The Beatitudes give us a picture of true blessedness, and it differs a lot from what we see in movies or read in romance novels. True blessedness is not measured the size of your house or the top speed of your car. Instead, it is that happy state in which the believer experiences God’s favour. Blessedness is about our character, not our circumstances.

In the fourth beatitude, Jesus explains that the blessed “hunger and thirst”. We’ve all felt hungry and thirsty, but chances are we are only vaguely familiar with the kind of hunger and thirst Jesus describes in this beatitude. In the ancient Near East, the average working man would only eat meat once a week. Many people lived on the border of starvation. Water was even more precious than food, with most settlements built around or near a reliable water supply. It is said that a person can survive for 3 minutes without air, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food.

Have you ever experienced that kind of hunger or thirst? Jesus is talking about a strong, passionate spiritual desire – a need that must be satisfied. Psalm 42:1-2 famously captures this kind of spiritual longing in its opening verses: “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” David had a similar longing for God: “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” (Psalm 63:1). They longed for God’s presence as a dying man would long for food or water.

John Blanchard highlights a particular danger in modern Christianity. Many professing believers are like cars that are running on empty. From the outside there seems to be nothing wrong with the car, but the fuel light is on, and the driver isn’t paying attention. Suddenly the car starts to sputter and then it stops. Outwardly, many professing believers live respectable lives, attending church and using religious words, but they are empty. They have no sense of urgency or need. They do not hunger or thirst for God. Most dangerous of all, they may not even be aware of it (like the church of Laodicea; see Rev. 3:17).

Martyn Lloyd-Jones gives us a timely reminder: “I do not know of a better test that anyone can apply to himself or herself in this while matter of the Christian profession than a verse like this. If this verse is to you one of the most blessed statements of the whole of Scripture you can be quite certain that you are a Christian; if it is not, then you had better examine the foundations again.” Hunger and thirst are signs of life and indicators of health (see 1 Pet. 2:2). A loss of appetite is usually not a good sign.

What does a loss of spiritual hunger look like? Thomas Watson gives several examples.
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• First, those who do not hunger for righteousness do not feel their emptiness. In other words, he lacks the awareness of the first beatitude. He writes: “None so empty of grace as he that thinks himself full. He has most need of righteousness that least wants it.”
• Second, those who do not hunger for righteousness do not feel a need for it. Related to the first, but here the professing believer thinks he or she can go without it for a season.
• Third, those who do not hunger for righteousness “desire rather sleep than food. They are more drowsy than hungry.” They are in a spiritual stupor and don’t want to wake up from it.
• Fourth, those who do not hunger for righteousness “refuse their food… Such are your fanatics and enthusiasts who put away the blessed ordinances and pretend to revelations… They live on airy notions”.
• Fifth, those who do not hunger for righteousness “delight more in the garnishing of the dish than the food.” They are more interested in the eloquence of the preaching than its content.
• Sixth, those who do not hunger for righteousness “prefer other things before it, namely, their profits and recreations.” 
• Seventh, those who do not hunger for righteousness “are more for disputes in religion than practice.”

Thomas Guthrie, a Scottish preacher, wrote: “If you find yourself loving any pleasure better than your prayers, any book better than the Bible, any house better than the house of God, any table better than the Lord’s table, any person better than Christ, any indulgence better than the hope of heaven – take alarm!”
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Because of Christ,
Pieter

Our relationship with God has a profound impact on our relationship with others. Those who are meek toward God, will also be meek in their relationships with others. We know what meekness toward God looks like. It means submitting to God’s providence and obeying his Word. What does meekness toward others look like?

This is an important question, and one that we must answer if we are to live spiritually fruitful lives. Consider Moses, who led the people of Israel out of Egypt. He put up with their constant complaining, frequent rebellion, and even their rejection. Numbers 12:3 gives us a remarkable description of his character: “Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth.” There is no doubt that much of his impact can be traced back to this trait.

Consider Christ, who dealt so gently with the broken and endured so much hostility from his enemies. He described himself as “gentle and lowly in heart” (Matt. 11:29). Paul would later appeal to the Corinthian believers “by the meekness and gentleness of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:1). Jesus exemplified what he commended in the third beatitude.
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When we consider their example, we learn that meekness toward man means bearing injuries. A meek spirit is not easily provoked. Thomas Watson likened it to wet tinder which does not easily catch fire. In Psalm 38:12-13 David writes about the traps that were set for him and the treachery of his enemies. He, however, was “like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth.” A meek man knows how to take a proverbial punch and not punch back.

Meekness means not being hasty or short-tempered. Eccl. 7:9 warns us not to be “quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.” A fool is like gunpower which lights at the slightest spark and explodes to the hurt and harm of all around. The meek are not prone to anger or resentment. This does not mean that they cannot experience anger, or that they don’t experience holy anger. The meek know that even our righteous anger quickly turns into sinful rage when we let it run riot.

Meekness toward man means we aren’t malicious. Malice is mental murder (1 John 3:15: “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”). Jesus taught his disciples to pray: “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matt. 6:12).

Meekness toward man means letting go of revenge. If malice is the scum of anger, revenge is what happens when malice boils over. When this happens, malice seeks to harm and ruin another. We want to hurt them. We want them to suffer. This is so foreign to the character of Christ that those who pursue revenge have reason to doubt their faith. The meek trust in a righteous God; they know God will deal righteously with those who harm his people (see Rom. 12:19). 

Meekness is also opposed to gossip. This is one of the most destructive forms of character assassination and one that has only gotten worse with the advent of social media. Eph. 4:31 is clear: “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.” Notice how slander is linked to malice. Our words reveal what is in our heart (Matt. 12:34). James 3:6 warned that the tongue (and we should add the keyboard) can be a terribly destructive force. 

We need to grow in meekness, but how? If we would grow in meekness, we must meditate on the gospel daily. We ought to look to Jesus. He is the perfect example of meekness. One of the ways in which Christ exemplified meekness, was in his readiness to forgive. He taught his disciples the importance of forgiveness: “And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” (Matt. 11:25). Being forgiven means that we ought to forgive as well (Eph. 4:32).

Another way in which Jesus exemplified meekness, was in returning good for evil (see Matt. 5:43-48). When we feed our enemies or give them something to drink (Rom. 12:20), we are following the example of Christ. I’ve been reading 1 & 2 Samuel in my quiet-time and I’ve been amazed at the meekness of David even as Saul pursued him. He constantly gave Saul what he did not deserve, and ultimately his meekness won the day, not Saul’s anger.

Which brings us to the blessing associated with meekness: “they shall inherit the earth.” (Matt. 5:5). The victory is not achieved through power, oppression, or might. Christ conquered through the cross. In a similar way, our inheritance is secured by the strength of meekness – the same meekness we see in our Saviour.

