Christmas. The thought of this holiday brings many thoughts to mind. Family , frineds, food, lights, trees, angels, shepherds, a manger, and most importantly a baby, called Jesus, Emanuel, God with us. We creatures do not deserve this attention that God has bestowed upon us.
We often think of the baby Jesus this time of year and forget that this babe wrapped in rags is God. This Child who was placed in a food trough to sleep is the beginning of last chapter of the Gospel. This infant was born to die, to conquer sin and death for a broken humanity. Such humility as Philippians 2 explains so well.
Born to die a terrible death at the hands of man. Born to be placed in the hands of Satan to do his worst. Born to suffer the wrath of His Father for the sins of men. What kind of love is that?
It is easy to dwell on the suffering of Christ, but what about that of the Father? I am a father. I have a son. I love my son dearly, but no where near the perfect love that the Father and the Son shared. I could not bear to watch my son suffer and die for a dirty, rotten, selfish scoundrel. Yet this is what God did. For you. For me.
Let us remember not only the birth of Christ this season, let us contemplate the Gospel as it is taught throughout scripture. Let us remember that this Gospel is all about God and Him reaching out to dirty rotten selfish scoundrels that are not worthy of this Babe who was born to die so that we, his chosen, may live.
Peace and blessings
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
More from Hebrews
Read Hebrews 10 this morning. Here are verses 22-31. Either my copy paste feature is broken or I'm not smart enough to use it properly, thus I will be forced to type it out word for word. At least I don't have to write it by hand!
"...let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love the good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversafies. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son Of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of Grace? For we know him who said, "Vengeance is mine; I will repay." And again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
Soft gospel? Pray a prayer? Universalism? I think not.
"...let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love the good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversafies. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son Of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of Grace? For we know him who said, "Vengeance is mine; I will repay." And again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
Soft gospel? Pray a prayer? Universalism? I think not.
Friday, December 10, 2010
A Short Goodbye
I lost a friend this week. A friend who told everyone he knew about Jesus and many he didn't know too. He had a passion for sharing the Gospel with anyone who would listen. I just heard that the local secular school had a moment of silence in honor of this godly man. He touched the lives of many.
As a Christian, the loss hurts, but knowing the joy, the complete joy he is experiencing now is nothing short of Awesome. I look forward to that complete joy someday!
Peter, I will miss you but I will see you again!
Praise God you are with your Savior!
As a Christian, the loss hurts, but knowing the joy, the complete joy he is experiencing now is nothing short of Awesome. I look forward to that complete joy someday!
Peter, I will miss you but I will see you again!
Praise God you are with your Savior!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
1 Peter 5:6-11
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by you brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To Him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Well, I have been thinking again. Concern and discouragement often cause that to happen.
I was raised very Arminian. I now praise God for the Doctrines of Grace that through His word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, I know to be true. Scripture is the picture of God reaching out to man, not the other way around! If it were not for His Amazing Grace, I shudder to think of the state of fallen man. Were it not for his Sovereign omnipotence, or his infinite wisdom, where would we be?
I used to be a die hard 1 or 2 point Calvinist. I could not see myself as totally deprived, there had to be some good in there somewhere! Unconditional election? Come on! There is no way God picks and chooses! I had, what I thought to be a very biblical understanding of these things. I look back now and see that what I had, was a very man based understanding of what man had created to make him feel more comfortable with who he thinks he is.
OK, OK, so what does this have to do with the above scripture?
Many people have different theology then I do. This difference in theology often makes me uncomfortable. I guess you could say that I allow a ''barrier'' to be built between myself and anyone who may think differently then I do. I think it is safe to assume that there are others like me! I also think that we can agree that this is not a proper response to our differences, especially considering these are fellow believers! We need to humble ourselves, cast our cares on Him because he cares! (v6-7) We need to be sober-minded and watchful in order avoid the schemes of the devil, we need to resist him and be firm in our faith! (v8-9)Take that wall down and live the Gospel!
There can be an is great danger here without the Gospel. Differences whether theological, personality, gender, or color can all tear apart. This cannot be allowed to happen in the church of God!
