My only comfort

(From the Heidelberg Catechism)

1 Q. What is your only comfort

in life and in death?

A. That I am not my own,

but belong -

body and soul,

in life and in death -

to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood,

and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil.

He also watches over me in such a way

that not a hair can fall from my head

without the will of my Father in heaven:

in fact, all things must work together for my salvation.

Because I belong to him,

Christ, by his Holy Spirit,

assures me of eternal life

and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready

from now on to live for him.

Ahhh... it is so good.

(From the Heidelberg Catechism)

56 Q. What do you believe

concerning "the forgiveness of sins"?

A. I believe that God,

because of Christ's atonement,

will never hold against me,

any of my sins

nor my sinful nature

which I need to struggle against all my life.

Rather, in his grace

God grants me the righteousness of Christ

to free me forever from judgment.

Blessings, blessings, blessings.

Thank you, brother, for meeting with me today. It was a blessing and an encouragement, and a good excuse to grab a cup of coffee and share about God's work.

Thank you, Lord, for being who You are and for doing what You do. You never cease to amaze me.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

-2 Corinthians 1:3-5

A time of perspective... God knows what I don't.

It's 2:30 am. I've just finished having two long, very difficult conversations with two good friends. I grieve for both of them, and they know that I will be seeking our Lord on their behalf.

As I prayed with one of them tonight, there are so many times when we simply don't, simply can't understand what God is doing. We don't understand why God allows certain things to pass. We don't understand His reasoning in doing so. We don't understand how any good could come out of these situations. But there is one thing that we understand, and that we cling to in times of hardship: God is good and He is sovereign.

I've been thinking recently about Job (no, not this one). I've been thinking how, at the beginning of all of the trials that he faced, his response was simply "the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (1:21), and "shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?" (2:10). But, over time, he seems to turn the focus a bit more on himself, and how he will remain faithful through the tribulations. However, starting in ch.33, Elihu comes along and says, "Dude, Job... hang on, man. It's not about you. It's about God's glory." (paraphrase...)

Of a truth, God will not do wickedly, and the Almighty will not pervert justice. Who gave him charge over the earth, and who laid on him the whole world? If he should set his heart to it and gather to himself his spirit and his breath, all flesh would perish together, and man would return to dust.

-Job 34:12-15

It is good for us to seek the Lord in confusion, doubt, frustration, even sometimes in anger, asking Him why He sovereignly ordains some of the things that He does. It's okay that we don't understand God's will, and it's okay that we run to Him in times of trouble, pressing hard into Him with questions which grieve our souls. But in the end, we have to come to the realization that we're dealing with the Creator of the entire universe, the One who lifts His voice to the clouds, that floods of water may cover the land, and Who can send forth lightnings, which obey His every command (38:34-35). In the end, we have to realize that God is God, and that we are not.

So, I will be praying for my friends. I will be seeking God, asking Him earnestly that He may answer the prayers in the way that I ask them. But, ultimately, I will ask God that His glory may shine forth, and that these situations - no matter their outcome - will turn men and women to Christ, so that the Godhead may be blessed and glorified more fully through these trials. God knows what I don't, and I will trust that this is a good thing.

Wanna share the Gospel? Then pray.

Very often, we spend so much time trying to figure out how to pray for God's will in certain situations, because we don't know what His will is concerning the matter. And yet we seek Him anyway, asking that His will be done.

However, there's at least one thing in which we can be absolutely certain of His will... but so seldom do we (or, at least, do I) actually pray for it: personal evangelism.

God has been teaching me in the last couple of years the importance of praying for very specific, providentially ordained situations which God would use to allow opportunity to point others to the cross. I started doing this, praying for specific people, that God would use me that month, that week, even that very day to speak to them about Christ.

And you know what? He has.

He's been answering those prayers... in a fury of humbling, awe-inspiring blessing to others and to me.

But the funny thing is that I've actually been kind of surprised by how readily He answers these prayers (literally within hours, in some cases)... yet, I shouldn't be. I know that God wants me to preach the Gospel, because it brings glory to His Son, His very Self. It's not as if He's going to have something better for me to do than to give Him glory, after all... because spreading the glory of God is the greatest activity that we could ever hope to be involved in.

