“Change in 2010”
(Luke 5:33-39)
Dr. Richard S. Koole
Chapel Pointe
January 3, 2010
I. Introduction
A. The umbrella
1. Invented by Jonas Hanway
a. Had to suffer a barrage of missiles and insults when he walked down an English street
b. People don’t always like change
2. Other inventions
a. The steam boat (Fulton’s Folly)
3. The personal computer
B. Most of us struggle with change
1. It can push us out of our comfort zone
2. Yet change is an “inconvenient truth”
3. Three truths about change
a. Some things must never change
b. Some things might change
c. Some things have to change
4. Takes wisdom to determine which is which
5. What do you need to change in 2010?
a. Resolutions
C. Change and Jesus
1. He rocked a lot of boats
II. Review
A. The feast (Luke 5)
1. Levi (Matthew) became a follower of Jesus (Luke 5:27-28)
a. And went after his friends
2. Threw a banquet for tax collectors and others “sinners” (v. 29-32)
a. Tax collectors were hated by the religious leaders
b. And Jesus was having dinner with them
3. Pharisees verbally attacked Jesus
4. The response of Jesus
a. “I came to call sinners to repentance”
b. “Not you self-righteous guys”
B. A second group was watching Jesus
1. The followers of John the Baptist
2. They too were getting uncomfortable
3. Jesus wasn’t doing it like John had
a. Some “life-style” issues
b. Source of much conflict even today
4. Three illustrations from things they knew well
III. Text
A. Wedding Receptions (v. 33-35)
(33) They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.”
1. The Pharisees had a question
a. And so did the Disciples of John the Baptist (Matt. 9:14 )
2. Jesus and disciples ate well at Matthew’s dinner
a. But John’s followers thought they should have been fasting
3. Four things regarding fasting
a. The Old Testament command to fast
1. Only on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:26-27 )
2. Yom Kippur
b. Pharisees added two per week
1. Every Tuesday and Thursday
2. Sign of greater righteousness
c. Fasting was supposed to be a sign of sorrow (humility)
1. They made it a show of self-righteousness
d. Fasting became a part of their culture
1. The disciples of John the Baptist were raised that way
2. They meant well
4. Jesus points to the Wedding Reception (Luke 5)
(34) Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?
a. Eating and food at wedding receptions
1. Usually last 3 hours
b. Theirs lasted seven days
1. Plenty of food and joy
2. Bride and groom stayed all seven days
c. No sadness while bride and groom are there
5. Jesus is called the bridegroom…and everything has changed
a. Time to eat and rejoice!
6. But a time of sorrow was coming
(35) But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.”
a. Jesus talking about his soon-coming death
B. Torn Clothes (v. 36)
(36) He told them this parable: “No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old.
1. Current style in jeans…..faded and torn
a. Old pictures of me
b. Iron-on patches
2. You can’t patch old jeans with new denim
a. The new will shrink and the old already has
b. (Matthew 9:16) “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse.”
3. Primary lesson…..you can’t mix the old and the new
a. The OT Law had served its purpose
1. To prepare them for Jesus
2. He was there….and it was now done
3. We’re not under the O.T. Law
b. Many wanted to hang on to the old law
1. Especially the Pharisees
2. Had added their own laws to it
a. Fasting
3. Often done with a cold heart
4. Christ brought freedom from the Law
a. Not a combination of grace and human effort
5. Gives a second illustration
C. Wine Skins (v. 37-39)
(37) And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. (38) No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. (39) And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, “The old is better.”
1. Wine Skins
a. Skin of an animal…a goat
b. Often turned inside out
c. Sewed legs shut
d. Used neck as spout
e. Put new wine into them and let it ferment
2. New wine released gases during fermentation
a. Caused the wineskin to stretch
b. But once it hit its limit….
