He is Worth It

                                           

More than that, I count all things to be loss in view

of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus

my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of

all things, and count them but rubbish so that 

I may gain Christ.

Philippians 3:8

In thinking about my relationship with Christ, its value far surpasses anything else. He is worth the sacrifices I make for Him. In the process of thinking about this, I had a scene come into my mind. A scene that has come up occasionally when thinking on sacrificing for the Lord, and how He is worth the sacrifice. It is a scene from my own imagination, that came about as a result of reading an excerpt from a missionary biography a few years back about John Paton. I wish I could remember where I read it, but here is the gist of it.  

There was a family that felt led of the Lord to go and witness to the natives of the New Hebrides, and were dropped off on the island to begin their ministry. The inhabitants were cannibals, and were fierce warriors. Over the next couple of years his children and his wife died and were buried, and John slept on their graves every night for fear that the cannibals would dig up their graves. John would later remarry and return to the island to continue to share the gospel with these people. Of course, there is more to the story, but the scene that keeps coming to my mind is one where this man, having given up all his possessions, comforts, and security to come to this foreign and hostile land; and then losing his entire family, is alone in the darkness and stretched out over the graves of his wife and children. And in my mind the man is proclaiming to the Lord, "You are worth it!  You are worth it!"

My friends, I don't know what you are giving up to serve the Savior. I don't know what sacrifices you are making or have made; but I do know this, "He is worth it!  He is worth it!" He is worth the work of our faith and the labor of our love. He is worth the taking up of our cross. He is worth the suffering of shame for His name sake. He is the pearl of great price who is worth all of what we have. He is the One who paid it all, and so He is the one who is worth it all. Let us take our lives and offer them up, so that along with Paul, we too may gain Christ and may be found in Him on that day. 

God's Nearness, Our Good

But as for me the nearness of God is my good.

Psalm 73:28

How blessed is the one whom You choose

and bring near to You to dwell in your courts.

Psalm 65:4

But God, being rich in mercy because of His

great love with which He loved us...made us

alive together with Christ (by grace you have

been saved), and raised us up with Him and

seated us with Him in the heavenly places

in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:4-7

God's nearness is indeed our good.  In fact, the closer we draw near to God the better it is for us, and the more joy and delight we have in Him and He in us. The question, though, for all of us is, "How indeed do we draw near?" How do we as physical and sinful creatures draw near to the Creator who is Spirit and Holy? 

The answer is that we draw near in Christ. And how then do we draw near in Christ? Since we are baptized in Christ (Romans 6:3-4), we have been placed in Christ through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and through the Spirit's baptism are united with Him (Romans 6:5); and because we now have a spiritual union with Christ, we remain in Him (I Corinthians 6:17, II Peter 1:4). This is what water baptism pictures for us, the spiritual immersing of us into Christ by the Holy Spirit, and the subsequent oneness that we have.

The term united in Romans 6:5 is an organic term as compared to a mechanical term. So instead of being bolted to Christ, or glued to Christ, or welded to Christ we are planted in Christ and grow in Christ, thus picturing a planting and growing together as one. We are not a part to be added to Christ, nor is He part that has been added to us, but we live and grow in Christ. It is a picture of a progressive and intimate relationship  

Once again, we see the wondrous provision of God, in giving to us from Himself and of Himself what we cannot possibly provide or accomplish on our own. Terms such as immeasurable grace or unconditional love do not capture the fullness of what He does for us. So let us rejoice today, and marvel in the nearness we have with the One who has created it all.  

Giving to the Lord

Giving to the Lord is an act of love,

not an act of duty.  When He has captured 

your heart, the money will follow.

The True Christian

The true Christian understands that he has been

united with Christ; and that once united with Christ

he can never be separated, torn, or carried away from Him.

True Repentance in the Life of a Believer in Psalm 119

I sought Your favor with all my heart;

Be gracious to me according to Your word.

I considered my ways

And turned my feet to Your testimonies.

I hastened and did not delay

To keep Your commandments.

Psalm 119:58-60

These verses give us a wonderful picture of true repentance in the life of the believer.  Let's break down what we see in this picture.

1. The condition of our heart, vs 58
We see the that there is a heartfelt desire to be right with the Lord.  This is the ground of repentance, this is where true repentance must start, with a real desire to be right with God and to walk closely with Him.  It will manifest itself in a concern for one's fellowship with God.  A heart like this is fertile soil for repentance.  In Psalm 51: 17 and Isaiah 66:2 we see that this the kind of heart that curries favor with God.  Compare this to the unrepentant heart in Hosea 7:14a, and Jeremiah 8:6.

2. The consideration of our ways, vs 59
The word consider means to think on, or to examine so as to make a judgment.  In true repentance we will have looked at our ways (both as to how we live and what we think) so as to judge them.  We, like the Psalmist, will have judged how our ways line up with God's ways as His ways are the plumb line for determining if our ways match up; and it is His word that give us the knowledge and ability to do that.  This always involves an acknowledgment of where our ways (again, both living and thinking) do not line up with His.  This judging of our ways will lead to that moment when we cry out to God, "O, what have I done!"

