The Mission of the Church

What is the mission of the church? Edmund Clowney in his book The Church provides a helpful and more importantly biblical answer to that vital question. Clowney orders the mission of the church into three categories of ministry: the church serves God in worship, the church serves the saints in nurture, and the church serves the world through witness (199). In all three of these ministries, the mission is spiritual in nature and it is guided by the Word of God. So we worship according to God’s Word; we are nurtured as disciples by the Word; and the Word is what the church proclaims to the nations.

1. The worship of the true God. Clowney reminds us that it is God’s glory which attracts sincere worship, not programs or styles of worship. The glory of God as Creator and Redeemer draws the renewed heart to worship in reverence and awe. If God’s glory is the primary goal of our worship, it will be the governing motive of all we do in worship. And what better way to glorify God in worship than to worship according to his Word? Graciously, God has given direction for how we are to worship, and the church should not do anything in worship except what God directly calls for. God summons us to worship on his terms, not our own. He prescribes what he wants us to do in worship. While such an idea might seem restrictive, it is actually liberating. When we worship God God’s way, we can come with a clear conscience, coming in the name of his beloved Son who shed his own blood for his Bride, and worship the Lord with all our heart and mind.

2. The nurture of the saints. The aim of the ministry to the saints aims to see them grow to maturity in Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 14:20). Church nurture aims for growth in grace, fruitfulness, and holiness. These are necessary pursuits for Christians, not to make them Christians but because they are Christians by God’s grace. Union with Christ entails both forensic and renovative benefits which therefore compels the building up of the body of Christ through the nurturing ministry of the church (Ephesians 4:11-16).  The goal of nurture, writes Clowney, is, “to know the Lord, to do the Lord’s will, and to be like the Lord” (143). We must know the true God through Jesus Christ, and knowing the true God cannot be separated from the rest of the Christian's life. We live out this new life in Christ knowing that it is the Spirit who sanctifies us, conforming us to the likeness of Christ.

3. The Great Commission. What is the mission of the church relative to the world? The mission of the church is the mission Jesus. Christ came into the world to bring good news, to call people to faith and repentance, to gather his people, and to form them into a body of believers. The church continues to carry on the mission of Christ in the world. Clowney makes this striking statement: “Mission is not an optional activity for Christ’s disciples. If they are not gatherers, they are scatterers” (159). He further explains, “The congregation that ignores mission will atrophy…It will inevitably begin to lose its own young people, disillusioned by hearing the gospel trumpet sounded every Sunday for those who never march” (160). Jesus came into the world on a mission to bring good news, and he has given his church the mission to take that news to the world.

I appreciate the biblical clarity Clowney provides for this important question. What is the mission of Trinity Presbyterian Church? To worship God, to nurture the saints, and to take the gospel to the world. 

What is Prayer?

What is prayer? Here are some John Calvin's answers.

Prayer is...

“The communion of men with God by which, having entered the heavenly sanctuary, God’s throne room, they appeal to him in person concerning his promises in order to experience that what they believe is not in vain.”

“Prayer is a communication between God and us whereby we expound to him our desires, our joys, our sighs, in a word, all the thoughts of our hearts.”

“Holy and familiar conversation with God, our Heavenly Father.”

“Prayer is an emotion of the heart within poured out and laid open before our Father.”

“Like Christ in Gethsemane we cast in prayer our desires, our sighs, our anxieties, our fears, our hopes, our joys into the lap of our Father.”

“Prayer is the means by which I pour out my worries bit by bit on God.”

“We are permitted in prayer to pour into God’s bosom the difficulties that torment us in order that he may loosen our knots which we cannot untie.” 

The Gospel of Grace

Why We Need the Gospel

The gospel addresses the most serious problem every person faces: God is righteous and I am not; God is just and I am guilty. 

Scripture teaches that like sheep we have all gone astray, each of us has gone our own way (Isaiah 53:6). In other words, we’ve all sinned. We stand before a holy and just God clothed in the filthy garments of our sin.

