Complete Gospel

Posted on May 16, 2013 by

The Purtians maintained a robust, analytical and comprehensive understanding of the Gospel that covers a wider view of the doctrine of redemption that most of today’s Gospel presentations.  They went beyond today’s focus on sin and forgiveness and considered the roles of the persons of the Trinity, the nature of the law as a guide to sin and the destiny of the lost.  JI Packer describes their approach as, “preaching ‘Gospel sermons’ meant teaching the whole Christian system – the character of God, the Trinity, the plan of salvation, the entire work of grace….the good news of a restored relationship with God through Christ cannot be understood further than it is seen in a comprehensive context.”  Compare the three summaries from Thomas Manton, Thomas Goodwin and John Owen to what we hear taught from our pulpits.

Thomas Manton
All who, by true repentance and faith, do forsake the flesh, the world, and the devil, and give themselves up to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as their creator, redeemer, and sanctifier, shall find God as a father, taking them for His reconciled children, and for Christ’s sake pardoning their sin, and by His Spirit giving them His grace; and, if they persevere in this course, will finally glorify them, and bestow upon them everlasting happiness; but will condemn the unbelievers, impenitent, and ungody to everlasting judgment.

Thomas Goodwin
The first part God the Father had the chiefest hand in, who drew the platform of this great work, contrived it, made the motion first to His Son…The second, God the Son, when He came down and took flesh and…transacted the redemption of the world according to that draft.  And after Him, came the Spirit, to apply what He had done, and all the benefits of it.

John Owen
The Gospel promises are: 1) the free and gracious dispensations; and 2) discovereis of God’s good-will and love to 3) sinners 4) through Christ; 5) in a covenant of grace; 6) wherein, upon His truth and faithfulness, He engaged Himself to be their God, to give His son to them, and for them, and His Holy Spirit to abide with them, with all things that are either required in them, or are necessary for them, to make them accepted before Him, and to bring them to an enjoyment of Him.

Quotes from JI Packer (A Quest for Godliness)

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Ten Steps to Repentance from Sin – Zachary Crofton

Posted on May 13, 2013 by

Zachary Crofton, a 17th century Puritan minister, provides ten steps for those who want to repent of their sin and turn to God:

  1. Sit with care, constancy and conscience under the word of truth and gospel of grace
  2. Study the nature of God…acquaint yourself with His attributes – His holiness, power, justice, mercy, etc.  Your souls will never be drawn from sin, or driven into a course of true repentance until God becomes your dread
  3. Sit close to the work of self-scrutiny…The worst of men, by a short conference with their own soul, would see the necessity of repentance
  4. Hold the world loosely…those who are truly repentant are pilgrims on earth
  5. See the brevity of life…Hopes of a long life, and thoughts of repenting later in life, help many a soul to hell
  6. Seriously expect approaching judgment
  7. Seriously apprehend the possibility…of pardon…it is a certainty if received with a prostrate soul, and asked for by serious repentance
  8. Soak the heart in the blood of Jesus – take every turn of meditation to daily contemplate the cross of Christ
  9. Speed will facilitate repentance – Linger not in what you will give up; for the longer you linger, the harder it will become
  10. Plead earnestly for repentance at the hands of God

“We sinners cannot change our own hearts, but we can employ means of grace (e.g., spiritual disciplines) through which God changes the heart.  A new penitent habit of heart will be proof positive that in and through Christ you have passed from death to life.” – JI Packer

Source: JI Packer (A Quest for Godliness)

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The Savior – Prayer

Posted on May 10, 2013 by

God of all grace,
You have give me a Savior
produce in me a faith to live by Him,
to make him all my desire, all my hope, all my glory.

May I enter Him as my refuge,
build on Him as my foundation,
walk in Him as my way,
follow Him as my guide,
conform to Him as my example,
receive His instructions as my prophet,
rely on Him intercession as my high priest,
obey Him as my king.

My I never be ashamed of Him or His words,
but joyfully bear His reproach,
never count it a glory if I take it patiently,
when buffeted for a fault,
never make the multitude my model,
never delay when Your Word invites me to advance.

May Your dear Son preserve me from this present evil world,
so that its smile never allure,
nor its frowns terrify,
nor its vices defile,
nor its errors delude me.

May I feel that I am a stranger and a pilgrim on earth,
declaring plainly that I seek a country,
my title to it becoming daily more clear,
my meetness for it more perfect,
my foretastes of it more abundant;
and whatsoever I do may it be done in the Savior’s name.

- Valley of Vision

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Balance Beam Illustration – Francis Chan

Posted on May 7, 2013 by

Francis Chan uses a judge scoring a balance beam routine as an illustration of our life being judged by God.  His point is that if we life safe little lives and never take any risks to serve God, we will not be judged to have a well lived and faithful life.