I don't know that I could call this suffering, as verse 10 states, it is certainly concern though!
We are his children, we are His church. We are here for His glory, let us live that way.
None of this is to say that I have perfect theology, perfection is unobtainable here on earth. You show me through scripture that I am wrong, I will change. I am saying I am human and I struggle, like we all do, with sin. I do indeed look forward to being restored, confirmed, strengthened, and established by my God through Christ! (v10)
To Him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Well, I have been thinking again. Concern and discouragement often cause that to happen.
I was raised very Arminian. I now praise God for the Doctrines of Grace that through His word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, I know to be true. Scripture is the picture of God reaching out to man, not the other way around! If it were not for His Amazing Grace, I shudder to think of the state of fallen man. Were it not for his Sovereign omnipotence, or his infinite wisdom, where would we be?
I used to be a die hard 1 or 2 point Calvinist. I could not see myself as totally deprived, there had to be some good in there somewhere! Unconditional election? Come on! There is no way God picks and chooses! I had, what I thought to be a very biblical understanding of these things. I look back now and see that what I had, was a very man based understanding of what man had created to make him feel more comfortable with who he thinks he is.
OK, OK, so what does this have to do with the above scripture?
Many people have different theology then I do. This difference in theology often makes me uncomfortable. I guess you could say that I allow a ''barrier'' to be built between myself and anyone who may think differently then I do. I think it is safe to assume that there are others like me! I also think that we can agree that this is not a proper response to our differences, especially considering these are fellow believers! We need to humble ourselves, cast our cares on Him because he cares! (v6-7) We need to be sober-minded and watchful in order avoid the schemes of the devil, we need to resist him and be firm in our faith! (v8-9)Take that wall down and live the Gospel!
There can be an is great danger here without the Gospel. Differences whether theological, personality, gender, or color can all tear apart. This cannot be allowed to happen in the church of God!
I don't know that I could call this suffering, as verse 10 states, it is certainly concern though!
We are his children, we are His church. We are here for His glory, let us live that way.
None of this is to say that I have perfect theology, perfection is unobtainable here on earth. You show me through scripture that I am wrong, I will change. I am saying I am human and I struggle, like we all do, with sin. I do indeed look forward to being restored, confirmed, strengthened, and established by my God through Christ! (v10)
To Him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Lets Do Church
Part 1
I have been spending quite a bit of time lately thinking about how we do church. The worship. The offering. The Bible reading. The prayer. The songs. The evangelical outreach. We all have specific ways we like our church services to be run. You like traditional, you like contemporary, and you like a mix of both.
Why is it that we have these preferences? Are we not at church to commune with our God? Don't we go to church to glorify and magnify His name?
Seems to be lots of folks out there would prefer to glorify themselves. I want this or I want that. How about ''I want God. I am here for Him. I owe Him so much more then I could ever repay. I am here for my God, as much of him as he will allow, I am here for God.'' Everything else should pale.
Part 2
We are not needed by God to do his good works. There is no need for music playing softly in the background to convince sinners they need a savior. There is no need for ''every head bowed and every eye closed''. If God is going to save someone none of these things will help persuade them! It is not an eloquent delivery or a disarming smile. It is the Gospel.
I remember attending services as a young man where my emotions were played on. I remember making emotional decisions and promises that were not led by the Holy Spirit but by men, men who seemed to care a little too much about numbers and not enough about life altering decisions. It only takes a simple prayer, a secret look at the evangelist, the raise of a hand, or a quick jaunt down the Isle. Lifestyle afterwards? That matters little, see here, on this little card in the front of my dusty bible is the date the sinners prayer was prayed. It seems that there are many churches and Christian organizations out there who have these techniques down to a science.
All this stuff man thinks he has to do to get folks saved just gets in the way. God is sovereign. He chose each and every believer before the foundations of the world! (Eph. 1).
I can't find one instance in scripture where a musical prayer, or a raised hand was required for salvation. I don't remember Paul praying the sinners prayer and signing and dating a piece of paper for proof of salvation. What was (and is and always will be) needed? The Gospel, period.
Sorry about the rant folks. This is something I am passionate about. God can and does use these things to change peoples lives. They are not the means though. The Gospel is.
I have been spending quite a bit of time lately thinking about how we do church. The worship. The offering. The Bible reading. The prayer. The songs. The evangelical outreach. We all have specific ways we like our church services to be run. You like traditional, you like contemporary, and you like a mix of both.
Why is it that we have these preferences? Are we not at church to commune with our God? Don't we go to church to glorify and magnify His name?
Seems to be lots of folks out there would prefer to glorify themselves. I want this or I want that. How about ''I want God. I am here for Him. I owe Him so much more then I could ever repay. I am here for my God, as much of him as he will allow, I am here for God.'' Everything else should pale.
Part 2
We are not needed by God to do his good works. There is no need for music playing softly in the background to convince sinners they need a savior. There is no need for ''every head bowed and every eye closed''. If God is going to save someone none of these things will help persuade them! It is not an eloquent delivery or a disarming smile. It is the Gospel.
I remember attending services as a young man where my emotions were played on. I remember making emotional decisions and promises that were not led by the Holy Spirit but by men, men who seemed to care a little too much about numbers and not enough about life altering decisions. It only takes a simple prayer, a secret look at the evangelist, the raise of a hand, or a quick jaunt down the Isle. Lifestyle afterwards? That matters little, see here, on this little card in the front of my dusty bible is the date the sinners prayer was prayed. It seems that there are many churches and Christian organizations out there who have these techniques down to a science.
All this stuff man thinks he has to do to get folks saved just gets in the way. God is sovereign. He chose each and every believer before the foundations of the world! (Eph. 1).
I can't find one instance in scripture where a musical prayer, or a raised hand was required for salvation. I don't remember Paul praying the sinners prayer and signing and dating a piece of paper for proof of salvation. What was (and is and always will be) needed? The Gospel, period.
Sorry about the rant folks. This is something I am passionate about. God can and does use these things to change peoples lives. They are not the means though. The Gospel is.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Devout and Righteous
We spent some time last night in church reading scriptures about the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. I will admit that I had a hard time paying attention, and was easily distracted. I few things did sink in though. These things were not what was taught but things that stuck in my mind as Luke was being read. Two names-Simion and Anna the prophetess. Simion was described as devout and righteous. These are terms, in today's American churches, reserved for pastors elders and the like, not common folk. Anna, is what would be referred to today as a freak. Luke 1:37 says that she ''...did not depart from the temple, worshipping with fasting and prayer day and night''.
Scripture is full of people like this. Men and women of whom this world is not worthy. Crazy folks who do not care what others think. The world looks at these people as being a few fries short of a happy meal. This is what real Christians are supposed to look like, never mind what the world or even those you attend church with might think.
Easy believeism will tell you all it takes is a prayer. Live however you want, you have your fire insurance! Easy believeism makes those folks who make fun of those who are devout and righteous.
These ''hero's'' of scripture were not easy believers. Theses were the bread and butter of what it means, what it looks like to be a real Christian. Remember, the gate is narrow and few there are that find it.
Make your calling and election sure. Examine yourselves. Let us be crazy freaks who are devout and righteous, because of all that God did for all of us who do not deserve anything other then the fires of hell.
Be Simion. Be Anna.
Scripture is full of people like this. Men and women of whom this world is not worthy. Crazy folks who do not care what others think. The world looks at these people as being a few fries short of a happy meal. This is what real Christians are supposed to look like, never mind what the world or even those you attend church with might think.
Easy believeism will tell you all it takes is a prayer. Live however you want, you have your fire insurance! Easy believeism makes those folks who make fun of those who are devout and righteous.
These ''hero's'' of scripture were not easy believers. Theses were the bread and butter of what it means, what it looks like to be a real Christian. Remember, the gate is narrow and few there are that find it.
Make your calling and election sure. Examine yourselves. Let us be crazy freaks who are devout and righteous, because of all that God did for all of us who do not deserve anything other then the fires of hell.
Be Simion. Be Anna.
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