1689 London Confession (part 46)

Father in heaven we thank you this morning for your goodness for your kindness for the reminder of your Really your justice even as we think about the murder of 11 Jewish people yesterday father We look at it from a human standpoint and we We weep.

We're sorrowful. But we also need to understand the depravity and the hatred that goes behind something like that and Lord we our hope is all in you that you Will make all things right that when the Lord Jesus Christ returns He will put all things Under his feet and father we just Pray for justice we pray for Comfort compassion we pray that the gospel would shine forth in the midst of darkness Father as we gather this morning.

We pray that you would guide us that you would lead us By your spirit that we would look to your word your inspired word and see what it says about us about you. About the freedom that we have in Christ and the things that we ought to be Focused on as Christians or we pray for these things in Jesus name.

Amen. Well, I Receive something in the mail. I don't know if many of you did and you probably can't see this. Maybe I should like hold up a magnifying glass. I guess that wouldn't really help. I just closed that door the.

This is it's the front side. It says the directors cut and you would see if you could see it. You would see what's the the Barnum movie that came out? Greatest Showman, so he's over on this side. The Last Jedi is up here the little dolphin or dolphins.

How do you say it penguins? Some of you know what I'm talking about because you're on Facebook penguins from Madagascar on here too, and it's called directors cut and With this you admit one person to what you might ask.

Well, you have to flip over you're invited. Join us as one of our most popular series returns for the fall directors cut. And you're like well, so what you go to the movie theater and you see a director's cut of a movie.

No during directors cut we will explore the truths of scripture found in some of today's most popular films including the greatest showman Madagascar 3 Dunkirk and Star Wars the Last Jedi. I'm sure you were all thrilled.

By the scriptural themes that were presented in these movies as you went and saw them in the theater. And then there's a little picture here with spider-man and a bunch of kids a couple of Disney princesses and a little girl.

Etc. Etc. And I thought now this is interesting because this is a Church. It's a multi-campus church there in Worcester and in Sutton. I don't have to say the name. And I thought this is fascinating why would I think it's fascinating.

Because what is the biblical mandate for churches, what are we supposed to be doing preaching the gospel? And it's that who in their right mind would go and listen to something like that on a Sunday morning or Saturday evening, you know depending on.

Maybe they have Friday night messages, too. I mean this is this is what Paul writes Timothy in 1st Timothy 4. He says now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves To deceitful spirits and teachings of demons through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared.

Who forbid marriage and require abstinence from food that God created? To be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth for everything created by God is good. And nothing is to be rejected as received by With thanksgiving for it is made holy by the word and with prayer and we know that When he says When Paul writes Timothy and he says preach the word in 2nd Timothy, it's because he knows that.

People are going to not do that in 2nd Timothy 4. I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to judge the living and the Dead by his appearing and his kingdom preach the word. Be ready in season out of season and just before that in chapter 3, but I understand this.

Then the last day is there will come times of difficulty for people will be lovers of self lovers of money, etc Etc, etc. But the one thing people do not want is The preaching of the gospel. They're going to heap up for themselves as he goes on in chapter 4 they're gonna find teachers that will tickle their ears and I thought if there's any example of Teaching for itching ears it would be let's see what truths we can find in the movies you go to the movies anyway.

So now we're not gonna waste your time asking you to study the Bible. We're gonna bring you to or you can go to the movies and then we'll tell you what you learned from the movies. That also happens to be in Scripture just Folly.

So months ago, maybe years ago. I'm not really sure we started studying the 1689 London Confession of Faith. One of the reasons that we did that first of all because it's our official statement of faith would be a good reason.

But another reason is because it reflects what the Bible teaches. In fact much of the Confession of Faith is is basically just a Statement and then a scripture reference. So when we look at it, we really are seeing a summation of what scripture teaches.

Now when I look at a church like this one here and I say well, can we go back in church history and see churches that taught like this maybe not movies but you know, maybe there was a You think Spurgeon for example would have done a series on things that we can learn from the Bible.

That also happened to be in Shakespeare's plays exegeting Shakespeare one of our most popular series or you know, they could call it director's cuts of you know King Lear or Whatever. I mean I go to my Shakespeare.

I've never even read King Lear. I don't know why that one pops in my head. But what about that what about this idea of Looking to movies to see the truth or looking to something else to find the truth.

Why would we not want to do that? What would be wrong with that? Okay, because God gave us the source his revelation. Movies aren't truth. Write that one down. I Go to the movies and I expect to see realistic portrayals of you know Life the gritty deal gritty realism of Disney Pictures.

