Latest / Providence Baptist Church - Sermons / Acts 16:1-5

Transcript

Acts 16:1-5 · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

0:00
Please take your copy of God's Word and turn to Acts chapter 16.
0:09
Acts chapter 16, our text for this morning is verses 1-5.
0:15
! Before we read this morning's text, let me remind you where we are in Luke's second narrative.
0:20
We've got the Gospel according to Luke, and then this book we call the Acts of the Apostles most often.
0:26
I like to call it the Acts of the Risen Jesus Christ.
0:31
We see that Jesus is working by the agency of the Holy Spirit in the lives of His disciples for the expansion of His church.
0:41
Beloved, this is our history. It's a wonderful thing to get to spend such a vast amount of time.
0:48
It's going to be probably, I think, about two years that we'll be in the book of Acts.
0:51
Considering this early church, these are our brethren.
0:55
At the end of chapter 14, we saw Paul and Barnabas complete their first missionary journey,
1:02
returning to Antioch, where they were commissioned in the first place.
1:07
At the beginning of chapter 15, false teaching reaches Antioch.
1:12
People travel to Antioch, preaching this, Acts chapter 15, verse 1,
1:17
But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers,
1:22
Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.
1:30
So, Paul and Barnabas are sent to Jerusalem to seek clarity from the other apostles.
1:36
These teachers, these false teachers have traveled from that region,
1:39
So they go to make sure that they haven't erred in teaching that you must not be circumcised to be saved.
1:47
So they're sent to Jerusalem to seek clarity.
1:50
At what's often called the Jerusalem Council,
1:55
the apostles and elders in Jerusalem decidedly affirm
1:59
that all that is necessary for salvation is faith in Jesus.
2:04
And then they give some further instruction in the form of a letter.
2:08
And Clay came and spoke to us both about the decision they made,
2:11
as well as the letter and the deliverance of it.
2:14
You can see in Acts chapter 15, verse 29, the further instruction.
2:19
Abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols,
2:23
and from blood, and from what has been strangled,
2:26
and from sexual immorality.
2:29
And so we find in this further instruction,
2:32
three cultural considerations.
2:34
These were matters of offense to the Jews.
2:38
Food sacrificed to idols, and blood, and from animals that had been strangled.
2:43
These would have been things that would have been offensive to a Jewish culture.
2:47
So three cultural considerations, and one moral obligation,
2:51
that is abstain from sexual immorality.
2:56
So this is the decision that's been made.
2:59
The letter goes back to Antioch,
3:02
and after some time,
3:04
Paul and Barnabas decide to retrace their first missionary route
3:08
to check on the churches established on their first journey.
3:12
We see that at the very end of chapter 15, beginning in verse 36.
3:17
But conflict, in the form of a sharp disagreement,
3:21
arises between them about whether or not to take John Mark along with them,
3:26
which results in their parting ways.
3:28
Now we noted last week that the good result of this,
3:33
what I would suggest, sinful conflict,
3:36
was missionary multiplication.
3:38
The one band of missionaries
3:39
has now turned into two bands of missionaries
3:43
as Barnabas goes west with John Mark
3:46
to the island of Cyprus,
3:48
and Paul heads north with Silas.
3:53
Now Silas was one of the leaders of the church in Jerusalem.
3:56
He was both a Jew and a Roman citizen,
3:59
so like Paul,
4:00
he had the protection of the empire
4:02
and could get entrance into the Jewish synagogues.
4:07
Silas was a perfect partner for Paul's second missionary journey,
4:11
but Paul, and I'm going to guess,
4:14
say likely due to his division with Barnabas,
4:16
now seems to have a mind toward multiplication.
4:20
What happens when Silas and I part ways?
4:24
What would come of that?
4:26
So he seems to have a mind now toward multiplication.
4:30
And so we see at the beginning of Acts chapter 16,
4:33
verses 1 through 5,
4:35
this bridge in our story.
4:37
Beloved,
4:38
this is God's Word to us.
4:41
It was written for His glory and our good.
4:44
We would all do well to listen to it
4:46
in order to believe its promises
4:48
and obey its commands.
4:51
His promises are sure and His commands are good.
4:56
Beginning in verse 1,
4:58
Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra.
5:03
A disciple was there named Timothy,
5:05
the son of a Jewish woman
5:07
who was a believer,
5:09
but his father was a Greek.
5:11
He was well spoken of by the brothers
5:13
at Lystra and Iconium.
5:16
Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him,
5:18
and he took him and circusized him
5:20
because of the Jews who were in those places,
5:23
for they all knew that his father was a Greek.
5:27
As they went on their way through the cities,
5:29
they delivered to them for observance
5:31
the decisions that had been reached
5:32
by the apostles and elders
5:34
who were in Jerusalem.
5:35
So the churches were strengthened in the faith,
5:39
and they increased in numbers daily.
5:43
Now this morning, I just have two points.
5:45
One, the first point we'll spend some time on,
5:48
and the second will be very brief.
5:50
The two points are,
5:51
number one,
5:52
the freedom to circumcise Timothy.
5:55
And number two,
5:57
the effect of circumcising Timothy.
6:03
But before we get to those two points,
6:05
let's first spend a little time
6:06
on some textual explanations.
6:09
We'll look at the first two verses.
6:12
Now for your sake,
6:13
on the back of the bulletin,
6:14
I asked Andy this week
6:15
to put a map of Paul's
6:17
second missionary journey.
6:20
I don't know if you're like me,
6:21
but it really helps me
6:22
to be able to wrap my mind
6:23
a bit around what's going on.
6:28
I asked Andy to do this yesterday,
6:29
and he did a great job
6:30
of finding a map
6:32
that the kids would enjoy coloring.
6:35
We think that it's in Italian.
6:37
So if you're looking at the odd spellings
6:40
across the map,
6:41
I think you're smart enough
6:42
to figure out the locations,
6:43
but we're pretty sure
6:44
it's an Italian map
6:45
of these locations,
6:47
which is why you may see
6:48
some spellings a tad different,
6:50
like check out Jerusalem
6:51
down at the bottom.
