DOCTRINE MATTERS

The Sermon on the Mount: A Christian Counter-Culture

2010-02-19T22:42:00.000-06:00

Matthew 6:8a - Do not be like them.

"The Sermon on the Mount [Matthew 5-7] is probably the best-known part of the teaching of Jesus, though arguably it is the least understood, and certainly it is the least obeyed. It is the nearest thing to a manifesto that he ever uttered. To my mind no two words sum up its intention better, or indicate more clearly its challenge to the modern world, than the expression 'Christian counter-culture.' ... For insofar as the church is conformed to the world, and the two communities appear to the onlooker to be merely two versions of the same thing, the church is contradicting its true identity. No comment could be more hurtful to the Christian than the words, 'But you are no different from anybody else.' ... Thus the followers of Jesus are to be different - different from both the nominal church and the secular world, different from both the religious and the irreligious. The Sermon on the Mount is the most complete delineation anywhere in the New Testament of the Christian counter-culture. Here is a Christian value-system, ethical standard, religious devotion, attitude to money, ambition, life-style and network of relationships - all of which are totally at variance with those of the non-Christian world. And this Christian counter-culture is the life of the kingdom of God, a fully human life indeed but lived out under the divine rule." (John R.W. Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount, IVP 1978)

So, what evidence of this Christian counter-culture is there in your life?

Exclusivity of the Gospel: In Christ Alone

2010-02-05T10:00:00.005-06:00

Mark 16:15-16
And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes [the gospel] and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe [the gospel] will be condemned."

I Cor. 16:22
If anyone has no love for the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed.

Rom. 10:14-17
How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

John 14:6
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Acts 4:12
And there is a salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

I Tim. 2:5
For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

How do we (can we?) line up the following quote with Scripture?

"Christianity and being a true believer, you know, I think there's the body of Christ which comes from all the Christian groups around the world, or outside the Christian groups. I think that everybody that loves Christ or knows Christ, whether they're conscious of it or not, they're members of the body of Christ. . . . What God is doing today is calling people out of the world for His name. Whether they come from the Muslim world, or the Buddhist world, or the Christian world, or the non-believing world, they are members of the body of Christ because they've been called by God. They may not even know the name of Jesus, but they know in their hearts they need something that they don't have and they turn to the only light they have and I think they're saved and they're going to be with us in heaven. [Question: So, it's possible for Jesus Christ to come into a human heart and soul and life even if they've been born in darkness and have never had exposure to the Bible. Is that a correct interpretation of what you're saying?] Yes, it is because I believe that. I've met people in various parts of the world in tribal situations that they have never seen a Bible or heard about a Bible, have never heard of Jesus but they've believed in their hearts that there is a God and they tried to live a life that was quite apart from the surrounding community in which they lived."
(May 31, 1997, interview with world-famous evangelist)

I don't know that we can.

Here vs. There: Oh, Happy Day!

2010-01-30T12:26:00.003-06:00

C.H. Spurgeon on how different will be the state of the believer in heaven from what it is here on earth.

"Here, rest is but partial, there, it is perfect. Here, the Christian is always unsettled; he feels that he has not yet attained. There, all are at rest; they have attained the summit of the mountain; they have ascended to the bosom of their God. Higher they cannot go. . . . Here, my best joys bear “mortal” on their brow; my fair flowers fade; my dainty cups are drained to dregs; my sweetest birds fall before Death’s arrows; my most pleasant days are shadowed into nights; and the flood-tides of my bliss subside into ebbs of sorrow; but there, everything is immortal; the harp abides unrusted, the crown unwithered, the eye undimmed, the voice unfaltering, the heart unwavering, and the immortal being is wholly absorbed in infinite delight. Happy day! happy! when mortality shall be swallowed up of life, and the Eternal Sabbath shall begin."

(C.H. Spurgeon, Morning & Evening, Morning January 18)

Eye of Faith's Grand Object - The Future With Christ!

2010-01-01T10:25:00.004-06:00

A reflection on this New Year's Day, January 1, 2010 -

"In the Christian pilgrimage it is well for the most part to be looking forward. Whether it be for hope, for joy, for consolation, or for the inspiring of our love, the future after all must be the grand object of the eye of faith. Looking into the future we see sin cast out, the body of sin and death destroyed, the soul made perfect and fit to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light.

And looking further yet, the believer's soul can see Death's river passed, the gloomy steam forded; he can behold the hills of light on which standeth the celestial city; he seeth himself enter within the pearly gates, hailed as more than a conqueror - crowned by the hand of Christ, embraced in the arms of Jesus, glorified with him, made to sit together with him on his throne, even as he has overcome and has sat down with the Father upon his throne."
(Sermon, CH Spurgeon, Lords Day, Feb. 27, 1859, Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens, London)

And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. (I Peter 5:10 ESV)

Christ Incarnate: Carol Theology

2009-12-23T23:45:00.000-06:00

As we celebrate the Godhead come to earth, taking on the flesh of men - the Incarnation - let us consider the rich theology found in Charles Wesley's great work, Hark, the Herald Angels Sing.

Hark, the Herald Angels Sing
(Charles Wesley, 1739)

1.
Hark! The herald angels sing, (Luke 2:10)
"Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild, (Luke 2:14; 1:78)
God and sinners reconciled!" (2 Cor. 5:18-21; Col. 1:20-22)

Joyful, all ye nations rise, (Rev. 21:24; Haggai 2:6-7)
Join the triumph of the skies;
With the angelic host proclaim, "Christ is born in Bethlehem!" (Luke 2:10-11; Matt. 1:4-6; Micah 5:2)
Hark! the herald angels sing, "Glory to the newborn King!" (Matt. 2:2)

2.
Christ, by highest Heaven adored; (Luke 2:9-14; Rev. 5:13; Heb.1:6)
Christ the everlasting Lord; (Rev. 22:12-13)
Late in time, behold Him come, (Gal. 4:4)
Offspring of a virgin’s womb. (Matt. 1:18-23; Luke 1:26-38)

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; (Heb. 10:20)
Hail the incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell, (John 1:14; Rom. 1:3, 8:3; Gal. 4:4; Phil. 2:7-8; Col. 1:15; 1 Tim. 3:16; Heb. 1:3; Heb. 2:9-11; 1 John 4:2-3; 2 John 1:7; Rev. 22:16)
Jesus our Emmanuel. (Isaiah 7:14; Matt. 1:23)

3.
Hail the heav'n born Prince of Peace! (Isaiah 9:6)
Hail the Sun of Righteousness! (Malachi 4:2)
Light and life to all He brings, (John 1:4, 10; John 8:12; 2 Tim. 1:10)
Ris’n with healing in His wings. (Malachi 4:2)

Mild He lays His glory by, (Phil. 2:6-8; John 17:5, 24)
Born that man no more may die. (John 11:25-26)
Born to raise the sons of earth, (1 Cor. 15:35-57)
Born to give them second birth. (John 1:13; 3:3-6; James 1:18; 1 Peter 1:3, 23; Titus 3:5)

4.
Come, Desire of nations, come, (Haggai 2:6-7)
Fix in us Thy humble home; (Eph. 3:17; Rom. 8:9)
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed, (Gen. 3:15; Rom. 16:20)
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.

Now display Thy saving power, (Heb. 7:25)
Ruined nature now restore; (Rom. 6:6; Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 3:9-10; Rom. 12:2)
Now in mystic union join, (Eph. 5:31-32; 1 Cor. 6:17; Rom. 6:5)
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine. (Rom. 8:9-11; 1 Cor. 2:14-16)

5.
Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface, (Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Cor. 15:22)
Stamp Thine image in its place: (Gen. 1:26-27; Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:23-24)
Second Adam from above, (Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Cor. 15:47)
Reinstate us in Thy love.

Let us Thee, though lost, regain (Phil. 3:8-11; Luke 19:10)
Thee, the Life, the inner man: (John 14:6; 1 John 5:11-12; Eph. 3:16; 2 Cor. 4:16; 1 Pet. 3:4)
O, to all Thyself impart, (Jer. 31:34; Habakkuk 2:14; Phil. 3:8-11)
Formed in each believing heart. (Gal. 4:19; Rom. 8:29; Eph. 4:24; Col. 1:27; 3:10)

(HT: Joyful Heart)

Having Taken, He Gave

2009-12-18T12:25:00.006-06:00

- Having become with us the Son of Man, he has made us with himself sons of God.
- By his own descent to the earth, he has prepared our ascent to heaven.
- Having received our mortality, he has bestowed on us his immortality.
- Having undertaken our weakness, he has made us strong in his strength.
- Having submitted to our poverty, he has transferred to us his riches.
- Having taken upon himself the burden of unrighteousness with which we were oppressed, he has clothed us with his righteousness.
John Calvin, Institutes of Christian Religion

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV)

Thanksgiving: Free, Sovereign Grace of God

2009-11-24T22:02:00.003-06:00

“Christian! The only thing that makes you differ from the vilest being that pollutes the earth, or from the darkest fiend that gnaws his chains in hell, is the free grace of God!” (Octavius Winslow, Jesus, Full of Grace)

As we gather with friends and family for the Thanksgiving holiday, may each of us who have been called by His name, be ever so thankful for the richly undeserved, sovereign grace of God!

Amen? Amen!

Increasing In God's Favor: What's the Bible Say?

2009-11-13T14:06:00.003-06:00

Well, it appears that good ol' Joel is out with yet another uplifting, encouraging book to scratch the itching ear (2 Timothy 4:3). Its title - It's Your Time: Activate Your Faith, Accomplish Your Dreams, and Increase in God's Favor.

Now, without even having to crack open the book, the front cover alone should bring a moment's (or two) pause.

Here's my questions - focusing on the line, "and increase in God's favor," what is the scriptural answer, response to this assertion? What does the Bible say about God's favor and our ability to "increase" His favor toward us (Christians and/or non-Christians)?

And if you've read the book, I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on it (doctrinally/theologically grounded, preferably).

Blessed Assurance: How to Know?

2009-10-23T16:31:00.003-05:00

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. (I John 5:13 ESV)

And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end. (Heb. 6:11 ESV)

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you fail to meet the test! (II Cor. 13:5 ESV)

You're giving a talk to the youth of your church (6th - 12th grade) and their parents. Your topic - The Assurance of Salvation: Ya Got It?

OK, so now what? What resources would you reference in your preparation? What references might you suggest and recommend to the parents to go through with their youth?

And what would you say to these kids about assurance? Can you have it? Keep it? How to fight against the doubt of one's salvation? How can you be sure that you're even saved in the first place?

Love to hear your thoughts.

False Prophets: Who, What are They?

2009-10-10T23:05:00.006-05:00

I've heard it said that the Bible's only reference to "false prophets" is of those who know the truth, and know that what they're saying is not true, or is false; and that it's not correct to use that title for someone who is not knowingly teaching a falsehood - like someone who's just ignorant, immature, impulsive or unwise in their speech or teaching. Do you agree?

So, who's a real "false prophet?" Benny Hinn? Tim LaHaye? Paula White? Robert Tilton? Any one of many on TBN?

What's the Biblical definition of a false prophet? What your definition? Are they the same or different?

God's Sovereignty: Over All (or Not at All)

2009-10-02T11:01:00.000-05:00

God has nothing to do with your sickness. That's the work of the devil, and you need to take authority over him, exercise your faith and claim your victory.

Sickness and disease does not come from God. It never has come from God. It always has originated from Satan.

Oh, really?

Here's what R.C. Sproul, in his work The Invisible Hand, has to say to such statements:

"Such sentiments do violence, not only to our understanding of the providence of God, but to our understanding of the whole character of God. Christianity is not a religion of dualism by which God and Satan are equal and opposite opposing forces destined to fight an eternal struggle that must result in a tie. God is sovereign over His entire creation, including the subordinate domain of Satan. God is Lord of death as well as life. He rules over pain and disease as sovereignly as He rules over prosperity.

If God had nothing to do with sickness or death, Christians, of all people, would be the most to be pitied. It would mean living in a universe ruled by chaos where our Father's hand was tied by fate and bound by the fickleness of chance. His arm would not be mighty to save; it would be impotent. But, the preachers to the contrary, God has everything to do with sickness and death. God majors in suffering. The way of redemption is the Via Dolorosa, the road to the cross. Our Lord was Himself a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. No, God is not removed from or aloof from human suffering; it is contained within the scope of His providence."

So, where do you fall on this? What's your response to the italicized quotes above? To Sproul's responsive argument?

Other resources:
2005 Desiring God National Conference, Suffering and the Sovereignty of God
Ligonier Ministries' Fall 2007 Conference, The Sovereignty of God

Count It All Joy: But What Does That Mean?

2009-09-25T22:23:00.000-05:00

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4 ESV)

In a recent Care Group a few weeks ago we spent close to 2 hours fleshing out these versus and their application to our lives and continued work of sanctification. And believe me, we only barely scratched the surface with these verses.

But the question was asked, "What is the Biblical definition of 'joy'?" What does it mean in this verse, and elsewhere in the Scripture? We know it's a fruit of the spirit, but what is it? What's it look like (or should look like) in our daily lives as we face a trial?

Self Help: Without Christ It's All Ya Got

2009-09-20T17:55:00.000-05:00

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. (James 1:5-8 ESV)

And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (I Cor. 1:30-31 ESV)

Without Christ all one has for help is him/herself. For them, it's self-help or nothing. How sad; how empty.

But with God, in Christ, He, Jesus, is our help, our wisdom. He is Wisdom! Oh, what hope! What joy! What a Savior!

Here's a great sermon from our pastor, Craig Cabaniss, on James 1:5-8.

What Turned You On?

2009-09-13T19:14:00.000-05:00

I've often been asked what "turned me on" to the Doctrines of Grace, i.e. Reformed Theology or Calvinism?

I was raised a typical Arminian. Not purposefully, mind you, but the theology under which I was raised was very strong "free will," with a heavy dose of what's commonly called, "the Faith Movement." And at any mention of "predestination" or "election" I would know to run away and consider the speaker almost akin to a heretic.

But for me, it was our family's move to Arizona and the exposure to co-workers who were former OPC (Orthodox Presbyterian Church) guys who talked all crazy-like with their "sovereignty," "providence," "reformed," and "election" talk. They asked questions I couldn't answer and challenged the very basics of my thoughts and beliefs about God - who He is and who I am to Him. And I got a hold of books that did the same!

And that's my question to you. If you were like me, and like me were "converted" to the truths of sovereign grace and of Reformed Theology, what did it for you? In particular, if you had to name one or two (or more if you'd like) books that just "did you in" with regard to your prior theology, what were those books?

For me, it was the initial combination of R.C. Sproul's Chosen by God, and Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology. Those two ruined me. They rocked my world and from there it's been so many more books and teachers (Piper, Mahaney, Boice, MacArthur, Bridges, Packer, Murray, Pink, etc.) that have brought me deeper into the fold.

What about you? What books turned you on and rocked your world?

One God. Many Paths. Relationship-Dependent.

2009-09-04T00:51:00.004-05:00

Stay with me on this, and hold on the stone hurling `til the end.

The following is from Dan Phillips on Pyromaniacs -

Up to a few weeks ago, I would have emphatically answered "No." But now I've changed my mind.

The light flicked on as I listened to a really fine sermon preached by theologian Robert Reymond, titled "God's Immeasurable Love." Reymond made the shocking statement that all religions really do lead to God.

In this sermon, Reymond revisited the verse that featured very conspicuously in how the Lord saved me: John 14:6.

Reymond stressed Jesus' exact words: "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Other religions will bring you to God. Shintoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam — they'll all eventually bring you to God. Mormonism, Christian Science, paganism, animism, and Roman Catholicism will bring you to God. Every practitioner of every religion created by man and/or demon will, by that religion, be brought to God.

But none of those religions will bring us to God as "Father"!

They will bring us to God as Judge. They would bring you and me, clothed in the unspeakably filthy rags of our human works (Isaiah 64:6), without excuse, hopeless, guilty and doomed (Ecclesiastes 12:14; Matthew 12:36; Acts 17:31; Romans 1:20, 32; 2:16; Revelation 20:11-15), falling continually and infinitely short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).

The only way to God as Father is through the Lord Jesus Christ. Born again by the sovereign grace of God (John 1:12-13), adopted as sons of God through Christ (Ephesians 1:7), blessed with the spirit of adoption whereby we can cry out "Abba! Father" (Romans 8:15), which is the Spirit of God's own Son sent into our hearts (Galatians 4:6).

All religions lead to God — for damning judgment.

Only through Jesus Christ can we approach God as Father.

So. What path are you on?

Holy Scripture: It's Not All About Jesus?

2009-08-04T20:02:00.001-05:00

Pastor Gary E. Gilley, author of This Little Church Went to Market and This Little Church Stayed Home, and Senior Pastor of Southern View Chapel in Springfield, IL, recently reviewed Michael Horton's (Whitehorse Inn) book, Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American Church.

Speaking of Michael Horton's study of sermons on the Prodigal Son in which he found them presenting a therapeutic message rather than a Christ-centered one, Pastor Gilley made this statement:

This is a good point, but Horton himself is in danger of importing the gospel message of reconciliation through the cross into the Prodigal Son account, even though it is not there (Christless Christianity, p. 56). This is no doubt due to Horton’s view, commonly held, that the whole Bible is about Jesus (CC, p. 143). With this approach to Scripture the meaning of the biblical texts cannot stand on their own - they must somehow always directly point to Christ. This leads to allegorizing and excessive typology (CC, pp. 148-152). I am not disagreeing that in the big picture all of Scripture is framed by Christ and the gospel, but we must be careful not to press each detail so hard that we distort the authorial meaning of individual texts. (review)

This statement didn't (and still doesn't) sit well with me. How about you? Do you agree with Pastor Gilley's assertion that the whole of the Bible is not about Jesus? That's what he's saying, right?! What say you?

For more on the Prodigal Son, read John MacArthur's book, A Tale of Two Sons.

Bible Commentaries: 5 Best, Per Book

2009-07-14T20:32:00.003-05:00

Dr. Keith A. Mathison with Ligonier Ministries has recently completed his survey of what he believes to be the top 5 commentaries for each book of the Bible - Old and New Testament.

What an invaluable resource that deserves our attention and utilization!

Link: Top Commentaries on Every Book of the Bible

Called. Sent. What Do You Say?

2009-07-02T14:20:00.000-05:00

The Islamic Society of North America will be holding its annual convention this 4th of July weekend, and they've asked Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church to address their gathering.

While I have no idea what he's going to say, my question to you is this -

What would you say to this group if you were given a chance to speak before them?

Ingrid Schlueter, on her blog Slice of Laodicea, rhetorically asked whether Pastor Warren will "feel impelled as a follower of the one true God to let the Muslims know that true happiness is only found through the forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s only Son? Or [will he] talk about finding a 'higher purpose,' 'living for others,' and all the ways we can feel better by finding something 'bigger than ourselves” to live for?'"

That's a good question.

So, what's your answer? What would you, if you're a blood-bought follower of Jesus Christ, say to the ISNA?

But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect. (1 Pet. 3:14-15 ESV)

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me. (2 Tim. 1:8-12 ESV)

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. (2 Tim. 4:1-5 ESV)

Guilty World Kissed In Love

2009-06-16T19:55:00.005-05:00

I love coming across new (or long forgotten) hymns with such rich theology. Here's a recent one:

Here is Love
(William Rees, 1802-1883)

[First two verses]

Here is love, vast as the ocean,
Lovingkindness as the flood,
When the Prince of Life, our Ransom,
Shed for us His precious blood.
Who His love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten,
Throughout Heav’n’s eternal days.

On the mount of crucifixion,
Fountains opened deep and wide;
Through the floodgates of God’s mercy
Flowed a vast and gracious tide.
Grace and love, like mighty rivers,
Poured incessant from above,
And Heav’n’s peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love.

Amen!!

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die - but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (Romans 5:6-11 ESV)

21st Century "I'm OK, You're OK"

2009-05-29T23:03:00.005-05:00

How many of us have heard the mantra of today? It goes something like this:

“It’s a really, really cool thing … to be able to show people that you can be yourself, and you should be proud of yourself, and you should own who you are and what you’re about, and never make apologies for it.” (Adam Lambert, People, May 27, 2009)

But what does the Bible say about our natural state?

John 6:44, 65
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

Romans 1:18
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

Romans 3:9b-18
For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive. The venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Romans 7:18
For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.

