Christ's Glorious Covenant - Notes, Audio, Video.

"Christ's Glorious Covenant" - Source of Joy and Power - Treasuring Christ Fellowship Camp (Australia 2007) NOTES, AUDIO, VIDEO

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Putting My Daughter to Bed Two Hours After the Bridge Collapsed

Putting My Daughter to Bed Two Hours After the Bridge Collapsed by John Piper

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Treasuring Christ Fellowship Camp (Australia)

"Christ's Glorious Covenant" - Source of Joy and Power - With Joseph Krygier Mt Tamborine 17-19 August 2007 Brochure - Right Click to Download

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Church-planting in Saskatchewan, Canada

Just in case any of you are interested in what we are doing in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, you can check out our latest newsletter here.
We are desirous of establishing a "Christ-treasuring" church-planting church. We want to grow in the grace and knowledge of God in and through the Lord Jesus Christ in an ever-increasing measure and make Him known in our community and beyond.
We will definitely need His grace and wisdom.

May the Lord be magnified!

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Gospel Sanctification 5 - Spiritual Repentance to the Glory of God

Applying the truths of Gospel Sanctification to repentance means maintaining a deeply sorrowful sense of indwelling personal sin while also rejoicing in the present reality of the full and free forgiveness in Jesus Christ, looking forward with expectation to the final delivery 'from this body of death'.

“. . . God's kindness leads you toward repentance.” Rom 2:4

A high view of our Holy God mixed with a sorrow over our own personal sin leads to a treasuring of Jesus Christ and complete surrender to His wondrous, gracious and extensive Gospel promises, and gift of Himself, as the only way to return us to the embrace of our loving heavenly Father.

Repentance therefore ought to be coupled with a relishing of the full & free gospel promises of love, forgiveness, acceptance, justification and of union with Christ Himself. Otherwise, repentance can become a defeated and mournful wallowing in the very slough we are being saved from rather than a turning from it and glorying in the eternal happy state we are being saved to. Thus even your repentance ought to be to the heart-felt praise and glory of God!
Although we are miserable creatures, of ourselves, we don't wallow in defeat or remain self-focused but rather look to God, with thankful heart, for the provision of a solution in Jesus Christ. True repentance leads to Christ-exultation:

“O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Rom 7:23-25

“This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” 1 Tim 1:15-17

Our repentance must not be characterised by wallowing or self-focus because, " . . . whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things.” Phil 4:8

When you are convicted over sin, don't wallow in defeat, but simply confess your sin and weakness to God, thank Him that even in this Christ is sufficient to cover your sin and present you faultless before the throne of grace, and He is the one that will bring deliverance from the very sin you struggle with. He loves you anyway and always - thank and praise him for it. And in this you will glorify God in your repentance.

Is your repentance done to the heartfelt praise and glory of God?

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
1 Cor 10:31-32

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Gospel Sanctification 4 - Legalism's Wrong Assumption

At one point I came to understand the need for the ministry of grace to strengthen believers. I struggled knowing exactly how or where the preaching of commandments came into things. I was challenged by a legalist to explain why we can't simply take an 'imperative' text and preach it, by which he meant rebuke believers for their lack of faithfulness and exhort them to obedience ( i.e. club believers with the commands). After all, it's in the Bible, we need to hear it, and be exhorted to obey, right? It took quite a while for me to figure out what was actually wrong with what he was saying (and doing).

I came to realise that an assumption was brought to the commands by the legalist that forgets that the indelible mark of a Christian is he "loves to keep God's commandments because those commandments are no longer grievous" ( I John 5:1-3).

The assumption implicit (and sometime explicit!) in legalistic preaching is that believers don't want to obey and need to be dragged against their will to obedience. Taken out of the equation is the new heart, the Spirit's work, New Covenant realities, and ultimately Jesus Christ Himself.

Legalists underestimate the power of a believer's new heart feasting on the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. So legalists turn their attention to subduing the flesh through rebuke and sharp exhortation. Scripture teaches this doesn't help bring about obedience but rather fuels the sinful nature by either leading to pride in those who feel successful or leading to despair in those that feel the burden of failure.

In one illustration, Walter Marshall says that much preaching is like telling a man to take his weapons and go and enter a battle. If the man is a soldier he will do it readily. But we are more like sick men on our death beds without the strength to so much as pick up our weapon. The question that needs answering is: How can I, without any strength in myself, perform such an overwhelming task?

The strength to enliven us, and give us power to get out of our sick beds to face the battle, is the gospel alone - to be embraced afresh every day. So our first duty is to believe on Christ and receive healing strength from the great physician who alone gets the glory.

"1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. 2Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? 4Did you suffer so many things in vain--if indeed it was in vain? 5Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith-- 6just as Abraham "believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness"?" Galatians 3:1-6.

Resting in grace-

Shane.

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Gospel Sanctification 3 - Walter Marshall to My Rescue

Probably the greatest help to me, during deep personal struggles in understanding the Biblical process of Sanctification, was the book "Gospel Mystery of Sanctification" by 17th Century puritan Walter Marshall.

If you seek to stir guilt in yourself or your people to motivate obedience then this post is for you!
So, let me share a little about Marshall's book, his times, and the influence on me. I think you'll find the history interesting and the noted quotes worth the read.

Marshall, in his book, examines what he calls is "The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification". His aim was to minister the much needed balm to those beaten under the weight of legalistic teaching and ultimately to save lives from the depths of what Bunyan calls, "The Slough of Despond".

Marshall's Battle

Marshall struggled despairingly with the issue of seeking after holiness in himself and his people although he preached it hard and often. He went to a number of preachers and writers in his time but found little help. He also went to a hero of his, Richard Baxter, who didn't help although at the time he still much appreciated Baxter's writings and largely modelled his own ministry after the same pattern – this later changed.

Regarding the discussions with Marshall, Baxter later stated that he felt Marshall had misunderstood him and taken him "too legally". Still, Marshall found Baxter useless as regards sanctification.

Can you relate!? Have you ever struggled with obtaining a peace filled life of obedience and have sought help only to find legalistic dung where sweet streams should be sourced? I've sure been there!

Thomas Goodwin to the Rescue

Later, when Thomas Goodwin visited the congregation and heard Marshall preaching, he accused Marshall saying, "You are trying to squeeze oil out of a flint" (an expression that became popular among grace preachers describing legalists). That is, he was trying to squeeze holiness out of the efforts of the flesh. Goodwin explained that holiness is to be sought by "Gospel Means" and he also exhorted Marshall to stop "railing against his people".

The two became friends and Goodwin spent much time with Marshall explaining and discussing the 'gospel mystery of sanctification'.

Marshall took on board the instruction of Goodwin and throughout his life studied Sanctification further. It was towards the end of his life that Marshall wrote his book.

Marshall Identifies the Problem

In his book he discusses, among other reasons, he is writing that some might not commit suicide as a result of the despair arising from much of the preaching of the time. The problem was not so much what was said but what was left out. Much preaching was very clear on the holiness of God, the sinfulness of man, and the duty of man (and rightly so). The problem, as Marshall saw it, was the means of attaining holiness and the means of dealing with failure was not understood and preached. In Marshall's day, people were exhorted, in the words of Bryan Chapell, to live the principles of:

- "Sola-bootstrapsa" (I must keep the law in my own strength & effort) and

- "Ego-nomianism" (I am able to keep the law).

In his book, Marshall takes Baxter to task for being legalistic. He doesn't name Baxter but a knowledge of the times & Baxter makes it clear who he's speaking of.

John Murray on Marshall's Book

John Murray calls Marshall's book the most important work on Sanctification ever written. I think I agree but unlike John Murray I haven't read every work on Sanctification ever written!! ; )

If you're interested in a modern version of Marshall's book you could read "Holiness by Grace" by Bryan Chapell. I've not read it all but have read good chunks and skimmed a lot. A friend of mine has read both books and said that "Holiness by Grace" is simply a modernized version of Marshall's book and much easier to read. It also extensively quotes Marshall's book. Personally, I think you can't beat the original although the old style may be difficult for a modern audience.

Another book that has been recommended (by Chad Bresson) is Jerry Bridges’ “Transforming Grace”.

Others on Marshall's Book

William Cowper expresses my own feelings regarding this book when he wrote, "The doctrines Marshall maintains are, under the influence of the divine Spirit, the very life of my soul, and the soul of all my happiness".

And, "James Harvey began life with strong prejudices against the truths which he was afterwards honoured so signally to advance. But about the year 1741 his preaching underwent an entire change, partly in consequence of the influence of his lifelong friend Whitefield, but chiefly from the perusal of certain books. Marshall's Gospel Mystery of Sanctification first lead him to the great spring and secret of gospel holiness. . ." Quote from the Editors introduction to the 1902 reprint of the 1645 classic, "The Marrow of Modern Divinity".

Where to Get Marshall's Book

The version of Marshall's book updated and simplified into modern English can be found here:

http://www.monergismbooks.com/gospelmystery0543.html

An electronic version of the original can be found here:

http://www.covenantofgrace.com/gospel_mystery_of_sanctification.htm

This page has a great single sentence summary of each chapter – let this page alone minister to your soul and whet your appetite for more.

A hardcopy of the original can be purchased here:

http://heritagebooks2.org/bookstore/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3922

Marshall, Whyte and Me

The reason I tracked down a copy and worked through the book is that it was so strongly recommended by Alexander Whyte in one of his books. Alexander Whyte, the Scottish Presbyterian, has probably been the single most helpful writer and greatest post-apostolic influence over me - although my New Covenant Theology (NCT) views and overall understanding of the structure of Scripture doesn't come from Whyte, of course!

Interestingly, both Marshall and Whyte name Goodwin as a primary influence on their thinking.

From Whyte: "In his classical book on Sanctification Walter Marshall tells his readers that he had been labouring all his days to squeeze oil out of a flint. That is to say, he had been labouring all his days to squeeze holiness out of his own sinful heart. And he had gone on performing that fruitless toil till a great spiritual teacher took him and told him that he was to have all his sanctification, as well as all his justification, out of Jesus Christ alone. That great spiritual teacher tells us that he himself for nearly seven years sought for satisfactory signs of grace in his own heart. It took him all that time till he was taken off entirely from searching for the grounds of peace and the source of power within himself, and was lead to look simply to the grace of God and thus to live and grow by faith in Christ alone. Up to that epoch-making conversation with Thomas Goodwin, Walter Marshall's whole life had been one long and painful and fruitless endeavour after inward holiness of mind and heart. But when he opened his whole mind and heart about that matter to Thomas Goodwin, that great spiritual teacher told him that he was to look to Jesus Christ for the sanctifying of his sinful heart, as well as for the cleansing of his sinful conscience. And ever after that illuminating and enfranchising interview with the great Puritan, Marshall set himself to study the person and work of Christ in a new way, and to preach the person and work of Christ in a new way, till he attained to that eminent spirituality of mind and heart and doctrine out of all which he wrote in his ripe old age his standard work on 'The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification' . . . .

The congregation will not have forgotten dear old James Stewart of the cab office at the Dean Bridge, who was wont to sit in the front seat down there with all his eyes and all his ears always open to the pulpit and to the desk. Well, at the last pastoral visit I had the privilege of paying to James Stewart's deathbed, laying his hand on Marshall's book . . . and he kissed that old brown book after his own passionate manner and said again: 'O! that heavenly direction on the Mystical Union!' Now, if your interest in this matter survives until tomorrow morning, your bookseller will supply you with 'Walter Marshall'. . . .

Well, then, all you people of sufficient interest and of sufficient enterprise in the life of Sanctification; all you who are old enough and deep enough in the Divine life, be sure to buy and to read again and again, that true classic of the soul. And send it to some of your most intimate friends as a Christmas gift. To all them who are sufficient intellect and of sufficient heart to appreciate such a great book. . . . And, if you do so, I warrant you they will thank and bless you all their days for so remembering them and for so honouring them and for so enriching them." Alexander Whyte

Spot the Influence

After reading Marshall's book I wrote our Nurturing Philosophy. I wanted to clearly spell out how believers would be nurtured coming into our fellowship. This is something that is often not clear in church creeds, confessions, doctrinal statements, constitutions, etc. Two churches can look the same on paper but one will minister grace, strength, power & Christ, and the other feed the flock the wood, hay, and stubble of will-power religion.

For anyone interested, a copy of our nurturing philosophy can be found here (and a keen eye will also spot the influence of John Piper and John Reisinger, as well as Marshall):

swf: http://treasuringchrist.com/_TCCC/TCF_NurturingPhilosophy_1-2.swf

pdf: http://treasuringchrist.com/_TCCC/TCF_NurturingPhilosophy_1-2.pdf

Section 7 succinctly covers what I consider to be the heart of what Marshall was driving at (although the entire document is ' Marshall' flavoured).

Marshall Strays into NCT

Marshall holds to Covenant Theology (CT), yet like many (e.g. Andrew Murray, John Owen, etc) this hasn't stopped him from making observations such as this one:

"You also should learn the true difference between the two covenants, the old and the new, or the law and the gospel: that the former shuts us up under the guilt and power of sin, and the wrath of God and His curse, by its rigorous terms: 'Do all the commandments, and live; and, cursed are you if you do not do them, and fail in the least point'; the latter opens the gates of righteousness and life to all believers ( i.e. the new covenant) by its gracious terms: 'Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and live,' that is, all your sins shall be forgiven, and holiness and glory shall be given to you freely by His merit and Spirit."

Although I don't agree with the CT of Whyte and Marshall, I still owe a great debt to both! The influence of Marshall's book on my thinking and life has been deeply profound!! It was just what I needed at the time when I was enduring week in, and week out, legalistic thumping while Christ's help and grace were hardly ever in view. Marshall (and Whyte) ministered to my soul and changed my life.

(The only other post-apostolic book that has had a similar impact was "Christian Take Heart" by Tom Wells. A simple book but for a messed-up Pentecostal becoming a messed-up Calvinist it was also just what I needed at the time – some overlap with Marshall's work also but it took many years before I 'got it' thanks to Marshall.).

Finally I Finish My Post

Get a copy and read Marshall's book. If you've made it this far into this overdone post of mine then I'm sure you are of 'sufficient intellect and of sufficient heart to appreciate such a great book'.

Take your time, linger over it, let it soak in, and then read it again. If you (or your people) are 'sanctified by vinegar', as Alexander Whyte would say, under legalistic counsel, you will rejoice at the soothing oil of grace and love that will flow as a result of Marshall, or rather Christ through Marshall, moulding you into a person who has 'been mastered by the unconditional grace of God, and from whom iron clad orthodoxy has been torn away and the whole armor of a gracious God has been applied; the armor of him who would not break the bruised reed or quench the dimly burning wick' (A Whyte).

"How can we command holiness without causing despair among saints who know that they are still sinners? Walter Marshall's answer to this 'mystery' not only saved lives in his time, but continues to bring renewed zeal for God to believers in the generations since. The relief and resolve of grace are the Gospel mystery that elude so many but find rejuvenating expression in the firm grasp of Marshall." Dr. Bryan Chapell, President, Covenant Theological Seminary.

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Gospel Sanctification 2 - What is it?

Gospel: The free gift of forgiveness of sin, and gaining of eternal life, all received through faith in Jesus Christ.

Sanctification: The process of becoming more like Jesus Christ throughout this life; personal growth in conformance to the law of King Jesus.

Gospel-sanctification: Conformance to the holy law of Christ through prizing the promises, performance, person and perfection of Jesus Christ freely given by means of His gospel. The process of seeking personal holiness through abiding in Christ and He in you to produce the inner holiness of a joyful and contented heart resulting in natural and unconstrained obedience to His commands.

Gospel sanctification is seeking to continually preach to yourself, and display to your conscience, all the treasures freely given to you in Christ and to ingrain yourself with an understanding of your right standing in Christ. This forms a sure foundation from which to grow in grace.
Believers are those that have a new nature in Christ and therefore desire and are enabled towards the enjoyment of Christ, to walk in the Spirit, glorify God and have the victory over sin. Therefore, believers are helped in this endeavor by the power of the Spirit through prayer, meditation and the Word.

While it is important to recognise the conflict within every believer dealing with their indwelling sin, it is equally important that you take care to not treat yourself, or other believers, as though this struggle with sin is the governing principle because the work of the Holy Spirit within is greater than any other influence in a believers life (1 John 4:4).

Gospel sanctification is aimed toward Spirit-powered holiness through treasuring Christ and abiding in Him. The opposite of Gospel Sanctification is will-power holiness: that is, doing the best that lies in your own power and trusting on the grace of God and Christ to help you in various resolutions of your own will.

