Defining the Church

Defining the Church

Intro.: I learned to create computer programs too early.

1. When I learned to program, all programs were composed of three kinds of building blocks.

2. But starting ten to fifteen years ago a new paradigm was developed to define program. The new paradigm is called object oriented programming.

3. In OOP, everything is considered an object. An object has to thing associated with it – attributes and methods. Attributes describe the object – color, make, model, size, speed, cost. Methods let the object do something – left turn, right turn, stop, accelerate, turn lights on, might be the methods associated with a car.

4. I wondered what attributes we might use to describe the church.

5. I would like to look at a passage that suggests two attributes that define the church.

Read: I Peter 3:8-12 Pray

Trans:One of the issues addressed in this passage is the problem of evil.

1. Why hasn't God dealt with the problem of evil. Why do so many bad things happen?

2. We assume that God would come in and change it all at once.

3. But why couldn't God decide to take care of evil over time as we know it – knowing that the problem will be done at the end of time. I mean why couldn't He?

4. Of course that is what He did. He takes on evil, person by person, and changes our lives. It will not be finished until the day we enter heaven – but it will be done.

5. God has dealt with evil – in his way, not ours.

T.S. I would like to look at two attributes that help define the Christian church.

1. Attitude One: Unity

   1. Peter begins the paragraph with these words, “Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another”

   2. Sometimes scripture catches me by surprise – this is one of them. You see, I thought I had turned to the wrong book of the Bible. Peter's words sound a great deal like those of Paul in his letter to the Philippians:

      If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.

   3. They are saying much the same thing – except they are saying it very different audiences. Paul writes to an established church, with leaders in place. A healthy church – needing, not to be corrected, but encouraged. Peter writes to a group of believers that have been forced from their home. They live away from friends. They live away from family. And yet they still had their faith. And the command – whether an established church or a struggling church – the call to unity is the same.

   4. But how do we show unity? Peter used two words to describe this – he said be humble and compassionate. Now most of us know what that means. But if we limit it to that – we have missed the point. What Peter wants his readers to know is that Christianity is not merely knowing about God, it is not just about having the right theology. More importantly, Christianity is about living our faith. Christianity is about reflecting Christ to the world around us.

(Ill.) Most of you know that last fall Sandra and I bought a new car. We have three mirrors up front. Each of the two visors have mirror on them – except that they are basically unusable unless I turn them down. And then there is the rear view mirror that is always there. It is always reflecting what is behind the car. We are all mirrors – we all are reflecting something. What kind of mirror is your life? Does your faith only work when you lower your viser? Does your faith only reflect Christ when you choose to put on your “Christian” faith. Or are you like that rear view mirror and let your faith always reflect your Lord and Savior. Humility and compassion are part of that reflection. But everything you say, everything you do becomes a reflection Christ's presence in your life.

5. As a church we are united – as a united church we are called to reflect Christ in all we do.

1. Attitude Two: Love

   1. Unity is part of what drives the church. But Peter moves onto a second attitude that defines the believer's life: love.

   2. The English has three words to express “love as brothers”. Now the Greek is not so wordy – it uses a single word: philadelphoi. As you may guess – it is the very word from which Philadelphia is derived. The “city of brotherly love” - we are to love each others as brothers.

   3. That means we are to be “tenderhearted” (that's Peter's word), caring, and courteous – those are the positive traits.

   4. But he also calls the church to avoid some things. Too often I hear people quote the biblical rule of an “eye for an eye”. It is an Old Testament quotation from Exodus 21. It certainly seems like a valid reason for getting revenge. But Peter reverses those rules. No longer is it an eye for an eye, but rather we are to told to not

      1. return evil for evil or

      2. returning reviling for reviling (NKJV) – I like the way the New Living Translation put it; do not return “insult for insults”.

      3. One translation sums it up by saying, “Don’t be hateful and insult people just because they are hateful and insult you.”

