CatHouse Chat

By the rivers of Babylon

I think many Republicans, conservative, and (possibly) even libertarians are only now coming out of the shock and disappointment of Tuesday's reelection of Obama. 

I know many who are looking to reevaluate and reprioritize, who are planning to do what they can to weather what is likely to be at least a decade (and possibly two or three) of aftershocks from the policies this administration will push through, either by Presidential fiat (no, I'm not going to use "executive order") or regulation, and I'm definitely one of them.

I've seen a lot of articles about "what the Republican Party needs to do now," but they are really just a rehash of four years ago when McCain/Palin lost - and they were as ineffective then as I suspect they will be now. I think the Right is just as deeply divided as America herself is (check out this article by Michael Barone in the New York Post), and the problem is not with the politics or the presentation of policies, but rather with the foundations the politics and policies rest on.

For all that 80% or so of Americans claim Christianity, for all that many of us assert a fondness and respect for Judeo-Christian principles, America is no longer a nation interested in living according to those foundations. We are no longer interested in rewarding personal responsibility, civic duty, mutual respect, true tolerance, diligence, hard work, or earned success. An entitlement attitude has trumped the work ethic, and crisis deferral has become the preferred method of dealing with problems.

Personally, I'm not planning to draw back into my shell like a hermit crab, but I'm also not going to put my heart into politics any more. I'll be involved and aware, certainly, and I'll continue to vote for the best available candidates, but I think that what this election did for me was to hammer in the fact that I'm not living in Zion any longer.

I'm living in Babylon.

This election has made me realize that I've gone down to Egypt for help, and that I've been trusting in horses and chariots, instead of God. I suspect the American church (I should say, rather, "the Church which happens to reside in America") is suffering from the same disease. And so we need to remember that we are but pilgrims in this world, and that it is not our home, it is not our Father's Kingdom.

Well. The Jews were exiled to Persia and Babylon, and eventually dispersed throughout the world - and they've remained the Jews. 

Christians lived in ancient Rome, in Corinth, and are in all the world. They, too, have lived as an unusual people, set apart to glorify God while living in a strange land.

So I need to work on revising my whole identity and begin to realize - and act out - that I'm not an American. First and foremost, I am an undeserving sinner saved by the great grace and mercy of the Sovereign Creator of the Universe, and that my allegiance is to Him above all other people, nations, causes, or desires. 

I am a child of the King - and it's time that I learned what that means.

By the rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down, yea, we wept
When we remembered Zion.
We hung our harps
Upon the willows in the midst of it.
For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song,
And those who plundered us requested mirth,
Saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”

How shall we sing the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?

(Psalm 137:1-4, NKJV)

Time to learn how to live in exile, and yet still proclaim the Name and Glory of God my Savior.

 

Quote of the Day: "Language must mirror reality."

My adult Bible study just began an overview of Ravi Zacharias' book, Cries of The Heart. Today's section has this quote:

Language and reason are the special endowments of humanity, the pinnacle of God's creation. When we cease to understand the role of language we misuse that privilege and can reshape reality just by changing our use of words. Al we need to do today to see the ustter wrong-headedness of our culture is to see what we have done with words. Words such as freedom, love, pleasure, and marriage have all lost their meanings. In the beginning was the Word. God has spoken. Language must mirror reality [<-- this emphasis is mine -- K].

"Language must mirror reality."

Yet, today it so often doesn't!

Just look at the word "tolerance." The proper definition includes a sense that you can live peaceably alongside something - or someone - you disagree with. These days, we are labled "intolerant" if we disagree with govenment welfare policies or with gay marriage; we are expected to endorse, promote and approve these things to be "tolerant."

But, how can you "tolerate" something with which you have no disagreement?

"Language must mirrow reality."

God made this whole universe. He spoke the laws of physics and biology and morality into existance. He Himself created reality!

If we are so foolish to try and wrest His power away and redesign reality, we will lose and He will have the last laugh. No matter what your IQ, no matter how many degrees you have or how much influence you wield, you cannot - you WILL not! - conquer God. Instead:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made,even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. 

Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.& Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. 

And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness,they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful, who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. [emph. mine - K]

Is that not who we all are today?

Albert Mohler's article, "Reparative Therapy, Homosexuality and the Gospel of Jesus Christ," relates to this:

The normalization of homosexuality simply cannot be accepted by anyone committed to biblical Christianity. The new secular orthodoxy demands that Christians abandon the clear teachings of Scripture, and Christians must understand that the sinfulness of all homosexual behaviors is not only a matter of biblical authority, but also of the Gospel. To deny that sin is sin is to deny our need for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Christians cannot accept any teaching that minimizes sin, for it is the knowledge of our sin that points us to our need for atonement, salvation, and the forgiveness of that sin through the cross of Jesus Christ.

Second, we must recognize that every human being is a sinner and that every sinner’s pattern of sexual attraction falls short of the glory of God. There is no sinner of physical maturity who will be able to say that he or she has never had a sinful thought related to sex or sexuality. Taking the Bible’s teachings about sin and sexuality with full force, we understand that every sinful human being is in need of redemption, and that includes the redemption of our sexual selves. [emph. mine - K]

As Isaiah says,

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; 
      Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; 
      Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 
      Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, 
      And prudent in their own sight!

