Christ Over All

November 8, 2024 Stephen Jones Leave a comment

What has first place in your life? Who or what do you trophy more than anything else? In Colossians 1:18, Paul says Jesus is to have “preeminence” in everything.

This word “preeminence” is an important one. The New American Standard says “that he himself will come to have first place in everything.” The NIV explains that “in everything, Jesus might have the supremacy.” The Greek word is πρωτεύω. It means “to hold the highest rank, to take first place, to have a superior status.” The word appears only here in our New Testament, and it means that Christ is unrivaled in his fame and glory. He has no peer. He has no equal. He is the true GOAT — the greatest of all time.

Michael is described as a great angel, a mighty warrior. He’s even called an “archangel” in Jude 9. Yet Michael’s glory pales in comparison to Christ’s. Satan was once Lucifer, also an angel. He was the chief of all angels, a shining one, a preeminent one that God had given much power and glory to in the past. Yet he rebelled against God and is now “the prince of the power of the air” in Ephesians 2:2. Satan, although powerful and intimidating, is completely impotent, unable to do anything apart from the permission Christ gives to him.

Just think about those stories in the Gospels. Every time Jesus encounters a demon, the demons are terrified because they know Jesus’ lordship and power. They would beg him not to be cast out or to be thrown into the abyss, because Jesus is the all powerful, all knowing, almighty God. Jesus is the supreme one, the preeminent one who has no equal. There’s many things that occupy our minds throughout the day, but Christ is to occupy the very highest place in our minds. He alone is to be seated on the throne of our hearts. Does he have first place in your heart today?

A few months ago, I preached this passage from Colossians 1:15-20. Together, we learned that…

Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
He is not just an imprint or likeness of God; He is the perfect representation and equality with God. This means he is fully God.
that Jesus always existed, even before His physical birth.
Jesus is actually the object of our worship, and that God alone deserves worship.
Encouragement to make Jesus the center of our lives and worship.

You can listen to the audio using the link below:

Or you can watch online using this link:

For a complete list of my sermons and Bible studies, please visit the Sermon Page on my blog.

Other links:
Calvary Church Youtube channel
Calvary Church sermon podcast
Calvary Church website
Feed My Sheep podcast

Politics

Election 2024

November 7, 2024 Stephen Jones 3 Comments

What a week. Rebounding from his controversial loss in 2020, Trump won not only the presidency, but delivered a knockout punch with all swing states voting in his favor and even winning the popular vote by a wide margin. The Senate is now firmly Republican, and it seems likely the House of Representatives will remain Republican as well.

People are processing this in very different ways. Some view it as a direct attack on women and the end of democracy. Others — apparently a majority of Americans — are breathing a sigh of relief that we avoided the radical leftwing agenda of a Harris/Walz presidency.

For me personally, I’m deeply thankful to God for the results that represent at least a partial shift away from radical leftism and back toward the Judeo-Christian values our country was founded upon. We’ve all seen the destruction caused by defunding the police, weak foreign policy, dangerously open borders, oppressive DEI policies, the mutilation and sterilization of teens, and the sheer insanity of men competing in women’s sports. Things were on the verge of getting much worse. Not long ago, we heard whispers of stacking the Supreme Court, abolishing the filibuster, clamping down on free speech, maybe even eliminating the electoral college altogether. Thankfully, those extremes have been averted — at least for now.

When Lot lived in Sodom, he was “greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked, tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds” (2 Peter 2:7-8).

Those verses have long resonated with me and perfectly describe the past 20 years as we witnessed the rapid expansion of wokeism and the corresponding erosion of our freedoms and biblical values in America. It cost good people their careers and their livelihoods. The baker and other creators and entrepreneurs who spent years in court defending their right to act according to their conscience. The journalist who was convicted for exposing Planned Parenthood’s sale of aborted baby parts. The fire chief fired over writing a book and sharing scripture on sexuality. The soldiers who lost their jobs over forced vaccines. We could go on and on.

This moral decline is still very real, but I pray President Trump will be a modern day King Cyrus, a secular ruler that God called his “servant,” who blessed God’s people and allowed them to return to free and open worship of the one true God.

Owen Strachan in his substack article “Morning in America” says it well:

“We have all lived through a long and almost unbroken nightmare. We have been forced to contemplate not only our present darkness, but the possibility of still greater unleashing of darkness through the presidency of Kamala Harris. We have trembled at that reality; we have wept; we have felt great surging waves of fear, anxiety, doubt, discouragement, and hopelessness at times. But for now, we have been granted a reprieve, a temporary stalling of evil as driven by the modern political left. God has shown up. God has answered our prayers. Let us use this truth to keep praying, and keep hoping, and keep loving. Let us not be weary in well-doing (Galatians 6:9); by the power of the Spirit in us, let us excel still more (1 Thessalonians 4:2).”

There’s still much work to be done, especially in the pro-life movement and biblical marriage. It’s hard to ever imagine returning to a pre-Obergefell world. Nevertheless, this week was an act of God’s mercy, a win for the American people, and a historic night in the history of American politics.

Prayer

Grit and Gratitude

November 1, 2024 Stephen Jones Leave a comment

In his book Revival, Baptist historian Michael Haykin traces some of the contours of the Great Awakening in the early 18th century and the British and Irish revival of the late 18th century.

