Why We Should Observe Lent (Part 1)

by Pastor Brian Phillips

When the Lenten season begins, so does open season on Lent. Particularly enjoyable are those who, with great vehemence, vitriol, and (for alliteration’s sake) venom, argue against Lenten observance, claiming it reflects a too curmudgeonly view of Christ and His work. Not all Lenten detractors object in such a way, and their more thoughtful critiques warrant further conversation.

Of particular interest were posts by Douglas Wilson (here) and Carl Trueman (here), because they both pose their objections to Lent and Ash Wednesday as being distinctly Presbyterian or Reformed objections – an intriguing claim, given the varied nature of Presbyterian and Reformed response to both (see here and here, for example). Wilson offers four “Presbyterian caveats” to support his willingness to “sit this one (Lent) out.” Condensed, while hopefully capturing his point, they are:

1 – Ash Wednesday is a violation of Matthew 6:16.
2 – Lent is inconsistent with the Old Testament pattern of feasting, particularly now that Christ has come.
3 – Lenten observance reveals the “rootlessness” of evangelicals.
4 – It is more important to fast during Advent because the season is commercialized.

Now, I would like to turn Wilson’s caveats into questions and then argue the opposite of his conclusion – that is, Presbyterians (by that, I refer to Reformed Christians and, if I may, Protestants in general) can and should observe Lent.

1 – Is Ash Wednesday a violation of Matthew 6:16?

Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, is traditionally observed by the imposition of ashes on the forehead in the shape of the cross. In other words, while it is a day of mourning over sin, the mourning is not without hope – it points to the cross, to the work of Christ.  It is not the sour-faced ash-sitting that some describe. Rather, it is a service in which we confess our sins, seek the Lord in repentance, and look to the cross.

But, does the imposition of ashes violate Christ’s words in Matthew 6:16 – “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.” It sure could. In fact, I bet some people violate Matthew 6:16 every Ash Wednesday. And then continue the violation by social media-ing their Lenten fasts and sacrifices, ad nauseum.

If you parade the ashes about, putting off a good scrubbing as long as possible, hoping to be noticed, then, sure, you are violating Christ’s command. But, while pastors should instruct their congregations about the dangers of that, we must be humble enough to admit that we cannot pinpoint why someone got the ashes. After all, Christ’s admonition in Matthew 6:16 is one of several that address the motive for good deeds, whether giving to the poor (v. 2), prayer (v. 5), or fasting (v. 16).

Ash Wednesday is not a default violation of Christ’s words any more than praying out loud is a default violation of Christ’s words in verse 5. Nor would we stand by a Salvation Army bell ringer and berate those who give as “self-righteous hypocrites.” Christ is attacking the self-righteousness of the Pharisees who gave, prayed, or fasted to be seen. He is not attacking the humble attempting obedience. The question, then, is whether the ashes are received to be seen by others or to be reminded again of Christ and His cross as the remedy for our sin?

2 – Is Lent inconsistent with the Old Testament pattern of feasting, particularly now that Christ has come?

Wilson writes, “In the Old Testament, there was one public day out of the year where they were instructed to afflict their souls (Yom Kippur, Lev. 23:27).” That is an excellent argument for observing Ash Wednesday – one public day on which we afflict our souls.

He continues, “Everything else about their prescribed calendar was made up of feast days. There was always room, of course, for private disciplines (Num. 30:13), just as there is room for that in the Christian era (Matt. 9:15).” Lent is a season for the private discipline of fasting. Jesus, after all, describes fasting as a private discipline (Matthew 6). Pastors and individual churches may recommend Lenten observance and provide resources for encouragement during the season, but there are no Presbyterians (or any Protestants), to my knowledge, arguing for the mandatory observance of Lent.  It begins with a day of public “affliction of soul,” but it continues through to Easter with a private, non-mandatory fast.

Wilson quotes the Westminster Confession XX.1 here: “But, under the New Testament, the liberty of Christians is further enlarged, in their freedom from the yoke of the ceremonial law, to which the Jewish Church was subjected; and in greater boldness of access to the throne of grace, and in fuller communications of the free Spirit of God, than believers under the law did ordinarily partake of.”

Fine and good. But, if the Westminster Assembly had intended to rule out seasons like Lent by such a declaration, then XXI.5 is horribly out of place. There they wrote:

“The reading of the Scriptures with godly fear, the sound preaching and conscionable hearing of the Word, in obedience unto God, with understanding, faith and reverence, singing of psalms with grace in the heart; as also, the due administration and worthy receiving of the sacraments instituted by Christ, are all parts of the ordinary religious worship of God: beside religious oaths, vows, solemn fastings, and thanksgivings upon special occasions, which are, in their several times and seasons, to be used in an holy and religious manner” (emphasis mine).

It is worth noting that Chapter XXI addresses “Religious Worship, and the Sabbath Day,” that is, things done by the Church for the benefit of Christians. Lent begins with a day of repentance on Ash Wednesday, and continues with a “holy and religious fasting” that is encouraged by the Church. I would argue that both are in keeping with the pattern of the Old Testament (even as described by Wilson) and with the Westminster Confession of Faith.

Wilson argues that “Deliverance should not be commemorated with long faces.” Agreed, but this is only an argument against improper fasting, as prohibited by Jesus. But, given that Lent commemorates the 40-day fast of Christ in the wilderness, and is suspended on Sundays for feasting on the day of His resurrection, it could be argued that Lent highlights the work of Christ, rather than detracting from it. It highlights feasting through fasting.

To be continued…

Reflections on the Beginning of Lent

by Pastor Brian Phillips

The 2024 Ash Wednesday service will be on February 14th at 7:00 p.m.

As we prepare to begin our journey through Lent – a journey of fasting, repentance, and prayer – the encouragement and perspective gained on Ash Wednesday is extremely helpful. The Ash Wednesday service… 

• Unites us in a "mere Christian" practice, a tradition observed by our Christian brothers and sisters through the ages, and around the world

• Provides encouragement and fellowship with one another as we begin Lent

• Reminds us of the sacrifice of Christ

• Nourishes our souls through the Lord’s Supper

• Calls our minds back to the purpose of fasting

• Helps focus our fasting on Christ, not on our own “suffering” or what we are “giving up”

• Gives us an opportunity to pray for one another

• Allows for a time of focused prayers of repentance and confession

But, what about the ashes?  First of all, the imposition of ashes is optional.  It is not a sacrament, but it is a powerful reminder of our own mortality, and therefore, of the great attention we should give to repentance and our walk with Christ.  One Anglican pastor reflected over the sobering act of applying the ashes:

“—An older man shuffles forward to receive the ashes. This would be his last time…and he knows it. The cancer has eaten away at his esophagus and the doctor gave him less than nine months. He gets these eleven words more than most: Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.

