Social Networking Repentance

My latest Tweet said this:

Twitter repentance: The flesh wants to impress people by saying something memorable in 140 characters or less. Jesus died for that sin too.

I think with blogging, the same can be true.  Sometimes I blog just to look cool and sound smart.  Other times I really do have a passion to share something that grips me, but more often than not, I wonder, “Will they like what I write?”

So often, good things become ultimate things.  Jesus died for social networking sins, too.  O praise him for that!

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Related Posts:

• Four Reasons I Tweet
• Pitfalls in Communication: Sin

Justification by Faith

Justification: View Series
Continued from Part 6

John Stott has said that faith merely receives what grace offers. We are saved by grace, yes, but we must believe (i.e. have faith) in order to be saved.  Grace is God’s doing.  Faith is man’s responsibility.  Romans 3:28 is the staple verse in which Paul boldly proclaims this truth: “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”

Paul writes that Abraham is the father of all those who “walk in the footsteps of [his] faith” (Rom. 4:12). He later says, “For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith” (4:13); Abraham was “fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (4:21); “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (5:1).

In Galatians 2 and 3, he tells us more of the same. “Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ” (2:17). “Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith…Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham…So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith (3:6, 7, 9). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law…so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith” (3:13, 14), “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith” (3:26).

Another way to describe faith is to say that someone “believes.” When you believe, you essentially put your trust in someone or something. When you believe, you are convinced of something (see Rom. 4:21 above; cf. Heb. 11:1). Galatians 3:22 says, “But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise of faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.”  It seemed best to God to ordain all people under the curse of sin so that we could not achieve righteousness before him by the law. Paul echoes this in Romans 4: “Righteousness will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification” (vv. 24-25). Later on in Romans 10, Paul says that we are justified when we believe with our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead (vv. 9-10).

Some may ask, “What about the Old Testament? They had the law. Certainly they were not justified by faith!” On the contrary, they were. Habakkuk 2:4 says, “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.” This verse is quoted in Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, and Hebrews 10:37.

The greatest argument for justification by faith for Old Testament saints is, of course, Abraham. That is who Paul focuses on in Romans 4. He says that Abraham could not have been justified by works because righteousness was counted to him before he was circumcised (v. 10). He says, “He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still circumcised” (v. 11a). Paul tells us why this happened: “The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised” (vv. 11b-12). Abraham was saved, not by his works or obedience to be circumcised, but by his faith. “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness” (Rom. 4:3).

To be continued.

True Joy is Found in Insignificance

This morning I read about Jesus feeding the five thousand and walking on water from Mark 6.  The disciples didn’t understand.  In fact, Mark says that their hearts were hardened.  What the disciples didn’t get was the fact that the God who created water, fish, bread, and the world was sitting and talking with them.

Then I began to think about molecules, atoms, protons, neutrons, electrons and the like.  I’m not scientific at all, but when you let your mind wander into the vast complexities of these invisible structures that make up the universe, you don’t feel important anymore.  Actually, I would argue that it’s impossible to think about such things and feel significant in yourself.

But I didn’t feel this way because of the atoms or protons themselves.  It’s ultimately the result of knowing and loving the infinite God who, with a single word, created those things and everything else — including me — in the universe.

That will make you feel small.  That will give you true joy.

Weekly Weirdness

Weird news always brightens-up my day.

• Police: Pilot used plane to stalk ex-girlfriend
• White Philly officer told to get rid of cornrows
• Woman shoots two holes-in-one — in same round

Enjoy the weirdness.

Abortion…a Blessing?

In a World Magazine blog from last Friday, Marcia Segelstein comments about Episcopal church Reverend Katherine Ragsdale’s remarks on abortion from a speech a few years back.  Ragsdale said:

When a woman wants a child but can’t afford one, because she hasn’t the education necessary for a sustainable job, or access to health care, or day care, or adequate food, it is the abysmal priorities of our nation, the lack of social supports, the absence of justice that are the tragedies; the abortion is a blessing.

And when a woman becomes pregnant within a loving, supportive, respectful relationship; has every option open to her; decides she does not wish to bear a child; and has access to a safe affordable abortion, there is not a tragedy in sight; only blessing.

