Reconciled Them Unto God

Driving home: There is the necessity of bringing into a relationship of amity those who are presently in a relationship of enmity. There is the necessity of bringing from a distance, into loving proximity, those who are presently in t…

Martin asks his children what 'reconcile' means, and they respond with 'people that are alienated from one another,' illustrating the immediate assumption of separation when the word is used.

In other words, reconciliation, even though we won't go into a technical definition of the word at this point, reconciliation immediately assumes a problem of alienation between two or more parties. Driving over in the car this morning, I just threw out the question, I just threw out the question to my children. If I say the word reconcile, what do you think of immediately? And the answer was, well, you think of people that are alienated from one another.

6:49 - 7:18 Read in full sermon

Driving home: There is the necessity of bringing into a relationship of amity those who are presently in a relationship of enmity. There is the necessity of bringing from a distance, into loving proximity, those who are presently in t…

He uses the hypothetical scenario of someone offering to reconcile him to his wife, which he would decline because there is no alienation, to demonstrate that reconciliation presupposes a prior separation.

If you were to come up to me this morning at the end of the service and say, Pastor Martin, in my love to you in Christ, or out of my love to you in Christ, I want to offer my services to you at this time. I say, well, in what way? You say, well, I'd like to reconcile you to your wife. I'd say, well, I appreciate the expression of your love, but I don't need your services.

7:19 - 7:39 Read in full sermon

Driving home: There is the necessity of bringing into a relationship of amity those who are presently in a relationship of enmity. There is the necessity of bringing from a distance, into loving proximity, those who are presently in t…

He describes intervening to reconcile two fighting children, separating them, finding the cause of their conflict, and trying to change their animosity to friendship, illustrating the practical work of a reconciler.

Now, if we go out of here and we see two kids going at it, hammer and tongs, pulling each other's hairs and kicking, why then, your services as a reconciler might well be exercised to the profit of all concerned. And you'd separate the kids, you'd find out what was the occasion of their getting nipped with one another, and you'd try to, to change their frowns to smiles and their closed fists to open handshakes or an arm-in-arm buddy relationship. You see, the problem then assumed in a text such as this, and might reconcile them both in one body unto God, the problem assumed is that Jew and Gen...

8:20 - 9:32 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Thou hatest, and the object of the verb hate is the worker of iniquity. It is the sinner that is the object of the pure hatred of the Holy God.

He uses the example of children saying 'I abhor spinach' to explain the meaning of 'abhorreth' in Psalm 5, conveying a strong, visceral dislike.

Thou wilt destroy them that speak lies. The Lord abhorreth. When you abhor something. Some of you kids, you say, I abhor spinach.

17:15 - 17:27 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin then argues that the primary focus of the passage is God's holy alienation from the sinner, demonstrating through Isaiah 59, Psalm 34, Psalm 5, Romans 1, Colossians 3, and…

Martin quotes Professor John Murray's definition of reconciliation, which states that alienation is twofold: our alienation from God and God's holy alienation from us, providing a theological authority for his argument.

Professor Murray in his masterful treatment of the whole subject of reconciliation has stated in a way that I cannot improve upon this basic concept of God's alienation to the sinner. Stated in these words and I want to quote them just a brief paragraph.

19:00 - 19:19 Read in full sermon