Consider this as an encouragement. Are you feeling stuck? apathetic? discouraged? The atoning sacrifice of Christ at the Cross is the answer to these ails, and telling others of this glorious news will bless you as it blesses them.

So pray for opportunities to proclaim of Christ's work, remembering that it is not of your power to reap the growth, only to sow the seed. But remember as well that God wants to give you opportunities to sow the seed... so just ask Him to give you what He already wants to give, and be blessed, brothers and sisters. Be blessed.

Keep it on Christ, Chris... keep it on Christ.

God has certainly taught me much in the past year... it has been a difficult year, to be sure... but I've understood lately just how much this difficulty was necessary for God to grow me just a bit more.

As many who might read this may already know, my relationship with my ex-girlfriend was ended a little over a year ago. This has been incredibly difficult for me to deal with, because I was moving towards making the relationship a bit more... ehh... permanent, if you will. Yah. Almost bought the ring, yo. Almost bought it.

Having that kind of relationship taken from me rocked me to the core, I have to admit (mostly because she was yet another one of the idols of my idol-factory heart). I was shaken and beaten, and didn't know what to do with myself. I was so sure that marriage was where that relationship was supposed to go. But God has taught me a good thing lately, a thing which - among other things - I'm not sure I would have been able to learn without being shaken so thoroughly (coffee, anyone?).

I have been thinking about my pastor's view on evangelism, which is that the fruit of his ministry isn't really his concern, it's God's. He's always said that, as he preaches the Gospel, if God decides to fill the church with 1000 people, he will praise God. If God decides to fill the church with 10 people, he will praise God. Whatever fruit God decides to bear from his ministry should have no effect on his calling to preach the Gospel and nothing but the Gospel. He keeps it on Christ.

In meditating on this, I have realized that I was focusing so intently on the fruit that I thought would be reaped from being in a Christ-glorifying relationship with a godly woman (namely, marriage), that I completely lost sight of the fact that I had been in a Christ-glorifying relationship with a godly woman. I was part of something which brought glory to the name of the Son of God, and seemed to have forgotten how much of a blessing this was, and how both of us can now glorify Christ more fully and deeply in our separate lives, having been a part of that relationship for a time, than if it had never happened.

Praise God for His faithfulness and goodness, and for His glory! Lamentations 3:37-38, Job 1:21, 2:10.

So, my prayer is that God would continue to remind me of this as He grows me. No matter what the fruit may be that He decides to bring about in my life, that is His business to deal with, not mine. My business is to bring glory to the name of Jesus, by the power of God's Spirit, and to lead others to the foot of the Cross in any and all ways that God will choose to use me to do so. As I do that, I pray that I would remember that anything that comes about in my life as a result is simply God's will unfolding, and that His will is good.

Keep it on Christ, Chris... let God take care of the rest.

Bad day

What happens when I don't want to trust in God? What do I do when I don't want to accept the possibility that things won't go my way? Where do I go when laying things at His feet means I might experience more pain?

Trusting in God has always seemed so easy to me, because all of the possible outcomes were at least "acceptable" in my mind.

It's easy to trust God when you don't have to fear what He might do with your life.

But what about when I don't want what He might give to me?

That's hard... and it is a test of faith that requires prayer. Help me in prayer, whoever might be reading this.

God knows what He's doing...

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."
-James 4:13-15

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.
-Proverbs 19:21

The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.
-Proverbs 16:9

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
-Jeremiah 29:11

The Gospel According to Ezekiel, Part 2

37:1-14
The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones.
And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry.
And he said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" And I answered, "O Lord GOD, you know."
Then he said to me, "Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.
Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.
And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the LORD."
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them.
Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live."
So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.
Then he said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.'
Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel.
And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people.
And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it," declares the LORD.

