"Quote" of the Week

"(Thomas Aquinas) stands as a giant in the intellectual world, and his work continues to be studied in every university, both sacred and secular. The great theologians of history display different styles and different gifts. But for sheer weight of intellect, I doubt that Thomas has had any peers, unless it is the Puritan...Jonathan Edwards." -R.C. Sproul

LESSON 19: A MUCH NEEDED REFORM

As the crusades came to a close, time came for a much needed reform. Pope Innocent III led the efforts to reform the papacy and supported efforts to teach and care for the poor. He also rebuked kings and emperors who tried to interfere with the election of bishops and abbots. He also shunned all forms of profiteering by the clergy, such as the selling relics and sought to be vigilant against heresy.

ST. FRANCIS

St. Francis was a product of this time period. He was born and raised in a wealthy family but felt God leading him away from a life of luxury. He instead devoted himself to the service of the poor. He also took literally the biblical text about leaving all to follow Christ.

He was a man of joy who was known to sing as he walked from place to place. He dedicated his life to preaching and teaching God’s word, prayer and service near his hometown. He also had a band of followers who were drawn to him because of his remarkable charisma and purity.

AN IMPORTANT LESSON LEARNED FROM ST. FRANCIS

St. Francis knew first hand that money does not bring lasting happiness. He and his followers proved that joy can be attained and maintained with very little. Historians Matthew Price and Michael Collins said of Francis, “He was utterly selfless, joyful, impractical, and whole hearted in his love for his Lord…He wrote some of the greatest of all prayers, which express an ardent desire to live for Christ” (115).

St. Francis not only experienced lasting joy in God, but also devoted his life to share that experience with others. Francis poured his life into other people and demonstrated to them that nothing was better than a right relationship with God through Christ. He spent his days caring for the poor and preaching the Gospel in the common language so that the poorest and most uneducated of people could understand. Price and Collins explained, “(St. Francis and his followers) nursed the sick, especially lepers (whom others shunned—it was the most feared of illnesses), held their own church services, prayed through the night, (and) slept in the open or in rough shelters (114). They also affirmed, “(The Franciscans), following the example of their leader, were so joyful and cheerful that they were called “God’s jesters” (114-115).

Many fail to realize that no created thing can bring lasting happiness. It is impossible for a perishable thing to bring joy that lasts. God has created us for lasting joy that is found only in Him. When we seek to find happiness in earthly perishable things, we allow ourselves to be content with far less than what God intends.

Price, Matthew and Michael Collins. The Story of Christianity: 2,000 Years of Faith. Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers. 1999. 114-115.

All creatures of our God and King

Lift up your voice and with us sing,

Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou burning sun with golden beam,

Thou silver moon with softer gleam!
Refrain
O praise Him! O praise Him!

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou rushing wind that art so strong

Ye clouds that sail in Heaven along,

O praise Him! Alleluia!

Thou rising moon, in praise rejoice,

Ye lights of evening, find a voice!
Refrain
Thou flowing water, pure and clear,

Make music for thy Lord to hear,

O praise Him! Alleluia!

Thou fire so masterful and bright,

That givest man both warmth and light.
Refrain
Dear mother earth, who day by day

Unfoldest blessings on our way,

O praise Him! Alleluia!

The flowers and fruits that in thee grow,

Let them His glory also show.
Refrain
And all ye men of tender heart,

Forgiving others, take your part,

O sing ye! Alleluia!

Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,

Praise God and on Him cast your care!
Refrain
And thou most kind and gentle Death,

Waiting to hush our latest breath,

O praise Him! Alleluia!

Thou leadest home the child of God,

And Christ our Lord the way hath trod.
Refrain
Let all things their Creator bless,

And worship Him in humbleness,O praise Him! Alleluia!

Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,

And praise the Spirit, Three in One!
Refrain

The book of Colossians was written by the Apostle Paul to combat a heretical teaching that taught that Jesus was a created being, less than God and one among many lesser spirits. Paul condemns this heresy by exalting the person of Jesus Christ and urges the Colossians to do away with any belief that denies Jesus’ supreme position as Lord.

Colossians 1:15-18 is the key passage in this letter. What Paul does in this passage is unveil the true identity of Christ focusing primarily on His deity because His divine nature is what is being called into question. Below is a brief outline of this text of scripture and an explination of why it is important to think rightly about Christ.

1. Christ is the perfectly revealed image of God.
15 He is the image of the invisible God,

Paul refutes this heresy by affirming that Christ is the perfect image of the invisible God. He also tells us in Philippians 2:6 that “(Christ) is in the very form of God. Jesus also says of Himself, “Whoever has seen me has seen the father” (Jn. 14:9).

It is important to understand that Jesus is distinct from us. I am afraid that we often think of Christ as too much like us and fail to exalt Him in a manner that is worthy of Him. Christ is God. He not only walked the earth, but created the earth and He alone is worthy of our worship. Thinking rightly about Christ will also correct the way we worship because God is to be worshipped as the God who has revealed Himself in the person of Jesus Christ.

