YOU and GOD

Words escape us when we attempt to explain the concept of grace. An oft-sung hymn is about as good as one can do: “Marvelous grace of our loving Lord, grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt! Yonder on Calvary’s mount out-poured, there where the blood of the Lamb was spilt.”

As do many believers, I began reading through the Bible in January and am now just about through with the Penteteuch—the books penned by Moses under the direction of God, books that major on the Law given by God to govern the ways, work, and worship of His chosen people before Christ’s first advent.

I often remind myself that the Law is “holy, just, and good.” (Romans 7:12). Paul told the Galatians that it was given as a “school master” to bring us to Christ. It reveals the sinfulness of man and the holiness of God. Old Testament believers never had to wonder whether something was “right” or “wrong” because a law governed every aspect of life—from diet, dress, and deportment to work and worship. One could not live under that economy without coming to the realization, eventually, that Paul came to when, in spiritual exhaustion, he exclaimed: “Oh wretched man that I am!” The law condemned; the law convicted.

But “marvelous, infinite, matchless grace—freely bestowed on all who believe! You that are longing to see His face, will you this moment His grace receive?” As John 1:17 says: “The Law was given by Moses, but Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ.” Jesus, John declares, was the Word that was “made flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

What a day that was! The reign of the law was about to be fulfilled by the only One Who could keep it, the only begotten Son of God! The reign of grace was about to be initiated by the only One Who was qualified to administer it, God the Son, Grace incarnate.

The following simple outline that God gave me recently will provide some hooks upon which to hang our thoughts on the inexhaustible subject of grace:

1. The Word of Grace, Titus 2:11

“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.”

➢God’s word of grace for salvation…to all men
➢God’s word of grace for service…teaching us

2. The Wonder of Grace, Eph. 2:8,9

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.”

➢Wonder, that Jesus would save, cf. Romans 3:9-20—“They are all gone out of the way…there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
➢Wonder that salvation would be a “gift!”

3. The Way of Grace, John 1:14,16,17

➢He giveth grace: “And of His fulness have we all received, and grace for grace.”
➢He giveth more grace, Romans 5:20,21. His grace reservoir is never depleted!

4. The Wisdom of Grace, I Cor. 15:10—”But by the grace of God, I am what I am.” Paul, killer of Christians, chief of sinners—now the least of apostles—by the grace of God.

➢The law condemns, grace converts
➢The law sentences, grace saves
➢The law restricts, grace releases
➢The law separates, grace seeks

5. The World of Grace, Eph. 3:8: “Unto me, who am the least of all saints, is this grace given….”

➢The world of sinners: sought and saved!
➢The world of saints: sealed and sanctified (“…that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.”)

6. The Worth of Grace, Rom.6:6; Acts 20:32

➢It is marvelous. By it the “old man”—the body of sin—is destroyed “that henceforth we should not serve sin.” “I commend you to God, and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.” WOW!
➢It is matchless, Eph. 2:7: “That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ. For by grace are ye saved through faith.” Take that, Devil!

“O to grace how great a debtor daily I’m constrained to be! Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee.” (Robert Robinson-“Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”)

“Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” (Romans 5:21)

In describing the newly nominated Supreme Court Justice, David Souter—President George H.W. Bush’s nominee to fill the vacancy created by Justice William Brennan’s resignation in 1990—one commentator described the New Hampshire nominee as a “blank page.” By that, he meant that Souter was virtually unknown. He had not written many decisions on matters of national significance and thus had not left a “paper trail.”

That’s about how one might describe the subject of this installment in this series on the apostles of our Lord. James, the son of Alphaeus—compared with the other apostles—is sort of a blank page.

His name is mentioned only in the three New Testament synoptic gospels, where the apostles are listed, and possibly in Mark 15:40—where “Mary, the mother of James, the less” is mentioned. The “less” may mean that he was short in stature, or of modest influence, or of a “retiring” personality—if indeed this person whose mother is mentioned as being at Calvary with Mary Magdalene and Salome—was James, the apostle.

