Links

I wanted to share some blog posts that I've read in the past week, but haven't really had the time to say much about them.  So here are some links with a brief quote from the post (along with a video):

When Hospitality and Hell-Fire Kiss

"Sarah and Lindsay both work in midtown Manhattan. Sarah is a Christian; Lindsay isn't. After several attempts to share Christ with Lindsay, Sarah simply invites Lindsay over to dinner, where she has many folks from her local church coming over for a meal and fellowship. Lindsay meets a handful of singles and a few married couples with kids. 

"She spends the evening eating and talking about life, which naturally leads to faith, since that's what everyone else shares in common. She witnesses thankfulness and hears about the providence of God in their lives. She sees how Christians interact with their friends, spouses, and kids. One single girl invites her to coffee, and another family invites her over for dinner, where a few other church members join her."

What Does Eating, Sleeping, and Exercise Have To Do with Sanctification? (HT: Vitamin Z)

(email/RSS subscribers may need to click through to view video)

How to Witness to Mormons

"There are basically two ways Christians witness to Mormons. One is to demolish Mormonism in an apologetic way, the other is to expose Mormonism in a theological way. The former deals with Mormon history, false prophecies, archaeology, DNA, etc. The latter deals with sin, repentance, atonement, the gospel, etc. 

"Most people take the first approach, but we, the Oasis ministry in Utah, take the second. The first may make many ex-Mormons, but it doesn't necessarily make believers. Actually, it can be counter-productive."

Join or Die?: Addressing the Question of Church Membership

"Church membership is a gift and a duty. It’s sort of like making your children eat their desert. Christ saves and sanctifies sinners in the church. Where else would we want to be?"

What Letter Would You Write to a Gay Son?

"I will not bring up your sin and the Gospel every time we meet, but I do want you to know where I stand right up front, and also that I’m willing to speak with you about the Gospel of Christ anytime you wish. 

"I hope you will not call this message hate. This is how love sounds."

Short & Sweet

In this video Jared Wilson shares the main difference between Christianity and other religions, and how that relates to our sanctification:

(email subscribers may need to click through to view the video)

For more from Wilson on the Gospel and sanctification, read this article, or check out his book, Gospel Wakefulness.

(HT: Desiring God)

The Gospel in Two Minutes

I figured I'd take a break from D.A. Carson and show you the following video, a two minute explanation of the Gospel from Trip Lee:




For more from Trip Lee, check out another 2 minute video on how hip hop can speak to the believers' fight against sin: http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/hip-hop-and-the-fight-against-sin

And if you're wondering what in the world I'm doing referencing a rapper, you may find this helpful (or at least entertaining, especially the graphic): http://www.challies.com/resources/the-middle-aged-white-guys-guide-to-christian-rap

The Message of the Bible

D.A. Carson writes the following:

God is the sovereign, transcendent and personal God who has made the universe, including us, his image-bearers. Our misery lies in our rebellion, our alienation from God, which, despite his forbearance, attracts his implacable wrath.  

But God, precisely because love is of the very essence of his character, takes the initiative and prepared for the coming of his own Son by raising up a people who, by covenantal stipulations, temple worship, systems of sacrifice and of priesthood, by kings and by prophets, are taught something of what God is planning and what he expects.  

In the fullness of time his Son comes and takes on human nature. He comes not, in the first instance, to judge but to save: he dies the death of his people, rises from the grave and, in returning to his heavenly Father, bequeaths the Holy Spirit as the down payment and guarantee of the ultimate gift he has secured for them—an eternity of bliss in the presence of God himself, in a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.  

The only alternative is to be shut out from the presence of this God forever, in the torments of hell. What men and women must do, before it is too late, is repent and trust Christ; the alternative is to disobey the gospel (Romans 10:16; 2 Thessalonians 1:8; 1 Peter 4:17). 

From For Such a Time as This: Perspectives on Evangelicalism, Past, Present and Future, ed. Steve Brady and Harold Rowdon (London, UK: Evangelical Alliance, 1986), 80.  Read the context of Carson's quote, in the midst of writing about "The Biblical Gospel" here.

(HT: Desiring God Blog)

The Good Samaritan

I wanted to share a few thoughts I had during and following Life Group yesterday.  I didn't say much during class because I couldn't sort out all my thoughts.  And writing helps me sort them out.  So I hope you find this helpful in some way, as it's been helpful to me.

One of the things I try to do with parables, indeed, one of the probing purposes of many of the parables, is to identify myself in them.  Who am I?  Often this is not an easy thing to do because of the nature of the parables - sometimes they seem clear, while other times they seem really confusing.  And often times those that initially seem clear turn out to be much more confusing than they appear on the surface.

The parable of the Prodigal Son was one of those for me.  For years I didn't think it really meant much to me, because I've always been a moral person - never drank or did drugs, never got in trouble in school or with the law, generally respected authority.  But (as I've previously written here) when I read Tim Keller's book The Prodigal God, I came to realize that I was in that story.  I was the elder brother who refused to go after the sinner, to turn him back to repentance.  Not only that, but I was sure that those sinful types didn't deserve to hear or embrace the Gospel.  All of it just showed how I didn't get the Gospel (or the depth of my need for it) as well as I thought I did.

The Good Samaritan (found in Luke 10:25-37) is another one of those parables for me.  Seems like a nice enough story - kind of like one of Aesop's Fables, a short little story to remind us that we should be nice to everybody.  But in thinking more about it during class yesterday and since then, I came to see that if that was Jesus's main point, he could have told the story much more simply.  He could have told the story of the priest and the Levite finding a beaten up Samaritan on the side of the road and helping him out.  That would have been a pretty strong story - be like the priest and Levite, who helped someone who Jews regularly do not associate with.

But that's not how it goes.  Instead of being heroes of the story, the priest and Levite are villains.  Instead of being the helpless victim, the half-breed Samaritan is the hero.  This is way more shocking to the lawyer and the Jews who were listening in.  Who will the lawyer identify himself with?  He knows the Samaritan is the hero of the story, but can't even bring himself to utter the word "Samaritan".  So he's clearly not identifying with him.

And that brings me back by initial question - who am I?  With whom do I identify with?  Certainly not the Samaritan.  Along with everybody else in my group on Sunday, I'm convicted by the actions of the Samaritan.  So that leaves me thinking that I'm more like the priest and the Levite.  And that's generally how I've thought about this parable in the past.  Don't be like the priest and the Levite, be like the Samaritan.  Maybe I should get a "WWtSD?" bracelet.

