Catekids Reading Room Episode 1 is Up
Click the image above to see the first episode.
Spiritual Food Daily Specials Menu
SAND HARBOR SPIRITUAL FOOD DAILY SPECIALS
TUESDAYS
Together in the Word is an audio devotional that was started by Treasure Coast Presbyterian Church in Stuart, one of our sister churches in the PCA. They asked me to be a regular contributor and I was delighted to join in with them. Each entry is a short (4-5 minute) Bible lesson going through the book of 1 Peter a few verses at a time. Each lesson includes links to worship songs and a list of discussion questions. The lessons are designed with family worship in mind, but they are suitable for any age or even for personal use. You can access the first 5 entries on our website here: http://www.sandharborpca.org/togetherintheword
WEDNESDAYS @ 2:00 pm
For the Ladies Bible Discussion Group you can access the Bible reading plan that the ladies have been using here: https://www.christkirk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/2019-20-ENGLISH-women-NO-LOGO.pdf
If you have never used ZOOM and want to figure out how to navigate it, you can watch a tutorial of how to join a meeting here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIkCmbvAHQQ
The ZOOM meeting will start at 2:00 pm on Wednesday and you can join the meeting here: us04web.zoom.us/j/9167492638
THURSDAYS
Catekids Reading Room is meant to be a video based catechism (that’s just a fancy word that means “teaching tool”) resource for children. Think of it like a virtual children's Sunday school class. My hope is that I will be able to film a session where I sit down with my own kids as we (1) listen to a Bible story from solid Christian children’s literature, (2) learn a catechism question from the New City Catechism, (3) memorize a related Bible verse using the Fighter Verse App, and (4) sing a verse from a related hymn/song. This is definitely an experiment, so we’ll have to see if I can edit out the crying and screaming that may take place in the course of filming! You’ll be able to access this material on our website here: http://www.sandharborpca.org/catekids-reading-room
FRIDAYS
Presbyterians in Quarantine Drinking Coffee is a theology videocast that is going to work through explaining various theological topics in a discussion based format. Our own Mark Murnan is going to moderate a discussion between myself and Pastor Wes Lauver (Cornerstone PCA in Palm Beach Gardens) through the book Concise Theology by J.I. Packer. Each episode will feature a different theological topic as we will seek to make it understandable and practical. You’ll be able to access this material on our website here: http://www.sandharborpca.org/presbyterians-in-quarantine
saturdays
Dead Theologians Society is my attempt to introduce (or reintroduce) you to some of the richest devotional material from my favorite pastors and theologians of the past. Church History is a gold mine of devotional material that is often neglected and unexplored. C.S. Lewis says that every age tends to be guilty of “chronological snobbery” by which he means that we think that “newer” and “modern” is always better. But what we often need is to open a window into our theological heritage and let the fresh sea-breeze of the centuries blow into our modern minds. I plan to record a reading each week of a sermon or article or excerpt from a variety of my favorite pastors and theologians so that you can listen to it as you would an audiobook or a sermon. I plan to start with the essay “Sickness” by J.C. Ryle for this Saturday. You’ll be able to access this material on our website here: http://www.sandharborpca.org/dead-theologians-society
sundays @ 9:30am
The Inklings group is going to continue to meet but we have moved the time to Sunday mornings from 9:30 - 10:30 am and we will be using the video conferencing tool ZOOM. We will continue discussing The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis picking up where we left off with letter 10. If you haven’t joined us up to this point, there has never been a better time to start and I can almost guarantee that your schedule has a little bit more margin these days! You’ll be able to access this material on our website here: http://www.sandharborpca.org/inklings
Introducing Together in the Word
Together in the Word is an audio devotional that was started by Treasure Coast Presbyterian Church in Stuart, one of our sister churches in the PCA. They asked me to be a regular contributor and I was delighted to join in with them. Each entry is a short (4-5 minute) Bible lesson going through the book of 1 Peter a few verses at a time. Each lesson includes links to worship songs and a list of discussion questions. The lessons are designed with family worship in mind, but they are suitable for any age or even for personal use. You can access the first 5 entries on our website here: http://www.sandharborpca.org/togetherintheword
All Ligonier Teaching Series are Free to Stream
Ligonier just posted this wonderful announcement on their website:
As a result of the global health crisis, churches are canceling Bible studies, small groups, and Sunday school classes. Pastors and elders around the world are thinking about new ways to bring God’s Word to their congregations. Fathers and mothers want to care for their children’s souls. This truly is an unprecedented time. To serve growing Christians around the world, Ligonier Ministries is here to help you maintain your daily growth and the discipleship within your family and community.
For the first time ever, we have made our entire library of hundreds of teaching series free to stream. Download the free Ligonier app today and stream thousands of messages from R.C. Sproul, the Ligonier Teaching Fellows, and other gifted pastors and teachers. Or browse more than 2,500 messages here on Ligonier.org. This represents 1,000+ hours of time-proven, trusted teaching covering topics in biblical studies, theology, church history, Christian living, and worldview. Our entire video and audio teaching series library will remain open until at least June 30.
Not sure where to begin? Try these series:
Surprised by Suffering with R.C. Sproul
The Providence of God with R.C. Sproul
Dealing with Difficult Problems with R.C. Sproul
The Book of Job with Derek Thomas
Attributes of God with Steven Lawson
A Time for Confidence with Stephen Nichols
The Great Commission with Burk Parsons
Free Study Guides
To dig even deeper into your study, you can also freely download the digital study guides that accompany many of our teaching series during this time. Share what you are learning online with others in your community.
C.S. Lewis on the Coronavirus (sort of)
C. S. Lewis’s words—written 72 years ago—ring with some relevance for us. Just replace “atomic bomb” with “coronavirus.”
In one way we think a great deal too much of the atomic bomb. “How are we to live in an atomic age?” I am tempted to reply: “Why, as you would have lived in the sixteenth century when the plague visited London almost every year, or as you would have lived in a Viking age when raiders from Scandinavia might land and cut your throat any night; or indeed, as you are already living in an age of cancer, an age of syphilis, an age of paralysis, an age of air raids, an age of railway accidents, an age of motor accidents.”
In other words, do not let us begin by exaggerating the novelty of our situation. Believe me, dear sir or madam, you and all whom you love were already sentenced to death before the atomic bomb was invented: and quite a high percentage of us were going to die in unpleasant ways. We had, indeed, one very great advantage over our ancestors—anesthetics; but we have that still. It is perfectly ridiculous to go about whimpering and drawing long faces because the scientists have added one more chance of painful and premature death to a world which already bristled with such chances and in which death itself was not a chance at all, but a certainty.
This is the first point to be made: and the first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things—praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts—not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds.
— “On Living in an Atomic Age” (1948) in Present Concerns: Journalistic Essays
HT: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/cs-lewis-coronavirus/
If you’d like you can watch/listen to the whole essay by viewing this video below:
Sin as Identity Relapse
One of the most important contrasts we find in the New Testament is between the old and the new. Not the old and new testament but the old and new man.
The old man is represented by Adam and stands for fallen humanity in rebellion against God.
The new man is represented by Christ, the Last Adam, and He is the head of redeemed humanity which is at peace with God.
To be a Christian is to be transferred from in Adam to in Christ. It is to be adopted from the broken-down house of Adam and brought into the royal courts of King Jesus.
Along with this new identity there is to follow a new way of living. "You are in Christ, so be who you are" is one way that you could sum up all the commands of the NT.
Yet as the saying goes "old habits die hard." So with that what we experience on a daily basis is an identity relapse, that is how you could describe the act of sin.
We forget who we are, and so relapse into acting like who we used to be. Or you might even say that we forget whose we are and relapse into living as if our allegiance remained bound to the Kingdom of Darkness.
In light of our frequent identity relapses it is vitally important that we remind ourselves of the identity that we have in Christ:
If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come…For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:17, 21)
This identity is true of you not because of anything you did or accomplished but only because of what Christ has done for you. On the cross he paid the penalty in full for your old identity so that He could give you a new one.
How Spurgeon Handled an Outbreak
The following article from Geoff Chang over at The Spurgeon Center gives us some helpful historical perspective:
As reports of the coronavirus spread around the world, pastors and church leaders are discussing how they should respond to the outbreak. Throughout church history, many pastors have had to think through similar challenges. As a young village preacher, Charles Spurgeon admired the Puritan ministers who stayed behind to care for the sick and dying during the Great Plague of London in 1665.[1] Now in the fall of 1854, the newly called pastor of the New Park Street Chapel in London found himself pastoring his congregation amid a major cholera outbreak in the Broad Street neighborhood just across the river.
How did Spurgeon respond?
