A King’s Conscience and A Leadership Failure

What rules your decision making? What drives you to the choices you make? These are critical questions for every person and especially critical for leaders. How you answer these questions will likely indicate what the character and outcome of your life and leadership will be.

The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church says of King Henry VIII, “Henry’s conscience often followed where his wishes led.”

Now conscience is an important element of our make up because it, in many ways, is the thing that guides our decisions. We talk about following and violating our conscience as if to do the former is admirable and to do the later is deplorable. However, that depends on what is driving your conscience.

Henry’s conscience was driven by his wishes, and his wishes seemed to be focused on power and pleasure. The result was disastrous. Many heads were lost because Henry allowed his conscience to be ruled by his wishes, including that of Sir Thomas More who was a beloved friend of Henry.

A good leader follows his conscience and insures that his conscience is lead by good desires. A good Christian leader follows his conscience and insures that his conscience is lead by a desire for God, His glory and the good of God’s people.

So, are you lead by a godly and sanctified conscience where your desires are for God and not the flesh? To be so lead is a vital key to effective leadership. To be lead in contrary ways is the the key to disappointment and failure for you and those you lead.

Mandate to the Church – Part Five – Church Discipline

The last time I wrote on this topic I talked about the fact that churches are to practice church discipline because it is commanded of us by God. I also noted that its purpose is for restoration and the saving of souls.

This last point is well illustrated by 1 Corinthians 5:5. Paul’s instruction concerning the handling of a particular man caught in an incestuous relationship with his step mother was that they were to “deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved.”

Paul’s point is that when we discipline a believer in Christ, the act of discipline is a means of sanctification designed to help bring victory of the Spirit over our flesh. Church discipline, a godly rebuke, a humble and caring correction: we ought to covet these things for ourselves and those whom we love.

In addition to the benefit to the one being disciplined there is also a benefit to the church. Paul continues: “Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.” (1 Cor 5:6-7a)

The church must be pure. It must not be defiled by open rebellion against God. The church that coddles sin as a sign of its progressive and tolerant nature is defiling itself and becomes no better than a den of robbers. The church that lovingly and firmly rebukes sin and reproves the sinner to the extent directed by Scripture cleanses itself and signals a love for God and His people, thus demonstrating to the world that God sent Jesus, His Son to save the world.

That is probably the most important point I want to make about church discipline. It is the appropriate action of a loving people. To tolerate sin is to signal a hatred of God and a disdain for the sinner. If we always remember that church discipline is an effort to restore and save a person’s soul we can never go wrong in glorifying God and demonstrating true love to His people and in so doing we preserve the witness of the gospel inherent in the Church.

• Part One
• Part Two
• Part Three
• Part Four

A Good Question About Christmas!

I just read a blog post by Doug Wolter, which I think you should read. Doug won’t promote his thoughts this clearly, and I respect that, but I think you should take five minutes and read the blog. It is worth the time. Be blessed.

Christmas – A Time of Giving or Receiving by Doug Wolter

You’re Not Qualified!

In his book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't Jim Collins quotes Darwin E. Smith, CEO of Kimberly Clark as saying, "I never stopped trying to become qualified for the job."

The opposite of this mindset is being apathetically content with where you are right now. I used the word "apathetically" because contentment is not wrong at all. In fact, it is one of the keys to personal sanity. But contentment in the present should always be coupled with a desire to be better tomorrow. This is, I think, a major key to success in any area of life.

So, we who desire to be successful should never stop trying to become qualified for the job. We should never stop learning. We should never stop allowing ourselves to be stretched outside of our comfort zone. We should never stop seeking for ways to be better today than we were yesterday. In fact I think this is the personal duty of every individual alive, a strong influence upon success, and a certain key to personal fulfillment

This post is a re-post from Feb of 2008.

Leaders Promote More Leaders

If you are a leader and want to be a better leader then I suggest to you that you will pray for, mentor, train and encourage other people to be leaders. This is not just my opinion. It is biblical.

When Moses appointed the 70 elders there were two men who did not come to the council to be appointed. It is thought that they considered themselves unworthy or unqualified to be elders. Nevertheless, God had the Spirit rest upon them so that they prophesied, which was how God confirmed the 70 elders.

This concerned Joshua. He knew that they would be seen as leaders of the people of God. He approached Moses and said, “My lord, stop them.” Moses’ response was, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!” (Numbers 11:26-30)

Moses wanted everyone to be so affected by the power and presence of the Spirit of God that each of them would be qualified to lead the others and themselves.

Leaders, who truly are leading for the benefit of others and not their own glory, desire that others become leaders themselves. I want to lead you to be a leader of yourself and a leader of others. Is that how you define leadership? Are you a leader? Who are you raising up to be a leader?

Ignore God and Die

It can be very easy to ignore God. Like a child with selective hearing, we can listen to God when He is offering us a blessing and ignore Him when, in our perception, He is restricting or correcting us. But we ignore God to our own peril.

When God first created, He placed Adam and Eve in the garden,

And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” Genesis 2:16-17 (ESV)

Now, Adam and Eve were clearly listening but only in part. They heard that they would die, but they did not really listen to God. Like so many of us, they heard what it fit there needs to hear, but when a more satisfying idea was presented they ignored God. Satan said,

“You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4-5 (ESV)

He convinced Eve that what she thought God intended for her good was really not for her good and that God was withholding good from her. She believed the lie and chose to ignore God, and while she did not perish at that moment, she and the entire human race died an awful death that day. The very wholeness that she sought to find in eating the fruit was lost to the entire human race.

Don’t ignore God. He truly does want what is good for you, in fact He is storing up goodness for you (Psalm 31:19). Trust Him and receive the goodness. Ignore Him and die.

What are some of the good things God has done for you?

Mandate to the Church, Part Four – Church Discipline

When we talk about church discipline the reaction is varied depending on who is in the conversation. Some are uncomfortable with the idea and even revolt against it. Some are receptive to the idea but too timid to practice it. Some are receptive to the idea and too eager to practice it. Some are simply obedient to God and therefore seek to understand it, look for ways to prevent its necessity and engage in it when necessary.

The final group holds that perspective because they understand why church discipline is so necessary. Those who are convinced that it is necessary are typically better at preventing the need of doing so through sound teaching of new converts and candidates for church membership as well as biblical instruction concerning the responsibilities of each individual to the body.

Let me first say what church discipline is not. It is not simply kicking people out of the church who do not comply with the church’s rules. Sometimes church discipline results in a person being removed from the privileges of church membership, but only as an ultimate measure and even that is discipline not punishment. The two are different.

So why practice church discipline? I will give my first reason today and return to other reasons in the following days.

First, church discipline is commanded of each of us by Jesus.

Matthew 18:15-17 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed. “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. NASB95

Note that there is a progression to church discipline and each stage involves showing a person his or her fault. The goal is to seek to win them over – to gain their repentance. Jesus expects me to love you enough that I am willing to seek your purity through the act of confronting your sin. It is a weighty responsibility for all believers but is a command of the Lord that we should obey, albeit with trembling hands and prayerful lips.

Please feel free to share your thoughts with me on the subject.

To gain an understanding of the background to this post please see the previous posts listed below

• Part One
• Part Two
• Part Three

Michael Horton on the Manhattan Declaration

Today I read Michael Horton’s “A Review of the Manhattan Declaration”, and I found it enlightening. I don’t think his arguments are designed to convince the reader to sign or not sign the document. They did not sway me in either way. They seem to be designed to give the evangelical some clarification on why the document is not a truly evangelical document, which in and of itself is enlightening.

