Monday, May 17, 2010

STOP BRAGGING! - Preached at GGC, May 16, 2010

Stop Bragging!
Romans 2:17 – 29

Introduction:

One of the things I can't stand about certain people is their tendency to brag about anything and everything under the sun. Have you ever met such people before? I'm sure you have. They're the kind who talks about their personal achievements, about the important people that they know or are acquainted with, about how great they are when they engage in sports or when they're doing business. They emphasize where they've studied (especially if its a prestigious school) as well as where they're working (if its a multi-national company). Such people are often termed as braggarts and I believe the reason they brag is because they want to feel important and they want others to think that they're important.

But sometimes people brag for other reasons, such as when they think and when they know that they're right and you're wrong. They brag when they have something that you don't have or something that is way much newer than what you have now. They even brag when they think that they are better and nicer people than you. Now before I keep on pointing fingers at others, I need to look at myself and admit that there are times when I am a braggart myself, when I begin to look at myself as being more superior than others or when I think that I'm smarter than others, or when I have something more superior to what you have. Why do some people brag or boast? It is because they feel a bit insecure about themselves as compared to others and thus, the need to elevate themselves or to put themselves on a pedestal in order for them to get attention.

Bragging is not an exclusive domain of an individual; it is also something that institutions do when they achieve a certain level of success such as a school winning a basketball tournament over a rival school, or a university achieving an engineering breakthrough, or of an alumni doing very well in the business world and in politics. Companies also brag about what they've accomplished such as inventions and patents.

Bragging is a trap we, as individuals, all have the tendency of falling into, when we are not careful in our thoughts as well as with our words. In fact, we may brag about certain things that may prove to be detrimental to us in the end. A southern California couple appeared in the talk show of Dr. Phil McGraw, the psychiatrist who became famous because of Oprah. This couple bragged to Dr. Phil that they had made US$ 100,000.00 by selling shoplifted toys on e-Bay, and even told Dr. Phil that they had stolen more than a hundred boxes of Lego toys. Their bragging led to their arrest by the police. The husband must serve a 27 months prison term while the wife must serve 12 months. There was also an incident involving an old friend of mine. One day he showed up in school wearing a Giordano T-Shirt. He was then boasting to another friend that he had a Giordano T-Shirt which was the fad in the early 1990s. Our friend then asked a seemingly innocent question, “What size is it?” My friend who was wearing the Giordano T-Shirt then answered, “Free Size.” Immediately, the other friend replied with a taunting chant, “Walang free-size ang Giordano. Fake iyan.” My friend who was wearing this fake T-Shirt had a deflated look on his face. His bragging led him to embarrassment instead!

While the examples that I've cited may cause one to be imprisoned or to be embarrassed, there is a kind of bragging that is dangerous to our soul and, if not addressed, will surely lead us to eternal damnation. What exactly am I talking about? As we will be examining Romans 2:17 – 29 this morning, we will see some things the Jews of Paul's time were bragging about and Paul warned them that their bragging would lead them nowhere close to God.

Context:

In the second half of Chapter 1, we find Paul talking about people having no excuses because of their rejection of the knowledge of God, their worship of idols, and the surrendering of themselves to their sins. Many scholars and commentators will tell you that Paul was talking about the Gentiles. A Jew would heartily agree that Paul was right – that the Gentiles were idol worshippers, people who have no idea whatsoever who the One True God really was. The Jews also despised the Gentiles as being terrible sinners, as described in Chapter 1.


Even as the Jews scoff and look down at the Gentiles, they also became arrogant and began to brag about what they had that made them superior to the Gentiles. From today's passage, we find a couple of areas that the Jews bragged about. As the Jews were beginning to feel that they were safe and secure from God's wrath, Paul reminds them that their bragging would lead them nowhere. What the Jews bragged about themselves and about their being God's people are the same dangers we may commit, bringing spiritual peril to us as we think wrongly that we are already safe and secure. What are these dangers?

Danger # 1: Religious Affiliation

The first danger that we can see from this passage is the danger of religious affiliation. Look at verse 17 carefully. Here we read that the Jews bragged about their relationship with God; this was because of their religious affiliation, the Jews being the chosen people of God. If one is familiar with the Old Testament Scriptures he would be aware that the Jews traced their lineage to Abraham. Furthermore, it was their ancestors who received the Law from God through Moses. If you were to compare the Jewish faith with the other religions existing together with it, not counting Christianity, you would easily conclude that Judaism was a superior religion with its ethical and ceremonial teachings as well as it elaborate rituals and sacrifices. But herein lies the danger: the Jews thought that they were right with God simply because they were Jews. They thought that their being descendants of Abraham would surely save them and give them favor before God. We know from the Gospels that being a descendant of Abraham was no guarantee of salvation and favor with God; just read what John the Baptist said to the Pharisees and the Sadducees in Matthew 3:7 – 9, and what Jesus said to the Jews in John 8:33 – 47 and you will conclude that being a Jew does not guarantee a right standing before God.

