Matt Robison

Prayer and the Armor of God

Intro:

Even Jesus, who enjoyed such an intimate relationship and oneness with the Father, where it seemed prayer would be superfluous – still prayed continuously. Ever vigilant in prayer.

We need prayer, but its not just a responsibility and a need. Because if it were, it easily becomes the last resort of the desperate, Instead of being looked on as the high privilege of being a child of the king.

It easily becomes the ritual before each meal, and not looked on as of being able to enter the throne room of the creator of heaven and earth.

Unannounced.

Whenever we want.

The Work of Your Hands and the Image of God

Intro to Sermon:

1 Thess 4:9-12

Last night before your dinner, you probably said a prayer, and thanked God for the food you were about to eat. And that is good and proper. It is God that provides all of our needs. Psalm 136:25 says that he gives food to all flesh, for his steadfast love endures forever. We are told by Jesus in Matthew chapter 6 that it is God who provides for the birds of the air, even though they do not sow or harvest. How much more so will he take care of us? And in the model prayer Jesus provides just before that, he says that we should ask for our daily bread. Because our daily bread comes from God.

And yet….how did God feed us? He didn’t

He provided it with common means and circumstances. It was the farmer who reaped a harvest and sold the grain. The baker who actually made the bread. The truck driver who drove it across the country to your chosen grocery store. The third-shift worker who stocked the shelves at 3:00 AM in the morning, so you could easily find what you were looking for.

All of these things conspired to give you your daily bread yesterday. All of these things are everyday jobs of normal people, some would say mundane jobs. And yet it was actually God working through them to care for you and your family. There is a very real sense that when the farmer puts his hand to the plow, God is putting his hand to the plow.

This has some staggering implications, some of which we will be talking about today, but the first one is the importance of the work of men’s hands. Even mundane work. Maybe even ESPECIALLY.

That’s what we are going to be talking about today. And we are going to start at the very beginning. Literally, the very beginning.

Discerning the Body

1 Cor. 11:17-29

Paul warns those in the Corinthian church to not eat the bread or drink the cup in an unworthy manner, and then gives immediate advice on how to do it in a worthy manner. Let a person examine himself before partaking.

But what does that mean? Examine himself for what?

In an apparent reversal, Paul then explains further: “For anyone who eats the drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgement on himself.”

To properly examine ourselves, we must discern the body. Certainly, Paul has in mind Christ’s body. He resolved to preach nothing but Christ and him crucified, it was Christ’s body that hung on that cruel tree, and it is Christ’s body that the bread most obviously represents.

But in the rest of the letter, what has been Paul’s emphasis? What seems to be the main problem for the Corinthian church? At the beginning of the letter, he rebukes the church for having divisions among them. Just before talking about the establishment of the Lord’s Supper, he brings the divisions up again. When they come together, it is not for the better, but for the worse.

Because of these divisions, one of which being the division between the rich and the poor, it is not really the Lord’s Supper that they eat, and they eat it to their condemnation.

Paul isn’t done with the topic yet. Immediately after his instructions, he talks about spiritual gifts and then he picks up the subject of unity once again. The body does not consist of one member, but many, each with their own function. There are many parts, but one body.

Chapter 12 and verse 27: “Now you are the body of Christ, and individually members of it.”

The Lord’s Supper is not a meal that’s just between you and Jesus. You come to the table of the King with your brothers and sisters. You sit at the table with the rest of your family. You do not eat this meal alone.

What does it mean to discern the body of Christ? Look to your left, and then look to your right. Look at who is sitting in front of you. We are called to love one another. In the very next chapter, Chapter 13, Paul shows us what he calls a more excellent way. Faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is love. For love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

What does it mean to discern the body of Christ? To love the body. To pray for the body. To find ways to give yourself up for the body, just as the example of Christ that we are about to memorialize right now. It means to not despise the body, and that means to not despise other members of the body. To be aware of each other’s presence, and not wallow in morbid introspection.

