Jesus Died to Show the Wealth of His Grace

I have heard it said, “God didn’t die for frogs.  So he was responding to our value as humans.”  This turns grace on its head.  We are worse off than frogs.  They have not sinned.  They have not rebelled and treated God with the contempt of being inconsequential in their lives.  God did not have to die for frogs.  They aren’t bad enough.  We are.  Our debt is so great, only a divine sacrifice could pay for it.

- John Piper, Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die

Love One Another Earnestly From a Pure Heart

In 1 Peter 1:22, Peter writers, “Having purified your souls by obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart.”

This “purifying” is not initial saving faith. The New Testament never speaks of people playing an active role in their conversion. The Greek word for “purified” is hagnizo which means “moral cleansing.” Peter already assumes that these people are converted (vv. 1, 3, 10, 18, 19, 21), so it is more likely that this purification is simply sanctification. Christians play a much more active role in sanctification (cf. James 4:8; 1 John 3:3). As Christians, we are more and more sanctified when we are obedient to the truth. When this happens, we are becoming more like Christ.

Now, the phrase “for a sincere brotherly love” may lead us to think that the purpose of sanctification is to sincerely love people. Sincere brotherly love is more a result of sanctification than a goal. The goal of sanctification is Christlikeness, and brotherly love is certainly a component of that.  However, if that were the goal of sanctification, there would no doubt be many private sins that never harm others that would not inhibit sanctification.  But we know that this certainly is not the case in our Christian journey. 

Since we have been born again (vv. 1-21), are now joining God in the sanctification process (v. 22a), and understand how to have sincere brotherly love (v. 22b), we are to “love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (v. 22c).  Romans 12:10 says, “Love one another with brotherly affection.”  Hebrews 13:1 says, “Let brotherly love continue.” We are to love with earnest from a pure heart. The word “earnest” in Greek is ektenos that comes from a verb which means to “stretch out the hand,” thus it means to be stretched out — earnest, resolute, tense. We are to be intentional, bold, and heartfelt with others. We are to be the stiff, strong arm that reaches for someone to hold on to in hard times.  We are to be the stalwart rock for people, like Jesus is for us, so they can see that Jesus is the true rock of defense when they are in dire straits.

I want to love people like this.  Lord, help me. 

Another Thought on Suicide

The world is not impressed when Christians experience a suicide and have their ultimate joy depleted in sake of living in sorrow and using God as a teddy bear for comfort.  The world is impressed when Christians experience a suicide and say, “Jesus is enough.  He is my shelter.  He will give me hope.  I will cling to him.  And even in tragedy and despair,  he is utterly satisfing and I will rejoice, for he is good.”

How You Can Bless Your Pastor

Listen to this short audio clip from John Piper on how you can bless your pastor. 

As someone who desires to be a pastor, I find this so helpful and encouraging.  The common demoninator in it all: don’t waste your life.  Live life in a way that shows you have saving faith.  Be holy, as God is holy.  Love Jesus with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Do those things, and you will bless not only your pastor, but those brothers and sisters around you. 

I Have Nothing, Yet I Posses More Than I Could Ever Imagine

We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.

- 2 Corinthians 6:8b-10

As I was reading 1 Peter 1:5-7 this morning, Peter said, “In this [the living hope we have], you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith — more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire — may be found to result in prise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”  The Christians to whom Peter was writing were joyful, yet sorrowful.  They were exceedingly glad that God has elected them, caused them to be born again to a living hope and eternal inheritance, and that they are being guarded by God’s power.  Still, they were sorrowful for going through trials and tribulations.

With this dichotomy from 1 Peter on my mind, I flipped over to 2 Corinthians 6 to read about how Paul described himself and the apostles.  Two of the clauses jumped off the page: 1) “as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing” and 2) “as having nothing, yet possessing everything.” 

The first one is for the obvious reason that it related to 1 Peter.  Is there ever true, undefiled rejoicing in this world without some sort of pain and sorrow attached?  Of course not.  We need to live on the fine line of knowing how to rejoice amidst pain and suffering.

The second for reasons that have become so much more evident to me over the past nine months.  I work for Campus Crusade in Nebraska.  I’ll be in Africa this summer for a month and then again for a year starting in January.  I have to raise financial support.  I don’t make much money.  People in my own family think that I am wasting my life and time with what I’m doing.  Others on the outside hear “ministry” and they think that I’m just some religious nut who will never be able to mortgage a home because I make peanuts for a living.  In the world’s eyes, I have nothing.  I buy clothes from Target and Wal-Mart.  Eating out means going to Subway.  Truly, I have nothing — in one sense.  But in an altogether different sense, I have never been richer in my entire life.  I have seen people go from death to life, darkness to light, and from a purposeless life to a living hope.  I have developed deep, meaningful relationships that will continue throughout my life.  I have grown with the Lord in mighty ways so that I now truly taste and see that he is good.  I might not have a large bank account in this world, but my savings account in heaven is no doubt growing by the day. 

God deserves all glory and praise and honor.  How blessed is it that he invites us undeserving people to be a part of what he is doing in the world.  For those in the economy of God, though we appear as if we have nothing, we are really more wealthy than could ever be imagined.