1. No more “give”
3. The danger of putting new wine in an old wine skin
a. The new wine would cause it to burst as it fermented
b. Thus….you never put new wine in old wineskins
4. Same lesson as before
a. Don’t try to add Jesus to Jewish law or rituals
b. Grace and the Law don’t mix
c. It’s all or nothing
5. Difficult for early believers
a. Peter’s struggles in Acts 10
1. Eating un-kosher foods
2. Salvation for the Gentiles
3. “What was I to do?”
b. Not easy to let go of what you’ve been taught
1. When Paul confronted Peter regarding circumcision
2. Called him a hypocrite
c. The followers of John the Baptist
1. They were holding on to fasting
6. The difficulty of change in the church
a. Especially in this area
b. Our CRC…RCA…GARBC…IFCA culture
c. Things we were taught
1. Many wonderful things
2. But also “church culture”
d. We become comfortable with the way things are done
7. Have watched many great churches become ineffective
a. Start out with a highly effective method
1. The difference between methodology and theology
b. But their culture continually changes
c. Soon find that what worked 10 years ago, no longer does
d. “Those who marry this culture will be widows in the next”
8. Fail to grasp the following truth
a. Some things must never change
b. Some things might change
c. Some things have to change
9. Our vision 12 years ago
a. Six humbled men with a vision
b. “Let’s see what God can do”
c. All six are still leaders at the church
10. Determined what must never change
a. Our Core values
b. Beyond that…everything was and is on the table
1. To complete our mission
c. Our vision and passion continues
11. But we first agreed on our Core Values
a. This is who we are and it has not changed
b. The platform for our vision and passion
c. Drove six stakes in the ground
II. Our Core Values
#1 We are a “Bible-based Church”
…where the Bible is the inspired and inerrant Word of God, and as such is to be taught literally as our guidebook for all matters pertaining to daily life.
1. Where the Bible is taught with authority and passion
2. Where the Bible is accepted as God’s revelation to mankind
a. Inerrant in its original manuscripts
b. Wholly inspired
c. To be taken literally unless clearly indicated to the contrary
3. Where the Bible is preached in its entirety
a. Instead of the topical whims of the preacher
b. A. W. Tozer
“The Word of God well understood and religiously obeyed is the shortest route to spiritual perfection. And we must not select a few favorite passages to the exclusion of others. Nothing less than a whole Bible can make a whole Christian.”
4. Where the Bible is preached with depth
a. Instead of sermonettes
5. Where the Bible is preached regardless of the consequences
a. Not aiming at political correctness
6. Where the Bible confronts the issues of our day
a. Culturally relevant
7. Where the Bible is preached to “transform” and not just “inform”
#2 We are a “Worshiping Church”
…where worship is personal, dynamic and pleasing to God…where He alone receives all of the glory.
1. Where the people worship in Spirit and in Truth
(John 4:23)
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks
a. Churches with spirit….and not truth
b. Churches with truth…..and not spirit
2. Where the people are participants….and not spectators
a. God and the holy angels are the spectators
b. God is “evaluating you”
3. Where people experience the presence of God
a. And not just hear about Him
b. Where God shows up for church
4. Where the singing is directed toward God
a. vibrant
b. dynamic
c. genuine
#3 We are a “Caring Church”
…where the people treat each other as family, and willingly rush to the aid of brothers or sisters in need of spiritual or material support.
1. Where we take care of each other
a. A natural outpouring
2. Where people are more important than programs or buildings
#4 We are an “Equipping Church”
…where leaders are committed to helping each believer by providing the opportunities and support for them to maximize the effective use of their talents and spiritual gifts.
1. Where we are preparing the next generation
(II Timothy 2:2)
And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others
2. Where we are concerned with the entire family
a. Multi-generational
3. Where your children will be loved and nurtured
#5 We are an “Evangelizing Church”
…where reaching the lost for Christ at home and abroad is a driving passion.
1. Where our mission is the “great commission”
a. Matthew 28:19-20
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
2. Where you feel comfortable bringing your unsaved friends with you
a. They will witness authentic Christian worship
b. Where they will desperately want what they are witnessing
3. Where the truth of the gospel is woven into every sermon
a. Paul came preaching nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified
b. My goal
1. Preach each sermon as if it will be the only time
4. Where there are ministries designed to attract the lost
5. Where the members are equipped to lead people to Christ
6. Where our impact is both local and global
#6 We are an “Empowered Church”
…where people aren’t afraid to pursue God-sized dreams through the power of persistent prayer.
1. Where the “unexplainable” happens
a. Where the people believe God’s promise that He is “able to do beyond what we can ask or imagine”
b. Joshua 3:5
Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”
2. Where people “experience” the presence and power of God
3. Where the people have a God-sized vision
4. Where prayer is the source of our power
a. (James 5:16) “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective
b. E.M. Bounds
“What the Church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy ghost can use…men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not anoint plans, but men, men of prayer.”
