Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Mother Nature?
Twice today, within about two minutes, I heard two different people on TV
say something like, "well, it's up to 'mother nature.' They were talking about
the hot weather and its effects on farmers and their crops, and just people being
outside in general.
I'm old enough to remember the old Chiffon margarine commercial which had
a woman portraying the character 'mother nature.' When told she was eating
margarine when she thought she was eating butter, she would say, "it's not nice
to fool 'mother nature.' "
I know that she was just a fictional character on TV, but for some reason that
name 'mother nature' just rubbed me the wrong way. It's as if people are em-
barrassed to say the word "God," so they just refer to the LORD, who is in charge of
the weather (and everything else in the world) by another name.
Long ago, in many cultures, goddesses were worshipped by the people, and even
though I don't think anybody is worshipping 'mother nature' when they use that name
today, I still think we should give God the credit (and sometimes we might wrongly
say the blame) for what He does.
**********
The Bible tells us that it's God who sends the rain and sunshine.
(Jesus said), " He (God the Father) causes His sun
to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on
the righteous and the unrighteous."
John 5:45
Jesus calmed the storm with just a few words. Even the winds and waves
obeyed Him.
"He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the
waves, 'Quiet! Be still!' Then the wind died
down and it was completely calm."
Mark 4:39
God the Father has given Jesus the power over "all things."
"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the
exact representation of His being, sustaining
all things by His powerful word."
Hebrews 1:3a
God sent hail and thunder and lightning on Egypt to show His power to
Pharaoh and also the Israelites, whom He protected.
"... the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt:
hail fell and lightning flashed back and forth.
The only place it did not hail was the land of
Goshen, where the Israelites were."
Exodus 9:23-24, 26
God put the land of Egypt in darkness, while the Israelites had light.
"Then the LORD said to Moses,' Stretch out your
hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread
over Egypt -- darkness that can be felt. ... total
darkness covered Egypt for three days.... Yet
all the Israelites had light in the places where they
lived."
Exodus 10:21, 23
**********
God is sovereign, in total control of everything -- even tornadoes, hurricanes,
and earthquakes, which sometime can cause the loss of many lives.
We don't always know why these things happen, but God has a purpose for
each one. If he isn't in control of these disasters then He is not sovereign, and
if He is not sovereign over these things of nature, then He is not truly sovereign.
What else might not be under His control? The actions of believers and unbelievers?
Our salvation and preservation?
**********
Yes, God is in control of everything, including the weather.
All of us have at one time or another, complained about it too. It may be too hot or
too cold, but when we do fuss about it what are we really doing, even if we don't
realize it?
Author and theologian, A.W. Pink said this about God and His sovereignty over
the weather:
"Truly, then, God governs inanimate matter. Earth and air,
fire and water, hail and snow, stormy winds and angry seas,
all perform the word of His power and fulfill His sovereign
pleasure. Therefore, when we complain about the weather,
we are, in reality, murmuring against God."
Most of us probably never thought of it that way. Even though I know it's not
the worst thing in the world, maybe we shouldn't complain about the weather,
because God has a purpose for it being as hot or cold as it is, even if we don't know
what that purpose is.
**********
So, the next time we're tempted to blame or credit "mother nature" for the weather,
perhaps we should remember who is really in charge.
"He who forms the mountains,
creates the wind, and reveals
His thoughts to man, He who
turns dawn to darkness, and
treads the high places of the
earth -- the LORD God Al-
mighty is His name."
Amos 4:13
Monday, July 23, 2012
Putting Sin to Death
As I share more truths from the book The Pursuit of Holiness, by Jerry Bridges.
I don't mean to imply that these words are for you, and not for me.
This book has convicted me and made me realize how far I am from being the
holy man God wants me to be. With the Holy Spirit's help, hopefully I'm making
progress in this never ending pursuit of holiness.
*********
Chapter Nine -- Putting Sin to Death
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your
earthly nature; sexual immorality, impurity, lust,
evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry."
