Lloyd-Jones and Rewards

This is how Lloyd-Jones concludes his sermon on Matthew 5:11-12. May it stir in you a desire to claim the prize that awaits those who finish the race! Run, Beloved, Run!

"What is this reward? Well, the Bible does not tell us much about it, for a very good reason. It is so glorious and wonderful that our human language is of necessity almost bound to detract from its glory...So there is a sense in which even the Bible cannot tell us about heaven because we should misunderstand it. But it does tell us something like this. We shall see Him as He is, and worship in His glorious presence. Our very bodies will be changed, and glorified, with no sickness or disease. There will be no sorrow, no sighing; all tears shall be wiped away. All will be perpetual glory. No wars or rumors of wars; no separation, no unhappiness, nothing that drags a man down and makes him unhappy, even for a second! .
Unmixed joy, and glory, and holiness, and purity and wonder! That is what is awaiting us. That is your destiny and mine in Christ as certainly as we are alive at this moment. How foolish we are that we do not spend our time in thinking about that. Oh, how we cling to this unhappy, wretched world, and fail to think on these things and to meditate upon them. 'Rejoice, and be exceeding glad.'

How often do you think of heaven and rejoice as you think of it? Does it give you a sense of strangeness and of fear, and a desire, as it were, to avoid it? If It does so to any degree, I fear we must plead guilty that we are living on too low a level. Thoughts of heaven ought to make us rejoice and be exceeding glad."

What holds your gaze?

Concerning persecution Jesus says:
"Blessed are you when others revile and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." Matthew 5:11-12

Rejoice...why? Because your reward is great in heaven! Is this how you think?

Martyn Lloyd-Jones says in relation to this passage:

"According to this outlook [that of Jesus], my whole outlook upon everything that happens to me should be governed by these three things: my realization of who I am, my consciousness of where I am going, and my knowledge of what awaits me when I get there. You will find this argument in many places in the Scriptures. The apostle Paul once put it like this, 'For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.' (2 Corinthians 4:17 -18) The Christian should always be looking at that."

Are you looking at that or is there something more captivating for your attention?

The Ministry of Caring

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

-John 13:34-35

Jesus instructed His followers to love one another. The New Testament speaks of the church as the context where biblical love should be practiced in its highest form. When the New Testament writers speak of love, they use language that brings to mind unity among members and reliance upon one another. Nowhere do we find language that would encourage or affirm individuality. This is the purpose of our caring ministry. We should take the initiative in caring for one another. This is accomplished through times of fellowship and through established relationships that enable us to serve one another.

The Ministry of Teaching

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching…”
-Acts 2:42

Just as our ministry of worship is guided by Scripture, so is our ministry of teaching. The early name for a follower of Christ, disciple, means “learner.” As we have studied in Romans 12, we are to have our minds continually renewed by the Word. This is the purpose of our Sunday School program, the children’s ministry, the youth ministry and the library. We believe that through these avenues we can seek to apply the truths of Scripture to our congregation in a more deliberate way. Our desire is that every member of Grace will be equipped to live out their faith and to glorify God in all of their life.

Mission and Vision (part 1)

The deacons and I this year set as our task to develop a comprehensive mission and vision for Grace Baptist Church. The purpose of this vision is to set the direction for years to come as we use our resources of time, energy, and money. We have settled on four biblical priorities that should guide our church. We have labeled them as ministries because we believe that these are the things that God calls His churches to do. They are the ministry of worship, the ministry of teaching, the ministry of caring, and the ministry of evangelism (including missions).

The Ministry of Worship

“But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
- John 4:23-24

The purpose of our corporate worship is to glorify God through the hearing of His word in exposition, reading, and the proper administration of the ordinances; and to respond to it with prayer, commitment, praise and obedience. In essence as we gather together we are to read Scripture, preach Scripture, pray Scripture, sing Scripture and see Scripture. New Testament worship is not limited to our corporate gatherings; we worship God and honor Him with all we do. This is the vision that we want to promote at GBC. We want to worship the God of the Bible, a holy and majestic God who communicates to us and who desires for us to worship Him in spirit and truth.