MCC Podcasts
Theology Matters - Soteriology
I know that you're running out of time and actually you got plenty of time, you're still golden. Is this an ice sweater? Just thought doing some props. Thank you. He was so proud of it. He spent like three minutes off this morning telling me about it and I just wanted to make sure you got some props for it. It's a good looking. You know, didn't we agree that my office is like Las Vegas, what happens in there stays in there? That's right. You want me to share everything that I've heard while you and I were talking in there. I can do it right now. And it was an accident. Somebody said, "Hey, you got Niners colors on and I do, but I didn't mean to." Wouldn't it have been cool if I would have accidentally worn some tan slacks today? That would have been so nice. All right. So in honor of my dear brother Rob, I'm pulling for New England today. And of course, you know, I mean, if you're not rooting for the Niners. I'm a converted Rams fan and I'm rooting for the Niners today. And my son Josh is also a converted Rams fan. And we agreed, okay, his nickname for me is squash. I call him squash. So I mean, it's squash and then our daughter is sweets and our son David whom you've known here as worship leaders, his family nickname is gutter ever since they were born. So I said squash, if the Niners get into the Super Bowl, we're going down to buy jerseys. Is it agreed? He says it's agreed. So we're hoping that we can go spend some money. Before I get going too much further down the road in this, I want to remind you that on the back table, we bought 80 of these, $2 a piece. While we're talking in this series on theology and theology matters, we thought it would be good to encourage as many as we can, at least 80 of you, to be reading the pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer who, every once in a while you're going to, if you're reading this book, you're going to hear a prayer that he wrote or a little something maybe in one of the messages from Tozer. But this is brilliant stuff, one of the greatest theological minds of modern history. They're $2 a piece. I prepaid for them. So I paid it forward for you. So I'd love to get reimbursed. So go ahead and pick one of these up at the back table right back there and just leave $2 in the box, take one home and read it and enjoy it. Be a fun read, that's not a fun read, but it's a profound read for you if you want to do it as couples or a family as well, the pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer. Pardon me? They have all the pages in them, yes, that's a reference to Pastor Jeff who was ripping pages out of the Bible last week right up here in front of everybody, it's a good, it's a good, do they have all the pages? You still haven't forgiven me. My point is made again this week. Let's pray. Well, God already we've sensed your presence here and we shouldn't be surprised by it because we ask for it. We ask you to blow through your people gathered in such a way that we feel the warmth of the wind in the presence of the Spirit of God, that we've come away from here refreshed in response to a week of living your principles, of busying ourselves with loving like you loved, of confronting and facing down our fears, of saying no to things that are sadly natural to us and yes to things that must be learned in the way we live in our community. When we come here deeply in need of refreshment, of encouragement, and that comes from your presence. We've already sensed your presence, at least I have, and now we ask God that you would take of your inspired word and guard against misunderstanding, miscommunication, maybe even misinterpretation that gives rise to the miscommunication, but all of us together, even though I'm doing most of the talking here, all of us together are learners as we trust you to teach us. So would you quicken our minds, Lord, so that we never become members of that group that just sits and listens and believes everything adheres thoughtlessly? Would you keep speaking through me, through the teachers that are teaching in various places on this campus and through us as we listen, discern, and apply in the name of Christ, amen? There's a man who's a popular conservative columnist, he's been a speech writer for presidents, a graduate I believe of Harvard School of Medicine, he's a physician, and many of you have heard Charles Krauthimer and read him, and from his 2012 New Year's editorial, I begin this morning with an excerpt that I found to be interesting, said, "As the romance of manned space exploration has waned, the drive today is to find our living thinking counterparts in the universe." For all the excitement over current discoveries in Earth-like planets, he writes, "However, the search betrays a profound melancholy, a lonely species in a merciless universe anxiously awaits an answering voice amid utter silence." And you want to read that to be uplifted. So according to Krauthimer, we are a profoundly melancholy, lonely species living in a merciless universe searching for a voice of hope that comes from outside of our known world. Now in all fairness to that article, that's sort of the picture he's creating, what he's going to go on to argue, I just want to be fair to the article and not rip it too far out of its context. He's going to go on to argue that for the value that that's not going to happen, it's not happening because he's saying that ultimately intelligent beings are co-opted by their own intelligent to destroy themselves. The results of intelligence ultimately brings destruction to super-intelligent beings and he's arguing that article that the hope for humankind is a sound and reasonable politics. So politics has as its responsibility, among other things, protect us from the negative outcomes of our own intelligence. But that quote still was pounding at me as I read it, a friend of mine sent it to me this week. And it reminded me of another quote that is maybe more well known, well certainly more well known, in fact it's become sort of secondary scripture for many of us. Well one of the great thinkers of