But again, I think this story is deeper than just an exhortation to help others.  It is clearly that, but I think it's more than that.  Jesus is telling us that the Law is summed up in love for God and love for others.  He is telling us that those who love and follow and worship God in Spirit and truth are those who also love others and put others ahead of themselves.

But there just seems to be more to the story.  And then this morning, it hit me.  Yes, I'm like the priest and the Levite in that I fail to help those I should.  But even more than that, I'm like the man who was robbed and beaten up and left for dead.  And it's the very Law that Jesus confirms that leaves me in this condition.  On my own, I'm beaten up by the Law.  I'm beaten up by my failure to love my neighbor as myself.  I'm robbed of any good that I thought I possessed.  I am left for dead in my sin.  I'm helpless and in desperate need.

Thankfully, that's not the end of the story.  Because there is good news.  There is another question I try to answer in parables like this.  Who is Jesus?  Does He correspond to one of His own characters?  In the Prodigal Son, he's noticeably missing.  He's the true elder brother who left home to come and redeem both the younger brother, rebellious, sinful types, and the elder brother, legalistic, self-righteous types.

So in the parable of the Good Samaritan, who is Jesus?  When you stop and think about it, there's really only one answer - Jesus identifies Himself with the half-breed Samaritan.

While I'm left for dead in my sin, I have not been left helpless and poor.  And not merely because of a Good Samaritan.  But because of the King of Kings who left His throne to humble Himself to come save helpless, poor, selfish, sinners like me.  "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich." (2 Corinthians 8:9)

Jesus identifies with the Samaritan - the outcast in the eyes of the Jews.  Jesus would be rejected by the chief priests and elders.  Jesus would be handed over to the Romans and crucified as the enemy of Israel.  Jesus loved His enemies.  He not only loved His enemies, He bore their sins, something the Good Samaritan could not do for the man in the parable.  (see Romans 51-10)

We are the ones who have been saved by the One who was despised and rejected.  We are the ones who have been saved by the One who has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.  We are the ones who have been saved by the One who pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our sins.  (see Isaiah 53)

Jesus not only healed us and took care of us, He took on our sin & suffering, so that we may be clothed in His righteousness.  "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

So when I think I'm under the Law, I know that I cannot live up to it.  In and of myself, I am not able to love my neighbor as myself - even if I like them.  I'm not even able to love my wife and kids as myself.  The Law in my flesh drives me to exclaim with Paul in Romans 7: "Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

Because of Christ, I am no longer the man lying along side the road.  Because of Christ, I am free to be the priest or the Levite or the Samaritan.  Because Christ died for His enemies, I can "go and do likewise" - love my enemies like the Samaritan.  Because Christ forgives my sin, I am freed from guilt and condemnation when I fail to love like the priest or Levite.  Because Christ has freed me from selfishness and sin, I can affirm with Paul that "I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God." (Acts 20:24)

May we all bask in this glorious good news of the gospel.  May we run to Christ each and every day.  May we know the power of the Holy Spirit that lives in us to love our enemies, to humble ourselves and count others as more significant than ourselves.  And may we know the forgiveness of the cross when we fail to do so.

What is Marriage Mainly About?

If you haven't seen the video below yet, take nine minutes and watch it. Trust me.

After watching the video the other day, I found my way to this blog post written by Larissa.

I also started reading John Piper's book This Momentary Marriage, and wanted to share a couple of extended quotes from the first chapter:

There never has been a generation whose general view of marriage is high enough. The chasm between the biblical vision of marriage and the common human vision is now, and has always been, gargantuan. Some cultures in history respect the importance and the permanence of marriage more than others. Some, like our own, have such low, casual, take-it-or-leave-it attitudes toward marriage as to make the biblical vision seem ludicrous to most people.

That was the case in Jesus’ day as well. But ours is worse. When Jesus gave a glimpse of the magnificent view of marriage that God willed for his people, the disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry” (Matt. 19:10). In other words, Christ’s vision of the meaning of marriage was so enormously different from the disciples’, they could not even imagine it to be a good thing. That such a vision could be good news was simply outside their categories.

If that was the case then—in the sober, Jewish world in which they lived—how much more will the magnificence of marriage in the mind of God seem unintelligible in a modern Western culture, where the main idol is self; and its main doctrine is autonomy; and its central act of worship is being entertained; and its three main shrines are the television, the Internet, and the cinema; and its most sacred genuflec- tion is the uninhibited act of sexual intercourse. Such a culture will find the glory of marriage in the mind of Jesus virtually incomprehensible. Jesus would probably say to us today, when he had finished opening the mystery for us, the same thing he said in his own day: “Not everyone can receive this saying, but only those to whom it is given. . . . Let the one who is able to receive this receive it” (Matt. 19:11–12). (pp. 19-20)

The ultimate thing we can say about marriage is that it exists for God’s glory. That is, it exists to display God. Now we see how: Marriage is patterned after Christ’s covenant relationship to his redeemed people, the church. And therefore, the highest meaning and the most ultimate purpose of marriage is to put the covenant relationship of Christ and his church on display. That is why marriage exists. If you are married, that is why you are married. If you hope to be, that should be your dream.

Staying married, therefore, is not mainly about staying in love. It is about keeping covenant. “Till death do us part” or “As long as we both shall live” is a sacred covenant promise—the same kind Jesus made with his bride when he died for her. Therefore, what makes divorce and remarriage so horrific in God’s eyes is not merely that it involves covenant-breaking to the spouse, but that it involves misrepresenting Christ and his covenant. Christ will never leave his wife. Ever. There may be times of painful distance and tragic backsliding on our part. But Christ keeps his covenant forever. Marriage is a display of that! That is the ultimate thing we can say about it. It puts the glory of Christ’s covenant-keeping love on display. (p. 25)

To download a free PDF of the book, go here. Or you can buy the book from Amazon or Westminster Bookstore.

Jonah and Jesus

Tim Keller on Jonah and Jesus (comparing & contrasting Jonah 1 with Mark 4:35-41), from his book King's Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus:

We have a resource that can enable us to stay calm inside no matter how the storms rage outside.


Here’s a clue: Mark has deliberately laid out this account using language that is parallel, almost identical, to the language of the famous Old Testament account of Jonah.

