Tag: New Testament

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Prophecy is for Everybody – 1 Corinthians 14:1-33

Starting in chapter 11, Paul has been working through prescriptions for ordered worship. It starts with discussions of the Lord’s Supper, then moves into spiritual gifts, and then veers briefly into an examination of love – which should underpin all of this – before moving on to this chapter where he discusses prophecy.

Tongues are also mentioned, but primarily as a negative comparison. (Short version: if there is no interpreter, don’t do it.) The main point is how prophecy should be used in the service.

What is prophecy? It’s a spiritual gift of revelation given to all believers. It’s something that Paul cites as something we should pursue, and with vigor. Everyone in the church can and should prophesy.

Prophecy is below scripture in its authority. This is not the same as Old Testament prophecy that was specifically called out as the word of God, spoken with his authority, and canonized as scripture. In the New Testament, this particular role was filled by the apostles, while all of us are still called to prophecy, which must fit below the authority of scripture.It thus must be tested by scripture.

The purpose of prophecy in the church service is to build up the church, clearly stated by Paul in verse 26. This means that the classic foretelling of the future-type prophecy does not fall into this context and would not be appropriate within the context of the church service. (To say nothing of the vague imagery and numerology that are sometimes used in churches as essentially Christian fortune-telling.)

Order is a value here, and that order and organization springs from love. It is not loving to interrupt, to dominate the conversation or otherwise disrupt. There is a reason this part Congress right after the discussion of love in chapter 13.

The specifics of how this plays out may differ in different contexts. At Seed, we work hard to practice this by opening the floor for conversation, questions and discussion, and Paul’s instruction here is a big reason why we do that. It is not a particularly strange or spooky experience – just believers sharing what the Lord has put on our hearts and building each other up.

One objection to this practice is that people are going to say crazy things in church. But consider this – Paul was telling this to, easily, the most messed-up church described in the New Testament. If this instruction had been given to the Ephesians or Philippians or some other relatively healthy churches, this might be an argument. But it is clear that the Corinthians were going to say crazy things, and yet Paul still called them to prophesy.

A second objection is that it will be too weird for outsiders. But consider how weird the teaching of the church already is: an incarnated God-man who washes is in His blood? Paul calls it a “stumbling block” to those who don’t believe. Prophecy is a minor thing compared to this, and in fact can be used to draw people closer to God’s truth.

A third objection is basically tradition and what people are used to. We have inherited traditions that diverged from Paul’s teaching and the early church practice a long time ago. Many churches have worked to get back to it, but many haven’t. However, the spirit within each believer is crying out to share in this way, even if a particular congregation is not used to that particular structure.

A fourth argument is that a church is too big for this. But if your church is too big to follow scriptural instructions about prophecy, maybe it’s too big? Or perhaps you just need to be creative about making it work.

All of us are called to prophesy. Paul puts no restrictions on prophecy the way he does on other things. Experienced or new, old or young, male or female, everyone is specifically encouraged to seek this gift.

If you have been in a church where this is practiced, you will have seen first-hand the reason for this – regularly, you will hear a pastor say, after a sharing moment after a sermon, “you just said in 30 seconds what I spent the last 45 minutes saying, and did it worse than you did.”

As Paul says elsewhere, we are part of Christ’s body and each of us will be used by the Spirit in different ways to minister to and edify the church.

– Sermon Notes, Sean McGillivray, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

1 Corinthians 14:1-33

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The Resurrection – 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

In America, we don’t deal with death particularly well. We’ll check the funeral box and then move on, bottling up our emotions and distracting ourselves with gadgets and material goods. All this, despite the fact that the one thing that most clearly and distinctly binds us together is our common fate. Death is coming for all of us, and with very few exceptions, there will be no sign that we ever existed.

But there is something beyond death, which Paul addresses here. Paul wrote this part of his epistle to correct misconceptions about the resurrection of Christ held by the Corinthians, influenced by various strains of both Jewish and Greek thought. Specifically, there were likely many in the church who doubted the bodily resurrection of Christ. Paul attacks this misconception ferociously.