3. The turning from our ways to His, vs 59
When we see where we are off, where our way of living and thinking have diverged from His, we will turn from our own path and turn to His.  His path is shown by His testimonies. This is truly turning from our transgressions and turning to His righteousness.  We see an example of this in Ezekiel 18:27-28.  True repentance always involves this turning from sin and turning to God (I Thessalonians 1:9-10).  See God's call to to the world for its repentance in Isaiah 45:22.

4. The hastening of our turning, vs 60
We see the sense of urgency as the Psalmist can't wait, won't delay to turn to God.  This shows the burden of the heart to be right with God, its importance to the heart of a true believer. True repentance will always include this sense of urgency to be back in God's favor.  True repentance will never be lacksadasical or luke warm regarding being right with God.  Repentance is serious stuff to a heart like this, because this is a heart that loves the Lord and craves that sweet intimate communion with Him, and does not want anything between him and his Lord.  When a heart is truly broken and contrite over its sin, it will always hasten and take the straightest path back to God as it wants to be healed from the wound of its sin.

5. The keeping of His commandments, vs 60
True repentance will always result in a renewed commitment to the word of God, and a renewed commitment of obedience to that word.  A heart that has turned from its sin, and been healed from its sin ,will be eager to follow the Lord's commands, and will take great joy in keeping those commandments.  This heart will take great delight in following after the Lord, and the Lord will take great delight in this heart (Isaiah 66:2, Psalm 37:4). 

A true believer will truly repent, and this pattern of repentance...contrition, consideration, turning, hastening, and keeping...will be true for their life.

A Christian's Desire

As Christians, we are to be overcome

by the desire to please our Father,

rather than be overcome by the desire

to please ourselves.

(Isaiah 58:13-14a, John 8:29, Colossians 1:9-10,

Ephesians 5:8b-10, Romans 12:1-2)

Knowing God

On my way to bed the other night, I happened to run across an interview on TV.  The person being interviewed is a well known television personality/celebrity.  They were talking about life and its lessons, and they mentioned some final words that someone who was close to death had given them, that in the end it is all about family and friends; in other words, it's all about relationships and it is those relationships that matter most in life, and give meaning to life.  Of course, the interviewer nodded in solemn agreement, and for the next few minutes they both talked about the value of relationships.

It is true that relationships are important, and, for those of us who are common everyday people, our legacy, if you will, is carried on in the relationships we leave behind.  However, there is an eternal relationship, a relationship that we can have both in this life and in the one to come, and that is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  This relationship is what actually guarantees our acceptance into the presence of God when we pass from this life into the next.  To those who professed to be Christians and were relying on their religious works as their ticket to heaven, Jesus had this to say in Matthew 7:23, "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew (knew in an intimate personal way) you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'"  And in John 17:3 Christ tells us this, "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."

It is to know God personally, not just know about or have heard about Him; to have a relationship with Him, rather than an abstract knowledge of Him; to know up close and not from a distance; to be familiar and not a stranger to Him and His ways, that makes our faith a living faith.   To have this faith, this intimate knowledge of God, was one of the promises of the New Covenant as God said in Jeremiah 31:34, "For they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them."   It is the knowledge of the Most High that gives substance to our faith.

The command to love God with all our heart, mind, and soul presupposes that we know Him.  We cannot have this kind and depth of love for someone whom we do not know.  In fact, the more we know Him the greater our love shall be for Him, so as we grow in the breadth and depth of our knowledge of Him there is a corresponding growth in our love for Him that will encompass more and more of our heart, mind, and soul. This is one of the reasons we are exhorted in II Peter 3:18 to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

This is also part of my personal testimony.  As I was reading an article on Tom Landry in Guidepost magazine while in the waiting room of a doctor's office, he talked about having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ; and I thought to myself, "How do you have a relationship with someone who has been dead two thousand years."  But this impacted me, for though I had grown up in the church and knew the facts about Jesus and had professed faith in Jesus, I knew that I did not know Him and did not have a relationship with Him.  After wrestling with this for two years, I finally came to the point where one evening I saw myself as the sinner I was and repented.  The next morning when I woke up I knew Him, and knew that I knew Him as He was alive to me; and the relationship has grown deeper and sweeter through the years.

So the question for those of you reading this is, "Do you know Him, and His Son the Lord Jesus Christ, not just know about Him, but know Him and have a relationship with Him?"  Do you have fellowship and communion with Him?  Are you intimate with Him?  Do you know that you know Him?  For if you do, then you can know and rest assured that you have eternal life.

A Different Take on Love Wins-Part II

In Part I we saw how God has a particular and specific love for His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and that He loves us with the same love with which He loves His Son. This is a familial love, a love that a father has for his own son. This love is not for those who are of the world, those who have not been adopted into the family of God, those who have not believed on Christ, His person and His finished work on our behalf. So let's see what else we can glean about this wondrous love of God.