Scott. Okay at best you're gonna see a distorted image of the truth and at worst you're gonna see something that maybe isn't true at all. Gary yeah, it's kind of like searching the scriptures to find something to redeem a movie, you know, for example but let's just think in terms of tradition in terms of Well Let me just put it this way when Paul says, you know find faithful men and entrust these things to them.

I think that's 2nd Timothy 2 2. Is this the kind of thing that we're thinking about if we look at Ephesians 4 and we see that Christ gave the church gifts men throughout the centuries who were gifted in interpreting and Teaching the scriptures and then we think well, wait a minute.

Thank you Lord for those gifts but We have the Last Jedi which we all know is the best movie in the series. I mean the folly of this right, but it packs them in. You can rent places you can do multi-campus theaters and all that I remember it was somebody Not quite famous on the verge of being famous.

I think is He has some radio show. Who used to say, you know all we have Is a guitar with one string and we just have to play that one string and that one string is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ so last time.

Just a few weeks ago we were talking about the gospel and the extent of the grace of The gospel how far the grace goes and just by way of review and we're gonna be really quick in review and It just talks about how we talked about how the Old Testament Saints were saved.

How did they gain the approval of God and that was by faith? And We talked about Adam and Eve. But here's where I wanted to pick up. We talked about the necessity of special revelation. When we say that word special special revelation two words.

What do I mean by special revelation? Scripture, what's the Non special revelation, what would we call that? General revelation, which is Creation. Okay, when we look around the world at creation we can discover some things.

I mean, I like it when people one of my friends who lives in West Virginia posted some beautiful pictures of West Virginia last night and I like those and I like them because we look at the handiwork of God, right?

We see the Really the creativity of God the power of God and we also see the fact that he is not somebody who paints in. You know black and white he's he's very colorful and creative and It's it's beautiful to see.

But those things all the power, you know if you're at the Grand Canyon and you look at it, you can see the majesty of it and the beauty of it and and you can think about the Genesis flood and you can go through all these things, but ultimately it's not the Grand Canyon or Mount Everest or Niagara Falls or Whatever that will save you.

It just tells you one thing. That there's something greater than you in the universe. There's a God who exists who created all these things and of course Romans 1 tells it Tells us that people suppress that truth in unrighteousness, but with special revelation that is to say Scripture the Bible.

God reveals himself personally to us so that we can know him. And Derive from the confession we would learn that the gospel is not revealed in general or natural revelation. In other words, you can't learn about Jesus Christ.

You can't come to saving faith by just looking at the world and This gives us some impetus some desire some drive to preach the gospel because Why do we preach the gospel to people to share the good news?

And because we were told to and because It's the power of God into salvation right without the gospel. People will die and then we will die certainly in their sins. Act 17 verses 29 to 31. The summation here of the final statement of Paul's presentation at Mars Hill.

He says this Being then God's offspring. We ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone an image formed by the arts and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.

Because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness. By a man whom he has appointed and he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. The judge is coming. The judge is Jesus Christ.

We know that he's the judge because God raised him from the dead and we know that he's not just a mere mortal. Because the father raised him from the dead. God overlooked the times of ignorance, but now he says everybody has to repent.

They have to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. God is certainly under no obligation to us, but he's gracious. He's kind and he gives us this gospel and the final point. Under this was the gospel is sufficient for Salvation.

Let me just read what the 1689 says there. Although the gospel be the only outward means of revealing Christ and saving grace and is as such Abundantly sufficient thereunto in other words. It is sufficient to save people.

Yet that men who are dead and trespasses may be born again quickened or regenerated. There is moreover necessary and effectual insuperable work of the Holy Spirit upon the whole soul. For the producing in them a new spiritual life without which no other means will affect their conversion under God.

What does that all mean? Was anybody paying attention? Here's here's what it means. The gospel will save you if you hear it and believe it and that can only happen. How? Okay, if it's preached The Holy Spirit works in you right and Insuperable effectual insuperable work of the Holy Spirit upon the whole soul.

You must be born again. We could say it that way. So we come to Christian liberty and Christian conscience this morning after we learn about the extent of the gospel and the power of the gospel, then we learn about the liberty.

Christian liberty and liberty of conscience. The statement of faith reads this way the Liberty with or the Liberty which Christ hath purchased for believers under the gospel. Consists in their freedom from the guilt of sin the condemning wrath of God the rigor and curse of the law and in their being Delivered from this present evil world bondage to Satan and dominion of sin from the evil of afflictions the fear and Sting of death the victory of the grave and everlasting damnation as also in their free access to God and Their yielding obedience unto him not out of slavish fear, but a childlike love and willing mind mind.

