Acts 1:12-26: Show Us Which You Have Chosen

Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 19 May 2013

By Captain Michael Ramsay

To read a version of this sermon presented to Toronto's Corps 614, 20 Sept 2015, click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2015/09/acts-112-26-who-have-you-chosen.html 

To read a 2024 TSA AVM BC version click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2024/04/acts-112-26-show-us-which-you-have.html 

1) How do we choose an important employee, manager, CEO, etc.? (Resume, ability)

2) How do we choose the Head of State? (Heredity: intense job-training programme from the moment they are born)

3) How do we choose the Canadian Idol, talent show winners and politicians in this country? (Popularity contest AKA an election)

4) What is the traditional way that one decides whether the one they fancy truly loves them or not: ‘she loves me, she loves me not’? (Removing leaves from a flower)

5) How does one decide which team is going to start with the ball in Canadian football or in a soccer game? (Coin toss)

6) How does one decide where to transfer Salvation Army Officers? (Prayer and fasting?)

Near the conclusion of Acts Chapter 1, the believers who have gathered in Jerusalem – about 120 of them – are faced with a choice that needs to be made: they need to choose a successor to one of the 12 disciples. This whole episode that we are examining today raises three layers of questions.

1) The first layer is composed of questions to which the solutions are not all that difficult to find, such as:

Ø      Who are these disciples here - particularly Judas Iscariot?

Ø      What did Judas do?

2) A little more challenging are the questions of the second layer:

Ø      Why do they need a successor to Judas? Outside of the RC tradition, I believe, we don’t believe that they even need successors to any of the apostles anymore; so why do they need a successor in Acts here?

Ø      And did they choose the correct successor? What about the apostle Paul? Some people say Paul was supposed to be the successor to Judas Iscariot, not Matthias. According to Luke, did the disciples make a mistake in selecting Matthias?

3) Once we have resolved the issues in these two layers of questioning, we should look at the third layer and ask ourselves the most important question inherent to the text: how should we resolve the difficult questions in our lives? How should we make the important decisions that we have to make in our life and in our world on a daily basis?

In answering these questions, let's look a little bit at the context of our pericope here. This book, Acts, is the second book written by the author Luke to his friend Theophilus. Can anyone tell me what is the name of the first book Luke wrote to his friend Theophilus? (Luke.) The book of Acts is a sequel to the book of Luke. It is a continuation of the story: The book of Luke tells about Jesus and his followers prior to Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. Acts picks up the story from where Luke finishes off.

We read Acts 1:1-11 earlier in the meeting today. This recaps what Luke had written to Theophilus in his previous book. As recorded in Acts 1:1-2, Luke writes, ‘In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.’ Luke then lists some of those things:

Ø      Jesus’ suffering,

Ø      His presenting himself alive after he was killed,

Ø      And showing many other convincing proofs (Acts 1:3-4).

Luke then tells Theophilus that Jesus also reminded the believers to stay in Jerusalem while they await the Holy Spirit to give their post-resurrection ministry a kick-start. Once Gods sends the Holy Spirit like a starter pistol, Luke tells us, the believers are to run to the ends of the earth sharing this Gospel of Salvation with everyone they meet (Acts 1:1-11). This review of his earlier book is how Luke sets the stage for this book of Acts.

Now let's look at one or two of the questions that we asked ourselves off the top today. Who are the disciples here?  Acts 1:13 mentions them by name. We’ll highlight a few of them. Peter, James and John were Jesus’ inner circle of disciples. They were all fishermen in their previous career, as was Andrew. Peter is the one who is going to take a leadership role among the disciples. Philip we will learn more about in the next few chapters of the book of Acts. We know the story of doubting Thomas. We also recognize the name of Matthew in the list. Someone can tell me what book did Matthew write? (Matthew). Luke also mentions, Verse 13, Simon the Zealot, Judas son of James, James son of Aphaeus, and Bartholomew. These were the 11.

Who was the 12th disciple? (Judas Iscariot). For what is Judas infamous? Judas Iscariot, Judas is remembered as Jesus’ betrayer. He led the Romans and the priests to Jesus and betrayed him with a kiss. Then Jesus was led off to be killed, to be crucified. Now this Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus’ 12 chosen disciples and he was the one trusted enough to be placed in charge of the disciples’ money. He was their treasurer. Luke, through Peter, tells us a few more things about Judas Iscariot in our text today. Acts 1:15-20 records that Judas:

Ø      Was a guide to those arresting Jesus, Verse 16 (like we said);

Ø      Was allotted a full share in Jesus ministry, Verse 17 (like we said);

Ø      And then, with the money he was paid for helping arrest Jesus –Verse 18 – he bought and field;

Ø      And he killed himself.

Judas was one of Jesus’ closest twelve followers, he betrayed Jesus for whatever reason, and then he took his own life (Acts 1:18-20 contrasts Matthew 27:3-10).

This is sad and this brings us to our second level of questions: Why do the disciples need a successor to Judas? And did they choose the right successor?

Why do the disciples even need a successor to Judas? As Jesus is already crucified, resurrected, and glorified; why do they need someone to replace Judas? They don’t replace any of the other disciples when they die; so, why do they need to replace Judas when Judas dies? Jesus gives us the answer to this question, as recorded in Matthew 19:28 and Luke 22:30. Jesus tells us that “at the renewal of all things,” his twelve disciples will “sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30). OT Scriptures, in particular the psalmist, also speak to this need: Psalm 69:25, 109:8.[1] John, in the book of Revelation writes that at “the consummation of God’s redemption as a ‘Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God’, having twelve gates with ‘the names of the twelve tribes of Israel’ written on them and twelve foundations with ‘the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb’ written on them (Revelation 21:10, 12, 14).”[2] Israelite tradition, Jesus’ teaching and subsequent Christian thought and belief record that the apostles have a role still to play at the resurrection of the dead. Jesus says that it is their job to judge the tribes of Israel after the resurrection of the dead.

So then, it is not because Judas died that he needs to be replaced because he will be raised on the last day with all the rest of us and none of the other disciples were replaced when they died. It is because Judas abrogated his responsibility, he forfeited his position as one of the twelve judges of Israel when he betrayed Jesus - who is Israel and the world’s Messiah - and then took his own life.[3] This is why they need a replacement; this is why they need a twelfth disciple. They need a twelfth person who will help judge the twelve tribes of Israel on the last day. As a side note, this is probably where originates the idea that continues even to this time and place that we should have 12 people sitting on juries to determine innocence or guilt in court.

The next question in this second layer of questions is, did they choose the correct successor? What about the Apostle Paul? Some people say that Paul was supposed to be the successor to Judas Iscariot, not Matthias. According to Luke, did the disciples make a mistake in selecting Matthias? No. The short answer is no. The reasons that some offer for Paul being the correct replacement for Judas rather than Matthias do not hold up to scrutiny.  Howard Marshall writes,

 “Some commentators have argued ... that the church acted wrongly in choosing Matthias: it should have waited for the ‘twelfth man’ of God’s own choice, Paul, instead of giving God his choice between two others who are never heard of again. But we never hear any more of [any of]the other members of the Twelve (apart from Peter, James, and John) in Acts, and Paul did not [even] possess the essential qualifications to be one of the Twelve.”[4]

The list of the qualifications for the job of disciple here include:

1. Acts 1:21, that, ^“… it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us” (The expression “was living among us” is a Semitic idiom for familiar and unhindered association; cf. Deuteronomy 31:2; 2 Samuel 3:25; Psalm 121:8; Acts 9:28).
2. Acts 1:22: “For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.” He must have seen Christ in person both before and after the resurrection.
3. And, Acts 1:14, Judas’ successor must also be appointed by the same Lord who appointed the Eleven.

The Apostle Paul does not meet all these criteria.[5] God used the Apostle Paul greatly -as Paul himself acknowledges- as an apostle to the gentiles not necessarily as the one to judge the tribes of Israel at the resurrection (cf. Galatians 1:18, 2:1-10).[6]

So, to review: the disciples referred to in this pericope were the 12 chosen ones who were with Jesus during his ministry. These apostles, at the eschaton, on the last day will judge the tribes of Israel. Therefore the successful applicant for Judas’ old job will have been a witness to the resurrection, will have met Jesus in person both before and after His death and resurrection and he will need to be appointed by Jesus Christ himself.

In our text then the disciples have before them then two viable candidates, Acts 1:23-26, “Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, ‘Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.’ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.” Luke records that these people who are gathered together in Jesus’ name when it comes time to make a decision pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.”

This is important and this brings us to our third and most important layer of questioning today. How do we make decisions that need to be made in our lives? I know that Susan, the kids and I have had to discern God’s leading in a few significant matters in our lives. How do we discern which paths to take in our own lives?

When we were called by God into full-time ministry with The Salvation Army, it was a tough decision. We were first called as urban missionaries in Vancouver’s infamous downtown eastside. We had two small children. I had businesses both on the Island (Victoria, Saanich, Sidney) and in and around Greater Vancouver; but my home, my wife with my children and our immediate families were all on the Island. I loved my businesses. I would have to give up my businesses that I founded and raised almost like a first child in order to enter the ministry and we would have to leave our long-time friends and extended family.