Rather, the power of true holiness is received when we trust on Christ, to work in us ‘to will and do, by His own power, according to His own good pleasure’. Will-power holiness is a trusting on the flesh for holiness through acts of the will, resolutions, determination, and personal efforts, instead of trusting on Christ. Christ is to be enjoyed and trusted upon as the author and finisher of our faith.

This is why we encourage you toward ‘vertical’ effort for the achieving of ‘horizontal’ results; looking ‘up’ to behold Christ for achieving our spiritual growth ‘down’ here with benefits spreading ‘outward’ throughout our lives; savoring the sweetness of the Savior to sanctify the soul and sever the root of sin. Seek to learn the art of personal holiness through abiding in Christ and He in you to produce the inner holiness of a joyful and contented heart resulting in natural and unconstrained obedience to His commands.

True holiness is primarily relational and flows from your connection to Christ.

“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” John 15:4

Therefore, we encourage you to learn to linger: Through prayer, the word, and meditation we encourage you in the empowering reality of doctrine cherished and adored, in particular as it pertains to and flows from the gospel and person of our Lord Jesus Christ. True holiness is obtained and sustained by the grace of our Lord working in our hearts to prize all we have in the Lord Jesus.

We encourage external obedience to flow from satisfaction in God lest service for God be performed with a legalistic heart far from the Lord (Mark 7:6).

– // –

For a more technical discussion of Gospel Sanctification refer to Chad Bressen’s article linked below:

http://breusswane.blogspot.com/2006/07/imperative-command-is-grounded-in.html

Anyone struggling with this issue would benefit from reading the above linked article and then getting a hold of, and mastering, “Gospel Mystery of Sanctification”, by Walter Marshall. If you think you may find Marshall’s 16th century style a bit challenging as a modern reader, as an alternatively, I’d recommend you read the more modern equivalent, “Holiness by Grace” by Bryan Chapel. Another book that has been recommended (by Chad Bresson) is Jerry Bridges’ “Transforming Grace”. I’m sure mastering any one of these books will do you much good.

Enjoying grace!

Shane.

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Gospel Sanctification 1 - Piper's Word for Joyless Pastors

I was recently part of a great discussion that all started with this link:

http://www.desiringgod.org/media/video/vftp_promo05.mov

(Reference: Sound of Grace discussion Group April/May discussions: http://freegroups.net/groups/soundofgrace/)

Over the next few posts I'll be explaining the importance of Gospel Sanctification, sharing some of the discussion details, and answering some of the questions raised - which were some of the very issues I have struggled with and perhaps some of you also struggle with.

Shane.

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Is John Piper's "Christian Hedonism" a misplaced emphasis on joy over love?

John Piper makes statements such as,

"The chief end of man is to glorify God BY enjoying him forever."
"Maximizing our joy in God is what we were created for."
"Pursuing pleasure in God is our highest calling."

Yet in the Bible, Jesus tells us the greatest command is to "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind". (Matt 22:37).

Therefore, does it not appear that Piper is exalting 'enjoying God' above 'loving God' contrary to the command of Christ? (This was the question raised recently on the Sound of Grace Discussion Group - http://freegroups.net/groups/soundofgrace/).

There is no question that that the Bible teaches that loving the Lord is the greatest command and is to be exalted above all other requirements.

So, to clarify this question in my own mind, I looked up my Thayers Greek Lexicon on the meaning of the word 'love' used in Matt 22:37 (Strongs # 25). In describing the meaning of the word, the lexicon uses terms such as "to have a preference for, wish well to, regard the welfare of . . . involves the idea of affectionate reverence, prompt obedience, grateful recognition of benefits received . . . denotes to take pleasure in the thing, prize it above other things, be unwilling to abandon it or do without . . . to welcome with desire, long for.".

Matt 22:37 states, " . . . You shall love the Lord your God . . .". Expanded, in light of the meaning of the Greek word, this is the same as saying:

"You shall have preference for, wish well to, and regard the welfare of the Lord your God."

"You shall have affectionate reverence for, prompt obedience to, and grateful recognition of benefits received from, the Lord your God" (I'd suggest 'prompt obedience' in context could better read as 'unconstrained prompt obedience' since constrained obedience is not obedience "with all your heart".).

"You shall take pleasure in, prize above other things, and be unwilling to abandon or do without, the Lord your God."

"You shall welcome with desire and long for the Lord your God."

Therefore, to pursue obedience to the greatest command, with all our heart, mind and soul, is to be a Christian Hedonist.

Relishing Christ with you all-

Shane.

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Give me Christ, or else I die

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Why Treasure Christ?

Shane,

Give me your feedback on this. What would you add? What would you restate? What order would you have these in? Please give me your insight!

"⁵For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. ⁷But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us." (2 Corinthians 4:5-7 ESV).

We treasure Christ because of His Divinity—God of very God. God has created everything for His own glory, including the universe and us. He created us to glorify Him by enjoying Him.

We treasure Christ because of His humanity in humbling himself to come in the form of man, living an absolutely perfect life, and being born of a virgin.

We treasure Christ because of His power to create a universe, uphold a universe by the might of His word, and perform mighty miracles.

We treasure Christ because of His obedience to keep His covenant, fulfill His law, perform His righteousness, and impute an alien righteousness to His people.

We treasure Christ because of His ministry to speak words of eternal life, send the Holy Spirit, and manifest the glory of the Father in His face.

We treasure Christ because of His death to bear the wrath of God, satisfy the justice of God, and atone for the sin of the Church.

We treasure Christ because of His resurrection to defeat death, destroy the devil, and open heaven.

We treasure Christ because of His reign at the Father’s right hand to be sovereign, interceding, ever present, triumphant, and never leaving us alone.

We treasure Christ because in all of this He is the fountain for all of our joy in God.

We treasure Christ because a superior joy in him is the key to severing the love of money, love of consumerism, and love of this world.

We want you to treasure Christ because our enjoyment of Christ will only be completed when we praise Him and call others to praise Him as well.

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The Morning I Heard the Voice of God

By John Piper

Let me tell you about a most wonderful experience I had early Monday morning, March 19, 2007, a little after six o'clock. God actually spoke to me. There is no doubt that it was God. I heard the words in my head just as clearly as when a memory of a conversation passes across your consciousness. The words were in English, but they had about them an absolutely self-authenticating ring of truth. I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God still speaks today.

I couldn't sleep for some reason. I was at Shalom House in northern Minnesota on a staff couples' retreat. It was about five thirty in the morning. I lay there wondering if I should get up or wait till I got sleepy again. In his mercy, God moved me out of bed. It was mostly dark, but I managed to find my clothing, got dressed, grabbed my briefcase, and slipped out of the room without waking up Noël. In the main room below, it was totally quiet. No one else seemed to be up. So I sat down on a couch in the corner to pray.

As I prayed and mused, suddenly it happened. God said, "Come and see what I have done." There was not the slightest doubt in my mind that these were the very words of God. In this very moment. At this very place in the twenty-first century, 2007, God was speaking to me with absolute authority and self-evidencing reality. I paused to let this sink in. There was a sweetness about it. Time seemed to matter little. God was near. He had me in his sights. He had something to say to me. When God draws near, hurry ceases. Time slows down.

I wondered what he meant by "come and see." Would he take me somewhere, like he did Paul into heaven to see what can't be spoken? Did "see" mean that I would have a vision of some great deed of God that no one has seen? I am not sure how much time elapsed between God's initial word, "Come and see what I have done," and his next words. It doesn't matter. I was being enveloped in the love of his personal communication. The God of the universe was speaking to me.

Then he said, as clearly as any words have ever come into my mind, "I am awesome in my deeds toward the children of man." My heart leaped up, "Yes, Lord! You are awesome in your deeds. Yes, to all men whether they see it or not. Yes! Now what will you show me?"

The words came again. Just as clear as before, but increasingly specific: "I turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. There they rejoiced in me—who rules by my might forever." Suddenly I realized God was taking me back several thousand years to the time when he dried up the Red Sea and the Jordan River. I was being transported by his word back into history to those great deeds. This is what he meant by "come and see." He was transporting me back by his words to those two glorious deeds before the children of men. These were the "awesome deeds" he referred to. God himself was narrating the mighty works of God. He was doing it for me. He was doing it with words that were resounding in my own mind.

There settled over me a wonderful reverence. A palpable peace came down. This was a holy moment and a holy corner of the world in northern Minnesota. God Almighty had come down and was giving me the stillness and the openness and the willingness to hear his very voice. As I marveled at his power to dry the sea and the river, he spoke again. "I keep watch over the nations—let not the rebellious exalt themselves."

This was breathtaking. It was very serious. It was almost a rebuke. At least a warning. He may as well have taken me by the collar of my shirt, lifted me off the ground with one hand, and said, with an incomparable mixture of fierceness and love, "Never, never, never exalt yourself. Never rebel against me."

I sat staring at nothing. My mind was full of the global glory of God. "I keep watch over the nations." He had said this to me. It was not just that he had said it. Yes, that is glorious. But he had said this to me. The very words of God were in my head. They were there in my head just as much as the words that I am writing at this moment are in my head. They were heard as clearly as if at this moment I recalled that my wife said, "Come down for supper whenever you are ready." I know those are the words of my wife. And I know these are the words of God.

Think of it. Marvel at this. Stand in awe of this. The God who keeps watch over the nations, like some people keep watch over cattle or stock markets or construction sites—this God still speaks in the twenty-first century. I heard his very words. He spoke personally to me.

What effect did this have on me? It filled me with a fresh sense of God's reality. It assured me more deeply that he acts in history and in our time. It strengthened my faith that he is for me and cares about me and will use his global power to watch over me. Why else would he come and tell me these things?

It has increased my love for the Bible as God's very word, because it was through the Bible that I heard these divine words, and through the Bible I have experiences like this almost every day. The very God of the universe speaks on every page into my mind—and your mind. We hear his very words. God himself has multiplied his wondrous deeds and thoughts toward us; none can compare with him! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told (Psalm 40:5).

And best of all, they are available to all. If you would like to hear the very same words I heard on the couch in northern Minnesota, read Psalm 66:5-7. That is where I heard them. O how precious is the Bible. It is the very word of God. In it God speaks in the twenty-first century. This is the very voice of God. By this voice, he speaks with absolute truth and personal force. By this voice, he reveals his all-surpassing beauty. By this voice, he reveals the deepest secrets of our hearts. No voice anywhere anytime can reach as deep or lift as high or carry as far as the voice of God that we hear in the Bible.

It is a great wonder that God still speaks today through the Bible with greater force and greater glory and greater assurance and greater sweetness and greater hope and greater guidance and greater transforming power and greater Christ-exalting truth than can be heard through any voice in any human soul on the planet from outside the Bible.

This is why I found the article in this month's Christianity Today, "My Conversation with God," so sad. Written by an anonymous professor at a "well-known Christian University," it tells of his experience of hearing God. What God said was that he must give all his royalties from a new book toward the tuition of a needy student. What makes me sad about the article is not that it isn't true or didn't happen. What's sad is that it really does give the impression that extra-biblical communication with God is surpassingly wonderful and faith-deepening. All the while, the supremely-glorious communication of the living God which personally and powerfully and transformingly explodes in the receptive heart through the Bible everyday is passed over in silence.

I am sure this professor of theology did not mean it this way, but what he actually said was, "For years I've taught that God still speaks, but I couldn't testify to it personally. I can only do so now anonymously, for reasons I hope will be clear" (emphasis added). Surely he does not mean what he seems to imply—that only when one hears an extra-biblical voice like, "The money is not yours," can you testify personally that God still speaks. Surely he does not mean to belittle the voice of God in the Bible which speaks this very day with power and truth and wisdom and glory and joy and hope and wonder and helpfulness ten thousand times more decisively than anything we can hear outside the Bible.

I grieve at what is being communicated here. The great need of our time is for people to experience the living reality of God by hearing his word personally and transformingly in Scripture. Something is incredibly wrong when the words we hear outside Scripture are more powerful and more affecting to us than the inspired word of God. Let us cry with the psalmist, "Incline my heart to your word" (Psalm 119:36). "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law" (Psalm 119:18). Grant that the eyes of our hearts would be enlightened to know our hope and our inheritance and the love of Christ that passes knowledge and be filled with all the fullness of God (Ephesians 1:18; 3:19). O God, don't let us be so deaf to your word and so unaffected with its ineffable, evidential excellency that we celebrate lesser things as more thrilling, and even consider this misplacement of amazement worthy of printing in a national magazine.

Still hearing his voice in the Bible,

Pastor John

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This Man Went Down to His House Justified

Thirsty Thursday: Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

John Piper:

"This Man Went Down to His House Justified"

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Ian Malins & E.M. Bounds - Quotes

"Revivals start with a sovereign work of the Holy Spirit who takes control of His Church and moves the way he chooses. Revivals die when people take control again and try to predict, program or direct the Spirit to work the way they want Him to work."
Ian Malins, Prepare the Way for Revival, (Chosen Books, Grand Rapids, MI, 2004) p161

"Preachers are pre-eminently God's leaders. They are primarily responsible for the condition of the church. They shape it's character, give tone and direction to it's life. Much depends on these leaders."
E.M. Bounds

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The New Pioneers of Revival by David Smithers

While driving to town the other day I unexpectedly came upon a busy stretch of highway that was under construction. Bumper to bumper, the line of cars ahead of me waited their turn to follow the directions of the brightly colored detour signs. Seemingly, without any thought or hesitation they all quickly sped away from their original course in pursuit of smoother traveling. The road ahead was unquestionably rough and unpaved, but it was still open to traffic and definitely the most direct route to town.

Suddenly I found myself thinking about the state of the modern Church. Many Christians today are being enticed into the well-paved highways of convenient Christianity at the expense of their personal calling and original destination. No doubt just the sight of that rough, unpaved road communicated "RISK" to many of the drivers that day. It threatened all of us with the risk of uncertainty, inconvenience and even the risk of physical danger or loss. As I sat there waiting for my turn to move, something else hit me. "All the well-paved roads in the Church today are only going places that most of us have already been." Those big, flashing church signs too often lead us away from where God’s pioneer work is being done. By the time the concrete sets up and the paint is dry, most of the heaven and earth moving is all over! . . . Read entire article.

How long will we continue to travel down the same old, predictable, powerless highways while the promises of God beckon us to enter into a fresh move of the Holy Spirit? There is still so much of the presence and power of Jesus Christ that is readily available and yet untouched. Be assured God is not standing still! He is even now seeking out and raising up a NEW generation in the Church who is willing to take extreme risks to REDISCOVER the highway of holiness and revival power. God is raising up a new generation of revival pioneers!

Go West Young Man!

The call to pursue revival is a call to be a pioneer! A revival pioneer courageously and even sometimes naively seeks to rediscover new and forgotten places in the Spirit. Pioneers instinctively challenge the modern Church to go places she has never been before, places long forgotten and overgrown by decades of man-made traditions and spiritual decline. Pioneers dare others to dream and trust God to do ALL that the Bible plainly promises. Pioneers are not satisfied with superficial reform. They hunger and thirst for spiritual REALITY. Their calling demands that they defy the laws and limitations of man-centered religion. In their pursuit of more of Jesus, they unknowingly challenge the foundations of so-called "NORMAL CHURCH". Like young Joseph in the company of his older brothers, the pioneer’s dream of revival often provokes strong reactions from within the established Church. -(Gen 37:5) The young pioneer is sure to be confronted by giants of intimidation and mountains of unbelief and religious control. At other times they are simply spurned and dismissed as immature extremists and idealists.

All the great pioneers of revival have had to face these same obstacles and hindrances in their zeal to bring Heaven down to Earth! Most of the early American pioneers that moved westward between 1760 and 1850 encountered countless dangers and extreme hardship, because they were not content with what they already seen. The knowledge that there was still something better beyond the horizon drove them to take extreme risks to improve the quality of their lives. A true pioneer is relentless. He refuses to compromise or substitute the barren plains of lifeless orthodoxy for the living presence of Jesus! No amount of religious rhetoric or decorum will ever satisfy his God-hungry heart. The God-breathed promises of Scripture hound his soul, reminding him over and over again of his destiny and calling. Promise of green forests, fruitful harvests and rushing streams compel him to continue to seek and pray for something MORE. -(Isa 35:7, Isa 41:18-19, Isa 44:3-4, Isa 51:3)

Forerunners & Mountain Movers

Revival pioneers are ordained of God to violently move Heaven and Earth. The English term "pioneer" was originally derived from a French word meaning PICK AX. Later it was also used to convey the idea of a foot soldier. The Germans use the term "trench digger" to convey the idea of a pioneer. A pioneer during wartime was one who marched before an invading army to prepare and repair the road. They did everything from clearing away barricades to setting mines for destroying the works of the enemy. Pioneers are pathfinders and scouts. Like Jeremiah, a pioneer is one who goes before to remove obstructions for the purpose of preparing the way for others that must soon follow. "See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant." -(Jer 1:10) These prophetic people do not set mines and level mountains of ungodliness just for the thrill of watching things blow up. No, the revival pioneer understands that it is his job to prepare the way and make it easier for others to enter into the manifest presence of Jesus Christ.

The revival pioneer labors to restore the highway of holiness, removing stumbling blocks, so it will be straight and level again. This work is done not only for the sake of a coming army, but also for the spiritually lame and crippled. The prophet Isaiah repeatedly reminds us of this important truth. He declares, "Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are fearful-hearted, ‘Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water; in the habitation of jackals, where each lay, there shall be grass with reeds and rushes. A highway shall be there, and a road, and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness…" -( Isa 35:3-8)

"And one shall say, ‘Heap it up! Heap it up! Prepare the way, take the stumbling block out of the way of My people.’ For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones". -(Isa 57:14-15)

The High Peaks of Prayer

The American pioneers moving west were always looking for some high vantage point from which they could catch a glimpse of the path just ahead of them. The pioneers of revival are no different. From the towering heights of bent knees they scan the spiritual horizon for some small token of a coming move of God. These Holy Ghost trailblazers are consistently scaling the mountain peaks of prayer in hopes of spotting even the smallest sign of revival. Revival pioneers cannot afford to live on second hand reports and experimental theories borrowed from books. The divine immensity of the pioneer’s vision and calling demands that they hear from God for themselves! They need Heaven’s insight and perspective if they are to stay on course and avoid falling short of their eternal destination. Only through regular and extended times in prayer can they maintain their bearings and spiritual compass.

Every true pioneer of revival is well acquainted with the taste of hot tears and heartache. Prayer for the revival pioneer is not only a means of fresh direction, but also a supernatural outlet for the burden of a broken heart. The pioneer is repeatedly tormented by the growing crisis of a powerless Church in the midst of a lost and sin-sick world. Religious wastelands and deep valleys filled with sun bleached bones mock and challenge his hopes and dreams. Yet, strangely enough it is these same bleak and threatening spiritual conditions that keep the pioneers of revival praying and pressing deeper into new frontiers of the Holy Spirit. For them to stay and settle in such places would mean the death of their ministry and vision.

For those truly called to be a pioneer, revival is not merely another church growth trend or some spiritual luxury. Revival is a reason for being, a created purpose and divine destiny. Though at different times many young pioneers try to deny the vision and hope for revival, they can’t escape it! The tears and intense longings for revival always return. This passion and burden was part of their spiritual inception and new birth. They have become RUINED for anything less than genuine revival. The pioneer can’t rest or give up until God’s revival glory is released in the Earth. They would rather die than miss or abort the coming visitation of God. These young pioneers are driven to continue to pray, weep and believe for revival. Though at times, they grow fainthearted and discouraged in their heavenly pursuit, they always finds themselves rising again to cry out for God to rend the heavens and come down.-(Isa 64:1-4)

You’re NOT Crazy!

Has this divine heartache ever made you wonder if you were going crazy? Many of the early pioneers that pulled up roots and moved west often experienced similar emotions before leaving the safety and comfort of their established homes. In spite of the fact that they enjoyed and valued their property and neighbors around them, they still somehow felt as if they didn’t quite fit in and belong. As hard as they tried, they couldn’t seem to shake a growing hunger and burden for something more. The pioneer spirit deep within them was driving them to keep moving and looking west. In much the same way, today there are thousands of young revival pioneers who share these same intense and sometimes bewildering feelings. I am talking about something born of the Holy Spirit, a divine discontentment that will not let you settle for anything less than the manifest presence of Jesus Christ.

Unfamiliar with God’s revival process, some young pioneers seek to escape the touch of God upon their hearts. Over and over again, they struggle to fit in with the Church’s most recent "cutting edge" agenda. Yet, lasting relief seems to never come. Even in the midst of renewed and vibrant fellowships, the young pioneer oftentimes still feels like a spiritual misfit and outsider. While others in the Church seem completely satisfied, the revival pioneer in the exact same setting fights to hold back the tears and hunger for something more. Do these disjointed feelings and uncomfortable emotions sound familiar? Is your hungry heart confused and puzzled over where you fit in the house of God? Perhaps God has not allowed you to "FIT" in!

Often there is not a hearing for the pioneer’s prophetic message until after a fresh work of God has begun to be realized. Therefore, young pioneers should not be surprised when they are accused of being idealistic and impractical in their message and methodology. Such criticism and misunderstandings are often a part of God’s training process in becoming a spiritual forerunner. These trials help to deepen the work of endurance and humility in the pioneer’s heart. Though at times they are slighted and even harshly rejected, the true pioneer learns by trial and error, how to bear it all in meekness, patience and love. Nevertheless, let each pastor and spiritual leader take care that they don’t too quickly dismiss a young pioneer’s sincere passion and zeal as simply the critical spirit of an immature rebel.

Young pioneer, be encouraged! These feelings of loneliness and holy dissatisfaction are all part of God’s process within you. Pioneers have always gone out in small waves in order to prepare the way for the masses. Nevertheless, beware of letting the uniqueness of your calling be an excuse for fleshly strife and division with other believers. Remember that we will NEVER build the house of revival with Satan’s tools of anger and strife! Don’t waste your time constantly striving and wrangling with those who don’t share your vision and passion for revival. Get in the prayer closet and unburden your broken heart to the Father. Give yourself to fervent prayer and don’t stop until the glory comes. Ask the Lord to send people into your life with a similar gift and vision. Read the classic works on the great moves of God. The Father wants you to nurture this passion and vision for something MORE, but you will have to make sacrifices in order to keep it. The larger the vision, the lonelier the path you will have to walk. A GOD size vision ALWAYS requires a great amount of grace, love and humility.

The Law of The Frontier

A person’s chances of surviving on the open frontier were often determined by his or her own willingness to cooperate and work with others. One of the unwritten laws of the western frontier was, "be a good neighbor". The constant threat and uncertainty of life on the trail taught the pioneers to appreciate the safety found in numbers. Therefore, most pioneer families, when they set out West joined several other families who were making the same journey. Typically what often started as a disjointed band of individuals and small cliques usually grew into a healthy and vibrant traveling community. Serving and considering one another’s basic needs became a way of life. Cultivating an atmosphere of forbearance and unity was no longer just a luxury, but a daily NECESSITY! (Eph 4:14-16)

As we have already seen, a revival pioneer is called to walk a very demanding and lonely path. The pioneer is often misunderstood, rejected and even ridiculed for venturing into what seems to be new and unfamiliar territory. Therefore, he is the last person who can afford to recklessly neglect his covenant relationships. If the revival pioneer is to succeed in his calling, he cannot indulge himself in the slightest trace of stubbornness or an independent spirit. Our differences and diversity are meant to remind us of our great need for one another, not give us an excuse to separate from each other. The persistent revival pioneer inevitably learns this costly lesson of love and self-denial. The process and path of revival is challenging enough without us making it even harder by being willful and uncooperative!

Abandonment & Settling for Less

It was not uncommon for many of the early pioneers to be abandoned by some of their family and friends during the most difficult parts of the journey. After traveling hundreds of miles, some forsook their dreams and plans of the new frontier. A lack of supplies, fatigue, sickness and even death caused many a band of once zealous pioneers to split up and go their separate ways. Some retreated back to more familiar and less threatening territory. Others abandoned their original vision and settled on the open range. Settling for less was not hard to justify for a family of exhausted and discouraged pioneers. Even while still hundreds of miles away from their original destination, the rich natural resources of the open range usually far exceeded what most people had previously enjoyed back home. This was heartbreaking for those who still felt called to push ahead. Shaken and torn from their loved ones, many pioneers moved forward with the complaints of the weary and fearful ringing in their ears. The same fears that excuse and justify the faint-hearted to abandon God’s BEST, are often used by Satan to threaten and discourage the progress of those whom are determined to move forward.

There have been many want-to-be pioneers that have at one time truly sought and prayed for revival, only to turn back to the broken cisterns of so called "GOOD" church. Others have gone further in their pursuit of revival and yet they too have fallen short. They unknowingly became distracted by the spiritual blessings enjoyed during the revival journey. God in His mercy often gives us a foretaste of the blessings to come to encourage us in the path of faith and obedience. However, some are tempted to confuse these mercy drops of refreshing for the reality of revival. Distracted by the appetizers of future grace, some have stopped hungering for the fullness of God’s presence. Today many revival hungry souls are in DANGER of making this terrible mistake! Such shortsightedness threatens to rob them of their spiritual destiny, while also misleading countless others along the way. This premature satisfaction calls into question the validity and hope of our vision for a worldwide revival. It belittles and mocks the very character and faithfulness of a covenant keeping God. If what is being experienced today is truly the fullness of God’s revival power, then this generation is surely doomed!

Spiritual Foresight & Timing

Every step and decision of the pioneer is to be considered in view of how it contributes or hinders him and other pioneers from their final destination. Every action, plan and opportunity is evaluated in view of the end of the trail. A wise revival pioneer understands what is essential for the journey and what must be left behind. The revival pioneer must discern the difference between the things that are temporal and the things that are eternal. He must be willing to lay aside anything and everything that would potentially weaken his ability to reach his God ordained destination. (Mtt 13:22 & 2 Tim 2:3-6)

A sense of proper timing is a very important part of being a revival pioneer. Depending upon the place of their departure, the early pioneer bands had to leave in time to get over the great western mountain ranges before the first snowfall. Physical strength and abundant resources could not make up for a lack of proper timing and foresight. The pioneers of revival MUST likewise discern the Spiritual seasons correctly if they are to enter into their manifest destiny. The very calling and purpose of a pioneer demands that he GO out early rather than late! He has a farseeing eye and therefore doesn’t wait until everything is neatly established and nailed into place. Spiritual procrastination is the pioneer’s deadliest enemy. Proper timing often means the difference between becoming a revival participant or merely a religious spectator.

Spiritual Claim Jumpers?

There are some in the Church today that seem to desperately want revival, but reject the pioneer path and call. They want revival, but they want it on their own terms. Their passion for revival fails to include a prayerful endurance and patience with the broken and needy in their own midst. They would rather complain about problems than pour out their heart in prayer. They readily recognize all the needs around them but lack the courage and faith to do anything about it! The very problems that should naturally awaken them to intercessory prayer are twisted and manipulated to justify their wandering from one church to another. These revival claim jumpers want spiritual riches, but they refuse to bend their own back and knees to get them. They covet revival but lack the endurance to dig in and help birth and pioneer something in the Spirit. So they seek out a place where God is already moving while neglecting the deeper disciplines of prayer, loyalty and sacrifice that are necessary to sustain such works. Please don’t misunderstand me, I am not saying that it is wrong to visit churches where God is moving. In past seasons of grace, men and women have always been eager to witness a genuine move of God. If at all possible, they took every opportunity to partake of these wonderful events. However, afterwards they went back home to pray and labor in faith for God to do the same things in their own communities! This was often the means by which revivals spread from region to region or even to other continents. God’s plan for you is not one long, unending renewal road trip, but an abiding visitation of His glory. He is not content with merely a handful of renewal hotspots! The Lord of the harvest longs to pour out the Spirit of revival over the whole Earth, among every tongue, tribe and nation.

Revival Shortcuts!

Some of the early pioneers never reached their destination because they were too eager to cut corners and take shortcuts. Many of you history lovers will surely remember the tragic story of the Donner Party. In 1846 a group of some 300 pioneers set out along the Oregon Trail determined to reach California. George Donner, hearing of a new and faster route, encouraged his family and fellow pioneers to abandon the trusted Oregon Trail to follow the newly advertised Hastings shortcut. The new route promised to trim 400 miles off their overall journey. Ignoring the warnings of seasoned frontiersmen, the Donner party left the main trail at Fort Bridger. Soon after exhausting most of their supplies in the Utah desert and struggling through tree-choked gorges and riverbeds, they finally acknowledged their error and returned to the established trail. However, by this time they had missed their window of opportunity and suddenly found themselves unable to cross the mountains because of an early snowstorm. Exhausted and inexperienced, most of the Donner party died in the mountains, succumbing to cannibalism, frostbite or starvation. The lure of saving time cost most of them their hopes, families and very lives. It was later learned that Lansford Hastings had promoted this shortcut for his own political advantage and at that time had himself never successfully made the trip to California by this route.

If Satan cannot tempt you to abandon your vision for revival, he will then entice you to reach for the promises of revival with the hand of the flesh. This is perhaps above all else his most deceptive tactic. We must always remember that there are no guarantees once we get out from under the grace-filled direction of God. Like the Donner party, we are capable of resorting to anything when left to our own wisdom! Apart from God’s grace we have no idea where we may end up or what we might do. Extreme risks and uncertainties unquestionably mark the pioneer’s life. However, the risks that a pioneer is called to take will NEVER fly in the face of the established and unfailing principles of God’s word!

A New Season of Hope & Opportunity!

The early pioneers had an old saying, "all the cowards stayed at home and the weak died along the way." Wherever men and women defy the laws of comfort and convenience, heartaches and casualties are sure to follow. Nevertheless, "beloved, we are confident of far better things concerning you…" None of us need fall short or stay behind in these days of revival hope and opportunity. The LAMB has prevailed. Jesus has provided a sure path into new frontiers of revival blessing and harvest for all those who will trust and obey. We are living in a new season of unprecedented opportunities and possibilities. God is opening up new doors in the Church today that no man can close. Such times require fresh vision and strength. The Church needs every ounce of zeal, vision and power at Her disposal.

Proverbs 20:29 says, "The glory of young men is their vigor and strength…" The zeal and energy of our youth was never meant to be carelessly squandered away on chasing fun and entertainment. With every great gift comes the call to great RESPONSIBILITY! Now is the time for a new generation of Christians to fully surrender to the yoke of Christ and take their rightful place on the pioneer path. God is raising up a new generation in the Church today to rediscover the forgotten frontiers of personal holiness and revival power. He is preparing them to carry the seeds of revival to the very ends of the Earth! The prophet Joel prophesied that God would accomplish great things through such a generation. "I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions". -(Acts 2:17)

Such language will no doubt make some cautious churchman very uncomfortable. They might quickly remind us of Lam 3:27 –"It is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth." This is certainly true! However, God’s yokes are designed to channel strength, not cripple it. The Lord’s yoke is not a fetter of bondage, but a tool for submissive service and labor! It was yoked oxen that pulled the pioneer wagons across rivers and over steep mountains. The strength of yoked oxen plows up the fallow and rocky ground for a coming harvest. Still, some fear the uncertainty and excess that sometimes comes with the zeal and enthusiasm of young oxen. Let’s not forget the divine wisdom of Solomon, "Where there is no oxen, the stall is clean, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest". -(Prov 14:4) Pastor what would you rather have in your church, a clean and orderly stall or an abundant harvest? It’s time to put the young oxen to work!

A Generation on Fire!

The greatest revivalists of the past were young men and women who dared to believe God for something more for their own generation! George Whitfield, Howell Harris, Count Zinzendorf, Charles G. Finney, Charles Spurgeon, Evan Roberts, Robert Murray M’Cheyne, William C. Burns, Hudson Taylor, C. T. Studd, David Brainerd and countless others were all mightily used of God while still in their twenties. Why then are so many of us still looking to the fruitless institutions of decaying Christendom for the steps to our revival dreams? We will never realize our spiritual potential by imitating the unrevived methods of status quo Christianity. God has not called us to mimic the weak and half-reformed religion around us. Like Abram, we have been called out of the land of barrenness to inherit the harvest-fields of revival fruitfulness for this generation and generations to come. -(Josh 24:2-3)

True spiritual pioneers are the embodiment of URGENCY and ZEAL. They recognize their eternal responsibility for their own generation. The apostle of faith, George Muller once said, "My business is with all my might to serve my own generation. In doing so I shall best serve the next generation, should the Lord tarry…I have but one life to live on Earth and this one life is but a brief life for sowing in comparison with eternity for reaping." General Booth conveyed the same thought with the following lines: "Your days at the most cannot be very long, so use them to the best of your ability for the glory of God and the benefit of your generation." Catherine Booth, the mother of the Salvation Army, daily charged her nine children with something similar, "You are not here in the world for yourself. You have been sent here for others. The world is waiting for you!" More than once, I heard the late Leonard Ravenhill predict that God was going to raise up a new generation to bring the fires of revival to this sin-sick world. The late Keith Green, echoed these same urgent sentiments. In his final days, he repeatedly unsettled many of us with the following words. "This generation of Christians is responsible for this generation of souls on the Earth!" Have you been awakened to your eternal and personal responsibility for this generation?

A good pioneer is always eager to learn from the insight and experiences of others, but stand still – NEVER! Not while the promises of revival are still unknown in this generation. Not while Christ is still a stranger to countless lost and dying souls around the world. Not while there is still one blind and stubborn heart that refuses to give praise and honor to our King Jesus! Are you willing to break new ground and rediscover some of the forgotten treasures of Jesus Christ? Are you ready to take His manifest presence to the ends of the Earth? Young pioneer, NOW is the time to look to Jesus Christ and dare to dream for something MORE! "The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force". – (Matt 11:12)
_____________________________________________

Ministry Article Site – Awake and Go: www.awakeandgo.com

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The Nature and Necessity of Repentance

Thirsty Thursday: Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Alistair Begg:

"The Nature and Necessity of Repentance" Part One and Part Two

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Advent Beauty

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By John Piper November 28, 1982

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Tilting on her yearly track
Advent beauty circles back,
Flying faster with the years,
Hardly giving time for tears
First to dry upon the cheek—
Has it been more than a week
In the ground now winter cold?
Has there really been a spring
When the birds began to sing?
Has there been both summer, fall
Since the Baby in the stall
Called us with a Christmas bell
to sing, O Come, Immanuel?
Tilting on her yearly track
Advent beauty circles back,
Flying faster with the years—
Ah, but overtaking fears.
Let the Lord of advent lift
Every care (an early gift!);
See the Savior and the Son
Shine in advent candle one.

All of Pastor John's poetry can be found here.

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Peter: On This Rock I Will Build My Church

Part Two: His Conversion

Some Are Like Peter, Some Are Like Andrew, Jn. 1.35-42.

Have you ever known someone from afar? Perhaps you’ve read a book, or watched a movie, or heard by ear, or corresponded my mail and in doing any one of these things, you’ve formed an impression of that person. Sometimes the person may live up to the hype that you’ve surrounded them in your mind. Sometimes the person disappoints. Can you imagine the anticipation with which Jesus anticipated meeting the men who would be His disciples and believers?

He had foreknown them before the foundation of time. The Father had chosen them and given them to the Son to be His. He had placed their ancestors in towns and nations, molded the hearts of men and women to love one another, all in preparation for these men’s lives. Perhaps Jesus had already become incarnated before His disciples were born. Or perhaps He, Himself, knit them in their mother’s wombs before going into the womb Himself. Nevertheless, can you imagine the excitement of Jesus upon laying His eyes on Peter?

“Jesus looked at him and said, ‘So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas’ (which means Peter). Notice the way in which Peter was introduced to Jesus. It was through his brother Andrew. There is something we should not miss here. The Lord will always have his men like Peter. He was a mighty man of God. He is a pillar of the Church. And many a would-be theologian has longed for the day that the Lord might use him as a Peter in this generation.

Just think of what is coming in Peter’s ministry: walking on water, confession of Jesus as Christ, transfiguration, preaching that God uses to save thousands of people. So we long to be used as Simon was used. As it were, we ought to long to be more like Andrew. Sure, the Lord used Peter to bring in thousands. But He used Andrew to bring in Peter. Although an apostle, Andrew doesn’t stand out in church history. We don’t know what he did. We don’t know where he went. We don’t know how he died. But, in heaven, we shall be there because God used Andrew to bring his brother Peter to the Lord. I pray that the Lord would cause me to be more enthralled with His plan for my life rather than my plan.

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The Dangers of Being a Student

Sunday With the Saint Series: Getting to Know David Brainerd

“In the beginning of September I went to college, and entered there; but with some degree of reluctancy, fearing lest I should not be able to lead a life of strict religion, inthe midst of so many temptations. After this, in the vacancy, before I went to tarry at college, it pleased God to visit my soul with clearer manifestations of himself and his grace. I was spending some time in prayer, and self-examination, when the Lord by his grace so shined into my heart, that I enjoyed full assurance of his favour, for that time; and my soul was unspeakably refreshed with divine and heavenly enjoyments. At this time especially, as well as some others, sundry passages of God’s word opened to my soul with divine clearness, power, and sweetness, so as to appear exceeding precious, and with clear and certain evidence of its being the word of God. I enjoyed considerable sweetness in religion all the winter following.

“In Jan. 1740, the measles spread much in college; and I having taken the distemper, went home to Haddam. But some days before I was taken sick, I seemed to be greatly deserted, and my soul mourned the absence of the Comforter exceedingly. It seemed to me all comfort was for ever gone; I prayed and cried to God for help, yet found no present comfort or relief. But through divine goodness, a night or two before I was taken ill, while I was walking alone in a very retired place, and engaged in meditation and prayer, I enjoyed a sweet refreshing visit, as I trust, from above; so that my soul was raised far above the fears of death. Indeed I rather longed for death, than feared it. O how much more refreshing this one season was, than all the pleasures and delights that earth can afford! After a day or two I was taken with the measles, and was very ill indeed, so that I almost despaired of life; but had no distressing fears of death at all. However, through divine goodness I soon recovered; yet, by reason of hard and close studies, and being much exposed on account of my freshmanship, I had but little time for spiritual duties: my soul often mourned for want of more time and opportunity to be alone with God. In the spring and summer following, I had better advantages for retirement, and enjoyed more comfort in religion. Though indeed my ambition in my studies greatly wronged the activity and vigour of my spiritual life; yet this was usually the case with me, that “in the multitude of my thoughts within me, God’s comforts principally delighted my soul;” these were my greatest consolations day by day."

Taken from The Life and Diary of David Brainerd, by Jonathan Edwards (in the Works of Jonathan Edwards, vol. 2, Banner of Truth), 319-320.

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The Faith on Friday

"Every Christian is a theologian. We are always engaged in the activity of learning about the things of God. We are not all theologians in the professional or academic sense, but theologians we are, for better or for worse. The 'for worse'' is no small matter. Second Peter warns that heresies are destructive to the people of God and are blasphemies committed against God. They are destructive because theology touches every dimension of our lives.

The Bible declares that as a man thinks in his heart, so is he. This declaration sounds strange. It is almost as if the biblical writer blunders. He seems to confuse the mind and the heart. We normally associate thought with the brain and feelings with the heart. So what does it meant to say a man thinks in his heart? The phrase to think in the heart refers to thoughtful reflection. Many ideas are briefly entertained by the mind without ever penetrating the heart. Those ideas that do grasp us in our innermost parts, however, are the ideas that shape our lives. We are what we think. When our thoughts are corrupted, our lives follow suit.

We all know that people can recite the creeds flawlessly and makes A's in theology courses while living godless lives. We can affirm a sound theology and live an unsound life. Sound theology is not enough to live a godly life. But it is still a requisite for godly living. How can we do the truth without first understanding what the truth is?

No Christian can avoid theology. Every Christian has a theology. The issue, then, is not, do we want to have a theology? That's a given. The real issue is, do we have a sound theology? Do we embrace true or false doctrine?"

The previous was taken from the preface in Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, by R.C. Sproul.

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"The Power of Christmas Truth" for Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

The Power of Christmas Truth, by John MacArthur

Here's a reminder to you that Christmas truth is always truth no matter the season.

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Communing with the Saints on Sunday

From the Life and Diary of David Brainerd, the account of his conversion,

"I continued, as I remember, in this state of mind, from Friday morning till the sabbath evening following, (July 12, 1739,) when I was walking again in the same solitary place, where I was brought to see myself lost and helpless, as before mentioned. Here, in a mournful melancholy state, I was attempting to pray; but found no heart to engage in that or any other duty; my former concern, exercise, and religious affections were now gone. I thought the Spirit of God had quite left me; but still was not distressed: yet disconsolate, as if there was nothing in heaven or earth could make me happy. Having been thus endeavouring to pray though, as I thought, very stupid and senseless for near half an hour, then, as I was walking in a dark thick grove, unspeakable glory seemed to open to the view and apprehension of my soul. I do not mean any external brightness, for I saw no such thing; nor do I intend any imagination of a body of light, somewhere in the third heavens, or any thing of that nature; but it was a new inward apprehension or view that I had of God, such as I never had before, nor any thing which had the least resemblance of it. I stood still, wondered, and admired! I knew that I never had seen before any thing comparable to it for excellency and beauty; it was widely different from all the conceptions that ever I had of God, or things divine. I had no particular apprehension of any one person in the Trinity, either the Father, the Son, or the Holy Ghost; but it appeared to be divine glory. My soul rejoiced with joy unspeakable, to see such a God, such a glorious Divine Being; and I was inwardly pleased and satisfied that he should be God over all for ever and ever. My soul was so captivated and delighted with the excellency, loveliness, greatness, and other perfections of God, that I was even swallowed up in him; at least to that degree, that I had no thought (as I remember) at first about my own salvation, and scarce reflected there was such a creature as myself."

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Someone To Watch Over Me

There is a George Gerswhin song that immediately came to my recollection as I meditated on I Peter 2:25.
It may seem strange that a secular song would be the first thing to identify with a Scripture verse but it was and Bob's your uncle.
It has a very haunting and beautiful melody that perfectly underscores the longing of these words in a fallen world:

There's a somebody I'm longing to see
I hope that she/he turns out to be
Someone to watch over me
I'm a little lamb who's lost in a wood
I know I could always be good
To one who'll watch over me

The world has a longing that we do not have. There is someone, although we have not seen him, who we know and who we love and we know he is watching over us. And our longing is in one way fulfilled and yet will be fulfilled in another way when we stand in glory.
We do not have to hope that the one we long for will watch over us. We know he does because he is our Shepherd/Pastor and our Guardian/overseer.
In vs. 25 Peter is again relating to Isaiah 53. This time it is vs. 6
Isa 53:6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
He is our great Shepherd.
Now remember that some believe that Peter’s writing in the original context is to Jewish Christians but he is most likely writing to a mixed group and addressing Jews specifically and Gentiles specifically at certain times, from a historical point of reference.
For you were (either in Judaism or without God) while you had not yet received the gospel, as sheep going astray, from Christ the great Shepherd, and the church of believers who are his flock, and the way of righteousness in which he leads them. You were alienated from the life of God, bewildered and lost in the way of sin, Isa 53:6.
But are now returned, in your conversion to the faith, to the Shepherd; Christ the good Shepherd, Joh 10:11,14,16, who takes care of souls in the way a shepherd cares for his sheep.
And Christ is the Bishop of your souls; the superintendent, the inspector, or, as the Hebrews would phrase it, the visitor, i.e. he that with care looks to, inspects, and visits the flock. This Peter adds for the comfort (as of all believers) but particularly of slaves who are servants that even they, in such a low social status and much exposed to unjust treatment, were under the care and watchful eye of Christ.
But the application suits all who are in this fallen world who by grace come to Christ. We all have sinned and fall short of glorifying God. The returning is to the relationship that was severed since sin came into the world. This is why we speak of reconciliation.
Christ has reconciled us to God. Reconciliation does not always mean that there was a relationship to begin with. For example when talking about reconciling ethnic groups it means to bring together to establish harmony in our society.
But man did have a relationship with God before the fall in the first man Adam, and all who are Christ’s are now reconciled with God. We are restored into a relationship with God.
And in this we have a Shepherd and an overseer. We have someone who cares and watches over us. Rather than singing There's a somebody I'm longing to see - I hope that she/he turns out to be - Someone to watch over me,” we can sing with assurance - Savior like a Shepherd lead us, much we need thy tender care. Jesus Savior pilot me and blessed assurance Jesus is mine.
How great is the grace of God. As we were straying far away from the fold of God it was always God’s intent to bring us into the flock of the Great Shepherd.
Some may be confused about the phrase “you have returned to the Shepherd” and believe that this was an inclination of a sinner who having decided to accept Jesus into their heart decided it was a good thing to do, but this completely contradicts what Peter has written earlier about the work of a sovereign God in the lives of those who become his people.
They have returned in the sense that they were straying and now have turned to the Christ. They are only returning as part of all mankind who is straying. The turning is because of the grace of God, which has been established earlier in the letter.
As John Gill an early Baptist pastor said “they were returned by powerful and efficacious grace: saints are passive, and not active in first conversion; they are turned, not by the power of their own free will, but by the power of God's free grace; they are returned under the illuminations and quickenings of the blessed Spirit, and through the efficacious drawings of the Father's love, unto Christ…”
This is the evidence that by His stripes we are healed, meaning of our sins in v. 24.
Our sin caused us to be straying. In one sense all of Christ’s own possession are already His sheep before they are converted. But because we have not yet heard the voice of the Shepherd as it were, we were straying. He comes and finds His own sheep. This is the reason he comes for us, because we are his and as a good shepherd he will go to find his lost sheep.
John 10:11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
Joh 10:27* "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;
So all we like sheep have gone astray. That is one characteristic of sheep left to themselves. But we have a Shepherd and he lays down his life for his sheep and calls them unto himself and because they are his sheep they will hear and follow him.
But they only can follow him because he has laid down his life for them.
Those who are not his continue as sheep without a shepherd to their own destruction to be plundered and ravaged by thieves and robbers and wolves.
Christ is also our overseer. He attends to us to see that we are progressing as we should. How wonderful is the Spirit Covenant that gives life and all that is needed to live according to that life. How gracious that it is a life that is progressive in the now but completed for us already in Christ and that completion awaits the day of glory. And because it progresses toward that which is already complete there is no killing as with the Letter Covenant. There is full provision for ongoing forgiveness of sins as we repent because we are incurable lovers of Christ. He is working to will and to do of his good pleasure in us and he will complete that good work in us, which he alone began.
How comforting, beyond measure to know there there is someone Who Is Watching Over Me.

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The Dream That Remains A Dream

In March of 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Dr.Martin Luther King gave his “I Have a Dream” speech.
The eloquence of his oratory matched the conviction of his heart.
His words were the revelations of a visionary leader of a movement that would neither ultimately succeed nor ultimately fail.
Peter Marshall, late Chaplain of the US Senate said, “I would rather fail in a cause that will ultimately succeed than succeed in a cause that will ultimately fail.”
The speech was filled with imagery that stirred the imagination and kindled the fires of emotion in Americans who were exhorted to take responsible, peaceful action toward the elimination of racism in America.
In contrast to the voice of pacifism and non-violence, there were the voices that advocated violence and were opposed to the mainstream message and methods of the movement.
These voices devastated the hopes for a true coalition of black leadership.The message of rage and racism within the Black Power Movement was articulated by Malcom X, Stokely Carmichael, Huey Newton, Eldridge Cleaver, Angela Davis and lesser known indiviuals. They represented The Nation of Islam, SNCC, The Black Panthers and other groups. More voices of opposition added to the turmoil. George Lincoln Rockwell spewed forth his Aryan rhetoric through the American Nazi Party and of course there was the ever present K.K.K.
These were the days of white faced mobs, springing up like hedges along the Civil Rights Marchers pathways, faces snarled with hatred and spitting venemous words of scorn at them.
These were the days of the famous and the infamous proving, once again, that the Bible accurately describes humanity as being depraved, wicked and sinful, (Mt. 15:18-20).
But, these were also the days of seeing the gift of a moral conscience because we are created in the image of God, yet marred by sin. A conscience that can still respond to the inequities in our society that are the result of our common sinfulness (Rom.3:23).
From Selma to Memphis, the consequences of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden were repeatedly illustrated and seared into the memories of a generation.
But Dr.King had a dream.
Curiously, there was one voice that was ambivalent and strangely silent. Barely a whisper came from this voice although it had a presence in every urban center, suburb and rural area of America. Generally, the voice of the “evangelical” white church was not heard.
Jews, Catholics and “Christians” from the mainline and liberal churches were in the mix. Some were killed - black, white, Jew and Gentile. But where was the “evangelical” church, white or otherwise.
This brings us to the essential factor as to why the Civil Rights Movement did not ultimately succeed nor can it succeed as men might hope it will. The underlying theological presuppositions upon which the movement was based were not biblical. The presuppositions of the universal fatherhood of God and the universal brotherhood of man are contrary to our biblical understanding of man.
The key theological presupposition in the “I Have A Dream” speech is evident:
"And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when
we let it ring from every tenement and every hamlet, from
every state and every city, we will be able to speed up
that day when all of God's children (author’s emphasis), black men and white
men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be
able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro
spiritual, Free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty,
we are free at last."
The freedom and brotherhood that Dr. King so earnestly desired cannot become a reality when we honestly and biblically assess human nature. Human nature is bound as a slave to sin (Rom.6:17). Without the Gospel and the reconciliation of God and man first, there can be no true reconciliation between men (Eph.2:14-17).
God is the Creator of all and the Father only of those who believe in Christ and repent of their sin.
To be free at last can only be accomplished through the cross and Christ’s resurrection.
Without Christ, the dream is a humanistic desire for a Camelot that man can never create. There was no happy everaftering for King Arthur, nor is there for us, unless Christ is our King and Sovereign Lord.
Many of the leaders in the movement were also trained in Eastern Mysticism meditation techniques and they embraced the philosophy of Mahatmas Ghandi which only obscured the truth of Scripture. Hindus and Brahmans and other Eastern religions believe in the universal fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man and that many roads lead to heaven. This is anti-Christian.
Why were these ministers of the gospel so eager to embrace teachings that are so far removed from the truth of the Bible?
Although I do not agree with the theology of either Dr. King or Billy Graham, can you imagine what might have been if Billy Graham and Dr. King held a joint evangelistic crusade in Selma, Birmingham, Atlanta or Memphis?
Can you imagine addressing racial prejudice by preaching the gospel and being ministers of reconciliation in our multicultural societies today or tomorrow?
Would Dr. King envision that the body of Christ, at least as he understood it, with it’s many hues, continues to and may even take the lead in promoting segregation in America forty-four years after saying, “I have a dream...”.
A more in depth article is available at www.fbceny.org/articles/king1.pdf

