Loving the cantankerous people

Jim Eliff shares some good thoughts on why love is the proper way to handle the “cantankerous” people in our church:

• Love is the highest mark of maturity.
• Love is the perfect bond of unity (Col. 3:14)
• Love is the way of blessing because it is grounded in humility (Phil. 2:3-4)
• Love is the reasonable return for what God has given you (Col. 3:13)

How should we love this kind of person practically? Eliff offers four ways:

1. Invite him to your home.
2. Try to find out what drives him.
3. Within reason, give him some servant responsibility.
4. Confront him if he continues to cause problems.

You can read the whole article here.

(As a side note, Eliff’s ministry, Christian Communicators Worldwide, is currently offering a free book to seminary students and first-time pastors. See below.)

We occasionally like to give away resources to seminary students and first time pastors. Students or first time pastors may currently ask for one of the following: Divorce and Remarriage: A Permanence View, OR Wasted Faith, OR Dangers of the Invitation System. We only ask that you commit to read the book. Please write Steve Burchett at ccwblog@gmail.com for ordering details.

Never too early to teach gender roles

Courtney Reissig has a good article over at the CBMW blog today. Even Sunday School teachers need to begin instilling within boys and girls an appreciation for their distinct identity and roles as male and female.

When we walk down the halls of our church we need to know that the authority of the Bible is at stake in our Sunday school classrooms. What we teach the next generation about God should include what he says about who he made them to be. When you are teaching the creation story to children, I encourage you not to gloss over the fact that there is a man and a woman being created by God with different roles to play. When you are closing your time with your class, you can teach the little ones to thank God that he made them as little boys and little girls—and that these genders are not interchangeable. If you are a parent, you can be working even now to train your little boys to protect little girls, not react against them. And you can teach your little girls that it is good that they want to play with dolls and help in the house—and someday they will help in their own house and take care of real babies, even if they are single.

The little ones in our classrooms, while precious and fun, are all in their hearts opposed to God's design for them. Therefore, manhood and womanhood is not simply a topic to be discussed at the seminary level, or even the adult Sunday school class level. It must start earlier. We have the great privilege of teaching the next generation the truths of God. And it starts in your nursery.

The world certainly wastes no time in pushing their own humanistic, egalitarian agenda. Will the church faithfully rise up for the truth and celebrate God's glorious call for our future men and women?

Dead to sin

I sometimes hear people who struggle with drug or alcohol addiction say things like "once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic," or "once an addict, always an addict." I suspect it's part of their AA or NA rehab counseling.

It may be true that this person will always be tempted in those areas, but the Bible never treats alcohol or drugs as a "disease," nor does it say this condition is incurable. In fact, the doctrine of sanctification gives great hope, because it teaches than any born again believer becomes dead to sin and can gain victory over whatever deeply rooted problems and behavior exist in their lives (drugs, alcohol, sex, anger, etc.).

The Christian is never bound and gagged to the power of sin.

Romans 6:11-14 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Concerning this passage, Wayne Grudem explains,

To be dead to the ruling power of sin means that we as Christians, by virtue of the power of the Holy Spirit and the resurrection life of Christ working within us, have power to overcome the temptations and enticements of sin. Sin will no longer be our master, as once it was before we became Christians.

In practical terms, this means that we must affirm two things to be true. On the one hand, we will never be able to say, “I am completely free from sin,” because our sanctification will never be completed (see below). But on the other hand, a Christian should never say (for example), “This sin has defeated me. I give up. I have had a bad temper for thirty-seven years, and I will have one until the day I die, and people are just going to have to put up with me the way I am!” To say this is to say that sin has gained dominion. It is to allow sin to reign in our bodies. It is to admit defeat. It is to deny the truth of Scripture, which tells us, “You also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:11). It is to deny the truth of Scripture that tells us that “sin will have no dominion over you” (Rom. 6:14).

This initial break with sin, then, involves a reorientation of our desires so that we no longer have a dominant love for sin in our lives. Paul knows that his readers were formerly slaves to sin (as all unbelievers are), but he says that they are enslaved no longer. “You who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness” (Rom. 6:17–18). This change of one’s primary love and primary desires occurs at the beginning of sanctification. (Systematic Theology, p. 747)

What a blessing that we are not longer slaves to sin but are now slaves to righteousness and new life in Jesus Christ!

Fighting to please God

The Christian life is a fight for holiness, a daily battle to put off the old self and put on Jesus Christ.

Though we have been saved and justified in God's eyes through His Son, even our best works still contain sin. We will never reach perfection until glory. But this should not cause us to lay down our weapons and stop fighting. God is pleased with our obedience, despite its imperfections. Hear the words of J. C. Ryle:

Sanctification is a thing which cannot justify a man, and yet it pleases God. The holiest actions of the holiest saint that ever lived are all more or less full of defects and imperfections. They are either wrong in their motive or defective in their performance and in themselves are nothing better than “splendid sins,” deserving God’s wrath and condemnation. To suppose that such actions can stand the severity of God’s judgment, atone for sin and merit heaven is simply absurd. “By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified.” “We conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law” (Rom. 3:20–28).