Jesus Died for My Obedience

Jesus didn’t just purchase salvation for the elect on the cross.  He also bought all of the benefits of the gospel kingdom, one of the greatest being obedience.  Without obedience to the gospel, we would only have wrath waiting for us (2 Thess. 1:8).

Ezekiel 36:26-27,

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

Hebrews 5:9,

And being made perfect, [Jesus] became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him. 

Without God giving us a new heart of flesh, we would have no ability to obey him.  Praise God that he has purchased obedience for us through Jesus’ death so we can experience eternal salvation with him forever.

 

 

 

Imputed Righteousness to the Unworthy

To believe, and to consent to be loved while unworthy, is the great secret.

- W.R. Newell

Sometimes we forget that God’s love is unconditional and grounded in who Christ is, not what we’ve done.  It’s easy to accept love from people when we know we deserve it.  But with a holy God, we are never deserving.  For God to love us even in our darkest, most grotesque hour–because of his Son–is what makes following Jesus more utterly satisfying than anything else in this world. 

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

- 2 Corinthians 5:21

Brokenness: The Antidote for Pride

John Piper posted today on pride, taking a quote from Jonathan Edward’s Religious Affections.  I couldn’t help but respond because of the pride that so often seeps into my own life.  I love to learn and share what I know and sometimes, my knowledge puffs up and I am simply just showing off what I know instead of humbly loving others.  I spoke to some college men in Wayne, Nebraska, last night and the whole day I prayed for humility and brokenness.  Yesterday morning, James 4:6-10 came to my attention.  James writes, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.  Submit yourselves therefore to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.  Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purity your hearts, you double-minded.  Be wretched and mourn and weep.  Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.”

When I stepped up to speak last night, I told the men, “I am preaching to myself, and you just happened to be here listening to me.”  That’s the attitude I want to have.  I want to be broken over my own sin as I invite others to be broken with me, trusting Jesus to work in us to bring us to completion. 

With that, here is what Edwards writes:

All gracious affections that are a sweet odor to Christ, and that fill the soul of a Christian with a heavenly sweetness and fragrancy, are broken hearted affections. A truly Christian love, either to God or men, is a humble broken hearted love. The desires of the saints, however earnest, are humble desires. Their hope is a humble hope; and their joy, even when it is unspeakable, and full of glory, is a humble broken hearted joy, and leaves the Christian more poor in spirit; and more like a little child, and more disposed to a universal lowliness of behavior.

Perseverance of the Saints

There’s a lot of different perspectives in Christianity about the level of assurance a believer can have.  D.A. Carson, of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, offers some great insight:

For non-reformed theologies…”at the end of the day, the security of the believer finally rests with the believer.  For those in the opposite camp [Reformed], the security of the believer finally rests with God–and that, I suggest, rightly taught, draws the believer back to God himself, to trust in God, to a renewed faith that is of a piece with trusting him in the first place.”

When people believe that their free-choice brought them to Christ, that their works bring about sanctification, and that their determination keeps them enduring, instead of God’s election, grace, mercy, and power, they are ultimately trusting in themselves and not God.  How arrogant and self-centered!

Furthermore, if we could lose our salvation, that would mean that the Christian could perform a work that is more powerful than Almighty God by leaving his saving grasp.  We must remember what Jesus said in John 10:27-29, “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.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

Take joy in that promise.  Rejoice that your Savior is not weak or incapable of preserving you.  He is gloriously powerful and more than able to hold you in his grip for all eternity. 

Unintentional Sins and Atonement

Leviticus 4 is about unintentional sins, or as the KJV would say, “sins of ignorance.”  There are sacrifices for unintentional sins that come from private individuals, the whole congregation of Israel, leaders, and common people.  Four times, God says this phrase after a sacrifice is made: “And the priest shall make atonement for them, and they shall be forgiven” (vv. 20, 26, 31, 25).  Israel was full of ignorant sins, they were hidden from their minds, hearts, and spiritual eyes.  Unfortunately, we are in the same boat. 

Our hearts should be that we trust in the Holy Spirit to reveal these secret sins to us.  We should have the desire of David when he prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” and “Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults” (Ps. 139:23-24; 19:12).  We should be broken over our ignorance simple unwillingness to examine our true selves by facing the ugliness of sin face-to-face.

Yet, there is a Priest who atones for our secret sins.  First John 2:1-2 says, “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”  More than that he is the atonement for our sin that he had to offer one time.  Hebrews 7:27 says, “He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.”

At the cross of Jesus, everyone who calls on his name finds grace, mercy, peace, compassion, and forgiveness (Acts 2:21; Rom. 10:13). There is no partiality with God, for here we see rich and poor, slave and free, leader and follower, male and female, old and young, and Jew and Gentile all come into the presence of God because of Jesus’ sacrifice (Rom. 10:12; Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11). Perhaps, even while Jesus was on the cross there was an allusion to this sacrifice for unintentional sins when he prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” 

How perfect are the Scriptures, that every page, even the Old Testament, tells the glory of God and the preeminence of Christ!