—A new mother presents her sleeping baby. The skin of the child is soft and pure…it seems too harsh to remind this woman that her child will die; would go down to the dust. How awful! But it is true. None are exempt. The words are hard to say, but I say them anyway and try to not wake the child. I touch the new forehead lightly: Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.

—Once, a business woman stood before me in a smart looking suit. She was dressed for success. She had come during her lunch hour to our service at high noon. I press the ashes on her forehead and then realize that I am smudging her makeup too. Her careful facade has been marred by the sign of the cross. I wonder if she will make a quick trip to the bathroom to reapply her cosmetics. Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.”

Second, the imposition of ashes does have a biblical basis, in addition to centuries of Church practice.  For more on that, take a look at "Ash Wednesday: What & Why." 

If you decide not to receive the imposition of ashes, you will still greatly benefit from the Ash Wednesday service and you will not be out of place. 

If you do receive the imposition of ashes, do so humbly, as a reminder of your own mortality and need for repentance.  Remember the warnings of Jesus - “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others.  Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.  But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret.  And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:16-18).

We can all be tempted to parade our “righteousness,” even in circumstances that should create humility.  When we fast or – as in the case of Ash Wednesday – begin our fast, we should never do so to be seen by men.  Once the ashes are applied, remember their meaning – repent.  Then, pray, wash them off, and walk in obedience. 

Finally, remember that the ashes are made in the shape of the cross for a reason – there is hope in Christ!  In Christ alone do we rise from the ashes to new life.

Ash Wednesday - What & Why?

by Pastor Brian Phillips

We are nearing the season of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting that begins on Ash Wednesday (February 14th) and ends on Easter (excluding Sundays). The 40 days mirror numerous biblical accounts – it rained forty days and forty nights in the flood, Moses spent forty days at the top of Mt. Sinai, Israel wandered in the wilderness for forty years, Elijah was given bread and water by the angel of the Lord but then didn’t eat again during his forty-day journey to Mt. Horeb, Nineveh’s 40 days of repentance before the Lord, and Christ’s 40 days of battling temptation in the wilderness. The tradition behind Lent, then, can be traced back to the early Church, but also back to the Scriptures themselves.

Lent begins with Ash Wednesday, a day that is unknown to some Protestants, even those who may observe Lent. Traditionally, Christians gather for a service of contrition and repentance on Ash Wednesday, typically called a “service of ashes.” Elements of those services differ, but many churches practice the “imposition of ashes” – the applying of ashes in the sign of the cross on the forehead.

Why? The Scriptures repeatedly refer to ashes as a sign of repentance for sin or mourning.

• Esther 4:3 – “And in every province, wherever the king’s command and his decree reached, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and many of them lay in sackcloth and ashes.”

• Job 42:5-6 – “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

• Jonah 3:4-6 – “Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, ‘Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them. The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.”

• Ezekiel 9:4 – “And the Lord said to him, ‘Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.’”

Note that the “mark” here is literally the tav, a Hebrew letter which in ancient script was written as a cross-shaped letter (tav = “+”). The Church father Tertullian remarked that God had given to Ezekiel “the very form of the cross…”

Of course, the imposition of ashes on the forehead is quite new to many, so we should stress that it is not required, and that an Ash Wednesday service is significant whether or not ashes are applied. Beginning Lent with an Ash Wednesday service…

• Provides encouragement and fellowship with one another as we begin Lent

• Reminds us of the sacrifice of Christ

• Nourishes our souls through the Lord’s Supper

• Calls our minds back to the purpose of fasting

• Helps focus our fasting on Christ, not on our own “suffering” or what we are “giving up”

• Gives us an opportunity to pray for one another

• Allows for a time of focused prayers of repentance and confession

In other words, ashes or not, make time to attend an Ash Wednesday service as you begin the Lenten season. And, as we prepare for Lent, let us ask the Lord to grant us longing hearts; hearts that seek Him above all else – above our own lusts and desires, above our love of self and comfort. For we don’t fast in order to gain favor with God or out of some severe asceticism, but rather to bring to light our struggles with sin and put them to death by His grace and strength. We do it so that we might be reminded of how serious our sins truly are, and that we might lay them before the cross, in preparation for the celebration of resurrection.

Epiphany: Why & How to Celebrate

The celebration of Epiphany is the culmination of the Twelve Days of Christmas (January 6th).  The word literally means “revelation” or “sudden unveiling,” and Epiphany commemorates the day when wise men from the East came to Bethlehem, guided by the miraculous star.  The magi, it seems, were the first to comprehend that Jesus was not merely the fulfillment of Jewish hopes, but the Light of the World, the joy of every man’s desiring.  They beheld the glory of God in the City of David, the Savior was born.  Epiphany is the celebration of that good news.

In Epiphany, we not only see the unveiling of the good news of Christ to the wise men, but the unveiling of Christ to the nations; the proclamation of salvation to all the nations.  And, what good news it is!  It begins with the wise men, but goes so much further.

In Acts chapter 10, Peter has the strange vision in which he is commanded to eat the unclean animals, and comes to understand that God is speaking, not just of food, but of the Gentiles themselves.  In verses 34-35, Peter says, “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.”

Paul makes a similar declaration in Ephesians 3.  There he refers to himself as an apostle to the Gentiles and says that it has been given to him to proclaim the “mystery of the Gospel.”  In verse 6, he says, “This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.”

There are numerous other passages that could be examined in light of this, but one more will suffice to echo the beauty of this; that God would extend His mercy and redemption beyond Israel to all the nations; that He would graft us in through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus.  Ephesians 2:11-16 says:

Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands — remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.  For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

We were once “separated” and “alienated” from Christ, but now we “who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”  How wonderful!  “He himself is our peace,” and He has tore down the walls of separation that once divided Jew from Gentile, bringing us together as His one people.  Christ has “reconciled us…to God in one body through the cross.”  That is what Epiphany is all about!  That is why it matters!

So, now what are we to do?  How should we or could we celebrate Epiphany?  Scripture does not give us specific requirements that must be observed in celebrating Epiphany, but Church history is quite helpful here.  So, here are some ideas and principles to keep in mind.

• Be sure to teach your children – The days God commanded Israel to observe were opportunities for teaching the children. Why do we observe this day? Why are we doing these things? Teach your children about Epiphany so it doesn’t become a simple matter of routine, but a true tradition.