The only righteousness in which we can appear before God is the righteousness of another—even the perfect righteousness of our Substitute and Representative, Jesus Christ the Lord. His work, and not our work, is our only title to heaven. This is a truth which we should be ready to die to maintain.

For all this, however, the Bible distinctly teaches that the holy actions of a sanctified man, although imperfect, are pleasing in the sight of God. “With such sacrifices God is well pleased” (Heb. 13:16). “Obey your parents . . . for this is well pleasing unto the Lord” (Col. 3:20). “We . . . do those things that are pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22).

Let this never be forgotten, for it is a very comfortable doctrine. Just as a parent is pleased with the efforts of his little child to please him, though it be only by picking a daisy or walking across a room, so is our Father in heaven pleased with the poor performances of His believing children. He looks at the motive, principle and intention of their actions and not merely at their quantity and quality. He regards them as members of His own dear Son, and for His sake, wherever there is a single eye, He is well pleased. (Ryle, Holiness, ch. 2)

Exposing the heart conference

On Saturday, October 3, our community will have a one-day men's conference called "Exposing the Heart." The speakers will include Chris Mueller, Tye Bridges, Gerry Brown, and myself. Here's a sneak preview:

Are we living as God intended, do we feel we have it together and others don't, and are we more than confident in our devotion and outwardly pious appearances when the truth of the matter is that it comes down to a condition of the heart? The very thing that sustains our life. Our lives and the way we live are directly related to our Heart. Its not always easy to diagnose, but God's Word reveals and exposes the Heart like nothing else. Until we see the condition we won't go for the cure which is in Christ Jesus and the grace He has poured out for us as Christians.

The focus and theme of this year's Morongo Basin Christian Men's Conference will be on "Exposing the Heart". It is based on the teachings from the "Sermon on the Mount". The "Sermon on the Mount" is one of the most well known of all of Jesus' teachings. It has been written about, taught on and preached extensively, and all for good reason, it truly reveals so much about us and our motives as fallen creatures apart from God.

Schedule:

8:00 - 8:30 Conference begins with worship band
8:30-8:40 Opening and prayer
8:40-9:30 Gerry Brown
9:30-9:40 Break
9:40-10:30 Stephen Jones - "Deadly Desire" (Mt. 5:27-30)
10:30-11:00 Break/worship
11:00-11:50 Tye Bridges - "Either Or" (Mt. 7:13-27)
11:50-12:00 Break
12:00-12:50 Chris Mueller - "Sermon on the Heart" (Mt. 5-7)
12:50-1:00 Closing & prayer
1:00-2:00 Free BBQ provided by the Saints motorcycle club

Men, mark your calendars for October 3. It should be a great time of worship and discipleship. For more information, you can visit the website here.

Glorifying God in the Golden Years

Last Sunday, we studied the prayer of an old man in Psalm 71, and learned how we can "Glorify God in the Golden Years." There were three points to our outline:

1. The Protection of the Elderly (Ps. 71:1-13). The psalmist senses that he is in danger as his enemies encircle and plot against him. Though his strength is diminishing, his faith remains strong as he runs to God for refuge. It may seem, at times, that God has forsaken us, but we know that those who have trusted Christ are secure. God already forsook His Son on the cross so that we would never have to be forsaken (Matt. 27:46).
2. The Purpose of the Elderly (Ps. 71:14-18). The psalmist knows that his many years and life experiences are intended by God to be the source for unending hope and praise, while teaching the next generation about God's character and salvation. As long as God keeps us on the earth, He has an important mission for us to fulfill. Whatever faculties we have left should be used for God's glory.
   
3. The Praise of the Elderly (Ps. 71:19-24). The psalmist concludes with an outburst of joy and praise to God. He can hardly contain himself as he remembers the righteousness of God and the great things He has done. He expects the Lord to revive Him once again so he can continue to praise God until His final breath, while he awaits God to humble the proud and put his enemies to shame.

Application questions for the young and middle aged:

• What are my thoughts and feelings about old age?
  
• What is the world's perspective of age? What, in contrast, do the following verses say about it? Lev. 19:32; Prov. 16:31; 20:29.
• Do I treat the elderly with honor? How could I improve? What are the main barriers I face?
• Do I keep a journal or some other way of recording the "great things" (Ps. 71:19) God has done in my life to help me recall them in the latter years?
  
• Do I make myself available to seniors, listening to them and even seeking out their counsel and testimony of God's grace? (Ps. 71:18)
  

Application questions for seniors:

• What are the threats and fears I face right now? What comfort can Psalm 71 bring?
  
• If Psalm 71:8 were written about me, how would it read? "My mouth is filled with ___." Is my speech generally positive or negative? Is it self-centered or others/God-centered? Are my words full of cynicism, gossip, and complaining? Or joy, encouragement, and thanksgiving?
• Do I view my life as still having purpose? If so what is it? How does this purpose match up with the glorious purpose described in Psalm 71:14-18?
• Do I treat the younger generation with respect or see them as a threat? What are the main barriers I face? How am I willing to change or accommodate my own preferences in order to help reach the next generation?
• Do I make myself available to young and middle aged people, talking with them, getting to know them, praying for them, sharing godly counsel, and testifying of God's grace? (Ps. 71:18) How could I improve?
  
