Omc: Family Chapel

Having persuasively defended the authenticity of his gospel and his apostleship, the question that now lingers in the heads of the Galatians is: “Okay, Paul, if you’re right, then does that mean the Jerusalem leaders are wrong? Is there division in the Church?” Paul responds by showing how he and the Jerusalem leaders share unity in the Gospel. They are in fundamental agreement that it is faith in Christ alone, and not obedience to the Law, that is needed for salvation. And maintaining this unity in the Gospel is of the utmost importance for Paul because if we want to get the Gospel out, we need to first get the Gospel right.

After calling out the false teachers for their false gospel, the question that naturally comes up is: "Okay, Paul, but what makes your gospel the true Gospel? How can we trust that what you're saying is true?" Paul anticipates that question and he responds by sharing about how he came to receive the Gospel. And he makes it very clear that he received the Gospel, not through any man, but through God Himself, who chose him, saved him, and commissioned him to preach that Gospel. We too can rest assured that the true Gospel about God has come from God!

Paul addresses the problem of a false gospel. And he shows us that a false gospel is not just fake news, it's bad news. Unlike the true Gospel, which comes from God, centers on the person and work of Jesus Christ, and provides new life, a false gospel only leads to destruction. We have to faithfully hold on to the Good News in a fake news world because there is no other Gospel.

God is committed to our change, but the Christian's transformation is progressive in nature. Sanctification is God's work and often includes pain and suffering, but He has also given us the most amazing gift to cooperate with that work, and that is the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 1 describes a person who is thriving as a healthy tree that is well planted and bears much fruit. But thriving does not happen by accident. Rather, thriving requires intentional cultivation. If we want to truly grow in the life we have received in Christ, we need to prune away our sin and we need to be rooted in God's Word.

With a new year, we do have a new theme for OMC: Family Chapel: "Thrive". We want to be healthy disciples that holistically follow Jesus in every arena of our lives. But so often, our lives don’t look like they’re thriving. Instead, we envision following Jesus to be one long, miserable march of just barely scraping by. But we see in Scripture that Jesus offers us a holistically, abundant life. Instead of trying to make life work on our own terms, would we receive the life that Jesus offers? It is a far better life. It is an abundant life, an overflowing life, a joyful life. This is life in Christ. This is the life that thrives!

As we close our series on the Person of the Holy Spirit, we will end by looking at the gifts of the Spirit. Just as it is the Holy Spirit who empowers us to live the Kingdom Life, it is Him who provides the gifts/abilities to build up His Kingdom. All believers in Christ are gifted by the Spirit, and we are called to use these gifts for the building of the church and the faith of those around us.

We have the death-defeating, sin-crushing, life-giving power of the Holy Spirit residing in us, but so often, we seek to handle life by our own strength. How are we able to tap into the power that is available to us through the Holy Spirit? That happens as we are filled with the Spirit. To be filled with the Spirit is to be empowered by the Spirit. And we are filled with the Spirit's power to fulfill the Spirit's purpose in magnifying Christ through our faithful witness.

Upon giving us new life, the Holy Spirit seeks to make us holy – to look more like Jesus. The new birth gives way to new growth as the Spirit carries out His work of sanctification in us. The work of sanctification is carried out in our lives by our effort through the Spirit's power, in having us behold Jesus to become more like Jesus.

Now that we’ve seen who the Holy Spirit is, over the next few weeks, we’ll be looking at what the Holy Spirit does. And the first work of the Spirit that we’ll be looking at is what theologians call “regeneration”. Regeneration is the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit in which He gives new spiritual life to those who are spiritually dead. We are made alive by the Spirit to live the Kingdom life!

For the past year, Family Chapel's theme has been "The Kingdom Life", and while we have seen what it looks like to live the Kingdom Life, we have not specifically addressed where the power to live it comes from. If we as believers want to live out the Kingdom Life, we need to know the One from whom the power comes from: the Holy Spirit. This week we will see who the Holy Spirit is and His relationship with us. The Holy Spirit is a full-fledged Person within the triune Godhead, and experiencing His presence means walking in relationship with Him.

As we close our 1-2 Samuel series, we see that in the end, David is successful as Israel’s king, not because he is great, but because he knows the One who is truly great. For all of his flaws and mistakes, David consistently comes back to this central truth that the true King is Yahweh. The key to successfully living the Kingdom Life is found in living for the King.

In looking back on his life, David sees the grace of God protecting him from life's difficulties and granting him life's victories. Our lives in God's Kingdom are truly marked by God's grace and faithfulness. And the only appropriate response to what God has done in our lives is to praise Him.

Here in chapter 21, we see that Saul has massacred Gibeonites. In doing so, he broke a 400 year old covenant with them (see Joshua 9:15-18). Because of this breaking of covenant, God sends the curse of famine on Israel. In order to remedy the curse, David has to make atonement by offering up 7 sons of Saul as a sacrifice. While this story may seem culturally strange to us, we see the need for atonement in our own lives as we have broken covenant with God because of our sin. Thankfully, we have a better Son, who shed His blood to secure atonement for us.

In the aftermath of the civil war between David and Absalom, we’re faced with the broader fallout of the national consequences of David’s sins. The nation is splintered, and broken relationships need to be mended. In these two chapters, we see the need for David to take responsibility and do the agonizing work of reconciliation and restoration. But the subsequent revolt by Sheba points to the sobering reality that reconciliation is often messy. So in the midst of the shortcomings of David, the anointed King of Israel, we hear the cry for a better Messiah King to come. Jesus our true Messiah King not only grants us reconciliation, but also gifts us with the ministry of reconciliation. Through Jesus, we can not only break the generational sins, but also have hope and power to bring reconciliation as well.

While the punishment for David's sins was covered by God's mercy, the consequences of David's sins remain. And we see that when sins are not dealt with by the older generation, those same sins are repeated in the younger generation. In these 6 chapters, we see the sad unraveling of David's family, as they engage in the same sins of David: lust, deception, and murder. Generational sins impact every family and require both generations to address them. Thankfully, in Christ, we have one who redeems us out of the cycle of our "earthly father's" sins and brings us to be like our Heavenly Father. Jesus ends the curse of generational sins by bringing us into a new family.

After securing great success and enjoying the heights of his kingship, David falls to an all-time low as he engages in great sin. Through David committing adultery and murder, we see the anatomy of sin. But the greater truth of this passage is that when we repent, our great sin is met with greater mercy. And in Christ, we see the greatest expression of God's greater mercy.

After receiving the promises of the Davidic covenant, David begins to experience success like Israel has never seen before. Many of us yearn for success in life, but how are we to handle it when it actually comes? Through this passage, we see that true success is faithfully fulfilling one's calling. And through David's success, we see the greater success of the Greater David, who fulfilled His calling by going to the cross to defeat our enemies and to secure our place in His Kingdom.

We can continue to carry out the mission of God in an ever-changing culture by being slow to speak and quick to listen. When we listen well, we reflect to the world the love of the God who hears. The greatest demonstration of this love is seen at the cross, where God hears the deepest cries of our hearts and sends His Son to save us.

In our passage this week, David seeks to secure the favor of God upon his kingship with a plan to build a house for God. Yet, in response to this seemingly noble act, God responds in an unexpected way. God shows us that His favor is not something that we earn; it is something that is given freely by God in His grace and mercy. Our God is the covenant-making and covenant-keeping God, and we will see that our primary response to His faithfulness ought to be awestruck humility and faith.