Romans 8:7-8
For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Ephesians 2:1-3
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Ephesians 4:18
They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.

- Not a "real cool thing."

Context, Context, Context!

2009-05-21T17:20:00.005-05:00

Great reminder to seek the whole counsel of Scripture:

Never Read a Bible Verse By Gregory Koukl, Stand to Reason

If there was one bit of wisdom, one rule of thumb, one single skill I could impart, one useful tip I could leave that would serve you well the rest of your life, what would it be? What is the single most important practical skill I've ever learned as a Christian?

Here it is: Never read a Bible verse. That's right, never read a Bible verse. Instead, always read a paragraph at least.

My Radio Trick

When I'm on the radio, I use this simple rule to help me answer the majority of Bible questions I'm asked, even when I'm totally unfamiliar with the verse. It's an amazingly effective technique you can use, too.

I read the paragraph, not just the verse. I take stock of the relevant material above and below. Since the context frames the verse and gives it specific meaning, I let it tell me what's going on.

This works because of a basic rule of all communication: Meaning always flows from the top down, from the larger units to the smaller units, not the other way around. The key to the meaning of any verse comes from the paragraph, not just from the individual words.

The numbers in front of the sentences give the illusion the verses stand alone in their meaning. They were not in the originals, though. Numbers were added hundreds of years later. Chapter and verse breaks sometimes pop up in unfortunate places, separating relevant material that should be grouped together.

First, ignore the verse numbers and try to get the big picture. Then begin to narrow your focus. It's not very hard or time consuming. It takes only a few moments and a little observation of the text.

Begin with the broad context of the book. What type of literature is it history, poetry, proverb? What is the passage about in general? What idea is being developed?

Stand back from the verse and look for breaks in the narrative that identify major units of thought. Ask, "What in this paragraph or group of paragraphs gives any clue to the meaning of the verse?"

There's a reason this little exercise is so important. Words have different meanings in different contexts (that's what makes puns work). When we consider a verse in isolation, one meaning may occur to us. But how do we know it's the right one? Help won't come from the dictionary. Dictionaries only complicate the issue, giving us more choices, not fewer. Help must come from somewhere else close by: the surrounding paragraph.

With the larger context now in view, you can narrow your focus and speculate on the meaning of the verse itself. Sum it up in your own words.

Finally and this is critical see if your paraphrase makes sense when inserted in the passage. Does it dovetail naturally with the bigger picture?

Here is an excellent example of how effective this paraphrase technique can be.

Jesus, the Uncreated Creator

In John 1:1 the writer states plainly that "the Word was God." In verse three he provides backup support for this claim. John writes, "All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being."

John says the same thing in two different ways for emphasis and clarity: Everything that ever came into being owes its existence to the Word, Who caused it all to happen. If the Word caused all created things to come into existence, then He must have existed before all created things came into existence. Therefore, the Word could not have been created. Jesus is the uncreated Creator, God.

Those who deny the deity of Christ offer this rebuttal, though. "Wait a minute, Greg. You didn't read the verse carefully. You missed something in the text. Notice the phrase ‘apart from Him.' The apostle excludes Jesus from the count. If you said, ‘Apart from Billy, the whole family is going to Disneyland' you wouldn't mean that Billy wasn't part of the family, just that he wasn't included in the count. Every member of the family is going to Disneyland with the exception of Billy. In the same way, every created thing was created by Jesus with the exception of Jesus Himself. Jehovah created Jesus first, then Jesus created everything else. Jesus is not God."

Note that this rebuttal turns on the ability to replace "apart from Him" with the phrase "with the exception of Jesus." Allegedly they're synonymous. Okay, let's try the replacement and see what happens. The verse then looks like this: "With the exception of Jesus, nothing came into being that has come into being."

If your brow is furrowed trying to figure this out, I'm not surprised. The reconstructed phrase is nearly nonsense. Strictly speaking, it means that Jesus is the only created thing that exists. Read it again and see for yourself. Obviously, the phrase "apart from Jesus" can't mean "with the exception of Jesus." These phrases are not synonymous.

"Apart from Him" means something entirely different. It means "apart from His agency." It's the same as saying, "Apart from me you'll never get to Disneyland. I've got the car." Apart from Jesus' agency nothing came into being that has come into being. Why? Because Jesus is the Creator. He is God. That makes perfect sense in the context.

Let me give you some other examples.

Having a "Peace" about It

Colossians 3:15 is a text that is constantly misunderstood by well-meaning Christians. Paul writes, "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." Some have accurately pointed out that the Greek word for "rule" means to act as arbiter or judge. They see this verse as a tool for knowing God's will for our lives.

The conventional thinking goes something like this. When confronted with a decision, pray. If you feel a "peace" in your heart, go ahead. If you don't feel peace, don't proceed. This internal sense of peace acts like a judge helping you make decisions according to the will of God. A paraphrase might be: "And let feelings of peacefulness in your heart be the judge about God's individual will for your life." Is this what Paul means?

This is a classic example of how knowledge of the Greek can be dangerous if context is not taken into consideration. The word "peace" actually has two different meanings. It could mean a sense of inner harmony and emotional equanimity. Paul seems to have this definition in mind in Philippians 4:7: "And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." This is the subjective sense of peace.

The word also has an objective sense. It sometimes means lack of conflict between two parties formerly at war with each other. This definition of peace is what Paul intends in Romans 5:1: "Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." (Note the distinction between the peace of God and peace with God in these two verses.)

What sense of peace did Paul have in mind when writing to the Colossians? The Greek gives us no indication because the same word is used in all three cases. Once again, context is king. The specific meaning can only be known from the surrounding material.

In verse 11, Paul says that in the Body of Christ there are no divisions between Greek and Jew, slave and free, etc. He appeals for unity in the body characterized by forgiveness, humility, and gentleness. He then adds that harmony ("peace") should be the rule that guides our relationships.

Paul has the objective sense of peace in mind here lack of conflict between Christians not a subjective feeling of peace in an individual Christian's heart.

This becomes obvious when we join the suggested paraphrases with the context:

Put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let feelings of peacefulness in your heart be the judge about God's individual will for your life, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.

vs.

Put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let harmony, not conflict, be the rule that guides you, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.

The first is completely foreign to the context; the second fits right in with everything that comes before and after. In the context of Colossians 3, there is no hint of using internal feelings as a divine stamp of approval on our decisions. Personal decision-making is not the point of the paragraph. Harmony and unity in the Body is.

"If I Be Lifted Up"

John 12:32 is another case where a phrase can have two widely divergent meanings. It's not uncommon for worship leaders to quote this statement of Jesus: "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself."

We "lift up" the Lord when we exalt Him and declare His glory. If we focus on Jesus and ascribe glory to Him, the power of Christ is released to transform the hearts of those listening and they are drawn to Him. This is the meaning the worship leader has in mind, but it isn't what Jesus is talking about.

When we apply our paraphrase test by adding the very next verse, the results look like this: "‘And I, if I be exalted before the people, will draw all men to Myself.' But He was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die" (John 12:32-33).

Oops. Praising Jesus will kill Him? I don't think so. No ambiguity now. In this instance, being "lifted up" clearly means to be crucified.

Understanding this phrase in context sheds light on another familiar passage, John 3:14-15: "And as Moses lifted up [raised in the air] the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up [raised in the air] that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life."

Our paraphrase looks like this: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be crucified that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life."

This makes perfect sense. Jesus had to be crucified before salvation could be offered, an appropriate lead-in to the verse that comes next, the most famous salvation verse in the world: John 3:16.

Let's try another.

"My Sheep Hear My Voice"

Many have taken this statement by Jesus in John 10 to refer to the Christian's acquired ability to "hear" God's personal instructions to him. "Hearing God's voice" is advocated as a very useful skill that aids optimal Christian living. Allegedly, this is a learned ability one gains as he matures in Christ. It enables him to sense Jesus' will in any given situation as he "hears" Jesus' voice.

Jesus has nothing like this in mind, though. I know because of the context surrounding the verse and a key clarification John himself gives early in the chapter. In verse six, John explicitly states that when Jesus speaks of His sheep "hearing His voice" He is using a figure of speech.

The word "voice," then, can't actually mean some kind of inner voice because a thing is never a metaphor of itself. It's a picture of something else. Jesus must be referring, in a figure, to something else that the phrase "hear my voice" represents. What is it?

The context tells the story. Jesus says, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me," and then adds, "and I give eternal life to them" (27-28). Note the sequence: His sheep hear His voice. They follow Him in response. He then gives them eternal life. Hearing Jesus' voice is a figure of speech for the inner working of the Holy Spirit that leads to our salvation. It results in salvation; it's not the result of salvation. It's applied here to non-believers destined for the Kingdom, not believers already in the Kingdom.

This makes perfect sense in the broader context of the chapter. The Jews have no trouble hearing Jesus' words. They know what Jesus is saying. Their problem is that they don't respond with belief. Why don't the Jews "hear" Jesus by responding with belief? Jesus tells us plainly. They don't "hear" because God is not "speaking" to them. They are not among the sheep the Father has given to the Son (26).

The voice being referred to here is not the still, small voice of private direction given by God to Christians, but the effective call of the Holy Spirit bringing non-Christians to salvation.

Our paraphrase test comes to our aid once again:

You do not believe, because you are not of My sheep. Mature Christians have the ability to sense My personal direction for their lives and obey it, and as a result I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all….

vs.

You do not believe, because you are not of My sheep. The ones that the Father gives me my sheep are the ones that respond to my message and believe in me, and as a result I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all….

The first view actually makes salvation dependent on the ability to get personalized communications from God. The second makes salvation dependent on the Father, which is Jesus' point in the passage.

To Jesus, "hearing" God is not an advanced skill one must develop to open lines of communication to the Father. It's a figure of speech. Hearing Jesus' voice is not getting individual, personalized direction. It's getting saved. It's the result of the Father drawing the non-believer into Jesus' arms.

Daily Bread?

This raises legitimate questions about daily devotionals that build a short message from a single verse. In my view, such quiet-time helps can be inspirational, but they come with an obvious drawback.

Fortunately, the liability can be overcome by remembering our basic rule: Never read a Bible verse. Instead, read a paragraph, at least. Always check the context. Observe the flow of thought. Then focus on the verse.

Remember, meaning always flows from the top down, from the larger units to the smaller units. A reflection on a Bible passage from a sermon or a devotional may be edifying, encouraging, and uplifting. If it is not the message of the text, though, it lacks biblical authority even when the quote comes right out of the Word of God.

If you will do this one thing if you will read carefully in the context applying the paraphrase principle you will begin to understand the Bible as God intended. Without the bigger picture you'll be lost.

Only when you are properly informed by God's Word the way it is written in its context can you be transformed by it. Every piece becomes powerful when it's working together with the whole.

It's the most important practical lesson I've ever learned…and thing single most important thing I could ever teach you.

For Further Reading:

Russell, Walt Playing with Fire How the Bible Ignites Change in Your Soul. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2000.

Koukl, Gregory "The Perils of Prooftexting" Solid Ground, Sept-Oct 1999

Sire, James Scripture Twisting. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1980.

Carson, D.A. Exegetical Fallacies. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984.

Fee, Gordon, & Stuart, Douglas How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1982.

(HT: Stand to Reason)

For a copy of this article in pdf.

I'd also add as an additional resource R.C. Sproul's book, Knowing Scripture (InterVarsity Press, 1977; ISBN: 0877847339)

And it would also be a good reminder that the Bible Wasn't Written to You!

The Gospel: Defined in 20 Seconds

2009-05-05T19:37:00.005-05:00

Previously, I posed the question: If you had to choose one verse from Scripture to sum up the whole of the Bible, what would it be?

I'd still love to hear from more of you what that verse would be.

But here's another question/challenge for you -

You're in an elevator with a friend and you have only 20 seconds in which to answer their question, "What is the Gospel?"

Ready . . . GO!

Abundant Mercy: Wash and Cleanse Me

2009-04-29T18:05:00.002-05:00

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and a cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions,and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight (Psalm 51:1-4)

Paul David Tripp describes his new book, Whiter Than Snow, a collection of meditations on Psalm 51.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. (Psalm 51:10-12)

(Create in Me a Clean Heart by Keith Green on his Greatest Hits album)

More valuable resources on understanding and gleaning the gems of God's abundant grace and mercy found in Psalm 51:

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David. And in printed form.

Arthur W. Pink's The Life of David (Vol. 2, Chs. 51-57). And in printed form.

Real Gospel Tract: Wonderful Plan & Best Life Now?

2009-04-22T18:50:00.002-05:00

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? (Mark 8:34-36)

Instead of preaching the good news that sinners can be made righteous in Christ and escape the wrath to come, the gospel has degenerated into the pretext that we can be happy in Christ and escape the hassles of life.(Ray Comfort, God Has a Wonderful File For You [Living Waters 2000, ISBN 1878859250])

(HT: The Contemporary Calvinist: Failed Gospel Tract; Desiring God Ministries)

Thankful He Stood!

2009-04-18T13:16:00.000-05:00

Today we celebrate and honor Martin Luther, who, 488 years ago stood trial at the Diet of Worms (pronounced "DEE-et of Voerms"). Worms is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Rhine River.

It was on this date, April 18, 1521, that Luther gave his historic response to the question of whether certain writings were his and if he would revoke them as heretical. His response is depicted in the clip below from the 2003 movie Luther.

More on Martin Luther here, and from Monergism.org.

(HT: Between Two Worlds: Here He Stood)

Christ's Glories - Concentrated

2009-04-13T19:24:00.003-05:00

That we might be "filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God." (Col. 1:9-10 ESV)

John Piper provides us this wonderful "litany of amazing truths about Jesus Christ that are probably the most concentrated description of the glories of Jesus in the entire Bible" from Colossians 1:14-20.

In him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (v. 14)
He is the image of the invisible God. (v. 15a)
He is the firstborn of all creation—that is, the specially honored, first and only Son over all creation. (v.15b)
By him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. (v. 16a)
All things were created through him. (v. 16b)
All things were created for him. (v. 16c)
He is before all things. (v. 17a)
In him all things hold together. (v. 17b)
He is the head of the body, the church. (v. 18a)
He is the beginning. (v. 18b)
He is the firstborn from the dead. (v. 18c)
In everything he is preeminent. (v. 18d)
In him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. (v. 19)
He reconciles all things to himself, whether on earth or in heaven. (v. 20a)
He makes peace by the blood of his cross. (v. 20b)

John Piper, Spectacular Sins: And Their Global Purpose in the Glory of Christ (Crossway Books, 2008, ISBN: 1433502755) (pg. 32).

Contents, Introduction & Chapter 1, courtesy of Westminster Bookstore.

Piper's sermons on God's purpose for, and use of spectacular sins for His purposes and ultimate glory (all for FREE download - audio and video).

Jesus Christ of Nazareth: He is Risen Indeed!

2009-04-09T21:05:00.002-05:00

I don't believe I can say anything more profound that what the Masters have said before me.

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
(Isaac Watts, 1707)
When I survey the wondrous cross,
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

Christ the Lord is Risen Today!
(Charles Wesley, 1739)
Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your voice and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!

Vain the stone, the watch, the seal, Alleluia!
Christ has burst the gates of hell, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids His rise, Alleluia!
Christ has opened Paradise, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once He died, our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!

Soar we now where Christ has led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like Him, like Him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!

Hail, the Lord of earth and heaven! Alleluia!
Praise to Thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail, the Resurrection, thou! Alleluia!

And Can It Be That I Should Gain?
(Charles Wesley, 1738)
And can it be that I should gain,
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain -
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

He left His Father’s throne above,
So free, so infinite His grace;
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race:
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray -
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

Still the small inward voice I hear,
That whispers all my sins forgiven;
Still the atoning blood is near,
That quenched the wrath of hostile Heaven.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach the eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

And Robert Lowry's (1874) Low In The Grave He Lay -

Death cannot keep its Prey, Jesus my Savior;
He tore the bars away, Jesus my Lord!

Up from the grave He arose,
With a mighty triumph o’er His foes,
He arose a Victor from the dark domain,
And He lives forever, with His saints to reign.
He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!

Yes! Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!

Pick One that Sums It All

2009-04-01T19:25:00.005-05:00

If you had to choose one verse from Scripture to sum up the whole of the Bible, what would it be?

I think mine would be:

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21, ESV)

What We Deserve: Do You Really Want That?

2009-03-25T21:27:00.003-05:00

Wonderful piece from The Shepherd Press:

What Do You Deserve?

The news this week is filled with outrage about bonuses paid to employees of the government-bailed-out insurance giant AIG. Every day we hear cries of unfairness, greed and shock. Even the President has said that he is stunned by these bonuses. We seem to be caught in an unending series of outrageous events. Have you noticed the underlying conviction that is driving the outrage? This conviction has to do with fairness and what we deserve. We don’t deserve to have out of control spending and increased taxes. We don’t deserve to have business executives who are greedy. We don’t deserve to have government leaders who are incompetent. We don’t deserve to have a bad economy and its resulting complications. And the list goes on and on.

How should Christians respond to all of this? We can certainly agree that things are economically challenging. We can agree that political leadership has been less than exemplary. We can agree that the housing markets have fallen. But do we really agree that all of this is not fair and that we deserve better? The solutions offered all appear to lie in the arena of government doing more or less. Some political persuasions want the government to be more involved. Others want the government to be less involved. But all seem to agree that things are not fair – we don't deserve this.

The economic problems that we face are the result of a people who functionally believe that God is not necessary anymore. Listen to the words of our political and business leaders. I have yet to hear any government leader or political pundit call for a national day of prayer and repentance as an appropriate response to the difficulties we now face. Repentance? What does repentance have to do with any of this?

When people think first of financial security and what they deserve, they automatically lose sight of God. If that seems too strong a statement, consider what Christ says about the rich fool in Luke 12:16-21:

And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.'
"Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." '
"But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'
"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."

Notice carefully the thinking of the rich fool. He believes that his hard work has produced a rich harvest—one that will produce a life of ease for years to come. It is what he deserves. Perhaps he even plans to share some of his wealth with family and friends. The life that he deserves, the good life, is now within his grasp. But how does God respond?

God is concerned with building riches that go beyond the material. The rich fool reasoned that he was deserving of his good fortune. Sadly, this man's attitude is not unlike the attitude of our own culture. We believe the good life is for us. It is our right to take life easy, to eat, drink and be merry. The rich fool, like many today, thinks of only what he deserves.

However, do we want to join the mood of the world around us and start asking God to give us what we deserve? I think not. That is why I mentioned repentance. Collectively, our country has not been rich toward God. We have become preoccupied with the good life. But when we consider the holiness of God, crying out in repentance is in order, rather than clamoring for what we deserve. If Christians are to be salt and light, then we must distance ourselves from the demands for fairness and the insistence on what is due us. What we deserve is hell—but we have been the recipients of the mercy and grace of God lavished upon us (Ephesians 1:8).

Parents, these uncertain financial and political times provide an opportunity to show your children what true riches are. Do you delight in being rich towards God? The world says that responsibility is following the formula of the rich fool: work hard, get a good return, and take life easy. God says in Luke 12 that life is about more than this. Life is about building true riches, riches that are certain and will not take wings and vanish. What is fair? When you consider what is really fair, what you really deserve, you must immediately think of repentance, not gains in the stock market. Let us rejoice in the mercy of Christ that gives to us what we do not deserve.

(HT: What Do You Deserve?, Shepherd Press Newsletter, No. 45, March 20, 2009)

A Quest for More: Only by Death

2009-03-19T14:00:00.000-05:00

From pages 115-116 of Paul David Tripp's A Quest for More: Living for Something Bigger Than You:

"The cross sticks out in Scripture. It seems crazy, like the greatest aberrant moment of all of history. It seems like a big mistake, a very bad joke. Surely nothing good could come out of God taking on human life and then being publicly, viciously, and unjustly mutilated. There were no positive connections to the cross. It was the most horrible punishment reserved for the lowliest and vilest of criminals. It was a public shame on a hill outside of the city, and it always ended in death.

Yet the cross is not a bad joke. It is history's most beautiful paradox. The death of the Messiah was the only way he could give life to those who would believe in him. The hope of the cross is in its willing sacrifice of One for the sake of another. This is exactly what Christ's call to daily take up your cross is all about. The one who sacrificed his life so that we might have life now calls his disciples to sacrifice their lives for him. In a world that only understands the kingdom of self, living for the big kingdom of Christ will always require suffering and sacrifice.