Both Jesus and Jonah were in a boat, and both boats were overtaken by a storm—the descriptions of the storm are almost identical.

Both Jesus and Jonah were asleep.


In both stories the sailors woke up the sleeper and said, “We’re going to die.”


And in both cases there was a miraculous divine intervention and the sea was calmed.


Further, in both stories the sailors then become even more terrified than they were before the storm was calmed.

Two almost identical stories—with just one difference.


In the midst of the storm, Jonah said to the sailors, in effect: “There’s only only thing to do. If I perish, you survive. If I die, you will live” (Jonah 1:12). And they threw him into the sea.
Which doesn’t happen in Mark’s story.


Or does it?


I think Mark is showing that the stories aren’t actually different when you stand back a bit and look at it with the rest of the story of Jesus in view.


In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says, “One greater than Jonah is here,” and he’s referring to himself: I’m the true Jonah. He meant this:

Someday I’m going to calm all storms, still all waves.


I’m going to destroy destruction, break brokenness, kill death.

How can he do that?


He can only do it because when he was on the cross he was thrown—willingly, like Jonah—into the ultimate storm, under the ultimate waves, the waves of sin and death.


Jesus was thrown into the only storm that can actually sink us—the storm of eternal justice, of what we owe for our wrongdoing. That storm wasn’t calmed—not until it swept him away.


If the sight of Jesus bowing his head into that ultimate storm is burned into the core of your being, you will never say, “God, don’t you care?”


And if you know that he did not abandon you in that ultimate storm, what make you think he would abandon you in much smaller storms you’re experiencing right now?


And, someday, of course, he will return and still all storms for eternity.


If you let that penetrate to the very center of your being, you will know he loves you. You will know he cares. And then you will have the power to handle anything in life with poise:

When through the deep waters I call you to go,
The rivers of woe shall not overflow;
For I will be with you, your troubles to bless,
And sanctify to you your deepest distress.


The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.

(HT: Justin Taylor)

A Look Back & A Look Ahead

We talked about this a few times during our study of James: Justin Taylor shares some "Echoes of the Sermon on the Mount in the Book of James."  You may have noticed some of these between our lessons in James and Quintin's series through the Sermon on the Mount.  Here are a few examples (out of 18) that Taylor lists:

Rejoice and be glad in your trials. 

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12) 

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” (James 1:2) 

Be perfect and complete. 

“You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) 

“And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:4) 

Ask your good and wise God who loves to give good things. 

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:7-11) 

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. . . . Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:5, 17)

Read the rest of the parallels here.

---

Looking ahead to our next study, this is something that I've been meaning to share since I found out that we would be studying Jonah.  A little over a year ago, Tullian Tchividjian was interviewed by Collin Hansen of the Gospel Coalition about his book, Surprised by Grace: God's Relentless Pursuit of Rebels.  Hansen asked Tchividjian the following questions:

• Why do you say Jonah is one of the best books for helping us get a better grip on the gospel?
• How does the book of Jonah reveal the contrast between God's heart and ours?
• How does Jesus' treatment of Jonah help us teach it today?
• How did you see your congregation respond when you preached the gospel from Jonah?
• What do you mean by saying Jonah is a storied presentation of the gospel?
• What books, articles, sermons, etc., helped you preach Christ and the gospel from Jonah?

Here are a couple of Tchividjian's answers:

Why do you say Jonah is one of the best books for helping us get a better grip on the gospel? 

Surprised by Grace started out as a series of sermons on Jonah that I preached during the hardest year of my life. Preparing those sermons and preaching them proved to be a functional lifeline for me, not because of things I learned about Jonah (everything we learn about Jonah we learn by way of negative example), but because of things I learned about God’s amazing, sustaining, pursuing grace. 

I learned that God’s capacity to clean things up is infinitely greater than our human capacity to mess things up. I learned about the “stubbornness” of God to accomplish his will, regardless of how hard we may try and thwart it. In fact, as I reflect on that painful season of my life now, I can honestly say that I am genuinely thankful for all the ache I experienced. For it was during this trying time that God helped me recognize, through the story of Jonah, the practical relevance of the gospel—that everything I need and long for, in Christ, I already possesses. 

What do you mean by saying Jonah is a storied presentation of the gospel? 

It is a story of sin and grace, of desperation and deliverance. It reveals the fact that while you and I are great sinners, God is a great Savior, and that while our sin reaches far, his grace reaches farther. This story shows that God is in the business of relentlessly pursuing rebels—a label that ultimately applies to us all—and that he comes after us not to angrily strip away our freedom but to affectionately strip away our slavery so we might become truly free.

Read the full thing here.  More importantly, read through all four chapters of Jonah sometime this week and come prepared to dive in this Sunday.

How Deep The Father's Love For Us

I wanted to share one of my all-time favorite songs.  Below the video are the lyrics along with some Scripture references that may be of help to you as you worship the Savior this week.  He is Risen!

How Deep the Father’s Love For Us

Written by Stuart Townend

Performed by Joy Williams

How deep the Father's love for us,.................................................... 1 John 3:1
How vast beyond all measure..................................................... Ephesians 3:18-19
That He should give His only Son......................................................... John 3:16
To make a wretch His treasure.................................................. Romans 7:24-25

How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away....... Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34; Psalm 22:1
As wounds which mar the chosen One,.......................................... Isaiah 53:5
Bring many sons to glory ..................................................................... Hebrews 2:10

Behold the Man upon the cross,.......................................... John 19:17-19, 31-37
My sin upon His shoulders..................................................................... 1 Peter 2:24
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers.................................................... Matthew 27:22-25

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life................ Mark 15:37-39; Luke 23:46
I know that it is finished......................................................................... John 19:30

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom......................... Jeremiah 9:23; 1 Corinthians 4:7
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,............................................... 1 Corinthians 1:31
His death and resurrection............................................................... Galatians 6:14

Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart:
His wounds have paid my ransom........................... Mark 10:45; Colossians 2:14

I'm a Wreck, Too

I'll readily admit that I'm abnormal.  In a lot of ways.  One of those is in my musical taste.  I consider myself to be rather eclectic, listening to a little of this to a little of that - from pop to rock to oldies, classical to rap, I'll even tolerate a little bit of country from time to time.  But for the past 22 years, I've given the same answer time & time again when asked who my favorite artist or group is.  Steven Curtis Chapman.  Ever since I got my tape of his For the Sake of the Call (go ahead, I'll wait while you go check out his mullet from back then; by the way, When You Are A Soldier continues to be one of my favorite all time songs).  I was reminded yesterday of one of the many reasons why I continue to love Steven Curtis Chapman.  Andrew Peterson recently wrote about his experience touring with Steven Curtis Chapman.  Here's a bit of what he wrote:

And yet, though everyone seems to know him, I’ve never heard a single negative story about the guy. I’ve been in Nashville for 15 years now, and, well, you tend to hear less-than-flattering stories about folks from time to time (I’m sure there are a few about me floating around out there), but I have yet to hear one of those about Steven. What that might lead a rascal like me to conclude is that either a) Steven is so squeaky-clean he must be hard to like or b) he’s a complete wreck and he’s hiding it. I didn’t realize until this tour was underway that there’s a third option. Here it is: Steven is a wreck, he’s not hiding it, and because of the mighty presence of Jesus in his life, grace abounds to those around him.


