Sin, Righteousness, & Judgment (Pt. 2)

(Part 2)

“As it is written, “There is none righteous, no, not one.”-Romans 3:10 

The Bible is clear that mankind has tried, since the dawn of time, to establish its own standard of righteousness rather than to submit to the righteousness of God. The Apostle Paul declared in Romans 10:3: “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” 

This self established righteousness is described by the Prophet Isaiah as being like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). When we work to establish our own parameters for right and wrong, we run the risk of undermining God’s framework for good and evil:

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!”-Isaiah 5:20 

The Apostle Paul recognized that the self-defined righteousness that he once lived by fell woefully short of the righteousness established by God. When he measured himself, against God’s standards, it caused him to declare himself to be the chief of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15) 

The righteousness that God has established is not self-determined but rather has been provided for through our Lord Jesus Christ:

“For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.”-Romans 5:17-19

His righteousness is afforded to us, not through any effort of our own, but by faith:

“But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.”-Romans 3:21-22

Jesus demonstrated a level of righteousness that we, in our sin-tainted state, could never hope to attain through our own works. 1 Corinthians 5:21 declares:

“For He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” 

Because we have all sinned, we have all fallen short of God’s standard of righteousness. Jesus, who lived a sinless life, took the penalty of our sins upon Himself when He died on the cross. This sacrifice allowed His righteousness to be extended to us, if we choose to place our faith in Him. 

The Holy Spirit continues to work today to convince us that our self-righteousness will never satisfy the demands of a Holy God, but instead He points to a perfect righteousness afforded to us by faith in Jesus. 

Pastor Scott Burr

Dayspring Community Church

Sin, Righteousness, & Judgment (Pt. 1)

(Part 1)

“But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you ask Me, ‘Where are You going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He comes, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”-John 16:5-11

We are living in a day and age that calling anything a sin is likely to get you labeled as bigoted, narrow-minded, or antiquated. We have been sold the idea that we can live however we choose as long as it is in moderation and that there is no need of repentance.

However, that is not the gospel. In fact John Ch. 16 tells us that convicting people of sin is a primary component of the Holy Spirit’s work.

Why? Because according to Isaiah 59:2 our sin has separated us from God:

“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.”

The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 3:23 that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. How did this happen?

“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.”-Romans 5:12

The introduction of sin into the human race is Adam’s legacy. It was through Adam’s disobedience that sin entered the world. Sin, then, became the door through which death entered and death spread to all men. God, recognizing that sin created a barrier between Himself and mankind, made forgiveness of sin possible. Sin would be atoned for through the shedding of blood:

“In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.”-Hebrews 9:22

The sacrifices that Moses made were simply a foreshadow of God’s ultimate sacrifice-Jesus Christ!

“He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.-Ephesians 1:7

God made Him who knew no sin to become sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because of His sacrifice, we now have an advocate with the Father in Heaven. We can cry out to God for forgiveness resting on the finished work of Jesus Christ at Calvary. The Apostle Peter instructed the people to “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. (Acts 3:19)”

The work of the Holy Spirit is to convict us of sin so that we may repent of our sins and gain eternal life!


Pastor Scott Burr
Dayspring Community Church

Lessons from the vineyard (Pt.2)

(Part 2)

“By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”-John 15:8

Jesus declares, here in John 15, that God is glorified when His disciples bear fruit. If that is the case, then what is the fruit that Jesus is looking for? Grapes on a branch are an outward evidence that the life of the vine is coursing through the branches. The grapes are the ultimate expression of the vine and serve as an indication that the branches are healthy and strong. Fruit indicates that there is life within. The healthier the branch, the better the results. I guess you could say that fruit is synonymous with results! So, what does being fruitful look like?

Fulfilling the commands of Jesus is a big part of the fruit bearing process:

“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”-John 15:9-10

Obedience to God’s Word is an outward expression of our love for Him. It is visible evidence of our connection to Jesus Christ. Another visible evidence is our love for one another: 

“This is My commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”-John 15:12-13

Two visible fruit of our connection with Christ then are: love for God and love for one another. Does that sound familiar?

“Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord our God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ “-Matthew 22: 37-39. 

What other type of evidences should emerge from our relationships with Christ? 