His Particular Love is an Eternal Love

Remember when we were looking at the love of the Father for the Son and we saw that He loved both the Son and His own before the foundation of the world (John 17:24, Ephesians 1:4). This means that before time began God already loved us. God's love for us is from eternity past, so in the eternal mind of God there has never been a time when He did not love us. This fact should give all of us who belong to Him a security in our relationship with Him. It also highlights His unmerited grace in bringing us to Himself. Before we were born, and could do anything good or bad He already loved us with an everlasting love. His love for us has always been, it will always be, and everything connected with His purpose for us revolves around this eternal love with which He loves us. Why can we never be separated from His love, as was stated in Romans 8:32? Because His love for us will never cease! We see a picture of this in Jeremiah 31:3 The Lord appeared to him from afar, saying, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness." The Lord is talking to Israel in this passage, but in it we see pictured His eternal love for those who are His own. Think about what it means that God has always loved you with the same love with which He has always loved His Son. Because God loves us with the same love with which He loves His Son, He would no sooner let us go than He would His own Son. What a humbling truth! At a minimum it should fill your heart with thanksgiving and humble your soul.

His Particular Love is an Electing Love

I commented earlier that to be beloved is to be the object of a particular love or the particular object of someone's love. We are the beloved of God, and therefore we are the particular object of His love (those on whom He bestows His love), and the object of His particular love (the same love with which He loves the Son, a familial love). But there is also something that goes along with being His beloved. Let's look at some Scriptures together to see what that is.

Ephesians 1:4b-5a In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ.
Colossians 3:12a So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved....
II Thessalonians 2:13-14 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I Thessalonians 1:4 knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you;
Jude 1:1 Jude, a slave of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ:

Did you notice that God has only called beloved His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and those whom He has chosen beforehand for salvation. He calls no one else beloved.  Did you also notice the connection between love and predestination; being beloved and being chosen, called, and kept. Because we are the particular objects of His particular love (His beloved), He chose us out of the world unto Himself, and has given us to His Son. This particular love is a love of choice, not compulsion. He chose to set His affection upon us, and the result of this is His drawing of us to Himself. He loves whom He chooses and He chooses whom He loves, and if you are not loved with this particular love you are not predestined for salvation, chosen, called, or kept. We see that He only saves those on whom He has set His particular love, the same love with which He loves His Son, upon from all eternity.  This is all done in accordance with the kind intention of His will to accomplish His eternal purpose, which God carried out in Christ.

When we start contemplating this we soon bump the ceiling of our understanding. And that is okay. This causes many questions to come up, the foremost of which is, "Why did God choose to love me, and therefore save me, and not person X?" One day we will know fully as we have been fully known, but until that time we can be in rapt wonder of the greatness of the mind of God, and how incomprehensible His ways are. This truth is transcendent, one that is above and beyond us and our rational capabilities. Suffice it to say that there is enough here to cause us to bow low before Him in holy reverence and awe. It is truths like this that set God apart as God, and let us know that He is truly a God who is deserving of all worship.

His Particular Love is a Saving Love

Because we are loved with a particular love, God has chosen us, and because He has chosen us we are saved. To be loved with this particular love is to be chosen, selected out of the mass of humanity headed for hell, for salvation. The outcome of this love is our salvation, our deliverance from the penalty, power, and ultimately, the presence of sin. The wages of sin is death, and the consequence of sin is the just judgement of a holy God. Ephesians 2:2-7 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Apart from the love of God we would not know salvation. In His choosing to love us our salvation was guaranteed and our eternal state was fixed. I am reminded of a statement by A. W. Pink to the effect that the crucifixion of Christ did not make our salvation possible, it made it certain.

II Timothy :8b-9 ...according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity. The love of God is most manifest in the person of Christ, and it is through the person and work of Christ that He has brought salvation to those whom He has set His great love upon. God's love for you is in accordance with His eternal purpose which has been carried out in Christ.

Christian friends, rejoice and be glad, be thankful and worshipful, that God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation. Marvel at the wondrous love with which you are loved by the Father. Give thanks to God for loving you so, for loving you with the same love with which He loved the Son, and for placing this love upon you.

A Different Take on Love Wins-Part I

Today and tomorrow I am reposting this two part series on the love of God as a biblical response to the book "Love Wins" by Rob Bell.  Yes, love does win, but it is the love of God described and delineated in the Scriptures, not the love that Rob Bell has made up.

Today I want to talk about the love of God, which, I believe, is the grandest theme in the Scriptures. The love of God is what has prompted Him to do all that He has done on our behalf. Yes, I know that ultimately all things are for His glory, but it is through His love that His glory is most vibrantly and visibly expressed. In I John 4:8 & 16 we see that God is love. He doesn't possess love, but He is love; and that love is manifested in, an oh so tangible way, in and through the person of Christ. So let's press on to know more fully this love which is part and parcel of the very nature of God. It is part of who He is and cannot be separated from Him.