Because of Christ,
Pieter

Jesus commends meekness in his third beatitude: “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matt. 5:5). Meekness is often mistaken for weakness, but nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus was meek, yet we do not find him afflicted by the same moral weakness or cowardice that seems to affect so much of our modern society. Jesus stood firm against hypocrites, yet he also dealt gently with the broken.

How, then, should we define meekness? Much like love, we recognize meekness by what it does. Thomas Watson helpfully points to two essential features of meekness, especially as it relates to God. First, it implies submission to God’s will and second, conformity to God’s Word.

How do we submit to God’s will? We see this particularly in how the Christian submits to God’s providence in his or her life. Providence, according to the Westminster shorter catechism, is God’s “most holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing all his creatures and all their actions.” Providence means that God is active in his world and in our lives. He preserves, guides, and provides. As Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains, God’s providence “is a description of His continuing activity, of what He does in the world, and what He has continued to do since He made the world at the very beginning.”

Submitting to providence is not always easy. Job understood this better than most. He faced soul-crushing calamity, but his response was surprisingly meek. He said: “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” (Job 1:21). And again, after receiving more bad news, he said: “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” (Job 2:10). On both occasions we are told that “Job did not sin with his lips.”

Jesus Christ is the supreme example of meek submission to providence. Before Jesus was arrested, we are told that he prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” (Matt. 26:39). Christ submitted to his Father’s providence, even as he wrestled with its frightening implications.
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This wasn’t fatalistic resignation but trusting submission. Meekness says “not as I will, but as you will” because it trusts that God is in control and that he is good. We might not be able to make sense of God’s providence, or see God’s good purposes, but we trust him. Why can we trust him? Because he “did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all” (Rom. 8:32). Such a God has earned my trust.

In the same way, meekness does not just submit to God’s providence but also seeks to conform to God’s revealed will. This means that we don’t oppose, argue with, or resist the Word, but conform our thinking to God’s. James 1:21 captures this beautifully: “Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.”

There may be passages of Scripture that we find difficult to understand or hard to apply. We wrestle, ask questions, and search, but the goal should never be to “get around” the text. Our aim is to understand and obey. Meekness not only trusts God’s providence but also his commands. He is good in what he does and in what he requires.

Such is meekness toward God. That meekness then overflows in our relationships with others, which we’ll explore next.

Because of Christ,
Pieter

In the Beatitudes, Jesus explains the way to true blessedness. True blessedness refers to that happy state in which the believer is at rest in his God. It implies a peace with God and an experience of God’s gracious favour. By now you have probably noticed that the path of true blessedness is surprising, different, and varied.
 
As the Holy Spirit guides us on the path of true blessedness, he helps us understand our lack and our desperate need (Matt. 5:3). Realizing just how poor in spirit we truly are, we mourn (v. 4). This might not sound all that pleasant, but the same Spirit assures us of the Father’s precious promises: a heavenly kingdom and divine comfort.

The third work of grace in the life of a true child of God is meekness. The third beatitude reads: “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (v. 5). What is meekness? The term that Jesus used is translated in several ways. The NASB translates it as “gentle”. The Good News Bible translates it as “humble”. The Amplified explains meek as “mild, patient, long-suffering”.

Translators struggle with the word, because like so many other concepts, it is something that we recognize but we find difficult to describe. In 1964 someone asked United States supreme court justice Potter Stewart to describe his test for obscenity. He simply answered: “I know it when I see it.” In much the same way, we know meekness when we see it. 

However, sometimes it is helpful to state what it isn’t, which might help us more clearly understand what it is. For starters, meekness is not being too submissive. Someone told the story of a domineering wife who shouted at her hen-pecked husband: “Are you a man or a mouse? Come on, squeak up!” Jesus is not commending that kind of attitude. Even as Jesus was being led to the cross, he was meek but not defeated.
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Meekness is also not being spineless. There seems to be a serious spine shortage in modern society, but don’t mistake spinelessness for meekness. Jesus was meek, yet we find him standing up to the Pharisees, clearing out the temple, and meeting his would-be captors with great bravery. It shouldn’t surprise us, because meekness is not weakness. Being so timid that a light breeze can blow you over, is not a sign of Christian virtue.
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Finally, meekness is not niceness. Modern society seems to have added an eleventh commandment: “Thou shalt be nice.” While we would not encourage meanness, we should be careful not to confuse niceness with meekness. Some people are more agreeable, pleasant, or easy-going than others. That does not mean that they are meek.

Meekness is more than a personality trait. I trust that you are familiar with the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Gal. 5:22-23: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”. The word for gentleness is very similar to the one that Jesus used in Matt. 5:5. The KJV even translates it as “meekness”.

In other words, this is not a natural timidity or niceness, but a Spirit-wrought part of godly character in the life of the believer. This also means that it isn’t an optional trait. This is something that should be present and growing in every believer’s life.

Now that we know what meekness isn’t, we are better positioned to explore what meekness truly is. But more on that next week.

Because of Christ,
Pieter

In the second beatitude Jesus again subverts our expectations. He said: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matt. 5:4). Jesus reminds us that even his disciples mourn. Following Jesus does not spare us the pain of living in a fallen world. Yet Jesus assures us that there is comfort.

This promise of comfort, it should be noted, is not given indiscriminately to anyone who mourns. Not all grief is godly. Consider Cain, who lamented the severity of God’s punishment for his sin (Gen. 4:13-14). He was more concerned about the pain that his sin caused him than the pain it caused his parents, not to mention his brother!

King Ahab is another example of ungodly grief. In 1 Kings 21:1-4 Ahab sulked because he could not get Naboth’s vineyard. He was angry and sullen because he could not have his way. He mourned, but it was motivated by greed and selfishness.

The most striking example of ungodly grief has to be Judas, Christ’s betrayer. According to Matt. 27:3-5 he acknowledged his sin and even tried to give back the money he was paid. Yet he never confessed his sin to God or sought his forgiveness. Overwhelmed by his guilt, he sought to rid himself of his accusing conscience by taking his own life. JC Ryle explains that it “is possible for a man to feel his sins, and be sorry for them, pricked in conscience, and exhibit much distress of mind, and yet, for all this, not repent with his heart. Present danger, or the fear of death, may account for his feelings, and the Holy Ghost may have done no work whatever in his soul.”

If we want to be comforted, we must grieve in a godly way. 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 describes godly grief. It produces “a repentance that leads to salvation without regret”. It leads to earnest change, a hatred of sin, the fear of the Lord, and a longing and zeal for godliness.