What are you unwilling to offer? Your money? Your lifestyle? Your reputation? Your house? Prestige? Power? The esteem of others? Your car? Your friendships? Your plan for the future? Which of these pleasures would you refuse to nail to your daily cross?

... Only when we die to the glory of our claim on our own lives will we begin to experience the transcendent glories of living for the Lord. Only when we are willing to do the unthinkable (preside over our own deaths) does the wonderful (the transcendendence for which we were created) become our possession."

Paul D. Tripp, A Quest for More (New Growth Press 2007, ISBN: 0978556747

Song Suggestions: Jesus Is My Boyfriend Songs?

2009-03-12T20:12:00.001-05:00

I've been working with the Junior Higher's of our church to get them to think when it comes to the music to which they listen. Similar to some of my earlier posts over the past couple of weeks, I've been encouraging them to think! - think about what they're listening to and give thought to the scriptural foundation (if any) to the songs they sing at church or sing along to on the radio.

I've given them a couples of songs each month, usually a hymn and a contemporary worship or praise song that we either sing in church or that's popular on Christian radio. I've asked them to take the songs, work their way through the lyrics with a Bible and Concordance in hand, looking up the words and messages/themes contained therein to see if they're supported by scripture. My desire is that through these exercises they learn the use of Biblically-driven discretion as they consider and test the words and messages conveyed in their music (much as the Bereans did with Paul's teaching [Acts 17:11; see also I Thessalonians 5:21-22 and I John 4:1]).

So, just how many of the songs commonly and popularly sung during Sunday services throughout the country are "me" centered - what and how I feel, and what the Lord will do for me; rather than Gospel- and Christ-focused - about Christ and Him crucified, about His glory and worth?

And where's our focus when we sing that Jesus, while on the cross, thought of us above all else (Above All)? Or when we sing "I love You, I need You, Though my world may fall, I'll never let You go, My Saviour, my closest Friend, I will worship You until the very end (Jesus, Lover of my Soul)? Come to think of it, I'm only aware of Christ's promise to never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5); not man promising that to God.

What I'd like to hear from you are suggestions of songs with which I may be able to challenge them. Perhaps a few "Jesus is my boyfriend"-type songs that are well know, or commonly song in most churches, or that you'll hear often on any given Christian radio station.

Any suggestions? And along with the song suggestion, how about sharing your thoughts on the song as well.

Painted By Blood, Gripped by Undeserved Love & Grace

2009-03-05T23:10:00.000-06:00

Today on my commute to the office I was listening to J.J. Heller's recent album, Painted Red, and was really struck by some simple yet powerful truths in her song by the same name -

"You have bought me with Your blood; And I am painted red by Your love."

>> I am so thankful for His blood. Oh, what a price was paid to save a wretch like me (1 Corinthians 7:23); one redeemed, covered by His blood (Ephesians 1:7).

"If I could not say a word; My life would speak of love I don’t deserve."

>> Such undeserved love! How can I say "thank you" enough for the fact that when I was still yet a sinner, in enmity with God and in utter rebellion, He, who is rich in mercy, showed His love to me by dying in my stead (Romans 5:8, 8:7; Ephesians 2:4-5, 2:8-9; 2 Corinthians 5:21)?!

"Hope means holding on to You; Grace means You’re holding me too."

>> It is God who is faithful and whose hand of grace holds and sustains me (Psalm 18:35, 37:24; Isaiah 41:13; Acts 17:28a). I may lay hold of Him as my hope in glory (Colossians 1:27), but it is by His saving grace that I am gripped by Him - the one who promised to never leave or forsake me (Hebrews 13:5), or allow anyone to snatch me from His hand (John 10:28-29).

Yes, these truths set to song struck a chord with me today. And I am humbled and thankful for Christ, my Savior and Lord, for His covering blood, His undeserved love, and His gripping and sustaining grace!

(J.J. Heller, Painted Red, Stone Table Records 2008)

R.C. Sproul and Coram Deo: The Essence of the Christian Life

2009-02-27T19:00:00.000-06:00

What great insight; and what a great reminder to all of us of the true essence, the ultimate goal, of the Christian life!

Coram Deo, Ya'll!

"I remember Mama standing in front of me, her hands poised on her hips, her eyes glaring with hot coals of fire and saying in stentorian tones, "Just what is the big idea, young man?"

Instinctively I knew my mother was not asking me an abstract question about theory. Her question was not a question at all--it was a thinly veiled accusation. Her words were easily translated to mean, "Why are you doing what you are doing?" She was challenging me to justify my behavior with a valid idea. I had none.

Recently a friend asked me in all earnestness the same question. He asked, "What's the big idea of the Christian life?" He was interested in the overarching, ultimate goal of the Christian life.

To answer his question, I fell back on the theologian's prerogative and gave him a Latin term. I said, "The big idea of the Christian life is coram Deo. Coram Deo captures the essence of the Christian life."

This phrase literally refers to something that takes place in the presence of, or before the face of, God. To live coram Deo is to live one's entire life in the presence of God, under the authority of God, to the glory of God.

To live in the presence of God is to understand that whatever we are doing and wherever we are doing it, we are acting under the gaze of God. God is omnipresent. There is no place so remote that we can escape His penetrating gaze.

To be aware of the presence of God is also to be acutely aware of His sovereignty. The uniform experience of the saints is to recognize that if God is God, then He is indeed sovereign. When Saul was confronted by the refulgent glory of the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, his immediate question was, "Who is it, Lord?" He wasn't sure who was speaking to him, but he knew that whomever it was, was certainly sovereign over him.

Living under divine sovereignty involves more than a reluctant submission to sheer sovereignty that is motivated out of a fear of punishment. It involves recognizing that there is no higher goal than offering honor to God. Our lives are to be living sacrifices, oblations offered in a spirit of adoration and gratitude.

To live all of life coram Deo is to live a life of integrity. It is a life of wholeness that finds its unity and coherency in the majesty of God. A fragmented life is a life of disintegration. It is marked by inconsistency, disharmony, confusion, conflict, contradiction, and chaos.

The Christian who compartmentalizes his or her life into two sections of the religious and the nonreligious has failed to grasp the big idea. The big idea is that all of life is religious or none of life is religious. To divide life between the religious and the nonreligious is itself a sacrilege.

This means that if a person fulfills his or her vocation as a steelmaker, attorney, or homemaker coram Deo, then that person is acting every bit as religiously as a soul-winning evangelist who fulfills his vocation. It means that David was as religious when he obeyed God's call to be a shepherd as he was when he was anointed with the special grace of kingship. It means that Jesus was every bit as religious when He worked in His father's carpenter shop as He was in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Integrity is found where men and women live their lives in a pattern of consistency. It is a pattern that functions the same basic way in church and out of church. It is a life that is open before God. It is a life in which all that is done is done as to the Lord. It is a life lived by principle, not expediency; by humility before God, not defiance. It is a life lived under the tutelage of conscience that is held captive by the Word of God.

Coram Deo . . . before the face of God. That's the big idea. Next to this idea our other goals and ambitions become mere trifles."

(R.C. Sproul, What Does "coram Deo" Mean?, Posted February 23, 2009)

Applause Between Songs: What Are You Thinking?

2009-02-23T20:03:00.001-06:00

How common it is in most Evangelical churches for the congregation to clap their hands during the time of "praise and worship." And how often have I seen in the churches to which my family attended growing up (and even many of the churches which I've attended as an adult) the congregation clapping in between the songs. As the congregation is led from one song into another, sometimes there's a gap in time, a gap that is filled with clapping, i.e., applause.

And what's that applause for? It's not for the worship team, or singers, or choir is it? Is it applause to God for His goodness and Gospel? How many who clap during this time of transition between songs really give it any thought whatsoever as to why they're applauding/clapping?? Not many if any, I'd presume. I dare say that most just do it because that what they've always done, or because everyone else is clapping too.

I remember a chapel service while attending Oral Roberts University, when the late Ed Cole (author of Maximized Manhood) was our guest speaker. It was during our opening time of singing that, as usual, the students applauded between each song that was sung. But after the 2nd or 3rd time this happened, Mr. Cole stepped forward and stopped us. I wish I could remember exactly what he said, but he basically told us to stop it - to stop always clapping and applauding after each song by default, without thinking. His admonition was that such conduct was really rather lazy - rather than worshiping Him in spirit and in truth, with our heart, soul and mind, we just fill this time with mindless, uninformed clapping. He challenged the student body to think and not just react. To think and not just do what we've always done - always done without question or thought.

So, why do we do it - why do we so often automatically clap or applaud between songs during our church services? Should we do it? And if so, for what purpose - to what end?

And if you so applaud, why do you? What are you thinking while you're applauding, or what are you intending by your applause? Have you given it any thought from a scriptural standpoint?

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

(Ok, you may clap now.)

Two Songs: Two Different Messages

2009-02-19T22:55:00.002-06:00

One album. Two songs. Two different messages?

Which of these lyrics gives a more scripturally supported view of a regenerate heart? Which should be our prayer; our proclamation? One, the other, both?

Your Love is Too Pure
Your love is too pure to ever force me to love You.
But, Lord, this is my heart’s true desire.
To love You beyond my human reason.
Burn it deep into my heart.
With your love’s holy fire.

Break My Heart, O God
Lord, You save every tear when I cry.
Knowing You love me leaves me wondering why You do.
For I know You know I don’t really love You.
For if I loved You I would lay my life down.
And if I loved You I would share what I’ve found in You.
Lord, show me every way that I don’t love You.

(Dennis Jernigan, Break My Heart [Word: Heart Cry 1991, ASIN: B00000317J])

>> I will note that I love this album! It has ministered to me for a number of years. Please check out Dennis Jernigan Ministries and read Dennis' testimony. What an example of God's sovereign, electing grace and redemption!

Evidences of Grace for 2009: How Are We Doing?

2009-02-12T17:15:00.000-06:00

For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. (Romans 7:14-25 ESV)

We're now at mid-February, and I'm wondering how many of us are doing with our various New Year's resolutions? I can tell you that for me, I'm not doing so well. How about you?

It was my hope to grow in greater sanctification in the following areas, so that I could say that I was seeing great evidences of God's sovereign work in my daily living with others, with my family, my wife, and my kids.

I wanted to -

*take greater glory in my Redeemer who crushed the power of sin and death, and whose faithfulness is my standing place.

*be more thankful, more conscientious that my Savior’s sacrifice paid for all my sin and that the wrath of God, once meant for me, was all spent on Him.

*be more thankful that because my sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free; and that God, the Just, is satisfied because He looked on Him (not me) and pardon me.

*be daily mindful that I am a debtor to mercy alone, and that by His amazing grace, I now bear His righteous name (and because of that would start living like it!).

But, despite these desires and proclamations of the work of Christ in my life as one of His children, how many days go by with little to no acknowledgment on my part of the above in that 24-hour period. How often have I found by the end of the day that I've gone the entire day with no recognition of my utter dependence on Christ, the work of Calvary, and His redemptive work on my behalf?!

How are you doing with yours?

"Hedge of Protection" - Praying for Shrubbery?

2009-02-11T20:25:00.002-06:00

I grew up within a Christian/church tradition where I often heard prayers for a "hedge of protection" around children, spouses, etc. when going off to school or to work, or starting off on a long road trip - that the Lord "would place a hedge of protection over us with angels before us and behind us."

Hmmmm. What's the scriptural support for such a prayer? Where do we see evidenced in scripture any model or admonition for Christians to pray in this fashion? I know Satan spoke to God about a hedge around Job - but is that enough scriptural support for Christians to pray this way?

And another thing - Job needed a hedge as the fullness of time had not come - Christ had not yet come and shed His blood for His people. And Christ has done this for His church, and the scripture clearly says that we have been bought with a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), that we have the full armor of God (Ephesians 6), and we are hid in Christ (Colossians 3:3). So, if all that is true (and it IS!), why do we need a "hedge" to protect us when we are "in Christ?!"

What say you?

More Spurgeon Gems

2009-02-06T11:05:00.001-06:00

The Way to God
No man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)

But from the moment when Adam touched the forbidden fruit, the way from God to man became blocked up, the bridge was broken down, a great gulph was fixed, so that if it had not been for the divine plan of grace, we could not have ascended to God, neither could God in justice come down to us. Happily, however, the everlasting covenant ordered in all things and sure, had provided for this great catastrophe. Christ Jesus the Mediator had in old eternity been ordained to become the medium of access between man and God.
(Sermon, Charles H. Spurgeon. Sunday, March 27, 1859. Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens)

The Sweet Pillow of God's Providence
He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. (Psalm 106:9)

How sweet is providence to a child of God, when he can reflect upon it! He can look out into this world, and say, "However great my troubles, they are not so great as my Father's power; however difficult may be my circumstances, yet all things around me are working together for good. He who holds up yon unpillared arch of the starry heavens can also support my soul without a single apparent prop; he who guides the stars in the well-ordered courses, even when they seem to move in hazy dances, surely he can overrule my trials in such a way that out of confusion he will bring order; and from seeming evil produce lasting good. He who bridles the storm, and puts the bit in the mouth of the tempest, surely he can restrain my trial, and keep my sorrows in subjection. I need not fear while the lightnings are in his hands and the thunders sleep within his lips; while the oceans gurgle from his fist, and the clouds are in the hollow of his hands; while the rivers are turned by his foot, and while he diggeth the channels of the sea. Surely he whose might wings an angel, can furnish a worm with strength; he who guides a cherub will not be overcome by the trials of an emmet like myself. He who makes the most ponderous orb roll in dignity, and keeps its predestined orbit, can make a little atom like myself move in my proper course, and conduct me as he pleaseth." Christian! there is no sweeter pillow than providence; and when providence seemeth adverse, believe it still, lay it under thy head, for depend upon it there is comfort in its bosom. There is hope for thee, child of God!
(Sermon, Charles H. Spurgeon. Sunday, March 30, 1856, New Park Street Chapel, Southwark)

Search the Scriptures
To the law and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. (Isaiah 8:20)

I teach that all men by nature are lost by Adam's fall. See whether that be true or not. I hold that men have so gone astray that no man either will or can come to Christ except the Father draw him. If I be wrong, find me out. I believe that God, before all worlds, chose to himself a people, whom no man can number, for whom the Saviour died, to whom the Holy Spirit is given, and who will infallibly be saved. You may dislike that doctrine; I do not care: see if it is not in the Bible. See if it does not there declare that we are "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father," and so on. I believe that every elect child of God must assuredly be brought by converting grace from the ruins of the fall, and must assuredly be "kept by the power of God, through faith, unto salvation," beyond the hazard of ever totally falling away. If I be wrong there, get your Bibles out, and refute me in your own houses. And now I charge you that are now present to read your Bibles, for one thing. Read your Bibles to know what the Bible says about you; . . . I pray you, put not away your Bibles till their dust condemns you; but take them out, bend your knees, seek for the Spirit of divine teaching, and turn ye these pages with diligent search, and see if ye can find there the salvation of your souls, through our Lord Jesus Christ.
(Sermon, Charles H. Spurgeon, Sunday, January 17, 1858, Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens)

The Super Bowl: Does God Care?

2009-01-31T10:20:00.001-06:00

"Does God care whether it's the Cardinals or the Steelers who win the Super Bowl?"

Is this a question of the extent of God's sovereignty (i.e., that He wants or will make one team win), or more a question of whether He really cares about such minor, frivolous human activity that He would involve Himself in it and make sure that one side wins over the other?

An opinion piece in Wednesday's edition of NBCSports.com asked, "Does God Care Who Wins the Super Bowl?" The writers begins his questioning with a statement - "Does God care who wins? Of course He doesn’t. Unless He does. After all, who knows what He cares about? Who knows if He is even a He or a She or a Who Am? Or if He even is. Who knows?"

Here's my question to you - How would you respond to this writer's statement? And for that matter, how would you respond to my question at the front of this posting?

Also in this article he quotes Bill Maher who, in his film Religulous, said, “Faith means making a virtue out of not thinking. It's nothing to brag about. And those who preach faith and enable and elevate it are intellectual slave holders, keeping mankind in a bondage to fantasy and nonsense.”

So, while you're at it, how would you respond to Mr. Maher's assertion?

I am so thankful that "God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:9-11 ESV)

And, oh yeah, Go Cards!

Cheap Grace? Is There Such a Thing?

2009-01-22T18:30:00.001-06:00

"Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate." (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship. Touchstone 1995, p.47)

"Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will gladly go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble, it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him. . . . Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. . . . Costly grace is the sanctuary of God; it has to be protected from the world, and not thrown to the dogs. It is therefore the living word, the Word of God, which he speaks as it pleases him. Costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus, it comes as a world of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite heart. Grace is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: 'My yoke is easy and my burden is light.'"
(Dale Larson, Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Costly Grace. InterVarsity Press 2002)

Is there such a thing as "cheap grace?" Is there such a distinction between "cheap" and "costly" grace? Is it blasphemy to speak of any aspect of God's grace as "cheap?"

Biblical Ambition & Contentment: Not An Oxymoron

2009-01-15T21:10:00.003-06:00

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:11-13 ESV)

. . . from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation. (Romans 15:19-20 ESV)

The crucible is for silver, the furnace for gold, and a man is tested by his praise. (Proverbs 27:21 ESV)

Pastor Dave Harvey, guest speaker at Grace Church Frisco, gave two wonderful! messages: Don't Waste Your Ambition (John 12:27-43), reminding us that we chase after what we love and pursue what we value, and Biblical ambitions should lead us to explore new paths and new opportunities to glorify God; and Quest for Contentment (Philippians 4:11-13), and that God teaches us that we are to be content in Him.

Some great quotes Dave brought us are:

Ambition
"The old humility was a spur that prevented a man from stopping; not a nail in his boot that prevented him from going on. For the old humility made a man doubtful about his efforts, which might make him work harder. But the new humility makes a man doubtful about his aims, which will make him stop working altogether." (GK Chesterton. Orthodoxy, NuVision Publ. 2007, pg. 26)

"Ambition that centers on the glory of God and welfare of the church is a mighty force for good." (J. Oswald Sanders. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer, Moody Publ. 2007)

Contentment
"If you have not what you desire, you have more than you deserve." (Thomas Watson)

"The Christian more often disgraces his profession in prosperity than when he is being abased." (Charles Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, Morning, Feb. 10)

"The world's idea that everyone, from childhood up, should be able at all times to succeed in measurable ways, and that it is a great disgrace not to, hangs over the Christian community like a pall of acrid smoke." (J.I. Packer. A Passion for Faithfulness: Wisdom From the Book of Nehemiah, Crossway Books 2000, pg. 206)

"The apostle's words ('through him' [Phil 4:13]) are better translated 'in him.'" (Sinclair Ferguson)

"Let us compare our condition with others and this will make us content. We look at those who are above us; let us look at those who are below us." (Thomas Watson, The Art of Divine Contentment, Reformation Heritage Books 2001)

See also

Jeremiah Burroughs' classic, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment (Banner Of Truth 1998).

But God: Thankful for the "Buts" of Scripture!

2009-01-10T13:50:00.002-06:00

Let us be reminded of the many "buts" of the Bible.

As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. (Genesis 50:20 ESV) I’d bet ya Joseph’s brothers were thankful to hear this “but!”

And David remained in the strongholds in the wilderness, in the hill country of the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God did not give him into his hand. (1 Samuel 23:14 ESV) I’m sure King David was thankful for this “but!”

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (Psalm 73:26 ESV)

And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” (Acts 9:4-6 ESV) I'm sure Saul was glad to hear this "but!"

Therefore no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. But now a righteousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the law and the prophets testify. (Romans 3:20-21 ESV)

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die - but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8 ESV)

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:1-5 ESV)

[R]emember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:12-13 ESV)

Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:10 ESV)

I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense - Jesus Christ, the righteous one. (1 John 2:1 ESV)

But for these biblical "buts," were would the people of Israel be? What would have happened to King David? What about Saul/Paul? And where would we as sinners be without his imputed righteousness, atoning death, and grace and mercy?! Perish (pun intended) the thought!

Can you think of a "but" verse (that I may have missed) that has ministered to you? If so, please share it.

Hate Sin, But Love The Sinner: Scriptural?

