Josh Benner

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  • Discipleship in the Bible

    Discipleship in the Bible

    There’s a hymn called “I have decided to follow Jesus” which largely owes its notoriety to Billy Graham, as it became a popular song during his famous crusades. 

    From the song, it says: “I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus”

    Before giving the refrain “no turning back, no turning back.” 

    Second verse: “The world behind me, the cross before me; the world behind me, the cross before me; the world behind me, the cross before me; no turning back, no turning back.” 

    The final verse of the song asks “will you decide now to follow Jesus? Will you decide now to follow Jesus? Will you decide now to follow Jesus? No turning back, no turning back.” 

    No turning back. 

    When you truly understand the gospel of grace, there is no turning back. 

    In the gospels, from the outset of his ministry, we see Jesus calling on people “follow me.” 

    At the beginning of the Gospel of Mark, we see Jesus calling his first disciples. 

    Mark 1:16-17: Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”

    Discipleship is not a call to continue in your old life. 

    It’s not Jesus saying, “Hey, you’re really great, you should just keep doing what you’re doing” 

    It’s Jesus saying “follow me.” 

    We see the response of Simon and Andrew in verse 18: And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

    No turning back, no turning back. 

    The gospel changes lives. 

    When a person gets married, their life is supposed to be different and look different. You have someone else to think about. It should impact how you spend your time. 

    What a person has a baby, their life is supposed to change. It’s no longer just about you. You have another life that you’re responsible for. You have another person who is totally and completely dependent on you. 

    Now, some people don’t do that. Some people aren’t supportive. But we see that that’s wrong. We see that that’s not the way it’s supposed to be. In following Jesus, it’s meant to result in a life that is changed. 

    If there’s no desire to know him, to live for him, then does a person really understand what Jesus has done? 

    We’re ok with saying that Jesus is a savior. But with discipleship, it gets at the question: is he your Lord? 

    In Luke 9, we see Jesus interact with three people who explain why they can’t follow Jesus on his terms.

    First person 

    Luke 9:57-58: As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

    That’s a pretty abrupt response. In Jesus saying that he has nowhere to lay his head, the point is that Christians who are truly living out the Christian life will always be out of place in this fallen world. 

    Jesus is also not hiding from the challenges of following him. Jesus will talk of persecution, suffering, families being divided over him. Jesus is the realist person who has ever lived. He doesn’t shy away from telling the truth. 

    The world hates the gospel message. So what’s easy for Christians to do is to share a watered down message instead of preaching Christ crucified (1 Corinthians 1:23). 

    But the gospel is offensive. 

    In a relativistic world where we act as though people can be right in whatever they want to believe or however they want to act, Christianity comes into direct conflict with that. 

    Jesus is the truth. God is the Lord of truth. And truth is what corresponds to God’s reality, not whatever we want it to be. 

    The gospel calls us to discipleship and not just doing whatever we want to do and saying a few nice things about God along the way. 

    That’s offensive to the world. That’s demanding to the world. That’s not for the faint of heart. 

    In Matthew 10:34-37, Jesus says: 34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

    The point of that passage is not that Jesus wants to harm relationships, but that in following him faithfully, in standing up for Jesus, there will be those who dislike that. 

    The gospel is offensive. It’s divisive. 

    2 Corinthians 2:15-17: 15 For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.

    The reason why the gospel is offensive is because it confronts people with their sin. It tells people you can’t be good enough, you can’t save yourself and if you want salvation, the only way is for you to trust in what Jesus has done. 

    2 timothy 3:12 says: Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

    Now, in America, it rarely comes to that latter extreme. Because Christian values and teachings have influenced our society and laws. But in much of the world, this is a daily threat and an ever-present risk of following Jesus. 

    Suffering for Christ. 

    But even here in America, there can still be a temptation to want to play it safe, not rock the boat, not stir the pot, not be vocal about faith, keep it to ourselves. 

    We’re virtually never under any threat of extreme persecution, but shouldn’t that therefore be a reason for us to have even greater evangelistic zeal?

    Because it’s safe? 

    What’s the worst thing that can happen to us in America for sharing our faith? People in other parts of the world die for their faith. 

    We’re often just worried that someone might not like us. 

    Part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus is to share his gospel message in a fallen world. 

    Second person 

    Luke 9:59-60:59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 60 And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 

    Just like with his disciples at the beginning of his ministry, again Jesus says “follow me.” Unlike the disciples, this man does not leave what he’s doing and follow Jesus. 

    Instead, he gives him an excuse. “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” Now, that seems reasonable enough doesn’t it. 

    “Hey, I’m on my way to a funeral right now, but how about I’ll meet up with you later. Ok?” 

    Jesus says “leave the dead to bury their own.” 

    Most scholars believe that the man’s father was still alive and that he was saying that he wanted to wait until his father’s natural life ended and then he would follow Jesus. 

    He was putting it off. Like in the passage we studied a couple weeks ago when the Israelites had been freed from slavery for the purpose of rebuilding the temple. Twenty years had gone by and they had yet to begin the project. 

    Jesus tells the man “go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.” 

    There’s a sense of urgency. 

    Jesus talks of taking up your cross in the Matthew, 10:38-39: 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 

    When you stop living for the world and for yourself and instead start living for Jesus, that is where life is truly found. 

    This is a message that too many churches shy away from. 

    Jesus isn’t asking you to just be nice. He’s not asking you to just go to church.

    Whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 

    No turning back, no turning back. True discipleship involves both a death to self, and a willingness to give up all for the sake of Christ. True discipleship is costly. 

    Third person

    Luke 9:61-62: 61 Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” 

    A third man says I will follow. So far so good. 

    But. 

    I will follow you Lord, but. 