Now I'm trying to think of the name of the author. I stole from here because I don't want to. It'll come to me. I can see the cover of the book and do you do that. This like picture in my head and as I scan down it eventually I'll get to his name, but Okay, let me just quote him here as I'm struggling trying to remember his name.

Christians are alive when they believe the gospel and obey the law they blossom when they understand Liberty. Christ purchased our Liberty our freedom. I Don't know if we often if we think about it that way we should.

We should think about the freedom that's purchased to us. Let's look at Titus 2 14. Okay, and the who is obviously Christ Jesus. And when we read that here's what he did he came here to redeem us. From it says all lawlessness we're Redeemed were purchased back from all lawlessness all Rebellion against the law and a purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

So you've been and we're gonna repeat the same a few times here set free from the bonds of Sinfulness you are no longer as you were right if you Think back to when you were saved or think back before you were saved.

If you think about and we're gonna hear this Lord willing this morning with Adam. Think about what your life was like before you got saved. What was it like? Were you different from other people? Did you fit in.

I mean, I think I did. I think I walked just like everybody else. But then when Christ saves us we are saved from lawlessness. Well, what does that mean exactly? What does it mean that we're saved from lawlessness?

Okay, we have the strength to do what is right, I'm sorry. We are bound to sin before we're saved right? I mean and and here's the thing To just kind of build on that. There's not even an awareness. So when Christ frees us from lawlessness, we have first of all an awareness.

I mean what happens when you hear the gospel. For the first time when you really understand it. The first thing that hits you is what? Condemnation guilt right all of a sudden you have this awareness this weightiness of sin.

I mean you've been living in sin and maybe you felt the effects of it you felt the Kind of or you've seen the effects of it in in many ways. But all of a sudden you hear the gospel you realize it is not just a generic Sermon it's not just some word out there.

That's nice or good advice or good lifestyle advice. You realize that it's for you and it's for you because you are weighed down by this Sin, you have this guilt that you are carrying that you maybe weren't even aware that you were carrying and so Christ in Redeeming us from lawlessness.

We have this weight of sin this debt of sin that we recognize and then suddenly We see the cross we understand who Christ is we understand that he died for our sins and ultimately the effect of that is that weights that guilt that Debt that we felt is Lifted off of us.

I mean there are some things in life that I forget rather easily and perhaps all too Easily, but one thing I can't forget was the kind of weightlessness. Of realizing that I've been saved for my sins.

I mean it was really like I feel like Michael Caine at the moment. I'm quoting a movie thing I felt like I was floating on air there's an old movie thing that nobody will remember but Because the sense of guilt that comes upon us when we finally recognize That there's a God we're not God that we're stick we stand condemned before him and that Christ then died for us there's a freedom from guilt and that's the point that The confession would make here and we're also free from the condemning wrath of God.

Let's look at 1st Thessalonians 1 verses 9 and 10. 1st Thessalonians 1 9 and 10. So we're free from the guilt that sense of guilt. That conviction that we're lawless. And we're free from the condemning wrath of God.

1st Thessalonians 1 verses 9 and 10 now we're waiting for the return of Jesus and As I read that or as we read that here, I just thought Delivers us from the wrath to come. I mean just think about this.

See when you woke up this morning if you did to these two things. Your day just got infinitely better if you reminded yourself that you were once guilty right as we just read that you were once lawless and we could say that you had no hope and That Christ redeemed you.

Okay, that would be step one. You just thought Christ redeemed me from all my sin. And then the second thing if you just thought this well, what does that mean? That means that Christ is coming back and he's coming back to bring wrath to bring judgments upon the world.

But he has he himself Has delivered me from that wrath. I don't face God's wrath. I deserve it. I was guilty. I was lawless. I deserve it, but I don't face that because of the perfect work of Jesus Christ.

If you do those things, I think you will have joy right you've been Delivered from the wrath that you deserve. So why wouldn't you be joyful? Third aspect is of this is we are free from the dreaded curse of the moral law.

Let's look at Galatians 3 15. Or I'm sorry Galatians 3 13 Galatians 3 13. What does it mean? That we have been redeemed from The law will say the moral law first, I guess we have to define what the moral law is.

I think most of us who've been in here for any number of weeks should understand the difference between the moral Ceremonial etc, etc. So what is the moral law? What does it reflect? The character of God and therefore it is Unchanging, right?

