SERMON TITLE: 1 Chronicles: Worship the Lord and New Vision
TEXT: 1 Chronicles 16:8-36 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 11-5-23 (Evening communion service)
Watch the sermon here
As always it’s a joy to be with all of you — especially for this evening’s service. And there’s one thing I want you to know — and this is true if you’re a guest with us here to celebrate baptisms or are part of our faith family here at Gateway — I want you to know that God loves you and that I love you too.
We're continuing our Finding Jesus series tonight. This is a series where I introduce you to a book of the Bible that you may or may not be familiar with. I’ll give you an overview of the book — followed by a closer look at a particular section of it. And then I’ll show you how to find the one story the whole Bible is telling — the story of Jesus — because the whole Bible is ultimately pointing us to him.
And in this iteration of our Finding Jesus series — we’re going to look at the books referred to as the history section of the Old Testament. These books cover historical events in the life of God’s people. And tonight we’ll be looking at the book of First Chronicles. So if you have your Bible, please turn with me to First Chronicles chapter sixteen.
In previous sermons we’ve looked at Joshua, Judges, Ruth, First and Second Samuel, and First and Second Kings.
Now let’s take some time to get our bearings in the book of First Chronicles — and I hope you’ll see that this is a book you’ll want to read for yourself.
First, what do we know about the author? Like many of these historical books — we don’t know who wrote First Chronicles — or Second Chronicles — for that matter. And — similar to the books of Samuel and the books of Kings — the two books of Chronicles are really one book — but were originally written down on two scrolls — resulting in us having a First and Second Chronicles in our Bible.
In previous sermons, I mentioned that the original Hebrew order of the Old Testament was a bit different than our Bibles today — for example — Ruth was originally placed between the books of Proverbs and Song of Solomon. Well — the two books of Chronicles — were originally placed at the end of the Old Testament — as sort of a final recap of the history of God’s people. In our Bibles today — Chronicles comes right after Kings — making it feel like you’re re-reading all of the same history that you just read.
So why another recap of the history of the kings? Scholars suggest that the author wrote these two books after the people of God had returned from living in exile in Babylon. So our author has a different perspective about the time period being covered. For example — the temple has been rebuilt — but it’s nothing like what God’s people were imagining it would be while they lived in exile. The kings have been a collective failure — none lived up to the king of God’s covenant with David. So — with all of this perspective — the author of First and Second Chronicles looks back over the history of God’s people and records the events with some theological insight.
So that’s the bird’s eye view of what’s going on — now let’s turn to the book itself. First Chronicles begins with nine chapters of — “keep you on the edge of your seat reading” — genealogy. That’s right — nine chapters of names. Think of this as a highlight reel of the key players in the history of the people of God.
Now the rest of First Chronicles focuses on the life of king David — and a lot of this will be familiar if you’ve read the books of Samuel — but you’ll notice that the author of Chronicles leaves out the moments from David’s life that have a negative bent to them. You won’t read about David being on the run from Saul — nor will you read about David and Bathsheba. But what you will find are positive stories about David — and some of them aren't found in the books of Samuel.
So — you may be wondering — “Why all of this positive spin on David — why none of the negative stuff?” Though we can’t say for sure what the author’s motives are — we do know that the books of Samuel were known at this time when the books of Chronicles were written — so it’s safe to assume the author doesn’t think we’re unaware of these stories. However the author’s goal seems to be to use David as an example of the Messianic King that all of the earthly kings have failed to be. It’s like the author is using David as a theological illustration to give hope to God’s people — a true and better David will come and save his people just as God had promised centuries earlier.
And — with that as our overview — let’s take a closer look at our passage for this evening. Hopefully you’ve had time to find First Chronicles chapter sixteen — we’ll begin in verse one.
1 Chronicles 16:8–36 (ESV)
8 Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! 9 Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! 10 Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! 11 Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! 12 Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he uttered, 13 O offspring of Israel his servant, children of Jacob, his chosen ones! 14 He is the Lord our God; his judgments are in all the earth. 15 Remember his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations, 16 the covenant that he made with Abraham, his sworn promise to Isaac, 17 which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, 18 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan, as your portion for an inheritance.” 19 When you were few in number, of little account, and sojourners in it, 20 wandering from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another people, 21 he allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their account, 22 saying, “Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!” 23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth! Tell of his salvation from day to day. 24 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! 25 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and he is to be feared above all gods. 26 For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the Lord made the heavens. 27 Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his place. 28 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength! 29 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him! Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; 30 tremble before him, all the earth; yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. 31 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!” 32 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it! 33 Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. 34 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! 35 Say also: “Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather and deliver us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. 36 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting!” Then all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord.