One London pastor gave this exciting report in 1754, “more of our meeting houses have been [expanded] within the last five years, and built within the last fifteen, than had been built and enlarged for thirty years before.”

Another pastor described the divine phenomena this way: “Meeting-houses which had been deserted were crowded. Meeting houses which had been more than large enough for their congregations for two or three generations had to be made larger. New meeting-houses in great numbers were erected. Cottages were rented in villages; farm-house kitchens were lent; old barns were turned into chapels; and young men who had been hard at work all through the week at the smithy, at the carpenter’s bench, or behind the counter in drapers’ shops, went out in companies from the towns on Sunday mornings to conduct the services” (p. 143).

Imagine that! Wouldn’t it be wonderful to see God do this again? Revival is a work of the Holy Spirit. It is impossible to predict or manufacture — just like the wind — and yet we can see its powerful effects (John 3:8).

You cannot predict when revival will break out. But certain conditions have characterized every revival throughout history. There has been an increased hunger for the Word, and there has been a renewed commitment to prayer. Anytime you see a revival in history, you see a return to these two things – the Word of God and prayer. If there is any hope of seeing a revival in our day, we must return to these things as well.

In Colossians 1, Paul models for us what it looks like to be a people of prayer. He prays that we will have both steadfastness and gratitude. I preached on this message a few months ago, and you can now listen online:

Other links:
Calvary Church Youtube channel
Calvary Church sermon podcast
Calvary Church website
Feed My Sheep podcast

Christian Living

Walking Worthy

October 3, 2024 Stephen Jones Leave a comment

Throughout his letters, the Apostle Paul describes the Christian life as a “walk” (Rom. 6:4; 1 Cor. 7:17; Gal. 5:16, etc.). Why does he use this metaphor so often? To “walk” refers to our Christian lifestyle, and I think it implies several things…

First of all, walking is an activity. When you’re walking, you’re not just sitting there or lying down. You’re moving, and your whole body is engaged. In a similar way, when we refer to a spiritual walk, we mean that the whole self is actively serving the Lord. The Christian life is not passive. God did not save us so we would sit back, relax, and wait for his return. We are to remain busy doing good works that glorify him. Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Walking also involves direction. Unless you’re on a treadmill, walking involves traveling from point A to point B. People in ancient Israel depended on walking as a primary means of travel. They didn’t have cars or buses, and most couldn’t afford horses or chariots. You had two feet, and if you wanted to get somewhere, for the most part, you walked. If you wanted water, you walked to the well to fetch it. If you wanted food, you either farmed it yourself or walked to the market to buy it. When it was time to worship, you walked to the synagogue or church. Blazing your own trail and straying off the well-worn path was dangerous. And people were warned not to do this spiritually either. As Proverbs 4:26–27 says, “Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.”

Lastly, walking requires consistency. Did you ever play the game “red light, green light” as a kid? Children love to move around and to give commands with frequent fits and starts. But walking is not like that. It is neither a quick sprint nor an intermittent walk. It involves finding and keeping a steady pace. You put one foot in front of another, then do it again, and again, and again. It might even be perceived as monotonous. But remember — you’re moving in a direction. Some professing Christians get “on fire” for God the first few months, buying a new Bible and devouring its pages, attending church every time the doors are open, sitting in the front row. But tragically, they burn themselves out and are done. You don’t even see them again. That’s not a walk. Instead, you need to develop a certain consistency that will serve you well over the course of a lifetime. Galatians 5:16 says to “Walk [present continuous] by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” And Galatians 5:25 tells us that “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”

A few months ago, I preached on the worthy walk, and God’s call for us to consistently follow him. You can find it on the podcast or watch the video below.

Audio – visit my podcast page or listen here:

Video – visit our church Youtube channel or watch below:

Christian Living

Praying with Power

September 24, 2024 Stephen Jones Leave a comment

Wouldn’t it be great to know the will of God? Maybe you’ve got a big decision coming up and you’re wondering what God’s will is. What if you accidentally make the wrong decision?

Now imagine that you could have an overflowing sense of God’s plan for you. That’s precisely what the Apostle Paul prays in Colossians 1:9, “that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will” (v. 9). We could translate the word, to be “filled full.” It sounds redundant, but that’s how much Paul wants and prays for God’s people to be filled with the will of God. Paul doesn’t just want us to be slightly acquainted with God’s will. He prays that we would be overflowing with this knowledge.

Many gas pumps today have a little sensor so you can’t “top off” your tank even if you wanted to. To avoid spillage and protect the environment, they require you to keep a little air space at the top. But Paul prays that Christians will be filled up and spilling over with the knowledge of God’s will. Like it says in Psalm 23, “You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.” The image is one of bounty, blessing, and surplus. Your cup is not big enough to contain all the blessings God has in store! He wants to fill it up, and overflow you with a knowledge of his will.

Back in May, I preached on Colossians 1:9 and tried to demystify this idea of the will of God by sharing three lessons…

God’s will is infinitely greater than our ability to understand.
Anything God wants us to know is revealed in his word.
God gives clear boundaries, then gives you freedom to choose.

Too many people turn decision-making into a coin toss or putting a finger in the wind. In reality, you simply need to know your Bible, live according to it, and then feel a generous amount of freedom to pursue your passions and chase your dreams, following God’s call and listening to wise counsel along the way. Ask the Lord for wisdom and then go out there and glorify God in everything you do!

If you’d like to listen or watch the sermon, here’s the link…