• Feast & celebrate – If you study Epiphany throughout Church history, you will see that one thing is certain: it is a day of feasting. In fact, while there is no set menu, the common elements were beer and wine, lots of chocolate, and a King’s Cake (some quite elaborate and others quite simple). Christmas decorations are often taken down on Epiphany, but amid the singing of carols and hymns. Even though the decorations come down, they come down in celebration that the Light of the World has come and, though the season ends, life in the light of Christ continues.

• Remember & be thankful – Israel observed special days so they would not forget (the most common sin they are charged with in the Old Testament), and we too must learn to remember the goodness of God. Epiphany is a time to celebrate the good news that Christ has come to save. He has extended His grace even to us Gentiles, grafting us into the true olive tree, making us the new Israel, reconciling us to God by the cross. Remember and be thankful!

Advent Readings - Week Four

The Advent season is a season of preparation – of prayer, contemplation, fasting, and spiritual renewal.  It is a time in which the people of God, by God’s grace, make straight His paths in their hearts.  Advent is a “time to slow down, to take stock of the things that matter the most, and to do a thorough inner housecleaning.  As the ancient dogma of the Church asserts, Advent is a Little Pascha – a time of fasting, prayer, confession, and reconciliation.”

The readings for week four focus on the reality of the Incarnation and the truth that Christ brings salvation to all who believe.

Sunday, December 24th – Fourth Sunday of Advent

Luke 2:1-7 – Joseph and Mary journey to Bethlehem, Mary gives birth to Jesus.

Monday, December 25th - First Day of Christmas

Micah 4:1-7 – The Christ will bring blessing to “many nations”

Tuesday, December 26th - Second Day of Christmas

Luke 2:8-14 – Angels appear to the shepherds, telling them the good news of Christ’s birth, declaring “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace and goodwill to men.”

Wednesday, December 27th - Third Day of Christmas

Psalm 98 – The Lord has made known His salvation to all the nations.  “All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”

Thursday, December 28th – Fourth Day of Christmas

Luke 2:15-20 – After being visited by the heavenly host, the shepherds journey to see Jesus, finding “Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.”

Friday, December 29th – Fifth Day of Christmas

Philippians 2:5-11 – Paul’s reflection on the mystery of the Incarnation, and the truth that all men will bow the knee and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father

Saturday, December 30th – Sixth Day of Christmas

Titus 2:11-3:7 – The “grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people” – grace that will bring about good works in all who believe

Join Us for Christmas Eve!

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Isaiah 9:6

Join us this Christmas Eve, as we celebrate the end of Advent and the arrival of Christmas! This combined service with Trinity Lutheran Church begins at 4:00 pm and will include singing, prayers, a homily by Pastor Brian Phillips, and the celebration of communion.

When: 4:00 pm on Christmas Eve
Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church - 3747 Trinity Church Rd., Concord, NC

St. Boniface & the Christmas Tree

by Pastor Brian Phillips

Delivered as an exhortation during worship on Sunday, December 17, 2023.

Traditions are great blessings, but they possess greater blessing when we delight not just in the act itself, but are faithful to remember and teach the meaning behind them. For all truly great traditions have great meaning. Some, having forgotten or never knowing the real reasons behind some Christmas traditions, have attributed just the opposite meanings to them. 

One of the clearest examples of this is found in the Christmas tree, which has been condemned by some as having pagan origins. As a result, some Christians refuse to engage in the “pagan practice” of having a Christmas tree. They miss that, in reality, nothing can have a pagan origin at all – after all, all things were made good and very good, so if anything can be said to be “pagan,” that thing is the counterfeit.  

The real story of the Christmas tree is quite wonderful. Some will say it is “mere legend,” to which I would respond that there is no such thing. Legends shape people and cultures, often more than brute facts, so dismissing them as insignificant or pointless is foolish.

St. Boniface was an 8th century missionary to modern-day Germany, a region controlled by the Norsemen who brought their religion with them. They worshiped many gods, Thor being the chief of them and they had a gigantic oak tree in Thor’s honor located at Geismar. They would gather around the tree for feasts, idol worship, and animal sacrifices. St. Boniface, in the company of these pagans, chopped down the tree on Christmas Eve just as they planned a sacrifice at the oak. Boniface proclaimed, “Here is the Thunder Oak; and here the cross of Christ shall break the hammer of the false god Thor.” Angry at first, the response of the Norsemen turned to repentance – if Thor could not defend his own holy place, what good was he?

Boniface then used a tree as an object lesson to tell them of a tree that actually does save, not because the tree was magic, but because on that tree, Jesus Christ died for the sins of men. That tree, Boniface said, is an evergreen, an eternal tree. He spoke of it as, “the wood of peace…the sign of an endless life, for its leaves are ever green. See how it points upward to heaven. Let this be called the tree of the Christ-child; gather about it, not in the wild wood, but in your own homes; there it will shelter no deeds of blood, but loving gifts and rites of kindness.” The Norsemen began the practice of bringing evergreen trees into their homes to decorate and light in celebration of the birth of the Savior. It is His birth that we celebrate during Advent and it was for our sins that He died on the tree, the cross.

2023 Advent Readings - Week Three

by Pastor Brian Phillips

Among the many wonders God wove into His creation are the seasons. With every year comes Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. Spring brings new life, Summer brings warmth and growth, Autumn brings the turning of leaves as the old is pushed away, and Winter is a season of death – death of flowers, grass, insects, in preparation for the coming life of Spring.

Yet, in this season of death, we pin lights to our houses, put bright decorations on our lawns, and put trees up in our living rooms! We wear festive colors and intentionally ugly sweaters, sing songs written solely for this season, and break out recipes we only use this time of year.

We do all of these things in winter – the season of death. And it is so fitting that we do so. The Advent season is a time of preparation, but like Lent, we know that this season has a definite and joyful end. We know that our fasting during Lent will end with resurrection! We know that our Advent preparations will end with the Incarnation and celebration that our Savior has come.

And so, we prepare in hope that is certain; not wishful thinking, but certain promises. Let us pause now to contemplate the growing light, the growing anticipation of celebration. Come, thou long-expected Jesus, the Light of the World to pierce the darkness, the Life of the World into a dying world.

To help us observe Advent, here is a collection of Scripture readings for each day of the season, drawn from the Book of Common Prayer. The readings for week three are taken from the Psalms, the prophet Isaiah, and the four Gospels. It can be helpful to begin the day with the first Psalm reading, then read the prophet at mid-day, and end the day with the Gospel reading and evening Psalm(s).

Contemplate these passages in light of the Advent and its call to preparation for the celebration of Christ's Nativity.