• Is my joy evident to others? Does my speech and body language suggest to others that I am genuinely happy? Do I give "shouts" of praise to God through singing and prayer? (Ps. 71:23) How can I be joyful even in difficult circumstances?
  

Related posts:

• The blessings of nursing home ministry
  
• Ministering to the homebound and elderly
• Homebound newsletter
  

Virgin lips

Here's something radically counter-cultural. A new movement is on the rise to encourage Christians to abstain from kissing until marriage.

It's obvious our culture has become hyper-sexualized in a very short time. Al Mohler writes,

In the space of little more than a single generation, we have seen the breaking down of virtually every social and cultural support for sexual abstinence. Arousal and intimacy come with the romantic longing that marks the deepening relationship between a man and a woman. Young couples no longer court on the porch swing with the girl's parents sitting inside and very close at hand. Now, most young couples face the temptation of romantic contexts in which intimacy--and this means sexual intimacy--is a likely outcome.

The Virgin Lips Movement represents a serious effort to push back against this expectation and to create boundaries that will protect virtue and honor marriage.

What do you think? Is the Virgin Lips Movement putting Matthew 5:29-30 into practice, i.e. taking radical steps to avoid sin? Or is it legalism? Should parents expect this of their children?

I don't think it would be legalistic at all to have such a standard for one's own relationship. After all, we all must set clear boundaries of purity and never violate our consciences. "He who doubts is condemned if he eats [or kisses], because his eating [or kissing] is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin (Rom. 14:23). There could be great wisdom in establishing and avoiding this threshold of physical intimacy. However, I could see the VLM quickly becoming legalistic if couples begin to impose this vow on others, adding an extra-biblical standard by which all relationships are judged to be sinful or righteous.

The real issue is a matter of the heart - not merely outward behavior. Certain boundaries must exist to avoid fueling lust and temptation, but these boundaries will vary from person to person and from couple to couple.

Randy Alcorn, in his excellent book The Purity Principle, says,

For years I didn't go in a particular doorway to our local supermarket because of a magazine rack. Later, my mental discipline became strong enough that I could keep my eyes away. But until then I honored my boundary. It was inconvenient, but a small price to pay to guard my purity.

We have a television, but we don't have cable. Not because we believe it's wrong, but because we don't want more temptation in our home.

I'm not telling you what you have to do. Boundaries will vary from person to person. A boundary may be not standing in a checkout line where certain magazines are displayed. Or not driving in a certain part of town. Or never going on a business trip alone.

Boundaries keep temptation from getting a foothold. They are based on the premise that our sexual purity cannot be strengthened if we keep doing what we've always done! We must change our habits. We are sentries charged with protecting something immensely strategic... (p. 44)

The Virgin Lips Movement is a great reminder that all of us must stand guard, glorifying God in our bodies and remaining pure in every relationship.

Abiding in Christ

Last Sunday, I preached on John 15:1-11, where Christ presents Himself as the Vine - our true source of life - and urges us to abide in Him.

One saint who learned the joy of abiding in Christ was Hudson Taylor, missionary to China and founder of the China Inland Mission. After making this life-changing discovery, Taylor wrote the following in a letter to his sister, who was herself a mother of ten kids and familiar with the pressures of ministry and the Christian life. It's a long quote, but captures something of the delight of abiding in Christ.

...As to work -- mine was never so plentiful, so responsible or so difficult, but the weight and strain are all GONE. The last month or more has been, perhaps, the happiest of my life, and I long to tell you a little of what the Lord has done for my soul. I do not know how far I may be able to make myself intelligible about it, for there is nothing new or strange or wonderful -- and yet, all is new!...

Perhaps I may make myself more clear if I go back a little. Well, dearie, my mind has been greatly exercised for six or eight months past, feeling the need personally and for our Mission of more holiness, life, power in our souls. But personal need stood first and was the greatest. I felt the ingratitude, the danger, the sin of not living nearer to God.

I prayed, agonized, fasted, strove, made resolutions, read the Word more diligently, sought more time for meditation -- but all without avail. Every day, almost every hour, the consciousness of sin oppressed me.
I knew that if only I could abide in Christ all would be well, but I could not. I would begin the day with prayer, determined not to take my eye off Him for a moment, but pressure of duties, sometimes very trying, and constant interruptions apt to be so wearing, caused me to forget Him.
Then one's nerves get so fretted in this climate that temptations to irritability, hard thoughts and sometimes unkind words are all the more difficult to control. Each day brought its register of sin and failure, of lack of power.
To will was indeed "present with me," but how to perform I found not.

