Easter Morning IBC. 3/31/2013. 1 Corinth 15.

Why Does the Resurrection Matter? Our Belief is Validated by it.
1 Corinthians 15:12-20
Pastor Nam Park.

The Question before us: Why Does the Resurrection Matter?
When thinking of the gospel of Jesus, we don't always think of the Resurrection.
We emphasize the His death and the forgiveness of sins through His death. But it's rare to hear the Gospel with emphasis on the fact that He was raised from the dead.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

- Paul stresses that not only that Christ dies, a death validated by burial, and then raised.

Why do we celebrate the resurrection and not merely His death? A: Because the resurrection demonstrates the power of everything He has promised.  He can actually give life and not just proclaim the forgiveness of sins. The resurrection validates everything that is accomplished on the cross. His Resurrection is the key to THE LIFE that is lived in Him.

1 Corinthians 15:12-20 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. 15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.

20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 

Matthew 9:1-6 Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to His own city. 2 And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.” 3 And some of the scribes said to themselves, “This fellow blasphemes.” 4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts? 5 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He *said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go home.”

Only God can dispense grace and grant the forgiveness of sins.
Which is easier: To say your sins are forgiven or to demonstrate the impossible? You can't just go around saying "your sins are forgiven," without validating the power behind it. The crowd understands it perfectly, that Jesus is not just talk.
So did Jesus die on the cross? ABSOLUTELY. But not only did say that he would take the wrath of God in the place that we justly deserve, He would overcome death and then come back to life; Physically, Verifiably, Historically. That validates that He is UNLIKE ANYONE ELSE. He has come back from the dead. This is the power of the gospel.

At that time, if you didn't believe, you were to go verify it with witnesses of the resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:5-8 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; 7 then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; 8 and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. 

If Christ was not raised, then we are not forgiven and we are still in our sins. 
He died "ONCE FOR ALL." And once I believe, he becomes my forgiveness of sins (past, present, and future sins). And if Christ didn't raise from the dead, there is no proof that we are forgiven. It's proof of the power of God to save.

Micah: Dad, which is your favorite super hero?
Nam: Superman.
Micah: Yea, I like superman because he's the most powerful.
---
Nam: But Micah, can he create life out of nothing?
Micah: What? 
[Teaching them, no matter how powerful one created being can get, he can not measure to the power of God. God speaks and reality happens; that is His power.]

God's power is mostly demonstrated:
1. The Creation of the World
2. The Salvation of Sinners: To give to dead men who are in their sin, life again. 
Salvation of your Soul. The darkness of your sin. The deadness of your death. In the midst of your sin, you have been given life. But no resurrection, you're still dead, in your sin.

Romans 7:24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 

Two Options.
1. We pay for our own sins.
2. Son of God takes our place. But if Christ isn't raised, we don't get option 2.

The tragedy of this world is all around. Each tombstone has the story of a life lived. Yet our hope is beyond death.  1 Corinthians 15:20 affirms this.
1 Corinthians 15:20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.

Dead men do not come back from the grave.

But God has the power to give life to that which was dead.

And if Christ is raised from the dead, our testimony is TRUE and more significantly, your sins are FORGIVEN. And if Christ has been raised from the dead, not only has He died for my sins once for all, He proves has the authority to do it. To demonstrate that the Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins, He has risen from the dead. For those that have hope in Christ, we will see them again. For those that have hope in Christ, we are not pitiful but instead the MOST TO BE ENVIED among all humanity.  Christ will change us and give us life. We worship a living Savior. He is risen, He is alive. 

2nd Hour IBC. 3/24/2013.

Prayer: By Affirming God's Character, Pray Confidently and Expect God to Answer.
Genesis 18:22-33
Tim Jin

Genesis 18:17 The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18 since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed?

God reveals to Abraham what he is about to do to Sodom and Gomorrah to teach him of His justice and righteousness.

Genesis 18:22-33 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord. 23 Abraham came near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” 26 So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” 

.

32 Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.” 33 As soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham theLord departed, and Abraham returned to his place. 

Abraham models how we ought to pray: By Affirming God's Character, Pray Confidently and Expect God to Answer.  In this passage, God is Just and Abraham affirms that God will not act outside His character.

v.23 “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?"

God's Justice doesn't allow Him to treat the righteous and the wicked alike.

I. PRAY CONFIDENTLY.

v.27 And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes.  

Even though Abraham knows that he is but dust and ashes before the Lord, he can still pray confidently. He is also persistent in his prayers.

Notice that Abraham ends his prayers in questions while we normally end our prayers in statements. "To question God is to Trust Him and to Believe in Him" ~ loosely quoted from William Varner.

v. 25 ...Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?

