The Advance of the Gospel (Sermon)

This sermons was preached by Kevin Deane on June 14, 2015 at Fairmont Baptist Church in Saskatoon. You can listen to the sermon online here.

WWI was filled with heroics, battles and bloodshed. One of the most significant battles and pivotal moments in Canadian history was the battle of Vimy ridge. There were 4 Canadian divisions against 3 German divisions. Vimy Ridge is a ridge in France that overlooks a very crucial pass. Take it, and the armies can advance. The battle began at 5:30 am on April 9. It was during a heavy and cold snowstorm. By 6:30 am they had captured the first line of defense. By 7:30 am, three of the four divisions had captured the second line. The 4^th division was almost entirely wiped out. After 4 days, Canada had captured the ridge. You can well imagine the commander behind this attack. His orders would have been very simple, "keep on advancing." There was no adequate excuse for the troops to stop. Their conversations, had there been any, would have been something like, "It's snowing." "Advance!" "The fourth battalion has been wiped out." "Advance!"

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

(Php 1:3-5)

Paul is thankful for this church. He is filled with joy every time he remembers them. Why? Because of their participation in seeing the gospel go forth.

The gospel is like an advancing army, and they have supported that army.

Stop and think of all the reasons Paul could have been filled with joy for these people. He is not filled with joy because they were once saved – although I'm sure when they were converted He was jubilant. He's not filled with joy when he remembers them because of their hospitality or great memories he has of them. He's not filled with joy because they are particularly knowledgable, or have something new and exciting going on in the church, or even because they are growing. Paul is filled with excitement, filled with joy, because when he thinks of these people, he is reminded of the fact that the gospel is going forth.

It is the advance of the gospel that is of the primary importance to Paul.

If you think of being far from home, it's not hard to relate to the concept of being filled with joy. Your letters home might say something like,

'I'm excited to know you are safe and healthy,' or, 'I was excited to hear about the marriage of so-and-so' or that someone got a new job.

Even when we are absent from the people we love, we still celebrate with them and for them. Paul is filled with joy every time he remembers them, but not because of their well-being or because of any accomplishment, he is filled with joy because of the role they play in seeing the gospel go forth.

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.

(Php 1:6-7)

So here Paul is expressing the same thing. He says he is confident that God will bring them to completion at the day of Christ Jesus. Why is it ok for him to think that? Because he holds them in his heart. In the greek, that is his inward being, the center of all emotion. So there's this deep yearning that is going on in Paul. He loves them deeply – why does he hold them in his heart? Read verse 7 – because they are partkaers in grace, in his imprisonment and in his defense and confirmation of the gospel.

For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

(Php 1:8-11)

The love he has for the Phillipians is not his own. This deep love, this passion, it is because Christ is loving through him. He deeply loves them and gives them a model for how they ought to live.

And now here is Paul's desire for them – he desires them to grow and grow and be more holy. More love. More knowledge. More discernement. Approve what is excellent. Be pure. Be blameless. This is what Paul wants for them.

And it's an absolutely incredible call for us to examine our own affections. To examine what brings us joy. Because what we are going to see in the rest of this book is that there is absolutely nothing Paul is not willing to go through, nothing Paul is not willing to give up in order to see the gospel advanced. Knowing that Jesus' message is advancing is so high on Paul's priority list that it should put all our selfishness to shame.

So while we live our lives in our comfortable homes with our nice leather bound Bibles. What the book of Phillipians is asking us today, is how much of a role do we play in seeing the gospel advance. And how well do we on Paul's model of living? Do you love more? Know more? Than yesterday?

"I see so few of our churches risking everything for the mission. We have retreated into our nice big buildings, where we sit in our nice, cushioned pews and chairs, where we are insulated and isolated from the inter-cities and spiritual lostness of the world. We have given a tip of our hats to world missions and evangelism as an optional program for the faithful few while we go on designing endless programs that revolve around us; and when we should be on the firing lines for God...most of our people are still in the nurseries of our churches drinking spiritual milk." - David Platt

Is a ticket at a parking metre what makes or breaks your day? Or is it the advance of the gospel that gives you joy?

What gives you joy? God is the giver of joy. And in the cross we see every attribute of God represented. In looking at the cross we see God. Knowing God and seeing others given the opportunity to know God should be the greatest thrill we can encounter.

Think about the fact that in the last week, dozens of funerals have taken place in this city. About 4 thousand people died worldwide because of Aids. Thousands worlwide have been sold into the sex trade. And what really grabbed hold of your attention this week was if the Blackhwaks would beat the Lightning. Shouldn't our focus be riveted on a message that can counteract all the darkness?