We had to make a decision. We could make an economic decision and stay on the Island with our house and our businesses or we could say, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two [options] You have chosen.” We could make a family decision and stay near the children’s grandparents and at that time great-grandparents or we could pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.” We could make a sentimental decision and stay by all that we have ever known and loved on the Island or we could pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.” As we are here today we thankfully took the latter option as our way forward. Praise the Lord; we followed Him into the mission field.

But our reliance on God is not a one-time thing. There are still many more decisions that each and every one of us are faced with everyday in our lives. And every time that we are faced with a decision we have to decide whether we are going to try to decide on our own or whether we are going to trust God to show us the way and then follow Him.

Our first month or so here in Swift Current, I think every staff member of our Thrift Store quit including the manager. Two Christmases ago our CFS director needed to be let go right as we were heading into our busiest time of year. Every year the Army has to declare whether we as Officers are going to stay in our communities or whether we are going to be transferred. In any of these situations any of us can just try to make up our own minds; we can dig our heels in and say to the Lord that we are not going to do what you or anyone else says; we can be bullied by those around us who have an agenda or who are just not very skilled at discerning the will of God; we can just rely on own devices to make the decisions ourselves; we can tell the Lord to please bless the decision that we are about to make. But really - no matter how skilled we are at making decisions - it would gain much better results if instead of any of these ways of deciding what to do, we would pray like the disciples in Acts 1, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.” And then we need to wait to see how He actually responds.

When we don’t do this we can be tricked into making the wrong choice. I remember once when I was living in a different part of the country, there was an election. I prayed. I looked at the various candidates in my riding. I checked out their resumes and past experiences and there were two of the myriad people running who seemed to have the prerequisite qualifications for the position, so I picked one and voted for him. He was elected but no sooner was he elected then he immediately betrayed those of us who voted for him by joining an opposing political party. He ran as if he belonged to one party so everyone who voted for him thought they were voting for a member of political party 'A' but as soon as he was elected, before he was ever even sworn it, he defected to political party 'B'; so in essence political party 'B' had two candidates in that riding in that election. No matter how much effort I put into casting my ballot, like everyone else who voted for this candidate, I was betrayed.

The disciples, in our passage today, have before them then two viable candidates to replace the one who betrayed Jesus, Acts 1:23-26, “Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, ‘Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.’ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.” Luke records that these people who are gathered together in Jesus’ name when it comes time to make a decision pray, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.”

This is important. How do we make decisions that need to be made in our lives? Do we attempt to make up our own minds or do we -like the disciples here- correctly attempt to discern the will of the Lord.

The disciples, they don’t pray, “Lord please bless our decision making process” and then do whatever they see fit; they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.” They don’t pray, “Lord, please help us to make the right decision” and then do whatever they see fit; they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.” They don’t pray, “Lord, show us what we should do” and then do whatever they see fit; they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.”

Do you see the difference? The disciples, they don’t call a big meeting and pray for God to bless the proceedings and then make up their own minds anyway after pouring over all of the resumes, conducting interviews, checking references; they don't make the decision all on their own and then ask God to bless it. Quite the opposite, they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.”

So what about us? When we are faced with life’s choices how do we decide what to do? Do we pray and then make up our own minds or do we ask for God to show us what he has already decided and keep our eyes and ears open to see what he is showing us? This is the end to which I would encourage us today. Whenever we are faced with a critical decision let us each seek the will of God in our lives and let us each pray as the disciples prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have already chosen.” And then let us actually wait for His answer. I know that as we do, He will show us what He has already chosen for our lives.

 

Let us pray.

www.sheepspeak.com

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[1] Cf. Robert W. Wall, ‘Acts’ The New Interpreter’s Bible 10, (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 2002), 49-50.

[2] Richard N. Longenecker, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Acts/Exposition of Acts/Introduction: The Constitutive Events of the Christian Mission (1:1-2:41)/D. The Full Complement of Apostles (1:12-26)/2. Matthias chosen to replace Judas Iscariot (1:15-26), Book Version: 4.0.2

[3] Cf. William H. William, ‘Acts’, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, (Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1988), 23.