6:53
Gerusalemme is what it looks like.
6:56
So anyway,
6:56
that's what's happening here.
6:59
So you've got,
7:01
the island of Cyprus
7:02
is not labeled on this map,
7:03
but it's out there
7:04
just up in that far right-hand corner,
7:07
high right-hand corner
7:08
of the Mediterranean Sea.
7:09
This is the place
7:09
that Barnabas was from.
7:10
This is the place
7:11
that the missionary journey
7:12
of Paul and Barnabas
7:13
started out.
7:14
They crossed over
7:15
and went to the island of Cyprus.
7:17
And then from the western coast of Cyprus
7:20
headed north
7:21
into the region
7:22
where they finally
7:23
ended their missionary journey
7:24
and circled back down and around.
7:27
This time, though,
7:29
Barnabas heads to Cyprus.
7:31
Paul and Silas head north
7:33
and then hook a hard left
7:34
to head their way
7:36
to Derbe and Lystra.
7:38
So that gives you some idea
7:39
of where they are.
7:41
If you think of the first missionary journey
7:42
as going clockwise,
7:44
they're going now counterclockwise.
7:46
back the other way.
7:49
And it's possible,
7:51
it's probable,
7:53
they do this
7:54
so that they could pick up Timothy.
7:56
Paul now having this mind
7:57
toward multiplication,
7:58
picking up Timothy
7:59
to accompany them
8:00
on the rest of that journey.
8:04
We find out a little bit
8:05
about Timothy in this text.
8:06
Timothy was a believer in Christ.
8:08
The text says he was a disciple.
8:10
In the Greek term for disciple,
8:12
there simply means believer.
8:14
In fact, other places in the text.
8:16
Referring to his mother,
8:17
believer is the exact same Greek word.
8:21
Likely converted
8:22
on Paul and Barnabas' first trip.
8:25
So when they traveled
8:25
into this region before,
8:27
it's been a couple of years now,
8:28
it was likely when he was converted.
8:32
We don't know that for sure.
8:33
Certainly Christian ministry
8:34
has been going on
8:35
in this community
8:36
since Paul and Barnabas' departure.
8:38
But it's likely
8:39
that that was the case
8:41
because in Paul's first letter to Timothy,
8:43
he writes,
8:44
1 Timothy 1-2,
8:45
to Timothy,
8:47
my true child in the faith.
8:50
We can't know for sure
8:52
that that's the case.
8:53
Certainly Paul played
8:55
a very fatherly role in his life.
8:57
But it's likely
8:58
that he was the one
8:59
that proclaimed the gospel to him
9:00
and Timothy came into the faith family
9:03
as a result of his tutelage of him.
9:07
We also find out
9:07
that Timothy's mother
9:09
was a believer.
9:11
Her name was Eunice.
9:14
We see in our text
9:15
the son of a Jewish woman
9:16
who was a believer.
9:18
We find out in 2 Timothy 1-5,
9:20
her name is Eunice,
9:21
as well as the fact
9:22
that his grandmother
9:23
was also a believer.
9:25
2 Timothy 1-5,
9:26
Paul writes,
9:27
I am reminded
9:28
of your sincere faith,
9:30
a faith that dwelt first
9:32
in your grandmother Lois
9:33
and in your mother Eunice,
9:35
and now I am sure
9:36
dwells in you as well.
9:40
We also find out
9:41
that his father
9:42
was not a believer in Christ
9:45
and that he was likely dead.
9:49
So we get a little phrase
9:50
in verse 1,
9:51
but his father was a Greek.
9:54
The conjunction, but,
9:56
refers both to Eunice's ethnicity
9:59
and her faith.
10:02
So you could read it this way,
10:03
but his father was not a believer
10:05
and his father was not a Jew.
10:08
It refers to both things.
10:10
Not a believer
10:10
and not a Jew.
10:12
His father was a Greek.
10:15
And the imperfect form
10:17
of the verb was,
10:19
rather than the present tense
10:20
of the verb,
10:22
suggests that he was dead.
10:23
He's already moved off the scene.
10:25
So Timothy, as a young man,
10:26
does not have a father,
10:28
and Paul, in some sense,
10:30
adopts him
10:31
and takes him on this journey.
10:33
We also find out
10:35
in verse 2
10:36
that Timothy
10:37
was faithful.
10:40
Verse 2 says,
10:40
he was well spoken of
10:42
by the brothers
10:43
at Lystra
10:45
and Diconium.
10:46
Luke records this for us
10:47
in the specific way
10:48
to say of the brothers,
10:50
because the brothers
10:51
are speaking well
10:52
of a man
10:52
because he's a brother,
10:54
not because he was
10:54
good at some particular skill.
10:56
Like his bow staff skills
10:57
were not excellent,
10:58
and so he was spoken
10:59
well of.
11:00
But he was a man
11:01
full of faith.
11:02
The brothers
11:03
considered him faithful.
11:07
And because
11:08
Timothy's father
11:09
was Greek,
11:11
he had not allowed
11:12
Timothy to be circumcised.
11:14
It's likely that his mom
11:15
and his grandmother
11:16
would have wanted him
11:16
to be circumcised,
11:17
but his father
11:18
prevented this
11:19
from happening,
11:20
which brings us
11:21
to our first point
11:22
from our text
11:23
this morning.
11:24
Number one,
11:25
the freedom
11:26
to circumcise
11:27
Timothy.
11:29
So we see in verse 3,
11:32
Paul wanted Timothy
11:33
to go along with him,
11:34
this faithful follower
11:36
of Jesus,
11:37
to go along with him.
11:39
And he takes him
11:40
and he circumcises him.
11:42
It seems that Paul
11:43
actually performs
11:44
a circumcision,
11:45
although we can't
11:45
be too sure.
11:47
He takes him
11:47
and he circumcises him
11:48
because of the Jews
11:50
who were in those places,
11:51
for they all knew
11:53
that his father
11:54
was a Greek.
11:54
That is,
11:55
they all knew
11:55
that he was not
11:56
circumcised.