See we're like, 'what an awful day I got stuck dealing with people all day long,' and Paul's like, 'I just got thrown in prison and am now chained to a guard. This is awesome, the guard can't go anywhere. I'm going to preach all night long. Even if I sing he can't leave.'

Read these verses:

I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

(Php 1:12-14)

Do you hear that? He's happy, or even pleased with what has happened because it serves as an opportunity to advance the gospel. I think the modern parallel would be to write something like, “I want you to know, brothers, that I have cancer. But this has really served to advance the gospel, for I now have opportunity to preach it to a variety of hospital staff.”

We as a culture are so self-absorbed. Our first priority is our own well-being, and the well-being of our children. Just think how many children have been discouraged from going to the mission field, or from bible college, because their parents didn't want them to encounter a life of poverty and hardship. But here's Paul, 'I am excited to see the gospel is advancing.'

I was at a youth conference a few weeks ago with about 400 young kids and several youth leaders. I was working with this one youth group and staying with the leaders. And from these two ladies that helped organize it, every morning we got up we heard new complaints. “These matresses are thin, my back hurts. Oh, I'm so tired from that late night. I'm having to runa round with these kids. I'm too old to do these weekends more than once a year.” And I remember sitting in a session and hearing the gospel proclaimed so clearly and we brought 8 youth. I think 5 of them went forward to receive Christ. And I could see visible, tangible changes in these kids lives. Maybe you should sleep on thin mattresses more often. Maybe tiredness is really just selfishness. Paul would have been thrilled to sleep on thin matts – he's thrilled to sit in prison! and run around all night with those kids if they got to hear the Word of God.

But here's Paul, 'I am excited to see the gospel is advancing.'

Paul isn't excited about seeing different giftings used (and he wrote Corinthians). He's not excited about new or different programs going in churches. He's excited about the advance of the gospel. I think our priorities are wrong, when we get excited that the awesome games we play has helped our youth group grow to 40 kids.

When the reality is, we should be more excited that 5 kids were taught, grown, mentored, sanctified, and made into evangelists. The Christian has a very different view of success than the world does.

Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

(Php 1:15-26)

Our understanding of success, and our understanding of endurance changes dramatically. See the average person when faced with difficulty clings to the hope that the sun will come up tomorrow. That they will make it though the darkness. But for the Christian, every roadblock, every barrier, is an opportunity to proclaim the gospel, whether we make it through or not.

We are a faith built on upon a history of men and women who have endured unto death.

The priority of the Christian faith is seeing the gospel advance.

Think of Stephen, proclaiming the gospel to the Jews. And they begin to hate him and become angry. He is not looking for a light at the end of the tunnel. If you think a happy ending means peace and prosperity, and good prevailing, then Stephen's story does not have a happy ending. As they pick up stones and kill him, the happy ending is seeing the gospel travel from Jeruslaen to the ends of the earth.

As the apostles are murdered, one by one, they are not looking for silver lining in those dark days, but they are singing hymns as they go to be publicly murdered because they know the gospel is advancing.

In more recent times, Jim Elliot marches into Ecuador and is murdered. If you read his diary, he was ready to pay that price. And his wife knew what was important – not the memory of her husband, but the advancement of the gospel, and she marched into the tribe and preached herself.

Regardless of what we face, our priority is always the gospel. It's the only thing that ought to stir the affections of our hearts. Seeing it advanced is our first priority. And if we will spend our lives advancing the gospel, it must mean the death of our self-centred love of our own comfort.

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

(Php 1:27-30)

I can't help but think of the story of George Whitefield. A man who preached daily until he died of exhaustion.

• He started preaching at 24
• On average, preached about 1,000 times every year, or three times a day
• He preached for 30 years
• This included 18,000 different sermons and 12,000 different talks and lectures.
• Most weeks he was speaking more than he was sleeping
• He preached on average for 60 hours a week
• He never took time off (there was no private life or family life)
• No one has ever really preached as much or as widely
• He preached until the age of 54, when he was on his way from town to town and was intercepted on the way. He was asked to preach and could barely finish he was so tired. He continued on to the town he was headed to and had to be carried from the boat because he was so tired. The house didn't hold all the people, so he preached outside. Despite being almost two weak to finish, he completed his sermon. He went to bed, got up in the morning, prayed on his knees, lay down on his bed and died of exhaustion.

Let us be the same way. Let us not be concerned for ourselves. Not concerned for our safety, or our well-being or our reputation. Let us see that te gospel advances through Saskatoon. Whether they martyr us or we see revival. Let us make it our priority.

The Need for Wisdom (Sermon)

This sermon was preached by Kevin Deane at Fairmont Baptist Church in Saskatoon on

 July 12, 2015.

