Slow and Steady

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by Jason Park

Think of spiritual growth like gardening. Paul did. God makes the soil, He controls the weather, He ordains all the varying circumstances of the garden. Plus, He gives us the seeds. And all we do is scatter the seeds and water them. Then we wait and watch to see what grows (1 Cor 3:6). 

Will anything grow? How fast will it grow? How much will grow? What will grow?

We wait and watch because “neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth” (1 Cor 3:7). Only God is anything. The rest of us are mere instruments in God’s hand to do the work of gardening. But the internal growth, the sanctification – that is God’s handiwork alone. 

Consider how we grow in grace. We take up the means of grace: Bible, prayer, and fellowship. But generally speaking, growth by those means doesn’t happen overnight. Growth, whether in a garden or in our heart, takes time. But we can falsely believe that doing something more – like reading, praying, or serving – will automatically produce growth in an area of weakness. Have you ever noticed the day after you come back from a spiritual high, you get into a fight, you get restless, you get discontent, or you grumble? That happens because the spiritual high is not the norm, and when we compare our norm to that, it’s easy to get frustrated. 

True growth happens incrementally and internally by God’s grace. When we use Bible reading or service or some other good thing as the formula to produce instantaneous and fail-proof growth, we are in danger of deceiving ourselves and despairing (in sorrow and anger) when that growth doesn’t happen the way we thought it would.  But take heart, growth is assured. It is the fruit of God the Spirit after all (Gal 5:22-23). He will produce His fruit in us unfailingly. But fruit takes time, and so, its growth is imperceptible to the naked eye. But after a while, it’ll be there, having budded and blossomed.  The means of grace are great! But don’t trust in them; use them as means to trust in the God of grace. Use them as means to see and savor the beauty of Christ. Let them feed Christ into your soul, and over time, without noticing it, you will have grown. Because when you use God’s means of grace that way, you will see more than ever before your sin against His holiness and Christ’s all-surpassing love and power for you. Then, your heart will be melted with love for Him and others.  Did I do that? Well, I read my Bible; I prayed. But apart from Christ, would my Bible reading and praying have done anything inside me? No! God does it through my act of reading and praying. So, let’s be grateful for that, because then we know the growth is both real and really going to happen.  

Seeing the Future from the Past

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by Jon Buck

The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David; Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest!”
~ Matthew 21:8-9

Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’” 
~ Matthew 23:38-39

The last week of Jesus’ earthly life began with an almost shocking scene. He rode into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey saddled with the coats of His disciples (Zec 9:9). He entered in gentleness and not judgment. 

As He rode, crowds surrounded Him and quoted Psalm 118:26, giving praise to God and praise to Jesus, referring to Him as the Son of David—a Messianic title. 

The crowd laid palm branches on the road in front of Him as he entered the city, and laid their coats on the road so that even the donkey did not step on the dirt. 

All of this pomp and circumstance identified Jesus as the coming King, the promised Messiah. 

But when He entered the city itself, He received rejection from the Jewish leaders, who were angry about the praise He was receiving. That night He left the city, and spent the night outside. 

Rejection Completed
The rejection of Christ by the leaders of Israel, and later the people as well, didn’t change who Jesus was. He was and remains the King of the Jews, the rightful King of Jerusalem, and the true Messiah. 

However, the people could not see His glory because, for most, their eyes were blinded to the reality of who He was. 

This blindness would ultimately lead to the wholesale rejection of His authority, and ultimately His death on the cross. 

Not Plan B
The disciples who watched the events of the week unfold must have been despairing. From the high of Sunday, things began to crash. But looking back on the events of that week, we know that the rejection of the leaders and the nation had not changed God’s plan in the least.

At the end of Matthew 23, Jesus laments over the city and makes a remarkable statement. He quotes the very same verse that the people sang to Him during His triumphal entry as a prophecy of things to come in the future (Psalm 118:26). 

God’s plans for the city of Jerusalem were still completely intact. The rejection and crucifixion of Christ were no accidents. Everything was going according to plan. 

