Is Your Faith Amazing?

Berean Baptist on December 16, 2019

When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. (Matthew 8:10) 

            Matthew records several specific miracles that demonstrated the power and authority of Jesus. The second one is unique in its emphasis on faith. There are only two instances in scripture where it is said that Jesus marveled, or was amazed, and both concern faith. This one is because of the presence of uncommon faith and the other is because of the absence of expected faith. In the first instance, it was because faith came from a man without the external privileges of God’s revelation. In the second, it was lack of faith from those that had been blessed with every opportunity, with every privilege, with easy access to God’s word, and yet it did not develop into full dependence upon God.

            Matthew 8:5-13 describes the faith of a Roman centurion, a Gentile, who was not born into one the families of God’s chosen nation. He was an outsider, one whom Paul would describe as one of the “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise” (Eph. 2:12). This means he had none of the external privileges of Israel. He had not grown up learning what they learned about Jehovah God. He had not partaken in the lifelong rituals of Judaism that were intended to prepare them for the coming of the Messiah. And yet when He heard of Jesus, he recognized the power of God was in Him. He recognized His authority as the Son of God and His transcendence over the creation. He recognized the power of His words; with His word alone, His will would be done. This recognition amazed Jesus.

            In the second instance (Mark 6:6), Jesus marveled at the unbelief of the Jews. They had every advantage. Paul said, “unto them were committed the oracles of God” (Rom. 3:1-2). The first promise of the Messiah was given to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:15). The promise was renewed with Abraham, and then with Isaac and Jacob. Finally, God’s greatest prophet Moses was given the Law contained in “divine ordinances” that found their fulfillment in Jesus Christ (Heb. 9:1). In contradistinction to the “alien” centurion, the ones with all the unique privileges did not recognize the Messiah when He came. They rejected His teachings, miracles, and authority; they claimed He was from the devil (Matt. 12:24) and then crucified Him. Jesus was amazed at their shameless rejection.

            As I think on this story, I wonder how God views lack of faith in His chosen church, by which I mean those who have been elected to salvation, given the privilege of faith in Christ, and have become members of His body on earth. What about your blessing of being in a church that preaches truth, that still believes the Bible, that is unafraid to declare the whole counsel of God when opposed by false Christianity? What about you who are members of a church unlike any in our area? What about you that hear the same doctrines preached as from our Baptist forefathers? How much faith do you have in God?

The answer can be found in how you support your church. It can be found in your attendance, in your tithes, in your witnessing, and in your lifestyles. If Jesus came to our services, would He say, “I have not found so great faith, no, not in America?” Is your faith so uncommon that it would amaze Jesus?

                                                                                    Pastor V. Mark Smith

Join the Church with New Testament Doctrine

Berean Baptist on January 28, 2019


Join the Church with New Testament Doctrines

Recently, I wrote a short doctrinal statement of our church based on 2 Timothy 1:9-13.  We are committed to these doctrinal truths as all churches should be. If these doctrines are true, they must be true for all churches, not just ours. Thomas Paul Simmons wrote in his systematic theology, “When one is saved, the next consideration that should claim his attention is the church. Gratitude to God for salvation should make him as conscientious about church affiliation as about matters pertaining to salvation.” I believe this is an accurate assessment of the value placed upon church membership by the apostles in two ways. As Simmons states, we should be conscientious about affiliation. His primary meaning is that each Christian should carefully choose a church that is faithful to New Testament doctrine. To this we would add, a Christian should be conscientious about becoming a church member in the first place! Neither the apostles nor Simmons would imagine a Christian not being a part of a church.

In the Great Commission, the apostles were told to preach the gospel, to make disciples, to baptize them, and teach them to observe the commandments of Christ. Thus, we find another great reason to become a part of the Lord’s church. The church is the place for the teaching of God’s word. Paul explained in Ephesians that God put pastors and teachers in the church for building the faith and knowledge of His people. Contrary to what many think, the church is not primarily a place for evangelism. The church is for believers and teaching them is our primary mandate. Since God predestined us to be conformed to the image of Christ, He gave His church as a place to receive instruction that we might come “unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13).

