God’s Plan A

Was the church always God’s Plan A? Was it always God’s intention to have Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female (Gal 3:28)? To have a hodgepodge of people from different backgrounds and experiences, many of whom were weak and unimportant to the outside world (1 Cor 1:26)?

There are Christians who believe the answer to those questions is ‘no.’ That God sent Jesus to be the Jewish Messiah, and when he was rejected by his people God then turned to the Gentiles to start his church. This church is viewed as the great parenthesis, the brackets in the sentence detailing God’s grand plan for Israel. They believe that one day soon God will close those brackets and begin again with the Jewish nation.

But this is not a natural reading of the Old Testament promises, or the New Testament reality. Consider Gen 12:1-3. God promised Abraham that all the nations would be blessed through him. When he was given the sign of circumcision in Gen 17 there were people outside Abraham’s family who received the sign. When the Israelites came out of Egypt, some Egyptians came with them (Ex 12:38). We have the stories of Rahab, Ruth and others who joined Israel. Israel was never ‘pure’ racially. There were always Gentiles included.

Think also of the New Testament church. The first Christians were Jewish. The Apostles called the Jews to join the church. James even declares Amos 9:11-12 (where David’s tent would be rebuilt) is fulfilled as the Gentiles enter the church.

Just as Israel can be called the congregation/church in the wilderness (Acts 7:38), so the church can be called the ‘Israel of God’ (Gal 6:16).

It was always God’s plan to have one people of God united together in Christ. We are God’s Plan A.

A Sure Word

We are a sceptical people filled with suspicion. I saw a photo recently of a truck filled with manure, with the statement written on it: ‘This truck is loaded will political promises.’

It is easy to laugh at such a statement. But it is also a sign of our sadly cynical times. We live in a time when we disbelieve whatever politicians say, and even the media are accused of bias. The question is, who can we trust? Is there anyone who will tell the truth?

The Bible makes a bold claim for itself. It claims to be the word of God, and therefore entirely trustworthy and true.

It says in Prov 30:5, ‘Every word of God proves true.’

‘Ah,’ someone will say. ‘Of course the Bible will make that claim! The Bible says it’s true, and people believe it blindly!’ The irreligious sceptic will use terms like ‘circular argument’ to get away from examining the claims of the Bible.

But when you examine the claim, how could the Bible say anything else? If the Bible is the word of God, then of course it is true! If these words are from him, if he was so in control of everything written that what we have in our Bibles is exactly what he intended, then they must be true! God cannot lie, the Bible tells us, therefore the Bible cannot lie because it is his word!

Every word from his mouth is truth. How comforting to know that in a world full of deception, there is a sure word we can turn to. When the world fears a political crisis will be the end of the world, we have the truth. When we are tempted to believe our sin has defeated us, we have his promises. His word is truth.

“Presby – what?”

‘Presbyterian’ is a strange word (and hard to spell!) But it says a lot about our church, what we believe, and how we function.

It comes from the Greek word ‘presbuteros’ (πρεσβύτερος) and means ‘elder.’ From the beginning of the denomination in Scotland, this word has proclaimed a great deal.

First, it says that rather than being led by priests, we are led by the Great High Priest who provided the last sacrifice for sins – himself. We don’t have priests who provide sacrifices on altars. Instead, we are led by a group of men called ‘elders.’ So, ‘Presbyterian’ says we believe Jesus is our priest who provided the once for all sacrifice for sins (1 Pet 3:18).

Second, (as already stated), it reflects the biblical pattern and command that the church be led by a group of men called ‘elders.’ This is the pattern established in Acts (e.g. 14:23; 20:17) and commanded in the epistles (e.g. 1 Tim 3:1-7, Tit 1:5-9, 1 Pet 5:1-4). These men are to be godly, able to teach, and caring for the church. The Presbyterian church is not a one-man show – we are a team, being equipped by a leadership team.

(It should be noted, the Bible uses the terms ‘elder,’ ‘overseer/bishop’ and ‘shepherd/pastor’ interchangeably – see Acts 20:17, 28; 1 Pet 5:1-2.)