11:59
So these Jews
12:00
would have been aware
12:00
of this fact
12:01
that he had not
12:02
been circumcised
12:03
on the basis
12:04
of who his father was.
12:05
And this fact
12:06
is what causes Paul
12:07
to circumcise him.
12:10
But why?
12:11
Why?
12:13
Paul was an ardent
12:14
defender
12:15
of salvation
12:17
by grace alone,
12:18
through faith alone,
12:20
in Christ alone.
12:21
He stood firm on that.
12:22
There were no works.
12:23
His whole trip
12:25
to Jerusalem,
12:26
the whole Jerusalem
12:27
council thing
12:27
was about him
12:28
affirming what he
12:29
had been teaching
12:30
Gentile believers.
12:34
Listen to some of his words
12:35
to the Galatian believers.
12:37
This is a group,
12:38
a church,
12:39
who were beginning
12:39
to believe the false
12:40
teaching that they
12:41
must be circumcised
12:43
to be saved.
12:43
This is some years later
12:44
when Paul writes
12:45
his letter to the
12:46
Galatian church.
12:47
Join me, if you will,
12:48
in the book of Galatians.
12:49
I think you'll appreciate
12:50
being there
12:51
and seeing these texts.
12:53
Remembering that Paul
12:54
was a defender
12:56
of salvation
12:57
by grace alone,
12:58
through faith alone,
12:58
in Christ alone.
13:02
And the question before us is,
13:03
so why did he
13:05
circumcise
13:05
Timothy?
13:08
So let's start
13:08
in Galatians chapter 2,
13:10
verses 15 and 16.
13:13
So the scene is,
13:14
what was often called
13:15
the Judaizers,
13:16
have come into
13:16
the Galatian church
13:17
and they've led
13:18
them astray
13:19
saying,
13:19
oh no, no,
13:20
believing in Jesus
13:21
is good,
13:21
but you must also
13:22
be circumcised
13:23
to be saved.
13:25
And Paul writes,
13:26
we ourselves
13:27
are Jews
13:28
by birth
13:29
and not
13:30
Gentile sinners.
13:32
Yet we know
13:33
that a person
13:34
is not justified,
13:35
found right before God,
13:37
by works of the law,
13:39
but through
13:39
faith in Jesus Christ.
13:42
So,
13:43
we also,
13:44
right,
13:45
these people
13:45
being Jews
13:46
by birth,
13:47
we also have
13:48
believed in
13:48
Christ Jesus
13:49
in order
13:50
to be justified
13:51
by faith in Christ
13:53
and not
13:54
by works
13:55
of the law.
13:56
Because by works
13:57
of the law,
13:58
no one
13:59
will be
14:00
justified,
14:01
right?
14:01
So justification
14:02
comes
14:03
by grace alone
14:04
through faith alone
14:04
in Jesus Christ
14:06
alone.
14:07
Further,
14:07
Galatians chapter 3,
14:08
verses 1 through 3.
14:11
Paul writes,
14:12
oh foolish Galatians,
14:14
who has bewitched you?
14:16
It was before your eyes
14:17
that Jesus Christ
14:18
was publicly
14:19
portrayed
14:20
as crucified.
14:23
Let me ask you
14:23
only this.
14:25
Did you receive
14:26
the Spirit
14:26
by works
14:27
of the law
14:28
or by hearing
14:29
with faith?
14:31
Are you so foolish?
14:33
Having begun
14:34
by the Spirit,
14:35
are you now
14:35
being perfected
14:37
by the flesh?
14:39
Again,
14:39
this defense
14:40
against them
14:41
altering their
14:42
physical being
14:43
to be found
14:44
right before God.
14:47
Galatians chapter 5,
14:48
verse 1.
14:49
Paul writes,
14:51
for freedom
14:52
Christ has set us free.
14:55
Stand firm,
14:57
therefore,
14:58
and do not
14:59
submit again
15:01
to a yoke
15:02
of slavery.
15:03
Strong language,
15:05
right?
15:05
It's for freedom
15:06
that Christ
15:06
has set us free.
15:07
Stand firm,
15:08
therefore.
15:08
He's saying
15:09
refuse
15:10
to be circumcised
15:11
because if you are
15:13
thinking that you'll be saved,
15:15
you're submitting yourself
15:16
again
15:16
to a yoke
15:17
of slavery.
15:20
Paul
15:20
had gone so far
15:22
as refusing
15:23
to have Titus
15:25
circumcised.
15:26
If you turn back
15:26
a few pages now
15:27
to Galatians chapter 2,
15:29
verse 1.
15:30
Paul is telling
15:31
the story
15:32
of traveling
15:33
to Jerusalem,
15:33
to the Jerusalem council
15:34
that we have learned
15:35
about in chapter 15.
15:37
So he's now,
15:38
many years later,
15:38
he's recounting
15:40
what he did
15:40
that's recorded
15:41
by Luke
15:42
in Acts chapter 15.
15:44
So Galatians chapter 2,
15:45
verses 1 through 5,
15:46
he says,
15:47
Then after 14 years
15:48
I went up again
15:48
to Jerusalem
15:49
with Barnabas,
15:51
taking Titus
15:51
along with me.
15:52
That's that trip
15:53
beginning of chapter 15.
15:56
I went up
15:57
because of a revelation
15:58
and set before them,
16:00
though privately
16:01
before those
16:01
who seemed influential,
16:02
the gospel
16:03
that I proclaim
16:04
among the Gentiles
16:06
in order to make sure
16:07
I was not running
16:08
or had not run
16:09
in vain.
16:10
So I talked about that
16:11
briefly a minute ago.
16:13
He's preaching
16:14
a gospel
16:14
of justification
16:16
or salvation
16:17
by grace alone
16:17
through faith alone
16:18
in Christ alone.
16:19
This is what he's preaching.
16:21
And because these
16:22
Judaizers have come
16:23
from Judea
16:23
and made their way
16:24
to Antioch,
16:26
he wants to make sure
16:27
that the message
16:27
that they're preaching
16:28
didn't come from
16:29
the apostles
16:30
and the elders
16:30
in Jerusalem.
