About Pastor Josh Wamble

Pastor Josh moved to the Louisville area in 2005 and joined FBC, Fairdale soon after. Since then, he has served as a deacon, the church's janitor, a teacher for children and adults, preacher, and on several church committees. He currently serves as one of the church's pastors. Josh also serves as a stateside missionary with Reaching and Teaching International Ministries as part of its Global Training Team providing education and training to indigenous pastors and church leaders who have not had access to such education. He works mostly in the Latin America region.

Three Ways to Prepare for Church

By Pastor Josh Wamble

I wonder if you have ever heard the saying, “Sunday morning church is a Saturday night decision.” That is a good saying. It is catchy and memorable. It also expresses an insightful truth in a pithy kind of way. Waiting until you wake up on Sunday morning to decide about church is a recipe for casual and sporadic involvement in the life of the church.

But, I wonder if you ever do more than just decide to attend church. What are you doing to prepare yourself for worship each week? Maybe you have never even thought about this question. Maybe it’s all you can do to get yourself and your family here by 9:30 or even 10:45 each Sunday morning. I want to suggest three things that you can be doing during the week to prepare yourself for worship and participation in the life of the church.

1. Read the Bible. Hopefully you are reading the Bible devotionally throughout the week, but I mean something even more than that. At FBCF, we normally preach expository sermons. One thing that this means is that we preach straight through books of the Bible covering each verse of each chapter as we get to it. We don’t skip anything. One of the benefits that this provides is that you can already know passage from the Bible will be preached each week. For example, if we finished Revelation 10 last week, you know that we will be starting Revelation 11 this week. The same is true for most of our Sunday School classes.

Let me encourage you to take a few minutes on Saturday evening before going to bed to read through the verses to be covered in the upcoming Sunday School lesson and sermon. Put a bookmark in your Bible or send a text message to yourself each Sunday noting where the next Sunday’s sermon will start so that you can do this. Already being familiar with the text to be studied and preached will help you to understand and follow the sermon better each week.

2. Spend Some Time in Focused Prayer. You can pray in a few different ways to prepare yourself for worship each week. Take some time to speak to the Lord about preparing your own heart for worship. Confess your sins to Him and ask Him to remove any distractions from your mind and heart. Pray that you would be attuned to the Holy Spirit’s conviction and encouraging and application to your life as you hear the word preached.

Also, take a few minutes to pray for your pastors and those who will be leading the services. Ask the Lord to prepare them and that they would be free from distractions and worries. Ask the Lord to protect them from sin and temptation, and ask Him to use them and their preaching, teaching, and leading.

Finally, take a few minutes to pray for other church members. Pray the same things for them—that their hearts would be prepared for worship and that they would be free from distractions. Pray that the Holy Spirit would use the preaching of the word to strengthen them and cause them to trust in Christ even more fully. Use the Wednesday night prayer sheets to pray for specific concerns and requests that other church members may have made known to us.

3. Make the Necessary Practical Preparations. Finally, think about the practical things that could get in the way of you worshipping God and being a blessing to other church members. Many times, when we arrive at church on Sunday morning upset or frustrated, the causes of those frustrations can be avoided with a little forethought. I am thinking about very practical things here. Make sure there is enough gas in the car to get to church. Even something as small as a surprise empty gas tank can make us late or feel rushed and irritated. Before you go to bed, make sure the clothes you plan to wear are clean and ready to go. Get to bed early enough on Saturday so that you are well rested and refreshed on Sunday morning. Make sure that your alarm is set so that you have enough time on Sunday morning to have breakfast and get dressed and get your family ready and the other things that you need to have done before leaving for church.

Sunday morning church attendance really is a Saturday night decision, and attending is something—but it’s not the most or the best. Let’s commit ourselves not only to attending church but attending and participating in a prepared way—prepared to worship the Lord, prepared to really hear and respond to the word preached and taught, and prepared to be a blessing and encouragement to other church members. This preparation is also a Saturday night decision—and a Monday decision, and Tuesday, and Wednesday, and Thursday and Friday.

Three Ways to Prepare for ChurchPastor Josh Wamble2023-04-10T22:14:24-04:00

Peace Be With You . . .

Peace Be With You …

By Pastor Josh Wamble

At FBCF, we have a greeting time in our worship service. As you know, this is an informal time where we briefly greet and encourage those around us. Many churches have a similar time in their worship services. Often this time is called the passing of the peace. In these churches it is common to hear the phrase, “Peace be with you” and the response, “And also with you.” I was reminded of this tradition earlier today while I was reading the end of John’s gospel.

In John 20, Jesus says “Peace be with you” three times—twice (vv. 19 and 21) when He appeared with all of the disciples (except for Thomas) when they were locked in the upper room and again (v. 26) when He appeared with all of them (Thomas included) 8 days later. It is interesting that Jesus never used this greeting before His resurrection but did use it the first few times He met with his disciples after his resurrection. I wonder if there is a significant reason that Jesus chose to speak these words to His disciples. Jesus does talk about peace in 2 other places in John’s gospel.

In John 14, Jesus tells His disciples that He will be leaving them shortly. Of course, he is talking about His crucifixion. He tells them that He will return for them and that He will leave a Helper to be with them—the Holy Spirit. In verse 27, He tells them that He will also leave His peace with them. Again, in John 16, He is telling His followers that he will be leaving. He tells them that before this happens, they will be scattered and will leave Him to face the crucifixion alone. He tells them that they will have tribulation and the world will be against them, but He encourages them not to lose heart. The basis of His encouragement is that He has overcome the world and that in Him they will have peace.

What is Jesus talking about? There are two ways of thinking about peace. The first type of peace is subjective. It is a calm or a peaceful, easy feeling to quote The Eagles. The second type of peace is objective. It is the absence of hostility. It is the type of peace that happens at the end of a war or conflict when both sides come to an agreement of how to live together—terms of peace.

I think Jesus is referring to this second type of peace in these passages. The last words that John records Jesus saying from the cross (John 19:30) is “It is finished.” or “It has been completed.” or “It has been accomplished.” Of course, He is talking about the entire work of salvation, and a concise way of summarizing this work is that peace between God and sinners has been achieved!

When Jesus approaches His followers after He has been resurrected, they are still confused about what has happened and afraid about their new circumstances. Jesus’s first words to them are “Peace be with you.” He is not telling them to be calm and serene. He is announcing to them that His work in His life and His death has produced peace between them and God where there once was hostility. I think of what Paul says in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Sometime during this Easter week, take some time to reflect on the peace Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection has secured for us by removing the hostility of our sin and guilt by taking them on Himself.

Peace be with you … And also with me!

Peace Be With You . . .Pastor Josh Wamble2023-04-04T13:57:46-04:00

Revelation 11:18

By Pastor Josh Wamble

Recently, I was talking with a group of men that I meet with each week. Many would consider these men to be down and out. Many would look down on them because of their situation in life. These are marginalized men. I was sort of surprised when a couple of them started to tell me how much it meant to them that I took the time to learn their names. They went on to tell me that many people they interact with, even people they interact with regularly, never even bother to ask them their names much less make the tiny effort of learning their names. I felt heartbroken for them. Such a small act can have such a big impact on someone!

During this conversation, I was reminded of Revelation 11:16-18 that says:

¹⁶And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, ¹⁷saying, “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign. ¹⁸The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”

More specifically, I was reminded of the small phrase in verse 18, “both small and great.” The way the Lord values people is so different than how people are often valued (or not valued) in our world.

People often find value (in others and ourselves) in wealth or power or “success” or appearances or age or sex. The list goes on and on. People often ‘value” others based on what they can do for them or what they can get out of them.

Sometimes, this way of thinking even makes its way into the church. At times, even believers are influenced by this worldly way of thinking. If we are not careful, we begin to think of success in ministry as big churches or influence and power in denominational structures or over the internet and social media. If we don’t work against this way of thinking, it will influence the choices we make in electing church members to committees or other leadership positions. This is not the way it should be in the Kingdom of Christ!

The Lord has a very different way of valuing people. When God charged the prophet, Samuel, to anoint the next king of Israel, Samuel began looking for a man who was strong and impressive—a man who looked like a leader. He was searching for someone who looked like Israel’s first king, Saul. “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.’” (1 Samuel 16:7)

In Revelation 16:18, one of the ways the four living creatures worshipped God was by thanking Him that He rewards those who fear His name—both the small and the great! Let’s strive to be a people and a church who values people differently than the world. Let’s strive to look on the heart the way the Lord does. Let’s strive to value people based on their relation to the Lord and to us not on their outward appearances or their level of worldly “success” or their level of influence and power.

After all, let’s not forget what Paul says about us in the first chapter of 1 Corinthians:

²⁵For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. ²⁶For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. ²⁷But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; ²⁸God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, ²⁹so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. ³⁰And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, ³¹so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Revelation 11:18Pastor Josh Wamble2023-03-21T14:03:06-04:00

Zephaniah 3:17

By Pastor Josh Wamble

During our Sunday evening services, we have been preaching through the whole Bible one book per week. This past Sunday, Robbie Hughes preached through the book of Zephaniah. That sermon was really good. If you were not at that service, you can watch or listen to his sermon here. One verse from Zephaniah stuck out to me, and I have been thinking about it for the last few days. Zephaniah 3:17 says,

¹⁷The Lord your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.

There are four things in this one verse that I want to point out.

1. God is with His People

The God of the Bible is the one true God who created the world and all that is in it. He is high and lifted up and rules over the whole creation in His might and wisdom. He is the Lord who has all authority. But that does not mean, that God is aloof or unapproachable. Zephaniah says that this glorious God who is exalted above all things is also “in your midst.” The One who is high and lifted up has brought Himself low to be with His people.

2. God is Mighty to Save His People

The thought of God bringing Himself near is troubling or scary until we read the next phrase that Zephaniah writes. He identifies God as the “mighty one who will save.” This holy and righteous God has come into our midst not to judge but to save. This is unbelievably good news and the very heart of the gospel—the Judge of all the earth has drawn near to His people offering salvation not judgment!

3. God Rejoices over His People

Further, God does not work for the salvation of His people begrudgingly. Zephaniah writes, “he will rejoice over you with gladness” and “he will exult over you with loud singing.” On Sunday night, Robbie pointed out to us that Zephaniah is explaining salvation to us from God’s point of view. God loves His people. He rejoices over His people with gladness and exults over them by singing loudly. If you are one of God’s people, He delights in you. This is the source of His saving work and not the result of it. He wants to do good to you and for you more than you want good things for yourself.

4. God Quiets His People

Finally, we see the result of these truths. God is with His people, He is mighty to save His people, and He rejoices over His people. If this is true, then we can be quieted by his love. One translation says, “with his love, he will calm all your fears.” We can rely on God. Even when situations in life are troubling and seem out of control, we can trust that God is ultimately for His people and will take care of us.

The holy, righteous, mighty, powerful, wise, authoritative God of the universe is on your side and working for your good and your satisfaction. Rely on Him. Count on Him. Rest in Him. Even when life is crazy and seems out of control, even when you can’t see how or where God is working, even when you are tempted to think that God has forgotten you or forsaken you, trust that He is in your midst, that He is your mighty savior, and that He is rejoicing over you with gladness and loud singing!

Zephaniah 3:17Pastor Josh Wamble2023-03-14T14:37:19-04:00

Small Actions: Big Impacts

By Pastor Josh Wamble

I have recently begun teaching an Introduction to the New Testament class at Re:Center Ministries. This afternoon, we finished talking about the early years of Jesus’s life and started discussing the beginning of His public ministry. One of the first things that Jesus does after his baptism and temptation is begin calling his disciples. That reminded me of something that led us to a really good discussion. John tells us that Andrew was one of the first two disciples that Jesus called. He started out as a disciple of John the Baptist, but he began following Jesus when John the Baptist identified Jesus as the “Lamb of God.”

Andrew is only mentioned in 12 verses in the NT. That is not many. And, in fact, 8 of these 12 references are describing how Jesus called his disciples or lists of the disciples. So, there are only 4 references to Andrew that do not refer to him simply as one of the disciples. Mark 1:29 tells us that Jesus entered the house of Andrew and Peter and healed Peter’s mother-in-law, and Mark 13:3 tells us that Andrew and some others were questioning Jesus about the timing of His glorification. The final two references to Andrew (John 6:8 and 12:2) describe Andrew taking messages to Jesus. When Jesus feeds the 5,000, Andrew is the one who told him that the boy had two fish and 5 loaves of bread. Later, He tells Jesus that a group of people has come and wishes to see him.

All of this is simply to point out that Andrew does not seem to be a significant figure in the NT. We don’t know much about him. He is not mentioned at all outside of the gospels except for in Acts 1:13 where Luke lists the disciples who returned to Jerusalem to pray. In fact, I wonder how many of you even remember that Andrew was one of the disciples. However, there is one very significant action that Andrew took. It was a very small action, but it had a huge impact on the rest of the NT and the rest of world history! The very first thing that Andrew did after leaving John the Baptist and joining Jesus was to go and tell his brother Peter that he had found the Messiah/Christ the one they had been looking for for so long.

As you all know, Peter is a very significant figure in the rest of the NT. He was one of Jesus’s “inner three.” He was the first of Jesus’s disciples to proclaim that Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” He was with Jesus on the mount of transfiguration. He and John were the first two disciples to see the empty tomb after Jesus’s resurrection. He preached the first sermon in Acts. He was the anchor of the church in Jerusalem for the first several years of its existence. His preaching and testimony about Jesus was the basis for Mark’s gospel. He wrote two of the NT letters. Now, the point that I am trying to make is that all of this started with Andrew introducing him to Jesus. Such a small action that had such a large impact!

There are many people like Andrew throughout history. I wonder if you all know the names of Mordecai Ham or Robert Eaglen. I didn’t until I looked them up. Mordecai Ham was an Independent Baptist evangelist who lived during the late 1800s into the mid 1900s. He is not very well known. In fact, the only information I could find out about him is that he was not a great guy. He was a racist, and somewhat antisemitic. However, while he was preaching one night in 1934, Billy Graham heard the gospel and trusted in Christ. Like Andrew, God used the imperfect and mostly insignificant actions of this man to introduce Billy Graham to Jesus! And we all know what type of impact Billy Graham has had on the Kingdom.

Robert Eaglen is even less well known. He was a primitive Methodist circuit preach who lived in the mid to late 1800s. As a circuit preacher, he travelled through different areas and preached at multiple churches at the same time. During his life, he took care of at least 27 circuits containing multiple churches each if not more. Like the majority of the people who have lived, his legacy and memory has been mostly lost to history. However, on January 6, 1850, he preached a sermon on Isaiah 45:22 at a Methodist chapel in Colchester, England. Charles Surgeon happened to ‘accidentally” be in attendance that day. Spurgeon heard the gospel, and believed in Christ! In an article for Ministry magazine, Arthur S. Maxwell wrote this:

Probably Robert Eaglen went home that day to his Sunday dinner wondering, like many another preacher, what good he had accomplished: But who can tell what results may accrue from even the humblest ministry in the Master’s service? We must labor on in faith and hope, confident that while we may but humbly scatter seeds, or water another’s sowing, God, in His own good time, will give the increase.[1]

Jonathan Edwards is the most influential theologian and one of the most influential intellectuals in American history, but unless you are into early American history, you’ve probably never heard of his father Timothy Edwards or his grandfather, Solomon Stoddard; yet, these men were both pastors who God used mightily in Jonathan Edwards’s life.

There have been so many people in my life whose small actions have had huge impacts—teachers, coaches, parents of friends I had growing up, tons of people in our church (many of whom have passed on to be with the Lord). I have been able to share with some of those people just how God has used them and how their everyday faithfulness has had such a big impact on me, but many of them may never know. None of you know the name Walter Lockhart, but he was my pastor from the time that I was 5 years old until after I graduated college. “Mr. Walter” had such a huge impact on my life in so many different ways—too many to count. He was such a good pastor to me and my family! God used him to form me in ways that I am sure I am not even fully aware of. I will remember him and the way he was to me forever. Right now my eyes are wet with tears as I remember him and think about how God used him in my life. I wish that you all could have known him.

You all have people like this in your lives as well. Take some time to think about all the people that God has used in your life to form you into who you are—parents, family, teachers, pastors, church members, and others. Take some time to thank God for His providence, for how He has put the right people in your lives at the right times, and for how He has used them.

Also, take some time to think about yourselves. Who has God put in your lives that you can have this type of impact on. How can God use you to impact the faithfulness of others? As insignificant and small as many of the mundane actions of our lives seem, God often uses them for big impacts on other people. Commit yourself to talking with people about Jesus and His gospel. Who knows how God might use the people that you introduce to Jesus? Who knows how God might use the people that you make a point to have dinner with or forgive or seek forgiveness from or sing beside in worship or go on a mission trip with or serve in some small way?

In 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, Paul writes this, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He will surely do it.” God will surely do it. He will surely sanctify His people and form us into the image Christ, but often the way He does that is by using insignificant people like you and me and our small insignificant actions. Let’s look for opportunities to be used by God this way!

[1] https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1943/09/sermon-that-converted-spurgeon

Small Actions: Big ImpactsPastor Josh Wamble2023-03-08T14:43:57-05:00

The Lord’s Supper: Part Four

By Pastor Josh Wamble

At the beginning of the month, we started a short series exploring what the Bible says and what Christians have thought about the Lord’s Supper throughout history. If you have missed some of these services, you can listen to the audio of them here: Part One: 2/5/23, Part Two: 2/12/23, Part Three: 2/19/23, and Part Four: 2/26/23. You can also read summaries of the first three parts here: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.

This past Sunday, we spent a little over an hour with all four of our pastors on stage together discussing and answering questions posed by our congregation relating to the topic of the Lord’s Supper. This is something that we only do twice each year. If you were not able to attend that service in person, we hope that you will find some time to watch or listen sometime this week. Again, you can find the link here.

The Lord’s Supper: Part FourPastor Josh Wamble2023-02-27T19:21:49-05:00

The Lord’s Supper: Part Three

By Pastor Josh Wamble

At the beginning of the month, we started a short series exploring what the Bible says and what Christians have thought about the Lord’s Supper throughout history. If you have missed some of these services, you can listen to the audio of them here: Part One: 2/5/23, Part Two: 2/12/23, and Part Three: 2/19/23. You can also read summaries of the first two parts here: Part One and Part Two. Below, we will briefly summarize the five questions we talked about this past Sunday (2/19).

Who Should Participate in the Lord’s Supper?

Different Christian traditions have different understandings of who should be allowed to participate in the Lord’s Supper. Most (but not all) churches and denominations believe that only believers should be allowed to participate. Some groups think that only members of their specific church should partake. Others think anyone who is part of a church in the same denomination should take part. I argued that there are four criteria that should be considered.

1. Professing Believers

Only believers should participate in the Lord’s Supper ceremony. Because of what the Lord Supper is and what it represents, it really doesn’t make sense that someone who is not a believer would want to anyway. In the Lord’s Supper we are looking back at the cross as our foundation of salvation and looking forward to the return of Jesus as the hope of our salvation. Why would someone who does not believe either of those things are true or is not trusting in those truths for his salvation want to symbolize that it is true? As we said, the Lord’s Supper is a sermon in pictures or in action. Why would someone want to preach (through his actions) that he doesn’t think is true?

Beyond those questions, the Bible is explicit that only believers should take part. In 1 Cor. 11:24-25, Paul tells the church to eat the bread and drink the wine/juice in remembrance of Jesus’s death and in anticipation of His return. As we said above, someone who doesn’t believe those things are true would not be doing that. 1 Cor. 11:29 also tells us to rightly judge (or discern/recognize) the body as we are eating and drinking. Whether that refers to the body of Jesus or the church (the body of Christ), again someone who is not believing is not rightly doing that. Finally, in 1 Cor. 10:16-17, Paul says that when the church celebrates the Lord’s Supper we are sharing in the body and blood. Once again, a nonbeliever is not sharing in Jesus’s body and blood; so, she should not act like she is. (For more evidence of this in 1 Cor. 5:9-11, see number 3 below.)

The Lord’s Supper is only for professing believers.

1. Professing Believers Who Have Been Baptized

In our Focus in February series in 2022, we explored the topic of baptism the way we are with the Lord’s Supper this year. Those discussions can be heard here, here, and here. We said that baptism is the public profession of faith. Baptism is how a believer declares publicly before the church and the world that he has turned his back on his old way of life and has submitted himself to Jesus’ lordship. A person (even a believer) who has not declared that she has renounced her old life and started following Christ, should do so before publicly declaring that she is devoted to continuing to follow Christ. She should be baptized quickly and then participate in the Supper frequently.

Baptism is also an act of obedience to the command of Christ. In 1 Cor. 11:28, Paul tells believers to examine themselves before participating in the Lord’s Supper. When a believer who has not yet been baptized examines himself, he should come to the conclusion that he is in disobedience. Again, he should be baptized soon and then participate in the Supper frequently after that.

Because of our conviction that proper baptism is only performed by the believer being fully immersed in water, we believe a person should be baptized that way before taking part in the Lord’s Supper.

The Lord’s Supper is only for professing believers who have been baptized.

1. Professing Believers Who Have Been Baptized (by Immersion) and are Members in Good Standing in a Local Church

In 1 Cor. 5:9-11, Paul is instructing the church on how to treat a believer who is part of their church who is refusing to repent of a very grievous sin that has affected the whole congregation. In that passage, he tells the church that they are not to judge those outside the church, but they are to judge those inside the church. He doesn’t mean to judge in the sense of pronouncing judgment on someone. It is not our place to cast verdicts of whether someone is a believer or not a believer. What he means is to judge in the sense of being discerning and wise. He tells them that when someone is acting like an unbeliever (refusing to repent) that we should treat them like one with hopes and prayers that they will repent and prove that they really are believers. We should also make efforts to draw them to repentance—pleading with them to do so as we remind them of the gospel that they once professed to believe.

One of the things he tells them to do is to refuse even to eat with them. We argued that he is not talking about eating a regular meal but that this is a reference to the Lord’s Supper. In Acts 2:42 and 2:46, Luke uses that same idea to describe the life of the early church in Jerusalem. He says that they devoted themselves “to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” “The breaking of bread,” many think, is referring to the Lord’s Supper. He says that they were daily “breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts.” Again, I think this is a refence to the Lord’s Supper that was often a part of a larger meal (as it was in Matthew 26, when Jesus instituted the Supper at the end of the Passover meal).

If that understanding is correct, then Paul is telling the Corinthian church not to have the Lord’s Supper with someone whose life displays an unbelieving heart (by refusing to repent of an open sin that is causing division in the church).

The Lord’s Supper is only for professing believers who have been baptized (by immersion) and are members in good standing of a local church.

1. Professing Believers Who Have Been Baptized (by Immersion) and are Members in Good Standing in a Local Church Who are Old Enough to Understand What the Lord’s Supper is and What it Represents

The Bible doesn’t give a specific age limit on who should participate in the Lord’s Supper, and we shouldn’t either. However, the Bible does offer some guidance that parents and churches should consider when deciding whether or not a child should take part in the Lord’s Supper.

As already noted, 1 Cor. 11:28 tells us to examine ourselves before joining in the Supper, and 1 Cor. 11:29 tells us to judge/discern/recognize the body rightly. A child who is a believer who has been baptized and is a member of the church should also be mature enough to examine himself and rightly understand the meaning and purpose of the Lord’s Supper before he participates.

The Lord’s Supper is only for professing believers who have been baptized (by immersion), are members in good standing of a local church, and are old enough and have the maturity to examine themselves and understand the meaning and purpose of the Lord’s Supper.

How Should We Participate in the Lord’s Supper?

In 1 Cor. 11:27-34, Paul cautions the church against having the Lord’s Supper inappropriately and warns us of serious consequences for doing so.

First, he tells us not to eat or drink in an unworthy manner (1 Cor. 11:27). One church leader explained that the problem is not unworthy participants but unworthy participation. Paul is not telling us to be careful that we are worthy—we aren’t. We are all rebellious and disobedient. None of us have loved God with all of our heart, mind, soul, or strength, but we have been invited to the feast anyway! He is telling us to be careful that we participate in a worthy manner. Are we eating and drinking with faith—trusting that Jesus’ sacrifice has covered our sin and our guilt and believing that He is ruling over His church right now and will come again one day to judge the earth and reward His people? Are we confessing and repenting of sin or letting it root its way into our heart? Are we fighting sin in our lives and helping others in the church to do likewise? Are we taking sin seriously?

Second, he tells us to make sure that we are judging the body rightly (1 Cor. 11:29). ‘The body” may refer to Jesus’ physical body, but I think it refers to the church—the body of Christ. Are you loving your fellow church members? Are you living a life in deference to others and their needs? Are you committed to one another? This is a major part of the problem with how the Corinthians were celebrating the supper that Paul is addressing in this part of his letter.

Where or When Should We Participate in the Lord’s Supper?

This question doesn’t have in mind whether or not there is a specific location or a specific time for observing the Lord’s Supper. Instead, we want to think about the circumstances and context surrounding when we have the Supper, where we have the Supper, and who we share the supper with.

It is our conviction that the Lord’s Supper is an ordinance given to the local church. Five times in 1 Cor. 11:17-39 (vv. 17, 18, 20, 33, and 34) Paul uses a phrase like “when you come together.” Clearly, his instructions about the Lord’s Supper are centered on a regular gathering of the church. Churches should observe the Lord’s Supper together, but this brings up several questions.

Should individuals or groups of individuals (such as family gatherings or wedding ceremonies) observe the Lord’s Supper together? What about smaller groups of church members? Should a church’s youth group or men’s or women’s ministry observe the Lord’s Supper when they are gathered (at a camp or retreat, for example)? What about a group of church members who are on a mission trip? What about para-church organizations (mission agencies, conferences or retreats, Christian schools, or etc. that exist to help and support local churches)? Should those groups celebrate the Lord’s Supper together?

In some ways these are hard questions. Perhaps you have been in one of these situations before. It is always a little awkward to not take part in something everyone else is doing. Often, we find ourselves in these situations with people that we love and like. We might fear that our decision to let the bread and wine/juice pass by us without taking them could be interpreted as us thinking that we are better than those around us or thinking that we have a better theology or belief system or just that we take the Lord’s Supper more seriously. Sometimes, the response might be to ask us to explain why we are deciding not to take part or for our friends to try and explain to us why we are wrong and should just go ahead and participate. These situations can be very awkward and uncomfortable, and it is often easier just to participate without thinking too much about it.

However, we should think about everything we do in worship to the Lord, and the passages regarding the Lord’s Supper explicitly tell us to examine ourselves and discern what we are doing before we eat and drink. We should take some time to think about these things. Because the Lord’s Supper is given to local churches to celebrate together and is related to the practice of church discipline (“do not even eat with such a one”), only churches should observe the Lord’s Supper. This means that individuals, families, wedding parties, para-church organizations, and other groups that are not churches should not observe the Lord’s Supper together.

The question about subgroups of a church (youth group, men’s/women’s groups, mission teams, etc.) is a little more complicated. However, because of what the Lord’s Supper is and what it represents, I think our normal practice should be to observe the Lord’s Supper when the church is gathered together in its regular worship service.

Of course, we don’t want to make a rule or put a regulation in place that is more restrictive than what the Bible says or where the Bible doesn’t give any explicit command at all, but we should be thinking about these things, and our practice should be based on the principles and understandings that are given in scripture.

How Often Should We Observe the Lord’s Supper?

Like the question on age, the Bible does not explicitly give us instruction on how often we should observe the Lord’s Supper. Some churches do so quarterly (4 times per year), some monthly, some weekly. In Acts 2:42, we read that the early church in Jerusalem was continually devoting itself to the breaking of bread. Does this mean they were observing the Lord’s Supper daily? Many Catholic churches have a mass every day. In Acts 20:7, Paul says that the church in Ephesus gathered on the first day of the week to break bread. Does this mean that they gathered for this purpose on the first day of every week or just the week that Paul was in town? We are not given straightforward and binding answers to these questions anywhere in the Bible.

Sometimes, people say that churches should observe the Lord’s Supper more often (weekly or monthly) because not doing so would cause the church to miss out on God’s grace or because not doing so would be disobedient to scripture. We’ve already pointed out that the Bible never gives a clear cut command regarding how often the Lord’s Supper should be observed. All we see are examples of when other churches in previous times did so—and even these examples are not very clear. Beyond that, we do not believe the Lord’s Supper conveys the grace of God the way the Catholic or Lutheran churches do; so, believers are not missing out on that grace by not observing the Lord’s Supper more often.

Others argue that the Lord’s Supper should be observed less often. Sometimes they will say that observing the Lord’s Supper more often just increases the danger. If it is possible to have the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy way and if doing so endangers people of serious consequences, then we should limit the frequency with which the Lord’s Supper is celebrated. Everyone has fewer chances of doing it wrongly if we are not doing very often. Others say it is better to have the Lord’s Supper less frequently because this helps to preserve its significance or meaning. The more often something is done, the more common it becomes; so, we should limit how often we have to Lord’s Supper in an attempt to preserve its weighty and serious character. However, just because something is done often doesn’t make it less significant. We practice other elements of worship regularly, and they are still meaningful and have significance. In each worship service we sing, pray, preach, read scripture, and share fellowship, and doing so often doesn’t strip them of their significance or meaningfulness.

Here we observe the Lord’s Supper on the first Sunday of each month. That is a significant in crease in frequency from just a few years ago when we were having it once each quarter. We like it. It is a special time for our church. Maybe we should consider having the Lord’s Supper more often, but the Bible gives no clear commands on this question.

Who Should Serve the Lord’s Supper?

The Bible also doesn’t tell us who should serve the Lord’s Supper. In fact, the Bible doesn’t put any restrictions in place at all. As regards who distributes the bread and juice, I think anyone can regardless of age, sex, dress, or any other descriptions.

As far as who leads the service, we should be a little more discerning. We should make sure that the person leading us in the Lord’s Supper understands and is able to explain what the Lord’s Supper is and why we observe it. He should be able to warn others with the warning we find in scripture, and he should be taken seriously enough for these warnings to have some weight to them. Since we said that in observing the Lord’s Supper and there is a need for explanation, perhaps we should limit who leads this service to someone who is qualified to preach.

This study on the Lord’s Supper has been really good, and we have considered several questions, but you may have others. If you do, please let us know. You can email or text your question to me or one of your other pastors, or you could ask one of us in person the next time you see us. At this week’s Sunday evening service (2/26 6:00pm) we will spend the entire doing nothing but answering these kinds of questions. All four of our pastors will be on stage discussing these issues and questions together. We would prefer for you to be at that service in-person and ask your question for the benefit of everyone listening. We hope to see you then!

The Lord’s Supper: Part ThreePastor Josh Wamble2023-02-21T13:36:42-05:00

The Lord’s Supper: Part Two

By Pastor Josh Wamble

Last week, we started a short series exploring what the Bible says and what Christians have thought about the Lord’s Supper throughout history. If you were not here for that, you can listen to the audio here. This past Sunday (2/12) we spent some time talking about four views of the Lord’s Supper different Christian traditions have held throughout history. If you were not able to attend that service, that audio can be heard here. Below, we will briefly summarize these six historical views.

1. Transubstantiation

This is the understanding the Catholic church has. This label is a combination of trans (to change or transform) and substance (the core or essence of a thing).

There are three aspects to this view. First, when the priest says the words of institution, the bread and wine experience a transformation. Although the bread still looks and smells and tastes like bread, the essence of the bread has been transformed into the actual physical body of Jesus. In the same way, although the wine still looks and smells and tastes like wine, its essence is transformed into the actual physical blood of Jesus.

This brings us to the second aspect of this view. Because this is really Jesus’s body and blood, the Lord’s Supper (Mass) is a re-sacrifice of Jesus. Jesus is being sacrificed again and again for the sins of those participating in the mass.

Thirdly, like the Catholic understanding of baptism, they believe that the mass is ex opera operato. This is a Latin phrase that means literally “from the working, the work” or “from the operating, the operation.” What this means is that the mass works in and of itself. It does not require any faith or repentance or even understanding of the person involved. It is a completely outward ritual or ceremony that works (to provide forgiveness of sins) in and of itself.

Those who believe this way point to a few passages in the Bible. They emphasize a literal understanding of Matthew 26:26-28 and John 6:48-58. When Jesus says, “This is my body.” and “This is my blood.”, they say that he is being literal. They believe that they are just trying to take those passages literally as well.

2. Consubstantiation

This is the understanding the Lutheran church has. Martin Luther was responding to and reacting to the errors of the Catholic church’s misunderstanding of the Lord’s Supper. He wanted to continue to understand Matthew 26:26-28 literally. He insisted that Jesus meant that the bread and the wine was actually his body. However, he did not believe that the Jesus was being sacrificed each time the Lord’s Supper was observed.

He did not think the bread and wine actually became Jesus’s physical body, but he thought Jesus’s body was present “in, with, and under” the bread and wine. (“Con” means with.) He believed the substance of the bread and wine coexists with the body and blood of Christ. Most Lutheran churches have followed this teaching to the present.

3. Spiritual Presence

John Calvin was another Christian leader who lived around the same time as Martin Luther. He too had begun reading the Bible for himself and coming to understand things differently than the Catholic church had been teaching for many years.

Like Luther, he agreed that we should take passages like Matthew 26;26-28 seriously, but he understood them to mean that the bread and wine represent Jesus’s body in a symbolic or figurative way. He did believe that Jesus was present in and during the Lord’s Supper, but in a spiritual sense not physically. He reminded his followers of passages like Matthew 18:20 where Jesus promises his followers that he is present with them whenever they gather together and Matthew 28:20 (The Great Commission) where Jesus promises his followers that he will always be with us. Calvin said it’s pretty clear that these passages are speaking of Jesus being spiritually present with his people not physically, and that is what is happening during the Lord’s Supper as well.

He definitely agreed with Luther that there was no sacrifice happening during the Lord’s Supper, but he did think of the supper as a “means of grace”—God’s grace was imparted to the participant during the supper. Unlike the Catholic view, this was not ex opera operato. God’s grace comes only to those who participate in the supper with faith and repentance trusting in the gospel that it points to.

Today, most Presbyterian churches understand the Lord’s Supper this way. Many Methodist churches do as well.

4. Memorial View

Another important Christian leader at the same time at Luther and around the same time as Calvin was Ulrich Zwingli. While Luther was in Germany and Calvin was in France, Zwingli was leading a movement in Switzerland. (Later, Calvin ended up in Switzerland, also.) Like Luther and Calvin, he had begun reading the Bible for himself and realized that much of what the Catholic church had been teaching for many years differed from what the Bible said. He began leading Christians in Switzerland to follow the Bible.

His views on the Lord’s Supper also differed drastically from what the Catholic Church had been teaching. He also differed from Luther and Calvin. He agreed with Calvin that the bread and wine represent Jesus’s body and blood. He understood Matthew 26:26-28 symbolically or figuratively. He pointed to other passages such as John 6:35, 10:17, and 15:5 where Jesus made similar statements (“I am the gate,” “I am the door,” and “I am the vine”) that were obviously meant symbolically or figuratively.

Unlike Calvin, Zwingli believed that the Lord’s Supper was a memorial that pointed back as a marker or reminder to what had already happened on the cross. He emphasized 1 Corinthians 11:24-25 where Paul quoted Jesus saying to eat the bread and drink from the cup “in remembrance” of me. Zwingli believed that the Lord’s Supper is a remembrance service.

Historically, most Baptist churches have understood the Lord’s Supper this way. Many Pentecostal churches have as well. However, some Pentecostal churches also believe that there is a connection to physical healing in celebrating the Lord’s Supper. They believe Isaiah 53:5 (“with his wounds we are healed.”) means that Jesus’s death secured healing from physical diseases and sicknesses; so, they think the ordinance that memorializes Jesus’s death is connected to these healings also.

As far a which of these views is correct, I think we should completely deny both of the first two positions. We are not offering any kind of sacrifice in any way when we have the Lord’s Supper. Hebrews 10:1-18 makes it clear that when Jesus died on the cross He offered Himself once for all as a single sacrifice for all time. That sacrifice never needs to be repeated; it fully accomplished all that God intended for it to accomplish and as Hebrews 10:14 says, “perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” The basis of our salvation was accomplished for all time at the cross. Likewise, the bread and wine are not in any way transformed into the body and blood of Jesus during the supper.

I believe that we should think about the Lord’s Supper using a combination of the final two views. Primarily, I believe the Lord’s Supper is a memorial. We are told to “do this in remembrance” of him (remembering both his death and his promise to return). It is also true that Jesus is spiritually present with his people when we eat the meal together. However, He is no more (or less) present during the Lord’s Supper than He is during the sermon or singing or other aspects of the worship service. Moreover, the Lord’s Supper is a means of grace. We do encounter God’s grace when we partake of the supper together, but only in so far as the supper points us to and draws our hearts to the truths of Jesus’s death and return. In other words, we experience God’s grace as we trust in and believe the truth that the Supper points us to.

The Lord’s Supper: Part TwoPastor Josh Wamble2023-02-21T13:38:20-05:00

The Lord’s Supper: Part One

By Pastor Josh Wamble

This past Sunday evening, we started a short series exploring what the Bible says and what Christians have thought about the Lord’s Supper throughout history. If you were not here for that, you can listen to the audio here. We looked mostly at two passages, and two aspects of the Lord’s Supper became clear during that time. First, the Lord’s Supper has a vertical dimension to it. It has something to do with our relationship with God. Second, the Lord’s Supper has a horizontal dimension to it. It has something to do with our relationship with other believers.

The Lord’s Supper Has a Vertical Dimension

When we look at Luke 22:14, 20, we see that the Lord’s Supper was anticipated (v.15). This was not a spur of the moment addition to the Passover meal that Jesus came up with on the fly. The Lord’s Supper was planned by God and implemented by Jesus at the right moment.

We also see that the Lord’s Supper is only temporary. It points to something else (Luke 22:16 and 18). Revelation 19:7-10 tells us that there will be a day when a reunion takes place between the Lord and His people. This is what the Lord’s Supper is meant to point us to. It is a reminder that a better Supper is coming—a marriage feast. Until that day, we have the Lord’s Supper together in expectation of what is to come.

The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic meal. The bread and the wine/juice point to something else. In Luke 22:19, we are told that the bread represents Jesus’s body and the wine/juice represents His blood. The bread helps us to think of Jesus’s sacrifice for us (“do this in remembrance of me”), and the wine/juice helps us to celebrate and trust in the new covenant that Jesus’s death established (“the new covenant in my blood”).

The Lord’s Supper Has a Horizontal Dimension

In Luke 22:17, we read that Jesus instructed His disciples to share the meal among themselves—with one another. There is an aspect of the Lord’s Supper that is focused on the relationship between those who are celebrating it together. In 1 Cor. 11:26, Paul tells us that every time we share this meal together, we are proclaiming something that is true. To proclaim something is to announce it or spread it’s message. In seminary, the preaching class was called “The Ministry of Proclamation.” The Lord’s Supper is a visual sermon or gospel presentation. Every time we share the Lord’s Supper, we are preaching the gospel to one another! We do so in two ways.

First, we proclaim His death to each other. We look back to what Jesus has done and how it has affected us. We remind one another that Jesus’s death is the foundation of our standing and acceptance before God. This is the very foundation of our faith and our hope. We remind one another that we are in this together. We are trusting in the same things. We are believing and following together. We can count on each other.

Second, we proclaim His coming to one another. Paul says we proclaim His death until He comes. As we see each other eat the bread and drink the wine/juice, we are helping each other and being helped to look ahead. We are reminding each other of this hope that we are moving toward. We are advancing toward holiness and righteousness and the fullness of our salvation—and we are doing so together! We are helping each other to make it. Sharing in the Lord’s Supper meal is a reminder that we are a community of faith following Jesus together!

I wonder if you have ever thought of this horizontal aspect of the Lord’s Supper. Some traditions refer to the Lord’s Supper as “communion.” It is a communion between us and God but also between us and each other. It is one of the ways God uses the church to mold His people into the image of Jesus.

The Lord’s Supper is a blessing to you and your faith as you look backward to Christ’s death and forward to His return, but it is also a way for you to encourage and strengthen the other members of our church as you proclaim these truths to your brothers and sisters. At our church, we have the Lord’s Supper on the first Sunday of each month. Sometimes it is during the morning service, and sometimes it is part of the evening service. You cannot take part in this proclamation encouraging and strengthening the church if you are not present. Would you prioritize being in attendance during these services?

The Lord’s Supper: Part OnePastor Josh Wamble2023-02-21T13:39:07-05:00

The Five Points of the Gospel

By Pastor Josh Wamble

If someone asked you what they had to do to get saved, could you answer? What if someone asked you why Jesus became a human or why He had to die—couldn’t God save humanity some other way? What if someone asked you to explain the gospel?

“Gospel” is one of those words that gets used a lot in Christian and church contexts, but sometimes there is confusion surrounding just exactly what it is that we are talking about. There’s a genre of music called “gospel.” There are four gospels in the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). But, when Christians talk about the gospel, they are usually referring to the message of salvation. The word evangelism comes from the Greek word that means gospel or good news.

So what is the gospel—the good news—the message of salvation? What must we include in order to be faithful to the full message given in the Bible? What must someone believe in order to be saved? There are different ways of summarizing the gospel. Some use four points or headings. Some use six points or headings. Some use different acronyms like G.R.A.C.E. or F.A.I.T.H. Below, I will summarize the gospel in five points—one for each finger of your hand.

The Gospel Summarized in Five Points

1. God is Holy.

God is holy. He is completely set apart from his creation. He is morally pure and always does what is right. He is good and true and just and impartial. He is rightly focused on Himself and His own glory.

2. We are not Holy.

When Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden, he did so as our representative standing in for all of humanity. Therefore, all humans are born with a sinful corrupted nature and guilty before God. We are not holy. We are not morally pure, and we often do what is wrong. We are not always good. We often are not truthful. We do not always treat others justly and often show partiality toward ourselves or others that we are connected to. We are not rightly focused on God and His glory. We often focus on ourselves and our own glory above God’s. Sometimes, we value parts of creation above God. We have rebelled against the God who created us, loves us, and provides for us!

3. This is a Problem.

Our guilt and sinfulness create a division between us and God. How can God remain holy and reconcile Himself to us? If God always does what is right, then he must do what is right toward guilty sinners. How can God forgive sinners without becoming unjust and unrighteous? Forgiving guilty sinners would require God to show partiality and no longer be true. He would no longer be good. (Think of a judge who lets people go free even though they are clearly proven to be guilty beyond a doubt.) If God is to remain holy, he must pronounce a true and right judgement against sinners. This is a big problem.

4. Jesus is the Answer to this Problem.

God could have left us in this position of guilt and rebellion against Him, but He chose not to. God has provided an answer by taking on humanity in the person of Jesus. Since Jesus is fully man and fully God, He can serve as a mediator between God and us. We can be reconciled to God in the person of Jesus! Jesus is fully human, but since he is not descended from Adam, He was not born with a sinful and corrupted nature or guilty before God. Since Jesus never sinned and lived a perfectly holy life (good, just, right, true, morally pure, impartial, and rightly focused on God and His glory), He is not guilty of sin. This means that Jesus can serve as a perfect sacrifice—a substitute for guilty/sinful humanity. Jesus takes our guilt and suffers our punishment before God. In addition, we are credited with His holiness and righteousness since He lived a perfect/holy life as our representative! This means that God can forgive sinners and remain holy. He doesn’t simply overlook our guilt and sin. He does what is right by justly and impartially judging our sin in Jesus. Since Jesus is fully God, he is able to fully consume God’s wrath toward our sin so that justice is fully done.

5. How Will You Respond?

Salvation is not an automatic thing. God requires us to make a choice. Will we continue in our rebellion and sin following the course of Adam or will we surrender and swear allegiance to Christ as our new representative? We must turn from our love of sin, abandon our own attempts to reconcile ourselves to God, and trust in the only solution that God has provided in Christ.

Sharing the Gospel with Other People

Remembering these five headings (1. God is holy. 2. We are not holy. 3. This is a problem. 4. Jesus is the answer. 5. How will you respond?) can make sharing the gospel with people much less intimidating. You don’t have to remember everything the Bible says or know how to answer every question someone might have. Remembering just these five points will give you confidence to talk to people about God’s plan of salvation.

Speaking with people about the gospel also requires wisdom and some discernment. Once you get a good understanding of the person you are talking with, you will not always have to go into great detail about all five of these points.

The person you are talking with may know and feel greatly that they are sinful, but may not believe that God is holy. He may think that a good God would not allow some specific thing that has happened to him. In this case, you would need to spend more time on the first point showing that God really is holy and all that that means.

Another person that you talk to may believe that God is holy but think that she is a pretty good person. In this case, you could almost skip over the first point and focus more on the second point and how serious her sin and guilt before God is.

A person who believes that God is holy and that we are sinful but thinks God should just forgive everyone, would need to be confronted with the third point and why this is such a big problem—how a holy God cannot just overlook sin and guilt and remain holy.

A person who agrees with the first three points may think that his sin is so great and the problem is so big that God cannot forgive his sin. In this case, you would need to spend time explaining the fourth point—how Jesus is the answer to this problem and has made a way to reconcile us to God, provide forgiveness for our sin, and remain holy.

Finally, if the person you are talking to understands the problem and how Jesus answers it but thinks that means that God will automatically forgive everyone, you will need to explain how in her sin she is still following Adam in rebellion against God. You will need to help her see that she needs to turn from her rebellion and sin and swear allegiance to Christ as her new representative before God and trust Him to reconcile her to God.

In all of these scenarios, we need to remember that the Holy Spirit is the one who converts and rely on Him to do so. We should never try to convince someone or convert someone under our own power or ability or cleverness. We should always join prayer with our explanations of the gospel asking God to give us the words and wisdom to explain the gospel well and asking Him to convict our friend of sin and open his heart to believe!

As people who have been changed by the gospel, we should always be seeking opportunities to share that same message of salvation with those around us—our family and friends and coworkers and neighbors and even strangers when we have opportunity. We should look for opportune times and pray that God would provide those.

I hope that this five point summary of the gospel is a help to you in your sharing the gospel. I hope that it will give you more confidence to do so. I pray that God will use this tool to make us more evangelistic people and a more evangelistic church!

The Five Points of the GospelPastor Josh Wamble2023-01-31T20:42:58-05:00