There is some conjecture about him. For instance, Matthew the apostle is also said to be the son of Alphaeus in Mark 2:14. It may be, then, that Matthew and this James, both called the son of Alphaeus, were brothers. They are never called brothers, however, so each may simply have had a father named Alphaeus. Also, some have thought this James to have been one of the brothers of Jesus who wrote the epistle of James. But, since the brothers of Jesus were spoken of in John 7 as unbelievers, initially at least, this in an unlikely possibility.

Interestingly, though very little is said of James in Scripture, his life can be inspiring! I believe every one of us can be and should be encouraged by the life of James, the son of Alphaeus, because we can all be—like him—what God wants us to be: 

1. He was a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, Matt. 10:1ff. He did what his Lord equipped him to do:

► He preached the gospel of the kingdom, v. 7

► He did some great things in Christ’s name: (Matt. 10:1ff.; 2 Cor. 12:12)

• Healed the sick, v. 8
• Cleansed lepers, v. 8
• Raised the dead, v.8
• Cast out devils, v.8

► He was persecuted, v. 22

► He was, above all things, a servant, v. 25

2. He was a faithful and obedient servant of Jesus Christ. (Acts 1:13)

► He wrote no epistles (like Paul)

► He preached no classic sermons (like Peter)

► He founded no church that we know of, nor did he pastor any great church

► But he was what Christ expects every follower to be:

• Faithful in all things, even that which is least
• Faithful unto death. Believers will be rewarded at the Judgment seat of Christ, based not on fame but on faithfulness; not so much on what we did but on how we did what we did—and why

Conclusion:  James, son of Alphaeus, was not of the stature of Peter or John. But what if Christ had chosen 12 to be with Him and to preach the gospel of the kingdom—and every one of them had been like Peter or John?

A painter completed his work of the Last Supper and asked some friends to view it. One friend remarked on how beautiful the cups were from which the apostles were drinking. The artist took a brush and painted out the lovely cups, to the astonishment of his admiring friends. His reason: “I want people to see Jesus.”

That’s the way James, son of Alphaeus, was. When people saw him, they were reminded first of Jesus.

By the way, “Isn’t it strange that princes and kings, and clowns that caper in sawdust rings—and common folk like you and me are builders for eternity? To each is given a set of rules, a shapeless mass, and a bag of tools. And each must build ‘ere life has flown, a stumbling block or a stepping stone.”  (R.L. Sharpe)

“Moreover, it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful.” (I Cor. 4:3)

(Editor’s Note: Please take a few minutes to read the following testimony that my friend John B. Aker—a retired pastor and former military chaplain and educator—shared with me. You will surely be blessed and inspired, as I was.)

“Once in a very great while, someone is blessed, as perhaps you may have been, in meeting another on whom a scripture passage or promise seems to have alighted and become alive.  To know such a one, and to see a living illustration of some biblical truth, is truly inspiring…

In my life, I have been privileged to know a few such men.  My friend Bob, for whom some of you prayed during his operation and post-op recovery, is truly an example to me.  I have seen Bob up close and personal for more than fifteen years—and to me he pictures the kind of man of whom David once wrote, the kind of man I long to be:

How blessed is that man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
But his delight is in The Law of The Lord,
And on His Law he meditates day and night.
He will be like a tree planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season,
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers…

Psalm 1:1-3

Another man, whose name and ministry might be familiar–one whom I was privileged to know personally–truly personified a most special passage.  Canadian born,  George spent most of his adult life in The States.  During my tenure as vice-president of Trinity College/Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (now Trinity International University), George was a member of The Board.  At the suggestion of then President Harry Evans, George agreed to sing at some of our informational (another word for fund-raising) banquets at which I was the speaker.  And, George, who had traveled with one of the world’s most notable preachers, was ever and always encouraging, never condescending.

Decades earlier, while working for Mutual of New York in New York City, George lived in Cresskill, New Jersey at the home of Pastor Cronk (whose son Dr. Malcolm Cronk had been my advisor during my own student days at Trinity).  In 1933, a year before marrying his childhood sweetheart, George earned an audition with the famed Lyn Murray Singers. 

