Knowing Him

I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. 2 Timothy 1:12

To be shamed is to feel that one’s humanity has come into question. Our human nature does not like to feel shame, great pains will be undertaken to avoid this feeling. We hide from all that will shame us whether that is our behavior or a sinful act exposed. The apostle says that he is not ashamed, no matter how the world would scoff or mock, in Christ we can have great boldness that our sins will never haunt us with the specter of shame.

Conjoined to his boldness, he mentions the hallmark of the Christian life. We must truly know him who we have believed. To know Christ is to know that he is trustworthy and he has canceled our sin debt. Our sins will never shame us by being exposed, as they are removed from us and his righteousness is imputed to the believer. If you are truly persuaded that Jesus is the Christ, then he must be able to keep that which we have committed to him, our very lives. To stop here is to truncate our Savior’s job, he has promised us that we will not feel shame, and that we will not stand judgment rather he is faithful to remove our sins and present us to the Father. Knowing him is trusting him.

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Sheep with names

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To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. John 10:3

Beginning in verse 1 of John 10, the Lord Jesus contrasts the difference between himself and the Pharisees. The ministry of Jesus is likened to a Shepherd. The sheep have been led in and they are being cared for during the night by the Porter. A.W. Pink’s excellent commentary on John provides us with the background of this parable.  In verse 1 Jesus speaks of the “sheepfold”.  Pink says that the sheepfold is properly speaking “Judaism”. 

Judaism is the door whereby God’s elect were gathered. The Messiah  comes through the “door” which is right, proper, and holy. He does not enter the sheepfold through some other way.  The Good Shepherd goes into the sheepfold because the porter or doorkeeper has allowed him entrance.

In this parable the porter is the Holy Spirit. Much of the symbolism is lost on us ‘moderns’.  The porter offered protection for the sheep during the night. The Shepherd would leave his sheep under the care of the porter so that he could secure lodging for the night. The porter would keep thieves and predators from attacking the sheep while the shepherd was away.

When the shepherd returned he would enter the sheepfold and gather his own sheep by calling them by name.  The shepherd in this parable is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. He calls his own sheep by name and they will follow him. Notice the call is not for all sheep. If from our passage we understand that the sheepfold is this case was Judaism, the Lord is calling his elect out of Judaism and unto himself. The elect “lost sheep” of Israel hear the voice of the Messiah and they follow him.

The effectual call of Jesus for his elect is both specific and by name. The Lamb’s book contains the names of those whom Christ has known since before the foundation of the Lord. Many are called but few are chosen, and the chosen ones of God are known to the Good Shepherd by name!

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The Apologist’s Verse

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but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and be ready always to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason of the hope in you, with meekness and fear;  1 Peter 3:15

This verse could properly be called the apologist’s verse. Along with Jude 3 many apologetics ministries use this verse as the keystone upon which their ministry is built. There are really two things that are important about this verse. 

The verse reminds us that there is a reason for the hope that we have within us.  Our faith is not a blind leap of faith, to the chagrin of the existentialists and mystics. Nor is our faith rooted in gnostic knowledge as the Apostle tells us to be ready to give an answer to anyone that asks, not just the initiates.

Our faith is to be one that demonstrates hope to the world. This hope is in word and deed. We cannot just talk about hope rather we must live hope. As Christ’s disciples our lives should be saturated in hope. The expectancy of that which is to come should so envelope our lives that the watching world rushes to ask the follower of Chirst, what is this hope that you have?

Our apologetic should be rooted in fear. Not fear of man as this would contradict the clear teaching of scripture in many places. Rather our apologetic should have a healthy reverential fear of the Lord who sovereignly plucked us as a brand from the fire. Second our answer is to be given with meekness. We are to rely and trust completely in the Lord’s completed work and his sovereign plan of election and predestination. The task before us does not depend on our powers of persuasion or even a method. If we are to be biblical then we are to answer the world with meekness and fear.

Most importantly though we are to sanctify Christ in our hearts. This does not mean that we can add to his holiness. He does not become holy because of man. As John Gill states in his commentary on this verse Christ is essentially, infinitely, and perfectly holy. Rather we are to proclaim his holiness, to exalt his holiness, to give to Christ alone all the praise, honor, and glory.

For the apologist this is the most important point of the verse. We are never to glorify ourselves in the apologetic task. We are to exalt Christ alone as all together wonderful. Remembering that all of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ.

 

 

 

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