If you recall — from our time back in First Samuel — the priest Eli died when he heard that the ark of the covenant had been captured by the Philistines. The ark was eventually returned — which you can read about in First Samuel chapter six — but once Saul became king — he never bothered with the ark — he just left it in the city where the Philistines had returned it. Now our text is the song that David sings in response to the ark returning to Jerusalem. So David — the king of Israel — is leading the people in corporate worship of their God.
Let’s look at the words of this song of worship — and I want you to notice the commands.
The ark of the covenant represented the presence of God. And look at — and be amazed at — and be inspired by David’s response of worship because the ark was back in Jerusalem. The king leads his people in worship. And worship is the goal and purpose of life — of your life, of my life, of the life of every man, woman, and child — worshiping God is the goal and purpose of life — worship is why you were created — worshiping God is why you exist. And David leads his people in worship.
Now — honestly — we could use any one of the commands to find Jesus — but let’s just stay on this broad theme of worship.
Martin Luther said, “To believe God is to worship God.” So — to believe in Jesus is to worship Jesus. For example — in the gospel of John — Jesus encounters a man who was born blind — and Jesus heals him. Now there’s a lot of commotion about this healing because it happened on the Sabbath — which upset the religious leaders of the day — and these religious leaders keep questioning the formerly blind man about the entire situation. “Were you really born blind.” “Yes.” “How were you healed?” “A guy named Jesus put mud on my eyes and told me to go wash it off.” “But were you really blind?” These religious leaders were relentless — they wouldn’t believe his story.
John 9:26–27 (NLT)
26 “But what did he do?” they asked. “How did he heal you?” 27 “Look!” the man exclaimed. “I told you once. Didn’t you listen? Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?”
And them were fightin’ words — so they threw him out of the synagogue. But…
John 9:35–38 (NLT)
35 When Jesus heard what had happened, he found the man and asked, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 The man answered, “Who is he, sir? I want to believe in him.” 37 “You have seen him,” Jesus said, “and he is speaking to you!” 38 “Yes, Lord, I believe!” the man said. And he worshiped Jesus.
The man said, “I believe” and he worshiped Jesus. To believe in Jesus means you worship him. And — when you worship Jesus — you’re worshiping the God who David was worshiping. You see, David was looking forward to God’s promised Messiah — the great Rescuer from Heaven — the coming King. And we look back to Jesus — God’s promised Messiah — the great Rescuer from Heaven — the King who has come and is coming again. Now — think of those commands from David’s song of worship.
Back in January — while I was meeting with some pastors in Orlando — Laura Moore — our Executive Director on staff — sent me an email that included a list of stressors for pastors. And she asked, “Which stressors on this list would you say you relate the most with? And is there anything else you would add?” Did I mention that Laura copied Matt Heft — one of our elders — in her email to me? So the pressure was on to not ignore her email. I spent a couple of days reflecting on her question — and here was my reply — and I promise this will eventually make sense as to how this connects to worship.
I wrote, “I don’t know that I’m good at being the vision guy for Gateway. Things like “Should we start another campus” or “should we think about starting up Saturday night services again” are decisions I never know what to do with, when to bring them up, or how we’d even know if we have an answer to these questions. I’ve never understood how pastors come up with a 3-5 year vision plan — it all seems like “throwing spaghetti against the wall” guessing to me — or at least for a mere mortal like me who can’t predict the future.”
And this email thread — all started by Laura Moore — has led me and the elders on a journey the last ten months. Matt and I met and — over lunch — he started describing what he sees as my vision for Gateway. I took a few other elders out for lunch and asked them questions. And since she started it all in the first place — I asked Laura to write down what she saw as my vision.
And — while I was collecting all of these thoughts and ideas — Matt sent me a video of a pastor giving a “vision talk” to his congregation. And that video clarified something else for me and where all of this vision stuff was headed. So I wrote some things down based on all of the feedback I’d been collecting and the elders and I discussed this for months. I eventually presented it to the staff — and then to those of you who came to our all volunteer training back in August. The elders and I kept discussing all of this — refining things — making it more clear based on feedback we’d received.
And — tonight — I’m going to present our vision to you. As a heads up — we’re going to begin 2024 with a series based on this vision but — for now — think of this as a sneak peek for what’s to come.
