First Baptist Church Litchfield
chapel 10/16

      • Isaiah 30:18ESV

  • Hey Man
  • The Gospel Song

      • 2 Corinthians 1:3–4ESV

  • Light Of The World
  • Sovereign One

  • Doing the Right Thing When Its the Hard Thing

    During World War II, many young men faced the dire call to join the fight against tyranny. Some, driven by fear, chose to hide rather than heed the call for bravery. War is a hard thing. No body wants to go to war. War is filled with death and destruction. It was, however, inevitable for the U.S. to go to war because evil was threatening our livelihood.
    It’s ok to be afraid. Fear is a good thing when it is healthy. But fear should not keep you from doing the right thing, which is often hard. Those who let fear keep them from doing the hard thing allow cowardliness to keep their eyes fixed on fear itself. Unhealthy fear keeps you from seeing the possibility of God’s glory and his victory.
    If people lack courage to do the right thing, which if often the hard thing, churches, communities, and families are not safe, and will suffer at the hands of the wicked.
    History, however, remembers those who stood firm, like the soldiers who stormed the beaches of Normandy. They overcame their fears for a greater cause, teaching us that courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the determination to stand up despite it.
    These men and women fixed their eyes on something greater than themselves; victory over the axis powers, freedom for all the nations that were oppressed, and the safety of their own nation. Seeing these greater values helped them overcome fear with courage.
    In a similar way, our text this morning shows us how Jesus call us to always do the right thing, which is often the hard thing. He knows doing the right thing, which is often the hard thing, might tempt us to do nothing out of fear. Jesus, however, empowers our faith and courage to do what he asks us to do, we see this in the story of Peter walking on water with Jesus.
    What Peter shows us is that,

    Courage requires you to fix your eyes on Jesus so you can step out in faith to do the hard things.

    In Matthew 14:22-25, Peter is in a boat with eleven other disciples. Jesus had already sent them on their way. In the early hours of morning, while it was still dark out, Jesus comes to the disciples by walking on water. Jesus is showing his disciple that he is the Son of God. He has the authority and power to control creation.
    As Jesus appears to his disciples walking on water, they think that Jesus is a ghost or spirit. Jesus assures them that it is he, body and all. Peter sees Jesus and is compelled to go to Him. With his heart set on following Jesus, Peter is about to learn three truths about Christ-honoring faith-field courage.

    Fixing your eyes on Jesus empowers you to have the courage to ask Jesus’ to call you to do the hard things

    Matthew 14:26–29 ESV
    26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
    By the time Peter sees Jesus, the waves and the wind are beating against the boat. A storm has arisen in the Sea of Galilee. Jesus, however, is unmoved and undeterred. He stands calmly on the water. The contrasts is remarkable to Peter. The wind and the waves beating against the boat stir his heart to anxiety and fear, and yet Jesus stands on the tossing waves and in the howling wind with calm and serenity.

    How can Jesus be so calm in amidst the storm?

    Jesus can stand with serenity on the stormy sea because he is soverign over the sea. He controls all of creation.
    A couple of chapters earlier, Jesus and his disciples were in a boat in a similar situation. A massive storm threatened to sink the boat. The disciples were scared out of their mind. Do you know what Jesus was doing? He was sleeping in the bow of the boat. When his disciples woke him up in a panic, Jesus stood up and calmed the raging sea and the howling wind with his words; “Be still.” Notice at end of our story when Jesus gets in the boat. What does the wind do?
    Matthew 14:32 ESV
    32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.
    Just like in the previous story, the seas and the winds obeyed his voice, and his disciples asked themselves, “Who is this that even the seas and wind obey him?”
    Paul explains who Jesus is in his letter to the Colossians. Paul says,
    Colossians 1:15–17 (ESV)
    15 [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 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. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
    Jesus is sovereign over all creation. He has the authority and power to start and stop the storms. He can stand on waves as the wind howls around him with out a single worry. He can tell them to be still and they will obey his voice.
    If Jesus can bring peace to the storms in the sea or on dry land, do you think he can bring peace to the storms inside of your heart?
    Do you remember the words we sing in the song, “Soverign One?”

