Many people nowadays have little idea how Adam Smith’s economic ideas have shaped their lives for good. Can a rediscovery of the real Adam Smith rescue our muddled Canadian economy?
— Read on lightmagazine.ca/adam-smith-father-of-compassionate-economics/
(Isaiah 61:7-11) By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird
“Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours. “For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing. In my faithfulness I will reward my people and make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants will be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed.” I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.”
Isaiah 61:7-11 NIV
Today is my last of four Lenten Sundays of ‘holding the fort’ so that Bishop Peter and Jenny Klenner could actually have a refreshing holiday in Australia. Let’s all say hi to Peter and Jenny as they will be watching online. He phoned me this week from Singapore to say how much he is enjoying our All Saints online services. The phrase ‘holding the fort’ goes back to the wild west where securing a frontier fort was often the line between thriving or not surviving. Why did those 30,000 American miners from San Francisco, who came for the Gold Rush in BC, voted to join Canada in 1871? It was because Governor James Douglas and Judge Matthew Begbie protected the miners with the rule of law. In the wild west of the States, miners were always being robbed by bandits. Would you like to hear about any bandits that I had to deal with in the past four weeks? Satan, the worst of all bandits, robs people of the Word of God by making them too busy to experience the blessing of reading their bible or even attend church. Satan is a master at making people too busy. I know many people in previous churches who made it to the church parking lot but had a huge struggle to make it in the front door. The devil hates people going to church. He loves to tell us that we can just do ‘me & Jesus’ at the beach, the golf course, or out in nature. He hates our taking part in Christian community.
How many of you remember the six key disciplines, really the six blessings of Lent? 1) prayer 2) self-examination 3) fasting 4) repentance 5) bible reading 6) generosity especially to those in need.
This morning, we will be particularly focusing on the covenantal blessing of bible reading, not only at Lent but especially at Lent. The Bible has two covenantal sections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. Testament is another word for Covenant.
I will never forget when my first congregation St. Philip’s Dunbar did an unheard-of thing of holding six bible study groups during Lent. They loved it so much that they wanted to continue, but St. Philip’s had so many committee meetings that the bible studies collapsed. We had a neighbouring Anglican Church with thirty-five different committees. God so loved the world that he didn’t send a committee. He sent his only son.
Our St. Philip’s Youth Group read the bible once a year out of duty, so of like swallowing castor oil because it is good for you. Some people view reading the bible like going to the dentist to have a root canal. How many of you enjoy getting a root canal? After the youth had me lead the obligatory one-time event, they enjoyed it so much that they decided to read the bible twice a year. Unknown to me, the youth then signed a petition asking for me to lead a weekly youth bible study. When I approached the rector about this, he said no to my leading this. He told me that the young people are already too busy, and I have all these committees to attend. But he softened and agreed when I said that I would only attend every other week, and I would train up youth to lead on alternate weeks.
AW Tozer, AB Simpson’s successor, said that Satan’s greatest weapon is our ignorance of the Word of God. I am firmly convinced that we in BC need a revival of reading God’s Word. We have become an increasingly illiterate culture. Only one in five Canadians read between one to five books a year. Many Canadians are no longer reading anything. Only 11% of Canadians read the bible once a week or more. While 54% of Canadians have a bible in their home, only 39% of Canadians have actually read it to some degree. Some of our Canadian politicians might have more wisdom if they regularly listened to the wisdom of the scriptures. Do I hear an amen?
The first Anglican Bishop of Liverpool JC Ryle said in his book Practical Religion: “Happy are those who possess a Bible.”
Ed: How many bibles do you own? When did you receive your first Bible?
Bishop Ryle went on to add: “Happier still are those who read the bible and obeys it.”
In our home church, we did a Living Bible skit where I dressed up as a 5’ 10 ½” cardboard Living Bible. The local Anglican priest in the skit visited an Anglican family and asked them if he could look at their bible. They went to their dusty book shelf, and frantically looked for the family bible. It was nowhere to be found. They desperately looked everywhere, all around town, until finally they discovered the Living Bible who had run away to the local Baptist Church. When asked why he ran away, he said that he felt lonely and ignored. When the Anglican family promised to pay him more attention, the Living Bible agreed to return back home.
I never saw another teenager or member of my family ever read a Bible until the Jesus movement in 1972. In our High School, you never saw a bible. You never thought that it existed. Did you ever observe a member of your family actually reading your bible? Who was that? The Bible, for me, was some obscure book read by clergy in a church building. The Anglican clergy from my youth never preached from the Bible. They seemed to give rather forgettable moral lessons on being a more moral person. Let me show you some bibles that have changed my life, beginning with my original Good News for Modern Man in Grade 12. I had to tape it together with duct tape. A worn-out bible is a potential sign of spiritual vitality. My second bible was the paraphrase Living Bible. My third Bible was the more academic New American Standard Version. My fourth Bible was the more readable while still accurate New International Version. Since then, I have been studying and preaching from the NIV interlinear Hebrew and Greek. What Bible translations have you read over the years?
The Bible radically changed my life in 1972. I could not get enough of it, and carried my bible everywhere, something that was scandalous in our Winston Churchill High School. When I lived in Montreal during Grade 6 & 7, I took part in a pre-confirmation class where I read a summarized version of the Old Testament, which I loved for the history and the battles. Returning to Vancouver, our ex-diocese did not focus on the bible, so I never got to read the New Testament, and was never given a bible for my confirmation. The only bible that I knew about in our household was my older sister’s white leather KJV bible with a gold chain which she had been given when confirmed in Montreal. I would sometimes sneak in her room to read her bible as a teenager. None of it made any sense, though I liked the pictures. Our Anglican youth group in Vancouver had no biblical or Christian content in it, no bible study, no singing, and no prayer. Only after a Jesus movement revival broke out at our local Anglican church did young people openly read their bible, pray, sing about Jesus, and even share their faith. We were tasting the everlasting covenantal joy that Isaiah 61 kept talking about.
During Lent, I have read five books by one of my heroes AB Simpson, including this one The Christ of the Forty Days. He memorably said that when the presence of Jesus is revealed to us, the Bible becomes a new book, a book for our hearts, a book full of our living Saviour. When I became born-again, the bible switched from being a closed book to being an open book.
How many of you feel that you need to cut back on bible reading during the remaining week of Lent? It is very difficult to say yes to more bible reading until we prune our busy schedules. We live in such a frantically busy culture. What might you need to say no to so that you could say yes to a double portion of bible reading this final Lenten week? You may want to think about it.
Next Sunday is Palm Sunday and Holy Week. Easter blooming requires Lenten pruning. As Isaiah 61:11 says, “For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.” Where might God need to prune you so that seeds would sprout and grow with righteousness and praise among the nations? I believe that Jesus wants covenantal seeds of blessing to sprout and grow in your life. How many of you want that?
Now, Isaiah 61:7 says “Instead of your shame, you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace, you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so, you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.” This is a very powerful verse.
Six times in the Bible, specific reference is made to a “double portion.” When someone receives a double portion, he gets a gift twice as much as that given to others.
Now you might want to consider this a double-or-nothing sermon. It is amazing how deep the doubling concept is in our English language: 1) double-decker 2) Double-edged 3) Double-barreled 4) Double-header 5) Double helix 6) double vision 7) Double-dealing 8) double-dipping 9) double-crossing 10) double-standard 11) Double entendre 12) Double feature 13) double-take, and my wife’s favorite: 14) Double jeopardy. Are there any other Jeopardy fans here today?? Quite a few 😉
I remember having double and triple portions on New Year’s Eve at Frank Baker’s Restaurant in West Vancouver. Has anyone else here had a double portion blessing at Frank Baker’s amazing all-you-can-eat smorgasbord? They had endless Tiffany lamps and a James Bond Aston Martin car with all the gadgets. Their trumpeter Lance Harrison had us do the Congo line singing O When the Saints Come Marching in. I had no idea that I was singing about Jesus’ second coming.
I want to ask you: Is it wrong to expect more from God? Some Christians unconsciously view God as a bad-tempered miser like the one who was outraged when Oliver Twist said ‘more gruel, sir’. So we may think that God might get angry at us if we ask for more. An inner voice may tell us, “Why don’t you just get used to life as it is”? Jesus, in contrast, wants to give us life abundant. He wants our cup to run over with blessings. Since the Spirit of Jesus in Ephesians 5:18 is actually our double portion, we don’t have to worry about hangovers. You know the whole drinking and drugging culture. What is one of the greatest downsides of getting drunk or on drugs? The effect wears off. You always need more, and the morning after can be very unpleasant. You will be very pleased to know (I checked with Bishop Peter on this 😉) that God’s double portion is sugar-free, calorie-free, and very low in cholesterol. Isn’t that good to know?
The concept of the double portion is first found in Deuteronomy 21:17: “But he shall acknowledge the firstborn . . . by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is the firstfruits of his strength. In the Old Testament, the right of the firstborn was that a firstborn son received twice the inheritance of that of a father’s other sons. So the Isaiah 61:7 emphasis on double portion, which is now for all of us as believers, is actually a covenantal focus on inheritance and sonship as God’s beloved children. Ephesian 1:14 says that the Holy Spirit seals our covenantal inheritance. In Ephesians 1:17-18, we are told that God opens the eyes of our heart so that we may see the riches of his glorious inheritance. Many of us as Christians don’t realize what an amazing inheritance we have been given in Christ. Galatians 4:7 tells us that because we are God’s children and no longer slaves, we are guaranteed a godly inheritance. 1 Peter 1:4 says that our inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. You know, the children of billionaires, how long does their inheritance often last? It goes pretty quickly. Often sports stars, their multi-millions fade away very quickly. Studies show that their wealth is often soon gone. Again and again, the bible affirms our covenantal inheritance in Matthew 5:5, Acts 20:32, Colossians 1:12, Hebrews 9:15, and Titus 3:7. The double portion is not something that we earn by trying harder, but rather receive by faith as our Kingdom inheritance.
Because Hannah could not have children, her husband tried to comfort her with an extra blessing. In 1 Samuel 1:5, we are told: “But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her.”
Near the end of Elijah’s time on earth, he offered his assistant Elisha a gift, saying: “What can I do for you before I am taken from you?” Elisha answered in 2 Kings 2:9, “Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me.” The doubling of miracles through Elisha confirmed that he had indeed been granted a double portion. We dealt with that a lot in our new book the Elisha Code which just came out in hardcover.
In Job 42:10, God restored to Job twice as much as he originally had before his time of testing. It could be said that Job also received a “double portion.”
The promise of a double portion in Isaiah 61:7 followed a period of double shame and double disgrace. Look at the history of the Jewish people, how often they have been sent into exile, how often they have been persecuted and shamed. Many people have been raised in a culture of shame, dishonour, and loss of face. The devil loves to give people a double portion of shame, guilt, fear, self-hatred, and hopelessness. The devil wants to say to us ‘shame on you’ while Jesus wants to say ‘shame off you.’ The devil wants to cripple us, to make us feel unworthy to receive God’s double portion. He will whisper to you: “You’ve made too many mistakes for God to still love you. God might love other people, maybe Bishop Peter and Jenny because they are worthy, but not you. You’re a sinner. You’ve blown it. It’s amazing that they even let you attend All Saints.” That’s what the devil will whisper. But, you see, God the Father loves you just as much as he loves Jesus his Only Son. Our covenantal God loves being generous to you. Double trouble often precedes and potentially prepares us for double blessings.
My wife wanted me to tell you about an Afro-American woman who runs a Christian fitness company in California. She was mega-successful, but she would always crash and burn. She lost everything, including her business, ending up divorced from overworking. Her breakthrough happened when she finally accepted at the core of her being that she was not unworthy to receive God’s double portion. I want to tell you today: you are not disqualified. Don’t listen to the devil when he tells you that God doesn’t love you.
Did you know that each of us as believers has a covenantal inheritance of both fruit and gifts? The Holy Spirit wants to give us a double portion of gifts and fruit, a double portion of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. A double portion blessing is a double blessing of the fruit of everlasting joy. As Isaiah 61:10 puts it, I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. If you are not rejoicing, you need a double blessing. Now you might be thinking, “I’ve got too much trouble in my life.” Well, if you have double trouble, you’re exactly whom God wants to give the double blessing.
1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12 describe the double portion of various spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit wants to pour out upon us. The Spirit of the Father breaks the power of shame off of our lives, turning us from saving face to saving grace.
You see, double blessings is like a magnificent rose among many thorns. Brent Rue, a Vineyard Megachurch pastor, told us that many pastors want a mega church. He went on to say that with mega churches come mega-problems. So there is the rose in the middle of many mega-thorns.
Isaiah 61:8 tells us that our covenantal God loves justice and hates robbery and wrongdoing. When we are going through the worst of times, God will never give upon on us. Do I hear an Amen?
He is covenantally faithful to us even we break his everlasting covenant. God has never given up on the chosen people of Israel even when he has disciplined them and sent them into exile. There is always the miracle of return and restoration, both for the Jewish people, but also for those of us who have been grafted in from the nations. We have a godly covenantal inheritance. Those of us who are grafted into the olive tree can trust in the faithfulness of God to all his covenants, including Jeremiah’s new covenant.
Isaiah 61:10 compares this double portion blessing to our covenantal wedding robes. Have you ever dressed us for a wedding in some function? Why do people do that? It is covenantal. It says: “For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Our covenantal wedding clothes are actually ‘military’ in nature 😉. Part of the double portion blessing is daily embracing the Ephesians 6:10-20 clothing of the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the Gospel shoes of peace, and praying in the Spirit at all times. Whenever I door-knock both evangelistically and politically, I find myself often putting on the covenantal spiritual armour. How of you ever put on your spiritual armour? How many do it on a daily basis? It can be a deep blessing, even a double blessing.
Isaiah 61:9 tells us that part of the double portion blessing is not just for ourselves but also for our children and grandchildren, both physically and spiritually. How many of you love your children? Covenant promises are for me and my household. Our descendants, says vs 9, will be known among the nations. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed. 1 John 1:4 says I have no greater joy that knowing that my children are walking in the truth. If you don’t have physical children, you can have spiritual children. So digesting a double portion of the Bible really helps us walk in the truth.
In conclusion, I love how Bishop Peter and Jenny invest week in and week out so deeply in us as their spiritual family to help us love God’s Word and walk in the truth. Do I hear an amen? Do people appreciate us?
God has doubly blessed us at All Saints. That’s why we’ve never had any troubles here 😉 Double troubles and double blessings go together. Because Canada is the most international nation on earth, we right here are blessing the nations in Canada both locally and indirectly through their international family networks. So many people in Canada are connected all around the world. Right here in Crescent Beach, through the Double portion of God’s Holy Spirit, we are impacting the world with the great Commission and the Great Commandment.
I believe that God wants to doubly bless you today to be a double blessing to others. This is your covenantal inheritance. I want to ask you: who this Lent would like to receive a double portion, a double blessing for yourself, your family, and for the nations? Let us pray. Dear Lord, you are so radically generous. Help us not to disqualify ourselves. Help us not to listen to that voice that says that we will never be good enough. Lord, help us to open and receive all that you have for us of your double portion, your double blessing, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
You will be pleased that the Elisha Code will be soon available on Amazon in hardcover as well as paper back and Kindle ebook.
Tina Friesen on the Elisha Code
5.0 out of 5 stars
An inspiring read
Reviewed in Canada on March 14, 2024
The personal devotion and passion of the authors shines through in this well written book. The Elisha Code touches on many aspects of Christian living as the writers till the soil and sow seeds in anticipation of a coming revival reminiscent of the Jesus Movement both experienced. The book awakens a yearning for a ‘Book of Acts’ Holy Spirit out-pouring accompanied by signs and wonders. The concept of the Elisha code is derived from the premise that Elijah prepared the way for Elisha’s double anointing in the same way John the Baptist prepared the way for Christ. It asks whether we are seeing forerunners of a new awakening today and challenges us to prepare our hearts.
Click to check out Tina Friesen’s new book From A Distance.
March 10th 2024 sermon: Rebuilding Ancient Ruins (Isaiah 61:1-6)
by Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, All Saints Community Church Crescent Beach
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations. Strangers will shepherd your flocks; foreigners will work your fields and vineyards. And you will be called priests of the Lord, you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast.”
Isaiah 61:1-6 NIV
Anita McBride sang her Isaiah 61 song.
You will notice that Isaiah 61 begins by saying: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me. The Hebrew and Greek words for the Holy Spirit is Ruach and Pneuma, which is the same word used for wind or breath. Think of a pneumatic drill powered by the air, the wind. Everything about Jesus is related to the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is also called the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of Jesus, the Spirit of the Father, the Spirit of Truth, the Paraclete our comforter and counsellor, and the Holy Ghost, from the German Geist for Spirit. The Holy Spirit is compared metaphorically to Clothing and a higher power in Luke 24:49), to a Dove in Matthew 3:16, to a Pledge and Earnest Money in 2 Corinthians 1:22, to a seal in Ephesians 1:13, to Fire in Acts 2:3, to Oil in Acts 10:38, to water in John 7:38, to Wind in John 3:8, to breath in John 20:22, and to wine in Ephesians 5:18. What is your favorite biblical image for the Holy Spirit?
Matthew 1:20 tells us that Jesus, born of the Virgin Mary, was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Matthew 3:16 tells us that the Holy Spirit descended like a dove upon Jesus during his water baptism by John the Baptist. Luke 4 tells us that Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where he was tempted by the devil for the forty days of Lent. In John 14:26, Jesus told us that the Holy Spirit would be his representative on earth when he returned to heaven. The Holy Spirit is mentioned over 90 times in the New Testament. In recent history, the Holy Spirit was often the forgotten third person of the Trinity. As the Nicene Creed puts it, the Holy Spirit is worshipped and glorified with the Father and the Son. He is not an impersonal Star Wars force. He is God. The Holy Spirit is not a something. He’s a someone, a person. The Holy Spirit has an amazing personality that you would enjoy getting to know.
Do any of you, by the way, know who Muslims think that the Holy Spirit is? Because they reject the Trinity, they shrink the Holy Spirit into just being the Angel Gabriel.
John 14: 16 tells that the world (and often many of us church folks) neither sees or knows the Spirit of Truth. Many of us had accurate theology about the Holy Spirit without personal experience of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:17-18 quotes Joel 2:28-32 that God in the last days will pour out his Spirit upon all people, on both men and women, young and old, even upon the servants. The Good News is that hundreds of millions of people, especially in Africa, are experiencing a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit. Most Anglican Christians live in Africa, well over forty to fifty million where they are experiencing a wonderful Spirit-led revival. Each of the three times that Janice and I have ministered in Africa, we have come back refreshed and renewed in the Spirit.
You will remember how in Luke 4, Jesus preached from Isaiah 61 in Nazareth. It did not end well, as his home town rose up, attempting to throw him headfirst off a cliff. What is it about Isaiah 61 that was so upsetting to his home town crowd?
To say that the Spirit of the Lord has anointed Jesus is to affirm him as the Messiah, the anointed one, in Greek the Christ.
Jesus’ mandate from the Holy spirit in Isaiah 61 is to proclaim good news to the poor. The term gospel means good news. The term evangelism or evangelical means to share good news. Historically, the poor are the most open to the good news. The poor can be those economically poor, but also poor in spirit. You will remember that Jesus said in the beatitudes ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of God.’ Blessed are those who know their need.
Isaiah 61 vs tells us that the Holy Spirit sent Jesus on mission. Part of that apostolic sending is to bind up the broken-hearted. Has Jesus ever done that for you? Has he ever used you to bind up the broken hearted? Why is it so essential to the gospel to bind up the broken hearted?
Isaiah 61 tells us that through the anointing and power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus will proclaim freedom for the captives. E. Stanley Jones describe these captives as those who have been disinherited and exploited because of race, class, social standing, and lack of education. 2nd Corinthians 3:17 tells us that where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. Romans 8:15 tells us that through the Holy Spirit, we as children of God are no longer slaves to fear. The Holy Spirit set my hero E. Stanley Jones free from a sense of inferiority. His father was an alcoholic who had sold most of his family’s furniture to feed his addiction. God reminded Jones according to 2nd Timothy 1:7 that God has not given me a spirit of fear but of power and love and a sound mind. The baptism or soaking in the Spirit is a baptism of God’s love. Has anyone experienced freedom from captivity in their Christian walk? Has anyone experienced a baptism of God’s love in your life? What was that like for you?
Has anyone been released through the Holy Spirit from darkness, as Isaiah 61 talks about? This reminds me of Isaiah 60 “Arise and Shine for your Light has come”. The Holy Spirit is vital in our being released from all forms of darkness, including physical and emotional sickness. Often the inner healing happens before the physical healing. Forgiveness of deep inner hurts often results in remarkable physical healings. Countless millions in Africa, Asia, and South America have come to know Jesus personally when they experienced the healing power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told us in Acts 1:8 that we shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon us, and we shall be witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea, and Samaria and to the ends of the earth, including Crescent Beach.
I am so grateful that this is the year of the Lord’s favor. How many appreciate the favour of the Lord in your life? In the creeds, the Holy Spirit is called the Lord of Life. Judaism and Christianity are all about embracing the gift of abundant life. We live in a culture of abundant death where abortion and MAID attempt to remove suffering through eliminating human beings. Romans 8:6 tells us that the mind governed by the Holy Spirit is life and peace. Romans 15:13 describes our being filled with joy and peace so that we may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Does anyone need less peace and joy in their lives?
You will notice that Jesus did not quote the second half of the verse, which refers to the Judgment of the Lord which awaits his second coming. As we say in the Creed, he, Jesus, shall come again to judge the living and the dead.
I love how Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit, comforts all who mourn, and provides for those who grieve in Zion. We are very aware of how many Israelis have been deeply grieving since the October 7th massacre. Jesus said in Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.” We are called in 1 Corinthians 12:15 to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. 2 Corinthians 1:4 says that the Father comforts us in our sorrow that we can comfort others with the comfort that He has given us.
Has God the Holy Spirit ever given you beauty for ashes, as mentioned in Isaiah 61:3? What did that look like for you? The oil of joy is such a gift where life is weighing us down. That is why Paul reaffirmed in Philippians 3:3 that the joy of the Lord is our true security. What are we tempted to trust in for our security?
How many have ever put on a garment of grumbling? How did that work for you? Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit, puts on us a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. There is something very radical when we give thanks while others curse. E. Stanley Jones said after a massive stroke that he still could give thanks, sometimes because of, and sometimes in spite of. How has giving thanks and praise brought breakthrough in your life? Has anyone ever heard of Merlin Carother’s book Prison to Praise?
How many of us want to be oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor? In this world of chaos and destruction, we need to be deeply rooted in a way that displays his splendor.
We live in a difficult time when everything that can be shaken is being shaken. Hebrews 12:28 tells us that only the unshakable Kingdom will remain. The Spirit of Jesus is helping us to rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; The Spirit of the Father is enabling us to renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations. That is incredibly good news in this time of gross darkness, particularly in BC.
Jesus in Luke 11:11-13 said: “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? So, if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” God only gives good gifts. We don’t need to fear giving over our will to the Holy Spirit, who is a good and loving God. Galatians 5:25 teaches us that since we live by the Spirit, we need to keep in step with the Spirit. I Corinthians 6:19 reminds us that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit.
All born-again Christians have the Holy Spirit living inside of them, but it is still too easy according to 1 Thessalonians 5:19 to quench the Spirit, Ephesians 4:30 to grieve the Spirit, Act 7:51 to resist the Spirit, and Isaiah 63:10 vex the Spirit.
It is such a joy, as Romans 8:26 puts it, that the Holy Spirit helps us in our weaknesses, that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us through wordless groans. Many scholars see this as an allusion to praying in the Spirit, to speaking in tongues. Nicky Gumbel calls it a love language. Some have the misunderstanding that speaking in tongues is always an ecstatic experience, and so they seldom speak in tongues unless they are a spiritual high. Rev. Dennis Bennett, the author of the best-selling book Nine O’Clock in the Morning and one of my Anglican heroes, recommended that people pray in tongues in their prayer closet on a daily basis. I compare speaking in tongues to flossing one’s teeth. It is best done on a daily basis, whether one feels like it or not. Over the past forty-five years, I have observed that daily speaking in tongues does not guarantee spiritual maturity, but it can help one grow in their prayer lives.
Nicky Gumbel says that you can be filled with the Holy Spirit without speaking in tongues. There are no first-class and second-class Christians. Nicky also says that all Christians can potentially speak in tongues. How many of you have ever heard of Vicar Alexander Boddy from All Saints Anglican Church in Sunderland? Janice and I visited there on our last trip to England. The Holy Spirit poured out on that church in 1907, and for the 25 years, countless people came at Whitsuntide/the Day of Pentecost to receive an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps the most famous recipient was the Bradford plumber Smith Wigglesworth, who after receiving his prayer language, went on to have a world-wide healing ministry. Has anyone heard of Smith Wigglesworth?
Being filled with the Holy Spirit again and again, according to Ephesians 5:18, makes us more fully Trinitarian, not just conceptually, but also experientially. It is not mere coincidence that we are water-baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. At the end of every worship service, we are blessed in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Healthy revival and renewal is always deeply Trinitarian. Jesus lays down his will to the Father. John 16:13-14 tells us that the Spirit of Truth points not to himself but to Jesus. The Spirit helps us experience intimacy with Jesus, making us more Christocentric and therefore less eccentric, as in off-centered. As Nicky Gumbel puts it, it is the Holy Spirit who makes Jesus real to us. That is why the Alpha Course weekend with the three talks on the Holy Spirit is such a gift. More than 24 mi E. Stanley Jones said that ‘every rediscovery and re-emphasis on Jesus has brought and still brings revival and renewal. This Lent, we all need to more fully receive the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Bishop Peter often says that breakthrough comes through surrendering our will. What if this Lent we actually surrendered to the Holy Spirit? What if we let go and let God the Holy Spirit take control? How many are willing to ask God for a fresh Isaiah 61 outpouring of the Holy Spirit this Lent? Let us pray. Come Holy Spirit and fill us afresh with abundant life. Amen.
March 3rd 2024 All Saints Sermon by Rev. Dr. Ed Hird
““Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you. Though in anger I struck you, in favor I will show you compassion. Your gates will always stand open, they will never be shut, day or night, so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations— their kings led in triumphal procession. For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; it will be utterly ruined. “The glory of Lebanon will come to you, the juniper, the fir and the cypress together, to adorn my sanctuary; and I will glorify the place for my feet. The children of your oppressors will come bowing before you; all who despise you will bow down at your feet and will call you the City of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel. “Although you have been forsaken and hated, with no one traveling through, I will make you the everlasting pride and the joy of all generations. You will drink the milk of nations and be nursed at royal breasts. Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. Instead of bronze I will bring you gold, and silver in place of iron. Instead of wood I will bring you bronze, and iron in place of stones. I will make peace your governor and well-being your ruler. No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders, but you will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise. The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more; the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of sorrow will end. Then all your people will be righteous and they will possess the land forever. They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for the display of my splendor. The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation. I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly.””
Have you noticed how Isaiah 60:10 says that foreigners and their Kings will rebuild the open walls of Jerusalem on Mount Zion? Vs 20 tells us that the everlasting Light of God will cause the days of sorrow to end. The Jewish people have seen so many days of sorrow, sometimes from people who claim to be Christians. Historically, many gentile nations have often robbed the Jewish people rather than generously bring them the wealth of the nations. Do you remember the first nation that robbed Israel and then blessed as they left? Exodus 12:36 calls it the plundering of the Egyptians after four hundred years of slavery. It is not rocket science to observe that nations that curse Israel and the Jewish people never do well, for as Jesus said in John 4:22, Salvation is of the Jews.
How many of you have a friend, family neighbour or colleague whom you would like to come to know Jesus personally? In the Jesus movement revival, we led countless people, including some of our Jewish friends, to Jesus, largely because we didn’t know any better. Most of our Christian friends were hiding in the closet about their faith until the Jesus movement happened. When Jewish people in Israel prophetically receive the wealth of the Nations, I am believing that this will include receiving what Romans 11:33 calls the depth of the riches of the wisdom and[i] knowledge of God! Paul tells us in Romans 11:25 that in the last days after the full number of the gentile nations have come in, there will be an end-times revival in which all Israel shall be saved. That is why we need to keep praying expectantly for our Jewish friends for a turning to the Lord and a removing of the veil. Do I hear an amen?
Both Bishop Peter and I have talked a lot about the Bible-based Chosen TV series, which is distributed first by Lionsgate Films on the large movie screen, and then on the Chosen App, YouTube, Prime, and Netflix. It first came out in 2017 and is now in its fourth of seven seasons. More than 600 million people already have watched the Chosen series. How many have watched any of it yet? What was your favorite episode?
New research reveals that roughly half of the viewers of The Chosen are not Christians. As mentioned last Sunday, the darkness out there is getting so gross that many of the unchurched are getting curious about Jesus the Light of the Nations. The research shows that Gen Z and younger, many who know nothing about Jesus and have never been to church, are loving the Chosen series. They can’t get enough of it. Here’s an advance tip: Season 5 of The Chosen will spotlight Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem for Holy Week. Season 6 and Season 7 will include the crucifixion and resurrection. You won’t want to miss it. How many of you are willing to check out the Chosen series? More importantly, are you willing to invite a friend or family member to watch a chosen episode with you? It is one of the easiest ways to do evangelism in this gospel-resistant culture.
