Perseverance of the Saints

The so-called “P” of TULIP: Perseverance of the Saints. If it rested on us to complete our course to Christ, we would be in sore shape about mid-day of the first day of our conversion. Thank God that He not only convicts, draws and regenerates the sinner’s stony heart, but He preserves them in His grace until He calls them home.

We believe that all who are justified will win the fight of faith. They will persevere in faith and never surrender to the enemy of their souls. This perseverance is the promise of the new covenant, obtained by the blood of Christ, and worked in us by God himself, yet not so as to diminish, but only to empower and encourage, our vigilance; so that we may say in the end, I have fought the good fight, but it was not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

Those whom he justified he also glorified. (Romans 8:30)

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. (John 10:27-28)

I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6)

I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. (Philippians 3:12)

John Piper

What is the Gospel?

“What is your greatest fear? If I were asking that question in many parts of the world, answers would probably cluster around basic needs such as running water, food, vaccines, and shelter. For most of us in the United States, though, our greatest fears are more likely to be things like the fear of loneliness, some cataclysmic event that throws me off the ladder of upward mobility, divorce, or the inability to find any ultimate meaning in life. None of these fears is illegitimate, yet none is ultimate. These fears haunt us only because we have the luxury of having them haunt us. Until we are confronted with the reality of God—in all of his blinding majesty, weightiness, and frightful claim on our lives—we are overwhelmed by secondary troubles. But when for some reason there is the slightest glimpse of God in his holiness, we either do our best to domesticate him, turn him into a pet by suppressing the truth, or run for the hills to escape the confrontation.

God should be your greatest fear. Yet there is no salvation from God’s just judgment from anywhere else than God himself. Only the same God who fills us with fear is able also to give us peace. If we are to escape this judgment, it will only be the result of the greatness in God’s heart and not something in our own. That God has moved toward us—even lunged toward us—not in judgment, as we should have expected, but in loving embrace and reconciliation, clothing us in Christ’s righteousness so that we can be acceptable in his holy presence, is the good news that you are called here and now to embrace. Christ lived a perfect life in the place of sinners, bore their sins on the cross, and was raised again for our justification. This means that “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Not because of anything that you have done, experienced, attempted, or decided, but because of what he has accomplished for you, can you be assured of God’s favor. It is good news, not good advice. It is not a call to self-improvement, but to die to self altogether and be raised a new person, in Christ. It is the free gift of forgiveness of sins, right standing with God, adoption as his heirs, and liberation from the tyranny of sin. As his ambassador, I am calling you in his name to be reconciled to God by turning away from all other saviors and lords and embracing Jesus Christ as your righteousness, holiness, and redemption. Come to him now. His love is greater than your enmity toward him; his grace is greater than your sin; his peace is greater than your fears.”

Michael Horton

Yes, it’s been a while...

It has been a few weeks since my last post. A lot is going on personally. All good stuff, but time consuming. However, I did want to post a thought I’ve had here lately.

I often wonder why God does not simply transform us from the moment we are in Christ. Christians still die. Christians still get hungry and thirsty. What is the point of continuing this, if we are already “in Christ”?

Many would argue that the difficulties of life are there to shape us into the “image of Christ” (Romans 8:28-30; James 1:2-4), and I am sure that that is true. However, it has occurred to me that this still begs the question of why He would choose not to conform us to that image immediately. Certainly, it is possible. I think of the transfiguration as a type of what could be done by God upon conversion. (Matt. 17:1-13) Or, what of Elijah and being caught up in a whirlwind? (2 Kings 2:11) Or even Enoch, who walked with God and simply “was not”? (Gen. 5:24; Heb. 11:5) I think I could handle being like Enoch, nothing fancy, just gone to be with Christ. But, this does not happen to us. Why?

It strikes me that even more profound than the effect that trials have upon us is the display of God’s glory, or His “worth”, in the face of the desire for other things. Even with necessary things, He is worth more and our dependence upon Him should be increased.