    When I’m all alone and afraid I will trust in You For You watch over my ways When things in my life don’t make sense I will trust in You For You are good, You are good

    When I don’t get to have my own way I will trust in You For You know what is best When tears begin to roll down my face I will trust in You For You are good, You are good

    Why can we trust Jesus with our fears and tears?

    Because, Jesus,

    Perfect in power, You control all things Perfect in wisdom, You know everything Perfect in goodness Jesus, You’re so good to me So good to me

    When Jesus calls you to do the hard things, you can trust him. He is perfect in power. He controls everything in and around your life, even the hard things he calls you too. He’s perfect in wisdom. He knows every thing that can happen, will happen, and even could potentially happen to you. He is perfect in goodness. Everything he does for you, even allowing hard things to be in your life, is for your good. Paul says,
    Romans 8:28 ESV
    28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
    Fix your eyes on Jesus. Be courageous. Trust his sovereignty and wisdom. Ask Jesus to call to do a hard thing for his kingdom, and be like Peter, with his eyes fixed on Jesus, he stepped out of the boat in faith.

    Fixing your eyes on Jesus empowers you to have the courage to step out in faith to do the hard things

    Matthew 14:28–29 ESV
    28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
    Because Peter fixed his eyes on Jesus and trusted his sovereign goodness, Peter asked Jesus to do a hard thing; to step out of a boat in the middle of a storm. From there, Peter’s Christ-honoring courage compelled him to step out of the boat by faith.
    Seeing Jesus walk on water strengthened Peter’s faith-field courage to do something amazing. He stepped out of the boat in the middle of a raging storm. This act of faith was not without fear; he faced the wind and waves, yet his desire to be with Christ propelled him forward.
    What is remarkable to me is that Peter did not let his fear keep him from following Jesus into a hard thing. Peter’s faith-filled courage to take a kingdom risk for the glory of Jesus, and in turn he experienced something glorious. He walked on water with Jesus, something no other disciple got to experience. He got to experience the glory of Jesus’ power first hand. Had fear kept him from doing the hard thing, he would’ve never seen Jesus in this way, or learned to trust him in the midst of a storm. When Peter fixed his eyes on Jesus, Jesus empowered his courage to take the step out of the boat in faith.
    Jesus will call you to do hard things, like stepping out of a boat in the middle of a storm. He may call you to start a ministry with nothing but a vision, or to be a missionary in a far away country. He may call you to stand up for the weak and vulnerable, or to speak truth when no one wants to listen. Like Peter, fix your eyes on Jesus, and Jesus will empower your courage with the faith it needs to step out of the boat and experience his glory.
    Peter’s faith-filled courage propelled him to step out of the boat in the midst of a storm to walk on water towards Jesus. Did Peter sink? Did he drown? No! How did Peter not sink?

    Fixing your eyes on Jesus empowers you to have the courage to rest in Jesus’ sustaining grace to do the hard things

    Matthew 14:30–33 ESV
    30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
    Peter’s courage was not keeping Peter afloat on the water. Jesus was graciously sustaining Peter. As long as Peter fixed his eyes on Jesus, his faith and his courage was strong enough to remain above the water. But something happens to Peter. What does Peter do? He took his eyes off of Jesus.
    When he took his eyes off Jesus, he began to sink. Peter fixed his eyes on the fear by focusing on the waves and the wind. His fear was not able to save him. His faith needed to save. What did Peter do when he began to sink?
    Matthew 14:30 ESV
    30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.”
    Peter cried out to Jesus to save him. What did Jesus do?
    Matthew 14:31 ESV
    31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
    When Peter cried our to the Lord to save Him, Jesus immediately grabbed his hand and took hold of him. That is how Jesus respond to those who cry out to him by faith. He immediately takes hold of them and saves them. Crying out to Jesus might be the first thing you need to do right now. Jesus may be calling you into his kingdom. He may be compelling you to step out of the boat by faith and trust him for the first time. Cry out to him. He will not let you perish if you cry out to him like Peter, “Lord save me!” Jesus will save you and he will bring you with him to the boat.
    Notice how the disciple respond to Jesus after Jesus gets in the boat. As soon as Jesus enters the boat, the wind ceases and the storm stops. Jesus was in control the entire time. Jesus brought the storm to them. Jesus sustained them in the storm, and Jesus brought them through the storm. They had never seen Jesus like that before. Now they see Jesus differntly.
    Matthew 14:33 ESV
    33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
    Now they see Jesus as the Son of God and they worshiped him. When Jesus brings hard things into your life, he desires to show you that he truly is the Son of God who is perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness. He desire to show you he is worthy of your faith. He will empower your faith with courage to follow him to the storm, through the storm, until you reach the other side of the storm.
    Fix your eyes on Jesus so He can empower your faith-filled courage to do the right thing when its the hard thing.

