Sharing Life and Christ

A Trip Down Memory Lane

2012-01-30T16:11:00.001-08:00

Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Jeremiah 31:31-33

Try and imagine with me what it would be like to be a devout Jew reading this passage of Scripture. Can you sense the eager longing in your heart? Can you begin to comprehend the burden of sin that weighs you down daily as you fail to follow the Law? Can you begin to grasp the joy of this promise?

God knew as well as His people did that this first covenant wasn’t working. It was never His intention for it to work, but rather to point ahead to a better covenant in which keeping the Law would be a joy rather than an obligation or means of gaining favor.

Now keep that eager longing in mind as we imagine being present to hear these words from Jesus on the night He was betrayed:

And He took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” (emphasis mine)

Luke 22:19-20

Imagine being present to hear Jesus Christ say that He is the fulfillment of the words of Jeremiah! Imagine your heart leaping for joy at these words, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Could there be any news greater than this?

Now consider with me the moment that God shone His light in your heart to give you knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 4:6). In other words, consider with me the day that God made Jesus more than just a theoretical, abstract savior of some religious order. Consider that moment in history that God revealed Jesus to be your personal Savior who died for your sins so that you might live in right relationship with God and enjoy Him for eternity. Consider when the Gospel first became Good News to you.

Were you filled with zeal for God? Desire for good works? Desire to spend time in relationship with Christ? Compelled to share your faith? Wanting to know more about His Word? Longing for Him to make all things new?

These are easy-to-understand emotions from one who has just realized that Jesus has saved him/her from the wrath of God and saved him/her to the Kingdom of God in eternal joy of the living God!

What about now? Is your zeal for God still what it used to be? Are you as deliriously excited as ever at the thought of seeing Jesus face to face? Do you really want to know God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent? Is Jesus Christ your treasure worth giving up everything for?

If you are reading, I hope you won’t shy away from these questions I am about to propose. Take some time and prayerfully consider them and then respond to what you sense God is leading you to do.

Was there ever that sense of that “kid on Christmas morning” excitement when you found out that Jesus had died for your sins and had become your personal Savior and means of right relationship with God? If not, why not? Ask yourself why Jesus isn’t your greatest joy and treasure and excitement, because He ought to be! Is He even a reality in your life? When Jesus is present, we can’t help but become more and more consumed by Him because He is beautiful and glorious beyond compare.

Is Jesus just an abstract concept? Is He simply a Sunday School story not too dissimilar from all the rest? Is the concept of salvation and the forgiveness of sins merely a nice notion?

Or does your heart well up with emotion at the thought of the spotless Lamb of God nailed to a Cross dying for your sins?

Which is it?

One lackluster response after another after beholding the glory of Son of God, Jesus Christ, is not going to cut it when we stand before the Holy Judge.

If our hearts are not longing for God, then we don’t know God no matter what we say we know.

But God is gracious and merciful; slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love!

Cry out for His mercy that you might behold the face of Jesus Christ and live.

Encouraging Sanctification

2012-01-18T12:15:00.000-08:00

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:6-8

One of the hardest parts for me about the sanctification process is what I learn about myself. As I behold the glory of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18) and am transformed from one degree of glory to the next, I don’t gain a better opinion of myself. In fact, it is the exact opposite. I find myself resenting the fact that I’m not a good person. I’m certain that I’m not alone.

We have some options. We can resign to being a less-than-stellar person and give up trying to make any progress towards Christ. We can try and fix ourselves and be like those Galatians whom Paul says are trying to finish in the flesh what has been started in the Spirit (Galatians 3:3). Or, the option I recommend, we can press into Christ.

While the third option seems absurd to me because I don’t believe Jesus would actually love the unlovable me or that I am simply making excuses as to why I can’t fix myself, it is the only option that will lead to our cooperation with God’s will: our sanctification. We must draw near to God in full assurance of faith and go against our instinct trusting that God has promised to give us mercy and grace to help us. No matter how needy we are, God has a fresh supply of mercy and grace for us!

I simply want to make two points, which I need to hear as badly as anyone. If you can relate to this struggle, I hope that you are encouraged to know that Jesus has provided reconciliation, making us right with God, and redemption, buying us back and saving our lives from God’s judgment.

Now, turning to Romans 5:6-8, we can see something very significant. Notice when God sent Jesus to die for the ungodly (we’re all included!). Jesus came to earth while we were still sinners. He didn’t come when we had cleaned up our act. He didn’t saunter in to provide the little extra boost that we needed to get over the hump. He died when we were helplessly enslaved to sin waiting for God to execute His judgment on us. Jesus did not hold the lofty opinion of us that we hold of ourselves! He knew that the people He came to save were sinners, ungodly, enemies of God, rebels who actively oppose God’s authority. And He did it without anger or bitterness or frustration. He did it with love!

The Cross reminds us that Jesus loves us more than we can understand. And it reminds us that Jesus loved us while we were still sinners, separated from God, more than we can understand! That love is not dependent upon our goodness now as Christians anymore than it was then when we were enemies of God. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever and His love for us is the same as well.

We can trust in that. In fact, we should cling to it to ensure that we don’t fall away from the help God offers us! If we forget the love that Jesus shows us at the Cross, we can forget that He finds us precious even though we fall short of the holiness He calls us to. So, don’t forget! His love for us is perfect and not dependent on our “loveableness.” Thank God, right? Otherwise, I think we’d all be in some trouble.

Second. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. In Romans, we are reminded that we should never think of ourselves more highly than we ought to. God is actively working to make sure that we don’t! His Spirit convicts us of sin. His Word shows us the standard that we fail to meet. Relationships with others reveal the sin in our hearts. And these are good things! If we walked around each day feeling pretty good about ourselves, we wouldn’t sense such a great need for Jesus. But God sees things as they truly are. He knows our hearts. And He knows how much we continue to need Jesus Christ on a daily basis so He refuses to let us keep thinking well of ourselves.

Hebrews tells us that it is for discipline that we have to endure because God is treating us as His children! (chapter 12:7) No loving parent lets his/her child continue to be disillusioned about life. In a similar way, our Father refuses to let us forget our great need for Him!

It is a good thing that God seeks to humble us since He actively opposes the proud. It is a good thing that the Cross is a constant reminder of how desperately we need grace. At times, it is good to see ourselves as a failure, just as long as we don’t remain there.

We need to trust that as we grow in Christlikeness, we will grow in distaste for the sin that is still present in our lives. Our opinion of ourselves will become more accurate, which means that we will think less of ourselves. But, more importantly, it should also grow our adoration and reverence and love of Jesus because of what He has done and is doing for us.

When we are tempted to be discouraged by the long road yet to travel on this Christian voyage, we only need to consider Jesus to remember that we are loved by the God who upholds the universe by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3). And that makes all the difference.

Why Christmas is So Important

2011-12-21T18:10:00.000-08:00

In our country, you don’t have to be a Christian to be excited about Christmas. Perhaps you just like presents or cherish the time together with family. Maybe it’s getting to decorate your house with lights or watch A Charlie Brown Christmas. Maybe it’s quoting A Christmas Story with your family or watching NFL football around the big screen.

However, while you don’t have to know the salvation made possible through Jesus Christ to enjoy Christmas, you must be born again into the family of God to understand why Christmas is so important. It is not ultimately about us at all. All of the gift giving, cookie eating, tree decorating, and football watching are but shadows of the joy that God wants us to have on Christmas. In fact, apart from the grace of the One who “upholds the universe by the word of His power,” none of us would be able to enjoy Christmas at all!

2011 years ago history records the birth of a Jewish boy in the small town of Bethlehem. But unlike every other birth ever recorded, the unique events surrounding this child’s birth make this child unique. Consider this example found in the Gospel of Luke:

And in the same region (Judea near Bethlehem) there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!”

Luke 2:8-14

I’m willing to bet that your birth didn’t include a multitude of angels saying, “Glory to God in the highest!” I know mine didn’t!

How fascinating it is that the Savior of the world, Christ the Lord, would take on flesh in the very same way that we ourselves did. He spent 9 months in his mother’s womb. He was birthed. He pooped and cried and was utterly dependent on his parents for clothing and shelter and food. He didn’t come into human history immediately preaching repentance. He came as a baby. Imagine it! The King of the universe who was in the beginning with God becoming not just a man, but also a helpless baby!

It would be an absurd thing to believe if it wasn’t so clearly testified to be true. But we can believe it. The shepherds’ story is recorded in Luke. The wise men’s testimony is in Matthew. Simeon was made a promise by God that he would lay eyes on the Savior before his death. Angels from heaven proclaimed the glory of this little baby. And God Himself lay in a manger. And He grew up. And He performed many miracles, cast out demons, raised the dead. And He was crucified for His crazy claims of deity and because of the influence He was having on people.

And He rose from the dead.

Christmas is important because it marks the fullness of time when God determined to make known His salvation to the world. In a clear presentation of what Paul calls the foolishness of God being wiser than men, God sent His only Son in the likeness of sinful flesh. But He didn’t come riding on the clouds in an “end zone touchdown dance” kind of way. He came as a helpless baby just like all of us. What a foolish way for God to reveal Himself to the world! Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!

Christmas is important because our own actions and words condemn us as sinners because we have denied God’s authority and truth and exchanged His Word for our own foolishness. We have rebelled against our Creator. And without reconciliation, we will all die in our sins condemned under the just and mighty hand of God. But Christmas marks the beginning of the solution to our greatest problem: sin. Christmas signifies the birth of our Savior, Jesus.

Christmas is important because, while Jesus was in the beginning as God, He had to come to earth and become a man in order that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. If Jesus had never come to earth, He would not be able to stand in our place of judgment and take our sins upon Himself. He had to be made like us. He had to take on flesh. And glory to God, He did!

Christmas is important because without the appearing of Jesus Christ, the True Light, we would all still be walking in darkness. We would still have no hope. We would be condemned as sinners awaiting judgment. But Jesus came and so we have hope. Thanks be to God that the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.

Christmas is important because it is God’s message against what the world defines as excellent. The world celebrates wealth, possessions, success, gold medals, and prestige. It mocks gentleness, compassion, and humility as weaknesses. Perhaps from a distance we might celebrate the humility of Mother Theresa or Gandhi, but only from a distance. We don’t cherish that type of life enough to live it ourselves. But Jesus, look at Him! His humility is a product of who He is.

And there is no greater display of humility than the birth, life, and death of Jesus Christ because no one else has been found in the form of God and not counted equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, and being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

True greatness came into the world at Christmas: humility, compassion, patience, grace, mercy, and love. True greatness came into the world because the God whose character produces true greatness came into the world. And He didn’t just come into the world to give us examples of great character and perform acts of service. He came into the world to save His people from their sins.

If you are still reading, please do not miss this next part! It is eternally important!

Jesus Christ, born of a virgin, is how God chose to reveal Himself and His plan of salvation to the world. Reflect on this a moment. God wanted to reveal Himself to His creation. He has done so in many ways, but the most important way is through Jesus Christ. This was God’s choice. It is not a fabrication made up to be leveraged for power by religious fanatics. God revealed Himself to us by sending Jesus to earth to live among us as a man.

The law that is written on our hearts proves to us that we cannot measure up to God’s standard. We can’t make God happy by performing well or doing good to others. Jesus’s birth gives us great hope because God has declared that we do not have to! Jesus has measured up and will always measure up to God’s standard of goodness. And He took on flesh and dwelt among us so that He might die in our place for the forgiveness of our sins! This is God’s Word. This is His message to the world. This is His wisdom and His righteousness and His love.