After his audition, and before learning its outcome, George returned to that little parsonage in Cresskill, but stopped first to pray in its small worship center.  He sat at the piano and quietly, prayerfully, composed the music to Rhea Miller’s now world-renowned I’d Rather Have Jesus.  He did not know as he brought that piece of music to life that he was also extinguishing his desire of ever singing before thousands.  As he played and sang these words, he renounced his own desire to sing on a worldly stage:

I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold, I’d rather be His than have riches untold
I’d rather have Jesus than houses or land, I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced Hand

Than to be the king of a vast domain, And be held in sin’s dread sway
I’d rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today

I’d rather have Jesus than worldly applause, I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause,
I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame, Yes, I’d rather be true to His holy Name

Than to be the king of a vast domain, And be held in sin’s dread sway
I’d rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today.

When the call came early that evening, George declined their offer.  Little did George realize as he sat at the piano that God was in that chapel speaking to the young musician who, one day—and for many, many years—would sing before presidents, kings and queens, heads of states, and crowds of tens and tens of thousands simply because he purposed in his heart that

I’d rather have Jesus than worldly applause,  I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause,
I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame, Yes, I’d rather be true to His holy Name.

George was twenty four years old when he made that decision—and for almost eighty years after, George Beverly Shea would, before literally countless millions, tell The One Who spoke to him in that tiny church How Great Thou Art!

And so, in the late 1980’s, George was willing to sing while this unknown preacher spoke—and it never seemed to bother him.  I often wondered why?  Why was he willing to sing in little banquet halls in New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, and Iowa with an unknown young preacher…

I know now.  Do you?  It was more than his humility.  It was simply that no matter where, no matter how large or small the crowd or its applause—for George it was always about The Audience, and his Audience never changed.  He sang not for presidents, politicians, nor earthly rulers and royalty—George Beverly Shea sang only and always for an Audience of One…The King of Kings!

Oh, the verse.  I did not forget.  As I think of this great man, who now sings with angels and saints before our Father’s throne,  I see in him the personification of a verse that alighted on him and became alive in him, a pledge made by another man who also shared a platform before the kings and great men of his day–Daniel:

And Daniel purposed in his heart

that he would not compromise…

Daniel 1:8

What a testimony—faith in the flesh of Daniel…and George Beverly Shea!  Whatever verse you or I might choose to be our own, one which we would want other men to recall as they consider our lives, we must first be willing  to say and live, as did John The Baptizer:

He must increase but I must decrease…

John 3:30

To do that, we must be willing to never compromise…

Selah…and…Blessings!”

John 14:21

(Pastor Aker writes a weekly “Thought for the Week”—similar to what you have just read. To be included on his mailing list, contact him at jba@akerjba.com.)

Bad impressions can be difficult to shake. They sometimes follow you around like a stray dog you’d like to be rid of.

Sometimes they are even unfair, but that does not matter. They still persist. Remember Dan Quayle misspelling potato (or was it tomato?). Or, former president Gerald Ford hitting someone in the head with a golf ball, making Ford the butt of cartoonists who pictured him as wild and dangerous? Then there was Dick Cheney, who accidentally shot a hunting partner. And on and on.

Enter the apostle Thomas, aka Didymus, the twin. If I were to ask you to fill in the blank, what would you say: “Why worry, when you can pray; trust Jesus, He’ll be your stay. Don’t be a doubting ________, rest fully on His promise.” For more than two millennia, the apostle Thomas has been stuck with the moniker “Doubting Thomas.” He is often portrayed as melancholic, pessimistic, gloomy and skeptical.

But consider with me another view of Thomas—not the doubter but instead the leader, the learner, the leary, and the loved:

