A tongue lashing...

Bill Brown — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 09:14:00 GMT

James 3:5-10 ⁵ So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. Behold, how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! ⁶ And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. ⁷ For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed, and has been tamed by the human race. ⁸ But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. ⁹ With it we bless our Lord and Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; ¹⁰ from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.

How many of us have been done in by our words? Have you ever made a difficult situation worse by saying the wrong thing? Worse yet, have you ever bad a good situation bad by saying the wrong thing? I won't ask for an "amen" because Europe would hear it! The fact is that all of us, to varying degrees, have sinned with our mouth. James begins this passage by contrasting the size of the tongue to rest of the body. The tongue is small. It is smaller than most of our eternal organs. It is smaller than a foot, a hand or the head. Most of the time it is not seen. But without the tongue it is impossible to speak. It is an indespensible organ. James introduces the destructive power of the tongue by compaying it to a flame that starts a forest fire. I think of the Smokey Bear line that says, "Forests don't start forest fires. Humans do." The origin of this fire comes from hell itself. That is how evil the tongue can be.

James introduces a pathetic irony. Man has tamed the animal kingdom, but he cannot tame the human tongue. James describes the tongue as a "restless evil." That is fitting with the reference to hell in verse 6. Peter described Satan as, "...a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8. Satan is "seeking." He is actively looking for someone to destroy. Our tongue, which is set on fire by hell, is "restless." It is also seeking. It is seeking to wreck more havoc. James goes on to describe the hypocrisy of the tongue. We use it for blessing and cursing. If a house divided against itself cannot stand (Matthew 12:25), how shall we stand by praciticing evil and righteousness? The truth is what we can't stand on our own. The truth is that our tongue is beyond our ability to control. But thanks be to God that He is able to control it! Paul writes:

Ephesians 6:10-13 Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

The truth is that there is nothing that we can do, even as Chrisitians, to tame the tongue. It is the Lord who is able to bring this destructive member of our body under control. We must recognize our need to be clothed with the "full armor of God." It is our protection from the evil one, and since our tongue is capable of evil we must be all the more diligent to wear this armor.

Brothers and sisters, don't try to fight alone. Know that God is the one who fights. He has called us to obedience to Christ. Know His word and live His word by the power that He provides. "Take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day..."

The Centrality of the Cross

Bill Brown — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 00:17:12 GMT

1 Peter 2:24 ²⁴ and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.

This church was founded in 2000 with the mission of bringing the gospel to the West County area of Anne Arundel County. The goal? To reach people of West County for Christ, who will grow into mature saints who will be able to reach others also. The central focus of who we were and what we wanted to do was Jesus Christ. It is now 2007. Grace Baptist Church of Odenton is now nearly six and a half years old. A lot has happened in this time. We started off meeting in Ridgeway Elementary School and had 86 people on our first Sunday. Prayer and bible study was held at our office facility on route 175. A year and a day after our beginning there was the tragedy of 911. Three years ago we moved into our present facility. Many of our families are in the military, so we have seen many members come and go. We have had times of testing and times of great blessing. Today, we still have great opportunities and some trials that lay before us. But as in the past we have great faith that God will see us through and direct our path.

With all that this church has experienced it is difficult to get our eye off of today. Early this morning was Sunday school. We are now gathered together to come into the presence of Christ in worship. In about an hour we will break bread together during our afternoon fellowship. Finally, the children of the church will gather for AWANA along with the adult leaders. Monday evening the ladies will gather for a bible study on the book of Ruth. Tuesday evening is our time for prayer and bible study. One Saturday each month the men meet for fellowship. Add to that all the other church calendar events and it is easy to get caught up in the now. This doesn’t even address our busy careers or school schedules. There are also doctors visits, sports teams and anything else that calls for our time. We are busy indeed. Because our lives are busy it can be easy to forget the things that are important. Sometimes we need to be reminded.

