Truth For Life

Alistair Begg: I still hear in my head advertising jingles even from my childhood. A good commercial is remembered. Great ones make you want to buy the product.

Alistair Begg: Today on Truth for Life, Alistair Begg reflects on how and why Christian families are to be a great endorsement for the Gospel.

Alistair Begg: The specific instructions given to the physical family are set in the context of the church family. Which, of course, raises immediately the question, "Who or what is the church family?"

Alistair Begg: And here in Colossians, we have the answer to that very, very clear. If you move in your Bible simply to the opening page of Colossians, you will see that Paul, the apostle of Christ Jesus, along with Timothy, his brother, is addressing those to whom he refers as the saints and faithful brothers and sisters.

Alistair Begg: He then goes on to say that these are the ones who are marked by three things in particular: by faith, by love, and by hope. In other words, these individuals are not simply a collection of religious people that are living in the Colossae Valley, but they are those who have had a direct encounter with the living God in and through the work of the Spirit of God, in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Alistair Begg: Now if you have your text in front of me, let me point out to you that he describes the fact that in verse six, this Gospel, this word of truth, has come to them, and they have, you will notice the verb, understood it. They have understood it.

Alistair Begg: There is a mysterious work when men and women understand the Gospel. You will not come to understand the Gospel as a result of sufficient argumentation. Argument, apologetic, is insufficient.

Alistair Begg: It is not unnecessary, but it is insufficient. Because what happens is, when the Holy Spirit comes and enables us to understand, He doesn't do so contra the evidence, but what He does is He clears away the mists from our eyes, and suddenly what was unclear becomes clear in a way that takes us by surprise.

Alistair Begg: And we say when someone asks us, "And are you a member of the family?" "Yes, I am." "What happened to you?" "Well, it was quite remarkable, really, because I understood God's grace." That's in verse six.

Alistair Begg: In verse twelve, he describes them as those who are qualified, qualified, giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you on the basis of what? Not on the basis of entry to a club, not on the basis of academic success, not on the basis of gender or social standing, but qualified solely on the strength of who Jesus is and what He has done.

Alistair Begg: Who are the members of the family? Those who are marked by faith, by love, by hope. How did this come about? They understood God's grace, they were qualified by God's grace. And in verse 13 there, they were delivered from where they used to hang out, and they were transferred to the Kingdom of His beloved Son, in Whom we have redemption, even the forgiveness of our sins.

Alistair Begg: Now I put it to you, this is something far greater than the idea, "Are you a member of such and such a church family that meets in such and such a building?" No, no, no. That is perfectly possible by means of all kinds of processes, but the work that is being described here, and the call that is being issued here, is being issued to Christian people.

Alistair Begg: In other words, the Christian family is distinct from every other family. In that, the work of God's grace is present in the parents who have by His grace understood, been qualified, transferred into His kingdom, and been set free.

Alistair Begg: Now if all of that is actually happened, you can see that surely there ought to be evidence of it somewhere. And of course that is why Paul and Timothy have been praying that their outward lives, those to whom he writes, the recipients of the letter, they and we, that their outward life would be in keeping with the Gospel.

Alistair Begg: It is verse 10 of chapter one, that you would walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

Alistair Begg: Now, what this means then is that as members of God's family, we are called to display the reality of that in practical ways, in our own little families.

Alistair Begg: So that our little families are outposts of the Gospel.

Alistair Begg: Now, you sensible people, you could read the Bible here and see if there is a logical progression in what I am saying. The Christian family is supposed to be a good advertisement, in fact, a fantastic advertisement for the Gospel in the world, for the Christian faith.

Alistair Begg: In fact, if Christianity is ever going to have an impact on society, it must revolutionize our home life.

Alistair Begg: Now it is for this reason that Paul consistently, and the other apostles too, move from the spiritual to the physical family, and do so in such a way as to help us avoid the idea that every time you come to stuff about husbands and wives and parents and children, you can't, if you are not a husband or a wife, or a parent, or whatever, then you can just simply skip that and go to the next section.

Alistair Begg: No, it's not in there specifically for parents and children. It is there for all of us. Why? Well, because of what I've just said. Because the issue is the Gospel. The Gospel is at stake in relationship to the roles that are assigned to us.

Alistair Begg: Now, in tackling this this morning, I want you to know upfront that I'm not going to spend hardly any time at all talking about the practical implications of what it means to be a submissive wife.

Alistair Begg: I'm going to trust you to put the pieces of the puzzle together for yourselves. You know what you're dealing with, you know where you live, you know how this needs to be applied.

Alistair Begg: I want instead to address this somewhat differently. And that is first of all, to answer a question that rises in the minds of people: "Where in the world did we get this from?" "How do we have wives?" "How do we have marriage?" "How is it that we even have this stuff?"

Alistair Begg: You say, "Well, that's ridiculous." No, it's not. Move about, listen to contemporary music, listen to the cries of teenagers, listen to those who are post-millennial in their perspective. Observe their lifestyles.

Alistair Begg: And you realize that they're beginning from a very different place than many of us want to start. They're beginning actually at the very beginning. So you will see, "Wives, submit to your husbands as is fitting in the Lord." "Fitting in the Lord."