My body gets hungry to remind me that He is the Bread of Life. (John 6:48, 51) I get thirsty to remind me that He gives living water. (John 7:38, Rev. 7:17). I am wet and chilled in a thunder storm to remind me that He has covered me with the garments of salvation. (Is. 61:10) And on it goes. What do I have that I did not receive? (1 Cor. 4:7)

Not only is our dependence upon Him made known to us in these things, but His worth is also displayed to others when we show our contentment in Him in the face of lacking these and other things. A picture of this would probably be 2 Corinthians 8.

We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— 5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.

Notice that this was a display of the grace of God given among the churches of Macedonia. This generosity was not a testimony to their goodness or sacrifice, but that, even through great persecution and lack, they gave because Christ was more satisfying to them than their earthly needs. Importantly, they didn’t give to earn God’s favor. They gave because they had His favor already, and it was enough.

Is His mercy and grace enough for you? I want it to be enough for me. I pray that it is.

The Evolution of Divorce

Read the full article here.

Prior to the late 1960s, Americans were more likely to look at marriage and family through the prisms of duty, obligation, and sacrifice. A successful, happy home was one in which intimacy was an important good, but by no means the only one in view. A decent job, a well-maintained home, mutual spousal aid, child-rearing, and shared religious faith were seen almost universally as the goods that marriage and family life were intended to advance.

But the psychological revolution’s focus on individual fulfillment and personal growth changed all that. Increasingly, marriage was seen as a vehicle for a self-oriented ethic of romance, intimacy, and fulfillment. In this new psychological approach to married life, one’s primary obligation was not to one’s family but to one’s self; hence, marital success was defined not by successfully meeting obligations to one’s spouse and children but by a strong sense of subjective happiness in marriage — usually to be found in and through an intense, emotional relationship with one’s spouse. The 1970s marked the period when, for many Americans, a more institutional model of marriage gave way to the “soul-mate model” of marriage.

Fruit

I wrote about this in an email to a friend recently and thought I’d put it up here for discussion, if any are so inclined.

I had kind of an interesting train of thought the other day. We, in Adam, grasped forbidden fruit to be like God – the creature striving to be the Creator. Christ, humbly, did not think equality with God a thing to be grasped but laid down His perfect life in perfect obedience for our sake. The Righteous for the unrighteous. He Who know no sin became sin THAT we might be the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21). Many have called this the “Great Exchange”.

As a function of that exchange we are given a new nature and sealed by His Spirit. (2 Cor. 5:17; Eph 1:13-14). His Spirit via the new nature bears “fruit”. (Gal. 5:22-23) Fruit is singular in Galatians even though nine attributes, or “slices” so to speak, are mentioned.

So, here is the thought: Christ exchanged the fruit of our sin for the fruit of His Spirit. In striving to be as God, we became as devils. Yet, in His humble obedience, He redeemed us so that one day we will be like Him. (1 John 3:2). He gave us freely through His obedience what we could not grasp in our rebellion.

Translators Will Overhaul NIV

Big news in Christianity Today concerning Zondervan’s pledge to overhaul the TNIV in a move at correcting the “mistakes” made in its gender-neutral slant in translation.

Can a True Christian Believe the Prosperity Gospel?

Collision: 13-minute preview

"Collision: Hitchens vs. Wilson" - EXCLUSIVE 13 minute preview from LEVEL4 on Vimeo.

I am bummed that it’s only going to be in theaters in New York and Los Angeles. Sign of the times where a movie about robots is distributed internationally, but a movie about men debating the answers to the fundamental questions of life goes straight to DVD.

Print Your Own Scripture Memory Cards

Announced at the ESV Bible Blog:

Using the ESV API, Michael Scott has developed a handy tool to help you with scripture memorization. His website takes a list of references and automatically fetches the texts, formatting them into business card sized cards for easy printing.

Check it out at www.mcscott.org.

Very cool.