Paul may in fact be quoting from an early creed in verses 3 & 4, one that may date from shortly after the ascension. He then goes on to tally up the hundreds of people who saw the resurrected Christ, ending with his own encounter with the risen savior on the road to Damascus. Everyone who saw Him was left changed. Once you see, you can’t unsee. As Philip Yancey writes:

“If I take Easter as the starting point, the one incontrovertible fact about how God treats those he loves, then human history becomes the contradiction and Easter a preview of ultimate reality. Hope then flows like lava beneath the crust of daily life.

“This, perhaps, describes the change in the disciples’ perspective as they sat in locked rooms discussing the incomprehensible events of Easter Sunday. In one sense nothing had changed: Rome still occupied Palestine, religious authorities still had a bounty on their heads, death and evil still reigned outside. Gradually, however, the shock of recognition gave way to a long slow undertow of joy. If God could do that…”

The resurrection is the focal point of the redemption of both creation and of our own broken souls. It reverses the sin curse of Genesis 3.

But it did not wipe out sin and death immediately. It is a light shining in the darkness and a promise of the ultimate victory of that light. If we try to shine our own light, we are only perpetuating that darkness. The resurrection is the light that can pierce the shadows of this life.

The resurrection is the foundation of the Christian faith. We cannot let it sit on the shelf as a dusty doctrine. The resurrection is our active, living connection to the love of God. It is the defeat of death, the key to God’s kingdom and the pathway to an abundant life in the here and now. It is there for the taking if we believe in our hearts and confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord.

– Sermon Notes, Dave Lester, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA, October 15, 2017

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

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Spiritual Gifts, pt 2: Using Your Gifts – 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

This passage is not about people trying to find their gifts, but rather about a church riven by jealousy and competition in the realm of gifts. Corinthian paganism was marked by ecstatic experiences, and there were some gifts that seemed to mirror this, but not all.

These differences were seized upon by the various factions in the church to add to the dissension. This obviously misses the point of spiritual gifts, but there is a place for trying to understand our own gifts. We all are connected to God’s spiritual network and all contribute in different ways. What is natural to you? What energizes you or stresses you out? Where have you been effective in the past? It isn’t necessarily the same as what you enjoy or even where your method is impeccable, but about the results the Holy Spirit brings about through your service.

Note that spiritual gifts are different than spiritual disciplines. The latter, we are all expected to do, though there are gifts that overlap with disciplines, such as prayer and encouragement.

So back to what Paul really is talking about. He addresses two temptations he wants the Corinthians to stop falling for: rugged individualism and gift envy. Some people look at the church and, being insecure, decide that it does not need their gifts.

Others do not work in the church at all so that they do not see it or otherwise neglect their gifts. Sometimes, churches do not give people sufficient opportunity to exercise their gifts, whether it doesn’t fit into pre-existing boxes or only fits into certain roles that are already filled. Others look at the church and, being prideful, decide that they don’t need the church’s gifts. This means that their gifts aren’t represented in the church, which means other people have to step into gifts that are not theirs, leading to burn out and collapse.

Paul’s point is that the gifts that are seen as less important are actually vital, and no individual, no matter how impressive their gifts seem to be, is complete without the rest of the body. This means that “gift envy” can be just as damaging as individualism.

Paul lists a number of gifts, not in order of importance, but rather chronologically, starting with the opening of the church by the apostles and moving through the other gifts that became necessary as the church progressed. The church would not function if all of these gifts were not in play.

So, when people in the church are seeking after specific, more highly honored gifts rather than living in their own gifts, again, we get gifts lacking in the church and dysfunction, not to mention the problem that envy itself brings along with it.

Then we get to verse 31, and it seems a bit unclear. Paul has just been saying that all the gifts are a result of grace, not our desire, and that all the gifts are vital. Then, suddenly, he tells us to desire greater gifts? Most likely, this is sarcasm from Paul, again, rebuking the Corinthians, again. “You eagerly desire the ‘greater gifts’ – but I’m going to show you something better.”

