Tag: COVID-19

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Obviously Hated

It was a year ago this past Sunday that our church started the first of seven livestream only services, including Resurrection Sunday. As a church we initially accepted what we were told, trusting the message about the severity of the virus as well as the timeframe for the lockdown: fifteen days to flatten the curve. We have learned a lot since then, not just about COVID but about the many faces of soft-(and scientific sounding)-tyranny.

A couple weeks ago at our Life to Life group we discussed the past year. A couple men mentioned that they sort of wished that we, as Christians, not just at TEC but including us, would have been both more unified and more attacked. As a church we’ve tried to avoid being obnoxious, and who knows all the ways we’ve been protected. But again, some of the guys wished that we’d been more obviously hated.

A few things:

First, we’re not done, there is still plenty of time.

Second, at heart this is a good longing.

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).

Being jealous for the blessing is appropriate. Being pour in spirit, mourning for sin, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, these are things that are more up to us. But being persecuted, and receiving the blessing that comes with it, requires outside hatred.

Third, now is a good time to get ready for not just the blessings, but the pains. It’s a less good time to talk about the sovereignty of God for the first time right after your friend’s cancer diagnosis, and it’s a less good time to talk about rejoicing and reward for being reviled once the attack bots on Twitter are released.

We are to “rejoice and be glad.” We will respond that way when we mourn our own sins first, when we hunger and thirst for righteousness, when we are pure in heart, when we make as much peace as possible. We will respond that way when we see ourselves in the long line of God’s people (as in the prophets) and when we see that we are promised great reward in heaven for worshiping the Son.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Soap, Water, and Anxiousness

There are at least three levels of crisis in the world currently: physical crisis, cultural crisis, and eternal crisis.

The first two levels are hand in glove, or like soap and water. The physical sicknesses and deaths of COVID-19 are real, though they have been made worse by the lathering of cultural anxiousness. The coronavirus attacks blood and internal body parts, and coronapocrisy hoards toilet paper and tattles on non-social distancers in the name of neighbor-love. Thankfully, not every hospital bed has been filled so far like was predicted, but unfortunately most of the political seats are still full of greed.

We can pray that God’s providential shake-up is being used by God to wake-up sinners to the eternal crisis. Because of sin they are separated from God, and whether they die from a virus, or they die from hunger, or they die from violence, God’s vengeance is still on them for their own unbelief and ingratitude before Him.

In the COVID-19 world is sickness, selfishness, and separation. In Christ is healing, love, and fellowship.

By faith in Christ we overcome the world. “Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world–our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 4:4-5). We are a communion of conquerors, and our communion is conquering.

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A Shot of Encouragement

MacArthur Out of the Corner

I am very grateful for how John MacArthur has come out of the corner on behalf of his flock, for the sake of religious liberty, and in service to all the other churches that will benefit from his stand.

Dr. MacArthur is a truth-lover. He’s been preaching the truth longer than I’ve been alive. God has used his teaching and his example in my own life. My convictions about the Word would not be as dear to me or as deep without MacArthur’s persistence and faithfulness.

I’d also say that his defenses of the truth sometime comes across like a truth quarantine. There have been times when the attitude has been more, “Join us in our corner. Here is where the biblically faithful are.” There is a way that guarding the faith can become insular.

But as GCC has returned to normal church services, Dr. MacArthur is in his lane, but out of his corner.

I started by saying that I am thankful. This is a difficult position, not only as a target of L.A. County officials and the CA governor, but also as MacArthur is getting significant criticism from many he’s trying to help.

It reminds me of the scene in Moneyball when the owner of the Red Sox said to Billy Beane, “I know you’re taking it in the teeth out there, but the first guy through the wall, he always gets bloody. Always.” (Watch the clip here, with the quote at the 2:35 mark.)

I am grateful for Phil Johnson and his (return to writing and) explanations of the changes at the PyroManiacs site. Phil is undoubtedly a major influence to the thinking behind, and change in, the GCC position.

So here we see MacArthur, Johnson, and GCC going first rather than circling the wagons. They are using their God-given platform to take a beating on behalf of others. Again, it’s not that this is the first time they’ve been criticized, even severely. But perhaps more than ever it is clear that this is an offensive rather than defensive move, and it is a move on behalf of their own church that, Lord willing, will benefit churches in CA legally as well as churches around the world by example. I am praying that they win.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

FoBIG

Solomon once wrote that in much wisdom there is much vexation. The more you know, the more you know what could be better, what has been lost, and how difficult it is to hold on to what is good.

