By Every Word...

Success and Jesus

2012-01-27T21:09:00.000-05:00

In my opinion, Ray Ortlund, Jr. is one of the most encouraging, edifying and balanced 'bloggers' out there today. He's truly a gospel-centered pastor. Here's another post from him:

In a world of secrets, outward success is everyone’s goal. If we can just succeed, we won’t have to face ourselves. No wonder that doesn’t work. It can’t work. The reality of what we are will always topple this house-of-cards persona we so earnestly wish were true.

The gospel is not God’s way of giving us an even better self-improvement goal. The gospel is God’s judgment on our better selves and his replacement of it all with Jesus.

Every one of us thinks, “If only I could do __________ or be __________, then I would arrive.” So, what does “arrival” look like to you? If it isn’t Jesus, the risen Lord himself, every arrival you achieve is only another set-back.

If you make financial security your arrival, you are already trapped in anxiety. If you make a thin body your identity, you will hate yourself more. If you make a porn-free life your okayness, you are doomed to compulsion. God’s remedy for you is not more money or better looks or perfect control. God’s gift to you is Jesus. With Jesus, we are saved. Everything is going to be okay. Without Jesus, we are damned. Nothing will go right.

Forsake all fraudulent success. Make Jesus your goal, your arrival, your identity, your comfort, your okayness, and he’ll gladly give himself to you — and on terms of grace. But reach for anything else, and it will turn into its opposite and betray you.

To paraphrase the apostle Paul, “I’ve lost everything, and I don’t even care, because now I get Jesus” (Philippians 3:8).

How we think of God, how we think of the atonement

2012-01-26T21:01:00.000-05:00

"All inadequate doctrines of the atonement are due to inadequate doctrines of God and man. If we bring God down to our level and raise ourselves to his, then of course we see no need for a radical salvation, let alone for a radical atonement to secure it. When, on the other hand, we have glimpsed the blinding glory of the holiness of God, and have been so convicted of our sin by the Holy Spirit that we tremble before God and acknowledge what we are, namely ‘hell–deserving sinners’, then and only then does the necessity of the cross appear so obvious that we are astonished we never saw it before. "

— John Stott
The Cross of Christ
(Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1986), 109

With Jesus, we have everything...

2012-01-25T17:18:00.000-05:00

More gospel-centered Biblical wisdom from Ray Ortlund, Jr.:

"In a world of secrets, outward success is everyone’s goal. If we can just succeed, we won’t have to face ourselves. No wonder that doesn’t work. It can’t work. The reality of what we are will always topple this house-of-cards persona we so earnestly wish were true.

"The gospel is not God’s way of giving us an even better self-improvement goal. The gospel is God’s judgment on our better selves and his replacement of it all with Jesus.

"Every one of us thinks, “If only I could do __________ or be __________, then I would arrive.” So, what does “arrival” look like to you? If it isn’t Jesus, the risen Lord himself, every arrival you achieve is only another set-back.

"If you make financial security your arrival, you are already trapped in anxiety. If you make a thin body your identity, you will hate yourself more. If you make a porn-free life your okayness, you are doomed to compulsion. God’s remedy for you is not more money or better looks or perfect control. God’s gift to you is Jesus. With Jesus, we are saved. Everything is going to be okay. Without Jesus, we are damned. Nothing will go right.

"Forsake all fraudulent success. Make Jesus your goal, your arrival, your identity, your comfort, your okayness, and he’ll gladly give himself to you — and on terms of grace. But reach for anything else, and it will turn into its opposite and betray you.

"To paraphrase the apostle Paul, “I’ve lost everything, and I don’t even care, because now I get Jesus” (Philippians 3:8)."

The Beauty of God's Holiness and Love

2012-01-24T18:27:00.000-05:00

"If we stress the love of God without the holiness of God, it turns out only to be compromise. But if we stress the holiness of God without the love of God, we practice something that is hard and lacks beauty. And it is important to show forth beauty before a lost world and a lost generation. All too often young people have not been wrong in saying that the church is ugly. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ we are called upon to show to a watching world and to our own young people that the church is something beautiful.

"Several years ago I wrestled with the question of what was wrong with much of the church that stood for purity. I came to the conclusion that in the flesh we can stress purity without love or we can stress the love of God without purity, but that in the flesh we cannot stress both simultaneously. In order to exhibit both simultaneously, we must look moment by moment to the work of Christ, to the work of the Holy Spirit. Spirituality begins to have real meaning in our moment-by-moment lives as we begin to exhibit simultaneously the holiness of God and the love of God."

-- Francis A. Schaeffer, The Church before the Watching World (Downers Grove, 1971), page 63.

The Implications of Divine Judgment

2012-01-23T21:10:00.000-05:00

"It must be emphasized that the doctrine of divine judgment, and particularly of the final judgment, is not to be thought of primarily as a bogey with which to frighten men into an outward form of conventional righteousness. It has its frightening implications for godless men, it is true; but its main thrust is as a revelation of the moral character of God, and an imparting of moral significance to human life."

- J. I. Packer

Packer on Why We Should Meditate on the Four Gospels More than Any Other Book

2012-01-22T14:59:00.000-05:00

J. I. Packer:

"[We can] correct woolliness of view as to what Christian commitment involves, by stressing the need for constant meditation on the four gospels, over and above the rest of our Bible reading: for gospel study enables us both to keep our Lord in clear view and to hold before our minds the relational frame of discipleship to him.

"The doctrines on which our discipleship rests are clearest in the epistles, but the nature of discipleship itself is most vividly portrayed in the gospels.

"Some Christians seem to prefer the epistles as if this were a mark of growing up spiritually; but really this attitude is a very bad sign, suggesting that we are more interested in theological notions than in fellowship with the Lord Jesus in person.

"We should think, rather, of the theology of the epistles as preparing us to understand better the disciple relationship with Christ that is set forth in the gospels, and we should never let ourselves forget that the four gospels are, as has often and rightly been said, the most wonderful books on earth."

—J. I. Packer, Keep in Step with the Spirit: Finding Fullness in Our Walk with God (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2005), p. 70, 71.
HT: Justin Taylor

A Sanctity of Life Sunday sermon from John Piper

2012-01-21T21:44:00.002-05:00

What does Roe vs. Wade actually say?

Jesus as Lord and Friend

2012-01-20T19:42:00.000-05:00

"The companionship of Jesus is indeed a gracious thing for burdened souls; but it is a terrible thing for those who have any trust in a righteousness of their own. No man can call Jesus friend who does not also call Him Lord; and no man can call Him Lord who could not say first; ‘Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, Lord.’

"At the root of all true companionship with Jesus, therefore, is the consciousness of sin and with it the reliance upon His mercy; to have fellowship with Him it is necessary to learn the terrible lesson of God’s law. "

— J. Gresham Machen
"What is Faith?"

"Is there enough teaching in the church?"

2012-01-19T20:47:00.000-05:00

More counter-(church)cultural thinking from Kevin DeYoung.

"Making necessary distincitions...."

2012-01-18T22:38:00.000-05:00

A call to discernment from Michael Horton

"Clothing Matters"

2012-01-17T20:08:00.000-05:00

What we wear to church may matter more than we think. An article from Duane Liftin.

"Getting it right...." (by Paul Tripp)

2012-01-16T15:19:00.002-05:00

Getting It Right

"But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord my refuge, that I may tell of all your works" (Psalm 73:28).

"It is a grace to get it right, because so often I get it wrong. No, I don't mean that I fall into gross and willing sin, and I don't mean that I am seduced by the old arguments of new atheism. No, I don't mean that I occasionally question the tenets of my faith or question whether ministry is really worth it. No, getting it wrong is much more subtle. Getting it wrong is not about the big, dramatic, consequential moments of life. No, getting it wrong is much more about the little mundane moments of everyday life.

"It is easy to let up your guard and be all too relaxed in these moments precisely because they are little. It is also tempting to minimize the wrong choices that you make in these little moments. But the opposite is true. The little moments of life are profoundly important because they are little. Little moments are the ones we live in everyday. The character and course of a person's life is not set in three or four grand, significant moments. No, the character of a person's life is shaped in 10,000 little moments. You carry the character formed in the mundane into those rare consequential moments of life.

"The last verse of Psalm 73 is a manual on getting it right, so it also instructs us on what it looks like to get it wrong. Getting it right means acknowledging God's presence, remembering his rescue, and obeying his call.

Acknowledging God's Presence

"These might be the most important words to have constantly ringing in the ears of your heart: "it is good to be near God." "Near God" is something you could never have earned, deserved, or personally achieved. "Near God" is the exact opposite of where sin takes you. "Near God" brought Jesus to earth and required him to die. "Near God" restores to you what sin destroyed and what only grace can restore. "Near God" is where you were designed to live.

"Grace has brought you close to God once again. Grace means he is in you and you are in him. Grace has made it impossible for you to be alone. God's greatest gift to you is himself! But you and I don't always acknowledge his presence. There are moments in life when we get it wrong, where we live as if he doesn't exist. When we act as if he is distant, we panic in the face of the normal difficulties of life in this fallen world and in the face of the perplexities of God's sovereign plan. Or else we fall into trying to do God's job, and in so doing, complicate our lives all the more. Does your daily living celebrate that grace has brought you near to God and God near to you?

Remembering God's Rescue

"In a fallen world that does not always operate in the way the Creator intended, and where temptation and danger lurk, these words are also vital: "I have made the Lord God my refuge." Under the heat of life in this broken world you will run somewhere for refuge when you become weary, wounded, and discouraged. But you must remember God is the only hiding place worth running to. He alone can heal the wounds of your heart. He alone can give you the strength you need to get up once more and continue. He alone can give inner peace when there is little peace to be found around you. He alone can forgive your sins and strengthen you when you are weak.

"But we often forget that grace has given us refuge. We forget that God welcomes us to run to him. So we run to the creation rather than the Creator for refuge, and when we do, we never get the solace we are seeking. We may successfully numb or distract ourselves for a while, but our hearts are not strengthened or encouraged. The replacement refuges of people and things cannot relieve, only distract us from our burdens, so we have to return to them repeatedly. We never end up strengthen and encouraged. We only end up fat, addicted, and indebted. Are you getting it right? When you are weak, weary, and discouraged, do you run to the one refuge who can deliver peace?