So imagine four columns. These four columns represent the key components that drive the life, ministry, and direction of a local church. The first component is the pastor. The second component of a church are its key leaders. The third component of a church is its discipleship process. And the fourth component is actually new for us — so we’ll spend more time here in a moment — but the title for this fourth column is disciple — you all — all of us, really — the followers of Jesus here at Gateway.
So component one — the pastor. This is me — for better or worse. Now the Bible has a lot to say about the qualifications, characteristics, and calling of a pastor. There are the characteristics of a pastor — found in First Timothy chapter 3. There’s the call to shepherd the flock found in First Peter chapter five. There’s the mandate to preach the word found in Second Timothy chapter four. And a pastor is to be focused on prayer and the Word as found in Acts chapter six. Those are some examples of what we mean by the word pastor here at Gateway.
The second column — the next component of a church — are the other key leaders in the church. Here at Gateway our key leaders include our elders, our deacons, our staff, and those who serve as Life Group leaders. None of these leadership roles should be surprising to you. And — if they are — know that I’ve written a booklet on our leadership model which you can pick up for free at the Resource Center.
These key leaders help the pastor move the church along in a certain direction — which leads us to the third component — the discipleship process of the church. Here at Gateway this is our process of Worship, Connect, Serve, and Go — this is how we help you grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
Worship is when we gather together to worship our God in a way that’s Gospel-Centered, done with excellence, and is contextual. We connect in Life Groups where we gather together to discuss how the Bible applies to our lives and care for one another. We serve each other — the people in our church family — and we go into the world by equipping, partnering with, and sending members to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.
And there’s a reason why our discipleship process begins with worship and ends with go. As John Piper has said — “Missions (which is our go value…) missions exists, because worship doesn’t. Missions is our way of saying: the joy of knowing Christ is not a private, or tribal, or national or ethnic privilege. It is for all. And that’s why we go. Because we have tasted the joy of worshiping Jesus, and we want all the families of the earth included. “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.” (Psalm 22:27) Seeking the worship of the nations is fueled by the joy of our own worship…Worship is the fuel and the goal of missions.” And I hope you’re starting to see the connection to the theme of worship and David’s song of praise as we talk about these four components.
Are there other ministries we do? Of course. But Worship, Connect, Serve, and Go is our primary way of making disciples here at Gateway. And these three components have summed up our ministry as a church. I — the pastor — invest in the key leaders — who oversee and support our discipleship process.
And then — back in August — I introduced a fourth column — a new component for us as a church. And the way I introduced it was by asking a question: What’s our spiritual goal for people who are part of Gateway Church? Meaning, what’s the win for someone who worships, connects, serves, and goes? What we’re asking is this: What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus here at Gateway?
And this is what hasn’t been defined — this is what hasn’t been clearly articulated. You’ve been catching glimpses of what it means to be a disciple through my preaching, the podcast, our conversations with leaders, and so on — but because this component hasn’t been defined like the other three components — there’s been some confusion. And this is what I and the elders want to make clear so we all move forward growing as disciples with a vision of knowing what we mean by “growing as a disciple.”
Our vision — our spiritual goal for every follower of Jesus here at Gateway — is that we’d be disciples...
1. Who are...Word and Spirit Christians.
2. Who are…generous.
3. Who are...family.
4. Who are…disciples who make disciples.
5. And who are Kingdom-minded.
Now — before we expand on each of these characteristics — let’s see a visual recap of the journey we’ve just been on. These are the four components of our church. The first three are nothing new — they’re familiar friends, I hope — but the fourth component — a column describing not what we want you do, but who we’re hoping we’ll all become as followers of Jesus — this fourth column is what I and your elders are presenting as our vision for the kind of disciples God has called us to make here at Gateway Church.
So let’s look at these characteristics of a disciple more closely — realizing that a sermon series on all of this is coming in January.
Characteristic number one: We are Word and Spirit Christians. This characteristic is meant to capture our view of God’s Word and our desire for all of us to be men and women who live under the authority of God’s word and empowered by his Spirit. Here at Gateway we believe that God’s Word is inerrant — it’s without error — it’s infallible — it’s incapable of teaching falsehood. We believe that God’s Word is authoritative, sufficient, and practical — thus — everything we’re to do in life — individually and as a church — is to be filtered by and submitted to God’s Word. Passages like Second Timothy chapter three and Psalm one hundred and nineteen come to mind when I think about us living under the authority of God’s Word.