16:31
He wants to go
16:32
affirm that.
16:33
Have I screwed this up?
16:34
Am I preaching
16:35
the right and true
16:36
gospel?
16:38
The answer to that
16:39
is yes.
16:40
But verse 3,
16:41
he says,
16:42
But even Titus,
16:43
who was with me,
16:45
was not forced
16:46
to be circumcised,
16:47
though he was
16:49
a Greek.
16:51
So Titus,
16:52
they refused
16:52
to circumcise Titus.
16:54
In one case
16:55
with Timothy,
16:56
Timothy is circumcised.
16:57
In the other case,
16:58
Titus is withheld
17:00
from him.
17:01
He was not forced
17:02
to be circumcised.
17:03
Verse 4,
17:04
Yet because a false
17:05
brother secretly
17:05
brought in,
17:06
who slipped in
17:07
to spy out
17:08
our freedom
17:09
that we have
17:09
in Christ Jesus
17:10
so that they might
17:11
bring us into slavery,
17:13
to them we did not
17:14
yield in submission
17:15
even for a moment
17:16
so that the truth
17:17
of the gospel
17:18
might be preserved
17:19
for you.
17:22
So men have come in
17:23
and they're teaching,
17:24
you must be circumcised
17:25
to be saved.
17:26
Works of the law
17:27
justify you
17:29
before God.
17:31
And Paul,
17:31
I'm assuming
17:32
Barnabas and Titus
17:33
and many others
17:34
in the church,
17:35
refused for Titus
17:36
to be circumcised.
17:37
They stood their ground.
17:39
They did the very thing
17:39
that he encouraged
17:40
them to do
17:41
in Galatians 5.1.
17:43
Stand firm,
17:44
therefore,
17:45
and do not submit
17:46
again to a yoke
17:47
of slavery.
17:50
So that's the scene.
17:52
This is that Paul.
17:54
So why
17:55
did Paul
17:56
have Timothy
17:57
circumcised?
18:00
Wouldn't it have been
18:01
better to prove
18:02
that salvation
18:03
is by grace alone,
18:04
through faith alone,
18:04
and Christ alone
18:05
by making Timothy
18:06
a case study?
18:07
He could have
18:08
traveled the region
18:09
and said,
18:10
point proven.
18:11
This is Timothy.
18:12
You may not know it,
18:14
but he's not circumcised.
18:15
To make the very case?
18:20
Paul doesn't seem
18:20
to think so.
18:22
And so we find
18:23
an example here
18:24
of Christian liberty
18:25
being exercised
18:27
properly.
18:29
Freedom in Christ
18:31
properly being exercised.
18:35
Timothy
18:35
was free
18:37
not
18:38
to be circumcised.
18:40
But for the sake
18:41
of the souls
18:42
of Jews
18:43
in the region,
18:45
he was.
18:47
False teachers
18:48
would have had
18:48
Titus circumcised
18:49
for his salvation,
18:50
and Paul refused
18:51
such a thing.
18:51
But for the unbelieving
18:53
Jews
18:54
of the region,
18:56
Timothy's uncircumcision
18:57
would have proven
18:58
to be a barrier
18:59
for the understanding
19:01
of the gospel
19:02
of grace.
19:03
They wouldn't have
19:04
even wanted to hear
19:05
what they had to say
19:07
traveling around
19:08
with a man
19:09
whose father
19:10
was a Greek
19:10
who was uncircumcised.
19:12
It would have been
19:13
a stumbling block
19:14
for them
19:14
to hear
19:15
the gospel
19:16
of Christ.
19:17
While Paul
19:19
was sent
19:20
by God
19:20
as the apostle
19:22
to the Gentiles,
19:23
he maintained
19:24
in the midst
19:25
of all of his
19:26
missionary journeying,
19:27
he maintained
19:27
an unwavering
19:29
commitment
19:29
to the Jewish
19:30
people.
19:32
Listen to his words
19:33
from Romans 9,
19:34
verses 1-3.
19:35
I am speaking
19:36
the truth in Christ.
19:37
I am not lying.
19:38
My conscience
19:39
bears me witness
19:40
in the Holy Spirit.
19:41
It's great,
19:42
like he's loading
19:42
that up, right?
19:43
I'm speaking
19:43
the truth in Christ.
19:45
I am not lying.
19:46
My conscience
19:47
bears me witness
19:48
in the Holy Spirit.
19:49
He's saying,
19:49
I am telling you
19:50
the truth,
19:51
verse 2,
19:52
that I have great sorrow
19:53
and unceasing anguish
19:55
in my heart,
19:56
for I could wish
19:57
that I myself
19:59
were accursed
20:00
and cut off
20:01
from Christ
20:02
for the sake
20:03
of my brothers,
20:04
my kinsmen,
20:06
according to the flesh.
20:08
Oh, beloved,
20:09
that we would have
20:09
a heart for people
20:10
like that.
20:12
That we would gladly
20:13
give up our position
20:15
in the kingdom
20:15
that others
20:16
might have
20:17
a standing,
20:18
a right standing
20:19
with the Lord.
20:21
So,
20:23
Timothy
20:23
exercises his freedom
20:26
by giving up
20:27
a little thing
20:28
for the sake
20:29
of others.
20:31
By giving up
20:32
a little thing
20:33
for the sake
20:35
of others.
20:36
Now,
20:36
a little thing,
20:37
of course I'm speaking
20:38
relatively here.
20:42
It feels pretty weighty
20:44
to me,
20:44
what Timothy
20:45
was willing
20:46
to do
20:47
for the sake
20:48
of others.
20:49
And so,
20:49
I want to just
20:50
take you to an
20:50
Old Testament example
20:51
of this
20:51
so that we don't
20:52
have to talk
20:53
about the anatomy
20:53
of what happened,
20:55
but to show you
20:56
the extent
20:57
of what happened.
20:59
So,
20:59
turn to Genesis
20:59
chapter 34.
21:02
This is one of my
21:02
favorite Old Testament
21:04
Bible stories.
21:07
I can't tell you
21:08
all that it means
21:09
because I don't
21:10
know.