You are a flock that has much knowledge. You have been given much, taught much, grown much. I myself have said before that, for my part, I would love to make you the right sort of discontent with less. May your expectations for grace and blessing never diminish.

But, this does put us in a higher level test; we’re in corona graduate school. We are not, for the most part, wondering whether to confess or deny that Jesus is Lord. We’re at the point of seeing how that confession defines our science and politics and businesses and neighbor relations and submission to rulers who aren’t submitting to constitutional laws.

You are among people who read the Constitution, like, the actual words and stuff. You are among people who have their eyes open, who have maturity to make their own decisions rather than be told by the National Guard to stay home. You know that freedom involves risk, that petty rules increase the ineffectiveness of the rules, and that rulers rarely go back to Civics after driving the Lexus of power.

So, Christians, you must be ruthless in mortifying your own will. You must not tolerate the anger of man in yourself. You must resist the worldliness of anxious rage, of woke self-righteousness, of grievances par excellence.

We cannot be the fellowship of (better informed) grievances, the FoBIG, even though it is grace that enables us to care how bad it is. I am exhorting you to fellowship in grace. Expose lies and oppression because you know that Jesus died for your lies and hurtful motives.

It’s one thing to be criticized for being a bunch of complainers, it’s another thing if we’re not confessing our sin to Christ.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Masks Are Winning

I want to talk about masks.

I am not an epidemiologist, or a doctor, or a nurse. I am not an elected official, I am not an appointed to any health board. In fact, no one has asked me.

But who would have thought that something so small could be so devastating? If someone had given me a week to invent a way to ruin community spirit as swift and as sweeping as possible, I’m not imaginative enough to have come up with “mandatory” face masks.

I am not talking about their effectiveness to limit catching or spreading viruses, let alone the risks of coronavirus. I am not addressing the legality of governor’s ordering behavior from the people apart from the consent of the people. I am not referring to my personal comfort wearing one, or not. I am speaking, as a pastor, about what masks are doing to people’s hearts.

More than fear, masks are winning at raising suspicion. Masks are stirring up first-feelings of distrust, even dislike. Like the law increases sin, masks increase suspicion.

Suspicion is a form of love, of self. You can get together a group of self-lovers, but you can’t build a community of them. There can be temporary alignment, but not true giving or serving or sacrifice. Whether or not masks inhibit the flow of oxygen, they are certainly inhibiting the flow of charity.

Paul wrote to the Galatians about using their freedom not for the flesh, but for serving one another in love, in which “the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'” The contrast to this is killer.

But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another. (Galatians 5:15)

This is a kind of eating you can do with a mask on. You can eat like this without a mask but with your mouth closed.

Either we will bite each other and be devoured, or we will eat and drink Christ. He loved and loves us, He calls us to love and serve each other, the weak and the strong, and to live in harmony.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Coronapocrisy and a Communion of Conquerors

There are at least three levels of crisis in the world currently: physical crisis, cultural crisis, and eternal crisis.

The first two levels are hand in glove, or like soap and water. The physical sicknesses and deaths of COVID-19 are real, though they have been made worse by the lathering of cultural selfishness. The coronavirus attacks blood and internal body parts, and coronapocrisy hoards toilet paper and tattles on non-social distancers in the name of neighbor-love. Thankfully, not every hospital bed has been filled so far like was predicted, but unfortunately most of the political seats are still full of greed.

We can pray that God’s providential shake-up is being used by God to wake-up sinners to the eternal crisis. Because of sin they are separated from God, and whether they die from a virus, or they die from hunger, or they die from violence, God’s vengeance is still on them for their own unbelief and ingratitude before Him.

In the COVID-19 world is sickness, selfishness, and separation. In Christ is healing, love, and fellowship.

By faith in Christ we overcome the world. “Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world–our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 4:4-5). We are a communion of conquerors, and our communion is conquering.

Though we are not under the same roof today, our faith is in the same resurrected Lord. We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. Though we don’t see each other, be believe in the Son who gives us eternal life.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Seriously Bad

I watched a recent interview with a pastor I appreciate who gave some explanation for why he didn’t think it was appropriate for a church to partake of the Lord’s Supper during our digital, distance assembling. His primary concern was that people wouldn’t take the Table seriously enough, which he clarified to mean that people wouldn’t take their sin seriously enough.

It may border on uncharitable of me to restate his argument thus: only pastors can make the people feel bad enough in order to make them worthy enough to take communion. That is not much of an exaggeration, if any.

Are you worthy to eat and drink at the Lord’s Table? Do you know how dangerous it is to eat and drink unworthily? Paul did say that those who don’t discern eat and drink judgment on themselves (1 Corinthians 11:29).