    But. 

    No turning back, no turning back. 

    Jesus wants our total devotion. This third encounter echoes an interaction in the book of 1 Kings 19 when the prophet Elijah called Elisha. Elisha similarly wanted to say goodbyes.

    1 Kings 19:20: he left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said, “Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.”

    In that instance, Elisha was permitted to say goodbye. 

    The difference that Luke is driving home in his gospel is the sense of urgency. 

    Jesus desires a singular focus on him, his mission, and his kingdom. 

    In Matthew 12:46-50, the apostle records an event in Jesus’ ministry: 46 While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. 48 But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” 

    In that, we see the value of discipleship. Dying to self and living for Jesus. It is the promise of hearing the Lord say “well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23). 

    While the world is sinful, we have one who has overcome. 

    Jesus says “follow me.” 

    Are you? 

    It’s a serious question. 

    Again, it’s not simply a matter of coming here every Sunday. That’s great if you do. But are you following Jesus every other day? 

    The Christian life is not a call to a life of ease. It’s a call to follow. But it’s because of the one whom we are called to follow that it makes the Christian life worth it. 

    Jesus says “follow me.”

    Will you? Will you take up your cross and follow Jesus? Will you put his kingdom first, even above your own desires and happiness? That’s where true life is found. 

    No turning back, no turning back. 

    In the 1880s, a group of American missionaries were ministering to various tribes in a remote region of India. 

    Many of the surrounding groups were hostile to the gospel and foreign missionaries. Successes in preaching the gospel were few and far between, but the missionaries did convert one man and his family to Christianity. 

    The man who had come to faith was persecuted for his faith and soon taken into custody by the leaders of his village. 

    He was ordered to renounce his faith or face execution. 

    In those most dire of circumstances, with his life on the line, he said “I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.” 

    The tribal leaders took his sons and killed them. They asked if he would renounce his faith. The man said “though none go with me, still I will follow.” 

    The man was given one last opportunity to renounce his faith, but his last words were his reply  “the cross before me, the world behind me, no turning back, no turning back.” 

    Seeing the tremendous faith of this man, others in the village were inspired and a revival broke out. 

    Years later, an Indian missionary took this man’s last words and set them to music in the song we sing today “I have decided to follow Jesus.” 

    The song that was made famous at Billy Graham’s rallies is not merely about walking up to a stage and making a profession of faith. It’s about a disciple who decided to follow Jesus even though it cost him everything. 

    Deciding to follow Jesus is not simply a one time decision. It’s a way of life.

    No turning back, no turning back.

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  • Falwell resigns from Liberty under allegations of complicity in sexual misconduct

    Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

    UPDATE: Monday evening, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that Falwell informed them that he has sent a letter of resignation.

    UPDATE: In another twist, Falwell says he has not resigned. It was reported by several news outlets. It appears that Falwell and his board are in negotiations.

    Jerry Falwell, Jr resigned as president of Liberty University this evening. In a day which saw two major bombshells, there was no legitimate case to be made for Falwell remaining the school’s president. I believe in accountability among Christian leaders.

    Background
    Long before today, he had done numerous things which were reason enough to remove him from leadership of America’s largest Christian University. He had lied about his appearance in photos in Miami nightclubs, he had posted a photo of Virginia Governor Ralph Northam in a Klan outfit from Northam’s medical school yearbook in protest to Virginia king budget cuts for higher education. He had posted a photo on his own Instagram account of him and another woman at a party with their pants unzipped and then incoherently went on the radio the next day saying he was “gonna try to be a good boy.” He’s called people “stupid” and “idiots” on Twitter. And there was a bizarre story from the New York Times last summer with the headline “The Evangelical, the ‘pool boy,’ the comedian, and Michael Cohen” which suggested that Cohen (President Trump’s fixer) had brokered a deal to secure compromising photos involving the Falwells.

    With the accumulation of all of these activities, Falwell should not be the president of Liberty. His conduct and character have been reprehensible.

    Falwell’s statement

    Last night, he released a statement in the Washington Examiner that appeared to be giving some explanation for his recent behaviors. In his statement, he said that his wife had had an affairs with a young business associate (the “pool boy”) eight years ago, Jerry had never dealt with the emotional fallout of this event.

    From Falwell’s statement, he says:
    “During a vacation over eight years ago, Becki and I met an ambitious young man who was working at our hotel and was saving up his money to go to school. We encouraged him to pursue an education and a career and we were impressed by his initiative in suggesting a local real estate opportunity. My family members eventually made an investment in a local property, included him in the deal because he could play an active role in managing it, and became close with him and his family. Shortly thereafter, Becki had an inappropriate personal relationship with this person, something in which I was not involved — it was nonetheless very upsetting to learn about.”

    Falwell’s statement goes on to suggest that the person with whom his wife had the affair had harassed and blackmailed the family. Falwell said that the relationship had ended years ago. His statement said that they had entered into a business deal with this person (a little bizarre).

    Then Falwell pats himself on the back for his leadership during all of this: “Even though I continued successfully working with our entire Liberty team to achieve so many of our goals, I am now dealing with things in a way that I should have done before“

    I’ll be critical for a moment. Absent from his statement was any apology for his actions or accountability for things he had done. He painted himself as the victim. He had thrown his wife under the bus to explain his poor decisions. These were excuses. And regardless of these excuses, that didn’t undo the things that Falwell had personally done and why he should not have been in power.

    The pool boy’s response

    Later today, the pool boy, a 29 year old man named Giancarlo Granda had his side of the story shared in an article from Reuters. The Reuters article contradicts several statements which Falwell had made. Granda claimed the affair had actually lasted for several years and didn’t end until 2018. But what’s worse is that he says Jerry Falwell knew about it.