The danger of religious affiliation is not exclusive to the Jewish people; it applies even to people who claim to be Christians. There are many who claim to be Christians or, to be specific, who claim to be members of a particular denomination or followers of a certain theological position or of a particular church. They proudly declare that they are Methodists or Episcopalians or Presbyterians or Baptists. They proclaim that they are Calvinists or Dispensationalists or Arminians. They will claim that they are Christians because of their long-time membership in a particular church or denomination; they may also claim to be Christians because their parents and grandparents were Christians, or that they are saved because their parents were missionaries or pastors. The emphasis on religious affiliation poses danger because it will mislead people into thinking that they are OK with God on the basis of their membership and ancestry when in fact every person has to make an individual response to the message of the Gospel. No human being can ever do anything to give me salvation; a person's right spiritual connection with the Lord is no assurance that the next generation is saved and is right with God.

Danger # 2: Intellectual Knowledge of the Word

The second danger the Jews fell into, according to Paul, was that their understanding of the Word was merely intellectual and not transformative. In verse 18 we read that the Jews knew God's will and approved what was taught by the law. They gave their intellectual assent to the Word of God, however, there is no indication that they were truly practicing what the Word of God was teaching. In fact, Paul rebuked the Jews, saying that the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of them, meaning they had possession of the Word of God and they knew the Word of God but they failed to live out the Word of God and had become stumbling blocks for others. The Jews thought that they were blessed by God and even saved because they possessed God's Word, but sadly, no amount of intellectual knowledge about the Word will bring salvation.

We may think that it is rather far-fetched that there would be people who think they're OK with God because they know God's Word, but I do believe that there are people who think that way. They have read the Scriptures and are familiar with the different facts recorded. They know the order of the books of the Bible by memory. They can even memorize and quote Scriptures. However, these same people who know so much about the Bible do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They think that they are OK because they know the Word, but that's not the basis for our salvation. Many people come to church and they have heard countless sermons; many have attended Sunday School for so many years and have heard so many lessons from the Bible, yet they are not saved. Why? It is because they think that hearing the Word is enough. They think that possessing the Bible in their hands is enough. Well, the Jews had the Word of God but were they exempted from God's condemnation? NO! In fact, they stood even more condemned because they knew the Word but they failed to put it into practice.

Now, I am not in any way treating the Word of God as being unimportant, but what I am stressing right now is that the mere intellectual knowledge and possession of the Word of God will not save you. The Word of God must probe deep into our hearts, revealing our sins and bring us before the feet of Jesus. If we know the Scriptures solely for intellectual exercise, then we stand condemned by what it teaches. We shouldn't brag if we are in possession of God's Word – what is expected of us is our response and obedience to God's Word.

Danger # 3: Religious Duty

Related to the danger of mere intellectual knowledge is the danger of religious duty. If you look carefully at verses 19 and 20, you will read that the Jews understood that they had the responsibility of being guides for the blind, of being lights for those who are in darkness, as instructors for the foolish and as teachers of infants. In other words, they understood that, because they possessed the Word, they were responsible for teaching the word. They knew their duty as God's chosen people, and no doubt, they did exercise their duty; but they did not pay attention to their personal testimony.

This danger that Paul cited was something that had been happening for some time already. Jesus had rebuked the Pharisees and the teachers of the law numerous times in the gospels because they were too eager to teach but unwilling to follow what they were teaching themselves. We know this problem by the term, hypocrisy. What they taught others to observe, they themselves violated.

However, I would like for us to pay attention to the idea of duty. I have no doubts that the Jews, outwardly, were faithful in administering their responsibility as bearers and teachers of God's law to those who are ignorant and who are in the dark. What is sad is that they think that their being dutiful to the Law of God is something for them to brag about. They viewed their duty as a hallmark of a good Jew and probably thought that it would win more merits for them. Unfortunately, we know that doing good works is not going to save anyone. We've learned that in other passages of Scripture such as Ephesians 2:8 – 9 and Titus 3:5 – 7. We will also learn more about that in Romans 3. We do good works as a grateful response to what God has done in saving us, and not as a prerequisite for salvation.