This morning we will focus on the central part of our faith, the cross of Jesus Christ. As Christians, what happened on that cross is the reason that our sins are forgiven. All our iniquities were put upon Christ while He hung on that cross. We are declared righteous by He who is righteous. We are justified by He who is the justifier. By His death, our old nature of sinful depravity died with Him. It is the cross of Christ and what Jesus accomplished on the cross that is the reason why we are gathered here this morning. And while all those who have called upon Christ by faith are His, the cross of Christ is also a proclamation of the gospel to all those who have not received forgiveness of sins. So that is what we will discuss this morning. The centrality of the cross of Jesus Christ.

This morning we will see five views of the Cross. They are:

The Need for the Cross

The Promise of the Cross

The Price of the Cross

The Hope of the Cross

The Offer of the Cross

First, what exactly was the cross? The cross was often a long vertical wooden pole attached to a horizontal transom. The victim was either tied or nailed to the cross. Death could take hours or even days to occur. The purpose of crucifixion was not only kill, but to humiliate. While the victim hung from the cross they would be the subject of taunts, jeers and torture. This is what Christ went through when He was on the cross. He suffered the humiliation of crucifixion in order to vanquish sin. So when we speak of the cross, it is not just the physical we are describing. We are also referring to the humiliation that the Son of God endured. But it is more than that. Because of the cross, those who place their faith in Christ alone come into right standing with God and have their sins forgiven. So the cross, while a place of pain and humiliation for Christ, is also a proclamation of good news to those that trust in Christ. As we will see, what the Romans and Jews of Jesus’ day saw as a onetime event in history, was actually the fulfilment of prophecy and one the most pivotal moments in human history.

The Need for the Cross

Adam was the first human being. We find in Genesis that God created Adam from the dust of the ground. Adam was without sin and in perfect fellowship with his creator. God planted a garden for Adam and placed him there to tend it. Adam named all the animals. His beginning was good. But Adam was issued a stern warning. God said to Adam, Genesis 2:16-17 "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; ¹⁷ but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die." In Genesis 3 we learn that Adam took the fruit from his wife Eve and ate. What Eve did in deception Adam did knowingly. Adam’s sin brought death not only to Eve and himself, but to the whole human race. Sin and death became a spiritually genetic problem effecting each person on this earth.

The problem was real. The human race was now plunged into sin because of the offense of Adam. The Apostle Paul wrote, Romans 5:12 ¹² Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned. Mankind could not save itself. It could not undo the damage done by Adam. Even today, the situation has not changed. We are born into this world at enmity with God. Literally we are God’s enemies. Nothing we can do can erase our condition. I’m sorry, but that is the reality. All of us that are Christians were once in that situation. We lost and dead in sin. We were separate from God and had no hope.

I recall an incident from my childhood that has had a lasting impact on me. In the summer of 1968 my family decided to vacation in New England. We camped in Newport, Rhode Island. It was a beautiful setting right on the Atlantic Ocean. Our campsite was near the bay that lead to the ocean. I was at the campsite when I heard a child screaming that a girl was drowning. Our campsite was on a ledge, almost a cliff that was a considerable height above the water. I looked over the ledge and could see blonde air floating on top of the water. It was my sister Patty who was just shy of four years old. I was seven years old, but I could remember feeling paralyzed while my sister was drowning. I couldn’t swim. There was no way I could save her. Imagine how my sister felt. A young child, unable to save herself. She couldn’t even call for help. I’m going to come back to this story later on in this message. There is an important point I want to make.

While Adam could probably not conceive of the idea of the cross, he certainly knew that he had sinned against a holy God and under the sentence of death. Unless something was done in order to rescue Adam, the situation would be hopeless for Adam and his posterity. Adam’s need, indeed that of whole human race, was very real.

The Promise of the Cross

The promise of the cross is rooted back in our discussion of Adam’s disobedience. After Adam sinned God pronounced His sentence of death on Adam. God said, Genesis 3:17-19 ¹⁷ Then to Adam He said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat from it'; Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. ¹⁸ "Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you shall eat the plants of the field; ¹⁹ By the sweat of your face You shall eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return." Left on their own, neither Adam or his posterity had hope. That posterity is modern day man, even some who may be sitting here today. But God did not leave Adam or the human race without hope.