The gospel is the answer to this problem. God  so loved the world that he gave his Son, Jesus Christ. Because of what Jesus has done, in his perfect life and death on the cross, and not because of anything we have done, we can stand before God forgiven and accepted.

What Is the Gospel?

Gospel simply means “good news.” At the heart of the gospel is the good news of how God sent his only Son into the world to save sinners from the guilt and power of sin (1 Timothy 1:15).

1. The gospel declares there is one God who created heaven and earth. Part of the biblical gospel is the truth that there is one God who made all things (Acts 14:15). That’s good news because this same God who made the heavens and the earth wants us to know him not only as  Creator but also as our heavenly Father. Because God made us, we are not an incidental and accidental product of time and chance. We were created for a purpose. This truth also means that because God made us, we are accountable to him.

2. The gospel announces God’s sovereign rule. Sin brought death and misery into the world, but sin does not get the last word. Embedded in the gospel message is the announcement that God reigns (Isaiah 52:7); even over sin and death, God reigns!

3. The gospel proclaims a double exchange. Paul explains this double exchange in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” In other words,  God counted our sins against Christ so that his perfect righteousness might be credited to us.

Let’s unpack this double exchange. First, Jesus lived a sinless life, yet our sin was credited to him so that Christ  was treated like a sinner; the righteous stood in the place of the unrighteous. God’s judgment against our sin fell upon Jesus because he was punished for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:8). While he was personally guiltless, he stood in the place of the guilty. That’s the first exchange. But not only did Jesus take our sin and endure God’s wrath, he also gives his people an amazing gift – his perfect righteousness. Jesus was born under the law and he lived a perfect life.  Jesus alone can stand in the presence of a holy and just God. But because of Jesus, we too can be welcomed into God’s presence. By grace alone, through faith in Christ, not only is our sin forgiven, we are also given Jesus’ perfect record with the Father. This second exchange means that instead of knowing God’s just judgment, we can know heaven’s joys.

In short, what was ours – sin and its penalty – became his. And what is his – perfect righteousness and the Father’s love and blessing – becomes ours when we trust in Jesus.

4. The gospel calls for a response. The gospel is a message which must be understood, embraced, and believed. Jesus is the central message of the gospel, and Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). No one gets to the Father except through Jesus. The gospel is amazing news, but this message implores us to respond in faith and repentance.

5. The gospel heralds a returning King. God has appointed a day when Jesus will return to make a new heavens and new earth. While the gospel tells us how we can personally have the hope of eternal life, it also tells us about the joys of a new creation. When Christ returns, he will fully establish a new kingdom where there is no more sin, no more sickness, no more suffering, and no more death. Every injustice will cease. Every  wrong will be made right. Those who belong to Jesus will be welcomed into that kingdom, where they will glorify and enjoy God forever.

What Is a Christian?

1. A Christian is awakened to danger of sin and the righteous character of God. Sin is contrary to God’s nature and sin is rebellion against God. God’s righteous reflex against any sin is judgment. His character requires that sin not be overlooked (Exodus 34:5-7). We are all accountable to God because he made us and we’ve all sinned and therefore are worthy of God’s displeasure (Romans 3:23; 6:23). But God, being rich in mercy, deals with our sin in Christ. The Christian sees the mercy of God on full display in Jesus, and he turns from his sin and runs to Christ for saving mercy. The Bible calls this repentance.

2. A Christian trusts in Jesus as Savior and Lord for salvation. What must you do to be saved? Answer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). That is the briefest biblical description of what it means to be a Christian but it’s packed with meaning. Jesus came to save his people from their sins; that is what his name means (Matthew 1:21)! Trusting in Jesus as Savior means relying on Jesus alone to save you from your sin. The Bible calls this faith.  

What about believing in Jesus as Lord? The true Christian also bows before Jesus, acknowledging him as Lord over everything. Because he is Lord, Jesus becomes the central focus of the Christian’s entire life. So a true Christian trusts in Jesus alone to save him from his sin and he confesses Jesus is the Lord of his life.

