The Corinthian church was having an in-house debate on whether or not it was proper to eat meat that had been sacrificed to pagan gods. Paul and the other apostles had concluded that there was nothing wrong with this as long as you thanked God for the food. However, rather than those with “right thinking” rubbing the noses of those with “wrong thinking” in the dirt, Paul’s suggestion was for them to be sensitive to the struggle some were having with this.

Don’t puff yourself up thinking you’re so smart for thinking the right way about this; make it your aim instead to build up the faith of those who think differently. Respect how hard it is for some to change. Respect the thought they may have given to their position. Respect the relationship they have with God and their desire to please him.

A passage like this is a reminder for us to look in the mirror and do our own ‘soul inventory’. In what ways do I live for the puffing up of myself? Pay attention to the ways in which you want to be first in line, i.e. get your own way. In conversation, do you talk more than you listen? Do you have to get the last word in? Do you have to win the argument? Pay attention to how you treat your family members. Do they have to serve you? When you say “Jump”, must they say, “How high?” Pay attention to the way you justify yourself. The way you tell yourself that you “deserve” this or that. The way you must “look good”. And likewise, notice how hard it is to admit you’re wrong, to open up to the possibility that it might be you with the problem. What are all the ways in which you go about puffing up yourself, rationalizing the things you do, stroking your ego.

Likewise, as you go through the week, ask yourself, What are the ways I live for the building up of others? In addition to gladly doing the chores that are mine to do, do I take note of ways that I can go the extra mile? The kitchen’s a mess – No it’s not my turn, but could I maybe make it a little less messy? Dad’s been working overtime. He hasn’t been able to get to the yard. Wouldn’t he love to come home and find the lawn mowed? When I come home from work, rather than thinking first of what I need to do to unwind, and what I deserve to have as a reward for all my sacrificing, why not ask first, “What does my spouse deserve or need right now after their long, hard day?” I’m having a conflict with someone. Rather than assuming the worst about them, rather than devoting endless hours to cataloging all the wrongs they’ve done, and all the things they need to change, how could I believe the best about them? Is there something I need to do to fix things? What have I contributed to the mess? Have I lost my ability to see their humanness?

“Knowledge puffs up; love builds up.”

But he never talked about abortion either, or bestiality, or polygamy, or co-habitation. He didn’t need to. Why? Because he endorsed God’s gold standard of human sexuality. When asked about the matter of divorce by the Pharisees in Matthew 19:3, and asked what God thought of it, Jesus appeals to Genesis 1:27 and 2:24 as authoritative. “Haven’t you read,” Jesus replied, ‘that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’, and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” Therefore, anything outside that standard he would regard as sinful.
And if Jesus were asked by modern-day Pharisees, “What do you think of homosexual practice or gay marriage?” he would respond the very same way with the very same verse. He’d say, “Haven’t you read…?” Jesus regarded all God’s Word as authoritative.

This is no small point, and as his followers we believe the same thing. It’s not just the words in red – Jesus’ words – that matter to us. Because Jesus endorsed the authority of the Old Testament we regard that as God’s Word to us. Furthermore, because Jesus promised that he had additional things to teach us through his apostles once he returned to heaven, we regard the rest of the New Testament as God’s Word to us.

Which gets at the heart of what’s at stake in this immense societal debate we’re having today about homosexuality. What it at stake is not only the social fabric of human society, not only the very institution of the family, but the moral authority of God’s Word for the Church. When you have an entire denomination which arrives at the conclusion that God now endorses homosexual orientation as a good and holy thing, so much so that God would even allow a gay man or woman to lead a church as a pastor, or an entire diocese as a bishop, you have a denomination which is saying, “We do not believe that God’s Word has authority for us today. We do not believe that God’s Word is binding for us today. We believe we can choose which of the commands and principles of God’s Word we will follow or not. We have become a law unto ourselves.” This is what is at stake. And once you set aside God’s Word as your foundation and moral compass then all bets are off for you.