But Chapter 11 isn’t the only place Paul talks about the Lord’s Supper in this letter. In chapter 10, starting in verse 16, it says: “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar?”

Just as with the peace offering of old Israel, we are participants. We eat the bread, and are reminded of the peace that God has declared between us and Him. We are reminded that, before God looks at us with deserving wrath, he first looks at His own Son, on whom he poured out his wrath instead. He first looks at Jesus, and then looks at us in peace and fellowship.

When we look at others, we too must first look at Jesus. And then we must look at his body in peace and fellowship.

The table is not a place for strife. It is not a place for anger. It is not a place for envy. It is a place for peace. If you have something against your brother or sister, or if you think a brother or sister has something against you, it does not belong at this table.

Matthew 5:23

“So if you are offering your gift at the alter and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the alter and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”

If we are only pretending to have unity here at the table, only pretending that there is peace among us, we are just eating and drinking judgement on ourselves. This is a table of no condemnation. This meal is a sign that God no longer accuses you. So do not bring your accusations and condemnations of a fellow brother here, even if they are just in your own head.

The paradox of the Lord’s Supper is that, to partake of it in a worthy manner, we must first recognize our unworthiness to partake of it. You should not fret and worry about your unworthiness. That’s part of the whole point. Of course you are unworthy to eat with the King. But that also means you should not fret an worry about the unworthiness of everyone else. Have you been slighted? Hurt? Has someone in the body done you harm? Of course they have. That is a given. They are unworthy. And so are you.

The body of Christ was broken on the cross, so that his body here, gathered at the table might be stitched together. The body of Christ was torn and pierced, so that this body here might be mended and unified. And the body of Christ was made alive again and glorified, so that this body here might have new life.

So as you partake of this meal, discern the body. Not the dead body that was put into the tomb, divided from spirit, but the living body of the resurrected Christ, and the living body into which you have been grafted.

Inclusio of Obedience in Romans…or Something More?

Romans is bracketed by a clear inclusio.

Romans 1:5

…through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations…(ESV)

Romans 16:26

…but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith…(ESV)

Or so it may seem. These verses might be the outer walls of a chiasm that organizes the whole letter. Given how other things begin to line up, I’m leaning toward the chiasm. (A chiasm is simply a literary structure used in ancient texts, including the Bible, to emphasize certain points, draw concepts in parallel, contrast similar but different ideas, or perhaps just aid in memorization. Read the wikipedia article I linked to for more information.)

In Chapter 1:9-15, Paul tells them that he longs to go to Rome. And then towards the end of the letter, starting at 15:22, we have Paul again telling them that he longs to visit, and then offer his greetings to several individuals. That is compelling evidence, I think.

The letter is sprinkled with other, smaller chiasms throughout, and a quick Google search will give you some examples. But I only stumbled on one other site that even hinted at single, foundational structure for the whole letter that took the true bookends as starting points. I probably just didn’t look hard enough, but this gives me an excuse to exercise and flex some synapses.

So here is my rough attempt at sketching out the overall chiastic structure. Key differences are emphasized.

A. The gospel promised through the prophets in the holy scriptures. To bring about the obedience of faith in the nations. (Romans 1:1-7)

B. Longing to go to Rome. Harvest among the Gentiles. The righteous shall live by faith. (Romans 1:8-17)

C. The wrath of God revealed. Men have no excuse and are deserving of death. Idolatry. Dishonorable passions and did not acknowledge God. You have no excuse. In passing judgement, you condemn yourself. God will render to each according to their deeds. God shows no partiality. Obedience. Doers, not hearers. Guide to blind, a light to those in darkness? Name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles. (Romans 1:18 – 2:24).