3. A Christian is a disciple. A disciple is someone who learns as an apprentice. Just as an apprentice learns a trade, a disciple learns from Jesus and strives to do all that he commanded (Matthew 28:20). Christian discipleship is more than merely learning information; it’s about embracing the teaching of Jesus and applying it to the whole of one’s life. The goal of discipleship is to learn more about God and become more like Jesus (Mt 10:25). While remaining imperfect in this life, the Christian more and more, by God’s grace, resembles the Lord Jesus (Rom 8:29). The Bible calls this lifelong process sanctification.

How Do I Become a Christian?

Some people think  being a Christian means going to church. Others may think they are Christians because they come from a Christian family. Still others may think they are Christians because they try to do good works. While these are all good things, they are not what makes you a Christian. Attending church, having a Christian family, and doing good works can never make you a Christian.

Actually, becoming a Christian on your own is impossible. To be a Christian you need a new heart. The heart is the Bible’s way of talking about the part  of us that governs our choices and affections. The condition of our hearts determines what we will choose and love. But sin has corrupted every human heart, leaving us totally helpless to save ourselves. The universal sinfulness of the human heart is why Paul can say, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God” (Romans 3:10-11).

Giving yourself a new spiritual heart would be like trying to perform your own heart transplant—it’s impossible. You can’t do it, but God can. In fact, he loves to do it.

So how do you become a Christian? It begins by seeing your desperate need for a changed heart. Cry out to God to take away your heart of stone and give you a new heart. Ask him to enable you to believe in his Son, Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of sins. Ask him to cover you in the perfect righteousness of Christ. Pray for a heart that loves what God loves. You become a Christian by casting yourself at the feet of a God who loves to show mercy. Run to him. Seek him while he may be found; today is the day of salvation. Whoever comes to him, he will never cast out (John 6:37).

“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.  But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned-- every one-- to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

-          Isaiah 53:4-6

Men's Book Study Update

Here is a quick update for our next meeting:

• Place: Next meeting: June 7, 8:00 AM @ Trinity Presbyterian Church
• Food: Breakfast will be provided (Dunkin' Donuts)
• Read: Chapters 2-4 (Pgs. 43-68)

Look forward to seeing you there. 

A Well-Rounded Christian Experience

On May 18th, we'll be looking at Psalms 42 and 43. These two psalms are filled with human emotion - longing, desire, sadness, depression, anguish, feelings of abandonment, hope, and trust. 

The Reformers believed the Psalms provide us with a holistic view of Christian experience on this side of heaven. Calvin called the Psalms "an anatomy of the human soul." To be sure, sadness and depression are not the defining emotions of a Christian's life. Paul wrote, "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17). Nevertheless, genuine feelings of depression, sadness, and a sense of abandonment are all emotions we as Christians may experience in this world. 

Many Christians today don't know what to think about such feelings. The good news is that God has given us the resources to not only understand but also express these deep struggles in prayer and song. The Psalms are God's resource for dealing with the hardest realities of life. They are also a reminder that we will never experience anything darker or more difficult than what Jesus Christ went through for us. 

My hope as we look at Psalms 42 and 43 is that we once again remember the wealth of resources God has given to us in his word. 

For more on the psalms and Christian experience, read Carl Trueman's article, What Can Miserable Christians Sing?"

Forgiveness

Someone shared this excellent blog with me on how our forgiveness of others it to be patterned after God's forgiveness. 

Check it out at David Murray's site, Head, Heart, Hands.

Men's Book Study

Here is a quick update on the upcoming men's book discussion group:

• Our first meeting will be held at Trinity Church on May 4, 8:00 AM. 
• The discussion will cover the introduction and part one of Matt Perman's book, What's Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done. 
• We ran out of copies of the book last week, but more copies will be available this coming Lord's Day. Be sure to get your copy. 

I am looking forward to the fellowship discussion with you men. 

Update

For our discussing on May 4, please read the introduction and part one of Matt Perman's book (pages 17-72).

Communion Hymn

We will be learning a new hymn at Trinity which we will sing as we prepare to come to the Lord's Table. Please watch the video below to familiarize yourself with the tune.