“That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”-Colossians 1:10

What does that look like in our everyday life? What good works demonstrate my connection to Christ?

“For I was hunger and you give Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me during; I was a stranger and you too Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me. Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord when did we see You hunger and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see you a stranger and take You in or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ “And the King will answered say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”-Matthew 25:35-40

We bear fruit when we love God. We bear more fruit when we love each other. We bear much fruit when we add making disciples. Reproduction is another indication of fruitfulness:

“And Jesus came and spoke to them saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and earth. God therefore and make disciples of all the nation, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”-Matthew 28:18-19

It is through these efforts (loving God, loving one another, serving one another, and making disciples) that our fruitfulness is recognized. Jesus said that a tree is known by its fruit. Because of this, we need be make certain that we stay connected to the vine. 

Pastor Scott Burr

Dayspring Community Church

Lessons from the vineyard (Pt.1)

(Part 1)

“I am the true vine and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”-John 15:1-5

One of the many things I love about Jesus’ teaching is his use of parables to convey simple truths. In John 15, Jesus uses a very common sight in Israel, a vineyard, to express the significance and necessity of remaining in close communion with Him.

The great thing about this passage is that Jesus identifies all the major players within the first five verses. God is the vinedresser, Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches. Now that we’ve established the characters of the parable we can begin to make some observations about the passage.

The primary emphasis of this text is on remaining (abiding) in the vine. It should be the primary concern of every believer (branch) to be connected to Jesus Christ. The second emphasis is on fruitfulness. According to the passage, we have been appointed by God to bear fruit. However, we cannot bear any fruit apart from being connected to Jesus.

One thing that I want to separate in your mind for a moment is the difference between “having life” and “being fruitful”. One has to to with abiding, the other with pruning:

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.-John 15:5-6

The vine is the root by which every branch receives life. The possibility of bearing fruit is negated if the branch is not connected to the vine. But even more importantly, the branch will not live (have life) if it is not connected to the vine. Without this connection it will wither and die. Jesus is clear, from the passage, that we first must be connected to the vine. However, to become connected is not the pinnacle of our Christian experience. We must then bear fruit:

“Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away;and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”-John 15:2

This verse demonstrates that not only are branches that are not connected taken away, but also are those branches, which are connected but bear no fruit. So the idea that we can simply confess we love Jesus and then sit back an cruise into eternity is a dangerous notion. We must certainly be connected to the vine to have life, but we must also remain connected to bear fruit.

Pastor Scott Burr
Dayspring Community Church

God's Timing (Pt. 2)

(Part 2 of 2)

“Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”-John 11:3-4

Although we discussed God’s timing in the raising of Lazarus, there may be something more that we have overlooked in this story. What was the ultimate outcome Mary and Martha were hoping for? Lazarus’s healing?

What did Jesus say that the ultimate outcome would be? Jesus said that Lazarus’s healing would bring glory to God and that the Son of God would be glorified through it!
What is more important? That God is glorified or that our needs are met in the manner, time, and plan that we hope?

Our Chronos time does not always meet up with God’s Karios time. Sometimes they parallel each other, but God is always more concerned that the moment is ripe for His glory than He is making sure that all He does lines up with our time schedule.

“Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”-John 11:38-40

Jesus was at the tomb when he ordered the stone to be removed. Martha chimes in, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” Martha was still focused on how the time for Lazarus’ healing has passed, however Jesus reminds her of the real objective.

“Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”-John 11:40

What if it brought God greater glory to delay giving you what you asked for and when you asked for it? Which is more important? His glory or your need being met? Lazarus was ultimately healed, but only when it brought God the greatest glory; not because God has a giant ego, but so that our faith might be stretched, increased and multiplied:

“Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”-John 11:41-42

Mary and Martha believed that Jesus could heal the sick, but now they believed He could raise the dead! That would not have been so if He had shown up 4 days earlier.

So, what have you been asking God to do? Are you simply interested in your need being met? Are you concerned about the glory of God? Don’t settle for a healing, when God has a resurrection in store for you!

Pastor Scott Burr
Dayspring Community Church

God's Timing (Pt.1)

(Part 1 of 2)

“Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore the sisters sent to Him saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”-John 11:1-7

As you read this passage, it is hard to get past the idea that Jesus deliberately stayed away for two whole days before traveling to Bethany to visit Lazarus. It is even harder to fathom when you consider that it is during this time frame that Lazarus goes from being sick to being dead. 