1. Thomas, the Leader. When Jesus heard of the death of His friend, Lazarus, in Bethany, and waited four days before going to visit his sisters Mary and Martha, some of His disciples favored “letting well enough alone” in response to Jesus’s statement that Lazarus was sleeping (“howbeit Jesus spake of his death”) (John 11:12,13); others questioned the wisdom of Jesus going back into Judea, where He had not been welcomed (John 11:8). But it was Thomas who sided with Jesus, and with loyalty and courage said, “Let us also go that we may die with Him.” Some think these were the words of a despondent, despairing person; might they rather be the words of a totally, courageously committed follower of his Lord who was willing to face the possibility of being stoned to death with Jesus (John 11:8) if He were going to go to visit the grieving sisters of His friends. Jesus was developing committed, consistent, creative, courageous disciples. Maybe, just maybe, Thomas was displaying his courage—to go with Jesus in spite of personal danger—rather than to play it safe by staying where they were, even though Lazarus’s sisters had urged Jesus to come quickly when he had fallen gravely sick.
2. Thomas, the Learner. In John 14, when Jesus told the apostles that He was going to prepare a place for them, then return at some future time to receive them to Himself, it was Thomas who said (in reply to Jesus’ statement that “And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know,”): “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?” (John 14:4,5) But do not mistake an honest inquiry for doubt or disbelief. Thomas believed that Jesus was going to prepare a place; he desired to go with Jesus, and he was simply seeking more information. He had learned not to assume anything, nor to take anything for granted. If Jesus were going to prepare a place, Thomas wanted to be sure he was going to see Him again at that very place, and he wanted to get the directions down pat! No problem there! I often, even with GPS, need to ask someone to repeat the directions so as to be sure I can arrive at the desired destination!
3. Thomas, the Leary. After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to the disciples in the Upper Room on the first day of the week. Thomas was not at that time present; but, having heard that he had missed seeing the resurrected Jesus, Thomas declared, “Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe.” (John 20:25) Eight days later, when Jesus appeared to His followers again, He bid Thomas to put his fingers into the nail prints and to thrust his hand into His side—and “be not faithless, but believing.” Thomas, like a disciple was supposed to be doing, was ever growing in his faith; the patient Teacher so often comes to us and proves beyond any doubt that He is sovereignly at work in our lives. Upon birth (as in the new birth) we are not suddenly full-grown in our faith, and we often find ourselves echoing the apostles’ plea, “Lord, increase our faith.” By the way, when Mary Magdalene first saw Jesus, and at His bidding went and told His disciples that He was alive and that she had seen Him, “they believed not.” And when the two men who had walked and talked with Jesus on the road to Emmaus told the disciples that they had seen Jesus risen and alive, “neither believed they them.” (Mark 16:11-13)
4. Thomas, the Loved. Thomas was one of the seven disciples of whom we read in John 21 that Jesus prepared an early morning breakfast for, following His resurrection. Read the whole of this unique chapter and you will surely conclude that, like the other six seasoned fishermen-followers of the Lord Jesus, Thomas was included in a morning meeting with the risen Lord around a prepared fire, where fish had been fried and lovingly served by the Savior. This indicates that Thomas, too, had witnessed a miracle, enjoyed a meal, and heard a memorable message from the Lord as He patiently taught Peter about love and life, service and separation (death).

So, who’s going to condemn Thomas for being a doubter? He never denied Jesus. He followed Him when others were hesitant. He was bold enough to ask a question so as not to miss heaven. And he—like his compatriots, hearing that the crucified Savior had risen and had been seen—could not at first believe what seemed too good to be true. But seeing, he believed. And kneeling, he confessed: “My Lord, and my God!” Thomas had an evangelistic ministry in India and died a martyr’s death, tradition records, by being thrust through with a spear in 72 A.D.

So, be cautious about those first impressions. Thomas the Doubter? Or, Thomas the Leader, Thomas the Learner, Thomas the Leary, Thomas the Loved?

“Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)

A prominent evangelical leader—Al Mohler Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville—indicted today’s churches with the following alarming evaluation: “The decline of church discipline is perhaps the most visible failure of the contemporary church.”

When was the last time you remember a church exercising this scriptural mandate?
Discipline is never joyous at the time, whether when a parent must exercise discipline toward a disobedient child, or a teacher toward a student, or a civil authority upon a delinquent citizen, or—God forbid—a church upon a wayward saint who is a member of His Body, serving in and through a local body, a church.