Third, we are an interconnected church. Some denominations are ruled by a hierarchy of bishops/priests, with many churches ultimately being ruled by one person. Other denominations have their churches be completely independent from one another (though they might be friendly towards one another, they have no impact on the others’ church leadership).

The Presbyterian system, on the other hand, says that all churches are interconnected, reflecting the reality of the council in Acts 15 where the apostles and elders gathered to make a decision for all the churches (see below for the explanation of how that works). Each church governs itself through its elders, but receives oversight from the other churches in the region, then State, then nation.

So, what does ‘Presbyterian’ mean? It means we are a church which believes Jesus is our priest and once-for-all sacrifice, led by a group of qualified men called ‘elders,’ who are connected to other Presbyterian churches.

Not only are the leaders of each individual church a team leading their local church to be a team for Christ’s glory, but all Presbyterian churches form a larger team, with the goal to proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ – his death and resurrection, and the call to repent and believe. Will you join us?

Some odd words

Coming into any unfamiliar system will mean learning some new words (or even adjusting familiar words to mean different things). Here are some words you might like to know:

Elder: a man elected by the congregation to be one of the leaders of the church. This is a lifelong position (unless they resign, move away, or are removed from the position because of heresy or gross ungodliness).

Session: the Session is the official meeting of the elders. It is here decisions are made concerning the spiritual direction of the church. (Think “The court is now in session” in any courtroom scene you’ve seen on TV.)

Board of Management: The BoM is the body that cares for the finances and property of the church. Those elected to the Board (a two-year position) are called Managers. (Elders are automatically on the Board.)

Deacon: someone elected by the congregation to care for the material well-being of the poor and needy. This is a three-year position.

Presbytery: The State is divided into regions called ‘presbyteries.’ From each church in that region, their pastor and one other elder gathers with the other pastors and designated elders. They meet as a presbytery to have oversight over each church and to plan for future gospel ministry within that presbytery. They may also hear appeals from decisions made in a Session.

Assembly: This is the week-long meeting of every pastor and a representative elder from each church in the denomination, exercising further oversight, hearing appeals from decisions made in Presbyteries, and determining the rules by which the denomination will function. (There is a State Assembly every year, and a national Assembly every three years. The national Assembly does not include every single pastor and representative elder, but a proportion.)

Courts: When elders meet formally, they meet in a court. It is these courts which have decision-making authority – no individual can make unilateral decisions. The courts of the church are: Session, Presbytery and Assembly. Think of them as a mix of a parliament (making rules for how the church will run) and a law court (hearing appeals about a lower court’s decision).

Confused? That’s OK! Come and chat to Jesse about it. He’d love to clear it up for you.

Divine Addition

It’s always important to know what your role is. When you know your role, you know what you are responsible for and what you are not responsible for. When I worked at the front office of a building company, I knew my job. I sent out and paid invoices, took calls, and other minor tasks. My job was NOT to arrange a tradie to attend a job.

When it comes to evangelism, we can often be overwhelmed because we forget what our responsibilities are and what they are not. We are quick to be disheartened when we fail to see positive results, feeling like failures when invitations to church are rebuffed, or people remain as hard as ever despite our best efforts at answering objections.

But don’t feel discouraged. Consider Acts 2:47 – ‘And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.’

Who is it that adds people to the church? Certainly not us. It is the Lord who adds to our number. It is him alone who brings people from their natural state of rebellion to humble submission and joyous reception of the gospel. Only he can bring the dead to life and give faith to his enemies.

All this happens in the context of gospel proclamation and loving, self-sacrificial service of course. God has chosen to act through his church. But what a comfort. My role is to proclaim and leave the results to him.

Does this mean we don’t need to evaluate our efforts? No! We should always be evaluating whether we are clear on the gospel, answering questions as well as possible, being kind and loving. But even when we do all things perfectly, it will always be up to the Lord to add to our number. May he add many.

The Lord’s Supper – Who May Come To The Table?

The Lord’s Supper should be a wonderful moment of unity in the church of Christ. Sadly, there is debate and disagreement over (probably) every element imaginable.

One of those disagreements is over who should participate. Do you need to be a member of a church? Do you need to be baptised? What about children? Here is how we at Eaglehawk Presbyterian answer those questions.