“Change in 2010”
(Luke 5:33-39)
Dr. Richard S. Koole
Chapel Pointe
January 3, 2010
I. Introduction
A. The umbrella
1. Invented by Jonas Hanway
a. Had to suffer a barrage of missiles and insults when he walked down an English street
b. People don’t always like change
2. Other inventions
a. The steam boat (Fulton’s Folly)
3. The personal computer
B. Most of us struggle with change
1. It can push us out of our comfort zone
2. Yet change is an “inconvenient truth”
3. Three truths about change
a. Some things must never change
b. Some things might change
c. Some things have to change
4. Takes wisdom to determine which is which
5. What do you need to change in 2010?
a. Resolutions
C. Change and Jesus
1. He rocked a lot of boats
II. Review
A. The feast (Luke 5)
1. Levi (Matthew) became a follower of Jesus (Luke 5:27-28)
a. And went after his friends
2. Threw a banquet for tax collectors and others “sinners” (v. 29-32)
a. Tax collectors were hated by the religious leaders
b. And Jesus was having dinner with them
3. Pharisees verbally attacked Jesus
4. The response of Jesus
a. “I came to call sinners to repentance”
b. “Not you self-righteous guys”
B. A second group was watching Jesus
1. The followers of John the Baptist
2. They too were getting uncomfortable
3. Jesus wasn’t doing it like John had
a. Some “life-style” issues
b. Source of much conflict even today
4. Three illustrations from things they knew well
III. Text
A. Wedding Receptions (v. 33-35)
(33) They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.”
1. The Pharisees had a question
a. And so did the Disciples of John the Baptist (Matt. 9:14 )
2. Jesus and disciples ate well at Matthew’s dinner
a. But John’s followers thought they should have been fasting
3. Four things regarding fasting
a. The Old Testament command to fast
1. Only on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:26-27 )
2. Yom Kippur
b. Pharisees added two per week
1. Every Tuesday and Thursday
2. Sign of greater righteousness
c. Fasting was supposed to be a sign of sorrow (humility)
1. They made it a show of self-righteousness
d. Fasting became a part of their culture
1. The disciples of John the Baptist were raised that way
2. They meant well
4. Jesus points to the Wedding Reception (Luke 5)
(34) Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?
a. Eating and food at wedding receptions
1. Usually last 3 hours
b. Theirs lasted seven days
1. Plenty of food and joy
2. Bride and groom stayed all seven days
c. No sadness while bride and groom are there
5. Jesus is called the bridegroom…and everything has changed
a. Time to eat and rejoice!
6. But a time of sorrow was coming
(35) But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.”
a. Jesus talking about his soon-coming death
B. Torn Clothes (v. 36)
(36) He told them this parable: “No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old.
1. Current style in jeans…..faded and torn
a. Old pictures of me
b. Iron-on patches
2. You can’t patch old jeans with new denim
a. The new will shrink and the old already has
b. (Matthew 9:16) “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse.”
3. Primary lesson…..you can’t mix the old and the new
a. The OT Law had served its purpose
1. To prepare them for Jesus
2. He was there….and it was now done
3. We’re not under the O.T. Law
b. Many wanted to hang on to the old law
1. Especially the Pharisees
2. Had added their own laws to it
a. Fasting
3. Often done with a cold heart
4. Christ brought freedom from the Law
a. Not a combination of grace and human effort
5. Gives a second illustration
C. Wine Skins (v. 37-39)
(37) And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. (38) No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. (39) And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, “The old is better.”
1. Wine Skins
a. Skin of an animal…a goat
b. Often turned inside out
c. Sewed legs shut
d. Used neck as spout
e. Put new wine into them and let it ferment
2. New wine released gases during fermentation
a. Caused the wineskin to stretch
b. But once it hit its limit….
