Far be it for me to criticise, let alone impose my (fallible) beliefs on others. I only seek the truth, and pray that I would do so in love.
"Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:12-13 (NIV)
*****
Annihilationism is the view that whoever and whatever cannot be redeemed by God is ultimately put out of existence. Sentient beings do not suffer eternally, as the traditional view of hell teaches...
The most difficult passages for annihilationists to explain are Revelation 14:10-11 and 20:10. These passages speak of the wicked being tormented "day and night forever and ever". However, these passages are not as decisive against the annihilationist's view as they might initially seem. The phrase "forever and ever" can be translated "for ages upon ages" which implies an indefinite, but not necessarily unending, period of time. Even more fundamentally, it's important to keep in mind that Revelation is a highly symbolic book. Its apocalyptic images shouldn't be interpreted literally. This is particularly true of the phrase "forever and ever" since similar phrases are used elsewhere in Scripture in contexts where they clearly cannot literally mean "unending" (eg. Genesis 49:26; Exodus 40:15; Numbers 25:13; Psalm 24:7).
Perhaps the most significant example of this for our purposes is Isaiah 34:9-10, for it closely parallels the two passages in Revelation. In this passage Isaiah says that the fire that shall consume Edom shall burn "night and day" and "shall not be quenched". Its smoke "shall go up forever" and no one shall pass through this land again "forever and ever". Obviously, this is symbolic, for the fire and smoke of Edom's judgment isn't still ascending today. If this is true of Isaiah, we should be less inclined to interpret similar expressions in the book of Revelation literally.
- Greg Boyd, The Case for Annihilationism
The issue hinges on two problems - theological and exegetical - one of which affects the other. The first is that of the immortality of the human soul. Put broadly, the traditional view holds that the soul is by its very nature immortal, being created in the image of God, and is therefore incapable of 'ultimate' death. Conditionalists argue that this view is more Greek than biblical, and hold that immortality is a blessing bestowed on the redeemed as a result of the work of Christ. The view taken on this question, therefore, acts as a control belief for the second problem, that of the exegesis of the various texts concerned with the ultimate fate of the wicked.
If it is held that the soul is innately immortal, clearly these texts must be interpreted in a way which reflects this, and 'eternal punishment' has to be understood as 'unending punishment'. If, on the other hand, immortality is made conditional on the acceptance of God's forgiveness, it begs the question as to how the biblical imagery of 'destruction', 'burning', 'the second death' etc. should be interpreted. Conditionalists argue that the plain meaning of all such texts is that God's judgment on the impenitent results in their final extinction or annihilation. 'Eternal punishment' in this context is held to imply 'of everlasting effect' rather than 'everlastingly in progress'. These two issues, then, lie at the heart of the current debate.
- Alan M. Linfield, Sheep and Goats: Current Evangelical Thought on the Nature of Hell and the Scope of Salvation
Incidentally, Rikk Watts, who spoke at The Living Word 2010, holds to annihilationism. John Stott is also open to it, while N. T. Wright posits a third way between annihilationism (ie. eternal death) and eternal torment - eternal dehumanisation.
A Tentative Position
I [Stott] am hesitant to have written these things [about annihilationism], partly because I have a great respect for longstanding tradition which claims to be a true interpretation of Scripture, and do not lightly set it aside, and partly because the unity of the worldwide evangelical constituency has always meant much to me. But the issue is too important to suppress, and I am grateful to you [Edwards] for challenging me to declare my present mind.
I do not dogmatise about the position to which I have come. I hold it tentatively. But I do plead for frank dialogue among evangelicals on the basis of Scripture. I also believe that the ultimate annihilation of the wicked should at least be accepted as a legitimate, biblically founded alternative to their eternal conscious torment.
- David L. Edwards and John Stott, Evangelical Essentials: A Liberal-Evangelical Dialogue
What is more consistent with God's justice and mercy - eternal capital punishment or indefinite life imprisonment?
What are the wages of sin - death or eternal torment? (Eternal torment is eternal life, albeit in torment.)
What is the gift of God - eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (as opposed to death) or heaven (as opposed to hell)?
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 6:23 (NIV)
Links: The Philosophy and Theology of Eternal Punishment (12 Mar 10), Tetelestai (10 Sep 10), Life, Death and Destiny (22 Jan 11)
Tuesday 31 August 2010
Monday 30 August 2010
The Sovereignty of God and the Role of the Government
I attended a forum on Saturday, Singaporeans in Conversation Dialogue 2010: "The Singaporean Dream vs The Singaporean Reality". Being back in Singapore for good, I've also been trying to keep up with the issues in this year's National Day Rally. This got me thinking about the sovereignty of God in relation to the role of the government.
The Problem of Evil and the Sovereignty of God in Governing Creation
Assuming that evil exists, we can either say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil or that God does not exist. However, we cannot both say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil AND that God does not exist. In order to say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil, we must first believe that He exists.
Of course, to say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil is not to say that God is the author of evil. Rather, man is the author of evil and God is the author of good out of evil.
"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." - Genesis 50:20 (NIV)
"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." - 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV)
"When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death." - James 1:13-15 (NIV)
We are responsible for what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world, and God is responsible for working all things (ie. what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world) 'for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose' (Romans 8:28, NIV) in this particular world - the best possible world out of all possible worlds.
The Problem of Limited Resources and the Role of the Government in Governing Singapore
Assuming that resources are limited, we can either say that the government is (in some sense) responsible for limiting resources or that the government should not exist. However, we cannot both say that the government is (in some sense) responsible for limiting resources AND that the government should not exist. In order to say that the government is (in some sense) responsible for limiting resources, we must first believe that the government should exist.
Would we really want to live in a society where there is no government at all? Is it even possible for us to live in a society where there is no government at all? How would we decide to allocate limited resources? And how would public goods be provided?
Just as God could not create a better world because there isn't one (the alternative is to say that God could create a better world but chooses not to), so the government (past a certain point) could not create a better society because there isn't one. For example, the government (past a certain point) could not increase welfare/workfare without also raising taxes.
God is perfect and no government is perfect. But having an imperfect government is better than having no government at all. And having a God who works all things (even evil - especially evil!) according to His good, pleasing and perfect will is certainly better than having no God at all.
The Problem of Evil and the Sovereignty of God in Governing Creation
Assuming that evil exists, we can either say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil or that God does not exist. However, we cannot both say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil AND that God does not exist. In order to say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil, we must first believe that He exists.
Of course, to say that God is (in some sense) responsible for evil is not to say that God is the author of evil. Rather, man is the author of evil and God is the author of good out of evil.
"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." - Genesis 50:20 (NIV)
"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." - 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV)
"When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death." - James 1:13-15 (NIV)
We are responsible for what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world, and God is responsible for working all things (ie. what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world) 'for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose' (Romans 8:28, NIV) in this particular world - the best possible world out of all possible worlds.
The Problem of Limited Resources and the Role of the Government in Governing Singapore
Assuming that resources are limited, we can either say that the government is (in some sense) responsible for limiting resources or that the government should not exist. However, we cannot both say that the government is (in some sense) responsible for limiting resources AND that the government should not exist. In order to say that the government is (in some sense) responsible for limiting resources, we must first believe that the government should exist.
Would we really want to live in a society where there is no government at all? Is it even possible for us to live in a society where there is no government at all? How would we decide to allocate limited resources? And how would public goods be provided?
Just as God could not create a better world because there isn't one (the alternative is to say that God could create a better world but chooses not to), so the government (past a certain point) could not create a better society because there isn't one. For example, the government (past a certain point) could not increase welfare/workfare without also raising taxes.
God is perfect and no government is perfect. But having an imperfect government is better than having no government at all. And having a God who works all things (even evil - especially evil!) according to His good, pleasing and perfect will is certainly better than having no God at all.
Sunday 29 August 2010
On Corporate Worship
Most churches would agree that any segregation arising from racial or economic bigotry runs contrary to the nature of the gospel and should not be tolerated. But there's another kind of segregation, perhaps more subtle, that many churches today have unapologetically embraced.
Following the lead of the advertising world, many churches and worship services target specific age groups to the exclusion of others. They forget that, according to the Bible, the church is an all-age community, and instead they organise themselves around distinctives dividing the generations: Busters, Boomers, Millennials, Generations X, Y, and Z. Many churches offer a traditional service for the tribe who prefer older music and a contemporary service for the tribe who prefer new music. The truth is, however, that if the only type of music you employ in a worship service is old, you inadvertently communicate that God was more active in the past than He is in the present. On the other hand, if the only type of music you employ in a worship service is new, you inadvertently communicate that God is more active in the present than He was in the past.
The only way to musically communicate God's timeless activity in the life of the church is to blend the best of the past with the best of the present. In other words, we must remember in our worship that while "contemporary only" people operate with their heads fixed frontwards, never looking over their shoulder at the stock from which they have come, and "traditional only" people operate with their heads on backwards, romanticising about the past and always wanting to go back, the Church, in contrast from both extremes, is called upon to be a people with swivelling heads: learning from the past, living in the present, and looking to the future. That's the only way to avoid in worship what C. S. Lewis called "chronological snobbery".
- Tullian Tchividjian, We Are One
Following the lead of the advertising world, many churches and worship services target specific age groups to the exclusion of others. They forget that, according to the Bible, the church is an all-age community, and instead they organise themselves around distinctives dividing the generations: Busters, Boomers, Millennials, Generations X, Y, and Z. Many churches offer a traditional service for the tribe who prefer older music and a contemporary service for the tribe who prefer new music. The truth is, however, that if the only type of music you employ in a worship service is old, you inadvertently communicate that God was more active in the past than He is in the present. On the other hand, if the only type of music you employ in a worship service is new, you inadvertently communicate that God is more active in the present than He was in the past.
The only way to musically communicate God's timeless activity in the life of the church is to blend the best of the past with the best of the present. In other words, we must remember in our worship that while "contemporary only" people operate with their heads fixed frontwards, never looking over their shoulder at the stock from which they have come, and "traditional only" people operate with their heads on backwards, romanticising about the past and always wanting to go back, the Church, in contrast from both extremes, is called upon to be a people with swivelling heads: learning from the past, living in the present, and looking to the future. That's the only way to avoid in worship what C. S. Lewis called "chronological snobbery".
- Tullian Tchividjian, We Are One
Saturday 28 August 2010
Abraham and Isaac
Both men received God's call and promise.
Both lived during a period of famine.
Both men dwelt in Gerar.
Both men had lovely wives.
Both men were cowards in the face of possible harm.
Both men lied and said their wife was their sister.
Both men were spared the consequences of their sin by God's mercy.
Both men were rebuked by more pious Gentiles for their lying schemes.
Both men were pursued by Abimelech (Isaac may have actually dealt with Abimelech's son or grandson with the same name) for a covenant.
Both men were a blessing to their neighbours.
Both men trusted God and lived peacefully with their neighbours.
Despite Isaac's unbelief that God would protect him and his wife, God blessed him nonetheless making him very wealthy. From the story it is apparent that Isaac was blessed solely because of God's grace to him as he was a conniving and undeserving man. Much like his father, Isaac is far from perfect but God remains true to His covenant promises nonetheless.
- Mark Driscoll, Genesis: Meditations on Moses' Mosaic
Link: Isaac and Jesus (27 Aug 10)
Both lived during a period of famine.
Both men dwelt in Gerar.
Both men had lovely wives.
Both men were cowards in the face of possible harm.
Both men lied and said their wife was their sister.
Both men were spared the consequences of their sin by God's mercy.
Both men were rebuked by more pious Gentiles for their lying schemes.
Both men were pursued by Abimelech (Isaac may have actually dealt with Abimelech's son or grandson with the same name) for a covenant.
Both men were a blessing to their neighbours.
Both men trusted God and lived peacefully with their neighbours.
Despite Isaac's unbelief that God would protect him and his wife, God blessed him nonetheless making him very wealthy. From the story it is apparent that Isaac was blessed solely because of God's grace to him as he was a conniving and undeserving man. Much like his father, Isaac is far from perfect but God remains true to His covenant promises nonetheless.
- Mark Driscoll, Genesis: Meditations on Moses' Mosaic
Link: Isaac and Jesus (27 Aug 10)
Friday 27 August 2010
Hebrews 11:17-19
I've found that a shelf of uplifting books helps me keep my thoughts tilted positively, so I have quite a collection of volumes both religious and secular. But I don't recall even one of these books devoting as much as a single chapter to the primary requirement and condition necessary for claiming the optimism of Romans 8:28 - loving God.
Yet this is the greatest of all the commands. Jesus Himself summarised all the requirements of the Old Testament by telling us to love God and to love people. When we genuinely fall in love with the Lord, we naturally keep His commands and do what pleases Him. That's why the Bible says that loving God is tantamount to fulfilling the Law...
Have you ever had an experience in which God measured or verified your love for Him? I'm sure you have, and so have I. The Lord is a master teacher who gives periodic exams to His followers to see how they're doing in the most critical subjects. The scary thing is that sometimes we may not even recognise when God is testing us. Not only do we fail the test, we don't even know it's being given!
Here are some hints. Have you had a financial reversal? Have you had health issues? Have you experienced challenges in a treasured relationship? Have things been bumpy at work? Has a valued client changed firms? Has a longed-for goal vanished into thin air? Have your goals evaporated before your eyes despite intense efforts on your part?
Deuteronomy 13:3b says, "'The LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul.'"
Perhaps God is watching your reaction to see if your devotion to these things eclipses your heartfelt and burning devotion to Him. He's waiting to see if your all-encompassing love and trust in Him keeps your soul buoyant amid the passing concerns of life...
[Of course, God knows what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world. Indeed, He uses this knowledge ("middle knowledge") to work all things according to His good, pleasing and perfect will.]
In Genesis 22, God tested Abraham's love by asking him to sacrifice Isaac, his only son whom he loved. Isaac was the longed-for son of Abraham's old age, the boy he had prayed about for many years. He was the light of Abraham's life, and we can visualise the old fellow kneeling over his sleeping son, stroking his hair, and loving him with all his heart. Young Isaac represented all of Abraham's hopes for the future. He was the promised lineage through whom the entire world would be blessed.
Abraham's love for his earthly son was so intense it could easily have crowded out his love for his heavenly Father. In one of the most unusual chapters of the Old Testament, God tested Abraham to see if perhaps his love for Isaac was greater than his love for the Lord...
We commit ourselves to Him like a husband and wife making their vows at the altar, and we learn the joy of living with Him each day, talking to Him in prayer, listening to His Word, worshipping Him, thanking Him for His blessings, trusting Him with our burdens, proving His faithfulness, and walking in His presence. We are called the "bride of Christ" and the "friends of God". In any marriage, the partners are either growing close or further apart each day. The same is true for our relationship with Christ.
- Robert J. Morgan, The Promise: God Works All Things Together for Your Good
Have you ever had a Bible verse/passage which keeps coming back to you? Over the past year, God has been drawing my attention to the story of Abraham being tested in Genesis 22. When Abraham's Dilemma (killing his son vs disobeying God's clear command to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering) even comes up in one of your philosophy modules, you know that God is convicting you of something!
Apart from Romans 8:28 and Matthew 6:33, Hebrews 11:17-19 is probably the Bible verse/passage which I have spent the most time meditating upon over the past year.
"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
Ok, maybe Romans 12:1-2 isn't too far behind.
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
As well as Philippians 4:6-7.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
Links: Romans 8:28 (27 Aug 10), The Real Question (10 Sep 10)
Yet this is the greatest of all the commands. Jesus Himself summarised all the requirements of the Old Testament by telling us to love God and to love people. When we genuinely fall in love with the Lord, we naturally keep His commands and do what pleases Him. That's why the Bible says that loving God is tantamount to fulfilling the Law...
Have you ever had an experience in which God measured or verified your love for Him? I'm sure you have, and so have I. The Lord is a master teacher who gives periodic exams to His followers to see how they're doing in the most critical subjects. The scary thing is that sometimes we may not even recognise when God is testing us. Not only do we fail the test, we don't even know it's being given!
Here are some hints. Have you had a financial reversal? Have you had health issues? Have you experienced challenges in a treasured relationship? Have things been bumpy at work? Has a valued client changed firms? Has a longed-for goal vanished into thin air? Have your goals evaporated before your eyes despite intense efforts on your part?
Deuteronomy 13:3b says, "'The LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul.'"
Perhaps God is watching your reaction to see if your devotion to these things eclipses your heartfelt and burning devotion to Him. He's waiting to see if your all-encompassing love and trust in Him keeps your soul buoyant amid the passing concerns of life...
[Of course, God knows what we would freely do in every possible situation in every possible world. Indeed, He uses this knowledge ("middle knowledge") to work all things according to His good, pleasing and perfect will.]
In Genesis 22, God tested Abraham's love by asking him to sacrifice Isaac, his only son whom he loved. Isaac was the longed-for son of Abraham's old age, the boy he had prayed about for many years. He was the light of Abraham's life, and we can visualise the old fellow kneeling over his sleeping son, stroking his hair, and loving him with all his heart. Young Isaac represented all of Abraham's hopes for the future. He was the promised lineage through whom the entire world would be blessed.
Abraham's love for his earthly son was so intense it could easily have crowded out his love for his heavenly Father. In one of the most unusual chapters of the Old Testament, God tested Abraham to see if perhaps his love for Isaac was greater than his love for the Lord...
We commit ourselves to Him like a husband and wife making their vows at the altar, and we learn the joy of living with Him each day, talking to Him in prayer, listening to His Word, worshipping Him, thanking Him for His blessings, trusting Him with our burdens, proving His faithfulness, and walking in His presence. We are called the "bride of Christ" and the "friends of God". In any marriage, the partners are either growing close or further apart each day. The same is true for our relationship with Christ.
- Robert J. Morgan, The Promise: God Works All Things Together for Your Good
Have you ever had a Bible verse/passage which keeps coming back to you? Over the past year, God has been drawing my attention to the story of Abraham being tested in Genesis 22. When Abraham's Dilemma (killing his son vs disobeying God's clear command to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering) even comes up in one of your philosophy modules, you know that God is convicting you of something!
Apart from Romans 8:28 and Matthew 6:33, Hebrews 11:17-19 is probably the Bible verse/passage which I have spent the most time meditating upon over the past year.
"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
Ok, maybe Romans 12:1-2 isn't too far behind.
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
As well as Philippians 4:6-7.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
Links: Romans 8:28 (27 Aug 10), The Real Question (10 Sep 10)
Romans 8:28
Romans 8:28 is all-inclusive, all-powerful, and always available. It is as omnipotent as the God who signed and sealed it. It's as loving as the Saviour who died to unleash it. It can do anything God can do. It can touch any hurt and redeem any problem. It isn't a mere platitude but a divine promise. It isn't a goal but a guarantee. It isn't wishful thinking but a shaft of almighty providence that lands squarely on our pathway each day and every moment.
The Lord moves heaven and earth to keep this promise. He puts His eye to the microscope of providential oversight and scans the smallest details of our lives, working them into a tapestry of blessing, making sure that goodness and mercy follow us all our days. He turns problems inside out, transforming bad things to blessings and converting trials into triumphs. He alone knows how to bring Easters out of Good Fridays...
Dr. Handley Moule was a brilliant British Bible teacher and author who died in 1920. On one occasion, he was called to the scene of a terrible accident at a British coal mine. Many friends and relatives of the victims of the cave-in gathered, and it was Dr. Moule's responsibility to address them.
"It is very difficult," he said, "for us to understand why God should let an awful disaster happen, but we know Him and trust Him, and all will be right. I have at home an old bookmarker given me by my mother. It is worked in silk, and when I examine the wrong side of it, I see nothing but a tangle of threads. It looks like a big mistake. One would think that someone had done it who did not know what she was doing. But when I turn it over and look at the right side, I see there, beautifully embroidered, the letters, 'God is love!' We are looking at all this today from the wrong side. Some day we shall see it from another standpoint and we shall understand."
Sometimes in the face of tragedy and disappointment, we can only hide ourselves in the promises of God until the storm passes by. We have to reassure our heart with the facts of God when we can't calculate the sums of life. We have to tell ourselves the truth, regardless of appearances to the contrary: Not some things, but all things work together.
- Robert J. Morgan, The Promise: God Works All Things Together for Your Good
There is a song which immediately (and I mean immediately) springs to mind.
Trust His Heart
All things work for our good
Though sometimes we can't see how they could
Struggles that break our hearts in two
Sometimes blind us to the truth
Our Father knows what's best for us
His ways are not our own
So when your pathway grows dim
And you just can't see Him
Remember you're never alone
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
He sees the masterplan
He holds our future in His hands
So don't live as those who have no hope
All our hope is found in Him
We see the present clearly
But He sees the first and the last
And like a tapestry
He's weaving you and me
To someday be just like Him
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
He alone is faithful and true
He alone knows what is best for you...
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
Links: Hebrews 11:17-19 (27 Aug 10), The Real Question (10 Sep 10)
The Lord moves heaven and earth to keep this promise. He puts His eye to the microscope of providential oversight and scans the smallest details of our lives, working them into a tapestry of blessing, making sure that goodness and mercy follow us all our days. He turns problems inside out, transforming bad things to blessings and converting trials into triumphs. He alone knows how to bring Easters out of Good Fridays...
Dr. Handley Moule was a brilliant British Bible teacher and author who died in 1920. On one occasion, he was called to the scene of a terrible accident at a British coal mine. Many friends and relatives of the victims of the cave-in gathered, and it was Dr. Moule's responsibility to address them.
"It is very difficult," he said, "for us to understand why God should let an awful disaster happen, but we know Him and trust Him, and all will be right. I have at home an old bookmarker given me by my mother. It is worked in silk, and when I examine the wrong side of it, I see nothing but a tangle of threads. It looks like a big mistake. One would think that someone had done it who did not know what she was doing. But when I turn it over and look at the right side, I see there, beautifully embroidered, the letters, 'God is love!' We are looking at all this today from the wrong side. Some day we shall see it from another standpoint and we shall understand."
Sometimes in the face of tragedy and disappointment, we can only hide ourselves in the promises of God until the storm passes by. We have to reassure our heart with the facts of God when we can't calculate the sums of life. We have to tell ourselves the truth, regardless of appearances to the contrary: Not some things, but all things work together.
- Robert J. Morgan, The Promise: God Works All Things Together for Your Good
There is a song which immediately (and I mean immediately) springs to mind.
Trust His Heart
All things work for our good
Though sometimes we can't see how they could
Struggles that break our hearts in two
Sometimes blind us to the truth
Our Father knows what's best for us
His ways are not our own
So when your pathway grows dim
And you just can't see Him
Remember you're never alone
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
He sees the masterplan
He holds our future in His hands
So don't live as those who have no hope
All our hope is found in Him
We see the present clearly
But He sees the first and the last
And like a tapestry
He's weaving you and me
To someday be just like Him
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
He alone is faithful and true
He alone knows what is best for you...
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
So when you don't understand
When you don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His heart
Links: Hebrews 11:17-19 (27 Aug 10), The Real Question (10 Sep 10)
Isaac and Jesus
Isaac and Jesus were both sons of a promise that was given many years before their birth.
Isaac and Jesus were both born to women who could not have conceived apart from a miracle.
Isaac and Jesus were both firstborn sons.
Isaac and Jesus were both greatly loved by their father/Father.
Isaac carried his own wood to the sacrifice just as Jesus carried His own wooden cross to His crucifixion.
Isaac and Jesus each willingly laid down their lives to their father/Father.
Isaac and Jesus were both laid down as a burnt offering for sin.
Isaac was brought back from the dead figuratively and Jesus was brought back from the dead literally.
According to Hebrews 11:17-19 Abraham's faith was so great that, "By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death."
After having walked with God for many years and seeing God provide in very difficult situations Abraham had apparently learned to trust God no matter what. And, his faith in God was so resolute that he believed that even if he killed his son that God who gave him the son through a miracle could give him back through yet another miracle. After all, Abraham had also lost his wife on two occasions only to see God bring her back to him and Abraham believed that God would do the same with Isaac.
Lastly, and I admit this is speculation, I believe that perhaps God brought this test not to discover what was in Abraham's heart, as God would have already known that. But, God may have waited for this test until his son Isaac was a young man so that Isaac could see that Abraham loved God more than even his own son whom he dearly loved, and trusted God with that which was most dear to him so that Isaac could see this event, experience the depth of his father's faith, and love and trust God as his father did.
- Mark Driscoll, Genesis: Meditations on Moses' Mosaic
Link: Abraham and Isaac (28 Aug 10)
Isaac and Jesus were both born to women who could not have conceived apart from a miracle.
Isaac and Jesus were both firstborn sons.
Isaac and Jesus were both greatly loved by their father/Father.
Isaac carried his own wood to the sacrifice just as Jesus carried His own wooden cross to His crucifixion.
Isaac and Jesus each willingly laid down their lives to their father/Father.
Isaac and Jesus were both laid down as a burnt offering for sin.
Isaac was brought back from the dead figuratively and Jesus was brought back from the dead literally.
According to Hebrews 11:17-19 Abraham's faith was so great that, "By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death."
After having walked with God for many years and seeing God provide in very difficult situations Abraham had apparently learned to trust God no matter what. And, his faith in God was so resolute that he believed that even if he killed his son that God who gave him the son through a miracle could give him back through yet another miracle. After all, Abraham had also lost his wife on two occasions only to see God bring her back to him and Abraham believed that God would do the same with Isaac.
Lastly, and I admit this is speculation, I believe that perhaps God brought this test not to discover what was in Abraham's heart, as God would have already known that. But, God may have waited for this test until his son Isaac was a young man so that Isaac could see that Abraham loved God more than even his own son whom he dearly loved, and trusted God with that which was most dear to him so that Isaac could see this event, experience the depth of his father's faith, and love and trust God as his father did.
- Mark Driscoll, Genesis: Meditations on Moses' Mosaic
Link: Abraham and Isaac (28 Aug 10)
Thursday 26 August 2010
Rely on God
I'm reading the Bible in one year and the New Testament reading for Aug 26 is 2 Corinthians 1:1-11.
"Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead." - 2 Corinthians 1:9 (NIV)
If we should rely on God to raise our mortal bodies from the dead, how much more should we rely on God to raise our earthly desires from the dead! As William P. Risk puts it, 'by obeying God, we enter into a rest that results from being utterly dependent on Him, relying on His activity and agenda rather than our own'.
"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
Link: God raises the dead (2 Jul 10)
"Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead." - 2 Corinthians 1:9 (NIV)
If we should rely on God to raise our mortal bodies from the dead, how much more should we rely on God to raise our earthly desires from the dead! As William P. Risk puts it, 'by obeying God, we enter into a rest that results from being utterly dependent on Him, relying on His activity and agenda rather than our own'.
"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
Link: God raises the dead (2 Jul 10)
Wednesday 25 August 2010
In Love
2009 Verse of the Year for York Baptist ChurchI'm reading the Bible in one year and the New Testament reading for Aug 25 is 1 Corinthians 16:5-24.
"Do everything in love." - 1 Corinthians 16:14 (NIV)
For example,
1. Serve one another in love.
"You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love." - Galatians 5:13 (NIV)
2. Bear with one another in love.
"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." - Ephesians 4:2 (NIV)
3. Speak the truth in love.
"Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ." - Ephesians 4:15 (NIV)
Tuesday 24 August 2010
Living in the Present
We need to avoid becoming obsessed with the future and the things that God has concealed from us and instead strive to become consumed with what He has revealed. Otherwise, we may miss the significance of our current season by failing to invest our life's energies wisely. We must be careful about throwing away our vocation, our ministry, our relationships or anything that may seem fruitless and frustrating at this time.
Sadly, most people live in a "Wish I" world in which they would rather be someone else or live somewhere else. Yet we can take advantage of this season and maximise our returns by doing what we know to do.
- Marlinda Ireland, What is God Waiting For?
"When Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer: "Do not think that because you are in the king's house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"" - Esther 4:12-14 (NIV)
The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one's "own", or "real" life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one's real life - the life God is sending one day by day; what one calls one's "real life" is a phantom of one's own imagination. This at least is what I see at moments of insight; but it's hard to remember it all the time.
- C. S. Lewis, The Quotable Lewis
Before we can live in the future, we must live in the present. Before we can live for tomorrow, we must live for today. We cannot change what COULD be or what WILL be, but we can change what WOULD be.
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:33-34 (NIV)
Sadly, most people live in a "Wish I" world in which they would rather be someone else or live somewhere else. Yet we can take advantage of this season and maximise our returns by doing what we know to do.
- Marlinda Ireland, What is God Waiting For?
"When Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer: "Do not think that because you are in the king's house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"" - Esther 4:12-14 (NIV)
The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one's "own", or "real" life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one's real life - the life God is sending one day by day; what one calls one's "real life" is a phantom of one's own imagination. This at least is what I see at moments of insight; but it's hard to remember it all the time.
- C. S. Lewis, The Quotable Lewis
Before we can live in the future, we must live in the present. Before we can live for tomorrow, we must live for today. We cannot change what COULD be or what WILL be, but we can change what WOULD be.
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:33-34 (NIV)
Monday 23 August 2010
Waiting for the LORD in Isaiah
1. The Purpose of Waiting for the LORD
"Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts." - Isaiah 26:8 (NIV)
We wait for the LORD, not for Him to satisfy our selfish desires, but for Him to glorify His name and renown, in and through us. Of course, God will give us the desires of our hearts as we delight ourselves in Him (Psalm 37:4). As John Piper puts it, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
2. The Practice of Waiting for the LORD
"Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
"O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." Then you will defile your idols overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold; you will throw them away like a menstrual cloth and say to them, "Away with you!"" - Isaiah 30:18-22 (NIV)
We wait for the LORD by crying out to Him for help and destroying the idols of our hearts.
3. The Promise of Waiting for the LORD
"Since ancient times no on has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him." - Isaiah 64:4 (NIV)
We wait for the LORD knowing that He is our strength and acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
Our God, You reign forever
Our hope, our strong deliverer
You are the everlasting God, the everlasting God
You do not faint, You won't grow weary
You're the defender of the weak
You comfort those in need
You lift us up on wings like eagles
"Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." - Isaiah 40:28-31 (ESV)
Link: More on Waiting for the LORD in Isaiah (5 Sep 10)
"Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts." - Isaiah 26:8 (NIV)
We wait for the LORD, not for Him to satisfy our selfish desires, but for Him to glorify His name and renown, in and through us. Of course, God will give us the desires of our hearts as we delight ourselves in Him (Psalm 37:4). As John Piper puts it, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
2. The Practice of Waiting for the LORD
"Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
"O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." Then you will defile your idols overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold; you will throw them away like a menstrual cloth and say to them, "Away with you!"" - Isaiah 30:18-22 (NIV)
We wait for the LORD by crying out to Him for help and destroying the idols of our hearts.
3. The Promise of Waiting for the LORD
"Since ancient times no on has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him." - Isaiah 64:4 (NIV)
We wait for the LORD knowing that He is our strength and acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
We will wait upon the Lord
Our God, You reign forever
Our hope, our strong deliverer
You are the everlasting God, the everlasting God
You do not faint, You won't grow weary
You're the defender of the weak
You comfort those in need
You lift us up on wings like eagles
"Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." - Isaiah 40:28-31 (ESV)
Link: More on Waiting for the LORD in Isaiah (5 Sep 10)
Sunday 22 August 2010
Aug 15 to 21
Aug 15: "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." - 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV)
Aug 16: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." - 1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
Aug 17: "Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on his throne as king to rule for the LORD your God. Because of the love of your God for Israel and his desire to uphold them for ever, he has made you king over them, to maintain justice and righteousness." - 2 Chronicles 9:8 (NIV)
Aug 18: "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ." - 1 Corinthians 12:12 (NIV)
Aug 19: "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)
Aug 20: "He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the LORD." - 2 Chronicles 12:14 (NIV)
Aug 21: "They entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul." - 2 Chronicles 15:12 (NIV)
Aug 16: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." - 1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
Aug 17: "Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on his throne as king to rule for the LORD your God. Because of the love of your God for Israel and his desire to uphold them for ever, he has made you king over them, to maintain justice and righteousness." - 2 Chronicles 9:8 (NIV)
Aug 18: "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ." - 1 Corinthians 12:12 (NIV)
Aug 19: "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)
Aug 20: "He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the LORD." - 2 Chronicles 12:14 (NIV)
Aug 21: "They entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul." - 2 Chronicles 15:12 (NIV)
Saturday 21 August 2010
God will provide
The story of how God provided for the infant nation Israel when they were wandering in the wilderness also illustrates God's care for his people and his desire for them to depend on him.
At the beginning of their time in the wilderness, God had set the pattern of six days of work followed by one day of rest, modelled after his work in creation. But God had not yet commanded Sabbath-keeping through the Ten Commandments that he later gave at Sinai. At that time, the Israelites grumbled for food, some even longing to go back to Egypt because the prospects in the desert looked so grim. God lovingly and miraculously provided manna, and he provided it in a way that teaches an important lesson about his character and about the meaning of the Sabbath.
Through the daily appearance of manna, God showed the Israelites that they could trust him to take care of their needs. Then on the sixth day, God asked the Israelites to collect enough manna for two days so that they could observe a Sabbath day of rest from work. It was as if God was saying, "Trust in me for today's provision and tomorrow's. I will provide for your daily bread, and I will take care of your anxieties for your future well-being."
How we so easily forget that God provides for us. And this is one reason that God commanded Sabbath-observance at Sinai. He knew how easy it would be for his people to forget that he is the one providing. Ceasing from work one day a week would be a tangible reminder of where they were placing their trust - on their own work or on their gracious God.
- Danielle Sallade, Human Flourishing
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:33-34 (NIV)
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)
At the beginning of their time in the wilderness, God had set the pattern of six days of work followed by one day of rest, modelled after his work in creation. But God had not yet commanded Sabbath-keeping through the Ten Commandments that he later gave at Sinai. At that time, the Israelites grumbled for food, some even longing to go back to Egypt because the prospects in the desert looked so grim. God lovingly and miraculously provided manna, and he provided it in a way that teaches an important lesson about his character and about the meaning of the Sabbath.
Through the daily appearance of manna, God showed the Israelites that they could trust him to take care of their needs. Then on the sixth day, God asked the Israelites to collect enough manna for two days so that they could observe a Sabbath day of rest from work. It was as if God was saying, "Trust in me for today's provision and tomorrow's. I will provide for your daily bread, and I will take care of your anxieties for your future well-being."
How we so easily forget that God provides for us. And this is one reason that God commanded Sabbath-observance at Sinai. He knew how easy it would be for his people to forget that he is the one providing. Ceasing from work one day a week would be a tangible reminder of where they were placing their trust - on their own work or on their gracious God.
- Danielle Sallade, Human Flourishing
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:33-34 (NIV)
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)
Friday 20 August 2010
For the Glory of God
As Pastor Tim Keller has noted, when our Saviour came to earth, he did not come as a philosopher (a job the Greeks would have highly valued), nor as a noble statesman (a job the Romans would have highly valued), nor as a powerful military general (a job the Jews would have highly valued), but he came as a carpenter - in our modern lingo, a union guy - and this was the one who would save the world.
Thus, we would do well to get rid of our modern notions that only some work has dignity because of the compensation and prestige that go with it. We should stop thinking that some work is less valuable because it pays less, requires less education, and is physical in nature rather than cerebral.
- Danielle Sallade, Human Flourishing
"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." - 1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
Thus, we would do well to get rid of our modern notions that only some work has dignity because of the compensation and prestige that go with it. We should stop thinking that some work is less valuable because it pays less, requires less education, and is physical in nature rather than cerebral.
- Danielle Sallade, Human Flourishing
"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." - 1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
Thursday 19 August 2010
For the Love of God
The love of God, and the love of the world, are two affections, not merely in a state of rivalship, but in a state of enmity, and that so irreconcilable that they cannot dwell together in the same bosom.
We have already affirmed how impossible it were for the heart, by any innate elasticity of its own, to cast the world away from it, and thus reduce itself to a wilderness. The heart is not so constituted, and the only way to dispossess it of an old affection is by the expulsive power of a new one.
- Thomas Chalmers, The Expulsive Power of a New Affection
"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart." - Psalm 37:4 (NIV)
Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.
- C. S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory
We have already affirmed how impossible it were for the heart, by any innate elasticity of its own, to cast the world away from it, and thus reduce itself to a wilderness. The heart is not so constituted, and the only way to dispossess it of an old affection is by the expulsive power of a new one.
- Thomas Chalmers, The Expulsive Power of a New Affection
"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart." - Psalm 37:4 (NIV)
Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.
- C. S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory
Wednesday 18 August 2010
The Resurrection
Most people don't realise that even Jesus experienced a divine delay. He spent three days in the tomb, with the wounds of spiritual and physical warfare all over His body. His head was bruised and scarred beyond recognition. His hands, His feet and His side were pierced through and through. For three long days, He laid on a cold slab of stone. It was dark in that cave. It was lonely. All of His friends and family members had scattered. They were in a state of shock. And I'm sure that even Satan believed that Christ was down for the count. It likely appeared to everyone that Jesus was defeated and that the ultimate dagger and deathblow were firmly in place.
I have often wondered why God allowed His only Son to remain in that condition for three long days. Why didn't the Father simply resurrect His Son immediately after He laid His life down? It would have been so easy for the Almighty to do this. It would have been so effortless. Thankfully, the Saviour knew the end from the beginning. Unlike Jesus, we are not blessed with such omniscience. Instead, when in the midst of a divine delay, we find ourselves asking such desperate questions as: Why me? Why now? Why this? Lord, am I down for the count?
- Marlinda Ireland, What is God Waiting For?
"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
"I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." - John 12:24 (NIV)
"He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all - how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" - Romans 8:32 (NIV)
I have often wondered why God allowed His only Son to remain in that condition for three long days. Why didn't the Father simply resurrect His Son immediately after He laid His life down? It would have been so easy for the Almighty to do this. It would have been so effortless. Thankfully, the Saviour knew the end from the beginning. Unlike Jesus, we are not blessed with such omniscience. Instead, when in the midst of a divine delay, we find ourselves asking such desperate questions as: Why me? Why now? Why this? Lord, am I down for the count?
- Marlinda Ireland, What is God Waiting For?
"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death." - Hebrews 11:17-19 (NIV)
"I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." - John 12:24 (NIV)
"He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all - how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" - Romans 8:32 (NIV)
Tuesday 17 August 2010
The Atonement
We might think that in the case of God his offer of forgiveness should then be possible without any demand for retribution or satisfaction. But although such an offer is made, the offender may not be contrite, and the grip of sin is such that sinners are not capable of showing the necessary contrition.
OT sacrifices could be understood as expressions of contrition, with the offering of a (valuable) article as expression and proof of the inner feeling, and these were offered in accordance with a divine direction that this way of dealing with sin was prescribed by God and acceptable to him. The sins in question were publicly confessed, the sinner laid hands on the sacrifice to indicate that it was their sacrifice and was in respect of the actual sins confessed. In this way the sacrifice could be said to take away sin.
In the NT, the danger of thinking that an outward act can deal with sin is clearly recognised (Hebrews 10:4, 11). God, who provided the path of sacrifice in the OT, now intervenes to provide a new offering, himself dying in the person of the Son who has united himself with humanity, to make the offering which will deal with sin. Christ, or his name or his death are integral to the New Testament concept of forgiveness. In Hebrews it is seen as the fruit of sacrifice (Hebrews 9:22, 10:18). In Ephesians 1:7 it is linked to the blood of Jesus. In Colossians 1:14 it is not far distant from a reference to peace being made by the blood of the cross (Colossians 1:20).
Thus God takes the initiative, God himself bears the sin and gives his Son in his sacrificial death as the way or means by which sinners can come to him. The sinner no longer needs to bring an offering to God, for Christ has already made that offering in the heavenly sanctuary. The conferral of forgiveness costs the sinner nothing, but it costs God everything.
- I. Howard Marshall, The Theology of the Atonement
OT sacrifices could be understood as expressions of contrition, with the offering of a (valuable) article as expression and proof of the inner feeling, and these were offered in accordance with a divine direction that this way of dealing with sin was prescribed by God and acceptable to him. The sins in question were publicly confessed, the sinner laid hands on the sacrifice to indicate that it was their sacrifice and was in respect of the actual sins confessed. In this way the sacrifice could be said to take away sin.
In the NT, the danger of thinking that an outward act can deal with sin is clearly recognised (Hebrews 10:4, 11). God, who provided the path of sacrifice in the OT, now intervenes to provide a new offering, himself dying in the person of the Son who has united himself with humanity, to make the offering which will deal with sin. Christ, or his name or his death are integral to the New Testament concept of forgiveness. In Hebrews it is seen as the fruit of sacrifice (Hebrews 9:22, 10:18). In Ephesians 1:7 it is linked to the blood of Jesus. In Colossians 1:14 it is not far distant from a reference to peace being made by the blood of the cross (Colossians 1:20).
Thus God takes the initiative, God himself bears the sin and gives his Son in his sacrificial death as the way or means by which sinners can come to him. The sinner no longer needs to bring an offering to God, for Christ has already made that offering in the heavenly sanctuary. The conferral of forgiveness costs the sinner nothing, but it costs God everything.
- I. Howard Marshall, The Theology of the Atonement
Monday 16 August 2010
The Incarnation
Judaism already had a strong incarnational principle, namely the Temple, and that the language used of Shekinah, Torah, Wisdom, Word, and Spirit in the Old Testament - the language, in other words, upon which the earliest Christians drew when they were exploring and expounding what we have called Christology - was a language designed, long before Jesus' day, to explain how the one true God could be both transcendent over the world and living and active within it, particularly within Israel...
When Jesus says, "Your sins are forgiven," he is not claiming straightforwardly to be God, but to give people, out on the street, what they would normally get by going to the Temple.
- N. T. Wright, Simply Lewis
When Jesus says, "Your sins are forgiven," he is not claiming straightforwardly to be God, but to give people, out on the street, what they would normally get by going to the Temple.
- N. T. Wright, Simply Lewis
Sunday 15 August 2010
Aug 8 to 14
Aug 8: "Houses and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the LORD." - Proverbs 19:14 (NIV)
Aug 9: "And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you for ever." - 1 Chronicles 28:9 (NIV)
Aug 10: "God said to Solomon, "Since this is your heart's desire and you have not asked for wealth, riches or honour, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, riches and honour, such as no king who was before you ever had and none after you will have."" - 2 Chronicles 1:11-12 (NIV)
Aug 11: "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)
Aug 12: "Then I realised that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labour under the sun during the few days of life God has given him - for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work - this is a gift of God." - Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 (NIV)
Aug 13: "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling-block to the weak." - 1 Corinthians 8:9 (NIV)
Aug 14: "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 (NIV)
Aug 9: "And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you for ever." - 1 Chronicles 28:9 (NIV)
Aug 10: "God said to Solomon, "Since this is your heart's desire and you have not asked for wealth, riches or honour, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, riches and honour, such as no king who was before you ever had and none after you will have."" - 2 Chronicles 1:11-12 (NIV)
Aug 11: "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)
Aug 12: "Then I realised that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labour under the sun during the few days of life God has given him - for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work - this is a gift of God." - Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 (NIV)
Aug 13: "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling-block to the weak." - 1 Corinthians 8:9 (NIV)
Aug 14: "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 (NIV)
Saturday 14 August 2010
Baptism and Covenant Theology
Foundational to a biblical theology of baptism is the recognition that baptism's sign character positions it within an ongoing pattern of divine activity. Throughout the history of redemption, God's dealings with his people have always included the use of emblems. His epochal promises were illustrated and confirmed physically and visually as well as verbally.
This pattern appears specifically in the history of divine covenants. To the verbal promise of the Noahic covenant was added the physical token of the rainbow in the sky (Genesis 9:12-16). The token was a sign of the promise and sealed it, guaranteeing God's faithfulness. The rainbow was in fact first a sign of God's promise to God himself. It then reassured Noah that God himself was reminded to remember his promise! Later the Abrahamic covenant had its own sign of circumcision (Genesis 17:11), while the "visible" sign of the Mosaic covenant was the Sabbath day (Exodus 31:16-17).
In their own context each of these covenant signs pointed forward to a fulfillment in the new covenant in Christ. He is the true Noah in whose ark we are saved (1 Peter 3:20-22), the seed of Abraham in whom all the nations of the earth are blessed (Galatians 3:13-22), the prophet-leader like Moses in whom the final Exodus took place (Deuteronomy 18:15; cf. Luke 9:31, where "spoke of his departure" translates elegon tēn exodon autou = ie. spoke of his exodus).
This background shows that the physical signs of baptism and the Lord's Supper which Jesus instituted belong to a larger pattern and should be interpreted in the light of this biblical-theological tradition. Baptism cannot be fully understood abstracted from this matrix.
- Sinclair B. Ferguson in David F. Wright (ed.), Baptism: Three Views
Link: More on Baptism and Covenant Theology (13 Nov 10)
This pattern appears specifically in the history of divine covenants. To the verbal promise of the Noahic covenant was added the physical token of the rainbow in the sky (Genesis 9:12-16). The token was a sign of the promise and sealed it, guaranteeing God's faithfulness. The rainbow was in fact first a sign of God's promise to God himself. It then reassured Noah that God himself was reminded to remember his promise! Later the Abrahamic covenant had its own sign of circumcision (Genesis 17:11), while the "visible" sign of the Mosaic covenant was the Sabbath day (Exodus 31:16-17).
In their own context each of these covenant signs pointed forward to a fulfillment in the new covenant in Christ. He is the true Noah in whose ark we are saved (1 Peter 3:20-22), the seed of Abraham in whom all the nations of the earth are blessed (Galatians 3:13-22), the prophet-leader like Moses in whom the final Exodus took place (Deuteronomy 18:15; cf. Luke 9:31, where "spoke of his departure" translates elegon tēn exodon autou = ie. spoke of his exodus).
This background shows that the physical signs of baptism and the Lord's Supper which Jesus instituted belong to a larger pattern and should be interpreted in the light of this biblical-theological tradition. Baptism cannot be fully understood abstracted from this matrix.
- Sinclair B. Ferguson in David F. Wright (ed.), Baptism: Three Views
Link: More on Baptism and Covenant Theology (13 Nov 10)
Friday 13 August 2010
His Story
"Man is in his actions and practice, as well as in his fictions, essentially a story-telling animal." - Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue
I've been attending The Living Word 2010 and the teaching by Rikk Watts is excellent. One thing which I have been reminded of is that without story, there is no personhood. God is a personal God and He reveals Himself in history - His story!
Scripture is all about concrete historical stories, not abstract philosophical ideas. Between biblical and systematic theology, biblical theology is the unpacking of the biblical narrative, the storyline of the Bible. Systematic theology is really philosophy. So Calvinism, Arminianism, Molinism and many other "isms" (with the possible exception of baptism...) are secondary issues. The primary issues are the matters of first importance.
"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born." - 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (NIV)
Incidentally, history was my favourite subject in secondary school and junior college, and philosophy was my favourite subject at university. I believe there is a place for both biblical and systematic theology, but it would be wise to devote more attention to the former than the latter.
"In a postmodern world, it is important to keep saying that we are not saved by ideas, not even biblical ideas, but by the Jesus whom God sent to the cross on our behalf." - D. A. Carson, Systematic Theology and Biblical Theology
Link: Beginning with Moses (4 Sep 10)
I've been attending The Living Word 2010 and the teaching by Rikk Watts is excellent. One thing which I have been reminded of is that without story, there is no personhood. God is a personal God and He reveals Himself in history - His story!
Scripture is all about concrete historical stories, not abstract philosophical ideas. Between biblical and systematic theology, biblical theology is the unpacking of the biblical narrative, the storyline of the Bible. Systematic theology is really philosophy. So Calvinism, Arminianism, Molinism and many other "isms" (with the possible exception of baptism...) are secondary issues. The primary issues are the matters of first importance.
"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born." - 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (NIV)
Incidentally, history was my favourite subject in secondary school and junior college, and philosophy was my favourite subject at university. I believe there is a place for both biblical and systematic theology, but it would be wise to devote more attention to the former than the latter.
"In a postmodern world, it is important to keep saying that we are not saved by ideas, not even biblical ideas, but by the Jesus whom God sent to the cross on our behalf." - D. A. Carson, Systematic Theology and Biblical Theology
Link: Beginning with Moses (4 Sep 10)
Thursday 12 August 2010
He keeps the key
Is there some problem in your life to solve
Some passage seeming full of mystery?
God knows, who brings the hidden things to light
He keeps the key
Is there some door closed by the Father's hand
Which widely opened you had hoped to see?
Trust God and wait - for when He shuts the door
He keeps the key
Is there some earnest prayer unanswered yet
Or answered NOT as you had thought 'twould be?
God will make clear His purpose by and by
He keeps the key
Have patience with your God, your patient God
All wise, all knowing, no long lingerer He
And of the door of all your future life
He keeps the key
Unfailing comfort, sweet and blessed rest
To know of EVERY door He keeps the key
That He at last when just HE sees best
Will give it THEE
- Anonymous
"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." - Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)
"You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed." - John Bunyan
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
Links: The Key to All Doors (30 Dec 09), Waiting on God (24 Dec 10)
Some passage seeming full of mystery?
God knows, who brings the hidden things to light
He keeps the key
Is there some door closed by the Father's hand
Which widely opened you had hoped to see?
Trust God and wait - for when He shuts the door
He keeps the key
Is there some earnest prayer unanswered yet
Or answered NOT as you had thought 'twould be?
God will make clear His purpose by and by
He keeps the key
Have patience with your God, your patient God
All wise, all knowing, no long lingerer He
And of the door of all your future life
He keeps the key
Unfailing comfort, sweet and blessed rest
To know of EVERY door He keeps the key
That He at last when just HE sees best
Will give it THEE
- Anonymous
"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." - Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)
"You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed." - John Bunyan
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
Links: The Key to All Doors (30 Dec 09), Waiting on God (24 Dec 10)
Wednesday 11 August 2010
There is a time for everything
I'm reading the Bible in one year and the Old Testament reading for Aug 11 is Ecclesiastes 1:1-3:22.
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)
Meanwhile, the Old Testament reading for Aug 12 is Ecclesiastes 4:1-6:12.
"Then I realised that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labour under the sun during the few days of life God has given him - for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work - this is a gift of God." - Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 (NIV)
This is a timely reminder as I graduate from York and prepare to start work in the near future. Incidentally, Ecclesiastes was the book which we studied in college small groups last term - which also happened to be my last term at York. I'll miss York CU (and York for that matter), but there is a time for everything and I trust that God has brought me back to Singapore in Jul 10 according to His good, pleasing and perfect will.
Links: Final Reflections (16 Jul 10), Rehab, Renew, Restart (13 Sep 10), Proverbs 24:27 (25 Sep 10)
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)
Meanwhile, the Old Testament reading for Aug 12 is Ecclesiastes 4:1-6:12.
"Then I realised that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labour under the sun during the few days of life God has given him - for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work - this is a gift of God." - Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 (NIV)
This is a timely reminder as I graduate from York and prepare to start work in the near future. Incidentally, Ecclesiastes was the book which we studied in college small groups last term - which also happened to be my last term at York. I'll miss York CU (and York for that matter), but there is a time for everything and I trust that God has brought me back to Singapore in Jul 10 according to His good, pleasing and perfect will.
Links: Final Reflections (16 Jul 10), Rehab, Renew, Restart (13 Sep 10), Proverbs 24:27 (25 Sep 10)
Tuesday 10 August 2010
I think, therefore I am
There is a flow to history and culture. This flow is rooted and has its wellspring in the thoughts of people. People are unique in the inner life of the mind - what they are in their thought world determines how they act. This is true of their value systems and it is true of their creativity. It is true of their corporate actions, such as political decisions, and it is true of their personal lives. The results of their thought world flow through their fingers or from their tongues into the external world. This is true of Michelangelo's chisel, and it is true of a dictator's sword.
People have presuppositions, and they will live more consistently on the basis of these presuppositions than even they themselves may realise. By presuppositions we mean the basic way an individual looks at life, his basic worldview, the grid through which he sees the world. Presuppositions rest upon that which a person considers to be the truth of what exists. People's presuppositions lay a grid for all they bring forth into the external world. Their presuppositions also provide the basis for their values and therefore the basis for their decisions.
"As a man thinketh, so is he," is really most profound. An individual is not just the product of the forces around him. He has a mind, an inner world. Then, having thought, a person can bring forth actions into the external world and thus influence it. People are apt to look at the outer theatre of action, forgetting the actor who "lives in the mind" and who therefore is the true actor in the external world. The inner thought world determines the outward action.
- Francis A. Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture
"There are two kinds of presuppositionalists: those who admit it and those who don't." - D. A. Carson quoting Carl F. H. Henry
Links: Philosophy and Theology (3 Jan 10), Why Theology Matters (11 Apr 10), Scripture and the Interpretation of Scripture (4 Sep 10)
People have presuppositions, and they will live more consistently on the basis of these presuppositions than even they themselves may realise. By presuppositions we mean the basic way an individual looks at life, his basic worldview, the grid through which he sees the world. Presuppositions rest upon that which a person considers to be the truth of what exists. People's presuppositions lay a grid for all they bring forth into the external world. Their presuppositions also provide the basis for their values and therefore the basis for their decisions.
"As a man thinketh, so is he," is really most profound. An individual is not just the product of the forces around him. He has a mind, an inner world. Then, having thought, a person can bring forth actions into the external world and thus influence it. People are apt to look at the outer theatre of action, forgetting the actor who "lives in the mind" and who therefore is the true actor in the external world. The inner thought world determines the outward action.
- Francis A. Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture
"There are two kinds of presuppositionalists: those who admit it and those who don't." - D. A. Carson quoting Carl F. H. Henry
Links: Philosophy and Theology (3 Jan 10), Why Theology Matters (11 Apr 10), Scripture and the Interpretation of Scripture (4 Sep 10)
Rationality vs Feeling
*From Spencer's blog*
In a recent discussion with a friend, we mused that there were two types of Christian: the 'happy clappers' (ie. those who disproportionately stress the Holy Spirit above biblical teaching) and the 'Bible nerds' (ie. those who disproportionately stress analytical rigour over the Holy Spirit). Why this needless division? To either prioritise the good feeling that the Holy Spirit imparts, or the logical stability that the Bible confers, is to focus on earthly wisdom and desire.
These two ways of living can be reconciled if the Word of God is both the inspiration for divine knowledge and the source of holy sentiment. Consider tongues. In the Bible, the first example of tongues being spoken on a wide scale occurred at Pentecost. Was this a random, feel-good orgy of mumbo jumbo, as is sometimes the case at modern processions where tongues are spoken? No. Tongues were used for a specific purpose, which was so that the diversity of languages present at the meeting could all understand Peter's sermon. Paul in his letters outlines very specific guidelines for the instrumentalisation of tongues, as a gift to be used in order to communicate God's wisdom to the masses, and not simply as a means of getting one's 'Holy Spirit fix' in some hypnotic and incomprehensible high.
Similarly, Jesus tells us that Love fulfills the Law. So what is the point of academic rigour, even of God's Word, if we are unable to live lives of Love? For this reason Paul tells the Church that he communicates to them through his actions, and intentionally avoids intellectual constructions, so that they can see the Word for what it really is - not a logical curiousum, but the ultimate reality.
In a recent discussion with a friend, we mused that there were two types of Christian: the 'happy clappers' (ie. those who disproportionately stress the Holy Spirit above biblical teaching) and the 'Bible nerds' (ie. those who disproportionately stress analytical rigour over the Holy Spirit). Why this needless division? To either prioritise the good feeling that the Holy Spirit imparts, or the logical stability that the Bible confers, is to focus on earthly wisdom and desire.
These two ways of living can be reconciled if the Word of God is both the inspiration for divine knowledge and the source of holy sentiment. Consider tongues. In the Bible, the first example of tongues being spoken on a wide scale occurred at Pentecost. Was this a random, feel-good orgy of mumbo jumbo, as is sometimes the case at modern processions where tongues are spoken? No. Tongues were used for a specific purpose, which was so that the diversity of languages present at the meeting could all understand Peter's sermon. Paul in his letters outlines very specific guidelines for the instrumentalisation of tongues, as a gift to be used in order to communicate God's wisdom to the masses, and not simply as a means of getting one's 'Holy Spirit fix' in some hypnotic and incomprehensible high.
Similarly, Jesus tells us that Love fulfills the Law. So what is the point of academic rigour, even of God's Word, if we are unable to live lives of Love? For this reason Paul tells the Church that he communicates to them through his actions, and intentionally avoids intellectual constructions, so that they can see the Word for what it really is - not a logical curiousum, but the ultimate reality.
Monday 9 August 2010
The Grace (and Duty) of Giving
I'm reading the Bible in one year and the Old Testament reading for Aug 9 is 1 Chronicles 28:1-29:30.
"But who am I [David], and who are my people [the Israelites], that we should be able to give as generously as this [in building a house for the LORD]? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand." - 1 Chronicles 29:14 (NIV)
May we be faithful stewards of all that the Lord has entrusted us with.
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property, who will give you property of your own?" - Luke 16:10-12 (NIV)
"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'" - Luke 17:7-10 (NIV)
"What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe - as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labour. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building." - 1 Corinthians 3:5-9 (NIV)
Every good gift, all that we need and cherish
Comes from the Lord in token of His love
We are His hands, stewards of all His bounty
His is the earth and His the heavens above
Praise to Thee, O Lord, for all creation
Give us thankful hearts that we may see
All the gifts we share and every blessing
All things come of Thee
All things come of Thee
Link: Building for the Kingdom (8 Jan 09)
"But who am I [David], and who are my people [the Israelites], that we should be able to give as generously as this [in building a house for the LORD]? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand." - 1 Chronicles 29:14 (NIV)
May we be faithful stewards of all that the Lord has entrusted us with.
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property, who will give you property of your own?" - Luke 16:10-12 (NIV)
"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'" - Luke 17:7-10 (NIV)
"What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe - as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labour. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building." - 1 Corinthians 3:5-9 (NIV)
Every good gift, all that we need and cherish
Comes from the Lord in token of His love
We are His hands, stewards of all His bounty
His is the earth and His the heavens above
Praise to Thee, O Lord, for all creation
Give us thankful hearts that we may see
All the gifts we share and every blessing
All things come of Thee
All things come of Thee
Link: Building for the Kingdom (8 Jan 09)
Hither by Thy help I've come
Random thoughts following yesterday's message (1 Samuel 7:7-13) at my church's 61st Anniversary and Baptism Combined Service.
1. Destroying idols and committing to the LORD
It was a long time, twenty years in all, that the ark remained at Kiriath Jearim, and all the people of Israel mourned and sought after the LORD. And Samuel said to the whole house of Israel, "If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the LORD only.
- 1 Samuel 7:2-4 (NIV)
2. Fasting and confessing sins to the LORD
Then Samuel said, "Assemble all Israel at Mizpah and I will intercede with the LORD for you." When they had assembled at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the LORD. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel was leader of Israel at Mizpah.
- 1 Samuel 7:5-6 (NIV)
3. Crying out to the LORD and sacrificing an offering to Him
When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. And when the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. They said to Samuel, "Do not stop crying out to the LORD our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines." Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered it up as a whole burnt offering to the LORD. He cried out to the LORD on Israel's behalf, and the LORD answered him.
- 1 Samuel 7:7-9 (NIV)
4. Remembering and praising the LORD
While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the LORD thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Car. Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far has the LORD helped us."
- 1 Samuel 7:10-12 (NIV)
Here I raise my Ebenezer
Hither by Thy help I've come
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home
Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wandering from the fold of God
He, to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood
Links: Thus far has the LORD helped us (1 May 10), Wait (29 May 10), Here I raise my Ebenezer (2 Jun 10)
1. Destroying idols and committing to the LORD
It was a long time, twenty years in all, that the ark remained at Kiriath Jearim, and all the people of Israel mourned and sought after the LORD. And Samuel said to the whole house of Israel, "If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the LORD only.
- 1 Samuel 7:2-4 (NIV)
2. Fasting and confessing sins to the LORD
Then Samuel said, "Assemble all Israel at Mizpah and I will intercede with the LORD for you." When they had assembled at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the LORD. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel was leader of Israel at Mizpah.
- 1 Samuel 7:5-6 (NIV)
3. Crying out to the LORD and sacrificing an offering to Him
When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. And when the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. They said to Samuel, "Do not stop crying out to the LORD our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines." Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered it up as a whole burnt offering to the LORD. He cried out to the LORD on Israel's behalf, and the LORD answered him.
- 1 Samuel 7:7-9 (NIV)
4. Remembering and praising the LORD
While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the LORD thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Car. Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far has the LORD helped us."
- 1 Samuel 7:10-12 (NIV)
Here I raise my Ebenezer
Hither by Thy help I've come
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home
Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wandering from the fold of God
He, to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood
Links: Thus far has the LORD helped us (1 May 10), Wait (29 May 10), Here I raise my Ebenezer (2 Jun 10)
Sunday 8 August 2010
Aug 1 to 7
Aug 1: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." - Romans 15:13 (NIV)
Aug 2: "Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." - Psalm 90:2 (NIV)
Aug 3: "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." - Psalm 90:12 (NIV)
Aug 4: "I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought." - 1 Corinthians 1:10 (NIV)
Aug 5: "David said to Gad, "I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men."" - 1 Chronicles 21:13 (NIV)
Aug 6: "We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us." - 1 Corinthians 2:12 (NIV)
Aug 7: "You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarrelling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?" - 1 Corinthians 3:3 (NIV)
Aug 2: "Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." - Psalm 90:2 (NIV)
Aug 3: "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." - Psalm 90:12 (NIV)
Aug 4: "I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought." - 1 Corinthians 1:10 (NIV)
Aug 5: "David said to Gad, "I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men."" - 1 Chronicles 21:13 (NIV)
Aug 6: "We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us." - 1 Corinthians 2:12 (NIV)
Aug 7: "You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarrelling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?" - 1 Corinthians 3:3 (NIV)
Saturday 7 August 2010
Christ and the Church
Today I witnessed a friend's wedding and was reminded that God will make all things beautiful in His time.
"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."" - Revelation 21:1-4 (NIV)
"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."" - Revelation 21:1-4 (NIV)
The Greater and More Perfect Tabernacle
"Make an atonement cover of pure gold - two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. And make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends. The cherubim are to have their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the cover. Place the cover on top of the ark and put in the ark the Testimony, which I will give you. There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites." - Exodus 25:17-22 (NIV)
"Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now." - Hebrews 9:5 (NIV)
"Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot." - John 20:12 (NIV)
*****
"When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation." - Hebrews 9:11 (NIV)
"For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance - now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant." - Hebrews 9:15 (NIV)
"For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence." - Hebrews 9:24 (NIV)
"Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now." - Hebrews 9:5 (NIV)
"Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot." - John 20:12 (NIV)
*****
"When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation." - Hebrews 9:11 (NIV)
"For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance - now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant." - Hebrews 9:15 (NIV)
"For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence." - Hebrews 9:24 (NIV)
Friday 6 August 2010
Seeking the Truth in Love
Charles Simeon (CS): Sir, I understand that you are called an Arminian; and I have been sometimes called a Calvinist; and therefore I suppose we are to draw daggers. But before I consent to begin the combat, with your permission I will ask you a few questions. Pray, Sir, do you feel yourself a depraved creature, so depraved that you would never have thought of turning to God, if God had not first put it into your heart?
John Wesley (JW): Yes, I do indeed.
CS: And do you utterly despair of recommending yourself to God by anything you can do; and look for salvation solely through the blood and righteousness of Christ?
JW: Yes, solely through Christ.
CS: But, Sir, supposing you were at first saved by Christ, are you not somehow or other to save yourself afterwards by your own works?
JW: No, I must be saved by Christ from first to last.
CS: Allowing, then, that you were first turned by the grace of God, are you not in some way or other to keep yourself by your own power?
JW: No.
CS: What then, are you to be upheld every hour and every moment by God, as much as an infant in its mother's arms?
JW: Yes, altogether.
CS: And is all your hope in the grace and mercy of God to preserve you unto His heavenly kingdom?
JW: Yes, I have no hope but in Him.
CS: Then, Sir, with your leave I will put up my dagger again; for this is all my Calvinism; this is my election, my justification by faith, my final perseverance: it is in substance all that I hold, and as I hold it; and therefore, if you please, instead of searching out terms and phrases to be a ground of contention between us, we will cordially unite in those things where in we agree.
- John Piper, A 250-yr-old Model: How Calvinist Simeon Related to Wesley
John Wesley (JW): Yes, I do indeed.
CS: And do you utterly despair of recommending yourself to God by anything you can do; and look for salvation solely through the blood and righteousness of Christ?
JW: Yes, solely through Christ.
CS: But, Sir, supposing you were at first saved by Christ, are you not somehow or other to save yourself afterwards by your own works?
JW: No, I must be saved by Christ from first to last.
CS: Allowing, then, that you were first turned by the grace of God, are you not in some way or other to keep yourself by your own power?
JW: No.
CS: What then, are you to be upheld every hour and every moment by God, as much as an infant in its mother's arms?
JW: Yes, altogether.
CS: And is all your hope in the grace and mercy of God to preserve you unto His heavenly kingdom?
JW: Yes, I have no hope but in Him.
CS: Then, Sir, with your leave I will put up my dagger again; for this is all my Calvinism; this is my election, my justification by faith, my final perseverance: it is in substance all that I hold, and as I hold it; and therefore, if you please, instead of searching out terms and phrases to be a ground of contention between us, we will cordially unite in those things where in we agree.
- John Piper, A 250-yr-old Model: How Calvinist Simeon Related to Wesley
Thursday 5 August 2010
Why Truth Matters Most
It is evident that we have some intuition of the meaning of truth, even if we cannot articulate it very well philosophically. Truth is something we may know, or fail to know, but it is not something we should manipulate according to our own desires, fears, whims, or hatreds. Winston Churchill quipped that, "Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened." This barb underscores the value of truth to life.
Brushing away truth in the rush and tumble of life is somehow wrong - and we know it. If so, there must be another way of life that seeks, honours, and is willing to submit to truth, especially concerning matters of supreme consequence. This orientation requires a kind of courage - one of the classical virtues - since the truth may not be what we would prefer. It may make us uncomfortable. (It is revelatory that so many people today express approval by saying, "I'm comfortable with that," and disapproval by saying, "I'm not comfortable with that." Comfort is rather important when it comes to furniture and stereo headphones, but is utterly irrelevant when it comes to truth.)
Conversely, the pursuit of truth requires that one must shun sloth - one of the classical vices - since truth may be tucked under the surface of things and not easily ascertainable. Moreover, one should cultivate the virtue of studiousness instead of mere curiosity. Curiosity may be no more than lust for what one need not know (or should not know); and it may be driven by ulterior motives such as vanity, pride, or restlessness. Curiosity is not intrinsically good because it can lead to gossip, violations of privacy (snooping, voyeurism), and wasted intellectual time and effort - as represented by the content of any issue of People magazine. In other words, curiosity can be a vice, despite the fact that it is a principal passion (or lust) of contemporary Western culture.
Studiousness, on the other hand, earnestly inquires after what ought to be known in ways fitting the subject matter. Studiousness sniffs out its own areas of ignorance and pursues knowledge prudently, patiently, and humbly - not resting until what needs to be known has been pursued to its end. Thus, one labours to avoid both gullibility (holding too many false beliefs) and extreme skepticism (missing out on too many true beliefs).
- Douglas Groothuis, Why Truth Matters Most: An Apologetic for Truth-Seeking in Postmodern Times
Brushing away truth in the rush and tumble of life is somehow wrong - and we know it. If so, there must be another way of life that seeks, honours, and is willing to submit to truth, especially concerning matters of supreme consequence. This orientation requires a kind of courage - one of the classical virtues - since the truth may not be what we would prefer. It may make us uncomfortable. (It is revelatory that so many people today express approval by saying, "I'm comfortable with that," and disapproval by saying, "I'm not comfortable with that." Comfort is rather important when it comes to furniture and stereo headphones, but is utterly irrelevant when it comes to truth.)
Conversely, the pursuit of truth requires that one must shun sloth - one of the classical vices - since truth may be tucked under the surface of things and not easily ascertainable. Moreover, one should cultivate the virtue of studiousness instead of mere curiosity. Curiosity may be no more than lust for what one need not know (or should not know); and it may be driven by ulterior motives such as vanity, pride, or restlessness. Curiosity is not intrinsically good because it can lead to gossip, violations of privacy (snooping, voyeurism), and wasted intellectual time and effort - as represented by the content of any issue of People magazine. In other words, curiosity can be a vice, despite the fact that it is a principal passion (or lust) of contemporary Western culture.
Studiousness, on the other hand, earnestly inquires after what ought to be known in ways fitting the subject matter. Studiousness sniffs out its own areas of ignorance and pursues knowledge prudently, patiently, and humbly - not resting until what needs to be known has been pursued to its end. Thus, one labours to avoid both gullibility (holding too many false beliefs) and extreme skepticism (missing out on too many true beliefs).
- Douglas Groothuis, Why Truth Matters Most: An Apologetic for Truth-Seeking in Postmodern Times
Wednesday 4 August 2010
The Lordship of Christ
As evangelical Christians we have tended to relegate art to the very fringe of life. The rest of human life we feel is more important. Despite our constant talk about the Lordship of Christ, we have narrowed its scope to a very small area of reality. We have misunderstood the concept of the Lordship of Christ over the whole of man and the whole of the universe and have not taken to us the riches that the Bible gives us for ourselves, for our lives and for our culture.
The Lordship of Christ over the whole of life means that there are no platonic areas in Christianity, no dichotomy or hierarchy between the body and the soul. God made the body as well as the soul and redemption is for the whole man. Evangelicals have been legitimately criticised for often being so tremendously interested in seeing souls get saved and go to heaven that they have not cared much about the whole man.
The Bible, however, makes four things very clear: (1) God made the whole man, (2) in Christ the whole man is redeemed, (3) Christ is the Lord of the whole man now and the Lord of the whole Christian life and (4) in the future, as Christ comes back, the body will be raised from the dead and the whole man will have a whole redemption. It is within this framework that we are to understand the place of art in the Christian life. Therefore, let us consider more fully what it means to be a whole man whose whole life is under the Lordship of Christ.
- Francis A. Schaeffer, Art and the Bible
The Lordship of Christ over the whole of life means that there are no platonic areas in Christianity, no dichotomy or hierarchy between the body and the soul. God made the body as well as the soul and redemption is for the whole man. Evangelicals have been legitimately criticised for often being so tremendously interested in seeing souls get saved and go to heaven that they have not cared much about the whole man.
The Bible, however, makes four things very clear: (1) God made the whole man, (2) in Christ the whole man is redeemed, (3) Christ is the Lord of the whole man now and the Lord of the whole Christian life and (4) in the future, as Christ comes back, the body will be raised from the dead and the whole man will have a whole redemption. It is within this framework that we are to understand the place of art in the Christian life. Therefore, let us consider more fully what it means to be a whole man whose whole life is under the Lordship of Christ.
- Francis A. Schaeffer, Art and the Bible
Tuesday 3 August 2010
The Multiplier Effect
Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance.
The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of.
An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an attack otherwise impossible.
- C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
"It is easier to crush the egg than it is to kill the serpent." - Charles Spurgeon
"You can't stop the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair." - Martin Luther
"Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful." - 2 Timothy 2:22-24 (NIV)
The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of.
An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an attack otherwise impossible.
- C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
"It is easier to crush the egg than it is to kill the serpent." - Charles Spurgeon
"You can't stop the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair." - Martin Luther
"Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful." - 2 Timothy 2:22-24 (NIV)
Monday 2 August 2010
Closer to God
A young man was unemployed for several months and growing increasingly anxious, he went to speak to his pastor.
As he poured out his heart to the pastor, he said angrily: "I begged and begged God to speak to me but He never did. Why doesn't God answer?"
The old pastor who was sitting across the room spoke something so softly that the young man could not hear so he moved nearer to him and asked: "What did you say?"
The pastor repeated himself but again in a soft voice. The young man moved nearer again and asked: "What did you say?"
Finally, the young man got so near to the pastor that their heads were almost touching. The pastor then said: "Sometimes God whispers so that we will move closer to Him."
The ultimate purpose of divine guidance is so that we may grow closer to Him, and in drawing near, we are transformed into His likeness.
- Benny Ho, Discerning the Will of God
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
As he poured out his heart to the pastor, he said angrily: "I begged and begged God to speak to me but He never did. Why doesn't God answer?"
The old pastor who was sitting across the room spoke something so softly that the young man could not hear so he moved nearer to him and asked: "What did you say?"
The pastor repeated himself but again in a soft voice. The young man moved nearer again and asked: "What did you say?"
Finally, the young man got so near to the pastor that their heads were almost touching. The pastor then said: "Sometimes God whispers so that we will move closer to Him."
The ultimate purpose of divine guidance is so that we may grow closer to Him, and in drawing near, we are transformed into His likeness.
- Benny Ho, Discerning the Will of God
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
Sunday 1 August 2010
Jul 22 to 31
Jul 22: "Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth." - Hosea 6:3 (NIV)
Jul 23: "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." - Romans 8:1 (NIV)
Jul 24: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." - Romans 8:28 (NIV)
Jul 25: "But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always." - Hosea 12:6 (NIV)
Jul 26: "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." - Romans 10:4 (NIV)
Jul 27: "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." - Romans 10:9 (NIV)
Jul 28: "Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his request." - 1 Chronicles 4:10 (NIV)
Jul 29: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
Jul 30: "Love does no harm to its neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." - Romans 13:10 (NIV)
Jul 31: "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men." - Romans 14:17-18 (NIV)
Jul 23: "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." - Romans 8:1 (NIV)
Jul 24: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." - Romans 8:28 (NIV)
Jul 25: "But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always." - Hosea 12:6 (NIV)
Jul 26: "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." - Romans 10:4 (NIV)
Jul 27: "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." - Romans 10:9 (NIV)
Jul 28: "Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his request." - 1 Chronicles 4:10 (NIV)
Jul 29: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
Jul 30: "Love does no harm to its neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." - Romans 13:10 (NIV)
Jul 31: "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men." - Romans 14:17-18 (NIV)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)