Mohler on the future of the SBC

Christless Christianity

HT: WHI

Compelling Missions Video

HT: JT

Was Calvin More Biblical Than Some Calvinists?

Here’s a helpful article by Trevin Wax on the language limitation Reformed folks tend to put on themselves when calling people to faith in Christ.

Is it wrong to call people to make a decision for Christ? Not at all. The language of “decision” or “surrender” is biblical. Calvinists and non-Calvinists alike believe that the lost sinner, under the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, actually does “make a decision” at the point of conversion. We do indeed respond to the preaching of the gospel. Therefore, we should not refrain from using the language of “following Jesus” or “choosing Christ,” etc.

HT: JT

Retreat or Risk Everything

David Platt: SBC Pastors Conference 2009 from Todd Thomas on Vimeo.

Keeping Watch...again

Some additional thoughts on church leadership from the nose-bleed section. Words have meaning and it is good to know the actual meaning of a word before another meaning is infused into it. People die for lack of knowledge, i.e., faith is harmed by misleading statements intended to curb an action through ungodly guilt.

One word that I hear misused a lot is “gossip”. Usually in church life it is in the context of some debated issue where one side accuses the other of gossiping and pulls out the tried and true warning that “loose lips sink ships” or some variation of the theme.

Now, to be sure, gossip is a sin. In fact, the New Testament has some pretty unflattering things to say for those who engage in such activity. (Romans 1:29-30; 2 Cor. 12:20; 1 Tim. 5:13).

But what is it? Webster defines a gossip as “a person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others.” Slander goes a little further. Slander is defined as “the utterance of false charges or misrepresentations which defame and damage another’s reputation.” If it’s true, it’s not slander. If it’s not personal or sensational, it’s not gossip.

So, here is the concern. Let’s say there is an issue going on at church, in a small group, or in a family. A decision needs to be made and there are concerns about motives behind plans that are being discussed. Is it gossip to ask questions and think through an issue with other church members, small group members, or family? Of course not. It is gossip to try to add weight to your side of the issue with irrelevant personal or sensational facts about someone else on the other side.

“I am concerned about the building program recommended by the pastor because I don’t think it is a valid or biblical stewardship of the church’s resources.” That is not gossip. That is an opinion inviting discussion concerning the proper use of church resources.

“I am concerned about the building program recommended by the pastor because you heard, of course, that he filed bankruptcy five years ago and doesn’t know how to handle money.” That would be gossip if true and slander if false. See the distinction?

Where it gets difficult is when there are concerns about the direction someone is promoting precisely because of past actions that have revealed selfish motives, etc. At what point does the discussion of the past issues that lead to concerns over present issues become gossip?

If it is true, it is definitely not slander. It would seem prudent to me to first look at the proposal on its face: is it biblical? If not, the discussion and decision stops there.

The next question would seem to be: is it biblical as applied? Is the plan structured in such a way as to limit or put checks in place against the natural sinfulness we all possess, or are certain aspects of the otherwise biblical direction being short-changed to give less scrutiny of the flaws of the human heart?

For example, say a group leader wants to start taking members to bars to witness to the patrons. Setting aside for discussion whether that’s a good idea anyway, if he’s a former alcoholic, it is not gossip to discuss the dangers of such an idea by having this particular leader head it up. That’s just discernment and common sense.

Finally, does it distract from the mission of the church body or group, or does it make it easier to be faithful in worship and evangelism?

What concerns me is when gossip is defined as whatever topic someone does not want discussed by others. That is manipulation. In fact, it is calling sin what God does not call sin, and that is a very dangerous thing to do. (Mark 7:1-13)

Consider this: when is it ever commended when someone makes a decision without thinking it through? It is exactly the opposite. The Bereans immediately come to mind as an example. (Acts 17:10-15) These people were “more noble” than the others because they received the word while searching daily to see if what they were being told was true! If Luke, and by extension Paul, views this as noble conduct, why would any Christian leader attempt to shut down thorough inquiry into a matter to be decided by calling examination and inquiry “gossip”?