When Adam and Eve ate that fruit they lost their relationship with God, but there were many things they gained (or gained the knowledge of). Justice, for example had never been known, because God had never previously had anyone to judge. No one in the garden had ever preached a sermon on righteous living. They gained the knowledge of both good, and also of evil. The problem was their natural tendency to choose evil. So just as an example, Cain knew that God was not pleased with his sacrifice of vegetables. He knew that was wrong according to God. But he did not discern that God would be even less pleased with him killing his brother. Cain could have asked God what he should do. He could have sought out wisdom. But instead he ended up being a wicked man. It was not that God was not willing to show what justice and righteousness looked like, but Cain was not willing to listen.

And the rest of human history has been the story of men and women continuing to do evil, because although God has revealed the path of righteousness, we are bent and wired to do otherwise. So I believe the Bible is one large story and one large cry for mankind to rely on something outside of ourselves. That to be righteous we need something that we do not naturally posses. To be made righteous once and for all we need to be justified through Christ's blood, but more than that in, order to live a righteous life we need a wisdom that only God can provide.

The book of Proverbs, is no exception, and highlights the value of wisdom. And I think the first three chapters are one big dissertation, or one big poem on the importance and necessity of gaining wisdom. In order to live righteously, we're going to need a God-given wisdom. Now Solomon writes about gaining wisdom with the assumption that it isn't something we naturally have. But he does write about it as something we need. In fact, he says several times that it is the start of the fear of the Lord. That is to say that in order to understand righteousness or justice or equity, we will need wisdom. So lets' read Chapter 2.

"My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of his saints. Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path; for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you, delivering you from the way of evil, from men of perverted speech, who forsake the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness, who rejoice in doing evil and delight in the perverseness of evil, men whose paths are crooked, and who are devious in their ways. So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words, who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God; for her house sinks down to death, and her paths to the departed; none who go to her come back, nor do they regain the paths of life. So you will walk in the way of the good and keep to the paths of the righteous. For the upright will inhabit the land, and those with integrity will remain in it, but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the treacherous will be rooted out of it."

(Pro 2:1-22)

So if we gain wisdom we will understand the fear of the Lord. These are the promises for the one who gains wisdom: We will understand righteousness and justice and equity and every good path. Knowledge will be pleasant to our souls. We will be delivered from the way of evil. Delivered from men of perverted speech. Be delivered from the forbidden woman. We will walk in the way of good and keep to the paths of righteousness. Godliness is in the hand of the wise.

See all of us naturally know the difference between good and evil (more or less). We know that perverted speech and adulterous women are wrong. But what we lack is the perspective of eternity. We lack a sufficient knowledge of God and His rewards to continually make the right choices. We knowingly choose wrong, not because of a lack of self-control, but a lack of wisdom. We need something that we do not naturally possess. So we are going to look at three tendencies or three common foolish choices that you and I make. They are outlined in the book of proverbs so we can really see and understand how much we need wisdom and where we can get it.

The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! There is a lion in the streets!" As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed. The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth. The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly.

(Pro 26:13-16)

I believe every one of us contains at least some tendencies to be the sluggard. The sluggard is the kind of person who makes excuses for not doing the work given to him. There are no lions in Israel. He invents imaginary foes so he may continue to hide comfortably inside.

The sluggard is the kind of person who doesn't give to the church because of an impending financial crisis

The sluggard is the kind of person who can't help with youth because they don't want to be overworked, and goes home to watch TV.

The sluggard is the kind of person who refuses to volunteer at a soup kitchen for the sake of their own safety.

The sluggard is the kind of person who won't lead a Bible study because they don't know enough, but hasn't bothered to try studying or preparing.

The sluggard is the kind of person who wants to cancel church because there is an inch of snow on the ground.

They take a problem that could be a problem, something with very small potential to be real, it grows into a certainty in their minds and they end up staying in their house doing nothing because they believe 'there is a lion in the streets.' And this could be a very genuine belief. It isn't always a conscious excuse. Sometimes it's birthed out of insecurity. Sometimes it comes from a bad experience in the past

The other thing a sluggard does is turns on his bed like a door on a hinge. And buries his hand in a dish but can't find the strength to bring it back to his mouth. Now when eating or sleeping is used to rejuvenate you for working it is a good thing. A God-given thing. But when resting becomes unproductive it is simply a waste of time. I think we are all prone to this. Many people, after a long day of work want to come home, turn the TV on and turn their brain off. We want to do something that doesn't engage, doesn't require effort or a response. One of the most common trends among my age bracket is to take a day off as a day to spend watching through a whole season of a TV show or just watching netflix. We fill our heads with media. When even our resting is unproductive, we are the sluggard he describes.

