Jesus is Lord of the Church

Here is summary from a section on the church (pp. 192-194), from "Big Truths for Young Hearts" by Bruce Ware.  The Bible gives 3 illustrations of what the church is in relation to Christ:

1. We are sheep, He is the Shepherd. We should hear and follow Him (John 10:3-4).
2. We are the bride, He is the Bridegroom. We should be pure and submit to Him (2 Corinthians 11:2-3; Ephesians 5:24).
3. We are the body, He is the Head. We should show love and receive love from other believers (1 Corinthians 12:12-26).

Making Disciples

God reminded of me of this truth, in “Big Truths for Young Hearts” (p. 210):  As a follower of Christ, I am called to make disciples (Matthew 28:19).  I must be careful that I am not making disciples just of myself, but of Christ.  I must direct others to the love, teaching, and grace of the Lord Jesus.  

Even more, I must remember my role of making disciples of my children.  It is so easy for me to focus on making them disciples of how I do things, how I think about things, how I talk about things.  But it all needs to be about the actions, thoughts, and words of Christ.  Even if they follow me, I need to ensure that I am following and reflecting Christ.  I must remember the words of John the Baptist as he refers to Jesus.  “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30).  

--  Joey Espinosa

Summary of the Holy Spirit

For quick reference, here is a summary on the series of posts about the Holy Spirit, from “Big Truths for Young Hearts.”

1. The Spirit in the Old Testament
2. Jesus and the Holy Spirit
3. Jesus’ Followers and the Holy Spirit
4. The Spirit Gives New Life
5. The Spirit Gives Unity
6. The Spirit-Filled Life

God Chooses Some

More from "Big Truths for Young Hearts," this time from the section on "Our Great Salvation." The scriptures used by Bruce Ware include Ephesians 1:3-6 and Romans 3:11-12.

"God has chosen some sinners to be in Christ. . . . [It is] important to be reminded of our sin and guilt before God. . . . If God were to leave it up to us, not a single person would ever want to be with God, and no one would ever desire to do what pleases God. . . . God's choosing is never a matter of his turning away some who wanted to come. His choosing is always a matter of his bringing to him those who never would have come."

That's my story. As much as I like to say that I came to know Christ, I know that He had to be at work in my life to make that happen. He was merciful to me by helping me know Him. To some, it's "not fair" that God chooses some. To me, it's "not fair" that by choosing some, God punished His innocent Son for their sins. I'm glad that God doesn't go by my standard of fairness.

-- Joey Espinosa

Why and How Does the Holy Spirit Fill Believers?

This summer will mark 15 years for me as a believer in Jesus Christ.  Because of my indifference to God for 19+ years, it had to be the power and grace of God that moved me to surrender my life to Him.  Not only that, God has kept me from repeatedly hardening my heart against Him, as I have gone through seasons of hardships and doubts.  By His love, He wants me to know, follow, and trust in Him, because that is what is best for me. 

The Holy Spirit has given me new life, and He now gives me the power to live a life that is pleasing to Christ.  He has continually worked in my life to help me live for Christ.  “The Spirit [should] be such a strong influence in your life that you end up speaking and acting in ways that are holy and honoring to Christ” (“Big Truths for Young Hearts”).  But how do we live by the Spirit (Galatians 5:25)?  Author Bruce Ware helps answer this:

“The Spirit will have a greater influence and will provide more direction in our lives as God’s Word ‘dwells’ more and more within us.  Our reading of his Word, our time spent memorizing and meditating on Scripture, is one of the main tools that the Spirit uses to help us think, feel, and act in ways that are more and more pleasing to Christ. . . .  Believers should long to be more ‘filled’ with God’s Word so they will be more ‘filled’ with his Spirit.” 

Therefore, since we need to be filled with God’s Word, how are you doing that?  Even more, how are you helping your children do that?  You cannot rely on mere church attendance to fill this need (although that is a part of it).  Next week, I will give some ideas of things that have helped me and my family grow in God’s Word.  For now, I’d love to hear what you and your family are doing.

-- Joey Espinosa

The Holy Spirit Unites Believers Together in Christ

Not only does the Holy Spirit work in the hearts of individuals, He “also works to unite all saved people together within a beautiful and joy-filled family, a body of Christ’s own people” (“Big Truths for Young Hearts,” pp. 161).  But this unity is not an end to itself; rather, there should be an outward manifestations that flow from this inward reality.  This can be seen in a simple cause-effect relationship, as seen on pages 162-164 of this book. 

• Cause #1:  Believers are brothers and sisters of one heavenly Father (Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 3:26)
• Cause #2:  Believers are parts of the same body of Christ (I Corinthians 12:13)
• Therefore:  Believers should seek God’s grace to truly love one another (I Corinthians 12:4-26)

That is, the fact that we Christ-followers are Spirit-led should be obvious in how we are loving each other.  We are called to use the gifts He has given us to advance His kingdom and to bless others. 