The general love of God

First, there is the general love of God for mankind. I know that there are those among our hyper-reformed brothers that will say that God does not love mankind, but only the elect, and that He is angry with the wicked every day. While it is true that God is angry with the wicked every day, it does not, and has not, kept Him from loving mankind. Let's look at some examples from Scripture.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Again, there are those who will say that this verse only applies to the elect, and if this verse were the only verse like it in the Scriptures, which it is not, then that argument might have some weight. However, the word for world here is kosmos. It is used 151 times in the NT and always means this created world, its order, or the people who inhabit it. Also, in this verse we see the word whosoever. It does not say for God so loved the elect, that they would believe in Jesus (even though that is true, and we shall see more on that later), but that God so loved the world that whosoever believes in Christ shall be saved. Whosoever is very clear in its meaning and it means anyone who will. A synonomous verse to John 3:16 is II Corinthians 5:19...God was in Christ reconciling the world (kosmos) to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them (Compare this little section with Acts 17:30), and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. God has made reconciliation with Himself available to the world (unredeemed humanity). Why? Because God has a general love for mankind. It is also interesting to note here that the word for love used in John 3:16 is agapao, which is the word for love used in I John 4:8 & 16. God can not deny Himself, or be other than He is, so we see this love of God revealed in His love for this world, and the people who inhabit it.

Additionally, let's look at Titus 3:4-5 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us... The phrase, love for mankind, is one word in the Greek and that word is philanthropia, from which we get our word philanthropy. It is composed of two Greek words, phileo--which means brotherly love; and anthropos--which means mankind. This is a very specific word to denote God's charitable, benevolent love and kindly disposition for all of mankind. It is used only one other time in the NT and that is in Acts 28:2.

But, let's don't stop there, let's look at Matthew 5:43-48, the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus says "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as you heavenly Father is perfect." Notice that Jesus is saying here that we are to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect, and to do that we must love not only those who love us, because even the most despised (tax collectors) do that; but also those who hate us and persecute us; and what is implied here is that God loves those who are His enemies (which He would automatically since He is love). So God does love the wicked, even those who are his enemies, which we all are until He saves us (Romans 5:10).

Finally, let's look at the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10:17-22. We all know the story about how he turned away from Christ because he did not want to give up his possessions. But what is interesting here is the attitude of Jesus towards this young man. Let's pick this story up in 10:21 Looking at him Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, "One thing you lack; go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." Here we see the heart of God, revealed through Christ, and His love (agape) for this one person, and how this love prompted Christ to reveal to this young man what was between him and heaven, even though He knew the young man would reject Him and walk away; and it is interesting to note here that even though Jesus felt a love for this young man, He let him walk away from Him and spurn His offer of salvation.

Because of God's love for this world, mankind, all those who are his enemies, and, yes, even individuals, He has made salvation available to all, by giving His Son, that whosoever believes in His Son will have life eternal. God is love, and He cannot be other than who He is, and we see His love for mankind revealed in these verses.

The particular love of God for His Son

However, there is another dimension to the love of God, and to understand that we need to look back into eternity past to see it. God gives us a glimpse of it in John 17:24 in the prayer of Christ, "Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given me, be with Me where I am so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world." We see here that the Father has loved the Son, God the Father has loved Jesus the Son, since before time began. So for all eternity there has been the love of the Father for the Son. A father's particular love for his own son has always existed between God and Christ. Now we also see here that Jesus wants this love to be known by those whom God has given Him (the elect) as they will see it manifested in the glory bestowed on the Son by the Father when they are with Him.

We see this attitude of the Father towards the Son manifested in Matthew 3:17 For this is My Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. To be the beloved of someone is to be the particular object of their love, or the object of someone's particular love. We see this stated in a more distinct way in Colossians 1:13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (literally, the Son of His love). The Son has always been the particular object of the love of the Father, so we can safely say that the Father has a particular love for the Son, and can understand that because we see it paralleled in this world by the particular love each father has for his own son. We see a manifestation of this love of the Father for the Son in John 3:35 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. So the Father loves the Son in different way than the Father loves the world as the Son is the particular object of His love, and this love has always existed between the Father and the Son.

The particular love of God for those who are His own

How does God love us, those who belong to Him? We know He loves the world, he loves mankind, but how does He love us, those whom He has called out of the world. To understand this let's go back to John 17:23-24 & 26. Again this is Jesus praying, "I in them and You in Me, that they maybe perfected in unity, so the the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them even as You have loved Me. Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with me where I am so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world...and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them. It is important to note here that in verse 23 Jesus states that the purpose behind the unity of those who believe in Him would be that the world, the same kosmos that God loves with a general love, would know that not only that the Father sent the Son, but that the Father loves those who believe in the Son with the same love with which He loves the Son. The truth given here, that God loves those who believe in His Son with the same love with which He loves the Son is a staggering truth, one that is almost incomprehensible, and is surely inexplicable. It always causes me to pause and catch my spiritual breath. But, while contemplating this great and wonderful truth, we must also not miss the fact that God does not love the world with the same love with which He loves the Son, this love is only for those who place their faith in Christ Jesus.