Unfortunately, many people who go to church, even to an Evangelical or a Protestant church still fall into such a trap. They believe that, by doing good works, they will earn merit that will tip the scales in their favor. They believe that, by doing good works, they will be rewarded with eternal life. Some are even in positions of authority and they're doing a lot in the church but they do not have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus.

The Jews of Paul's time fell into the trap of thinking that their good works or fulfillment of duties will win them God's favor. Many in the Christian community make the same mistake also and what is worse is that they brag about their goodness and falsely conclude that they are saved. Let us be careful that we don't make this mistake also.

Danger # 4: Ritualism

Finally, the fourth danger that would surely bring peril to anyone who adheres to this is the danger of ritualism. In our passage, we see indications that the Jews thought that their being circumcised surely meant that they were viewed with favor by God and that they were surely saved. I'm sure we all are aware that the rite of circumcision was something important for the Jews. It was the sign of the covenant between God and Abraham in Genesis 17, sort of a condition required of Abraham and his descendants as indication that they belong to God's covenant community. Sadly, the Jews thought that being circumcised or keeping this important ritual was key to their being the people of God. This was why Paul talked about the circumcision of the heart by the Spirit (v. 29), because the outward rite should be symbolic of what has taken place inside your heart. If circumcision symbolized separation unto God, then the heart must first affirm that it is devoted or consecrated to God in order for the rite of circumcision to be truly meaningful for the person who has undergone the rite.

I think the closest equivalent to circumcision in the church is the rite of baptism. We know that baptism is the outward rite that symbolized what has happened to us spiritually, namely the forgiveness of our sins and the new life that we have in Christ Jesus, attained not by good works but because of God's grace that operated through our faith. The inward reality of conversion must happen in order for the outward rite to become something meaningful. Unfortunately, many in the Protestant and Evangelical churches have the mistaken notion that, because they are baptized, they are already saved and they are in a favorable position with God. Baptism does not save us from our sins and give us salvation in the same way that ritual circumcision does not make one a true Jew. Ritualism is dangerous because it gives a false security or hope that, because we have gone through baptism we are already safe when in fact, we aren't.

Conclusion:

This morning, we've learned that the Jews made the mistake of trusting in four things for their salvation and for their gaining favor with God. First, they trusted in the religious affiliation. Second, they trusted in their knowledge of God's Word. Third, they trusted in their fulfillment of religious duties. Finally, they trusted in the rituals they had undergone. Now, note that I never said that these things are bad in themselves, however if we are to trust these things for our salvation and for gaining favor with God, we will soon find out that we are trusting in the wrong things. Being right with God does not depend on what we do or what we achieve; it depends on our having saving faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. The Jews made the mistake of trusting in their own righteousness; some who attend church have committed the same mistake. I hope and pray that we will not make the same mistake of trusting our own righteousness; instead, let us trust only in the Righteous One – our Lord Jesus Christ.

Monday, May 3, 2010

NO EXCUSES - Preached at GGC, May 02, 2010

NO EXCUSES
Romans 1:18 – 32


Introduction:

I will never forget the very first day I stepped into Rev. David Cheung's class in New Testament Exegesis. Upon the start of the class, Rev. Cheung passed out some handouts containing book references he expected us to use throughout the course. He also passed out a sheet containing the course requirements. Of course, the most prominent assignment in a subject like NT Exegesis is the exegetical paper, which is the analysis of a particular passage from the NT. In some sense, an exegetical paper is like writing your own commentary on a given passage. Now, the paper had to be passed on a certain time and date, either by dropping it on Rev. Cheung's pigeon hole or by handing it straight to him. If someone failed to pass on the given date, the supposed grade of the paper would be cut in half (example: if you got 100% on the paper but submitted it late, you only get 50%).

Now, I don't recall if anyone failed to submit his paper on time, but I am sure that if there was someone who did, he probably wouldn't have been able to get Rev. Cheung to give him an extension or to give leniency. Why? It was because he had made it clear already what was the submission date and time. He also made it very clear that he would not be lenient to those who submit their papers later than the said time and date. We were aware of the date and we had no excuse whatsoever to submit our paper late, nor could we complain about unfair treatment because we had full knowledge of the deadline and the consequences of submitting late.

In my particular case, we had full knowledge of deadlines and consequences, thus we could not give any excuses for submitting our papers late and get away with it. With regards to the laws of the land, we often hear the expression, “Ignorantia juris non excusat” or in English, “ignorance of the law excuses no one”. Ignorance of the laws of the land does not excuse us from the penalties and consequences when we violate these laws. Whether we have knowledge or we are ignorant of the law, we must suffer consequences when we break them.

