For the church, a podcast for the flock of Zion Presbyterian Church in Columbia, TN. We want to help you think biblically about everyday matters.

Zion Church exists to join Jesus in his mission to reach people with his gospel, and then to equip his people to worship and serve.

I am Paul Joiner, the Senior Pastor back with my regular conversation partner and friend, Jon Kelly and today we have our Youth Director and Head of our Bible Department, Keaton Paul.

This season we are focusing on theological topics that are important foundations for the church. These will be theological topics that need to be deeply installed as bedrock truths for the followers of Jesus.

We are talking about God’s sovereignty — his rule over all of creation, his ordering of whatever comes to pass according to his eternal plan — his kingly decree. The WCF 3.1 states that "God from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass."

That is - God is ruling over all things and nothing happens apart from his will. Het sets the boundaries and times of the nations, and not a bird falls from the sky apart from our Father's will.

That is a great comfort - God is solely in control, he is executing his good plans in the world, and nothing can thwart him. He is not contingent on the creation.

But - that is also a great confrontation. Because it means that we are not sovereigns. Which then makes us ask the next question -- what role do my actions play?

Or, often it is asked this way: What about free will? Today we are going to tackle the question generally -- that is the question of free will in relationship to God's sovereignty. Next week, we are going to talk about free will in relationship to sin. Or, to say it another way, this week we are going to talk about the creature's relationship to the Sovereign Creator, and in the next episode we are going to talk about the creature's will in relationship to sin.

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

For the church, a podcast for the flock of Zion Presbyterian Church in Columbia, TN. We want to help you think biblically about everyday matters.

Zion Church exists to join Jesus in his mission to reach people with his gospel, and then to equip his people to worship and serve.

I am Paul Joiner, the Senior Pastor back with my regular conversation partner and friend, Jon Kelly.

This season we are going to focus more on theological topics that are important foundations for the church. These will be theological topics that need to be deeply installed as bedrock truths for the followers of Jesus.

In our last episode, we talked about God’s sovereignty — his rule over all of creation, his ordering of whatever comes to pass according to his eternal plan — his kingly decree.

But — this quickly brings up the question, “What about evil?” If God ordains whatsoever comes to pass, how is he not the author of evil? Or — if God is sovereign, and evil exists — why doesn’t he do something about it…and the tension seems to be that either he isn’t sovereign or he isn’t good.

We often call this a "theodicy" (compound of the Greek words for God (theos) and justice (dikē) -- which carries the sense of putting God on trial and vindicating him). 

This is the heart of the book of Job -- a theodicy, God on trial. Isn’t interesting that the first book of the Bible — that is the oldest book — is dedicated to this question. It is probably one of the deepest and most difficult questions that we ask. Eventually, in suffering, we ask “Why?”

We aren’t going to say everything — we just simply can’t — I have had the privilege over the years of sitting with people who have been deeply sexually abused or experienced evil at the hand of another. And when they ask, “Why did this happen to me? Why didn’t God do something about it?” The only answer I have to give is, “I don’t know.” 

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

We are going to start this season with the Sovereignty of God. Reformed theology is uniquely God-centered. When people discover Reformed thought the God-centered nature of it is the thing that first strikes them — even our children’s catechism starts with the question, “Why did God create humanity?” “For his glory.”

The Bible is one story of God working all things toward his glory in the person and work of Jesus. All history moves toward this purpose. 

But what do we mean when we say “Sovereign”? It is a term that comes from the realm of a “king”…a “king” is a “sovereign” — a king rules and executes his decrees. That is, he speaks his plans -- that is a decree - and then he makes sure his plan or "decree" is accomplished.

Or, as the WCF 3.1 - "God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass."

And that is what we mean by the Sovereignty of God -- God the Creator accomplishing his purposes in the world according to his plan. 

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

In 2019, the General Assembly created a study committee to “study the topic of human sexuality with particular attention to the issues of homosexuality, same-sex attraction, and transgenderism and to prepare a report.”

In this episode, we talk through this report which was commended as a “biblically faithful declaration" at this year's General Assembly.

You can find the report here: https://pcaga.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/AIC-Report-to-48th-GA-5-28-20-1.pdf

Also, if you are interested in the two Overtures that dealt with qualifications for church officers, you can find a pretty good play-by-play here.

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

Part 1 of a two-part series on the PCA's national meeting. In this episode, we discuss how the PCA is set up, how presbyterianism works, and how the General Assembly operates.

Next week we will discuss the Report on Sexuality and a couple of Overtures we discussed on the floor of the General Assembly.

If you would like to watch the General Assembly deliberation, you can find it here: https://livestream.com/accounts/8521918/events/9731338

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

“Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. ” (Philippians 4:5, ESV)

Outrage is today's drug of choice. Studies have shown that it activates the same systems as an addict when he takes a hit. And like a drug — it's a quick hit — an easy fix — it bypasses patient, thoughtful work to get to a reward — and rather it seeks the immediate. Outrage feels so good on the front end. But like a drug, leaves destruction in its wake.

The root issue — at its deepest level outrage is about self-righteousness. Outrage is an attempt to assure ourselves that we are more righteous than we actually are.

We love being outraged because it gives us a sense of being morally superior. At its root, outrage is an attempt to justify ourselves...to build a righteousness for ourselves. And whenever we do this, it is always at the expense of others. "Look at how awful that person or that tribe is." Outrage is the voice of the Pharisee in Luke 17, "I thank you God that I am not like this sinner."

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

1 Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. “

Encouragement is when we impart courage to each other. Just as discouragement is when we take courage away.

Maybe we can think of courage this way, “the willingness to take the next step in light of overwhelming obstacles.”

Compassion is wonderful for a moment but it always needs to be married to something else — an action. For instance, if a friend has compassion and that’s it...well, you will eventually need them to do something for you. Compassion is most stark when it is lacking and when it is alone. When someone acts and does not have compassion, the action feels harsh and unloving. But if it is alone, compassion feels useless and tepid.

Most of the time, we need encouragement — that is an action that compassion can produce. 

But if we assume that courage will arise from within ourselves, we will find that well dry. As with everything in the Christian life — what we lack has to come from outside of ourselves.

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” and promised that “the truth will set you free” — made in the image of God — we were made to live under the objective truth that comes from the Creators mouth — Jesus said, “humanity can’t live by bread alone, but every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

Nobody simply dismisses this dynamic — everyone lives by truth claims.

And, in my estimation, the swing from postmodernism’s insistence that truth is socially constructed has not led to lesser conflict, but greater conflict — greater conflict where tribes launch “truth grenades” across social media platforms and words are seen as the place of social activism (often because it costs us nothing).

So as the followers of Jesus try to navigate these waters — the question for today is: “What does it mean for the followers of Jesus to speak the truth in love?”

Ephesians 4:15–16: Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. “

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

The conscience is our moral sense. It accuses us and excuses us according to an external standard.

What is the freedom of the conscience? The freedom of the conscience is earned by the cross and thus must be shaped by the cross. One of the things the freedom of the conscience is meant to do is allow us to make compromises — compromises for community and compromises for the mission of Jesus.

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org

The conscience seems to be a hot topic in this cultural moment. So we wanted to enter into the conversations around the conscience.

The conscience is a moral sense — it alerts us to guilt and innocence. The Puritans would call the conscience “God’s spy in the bosom.” Calvin called it an awareness of a thousand witnesses (3.19.16). And I like both of those because instead of being a wild-card to do what I want, it gives us the sense that it makes us aware of our guilt or innocence before God (this emphasis is important).

Recommended Resources:
10 Statements on the Conscience

Andy Naselli and JD Crowley,  Conscience.

Zion Presbyterian Church — www.zioncolumbia.org