Mt. Vernon Baptist Church, Mt. Vernon, IN

A Word For the Irreligious

By Matthew Watson • September 22, 2022

“Hedging One’s Bets” is a common English idiom you’ve likely heard before. The authors at Grammarist.com define it like this: “To hedge one’s bets means to mitigate one’s risk; to leave oneself an escape; to counterbalance one’s risk or avoid committing to only one course of action. For instance, a gardener may hedge his bets by planting different varieties of tomatoes in case one variety fails to produce. The expression hedge one’s bets came into use in the 1600s and is derived from a definition of the word hedge that was popular at the time, which was to avoid commitment.” Consider hedging one’s bets when it comes to your relationships with Christians. Of course, I would rather convince you to become a Christian. This is our prayer and aim. However, at the very least, I would urge you to keep your options open and keep Christian friendships alive. Along the time that I became a Christian, I had a friend, we will refer to him as, “Joe.” When Joe discovered I became a Christian, he relayed a message back to me, that was, “Be sure to tell him not to bring that Christian message around me.” Joe was hostile to the gospel. Joe wanted God’s messengers out of His life. Joe did not see the potential value. Joe did not want Christian preaching in his life. With regard to Christianity, Joe did not even “hedge his bets.” Don’t be like Joe. Here’s why. Thirty-five hundred years ago, during the zenith of the Egyptian empire, the ruler of Egypt did what Joe did. The ruler of Egypt, Pharaoh, told God’s chief messenger, Moses, that he didn’t ever want to see him again. He cut him totally out of his life. He threatened him. And, by extension, he cut all of God’s messengers and God’s word out of Egypt. What were the results? Disaster! Moses was described as like God to Pharaoh. God’s name had fallen on hard times. In an effort to restore knowledge of God to people, God sought to liberate his people from Egyptian slavery. Pharaoh had isolated God’s people to a specific geography in Egypt for housing, conscripted them to cruel construction slavery, and mandated population control measures against God’s people through forced infanticide and partial birth abortion. God saw. God responded. But not all at once. Graciously, over a three month period, God meted out ten plagues with opportunity to repent in each one. Despite the pain of plagues, each plague up to the last one lacked finality. Frogs and fleas, boils and livestock, water impurity and crop destruction were not total separation, death, and loss of the future. But that’s what came with the tenth plague. Egypt’s decimation came. But not before salvation. Consider the next to last plague, the plague of darkness. There, the Egyptians faced utter darkness for three days—it was a darkness they could feel! For three days, no one could see to do anything. They stayed in bed. Economic activity halted. Pain ensued. But, in the midst of groping in the dark, over on the horizon, they could see the living quarters assigned to God’s people. There, was light. So long as God’s people were on the horizon, there was hope. So long as God’s preacher, Moses, was on the horizon, there was hope, too. But this was all about to change. After the plague of darkness ended, most of Pharaoh’s cabinet of officials as well as many of the people knew that Moses’ God was the one true God. The plagues bore witness to the systematic deposing of Egypt’s false gods as well as ironic repayment for injustices done against God’s people. The plot thickened. The drama built to the death of Egypt’s firstborn—an eye for an eye for the deaths of Israel’s first borns drowned in the Nile River. However, there was a way out from due punishment. And some took it. Here's what happened. Hard-headed and hard-hearted Pharaoh called Moses in after the three days darkness. This would be the last time Moses entered as an underling to the king. He was about to become a regent all himself. He was about to upend Pharaoh. But Pharaoh was blind to it. Pharaoh was still trying to bargain his way around with Moses. Moses wisely made no deal with Pharaoh. For God insisted his people depart a certain way. So frustrated Pharaoh commanded Moses to get away from him forever. Moses, in righteous anger, obliged. And, just like that, Pharaoh stopped hedging his bets with God’s people. God’s judgment was swift on the Egyptians; however, thanks to the grace of previous events, many Egyptians knew whom was delivering the judgment and why. Rather than blaming God’s people, they sent God’s people with much riches. Rather than killing or keeping them, they sent them packing. Rather than cutting God’s people out of their lives, some Egyptians completed the “exodus” from Egypt as converted Israelites. The host of over a million that exited that day represented several ethnicities—an early picture of what heaven will be! So there’s a lesson for you in this. There’s a move in our land for the convinced irreligious to blatantly disregard the religious—for folks that have little use for religion to relegate biblical religion to the edges of the public square. Learn the cautionary tale of Exodus. Do not make this mistake. It’s not too late until it’s too late. So long as you breathe, keep the people of God in your orbit. Welcome them in your neighborhood. Seek them in the city. Ask them for dinner. Listen to their messages. Perk up at their preaching. Tolerate their reaching. Even if you disagree, stay curious and inviting. You never know which plague in your life that God will use to bring you from tolerance to acceptance of Christianity. For now, though, at the very least, take care to “hedge your bets.”