Sunday, December 17th – Third Sunday of Advent
Psalms 63:1-8; 98 (morning) · Psalm 103 (evening)
Isaiah 13:6-13
John 3:22-30

Monday, December 18th
Psalm 41, 52 (morning) · Psalm 44 (evening)
Isaiah 8:16-9:1
Luke 22:39-53   

Tuesday, December 19th  
Psalm 45 (morning) · Psalms 47-48 (evening)
Isaiah 9:1-7
Luke 22:54-69

Wednesday, December 20th
Psalm 119:49-72 (morning) · Psalm 49 (evening)
Isaiah 9:8-17
Mark 1:1-8 

Thursday, December 21st
Psalm 50 (morning) · Psalm 33 (evening)
Isaiah 9:18-10:4
Matthew 3:1-12

Friday, December 22nd
Psalms 40, 54 (morning) · Psalm 51 (evening)
Isaiah 10:5-19
Matthew 11:2-15

Saturday, December 23rd
Psalm 55 (morning) · Psalms 138-139:1-17 (evening)
Isaiah 10:20-27
Luke 3:1-9

2023 Advent Readings - Week Two

by Pastor Brian Phillips

Advent is the beginning of the Church year. For four Sundays before the celebration of Christmas, Christians observe Advent. Traditionally, the first act of Advent is the lighting of one candle on the Advent wreath – which is made up of four candles (one for each Sunday in Advent), 3 purple/blue and one pink (though that varies from culture to culture and by Church tradition).

Lighting Advent candles is not necessarily “magical,” but it does mark the beginning of something. To give one very inadequate example, when you light birthday candles, the song begins. When we light the candles, we mark the season of Advent and, with each additional candle each week, the light grows, pointing us to the Light of the World whose birth is the end of the Advent season and the beginning of Christmas. Just as the birth of Jesus divided all of history into B.C. and A.D., so it divides Advent from Christmas – two different seasons. 

The Advent season is a time of preparation. It is a time to decorate the church, our homes, even our yards. But more than that, it is a time for spiritual preparation - individually, household by household, and as a whole congregation.

To help us observe Advent, here is a collection of Scripture readings for each day of the season, drawn from the Book of Common Prayer. The readings for week two are taken from the Psalms, the prophet Isaiah, the Gospel of Luke, and the Gospel of John. It can be helpful to begin the day with the first Psalm reading, then read the prophet at mid-day, and end the day with the Gospel reading and evening Psalm(s).

Contemplate these passages in light of the Advent and its call to preparation for the celebration of Christ's Nativity.

Sunday, December 10th – Second Sunday of Advent
Psalms 148-150 (morning) · Psalms 114-115 (evening)
Isaiah 5:1-7
Luke 7:28-35

Monday, December 11th
Psalm 25 (morning) · Psalms 9, 15 (evening)
Isaiah 5:8-12, 18-23
Luke 21:20-28  

Tuesday, December 12th
Psalms 26, 28 (morning) · Psalms 36, 39 (evening)
Isaiah 5:13-17, 24-25
Luke 21:29-38

Wednesday, December 13th
Psalm 38 (morning) · Psalm 119:25-48 (evening)
Isaiah 6:1-13
John 7:53-8:11

Thursday, December 14th
Psalm 37:1-18 (morning) · Psalm 37:19-42 (evening)
Isaiah 7:1-9
Luke 22:1-13

Friday, December 15th
Psalm 31 (morning) · Psalm 35 (evening)
Isaiah 7:10-25
Luke 22:14-30

Saturday, December 16th
Psalms 30, 32 (morning) · Psalms 42-43 (evening)
Isaiah 8:1-15
Luke 22:31-38

2023 Advent Readings - Week One

by Pastor Brian Phillips

Advent is a season of preparation – of prayer, contemplation, fasting, and spiritual renewal.  It is a time in which the people of God, by God’s grace, make straight His paths in their hearts.  Rather than simply being an extension of the Christmas celebration, Advent prepares us to more truly and fully celebrate Christ’s birth. 

To help us observe Advent, here is a collection of Scripture readings for each day of the season, drawn from the Book of Common Prayer.  The readings for week one are taken from the Psalms, the prophet Isaiah, the Gospel of Matthew, and the Gospel of Luke. It can be helpful to begin the day with the Psalm reading, then read the prophet at mid-day, and end the day with the Gospel reading.

Contemplate these passages in light of the Advent and its call to preparation for the celebration of Christ's Nativity.

Sunday, December 3rd – First Sunday of Advent
Psalms 146-147
Isaiah 1:1-9
Matthew 25:1-13

Monday, December 4th
Psalms 1-3
Isaiah 1:10-20
Luke 20:1-8  

Tuesday, December 5th
Psalms 5-6
Isaiah 1:21-31
Luke 20:9-18

Wednesday, December 6th
Psalm 119:1-24
Isaiah 2:1-11
Luke 20:19-26

Thursday, December 7th
Psalm 18:1-20
Isaiah 2:12-22
Luke 20:27-40

Friday, December 8th
Psalms 16-17
Isaiah 3:8-15
Luke 20:41-21:4

Saturday, December 9th
Psalms 20, 21:1-7
Isaiah 4:2-6
Luke 21:5-19

Annual All-Refor-Thanks-Fest!

All Saints' Day

We are counting down the days until our annual All-Refor-Thanks-Fest - our church's combined celebration of All Saints' Day (November 1st), Reformation Day (October 31st), Thanksgiving (4th Thursday in November), and Oktoberfest (from mid-September to early October).

We are happy to find a reason to celebrate as a congregation, and this time of year gives us so many!   

Reformation Day

When: Saturday, November 11th
Where: The Haggan Home

Look forward to a time of fantastic food and drink, lots of laughs, a (hopefully) roaring fire, and a time to give thanks for God's great gifts to us all!

Thanksgiving

Oktoberfest

On Screwtape, Demons, & Unhealthy Fascination

By Pastor Brian Phillips

Originally published as separate articles beginning in 1941, and published as a collection in 1942, C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters provide intriguing insight into temptation, the deceptiveness of sin, and the “schemes of the devil.” Recently, I concluded a rereading of Screwtape, including his magnificent preface and later essay, “Screwtape Proposes a Toast,” and was struck anew by its wisdom and warning.

It would require many more pages to collect my full thoughts on the book, yet my recent rereading of Screwtape – combined with a dramatic increase in fascination of demonic activity and the “spiritual realm” - compels me to offer two simple, pastoral instructions to those willing to read them.