Additionally, I would mention the fellowship of the church. The church is a place for Christians to meet to encourage one another. Hebrews says, “Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another…” (10:25). Church membership identifies you with other Christians and is acceptance of the responsibilities of your faith. Membership is commitment to the cause of Christ and the responsibility of the commission Christ gave to His disciples. The Great Commission was given to the apostles as they were the first church. They were commissioned as a church, not as individuals, for the perpetual work of evangelism. It is your responsibility as God’s child to assist in carrying out the commission under the authority of the church.

The New Testament is filled with instructions for the church. Nine of Paul’s epistles were written specifically to local congregations. Three were written for instructions to pastors and deacons and for church order. The Revelation written by John begins with a message to seven local churches. Acts is the history of the organization and growth of the local church in the first century. These books along with the gospels and general epistles are centered on the church. We cannot escape the reality that the local church is the plan and purpose for God’s people today. I encourage you to join a true Bible believing church and serve God faithfully by committing yourself to its ministry. Be conscientious about your choice of affiliation. Be sure your choice is a church that is committed to sound doctrine. I can think of none better than Berean Baptist Church! Join with us as we minister to this community and send the gospel around the world.

                                                                        Pastor V. Mark Smith

Intentions

Berean Baptist on August 27, 2018

Exodus 20:7

In this morning’s message, we take up the final exposition of the third commandment: “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain.” In the previous messages, I have shown you there is more to taking the Lord’s name in vain than using it as a swear word. Today, we examine some of these other ways. Since there are several of them, I do not have a lot of time to spend on each one. I have already shortened the list to make the point in the briefest time possible.

I would like, however, to expand on the common usage of God’s name as “filler speech.” For want of some other expression, God’s name is inserted as an exclamation of surprise, of disgust, or some other emotion. The expression “Oh my God” is so common it is spoken without thought. Since most people do not actually talk to one another any longer, the expression shows up in texts, tweets, and emails as “OMG.” I would think to type this out surely requires a little bit of thought—more so than in spoken language because many are indeed so foolish as to speak without thinking.

The problem of determining whether this is sinful relates to intent. Is this intentionally disrespecting God’s name? Does intent rule, or is it overridden by the clearness of the command? In other words, if you do not intend to act wrongly are your wrong actions sinful? If you speak God’s name without intentionally disgracing Him, is it still sin? We only need to compare it with other things we do without intent. Go back to the second commandment. If we hang a picture of Jesus on the wall without the intent of worshiping it, is it still wrong? If you listened to those sermons, you hardly need to ask. If you offend someone unintentionally, is it still wrong? Ask Hilary if you use a private email server for national security conversations, is it wrong if you had no intent to put this country in harm’s way? Wait, don’t answer that—apparently it is okay. Usually, however, the government is not concerned with your intent. The law has been broken and consequences must be faced. Most people have no intent to run over people on the sidewalk, but it could happen if you text while driving.

Likewise, with this command. We do not expect the world to get this, but Christians are definitely under obligation to get it. We are supposed to think about what we say. We are supposed to be deliberate in our speech. Jesus said, “Every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36). We can very well take this as His exposition of the third commandment: “The LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.” There is no argument left to excuse the careless speech of those who say, “Oh my God,” “Oh, Jesus Christ,” “geez” and so on. They are clearly in violation of the command. The Christian should work overtime completely expunging these expressions from his vocabulary. Every word we speak has meaning whether said with intent. Our conscious thought should be as Paul advised: “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him” (Colossians 3:17).

Pay attention to this today and the other ways the Lord’s name is used wrongly. God allows no excuses. This is not the preacher’s opinion; it is the word of God. As the end of the message encourages, go to the Lord in repentance and contrition. He will forgive this sin as He does all others. The key is to recognize that you have offended the precious Saviour with or without intent, and to come with a promise to change your ways. I promise He will give great thought to intentional forgiveness.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

Zion

Berean Baptist on May 14, 2018

Psalm 132

Psalm 132 is most interesting as it relates to the temple built by Solomon and the placing of the ark of the covenant in the most holy place. For the previous five hundred years, Israel worshiped at the Tabernacle which at this time was located at Gibeon. When David was anointed king, he vowed to build a house for the Lord God but was prevented because scripture says he was a man of war. Instead, the building of the new magnificent sanctuary that would hold the most holy ark of the covenant was left to David’s son, Solomon.