1. No more “give”
3. The danger of putting new wine in an old wine skin
a. The new wine would cause it to burst as it fermented
b. Thus….you never put new wine in old wineskins
4. Same lesson as before
a. Don’t try to add Jesus to Jewish law or rituals
b. Grace and the Law don’t mix
c. It’s all or nothing
5. Difficult for early believers
a. Peter’s struggles in Acts 10
1. Eating un-kosher foods
2. Salvation for the Gentiles
3. “What was I to do?”
b. Not easy to let go of what you’ve been taught
1. When Paul confronted Peter regarding circumcision
2. Called him a hypocrite
c. The followers of John the Baptist
1. They were holding on to fasting
6. The difficulty of change in the church
a. Especially in this area
b. Our CRC…RCA…GARBC…IFCA culture
c. Things we were taught
1. Many wonderful things
2. But also “church culture”
d. We become comfortable with the way things are done
7. Have watched many great churches become ineffective
a. Start out with a highly effective method
1. The difference between methodology and theology
b. But their culture continually changes
c. Soon find that what worked 10 years ago, no longer does
d. “Those who marry this culture will be widows in the next”
8. Fail to grasp the following truth
a. Some things must never change
b. Some things might change
c. Some things have to change
9. Our vision 12 years ago
a. Six humbled men with a vision
b. “Let’s see what God can do”
c. All six are still leaders at the church
10. Determined what must never change
a. Our Core values
b. Beyond that…everything was and is on the table
1. To complete our mission
c. Our vision and passion continues
11. But we first agreed on our Core Values
a. This is who we are and it has not changed
b. The platform for our vision and passion
c. Drove six stakes in the ground
II. Our Core Values
#1 We are a “Bible-based Church”
…where the Bible is the inspired and inerrant Word of God, and as such is to be taught literally as our guidebook for all matters pertaining to daily life.
1. Where the Bible is taught with authority and passion
2. Where the Bible is accepted as God’s revelation to mankind
a. Inerrant in its original manuscripts
b. Wholly inspired
c. To be taken literally unless clearly indicated to the contrary
3. Where the Bible is preached in its entirety
a. Instead of the topical whims of the preacher
b. A. W. Tozer
“The Word of God well understood and religiously obeyed is the shortest route to spiritual perfection. And we must not select a few favorite passages to the exclusion of others. Nothing less than a whole Bible can make a whole Christian.”
4. Where the Bible is preached with depth
a. Instead of sermonettes
5. Where the Bible is preached regardless of the consequences
a. Not aiming at political correctness
6. Where the Bible confronts the issues of our day
a. Culturally relevant
7. Where the Bible is preached to “transform” and not just “inform”
#2 We are a “Worshiping Church”
…where worship is personal, dynamic and pleasing to God…where He alone receives all of the glory.
1. Where the people worship in Spirit and in Truth
(John 4:23)
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks
a. Churches with spirit….and not truth
b. Churches with truth…..and not spirit
2. Where the people are participants….and not spectators
a. God and the holy angels are the spectators
b. God is “evaluating you”
3. Where people experience the presence of God
a. And not just hear about Him
b. Where God shows up for church
4. Where the singing is directed toward God
a. vibrant
b. dynamic
c. genuine
#3 We are a “Caring Church”
…where the people treat each other as family, and willingly rush to the aid of brothers or sisters in need of spiritual or material support.
1. Where we take care of each other
a. A natural outpouring
2. Where people are more important than programs or buildings
#4 We are an “Equipping Church”
…where leaders are committed to helping each believer by providing the opportunities and support for them to maximize the effective use of their talents and spiritual gifts.
1. Where we are preparing the next generation
(II Timothy 2:2)
And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others
2. Where we are concerned with the entire family
a. Multi-generational
3. Where your children will be loved and nurtured
#5 We are an “Evangelizing Church”
…where reaching the lost for Christ at home and abroad is a driving passion.
1. Where our mission is the “great commission”
a. Matthew 28:19-20
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
2. Where you feel comfortable bringing your unsaved friends with you
a. They will witness authentic Christian worship
b. Where they will desperately want what they are witnessing
3. Where the truth of the gospel is woven into every sermon
a. Paul came preaching nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified
b. My goal
1. Preach each sermon as if it will be the only time
4. Where there are ministries designed to attract the lost
5. Where the members are equipped to lead people to Christ
6. Where our impact is both local and global
#6 We are an “Empowered Church”
…where people aren’t afraid to pursue God-sized dreams through the power of persistent prayer.
1. Where the “unexplainable” happens
a. Where the people believe God’s promise that He is “able to do beyond what we can ask or imagine”
b. Joshua 3:5
Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”
2. Where people “experience” the presence and power of God
3. Where the people have a God-sized vision
4. Where prayer is the source of our power
a. (James 5:16) “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective
b. E.M. Bounds
“What the Church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy ghost can use…men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not anoint plans, but men, men of prayer.”