We don’t think we are worthy because we’ve done enough good. We also don’t think we’re worthy because we felt really, seriously bad about our sin. God does not despise a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:17), but in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday there were many who took sin seriously who didn’t have anything like a broken heart.

What I miss most about having communion in the same room is not that I don’t have a sense of control over the wretched vibe, I miss trying to make eye contact with as many of you as possible while we eat and drink together in joy.

He gave His body for all who believe. He calls us to remember Him as we drink the cup. May His Spirit fill us with serious thanks and seriously unite us as one.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Salvation So Free

Salvation in Christ is so free. It really is unlike any other transaction.

In our economic decrescendo the government is offering money buckets to bail out certain industries that are supposedly too big to sink. The government is printing money to make numbers look better on paper. The government is offering loans to some businesses to help them get through a rough season. Without saying much more than that for now (except that the majority of these decisions and offers are wrong-headed, counter-productive, and unjust), just think about how these stimulus packages compare to the gospel.

In God’s economy, no person (or family or nation) is too big to fail. God needs to preserve or protect no single individual in order to accomplish His purposes. A kid can be saved no matter his dad’s condition, a poor person, or a rich one, can be saved no matter what a king or president or Federal Reserve Chairman decides. Absolutely anyone can fail, can die in need of forgiveness without repentance, and God alone remains indispensable.

Yet in His sovereignty over the entire system and every sphere, He offers grace. Grace is unconditional. God’s grace is not based on any amount of merit or qualification; not gender, age, lineage, occupation, network, portfolio, health. He considers none of those factors in considering who to save.

And He saves entirely at His own expense. Salvation is not a loan. We do not pay Him back. If we use the language of debt, it is one of love, but that is not a debt to work off. He does not tax us next year, or tax our grandchildren, or anyone else.

Christ died for our moral bankruptcy. He atoned for our foolishness and selfishness and pride, for our lack of submission and faith and thanks. His forgiveness and gift of life is free, and He makes us free to serve Him.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

That Is Our Habit

Hebrews 10:25 urges Christians not to neglect meeting together, as is the habit of some. I’ve seen various arguments that churches who are not meeting in their usual locations in their usual ways are disobeying this exhortation. But not meeting together is not our habit. And, as a church we are still considering how to stir one another up to love and good works, encouraging one another albeit through different channels.

The word “church” refers to a collection, a group of gatherers. A church, like some Christmas toys, means that some assembly is required. But we are not reinventing church, we are not trying to replace anything, we are in a season that causes us to remember why being the church is so important.

When Solomon dedicated the temple he had built, he prayed that even those who couldn’t be at the temple could turn toward it, wherever they may be, from however far away they may be, and trust that the LORD would hear their prayers (1 Kings 8:30 ,35, 38, 44, 48).

As Christians we do not have a temple, we are the temple. You do not turn toward a particular direction, but you do turn toward the rest of your people. That is our habit.

So we celebrate our communion again in an imperfect way, but we celebrate because we believe that He who began a good work in us will be faithful to complete it. We celebrate because Christ will build His church; we are His body, and He is our head, wherever we may be.

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Lord's Day Liturgy

Rust on the Bottom of the Chair

You are at home, but you are not home alone. We are at a distance, but we are not disconnected.

I am not trying to play loose with words, I’m trying to emphasize the spiritual, even if invisible, reality of our union in Christ.

You cannot do something that doesn’t affect the rest of us. You can do, and regularly do, a lot of things that we don’t know about. Perhaps most of the time we won’t notice any immediate consequences. But that doesn’t change what’s true.

The current “Stay home, save lives” context has changed how we contact each other, but it has not changed that we are connected.

This is true for our household units, but in reverse. Just because your kids can see you work from home now doesn’t mean that how you did your work at the office didn’t matter to them before, it just means that a lack of integrity takes more work to hide.

Some of you may be compromised; what would we see if you forgot to turn off your webcam? Rust on the bottom of the chair isn’t as obvious, but it is just as damaging.

So how are you helping the health of the church body? How are you making us stronger? You cannot use your spiritual gifts in all the same ways as before, but that doesn’t mean that we are any less dependent on you doing your part for our fellowship.

David’s “private” sin with Bathsheba didn’t stay private. He was Israel’s king, so he had a different level of responsibility as the governing head, and that’s why the Lord punished the nation not just the man. In a similar way, the body has many members, but it is still one body (1 Corinthians 12:20, 26).

We will be stronger or weaker the next time we come together in person, and it will be a result of how we killed sin or coddled sin while we’re not.