It’s the great, confounding reversal of the Gospel of Jesus. If the word we preach is one of attainable perfection, of law, of justification by works, then when we fail, our testimony fails with it. But if we preach our deep brokenness and Christ’s deeper healing, if we preach our inability to take a single breath but for God’s grace, then our weakness exalts him and we’re functioning as we were meant to since the foundation of the world. Steven isn’t super-human. He’s just human. But what a glorious thing to be! An attempt on our part to be super-human will result only in our in-humanness–like a teacup trying to be a fork: useless. But if the teacup will just be a teacup, it will be filled. Humans were made (as was everything under the sun) for the glory of the Maker. Why should we try to be anything but fully human? Let God fill us up and pour us out; let him do what he will, let us be what we were meant to be. That gives us the freedom to sing about what’s really happening in our hearts without being afraid of sullying the good name of God. If our hearts are contending with the forces of darkness, clinging desperately to the hope of a Savior, then to sing boldly about the battle is no shame to us and all glory to our King.

Amen.  That reminded me of the line I've seen - "I'm the wretch that song refers to."  We need to be reminded of this, of God's glorious grace to us in Christ Jesus.  We need to remember that our witness to the Gospel is not primarily that Jesus has made our lives better or easier, but that we are sinners who have been saved by the grace of God.  I want to be able to say, as John Newton (the author of Amazing Grace) did, "Although my memory's fading, I remember two things very clearly: I am a great sinner and Christ is a great Savior."

Battling Worldliness

This morning in Life Group we studied James chapter 4 and the topic of worldliness and friendship with the world was discussed. James 4:4 says that "Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God".

Our discussion made me think of this quote by J.C. Ryle...

Look at the cross, think of the cross, meditate on the cross, and then go and set your affections on the world if you can. I believe that holiness is nowhere learned so well as on Calvary. I believe you cannot look much at the cross without feeling your will sanctified, and your tastes made more spiritual. As the sun gazed upon makes everything else look dark and dim, so does the cross darken the false splendor of this world. As the taste of honey makes all other things seem to have no taste at all, so does the cross seen by faith take all the sweetness out of the pleasures of the world. Keep on, everyday, looking firmly at the cross of Christ

The Gospel and Children

The great preacher Charles Spurgeon wisely instructs christian parents on the importance of communicating our personal experience when sharing the gospel with our children.

Deuteronomy 6:20–21:
When your son asks you in time to come, "What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the Lord our God has commanded you?" then you shall say to your son, "We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand."

Charles Spurgeon:

Fathers and mothers are the most natural agents for God to use in the salvation of their children. I am sure that, in my early youth, no teaching ever had such an impression upon my mind as the instruction of my mother; neither can I conceive that, to any child, there can be one who will have such influence over the young heart as the mother who has so tenderly cared for her offspring.

We should especially tell our children our own experience… Perhaps, my friend, there is no testimony that you can bear which will be so useful, so interesting and so striking, as the testimony of what you have, yourself, seen and handled of the Word of Life.

Tell the gospel as you find it in the Bible, but set it in the frame of your own experience of its preciousness! Tell your son how you sinned and how the Lord had mercy upon you. Tell him how he met with you, how you were brought to seek his face, how you were born again, how you received a new heart and a right spirit. He will think the more of this great change because it happened to his father, or to his mother, or to some kind friend. And, perhaps, if he is not himself converted as a child, in his later life he may think of what you told him or the remembrance of his mother’s God may rise before him when he is far away from the scenes of his youth and has spent many years in foolish vanities — and he may even then turn to God, beckoned back to the great Father’s House above by the memory of his godly father and mother here below.

Charles Spurgeon, "Brought Out to be Brought In."

(HT: Desiring God Blog)

Key To Obedience

On my good mornings, I try to take a few minutes before leaving for work and read a daily excerpt from Elyse Fitzpatrick's outstanding book Comforts from the Cross - Celebrating the Gospel One Day at a Time. I cannot recommend this book strongly enough.



I want to share a few highlights from a passage I read a few weeks ago. The book is made up of thirty-one 2-3 page writings that focus on the centrality of the gospel. The notes from the chapter I am going to highlight discuss John 14:15 - "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." Fitzpatrick attempts to explain the key to a life lived in obedience to Christ. I will share a hodgepodge of her comments.

If love for God isn't present in our heart, then Godward obedience will be absent in our life.

Jesus is lovingly stating a fact (John 14:15), but he's also making a precious promise: love will motivate behavior...... But he also knows this: as our love for him grows, our obedience will grow, too.


The key to a godly life is not more and more self-generated effort. Instead, Jesus is saying "Love me and your obedience will flow naturally from that love". The secret to obedience isn't formulaic steps found in a self-help book. It is a relentless pursuit of love for him. How then do I cultivate the sincerity of love that motivates obedience? By focusing more intently on his love for me than on my love for him, more on his obedience than mine, more on his faithfulness than mine, more on his strengths than mine.


"We love because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). The plain truth is that my love for God (and hence, my obedience) will grow as I cultivate my comprehension of his vast love for me. This is the wonderful promise of our Savior and the only sure method for true growth in godliness.


If we neglect this key by focusing too narrowly on ourselves, our success or failure, then we'll become mired down in guilt or pride, neither of which will stimulate loving obedience. If, on the other hand, we intently focus on how we've been loved, irrevocably, eternally, freely, and without merit, if we contemplate how our obedience (or lack of it) doesn't faze his love one whit, then we'll find within our hearts a growing desire to obey. Why? Because love like that changes people. It draws us toward him; it makes us want to be like him; it makes obedience attractive. Resting in the awareness of our perfect acceptance before him and in his intense desire to have us for his own will cause us to want to please him. It will make us love him, and love for him will always eventuate in godliness.


