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Worthy of Worship
Christ Church on April 2, 2023
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Marriage and the World’s End (Get Married & Stay Married #5)

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INTRODUCTION

Perhaps you’ve watched a skilled artist at work. You watch them paint or carve or shape, moving their hands in ways you can’t, creating something you couldn’t. Then they do something so drastic that you think they’ve ruined the whole thing. That stroke of color was too much. That chiseled off too much marble. That marred the shape of the clay. But somehow it still ends up remarkable. Or think of the skilled cook who bakes & frosts, assembles & garnishes a wonderful spread. Then he invites the guests to dig in, seemingly ruining all the hard work. God is guiding history from one glory to the next. We live in the bright glory of Christ’s resurrection. However, we’re awaiting the final consummation of all things, where this present glory will give place to an eternal weight of glory.

THE TEXT

And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband (Rev. 21:2).

For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee (Isa. 62:5).

SUMMARY OF THE EVENTS

There is something in a wedding that portends the end of the world. Secularists foretell that the world shall end, billions of years from now, either in a slow, cold demise, or a cataclysmic fiery meltdown. The Climate Activists tell us that the world will end in starvation, misery, and breakdown.

These texts, along with numerous others, reveal to us how the world will really end: marriage bells. A gloriously adorned bride, free of all flaw. A mighty Bridegroom, rejoicing and beaming with delight over His bride. An eternal covenant, which cannot and will not be broken or transgressed. A sweet consummation of fellowship free from sin, brimful of God’s great love, with no sorrow or sighing to be heard of.

John’s description is that of New Jerusalem walking down the aisle, as it were. The church made complete, coming to rest in the arms of her beloved Savior. Along the same lines, Isaiah uses the picture of the returning exiles of Israel to describe the end of the world, and he uses marital language as well to describe it. The sons would delight in the land of promise, as if marrying it. While even better, God would rejoice over His people like a bridegroom delights in His bride.

WHAT IS MARRIAGE? WHAT IS IT FOR?

If this be the case, the question arises: does your marriage (or your pursuit of marriage) preach a true or false Gospel? Hookups, porn, divorce, adultery, gay mirage, kink, polygamy, violent actions, and profane language/arguments are all ways of taking the Gospel glory which ought to be displayed in marriage and falsifying it. If marriage is to be a picture of Christ & the church, married Christians, or Christian singles who are pursuing marriage should ask whether they are presenting a faithful portrait of the end of the world.

There are two things which make a marriage what it is. A marriage is a solemn, lifelong vow between one man & one woman which is then consummated. You can have a vow that is never consummated, but that is more like roommates or business partners. You can also consummate without vows, but that is like trying to plant a garden in the middle of Times Square. It’s oxymoronic to speak of “redefining marriage.” You might as well speak of replacing the sun, or rearranging the constellations, or refilling the ocean.

BUILDING AROUND A BONFIRE

The WCF gives a helpful three-fold purpose for marriage: companionship, propagation of godly children; and in this fallen world, a curb against uncleanness. The order matters. The first tells us that we are not made for the isolation pods. God made us for fellowship (with Him and each other) (Cf. Gen. 2:18); marriage is ground zero for loving thy neighbor. The second teaches us that this marriage union is to be physical & fruitful (Mal. 2:15). It is to increase fellowship, not decrease it.

The third one is, perhaps, easily misunderstood; it might make us think, wrongly, that God is a repressive kill-joy. Rather, marriage is a safeguard against the misery of uncleanness (1 Cor. 7:2, 9). The misery which marriage guards us from is that of fatherless children, aborted unborn, an unending drumbeat of guilt for shameful deeds, the grief that is divorce, the impossibility of fruitful unions.

The modern world is full of smoldering ruins. The belief is that your momentary pleasure is central to your existence. this conviction is like thinking the best foundation for building your life is a napalm fire of sexual indulgence. The culture then wonders why the framing keeps catching fire, the concrete keeps getting charred, and the plumbing keeps melting. The marriage vows are the foundation, framing, and roof. The consummation is like the sturdy fireplace.

MEN ARE LINEAR, WOMEN ARE CIRCULAR

Marriage can only be constituted between one man and one woman. This is because marriage isn’t something which can be built using outsourced parts and a good bit of duct-tape. Man has been given a mandate (Gen. 1:28) and a Great Commission (Mt. 28:19-20). In both instances, we see that God intended husband & wife together to serve the task in their respective ways.