What Do You Think of When You Think of Revelation?

By Matthew Watson • August 10, 2021

When we think of Revelation we think of signs and wonders and the apocalypse and predictions and concerns and the lordship of Christ on grand display defeating foes in the last battle. What we don’t often think of, when we think of Revelation, is, the local church. But we should. Revelation has as its audience the local church in totality, completely, represented by seven (a complete #) of local churches known to the first century reader. Each of the seven messages are from Jesus and carry modern messages for our local churches today and are practical for your Christian life: to Ephesus—love; to Smyrna—keep on; to Pergamum—teach right; to Thyatira—live moral; to Sardis—wake up; to Philly—endure; and to Laodicea—live on mission! Today, let’s consider the message to a church like Pergamum—teach right—found in Revelation 2:12-17.    “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword. “ ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.’” ~ Revelation 2:12-17   Now, let’s try to make a little sense of Revelation 2:12-17. These are Jesus’ words to the church. He has the spiritual sword, the Word of God. He intimately knows who His people are and where they live. They live “where Satan’s throne is,” likely, a reference to the literal throne of Zeus, the pagan god recognized in Pergamum. But we all live where Satan’s thrones are, and, we must hold fast to Jesus’ name anyway. This is what it means to be a true Christian—to witness faithfully to Christ, not denying the faith, even when satanic influences try to get you to acquiesce to the coercive power of the state. The state wields a “sword” too. The “sword” is understood as an instrument of justice used by the state to encourage good. For good or ill, the state uses its sword for its purposes. Always for good, Jesus uses his sword, the Word, for Christian purposes. He knows who and where we are, always, and forever. Jesus never checks out from your situation.    The early Jewish Church leaders knew they needed to provide guidance to new Christians coming into the faith. The gospel brought Jews and Gentiles together under the religion of Christ but guidance was needed. The Jewish Christian leaders wrote an affirming letter to circulate to the Gentile churches, urging them to be compliant, to not eat food sacrificed to idols or engage in sexual immorality. See Acts 15 for that. There were professing Christians at Pergamum being taught exactly the opposite of what they were supposed to do. These were being taught to eat and sexually engage in a pagan and impure manner. Teaching leads to action. Jesus is trying to pre-empt their sinful actions. So he sounds the alarm against false teaching! He compares them to Balaam and Balak in the book of Numbers. The problem back then was a scriptural teacher who put personal gain ahead of faithful witness. We must repent of holding to such false teaching. Teaching and teachers matter. What type of teachers do you listen to? Have you thought carefully enough about it? Have you sought to ensure that your teachers teach in accordance with Scripture? Have you considered that Jesus holds you personally accountable for whose teaching you “hold to?” Repent of any haphazard attitude you’ve taken toward vetting your teachers. Learn to insist on Scripture teaching teachers.    Jesus’ last book in the Bible has the local church and your Christianity in view. Jesus knows who are his and where his are. Jesus insists you vet your teachers based on what they teach. Hear His love for you in this passage, Revelation 2:12-17. He has expectations of you but he also advocates for you. He promises to conquer. He will protect and provide for you. He knows your name. Revelation is more than predictions. Revelation is practical. Revelation is for you.  