2. He is the head of all creation.
The firstborn of all creation.

This phrase is often misunderstood. Many have taken this to mean that Jesus was a created being. What they fail to understand is that the word translated firstborn primarily refers to position or rank. Paul is not saying Jesus is the first created being, but is saying that He is the head of all created things. Therefore, it is essential that we elevate Him above all else and understand that no other position is worthy of Him.

3. He is the creator and sustainer of all things
16For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Paul has just affirmed that Jesus is exalted in rank above all things. In this passage he gives the reasons why.

#1 He is creator

By simply studying creation, one can get a glimpse of the greatness of Christ. For example, simply thinking about the countless number of stars and planets can be overwhelming, but what is even more amazing is the fact that Christ has created them and knows them by name and number according to Psalm 147:4

Paul also reminds his readers that Jesus is the author of the invisible world as well. He created the heavenly creatures as well as earthly ones. Scripture is clear that He is not an angel but the creator of the angels and they rightfully worship Him and are under His authority.

#2 He is sustainer

We learn that “in him all things hold together.” John MacArthur says, “(He) is the power behind every consistency in the universe.”

Christ not only created us, He is keeping us alive moment by precious moment and wants us to respond by worshipping Him as creator, by seeing our need for Him daily and by loving Him and doing what He commands.

4. He is the head of the Church
18And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.

As the head gives life and direction to the body, so Christ gives life and direction to believers as He rules over them. The reason He has this kind of authority is because Paul tells us, "He is the beginning." In other words, He is the cause and reason for the existence of the church.

Paul also says, "He is...the firstborn from the dead," meaning Christ is first person to be resurrected from the dead with a glorified body. Being in right standing with God is contingent upon Christ’s resurrection. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:14, “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.”

Because of Christ’s resurrection we are able to experience what Scripture calls the new birth. Peter says,“We have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).

Paul ends this familiar passage of Scriputre by affirming that Christ has come "to have first place in everything." Basically he is saying, "Because God is perfectly revealed in Christ, because Christ is the creator and sustainer of all things, because He is the head of all creation and the church and especially because through His death and resurrection salvation is made available--as a result of all these things, Christ has been exalted by the Father to the highest position in existence--to have first place in everything."

To what extent does your life reflect that Christ has first place in everything? May you resist the temptation to restrict the preeminence of Christ in your life. He is to be honored as preeminent over all things, at all times, in every context, and in every circumstance.

"Quote" of the Week

"(Jesus) is the inspiring, ruling, guiding, combining, sustaining power (of the church), the mainspring of its activity, the centre of its unity and the seat of its life." -J.B. Lightfoot

"From everlasting there was one God, who had no beginning, and will have no end, who is not a body as we are, but a most pure, spiritual Being, that knoweth all things, and can do all things; and hath all goodness and blessedness in himself. This God is but one, but yet Three Persons, the Father, the Son, and Holy Ghost, in a manner that is above our understanding. And you must know, that this one God did make all the world by his Word; the heavens he made to be the place of his glory, and a multitude of holy angels to serve him. But some of these did, by pride or some other sin, fall from their high estate, and are become devils, and shall be miserable forever.

When he had created the earth, he made man, as his noblest creature here below, even one man and one woman, Adam and Eve; and he made them perfect, without any sin, and put them into the garden of Eden, and forbade them to eat of one tree in the garden, and told them that if they ate of it they should die. But the devil, who had first fallen himself, did tempt them to sin, and they yielded to his temptation, and thus fell under the curse of God's law. But God, of his infinite wisdom and mercy, did send his own Son, Jesus Christ, to be their Redeemer, who, in the fullness of time, was made man, being born of a virgin, by the power of the Holy Ghost, and lived on earth, among the Jews, about thirty-three years, during which time he preached the gospel himself, and wrought many miracles to prove his doctrine, healing the lame, the blind, the sick, and raising the dead by his Divine power; and in the end he was offered upon the cross as a sacrifice for our sins to bear that curse which we should have borne.

And now, if sinners will but believe in him, and repent of their sins, he will freely pardon all that is past, and will sanctify their corrupted nature, and will at length bring them to his heavenly kingdom and glory. But if they make light of their sins and of his mercy, he will condemn them to everlasting misery in hell. This gospel, Christ, having risen from the dead on the third day, appointed his ministers to preach to all the world; and when he had given this in charge to all his apostles, he ascended up into heaven, before their faces, where he is now in glory, with God the Father, in our nature. And at the end of this world, he will come again in our nature, and will raise the dead to life again, and bring them all before him, that they may 'give an account of all the deeds done in the body, whether they be good, or whether they be evil.' If, therefore, you mean to be saved, you must believe in Christ, as the only Saviour from the wrath to come; you must repent of your sins; you must, in short, be wholly new creatures, or there will be no salvation for you.'"

Baxter, Richard. The Reformed Pastor. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: The Banner of Truth Trust. First Published 1656. 244-245.

"Quote" of the Week

"And now, brethren, what have we to do for the time to come, but to deny our lazy flesh, and rouse up ourselves to the work before us. The harvest is great, the labourers are few; the loiterers and hinderers are many, the souls of men are precious, the misery of sinners is great, and the everlasting misery to which they are near is greater, (and) the joys of heaven are inconceivable." -Richard Baxter