    While it’s Granda’s word against Falwell’s, the Reuters article did claim that Granda had showed them “emails, text messages and other evidence that he says demonstrate the sexual nature of his relationship with the couple.” Reuters also posted an audio clip that they claim was from a phone conversation between Granda, Jerry, and Becki Falwell.

    Reuters said that they had reached out to the Falwell’s for comment last week.

    So before the Reuters story was posted, Falwell released his own statement to try to control the story. Which one is telling the truth? I don’t know. But I do know that it’s easy to believe Granda. I believe that the leader of a Christian University should be “above reproach” (1 Timothy 3:2). And the fact that these accusations can be credibly made shows that Falwell is not above reproach. His morality and character being so blatantly called into question was reason enough for a person to not be leading a Christian institution.

    Again, I don’t know what’s true. And long before any of this had come to light, I thought that Falwell needed to step down.

    Thanks for reading!

  • Sermon: Security system – John 6:35-40

    35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 

    40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” 

    Prayer

    Almighty and everlasting God, We praise you for your goodness and majesty over the world that you’ve created. You are good and we rejoice in your grace and your great name. You are the Great I am, the alpha and the omega, the Lord of Lords. Lord, we pray for our schoolchildren who began school this week. I pray for this school year, for their growing in knowledge. We pray for their teachers and the even more daunting task they have with everything going on in our nation and community. We pray that this year be able to continue without any significant interruptions. Lord, we continue to pray for our church and community with this virus. We praise you that we have continued to persevere. It is entirely by your hand of grace that we have been sustained. 

    Lord, we also pray for our school board. They do not have an easy job to do in this current climate. We pray for them as well as for wisdom and discernment in the decisions which they have to make. Lord, we continue to pray for our nation. With all of the division, all of the unrest, all of the anger, Lord may we continue to shine light. May we be known by our fruit. May we be salt. 

    Lord God, in spite of what the media, and society, and friends might tell us, may we be a church who never loses sight that you are the king. You are our hope. You are the one who reigns. Are meaning and purpose are found in you and through your gospel. Lord, we pray for our time in your word this morning. Lord, may we be drawn to a greater love and affection for you through the tremendous truths which your scriptures proclaim and teach. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

    Sermon

    We’re in John this morning but we’re actually continuing our summer series the Forensics of Faith. 

    The next passage in John happened to fit in with this series so we’ll be looking at this section today but we’ll also be looking at a lot of texts this morning. Today is going to be a bombardment of Biblical passages as we talk about a glorious doctrine that the Bible – and especially the New Testament – repeatedly proclaims and teaches. 

    Perseverance of the Saints. 

    Now over the past few weeks as we’ve examined significant doctrines related to our salvation, there is this connection between them. These doctrines support each other, they help make sense of each other. When we talked about regeneration, we talked about the new Spiritual life God causes in the life of a believer through which we are born again. 

    Justification is right legal standing before God accomplished through faith in the work of Christ on the cross. Sanctification is the process by which God makes us holy through his Spirit. Adoption which is becoming a member of the family of God. And it is because all of those things are true that the Doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints is also necessary. 

    Perseverance of the Saints teaches that God will always complete his redemptive work in a person who truly has faith. Perseverance of the Saints is a widely held doctrine within Protestantism. 

    A scripture that summarizes this doctrine well is found in Philippians 1:6: he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

    And with that, we’ll first open up by looking at our passage in John this morning. And I’ll stress again that we’ll be looking at a lot of passages this morning. So we’ll actually be fairly brief in our coverage of John. This passage sets the foundation for everything else we’ll be talking about this morning. 

    If you remember where we left off in John a few weeks ago, Jesus had just explained to the disciples that he was the bread of life. And in that, the point was that Jesus is the true nourishment which satisfies the human soul. 

    Picking up in John 6:35

    35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.

    Some of the reasons why the statement “I am the bread of life” is significant is because Jesus is pointing to his divinity, he’s showing rooting his ministry into the Old Testament. He’s using a natural metaphor of bread to point to his work as being that which satisfies the needs of the human soul. 

    It’s all in the sermon from July 12 where I go into further detail. 

    So we continue in John, and immediately after Jesus has said that he is the bread of life, he continues speaking to a crowd who has not necessarily been following Jesus for the right reasons. We’ve seen throughout chapter 6 that this crowd is more interested in the things Jesus does than who Jesus is. We’ve seen that they’re drawn to his signs but not to Jesus as the savior. We’ve seen that they’re more interested in what Jesus can do to meet their physical needs than their Spiritual needs. 

    In verse 36, he continues speaking. 

    In the context of John, the crowd to whom he’s been speaking has been impressed by his signs, they’ve wanted greater revelation of who Jesus is. But they don’t really want Jesus himself. 

     36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.

    He’s pointing to the faithfulness of many in the crowds. 

    They’ve been in contact and communion with the Lord Jesus but are not coming to him in faith. 

     37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

    Jesus says that he will never cast out a person who comes to him.  That’s important to remember as we consider perseverance of the saints. Jesus is faithful to his people.

    The rest of this passage in John explains why Jesus will never cast out those who come to him. 

    Verse 38-39: 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.

    Jesus has come to do the will of God. Something we’ve seen throughout our study of John. And in verse 39, Jesus says that it is the will of God that Jesus “should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up at the last day.” 

    So Jesus has so far said that he will never cast out those who come to him and that it is the will of God. 

    And that is why we can have are ultimate trust that God preserves his people, why God’s people will always persevere, because it is the will of God. 

    Verse 40, Jesus says: For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” 

    Whoever looks to Jesus and believes in Jesus has the promise of eternal life. 