Ungodly sorrow produces death. Godly sorrow, by contrast, is life-giving. John Blanchard put it well: “Nobody ever regrets godly, spiritual sorrow; instead, he rejoices at God’s gracious dealings with him and at the blessings he receives by his hand.” In the words of Psalm 34:18, “The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

In the previous beatitude we were told that the “poor in spirit” are blessed. We saw that their poverty is not material or intellectual, but spiritual – they know their spiritual need. This leads naturally into the next beatitude: “those who mourn”. We cannot separate the two, or any of the beatitudes, because they aren’t electives that we can opt out of, but describe the whole tapestry of Christian character. These are the characteristics of those who belong to the kingdom of Jesus Christ
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Christians will experience godly grief, not just once but often. John Stott rejected the giddy faux-spirituality that fills so many of our churches today. He warned: “Some Christians seem to imagine that, especially if they are filled with the Spirit, they must wear a perpetual grin on their face and be continually boisterous and bubbly. How unbiblical can one become?”

A Christian knows how to mourn over sin, brokenness, and how far we fall short of the perfection of Christ. “For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me… I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin.” (Psalm 38:4, 18). Yet it is for such people that the Lord reserves his comfort.
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When the believer runs to the Father, instead of from him, he finds Him to be “the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort” (2 Cor. 1:3). He finds Jesus Christ the righteous, standing beside him as his advocate (1 John 2:1-2). And he will find that the Spirit truly is a help and comfort to God’s children.

No wonder Jesus calls them blessed.

Because of Christ,
Pieter

The Beatitudes are among the most well-known passages of Scripture. The name, the Beatitudes, is borrowed from Latin. It means “blessedness” or “happiness”. Who doesn’t want to be happy? Yet Jesus turns our usual picture of happiness on its head with the second beatitude: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” (Matt. 5:4).

It sounds like a contradiction. The Good News translation was translated for English speakers who have had little to no exposure to Christianity. The contradiction sounds even more stark in their rendering: “Happy are those who mourn; God will comfort them.” How do we make sense of this?

Much of the Western world pursue happiness as the greatest good. The United States Declaration of Independence claims that all men have been endowed with unalienable rights: “among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Some African countries have followed suit and enshrined the right to happiness as a core value in their constitutions (like Liberia, Namibia, Ghana, Nigeria, and Egypt). Our own country, South Africa, did not.
 
Do we have a right to be happy? Some would argue that we can’t be happy while there is so much suffering in the world. Thousands die in wars across the globe. Millions are suffering because of malnutrition. Dictators rule with an iron fist. Yet even if we acknowledge that, we aren’t keen on walking around in sackcloth and ashes.

We mostly try to avoid mourning or people who mourn. It makes us uncomfortable. We want to be surrounded by people who are upbeat, happy, and enthusiastic. As DA Carson points out, “The world does not like mourners; mourners are wet blankets.” Yet Jesus says that those who mourn are truly blessed. He even warns those who are happy: “Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.” (Luke 6:25).

What does it mean to mourn? Jesus used a weighty word to describe mourning. It was used for the desolation we experience when we lose a loved one. It was used in Greek translation of Genesis 37:32-34 to describe Jacob’s mourning when he thought he had lost Joseph. It is also the word that Mark used to describe the disciples mourning after the death and burial of Jesus in Mark 16:10. The mourning that Jesus referred to was deep, heartbreaking grief.

This beatitude is wonderfully comforting when we suffer, and its message is consistent with the rest of the New Testament. We find comfort knowing that God can sanctify us through our suffering, “knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope” (Rom. 5:3-4). We are comforted when we remember that we are God’s children and therefore fellow heirs with Christ, who will not only share in his suffering but in his glory too (Rom. 8:17-18).

There is also the promise of the resurrection (John 11:25-26) and the hope that God himself will comfort us in glory: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:4). These heavenly truths comfort us in our earthly suffering. “A moment is long if we look at the things round us; but once we have raised our minds to heaven, a thousand years begin to be like a moment.” (John Calvin).

These comforts do not spare us the mourning, but they help us endure. There is much to hope in and to look forward to, provided we mourn for the right things and in the right way. More on that next week.
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Because of Christ,
Pieter

Jesus opened his Sermon on the Mount with a lesson on true blessedness. He gave us eight declarations of what true blessedness is, each starting with the words: “Blessed are…” The first of these, “Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matt. 5:3) is rather surprising. As we noted last week, we do not usually see poverty and blessing mentioned in the same breath. Yet this was the first characteristic Jesus highlighted when he spoke on true blessedness.

Clearly, the kind of poverty that Jesus describes here is not material in nature. He was speaking of a poverty that is felt deeply in the inner man. That is what “spirit” refers to in this context. This is what the Lord referred to when he said to Samuel: “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” (1 Sam. 16:7).

What does a truly blessed inner man or spirit look like? We are told the truly blessed heart is a poor one. When the New Testament uses the word “poor” it often refers to those who are in abject poverty. In Luke 14:21 the poor are listed with the crippled, the blind, and the lame. These were people who had no means of caring for themselves – they were beggars. The poor in spirit understand themselves to be spiritual beggars.

Listen to how John Brown describes the poor in spirit: “He knows himself to be an entirely dependent being; he knows himself to be an inexcusable sinner; he knows himself to be a righteously condemned criminal; he knows that ‘in him, that is, in his flesh, dwells no good thing’; he knows that he has, that he can have, no hope, but in the sovereign mercy of God”.

In Luke 18:9-14 Jesus told a parable in which a Pharisee and a tax collector were in the temple praying. The Pharisee looked down on the tax collector. His prayer was filled with condescension and boasting. But the tax collector, we are told “would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'” (v. 13). He was justified, not the Pharisee. He was truly blessed.

Psalm 34:18 says: “The Lord is good to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit”. The Lord loves the poor in spirit. We are told that he will look to “he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word” (Isa. 66:2). The Lord does not shun our poverty of spirit, but draws near to it. 

​Augustus Toplady’s famous him, Rock of Ages, expressed it well: 

Nothing in my hands I bring, 
Simply to thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to thee for dress;
Helpless, look to thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Saviour, or I die.

Why are the poor in spirit considered blessed? The final phrase in Matt. 5:3 explain that “theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. The grace that God promised to those who humble themselves under his mighty hand (Jam. 4:6), is that they will posses the kingdom of heaven. You may not have noticed this, but the phrase is in the present tense, not future tense. Future tense would have made sense, if Jesus was just referring to his future kingdom. The new heavens and the new earth, the heavenly Jerusalem descending... this kingdom is considered their present possession. They are already citizens of it. Deserving nothing, in Christ the poor in spirit have everything.