Obeying God's Call

"Getting it right is also about answering his call and remembering that God gives you himself and his grace to fulfill that calling, not so you can build a kingdom of your own design. "That I may tell of his works" says it very well. No longer do I live for the glory of getting what I want, indulging what I feel, and satisfying my needs. I now live with the recognition that I have been sovereignly gifted and positioned so that all that I do and say points to the one glory that can satisfy their hearts. I look for opportunities to point to his work as Creator, his work as sovereign, and his work as Savior.

"Sadly, I don't always get it right. Often I live as if there were few things as important as my schedule, plans, comfort, and success. Where the rubber meets the road in daily live, I put myself in the center of my world and forget that place had been reserved for God alone. When I make it all about me, I live in low-grade frustration and irritation. I miss the daily opportunities that God gives me to connect with something vastly bigger and fundamentally better. Are you concretely living for something bigger than your daily agenda?

"Because of God's grace, we often get it right. But because of remaining sin, we so often get it wrong. In which place are you living today? May your hands be productive because in your heart you get it right: God is near, he is my refuge, and I will obey his call."

Paul Tripp is the president of Paul Tripp Ministries, a nonprofit organization whose mission statement is "Connecting the transforming power of Jesus Christ to everyday life." Tripp is also professor of pastoral life and care at Redeemer Seminary in Dallas, Texas, and executive director of the Center for Pastoral Life and Care in Fort Worth, Texas. Tripp has written many books on Christian living that are read and distributed internationally. He has been married for many years to Luella, and they have four grown children.

He had a dream....

2012-01-16T09:46:00.000-05:00

The deservedly famous speech from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

An admonition to preachers

2012-01-15T23:05:00.002-05:00

“In the name of God, brethren, labor to awaken your own hearts, before you go to the pulpit, that you may be fit to awaken the hearts of sinners. Remember they must be awakened or damned, and . . . a sleepy preacher will hardly awaken drowsy sinners. Though you give the holy things of God the highest praise in words, yet, if you do it coldly, you will seem by your manner to unsay what you said in the matter. . . . Speak to your people as to men that must be awakened, either here or in hell. Look around upon them with the eye of faith, and with compassion, and think in what a state of joy or torment they must all be for ever; and then, methinks, it will make you earnest, and melt your heart to a sense of their condition.”

Richard Baxter, quoted in J. I. Packer, A Quest for Godliness (Wheaton, 1990), 279.

HT: Dane Ortlund.

Do you dread a false Deity?

2012-01-14T17:05:00.000-05:00

Samuel Bourn:

"All true fear of the Supreme Being can only spring from a right knowledge of him. And it consists, first and fundamentally, in conceiving and believing him to be what he is, most powerful indeed, but at the same time, most wise, just, and benevolent. . . .

"The character and title most certainly ascribed by our Savior and his Apostles to the Supreme being is The Father: the appellation [or name] by which we are taught to address him, [is] Our Father in heaven. . . . But if we impute to him qualities inconsistent with the parental character, and represent him to ourselves, as seeking and delighting, not in the happiness, but the misery and ruin of his creatures; we dethrone as it were, the Father, and set up in his stead a tyrant. . . .

"And the dread of such a false deity is widely different from the fear of God . . . producing timidity, distrust, dejection, horror and despair and leading to all the . . . corrupt methods, by which, men, deceiving themselves, may hope to appease his wrath and gain his favor."

"On Religious Fear," Discourses on Various Subjects of Natural Religion and the Christian Revelation, vol. 2 (London: R. Griffiths, 1760), 356–57, quoted in Lou Priolo, Fear: Breaking Its Grip, (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2009), 8–9.

HT: Desiring God Ministries (Jonathan Parnell)

"Unselfishing" Ourselves for the Sake of Others

2012-01-13T21:19:00.002-05:00

“Our self-abnegation is thus not for our own sake but for the sake of others. And thus it is not to mere self-denial that Christ calls us but specifically to self-sacrifice, not to unselfing ourselves but to unselfishing ourselves. Self-denial for its own sake is in its very nature ascetic, monkish. It concentrates our whole attention on self—self-knowledge, self-control—and can therefore eventuate in nothing other than the very apotheosis of selfishness. At best it succeeds only in subjecting the outer self to the inner self or the lower self to the higher self, and only the more surely falls into the slough of self-seeking, that it partially conceals the selfishness of its goal by refining its ideal of self and excluding its grosser and more outward elements. Self-denial, then, drives to the cloister, narrows and contracts the soul, murders within us all innocent desires, dries up all the springs of sympathy, and nurses and coddles our self-importance until we grow so great in our own esteem as to be careless of the trials and sufferings, the joys and aspirations, the strivings and failures and successes of our fellow-men. Self-denial, thus understood, will make us cold, hard, unsympathetic—proud, arrogant, self-esteeming—fanatical, overbearing, cruel. It may make monks and Stoics, it cannot make Christians.”

-- B. B. Warfield, “Imitating the Incarnation,” in The Person and Work of Christ (Grand Rapids, 1970), page 574.

HT: David Powlison. (HT: Ray Ortlund, Jr.)

The Cosmic Canvas

2012-01-12T21:24:00.002-05:00

I shall bet my life on the assumption that this world is not idiotic, neither run by an absentee landlord, but that today, this very day, some stroke is being added to the cosmic canvas that in due course I shall understand with joy as a stroke made by the Architect who calls himself Alpha and Omega. ~ Clyde Kilby

What is friendship?

2012-01-11T21:25:00.001-05:00

What is friendship? The Bible, and particularly the book of Proverbs, spends much time describing and defining it. One of the prime qualities of a friend is constancy. Friends “love at all times” and especially during “adversity” (Proverbs 17:17). The counterfeit is a “fair-weather friend” who comes over when you are successful but goes away if prosperity, status, or influence wanes (Proverbs 14:20; 19:4,6,7). True friends stick closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). They are always there for you. Another of the essential characteristics of friendship is transparency and candor. Real friends encourage and affectionately affirm one another (Proverbs 27:9; cf. 1 Samuel 23:16–18), yet real friends also offer bracing critiques: “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Proverbs 27:5–6). Like a surgeon, friends cut you in order to heal you. Friends become wiser together through a healthy clash of viewpoints. “As iron sharpens iron, so friend sharpens friend” (Proverbs 27:17). There are two features of real friendship—constancy and transparency. Real friends always let you in, and they never let you down.

-- Tim Keller, "The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God" (p. 104). Penguin Group.

A powerful address from Charles Spurgeon

2012-01-10T20:40:00.001-05:00

"First Things First"

"AN ADDRESS BY C. H. SPURGEON,
DELIVERED AT THE MONTHLY MEETING OF THE LONDON BANKS’ PRAYER UNION,
HELD AT THE EGYPTIAN HALL, MANSION HOUSE, LONDON,
ON MONDAY AFTERNOON, SEPTEMBER 28, 1885,
THE RIGHT HON. THE LORD MAYOR, M.P., IN THE CHAIR"

Challenging passages from the Book of Hebrews

2012-01-09T22:00:00.000-05:00

Commentator Peter O'Brien gives helpful teaching in this interview about warning passages in the Epistle to the Hebrews.

"Why go I mourning?"

2012-01-08T22:20:00.000-05:00

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

I will say to God my Rock,
'Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? '
Psalm 42:9

Canst thou answer this, believer? Canst thou find any reason why thou art so often mourning instead of rejoicing? ["Why so downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?" v.11] Why yield to gloomy anticipations? Who told thee that the night would never end in day? Who told thee that the sea of circumstances would ebb out till there should be nothing left but long leagues of the mud of horrible poverty? Who told thee that the winter of thy discontent would proceed from frost to frost, from snow, and ice, and hail, to deeper snow, and yet more heavy tempest of despair? Knowest thou not that day follows night, that flood comes after ebb, that spring and summer succeed winter?

Hope thou then! Hope thou ever! For God fails thee not. Dost thou not know that thy God loves thee in the midst of all this? Mountains, when in darkness hidden, are as real as in day, and God's love is as true to thee now as it was in thy brightest moments...Thou shalt yet climb Jacob's ladder with the angels, and behold Him who sits at the top of it--thy covenant God. Thou shalt yet, amidst the splendours of eternity, forget the trials of time, or only remember them to bless the God who led thee through them, and wrought thy lasting good by them.

Come, sing in the midst of tribulation. Rejoice even while passing through the furnace. Make the wilderness to blossom like the rose! Cause the desert to ring with thine exulting joys, for these light afflictions will soon be over, and then "for ever with the Lord," thy bliss shall never wane.

Faint not nor fear,
His arms are near,
He changeth not, and thou art dear;
Only believe and thou shalt see,
That Christ is all in all to thee.

"...to live is Christ..."

2012-01-07T17:53:00.000-05:00

"The believer did not always live to Christ. He began to do so when God the Holy Spirit convinced him of sin, and when by grace he was brought to see the dying Saviour making a propitiation for his guilt. From the moment of the new and celestial birth the man begins to live to Christ. Jesus is to believers the one pearl of great price, for whom we are willing to part with all that we have. He has so completely won our love, that it beats alone for Him; to His glory we would live, and in defence of His gospel we would die; He is the pattern of our life, and the model after which we would sculpture our character.

"Paul's words mean more than most men think; they imply that the aim and end of his life was Christ—nay, his life itself was Jesus. In the words of an ancient saint, he did eat, and drink, and sleep eternal life. Jesus was his very breath, the soul of his soul, the heart of his heart, the life of his life.

"Can you say, as a professing Christian, that you live up to this idea? Can you honestly say that for you to live is Christ? Your business—are you doing it for Christ? Is it not done for self-aggrandizement and for family advantage? Do you ask, "Is that a mean reason?" For the Christian it is. He professes to live for Christ; how can he live for another object without committing a spiritual adultery?

"Many there are who carry out this principle in some measure; but who is there that dare say that he hath lived wholly for Christ as the apostle did? Yet, this alone is the true life of a Christian—its source, its sustenance, its fashion, its end, all gathered up in one word—Christ Jesus. Lord, accept me; I here present myself, praying to live only in Thee and to Thee. Let me be as the bullock which stands between the plough and the altar, to work or to be sacrificed; and let my motto be, "Ready for either."