2009-01-03T15:05:00.001-06:00

Where in the Bible are Christian's instructed, encouraged, or exhorted to hate? And if so, hate what?

And where in scripture are we told to love the sinner while hating his sin? When an unregenerate man's sin condemns him to hell, is God only going to send his sin to hell, or that man?! And if the man, than is God guilty of not separating the man from his sin as we think we're told to do when we love the sinner, but hate his sin?

And in looking at the life of Christ, do we see scripture telling us that Jesus separated the man from the sin when confronting the Pharisees ("brood of vipers" [Matt. 23:33])?

So, is "hate the sin, but love the sinner" supported by scripture? If so, where? If not, then what should be our response to someone who uses this phrase?

What say you? Chapter and verse, please.

Life Lived Worthy of the Gospel

2008-12-30T10:40:00.002-06:00

Only let your manner of life be worthy [Greek: Only behave as citizens worthy] of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel. (Philippians 1:27 ESV)

This past Sunday, visiting pastor Jon Payne (Sovereign Grace, Gilbert, AZ) preached a wonderful and challenging message, "Living in a Manner Worthy of the Gospel." It's a must hear as we enter the new year!

And prior to the message, we sang the truths of the great hymn, Crown Him with Many Crowns (1851 Matthew Bridges, George J. Elvey).

What powerful truths this hymn conveys - truths we should oft remind ourselves throughout 2009! May each of us:

Crown Him, the Lamb upon the throne.
Hail Him, forever, the matchless King.

Crown Him, the Lord of life.
Sing the glories of Him who died, and lives, killing death for those He came to save.

Crown Him, the sovereign Lord of lords.
He was slain to ransom me, a sinner.

Crown Him, the Lord of heaven.
The King, named Love.
He is King of all - King of kings, and Lord of lords! (1 Timothy 6:15; Revelation 19:16 ESV)

And what wonderful names of Christ about which the hymn speaks - He's the

>> Lamb on the Throne
>> Matchless King
>> Lord of Life
>> Lord of Lords
>> Redeemer King
>> Lord of Heaven
>> King of Love
>> King of All

My prayers is that 2009 see more of His hand upon you and yours as you serve and glorify, and seek first Him and His kingdom!

The Fullness of Time Has Come: His Name is Jesus, the Christ!

2008-12-24T15:30:00.016-06:00

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. (Galatians 4:4-6, ESV)

He came, not with a heralding of trumpets, or with royal pomp and circumstance; but to blood and the sounds of his and his mother's cries. Hardly was it a "silent night."

I love this song by Andrew Peterson! He was the maker of the moon, the Author of the faith! He was, and is, the King of kings, and Lord of lords!

Lyrics:

It was not a silent night
There was blood on the ground
You could hear a woman cry
In the alleyways that night
On the streets of David's town

And the stable was not clean
And the cobblestones were cold
And little Mary full of grace
With the tears upon her face
Had no mother's hand to hold

It was a labor of pain
It was a cold sky above
But for the girl on the ground in the dark
With every beat of her beautiful heart
It was a labor of love

Noble Joseph at her side
Callused hands and weary eyes
There were no midwives to be found
In the streets of David's town
In the middle of the night

So he held her and he prayed
Shafts of moonlight on his face
But the baby in her womb
He was the maker of the moon
He was the Author of the faith
That could make the mountains move

It was a labor of pain
It was a cold sky above
But for the girl on the ground in the dark
With every beat of her beautiful heart
It was a labor of love
For little Mary full of grace
With the tears upon her face
It was a labor of love
(Andrew Peterson, Labor of Love, Behold The Lamb Of God, 2004, ASIN: B0006NNQBQ)

Merry Christmas! And Glory to God in the Highest (Gloria in Excelsis Deo)!

Will (& Joel's?) Gospel: One Should Know Better!

2008-12-20T22:07:00.002-06:00

In a recent Newsweek interview (The Gospel of Will Smith, Newsweek, Nov 28, 2008), actor Will Smith was asked, "There are also rumors about you being a Scientologist. Jada has spoken about you two studying many religions, including Scientology. So are you a Scientologist?" Mr. Smith answered:

"I love the nature of humanity's search for meaning. For me I'm certain about my relationship with the model of perfection of human life that's laid out with the life of Jesus Christ. I'm certain of that. So I'm at home and not fearful when I sit in a mosque or a synagogue or a Buddhist temple, the same way that I'm home in the Church of Scientology. I like anywhere people are searching for the truth, and I respect their path and I'm intrigued by their path. I think when you are certain in and of what you believe in, you can open your mind to seeing the ways of others. I'm not bothered when someone says 'Allah' because they're talking about God - we are talking about the same person. I was in India recently and my hotel was near the Taj Mahal. Five times a day there would be a call for prayer, and it was the most beautiful thing. I was lying in my bed thinking, no matter what your religion is, it would be great to have that reminder five times a day to remember your Lord and savior."

When I read this, what immediate struck me was the similarity of this claim to that made by Joel Osteen, pastor of Houston's Lakewood Church, during his June 20, 2005 interview with Larry King:

KING: What if you're Jewish or Muslim, you don't accept Christ at all?
OSTEEN: You know, I'm very careful about saying who would and wouldn't go to heaven. I don't know ...
KING: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They're wrong, aren't they?
OSTEEN: Well, I don't know if I believe they're wrong. I believe here's what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God will judge a person's heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don't know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don't know. I've seen their sincerity. So I don't know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.
(CNN Larry King Live, Interview with Joel Osteen, June 20, 2005)

The difference between the two is that Joel Osteen knows (or should know) better, he's just too chicken to say it, or really doesn't know the exclusivity of the Gospel - "Jesus said, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'" (John 14:6, ESV)

Back to Will Smith's interview, when asked whether he was raised Baptist, he said, "Yes . . . My grandmother raised me to be a do-gooder in the church, that it was about doing what you can to help your community. So whatever religion does that - Jewish, Muslim, Scientology - it's cool because the end result is the same."

I agree. Before the separation of the sheep and the goats, the redeemed and the unregenerate, we will all, at the sound of the name of Jesus Christ, bow our knees, in heaven and on earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord! (Philippians 2:10-11, ESV)

Forgiveness: Forgive as God Forgave.

2008-12-15T18:53:00.004-06:00

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32, ESV)

Forgive. Forgive just as God, in Christ, forgave.

So, for what has God forgiven me?

For the times I've demanded that my kingdom come and be established, and not His?! Yes!

For directing my attention and affections on the temporal things of this world rather than in Him - glorifying Him and His righteousness?! Yes!

For my very own sin that mocked Him, cursed Him, and that was at enmity with God and placed Jesus Christ on the cross?! Yes! (Rom. 5:10; 8:7)

That, and more, He forgave.

And I am/we are to forgive like that?! Yes!

And if "yes," than is there anything that anyone can do to me/us that is more serious, more offensive, as what I/we did to Christ, or that I/we do all too often each and every day in the sins I/we commit in offense of His saving grace and election?! No!

So, what are you, by the power and in the grace and mercy of Him which is new every morning (Lam. 3:22-23), going to do about this?

Resources:
*Sermon, John Piper, Forgive Just as God in Christ Also Has Forgiven You (Palm Sunday, March 27, 1994).
*Commentaries and other resources on the Book of Ephesians.

Cursing Things In Jesus' Name: Scriptural?

2008-12-07T15:26:00.003-06:00

How many of us have heard prayers such as these?

"I come against the report of cancer and I curse it, in Jesus name. And I loose the healing power of Jesus Christ to work in that body, and expect a good report of healing. By faith I pray this."

"By the authority given to us by God in Christ, we speak to that infection and we curse it in Jesus name! 'Infection, you are cursed in Jesus' name.' "

Cursing things - sickness, loss of a job, the devil, things that discomfort us - in Jesus' name.

Here's my question for you -

Is to do so scriptural? Is it biblical? Is this practice evidenced to us anywhere in scripture as something Christians are to do? Does the Bible tell us anywhere to curse anything, and to use Jesus' name to do so? If so, chapter and verse please.

And if it's not biblically supported, than what should be our response to those that pray this way? Any? And how should we biblically, and sound-doctrinally, pray in such situations?

The Trinity: Belief Essential for Salvation?

2008-11-30T16:38:00.006-06:00

Here's a question for you -

Can someone who is decidedly non-trinitarian (i.e., one who claims there is no Trinity - no Father, Son and Holy Spirit - but only Jesus) be a Christian? How essential for true, effectual salvation is belief in the Trinity?

Note that I'm not asking whether a correct understanding of the doctrine of the Trinity is essential for salvation (I doubt the thief on the cross had time to formulate his doctrine of the Trinity prior to Christ's telling him that "today you will be with me in Paradise" [Luke 23:43]).

Love to hear your answer or thoughts on this.

"All non-Trinitarian formulations of the Christian message are by biblical standards inadequate and indeed fundamentally false, and will naturally tend to pull Christian lives out of shape." Excerpt from J.I. Packer's Concise Theology (Tyndale House 2001)

More on the Trinity from Monergism.

Man's Chief End: Glorify God & Enjoy Him Forever

2008-11-20T20:18:00.005-06:00

How are we doing in fulfilling and living our primary purpose? The chief end to which God has called us?

Q: What is the chief end of man (i.e., man's primary purpose)?
A: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
(I Cor. 10:31; Rom. 11:36; Ps. 73:24-26; Jn. 17:22, 24)

A great treatment on this is Thomas Watson's Man's Chief End, in his work A Body of Divinity (Banner Of Truth, 1984).

See also Thomas Boston's Of Man's Chief End and Happiness.

From the Valley of Vision (Banner of Truth, 1988)

Our Highest Blessedness: Knowing Him!

2008-11-08T13:45:00.007-06:00

"If God is the Supreme good then our highest blessedness on earth must lie in knowing Him as perfectly as possible."
(A.W. Tozer, That Incredible Christian,WingSpread Publ., p. 65)

I'd say we need more than a "let's just love Jesus" mentality and theology.

You need to know the Jesus, the God, whom you love - Who He is, and who you are to Him based on the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Happy Reformation Day 2008

2008-10-31T08:46:00.004-05:00

From my family to yours, we pray you a healthy and blessed Reformation Day as we focus our continued attention on Jesus Christ, celebrate Him and His work; and the truths of His Solas as revealed in Scripture!

Sola Scriptura ("by Scripture alone")
Sola Fide ("by faith alone")
Sola Gratia ("by grace alone")
Solus Christus ("through Christ alone")
Soli Deo Gloria ("glory to God alone")

Propitiation: Evoking Our Worship!

2008-10-28T18:59:00.006-05:00

Our pastor, Craig Cabaniss (Grace Church, Frisco, TX), gave a wonderful message this past Sunday in his series on The Atonement. Pastor Cabaniss reminded us that to fully understand God’s love for his people, we must first understand His wrath from which we were saved (i.e., God sending His son to be the propitiation for our sins).

Hallelujah! What a Savior
(Philip P. Bliss, 1875)

Man of Sorrows! what a name; For the Son of God, who came
Ruined sinners to reclaim. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Bearing shame and scoffing rude, In my place condemned He stood;
Sealed my pardon with His blood. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Guilty, vile, and helpless we; Spotless Lamb of God was He;
“Full atonement!” can it be? Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Lifted up was He to die; “It is finished!” was His cry;
Now in Heav’n exalted high. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

When He comes, our glorious King, All His ransomed home to bring,
Then anew His song we’ll sing: Hallelujah! What a Savior!
(Sovereign Grace Ministries)

More on Propitiation -

"This means the turning away of wrath by an offering. It is similar to expiation but expiation does not carry the nuances involving wrath. For the Christian the propitiation was the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. It turned away the wrath of God so that He could pass 'over the sins previously committed,' (Rom. 3:25). It was the Father who sent the Son to be the propitiation (I John 4:10) for all (I John 2:2)." (Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry)

"It is God Himself who in holy wrath needs to be propitiated, God Himself who in holy love undertook to do the propitiating, and God Himself who, in the person of His Son, died for the propitiation of our sins. Thus God took His own loving initiative to appease His own righteous anger by bearing it His own self in His own Son when He took our place and died for us. There is no crudity here to evoke our ridicule, only profundity of holy love to evoke our worship." (John Stott, The Cross of Christ, InterVarsity Press, 2006)

“The gospel tells us that our Creator has become our Redeemer. It announces that the Son of God has become man and has died on the cross to save us from eternal judgment. The basic description of the saving death of Christ in the Bible is as a propitiation, that is, as that which quenched God’s wrath against us by obliterating our sins from his sight. God’s wrath is his righteousness reacting against unrighteousness; it shows itself in retributive justice. But Jesus Christ has shielded us from the nightmare prospect of retributive justice by becoming our representative substitute, in obedience to his Father’s will, and receiving the wages of our sin in our place. . . . If you [understand this], you are now seeing to the very heart of the Christian gospel. No version of that message goes deeper than that which declares man’s root problem before God to be his sin, which evokes wrath, and God’s basic provision for man to be propitiation, which out of wrath brings peace. Some versions of the gospel, indeed, are open to blame because they never get down to this level.” (J.I. Packer, Knowing God, InterVarsity, 1993)

Resources -

Of Propitiation, Atonement, and Reconciliation, as Ascribed to Christ (John Gill, A Body of Doctrinal Divinity, Book 6, Chapter 6)

Pierced for Our Transgressions: Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution
(Steve Jeffery, et. al., Crossway, 2007)
(Free Copy of Chapter 1)

The Truth of the Cross
(R.C. Sproul, Ligonier Ministries, 2007)

The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross
(Leon Morris, Eerdmans Publ., 1955)

The Atonement
(Leon Morris, InterVarsity, 1984)

In My Place Condemned He Stood: Celebrating the Glory of the Atonement
(J.I. Packer & Mark Dever, Crossway, 2008)

Introductory Essay to John Owen’s Death of Death in the Death of Christ (J. I. Packer)
(John Owen, The Death of Death in the Death of Christ, Banner of Truth, 1959)

More on the Atonement.

Biblical Confession: Great Sinner, but Greater Savior!

2008-10-12T22:55:00.002-05:00

John Newton, English pastor and hymn writer (including Amazing Grace), said this at the age of 82, just before his death,

"My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things, that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour."

And his self-written epitaph reads in part,

"John Newton, Clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy."

And the Apostle Paul. He identified himself as a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God (Romans 1:1); a prisoner of Christ Jesus (Philemon 1); and the chief of all sinners (I Timothy 1:15). In fact, note Paul's apparent progression of matured God/self-awareness from the least of the apostles (I Corinthians 15:9, written AD 55) to the very least of all the saints (Ephesians 3:8, AD 60) to the foremost of sinners (I Tim. 1:15, AD 63-64) as he grew in Christlike character. (See, Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate, NavPress 2007, Ch. 4)

What a difference, and what an antithesis to what we have (too often!) seen and heard today from our pulpits or in the "positive confessions" of popular televangelists!

For example:

"When you were born again the Word was made flesh in you. And you became flesh of His flesh and bone of His bone. Don't tell me you have Jesus. You are everything He was and everything He is and ever He shall be. . . . It [the new man] says, 'I am as He is.' That's what it says. As He is, so are we in this world. Jesus said, 'Go in my name, go in my stead.' Don't say, 'I have.' Say, 'I am, I am, I am, I am, I am.' That's why you never ever, ever, ever ought to say. 'I'm sick.' How can you be sick if you're the new creation? Say, 'I'm healed!' Don't say, 'I'm a sinner.' The new creature is no sinner. I'm the righteousness of God in Christ." (Benny Hinn, "Our Position in Christ #2--The Word Made Flesh" [Orlando, FL: Orlando Christian Center, 1991], audiotape #A031190-2, side 2)

KING: You don't call them sinners [speaking of abortion, same-sex marriage]?
OSTEEN: I don't.
KING: Is that a word you don't use?
OSTEEN: I don't use it. I never thought about it. But I probably don't. But most people already know what they're doing wrong. When I get them to church I want to tell them that you can change. There can be a difference in your life. So I don't go down the road of condemning.
(Larry King Live, Interview with Joel Osteen, CNN, June 20, 2005)

Pet Peeve Phriday: Honest!

2008-10-02T22:57:00.000-05:00

Honestly, to tell you the truth, it drives me crazy when people preface what they say with, "to be honest with you . . . " or "to tell you the truth . . ." What? You've been lying to me the rest of the time?

Stop it! Just tell me the truth, and be honest, all the time.

What say you? Do you agree? Please, you can be honest with me (pun intended)!

And while we're at it, what are your pet peeves?

Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil. (Matthew 5:37 [ESV])

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them. (Proverbs 11:3 [ESV])

When Will I; When Will We . . . ? RERUN

2008-09-26T17:21:00.000-05:00

For a couple days now I've felt led to run this post again; and would really encourage you to give these some thought, and let me know what you would add!

When Will I (we) . . .

~Take more precious my relationship with Christ than my relationship with recurrent sin(s)?

~Find my Savior more lovely than I do my sin?

~Allow His kingdom to come and rule in my actions, and His will be done; rather than my kingdom and my will?

~Be as aggrieved by my sin as He is?

~Rather in my heart to aggrieve my sin, than to aggrieve Him?

~Be holy even as He is holy?

~Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness rather than only doing so when it's convenient or best suits my needs?

~Rather boast in the cross of Christ, instead of my job, my salary, the car that I drive, the house in which I live, or my family and its position in the community?

~Answer His call to die (to my sin), in order that I may truly live?

~Default in faith; rather than in doubt?

~Be more in love with Christ and the grace He's given, than in love with my sin?

~Rather be bound to Him, than demand my freedom to exercise my will?

~Be in such a state of antithesis with the world of man that it becomes the thesis of my life?

~See that everything this world has to offer is nothing when compared to His riches in glory?

~Live as a mere sojourner in this land, recognizing my residence is elsewhere?

~Daily live the truth that greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world?

~Stop accepting (or acquiescing) to a paper mache crown when I've been promised one of gold?

~Stop substituting the truth for a lie?

~Choose to no longer be so reluctant to live by faith and not by sight?

~Give even a fraction of trust to God and His providence as I do to nearly any chair in which I sit without giving even a scintilla of thought as to whether it will hold and sustain, and not fail, me?

~Finally relinquish the driver's seat (or the remote control, eh guys?!) of my life to Him?

Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly, Thou has brought me to the valley of vision, where I live in the depths but see thee in the heights; hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold thy glory. Let me learn by paradox - that the way down is the way up, that to be low is to be high, that the broken heart is the healed heart, that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit, that the repenting soul is the victorious soul, that to have nothing is to possess all, that to bear the cross is to wear the crown, that to give is to receive, that the valley is the place of vision. (The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, Arthur Bennett [Banner Of Truth, 1988])

Life and Heart Development: What Are You Set On?

2008-09-18T21:44:00.000-05:00

I'm reading Sinclair Ferguson's Sermon on the Mount, and am really digging it!

What a good, solid book.

Here's a question Ferguson poses - What is your heart set on as vital for your life and your character? What eight things do you most want to see developed in your life?

Now, before you read any further, write down your answer. . . . . OK, read on.

Ferguson then queries: How does your list compare with what Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount? He asks, "[d]oes the list include poverty of spirit, meekness, a hunger and thirst for righteousness mercy, purity of heart, a peacemaking spirit and a willingness to be persecuted for the sake of Jesus?" (Ferguson, Sinclair. The Sermon on the Mount, Banner of Truth Trust 1987, pg. 14)

How do you compare? Care to share?

What Should Be Our Response?

2008-09-05T17:25:00.002-05:00

What is the state of the Church today (at least here in the west) that we have this, allow this, or put up with this from our pulpits or in our sanctuaries?

Are we - should we? - be saddened by this, ashamed of this, or sickened by it? And if so, what should be done about it?

What would the Puritans of old have said to this? How about John Owen? John Edwards? John Newton? Or more recent - A.W. Tozer, J. Gresham Machen, or Martyn Lloyd Jones?

First. A move of the Spirit, or the flesh? (1 Corinthians 14:33, 40 - For God is not a God of confusion but of peace . . . But all things should be done decently and in order.)

Or how about Mr. John "Oing, Oing, Okey Dokey Lord" Crowder? The first 1:50 minutes is all you need endure in order to get a taste of this "minister" of the gospel.

A sickening display by Mr. Crowder may also be seen here. (Matthew 12:31-32, Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.)

