Ben Zornes

Living and Dying to Show the Preciousness of Christ

Home » Meditations » Page 46

Meditations

Slaves to Sons

Slaves to Sons

by ·

Slaves of wicked men live under perpetual fear of torment. Perhaps they became slaves because of some fearful misfortune; but they generally have no means of escape. They cannot escape, because the penalty for runaway slaves is death; they dare not try to escape because the cost of failure is torture. We are born into slavery; slavery to sin. The fear of punishment looms over every action. The whip of shame flicks constantly overhead. Slaves know only fear. All they know behind them and before them is fear.

Not so with sons. Sons are loved. They are welcomed in, the father’s pride beams over them. Sons are disciplined, certainly, but the discipline is administered as a means of correction, not as a final judgement. By Christ, we are delivered from slavery, and thus all our fears, and brought into the household of joy. In this home, God counts us as His very sons and daughters. He beams with joy over us. He gives us our portion of the inheritance. That inheritance is infinite joy. We lay claim to that inheritance by being baptized into Christ. So, these children come not as slaves, but freeborn children. They are free because of Christ’s blood, shed to deliver them from slavery.

Praying After Supper

Praying After Supper

by ·

Matthew, Mark, and Luke note that Jesus gave thanks for this meal and blessed it, sanctifying it by His prayer. John’s account of the Last Supper is similar but with a unique feature; it includes a full record of the prayer that Jesus prayed after the supper.

In that prayer, often called the High Priestly prayer, Jesus stands before the Father on behalf of the disciples and for those who would believe because of their testimony. He prays that His people might be made one, even as He and the Father are one. This meal before us was founded by Christ’s blessing, and it was concluded with intercessory prayer. 

We’re called to imitate Christ. Now, we can’t imitate His final sacrifice for sin; sorry champ, you’re just not qualified for that. However, we ought to do as He did. One response which this meal should lead us to, is fervent prayer on behalf of others. Christ gave this meal to His disciples so they would memorialize and shew forth His death. He then concluded that meal and commenced His walk to the cross by interceding in prayer for them and for us.

So, we should do likewise. Receive this meal in gratitude, and under the Lord’s blessing. Then stand before the Father, because you are united with Christ, and plead with God on behalf of those in need.

Prayer is how the life of faith breathes. Christ has given us new life, by uniting us to Himself (symbolized in this meal). So now breathe in and out that Christ’s kingdom would come. Pray that God would compel the nations to join us here; bring home wandering sheep; convict hypocrites; undo wicked men’s plans; heal those too ill to even come to the house of the Lord; and pray that in all our dealings, we might show forth Christ’s death until He comes.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus…

The Spirit and the Supper

The Spirit and the Supper

by ·

The church, through all windings of history, has emphatically taught that Christ is memorialized in this Supper. The bread we break is His body, the wine we drink is His blood; this is a cup of blessing, because it overflows with Christ. But the only reason the saints partake of Christ is because of the Holy Spirit’s work.

One of the works which are attributed to the Holy Spirit is that of sealing. After hearing the Word of Christ’s saving work proclaimed, those who believe are, as Paul taught, “sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise (Eph. 1:13).”

The Spirit changes our heart and opens our eyes, so that the declaration of the Gospel is not only heard by our physical ears but is received by faith. The Spirit then seals that faith, confirming to the believer that they are owned a child of God. A seal confirmed that the letter which was received was genuinely from the one who sent it; and thus the contents of the letter could be believed, the promises made would be fulfilled, the benefits conferred would be given.

This is Christ’s body and blood. If you’ve heard & believed the good news that your sins are forgiven and have been given eternal life, it’s only because you’ve been united with Christ. The Christ whose body was broken & whose blood was shed to reconcile sinners to the Father. The only reason that you partake of Christ in this meal is because the Spirit has sealed you.

Calvin put it this way: “the Holy Spirit is the bond by which Christ effectual unites us to himself.” The Holy Spirit binds you to Christ, and Christ brings you to the Father, and by God’s triune grace, you enjoy fellowship with the Source and fountainhead of all the blessings. Fellowship with the Blessed One. Fellowship with God, because the Holy Spirit has sealed you.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus…

Prepare for Worship

Prepare for Worship

by ·

Have you ever seen a theatrical performance where all the actors have clearly invested a lot of time to know their parts? The show’s going off without a flaw, and then one actor enters the stage who doesn’t know his lines or stage directions, and keeps ruining key scenes.