Jesus is not simply one path to God. Jesus is THE way, THE truth, and THE life that God saw fit to use to proclaim and execute His plan of salvation. Jesus is the light of the world. If you reject THE light, you make God out to be a liar. But God is not a liar. God is truth and always speaks truth. If you reject the light of the world, you stand condemned already, not by God or by Christians, but by the very works that you do. Your works condemn you because they prove that you love the darkness rather than the light who is Jesus.

You must turn from the darkness and come to the light. Then you will know the living God and eternal life! Then you will be born again to a living hope. Then you will enjoy Christmas the way that it was meant to be enjoyed by celebrating the birth of a Savior, Christ the Lord.

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

Isaiah 9:2, 6-7

Grace That Preserves

2011-12-17T12:35:00.000-08:00

Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.

Psalm 16:1

During this Advent season, there are many things for which to be grateful. There are the blessings of family, friends, and opportunities to give gifts. We have the privilege of remembering the birth of Jesus Christ and celebrating the light that has come into the world. Could an infant in a manger really save His people from their sins? Could this little baby boy really bring salvation to the world?

We can now look back on Jesus’ birth with warm affection because that little baby answered those questions with an emphatic “Yes!” The day had arrived. The King had come! What a gift our God gave to the world on that day when Mary wrapped that babe in swaddling cloths.

Recently, God has reminded me that not only did Jesus come into the world to provide salvation, but He came to gather a people to Himself and keep them until He returns. Without the ongoing sustaining power of Jesus Christ, we would be at risk of shrinking back from this great salvation.

I can remember for years and years feeling as if I couldn’t possibly be a Christian because I hadn’t been good enough. Even though I believed that Jesus Christ died for my sins, I didn’t live as if that reality defined my life. Instead, I lived with tremendous shame knowing that God would eventually punish me for the way that I was living. I fully expected to spend eternity in Hell because I hadn’t lived up to God’s standard, even though Jesus lived that standard perfectly for my sake.

I hope this sounds silly to you. I hope this wasn’t a similar experience for you. It was a type of darkness that I wouldn’t wish upon anyone. And at the same time, I am so thankful that I went through over half of my life thinking that way. Because I was so good at condemning myself, once I realized that Jesus Christ died so that I would not be condemned, it was as if the flood lights had been turned on and pointed right at my heart. For the first time, I was seeing grace as grace and not just as a promise to remove punishment if I was good enough to please God after He gave His Son.

God wasn’t mad at me. All of His anger and wrath was turned towards Christ. All of the depression that I experienced was not because of God’s anger. It was because I failed to realize and understand that God was pleased with me because of Christ. Nothing I could ever do would change that. Amazing grace. And it began to reign in my life. Grace changes everything.

And grace preserves always.

What I want to do is give you the basis for my stance on the doctrine of the preservation of the saints as Calvin puts it. Simply stated, it means that God will keep those who are in Christ and ensure that they enter Heaven in glory. He will never allow them to “fall away” from salvation. After giving you an understanding of why I believe this is the teaching of Scripture, I will briefly highlight some verses that support it. My hope is that (if you’re still even reading this) you are reminded of God’s amazing grace and take a moment to worship Him who bore our sins in His body on the tree.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…

1 Peter 1:3

In John 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus that in order to have eternal life, one must be born again. Nicodemus marvels at this, but Jesus does not waiver and repeats Himself. Spiritual life requires spiritual birth, which is only possible by the Spirit of God. Once a birth happens, you cannot be “unbirthed”! Nicodemus knew this. He asked Jesus how a man when he was old could return to his mother’s womb to be born again. Of course, Jesus wasn’t talking about a second natural birth. The birth He was speaking of was not of flesh but of spirit.

In the same way that one cannot reenter the womb, one cannot be unborn after being born of the Spirit of God. True spiritual birth can never be undone. We become new creations. Our hope is a living hope ensured through Jesus’ resurrection.

How sweet it is to know that if I am truly born again that I will never perish but have eternal life! This is God’s promise. Let’s see it in Scripture.

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy…

Jude 24

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Colossians 1:13-14

Notice the past tense “delivered” and “transferred.” This has already happened for those in Christ.

And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:6

I could keep going and reference John 6 when Jesus says that all that the Father has given Him will never be cast out. Or John 10 when Jesus again says that no one can snatch His sheep out of the Father’s hand. And we didn’t even get to Paul’s great discourse in Romans 8 where he says that no one and nothing can ever separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

To wrap up, I don’t want to pretend as if I am overlooking verses that speak of falling away from salvation (ie. Hebrews 6) or tell us of our responsibility in preserving our souls (ie. Colossians 1:23). In his first epistle, John tells us that those who fall away prove that they were never truly born again (1 John 2:19).

In a similar way, as we practice righteousness, we prove that we are truly born again. However, our works have no more ability to preserve our salvation than our good works are able to save us from our sins in the first place! We are saved to good works that prove the regeneration and new birth we have in Jesus Christ. And this is Good News!

Now, if you don’t find yourself desiring to do good and grow in fellowship with Jesus, you have reason to question your faith. Best case scenario, your love has grown dull because this world full of weeds is choking it out. Worst case scenario, you are walking around confident of a hope that comes from a Savior that you don’t actually know.

Delight in good works so that you may never fall. Stand in awe of God’s grace that preserves your soul! Take refuge in Him for He is faithful and will surely finish the good work that He has begun in causing you to be born again to a living hope.

Melchizedek the Priest-King

2011-12-12T12:25:00.001-08:00

He is first by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.

Hebrews 7:2b-3

I have been camped out in Hebrews 7 for a little while now trying to wrap my mind around this Melchizedek character. Who is this guy? Why does the writer of Hebrews spend so much time talking about Melchizedek when there are only four verses in the entire Bible dedicated to him (Genesis 14:18-20; Psalm 110:4)? And why does it matter at all to me who this guy was? Or should I be saying, “who this guy is,” since he has no beginning of days nor end of life?

Who is Melchizedek?

We see in Genesis 14 that Melchizedek is a king who met Abraham returning from battle after his nephew, Lot, had been seized. He blesses Abraham, and Abraham gives him a tenth of the war spoils. Then he disappears. There is no other recorded history of Melchizedek. The only other time he is mentioned is in Psalm 110:4, which says, “The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind, ‘You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.’”

The psalmist, David, doesn’t make his opinion of Melchizedek known, but he does pick up on the fact that there is no record of genealogy for this priest-king. And he uses the absence of parents or descendants to his advantage in his psalm pointing to a priest who will reign forever over God’s people. Since we now look back on the Cross, we can confidently affirm that this priest is Jesus Christ, God’s Son.

Because of this, there is debate about who Melchizedek is. Is he Jesus appearing in the Old Testament? While this is a secondary issue that we shouldn’t get wrapped up in (and not one the writer of Hebrews was aiming to expound on), it remains useful to consider.

I think that the biggest reason Melchizedek is grounds for debate is because Scripture appears to say that he lives forever. We know that only God lives forever. So if Melchizedek in fact lives forever, he must be God. And if he is God, then he must be Jesus, because Jesus became flesh and blood and walked among us on earth.

Before I share my thoughts on whom Melchizedek really was, something must be said. Jesus Christ is the Priest-King that has come into the world to save us from our sin by the shedding of His own blood. He was in the beginning with God because He is God. And He is alive today, seated at the right hand of Majesty on high and will come again for His bride, the Church, and to judge those who have failed to put their faith in Him and acknowledge Him as Lord. To miss the glory of Jesus Christ when talking about Melchizedek is to miss the entire reason that the writer of Hebrews mentions him at all.

With that said, I believe there is convincing evidence that Melchizedek is not Jesus Christ appearing in the Old Testament. Melchizedek is simply a man who God appointed a priest-king during the days of Abraham. Just because he does not have a lineage in Scripture does not mean that he does not have one. What is omitted does not give us license to make him God without the concrete statement, “Melchizedek is Jesus,” which is also absent from God’s Word. It is enough to say that Melchizedek is a man in Scripture that points us to Jesus Christ, the true Priest-King who lives forever.

I will share two reasons for why I believe this. First of all, the writer of Hebrews is constantly comparing Jesus to other people and other things. Jesus is compared to the angels, to Moses, to the Levitical priesthood, to the Old Covenant, etc. It doesn’t make sense that the author would stop with comparisons, bring up Melchizedek, and not make the statement that the two are the same person, if they truly were. It makes a lot more sense that the author is continuing with his theme of comparison when he mentions Melchizedek.

Secondly (which is more of a continuation than another reason), the writer uses the phrase “resembling the Son of God.” The Greek word aphŏmŏiŏō means to assimilate closely or make like. It doesn’t make sense to make Melchizedek like Jesus if they were the same person!

So there must be another explanation for his lack of genealogy and death certificate. Melchizedek is no more alive today than any of the other people in the Bible who lack information about their family history and death. It simply became a very convenient (and God-supplying) opportunity to point to the One who indeed has an indestructible life, Jesus Christ.

Why does it matter to me?

I’ve become rather fascinated by Melchizedek. There is so little information about this man in Scripture and yet he remains a very important figure. In this way, he truly has continued on. He has a legacy that remains talked about to this day.

But even more than my fascination with Melchizedek is my fascination with the God who Melchizedek served. The God who has supplied us with the Bible inspired each writer so that what is included in the 66 books of the Bible is the very history, doctrine, and instruction that He desires us to know.

We find Melchizedek within this grand narrative. He takes on importance because God has put his (Melchizedek’s) life in His (God’s) book and wants us to know about him so that we can know about Him. God saw fit to inspire the writer of Genesis to include the account of Melchizedek blessing Abraham. God saw fit to stir David’s heart to write about the coming Priest-King after the order of Melchizedek. And God caused the writer of Hebrews to use Melchizedek’s life to point to the superiority of Jesus Christ and His indestructible priesthood over that of the Levitical order.

God knew that the three verses of Melchizedek’s life in Genesis 14 would be used hundreds of years later to point to the true King of righteousness and King of peace who is infinitely superior to Abraham AND Melchizedek. When I consider the life of Melchizedek, I am filled with awe, not because this man was so incredible (which he was!), but because God has sovereignly preserved His Word that raises the dead, creates new life, and transforms the hearts of men.

No one other than the sovereign King of the Universe, Jesus Christ, could ever do something so amazing. Not even Melchizedek, who blessed Abraham, the father of our faith, can compare with the One who blesses us from Heaven.

I am thankful that I did not gloss over the story of Melchizedek. I’m glad that I did a little spiritual sweating in Hebrews 7. And I know that I’ve still only scratched the surface of what God intends for me to know through this man’s life.

If you’ve read this far, I hope that you find encouragement knowing that God has supplied us with His eternal Word, Jesus Christ, and His written Word through which the Son of God becomes real to us. Melchizedek is just one illustration of God’s gift to us. I hope you are hungry for the nourishment that only God’s Word can provide. And I hope that your hunger drives you to the Word to feast on the Bread of Life who never fails to satisfy.

but He holds His priesthood permanently, because He continues forever. Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for His own sins and then for those of the people, since He did this once for all when He offered up Himself. For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever.

Hebrews 7:24-28

For the glory of our faithful High Priest, King Jesus…

How an Introvert Becomes an Extrovert

2011-11-18T18:02:00.000-08:00

Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!