The Gospel According to Ezekiel, Part 1

16:4-8
"And as for your birth, on the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to cleanse you, nor rubbed with salt, nor wrapped in swaddling cloths.
No eye pitied you, to do any of these things to you out of compassion for you, but you were cast out on the open field, for you were abhorred, on the day that you were born.
And when I passed by you and saw you wallowing in your blood, I said to you in your blood, 'Live!' I said to you in your blood, 'Live!'
I made you flourish like a plant of the field. And you grew up and became tall and arrived at full adornment. Your breasts were formed, and your hair had grown; yet you were naked and bare.
When I passed by you again and saw you, behold, you were at the age for love, and I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness; I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord GOD, and you became mine."

16:15
"But you trusted in your beauty and played the whore because of your renown and lavished your whorings on any passerby; your beauty became his."

16:22
"And in all your abominations and your whorings you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare, wallowing in your blood."

16:60-63
"Yet I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish for you an everlasting covenant.
Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you take your sisters, both your elder and your younger, and I give them to you as daughters, but not on account of the covenant with you.
I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the LORD,
that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when I atone for you for all that you have done," declares the Lord GOD.

36:25-27
"I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you.
And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules."

36:32
"It is not for your sake that I will act," declares the Lord GOD, "let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel."

Christ's Ceaseless Love

He who has loved thee and pardoned thee, shall never cease to love and pardon. He is Alpha, and He shall be Omega also: He is first, and He shall be last.

-Charles H. Spurgeon, from "Morning & Evening", February 4

We Are Debtors

'Therefore, brethren, we are debtors.'
Romans 8:12

As God’s creatures, we are all debtors to him: to obey him with all our body, and soul, and strength. Having broken his commandments, as we all have, we are debtors to his justice, and we owe to him a vast amount which we are not able to pay. But of the Christian it can be said that he does not owe God’s justice anything, for Christ has paid the debt his people owed; for this reason the believer owes the more to love. I am a debtor to God’s grace and forgiving mercy; but I am no debtor to his justice, for he will never accuse me of a debt already paid. Christ said, “It is finished!” and by that he meant, that whatever his people owed was wiped away forever from the book of remembrance. Christ, to the uttermost, has satisfied divine justice; the account is settled; the handwriting is nailed to the cross; the receipt is given, and we are debtors to God’s justice no longer. But then, because we are not debtors to our Lord in that sense, we become ten times more debtors to God than we should have been otherwise. Christian, pause and ponder for a moment. What a debtor thou art to divine sovereignty! How much thou owest to his disinterested love, for he gave his own Son that he might die for thee. Consider how much you owe to his forgiving grace, that after ten thousand affronts he loves you as infinitely as ever. Consider what you owe to his power; how he has raised you from your death in sin; how he has preserved your spiritual life; how he has kept you from falling; and how, though a thousand enemies have beset your path, you have been able to hold on your way. Consider what you owe to his immutability. Though you have changed a thousand times, he has not changed once. Thou art as deep in debt as thou canst be to every attribute of God. To God thou owest thyself, and all thou hast—yield thyself as a living sacrifice, it is but thy reasonable service.

-Charles H. Spurgeon, "Morning & Evening", January 5

More happy... but not more secure!

I love, love, love, love, love...

...love hymns!!

There's nothing like the solid meaty truths threaded into the lyrics of a good hymn to get the blood pumping! Whew!

During this morning's service, we sung the hymn "A Debtor to Mercy Alone", by Augustus Toplady, author of the famous "Rock of Ages". My favorite line from this hymn comes at the end of the last verse:

Yes, I to the end shall endure,
As sure as the earnest is given;
More happy, but not more secure,
The glorified spirits in heaven.

Why is this my favorite line? Assurance, baby!! Those who are already in heaven may be more happy than we on earth, for they now exist in the eternal glory of God, but the fact that they are already there does not make their eternal security any more sure than our own! Some may disagree with the idea of the "perseverance of the saints", but I believe that it is well supported in Scripture, and is a source of great joy for us who are redeemed sons and daughters of the LORD!

The apostle Paul wrote about this security in the eighth chapter of his epistle to the Roman believers, verses 28-30:

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

Notice something very important in the "golden chain" of glorification here: Paul wrote about it in the past tense! Sure, there have been, and continue to be, various debates surrounding the different translations of the Bible, but however you slice it... the past is the past, and it is finished! Paul wrote about the future glorification of those "who are loved by God and called to be saints" (Romans 1:7) as if it had already happened!

