Embracing Boldness Amidst Idolatry and Opposition

Here we go again. Everywhere we have been on the apostolic journeys of the Apostle Paul, we have seen the same pattern over and over and over again. When the apostle proclaims the gospel with clarity, there are those who respond favourably, but inevitably and invariably some will respond with conflict, in hostility, and in many cases even with violence. [00:04:03]

But let me say this before we look at the text, that characteristically we speak of the church in heaven as "the church triumphant," the church that has passed the veil, passed beyond the sufferings and afflictions of this world, and into the glorious presence of Christ. And historically, we have called the church, while it is in this world, "the church militant," because the church is engaged in warfare, spiritual warfare with a great battle that pits the people of God against the forces of hell itself. [00:04:50]

Sadly, in our day, we have been declawed and defanged and been rendered politically correct in our culture. And in our day, so often in our country, the church is the church quiescent. But if we are to be the church as Christ has called us to be, we need to look back at the apostolic foundation to see the boldness, the courage, and the commitment of those who were filled by the Holy Ghost to stand against all of the opposition the world could bring in order to be faithful to the Great Commission. [00:05:37]

When I look at the culture in which I live, the time in which I am alive at this particular juncture in American history, there are certain things I am bothered by, certain things that confuse me, certain things I don't think I will ever understand. I can't imagine, I just can't imagine that I live in a nation where a million-and-a-half unborn babies are slaughtered every single year with the sanction of the United States government and where the church of Jesus Christ has laryngitis, is silent. [00:16:16]

I think we are living in a time where we have the greatest ethical crisis that has ever been faced by our nation, but we want to be peaceful. We don't want to step on anyone's toes, and after all, this question is a question of women's rights. No, it isn't; it is a question of life, of human life. There has never been a woman on this planet who carried that child in her womb that didn't know she was carrying a living, breathing human being. But our silence permits this. [00:17:07]

Why does the gospel when it is preached boldly and accurately always cause trouble? I can tell you why. First of all, because it is true and truth has no company with falsehood. And we who are fallen creatures prefer the lie over the truth, as the apostle has made it clear in his letter to the Romans that the deepest pagan impulse that resides in the hearts of fallen creatures, unconverted creatures, is the impulse toward idolatry. [00:18:51]

Paul tells us again in Romans 1 that God has revealed Himself manifestly, so clearly of His character, of His nature, of His existence, of His holiness, of His power, so clearly to every human being that every person in this world knows that God exists. Every human being in this world knows that they are going to have to stand before God and be accountable to God for their lives, but every human being in this world under sin pushes that knowledge down, buries it, suppresses it, and does everything to destroy it possible, and then substitutes an idol in exchange for the living God. [00:19:24]

There were thirty-three shrines to Diana in Asia Minor, the main one being at Ephesus. And like we heard in the Psalms being read this morning, about people actually talking to objects that they made with their own hands. They make idols out of wood and out of stone, "Idols that have ears," the psalmist says, "but can't hear anything. They have eyes; they can't see anything. They have noses; they can't smell anything. They have hands; they can't handle anything. They have got feet, and they can't move." [00:20:46]

What is wrong with us that we would do such silly things? But we say, "We're far too sophisticated for that today." We don't build our idols out of stone anymore or out of wood; we build them out of ideas. We take the biblical understanding of God, a God who is holy, a God who will not tolerate the slaughter of innocents. He won't; I promise you that; a God who is a God of wrath, a God who is a God of justice. And we say, "I'm not comfortable with a God like that. My God is a God of love. So I am going to communicate a different God, a God who is stripped of His holiness, a God who is stripped of His wrath, who is stripped of His justice, who is stripped of His sovereignty, a God we can all live with." [00:21:56]

And the problem is, dear friends, as I have said this to you—probably you are getting sick of hearing it—this propensity towards idolatry does not magically end the moment we are converted. We have to fight against it every day of our lives, because if we really embrace the God who is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, it will inevitably bring us into conflict. And we will know what Jesus meant when He said, "I didn't come to bring peace," because His Word divides, truth divides, because God cares about truth. [00:22:42]

And you know why God cares about truth? Not just because He cares about Himself, but because He cares about people. Sin, of course, is an offense against God—we know that—but it is also an offense against people. We have all been hurt by it, and we have all hurt others by it. But I pray that somehow God will so pour out His Spirit upon us that He will give us that same boldness, that same courage, that same single-mindedness of focus that characterized the apostolic church in those days where they were willing to mingle their own blood with the blood of the martyrs, that we would be willing to lay our lives on the line for the One who gave His life for us. [00:23:26]