Twas the Night Before Easter

By Matthew Watson • April 5, 2021

“Twas the Night Before Easter,” said…no…one…ever! “Twas the Night Before Christmas” titles a famous poem describing the anticipation of Christmas morning. Everyone knows food and presents and family is just around the bend. You know what’s coming and you’re almost too excited to sleep!    Not so with Easter. Let’s take a trip down memory lane to consider the events that led up to the night before Easter. What happened and what are we to make of it?    God made Adam. That’s how it all got started. Adam sinned. We all sin. His better son, Abel, was killed by his jealous son, Cain. And so it began. Noah was better. The world was crazy and nearly killed off. From Noah’s offspring came Abraham who was promised the gospel. Abraham had Isaac and Isaac had Jacob and Jacob had twelve sons. Sins abounded. Joseph was sold by his brothers. They later reconciled—forming a picture of the gospel to come—but things weren’t good for the twelve sons. These became known as the twelve tribes of Israel and these people were trapped in Egypt hundreds of years. Moses delivered Israel from Egypt. Israel sinned in the desert. Joshua led Israel into the Promised Land. Israel demanded to be like their enemies and have a king. So they got Saul then David then Solomon before the fourth generation of kings couldn’t keep the people together. So they divided and divided before they were conquered and exiled—all of them exiled—by the 6th century BC. Israel repented and God gave them some more assurances of a conquering Messiah that would come, a Messiah like King David before, that would save the people; however, God seemed eerily silent. The Old Testament Scriptures tell this story and was written down on or before 400 BC. Then, God went silent. Israel groaned. Their Messiah would heal all the nations, or, at least, that’s what the prophet Isaiah had predicted. But the promises were stale and the Messiah was long overdue.    The Messiah finally came. He fulfilled every prediction of the writing prophets. He was a prophet like Moses, a King like David, and a priest like Melchizedek. Every promise of God found their “yes” in Jesus. Just one problem. Israel rejected him. That’s right. Israel rejected their own King. The culmination of Jesus coming to His own and His own knowing Him not is the inscription placed over Jesus’ head as he was crucified on Good Friday. The inscription read, “King of the Jews.” What they meant for mockery actually told an ironic truth. The ultimate Jewish King was Jesus but they didn’t recognize Him. Why?    They didn’t recognize Jesus as the Messiah, at first, because He didn’t conquer Rome. On Palm Sunday, Jesus didn’t come riding in on a war horse but humbly, on a peaceful donkey. Jesus didn’t come first to judge but to save, not to impose but to propose. Jesus proposed the world follow Him. But Israel didn’t envision a Messiah that would war primarily against their own sin but rather against the occupying empire, Rome. And Israel didn’t want a Messiah that would willingly die for the people. They wanted a Messiah that would ably kill for the people. They wanted a man of war, like David. Jesus came first as a man of peace. It is true that Jesus declared war and will come to judge the quick and the dead but that’s not the story of Easter. On Easter, Jesus delivered victory in the decisive battle in the war of human history even though the battle wages on even now. How was the decisive battle against the sovereigns in the spiritual realm won? Through death, even death on the cross.   Jesus’ death was the only unjust death in the history of mankind. Every other man could rightly accept death as the natural outcome of a sinful disposition. Unlike every other man, Jesus knew no sin. This qualified Jesus uniquely to atone for the sins of all of His people—the righteous for the unrighteous—to bring us to God. And bring us He did! Jesus’ death brought death. This is why one pastor wrote, rather complicatingly, but also aptly, of what Jesus accomplished in this title, “The Death of Death in the Death of Christ.” Death died, it ended, when Christ died. How? Jesus conquered death. How? By removing it’s permanence, it’s sting. The sting of death is swallowed up in victory! Praise be to God!    So what would that first Easter eve have looked like? Shocked and silent. Often, the Saturday after Good Friday is referred to as Silent Saturday. Why? Because Jesus’ earthly body laid in the grave. God the Son could never die but his incarnate body was brutally murdered by his biological kinfolk—related through his mother Mary. Jesus died. He was buried. And Saturday was quiet. Twas the Night Before Easter and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. When up from the grave there arose such a Man that the world would trust Him or in judgment they’d stand. Jesus’ resurrected body lives on as proof that you’ll live on too. Every Christ follower will follow Christ in resurrection. So, as we sing, “It is Not Death to Die.” Christmas lights the spark of a life. Easter lights the spark of life eternal. Christmas anticipates. Easter fulfills. “But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb…And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. …two men stood by them in dazzling apparel, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest” (Luke 24:1-9).

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