How is it in what sense did Christ redeem us from the moral law? Okay from the curse of the moral law. If we think about the moral law, what are the moral aspects of law, let's just talk about that for a second.

Thou shalt not I'm sorry Steal. Okay, the Lord's name in vain, right? Murder. Okay Idolatry that the the main points if we think about the Ten Commandments. There are some and I would argue that stealing is in the latter part where we how we treat one another but that's neither in or there because I guess you could say it's a form of idolatry, but If we look at the aspects of the law that point us towards the character and nature of God thou shalt not murder.

Well, why is that? Why does that reflect on God's moral? Character is that why do we why would we call that the moral law? Exactly because we are created in the image of God and therefore murder is to snuff out to Illicitly Eliminate that image bearer and so it is a sin directly against God his moral character his perfections right.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the moral law the curse of the law. How do you do that? By perfectly keeping it for us, right? We need that perfection. God says do this and live we don't do it, right?

Even if we think we do. Well, I haven't killed anybody. Well, Jesus says you have heard it said thou shalt not commit murder. But I tell you what, you know, even if you look at somebody with Malice or hatred that you've committed that you're guilty of murder.

So we're free from the curse of the moral law because Christ has fulfilled that for us. So we're not only Free from guilt. We're not only free from the condemning wrath of God, but we also have Freedom from the curse of the moral law.

In other words all the things that would normally condemn us because Christ has done that for us. Now the author goes on to Give us a list of complimentary gifts. I like it when I go to a hotel and there's a whole bunch of complimentary gifts in the hotel.

That almost never happens. It's usually the complimentary $5 bottle of water but Although the last time I checked into a hotel I did get they gave me two little 12 ounce bottles of water, you know in a bag and I was just like I take the bag and I'm looking at it later.

I'm going. This is like $15 worth of stuff here. Some some things that are true that have been granted to us. We are delivered from the worst this present evil world has to offer. Well in what sense we're still in this world, right?

So, how are we delivered from the power of the present world? How is it true that we are delivered from this? World. Okay, we can resist it. Now. We've also been set free from Bondage to Satan, right?

I mean one of the great truths in all of Scripture when you just think about this. That you were children of wrath you were children Whom God hated you were children of Satan. You follow the Prince of the power of the air here of this world but now you've been transferred from the household of Satan as it were into the household of God.

Set free from bondage to him. Whom the Son has set free will be free in deed. You're unable to break loose from the dominion of sin. Before you were slaves. I mean we go to Romans 6. We're not going to right now, but you were slaves of sin.

And now you're slaves of righteousness. These are not benefits that we we have to sort out for ourselves. We had to figure out on our own. They are made explicit in Scripture, let's go to Galatians chapter 1.

Galatians chapter 1 verses 3 and 4. Okay, so there we can see that we are delivered from this present age and He didn't mean that we're we've left the planets. I mean, I think there are a number of ways where we could just think about being delivered from This evil world.

Certainly if we just understand this that this world is not our home. It's not our home anymore. We can look around and what do we find we find that instead of a world in which we are comfortable. We're uncomfortable and that's a good thing.

It's a good thing to not just think this is the way things are supposed to be. Let's look at Colossians 1 13. Well, actually, I'll just read that for you because I basically already talked about anyway he has delivered us talking about Christ has delivered us from the domain of darkness and Transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son or God has done that he's delivered us from the domain of darkness in other words the dominion of Satan and Transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son.

Let's turn to acts 26 verses 14 to 18. And this is a Paul giving his testimony pretty dramatic testimony that acts 26 verses 14 to 18 if somebody would read that please. Thank you, and this is what happens right when we are saved what happens to us.

We have our eyes open. We turn from darkness to light and From the power of Satan. I mean that's that's odd. You know, how would you like to just approach an unbeliever today and say? How would you like to turn from the power of Satan to the power of God?

That might be a conversation starter. What do you mean to say? I'm under the power of Satan. People don't like to think about themselves that way right. That they may receive forgiveness of sins in a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.

This is what happens as a result of being saved. These are the free complimentary gifts that come along with being saved. We also will not feel the sting of death, you know distinct does death hurts in Spite of the fact that you're a Christian.

Does death bother you does it bother you when people die? Yes is the answer. People are like is this a trick question. No, it's not a trick question. Death is supposed to be painful. The question though is I.

My friend clay posted something about his wife. She's been dead a few years now from breast cancer and He always posts just the nicest Pictures and the nicest words about his wife and and I just thought here's a man who understands the the loss that's.

