In about two weeks, I am beginning a long process of preaching through the 16 chapters of Romans. If you know anything about Romans, it is arguably the most theologically weighty of all the books of Scripture.

Like many believers, I have read my Bible for years and years. I’ve read Romans (and all of the Bible) scores of times. But when you are tasked with preaching verse-by-verse, one at a time, sequentially, it makes you slow down and focus. You don’t want to miss anything. You don’t get to pass on the hard sayings. You can’t skip over the rough stuff. And in Romans, there’s a lot of that ilk.

You have to preach about the wrath of God, about sin, about suppression of the truth, about human depravity, etc. The gospel is there, too, rest assured! But the first sections of the Book of Romans are unrelenting in their exposure of, and condemnation of, human sin and moral rebellion against the holy.

This morning, I was reading through Romans again, and I was focused on just the first opening verses. And Romans 1:5 struck me: “through whom [Jesus] we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his [Jesus’] name among all the nations,” and that was it.

For the sake of his name. Why does God call preachers and teachers and evangelists and apologists? For the sake of his name.

It’s not about our names. It’s about God; it’s about Jesus. It’s about his being the hero of the Bible and of the history of redemption, of salvation through judgment. For the sake of his name.

And that removes us from all except the hard work of being faithful to teach the truth accurately. Because when the people get mad (and they do, and they will), we must remember that verse, and why Paul was inspired by the Holy Spirit to pen it: For the sake of his name.

Text: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days” (Eccl 11:1, ESV).

Context, Context, Context: Solomon is near his ending of the Book of Ecclesiastes, one of the books of Wisdom Literature in the Old Testament. The last two chapters of Ecclesiastes (11-12) are comprised of a smattering of proverbs, phrases, and sentences like the one referenced above.

The main issue at stake in Ecclesiastes 11:1 is the issue of faithfulness in work/labor. Specifically, it is a call to work with faithfulness and diligence, even and especially when we don’t see immediate results. Oftentimes the return on investment remains hidden to us, perhaps for a very long time. How, then, do we not lose hope in the process? That’s the related issue.

I shared with the saints this past Sunday as the church gathered that over my many years of ministry, I have given, loaned, and purchased countless books on spiritual discipleship, apologetics, theology, history, counseling, etc. for myriad Soldiers and Civilians. Very often I received no feedback from those to whom I gifted the items. Call me old-fashioned, but a little gratitude goes a long way with me. I don’t ask for much, but a “Thank you” means a great deal to me. Anyway, I could feel all down about the whole matter, pout, and just take my toys and go home, so to speak. But Christianity does not give me that option. It calls me, instead, to labor in hope. Here’s the way that idea is expressed later in Scripture: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Cor 15:58, ESV).

Encouragement: Steadfast, immovable, always abounding. Those are adjectives and adverbial modifiers (sorry, I was an English major) that describe the spirit with which we’re to be engaged in ministry. If we look for kudos from the crowds, we may not get them. We’re to give but not expect reward. We’re to labor “in the work of the Lord.” Why? Because if it’s done for the right audience (God), we are already more than conquerors. 

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Text: “Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act” (Ps 37:5).

Context, Context, Context: This is a psalm of David, part of what is called the Wisdom Literature in Scripture. The issue in Psalm 37 is a sensitive one: why do the wicked so often prosper in this life? Why do the godly often suffer profoundly?

What David pens should encourage all who have grappled with these existential questions. Why? Because one of the most obvious realities is that we find ourselves in a broken world. People are messy. Marriages suffer; friendships are tested; lies fill each day’s headlines; murderers go free; children are trafficked, and on and on it goes. If you want news of spiritual darkness, you do not have to look long or very far. Just turn on your favorite podcast, radio, news channel, etc. It’s all there—a litany of sad stories of cruel things done by people to other people. We are indeed a fallen creation, just as Scripture teaches.

But what about those who are trying to be good, those who are trying to live as salt and light in a morally rotten and darkening world? What does God have to say about that type of person’s character and about his affections/inclinations of his heart? That’s where Psalm 37 is so helpful.

A similar address is Proverbs 16:3. There we read, “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.”

Encouragement: What we discover in Psalm 37:5 and Proverbs 16:3 is the matter of patient endurance in a godly direction. In the psalm, David writes that the godly person must first commit his way to God. Commitment is covenantal language. It is like marriage language where we commit to our wife or husband, promising to be faithful. Second, we see an emphasis on enduring faith in the goodness of God. The reality is, from our perspective, God seems to delay. We might say, God “drags his feet.” We are often prone to impetuousness and impatience. But God is not like that. God will act, according to Psalm 37. David reminds us, “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him . . .” (Ps 37:7a). To summarize, then, two things: commit and patiently endure in the faith (and that faith is in the complete goodness of God).

Introduction: What does it mean to test the spirits to see whether they are from God? The passage comes from the apostle John’s first epistle:

4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. (1 Jn 4:1-6)

Discussion: The issue revolves around the locus of rightful authority. Who is the true God? Are we to worship a Caesar? Should we worship a fickle mythical god like Zeus or Poseidon? Are we to offer a pinch of incense to Domitian, Nero, or any political tyrant or charismatic leader? Who’s the legitimate authority? The answer should be obvious: God. Not an idol, but God alone. Jesus said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (Jn 14:9). The issue is the locus of rightful authority. Those who oppose Christ’s lordship are by definition anti-christs, i.e., opposed to God’s revelation. They are, to use the apostle John’s words, “from the world” and “speak from the world” and “the world listens to them.” What John means by that is the world system. There’s always a god of the system. If there’s no transcendent God above the system, then the system is the idol-god.

