Cherrydale Baptist Church is an independent evangelical church in the Baptist tradition located in Arlington, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C. The lead pastor is Tom Oostdyk. The church's vision is to spread a passion to love God and people above all else.
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God’s vision for womanhood calls the world’s vision up short. The picture of womanhood portrayed in Proverbs 31 is not a standard to be met, but a vision to inspire.
Against the backdrop of sexual chaos, is a vision for sexuality that God has designed. Proverbs poetically reveals the dangers of sexual sin and the wonder of righteous sexuality. And holds out the merciful opportunity to walk the path of repentance and wisdom.
Proverbs is as much about righteousness as it is about wisdom, so the wise man in Proverbs is also the righteous man. What is the relationship between wisdom and righteousness? The path of righteousness is the response of a wise person to the warnings and promises given by a righteous God.
Proverbs says that life and death are in the power of the tongue. Our words can destroy or build up. To exalt God and encourage others with our words we need the power of the gospel to change our hearts.
Proverbs exposes the fact that we can’t see ourselves clearly. We’re living through a spiritual battle and spiritual blindness is common. We need the loving grace of other people to help correct us back to the joyful life of wisely following Jesus.
We are typically aware of our need for wisdom to navigate the complexities of life. But God’s wisdom rescues us from something far more important—sin and its lasting consequences. We should, therefore, diligently pursue wisdom.
Here’s the main claim God makes in this text this morning: Heed wisdom’s warning and invitation. Wisdom calls us to cut ties with the world and to build our lives upon God Himself. To know Him and enjoy Him forever.
But how does a dead King usher in all the sweeping promises of the Kingdom that is to come? That’s what’s agonizing Jesus’ followers during his arrest, trials, crucifixion, death, and burial. And honestly, that’s what can agonize you and me as we follow Jesus through this world experiencing the trials and opposition He predicted. Beholding the risen King rightly fills our hearts with joy, resolve, adventure, and steadfastness.
Sometimes it will feel impossible to follow Jesus because of the costs that might be associated with following Him. But in Matthew 27, Jesus goes first into some of the hardest things that we can imagine, showing us that it is possible to follow Him and still find the life that He promised us.
Jesus understood that He alone could faithfully bear the spiritual load and withstand the spiritual labor necessary to atone for sins. Just one Passover lamb would die that year. And Jesus predicted Peter’s restoration too. After I rise, I’ll go ahead of you back to Galilee. Peter’s failures are met by Jesus’ faithfulness. Our failures are met by Jesus’ faithfulness.
At the bottom of all that weighs us down is the curse of sin that infested creation. Jesus defeated the darkness so we don’t have to. Instead, we come by faith trusting the glorious sufficiency of His atoning death. Worship Him!
Jesus demonstrates His complete control and authority over every event leading up to His atoning death and powerful resurrection. When the pressure mounts against Him, the disciples will abandon Him. But He won’t abandon them. And His work on their behalf transforms them into men who will take up their cross and follow Him.
Times will come when people say that we are wasting our lives by following Jesus. But Matthew 26 teaches us why following Jesus is never a waste, no matter what it might cost us.
Love for God is expressed by love for people; especially the church. The call of Jesus in this text is to care for the King’s bride and wait for the King’s reward. And the stakes are high. How we respond to Jesus reveals whether we are welcomed into an inheritance in a kingdom prepared for us before the foundations of the world, or into the eternal fire prepared for Satan and his angels.
While Jesus can return at any moment, He prepares us in these two parables for a possible delay. How do we wait for the King’s return? Jesus calls us to watchfulness and diligence.
Unless Jesus returns, we won’t fully experience the salvation that God promises through Him. To prepare His people for a perhaps longer-than-expected wait for His return, Jesus assures them that His return is closer than it seems, that it is absolutely certain, and that it will surprise many. Then, through a parable, He instructs us to prepare for His return by embracing a life of faithful obedience.
One of the most glorious truths of the Christian life is the fact that we are in Christ. The expressions “in Christ”, “in the Lord”, and “in Him” occur more than 160 times in Paul’s letters alone. Theologically, this glorious truth is called ‘union with Christ.’ Spiritually speaking, we died and were buried with Christ. And we rose and ascended with Christ. And once our grace-ignited faith unites us to Him, we can never, ever be separated from His love. The Church is united to Jesus; live for eternity.
Jesus reveals the signs that will precede His return at the end of the age and He encourages us how to live in light of His coming! Hold fast to Christ, proclaim Him, and love His appearing!
It feels good to be praised and respected by others, so we can be tempted to be content to get that praise and respect even when we aren’t what we want people to think we are. Jesus warns His disciples and the crowds–and us–to avoid an insincere faith that doesn’t lead to true obedience.
Jesus goes four rounds of questions with the Jewish leaders who try to undermine His popularity with the Jewish crowd. In each, round Jesus astounds and silences His opponents and the crowd alike. The account ends with a resounding revelation of Jesus’ divine authority. Jesus alone is worthy of our wholehearted devotion.