I encourage you to read the review and comment back here on your impressions. Should one be persuaded to sign or not sign by Mr. Horton’s arguments?

• Michael Horton’s “A Review of the Manhattan Declaration
• The Manhattan Declaration

“Crazy Love” and My Sorrowful Reaction

I just finished reading Francis Chan’s book entitled “Crazy Love”. Many people talk about this book and their love for it. Chan states in the last chapter that he hopes his readers walk away “encouraged”. I can’t say that I did, at least not like others.

Chan talks about how the Christian life is to be radical. His overpowering message is that as a Christian I should be radically in love with God such that I would do anything that He calls me to do. Now, I agree and have no problem with that concept. Where it gets tough is in the application.

I found myself angry at times reading this book. Is it right to put such a high standard of devotion on Christianity such that the assurance of many fails? Is true love for God really a love that is not only willing to sacrifice anything for Christ but actually does? It was impossible for me to escape it. After all he was simply repeating the preaching of Christ. The answer to both questions is yes.

My response, as I finished reading, was an overwhelming sorrow. I kept asking myself, “What will it cost me and my family to follow Christ? Am I willing to pay that price? Am I making excuses by waiting for God to call me or should I simply move out in faith?”

Such is the nature of a book like this. It creates questions, which only God can answer. Chan is right to acknowledge that God called no two people to express there love for Him in the exact same way save that they love and obey Him. So, I will seek to love and obey Him for I want nothing more than to serve Him with all my life.

What about you?

I Am A Nobody! What About You?

My pastor preached from the gospel of John yesterday, and last night, as he discussed the testimony of John the Baptist, he hit on a very powerful one liner from The Baptizer.

“A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.” John 3:27

That is a most humbling and comforting statement. Think about it. You and I have nothing that God did not give to us. That is humbling because it confirms the fact that we are completely dependent on another, namely God. This thought and the ability to construct it in sentence form is mine because God gave it to me. Literally, everything that I have comes to me from God.

This is a comforting statement, but only for those who follow Christ and confess Him as Lord and Savior. It is comforting because as a child of God I have a perfect and loving Father who is perfect in blessing me with good gifts and perfect in correcting me with righteous and loving discipline. Everything that I need He can and will give to me, because He loves and redeemed me with a great price.

I am nothing, and that is good, for in being nothing I put God in His rightful place as above everything. What do you think? Do you believe John’s statement and if so, what are the implications for your life? Please share your thoughts.

Blessings, Mark

Unity in the Church – A Sure Path

There is no question that our Lord desires the Church to be unified. However, achieving unity in the church is difficult. We are sinful creatures who are driven by our individual passions, and those passions conflict. As a result, we choose to avoid each other, or we openly fight with each other. In either case, we are not in unity.

The question is, “can we obtain unity”? James says, “yes, you can, but you have to understand why you lack unity and what it takes to achieve unity.” He begins by asking some questions to which he gives the answer.

”What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.” James 4:1-3

It is all about personal pleasure. We are guided by our passions, and when our passions are fueled by the motive of personal pleasure, we come into conflict with each other.

It is interesting that James’ answer does not primarily involve changing our passions but changing our activity along with our passions. His instruction to us is to pray; ask God for the things that we want. “You fight with each other because you don’t have what you want, but did you ask for it?” So, one of the reasons we fail to achieve unity in the church is because we don’t ask God to give us what we want; we don’t pray.

However, it does not stop there. Some of us ask but still, we don’t receive. This is where our passions come into play. When our passions are driven by selfish motives (personal pleasure), then our prayers are not answered. Our motives too, must change (Spiritual pleasure must win out). Our motives must be driven by the will of God. “You quarrel with one another and commit murder in your heart, because you do not seek the will of God.”

To achieve unity in the church, the people of the church must pray, asking God for the things they desire in accordance with the will of God. We must be Spirit lead people and people of prayer. This is a sure path to unity.

To Sign or Not to Sign – The Manhattan Declaration

Recently a document was presented to the National Press Club entitled “The Manhattan Declaration”. It is a document written and signed by leaders of the Roman Catholic church, the Orthodox church and Evangelical churches. The aim of the document is to make a statement concerning the collective resolve of these leaders and the other signatories that we “reaffirm” and “defend” such “fundamental truths” as “the sanctity of human life, the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife and the rights of conscience and religious liberty.”

At the time of this post 123,115 individuals have signed this document. However, it has not been without disagreement among evangelicals. If you are still not sure whether you should sign the document, please consider reading the document and the opposing evangelical reasons concerning signing the document. I provide you with the links below.

• The Manhattan Declaration
• Albert Mohler’s reason for signing
• John MacArthur’s reason for not signing

I hope you will consider this issue prayerfully.

Mandate to the Church, Part 3 – Live In Peace

The Church is a blessing. I love her and desire to see her abiding in Christ. Much of the difficulty we see in the Church stems from the fact that the members of the body don’t abide in Christ. It is as if my hand said to my brain, “No, I will touch the fire, regardless of how much it hurts me and the body.” I pray with my Lord that the Church would be one as Jesus and His Father are one.

This goal was Paul’s when he told the Thessalonians, “Live in peace with one another.” He echoed the words of Jesus who said, “Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.” To be the salt of the earth we must live in peace with each other. Now, peace and unity are things often discussed in the church but not nearly as often achieved.

The first reason for this state is that we are not abiding in Christ in every area of our lives. We hold out things for the self, personal things that we want to protect from the encroachment of our faith, and thus, we put a condition on how we live with one another. We live in peace so long as peace does not interfere with our personal god. The simple answer to dealing with this problem is to kill the self, to mortify the flesh and the desires thereof.

The second reason is more about knowledge and understanding. Often we don’t live in peace with one another because we don’t know what living in peace looks like. In fact, we have created a picture of peace in our minds that is not true. Paul explains to us what peace looks like. I start with the first few pictures found in 1 Thessalonians 5:13-14. Peace can only exist in the Church when the following things are true:

• The unruly are admonished – Church discipline is practiced
• The fainthearted are encouraged – Pastoral care is done
• The weak are being helped – True religion is active
• The governing attitude is patience – We are longsuffering

If we can grasp these things, understand them rightly and practice them well, we will see our selfish motivation die. It would defeat my purpose here to let you walk away from this word looking at the “leaders” in your church saying, “Yeah, they really should be doing these things.” Paul was writing to the whole church, not just the “leaders”. Christ was speaking to all his disciples not just some. These things fall under the realm of responsibility for us all.

It is my hope in the days to come to talk about these things in more detail. I ask that you prayerfully consider them. Pick any one or more of them, and let me know how you would describe them and expect to see them being practiced in the Church. Pray that you would practice them yourself and then do it.

• Part One
• Part Two

Mandate to the Church, Part Two - Love Your Pastor

Previously I talked about appreciating your pastor. I mentioned that we should recognize the heavy burden upon him as he sits under the charge to care for our souls. This recognition leads to an unwillingness to slander or speak ill of our pastor. It leads to a deep appreciation for and a graciousness toward him.

As Paul continues his plea to the church, he takes our treatment of those who have charge over us to a higher level. It is not enough that we appreciate our pastor. Paul says, “We request of you brethren…that you esteem them highly in love because of their work.” Three things must be addressed here. One, what we are to do. Two, how we are to do it. Three, why we are to do it.