1 Corinthians 9:16b

I feel as if nothing else needs to be said after reading the title and Paul’s words to the Corinthians, but seeing as how I like to talk, I’ll say a few things.

There are at least two ways that we can define extroversion. In one sense, it means to be outgoing, to be the life of the party. In the Meyer’s-Brigg’s sense, it seems to mean that a person draws his/her energy from being around people verses the introvert who is recharged by isolating him/herself from people.

To be honest, it is hard for me to relate to either of those definitions. As a general rule, I don’t recharge by spending time with people, especially bigger groups. And I certainly don’t very often find myself to be the life of the party (although sometimes I can be a real cut up!). So as a classified introvert, maybe I should have just left it at the opening statement to avoid talking of things that I don’t know much about!

However, there is a common phrase that I’ve heard people say and have heard my own heart say even if I have never spoken it out loud. It’s a phrase that shirks responsibility and ignores a clear command of God. “I’m just not outgoing enough to share my faith.” Couldn’t we rewrite that as, “God makes some people to be extroverts and the entirety of evangelism rests on their shoulders”?

Can’t I, the introvert who worries what people will think of him or can’t come up with relevant questions to ask in order to steer a conversation towards Christ, just be content letting other people share their faith? No. That’s God’s answer. Jesus didn’t divide His disciples into personality groups before giving the Great Commission. He simply said, “Go and make disciples.” Now, I can imagine Peter getting energized by those words, but I can just as easily imagine one of the other disciples responding with a groan like I tend to.

It’s easy for us to compare ourselves to others who have more evangelistic abilities. I certainly know people who are great at sharing Christ. And I certainly don’t put myself into that category…and that makes me sad. Not sad in the sense that God didn’t make me like them, but rather sad in the sense that I should be like them.

This is where the Gospel transforms lives and where I see it transforming my life more and more towards extroversion. I probably won’t ever draw my energy from being around people or by being the life of the party. I will probably continue to prefer quiet surroundings and intimate gatherings of a few close friends. But I refuse to remain bound by those things when it comes to sharing Christ! No matter how hard it may be (and believe me, it is a hard, uphill battle), I cannot allow the tendency of my personality to keep others from hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

If Jesus really is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one comes to the Father except through Him, then pawning off my lack of evangelistic efforts makes me a chump, not an introvert. If people are on a road that leads to eternal punishment as Jesus has made very clear that they are, then for me to not share the Good News of Jesus Christ makes me a jerk, not an introvert. And Jesus will hold me accountable for how I responded to the Great Commission in Matthew 28 to go and make disciples!

You see, telling God that I had an introverted personality is not going to cut it when I stand before the One who showed me indescribable grace in sending His Son to die in my place. How did God deal with the servant who buried the talent that he was given? God took the talent and cast the servant into outer darkness!

Now, I’m not saying that salvation depends on sharing our faith, but even the most introverted chess club president is going to talk your ear off about chess for a few hours if he’s given the chance! I say this with reservation, but I say it just the same. If you are an introvert who isn’t sharing his/her faith, then you probably aren’t that passionate about Jesus. It’s either because you aren’t spending time pursuing Christ through the Word of God and pressing in to a local church or because you’ve become lazy in seeking out opportunities to share Christ.

Maybe I’m just being harsh, but it is hard for me to fathom a scenario in which one can know the only essential message in all of human history and hide behind a smoke screen of introversion to keep from sharing that Good News of Christ. For the sake of souls and the glory of Jesus Christ, we have to put to death everything that keeps us from boldly heralding the Gospel.

So what does that look like? For starters, it involves loving Jesus more than we fear the opinions of men. If I really count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ, I won’t hesitate to associate with the rejection that Christ endured when He called the whole world to repentance. I will gladly go outside of the city gates and bear the reproach that He endured for me.

In addition, we need to be willing to mess up and stumble over our words and sound foolish. I think what helps me in this area is realizing that about 99 out of 100 times that I share the Gospel, the response is not going to be the guy falling flat on his face in repentance. Most of the time, no matter how clear I am in the “Gospel presentation,” the spiritually dead person will respond like all dead people do…by staying dead. God needs to make the person alive to spiritual things. My craftiness or skills of persuasion have nothing to do with it! Thankfully, God does not require us to sell anything or convince anyone of anything. He just tells us to faithfully share His message of salvation.

As a whole, people are pretty willing to listen to someone talk about something that he/she is passionate about even if it is the most boring topic on the planet to them. Maybe it’s because it is the nice thing to do. Maybe it is because they know that they’ve got some boring things that they would love to talk about too. The point is that God has been using imperfect, broken, stuttering people for a few millennia and He will continue to do so, so we shouldn’t be overly concerned with trying to come across like a seminary professor. (In fact, most of the time it is probably better that we don’t!)

We need to be seeking out these opportunities (for practice?). It is not enough to sit on a street corner and hope that someone will come up to us and ask us who Jesus was. For some of us, it is as easy as calling our parents or clocking in at work. For others like many of my friends with Christian families going to Christian universities, it takes more intentionality. Whatever the case, if we aren’t looking for and praying for opportunities to share our faith, we probably won’t be sowing a lot of seed! And that’s a shame considering God has promised that His Word will not return to Him void but will accomplish all that He has intended it to.

Lastly, we have to have predetermined to continue loving the person regardless of how he or she responds to our efforts. Are we simply trying to get another check in the box or are we trying to love others with the selfless love of Jesus Christ? Is it frustrating when people laugh at the Gospel? Of course! Is it aggravating when they blink a few times and then start talking about how awesome Aaron Rodgers is? That’s a trick question because ARodg is awesome and they’re trying to distract me! Do I want to pull my hair out when their response is apathy? Absolutely! Especially since I just served up the Gospel like a filet mignon and garlic mashed potatoes on a silver platter! (Or at least that’s how my pride tells me it came across.)

No matter how passionate we might be, no matter how intelligent our argument sounds, what is going to pay more dividends in the long run than anything is how we treat them after sharing Christ and how we live out what we claim to believe. Does our love for Christ compel us to love them regardless of how hopeless it seems that they will ever respond to the Gospel call? People will always sniff out phonies. We need to love people because Christ loved us, no matter how they respond. And we need to pray like crazy that God will grant them repentance, which none of us deserves. Salvation is of the Lord.

I close by letting the Word of God speak with the holy power that only it has.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

Romans 1:16-17

Being Saved From Death is a Call to Come and Die

2011-11-04T08:14:00.000-07:00

It’s been over a year now since I put a thought on Facebook that generated a surprising debate. While I won’t share the thought just yet, I will say that I still believe I’m right. Over the last several months, I have been convinced that I am not just arguing semantics but arguing for a very central and essential part of the Gospel. And the more rightly we think about the Good News of Jesus Christ, the more we will behold God’s glory and shine like lights in the midst of this crooked and twisted generation that needs forgiveness.

But first, let’s make sure that we are on the same page. What exactly is the death that we are being saved from? The death I am referring to is the final and ultimate death that Jesus describes in Matthew 25:31-46. This death is irreversible. And Jesus makes it clear that this death awaits all who have violated God’s commands and remained unrepentant. It is the same death referred to in Revelation 20:11-15 of which it is said, “if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”

If the thought of this death is scary, that’s good. It’s meant to be. And when we consider ourselves accurately, we come to realize that we have violated God’s commands and deserve this judgment. We are by nature creatures of wrath because we have rebelled against our righteous Creator and exchanged the truth about Him for a lie. We have worshipped created things rather than God and have exalted ourselves into positions of absolute authority and autonomy.

But knowing this, God predetermined that He would send His Son, Jesus, in the likeness of sinful flesh so that all who call on His name while turning from the sin that we once embraced would be saved from death and transferred to the kingdom of God. This is the essence of the Gospel. Christ died for our sins and by putting our faith in that objective reality, we are saved from death and, by His Spirit, made to walk in newness of life.

This new life sounds like a good deal! In fact, I believe that many well-intentioned Christians would say that, apart from dying for our sins, the greatest thing Jesus ever did for us was teaching us how to live. He taught us to love our neighbor. He taught us to serve. He taught us to forgive and forbear. He taught us to speak the truth in love. He taught us to pray.

These are all fantastic things. I truly praise God for teaching me these things through His Son. Without teaching us how to live and being our perfect example, we would be lost to try and do these things well. However, there is a greater lesson that Jesus taught us. It is a lesson that is closer to the Cross than I dare say all of us desire to tread. It is a lesson that, if left out, overlooked, or tiptoed around, threatens to distort the Gospel. It is an essential part that goes far beyond a difference of semantics.

The greatest lesson that Jesus Christ ever taught was how to die.

I never use superlatives unless I really mean it! And I really mean that Scripture clearly confirms this statement.

Now, while Jesus died on the Cross, this is not the death that I am most interested in discussing for the remainder of this writing. The death that I am describing is the death that Jesus died every day of His thirty-three years on this earth. In this way, Christ was dead long before He hung on the Cross and gave up His Spirit. Every single day of His life, Jesus chose to die to His own desires and live in submission to the will of His Heavenly Father.

Consider for a moment how far He took this.

Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside His outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around His waist. Then He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.
John 13:3-5

…who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:6-8

…even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.
Matthew 20:28

Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.”
John 12:27

The only way that Jesus was able to come to the day of His crucifixion was by living an obedient life. And the only way that Jesus was able to live an obedient life was by dying to His own desires. He died to the desire to be saved from brutal death. He died to the desire to call down legions of angels to save Him from Satan’s temptations. He died to the desire to reign ultimate judgment on Israel. He died to the desires of bitterness, frustration, entitlement (who has more than the Son of God?!), exercising supernatural power, and countless other real desires.

There was only one desire that Jesus lived to: His desire to glorify His Father’s name. He counted all other desires as loss, often forsaking His own personal welfare. He did it with joy, perfect humility, and without the slightest hesitation.
This is the greatest lesson that Jesus Christ has taught a world full of people hell-bent on exalting themselves and getting what’s due them and squashing the little guy to get a bigger piece of the pie. Jesus, a man who was full of these same desires, came and humbled Himself to the point of death to wake us up out of our stupor and call us to the fullness of life through repentance.

What Jesus really calls us to is death. There is no way around it if you want to be His disciple. You must die. It will be difficult. You will suffer immensely because flesh dies hard. It doesn’t resign to defeat. It fights tooth and nail, dirtier than a hair-pulling, ball-kicking bar fighter would. But it must die, because, if it lives, on the Day of Christ’s return, we come to find that we have no part in Him. And that death is far worse, because we face it alone.

The death that Jesus calls us to is painful, yet our Lord promises to never leave us nor forsake us. He has gone ahead as a forerunner. He can sympathize with our weaknesses because He Himself has been tempted in every way that we have been, yet without sin. He calls all would-be disciples to drink of this cup.

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?
Luke 9:24-25

Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:27, 33

So this is the zenith of Christian discipleship. We look upon the Cross at Calvary and see Jesus hanging there, the innocent condemned for the guilty, the righteous for the ungodly. We think of His perfect life, perfect because He was obedient, obedient to the point of death, obedient even to the point of death on a cross. We think of our part in this grand display of justice and mercy. We brought the sin that held Him there until it was accomplished.

All who have seen the risen Lord know that mercy triumphs over judgment. And all who have looked upon the crucified Jesus know that no matter what we posses, it is an offering far to small. Love so amazing, so divine, demands our souls, our lives, our all.