Colossians 3:5
The New Testament leaves no doubt that holiness is our responsibililty. If we are
to pursue holiness, we must take some decisive action. The action we are to take is to
put to death the misdeeds of the body (Romans 8:13).
What does the expression put to death mean? The King James Version uses the term
mortify. According to the dictionary, mortify means "to destroy the strength, vitality, or
functioning of; to subdue or deaden." To put to death the misdeeds of the body, then, is
to destroy the strength and vitality of sin as it tries to reign in our bodies.
It must be clear to us that mortification, though it is something we do, cannot be car-
ried out in our own strength. Well did the Puritan John Owen say, "Mortification from
a self-strength, carried on by ways of self-invention, unto the end of a self-righteousness
is the soul and substance of all false religion." Mortification must be done by the strength
and under the direction of the Holy Spirit.
Owen says further, "The Spirit alone is sufficient for this work. All ways and means
without Him are useless. He is the great efficient. He is the One who gives life and strength
to our efforts."
But though mortification must be done by the strength and under the direction of the
Holy Spirit, it is nevertheless a work which we must do. Without the Holy Spirit's strength
there will be no mortification, but without our working in His strength there will also be
no mortification.
We must be convinced that "without holiness no one will see the Lord" (Hebrews 12:14).
Not only must we develop conviction for living a holy life in general, but we must also de-
velop convictions in specific areas of obedience.
These convictions are developed through exposure to the Word of God.
We are bombarded on every side by temptations to indulge our sinful natures. That is why
Paul said, "Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God re-
make you so that your whole attitude of mind is changed" (Romans 12:2).
Only through God's Word are our minds remolded and our values renewed.
Jesus said,
"Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one
who loves me" (John 14:21).
Obedience is the pathway to holiness, but it is only as we have His commands that we
can obey them. God's Word must be so strongly fixed in our minds that it becomes the
dominant influence in our thoughts, our attitudes, and our actions. One of the most ef-
fective ways of influencing our minds is through memorizing Scripture.
David said,
"I have hidden your word in my heart that I
might not sin against you" (Psalm 119:11).
To memorize Scripture effectively, you must have a plan. The plan should include a
selection of well-chosen verses, a practical system for learning those verses, a systematic
means of reviewing them to keep them fresh in your memory, and simple rules for con-
tinuing Scripture memory on your own.
Of course, the goal of memorization is application of the Scripture to one's daily life.
It is through the application of Scripture to specific life situations that we develop the
kind of conviction to see us through the temptations that trip us up so easily.
**********
Years ago a friend gave me (Jerry Bridges) what he called his "Formula: How to Know
Right from Wrong." The formula asks four questions based on three verses in 1 Corinthians.
* "Everything is permissible for me' -- but not everything is beneficial"
(1 Corinthians 6:12).
Question 1: Is it helpful -- physically, spiritually, and mentally?
* "Everything is permissible for me' -- but I will not be mastered by anything"
(1 Corinthians 6:12).
Question 2: Does it bring me under its power?
* "Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat
meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall"
(1 Corinthians 8:13).
Question 3: Does it hurt others?
* "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God"
(1 Corinthians 10:31).
Question 4: Does it glorify God?
**********
We must develop the quality of commitment if we are to put to death the misdeeds of
the body.
Jesus said,
"Any of you who does not give up everything he has
cannot be my disciple."
Luke 14:33
We must honestly face the question, "Am I willing to give up a certain practice or
habit that is keeping me from holiness?" It is at this point of commitment that most of us
fail. We prefer to dally with sin, to try to play with it a little without getting too deeply
involved.
We have the "just one more time" syndrome. We will indulge ourselves just one more
time, and then we'll quit. In all of this we are postponing the day of commitment, the day
when we say to sin, "Enough!"
The apostle John said, "My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin"
(1 John 2:1). He was in effect saying, "Make it your aim not to sin."