    It is Jesus who will not cast them out, it is Jesus who will raise a person who has faith on the last day. 

    The reason why Perseverance of the Saints is something in which we can have confidence is because it is a work of God. Faith in the gospel cannot be lost. 

    God finishes what he starts. 

    Perseverance of the Saints and the Trinity 

    Perseverance of the Saints is a Trinitarian Doctrine. 

    All three persons of the Trinity are working in through the process of our salvation. 

    As we’ve already seen in our passage, God is at work because it is through the will of God that Jesus serves and that Jesus saves. 

    I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.

    It is by the will of God because of the love of God that the Son of God was sent so that we could be forgiven. 

    Romans 5:8: God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 

    John 3:16: God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

    And it is because of the power of God that we are preserve. 

    1 Peter 1:3-5: 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 

    We see the work of Jesus in salvation. God is the one who sends and preserves. 

    Jesus is the savior who achieves forgiveness and makes it available through his death on the cross. Obviously there are myriads of passages we could point to for that but I again want to remind us of the justification that Jesus brings. 

    Galatians 2:16: a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ 

    Romans 3:28: we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. 

    We are saved through the work of Christ. 

    Philippians 3:8-9: 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— 

    It is faith in Jesus that matters. 

    John 3:36: Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. 

    Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. 

    Because the eternal life is not about our goodness or merit. It is in the merit of Christ. 

    Eternal life. And he says eternal life because he means…eternal life. 

    Because we persevere in faith. 

    Because it is by the power of God. 

    He who began a good work will bring it to completion. 

    Hebrews 12:2 calls Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith. 

    True repentance and regeneration and faith is the basis by which we are saved. 

    Because it is a work of God. 

    And so the question is never whether or not God will complete is work or whether or not Christ is sufficient. 

    The real question is where our faith is. 

    Because real faith cannot be lost. When you truly know the gospel, when you truly know what Christ did on the cross, there’s no going back. 

    Grace is such a unique idea compared to the religions of the world. Most religions put the onus on a person to live up to a set of moral standards and salvation is contingent upon adherence to the rules. 

    And so it’s not shocking that we do that with grace. Where we treat the justifying grace of Christ as if it’s something we can give away. 

    You’re not that powerful. 

    I’ve heard Mark Driscoll say “you can’t un-earn something you didn’t earn in the first place.” 

    We are not the author and perfecters of our faith. Christ is. 

    And to deny the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints is to revert back to works based righteousness where we make maintaining faith a work that we must do in order to be saved. That. is. Not. what. The Bible. Teaches. 

    We are not the ones who promise eternal life. 

    We are not the ones who justify ourselves. 

    Romans 8:35-39:

    35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

    That passage in Romans 8 is explaining how nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. And that includes ourselves. 

    If you are in Christ, if your faith is truly in Christ, you are forgiven of your sins. You cannot lose salvation. 

    There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1) 

    No sin is so great that you lose salvation. You cannot lose salvation. You cannot relinquish or renounce salvation. True faith will persevere to the end. Always. There is no exception. It’s theologically impossible. It’s unbiblical. 

    You might be tempted to disagree with that. Well what about a person who used to go to church and now says they don’t believe. 

    Either they are in a prodigal season and they will turn from their wayward path or they were never saved in the beginning. Just because someone has a history in the church and then walks away does not undermine perseverance of the saints because church is not your salvation. Jesus is. 

    People do walk away from church. You cannot walk away from the gospel. 

    It is the blood of Christ shed on the cross and believing in the work that he did through which we are saved. 

    The Bible teaches that there are people in churches who are not believers. 

    Matthew 7:21-23: 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ 

    In that example which Jesus gives, it’s not a matter of Christ’s atoning work being insufficient. It has everything to do with people who were in fellowship but who did not truly believe. 

    Participating at church does not make you a Chrisitan. The Bible never says that it does.

    The Bible does say that you must be born again. It does say that we’re justified by faith. It does say that everlasting life is through Jesus and that he is the way, the truth, and the life.

    I’ve talked before about the parable of the sower.. 

    Seed is sown and some falls among turns, some falls through the cracks, isn’t rooted in good soil, doesn’t survive. 

    That’s insincere faith, disingenuous professions of faith. 

    But then you have the seed that lands in the good soil. You have the person who truly has placed faith in Jesus, who truly has found new life through Christ.  

    It is that person who is born again and has an eternal life that cannot be lost. 

    1 John 2:19: 

    They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. 

    Salvation does not ebb and flow. When you place your faith in Jesus, you will never be more or less forgiven than you are at that moment. It’s not that you’re forgiven one day, but then you feel less faithful. 

    Fortunately. Your salvation is in what Christ has done. It is the savior that matters, not the ferocity of our faith. 

    It’s not something that changes day by day. It’s not “hopefully I die on a good day, Spiritually, or else I’m in trouble.” 

    God’s people persevere. 

    So we see the work of the Father and the Son together in our salvation. 

    And the spirit is also very much at work in the process. 

    Again, regeneration, when we are born again, that is a Spiritual work. 

    Titus 3:5-7: he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 

    We are saved not through our righteousness but through renewal of the Spirit and justified by the grace of Christ. 

    And it is because the Christian life is Spiritual that we again see another reason as to why we cannot lose salvation. 

    Because a real believer has the Spirit and the Spirit is working in you. 

    We cannot lose the Spirit. 

    Ephesians 1:13-14: In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory. 

    We are sealed with the Spirit. Stamped with the Holy Spirit as belonging to God. 

    The Spirit is a guarantee of our inheritance. 

    That’s not to say that he’s a guarantee of our inheritance if we still want it. 

    We are justified by Christ but we are regenerated and sanctified by the Spirit. 