1) Prioritize local ministry
During that epidemic of cholera, though I had many engagements in the country, I gave them up that I might remain in London to visit the sick and the dying. I felt that it was my duty to be on the spot in such a time of disease and death and sorrow.[2]
Spurgeon’s popularity had grown throughout the Fenland villages outside of Cambridge during his pastorate at Waterbeach. Even after arriving in London, he continued to be invited to preach in those villages during the week. But during the outbreak, Spurgeon recognized his responsibility to be present with those who were sick and dying. This was not a time to be an itinerant preacher. This was a time to focus on caring for his church and the community in which he lived. He would not outsource this task to his deacons or other church leaders but remained in London in order to fulfill his duty.
2) Adjust as needed, but continue meeting if possible
The Broad Street Cholera Outbreak of 1854 occurred in August and September of that year, and its effects would continue to be felt in the weeks and months following. The neighborhood where Spurgeon’s church met was not quarantined, so they were able to continue meeting throughout those months. Interestingly, no record of the sermons Spurgeon preached during those days remain.[3] Perhaps the outbreak forced the congregation to adjust some of their previous practices, including the transcription of sermons. Additionally, Spurgeon was likely too busy in those days to edit sermons for publication.
However, we know that the congregation continued meeting during those days because the church’s minute books contain records of congregational meetings carried on throughout the fall of 1854. In those books, amid all the pastoral challenges of the outbreak, Spurgeon and his deacons continued to receive new members, pursue inactive members, observe the Lord’s Supper, and practice all the other normal activities of a church. Not only that, but in retrospect, it was particularly during this time, when news of death raged all around the city, that Spurgeon found Londoners most receptive to the gospel.
If there ever be a time when the mind is sensitive, it is when death is abroad. I recollect, when first I came to London, how anxiously people listened to the gospel, for the cholera was raging terribly. There was little scoffing then.[4]
In other words, not only did Spurgeon gather his church amid the outbreak, but he saw in these gatherings a powerful opportunity for the gospel and proclaimed the gospel boldly.
Pastors need to exercise wisdom when it comes to gathering as a church, especially when the health and lives of people are at stake. Certainly, adjustments will need to be made and priority will have to be given to only the most important aspects of our gatherings. But when such gatherings are possible, pastors should realize that they can be tremendous opportunities for preaching the gospel to those who are desperately looking for hope.
3) Visit the sick
As the pastor, Spurgeon not only continued to gather his church, but he also made himself available throughout the week, working tirelessly to visit the sick and grief-stricken.
In the year 1854, when I had scarcely been in London twelve months, the neighborhood in which I labored was visited by Asiatic cholera, and my congregation suffered from its inroads. Family after family summoned me to the bedside of the smitten, and almost every day I was called to visit the grave.[5]
In these visits, Spurgeon prayed with the sick and grieving, and pointed them to the hope of the gospel. But more than just bringing gospel content, his presence communicated something of God’s comfort to his people. Though these visits were often fearful and full of grief, there were also glorious occasions of faith and joy.
I went home, and was soon called away again; that time, to see a young woman. She also was in the last extremity, but it was a fair, fair sight. She was singing, — though she knew she was dying, — and talking to those round about her, telling her brothers and sisters to follow her to Heaven, bidding goodbye to her father, and all the while smiling as if it had been her marriage day. She was happy and blessed.[6]
4) Be open to new evangelistic opportunities
Spurgeon did not limit himself merely to visiting members of his congregation but was willing to visit “persons of all ranks and religions.”
All day, and sometimes all night long, I went about from house to house, and. saw men and women dying, and, oh, how glad they were to see my face! When many were afraid to enter their houses lest they should catch the deadly disease, we who had no fear about such things found ourselves most gladly listened to when we spoke of Christ and of things Divine.[7]
On one occasion, at three in the morning, Spurgeon was summoned to visit a dying man. Surprisingly, this was not a Christian, but someone who had opposed him:
That man, in his lifetime, had been wont to jeer at me. In strong language, he had often denounced me as a hypocrite. Yet he was no sooner smitten by the darts of death than he sought my presence and counsel, no doubt feeling in his heart that I was a servant of God, though he did not care to own it with his lips.[8]
Spurgeon went right away, but by the time he arrived, there was little he could do.
I stood by his side, and spoke to him, but he gave me no answer. I spoke again; but the only consciousness he had was a foreboding of terror, mingled with the stupor of approaching death. Soon, even that was gone, for sense had fled, and I stood there, a few minutes, sighing with the poor woman who had watched over him, and altogether hopeless about his soul.[9]
Not every evangelistic opportunity will result in dramatic conversions. But during times of disease, surprising opportunities may arise. Therefore, take advantage of any opportunities you might have to preach the gospel to those who are suffering.
5) Entrust your life to God
As Spurgeon gave himself to this pastoral work, he soon found himself physically and mentally exhausted. Not only that, but he began to fear for his own safety. Yet, amid his fears, he learned to entrust himself to God and to His faithfulness.
At first, I gave myself up with youthful ardor to the visitation of the sick, and was sent for from all corners of the district by persons of all ranks and religions; but, soon, I became weary in body, and sick at heart. My friends seemed falling one by one, and I felt or fancied that I was sickening like those around me. A little more work and weeping would have laid me low among the rest; I felt that my burden was heavier than I could bear, and I was ready to sink under it.
I was returning mournfully home from a funeral, when, as God would have it, my curiosity led me to read a paper which was wafered up in a shoemaker’s window in the Great Dover Road. It did not look like a trade announcement, nor was it, for it bore, in a good bold handwriting, these words: —
“Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.”
The effect upon my heart was immediate. Faith appropriated the passage as her own. I felt secure, refreshed, girt with immortality. I went on with my visitation of the dying, in a calm and peaceful spirit; I felt no fear of evil, and I suffered no harm. The Providence which moved the tradesman to place those verses in his window, I gratefully acknowledge; and in the remembrance of its marvelous power, I adore the Lord my God.[10]
Here, Spurgeon does not promise that no Christian will ever die of sickness. Rather, the Christian “[needs] not dread [sickness], for he has nothing to lose, but everything to gain, by death.”[11]
Once again, pastors must exercise wisdom and take appropriate precautions as they visit those who are dying. At the same time, our security cannot be in those precautions, but it must be in God. As we entrust our lives to God and faithfully carry out our responsibilities, we have an opportunity to demonstrate what hope and peace look like in the midst of death.
Conclusion
In many ways, Spurgeon’s example during the cholera outbreak of 1854 follows the pattern of normal pastoral ministry on every occasion. Pastors are to be present with their people, lead in the gatherings of the church, care for those who are suffering, be faithful in evangelism, and continue trusting in God through it all. The main difference is that during an outbreak, there is a heightened reality of suffering and death. Therefore, the work becomes more intense and urgent, and the opportunities for the gospel multiply. As pastors and church leaders consider their response to the coronavirus in our present day, there is much to figure out practically and logistically. But the core of our ministry remains: Preach the gospel.
Speaking in 1866, amid another cholera outbreak, Spurgeon gave this charge to pastors and all Christians:
And now, again, is the minister’s time; and now is the time for all of you who love souls. You may see men more alarmed than they are already; and if they should be, mind that you avail yourselves of the opportunity of doing them good. You have the Balm of Gilead; when their wounds smart, pour it in. You know of Him who died to save; tell them of Him. Lift high the cross before their eyes. Tell them that God became man that man might be lifted to God. Tell them of Calvary, and its groans, and cries, and sweat of blood. Tell them of Jesus hanging on the cross to save sinners. Tell them that —
“There is life for a look at the Crucified One.”
Tell them that He is able to save to the uttermost all them that come unto God by Him. Tell them that He is able to save even at the eleventh hour, and to say to the dying thief, “today shalt thou be with Me in Paradise.”[12]
ENDNOTES
[1] See Notebook 6, Sermon 290.
[2] Autobiography 1:372.
[3] The NPSP and MTP sets only contain three sermons from 1854: No. 2392, preached on 12/24/1854; No. 2908, preached on 11/6/1854; No. 2915, preached on 12/24/1854.
[4] Autobiography 1:371.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid., 373.
[7] Ibid., 371.
[8] Ibid., 373.
[9] Ibid.
[10] Ibid., 371-372.
[11] Ibid., 371.
[12] Ibid.
How Presbyterian Church Government Works
Every local church, every denomination, every voluntary association of like minded churches (which is really a denomination but they don’t like that word) has a form of government, whether they acknowledge it or not. The question is not “if your church has a form of government?” but “what form of government do you have?” Is it biblical? Does it have properly fortified structures of accountability? Does it promote the flourishing of the sheep that are under its care? In a day and age when authority structures are viewed with suspicion (at best) and disdain (at worst), we need to think carefully and clearly about how Jesus desires His church to be governed.
Thankfully, Pastor and Professor Sean Michael Lucas has done us a kind favor by giving us a clear and concise overview of the what, why, and how of Presbyterian Church government. I encourage you to watch or listen to this teaching to understand more about how Jesus runs His church.
How Can I Love Fellow Christians with Different Politics?
It’s that time again…an election year. Social media will soon turn into a cafeteria food fight as political opinions are thrown left and right (pun intended). My hope is that, during an election year (and at all times for that matter), the church will look much different than the social media scene. During an election year the church has a unique opportunity to demonstrate to the world that we find our fundamental identity and unity in Christ despite where we stand politically. To help us do that I want you to ask yourself this very important question: “How can I love fellow Christians with different politics?” Now to help you answer that question I invite you to listen to this message given by Professor Andy Naselli, who teaches at the wonderful seminary that I had the privilege of going to.
If you would rather listen to or download the audio you can do so below:
The DO NOT Program DOES NOT Work
“If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.” Colossians 2:20-23 (ESV)
What the Apostle Paul is pointing out in this passage and warning us against is the misdirected religious impulse to make a bunch of rules and regulations that we must adhere to and practice if we really want to be “sanctified” or “spiritual” Christians.
The thinking that feeds and stands behind this misdirected impulse goes something like this: “The world is a very dangerous place and the slightest misstep or even the most subtle exposure to the wrong thing could be devastating to your spiritual health.” According to this thinking the world is strictly viewed as like walking through an active Minefield. So this fear and panic (rather than faith and dependence) sets in and you begin to construct this protective Christian bubble wrap made up of a bunch of “Do not’s”:
DO NOT read those books
DO NOT watch those kind of shows or movies (in some cases DO NOT even have a TV)
DO NOT hang out with those kind of people
DO NOT send your kids to that kind of school
DO NOT shop at that store
DO NOT associate with that political party or vote for that kind of candidate
The list could go on and on and specific examples could be supplied for each of these.
Paul says that to varying degrees this “Do not” Christian bubble wrap method has the appearance of wisdom. Some of these rules in the right context and with the right motives can be useful and beneficial. Let’s not forget that the Bible has some “Do not’s” of its own that we must follow, the prime example being the majority of the ten commandments.
But the problem with this spiritual program is that these “Do not’s” go beyond the Bible. And as an overall package the “Do not” program does not get the job done. Why? Because it never gets to the heart, which is the heart of the matter. Also, its most serious error is that it actually becomes a distraction from centering our focus on Christ, who is the heart of the solution.
It is only because of and in the power of the Cross of Christ that we can crucify the flesh with all its desires. As the Puritan John Owen said, “Fill your affections with the Cross of Christ and there will be no room for sin.” The Cross is so much better than our self-made religious strategies that have the appearance of wisdom, because the Cross is the wisdom of God for our salvation and sanctification.
10 Flavors of Works Based Salvation
I found this following article from the 9Marks website to be very helpful and insightful:
By nature and by training we all seek solutions to our problem of sin. To varying degrees, these solutions include doing something—law keeping, good works, etc—to please or appease or satisfy the God who is one day going to judge us. The idea of contributing to one’s own salvation is universal. It’s the engine which propels every religion.
But you may say, “I’m not that religious.” Well, even people who are “not religious” feel this way—and their feelings are based on some version of being good.
Now there are many flavors of works-based salvation. Let me mention ten of them:
1. The Work of Philanthropy
“I’m going to give money. I’m going to contribute. I’m going to give to the poor. I’m going to see someone in need, and I’m going to meet that need. I’m going to make charitable gifts, and as I give I really cannot imagine in the final day that the Almighty would damn me. After all, look at all the money I’ve given.”
2. The Work of Service
“I’m going to volunteer. I’m going to pitch in. I’m going to give my time. I’m going to use my skill and expertise. I’m going to get my hands dirty for Jesus, or for whatever deity I think is in charge. I’m going to work, to do good, and to serve—whether it’s shoveling my neighbor’s walk or going to a food pantry. And, on judgment day, I just can’t imagine that God would watch a video of my life, of me serving on Thanksgiving Day with the homeless, and still send me to hell.”
3. The Work of Ritual
Confession. Confirmation. Communion. Baptism. Prayers. Beads. Candles. Church attendance. Pointing a mat toward a city and bowing down five times a day in the direction of that city. Whatever. Some sort of a ceremony is going to get me right with God.
I’ve been to funerals and so have you where the clergyman has stood and said, “We know that the dearly departed is going to one day be in the presence of God because they were baptized.”
4. The Work of Comparison
“Alright, I’m not the best guy in the world but I can point you to a million people who are far worse than me. If we’re looking at a bell curve, I’m on the plus side. By comparison, I’m in.”
5. The Work of Comprehension
“This whole thing is a riddle. And I’m going to figure it out and when I figure it out then I’m going to be in God’s good graces. If I learn enough about the Almighty, then I will be accepted. I understand and can articulate the salient points of the gospel; therefore, I’m a recipient of salvation.”
Side-note: these people can be tricky for a church. And if your church has elders, it’s where they are deficient. Just imagine: someone desires to be a member of your church, and your elders ask them to share their testimony of salvation. And they do—with precision and emotion. Your elders sit across the desk from someone as he or she tells them about how Jesus lived a perfect life, died in the place of sinners, and rose from the dead. Your elders listen as he or she describes trusting in Christ alone.
This person is correct on every point, and so—at my church, at least—we say, a few weeks later, “Welcome to North Shore Baptist Church.” But some time passes. And their life proves that all they knew were the facts. But truthfully, we could teach a parrot to say the facts. Jesus told us that not everyone who says “Lord, Lord” shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven. We need to remember that. There are many today who are unsaved and on the way to hell and yet have a very correct understanding of the gospel.
6. The Work of Decision
Walk that aisle, sign that card, pray that prayer. Well-meaning Christian pastors will tell you that if you simply make your decision to ask Jesus into your heart as your personal Savior then you are saved and you can doubt no more.
There’s that ridiculous story of the farmer who is standing in the field and doubting his salvation. He says to himself and to the Devil: “I’m going to make it secure right now and he takes a wooden post and pounds it into the ground.” And he looks to that post and says, “Right here, this is the time I made sure that Jesus is my Lord and Savior.” Other days, he’d be working in that same field, having doubts about his salvation, and he’d simply tell the Devil to look at that post which marked the day Jesus became his Lord and Savior.
The man is trusting in a post in the ground. It’s unwise to rely on a monumental, emotional decision that you made years ago as the ground for your assurance.
7. The Work of Restitution
“I’ve done a lot of bad things in my life so I need to go back and take care of it.”
I had a man tell me once that he went several years without tithing and now he is paying God back. “I’ve hurt some people in my life and I need to go and ask their forgiveness. I’ve stolen from people so I need to go to them and make things right. I need to go back and take care of the wrongs in my life. Once I’ve done that, then God will forgive me.”
8. The Work of Affliction
This looks like beating yourself up, or penance. “If I give myself hell here and now, then God won’t give me hell later.” Martin Luther, in an attempt to be saved, used to beat himself with a whip, literally, he used to flog himself until he realized that the just shall live by faith.
9. The Work of Meditation
“I can just go on a retreat and be quiet and still before God. He connects with me when I clear my mind. When I’m poised and quiet, God comes and meets me where I am. “
10. The Work of Seeking Affirmation
“I don’t know whether or not I’m saved but if I can get the elders to say that I am, or if I can get anybody else who is saved to tell me that I am, then I will find rest before God.”
Unsaved people add countless other contributions to their resumes in order to be right with God. By nature, we all feel like we need to do this. Our sinful prides says that, with God’s help, we have what it takes to get there. We just need to apply ourselves because, after all, I’m me.
But as reasonable as this seems, it’s wrong. In fact, it’s the opposite of the truth because even a drop of ink dropped on an Elvis autograph renders it trash. And any work which you try to contribute to your salvation, your justification before God, annuls the grace of God and insults the God of grace. You have absolutely nothing that God wants.
So come to Christ, but come to him with nothing.
Test Your Knowledge of the Trinity
How well do you know what the Bible teaches about the Trinity? THE distinguishing mark of biblical Christianity is our belief in our Triune God.
The test was put together by Tim Challies
If you would like to start digging more deeply into the doctrine of the Trinity I would recommend starting with the book Our Triune God by Michael LeFebvre and Philip Ryken you can get a paperback or kindle version.