The Familial love of God

As we have already seen in John 17 God loves us with the same love with which He loves the Son. Tie this in with Romans 8:29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren. We see that God's plan from before the foundation of the world was for those of us who name the name of Christ as our Savior to be the brethren of His Son, and that Christ was to have the place of preeminence as the firstborn of the sons of God. It is not those of the world who are the brethren of Christ, but only those whom God has predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son. Therefore the love of God for the Son is only for those who are among the family of God.

This is said a little differently, but just as succinctly in I John 3:1. Notice how beautifully John expresses the richness of this truth. See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us that we should be called the children of God, for such we are. The love of the family is reserved for those who are members of the family, and the familial love we see here upon the earth is a dim and imperfect expression of the familial love of God as we have been created in His image, and this image has been marred by sin. This familial love of God is lavishly and graciously bestowed only upon those who are His children and we never see in Scripture those of the world being called the children of the living God. It is only those whom God has called out of the world and place their faith in Christ who become His children.

This is said much more strongly and forcefully in Ephesians 1:4-5a just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world....In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself. This verse brings together all the other verses concerning our status as children of God and tells us how God went about making us His children and the brethren of Christ. We have been adopted. Even better, we see that the reason behind our adoption is the love of God. We know from John 17:24 that the Father loved the Son before the foundation of the world, and from this verse in Ephesians we see that we were also loved before the foundation of the world. What does this mean? It means that God loved us with the same love He had for the Son, that familial love, before the foundation of the world, and because of that love and out of that love He predestined us for adoption as his children. What a wonderful and deep truth to dwell upon, that from eternity past God loves us with the same eternal love with which He loves Jesus and the outworking of that love is our admittance into the family of God; and now we can get insight into why Paul could boldly cry out in Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. It reminds me of Psalm 36:7-8 How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They drink their fill of the abundance of your house; and You give them to drink of the river of your delights. Oh, the wonder and magnificence of it all!

To be continued

Matthew 22:36-37

“Teacher, which is the great commandment

in the Law?” And He said to him, “You shall

love the Lord your God with all your heart,

and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”

This love that Christ is speaking about is a personal love, an intimate love, a relational love. This love grows out of our knowledge of Him and is basic to our relationship with Him.

To love our God with all our heart, soul, and mind is an unfettered love, a love without restraint, a love without hesitation. It is a full on frontal embrace without reservation and without self-consciousness. It is a love that fully engages the object of its love. It is a love that knows it is accepted and a love that knows it is safe. Therefore it is a love that trusts and a love of confidence; and as such is a love of commitment, and a commitment that entails and engages our total person.

This is a love that brings the fullness of joy; the deep and abiding joy that in and of itself is a source of strength. This joy is not subject to circumstance, but seems to thrive in the worst of circumstances. It is a joy that cannot be shaken, because its foundation is a trusting and confident love involving the entire person, soul, heart, and mind; and the object of this love is Himself immovable, unshakeable, unspeakably good, eternal, immortal, unchanging, and our soul knows it very well.

Let us journey on, let us press on, to know our God and our Lord better…more deeply and more completely. It is in knowing Him and growing in our knowing of Him that our love for Him grows ever stronger and deeper; and in this and through this our lives are enriched and we truly experience the real abundant life.

Our Knowledge of the Godhead

Our knowledge of God is incomplete without knowledge of the Son and the Spirit, who are co-equal and consubstantial with the Father.  So for us to know God truly and fully we must know the Godhead which makes up the Trinity. We know that if we have seen Jesus we have seen the Father, that to know Jesus is to know the Father; and that the Holy Spirit is at the same time both the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ.  Knowledge of each has its own special place, function, and application as each member of the Godhead has their own special place, function, and role.

We see their work in salvation (I Peter 1:1-2, Ephesians 1:3-14), creation (Genesis 1:1-2, 26; John 1:1-3),  the earthly ministry of Christ (Matthew 3:16-4:1), and Christ's sacrifice (Hebrews 9:14), just to name a few.  So understanding the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit within the context of their membership in the Godhead, will give us insight into the profoundness of the person of God.

Our Knowledge of God

On one level, our knowledge of God must lead us to know Him better, to love Him more, and to serve Him more effectively.  Knowing God is not an end unto itself, but is the means through which our fellowship with Him is deepened, broadened, and strengthened.  Our knowledge of God is the key to our relationship with Him.

On another level, our knowledge of God does not occur in a vacum, but is acquired while living a life in a fallen and broken world.  Therefore it is to be applied to our life in the midst of our dealings with life, and our comings and goings in this world. Our knowledge of Him should effect the way we think, thereby influencing and guiding, being intertwined in every decision we make.

God of the Possible and Impossible

...with God all things are possible.  Matthew 19:26

For nothing will be impossible with God.  Luke 1:37

With Him all things are possible, and with Him nothing is impossible.  Pretty much sums it up, doesn't it?   In these two verses God has covered the fact that He can do anything and everything, and there is nothing He can't do.  The thing is, do we really believe it?  Is our faith too short when God hasn't answered our prayer or a situation is taking longer than we think it should to play out or resolve itself.  Because if the verses above are true, and they are, then the issue is our faith in God, and not God's ability. So, instead of throwing rocks at God, maybe the rock needs to be self-directed.