21:12
But this one
21:13
rivals the
21:15
she-bears,
21:16
if you're familiar
21:16
with the
21:16
she-bear story.
21:26
Two things
21:27
I want you to get
21:28
from this.
21:28
I am actually
21:29
going to read it
21:29
because it's always
21:30
good when there's
21:31
a long story
21:31
to summarize it.
21:33
I think it's
21:33
best summarized here.
21:35
I want you to
21:36
appreciate the
21:37
Old Testament.
21:37
If you're not
21:38
an Old Testament
21:39
reader,
21:39
I hope you just
21:40
go,
21:40
whoa,
21:41
what?
21:42
And you appreciate
21:42
that,
21:43
so it's like a
21:43
side hope
21:44
for this.
21:46
But then I also
21:47
want you to know
21:48
that what Timothy
21:49
did as an adult
21:50
man was kind
21:51
of a big deal.
21:51
So,
21:52
beginning in
21:53
verse 1
21:54
of chapter 34,
21:55
now Dinah,
21:56
the daughter of
21:56
Leah,
21:57
whom she had
21:57
borne to Jacob,
21:59
went out to see
22:00
the women of
22:00
the land.
22:01
And when Shechem,
22:02
the son of Hamor,
22:04
the Hivite,
22:05
the prince of the
22:05
land,
22:06
saw her,
22:06
he seized her
22:08
and lay with her
22:09
and humiliated her.
22:10
He raped her.
22:12
Verse 3,
22:13
And his soul was
22:14
drawn to Dinah,
22:15
the daughter of
22:16
Jacob.
22:16
He loved the
22:17
young woman and
22:17
spoke tenderly to
22:18
her.
22:19
So Shechem spoke
22:20
to his father,
22:21
Hamor,
22:21
saying,
22:22
Get me this girl
22:23
for my wife.
22:26
Now Jacob heard
22:27
that he had
22:27
defiled his
22:28
daughter Dinah,
22:29
but his sons
22:29
were with his
22:30
livestock in the
22:31
field,
22:31
so Jacob held
22:32
his peace
22:32
until they came.
22:34
Adult sons.
22:35
And Hamor,
22:36
the father of
22:36
Shechem,
22:37
went out to
22:37
Jacob to speak
22:37
with him.
22:38
The sons of
22:39
Jacob had come
22:39
in from the
22:40
field as soon
22:40
as they heard
22:41
of it,
22:41
and the men
22:42
were indignant
22:43
and very angry
22:44
because he had
22:44
done an outrageous
22:45
thing in Israel
22:46
by lying with
22:47
Jacob's daughter,
22:48
for such a
22:48
thing must not
22:49
be done.
22:51
But Hamor spoke
22:51
with him,
22:52
saying,
22:52
The soul of my
22:53
son Shechem
22:53
longs for your
22:54
daughter.
22:54
Please give her
22:55
to him to be
22:56
his wife.
22:57
Make marriages
22:58
with us.
22:58
Give your
22:58
daughters to us
22:59
and take our
22:59
daughters for
23:00
yourselves.
23:01
You shall dwell
23:01
with us and the
23:02
land shall be
23:02
open to you.
23:05
Shechem also
23:06
said to her
23:07
father and to
23:07
her brothers,
23:08
Let me find
23:08
favor in your
23:09
eyes and
23:09
whatever you
23:10
say to me
23:10
I will give.
23:11
Ask me for
23:12
as great a
23:14
bride price as
23:15
gift as you
23:15
will and I
23:16
will give you
23:16
whatever you
23:16
say to me.
23:17
Only give me
23:18
the young
23:18
woman to be
23:19
my wife.
23:20
The sons of
23:21
Jacob answered
23:22
Shechem and
23:22
his father
23:22
Hamor deceitfully
23:23
because he had
23:24
defiled their
23:25
sister Dinah.
23:26
This is where
23:26
it gets really
23:27
good.
23:28
They said to
23:28
them,
23:29
We cannot do
23:29
this thing to
23:30
give you our
23:30
sister to one
23:31
who is uncircumcised
23:32
for that would be
23:33
a disgrace to us.
23:34
Only on this
23:35
condition will we
23:36
agree with you
23:37
that you will
23:37
become as we
23:38
are by every
23:39
male among you
23:40
being circumcised.
23:41
Then we will
23:42
give our
23:42
daughters to you
23:43
and we will
23:43
take your
23:44
daughters to
23:44
ourselves.
23:45
We will dwell
23:46
with you and
23:46
become one
23:47
people.
23:47
But if you
23:48
will not listen
23:48
to us and
23:49
be circumcised,
23:50
we will take
23:50
our daughter and
23:51
we will be
23:51
gone.
23:52
So they asked
23:52
the entire
23:52
city, like
23:53
Hamor and
23:54
his son rule
23:55
over to be
23:56
circumcised,
23:57
all the males.
23:58
All right,
23:59
verse 18.
24:01
Their words
24:01
pleased Hamor and
24:03
Hamor's son
24:03
Shechem.
24:04
And the
24:04
young man did
24:05
not delay to
24:05
do the thing
24:06
because he was
24:07
delighted.
24:07
I love that,
24:07
to do the
24:08
thing, because
24:10
he delighted in
24:12
Jacob's daughter.
24:14
Now he was the
24:14
most honored of
24:15
all his father's
24:16
house.
24:16
So Hamor and
24:17
his son Shechem
24:18
came to the
24:18
gate of their
24:19
city and spoke
24:19
to the men of
24:20
their city,
24:20
saying,
24:21
These men are
24:21
at peace with
24:22
us.
24:22
Let them dwell
24:22
in the land
24:23
and trade in
24:24
it.
24:24
For behold,
24:25
the land is
24:25
large enough for
24:26
them.
24:27
Let us take
24:27
their daughters
24:27
as wives and
24:28
let us give
24:28
them our
24:28
daughters.
24:29
Only on this
24:29
condition will the
24:30
men agree to
24:31
dwell with us
24:31
to become one
24:32
people, when
24:32
every male among
24:33
us is circumcised
24:34
as they are
24:35
circumcised.