We see the promise of the cross in Genesis 3. Genesis 3:15 ¹⁵ And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel." The LORD was addressing the serpent, Satan. We know that Jesus was born of a woman, thus the reference to "her seed." "He" is a reference to that seed. This is Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman. The seed of the woman will bruise the serpent on the head. This is a fatal blow. The head is the center of the mind. Satan would be dealt a fatal blow by the seed of the woman - Christ. The serpent (Satan) would wound the seed (Jesus) on the heel. The heel is not fatal blow. This is what happened on the cross. Jesus’ death on the cross, while humiliating, was a wound to the heel. Jesus "recovered" from this wound and three days later rose from the dead to prove that death no longer had dominion over Him. 1 Corinthians 15:54-57 ⁵⁴ But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "Death is swallowed up in victory. ⁵⁵ "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" ⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; ⁵⁷ but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

In John 3 we see a reference to an Old Testament event that was a sign of the cross. John 3:14 ¹⁴ "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up. These words of Jesus in John 3 relate a story of what happened to the nation of Israel in the wilderness after their exodus from Egypt. This story is found in Numbers 21:

Numbers 21:5-9 ⁵ And the people spoke against God and Moses, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food." ⁶ And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. ⁷ So the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, because we have spoken against the LORD and you; intercede with the LORD, that He may remove the serpents from us." And Moses interceded for the people. ⁸ Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he shall live." ⁹ And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.

Little did Israel know that this event signified the manner in which Jesus would save His people, those who trust Him in faith, from their sins. While the cross is never mentioned by name in the Old Testament its future is implied. The seed of the woman will crush the head of the serpent, and as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so too the Son of Man would be lifted up.

God’s promise of the cross was an act of mercy and grace. God would have been just in condemning the human race without any hope. But the LORD promised a way to restore right standing with Him, and it would be in the shape of a cross.

The Price of the Cross

We have seen the need for the cross. We know that God promised the cross. But what was the price of the cross? What did it cost in order to pay the price the cross demanded for sin? We see the first indication of the price of the cross back in Genesis. Genesis 3:21 ²¹ And the LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them. After Adam’s sin and God’s pronouncement of judgement upon him, the LORD made garments of skin for Adam and Eve partly to hide their nakedness. But these clothes were much more symbolic than just to cover them up. In order for garments of skin to made animals were killed. Thus, in order for Adam and Eve to be clothed blood had to be shed. This act of God ushered in the need for blood sacrifices in order to overlook sin. Both nation of Israel and the individual would bring an animal sacrifice in order for God to overlook sin. The animal sacrifice had to be performed continually. They could only overlook sin, they could not atone for it. The cost of overlooking sin under the Old Covenant (the Law) was the blood of animals, but the cost of breaking the power of sin forever was paid by Jesus Christ on the cross. So the first question to ask is, "What price did Jesus pay?"

If your recall from Genesis 3, we learned that the serpent would wound the "seed" on the heel. This wound was Jesus’ death on the cross. Most of us have some idea of what Roman crucifixion entailed. It was a horrible death. But the price Jesus paid was more than just physical. Consider what the Old Testament had to say about the price Jesus would pay.

Isaiah 53:4-7 ⁴ Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. ⁵ But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. ⁶ All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him. ⁷ He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth.

Continuing...

Isaiah 53:10-12 ¹⁰ But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. ¹¹ As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities. ¹² Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.

Jesus Christ bore our griefs. He carried our sorrows. It was on our behalf that He was stricken, smitten and afflicted. It is because of our sins that He was crushed. He was scourged in order that we might be healed. Indeed, we have all gone our own way and done what is pleasing in our own eyes. Our sins are too numerous to mention, yet the LORD cause all our sins to fall upon Him. What blood of rams and goats could not do, Jesus Christ did. But at what cost? The bible says, 2 Corinthians 5:21 ²¹ He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. This verse means that Jesus took on Himself the full penalty of sin. But so far we have looked at the physical aspects of paying for sin. Stricken, smitten, afflicted...there is one more aspect of taking on sin that we have missed.

