Eric Ludy Sermon Podcast: Church at Ellerslie

Just as there are gradients to the color blue, there are gradients to the grandeur and substance of a Godly man. On a scale of 1 to 10, Jesus ranks a ten—the deepest and richest royal shade of blue, so to speak. He was the perfect man, demonstrating the heavenly hues of majesty and holiness. Jesus has set forth a pattern of manhood, and it is a standard so far beyond the average pew-sitting man of our day. So, the question is, “Are we to ignore Christ's righteous pattern or are we to expect God to work the almighty manly pattern into our manhood?” History will show the significance of the men of God of our day answering that question rightly.

The ancient war-cry of the Hebrew nation was, "Rak Khazak." And today, those fiery words still turn Israeli soldiers into steely fighting machines. It was first introduced by Moses in his Deuteronomic commission and then carried on by Joshua as he stepped into the Promised Land with the face of a lion. Translated into English, the words mean "be strong and of good courage!" Those ancient words have prefaced supernatural victory time and again throughout history. And they are the very words needed for this hour.

If the power of the Gospel is to be fully realized in the life of a believer, that believer must first be emptied. The principle of the Gospel is always "first death, then life." Mary of Bethany took her most precious possession (the alabaster jar of spikenard) and poured it out upon Jesus's feet. Those near the scene grumbled that the cost of such a precious treasure was wasted in that fashion, but Jesus responded by declaring that such an act was a clear enunciation of the Gospel life. Taking on the life of Jesus Christ comes with a stiff cost: it means giving up everything. But let's not forget the fact that in giving up everything, we are getting the fullness of life in Jesus Christ.

The Gospel is more than forgiveness; it is a blood-speckled avenue into the fullness of the person of God. This is a message about living where God lives and comprehending the amazing truth that God Almighty wishes to enter in and take control of our very lives. This is the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to the saints.

The Emergent Church has proposed the outrageous notion that God's Word is evolving and each subsequent generation is responsible for interpreting God's Truth for their time. But the Word of God itself is in complete opposition to such a notion of a "changing" God and a "relative"Truth. Our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever—in Him is no variation nor shadow of turning. Our God is revealed as a rock, and He is immovable. His nature is perfectly consistent from generation to generation. His Truth is unalterable. His Gospel doesn't adapt. His promises don't go away. We can be assured that the same God that divinely crafted the Bible is the same God in our midst today and revealing to us the Scripture’s immutable meaning. Praise God for this fact!

The Apostle Paul mentions a certain sword, shield, helmet, breastplate, belt, and shoes in Ephesians, chapter six. He refers to them as the believer's "armor." Paul clearly commands us to dress ourselves in this "armor" in order that we may effectively fight this spiritual battle in which we find ourselves currently employed. However, even with the presence of a clear command, many Christians today are under the impression that this "armor" is merely for little kids in Sunday school class, and not something that mature Christian adults are supposed to actually "put on."In many ways, we have lost the grandeur and majesty of God's purchased weaponry, and many Christians think of God's "armor" as plastic, dime- store religiosity. The saints of God have not been left here on earth alone to fend for themselves. They have been given every last thing they could possibly ever need in order to thrive in life and godliness.

We experienced something very sacred in our midst this past week at Ellerslie. It was a powerful move of God upon our students and staff. It was a campus-wide revival that led to entire days of confession of sins, entire days of worship, and entire days of prayer. Here is the testimony as shared this past Sunday at the Church at Ellerslie (including student testimony). This service, as recorded here, was followed up with three hours of worship, confession of sins, and confession of faith. NOTE: a new microphone was implemented this past Sunday, and whereas the intention was to increase recording quality, it actually did the opposite. Please forgive the raspy mic clipping throughout the audio when Eric is speaking.

The book of Romans, chapter ten, makes a statement that is a bit unusual. "How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of peace." At the pedestrian level of thought, "feet" are not typically considered beautiful. And the reason we don't understand this concept is because we don't understand the Biblical significance of feet. To the Hebrew mind, feet are more than just a body part; they are a symbol of something extremely powerful. So, as the idea of feet is Scripturally unlocked, likewise is the worshiping soul of the believer who desires nothing else but to shout heavenward, "How beautiful are your feet, Lord Jesus!" There is no better place to be than at the precious, lovely, life-giving feet of Jesus Christ.

We as humans can forgive those that wrong us, but we lack the ability, the power, and the love to forgive the way God forgives. Human forgiveness relinquishes resentment and anger, but it can't remove the magnetic pull of remembrance. Human forgiveness leaves us free from the rot of bitterness, but it does nothing to bring heavenly love into the soul towards the one who wronged us. God forgives unlike any man ever could. And His forgiveness must be a hallmark of grace within our souls as Christian men and women. While we can't as humans forgive as God forgives, we can allow God to forgive in and through us and thusly change us and change this world with the amazing love of Christ.

We as humans have problems. We have issues, and this world has a name for every single one of them—and not only a name for them, but also a man-crafted “solution” for each one. Yet every solution offered by man is nothing more than a counterfeit to the real solution that God has made available through the person of Jesus Christ. As Christians, we must learn to always turn to Jesus Christ and His Word first for our solutions rather than to earthly substitutes. He is our all in all. And He is more than prepared to handle our every need, our every crisis, and our every dire circumstance.