24:36
Will not their
24:36
livestock, their
24:37
property, and all
24:38
their beasts be
24:38
ours?
24:39
Only let us agree
24:40
with them and
24:41
they will dwell
24:41
with us.
24:42
And all who
24:42
went out of the
24:43
gate of his
24:43
city listened to
24:44
Hamor and his
24:45
son Shechem, and
24:45
every male was
24:46
circumcised, all
24:47
who went out of
24:48
the gate of his
24:49
city.
24:49
And here's the
24:51
punchline.
24:54
On the third
24:55
day, when they
24:57
were sore, two
24:59
of the sons of
24:59
Jacob, Simeon and
25:00
Levi, Dinah's
25:01
brothers, took
25:02
their swords and
25:03
came against the
25:03
city while it
25:04
felt secure and
25:05
killed all the
25:07
males.
25:08
They killed
25:08
Hamor and his
25:09
son Shechem with
25:10
a sword and took
25:10
Dinah out of
25:11
Shechem's house and
25:13
went away.
25:16
I don't know
25:16
what it means.
25:19
But, a bunch of
25:23
men who had been
25:24
circumcised, adult
25:25
men who had been
25:26
circumcised, were
25:27
slain by two guys.
25:29
It could not have
25:30
been pleasant.
25:33
So Timothy gives
25:34
this up for the
25:34
sake of others.
25:35
Are you with me?
25:36
Like, Paul says,
25:38
hey, I want you to
25:39
come with me, but
25:40
there's this thing I
25:40
need you to do.
25:43
And Timothy lays
25:44
that down.
25:45
For the sake of
25:46
others.
25:47
He was free to
25:47
say no.
25:49
He could have
25:50
refused.
25:51
The gospel allowed
25:52
that of him.
25:54
But he was
25:55
willing to do
25:56
this for others.
26:00
Beloved, the
26:00
grace of God
26:01
to us is free,
26:03
or else it would
26:04
not be grace at
26:05
all.
26:06
But the call to
26:07
follow Christ is a
26:08
costly call.
26:10
He requires all
26:12
of us.
26:13
Every bit of
26:14
us.
26:16
Timothy's
26:16
sacrifice was a
26:17
little thing.
26:18
But it was
26:19
only little in
26:20
comparison to the
26:20
eternal state of
26:22
unbelieving Jews.
26:26
Paul makes
26:26
sacrifice as well
26:27
in the same and
26:29
many various
26:30
ways.
26:32
You can read
26:32
about this in
26:33
1 Corinthians
26:33
chapter 9
26:34
verses 19
26:36
through 22.
26:37
Paul said
26:38
this,
26:38
verse 19
26:39
for though I
26:40
am free from
26:41
all, I have
26:43
made myself a
26:44
servant to
26:45
all that I
26:47
might win more
26:48
of them.
26:49
You see what he's
26:50
saying?
26:50
Even though the
26:53
regulations that
26:54
people want to
26:54
place on me, the
26:56
rules that they
26:57
want to follow, I'm
26:59
free from those
26:59
things, but yet I
27:01
submit myself to
27:03
them that I might
27:05
win more of
27:06
them.
27:08
Verse 20,
27:08
to the Jews I
27:10
became as a
27:11
Jew in order to
27:12
win Jews.
27:14
To those under
27:14
the law I
27:15
became as one
27:15
under the law,
27:16
though not being
27:17
myself under the
27:18
law, that I
27:19
might win those
27:21
under the law.
27:23
To those outside
27:24
the law I became
27:24
as one outside
27:25
the law, not
27:26
being outside the
27:27
law of God, but
27:27
under the law
27:28
of Christ, that I
27:30
might win those
27:31
outside the law.
27:33
to the weak I
27:36
became weak, that
27:37
I might win the
27:39
weak.
27:39
I become all
27:40
things to all
27:41
people, that by
27:42
all means I
27:43
might save some.
27:46
So what Paul is
27:47
saying is for the
27:47
sake of weaker
27:49
faith people, we
27:52
make decisions, we
27:53
practice our
27:54
Christian liberty in
27:55
a way that's good
27:57
for their soul.
28:00
There are many
28:01
examples.
28:02
You can go
28:02
almost an endless
28:04
list of gray
28:05
areas that we
28:06
have to navigate
28:06
as followers of
28:07
Jesus Christ.
28:08
I just want to
28:09
give you two in
28:10
brief.
28:12
The first one is
28:13
the matter of
28:14
alcohol.
28:15
Much talked about
28:16
in Southern
28:17
Baptist denomination.
28:19
There's always a
28:20
new article, there's
28:20
always some new
28:21
motion being
28:22
passed.
28:23
You almost can't
28:24
go to a Southern
28:24
Baptist meeting
28:25
without some talk
28:26
of just saying
28:28
no,
28:29
to alcohol.
28:29
alcohol.
28:32
The Bible doesn't
28:33
do that to us.
28:34
It doesn't do
28:35
that.
28:35
It doesn't place
28:35
that as a law on
28:37
us.
28:37
So those of you
28:38
who are under
28:38
21, this is not
28:39
permission to drink.
28:41
Obey the law of
28:42
our land.
28:43
But for those of you
28:44
who are over, you
28:44
have the freedom to
28:45
drink.
28:46
Alcoholic beverages,
28:48
right?
28:48
Not to become drunk,
28:49
but to drink.
28:50
This is permissive.
28:52
And there are many
28:53
people in our age that
28:55
in order to practice
28:56
their Christian liberty,
28:57
make a real big deal
28:59
about a drinking
28:59
alcohol, right?
29:00
As if they're trying
29:02
to show how glorious
29:04
the gospel is because
29:05
they get to drink
29:06
lots of beer.
29:08
Ridiculous.
29:10
And in fact, I think
29:11
a lot of the strong
29:12
response within the
29:14
Southern Baptist
29:15
Convention against
29:15
alcohol is because
29:16
of those idiots.
29:20
I know someone who
29:22
has stated, and I
29:22
hope he's grown past
29:23
this, but that his
29:24
mission is to redeem
29:25
beer drinking.