Because of Christ,
Pieter

Have you ever wondered how the Beatitudes got their name? They are so called because of the Latin translation of the opening words, “beati sunt”, meaning “blessed are” (Matt. 5:3). In this passage Jesus explains what true blessedness is and to whom such blessedness belongs.

Reading through the Beatitudes, you may have noticed that true blessedness is not defined the way the world would. The prevailing culture tells us that the ambitions, wealthy, popular, confident or gifted are the truly blessed ones. Parents and children are being bombarded with these messages through social media and the entertainment they consume. Their idols are a far cry from what Jesus describes in this passage.

Jesus says: “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” (Matt. 5:3). Some interpret this to mean that material poverty is the key to true spirituality. Some professing believers take a “vow of poverty” to grow closer to Christ and sympathize with the poor. However, poverty does not necessarily bring one closer to God. The poor can harden their hearts against the gospel as well as any rich person can. As the Scottish preacher, John Brown, once said: “Extreme poverty is not favourable to religion any more than extreme affluence.”

Some Christians, in their zeal to help the poor, misinterpret or misapply the Bible. They’ll point to passages like James 2:5, which says: “has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?” This, they believe, proves that the poor are the true people of God. The next verse, however, explains James’ statement: “But you have dishonoured the poor man.” (v. 6). They were showing favouritism based on people’s social status or wealth. The poor are not prevented from entering the kingdom because of their poverty, but they are not guaranteed entrance because of it.

True, there is one occasion where Jesus asked a rich you man to: “sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."” (Matt. 19:21). The next verse explains why Jesus asked this of the young man: “When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.” (Matt. 19:22). It was not the wealth of his possessions that kept him from Christ, but his love of those possessions that did so.
The Bible warns us against the “love of money” (1 Tim. 6:10). It leads to all kinds of temptation and has ruined the lives of many. Riches aren’t the problem, but setting our hearts and hope on it is. Money has a way of becoming a destructive idol. We so easily convince ourselves that money will solve all our problems. Ecclesiastes 5:11-12 warns that when “goods increase, they increase who eat them” and that “the full stomach of the rich will not let him sleep.” 

Abraham was a godly man and is even called a “friend of God” (Isa. 41:8), and the Lord blessed him with wealth (see Gen. 13:2). Our Lord Jesus Christ never enjoyed such riches during his earthly life. Though he was rich in glory, for our sake he became poor (2 Cor. 8:9). 

Blessedness is not measured by the wealth of our possessions. Scripture is clear on that (see Heb. 11:37-38). True blessedness comes to those who are “poor in spirit”, which we will explore next week.

Because of Christ,
Pieter

The Gospel of Matthew is a true gem. From the opening sentence it has deliberate and direct ties to the Old Testament, bridging the gap between the two. It also presents the teaching of Jesus' teaching in a clear and orderly way, making it the most used Gospel in the early church.

Jesus, the true Prince of Preachers, preached with such clarity and authority that the people were amazed at his teaching (see Matt. 7:28). The Sermon on the Mount is arguably the most famous of his sermons. His preaching routinely drew huge crowds, and this time was no different (Matt. 5:1). On this occasion a hillside served as his pulpit.

Jesus opened his sermon with these words: “Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matt. 5:3). The Greek word that is used here often appears in the Greek translation of the Old Testament (the LXX or the Septuagint). This is the first time the word is used in the New Testament. 

What is blessedness? It is an important theme in both the Old and New Testament. Thomas Watson calls it “the whetstone of a Christian’s industry, the height of his ambition, the flower of his joy.” Aquinas called it the “ultimate end”.  To help us understand blessedness, we need to understand what it is not. 

First, it is not the accumulation or increase of worldly things. That much is clear from the passage, but that isn’t how many of us live. Much of our time and effort is expended in gathering worldly goods, yet we may miss true blessedness altogether. Solomon understood this very well: “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes?” (Eccl. 5:10-11). Again, Thomas Watson writes: “earthly things accumulated cannot rock the troubled heart quiet”.

Second, blessedness is not the absence of trouble. Our passage makes that clear as well. There is a whole lot of trouble in the Christian life. David understood this, as he explained in Psalm 23:5: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

True blessedness, then, includes the idea of being well and happy. Sadly, we’ve so overused and diluted the idea of happiness that we need clarify what we mean. When the Bible tells us that someone is ‘blessed’ it is not telling us how they feel but what they are. John Stott explains that the “beatitudes are not an indication of their feelings but of God’s assessment of them.”

God alone can make a man or woman truly blessed. In doing so, they are made spiritually well or whole. They experience true joy, even when their circumstances are not all that enjoyable. As Don Carson explains: “Those who are blessed will generally be profoundly happy; but blessedness cannot be reduced to happiness.” Their happiness and wholeness are not rooted in their circumstances, but in their God.
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It is only by abiding in Christ that such blessedness is attained. That is why, as we will see, it is found even in the most surprising places.

​Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

How do we prepare for doomsday? When Covid first hit, it caused a great deal of uncertainty, anxiety, and fear. People were quoting verses on plagues and pestilence (mostly out of context) as proof that we had entered the last days. Then Russia invaded Ukraine, and recently Hamas attacked Israel as they were celebrating Yom Kippur. Thousands of lives have been lost in these conflicts and there seems to be no end to the suffering that it has caused.

Surely these are the last days, right? Listen to what Jesus said in Mark 13:7-9: “when you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.  "But be on your guard.”” Jesus called these events “birth pains”. They must take place, but “the end is not yet.”

These events are tragic. We mourn for every life that has been lost, especially those who do not know Christ. Jesus did not say these words to minimize the injustice or suffering that people have had to endure. He said them to comfort his disciples – “do not be alarmed” – and to prepare them – “be on your guard.”

How should we prepare? Some people have decided to sell their homes, build bunkers, stockpile food, or purchase weapons. Is that how Christians ought to prepare? The Bible clearly instructs us to be vigilant. There will be signs. Jesus said as much in Mark 13:28-29: “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.” There will be signs, but believers need not fear these signs. We should not be alarmed, while still being on our guard. 

Beware those who try to predict the time of Christ’s second coming. Every attempt has only led to humiliation and has shaken the faith of many. Jesus said, in Matthew 24:36, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” Before his ascension, Jesus repeated: “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.” (Acts 1:7). Being prepared and predicting the coming of Christ are not the same thing.