What we are to do is esteem our pastor. The word esteem communicates the idea that we are to view our pastor as one who is above us as our leader, governor, or prince. In other words, our actions toward our pastor must be akin to those of a follower to his leader, a citizen to his governor, or a subject to his prince. This is how you are to think of and treat your pastor.

Now, if we were to leave it there, we would miss something very important. Many people are fine with the concept that a follower can disrespect a leader, a citizen can criticize and ridicule a governor and a subject can subvert and even plot against a prince, but not if he loves him. That is how we are to esteem our pastor: with love. It is more than just appreciating him. It is loving him as one who has charge or authority over us. We are to look at our pastors as men whose rule over us is a joy to our hearts.

Some might say, they love their pastor by keeping him humble, but that is not your job. You esteem him with love. Submit to him, even in joy, desiring and praying for his success as God’s under-shepherd. God will humble the man, if humbling is necessary. You esteem with love.

Why must we esteem our pastor with love? Because of his work. Now this word ‘work’ may speak of the things that he does, the output of his life, or it may speak of employment, that with which he is occupied. I tend to think it refers here to the latter. The reason we esteem our pastor in love is because of where God has placed him. He is not your pastor because you choose him. He is not your pastor because he was the best candidate for the job. He is your pastor because God, in his care for you, gave him that office. In recognition of this fact, we should esteem him as one who has authority over us, because God has given him that authority. We should do so in love, because it was in love that God placed him over us.

This is the beginning of the path to unity for God’s people.

Part One

Mandate to the Church, Part One - Appreciate Your Pastor

Over the next few posts I intend to talk about some things that we as Christians are taught to do in scripture as it relates to the body of Christ, the Church. One of the most life changing concepts to ever grasp my heart was the idea that I am a member of a body, accountable to that body and impactful on that body. In other words, when I learned that my character, the health of my soul, has a direct impact on the health of the church, my concern for my own soul became even stronger.

I am grateful for those who teach me how to be a better Christian and how to have a closer walk with Jesus. However, I fear that too often we stop in our thinking at the point of our individual relationship with God and rarely transfer the concept of spiritual growth to the realm of the corporate body. As a result, we “go to church” as individuals, we worship as individuals and we later wonder why we don’t feel more loved by others in the church or have more love for them. We have removed the concept of the body of Christ from Christianity and the Church is suffering the consequences.

For this reason, I address these messages to the church. In fact they were first addressed to the church in Thessalonica by Paul – 1 Thessalonians 5:12-22. Here Paul gives a list of things that the church is to do. They are not suggestions to consider and adopt if you agree. They are imperatives – “do this”. As I read them they seem to be aiming toward the idea that the church is a body and must conduct itself in a unified way, “having the same mind”.

Paul’s first imperative is this: “But we request of you, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction.” 1 Thessalonians 5:12. Here Paul starts with a plea. It is not technically an imperative, but it is followed by a string of imperatives which show that while Paul is pleading for us to do this, he really does expect us to do so.

What Paul wants and expects of the Church first is that we appreciate our pastor. Our pastor is the one who labors for the gospel among us. He has been given charge over us. This means that our pastor has both authority over and responsibility for us. He is told that he will give an account for those under his charge. The spiritual weight upon him is great, and he is yet a man. Therefore, Paul says, appreciate him. The Amplified version helps by telling us to recognize him for what he is, namely one who cares for and is responsible for your soul, one who has the weight of your eternity on his shoulders.

I believe that if we, as the church, look at our pastor in this light, we will be more gracious and even appreciative of him. We will not speak ill of him, rather, we will seek to encourage him with words of affirmation and prayers of intercession. It only makes sense that a church who cares for her pastor in this way is a unified church, one that has put aside all envy, malice and strife.

Recognize and appreciate your Pastor for his burden is great!

A Cure for Despair

What do you do when your soul is in despair, when you have lost all hope and find no reason to carry on? What do you do when you feel it would be better to quit your faith than to continue in it? I really would like to know from you your answer to these questions, so please comment.

I find it interesting that when the Psalmist described his soul as being in despair he said “Therefore, I remember you from the land of the Jordan and the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.”

In his despair, when his soul was cast down within him he gazed back at the work of God during times of great despair. He remembered how God dried up the waters of the Jordan so Israel could enter the promised land after 40 years of wandering and death in the wilderness. He remembered how God had given Joshua and Israel victory over the Amorities and all the other kingdoms in the promised land. He even remembered how God had protected him from Absalom and given him rest.

In other words, David found that when his soul was in despair his best course was to think about his history with God and the manifold evidences of God’s presence and deliverance in the lives of His people. Somehow, this exercise of remembering brought David comfort in despair. He found solace in thinking about God.

My prayer is that you and I can remember to remember God when we find ourselves most troubled within our souls. How do you overcome despair or find comfort when your soul is cast down within you?

Defend the Rights of the Preborn!

Friends,

Focus on the Family Action has launched a petition urging that any health
care reform proposal respect the rights of the preborn, health care
professionals and our families. Focus Action wants to deliver petitions
to Congress. I just signed and I'm asking you to do so as well.

This is very urgent – please sign today to defend the preborn!

Please go here:
http://www.focuspetitions.com/215/petition.asp?PID=22805498&NID=1

Blessings, Mark

Disappointed and Disillusioned

Are you disappointed in your relationship with Christ? Are you disillusioned by the fact that you don’t feel the presence of God near you? Most of have been there. Many have made an attempt at diagnosing why we are there. But how do you overcome your disappointment? How do you change your outlook to become enamored by Christ and encouraged in your fellowship with him? That is not an easy question to answer. Because it is so personal, I have found that it is a process worked out by God himself in our lives that is very difficult to articulate. However, I found the following quotes from Paul Tripp’s new book Broken Down House very helpful. I pray that you will too. You can follow more quotes from BD House on Twitter.

BDHouse

“Here is a sad truth: Celebrating grace is an act of war. The worship of God doesn’t come naturally to sinners like you and me.”

“It doesn’t take long for us to imagine that perhaps life really can be found apart from Christ.”

“We do the unthinkable: we take grace for granted and stop celebrating the one thing in life that should amaze us for eternity.”

“We have to be committed to fighting for our hearts. We have to remind ourselves daily how quickly we get distracted, seduced, & hooked.”

“We need to warn ourselves again and again against disappointment and the danger of looking for life where life cannot be found.”

There is no easy answer here. Tripp describes grace as an act of war. I think what he means is that living in the grace of God and overcoming despair is hard work. It takes commitment, even when the feeling of God’s presence is absent. It takes lectures and warnings to ourselves in which we tell ourselves the truth about who we are, who God is and what He has done. And we wait, repeating the same steps over and over again, trusting that God in His Providence is using our despair to finish the work he began in us.

Blessings, Mark

SBTS – Resources – Panel - Perspectives on Multi-site Churches

via sbts.edu

I have been thinking about the question of a Multi-site Church vs. Church planting for a while. So, when this panel occurred, my interest was peaked. I found the dynamics interesting in that four of the five men were in favor of the Multi-site church model. I also found it interesting that the appeal for Church planting instead of a multi-site church model was, in my opinion, more compelling and more focused on the question of biblical warrant and the principle of congregationalism.

Give it a listen and let me know what you think.

Posted via web from Taking Heaven by Storm

Missional Leadership

via blogs.lifeway.com

Pastors should listen to this in order to reset their expectations for their ministries. Christians should listen to this in order to better understand the expectations they should have of their pastors and themselves. Both pastors and Christians put non-biblical expectations on pastors.