May those of us who have been saved from death boldly profess the words of the Apostle Paul until Jesus calls us home and true life begins.

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Galatians 2:20

Being Partial Against Partiality

2011-10-26T07:32:00.001-07:00

Being Partial Against Partiality

I am boldly going to try and make an argument from James 2:1-13 fresh off an hour of comparing and contrasting Melchizedek, King of Salem, with Jesus Christ, King of kings. We’ll see how it goes! (If you didn’t get the humor in that, don’t worry…it’s for geeks like me)

I did it again. I made the mistake of opening my Bible to the Book of James. What was I thinking? Reading through James is just asking for trouble. It’s like stepping into a boxing ring with Muhammad Ali. In any case, you’re going to come out battered and bruised. While fighting Ali leaves your body swollen and sore, reading James cuts way beneath the skin, through the tissue, right to your heart of hearts.

Since Saturday, I’ve been in a cage fight with James 2:1-13 and I’m losing badly. I’m against the ropes just hoping that the bell will ring to end the round. But, I’m afraid that this round isn’t going to end. The conviction that I’m experiencing isn’t going to go away this side of glory. This is a fight to the death. I’m woefully unequipped for this fight, and yet, by the grace of God alone, I am in the ring standing toe-to-toe with sin. Thanks be to God, the Referee has already judged me victorious. So I fight on knowing that Jesus is the ultimate Prize Fighter who has defeated sin once and for all.

Sorry…I got a little carried away with that boxing reference. It’s kind of like the beating my brain took thinking about Melchizedek and reading John Calvin.

So, back to James 2! What I hope to accomplish in this writing is to explain what James is trying to say in these thirteen verses and then show how we are all guilty of partiality. I then will share how God has convicted me and what I believe He has called me to. And, I just might tie it all up in a big Gospel bow at the end and present it to you as a sacred gift.

My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

James 2:1

James is all about being a doer of the word (1:22). He dares anyone to share his/her faith apart from his/her works, because James knows that true faith is made visible through one’s works (2:14-26). James is so insistent on this that he goes so far as to say that faith without works is dead faith that cannot save a man from his sins (2:17, 26).

It is in this context that we find the above verse. James grew up with the King of impartiality. Jesus loved his parents, siblings, friends, and enemies with equal measures. He was perfectly impartial. And James noticed. I imagine James was probably aware of his half-brother’s talks with Samaritans and lepers and tax collectors and prostitutes. And I imagine that, as a Jew, James was appalled by Jesus’ “rebellious” behavior.

Time and time again, we see the Jews showing partiality. Consider the Pharisee in the temple thanking God that he is not like the pathetic tax collector. Or how about Peter in Galatians 2 who had to be rebuked by Paul because he wasn’t showing honor to Gentile believers. What about Paul himself who was so zealous for his Jewish faith that he persecuted and killed Christians?

But something happened to James. Something happened to this Jew who would push against this command from his own pen with great fervor and displeasure. He heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ and encountered the living God. And everything changed instantly.

I would imagine this to be a typical response to James’ words “Show no partiality.” “What do you mean ‘no partiality’? Don’t you remember what those dogs say about us? Don’t you remember what the Law says about engaging with lepers or dining with tax collectors? They are unclean and we are to have nothing to do with them!”

But in verse 4, James pleads,

Have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

James realized that the Gospel levels the playing field. All are unrighteous and have no merit of their own. All need the life-saving blood of Jesus Christ in order to be forgiven of sin. And since God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, how ought we to act toward those whom we judge to be different? Are we to show favoritism? Are we to put expectations on others? Are we to grant favor to some while banishing others?

All of these are excluded by the Gospel. Ephesians 2 tells us that we were by nature creatures of wrath. All of us, by our very nature, deserve judgment. Jews don’t receive God’s favor because they practice the Law. Modern day “Jews” don’t get to Heaven by practicing good works, donating money to charities, going to church every Sunday, volunteering at the animal shelter, and putting their kids through college. These are all good things, but they don’t achieve salvation!

Neither do Gentiles get a free pass to Heaven because they weren’t God’s chosen people and didn’t know any better. Why? Because what can be known about God is plain to them because God has made Himself known through creation. And modern day “Gentiles” don’t get a free pass because of the age of enlightenment and dead religion. Why? Because they prove that the Law of God has been written on their hearts by demanding justice and striving for equal rights and individual freedom.

So if we are all in the same boat, how can we still compare ourselves to others? How can we still value one person’s life above that of another? And yet we do! If we claim to know the Gospel, isn’t this a huge contradiction? The Gospel is freely extended to all people who would repent and believe in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. It doesn’t matter what race, creed, sex, childhood religion, credit rating, golf handicap, net income, stock portfolio, or sexual orientation they have. Any who turn from their sin and believe in Jesus Christ will be saved.

So why do we still judge others and condemn them while crying out so that we might receive mercy? “Treat everyone else according to justice, but treat me according to mercy, God. I must deserve mercy because I’m really sad about my sin, but they should be judged because they sinned against me!”

But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

James 2:9-10

It’s easy to be partial, isn’t it? It comes naturally. I like my friends because they are nice to me and do nice things for me and talk to me on the phone when I’m perplexed by the hilarity of life. It’s easy to like them and show them favor and offer them grace.

But how about those people who, after trusting them, hurt me? Am I as willing to show them grace as I am with my friends who are nice to me? Heck no! In fact, I am quick to pronounce judgment on them. “How dare they…!” I rant. It’s much easier to just wish these people out of my life as a matter of convenience and sanity.

Or what about those people around me in this community who are different? Do I treat the black people in my neighborhood with the same kindness I would my mother? Do I respect and value their lives as much as I do the life of my pastors at church? Am I as quick to do kind things for them even though they appear to need an attitude adjustment before I’ll even smile in their direction? No. I don’t treat them as well.

What about those who seem to be having a bad day or are failing to be friendly to me? Do I seek to care for them? No. I don’t because it takes more effort than I’d like to extend.

How about those slow moving people pushing their shopping carts at negative speeds? Or those drivers who aggressively cut me off? Or the “not going to hold the door open for you in a million years” apartment neighbor? Or the fast food worker who messed up your order again? Is there mercy or is there judgment? Is there complaining or is there heart-felt compassion?

James has got me on the ropes, and he knows I’m going down, but he isn’t finished with me yet.

So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

James 2:12-13

There it is…the knockout punch.

The Gospel will always slay any and all of my “most-reasonable” arguments. When I am tempted to justify my disposition towards another, Christ obliterates my argument.

Show no partiality. Why? Because you, my brother, have been judged under the law of liberty. You have been freed from judgment through the precious blood of Jesus Christ. God no longer deals with you according to your sin! Mercy has triumphed!

And because mercy has triumphed, we must be impartial. We must view all others as our equals. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Equals. And are justified by His grace as a gift. Equals. No one does good. Equals. Not even one. Equals.

Having met the risen Lord Jesus, I cannot justify any attitude, action, or speech toward another person that fails to build up and give grace. If I am thinking of another in a way that causes apprehension or fear or prejudice, I am wrong and guilty of breaking God’s law. I must reject all attempts to justify this type of attitude or behavior.

What Good News we have heard in Jesus Christ! And what an opportunity we have to live out the implications of the Gospel when we treat others as equals instead of judging them or writing them off as different and inferior!

Who in your life do you need to begin seeing in a different light when the reality of what Christ has done for you is shone on your heart? Who would have an opportunity to see Christ in you if you would only change your attitude toward them? And who would take great delight in watching His followers loving people with sincerity and compassion?

Because Christ has triumphed over judgment, we ought to live as those who have been transformed by the Gospel, which requires counting others as more significant than ourselves. This is the mind of Christ that has been given to us.

For the glory of the triumphant King, Jesus Christ…

It's Necessary...Use Words

2011-10-20T04:39:00.000-07:00

I can remember coming across a “feel good” quote back in high school. It gave me confidence that I was being a good Christian. And I think it probably eased some of the fear that I had about actually sharing my faith.

As I become more acquainted with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I realize that the message that I valued so much was wrong and dangerous. It was wrong because it wasn’t based on truth. It was dangerous because it was a misrepresentation of the Gospel.

I’ve seen many slight variations of the quote, but here is the general idea:

“Preach the Gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.”

It sounds nice. It even makes mention of the Good News. But sadly, the second sentence obscures the clear teaching of Scripture. It muddies the definition of the Gospel. It is easy to receive this quote to mean that we don’t have to actually speak the name of Jesus Christ to be preaching the Gospel. We can just live a good moral life and do nice things for people.

Obviously, these things are good and we should strive after sound morals and acts of service. However, these things are not the Gospel! Doing good to others and avoiding curse words does not save souls. Saying prayers before meals and telling people not to get drunk does not save souls. Giving millions of dollars to hungry orphans, while being extremely generous and Christ-like, does not in itself save souls.

Only one thing has the power to save souls from death: the Gospel. And let’s be clear that the Gospel is the spoken Good News of Jesus Christ describing how One has died so that we sinners might be reconciled to God. Jesus lived a perfect life and died on a Cross in our place. His brutal death is what we deserved because of our sin. He died that God’s wrath would be satisfied and that we would be forgiven of our sins IF we place our faith in being righteous before God entirely in Jesus Christ and His finished work at Calvary.

Romans 10 makes this as crystal clear as possible. This is God’s kindness to a people hardened by sin and prone to muddy up the message of salvation.

For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How then will they call on Him whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?.. So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Romans 10:13-14, 17

How are they to believe in Him of whom they have not heard? Actions do not speak louder than words in this instance. Why? Because the Cross of Christ is folly to those who are perishing. We are not going to gather that Jesus died for our sins simply because someone bought us some groceries. We will conclude that they are way nicer than they ought to be and leave it at that! Without the explanation behind the act, our attempt at “preaching the Gospel” amounts to little more than a good deed by a nice person.

J. Mack Stiles puts it this way in his book Marks of the Messenger:

So, is caring for others “the gospel”? Is that evangelism? No, not without the spoken message of the gospel of Jesus. The gospel message is the message that

produces salvation. So we should never confuse meeting physical needs with

sharing the gospel. Caring for others represents the gospel, it upholds the gospel,

it points to the gospel, it’s an implication of the gospel, but it is not the gospel, and it is not equal to the gospel.

I am woefully far from being faithful in this, but I believe what Scripture says and am committed to making progress in this area. I hope that you will join me! And don’t be the person who says, “I don’t have the gift of evangelism.” While some people are definitely gifted in this area, evangelism is not most of all a gift. It is a command of the Lord Jesus.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

Matthew 28:18-20

WWJD? Preach the Gospel. Use words. It’s necessary.

Letting God Determine the Definition of Blessing

2011-10-12T07:48:00.000-07:00

Blessed is the man…[whose] delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.

Psalm 1:1a, 2

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face to shine upon us, that Your way may be known on earth, Your saving power among all nations.

Psalm 67:1-2

I was sitting in Kevin’s Place about to tear into some pumpkin oatmeal pancakes with my brother in Christ this morning when our conversation turned to blessing. In the context of Psalm 67, my friend asked what it meant for God to bless us. Was God’s blessing in the Old Testament different than in the New? Is the blessing that we experience today different than what they experienced? How does our society influence our opinion of blessing?

The good news is that there is no shadow or variation due to change with God. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. With that said, we can conclude that God’s method of blessing has remained the same as well. Perhaps now that we are looking back on the Cross, blessing is more visible rather than veiled, but that does not make the manner of blessing different.