From eternity past Jesus had always been one with the Father. Jesus, the Son of God, has always existed. He is the second person of the Trinity. He is eternally existent and has always been in fellowship with the Father and the Holy Spirit. But on the cross the ultimate price was paid. The Father had to literally turn His back on His Son. Jesus Christ has become sin. He had taken on Himself the full penalty of sin. Since God is holy, He cannot allow sin into His presence, and while Jesus had committed no sin, He was taking on Himself the sins of the world. This is why Jesus cried out, while on the cross, Matthew 27:46 ⁴⁶ And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" The Father had to forsake the Son because of our sin. This was the price of the cross.

The Hope of the Cross

For those of you this morning who are believer in Jesus Christ, you have the hope that cross provides. For you the cross is where you sins have been laid. They have been forgiven because of what Christ has done. Most of you know this. I do not seek to insult your intelligence. But we get busy. Our attention sometimes is diverted. We know the facts but can forget the passion. The reality is that we can take for granted the price of the cross that has secured our own salvation. It is for this reason that we are called back this morning to remember. We can never take our eyes off the cross. It is not only the source of our salvation, but it is has also made possible our sanctification.

Because of the cross Paul was able to say, Philippians 1:21 ²¹ For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Paul was saying that live meant serving Christ, and to die was to gain Christ in heaven. The cross is our blessed hope of the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Titus 2:13 ¹³ looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus. The cross also calls us to endure and fight the good fight. Hebrews 12:1-3 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³ For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart.

The enemy, Satan, saw the cross has a means of shame and defeat. But to us, those who will inherit the kingdom of God, it is the means by which our Savior purchased our redemption. It was on the cross that our Savior dealt death to death and overcame the prince of the power of the air. Instead of defeat, we have victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 John 5:4 ⁴ For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world-- our faith.

The Offer of the Cross

Perhaps all this talk about the cross doesn’t seem to apply to you. You have never placed your faith in Jesus Christ. Today you may be sitting in this church still in your sins. You may even chalk up all this talk about the cross of Christ as foolishness. That would be a terrible mistake. There is no one that is good enough to meet God standards. God requires holiness. How many of us are holy? The bible says,

1 Peter 1:16 ¹⁶ because it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." How many of us are holy? None of us. The bible says that all men have transgressed God’s laws and have fallen short. Romans 3:23 ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

The truth is not none of us are acceptable before God. We can do nothing to improve upon our condition and make us acceptable before God. Remember the story I told you earlier about my sister Patty? She was drowning and unable to save herself. She didn’t know how to swim and the water was too deep. Being under water she couldn’t even scream for help. Because of God’s grace my sister is still alive today. My father dove into the water and rescued my sister before she drowned. Her lungs were full of water, but she recovered.

My friend, if you are here today and you do not know Christ, you are drowning too, but not in water. You are drowning in sin. But like Adam and like many who are sitting her today, you are not without hope. Jesus Christ made it possible to have peace with God by what He accomplished on the cross. God calls on you to recognize your sinful condition, believe in Christ by faith and repent of your sins.

Application

Friend, let this message serve as a reminder of what Christ did for us on the cross at Calvary. This afternoon as we share a meal and minister to our children in AWANA, may we remember the cross. On Monday evening when the ladies gather for bible study, may they remember the cross. This week as you go to work or school and deal with the stresses of everyday life, remember that we can endure because of the cross. As God gives you opportunity to share His word with someone who is not a Christian, remember what the cross accomplished in your life. I close with the words of a famous hymn by Isaac Watts.

"At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light,
And the burden of my heart rolled away,
It was there by faith I received my sight,
And now I am happy all the day!"

Reformed Leanings

A tongue lashing...

The Centrality of the Cross

Welcome to Reformed Leanings!