Posted via web from Taking Heaven by Storm

The Leaven of the Pharisees: Hypocrisy - The Need to Kill It

I think it is clear that subversive behavior in the church is unacceptable as is self-serving behavior. Jesus' response to this hypocrisy is to deny subversive and self serving people before God. If you talk about others in the church behind their backs plotting or wishing their fall, if you secretly hope that they will be caught in an embarrassing or damaging error or sin, then you are a subversive. If your actions in the church are designed to promote you and/or your agenda or to secure you with the things you want, then you are self serving.

Jesus saw both of these types of behaviors in the Pharisees and described it as leaven, something of which we should beware. Paul said leaven in the church should be removed otherwise it will infect the whole church (1 Corinthians 5:6-7).

In the church we should beware of the sin of hypocrisy, which is the word Jesus uses to describe this subversive and self serving behavior, and we should kill. We should kill it in our own lives and the church. If you let a self serving attitude grow in your heart, you will become a subversive person. The end result of this is that you will likely infect the whole church making it sick and find yourself denied by Christ before God.

"Beware the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy." (Luke 12:1)

Posted via email from Taking Heaven by Storm

"John Calvin and His Passion for the Majesty of God" by John Piper

I just finished reading "John Calvin and His Passion for the Majesty of God" by John Piper. I wanted to share some thoughts from the book. 

Piper's purpose is to demonstrate that it was in fact Calvin's discovery of the Majesty of God in God's Word that served as the irresistible force behind Calvin's entire life. He seems to have been a singularly focused man. I say that he was driven by an irresistible force because that seems to be how Calvin understood it. He believed that God wants us to see His majesty above all other things. That is why God told Moses to tell the Israelites "my name is 'I am'". The point in this revelation is to demonstrate that, as Piper puts it, "The absoluteness of God's existence enthralls the mind" and the mind should be enthralled by God.

Calvin understood that he would never see the majesty of God; his mind would never be enthralled by God, if God, through the Holy Spirit, did not persuade him. This persuasion was rooted in the Holy Spirit awakening him, as if from the dead, to see the divine reality of God as revealed in scripture. It is only through the Word of God that a person can be saved, but a person cannot trust the Word of God if in it, he or she does not see the majesty of God, and in order to see the majesty of God, the Spirit must awaken the person as if from the dead.

The irresistible force comes into play at this point. Calvin believed that when awakened by the Spirit a person will simply recognize the majesty of God, and without any reasoning or prior consideration, that person will embrace Christ, and his mind will be enthralled by the majesty of God. He will be consumed by a need to display the majesty of God.

Where this leads me personally is to a reflection on my own desire to display the majesty of God. Why does it sometimes flow and sometimes ebb? I reflect on John 15 and realize that it flows when I abide in Christ, it ebbs when I abide outside of Christ. And so my prayer becomes, 'God, help me to abide always in Christ.'

Posted via email from Taking Heaven by Storm

Overcoming Sin - Audio Version

  
Download now or listen on posterous

Overcoming Sin.mp3 (3338 KB)

This is the audio version of my earlier post concerning what the Bible tells us about overcoming sin. I hope it is a blessing to you.

Blessings, Mark

Posted via email from Taking Heaven by Storm

Overcoming Sin

Do you ever wonder how to go about "overcoming sin"? We are told in Romans that we are to "not let sin reign" in our mortal body so that we "obey its lusts." (Romans 6:12). But, how do you do that. How do you stop sin from reigning supreme in you?

Before you say, "Well, Paul was special, he had it better, he was closer to Jesus, it was easier for him", don't forget Paul is the one who talked about the war inside him between the flesh that wanted to sin and the spirit that wanted to obey God. He needed an answer to this question just as much as you and I need an answer. So, what is the answer.

First, there is a very practical answer in scripture. Flee temptation! Our pastor is always telling us that we should resist the devil, but flee temptation. We cannot resist temptation; we will loose. The bible does not tell us that God has given us a way to resist temptation. No, it tells us that He gives us a way to escape it. So the very practical means for "overcoming sin" is fleeing temptation.

Nevertheless, you might ask, 'How do I do this? Temptation is a strong lure, it is enticing, and I have a difficult time fleeing from it. What can I do?' Here is where your mind comes into play. You overcome sin when your mind tells your heart the truth. Listen to Paul.

Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead is never to die again; death no longer is master over him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. (Romans 6:6-11)

Notice that our belief about who we are is influenced by what we know. We believe we are alive in Christ, because we know we were crucified with Him. We also believe or consider that we are dead to sin because with Christ we died to sin, and sin no longer has mastery over us. Knowledge of who you are in Christ is the key to overcoming sin. The more you understand who you are in Christ, the more you will live like that person. In other words if you know you are dead to sin, you can believe that sin is no longer your master, and therefore, you are empowered by your knowledge to flee temptation and thus overcome sin.

May God grant us a clear knowledge of who we are in Christ, and may that knowledge empower us to overcome sin.

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Audio Version of "Some Reasons to Praise God"

  
Download now or listen on posterous

Some Reasons to Praise God.mp3 (2141 KB)

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Tony Rose: LaGrange Baptist Church - "Living a Faith Focused Life" Sermon on October 11, 2009

Living A Faith Focused Life by Tony Rose, Pastor  
Download now or listen on posterous

Living_a_Faith_Focused_Life_10-11-2009.mp3 (10280 KB)

A sermon from by Tony Rose on Numbers 13:25-14:4 about the need for God's people to have a "Faith Focused Life" or a "God Orientation" so that we will believe God and obey him.

You can also watch and listen to the sermon at the LBC website.

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Influence: Connecting with People

I wanted to share this article with you because it points to some very important concepts about leadership. I found the 1st and 3rd principles influential for me.

Leadership is developed in others through relationships, and a good leader develops relationships. A good leader will also seek to develop others in leadership who don't necessarily show the initiative to becoming leaders.

Enjoy!

Influence: Connecting with PeopleBy Dr. John C. Maxwell

As a train's source of energy and direction, the locomotive plays a vital role. However, unless a locomotive connects to other cars on the track, it is relatively useless. A train's value comes from its ability to transport massive amounts of cargo, and doing so requires the locomotive to link up with dozens of freight cars. Traveling by itself, a locomotive would arrive at its destination empty-handed. In that case, its journey would be nothing more than a waste of fuel.

Leaders are like locomotives in that they're blessed with drive, energy, and vision. However, until leaders learn the art of connection, their influence remains minimal. In isolation, their talents accomplish little, and their efforts are squandered.

Let's look at practical ways whereby leaders can make meaningful connections with others.

8 Steps for Connecting with People

#1 Don't Take People for Granted

Weak leaders get so caught up in the vision of where they're going that they forget whom they're trying to lead. Instead, leaders would be wise realize that connecting to people and developing them are the surest ways to gain influence. Results happen through relationships.

#2 Possess a Difference-Maker Mindset

A hesitant and indecisive leader doesn't enliven the hearts or imaginations of people. On the contrary, leaders who influence and inspire have a difference-maker mindset. They connect with others by passing along an infectious confidence in their ability to succeed.

#3 Initiate Movement Toward People

Freight cars sitting on the railroad tracks won't go anywhere by themselves. They will rust and collect dust unless a locomotive makes contact and connects to them. Similarly, most people stay parked due to self-doubt, fear, or absence of vision. It takes the connection of a leader to tap into their potential and rouse them to action.