29:27
What does that mean?
29:29
What does that even
29:30
mean redeem beer
29:31
drinking?
29:34
So we're given
29:34
permission, but oh,
29:36
we should be careful
29:37
about the how.
29:38
There are many people
29:39
who will sit in rows
29:43
in our churches who
29:45
would be offended by
29:46
me even suggesting
29:47
that it's okay, who
29:50
would say, I can't
29:51
even listen to this
29:52
guy.
29:52
I'm sorry.
29:53
All I know is to
29:53
preach the Bible.
29:54
But we ought not
29:57
rub things in other
29:59
people's faces because
30:00
we can.
30:02
You are practicing your
30:03
Christian liberty in not
30:06
drinking as well.
30:07
In deciding that a
30:08
circumstance is not the
30:09
best circumstance for
30:10
such a thing.
30:11
We're deciding altogether
30:12
that you may not.
30:14
And so we practice
30:17
Christian liberty in many
30:18
varied ways, but it's
30:20
always aimed, rightly
30:22
practiced, at gospel
30:24
proclamation, at gospel
30:26
advancement.
30:27
So we don't feel like
30:28
someone has their thumb
30:29
down on us because
30:30
they're weaker in the
30:31
faith than we are.
30:34
But we pick that up and
30:35
we accept it for the sake
30:37
of their soul.
30:38
The way I dress on Sunday
30:41
is much simpler, much
30:42
less complicated, right?
30:44
Topic.
30:45
I have the freedom to
30:47
preach in flip-flops and
30:49
shorts and a t-shirt.
30:52
God does not look at what
30:54
I'm wearing on a Sunday
30:55
morning and then empower
30:56
my preaching because I'm
30:58
wearing a jacket or a tie
31:01
occasionally with my
31:03
shirt's tucked in.
31:05
I could be much more
31:06
comfortable on a Sunday
31:07
morning.
31:07
I have the freedom to do
31:09
that, but I am legitimately
31:11
concerned that someone
31:13
comes in amongst us and
31:15
can't even hear the words
31:16
coming out of my mouth
31:17
because they see me as
31:18
disrespectful to the
31:20
position that I hold.
31:21
We live in a culture that
31:23
thinks in those terms.
31:24
We live in a culture where
31:25
many people grew up in
31:25
churches where the pastor
31:26
always had on a suit.
31:29
Usually an ill-fitting
31:30
suit because he doesn't get
31:31
paid enough to buy nice
31:32
suits.
31:34
I would wear a suit every
31:36
Sunday morning for the
31:37
sake of your soul.
31:39
And I hate wearing suits,
31:40
but I would do it for the
31:41
sake of your soul because I
31:43
don't think that this is a
31:44
crowd that typically cares
31:45
about such a thing.
31:46
I don't.
31:47
If I began to think that
31:48
that was the case, I
31:50
definitely would.
31:52
So we consider, we
31:53
practice liberty, and I'm
31:55
not practicing my liberty
31:57
when I put on a jacket
31:58
Sunday morning.
31:59
Did you guys notice I have
32:00
one jacket I wear on
32:01
Sundays?
32:01
Because I like it.
32:05
But I'm practicing my
32:06
Christian liberty when I
32:07
put it on.
32:08
Right?
32:08
I've been set free.
32:10
I've been set free from the
32:12
law.
32:13
So putting on this jacket
32:14
is a practice of liberty,
32:16
not a neglect of Christian
32:19
liberty.
32:20
So, Paul circumcises
32:24
Timothy for this reason,
32:26
for the sake of people's
32:28
souls, so that Timothy would
32:30
not be a stumbling block in
32:32
their traveling and in their
32:34
entrance into the
32:35
synagogues.
32:36
Timothy would not have been
32:37
allowed in the synagogues
32:38
having been uncircumcised.
32:40
So he's able now to
32:41
participate fully in that
32:43
tradition and share the
32:46
gospel with people.
32:47
So he circumcises
32:49
Timothy and then verse 4
32:51
says they went on their
32:53
way through the cities and
32:53
it's so fascinating that the
32:55
way Luke records this, that
32:56
what they're doing is they're
32:57
delivering to them for
33:00
observance the decisions that
33:01
have been reached by the
33:02
apostles and elders who were
33:03
in Jerusalem.
33:03
The thing they're going and
33:04
doing is teaching all of the
33:05
churches that they don't
33:06
have to be circumcised.
33:08
It's the very thing that
33:09
they're teaching them.
33:09
Hey, don't be circumcised,
33:11
but be culturally sensitive.
33:14
Wasn't that the drive of that
33:16
message?
33:17
Remember, abstain from what
33:19
has been sacrificed to
33:19
idols and from blood and
33:20
from what has been
33:21
strangled and from sexual
33:22
immorality.
33:24
These cultural considerations,
33:26
matters of offense to the
33:28
Jews and this one moral
33:30
obligation.
33:32
You see, Paul understands the
33:33
spirit of the letter.
33:35
Paul doesn't accept it as
33:36
just a mere list, a new law,
33:39
but he understands the
33:39
spirit of the letter.
33:41
And he applies this idea of
33:42
cultural consideration of not
33:44
being stumbling blocks for the
33:45
Jews to the very matter that the
33:47
letter sought to unburden the
33:50
Gentile believers from.
33:52
He takes along a young man who
33:54
will be a leader in the church and
33:56
a missionary companion for him and
33:58
has him circumcised to aid in
34:01
bringing people to faith in Christ.
34:04
On your bulletin, the quote from A.W.
34:07
Tozer, who was a 20th century pastor and
34:10
author, he said this,
34:11
Be hard on yourself and easy on others.
34:15
Carry your own cross, but never lay one on
34:17
the back of another.
34:20
Paul preached in delivering this message
34:23
for observance.
34:24
Paul preached salvation by grace alone,
34:27
through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.
34:31
And all of that lived out in love.
34:36
It becomes the grateful response to what
34:38
God has done for us in Christ,
34:41
that we then turn and love others.
34:44
And we lay down our own will for the sake of
34:48
others.