The ‘empowered by God’s Spirit' part of this characteristic means that we desire for us to be a people who live in the freedom we’ve been given because of the work that Christ has accomplished on our behalf. Because — through our faith in Christ — we’ve been set free from sin — and are now to fight against sin as we live holy lives by the power of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. Living in a way so that all that we do — in word and action — is done for the glory of God and done with the supernatural joy that’s found only in Jesus. And our goal is that every disciple at Gateway will use the gifts the Spirit has given them for the building up of this church body so that we reach our full maturity in Christ. So that’s our first characteristic of a disciple and our vision is that we’d be Word and Spirit Christians.
Let’s look at the next characteristic: We are generous. Being generous is something I especially love about Gateway — probably because generosity is one of my spiritual gifts. Theologian Leon Morris has said, “Worship that costs us nothing is worth precisely what it costs.” What cost are we willing to pay so that others — both here and far — might worship the only Savior, Jesus Christ? Remember the promises of Scripture — “It’s better to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35) — as well as — “God blesses a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7)
Whether it be how we budget, our Christmas Eve offerings, or how much we give to missions — from our partnerships with people working among unreached people groups around the world to the Women’s Resource Center gift and the adoption scholarship announcements we recently made — being generous disciples is who we envision all of us to be — that we’d recognize the holy obligation we’ve been called to: to steward the resources God has entrusted to us by using them for his Kingdom work.
Characteristic three: We are family. Understanding this as the kind of disciples we’re making here at Gateway will help clarify why we do ministry the way that we do as a church. For example — families are different from business organizations — and I want your view of our church to be first as that of a family and then — and much later — as an organization. There are some organizational activities we must do — budgets, room reservations, keeping calendars up to date, and so on — but I want our default position to be that we view each other — especially the congregation at the other campus — as family.
Rarely do you make formal plans to connect with family. You bear with crazy aunts and uncles — why? Because they’re part of the family. You help carry the burdens of those in your family who are suffering. And — families — healthy ones — Christ-centered ones — they love each other. They’re committed to each other. And there’s this idea — in a family — of “we before me.” Everyone has a place and a role in the family. Names matter. And so do each of our unique stories.
And viewing ourselves as family will change how we do ministry. It’ll change our gatherings when we worship. The person who shows up late or runs out early will feel like an outsider because family members stick around to talk and hangout. Our Life Groups will feel like getting together with family — not a box we check on our calendar. And though we try real hard to make everyone feel welcome — if you choose to not participate in our family activities of worship, connect, serve, and go — well — you’re always gonna feel like a guest instead of like a family member.
A passage that comes to mind are the first few verses of First Timothy chapter five. There Paul tells us to view older women as mothers; younger women as sisters. Older men as fathers; and younger men as brothers. Though we may not be blood-related — there’s a familial relationship we have with each other — for we’ve all been adopted into God’s family. Romans 12:15 shows us the kind of family God wants us to be — a family where we rejoice with those who are rejoicing; and where weep with those who are weeping. This is our vision for us — that we’d be a family.
Characteristic number four: We are disciples who make disciples. I’ve shared my life mission statement before, which is “to glorify God by making disciples who find their joy in Jesus.” A local pastor in town calls me the Bible guy — the disciple making pastor. I’ll gladly accept that reputation. And my hope is that you will gladly accept the reputation — and responsibility — of being disciples who make disciples along with me. Because — it’s not just me — or just a few of us here at Gateway — but all of us are called to be disciples who make disciples.
For we must pass on the baton of faith to the next generation. We’re responsible for raising up the next generation of Christians, pastors, missionaries, and church leaders. We’re responsible for leaving the Christian faith stronger and in better hands as our time on earth comes to an end. Matthew chapter twenty-eight and Acts chapter one come to mind when I think of this characteristic — chapters that record Jesus’ command that we would be disciples who make disciples — for we’re all called to make disciples and our vision is that we’d live up to this calling.
The final characteristic: We are Kingdom-minded. This characteristic is directly linked to our striving to be a church that raises up the next generation of Christians, pastors, missionaries, and church leaders — but now — not just for our own local church benefit — but for the benefit of Christ’s church beyond our walls.