Then came the question, is there no rescue? Must it be thus to the end -- constant conflict, and too often defeat? How could I preach with sincerity that, to those who receive Jesus, "to them gave he power to become the sons of God" (i.e., Godlike) when it was not so in my own experience? Instead of growing stronger, I seemed to be getting weaker and to have less power against sin; and no wonder, for faith and even hope were getting low. I hated myself, I hated my sin, yet gained no strength against it. I felt I WAS a child of God. His Spirit in my heart would cry, in spite of all, "Abba, Father." But to rise to my privileges as a child, I was utterly powerless.
I thought that holiness, practical holiness, was to be gradually attained by a diligent use of the means of grace. There was nothing I so much desired as holiness, nothing I so much needed; but far from in any measure attaining it, the more I strove after it, the more it eluded my grasp, until hope itself almost died out, and I began to think that -- perhaps to make heaven the sweeter -- God would not give it down here. I do not think that I was striving to attain it in my own strength. I knew I was powerless. I told the Lord so, and asked Him to give me help and strength. Sometimes I almost believed that He would keep and uphold me; but on looking back in the evening -- alas! there was but sin and failure to confess and mourn before God.

I would not give you the impression that this was the only experience of those long, weary months. It was a too frequent state of soul, and that towards which I was tending, which almost ended in despair. And yet, never did Christ seem more precious; a Savior who could and would save such a sinner! ... And sometimes there were seasons not only of peace but of joy in the Lord; but they were transitory, and at best there was a sad lack of power. Oh, how good the Lord has been in bringing this conflict to an end!

All the time I felt assured that there was in Christ all I needed, but the practical question was -- how to get it OUT. He was rich truly, but I was poor; He was strong, but I weak. I knew full well that there was in the root, the stem, abundant fatness, but how to get it into my puny little branch was the question. As gradually light dawned, I saw that faith was the only requisite -- was the hand to lay hold on His fullness and make it mine. But I had not this faith.

I strove for faith, but it would not come; I tried to exercise it, but in vain. Seeing more and more the wondrous supply of grace laid up in Jesus, the fullness of our precious Savior, my guilt and helplessness seemed to increase. Sins committed appeared but as trifles compared with the sin of unbelief which was their cause, which could not or would not take God at His word, but rather made Him a liar! Unbelief was I felt THE damning sin of the world; yet I indulged in it. I prayed for faith, but it came not. What was I to do?

When my agony of soul was at its height, a sentence in a letter from dear McCarthy was used to remove the scales from my eyes, and the Spirit of God revealed to me the truth of our ONENESS WITH JESUS as I had never know in before.

McCarthy, who had been much exercised by the same sense of failure but saw the light before I did, wrote (I quote from memory):
"But how to get faith strengthened? Not by striving after faith, but by resting on the Faithful One."

As I read, I saw it all! "If we believe not, he abideth faithful." I looked to Jesus and saw (and when I saw, oh, how joy flowed!) that He had said, "I will never leave thee."
"Ah, THERE is rest!" I thought. "I have striven in vain to rest in Him. I'll strive no more. For has not HE promised to abide with ME -- never to leave me, never to fail me?" And, dearie, HE NEVER WILL.

Nor was this all He showed me, nor one half. As I thought of the Vine and the branches, what light the blessed Spirit poured direct into my soul! How great seemed my mistake in wishing to get the sap, the fullness OUT of Him!

I saw not only that Jesus will never leave me, but that I am a member of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. The vine is not the root merely, but ALL -- root, stem, branches, twigs, leaves, flowers, fruit. And Jesus is not that alone -- He is soil and sunshine, air and showers, and ten thousand times more than we have ever dreamed, wished for or needed.

Oh, the joy of seeing this truth! I do pray that the eyes of your understanding too may be enlightened, that you may know and enjoy the riches freely given us in Christ.

Oh, my dear Sister, it is a wonderful thing to be really one with a risen and exalted Savior, to be a member of Christ! (Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret, pp. 158-62).

Why you should join Facebook

Yesterday, Natalie and I enjoyed listening to Al Mohler's recent radio program "Five Years of Facebook: The Moral and Cultural Impact of Social Networking."

Like all technology, Facebook and other "social media" (blogs, MySpace, Twitter, Skype, Flickr, etc.) have both opportunities and pitfalls.

I've really enjoyed connecting with friends on Facebook, sending notes of encouragement, and browsing new pictures. Facebook also keeps me informed of new prayer needs and reminds me of upcoming birthdays.

But social networking can easily become self-centered. It can be a tremendous time-waster. It can serve as a cheap imitation for genuine, life-on-life relationships. It can open a door for internet predators. It can expose us to images and ideas that are spiritually lethal. In fact, avoiding raunchy content on the internet sometimes feels like navigating a minefield. (Though the free Firefox download Adblock Plus does help cut down on unwanted ads.)

Yet in spite of its dangers, social networking applications like Facebook can offer a lot of clean fun and can even be a tool to advance the gospel. Mohler gives eight practical suggestions to set up safeguards and redeem this technology for the glory of God:

1. Never allow social networking to replace or rival personal contact and communication.

2. Set clear parameters for the time devoted to social networking.

3. Never write or post anything on a social networking site that you would not want the world to see, or anything that would compromise your Christian witness.

4. Never allow children and teenagers to have independent social networking access (or Internet access, for that matter).