    Galatians 2:20: 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 

    It’s a new life which is not your own when you come to faith in Christ. 

    I hope that this is all making the case abundantly clear. 

    We see how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all at work in our salvation. 

    And when we consider Perseverance of the Saints along with the other doctrines we’ve considered, they don’t make sense without the belief that a true Christian will persevere in faith. 

    If we can lose faith, or if we can lose salvation, then we are not justified by faith. 

    If we can lose salvation, then that makes no sense of how we can be sealed with the Holy Spirit and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 

    These ideas all work together. 

    If you could lose the grace of God, then it isn’t really grace. 

    Perseverance of the Saints helps make more sense of all of these other doctrines

    But the main reason as to why we should all believe in the Doctrine of Perseverance is because it’s thoroughly Biblical. 

    And like I’ve already said, the question is not whether God perseveres his people. That’s a given. 

    John 10:28-29, Jesus says: I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.  

    And as we continue this glorious doctrine of God’s work of perseverance that he does in his people, we should be drawn to even greater worship for our glorious God who has promised to complete his work, who will not let us be lost, who promise eternal life. 

    If it depended on us, we would be in big trouble. 

    But it is God who is working and because it is God who is at work and because we have God’s promises of salvation and eternal life through faith in his gospel, we can be assured of our salvation. 

    Again, we should ask ourselves where our faith is, where our hope is? Is it in God? Is it in the Lord Jesus who went to the cross to bear your sins? And that you’re justified by his blood, you’re given his righteousness? 

    Is that where your faith is? 

    Then you have the promise that God will bring his work to completion. 

    To the glory of God. 

    For a person who does not believe in the doctrine of perseverance, they have to put their faith into hoping that God will be gracious. 

    Not to sound like a broken record. Faith is counted as righteousness. We are given the promise of eternal life, justified in Christ, regenerated by the Holy Spirit, adopted into God’s family, sanctified by the Spirit. 

    All of those things which the Bible teaches are not pointing us to some grand uncertainty. They’re not meant to lead us into confusion. They’re meant to point us to the love of God and the sufficiency of Christ. 

    They’re meant to point us to eternal security, assurance of salvation, and the perseverance of the saints. 

    We aren’t called to go through life hoping that God might be gracious, hoping that we might have done good enough. 

    If you died today, where would you spend eternity? 

    If you believe that Jesus is the Lord who takes way your sins, then his work is enough. 

    If you believe in Jesus, there is no room for “I hope so.” 

    If you believe in Jesus, there is no room for “maybe.” 

    If you believe in Jesus, there is no room for “I don’t know” or “I’m not sure.” 

    If you believe in Jesus as your Lord and savior, and you have faith in him, then your answer to that question, your belief, your hope should be rooted in the promises of Christ. Jesus is the Lord through whom we have eternal life. 

    Because the danger in lacking confidence in that is thinking that your salvation is about you and your work. 

    Last week, I talked about the balance of faith and works and the point of that was that genuine faith results in a changed life. But that the works we do will not and cannot save us. 

    The only works that save us are the works of Christ. 

    Perseverance is a doctrine that is not talked about as much as it should be. 

    But as I’ve said, it’s a glorious doctrine and a teaching of scripture in which we should all rejoice and give glory to God. 

    As I close, I have six thoughts on why perseverance of the saints matters. Some of these ideas I’ve already touched on but this is somewhat of a summary of what we’ve been discussing. 

    1. It matters because it’s what the Bible teaches. The Bible repeatedly tells us that true salvation cannot be lost. Jesus says us entirely. Verses that talk about people falling away are referring to a person who never truly had faith in the first place. But for the one who believes in Jesus, there is eternal salvation. 
    1. Perseverance of the saints matters because it points us to the gospel. 

    I said in the beginning that it’s a commonly held doctrine among Protestants. But it’s not universally believed. And it’s not a doctrine that’s part of Catholic theology. But we are called to believe what is true. And the Bible teaches that salvation is from the Lord and that we are justified and forgiven all of our sins when we come to faith.

    To reject perseverance of the saints is to undermine the sufficiency of Christ’s work of salvation. To think that a person can fall away from saving faith means that we are not actually saved by Christ alone. The logical implication is that Christ forgives us but our resolve and faithfulness to him is our actual hope. 

    That’s not the gospel. 

    1. It matters because it’s an encouragement to the human soul. When we sin, it is a reminder that God is faithful. It’s a reminder that God is working. When we struggle in faith, it’s a reminder that we are not saved by the intensity of our faith but by the goodness of our savior. 
    2. It matters because it does call us to question where our faith really is. Again, perseverance of the saints only applies to a person who actually has believed in the gospel and been born again. 
    1. Perseverance of the saints matters because it shows us the important work that each person of the Trinity has in our salvation. The will of God, the grace of Christ, and the ongoing work of the Spirit.
    2. It matters because it again points to the love and faithfulness of God. 

    He who began a work in you will bring it to completion. 

    That is our promise, our guarantee, and our hope, to the glory of God. 

  • Sermon: Name Changer – Romans 8:14-17

    14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. 

    Lord God,

    You are our God. You are our creator. But you are also our Heavenly Father. And let us not take it lightly that we can to approach you as Father and that because of your Son, our Lord Jesus, who took on the penalty of our sins, that we are enabled to be adopted as your Sons and daughters. 

    3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight

    Lord, we once again thank you for the opportunity to meet here today and to praise your great name and to remember your wondrous gospel. 

    Our Father, we pray for our time of fellowship. We pray for the city of Beirut who endured a catastrophic explosion this past week which has caused so much destruction in a city and nation that are already reeling. Lord, we also pray for missionaries and Christians in that struggling nation that they can be light in spite of this horrible event. 