Demonic activity is a reality of which every Christian must be aware

In his preface to the work, Lewis notes that one of the errors men can commit regarding demons is to “disbelieve in their existence.”

Additionally, Screwtape’s seventh letter begins: “My Dear Wormwood, I wonder you should ask me whether it is essential to keep the patient in ignorance of your own existence. That question, at least for the present phase of the struggle, has been answered for us by the High Command. Our policy, for the moment, is to conceal ourselves...I do not think you will have much difficulty in keeping the patient in the dark. The fact that ‘devils’ are predominantly comic figures in the modern imagination will help you. If any faint suspicion of your existence begins to arise in his mind, suggest to him a picture of something in red tights, and persuade him that since he cannot believe in that (it is an old textbook method of confusing them) he therefore cannot believe in you.”  

Not only do the Gospels bear out numerous examples of demonic possession and activity, but in Ephesians 6:12, the Apostle Paul notes, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” We are not permitted to be materialists, naturalists, or rationalists, denying the existence of the spiritual realm where real, fierce battles do take place. To do so would require us to abandon numerous warnings and commands in Scripture (more of these cited below), and even deny reality as God has made it.

This awareness, however, must be paired with a second bit of biblical and pastoral counsel…

Being overly interested or preoccupied with demonic activity is a great danger

Being excessively intrigued, interested, or enamored with the existence, activity, and presence of demons is foolish and dangerous. It is noteworthy and verifiable that those who open themselves up to interests in the demonic and paranormal often get far more than they intended, making themselves targets for such activity. When one looks for a demon behind every bush, he will eventually find a few. Again, in the preface to Screwtape, Lewis cautions:

“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight. The sort of script which is used in this book can be very easily obtained by anyone who has once learned the knack; but disposed or excitable people who might make a bad use of it shall not learn it from me.”  

Currently, in some circles of the Church, there is a noted increase of documentaries, podcasts, social media personalities, and other media focused on demons, demonic possession, various paranormal phenomena, UFOs and aliens (more on these in another essay), pagan rituals, the occult, and other strange things. The result is a growing number of Christians are becoming increasingly intrigued and, at times, overly preoccupied with them. Some give hours, days, even the bulk of their lives to the study of demonology, the pagan gods, enchantments, hauntings, and exorcisms. Some, it seems, speak as if they are jealous that they have not experienced such things themselves.

The general pattern, as I have found it, is that such devotees take a biblical allusion or term, attach tremendous significance to it, and attempt to find manifestations of it in contemporary contexts. This all plays on an all-too-common fault we have to seek the “grand” and “glorious,” the “exciting” and “mysterious,” though the thrust of Scripture is to daily faith and obedience – to fulfill the whole Law by loving the Lord our God and loving our neighbor as ourselves.

As noted above, Scripture commands us to be aware of the existence of and “schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11), to “resist the devil” (James 4:7), and to be mindful that our “adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1st Peter 5:8). Yet, every one of those passages, without exception, directs our attention back to the Lord. Other passages allude to false gods or the gods of the peoples, but those allusions aim to draw attention to their weaknesses, their destruction, or the foolishness of those who serve them (Psalms 96:5, 97:7, 135:5, and others).

·       “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:10-11).

·       “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded” (James 4:7-8).

·       “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world” (1st Peter 5:6-9).

We are not to allow our hearts and minds to dwell excessively upon the enemy and his distractions. After all, would the one who fell from heaven through treasonous pride and conceit love anything more than to occupy the imaginations and thoughts of his Enemy’s people? God’s Word calls us to dwell upon “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8).

Additionally, Paul warns, “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ” (Colossians 2:8). Why? As he wrote in the previous chapter, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross” (1:15-20).

In summation, the biblical instruction that we be mindful of the devil and his methods does not condone an excessive or unhealthy fascination with them. Rather, they are intended to swiftly drive us back to the Lord, His might, and our dependence upon Him.

Join Us This Christmas Eve!

"FOR TO US A CHILD IS BORN, TO US A SON IS GIVEN; AND THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER AND HIS NAME SHALL BE CALLED WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, MIGHTY GOD, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE."

Isaiah 9:6

Join us this Christmas Eve for our annual combined worship service with Trinity Lutheran Church, as we celebrate the end of Advent and the arrival of Christmas! The service begins at 4:00 pm and will be a traditional Lessons & Carols service with communion.

A Lessons & Carols service alternates Scripture readings and traditional Christmas hymns to tell the full story of the promise of Christ our Savior and what He came to accomplish for His people. We hope you will join us this Christmas Eve!

When: 4:00 pm on Christmas Eve
Where: Holy Trinity Reformed Church - 3747 Trinity Church Rd., Concord, NC

Suffer the Little Ones: Children & Their Place in the Church (Part 3)

Adapted from Pastor Brian Phillips’s book Sunday Mornings.

Unworthy Partakers?

Perhaps the most common objection to children taking communion arises from 1st Corinthians 11:27-33.  In that text, Paul strongly warns the Corinthians against partaking of the Lord’s Supper in an “unworthy manner.”  Verses 27-33 say: 

“Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.  But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.  For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.  For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.  For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.  But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.”

It is understandable that a parent would pause after reading such a passage.  What father wants to let his son or daughter eat and drink damnation?  But, these verses are only part of a much larger context in which Paul addresses a specific problem with the Corinthian church’s practice at the Lord’s Table.

Paul begins his discussion of the disturbing Corinthian behavior in verses 17-22: 

“Now in giving these instructions I do not praise you, since you come together not for the better but for the worse.  For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it.  For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you.  Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper.  For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others; and one is hungry and another is drunk.  What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise you.”

The real problem with the Corinthians at the Lord’s Supper was that they were not considering one another.  They were partaking of the Lord’s Supper (an event which is intended, among other things, to remind us of our union and communion with Christ and the Church) in a way that created further division and fracturing of the church.  They were considering only themselves and their own desires, giving no thought to those who had nothing.  Think of this particularly in light of what Paul said in verses 16-17 of the previous chapter – “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?  The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?  For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.”

When Paul speaks of not partaking in an “unworthy manner…not discerning the Lord’s body” (11:27, 29), he is speaking of those who partake of the one cup and one loaf in a manner which causes division among the body.  He is not saying that only those who understand the metaphysical presence of Christ may partake.  If that were the case, who could partake of the Supper worthily?  If the passage tells us anything about worthy partaking, it’s that it means partaking with the whole body, not a single covenant member left behind (see 11:21).

In the climate of the contemporary church, the children have, tragically, been pushed aside and out of the way.  In short, the holy ones have been treated as unclean.  They are treated as an inconvenience.  To remove children from worship is to train another generation of anemic Christians to worship by their own devising – to abandon good order and follow their own thinking (Colossians 2:5, 8). 