As we continue our study of the Book of Romans, in particular our passage today taken from Romans 1:18 – 32, we learn that we are all under the wrath of God and that none among us can ever reason to God and say that we are not deserving of his wrath. In fact, none of us can ever offer an excuse as to why we should not be punished. However, we may be asking the question, “What makes us fall under the wrath of God and why can we not be excused or spared from it?” Today's passage holds the answer to our question, and I pray that as we study this passage, we will better understand why we need the gospel so badly.

Just a side note before I continue with our study: Paul's presentation of the Gospel began with the bad news. Why is this so? Why didn't he begin with the good news like what a popular gospel tract called “The Four Spiritual Laws” did? My personal interpretation is that Paul wanted the readers to understand the depths of humankind's sin and depravity as well as the punishment due in order for them to appreciate more deeply the salvation the Lord Jesus has won for us and the undeserved grace God extends to us.

There are three reasons why humanity cannot be excused from God's righteous judgment that we can find from today's passage. Let's examine these three reasons carefully.

Reason # 1: Knowledge of God is Readily Available

We cannot excuse ourselves from God's judgment because the knowledge of God is readily available, even for someone who doesn't have the Bible or know who Jesus is, even for someone who belongs to a different religion or even for someone who is an atheist. Just look at verse 18; here we read that God's wrath is being revealed against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness. Here, humanity is aware of the truth but they chose to suppress it in order to continue living a life of wickedness.

Now, how was the truth manifested or made known to humanity? In verses 19 to 20, we see that Creation was actually a showcase of God's invisible qualities – namely his eternal power and divine nature. All you have to do is to look at the created things such as the animals, the forests, the seas, the stars, the heavens, and you will see that these are truly marvelous sights to behold. Furthermore, they testify that a powerful, eternal God brought all these to existence. In Psalm 19:1 – 3, the psalmist wrote, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night to night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.” In Job 12:7 – 9 we read, “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and they will teach you; or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this?” The creation testifies that there is a powerful, eternal God. Everything in it bears witness to this God.

Humanity's knowledge of God doesn't just come about because of Creation; it is also available through the decrees God has given in people's conscience. Look at the first part of verse 32. Here we read that humanity knows God's righteous decrees that those who do evil deserves death. Not everyone here on earth is exposed to the ethical teachings of the Holy Scriptures like Roman Catholics, Protestants and even Jews; however, if you look at the teachings of major religions, they actually have laws similar to the Ten Commandments. In Hinduism, adherents were expected to refrain from killing, stealing, sexual impurity and lying. In Buddhism, there is the teaching about having the right attitude, right speech and right action. An author pointed out that primitive tribes know when they have sinned and they have sacrificial systems in place in order to atone for their sins. You can investigate the different belief systems in the world and you will see that many of the ethical practices are similar to the Ten Commandments. What this reveals is that, even though many may not know the God of the Bible, they do know that there is a supreme being out there and that they must be careful not to offend this being by keeping certain moral laws. Even without the Bible, people do have their conscience to dictate what is right and wrong.

Sadly, people have chosen to reject God's revelation of himself through creation by saying that the universe came about because of evolution over millions upon millions of years. Also, people have chosen to deaden their conscience in order to continue in their sinful ways. The knowledge of God is readily available but we have rejected this knowledge. Therefore, we cannot make any excuses when God executes his wrath upon us.

Reason # 2: Failure to Honor God

Our second reason is connected with the first reason but I believe it stands on its own because it is a clear reflection of humanity's rejection of the knowledge of God. The second reason why we cannot be excused from God's wrath is because we have failed to honor God properly. We find this in verse 21 where it says that we neither glorified God nor gave thanks to him, even though we have the knowledge of God.

Now, how did humanity fail to glorify and give thanks to God? This is not a simple case of failing to say “thank you” or “praise God” when you receive blessings or when people honor you, although expressing these words are appropriate; rather, humanity fails to glorify and to thank God by becoming futile in their thinking and their hearts becoming foolish. A Bible scholar suggested that because man refused to acknowledge God, he must now substitute God with a being greater than himself, which explains why he fabricates myths and idols. The result: images of mortal men and animals are made to be gods or deities.

Just imagine that: man takes the place of God as the object of worship. This was very much true during the time of Paul when people worshipped Caesar or the emperor as a god. It is very much true today when people kneel, bow and burn incense to Buddha, or when people pray to the statues of Mary, Santo NiƱo and all the other saints. It is also true that we worship men when we bow and burn incense to our departed ancestors. At times, when we claim glory for ourselves or when we view ourselves as more superior than others, we make ourselves to be gods and, in effect, we are worshipping ourselves.