The Bible is filled with examples of God's ability, God's power.  In fact, we are told that no purpose of His can be thwarted (Job 42:2).  So why do we tend to sell Him short and have our faith fall short?  Let's give consideration to a few reasons.

1. God's timetable does not meet our own, and we have to wait longer, sometimes much longer than we think we should.

2. The situation is not resolving like we want it, or our expectations are not being met.

3. We have presupposed that our will or desire is His will.

4. We have confused our will or desire as His will. 

5. We try to impose our will on the situation.

6. We bow to the pressure of others or the situation.

7. We forget that God uses times like these to test our faith.

8. We forget that God uses times like these to strengthen our faith.

9. We forget that with God there is never a plan B, but it always has been and always will be plan A. In other words, God never has a contingency plan, because He never needs one.

10. We forget that God works at the speed of life, and at the pace of people, yet He is never slow.

11. We forget the real issue is never with Him, but always with us, as these situations usually highlight.

12. We really don't believe that God is who He claims to be, and can do what He has said He can do.

13. We don't want to deal with our sin that stands in the way.

I am certain this list is not exhaustive, but this is enough for us to think about.  How about you, my friend, did you find yourself on this list?  The real issue facing us in believing God, is surrendering our will to His.  So many times the issue in trusting God is trusting Him with the outcome, even if it is not what we want.  Let us bow our hearts in submission to His will and trust Him to do the impossible, for all things are possible with Him.

The Ground of Our Reconciliation

Propitiation is the ground from which reconciliation occurs.

Reconciliation can not take place until the wrath of God

is satisfied and removed.

In Christ our reconciliation takes place,

because on Christ the wrath of God stored up for us,

was removed from us, poured out upon Christ,

and God's wrath was satisfied once for all at the cross.

IRREVERENCE Part III

This irreverence in the American church is not just in the worship service, but pervades every area of Christian life. Recently my family and I were at Jason's Deli one evening when another family sat down next to us. One of the men was wearing a "religious" tee shirt, and thought, I'm quite sure, that he was providing a cool witness of his Christianity with its catchy wording, as if it is the catchy wording that provides the witness. I sat there with a mouth full of turkey croissant sandwich thinking, "This guy's not serious," and slowly shaking my head at the irreverence he was projecting, all the while he was probably thinking how cool his tee shirt is because of its hip phrasing that will witness to the unchurched, for why else would he wear it. The tee shirt said, "GETTING DOWN WITH THE MOST HIGH," and went on to quote Psalm 91:1 He who dwells in the shadow of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. And of course it had all the fancy graphics most of these tee shirts have. Can anyone seriously think for one minute that they or anyone one else can "get down" with God, the Most High? This tee shirt pictures God as some home boy you can hang out with, dance with, crack jokes and cruise the hood with. The irony of this is that because God is the Almighty, the One and only God, the Creator of Sustainer of all that exists, the One who holds our life breath and our ways in His hand, the One to whom the angels constantly cry, 'Holy, Holy, Holy,' He is not going to be getting down with us...at any time. This, to me was the same attitude that Nadab and Abihu had, and, as we have seen, God did not get down with them, but struck them down. Look at the reverence Jesus, His own Son and fully God as well, showed to Him during His life upon this earth. This tee shirt is indicative of the irreverent attitude towards God that if rife in the American church today. Where is the respect for God as God, and all that He is as God, in the church in our land today?

Another area in Christianity that smacks of irreverence is in the books and music. I am not going to get into all the issues with the music because that should be another post series, but just listen to the lyrics, compare them with the Scriptures, and see how much of what is passing off as worship and praise is veiled irreverence. The same can be said about books, and there are way too many to mention, but I will single out one because it is such a good example. It is John Eldredge's "Wild At Heart." It is one of the biggest pieces of heresy I have ever come across, and the heresy involves the very person of God and how He is presented in this book, and the presentation of God in this book is the height of irreverence as it portrays Him as just like sinful man.

Worship is not limited to our gathering on Sunday, but is to be lived out every day as we see in Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living an holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. So we see that our lives, therefore our lifestyle, should be one of worship. How does God say that we should worship Him? Psalm 2:11 Worship the Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling. So our lifestyle, yes, our very life, should be one of reverence, filled with rejoicing and trembling. To revere is to honor, to show respect, to pay homage all because it is what is due. This is the kind of life we are to live before Him, Coram Deo, before His face. Our lifestyle should not spit in His face, ridicule Him, or present Him as less than He is or other than He is. In Romans Paul tells us to give honor to whom honor is due. Well, who is due more honor than our heavenly Father, our Great Redeemer, and our Friend. Read John 17 and see the honor, the respect, the homage the Son pays to the Father. Should we not do the same in every area of our life?