II. PRAY SPECIFICALLY.

"Definite prayers are greeted with definite answers." ~loosely quoted from Professor Rosscup.

v.24 Fifty

v.28 FortyFive

v.30 Thirty

v.31 Twenty

v.32 Ten

Abraham asks for specific numbers and God answers him.

III. PRAY EXPECTANTLY.

We can't change God's will. 
But, might God have acted differently if you had not prayed? I venture "yes."
Example: George Muller.

What next? You'd expect Abraham to ask for God to save Sodom with only 5 righteous.  Ultimately, it's about saving that 1 righteous person. But God leaves.
Genesis 19:4-7 Proof that the city is wicked.
Genesis 19:12-21The Angels are still intent to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.

Abraham expected one of two possible options:
Either the Cities fall or the Cities stand.
God's Resolution: The Cities fell and the Righteous lived.
God was faithful to act according to His unchanging character.

Let what you know about God's Character Drive your Prayers.

Sunday Morning IBC. 3/24/2013. Luke 3.

Luke 3:7-9. A Voice in the Wilderness (Part II).
Pastor Nam Park. 

Luke 3:7 So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. 9 Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

Each of us, uniquely, (with our own personality) put the stamp of following Christ upon our own lives. There is no other human being in scripture, as consecrated, as completely SOLD OUT as John the Baptist. His mind and heart were pointed to the cross. He was a conduit (not to emulate as a person but to emulate as a follower of Christ) an instrument to point people to Christ. John was the Magnesium that burned so BRIGHT for just a short while, then was gone.

Why was such a Preparation Ministry necessary?
A: The people had forgotten that Salvation was from the Lord. The Lord is Savior.
If John didn't remind them of their sins, they might not have been able to connect the death Christ's death to the atonement of their sins.

Baptism of Repentance: You are a sinner. Come and be baptized in recognition that you are in need of salvation.

Luke 3:7 Term "brood of vipers"  
Brood: the offspring of an animal. 
"You children of venomous snakes." And those well-versed in the old-testament would immediately relate this to the garden of Eden where the serpent was the devil.
The Jews considered themselves "children of Abraham" yet John was calling them offspring of the devil. Being considered "children of Abraham" was insufficient to save them from their sins. You can not be born into Salvation.

"who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"
Jesus will one day return with wrath and the question everyone must answer in judgement will be: How did you honor my Son? 

John preaches the BAD NEWS that makes the GOOD NEWS so good.
[1] Either I pay for my own sins or [2] Something greater than me, a precious lamb comes and takes my place.  We are not saved from the Devil, but rather, we are SAVED from the Wrath of God.

"the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire"
Everyone unwilling to seek salvation from the Lord, the axe is already ready to swing. SOON! NOW! The fire is God's wrath. It consumes and we perfectly deserve it.

This message of the gospel is offensive to some but DELIGHTFUL to others.
It might be hard to share the gospel, but remember that the Gospel is a DELIGHT and find encouragement there when we share. John made HUGE enemies over the course of his life, yet because of his strong conviction, hundreds if not thousands streamed to the Judean Dessert to find him preaching. We likewise are conduits to lead others to Christ.

2 Corinthians 2:14-17 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. 15 For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; 16 to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things? [[not us, we're just a conduit, pointing men to the salvation: to the Savior that they need and the Salvation they can have.]]

2nd Hour IBC. 3/17/2013.

Prayer: Aligning yourself to God's Will. 
Ray Kwan.

Looking at 6 Examples of Prayer.
Isaiah 38:1-6 Hezekiah Sickness. This proud man prayed for healing and God granted him 15 additional years of life. This allowed for Hezekiah's heir to be born, allowing the Lord to fulfill His promise to continue the line of King David.

Exodus 32:9-14 Moses Prays. 

9 The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, they are an obstinate people. 10 Now thenlet Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation.” 11 Then Moses entreated the Lord his God, and said, “O Lord, why does Your anger burn against Your people whom You have brought out from the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians speak, saying, ‘With evil intent He brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your burning anger and change Your mind about doing harm to Your people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants to whom You swore by Yourself, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heavens, and all this land of which I have spoken I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” 14 So the Lord changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people.

God tests the faith of His people by hearing their prayers. As Moses prays, we can see that his heart is aligned to God's. Moses shows concern for God's glory.

James 5:13-18 "Effective" prayer.
God supplies the energy for prayer.
The book of James is concerned with Wisdom put into Practice.

Luke 18:1-7 Persistent Widow.
Be persistent in asking for Justice. The KEY here is asking for things JUST.
Argument from the lesser to the greater: If this unjust judge will answer to the persistent widow, how much more so will the JUST Judge be willing to respond.