Ancient myths such as those of the Greek and the Roman Empire were also fabricated by men in order that they could have objects of worship in place of the true God. However, these Greek and Roman gods and goddesses behave not like the true God but just like fallen, depraved human beings.

Humanity also made animals as objects of worship. We see this in the Book of Exodus where the Israelites, upon the absence of Moses, demanded Aaron to make gods for them to worship. Aaron asked that the people give them their gold earrings, and from these he fashioned a golden calf. Aaron then declared to the people that the golden calf was their god and he even instructed the people to build an altar for the calf. If you remember the second plague that God inflicted upon the Egyptians when Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go, God sent countless numbers of frogs upon the land. There is significance to this, as the Egyptians had a god who had the head of a frog. Today, people still worship animals such as the Hindus who treats the cow as a deity as well as the elephant.

Our trip to Southern India in 2007 was a memorable experience for us not only because we got to do ministry but also because we saw firsthand what India was like,especially the city of Madurai with all the shrines, temples and images found in almost every corner of the city. We also got to see from a distance one of the fourteen towers of the Meenakshi Amman Temple, where each of the towers are filled with thousands of idols. It was fascinating to see such a sight, but at the same time, it was also saddening because the people chose to worship these idols rather than seek after the one true God. The same is true for the whole of humanity – we know that God exists but we refuse to worship him and give glory to him. We have chosen to worship the creation rather than the Creator. Thus we are not excused from the wrath of God.

Reason # 3: We Deliberately Sin Against God


Finally, we cannot escape God's judgment nor give excuses because we have deliberately sinned against God. Again, this reason is connected with the two previous reasons we've looked into. If you look at the progression, it goes something like this: Man rejects God's revelation of himself through the creation and conscience; they give glory and worship instead to idols; because of their failure to worship God, God gave them over to their sinful desires.


Now, the idea of God giving humanity over to their sinful desire does not mean that God caused us to sin; on the contrary, what it means is that God gave us up to what we want to do. If we want to abandon him and go after other gods, fine. But we better be ready to face the consequences of our actions. It is our willful rejection of God that produces ugly results in humanity.

There is a long list of various sins people commit as a result of their rejection of God. We do not have time to look at each one of these sins in detail. However, I would like for us to pay attention to one particular sin mentioned in verses 26 to 27. It is the sin of homosexuality. The media as well as the gay rights movement want us to believe that homosexuality is not a sin but rather, it is a choice people should be free to make. Psychiatrists on the other hand say that homosexuality is in the genes of some people, thus making them more prone to become homosexuals; therefore such people should not be hindered from being their “true self”. They can justify all they want, but when God says its a sin, its a sin.

Now, I don't want you to leave this sanctuary later thinking that homosexuality is the worst sin of all. In God's sight, sin is sin, regardless of what kind of wrong act you've committed. You cannot blame your environment for making you a sinner. You can't blame the people around you for making you a sinner. You made the choice to rebel against God. You made the choice to worship anything and anyone other than God.

In the 1960s, psychologist Dr. Stanton Samenow and psychiatrist Dr. Samuel Yochelson, sharing the conventional wisdom that crime is caused by environment, set out to prove their point. They began a seventeen-year study, published in 1977, titled, The Criminal Personality. To their own astonishment, they discovered that the cause of crime cannot be traced to environment, to poverty or oppression. Instead, crime is the result of individuals making, as they put it, “wrong moral choices”.

Well, sinning is a poor choice humanity made as an act of rebellion against God. Because of this poor choice, we are left without an excuse as we must face the wrath of God.

Conclusion:

Today, we have learned that none of us are excused from God's wrath. It is because we have rejected God's revelation of himself through creation and our conscience by instead believing in the lie of evolution as well as in deadening our conscience. We cannot be excused because we have failed to honor God by bowing our knees and offering our prayers and allegiance to false gods – idols. Finally, we cannot be excused because we deliberately chose to sin against God instead of choosing to follow God's way.

While it is true that most, if not all of us are already believers of Jesus Christ and we have been justified by faith in Christ such that God's wrath is no longer upon us, I believe today's message should be a reminder to us that God's wrath is real. While we may be spared from his wrath, there are still many who are lost in their sins and in their rebellion. We must take seriously our responsibility of sharing the good news to the lost.

Today's discussion should also help us to see the gravity of our sins and why Jesus had to pay for our sin and rebellion with his death on the cross. As God's redeemed people, we should no longer allow sin to dominate us, going back to the old way of life. Instead, let us live the new life which Christ has already bought for us through his death and resurrection, forsaking our sins and choosing instead to please God.