Men are linear. They must have a mission to pursue, a problem to solve, a rival to subdue, a challenge to overcome. Meanwhile women are circular. They must have a brood to gather in, a flock to nurture, a rhythm to dance to, a garden to fill & beautify.

Problems arise when husbands want their wives to be linear, and wives want their husbands to be circular. Men are to go out like a rocket, but wives are to draw them in again. Wives are to encircle their home, but a husband must lead his family forward so the encircling doesn’t become a smothering.

THE WORLD TO COME

God is orchestrating history towards a wondrous denouement. Christ dwelling with the church in unbroken joy, uninterrupted love, and unthreatened peace. Eden not only restored, but glorified. Eden was the seed, the New Jerusalem is the ever fruitful tree.

Lewis once gave the example of trying to describe for a child the delight which a married couple enjoy in their physical union. The child would still prefer chocolate. He can’t comprehend a joy that he isn’t yet ready for. This is what earthly marriage is. It is a preliminary joy intended to ready the church for the joy beyond the shadows. Real joy. God is like that artist which we began with. He has given us this glorious thing called marriage, and yet He assures us that it will soon be supplanted by the True Marriage.

The joy which you shall partake of in eternity isn’t contained by mere moments & glimpses. The hymn gets it spot on when it says, “Solid joys and lasting treasure” are what await Zion’s children. This joy is promised to those who lay hold of Christ by faith. It doesn’t come through good behavior. It doesn’t come from being woke or based. It comes to us through Christ, who sought us and bought us to be His holy bride.

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The End of the World is Just the Beginning: Part 2

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INTRODUCTION

Revelation is a notoriously challenging book of the Bible, but like the rest of Scripture, it was written for our edification. Much of it is written in highly symbolic language, but it was written to “reveal” the truth not confuse or obscure it. One of the interpretive keys comes at the very beginning: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God have unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass… Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear… for the time is at hand” (Rev. 1:1, 3).

What John saw in the Revelation was an apocalyptic vision of things that had happened or were about to happen in the first century. We noted last week that what Jesus described as the end of the world was the end of the Old Covenant world and the inauguration of a New Heavens and New Earth upon His Ascension. Likewise, here we see another angle on the same events: the defeat of Satan and His kingdom by the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus.

THE TEXT

“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feed, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: and she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered…”

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

John sees two signs in Heaven: first a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head (Rev. 12:1). Like Joseph’s dream, this woman represents Israel, from Eve to Mary, travailing in birth (Rev. 12:2), and she is being threatened by the second sign: a dragon standing before the woman waiting to devour her child (Rev. 12:3-4). This reminds us of Herod and the slaughter of the innocents. The child that is born is Jesus: the man who is to rule all nations with a rod of iron (Rev. 12:5, cf. Ps. 2), and He is caught up to Heaven to God (Rev. 12:5). While the woman flees into the desert, a war breaks out in heaven, and Michael and his angels fight and defeat and cast out the great red dragon, who is that old serpent from the Garden of Eden, the Devil and Satan (Rev. 12:6-9). When this happens, John hears a loud voice announcing that salvation and the kingdom of God and of His Christ is come because the Accuser has been cast down to earth where he is overcome by the saints by the blood of the Lamb and their testimony (Rev. 12:10-11).

THE ACCUSER OF THE BRETHREN

This text together with others implies that before Christ came Satan (meaning “Accuser”) enjoyed far greater power, and in particular, access to heaven to accuse the brethren before God night and day (Rev. 12:10). We see this in the book of Job, where Satan is in heaven accusing Job of only serving God because God has blessed him (Job 1:9-10).

But at the Ascension of Jesus, the power of the Accuser was destroyed and he was cast down out of Heaven. How did this happen? The power of Satan the Dragon is the power of death: “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Heb. 2:14-15). Why do sinners fear death and why are they in bondage? Because “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 8:23). Guilty sinners know that they deserve death, but Christ came to deliver sinners by paying for their sin and forgiving them, so that they no longer fear death and Satan has no power over them: “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Col. 2:13-15).

THE JUDGMENT OF THIS WORLD

This cosmic change cannot be underestimated. Jesus described this shift as the “judgment of this world”: “Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die” (Jn. 12:31-33). Likewise: “And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. No man can enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house” (Mk. 3:26-27). This is exactly what Jesus came to do, and He did, beginning with sending out the 70 evangelists during His earthly ministry: “And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Lk. 10:17-19).