How has the Spirit led you to be united with and bless other Christ-followers?

How Do I Help My Child Live a Spirit Directed Life?

One of the most common questions from parents who are Christ-followers is about helping their child learn to know and follow Christ.  This question fits in well with our discussion on the Holy Spirit, but first let us go back to the basic problem we all have – sin. 

A basic definition of sin is “rebellion against God and disobedience to His laws and ways.”  The Bible is clear that sin brings about the punishment and result of death (Romans 6:23; James 1:14-15). And since we are all sinners, then at some point we all are dead.  We deserve the punishment of everlasting death, and we are incapable by ourselves to love God and obey Him.  This is the state that we are all born into, including your child.

But the Holy Spirit gives new life to those who have faith in Christ (Isaiah 44:3-4; John 3:5).  “Just as water brings life to plants and trees that are made to drink of that water, so the Spirit brings spiritual life to those who are made to drink of that Spirit.” (“Big Truths for Young Hearts,” p. 159-160). 

But hear is the kicker: the Spirit gives life, but we are powerless to love God if we don’t have the Spirit.  Therefore, how do we get the Spirit to work in our lives in the first place?  The answer: we can’t control Him. 

“The only thing we can rightly do, and the one thing we should do, is this: we should bow our heads and admit before God that we are helpless to save ourselves.  We are unable to make ourselves come alive. . . .  We should put our hope in the kindness of God, his mercy towards sinners, and his power to save those who admit they cannot save themselves. . . .  His Spirit must give us life. He alone is our hope!”

So with regards to our children, the best we can do is lead them to know God’s laws and ways (by what we teach them and what we model for them), and to earnestly cry out to God to have mercy on them, so that He would work in their hearts to help them know Him. 

Questions or comments?

The Spirit on Jesus and Jesus' Followers

As discussed in the previous post on the Holy Spirit, Jesus did His work by the power of the Spirit. Just before He was crucified, He gathered with His disciples and told them, “It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.”  The disciples must have been confused; how could it be good that the Lord Jesus would leave them?  Bruce Ware explains (“Big Truths for Young Hearts,” p. 156):

“What could possibly be better than having Jesus living with you, walking alongside you day by day? Answer: having Jesus, by his Spirit, living his own life within you.”

It’s so easy for us to surround ourselves with things that keep us "safe" – money in savings, Bible study, private school or homeschooling, a stable job, attending church services, activities for kids, and so on.  And these can be good things, but for followers of Christ, there must be more.

What’s most important for Christ-followers is having the Holy Spirit in us, changing us, guiding us, and making us more like Christ.  Those other “good” things in life are empty and ineffective without the power of the Spirit.  Are you relying on the good things around you, or are you submitting to and trusting in the One who is in you?  We need to remember that the primary role of the Holy Spirit in our lives is not to accomplish tasks, but to cause transformational, inside-out change.

Jesus Lived in the Power of the Spirit

In “Big Truths for Young Hearts” (pp. 113-116), Bruce Ware makes the biblical case that Jesus did His work by the Spirit’s power, not His own power.  This is attested by Jesus Himself (Matthew 12:22-19), as well as the apostle Peter (Acts 10:38).  That Jesus worked by the Spirit’s power should be a great encouragement for us:

"Even though Jesus was fully God, he did not live his life through his divine power as God. . . . He can to live as one of us, to experience the limitations and struggles of our life. . . . But to do this he could not live truly as a man while also using power that he alone would have as God. To live by his power as God, he would not and could not live as one of us. So instead, as a man, he relied on the Spirit of God to grant him all that he needed to live life faithfully and to carry out everything that the Father sent him to do."

This is the great part for us: as believers, we "would have the same Spirit empowerment that Jesus has used."  That is, if Jesus did works on His own divine power, then there would be a huge loss to the kingdom work when He left.  But the same Spirit continues to work through those who belong to God!  The same Spirit that worked through Jesus to do miracles is also working to change our lives, and He wants to bless others through us.

What do you think about this?  Have you ever thought of why it’s good that Jesus left to return to His rightful spot in heaven?

The End Times and Now

Here’s an excerpt from “Big Truths for Young Hearts,” from the section entitled Knowing the Future Helps in the Present. 

“[God] hasn’t told us everything about what is coming. . . .  But he has told us a lot. And he’s told us enough so that if we are trusting in Christ, we can put away our fears and worries.”

In other words, God promises that He and those who trust in Him will be victorious.  If that’s true, does it make sense to worry over day-to-day troubles?  If you or your child is struggling with worry, spend some time studying Matthew 6:25-33 and Romans 8:29-32. 