Solomon’s reign was one of peace as no major wars occurred during his lifetime. At the same time, Israel increased in power and influence throughout the world. Solomon’s days were the most prosperous for Israel leading his reign to be known by successive generations as the Golden Age. In the New Testament, it was Solomon Jesus appealed to for His example of prosperity and notoriety telling the people He was greater than Solomon (Mt. 12:42) and comparing Solomon’s beauty to the loveliest of God’s creation (Mt. 6:29).

In the 13th verse of the psalm, the psalmist speaks of Zion as God’s choice for His holy habitation. Zion is Jerusalem and is synonymous with the city of God. The area was originally the hill on which David built his fortress, but later was expanded to include the temple mount. In the Old Testament when people spoke of going to Zion, they were referring specifically to making the trip to the temple.

Jerusalem is the only place God allowed a temple to be built. In the ancient world, temples for pagan gods were built in various locations such as Paul saw in Athens and Ephesus. However, the one true living God had only one place of worship and one place of sacrifice. In Paul’s time, the ark was long since gone but there was a stone in its place in the Holy of Holies on which the priest put a censor on the Day of Atonement. There were no images allowed and no representation of the ark. Any Israelite that wanted to observe the solemn feast days had only one place to go—he must go to Jerusalem.

Zion’s was further expanded to mean the holy city of the New Jerusalem (Heb. 12:22). This is the brilliant city of light in Revelation 21. It is the home of the bride of Christ, the Lord’s church. The New Jerusalem is a city that comes out of heaven and descends to rest above the new earth, possibly touching it at some point. Although all of heaven belongs to God and His presence fills it all, His special manifestation is in the New Jerusalem whose entirety is His temple. Essentially, God’s people dwell within His temple. We are in Christ so that scripture says Christ Himself is the temple.

The beauty of worship in Solomon’s time was unparalleled by any other period of Israel’s history. It most closely models the worship of heaven. When the Queen of Sheba visited Solomon, she was stunned with the magnificence of what she saw. And yet, Jesus, the one who was a lowly carpenter, said He was greater than Solomon. The real beauty of Jesus is not seen on the outside. It is to be inside Christ to be able to understand how glorious He is. You can see His beauty by faith. Trusting Jesus is to have a glimpse of Zion, the holy city of God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

How Will You Enter the Kingdom?

Berean Baptist on June 12, 2017

Psalm 90

This psalm begins the fourth division of the Psalter and runs through Psalm 106. Each of the five divisions corresponds to one of the books of the Pentateuch and this one is linked to the book of Numbers. The theme is the same as Numbers with key topics of unrest and wandering.

Psalm 90 is a song of Moses which feels in places like a funeral dirge because of the despair of forty years meandering around the desert with no definite timetable for receiving the inheritance God promised. Verses 9 and 10 have the ring of a man who thought he would die before seeing the promise fulfilled: “For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told. The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.”

We remember from the Pentateuch the carnage of the wilderness wanderings. Before it was through, all of the males that left Egypt above the age of twenty years had died. The cause was the sin of not trusting God even after they saw the amazing plagues brought on Egypt that enabled their freedom from slavery. There were further examples of God’s power such as the parting of the Red Sea. Time after time God showed what He was able to do, but still when they came to the borders of Canaan they were too frightened to enter. They supposed walled cities and giants were too much for God.

From there, it was mostly downhill as time after time Moses’ leadership was challenged. Following God’s way was a reluctant enterprise which angered God. Paul alluded to their faithlessness in 1 Corinthians 10:5-11. Particularly verse 5 gives God’s mood because of their transgression: “But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.” Notice how Moses said the same in verse 7 of the psalm: “For we are consumed by thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled.”

There isn’t much hope expressed in this psalm. It is mostly the pleadings of Moses who often played the role of intercessor for constantly sinful, complaining people. This psalm is a reminder of how our lives can become fruitless and wasted when we are disobedient to God. Why should Christians live in defeat when every resource is available for triumph? God intends we should have a glorious entrance into His kingdom, not one in which we say we barely made it by the skin of the teeth.

This section ends at 106 with a repetition of wilderness sins, but it also mentions God’s faithfulness to never abandon His people. I believe this teaches that it is never too late to experience revival. We desperately need it when holiness is in short supply. Ask God to help this church and all His chosen people not to take His commands lightly. There is a great difference in the success of the Christian life depending on how you serve Christ. I do not want to enter heaven moaning and groaning, but with glorious expectation. May God help us to make it so?

Pastor V. Mark Smith