The ability to enjoy God’s good gift of sexuality without compromising one’s education, life’s work, or ability to put to use God’s gifts and call is simply blessing. These are the two things I want you, please, to remember – abortion is a blessing and our work is not done. Let me hear you say it. Abortion is a blessing and our work is not done.

According to Ragsdale, Jesus’ poor, helpless, husband-less, jobless, teenage mother should have had an abortion.

I can understand a non-Christian saying, “I don’t give a rip what God thinks.”  Well and good for you, my friend.  But this is coming from a self-proclaimed “Christian”!  In order for us to know what God thinks, we need to actually read the Bible.  Here’s a sampling:

• For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb (Ps. 139:13).
• The king of Egypt said…”When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.”  But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live (Ex. 1:15, 16-17).
• “For he [i.e. John the Baptizer] will be great before the Lord.  And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb” (Lk. 1:15).
• And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb…she exclaimed with a loud cry…”For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy” (Lk. 1:41, 42, 44).

So what do you think?  Is abortion a blessing? (Non-Christians feel free to weigh in, too.  Everyone, please be gentle.)

Conversation Between a Calvinist and an Arminian

This is from John Piper’s post earlier this week about how Charles Simeon, a Calvinist, tried to reason with John Wesley, an Arminian, about the supremacy of God in the salvation and perseverance of Christians.  I have adapted it to contemporary language.

So you call yourself an Arminian. People call me a Calvinist; and therefore we are supposed to argue about finer points of theology. But before we start fighting, may I ask you a few questions? Do you think that you are a depraved person, so depraved, in fact, that you would have never turned to God if God had not put it in your heart first?

Yes, I do indeed

And do you reject your coming to God with your works as the source of your righteousness, and look for salvation solely through the blood and righteousness of Christ?

Yes, solely through Christ.

And since you were at first saved by Christ, do you try to continue to be saved by something other than him?

No, I must be saved by Christ from first to last.

Since then you were first saved by the grace of God, do you need to keep yourself saved by your own power?

No.

Are you to be upheld every hour and every moment by God, just like a baby in his mother’s arms?

Yes, altogether.

And is all your hope in the grace and mercy of God to preserve you so that you will be able enter into his kingdom?

Yes, I have no hope but in Him.

Then, let me say, my friend, that this is what Calvinism is. This is election and justification by faith, and perseverance. This is really all there is to it and nothing else. Therefore, instead of searching for differences in language and definitions and having that be a source of contention between us, can we please be united in these things that we agree on?

Obviously, there is a lot more in Reformed theology than just this, but I think Simeon’s point is to show that “Arminians” and “Calvinists” have more in common than they think.  Furthermore, I think that Simeon may have tried to show the inconsistencies in Arminian thought.

How do you think the conversation would have gone if Wesley had asked the questions?

Yes, I do indeed.

And do you utterly despair of coming to God with your works as the source of your righteousness, and look for salvation solely through the blood and righteousness of Christ?

Yes, solely through Christ.

And supposing you were at first saved by Christ, do you try to continue to be saved by something other than him?

No, I must be saved by Christ from first to last.

Since then you were first saved by the grace of God, do you need to keep yourself saved by your own power?

No.

Are you to be upheld every hour and every moment by God, just like a baby in his mother’s arms?

Yes, altogether.

And is all your hope in the grace and mercy of God to preserve you so that you can enter into his kingdom?

Yes, I have no hope but in Him.

Then, let me say, my friend, that this is what Calvinism is to me.  This is election and justification by faith, and perseverance.  This is really all there is to it and nothing else.  Therefore, if you please, instead of fighting about language and having it be a source of contention between us, can we please be united in these things that we agree on?

Blogging and Broken Computers

My computer is in the local HP shop this week.  Nothing internal, however.  The hinge to close the screen is poorly designed and has been slowly deteriorating since I bought it in January.  It’s a Compaq…so I don’t need to say much more.