So how does God bless His people? Is blessing only seen in material wealth and prosperity as some would argue? Can we measure our blessing based on how great our job is compared to our neighbor? Or how big a family we have? If we have more “toys” like boats and computers and iPads and work out equipment, are we more blessed?

I’m not saying that any of these scenarios are bad in and of themselves, but I do not believe that these things speak of primary blessings as outlined in Scripture.

Consider Psalm 1 for a moment. Blessed is the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord. How is that man blessed? There is no connection made to material possessions or a happy family life or many friends. Rather, verse 3 goes on to compare this man to a tree that is planted near streams of water that bears good fruit in its season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in everything that he does.

The tree’s roots grow deep because it is planted near streams, count them, plural streams of water. God’s law is that water that sustains the life of man. God’s Word is the water that nourishes the man to bear good fruit and His Spirit is the producer of that fruit. He does not lose strength or wither because he is abiding in God and His nourishing Word. He prospers, not necessarily materially, though possibly materially, but he prospers in areas of true abundance and true riches.

He receives the blessing of tasting and seeing that the Lord is good. He is blessed through trials knowing that the testing of his faith produces steadfastness and leads to maturity. He is blessed through suffering knowing that Christ also suffered and died in his place and that he has the privilege of following in the footsteps of his Lord and Savior. He is blessed in relationships knowing that God has put him in the lives of others to build them up and to point them to the Good News of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. He is blessed when things don’t work out according to plan because he knows a God who is forever faithful and promises to be his Shepherd. Delighting in God’s Word produces these types of blessings again and again in ever-increasing measure. We would all do well to desire to be like this man.

As my friend said this morning, “We need to leave the definition of blessing up to God.” Those are wise words from a man who knows how difficult it is to faithfully thank God through years of questions and trust that He will remain true to His Word no matter how dire the situation may seem. I am confident that in every situation, trial, tragedy, and experience we will be able to someday look back and marvel at God’s faithfulness. How much greater would our joy be if we embraced the grace of trials as they happened?!

It’s this last question that brings me to Psalm 67.

I want to pause for a moment to say how thankful I am to be a member of CrossWay Community Church where the Word of God is faithfully preached and connections like the one I am about to make are taught with clarity and conviction.

The psalmist prays. He prays for God to be gracious, to bless them, and to make His face shine upon His people. But he doesn’t stop there. His vision is much larger than simply receiving blessing. He asks for blessing so that the nations might know the saving power of God!

Looking in the Old Testament, we can see in Genesis 12 that God makes a covenant with Abraham to bless all nations through his offspring. The nation of Israel results from God’s promise to give Abraham a son. Time and time again, God promises that the nations of the world will know Him because of His steadfast love toward Israel. At times Israel is blessed with prosperity so that nations may marvel at their God. At times they are blessed with famine found in stories like that of Joseph (Genesis 43-46) and Elimelech and Naomi (Ruth 1). I encourage you to study these passages to see for yourself the salvation that results for God’s people through severe famine.

In any and all cases, the people who prospered and experienced God’s blessing were the ones that saw God’s sovereign hand upholding them through abundance and want.

God blesses His people so that His name will be glorified to the ends of the earth. God sent Jesus in an unparalleled act of love and grace. God continues to bless His people so that the nations be glad and sing for joy at His amazing grace.

And God is blessing each of us who are in Christ right now. Some of us are being blessed through trials of loneliness or cancer or financial strain. In each case, God wants us to experience the blessing of drawing nearer to Him in relationship made possible only in Christ Jesus. Some of us are being blessed with an abundance of money or time. God intends for us to be blessed as we give generously to others who are suffering want. As we pour ourselves out, we experience the joy of Christ who gave all of Himself for us.

And God is blessing us so that others might know the name of Jesus Christ. Having the perfect life is not the means God uses to make Jesus known to our friends and family. Struggling to be faithful in the midst of trial because we have a sure and steadfast Anchor in Jesus Christ is a testimony far more useful and powerful than a big investment portfolio. Mourning well the loss of a child can be a blessing when unbelievers look on with amazement and glimpse the face of God when joy and hope swallow up the real and significant loss experienced by the family.

Each and every experience we have can be counted as a blessing designed by God to make His glory known. We can be sure, as God’s chosen people in Christ, that God is blessing us, because He delights in doing just that for His children. And we can be sure that God desires the blessing we receive to showcase His immeasurable grace in Christ Jesus extended to rebellious sinners.

We have the tall order of counting it all joy. But what encouragement it is to know that God is with us and for us! He will use us to accomplish His purposes even though we hold this treasure in jars of clay. What mercy!

Let the nations be glad and rejoice in the awesome saving power of God in Christ Jesus!

The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26

Why I Love Doctrine: Unpacking Hebrews 6:1-8

2011-09-03T20:32:00.001-07:00

Perhaps it comes as no surprise that I love doctrine. I love studying what the Bible teaches and learning to apply it to my life and use it to affect the lives of others. I can clearly see how God used the growing of a deeper knowledge of doctrine to exponentially increase my affections for Jesus Christ. Doctrine is important for every Christian. We should all want to see its value and pursue understanding for the sake of knowing Christ and bearing fruit for the Gospel.

This might get nerdy, but bear with me! It is my hope that by the end, we will all have grown in an understanding of why it is important to not just know a few Bible verses but know the deep intricacies and riches of the doctrine taught in the Word of God. If you’ve never considered this before, I urge you to immerse yourself in the deep truths of Scripture prepared to grow in love for your Lord and Savior.

To quote my brother, Shai Linne, “Here’s a controversial subject that tends to divide, for years its had Christians linin’ up on both sides.” Hebrews 6 is one of the most controversial chapters in the New Testament. It has had “Calvanists” and “Armenianists” at odds with each other since the early church. There has not been an era of Church history when this issue was not debated at great length.

Here is the question that has caused so much division: Can a believer lose his or her salvation? Hebrews 6 seems to answer in the affirmative. Consider these verses.

For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the Word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding Him up to contempt.

Hebrews 6:4-6

Maybe this doesn’t seem like a big deal. It’s just one sentence after all! It isn’t even a paragraph! It’s not even the beginning sentence or the concluding sentence of the paragraph! It’s imbedded in the middle of a paragraph that talks about crops and baptisms and spiritual maturity.

But it is a huge deal. What you conclude from this one sentence will drastically affect what you conclude about 1. God 2. You 3. Your salvation. If you conclude that losing your salvation is possible, then you must also conclude that you have a major responsibility to keep yourself in God’s good graces. You must conclude that God is limited in what He can do to save you from your sins. He provided Jesus as a means, but you have to do the work to receive Him. When you look at the implications, eventually you must say that if you can lose your salvation then there must be something you can do to gain it or keep it once you’ve received it.

I hope you are seeing how this leads to all sorts of problem, salvation by works being at the top of the list of dangers. By making the claim that you can lose your salvation, all of a sudden you can potentially “reason” yourself into a false Gospel. All because of one little sentence!

Now I don’t begin to think that what I’m saying is easy to deal with. I have debated this issue for several months with a good friend and brother in Christ. But the fact remains that this doctrine is of critical importance and we need to think rightly about it. But don’t take my word for it! Be like the Bereans and check the Scriptures to see if what I’m saying is right!

So since I’ve pointed out the position I believe to be erroneous, I suppose you’d like to see how I’ve concluded that the opposite must be true. I believe Scripture teaches that all who are saved are God’s elect and that all of God’s elect will persevere to the end and be saved.

I want to make three observations. First, salvation belongs to the Lord (Psalm 3, Jonah 2). Second, the only part we play is the need of salvation. Third, the Gospel cannot function properly unless we have a humble view of ourselves.

If anyone ever had knowledge of where redemption comes from, it would be Jonah. As he was sitting inside the belly of a great fish, he triumphantly exclaimed, “Salvation belongs to the Lord!” Jonah saw his great need and knew that he had no ability in himself to do anything about it. If you want to argue that being in the belly of a fish is different than salvation, read Jonah’s psalm in chapter 2 and provide convincing evidence that words like “Sheol” and phrases like “you brought up my life from the pit” don’t speak of a greater deliverance than Jonah’s physical predicament.

Probably the most convincing verses in all of Scripture come from Ephesians 2. Verses 8 and 9 speak of salvation very clearly.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

This is not your own doing….not a result of works. Salvation is the gracious gift of God who stepped down from Heaven, became man, revealed Himself to the world, died a gruesome death, rose from the dead to prove His innocence, and ascended to Heaven to live forever as King of kings and Lord of lords. In other words, salvation belongs to the Lord!

The Bible is clear that we have a great, infinite need of redemption. We have sinned against a holy God who is just to punish that sin. We stand condemned before God’s infinite and eternal holiness and righteousness. And we can’t utter one single word or do any amount of good deeds to lessen our guilt.

That’s what we bring: the sin that nailed Jesus to the Cross.

Maybe someone will say, “But what about the people I’ve known that used to be Christians and now don’t want anything to do with Jesus Christ?”

To that I respond, in the same way that all of God’s elect will persevere until the end, all those who are not God’s elect will eventually fall away because they never had true saving faith in Jesus Christ. Consider the parable of the sower in Mark 4. The seed falls on four different types of ground. Three of the soils bring forth growth, but only one soil continues to nourish the plant and produce fruit.

There indeed are other Scripture that appear to speak of losing one’s salvation (Colossians 1:23 is the biggest “if” statement I’ve found), but when examined in light of the context of Scripture as a whole, I don’t believe that they teach the potential of losing salvation. There are too many verses that seem to oppose that idea. One example is found in 1 John 2:19

They (antichrists) went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

If they were of us, they would have continued with us. If these antichrists had been true believers, they would have remained steadfast until the end and proven to be God’s elect.

Before ending with my third observation and application, I want to ask one question that has often come to my mind while thinking through this doctrine. It comes from 2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

And John 3:3

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

If salvation requires new birth, how can that new birth be undone once it has happened?

We can consider Nicodemus’ question to Jesus. “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Is man responsible for his first birth? Did Jesus give a bad example to speak of salvation? Do we have something to do with our second birth into the family of God? Once we are born, do we somehow have to do anything to remain by blood a part of that family?

I argue that once we have received by faith the free gift of eternal life by putting our trust in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit and clothed in righteousness for all eternity, which is an act of God from beginning to end. We were born because God chose to give us life. We remain in God’s family by the blood of Jesus Christ.

And yet, Scripture makes it clear that we must be diligent to pursue holiness and live in a manner worthy of this great price that Jesus paid for our lives. 2 Peter 1 tells us that the only way to ensure that we never fall away and perish is to grow in godliness. It seems that if we forsake our responsibility to live in a manner worthy of the Gospel it might very well mean that we never received Christ in the first place!

That should cause a shudder to go down your spine! No one claiming to be a Christian wants to be that person to whom Jesus says, “Depart from me, I never knew you.” And yet many will be in that camp come Judgment Day.

God-given humility is what allows us to realize and reckon with the fact that we have nothing to offer. We can’t measure up. God won’t accept our sacrifices or good works as a means of atoning for our sin. Humility puts our faces in the dirt and gives us hearts that cry out to God for His salvation. There is no other way. Chew on that sentence. There is no other way.

And it is in this exact moment that the Gospel soars in to rescue us. When we see our situation as hopeless…when we see ourselves as rebels…when we cry out to God, He hears us. And He responds with Good News. “I sent my Son to die in your place! Do not fear my wrath. It has been taken care of. I love you!”