  • The Plight of the Leper

    William Barclay described what a leper looks like:
    “The whole appearance of the face is changed, till the man loses his human appearance and looks, as the ancients said, ‘like a lion or a satyr.’ The nodules grow larger and larger. They ulcerate. From them there comes a foul discharge. The eyebrows fall out, the eyes become staring. The voice becomes hoarse and the victim wheezes because of the ulceration of the vocal chords. The hands and feet always ulcerate. Slowly the sufferer becomes a mass of ulcerated growths. The average course of the disease is nine years, and it ends in mental decay, coma, and ultimately death. The sufferer becomes utterly repulsive—both to himself and to others.”
    Leprosy was both contagious and repulsive. In biblical times, being declared unclean meant more than just physical ailments; it was a spiritual state that separated one from the community and the presence of God.
    The plight of a leper was a life of feeling repulsively unwelcome. The Lord says in Leviticus,
    Leviticus 13:45–46 ESV
    45 “The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ 46 He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.
    A person with leprosy would not be welcome in the church, community, and home, not merely because they were sick, but because they were unclean. This made them live as the marginalized of the community. That it is, they lived outside the camp and were not given a lot of respect or resources to flourish.
    This passage teaches us that Jesus is not only able but also willing to heal us from our sins and sickness. It shows us that no one is beyond the reach of His mercy and grace.

    The compassion of Jesus compels us to show love and mercy to others, just as He has shown to us.

    ​

    Jesus’ Compassion Confronts Marginalization

    Matthew 8:1 ESV
    1 When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
    One of the marks of Jesus ministry was his willingness to interact with those marginalized by society, such as the leper. He has a profound for the broken and was ready to offer his salvation to the least of these in the community. The least of these are the marginal of the community. When I say the “marginalized,” I mean people who are broken hearted and belittled by society. In America, some of the marginalized people have been people with disabilities, different ethnicities, the poor, the old, and the sick.
    Our culture likes to hide these people away from the rest of society. We hide people with disabilities and the dying in institutions. We hide the poor in neighborhoods away from wealthier neighborhoods, and the old we put in nursing homes. Our sinful nature is inclined to segregate people by race, class, and gender. It’s as if we decide who is clean and who is unclean.
    In the Old Testament, there is a distinction between cleanness and holiness. God provided regulations about cleanness and uncleanness. To be clean is a prerequisite to becoming holy. To be clean in the Hebrew was associated as being normal. If you became unclean, there was a process to become clean.
    Leviticus 14 deals primarily with the process of cleansing for skin diseases. The infected person must see a priest. The priest determines the severity of the skin disease. Restoring cleanness requires more deliberate actions, usually involving washing, waiting, being inspected, and offering sacrifice.
    Depending on the severity of the infection, whether it is getting better or not, the person may have to burn their clothes and even destory their home. If the infection goes away, they can become clean. If it remains, then the person may be banned from the camp.
    Allowing the unclean person to remain with the clean ran the risk of everyone becoming unclean because ritual cleanliness was an outward manifestation. Whatever is unclean outwardly could infect others with defilement.
    For those with leprosy, however, there was nothing in either code to allow them ever to be clean. The kind of leprosy the man who stood in front of Jesus was an infectious disease that had no cure. Not only was the leper sick, be he was condemned to a state of perpetual uncleanness according to the Law. This means that the leper would have to remain outside of the community, forever in the marginalized camp.
    Jesus knew this about the leper, and his compassion moved him to bring the leper inside the camp. Just as Jesus’ compassion moved him to bring the marginalized inside the camp for restoration, so should our compassion do the same. The church should be made up of broken people who are trying to live out the blood-wrought redemption Jesus offers everyone; red yellow black and white, they are all precious in his sight. The abled, the disabled, the rich and the poor, the sick and the healthy. Jesus’ compassion inside of us should compel us to go the darkest ares of our community, reach out the marginalized, and bring them to the kingdom of God. That is what Jesus was doing with this leper. But to do this Jesus had to do a great cleaning work in the man’s life, and the man would have to trust Jesus to clean him. This is the cry of faith.

    Jesus’ Compassion Recognizes the Courageous Cry of Faith

    Matthew 8:2 ESV
    2 And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”
    Do not miss the physical and spiritual posture of the leper. He kneels at Jesus’ feet and he calls hime Lord. Kent Hughes notes that the term translated as "knelt" (NASB, "bowed") invites us into the leper’s inner emotions. In early Greek literature, the fundamental meaning of this word was "to kiss," akin to kissing the earth while lying prostrate before deities. In the Greek version of the Old Testament, this term corresponded to the Hebrew word for bowing down. Luke adds that "he fell on his face" (5:12), which deepens the imagery.
    The humble leper devoted his entire being to a single minded, heart-united, loyal adoration as he lay before Christ in reverence. He worshiped Christ as the sole source of his healing. Furthermore, using the title, Lord, with his kneeling posture signifies at he recognizes Jesus’ authority.
    The leper humbled himself before Jesus to ask him to do something extraordinary. The leper says,
    Matthew 8:2 ESV
    2 And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”
    When the leper asks, “If you will,” he’s not asking if Jesus is able. He believes he is able. He asking if Jesus would be compassionate enough to oblige his request. The whole scene looks like a servant asking a king for his favor.
    Jesus does not deny his faith, but welcomes his faith by rewarding his request.

    Jesus’ Compassion Compel’s Him to Give a Healing Touch

    Matthew 8:3 ESV
    3 And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
    The word, “compassion,” finds it’s root in Latin; Lat. compati. It means “to sympathize,” or, “to suffer with.” The Westminster Dictionary defines compassion as a desire to help others and assist them arising from perceiving suffering, being moved by it, and alleviating it; a response of the mind, emotion, and will.
    Compassion, motivated by a deep love for your fellow man, looks upon the misery of others with a profound willingness to make an effort, even at great sacrifice, to ease another’s pain, readiness to forgive, eagerness to help.
    There are three main words that captures God’s compassion in the Hebrew: Hesed, rāhamîm, h̥n/h̥nan. Hesed is very broad, capturing God’s covenant love, faithfulness, and mercy toward his people. Hnan captures more of God’s grace and favor, and it is used often between two people. For example, Joseph found favor with Potiphar.
    The Hebrew word, rāhamîm (with the verb rāh̥am), is related to the word for “womb” (reh̥em). It designates “womb-love,” the love of mother (and father) for a child (1 Kgs 3:26; cf. Hos 2:6), the love of brothers and sisters who have shared the same womb for each other (cf. Amos 1:11). It implies a physical response; the compassion for another is felt in the center of one’s body. This mercy also results in action.
    Jesus’ compassion consists of his hesed, hnan, and rahamim. In his encounter with the leper, hesed and rahamim seem to shine the most.
    Where the Rabbi’s, Priests, and Jewish community saw the leper as a repulsive outcast, Jesus saw him as a broken image bearer who was loved and redeemable.
    When the leper came to the crowd calling unclean, unclean, unclean, while everyone cleared away from the leper, Jesus’ compassion compelled him to remain. When the leper knelt before Jesus and asked him for help, Jesus’ compassion looked on his misery without rebuke or scorn. Jesus’ compassion, motivated by a deep love for this broken man, looked upon his misery with a profound willingness to make an effort to ease his pain, and he reached out his hand to touch the untouchable.
    Do not underestimate the power of compassionate touch. I met a woman who was diseased and riddled with sores. She smelled like urine and never left her one room apartment in the ghetto. I read the bible to her when I delivered meals on meals in Louisville, KY. One day I noticed she was considerably upset. She wanted to go home to Kansas to die and she had no way of getting there. I felt for her pain. I reached out my hand to to touch her hand. When I touched her, she physically shivered and latched onto my hand. She told me she had not been touched by another human being in years. She wept.
    You have to wonder how long the leper had gone without ever being touched by another human being. How shocked he had to of been when Jesus, the Son of God, offers his compassion by reaching out to touch the him.
    There is no sinner to unclean or repulsive that Jesus does not look upon with compassion. Keep that in mind when we minister to the broken.
    God is calling you to reach out and touch the marginalized, the broken, the outcast of society with you heart and your hands. Just as Jesus spent most of his time with these people, so should we seek them to bring healing and help to alleviate the burden of their suffering.