D. Circumcision is a matter of the heart. Doers of the law, not only hearers. The Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. God is not unrighteous to judge to the world. None is righteous. Both Jews and Gentiles are under sin. No distinction: all have sinned. God passed over by his blood (sacrificial overtones) former sins. God is God of the Jews and the Gentiles. What becomes of our boasting? We are justified by faith, apart from works of the law. Abraham the father of all who believe (brotherhood), the father of many nations. Abraham is heir of the world. (Romans 2:12 – 4:25)

D’. No distinction between Jew and Gentile. The Lord is Lord of all. The Jew’s rejection meant the reconciliation of the world. The Gentiles grafted into the promises of Abraham, supported by the root. All consigned to disobedience, so God may have mercy on all. Present your bodies a living sacrifice. One body, many members. Overcome evil with good. No authority except what has been instituted by God, and whoever resists will incur judgement. Love one another, and therefore fulfill the law. (Romans 10:5 – 13:11)

C’. Do not pass judgement on the servant of another. Cast of works of darkness, put on armor of light. Observing and eating to the honor of the Lord, because of giving thanks to God (or, acknowledging God). Each man will give an account. God is praised among the Gentiles. (Romans 13:12 – 15:13)

B’. Offering of the Gentiles. Plans to visit Rome. Greetings. (Romans 15:14 – 16:16)

A’. The gospel revealed (or disclosed, made manifest) through the prophetic writings. To bring about the obedience of faith.

There are many things to tease out of this structure, the most obvious being the play promise/revealed and on harvest/offering in parts A and B. I’ll be expanding some of these concepts in later posts. There is also an overriding theme of “exodus” that shines through in many places, which can be studied for profit.

In chapter 2, there is some overlap of verses that seem to belong to two parts. Each part emphasizes something a little differently. Better to treat the separations more like the gentle waves on a beach and less like sterile, impenetrable walls. There is harmonious overlap, but clear distinction. Paul goes back and forth on some topics several times.

I honestly don’t know how I would structure the middle. I would need to read it a few more times, and look at other chiastic structures besides the most obvious parallelism. But parts A and B, I think are the clear beginnings of a chiasm, and so that gives us a hint as to how everything else is structured.

What do you think? What would you change? Is there an outline or structure that better matches up?

The Purpose of Food

What is the primary purpose of eating food?

The common answer is that it keeps us alive. It gives us strength. Food certainly accomplishes this and more. But if that were the primary purpose, if that were the main reason we needed to eat, it seems there is a whole lot of wasteful abundance.

God could have just made a pill that fulfilled all of our nutritional needs. Take once a day, and…that’s it.

Instead we see an all-you-can-eat buffet spread out before us. A variety of trees carve up the same air molecules and produce a variety of different types of fruit. The list is too long to recite.

A rainbow of vegetables spring up from the ground. Do you know how many different cuts of meat, different flavors and textures, can come from a single cow? At least 12. And that’s just one animal.

Why? Why all the apparent excess? Surely we could get by with far less. And if the primary purpose of food was to sustain us, then that would be a fair point. But the primary purpose of food is not really to feed the body. The primary purpose of food and eating is really to minister to the soul.

David hints at this in Psalm 34:8a. “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!”

And in this meal, the Lord’s Supper, this is infinitely true. Here, above all other meals, we taste, and see that the LORD is good. We look to the cross and see that the LORD is good. We look to the Son’s broken body and shed blood and see that the LORD is good.

And then we look at the empty tomb…and we see that the LORD is very good.

At the beginning of creation, the second instruction God gives to man is that he should eat of the earth:

“And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.” (Genesis 1:29) (ESV)

God gives man no less than the world itself, laid out like a grand banquet, to give Man life. Man did not deserve it. It was given freely as a gift. This Father, whose imagination knows no limits, who already gave man everything, then gave his own Son so man might have life more abundantly (John 10:10).

Not surprisingly, this abundant life, this new creation, is described throughout Scripture as a glorious banquet, bursting at the seams with good food and rich wine. In the context of the institution of the Supper, Jesus says in Luke 22:29-30, that “I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom…”

We are given a kingdom SO THAT we can eat with Jesus.

So what is the purpose of food? Like everything else in creation. To point to Christ. To point to the one through whom it was made. To point to this meal and the great meal we will share with Him in the world to come. So that we can dine at the table of the Great King.

So taste, and see that the LORD is good.