    Lord, we pray that you would bless our time in your Word. May we be pointed to grace and truth. In Jesus’ name, amen.  

     This morning, we’re continuing in our series the Forensics of Faith. 

     We’ve discussed regeneration: the new Spiritual life that God works in a believer. 

    Justification: the right legal standing before God. 

    Sanctification: the process through which God makes us holy. 

    All three of those things are glorious works of grace in the lives of a believer. 

    Today we focus on our relationship to God because of the salvation of the gospel. When we come to faith in Christ, we are adopted as God’s sons and daughters and become members of the family of God. 

    It isn’t deserved or merited. It is entirely because of the grace of God through the gospel and the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross. He did that so we could be forgiven of our sins but also so that we could have a relationship with God. 

    Bridge 

    Main idea: God’s son died so we could be God’s sons. 

    And certainly for ladies, you’re no less adopted, no less part of God’s family, you’re adopted as a daughter of God. I say “Son” because that’s what the text says, which is what the Greek had said, which is part of an overarching thee of sonship that is in the Bible. 

    Body 

    I. Adoption 

    14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

    Everyone who is led by the Spirit is a Son of God. 

    Sonship is an important theme in the Bible. We talked about this a few weeks ago in one of our recorded sermons we did this spring. 

    In the Old Testament, we see Israel referred to as God’s son. And during the Davidic Monarchy of Israel, the earthly king of Israel was also referred to as a Son of God.

    But we don’t see individuals referring to themselves as God’s sons in the Old Testament. Nor do we see people referring to God as their “father.” 

    (pause)

    Where the text says “sons,” of course this includes women as well. But when it talks about being sons of God, the term has this rich Old Testament background.

    Especially when we consider that the ultimate reason why this is even possible is because Jesus Christ, the son of God, has enabled us to be adopted by God. The son of God died so we could be sons of God. 

    This passage also talks about the role of the Holy Spirit in our relationship with God.

    We are regenerated by the Spirit. We are sanctified by the Spirit. We are baptized by the Holy Spirit. And here, we are led by the Spirit as an indication of our adoption into God’s family. 

    And if you look at this verse in context, when it’s talking about being led by the Spirit, it’s referring to being led by the Spirit away from sin. 

    Because we have been given God’s Spirit, it is the Spirit which leads a person in holiness and leads a person from sin. 

    Adherence to the Spirit of God shows a person who really is in the family of God. Someone who really has received this Spiritual adoption.

    15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

    We haven’t received a Spirit of fear. A spirit of doubt. But we have received the Spirit of adoption. It is only when a person has faith and the Spirit that comes through faith that a person is adopted as God’s child. 

    And because the Spirit is God, the Spirit internally witnesses to God, and it is through the Spirit that we cry “Abba! Father!” 

    Abba is the Aramaic word for Father. It’s the word Jesus himself would have used when referring to God. 

    Abba almost sounds like a word a child would use. As little ones are trying to first speak, not even putting words together, but just syllables and sounds. 

    Because we have been adopted as God’s children, due to the witness of the Spirit in our hearts, we are able to approach the infinite God of the universe in the same intimate terms in which His own son, Jesus Christ referred to him. “Abba.” 

    That when we are in the difficulties of life. When we are in the dark nights of the soul. When we are in the stormy seasons. When we are dealing with brokenness and shattered relationships. That we have a personal God to whom we can address as “Abba, Father.” 

    I very lightly touched on this point last Sunday. 

    This idea, as Americans is one that is so basic, that it is easy to lose appreciation for the magnitude of what this means. It’s just so entrenched in our vocabulary with how we talk about God that it’s good to step back and think about that. God is our Father. 

    Even nominal Christians know the Lord’s prayer, “Our father who art in heaven.” Again, that’s part of the way how we talk about God.  

    In many parts of the world, and in many other faiths, such a thing would be radical, if not outright blasphemous. 

    But God’s son died so we could be God’s sons. And because of the gospel, we can approach the King of the Universe as our Father. 

    Again, do we think about how remarkable that is? 

    You can approach God as “Father.” If you called your boss your father, he’d think you were crazy! You don’t address the president as “father.” And those are just people. But with Almighty God, we can approach him as “Father.” And I think we treat it like, “well yeah, so what?” 

    We are enabled to approach God in such a way. 

    Not because we deserve it. We don’t. God is holy and mighty and perfect and righteous. 

    And we are not.

     But the God of the universe invites you into close relationship with Him. That’s not something that is meant to be taken lightly. 

    In Jewish literature from ancient times, individuals did not refer to God as their “father.”

    I’ve already alluded to this, but in the Bible, the giants of the Old Testament didn’t address the Lord as their Father. Abraham. Who believed in God and it was counted to him as righteousness. Who God promised his offspring would be as innumerable as the stars, through whom all the nations would be blessed (Genesis 12:3, 15:5, 22:18), don’t address God as his “Father.”

    Moses, the leader of Israel who led them from slavery in Egypt, through wanderings in the desert. The man to whom God gave the Ten Commandments. The man who was in the presence of the Lord and whose face shined so spectacularly that he had to wear a veil when talking to the people didn’t address God as His Father (Exodus 20, 34). David. The King of Israel. The man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22) the author of 76 Psalms, some of the most loving words in scripture written about God did not address God as his father. 

    But 39 times in the gospels, Jesus personally refers to God as His Father.

    And he talked about our relationship to God as being our father. I’ve mentioned the Lord’s prayer. It begins “Our father, in heaven (Matthew 6:9).” Before the prayer, he says:

    when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:6)

    These great figures in the Old Testament. Didn’t refer to God as their father, but Jesus instructs us to do so.