And then there's this feigned (and he should be ashamed!) attempt/ploy of appearing to move the people into a time of worship when all he wants is for them to get their shoes and sock off so they can spin them around in the air. Unbelievable!

For those of you around in the `80's, you may recognize that song from the group Dead or Alive, You Spin Me Round (Like a Record). And all this "worship" leader did was replace the word "baby" with "Jesus," saying, "you spin me right round Jesus, right round like a record, Jesus." What in the world does that mean? How does this song bring us any closer to an understanding of the Gospel?, of Christ and Him crucified?, of who Christ is and how He should be worshiped and adored?

Simple answer - IT DOESN'T!

UGH!, I could go on, but I'd rather hear from you.

The Blood's Call: Mercy!

2008-08-30T08:47:00.009-05:00

Hark! there is a cry heard in heaven, the angels are astonished; they rise up from their golden seats, and they enquire, "What is that cry?" God looketh upon them, and he saith, "It is the cry of blood, a man hath been slain by his fellow; a brother by him who came from the bowels of the self-same mother has been murdered in cold blood, through malice. One of my saints has been murdered, and here he comes, And Abel entered into heaven blood-red, the first of God's elect who had entered Paradise, and the first of God's children who had worn the blood red crown of martyrdom. And then the cry was heard, loud and clear and strong; and thus it spoke - "Revenge! revenge! revenge!" And God himself, upstarting from his throne, summoned the culprit to his presence, questioned him, condemned him out of his own mouth, and made him henceforth a fugitive and a vagabond, to wander over the surface of the earth, which was to be sterile henceforth to his plough.

And now, beloved, just contrast with this the blood of Christ. That is Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son of God; he hangs upon a tree; he is murdered - murdered by his own brethren. "He came unto his own, and his own received him not, but his own led him out to death." He bleeds; he dies; and then is heard a cry in heaven. The astonished angels again start from their seats, and they say," What is this? What is this cry that we hear?" And the Mighty Maker answers yet again, "It is the cry of blood; it is the cry of the blood of my only-begotten and well - beloved Son!" And God, uprising from his throne, looks down from heaven and listens to the cry. And what is the cry? It is not revenge; but the voice crieth, "Mercy! mercy! mercy!" Did you not hear it? It said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Herein, the blood of Christ "speaketh better things than that of Abel," for Abel's blood said, "Revenge!" and made the sword of God start from its scabbard; but Christ's blood cried "Mercy!" and sent the sword back again, and bade it sleep for ever.
(Sermon, The Voice of the Blood of Christ, C.H. Spurgeon, August 29, 1858, Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens)

The Precious Blood (© 2005 Valley of Vision, Sovereign Grace Worship [ASCAP])

School Dreams: Is It Just Me?

2008-08-21T23:24:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again - Back to School! And with the purchase of school supplies and new shoes for the kiddos come the inevitable school dreams!

It's been 20 years since college, and 16 since law school, and yet, when school starts up for the young'ins, so start up my school dreams.

They typically look like this:

1. I'm in the hallway, kids all around me. I've never been in the school before and don't know where anything is, let alone my classes. Sometimes I have a class schedule, and sometimes I don't. But always, I'm frantic in my attempts to find out where I'm supposed to be, or where I'm going next.

2. I've graduated from high school, college and law school, and am practicing law. But I've just been informed that back in high school I failed to take one class (usually English), so my college degree and Juris Doctor are null and void until I go back and take that missing, overlooked class.

3. I'm back in high school, a senior, and it's the last school day of the year. I'm one day away from graduating when I suddenly discover that I've missed one class (and it's English again, or sometimes Math), all year, and without it I won't graduate.

But what about you? Please tell me I'm not the only one having these dreams at this time of the year. If great minds are thinking (dreaming) alike, tell me what yours look like! How are they the same, similar, or different?

(And no, I don't have dreams of standing in the school hallway only in my underwear.)

Parental Duties Circa 1664: Still Relevant?

2008-08-15T17:05:00.000-05:00

Richard Baxter, 1664:

"Speaking of the importance of wise, holy education of children is to the saving of their souls, the comfort of their parents, the good of church and state, and the happiness of the world.

Direct I. Understand and lament the corrupted and miserable state of your children, which they have derived from you, and thankfully accept the offers of a Saviour for yourselves and them, and absolutely resign, and dedicate them to God in Christ in the sacred covenant, and solemnize this dedication and covenant by their baptism.

Direct II. As soon as they are capable, teach them what a covenant they are in, and what are the benefits, and what the conditions, that their souls may gladly consent to it when they understand it; and you may bring them seriously to renew their covenant with God in their own persons.

Direct III. Train them up in exact obedience to yourselves, and break them of their own wills. To that end, suffer them not to carry themselves unreverently or contemptuously towards you; but to keep their distance. For too much familiarity breedeth contempt, and imboldeneth to disobedience.

Direct IV. Make them neither too bold with you, nor too strange or fearful; and govern them not as servants, but as children, making them perceive that you dearly love them, and that all your commands, restraints, and corrections tire for their good, and not merely because you will have it so.

Direct V. Labour much to possess their hearts with the fear of God, and a reverence of the holy Scriptures; and then whatsoever duty you command them, or whatsoever sin you forbid them, show them some plain and urgent texts of Scripture for it; and cause them to learn them and oft repeat them; that so they may find reason and divine authority in your commands; till their obedience begin to be rational and divine, it will be but formal and hypocritical.

Direct VI. In all your speeches of God and of Jesus Christ, and of the holy Scripture, or the life to come, or of any holy duty, speak always with gravity, seriousness, and reverence, as of the most great and dreadful and most Sacred things: for before children come to have any distinct understanding of particulars, it is a hopeful beginning to have their hearts possessed with a general reverence and high esteem of holy matters; for that will continually awe their consciences, and help their judgments, and settle them against prejudice and profane contempt, and be as a seed of holiness in them.

Direct VII. Speak always before them with great honour and praise of holy ministers and people, and with dispraise and loathing of every sin, and of ungodly men.

Direct VIII. Let it be the principal part of your care and labour in all their education, to make holiness appear to them the most necessary, honourable, gainful, pleasant, delightful, amiable state of life; and to keep them from apprehending it either as needless, dishonourable, hurtful, or uncomfortable.

Direct IX. Speak often to them of the brutish baseness and sinfulness of flesh-pleasing sensuality, and of the greater excellency of the pleasures of the mind, which consist in wisdom, and in doing good.

Direct X. To this end, and also for the health of their bodies, keep a strict guard upon their appetites (which they are not able to guard themselves): keep them as exactly as you can to the rules of reason, both in the quantity and quality of their food.

Direct XI. For sports and recreations, let them be such, and so much, as may be needful to their health and cheerfulness; but not so much as may carry away their minds from better things, and draw them from their books or other duties, nor such as may tempt them to gaming or covetousness.

Direct XII. Use all your wisdom and diligence to root out the sin of pride.

Direct XIII. Speak to them disgracefully of the gallantry, and pomp, and riches of the world, and of the sin of selfishness and covetousness, and diligently watch against it, and all that may tempt them to it.

Direct XIV. Narrowly watch their tongues, especially against lying, railing, ribald talk, and taking the name of God in vain.

Direct XV. Keep them as much as may be from ill company, especially of ungodly play-fellows.

Direct XVI. Teach your children to know the preciousness of time, and suffer them not to mispend an hour.

Direct XVII. Let necessary correction be used with discretion.

Direct XVIII. Let your own example teach your children that holiness, and heavenliness, and blamelessness of tongue and life, which you desire them and to learn and practise.

Direct XIX. Choose such a calling and course of life for your children, as tendeth most to the saving of their souls, kind to their public usefulness for church or state.

Direct XX. When they are marriageable, and you find it needful, look out such for them as are suitable betimes."
(The Duties of Parents for Their Children, The Practical Works of Richard Baxter, Vol. 1, Chap. X, pp. 449-454)

So - Are any of these still valid? Still applicable for the parents and youth of our day? If not, why? And if you could change any item of R. Baxter's list what would it be; and how would you change it?

Please read Richard Baxter's entire work, and more about Richard Baxter himself.

Reformed Rap?! Shai Linne Says "Yes!"

2008-08-07T17:24:00.002-05:00

Christian Rap? Is that not an oxymoron? Aren't they mutually exclusive?

Well, that's what I thought until I came upon Shai Linne. Shai's grasp of rhyme and theology - good, biblical theology - is really something! I prefer to call it "Reformed Rap."

The following is what Todd Friel of Way of the Master Radio had to say of Shai Linne (whom he called a "Christian Rapper Fellow" - funny) and his ministry of reformed rhyme.

Part 1

Part 2

You'll serve yourself well (and you might even find yourself bopping your head to the rhythm) by looking more into the ministry of words, of truth, of Shai Linne.

Here's a short Bio, his blog, and MySpace.

And be sure to listen and download some of his music from The Atonement and The Solus Christus Project.

And let's not forget Voice (Curtis Allen), and his recently released album, The Process of the Pardon. You may download his song, Here I Stand.

Word.

The Four Spiritual Laws: Alternative Needed? Available?

2008-08-01T16:28:00.006-05:00

For many, when they hear of "evangelism," "witnessing," or handing someone a "tract," what do you think comes to mind? Especially with the word "tract" I would guess that most often it is Campus Crusade's Four Spiritual Laws. Or maybe those warm and fuzzy (just kidding!) Chick Publication tracts that were all the rage in the late `70's, early `80's?

Tell me, if you're familiar with the Four Spiritual Laws, what do you think of it? Its usefulness? Its doctrinal or theological soundness (or lack thereof)?

If you're Reformed and have issues with it, is there a Reformed alternative? Does one exist? Is one needed? If so, why?

Has anyone heard of, or used, Matthias Media's Two Ways to Live? What do you think?

Love to hear your thoughts.

WWJD: The Pelagian Gospel?

2008-07-24T17:33:00.001-05:00

"Pelagius' gospel is Charles Sheldon's In His Steps, 'What Would Jesus Do?' That's the gospel according to Pelagius."
(Pastor Kim Riddlebarger, Whitehorse Inn, July 6, 2008 broadcast)

Is that true? Accurate? Fair?

If so, does that mean that anyone wearing a "WWJD" bracelet, lapel pin, or shirt is unwittingly promulgating or otherwise promoting the Pelagian Heresy (man has the natural ability to reject evil and seek God)?

And if so, what does this mean for one who's reformed in their theology, but may ask him/herself when faced with various life situations, "what would Jesus do?"

Or is this statement unfair - too simple and easy an explanation to say that "WWJD" is merely "contemporary adoptionism," i.e., that reduces the work of Christ into simply giving us a good example; or that there is no true Gospel in “what would Jesus do?"

Dr. Roger Olson (Baylor Univ.), an Arminian theologian, in his book The Mosaic of Christian Belief, says, “Even such a seemingly innocent and positive movement as wearing wristbands with the letters W.W.J.D. (What Would Jesus Do?) can manifest a Pelagian attitude Christianity." (The Mosaic of Christian Belief: Twenty Centuries of Unity & Diversity [Inter-varsity Press, 2002], pg. 215)

Reminder: Pelagius was a 5th Century British monk, against whose teachings St. Augustine wrote no fewer than fifteen treatises.

Join the Cry - Bring the Books!

2008-07-17T13:03:00.005-05:00

"The cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments." 2 Timothy 4:13

"The apostle [Paul] says to Timothy and so he says to everyone, 'Give thyself unto reading.' . . . He who will not use the thoughts of other men's brains proves that he has no brains of his own. . . . You need to read. Renounce as much as you will all light literature, but study as much as possible sound theological works, especially the Puritanic writers, and expositions of the Bible. . . . The very best way for you to be spending your leisure is to be either reading or praying. Paul cries, 'Bring the books' - join in the cry!"

(Sermon, Paul - His Cloak and His Book, by C.H. Spurgeon, November 29, 1863, Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington)

Essential Reading Curriculum: Church Youth & Parents

2008-07-03T15:24:00.008-05:00

Parent/Youth Essential Reading Curriculum
(Blog: Doctrine Matters, Plano, Texas, July 3, 2008)

First of all, a big "Thank You" to everyone who contributed comments to my earlier post, Church Youth "Must Reads" List: What Say You?

Creating a list such as this - an essential reading curriculum for the youth (and their parents) of our church - is a daunting task, and one full of inherent shortcomings, the main being - you simply cannot list every essential book that could, or should, be read.

This list is by no means exhaustive, and presumes that many of the classics and other "must reads" are already part of the youth's school or home reading. I've operated under such an assumption (and yes, I know what happens when one "assumes") as most of the youth of our church are home schooled (many in the classical method).

And while this list may appear a bit ambitious for today's youth, remember, this list is for youth and their parents to work through each year - together, talking about it, learning from it, and growing together in the knowledge and admonition of the Lord! Besides, let's not shy away from pushing our youth to higher things, and doing hard things (little plug there for the Harris' The Rebelution).

So, I could go on with all the caveat applicable to such a project, but alas, let's get to the list.

Here was my query: If a church asked you to fashion a reading curriculum for the youth (and their parents) of its congregation, 1st grade through 12th grade, consisting of yearly "must reads," grade-by-grade, with one or more fictional, non-fictional, and Biblical/theological/doctrinal works, how would you advise?

Here's the list -

BASE CURRICULUM

1st Grade:
The Lightlings, R.C. Sproul
The King Without a Shadow, R.C. Sproul
The Child's Story Bible, Catherine Vos
The Gospel for Children, John B. Leuzarder
The Big Book of Questions and Answers About Jesus, Sinclair Ferguson

2nd Grade:
Dangerous Journey, John Bunyan, Ed. Oliver Hunkin
The Child's Story Bible, Catherine Vos
Grandpa's Box: Retelling the Biblical Story of Redemption, Starr Meade

3rd Grade:
Against the World, Henry Coray
The 100 Most Important Events in Christian History, A. Kenneth Curtis, et al.
Heroes of the Reformation: Life-Changing Lessons for the Young, Richard Newton
Training Hearts, Teaching Minds, Starr Meade

4th Grade:
Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis (box set)
Luther the Leader, Virgil Robinson
Ten Boys/Ten Girls Who Changed the World (box sets), Irene Howat
Training Hearts, Teaching Minds, Starr Meade

5th Grade:
The Young Peacemaker: Teaching Students to Respond to Conflict God's Way, Corlette Sande (Kit, grades 3-7)
Visible Saints: The History of a Puritan Idea, Edmund S. Morgan
Survey of the Bible, William Hendriksen
According to Plan: The Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible, Graeme Goldsworthy

6th Grade:
Adventures Of Robinson Crusoe, Daniel Defoe
The Hiding Place, Corrie Ten Boom
The Gospel for Real Life, Jerry Bridges

(Interim Recommended Reading: Shelf Life: How Books Have Changed the Destinies and Desires of People and Nations, George Grant; Read Any Good Books, Sinclair B. Ferguson; and Invitation to the Classics: A Guide to Books You've Always Wanted to Read, Eds. Louise Cowan & Os Guinness)

7th Grade:
The Pilgrim's Progress, John Bunyan
Church History Plain Language, Bruce L. Shelley
Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations, Alex & Brett Harris
Chosen by God, R.C. Sproul
The Holiness of God, R.C. Sproul

(Interim Essential Purchases: Systematic Theology, Wayne Grudem; Concise Theology, J.I. Packer; and How to Read Slowly: Reading for Comprehension, James W. Sire)

8th Grade:
Crown & Covenant Trilogy, Douglas Bond
Confessions, St. Augustine of Hippo (Ed. Henry Chadwick)
The Heidelberg Catechism: A Study Guide, G.I. Williamson
Knowing God, J.I. Packer

9th Grade:
The Screwtape Letters & Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis
The Peacemaker (Student Ed.), Ken Sande
Humility: The True Greatness, C.J. Mahaney
Living the Cross-Centered Life, C.J. Mahaney
Basic Christianity & Cross of Christ, John Stott

10th Grade:
The Bondage of the Will, Martin Luther
Christianity and Liberalism, J. Gresham Machen
The Sovereignty of God, Arthur W. Pink (Baker Books edition)
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer
Pursuit of God, A.W. Tozer

11th Grade:
Hostage Lands, Douglas Bond
Reading Between The Lines, Gene Edward Veith Jr.
Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography, Iain H. Murray
The Great Exchange, Jerry Bridges
The Truth of the Cross, R.C. Sproul
The Atonement: Its Meaning and Significance, Leon Morris

12th Grade:
Paradise Lost, John Milton
John Owen on the Christian Life, Sinclair B. Ferguson
Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
The Reason for God: Belief in God in an Age of Skepticism, Timothy Keller
The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross, Leon Morris

Devotionals:
Day by Day with the Early Church Fathers, Eds. Christopher D. Hudson, J. Alan Sharrer
Day by Day with the English Puritans: Selected Readings for Daily Reflection, Ed. Randall Pederson
Heart Aflame: Daily Readings From Calvin on the Psalms, John Calvin
Help Heavenward, Octavius Winslow
How Great Thou Art, Steve Halliday
Morning and Evening, Charles H. Spurgeon
The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, Ed. Arthur Bennett
Walking with God Day by Day 365 Daily Devotional Selections, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Pre-College Prep:
How to Stay Christian in College, J. Budziszewski
Ask Me Anything: Provocative Answers for College Students, J. Budziszewski
Think Biblically, John MacArthur
Above All Earthly Powers: Christ in a Postmodern World, David F. Wells

OTHER READINGS

Middle School/Junior High -
> A Shepherd Looks at , W. Phillip Keller
> Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know, Wayne Grudem
> Don't Check Your Brains at the Door, Josh McDowell
> Growing Up Christian: Have You Taken Ownership of Your Relationship With God?, Karl Graustein & Mark Jacobsen
> More Than a Carpenter, Josh McDowell
> Passion and Purity: Learning to Bring Your Love Life Under Christ's Control, Elisabeth Elliot
> Thoughts for Young Men, J.C. Ryle
> Understanding the Bible, John Stott
> When God Writes Your Love Story, Eric & Leslie Ludy

High School -
> A Quest for Godliness: Puritan Vision of the Christian Life, J.I. Packer
> All of Grace, Charles H. Spurgeon (Study Guide, Ch. 1-5, Ch. 6-10)
> City of God, St. Augustine of Hippo (Transl. Henry Bettenson)
> Don't Waste Your Life, John Piper
> Francis Schaeffer Trilogy (The God Who Is There; Escape from Reason; He Is There and He Is Not Silent), Francis Schaeffer
> Hard to Believe: The High Cost and Infinite Value of Following Jesus, John MacArthur
> How Long, O Lord?, D.A. Carson
> Knowing Scripture, R.C. Sproul
> I Am Not But I Know I Am: Little Me, Infinite God, Louie Giglio
> In Understanding Be Men, T. Hammond (IVPress, 1983)
> Lectures on Calvinism, Abraham Kuyper
> Lectures to My Students, Charles H. Spurgeon
> Now, That's A Good Question, R.C. Sproul
> The Calvinistic Concept of Culture, Henry R. Van Til
> The Case for the Real Jesus, Lee Strobel
> The Cruelty of Heresy, C. FitzSimons Allison
> The Devoted Life: An Invitation to the Puritan Classics, Ed. Kelly M. Kapic
> The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment, Tim Challies
> The Enemy Within: Straight Talk About the Power and Defeat of Sin, Kris Lundgaard
> The Legacy of Sovereign Joy: God's Triumphant Grace in the Lives of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin, John Piper
> The Micah Mandate: Balancing the Christian Life, George Grant
> The New Evidence That Demands a Verdict, Josh McDowell
> Turning Points: Decisive Moments in the History of Christianity, Mark A. Noll
> Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, Ed. John Piper
> Redemption Accomplished and Applied, John Murray
> Your Mind Matters: The Place of the Mind in the Christian Life, John Stott & Mark A. Noll

God's Attributes:
> Attribute of God, Arthur W. Pink
> The Doctrine of God, Herman Bavinck
> The Doctrine of God: A Theology of Lordship, John Frame
> The Existence and Attributes of God, Stephen Charnock
> The Knowledge of the Holy, A.W. Tozer

Puritans:
> Religious Affections, Jonathan Edwards
> The Bruised Reed, Richard Sibbes
> The Mortification of Sin, John Owen
> The Mystery of Providence, John Flavel
> The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, Jeremiah Burroughs
> The True Bounds of Christian Freedom, Samuel Bolton

Biographies:
> A Life of John Calvin, Alister E. McGrath
> Augustine of Hippo: A Biography, Peter Brown
> Calvin and Augustine, B.B. Warfield
> B. B. Warfield: Essays on His Life and Thought, Gary L. W. Johnson
> George Muller of Bristol: His Life of Prayer and Faith, A.T. Pierson
> Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther, Roland H. Bainton
> J. Gresham Machen: A Guided Tour of His Life and Thought, Stephen J. Nichols
> John Bunyan - His Life, Times And Work, John Brown
> John Owen: The Man and His Theology, Sinclair B. Ferguson
> Jonathan Edwards: A Life, George M. Marsden
> Jonathan Edwards - A New Biography, Iain H. Murray
> Life and Times of George Whitefield, Robert Philip
> Meet the Puritans, Joel R. Beeke & Randall J. Pederson
> The Forgotten Spurgeon, Iain H. Murray
> The Life of D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (2 Vols.), Iain H. Murray
> The Life of George Whitefield (2 Vol.), Arnold Dallimore
> The Life of John Newton, Josiah Bull
> William Tyndale: A Biography, David Daniell

Further Reading Lists:
> What are some books that DG recommends? (Desiring God Ministries, January 23, 2006)
> The City of God and the City of Man: Recommended Reading on Christian Engagement in Culture (Justin Taylor, Desiring God Ministries, July 20, 2005)
> Topical Recommended Reading List (Ligonier Ministries)
> Literary Lists (George Grant, King's Meadow)

To download the list in .pdf, click here.