There is nothing wrong with trying to get better at something or even desiring particular roles. But we are not to see some gifts as better than others, or to feel pride for our own gifts or envy for others.

–Sermon Notes, Brent Rood, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

1 Corinthians 12:12-31

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Spiritual Gifts, pt 1: “Jesus is Lord” – 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

Humans, generally speaking, have an innate need purpose, whether consciously or unconsciously, whether in grand scale or small things. Knowing God gives us a leg up in this struggle for purpose, because we know the purpose of both our beginning and our ultimate end.

However, we also have our own individual purposes and spiritual gifts – this is made clear throughout the New Testament. This is not just saying that everyone has different abilities, tastes and talents. There is something else going on here – but there are some frustrations.

First, we don’t have a consistent list of gifts. Second, we don’t have descriptions of what most of these gifts mean – yet, somehow, we have books, inventories and tests that tell us in great detail about each of them. Third, it’s unclear what the difference​ is between spiritual gifts and natural talents. We may say that a teacher has the spiritual gift of teaching, but what about a mailman or a cook?

Another issue is that some of the gifts seem much more supernatural than others. The gift of prophecy, for example, seems a lot cooler than the gift of hospitality.

Then there is the question of gifts throughout history. Some people believe that all gifts ceased after the destruction of the temple in AD 70. Others believe that the church abandoned miraculous gifts until the mid-19th century and the development of the Pentecostal movement. Others believe that the miraculous gifts ended, but the others carry on.

So let’s go back to what Paul is saying, and to whom. He was speaking to people in a hierarchical society with limited options, where the notion of being unique and special was entirely new. He opens the conversation about “spirituals” – the word “gifts” has been added by translators clarity, but it could mean spiritual gifts or it could mean spiritual people – and it probably means both.

Paul then gives a framework for the conversation, first by comparing Christian versus pagan spirituality. False religion and spirituality mimic real religion and spirituality, but the key difference is the “mute idols” versus the Holy Spirit. Paganism is a narcissistic cycle where we create our own values and have them reflected back to us by our rituals and spiritual experiences. He goes on to center the contrast to that on the confession that “Jesus is Lord.”

This also gives us a center point to the discussion of spiritual gifts. The goal of these gifts, versus natural talents or abilities, is that they are designed to enable people to discover, know or remember that Jesus is Lord. There are different kinds of gifts (grace), service and workings (energizing).

The first gift given to Christians is the person of the Holy Spirit, as promised by Christ. That then leads to these other gifts, distributed by the Holy Spirit, for the purpose of community and unity among the people of God, again by returning our focus to the eternal truth, “Jesus is Lord.”

So are they separate from our own natural abilities? Probably not entirely. Remember that God directs our very creation and has a cosmic plan, so there is no reason not to believe that our genetics have some relationship to our ultimate spiritual gifts. At the same time, in many situations, that might not be the case. Many people have secular talents that do not translate to the spiritual realm, whereas many others have gifts that work in a spiritual way that could not possibly work in a purely secular realm.

Your spiritual gifts are those positive effects you have on others’ spiritual wholeness. Obedience is more important than gifting – if someone’s house is on fire, you don’t take a gifts assessment to see if you have the gift of rescuing. However, you should have some idea of your gifts. Just because you should rescue people when it becomes urgent, it doesn’t mean you should get in the way of trained firefighters.

Understanding your gifts will help you better recognize your purpose, organize your priorities, and serve God and others more effectively.

– Sermon Notes, Brent Rood, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

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What Does it Mean to be a Disciple? – John 4:1-10

What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus? This story tackles this question, with Samaritan woman as a model of discipleship.

At this time, Jesus is heading north out of Jerusalem after having knocked over tables and whipped people at the temple. It says that he “had to” go through Samaria. This could mean that he was specially directed to do this specific thing. More likely, though, this was a providential event – he has to go through because it was the quickest way and he was in a hurry. God used this mundane event to change an entire town.