His love is fervent, eternal, uncompromising. Rest there, drink there, luxuriate in the warm sunshine of his smile; grow strong in his everlasting embrace. Confront your own sinfulness, yes, but only after you've remembered his love for you. Then love him and obey.

It Is Finished

I read part of an interview with Tullian Tchividjian tonight, and it made me think of our discussion of faith & works in James this morning:

So how did Christians become legalists about the whole idea of sanctification, where did we get it wrong do you think?


Tullian: I think since Genesis 3, we have all been prone towards works righteousness. Our heart is bent to do it on our own and that doesn’t go away after we become Christians. We still drift into what Jerry Bridges calls the “performance treadmill.”


For instance, none of us has a problem saying that our good works don’t get us in. We know our good works don’t get us in. Any good works are as filthy rags because we’re justified by grace alone through faith alone and the finished work of Christ alone. We acknowledge that.


But once God saves us it gets weird because we start thinking, OK, my good works do keep God’s favor. My good works may have not earned God’s favor, but it’s up to me to keep God’s favor. As a result, we become the hero of the story. We become the centerpiece of our own narrative, and Jesus is sitting on the sidelines and we’re on the field and he’s like, “Put me in, coach,” and we’re like, “No. We got it. Thanks for getting us on the field, but we’ll take it from here.” And we add all sorts of things.


...


The good news of the gospel is that my standing with God is not dependent on my obedience but Christ’s obedience for me. People will say, “Well, you can’t say that because then what impetus will you have to get people to do what they need to do?” and I simply go back and give them an illustration and say, “Listen: if I know that my wife loves me unconditionally—whether I’m being nice or whether I’m being a jerk—does that make me want to be more of a jerk?” [Laughing] It actually makes me want to be nicer. The thing that makes me want to love my wife more is when she loves me when I’m not being nice.


That’s the kindness of the Lord that Paul says leads to repentance. It’s the amazing grace of God, the unconditional favor of God given to us because of what Christ has done that transforms the human heart and turns us into the kind of people the Bible describes.

This was from part 3 of the interview.  You can also check out part 1 and part 2.

More on James 1:19-27

Reading through James 1:19-27, and thinking it through some more after class on Sunday, I found the following questions floating around my mind.  I thought it might be helpful (to me if nobody else) to try and work them out here.  Before I get to the questions, let me go ahead and post the text at hand:

[19] Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; [20] for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. [21] Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.


[22] But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. [23] For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. [24] For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. [25] But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.


[26] If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. [27] Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
(James 1:19-27 ESV)

Now, on to my questions:

1. Why does James seemingly start talking about speaking, listening, and anger out of nowhere?
2. Why would anybody think that man's anger produces the righteousness that God requires?
3. Why is there a "therefore" in verse 21?
4. How are speaking and anger (v.19) related to putting off filthiness and rampant wickedness (v.21)? (Assuming that being quick to hear is related to receiving the implanted word.)
5. How do you receive the "implanted" word?
6. How do you do the "word"? (James first calls it the "word of truth" in v.18, then the "implanted word" in v.21, then he goes on to exhort us to be doers of the word and not just hearers)
7. If James is talking about the gospel (i.e. "word of truth"/"implanted word"), why does he then talk about the law?  And why does he call it the law of "liberty"?

As opposed to my typical blog posts, which drag on & on, I'll attempt to be brief.  I think James introduces speaking and anger because that's often where we fall into temptation during trials.  When we face trials, such as losing a child or loved one, or being passed over for a promotion or losing a job, what do we tend to do by default?  How often do we lash out in anger, seeking to tear others down or justify ourselves?  We're attempting to declare, by our own (perceived) authority, that life isn't fair to us, or that we deserved to get the promotion or keep our job.  This attempt at self-justification, or self-righteousness, is ultimately a display of the filthiness and rampant wickedness in our hearts.  As Jesus said, out of the abundance, or overflow, of the heart, the mouth speaks.  (Matthew 12:34, Matthew 15:18, Luke 6:45)  That doesn't result in the righteousness that God requires.

So what does?  The "implanted word."  Rather than trying to attain this righteousness on our own, by our own standards or the standards or expectations of others, we receive the implanted word.  It is the gospel that reminds us that our standing does not depend on our own feeble attempts at righteousness.  For the righteousness that God requires is a much higher standard than we could ever set before ourselves - the standard of His holiness.  And the gospel reminds us that God has imputed this righteousness to us in Christ.  "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV)

How do you receive this implanted word?  How do you receive something you already have?  I'm thankful to John Piper for his illustration (found here) of this word as oxygen.  We have oxygen in our lungs, but none of us would say that we no longer need to breathe.  We need fresh oxygen to live.  Likewise, we need the word again & again to sustain the spiritual life that God brought forth in us.  The word of the gospel implanted in us drives us to the written word in the Bible.

As Christians, we stand on the gospel.  We are given new birth through the gospel, and are transformed by the gospel.  The good news of God's grace forgives us of our sins, and enables us to live lives of faith, to be "doers of the word" - the "obedience of faith" Paul talks about in the bookends of Romans (Romans 1:5; 16:26).  And when we fail once again, as we all do, God's grace remains, so that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1).  That's why James can call the law the "law of liberty" - it is only a law of liberty when bound up in the gospel.  Apart from God's grace, the law leads to enslavement, sin, and death.  But thanks be to God that "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us..." (Galatians 3:13).

I pray that we would be people who breathe in deeply of the Word of God.  That He would continue to work in us by His Spirit and through His Word, so that we would be fruitful.  And that we might be blessed like the man in Psalm 1:

[1] Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
[2] but his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
[3] He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.(Psalm 1:1-3 ESV)

So drink deeply from the Word.  Meditate on it. Consider the grace of God to free us from our slavery to sin and self.  Worship Him, be planted in Him, abide in Christ as the vine, and see the fruit that grows.  May we be able to say with the apostle Paul, "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me." (1 Corinthians 15:10)

Gospel-Centered Discipleship

I wanted to share a couple of things from D.A. Carson (yep, more Carson, I can't help myself) that I read a couple of weeks ago and was reminded of this week with our study of James.  The first is a quote from Carson that I've tried to take to heart, and pray that my life & my teaching would be saturated to overflowing with the Gospel:

If I have learned anything in 35 or 40 years of teaching, it is that students don’t learn everything I teach them. What they learn is what I am excited about, the kinds of things I emphasize again and again and again and again. That had better be the gospel.