Do I need to be baptised?

Yes. Confusion over this is often due to how little we think about the purpose of these two sacraments. Baptism is the rite of initiation, the ceremony in which someone is officially welcomed as part of Christ’s church. The Lord’s Supper is a meal through which Christ continually nourishes the faith of his church. Just like those wanting to join Old Testament Israel needed to first be circumcised before they could take the Passover (Exodus 12:48), so we must first be baptised before we take the Lord’s Supper.

A quote from Michael Horton is particularly helpful here: ‘If baptism is the bath for the beginning of the journey, the Supper is the table that God spreads in the wilderness along the way.’ We need to have the bath before we can join in the meal.

Do I need to be a member?

Yes. Those coming to the table are expected to be a member of a Christian church – whether of our church, another Presbyterian church, or any other Christian church. And they need to be a member in good standing – if someone is under discipline at their church and unable to take the Supper there, we pray they would respect that process of discipline and not seek to get around it by visiting another church!

There are multiple reasons for this, but the key reason is that the Supper is a communal meal (indeed, one of the names for the Lord’s Supper is ‘Communion’). We not only commune with Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16) as we eat at his table, but we also commune with one another (1 Corinthians 10:17) as the church comes together (1 Corinthians 11:18). For the church to come together, we have to know who’s in the church! That’s what membership identifies – with the wisdom that Christ gives his people, they determine whether someone’s profession in Christ is genuine, and whether they will commune with them in this meal.

Are children welcome to participate?

It depends! Are they full members of a church? Have they professed their faith publicly (either by being baptised as a believer, or giving a Profession of Faith if they were baptised as an infant)? One of the requirements given to those partaking is that they ‘examine themselves’ and be able to ‘discern the body’ (1 Corinthians 11:28-29). A young child is unable to do these things.

But how young is too young? This is where a conversation with the parents and the elders/leaders of the church is important. Taking the Supper is a great privilege, but it also comes with some danger (1 Corinthians 11:27, 30). We want to protect them from unknowingly abusing the Lord’s Supper. When it would be appropriate for a child to profess faith, and so be welcomed into membership and to the table of the Lord’s Supper requires the wisdom of both the parents and church leaders.

When I was growing up, I had this all reversed. I took the Lord’s Supper before I was baptised, in a church where it probably never crossed their mind to consider whether I had genuine faith. Did something terrible happen to me? No. Was it a heinous crime against the church? No. But it was inappropriate.

As a church, we want all things to be done with good order (1 Corinthians 14:40, Colossians 2:5). When we consider the importance and meaning of membership, baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and any number of other issues related to what it means to function biblically as a church, we can see how seriously Christ regards his church.

The Lord’s Supper is for those who are baptised Christians, who have publicly professed their faith in Christ and been accepted as members of a local body of believers, and who have examined themselves. It is a privilege to participate in the Lord’s Supper. Let us do it with great joy!

Children in Church

How can Christian parents and the church best nurture the faith of the children in their care? It’s an important question, and one where churches respond with different answers. The main options are:

Children stay with the adults in the church service the whole time, or
Children leave the service at a certain time (whether it’s after a few songs, or only for the sermon) where they can have dedicated teaching.

Both methods desire children to develop their own faith, and neither is easy.

At Eaglehawk Presbyterian Church we love our children to stay with us for the whole service. We hope this article will help explain why, answer (some) questions, and offer some tips on how to help your children worship our God with you in the pew.

Why keep the children with us?

We believe one of the most significant ways we can parent as Christians is to worship with them, with the covenant community. There are struggles, but they are well worth it. Why?

God made us to worship him

Whether we’re very young or very old, we’re here to worship God. This is why God created us (Gen 1:27; Psa 149:11-13), why we’ve been saved (Rom 12:1-2; Eph 1:4-5), and why we’ll be raised on the Last Day (Rev 19:6-8, 22:3-4).

Worship is both individual and corporate

Throughout the Bible, people are called to worship God both as individuals and a community. In the New Testament we’re called to do everything to God’s glory (1 Cor 10:31), and to gather together (Heb 10:25). Together we are the flock (John 10:16), the body (1 Cor 12:12) and the temple (1 Cor 3:16). When someone is missing from the gathering, we all suffer for it.