So we find Jesus at a well asking for help. This is strange in a number of ways. He’s a single Jewish man at a Samaritan well, without any way to get water, asking a Samaritan woman to help out. Jesus quickly uses the water situation to create a metaphor.

Well water was stale, unmoving, while “living water” is water that moves, down from the mountains and hills. The idea that there is a secret source of pure, moving, living water was of great interest to her. Jesus uses her physical need in order to highlight her spiritual one.

Traditionally, this woman has been understood as a “loose woman” but given the penalties for adultery and her apparently positive reputation in the town, that may not be the case. More likely, she is stuck in an abusive system, divorced and discarded multiple times by men, and she is currently betrothed yet again.

Notably, when the discussion here moves from the physical to the spiritual, the woman does not lose interest. She recognizes her need in this area, and expresses her limited understanding of what God’s plan is, specifically bringing up a key point of contention between the Jews and the Samaritans. Jesus tells her that something new is coming that will deprecate both understandings. She also has some understanding of this, and knows from Old Testament prophecy that this is the sort of thing the Messiah will do – and then Jesus reveals that he himself is that messiah.

About this time, the disciples return, typically clueless and unclear on what Jesus is doing. The woman then runs off to tell about this remarkable man, even leaving her water jar, possibly her most valuable possession. Her paradigm has fully shifted from the physical to the spiritual. The disciples still don’t know what is happening and try to get him to eat.

Jesus, however, is still focused on the spiritual side. As he sees the people of the town streaming towards him, likely still dressed in their white work tunics, he shows the disciples what they should be focusing on: “look, the fields are white for harvest.” The goal is making disciples, bringing lost people to forgiveness and acceptance of Jesus.

Jesus invited the woman to meet the real God. He offered her freedom, showing her where in her life she was a slave. He helped her discover a greater purpose than carrying water. She then went on to make a difference, not through her own powers of persuasion, but rather as a conduit for what the Holy Spirit was already doing.

These are the same things we try to do as a church. We offer an opportunity to encounter the living God. We try to be a mechanism for bringing freedom from sin into people’s lives through sanctification. We help each other discover our purpose and develop meaning in our lives. Understanding this purpose is key to seeking freedom, providing a direction for our sanctification. Finally, we live out that purpose, and go out and make a direct impact on the lives of others.

– Sermon Notes, Brent Rood, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

John 4:1-10

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If God Wills It – James 4:13-17

James, the brother of Jesus, was the pastor of the Jerusalem church. He was a strong proponent of the rights of the poor and outspoken opponent of oppression by the rich. He wrote primarily to a Jewish audience, so understanding the rabbinical teachings of the time helps us understand the context.

Here he writes about making plans. At first look, his warning in verse 13 against plans seems to cut against biblical teachings elsewhere about being wise, counting the cost, etc.

However, verse 14 clarifies that this, like so much of Christianity, is about motivation, not necessarily action. God is concerned with the heart, and here we see James warning against​, not planning, but assuming control – of timing, of location, of outcome.

Switchfoot echoes James’ warning of our own mortality:

Gone
Like yesterday is gone
Like history is gone
Just try and prove me wrong
And pretend like you’re immortal

Understanding our mortality is core to shaping our behavior, as is our understanding our dependence on God. “If God wills it” is not simply a disclaimer we are supposed to tack on to our claims and plans, but it a core understanding that wends its way through all our thoughts and plans.

There are two kinds of arrogance we should avoid. One is to see ourselves as entirely separate from God and capable of succeeding in our plans on our own. We see in the rabbinical teaching many stories about those who have tried to live as if God has no impact or ultimate control, and the bad ends they came to.

The second arrogance is assuming that we are in the center of God’s will and that our desires are His desires.

So James warns us against building our plans on our own desires, on our pride, on our selfish ambition, or on materialism.

So what is the good we are supposed to do? Elsewhere, Paul tells us clearly: we are living sacrifices, to seek after whatever is good, perfect & pleasing to God. Our model of this is Christ, which has given us everything we need to act in the will of God.