Alistair Begg: It doesn't say, "as it fits in with your own agenda," but as it is fitting in the Lord. Because it is the Lord who created this.

Alistair Begg: That the whole reality of what we deal with in the structure of marriage is not invented by culture, it is established by creation. So when someone says, "Well, where did we get this from?" The answer is, "From God."

Alistair Begg: And when Jesus actually is asked about things in relationship to the disruption of marriage, and you can find this in Matthew 19, He goes immediately back to the doctrine of creation. He doesn't argue from the contemporary world in which He's living. He doesn't argue on the basis of pragmatism. He goes right back to the fact, He says, "Don't you know how it was in the beginning? Don't you know how God started this thing off? Don't you understand that?"

Alistair Begg: Well, of course the answer is for many of us, "No, we don't understand it." Human sexuality is part and parcel of creation. Creation. That's where it comes from. Masculinity and femininity are both physiological and psychological realities. Who says? God says. Oh.

Alistair Begg: Therefore, the instruction is permanent and universal.

Alistair Begg: Now you see, unless we get grounded in this, we can have all the kind of talks that you have in these books for about 20 chapters on what you're supposed to do. They're very helpful, I'm sure. But that is down the line until we understand this. What God has established by creation, no culture will be able to destroy. It will destroy itself first, but it will not destroy the reality of that which God has founded from the creation of the world.

Alistair Begg: We need to understand that and we need to believe it. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not put it out. Heaven and Earth, says Jesus, will pass away, but My word will never pass away. This is the foundation.

Alistair Begg: You say, "But I thought it is about wives." Yes, it is. By creation, God has put this in place. That's the first observation.

Alistair Begg: Secondly, but look at us. The Bible not only explains its origin, but it explains why it is that it's so messed up. Why is everything so messed up? And you discover that God's perfect plan was disturbed.

Alistair Begg: Adam's role, assigned to him, was to lead. Not because he was superior, but because it was fitting in the Lord. God constituted the order for His purpose.

Alistair Begg: Eve came after Adam. Eve came out of Adam. Eve came for Adam. Who says? God says. Well, what happened? Well, she listened to the serpent instead of listening to Adam. And Adam listened to Eve instead of listening to God.

Alistair Begg: And the result was disruption in the order and confusion in the roles. Immediately, things were out of kilter. You need only to go on immediately into the fourth chapter and see how the disruptive impact of that extended beyond Adam and Eve to their children.

Alistair Begg: Now why is this so important? Well, it's so important because we have to recognize that God ordained marriage in part for the lifelong companionship which is the beauty of marriage. And in the awareness of the fact that the welfare of human society, as we often say in our marriage service, that the welfare of human society can be strong and happy only where the marriage bond is held in honor.

Alistair Begg: Well, how can the marriage bond be held in honor if people don't even understand the origin of the marriage bond itself? This is not an invention along the way. This is not a cage in which people are trapped. This is the divine order of creation. And until we understand that, then our particular roles within it will appear to be a constructed that emerges from somebody's bright head or something else.

Alistair Begg: So if it is there by creation, if it is disrupted by sin, it is thirdly restored by grace, restored by grace. You see, the Bible tells us that it is only in Jesus, only in Jesus, that we find freedom from the disruption of relationships brought about by the fall.

Alistair Begg: Only in Jesus is there freedom from that. No self-help book will ultimately fix it. No psychological methodology will be able to change you. We need an explosive power of a new affection. We need somebody to come from the outside of us and live within us and so open our understanding, so qualify us, so make us new.

Alistair Begg: And then so make us obedient. Actually, what this is all about is the fact that Jesus is Lord. Jesus is Lord. You will see that in the little section beginning in verse 18 here in chapter three, it is the Lordship of Christ that keeps coming.

Alistair Begg: Submit to your husbands as is fitting in the Lord. Children, obey your parents because it pleases the Lord. Make sure you do your work in the fear of the Lord and so on.

Alistair Begg: It is only when we understand that Jesus is Lord of all, that we will discover any kind of wholeness, any kind of freedom. Because in Jesus, all that happened in the fall is reversed.

Alistair Begg: That's why when we read in the epistles, Jesus is referred to as the second Adam or the last Adam. Romans 5:19: For as by the one man's disobedience, that is Adam, the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience, the many will be made righteous.

Alistair Begg: Jesus obeyed where Adam failed, and Jesus took the divine judgment that Adam and we in him deserve. You say, "Well, where will there be evidence of this?"

Alistair Begg: Well, there are hints of this amazing restorative principle in His miracles. Because people would observe what Jesus was doing and say there's nobody can do these things. How is it that this happens? He was the King. He was giving an indication of what would ultimately be the case when the lion metaphorically lies down with the lamb, when all things are made new.

Alistair Begg: So, you have a hint of it in the miracles, you have the promise of it ultimately in a new heaven and a new earth, and you have it presently. Now wait for this. You have it presently in the church.

Alistair Begg: Remember when you go to the marriage service, and this is the great mystery. And we are talking about Christ and the church.