34:49
So this is the freedom that was exercised in
34:52
the circumcision of Timothy.
34:55
And then second and brief, the effect of
35:00
circumcising Timothy.
35:02
It's not really an entirely fair second point
35:04
because the effect we see in verse 5 is not
35:08
just because Timothy is circumcised.
35:13
So I hope you'll catch what I'm trying to say.
35:17
Paul's missionary troop is traveling about.
35:20
They're delivering a message.
35:22
It's a gospel message.
35:23
And the gospel preached and practiced
35:29
always results in fruit.
35:33
The gospel preached and practiced
35:35
always results in fruit.
35:39
Verse 5, so because of, right?
35:42
Not just because of Timothy's circumcision,
35:45
but because of his circumcision
35:47
and the message being preached.
35:49
So, the churches were strengthened in the faith
35:53
and they increased in numbers daily.
35:59
So the gospel preached and practiced
36:02
always results in fruit.
36:05
The fruit of what?
36:07
The fruit of increased faith.
36:09
The church is being built up in faith.
36:12
And the fruit of new faith.
36:15
Faith.
36:16
They're increasing in numbers as well.
36:18
Not only are they growing in their depth,
36:21
but they're also growing in their breadth.
36:23
as the gospel is both preached and practiced.
36:29
I hope it's becoming familiar to you.
36:31
There it is up on the screen.
36:34
The vision statement of our church,
36:35
which is not unique for our church,
36:36
shouldn't be anyway,
36:37
that our church exists to glorify God,
36:40
to magnify His name,
36:42
by experiencing,
36:43
proclaiming,
36:44
and displaying the supremacy of Jesus Christ
36:46
in all things,
36:48
to all peoples.
36:50
And that derives at the very point
36:52
that I'm making now.
36:54
That we both know that Jesus Christ is supreme
36:57
to anything else,
36:59
to anything we might be able to do
37:02
under Christian liberty.
37:03
Christ is better.
37:05
And all that I have should be leveraged
37:07
to have more of Him.
37:09
To experience Him deeper.
37:11
To be known by Him greater.
37:14
All of this should be leveraged
37:15
at that very point.
37:17
That we would know Christ as supreme
37:20
in our experience.
37:22
And that will move us,
37:23
it will drive us out
37:24
to both say that to be true
37:25
and to live it to be true as well.
37:28
Practiced and preached.
37:32
And I am so challenged
37:33
by verses like verse 5 of chapter 16.
37:38
As they're doing these very simple things,
37:40
traveling around,
37:41
preaching the gospel,
37:42
Timothy is now circumcised,
37:45
and they're strengthened in the faith,
37:49
and they increased in numbers daily.
37:53
What a phenomenal thing
37:54
to have happen in the life of our church.
37:57
So here's some simple application for you.
38:05
First,
38:06
are you saved
38:08
by grace alone,
38:10
through faith alone,
38:11
in Jesus Christ alone?
38:14
beloved,
38:15
I fear that we live in a day and age
38:17
where people have been sold
38:19
a cheap grace gospel,
38:21
a crossless Christianity,
38:24
Christianity,
38:26
and a crossless Christianity,
38:27
it's a Christless Christianity,
38:28
and it's not Christianity at all.
38:31
That you have been told,
38:33
growing up,
38:34
young,
38:35
likely,
38:36
possibly,
38:36
in churches,
38:37
that simply,
38:39
going through some motions,
38:40
taking some steps,
38:41
doing a few things,
38:43
repeat after me,
38:44
sign a card,
38:46
get dunked in water,
38:47
and you're a follower of Jesus.
38:50
And all of those things
38:51
may have been part of your story
38:53
of coming to faith
38:54
in Jesus Christ,
38:56
but I fear that there are
38:57
countless people
38:58
who believe they're Christians
39:00
and are not Christians at all.
39:03
So you have to ask yourself
39:03
an honest question.
39:05
When I think about
39:06
why it is I'm a Christian,
39:08
is that because of things
39:09
that I did
39:10
or because God saved me
39:12
by His grace?
39:14
The picture is,
39:16
those of you who like
39:17
good rap music,
39:20
Shilin,
39:21
we're not drowning in the ocean,
39:23
and God throws us a rope,
39:25
and we reach out and grab it.
39:27
The picture is that we are dead
39:28
on the bottom of the ocean,
39:31
and Christ leaps in,
39:33
and He swims down,
39:34
and He pulls us up,
39:35
and He breathes life
39:37
in our lungs, right?
39:38
As that's your experience, right?
39:40
I was a wretched enemy of God,
39:44
and God woke me up
39:45
in Christ.
39:47
He saved me.
39:52
Are you saved by grace alone
39:53
through faith alone
39:54
in Jesus Christ alone?
39:56
Is your righteousness
39:57
in Christ's person
39:59
and work
40:01
or in your working?
40:05
Secondly,
40:06
if you are saved by grace alone
40:07
through faith alone
40:08
in Jesus Christ alone,
40:10
I hope you have a confidence
40:11
of that this morning.
40:12
What might God be requiring of you
40:15
in order that some
40:17
might be saved?
40:19
How could God be suggesting to you
40:22
that you reorient your life
40:24
so that some
40:26
might be saved?
40:28
Is there anything you can think of now
40:30
that you would be unwilling
40:31
to give up?
40:34
Anything.
40:34
Would you be unwilling
40:35
to give up
40:37
in order to see the church
40:38
strengthened in the faith
40:39
and increasing
40:41
in numbers
40:42
daily?
40:44
I would suggest to you
40:45
that there are things
40:46
like that.
40:47
That if you would
40:47
ask God
40:48
to search your heart
40:49
and take some time
40:50
to consider
40:51
what you might
40:52
hold on to
40:53
that's not Jesus,
40:55
things that you worship
40:56
instead of Him,
40:57
and if you would by grace
40:58
let those things go,
40:59
we would see
41:00
things begin to happen.
41:02
The church strengthened,
41:03
increasing in numbers
41:05
daily.
41:07
Wouldn't that be
41:07
a wonderful blessing?
41:09
Let's pray together.