    Jesus’ Compassion Call for a Testimony

    Matthew 8:4 ESV
    4 And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”
    Jesus did not wish to be labeled simply as another Jewish miracle worker. Therefore, he instructed the leper to remain silent about his healing. Instead, he wanted the leper to go to the temple, despite being forbidden, and to approach the priest, who had previously rejected him due to his condition. Jesus intended for the leper to testify at the temple and to the priest that he had been made clean by Jesus Christ.

    Jesus heals your spiritual leprosy, purifying you from all unrighteousness.

    You must understand, what the leper was on the outside, every human being is on the inside. Our hearts are calloused like rotting flesh toward God. We are morally repulsive to His holiness. Our thoughts, motives, and actions cry out to heaven and earth, “Unclean, unclean, unclean!” The Lord says through the prophet Isaiah 64:6
    Isaiah 64:6 CSB
    6 All of us have become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like a polluted garment; all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.
    Those in heaven who observe us might be incline to keep their distance from us. The bible describes our hearts as desperately wicked and deceitful above all things (Jeremiah 17:9).
    We who are defiled, defile everything we touch. Yet, Jesus chose to show us compassion by touching us, putting on flesh and dying on a cross.

    How does he cleanse you from all unrighteousness?

    He does so by identifying with us in three was.

    Jesus identifies with us through is incarnation

    He could touch the leper because he left heaven to take on our flesh. He could feel the misery of the leper and exercise compassion because his incarnation made him able to sympathize with all of our weaknesses (Hebrews 4:14-16). He identifies with us as broken image bearers.

    Jesus identifies with us at the cross

    When he took on flesh, he took on our filth, our uncleanliness. Paul says,
    2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV
    21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
    We all come before Jesus as unclean, sinful lepers, burdened by guilt and shame from our wrong choices that have led us to hate God and our neighbors. Our battles with immorality, infidelity, idolatry, jealousy, bitterness, fear, and doubt make us feel untouchable in God’s sight, as if He cannot bear to be in the presence of such dirt and betrayal. This is indeed the case if we attempt to approach God relying on our own strength and pride.
    Jesus understood that the leper required more than just healing of the body; he needed a compassionate Savior to cleanse his heart. The incarnation and atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross purified him from his sins, making him eternally clean in God’s eyes.‌
    The apostle John says
    1 John 1:9 ESV
    9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
    You must kneel at the foot of the cross and humbly say, Lord, if you will, make me clean.” To every sinner who confesses their sin and repents, Jesus reaches out to you, embraces you, and says, “I will. Be clean.”
    When Jesus makes you clean, you are no longer detestable to God. The old self has passed away, and a new one has emerged. In Christ, Jesus has cleaned and liberated you from spiritual afflictions and granted you eternal life. He has provided you with a new eternal community, ensuring you will never feel isolated. You are secure in His embrace, with a promised inheritance. He has empowered you with his Spirit to feel and show his compassion toward the marginalized of society, the broken, and the weak.
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      • Leviticus 13:45–46ESV

      • Matthew 8:1ESV

      • Matthew 8:2ESV

      • Matthew 8:2ESV

      • Matthew 8:3ESV

      • Matthew 8:4ESV

      • Isaiah 64:6ESV

      • 2 Corinthians 5:21ESV

      • 1 John 1:9ESV

  • Empowered by the Spirit, Guided by the Word
First Baptist Church Litchfield
pastorjason.fbcl@gmail.com
217-324-4232
http://www.firstbaptistlitchfield.org/
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