[4] I. Howard Marshall: Acts: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1980 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 5), S.71

[5] Cf. Richard N. Longenecker, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Acts/Exposition of Acts/Introduction: The Constitutive Events of the Christian Mission (1:1-2:41)/D. The Full Complement of Apostles (1:12-26)/2. Matthias chosen to replace Judas Iscariot (1:15-26), Book Version: 4.0.2

[6] Cf. Simon J. Kistemaker, ‘Acts’, New Testament Commentary, (Grand Rapids Michigan: Baker Academic, 2007), 68.

Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord Always.

Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 05 May 2013
by Captain Michael Ramsay

Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice

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Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice

A good question to ask here –of course- would be what does Paul mean when he says to rejoice always? In the ancient Roman world “joy is rarely mentioned, except as an illusion. This is true for the philosopher and the elites. It is much more so for the vast populace that had no opportunity for philosophical or scientific reflection.”[1] For the vast majority of the people in the world of the Roman Empire the old adage would apply that ‘life’s hard and then you die’ and on top of that people didn’t live very long to begin with then and there. And some of the pagan religions of that region stated that in some circumstances that your suffering in this life didn’t even end with your life; it continued on after death.

Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice

There is not a lot of joy, as we would represent it today on commercials for early retirement, travel, entertainment, etc. in the ancient Roman world. Remember that even the Roman Emperor, the most powerful man in his world; he didn’t have any indoor plumbing; he didn’t have any central heating; he didn’t have any air conditioning. Neither he nor the other rich and powerful people of this time and place flossed or even brushed their teeth – toothpaste was not even conceived of - and no one ever took a shower. People didn’t live that long and there wasn’t much joy, as we would portray joy today in our contemporary advertising.[2]

Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice

Even if there were a lot of things that we would consider joyful, it certainly would not be in and around the situation in which Paul found himself. Remember that Paul was in a 1^st Century Roman prison when he wrote this letter. As such, Professor Gregory Bloomquist writes:

Joy was, however, something that Paul appears to have thought that he could offer to those willing to accept his message. What makes his assertion so implausible is that his was a message written from a context of extraordinary suffering. We may not realize this today. First of all, most of us have no experience of prison. But, even if we did, imprisonment would have been profoundly different from almost any North American experience of prison today [except maybe Guantanamo Bay]. Prison in antiquity was not a ‘holding cell,’ but a place to impose greater suffering on the wrongdoer than the wrongdoing itself had caused. We would be shocked by the length of imprisonment for crimes that today would be considered matters either for fines or for a short jail sentence. And we would be shocked by the conditions of the prisons—overcrowding, hunger, chains, filth, inadequate clothing, illness and death, all of which could be worse in some regions or during times of social unrest, while improvement was episodic but never permanent. Moreover, we would be shocked that torture was common and consistently used to extract confessions and information, and prison was an opportunity to enable torturers to hurt those accused of hurting others and to do so with increasing savagery and ferocity.  But knowing this, we would not be shocked that the logical end for prisoners was death, not release, and a death that would almost certainly be followed by yet more prison in the underworld of the life to come. The afterlife was simply a kind of eternal prison in which gods and their agents tortured men and women.[3]

Philippians 4:4, Paul writes: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice.

So why does Paul write ‘rejoice in the Lord always’; what does Paul mean by ‘rejoice in the Lord always?’ It is important enough that he says it twice: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice’, he writes. Elsewhere, in his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul writes, ‘rejoice and give thanks in all circumstances’ (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Paul is writing this letter to his friends in Philippi who aren’t in jail and who could in all likelihood wind up in jail or dead for their faith and instead of telling them to pray for him so that his suffering will be eased, instead of complaining to them about his treatment, instead of complaining about his condition and instead of asking for relief, instead of warning all of his friends to head for the hills so that they don’t suffer the same way as he is in this Roman imprisonment, Paul says that he has all this joy in his imprisonment and he wishes the same for them.

Can you imagine? Picture this with me. Someone you know has just been sent to prison – to a real bad prison. Maybe Guantanamo Bay, itself where there is water-boarding and other 21^st century versions of torture going on and they write you a postcard, maybe there is a picture of it on the front, and you flip it over and it says, “wish you were here.” Maybe you wouldn’t feel quite the same.

Philippians 4:4:Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice.

Paul in this letter is writing to people who have about as good of a life as people in his day and age do; Paul is in as bad a situation as probably a Roman citizen would find themselves. And Paul is encouraging them – earlier in this letter – to be bold for the gospel when he and they both know full-well that if they are they run the risk of winding up in the same condition as Paul. And here Paul, who is suffering much more than they in Philippi would appear to be, Paul writes, “rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice.”