    Because of what Christ has done for us so that we can be forgiven of our sins, he has invited into a relationship, and because God has given those whom he has forgiven his Spirit, we can approach God as “Abba, Father.” It’s not just that we get to use a new term to refer to God. It’s that the Spirit of God witnessing and convicting us internally affirms in our heart that God is our “Abba, Father” and that we are His children. We have a good God.

    Some people envision this abstract creator God who’s not personal or relational. But the Spirit testifies in us in these intimate terms in referring to God. Abba, father.

    Application 

    Is that something you’ve done recently? Or done ever? And I’m not so much talking about the words. 

    But do you ever rest in the grace of your loving heavenly Father? Do you ever find peace and patience in knowing God is on the throne?

    I think it’s so tempting for us to want to control everything. To want to control situations. I know it’s something I fight against. 

    But we are adopted as Sons and Daughters of the Father of all creation. We are heirs of grace because of what Christ has done. 

    We get to approach God as our Father, just like how Jesus could. Because we are adopted. We aren’t partially adopted as God’s children. We are fully adopted into the family of God. Since the adoption is a work of God, it’s not something we can lose. You can’t get disowned in this family. You are God’s child when you place faith in Christ. 

    In times of uncertainty and stress, is the first reaction to panic about it? Is it to worry and be fearful? Or do you think “My Father in heaven knows me and knows.”

    When you’re in a situation and you don’t know what to do, do you think “Father, lead me.” When you’re dealing with someone who’s difficult, do you think “Father, soften me.” When you’re facing loneliness and desire, do you say “Father, be with me.”

    God adopts us. You cannot be God’s child without having been adopted by God. 

    Being able to approach God as your Father is something only his adopted children can do. 

    While all people are created by God, not all people are his sons and daughters. 

    John 1:12 says that for all who believed in him, he gave the right to become children of God.  In our own passage, in verse 16, it is the Spirit that testifies that we are children of God. But without that means that a person is not. And the Spirit comes through faith.

    It’s not because he needs us, or because he’s lonely without us. God has always existed in a relationship with Himself, in the three persons of the Trinity: Father, Son, and Spirit. And yet he invites us as well into relationship with Him. Purely because of his goodness and love.  

        Validation 

    We see other references from Paul to adoption. 

    Ephesians 1:5 

    In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will

     Again, the forgiveness that comes through the gospel is reserved exclusively for the person who has placed faith in Christ. 

    We see similar language used in Galatians as we do in Romans. Galatians 4:4-6

     But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 

    The son of God died so we can be God’s sons.

        Meditation 

    None of this is to say we should just be totally casual in our relationship with  God. In the Ten Commandments, we are told to honor our Father and Mother (Exodus 20:12). And we should. And we must also honor our Heavenly Father. 

    Jesus honored and revered his Heavenly Father. And keep in mind, Jesus is God. We aren’t. But nevertheless, we see from Jesus humility before God. We see him living in fidelity to God’s will. 

    God is our Father in heaven. We can experience closeness and intimacy with God. But it’s a relationship that also demands reverence and honor.

    He is perfect.    

    II.

    16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.  

    There is so much that could be said about these verses. 

    The Holy Spirit bears witness in your heart the you are a child of God. 

    The Spirit witnessing to God is also touching on the doctrine of assurance.

    This again speaks to the impact of the gospel in a person’s life.

    The Spirit bears witness that we are children of God. And if children, then heirs. Being adopted as a child of God comes with an inheritance. 

    In the first century Roman world, their concept of adoption had many similarities to how adoption works here today. Again, adoption doesn’t mean someone just has a new set of roommates. It is becoming part of a family. It is having a new name. 

    In Rome, for people in the upper classes, if they did not have a male heir, sometimes they would adopt a child from another family. Perhaps the most famous example of this from the Ancient Roman world was Augustus Ceasar. 

    But here’s what’s interesting.  Since it was often times wealthier families who practiced adoption, it was to carry on the family name and it was also for the purpose of having an heir to whom to give an inheritance. 

    And those are all true for us when we are adopted as sons and daughters of God. And you do have privileges through adoption as well. 

    You have the inheritance of a future with God. You have the Spirit of God in you. You have forgiveness for your sins. You have a relationship with God. You are God’s child.  

    But there are also responsibilities with being a child of God. There are greater things we are called to.

    We are supposed to be like our father.

    Like Father, like son.

    After the Lord’s prayer, Jesus says “if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14).

    Jesus said to “be merciful, even as your father is merciful (Luke 6:33)” and those who love their enemies will be sons of God” (Luke 6:35).

     And that the peacemakers will be called “sons of God” (Matthew 5:9).

    Like Father, like son. We are called upon to do what our Father does too. Obviously it’s not that we become divine now or at any point ever in the future. But in character and holiness, as God’s adopted heirs, we are to live lives as witnesses to God’s holiness and goodness in the world.

    Another part of being an heir with Christ taken directly from the text:

    if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

    Now this might not be what we’d expect. Shouldn’t we be insulated from any sort of suffering or difficulty?

    Christ wasn’t. And part of the union with Christ does involve difficulty and suffering. That cuts against the grain of what our society likes to say Christianity is. That true blessing is always the path of least resistance.

    But that view is not Biblical. 

    The Bible doesn’t hide from the reality of the fallen world in which we live. Sharing in suffering, enduring and persevering in faith through difficulty is a prelude to future glory.

    For a person who truly is adopted and truly is a child of God, even in the difficulties, we still have the Holy Spirit inside us, witnessing “Abba, father” confirming our faith to us. But in being like Christ, we all do have our crosses to bear.

    And knowing that, are you still able to trust God? Or do you want to go into doubt? Do you want to find scriptures that say that isn’t true? What’s your response?