The Bible warns me that there is a way that seems right to a person (i.e. it feels natural) but in the end it leads to death (Prov.16:25). And the Bible tells me why this is so. The Bible tells me that I have a sin nature. In other words, sin feels natural to me. Who can honestly argue with the Bible on this point? I mean, you be the judge. What are we more inclined to do – put others first, or put ourselves first? You know the answer. It’s easier for me to lose my temper than to control it. If I did what felt natural to me, I’d take six days off a week and work one. I’d spend more money than I could safely afford to spend. And eat more waffles at breakfast than was good for me.

It seems to me that to live life well, I need to learn how to reel in the things I’d want to do naturally, and learn instead behaviors that on one level are really unnatural to me. Like put my wife first. Or give money rather than spend it. Or listen more than I speak. Forgive my enemy rather than beat him to a pulp. Get me and my family into church on Sunday rather than sleep in. Read my Bible before I turn on the TV. Rein in my hormones and practice sexual self-control.

In fact the entire practice of following Jesus is to some degree a highly unnatural act. Which is why at the heart of our faith is a cross on which our Savior died for us. And I come to that cross admitting my pitiful weakness and sinfulness. I come to that cross asking God to forgive me for being so naturally sinful. And asking for his help and power to live the sort of life that is truly supernatural – a life of holiness, dignity, and discipline. It’s a life that can only be lived with Jesus alongside of me. So no, the argument that we should condone what feels natural doesn’t hold water at all. We are created by God to follow the path marked out for us by his Son – a path marked out by a cross.

Though initially mocked as a ‘conversion of convenience’, the second half of Colson’s life proved the depth of his transformation. Shortly after his release from prison, he founded the international ministry “Prison Fellowship”, and he devoted the bulk of his time to ministering to convicts around the world, and to writing and speaking on behalf of his Lord. His influence in shaping the landscape of evangelicalism into a moral and intellectual force for good is almost without parallel. He has been compared to C.S. Lewis, Billy Graham and Francis Shaeffer in terms of the mark he has left on 21st century Christianity.

Colson leaves behind a legacy of thought and writing that should be studied by any serious follower of Christ. His conversion story “Born Again” has sold millions of copies since its publication. His book “The Body” may be the finest volume on the doctrine of the church written in our lifetimes. In “Kingdoms In Conflict”, Colson writes with a prophetic fervor as he warns the church against the dangers of seeking political power as a means for accomplishing God’s ends (and who better to issue that warning than a man who knew from personal experience the limitations and corruption of Caesar’s power.) His magnum opus – “How Now Shall We Live?” – transmits the passion of Francis Schaeffer’s lifework to a new generation, as Colson argues for the supremacy of the Christian worldview against every counterfeit philosophy of modern life.

In light of Colson’s death, I urge our church members to pull up a chair, pick up one of these volumes and enjoy some fellowship with this amazing man we were privileged to call our brother in the fight of faith.

The Bible contains three types of prophecy. First there are prophecies about the nations that lived roundabout Israel in the Old Testament age. And everything the Bible has declared about these nations has come to pass. You can research it for yourself. I’ll give you two examples. The Biblical prophets foretold that mighty Egypt would be stripped of its power and exist throughout the rest of history as a lowly, debased nation, which is exactly what happened. On the other hand, the prophets said of Babylon – who at one point ruled the civilized world and achieved power greater than Egypt –that she would be brought down as a nation and a people, and would be wiped out and known no more. Sure enough, Babylon was destroyed by the Persians, and the city was swallowed up by time and by sand. The Hanging Gardens of Nebuchadnezzar were thought to be a legend, nothing more. Skeptics actually scoffed at the Bible for all that it wrote about the fierce might of Babylon. It’s an exaggeration! It’s myth! many said. Until archaeologist Robert Koldewey discovered the city of Babylon in the Iraqui desert in the late 19^th century, and it was learned that everything the Bible said about it was true. Those are just two examples of many that could be given.

The second category of prophecy in the Bible concerns what we touched on briefly on Palm Sunday in our worship service: Prophecies of the last days. The Bible gives specific descriptions of the moral, political, even environmental and technological conditions of the earth in the last days. And the sign of all signs – the one occurrence that should cause everyone to look up and take notice – the Bible predicted that Israel would, at the end of days, take her seat at the table of nations again, after a long period of time when her land and her city, Jerusalem, would be occupied by Gentiles.