5. Do not allow children and teens to accept any "friend" unknown to you.

6. Encourage older friends and relatives to sign up and use the technology.

7. Use the social networking technology to bear witness to the Gospel, but never think that this can replace the centrality of face-to-face evangelism, witness, and discipleship.

8. Do all things to the glory of God, and do not allow social networking to become an idol or a display of narcissism.

Now five years old, Facebook and other social networking sites are here to stay. We must remain vigilant in using this new technology, but it would be a tragedy to miss this chance to encourage one another and to reach the next generation. So if you're not already on Facebook, why not sign up?

Illustration by: Matt Hamm

Sovereign Grace sale

In case you haven't heard yet, Sovereign Grace is holding a generous sale in February. Much of their music and book material is outstanding. Here's the announcement...

We’re doing it again. Having a ridiculous sale, that is.

Last year, during the month of February, we reduced the prices of our CDs and books. The response was overwhelming. So we decided to repeat the lunacy. Here’s the deal:

From February 1–28, at the Sovereign Grace store, you’ll find these prices:

* Sovereign Grace books (23 of them, including Worship Matters, Worldliness, and Living the Cross Centered Life): $7 each

* all CDs produced by Sovereign Grace Music (including Together for the Gospel Live, Psalms, Come Weary Saints, Awesome God, In a Little While, and Valley of Vision): $6 each

* all books in our Pursuit of Godliness series (Why Small Groups, This Great Salvation, and others): $4 each

But wait…there’s more!

During February, we’re offering our normal free shipping in the continental US (library rate). But on all international orders we’re offering a discount of 50% on USPS First Class International shipping.

Why are we doing this? Well, we figure that most of us have been affected by the present economic crisis. We want to do whatever we can to make it easier for people to benefit from what we produce. We want to serve churches and individuals by providing biblically informed, gospel-centered resources at a low cost. And we’d really like to give it all away, but for now, that’s not financially feasible…

So we offer the February sale. Enjoy.

And feel free to tell your friends.

Get the goods at: http://www.sovereigngracestore.com/

25 years of Discipleship Journal

Rejoice Christian Software is offering the Discipleship Journal Anthology CD at a deep discount. Here are the details:

Product Features:

• 150 Issues of Discipleship Journal
• Covers the Years 1981-2005
• Includes Original Articles, Artwork, Graphics, and More
• $550 in Comparable Print Value

with Articles by:

• Martyn Lloyd-Jones
• Martin Luther
• A.W. Tozer
• J.I. Packer
• R. Kent Hughes
• Andrew Murray
• Gordon MacDonald
• Jerry Bridges
• Randy Alcorn
• Donald Whitney
• Norman Geisler
• Tremper Longman
• H. Wayne House
• John Calvin
• J. Oswald Sanders
• John Piper
• Abraham Kuyper
• And Folks You've Never Heard of, too

Sample Articles:

• How to teach others to practice spiritual disciplines without falling into legalism
• The Bible and divorce: three views
• Why should Christians fast?
• Is your anger righteous?
• Our expectations about the power of God to transform lives
• The revolutionary leadership of Jesus
• Why there has to be a place of eternal punishment
• Tongues: two views on a controversial topic
• Qualities for spiritual leadership
• How to read the Psalms
• How to listen to a sermon (by George Whitefield)
• The Godhood of God (A.W. Pink)
• What is baptism in the Holy Spirit?

Logos sells this CD for $89, but Rejoice Software is selling it for only $19.95. You can order either the Libronix or the WORDsearch version.

A call to love others

Over the past several months, I've been blogging my way through our church mission statement: "to make disciples of Jesus Christ who love God and love people, by reaching and teaching everyone."

Today, we come to the next phrase, "love people." Followers of Jesus Christ are called not only to love God, but also to love people. The principal text for loving others is Matthew 22:39. Jesus, after identifying love for God as the greatest commandment, says in His next breath, "The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' " Then Jesus makes this stunning statement: "On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets" (Matt. 22:40). In other words, if we truly love God and love others, we are perfectly obeying God.

Some people have noted that the first commandment (love for God) covers the first four of the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:3-11), and the second commandment (love for others) covers the last six of the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:12-17). None of us, except Christ, are able to keep these commandments perfectly, but love becomes the supreme goal of every believer.

There's another key passage on loving others, a passage that must be deeply embedded in our hearts. John 13:34-35 says, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

There verses teach us five important lessons about love:

1. The mandate of love. Love is not merely a suggestion, an abstract ideal. It is a commandment from the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. John 15:12, 17; 1 John 3:23). And it is not merely a one-time act at the moment of conversion, but a continuous action, to "keep on loving" one another. Love is something that must describe our behavior every day, to all people, in all situations. According to Jerome, this command was so impressed upon the heart of the Apostle John that in his extreme old age, John would often be heard repeating over and over "Love one another...Love one another." When asked why he so often repeated this command, he responded, "Because it is the Lord's commandment; and if it be fulfilled, it is enough."
2. The model of love. What makes Jesus' commandment "new" is that He has raised the standard of love much higher. A glance earlier in the chapter reveals Jesus on his knees, girded with a towel, humbly washing the feet of His disciples. A few chapters later, Jesus will empty Himself to the ultimate level by dying on the cross for our sin. This humble, costly, unselfish love becomes the model for how we should now love one another.
3. The meaning of love. The Greek word Jesus uses in these verses is agape. It is an unconditional love, the deliberate setting of your affection upon someone else. True love is choosing to love someone, even when it's not easy, and even when they're not worthy. How grateful we can be God first demonstrated this love toward us! (Rom. 5:8) And now we are called to love others in the same way (1 John 4:11).
   