1. The precept of church discipline is based on scriptural injunctions. Old Testament Israelites, in covenant with their creator God, were given commandments regulating their diet, dress, and demeanor. To ignore these distinct directives was to jeopardize one’s standing as part of God’s family—and, in severe instances, even one’s life. In the New Testament economy, as God instructed His people about their walk and worship, the precept of discipline is inculcated into His Word. There are many examples of this, including Paul’s guidance to the church at Rome concerning those in that body who were causing “divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned…avoid them.” (Romans 16:17ff.)
2. The purpose of discipline was for the good and spiritual well-being of the local assembly and for the spiritual reclaiming of the wayward worshipper. James put it this way: “If any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way, shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.” (James 5:19,20) The death James alludes to in this passage is the sin unto death of which John spoke in his first epistle, where he mentioned that there is sin unto death (which a brother can sin) and sin not unto death.” (I John 5:16-18)
3. The people of church discipline, then, are people living in open, flagrant sin that not only endangers their own well-being but puts in jeopardy the testimony and the validity of the whole body of believers. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth (I Cor. 5) reprimanding them because they had tolerated and ignored the fact that one of their members was living in immorality (the awfulness of which even unbelievers condemned); yet the church had become “puffed up” about the situation, rather than mournful about it, evidently “proud” of the exercise of the supposed “liberty” that they were embracing.

4. The practice of church discipline, therefore, was established in epistles that apostles wrote, and also in the explicit teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ when teaching the apostles, who would become the foundation of the Church that He had promised He would build. (Matt. 16:18) In Matthew 18:15ff., Jesus sets forth clearly the steps in the practice of disciplining members of the local assembly who were walking disorderly.
5. The pattern of church discipline can be observed in how Jesus told His followers to deal with a conflict between two estranged brothers. He told the offended brother to go to the offender and explain to him how he had been offended; if no resolution occurs through that meeting, he is go to a second time—this time with one or two members of the church accompanying him. Finally, if this meeting proves unfruitful in bringing about a resolution, he is to take the matter to the church (through proper channels, beginning with the pastor/elders). (Matt.18:15-18) The essence of this pattern or procedure was reiterated by Paul when he instructed the Corinthian church in how to deal with the member there who was living a life of reproach.
6. The purity of the local assembly is at stake. Al Mohler, quoted above, went on to say: “The absence of church discipline is no longer remarkable—it is generally not even noticed. Regulative and restorative church discipline is, to many church members, no longer a meaningful category, or even a memory. The present generation of both ministers and church members is virtually without experience of biblical church discipline.” One might ask then: “Is today’s church known for its purity or for its tolerance of just about any aberrant behavior?”
7. The peace that the practice of church discipline can afford is immeasurable in its benefits. Paul told the Galatians that if a brother was “overtaken” in a fault, one of the members in tune with God’s Spirit might, in meekness, when going to the brother, be used of God to restore the wayward member. (Gal. 6:1) Again, in his second letter to the Corinthian church, Paul intimates that the discipline that he had urged the church to exercise upon the fallen brother (I Cor. 5) had been successful in reaching its desired end; and now the brother, having repented, should be “forgiven…comforted… and confirmed” in love. (II Cor. 2:5-11)
8. Finally, a word about the pitfalls of church discipline. When exhorting the Galatian church about restoring a brother who had been overtaken in fault, Paul instructed that someone who was “spiritual” should approach the brother “in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” (Gal. 6:1) The ever-lurking monster of pride must be guarded against as one of the common pitfalls prevalent in our watch-care of one another.

As a pastor for most of my adult life, it was the unhappy duty on a few occasions to lead our church in the exercise of Biblical, local-church discipline. Some produced the desired effect; some, sadly, did not. To all pastors, I would encourage you with these words: if people visit your church from another local assembly, be sure to make a courtesy call to the pastor of the church they have belonged to. That pastor might inform you that your visitors have been disciplined by the church they are leaving. You must honor that disciplinary action. Encourage them to return to their church and, if possible, resolve problems there biblically. This is not always done. One more word from Dr. Mohler: “The contemporary church sees itself as a voluntary association of autonomous members, with minimal moral accountability to God, much less to each other.” Selah.

“Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way, shall save a soul from death, and shall hide the multitude of sins.” (James 5:19,20)

Before and after pictures are always fascinating to me.

You know—like the ones you see in the newspapers or magazines; or, more commonly now, on commercials for diets, plastic surgery, or hair replacement.

The Word of God gives us a striking picture of a “before and after” of an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.

His name is Matthew, aka Levi, son of Alphaeus.