This is Chan’s most viewed video on YouTube

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Brief Summary of Muslim Beliefs

Posted on May 4, 2013 by

Here’s a brief summary of Islamic beliefs with specific attention to how they related to Christianity to help you understand the points of similarity and difference between the two religions.  The references in the parentheses are passages in the Qu’ran.

Muslims believe that Allah created man good and uncorrupted, but not in his own image (42:11). Creation is a proof of his existence (2:164, 3:190). Through the prophets Noah, Abraham (3:67), Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David and John among others (4:163), he gives us a law to submit to, but we forget to follow it. Allah is merciful and forgives us if we repent (4:110, 5:39), believe in him and do good works (specifically haaj, alms, prayer, fasting) (4:122; 5:9, 93). We are directly accountable for our own actions and no one can intercede in our place as a mediator (1:48, 123; 17:15). Allah’s nature allows him to forgive sins directly without punishment or justice for breaking his law and he has mercy on whom he wills (3:74, 135, 193; 5:41). The cross is therefore unnecessary and Jesus was merely a special messenger (4:171, 5:74) among many prophets who proclaimed Allah’s law throughout history. Though Jesus is sinless and was born of the virgin Mary (3:39, 47), He is not the Son of Allah because Allah cannot have children (3:62, 4:171). Allah is one being and does not have partners (5:72-73), so the Trinity is the highest heresy (4:48, 115-116; 5:72-72). Jesus was created with the same nature as Adam (3:59) and isn’t eternal (3:59). He slept and needed to eat, neither of which would be needed of God. Jesus’ Gospel message (5:46) was consistent with Islam and proclaimed to Israel only (3:48-57), but the disciples corrupted it after He ascended to heaven without dying (4:158). He didn’t die on a cross (4:157). Jesus will return to judge those who made Him a partner with God (4:159). Mohammad was the last prophet and brought the Qur’an to all people (2:176, 5:19). We will all receive our wages on the Day of Resurrection (3:185). Paradise is the reward for those who do righteous deeds (sawab, 3:136, 198; 4:57). Hell (a torment of fire) is the destiny of those who don’t believe (3:191, 4:14) or obtain enough sawab. Muslims don’t know where they’ll go until after they die.

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The Earth Stood Still – Video and Lyrics

Posted on April 25, 2013 by

This is a beautiful song about the incarnation.  The lyrics are below and the video is from Harvest Bible Chapel though the original song is from Future of Forestry.

A teenage girl and her soon-to-be.
A simple trip far as they could see.
The sky was clear and the hour serene.
But did they know what the night would bring.

Lonely hearts strung across the land
They’ve been waiting long for a healing hand.
My heart was there and I felt the chill
Love came down and the earth stood still
Love came down and the earth stood still

Shepherds stirred under starry skies
Tasting grace that would change their lives
The angels trembled and the demons did too
For they knew very well what pure grace would do.

The hope of the world and a baby boy.
I remember Him well like I was there that night.
My heart was there and I felt the chill.
Love came down and the earth stood still
Love came down and the earth stood still
Love came down and the earth stood still

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On Wealth and Worry – Blomberg

Posted on April 23, 2013 by

In his article On Wealth and Worry, Craig Blomberg explains Jesus’ teaching on money from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6).  The whole paper is worth reading, but the summary at the end is particularly helpful.  Blomberg’s analysis about money is captured as follows:

A major barometer of spiritual maturity and obedience involves one’s financial priorities. Careful scrutiny of a person’s checkbook ledger may be more telling than various outward forms of piety, if one is trying to determine who is truly committed to Christ. Matthew 6:24 suggests that materialism may be one of the greatest competitors with God for human allegiance. A. Kodjak elaborates persuasively: mammon “is the most direct channel for self-assertion, the establishment of security, the acquisition of a sense of superiority over other mortals, and thus the presumed removal of the curse of mortality.” Second, it has a lasting power outliving the one who accumulated it and thus functions as a “surrogate immortality.”

…The mentality which promises God a certain percentage and then assumes one is free to do whatever one wants with the rest is seriously misguided. We need to recover a sense of “whole-life stewardship.”Scripture never mandates a tithe (or any other percentage of giving) for the NT age (i.e., after Jesus’ death and resurrection),but it does call believers to give generously and sacrificially, which for most everyone in the middle-class or above surely ought to suggest ten percent as a bare minimum. Most should seriously consider giving far more either to churches or to other Christian organizations and individuals. The concept of a graduated tithe seems to fit well with Paul’s understanding of believers’ responsibilities in 1 Cor 16:2 and 2 Cor 8:12-13. In other words, the more money one makes, the higher percentage one would give away.

If this is a topic that interests you, Blomberg’s book Neither Poverty Nor Riches expands on the topic by surveying all of the verses in Scripture on wealth.  Also, read about other articles about giving.

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