#4 Search for Common Ground

Anytime you want to connect with a person, the starting point should be shared interests. If you're attentive to the hobbies, histories, and habits of those you lead, then you will find ample areas of common ground. Launch out from these areas of agreement to build rapport.

#5 Recognize and Respect Differences

We are capable of finding common ground with others, but at the same time we need to acknowledge that we're all different. The greatest influencers realize that differences ought to complement rather than clash. When you demonstrate regard for diverse personalities and meet people on their terms, they will appreciate your sensitivity and connect with the understanding you've shown.

#6 Learn the Key to Others' Lives

People have core motivations that vary drastically, and a leader has to discern them to forge a connection with others. Generally, the key can be unearthed by examining what a person has already done in life and by discovering what he or she aspires to do in the future. Once you've found the key, do not exploit it. Turn the key only when you have the person's permission, and always use it for his or her benefit - not your own.

#7 Communicate from the Heart

Nothing repels people like a phony leader. Be authentic when you speak, and align your actions and words. People respond to passion, and they will latch onto a vision when it's communicated directly from the heart.

#8 Share Common Experiences

Shared experiences cement a relationship. For this reason, it's wise to be intentional about eating out with teammates, inviting them to join you on an errand, or taking in a play or ballgame together. The more time you invest in those you lead, the greater the connection you will forge with them.

Summary

One is too small of a number to achieve greatness. No one ever accomplishes alone what he can do in partnership with others. If you're looking to grow as an influencer, start by strengthening your connections with the people around you.

Link to orginal article: http://www.giantimpact.com/articles/read/article_influence_connecting_with_people/?utm_source=leadershipwired&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article&utm_campaign=lw-20090421#

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Some Reasons to Praise God

Are you looking for a reason to praise God this day? Sometimes our minds just stop thinking clearly, and we find that, because we don't feel an affinity to God at the time, we also don't know how to praise Him. I find that at these times the Bible is, as always, our best guide.

1 Peter 1:3-5 gives us a few of the very best reasons to praise or bless God. Peter writes,

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

As you look for things for which to praise God, this list is at the top:

If you have faith in Christ, he has caused you to be born again. Your rebirth is a source of living hope. In other words it is real, and it is focused on something that is certain. Your rebirth has made you an heir of God. Your inheritance is imperishable: it cannot be destroyed. It is undefiled: it is a perfect inheritance. It is unfading: it will never cease to be a source of joy for you. This inheritance is being kept for you and guarded by God's power so that you are certain of receiving it.

To God it is said, “At your right hand are pleasures forevermore” Psalm 16:11b

Meditate on these things and see what a great God it is that you call Father. I think you will find reason enough to bless God. May God's word be a source of rekindled hope and increasing joy for you as it points you to the riches of His mercy.

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A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

This book tells of a man whose life transformed from meaningless to meaningful. There are two ways to approach life. The way of stagnation is the way of most. Donald found meaning in life when he began to write a story with his life that involved risk. He talks about the need to react to “inciting” events in life by taking risks to enter those events and seek one's desires through conflict.

I found this book helpful. Put in a Christian context, it confirms that the Christian life is one of conflict. The most fulfilled Christian is the one who seeks his greatest desire, God, through great conflict. Thus, he tells an amazing story with his life. The least fulfilled Christian avoids conflict even when such avoidance keeps him from great fellowship with God. Donald's book only disappoints me in that when he has the opportunity to point people to the gospel of Jesus Christ, he stops short. God, Jesus and prayer are in the book. But, a clear evangelical gospel message is missing. The book can easily be read and the message of the greatest pursuit in life, God through Christ, can still be missed.

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life

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Pondering on Leadership

I have been thinking about Leadership lately. I am wondering why organizations sometimes flounder and loose momentum. There are two possibilities that I can think of: either the people in the organization are lazy and don't want to do the work that is necessary to carry the organization along, or the people are not being led by effective leaders. As I think about that idea, it is clear to me that the burden is really on the leaders all the way. Let me explain.

If the mass of people in an organization are exhibiting signs of apathy or laziness, I believe that apathy is a reflection on the leadership of that organization. I believe this is true, because I believe people generally want to be lead, they want to follow someone. This is how people typically find their identify and course in life. We don't often set our own course or define our own identity. (Perhaps through good leaders, we may change).

But, even though people generally want to follow someone, they have some rules in their makeup that tell them who they will follow. Here are the rules I have identified.

• People will only follow you if they perceive that you are going somewhere
• People will only follow you if where they perceive that you are going is somewhere that they want to go
• People will only follow you if you give them clear, meaningful, actionable directions on how to follow you
• People will only follow you if you define the cost of doing so and convince them of the worth or value of paying that cost

You see, I think people need leaders who have a destination, know how to get there, can tell them exactly what they need to do to get there and can express to them what they should expect along the journey and at the destination. Organizations begin to flounder when leaders have no destination, don't know how to reach the destination, can't guide the mass of people in the organization toward the destination, can't give the people meaningful actions to take in order to reach the destination and can't communicate the costs of going there and the benefit of getting there.

What this tells me is that leadership is a very hard task and should not be lightly undertaken.

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Why Praise God?

Have you ever wondered why you should praise God? Sometimes as people we are so self absorbed and so earthly bound that we can't really think of a good reason to praise God. Frankly, we really don't even think about God enough to think about praising him. We are so human. We can't begin to imagine how foolish it is to miss God's greatness and therefore, forget to praise him.

In Psalm 100 we are told, "Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth. Serve Him with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing." This is the duty or obligation of every person. Our attitude before God should be joy and gladness and it should come out of us through shouts and singing. It should come out of us in service to him. We should attend God as a servant attends a benevolent master, with gladness. We should bow before Him with a smile on our face. This is the essence praise.

But why? Why be joyful before God? Why be so overcome with gladness that we shout and sign in His presence? Verse three gives the answer. You praise God with shouts, gladness and singing simply because He is God and He made you. You did not make yourself. You and I, we are like sheep in His pasture. We are helpless without his presence. If God were not the shepherd in the field, we would be consumed by lions, grow sick and weak and be picked on and killed by the other sheep, or get lost and fall of a cliff to our deaths. He is God. He has the power to create life and protect it, and He created your life, and He watches over you.

You may say, "my life isn't great; the shepherd isn't doing so hot." My response: it is only God's hand that holds death at bay, that keeps you this very moment from plunging into the abyss. Sometimes the God who created us needs us to see that He is God, He needs us to know that we are weak and in need of Him. He needs us to grow weary of trying to make sense of our lives without Him so that we will turn to Him and enjoy the full blessings of His shepherding ways. Therefore, He gives us some room to roam, some freedom to discover, some opportunity to realize that without God, without His grace, life is a truly scary and dark thing. And when we turn back to this God and run into his fold, it will be with shouts of joy, bowing before Him with gladness and singing with our full voices the song of his redeeming love.

May it be so for you, oh doubter of his praiseworthiness.

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SBFC-SW, "The Foolishness of Preaching"

via ustream.tv

This is a link to the live stream of the Southern Baptist Founder's Conference that will take place next week. The theme of the event is "The Foolishness of Preaching." The argument: Preaching that puts the Word of God at the center is the only means to recover the church.

"The Foolishness of Preaching" Southern Baptist Founders Conference - SW

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The Gospel Message Explained

What is “The Gospel”

One person defined it as “good, merry, glad and joyful tidings, that makes a man's heart glad and makes him sing, dance and leap for joy.”