We have some insight into his life before and after his meeting with Jesus.

This study of God’s Word of this converted Jew will yield spiritual profit.

1.  Matthew before he met Jesus.

➢ He, like all the apostles, was a Jew.

➢ He was familiar with the Old Testament, quoting from it more than any other gospel writer and citing passages from the Torah, the poetic books and the prophets.

➢ He was looking for the Messiah.

➢ He was also known as “Levi” (the house of the “priestly order,” set apart for worship).

➢ He was from Capernaum, located on the northern end of the Sea of Galilee, an important east-west trade town—visited by travelers from Mesopotamia; sheiks from desert oases, artisans from the east, and entrepreneurs from Rome. Roman roads made travel to and from there possible. When Jesus was rejected by Nazareth, He made His “base of operations” Capernaum, where He did much of His teaching and healing. (Mark 1:33,34)

➢ He was a tax-collector, a “publican,” employed by and for Rome.

• These were known as “leeches.”
• None were detested more by the Jews than tax collectors. A common saying among Jews: “Take not a wife out of that family wherein is a publican, for they are all thieves, robbers and harlots.”
• They were cut off from family, friends, country, and the synagogue.
• When publicans came to John the Baptist, asking him what they could do, he answered them, “Exact no more than that which is appointed you.” (Luke 3:12,13)

2.  Matthew at the time he met Jesus, Matt. 9:9-13.

➢ Jesus met Matthew where he was (He found him!).

➢ Jesus gave him a simple command: “Follow me.”

• He was not commanded or asked to quit anything.
• He did not ask him to make any promises.
• He did not lecture Matthew on the evils of what he was doing. “You don’t quit something and then believe; you believe and then quit.”
• Matthew knew he needed Christ; he knew he couldn’t help himself; he knew what he was doing would never bring satisfaction; he repented—had a change of mind—and believing, followed Jesus.  

3.  Matthew after he met Jesus.

➢ He was an obedient follower, Matt. 9:9.

➢ He was a dedicated follower, cf. Luke 5:28. (He left his job, his high paying position, but, thankfully he kept his pen!).

➢ Matthew, in his gospel, systematized the Sermon on the Mount; Jesus’ parables on the kingdom; and the teaching about the second coming of Christ. He gave us the genealogy of Jesus through Joseph.

➢He was an enthused follower of the Lord Jesus, Luke 5:29. In Mark 2:15ff. it says Matthew gave a dinner to Jesus, the disciples, and “publicans and sinners.” Three times “publicans and sinners” are mentioned as being present at the meal—they were, no doubt, the only friends Matthew had at that time.

➢ He was a faithful follower of Jesus, Matt. 10:3. He will receive that which Jesus promised in Matthew 19:29: “Everyone that hath forsaken houses or brethren or sisters or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundred fold, and shall inherit everlasting life.”

Despised as he once was by contemporary Jews, Matthew—by the grace, mercy, and love of God—will have his name inscribed on one of the twelve foundations of the New Jerusalem. (Rev. 21:14) Tradition records that he was burned at the stake. In his prominent place as a tax collector in Capernaum, he heard much of the miracles and of the messages of Jesus of Nazareth. On that day that Jesus stopped where Matthew was sitting at the receipt of custom, when Jesus simply said to this son of Alphaeus, “Follow Me,” Matthew “arose and followed Him,” and never looked back.

He was never one of the inner circle of His master; never was he out front or the first to speak up. But his mind never stopped rehearsing and recording what Jesus did and said; and, at the right time, Matthew took up his pen and wrote a book designed especially to appeal to his Jewish brethren in an attempt to once and for all prove to them that Jesus of Nazareth—by His birth, His life, and His death—fulfilled every Old Testament prophecy of this One who presented Himself as sent from God to those who sat in darkness and the shadow of death spoken of by the prophet Isaiah centuries before His coming—by the sea, beyond Jordan to Galilee of the Gentiles, to proclaim “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 4:12-17)

“And as He passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed Him.” (Mark 2:14)

