The Pastor’s Corner

Maybe you can understand and sympathize with me over the way I have at times viewed sin. When I look back at the end of a day, examine my actions and thoughts of that day I find it quite easy to say, well, I didn’t sin much today. I mean, I didn’t lie, I didn’t steal, I didn’t lust, I didn’t act out of anger towards anyone, therefore I didn’t sin!

 Recently I’ve been puzzled by how easily I can look at myself and think that I have done a relatively good job and yet Paul says that “He is the chief of sinners” (I Timothy 1:15) Notice that Paul does not say that he was chief, no he says that he is currently chief. Paul recognized his daily sinfulness and utter failure before God. Therefore I think it might be wise for us to reevaluate sin in our lives and not underestimate the amount of sin that occurs daily.

The following quote really grabbed my attention: “Sin is any failure to conform to God’s Holy law. We are talking here about both action and attitude. The apostle John put it like this: “sin is lawlessness” (I John 3:4). Therefore, we sin when we do, say, or think anything that God commands us not to. Likewise, we sin when we do not do, say, or think what God commands us to. The slightest departure from absolute obedience to God’s law is sin.” (Wayne Mack, A Fight to the Death)

 Therefore, let us begin to think correctly about sin and recognize that we’ve looked at ourselves as better than we are and humbly fall before God.

Theoretically, you are studying the Word of God each day. I say theoretically because most studies, including recent studies by George Barna, show that only 30% of “born again” Christians actively study their Bibles on their own. This gives great clarity to the daily undermining of the Scriptures by “Bible believing” Christians. If the Word is not in you and you are not in the Word, you will not live by it! You will not know it! Therefore, you will live by codes or ideas that undermine Scripture! Here is where Sunday school comes in and is so valuable to Oak Grove, for Sunday school supplements your personal Bible intake.

A supplement is used to help bolster an area where one is weak. This is not to say that attending Sunday school is a free pass to skipping Bible intake throughout the rest of the week, no, it is intended to help you learn and grow in your ability to hide God’s Word in your heart.

Secondly, Sunday school is a growth hormone for personal Bible intake, here’s why: Sunday school will give you a thirst for more of the Word of God as you study it here! It’s like a shot in the arm that causes you to salivate over the truths of Scripture. God’s Word is so helpful, comforting, challenging and convicting each time you come to it, and Sunday school will bolster your desire for it. Not only will it encourage you to continue studying, but also Sunday school will give you the tools for effective Bible study on your own. Please, take it from me, your pastor who has greatly benefited from Sunday school over the past 25 years, you need to be in Sunday school to help your growth process.

Sunday school is one of the greatest places to be able to fulfill the Great Commission of evangelizing, assimilating and discipling people. First, if we begin to organize lists of people who we are praying for to come to Christ in our Sunday school classes, we will see God work as we pray. Second, we can begin to go visit those people and invite them to Sunday school. As God answers prayer and these people come, hear the gospel and respond, we have already begun the assimilation process.

Assimilation requires relationships, and Sunday school provides you a great place to build and encourage relationships. Did you talk to the visitor in your Sunday school class last week? Do you know what their occupation is? Their likes/dislikes/hobbies, etc? As you develop relationships with them, you are serving God through seeking to fulfill the great commission. Tell them your testimony, have them over to your home, start a bible study!

Finally, while you are in Sunday school, you are learning about the Word of God, this is where the discipleship takes place. Sunday school is to be a place of discovery in the Word of God. Bring people to Sunday school and help them begin the process of discovering the greatness of our God.

Sunday School deals with the most important education people can ever get, a Bible education. Today, thankfully, we do not have to choose between a school education and a Bible education. However, if we did, we should choose the Bible education. Why? Not because I am opposed to a school education. I believe strongly in a solid education program for our children. However, math and science and other school subjects prepare us only for life here. A Bible education prepares us for life here and for life in eternity.

If ministry is defined as being a human conduit through which God meets the real needs of mankind, Jesus is absolutely the epitome of real ministry. If we are serious about the brevity (shortness) of life we find that all mankind has a huge problem: we all face death eventually. I recently read from one of our missionaries that there is a man in Kenya who is 120 years old! That is a long life, but short in comparison to how long the earth has been here. Hebrews 9:6 states

Do you remember John 8 where the Pharisees bring a woman caught in the very act of adultery before Jesus?   If not that’s okay. Here is what happened: the pharisees wanted to trip up Jesus, so they found a woman and caught her in the act of adultery and brought her to Jesus.  When they placed her before Jesus they asked Him what He thought should be done with her.

John 8:3 As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and Pharisees brought a woman they had caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.

Here is the question they asked Him:

John 8:5 “Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?”

This is a real life situation that is not foreign to us, because we are always meeting people who have problems in their lives because of acts of adultery, divorce and remarriage, drugs and alcohol, and the list continues. Notice how Jesus uses the opportunity: He says, Anyone here who doesn’t have personal sin, anyone here who is willing to say that they’ve never done something wrong, you be the first to cast a stone at her. Effectively, Jesus shows all present that they have personal sin that would cause God’s condemnation in their lives. But notice that He does not go after them and condemn them (for their sin has already done that) but He does reveal that belief in Him will provide the needed freedom from their sin problem.

In John 4 we follow Jesus as He is on His way to His home region (Galilee). On this trip, he had to pass through Samaria, (which is an area primarily populated by Samaritans who were viewed as second class citizens by the Jews) which is the most direct route, often abandoned by Jews for a route around Samaria. This journey would have been nearly 70 miles or 2 and ½ days journey on foot. We find Jesus tired and worn at Sychar in verses 5-6:

Turning to John chapter 6, we are confronted with an amazing display of Christ’s ministry. The feeding of the five thousand, whether it is five thousand total or five thousand men with women and children, is an amazing feat! While the passage serves to prove to all mankind that they must believe in Jesus Christ, here by demonstrating His power, it also demonstrates for us some amazing strategies that Christ employed in reaching people.Notice first, Christ realized that the people who were following Him had needs.

 John 6:35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”

These are mportant lessons for reaching people, we must care and we must share!  How have you demonstrated the love and care of Jesus Christ to the needy world this week?  If you don’t care, you won’t ever be able to share (and this is the heart of God as He is not willing that any should perish!)

This past month has been given to briefly addressing the teaching of the Bible on the character of the Bible itself. We’ve discovered that the Scriptures (66 books of the Old and New Testament) carry the dominant theme describing Christ as the Messiah and His atoning work for mankind (Part 1). We’ve also learned that the Scriptures are divinely inspired including all of the words and the entirety of the Old and New Testaments(Parts 2 and 3). Finally, since they are inspired (breathed) by God they are authoritative in every aspect that they address (as God is holy, honest, and true)(Part 4).The final question I would like to address along the lines of Bibliology (the study of the bible) is this: How does one understand what the bible is saying to us today? This is a very important question when it comes to daily studying and understanding the Bible because it will affect the conclusions you come to in your study of the Scriptures. The answer is contained in several passages of Scripture and it is this: the Holy Spirit is given to us as a teacher so that we can understand the teachings of Scripture. This ministry of the Holy Spirit is called “ILLUMINATION”.