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The Aliens Are Already Here

Peter writes that there is something about us that makes us different from other people. We are aliens and strangers.
Now Christians come in all shades of hue and color. We are brown, red, yellow, black and white. We wear dresses, suits, dashikis, saris, sandals, shoes, sneakers and some go barefoot.
We are teachers, mechanics, factory workers, administrators, and salesman.
We live in small houses, larger houses, huts and in prisons.
We like sports and we do not like sports.
In these and in so many other things we are no different from those in the world in which we live.
We are all made in the image of God and until we are made God’s own possession by his mercy and grace we are all the same in our fallen state of sin.
But God has made His own different.
We are to be holy even as He is holy.
Simply put this means that as God is different from all He has created we are to be different from other men.
The way in which our difference can be readily known is by our moral behavior.
The world is an amoral place. It really does not care about morals in an absolute sense and so immorality is very much tolerated, not universally but by matters of degree.
Certain immoral behavior according to God’s standard is tolerated by the world depending on the circumstances of how one is affected by certain immorality. Often, if something immoral by God’s standard has no direct effect on a person in the world, then it will be tolerated, as long as it does not interfere with one’s life.
Often, a Christian sense of morality becomes politicized.
Many moral issues that are biblically based on God’s holiness become the center stage for politics and the morality is really left out. The issue becomes more of a difference of opinion on what rights someone has as opposed to a purely moral issue.
This is how Christians get swept up into right wing politics and the Moral Majority and the Christian Coalition, neither of which were exclusively moral or Christian.
I do not need Rush Limbaugh representing my worldview. If I am Christian and happen to be a political conservative perhaps I agree with Rush on political views, however his world view is not rooted in the Scripture, it is not a biblical world view anymore than Jerry Falwell’s or Pat Robertson’s view is biblical once they make it political.
So what we engage in are culture wars that are really removed from the Scriptures although some appeal is made to the truth of Scripture for the basis of the political process.
We are not called to change the world through politics but we we have a legitimate call to be nation builders through the preaching of the gospel, which enlarges the kingdom of God and His holy nation on the earth.
So Peter is urging to abstain from fleshly kinds of immoral behavior that are proven by God’s word to bring destruction to the soul.
This is what truly makes us holy, different from other people.
We have a deliberate and conscious standard of morality that is based on God’s purpose for us, to be holy as He is holy. Our standard of morality is different than the morality of the world. This is why we are aliens ands strangers; this is why we are different. Aliens and strangers stand out in any community. We will not stand out by our clothes, our work, and our food or our hobbies but we will stand out because of our morality.
This will be outstanding because it is not a priority for the world.
Self-indulgence, self esteem, degrees of hedonism and self-satisfaction are the standard of the world and they are blind to the absolute standards of God and His morality and will lose the war against the soul, which is perpetrated by our very own sinful nature.
And the purpose of this moral living is the glory of God. This is where the real battle lies; it is about the glory of God.
We will be slandered and accused of many things but in the end God will be glorified by how we lived as being different people, as aliens and strangers and as Peter later says as good citizens where ever we are.
The world does not care. It is not a priority. Absolute truth from the One who is the Way, the Truth and The Life means nothing to the world reveling in its heart of darkness.
Was absolute morality a concern for you before Christ saved you? I don’t think so.
By our living according to God’s morality we will be called evildoers, Peter says. We will be singled out as the ones who really have a problem. By upholding and living the truth of Scripture people will call us evil for even daring to say that another person is a sinner and deserving of hell.
You may be the most pleasant and gracious neighbor on the block, but once you have a serious biblical discussion about the penalty for an immoral lifestyle you will be judged by most and perhaps tolerated by some.
Once you inform someone that their child or husband, or wife is not a victim but an active sinner whose own wicked nature is encouraging their self destruction you’d better duck. And if they do slap your cheek, then turn the other to them.
Our job is not to hit back but like Rocky Balboa says in street language that rings true to Scripture, “But it ain't about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much can you take and keep moving forward.”
Rocky is talking about winning a fight. We are talking about winning the war, the only one in the end of human history that really matters. John Bunyan called it the Holy War.
I may learn to live from you but only if you are living according to Christ otherwise you have nothing to teach me that will nourish my soul.
Now that does not mean that I should live like a monk and only learn spiritual things.
But Christ is to be the priority of my life. As I learn life skills and trades and other things that are needed to live in the world they need to be a part of my living for Christ. As I use these skills or apply my trade I do it as a Christian. The morality of my life needs to be seen, so that they who will call me evil may one day give glory to God at Christ’s appearing.
The world cares not for the glory of God
O, what a fearful condition
When the heart of darkness rules in man’s life
The end will be perdition
How great was the darkness of my own soul
Until Jesus revealed His light
How unworthy I was
And how glad I am now
That mercy and grace gave me sight (J. Krygier)
We are the light of the world. We are the salt of the earth. It is not just speaking the truth of God’s word that He uses for His glory. That is important because true faith comes from the hearing of the word and Peter later writes:
1Pe 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;
Peter says in 1 Peter 2:11-2 says that by observing our good deeds they may glorify God.
Our faithful living according to God’s morals does affect men for good. It is part of the process God uses to call His elect unto Himself.
What we say and how we live are both used of God for His glory.
Just as we are to fight against those things that would cause us to demean Christ, those things we should fear that would be demonstrating that we may truly not be what we think we are, we should be waging war against the immorality that will attempt to destroy our living unto the glory of Christ and which will destroy the souls of men who do not know Christ.

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The Excellency of The Kingdom of Light

The darkness that we were called out from is the very heart of what and who we were. People living in spiritual darkness ruled by a nature that loves darkness because our evil deeds relish the darkness of our souls and the darkness of our souls relish the darkness.
Therefore, we really do not, in our dark condition, see man as he really is.
Darkness is the inability to see: this may sound simple, but as a description of the human nature it has profound implications. Failing to see another human being means failing to understand that individual and not knowing what the real source of their difficulties are. In our darkness we cannot see it.
Our worldview, without Christ, is determined not by the light of absolute truth found in Christ but by the darkness of our own hearts and our depravity and our natural condition as haters of the Light. Having eyes to see we cannot see, in the natural or the spiritual sense.
What did you know and what truth did you really see until God called you out of darkness and brought you into His marvelous light?
The only honest answer is that you saw nothing and knew nothing in an absolute sense.
What you knew of man was distorted although even sinful men can recognize evil for example, but not in the absolute terms of God's definition of evil.
What ever you saw or knew of God was distorted and overshadowed by human reason and making gods in your own image until God called you from that domain of darkness with a heart of stone and placed you in his kingdom of light with a new heart.
You may have known much about God but knowing him is a completely different thing.
Peter says we once were not a people of God but since we have received mercy we are the people of God. We need to cherish more and more of what that means.
O Christ, in Thee my soul hath found
And found in Thee alone,
The peace, the joy I sought so long,
The bliss till now unknown.

I sighed for rest and happiness,
I yearned for them, not Thee;
But while I passed my Savior by,
His love laid hold of me.

Now none but Christ can satisfy,
None other name for me;
There's love, and life, and lasting joy,
Lord Jesus, found in Thee.
--Author unknown
As the people of God many will despise you and call you arrogant and call you bigoted and call you crazy to believe that you have some kind of right to be so exclusive about God.
But we have the sure word of God and a changed heart and the ministry of the Holy Sprit that proves who we are by God’s grace and mercy. We do not merely know about God - we know him through Jesus Christ our Lord and we know He knows us, intimately as his very own possession. To proclaim the excellency of our God should be the easiest and most joyous thing that we can do.
His name alone is excellent. We can speak of the excellencies of his grace, of his mercy, of his kindness, of his faithfulness, of his everlasting love and so much more.

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Photos of my recent trip to the USA.

Photos of my recent trip to the USA.

http://www.solochristo.com/Album/2006_12_12_Trip_to_the_USA/album.html

Shane Becker.

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New Focus Attacks "New Covenant Theology"

A copy of my email to "New Focus" regarding their latest attack on 'New Covenant Theology' (NCT).
____

Dear brothers in Christ,

I have a few queries about George Ella's remark regarding New Covenant Theology (http://www.go-newfocus.co.uk/pages.php?section=25&subsection=7&artID=177).

1. Has he actually read Wells and Zaspel's book or is he basing his criticisms on material written by others? If he has not read the book word for word does he intend on doing so?

2. Has he sought to dialogue with Zaspel and/or Wells? If not, would Ella be willing to dialogue with some NCT theologians regarding his views? Would he be willing to open himself up to some loving theological dialogue and cross examination in an open forum or via email?

3. Some questions in regard to the following Ella quote:

"Our Reformers distinguished between error and heresy. The former was a mere misunderstanding of the gospel here and there; the latter was a total rejection of the gospel and the bringing in of a new religion. New Covenant Theology is thus most definitely a heresy. The ‘new’ in it is a new law and a new gospel with a new ecclesiology, a new Christology and a new doctrine of the Word of God. It has a new view of the natures of both man and God and a new view of God’s dealings with man. In the following months, I hope to show in detail what are the basic tenets of this false religion and how we can armour ourselves against it."

Do you (or Ella) believe that those who hold to NCT are unbelievers going to hell as implied by such vitriolic and misleading statements regarding NCT such as “heresy” (as opposed to “error”), “total rejection of the gospel”, “a new gospel”, “new Christology”, “false religion”, etc.

If you/he does believe that we, who hold to NCT, are all a bunch of hell bound rebels, does he also believe that the foundation for our faith is false? I remind you that those who hold to NCT also hold Calvinistic views of salvation. We have likewise repented for our sins and trusted in Jesus Christ alone: as the only Son of God, our Lord, King, Saviour and treasure. Are we not saved on this basis? We all confess him as Lord, forsake our sin, hold to the infallibility of Scripture, etc.

In my case I was converted and much later embraced Calvinistic teaching. Later again I embraced Presbyterianism as taught by the Westminster Confession of Faith. Many years later I changed my understanding of how the covenants fit together (i.e. embraced NCT). At this point did I enter a “false religion”? So, if we are unbelievers, as implied, do you or Ella believe it is not enough to hold these basics of Christianity to be saved? Is there more that we need to embrace? Must we agree point for point with Mr Ella over additional theological truths in order to be saved? (If so, you’ve added an awful lot of propositional truths to the gospel required to be embraced in order to be saved. Such a view can not be substantiated by Scripture!)

If I have misunderstood you or Ella, and you are not implying that we are all hell bound, may I suggest you tone down your language and speak more accurately concerning our beliefs. Please stick to the points of difference and stop making sweeping statements like you have so far. Broad brush, unqualified and misleading statements are not helpful. That is, saying we embrace a “new gospel with a new ecclesiology, a new Christology and a new doctrine of the Word of God. It has a new view of the natures of both man and God and a new view of God’s dealings with man.”, etc. Unqualified these overstatements appear designed to make us appear to hold views further divergent from the reformed faith than is correct. Please exercise more care in the future.

4. Do you consider the following to be “law”?
“Let your speech always, be gracious” (Col 4:6a)
“Rather, *speaking the truth in love*, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” Eph 4:15.

Your brother in Christ-
Shane Becker.

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Ryan Ferguson Recites Hebrews Chapters 9 and 10

Worth a look . . . .

http://video.google.com.au/videoplay?docid=-8919399424910324675&q=Hebrews

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Elections come and go, but God remains forever

Tuesday, Nov 7th is election day in the USA.

It is mid-year elections and of course the get out the evangelical, whatever that is today, vote movement is once again moving forward at full pace. The pundits, the Theonomists, and the Reconstructionists are all waiting to see if God is going to win this election. What a shallow view of the sovereignty of God.

Elections are purposed in the divine purposes of God as a means to His ends for the praise of His glorious grace. But they are no more conditioned or influenced by another force any more than a brutal dictatorship which remains one as long as God determines that to be His providence. I am a Baptist by conviction. In the US we might have been a limited religious freedom country made up of about four major denominations if it had not been for the Baptists. I am an incurable Christ lover by God's decree and gracious election (whoever heard of one of those in this world). I no more want to affiliate with the religious right and the confused doctrines of a Pat Robertson or a Jerry Falwell than I want to be ruled by Sharia Law or anarchy.

My days as a hippie (I am 56) radical are behind me. I stood in front of the state troopers while occupying a student building at a NY State College in 1968. I experienced pepper gas and all the tension of a mass demonstration. I was going to vote for Frodo Baggins in the 1968 election but he did not get on the ticket, so I voted for Eldrige Cleaver and Mark Lane. I am glad that I saw how Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin really manipulated alot of young people and walked away from that long before I was A Chrisitan. But then again in '68, guys were leaving for Canada and other places during the October draft. I drew a high number but after a few years I gave up my student exemption, and waited for six months to be called. I never was. If the war had continued, I would have been on my way as soon a I left school so I figured. Let's get it over with and take the risk.

It is wonderful to be able to express my freedom in a demonstration or in an election as a US citizen. But far too many Christians in the world suffer daily as they live to honor God in whatever way they can. American evangelicalism as a whole is a far cry from what true biblical Christianity is. It would do us well to recall Peter's 1st epistle.

Peters’ purpose in writing this letter seems to be based on clearly making it known to his readers about the heavenly inheritance. He also follows Christ’s example, if we would reflect back to the Sermon on the Mount and other passages where Jesus guarantees persecution for the believer, to give consolation to the persecuted, and to prepare them for a greater approaching ordeal. Peter exhorts all by letter’s end - husbands, wives, servants, elders, and people to live as good citizens wherever they are, so as to give no reason for the enemy to reproach Christianity or the gospel of Christ. Rather he would hope that they would win them to it, reminding them that they are established in the faith and others can be as well. But too often our political Christianity just does the opposite in the name of political freedom. And we do everything we can to anger the enemy by accusing them of all sorts of nasty things, which they will do by sheer nature and hatred of God.

All Christians, if they rightly consider their calling, must never settle themselves here in this temporal place and kingdom, but see themselves as travelers, sojourners and as pilgrims waiting for the consummation of Christ’s kingdom to come in His person unto the praise of His glorious grace. Jesus taught us “My kingdom is not of this world”. Yes we are members of His kingdom, but it is not of this present world or its system. The kingdom of God is within us and whereever we are there exists the kingdom of God, in small tracts as it were, as we gather as bodies of believers throughout this world. We should live as aliens and many times brethren we are made to be aliens in many lands and many places. We simply are not wanted. However we are God’s chosen. No politics here, just God's election by His immeasurable and all consuming grace.

Stay tuned for the results.

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Thirsty Thursday, October 26th, 2006

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

The Other Dark Exchange - Homosexuality (Part Two)

Here's part one for those that can't just listen to a part two.

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Awake and Go! Global Prayer Network

At our fellowship group this week we examined the need to for us to be in regular prayer for revival.  By prayer for revival we simply mean pursuing God's means (prayer) for experiencing a supernatural celebration of the Supremacy of Jesus Christ.  No other 'technique' will do.  Prayer is the Lord's chosen means.

For help and encouragement, the website I recommend is www.awakeandgo.com . It contains tremendous revival resources, Biblical studies, quotes, historical accounts and biographies.

David Smithers and team have done a wonderful job. They are at the forefront of leading God's people to withdraw from fruitless treadmill programs, church techniques and activity, to seeking and waiting upon the Lord afresh for abundant outpourings of the Spirit.

Often the incentive and motivation to pray can be a problem. This site will help. The articles are mostly short and very encouraging through highlighting the benefits and joy to be obtained through intimacy with Jesus by prayer.

Below, I have pasted the Vision of Awake and Go!

Part of the vision of Treasuring Christ is to be revival seeking. We therefore align ourselves with the vision of 'Awake and Go!' and encourage you also to join us in regular prayer for revival.

May the Lord break the drought!!

Resting in refreshing grace-
Shane.


Awake and Go! Global Prayer Network Vision and Values.

by David Smithers.

We have three primary values and objectives in which we hope to serve and encourage the Body of Christ;

1.  Genuine Revival is a supernatural celebration of the Supremacy of Jesus Christ.

Genuine Revival is NOT a church growth strategy, evangelistic crusade or a series of miracle meetings, but rather the manifest glory of God that radically redefines and transforms the Church from a man centered institution to a corporate celebration of the supremacy of Jesus Christ. In our praying for Revival we are not merely seeking after spiritual experiences. Biblical Revival always reestablishes the Supremacy and Glory of Christ as the primary focus of the Church,  “Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?”(Ps 85:6).  We understand and appreciate that many of the outward expressions of the Church will be radically affected by revival, however, these things are the byproduct and not the goal and focus of genuine revival. The preeminence and pleasure of Jesus Christ is to be the beginning and the end of all our revival pursuits! Anything less will only leave our churches disillusioned and distracted by temporary and superficial religious experiences.

2.  Genuine Revival mobilizes the Church to World evangelism for the glory and pleasure of God.

Genuine Christ focused Revivals always produce a renewed passion for World Evangelism. Yet, it's not uncommon to find many of our revival prayer groups focusing almost exclusively on the Church, while neglecting to pray for the forgotten and unreached nations of the World. Likewise, it’s also common to find other groups of sincere believers praying for World missions, but ignoring the pressing need for spiritual revival at home. God desires for His people to unite and earnestly pray about both of these Kingdom priorities. In spite of our personal emphasis and giftings, a mature and healthy Kingdom perspective demands that we warmly embrace God's call to pray for both Revival and World Missions! 

By affirming the eternal relationship between these two themes, we are NOT suggesting that our churches should postpone their missionary activity while we passively wait for another sovereign, God-sent revival. However, the Scriptures and Church history clearly confirm that the remaining task of World evangelism will never be fulfilled in our generation apart from a fresh and mighty move of God.  J. Herbert Kane, the missionary historian and strategist stated this case quite clearly with the following words: “Water cannot rise any higher than its source, nor can the mission overseas be any stronger than the supporting church at home. A sick church can never save a dying world…Throughout history, revival at home and missions abroad have always gone together.”

3.  Genuine Revival is always preceded by faith, humility and united prayer.  

God desires to wonderfully revive and equip His church today. Therefore it is our goal to challenge God’s people about the spiritual value of child-like faith, deep humility and united prayer as the essential elements in preparing our hearts to experience God's reviving presence. God delights to use the faith-filled prayers of frail and needy people to birth great things into the earth.  Remember, the strategy of prayer is God’s sovereign design and not the human efforts of overly ambitious men. The inspired Word of God repeatedly exhorts us to pray in cooperation with God’s kingdom purposes.

“Ask of Me, and I will give you the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession.” (Ps 2:8)

“Ask the LORD for rain in the time of the latter rain.” (Zech 10:1) 

"Ask , and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Matt 7:7-9)

We are living in a new day when God is calling a new generation to partner with Him in persistent and enduring prayer.  We trust that the resources and tools posted on this page will help and inspire you to pray more strategically for God’s glory to revive the Church and awaken every tongue, tribe and nation! 

http://awakeandgo.com/

 

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Thirsty Thursday, October 19, 2006

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Voddie Baucham, Lovers of God: The Commandment to Love, Deut 6.4-12

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Peter: On This Rock I Will Build My Church Part One, An Introduction

The Apostle Peter was a part of the Jewish community in the first century. His original name was Simeon (Acts 15.14, 2 Peter 1.1). He seemed to have most often used the Greek version of his name, Simon. Jesus renamed him "Peter" or "rock" in Greek. And for some reason only known to him, Paul preferred calling Peter "Cephas" which is the Aramaic transliterated form of the word "rock."

His father's name was Jonah (Matt 16.17) or John (John 1.42). Jonah was a fisherman. And by the tradition of the day, that meant his sons Peter and Andrew were fishermen too. They were from the city of Bethsaida (John 1.44), but later, when they met Jesus they were residing in Capernaum It is possible that they were partners in the fishing business with James and John, sons of Zebedee (Luke 5.10). (Mark 1.21, 29).

Peter was married. He and his wife owned a home in Capernaum. She was a believer and went along with Peter in his travels and ministry (1 Corinthians 9:5). I don't know which would have been harder for her, being married to Peter, going along with him wherever he went, or knowing that the Lord prophesied her husband's death. I can't imagine that they didn't have any children. Since having no birth control tends increase the probably of God blessing through children, it should be possible that there little "Simon Peters" running amuck in Capernaum, Jerusalem, and Rome.

He was marked as a Galilean by his accent (Matt. 27.73; Mark 14.70). Being from the South, I tend to hear that Galilean accent as a bit of a southern drawl. He's from a small town, and he's a fisherman, what else is needed for this picture other than a six-pack of cold ones and a lawn chair? That may be stretching it, but the elders and the scribes did refer to him as uneducated (which is, unfortunately, a label for the South). "¹³Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus"(Acts 4:13 ESV). The word translated may mean illiterate, but I think that's highly unlikely. Luke didn't mention the elders handing Peter an ACT college entrance exam, but they just heard him speak. So there was a simplicity mixed with boldness and authority that impressed these elders. Let's see how Peter came to be that man.

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Individual Perseverance is a Community Project Complete Series

Part One: Introduction: The Loneliness of Spirituality

Part Two: Why Should We Take Care?

Part Three: How Do We Exhort One Another?

Part Four: How Shall We Make It to the End?

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Individual Perseverance is a Community Project Part Four

How shall we make it to the end?

¹⁴For we share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end." (Hebrews 3:14 ESV).

I believe that these truths bring us to a very precarious position. The point I've been making is that for every professing Christian, there is a need to in a community that will exhort the believer to stay faithful to Christ because he or she might not make it to the end. He or she might not persevere until Christ returns. He or she might stop believing in Christ. He or she might not be saved. Which should raise the question, “Is this the Christian life? If it’s nothing but an upward fight with no assurance, how shall we make it to the end? And can someone who is a believer truly fall away?

No, there is assurance. There is titanium-reinforced, diamond-hard foundation to a Christian's confidence and the writer of Hebrews wants you to have it. He says in 6.11, “And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end." It is not a fool’s quest or a mythological treasure. But the assurance isn’t in anything you’ve done. Your assurance must rest safely in the person and work of Jesus Christ: " ¹⁹Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, ²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²²let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. ²³Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, ²⁵not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. ²⁶For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, ²⁷but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. ²⁸Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. ²⁹How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? ³⁰For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” ³¹It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." (Hebrews 10:19-31 ESV).

So all of our confidence must be based entirely on the trustworthy character of God who has promised to justify the sinner based upon the person and work of Jesus Christ. On that you can trust. Then what about all of this “if” stuff? ¹⁴For we share in Christ, if we hold our original confidence firm to the end." (Hebrews 3:12-14 ESV). “And we are [God’s] house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope. " (Hebrews 3:6 ESV). So what do you do when you read those texts? We've already established that you don't throw out assurance.

There's a couple of reasons why these texts are important and precious to the believer. First, what happens to the believer when he reads those texts that doesn’t happen in the heart of an unbeliever? The unbeliever, who may claim to be following Christ, brushes the warning aside and says, “I’m okay. That doesn’t apply to me.” But the believer goes to the cross and pleads, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner. I deserve to be cast away, but you’ve promised to save those who hold fast their confidence in you and I trust you to save me. Your work on the cross has atoned for my sins, your righteousness has given and will give me standing in the judgment. I trust in You, Jesus. That’s what I think the writer means in 10.14 "¹⁴For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." Those who keep on fighting their sin, continue clinging to Christ, trusting everyday in his righteousness alone.

God has ordained not only who shall be saved, but also how he or she shall be saved. One method is through the warnings of Scripture. Then there is the flip-side of warning, which be exhorting. That is the goal of the Christian community—to exhort the fellow believer to make it to the end. And what we shall find when we are all in heaven is that those who made it to the end had been regenerated. And the way the regenerated heart keeps loving Jesus is by the church's constant reminder of how glorious He is.

So, I hope that makes sense as to why Bethlehem has a certain type of shepherd group in mind. This shepherd group exists to help you to keep on believing and trusting in Jesus Christ so that you’ll make it to the end and be saved. And this community aspect is what is lacking in our culture and especially in American spirituality. This is a community of believers that points you to the Living God manifest in Jesus Christ. It is a group that points you to His word, and exhorts you to hold fast to Him. And we don’t just want you to coast to the end, but to be so enamored by Jesus that you go to a glorious Hebrews 13 ending: "⁸Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. ⁹Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. ¹⁰We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. ¹¹For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. ¹²So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. ¹³Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. ¹⁴For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. ¹⁵Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. ¹⁶Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God." (Hebrews 13:8-16 ESV).

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Thirsty Thursday, Sept. 28, 2006

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

John MacArthur, Portrait of Paul's Friends

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Individual Perseverance is a Community Project, Part Three

How do we exhort one another?

Hebrews 3.¹³But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Unlike the spiritual life of an post-modern America, the life of the Christian isn’t a castaway, recluse experience. The writer tells us not only to “take care” that we might fall away, but to also exhort one another to keep them from falling away. That entails being in spiritual ear-shot of another person. And for the Christian this is crucial. What is needed to keep you from being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin is someone exhorting you. And not just “another” person but someone from among you. The text literally means exhort “yourselves”. These are people that are like-minded with the same goals. I don't at all mean people that will tell you what you want a hear. But I do mean people that will hold you accountable to finding the Treasure of the universe.

Here is how I see the situation. I picture sin whispering in your ear, “Money…money is more important than God. God doesn’t care about you. If He did, he'd support you better financially. Money can make you happy. You could take care of your family.” nd try as you might, you can’t shake the notion that it would feel so good to be financially padded, comfortable, safe and secure. Then someone comes up beside you and says, “Don’t you believe that. Money can lead you away from the living God. You were not made to fall away from the living God. There’s a promise today. Believe that promise today."

We could exhort the believer to remember God's covenants to his people. For today God has fulfilled his covenant. “He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since [Jesus] always lives to make intercession for them." (Hebrews 7:25 ESV). Draw near to him. He won’t turn you away. He has always helped his people make it to the end. Remember Abraham. He lived in tents. He never had a permanent place to live. Remember Moses. He forsook the wealth and comfort of all the riches of Egypt to go and suffer with Israel. Remember those that “conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. ³⁵Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. ³⁶Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. ³⁷They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— ³⁸of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth" (Hebrews 11:33-38 ESV). And they didn’t get all that God promised them. God has promised that apart from you, they would not be made perfect. Don’t dishonor them for their faith, by making little of the God after whom they went hard.

They are surrounding you, so look to Jesus, not to money! He endured the cross because of the joy set before him. He despised the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God having completed His work so that you might receive eternal joy in God and all things as a sharer in Christ. And Jesus has said that He “will never leave your nor forsake you.” So you can “confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” (13.5-6). Therefore, don’t turn away after money, and don’t let your heart lead you away from God. Turn back to God!

And what is the believer to do if he has no voice of exhortation? Without a community grounding him in the Bible and pressing on him to finish the race, he could drop out. He could buy into the lie that a few dollars here are more rewarding than a universe and a God purchased through the blood of Christ. So we have a crowd in heaven eagerly awaiting and cheering for our arrival for their share in Christ, and we have a community on earth eagerly exhorting and calling us to lay aside everything that might keep us away from the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus. Don't let your heart disqualify you from the race by tempting you to run alone.

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Individual Perseverance is a Community Project, Part Two

Why should we take care?

"¹²Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. ¹³But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today," that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. ¹⁴For we share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end." (Hebrews 3:12-14 ESV).

"¹²Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.

Although we should exhort our spiritual Americans "to take care lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God," notice that this is not to whom he is addressing this.  I believe this is essentially important.  To whom is the addressing this exhortation to "take care"?  The verse is addressed, as in casual observer can see, to the "brothers."  Or, it might be more helpful to just say that he is writing this to believers, to Christians, to the Church.  That's a massive thing to warn the Church of Jesus Christ to take care. 

Can you recall any text in Hebrews which seems to imply this text is for believers?  Hebrews chapter 6 comes to my mind, "⁴For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, ⁵and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, ⁶if they then fall away, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt." (Hebrews 6:4-6 ESV).  So let's be jarred when we read, "Take care, brothers.  Take care, sisters.  Take care, Christians."  Because, the writer is absolutely serious when he warns us to take care.

The care is toward "an evil, unbelieving heart."  And the caution is not just for right now, but he says "lest there be."  There's an even more startling idea than there might be in me an evil and unbelieving heart that leads me to fall away.  In Greek, the verb translated "there be" is in the future tense, "lest there will be."  There could be in the future, an evil, unbelieving heart in you that is leading and will lead you away from God.  It could be dormant, biding its time.  It could be influencing your choices, the thoughts that you think, the words that you speak, the actions you produce all for the purpose of leading you away from God.

The author warns, "Take care!"  And, he spends all of the book of Hebrews trying to get you to take care.  He paints the picture of our sin in separating us from God.  He warns of the wrath of the living God bearing down on us.  He exults in the Son of God, God of very God, coming down into a man and bearing the wrath of that sin as our Great High Priest.  He pleads with these believers to rest, not in their works, but in the perfection of Jesus Christ downloaded to us to become our right standing before God.  He encourages us, since God is a God of forgiveness toward sinners, to approach the throne of grace boldly clothed in that alien perfection.  And he tells us that Christ suffered just like we did.  He knows what we're going through, and is able to keep us from falling.  There's no more wrath of God for you, he satisfied it all.  Take care not to let your heart lead you away from this Great High Priest at a throne of grace offering you rest.

The last thing that American spirituality does is take care.  There is no concern of the danger.  There is no impending sense of doom that there might be a God out there whom we may have offended.  More than that, we must take care that we receive this God.  He is the supreme good of our souls.  And any spirituality, religion, or path that leads away from Him is not only damning to our souls, but it is robbing of our potential happiness.  Happiness is in the right hand of the Father of Jesus Christ, and our hearts would lead us any where but to Him.  So take care!

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Individual Perseverance is a Community Project, Part One

Introduction: The Loneliness of Spirituality

Every era throughout history has had its societal manure processed and sold in different bows, ribbons, and labels. Sin and half-hearted hedonism 2000 years ago manifests itself in the same type of unbelief as it did then, but with all new enticements marketed to appeal to the 21^st century materialist. Though we have new terms, new bows and ribbons, the same problems and stumbling blocks that kept men from God then are keeping them from God now. The enemy never changes, the war still rages, but the nuances of the battle always seem to be recycled. The frontline encounter may be at different places, but the fight for the faith is all the same. To be faithful believers, we must know where the major battle is, what is at stake, and how to fight so as to win.

In America, the battle is one that rages for religion and for the individual. For all of the blasting that organized religion has received with negative criticism, it may be interesting to note that there has developed a rise of spirituality in America. We see that this spirituality in America is greatly separated from Christendom and Christian doctrine. Gone is the spirituality that allowed Jonathan Edwards to refer to “religion” and mean simply Christianity. This rejection of Christian Truth has led to a tension between culture and Christianity. There is a lack of common ground with individuals because there is no longer the idea of a common “religion,” or a pool of Biblical truth to fish from. A pump of pluralism has been unleashed into the pure streams of our culture and Christians are struggling to stay afloat.

And with Christianity no longer influencing culture through God’s merciful common-grace restraints, the bonds that bound the individual’s relationships have been blasted. The individual is “free” to explore areas that were at one time deemed “off limits or wrong” by society’s common laws. So, the person begins a private, internalized pursuit of a higher power, or a pursuit to find and trust in one’s self. This spirituality may produce a pursuit of the sacred, and it may mean a search for a god. Wells quotes the story of the Liveranis who

began to build their own church, salvaging bits of the old [Catholic] religion they liked and chucking the rest. The first to go were an angry, vengeful God and hell—‘That’s just something they say to scare you,’ Ed said. They kept Jesus, ‘because Jesus is big on love.’

From the local bookstore, in a bulging section called ‘Private Spirituality,’ they found wisdom in places they had never before searched, or even heard of: In Zen masters, in New Age chestnuts such as A Course in Miracles, in their latest find, Conversations with God.

Now they commune with a new God, a gentle twin of the one they grew up with. He is wise but soft-spoken, cheers them up when they’re sad, laughs at their quirks. he is, most essentially, validating, like the greatest of friends.

And best of all, he had been there all along. ‘We discovered the God within,’ said Joanne. ‘That’s why we need God. Because we are God. God gives me the ability to create my own godliness’ (Hanna Rosin, Beyond 2000: A Self-Made Deity qtd. in David Wells, Above All Earthly Pow’rs, 113).

You can imagine that with God out of the way, and self as the new God, there is no objective morality. There is no standard to follow. And if there was a standard, this type of God would never expect perfection or righteousness. What is most distressing is that the person refuses any guidance from community. By ensuring that all their relationships are shallow, the individual guarantees that no one can judge their spirituality. Their journey is a private one, and like the superficial relationships that are forged along the way, the journey is as equally superficial as the dead relationships. Wells points this out be quoting Mark Greene’s “Tourists”:

Tourists; that’s what we are becoming…
Tourists, we move through life, flitting from idea to idea, from
novelty to novelty, from new person to new person,
Never settling, always moving…
Selecting the best sights, the highlights, the choice cuts,
avoiding the mess on the edge of town, the slums, all the
uncomfortable things, the struggle of really knowing people,
Never settling, always moving lest we hear the hollow clang
of our own emptiness…
Tourists; that’s what we are becoming…
Inquisitive, curious, picking up the tidbits of other
people’s depth…
Tourists, flicking through our snapshots, the paper thin
trophies of our click and run existence, filing them away,
loading the next roll of film,
Never settling, always moving,
Tourists; that’s what we are becoming,
Tourists; that’s what we are becoming….(qtd. in, 134).

“It is quite apparent that the new spirituality is practicing what has become one of the norms of the postmodern world—that is, the belief that each person must be allowed one’s own private space within which one has the freedom to define reality for oneself and set one’s own rules” (Wells, 168). Truth is subjective, what is true for me may not be true for you. Your god may work for you, but he, she, it may not work for me. And it is arrogance to impose your beliefs on my beliefs. You can not tell me that my system is wrong. “Spirituality…has come to stand for what is private and internal” (Wells, 110) and “violating this private space is, socially speaking, intolerable” (Wells, 168).

So please understand the tension that is inside this culture when we read Hebrews 3.12-14. In calling for a community of people to stop moving and stay for awhile, to be willing to be transparently honest, to be eager to be exhorted in Truth, to be called to look to the God of the Bible, and to be unashamed about the exclusivity of salvation in Jesus Christ alone means swimming against the cultural current. But I think that the Bible makes it crucial for the perseverance of the believer to be provided by a community of believers. What does that look like for the individual and the community?

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Verses for Difficult Trials

Here are some good verses to provide comfort and assurance during trials.
. .

Psalm 34:18. "The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who
are crushed in spirit."

Isaiah 41:10. "Fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your
God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my
victorious right hand."

Psalm 23:4. "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort
me."

2 Corinthians 1:3-4. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in
all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any
affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."

2 Corinthians 1:8-9. "We do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our
affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively,
beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the
sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in
ourselves, but in God who raises the dead."

It is interesting to note the 'purpose' flavor of those last two . . .

--> ". . . so that we will be able to comfort . . ."

--> ". . . so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God . . ."

God provides comfort in difficult times yet during the trail, and even
after the trial is ended, the benefits go on for our good, for the good of
others, and for His glory.

One particular benefit the Lord has in mind is for us to rediscover Him
afresh as the one we can trust and cling to through trials. And learning
to not trust in ourselves but in God is a rediscovery that goes on all
through life!

Be encouraged. God is with you through all trials. This reality has been
guaranteed through Christ our mediator. Rest in Him and take every
opportunity to rediscover His readiness to carry you through to the very
end. Our Heavenly Father is good and He loves His children through Jesus
Christ.

Resting in Grace,

Shane.

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Fighting for Joy Through Treasuring Christ

When our hearts are captivated by the lovely Jesus we bring glory to God - naturally, joyfully.  But when we don't feel like it we seek to glorify God by good works under compulsion.  When we serve God through the force of our will power our hearts are really declaring we'd prefer to cast Him off His throne for all the hard work we have to do for Him.  In other words, if our hearts are not in our service of God, it does not bring God glory.

 

"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men."  Matt 15:8-9

 

Don't get me wrong.  When a believer doesn't feel joy there is still rest in the grace of Christ who is our righteousness before God.  His perfection covers all our imperfections.  His perfect joy in service of God is presented on our behalf and forms part of that righteousness that we receive as a free gift.  So whether we feel like it or not we are loved, accepted and welcome before God!  This is always true of every believer!! 

 

Just knowing this gospel truth can begin to stir joy in our hearts.  That's the nature of our relationship with God through Jesus.  We bring Him the problems (joylessness, sin, weakness, failure, shame).  He lavishes us with solutions (grace, forgiveness, righteousness, love).  He gets the glory.  We get . . . . well . . . . everything!!  We get love, joy, acceptance and ultimately we get Jesus Christ.  Christ dwells within us and is formed in us.  And collectively we make up the body of Christ.  Amazing union!!

 

Fight for joy! Fight to see Christ as infinitely valuable and available and welcoming!!  May the Lord remove the veil to enable us to see all we have received freely in Christ.

 

He is good!   I've also posted a short article below from Terry Rayburn for your encouragement.  Terry's articles help me treasure Christ and enjoy Him! Be sure to visit Terry's site and enjoy his articles when you can!!

 

Blessings,

Shane.

_________________________________________

 

Is God Pleased With You?

Terry Rayburn

 

Five times in the Bible the words are recorded which the Father said regarding Jesus, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matt. 3:17; 17:5; Mark 1:11; Luke 3:22; 2 Pet. 1:17)

 

But do you realize that your Father now has that same view of you?

 

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. " (2 Cor. 5:21) Not only have we been given the righteousness of God, we ourselves have become sons and daughters of God. Amazing!

 

And so now, as stunning as it may sound, we are brethren of Jesus Christ! "...for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren..." (Hebrews 2:11b)

 

Don't squirm uncomfortably because you don't feel worthy. He has done it all. He has made you His child. He has made you a new creation, born of Him, not of corruptible seed, but incorruptible. And He has given you a new spirit, and made you one spirit with Him. And He delights in you, the apple of His eye.

 

And so now, you...

 

are also the Father's beloved son (or daughter), in whom He is well pleased.

 

Enjoy.

 

http://www.graceforlife.com/2006/06/is-god-pleased-with-you.html

 

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Sinclair Ferguson, Rightly Dividing Part 2

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Sinclair Ferguson, Rightly Dividing Part 1

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

John MacArthur, Perfecting the Saints

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

John Piper, The First Dark Exchange: Idolatry

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Ravi Zacharias, Convictions that Conquered the World

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Experiencing Life at the Margins

The Rt. Rev. Dr. David Zac Niringiye, African Bishop, has this (and more) to say about the American church:

It's so difficult to get American Christians, even those who profess to love missions and their brothers and sisters on the periphery, to actually come and see what is happening where we are. This is especially true of those in the positions of greatest power in the church. I have asked a friend, a pastor of a large church that gives half of its money to missions, to come and spend time on the fringes. But he won't. He wants to spend his study leave in Oxford, in Australia. How can American pastors be leaders if they haven't seen what God is doing elsewhere? Every search process for a senior pastor should ask, "Do you have experience in marginal places, economically deprived places, places with HIV/AIDS? Have you gone to be among them?"

Read the entire interview.

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Don Whitney, The Means of Church Revival

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I Don't Believe that Anyone can Believe in a Non-Belief System!

by Chris Carmichael.

At a community college graduation ceremony I attended in May, I was taken aback by a piece of advice that the commencement speaker gave to the graduates near the end of his speech. He declared with all sincerity, “When you lay in bed at night, don’t forget to thank God, or your Higher Power, or your non-belief system for all the blessings in your life.”

Yes, boys and girls, welcome to the new age of enlightenment where even atheists must not be excluded from bedtime prayer.

In fairness it should be noted that this particular commencement speaker is a director for a non-profit human rights organization that promotes inclusion and diversity, and thus he has developed an expanded consciousness that makes him much more sensitive to all points of view. That's why he can make a profoundly stupid statement like, "Thank your non-belief system for your life's blessings," and make it sound so culturally relevant and globally responsible. Isn't that nice of him?

I’m sure there must have been a few bright-eyed, fresh-faced atheists among the graduating class who were initially charmed by the speaker‘s feel-good advice, but then when they tried to put it into practice, they suddenly became as horrified as Isaac Watts at a Dove Awards ceremony. I can hear their train of thought now: “Thank you, Non-Belief System, for blessing me with… hey, wait a minute! What am I DOING?! If I give thanks to an entity outside myself, then I’m creating belief in another power, which is like God, and I don’t believe in God, so who am I really thanking? Hoo, boy, you almost had me there, you sly dog!"

Good grief, even an atheist with a community college education could smell a rat. . . .

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Thirsty Thursday

Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

Paul Washer, Youth Evangelism Conference June 2002, Matthew 7.13-27

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Prayer Quotes

"The Enemy uses all his power to lead the Christian, and above all the minister, to neglect prayer."

Andrew Murray

 

"There is no easier sin to commit than the sin of prayerlessness.  It is a sin against man and a sin against God."

Wesley Duewel

 

"The least popular and the worst attended gathering so often is the prayer meeting."

Stephen Olford

 

"We have a great deal of activity but we accomplish little; many services but few conversions; much machinery but few results.  The power of God is lacking in our lives and in our work.  We have not because we ask not."

R.A. Torrey

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Thirsty Thursday

Thirsty Thursday:  Fueling Your Passion to Treasure Christ by Providing Grace-saturated Audio Sermons

"As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV)

 

The Peril of Partiality:  Riches and Race in the Christian Church

by John Piper

"For 250 years the [African] captives endured an assault on their culture and their dignity. The spirit of Africans in America did not break. Yet the spirit of their captors was corrupted. Small men took on the powers and airs of tyrants and masters. Years of unpunished brutality and bullying and rape produced a dullness and hardness of conscience. Christian men and woman became blind to the clearest commands of their faith, and added hypocrisy to injustice. A republic founded on equality for all became a prison for millions. And yet in the words of the African proverb, No fist is big enough to hide the sky. All the generations of oppression under the laws of man could not crush the hope of freedom and defeat the purposes of God.

"In America enslaved Africans learned the story of the Exodus from Egyptand set their own hearts on a promised land of freedom. Enslaved Africans discovered a suffering Savior and found he was more like themselves than their masters. Enslaved Africans heard the ringing promises of the Declaration of Independenceand asked the self-evident question, Then why not me? . . .

The evils of slavery were accepted and unchanged for centuries. Yet, eventually, the human heart would not abide them. There is a voice of conscience and hope in every man and woman that will not be silencedwhat Martin Luther King called a certain kind of fire that no water could put out. That flame would not be extinguished at the Birmingham jail. . . . It was seen in the darkness here at Goree Island , where no chain could bind the soul. This untamed fire of justice continues to burn in the affairs of man, and it lights the way before us.

One of the sad things about this Martin Luther King weekend is that many people-mainly white people-will not mark or celebrate racial justice or the advance of civil rights on this weekend because it is named for Martin Luther King, just like there are many people-mainly black people-who would not listen to that powerful speech if they knew it was spoken by George W. Bush."

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Keep Yourselves In The Love Of God

by Terry Rayburn.

I'll bet it's been awhile since you've read the book of Jude.

It's an interesting epistle, because Jude started out to write an encouraging letter about our salvation, and changed direction under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He was led to write about "contending for the Faith", because of false teachers that were abounding.

And in the midst of this very serious letter about false teaching, Jude says something very important for us to remember as we are contending for the Faith.

In verse 21 (Jude is only one chapter), he writes, "...keep yourselves in the love of God."

Have you ever seen the optical illusion of the 3-dimensional box? If you focus your eyes one way, you see the outside surface of the box. If you focus your eyes another way, you see the inside surface of the box.

Jude 21 is like that. Does Jude refer to God's love for you...or your love for God? Well, it's both.


1. Keep yourself in His love for you.

This must come first. We love Him because He first loved us (1 Jn 4:19)

Doubting God's love comes from Law-based thinking. We know we can't measure up perfectly to our every duty, and so we think God loves us less. This is, of course, unbiblical, and Grace is the antidote. God loves us unconditionally, and we need to remember that. We need a crash course in Grace every day. Peter wrote in 2 Pet. 1:12,13,

"Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, "

We need to be reminded that we are His beloved.

Why is this important? Because if we’re not appropriating the love of God for us….if we’re not basking in His love and grace….then we will not be able to be filled with His Holy Spirit, and we won’t be able to walk by the Spirit….and that means we won’t have the fruit of the Spirit, and the primary fruit of the Spirit is love.

2. Keep yourself in your love for Him.

This requires walking by the Spirit. This requires being filled with the Spirit.

Jude precedes vs. 21 by saying in vs. 20, "But you, beloved, [see that word "beloved"? That’s us], but you beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit".
See how we can build ourselves up in the faith? We can do that, through reading the word of God, through meditation on Jesus, on God the Father and His word, through shutting out the world and it’s noises for a time, and listening to the Lord, through praying while we’re filled with the Spirit, through thirsting after God like the deer pants after the waterbrook.

We love Him because He first loved us. But we can’t let Religion choke out this love.

I love theology. I love the study of God in His word, in depth. I want to know all I can about Him and His ways. That’s theology at it’s best. And I even love a good debate. Jude even says in vs. 3 that we should contend earnestly for the faith. I love that.

But nothing, I repeat nothing, takes the place of keeping ourselves in the love of God.

Did you know there are two letters to the Ephesians in the New Testament? The first is the epistle we call the book of Ephesians, written by Paul the Apostle. The other is the letter of Jesus to the church at Ephesus, as recorded by John in Revelation 2:1-7.

Jesus commends the Ephesian church for doing something good. That good thing they did was to contend for the faith. They recognized and fought doctrinal error in the church. But then Jesus tells them something very sad.

The Ephesian church had left their first love.

Did they apostasize? Turn against Jesus, lose their salvation? No, of course not. They merely failed to do what Jude exhorts us to do: "Keep yourselves in the love of God."

Don’t underestimate this, beloved.

Don’t be like the church at Ephesus. "Keep yourselves in the love of God."

Link: Grace for Life.

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An Humble Blog

For your encouragement to pray together corporately here are some key points taken from Jonathan Edward's exposition of Zech 8:20-22 in his "An Humble Attempt . . .".

May we all be incurable God-seekers as we pursue Him through prayer!

-- // --

Text: Thus saith the Lord of hosts; [It shall yet come to pass,] that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts: I will go also. Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.” Zech 8:20-22

Prayer is here expressly and repeatedly mentioned; and also considering how parallel this place is with many other prophecies, that speak of an extraordinary spirit of prayer, as preceding and introducing that glorious day of religious revival, and advancement of the church’s peace and prosperity, so often foretold. Add to this, the agreeableness of what is here said, with what is said afterwards by the same prophet, of the pouring out of a spirit of grace and supplication, as that with which this great revival of religion shall begin. (chap. 12:10.) . . .