How many of you love Isaiah? I deeply love Isaiah. I am genetically related to Isaiah who is now four years old. His mom chose this name because the prophet Isaiah spoke about beauty for ashes, an anointing of joy for a spirit of heaviness. How many of you have met any of our grandchildren? If you have met Isaiah, you will never forget him. Our grandson Isaiah is full of life, bubbling over.
As you know, All Saints is currently doing a five-week Lenten sermon series on Isaiah entitled “Arise and Shine, All Saints.” The New Testament quotes the book of Isaiah 71 times. Isaiah is the most Christian, in Hebrew, the most messianic book in the Old Testament, which Jewish people call the Tenach. How many of you know what the term Tenach stands for? It is an acronym for the three section of the Old Testament: 1) Torah (Law, the first five book), 2) Neviʾim (Prophets), and 3) Ketuvim (Writings, or the rest of the Old Testament).
Isaiah 2:5, as quoted by 1 John 1:9, calls us to walk in the light of the Lord”. Isaiah 5:20 warns woke people, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness.” Isaiah 7:14, as quoted by Matthew 1:22, prophesies that a virgin will give birth to God’s son, one of his names which is Immanuel, God with us. Isaiah 9:1, as quoted by Matthew 4:15, calls Jesus a light in darkness. Isaiah 9:6 prophesies that Jesus the Messiah will come as a baby. I love the beauty of the King James Version which Handel’s Messiah drew upon “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 11:1, as quoted in Luke 1:31-33, calls Jesus the root of Jesse, King David’s father. Isaiah 28:16, as quoted in Matthew 21:42-44, calls Jesus the rejected Corner Stone. Isaiah 29:18 & 35:5, as quoted in Matthew 11:5, prophesied that Jesus would cause the deaf to hear and the blind to see. Isaiah 40:3-5, as quoted by all four Gospels, predicted the coming of John the Baptist who would prepare the way for Jesus the Messiah. Isaiah 42:1-4, as quoted by Matthew 12:18-21, prophesied that Jesus the Messiah would be gentle and not crush the broken.
The strongest and longest OT prophecies about Jesus are found in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53, which is never read nowadays in the synagogues. Many of my messianic Jewish friends have come to know Jesus, who they call Yeshua, by reading Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53. There was a Jewish person who was first shown Isaiah 53 and asked who it was talking about. He said, “Well, it’s obviously about Jesus. But I don’t trust your New Testament.” He was then amazed to discover that this was not from the New Testament but the Old Testament.
Have you noticed that Isaiah 60 keeps telling us in verses 3, 5 to 6, 11 (even in Isaiah 66:12-13) that those coming to the Light of Jesus will bring the Wealth of the Nations? The King James Version called this the Wealth of the Gentiles. In Hebrew, it is called the wealth of the Goyim. In 140 places, the KJV translates the term goyim as the heathen. The words ‘heathen’ and ‘nation’ are often interchangeable in the KJV, as in 1 Chronicles 16:24 “Declare his glory among the heathen, his marvelous works among all nations.” This is where we get the word ‘ethnic’ from (ethnos in the Greek). To be called heathen did not mean that you were uncivilized, just not Jewish. Those of us who are not Jewish and love Jesus are actually Christian heathens.
Now when business people, economists and politicians hear the term Wealth of the Nations, what person and book comes to mind? Adam Smith’s 1776 book Wealth of the Nations. How many of you have ever read Wealth of the Nations? How many of you have ever taken a course of economic? I want to invite you up for a little dialogue.
In 1776, Smith’s second book The Wealth of the Nations was so popular that he became known as the Father of Economics and the Father of Capitalism. For some people today, Capitalism has become a negative word associated with Scrooge-like greed and cutthroat business practices. Karl Marx blamed capitalism for all the world’s ills.
Most people have no idea that Adam Smith was a devout Christian economist. In his two books, including his lesser-known book The Theory of Moral Sentiments, God was mentioned a total of 403 times. Biblical economics is based on our being faithful stewards, realizing that all things come from God, and of his own have we given him (1 Chronicles 29:14). Stewardship in the Greek is the same word as economics (oikonomos, manager of the oikos, the house). Smith wanted everyone to earn a decent living, saying ‘No society can surely be flourishing and happy of which the far greater of the members are poor and miserable.’ Smith observed how God transforms private interest into public good by his invisible sovereign hand.
Born in 1723 in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, Adam Smith never knew his father who had died five months before his birth. Smith regularly attended the local church with his devout mother Margaret. His strong Christian faith is often ignored or minimized by modern economists. You cannot really understand Adam Smith without appreciating his 1759 book The Theory of Moral Sentiments:
He said: “As to love our neighbour as we love ourselves is the great law of Christianity, so it is the great precept of nature to love ourselves only as we love our neighbour, or what comes to the same thing, as our neighbour is capable of loving us.”