   5. Peter even takes it another step. “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.”

• Eugene Peterson created a unique translation for his church that would capture the original excitement and intensity of the scriptures when they first read the New Testament. Dr. Peterson's translation is called The Message and he translates this passage saying "we must be a blessing to get a blessing" (The Message)

(Appl.) Bob Dylan had a song back in the sixties that had a line that said, “...the times are a changing...” When we become members of the church – not the Garland United Methodist Church, not any Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, or Catholic church – when we become a member of Christ's church, we find that “...the times are a changing...”. We will see the world differently, we will face the world differently. No longer will we live by “an eye for an eye” but we “will be a blessing to get a blessing”.

Conclusion: Two attributes that can define us a believers.

1. Unity defines how we relate to each other Love defines how we relate to our world

2. And none of this is new – Peter quotes Psalm 34:

“Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer,

but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

4. Whether we are church of 5000 or a church or 10; whether we are a two year old church or a 200 year old church, these two attributes must define who we are.

Pray

Serving God's Way

Serving God's Way

Intro.: There are some topics I just don't like preaching about.

1. The problem is that, even though I don't like preaching about them, God talks about them.

2. For example, I don't like preaching about money. But I have read that the New Testament says more about money than any other single topic. So, every so often, I do preach about your pocketbooks.

3. Another topic that I find difficult to preach about is submission. I remember growing up listening to preachers in church or on the radio trying to convince every wife they are to be submissive to their husbands. It still sound abusive the way it was presented back in the 60's and early 70's. Yet Paul and Peter do preach about submission.

4. Six months ago I stopped preaching from I Peter for two reasons. It was partly because it was at that time I had my heart attack. But it was also because we were ready to look at this topic of submission and I was not read.

5. Now six months later, as promised, we are returning to I Peter. And, though I suppose I could skip any discussion of submission, I will not do so.

Read: I Peter 2:13-17 Pray

Trans: Peter is the author of this book of scripture.

1. This man of God had spent three years of our Lord – living with him, listening to him, watching him.

2. And now he writes his first letter (or at least the first that we have) to a group of believers that felt alone and isolated from the rest of the church. Peter writes to encourage these young believers as the seek to serve their Lord.

T.S. Let's look at three ways in which we as believers must submit.

1. We are called to submit to each other
   1. God has created us to be in relationships to each other.
   2. And in those relationships we are called to serve each other.
   3. Not surprising – Jesus made it clear in the gospels, when he reminded us that he “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”
   4. Look around you – beside you, behind you, in front of you. These are all members of the family of God. As a family, we are will be there for each other. We will support each other. We will serve each other.

(Ill.) The word “serve” has a very uncomfortable derivation. It comes from the Latin word servier meaning servant or slave. (Appl.) I don't want to be anybody's slave. I enjoy my freedom. I enjoy setting my own agenda, I want to set my own path. Yet God calls on my serve – serve you, serve my fellow man, serve those around me. No matter how uncomfortable it may be, I am called to serve.

2. We are called to submit to authority
   1. I don't like authority. Authority makes feel very uncomfortable.

(Ill.) As we drove home last Sunday, the weather was far better than it had been the night before. We were tooling down I-90 heading toward New York. I have no idea what the speed limit was. But I expect that the Pennsylvania trooper that was stationed on the divider between the the Eastbound and Westbound lanes knew the speed limit. I saw the trooper, saw my speed was 65 MPH, and the 55 MPH speed limit sign in a single scan of my surroundings. I immediately started to slow down, but was certain that the trooper was about to leave his post and follow a silver Ford Taurus with New York plates. I was certain because I do not like authority. But you know what, he did not start to follow me. I still don't trust authority.

2. But I Peter 2 reminds us that “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.”
3. Regardless of how I feel about authority, regardless of who that authority is – I am to submit.
4. You see, if I am called to serve, then there are no limits. Regardless of how I feel about someone, I am their to represent Christ to them.