Jonathan Edwards, one of the great preachers of early American history, used to make
resolutions. One of these was,
"Resolved, to never to do anything which I
would be afraid to do if it were the last hour
of my life."
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Psalm 111
Psalm 111 describes a powerful God who is:
Sovereign
Glorious
Majestic
Righteous
Gracious
Compassionate
Faithful
Just
Trustworthy
Steadfast
Upright
Holy
Awesome
God cares for and redeems His people!
Those who fear Him are given wisdom and understanding.
He is worthy of our praise!
**********
Psalm 111
"Praise the LORD. I will extol the LORD with all my heart in the council of the
upright and in the assembly.
"Great are the works of the LORD; they are pondered by all who delight in them.
Glorious and majestic are His deeds, and His righteousness endures forever.
"He has caused His wonders to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and com-
passionate.
"He provides food for those who fear Him; He remembers His covenant forever.
"He has shown His people the power of His works, giving them the lands of other
nations.
"The works of His hands are faithful and just; all His precepts are trustworthy.
They are steadfast for ever and ever, done in faithfulness and uprightness.
"He provided redemption for His people; He ordained His covenant forever -
holy and awesome is His name.
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts
have good understanding. To Him belongs eternal praise."
AMEN
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Repentance and Faith
Salvation is a gift from God that no one can ever earn, but we are
commanded to DO something in order to be saved.
We must repent and believe (or trust) in Jesus Christ for salvation.
Early in His ministry, Jesus told the people to repent and believe the
gospel, and they would enter the kingdom of God.
"After John was put in prison, Jesus went
into Galilee, proclaiming the good news
of God. 'The time has come,' he said.
'The kingdom of God is near. Repent and
believe the good news!' "
Mark 1:14-15
Repentance and faith are necessary, but where do they come from?
Are they decisions we make on our own to turn away from sin and trust
in Christ?
No, just as salvation is a gift from God, so are repentance and faith
gifts (Eph 2:8-9). Because we are spiritually dead in our sins, we must be
made spiritually alive by the power of the Holy Spirit.
"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions
and sins, in which you used to live when you followed
the ways of the world ..."
Ephesians 2:1-2a
"But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in
mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were
dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved."
Ephesians 2:4-5
Salvation comes from God, as He raises us to new life in Christ Jesus.
**********
John MacArthur wrote,
"Because He is gracious, God takes the initiative,
(1) drawing the sinner ('No one can come to me
unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I
will raise him up at the last day' John 6:44;
'That is why I told you that no one can come to me
unless the Father has enabled him' John 6:65);
(2) granting repentance, ('... God's kindness leads
you toward repentance' Romans 2:4b; 'God ex-
alted Him to His own right hand as Prince and
Savior that He might give repentance and for-
giveness of sins to Israel' Acts 5:31; 'God has
granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life'
Acts 11:18b); and
(3) awakening the heart to faith ('To those
who through the righteousness of our God and
Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as
precious as ours ...' 2 Peter 1:1b; 'For it has
been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only
to believe on Him ... ' Philippians 1:29a; 'The
Lord opened her (Lydia) heart to respond to
Paul's message' Acts 16:14b)."
MacArthur continues:
"Every aspect of the believer's response ...
conviction, repentance and faith ... is the re-
sult of God's gracious work in the heart ...
Scripture teaches that sanctification is launched
by God's regenerating work, when He graciously
gives the sinner a new heart and a new spirit of
obedience ('I will give you a new heart and put
a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your
heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And
I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow
my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. ...
you will be my people, and I will be your God'
Ezekiel 36:26-27,28b; 'Therefore, if anyone is in
Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the
new has come!' 2 Corinthians 5:17)."
**********
"When we declare that God gives us faith as a gift, we do not mean that He
passes on a substance called faith to us; it means that He opens our blind eyes,
unplugs our deaf ears, and grants us a new heart and spirit so we will believe."
John Samson
Reformation Theology
May 30, 2011
Repent (turn away from your sin) and trust in Jesus Christ, and you
will be saved.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Tyndale on Salvation
William Tyndale (1492-1536) was a Christian scholar and leader of the
Protestant Reformation in England. He is best known for his translation of
the Bible into English.
He was also fluent in French, Greek, Hebrew, German, Italian, Latin, and
Spanish.
Tyndale was charged with heresy for daring to make the Bible available to
the general public. He was condemned to death and executed, and his body
burned in 1536.
William Tyndale understood that salvation was a free gift from God, given
to those who, even though spiritually dead, were granted life from the Holy Spirit,
not because of anything good in them, but because of God's grace, according to His
purpose and will.
Below are Tyndale's brief observations about salvation.
I have added scripture passages which appear in parentheses.
**********
"Now faith cometh not of our free will (John 1:12-13); but it is the gift of God,
given us by grace (Ephesians 2:8-9), ere there be any will in our hearts to do the law
of God (Romans 3:10-11).
"And why God giveth it not every man, I can give no reckoning of His judgments
(Romans 9:14-24). But well I know, I never deserved it, nor prepared myself unto it;
but ran another way clean contrary in my blindness, and sought not that way (Acts 9:
1-9); but He sought me, and found me out, and showed it to me (Luke 15:3-7), and
therewith drew me to Him (John 6:44).
"And I bow the knees of my heart unto God night and day, that He will show it all
other men; and I suffer all that I can, to be a servant to open their eyes (Ephesians 1:18).
For well I know they cannot see of themselves, before God hath prevented them with
His grace (Ezekiel 11:19-20)."
William Tyndale
**********
"Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right
to become children of God -- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision,
or a husband's will, but born of God."
John 1:12-13
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God -- not by works, so that no one can boast."
Ephesians 2:8-9
"As it is written: 'There is no one righteous, not eve one; there is no one who under-
stands, no one who seeks God."
Romans 3:10-11
"What the shall we say? Is God unjust? Not al all! For He says to Moses,'I will
have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have com-
passion.'
"It does not therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy. For
the Scripture says to Pharaoh: 'I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might dis-
play my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.' There-
fore God has mercy on whom He wants to have mercy and He hardens whom He
wants to harden.
"One of you will say to me: 'Then why does God still blame us? For who resists
His will?' But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to
Him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?' Does not the potter have the
right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some
for common use?
"What if God, choosing to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with
great patience the objects of His wrath -- prepared for destruction? What if He did
this to make the riches of His glory known to the objects of His mercy, whom He pre-
pared in advance for glory -- even us, whom He also called, not only from the Jews
but also from the Gentiles?"
Romans 9:14-24
"Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's
disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues
in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men
or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus
on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.
"He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you
persecute me?' 'Who are you Lord?' Saul asked. 'I am Jesus, whom you are perse-
cuting,' He replied. 'Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you
must do.'
The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did
not see anyone. Saul got up form the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could
see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was
blind, and did not eat or drink anything."
Acts 9:1-9
"Then Jesus told them this parable:
'Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave
the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And
when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls
his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost
sheep. I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over
one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to
repent.' "
Luke 15:3-7
"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will
raise him up at the last day."
John 6:44
"I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may
know the hope to which He has called you , the riches of His glorious inheritance in
the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe."
Ephesians 1:18-19a
"I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove
from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow
my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be
their God."
Ezekiel 11:19-20
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Obedience - Not Victory
Here are more highlights from the book, The Pursuit of Holiness, by Jerry Bridges.
Chapter eight: Obedience - Not Victory
*********
"For if you live according to the sinful nature, you
will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the
misdeeds of the body, you will live."
Romans 8:13
God has made provision for our holiness and He has also given us a responsibility
for it. God's provision for us consists in delivering us from the reign of sin, uniting us
with Christ, and giving us the indwelling Holy Spirit to reveal sin, to create a desire for
holiness, and to strengthen us in our pursuit of holiness. Through the power of the
Holy Spirit and according to the new nature He gives, we are to put to death the mis-
dees of the body (Romans 8:13).
It is clear from this passage that God puts responsibility for living a holy life square-
ly on us. We are to do something. We are commanded to assume our responsibility for
a holy walk.
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your
earthly nature."
Colossians 3:5
This is something we are told to do.
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great
cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that
hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let
us run with perseverance the race marked out for
us."
Hebrews 12:1
"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil,
and he will flee from you."
James 4:7
"Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless
and at peace with Him."
2 Peter 3:14
The clause make every effort addresses itself to our wills. It is something we
must decide to do.
**********
We are responsible for living a holy life, but at the same time the Holy Spirit is
given to us to help us to do so.
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says,
"The Holy Spirit is in us; He is working in us, and
empowering us, giving us the ability ... This is the
New Testament teaching - 'Work out your own
salvation with fear and trembling.' We have to do
so.
"But note the accompaniment - 'Because it is God that
worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good
pleasure!' The Holy Spirit is working in us 'both to
will and to do.'
"It is because I am not left to myself, it is because I am
not 'absolutely hopeless,' since the Spirit is in me, that
I am exhorted to work out my own salvation with fear
and trembling."
We must rely on the Spirit in our putting to death the deeds of the body,
but if we sin, it is because we choose to sin, not because we lack the ability
to say no to temptation.
It is time for us Christians to face up to our responsibility for holiness.
Too often we say we are "defeated" by this or that sin. No, we are not defeated;
we are simply disobedient!
It might be good if we stopped using the terms "victory" and "defeat" to
describe our progress in holiness. Rather we should use the terms "obedience"
and "disobedience."
When I say I am defeated by some sin, I am unconsciously slipping out from
under my responsibility. I am saying something outside of me has defeated me.
But when I say I am disobedient, that places the responsibility for my sin squarely
on me.
**********
We need to brace ourselves up and to realize that we are responsible for our
thoughts, attitudes, and actions. We need to reckon on the fact that we died to
sin's reign, that it no longer has any dominion over us, that God has united us
with the risen Christ in all His power, and has given us the Holy Spirit to work in
us.
Only as we accept our responsiblilty and appropriate God's provisions will we
make any progress in our pursuit of holiness.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Praying for Loved Ones to be Saved
Yesterday, we established through scripture, that from the beginning, God elected
His people to salvation (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14), and appointed them to eternal life
(Acts 13:48), according to His pleasure and will, to the praise of His glorious grace
(Ephesians 1:5b-6a).
In spite of God's election, Paul prayed that fellow Jews would be saved (Romans 10:1).
He set an example for us to pray for our loved ones' salvation.
However, some may ask "what's the point of praying for someone's salvation if God
"unilaterally" regenerates someone and unconditionally chooses whom He will save?"
(In other words, if God is sovereign, why bother?).
*****
Michael Horton of White Horse Inn blog answers:
"Our confessions teach that God works through means. Though the Father has chosen
unconditionally some from our condemned race for everlasting life in His Son, the elect
were not redeemed until He sent His Son "in the fullness of time," and they are not justified
until the Spirit gives them faith in Christ through the gospel.
"I like to reverse the question above.
'Why would anyone pray for the conversion of their
loved one if God were not sovereign in dispensing
His grace?'
"If God is not sovereign then He could reply,
'Look, I've done my part, now the ball is in your court."
(Some say that it's not fair that God 'forces someone to repent and believe' against his
will).
Horton continues his answer:
"God does not 'force anyone to repent and believe.' In effectually calling us, the Spirit
does not coerce or force our will, but frees it from its bondage to sin and death. Faith is
entirely the gift of God and entirely the free response of a human being who has been made
alive by the Spirit through the gospel.
"Since God does use means (including our prayers) to accomplish His purposes, it is a
good thing indeed that Christians are asking God to bring their loved ones to saving faith
in Christ.
"And it's a good thing that God can in fact answer that prayer, isn't it?"
*****
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