In Daniel, an angel describes angelic beings over nations (e.g. the “prince of Persia” and the “prince of Greece”), and how Michael “your prince” (“one of the chief princes”) fought with them (Dan. 10:13-21). This suggests that in the Old Covenant world, angels and demons played a far more significant role in international politics, but with the coming of Jesus, the “principalities and powers” have been spoiled. Because Christ is on the throne, those who reign with Him will judge angels (1 Cor. 6:3). Whether the war in heaven that John saw is symbolic of the earthly ministry of Jesus or it is the heavenly parallel of the same events, the point is the same: Satan has been cast down, significantly bound, and His power of accusation is greatly diminished because of the blood of the Lamb. Jesus has taken captivity captive (Eph. 4:8).

CONCLUSION

So what does this mean for us? Satan has been cast down to earth where he can still make some havoc. He can and does prowl about like a lion (1 Pet. 5:8), but because of Christ, he is a wounded and shackled lion and his lies and accusations can be overcome by the blood of the Lamb.

This is why Paul tells the Romans that they can expect the God of peace to “crush Satan under your feet shortly” (Rom. 16:20). Because of Christmas, we live in a new world: “No more let sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground; He comes to make His blessings flow, far as the curse is found.”

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New Birth & New Creation

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INTRODUCTION

The theme of creation and new creation is a significant one in Scripture, but sometimes we may forget where God has determined to begin that new work. The new birth is not merely a significant improvement of who we are. It is a new creation; it is heaven breaking into this world. And this is what makes the Christian Church tick. This is what makes Moscow tick. This is the center of who we are and what we’re about.

THE TEXT

“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create… I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; not more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress…” (Is. 65:17).

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband… He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:1-4)

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Cor. 5:17).

HEAVEN IS FOR REAL

Because of where I want to focus this message, it is important to nail a couple of things down first. None of what follows should be taken to downplay or lessen the physical return of Christ, the glory of heaven, or the new heavens and new earth in the slightest. For Christians to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord in heaven, and it is far better to be with the Lord than to be here (2 Cor. 5:8). At the resurrection, when we are clothed once more in new, immortal bodies, all things will be finally and completely made right (1 Cor. 15:15:53-55). The glory of heaven will be immense and completely perfect. We will see God face to face, and we will be like Him, without any sin or suffering (Rev. 22:3-5, 1 Jn. 3:2). This is our hope and joy.

HEAVEN ON EARTH

Nevertheless, Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We pray that heaven would come down to earth. And Scripture says that the new heavens and new earth are coming down out of heaven like a bride coming down the aisle to her husband, like a city full of light and jewels (Rev. 21:1-2ff). Furthermore, the Bible teaches that by the gift of the Spirit, God has come to dwell with us already: “By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us His Spirit” (1 Jn. 4:13). Finally, we are able to behold the glory of the Lord even now, so that we are being transformed from one degree of glory to another, becoming more and more like Him in this life (2 Cor. 3:18). What is that like?

HEAVEN NOW

The temptation – growing up in a Christian family/church/school is to take this for granted, to underplay the radical nature of the new birth. The great blessing of living in a covenant community is the momentum and gravity generally pulling in the direction of holiness and faithfulness. But that is also the context in which it can become perilously easy to float, to go with the flow, which is not the same thing at all as being made new. The text says, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17). To be “in Christ” is to be made completely new. The old has passed away, the new has come. Another way to make this point is to recognize that the language of “new creation” is the language of heaven.

What is heaven? It is the presence of Christ – God with us. It is the presence of His perfection, His holiness, His joy, such that we know Him and the power of His resurrection (cf. Phil. 3:10). Heaven is the full possession of unending, indestructible, abundant life. And what does Jesus say? “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die” (Jn. 11:25-26). Our text from Isaiah 65 goes on to describe life in this world, foretelling days in which people live extraordinarily long lives and children are born for blessing and not cursing (Is. 65:20-23). In other words, that new heavens and new earth begin here, in a Jerusalem of rejoicing, where there is no weeping or crying (Is. 65:18-19). For those who are new creations in Christ, the old is passed away. Christ is with us and everything is fine. He is wiping away every tear even now.

CONCLUSION

The same Creator God who commanded light to shine out of the darkness in the beginning is still in the business of creating new worlds in human hearts, through the knowledge of the glory of God in Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:6). We have this treasure in the earthen vessels of fallen bodies and souls (2 Cor. 4:7). But this is the point: we have this treasure. The New Birth is a New Creation of a new and perfect world inside every believer.