Or you can listen to R.C. Sproul’s teaching series The Mystery of the Trinity for free online.
From Cradle to Cross to Crown
I wrote this poem one Christmas as I was meditating on Philippians 2:5-11:
He inhabited heaven surrounded with praise,
without beginning, the endless of days
by nature God, second person of the Trinity
the Immortal, the Invisible, robed in divinity.
Yet all the prerogatives and privileges of glory,
He laid aside to inhabit humanities story.
A story that is filled with a darkness most grim,
but lo He comes to shine light upon them.
How He came is still shrouded in mystery,
One might call it the great miracle of history.
Even more marvelous was the way that He came:
It wasn’t the entrance of a person of fame,
It wasn’t the arrival of one who is King,
Nor of the one who owns everything.
This is the part that should leave us floored
The One we call Master, Savior, and Lord
Entered this world through the womb of a lady
God the Son actually became a baby.
The unmade Maker went through gestation
and was born in a very humble location.
Born with the animals, their stink and their stank,
He came to be a servant of most lowly rank.
He was found by Shepherds sleeping in a manger
His appearance was that of any other stranger.
That birth in the stable is where Hope begins,
there lies the One who’ll save us from our sins.
The place of the cradle is only the start
A mission to suffer lies at the heart
The cradle was destined to lead to the cross
As He has come to seek and save the lost.
He was obedient to the point of death
Honoring His Father with every breath.
His resolve: “Father glorify your Name”
Brought him at last to a cross of shame.
But even the cross gave way to the crown.
as death was unable to keep this King down.
His Father raised Him exalted Him high,
And one day every tongue will His Name magnify.
Our Lord went from cradle to cross to crown,
So let us before Him worship and bow down!
Seeing the Goodness of God's Commands in the light of the Gospel
Every time I deliberately disobey a command of God, it is because I am in that moment doubtful as to God’s true intentions in giving me that command.
Does He really have my best interests at heart?
Or is He withholding something from me that I would be better off having?
Such questions, whether consciously asked or not, lie underneath every act of disobedience.
However, the gospel changes my view of God’s commandments, in that it helps me to see the heart of the Person from whom those commandments come.
When I begin my train of thought with the gospel, I realize that if God loved me enough to sacrifice His Son’s life for me, then He must be guided by that same love when He speaks His commandments to me.
Viewing God’s commands and prohibitions in this light, I can see them for what they are: friendly signposts from a heavenly Father who is seeking to love me through each directive, so that I might experience His very fullness forever.
When controlling my thoughts as described above, the gospel cures me of my suspicion of God, thereby disposing me to walk more trustingly on the path of obedience to His commands.
Vincent, Milton. A Gospel Primer for Christians: Learning to See the Glories of God’s Love. Focus Publishing (MN), 2008.
The Best One Sentence Definition of Worship
To worship is…
to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God,
to feed the mind with the truth of God,
to purge the imagination by the beauty of God,
to open the heart to the love of God,
and to devote the will to the purpose of God.
-William Temple (1881-1944), Archbishop of Canterbury from 1942 to 1944.
This definition would be well used if it were converted into a prayer each day as we seek to present our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to the Lord (Rom. 12:1-2), or each time we assemble together with the church for corporate worship (Her. 10:24-25).
Why Do You Open Your Bible? (Michael Reeves)
“The point of all the Scriptures is to make Christ known. As the Son makes His Father known, so the Spirit-breathed Scriptures make the Son known.
Paul wrote to Timothy of how ‘from infancy, you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus’ (2 Tim. 3:15). He is referring to the Old Testament, of course, but the same could be said of the New.
Similarly, Jesus said to the Jews of His day: ‘You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about Me, yet you refuse to come to Me to have life… If you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me’ (John 5:39-40, 46).
Clearly, Jesus believed that is quite possible to study the Scriptures diligently and entirely miss their point, which is to proclaim Him so that readers might come to Him for life.
It all dramatically affects why we open the Bible. We can open our Bibles for all sorts of odd reasons– as a religious duty, an attempt to earn God’s favor, or thinking that it serves as a moral self-help guide, a manual of handy tips for effective religious lives.
That idea is actually one main reason so many feel discouraged in their Bible-reading. Hoping to find quick lessons for how they should spend today, people find instead a genealogy or a list of various sacrifices.
And how could page after page of histories, descriptions of the temple, instructions to priests, affect how I rest, work and pray today?