The GOOD, that shall be sought by prayer, which is God Himself. It is said once and again, “They shall go to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts.” This is the good they ask for, and seek by prayer: The Lord of hosts Himself. . .

it implies that God Himself is the great good desired and sought after; that the blessings pursued are God’s gracious presence, the blessed manifestations of Him, union and intercourse with Him; or, in short, God’s manifestations and communications of Himself by His Holy Spirit. Thus the psalmist desired God, thirsted after Him, and sought Him. Psalm 63:1,2,8 “O God, Thou art my God; early will I seek Thee. My flesh longeth for Thee, in a dry and thirsty land where no water is; to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen Thee in the sanctuary. My soul followeth hard after Thee.” Psalm 73:25 “Whom have I in Heaven but Thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides Thee.” The psalmist earnestly pursued after God, his soul thirsted after Him, he stretched forth His hands unto Him, etc. (Psalm 143:6) And therefore it is in Scripture the peculiar character of the saints, that they are those who seek God. Psalm 24:6 “This is the generation of them that seek Him.” Psalm 69:32 “Your heart shall live that seek God.” If the expression in the text be understood agreeably to this sense, then by seeking the Lord of hosts, we must understand a seeking, that God who had withdrawn, or as it were hid Himself for a long time, would return to His church, and grant the tokens and fruits of His gracious presence, and those blessed communications of His Spirit to His people, and to mankind on earth, which He had often promised, and which His church had long waited for. . . . And when God, in answer to their prayers and succeeding their endeavours, delivers, restores, and advances His church, according to His promise, then He is said to answer, and come, and say, Here am I, and to show Himself; and they are said to find Him, and see Him plainly. Isa 58:9 “Then shalt Thou cry, and He shall say, Here I am.” Isa 45:19 “I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye Me in vain.” Isa 25:8,9 “The Lord will wipe away the tears from off all faces, and the rebuke of His people shall He take away from off the earth. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God, we have waited for Him, and He will save us: This is the Lord, we have waited for Him; we will be glad, and rejoice in His salvation.” Together with the next chapter, verses 8,9 “We have waited for Thee; the desire of our soul is to Thy name, and to the remembrance of Thee. With my soul have I desired Thee in the night, yea, with my spirit within me will I seek Thee early. For when Thy judgements are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.” Isa 52:6-8. “Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore they shall know in that day, that I am He that doth speak: behold, it is I. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice, together shall they sing; for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion.” . . . .

We may observe WHO THEY ARE that shall be united in thus seeking the Lord of hosts: the inhabitants of many cities, and of many countries, yea, many people, and strong nations, great multitudes in different parts of the world shall conspire in this business. . . . There shall be given much of a spirit of prayer to God’s people, in many places, disposing them to come into an express agreement, unitedly to pray to God in an extraordinary manner, that He would appear for the help of His church, and in mercy to mankind, and pour out His Spirit, revive His work, and advance His spiritual kingdom in the world, as He promised. This disposition to prayer, and union in it, will gradually spread more and more, and increase to greater degrees; with which at length will gradually be introduced a revival of religion, and a disposition to greater engagedness in the worship and service of God, amongst His professing people. This being observed, will be the means of awakening others, making them sensible of the wants of their souls, and exciting in them a great concern for their spiritual and everlasting good, and putting them upon earnestly crying to God for spiritual mercies, and disposing them to join in that extraordinary seeking and serving of God. . . . In this manner religion shall be propagated, till the awakening reaches those that are in the highest stations, and till whole nations be awakened, and there be at length an accession of many of the chief nations of the world to the church of God. Thus after the inhabitants of many cities of Israel, or of God’s professing people, have taken up and pursued a joint resolution, to go and pray before the Lord, and seek the Lord of hosts, others shall be drawn to worship and serve Him with them; till at length many people and strong nations shall join themselves to them; and there shall, in process of time, be a vast accession to the church, so that it shall be ten times as large as it was before; yea, at length, all nations shall be converted unto God. Thus Zech 8:23, “ten men shall take hold, out of all languages of the nations, of the skirt of Him that is a Jew,” (in the sense of the apostle, Rom 2:28-29 i.e. Christians) “saying, We will go with you; for we have heard, that God is with you.” And thus shall be fulfilled, Psalm 65:2, “O Thou that hearest prayer, unto Thee shall all flesh come.” . . .

We may observe, THE MODE OF THEIR UNION in this duty. It is a visible union, an union by explicit agreement, a joint resolution declared by one to another, being first proposed by some, and readily and expressly followed by others. The inhabitants of one city shall apply themselves to the inhabitants of another, saying, Let us go, etc. . . .

We may observe the manner of prayer agreed on, or the manners in which they agree, to engage in and perform the duty. Let us go speedily to pray; or as it is in the margin, Let us go continually. The words literally translated are, Let us go in going. Such an ingemination (doubling of words), is very common in the Hebrew language, when it is intended that a thing shall be very strongly expressed. . .

We may learn from the tenor of this prophecy, together with the context, that this union in such prayer is foretold as a becoming and happy thing, what would be acceptable to God, and attended with glorious success. . .From the whole we may infer, that it is a very suitable thing, and well-pleasing to God, for many people, in different parts of the world, by express agreement, to come into a visible union in extraordinary, speedy, fervent, and constant prayer, for those great effusions of the Holy Spirit, which shall bring on that advancement of Christ’s church and kingdom, that God has so often promised shall be in the latter ages of the world.

--//--

"Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts".

Your brother in Christ-

Shane.

O LORD, revive Your work in the midst of the years! . . .
His glory covered the heavens, And the earth was full of His praise
(Hab 3)

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The Foreknowledge of God

"The fact is that "foreknowledge" is never used in Scripture in connection with events or actions; instead, it always has reference to persons. It is persons God is said to "foreknow," not the actions of those persons. In proof of this we shall now quote each passage where this expression is found.

The first occurrence is in Acts 2:23. There we read, "Him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain." If careful attention is paid to the wording of this verse it will be seen that the apostle was not there speaking of God's foreknowledge of the act of the crucifixion, but of the Person crucified: "Him (Christ) being delivered by," etc.

The second occurrence is in Rom. 8:29,30. "For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called," etc. Weigh well the pronoun that is used here. It is not what He did foreknow, but whom He did. It is not the surrendering of their wills nor the believing of their hearts, but the persons themselves, which is here in view.

"God hath not cast away His people which He foreknew" (Rom. 11:2). Once more the plain reference is to persons, and to persons only.

The last mention is in I Peter 1:2: "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father." Who are "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father"? The previous verse tells us: the reference is to the "strangers scattered," i.e., the Diaspora, the Dispersion, the believing Jews. Thus, here too the reference is to persons, and not to their foreseen acts.

Now in view of these passages (and there are no more) what scriptural ground is there for anyone saying God "foreknew" the acts of certain ones, viz., their "repenting and believing," and that because of those acts He elected them unto salvation? The answer is, None whatever. Scripture never speaks of repentance and faith as being foreseen or foreknown by God. Truly, He did know from all eternity that certain ones would repent and believe, yet this is not what Scripture refers to as the object of God's "foreknowledge." The word uniformly refers to God's foreknowing persons; then let us "hold fast the form of sound words" (II Tim. 1:13)"  (A.W. Pink.  "The Foreknowledge of God').

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Comfort in Suffering

"Without a due sense of predestination, we shall want the surest and the most powerful inducement to patience, resignation and dependence on God under every spiritual and temporal affliction.

How sweet must the following considerations be to a distressed believer! (1) There most certainly exists an almighty, all-wise and infinitely gracious God. (2) He has given me in times past, and is giving me at present (if I had but eyes to see it), many and signal intimations of His love to me, both in a way of providence and grace. (3) This love of His is immutable; He never repents of it nor withdraws it. (4) Whatever comes to pass in time is the result of His will from everlasting, consequently (5) my afflictions were a part of His original plan, and are all ordered in number, weight and measure. (6) The very hairs of my head are (every one) counted by Him, nor can a single hair fall to the ground but in consequence of His determination. Hence (7) my distresses are not the result of chance, accident or a fortuitous combination of circumstances, but (8) the providential accomplishment of God's purpose, and (9) designed to answer some wise and gracious ends, nor (10) shall my affliction continue a moment longer than God sees meet. (11) He who brought me to it has promised to support me under it and to carry me through it. (12) All shall, most assuredly, work together for His glory and my good, therefore (13) "The cup which my heavenly Father hath given me to drink, shall I not drink it?" Yes, I will, in the strength He imparts, even rejoice in tribulation; and using the means of possible redress, which He hath or may hereafter put into my hands, I will commit myself and the event to Him, whose purpose cannot be overthrown, whose plan cannot be disconcerted, and who, whether I am resigned or not, will still go on to work all things after the counsel of His own will.

Above all, when the suffering Christian takes his election into the account, and knows that he was by an eternal and immutable act of God appointed to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ; that, of course, he hath a city prepared for him above, an building of God, a house not made with hands, but eternal in the heavens; and that the heaviest sufferings of the present life are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in the saints, what adversity can possibly befall us which the assured hope of blessings like these will not infinitely overbalance?

"A comfort so divine, May trial well endure."

However keenly afflictions might wound us on their first access, yet, under the impression of such animating views, we should quickly come to ourselves again, and the arrows of tribulation would, in great measure, become pointless. Christians want nothing but absolute resignation to render them perfectly happy in every possible circumstance, and absolute resignation can only flow from an absolute belief of, and an absolute acquiescence in, God's absolute providence, founded on absolute predestination. The apostle himself draws these conclusions to our hand in Romans 8, where, after having laid down, as most undoubted axioms, the eternity and immutability of God's purposes, he thus winds up the whole: "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us"  (Jerome Zanchius [1516-1590].  From chapter 5 of The Doctrine of Absolute Predestination.).

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The Five Claws of Grizzly Theology

by Grizzly Ben of Grizzly Bible Institute

Treasuring the absolute and sweet sovereignty of God.

God is the decisive factor in all arenas of reality: from personal destinies to hole-in-ones; from childhood leukemia to devastating terrorist attacks; from the world-wide activity of Satan to the movement of a solitary ant; from answered prayers to the conversion of the lost; from deliverance from pride & anxiety to perseverance in holiness. God ordains all things: who can reverse it? While the sovereignty of God is absolute, it is ultimately sweet to the believer who humbly embraces it. As a result, God, the Infinite Giver, receives all the glory, and His people, who treasure His sweetness, get all the grace.

Uniting in the good fight of persevering faith in future grace through the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

A full & permanent justifying faith, based solely on the righteousness of Jesus Christ, is a persevering, future-oriented, Christ-embracing, heart-satisfying faith. Therefore, this kind of faith must be life-transforming leading to eternal life or it is a dead faith leading to eternal damnation. The lifelong fight of faith is fought mainly by meditating on the Scriptures, by praying to the all-sufficient God in Jesus’ name, and by uniting with others, who treasure Christ above all else, to nurture a superior satisfaction in Jesus Christ over the deceitfulness of sin.

Longing for satisfying and never-ending pleasure in the self-sufficient and exuberantly happy God.

True Christianity involves the affections. Emotions such as joy, delight, happiness, satisfaction, pleasure, gladness, exhilaration, exuberance, jubilation & exultation IN GOD are essential for authentic worship & virtue in the Christian life. These emotions are not merely the icing-on-the-cake or the caboose at the end of the train. They are part & parcel to real Christianity. Even when these feelings are languishing, a genuine longing for them (either individually or corporately) is an act of worship. Moreover, the believer is assured from Scripture that the Triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), whom they serve, is Himself joyful beyond our comprehension and will share that joy with the redeemed in increasing measure throughout eternity.

Imitating the radical God-centeredness and earnestness of the old paths.

Humanly speaking, the path to Christian maturity invariably comes through the help of others. In regard to books, the most lavish benefit surely is drawn from the godly men & women of past centuries (i.e. Augustine, Luther, Calvin, the Puritans, Edwards, Spurgeon, etc.). Their writings are certainly significantly more God-immersed and blood-earnest than the superficial fluff of most modern authors. Hence, the desire to imitate the Godward life of these saints is a worthy ambition even in these, so called, “postmodern” times. 

Proclaiming and boldly contending for the once-for-all delivered Word of God.

The once-for-all revealed and written Word of God, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old & New Testaments, is the supreme & sufficient authority in dealing with the most important realities in the universe. There is absolutely no need for further revelations, accumulated traditions or alternative remedies to be given equal status with Scripture. The Bible is gloriously suited to reveal the reality & beauty of the Triune God, to save individuals from the wrath of God & the deception of sin, and to provide the clear path to everlasting joy in God. Thus, it is the duty & delight of Christians to boldly proclaim this Book to all peoples of the world in the power of the Holy Spirit.

____

Please pray for Ben and his vision for Grizzly Bible Institute. 
Shane.

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Some Articles Regarding Family Integrated Ministry (2)

The previous articles link didn't work properly for some, so here are the links regarding Family Integrated Ministry.

Also, I heartily agree with Elijah, the sermon linked to the previous post is worth listening to!

Shane.

 

"Hear, my son, your father's instruction And do not forsake your mother's teaching" - Pro 1:8 How are people best lead into maturity? By being placed into peer oriented groups (Youth Group, Singles Ministry, College Group, Empty Nesters...etc)? The biblical family is a Scripturally ordered household of parents, children, and sometimes others (such as singles, widows, divorcees, or grandparents), forming the God-ordained building blocks of the church (2 Tim. 4:19). Therefore we ought to reject the church's implementation of modern individualism by fragmenting the family through age-graded, peer-oriented, and special-interest classes, that prevents rather than promotes family unity.  If the elders desire to find the best way to build up the youth of the church then let them find ways to build up and strengthen the families.  Solo Christo's Reformation Statement

1. The Family: Together in God's Presence ~ John and Noel Piper
   

2. Developing a Multi-Generational Vision ~ Eric Wallace

3. Examining The Youth Ministry ~ Mark LaVoie

4. "The Family-like Nature of the Church" Back to the Drawing Board: The Church Is an Extended Household ~ Eric Wallace

5. "The How and Why of Age-Integrated Teaching" Implementing a Household Approach ~ Eric Wallace

6. Confession of the National Center for Family Integrated Churches

7. A Book Review of Chris Schlect's "A Critique of Modern Youth Ministry" ~ Mike McHugh

8. Adult - Centered Youth Ministry ~ David Alan Black 

9. Family Based Youth Ministry ~ Steve Haymond

10. The Age-Integrated Church ~ Brandon Dauphinais (age 16)

 

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Closing the Generational Gap

Please listen to this sermon by Voddie Baucham.  It exposes the reasons why our culture (and the church in America at large) hates children.  "Closing the Generation Gap", Eph 6.1-4 (MP3 Download, 8.6mb)

He touches the birthrate, the unspoken rule of two children per family, youth ministry, and elder qualifications. This is one of the best sermons that I've heard in awhile.

(HT: Amy Scott).

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2 Peter 3.9, The Achilles' Heal of Calvinism?

"The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." (2 Peter 3:9 ESV. The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001).

 Recently, James White explained the exegetical meaning of this passage:

 Immediately one sees that unlike such passages as Ephesians 1, Romans 8-9, or John 6, this passage is not speaking about salvation as its topic. The reference to "coming to repentance" in 3:9 is made in passing. The topic is the coming of Christ. In the last days mockers will question the validity of His promise. Peter is explaining the reason why the coming of Christ has been delayed as long as it has. The day of the Lord, he says, will come like a thief, and it will come at Gods own time. This fact needs to be emphasized. The context is clearly eschatological, not primarily soteriological.

 [...]

 But the next thing that stands out upon the reading of the passage is the identification of the audience to which Peter is speaking. When speaking of the mockers he refers to them in the third person, as 'them." But everywhere else he speaks directly to his audience as the "beloved" and "you." He speaks of how his audience should behave "in holy conduct and godliness," and says that they look for the day of the Lord. He includes himself in this group in verse 13, where "we are looking for a new heavens and a new earth." This is vitally important, for the assumption made by many is that when verse 9 says the Lord is "patient toward you" that this "you" refers to everyone, every person then living, or who has ever lived or ever will live. Likewise, then, when it says "not wishing for any to perish" but "all to come to repentance," it is assumed that the "any" and "all" either has no referent in the context at all, or, that these terms refer to anyone at all of the human race. Yet, the context indicates that the audience is quite specific. In any other passage of Scripture the interpreter would realize that we must decide who the "you" refers to and use this to limit the "any" and "all" of verse 9. But in this case there is a lot of tradition that comes flying through the door, deeply impacting the resultant interpretation.

 [...]

 The patience of the Lord is displayed toward His elect people (the "you" of verse 9). Therefore, the "not wishing any to perish" is logically and contextually limited to the same group already in view: the elect. In the same way, the "all to come to repentance" must be the very same group. In essence Peter is saying the coming of the Lord has been delayed so that all the elect of God can be gathered in. Any modern Christian lives and knows Christ solely because Gods purpose has been to gather in His elect down through the ages to this present day. There is no reason to expand the context of the passage into a universal proclamation of a desire on Gods part that every single person come to repentance. Instead, it is clearly His plan and His will that all the elect come to repentance, and they most assuredly will do so.

Read the entire article.

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