4. The magnitude of love. Jesus says we are not only to love our small circle of friends, but every single person in the church. "One another" speaks of the community of God, the entire body of believers. It's all-inclusive, and includes loving our enemies (Lk. 6:32, 35), loving those who are unattractive, loving strangers (Rom. 12:13), loving our family members, loving the needy (James 1:27), loving the wayward (Gal. 6:1), and loving those who are different than us. None are excluded from this kind of love.
   
5. The mission of love. Our love for one another has serious evangelistic implications. We are all ambassadors of Christ, and the world's perception of the church will determine their perception of Christ. Does the world view Christianity as angry, cynical, factional, self-righteous, and hypocritical? Or do they see our kindness, our forgiveness, our faith, our compassion, our sacrifice, and yes, even our tough love? Show me a church that is loving, and I will show you a church that is winning souls for Christ. But show me a church with outreach programs every night of the week, yet lacking love, and I'll show you a church that is actually doing damage to the gospel. Because of our sin, the church will never be perfect until Christ comes and glorifies us, but by God's grace, our love for one another should constantly be growing (1 Thess. 4:9-10). Love is the greatest apologetic for the truth of Christianity.

Jesus commands His disciples to love, but He never said love would be easy. C.S. Lewis writes,

To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully around with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket—safe, dark, motionless, airless— [your heart] will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable; impenetrable, irredeemable...The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers of love is Hell.

Love is a frightening prospect, but it's also a thrilling opportunity. Let's learn to be vulnerable with one another, so that every church might become a refuge of love, where Christ will be honored and where the world will see the gospel not only through our words, but through our actions.

Unfinished business

David Nelson has written a thought-provoking article called "Going Home at the End of the Day: A Theology of Leaving."

There's nothing quite like the satisfaction of seeing a project come to completion. Whether it's turning in a major term paper, adding the last bit of finish to a hand-crafted piece of furniture, making the final stitches to a massive embroidery project, or watching your child graduate from high school, it's so rewarding to step back from your work and say, "By God's grace, I've done my best. And the results look good."

As a master craftsman, God Himself took great pleasure in the completed work of creation: "God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good" (Gen. 1:31).

Nevertheless, most of our days amount to just making small dents in incomplete projects. Rarely do we get that profound sense of accomplishment. But David Nelson reminds us to enjoy the work God has given us, and to find rest in spite of the "unfinishedness" of our lives...

[H]uman labor is by its nature mostly unfinished business. It is one of the exigencies of temporality that many of the tasks we pursue are, for the largest part of their duration, unfinished. It is true that certain work is done over the short term while other work is a long term project. If, for example I set out to grill a cheese sandwich, I have good reason to believe I will complete that labor in the short term, lest I end up with a grilled cheese blackened beyond description or usefulness. Yet other tasks are longer term propositions. Building a new house is not a task quickly completed, and it requires a series of starts and stops, day by day, in which workers determine to finish certain things and leave other things to be completed in due order. Part of the process of work, therefore, is the messy “unfinishedness” of our labors that tend to keep us in the office “after hours.” Some of us will do well to learn to leave what is unfinished for another day, and to rest well in spite of our dissatisfaction with what is undone.

...[L]eaving the office at the end of the day, and the rest that we pursue subsequent to that departure, is a sign of trust in God. It is so in that we are willing to labor hard during the day, and then leave what is unfinished for the day following, trusting that God will sustain us to do so, or indicate that there is other work to be done or, ultimately, that our labors in this age have come to an end.

Another year is dawning

As I was preparing our order of service for last Sunday, I came across the great hymn "Another Year is Dawning." This song did not appear in the 1991 Baptist Hymnal, but has been added back into the 2008 Baptist Hymnal.

The tune is Aurelia - the same as "The Church's One Foundation." The lyrics were first written in a New Years Card sent out by Francis Ridley Havergal to her friends in 1874, and are especially appropriate as we enter this new year...

Another year is dawning;
Dear Father, let it be
In working or in waiting,
Another year with Thee;
Another year of progress,
Another year of praise,
Another year of proving
Thy presence all the days.

Another year of mercies,
Of faithfulness and grace,
Another year of gladness
In the shining of Thy face;
Another year of leaning
Upon Thy loving breast;
Another year of trusting,
Of quiet, happy rest.

Another year of service,
Of witness for Thy love,
Another year of training
For holier work above.
Another year is dawning:
Dear Father, let it be
On earth, or else in heaven,
Another year for Thee.