Every generation has had to be on their guard. A quick review of history will show that our situation is not unique. Imagine being a believer in Rome under Nero. He persecuted the church and martyred the apostles Peter and Paul. Christians were burned at the stake and thrown to lions. Not long thereafter, Jerusalem fell and Christians fled Jerusalem and Judea. Read Augustine’s great work, The City of God, where he reflects on the fall of the Roman Empire and the effect it had on the world. Europe’s history is filled with tales of devastation, war, and conquest. And the plague… the Black Death, as it was called, decimated Europe in the fourteenth century. It wiped out towns and claimed an estimated 25 million lives (nearly half of Europe’s population). 

The world was at war for four years between 1914 and 1918. The devastation was terrible and it was thought that it could not be matched. Then, two decades later, from 1939-1945, the world would witness the death of thousands on the battlefield and millions in concentration camps. Nuclear bombs were dropped on civilian targets for the first time and even after the war ended, the threat of the Cold War loomed over the world.

These are indeed the last days, the end times, but that has been the case ever since the ascension of Jesus Christ. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he said: “Now these things happened to them (referring to the history of Israel) as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.” (1 Cor. 10:11). When John wrote to his disciples, he said: “Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour.” (1 John 2:18). The author of Hebrews opens his letter with these words: “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son” (Hebrews 1:1-2). And the apostle Peter wrote: “He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for your sake” (1 Peter 1:20).

Dear believer, you are in the last days. This is the final phase of human history before the return of Christ. Christ commands us to be on our guard, but he also comforts us when he says: “do not be alarmed”. In our next post we’ll look at what the Bible says about preparing for Christ’s return, with vigilance and faith.
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Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

At least once a year I try to read a book on parenting. It deepens my understanding of the task to which God has called me. It also reminds me of truths I may have started to take for granted. One such truth, for example, is that I cannot give what I do not have.

In Deut. 6:5-7 Moses instructed the Israelites: “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”

The basic idea is that parents should teach their children God’s Word, and that they should use every opportunity to do so. Sounds simple enough, but did you notice how Moses introduced the command to teach? Before he deals with a parent’s ministry, he deals with a parent’s heart. The first command of the passage is that we should “love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (v. 4).

Jesus called this “the great and first commandment” (Matt. 22:38). Here we have the first key to an authentic and enthusiastic witness: a genuine love for the Lord. We all have things that we are passionate about. I had a high school teacher who was passionate about cricket. It was a passion that we exploited if we didn’t want to have class. “Sir, what do you think of the Proteas’ chances at the world cup?” We’d sit back and listen as he waxed lyrical about his favourite players. He was positively effervescent in his enthusiasm for the game.

It is the love of God which compels us to share his gospel with others (2 Cor. 5:14). Sadly, we often find that Christians share their faith reluctantly. You’d be forgiven for thinking that they were ashamed of the gospel, as though it wasn’t “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16). If we don’t love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and might, we won’t be motivated to share his Word with others. You cannot give what you do not have.

How can I grow in my love for the Lord? That is where the second command of the passage comes in: “these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.” (v. 6). Our love for the Lord is deepened by our knowledge of him. Our love is a response to his love revealed in the Word and in his Son (1 John 4:19). For example, in Psalm 1:2 we are told of the blessedness of those whose “delight is in the law of the LORD” and meditates on it day and night. Similarly, David wrote: “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (Ps. 119:11).

Have you ever joined a conversation only to realize that we have no idea what they are talking about? We stand there quietly, politely nodding our heads, but we’re just looking for an opportunity to leave. If we want to participate joyfully in Christian fellowship or share our faith effectively with family and friends, we must know what we are talking about. We cannot give what we do not have.

These are the fundamental requirements for an authentic, enthusiastic, and effective witness. We must love the Lord our God and his Word must be on our hearts. Only then are we equipped to share it with others.

Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

As I parked my car outside a friend’s house, he walked up to me and remarked: “Do you know your front right wheel is flat?” I hadn’t noticed and awkwardly tried to turn the exchange into a joke. He stopped me and said: “That isn’t safe, man; not for you and not for your family.” I had it checked later that day.

We live in a materialistic world. This is not new. Proverbs 11:28 warns us: “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall”. These words were penned by one of the richest men in the Old Testament: Solomon. Yet even Solomon understood that wealth has its limits and that it is a flimsy foundation for confidence. As Jesus explained: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Matt. 6:19-20).

Christians would do well to heed these warnings. Our confidence should not be in the abundance of our possessions. We must be careful that the things we own don’t own us. Jesus added: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt. 6:21). 

Psalm 24:1 says: “The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein”. We don’t actually “own” anything; God has entrusted some of his abundance to us. How we manage this blessing will say a great deal about our priorities, desires, and spiritual maturity. 

At this point you probably expect a lecture on generosity and benevolence. These are important Christian disciplines that defined the early church and should shape us as well. However (you knew this was coming), this is not what I want to focus on. I want to focus on how you take care of the things God has entrusted to you. They were given to take care of your family (or, if you are alone, yourself). 

Look at Proverbs 27:23-27: “Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds, for riches do not last forever; and does a crown endure to all generations? When the grass is gone and the new growth appears and the vegetation of the mountains is gathered, the lambs will provide your clothing, and the goats the price of a field. There will be enough goats' milk for your food, for the food of your household and maintenance for your girls.”

This proverb teaches a lesson drawn from rural life. There are flocks and herds, grass and vegetation, fields and milk. These imagines may be strange those of us who grew up in the city, but they are the stuff of life out on the farm. Tending to your livestock is important because they will provide wool (v. 26), milk (v. 27), food (v. 27), and yes, money (v. 26). Tending to your field is also important because it produces food for the livestock (v. 25).

We understand the concept. This is the “circle of life” stuff our childhood cartoons sang about, but there is more to it than that. Look at how the passage ends: “food for your household and maintenance for your girls” (v. 27). If you are a breadwinner or homemaker there are people who depend on you. Your family (“your household”) depends on you. There may even be people that you employ: “your girls”. This is most likely a reference to servants, which the NIV makes explicit when it translates it “servant girls”.

In both cases there are people who rely on you for “wool… milk… food”. You may not have fields or flocks, but you have a car that gets you to work, a home that keeps your family warm and dry, and other tools that enable you to ply your trade. You, and the gifts that God has blessed you with, are the means by which God takes care of your family or employees. How you manage your fields and flocks impacts them. In other words, you must take care of the things that take care of your family. The wise stewardship of the means that God has provided for you, is a blessing to your family. If you squander what God has given, or if you aren’t attentive to it, your family and your employees will suffer.

Can God provide for your family without you? Absolutely. God takes care of those who have no one else to take care of them. Just look at Psalm 68:5: “Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.” Trust that the Lord will take care of them when you can’t. But this does not mean that we can be unwise stewards of what he has entrusted to us.

