Who is the Redeemer of God’s Elect?

Posted on February 27, 2019 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Editor’s Note: It has been a while since a post in the Westminster Shorter Catechism series has been produced. It is my intention begin taking on one question per week and post them on Wednesdays. So we can perhaps call them “Westminster Wednesdays”?

Question 21 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks: Who is the redeemer of God’s chosen ones?

The answer given is: The only redeemer of God’s chosen is the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, Who became man. He was and continues to be God and man in two distinct natures and one person forever.

There is a lot of content in the answer that the Westminster Divines gave to this question.

First, it clearly states the belief that Jesus provides the only means of salvation. This belief is foundational to Christianity.

Secondly, it identifies Jesus as the eternal Son of God who became man.

Thirdly, it clearly teaches that beginning with the incarnation, Jesus was and still is both God and man in one person.

In the last few months, I have been reading about the first Ecumenical Councils of the church in the 4th and 5th Centuries. It was at these councils that the nature of Jesus was clearly defined for all of Christendom. Many of the misunderstandings about Jesus that survive today were addressed by these councils. So an understanding of the events leading up to the councils and the results of those councils will help us avoid error today.

It would be good to consider the words of the Nicene Creed, first developed at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD and then adopted at the Council of Constantinople in 381 AD. The portion of the Creed which speaks to belief in Christ is quoted below.

[We believe] in one Lord Jesus Christ,
      the only Son of God,
      begotten from the Father before all ages,
           God from God,
           Light from Light,
           true God from true God,
      begotten, not made;
      of the same essence as the Father.
      Through him all things were made.
      For us and for our salvation
           he came down from heaven;
           he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,
           and was made human.
           He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;
           he suffered and was buried.
           The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.
           He ascended to heaven
           and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
           He will come again with glory
           to judge the living and the dead.
           His kingdom will never end.

The enemy’s best tool

Posted on July 23, 2018 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Church leaders have the opportunity to deprive our great enemy of his best and most effective tool. What is that tool? It is us when we are more concerned about our own glory and reputation than we are of God’s glory and reputation. When we make decisions and say things that misrepresent God, we are an apt tool in the enemy’s hand.

I am reminded of the answer to Question 1 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism. “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.”

There are 1,440 minutes in every day. Think about yesterday and tally up how many of them were spent in promoting your own agenda, increasing your own comfort, or increasing your own reputation. Then add up the minutes that were used in active contemplation of how to best reflect God’s glory to a world that so desperately needs a glimpse of it.

I am guessing that I am not alone in finding this exercise shows me that I have much to repent of.

It is time that the church ditch the corporate model of the strong leader that pushes his agenda. What would the church look like if, instead, we followed the model of a leader who actively demonstrates a life of continual repentance and dependence upon God?

What is at stake is God’s reputation. When we misrepresent God, people get hurt.

Think about this question: How many people have you met that were hurt by the actions of a church leader who misrepresented God by driving his own agenda? I have met many who have legitimate complaints about how they were treated by a pastor or church leader. How many of them have walked away from the church and are unwilling or reluctant to return?

The stakes are high. We, who are called to be church leaders, need to be aware of our tendency to go wrong and humbly seek God on a moment by moment basis. Otherwise we will go wrong and people will get hurt.

Take the tool out of the enemy’s hand.

Who builds the church?

Posted on January 2, 2018 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Through the years, the church has had to endure persecution, neglect, corruption and apathy, but yet she endures.

The church has displayed the best and the worst of humanity. She has both stunning victories and miserable failures on her record. Yet, she endures.

When I am tempted to be overwhelmed by the problems in the church, I need to remind myself that it is not up to men to build the church. Jesus told us that he, himself, is the one who builds his church (Matthew 16:18). (Tweet This)

We can be co-laborers with him, but he is the architect and builder.

This is good news! It is good news because it takes the pressure off of us as church leaders.

Certainly we need to be diligent in presenting the truth of Scripture to those who come under our care. We need to be diligent in reaching out to those in our community who don’t yet have a relationship with Christ. We need to be diligent in equipping the saints for the work of ministry (Ephesians. 4:12).

But we must always keep in mind that it is only God who change change hearts and bring people into relationship with himself. It is only God who can cause spiritual growth. God is the only one who builds his church.

One analogy that Jesus used is that of a laborer in a harvest which can be seen in John 4:35. The farmer can plant, water and remove weeds, but he cannot cause the crop to grow. The farmer cannot cause the growth.

In the same way, church leaders cannot cause anyone to grow spiritually. We cannot save anyone. We can only be faithful in promoting conditions that are beneficial to spiritual growth.

We will be judged on how diligently we worked to promote the conditions under which growth happens. We will be judged on how faithfully we worked at the tasks that God calls us to perform.

We will not be judged on the results. The results are in God’s hands.

Ultimately, we can’t mess it up. God will build his church with or without us.

How well do you shepherd your flock?

Posted on October 11, 2017 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Shepherd with Sheep — Copyright: designpics / 123RF Stock Photo

In judgment of the Nation of Israel, God said this through the prophet Zechariah:

“For behold, I am raising up in the land a shepherd who does not care for those being destroyed, or seek the young or heal the maimed or nourish the healthy, but devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs. ‘Woe to my worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock!’” (Zechariah 11:16–17a, ESV)

In this verse-and-a-half, we are giving a list of the qualities of a bad shepherd. This is one who is worthy of judgment because he:

does not care for those being destroyed
does not seek the young
does not heal the maimed
does not nourish the healthy
devours the fat sheep.

Those of us who have been identified as church leaders should take note of this list. We have an opportunity to do things differently. Looking at the list above, some questions come to mind.

Do we care about those in our community that have not yet heard the truth about Jesus Christ?
Do we actively reach out to those who are outside of our fellowship?
Do we encourage young people to engage with us over spiritual matters?
Do we have a vibrant youth ministry or are we just going through the motions?
Do we monitor our track record for young people remaining in the church after they go off to college?
Do we effectively minister to those who come to our church hurt by life’s trials? Or do we heal the wound superficially by pressuring them to cover it up?
Do we nourish the healthy people in our congregation by giving them opportunities to grow in their understanding and ministry?

On the negative side, we must also ask ourselves if we are devouring the fat sheep. Are we using up the strong people in our congregations by giving them more to do without providing a nurturing environment where they can find refreshment? Church burnout is a real thing.

Honesty requires the admission that we don’t do any of these perfectly. Inability to do them perfectly does not relieve us of the responsibility to keep them in mind and humbly seek God for strength and wisdom to improve in these areas.

All of the items in the list above are related to the second great command to love my neighbor. A list like this is helpful because it reminds me that to love my neighbor, I have to get to know him and know what is going on in his life.

To do all of this, I have to get my focus off myself and become increasingly aware of the people around me.

Who is the Redeemer of God’s Elect?

The enemy’s best tool

Who builds the church?

How well do you shepherd your flock?

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