Communion Hymn by Stuart Townend

Desperate Times Call for Ordinary Measures

Christianity is being increasingly marginalized and slighted in our culture today. The vast majority of people know very little, if anything, about the historic Christian faith. Therefore, the challenging question facing the church today is: how will the church bring the gospel to this generation? Stating the question another way, what approach to ministry should the church take in a post-Christian (or anti-Christian) culture? Many answers to these important questions are being suggested. There are purpose-driven ministries, missional ministries, word and deed ministries, emergent ministries, and the list could go on. It would be wrong to immediately dismiss the concerns of these various approaches, and surely there are some helpful truths within some of these philosophies of ministry. Nevertheless, each of these approaches has in some way allowed the culture to shape the methodology of ministry.

But there is another way, a better way. This method is time-tested and finds its origin in Scripture. In the Larger Catechism, it is called the ordinary means of grace. But what does ordinary means of grace based ministry mean? The Westminster Larger Catechism explains: “the ordinary means whereby Christ communicates to his church the benefits of his mediation, are all his ordinances; especially the word, sacraments, and prayer…” (Q. 154). These are the means which God has ordained for the building up of Christ’s Church, and those means include the Word, the sacraments, and prayer. While this is not all there is to the ministry of the church, these God-given means are central and requisite to the life of a healthy, growing, and maturing congregation.

An emphasis on the ordinary means of grace has several practical consequences. First of all, the word of God is central to everything in the ministry of the church, not just the worship service. God’s word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12); it is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16); it reveals the only way to the Father through Jesus his Son (John 14:6). The centrality of Scripture in a church’s ministry is not just a confessional idea; it is a command of God. The church is called to give attention to the public reading and teaching of God’s word (1 Timothy 3:13). Ministers are exhorted to preach the word, in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2). Furthermore, the centrality of the word in a church’s ministry is rooted in the Great Commission itself: “Go, therefore, 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 have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).

A second practical consequence of an ordinary means of grace ministry is a biblical appreciation of the sacraments of the Lord’s Supper and Baptism. While the Roman Catholic Church errs by viewing the sacraments as automatic dispensers of grace, much of evangelicalism has erred in the opposite direction of seeing the sacraments as nothing more than mere signs. An ordinary means of grace ministry maintains a robust, biblical sacramental theology.

A third practical consequence is the centrality of prayer. Sadly, prayer is being pushed out of many church services to make room for other activities. But in the context of worship, Paul urges men to lead the congregation in prayer: “I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people . . . I desire then that in every place the men should pray…” (2 Timothy 2:1, 8). A healthy church is saturated in prayer. Prayer is the natural outworking of knowing who we are as children of God the Father. The catechism tells us that prayer is "the offering up of our desires unto God" (Shorter Catechism, 98). Prayer, like the ministry of the word, goes beyond the worship service. God's word and prayer must be a part of the whole life of the church.

Many see these ordinary means as insufficient to address the challenges the church faces today. But despite the drastic cultural changes in recent years, the fundamental problem remains the same: sin. God’s answer to that problem never changes. His remedy is his grace offered to us in Jesus Christ, the only name under heaven by which men may be saved (Acts 4:12). The problem remains the same, and God’s solution remains the same. But furthermore, God’s given means of offering that solution and making the name of Christ known remains the same! The primary and ordinary way God gathers, saves, and helps people grow is through the word, the sacraments, and prayer. Therefore, these ordinary means are critical to the ministry of a healthy church.

To be sure, these are not novel ideas. They are not flashy, and they certainly won’t grab attention from the world. But they work. And that’s because these are the means God has chosen to give and bless for the establishment, growth, and preservation of his church in this fallen world. 

What Does the Gospel Teach?

Francis Turretin wonderfully summarizes the heart of the gospel message: "The gospel teaches that what could not be found in us was to be sought in another, and could be found nowhere else than in Christ, the God-man; who taking upon himself the office of surety most fully satisfied the justice of God by his perfect obedience and thus brought to us an everlasting righteousness by which alone we can be justified before God; in order that covered and clothed with that garment . . .we may obtain under it the eternal blessing of our heavenly Father."