history, a 17th century thinker who was also a Christ follower said, "There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every human being which cannot be fulfilled by any created thing," blaze Pascal. All of us have this God-shaped vacuum in us, this half-magnet and the other half is God and there's something in us that's looking for something outside of us to rescue us. That's what Pascal is saying. So both Krauthammer and Pascal are referring to an express need for humanity to be rescued from a force outside of itself. And of course as I've already said, Krauthammer goes on beyond that but that's sort of the foundation for his argument at least as in terms of an illustration. And suspiciously he concludes that politics is what gives us the best chance for that rescue. Now I don't think for a moment that that's all this great mind thinks about the subject. We're just judging him or I'm just using him from one article. Pascal argues that humanity's only hope for rescue comes from and through Jesus and is different as these two men's positions are. Both the 21st century Krauthammer and the 17th century Pascal believe that humanity needs are protectors, different as they are they both believe that. They're both looking for something from outside of ourselves to protect us or rescue us or keep us a rescuer a redeemer that unless somehow humanity is rescued or redeemed or saved whether it be by a solid politic humanity sort of organizing in such a way that it can save itself from itself or from a force outside of itself as Pascal would say by God. They're both saying that unless something happens unless there's some intervention some place humanity will destroy itself and be cursed by its own intelligence. For instance by that they mean to say for instance we're smart enough to figure out how to create weaponry that we don't know how to control and then because of human intelligence and the scientific ability to create weapons of mass destruction for instance now the big concern isn't will rational thinking nations control themselves with the use of that. Now the concern is what happens when non-rational thinking people get their hands on all of that and eventually you can see where we have the book. Are you excited and encouraged yet this morning? But both are saying as others have said unless something happens unless there is some redemption someplace whether it's literally just literal destruction or spiritual destruction whatever version humanity really is in a bad way and that introduces us to our big word this morning. We're in this series big words theology matters big words that make a big difference and we now have another ology word today the big word for today is soteriology and just as a way of reminder the hope is we're going to kind of define it and think about it a little bit but then get to the place where we say so what how does that big word make a big difference so we want for this to be more than a lesson but something that inspires the heart and encourages as well. The first section has to do with this big word so tereology let's look at it a little bit and then we'll look at how it makes a difference. Comes from the Greek word that means to save in the verbal form it's sozo the noun will form a soterre savior rescuer I define it this way soteriology is the study of the mechanics of religious salvation as theologians use the word soteriology they're studying what's behind what's in the process of this rescue that most philosophers whether Christian or not know must happen it's the study of how a person is transitioned from not to use scriptural language a kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light that's Bible language focusing but not rest focusing on but not restricted to the activity of God in that process so that's sort of the heavy heavy definition of what we mean by soteriology to put it in old school TV preacher language it's the study of how somebody gets genuinely saved but there's much more to this study than that language might imply. Some examples of this use remember we I said last week that the scriptures were written by people but they came from God when the scriptures were written by people and as God was employing people to communicate his message and get it written down they had they used a language that was available to them at the time so there was a field of meaning that the common culture the community would use when to convey things they would use certain words and there was a field of meaning that they would all agree upon and the scripture writers pull from those very same use those very same words in the context of that very same field of meaning so to look at some of the examples of the way this word was used is very helpful in Matthew 8 you have the reference for instance this isn't the only time not even close to the only time this verb shows up in the New Testament but here's a good example of it you have the example of the storm happening and what are the apostles who are with Jesus in the boat during the storm yell out they yell out master while the storms are storms raging and the waves are you know coming over the top of the boat and they think they're going to sink they yell out master save us so do us rescue us in extra biblical literature so this is literature that was out there about the same time the Bible was written letters legal documents scholars can look at scriptural words and then they can look at the way those particular words tended to be used the same time scripture was written and get a sense for what it helps us to get a sense for what the Bible writers might have meant by it and some extra biblical literature you have the word used to sort of preserve or protect or keep safe you have one reference of a letter that was written to an authority that was going to be visited by some friends and the letters said hey save yourself for us because we're coming to we're coming to visit you soon save some of your energy energy don't expand everything save a little something for us you have a pretty broad range of usage for the word in the noun form again preserver savior rescuer they're all synonyms that could be used in scripture in extra biblical scripture you you have the noun form of the word from which we get this big word so tereology used to refer to an emperor or a a prefect as the saver or protector or preserver for instance of personal rights I'm coming to you governor and I'm pleading with you as my savior for justice you're the one who makes sure protects everybody's right to have a fair hearing you have that sense of this word from which we get our word savior or save in the big word so tereology so just a quick definition and some examples of how the word was used but let's get into the essence of the study if we boil it down to its simplest and most important points what do we mean by so tereology this big fancy theology word I'd put it this way the first thing we need to remember is that it means this it means that God sees creations predicament we're going to focus on God's activity and understanding this but God sees creations predicament God always has seen he foresaw he sees now creations predicament he is a parent who loves the children he created that he sired and he watches them he stays aware of them and he's aware of their ache their successes their joys their celebrations their stumbles and their falls we all try to stay aware of all of that those of us who have children we can't and maybe we don't want to know everything that they experience but we try and God is aware he sees creations predicament and here's what he sees when he sees creations predicament scriptures pretty clear on this and Romans 3 you have Paul reminding us of what God sees when he sees creations predicament that all have sinned and fall short of the perfection that God longs for us to experience all of sin there's nobody left out and he sees that in Romans 6 the consequences the results or the scripture says the wages what you earn from sin is death separation from God and that's what God sees so tearyology reminds us that God is aware God sees creations predicament he sees it even when we don't see it he sees that we can't rescue ourselves any doubt of that fact I mean just think about recent history and time after time after time after time humanity is gets itself in a mess and it can't seem to get itself out temporarily maybe but not for good isn't that right I mean just watch the news for a while and you shake your head just look at your own heart and some of the decisions that we still keep making even though we know they're not the best decisions in the world cannot rescue ourselves we need some help back and I'm our daughter Becca and I a few years back she went on a ministry trip with me down to Los Angeles and we had some extra time and so I said let's go see some stuff down here and what do you want to go see it's just was heard as an adult this was just a handful of years ago she said I want to see the labria tar pits and I said okay we'll go see the tar pits and we went to the tar pits and it was a pretty interesting trip actually very educational and you see what happened these beautiful strong magnificent animals unaware that that's not solid ground that's a tar pit walk out to get whatever and they get stuck there and they didn't just get stuck there and then die they try to get out and the more they tried to get out the deeper they were buried in the tar you know the scenario and you even have animals that were prey to predators and you have the animals say I don't know a woolly beast or whatever and then you have a predator right next to it in the same tar pit because the predator would even see oh dinner and he can't move ah easy jumps to start eating and it also gets caught in the in the tar pit and we get to see the remnants of that humanity here's what God sees God sees humanity experiencing the same thing it looks like those animals and part of the study of soteriology is to recognize that God sees the predicament he sees us as stuck and he must appreciate us trying to get unstuck but he also sees the fact that the more unstuck we try to make ourselves in our own strength the more stuck we get so that's the first thing to recognize in soteriology and remember God sees creations predicament the second is this the God doesn't just sit passively by and say oh gee that's too bad what a bummer no it's the study of the rescuer the savior of the world rescue of the world God not only sees creation creations predicament God takes initiative to make a way of escape even from the deepest pit he sees in his heart is broken torn crumbling almost by what he sees and in Philippians two we're told that God saw and he didn't just sit back he took initiative he came he took on the form of a human being the form of a servant in order to come and walk in the tar with us I'm not gonna sit back I'm gonna go to you I'm gonna come to you he sees and he takes initiative soteriology remembers that my dad I remember when I was told which high school I would go to I was in junior high I don't think my dad liked the direction I was going or the he saw the kind of relationships I was building and I was being a normal adolescent trying to prove that I was cool and you do that by who you connect with I don't think that's ever going to change and so my dad saw that and he I know what he did he sat and he thought he said now how can I take initiative to change the trajectory of that kid's life because I don't I'm using that commercial don't have a grandchild with a dog collar on don't whatever it was don't let your internet be slow or something that make all these logical connections my dad said I don't want to have a grandchild with a dog collar and so what my dad did was one day we were driving someplace I still remember this I don't remember everything leading up to it but he said in my eighth grade year what do you think of Archbishop Mitty High School I said never heard of it but I'm going to books or which is now Santa Clara High School and you don't need to know all that good because what do you think of it I'd be cool it's all boys you know okay dress code you can't have sideburns longer than halfway down your ear not a problem for me because it wasn't an option only shirts with a collar on them no patch pockets on your patch you have to wear hard shoes you have to it doesn't sound so much fun but he goes well get used to it because that's where you're going I was introduced to Mitty my dad took initiative now it turns out that was a great decision in his part I mean he could have done something really mean to me like sent me to St Ignatius or Sarah or Reardon or you know someplace like that but instead I went to the best of all still true the best of all the Catholic High Schools in the Bay Area Archbishop Mitty Memorial High School I became a monarch because were the were the monarchs the point was this my dad didn't sit back passively my dad became so tear my dad practice so teriology my dad saw my predicament and took initiative on my behalf and so teriology studies the fact that God is seeing the human predicament taking initiative in response to our stuckness and thirdly God offers us the option for a different life I see it you can't get out of that tar I'm coming and I'm connecting with you and I'm gonna experience everything you experience that's God in his son Jesus Christ coming to earth and living the life we are trying to live and then he offers an option for a different life there's that text that we've been hearing so much about the last few weeks John 3 16 God loved the world in spite of what he saw dripping with tar and getting deeper and deeper with every attempt to get out he loved his creation so much but he took initiative and he sent his son that whoever then would choose to align themselves with his son would not have death as is the consequence of being that stuck but have a chance for eternal life like the eternal life you shared with us that you found God took initiative and then he offered an option for a different life John 10 10 says he says he he came that we might have life in abundance and that text is offered in contrast as you remember he says a thief comes to only kill and steal and destroy to spread the tar and then make sure you get stuck in it having been lured in by him but in strong contrast to that I came for just the opposite reason you say that you might have life and I don't mean the kind of life where you just get to keep breathing abundant life full life rich life purposeful life rescued life this is like when I don't know that they still do this but in in ballroom dancing you can be dancing and there you there are a bunch of people that want to dance and then somebody can come and what do they do if they want to break in tap you on the shoulder and you're dancing with someone and somebody comes up that's a good dancer and taps your partner on the shoulder and says may I and so you have I don't I don't know that I've heard anybody say absolutely not but you're you have to kind of step back and somebody comes in you know what this is like this offer that God gives us it's like we're dancing with somebody who steps on our feet kicks us in the shins we keep tripping over each other's feet trying to dance and we're doing the best we can with this music and then all of a sudden somebody comes in taps him on the shoulder and they leave and somebody comes and replaces them and they are dancing beautifully we're in step this fits this works God sees creations predicament the scripture tells us he takes initiative and then he gives us an offer for a better dance this is the ultimate opportunity to change partners to rearrange everything do not have your feet stepped on anymore or probably more honestly to quit stepping on your own feet fourthly so God sees God takes initiative God offers and a fourth and last point in this study of soteriology is after God offers it seems that the scriptures are showing us that he waits hopes and encourages us to follow him it's kind of like if he taps someone on the shoulder and they leave there's this moment in time where you haven't embraced yet but it's like he's saying may I okay we'll dance like you've never danced before trust me but may I and he waits and he hopes and he encourages come on let's dance how long are you going to dance with a partner that can't dance come dance with me and he waits some people complain about him waiting man oh man I wish you just put the push the button already let's get this thing done I got mine let's get this over with Peter addresses that in second Peter three said God is not slow as some consider slowness it's not like God just kind of getting bogged down in all the details of history God's waiting and hoping and encouraging Peter says he's just not willing that anybody should perish he's not willing that anybody have a bad dance partner he's not willing that anybody stay stuck in the tar and he's it seems as though he's slowing down the historical clock so more people can have a chance to seek clearly and respond to his offer for a different life we were given Brenda surprise party once my wife Brenda surprise party once in Colorado and I thought I had everything all organized had everybody show up at the church and we're having this big birthday party except uncharacteristically she was early and she was ready oh boy she come to second gathering that's our secret that I said that okay she was early and on target probably because she knows that's important to me and sort of birthday and we're going to dinner whatever I had to actually slow her down and make sure that we didn't get to the party ahead of all the guests but I was slowing her down not to ruin her evening I was slowing everything down to enhance her experience in the evening does that make sense and there's God I want to dance with you will you dance with me oh will we ever dance the dance you've dreamt of will dance the dance but hold out your arms and ask me to come to you he sees he takes initiative he offers an option for abundant life and then he hopes he waits he encourages for us asking us to receive him that's what the big word means that's what the big word soteriology talks about but that big word makes a big difference and here are some of the takeaways that I think would be helpful for us today first one the big difference if God sees all of creations predicament you can be sure that he's aware of your predicament it's going from the large to the small from the macro to the micro because you're part of all of creation and sometimes that's pretty encouraging man are you do you are you so busy seeing everybody else that you don't see what I'm dealing with right now nope if God sees all of creations predicament you can be absolutely certain that he's aware of yours to remember that great song who was it Mahalia Jackson I don't remember who introduced it first but his eye is on the sparrow so I know he what watches me that's not scripture but it's scripture I mean the scripture even says God can count the numbers of hairs on your head he doesn't even tax him and if that's true oh my my word he must be aware of me then because he's a if he's aware of the number of hairs I have on my head and that keeps changing every year he's aware of what I'm going through is aware of my life that's a great takeaway God sees all of creations predicament you can be sure these are aware of yours too second takeaway if God takes such sacrificial initiative then every one of us must be incredibly precious to him see we have to hear that over and over and over again because just about every minute of our lives where the opposite is either told to us or implied you're not good enough you're not up to standard you haven't accomplished this you're a bum and you're always going to be a bum even when it's direct like sometimes it's not so direct isn't it true logically no one pays a high price for what isn't highly valued right you don't just go out and pay top dollar for something that you don't value and if God paid such a high price took such sacrificial initiative and every one of us is precious to him and that hairs on your head text even teaches that third takeaway if God is offering and waiting then becoming a Christian involves a decision I make and response to that invitation that's an important thing to remember becoming a Christian and I'll even add and then living like a Christian living out what you have just yielded to takes a decision Jesus says may I cut in and you have to say yes no or maybe later but it's important to remember becoming a follower of Jesus is a choice and then I'll add to that for those of us who'd say I've done that and I haven't backed down on that living into what we claim to believe in the way we treat others in the way we relate even to those with whom we might have strong disagreement in the way we contribute to our community is a series of decisions isn't it it's all about choices John one says Jesus came to his own to the his chosen people and for the most part they rejected him but as many as choose to do the opposite of that as many as received him come all right come on dance with me he gave the right to become children of god that does that involves a decision and folks everybody has to make a decision fourth take away and this is the last one that I'm going to give you we're going to pray together and then I'm going to dismiss you if God is slowing down history's clock hoping people will accept his offer of rescue and encouraging us to wait no longer as by the way is the case because here we are right now you're hearing this going only at least owe him a thoughtful response I think the answer is yes and and that thoughtful response can take many forms a valid response is as I've already stated I'm absolutely certain that I've thought through this and do not believe it and the people might be nice and it's cool to have donut holes and everything but I'm not in and I'm thoughtfully not in I think that's a fair response I don't buy it I'm not in if that's your response to the study of soteriology and all that it implies even if you're not in I hope you'll give us the privilege of staying connected we this church seeks and works really hard at loving and even learning from people with whom we might have significant disagreement another response and maybe we have a bunch of people here I'm not sure but I will commit myself to being open to God's offer I'm not quite sure I can say yes I'm ready to join and baptism next gathering but I am sure that I will say there's something going on that I don't understand and I will commit myself to a prayer that sounds something like God I'm open teach me but I'm not a follower of Christ yet but I'm open or you may say I've been considering this and I've considered it long enough I now know in the deepest recesses of my heart I believe this stuff I believe at least the core of it I believe Jesus was here I believe he got it right and I believe what he said was true and I need to respond to him and I want to follow him I want to I'd like to have forgiveness and a reconciliation with my Creator and I want to pattern my life after the life of Jesus in the community of Christ followers now we can say it much more simply than that but that's a legitimate response I've considered it in my gut I know it's true and I want and even before I understand all about it and then maybe the majority of us would respond like this I am once again deeply aware of what God has done for me and us and I re appreciate the rescuing not going to take it for granted anymore I want to give you a chance to pray in response to those four options my friend John Nodhofer wrote me a wrote a note to some of us that he stays in touch with and in the middle of that note it's a quote from him we said we are still here as a human race as uniquely endowed created in God's image and our Creator God is still alive and well his redemptive interventions in the affairs of his fallen creation are still are great and sustaining hope his redemptive from outside of us interventions to the creation that he sees as broken and stuck are still our sustaining hope Joshua must have fought something like that when he challenged the people who are following him choose you this day whom you will serve as for me in my house we will serve the Lord and I think you deserve a chance to choose would you stand