    Some of us have been blessed with incredible dads. Dads who were always there for us. Supportive. Loving.

    But some of us didn’t have great dads.

    Sociologists say that a person’s view of their father can impact their views of God.

    But even in spite of challenges, what do you believe about God? Do you believe he is a good and loving Father?

    Conclusion 

    I talked earlier about Roman adoption. 

    It’s striking to me that something that was sometimes practiced in Roman adoptions was the adopting family giving money to the birth family for their child. The adopted Roman could often times still maintain connections with the birth family and was promised an inheritance in the new family. 

    But it’s striking that it came at a cost. 

    It makes me wonder how passages like this would have been viewed in the first century. Because our adoption into God’s family also came at a cost. The cost of God’s son dying so that we could be God’s sons. 

    Even today. In doing a domestic adoption through an adoption agency, it’s many thousands of dollars. It comes at a cost. 

    God adopting us as his sons and daughters came at a cost. 

    In the book Hidden in Plain Sight, author Mark Buchanan tells the story of a woman named Regine from Rwanda. She had become a Christian and moved to Canada. She met a man named Gordon. They got married and eventually decided to return to her homeland to spread the gospel. 

    Tragedy would strike when her only son was murdered in Rwanda. 

    Regina prayed for clarity on who had done this. She was filled with bitterness and hatred. 

    Her only son. Gone. 

    One day, she had a knock at the door and there stood a young man.

    He hesitated. Then he said, “I am the one who killed your son. Since that day, I have had no life. No peace. So here I am. I am placing my life in your hands. Kill me. I am dead already. Throw me in jail. I am in prison already. Torture me. I am in torment already. Do with me as you wish.” 

    The woman had prayed for this day. Now it had arrived, and she didn’t know what to do. She found, to her own surprise, that she did not want to kill him. Or throw him in jail. Or torture him. In that moment of reckoning, she found she only wanted one thing: a son.

    God has a son too. 

    And that son gave his life for you so you could be called God’s own son or daughter. 

    Regina took that boy in that day. She made him her own. 

    He had killed her son and deserved wrath and punishment. But what he instead found was unimaginable grace. Her son’s killer found a home. 

    We were outside the family of God. Our inheritance wasn’t joy in heaven. It was wrath in Hell. It wasn’t the Holy Spirit, it was worldliness.

    It wasn’t God as our Father. We couldn’t make him adopt us. God chose to adopt us because of his love. But the cost of that was his own son. Who died for us so we could be with God. That was the cost of forgiveness from our sins. 

  • Falwell Jr. on leave after inappropriate Instagram photo

    Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

    The largest Christian university in the world should not be led by a person who’s controversial because of his antics. It’s one thing to be controversial due to conviction or controversial due to moral stances which cut against the grain of society.

    But Jerry Falwell, Jr’s controversies largely stem from his antics. This week, Falwell posted a photo on his Instagram of him and a woman (who he later said is his wife’s assistant) at a yacht party. In the photo – which was later deleted – Falwell has his arm around the woman, both have their shirts lifted above their stomachs, and show their pants unzipped. Along with the photo, Falwell included the caption:  “Lots of good friends visited us on the yacht. I promise that’s just black water in my glass. It was a prop only.”

    The following day, Falwell explained the photo in a slurred radio interview where he said:  “She’s pregnant so she couldn’t get her — she couldn’t get her pants up,” he said. “And I was like, trying to like — my — I had on pair of jeans that I hadn’t worn in a long time so I couldn’t get mine zipped either. And so — and so — I just put my belly — I just put my belly out like hers.” Falwell said that he was “gonna try to be a good boy.”

    Everything about that situation looks bad. And his explanation didn’t do him any favors. “I’m gonna try to be a good boy?” You’re the president of the largest Christian University on earth and a 58 year old man. Also, in the photo when he says “I promise it’s just black water?” That sounds like an excuse an underage drinker would make when getting caught.

    Appearances matter. Being above reproach matters. Falwell failed on both fronts with that photo. Video from the yacht party also emerged showing people in a themed party based off of the Canadian television series “Trailer Park Boys.”

    Today, Liberty announced that Falwell will be taking an indefinite leave of absence, effective immediately. It’s a decision which is long overdo. It’s a microcosm of a larger problem in evangelical Christianity where organizations and churches fail to hold influential leaders accountable.

    If a student at Liberty had done what Falwell did, they would face disciplinary action. For Falwell, the standard for his conduct should be higher, not lower, than for his students.

    And again, it’s not an isolated incident. In May, Falwell Tweeted a picture of a custom surgical face mask which displayed the image of Virginia Governor Ralph Northam in a racially insensitive photo from his medical school yearbook. Falwell said that it was in protest to budget cuts for higher education made by Northam. Thousands called for Falwell to apologize and resign.

    He eventually did apologize. Kind of. Although his Instagram account still features a link in the bio section to a Breitbart story which paints Falwell as the victim in that story.

    Last year, there were photos which emerged of photo and his family at a Miami nightclub. Not the worst thing in the world (although not a great look for the president of a major Christian University, either). But Falwell vehemently denied the photos and said they were photoshopped, which prompted a response from the photographer who had taken the photos.

    Last October, there was a bizarre settlement involving a business deal gone awry.

    On social media, there are numerous occasions where Falwell has called people “stupid” and “idiot.”

    I appreciate Liberty University. But they deserve better. Standards and accountability matter. I’ve written about numerous influential pastors who have been fired or resigned due to misconduct. And so often, I feel like those situations could have been averted had their respective boards held leaders accountable in the beginning. And we see it here with Falwell. His board has allowed him to run wild time and again. And each time, it further diminishes the institution.