Faith Church is Moving!!!

We are now moving to a new location... the OMF guest house. Plus, we have a new worship time... 1:30 pm, every Sunday.

It is located at 1058 Avenue Road in Toronto.

Bus information: From Eglington Station, take the 32 West bus or the 61a bus. Get off at Avenue Road and walk North on the West side. It's not far from there!

Parking is located at the street just North of the building.

No, it's not makeup... It's a black eye!

Sean D (AKA Mr. Bible) did this too me (By accident while playing basketball)!!!


But I forgive you Sean...

True Conversion Produces New... Converts to Embrace.

Acts 9:31
"So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied."

What follows true conversion is the fruit of true conversion (James 2:18). One of these fruits in a Christian's life is our love for new converts.

When I reflect on the rejoicing that we should have when a person finds Christ, the first person I think of is Melissa.

I remember when, before we started on this path of ministering to others together, she told me about this woman that had come to Christ. She was so excited and joyful about this person's conversion that she called me at 2 am to tell me about what God was doing! And as tired as I was, in my heart, I rejoiced when Mel magnified God!

In light of Mel's experience, I would encourage others to not repress the delight we may have in a person's conversion.

Luke 15:7 says:

Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

We aren't rejoicing alone. When we celebrate the conversion of an individual, we are joining the heavenly hosts in celebrating!

True conversion produces:
1. A confession to proclaim.
2. A story to tell.
3. Strength to use.
4. Enemies to love.
5. A family to join.
6. Converts to embrace.

I hope these past 6 days have been a blessing to those that have read these posts. Grace and peace to you from our God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

True Conversion Produces A New... Family to Join.

Acts 9:26-30
"And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists. But they were seeking to kill him. And when the brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus."

What follows true conversion is the fruit of true conversion (James 2:18). One of these fruits in a Christian's life is our love for the family that we join.

We join a community of believers called Christians. By "Christians," I don't mean a social class or a club. When I say "Christians," I want us to reclaim that word, or title, as meaning "People who have faith in Christ, who died for our sins, and have the joy in glorifying God because of Christ."

I have to say, friends, after having house church today at Pastor Sean's house, I am privileged and thankful for having people like you as family. And I know that there are other CHRISTians outside of our church that I would gladly welcome as friends.

I thank GOD for you guys!

Tomorrow: True Conversion Produces New... Converts to Embrace.

True Conversion Produces New... Enemies to love.

Acts 9:23-25
When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket."

What follows true conversion is the fruit of true conversion (James 2:18). One of these fruits in a Christian's life is the love for our enemies.

Luke 6:35

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

Matthew 5:44

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

I have to tell you friends, I find that this commandment is probably one of the hardest to follow. If it were up to us to willfully love our enemies, I think we would all ultimately fail.

I, personally, have been going through rough patches with a person that I hate sometimes and love at other times. When I reflect on how I could spread the gospel to that person, I imagine myself being compassionate and loving. But when the right buttons are pushed, we get into arguments that escalate into all-out yelling matches. It is at that moment, when God shows me my utter lack of self-control, that I break down and repent because I have failed to live up to the gospel.

It is then that I am reminded about the last post, "God gives new strength to use". And instead of being riddled with anger, guilt and grief, I'm reminded of the cross. I'm reminded that Jesus Christ was a real person that bore the pain of being tortured and laughed at. What emotions were going through his mind and heart?

How did he bear the pain of having the people he came to save nail him to the cross? Did he feel anger towards his enemies? Did he not grieve for his coming loss?

He didn't have to go to the cross... but he did.

Don't you see friends? We were his enemies, we were the ones that turned away from him. But he called us back into his saving grace. And now we can follow him and do the same...

This is what we confess.
This is what we proclaim.
This is where we find our strength.
All glory be to God.

Tomorrow: True Conversion Produces A New... Family to Join.

True Conversion Produces New... Strength to Use

Acts 9:22
"But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ."

What follows true conversion is the fruit of true conversion (James 2:18). One of these fruits in a Christian's life is the strength to prove the story of Jesus.

First, we have to recognize that it is God that gives us strength (1 Timothy 1:12). Second, we have to trust in that God-given strength, in spite of our circumstances.

Paul says in Philippians 4:10-13

"I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me."

God's providence doesn't come when we reject His help. We must ask (Matthew 21:22).

God's providence doesn't come when we are complacent about His sovereignty. We must deny ourselves (Matthew 16:24).

Have faith friends, and trust in His strength.

Tomorrow: True Conversion Produces New... Enemies to love.

True Conversion Produces A New... Story to Tell

Acts 9:21
And all who heard him were amazed and said, 'Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?'"