At the risk of being deemed a Scripture-meddling heretic, I would like to try something with this golden chain; I would like to put it into the perfected past tense, and add the word already to highlight this perfected action, just to put emphasis on this chain having already been completed:

And those whom he has already predestined he has also already called, and those whom he has already called he has also already justified, and those whom he has already justified he has also already glorified.

Wow. What? Really?! It's as good as done?!?! You've got to be kidding me!!

Nope. Not kidding. God's calling is surely effectual, and He will perfect His own:

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
-Philipians 1:6

Wow. Wow. Wow. Assurance of salvation? How is this possible?! Because God is just, that's how:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
-1 John 1:9

How is glorification of the redeemed a necessary reaction of a just God? Because our LORD is not a God of double jeopardy: we can't be tried twice for the same crime in the courts of the Almighty Judge! The wages of sin is surely death (Romans 6:23), and God demands payment for offense to His holiness. But I don't believe that Jesus paid for the mere possibility of forgiveness at the cross... I believe that He actually satisfied the payment for the specific sins of specific people at the cross! If my debt has already been paid by Another, how can God, who is just, ever demand that I pay for that debt a second time by my own blood? He can't: for Him to do so would make Him unjust, which He is not. And furthermore, once a judgment of righteous status has been truly rendered by the LORD, how can it possibly be revoked?

But this doesn't mean that we get to continue sinning like we did before our spiritual rebirth! This objection to absolute justification and effectual perseverance was foreseen by Paul, and was therefore addressed in the sixth chapter of Romans, verses 1-11:

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

We would do well to consider ourselves already glorified even in our present state, for our justification has already been purchased for us by Christ, and "we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his." However, because of this holy transaction - this imputation of Christ's justification and righteousness - we should first consider ourselves dead to sin... to live in it no longer... and to then rejoice with the glorified spirits in heaven that we also, being dead to sin, are already alive in Christ! Truly, truly: a new creation!!

Sweet mercy.

And God saw the light

'And God saw the light'
Genesis 1:4

This morning we noticed the goodness of the light, and the Lord's dividing it from the darkness. We now note the special eye that the Lord had for the light. "God saw the light" - He looked at it with complacency, gazed upon it with pleasure, saw that it "was good." If the Lord has given you light, dear reader, He looks on that light with peculiar interest; for not only is it dear to Him as His own handiwork, but it is like Himself, for "God is light."

It is pleasant for the believer to know that God's eye tenderly observes that work of grace that He has begun. He never loses sight of the treasure that He has placed in our earthen vessels. Sometimes we cannot see the light, but God always sees the light, and that is much better than our seeing it. Better for the judge to see my innocence than for me to think I see it. It is very comfortable for me to know that I am one of God's people - but whether I know it or not, if the Lord knows it, I am still safe. This is the foundation, "The Lord knows those who are his."

You may be sighing and groaning because of inbred sin, and mourning over your darkness; yet the Lord sees "light" in your heart, for He has put it there, and all the cloudiness and gloom of your soul cannot conceal your light from His gracious eye.

You may have sunk low in despondency, and even despair; but if your soul has any longing toward Christ, and if you are seeking to rest in His finished work, God sees the "light." He not only sees it, but He also preserves it in you. "I, the Lord, do keep it." This is a precious thought to those who, after anxious watching and guarding of themselves, feel their own powerlessness to do so. The light thus preserved by His grace, He will one day develop into the splendor of noonday, and the fullness of glory. The light within is the dawn of the eternal day.

-Charles H. Spurgeon, "Morning & Evening", January 5

How to Stunt the Growth of the Soul

There is no ongoing spiritual life without this process of letting go. At the precise point where we refuse, growth stops. If we hold tightly to anything given to us, unwilling to let it go when the time comes to let it go or unwilling to allow it to be used as the Giver means it to be used, we stunt the growth of the soul.