Alistair Begg: Now that ought to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up just a little bit. Are you telling me that my part as a husband or as a wife is directly related to the plan and purpose of God in relationship to His church and its effectiveness in the universe? Yes, because that's what the Bible says.

Alistair Begg: The restorative principle in a sentence from Sinclair: the liberation from decay, the smoothing out of that which sin has rumpled and distorted is also seen in Christian marriage.

Alistair Begg: So, God planned it, sin spoiled it, grace restores it, and my marriage is to display it. You say, "Well, did we reach our verse?" Yes, I think you can safely say so.

Alistair Begg: Someone says, "But we're only now getting to the point, aren't we? We're now going to get to grips with the good stuff."

Alistair Begg: Well, I say to you again, let's be clear about why this matters. It actually is not about whether you're having a really happy time in your marriage. It's about something far bigger.

Alistair Begg: When Paul writes to Titus and he gives him instructions about how he should conduct himself in pastoral ministry, he says that it is vitally important that there is instruction for the young women: that they are trained to love their husbands and their children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands.

Alistair Begg: Do you know what the next phrase is? So that they may have a really happy time? So that the Word of God will not be reviled. In other words, so that you as a Christian wife will not by your attitude towards your husband cause some of your friends at the tennis club to disregard the Gospel on account of your behavior.

Alistair Begg: In other words, Christian wife, so that you may not cause people to revile His word, but so that you may be a walking advertisement for the reality of the transforming power of the Gospel.

Alistair Begg: Now, if we imagine a picture, if we imagine this picture, it is a picture of a husband issuing commands and of a wife obeying orders, then we're going to have to look somewhere other than the New Testament for that picture. Because that is not actually the picture.

Alistair Begg: In fact, it is interesting that as you go on in this section, the word that is used in relationship to the wife, the word is submit. In the relationship to slaves and masters, it is the word obey.

Alistair Begg: You say, "Well, what is that? Isn't that just a synonym?" Susan, I had this conversation just yesterday afternoon. She said, "Well, that means the same thing, doesn't it?" I said, "Honey, no, it doesn't mean the same thing."

Alistair Begg: Submission is a voluntary self-giving. A voluntary self-giving to a lover. To a lover whose responsibility is defined in the verse that follows, a responsibility of constructive care, a responsibility of putting the other person first. In other words, submission is the response of love to love. It's the response of love to love.

Alistair Begg: The distinction that exists within the roles is a distinction of function, it's not a distinction of value. Susan and I have an equal standing and an equal dignity before God by creation. We have an equal standing before God by redemption. But we have been assigned different roles according to the Maker's design.

Alistair Begg: And therefore, it becomes a matter of great significance. The Christian wife is to be able to say, "My relationship to my husband is a reflection of my commitment to the Lord Jesus." There may be more than that, but there dare not be less.

Alistair Begg: Now let me end in this way, and our time is gone. If Christianity is to have an impact on society in the present day, like right now, just think about the fact that you, as a single person, have friends who are husbands and wives, you are an aunt, you are an uncle to children. What is your role there?

Alistair Begg: Well, it's to be supportive of God's ultimate purpose. It's to take your part there, in prayer, in encouraging. You have other children, you take them to the pool, the children say this or they say that, you say, "No, honey, listen, this is what it means to be. This is what matters." So the role is an important role.

Alistair Begg: Why is it that so many Christian homes are struggling in this area? Well, partly because we've decided that our preferences take precedent over God's plan.

Alistair Begg: Partly, our poor showing is not on account of a dearth of information. Goodness gracious, there's more ink given to this than probably any other aspect of Christian living in the 21st century. So it can't be an absence of material. No. It has to be a lack of application.

Alistair Begg: Well then it has to be that I'm guilty of hearing it but not doing it. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that I listen far more to the voices of a godless culture than I listen to the voice of God.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Truth for Life with Alistair Begg.

Guest (Male): As Alistair is taking us through Paul's teaching in the book of Colossians, we're learning that when we embrace the Bible's pattern for family life, our homes and our churches should reflect the blessings of Christ's love. And that can be easier said than done.

Guest (Male): So as we consider how to cultivate a gospel-centered family, we want to recommend to you a book called Good News for Parents, How God Can Restore Our Joy and Relieve Our Burdens. This is a book that reminds parents of children of any age, even grown children, that we don't need to parent alone. God is ready and willing to help.

Guest (Male): The book Good News for Parents points us to God for spirit-empowered, Christ-centered parenting so that we don't become overcome by worry or discouragement or fear of failure or the trappings of self-reliance.

Guest (Male): You can learn how to trust God's grace for help when you read the book Good News for Parents. It's yours when you donate to Truth for Life today. You can give online at truthforlife.org/donate or call us at 888-588-7884.

Guest (Male): And if you'd like extra copies of Good News for Parents to share with your adult children or people in your church, you can find them in our online store at truthforlife.org/store. They're available at our cost of just $5 while supplies last.

Guest (Male): Thanks for studying God's Word with us today. How can you display the Gospel through your marriage? We'll find out tomorrow.

Guest (Male): The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life.