If the gospel—even when you are orthodox—becomes something which you primarily assume, but what you are excited about is what you are doing in some sort of social reconstruction, you will be teaching the people that you influence that the gospel really isn’t all that important. You won’t be saying that—you won’t even mean that—but that’s what you will be teaching. And then you are only half a generation away from losing the gospel.

Make sure that in your own practice and excitement, what you talk about, what you think about, what you pray over, what you exude confidence over, joy over, what you are enthusiastic about is Jesus, the gospel, the cross. And out of that framework, by all means, let the transformed life flow.

And the other quote is a story from Carson's book From the Resurrection to His Return: Living Faithfully in the Last Days, talking about gospel-centered discipleship, and how older Christians should influence younger Christians:

As a chemistry undergraduate at McGill University, with another chap I started a Bible study for unbelievers. That fellow was godly but very quiet and a bit withdrawn.

I had the mouth, I fear, so by default it fell on me to lead the study. The two of us did not want to be outnumbered, so initially we invited only three people, hoping that not more than two would come. Unfortunately, the first night all three showed up, so we were outnumbered from the beginning.

By week five we had sixteen people attending, and still only the initial two of us were Christians. I soon found myself out of my depth in trying to work through John’s Gospel with this nest of students. On many occasions the participants asked questions I had no idea how to answer.

But in the grace of God there was a graduate student on campus called Dave Ward. He had been converted quite spectacularly as a young man. He was, I suppose, what you might call a rough jewel. He was slapdash, in your face, with no tact and little polish, but he was aggressively evangelistic, powerful in his apologetics, and winningly bold. He allowed people like me to bring people to him every once in a while so that he could answer their questions. Get them there and Dave would sort them out!

So it was that one night I brought two from my Bible study down to Dave. He bulldozed his way around the room, as he always did. He gave us instant coffee then, turning to the first student, asked, ‘Why have you come?’ The student replied, ‘Well, you know, I think that university is a great time for finding out about different points of view, including different religions. So I’ve been reading some material on Buddhism, I’ve got a Hindu friend I want to question, and I should also study some Islam. When this Bible study started I thought I’d get to know a little more about Christianity—that’s why I’ve come.’

Dave looked at him for a few moments and then said, ‘Sorry, but I don’t have time for you.’

‘I beg your pardon?’ said the student.

‘Look,’ Dave replied, ‘I’ll loan you some books on world religions; I can show you how I understand Christianity to fit into all this, and why I think biblical Christianity is true—but you’re just playing around. You’re a dilettante. You don’t really care about these things; you’re just goofing off. I’m a graduate student myself, and I don’t have time—I do not have the hours at my disposal to engage in endless discussions with people who are just playing around.’

He turned to the second student: ‘Why did you come?’

‘I come from a home that you people call liberal,’ he said. ‘We go to the United Church and we don’t believe in things like the literal resurrection of Jesus—I mean, give me a break. The deity of Christ, that’s a bit much. But my home is a good home. My parents love my sister and me, we are a really close family, we worship God, we do good in the community. What do you think you’ve got that we don’t have?’

For what seemed like two or three minutes, Dave looked at him.

Then he said, ‘Watch me.’

As it happened, this student’s name was also Dave. This Dave said, ‘I beg your pardon?’

Dave Ward repeated what he had just said, and then expanded: ‘Watch me. I’ve got an extra bed; move in with me, be my guest—I’ll pay for the food. You go to your classes, do whatever you have to do, but watch me. You watch me when I get up, when I interact with people, what I say, what moves me, what I live for, what I want in life. You watch me for the rest of the semester, and then you tell me at the end of it whether or not there’s a difference.’

Although this other Dave didn't actually move in with Dave Ward, he did pay attention to him whenever possible, watching how he lived, meeting with him, and seeing how the Gospel shaped him.  And today this Dave is a medical missionary.

Carson adds:

You who are older should be looking out for younger people and saying in effect, ‘Watch me.’

Come—I’ll show you how to have family devotions.

Come—I’ll show you how to do Bible study.

Come on—let me take you through some of the fundamentals of the faith.

Come—I’ll show you how to pray.

Let me show you how to be a Christian husband and father, or wife and mother.

At a certain point in life, that older mentor should be saying other things, such as: Let me show you how to die. Watch me.

(HT: Justin Taylor)

"In Christ"

John Piper shares 13 magnificent truths related to our union with Christ here.

James 1:12-18 Persevering Through Trials

This week, we looked at James 1:12-18.  And since this post is going to be rather long, here are some links to allow you to skip around a bit:

• A couple of stories from D.A. Carson (this is what was sent out in an email on Friday)
• The text of James 1:12-18
• My teaching notes, including the following principles:
• #1 - When you are struggling under trial, remember the Christian's goals.
• #2 - When you confess God's sovereignty, do not misunderstand God's motives.
• #3 - When you feel abandoned & crushed, do not forget God's goodness.

In the interest of full disclosure, I learned a lot from Carson, taking both the two stories and the three principles from some messages of his that I listened to.  If you want to hear Carson's teaching (and hear his French Canadian [with maybe a hint of British] accent I mentioned this morning), you can go listen to or download the message from the Gospel Coalition's website.

Now, on to the stories:

I know an English chap, we'll call him George to protect the guilty, who some years ago felt called into the ministry in England, and he went to a Bible college.  He turned out to be quite gifted - he was an able speaker, good with people, with a certain ability to declare the gospel with boldness and fruitfulness.  Eventually he graduated, became pastor of a church, and the church began to grow and people were being converted.  And then he got caught out in adultery.  Of course he resigned.  He disappeared from the scene.

He showed up some time later in Canada.  In fact, that's where I met him.  I met him at the seminary where I was studying in Toronto.  We didn't know anything of his background, and he didn't let on.  We graduated from the seminary at the same time.  I became pastor of a church on the west coast of Canada, and he became pastor of a church somewhere in Ontario.  In due course, I went to Europe and was there for a number of years, but I heard through the perennial ecclesiastical grapevine that this chap had committed adultery.  And he was dismissed.  He disappeared from the scene.