It is easy to make a mistake here. “If God gave it to me,” we say, “it’s mine. I can do what I want with it.” No. The truth is that it is ours to thank Him for and ours to offer back to Him, ours to relinquish, ours to lose, ours to let go of – if we want to find our true selves, if we want real Life, if our hearts are set on glory.

-Elisabeth Elliot

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
-Psalm 34:8

I once heard a wonderful analogy that was an extension of this verse. It was a comparison of the knowledge of God's goodness to the tasting of a cake. If you have tasted a cake, and found that it is wonderfully sweet on your tongue, you may try to explain the experience to others. You may try to explain the taste using the most descriptive words that you can find; you may tell of all of the ingredients that are used to make the cake and that give it its taste; you may even write down the recipe so that someone might be able to understand how the cake is made. However, until another person actually tastes the cake for their self... it is impossible that they will fully understand how good the cake actually is.

God continually allows me to taste more and more of Himself as He grows my faith. He is most certainly good, I can assure of you that. But I can also assure you that He faithfully remains good... even when the particular piece of cake that you are about to eat may not look very appetizing...

The Essence of Humility

Casting your anxieties on God means trusting the promise that he cares for you and has the power and the wisdom to put that care to work in the most glorious way.

That trust is the opposite of pride. It's the essence of humility. It's the confidence that the mighty hand of God is not over you to crush you but to care for you just like the promise says. Don't be proud, but cast your anxieties on him because he will care for you.

Whenever your heart starts to be anxious about the future, preach to your heart and say, "Heart, who do you think you are to be afraid of the future and nullify the promise of God? No, heart, I will not exalt myself with anxiety. I will humble myself in peace and joy as I trust this precious and great promise of God—he cares for me."

-John Piper, "Are You Humble Enough to Be Care-Free?"

Hurry up and wait, already!

Bippity...

Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!
-Psalm 27:14


boppity...

My soul, wait silently for God alone,
For my expectation is from Him.
-Psalm 62:5


boo.

The LORD is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who seeks Him.
-Lamentations 3:25


Bam! 'Nuff said.
Chris... best listen up now!

Traversing the Storm

If you ever have experienced, or currently are experiencing, a spiritual storm, then you know how incredibly difficult, lonely, and disorienting it can be. It's as if everything you once knew to be true has somehow slipped into darkness, and away from your sight. What can we possibly do in the midst of times like these?

I would encourage you all to read this great post by one of the members of Desiring God Ministries. I wish I would have read this a few years ago!

Here's a snippet from the end:

If you or a loved one is flying in a storm and despairing, remember your own perceptions, as real as they feel, are not reliable. As one who has tested them in a number of storms I can say with confidence: fly by the instruments God has provided you. They will not prove faulty.

May God bless you all by incredible means... even in the midst of a storm.

I waited patiently for the LORD;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the pit of destruction,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the LORD.
-Psalm 40:1-3

Blood Diamond

I just finished watching the movie "Blood Diamond" for the second time. Many people think that this movie has been too "hollywoodized" to have any artistic value, but I think it is an important movie, and appreciated it even more the second time around.

(Warning: spoiler coming up. Don't read if you haven't yet seen the film, but plan on watching it!)

There is a scene toward the end of the film which is one of the more beautifully heartbreaking moments I have experienced in cinema: an African fisherman, searching for a large diamond in the hopes of using it to free his son, who has been kidnapped by members of the Revolutionary United Front, has found the diamond, and his son.

However, the son, who has been psychologically ravished by the evils that he has been forced to both witness and perform, has a gun trained on his own father, blinded by the horrors that he has experienced, ready to pull the trigger.

The father calls to him, and reminds him of who he truly is, despite what he has done. The nearly possessive manifest evil that has invaded the child melts away upon hearing whom his father declares him to be.

The parallel to the purging of our own evil that imprisons us, as our Father calls us from the dead, even as we look upon Him with hate in our eyes, is undeniable. His proclamation to us as being righteous and unconditionally loved, despite all that we have done, is all but explicitly asserted in this scene as the father affirms his son. Read this as a son or daughter of the Most High God, as He declares His love for you and your worth in Him:

"I am your father... who loves you... and is ready to take you back as my son again."