Religious Affections, Part I and II

Back in July, I said I would be reading through Religious Affections, by Jonathan Edwards. I don't know of any readers who planned to follow along with me, so I decided to take my sweet time on this project, reading just a little at a time as devotional reading.

So far, I've finished Parts I & II of Edwards' work and have really enjoyed it. Edwards stretches the mind and the soul, opening up new dimensions of understanding about God and human nature.

The main question he explores in the book is this:

What are the distinguishing qualifications of those that are in favor with God, and entitled to his eternal rewards? Or, which comes to the same thing, What is the nature of true religion? And wherein do lie the distinguishing notes of that virtue and holiness that is acceptable in the sight of God?

In other words, how can we know we are pleasing God? There are certain impulses that should characterize believers and help measure our growth in godliness. But before giving an answer, Edwards explains twelve "unreliable" signs of genuine religious affections in Part II:

1. It is no sign one way or the other, that religious affections are very great, or raised very high.
2. ...that they have great effects on the body.
   
3. ...that they cause those who have them to be fluent, fervent, and abundant, in talking of the things of religion.
4. ...that persons did not make them themselves, or excite them of their own contrivance and by their own strength.
5. ...that they come with texts of Scripture, remarkably brought to the mind.
6. ...that there is an appearance of love in them.
7. ...[that people experience] many kinds, accompanying one ...
8. ...that comforts and joys seem to follow awakenings and convictions of conscience, in a certain order.
9. ...that they dispose persons to spend much time in religion, and to be zealously engaged in the external duties of worship.
10. ...that they much dispose persons with their mouths to praise and glorify God.
    
11. ...that they make persons that have them exceeding confident that what they experience is divine, and that they are in a good estate.
12. ...that the outward manifestations of them, and the relation persons give of them, are very affecting and pleasing to the truly godly, and such as greatly gain their charity, and win their hearts.

This is as far as I've gotten in the book, but I've already been challenged against using common "signs" to judge our faith and measure that we are growing in grace. There are many good things on this list, but any of these twelve can be counterfeited by the Enemy and are not sufficient evidence of a genuine walk with God.

I'm looking forward to reading Part III of his book, where Edwards finally addresses what are the distinguishing marks of true religion.

20 books

Justin Buzzard offers a great list of 20 books to read in your 20s. What a difference it would make if the next generation would simply read and apply the material in these 20 books.

Idea: Why not get started right away by checking one of these books out from the library, or adding it to your Christmas wish list? Even if you're past your 20s, it's never too late to start reading good Christian literature.

HT: Justin Taylor
Photo credit: stephmcg

A call to love God

Today is the next installment in my series of posts on the mission statement of our church. As a reminder, our mission is "to make disciples of Jesus Christ who love God and love people, by reaching and teaching everyone."

I've already written on the importance of a clearly defined ministry goal and the definition of a disciple of Jesus Christ. Now we'll move along to the marks of a genuine disciple.

There are two distinguishing marks of a disciple of Jesus. One is a love for God. The other is a love for people. If you claim to be a Christian, these two things should increasingly characterize your life.

Above all, a disciple must have a love for God. All other Christian virtues, emotions, and duties stem from this root of love. When a religious leader asked Jesus, "Which is the great commandment in the Law?" Jesus answered without hesitation that it is a love for God. He said, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matt. 22:37). This is a genuine, all-consuming, love for God that is so strong that all other relationships, by comparison, are viewed with contempt (Matt. 10:37).

Jonathan Edwards calls love "the chief of all affections, and fountain of all other affections" and believes "the essence of all true religion lies in holy love." He goes on to say,

From a vigorous, affectionate, and fervent love to God, will necessarily arise other religious affections; hence will arise an intense hatred and abhorrence of sin, fear of sin, and a dread of God’s displeasure, gratitude to God for his goodness, complacence and joy in God, when God is graciously and sensibly present, and grief when he is absent, and a joyful hope when a future enjoyment of God is expected, and fervent zeal for the glory of God. (Religious Affections)

Likewise, Alexander Strauch writes,

Above all things, we should seek to increase our knowledge and enjoyment of Christ and deepen our love for him (Phil. 3:8-14). After all, the deeper our love for him the more we will become like him in love and the more we will be able to teach others to love. (Leading With Love, 30)

Love of God is the greatest commandment, the essence of true religion, the fountain of religious affection, and the mark of a true disciple. How is your love for God? Is it growing or waning? Have you, like the Ephesians, begun to leave your first love (Rev. 2:4)? Consider the following questions:

• Are you growing in your knowledge of God? We can't expect to love Someone we don't know.
  
• Are you growing in your fellowship with God? We can't expect to love Someone we don't spend time with.
• Are you growing in your obedience to God? We can't expect to love Someone we ignore.
• Are you growing in your disdain for sin? We can't expect to love Someone who we enjoy rejecting and offending.
• Are you growing in your appreciation for the cross? We can't expect to love Someone if we forget their greatest demonstration of love toward us (Rom. 5:8).
• Are you sure that you are a Christian? We can't expect to love God unless He has first loved us (1 Jn. 4:19).
  