Let your light shine....

2012-01-06T21:09:00.000-05:00

Good practical exhortation from John MacArthur...

The Gospel and Its Effects

2012-01-05T20:03:00.000-05:00

"The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope. This is the only kind of relationship that will really transform us. Love without truth is sentimentality; it supports and affirms us but keeps us in denial about our flaws. Truth without love is harshness; it gives us information but in such a way that we cannot really hear it. God’s saving love in Christ, however, is marked by both radical truthfulness about who we are and yet also radical, unconditional commitment to us. The merciful commitment strengthens us to see the truth about ourselves and repent. The conviction and repentance moves us to cling to and rest in God’s mercy and grace."

Timothy Keller, The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God (p. 40). Penguin Group.

Bible Reading plans for 2012

2012-01-04T20:30:00.000-05:00

Justin Taylor provides a helpful list of options.

In Christ Alone

2012-01-03T17:39:00.000-05:00

"In Christ alone God’s rich provision of salvation for sinners is treasured up: by Christ alone God’s abundant mercies come down from heaven to earth.Christ’s blood alone can cleanse us; Christ’s righteousness alone can cleanse us; Christ’s merit alone can give us a title to heaven. Jews and Gentiles, learned and unlearned, kings and poor men — all alike must either be saved by the Lord Jesus, or lost forever."

— J. C. Ryle

A great goal for the New Year

2012-01-01T20:09:00.000-05:00

“It ought to be the primary goal of every Christian to put aside confidence in works and grow stronger in the belief that we are saved by faith alone. Through this faith the Christian should increase in knowledge not of works but of Christ Jesus and the benefits of his death and resurrection.”

Martin Luther, The Freedom of the Christian (Minneapolis, 2008), page 55.

A Poem for the New Year

2011-12-31T11:39:00.001-05:00

-- by Charles Moir

O Thou whose glory fills the heavens,
Whose bounty clothes the earth,
To Thee a poem of thanks we raise
For blessings from our birth.

For that untiring love Thou dost,
From day to day renew,
O may it on our hearts descend
Like heaven-distilled dew.

For mercy great, unending still,
Which gave up to the grave
Thine only Son, the Sinless One,
Our sinful souls to save.

While entering on another year
Our cares on Thee we cast,
Beseeching aid in days to come
Which cheered us through the past.

That still the freedom may be ours
To kneel down in Thy sight,
And worship Thee at shut of day,
And in the morning light.

That from temptation's fatal paths
Thou turn our steps away;
And keep us from unholy thoughts
That lead the mind astray.

No more may lust of worldly wealth
Command thoughts that are thine;
Nor may we envy other's lot,
Or at our own repine.

Than all the riches earth can boast
Or gems beneath the sea,
We know the pious, humble heart,
More precious is to Thee.

How needful, then, to train our thoughts,
And fan the heavenly flame
Of faith, in the believing heart,
Triumphing o'er sin and shame

And holding by the Word, thou hast
For grace and guidance given,
Pass trough this world in holy fear,
True candidates for heaven.

Your Father delights in giving you the kingdom

2011-12-29T18:22:00.000-05:00

"Our heavenly Father is sitting on the edge of his throne of grace eager to hear our prayers and do us good." -- John Piper

"Our case is settled..."

2011-12-28T23:12:00.000-05:00

"Christ bore our sin. And he stripped Satan of the one weapon that he had that could damn us: namely, the valid accusation of our unforgiven sin. That weapon is taken from his hand. He is disarmed. We have no unforgiven sin. The blood of Jesus covers our sin — all of it. Therefore the cross was the decisive defeat of the condemning designs of the devil. He cannot succeed. The victory is ours though faith in Christ. This is why John said in Revelation 12:11, ‘They have conquered Satan by the blood of the Lamb.’ The blood of the Lamb strips Satan of his one condemning weapon, our unforgiven sin.

"The god of this world is cast out of the courtroom. Our case his settled. Our judgment is passed. Our sins are forgiven. Our accuser has no records in his folder. He has no say in our future any more. We have passed from death to life. God has glorified himself by defeating his ancient adversary at the very moment when Satan thought he could win."

— John Piper
For This Purpose I Have Come to This Hour
(Minneapolis, Minn.: Desiring God Ministries, December 3, 2011)

"What to do if you wake up feeling fragile...."

2011-12-28T12:05:00.000-05:00

More practical wisdom from John Piper....

Since we are made in the image of God...

2011-12-26T20:48:00.000-05:00

from C.S. Lewis’s The Weight of Glory:

It may be possible for each to think too much of his own potential glory hereafter; it is hardly possible for him to think too often or too deeply about that of his neighbor.

The load, or weight, or burden of my neighbor’s glory should be laid daily on my back, a load so heavy that only humility can carry it, and the backs of the proud will be broken.

It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare.

All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations.

It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics.

There are no ordinary people.

You have never talked to a mere mortal.

Nations, cultures, arts, civilization—these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.

But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit—immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.

This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn.

We must play.

But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously—no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.

And our charity must be real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner—no mere tolerance or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment.

-- C.S. Lewis, "The Weight of Glory"

HT: Justin Taylor

"If we regularly beheld the glory of Christ..."

2011-12-26T20:24:00.000-05:00

"If we regularly beheld the glory of Christ our Christian walk with God would become more sweet and pleasant, our spiritual light and strength would grow daily stronger and our lives would more gloriously represent the glory of Christ. Death would be most welcome to us."

— John Owen
The Glory of Christ
(Carlisle, Pa.: Banner of Truth, 1994), 21

The Bible's Message of Christmas

2011-12-25T12:38:00.000-05:00

The Biblical message about Christmas is the wondrous truth of the Son of God becoming man to save sinners from the guilt and misery of their sin.

It is about the profound mystery of the Incarnation – the Word becoming flesh, God becoming man, dwelling among us, as one of us, fitting Him to be our sympathizing Savior and interceding High Priest.

It is about the fulfillment of promises and prophecies and about the inauguration of a new covenant, with the covenant gifts of forgiveness of sin and the indwelling ministry of the Holy Spirit.

It is about the drawing near of the reign of God in the person of the Messiah whom God had promised to send.

It is about the glory of God in the way that he brings peace – shalom (the way things are supposed to be) – to earth.

It is about the momentous decision that his coming presents to every human being – will they receive or reject Him? Will they repent and believe the Good News?

And the Good News is that a Savior from sin has come – and this One who is Savior/Redeemer is also Messiah, King and Lord. Those who refuse Him will bring final judgment and everlasting ruin upon themselves. Those who receive Him are actually made the children of God!

The Biblical stories surrounding the birth of Christ also give us compelling examples (in the responses of Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Simeon etc.) of what it means to trust and obey God, and to submit to his will even when that submission is very difficult. And these examples teach us about what it means to care more about the interests of the kingdom of God than our own individual concerns.

These are the themes that the faithful church joyfully and reverently proclaims in music and message at Christmas time!

"Behold, the Lamb of God"

2011-12-24T10:34:00.001-05:00

Jill Phillips, from Behold the Lamb of God, with scenes from the movie, The Nativity Story:

The song and YouTube video.

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....

HT: Justin Taylor

"God with us"...the Good News of Christmas

2011-12-23T21:36:00.000-05:00

Preaching on Isaiah 7:14, C. H. Spurgeon closed with this flourish:

“God with us.” It is hell’s terror. Satan trembles at the sound of it; the black-winged dragon of the pit quails before it. Let him come to you suddenly, and do you but whisper that word, “God with us,” back he falls, confounded and confused. “God with us” is the laborer’s strength; how could he preach the gospel, how could he bend his knees in prayer, how could the missionary go into foreign lands, how could the martyr stand at the stake, how could the confessor own his Master, how could men labor, if that one word were taken away? “God with us” is the sufferer’s comfort, the balm of his woe, the alleviation of his misery, the sleep which God gives to his beloved, their rest after exertion and toil. “God with us” is eternity’s sonnet, heaven’s hallelujah, the shout of the glorified, the song of the redeemed, the chorus of angels, the everlasting oratorio of the great orchestra of the sky.

-- from Ray Ortlund, Jr.

When the Promise seems unlikely...

2011-12-22T11:28:00.001-05:00

“I am the Almighty God, able to fulfill your highest hopes and accomplish for you the brightest ideal that ever my words set before you. There is no need of paring down the promise until it squares with human probabilities, no need of relinquishing one hope it has begotten, no need of adopting some interpretation of it which may make it seem easier to fulfill, and no need of striving to fulfill it in any second-rate way. All possibility lies in this: I am the Almighty God.” (see Genesis 17:1)

-- Marcus Dods, The Book of Genesis (New York, 1902), page 161.
HT: Ray Ortlund, Jr.

Worrying is "meddling with Christ's business"

2011-12-21T15:29:00.000-05:00

From Charles Spurgeon:

"The lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord."—Proverbs 16:33.

IF the disposal of the lot is the Lord's whose is the arrangement of our whole life? If the simple casting of a lot is guided by Him, how much more the events of our entire life—especially when we are told by our blessed Saviour: "The very hairs of your head are all numbered: not a sparrow falleth to the ground without your Father."

It would bring a holy calm over your mind, dear friend, if you were always to remember this. It would so relieve your mind from anxiety, that you would be the better able to walk in patience, quiet, and cheerfulness as a Christian should. When a man is anxious he cannot pray with faith; when he is troubled about the world, he cannot serve his Master, his thoughts are serving himself. If you would "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness," all things would then be added unto you.

You are meddling with Christ's business, and neglecting your own when you fret about your lot and circumstances. [see Matthew 6:25-34]. You have been trying "providing" work and forgetting that it is yours to obey. Be wise and attend to the obeying, and let Christ manage the providing.

Come and survey your Father's storehouse, and ask whether He will let you starve while He has laid up so great an abundance in His garner? Look at His heart of mercy; see if that can ever prove unkind! Look at His inscrutable wisdom; see if that will ever be at fault. Above all, look up to Jesus Christ your Intercessor, and ask yourself, while He pleads, can your Father deal ungraciously with you? If He remembers even sparrows, will He forget one of the least of His poor children? "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He will sustain thee. He will never suffer the righteous to be moved."

My soul, rest happy in thy low estate,
Nor hope nor wish to be esteem'd or great;
To take the impress of the Will Divine,
Be that thy glory, and those riches thine.

"Afflictions, But No Broken Bones"

2011-12-20T19:10:00.000-05:00

From Charles Spurgeon:

He keepeth all his bones; not one of them is broken. (Psalm 34:20)

"This promise by the context is referred to the much afflicted righteous man: 'Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.' He may suffer skin wounds and flesh wounds, but no great harm shall be done; 'not a bone of him shall be broken.'

"This is great comfort to a tried child of God, and comfort which I dare accept; for up to this hour I have suffered no real damage from my many afflictions. I have neither lost faith, nor hope, nor love. Nay so far from losing these bones of character, they have gained in strength and energy. I have more knowledge, more experience, more patience, more stability than I had before the trials came. Not even my joy has been destroyed. Many a bruise have I had by sickness, bereavement, depression, slander, and opposition; but the bruise has healed, and there has been no compound fracture of a bone, not even a simple one. The reason is not far to seek. If we trust in the Lord, He keeps all our bones; and if He keeps them, we may be sure that not one of them is broken.

"Come, my heart, do not sorrow. Thou art smarting, but there are no bones broken. Endure hardness and bid defiance to fear."

For the sake of praise, not pride

2011-12-19T16:18:00.000-05:00

"We are not saved from sin and changed into righteousness for the sake of pride but for the sake of praise. And when God's work on us is done and we stand perfected before Christ in the last day, we will not exult in our worth but will sing with millions of angels: 'Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and honor and glory and blessing.' Praise to you, O Lord. Amen."

-- John Piper

The True Christmas Story Is a Story We Are Already In

2011-12-18T14:42:00.001-05:00

“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.” Lk.1:1-4….

“We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.” 2 Pet. 1:16

The Biblical Christmas story is real history, it’s not a “Christmas Shoes” kind of story (e.g., a sentimental story of something that may or may not have happened, whether it did or didn’t doesn’t matter, you can still ‘learn the lesson’ or apply the ‘moral’ of the story…)

Christianity is the religion that insists that it rests upon what really happened, and that whether what it affirms as having happened really did happen, makes all the difference in the world. It matters crucially to the truth claim that Christianity makes (1 Cor. 15:12-19; 2 Peter 1:16; 1 Jn.1:1ff.; Jn.20:30-32; Lk.1:1-4; cp. Acts 1:1-4). And that’s why you find the 'witness/eyewitness' theme throughout the New Testament (Lk. 24:45-49; Jn. 20:30-31; Acts 1:8; 4:20; 1 Cor. 15:14-19; Rev. 1:5; 3:14).

And think about it: how do we know anything that we know and believe about history? We know and believe it because we believe in the ‘witness/testimony’ of others who were there at the time.

The Bible is story, yes, but it is a story interpreted and applied by God himself (cp. 1 Jn. 5:9-13, regarding God’s own ‘witness/testimony’ concerning His Son).

The basic Christian message is NEWS – it’s reporting about what really happened (Lk.1:1-4), combined with a God-given explanation of what those events meant, and still mean today.

“Christ died…” that’s story/history/news “…for our sins…” that’s inspired interpretation and explanation... "according to the Scriptures" -- and so the Scriptures faithfully bear witness to Christ (1 Cor. 15:1ff.; Jn. 5:39)

That a baby was born in Bethlehem is news…it happened in history. It really happened. But the Bible goes further, telling us who he was and what he had come to do…and that’s what makes it Gospel – Good News.

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord." (Lk.2:11)

And so the main reason a person should embrace Christianity, and become a Christian, believing in Christ – is because this Good News is really true, it really happened, and Jesus Christ is just who the Bible and the Gospel say he is – Savior, Christ/Messiah, Lord!

So the Christmas Story is a Story that always involves each of us, and always requires a response (Matt.28:18ff.; Acts 2:36ff.; Jn. 3:16)

In fact, the Biblical story is a story we’re all already in…. And in this Story, in the real and true history of God that is the history of our world, Jesus is Savior, so we are to trust Him, and He is Lord, so we are to give Him our whole-souled allegiance.

What Christmas tell us...

2011-12-17T20:25:00.000-05:00

Christmas means "God is with us" (Matt. 1:23); the Cross means "God is for us" (Rom.8:31).

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!." (2 Cor. 9:15)

"...He Ascended into Heaven."

2011-12-16T13:38:00.001-05:00

"If 25 percent of the New Testament has the ascension of Christ as its central event and theological emphasis, why is this the most overlooked doctrine in modern evangelicalism?..."

Read this helpful, inspiring essay here.

"God's Funeral"

2011-12-15T11:14:00.000-05:00

An exchange between Martin Luther and his wife Katharina:

“Once, when Martin was so depressed that none of Kate’s counsel would help, she put on a black dress.

Luther noticed it and asked, ‘Are you going to a funeral?’

‘No,’ Kate replied, ‘but since you act like God is dead, I wanted to join you in your mourning.’

Luther got the message and recovered.”

—Rudolf K. Markwald and Marilynn Morris Markwald, Katharina Von Bora: A Reformation Life (Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 2002), 139-140.

HT: Justin Taylor

"The World's Best Epilogue"

2011-12-14T20:36:00.000-05:00

By: Ed Welch

Topics: Gospels, Scripture & Theology

Published: Mar 04, 2010

"With so much of life being untidy and imperfect, I appreciate an epilogue that brings a satisfying completeness to a complicated story. I’ll even settle for a couple of lines at the end of a movie: Jack’s fortunes were restored, his good name was cleared, and he lived to see many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, which sounds peculiarly like a great Old Testament epilogue. Yes, the end of Job is a winner, but, as we might expect, everything is better once Jesus comes. The epilogue to John’s gospel is the best ever.

"John seems to finish his gospel at the end of chapter 20, but at the urging of the Spirit – and perhaps with a little time afforded by older age and the incessant questions from inquiring minds – he brings everything together in such a way that you too will find it to be the best and most edifying epilogue ever. Throughout his gospel John tosses out intriguing themes and connections, but he rarely spells out his ingenious method. Instead, he is content to put us to work and let us figure some of it out. But, when we get to John 21, we can sit back and relax. Everything is clear.

"Peter is the main character, and for good reason. After all, who doesn’t want to find out what happened to this inner-circle disciple who fell as hard as anyone possibly could? And our interest is not mere curiosity. Since we all have some of Peter in us, we are eager to see how far Jesus’ forgiveness actually extends. If it extended to him, it extends to us.

"The epilogue starts in a very familiar way. John echoes the very beginning of Peter’s relationship with Jesus (Luke 5:4-11). Same lake, no success fishing, an incongruous request from Jesus, a ton of fish. But this time it is no idyllic scene. The last time Peter was fishing Jesus said, “from now on you will catch men” (Luke 5:11), and he hadn’t cast a net since. Now he was back fishing again. He was a man without a mission. At the beginning of this epilogue, Peter had to be thinking that Jesus’ invitation to catch men and women to be part of God’s Kingdom was no longer valid, so he went back to fishing for fish. When Jesus called out to Peter, “throw your net on the right side of the boat” (John 21:6) the nets were soon bursting at the seams, and the message was unmistakable: Peter, what are you waiting for? Get out and start fishing for men. Do you think sin can tinker with my purpose in your life? No way.

"Great epilogue, isn’t it? Peter could not max out God’s gracious forgiveness with three blatant denials. For us, since three blatant denials equal or beat any of our own top three sins, God’s gracious forgiveness certainly extends to our worst sins. As a result, we are justified in hearing Jesus’ words as if they were his words to us. Better yet, it is one thing to be forgiven, but it something much more to be a fruitful partner in God’s plan for the world. We tend to think that we need to spend a few years in the doghouse after such a shameful display of sin. Well, that is not the case. Forgiveness, acceptance and re-commissioning are the way of the Kingdom.

"But in case you have a hard time believing this, Jesus does more.

"An invitation to a meal has always been a sign of fellowship and acceptance. The host is saying that all is well in the relationship with you. Now intensify that experience. For the New Testament Jew, eating together had near sacramental overtones. It was filled with the symbolism of unity and friendship. If you feel unworthy or unclean, your host responds by honoring your and making sure you are cleansed.

"Jesus says, “Come and have breakfast.”

The message again is unmistakable: Peter, you are cleansed. You are a friend. Please, join me. I love you.

"And he says it to us too.

"Too good to be true? Jesus keeps at it. He matches Peter’s three-fold denial with his three-fold commissioning, and he doesn’t even raise the shameful events of the past. Here is a prime moment for “I told you so”—how many times have I gone into a conversation in which I swore off the “I told you so” only to hear it come stumbling out of my mouth— but all Jesus does is stress his love, acceptance and partnership.

"I talked to a man the other day who had been in the marriage dog house. Bad decisions, too many hours wasted in self-indulgence, a roommate more than a spouse – then, finally, after years of indifference to his wife’s pleas, he experienced real repentance. The only question: Was this too little too late? About a month into his changes, he heard his wife on the phone. She was making an appointment with a counselor, who happened to be me, and the husband interpreted that to mean counselor-at-law. He wasn’t angry, but saddened that this was the consequence of his old lifestyle. The marriage was over. When she hung up the phone, she sat down to give him the news. She had set up a time for counseling. It would be like a date. They could spend the morning together, go out for lunch, and top off the day with some biblical direction for their marriage. He witnessed John 21 in a modern-day form.

“Do you love me? Feed my sheep” Jesus is saying that Peter’s sin is in the distant and forgotten past, he loves Peter, and he is asking Peter to respond in kind. In this case, Peter’s love would take a particular form. He would adopt the mission of his Lord and King. Forgiveness and purpose – if you have one, you have the other.

"John crams a lot more in this epilogue, but this is enough to leave a smile on my face. Sins forgiven, fellowship restored, and guaranteed fruitfulness in the best job ever. I still have a hard time believing that he gives us the entire package – forgiveness, fellowship and fruitfulness – even when my sin rivals that of Peter, yet my unbelief is nothing that a few more years of repentance can’t cure.

"Lord, you said these things to Peter. You said them to me. I confess that I limit your words to the size of my own imagination. I believe you. I trust you. And, to respond to your question “Do you love me?” - yes, I love you."

-- Ed Welch, from the website of CCEF (Christian Counseling Educational Foundation)

The most accurate description of counseling....

2011-12-14T10:30:00.001-05:00

"Perhaps the most accurate synonym for counseling is wise love. Wise love makes a huge difference in other people's lives. Both the receiving and giving of wise love make a huge difference in your life. Genuine care, a searching question, sympathy and understanding, a timely and true word of God, practical aid, patience in the process---these are life giving."

-- David Powlison, an excerpt from a book foreward

The place of prayer

2011-12-12T21:18:00.000-05:00

"Ten minutes' praying is better than a year's murmuring." - C.H. Spurgeon

Where can the darkness be drowned?

2011-12-11T22:19:00.000-05:00

C. S. Lewis:

In the Incarnation God the Son takes the body and human soul of Jesus, and, through that, the whole environment of Nature, all the creaturely predicament, into his own being.

So that ‘he came down from Heaven’ can almost be transposed into ‘Heaven drew earth up into it,’ and locality, limitation, sleep, sweat, footsore weariness, frustration, pain, doubt, and death, are, from before all worlds, known by God from within.

The pure light walks the earth; the darkness, received into the heart of Deity, is there swallowed up. Where, except in uncreated light, can the darkness be drowned?”

-- "Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer," (San Diego: Harvest, 1964), 70ff.

The Church and the World

2011-12-10T20:19:00.000-05:00

“That very church which the world likes best is sure to be that which God abhors.”
― Charles H. Spurgeon

Christ's love to you

2011-12-09T20:48:00.000-05:00

“In one sense the whole object of being a Christian is that you may know the love of Jesus Christ, his personal love to you; that he may tell you in unmistakable language that he loves you, that he has given himself for you, that he has loved you with ‘an everlasting love.’ He does this through the Holy Spirit; he ‘seals’ all his statements to you through the Spirit. . . . You believe it because it is in the Word; but there is more than that; he will tell you this directly as a great secret. The Spirit gives manifestations of the Son of God to his own, to his beloved, to those for whom he has gladly died and given himself.”

D. M. Lloyd-Jones, Romans: An Exposition of Chapters 7.1-8.4 (Edinburgh, 1973), page 61.

HT: Ray Ortlund, Jr.

"Come, Lord Jesus, to Redeem Us"

2011-12-08T22:30:00.000-05:00

Come, Lord Jesus, to redeem us

from our foes and from our fears.

We await the hand of mercy

that will wipe away our tears.

We have labored long in darkness,

even now our hearts grow weak.

How we long for your appearing

and your great salvation seek.

(Rev. 21:4; Rom. 8:23; 2Tim. 4:8)

Come, Lord Jesus, true and righteous,

bring your pure and piercing light.

For we know when you appear, Lord,

ev’ry wrong shall be made right.

You will vanquish all the proud ones;

you will fill all those who thirst.

O, the first shall be the last, then

,and the last shall be the first.

(Rev. 16:5-7; Matt. 19:30; 20:16; 24:32-46)

Now prepare a path before Him:in the desert make a way.

Take the gospel to the nations

and proclaim his coming Day.

Ev’ry mountain must be leveled;

ev’ry valley must be raised.

Then all flesh shall see his glory.

God shall be forever praised!

(Isa. 40:3-5; Matt. 24:14)

Raise the cry of "Maranatha!”

We shall soon behold our King.

To the Alpha and Omega,

this one prayer and plea we sing:

joining voices with the Spirit

we, the Bride of Christ, say, "Come!”

Come, Lord Jesus, come and free us

from this death and bring us home.

(1Cor. 16:22; Rev. 22:13, 17)

Text: Gary A. Parrett (2002)

Tune: NETTLETON

Come, thou long-expected Jesus, born to set thy people free

Whole-hearted trust accepts authority

2011-12-07T21:18:00.000-05:00

from Ray Ortlund, Jr.:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5

How can I tell if my trust in the Lord is wholehearted? One way is this. Do I let the Bible overrule my own thinking? It says, “Do not lean on your own understanding.” So, do I agree with the Bible, or do I obey the Bible? If I merely agree with the Bible, then my positive response is not obedience but coincidence. The Bible just happens to line up with the prejudices I’ve soaked up from my background. But what do I do when the Bible contradicts what I want to be true — especially when, on top of that, it seems culturally remote and perplexing? If I’m reading the Bible for excuses for what I want anyway, my heart has already drifted from the Lord. But if I trust him wholeheartedly, I will let the Bible challenge my most cherished thoughts and feelings.

Preaching the Gospel...Words Required

2011-12-06T08:30:00.001-05:00

"Have you ever heard that statement (attributed to Francis of Assisi), 'Preach the gospel. If necessary, use words'? How do you explain the gospel without using words? That’s like saying, 'Tell me your phone number. If necessary, use digits.'

"Your phone number is digits. The gospel is the words announcing what Christ has done.

"People can’t look at our lives and know the story of Christ. They may see glimpses of the kindness of Christ, but expecting them to get the gospel by watching us would be like trying to gather information from a newscast with the sound turned off."

-- J. D. Greear, "Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary" (p. 223). B&H Publishing Group

Christmas Is for Those Who Dread It the Most

2011-12-05T20:08:00.005-05:00

from Matt Redmond:

We are by now accustomed to hearing about how Christmas is difficult for many people. The story of Scrooge and his—ehem—problems with this season is no longer anecdotal. It is now par for the course. Maybe it always has been. Maybe the joy of the season has always been a thorn in the side of those who can scarcely imagine joy.

Not too long ago, I heard from someone about how difficult Christmas would be because of some heartbreak in their family. There was utter hopelessness and devastation. Christmas would be impossible to enjoy because of the freshness of this pain. It's been a story very hard to forget.

I get it. I mean, it makes sense on the level of Christmas being a time in which there is a lot of heavily concentrated family time. The holidays can be tense in even the best of circumstances. Maneuvering through the landmines of various personalities can be hard even if there is no cancer, divorce or empty seat at the table. What makes it the most wonderful time of the year is also what makes it the most brutal time of the year. My own family has not been immune to this phenomenon.

But allow me to push back against this idea a little. Gently. I think we have it all backwards. We have it sunk deep into our collective cultural consciousness that Christmas is for the happy people. You know, those with idyllic family situations enjoyed around stocking-strewn hearth dreams. Christmas is for healthy people who laugh easily and at all the right times, right? The successful and the beautiful, who live in suburban bliss, can easily enjoy the holidays. They have not gotten lost on the way because of the GPS they got last year. They are beaming after watching a Christmas classic curled up on the couch as a family in front of their ginormous flat-screen. We live and act as if this is who should be enjoying Christmas.

But this is backwards. Christmas—the great story of the incarnation of the Rescuer—is for everyone, especially those who need a rescue. Jesus was born as a baby to know the pain and sympathize with our weaknesses. Jesus was made to be like us so that in his resurrection we can be made like him; free from the fear of death and the pain of loss. Jesus’ first recorded worshipers were not of the beautiful class. They were poor, ugly shepherds, beat down by life and labor. They had been looked down on over many a nose.

Jesus came for those who look in the mirror and see ugliness. Jesus came for daughters whose fathers never told them they were beautiful. Christmas is for those who go to "wing night" alone. Christmas is for those whose lives have been wrecked by cancer, and the thought of another Christmas seems like an impossible dream. Christmas is for those who would be nothing but lonely if not for social media. Christmas is for those whose marriages have careened against the retaining wall and are threatening to flip over the edge. Christmas is for the son whose father keeps giving him hunting gear when he wants art materials. Christmas is for smokers who cannot quit even in the face of a death sentence. Christmas is for prostitutes, adulterers, and porn stars who long for love in every wrong place. Christmas is for college students who are sitting in the midst of the family and already cannot wait to get out for another drink. Christmas is for those who traffic in failed dreams. Christmas is for those who have squandered the family name and fortune—they want "home" but cannot imagine a gracious reception. Christmas is for parents watching their children’s marriage fall into disarray.

Christmas is really about the gospel of grace for sinners. Because of all that Christ has done on the cross, the manger becomes the most hopeful place in a universe darkened with hopelessness. In the irony of all ironies, Christmas is for those who will find it the hardest to enjoy. It really is for those who hate it most.

Good News: "God with us"

2011-12-04T20:27:00.000-05:00

‘Immanuel, God with us.’ It is hell’s terror. Satan trembles at the sound of it. . . . Let him come to you suddenly, and do you but whisper that word, ‘God with us,’ back he falls, confounded and confused. . . . ‘God with us’ is the laborer’s strength. How could he preach the gospel, how could he bend his knees in prayer, how could the missionary go into foreign lands, how could the martyr stand at the stake, how could the confessor own his Master, how could men labor if that one word were taken away? . . . ‘God with us’ is eternity’s sonnet, heaven’s hallelujah, the shout of the glorified, the song of the redeemed, the chorus of the angels, the everlasting oratorio of the great orchestra of the sky. . . .

"Feast, Christians, feast; you have a right to feast. . . . But in your feasting, think of the Man in Bethlehem. Let him have a place in your hearts, give him the glory, think of the virgin who conceived him, but think most of all of the Man born, the Child given.

"I finish by again saying, A happy Christmas to you all!”

-- C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of the Old Testament (London, n.d.), III:430.

HT: Ray Ortlund

What is unbelief?

2011-12-03T18:24:00.000-05:00

St. Hilary of Poitiers (c. AD 315-67):

“All unbelief is foolishness, for

it takes such wisdom as its own finite perception can attain,

and measuring infinity by that petty scale,

concludes that what it cannot understand must be impossible.

Unbelief is the result of incapacity engaged in argument.”

—De Trinitate, III.24, cited in Douglas Kelly, Systematic Theology, vol. 1, p. 19.

HT: Justin Taylor

Why we need Jesus Christ

2011-12-02T21:38:00.000-05:00

An important essay from Michael Horton on this theme: "Reason and morality cannot show us a good and gracious God. For that, we need the Incarnation."

Membership Matters

2011-12-01T20:03:00.000-05:00

"Why Should You Join a Church?"

Jesus is the Great Burden-bearer

2011-11-30T22:41:00.000-05:00

"Jesus is the great Burden-Bearer of His people. No other arm, and no other heart, in heaven or upon earth, were strong enough, or loving enough, to bear these burdens but His! He who bore the weight of our sin and curse and shame in His obedience and death — bore it along all the avenues of His weary pilgrimage, from Bethlehem to Calvary — is He who now stretches forth His Divine arm, and makes bare a Brother’s heart to take your burden of care and of grief, dear saint of God, upon Himself."

— Octavius Winslow

The Ministry of Home

(HT: Tony Reinke; Of First Importance)

Why Theology Matters

2011-11-29T22:12:00.000-05:00

A good summary post from Kevin DeYoung on why faithful churches and faithful Christians should be unapologetically theological.

What it means to trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord

2011-11-28T21:00:00.001-05:00

“’Trusting in Jesus’…means firmly believing certain things to be true about Jesus – that he came into the world as God’s Son, that he died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins, that he rose again to be God’s king, and that he is the only one who can stand as a priest before God on my behalf – and then acting in dependence and reliance upon those things about him….

“Because I know and trust that Jesus is God’s good and perfect king, I will fall down before him and submit my entire life to him, knowing that whatever he tells me to do will be excellent and for my good. And because I know and trust that Jesus has died and risen and ascended to God as my priest, I will completely depend upon him for the forgiveness of my sins and eternal life. I will place my life in his hands, knowing that he will save me from the judgment I deserve and that submitting to him as my king will mean ‘life’ with a capital L.”

“What part does the Spirit play in this? He’s the one who changes us on the inside so that we put our trust in Jesus…. By his Spirit, God brings us to the point where we put our trust in Jesus, making him the king and savior of our lives…. When the Spirit brings you to trust in Jesus, he actually begins a new life in you…. God works in you so that you start living how you were meant to live – with Jesus as the king of your life. God makes you his by joining you to Jesus in such a way that his death is your death – all your sins are paid for; and his life is your life – you begin to live as someone who loves God.”

-- Paul Grimmond, "Right Side Up: Life as God Meant It to Be" (Matthias Media, pp. 71-73)

God's ability to bless

2011-11-27T22:47:00.000-05:00

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think . . . .” Ephesians 3:20

“Not above some things that we ask, but all. Not above some of our dimmer conceptions, our lower thoughts, but above all that we think. Now just put together all that you have ever asked for. Heap it up, and then pile upon the top thereof all that you have ever thought of concerning the riches of divine grace. What a mountain! . . . High as this pyramid of prayers and contemplations may be piled, God’s ability to bless is higher still.”

-- C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, 1950), III:419.

HT: Ray Ortlund, Jr.

Beloved children, keep yourselves from idols...

2011-11-26T18:46:00.001-05:00

From David Powlison:

The relevance of massive chunks of Scripture hangs on our understanding of idolatry. But let me focus the question through a particular verse in the New Testament which long troubled me. The last line of 1 John woos, then commands us:

“Beloved children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21).

In a 105-verse treatise on living in vital fellowship with Jesus, the Son of God, how on earth does that unexpected command merit being the final word?

Is it perhaps a scribal emendation?

Is it an awkward faux pas by a writer who typically weaves dense and orderly tapestries of meaning with simple, repetitive language?

Is it a culture-bound, practical application tacked onto the end of one of the most timeless and heaven-dwelling epistles?

Each of these alternatives misses the integrity and power of John’s final words.

Instead, John’s last line properly leaves us with that most basic question which God continually poses to each human heart.

Has something or someone besides Jesus the Christ taken title to your heart’s trust, preoccupation, loyalty, service, fear and delight?

It is a question bearing on the immediate motivation for one’s behavior, thoughts, and feelings. In the Bible’s conceptualization, the motivation question is the lordship question.

Who or what “rules” my behavior, the Lord or a substitute?

The undesirable answers to this question—answers which inform our understanding of the “idolatry” we are to avoid—are most graphically presented in 1 John 2:15-17, 3:7-10, 4:1-6, and 5:19. It is striking how these verses portray a confluence of the “sociological,” the “psychological,” and the “demonological” perspectives on idolatrous motivation.

The inwardness of motivation is captured by the inordinate and proud “desires of the flesh” (1 John 2:16), our inertial self-centeredness, the wants, hopes, fears, expectations, “needs” that crowd our hearts.

The externality of motivation is captured by “the world” (1 John 2:15-17,4:1-6), all that invites, models, reinforces, and conditions us into such inertia, teaching us lies.

The “demonological” dimension of motivation is the Devil’s behavior-determining lordship (1 John 3:7-10,5:19), standing as a ruler over his kingdom of flesh and world.

In contrast, to “keep yourself from idols” is to live with a whole heart of faith in Jesus. It is to be controlled by all that lies behind the address “Beloved children” (see especially 1 John 3:1-3,4:7-5:12). The alternative to Jesus, the swarm of alternatives, whether approached through the lens of flesh, world, or the Evil One, is idolatry.

HT: Justin Taylor

Unbelief in three tenses

2011-11-25T10:24:00.000-05:00

Guilty regret is unbelief regarding God’s grace and goodness, aimed at the past; envy is that same unbelief in the present, and worry is the same doubt about his goodness, aimed at the future.

President George Washington's Thanksgiving Day Proclamation

2011-11-24T15:26:00.000-05:00

THANKSGIVING DAY 1789

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - A PROCLAMATION

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor - and Whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be – That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks – for his kind care and protection of the People of this country previous to their becoming a Nation – for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war –for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed – for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions – to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually – to render our national government a blessing to all the People, by constantly being a government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed – to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord – To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and Us – and generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

GEO. WASHINGTON.

You cannot jump out of your skin

2011-11-23T19:14:00.000-05:00

"All things are intrinsically made to work in Christ’s way, and, if they do, they work well. The discovery of that fact is going to be the greatest adventure of the future. If we were created by Christ and for Christ, then he is inescapable. You cannot jump out of your skin. If you revolt against Christ, you revolt against yourself. God has us hooked. We may run away in short excursions of freedom, but he reels us in. The facts are against us."

— E. Stanley Jones, quoted by Darrell W. Johnson in

Discipleship on the Edge

(Vancouver, BC: Regent College Publishing, 2004), 117-118

HT: Of First Importance

"When we watch our friends suffer...."

2011-11-22T21:17:00.000-05:00

Gracious wisdom from Ray Ortlund, Jr.:

Eliphaz reveals how his suspicions of Job were confirmed. “A spirit glided past my face” one night with a message (Job 4:12-16). A profound insight came to him in this striking manner. What was it? Nobody’s perfect (Job 4:17). Wow. We really needed spiritual illumination to know that.

In Eliphaz’s mind, that glib moralism explains Job’s sufferings. It gives Eliphaz, he feels, authority to needle Job, to go on and on about how Job should repent and if only he would own up everything would get better, etc.

But more, his simplistic outlook casts a shadow on God: “Even in his servants he puts no trust, and his angels he charges with error” (Job 4:18). In other words, God is the ultimate Fault-Finder. That is the moral calculus of the universe.

“Nobody’s perfect” is indeed true, but not profound, nor even relevant in Job’s case (Job 1:1, 8). It does, however, surround Job with an aura of suspicion in the eyes of others. There is a social dimension to suffering, as friends gather around to insinuate their well-meaning but misplaced criticisms. Inevitably, a mentality of judgment projects its darkness even onto God himself. God saw it that way (Job 42:7).

Wisdom, by contrast, makes us suspicious of our own suspicions, critical of our own criticisms. Wisdom stops, rather than spreads, a spirit of accusation. Wisdom gives the benefit of the doubt. Wisdom, like love, “believes all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7), filling in every blank with positive assumptions.

God does sit in judgment over us all — with perfect wisdom, for the sake of Jesus Christ his Son, the Friend of sufferers, the Accused in their place.

Our part? “Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent” (Proverbs 11:12). And, “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body” (Proverbs 16:24).

The mission of the church

2011-11-21T20:55:00.000-05:00

A "Missional Manifesto" (from Tim Keller, Ed Stetzer...)

What "union with Christ" means in experience

2011-11-20T21:30:00.000-05:00

So near, so very near to God

Nearer I could not be

For in the person of his Son

I’m just as near as he.

So dear, so very dear to God

Dearer I could not be

The love wherewith he loved his Son

Is the love he has for me!

-- a poem quoted by Ray Ortlund, Jr. in a tribute he wrote to his father

What matters most in a preacher?

2011-11-19T18:06:00.003-05:00

"If the pulpit be declining in power, it is due in a great measure to the men who mistake error for freshness, self-conceit for culture, and a determination to go astray for nobility of mind. So far from despising brethren of small literary accomplishments who excel in spiritual power and life, it is our duty to have them in abundant honour, to cheer them under their difficulties, and imitate them in their industrious use of their few talents. They can arouse a conscience though they cannot elucidate a problem; they can stir the affections, though they cannot revel in poetic imagery; they can reclaim sinners, though they cannot mystify with subtleties."

-- Charles Spurgeon

(See the rest of this message here.)

What should we expect in our daily walk with God?

2011-11-17T22:00:00.000-05:00

In this first post, Justin Taylor introduces teaching from Greg Koukl that examines the idea "that a true relationship of intimacy with God requires ongoing private and personal revelations as a normative part of the Christian life."

In this second post, John Koessler discusses a related concern, the possibility of disappointment when it comes to our expectations of 'intimacy with God.'

Receive the redemption God offers

2011-11-16T21:28:00.001-05:00

To refuse to let God graciously redeem and restore you is the worst and last act of tragically needless unbelief.

Justification: Declared Righteous...

2011-11-15T20:57:00.000-05:00

"This is the scandal of justification: How can God declare us righteous if we are not inherently righteous? Isn’t this a legal fiction? Doesn’t it make God a liar? But that’s like thinking that God cannot say, ‘Let there be light’ unless there is already a sun to give it. God himself creates the conditions necessary for the existence of his work. When he says, ‘Let there be light!’ the sun exists. When he says, ‘Let this ungodly person be righteous,’ ‘this barren woman be pregnant,’ ‘this faithless person embrace my Word,’ it is so.

"When we really understand justification, we really understand how God works with us in every aspect of our lives before him. Christ lived the purpose-driven life so that we would inherit his righteousness through faith and be promise-driven people in a purpose-driven world. He did gain the everlasting inheritance by obedience to everything God commanded, driven by the purpose of fulfilling the law for us, in perfect love of God and neighbor, and he bore its judgments against us. His resurrection guarantees that the law of sin and death does not have the last word over us. He fulfilled the original purpose and commission for human existence, glorifying and enjoying his Father to the fullest. And he did this as our covenantal head, our representative, not simply as a moral example. Just as we were ‘in Adam’ at the fall, we were legally included ‘in Christ’ as he fulfilled all righteousness, bore our sins, and rose from the dead in victory."

— Michael Horton

The Gospel-Driven Life

(Grand Rapids, Mi.: Baker Books, 2009), 141-142

"A Game Plan for When You Start to Worry"

2011-11-14T21:03:00.000-05:00

Justin Taylor presents helpful perspectives from David Powlison.

"Why We'd Be in a Miserable World Without Religion"

2011-11-12T18:02:00.000-05:00

Go here for an interview with King’s College President Dinesh D’Souza: why he’ll argue against the motion, “The World Would Be Better Off Without Religion,” at the Nov. 15 Slate/Intelligence Squared U.S. debate.

Baptism is for believers

2011-11-11T14:33:00.001-05:00

Justin Taylor has a very helpful interview with Stephen Wellum, summarizing the case for believer's baptism.

Here is the introduction to the blog post:

Stephen Wellum is professor of Christian Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, KY). His essay “Baptism and the Relationship between the Covenants” (available in PDF online for free) is, in my mind, one of the most helpful pieces showing what the differences between the old and new covenants demonstrate the necessity of credobaptism over and against paeodobaptism. (The chapter is part of a larger collection of essays, Believer’s Baptism: Sign of the New Covenant in Christ, ed. Thomas Schreiner and Shawn Wright.) He is also the co-author, with Peter Gentry of the forthcoming book Kingdom through Covenant: A Biblical-Theological Understanding of the Covenants (forthcoming June 2012), a massive exegetical and biblical-theological look at all of the biblical covenants.....

You can read the entire post here.

Spiritual Disciplines and the Gospel

2011-11-10T21:00:00.000-05:00

"Spiritual disciplines must be accompanied by a deep saturation in the gospel. The gospel changes the desires and cravings of the heart. The whole purpose of the disciplines, in fact, is to give you opportunity to think about, and meditate on, and move within the gospel. Spiritual disciplines are like wires that connect us to the power of the gospel. They have no power in themselves, but they connect us to the place from which the power flows. They are gateways to the gospel, but not the gospel itself."

-- J.D. Greear, "Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary" (p. 196). B&H Publishing Group.

Honoring one another

2011-11-09T20:26:00.001-05:00

from Ray Ortlund, Jr.:

"Outdo one another in showing honor." Romans 12:10

I wonder if Romans 12:10 is one of the most under-obeyed commands in Scripture. I wonder if we have lowered our standard to “Do no harm to one another,” which is passive, and if we are not destroying each other we must be doing okay. But the gospel is all about the glory of God coming down on sinners (2 Thessalonians 2:14). Honor to one another is an obvious next step. But how many churches have you observed that made you say, “How they honor one another!”

What might keep us from pressing further in this way?

One, we might fear that honoring one another could appear to be mere flattery, even manipulation. And yes, we should carefully watch our hearts against insincerity. But do we ever obey perfectly in any respect? Obeying imperfectly is better than disobeying for fear of imperfection.

Two, we might think, Who am I to confer honor on anyone? What is my opinion worth? Good thought. Humble thought. But it isn’t us conferring the honor. It is God. Our part is to celebrate the honor and glory God is giving.

Three, we might not know how to show honor. Some of us grew up in homes where put-downs were how we were managed as children. But the gospel is all we need to begin a new tradition in every life, every home, every church. As we reach for nobler things, the God of peace will be with us to help us (Philippians 4:8-9).

Four, we might not see things in other believers worthy of honor. Well, maybe we need to look more closely. “As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight” (Psalm 16:3). Every saint has some excellence. But an outlook of negative scrutiny will impute dark things to admirable people. Maybe we need to repent of an ungenerous spirit toward truly godly people.

As Paul Tournier wrote in Guilt and Grace, pages 15-16, “In everyday life we are continually soaked in this unhealthy atmosphere of mutual criticism, so much so that we are not always aware of it and we find ourselves drawn unwittingly into an implacable vicious circle: every reproach evokes a feeling of guilt in the critic as much as in the one criticized, and each one gains relief from his guilt in any way he can, by criticizing other people and in self-justification.” This is the spirit of worldliness.

We gospel-centered people are under the command of God to create alternative cultures of honor, called churches, where people are lifted up, their accomplishments celebrated, their strengths admired, their weaknesses forgiven. This new relational environment has high standards, in keeping with the glory of the gospel.

Believing in the love and power of God

2011-11-08T20:53:00.001-05:00

It is easy to believe in the love and power of God when you are seeing it manifested in your circumstances. Believing in God’s love is harder, however, when He’s not answering a prayer the way you think He should. For years, atheists have advanced an argument against God based on the presence of evil in the world. It goes something like this: If there were a God who is infinite in love, He would want to stop pain. If He is infinite in power, He could stop pain. Therefore, since pain exists, God must not. Perhaps you’ve asked a similar question, even as a believer:

God, why won’t You bless my ministry?

Why aren’t I married yet?

God, why isn’t my business prospering? I’d use the profits to bless others!

God, why won’t You heal me?

God, don’t You see?

Why won’t You help? Don’t You care? Do You not love me?

I can’t answer all the “why” questions, but I do know this: We must not reinterpret how God feels about us based on our circumstances. The cross settles forever how God feels about us, and the resurrection shows us how much power He is using to bring about His good plan for our lives.

-- J.D. Greear, "Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary" (pp. 184-185). B&H Publishing Group

"Because we are in Christ..."

2011-11-07T17:33:00.002-05:00

"Preaching the gospel to ourselves every day gives us hope, joy, and courage. The good news that our sins are forgiven because of Christ’s death fills our hearts with joy, gives us courage to face the day, and offers us hope that God’s favor will rest upon us, not because we are good, but because we are in Christ."

— Jerry Bridges

The Discipline of Grace: God's Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness

(Colorado Springs, Co.: NavPress, 1994), 26

Suffering from Eternity Amnesia

2011-11-05T20:45:00.000-04:00

"...Why are our expectations less than realistic? Because in our eternity amnesia we are asking this present world to be what it simply never will be. We want the here and now to behave as if it is our final destination, when actually all that we are experiencing in the here and now prepares us for the destination that is to come.... Human beings were created to live big-picture, long-view lives. We were made to live with something bigger in view than this present moment’s comfort, pleasure, and happiness. Eternity confronts us with the fact that we are not in charge, that we do not live in the center of the universe, and that life moves by the will and purpose of Another. The instantaneous, self-serving, me obsession of our culture never results in inner peace and contentment. Eternity confronts me with the realities that transcend my momentary wants, feelings, and needs."

-- Paul DavidTripp, "Forever: Why You Can't Live Without It" Zondervan

What does God want for us?

2011-11-04T21:40:00.000-04:00

‎"I'm not sure that God particularly wants us to be happy. I think he wants us to be able to love and be loved. He wants us to grow up. We think our childish toys bring us all the happiness there is and our nursery is the whole wide world - but something must drive us out of the nursery to the world of others and that something is suffering."
- C.S. Lewis

What does it mean to live in hope?

2011-11-03T21:10:00.000-04:00

"If you are God’s child, you have hope because God is hope, and you have a hope that will last forever because he has defeated the one thing that stands between you and forever: death.

"Sadly, many of us who by God’s grace have been given hope don’t live as if we have it. We look for hope where hope can’t be found. We place our hope in things that can never deliver. We live hopelessly because we fail to live with forever in view. We live for the next vacation, the next thrilling experience, the next stunning achievement. We put our hope in the hands of flawed and finite people, burdening our relationships with expectations that they can never deliver. We ask inanimate objects to give us a reason to get up in the morning, but they never can.

"Sure, the things in which we put our hope give us a temporary buzz and a temporary rest, but reality always hits. These things all disappoint us in the end. No matter how wonderful the situations in our life are, no matter how beautiful our possessions are, no matter how exciting our experiences are, no matter how fulfilling our accomplishments are, and no matter how loving the people in our lives are, they will only satisfy us temporarily. They simply cannot carry our hope. How different would your life and mine be if we remembered that everything that exists in the created world is meant to be a finger pointing us to the only place where hope can be found?"

-- Paul David Tripp, "Forever: Why You Can't Live Without It" Zondervan.

Why we have hope...

2011-11-02T20:31:00.000-04:00

"If you are God’s child, you can have hope in the middle of all the tough things you face because in all those moments God is with you, but also because the cross of Jesus guarantees you that all that is broken will be made new forever. You can live today knowing that you have a future that is beyond the boundaries of your wildest imagination. If you are God’s child, you have hope because God is hope, and you have a hope that will last forever because he has defeated the one thing that stands between you and forever: death."

— Paul David Tripp

Forever: Why You Can't Live Without It

(Grand Rapids, Mi.: Zondervan, 2011), 101-102

"The most important thing..."

2011-11-01T20:50:00.001-04:00

Here is Ray Ortlund's moving tribute to his father (Ray Ortlund, Sr., whose "Haven of Rest" broadcasts really ministered to me early in my Christian life):

"I think about my dad a lot. I miss him so much it aches sometimes. But the most important thing he taught me was this. There is only one way to live: all-out, go-for-broke, risk-taking enthusiasm for Christ.

"Halfway Christianity is the most miserable existence of all. Halfhearted Christians know enough about their sin to feel guilty about themselves, but they haven’t given themselves enough to the Savior to become happy in him. Wholehearted Christianity is happy.

"How could my dad get there and stay there? He really, really knew that God loved him and had completely forgiven all his sins at the cross of Jesus. He did not wring his hands, wondering what God thought of him. He believed the good news, his spirit soared and he could never do too much for Jesus.

"I am thankful for what I saw in my dad. It’s the most valuable thing anyone has ever given me. I want everyone to have this treasure."

How we share in His righteousness...

2011-10-31T10:05:00.000-04:00

John Calvin:

"Therefore, that joining together of Head and members, that indwelling of Christ in our hearts—in short, that mystical union—are accorded by us the highest degree of importance, so that Christ, having been made ours, makes us sharers with him in the gifts with which he has been endowed.

"We do not, therefore, contemplate him outside ourselves from afar in order that his righteousness may be imputed to us but because we put on Christ and are engrafted into his body—in short, because he deigns to make us one with him. For this reason, we glory that we have fellowship of righteousness with him."

-- Institutes of the Christian Religion, Vol. 1, ed. John T. McNeill, trans. Ford Lewis Battles, 3.XI.10 (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1960), p. 737).

"People do not drift toward holiness..."

2011-10-30T16:47:00.000-04:00

‎"People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated." - D.A. Carson

Sin Forgiven and Overcome

2011-10-29T14:39:00.000-04:00

"A legal mode of thinking gives indwelling sin an advantage, because nothing so cuts the nerve of the desire to pursue holiness as much as a sense of guilt. On the contrary, nothing so motivates us to deal with sin in our lives as does the understanding and the application of the two truths that our sins are forgiven and the dominion of sin is broken becuase of our union with Christ.

"Robert Haldane in his commentary of Romans...said, 'No sin can be crucified in heart of life, unless it is first pardoned in conscience... If it be not mortified [put to death] in its guilt, it cannot be subdued in its power.'"

-- Jerry Bridges, "The Discipline of Grace"

The more we see of the love of God....

2011-10-28T20:44:00.001-04:00

John Owen--

So much as we see of the love of God, so much shall we delight in him, and no more.

Every other discovery of God, without this, will but make the soul fly from him; but if the heart be once much taken up with this the eminency of the Father’s love, it cannot choose but be overpowered, conquered, and endeared unto him. This, if anything, will work upon us to make our abode with him. If the love of a father will not make a child delight in him, what will?

Put, then, this to the venture: exercise your thoughts upon this very thing, the eternal, free, and fruitful love of the Father, and see if your hearts be not wrought upon to delight in him. I dare boldly say: believers will find it as thriving a course as ever they pitched on in their lives. Sit down a little at the fountain, and you will quickly have a further discovery of the sweetness of the streams. You who have run from him, will not be able, after a while, to keep at a distance for a moment.

--John Owen, Communion with the Triune God (ed. K. Kapic and J. Taylor; Crossway, 2007), 128

HT: Don Jones; Dane Ortlund

"Blessed are the uncool...."

2011-10-27T20:52:00.000-04:00

Lessons (for evangelical Christians) from a Mormon ad campaign...

Perspectives on Halloween

2011-10-26T22:03:00.000-04:00

Some newer thoughts about how to think about Halloween.

The Ultimate Apologetic

2011-10-25T20:44:00.000-04:00

from Ray Ortlund, Jr.

In the July 1954 issue of Reformation Review, Francis Schaeffer published “How Heresy Should Be Met.” He proposed that, to neutralize the heresies defrauding people in our time, what is needed is a three-fold strategy:

“The final problem is not to prove men wrong, but to win them back to Christ. Therefore, the only ultimately successful apologetic is, first, a clear, intellectual statement of what is wrong with the false doctrine, plus a clear, intellectual return to the proper scriptural emphasis, in all its vitality and in its relation to the total Christian faith, plus a demonstration in the life that this correct and vital scriptural emphasis meets the genuine needs and aspirations of men in a way that Satan’s counterfeit does not.”

The ultimate apologetic is churches where (1) falsehood is exposed, (2) the gospel is clarified, and (3) we together, though imperfect, become living proof that the gospel creates beautiful human beings in beautiful community.

"Should you be a missionary?"

2011-10-24T17:30:00.000-04:00

from Charles Spurgeon:

I plead this day for those who cannot plead for themselves, namely, the great outlying masses of the heathen world. Our existing pulpits are tolerably well supplied, but we need men who will build on new foundations. Who will do this?

Are we, as a company of faithful men, clear in our consciences about the heathen? Millions have never heard the Name of Jesus. Hundreds of millions have seen a missionary only once in their lives, and know nothing of our King. Shall we let them perish?

Can we go to our beds and sleep, while China, India, Japan, and other nations are being damned? Are we clear of their blood? Have they no claim on us? We ought to put it on this footing – not, ‘Can I prove that I ought to go?’ but, ‘Can I prove that I ought not to go?’ When a man can honestly prove that he ought not to go, then he is clear, but not else. What answer do you give, my brethren? I put it to you man by man.

I am not raising a question among you which I have not honestly put to myself. I have felt that, if some of our leading ministers would go forth, it would have a grand effect in stimulating the churches, and I have honestly asked myself whether I ought to go. After balancing the whole thing, I feel bound to keep my place, and I think the judgment of most Christians would confirm my decision; but I hope that I would readily, and willingly, and cheerfully go abroad if I did not feel that I ought to remain at home.

Brethren, put yourselves through the same process. We must have the heathen converted; God has myriads of His elect among them, we must go and search for them somehow or other. Many difficulties are now removed, all lands are open to us, and distance is almost annihilated. True, we have not the Pentecostal tongues; but languages are now readily acquired, while the art of printing is a full equivalent for the lost gift.

The dangers incident to missions ought not to keep any true man back, even if they were very great, but they are now reduced to a minimum. There are hundreds of places where the cross of Christ is unknown, to which we can go without risk. Who will go?

… Surely there is some self-sacrifice among us yet, and some among us who are willing to be exiled for Jesus. The Mission languishes for want of men. If the men were forthcoming, the liberality of the Church has provided the supply, and yet there are not men to go. I shall never feel, brethren, that we, as a band of men, have done our duty until we see our comrades fighting for Jesus in every land in the van of the conflict. I believe that, if God moves you to go, you will be among the best of missionaries, because you will make the preaching of the gospel the great feature of your work, and that is God’s sure way of power.

-- HT: Nathan Busenitz

How the Psalms Both Express and Shape the Emotions of God’s People

2011-10-23T21:32:00.000-04:00

From Jack Collins’s “Introduction to the Psalms” in the ESV Study Bible:

The Psalter is the songbook of the people of God in their gathered worship.
These songs cover a wide range of experiences and emotions, and give God’s people the words to express these emotions and to bring these experiences before God.
At the same time, the psalms do not simply express emotions: when sung in faith, they actually shape the emotions of the godly. The emotions are therefore not a problem to be solved but are part of the raw material of now-fallen humanity that can be shaped to good and noble ends. The psalms, as songs, act deeply on the emotions, for the good of God’s people. It is not “natural” to trust God in hardship, and yet the Psalms provide a way of doing just that, and enable the singers to trust better as a result of singing them. A person staring at the night sky might not know quite what to do with the mixed fear and wonder he finds in himself, and singing Psalm 8 will enrich his ability to respond.
The Psalms also provide guidance in the approach to worship: at times they offer content that is difficult to digest, calling on God’s people to use their minds as well as their hearts and voices.
They show profound respect for God as well as uninhibited delight in him.
They enable the whole congregation to take upon themselves, to own, the troubles and victories of the individual members, so that everyone can “rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15).
They enable God’s people more fully to enjoy being under his care, and to want more keenly to be pure and holy, seeing purity and holiness as part of God’s fatherly gift rather than as a burden.

HT: Justin Taylor

The way to have true Christian unity

2011-10-22T20:52:00.000-04:00

A. W. Tozer:

Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow.
So one hundred worshippers meeting together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become “unity” conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship.

—The Pursuit of God [1948] (Wilder Publications, 2009), p. 63.

HT: Dane Ortlund, Defiant Grace: The Surprising Message and Mission of Jesus, p. 86.

& Justin Taylor

A Prayer of Aspiration

2011-10-21T21:14:00.000-04:00

(author unknown)...

Lord Jesus, give me a deeper repentance, a horror of sin, a dread of its approach. Help me chastely to flee it and jealously to resolve that my heart shall be Thine alone.

Give me a deeper trust, that I may lose myself to find myself in Thee, the ground of my rest, the spring of my being. Give me a deeper knowledge of Thyself as saviour, master, lord, and king. Give me deeper power in private prayer, more sweetness in Thy Word, more steadfast grip on its truth. Give me deeper holiness in speech, thought, action, and let me not seek moral virtue apart from Thee.

Plough deep in me, great Lord, heavenly husbandman, that my being may be a tilled field, the roots of grace spreading far and wide, until Thou alone art seen in me, Thy beauty golden like summer harvest, Thy fruitfulness as autumn plenty.

I have no master but Thee, no law but Thy will, no delight but Thyself, no wealth but that Thou givest, no good but that Thou blessest, no peace but that Thou bestowest. I am nothing but that Thou makest me. I have nothing but that I receive from Thee. I can be nothing but that grace adorns me. Quarry me deep, dear Lord, and then fill me to overflowing with living water.

When life punches you in the face....

2011-10-20T21:50:00.003-04:00

The amount which you understand the gospel is measured by your ability to be joyful in all circumstances. If you grasp what a treasure the presence and acceptance of God are, then even when life goes really wrong you will have a joy that sustains you, because you’ll recognize the value of what you have in Him. When life punches you in the face, you’ll say, ‘But I still have the love and acceptance of God, a treasure I don’t deserve.’ And the joy you find in that treasure can make you rejoice even when you have a bloody nose. You have a joy that death and depravation cannot touch.

— J. D. GreearGospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary(Nashville, Tn.: B & H Publishing, 2011), 81

C.S. Lewis: What to remember when fighting temptation

2011-10-19T22:02:00.000-04:00

Characteristically insightful and though-provoking perspectives from Lewis, this time on 'fighting temptation.'

"He does all that He pleases....."

2011-10-18T19:22:00.000-04:00

A brief overview of Scripture passages concerning God's sovereignty.

"My song is love unknown"

2011-10-17T22:02:00.000-04:00

The power of grace: "Love to the loveless shown, that they might lovely be."