Luke 11:9-13 Knock.
This is not a blank check for prayer. The request here is for food.
Argument from the lesser to the greater: If earthly fathers provide food, how much more gracious will our Heavenly Father be with the things He knows that we need.

John 15:7 Abide in the Vine.
Verse 7: If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
This is ALSO not a blank check for prayer. What is the qualification? A: His words must abide in you. 

In Review, God did not grant years of life to the Prideful Hezekiah b/c he asked, but God granted that request to fulfill His Promise to David. Prayer is not about asking for what we desire or swaying God to do things for us. 

We pray to: [1] ALIGN our hearts to God's Will and when the Lord answers our prayer, we must [2] ACCEPT the answer He gives us. 

2 Samuel 12:22-23 He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’23 But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”

Sunday Morning IBC. 3/17/2013. Luke 3.

Luke 3:1-7. A Voice in the Wilderness.
Pastor Nam Park.

3 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, ² in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness. ³ And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; ⁴ as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
‘Make ready the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight.
⁵ ‘Every ravine will be filled,
And every mountain and hill will be brought low;
The crooked will become straight,
And the rough roads smooth;
⁶ And all flesh will see the salvation of God.’”

⁷ So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 

Let's appreciate the ministry of John the Baptist. Looking to him as a man consumed with the glory and ministry of glorifying his Savior. His life was consecrated to the greatness of his God. Sacrificing a normal life in exchange for a difficult life that was God-honoring. And help us to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel.

John's instruction isn't: You should become like me. 
Instruction to the Wealthy -> Share.
Instruction to Tax Collectors -> Earn an honest wage.
He didn't instruct them to live like him. He chose that life because he loved the Lord. We must find our own ways to live out our love for the Lord.

John wasn't a "reed swayed" and spoke the truth to Herod about his wife.
Luke 7  ²⁴ When the messengers of John had left, He began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ²⁵ But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces!²⁶ But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one who is more than a prophet.²⁷ This is the one about whom it is written,

‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You,
Who will prepare Your way before You.’

²⁸ I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 

In the the time of political chaos in Luke 3:1-2, when the leaders did not consider the Lord as their authority, God sends John the Baptist.
John preached a "Baptism of Repentance": the requirement for this baptism was repentance (uncleanness). Pointing forward to Christ.
The Jews saw this baptism as offensive because it declared even them as being unclean.

Repentance: turning from ourselves towards God. This is part of Luke's over-arching theme.

Repentance is necessary b/c we're all sinners. Yet, while Romans 10:13 says the following, John 6:44 says that it's God who saves. So, which is it? Answer: YES!
Romans 10:13  for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
John 6:44  No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. 
Philippians 2:12  So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;

"Christian Baptism": Points backward, to the Cross. We are united and identify with Christ.

Why was such a preparation necessary (John the Baptist)?
A: God's people had forgotten the wonder of being saved.  They were culturally Jewish... And assumed salvation. They had forgotten that they were still sinners, needing salvation.

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness,  
‘Make ready the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight.
⁵ ‘Every ravine will be filled,
And every mountain and hill will be brought low;
The crooked will become straight,
And the rough roads smooth;
⁶ And all flesh will see the salvation of God.’”

Many that followed John realized that Jesus was the lamb. They became followers of Jesus. He was a great bridge from the old covenant to the new covenant. John connected it all for them... if they were willing to repent. Turn to the Lord and repent.

Sunday Morning IBC. 3/10/2013

Acts 1:1-11. "What are you waiting for?: Remembering the work of the disciple"
Guest Speaker: Pastor Dick Conners.

Acts 1:1-11 The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach, ² until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen. ³ To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. ⁴ Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; ⁵ for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” ⁶ So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; ⁸ but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
The Ascension
⁹ And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. ¹⁰ And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. ¹¹ They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”

1. Disciples need to learn of "active waiting" [while waiting for Christ to return; GOOD WORK]. 
James 2:18-26 But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” ¹⁹ You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. ²⁰ But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? - - - ²⁴ You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. ²⁵ In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? ²⁶ For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.

 Philippians 2:12-13 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; ¹³ for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

2. Disciples need to adopt Christ's mission.  To save the lost from their sins; WITNESS.
Luke 18:31-34  Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. ³² For He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon, ³³ and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him; and the third day He will rise again.” ³⁴ But the disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said.

Luke 24:46-49  and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, ⁴⁷ and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ You are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

3. Disciples need help from the Holy Spirit to carry out the work.  RELIANCE on the SPIRIT.
Acts 1:8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Profitable.

Acts 20:20-21 how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house, ²¹ solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

I've been encouraged by reviewing my sermon notes as Pastor Nam goes through the book of Luke. We'll see how this goes!  c.lau