Christ Church (Moscow, ID)

God isn’t keeping you out. Only sin keeps us out. But the promise is glorious: if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. God really is easy to please.

We must view this gathering as both a place to receive from God, but also as a place to serve him.

We are rich in the Word of God, rich beyond measure... but there is a danger to be avoided. Do not let easy access to the Scriptures and faithful preaching each Lord's Day obscure the fact that these are the precious words of God. Instead, let us joyfully and reverently receive with meekness the implanted Word which is able to save our souls.

Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you (1 Peter 1:13–25).

If joy is not driving your response and resistance, it isn’t a Christian response or Christian resistance. Joy is what allows us to walk away whistling, and joy is what allows us to see the appropriate response. We must not be fearful or wrathful. Jesus commands us to rejoice.

The heartening news this week is that the Supreme Court is poised to roll back the scourge of Roe v. Wade. This is a tremendous victory in the fight for defending unborn babies. But victory must be accompanied by pursuit. If you rout your enemies, and then yawn while they retreat and rearm, you will find the victory is short-lived... The battle isn’t done, but it must be fought by those with clean hands and pure hearts. The saints of God have only one way to overcome: the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. We overcome by being justified freely by His grace, and then laboring according to His grace that works in us to do the good works He has prepared for us. And the basis of our testimony are these words of Gospel kindness, God has washed away all our sin, through Christ.

May the Church of our Lord Jesus to assist our young men & women to pursue the blessing of marriage in such a way as to demonstrate to the world the great mystery of Christ and the church. And may God grant that as we reform our view of marriage to be in accordance with His word, that our culture will be reformed as well. Underneath all of this is the truth that the only way we can receive the many good gifts God has to give—marriage, children, financial prosperity, and so on—is to first ask for and receive this gift of mercy and grace through Christ.

INTRODUCTION The children’s rhyme about sticks and stones is actually one that is wildly off the mark. Scripture teaches us that the tongue is one of our most potent organs. When we walk with the Lord, our wholesome speech is a tree of life (Prov. 15:4). If we are given over to evil, the tongue has the capacity to burn down entire forests (Jas. 3:5-6). This psalm gives us a close look at the destructive power of speech.THE TEXT“Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: Preserve me from the violent man; Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; Continually are they gathered together for war. They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; Adders’ poison is under their lips. Selah. Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; Preserve me from the violent man; Who have purposed to overthrow my goings . . .” (Psalm 140:1-13).SUMMARY OF THE TEXTThe occasion for this psalm is likely from the time when David was on the run from Saul, and his enemies at court refused to miss any opportunity to malign him. David cries out for deliverance from the evil and violent man (v. 1). Their mischievous plots begin in the heart (v. 2), move to their poisonous speech (v. 3), and end with the violence of their hands (v. 4). These evil ones are doing what they do on purpose. It is thought out, premeditated. They lay the traps and snares beforehand (v. 5).David turns to his God as his only possible deliverance (v. 6). The Lord who is the strength of his salvation is the same one who placed a shield over his head on the day of battle (v. 7). His enemies are conceited and so he prays that they would not succeed, lest they become even more full of themselves (v. 8). David prays for a divinely appointed recoil (v. 9). From the context, we see that the retribution he wishes for them is that the fall into their own traps (v. 10). Let the malicious hunter let loose the dogs of his cruelty, and may they turn back around and starting hunting him (v. 11). God undertakes for the afflicted and poor (v. 12). The righteous will return thanks to God’s name, and the upright will dwell in His presence (v. 13).Notice that this psalm begins with the psalmist on the run, looking out for any possible snares and traps. A mere thirteen verses later, he is dwelling in the presence of God.VERBAL PERSECUTIONWe live in a world where actions follow words, and words have the power to result in action. An intelligent Christian should be able to see and predict the trajectory of malice. The road along which this evil runs can be described as a plotting heart (v. 2), a venomous tongue (v. 3), and violent hands (v. 4).It has become fashionable for the liars of our generation to mock the idea that Christians are being “othered.” But we most certainly are. And however easy it is for someone to say, “Oh, poor widdle Cwistians! Did somebody differ wiff you on Twitter?” That’s not persecution. But that is not what Jesus taught us. “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake” (Matt. 5:11). Being reviled most certainly is persecution, and as we see in this psalm, it is the preparation for more direct action to follow.HOW POISON WORKSThe viper bites, and poison is introduced into the body. Now that body has a circulatory system which is system which keeps the body alive. That body cannot exist without it. Your red blood cells deliver oxygen to every point in your body, and so this amazing system is your essential friend. But the circulatory system is also involved in distributing any poison that is introduced into the body to every part of your body.Now in any social group—church, school, town, state, or nation—that circulatory system is made up of words. And lies, venomous lies, are the poison.PROTECTING THE COMMONWEALTHIf you doubt the truth proclaimed in this psalm—about the potency of lies—just look around. Over the last several years, you have witnessed a great nation reduced to a shambolic mess, and all through the power of poisonous lips. We have faced no great invasion. We have not been struck by a giant asteroid. We have not been visited with the frogs of Egypt. We have not seen the Black Death sweep through our cities. The seven angels of Revelation have not emptied their bowls on us.What we have seen is lies, lies everywhere. The lie of Darwinism. The lie of multiculturalism. The lie of woke. The lie of climate change. The lie of governmental authority. The lie of evangelical steadfastness. The lie of secularism. The lie of a defeated foe is destructive nonetheless, provided that the foolish believe it.MOUTHS FULL OF GOSPELWe have many examples of lies and liars being answered in Scripture. That is a lawful response, and in many cases it is a necessary response. Think about Paul, answering questions to the Galatians about how many times he had visited Jerusalem (Gal. 1:17). Think about Jesus, refuting charges that He was casting out demons by the prince of demons (Matt. 12:27). Think about Job, answering charges that he must have brought all his calamities down on himself (Job 42:7). So it is lawful.But at the same time, our central response must be to point to the cross where the prince of lies was thrown down and humiliated. They fell into the trap that they themselves had prepared. They managed, with their lying tongues, to have the Lord nailed to the cross. And when they had done so, they found all their lies were completely overthrown, forever and all. If the princes of this world had known what they were about, they wouldn’t have done it (1 Cor. 2:8). We should talk about all this more, with our mouths full of gospel.

Ungodly comparison comes pretty easily to us. It’s like an annoying habit that someone doesn’t realize they have until someone points it out. Comparing ourselves isn’t the problem, rather it’s the objects of our comparison. Ungodly comparison formulates either a disappointed view or an over-inflated view of yourself; and either way creates a toxic brew of strife & rivalry with those whom you’re comparing yourself.

A central aspect of this community that we are seeking to grow is hospitality. We believe in welcoming strangers, feeding the hungry, and befriending the lonely. It was not good for man to be alone in the beginning, and that was not just talking about bachelors; it was talking about community. We are talking about the work of the Spirit in the Church, conforming us more and more into the image of Jesus Christ. This happens around conversations after church, meals in one another’s homes, play dates, business ventures, prayer, and worship.