Unfortunately, that actor’s glaringly bad “performance” will become the thing which is remembered. I bring that up not merely to say, “don’t be that guy,” but also to highlight what our corporate worship ought to be. The Reformation restored the work of worship to the people, the congregation. Worship isn’t a performance of people up on stage, while the audience watches.

Rather, we are the performers. We are the actors. We are the set. Which means that our corporate worship requires work. It takes attentiveness. It takes preparation. 

First off, and above all, it demands that we come in the right garments: the righteousness of Christ. Knowing that our filthy works of self-righteousness are odious to Him. But as we come to God, to bring our worship, and are dressed in Christ’s righteousness by faith, we are filled with His Spirit to render good works which God accepts. These songs we will sing, these prayers we will offer, the Word which we will hear, these tithes we will give, the Supper we will take are good works which God has called us to.

So, know your part. We print next week’s songs in the bulletin and post them on the church website/app, so work on the songs beforehand as a family so as not to be caught off-guard. Get the ironing done Saturday so that you’re not scrambling for clean trousers on Sunday morning. Do all this so that together, as the congregation of the Lord, we execute this service of praise to the Lord as a thing of glory.

When the Seed Flowers

When the Seed Flowers

by ·

There’s an important exegetical point which we make whenever we baptize a child of believing parents. We don’t baptize babies because we want to coo over sweet little cherubs, with all their adorable chins of baby fat. We do this because faithful exposition of Scripture demands it.

God didn’t decide to wad up the promise He’d made to Abraham and pitch it out the window and start from scratch with Jesus and those who believe in Him. The coming of Christ isn’t the failure of God’s promise to Abraham, it’s the fulfillment. Likewise, baptism isn’t a replacement of circumcision, it’s the flower of that seed.

Jesus was the fulfillment of what God had promised to Abraham. All those who trust in Christ are true children of Abraham and share in the same promise which was made to him. The exegetical point we make here is that God’s promise stands as firm now as it did that starry night when God assured Abraham that His seed would possess the gates of his enemies. God has promised and He will make good. This baptism is a faithful reception of that same promise to us & to our children.

So welcome covenant child to Jesus Christ…

Scary Things

Scary Things

by ·

The world is full of scary things, wicked monsters, and unseen— but cunning —dragons. God wants us to fight them. How do we defeat them?

We fight them by trusting Jesus, singing God’s praises joyfully, sharing what God has given us with others, and obeying His word. So even though there are scary things in the world, God gives us courage to defeat them.

Another Inch Forward

Another Inch Forward

by ·

When a nation goes to war, it does no good to rally their resources and spill the blood of their sons just to grow squeamish at the first sign of resistance. They must persistently engage the enemy until the battle is won.

The battle of Iwo Jima is a remarkable instance of this. It was of vital importance to capture that strategic outpost. Many days, the goal was simply to inch forward to a slightly better position to fire upon the enemy. Slowly, after a month of grit & determination to win, by crawling forward inch by inch, the U.S. troops finally bested the enemy.

Worship is warfare. We’re in locked battle with those who worship Humanity. Their sacrament is the abortion of babies and the satiation of their various lusts, their songs are political slogans, their prayers are cancel campaigns, their righteousness is found in good works (as defined by current sentiments). 

Our weekly worship is in direct conflict with this false religion. We are forgiven for sins by the sacrificial death of God’s own Son. We lift songs of praise to the only Source of true delight. We offer prayers to One who made every star and grain of sand.

The enemy will oppose us, but we must not be turned aside. Our worship culminates in this meal. Here we are fortified for the fight at our daily posts as husbands, wives, sons, daughters, students, teachers, employers, and employees.

Inch by inch, week by week we advance Christ’s Kingdom. This meal is like another charge into enemy ranks. In this bread which is the body of the Lord, and this wine which is the blood of the only sufficient sacrifice for sin, God is lifted up. God in Christ is held forth to you. And as He is lifted up, His enemies are scattered (Ps. 68:1).

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus…

Ben Zornes