Years went by; I went back to Vancouver.  More years went by, and then I moved down to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where I am now, in Chicago.  When I got there, I didn't know any of the churches in the area, but the seminary said, "You know Don, if you don't mind, where you end up in church is ultimately for you and your wife to decide, but in fact there's a Free church near here that has recently gone through some trauma.  They've had a minister who saw quite a lot of fruitfulness - people growing and being converted, the numbers multiplying.  But then the minister there was caught out in adultery, and there's a mess.  Would you mind serving there while you teach here for a while?"  You guessed it, your friend and mine, this same chap.  Round number 3.  Different country, different church, same pattern.

Well besides saying some things about how sometimes churches don't do enough background checks, this also brings me to the point of the story.  If you speak to George today - and the last time I heard of him, he was in Ohio selling computer parts, and mercifully he's not gumming up any more churches - but if you ask him, "Come on, what went wrong?  Three times; didn't you learn anything?"  The most he would say is, "The New Testament says God will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able.  I was tempted and I wasn't able to withstand it.  God is a liar."  Then he turns and walks away.

Now most of us would not put things quite as crassly as that, yet deep down when we're going through trials and temptations, we can begin to wonder if God's got it in for us.  In fact, when you face horrible bereavement, or you're diagnosed with a vicious melanoma and there's no outcome but death and you're 42 with 3 children, or you're crippled at the age of 26, or you lose an only son in a war, it's pretty easy to start wondering what God is doing.


On the other hand, there are plenty of fascinating accounts of Christians whose lives shine most brilliantly under suffering, aren't there?  When I went to England in 1972 for the first time, within a short while I got to know Sir Norman and Pat Anderson.  Norman & Pat Anderson had been in Cambridge University, and went out as missionaries to Egypt, before World War II, where he became fluent in Arabic.  In World War II, the British army conscripted Norman into service so he would be involved in counterintelligence work.

After the war, he went on with his education, and eventually became professor of Oriental Studies at London University.  He was knighted by the Queen for establishing a couple of magnificent institutions.  He wrote a couple of very important books on world religions from a Christian point of view.  His understanding of Islam was profound.  At the same time, though he was a layman, he was a very faithful university evangelist and became an astonishingly influential layman in the Church of England.

But not everybody knows that Sir Norman had three children.  The first was a woman who became a medical doctor herself, and then in the revolution that turned the Belgian Congo into the Congo, which became Zaire, and is now the Congo again, she was gang raped.  She was sent home and as she was recovering she went to California to do some further medical training preparatory to going back to Africa.  While she was there, she tripped and fell down some stairs and knocked herself out and drowned in her own spittle.  The second daughter died in circumstances almost as bizarre.  The third child was a son, Hugh.  And he was genuinely brilliant.  He went to Cambridge University and became president of what's called there, The Union.  Oxford and Cambridge have a certain tradition of debating unions, and a very high percentage of their future Prime Ministers come out of Oxford or Cambridge debating unions.  He was already politically very well connected.  However, he never graduated.  He died at the age of 21 of a brain tumor.  Six cabinet ministers attended his funeral.  And there were no more Anderson children left.

In their later years, Pat suffered from Alzheimer's.  Sir Norman worked with her and helped her and loved her until he finally died himself.  And in all the years that I knew Sir Norman and Pat Anderson, not once - not once - did I hear a single bitter word.  For two years after the death of Hugh, Pat couldn't talk about it.  But not once did I hear bitterness, not once did I hear resentment, not once did I hear a bubbling, seething anger, not once.  When he was a very old man, when Pat was incapacitated from Alzheimer's, Sir Norman was asked to speak to a large conference of university students in Wales.  He didn't speak anymore, he said.  His memory couldn't hold things together long enough, but he would be glad to try and answer some questions.  So for almost an hour, one of my friends asked him questions about his experience of God across more than eight decades.  And he testified to all of his experience of the goodness of God.  And there was scarcely a dry eye in the place amongst those two thousand cynical students.


Now, my question to you is this - do you want to be George, or do you want to be Norman?  Do not answer quickly.  It costs something to be Norman.  Now what makes the difference between these two kinds of people?  Those who blame God and those who become more spiritually minded under it all.  You may not suffer exactly like any one of them.  You may not face temptations exactly like any one of them.  But face temptations, you will; face trials, you will; and the longer you live, the more you're going to face.  What kind of person would you rather be?

James 1:12-18 gives us three exceedingly important principles to bear in mind when we confront trial and temptation.

James 1:12-18 (ESV)

[12] Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. [13] Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. [14] But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. [15] Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

[16] Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. [17] Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. [18] Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.



Principle #1: When you are struggling under trial, remember the Christian's goals. (Verse 12)

• “remains steadfast under trial” - in verse 2 we read that trials produce steadfastness (or perseverance); here we see how steadfastness allows us to endure trials; similar to working out – strength training helps you develop strength, developing strength allows you to endure strength training
• In the ancient world, victorious athletes were rewarded with a laurel wreath, which symbolized glory and honor to the victor. (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:25)
• “crown of life” - life, eternal life, is the crown – Revelation 2:10 – crown of life is given to those who are faithful to death
• this crown of eternal life is promised to those who love God; this is not a reward that is in doubt, only if we remain steadfast under trial, but a motivation for remaining steadfast – we who love God have been promised the crown of life, therefore we can endure trials.
• Christ bore a crown of thorns so that we might receive the crown of life. (cf. Matthew 27:27-31)
• Discussion Questions: What is your reaction or response to this promise of a crown of life? In what ways does considering heavenly rewards spur you on toward perseverance?
• We must look at our sufferings with eternity's values in view.  No matter how much things hurt now, 50 billion years into eternity, things will look differently.  Our goal is not an easy life, but the crown of life, which has been promised us in Christ.

Principle #2 - When you confess God's sovereignty, do not misunderstand God's motives. (Verses 13-15)

• The idea of temptation here is different than a trial. A trial is an external difficulty. A temptation is an internal draw to sin.
• very interesting how we see the tension & interplay between the sovereignty of God and human responsibility.  God tests us, gives us opportunities to strengthen our faith, to trust him in trials.
• These tests from God are not temptations to sin.  God can’t be tempted because He is holy. There is nothing within Him for sin to appeal to.  If He has no desire for sin, how could He desire sin for His people?
• Our sinful nature turns trials into opportunities to feed our sinful desires.  Instead of running to God  and trusting Him, we run away from Him and into sin.
• Discussion Questions: What is the progression of sin in our lives? How does understanding this progression help you resist temptation?
• God's motive in bringing trials & tests into our lives is not to lead us into sin, but to purge us of sin and strengthen our faith & trust in Him.
• Though death is the end of sin, though death is the last enemy (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:26), it doesn't get the final word.