You’ll note that this does not necessarily help us in certain questions like what house to buy or who to marry or what to be when we grow up. These questions are not, ultimately, what God cares about.

What He does care about is humility and dependence on Christ. He wants us to ask “where do I need to obey right now?” What do I need to do in order to follow the revealed will of God in this moment.

We can still make plans, but there is a massive difference between making plans and living in the present, and making plans and living in the future.

The idea that we should seek the will of God in the specifics of everything is, in fact, a pagan notion. Diviners would throw bones or spread bird guts around and in order to get mystic instructions from friendly deities. We are called to a more mature relationship with God than this. God is not a magic 8-ball.

It can be tempting to ignore the broadly revealed will of God, which is plenty to handle, in order to focus on a problem, disengaging until that problem is resolved. Confucius is said to have said “To put the world in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order; we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.”

The flood in Houston is a reminder that we are one storm, one cancer cell, one car accident away from losing everything material we have worked for. We should be looking to put those material blessings to work now in order to live out the gospel in our present.

Christ is again our model. In His case, He did know the future – that He would have a scant three years of ministry that would end in torture, humiliation and death. And yet He focused on God’s will in each moment. Likewise, the early church, especially those James was writing up in Jerusalem, lived in stark knowledge that an end was coming, which was realized in AD 70 with the destruction of the temple and the sack of the city.

For our part, we can see that much of American Christianity has become worldly and apathetic, and while we cannot know what God’s plan is, we can know that God will not let His children go too long in this apathy without discipline.

Whenever and whatever form it comes in, our role will be the same: live as Christ did, and do the good we know we ought to do.

– Sermon Notes, Brent Rood, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA, September 3, 2017

James 4:13-17

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Anger, Hatred and the Gospel – Matthew 5:17-22

The news the last two weeks have been disheartening. It would be very easy to condemn the bad guys and move on, but that would be looking outward, and in the context of this church, we need to look inward. We need to see how it is impossible to reach the levels of goodness we are called to, and how we – and everyone involved – need Jesus.

So Jesus here is discussing his relationship to the Law. He himself will follow the Law down to the smallest portion, living out the Law to its fullest extent. Jesus was the embodiment of loving God and loving others, the building described by the blueprints of the Law.

The Law thus fulfilled in its smallest part, Jesus gives a new command. Rather than loving via the written law of Moses, we follow what James calls the “royal law.” The Mosaic law was for a specific culture and context, but the Law as embodied in Christ is universal. The standard of love embodied in Christ becomes our new goal. Did this raise or lower the bar? In Jesus’ audience, the majority of people followed the Law as best they could, but did not necessarily make special efforts.

But the the Pharisees, on the other hand, made following the Law a full time job. They went above and beyond, tithing more than necessary, hedging the Law and following rules even above and beyond the Law. And yet Jesus says that God’s standard is even beyond the example of this Pharisees.

Not even beyond, but simply of an entirely different kind – killing is not just about the end result, but about the moral starting point. Anger, hatred, prejudice, slander and pride all flow from the same spring. And that is difficult to deal with when our anger and hatred are pointed at that prejudice and slander.

So what does God say about anger? Anger should be slow to come. James tells us to be slow to anger because human anger does not accomplish God’s end. Anger should be short lived – do not let the sun go down on it.

Anger should not be a characteristic of our tongue. Again, James says that if we respond with speech in unrestrained anger, our “religion is worthless.”

Responding to anger with anger and hatred with hatred, we accomplish nothing. But the takeaway here is not “five ways to be less angry.”

The takeaway is that we are worse than we thought we were before, we are trapped in cycles of anger and resentment. We are no more righteous than anyone else we have seen.

But there is another path to righteousness. As with Abraham, faith is credited to us as righteousness. The gospel is not just what we go to for our initial salvation, but what we must go back to again and again for confession, repentance and a shift of our focus back to Christ as our model and source of the capability to love.