Encouragement: There is a high calling for followers of Christ. It involves testing the spirits to see whether they are from God. That means we are called to be a wise, discerning people, people who discern the reality from the appearances, the heart of the matter and not the facades.

I was reading in Micah. Specifically, I was in chapter 5. Micah prophesied to Israel and Judah from the time just before the fall of Samaria through the time of Hezekiah of Judah (c. 740s B.C.). He was a contemporary of Isaih and Hosea. Michah’s themes were judgment and forgiveness. The Lord was and is the Judge, but is also believers’ Shepherd-King. And what does He do? Gathers, protects, and forgives His flock. Why? Because He is faithful to His covenantal nature. 

    Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops;
    siege is laid against us;
with a rod they strike the judge of Israel
    on the cheek.
      But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
    one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
    from ancient days.
  Therefore he shall give them up until the time
    when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return
    to the people of Israel.
And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
    in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
    to the ends of the earth.
  And he shall be their peace. (Micah 5:1-5a, ESV)

The progression of the recurring plot is all here: 1) Judgment is to fall upon the flock because the sheep have strayed; 2) but out of a seemingly insignificant tribe (Bethlehem), a ruler is promised “whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days” (Micah 5:2b); and 3) He will “shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD” (Micah 5:4). 

Just as David was a type of this in the 900s B.C., a shepherd-boy who became king and ruler, so the covenantal promise is fulfilled ultimately in Christ, the Good Shepherd, who leads His people “in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Ps 23:3). And He bore the judgment the flock deserves.

All of the Bible points to Jesus. All of it. One coherent story. And God is the Hero.  

Introduction: I was discussing land with a peer from work recently. He was telling me about the family farm he grew up on, and of the possibility that some of his relatives may continue selling off the property that he was reared upon, and of his deep desire to retain the property. His memories are tied to that land. He drove his grandpa’s tractor on that land. He tended cattle on that land. He hunted that land and grew crops on that land, etc. He loves it.

I think many of us can relate to his feelings. He values the land and hates to think that some new guy will come in and make a financial offer the family can’t refuse. Or can they? It can get muddy and quite involved rather quickly because values come into conflict. Should temporary financial gain be the overriding factor? Should nostalgia and family memories get involved? If so, to what degree? The questions could, of course, continue.

Context, Context, Context:  In Proverbs 2, Solomon is imparting wisdom to his son. Wisdom is not just information; it is deeper than that. Folks can often get lots of information, but knowing how to sift, sort, and mine wisdom from information is a skill that must be cultivated.

Text: “if you seek it [wisdom] like silver and search for it [wisdom] as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God” (Pr 2:4-5).

Encouragement: In Mt 13:44, Jesus is teaching, and he says, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” He’s teaching of the supreme value of this hidden treasure, the kingdom of heaven. In other words, it’s recognizing the distinction between the temporal and the eternal. So often our appetites are for junk when treasure is available. It’d be like settling for plastic-wrapped donuts from the QuikTrip when a fine cut of beef is available. Wisdom is called for, in order to know how to discern kitsch from jewels. (And yes, I hope my peer’s family keeps their property. We don’t need another strip mall.)

Question: What is a wise criterion by which to evaluate leadership?

Possible responses:

• Mission accomplishment
• Retention of quality workforce
• Job satisfaction
• Growth
• Pride in the organization
• Sense of self-worth/value experienced by team members
• Truth
• Transparency

Context, Context, Context: In the prophetic Book of Hosea, we have the words of Hosea speaking a parable of warning to his culture in the 700s B.C. when the culture has largely fallen into false religion, shepherds for sale, and morally rotten leadership.

Text: “My people inquire of a piece of wood, and their walking staff gives them oracles. For a spirit of whoredom has led them astray, and they have left their God to play the whore” (Hosea 4:12).

One thing I love about Scripture is that it tells it like it is. The Bible does not sugarcoat things. It uses imagery, metaphors, and analogies, in addition to narratives, poetry, gospels, and apocalyptic literary genres to reveal the truth about God, about us, and about the only means of salvation: Christ.

The context in verse 12 above concerns how idolatrous people fall under false shepherds, shepherds for sale, and lies. Hosea illustrates ways that the people use a “walking staff” that gives them oracles. And what do those oracles do? They lead the people astray. And the people “play the whore.” They allow themselves to be pimped. That’s strong language, you say? Yes, it is. And it comes straight from Scripture. So, don’t shoot the messenger.

Teaching/encouragement: The point from Hosea as God’s prophet is straightforward: a wise criterion by which leadership is to be evaluated is tied to the quality of transparency and truth of its leadership. This is why Jesus is called the Good Shepherd in Scripture. He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He leads His sheep to green pastures. He guards against the wolves. He exposes the darkness. He equips His sheep. He exposes the false. He invites investigation. He is transparent. His work is done in the light.