God’s Plans Sure
We live in a moment of global uncertainty. But these days are not uncertain for God. Instead, this moment in history is simply the unfolding of God’s perfect plan. This is true for world governments and economies, but also true for each person. 

God’s perfect plans for each of us remain completely intact. He is not caught off guard. He is not second guessing. Instead, He is continuing to bring His perfect plan to fruition in each of our lives. 

We can’t look back on tomorrow yet. But we can trust the One who has planned it! Our Savior’s own life and death prove that God’s loving plan for us will remain sure, no matter what comes. 

“Husbands, Love Your Wife” – Approaching the Command

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by Jason Park

I write this post with no little hesitation.  

It’s like when I hear a sermon on money, evangelism, or prayer…my heart shrinks. I feel guilty for my failures in all three areas.  And the desire not to feel this makes me want to avoid those topics. But that won’t do. God wants me to deal head-on with every one of His words.  

So, what is the topic that makes me wince? It’s loving my wife from Eph 5:25. [Before you cast the first stone, stay with me.] 

As we’re home more than ever, we’re interacting with our family more than ever. With more interaction comes more exposure of what we’re really like. And with more exposure comes more insight into our hearts: I’m so angry, full of grumbling, selfishness… 

And as I read Eph 5:25, the bad news of my failure rings out in me. Not that I don’t love her at all, but the consistency and genuineness with which I ought to love her fluctuate more than I care to confess. I’m selfish; I love myself above all.  

So, the Spirit brings the bad news of my heart to my attention through the Word. Then I consider how Eph 5 might apply to me. The Spirit also helps me do that. But then, the reality of this command and the gravity of Christ’s example sit there…How can I ever love my wife as Christ loved the church?  

Then I realize that the command wasn’t written to condemn us. It was written to be kept…joyfully in fact. And I do love my wife. But I also fail to love her. So, what do I do? 

I have to go back to the basics. Who am I? I am a new creature in Christ. I have His Spirit in me; Christ lives in me. I am dead to sin and alive to God (Rom 6:12). What has God done for me?  God has forgiven me of all my sins, including the sin of not loving my wife (Eph 4:32). Jesus Christ loved me and gave Himself up for me, the perfect husband for the radically imperfect wife (Eph 5:2). 

And because all this is true, I can imitate God and Christ (Eph 5:1). Yes, I will fail to love my wife. I will fail at all of God’s commands. But by His grace, I can repent of my sin, trust in His forgiveness, and rely on His power to do all that He’s called me to.  

Praise God that He has blessed us with every resource in Christ to do just that!  

The End and the Beginning

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by Jon Buck

“Remember this and be assured; recall it to mind, you transgressors. Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, ‘My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure’.” 
~ Isa. 46:8-10

I enjoy studying and reading history. The stories of events in generations gone by are gripping to me because they deal with real people who experienced remarkable things. 

But the thing I like about history is that I generally know how things end. The Allies win the war, Lewis and Clark get home, and Adoniram Judson survives to start the church in Burma. I may like the intensity of the stories, but only because I’m confident about how each ends. 

Shadows and mist
Of course, the problem with my own life is that I never know how things will end. Will I get COVID-19? Will my family? Will loved ones die? Will the economy implode? Etc. Etc. Etc. 

So many questions must remain unanswered, as history unfolds day by day. 

And this lack of clarity is the root of sinful fear and anxiety. I fear because I do not know, and I do not know because I cannot control. And when I’m not in control, I’m afraid because I may very well not like the outcome of my circumstances. 

Not like ME
Interestingly, God knows that this is true, and He reminds the Jewish people of this truth through Isaiah the prophet. He tells them to remember one simple truth—He is God, and there is no one who compares to Him. 

The primary way that God differentiates Himself from all other beings is that He has the authority to declare the end from the beginning. In other words, God not only knows how my story ends, He wrote the story from beginning to end. 

Every detail, every molecule, every virus, every penny, every person is in His perfect and unshakable plan. He has declared it because He is God, and there is no other. 

His purposes
This truth can either be comforting or terrifying. If God is sovereign but not loving, then this is the scariest thing in the world. He will accomplish purposes, but they may be terrible for me. 