(Appl.) Somehow it seems appropriate as we approach the inauguration of the 44^th President of the United States that we spend a few moments speaking about our submission to authority. I do not know who you voted for – I really don't want to know who you voted for. You see, it really doesn't matter – regardless of who we voted for, we are to be submit to every authority. During the coming months, changes will come – yet we are to submit. (Ill.) The problem with submission, be to each other or to authorities, is that we are too much like the boy who was about to be disciplined by his parents. His mom was trying to get him to sit down so they could talk. Knowing what was coming, the boy refused – at least at first. He finally did sit down, but when he did just glared at his mother. But too often his words echo our feeling toward God, “I may be sitting down on the outside, but I'm standing up on the inside.”¹

5. Submission does not always come easy. You will remember that I earlier said, “I enjoy my freedom.” I am not alone – as long as we respond to this thing called submission using our own power, it will be difficult. As we learn to trust God, as we learn to rely on his strength, rather than our own, submission becomes easier. Whether it be to each other, to the authorities God has placed over us, or whether it be to God Himself.

3. We are called to submit to God
   1. And that brings us to the third point of our sermon – ultimately we are to submit to God.

   2. Though it may seem easier to speak about being submissive to God than being submissive to human, I cannot help wondering if the reverse is actually true.

   3. Even as we submit to each other and to the authorities, we are submitting to God. We cannot submit to each other, we cannot submit to the authorities God has given us, unless we are submitting to God as well.

(Appl.) Stand as we close. I want you spend a minute thinking about where submission becomes hard for you. Is it with each other, is it to authorities, or maybe it is God. I don't want you to tell me where it is your struggle, but I do want you to tell God. Tell God where submission becomes hard for you and then ask Him to teach you this year how He wants you to be more submissive.

Pray

1Green, M. P. (1989). Illustrations for Biblical Preaching : Over 1500 sermon illustrations arranged by topic and indexed exhaustively (Revised edition of: The expositor's illustration file). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

Prince Caspian Introduction

Garland

United Methodist

Church

May 25, 2008

C. S. Lewis

Clive Staples Lewis, born in 1898, spent his early years as an atheist scholar. It was not until his early 30’s that Lewis converted, first, to Paganism and, shortly thereafter, to orthodox Christianity. He was a member of the Anglican church, but his writings are appreciated by Christians from a variety of backgrounds.

His writings include two books describing his testimony: the allegorical The Pilgrim’s Regress and the more traditional autobiography Surprised By Joy. Among his most appreciated writings is The Screwtape Letters which purports to be a set of letters from a senior devil to a less experience devil on how to bring a Christian back into the fold “of our Father below”. Other works of note include Mere Christianity (an introduction to the Christian faith), The Problem of Pain, and Miracles.

But given that Lewis’ appointment at Oxford was in medieval and renaissance literature, it should not surprise us that he also explored the use of myth to explore his faith. For the adult, there is a three book science fiction series: Out of the Silent Planet (1938), Perelandra (1943), and That Hideous Strength (1945). For the child in all of us, Lewis wrote the seven books which he entitled The Chronicles of Narnia.

Though the stories are not particularly “Christian”, they were written by a man who had a deep faith in God and the grace He demonstrated in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In the first book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Aslan, the Christ figure in the series, is sacrificed and resurrected in time to defeat the witch troubling Narnia.¹²

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

Prince Caspian was the second book published in the series, but is the fourth book if read Chronologically. As you view the movie this afternoon, ask yourself the following questions:

1. One reviewer has suggested that the world of Narnia is full of skepticism, much like our world? Why do you think this is so? Can you see other similarities between Narnia and 21^st century America? 

2. How do people come to believe and accept the presence of Aslan in Narnia? Why do some take so long to believe?

3. Why does Aslan refuse to step in as he did in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe?

4. Can you give a one word description of each of the major characters? Who is the hero in this movie? What evidence do you have for this?

Remember, this was a children’s story – even as you think about these questions. Enjoy the show.