Now Paul is writing this letter and there are a couple of church ladies who have had some row about something. It was bad enough that someone has even told Paul about it while he is in prison. Paul writes, Philippians 4:2,3: “I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life” (Revelation 3:5; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27; 22:19; cf. Luke 10:20; Hebrews 12:23). These are women whose names have been written in the book of life and they are fighting, arguing, talking about each other behind each other’s back, gossiping, or just being nasty about each other. They are not building each other up and as a result someone has brought this to the attention of Paul who is in jail and Paul himself has written back from his experience. He says that they should ‘be of the same mind as the Lord’ and each other.[4] They should both focus on the things God focuses on – the proclamation of the Gospel, instead of their petty differences and they should, Philippians 4:4, Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice.

What about us? Do we have this joy of the Lord that Paul has? Do we have the joy of the lord that those whose names are written in the book of life have? Do we have the joy of the Lord that Christians are to have? You and I do we? If we wound up in a prison tomorrow would our first concern be how will we tell people about Jesus and would we rejoice in our new opportunities to do so?

How much more in our lives today? As we find ourselves in jobs we’ve held for a long time or a short time, do we rejoice -instead of complaining- do we rejoice in the Lord and the opportunities that He provides us in that job to share the gospel?

How about us in our lives today? As we find ourselves in care homes, retirement villas, or hospitals for the long haul, do we rejoice -instead of complaining- do we rejoice in the Lord and the opportunities that He provides in that place to share the gospel?

How much more in our lives today? As we find ourselves in relationships and in families that we’ve known for a long time or a short time, do we rejoice -instead of complaining- do we rejoice in the Lord and the opportunities that he provides us with our family to share the gospel?

How much more in our lives today? As we find ourselves in congregations that we’ve been apart of for a long time or a short time, do we rejoice -instead of complaining- do we rejoice in the Lord and the opportunities that He provides through that church to share the gospel or do we whine about the person sitting next to us?[5] Do we rejoice in the Lord and share the gospel or do we complain about how so and so leaves the kitchen? Do we rejoice in the Lord and share the gospel or do we gossip about others behind their backs? Do we rejoice in the Lord and share the gospel or do we complain about the music or the preaching? Do we rejoice in the Lord and share the gospel or do we tear down our fellow congregation members with negative words? Do we rejoice in the Lord and share in the work of the gospel or do we refuse to work with others who we see as antagonistic, inferior, or infuriating? Do we, like Paul tells us from prison 1 ocean and 2 millennia ago, do we rejoice in the Lord always in the opportunity to share the gospel with others or do we work against Christ and against the gospel by not being of like mind with Him and with each other. This is very important. This is so important that Paul says it twice. Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice.

This week the Stanley Cup play-offs began. It is the first time in about 40 years that all of the original six teams have been in the play-offs and it is the first time in a long time that the majority of the Canadian teams (though none from the prairies here) are in the play-offs. Athletes, on their teams, have one goal: to win the cup. Christians, through our churches are supposed to have one goal: to win the world for Christ, to point everyone to the salvation that God has already provided for the world.

Can you imagine that if when the members of your favourite hockey team got together that instead of practicing, planning for the game, conditioning, and building each other up through pep talks, the coach started talking to the goalie about what a nag the centre’s wife is?

Can you imagine that if instead of practicing, planning for the game, conditioning, and building each other up through pep talks, the defence started complaining about how inappropriately dressed Number 8 was all the time?

Can you imagine that if instead of practicing, planning for the game, conditioning, and building each other up through pep talks, the manager gossips with the left wing about how messy the right wing’s car is?

Can you imagine that instead of practicing, planning for the game, conditioning, and building each other up through pep talks, the goalie is worried about what player number 9 may have said to player number 12 about player number 13?

Can you imagine that if instead of practicing, planning for the game, conditioning, and building each other up through pep talks, one of the players was so self-focused that he was always whining and always complaining and always sharing about all of his perceived problems and how miserable his life is?  Can you imagine if he was always complaining about himself or someone else or some real or some perceived problem in his life? Can you imagine if he refused to rejoice always in his sport?

What would happen to that hockey team and their goal of winning the Stanley Cup, if instead of being of one mind in rejoicing in the opportunity provided to play, they instead gossiped, tore each other down, cried about their own state of affairs and complained about those who were on their own team? What would happen if they weren’t of the same mind? What would happen? Would they achieve their goal of winning the cup? Would they achieve their goal? No.