Adam Smith was not just a philosopher and economist. He was also an early psychologist and sociologist who served at Glasgow University as Professor of Moral Philosophy. He was such an academic rock star in Glasgow that the university bookstore even sold a bust of his head what he was still alive! Smith was fascinated about what made people tick, especially how emotions/sentiments affected our life choices and ethical decisions.
With most of his students training to become ordained clergy, he taught them extensively about natural theology, how God our creator impacted our natural world:
…every part of nature, when attentively surveyed, equally demonstrates the providential care of its Author, and we may admire the wisdom and goodness of God, even in the weakness and folly of man.
Smith was struck by the miraculous order of God’s good universe. He called the universe God’s machine, designed to produce at all times the greatest quantity of happiness in us. Romans 8:28 reminds us how all things work together for the good.
Since he was fatherless, Smith deeply appreciated that God was indeed our heavenly Father. He commented that ‘the very suspicion of a fatherless world must be the most melancholy of all reflections’, leaving us with nothing but endless misery and wretchedness.
All the economic prosperity in the world, said Smith, can never remove the dreadful gloominess of a world without God our Father. Smith taught that with this conviction of a benevolent heavenly Father, all the sorrow of an afflicting adversity can never dry up our joy. Smith, who sometimes suffered from depression, knew that because he was not cosmically alone, he had reason to keep going. After experiencing academic burnout, he left Glasgow University, serving as a European tutor for Henry Scott, the future Duke of Buccleuch and his brother. While in Paris, he became friends to Voltaire and the French physiocrat economists, led by Dr. Francois Quesnay, the Royal Physician to King Louis XV. After the tragic death of Henry Scott’s younger brother, Smith returned home, never to visit Europe again.
Let me ask you a question: Who first brought the wealth of the nations to Israel as predicted in Isaiah 60? None other than the wise men who brought their three gifts to Jesus the Messiah of gold, myrrh, and incense. Haggai 2:7 says that the gold and silver belong to the Lord. My scientist brother-in-law had a great bumper sticker “Wise Men Still Seek Him.” Isaiah 60 Vs 5 prophetically said “Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah. And all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.” Where did we get the idea that the wise men came on camels? From Isaiah 60. Where did we get the idea that the wise men or magis were kings? From Isaiah 60 vs. 3 and 11. And also in the prophecy of Psalm 72:10-11, it says “May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores bring tribute to him. May the kings of Sheba and Seba present him gifts. May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.”
What reason did Isaiah 60 give that the wise men came to visit Jesus? The darkness became so gross that they were drawn to the light. Have you noticed in 2024 that the darkness is getting pretty gross? I am believing that many unchurched people in 2024 will be so grossed out by the extreme darkness in BC that they will come to this glorious Lighthouse in Crescent Beach. We the people of the light need to be ready to welcome them with open arms. These lost, broken people will not come to the light already cleaned up and fixed.
According to Matthew 2:2, what led the wise men to that perfect light? (the Star of wonder, Star of night) That reminds me of a song.
Bearing gifts we traverse afar
Field and fountain
Moor and mountain
Following yonder star
O star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy perfect light
Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice
Al-le-lu-ia, al-le-lu-ia
Heaven to earth replies
O star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy perfect light
Did the wise men visit Jesus at his birth? Not likely. Likely over 40 days later. Perhaps a year or two later. Do you know, by the way, why the wise men were late for Christmas? Being men, they wouldn’t ask directions.
How many wise men does the bible say came to Jesus? It doesn’t say. It just said three gifts. Their names were not likely Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar.
What was the final thing the wise men did after they gave Jesus the wealth of the nations? They worshipped him. Did you know that the JW New World Translation bible wipes out any references to worshipping Jesus, retranslating proskuneo as merely obeisance, whatever that means? How many of you believe that Jesus the King of the nations is worthy of worship and adoration? That reminds me of a chorus: O come let us adore Him
O come let us adore him
O come let us adore Him
Christ, the Lord
Why do we have an offering of our tithes and sacrificial offerings each Sunday in our worship service? Because Jesus is worthy of our worship, worthy of receiving the wealth of the nations. Do I hear an Amen?
Jesus, in sixteen out of the thirty-eight recorded parables, spoke about stewardship. As we seek first God’s Kingdom, our needs will be met. (Matthew 6:33) Jesus tells us in Luke 16: 11 “if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?” Money is small potatoes in God’s eyes. The true wealth of the nations is about love, forgiveness, justice, and God’s Word.
Abundant living depends on abundant giving. Jesus taught that it is better to give than receive (Acts 20:35). Tithing our first 10% to God and then giving sacrificially expresses the truth that God the King owns it all, and we are his Kingdom caretakers. E. Stanley Jones told the story of a poverty-stricken boy named Colgate who met a steamboat captain who encouraged him to give his heart to Jesus and give one tenth of all he made to God. The boy promised both, and through his Colgate Toothpaste Company, ended up giving millions to serving others.
What might happen to Canada in 2024 if we chose to lay the wealth of the nations at the feet of Jesus’ unshakable Kingdom?
Let us sing the first verse of All to Jesus I surrender song, as our prayer to Jesus.
Seek wisdom leading to life and peace.
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