Judgement begins with the household of God. Let us examine ourselves and our own households for attitudes or displays of irreverence towards our God. Let us look at our own lifestyle, thoughts and attitudes. Let us come before God with reverence and awe and let all that we do reflect the high regard and esteem we hold for our wonderful Savior and our God.

IRREVERENCE Part II

You might be thinking to yourself, "Wait a minute, you are picking on the contemporary church crowd. What about the coat and tie traditional crowd?" Honestly, they can be just as guilty. Let's look at Isaiah 29:13 "Because this people draw near with their words and honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, and their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote." Wearing your Sunday best, repeating the liturgy, praying out of a prayer book, and singing three hymns accompanied by an organ does not make you reverent. Much of the contemporary movement was a reaction to the lifeless, heartless, traditional service where the reverence was ritualized, not internalized. Reverence begins in the heart and its attitude towards God, and at the heart of true worship is reverence towards God. Part of why we are to gather together is to corporately revere God; and in that corporate reverence is a testimony to the greatness of this God who commands such honor and respect.

You may think that this was really an Old Testament issue, and the New Testament God of grace and love is not so harsh and demanding. Read I Corinthians 11:17-34 about the Corinthians attitude and handling of the Lord's supper. Check out verses 27-32, "Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgement to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world." What was God's discipline upon members of this church (which so resembles the American church of today)? Many were weak, many were sick, and a number (obviously more than one) slept (were dead). Go read Acts five about God's dealings with Ananias and Sapphira. Would God do this today? Well, you might be familiar with the Waco pastor who, two years ago, was electrocuted in the baptistry in front of his congregation after leading them in a prayer saying, "Surprise me, Lord. "Let not many of you become teachers, for as such, you will incur a stricter judgement."

If you noticed in the section above where I quoted from I Corinthians, the Corinthians were so spiritually dull that Paul had to tell them that the reason some were sick, or weak, or dead was because of God's hand of discipline among them. They could not see it themselves. Take a step back and take a good look at your church. Could the same thing be happening there? Has it been happening and no one has been able to see it because of the spiritual shallowness of the congregation? Could this be going on in American churches and no one is noticing?

To be continued.

IRREVERENCE

We live in an irreverent society. In fact, it is in vogue to be irreverent, and in many cases the more irreverent, the better. What does it mean to be irreverent? Well, the dictionary defines the word irreverent as having or showing a lack of respect, and the thesaurus gives the word disrespectful as its synonym. We live in a time when it is hip, cool, and popular to be irreverent. However, if you examine irreverence closely, you will find at its heart is rebellion, and that is exactly what the heart of man is, rebellious. Unfortunately, like so many other things, this irreverence has made its way into the church bringing its rebellious heart along with it.

One of the culprits that has allowed this societal irreverence to make its way into the church has been the paradigm shift that has taken place over the last couple of decades in the place and purpose of the church. Where once the church was the place where believers gathered to corporately express their mutual praise, adoration, and thanksgiving, it has now become a place where unbelievers are enticed, entreated, and entertained. Where once the purpose of the church was to honor God, glorify God, and give witness to His majesty, its purpose now is to attract as many people as possible, by any means possible. Where once the focus was on God, His glory, and His holiness, the focus now is on the individual and his felt needs. In short, people no longer come to church for God, they come to church for themselves. The church has ceased to honor God and has chosen to honor man. It reminds me of Malachi 1:6 A son honors his father, and a servant his master. Then if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My respect? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests who despise my name."

Think about it, be honest, and ask yourself these questions. Why do I go to church? For whom am I going to church? What is my motivation for going to church? Do I get disappointed if I don't get anything out of the music or the sermon? Am I focused on blessing God, being a blessing to others, or getting a blessing for myself? Am I disappointed if the music is not how I like it? Do I only like and appreciate the sermons if they make me feel better about myself or cover an area of self-improvement? Am I here to extol God, if not, then why am I here.? The church has become like Romans 1:21 where they know God, but do not honor Him as God.

Another area of irreverence in the church can be seen in the casual attitude and dress. You get the sense that people are telling God that He should, He must, and He will accept them as they are. Is this how you feel in your heart of hearts, that God should accept you like you are, without any concern of whether you are acceptable to God, whether your attitude is acceptable to God, whether your dress is acceptable to God, or whether your lifestyle is acceptable to God? Would you wear what you wear to church to a state dinner with the President? If not, why not? Would you tell the President he must accept you just like you are? So you hold the President in greater esteem than you do the God who gave His Son to secure your eternal salvation? What does this say about your attitude towards God? Listen to the words of God in Leviticus 10:3 after He slew Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, for approaching Him in a disrespectful way, "By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, and before all the people I will be honored." And what was Aaron's response to this as verse three ends? "And Aaron, therefore, kept silent."