Glory in the Lord's Supper: Songs of Communion

2008-06-27T14:51:00.003-05:00

Flesh and Blood, Andrew Peterson, Album: Appendix A (free sheet music)

Remember Me, Jason Germain & Marc Martel, Album: Wide-Eyed and Mystified (free download)

Communion Song, John Michael Talbot, Album: The Lord's Supper

Communion, Cliff & Danielle Young, Album: Sing Alleluia

Resources unpacking and glorying in the mystery and beauty of the Lord's Supper -

A Summary of the Lord's Supper, John Knox

An Overview of The Lord's Supper, Charles Hodge

The Remembrance of Christ, C.H. Spurgeon (Sermon, January 7th, 1855, New Park Street Chapel, Southwark)

John Piper, Bethlehem Baptist Church

Songs, Choruses, and Hymns for Communion, Ed. Dr. Ralph F. Wilson

The Mystery of the Lord's Supper: Sermons by Robert Bruce preached at St. Giles, Edinburgh, Robert Bruce

The Lord's Supper: Eternal Word in Broken Bread, Robert Letham

Take Eat, Take Drink: The Lord's Supper Through the Centuries, Ernest Bartels

Sermons on the Lord's Supper, Jonathan Edwards

Monergism.com's abundant resources on the Lord's Supper

War of Words: Who's In Charge Here?!

2008-06-21T10:07:00.001-05:00

"Many of the problems we experience when talking with one another emerge from the fact that we have usurped the authority of God: We say what we want to say, when and how we want to say it. We speak as if we are in charge and as if we have the right to use words to advance our purpose, and to achieve what would make us happy. We speak as if we were God rather than his creatures, called to submit to his authority in every idle word we speak."
(Paul David Tripp, War of Words, Chapter 2, pgs. 20-21)

Read 1st Chapter, God Speaks

Matthew 12:36
I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless [idle] word they speak.

2 Corinthians 10:5b
Take every thought captive to obey Christ.

James 3:3-12
If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

Vacation + Leadership: A Winning Combination

2008-06-14T09:06:00.000-05:00

C.J. Mahaney:

"The difference between forgettable vacations and unforgettable vacations is not the location or attractions. Nope. The difference between forgettable and unforgettable vacations is the father’s attitude and leadership. This makes all the difference. Family vacations provide a unique opportunity each year for fathers to create memories their children will never forget. Memories that will last a lifetime. Memories that will be recreated by your children with your grandchildren. Memories that will outlive a father. But in order to create these memories, a father must be diligent to serve and lead during a vacation. How a father views his role on a vacation will make all the difference in the vacation."

With this introduction, C.J. Mahaney proceeds to outline seven lessons he's learned over the years in hopes that your family vacation will be a God-glorifying, grace-filled, relationship-building, memory-making time together.

Lessons:
1. A Servant Heart
2. A Tone-Setting Attitude
3. An Awareness of Indwelling Sin
4. Studying Your Family
5. Skillful Surprises
6. Intentionally Together
7. Gratefulness to God

Read more here, or here.

Church Youth "Must Reads" List: What Say You?

2008-06-05T18:07:00.002-05:00

**Updated Below**

If a church asked you to fashion a reading curriculum for the youth of the congregation, 1^st grade through 12^th grade, consisting of yearly “must reads,” grade-by-grade, with one or more fictional, non-fictional, and Biblical/theological works, how would you advise?

My main focus: Biblical/theological/doctrinal works.

Is there already a list of which you are aware that you would access and provide? If so, what is that list and where might it be obtained?

Or would such a curriculum have to be created? And if created, what book(s) would you recommend for each grade, in each category?

I thought about putting together such a list after talking with some guys at church about what we’d love to see the kids of our church read by the time they graduate, i.e., “these are the books that we want to make sure the youth have read while in our care.”

I appreciate your thoughts and suggestions. Please forward/link to friends and family and ask them to weigh in as well.

**Update**
The resulting reading list is posted here.

Carlton Pearson: Heresy and Apostasy

2008-05-30T11:40:00.002-05:00

Incredible words straight from the mouth of Carlton Pearson, former pastor of Higher Dimensions Family Church in Tulsa, OK, now an ordained "minister" of the United Church of Christ (Barak Obama's and Jeremiah Wright's denomination).

From the UCC interview with Nancy Haught (Religion News Service), September 5, 2007, Ten minutes with UCC's Carlton Pearson -

Seven years ago, Bishop Carlton D. Pearson was a fourth-generation evangelical preacher and one of Oral Roberts' anointed; he had graduated from Oral Roberts University and served on its board of regents. He prayed with U.S. presidents, preached to 5,000 people in his home church in Tulsa, Okla., and to thousands more on television.

And then, in an interview, Pearson said that he did not believe God would consign countless souls - or anyone, for that matter - to hell.

In that instant, he broke ranks with those Christians who believe that unrepentant sinners will go to hell. That doctrine, called universal salvation, is an old one, but it's still not popular in some circles.

Pearson was denounced by the Joint College of African-American Pentecostal Bishops and by the Rev. Ted Haggard, who was then president of the National Association of Evangelicals. Pearson's worldwide television audience disappeared. Only a few hundred stayed in his local congregation, and he lost the building itself in foreclosure.

Today, Pearson, 54, is still a bishop. ("Once a bishop, always a bishop," he says.) He's joined the United Church of Christ, and his steadfast disciples -- maybe 1,200 of them - meet in an Episcopal church in Tulsa.

He talked about his new book, "The Gospel of Inclusion: Reaching Beyond Religious Fundamentalism to the True Love of God," and some of his own temptations.

Q: Describe your gospel of inclusion.
A: Well, it's really basic universalism, but I couldn't have called it that. I needed another name. I am an evangelical Pentecostal fundamentalist and we'd always believed universalism was wrong. But the gospel of inclusion says that the whole world is already saved -- they just don't know that. If salvation is a reality and people have been saved, the question becomes, have they been saved from God? Or for each other?

Q: If salvation is inclusive, why do people need to reform their lives at all?
A: To create a heavenly consciousness or reality or experience here. Being good or kind or receptive or tolerant gives rise to some happier experience on Earth. To use reward and punishment is elementary; it will not work. If we stop this idea of a hostile God who is difficult to please or appease, when we get past that, the presence or reality of peace on Earth becomes possible.

Q: You still see yourself as an evangelical Pentecostal fundamentalist?
A: Well, I am reformed. I am a fourth-generation classical Pentecostal preacher. That's all we've ever known. I don't believe that Jesus came to start a new religion but only to reform his own. He was a Jew. ... He remained fundamentally a Jew, but he extended the love factor. He moved from the literal to the logical. The Bible says that the letter kills, but the spirit gives light.

Q: What impact has this turmoil had on you and your ministry?
A: It is humbling and sobering. You give more attention to details. Before, I did a lot of generic, sweeping ministry and delegated all the responsibilities to my staff. I was like the drawing card, sort of a celebrated guest.

Q: Was ego an issue?
A: Sure. There is a huge amount of ego in a lot of cultures. Anyone who expects everyone to look at him, listen to him for an hour every week. ... They were here for me. I was young and cocky and arrogant then, I am sure.

Q: And now?
A: I'm reaping what I sowed. Now I am on the board of Planned Parenthood -- I was a strong pro-life advocate and now I am pro-choice. Now they're saying I've gone a step beyond heresy. Now I am a reprobate, and I will be turned over to Satan. I am the anti-Christ, a wolf dressed in sheep's clothing. But some of these jerks, clowns and clones are my family. I have a 92-year-old aunt who is the matriarch of my family and she called me: "I didn't see that TV program, but people have called me and told me that you don't believe in hell. But I have a lot of Bible verses for you, and hell is in every one of them. So you stop by now."

Q: Will you stop by?
A: Well ... people used to be courteous and accommodating when my family came to church. "You're Bishop's mother, Bishop's sister, you sit up front now." But now, my family is embarrassed and sometimes defensive. They love me, but they don't all agree with me.

Q: Are you still tempted by ego?
A: Of course. I will be subject to that temptation until they put me in the grave. The ego in all of us gives us the drive to exist, but we need to keep it in check. I have a new understanding about what it is to be human. The church teaches self-loathing, teaches you to dislike yourself, but also to love others as you love yourself.

Q: It can seem like a mixed message.
A: The Bible sends a lot of mixed messages. I don't think of it anymore as the inspired word of God, but the inspired word of men about God -- and some of it has expired.

See also my earlier post, Doctrine Has Consequences.

Also listen here to host Todd Wilken, Issues, Etc., and his Sept. 12, 2007, piece on "Carlton Pearson's Gospel of Inclusion," with his guest Bob Hunter of Christian Research Institute.

Or download it here, starting at 33.30 minutes.

We're All The Same?

2008-05-23T18:15:00.006-05:00

Comedian and talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres, recently interviewed Senator and Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, on her show, Ellen. Speaking of Ms. DeGeneres' stated intention to take advantage of the California Supreme Court’s recent gay marriage ruling and "marry" her partner, actress Portia di Rossi, Ms. DeGeneres made the following statement:

"Yeah, I mean, I think that it is looked at, and some people are saying that blacks and women did not have the right to vote. Women just got the right to vote in 1920, blacks didn’t have the right to vote until 1870, and it just feels like there’s this old way of thinking that we’re not all the same. We are all the same people. All of us. You’re no different than I am. Our love is the same."

"We are all the same people. All of us. You’re no different than I am. Our love is the same."

Scripturally, what does the Bible say to this statement? If you were asked to respond, what would you say, and how would you support it by scripture? Book, chapter and verse, please.

Why Doctrine Matters

2008-05-09T23:31:00.001-05:00

Is it enough to “believe in Jesus” in some amorphous sense that divorces “faith” from any particular doctrine about Him, or is doctrine—and the content of our faith—really important after all?

Scripture plainly teaches that we must be sound in the faith—which is to say that doctrine does matter (1 Tim. 4:6; 2 Tim. 4:2-3; Tit. 1:9; 2:1). It matters a lot.

“If anyone advocates a different doctrine, and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing” (1 Tim. 6:3-4, emphasis added).

Sound, biblical doctrine is a necessary aspect of true wisdom and authentic faith. The attitude that scorns doctrine while elevating feelings or blind trust cannot legitimately be called faith at all, even if it masquerades as Christianity. It is actually an irrational form of unbelief.

God holds us accountable for what we believe as well as how we think about the truth He has revealed. All Scripture testifies to the fact that God wants us to know and understand the truth. He wants us to be wise. His will is that we use our minds. We are supposed to think, meditate, and above all, to be discerning.

The content of our faith is crucial. Sincerity is not sufficient.

Consider, for example, these well-known verses. Note the repeated use of words like truth, knowledge, discernment, wisdom, and understanding:

“Thou dost desire truth in the innermost being, and in the hidden part Thou wilt make me know wisdom” (Psa. 51:6).

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments” (Psa. 111:10).

“Teach me good discernment and knowledge, For I believe in Thy commandments” (Psa. 119:66).

“Make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to understanding; for if you cry for discernment, lift your voice for understanding; if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will discern the fear of the Lord, and discover the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding” (Prov. 2:2-6).

“The beginning of wisdom is: acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding” (Prov. 4:7).

“We have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (Col. 1:9).

“In [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3).

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16).

God’s Word makes it abundantly clear that He wants us to use our minds. And one of the most vital duties facing every Christian—especially in an era (such as ours) when the church is overrun with contradictory ideas and spiritual confusion—is the duty of discernment. As those who would be faithful Bereans of the Word (Acts 17:11), we must be careful to watch our lives and our doctrine closely (1 Tim. 4:16).

(John MacArthur, Why Doctrine Matters, Pulpit Magazine, May 9, 2008)

Martyn Lloyd-Jones & Worshipping Trinity

2008-05-03T14:11:00.004-05:00

Great News!

Now, available for FREE downloads, are Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones messages in MP3!

"Living Grace," a weekly radio broadcast featuring Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, is now streaming at Oneplace.com. You can also download the individual broadcasts for your iPod/MP3 Player or sign up for the podcast. It's just what the Doctor ordered!

ALSO

Check out Robin Parry's, Worshipping Trinity: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Paternoster Publishing, June 1, 2005).

The doctrine of the Trinity is one of the distinguishing beliefs of Christianity, but have we ever thought about its implications for worship? Worship is God-centered. And God is the Trinity. So it follows that worship should be Trinity-centered. This book seeks to make the three members of the Godhead central to singing, preaching, the discernment of spiritual gifts, communion, and creativity in the arts.

Writing for church leaders, worship leaders, and songwriters as well as those interested in theology, Robin Parry looks at why the Trinity matters and addresses pressing questions such as:

What is the relationship between theology and worship?
Why is the Trinity central to Christian living and believing?
Does the Trinity help us understand what we do when we worship?
How can we write and select songs that foster an awareness of the Trinity?
How can we make the Trinity central through Holy Communion, spiritual gifts, preaching, and the use of the arts?

Personal Relationship With God: We All Have One

2008-04-25T19:42:00.005-05:00

"In actual fact, isn't it true we are all born into this world in a relationship with God. Everyone has a relationship with God. Atheists have a personal relationship with God. God is not separated from any of us. The question is whether the God who is near is near in wrath or forgiveness. . . . If your way of explaining the Gospel doesn't get you within two seconds to Jesus Christ and His work on the cross, it is not a biblical way of presenting salvation. . . . You do have a personal relationship with God. Now, the question is do you have a mediator - Jesus Christ? If you don't, than that relationship is one of wrath, and it's judgment."
- Dr. Michael Horton, White Horse Inn, The Gospel of Personal Relationship, Aired: Sunday, April 20, 2008)

Ephesians 2:1-3
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

I Timothy 2:5
For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

"Divine love triumphed over divine wrath by divine self-sacrifice."
John Stott, The Cross of Christ (InterVarsity, 1986), pg. 15.

THE GLORY OF THE CROSS
What wisdom once devised the plan, Where all our sin and pride
Was placed upon the perfect Lamb, Who suffered, bled, and died?
The wisdom of a Sovereign God, Whose greatness will be shown
When those who crucified Your Son
Rejoice around Your throne

[Chorus] And, oh, the glory of the cross
That You would send Your Son for us
I gladly count my life as loss
That I might come to know
The glory of, the glory of the cross

What righteousness was there revealed, That sets the guilty free
That justifies ungodly men, And calls the filthy clean?
A righteousness that proved to all, Your justice has been met
And holy wrath is satisfied
Through one atoning death

[Chorus]

What mercy now has been proclaimed, For those who would believe
A love incomprehensible, Our minds could not conceive?
A mercy that forgives my sin, Then makes me like Your Son
And now I’m loved forevermore
Because of what You’ve done

[Chorus]

Bob Kauflin, The Glory of the Cross, Songs for the Cross Centered Life (© 2000 Sovereign Grace Praise [BMI])

George Whitefield: Man, Dead in Sin

2008-04-18T09:19:00.001-05:00

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. John 6:44a (ESV)

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved. Ephesians 2:1-5 (ESV)

All are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Romans 3:9b-18 (ESV)

George Whitefield, the great Calvinistic Methodist, preaching from Ephesians 2, gave the following description of the spiritual condition of man:

“Come, ye dead, Christless, unconverted sinner, come and see the place where they laid the body of the deceased Lazarus; behold him laid out, bound hand and foot with graveclothes, locked up and stinking in a dark cave, with a great stone placed on top of it. View him again and again; go nearer to him; be not afraid; smell him, Ah! how he stinketh.

Stop there now, pause a while; and whilst thou art gazing upon the corpse of Lazarus, give me leave to tell thee with great plainness, but greater love, that this dead, bound, entombed, stinking carcase, is but a faint representation of thy poor soul in it natural state;...thy spirit which thou bearest about with thee, sepulchered in flesh and blood, is literally dead to God, and as truly dead in trespasses and sins, as the body of Lazarus was in the cave. Was he bound hand and foot with graveclothes? So art thou bound hand and foot with thy corruptions; and as a stone was laid on the sepulchre, so there is a stone of unbelief upon thy stupid heart.

Perhaps thou has lain in this estate, not only four days, but many years, stinking in God’s nostrils. And, what is still more effecting, thou art as unable to raise thyself out of this loathsome, dead state, to a life of righteousness and true holiness, as ever Lazarus was to raise himself from the cave in which he lay so long.

Thou mayest try the power of thy boasted free will, and the force and energy of moral persuasion and rational arguments (which, without doubt, have their proper place in religion); but all thy efforts, exerted with never so much vigor, will prove quite fruitless and abortive, till that same Jesus, who said 'take away the stone' and cried 'Lazarus, come forth,' also quicken you."

Paradigm Shift In Scripture Reading

2008-04-11T18:44:00.006-05:00

Sinclair Ferguson -

There's a "difference between reading the Bible for what you can get out of it and reading the Bible for what is actually in it."

It's the paradigm shift from, "Let me read Mark's gospel to find out what Mark is saying about Jesus and the Gospel," rather than, "What is this doing for me today to get me through the day?"

So here's the challenge:

Take a book of the Bible and read it for what it's saying, i.e., what God is saying about Himself and His Gospel in Christ Jesus. Ask yourself, "What is Jesus doing here?" rather than, "Where am I in this story?"

Let No Tongue Be Silent: Early Church Prayers

2008-04-04T19:15:00.001-05:00

Have recently come across a couple of prayers/hymns from early in the life of the church; the latter espousing the truths later affirmed in the Chalcedonian Creed decades later - Jesus Christ, born, fully human, fully divine, coequal with the Father.

May none of God's wonderful works keep silence
May none of God’s wonderful works keep silence,
night or morning.

Bright stars, high mountains, the depths of the seas,
sources of rushing rivers:
may all these break into song as we sing
to Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

May all the angels in the heavens reply: Amen! Amen! Amen!
Power, praise, honour, eternal glory to God, the only Giver of grace.
Amen! Amen! Amen!
(Third-Century Hymn, A. Hamman, ed., Early Christian Prayers (Chicago, Henry Regnery, 1961, pg. 69)

and

Of the Father’s love begotten, ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see, evermore and evermore!

O that birth forever blessed, when the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving, bare the Savior of our race;
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face, evermore and evermore!

O ye heights of heaven adore Him; angel hosts, His praises sing;
Powers, dominions, bow before Him, and extol our God and King!
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Every voice in concert sing, evermore and evermore!
(Aurelius Clemens Prudentius, Corde Natus Ex Parentis [348-413])

The Sweet Pillow of God's Providence

2008-03-31T19:27:00.003-05:00

He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. Psalm 106:9

"How sweet is providence to a child of God, when he can reflect upon it! He can look out into this world, and say,

'However great my troubles, they are not so great as my Father's power; however difficult may be my circumstances, yet all things around me are working together for good.