So blogging will be slow this week and through the weekend. In the meantime, here’s some random thoughts or things that have come up over the past day or so:

• Wedding planning is really fun, especially when you are less than four months away.  I like details.  I think they like me, too.  But I love my bride-to-be, and I know that she loves me too.  What a blessing she is to me.
• We are studying Nehemiah for our staff Bible study here in South Africa.  It might be the best book on leadership ever written.
• I just bought Leading on Empty by Wayne Cordeiro.  It’s about watching for, recovering from, and avoiding burnout in ministry.  I’m almost 25 so I’m hoping to apply the watching for and avoiding parts.  The first 30 pages are very good.
• Jesus’ voice will raise the dead — every single person who has ever lived — and judge them (John 5:28-29).  That has implications for your life.
• Jesus’ intercession for us is the thing that is keeping us saved (Luke 22:31-32).
• I’m glad that my hope is not in a bunch of college kids who play football.  Otherwise after Nebraska’s game against Virginia Tech this past weekend, my life would be ruined.
• My time here in SA is almost done.  In the past 2 months, we have seen more gospel vision, passion, and fruit than in the previous 7 months combined.
• I really have a craving for tortilla chips and chunky salsa.

Justification by Grace

Justification: View Series
Continued from Part 5

The pillar of the Reformation was “justification by faith.” Justification is by faith alone, but if there was no grace—unmerited favor from God—there would be no opportunity for faith. God’s grace is the foundation for our faith.

Romans 4:16 makes this clear: “That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring.” Justification is by faith, then, in order that the promise of eternal life may depend wholly on grace, not works.

If justification came to men by anything other than grace through faith, it would be on the basis of works. We must hold firm to this truth, otherwise this precious pillar of the Christian faith come tumbling down. Man would be exalted, not God. Man would get the glory, not God. Man would be most powerful, not God. As Wayne Grudem said in the introduction, if the gospel is to go forth in power for generations to come, we must firmly uphold this truth.

This is clear in other passages, too. Outside of the epistles, in Acts, Peter tells the Jerusalem church, “But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as [the Gentiles] will” (15:11). In Romans 3:24, Paul says that people “are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Later, in 4:4, he writes, “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due.” In Titus 2:11, Paul writes, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people.” Later in 3:7, he says, “So that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

In Galatians 2:21, Paul contrasts works of the law with God’s grace. He says, “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” God’s grace cannot be canceled-out. Jesus died for our sins—this was grace. But if we could be righteous from our own good works, then Jesus’ death (i.e. God’s grace) would be null and void.

Perhaps the most popular passage on the distinctive roles of grace and faith is found in Ephesians 2:8-9. Paul writes, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this [i.e. faith] is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Grace is the foundation for all that Christians do. It is even the foundation and reason for the faith that comes to us when we believe.

To be continued.

Truth is Truth is Truth

From the urban philosopher Lecrae:

Man, see some folks say, “All truth is relative, it just depends on what you believe.” You know, “Hey man, ain’t no way to know for sure who God is or what’s really true.” But that means you believe your own statement: that there’s no way to know what’s really true. You’re saying that that statement is true. You’re killing yourself. If what’s true for you is true for you, and what’s true for me is true for me, what if my truth says your’s is a lie? Is it still true? Come on man!

…See, there’s this thing called “Secular Humanism”, it says man is the source of all meaning and all purposing. You know what i’m saying? We’re just the result of a big cosmic explosion. We don’t really have a purpose or meaning, so we just come up with our own purpose. We’re the source of our meaning and our purpose. How can a man, which is the product of chance, a finite being be the source of purpose and meaning? You can’t! You’re created with purpose man!

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Related Posts:

• Don’t Waste Your Life Music Video
• Driscoll Interviews Lecrae
• 116 Clique: Good Rap, Better Theology

A Linguistic Approach to Tongues

I found these two articles by Robert Zerhusen very helpful on the study of speaking in tongues.  He gives compelling arguments to believe that tongues are known human languages in both Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 14, and not ecstatic utterances.  They were published by the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals:

• Part 1: A New Look at Tongues
  
• Part 2: The Problem of Tongues in 1 Corinthians 14

Perhaps a great question to ask before and while you read is, “Who ever said that tongues has to be a miraculous gift?”  The Bible certainly say that, or really even imply it.

At the end of the day, this debate doesn’t make a lot of difference, as it’s not an essential thing.  However, we are called to know the Scriptures and study them.  Wherever you are at on this issue, I hope these articles are beneficial to you.