We’re to make disciples of all nations. This is why some of our folks are overseas right now. This is why so many of you were at our missions celebration dinner and have gone on mission trips. But his characteristic isn’t just for a few of us — this is a characteristic for all disciples of Jesus. For did teach us to pray for God’s Kingdom to come here on earth as it is in Heaven (Matthew 6:10). And our vision is that we’d be a people who trust in Jesus’ promise to us that he is building his Church and the gates of Hell will not prevail for we’ve been given the keys of Christ’s Kingdom (Matthew 16). And our King of all kings — is reigning and ruling over all of his creation — he has promised that his Kingdom will come — thus we’re to be Kingdom-minded disciples.
Word and Spirit Christians. Generous. Family. Disciples who make disciples. And Kingdom-minded.
Let’s take one last look at the four components of our church. Pastor — check. Key leaders — check — I’m so thankful for our elders, deacons, staff, and Life Group leaders. Discipleship process — we’ve got a good one — check. And the goal of our discipleship process — our vision for the kind of disciples we’re making here at Gateway: Disciples who are Word and Spirit Christians. Who are generous. Who are family. Who are disciples who make disciples. And who are Kingdom-minded. Finally — check.
One last thing. If you were at the volunteer training back in August — you may recall that I didn’t have a word at the top of the fourth column — I called it the “X” that marks the spot — our “win” — and our “spiritual goal”. And the reason why I didn’t have a word for the fourth component was because — believe it or not — it took me a really long time to figure out what the word was supposed to be. “Well that seems silly, Josh. Disciple is so obvious!” And it is obvious, but there’s a reason why I struggled — but you’ll hear more about that in our preaching series when we’ll return to all of this.
Know that the elders and I are unified and excited for this next chapter in our story as a church. We’re so thankful for Gateway’s past — I’m so thankful for Gateway’s history — thankful for the pastors, elders, staff, and church members who’ve come before me. I and the elders find it a joy to honor our past — AND — we’re excited about our future and we hope it excites you as we make clear the spiritual win for each and everyone of us — so that — all that we do as a church results in many more people — both here in Findlay and to the ends of the earth — worshiping Jesus Christ — for worship is why they exist — and worship is why we exist. Let’s pray together.
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit we thank you. We call upon your name. We vow to make known your deeds — to tell of your wondrous works — and to tell the nations of your salvation. We vow to sing praises to your name and to seek you — to seek your presence — and to ascribe to you glory and strength. We will remember your covenant promises as we come before you — bringing you the offering you require of us — our lives — as we worship you and you alone. Save us, we ask. Deliver us, we pray. Gather and unite us together as your people. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
If you’re serving communion this evening — please make your way forward to the tables at this time. Everyone else please respond to the words on the screens.
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
Congregation: It is right for us to give thanks and praise.
Leader: With joy we praise you, gracious God, for you have created heaven and earth, made us in your image, and kept covenant with us — even when we fell into sin.
Congregation: We give you thanks for Jesus Christ, our Lord, who by his life, death, and resurrection opened to us the way of everlasting life. Therefore we join our voices with all the saints and angels and the whole creation to proclaim the glory of your name.
Leader: We give thanks to God the Father that our Savior, Jesus Christ, before he suffered, gave us this memorial of his sacrifice, until he comes again. At his last supper, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, he took the cup after supper and said, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this in remembrance of me.” For whenever we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. - 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Leader: Therefore we proclaim our faith as signed and sealed in this sacrament.
Congregation: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
At this time, ushers will begin dismissing you by rows so you can come forward to receive the bread and the cup. Take both before returning to your seats. There are baskets — up front — for you to put your empty cups in. We also have a gluten free wafer option for those who need one. If you’re unable to come forward — raise your hand and let the usher know as they dismiss your row — and someone will come and serve you in your seat.
During evening communion services we collect an offering for our benevolence fund — this fund goes towards helping meet the practical needs of folks who are part of our congregation. If you’d like to give to the benevolence fund you can do so digitally on our app or website — there’s a special benevolence option that’s available until 9pm tonight — or you can give in the black boxes at the doors when you exit.
Now — come and feast on the grace of Christ.
Let’s pray. Father, we acknowledge that you are holy and majestic — and blessed is Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. In Jesus, your Word became flesh and dwelt among us and he was full of grace and truth. He lived as one of us — knowing both joy and sorrow. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, opened blind eyes, and broke bread with outcasts and sinners. Dying on the cross, he gave himself for the life of the world. Raised from the grave, he won for us victory over death. And — in response to these truths — we now do what you have created us to do — we worship you in song together. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
May you go believing in Jesus — going as a disciple who worships the Lord. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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