Gathered worship involves the Word, prayer, singing and sacraments

God gets to decide how people worship Him, and these are his appointed means. God’s word is to be preached (Neh 8:8; 2 Tim 4:2), we’re to pray (1 Tim 2:1; Col 4:2), sing (Col 3:16), and have baptisms and participate in the Lord’s Supper (Matt 28:19; 1 Cor 11:24-25).

There’s more to say about worship. Our worship should have integrity (not just hearing the Word, but believing and obeying), joy and awe. It should be encouraging and centre on God.

Throughout the Bible, children are included in gathered worship

They take part in the feasts of Israel in the Old Testament (e.g. Passover [Exo 12:26-27]) because they are considered part of the people of God. This is why infant boys were given the sign and seal of the covenant (Gen 17:9-14). This continues in the New Testament. Whether you believe children of believers should receive baptism or not, they are part of the church. They receive the promises (Acts 2:38-39), and they are spoken to in the letters (e.g. Eph 6:1-3; Col 3:20).

There are blessings that come with children worshipping with the church

They hear the Word preached. While it is beneficial for children to have the Bible taught at their level, there is also great benefit in them hearing God’s Word proclaimed to the whole church, and to sit under it themselves. They won’t understand everything, but they will pick things up quicker than we might think.
They see the sacraments (baptism and the Lord’s Supper). They will no doubt ask questions about this, which gives great opportunities to explain the gospel truths.
They join in prayer, hearing what the church prays for each week, and often learn how to pray themselves as they hear others.
They are with the church, surrounded by saints of all ages and walks of life who are examples as they worship with all their heart.
They are with their parents, learning from them what it means to worship God, seeing what is important to them.
It tells them that they can worship God too. It’s not an adult activity; it’s for them.
And it encourages the adults, older saints, as they see these young ones learning how to worship, learning the songs, learning to pray, starting to serve. The older ones are reminded of the call to have child-like faith.

Some tips

We know (all too well!) that children being in the service can be difficult. Parents with young children may feel they miss out on church for a long period of time, as they manage crying and squabbling children. Parents may fear their children will be bored.

But consider that we struggle through these challenges with other things we find important. We battle feeding our children what they need multiple times a day. When something is important to us, we want to include our children, even though they don’t understand the intricacies.

Parents don’t keep their kids away from footy until they can understand the rules – if they love the game they’ll have it on TV, take their kids to the games, and explain as needed. The child won’t always be paying attention, but they’ll learn that it’s a love of their parents, and as they experience it themselves it may become a love of theirs too.

So, what can parents do to help their children in gathered worship?

Talk about church through the week. What were the sermon and songs about?
Try not to make Saturday a late night, and be ready early on Sunday.
Have family worship at home – read the Bible, pray, and sing together.
Whisper to your child occasionally, telling them what hymn you love, or what you were challenged by in the sermon.
Get help from others in the church.
Encourage them to be involved – stand for the songs, give in the offering, bow their heads in the prayers.
Don’t worry about what the other adults are thinking about you! We’re so glad to have children in the church!
Encourage your children when they are behaving (don’t only speak to tell them off!)
Be patient. Your children are learning, and so are you. Pray that they would encounter God through His Word

We know it’s not easy, but there are great moments of joy and blessing. Please join with us as we teach and model worship of our great God to our children.

(This is mostly a summary of Let the Children Worship by Jason Helopoulos – a small book that is highly recommended!)

The disease of Self

We all have a disease. In every part of the globe, in every class of society, the disease of selfishness has infiltrated and wreaked havoc. We can’t escape the day without desiring something for ourselves.

Looking at some newspaper headlines before the start of the year, selfishness was a common theme. One energy company admits to duping customers with cheap rates on sign up only to raise them without warning a few months later. A Hollywood star speaks of being objectified when she was a teenager. A shoplifting syndicate which has been disrupted by police.

But this selfishness isn’t only in the world ‘out there.’ It is in the church, threatening to tear it apart. Consider James 4:1-2 – ‘What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.’