Must of us can relate to this definition. At least we may have had news come to us that filled us with gladness, made us laugh and perhaps even jump for you. But, “The Gospel is more specific than just any good news that makes us happy.

Another person defines The Gospel as “the joyous proclamation of God's redemptive activity in Christ Jesus on behalf of humans enslaved by sin.”

This is a little more specific. It talks about God's redemptive activity, about Jesus performing that activity and about humans and sin. There is a reason The Gospel is considered “Good News.” It addresses a huge problem in a perfectly effective way.

Isa 60:1-2 – While they were captives in Babylon, God told the Jews,

Arise, shine; for your light has come,
And the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
For behold, darkness will cover the earth
And deep darkness the peoples
But the Lord will rise upon you
And His glory will appear upon you.

The “Good News” addressed a difficult, consuming problem. The people were in darkness, banging and stumbling in the night and they were told that the glory of the Lord, a great and brilliant light was coming over them and bringing light into their lives.

We have all had dark nights in our lives. Periods of great disappointment, sorrow, shame, regret, dispair, hopelessness, consuming depression and God says, “Arise, shine: for your light has come.”

But “The Gospel” is even more specific than just turning our darkness into light and sorrow into rejoicing. The darkness is only symbolic of a real problem that feeds the darkness and gives it its power over you.

Luke 4:18-19 – Jesus said,

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
Because He anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind
To set free those who are oppressed
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.

That sounds like good news, but how does it apply to you and me? Am I poor, captive, blind, and oppressed? The answer to that question is “Yes” on all counts.

These words describe more clearly our darkness. Our problem is that we cannot escape our darkness for our darkness is a result of our own nature and action. Our darkness is caused by our sin.

Our Problem

Isaiah 53:6 - “All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way....”

Rom 3:10-12

as it is written,

“There is none righteous, not even one;
There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.”

Eph 4:18 – says all people are “darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart.”

We have turned away from God, we do not seek God, we do not do good, and our heart's are hardened. Therefore we are excluded from the life of God. I can think of no poorer man than the man who is excluded from the life of God.

1 Cor 2:14 - “But a natural man does not accept the things of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritual appraised.”

It is not just that we won't accept God, the Bible tells us that because of our sin nature, our natural inclination to reject God, we cannot accept God.

The result of this is that we are held captive by our sin; it enslaves us; we can't get away from it or overcome it. Therefore we are held captive by death for the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23). God is a just God and must deal with sin justly.

I truly am poor for I do not have the life of God, I am captive because sin and death enslave me, I am blind because I cannot my own captivity or the God that I have rejected, and I am oppressed by a devil who hates me and wants to keep me in my darkness.

But there is hope!

God's Solution

“The Gospel” applies to me in that I need it, but how is it possible, how can I be released, given sight and relieved from oppression?

Isa 53:6 – “All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way, but the Lord has caused the iniquity (the sin) of us all to fall on him (Jesus).”

That sin that enslaves and makes my death and separation from God for all eternity a necessity: God puts it on Christ and Christ pays the debt for it. That is what it means to be redeemed – to be bought back – in this case Christ, by dying for us, he buys us back from or out of our enslavement to sin and death.

Rom 3:24 says that God in Christ justifies us – makes us right before God – the result of this is that we are no longer separated from the life of God, instead, we are included in God's life, and therefore, we are no longer in darkness, for our light (Christ Jesus) has come.

How does this work of God get applied to me?

Rom 3:24 – it is a gift given to us by God's grace

Rom 6:23 – “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Rom 3:28 – We are not justified by our works – we are justified by our faith in the work of Christ, i.e. His death, burial and resurrection – his redemption of me from my enslavement to sin and death, his payment of my debt to God, his acceptance of my just penalty for my sin.

Acts 2:37-39 – When confronted with the exact same message by Peter, the people in Jerusalem

were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”
Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
“For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

What should you do?

This is simple – Jesus said, and I will say it.

Matt 1:15 - The time is fulfilled – now is the time – the Kingdom of God is at hand – Christ is coming soon – Repent – turn away from your sin – and believe in the gospel – trust in the work of God in Christ to redeem you from your captivity and to give you new sight and new hope.

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Fearless, by Max Lucado

In his book Fearless, Max Lucado reminds us that “we are the most worried culture that has ever lived.” We worry about not fitting in, our children, violence, death, the unknown, and that somehow life is meaningless and God is not the answer. We are gripped and paralyzed by fear. However, Lucado does not just diagnose the problem. He also prescribes the remedy: “Listen to the voice of God calling through Scripture, “Fear not!”

This book was a blessing. In it I found the evidence of countless counseling sessions where a pastor cares for the souls of those gripped by innumerable fears. With every word I was drawn into the event and driven to God's word, which with clarity, Lucado formed the lens through which we should read the story and face the darkness. He showed me that God is everywhere and in everything and that the words, “Fear not” are not empty when they come from the lips of the one who has dominion over all things, even the darkness.

I hope you will read this book and find encouragement to overcome your fears and live with true courage being rooted in Christ.

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SBTS – Resources – Panel - N.T. Wright and the Doctrine of Justification

via sbts.edu

If you have read or are thinking about reading N.T. Wright's book on Justification you should watch this.

http://www.sbts.edu/resources/chapel/chapel-fall-2009/panel-nt-wright-and-the-doctrine-of-justification-2/

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The Blessings of an Inescapable God!

I return today to the thought of hiding from God and the fact that the one who calls God, Father and his Son, Lord; that one has no need nor even desire to hide from God. I take as my example David who said:

O Lord, You have searched me and known me
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.
You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

 Psalm 139:1-6 ASV

As David contemplated God's Omnipresence and His Omniscience he realized that it meant no hiding from God was possible, no avoiding God's sovereign decree could take place. Now some might complain about this. Some might consider God's practice of enclosing us and laying his hands upon us as too much. They might say, "give me some room God, let me live my own life, do not smother me so with your overbearing character." But this is not the thought of David or any other believer. For the child of God, it is a thought too wonderful and too high that one so awesome and holy, would care to consider him.

And it is more than this. David knew that if God considered him, thought about him, listened to him all to such a degree that he knew David's thoughts, knew when he lay down and where he walked, then God also would be with him in the darkness that so often is this life.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,”
Even the darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike to You.

Psalm 139:11-12 ASV

Oh, what a joy it is to know that God, my Father truly is inescapable!

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Man's Condition Without Christ

Why doesn't God destroy the world and all that is in it and begin again as he did in the days of Noah. Is it because man is not a bad as he once was in those days? Did God somehow destroy something when he sent the flood such that man is at least a little better off and more worthy of God's mercy?

How proposterous is that thought. How God saw man in the days of Noah has not changed one bit, with but one exception, for as in those days so today "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." The only exception to this fact, the only difference that stays God's hand now, is the promised redeemer. Not my goodness, but the righteousness of Christ, the fact the God has adopted children here on earth, children who appear before him as holy is the one thing that keeps him from reigning down his just wrath and destroying all of creation.

That is better mercy than I could ever hope to earn.

Posted via email from Taking Heaven by Storm

"We were never created to be our own source of wisdom" Paul David Tripp

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Can You Hide From God? Would You Want To?