But, to allow children to remain in worship and bar them from the Table is no less following the thoughts of man.  Requiring covenant children to convince the elders that they deserve what Scripture promises them is just as unbiblical and, perhaps, even crueler.  We must raise our children to trust, to believe the promises God has already made to them, and to believe that the body and blood of Christ is given for them, and none of these things is accomplished by merely letting them look at it.  We do that by letting them do what we want them to do – partake. 

Conclusion

May God help us raise our little ones by His ways and thoughts and not by our own; may He grant the Church repentance for causing her little ones to stumble; may He give wisdom to all believers, that we will work to establish that which we want for our children and our children’s children.  May the Lord bring reformation in worship, causing believers to rejoice in knowing that God is God to us, our children, and our children’s children!   

Suffer the Little Ones: Children & Their Place in the Church (Part 2)

Adapted from Pastor Brian Phillips’s book Sunday Mornings.

Starving the Little Ones

            Nowhere is the tragedy of putting children “out of the way” more obvious than at the Lord’s Table. To those churches who rarely practice communion (a couple of times per year, perhaps), this is a non-issue because the Supper itself, sadly, is a non-issue. But, for those churches that regularly observe the Lord’s Supper, the issue of children at the Table has become one of great debate. 

In Reformed and Presbyterian churches, like my own, observing communion is taken seriously and, in an increasing number of churches, it is practiced weekly. The children of believers are baptized and, in many of those churches, they sit alongside their parents, singing, praying, reading, and hearing the Word of God. They are told that they are members of the covenant through baptism, yet when the bread and wine come around they are denied because they have not made a “credible profession of faith to the elders.” 

            These covenant children likely cannot remember a time when they did not believe and they profess their faith each week as they recite the creeds. They seek forgiveness for their sins each time they join in the corporate confession of sin and pray the Lord’s Prayer. Yet, for some reason, they are still denied. A 5-year-old faced with these circumstances knows only that the elders (who are much older, wiser, and theologically astute) have some reason to doubt that she’s genuine. So, she doubts it too. Rather than being raised to trust and believe, the children are trained that they lack both, being identified as “unworthy partakers.”

            The Church starves her children of spiritual food, telling them to grow up big and strong, so they can be given something to eat. When some of the children waste away from hunger, the Church responds with a sigh of relief that no bread was wasted on them. The children who grow up to doubt Christianity are used to illustrate why they shouldn’t be allowed to commune without first making a profession of faith. Yet, no one wants to acknowledge that the doubt they pursue was first handed to them by the elders.

Little Saints

            1st Corinthians 1:2 says Paul was addressing “saints” in his letter. The word “saints” is the Greek term hagios, meaning “holy ones.” Who are the holy ones to which Paul wrote? 1st Corinthians 7:4 says, “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.” The word “holy” is the same term rendered as “saints” in 1:2.  Paul was addressing all believers and, very explicitly, their children. He does the same in Ephesians and Colossians, where he specifically states that he is addressing “saints” and directs specific commands to the children (Eph. 1:1 and 6:1; Colossians 1:2 and 3:20). 

            In 1st Corinthians 10:16-17, Paul says, “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.” Who is “we?” Who is “one bread and one body?” The saints are one bread and one body and their children are included in that as well. 

To be continued…

Suffer the Little Ones: Children & Their Place in the Church (Part 1)

Adapted from Pastor Brian Phillips’s book Sunday Mornings.

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’  Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.  Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.’”

-        Matthew 18:1-7

            When evangelism is the primary goal of worship, children are taken out of worship to avoid distractions.  When the purpose of worship is the education of Christians, children are taken out to be taught “at their level” and so parents won’t be kept from taking notes.  When the purpose of worship is a spiritual experience or particular emotion, children must be removed because they may prevent you from reaching that experience (crying infants and squirming toddlers can do that).  And, when the purpose of worship is praise, children are taken out for a couple of reasons – in Charismatic churches, they may get knocked down; in more reserved circles, they need to be taught songs and Bible stories on their “own level” so they can praise like children.  The end result of these approaches is that the children are taken out of worship.

            The practice of taking children out of corporate worship, away from their parents, has actually created the mess of the contemporary church.  From their earliest days, children are shuffled off to “Children’s Church” where they are taught cute ditty songs, adapted Bible stories, and Bible games that are all geared to their age and often watered-down (for more info, see any episode of “Veggie Tales”).  Then, when they get to about age 10 or 12, they may be allowed to come into “big church,” where they are bored stiff because they have never been taught to do this. 

For some reason, church isn’t catered to them anymore.  So, in order to solve this “problem”, churches adopt “Youth Church” where they learn choruses with guitars (in my experience, 3 chords at a time), hear lessons about dating, go to lock-ins, and have an excuse to sit with that cute girl or guy.  So, now, until at least age 18, church is catered to them.   

            Well, what happens to little Johnny when he becomes grown-up Johnny and doesn’t have a church that’s catered to him anymore?  “I’m used to music that I like and sermons that are ‘relevant’ (because after all, the Bible’s not relevant unless it directly and clearly involves me).  Why are they reading creeds?”  The result should be clear.  When a generation of “Johnnys” grows up with no connection to the actual worship of the church; when they grow up with a church tailor-made to suit their desires, they will simply leave and start one that is.  Johnny has been taught to love drums and strobe lights, not Psalms.  The elders of Johnny’s home church still can’t figure out why he’s moved to the edges of the reservation, never realizing that they sent him there. 

            Of course, that’s not to mention the kids who, after years of being “kept out of the way,” conclude that Christianity itself has no use for them.  So, they stay out of the way, permanently.  The elders are confused again.  Why have these children left the reservation entirely?  The church pushed them out and the children got the hint.

To be continued…

Winston Churchill & Why the World Is So Angry

By Pastor Brian Phillips
Originally delivered as an exhortation at Holy Trinity Reformed Church (8/28/22)

In 1912, Winston Churchill, Lady Astor, and several others were gathered at Blenheim Palace for the weekend. Churchill and Lady Astor were long-time rivals. It started as a typical political rivalry, but it became personal.   

One famous exchange took place while at Blenheim Palace. One night, after dinner, the group was enjoying drinks, desserts, and coffee. Churchill and Lady Astor were bickering over some political point, as usual, when Lady Astor commented, “Winston, if you were my husband, I’d put poison in your coffee.” To which Churchill replied, “Lady Astor, if you were my wife, I’d drink it.” They exchanged such barbs regularly.