These are words to Christians! And they are a warning we must heed if we want to honour Christ. If we want to be friends with the world, desiring what they desire, we make ourselves enemies of God (Jas 4:4). How can we represent Christ to a fallen world if we are focussed on ourselves – our own reputation, our own preferences?

Jesus calls us to be united together in love. The gospel is to transform us that we no longer listen to selfish desires, but eagerly desire the good for others. Rather than taking, we give. Instead of harbouring grudges, we forgive. We seek to imitate the one who had the glories of heaven but left it for us; who was reviled on the cross but prayed for their forgiveness.

Let’s put selfishness to death, and love one another in 2019.

Waiting for another advent

As we come to the end of one year and anticipate the next, we usually have one of two attitudes: eagerness or dread. We either expect things to improve, or to turn sour.

The reality is, there is a measure of appropriateness to each attitude when they aren’t taken to the extreme. It is right to be hopeful in a world controlled by a good God. It is right to have a measure of apprehension in a world populated by sinners (either regenerate or not).

Our hope can never be merely in the changing of the seasons, or the advance from one year to the next. Our hope must be fixed on something greater and more significant.

We have just celebrated the advent, the coming, of Jesus. Or, to be more precise, we have celebrated his first advent. We’ve celebrated the wonders of the incarnation where God took on flesh in order to bear our punishment.

But there is another advent coming, and it is in this advent that we put our unbridled and unmeasured hope in. Christ will return to claim the world he not only made but died to save.

In Revelation 21:5, God makes that astounding statement, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ In the world to come the old things – death, mourning, crying, pain – will all be done away with. There will only ever be good things, never bad. Only ever joy, never pain. We have no need to be guarded in our anticipation, because it will be greater than we could even imagine.

As we come to a new year, let us put our hope in that Great Day, the dawn of the new age. ‘He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!’ (Rev 22:20).

The Branch has come

CS Lewis once said it would be too difficult to write something like The Screwtape Letters from the opposite point of view. The Screwtape Letters is a fictional record of letters, giving instructions from a senior demon to a junior demon seeking to keep a man from Christ and lure him into sin.

But to attempt something from the angelic perspective? Lewis didn’t have the skill. It seems to be a common lack among storytellers – they can’t imagine the good, pure and holy. The fictional world abounds with dystopian futures, but none that are truly utopian. We either can’t imagine a world that is completely good, or we so sugar-coat it that it becomes boring.

Yet this is the yearning of our hearts. The desire for utopia is the motivator for so many in the political sphere – if only tax rates were… if only those people weren’t allowed here… if only my moral code was legislated – then the world would be perfect!

But utopia will never be gained by man’s laws, or social change, or a health care system, or education, or an immigration policy. Utopia is beyond our reach to achieve. Whether we live in the most progressive or conservative state, we will never reach it.

But a utopia is what God promises to bring. How? By raising up a Branch.

‘Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land’ (Jer 23:5).

The Branch has been raised up. He came, opening the way to the New Creation. And he will come again, this Branch from David, bringing the New Creation with him. O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!

Jesus: the greatest gift

What’s the best gift you’ve ever received? Once Bec and I were given an ice-cream maker! It was fun to make our own flavours. Another year Bec was given a few nights at a B&B near Apollo Bay, which was wonderful!

Unsurprisingly, God is the best gift-giver. Nothing we could give can top what he has already given. And God still promises more!

Consider Isaiah 9:6-7. ‘For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.’

What is God’s gift to us? A son! And what a son he is. We see his authority and majesty all throughout these verses. But surprising, this son will be God himself. He will be called Mighty God, Everlasting Father. We must be careful not to read this verse in isolation, concluding the Father became a man – he didn’t. But Jesus himself said, ‘Whoever has seen me has seen the Father’ (John 14:9).

God was saying that the child would be God, and yet from David. And there is no better gift than that. Nothing you could receive this Christmas could compare with getting God himself. There are many great things to look forward to: an eternal kingdom of justice, righteousness and peace for one. But nothing could compare to God himself.

Do you have God yet? Receive the precious gift of the Son. He died to bring sinners to God. There’s no better gift than that.