Heed God’s wisdom and learn to take care of the things that take care of your family.
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Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

Part 3: A few things to remember
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Sharing our Christian testimony is one of the simplest ways to share the gospel. We are essentially telling the story of how Jesus Christ saved us. This is exciting stuff, because each conversion story is a THTHTHT to the grace of God and the power of the gospel. It is an account of how light triumphed over darkness, grace over sin, and Christ over Satan. If our testimony is boring, it is not because God didn’t do something amazing, but because we don’t realize what an amazing thing God has done.

How should I tell my story? We have three accounts of Paul’s conversion in the book of Acts. The first is found in Acts 9. Here Luke, the human author writing under the inspiration of the Spirit, narrates the events of Paul’s conversion as it happens. The second is found in Acts 22, where the apostle Paul shares his own testimony of conversion when the Jews level false accusations against him. The third is found in Acts 26. Again, the apostle Paul shares his testimony, only this time he shares it with a much smaller group and in a very different setting.

If you read all three accounts, you will find that there are subtle differences between them. For example, in Acts 22:8 Jesus identifies himself as “Jesus the Nazarene” (which does not happen in the first account). In Acts 9 we read about how the Lord prepared Ananias to minister to Paul, but Paul’s account in Acts 22 doesn’t mention it. In Acts 26 some details are left out, while more details of his call and his message are given. How do we make sense of these differences?

Some believe that these discrepancies prove that Paul made it all up and that his testimony was a fabrication. The opposite is true. In law, if a story remains totally unchanged when told at different times or to different people, it is more likely to be considered false. All of the details in Paul’s different testimonies are true, but weren’t included in each account. Why not?

Each of these testimonies emphasized different aspects of Paul’s conversion depending on his hearers. For example, when Paul was speaking to his fellow Jews, he emphasized his Jewishness and faithfulness to the Law. He also referred to God as “the God of our fathers”. He was trying to reach his fellow Jews with the message of the Messiah. He naturally changed his emphasis when he shared his testimony with Gentiles (see Acts 26).

This means that you, too, can shift the emphasis when you share your conversion story with different people. You don’t invent a new story, but you highlight different things. For example, the way that I share my testimony with teens or young adults differs slightly from how I would share it with someone older. I use different words (a different vocabulary), or I’ll highlight things that my listeners can relate to.

An effective testimony does not embellish or exaggerate. It recognizes that the salvation of a soul is a miracle of God’s grace. You don’t have to repeat the same rehearsed story every time; you can tailor the story to the situation while staying true to the facts. We want others to see how the gospel has changed our lives and how it can change theirs as well.
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Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

​The apostle Paul has a pretty unique conversion story. It is first recorded in Acts 9, where the author gives us a spectator’s perspective of what happened. Later, in Acts 22, Paul shares his own testimony with the Jews as they were trying to arrest him. After his arrest, Paul had an opportunity to plead his case before King Agrippa (Acts 26). While the circumstances of each testimony is different, the essential elements of the story stay the same. We’ll look at Paul’s testimony before Agrippa as an example of how you can tell your conversion story. 

What does a Christian testimony look like?

1. Introduce yourself (v. 4-8):
Paul’s introduction fits the occasion: he is standing before a ruler after being accused by his own countrymen. That is why he details his connection with the Jews, his strict adherence to their Law, and constantly shows deference or respect to the king. 

In his introduction he sets the stage. He links his own story with the bigger story of Israel, one that the king would have been familiar with. He also introduces the theme around which he builds his story. It is in verse 8: “Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?” The resurrection becomes a central theme in how he shares his conversion story.

There are other gospel themes, like forgiveness, eternal life, or reconciliation around which you can tell your story. A theme helps you to decide what to include and what to leave out. It also gives your story focus. What grabbed your attention when you first heard the gospel? Was it the love of God revealed in Jesus? Was it the offer of forgiveness? Were you looking for life in all the wrong places, only to find eternal life in Christ? 

2. Describe your life before Christ (v. 9-11): 
In verse 9-11 Paul describes the consequences of his self-righteousness and how it motivated him to persecute the church. He describes his fallenness; he tells the king what his sin looked like. Note, however, that Paul does not glorify his sin. This is not the most exciting part of his story. He does not go into the gory detail, but he shares enough to help his listeners understand that he needed salvation.

When we talk about our lives before faith in Christ, we must be careful that we don’t glamourize sin. Don’t share details that may entice or tempt others to sin, rather than pointing them to Christ. This is a confession, not a boast, and should be done with the appropriate humility (see 1 Tim. 1:15).

3. Describe your conversion (v. 12-18):
Paul’s account of his first encounter with Christ differs slightly from the first account in Acts 9. For example, he includes the words: “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” (v. 14). It was a common proverbial statement that meant that we cannot ultimately prevail against God’s will. Agrippa would have known what Paul meant: the Lord is in control, not Paul and not the king. In this version of his testimony he shares a lot of detail on his commission (v. 16-18). This links his story with the king’s story; the king is one of the Gentiles to whom the Lord has sent Paul!

What is most important, however, is that Christ takes centre stage. We must understand that our testimony isn’t ultimately our story, but God’s. It is about how he saved us, how he intervened in our lives. This should be the most exciting part of your testimony. This is the part where someone who was dead in their trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1) and lost in darkness (Col. 1:13), is brought to life and delivered into light by Jesus Christ.

How did you hear the gospel? Who shared it with you? What was your first response? When did you cry out to Jesus? What did you experience when you repented of your sin and trusted in the Saviour?

4. Describe your life after coming to Christ (v. 19-22):
Paul’s description of his life after coming to Christ is brief, but he wants to show that the gospel has made a difference. He wants to show how Christ has changed him: before he persecuted the church, but now he planted churches all over the Roman empire!

One of the elements we often neglect when we tell our conversion story, is how Christ has changed us. We are not who we used to be, and it will show (2 Cor. 5:17). Share how the gospel has made a difference in your live. What is different about you? How have your desires and plans changed? Where has God used you? What have you learned?

5. Conclusion (v. 23):
Paul concludes with an invitation: he restates the gospel clearly and simply: Christ suffered, died, and rose from the dead so that light can be proclaimed to both Jew and Gentile. He brings his story full circle by pointing Agrippa back to the resurrection. 

His story demanded a response, and our should as well. Not everyone will respond positively to your testimony (they didn’t always respond positively to Paul’s), but that is not our job. We cannot change hearts, only Christ by his Holy Spirit can. Our job is to testify to the grace of our Lord in our lives. If you know enough to be saved, you know enough to share.

Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

Part 1: What is a testimony and why should I share it?

