THE WHOLE COUNSEL OF GOD

This sermon was preached at Cornerstone Baptist Church in Cherry Log, Georgia on June 9, 2013 by Pastor Paul Mims.
Acts 20:17-38
Once the Devil was walking along with one of his friends. They saw a man ahead of them pick up something shiny. “What did he find?” asked the friend. “A piece of the truth,” the Devil replied.
“Doesn’t it bother you that he found a piece of the truth?” asked the friend. “No,” said the Devil, “I will see to it that he makes a religion out of it.”

In a survey interviewees were asked, “Do you agree strongly, agree somewhat, disagree somewhat, or disagree strongly with the following statement: There is no such thing as absolute truth; different people can define truth in conflicting ways and still be correct.” Only 28% of the respondents expressed strong belief in “absolute truth,” and more surprisingly, only 23 percent of born-again or evangelical Christians accepted this idea!

James Dobson commented on the survey: “What a telling revelation! If more than 75 percent of the followers of Christ say nothing can be known for certain, does this indicate, as it seems, that they are not convinced that Jesus existed, that He is who He claimed to be, that His Word is authentic, that God created the heavens and earth, or that eternal life awaits the believer? That’s what the findings appear to mean. If there is no absolute truth, then by definition nothing can be said to be absolutely true. To the majority, apparently, it’s all relative. Nothing is certain. Might be. Might not be. Who knows for sure? Take your guess and hope for the best!”

Just this past week, I was listening to a radio program that proclaimed, “All that we have believed about the Bible is not trustworthy in the light of modern science and philosophy.”

In our scripture passage today, the Apostle Paul has completed his three year ministry in Ephesus. Because his preaching has been so effective and has confronted the pagan culture with the claims of Christ so that people are turning to him and away from the worship of the goddess Diana a riot occurs in the great amphitheater and Paul is forced to leave. He plans to sail back to Jerusalem but discovers that the Jews have developed a plot to kill him on the ship. He decides to walk twenty miles to another port and take another ship. So from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and asked for the elders of the church to come to him there. He has some final words to say to them about the future of the Ephesian church that he was not able to say before he left because of the riot.

He begins by revealing his heart to them and assuring them that he has kept nothing back that was profitable to them. He has taught them the whole truth about the whole gospel and says, “I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole counsel of God.” What does this mean? It would have been blessed to have heard his preaching and teaching. I want to suggest to you the elements of the whole counsel of God that he preached and taught them over a period of three years. We can know by what he has written in his letters.

I. CHRIST, THE CREATOR (Colossians 1:15-17)

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together.”
Paul is saying that Jesus the Christ existed before the world was created and is the eternal Son of God who was active in the creation of all that is. In our world today it is difficult to convey that there is a Divine Creator. It is popular to believe that it all just happened naturally. Paul went far beyond the Jesus of Nazareth to convey him as the Christ of Eternities, the Creator as God.

II. CHOSEN IN CHRIST (Ephesians 1:3-12)

“For he (the Father) chose us in him before the creation of the world to be blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ…In him we were also chosen having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.”

There is a wide variance of theological thought as to the implications of this doctrine of election. Popular today is five-point Calvinism which asserts that Christ only died for the elect. We do not subscribe to that interpretation and instead accept the John 3:16 statement that Christ died for the whole world of “whosoevers.”

III. JUSTIFIED BY FAITH (Romans 3:21-26)

“But now a righteousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished – he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.”

Paul is saying that faith in Jesus the Christ is righteousness for this is the response that God wants from his revelation of Christ to us. He had a most difficult time with those who held to the old covenant of the Law of Moses and would not see the new covenant. But those who do are made in his sight “Just-as-if-I’d-never sinned.” We are totally forgiven in true repentance and are given the privilege of fellowship with God through Christ.

IV. SEALED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT (Ephesians 1:13-14)

“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession-to the praise of his glory.”

At the time of our conversion, the Holy Spirit is God’s salvation love gift to us: “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5:5)

When you are sealed by the Holy Spirit, you belong to Christ. Thereafter the Holy Spirit lives in you to empower you and grow you in Christ.

V. SET APART FOR SERVICE (I CORINTHIANS 12:1-31)

“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.” (vv.7-11).

This is just one of several passages that describe how God has equipped his church for service in the kingdom. You have been given a spiritual gift to be used in the ministry of Cornerstone. What are you interested in – your passion? What do you have the ability to do? What are you willing to make time to do? You passion plus your ability plus your availability will lead you to your spiritual gift. We need workers in all areas. Find your place where you can plug in and find the joys that the Lord has in store for you.

VI. HOLY LIVING (Romans 12:9-21)

“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people os low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry feed him; if he is thirsty give him to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Paul called believers “Saints.” Let’s be sure that we are “Saintly.”

VII. THE SCRIPTURES (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn away their ears from the truth and turn aside to myths.”

We regard the Bible as the authority for our faith and practice. We believe that it is the infallible word of God containing revealed divine truth without any mixture of error.

VIII. THE CHURCH (Acts 20:28-31)

Paul told the elders from Ephesus who had come to bid him farewell: “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”

God holds the pastor accountable for the pure doctrines of the church. He also holds the elders – the deacons responsible for being shepherds of the flock. Both the pastor and leaders are responsible for taking care of the church – to protect it from false teaching and from the assaults of Satan.

IX. THE AFTERLIFE (I Corinthians 15:12-21)

“But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.”

In II Corinthians 5:1-4, Paul says, “Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in the heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.”

This is the scope of Paul’s preaching and teaching: from eternity to eternity! The whole counsel of God!

PRAISE BE TO HIS NAME!