What will happen to the Church, what will happen to this congregation and our God-given goal of salvation and winning the world for Christ, if instead of being of one mind in rejoicing in the opportunity provided us to serve, we instead gossip, tear each other down, cry about our own state of affairs and complain about those who are on our own team? What will happen if we aren’t of the same mind? What will happen? Will we achieve our goal of salvation and winning the world for Christ? Will we achieve our goal?

Friends, as Paul exhorts us from one ocean and two millennia ago, as we are bold for the gospel, as we remain of one mind, no matter what our circumstances – and I know that there are some very real, trying circumstances represented here today - no matter what our circumstances, I encourage us to, Philippians 4:4-7:[6]

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything [cf. Matthew 6:25-34], but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Even and especially when things are at their most challenging, Philippians 4:4: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 

Let us pray.

www.sheepspeak.com

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[1] L. Gregory Bloomquist, ‘Subverted by Joy: Suffering and Joy in Paul's Letter to the Philippians’. Interpretation 61 (2007): 274. cf. also A. A. Long, Stoic Studies (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996), ch. 8, "Stoic eudaimonism." For Stoics, human life was never an achieved happiness but alwavs remains a battle between cleaving to the flesh and cleaving to the divine logos; see William O. Stephens, review of A. A. Long, Stoic Studies, n.p. Online: http://ccat.sas. upenn.edu/bmcr/1997/97.ll.20.html.

[2] Cf. Morna D. Hooker, The Letter to the Philippians, NIB XI, 548.

[3]L. Gregory Bloomquist, ‘Subverted by Joy: Suffering and Joy in Paul's Letter to the Philippians’. Interpretation 61 (2007): 274.

[4] Cf. Homer A. Kent, Jr., The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Philippians/Exposition of Philippians/V. Second Series of Exhortations (4:1-9)/B. Exhortation to Maintain Various Christian Virtues (4:4-9), Book Version: 4.0.2

[5] Martin, Ralph P.: Philippians: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1987 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 11), S. 172. The attitude of gentleness should not JUST be represented in our relationships in the Church but it should ALSO be represented in our relationship in the Church.

[6] Fred B. Craddock, Philippians, Interpretation Series, 1985,72. Not being anxious, not worrying is very different from not caring.

2 Corinthians 9:12-15: Thanks be to God for His indescribable Gift!

Presented to each the Nipawin and Tisdale Corps 12 October 2008

and Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army 28 April 2013
by Captain Michael Ramsay

Click here to read the message: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2008/10/2-corinthians-912-15-thanks-be-to-god.html

Galatians 5:19-21, Ephesians 4:27-32, Philippians 2:14-16: Green Grenade

Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 21 April 2013
and Corps 614 Regent Park Toronto, 30 August 2015

and TSA Alberni Valley Ministries, 08 June 2025 

By Captain (Major) Michael Ramsay

This is the original version, to read the 2015 version, click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2015/08/galatians-519-21-ephesians-427-32.html

To view the 2025 version, click here:

https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2025/06/galatians-515-21-ephesians-426-32.html

Tim told me this story the other week. I am sure he will forgive me if I have any of the details wrong. For more information, I invite you to chat with him about this after the meeting (service) today.

Early on a Sunday morning – it may even have been Easter morning – there was a knock on the door of Tim’s new place. He had just moved in, I believe. He gets up, answers the door; it is a police officer. She asks, “Are you Tim?”

“Yes...”

“I need you to come with me.”

“Why?”

She tells him what it is that he has supposedly done. Tim doesn’t think that this applies to him at all. As far as he knows he has never been involved in this thing but “Okay.”

“Go get dressed”, she tells him. He does.

The whole time he is wondering, of course, ‘what is going on?’ As he is getting dressed, of course, he is thinking that there is something not right here; so as he comes out of his room, fully clothed, of course, he asks her again, “Who are you looking for?”

As they walk out the door, “Tim”, she says.

As they head out to the car, “Tim who?” he says. “What is the last name of the Tim you’re looking for?”

“You tell me your last name first”, she says. He does. “Show me your ID, please”, she says. He does. “Have a nice day, Tim”, she says. He does.

Apparently some other Tim – in whom the police were interested - used to live here before him; or the new landlord thought he was some other Tim who needed to be questioned by the RCMP; or someone thought they saw some other Tim moving into that place; or something else.