​What is a testimony? Don’t worry, I won’t bore you with the dictionary definition. I would, however, like to give you a Christian definition. A Christian testimony is a story. It is a story in which you testify about God’s character. It is your eyewitness account of how God rescued you from sin and death through Christ, and changed your life as a result.

In Acts 4 the disciples were being persecuted for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. After their release, they prayed, and God filled them afresh with his Holy Spirit. What was the result? Acts 4:31 tells us: “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.” Then, in verse 33, we read: “And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.” The disciples were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, or as the NASB translates it, they “were giving witness to the resurrection”. 

In a similar way, when a Christian shares his or her testimony they are giving an account of what the Lord has done in their lives. Sometimes this means sharing the story of how the Lord answered prayer or delivered from a particular danger. In most cases, however, testifying means that we share how the Lord has changed our lives through the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now that we know what a Christian testimony is, we must consider why we should share our testimony with others. The apostle Peter instructed believers to: “Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,” speaking here of those who persecuted them because of their faith, “but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:14-16). 

If we love the Lord Jesus Christ and devote our lives to honoring him, it will elicit a response from those around us. Sometimes people respond with curiosity, not understanding why we are different or how we’ve changed. At other times they respond with animosity (enmity, opposition, or even persecution – which is what Peter highlighted in his letter). Even if people reject us, Christians are people with a profound hope. This hope changes how we endure suffering for the sake of Jesus. We should be ready to explain why we have such hope, even in suffering.

One of the best ways to do so, is to share your testimony. It is a way in which you can honor Jesus Christ, share the gospel, answer your opponents, and encourage other believers. Do you want to know the best part? Everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ has a testimony. True, your testimony may not be as exciting as the apostle Paul’s, which will look at next week, but you can share your unique story of how the Lord changed your life by grace through faith in the Saviour. 

God can use your story to lead others into the glories of the gospel. If you know enough to be saved, you know enough to share the gospel with others.

Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

Yesterday we saw that the apostle Paul admonished the Ephesian believers to “walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time” (Eph. 5:15-16). Time is precious. We have a wonderful illustration of this in antiquity. Kairos was the Greek god “of the fleeting moment”. There was a well-known bronze statue of Kairos by a Greek sculptor named Lysippos. It depicted Kairos with wings on his feet, a bushy lock of hair on his forehead and a bald spot on the back of his head. The epigram on this famous statue explained its meaning: “Who are you? Time and opportunity… why do you have a pair of wings on your feet? I fly with the wind… why does your hair hang over your face? For him who meets me to take me by the forelock… why is the back of your head bald? Because none whom I have once raced by on my winged feet will now… take hold of me from behind.” Some opportunities come by only once in a lifetime; we should, in the words of the apostle Paul, make “the best use of the time”.

This brings us back to Ephesians 5:15-20. How should we redeem the time that we have been given? We have already seen that wisdom will “understand what the will of the Lord is” (v. 17). This calls for time in God’s Word. We have also seen that wisdom will “not get drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart” (v. 18-19). This calls for worship. The final component that Paul points out, is gratitude.

Verse 20 explains that a Spirit-filled life will not only worship, but also give “thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ”. Dr. Paul Hartwig highlights three essential elements of Christian gratitude found in this passage: it is perpetual, universal, and evangelical. Let us look at each of these in turn.

Perpetual
Verse 20 says that we should be “giving thanks always”. Gratitude should be our constant, consistent, and continuous response to the providence of God. Giving thanks to God should not be an event, but a lifestyle. 1 Thess. 5:18 puts it beautifully: “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Universal
Verse 20 continues by explaining that such perpetual gratitude is only possible if we understand that God should be thanked “for everything”. Some might object and say that God should be thanked in everything, but not for everything. The text, however, is clear: God should be thanked for everything. Nothing is excluded, good or bad, desirable or undesirable. How can we thank God for everything? Consider this: if God is in control, and if God is good, whatever God ordains will be for our blessing and his glory. Romans 8:28 says: “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” This does not mean that I understand all of God’s purposes, nor does it mean that I immediately experience the blessing. Giving thanks for everything means that I trust my sovereign heavenly Father, even when I don’t understand his ways.

Evangelical
This is what makes our gratitude uniquely Christian: “in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 20). The cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, the gospel, gives us the perspective and the basis for such gratitude. It is because we know that God used the tragedy of the cross to bring hope to sinful men, that we can be grateful for everything. God took Jesus to Calvary and he, “for the joy that was set before him endured the cross” (Heb. 12:2). Moreover, we bring our gratitude to God the Father in the “name of our Lord Jesus Christ”. We cannot do this on our own. Our thoughts need to be shaped by the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our prayers need to rest on the grace of Jesus Christ. Our gratitude needs to be empowered by the glory of Jesus Christ.

This is how Christians respond in adversity. The apostle Paul instructed the believers in Ephesus to do this while he was imprisoned in Rome. He wasn’t a fair-weather Christian, but a believer who knew how to walk in wisdom, making the best use of the time, worshiping and thanking God in the power of the Spirit and in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
What will you do with this opportunity?
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Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

When the president announced a 21 day national lockdown starting on the 26th of March 2020, many people panicked. Stores were swarmed with anxious buyers and travellers hurried to get home as the country prepared to effectively shut down. Immediately people began counting the days, myself included. The initial lockdown would have ended on Friday, the 17th of April 2020, but on the eve of Good Friday the president announced that the lockdown would be extended to the end of April.

How should Christians respond? I’d like to take you to Ephesians 5:15-20. For the next two days we’ll look at this passage together. It won’t answer all our questions, but it will help us make wise decisions and to respond in a God-honouring way.

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”.

The apostle Paul began Ephesians 5 with a simple, but profound call: “be imitators of God” (v. 1). How could we possibly imitate God? In most respects we can’t, but Paul does mention three things in this chapter that we can imitate. The first is love – God’s love being made visible in the Lord Jesus Christ (v. 1-7). The second is holiness – God’s holiness being made visible in a life of light (v. 8-14). The third is wisdom. Verse 15 says: “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise”.
 
Wisdom, God’s wisdom, is not something that comes naturally to man, because we are born separated from God and our hearts are naturally inclined against him (Eph. 2:3). We are born fools. In chapter 4:17-18 Paul describes the unconverted as walking in “the futility of their minds” and says that they are “darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God”. Outside of God’s redeeming grace in Jesus Christ humanity is foolish.
 
So where do we get the wisdom we so desperately need? Wisdom is found in the Lord, who is himself the Author of wisdom. To gain such wisdom, and to grow in it, we must fear the Lord (Proverbs 9:10), study his Word (Psalm 119:99) and pray (James 1:5). And we now have the time to do it.
 