But if God is both sovereign and loving, then this is the very best news that I could possibly hear in my moments of fear. God has already declared exactly what will happen in my life, and will bring about His purposes for my good! 

Absolutely nothing will thwart God’s perfect purpose to bless me and conform me into the image of Christ, and bring me to His side forever. COVID, economies, sorrows, blessings, friends, enemies—all of them are simply brush strokes in a painting that is already complete. 

You Will See Christ

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by Jason Park

Can you imagine what it was like to be with Christ in person during His earthly life? To see the the Son of God incarnate? Many did. It was their unique privilege to hear him, see him with their eyes, and touch Him with their hands (1 Jn 1:1). As John puts it, the Word of Life “was manifested” in real space and time for a little over 30 years. 

And because John and others experienced Christ and believed in Him, they testified of Him. When they saw Him resurrected from the dead, it solidified in their hearts the reality of the gospel, and so they turned the world upside down by preaching Christ. Many to their deaths. 

Christ was really here. He really lived, suffered, and died for our sins. He really was raised from the dead. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). The historical reality of Christ’s person and work is the cornerstone of our faith. Paul says in 1. Cor 15:1-8 that these historical elements make up the gospel, which is “of first importance.”  And if any one of these elements, like the resurrection, is not historical, then our faith “is in vain” and “worthless” (1 Cor 15:14, 17). If none of these facts are facts, then Christians are “most to be pitied” (1 Cor 15:19). 

But praise God that these facts are true. They are as real as you and me. And ultimately, we are convinced because when we read the biblical accounts of Christ, the Holy Spirit cries out in our hearts, “Yes, Christ is real…His work is true…He is my Lord and my God…He delivered me from my sins!”  

We don’t see Him, but we love Him, believe in Him, and rejoice in Him (1 Pet 1:8). Through Scripture, by faith, we fellowship with Christ. And His love in our fellowship moves us to repent for putting any other gods before Him, receive forgiveness and cleansing by His blood, treasure Him, and love others. 

So, keep looking into the facts and truths of the Bible to see Christ and to be changed by that sight…Because that is preparing us for the day we will look into the Word Himself and see Him like we’ve never seen Him before…not through Scripture, but through our very eyes.         

Till He Returns or Calls Me Home

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by Anonymous, by request

The following is an article by a member of FBC. We appreciate the willingness for brothers and sisters to write and offer their thoughts during this season! Hope it encourages you! 

“No power of hell, no scheme of man, can ever pluck me from His hand ’Til He returns, or calls me home, here in the power of Christ I’ll stand!” ~ In Christ Alone

In the our study of Romans one theme the elders have been pivoting off of to show the need of the Gospel is that we are all going to die.  Because of sin, creatures were born to die.  With COVID-19 still being unpredictable and half the world shut down, the fear of death is more present then many of us have ever seen.  Accordingly, if you’re over the age of 50, have heart or lung issues of any kind or diabetes, you are on COVID’s hit list.  

A quick run through the N.T. epistles will show that God promises peace, grace, mercy, forgiveness, and more.  However, tomorrow is not on the list.  We are not promised to live through this pandemic, let alone the night.

When doubts prevail, the question that should come into our minds is, “ARE YOU PREPARED?”  Do you truly believe the Gospel?  You are a sinner (Rm 3:23).  COVID is a result of sin.  If COVID is what kills you, know that ultimately sin is what killed you and there are only two paths to walk from that final breath.  Is Christ alone where your hope is found?  God sent His own Son to the cross, just so sinners could be freed from their sin and escape His impending wrath.  Now Jesus sits in heaven next to God, saying to all sinners, “I have done it.  I have taken My Father’s wrath that you’ve earned.  Don’t try to earn what’s free.  This is a gift of love and righteousness.  Forgiveness is here.  I have it.  You must believe it and repent.”