Principle #3 - When you feel abandoned & crushed, do not forget God's goodness. (Verses 16-18)

• “Do not be deceived” - these trials are not bad, and God is not leading us into sin.  As James says earlier, we can consider them joy. Why?
• Verse 17.  Because they are good gifts from God.  Every thing God gives His children is a good gift.  It is only because of our sinful nature that we turn God's good gifts into sinful ends.  As the Reformer John Calvin said, the human heart is an idol making factory.  Sure, we're too intellectually sophisticated to make statues of wood or metal and worship them.  Instead we take good things like money, marriage, spouses, work, sex, food, sports, children … you name it, and we turn them into ultimate things.  We were made to worship, but what are we worshiping?  Anything that takes our attention and our loyalty away from God is an idol.
• God is the Father of lights, does not vary or shadow – He does not change.  Have you ever noticed all the shadows in an auditorium when all the lights are on – how we have multiple shadows all over, no matter where we are?  Or how on a clear night out in the country that you still see shadows all around?  God has no shadow.  He is above all the lights He has created, and His glory outshines them all.  He is the unchanging, eternal Light of life.
• God's unchanging nature is good news because of the crown of life that He promised us, that we saw in our first verse today, verse 12.  And our last verse today, verse 18, speaks of how God brought about this crown of eternal life to His children.
• First, it was “by His own will” - another affirmation of God's sovereignty.  It was His call, His plan, His decision to do what follows
• And what did He do by His own will?  He “brought us forth” - As we saw earlier, sin gives birth to death, but God gives birth to life. – not just our physical life, although He did give us that, but here it's particularly our eternal life in Christ – the “crown of life” James mentioned before.  How do we know this?  Because of the means by which He brought us forth – the “word of truth”
• This phrase appears four other times in the New Testament:
• 2 Corinthians 6:7 (translated "truthful speech" in the ESV); Ephesians 1:13; Colossians 1:5; 2 Timothy 2:15
• Every time, this phrase refers to the Gospel, the good news of the righteous life, substitutionary death, & resurrection of Jesus Christ, by which we are born again
• As D.A. Carson says, “The most outstanding demonstration of the sheer goodness of God is that He chose to give us new birth through the gospel”
• Discussion Question: How does understanding the character of God, in particularly in the Gospel, help you resist temptation?
• This “word of truth”, the Gospel, is important to remember all the time, and especially in this study of James. Consider next week when we get to James 1:22, where James encourages us to be doers of the word, and not just hearers.  We don't just carry around a list of rules to live by as Christians.  But the Gospel should come to bear on our lives in at least a couple of distinct ways:
• As Paul exhorts the Philippian Christians, we should live in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ. (cf. Philippians 1:27)  The Gospel becomes the foundation & fuel for our living.  To sneak a peak ahead at some of the imperatives in James:
• Why should we be quick to listen? Because Christ is the Word, and faith comes by hearing.  The Gospel (the "good news") comes to us as we listen.
• Why should we take care of orphans?  Because God is Father to the fatherless, our Father who redeemed us from sin and adopted us into His family.
• Why shouldn't we look down on the poor?  “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)  Compared to (and apart from) the riches of God's glory, we are all bankrupt sinners.  But He has made us co-heirs with Christ.
• When we fail to withstand temptation, when we fall into sin. Whatever list of rules you want to pull from the Bible, we fail to keep them.  But we do not lose heart because we have a Savior who perfectly fulfilled the Law – every jot & tittle – on our behalf.  When James says in verse 5 that God gives generously to all without reproach, he means that God doesn't make us clean up our act before He gives us good gifts.  His good gifts are what forgive us and clean up our act for us.  We live in light of the Gospel when we remember the grace of God and do not submit ourselves to a yoke of slavery to the law, but turn to Him in repentance and faith.  We go back to the cross again, and again, and again.
• God's goodness doesn't depend on our performance, and the ups & downs of our daily lives, but it ultimately depends on and was demonstrated on a small hill outside of Jerusalem nearly 2000 years ago.

Back to the stories D.A. Carson shared at the beginning.  When you face trials & temptation, do you want to get bitter, like George, or do you want to get better, like Norman? Do you want your life to be characterized as the double-minded man, unstable in all his ways (as in verse 8)?  Or to be one who considers trials as joy, who grows in them by trusting God and standing firm in the truth of the Gospel?  Remember the three principles from along the way:

1. When you are struggling under trial, remember the Christian's goals.
2. When you confess God's sovereignty, do not misunderstand God's motives.
3. When you feel abandoned & crushed, do not forget God's goodness.

Gospel Goodness

The Five Solas are five Latin phrases (or slogans) that emerged during the Protestant Reformation and that summarize the Reformers' basic theological convictions on what they believed to be the essentials of the Christian life and practice.

Here is a very good, brief description of each.

There's Something About That Name

Kevin DeYoung has a good reflection on "The Name of Jesus," which begins as follows:

Over the past 2000 years, more people on planet earth have known the name of Jesus than any other name. Since 33 AD, over 8 billion people, by one estimate, have claimed to be followers of this Jesus—or Jésus or Isus or whatever the Christ is called in your language. Billions more have heard of his name. Presently, the name of Jesus can be found in over 6000 languages and more are being added every year.

On the one hand, it’s strange that this single name has dominated the last 2000 years of world history, especially Western history. For most of us, Jesus has a sacred ring to it; it sounds holy and divine. But this wasn’t the case when Mary and Joseph followed the angel’s instructions and gave their baby his name. Granted, it had a special meaning, but it was not an unusual name. The first century Jewish historian Josephus mentions at least twelve different people he knew with the name Jesus, including four High Priests. In Acts 9 we read of the Jewish false prophet, Bar-Jesus. In Colossians 4, Paul mentions one of his fellow workers, Jesus, called Justus. And some ancient manuscripts of the gospel of Matthew call the robber released by Pilate, Jesus Barabbas, which can be translated, ironically enough, “Jesus Son of the Father.”

Read the whole thing and take some time to meditate on and worship the Name above all names.