Note what Paul says in verse 16: “making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” Wisdom understands that time is precious and that we only have a finite amount of it. In Psalm 90:12 Moses prays: “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Let’s do that. We have 168 hours in our seven-day week. Roughly a third of those 168 hours should be devoted to rest and sleep – around 8 hours a day. That leaves us with 112 hours. With many of us either working from home or not working at all, balancing those 112 hours becomes very difficult. By now many of us may have run out of projects that needed to be done around the house. You can only Spring clean your house so many times. What should we do with the remaining hours?

If we are to be imitators of God (v. 1) and if we should “walk… as wise” (v. 15), our priorities will be shaped by the Lord and his Word. Verse 17 says: “Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” To know what the will of the Lord is, we need to spend time in the Word. One of the complaints I hear often is that people don’t have the time to really study God’s Word. They squeeze it in here and there, but they don’t have time to really read and meditate through God’s Word. But we do now.

Another priority that you’ll pick up is worship. Verse 18-19 contrasts the drunken revelry of the world with the Spirit-filled worship of the church: “addressing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart”. When we spend time in God’s Word, where God speaks to us, it moves us to respond. When the Word convicts us of sin, we respond with prayerful contrition and repentance. When the Word reveals the glories of God, we respond with praise and adoration. The Psalms are a wonderful refuge in this time, as are those songs and hymns that have stood the test of time. Let them be the “background music” of your lockdown.

Tomorrow we’ll look at the last part of this passage. For now, remember to “walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time”.
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Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter
 

On the 19th of February 1948 Romanian pastor Richard Wurmbrand was arrested on his way to church. His only crime was shepherding his flock and witnessing to others about his faith. He would spend 14 years in jail. His sole comfort, when all contact with family and friends was cut off, was the Word. Night after night he would console himself with verses stored away in his memory – something his communist captors could not take from him.
Stories like these illustrate the importance of memorizing Scripture. Here are five reasons every believer should memorize Scripture:
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1. It helps us fight temptation: “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (Ps. 119:11). When Jesus resisted temptation, he relied on the Word – passages that he had memorized. 
2. It strengthens our faith: “hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my knowledge, for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you… That your trust may be in the LORD, I have made them known to you today” (Prov. 22:17-19). Memorizing Scripture reinforces the truth upon which our faith rests. Cherish God’s precious promises in your heart.
3. It helps us witness: On the day of Pentecost the apostle Peter preached to a large crowd. During his sermon he expounded three different Old Testament passages from memory (see Acts 2). Sharing the gospel with conviction is a lot easier when we have relevant gospel passages memorised.
4. It guides our decisions: “Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counsellors.” (Ps. 119:24). As we memorize Scripture it changes how we think. It begins to shape our ideas, priorities and principles. We can then apply those passages and principles to our decision making.
5. It inspires worship: “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.” (Ps. 139:17-18). Many of the Psalms were inspired by prayerful meditation on God’s Word. This is what fuelled their worship. The Word, stored up in the heart, fans the flames of worship.

You may not live under the threat of persecution, but that does not diminish your need for God’s Word. Dallas Willard wrote: “As a pastor, teacher, and counsellor I have repeatedly seen the transformation of inner and outer life that comes simply from memorization and meditation upon Scripture.” So, which passage will you memorize first?
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Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

Hear me out. What makes you get up early on a Sunday morning, get dressed, and drive to church? You may enjoy the music, the atmosphere or the coffee. Maybe you come for the youth program. Your friends may be at this church. You might even enjoy the preaching. These aren’t bad motivations, but on their own they aren’t enough.

What happens when you don’t have friends at church, the youth program isn’t running, and the coffee is bad? Do you stay in bed? There should be more to our church commitment than preferences and personalities. What should bring us to church?

Love for Christ: Jesus said that if we love him, we will keep his commandments (John 14:15). His Word commands us not to neglect meeting together (Heb. 10:25). His Word also reminds us that if we love him, we will love his people (see 1 John 4:20). You can’t love Christ by avoiding his people.

Love for his Word: When the church gathers it does so in obedience to the Word and to be instructed in the Word. The early church devoted themselves to “the apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42). Paul sought to instruct the church in the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). He also commanded Timothy to “preach the Word” (2 Tim. 4:2). If you believe that the Bible is the sword that the Spirit uses to cut away sin and cultivate godliness (Heb. 4:12), you will want to be where it is preached.

Love for the glory of God: There is a reason why we call our it a worship service. The focus of our gathering is the glory of God. We praise God for his character and works (Ps. 103:1-5). We pray for God’s Name to be “hallowed”, his kingdom to come and his will to be done (Matt. 6:9-10). We preach so that his church can grow in their understanding of his glories (1 Cor. 1:23). We proclaim that the world may see his glory (2 Cor. 4:5-6). Sundays help us refocus on what really matters: God’s glory.

Love for the body: Because of Christ’s love for us, we love his people (Eph. 4:32). This love is more than mere sentiment; it reveals itself in service. It is not enough to live in passive tolerance of God’s people; Christ calls us to serve them. Gal. 5:23 commands: “through love serve one another.” You’ve received gifts to “serve one another” (1 Pet. 4:10). The members should all “have the same care for one another” (1 Cor. 12:25). Care given and care received – it starts on Sunday.

These are just a few biblical motivations; there are others. The question you must answer, is: what brings you to church?

​Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter

How would you like 2020 to be remembered? “Begin with the end in mind,” as Stephen Covey so famously put it. We often make the mistake of rushing off in a direction without really knowing where we are going. Or we leave our goals so vague and our dreams so nebulous that it is hard to judge whether we’ve even achieved them. As believers we often neglect to set goals for ourselves, and those that we do set often fall short of any biblical standard. 

What should we aim for in 2020? The apostle Paul encourages us to aim high, really high: “seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” (Col. 3:1-2). Being heavenly minded means that we have set our minds and our affections on the Lord Jesus Christ and his kingdom. It changes how we view the world and our place in it. 

This has a negative and a positive component. Negatively it means that we must “put to death” sinful acts, thoughts and attitudes: “sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry”, to name a few (v. 5, 8). Positively it means that we “put on” godly acts, thoughts and attitudes: “compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (v. 12). The fountain from which such change flows, is setting our minds on Christ and his kingdom. 

I suspect that we’ve been aiming to low. So instead of hoping that 2020 would be the year that you finish your first 5K race, stick to a diet or learn to waltz, aim higher. Aim for Christ-like character. May 2020 be remembered as the year you got to know Jesus better, more intimately, and in doing so, became more like him. Alan Redpath once wrote: “The conversion of a soul is the miracle of a moment; the manufacture of a saint is the task of a lifetime.” No time to start like the present. 

Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter