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Sat, 21 Feb 2009 18:46:05 GMT

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Sun, 04 Jan 2009 00:16:32 GMT

Here is a question for you as you begin the new year:

Do you have enough desire for God in order to discipline your pursuit of God in 2009?

A MEDITATION FOR ADVENT*

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:47:05 GMT

Genesis 2:18-25 is a word of grace. There we learn about the first man, who was alone and in need of a counterpart, that is, a wife. The animals were brought to the man and he named them. But no counterpart, no suitable helper, was found among the animals. So the Divine Artist created a woman out of the man's side and brought her to the man. We had begun in Genesis 1:2 with a blank canvas and in Genesis 2:4-5 with a barren landscape; now we have God's masterpiece – an ordered universe, a beautiful garden, and, in the center, the energy and joy of a wedding. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame" (Gen. 2:24-25 NIV).

But what would happen if we transposed this beautiful song of covenant love into the key - the tragically sinful key - of Genesis 3? Do you remember what Scripture says about marriage? Scripture says that Genesis 2:24 refers to Christ and the church. Paul writes, "'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife.' This is a profound mystery – but I am talking about Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:31-32 NIV). Human marriages exist in order to proclaim the excellencies of another marriage – the marriage between Christ and his bride, the church. The marriage between Adam and Eve, recorded in Genesis 2, happened in order to display the future glory of a far better marriage – the Son’s marriage to the people of God. What would happen if we read Genesis 2 in this light?

We would say, first of all, that there was a Father with a one and only Son, whom he dearly loved. This Father was pleased to imagine his Son as having a radiant and glorious bride – a bride composed of his image-bearers. But no such bride existed, since all of the image-bearers were blemished, corrupted and flawed. So the Father and the Son weaved together a plan for the most astonishing marriage ever. The Father designed to put his Son, not in a beautiful garden, but in a barren wilderness, in order to seek and save what was lost. Scripture says, "A man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife." And so the eternal Son, willingly and lovingly, left his Father in order to fulfill his Father’s design and claim his bride – and at great cost. And when the time was right, the Father, who had once caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep in order to take a rib from his side, did something far greater in the case of his Son; it pleased the Father to wound his Son, in order to take away all the blemishes and flaws of his Son’s bride.

And so we should delight to say that as the woman was created out of the man’s side, so the church was created out of the side – the pierced side – of the Crucified One. And we should marvel that the perfect Son would condescend to call us his wife: "bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called [the bride of Christ], for she was taken out of [Christ]" (NIV). And we should treasure our Hope, namely, that Christ has united himself in covenant love to his bride, and that we have become one. For Scripture says, "He who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him" (1 Cor. 6:17 ESV). And finally, we should be stunned that, in the end, the blemished and flawed bride will be so transformed, that she will actually be presented to Christ as a pure virgin (see 2 Cor. 11:2), spotless and blameless, and she will experience unashamed and unhindered fellowship with her husband, forever.

When we transpose Genesis 2 into the key of Genesis 3, we see God’s eternal purpose of grace in the gospel of his Son. On its own terms, Genesis 1-2 begins with a blank canvas (Gen. 1:2) and ends with the energy and joy of a wedding (Gen. 2:24-25). But in the light of Genesis 3, a greater story is told: we now begin not with a blank canvas (Genesis 1:2) or barren landscape (Gen. 2:4-5), but with the distorted and darkened canvas of Genesis 3. The Divine Artist applies his redeeming skill to this canvas, too, and this time we end, not with the energy and joy of Adam's marriage to Eve in Genesis 2, but with the energy and joy of Christ's marriage to the church in Revelation 19. "Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready" (Rev. 19:7 NIV).

"Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display Thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine."
(from "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" by Charles Wesley)

*taken and adapted from an Advent sermon titled "God's Coming To Us: Lessons from Genesis 1-3", preached by Brian Wilbur at BridgeWay242 on November 30, 2008

THIS COMING WEEKEND

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:49:59 GMT

ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6
We are having our first "Friends of BridgeWay242 Christmas Dinner" - for our friends. A thirty-five pound pig and two turkeys are on the menu, and a skit and short talk will be presented.

ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 7
We will welcome John Lauber as a guest speaker. John works as a counselor with Hindsight Biblical Counseling (see http://www.hindsightcounseling.com/home.html). John will continue our Advent Sermon Series - "God's Coming To Us" - by sharing from Exodus 3:1-12.

For more information about BridgeWay242 call the church office (703-527-9200) or visit our website at www.bridgeway242.org .

UPCOMING EVENTS

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 18:18:09 GMT

Four Sundays, Nov. 30 - Dec. 21: Advent Sermons. Theme: God's Coming To Us

Saturday, December 6: Friends of BridgeWay242 Christmas Dinner

Tuesday, December 16: Caroling at Brighton Gardens

Friday, December 19: BridgeWay242 Christmas Party

A Cup of Hope Coffeehouse

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:56:02 GMT

Join us in the fight against modern day slavery with a night of coffee and music. A representative from Not For Sale, an organization working to address this social injustice, will be speaking. The $5 cover goes to the Not For Sale campaign. It all goes down on Saturday, November 1st starting at 7:00 pm at our normal meeting place (4201 Fairfax Dr., Arlington, VA 22203).

COLOSSIANS 3 & THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 02:22:22 GMT

Recent sermons have related to Colossians 3:5-9, where the Apostle Paul tells us to get rid of a variety of sins, including lust, greed, anger, and dishonesty. The goal of getting rid of such sins, of course, is so that we might honor the Lord Jesus and please him as we live out our faith in purity, contentment, compassion, and truthfulness. As we have been and continue to work through Colossians 3 in our sermon series, it is worth noting the harmony between Paul's teaching here and Jesus' teaching in Matthew 5-7 (The Sermon on the Mount). Consider the parallels:

ON SEXUAL PURITY
Jesus: "I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away" (Matthew 5:28-29 NIV). Paul: "Put to death ... sexual immorality, impurity, lust" (Colossians 3:5 NIV).

ON MONEY
Jesus: "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money" (Matthew 6:24-25 NIV). Paul: "Put to death ... greed, which is idolatry" (Colossians 3:5 NIV)."

ON CONFLICT IN RELATIONSHIPS
Jesus: "I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment" (Matthew 5:22 NIV). Paul: "You must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice" (Colossians 3:8 NIV). Jesus commends peacemaking, reconciliation, and forgiveness (Matthew 5:9, 23-26; 6:12, 14); Paul tells us to bear with one another, forgive one another, and be governed by Christ's peace (Colossians 3:13, 15).

ON HONEST COMMUNICATION
Jesus: "Simply let your 'Yes' be Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one" (Matthew 5:37 NIV). Paul: "Do not lie to each other" (Colossians 3:9 NIV). Though this parallel may not be as obvious or as strong as the others, both Jesus and Paul are dealing with the general subject of truthfulness in our communication.

Jesus is the King of the universe. Paul is simply "an apostle of Christ Jesus" (Colossians 1:1 NIV). It is no wonder that the apostle's teaching is in keeping with the teaching of his Master.

A WEEKEND IN THE MIDST ...

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 23:04:12 GMT

... in the midst of the elderly. Saturday, August 23, 3:30 pm: We will be serving at Brighton Garden's social hour.

... in the midst of the community. Sunday, August 24, 1:00-6:00 pm: We will have a table at the annual Buckingham Festival.

... in the midst of one another. Sunday, August 24, 6:00 pm: We will gather together for our weekly worship service, and we will be having a special speaker, Rev. Christof Weber, share the Word with us. Christof serves as the pastor of Rockland Community Church (www.rockland.cc) in Front Royal, VA. He has titled his sermon "In The Midst". (Whatever his sermon may be about, his sermon title has inspired the theme for today's blog. Thank you Christof!)

The Journey Toward Christlikeness

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 23:54:14 GMT

This coming Sunday, August 3, we return to our study of Colossians. Two weeks ago we looked at six dimensions of the Christian journey of being conformed to the character of Christ. This Sunday we will, Lord-willing, look at four additional dimensions of this journey. These ten dimensions are definitely not an exhaustive list, but they do cover a lot of ground and should shape our understanding of the Christian life. Here are ten dimensions of this journey:

1. It (this journey toward Christlikeness) is rooted in the gospel. We rest on the firm foundation of what the Father has done for us through Christ. (see Col. 1:1 - 3:4)

2. It requires strength from God. We depend on Christ for nourishment and strength. (see Col. 2:19)

3. It flows out of who we are as Christians. We live according to our new identity in Christ. (see Col. 2:9 - 3:14)

4. It involves conflict (e.g., with sin). We take sin seriously (and fight against it). (see Col 3:5-14)

5. It prioritizes the inner life. We seek heart transformation, not mere behavior modification. (see Col. 3:1-14)

6. It is an ongoing process. We take the long view and look for continual, steady growth over time. (this concept may be present in Col. 3:10, but see 2 Corinthians 3:18)

7. It is a journey together. We work together for God's purposes. (see Col. 2:2-3 and Col. 3:14-16)

8. It leads to a definite destination. We look forward to that day when we will appear with Christ in glory. (see Col. 3:4)

9. It calls for our active participation. We pursue holiness. (see Col. 3:5-14)

10. It relates to every aspect of life. We live under Christ's Lordship in all things (e.g., church, family, work, society). (see Col. 1:15-20 and Col. 3:5 - 4:6)

In all of these things, we always hold on to the gospel as our only hope. This journey toward Christlikeness is a journey of grace from beginning to end. "If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:7 ESV).

Waiting for the Lord

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 02:31:13 GMT

Waiting is a part of life. Waiting for a relationship to be transformed. Waiting for provision that will meet a specific need. Waiting for direction that will lead us to take the next step. Waiting for deliverance from a painful trial. Waiting for a ray of light to break through the clouds of darkness and gloom. Waiting for a promise to be fulfilled. And as we wait, we typically want circumstances to change - the sooner the better! - in a way that makes sense to us.

As Christians, however, our hope is not in a change of circumstances. Our hope, rather, is in the Lord, who is faithful and good. "Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD" (Psalm 27:14). There is hope and strength to be found in the valley of waiting - the hope and strength that come from our Rock and our Redeemer.

This Sunday, July 27, we are taking a break from our study of Colossians. Dan, one of Bridgeway's elders, will be preaching from the Book of Genesis about the journey of Abraham and Sarah - a journey that sheds light on this theme of waiting for the Lord. Come and hear, and be encouraged to put your hope in the promises of God.