Today, we end a series that I’ve entitled “Distributing Grace to the Multitudes” that, I believe, explains how God wants to use His people here at Cornerstone. And I will share with you that even this week as I’ve prayed concerning this message and these matters that my faith has grown even greater in believing this. As Jonathan said a few weeks back, however, we must commit to prayer. But as we do, I believe we will begin to see God carry out this vision even more.
In fact, I think that He already is, and not just with people that God has allowed to leave and begin ministry (like the Celzos and others) but also with people that God is bringing to us. In fact, I find that I don’t have enough time to work to disciple the number of people with whom I am having the opportunity to do that. And my heart rejoices at people like William Marshall, who joins the church today, being led by God to be among His people here. God is working, and I believe it will become clearer as we continue to pray and ask Him to do such things.
As I look at the number of teachers, intercessors, and servants that God has here, I’ve begun to pray that He would send as many as we can shepherd and lead to maturity and completion in Christ. I’ve noticed God increasing faith in many of us in prayer. And there is a holy dissatisfaction among the people here as many are wanting to see God work powerfully among us. People have come to me and said, “Lee, we need to begin praying about the parking lot, or bathrooms, or whatever other big needs we have because God can miraculously provide our needs as we ask Him in prayer.” And that excites any pastor’s heart to see such a holy dissatisfaction among the people of God, hungering for more of Him and His fullness. And so, I am greatly encouraged and excited as I believe God has shown us how He wants to work among His people.
As I look at the number of teachers, intercessors, and servants that God has here, I’ve begun to pray that He would send as many as we can shepherd and lead to maturity and completion in Christ. I’ve noticed God increasing faith in many of us in prayer. And there is a holy dissatisfaction among the people here as many are wanting to see God work powerfully among us. People have come to me and said, “Lee, we need to begin praying about the parking lot, or bathrooms, or whatever other big needs we have because God can miraculously provide our needs as we ask Him in prayer.” And that excites any pastor’s heart to see such a holy dissatisfaction among the people of God, hungering for more of Him and His fullness. And so, I am greatly encouraged and excited as I believe God has shown us how He wants to work among His people.
I want us to look at an event that happened early in the ministry of John. For John’s message is a reminder to us today.
John had been baptizing in the wilderness asking people to confess their sins and, in repentance, commit to following the Lord. He was growing ever popular, and so a group of Pharisees and Sadducees approach as if they are coming to profess openly their repentance—though that was not their intent.
They were more likely coming to evaluate and condemn John’s practices because baptism was a sign that the individuals were renouncing their old dependency on the fact that they were Jewish and were relying wholly on the mercy of God to forgive them as they confess their sins and repent. And John knows that these groups are wanting to do nothing of the sort. John, therefore, rebukes them saying, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” And by calling them a “brood of vipers,” he was saying that they were the offspring of vipers (that is what ‘brood’ means). And Herodotus recorded in the fifth century of Arabian vipers that they chewed their way out of their mothers’ wombs, killing their mothers in the process.
So John is not throwing some insult that the crowds would laugh at or that slightly degrades the Pharisees and Sadducees. Rather, he is saying that they exhibit the utmost moral depravity in their actions. And tells them to “bear fruit in keeping with repentance.” He is saying, “If you have truly repented then you should have fruit that show it.”
And it’s almost as if John is anticipating their thoughts and comebacks, because the next thing he tells them is not to suppose that they are alright because they are Abraham’s descendants. The Pharisees were thinking that because they were Jews by birth, because they were the children of Abraham, that they had no need to repent. Repentance was something Gentiles needed to do.
The Pharisees and Sadducees figured that God had to be faithful to a covenant that He had made to Abraham (after all, He cannot lie), and, therefore, they banked on the faithfulness of God to be their security no matter what they did. They were not threatened by the coming wrath of God.
They figured that because God had said that the children of Abraham would be blessed that they were fine. What they did not understand is that being born a Jew does not mean that one is really a child of Abraham. Being born physically a Jew does not mean that one is spiritually a Jew, if you will. That’s what Paul is saying in Romans 9:6-8 writing, “For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; neither are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants … That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.”
And so John destroys their arrogance and security saying, “Take no pride in being physical descendants of Abraham for, ‘God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham,’ but for you, you are like the tree that is bearing no fruit and the wrath of God is like an axe ready to cut and remove dead trees to cast them into the fire."
He tells them of God, “His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
The process of making ready the wheat involved the oxen treading out the grain and shaking it free from the husks, leaving them in the same pile. Therefore, the farmer would take a winnowing fork and would throw it in the air allowing the grain to fall straight down but the husks to be blown further away. Then he would gather the grain to be used and would take the chaff to be burned.
By John saying that the winnowing fork is in hand, John means that the process is getting very close to the end. God is soon going to divide His people of faith from those who are and they will know the wrath of God—everlasting punishment.
John allows them to see the faulty security they have in being Abraham’s physical descendants, thinking that because of their genetic makeup they are okay. Instead, they await the wrath of God. “There is no security in thinking God has to bless you” he says, “for God could raise up children for Abraham out of these stones.” In other words, he tells them that God is not boxed in or limited the way they think He is. He will be faithful to His promises to the children of Abraham, but He will fulfill them only in the repentant believing children of Abraham.
And before I get to the point I want to make from this text, I want to point out several key doctrines that show themselves here. And I want to show corrections to misconceptions many have that are corrected in this passage.
1) Many think that in salvation an individual is saved from Satan. In fact, we might see television shows that display hell as a place where men captives of Satan as he is shoveling coals into the fire. But according to this passage (and the rest of Scripture) what is it that we are saved from when we believe and repent? John asks them, “who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” and then proceeds to tell them that God is awaiting with His winnowing fork in hand, ready to clear His threshing floor.
1) Many think that in salvation an individual is saved from Satan. In fact, we might see television shows that display hell as a place where men captives of Satan as he is shoveling coals into the fire. But according to this passage (and the rest of Scripture) what is it that we are saved from when we believe and repent? John asks them, “who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” and then proceeds to tell them that God is awaiting with His winnowing fork in hand, ready to clear His threshing floor.
3) Some (even noted theologians) think that the wrath of God in hell will be temporary—that men will face wrath for a time and then either be no more or be blessed. But John’s analogy of the wrath of God has an element that does not work for the analogy and, therefore, was most likely added to describe the true wrath of God. He describes the fire which burns up the chaff as, “unquenchable.” And thus he describes the eternality of the wrath of God.
4) Some might think they can claim repentance without showing fruit of their repentance and faith by their works. John clears up this misconception quickly telling the Pharisees that fruit must accompany repentance.
5) Finally, we who have been made children of Abraham and who are Gentiles have been showna greater magnitude of grace than we might have realized. We are the stones that God raisedup and allowed to become His people as His chosen people were unrepentant. We could claim noright to being His eternal people. He merely grafted us into His family tree. And, therefore,we cannot think we are wise and mock the Jews, for it is only because God hardened thehearts of the Israelites that we were given opportunity to have the gospel
Paul wrote to the Romans, “For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:25-26).
We actually only have the gospel because God “partially hardened” the hearts of the Israelites in order that the gospel may come to us. And He has done that because He wants all “Israel” (that is, spiritually all those who He makes Abraham’s descendants) to be saved, and they will.
And on top of that, one reason we have even been privileged to be God’s children, accepting the gospel, is to make the Jews jealous that we are being able to become spiritual Jews. Paul writes as well, “Salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them (the Jews) jealous … But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them” (Romans 11:11-14).
We who are spiritual Jews, who were not born as God’s chosen people but have come to know Him as our Father through faith and repentance have been shown such undeserved favor. God has lavished grace upon us. We would all have gone to hell if God, in His infinite love, did not grant that we should hear and accept the gospel. Therefore, be humble.
And that drives me to the point I want to make today. Yes, all of that was introduction, but today is just a one point sermon. And as I said before, it can be a point of warning and/or a word of encouragement.
It is this: God will fulfill the plans and purpose for His Church that we have been talking about for the last few weeks and months. He will use His Church to equip saints that they may be sent out in order that the great commission may be completed. And He will channel through individuals and money in order to complete this cause and exalt His name above all things.
However, the warning is that God does not necessarily need us. The very minute that we become prideful, think we are “doing it” here, scoff and belittle other churches who we do not think understand in the great manner we do, move from seeking God’s face in great desperation to thinking we have it figured out and can do it ourselves, and think that God actually is using us because of our merit will be the very minute that God will oppose us. And He will raise up others to accomplish His purpose and plans.
And it won’t be because He does not like us anymore. It will be because He is holy and passionate about His own glory. And because of that He must oppose anyone who would stand in pride before Him.
However, as we humble ourselves, seek His face, and feel grateful that we even get to play a part in God’s divine scheme, God will lavish His grace on us and use us to accomplish His purpose.
Isn’t it ironic that the very one’s in this passage who were physically Abraham’s children missed out on knowing the blessings of truly being Abraham’s children because of their pride and arrogance. While all the time, the very ones who did not belong but were crying out for God’s mercy received the blessing of the covenant and eternal life.
We are truly blessed that our eyes have been opened to see how God wants to use His Church. We have been shown much grace to be driven in our hearts to pray in our services, privately, and on Sunday nights. We have not just figured these things out in our great wisdom. And we will never walk in the path that we may see God work because of my wisdom or yours. It will be God’s grace.
So, my exhortation is that we humble ourselves, pray, strive for holiness, and focus our hearts on delighting and treasuring God above all else. If we do that, then oh the grace He will show us in allowing us to play a role in His eternal work.
Grace has truly been shown to us, and I praise God that as we humble ourselves His grace will be with us. O God, glorify yourself among these, Your, children. Amen.