How marvelous is our God, and how worthy of our love! Let us develop daily a deeper love for God in heart, soul, mind and strength. Let us be satisfied with Him, enthralled with Him, and completely devoted to Him. May He become our portion, our passion, and the sole object of our affection. In so doing, we will prove to be Christ's disciples.

Book Review: Respectable Sins

Christians often identify "sin" with the "really bad" stuff like murder, adultery, and theft. Avoid those things, and you're doing fine. But in Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate, Bridges shows that sin is far deeper and more pervasive than we would like to admit. Most sins, for believers, are far more subtle - what Bridges calls "acceptable" or "respectable" sins. Yet these sins are also evil and offensive to God.

Why devote a whole book to the subject of sin? "The motivation for this book stems from a growing conviction that those of us whom I call conservative evangelicals may have become so preoccupied with some of the major sins of society around us that we have lost sight of the need to deal with our own more 'refined' or subtle sins" (p. 9).

In Respectable Sins, Bridges first deals with general principles of sin, forgiveness, and obedience. Then, beginning in Chapter 7, he looks as common sins that believers tolerate like anxiety, unthankfulness, pride, selfishness, impatience, judgmentalism, and sins of the tongue. The author concludes with a chapter on worldliness and then some practical help on where to go from here.

Having already written several Christian classics like the Pursuit of Holiness and Trusting God, Bridges has done it again with Respectable Sins. I found this to be a very fresh and convicting book. Every chapter gives a brutally honest exposure of my own sin. Bridges deals with issues in a practical way, sometimes giving personal examples of struggles in his own life. Most chapters were short and easy to read. The only drawback is that the Study Guide does not follow the same chapter order as the book. But whether you buy the study guide or use this as a stand-alone book, Respectable Sins is highly recommended.

The pride of moral superiority

"There is none righteous, not even one." (Rom. 3:10)

Last Saturday at Men's Bible Study, we were made aware of our own pride and selfishness through Jerry Bridge's book, Respectable Sins.

Bridges has spent thousands of hours studying and writing and preaching and counseling on the matter of personal holiness. So when he speaks about the human heart, I know I need to listen. And what he said about self-righteous pride really grabbed my attention:

I venture that of all the subtle sins we will address in this book, the pride of moral superiority may be the most common, second only to the sin of ungodliness. But though it is so prevalent among us, it is difficult to recognize because we all practice it to some degree. In fact, we seem to get a perverse enjoyment out of discussing how awful society around us is becoming. When we engage in this kind of thinking and conversation, we are guilty of the pride of moral superiority. (p. 90)

I feel way too good about myself. If my thoughts and impulses were carried out and translated into words, I would probably be caught saying things like,

"Thank God I'm not like that murderer, or drug addict, or homosexual. I sure am glad I'm not one of those open theists, or emergents, or charismatics, or Arminians! Come to think of it, I really am a pretty good Christian. I read my Bible more than he does; I arrive to church earlier than she does; I know my theology better than he does; I never struggle with the sin he does; I'm a lot nicer to be around than she is; my prayers are much more fluent than his; my comments are always more profound than hers; I'm a better writer than she is; I'm a better preacher than he is; and I bet I even tithe more than he does. God sure must be happy with me. Isn't He lucky to have me on His side?"

I'm being only slightly facetious here. In these moments of moral comparison, which are far too frequent, I'm really no better than the Pharisee of Luke 18:11-12. Exalting himself, he was humbled by God, and found no mercy (v. 14).

The remedy to all of this is to fix my eyes completely on Christ. His glory and perfection smash my self-righteousness like a sledgehammer. And when I hear His words, "You shall be holy, for I am holy," (1 Pet. 1:16), I suddenly realize just how sinful I am, and how much I need the cross of Jesus every day.

Disciplining our children

Discipline. What comes to mind when you hear this word? Harshness? Insensitivity? Perhaps even abuse? In the Bible, 'discipline' is consistently portrayed as an act of love. Consider these verses:

Proverbs 13:24 He who withholds his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.

Hebrews 12:6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.”

Hebrews 12:9-10 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

I can testify that as a child, discipline was never "fun." But I am very thankful that my mom and dad faithfully disciplined me as seemed best to them. Even at the time, I respected them because I knew they did it out of love, and never out of anger.

Now, with children of our own, Natalie and I struggle daily with the matter of discipline. How strict should we be in our rules? When should we be firm? When should we give another warning? And what punishment will fit the crime, so to speak?

I really appreciated these words by Danny Akin, as he recalled how he and his wife raised four godly sons:

In our family we tried to provide a big playing field not a small one. Why? Because kids are kids and, if the box is too small they will break the rules constantly and you will probably not be consistent in your discipline. We always told our boys they would establish the size of the playing field. If they were faithful, truthful and trustworthy, the playing field got bigger and bigger. If they were unfaithful, untruthful and untrustworthy, the playing field got smaller. We also adjusted the way we disciplined as they grew older. We believed spanking, in moderation and always under control, is both biblical and effective when the children are small (e.g. Proverbs 29:15). However, as they grow older, unless the situation is extreme and exceptional, the rebuke and restriction is a more effective way to mold and shape their character and behavior.