Evangelical churches are generally known by their desire to evangelize the unevangelized world; that is, to send missionaries into all the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, in obedience to Christ’s command (Matt. 28:18-20). Then, when people who hear the gospel accept Christ, the missionary will endeavor to lead the convert into baptism, church membership, and then into a systematic discipleship program, grounding new believers in the doctrines taught in the Bible. All of this is done in the context of a local church ministry, as the church is the pillar and ground of the truth. (I Tim.3:15)

The goal of world mission endeavors originating in and mothered by a local church is the birthing of churches of like precious faith, churches that will in time—through teaching—become indigenous local assemblies; that is, bodies that are self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating. “To the uttermost part of the world” is the scope of this aggressive outreach that every local New Testament church has as its eventual goal. (Acts 1:8)

The part of “indigenous” that sometimes becomes a thorny issue—that of self-governing—has caused some unique challenges in the everyday, week after week, life of the local church.

Self-governing means that each local assembly, directed by the Holy Spirit through prayer and a consensus of the body, calls its own pastor, sends missionaries by action of the local church, and determines for itself what, when, and how the church, under the Headship and leadership of the Lord Jesus Christ, will conduct its worship and outreach without any directives from a “denominational” headquarters. Each local New Testament church, beginning with the first church in Jerusalem serving as a model (see Acts 15), governs its own affairs by Christ Jesus through the Spirit, led by an overseer—a bishop/pastor.

The earliest missions outreach, as set forth in Acts 13 and 14, was the result of the Holy Spirit directing the Antioch church to send forth two men whom the Spirit had set apart for service. These first missionaries were thrust out into missions ministries to start churches wherever people would accept Christ and gather together around Bible doctrine as taught by Paul and Barnabas in the earliest days of the Church. It should not be missed that, in many of these towns, Paul and his missionary companion not only led people to Christ but instituted Bible-doctrine classes, enrolling truth-thirsty new converts into a crash-course of New Testament teachings. Remarkably, in many of these cities, “elders—pastors” were “ordained” to lead the local flocks. That, at its core, was and is New Testament missions.

“Elders” were set apart, trained and left to be under shepherds of these baby churches. Later, in the epistles, Paul specified those who were delegated assignments in the church, and who were gifted by the Holy Spirit to execute their work responsibilities. (I Tim. 3) Peter, in his first epistle, addresses the elders as ones who were to “feed the flock” and to take the “oversight” thereof. These elders, pastors, bishops were called and equipped to do the work of the ministry, the bulk of which was to labor in the Word, teaching and preaching the whole counsel of God.

Early in the book of Acts, deacons were appointed, set apart in the local church, to “serve tables.” Qualifications for deacons were spiritual (I Tim. 3:8-14); there is no indication that they were to do anything but serve though. The work of a deacon was (is) to minister to the physical, temporal needs of those in the church who may, due to circumstances, find themselves in need of special assistance. Widows would be an example of those who, in some congregations, would need extra assistance in daily needs for food, shelter, watch care. There is not, in the New Testament, anything that would lend itself to the current, common mode of thinking that the duties of pastors and deacons are sometimes, somehow blended; and that deacons, if there is no pastor, can function as pastors. In extreme (yet not uncommon) instances, deacons sometimes feel that their “gift” to the church is that of assuming the duties of a pastor, that is, taking on pastoral responsibilities. This is unscriptural in any setting, in any church, whether the church has or does not have a pastor.

Pastors lead by the Spirit and at the direction of the Head, Jesus Christ; deacons serve as in “serving tables.” (Acts 6:1-5) The pastors give themselves over “continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word.” Too often, these Biblical roles are mingled. Pastors sometimes feel they need to “micromanage” every detail of the Body life; and, too often, deacons get the idea that their calling is tantamount to being an “assistant pastor.” This is not to say, though, that godly deacons cannot be an invaluable help to their pastor—by lifting his load of temporal cares, and by wise, thoughtful, and scriptural counsel.

The confusing and unscriptural mixing of ministries will cause dissension, division, and, if not corrected, the eventual death of what might have once been a great church. Any pastor who is blessed by the counsel, fellowship, prayers, and loyalty of a servant-deacon is a pastor whose ministry will flourish, as will the church that God has called him to lead.