He who holds up yon unpillared arch of the starry heavens can also support my soul without a single apparent prop; he who guides the stars in the well-ordered courses, even when they seem to move in hazy dances, surely he can overrule my trials in such a way that out of confusion he will bring order; and from seeming evil produce lasting good.

He who bridles the storm, and puts the bit in the mouth of the tempest, surely he can restrain my trial, and keep my sorrows in subjection.

I need not fear while the lightnings are in his hands and the thunders sleep within his lips; while the oceans gurgle from his fist, and the clouds are in the hollow of his hands; while the rivers are turned by his foot, and while he diggeth the channels of the sea.

Surely, he whose might wings an angel, can furnish a worm with strength; he who guides a cherub will not be overcome by the trials of an emmet [ant] like myself.

He who makes the most ponderous orb roll in dignity, and keeps its predestined orbit, can make a little atom like myself move in my proper course, and conduct me as he pleaseth.'

Christian! there is no sweeter pillow than providence; and when providence seemeth adverse, believe it still, lay it under thy head, for depend upon it there is comfort in its bosom. There is hope for thee, child of God!"

(Sermon, Charles H. Spurgeon. Sunday, March 30, 1856, New Park Street Chapel, Southwark.)

Jesus, My King, Is Risen Indeed!

2008-03-21T18:15:00.001-05:00

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!

Dr. Shadrach Meshach (S.M.) Lockridge (1913-2000), Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, San Diego, California, spoke these powerful words in a sermon in Detroit in 1976.

My King was born King. The Bible says He’s a Seven Way King.
He’s the King of the Jews – that’s a racial King.
He’s the King of Israel – that’s a National King.
He’s the King of righteousness.
He’s the King of the ages.
He’s the King of Heaven.
He’s the King of glory.
He’s the King of kings and
He is the Lord of lords.
Now that’s my King. Well I wonder if you know Him. Do you know Him? Don’t try to mislead me. Do you know my King?

David said the Heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament show His handiwork. My King is the only one whom there are no means of measure can define His limitless love. No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shore of supplies. No barriers can hinder Him from pouring out His blessing.

Well, well, He’s enduringly strong.
He’s entirely sincere.
He’s eternally steadfast.
He’s immortally graceful.
He’s imperially powerful.
He’s impartially merciful. That’s my King.

He’s God’s Son.
He’s the sinner’s savior.
He’s the centerpiece of civilization.
He stands alone in Himself.
He’s august.
He’s unique.
He’s unparalleled.
He’s unprecedented.
He’s supreme.
He’s pre-eminent.

Well, He’s the loftiest idea in literature.
He’s the highest personality in philosophy.
He’s the supreme problem in high criticism.
He’s the fundamental doctrine of proved theology.
He’s the carnal necessity of spiritual religion. That’s my King.

He’s the miracle of the age.
He’s the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him.

Well, He’s the only one able to supply all of our needs simultaneously.
He supplies strength for the weak.
He’s available for the tempted and the tried.
He sympathizes and He saves.
He’s strong God and He guides.
He heals the sick.
He cleanses the lepers.
He forgives sinners.
He discharged debtors.
He delivers the captives.
He defends the feeble.
He blesses the young.
He serves the unfortunate.
He regards the aged.
He rewards the diligent and He beautifies the meek. Do you know Him?

Well, my King is the key of knowledge.
He’s the wellspring of wisdom.
He’s the doorway of deliverance.
He’s the pathway of peace.
He’s the roadway of righteousness.
He’s the highway of holiness.
He’s the gateway of glory.
He’s the master of the mighty.
He’s the captain of the conquerors.
He’s the head of the heroes.
He’s the leader of the legislatures.
He’s the overseer of the overcomers.
He’s the governor of governors.
He’s the prince of princes.
He’s the King of kings and He’s the Lord of lords. That’s my King.

Yeah. Yeah. That’s my King. My King, yeah.
His office is manifold.
His promise is sure.
His light is matchless.
His goodness is limitless.
His mercy is everlasting.
His love never changes.
His Word is enough.
His grace is sufficient.
His reign is righteous.
His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

Well. I wish I could describe Him to you, but He’s indescribable.
He’s indescribable. Yes.
He’s incomprehensible.
He’s invincible.
He’s irresistible.

I’m coming to tell you, the heavens of heavens cannot contain Him, let alone a man explaining Him.
You can’t get Him out of your mind.
You can’t get Him off of your hands.
You can’t outlive Him and you can’t live without Him.

Well, Pharisees couldn’t stand Him, but they found out they couldn’t stop Him.
Pilot couldn’t find any fault in Him.
The witnesses couldn’t get their testimonies to agree.
Herod couldn’t kill Him.
Death couldn’t handle Him and the grave couldn’t hold Him. That’s my King.

Yeah. He always has been and He always will be.
I’m talking about He had no predecessor and He’ll have no successor.
There was nobody before Him and there’ll be nobody after Him.
You can’t impeach Him and He’s not going to resign. That’s my King! That’s my King!

Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory. Well, all the power belongs to my King. We’re around here talking about black power and white power and green power, but it’s God’s power.

Thine is the power. Yeah. And the glory. We try to get prestige and honor and glory for ourselves, but the glory is all His. Yes.

Thine is the Kingdom and the power and glory, forever and ever and ever and ever. How long is that? And ever and ever and ever and ever.

And when you get through with all of the evers, then, Amen.

Here's an abridged video presentation.

God So Loved The World or Particular Redemption? Or Both?

2008-03-17T19:21:00.006-05:00

Does God So Love the World?
by: John MacArthur (Grace to You, July 21, 2005)

Love is the best known but least understood of all God's attributes. Almost everyone who believes in God these days sees Him as a God of love. I have even met agnostics who are quite certain that if God exists, He must be benevolent, compassionate, and loving.

All those things are infinitely true about God, of course, but not in the way most people think. Because of the influence of modern liberal theology, many suppose that God's love and goodness ultimately nullify His righteousness, justice, and holy wrath. They envision God as a benign heavenly grandfather-tolerant, affable, lenient, permissive, devoid of any real displeasure over sin, who without consideration of His holiness will benignly pass over sin and accept people as they are.

Liberal thinking about God's love also permeates much of evangelicalism today. We have lost the reality of God's wrath. We have disregarded His hatred for sin. The God most evangelicals now describe is all-loving and not at all angry. We have forgotten that "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31). We do not believe in that kind of God anymore.

We must recapture some of the holy terror that comes with a right understanding of God's righteous anger. We need to remember that God's wrath does burn against impenitent sinners (Psalm 38:1-3). That reality is the very thing that makes His love so amazing. Only those who see themselves as sinners in the hands of an angry God can fully appreciate the magnitude and wonder of His love.

In that regard, our generation is surely at a greater disadvantage than any previous age. We have been force-fed the doctrines of self-esteem for so long that most people don't really view themselves as sinners worthy of divine wrath. On top of that, religious liberalism, humanism, evangelical compromise, and ignorance of the Scriptures have all worked against a right understanding of who God is. Ironically, in an age that conceives of God as wholly loving, altogether devoid of wrath, few people really understand what God's love is all about.

How we address the misconception of the present age is crucial. We must not respond to an overemphasis on divine love by denying that God is love. Our generation's imbalanced view of God cannot be corrected by an equal imbalance in the opposite direction, a very real danger in some circles. I'm deeply concerned about a growing trend I've noticed - particularly among people committed to the biblical truth of God's sovereignty and divine election. Some of them flatly deny that God in any sense loves those whom He has not chosen for salvation.

I am troubled by the tendency of some - often young people newly infatuated with Reformed doctrine - who insist that God cannot possibly love those who never repent and believe. I encounter that view, it seems, with increasing frequency.

The argument inevitably goes like this: Psalm 7:11 tells us "God is angry with the wicked every day." It seems reasonable to assume that if God loved everyone, He would have chosen everyone unto salvation. Therefore, God does not love the non-elect. Those who hold this view often go to great lengths to argue that John 3:16 cannot really mean God loves the whole world.

Perhaps the best-known argument for this view is found the unabridged edition of an otherwise excellent book, The Sovereignty of God, by A.W. Pink. Pink wrote, "God loves whom He chooses. He does not love everybody." (Arthur W. Pink, The Sovereignty of God [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1930], 29-30.) He further argued that the word world in John 3:16 ("For God so loved the world?") "refers to the world of believers (God's elect), in contradistinction from 'the world of the ungodly.'" (Ibid., 314.)

Pink was attempting to make the crucial point that God is sovereign in the exercise of His love. The gist of his argument is certainly valid: It is folly to think that God loves all alike, or that He is compelled by some rule of fairness to love everyone equally. Scripture teaches us that God loves because He chooses to love (Deuteronomy 7:6-7), because He is loving (God is love, 1 John 4:8), not because He is under some obligation to love everyone the same.

Nothing but God's own sovereign good pleasure compels Him to love sinners. Nothing but His own sovereign will governs His love. That has to be true, since there is certainly nothing in any sinner worthy of even the smallest degree of divine love.

Unfortunately, Pink took the corollary too far. The fact that some sinners are not elected to salvation is no proof that God's attitude toward them is utterly devoid of sincere love. We know from Scripture that God is compassionate, kind, generous, and good even to the most stubborn sinners. Who can deny that those mercies flow out of God's boundless love? It is evident that they are showered even on unrepentant sinners.

We must understand that it is God's very nature to love. The reason our Lord commanded us to love our enemies is "in order that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous" (Matthew 5:45). Jesus clearly characterized His Father as One who loves even those who purposefully set themselves at enmity against Him.

At this point, however, an important distinction must be made: God loves believers with a particular love. God's love for the elect is an infinite, eternal, saving love. We know from Scripture that this great love was the very cause of our election (Ephesians 2:4). Such love clearly is not directed toward all of mankind indiscriminately, but is bestowed uniquely and individually on those whom God chose in eternity past.

But from that, it does not follow that God's attitude toward those He did not elect must be unmitigated hatred. Surely His pleading with the lost, His offers of mercy to the reprobate, and the call of the gospel to all who hear are all sincere expressions of the heart of a loving God. Remember, He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but tenderly calls sinners to turn from their evil ways and live.

Reformed theology has historically been the branch of evangelicalism most strongly committed to the sovereignty of God. At the same time, the mainstream of Reformed theologians have always affirmed the love of God for all sinners. John Calvin himself wrote regarding John 3:16, "[Two] points are distinctly stated to us: namely, that faith in Christ brings life to all, and that Christ brought life, because the Father loves the human race, and wishes that they should not perish." (John Calvin, Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, William Pringle, trans. [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1979 reprint], 123.)

Calvin continues to explain the biblical balance that both the gospel invitation and "the world" that God loves are by no means limited to the elect alone. He also recognized that God's electing, saving love is uniquely bestowed on His chosen ones.

Those same truths, reflecting a biblical balance, have been vigorously defended by a host of Reformed stalwarts, including Thomas Boston, John Brown, Andrew Fuller, W. G. T. Shedd, R. L. Dabney, B. B. Warfield, John Murray, R. B. Kuiper, and many others. In no sense does belief in divine sovereignty rule out the love of God for all humanity.

We are seeing today, in some circles, an almost unprecedented interest in the doctrines of the Reformation and the Puritan eras. I'm very encouraged by that in most respects. A return to those historic truths is, I'm convinced, absolutely necessary if the church is to survive. Yet there is a danger when overzealous souls misuse a doctrine like divine sovereignty to deny God's sincere offer of mercy to all sinners.

We must maintain a carefully balanced perspective as we pursue our study of God's love. God's love cannot be isolated from His wrath and vice versa. Nor are His love and wrath in opposition to each other like some mystical yin-yang principle. Both attributes are constant, perfect, without ebb or flow. His wrath coexists with His love; therefore, the two never contradict. Such are the perfections of God that we can never begin to comprehend these things. Above all, we must not set them against one another, as if there were somehow a discrepancy in God.

Both God's wrath and His love work to the same ultimate end-His glory. God is glorified in the condemnation of the wicked; He is glorified in every expression of love for all people without exception; and He is glorified in the particular love He manifests in saving His people.

Expressions of wrath and expressions of love - all are necessary to display God's full glory. We must never ignore any aspect of His character, nor magnify one to the exclusion of another. When we commit those errors, we throw off the biblical balance, distort the true nature of God, and diminish His real glory.

Does God so love the world? Emphatically - yes! Proclaim that truth far and wide, and do so against the backdrop of God's perfect wrath that awaits everyone who does not repent and turn to Christ.

Does the love of God differ in the breadth and depth and manner of its expression? Yes it does. Praise Him for the many manifestations of His love, especially toward the non-elect, and rejoice in the particular manifestation of His saving love for you who believe. God has chosen to display in you the glory of His redeeming grace.
(Adapted from The God Who Loves ©2001 by John MacArthur. All rights reserved.)

See Also:

> John Piper & Bethlehem Baptist Church on Limited Atonement, or Particular Redemption.

> And, For Whom Did Jesus Taste Death?, by John Piper.

> John Owens' Exposition of John 3:16, from his work, The Death of Death in the Death of Christ, Reprinted in part by Reformed Perspectives Magazine, Volume 9, Number 5, January 28 to February 3, 2007.

> John 3:16, A Brief Exegetical Study, by Dr. C. Matthew McMahon, taken from The Two Wills of God.

> Understanding John 3:16, by Pastor John Samson.

True Repentance: Special Mercy from God

2008-03-07T17:23:00.004-06:00

"True repentance is a special mercy from God. He gives it. It comes from none other. It is impossible for poor fallen nature so far to recover herself by her own strength as truly to repent. The heart is wedded to its own ways and justifies its own sinful courses with incurable obstinacy, until divine grace makes the change. No motives to good are strong enough to overcome depravity in the natural heart of man. If ever we attain this grace, it must be through the great love of God to perishing men. . . .

. . . 'Repentance unto life is a saving grace, wrought in the heart of a sinner by the Spirit and word of God, whereby, out of the sight and sense, not only of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his sins, and upon the apprehension of God’s mercy in Christ to such as are penitent, he so grieves for and hates his sins, as that he turns from them all to God, purposing and endeavoring constantly to walk with him in all the ways of new obedience.' [Acts 11:18; II Timothy 2:25; Psalm 51:1-4; Joel 2:13; Luke 15:7, 10; Acts 2:37; Jeremiah 31:18-19; Luke 1:16-17; I Thessalonians 1:9; II Chronicles 7:14; Psalm 119:57-64; II Corinthians 7:10; Westminster Larger Catechism Q.76; Shorter Catechism Q.87]

True repentance is sorrow for sin, ending in the reformation of heart, thought and life. Mere regret is not repentance, neither is mere outward reformation. It is not an imitation of virtue, it is virtue itself . . .

He who truly repents is chiefly sorry for his sins; he whose repentance is spurious is chiefly concerned for their consequences. The former chiefly regrets that he has done evil, the latter that he has incurred evil. One sorely laments that he deserves punishment, the other that he must suffer punishment. One approves of the Law which condemns him; the other thinks he is hardly treated, and that the Law is rigorous. To the sincere penitent, sin appears exceeding sinful. To him who sorrows after a worldly sort, sin in some form appears pleasant. He regrets that it is forbidden. One says it is an evil and bitter thing to sin against God, even if no punishment followed; the other sees little evil in transgression if there were no painful consequences sure to follow. If there were no hell, the one would still wish to be delivered from sin; if there were no retribution, the other would sin with increased greediness. The true penitent is chiefly averse to sin as it is an offence against God. This embraces all sins of every description."

Dr. William S. Plumer (1802-1880), American Presbyterian Minister
From Vital Godliness: A Treatise on Experimental and Practical Piety, Sprinkle Publications

"The need for repentance is another fundamental postulate of the Christian faith, and it is also one of the truths that people most resent. Teaching about repentance utterly infuriates people today, as it did these rulers in Jerusalem. There is no difference whatsoever in this respect between the first and the twentieth centuries. The fact that the message of repentance is regarded as a very great insult is further proof of that fatal self-righteousness that is always the greatest hindrance to acceptance of the Gospel message."

Dr. David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981), Pastor, Westminster Chapel, London

CD Review: You and You Alone

2008-02-28T18:30:00.003-06:00

Pastor Pat Sczebel, with son Joel, wrote all the music on this latest album from Sovereign Grace Music, a division of Sovereign Grace Ministries.

Pat Sczebel is associate pastor at CrossWay Community Church in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. This album (OK, it’s actually a CD, I’m dating myself here) contains lead sheets and guitar sheets in PDF format.

Here are some of the songs on You and You Alone:

Trust In You and Over All
Speak of Christ’s reign over all creation (Matthew 28:18; Ephesians 1:22); sovereignty over all kingdoms and all rulers (Daniel 2:21); and that nothing can thwart His plans (Isaiah 46:9-10; Job 42:2b; Lamentations 3:37-38).

The Greatest of All
Celebrates The Great Exchange - my sin for His righteousness. The greatest of all transactions, the costliest purchase price, was Christ’s atoning death given in payment for mine. As a result, I’ll never know God’s judgment because Jesus Christ was judged for me, cancelling my debt and satisfying the law’s demands.

In You
Reminds us that in Jesus Christ is grace; perfect rest; deliverance from shame; awesome mercy; sweet forgiveness; and joy forevermore.

You Are Good
Proclaims God’ goodness toward us through Christ who gave His life to save us - His righteous for our unrighteous - so that we could know His grace. Forever, lasting mercy; immeasurable grace. You may download a free MP3 of this song here.

You Alone
As with The Greatest of All, this is a song of God’s atoning work on Calvary. "Once a slave to sin, condemned to die and know Your wrath; but in wondrous love You gave Your Son to bear it all."

And Track 8, Lord, You Are Gracious, is my favorite. I will let the words of this song speak for themselves.

You do not treat us as our sins deserve
Though we are guilty as charged
Your Son was treated as if responsible
For all my sin

(Chorus) Lord, You are gracious
Lord, You are compassionate
Slow to anger, rich in love
Lord, You are

Your Son was perfect, blamelessness itself
Father, You turned Your face away
You bruised and crushed Him that I might know Your grace
For all my days (Chorus)

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases
His mercies never come to an end
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases
His mercies never come to an end

Slow to anger, rich in love
Lord, You are

Also on this album are Yesterday, Today and Forever; I Surrender All; and Jesus, You Are Beautiful.

Purchase this CD through Sovereign Grace Music, and allow its biblically rich truths to minister to you as they have to me.

The Gospel: Compare & Contrast

2008-02-22T09:35:00.006-06:00

1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 (ESV)
For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him.

John 14:6 (ESV)
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (ESV)
And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

Romans 1:16a (ESV)
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.

So, is this the proclamation of the gospel?

Or is this the proclamation of the gospel?

For more on the true, biblical gospel of Jesus Christ:

The gospel is the good news of God’s saving activity in the person and work of Christ. This includes his incarnation in which he took to himself full (yet sinless) human nature; his sinless life which fulfilled the perfect law of God; his substitutionary death which paid the penalty for man’s sin and satisfied the righteous wrath of God; his resurrection demonstrating God’s satisfaction with his sacrifice; and his glorification and ascension to the right hand of the Father where he now reigns and intercedes for the church. Such news is specific: there is a defined "thatness" to the gospel which sets forth the content of both our saving faith and our proclamation. It is objective, and not to be confused with our response. It is sufficient: we can add nothing to what Christ has accomplished for us--it falls to us simply to believe this news, turning from our sins and receiving by faith all that God has done for us in Christ.
(Jeff Purswell, Covenant Life Church; Dean, Academic and Student Affairs, Pastors College of Sovereign Grace Ministries)

John Piper's God is the Gospel: Meditations on God’s Love as the Gift of Himself (Crossway Books, 2005)

The Gospel, by Tim Keller (MP3)
with Study Guide

What is the Gospel?, by D.A. Carson (MP3)

Desiring God Ministries

Monergism.com

The Gospel for Real Life, by Jerry Bridges
Description: The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most explosive news of freedom the world has ever heard. Yet, why do so many of His followers experience so little of the gospel’s liberating power? The poverty of actual Christian experience is the result of an impoverished understanding of the depths of the gospel itself. The key is not to try a little harder, but to know more fully the incredible work of Christ on the cross - and to live in a more vital awareness of that grace day by day. Without a knowledge of the depth of our sin, we cannot experience "the unsearchable riches of Christ" that are available to us in the gospel. And when we know those riches, we are empowered to live every day "glorying in a sense of acceptance and the experience of grace."