Only the Gospel puts our situation in its true light. Find a religion that has answers for all of our problems as individuals and as a people. Only the Gospel points us to the sin in our hearts as our ultimate problem. And only Jesus Christ provides the ultimate solution and lasting satisfaction that we are all longing for.

Thank God that He did not leave us to our own will and logic! He had a plan set in place before the foundation of the world, and He is faithfully drawing countless people into right relationship with Himself through Jesus Christ. All those that are born again will be preserved to the end because of the finished work of Jesus Christ. This is what Scripture teaches, and the writer of Hebrews wasn’t disagreeing.

God of grace,

May we be people who love doctrine. Not because knowing doctrine is an end but because it is the means to having a deep and abiding relationship with Jesus Christ. Thank You that Your Spirit teaches us all things. If we lack wisdom, we only have to ask and You will provide. You are so gracious. Thank you for Jesus who gave His life for ours. How desperately we need You.

For the glory of the Blessed Christ…

A Sinful Woman Forgiven

2011-08-31T05:24:00.001-07:00

Luke 7:36-50 tells the story of a Pharisee named Simon inviting Jesus to eat in his home. A “woman of the city, who was a sinner,” hears that Jesus is going to be there and brings an expensive flask of ointment for Jesus’ feet. She falls at His feet weeping and wiping His feet with her hair as Simon and his friends look on with disgust and condemnation. Jesus discerns what these self-righteous men are thinking and uses a parable to illustrate the faith of this woman.

A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more? Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And He said to him, “You have judged rightly.”

Luke 7:41-43

Jesus goes on to tell Simon how he failed to honor Him as a guest while this woman had gone above and beyond in her love for Jesus. Then, amazingly, Jesus turns to the woman and tells her that her sins are forgiven! And just to make sure no one mistook what He said the first time, He said it again, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

I’m not sure about you, but if I had to guess which person in this story I would be, I could almost immediately rule out two of them. I certainly wouldn’t be Jesus forgiving peoples’ sins! And I doubt that I would think myself to be the woman sobbing and mopping up her tears with her own hair. Most likely, I would be Simon having invited Jesus into his home probably hoping for a pat on the back and some words of praise from this prophet for his diligence in keeping the Law. If ever there was a person to impress, it would be Jesus! “What an opportunity,” I can almost imagine saying in my mind as Jesus takes His place around my dinner table. “Even Jesus should be impressed with my ability to be good.”

I think this is the point of the story. We all associate much more easily with Simon than we do with the sinful, wailing woman of the city. We all want to turn our noses up at those who just don’t seem to measure up in our eyes. We all want to slam the door of condemnation in the face of others while being overly gracious with our own blunders.

And yet, can you hear the voice of Jesus speaking to you just as He did to Simon?

“Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” And He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

Luke 7:44-48

Jesus is clearly saying that it is better to associate ourselves with this woman of the city, who was a sinner, than it is to associate ourselves with Simon, the Pharisee! And I don’t mean that we are to go out and sin it up! We need to see ourselves as the sinner who needs forgiveness. We need to see our helpless state and come crawling to Jesus in tears. We need to hope against all hope that Jesus will be our merciful Savior instead of our Righteous Judge.

If we respond like Simon, we seal our own fate. “He who is forgiven little, loves little.” And Jesus isn’t saying this to a man who is mostly righteous and doesn’t have as much of which to be forgiven! He is saying it to a self-righteous man who thinks he is good when in fact he is on the same level of need as the sinful woman. Simon was blind to his need for Jesus’ forgiveness. O, that we would not be blind to our need!

The Letter of Paul to the Romans is regarded by many as the most important doctrinal statement ever written. In Romans 1-3, the Apostle Paul masterfully outlines the sinfulness of man. In 3:20, it seems that all hope is lost when Paul says that no one will be found righteous through good works. Instead, we will only find out how short we come of God’s standard and how sinful we truly are. Paul levels the field explaining how both Jew and Gentile are on the equal ground of total depravity and sinfulness. One is judged condemned through running amuck and the other through attempts at self-righteousness.

But then when all are broken and lost, Paul speaks of a glorious revelation of how to regain good standing with God! To be righteous before God requires faith in Jesus Christ and His perfect life of obedience.

Consider the Good News as Paul records it in Romans 3:23-25:

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by His blood, to be received by faith.

When we realize that we are numbered with the “None is righteous,” then our only response is to come like the woman of the city, who was a sinner, sobbing and hoping that Jesus might be merciful. It’s our only hope. Sin has us captive and only Jesus has the means of escape.

Let us not be quick to respond like Simon when we see others struggling. Let us remember that we ourselves come to Christ with nothing to offer but our sin.

Jonah and Me

2011-08-12T14:53:00.000-07:00

Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,

“Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their

evil has come up before me.” But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from

the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship

going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went on board, to go with

them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD.

Jonah 1:1-3

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ whose Word is not bound by time, environment, or circumstance.

As I was waiting with the rest of the band to perform our final piece at graduation today, I had a moment to turn to Jonah. In that short window of opportunity, God revealed something great to me, but before I get to that, I’d like to share some thoughts about this passage. I’d also like to recommend Surprised by Grace by Tullian Tchividjian to anyone looking for a Gospel-centered commentary on the Book of Jonah. Tullian says that Jonah is a story that “shows that God is in the business of relentlessly pursuing rebels like us and that He comes after us not to angrily strip away our freedom but to affectionately strip away our slavery so we might become truly free.”

What a great book Jonah is! For anyone who thinks it is just a fish story, you are missing out on so much more! We see a merciful God who pursues both pagan city and heard-hearted prophet. We see true repentance modeled by the unlikely Ninevites while a prophet of God refuses to obey the voice of the Lord. And, yes, we see the miraculous account of Jonah being swallowed by a huge fish and live to tell about it.

These first three verses tell a lot about Jonah’s worldview. We clearly see that the prophet believes he can hide from the presence of God. I’ve been scratching my head wondering how he came to that conclusion! To Jonah’s defense, I’m sure he wasn’t expecting to get swallowed by a huge fish for disobeying a little command of God. Maybe he thought that God would just forget about His command after awhile and Jonah could just go on with life. He certainly wasn’t about to go to a city of pagans, pronounce judgment on them, and allow them a chance to repent and be spared from the wrath of God. But as we read Jonah, we see that not only is that exactly what God called Jonah to do, but we see how God is teaching Jonah even more than He is teaching the people of Nineveh. God wanted Jonah’s heart and was willing to watch the prophet squirm miserably in order for him to learn to fear the Lord.

My initial reaction to Jonah’s fleeing is to mock him. How could he be so stupid to think that he could flee the presence of the Lord? Did he really think that getting in a boat bound for Tarshish would save him from having to obey God? It seems that Jonah really was that foolish.

What strikes me even more, however, is that of my own foolishness. Am I really that different from Jonah? Do I immediately jump onboard with all of God’s directions for me? Or do my responses to God’s commands prove that my heart is exactly like Jonah’s?

So often I think that I can flee from the presence of the Lord. Maybe I don’t think this in my mind, but my actions certainly affirm that I believe it in my heart! Sin is deceitful. I can read Jonah and scoff at him for being a fool while avoiding sticking my neck out just like Jonah! Or maybe I think that when no one is around I have free reign to cut corners or act less than Christ-like. Are these compromises that much different than Jonah trying to physically flee from the presence of the Lord? How about ignoring the prompting of the Holy Spirit or brushing off a convicting thought from the Word of God? Aren’t these the very thing that I’m ready to slam Jonah for doing?

So I must conclude that Jonah and I are a lot more similar than we are different. In fact, when looking at the thoughts and intentions of the heart, there isn’t any difference at all. Both of our hearts reveal a belief that we can flee from the presence of God.

Is your heart any different? Or do you too ignore the presence of God in an attempt to flee from Him? Maybe God has called you to proclaim Christ to a coworker but you have fled to the other side of the office instead. Maybe God has called you to give up something valuable in your life like internet or TV or a career or relationship but you ignored it by saying that it is simply too radical and must not really be what God wants of you.

In reality, we are all like Jonah. We are more interested in fleeing from the presence of God than we are of longing to see the face of Jesus Christ. And we flee because God’s presence makes us aware of our sinfulness.

If we look ahead in Jonah, we see that Jonah knew God to be a God of mercy and steadfast love. Jonah saw God’s character and fled knowing that God might let this city that the prophet loathed off the hook for their sins as God had done for Jonah himself. Jonah wasn’t about to let a bunch of pagans experience the loving kindness of his God, as if he had somehow earned God’s grace for himself! Once he finally obeyed God, Jonah stood face-to-face with his pride and hatred for Nineveh. He was convicted, but instead of repenting, we see him become increasingly hardened. The book ends with Jonah saying, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.”

Fortunately for Jonah and for all of us, God continues to pursue us even as we flee. Though we like sheep have all turned away, God refuses to give up on us. In fact, we see His pursuit so clearly in the Cross. While rebellious sinners shouted, “Crucify him!” Jesus Christ was lifted up so that He might draw all men to Himself. God was so determined to capture the heart of man that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die for our sins.

No matter how much we want to find love like that anywhere else, we simply won’t find it. The love God has for us makes all other would-be pursuers seem insignificant.

We need to daily seek to know Christ and the love He has for us more and more. The more we pursue Jesus, the more we see that He really is a priceless treasure. The more we know His love, the less we will ever want to flee from His presence. In fact, His love makes us run for safety in the shadow of His wings. He has accepted us freely even though we are sinful rebels. And His acceptance changes everything.

Do you know the love of the great Pursuer? Or are you fleeing from Him? Jesus changes everything if only we would stop running away and turn towards Him.

No matter where we are in our faith, may we not think that Jonah is unique in his fleeing. May we acknowledge our own hearts’ desires to flee from the presence of God and cry out for His mercy to make us people who long for His presence.

For the glory of Christ, who after being swallowed by the earth for three days rose from the dead…

Walking Through Colossians: Part 4

2011-08-08T08:12:00.001-07:00

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

Colossians 2:6-7

So far in our look at Colossians we’ve seen Paul’s praise for the Colossian church, the preeminence of Christ, and an overview of Paul’s ministry as a pastor and church planter. We’ve seen how Paul has pointed everything back to the central figure of the Gospel: Jesus Christ. We’ve seen how Paul draws his own encouragement, energy, and strength from the person of Jesus Christ. And we’ve seen Paul’s pastoral labors aimed at the church at Colossae.

Paul moves on from his joy for the church to offer two verses of exhortation. The section of Scripture that we will deal with in this essay comes from chapter 2 beginning with verse 6 and going through verse 15. Paul’s desire is for the Colossian church to walk in Christ. He longs to present everyone mature in Christ (1:28), and he is willing to sacrifice his own health and well being to see it happen (1:24).

Remember why this ministry is so important to Paul. Christ is our life (3:3); Christ is our hope of glory (1:27); Christ is before all things and in Him all things hold together (1:17). Paul is absolutely and unswervingly convinced that Jesus Christ is the only hope for a world full of lost sinners who have rebelled against a holy God. And we only have until our last breath to figure out that Christ is the answer to our greatest need. After that, it is too late. We should all be working towards possessing this singular focus like Paul. Eternity is at stake for every single person on this earth. They need to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because there is no other name in heaven by which man must be saved (Acts 4:12).

Once we know this, the charge to walk in a manner worthy of the Gospel takes on much more significance. Scripture tells us that we should shine as lights, be the salt of the earth, and exert all of our energy towards the pursuit of godliness. We must be faithful stewards of the grace we have been given in Christ. Eternity is at stake. Our joy is at stake. God’s glory is at stake. Considering what will be left when Jesus comes back, nearly everything is at stake! God is serious when He calls us to be holy.

For the remainder of this note, I want to make one point about the differences between the Gospel and human traditions (v. 8) and conclude with Paul’s masterful way of continuing to make the Gospel central to our charge to walk with Christ.

In verse 8, Paul cautions the church to avoid being taken captive by philosophy and human tradition according to the elemental spirits of the world instead of Christ. In Paul’s day, these would be things like conforming to the Old Testament law or trying to find favor with one’s god(s) in order to prosper in this life. Today, the elemental principles have shifted to things like individualism, relativity, and science. I think Paul’s point is that none of these sources provide the ultimate answer to our dilemma. None provide true, lasting happiness. And none satisfy our deep longing to find that happiness. Sadly, countless people since the creation of man have turned to human traditions, philosophy, science, etc. as their ultimate realities and have come up empty in the end. Clearly this message is not just for the lost, but for Christians as well, because Paul is addressing this to the church. We all need to be careful that our ultimate satisfaction is aimed at Jesus Christ and no where else. The lost world needs their gaze directed to Christ, and the Church needs our gaze directed to our Anchor as well.

At best, our human wisdom results in external behavior modification and attitude adjustments. But it fails where we must succeed in order to find lasting fulfillment. It fails to address the reality of hearts hardened against God due to our sinfulness. Human tradition will always seek out a way to be self righteous and earn God’s favor. Our hearts, which are deceitful about all things and desperately sick (Jeremiah 17:9), will always lead us down a path towards destruction. Our minds will never reason their way into God’s favor. We are without hope, sinners who have fallen short of the glory of God.

But God…

That’s my favorite part of Scripture: the “but God” part. When we come to the end of our rope and realize that we have no way out of the mess that we have made for ourselves, God intervenes.

Verses 11-15 close out this section of text by giving two beautiful illustrations of the Gospel. This time, Paul speaks of the Gospel in terms of what Christ has done for those who have turned from their sin and placed their faith in Christ alone for their salvation. I’ll quote all of it because God’s Word is much more powerful than mine.

In Him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the Cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him.

Colossians 2:11-15

Do you notice who is doing all of the acting in these verses? It isn’t the ones dead in our sin doing much of anything. Paul ascribes all the glory of salvation to God alone. The Father willed it. Christ was the propitiatory sacrifice. The Holy Spirit gave us eyes to see and perceive our sinfulness and need for Jesus Christ.

But God…

The more awestruck I am by the Gospel, the easier it becomes to see how the Cross of Jesus Christ is folly to those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18). In our arrogance, we believe that we can be good enough to earn the favor of a holy God who demands perfect righteousness from any that would be in His presence. The Cross tells us that we can’t earn God’s favor. It is a free gift that declares us righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ. We did nothing to deserve and we can never earn it. We have nothing to use as a bargaining tool for salvation. We must humble ourselves and cry out to God for salvation. But we don’t because it is folly. The Gospel is our only hope and we reject it because it is the most ridiculous thing we’ve ever heard.

But God…

All who receive the Good News of Jesus are born again to a living hope by the great mercies of God. Then begins the joyful, yet tumultuous, pilgrimage of sanctification. But we must never forget the message that set us on a path of righteousness. And we must never forget the Savior who made it possible!

“Walk in Christ” sums up Paul’s exhortation in our text. How? By always remembering the finished work of Jesus Christ in emptying Himself, taking the form of a servant, living a life of perfect righteousness, and dying on the Cross. Without this act of God, all would perish in our sins. Without Jesus, we would be strangers and exiles with no hope. God has brought us near to Himself through the blood of Christ. The Gospel must sink in. Its roots must go down deep.

Christian, can you fathom how much it cost God to ransom your soul? Does the Gospel cause you to find joy in all of life’s circumstances because your greatest need has been met in Christ? Do you find strength to endure and reason to die to yourself when you consider Christ crucified?

Affection for Christ is not optional. It is the fruit of those who have been made alive upon receiving Jesus Christ and placing all of their hope in Him.

May your hearts be stirred. May they burn with ever-increasing longing for Christ. Those who have given everything over to Jesus will find themselves lacking nothing on that Day when Jesus comes back to gather His bride.

For the glory of the reigning King Jesus who will return to make all things new…

Satisfied In Anguish?

2011-08-01T10:41:00.001-07:00

Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.

Isaiah 53:11

This verse is taken from what is probably the most complete messianic prophecy of Jesus Christ in all of the Old Testament. Isaiah 53 tells the story of how the Christ will suffer at the hands of the very ones whom he came to save. It speaks of a suffering servant who is acquainted with grief and of lowly disposition. It speaks of a righteous, innocent servant of God who didn’t even offer a response when being led to his own execution. In verse 11, we see that this servant humbly submitted to this treatment so that many would be accounted righteous in the sight of the living God. Blessed is the Lamb, Jesus Christ, who was slain and incurred God’s wrath that we might be reconciled to God through Him!

I want to do something very “Spurgeon-like” with the first phrase of this verse. Of course, my effort will lack the poetic brilliance that embodies Spurgeon’s words, but nonetheless, I consider him the inspiration for this exercise. (I hope my brother won’t mind!)

Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied…

While this text is speaking of Jesus Christ, I want us to consider what it has to say to each of us who find our lives hidden with God in Christ Jesus (Col. 3:3). If we are to consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus (Rom. 6:11), then what does this text mean for us? Is our response to suffering supposed to be any different from that of Jesus Christ after we have died to sin and been raised to new life in Christ? Are we to approach anguish the same way that we always have and chalk it up to “being human”?

Contrary to popular belief, we are charged to have the mind of Christ and share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death (Phil. 2:5, 3:10). We are to know Christ more and more fully so that His heart becomes ours, His thoughts become our thoughts, and His life becomes our lives. And this isn’t just some self help plug. Paul tells us, “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” As we grow our knowledge of Jesus Christ through His Word, God’s grace works to transform us to be like our Savior. And people say that miracles no longer happen today! Show me a hardened, rebellious man who has been raised to new life in Jesus Christ, and I’ll show you a miracle that defies all comprehension.

To get to the point, we must do more than gloss over the suffering of Christ. We must embrace His suffering for ourselves. Scripture is so clear. All who desire to live a godly life will be persecuted (2 Tim. 3:12). Jesus told His disciples that the world will hate them because it hated Him (John 15:18). We are commanded to share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ (2 Tim 2:3). And Paul goes so far as to yearn to share Christ’s sufferings so that he might know Him (Phil. 3:10-11) and attain the resurrection from the dead by whatever means necessary!

So we have two options. We can go on responding to suffering like the world does by becoming distraught and surprised that anything bad could actually happen. Or we can put on a smiley face and pretend that everything is ok. We can fake our happiness while striving to find satisfaction in some other pursuit even though we are empty on the inside. We can turn to another idol whether it be pleasure or wealth or relationships or family or alcohol.

Or, we can find satisfaction in the anguish of life. As Tim Keller reminded me yesterday while listening to a sermon he preached on Psalm 1, happiness and satisfaction are possible. True happiness does not result from better circumstances or the perfect marriage or success in one’s career.

True happiness results from finding the entirety of our satisfaction in Christ Jesus alone.

When we make the choice to be satisfied in Christ no matter what trials and anguish come our way, we find the “secret” to this life. We find that Jesus Christ really is a treasure that our money, obedience, and sacrifices cannot buy. He becomes our joy. We find Him comforting us in the midst of terrible circumstances. We find peace. We are content in Him.

But this will never happen and we will never want to be satisfied in the anguish of life until we see how great our need for Jesus Christ is. Without the understanding of how great a sacrifice was made for us while we were rebelling against God, we will never believe that Christ is enough to satisfy no matter the circumstances. Jesus Christ died for our sins. God’s wrath is satisfied because Jesus took our place on the Cross. Jesus restores sinners to right relationship and justified status before the one, true God!

The 80 years we spend on this earth are worthless until we realize that the sole reason we were created (to glorify God) cannot happen as it should until we repent of our sins and put the totality of our faith in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.

But…! But God grants us the ability to see this reality and gives us new life in Jesus Christ, we are able to find true, lasting satisfaction. Jesus is the source of all satisfaction, whether our lives are great or our lives are awful. Circumstances do not matter. The only thing that matters is the new heart that God gives to all those who put their faith in Jesus Christ. And that new heart beats with gratitude even in the midst of anguish.

For the glory of Christ, the giver of new life.

Satisfied In Anguish?

2011-08-01T10:41:00.000-07:00

Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.

Isaiah 53:11

Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied…

True happiness results from finding the entirety of our satisfaction in Christ Jesus alone.

For the glory of Christ, the giver of new life.

Walking Through Colossians: Part Three

2011-07-28T14:00:00.000-07:00

Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

Colossians 1:28

Paul transitions from his description of Jesus Christ into an overview of his ministry (1:24-2:5). He is quick to point out that his ministry is a God-given stewardship with specific instructions. He is to make the Word of God fully known and strive to present everyone mature in Christ. His entire focus is to make much of Christ no matter the cost to his own personal wellbeing.

Even in discussing his own ministry, Paul showcases Christ. He calls Jesus the hope of glory (v. 27). He explains how Christ was afflicted for His elect Church (v. 24). Paul also boasts that in Christ all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are found (2:3). For someone talking about his calling, Paul sure mentions Jesus a lot! My guess is that Paul’s thoughts and life were so consumed with knowing Christ that talking about Jesus in relation to everything became second nature. Paul wasn’t forcing himself to talk about Jesus in relation to his ministry. He was gladly humbling himself for the glory of Jesus Christ. I want to be like Paul here!

While it may go without saying, I believe it is important to understand the ministry that Paul is describing. At the center of it all is Jesus.

“Him we proclaim…”

“Christ in you, the hope of glory…”

“God’s mystery, which is Christ…”

Jesus Christ’s character is put on display in what He did while on earth. He is humble, which we see in His lowly life as the son of a carpenter and by the fact that He did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied Himself by becoming a servant. Ultimately, we see Christ’s humility in His death on the Cross as He obediently submitted to the will of His Father. He is righteous. No one could bring any legitimate charge against Him. Eventually, embittered enemies crucified him under false accusations. But His righteousness was again displayed when God raised Him from the dead three days later. Jesus stands alone as the only man to ever live a life of perfect obedience and holiness to God. And He did it so that we might be forgiven of all of our sins and reconciled to God.

Paul’s ministry was all about showing the reality of sin in the heart of every man and pointing lost souls to the life-saving Messiah, Jesus Christ. Paul knew that he had no power to save anyone. He knew that his righteousness through the Law came up short of the righteousness that God demands. He knew that Jesus Christ was his only hope and the only hope for all of us. The Gospel changed Paul’s life, and he knew that it would change the lives of all those who received it by faith, because Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.

In chapter 1 verse 28, we see the center of Paul’s mission. He is to proclaim Christ. We also see Paul’s strategy. He gives a warning to all who are under condemnation. This isn’t pleasant! We can obviously see in Scripture how ill-received Paul’s warnings were at times! But, we can also see how necessary it is to warn people of the impending wrath of God. God has promised to punish sinners. And we can be sure that none of us will be justified by works of the law. We are all on an equal playing field when it comes to God’s standard. We are failures. Without knowing what we are saved from, Christ’s work doesn’t seem as important. Being fond of sin for a few years on earth pales in comparison to the weeping and gnashing of teeth for all eternity. God’s wrath is severe, but it is avoidable.

After offering a sobering warning, Paul offers the only hope for sinners under the wrath of God: Jesus Christ. The Good News! The Gospel! Christ died for our sins. Repent of your sinful lifestyle and receive Christ by faith. You lose nothing that is good and gain everything. You gain your life. You gain your joy. And most importantly, you gain Christ. Everything is worth losing for Him. Paul learned this through his own experiences as a Christian, and his mission was to teach this to anyone who would listen.

Speaking of Paul’s experiences, I will offer one final observation from the text along with application that will hopefully serve all of us.

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His body, that is, the Church…

Colossians 1:24

Paul rejoices in his sufferings for the sake of the Church. He is glad to be imprisoned, beaten, mocked, jeered, etc. for the sake of God’s elect. He finds joy in the trials because he knows that his example is seen by the saints of light. He is motivated to cling to Christ in hardships because it enhances the riches of the glory of Christ. It’s one thing to see knowing Christ as good news when it brings wealth or success and fame. It’s quite another to see knowing Christ as our treasure when we are overcome by trials on every side. But Paul’s example should give us confidence to rejoice in the Lord always. He kept the faith through it all, and we can be sure that he is in glory with the Lord Jesus. We can be confident that every last trial has become an afterthought to Paul because he is at home with the Lord.

So, I ask this question. Is there a better way to display the superior worth of knowing Christ than to rejoice in Him regardless of suffering and trials? Can you describe a more perfect scenario to grow in treasuring Christ than to suffer loss of worldly things? Whether it is money or success or family or health, what better way to experience the only One who satisfies than by losing those things that we are most fond of! And as we die to all of our desires and live to Christ’s, what an encouragement it is to our brothers and sisters who see us rejoicing in trials! We have the opportunity to point others to Christ’s worth when we remain steadfast in Him in the midst of trials. That brings Him glory. We were created to bring Him glory!

If we really believe God’s Word, trials will not surprise us nor will they dismay us. We will remain fixed on the Rock. God wants to test the genuineness of our faith, which is of greater worth than much fine gold. That testing is done through trials and tribulation. We must hold fast to the word of life! We must endure by the grace of God and thus prove to be God’s people! Christ is our only hope.

And as we go through trials, we must not forget that the world is watching. Those who don’t know Christ are looking to see how we handle disappointment and failure and ridicule. Do we respond like every other person on the planet? Or do we respond like Paul and rejoice in the opportunity to suffer loss to experience the greatness of knowing Jesus Christ?

Lord, that I might love you enough to remain immovably rooted in Christ no matter what hardships may come. O, that I might be one who encourages your people by having a right response to suffering, that I might point a lost world to their only hope, your Son, Jesus. That many might be presented mature in Christ. Would you change my heart to desire to exalt Christ above my desire to whine about trials? Would you use me to point others to the surpassing worth of Jesus Christ even if it means that I lose everything? Would you give me a heart that desires your glory above my own?

For the glory of Jesus, who is worth more than all I could ever hope to possess…

Walking Through Colossians: Part Two

2011-07-20T13:49:00.000-07:00

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth,

visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or

authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.

And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

And He is the head of the body, the Church. He is the beginning,

the firstborn from the dead, that in everything He might be

preeminent. For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to

dwell, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things,

whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of

His Cross.

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing

evil deeds, He has now reconciled in His body of flesh by His

death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above

reproach before Him, if indeed you continue in the faith,

stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel

that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation

under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Colossians 1:15-23

I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to quote all of this passage. It is just too good to miss out on. If I had to pick only one subject of Scripture to call my favorite, it would have to be the verses that speak of the greatness of Jesus Christ. This passage is one such example.

Remember where we just were. Paul had been thanking God for the Colossians’ faith and encouraging them by sharing how he had been praying for them. He pointed everything back to the Good News of Jesus Christ and instructed his flock to turn to the message of the Gospel for strength, wisdom, and power to live in a manner worthy of the Lord.

Now Paul turns his focus to the central character of the Gospel: Jesus Christ. If Christ had not emptied Himself from His position in heaven and taken on the form of man, we would not have any reason to rejoice. But, thanks be to God, Christ did come to earth, live a perfect life in submission to God the Father, and take our sin upon Himself in order that we might become the righteousness of God!

I sometimes wonder how I can sit and write those words without constantly alternating between jumping for joy and falling on my face with tears in my eyes to worship King Jesus.

It is inconceivable to me that Jesus would die for me. I wasn’t even a good person! I was His enemy. I am responsible for the Cross. I am responsible for the agony that He experienced. And I continue to exchange fellowship with Him for the enticements of my flesh and of this world. How ludicrous that He should still care at all about me! And yet, He does. He loves me.

I wish there was a way to share just how passionate this reality makes me. Words fall short. Life doesn’t quite capture it. But, I’ll try anyway.

Jesus isn’t some arbitrary mythological cartoon character. Jesus is God. And He walked on this earth. And He experienced the same hardships and temptations and evil that we do. The only thing is, He remained perfectly righteous through all of it. I dare you to wrap your mind around that! Try and imagine how you could remain perfect through even a single day or event that tries your patience or causes anger. Jesus was perfect.

And this man died. But not even death was enough to destroy Him. Instead, Jesus rose from the dead and promised to destroy death and destroy sin, which for all of us leads to death.

Jesus Christ is alive! Do you get it? Every last failure, every last sorrow, and every last trial will be an afterthought when Jesus is finished restoring order and making all things new! When He presents us holy and blameless and above reproach before God, what else will matter? Will we want to argue how right we were back in ’04 when we yelled at that guy in Target or validate our frustration with the “bob” haircuts? Will it matter that we lost our job and had to eat ramen or lost a friend in an accident? Will these trials still appear bigger than Jesus Christ when we are with Him in glory? Perish the thought, friends!

And I say all of this as a man who knows the daily conflict of suppressing my flesh’s desire to make everything about me. It is exhausting. But there is goodness in it. There is glorious goodness in waging the good war against the flesh and the world and the devil. For when we have proven our faith to be genuine, our life will go on for eternity in the presence of the One who is preeminent: Jesus Christ.

When we are thinking rightly about Jesus, we are not thinking much of ourselves nor our circumstances. They are not nearly as important in light of the Gospel. Jesus Christ died for our sins and He will come back to take His brothers and sisters with Him to glory. Let this hope anchor your heart and soul to Christ and His victory. Let this hope cause a decrease in self-focus and an increased focus on Christ. He has made peace by the blood of His Cross. That peace is ours and will be forever. Can anything compare to Christ?

For the glory of King Jesus…

Walking Through Colossians: Part One

2011-07-18T06:45:00.000-07:00

I have been refreshed time and time again recently by the short, four-chapter letter of Paul to the Colossians. I’m pretty sure the thing I like most about this letter is that Paul talks a lot about Jesus Christ and how great He is. Paul’s words help me refocus when I am beginning to turn my gaze away from Christ and onto myself. With that being said, I guess you could call this writing the first installment of my attempt to share some soul-enriching truth from the pages of the Letter of Paul to the Colossians. I will try to avoid biting off too much text in one sitting, but I make no promises because I am eager to put some thoughts down on “paper.”

Chapter 1:3-14

Paul starts off by saying, “we always thank God for you when we pray for you.” Right away I am convicted that I don’t spend nearly enough time thanking God for the salvation of my friends and family who I pray for! And I certainly don’t tell my fellow Christians how thankful I am to God for their salvation in order to encourage them and remind them of the Gospel. Paul does both at the beginning of his letter (v. 3). I want to be more like Paul here.

Why does Paul thank God? Because upon hearing of their faith in Jesus, he knows the hope that God has stored up for them in Heaven (v. 4-5). Paul knows that these believers are anchored to the Winner of souls, King Jesus, and will never be removed from the Kingdom of Heaven. What greater grounds could there possibly be to be thankful to God than eternal security through the blood of Jesus Christ? That’s the Gospel, and Paul praises God as he sees it functioning in the lives of his fellow Christians.

Paul offers a great example here of why we should thank God for the new life that others have in Jesus Christ. We do it because it glorifies God and gives Him honor and praise for the work He has done through Christ. And we do it because it encourages those in Christ by pointing them to the Cross and to the glory of Jesus.

Without having to shift gears (because the Gospel is central), Paul focuses his readers’ attention of the Gospel. He tells the church that they know the hope laid up for them in Heaven because they have received the Gospel of Jesus Christ (v. 5-6).

Notice a couple of things that Paul says in regards to the Gospel. First, he says that these Christians heard it (v. 6) and learned it from Epaphras (v. 7). The Gospel was spoken to them and then explained to them. It wasn’t a message that they received simply by observing the mannerisms of a Christian. It was spoken, and, upon hearing it, they believed. In Romans 10:17, Paul writes, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Second, Paul says that the Gospel is bearing fruit in the world and also among those who have received it! I don’t know about you, but that gives me great confidence to continue praying for others’ salvation and Christians’ sanctification. God promises that the Gospel is bearing fruit in the whole world and growing His Kingdom.

In verses 9-12, Paul outlines a typical prayer that he would pray for his churches. There is great wisdom here for us if we can see the types of things Paul prays for and gain an understanding of his passionate care for others.

The first thing Paul prays is for the church to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding (v.9). Apparently God’s will is a big deal if the Apostle Paul’s prayers begin by petitioning for an understanding of it!

Now here is a fascinating connection. In verse 10, Paul makes a direct connection between knowing God’s will and our ability to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. (Much of Colossians is Paul’s attempt to teach the church about the actions that cultivate a godly life.)

It’s no coincidence that Chapter 1:15-23, Chapter 2:6-15, and many other sections of the letter speak of the supremacy of Jesus Christ. God’s will was put on display at the Cross of Christ, and, by pointing us to the Gospel, Paul gives us a critical source used to understand the will of God. At the Cross, we see that God is a God of justice and wrath. He is a God who hates sin. But, more than that, we see a God who loves us enough to send His own Son to die in our place. We see a God who is forgiving and merciful. We see a God who spared no expense in redeeming a people for His prized possession. We see a God who is faithful and will follow through with all of His promises. The more we grow in our understanding of God through the Cross, the more we will be able to discern the will of God and walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

Paul continues praying that the church “be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light (v. 11-12).”

Whose power strengthens? God’s power strengthens.

What does God’s power provide? Endurance and patience with joy.

And, by the way, God has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light!

As if Paul hadn’t clubbed his readers over the head with the Gospel enough at the point, this section of the letter concludes with these glorious words:

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the Kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

That is REALLY Good News! Another word for “delivered” is “rescued.” God saved us when we were incapable of saving ourselves. Then, as if saving us from our sin wasn’t enough, He transfers us to the Kingdom where Jesus reigns forever in complete freedom from sin and heartache and worldly troubles!

What a great God! What a glorious Savior!

I pray that the Gospel is functioning in your life. If it is not, there is hope in Jesus Christ. If it is, trust God when He says that it will continue to bear fruit. Let Paul’s words be an example for us to follow. Let us encourage one another. Let us thank God for His work in our lives. Let us cling to Jesus Christ for He anchors our souls with His righteousness forever.

For the glory of Christ.