No Confidence
February 28, 2024
Notes from Lance Shumake's sermon on Sunday, February 25, 2024.
Sermon text: Romans 2:17-29
We don’t find confidence in having the law
We don’t find confidence in keeping the law
We need to pose ourselves the same challenge: is our church community, and are we as individuals, attractive? Is our humility, love in hard situations, grace under pressure, and so on obvious for others to see? Are we living as an advertisement for God, or as a “Keep clear” sign? Only the gospel produces churches and people who commend God to the world. Moralism cannot.
—Tim Keller, Romans for You
We don’t find confidence in outward signs
So what if you have been baptized? So what if you are a church member? This only counts for anything if there has been a real change in your life, if your heart has been truly affected. Don’t you know that you are not a Christian if you are only one externally, that real Christianity is not about having confidence in external things? No, a Christian is someone who is a Christian inside; what matters is inner baptism, a heart-membership of God’s people. And this is a supernatural work, not a human one.
—Tim Keller, Romans for You
We only find confidence in Jesus as He changes our hearts
Isn’t this a fitting climax to the argument in chapter 2? What Paul has been driving at all along is this: God is going to look at the heart. We can come adorned with all kinds of externals, but if there is no circumcision of the heart, it will be to no avail. He is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit—that is by the Holy Spirit—not by the letter.
—R. C. Sproul, The Gospel of God
Philippians 3:4–9
[4]...If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: [5] circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; [6] as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. [7] But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. [8] Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ [9] and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.
Discipleship Questions:
- In what ways do you find it tempting to put your confidence in having the law?
- In what ways do you find it tempting to put your confidence in keeping the law?
- In what ways is the charge of hypocrisy against Christians wrong and unfair?
- In what ways is the charge of hypocrisy against Christians a valid concern, and how do we fix it?
- What are the problems with putting our confidence in outward signs?
- What does it look like to find your confidence in Jesus and His ability to change your heart?
- What is the evidence of a changed heart, and how is that different from the warnings in this passage?
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, August 10, 2025. Sermon text: 2 Peter 1:8-11 Intro: March 25, 1911. Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. 146 dead. Young labor activist Francis Perkins witnessed it first-hand. She would go on to be appointed Secretary of Labor by President Roosevelt, making her the first ever female member of a presidential cabinet. She would go on to create and implement sweeping improvements, drafting and implementing legislation to reform workplace safety in New York. Her experience made her effective. 1.) Your experience with God is meant to make you effective. v.8 “For if these qualities are yours and increasing, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Christ.” How is it possible to be ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of God? - Gnosis (General or First Knowledge; 1:5 & 6) Vs. Epignosis (Relational, Intimate, Transformative, Complete Comprehension After First Knowledge; 1:8) - Illustration of pen vs Epipen - “I guess you had to be there.” - Shu’s definition from last week for knowledge: “knowing God’s will and God’s way.” - Experience… “near to the broken-hearted”… 2.) Your character impacts your effectiveness. The qualities have to be yours and they have to be increasing. Do you believe that all of these qualities can be increasing for as long as you live? For some, a decision is made for Christ, but no action is taken… professing Christians who are neither effective or fruitful. That is not God’s plan! What happens if they aren’t? v.9 “For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.” Consider your faith journey… (Blip on radar VS Lifelong upward trajectory) APPLICATION: 3.) Confirm your election. Election simply means that none of us have the ability to save ourselves. Predestination is explained in Romans 8:29. It refers to those whom God “predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.” Doesn’t that sound a lot like “effective and fruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Christ”? ADVANCE v.10 “Be all the more diligent…” HUGE PROMISE: “for if you practice these qualities, you will never fall” 4.) Anticipate eternity. v.11 “For in this way…” what way? EPIGNOSIS!!!… “there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Discipleship Questions: In your life, how has your experience with God made you effective? Discuss the differences between "gnosis" and "epignosis". How does epignosis with God transform us? How is it possible to be ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of Jesus Christ? What keeps us from completely falling away from God? What does it mean to confirm your election? How long does it take? What are some ways that we can help our children anticipate eternity?