But, when Lady Astor’s husband, Lawrence died, Churchill was leaving the funeral when Lady Astor “ran to him and caught hold of his hand. They stood in silent understanding with tears running from their eyes.”

Theirs was a friendship, a fierce, highly misunderstood friendship; but a friendship nonetheless. They could disagree on policies, politics, and even what was best for their country, but stand hand-in-hand at a funeral.

Disagreements and conflict are a fact of life – always have been. But we live in a time that no longer knows when to hold hands and weep together. Everything is political. Blame must always be assigned. Everyone is a victim. Offense must always be taken and must always be avenged. In a culture that rejects the Gospel, nothing can be forgiven and people cannot change (which is a why something said on Twitter when you’re 16 can still ruin your life).

In Ephesians 4, Paul instructs us: “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” This is not self-help advice simply aimed at making us happy. It is a call to live the Gospel before a world that has no hope, no forgiveness, outside of Christ.

So, as the people of God, let us take two exhortations from this. First, do not be surprised by the anger, bitterness, and hatred of the world. They have rejected the Gospel, so there is no forgiveness of sins (for themselves or for them to extend to others). The world is an angry place because they have rejected Christ. Second, do not fall into the trap of acting as those who have no hope. We are in the world, but not of it. Do not treat others as if the Gospel is not true; rather, live it out before them.

Mercy for Pastors

Commonly enough, the “mercy” of God is defined as His “not giving man what he deserves” – i.e., immediate judgment. And, that definition fits frequently, particularly in St. Paul’s epistles. The several occurrences of the word in Romans chapter 9 reveal this:

“For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.’ So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.’ Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens” (vv. 15-18).

Again, in Romans 11:30-32: “For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.” 

In each of these instances (and many more), defining mercy as God “not giving man what he deserves” makes perfect sense. And, when referring to interpersonal relationships, “mercy” can carry that same sense of not giving someone what they deserve – be it wrath, anger, revenge, etc. While not using the term “mercy,” Paul captures this in Ephesians 4:32 – “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.”

But, the Gospels use “mercy” in another sense as well. On multiple occasions, people call to Christ, pleading for mercy, not in reference to their sins, but their current miseries – blindness (Matt. 9:27; 20:30-31; Luke 18:35-39), leprosy (Luke 17:11-13), a demon-oppressed daughter (Matt. 15:22), an epileptic son (Matt. 17:15). The call of, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” is repeated in nearly every such case, each one a plea for help in the midst of pain or suffering.   

When the Apostle Paul penned the Pastoral Epistles – that is, the letters of 1st and 2nd Timothy and Titus – he greeted them in unique fashion. 1st Timothy begins, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope, to Timothy, a true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.” 2nd Timothy opens in similar fashion: “To Timothy, a beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord” (1:2). Finally, Paul greeted Titus with the words, “To Titus, a true son in our common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior” (1:4).

In no other letter does Paul include “mercy” in his greeting, only “grace and peace.”

·      Romans 1:7 - “To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

·      1st Corinthians 1:2-3 – “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” 

·      2nd Corinthians 1:1-2 – “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

·      Galatians 1:3-5 – “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

The same holds for St. Paul’s letters to the Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and both letters to the Thessalonians. One would have to assume that Paul does not pray for God to withhold anything from the congregations to which he writes, but rather he prays to bestow upon the pastors something particular. All saints – that is, all Christians - have received the mercy of God in that they have been given grace in Christ, but Paul particularly blesses the pastors to whom he writes with “mercy” in the second sense of help in distress or suffering.

Additionally, Paul describes pastoral ministry as waging warfare (1st Tim. 1:18), laboring (1st Tim. 4:10, 5:17), suffering reproach (1st Tim. 4:10), fighting the good fight of faith (1st Tim. 6:12, 2nd Tim. 4:7), guarding a trust (1st Tim. 6:20, 2nd Tim. 1:14), sharing in suffering (2nd Tim. 1:8, 2:3), holding firm to the word (Titus 1:9), and numerous exhortations to teach the truth in the face of increasing desire to embrace error (1st Timothy 1:3-11, 4:1-16, 6:20-21; 2nd Timothy 3:1-6, 3:16-4:5; Titus 2:1).

Clearly, ministers of the Gospel are in tremendous need of mercy, of divine help in distress and suffering. This realization should form our thoughts about the nature of pastoral ministry. A far cry from the “celebrity pastor,” Paul addresses Timothy as an ox, a laborer, a soldier, an athlete in training, a hard-working farmer, a worker, and a servant. As George Herbert observed in his excellent work The Country Parson, “the complete definition of a minster” was captured by St. Paul when he “plainly avouceth that he fills up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in his flesh, for his body’s sake, which is the church.”

Pastors are charged with telling the truth even if no one wants to hear it, confronting sin even if no one wants to repent, and offering counsel in life’s most complicated problems. Like first responders in different uniforms, they are with people in the worst moments of life. They strive to be the voice of calm and peace at gravesides and bedsides. Yet many pastors are notoriously hesitant to ask for help or prayer, or to admit their need for encouragement. So, like Paul, pray that the Lord will give them “grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior” that they may fulfill the high calling of pastoral ministry.

Coats & Palm Branches

Reflections on Palm Sunday, Holy Week, & Eternal Rest
Also posted for The CiRCE Institute
By Brian Phillips

Just a few days from now, the Church will celebrate Palm Sunday, the commemoration of Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, and the beginning of Holy Week – the final days of Christ on earth before His crucifixion. The event is recorded in all four Gospels – Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-10, Luke 19:29-38, and John 12:12-15 – and the event shares connections and echoes with several other passages as well.

Here is the Triumphal Entry as recorded in Matthew’s Gospel:

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”

The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Mark tells us that the owners asked the disciples just what they were doing with the donkey and colt.  Mark 11:5-6 say, “And some of those standing there said to them, ‘What are you doing, untying the colt?’  And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go.” This is similar to the response the soldiers gave in John 18. Jesus was about to be arrested, and in order to stop it, Peter tried to kill the high priest’s servant (it seems more likely that Malchus would duck than that Peter would aim for an ear). Yet, even after Peter’s attack, when Jesus told the soldiers to let His disciples go, they did (John 18:8). These are tremendous displays of Christ’s sovereign control over the circumstances.

As Jesus and the disciples prepared to enter Jerusalem for the celebration of Passover, they came near Bethphage (a town not mentioned in any other context) to find a donkey and a colt (which had not been ridden by any other man – Mark 11:2, Luke 19:30).     