But anyway this was Tim’s excuse for missing church that day. I thought that was a good excuse. Mind you I didn’t check it out with the RCMP yet… (-:

This was a case of mistaken identity. In our texts today – especially the one from Galatians – we may have cases of mistaken identity as well. The pericopes that we read this morning are all passages from letters that the Apostle Paul has written to the Saints (a.k.a. Christians) in various communities that he knows well. He is writing these letters to some churches that he has planted himself. He is writing these letters – in the cases of Philippians and Ephesians – to people he loves and respects. And to the Galatians, he writes of their common problem, Galatians 5:19-21:

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

People who indulge in hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like will not inherit the kingdom of God.[1] This is pretty serious stuff. He is not talking about those who have not claimed that Jesus is Lord (See Matthew 7:15-27; see also Matthew 25:31ff.); Paul is writing this letter to and for people in the churches. Matthew 7:21, Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Paul says that those in the Christian churches – that he himself knows and some of these churches he has actually planted himself – Paul says to his friends that those of us who live a life with hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy and the like will not inherit the kingdom of God.[2] This is serious stuff (cf. TSA doc 10).

This can be quite a prevalent problem too. Paul had to write this similar sentiment in many of his letters, three of which we have read from today.[3] Paul had to warn people who were meeting in the Christian congregations. Paul had to warn the saints in these Christian communities. Paul had to warn the good guys not to get drawn into this stuff or, he says, even they will not inherit the kingdom of God.[4]

We know too that just as this was obviously a temptation for people in the Roman world of the first century, it is equally a temptation for people in the English-speaking world of the 21^st Century. Who of us hasn’t seen or experienced hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like? And who of us ourselves hasn’t been tempted to consider indulging in hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like? Here then is the question for us pertaining to mistaken identity: have any of us been convincing ourselves that we are saints when conversely we regularly partake of hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like? And if we do this, what can we do about it?

These behaviours can pose such a temptation to draw us away from salvation and a loving relationship with God and a loving relationship with our neighbour, can’t they (cf. TSA doc. 9)? We have heard the analogy of yeast working its way through dough. When we are surrounded by all of this stuff, it becomes contagious. We have heard the expression, ‘one bad apple spoils the whole bunch’. This is true. Where one day no one is engaged in discord, dissentions, factions, and the like; one person indulges himself or herself in gossiping with another person who then huddles in a corner with a third person; who then tells someone on coffee row about all of their perceived problems with someone (which may or may not by this point too be true; it may be totally imagined!); and then they tell two friends, and then they tell two friends, and then they tell two friends, and so on, and so on, and so on; and soon the whole congregation is full of cliques, factions, whispering, gossiping, fits of rage and the like. And that is not a good place to be. And that is exactly where some of the first century churches were and that is exactly where a lot of the 21^st century churches appear to be and that is exactly where I would hope and pray that we would not ever find ourselves as a congregation – in this very real danger of – as Paul says, ‘not inheriting the kingdom of God’ (cf. TSA doc. 8).

The effects of these things - hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like - are disastrous. It is like this. I was at an RCMP chaplaincy-training course last week in Edmonton. There were many good speakers. The Edmonton ERT (SWAT) Team Leader let us play with some of their ‘toys’ (their weapons) and he spoke to us about the importance of chaplains in his job when people are shooting at them and when they have to consider what course of action to take themselves.

The keynote speaker, Gerry Fostaty, is a fellow who has written a book, As You Were: The Tragedy at Valcartier, about an incident that happened to him when he was a teenager in military cadets.[5] He was probably the age of Gloria here who is in cadets in town and he was a leader of younger cadets – probably Melissa, Violet, Rebecca, or possibly even Sarah-Grace’s age. They were at a cadet camp in Valcartier, Quebec. As part of the camp, they got to handle with weapons not entirely unlike us at the conference in Edmonton last week. The cadets (even more) learned how to use the weapons properly and how to take care of the weapons and how the weapons worked and all kinds of things like that. (Melissa, Violet, Gloria, do you girls get to do that sort of thing?)

In one class, the adult instructor was handing out dummy grenades for the children to examine. The dummy grenades you can apparently tell from the real grenades because the dummies are brightly coloured - orange, pink, blue – not the military green of the combat weaponry. The cadets, the children were encouraged to take apart these dummy grenades, put them back together, examine how they work, etc., etc., etc… Apparently and disastrously in with the orange, pink, and blue-coloured grenades was at least one green-coloured military grenade. The children were passing this live green grenade – along with the toy grenades – along the line of cadets in the class. They were taking the pin out and placing it back in and they were holding (I don’t know what the term is but…) the safety and they were disassembling and reassembling the green grenade along with the coloured grenades when one little boy pulled the pin and putting the grenade in the wrong place, or holding it the wrong way, or holding the pin out for too long… There was a loud noise.