1Douglas, J., Douglas, J., & Clouse, R., G. (1997, c1991). Vol. 4: Biographical entries from New 20th-century encyclopedia of religious knowledge. Rev. ed. of: Twentieth century encyclopedia of religious knowledge 1955.; Biographical entries from New 20th-century encyclopedia of religious knowledge. (electronic ed.). Baker reference library; Logos Library System. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lion_the_Witch_and_the_Wardrobe

Beginning of the Journey Watch the Video

Beginning of the Journey

Intro.: Let's see, I want to be on the road by 9:00 AM. So I tell Sandra that if we don't leave by 8:00 AM, it will be driving late in to the evening.

1. There is so much that goes into planning a trip.

2. The packing. The stops. The snacks. The music or stories.

3. It does take a lot of planning.

4. Some call the Christian life journey – and like any journey, it takes a lot of planning.

5. But we are lucky, the Christian's journey does not require that we plan it – that is God's job.

6. Today, we will look at the first milestone along our life as a Christian.

Read: 1 Peter 1:3-6

Pray

T.S. 1 Peter 1:3-6 makes it clear that there are two participants in this thing call the Christian life.

1. God gives the New Birth

(Ill.) I have been lucky to be present for five births. The first was my own – it was November 24, 1950, in a hospital in Southern California. The next three were in hospitals scattered both in time (1978 to 1983) and in place (Illinois, Wisconsin, and Oklahoma) – those were of course the birth of my three kids.

But the last birth was far more significant – it took place in 1966 or 1967. I was a Junior in Sacramento High School. One night I was in my room listening to the local Christian radio station and reading my Bible and I realized I had to make a decision. That night God began something in me that continues to this day – it was the night that I was Born Again.

1. When most of us think of the new birth we usually turn to John 3 where Jesus is talking to Nicodemus. It is the same conversation that includes the most famous verse of all – John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” But much earlier in the evening, he told Nicodemus, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

2. And now Peter reminds us now - “In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” In some ways it may seem surprising to find the new birth in 1 Peter, but then they all come from the same God.

3. Peter rests God's gift of a new birth in God's mercy. What he is really doing is reminding us that God's goodness is being displayed toward us as he blesses us with the new life that allows us to serve him. Our translation focuses on the “mercy” of God. But if you were to look at the Contemporary English Version – the translation preferred by Max Lucado – it changes our focus to God's goodness. Listen to how it tells us of the new birth: “God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on.”

(Ill.) A man in Dundee, Scotland, was confined to bed for forty years, having broken his neck in a fall at age fifteen. But his spirit remained unbroken, and his cheer and courage so inspired people that he enjoyed a constant stream of guests. One day a visitor asked him, “Doesn’t Satan ever tempt you to doubt God?”

“Oh, yes,” replied the man. “He does try to tempt me. I lie here and see my old schoolmates driving along in their carriages and Satan whispers, ‘If God is so good, why does He keep you here all these years? Why did he permit your neck to be broken?’ ”

“What do you do when Satan whispers those things?” asked the guest.

“Ah,” replied the invalid, “I take him to Calvary, show him Christ, and point to those deep wounds, and say, ‘You see, he does love me.’ And Satan has no answer to that. He flees every time.”¹

4. God's goodness was demonstrated o

5. n the cross, but it is also demonstrated in our lives today.

6. God is good -- All the time. All the time -- God is good.

2. You have faith in God

   1. God is certainly at work in salvation.

   2. But there is something else at work – and it partially what defines us as Methodists.

   3. There is a danger in saying that it is all God – because it means that we have no responsibility. And that is what made Wesley stand out in his day. He made it clear in his preaching that believers have a part is this thing called salvation – that part is called faith. Paul tells us that “...without faith it is impossible to please God.”

   4. But what do we get for this faith? Why bother? Peter suggests four consequences of being faithful.

   5. The first is protection both for the goal and for ourselves.

• Heaven is there – it can never, to use Peter's words, perish, spoil, or fade.

• But it is not just heaven, but faith also protects the believer “who, through faith, are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.”

• Life gets tough – God is there watching over you. You don't know all the answers, I don;t know all the answers, but God does.

6. That same verse mentions the second benefit – salvation. I don't want to spend a lot of time here, but I do want to make it clear that faith does lead to salvation.

   Protection, salvation, and, then, rejoicing.