What follows true conversion is the fruit of true conversion (James 2:18). One of these fruits in a Christian's life is the yearning, or urge, to tell a story. This story, however, is not about us. It is not about our personal achievements or accomplishments. It is not about our earthly plans and goals. This story is about Jesus, with our story on the side (1 John 5:9).

Saul, before he became known as Paul, persecuted Christians. But when he stopped persecuting them, and people were asking what happened to him (Acts 9:21).

Well, what happened to him? He had a new story to tell. Gone were the days of him working to revive the traditions of Judaism (Galatians 1:13-14). He no longer told that story.

His story was now the gospel (1 Corinthians 15:3-11).

Jesus Christ died for our sins... 1 Corinthians 14:3
He did this because we are incapable of being faithful to God... Romans 3:23
He did this because he loves us... 1 John 4:10

Repent as Paul did, so that we can enjoy life in Christ as Paul did. And tell of His story in your life.

Tomorrow: True Conversion Produces New... Strength to Use.

True Conversion Produces New... Confession to Proclaim

Acts 9:20
"And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, 'He is the Son of God.'"

What follows true conversion is the fruit of true conversion (James 2:18). One of these fruits in a Christian's life is the yearning, or urge, to proclaim his name. To be very specific, Christians don't just "talk" about God. When verse 20 talks about "proclaiming" (or kerusso in Greek), it conveys a sense of authority and gravity when talking about Jesus as the Son of God.

Why is this important?

When one finds a new life in Christ, he/she is fixated on the things of God (Colossians 3:1-2). It's much like playing video games. When you enjoy a game so much, you become entranced with the object of your joy, and even become oblivious to other things. This is the same with other things that you may find entertaining.

But one interesting thing happens when you reflect on the object of your joy... you start talking about it! You start talking about how awesome the game was! Or how thought provoking the book was! Or how amazing the basketball game was!

Friends, are you asking yourself: Why don't I feel the urgency to proclaim Jesus' name?

If you want to proclaim Jesus, pray and give thanks because the Holy Spirit is already working you! Your feeble desire is the beginnings of God giving you that ever-increasing yearning to proclaim the gospel!

One other important thing that Pastor Sean brought up was the question of whether you can even articulate the gospel.

Do you even know what the gospel is? If you are a Christian and you can't even give a basic account of the gospel, then you should really check your faith. You need to know and believe the gospel before you can proclaim it.

Tomorrow: True Conversion Produces A New... Story to Tell.

Sermon: Saul's Conversion

[The following is a summary of Pastor Sean's sermon]

Acts 9:1-19

What is remarkable about Saul's conversion: First, it exemplifies the fact that non-Christians cannot please God (Hebrews 11:6; 1 Peter 4:11b; Matthew 5:16). Saul, before his conversion, thought that he was doing the work of God by persecuting Christians; but this is far from the truth because the gospel is the truth. Second, it exemplifies the fact that no one could stop God (Acts 5:38-39a). Saul tried to stop the gospel being spread by intercepting it in the North, but was really sending him there because God's purpose was to spread the gospel to the South.

Conversion involves:

1. Divine initiative by Christ (vs. 3-6).

Romans 9:18; 10:20
2 Corinthians 4:6
1 Timothy 1:15-16

2. Personal Encounter with Christ (vs. 7-9).

John 10:3-4, 14
John 17:3

3. Lordship surrender to Christ (vs. 5).

Romans 10:9-10

4. Importance of the body to Christ (vs. 10-12).

Hebrews 10:24-25

5. Called to be witnesses for Christ (vs. 13-16).

Justification Under Fire

For those of you who know about the controversy about N.T. Wright, there's a nicely packaged Q and A that basically summarized the problem: Q & A

(via. Justin Taylor's blog)

For those of you who don't understand what the heck I'm talking about...

A very well-known and respected biblical and theological scholar, N.T. Wright, recently wrote about something called "The New Perspective on Paul". Basically, he is calling for a reformed view on Paul's understanding of justification (which has to do with propitiation). The problem with this view is that if you take what Paul says in Romans 9:30-32 to be anything but justification by faith alone, then being saved in Christ means nothing.

If you remember my sermon on The Eunuch, then you'd remember that I said that the doctrine of "substitutionary atonement" is under attack. If there is no justification by faith alone, then the penal substitution of Christ's death does not nail our personal sins to the cross (Colossians 2:14).

Be wary friends, because our temptation is to be too clever about how we know God and what Jesus has done for us. I'm reminded, by Pastor Sean, that Joshua Harris asked, "Are you trying to be right, or righteous?" In humility, correct others and stand for the truth. In humility, stand firm in the faith because Christ has counted us righteous.

Sermon: The Eunuch

Acts 8:26-40

Who was this person that got saved?