The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament

The Holy Spirit is probably the most mysterious Person in the Trinity.  (As we talked about the Spirit recently, my son Elijah, age 6, was completely perplexed on how He is a Person.  I guess God the Father and God the Son gives him a mental image to fall back on, but He doesn’t have a picture of what God the Spirit is like.)  It seems that the Spirit is always just thought of as “the other” part of the Trinity, and even Scripture indicates that He is under the authority and direction of the Father and the Son (and has no role of authority over Them).  But there is no doubt that He is real, and His work is amazing.  That’s why over the next few weeks I’m excited to give a review of what the Bible says about the Holy Spirit.

First of all, let’s look at what the Old Testament says about the Holy Spirit.  It’s only in the context of the OT that we can fully appreciate how He appears in the New Testament and in our lives today.  These thoughts come from “Big Truths for Young Hearts” (pp. 149-154).  In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit’s work was:

1. Selective.  He came only on a few people.
2. Task-oriented.  He granted supernatural power in order to fulfill a specific calling or task from God.
3. For a limited duration.  When the task was done, the Spirit would leave.

However, the OT promises that one day the Spirit would:

1. Be for all, not for a few.
2. Work for transformational (life-change) purposes, not merely to accomplish tasks.
3. Fill a follower of God forever, not for a limited time.

Check back next week for the introduction of how the Spirit worked in the New Testament times. 

--  Joey Espinosa

Baptism

Baptism is a picture of "being united with Christ in his death and united with Christ in his resurrection from the dead" ("Big Truths for Young Hearts" p. 203).  This was illustrated this weekend at Grace Church, as we had baptisms at 3 of our services.  You can watch all of the video testimonies on our Pastor's Blog. 

Do you have questions or thoughts about what baptism looks like for your child?  Contact Joey Espinosa, Pastor of Children & Families by email or phone (864-284-0122, ext. 172).  We would love to partner with you and assist you in leading your child.

What's in store for 2010?

Happy New Year! 

You've read the highlights of 2009.  Now, we want to let you know some things we have planned for this blog over the next few months.

• We will give an overview and our vision for our curriculum, for both the Camp Grace and the Preschool programming.
• Questions about some aspects of our policies (safety, general procedures, etc) for our weekend programming? You'll get answers.
• One of our goals is to Equip Volunteers.  What does an equipped volunteer look like?
  
• We will give some nuggets of theology from "Big Truths for Young Hearts." As an example of some of the theology presented in the book, we'll give a summary of the section on the Holy Spirit, along with some other topics.  If you have kids who are kindergarteners through pre-teens, I encourage you to get this book. (And if you order it through the Osborn Mission webpage (via Amazon), Philly and Elizabeth get a portion of any purchases you make.)

Any other topics you'd like us to touch on? Or any specific parenting questions?

Jesus vs. Satan

From "Big Truths for Young Hearts" (p. 134-135):

"Satan's power over sinners is tied directly to their guilt through sin. His hold on them is because of their sinful rebellion against God. But remove the guilt through Christ's payment for their sin, and you remove the basis for Satan's hold on them. . . . Forgiveness of sin's penalty and freedom from Satan's prison go together. Remove the guilt, and you remove the bondage. As Christ bought the former -- forgiveness of the guilt of our sin -- he won also the latter -- victory over the bondage of our sin. Praise be to our Savior for his gracious and complete forgiveness that accomplishes also this glorious and powerful deliverance from Satan's dominion, bondage, and death (Colossians 1:13-14)."

The Greatest Gift

From "Big Truths for Young Hearts" (pp. 178-179):

"How can God view sinners as righteous? Answer: because they have been credited with the righteousness of Christ, a righteousness that is not their own, a righteousness that is complete and perfect. . . . [T]he ungodly person has been declared righteous by faith. . . . Justified by faith, not by works -- this is the heart of what the story of God's salvation plan is all about."

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Men & Women

Here's a excerpt from Bruce Ware's book "Big Truths for Young Hearts" (p. 91):

"To be faithful to the Bible's teaching, then, means accepting two very important ideas: 1) men and women are completely equal in their common human natures, both being made in the image of God, but 2) God gives men and women different roles in the home and in the church. The woman should accept the God-given authority in God-honoring ways. We are equal and yet different at the same time, and in this we reflect something of how the Persons of the Trinity relate. The Father, Son, and Spirit are equally God, yet they have different roles to play marked by lines of authority and submission in their relationships. So God created men and women in his image fully equal in their human nature, but different in certain roles in which they also have differences in authority and submission. This is part of the beauty of male-female relationships as God has designed them. What a privilege to reflect God's own ways of relating in our human relationships."

This book is helpful for any parent who needs a little insight and encouragement on how to teach their children about basic theology and a Biblical worldview. It was the most popular sell at our recent Future Men event, with 28 people buying this book. You can get a copy for yourself on our website, along with a number of other helpful books.

Also, you can watch an excerpt from a recent sermon on gender and the image of God on the Grace Church YouTube channel.