But when you see that Christ is the subject of all the Scriptures, that He is the Word, the Lord, the Son who reveals His Father, the promised Hope, the true Temple, the true Sacrifice, the great High Priest, the ultimate King, then you can read, not so much asking, ‘What does this mean for me, right now?’ but ‘What do I learn here of Christ?’
Knowing that the Bible is about Him and not me means that, instead of reading the Bible obsessing about me, I can gaze on Him.
And as through the pages you get caught up in the wonder of His story, you find your heart strangely pounding for Him in a way you never would have if you had treated the Bible as a book about you.”
–Michael Reeves, Delighting In The Trinity: An Introduction to the Christian Faith(Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2012), 81-83.
Digging Deeper into William Tyndale
This past Sunday, which we affectionately call “Reformation Sunday,” I continued a tradition of highlighting the life of a person who God used to bring about Reformation to the church. This year I focused on William Tyndale, who many consider to be not only the father of the english reformation but of Bible translation as well. So throughout the year leading up to Reformation Sunday I have been reading books, listening to lectures, and watching documentaries about William Tyndale in order to understand him, his times, and how God used him.
For your own study and benefit I thought I would share with you the resources that I found most encouraging and helpful:
If you want to read from William Tyndale
If you want to read on William Tyndale
William Tyndale: A Biography by David Daniell (more scholarly)
Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice by David Teems (less scholarly but still meaty)
The Daring Mission of William Tyndale by Steve Lawson (popular and accessible)
God’s Outlaw: The Story of William Tyndale and the English Bible by Brian Edwards (my favorite)
If you want to listen to something on William Tyndale
If you want to watch something on William Tyndale
William Tyndale: Man with a Mission (Documentary)
If you want something for your kids on William Tyndale
William Tyndale: The Smugglers Flame by Lori Rich (book for Kids 8-12)
Torchlighters: The William Tyndale Story (movie for kids 4-8)
The Grieving God (Genesis 6:6)
The flood of evil that has filled the world as described in Genesis 6:1-5 leads to this striking emotional response of the Lord in Genesis 6:6:
“And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.” (ESV)
In the King James Version the first clause of that verse is translated this way:
“And it repented the LORD…“
Likewise in the New American Standard Bible it is translated this way:
“The LORD was sorry…“
The heart of what Moses seems to be communicating to us with these words is that the sin was so great that it made God so sorry he had made man. Likewise, the heart of man was greatly wicked and it brought great grief to the heart of God.
This passage offers us something of a theological riddle and puzzle in that on the surface of this passage it sounds like God is shocked and surprised by how bad things turned out and has decided to call an audible at the line of scrimmage. If such is the case this would call into question God’s omniscience and sovereignty.
In dealing with a theological puzzle such as this, there are two vital Old Testament texts that you need to keep in mind.
One is found in Numbers 23:19:
“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind.”
Another is found in 1 Samuel 15:29:
“the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret.””
These verses are placed as theological guardrails in the Bible so that when we drive through passages like Genesis 6:6, we don’t veer off into the false conclusion that there is impotence and ignorance in God.
But that still leaves us with this question: What are we to make of this language?
To answer that question I can do no better than share with you these very helpful words from John Calvin:
“Because it could not otherwise be known how great is God’s hatred and detest of sin, therefore God accommodates himself to our capacity (as a Father stooping down to lisp to his infant child). God clothes himself with our affections, in order to more effectively pierce our hearts with the gravity of sin.”[1]
In other words, by putting on our emotions God is teaching us how we should feel about and view sin. This act of accommodation on God’s part leads us to ask some very heart probing questions:
Do God’s emotions, as it were, toward sin, reflect yours?
Are you growing in holiness in your affections by learning to be grieved like God?
Or have you become so desensitized to sin that you merely shrug your shoulders at it, or worse, find it quite entertaining?
Also, by putting on our emotions God is teaching us how we should respond to our own sin.
Genesis 6:6 is a wonderful example of what repentance looks like. Ironically, God, who has no sin and so need not repent, is the one doing the repenting.
Repentance is when we bring the darkness of our sin under the light of God’s holiness and see it for what it really is. Then with grief and hatred for our sin we seek to turn from it to God in renewed obedience.
This is what we learn from our “grieving” God.
[1] John Calvin, Commentary on the First Book of Moses Called Genesis (vol. 1; Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2010), 249. (I have slightly paraphrased and updated some of the English).