No member, nor any visitor to any local church, should ever leave a service wondering, “Who’s in charge here?” Pastors, elders, and bishops are called and gifted to teach, preach, and lead the flock of God. Deacons are servers who do not have any “power,” either stated or implied. Happy and healthy is the local church that understands these distinctions in principle and in practice. Selah.

“And He gave some…pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” (Eph. 4:11,12)

The 12 men who uniquely lived and labored with Jesus of Nazareth for the duration of his 42-month public ministry are the subjects of this series on the Apostles.

They were holy men, yet not hallowed. They were good and godly men, yet men of passions and prejudices as men of today are.

They were convinced by and committed to the words and works of Jesus the Messiah.

They ultimately paid the supreme price for their faith and following of Jesus by dying a martyr’s death.

Of some of them, much us written; and of some, very little.

They were, for the most part, called one by one and sent out two by two.

They came from varying walks of life. And, though they possessed wide-ranging differences, one characteristic was common to all—they were to a man (with one exception) driven by devotion to Jesus Christ—a devotion that made them capable of any sacrifice.

They became the foundation of the Church that Jesus built and is building, Himself being the chief cornerstone.

Their messages and their ministries continue to touch lives world-wide today. When we study the Apostles, we learn not only of them but also of ourselves. We often see ourselves in them—their weaknesses are ours; their desires are ours, their faith and their frailties, most of us can easily identify with.

As we continue this study, our subject in this installment is a man introduced in John’s Gospel, chapter 1, verse 45:

1. His Identity

► Nathanael, “gift of God.” He was from Cana in Galilee.
► Nathanael was his common name; Bartholomew was a patronym. He was a son of Tolmai. (Matt. 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14, John 21:2)

2. His Introduction

► He was sought and found by Philip, his friend, John 1:45. (Andrew found Peter; Jesus found Philip; Philip found Nathanael)
► He was a serious student of Scriptures, having read and studied the Law.
• Gen. 3:15: the “protoevangelium.”
• Gen. 49:10: “The sceptre shall not depart out of Judah….”
• Num. 24:17: “I shall see Him…I shall behold Him…a star out of Jacob….”
► He had studied the prophets and examined the Messianic prophecies
• Re: His virgin birth, 7:14; 9:6ff.
• Re: The time of His birth, Daniel 9:27
• Re: The place of His birth, Micah 5:2
• Re: The tribe from which He would come, Matt. 1:2ff.
►He was a sincere seeker, John 1:46-49
• Philip’s declaration indicates that they had been looking for the Messiah to come
• Nathanael’s question, v. 46, is out of sincerity not contempt. He was from Galilee himself, and Jews generally had a low view of Galilee. Common saying: “If any man would be rich, let him go to Galilee; if any would be wise, let him go to Jerusalem.”
• Nazareth was looked down upon because a Roman outpost was there; it was a notorious citadel of unbelief, Matt. 13:58.

3. His Meeting with Jesus

► What Jesus said about Nathanael
• He was a true Israelite (John 1:47; cf. Romans 2:28)
• He was guileless, i.e. sincere, honest, transparent
• It was said also of Jesus, “Neither was any guile found in His mouth.” (I Pt.2:22)
(See Psalm 15 for a divine description of a guileless person)
► What Nathanael said to Jesus, John 1:48,49
• He called Him “Rabbi.”
• He said He was “the Son of God.”
• He acknowledged He was the King of Israel. His search was over, His quest was completed; His thirst was quenched!
► What Jesus Promised to Nathanael: “Greater things than these….”
• “Son of God,” v. 49—The rest of John’s Gospel would prove that in the “greater things” that are enumerated in his gospel (John 20:30,31)
• “Son of Man,” v. 51—Jesus reveals that He was also the Son of Man

4. Things learned from studying Nathanael
   • As God knew Nathanael (before Nathanael met Jesus), so He knew each of us before we met Him.
   • With God, an interrogation can at once become a declaration:
   “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”; “Thou are the Son of God, Thou art the King of Israel.” (John 1:46,49)
   • Seeking faith will not be unrewarded, John 1:45.
   • Jesus can find you and will accept you where you are just now.

“Nathanael answered and saith unto Him, Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel.” (John 1:49)

---