Upon arriving in Bethany, both Martha and Mary approach Jesus with an identical response to His late arrival:

“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”-John 11:21 & 32

Although they are not being accusatory, they are highlighting what they perceive to be a flaw in God’s timing. How many of you would be honest enough to say that you have or may be even now questioning God’s timing in regards to a situation that you are facing? I think most of us have at some point. 

Our struggle like Mary and Martha is that we tend to fixate on the best case scenario. We pray and ask for God’s favor and help and then when we proceed (without consulting God) to plan out the perfect outcome. We lay out all the details in our minds, especially the what and when! However, when that time passes, we are forced to reconfigure the details and begin to believe for the next best set of outcomes. 

Mary and Martha believed that Jesus would respond immediately, because of His relationship with them and His love for Lazarus (John 11:36), and that He would come and pray for Lazarus and make him well. Instead, Jesus delayed His coming. 

He stayed long past when Mary and Maratha hoped Jesus would come and in so doing they stopped believing that Jesus could restore Lazarus. This is because their plans were hinged on God showing up by a certain time. 

There are two types of time that we see unfold in the Scriptures. Chronos time, from where we get the word chronological, is time that can be quantified in seconds, minutes, hours, and years. This is the time that we are most familiar with and operate within. However, there is also Karios time. The word Karios means: when it is ripe. There is no hour, second, day or year that can be placed on it, but is comes to pass when it is fully ready:

“And let us no grow weary in while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”-Galatians 6:9

Another great example of this is 1 Peter 5:6-7:

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He will exalt you in due time, casting all you care upon Him, for He cares for you.”

Karios time is proof that God works on His own time schedule: 

“But, beloved, do not for this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”-2 Peter 3:8

Mary and Martha fell into the same trap may of us do, we expect God to move within the boundaries of Chronos time; while forgetting that God is waiting for the perfect time to reveal His glory! 

Pastor Scott Burr

Dayspring Community Church

Are you ready to see? (Pt. 2)

(Part 2 of 2)

“They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I can see.”-John 9:13-15

Upon hearing this, the Pharisees became indignant calling Jesus a sinner, because although He had done a notable miracle; He did so on a Sabbath day. This caused a great division among them. However, some protested that a sinner could not do such miracles. Others questioned whether he had been blind at all!

So they had the man’s parents brought in and asked them about the man’s miraculous healing. They testified that the man was their son and that he had been born blind, but they did not know how his eyes were opened. So they brought the man man back in and began to question him again:

“Then they said to him again, ‘What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?” He answered them, “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”-John 9:26-27

The man’s answer infuriated the Pharisees and after another brief exchange they had him cast out. Upon hearing what happened, Jesus found the man and asked him an important question: “Do you believe in the Son of God?”  After confirming to the man that He, Himself, was the Son of God; the man placed his faith in Christ and worshipped Him.

It is then that Jesus made a bold proclamation:

“For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”-John 9:39

This caused some of the Pharisees to ask, “Are we blind also?” Jesus told them that their mistake was claiming to see, while living in darkness.

No man can see without coming to Christ! He is the light of the world! Just like the man born blind each of us was born into sin. Romans 3:23 tells us that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Our spiritual blindness was not caused by our own sin or our parents sin, but (Romans 5:12) through Adam we all inherited a sin nature.

Jesus recognizing our misery, got directly involved; because He cares for us. So much so, that He died on Calvary’s cross to take upon Himself the penalty of our sinfulness. However, just like with any other miracle, we have to take a step of faith. We have to come to Him; so that we too can be washed. We have to make a confession of faith in Jesus Christ and allow Him to be Lord of our lives; so that we too can be saved and be able to see clearly to live a life that honors God.

Some of you, nevertheless, are living a lie. You are living in darkness, but claiming you are able to see. You don’t see your need for a Savior and have convinced yourselves that there is some other way to make heaven and that you don’t have to put faith in Christ to get there. Therefore, your sins remain! You remain separated from God because it is now your sin that separates you from Him.

Jesus wants to open your blind eyes; that you may see the truth. If you will put your trust in Him, He will restore your sight!

Pastor Scott Burr
Dayspring Community Church