– Sermon Notes, Brent Rood, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

Matthew 5:17-22

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Incarnational Living: Inclusive Friendship – Matthew 13:24-30

In this parable, the key concept is not that there are righteous and there are unrighteous and us righteous people should stay away from those nasty weeds. But Jesus is clear about our place in this story: we are the plants, not the harvesters who distinguish between the weeds and the wheat.

We cannot identify purely by current behavior who is the righteous and who is not. Many who today reject Christ will call on him before the end, and many who outwardly follow Christ will reject him.

We are sent into this world to live alongside all people and shine the reflected light of God on everyone we come into contact with, just as God Himself causes the sun to shine on the righteous and the unrighteous.

This means should seek to share the gospel with all people. Christians need the gospel just as much as non-Christians.

We should actively seek to engage those who do not yet know Christ. We should absolutely develop friendships with non-Christians. Ideally, we should do this in concert with other Christians. The community we build with other Christians should be designed to spill out into the world and create an environment where the gospel is demonstrated. This may involve a “third place” between work and home.

As a church, we should be careful not to focus only inward, but outward as well. It is easy to get stuck in “holy huddles” that do not share the love of God beyond our walls.

The concept of inclusive friendship is fundamentally incarnational. Christ coming to earth was the ultimate act of inclusive friendship, leaving the holiest of huddles to serve a people who hated him. He brought other alongside him in this task, creating a community to show his love to each other and the world.

– Sermon Notes, Jeff Krabach, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

 Matthew 13:24-30

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Servant Leadership – John 13:1-16

Jesus was the greatest leader in history, and in this passage he demonstrates his divine method of servant leadership. He knew, John tells us, that his time on earth was coming to an end. We know from the Garden of Gethsemene that he had a real level of fear and anxiety around the crucifixion. He also knew that he loved his disciples, and would love them through all of what would come.

This included the one who he knew would shortly betray him to torture and death. He knew he was the second person of the Trinity, and was shortly to reclaim his place among the godhead – and yet his final acts were those of service to those far below him. And so he washed his disciples’ feet.

Keep in mind that this was a culture that wore sandals and walked along roads lined and caked with feces. A servant might be asked to wash your feet, just like a janitor might unclog a disgusting toilet, or a hospice nurse might clean bedsores.

And so when Jesus wraps the towel around his waist and goes to wash Peter’s feet, Peter rejects it. Someone so high doing something so low for someone so low offended Peter’s understanding of leadership. But Jesus explains that to reject his act of service is to reject his very self. This is a direct parallel with the cross – those who reject the service of Christ on the cross are rejecting Christ himself.

So Peter, who wouldn’t know a metaphor if it hit him in the face, begins to strip down to get washed from head to toe. (Ultimately, Peter will take the image of Jesus wrapping himself in a towel for this act of service and make it core to his image of the Christian life – “clothe yourself in humility.”)

Jesus forestalls him, and instead notes that all of them are clean because they have (or will have) accepted his act of service, with one exception. Judas will reject that offer of service and this remains unclean.

He then moves farther ahead in time, speaking to the church era when these men will found and lead congregations around the world. He calls on them, when they find themselves in positions of leadership, to lead as servants, to take the picture he has painted of servant leadership and replicate it down through the ages.

Within the Christian life, leadership is serving. The distinction between ruler and scavenger is non-existent in Christ. If we refuse to serve our wives, for example, by changing diapers or washing dishes because that is “her job” then we have already missed the point. If we serve from a selfish motivation, picking those services that are enjoyable or that let us claim special status, then we are not truly serving.

True Christ-like service draws no distinction between public and private service. Nor does it have a need to calculate results, whether external or internal. It is not driven by feelings or whims. It is action-oriented and Christ-focused. Once you have the right mindset, the challenge is actually doing it, without those external motivators.

It is difficult to give up the power and control that worldly leadership offers. Serving rarely pays off from a material point of view. Serving may well mean you perform worse, whether in a job or wherever else. Serving means making sacrifices to make those around you succeed, not you yourself.

– Sermon Notes, Brent Rood, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA

John 13:1-16
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