That death presents to us, but it doesn't have the sting and the reason he doesn't have the sting is because he knows. His wife Margie doesn't have the sting of death. She's not suffering and one day.

He'll just show up and be right next to her and that'll just be you know, it'll be like. She won't even know he was gone. I don't even know if she'll know who he's really there, but it doesn't matter the death the sting of death is gone.

1st Corinthians 15 says this in verse 53 to 58. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts on the Immortality then shall come to pass the saying that is written.

Death is swallowed up in victory. And let me just hold there for a minute. One of the things that happens at the end of time what happens to death at the end of time? It's abolished. Right. It's thrown into the pit as it were.

Verse 55. Oh death, where is your victory? Oh death? Where is your sting? The sting of death is sin? Excuse me, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore my beloved brothers be steadfast Immovable always abounding to the work or in the work of the Lord knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. Because you have been Redeemed. I mean it's interesting.

We don't we don't see this. Because you have been saved from the curse of the law because you've been saved from your sins. Because you've been saved from the judgment and wrath of God therefore Go and cruise control therefore sin.

Therefore don't worry about a thing. Therefore Be steadfast immovable always abounding in the work of the Lord knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. God saves people he removes from them the sting of death.

He grants them everlasting life. Your labor in Christ is not in vain and we are not only freed from evil, but we are fully I Like this word here, we're fully franchised in the good. What does it mean to be franchised if somebody says they've been disenfranchised?

What do they mean normally? Separated from something. They're separated from if well. Because I I'm thinking in political terms if somebody says they've been disenfranchised that means they've been denied their right to Vote.

Right to be franchised is to have the right to vote. So I just like this here that we are fully franchised. We're owners in Good, we're full participants in good. We're no longer offering the cringing obedience of a terrified slave.

But the loving service of a child of the father. Let's look at Romans 8 verses 14 and 15. Romans 8 verses 14 and 15. It's so good and it's so right to think about this, you know. Sometimes there's that there's a sense in which and I've done this.

I think we all do this in which we think of Service as to the Lord service to the local body as almost like drudgery. But that's not the point here. The point is not that it's that we you know, we have been freed from this idea of Slavery to anything and now in joy, we present ourselves to our father and say Lord What can I do for you?

How can I serve? I mean in light of everything you've done for me. How can I in some small measure? Repay you. Let's look at 1st John verses 14 and 17. I'm sorry 1st John 4 verses 17 and 18 here's the point that the writers of the confession are wanting to make here.

We don't serve out of a sense of fear that we're going to be. I mean Did you ever do this with your parents and if I was the only one who did you know? I'm terribly sorry for bringing this up. But obey your parents because you were afraid of the punishments right if you didn't I won't.

Yeah, well, I give you this little illustration. This really what how it doesn't have to do with obedience, but there was an occasion I know this is hard to believe. I was thrown out of school in the third grade and Third grade and I walked home from school, which you know these days.

I I know it sounds horrific. I mean, I must have been at least two and a half blocks home and And I get home and all the way home. All I'm thinking about is My mom is going to kill me. Right. I mean, I'm I'm dead and my parents at the time were separated on their way to getting a divorce and I get home and lo and behold My dad was there.

That was a big relief. You know. Because it was just like a little talking to you know go to your room that that was it. But this terror that I had all the way home was removed. It was relieved and here's the point the point in the scripture is this.

That we're no longer like afraid. We don't we're not Hoping that in some way something that we do blindly is going to appease this great God. We no longer serve like that. We serve out of love. We know that God has removed this punishment from us.

That we no longer need fear him in the sense that he is going to be our judge. We only fear him in the sense that we want to give him right reverence as our father. We want to serve him out of love. We're not afraid of as John writes here punishment but we have this sense of love and it's not it we ought not to really even think of our service as Obligation although certainly I think it is.

But we really ought to just want to serve the Lord because we want to serve the Lord we love him. Why would we not want to serve him? He gives us all things he's given us the greatest gifts ever that we could ever possibly give.

Why would we not then serve this God who loves us and died for us and did all these things for us? Well, we have to Close because we have a baptism to do so let's pray Father in heaven. Lord we are immeasurably indebted To you for Choosing us before the foundation of the world.

Father we are indebted to the Lord Jesus Christ for coming and redeeming us. Paying the price for our sins obeying perfectly in our place. Lord we are indebted to the Holy Spirit for Sealing us. Keeping us to the day of judgment.

And father we praise you Father Son and Holy Spirit the three-in-one the triune God. We give you all the glory and praise in Jesus name.