The gospel is Christ. It is the good news that "directly addresses the ultimate bad news ... that we were by nature objects of God's wrath (Romans 1:18; 3:10-12; Ephesians 2:3)." It tells me that if I have been redeemed by the shed blood of Christ, that I am "accepted by God, not on the basis of my personal perfection, but on the basis of the infinitely perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ." It was Christ who paid my debt, exchanging my sin for his righteousness, making me no longer an enemy and object of His wrath, but rather, an adopted son, heir, with Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:5; Romans 8:16-17). (Quotes taken from Jerry Bridges, The Gospel for Real Life, NavPress 2002)

The Mystery of Election: Sovereign, Electing Grace

2008-02-13T18:11:00.001-06:00

Here, C.J. Mahaney talks about mystery, and the limitations of human knowledge about God, especially regarding whom He chooses to save. This is a 6-minute excerpt from a session of Sovereign Grace Ministry's 2002 Small Group Leaders Conference. The full message is available on DVD.

For a plethora of resources on the Doctrines of Grace, or Sovereign Election/Grace.

Categorized scripture list on the Doctrines of Grace.

The Reformed Doctrine Of Predestination, by Loraine Boettner
Free, on-line copy. For purchase.

Charles H. Spurgeon's series on the Doctrines of Grace.

"Get comfortable with mystery."

Earning God's Favor? Or Filthy Rags?!

2008-02-05T19:04:00.000-06:00

What say you to this statement by a pastor of a local mega-church here in the Dallas area?

The following is an excerpt from an interview he did (promoting his most recent book), speaking of grace and obedience, and regarding the assurance of one's salvation:

"There are probably more unsaved people in my pews than I want to acknowledge. . . . In the past, I've made the mistake as a pastor of trying to assure people of their salvation when they never possessed it to begin with. Here are people who profess to be Christians, but they have no interest in God's Word, they never pray, they don't want to be in church, there is absolutely no fruit in their life. Why should we give false security to people like that? The Bible certainly gives no assurance of salvation for such people. . . . It comes down to the question: What place does obedience have in the life of a Christian? What does grace say is my responsibility in marriage, in friendships, in the church? I don't believe that obedience earns God's salvation of our souls. But it certainly earns God's favor in our lives."

"I don't believe that obedience earns God's salvation of our souls. But it certainly earns God's favor in our lives."

Our acts of obedience earn God's favor?

How is this any different from offering God our "filthy rags" as mentioned in Isaiah 64:6? Does this not also run the risk of creating (for some) a form of expectation that because I've done X, Y and Z, God now accepts me, or owes me some form of favor?

What does this say about the great exchange that took place on the cross - my sin for His righteousness? That Christ earned God's favor for me already by living an absolutely perfect life; shedding His blameless blood on the cross; thereby taking my sin in exchange for His righteousness. (Romans 4)

What say you?

For more on this great exchange, get a hold of Jerry Bridges' and Bob Bevington's book, The Great Exchange. Book: If Jesus Christ died for your sins, and he did, that makes him the most important person in your life, and his death he most important thing he did. So walk through this study of Christ's Great Atonement and learn the depth and riches of the cross. The Great Exchange exalts Christ's finished work of atonement as the central event of all history, where, in union with Christ as our wrath-bearer, curse-bearer and sin-bearer, our sin is forever exchanged for His righteousness.

What is Man? Piece of Work and/or Sinner?

2008-01-25T10:30:00.000-06:00

One speaker; two pictures of Man -

What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god! The beauty of the world, the paragon of animals—and yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust?
(Hamlet, Act 2, scene 2, 303–311)

Get thee to a nunnery: why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners? I am myself indifferent honest; but yet I could accuse me of such things that it were better my mother had not borne me: I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious, with more offences at my beck than I have thoughts to put them in, imagination to give them shape, or time to act them in. What should such fellows as I do crawling between earth and heaven? We are arrant knaves, all; believe none of us. Go thy ways to a nunnery.
(Hamlet, Act 3, scene 1, 131-139)

Which is the more Biblical view of Man? Both? Neither? Do they have to be mutually exclusive?

Simon Cowell: It's All About Me!

2008-01-18T20:36:00.000-06:00

On the first night of American Idol, from Philadelphia, a contestant's family celebrated with her when she received her ticket to Hollywood. Hearing the joy in the hallway, Simon commented of his amazement that here in America people celebrate when something good happens to someone they know.

Simon's response? He said he didn't understand it; that he could never do that.

That, my friend, is evidence of an unregenerate heart. A self-centered, "I"-focused heart and life. So antithetical to a heart of flesh made alive from a heart of stone, due wholly to the love and touch of Jesus Christ's shed blood and redemptive work on the cross.

How sad. May the love and life of Christ touch you, Simon, and draw you to Him!

Romans 12:15a
Rejoice with those who rejoice.

Romans 12:9-21
Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

I John 4:7-12
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

So the unregenerate ‘walk in the futility of their mind’ (Eph. 4:17). The natural inclination of the unregenerate mind is to seek those things that cannot satisfy (Gen. 6:5). It is an unstable mind (Prov. 7:11-12). The unregenerate understanding is darkened and cannot judge things properly (John 1:5). The unregenerate heart is blind. . . . Even though the unconverted mind is highly educated and talented, yet it is utterly unable to receive and understand spiritually those things needful for its eternal salvation. It will not respond to the preaching of the gospel until renewed, enlightened and enabled to do so by the Holy Spirit: “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned’ (1 Cor. 2:14). The subject of this verse is the natural man. The natural man is quite opposite of the spiritual man (1 Cor. 15:44; Jude 19).
John Owen, The Holy Spirit (Banner of Truth, 1999)

Great, Faithful Steadfast Love - Exalt the Lord!

2008-01-13T21:09:00.002-06:00

Be Exalted Oh God (based on Psalm 57:9-11)

I will give thanks to Thee Oh Lord, among the nations
I will sing praises to Thee among Thy people
For Thy steadfast love is great is great to the heavens
And Thy faithfulness, Thy faithfulness to the clouds

Chorus:
Be exalted Oh God above the heavens
And let Thy Glory be over all of the earth
Be exalted Oh God above the heavens
And let Thy Glory be over all of the earth
(Brent Chambers, © 1977 Scripture in Song, CCLI# 178041)

Purchase here.

His steadfast love is greater than great - it's great to the heavens! And His faithfulness! All the way to the clouds. Give thanks and exalt Him for His steadfast love and faithfulness!

Live Nearer to Christ;Think Much of Him

2008-01-08T19:00:00.000-06:00

New Year Benedictions -

Oh, beloved, when ye hear of Christ, when you know that this grace comes through Christ, and the calling through Christ, and the glory through Christ, then you say, "Lord, I can believe it now, if it is through Christ." It is not a hard thing to believe that Christ's blood was sufficient to purchase every blessing for me. If I go to God's treasury without Christ, I am afraid to ask for anything, but when Christ is with me I can then ask for everything. For sure I think he deserves it though I do not. If I can claim his merits then I am not afraid to plead. Is perfection too great a boon for God to give to Christ? Oh, no. Is the keeping, the stability, the preservation of the blood-bought ones too great a reward for the terrible agonies and sufferings of the Savior? I trow not. Then we may with confidence plead, because everything comes through Christ.

I would in concluding make this remark. I wish, my brothers and sisters, that during this year you may live nearer to Christ than you have ever done before. Depend upon it, it is when we think much of Christ that we think little of ourselves, little of our troubles, and little of the doubts and fears that surround us. Begin from this day, and may God help you. Never let a single day pass over your head without a visit to the garden of Gethsemane, and the cross on Calvary. And as for some of you who are not saved, and know not the Redeemer, I would to God that this very day you would come to Christ.
(C.H. Spurgeon, Exeter Hall, Strand, January 1, 1860)

Psalm 138:8a (ESV)
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.

Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

"We will be glad and rejoice in thee" (Song of Solomon 1:4). We will not open the gates of the year to the dolorous notes of the sackbut, but to the sweet strains of the harp of joy, and the high sounding cymbals of gladness. “O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise unto the rock of our salvation.” We, the called and faithful and chosen, we will drive away our griefs, and set up our banners of confidence in the name of God. Let others lament over their troubles, we who have the sweetening tree to cast into Marah’s bitter pool, with joy will magnify the Lord. Eternal Spirit, our effectual Comforter, we who are the temples in which thou dwellest, will never cease from adoring and blessing the name of Jesus. We will, we are resolved about it, Jesus must have the crown of our heart’s delight; we will not dishonour our Bridegroom by mourning in his presence. We are ordained to be the minstrels of the skies, let us rehearse our everlasting anthem before we sing it in the halls of the New Jerusalem. We will be glad and rejoice: two words with one sense, double joy, blessedness upon blessedness. Need there be any limit to our rejoicing in the Lord even now? Do not men of grace find their Lord to be camphire and spikenard, calamus and cinnamon even now, and what better fragrance have they in heaven itself? We will be glad and rejoice in Thee . That last word is the meat in the dish, the kernel of the nut, the soul of the text. What heavens are laid up in Jesus! What rivers of infinite bliss have their source, aye, and every drop of their fulness in him! Since, O sweet Lord Jesus, thou art the present portion of thy people, favour us this year with such a sense of thy preciousness, that from its first to its last day we may be glad and rejoice in thee. Let January open with joy in the Lord, and December close with gladness in Jesus.
(C.H. Spurgeon, Morning & Evening, Evening Reading, January 1)

Happy New Year 2008!

2008-01-01T12:01:00.000-06:00

I wish you a Happy New Year, and pray the Lord's hand of blessing on you, your family, and calling. May He continue to lead and bless you, and make Himself ever more evident to you in your life.

10 Resolutions for Mental Health
John Piper's reflections of a 1976 lecture in which the speaker plead with his listeners to stop seeking mental health in the mirror of self-analysis, but instead to drink in the remedies of God in nature.

New Year's Resolutions
David Powlison, M.Div., Ph.D., Editor, The Journal of Biblical Counseling; Counselor and faculty member at Christian Counseling & Educational Foundation; Teacher, Westminster Theological Seminary.

Resolutions
70 resolutions written by Jonathan Edwards when he was about 20 years of age. He reviewed his resolutions on a weekly basis.

Emmanuel! God, In Jesus Christ, With Us! Rejoice!

2007-12-24T11:44:00.000-06:00

Ya know, when looking at so many of the blogs out there talking about the wonder of Christmas, it's quite easy (or at least I've seen it in myself) to be tempted to come up with my own blog entry that is more insightful, more profound, just as cleaver, or even more "spiritual" than the next guy (and gal). But that is far from being Christ-honoring, and Christmas is all about Christ!

So, may I wish you, your family, church fellowship, and community a blessed and Christ-filled, Christ-honoring, Christ-infused and permeated Merry Christmas! May Christ be the center and focus of your attention, and may Christ be magnified and glorified and lifted high! And may we all glory in Him, and marvel at the wonder and mystery of His love and grace - that He would come to us, mortal man, humbling Himself to take on our mortal flesh, being born in order that He may die - for us!! Just think about it! Wow!

Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all!

So, Merry CHRISTmas!! And I'll leave you with some of the lyrics of Mark Lowry's song, Mary Did You Know.

Mary, did you know:
That your baby boy will one day walk on water?
That your baby boy has come to make you new?
That the child that you've delivered will soon deliver you?
That your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
That when you kiss your little baby, you've kissed the face of God?!

Mary, did you know:
That your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
That your baby boy will one day rules the nations?
That your baby boy is heaven's perfect lamb?
That this sleeping child you're holding is the great I AM?!

I'd venture a guess that little did Mark Lowry know when writing the lyrics to his song, that he was echoing what Augustine of Hippo had said some 1600 year ago:

He so loved us that, for our sake,
He was made man in time, although through him all times were made.
He was made man, who made man.
He was created of a mother whom he created.
He was carried by hands that he formed.
He cried in the manger in wordless infancy, he the Word,
without whom all human eloquence is mute.
--St. Augustine, Sermon 188, 2

(Gloria artwork: Friedrich Peter, Vancouver, BC)

The Necessity of Doctrine

2007-12-13T18:47:00.000-06:00

"And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching . . ." (Acts 2:42)

No statement more clearly shows the lack of Biblical thinking and discernment in Evangelical Christianity then, "I don’t believe in doctrine, I believe in Jesus." I have heard this silly statement, and others similar to it, too often to believe that it is only the product of a few reckless individuals. Doctrine in Evangelical Christianity has become not only despised by many, but routinely mocked with seeming spiritual sounding cliches. In place of despised doctrine the Bible is shoved into our faces by these seeming pious individuals, who assert with a certain air of spiritual elitism, "We believe in just the Bible, not church dogma."

The word doctrine, however, comes from the Greek word didache and means "teaching." In Theology, that is, the study of who God is and what He is like, doctrine means "that which is taught as a formal truth or belief OF THE FAITH" (The Compact Dictionary of Doctrinal Words, p. 75). Christian doctrines are those doctrines of our Christian faith, which were "once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3). Therefore, to present the bible as something totally antithetical to Christian doctrine is absurd. Christian doctrines are those truths taught in Scripture that are Essential to the Christian faith.

The Apostle Paul viewed doctrine much differently then many Evangelical Christians do today. Paul used the "D" word some 12 times in his Epistles. Paul considered not only the ability to "EXHORT in sound DOCTRINE" a qualification for church leadership, but also the ability "to REFUTE those who contradict. (Titus 1:9). Later in the same letter Paul writes, "But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound DOCTRINE." (Titus 2:1). To his young friend Timothy, Paul writes, "Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction [Didache]." To the believers in Rome Paul ends his epistle with these words, "Now I urge you brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching [Didache] which you have learned, and turn away from them." Paul’s exhortation to the believers at Rome, and to us today, presupposes that one understands sound doctrine, therefore, one can discern false doctrine and turn away from those teaching it. How far Evangelical Christianity has moved from Paul’s simple exhortations! Many Evangelical Christians today pride themselves upon the fact that they do not know doctrine, "just Jesus" therefore, are unable to discern false doctrine, let alone false teachers.

If the words of the apostle Paul are not themselves enough to convince of the necessity of doctrinal teaching and understanding, then listen to the words of Jesus Christ: "And He was teaching them many things in parables and was saying to them in His teaching [Didache]." While Jesus severally condemns the pharisees, He does not condemn the teaching of doctrine, only the teaching of FALSE doctrine: "The teaching as doctrine the precepts of men." To discern the difference between doctrine that is from the word of God from those that are merely the precepts of men, one must have a knowledge and understanding of biblical doctrine. To this end, was a large part of our Lord’s earthly ministry; so much so that He often warn that those who did not abide in his teaching would perish.

The so-called Great Commission of Christ presupposes the teaching of doctrine: "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit TEACHING them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:19-20). Christ commanded His people to disciple the nations. There is no other way to disciple one in Christianity then by the teaching of Christian doctrine.

To those who pride themselves on the fact that they have "No creed, just Christ," or "I am just a simple Christian, I believe just the Bible" I ask: Who is Jesus? Do you believe that Jesus is God come in the flesh? Then you believe in the doctrine of the incarnation of Christ. Do you believe that Christ paid the price for your sin? Then you believe the doctrine of the atonement. Do you believe that Jesus rose again from the dead? Then you believe the doctrine of the resurrection. Do you believe that we are saved by faith alone? Then you believe in the doctrine of justification by faith.

Considering the emphasis Scripture places on the importance of teaching and understanding Christian doctrine, What should be the response of the Christian? The Christian should not take pride in doctrinal ignorance, but rather study and learn carefully the doctrines of the Christian faith, so that he or she may not be led astray by false doctrine.

Bremmer, Michael. Is Doctrine Necessary? Third Millennium Ministries, Reformed Perspectives Magazine (Vol. 9, No. 45, Nov. 4-10, 2007).

Movie: The Golden Compass

2007-12-04T19:05:00.001-06:00

Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, addresses the following questions with regard to the movie, The Golden Compass:

- Why is this movie such a challenge?
- So, what's the problem?
- Will viewers of the movie see all this?
- Is Pullman's attack on Christianity exaggerated by his critics?
- Is there more to the larger story?
- What is it about Pullman and C. S. Lewis?
- So, what should Christians do?

Dr. Mohler states, "This is about the battle of ideas and worldviews. While Christians will not celebrate the release of this film, we should recognize the mixture of challenge and opportunity that comes with millions of persons watching this film and talking about the issues it raises. When the movie is mentioned in the workplace, in school, on the playground, or in the college campus, this is a great opportunity to show that Christians are not afraid of the battle of ideas."

He concludes, saying, "The biblical story of the Fall is true, after all, and our only rescue is through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The curse of sin was not reversed by adolescents playing at sex in a garden, but by the Son of God shedding His blood on a cross. So let's get our bearings straight as we think and talk about The Golden Compass. This movie does represent a great challenge, but a challenge that Christians should always be ready to meet."

Read Dr. Mohler's entire post here.

What Is This? You Name It.

2007-11-30T12:35:00.000-06:00

Frivolous Fun Friday. What is this? Do you know? If not, give us a cleaver guess.

(HT: Soul Junk)

With A Heart of Thanksgiving

2007-11-21T19:36:00.003-06:00

That for which I am thankful:

*My wife and children

*My church, Grace Church, and pastors Craig Cabaniss and Pete Payne

*That my name is written in heaven, in the Lamb's book of life. (Luke 10:20)

*That Christ's boundless love conquered my boundless sin.

*That He is ever faithful, when I am too often faithless. (1 Cor. 1:9; Deut. 7:9)

*His perfect obedience and shed blood hide all my transgressions from view. (Augustus M. Toplady, A Debtor to Mercy Alone)

*The cross, against which there is nothing in which to boast. (Gal. 6:14)

*The name, Jesus Christ of Nazareth, which is above every name. (Phil. 2:19)

*That by my sinless Savior's death (by which my sinful soul is counted free), God, the Just, is satisfied to look on Him and pardon me. (Charitie L. Bancroft, Before the Throne of God Above)

*That His mercies are new every morning, and his steadfast love endures forever. (Lam. 3:22-23; I Chron. 16:34)

For what are you thankful?

(Photo: Paul Lee, HighPoint Fellowship)

Have Rock? Make Honey!

2007-11-13T19:07:00.000-06:00

Thomas Wilcox (1621-1687), Pastor and Particular Baptist, wrote a powerful yet little known work, “Honey Out Of The Rock.”

Here are a few choice quotes to whet the appetite, and encourage you to read the entire sermon:

"Men talk bravely of believing, whilst whole and sound; few know it. Christ is the mystery of the Scripture; grace the mystery of Christ. Believing is the most wonderful thing in the world. Put any thing of your own to it, and you spoil it. Christ will not so much as look at it for believing. When you believe and come to Christ, you must leave behind you your own righteousness, and bring nothing but your sin: (Oh, that is hard!) leave behind all your holiness, sanctification, duties, humbling, and so on; and bring nothing but your wants and miseries, or else Christ is not fit for you, nor you for Christ. Christ will be a pure Redeemer and Mediator, and you must be an undone sinner, or Christ and you will never agree. It is the hardest thing in the world to take Christ alone for righteousness: that is to acknowledge Him Christ. Join any thing to Him of your own, and you un-Christ Him."

"Remember your sins, Christ's pardonings; your deserts, Christ's merits; your weakness, Christ's strength; your pride, Christ's humility; your many infirmities, Christ's restorings; your guilt, Christ's new applications of His blood; your failings, Christ's assistance; your wants, Christ's fullness; your temptations, Christ's tenderness; your vileness, Christ's righteousness."

"He is Judge of quick and dead, and must pronounce the final sentence. His blood speaks reconciliation (Col. 1:20); cleansing (1 John 1:7); purchase (Acts 20:28); redemption (1 Pet. 1:18); purging (Heb. 10:19); justification (Rom. 5:9); nearness to God (Eph. 2:13). Stand and hear what God will say, for He will speak peace to His people, that they return no more to folly (Ps. 85:8). He speaks grace, mercy and peace (2 Tim. 1:2). That is the language of the Father and of Christ."

"Believer, Christ drank up all the Father’s wrath at one draught; and nothing but salvation is left for you."

For the full text of “Honey Out Of The Rock,” you may download it in .pdf format, as an html, or in Rich Text for MSWord.