Do not settle for a decent conservative Christian life. Do not settle for reasonable. Do no settle for mediocre. Christ does not make mutant mistakes. Christ died to make people new creations. Christ rose in order to give the treasure of everlasting life – heaven now. He came to give abundant life, to make us more than conquerors. We do live in a veil of tears, but if you are in Christ, you live in that veil of tears with Christ. Christ is with you and in you. And if Christ is in you, the fullness of heaven is already in you and your tears disappear almost as quickly as they appear. Do you have that treasure? Do you know that joy? It is impossible for you to get this for yourself, but it is something that God delights to do. Call on Him now. Turn to Him now.

This is what makes us tick: Jesus. 2000 years ago He was crucified on a Roman cross between two thieves. And when He was beaten, whipped, and nailed to that cross, our sins were laid upon Him. And now we bear them no more. The old is passed away, behold the new has come. Because Christ is here. He is with us. He is our heaven, and He holds us tight.

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Kingly Obedience (Ascension 2021)

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INTRODUCTION

The progress of the gospel throughout the world is certainly going to have the effect of making your neighborhood a lot nicer, but that should not be considered as the extent of it. We look forward to the time when every son of Israel is at peace under his own fig tree, but there are also larger geopolitical issues involved. And those issues are directly related to what we are celebrating on this Ascension Sunday.

THE TEXTS

“And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh” (Matt. 2:11).

“And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it” (Rev. 21:24–26).

“Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers; They shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth, and lick up the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord, for they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me” (Is. 49:23, NKJV).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXTS

Our first text is one we are accustomed to refer to in our Christmas celebrations because the story is given to us in the narrative of Christ’s birth at Bethlehem. But the story is also proleptic or anticipatory. What August did unwittingly, what Herod rebelled against doing, these rulers from the east did gladly, and that was to serve the interests of the holy family. These men worshiped the Lord, and they brought gifts to Him. That is what all the kings of the earth are summoned to do (Ps. 2:12), and which all will eventually do. Revelation tells us that leaves from the trees of life will be made readily available for the healing of the nations, and the New Jerusalem, which is the Christian church, will provide light for the nations to live by. The nations, and their kings, will bring their glory and honor into the Church. What the devil offered to Christ on that very high mountain as a bribe (Matt. 4:8) is instead brought into His Church as bounden tribute. This all happens when the Gentile nations bring sons of God in their arms and carry daughters of God on their shoulders. They will support the Church, not as lords over the Church, but as sons and daughters of the church themselves. Just as Jacob bowed down to Joseph, so also the mighty ones of the earth will acknowledge the wisdom of God resident in the Church, and will do so as they bow down.

A VOICE OF AUTHORITY

But before the kings of the earth will recognize the great authority that has been bestowed on the Church, something else must come first. The rulers of the Church will have to recognize it first, and they will have to repent of acting so embarrassed. The Church is not a social club with an interest in theological topics, in which we dabble during our Sunday meetings. Rather the Church is a militant army that makes the gates of Hades tremble as though they were the gates of Jericho.

There is something in the carriage of this kind of authority that makes carnal rulers shake, even when it appears that they are holding all the cards. “When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid” (John 19:80). Why on earth would Pilate be afraid?

MIGHTY THROUGH GOD

A robust eschatology encompasses all of history. The “end times” are the last chapter in the story, and if you understand the last chapter, you understand the whole book. And as God is the author of the entire story, and because we are His friends, He has invited us to read His story in manuscript, well before final publication.

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled” (2 Cor. 10:3–6).

These words were written, and understood, and acted on, by the apostle Paul, who lived two thousand years ago. That being the case, he was clearly playing the long game. And because he was playing the long game two thousand years ago, we have no business refusing to play that same long game. Every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:10-11). The earth will be as full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14).

So as God gives opportunity, and we stand before rulers and kings, we should be bold to declare what the magi in Bethlehem saw so clearly. We should be willing to echo what Paul said to Agrippa.

“For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely: for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest. Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds” (Acts 26:26–29).

Where does such authority come from? It comes from the recognition that the Christ who was crucified was the same Christ who was raised, and the Christ who was raised is the same Christ who has ascended to the right hand of the Father— where He has been given blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and might, amen (Rev. 7:12).

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