Notes from Lance Shumake's sermon on Sunday, August 3, 2025. Sermon text: 2 Peter 1:5-7 “A farmer is helpless to grow grain; all he can do is provide the right conditions for the growing of grain. He cultivates the ground, he plants the seed, he waters the plants, and then the natural forces of the earth take over and up comes the grain...This is the way it is with the Spiritual Disciplines - they are a way of sowing to the Spirit... By themselves the Spiritual Disciplines can do nothing; they can only get us to the place where something can be done.” ―Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline “The difference is one of motivation: legalism is self-centered; discipline is God-centered. The legalistic heart says, “I will do this thing to gain merit with God.” The disciplined heart says, “I will do this thing because I love God and want to please Him.” ―R. Kent Hughes, Disciplines of a Godly Man Faith —trusting God in all of life Virtue —seeking to live a life of moral excellence “Moral excellence means walking in integrity of heart; when we sin (not if), we deal with our sin in humility and repentance, trusting in the grace of God, who brought not only the conviction of sin upon us but also the desire to repent.” —Miguel Nunez, 2 Peter and Jude For You Knowledge —knowing God’s will and God’s ways Self-control —controlling our bodies, thoughts, and emotions “Self-control is not control by oneself through one's own willpower but rather control of oneself through the power of the Holy Spirit.” —Jerry Bridges, The Practice of Godliness Steadfastness —enduring with patience in all circumstances Godliness —becoming more and more like Jesus Brotherly Affection —loving one another because we are family Love —loving sacrificially and unconditionally 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NLT) Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. Love does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. Discipleship Questions: How do you find the balance between God giving us everything we need and making every effort? How do you see faith and love as being the foundation and culmination of what Peter is talking about? Read through the list Peter gives and discuss how we rely on God to produce these things in our lives while also making every effort to pursue them. Read 1 Corinthians 10:13. What does that teach us about God’s help with self-control? What can help us be more patiently enduring with people and circumstances? How can seeing each other as family help us love one another well? How can we love others with the love described in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7?
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, July 27, 2025. Sermon text: 2 Peter 1:3-4 We have everything we need for a godly life. Sentence has: 68 words 9 prepositional phrases 5 dependent clauses God called us. “By His divine power” The word here is summon Like Lazarus, come forth. English readers are apt to understand calling in terms of an invitation that can be accepted or rejected. Peter has something deeper in mind. Christ’s call is effective, awakening and creating faith. -Thomas R. Schreiner 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. By revealing Christ to us. “Through the knowledge of Him” Side note, ambiguity: The ambiguity in the text indicates that Peter does not clearly distinguish between God and Christ, which indicates that God and Christ were venerated equally. - Thomas R. Schreiner Excuses are Eliminated We need to note that this comes to us by grace, but also that we have a part to play here. Effort is not a 4 letter word. You have no excuse for: Pornography- You have everything you need. Substance Abuse- You have everything you need. Pride- You have everything you need Laziness- You have everything you need Anger- You have everything you need. Prayer and Scripture Reading- You have everything you need. Evangelism- You have everything you need. He’ll go on to mention supplementing He has given us what we need for godliness now, and He promises us even greater things to come. We will share in Christ’s Divine Nature 2 Pe 1:4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature Unusual word… The “divine nature” (Theos) appears only here and in Acts where Paul addresses the Areopagus an odd work choice and would have appealed to his pagan readers. Acts 17:29 Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. Redefining what it means to become like God. Christ shared in our nature that we might share in His. 1 John 3:2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. In 1:3, it’s through the knowledge of Christ that we are called to Him. Here, we see that a fuller revelation of Christ will conform us even more fully into His likeness. How so? Purity Immortality Restoration to Eden Christians also share in God’s immortality. They are not trapped in this world. Though ‘perishable’ now, Christians will be raised ‘imperishable’ -Paul Gardner Glory John 17:22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, We have everything we need for a godly life. English readers are apt to understand calling in terms of an invitation that can be accepted or rejected. Peter has something deeper in mind. Christ’s call is effective, awakening and creating faith. -Thomas R. Schreiner 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. The ambiguity in the text indicates that Peter does not clearly distinguish between God and Christ, which indicates that God and Christ were venerated equally. - Thomas R. Schreiner Excuses are Eliminated We will share in Christ’s Divine Nature Acts 17:29 Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. 1 John 3:2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. Purity Immortality Christians also share in God’s immortality. They are not trapped in this world. Though ‘perishable’ now, Christians will be raised ‘imperishable.’ -Paul Gardner Glory John 17:22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one. Discipleship Questions: 2 Peter 1:3 says we’ve been given everything we need for life and godliness… Do you find that verse encouraging, challenging or both? Are there any areas of your walk where you struggle to believe that you already have everything you need for success? Do you ever make excuses to yourself or others for a lack of godliness? If yes, explain. How much work does it take to live as a Christian? What does it mean that we will be “partakers in the divine nature”?