I think we all contain at least some 'sluggard' tendencies. So what is wisdom? What we lack is the perspective of eternity. Knowing how long eternity is and how short life is changes our work ethic. The wise man knows and understands righteousness. Which means he no longer lives for Himself, but says with Paul, “Whether I eat or drink or whatever I do, I do all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)

The second tendency we all have is to desire things that appear good. Let's read 5:1-6:

My son, be attentive to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding, that you may keep discretion, and your lips may guard knowledge. For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps follow the path to Sheol; she does not ponder the path of life; her ways wander, and she does not know it.

(Pro 5:1-6)

This is like a man who is extremely hungry and he walks to a restaurant. But as he gets closer to the restaurant he is so hungry he can not contain himself, and he dives into the garbage can and starts chewing on the rubbish. Is his hunger satisfied? Yes. But is he given the strength and nutrition he needs? No. See the temptation has all the appearance of being good – this adulterous woman drips with honey and is smoother than oil, but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood.

I want to borrow an illustration from John Piper. He was speaking on the subject of pornography, but I think it is more widely applicable.

If you were sitting at your computer screen, caught fully in the sway of sexual desire, more powerfully than you ever felt before, with every intention to look at something innapropriate online, and suddenly an ISIS member with a black mask burst into your room with a knife to the throat of your best friend. And they said they would kill your best friend, perhaps its your wife, if you clicked on that site, you would suddenly find you have all the self control you need. Likewise, if someone burst into your room and offered you one million legitimate tax-free dollars if you did not click on that site, you would have all the self control you need. There is no one who has a true sexual addiction, there are only people who make poor sexual choices.

He's speaking of pornography but I think the lesson is far more broad. Sin costs us intimacy with God. Purity offers us a chance to experience the riches of Jesus. If we actually knew and believed that losing intimacy with God was more costly than losing our best friend, we would have self-control. If we actually believed the riches of Jesus Christ were more valuable than a million dollars, we would have the self-control we needed.

The Holy Spirit's job is to constantly reveal to us the cost of sin and the riches of Jesus. What is wisdom? Knowing and believing how much sin cost us.

Over the last few weeks, with the legalization of homosexual marriage in the States and the rise of gay pride worldwide, I believe the church is headed into a new and bigger battlefield than ever before. The early church faced martyrdom, the Reformation era saw political and social rejection, but I think our era will be remembered for a different fight. I believe we will be remembered for our sexual purity. I think the church is entering a new age where a pastor having an affair will no longer be a 'scandal,' it will be a permanent stain on the ministry. Now, more than ever, the purity of the believer is of utmost importance.

The third tendency Solomon talks about in Proverbs is having a loose tongue.

Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble. "Scoffer" is the name of the arrogant, haughty man who acts with arrogant pride.

(Pro 21:23-24)

If you can keep control over your tongue you can stay out of trouble. How you use your tongue is a huge key to righteous living.

How and when we speak can have a huge effect on our life.

Think about what words can do in the context of:

Church life – gossip can rift quicker than murder

Evangelism – We can have the right words but lack compassion. We can offend with our presentation rather than message.

Work – The break room can easily become the complain room

Proverbs talks a a lot about quarrels. It takes wisdom to know when and which fights to become a part of. Jesus knew when to rebuke pharisees and when to stand silent before Pilate. We need His wisdom.

Proverbs also talks a lot about speaking when it isn't necessary. A common image in the book is of the nagging wife – a favourite image for some. Words can put unnecessary tension in a family. Too many words can tear apart a marriage.

So here we are – the sluggard, the one who is tempted by what appears good, and the one with a loose tongue. Maybe you identify with one of those images, maybe you identify with all of them. The point is that we all have tendencies to make foolish decisions. Tendencies to live unrighteous. What we need in order to live Godly daily lives is a perspective of eternity. To know the length of eternity and the value of knowing Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 2 told us very clearly that when we look for wisdom we will find it. The Fear of the Lord and wisdom are two things that inspire and cause each other. God has given the eye, and given light to meet the eye's need, and in the same way, God has not only given the heart, but given wisdom to help meet the heart's need. Wisdom is offered as freely to man as folly is. God 'stores it up' for the upright. Meaning it is free, but it is hidden away for those who seek it according to his conditions. As gold is found by those who dig deep in the ground, wisdom is found by those who dig deep into the Word. Searching for wisdom is a process of refining and purification. As it comes into your heart, knowledge will become pleasant to your soul. When we are given wisdom, it can be put into practical use.

When we are given wisdom, we will understand the Fear of the Lord. And when we understand the fear of the Lord, we will begin to see the value of the time on Earth we have been given, and we will not waste it. As we are given the fear of the Lord, we will see the cost of sin and the riches of Jesus and we will remain pure. As we are given the fear of the Lord we will learn to guard our tongues and use them for building others up. This is the heart of the gospel; we need God's help. And that He is willing to give it. Wisdom calls from the streets. Seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures.