Another Prayer

Wondrous almighty God
Your child lies here waiting to be held
I want to marvel at your world
I want to bask in amazement
I want to see beyond this veil I wear
I want to see into the infinite
You have given me exactly what I can bear
And when I fail you pick me up
You carry me more than I walk
And your faithfulness has no end
How many times will I pick up the hammer
…will I drive the nails in your hands
…will I spit upon your face
…will I whip you to disgrace
Yet your arms reach out again
…hold me when I’m alone
…protect me when I cant see
…pick me up and carry me again
Wondrous almighty Christ
You bore my sins and you call me home
I see you now in your glory
I see you now in your humility
I see you now as my King
I see you now as my lover
You will never leave me nor forsake me
And when I cry you comfort me
You pour your grace and love on me
And your worship has no end
I love you so pitifully
But with all I am I want to sing
You will cause me to love you more
Amen

A prayer

Your love astounds me
A love of heavenly wisdom
A love of unforeseen grace
How marvelous is your guidance
Wrestling with fear and doubt exaggerated by anger
But because of your preexisting knowledge I trust
My knowledge of your wisdom
…of your love
…of your guidance
…of your brilliance
As a child huddled in the corner
In a dark and strange environment
I find myself wanting something I know
I know you
I find myself wanting something I trust
I trust you
I find myself wanting someone who loves
You love me
I step forward in the dark scared that I will fall
Your providence lays a firm foundation
I step trembling scared like a lost child
My footing being established by you
Despite my fear your peace surrounds me
I experience your wisdom
…your love
…your guidance
…your brilliance
As a child I cling to you my father
I find myself scared and yet trusting
Your love astounds me

Glories in Christ for October 5th 2007

So I sit here in Starbucks and I just started to write. This is the product. It is not polished and rehearsed...it is spontaneous and honest. Enjoy

There is something, nay, everything! Everything is precious and amazing about our life. I do not mean our material existence or the ability to move and breathe and function. I mean spiritually. The fact that we are both again, regenerated and brought from death and damnation, enemies and haters of God who are taken into his arms and embraced by God while we fight Him, and by his amazing love and sovereign grace, he breathed into us life, love and righteousness. With his effectual calling he brings his enemies and makes them his lovers. This is an incredible power, but it should not surprise those of us who know of Jesus Christ. This power that regenerates us and causes us to love God in the midst of our vehement rebellion, this is the same power that raised Lazarus from the dead, and even more it is the same power that rose our Lord and Savior, the reason we live and breathe, Jesus Christ from the dead on the 3rd day. This grace is amazing indeed. Not only is it immeasurable in power, but also it is unmerited in application! We know that mankind is at war with God by nature, no one is good and no one does any good. God would be completely justified in sending every single human to hell as soon as they’re conceived. This is understood. But what a scandalous proposition that God should make the unrighteous righteous! How can a just and holy God just forgive sin, which is by its very nature an affront to him? Can God just forget our wrongdoing and be just? May it never be! For God to be just, he must extract punishment worthy of the violations that every human commits against him. This is the state of humanity, and this is our only plea when we stand before God: “Guilty and worthy of hell”. That is what we would have to declare and just as all hope was forever dashed, Christ our King stands up and says, “I will bear the punishment for his sin”! The Son of God stands before us and his righteousness becomes ours and at the moment of regeneration, we gasp for air and say “I believe!” and at that moment all of our sin is washed away because Christ was our wrath-bearer. What did I do to deserve this favor with the Son of God? Why am I not being damned to hell with the rest of humanity as I rightly deserve? How can one who did not desire or love God be transformed and have faith and actually start to love God? The death of the King of Kings on the cross, secured for me heaven, eternal life, faith itself, and all good things! What blessed grace. Regeneration secured my salvation and created the faith to accept the gospel of grace, the gospel of my salvation! Regeneration, blood bought and blood secured, the source of infinite, eternal blessing and favor with the God of the universe. I was once at war with God, but I am now reconciled by the blood of Christ. I was a slave to sin and marked by wrath, but I am now held in the embrace of the God I trespassed. This is my salvation, and today I praise God for the gift of regeneration that made this possible.

It will come back...

Spiritual depression has lifted, and I should be engaged and writing again soon...so check back periodically to see if its up and running!

See my pain?

Something that happened at work yesterday helped me realize something. I've been somber and more melancholy than usual, in part due to anxiety and in part due to internal struggles I think. Anyway, at work I had to step back from what I was doing because I didn't know exactly how to do it, and Darren at work was stepping in to finish it. I was probably a bit annoyed when I walked away but my dad saw me and took me outside and went on about how I disrespected Darren in the way I walked off and acted. Perhaps that's true, and if so then I'm sorry. But i wanted to scream at him and say "LOOK AT ME! Look at me and see that somethings wrong! I'm not good, I'm not OK, I'm depressed all the time!" I noticed that people don't see much beyond that they want to see a lot. People don't come up and ask whats wrong, perhaps because I've grown adept at hiding it. I'm not totally surprised with my dad, since I don't think he's very into his faith right now, and that means that you're not mature and in tune with the spirit if you're not walking with Him, but it served as a lesson to me, since I fail at this as well: we need to look deep into each other and when there's a problem dig it up and deal with it. We need to care for each other and bare each other's burdens. You can see pain in people's eyes, and you can see it in their actions. True, I am very select in who I will open up too...not many people and even then it's hard, but it's the carelessness that hurts the most, when people see you and don't do anything, even worse when they won't see it in you. I pray we grow more sensitive.

The Missionary Heart

John Piper just had a blog on Karen Watson's epitaph which reflect the missionary's heart. It was very moving, and I pray we all grow close to having this type of devotion and passion.

Ephesians: To Live By

You will not go wrong if you plunge into Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Master it. Be mastered by it. Work Ephesians into your thinking, your living, your prayers, and your conversation. The Bible is vast and deep, and human life is diverse and perplexing. But in a pinch you could do all counseling from Ephesians. It’s all there: the big picture that organizes a myriad of details.

David Powlison from the book Seeing with New Eyes: Counseling and the Human Condition Through the Lens of Scripture. Taken from the blog about Powlison warning against the dangers of extreme introspection. A good read.

New creation?

What does it mean to follow Jesus? I don't want cookie cutter answers, but really...why did he say to count the cost. We're called to "pick up our cross daily", and to be willing to forsake everything, family, friends, belongings, and even our own lives. But is this type of faith practical? Does God have a place in our every day lives? To what extent are we new creations? We live as though Christ is the icing on the cake, he makes everything good but he isn't relevant to much of our lives. Faith is not something we go to when things get hard, and Christ isn't a person who only makes us good people. Faith is something that should be as visibly necessary to us as oxygen, and Christ should be someone who radically transform our thought and every aspect of our life. The way we approach relationships, business, politics, our entire worldview and everything that motivates us should be permeated with Christ! If you can make any decision without considering Christ then he is not you're life yet. There should be nothing that Christ does not influence about us, but yet Christ has a small corner of our life. He may be useful in morals and ethics, but not much more in our practical lives...how is this picking up our cross, how is this forsaking all, how is this a new creation?

Maybe I'll have more developed thoughts later.

Schaeffer on True Spirituality

1. The true Christian life, true spirituality, does not just mean that we have been born again. It must begin here, but it means much more than that. It does not mean only that we are going to in heaven. It does mean that, but it means much more than that. The true Christian life, true spirituality in the present life, means more than being justified and knowing that I am going to heaven.

2. It is not just a desire to get rid of taboos in order to live an easier and looser life. Our desire must be for a deeper life. And when I begin to think of this, the Bible presents to me the whole of the Ten Commandments and the Law of Love.

3. True spirituality, the true Christian life, is not just outward, but it is inward -- it is not to covet against God and men.

4. But it is even more than this: it is positive -- positive in inward reality, and then positive in outward results. The inward thing is to be positive and not just negative, and then sweeping out of the inward positive reality, there is to be a positive manifestation externally. It is not just that we are dead to certain things, but we are to love God, we are to be alive to him, we are to be in communion with him, in this present moment of history. And we are to love men, to be alive to men as men, and to be in communication on a true personal level with men, in this present moment of history.

When I speak of the Christian life, or freedom from the bonds of sin, or of true spirituality, the four points listed above are what the Bible says we should mean, and anything less than this is trifling with God -- trifling with him who created the world, and trifling also with him who died on the cross. This is what we are to have in mind when we begin such a study; otherwise, there is no use even to talk about experiential freedom from the bonds of sin or about an experiential reality of the Christian life, or true spirituality. If this is not in our minds, at least in some poor comprehension and at least in some poor aspiration, we might as well stop. Anything else is trifling with God, and because it is trifling with God, it is sin.

Schaeffer is incredible! Such a mind, such a heart...

Giving needs to increase...

I was thinking about how many churches around are almost weekly bringing up and having someone discuss giving and how the church needs support. Week after week hearing the same thing, it begins to become a broken record that skips over the same part over and over again. I was thinking that this cannot be a healthy sign. This got brought to the forefront of my mind tonight because I recall my friends' church in Ontario, and out of all the times I have had the pleasure to attend, I don't ever remember hearing anything regarding money. There was a small notifier in the bulletin as to how much the last weeks offering was, but it didn't even have a budget given. I cant recall if the bulletin is consistently like that, because I only noticed it on my last visit, but something else struck me. They don't even to my knowledge pass around an offering plate. It's very weird, and refreshing in many ways, to see a church that doesn't have to constantly be reminding its congregation to give. The fact that they have no offering, and there is no expected giving listed in addition to the fact that it is not mentioned, and yet the church survives and the funds are met as they are needed is so amazing to me. Examples like this give me a glimpse of what a healthy church looks like. When you are leading the flock as you ought, the flock will grow and become mature believers, and as they mature they grow closer to God and giving and taking care of one another become natural to them. Isn't this the way we ought to be? You cant make giving and charity natural when you keep begging for money. It is something that is the product of a healthy, mature, biblically based church. Thank God they exist, and God willing may there be more and more of such churches. Christians who believe their Lord when he says that He will provide, and who obey when He urges them towards giving and charity. Praise God!

Justified in Christ!

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. - 1 Cor 6.9-11

This is amazing, and humanity is found guilty of the condemning list given. Praise God that the list ends with hope! We, as children of God, though we deserve hell for we have sinned, we are washed and justified in the name of Jesus Christ by the blood he spilt on the cross! Let us bend our knee and praise our King!

I hope to have something substantial posted tomorrow, be blessed!

Schaeffer and joy

I found this to be a sobering truth as I read the first chapter of Francis Schaeffer's book Pollution & The Death Of Man.

Near the end of his life, Darwin acknowledged several times in his writings that two things had become dull to him as he got older. The first was his joy in the arts; and the second, his joy in nature. This is very intriguing. Darwin offered his proposition that nature, including man, is based only on the impersonal plus time plus chance, and he had to acknowledge at the end of his life that it had had these adverse effects on him. I believe that what we are seeing today is the same loss of joy in our culture as Darwin personally experienced: first of all in the area of arts, then in the area of nature. The distressing this about this is that orthodox Christians often have had no better sense about these things than unbelievers. The death of "joy" in nature is leading to the death of nature itself.

I think it is true that Christians have a much more careless attitude about nature. People can enjoy nature as they pass, but they can just as easily turn a blind eye as we ravage earth and destroy nature. To make a difference will require world-wide reform, but all reforms have to start with the individual before they can get bigger, let us start to enjoy God's creation. Conservation and protection are how we bring glory to God through nature, not pollution and disruption. Enjoy nature, nature itself points the believer to God.

Christianity under internal attack...again

I read a few articles on Al Mohler's blog that were fairly sobering. The doctrines surrounding the Penal Substitution of Christ (wrath absorbing on our behalf) were attacked by Rev. Jeffrey John of the Church of England. You can read Mohler's article here (offers additional links for further reading on the matter), but I was horrified to see someone say that Christ's wrath absorbing, propitiatory death as "repulsive" and "insane". I wish I could say that this was a heresy that didn't influence the church much, but I can't say that seeing as how other church leaders have affirmed his position. This teaching of "God is love" is a perversion and a tragedy to any biblical theology, since it undermines the whole of scripture and ignores almost every place Paul addresses the cross, and any place where God demands justice and punishment for sin. Let us think long and hard about the true meaning of the cross, and let us rise up to defend against such horrible perversions. For reading on defending the doctrines of the Penal Substitution in regards to the death of Christ you can read Mark Dever's article he wrote in a past issue of Christianity Today here.

Scripture reference

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. - Rom 8.28-39

This is an amazing text, read it over and over and be blessed. So dense, and perhaps sometime I'll attempt to write about it. I haven't been reading much or writing much at all recently, but I should have something concrete tomorrow. This is a great post-Easter (everyday if we're honest) thought we need to immerse our brains in: "Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us." Oh, how sweet are those words! The Son of God, who died for us and was risen for us, is at the right hand of God interceding for us! Oh, without the divine love we would be stomped upon like the worms we are, but because of this love we will be ushered into the gates of heaven and worship God for eternity! How blessed is the lamb that was slain?

And then there was...

...another Christian Hedonism oriented ministry. Check out Enjoying God Ministries by Dr. Sam Storms. Here is John Piper's endorsement for it:

It is a distinct pleasure to point out Sam Storms' good theology and bad advice. For the good theology read his essay "What if Christ is Not Risen?" There are few people on the planet who embody in life and in teaching the radically biblical and Edwardsian message of Christian Hedonism better than Sam Storms. He has a new website that I want you to know about.

But be careful. You may find sentences like this one:

If you haven’t read Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (Multnomah Publishers, 2003 edition), repent, close down this website, and go purchase that volume.

No, Sam. Bad advice. Don't repent. Don't close down the Enjoying God Ministries website. And you don't need to purchase Desiring God. For one reason, Sam's books tell the same story just as well. So go to Enjoying God Ministries and revel in "the power of truth and the truth about power."

Good Friday

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
"Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!"
"It is finished"

These are some of the words of our Lord Jesus Christ as He hung on the cross. There were no harsh words, or hateful slurs, only words of anguish, love, and sacrifice. The perfect lamb of God, the one who knew no sin, stripped naked upon a blistering cross, having the punishment for our sins poured out upon Him. Suffering and scourged on my behalf, and he did it willingly without complaint, even when He felt, for the first time, a separation between Himself and the Father, as He began to suffer. As the wrath of God began to be poured upon Him, He uttered words of forgiveness to all of those who were guilty of maligning and mocking and murdering Him! His words are an example to us all and speak life to the command to love your enemies and bless those who persecute you. What kind of man was this upon the cross? Why would we want to kill such a loving man? The answer is humbling, and amazing at the same time! We would kill such a loving man because that's how corrupt we are, where we have no desire to love, and no desire for God, and it is precisely this reason that He gave up His life willingly, that wretches like these may inherit the kingdom of God! Oh, what a love is His! Even a thief called out to Him, but this time it was in defence of His majesty and a cry for mercy. This must have been a sweet sight to the Father, someone got it! Surrounded by all of that corruption and all of that hatred, see a humbled sinner, softened by tender mercies of God and ripe for repentance! Even as he was hung on the cross for sins he deserved, he recognized that, and recognized the innocence of the One by his side, and recognizing Him as The Savior he cried out to Him hoping for some undeserved love and Christ, being so rich in mercy, was even willing to forgive a sinner who was dying a just punishment for his sin! Christ lived a live of complete obedience and submission to the will of the Father, and even when this meant being a propitiatory sacrifice, he submitted to His Father, his spirit given to His Father, and his will broken under the weight of the sin of mankind! And at the darkest moment the world has ever seen, Christ uttered some of the most beautiful and reassuring words He had ever spoken, "it is finished"! The atonement for our sins was carried out on the only One who deserved Heaven, and because of His complete sacrifice, sinners may now approach the throne of God by grace alone through faith alone, because all of the work for our salvation's have been completed! Oh, such a beautiful reflection. It should have been me upon that tree, and Christ the Son of God died for me! Let us reflect and be humbled on this, the darkest day mankind has ever seen, but have hope oh dispirited children, for He will rise again, three days later as He promised!

Maundy Thursday Part 4

And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch." And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will." And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. And he came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. - Mark 14.32-41

And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. And when he came to the place, he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, and he said to them, "Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation." While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss him... - Luke 22.39-47

This is the last moment Christ had with His Father before His appointed sacrificial death. His three closest friends went with Him to be with Him in His greatest time of need. Christ's request was simple, sit here and keep watch and pray. That is all He requested his best friends do while he wrestled with his impending sacrifice. This was the most stressful time in His ministry to this point. He wasn't just facing beatings, he wasn't just facing death, he was facing a broken communion with the other two parts of the Trinity, the Father and Spirit, which He had never had to bear for all of eternity to this point. The agony of the impending separation was so great that his sweat was mixed with blood and he sweat blood! He cried out in his agony as a child cries to their father "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me". These words must have been said with unthinkable agony. And even though the bloodied sweat dripped off of His body, even though he had no desire to undergo the broken fellowship with God and had no desire to bear the weight of His bride's sin upon Him and be punished in place of His bride, in spite of all of this he said "Yet not what I will, but what you will"! This total submission to the Father, in spite of His own desires, this was what was required of Him, this is His act of obedience to the father, and He willfully chose to do it, because He loved us. Unfathomable! In this time of need, Peter John and James all proved to be of little support to Him. Imagine what it would be like in your time of greatest need when your best friends couldn't even be there to support you, instead they grew weary and slept. This is the total solitude Christ found himself at. Impending wrath from God on our behalf, broken (eternal!) fellowship with the other two parts of the Trinity, and He found Himself alone. In His solitude, the Father saw Him and knew He needed support and knew the weakness of His disciples, and because He was such a loving Father, He sent an angel from heaven to be With Christ and strengthen Him! What an amazing truth of God, that even when we are alone and are in complete agony because of the task appointed for us, when our Heavenly Father sees us in such need, He supplies us support from heaven, as He supplied it to Christ in His darkest hour! Oh what a loving Father we have! We have a Savior who would take a break in His time praying to His Father to come check on us, and we have a Father who will send us heavenly aid when we enter our darkest, most solitary hours! We must never lose sight of Christ's example here! Even if we do not want to go through the trials and persecutions set before us, even if we would ask with all of our being that they be removed from us, nevertheless that we submit to them because they were appointed by our Father, who knows what is best, and works all things for good for his children, those who love Him and are called according to His purpose! This is the example set by Christ, and we will never know a tiny amount of what Christ endured on our behalf, and so it is gratitude for his suffering for us, that we follow His example, even if it means physical death. They may kill the body, but our Father is stronger than all, and they can never kill the spirit, which the Father protects with the blood of His Son! This is our Christ, and this is how much He suffered on our behalf! Let us obey and submit as He did.

Maundy Thursday Part 3

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another. - John 15.1-17

There is so much to cover in Christ's monologue to his disciples at the Last Supper. This is one piece that always sticks out to me, but we should read the entire discourse (John 14-17) and meditate on it. In this passage Christ shows the necessity of good works in the believers life, and explains how these things come about. Christ is very clear that we must abide in Him to bear fruit. That's an incredibly humbling thing. We're so often guilty of individualistic, self-reliant thinking that to understand that unless with dwell in Christ, we can do nothing pleasing to God, that realization can be so offensive to us at times. Above that, when Christ says that in order to bear more fruit, we must be pruned, that also can raise the hairs on the back of our necks. To prune something means to cut away dead pieces so that it may thrive more, which in our understanding means disciplining us and removing things from us that hinder our growth. And beyond that, we can't even help ourselves grow, it is the work of God! This can easily offend us until we reflect on the perfection and wisdom of our Father and then reflect on how the Scriptures say than He who began a good work in me will continue it until the day of completion! We are a fickle people and our desires change constantly. It is so relieving to know that the One who is perfect, and absolutely wise, and can never change, it is He who takes care of us and causes us to grow and bear more fruit! The pruning work of the father, and the abiding in the son for their power to do good works is a complete gift! But we don't see that unless we're humbled. The only other alternative offered is being cut off completely and thrown into hell, and that is much less attractive than being pruned and being able to do an ever increasing amount of good works, and these good works in turn glorify the Father. So we see that abiding in Christ is a complete gift and is ultimately a blessing and not drudgery. This brings us to the matter of affections. Christ elaborates and relates the duty of good works with the affections of loving Him. Love is related to duty because to love Christ is to obey his commandments. Obedience is the fruit of love, not just duty, and that is the key to good works. Anything that man can label "obedience" to the law of God, that is not rooted in love for God, is not in fact obedience. Christ did not say that love was a product of obedience, no. He said that obedience was a product of love! The love comes first, and where there is no love, there can be no obedience. Jesus obeyed His Father, even to give up his life for us on the cross, and because of His love for His Father, He remained abiding perfectly in His Father's love. Likewise, we are called to live a life of love that brings forth obedience, possibly even obedience to death, so that we may remain in Christ's love. He shows us the depth of His love for us, that even though we are his servants, he calls us friends, because we are now adopted children and have nothing hidden by the Son in regard to what the Father shared with Him. Christ kept no secrets from us, but shared with us all the secrets of the kingdom that were revealed to Him, because we are now friends, children, of God. This is indeed an amazing blessing. One of the final things Christ emphasizes again is the fact that our bearing the fruit of good works is not of our own doing since "you did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you." Christ chose us so that our fruit would abide! There is nothing fickle and changing about Christ, who is one with His father, and because we are chosen by Him (not by ourselves), our fruit is of an imperishable seed that will endure till the end, and we will prosper! Another blessing of being chosen by the unchangeable Christ is that whatever we ask in His name we shall receive! The key is growth since the more we grow the more in line our thought process is with God, and the more heavenly things we will ask for. This is why it is so necessary that we are chosen by God, because His choices are effectual and permanent. What he chooses can never be changed, and it will come about in it's fullness, so we will continue to grow and will never be forsaken! Oh, what a beautiful truth! Let us grow up embrace and love it, and let us be humbled by it and glory in Christ alone! Let us love God and love one another, this is the obedience we are commanded to!

Maundy Thursday Part 2

And you are clean, but not every one of you." For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, "Not all of you are clean." ... I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, 'He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.' I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me." After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, "Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me." The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table close to Jesus, so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, "Lord, who is it?" Jesus answered, "It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it." So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, "What you are going to do, do quickly." Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, "Buy what we need for the feast," or that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. - John 13.10b-11, 18-30

Then he came to the disciples and said to them, "Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand." While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I will kiss is the man; seize him." And he came up to Jesus at once and said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, "Friend, do what you came to do." Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. - Matt 26.45-50

This is the most heinous betrayal to be exercised on earth. No betrayal could have been more devious and evil than to betray the Son of God and sell him for a price. Judas' betrayal was as unthinkable as it was devious. It was so unthinkable, that as the disciples heard Christ in clear terms say that the betrayer was the one "whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it" and then they saw Him hand the bread he had dipped to Judas, they still only thought "Jesus was telling him, 'Buy what we need for the feast,' or that he should give something to the poor". This is how unthinkable an act betraying the Son of God was, so unthinkable that Judas' own companions, with the verbal account of Jesus, were still blind to the fact that Jesus would be betrayed. To show the corruption in his being, Judas' pointed out Christ with a kiss! Many of us I'm sure have heard the word picture of a man hugging someone while stabbing them in the back, this is just the example to fit such a phrase. To greet someone with a kiss, as the sign that they're the one you're betraying. Judas was content with betraying the Son of God for the price of 30 pieces of silver, and Christ knew this all along. This is one of the many times Jesus led by example when he spoke of loving our enemies. His words to Judas weren't hateful even though all Judas' words in scripture were drenched with venom, Jesus spoke to him gently, as if pitying him. Jesus described him saying that it would be better had he never been born. To know that a person was going to betray you, and then to still show them the love and service of washing their feet and break bread with them showing them nothing but kindness, this is our example. Knowing the one who betrayed Him with a kiss for 30 pieces of silver, and then to refer to him as "friend", this is our Christ. Loving his enemies even when they betrayed him. Now there's the matter of the betrayal. Judas loved his 30 pieces of silver more than he loved Jesus (if he had even the smallest affection for Jesus at all). His love for money was clear in scripture, since we know that he was a thief and stole from the treasury, which he was appointed treasurer by Christ (another message in itself). This love for money was big enough to sell out the Son of God to death, and even though this act cannot be duplicated, it brings up a practical question. Do we have anything we love more than Christ? This is something that requires personal reflection, but what do we love more than Christ, and are we willing to forsake Christ for it? If the answer is yes, then you need to come before God asking Him to change your heart before you sell out Christ for any other pleasure on this earth. We know from Judas' case that the money wasn't enough to satisfy since he saw death in suicide (ironically hung on a tree, the same as he sold Christ to be) as the only was to end his misery. That's the bitter truth of pleasures apart from Christ, they don't satisfy and they lead to death. Let us strive to find our pleasure in Christ, and let us, as Christ did, to love our enemies, even as they betray us.

Maundy Thursday Part 1

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, do you wash my feet?" Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand." Peter said to him, "You shall never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no share with me." Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" Jesus said to him, "The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you." For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, "Not all of you are clean." When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, "Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. - John 13.1-17

Jesus Christ, the Holy God-man, came down to earth in a humble means, rode into Jerusalem in humble means, and now takes the place as a common servant washing the disciples feet. In Jesus' rich words we are given a comfort, and a service. We are comforted with the fact that we know that as children of God, we are bathed by Christ completely and sufficiently to stand before God, cleansed by His precious blood, and all of our filth has been washed away. For Christ to say "if I do not wash you, you have no share with me" is totally humbling. There is no cleaning up our mess for Christ. Anytime we have a meeting with someone we respect, our inclination is to clean up and have a proper appearance. This is not the case with God. It is God who will condemn our filthiness, and it is God who will clean our filthiness. This is a beautiful truth. And then as we read on that "The one who has bathed does not need to wash...but is completely clean." Oh thank you Jesus for your absolute forgiveness, we are completely cleaned and no spot or blemish remains! You have done the work, and we have such an undeserved gift! Now there's the point of the washing of the feet. Even though our sins are forgiven and we have the righteousness of Christ to stand before God with confidence and enter to His presence, Christ said that everything is clean "except for his feet" and He continued to wash the disciples feet. Then He went on to say that "you also ought to wash one another's feet." While the historical, literal context might have been that their feet were constantly dirty, and they had to ceremonially be cleaned before they ate, the text begs something more. We understand the illusion of Christ cleaning us to be justification and the imputation of righteousness, so we should understand Christ's actions and words on the nature of washing feet to be symbolic of something more, namely the act of sanctification and the disciplines of growing in grace and aligning our actions more closely to those of Christ. This is why we must wash our feet, and this is, as Christ washed ours, what we ought to help our brothers and sisters in Christ to do! Just as no servant is greater than his master, Christ hes been victorious in removing the sting from our sin, forgiving us, and so we must in turn help each other to walk in holiness and wash away the dirt from our feet (fight against remaining sinful urges). As Christ served us, so we ought to serve each other, which in turn is an act of service to Him as our Lord. This is a profound truth.

Prayer Request

My friend Mike Niehouse from Ventura has been diagnosed with Lukemia. He's currently in ICU and has started kemotherapy. Please keep him in your prayers. Thank you.

More thoughts on Palm Sunday...

This is very good (as little as I've read thus far at least) thoughts on Palm Sunday from the pen of one far more mature and wise than myself. John Piper's article entitled "Palm Sunday Tears of Sovereign Mercy". Enjoy and have a blessed day!

Hosanna to the Son of David!

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord needs them,' and he will send them at once." This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, "Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'" The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, "Who is this?" And the crowds said, "This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee." And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you make it a den of robbers." And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant, and they said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, "'Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise'?" - Matt 21.1-16

Lest there be any reason we can concoct to show we have reason to glory in ourselves, let us to to our King. He came into the world born in a manger, and even when He comes into Jerusalem and is flooded with praises and admiration and glory from all the people or Israel, He enters on the back of a donkey and a colt with it. He enters, gloriously praised and adored, on the shoulders of a common "beat of burden", and what a great burden He himself bore. The son of God lowered Himself to such humble means when He could have rightly entered riding on the wings of angels, how much more should we, unworthy sinners with no cause of boasting in our selves, humble ourselves before men? Let us look to our King and His humility and humble ourselves in our proper place lest we build for ourselves a throne of glory and are humbled by God! One of the first things He does upon entering Jerusalem was to purge the temple from all sorts of greed and profanity that had replaced the honor and worship of His Father. The son of God who was due the glory and praise and honor of all the world, humbled Himself and brought the focus back to His Father condemning all profiteering and greed that had permeated the temple. After purging his holy temple, He showed compassion on the sick and needy and the little children continued to honor Him as the "Son of David" and recognized Him as their King and the Lord sent from Heaven. This was a great cause of offense for the Jewish leaders, not only had He disrupted their business, but He was now being honored as the Messiah! When questioned about it, our King showed them the hardness of their hearts in that even infants and babes honored Him but they would not bow their knee to their King; what children had seen, the priests and scribes (who were vastly aware of the scriptures) were blind to! Oh this is such a glorious picture of our King, robed in humility and glorified by children of pure, unadulterated faith. We serve the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Son of the Living God, and He alone is worthy of all our praise and admiration! Let us not be so adorned in our own religious accomplishments and our own self righteousness that we expect something greater than we view ourselves to come and save us. The humble will be exalted, and the first shall be last. Let us look to Christ, who could have adorned Himself in fine silks and gold and jewels and commanded our worship, and let us see how He came to serve us and save us in the ultimate act of service and sacrifice, laying down His life. Let us glorify Him, and direct all glory given to ourselves to Him and Him alone, who is worthy of all praise and honor and glory. This Palm Sunday, let us sing praises to Him and glorify Him and keep ourselves humbled before Him.

Palm Sunday preperation

So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!" - John 12.13

It's Palm Sunday tomorrow. The day our Savior was welcomed with the honor of a king by the same people who would in a week crucify him as a thief. What it must have been like for Christ to look over these people and see their fickle allegiance. As I thought about this, it became clear that all the glory that was bestowed upon Him on this day (and more) was indeed due Him. I began to consider that these people praised Him because they thought He would deliver them from their oppressors, establish a Kingdom, and make them a nation. They had no idea the expanse of His kingdom, the type of salvation and liberation He offered! We find ourselves as adopted children, grafted into the inheritance that was promised by from the coming of Christ. We have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, and we benefit completely from his Kingship and his deliverance from our sins! We have received so much more than the Jews thought they would receive, and how reluctant we are to praise Him. How often do we sing praises to Him and glorify his name? This Palm Sunday, let us praise our King, our Deliverer, our Savior. Let our thanks not grow cold. God, keep us from mocking and hating your Son, keep us glorifying You in our joy!

Lewis On Joy

This C.S. Lewis quote I have seen mentioned by John Piper on a few occasions, and I think it is worth reading and careful pondering.

If there lurks in modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.

Come so far to fall so short.

This past weekend, something happened. Right before I drove to Claremont to go visit friends at Harvey Mudd, I stopped by Albertsons to get something. When I walked toward the store from the parking lot, a lady stopped me and asked if she could wash my windshield for some money. I paused and gave her some money and told here there was no need to wash the windshield. As I talked to her some more, her voice was very hoarse and she said that she was feeling ill and didn't know what type of medicine she should get. I told her to wait there and went in to buy her a few dayquil and nyquil (since I thought she could use some sleep, but might need both). So I gave it to her and said "God bless" as I walked away. I felt decent about what I had done, especially since I have been harping on helping the needy recently, but then as if running into a wall I felt guilty. Here I was with this woman and sure I helped her physical needs, but I had her engaged in conversation and I let a prime time to share the gospel slip through my fingers. I almost started to cry as I continued to drive. I had become in that moment exactly what I preach against, a person who ends God's love with doing good for people's physical needs and doesn't meet spiritual needs. This hit me as a load of bricks, and I became very depressed. I talked with a friend over the course of the weekend about the matter, and I began to realize my progression, a good progression. A few years back I wouldn't have even helped the lady. Slowly I started to give help to the poor in various ways, but neglected to even mention God. Then I started to tack on "God bless" because I felt convicted about the shame I had at being a public Christian and wanted to bring God to the forefront. This is the place I was at until recently. Do good deeds and make sure God is associated with them. But this isn't far enough. I've discussed in an earlier (myspace) blog about how it's a tragedy to meet someones physical needs and neglect their spiritual, because meeting spiritual needs is a more pressing concern, and physical needs should be a secondly (though important) concern. I began to realize how God has been progressing me, and how at each stage when I feel convicted to go further I feel guilty when I am aware of how I've failed. This is been an odd source of encouragement though after talking to my friend, because I see this as living proof of what Jonathon Edwards wrote in Religious Affections about how when we are more aware of God's grace we are more aware of our sin. The closer you get to God, who has no blemish or defect, the more you see your own sin. Stated negatively, you see how wretched and sinful you are and how far you are still from true holiness. Stated positively, you see how great God's grace is and you see how far you have come in your faith as you recollect on how your struggles have changed.

A break from the silence!

I was hoping to have posted over the weekend in my visit to Harvey Mudd, and I have no excuse other than sleep for the past couple days. However, as I read from R.C. Sproul's "The Character Of God" this past weekend, I came across a quote I quite liked.

There are many things in my life that I do not want to put under the gaze of Christ. Yet I know there is nothing hidden from Him. He knows me better than my wife knows me. And yet He loves me. This is the most amazing thing of all about God's grace. It would be one thing for Him to love us if we could fool Him into thinking that we were better than we actually are. But He knows better. He knows all there is to know about us, including those things that could destroy our reputation. He is minutely and acutely aware of every skeleton in our closet. And He loves us.

...

To be known by God is our highest privilege. The deepest folly of man is to flee from the eye of God. Hiding from God is as foolish as it is futile. There is no adequate hiding place. We can call for the mountains to fall upon us and the hills to cover us. But the eye of God can see through mountains and penetrate the cloak of the hills.

There is only one adequate cloak for our shame -- the righteousness of Christ. Our nakedness and shame are covered by a shield that no guilt can pierce. Our lives are hid from Him. He is our refuge. He who knows the fugitive's crimes gives the fugitive a hiding place.

Sacrifice

What is it in your life that you are being called to lay down at the foot of the cross and give up. Part of the Christian life is sacrifice and no matter how much we are called to give, our Savior gave more. Our Savior, the incomparable Jesus Christ, sacrificed more than the whole of all other men's sacrifices! That is an impressive feat, because we can probably think of people who have sacrificed a lot over the course of their lives. Add up all of those sacrifices and you can't even begin to compare it to the sacrifice Christ made on the cross. Christ didn't just give up His life. He took upon the sin of all His children upon his shoulder and set aside His eternal union with the Father and Spirit to have the wrath of God poured upon Him for our sakes! He did it willfully, and he was pleased to do it! Oh how foolish we are when we look at the trivial things we fight not to lose, and how much we grumble when we're called to sacrifice! If only we had our eyes focused on the eternal things, sacrifice would be trivial, because the joy of losing your earthly pleasures to gain eternal pleasures is unfathomable! But our eyes are focused on our circumstances and not our destiny, our hearts adore temporal things and not eternal things, our passions are for fleshly things and not heavenly things. These indictments are true of us all too often, but thank God for grace, and thank God for His sanctifying work; taking our worthless lives and giving them purpose and value in Jesus Christ. God give us eternal eyes and help us to view sacrifice through Your eyes and cause us to do it joyfully!

Various links for the day...

There's a lot of things I read today that are link worthy, so instead of a blog for each im lumping them into one. First is the article where John Piper describes how he heard the voice of God. I'll admit I was skeptical, but I did give him the benefit of the doubt (since his track record speaks totally God-centered). I was right to do so, because he once again blew my mind with his humility and God-centric thinking! You can read that article here, and on a similar thought Tim Challies had a review on "Prayer And The Voice Of God" that is interesting. One of the greatest things I have read in a few days online was the 3 selections from Justin Taylor's blog on letters of John Newton dealing with controversy. (part 1, part 2, part 3) They're a great source of edification and deep food for thought/self reflection.

Theology that makes a difference.

This is one of many posts to come (or perhaps a large post), but I was thinking today about how Calvinism makes any difference. I recall discussing this with a friend, and his specific question was "what does it matter if there's election or free will? Isn't the outcome the same?" My initial response was true, but not really heavy with purpose. My simple response was "because having correct doctrines and glorifying God for correct things gives Him glory, and He isn't glorified by false doctrine, no matter how 'harmless' they are." I started meditating on things i recollected from various piper books and articles and sermons, and then I realized that there's an amazing benefit to believing in the doctrines of grace! If you believe in election and the effectual call of God then when you evangelize you can have full assurance that no matter how hard their heart is, if God intends to plant a seed of faith to blossom, it will be done and despite the hardness of their heart, and their free will that is indeed hostile to God, if God intends them to be saved, they will be saved! You don't have to beg them, you don't have to sugar coat the gospel and entice them, you preach Christ crucified who died to save a worthless dead people from their sins and was killed on the cross in an act of propitiation to appease the wrath of God for all who believe, and this brutal, offensive, non-seeker friendly gospel becomes the sweetest thing to the most wicked and obstinate person in the world if it is indeed the will of God! For people who cling to the unbridled free will of man in choosing his salvation, you have no assurance that an obstinate person will hear the call of God, you have no assurance that a desperately wicked person will turn from his sinful pleasure at the high cost that is required (deny yourself...pick up your cross...and follow Christ!). For those who believe in ultimate self-determination you have to beg and plead and woo and compromise the blessed gospel possibly to win souls! Calvinists, with their offensive doctrine of election, don't have to because we rely on God's grace, which is stronger than ANY of human will! More as the thoughts continue to digest.

John Piper invited a rapper to perform at Bethlehem Baptist?!?

John Piper had a rapper perform at Bethlehem Baptist and it started quite a firestorm of responses about Christianity and it's compatibility with rap and other forms of hip hop. Curtis "Voice" Allen wrote an article, which is a very good read, in regards to the controversy he was a part of for performing at Piper's Church. The article shows he handled a wide variety of malicious attacks very humbly. If you don't have time to read the entire article, the following quote I found very powerful, and it was a quote that helped him deal with abusive criticism. The article was entitled "The Cross and Criticism," by Alfred Poirer and was found in a 1999 issue of the Journal of Biblical Counseling.

"In light of God's judgment and justification of the sinner in the cross of Christ, we can begin to discover how to deal with any and all criticism. By agreeing with God's criticism of me in Christ's cross, I can face any criticism man may lay against me. In other words, no one can criticize me more than the cross has. And the most devastating criticism turns out to be the finest mercy. If you thus know yourself as having been crucified with Christ, then you can respond to any criticism, even mistaken or hostile criticism, without bitterness, defensiveness, or blame-shifting."

In case you want to see the song he performed before the congregation, you can view it here. Personally, despite my general dislike of most rap, I am thrilled that Curtis is living in his neighborhood and his subculture unashamed of the gospel, and is speaking clear biblical truth through his music. He is a great example of being a light in the darkness. :) I hope you have time to listen to his song and read through the article he wrote.

Francis Schaeffer, a man of tears?

John Fischer wrote a very good article for Christianity Today about Francis Schaeffer being a compassionate, broken, man of tears. Here was one (of many possible) quote from the article that effected me. The whole article moves me to want to study and get to know Schaeffer's life and work more though. If you have a few minutes, I strongly suggest the article.

Jesus asked us to love our enemies. Part of loving is learning to understand. Too few Christians today seek to understand why their enemies think in ways that we find abhorrent. Too many of us are too busy bashing feminists, secular humanists, gay activists, and political liberals to consider why they believe what they do. It's difficult to sympathize with people we see as threats to our children and our neighborhoods. It's hard to weep over those whom we have declared enemies.

Perhaps a good beginning would be to more fully grasp the depravity of our own souls and the depth to which God's grace had to go to reach us. I doubt we can cry over the world if we've never cried over ourselves.

To be sure, Francis Schaeffer's influence has declined in recent years, as postmodernism has supplanted the modernity he dissected for so long. Schaeffer is not without his critics, even among Christians. But perhaps, in the end, his greatest influence on the church will not be his words as much as his tears. The same things that made Francis Schaeffer cry in his day should make us cry in ours.

Calvin on the Trinity

John Calvin from "Institutes of the Christian Religion" (Book 1, Ch. XIII, 18)

I am not sure if it is expedient to borrow analogies from human affairs to express the nature of this distinction. The ancient fathers sometimes do so, but they at the same time admit, that what they bring forth as analogous is very widely different. And hence it is I have great dread of anything like presumption here, lest some rash saying may furnish an occasion of calumny to the malicious, or of delusion to the unlearned. It were unbecoming however, to say nothing of a distinction which we observe that the Scriptures have pointed out. This distinction is, that to the Father is attributed the beginning of action, the fountain and source of all things; to the Son, wisdom, counsel, and arrangement in action, while the energy and efficacy of action is assigned to the Spirit. Moreover, though the eternity of the Father is also the eternity of the Son and Spirit, since God never could be without his own wisdom and energy; and though in eternity there can be no room for the first or last, still the distinction of order is not unmeaning or superfluous, the Father being considered the first, next the Son from him, and then the Spirit from both. For the mind of every man naturally inclines to consider, first, God, secondly, the wisdom emerging from him, and, lastly, the energy by which he executes the purposes of his counsel. For this reason, the Son is said to be of the Father only; the Spirit of both the Father and the Son. This is done in many passages, but in none more clearly than in the eighth chapter to the Romans where the same Spirit is called indiscriminately the Spirit of Christ, and the Spirit of him who raised up Christ from the dead. And not improperly. For Peter also testifies (1 Pet. i. 21), that it was the Spirit of Christ which inspired the prophets, though the Scriptures so often say that it was the Spirit of God the Father.

A nice chunk from Romans

For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression. That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring--not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations"--in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, "So shall your offspring be." He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was "counted to him as righteousness." But the words "it was counted to him" were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person--though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die--but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.- Romans 4.13-5.11

Oh so great a passage. I read this chunk a few times in my devotions today, every time it sank it to give me deeper insights and a greater appreciation and love for Jesus Christ, my savior and my righteousness. May everyone who takes the time to read it let it digest and let it change you. Maybe I'll write on it later.

I realize I do not love...Confession 2

What does it mean to love sinners? What does it mean to love the lost? What does it mean to love our enemy? What does it mean to love our neighbors? What does it mean to love?

I've realized my love (in practice, not in understanding) is so narrow and so selective. My heart has broken occasionally for the church or for people I know personally and enjoy their company, but it has never been broken for the lost people I do not know, or are not close. I can intellectualize about it and come up with a mental ascent for how important they are, but it's never sunk into my heart. I pass people on the street and in stores day after day, and I just walk by them. I may give a half smile, and possibly a nod, but I could also very probably look stern and deep in thought, careless and carefree to their presence. Then there's a lot of people I know. "Friends" that by a realistic standard are mere acquaintances, and I know they're on a path to hell, but do I care? If I did wouldn't I be running alongside them screaming and begging and pleading for them to head my warnings and turn to Christ, the one person that can save them? I know evangelizing to every stranger you see is a bit much, but people I have a relationship with, I don't believe I care about them. This realization hurts me, because this love isn't something I can muster of my own power, this love is supremely...divinely greater than any pathetic love we can attain on our own. I do love people who are close to me, and I'm beginning to love those who are opposed to me, but how much do I love those who are at a distance but still connected to me? God, break apart this death inside of me. Give me your heart, a heart that was broken over Jerusalem, a heart that loved people he had barely met, a heart that would lay down it's life for strangers and people who betrayed him. Oh God, transform me. This need I confess, this need I know you will meet. Please send help soon.

This is the gospel.

I was thinking about the gospel. I think, from observation and personal experience, that all too often we look at the gospel, and we know it has is the power of salvation to any and all who believe but we almost trivialize it after we're saved as if it's lost its power since we have obtained salvation. This i believe to be a tragic mistake. The gospel should be a great cause of joy to the believers, and it should be one of the ways that our love and holy affections for Christ are birthed and grown. The gospel is a means to bring us to humility and magnify the glory and love of Christ. The gospel can be a source of encouragement when we fall and a strength when we are tempted. Why is it that we overlook it so much? I've read on multiple occasions from multiple people (Jerry Bridges comes to mind first off) who have written that we should preach the gospel to ourselves daily. I decided to write out the gospel. Feel free to change the name when you read, comment, or give concerns about things i omit or include that you see as problematic. Bear with my words, and may God guide them and bless them.


John. You have read that God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son that whosoever, that means you John, that believes will have eternal life and escape the due punishment for their sins. Yes, you are indeed a great sinner, born into an inherited sin nature that has killed your soul, blinded your eyes, deafened your ears, hardened your heart, leaving you dead and hateful towards God, unable to love Him, unable to change, and unable to desire anything pleasing to Him. This sin effects every part of your life, and anything you do that is not for the glory of God is in fact sinful, which means that since you don't desire God and are an enemy of God, everything you do is sinful and further blinding you and hardening your heart. This leaves you as an object of God's wrath, deserving hell, leaving you at enmity towards God, who hates everything tainted by sin. His hatred is not bad, for it is rooted in His righteousness and justice and holiness. He cannot look upon anything tainted by sin with a pleased affection, or even apathy. His holiness burns against such things. You will justly be sentenced to an eternity in hell, having the wrath of a righteous and holy God poured upon you. You will lash out in hatred and agony, but the wrath will never stop, the pain will never cease. This is where you are found before you accept Christ. Every person who is born of the flesh, save Christ Himself who was born of immaculate conception without imputed sin, is born drenched in sin, and can do no good, nothing to please God. Therefor all mankind is born an object of God's wrath. Who then can be saved? With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. God, being so rich in love, grace, and mercy sent His son to come down and in an act of propitiation to lay down His life on behalf of anyone who hears the call of God and responds. How can someone respond if they're blind and deaf? The call goes out to the entire world, and it goes with the power of Holy Spirit that has the power to replace our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh, to give us sight and hearing to accept the gospel, to give us a new spirit that is alive and full of holy affections and desires to know and follow God. This is the call of God. He saw you in your despair and your sin, and He felt compassion for you. His only begotten Son was sent down to earth to become a man, live a sinless life and then lay down His life to appease the wrath of God so that a loving God could save a wretched sinner and still be holy and just! Oh so great a love, that when we were worthless and deserved death The Loving One made a way for us to be reconciled as sons and daughters and be washed clean of our sin! He loves us so much that He sacrificed His son on our behalf and if only you will hear and believe you will be saved not because of who you are, but because of who He is. You're a sinner, so great a sinner. He is Love, oh so great a love it is! And so the call goes out: "Turn from your sin, the punishment has been paid for all who hear and who repent and believe"! John, that is the gospel...while you were yet a sinner, Christ lay down His life, his invaluable life, to save a sinner like you for it is by grace you have been saved!

Ligonier 2007 National Conference

From Ligonier Ministries:

We give thanks to the Lord that the 2007 National Conference has received such a favorable response. As never before in our generation, contending for the truth requires that we are able to give solid reasons for the hope that lies within us (1 Peter 3:15).

John MacArthur, Al Mohler, John Piper, R.C. Sproul, and Ravi Zacharias aim to equip as many people as possible to defend their faith. To this end, we are offering a free live webcast of this conference.

Ligonier has just opened up registration for a free live stream of the conference. You can register here or here.

Lewis On Love

Yesterday Justin Taylor had this great quote posted on his blog, I thought it was worth spreading.

"When I have learnt to love God better than my earthly dearest, I shall love my earthly dearest better than I do now. Insofar as I learn to love my earthly dearest at the expense of God and instead of God, I shall be moving towards the state in which I shall not love my earthly dearest at all. When first things are put first, second things are not suppressed but increased." - C. S. Lewis, Letters of C.S. Lewis

Husbands Love Your Wives Who Submit To Their Husbands...

This topic has been getting played again and again in my head the past few days, so now I am going to write about it. What is the relationship between husbands and wives? The simple answer is that husbands are the head of the household, and wives are to submit to their husbands. This is the biblical (drastically oversimplified on purpose) answer to that question. This doesn't sit well in our society many times, and I'm starting to understand a few of the reasons why. One is that it doesn't sit well because both men and women have historically misunderstood what each role entails. Men have become unjustly domineering and controlling, and women have become unjustifiably militant and contemptuous. Another is that both men and women don't understand just what the gospel entails and what the role and purpose of Christ and the church are. To establish the biblical definition of the roles of a husband and a wife, I will go directly to scripture to leave no doubt of my simple definition listed before.

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. -Eph. 5.22-33

Now that a scriptural basis has been clearly established, I will not bother defending my original position to people who are still going to bicker about matters of submission and leadership. If you call yourself a Christian, read the words from the Word of God, breathed from his own Being, and argue with Paul, or take your argument to God. I will not bother defending something so clear. My intent is to understand it and keep it from perversion, but it says what it says, and the text is clear.

One big misconception is that the roles of leadership and submission are so intertwined with value and importance in our understanding. This is not the intent of scripture, and it is not true of the roles in their relation to husbands and wives. Both male and female are created in the image of God (Gen 1.27). God showed favoritism to neither Adam nor Eve, and as Paul said to the Galatians, there is no male or female because we are all one in Christ (Gal. 3.28)! We are entitled to the same reward and heirs to the same promise (Gal. 3.29, 1 Pet. 3.7). Once we can understand that men and women have equal value, both having the same importance to God, we can begin to understand that the roles are not a matter of superiority, but are necessary to keep a logical order and function in the confines of marriage.

The necessity for a marriage's function can be easily demonstrated. If, for instance, parents had equal leadership and both of them told a child to do two opposite things, then who's to say which the child must do? Which parent is the child to obey? And since obedience to one parent means disobedience to the other, the parents whose instruction was violated could punish the child for obeying the other parent! That would not be helpful to the parent/child or the spousal relationship and could be the cause of spite and a bitterness from either parent or the child. Any time you have two leaders with equal authority, order is undermined and a power struggle ensues at the onset of any differing view. Eventually one will rise to leadership and the other will be forced into being a subordinate (often times bitterly), or the entire function completely quits and both people go their own way.

Something else to consider about leadership is that leadership is necessary for proper function, but that it does not come without its struggles. Leaders of Christian households have a God given duty to lead their families first in a Godly, God-seeking direction and secondly to put the good of the family above the good of themselves. Such a role could lead to major sacrifice and self denial if it is needed for the welfare or the family as a whole. In addition to the duty to make proper decisions for the family, the responsibility of failure falls on the shoulders of the leader as well. Being a leader, when you make mistakes, you are responsible to do all you can to repair any damage done, and fix any error. Being a leader also does not mean that you make all your own decisions and neglect the voices of your subordinates. A good leader, a Godly leader, will listen to the people he leads, consider their opinions, and then make a decision in light of all view points, and all known facts. So being a leader is not a carefree position of power, at least not if it's executed in a Godly fashion. Being a leader comes with severe responsibility and can be very stressful at times. In some aspects, it's a blessing not to have to lead.

One of the large problems that has led to radical feminism, and the mishandling of families is that husbands have taken their roles as leaders and become tyrants. This is a terrible tragedy, and though it doesn't justify swinging to the opposite end of the spectrum to "correct" it, husbands need to be clearly defined and understand what a leader is. Husbands are to give up their lives for their wives! They're not to lord their authority over them, this is perverse and denies the long suffering and tenderness that Christ has with the church! As Christ nourishes and cherishes the church, husbands have a responsibility to nourish and cherish their wives. It is not a burdensome duty, but is done out of love because "he who loves his wife loves himself". You do not lord dominion over yourself, and husbands should not lord it over their wives. Paul says in Colossians that husbands should "love your wives, and...not be harsh with them" (Col. 3.19). Wives should not be treated as property, as slaves, or as any type of inferior. Husbands are to acknowledge that their wives are weaker (physically), but this should not lead them to superiority but rather they should "honor (them) as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered" (1 Pet. 3.7). Not showing understanding and honor to your wives actually leads, not only to an unhappy marriage, but also to an incomplete communion with God! In order to effectively lead, you must seek after God for guidance and help, and if you're not loving your wife properly then you're relationship with God is hindered, and you can't effectively lead your family. Husbands have a very high standard to live up to, set by Christ himself! Christ shows grace and mercy to His bride every time that we (the bride) trespass against him and, as adulterers, go seek pleasure in other things besides Him. Christ's love, His unconditional love, covers over a multitude of sins and He woos us back to faithfulness again and again as we continually commit adultery against Him! This is the standard set for husbands. Forgiveness, long suffering, and faithfulness all for the purpose of wooing a wavering bride back into the covenant keeping bonds of marriage! These are hardly the actions of a tyrant, but are more appropriate of nothing less than the loving God-King, namely Jesus Christ!

Wives on the other hand have a separate but complementary role. Though they are the subordinate to the husbands in role, they are intended to come alongside the husband and help him. Submission has a significant ability to bring a wavering husband who does not follow the Word back to Godliness since "they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives--when they see your respectful and pure conduct" (1 Pet. 3.1-2). That shows a profound power found in submission. What glory can be attributed to Christ when a woman is found to be of pure and respectful conduct, where there is no bitterness and no resentment for her husband, nothing but pure love! With the same love that a husband looks over the flaws of his wife (because of Christ), so a wife should have a love that looks over the flaws of her husband! Such a wife is a blessing to her husband, and as the Proverb says, "she is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain" (Prov. 31.10-11). A Godly wife will help keep her husband firm and God-centered in his ministry as a leader! This is all a part of why God made Eve, of equal value, but as a helper to Adam. Both of them must be properly functioning and supporting each other if the union of marriage is going to benefit either of them. The majority of Proverbs 31 deals with the excellency of a good wife, but the last section I want to focus on.

Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: "Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all." Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates. -Prov. 31.25-21

This passage speaks very highly of women, hardly the inferior servant that woman have at times been made out to be. A wife's servant hood are clothed by "strength and dignity", and she is described as wise and fearless (or laughing at the future)! A Godly wife is a blessing and a joy to her children and to her husband! Her actions speak of her value, and her beauty is "the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious" (1 Pet. 3.4). This is hardly someone who is weak willed, but is more appropriately someone who does not seek to usurp the leadership of her husband, and respects and honors him in his authority over the family. This type of behavior is the behavior of one who "fears the LORD" and submits to her husband as the church submits to Christ. Fear of the Lord is more lovely than charm and physical beauty, because a wife who fears the Lord is found to be a wise woman, for "fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" (Ps. 111.10). What Godly wives lack in physical strength and leadership, they make up for with strength of character and wisdom, both of which are invaluable assets to help assist the leader.

Marriage is a mysterious and valuable union. To understand and fulfill a marriage, we must know, understand, and live out the gospel! The gospel is one of grace, mercy, love, and patience. Christ, the husband in the spiritual union, laid down his life (as we committed adultery and mocked him) in place of us, because of our transgressions! To even begin to fathom that love, that a husband would pay the penalty for his wife's adultery, and be completely glad to do it! That is the gospel, we have a husband who purchased us from damnation for our (MANY) acts of adultery, and He had no regrets because it pleased His father. We as the church strive and yearn and fight to obey Him because we love Him and it is our desire to be faithful and live in service of Him! We don't want to usurp his role, because we know that He will always lead us in paths of righteousness and will never leave us or forsake us, and so we are glad to serve Him! Oh, that both husbands and wives will show grace, mercy, love, and patience towards each other, that husbands would learn what it means to lead, and that wives would see the immeasurable beauty of femininity. Neither husbands nor wives will be found perfect, but we should strive to be. Husbands, love your wives and Christ loves church: completely sacrificial and substitutionary, not domineering and persecuting. Wives, submit to your husbands as the church submits to Christ: out of love and gratitude, not spite and envy!

To die is gain!

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. - Phi 1.21

I don't think we can meditate on this passage enough. "To live is Christ". If you had one word to sum up your life, what would it be? Success? Money? Sex? Power? Something so noble as love? I will not (at this moment) claim that to have any of these things is idolatry and false worship, but I will challenge you to consider Paul's self confessed summary of his life's purpose...Christ. To partake of the sufferings of Christ, to continue to ministry of Christ, to conform himself to the life of Christ, to enjoy Christ as treasure. This sums up Paul's life. Is it too invaluable for us to do likewise, which brings me to the second half; "to die is gain". What do you hold as valuable in your life? Money? Power? Status? Possessions? What do you enjoy in your life? Family? Friends? Sex? Music? Movies? Books? The finer things? Oh, can we begin to taste, and can we get an insatiable desire for Christ, so much that nothing else satisfies, nothing has more value? When you die, at the loss of EVERYTHING you have, you will leave it all behind, will this pain you or will you run towards Christ and say "Gain!" "Such a deal!" "I won!" To lose everything in this world, all people, all things, all pleasures, will you look at Christ and say "Gain!" This is what Paul would do. Is this type of pursuit lower than you?

A forerunner...

Just to give you an idea, food for thought, of the subject of my next blog, you can read the two posts on The Extraordinary Value Of Women by Tim Challies (part 1, part 2), and you may want to start listening to Piper's current series on marriage. (I've finished the first 3 of 5 currently finished)

Piper's journal

John Piper's journal entry narrating his father's death is a very nice thing to read. It shows the character of Piper very well.

A poem

The Glorious Triune Eternal God
Dwelling among the heavens and the earth
The Wondrous Miraculous Loving God
Came from his lofty thrown to give me birth

As the day vanquishes the dark of night
So the Spirit has come upon my soul
The darkness and cold that thrives in the night
The darkness torn from me and now I'm whole

I run I dance I sing I shout
Joy springs from me without a doubt

The Glorious Triune Eternal God
Now has become a dear Father to me
The Wondrous Miraculous Loving God
Is now a personal and beloved friend

Christ my Lord and King has become my light
His sacrifice of grace sustain my life
Jesus Son of God divine Word and Light
His blood cleansing me of my sinful strife

My life my hope my strength my love
My savior has come from above

More considerations on homosexuality

Justin Taylor got permission to post part of an article by David Powlison taken Psychology and Christianity: Four Views. The segment is worth reading and consideration.

William Piper has passed on.

John Piper's father has passed away. Continue to pray for the family and all who are effected by this loss.

Ashamed of the gospel?

"I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." Romans 1.14-16

Are you eager to preach the gospel, or are you ashamed of it? If you understand the gospel and understand that the gospel is necessary to save sinners (for you yourself have only been saved by hearing it with faith), then why do you not preach it? It is either shame of the gospel and God, or lack of love for the world. Either way, if you find yourself in this condition, pray that God will change your heart and give you a passion for the lost. You are (whether you feel it or not) under obligation, a divine command from Christ, to preach the gospel to all men from all nations (Matt 28.19-20).

Piper's father

Keep John Piper and his family in your prayers as his father is going home to be with the Lord soon. You can read a tribute John delivered about his father on Father's Day 'o5.

Be holy as I am holy

As we go about our lives, we develop habits and these habits slowly start to characterize our lives. This was at the forefront of my mind lately because I'm finishing the book of Leviticus in my study, and I realized that "Be holy as I am holy", or some variation of the command to be holy, is used a tremendous amount. If we are holy, that means that we are set apart for Godliness. What does this mean? One of the main things that keeps jumping into my mind is the admonishment by Paul to not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. There is a clear contrast between the worlds habits, and the Christian's habits. I know a lot of people have a long list of "do's and don'ts" that they can almost check off when they accomplish something big or abstain from something evil, and while there is a definite place for such a thing, I think that the issue's of holiness goes further than that. I started to think. How do you drive John? Are you quick to cut someone off to get ahead of them, are you racing to get past that one last car? How do you treat people in passing? Are you courteous about letting others go before you, do you tend to avoid looking people in the eye and get away from them as fast as you can? How are you towards someone who gets in your way, offends you, or acts like you're not even there? Are you resentful or angry at them? How many of these things can people see? The answer is that those who are looking can read a lot more about me than I know, and you can know a lot about a person by observing them. How little do I represent Christ, and how much better would it be if the nuances of my behavior were to change? Without losing sight of the larger aspects of my Christian walk, how do I become more aware of the smaller things that people who are watching notice? This is my question. How can I be holy (in even the smallest things) as God is holy? What a shame it would be to stand before Christ and have to account for a wasted life, how much better would it be to see Christ and your Heavenly Father beaming with joy say "Well done good and faithful servant." If the goal of the Christian life is to live a pleasing life to God that is set apart from the world and holy in all ways, let us strive in every way to attain this.