We fool ourselves if we think we can hide from God. The psalmist showed that he understood this when he recorded these words:

"Am I a God who is near,' declares the Lord
"And not a God far off?
"Can a man hide himself in hiding places
"So I do not see him?' Declares the Lord
"Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?" Declares the Lord

Psalm 23:23-34 ASV

There is no way to hide from a God who is near, who sees all things, and who fills the heavens and the earth. But why would we want to hide from God? Adam and Eve found a reason, they had sinned and guilt made them fear God and so they hid themselves from him. Jonah had a reason, he wished to disobey the will of God, and so, he fled thinking he might leave God behind. In the end we want to hide from God because we are sinners, because we fear that he will condemn us, look with disfavor upon our faces and shower us with his great disappointment, and so, like a child we turn our heads away, try not make eye contact, run to our rooms, and slam the door cowering in our beds, hoping that he won't open the door.

But wait! There is a blessing in having a Lord who is near, who sees all things, and who fills the heavens and the earth. When we trust in Christ to save us, in running to our room we will find God there full of love and mercy. We think we cannot flee his wrath, but we have no need to do so. Christ took his wrath. Now, we cannot flee his mercy. We cannot go anywhere where he does not know us and love us and call us his children.

Praise Him for always being near for that is where I need him today!

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Fellowship Groups

I have been thinking a lot lately about growing people in their faith, about how to help the church become alive in Christ, thus fulfilling it's mandate to make disciples, and experiencing the richness of being in Christ. I have been thinking about discipleship groups and small groups. I always end up thinking that they are a good idea, but I despair about how to start and maintain them and how to integrate them into the body. From the logistics of child care to the concern over pastoral oversight, I find the concept difficult to deal with and it is a weight upon me.

Even more so now I am concerned about finding answers to my questions since I have read the chapter on Fellowship in John Stott's book, The Living Church: Convictions of a Lifelong Pastor. Stott makes a compelling case for the need and appropriateness of small groups or “fellowship” groups. It was the following quote that grabbed my attention most forcibly.

“There is always something unnatural and subhuman about large crowds. They tend to be aggregations rather than congregations—aggregations of unrelated persons. The larger they become, the less the individuals who compose them know and care about each other. Indeed, crowds can actually perpetuate aloneness, instead of curing it. There is a need, therefore, for large congregations to be divided into smaller groups.”

When I read these words I was struck by how clearly they seem to resonate with my experience of larger churches, and I was grateful for how expertly they expressed and revealed to me the source of my angst for the Church. I have long felt that the Church is missing something vital, that it was empty of much life. Only on a small level does it seem to satisfy our need for community. Only in some rare cases do the people of the Church seem to be intimately concerned with and involved with others as people who love one another. My question for so long is what is wrong, why do the people of God seem so lonely?

I believe I now know. There is no loving of one another, because there is no knowing of one another and there is no knowing of one another because there is no fellowship with one another. Now be careful. I am thinking of fellowship in Stott's terms not the common terms. I am not thinking that the Church must move toward a greater “experience of warmth and security in each others presence” rather, I am thinking that the Church must have more of a unity in Christ that expresses itself in our service to others, our proclamation of the gospel in the world and our partnering together in giving and receiving.

It seems right to me that this sort of fellowship, based on the objective facts about our salvation, our service toward others and our proclamation of the gospel, can most effectively be achieved and bring the greatest good, when it is exercised among smaller fellowship groups, where people find unity in the Faith with others.

Now to overcome the other obstacles...

The Holy Spirit in You and Your Resurrection Hope

Below are a few notes taken from my study of Romans 8:9-11

Romans 8:9

Note that being in the Spirit, having the Spirit of God dwelling in you and having the Spirit of Christ dwelling in you are all three equal statements. To have one is to have all three. This verse demonstrates that there is a trinity in the Godhead and that the members of the Godhead are of the same nature.

Romans 8:10

When we are redeemed from sin and death, we yet remain in a corrupt flesh. This is why Paul says Christ can be in you and yet your flesh can still be dead because of sin. When we are redeemed in this flesh our salvation is complete once and for all, but in another sense we have to wait for it's full impact to be realized. Our resurrection is certain and as good as done, and yet, we must still wait for it.

Part of partaking in Christ involves suffering through the miseries of a fallen flesh and proving the power of Christ by overcoming that flesh while still living in it. As we share in his suffering, we move toward that glorious day that we will share in his resurrection too, and then, our flesh will be made alive again in Christ.

Romans 8:11

We can take great confidence in our certain resurrection because it will be accomplished by the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead. That is one reason why the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is so essential to all believers. If the Spirit does not live in you, how do you expect to be raised from the dead. But, because the Spirit does dwell in you, you can have certain confidence that you will be raised one day from the dead and your mortal body will be made perfect, just as your spirit is already perfect today.

Let us give thanks to God for the indwelling presence and power the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ!

Where to Look for Grace - Revelation 1:4

Grace is defined as “favor or kindness shown without regard to the worth or merit of the one who receives it and in spite of what that person deserves."1 When I think about that definition I wonder who can show me true grace. To whom should I look if I truly want kindness from them that is rooted solely in their love for me and not upon any merit of my own? We know that we have trouble showing favor toward even our children without some consideration of the joy and happiness that they bring us. There is a natural human inability to show perfect kindness to people who do not deserve it. Yet, I want to be shown favor. I want to be the recipient of unconditional kindness. So, if I am to be shown favor and kindness, to whom should I look?

John prays for the seven churches of Asia that they would receive grace, and he prays that the giver of that grace would be the one who is and was and is to come. In other words, for John, the grace that we need comes from God. Why not just say so? Why not just pray that they would be given grace from God? Why the long title? Well, as you might guess it more than just literary beauty that drives John to use the phrase “who is and who was and who is to come.” There is something in the description of God that makes the receipt of His grace more meaningful and desirable.

In that phrase John expands the idea of God's eternal immutability; his unchangeable character; his sameness yesterday (who was), today (who is) and forever (who is to come). If God the Father, before the foundations of the earth were laid, determined to save me based solely on the merit of his son and not on any of my righteous acts, which are as filthy rags, and if this same God never changes, then based on these two facts, 1. his choice to give me grace on his son's merit 2. his unchangeable character, I can be confident that his grace toward me will always be perfect and motivated solely by his unchangeable love for me. I will never have to earn it. I will never have to work to hold on to it. It will always flow from him to me because of the blood of Christ, which has washed me and bought me and made me his own.

If am to look to anyone for grace, for that undeserved favor and kindness which brings true peace to the soul, then I will look to God and to no other.

1. Youngblood, R. F., Bruce, F. F., Harrison, R. K., & Thomas Nelson Publishers. (1995). Nelson's new illustrated Bible dictionary. Rev. ed. of: Nelson's illustrated Bible dictionary.; Includes index. Nashville: T. Nelson.

Working It Out/Living It Out

Have you ever wondered about Philippians 2:12, “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling”? Have you ever asked yourself, what does that mean, what does that look like, what is the purpose and/or reason? I have. It can be a perplexing statement, but it is an instructive one. To understand the statement it is important to put it in its context.

In chapter one Paul begins to talk about his resolve to continue in life in order to continue ministering to the churches. His one request of the Philippians is that they conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel (1:27). He then gives them his reasons, the ultimate of which is that “...to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for his sake...” (1:29). He then begins to talk about all the benefits found in the Christian faith: encouragement, consolation or comfort, fellowship, affection and compassion. He then says, if you have these things in Christ, and you do, then live like it; be unified; look out for one another; be selfless. The sum of this would be that Christians, who have been granted the privilege of suffering with Christ will love one another even to the point of dying for one another.