1. An Ethiopian

The description in Acts indicates that this man was from the Kingdom of Meroe, South of Egypt. Most likely, he was from what is now known as Sudan. This place is a far cry from Jerusalem, so he must have traveled a long way to worship in the temple.

2. A court official

Obviously, this man was of high rank. This is known because he is a eunuch (see next) and because he was trusted by the queen to oversee all her treasure.

3. A eunuch

A eunuch is a castrated man that, in this case, is employed as a chamberlain in the queen's court. Though it may seem to be a sign of punishment in our culture, in the eunuch's culture castration is an honourable duty. Only high ranking officials would be so devoted and respected to be allowed castration for their government.

4. A proselyte

A proselyte is a Jewish convert. Though Deuteronomy 23:1 explicitly says that eunuchs cannot enter Judaism, he was probably allowed to be a convert because of Isaiah 56:3-5.

Acts 8:36-39 suggests that this man got saved in Christ Jesus. He got saved in spite of his devotion to: his culture; his governmental duties; his rank in the government; his faith in Judaism.
What does this teach us? That salvation through Jesus Christ is sovereign over all these things. Not only that, but the eunuch's rejoicing in verse 39 means that this supremacy of Christ is something to be joyful about (Ephesians 1:18-23).

How was he saved?

Verse 30: So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?"

What is not readily apparent in the English is the play on words in Greek. Here Philip is questioning emphatically: Do you really know what you are reading?

Verse 31: And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

This eunuch, court official to the queen, a devoted proselyte, obviously high in stature and power, confesses that he is unable to understand without help. If there is anything consistent about how all Christians come to Christ, it's when they realize that their worth is incomparable to the glory of God. This man, led by the spirit, understood humility before knowing Matthew 23:12 and Matthew 5:3.

Verses 33 and 34: Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this: "Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent. so he opens not his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth."

This reference to Isaiah 53:7-8 describes a person who:

1. Experienced physical pain and death.
"Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter."
"For his life was taken away from the earth."

2. Experienced the pain of injustice.
"Like a lamb before its shearers is silent, so he opens not his mouth."

3. Experienced abandonment.
"In his humiliation..."

4. Experienced the pain of judgment.
"...justice was denied him."

Verses 34 and 35: And the eunuch said to Philip, "About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?" Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus.

Jesus is the one who:

1. Experienced physical pain and death
Mark 15:24

2. Experienced the pain of injustice... through the pain of bearing sin.
2 Corinthians 5:21
Romans 4:24

3. Experienced abandonment
Matthew 27:46

3. Experienced the pain of judgment... by bearing the wrath of God.
Romans 3:25
1 John 4:10

This points to the doctrine of substitutionary atonement: "Erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set it aside, nailing it to the cross." Colossians 2:14

This doctrine is the gift of grace that God gives us that is different from any other false belief. From Islam to Oprahism, all other religions are wrong. Jesus is the the only way... period.

So, as Philip spoke about "the good news about Jesus", let us do so as well. Like the eunuch let's "go on our way rejoicing" in the Lord, our saviour.

Cool Website

Check out: http://www.biblemap.org/

This website basically integrates googlemaps with the ESV and KJV bible. When you select the name of a place in a particular biblical passage, the map will show that place!

Sermon: Come Let Us... Show Him Beautifully

[The following is a summary of Pastor Sean's sermon]

2 Corinthians 4:13-18

1. Starts with FAITH CONVICTION (vs. 13-14)

This harkens back to Psalms 116:10. Paul's conviction was one of faith in Jesus, who died for our sins. His conviction was so strong that he spoke of this one truth in the face of opposition and against whatever odds. Like Jeremiah, he was passionate for God (Jeremiah 20:9), and it exuded through his actions. What is your faith conviction?

2. There are PURPOSES (vs. 15)

(a) Grace to us
(b) Glory to God
Though these seem like different purposes, they are actually one purpose. Grace to us necessarily means glory to God. Glory to God, inasmuch it involves us, is revealed in the grace given to us.

3. There are COSTS and BENEFITS (vs. 16)

Verse 16 is really a summary of verses 7-10. On the outside, or "outwardly", we will die. We, as humans, naturally deteriorate. "Self" will die with or without Jesus. But "inwardly", we are renewed in Jesus through faith in Jesus. Absence of faith in Jesus means no renewal.

"If I am going to burn out, let me burn out for God." Henry Martyn

4. Eternally ends with a great reward (vs. 17-18)

We can see something in the distance, there seems to be something at the end of life (Hebrews 11:13). That something is apparently a reward (Hebrews 11:24-26). That reward is better than anything, and it is worth the worldly suffering in order to attain it (Hebrews 10:32-34). That reward is the "Glory that will be revealed to us" (Romans 8:18).

Our seeing and savouring right now will become full in heaven.