(Appl.) Too often we get so caught up in life that we forget about joy. Galatians calls it one of the “fruit of the Spirit” - a natural outgrowth of living the Christian life.

(Ill.) George Whitefield was a contemporary of John Wesley. Oh, they represented different parts of the church, but they also respected each other. And George Whitefield understood joy. The year was 1733 and he had just come to Christ. He was heard to exclaim that day, “Joy—joy unspeakable—joy that’s full of, big with glory!”² Joy that touches the heart.

7. Protection, Salvation, Rejoicing – that all sounds pretty good.

8. But there is another consequence of being faithful to our faith. Look at the end of verse 6 – there is the last consequence – it is testing.

(Ill.) As an educator, I gave a lot of tests. Students never seemed to look forward to them. I want to tell you a secret – neither do the teachers. I mean, it means we need to grade papers, it means that we need to judge students. And that was never fun. Can we be surprised when the testing that comes our way as believers is also not fun?

(Appl.) As Christians we enjoy God's protection, we enjoy the salvation that is ours, we enjoy the joy that comes our way as believers. And we want it to stop there. But scripture never promised an easy life for the believer. In fact, there will be testing, there will be trials, there will be persecution. Easy – nope. But you God will give us a path through whatever comes our way.

Pray

1Morgan, R. J. (2000). Nelson's complete book of stories, illustrations, and quotes (electronic ed.) (170). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

2Federer, W. J. (2001). Great Quotations : A Collection of Passages, Phrases, and Quotations Influencing Early and Modern World History Referenced according to their Sources in Literature, Memoirs, Letters, Governmental Documents, Speeches, Charters, Court Decisions and Constitutions. St. Louis, MO: AmeriSearch.

Seeing God Watch the Video

Seeing God

Intro.: Do you realize that we only see only one side of the moon.

1. One side of the moon is always facing toward the earth, the other side is always facing away.

2. Wouldn't it be fun to be able to travel up into space and see the other side of the moon?

3. Between 1968 and 1972 twenty-four people have seen the far side of the moon as part of the Apollo program – twelve of these actually walked on the moon.

4. But I will never be able to see the far side of the moon – at least not directly. I will be pictures made by satellites or by the astronauts that flew over the moon.

5. I may not be able to see the moon – but on the other hand, God gives us many views of himself.

6. Though we will spend today looking at the first verse of the body of Peter's letter, I want to read the entire first paragraph.

Read: 1 Peter 1:3-9

Pray

Trans: Though we will only be looking at two members of the Trinity in today's passage, it is important that we understand what we mean by this classic Christian doctrine.

1. There is only one God.

2. The Father is shown to be God.

3. The Son is shown to be God

4. The Holy Spirit is shown to be God

5. No one else is said to be God

6. And that sums up the doctrine of the Trinity.

T.S. In 1 Peter 1:3 we get a glimpse at the nature of God

1. Two views of our Lord

1. If you read enough different translations of I Peter, you will find that I Peter 1:3 begins in two very different ways. The NIV is typical of many of the translations - “Praise be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ ...”. The New Revised Standard Version is a good example of an different way to read this verse. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!”

2. Did you notice the difference. One says “Praise the God ...” The other says “Bless be the God ...”.

3. Now, I suppose that we could ignore the difference – but understanding the difference will also help us understand our own response to God. I could, I suppose, give you the Greek word that Peter used to start the body of his letter; but, instead, let me tell you that the Greek word means “to bless”.

4. Thus, Peter writes “Bless be the God ...”. But wait something seems wrong. How can Peter “bless” God? How can I “bless” God? I mean, God is the blessor. He is the source of all blessing.

5. I cannot bless God! Not in the traditional sense – yet out of a heart that has been touched by God's grace, I may wish that I could give some of the blessing God has given me back to him. Peter begins the body of his letter by responding from his heart.