When women wear tops to church that reveal their breasts or midriffs are they treating the Lord as holy? When they wear tops or pants that look like they are either sprayed on or shrink wrapped so that the whole contour of their front or backside is entirely visible leaving little to the imagination, are they doing so to honor the Lord, or to say, "Hey, look at me!" When husbands and fathers allow their wives and daughters to go to church dressed in such a manner are they honoring the Lord, or are they fearing their wives and daughters more than they fear the Lord? Isaiah 8:13 tells us, "It is the Lord of hosts whom you shall regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, and He shall be your dread." Men, what are you saying to the Lord when you come in to appear before Him dressed for the beach or the golf course? In the presence of the Lord is not a place to be "hot" or a place to chill out. By your demeanor, your attitude, or your dress are you regarding the Lord as holy? Are you showing Him the respect that is due Him, the Almighty God?

To be continued

Alone with God

Prayer is something in which we turn our backs upon everything else, excluding everything else, while, for the time being, we find ourselves face to face with God alone.

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Alone with God and face to face with God. Maybe that is why we don't pray as often or as much as we should. Are you avoiding prayer because it is just you and God and it makes you uncomfortable or makes you feel vulnerable? Are you uncomfortable in the presence of God because you know you aren't walking in the light, as He Himself is in the light, and that the darkness of your sinful ways and thoughts will be exposed? Are you afraid of exposing the dark corners of your heart, or are you harboring a sin that you don't want to let go? Are you afraid of coming into the holiness of His presence and being confronted by His righteousness? Are you ashamed to come before Him because you know you should be spending time in prayer and you are not? Or is it a matter of rebellion because praying to God requires our acknowledgment of His superiority, our submission to His authority, and our subjection to His sovereignty? Is it that it is hard to justify taking time out of your busy schedule? Is it that you take your relationship with Him for granted until you need Him for something? Or, somehow, is it a little of all of the above.

Brethren, don't let your heart become hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. The nearness of our God, your God and my God, is our good (Psalm 73:28). His promise is that if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us, and that if we seek Him, He will let us find Him (James 4:8, Jeremiah 29:13); and His command is for us to seek His face (Amos 5:4, Psalm 27:8). Whatever you are holding on to that is hindering you from fully coming into His presence, let it go. Come as Jacob did, to wrestle with God until he received the blessing, and you will leave His presence changed and marked by God.

Some Random Thoughts on Loving Christ

If we love Christ we will keep His commandments. So everyday we prove we love Him as we keep His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome. It is true that we love Him because He first loved us. He has poured out His love within our hearts through His Holy Spirit and we are rooted and grounded in this love. His love does not reside in those who are not His. So if we are truly His we can not help but love Him and it is this love that compels us to no longer live for ourselves, but for Him who died and rose again on our behalf.

We work out that which has been inwrought. We are working out while He is at work in us, and it is this work, this good work, that He has begun that He will complete. But in the middle of all of this is sin. The sin that is present in our members, waging war against the law of our mind. Sin, the great weapon of the enemy which has caused the death of all mankind, which seeks to master us. It is in the battle against sin that our love is proven. The issue is not do we still sin, because we do, but the issue is do we battle against sin, do we strive against sin, are we actively resisting sin. We are to watch and pray that we would not enter into temptation for the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

It is written that those who have been forgiven much love much. Does this mean that those who were more egregious and pervasive in their sin are the ones who love more? No, it means that it is those who see their sin for what it is and understand the depth of their depravity, who, therefore, understand the depth and the riches of the mercy and compassion of God, who then love Him more. This is something that happens as we work out our salvation and grow in Him. Let us, therefore, not think that we have arrived, but realize that we have not, and continue to press on toward the goal of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Knowing God

Jeremiah 9:23-24--Thus says the Lord, "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the Lord.

So, what is your boast? What is the thing you take pride in, glory in, or hang your hat on?

No matter the loftiness or lowliness of our earthly state our boast is to be that we understand (to have insight into and have comprehension of) and know (to percieve, to see, to know by experience) God Himself. This implies a personal knowing and experiencing that would attest to the fact that God delights (takes pleasure) in exercising (accomplishing) lovingkindness (deeds of mercy/love), justice (execution of what is proper and fitting), and righteousness (doing what is right by His standard) on earth.

Why is it important for us to know and understand God this well?

1. It puts us in our proper place (not in a negative sense). Psalm 100:3; 46:10
Being in the proper place gives us the proper perspective on ourselves, others, and God.
Isaiah 40:18-31, Proverbs 1:7

2. Knowing is paramount to believing. Isaiah 43:10, I John 4:16
With believing comes trusting. Psalm 55:22; 56:11

3. It gives us confidence in Him, not self-confidence, but God-confidence.
Deuteronomy 4:35, 39; 7:9-10, John 15:4-5, Philippians 4:13

4. It puts life into perspective. The more we know and understand Him, the more we see Him
and His hand in our life. Deuteronomy 8:5, Hebrews 12:10, Jeremiah 10:23

5. It is the key to eternal life. John 17:3, II Peter 2:20

6. It is the key to spiritual growth. II Peter 1:2-3; 3:18

7. It enlarges our life. It takes us to a bigger and deeper place, spiritually.
Ephesians 1:16-19; 3:14-19, Psalm 119:32

Jeremiah 33:3--Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know. (Which, I believe, are the things of God Himself)