The writer of this book was out of the room at this time; he ran in when he heard the explosion and found his little brother who was not seriously injured alongside the many others who were. One deadly green grenade had mixed in with the harmless coloured grenades and this one green grenade brought with it destruction and death.

The result of this green grenade in a room full of children is essentially the same as what results when hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like wind up in our churches. These are our green grenades. When we put ourselves first, engaging in selfish ambition instead of thinking of others as greater than ourselves (Philippians 2) the results are essentially the same.[6] Just as the green grenade brings physical death when people handle it and it is passed about improperly; Paul reminds us that hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissentions, factions, envy, and the like, bring everlasting death to those who are consumed with them. Paul says that they will not inherit the kingdom of God.

So what can we do about this? Well, in the words of one wise man, “if we are acting this way, we should simply stop acting this way.” The Apostle Paul says, in essence, that we need to remove the green grenades from the box; we need to remove these things from the church.[7] We need to, Ephesians 4:31-5:2a:

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.  Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us…

We need to remove the green grenades before they go off. Paul says, Galatians 5:16, 22-25:

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh… But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Remove the green grenades before it is too late. Paul says, Philippians 2:3-4 &12-13:

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others... Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfil his good purpose. 

Friends, I remind us all today that selfishness, gossip, slander, talking about others in this way, pulling each other down instead of building each other up… these are the green grenades that can blow the roof right off the top of a corps or a church that has to that point been very actively fighting in the Salvation War. When we think of ourselves as equal or greater than others, when we allow ourselves to get worked up about what other people are doing or saying, when we start talking about others and when we start tearing each other down instead of building each other up; that is really our pulling the pin on a green grenade that the enemy has tossed into the Holy of Holies, this, the body of Christ.[8] So today I challenge each and every one of us and today I encourage each and every one of us here “to be wholly sanctified, and that [our] whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (TSA doc 10) and so as Philippians 2:3,4 records, let us “do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above [ourselves], not looking to [our] own interests but each of [us] to the interests of the others.”

 

Let us pray.

 

www.sheepspeak.com

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[1] Francis Foulkes, Ephesians: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1989 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 10), S. 139: Quoting the Old Testament again, the Septuagint of Psalm 4:4, he says, Be angry but do not sin. The av rendering of the psalm, ‘Stand in awe, and sin not’, gives a different turn to it. The Hebrew verb rāgaz means basically to ‘tremble’, and it could be with fear or rage (BDB). Whichever was the psalmist’s thought, the Septuagint is meaningful and relevant. There is anger which is righteous anger, such as we see in our Lord himself (e.g. Mark 3:5; John 2:13–17); but his anger never led to sin, because his emotions were kept under perfect control.

[2] R. Alan Cole, Galatians:An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1989 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 9), S. 217: Inherit the kingdom of God; although Paul is emphatic that we cannot by ‘doing’ the works of the law enter our promised inheritance (3:12, 18), but that entry is by faith alone (3:11), yet he strongly asserts here that by ‘doing’ these very different things we can bar ourselves from the kingdom …those who do such things thereby show themselves to be without the transforming gift of faith which leads to the gift of the promised Spirit, which, in turn, leads to the fruits of the Spirit, the seal of our inheritance.

[3] Cf. Davorin Peterlin, Paul's Letter to the Philippians in the Light of Disunity in the Church, (Leiden/New York/Cologne: Brill, 1995), 217.

[4] Cf. James Montgomery Boice, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Galatians/Exposition of Galatians/III. The Call to Godly Living (5:1-6:10)/C. Life in the Spirit (5:13-26)/2. The works of the flesh (5:19-21), Book Version: 4.0.2

[5] Gerry Fostaty, As You Were: The Tragedy at Valcartier (Fredericton, NB: Goose Lane Editions, 2011).

[6] Ralph P. Martin, Philippians: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1987 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 11), S. 101: The ethical terms used here expose the spiritual malaise at the heart of the church, and point to the all-sufficient remedy. Selfish ambition, eritheia (rv, ‘faction’) is the same word as in 1:17 where it is used to describe the inimical intention of Paul’s enemies. Of the Philippians it is used of party squabbles and petty conceits. We might translate it ‘quarrelsomeness’, although that does not quite convey the hint of self-seeking which the word contains. Such a display which Galatians 5:19–21 brands as an ‘act of the sinful nature’ sadly disfigured the inner life of the church.

[7] Cf.  Frank J. Matera, ‘Galatians in Perspective : Cutting a New Path through Old Territory’ in Interpretation 54, iss. 3 (July 1, 2000): 244-245

[8] Cf. Morna D. Hooker, The Letter to the Philippians, NIB XI, 499