Sinner, there is a comfort in this time of fear and chaos.  He is in control of all things—the virus, the molecules that make up the virus, the atoms that make up the molecules—all of it is in His perfect control.  Jesus commands everyone’s destiny.  Only a Christian, someone who has truly believed in the Gospel and truly repented for their sin can say with boldness, “No power of hell nor scheme of man can ever pluck me from His hand.  Till He returns or calls me home, here in the power of Christ I stand.”

If Jesus comes again, or if the body is destroyed by infection, the future is sure for those who know and trust in Him. He will certainly care for His people.  Jesus made a way for forgiveness through the cross.  He offers forgiveness and once you have received this forgiveness then you can sing with His church, “Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me for I am His and He is mine.”  When your heart has believed these things, His care over your destiny is the greatest of comforts. 

It’s Just Not the Same

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by Joe Koh

As we complete the second consecutive week of live streaming our Worship Service, there are so many things to be thankful for (especially with the help of modern technology):

  • We can sing along as Enoch leads us in worship

  • We can watch and listen to the Word of God being preached by Jon Buck

  • We can watch and listen to Jason Park’s Eschatology class

  • We can watch and listen to Jon Buck as he leads us through the book of Hebrews for Care Group

  • We can watch and read the daily blogs posted by our pastors 

What a blessing to be taught the Word of God in so many different ways! What a blessing that we can still worship God in the midst of our Shelter-in-Place orders. 

As I left the church office after live streaming the worship service, there was something missing…something incomplete…something was not the same. Even though we sang and heard the preaching of Word of God, there was a compartment in my heart that was lacking. I didn’t have to think long to figure out this dilemma. It was quite evident. Today, and last Sunday, was not the same because I didn’t get to see you, my brothers and sisters in Christ! We were unable to meet TOGETHER to sing TOGETHER and worship TOGETHER and pray TOGETHER and fellowship TOGETHER. This reiterated to me the preciousness of the church and more specifically, the preciousness of Faith Bible Church! The church is so dear, Christ “gave Himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25). This is how beloved each of you are and how valuable FBC is. 

Not being together deepened my longing for fellowship with our church family. I’m sure this longing is in all of you because God intended the Christian life to be others focused. Next to loving God with all of our heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:36-37), Jesus instructed us to love our neighbor. So, God intended for us to love Him and love one another. To guide us, God’s Word gives us over 50 “one another” commands. Why? So that we can show our love for God by loving and serving others. And where does this take place? At FBC on Sundays and at Care Groups and getting together during the week. This is what’s missing…this is the void in our hearts…and this is why it’s just not the same. Until we are able to gather together, I encourage all of you to stay connected with one another using the technology we have. Get creative on how we can serve one another (1 Peter 4:10). And the one thing we can all do is PRAY for one another (James 5:16).   

Grace for Today

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by Jason Park

Here are the final words of the Bible: “The grace of our Lord Jesus be with all. Amen” (Rev 22:21). 

As you probably know, many NT books end with the same blessing. The writer prays that God’s grace or Christ’s grace would be with believers. Most of the NT books begin with a similar blessing. Why? Because grace is what we need for everything in our lives. Christ’s grace in our spirits is what sustains us. Apart from His grace, we are nothing and can do nothing. Every heartbeat and breath, involuntarily occurring, is an act of His grace.  

As we’re more tempted to be afraid and as we’re stripped of all our normal routines, our true treasures are revealed, aren’t they? I’m discovering that I’m the same sinner I was 10 days ago as I am today. Hopefully, I can see more of that reality. And this too is God’s grace. He’s certainly not causing the fear in our hearts or forcing our hand to sin (cf. 1 Cor 10:13; Jas 1:13-15). But in His gracious providence, He’s bringing adversity into our lives so that our sinful responses would reveal what we actually trust in, what we actually value. 

But in this exposure, He doesn’t leave us; He doesn’t mock or berate us. He just supplies more and more grace…specific grace to repent of our heart’s idols, to trust in specific promises fit for the moment, to endure a trial by faith, and to love others when we want to focus on ourselves. 