The disciples spread their cloaks or outer coats over the back of the colt and Jesus rides into Jerusalem as the humble King (Zechariah 9:9). The crowds responded by spreading their cloaks along the road in front of Jesus, while others cut down palm branches and spread them out on the road as well.

These two items – cloaks and palm branches – carry significance. Spreading garments out for someone to walk on was more than an act of chivalry (i.e., spreading your coat over puddle so a lady does not soil her feet). It is connected with Christ’s Triumphal Entry in that it is a show of deference and honor, but spreading garments out before someone was an act of submission paid to royalty.

The only other time this is done in Scripture (that I could find) is in 2nd Kings 9:13 – “Then in haste every man of them took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and they blew the trumpet and proclaimed, ‘Jehu is king.’” And, while we initially think of Jehu as a particularly violent king, we dare not miss that it was he who destroyed Jezebel – the wife of Ahab who led Israel astray and tried to kill Elijah. Was not Christ riding into Jerusalem to do the same?

The people also cut down branches to lay before Jesus. Only John specifies that these were “palm branches” (John 12:13), which is interesting given what he writes in Revelation 7:9-10 (a book which I increasingly think was greatly connected with his gospel) – “After this I looked and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’”  

John portrays the Triumphal Entry in Jerusalem as a picture of what happens in the heavenly Jerusalem – with multitudes, palm branches, and shouts to the Lord.

But, the palm branches also call us back to the Feast of Booths – a feast designated to remind Israel of God’s guidance out of Egypt. And, in every observance of the Feast of Booths, the people would “take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days” (Leviticus 23:40).

At the Triumphal Entry, Christ was celebrated as the one who would bring His people out of the captivity and slavery of sin (the spiritual Egypt, if you will). Jesus was welcomed by the same sign of palm branches and shouts of rejoicing, and a new Feast of Booths was initiated. This new Feast of Booths also lasted seven days.

Remember that the Jews counted part of a day as a whole. This is why Christ was crucified on Good Friday, rose again on Sunday, yet it is regarded as three days. The new Feast of Booths lasted seven days, from the Triumphal Entry to Saturday – the day after Good Friday. But, what happened on the Eighth Day? In the Feast of Booths, “the eighth day shall be a solemn rest” (Leviticus 23:39). In the new Feast of Booths, Christ rose from the grave, securing eternal rest for His people.  

On Church Music - Part 3

Excerpt from Sunday Mornings: An Introduction to Biblical Worship by Pastor Brian Phillips

For Part 1, visit here. For Part 2, visit here.

Conclusion

The subject of music is so large that we need to now focus our attention more specifically on how all this affects music in worship.  What do we do with these principles and statements from Scripture?

We must sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.  This one is simple because it is a blatant command.  We should and must learn to sing the Psalms and sing them well.  No other type of music has such a heavy emphasis in Scripture.  We ought to take delight in learning them because we are being given the opportunity to sing God’s Word back to Him.  2nd Chronicles 29:30 also says that the “words of David and Asaph” – the two main authors of the Psalms - were sung in worship as a part of putting the house of the Lord in order. 

One caveat to this is that we must make sure we are singing the Psalms beautifully.  We should put effort into our singing and we should select the most beautiful arrangements to sing.  I honestly think some Christians and congregations shy away from the Psalms because they have been poorly done.  We must sing Psalms, but shouldn’t sing them in a way that is ugly just to accomplish that goal.  We can do both well.

 We must also not fall into the “exclusive Psalm” trap.  The Bible does call us to sing hymns and spiritual songs which are beautiful and doctrinally rich.  Be Thou My Vision, And Can It Be?, and many others are part of a rich and beautiful heritage of hymns.  Songs like the Gloria Patri and the Doxology are important because they are beautiful, simple “spiritual songs” that are appropriate congregational responses in worship.  We need all of these elements and types.

We should sing what is beautiful.  Because music is not subjective, we can’t pretend that one thing is just as good as another thing when it isn’t.  Let’s face it – contemporary Christian choruses and praise songs are not typically good music.  Exceptions exist, certainly, but I am speaking in generalities.

Classic hymns last centuries and “praise and worship” songs last weeks, and there are reasons for this.  When any 14-year-old with an acoustic guitar can play nearly the entire genre with the same 3 chords, something is wrong.  It is not beautiful and, usually, it is not well done. 

 This has nothing to do with what we “like” or what we listen to in the car.  Such concerns are irrelevant to whether or not we should offer it to God in worship.  Radio air time and record sales should not determine what is to be offered up in worship. 

We ought to sing arrangements of Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, and even play instrumentals that have stood the test of time and are well done.  The music a church uses and the songs a church sings are a reflection of their view of God.  Does the music reflect the majesty, goodness, holiness, sovereignty, and goodness of God, or does it reveal that we see God as a college buddy that we hang out with on weekends?

We must sing that which is doctrinally rich.  Again, because music teaches us, we must be cognizant of what we are learning through our singing.  Are we learning the character of God and His Word?  Is our music deepening our understanding of God, or has our repetition of this chorus so deeply implanted it into our subconscious that we won’t be able to forget it no matter how much hypnotherapy we go through?  Are we learning, through extreme repetition, that which is trite, repetitive, and sappy?

Because we are basing the decision on what is objectively good and true, we can come to some conclusions.  Holy, Holy, Holy is a better choice than The Days of Elijah, and it’s not a better choice because I like one better than the other, but because one is better than the other in content, music, and presentation.   

Music teaches and we should be teaching and learning the right things.  If you listen to what is being passed along as fitting worship music, it is obvious that the evangelical church is receiving an incomplete education.

We must sing from the right motivation.  We sing as an act of worship to God, not for our own entertainment.  Therefore, we should sing what is acceptable to God, not necessarily to ourselves (though it should be both). 

The worship service is not designed for our emotional experience, though emotion in worship is not a problem.  Music is emotional, but we do not sing so that we may have a certain emotional experience.  Music is not to be used as a tool of emotional manipulation, but it often is.  I would argue that there is a connection between this emotional manipulation and the resistance of some men to the contemporary evangelical church.  It smacks of emotional manipulation – quick, peppy songs to get you going and then slow songs to produce some tears. 

But, we are to sing with the emotion commanded, not in order to produce the emotion.  Music produces emotion, but we shouldn’t get the cart before the horse.  We are to sing “with grace in our hearts to the Lord” (Col. 3:16), with “joy” (Psalm 95, 98, 100, etc.), and with “gladness” (2nd Chr. 29:30), but we don’t sing in order to feel that way.  We sing and play for God and His glory, and by doing that, He gives us the other – joy, gladness, and grace for doing what He has commanded.