The third category of Biblical prophecy for me clinches the deal. These are the dozens of biblical prophecies that pertain to the coming of the Messiah to the earth. And we looked at a number of these on Thursday evening at our Maundy Thursday service. Prophecies that identified the lineage of the Messiah, which Hebrew tribe he would come from, and where he would be born, where he would grow up. Prophecies that foretold the specific miracles the Messiah would perform, and which describe his compassion, and his love for the Gentiles. And then amazing prophecies that described in vivid, chilling detail how he would suffer for the sins of humanity. How he would enter Jerusalem on a donkey and then be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver. How his hands and his feet would be pierced. Both David and Isaiah described crucifixion centuries before it was even conceived of – 900 and 700 years before Christ was born respectively. They described how the Messiah’s executioners would gamble for his clothing. How he would die alongside criminals and be buried in the tomb of a rich man. And then…how he would rise from the dead. David declared in Psalm 16 that God’s Holy One would not see decay. Isaiah boldly wrote that after his death, the Messiah would see the light of life again and be able to see the good that his sacrifice would bring about.

It leaves me speechless to even summarize yet again these objective facts. And if you choose not to believe, if you choose not to give your life to Christ and accept his sacrifice as a gift of love for you, well then give me an alternative explanation for these prophecies. They are in your Bibles, in black and white. We know when these prophecies were written, and we know when Jesus lived. So do the math, and tell me: How is this possible? Convince me of another explanation other than the one that is staring us in the face: that there is a God, the Bible is his Word, and Jesus is alive. Better yet, convince yourself, because you are the who will stand before Jesus one day and have to explain to him why you did what you did with your life.

Last Sunday on Easter, we unpacked four different parts of Christianity that are distinctly objective. The first of these is the uniqueness of Jesus Christ. Christians believe that Jesus is God in human flesh. So what’s the evidence for that belief? If Jesus were truly God then there ought to be some very obvious things that stand out about him, in comparison to other humans. And is there ever!

First thing, his words and teaching. Decide for yourself. Read his words and ask yourself: who has ever spoken like this? Jesus himself said, “Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will never pass away.” Who speaks like this? Well lunatics can. Or God. Those are your choices.

A second thing unique about Jesus: his life stands out, his character, his integrity. The Bible says of Jesus he was a perfect man who never sinned. See for yourself. Read the gospels. See Jesus in action. You decide. Every other great religious figure who has ever lived, from Moses to Buddah, to Mohammed, were terribly flawed human beings. Not Jesus.

Another aspect of Jesus that stood out: his love for others. Every human life mattered to him, and you would hope that this would be true of God. From little children to destitute women, from grieving widows to those scarred from head to toe with leprosy – the compassion he modeled literally has changed this world. For to this day, Jesus’ true followers have a special place in their hearts for those who are called, “the least of these”. You think the world is in bad shape today? If you took the true church, the real church, out of this world and removed it from history, this world would be a nightmare the likes of which we have never seen. Thank God followers of Jesus Christ still walk this earth.

Jesus’ power also sets him apart from everyone else. All of Jesus’ contemporaries, including secular historians from the first century, tell us that Jesus did great miracles. If God were to come to earth, you would expect acts of power to be among his calling cards.

And one other thing: Jesus fulfilled dozens and dozens of ancient Old Testament prophecies which foretold the coming of the Messiah. How did Zechariah know that the Messiah would enter Jerusalem on a donkey 400 years before it happened? How did Isaiah know that he would come from Galilee, and be born from a virgin? How did Micah know that he would be born in Bethlehem? How did David know that he would die by having his hands and feet pierced, and that his executioners would gamble for his clothing? Zechariah foretold that he would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver. Isaiah could name the actual miracles the Messiah would do: he would heal the blind, deaf, lame and mute. His family line was foretold. All these facts about the Messiah were predicted by the prophets 400-900 years before Jesus was even born!

If you’re going to blow Jesus off, or write him off, then you better be able to give a good reason why you’re doing that. Because Jesus has certainly given you ample reason in himself for why you should fall down and worship him as your God and Savior.