Having said this, he gives them a perfect example and shows them how Christ subjected himself to humiliation in order to serve others. He faced and went through the miseries of this life, including a cruel death, in order to deal compassionately with us. As a result God exalted him. God lifted him up above all others in stature and worth and made him Lord over all with the power to subdue the nations and one day judge all people. This is our example. It has been granted to us to share in that humiliation. So it has also been granted to us to share in that exaltation. Christ faced his humiliation with tears and sweat drops of blood, but through it he was exalted. Through his selflessness he became the highest sovereign.

When Paul says that we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling he is saying to us, abandon your perceived rights to comfort, privilege, and respect, and give yourself over to the humiliation of Christ, which comes inherently when you live for others to save them from hell. Live out the privilege of your salvation, the privilege of suffering with Christ. It will be no easy thing, and so you must do it with great fear and trembling, weeping through the sorrow that you must surely endure for the sake of Christ and others.

This is what it mean to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. You are not earning something, you are living something out and doing so is a fearsome thing. But, oh the reward, to share in his exaltation, his resurrection. This is a gift worth looking forward to, even through tears.

Recovery From Personal Failure and Humbly Rejoicing in the Success of Others

In 2 Timothy 4:11 Paul is writing to Timothy about some people and things he wants Timothy to bring to him. In particular he tells Timothy to “Pick up Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.” This could not always be said about Mark. During Paul's missionary journey Mark, who had gone with them, had deserted them and this had left Paul with little respect for Mark and his value in ministry to the degree that Paul refused to take Mark the next time they went out and splitting with Barnabas took Timothy instead.

Now Paul is close to the end of his life, he is cold and in need of companions to help him and continue his work. Timothy has been of great value to Paul and is even called by Paul “my true son.” So, one has been left in disgrace and the other has come to great prominence...until now. Now Paul tells Timothy, Mark is useful to me. The former who had fallen is now restored. The later who has never failed is now asked to bring the former back.

Two thoughts occurred to me as I looked at this scenario. I wonder how Mark felt about his return to favor with Paul. How his ministry with Barnabas must have changed him, given him greater confidence to share his faith, and travel through dangerous lands to proclaim Christ to a hostile people! Through the patience of Barnabas and the grace of God Mark found redemption. He found courage. He regained his status as useful to the work of the gospel.

It is a profound reminder to me that, because of the grace of God, my failures can never keep me from doing the good works that God prepared in advance for me. In fact, my personal failures must necessarily be providential events in my life designed to prepare me for just such works. May God be praised. This also teaches me to never discount a brother or sister as lost who has fallen or failed, for their God is the one and same God who loves me and keeps me.

The second thought that occurs to me is, how did Timothy feel about seeing Mark restored to Paul's favor. Was he glad for Mark's redemption seeing it as an evidence of God's grace and mercy, or was he troubled with feelings of jealousy or incredulity by the fact that this one who so greatly failed Paul could find favor again, when he himself had faithfully served Paul. Was his attitude that of the older brother to the prodigal son or that of the father who rejoiced in the the son's redemption?

Too often we find ourselves struggling to be happy with another person's spiritual success or prominence in the faith, when we should rejoice in God's blessings as given to all his children. The pettiness of child-like jealousy and the critical hearts that come from it are a blight on the church. We must pray to value God's work of grace in the life of another as much as we do in our own. We must pray that God's graciousness to us will never give us reason for pride and boasting in ourselves, but that we will see it as evidence of our own need and be humble.

I have a feeling Timothy rejoiced in Mark's personal redemption. May God help us rejoice likewise in the redemption of a fallen brother or sister and in the prominence of others in the faith. Amen

What Happens When Infants Die?

Recently I was asked how I would respond to someone who had lost an infant. What would I say to her when she asked, "Is my baby in heaven?" I have to admit I was caught off guard by the questions, and I realized quickly as we discussed the situation that there is sometimes a conflict between raw theology and the everyday needs of the heart.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying theology takes second place to comfort and everyday needs. Nor am I saying that the two don't agree and that theology is somehow only a head thing and doesn't apply to reality. What I am saying is that the black and white categories into which we sometimes paint theology don't always answer for the task of soul care. I've learned that God's grace plays an important role in how we apply our theology biblically to our souls.

So what should I say to this dear woman or her husband when they ask that heart wrenching question? My initial response was to comfort them with an assurance that God is sovereign and good, and therefore, we must take our refuge in him. We don't know the answer to this question, and I can't give you an assurance that your child is in heaven.

My response stems from my theology. We are all born with a corrupt heart and therefore subject to the wrath of God. Only the elect are saved. Logically (here is our problem sometimes) not all infants that die are elect so not all infants that die go to heaven. By the way, I think this logic is good. Sharing it with a grieving mother and father might not be so appropriate.

But someone might protest, "What about David and his infant son, can we not claim his confidence too?" Here is where it gets tough for me. I know about this passage of scripture in 2 Samuel 12:15-23. While his son was sick, David refused to eat or drink and lay on the ground weeping night and day. When his son died he arose, cleaned himself, worshipped God and ate a meal. Those around him questioned his behavior. They had expected even worse mourning than they had seen while the boy was ill. They asked David for an explanation and his response was, "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’ But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”

This last statement, “I will go to him” gives many a confidence that infants who die may go to heaven. The logic is this; David was a believer in God and therefore would go to heaven. So, if he had confidence that he would see his son in the afterlife, then his infant son was in heaven too.

Now most will admit that this is a weak basis on which to build their doctrine on this issue, but then again, it really is one of a few places that we get an indication of what happens to infants when they die. There is Jesus’ statement in Matthew 19:14 that gives some hope, but again this is not a strong proof.

The question is, “Did David believe that his infant son was in heaven?” It is doubtful that David had as developed of a concept of the afterlife as New Testament Christians have. Throughout the Old Testament, the afterlife is called Sheol and is described as a single place for the dead to spend eternity. Jacob, when he thought that Joseph had been killed by wild beast stated, “Surely I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son. (Gen 37:35)” He thought he would die from his sorrow and the place of his eternity was Sheol. Job believed that when he died he would go to Sheol (Job 7:8-10), and he believed that everyone, including miscarried infants, the wicked, the rich, the weary, princes and kings, they all go to Sheol (Job 3:13-19). It was not until much later that the understanding of two separate divisions in Sheol and then later a heaven and a hell began to be prominent in the view of eternity for God’s people.

Because of this, and because of the integrity with which I seek to bring to theology and it’s application to life, I can’t rest on David’s statement as any hope at all that infants who die go to heaven. So where does this leave me? Really, I am back where I started. The answer that I thought was weak is now what I believe to be the most comforting answer for the believer.

God is sovereign. God is just. God is merciful, God is good. God keeps his own council on to whom he shows mercy and to whom he leaves to the just rewards of their sinful nature. I must rest in him as the source of my strength in times of trouble. Christ is my high priest and has suffered and been tempted like me and now intercedes for me at the throne of the Father and I must trust him to do that which will bring him the greatest glory and the me the greatest good, even if I do not understand how what he brought about in my life could possibly be good for me.

In the end I must say to you who have experienced the gut wrenching loss of an infant; I do not know the mind of God, nor do I pretend to see into his will for the eternal disposition of any single soul, but this I do know, that my God will not disappoint. Your faith in him must increase and so, I pray that he would grant you the faith necessary to rest in his perfect holiness never doubting that all the ways of God, though they be mysterious to us, are good and just and right, for his glory and our good.