Trust me, I know how hard it is to believe what I’ve just written. When fear or some other sinful emotion overwhelms us, we don’t naturally turn to Christ and His word. We freak out, we get depressed, we get angry. Then we feel guilty for not turning to Christ. And that guilt bars us from going to the One who is grace. But even there, in the pit, Jesus is there with us, always there, “even to the end of the age” (Matt 28:20).  

Even with all our idols, we can come to Him for forgiving grace. And He will forgive and cleanse us completely right then and there (1 Jn 1:9). This is just one aspect of His manifold grace (1 Pet 4:10). So, we’ll never need to worry that He won’t have enough grace or that it’ll be the wrong kind. Our Father knows exactly what we need and when we need it. And His heart is more than eager to give it. He is “the God of all grace” (1 Pet 5:10).  

So…in these hard times, may the grace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all today, right now.   

A Word about Death for a Time of Fear

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by Jon Buck

There are dangers in our current world—sickness, unemployment, financial ruin.  When we hear about the fear that is all around us, our tendency can sometimes be to point people to good things. 

We can try to conciliate those around us with hopes for future peace. Things will get better. There’s always a way out. A new bill will fix the problems. 

However, this isn’t always true, and, rather than hope in the government or in the economy, our hope needs to be in power of God. 

Death and power
What’s so interesting is that the way that Paul offers hope and power is through death—not his death, but the death of Jesus Christ. 

“The word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.” ~ 1 Cor. 1:18

I would never think to offer the death of the Son of God as the hope for power. The cross was the moment of greatest weakness in the life of Jesus, by all appearances. 

But for Paul, Jesus’ death was the crowning triumph of His power, and the Gospel was the offer of that power to people. 

What’s the connection? So how does talking about the death of Christ offer power for our present time? 

The answer is in the verse. 

Paul says he word of the cross is power, “…to us who are being saved…” We are being saved through the life and death of the Son of God. 

  • Jesus died for all our sins. 

  • We are completely free from any condemnation from God. 

  • Our eternity is forever secured. 

  • Jesus dwells in our hearts by faith. 

  • We are loved by the sovereign Creator of the universe.

In this moment, as the world around us wallows in fear, we must stand on the power of God that the cross offers us.  The worst thing that could EVER happen to us already happened to someone Else FOR us!

God is with us, and has proven His love for us once for all at the cross. When we live in light of these things, we can trust Him with joyful hope for the future no matter what comes. That is, in fact, the power of God in us. 

The Best Is Yet to Come

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by Jason Park

This isn’t positive or wishful thinking.  It’s biblical thinking, thinking that agrees with what the Bible reveals is going to take place one day: God is going to create a new heaven and a new earth (Rev 21:1). 

Real hope is in short supply, not only today, but from the Fall on, the world has clamored for real hope. But seeking it here, we’ve come up miserably short. The progress of man has not immunized us from natural disasters, economic crises, wars, disease, and worst of all, our own mortality. The wages of sin is death, and sin and death have no mercy on us. 

But God does. He holds out true hope. He calls everyone who thirsts for hope to go to Him and drink from the spring of the water of life at no cost (Rev 21:6). He calls the world to drink from His Son who gives living water by pouring out His life on the cross for our sins. And to the one who overcomes this dying, sin-cursed world by faith in His Son, the Father will be his God and he will be His son (Rev 21:7). He will not fail to deliver on this promise: He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end (Rev 21:6). You can trust Him. 

The springs of this world offer only temporary relief at best. But they all deceive us. There is no real water in them, only gravelly muck (Jer 2:13).  No amount of health, wealth, or pleasure will quench our deepest thirst for joy. Yet this is precisely what God offers us in Christ – through His death for our sins, we have abundant life by faith in Him. And in that life, we will one day arrive at a place where God will wipe away every tear and remove all death and pain (Rev 21:5). 

The first things will all pass away to usher in the new…where God and Christ live among us…where His glory outshines the need for sun and moon…where all our hopes are fulfilled.  

I know it’s hard to see this, but it’s true. I need to keep preaching it to myself. So, let’s fix our hope on the glory God will reveal to us on that day. Let’s persevere together by faith in Christ. He is faithful and true. He is best.