(Ill.) Peter was not alone – David had the same thoughts in Psalm 103:1 –you could look at the English Standard Version, where the verse is translated, “Bless the Lord, O my soul”; or you clould might note that the NIV translates the verse, “Praise the Lord, O my soul”

6. I wish I could bless God, I cannot. What I can do is praise God for what he has done. And so some translations will translate the Greek - “Bless ...”. Others will translate the emotion - “Praise God ...”

7. So Peter writes, “Bless/praise be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”

8. But as much as the verb is important, so is the object of the praise “” ...the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9. I was impressed as I moved through this passage that the same God that Jesus worshiped and the one whom he called father, I also worship as God, I also can call “father” - the same God that Jesus worshiped and the one whom he called father, you also worship as God, you also can call “father”. I am a child of God, you are a child of God.

(Ill.) Many of you have heard of Dr. Theodor Geisel – but you may not know it. You see, his more famous name is the children's book author, Dr. Seuss. Dr. Seuss once said, “Adults are obsolete adults.”¹ Christ takes obsolete children and makes them children of God that never need to go obsolete.

10. May you, as a child of God, find yourself praising God.

1. Three views of His Son

   1. The first verse of the body of Peters letter tells a great deal about God. It also gives us three views of Jesus:
      Lord Jesus Christ

   2. Let me suggest that each part of this name can teach us something of who Jesus really is.

   3. In the Greek translation the word Lord is used almost exclusively to translate the word YHWH – God's very personal name. So personal that the Jews were not permitted to say the name out loud. And so personal that Jesus takes it for his own name, he is understood to be appropriating all the characteristics of God for himself. As Peter wrote, there was no doubt that the Jewish Christians who would be reading his letter would already believe this. The one they worshiped – was the one and only YHWH, the one and only Lord of the universe.

   4. Jesus is not only Lord, he is also, well, Jesus. Where the name YHWH was unique for God alone, Jesus was a very common name – a name with roots going back to the very early days of the Jewish nation. In fact it is the Greek spelling of the name Joshua.

   5. Oh the name fits, it means “salvation”. Very common, but, for Jesus, very appropriate. It is the very human name for a very human person.

   6. When we speak of the “Lord Jesus” we are reminded that He is both divine and human. He was both involved in creation and he was tempted just as we are.

(Ill.) Athanasius is one of my favorite early Christians. He wrote in the 4^th century about Jesus. “Our Lord took a body like ours and lived as a man in order that those who had refused to recognize him in his superintendence and captaincy of the whole universe might come to recognize from the works he did here below in the body, that what dwelt in this body was the Word of God.”²

7. But there is a third name, Christ, or in the Greek Xristos. It is the equivalent of the Hebrew Messiah – the anointed one. Remember the Jews were expecting the Messiah – the one who would bring salvation to God's people.

8. Not only was Jesus divine, not only was Jesus human, but Jesus was also the one chosen since the beginning of the world to be God's representative to this broken world. He was annointed, was the Messiah, he was the Christ.

(Ill.) The historian Josephus was a contemporary of Jesus – but, as far as we know, he was never a believer. Yet he wrote shortly after the death of Jesus, “About this time lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was the achiever of extraordinary deeds and was a teacher of those who accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. He was the Messiah. When he was indicted by the principal men among us and Pilate condemned him to be crucified, those who had come to love him originally did not cease to do so; for he appeared to them on the third day restored to life, as the prophets of the Deity had foretold these and countless other marvelous things about him. And the tribe of Christians, so named after him, has not disappeared to this day.” ³

9. We worship the Lord of the universe, we worship the Son of God, the man Jesus, and we worship the one chosen to bring our salvation, the messiah, the Christ. We worship the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pray

1Dr. Seuss in Streiker, L. D. (2000). Nelson's big book of laughter : Thousands of smiles from A to Z (electronic ed.) (4). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

2Water, M. (2000). The new encyclopedia of Christian quotations (527). Alresford, Hampshire: John Hunt Publishers Ltd.

3Flavius Josephus, Jewish historian, ad 37–95 in Water, M. (2000). The new encyclopedia of Christian quotations (1054). Alresford, Hampshire: John Hunt Publishers Ltd.