Right foundations
Two weeks ago – new birth – many issues arising from the beginning of people’s Christian life – the signs that it has occurred – test yourselves – not questions about the sinner’s prayer but real 5 tests that determine whether God has actually performed a miracle of regeneration
When I was in the scouts and went on my first summer camp there were initiation rights to be endured – things that made you a “proper scout”
For our scout troop just turning up was not enough – nor was getting your badges – there were other things!
Many groups have initiation rights – many are not good
For many people the first contact with Christianity is a sprinkle of water on the head and a priest declaring that you are now a Christian
Spoke two weeks ago about the evangelical equivalent – our superstition – pray a certain form of words and believe that you are born again
Hebrews 5 has something to say about initiation into the Christaian life
Heb. 5:11-6:3
Elementary teachings – six things that could be considered to be Christian basics
The last two are things we need to understand but they are things that none of us here have personally experienced yet
They are essential things that, though they are future, change the way we live when we understand them
When you understand that this life is not all and that God will hold you accountable for what you did with it your today will change!
Also find here four things – four elementary teachings that are for us now – four basics of the faith that should be real in all of our lives
Repentance, faith, baptism, laying on of hands (receiving the Holy Spirit)
Acts 2:36-38 Finding themselves believing what Peter has said (faith) they ask what to do and are told to repent and be baptised and promised that they will receive the Holy Spirit
Read through the NT and you will see these four things coming up time and time again – repentance, faith, baptism and receiving the Holy Spirit
Not always all together as in Heb. 6…
Luke 24:46-47 He told them, This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Acts 17:30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Eph. 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith
Mark 16:15-16 He said to them, Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Matt. 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
John 7:38-39 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Acts 2:38 Peter replied, Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
By taking any one of these verses in isolation one aspect of the Christian life can be taken in isolation and made to be the big thing, or the only thing
Talk to a selection of people from different churches and ask them how one becomes a Christian and you will find they emphasise one or more of these above the others
Catholic/Anglican – baptism
Baptist/Brethren/Pentecostal – faith
Methodist/Reformed – repentance
Charismatic/Alpha Course attendees – Holy Spirit
Restaurant question - Chocolate fudge cake, apple crumble or banoffee pie?
All three please, with ice cream!
It isn’t faith or being filled with the Holy Spirit, repentance or baptism – we need all of these!
With our “sinner’s prayer” approach to new birth we have minimised the process and all too often missed out essential components
Heb. 6:1 laying again the foundation
These things are a foundation – if then the foundations are inadequate then the building will be wobbly – there are a lot of wobbly Christians around
2 weeks ago mentioned the emperor’s new clothes – don’t always like to point out nakedness
Today we need to face another discomfort – bad foundations
Always easier to get foundations right before you build on them – underpinning is a complex job
However – if there is a problem with the foundations then it must be addressed – may be easier to leave it but it is not safe to do so
Foundation 1: Repentance
Jonathan Edwards, preached on July 8, 1741 in Enfield, Connecticut a sermon that has become famous among church historians entitled “Sinners in the hands of an angry God”
A sermon in which he spoke of the reality of hell and how mankind fully deserves to be condemned to spend eternity there
There’s not many preached like that these days!
Trouble is that it is true – outside of Christ the sinner’s destination is a very real hell
Modern approach is more likely to be “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life”
This is true too – but there is a problem…
Trouble is many people also love themselves and have a wonderful plan for their lives and would be only too happy to have God come alongside them and help them achieve it
Luke 13:1-3 unless you repent, you too will all perish
We need to realise that sin is deadly – we need to see it as God sees it
Human nature is to take a comparative approach to sin – “I’m not perfect but I’m not really evil – I’m not a murderer or a rapist”
The Bible makes no such distinctions; greed, anger and pride are sin just as much as the more notorious sins
Until you realise that your sin is an offence to God repentance will not be real
Remember Isaiah 6 – when Isaiah saw the Lord his response was to cry, “Woe to me! I am ruined!”
Have you been ruined before God?
Have you come to the place of seeing your sin as God sees it?
Without real repentance you will never know real freedom and healing
The Christian who missed out the foundation of repentance will often be a broken person with many “life issues”
Acts 3:19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord
Foundation 2: Faith
Interesting that it says God and not Christ in Heb. 6
Considering that God is our Saviour as Christ is our Saviour (Titus) we need not make much of this detail here as the list is here as part of another argument not as a structured teaching
Probably don’t need to say so much about this one in present company as it is a stronger area in churches like ours
Eph. 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no-one can boast.
If this foundation is missing the result is likely to be a “salvation by works” mentality
Without faith in Christ we will be always striving but never coming to the place of rest – always looking at ourselves, our efforts and our failing rather than looking at Christ and the cross
Do you know who Jesus Christ is and what he has done?
If not you need to read a Bible and find out!
Foundation 3: Baptism
Again we should not be overly concerned about the plural in Heb. 6 – remember that it was not that long ago that John was baptising – there was more than one type of baptism known in NT times
Policeman pulls you over for speeding – tell him that you obeyed every red light, yellow box, lane marking, didn’t cut anyone up, waited patiently as people crossed the pelican crossing far too late and slowly…
None of this matters – you broke the limit!
Matt. 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
If Jesus commands a thing and we don’t do it then there is only one word that can describe us – disobedient!
Many people “make a commitment”, “become a Christian” and “follow Jesus” for years and years without being baptised
In our protestant thinking where we look with dismay at the ritual of other groups we forget that baptism is more than symbolic – it is real!
Rom. 6:3-4 Something very real is being spoken of here – the death of an old life
Without this foundation a believer will still have an enduring connection with the past – the old person will still be alive and still be a real nuisance
Have you been baptised?
Foundation 4: Receive the Holy Spirit
Visited Cambodia in the dry season - very brown and dusty - very little life to be seen
Why is England so green in comparison – it rains a lot!
John 7:38-39 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Streams of living water enable there to be abundant life – droughts do not produce life!
Acts 1:4-5, 8
Don’t go anywhere or do anything until you have received power!
Without this foundation a disciple of Jesus will be continually struggling
Before he began his ministry Jesus was baptised in water and then the Holy Spirit came upon him
Still I meet many Christians who try and go it alone without being filled with the Holy Spirit – do you really think that you can do better then the Lord Jesus?
If you don’t have streams of living water flowing from within you then you need to receive!