We have taken reality and are trying to turn it upside down. We try to remake words to fit our own depraved and fallen definitions, calling what is evil, good, and what is good, evil. We refuse to acknowledge that we are ALL sinners under God's righteous and holy condemnation and that any sin separates us from God and condemns us to eternal hell.

We have twisted language so torturously that is is almost impossible to call sin what it is. We have crippled our ability to offer the glorious hope of the Gospel of forgiveness and redemption. We ourselves, though our corruption of language, condemn people to hell because we do not call evil EVIL and show people their desperate need for their God and Savior. We damn them to a life lacking hope, lacking transforming renewal, and lacking the power to change.

God is the God of reality. "Language must mirror reality."

God help us all...

My brother, I worry about you...

You say imply that you're a Christian, yet you won't speak out beyond generalities. You show no interest in God's Word, you are indifferent to gathering together with His people. Your life and words have little evidence of His saving grace working to conform you to the image of His Son. Godly exortation seems to roll right off your back, producing - at best - a momentary sorrow, but no godly sorrow leading to repentance. Sin doesn't seem to grieve you or make you turn to God, but rather seems to be an occasion for a joke or a sarcastic remark.

My brother, you know I myself am far from perfect, and I would never presume to state that you are not, in fact, a Christian... 

But I see no fruit and I see no desire for obedience in your life, and it has me terribly worried.

John 14:15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments."

John 14:21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."

John 15:5-8 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw theminto the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."

James 2:14-17 "What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead."

Romans 12:1-2 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

Romans 5:1-4 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

Romans 8:5-8 "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God."

Romans 8:29 "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren."

1 John 2:3-6 "Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked."

1 Thessalonians 4:3-7 "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God;  that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness."

And finally,

Hebrews 10:19-25 "Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching."

My brother, I love you. I ask you to consider your ways, to come before God honestly, and to make your choice openly. I would not see you cast into the fire because you were confident in a false faith; I would far rather rejoice with you in Heaven because of your true and living faith.

Thoughts on the END OF THE WORLD that, well, wasn't

It has been rather amusing - and somewhat painful - to watch all the sturm und drang that Harold Camping's prediction of the world's end on 21 May stirred up. I wasn't too surprised when the media et al. hyped it because that's what they do - and God forbid that they should bring in, you know, an actual biblical scholar or theologian to discuss the matter and provide a real, non-sensational rebuttal to Camping's non-biblical bid for attention.

So, basically, my main reaction was amusement at the gullibility of 'most everyone who opined on the matter in their quest to sensationalize a topic that is really quite serious.

Which point brings me to the painful aspect of all the hoopla: you may not believe it, but the Bible - God's Word - does speak of the end of the world. Jesus, in fact, speaks more of unsaved man's fate in Hell more than any other person in the Bible; if He spoke of it so much, simple respect for His character should make us take a look at our eternal destination and the end of the world.

Since I've written about salvation a few times on this blog but not about the end of the world (not that I recall, anyway), I thought I'd toss in a few of my own thoughts on the matter as my blog-brother, Michael, has.

Full disclosure time: while I hold to the premillennial rapture view of the end times, it is not something which I hold with a "closed hand." What I mean by that is, since

1. I have not personally done a dedicated study of end time prophecies and the history of that doctrine as held by the Christian Church, and
2. while I consider it an IMPORTANT doctrine, I don't believe it's a doctrine (generally) that is an essential of the faith (i.e., if you don't believe in the premillennial rapture view, you're not a Christian), so we should view the subject through the lens of Christian charity and liberty, and
3. several Bible teachers who I hold in great respect and honor for their diligence in the study and proclaimation of Scripture have opposing views, each with biblical reasoning that, at least, requires me to give them careful consideration, even if I don't think I agree with them, and
4. finally, remember that in any discussion, positions A, B and C (or however many), when they are in opposition, cannot ALL be right... but they CAN all be WRONG! We are still imperfect humans, and "see through a glass, darkly." We have not yet been glorified with the Son and thus do not have perfect knowledge untainted by sin. Even when we do enter Eternity to be with our Savior, there will always be things we do not - and will not - know: finite creatures such as ourselves are incapable of fully comprehending the infinite God who created us.

Due to these points, I cannot be dogmatic on what Christian view of the end times is the "right" one - except, of course, for the fact that Jesus said He would return to judge the world, condemn the unrighteous to eternal punishment, take His Church to be with Him in Eternity, and to bring a "new heaven and a new earth" in which there is no sin and no tears (see Revelation 21).

OK, so what's the big deal about the end times, then? Why did I feel saddened by all the posturing and pontificating and derision heaped up on Camping and his deluded prediction?

Simple: because Christ IS coming back! When, we don't know - but it could be before I finish this post, or it could be hundreds of years from now: we just don't know. However, God knows. He has set the year and the day and the hour and the very minute that He will bring history to an end and usher us all into eternity.

Look, folks, you don't even know if you'll be alive five seconds from now, much less what the date is for the end of the world. Yet the Bible makes clear that NOW is the time for salvation, NOW is the time to repent of sin and turn to God for forgiveness. Once you die, there will be no second chance, and your eternity is fixed. There are no second chances!

So, Christian, while we wait in anticipation of Christ's glorious Return, we should be diligent in being committed disciples of Christ. We should be earnestly working out our salvation by immersing ourselves in His Word and rooting out sin in our lives. We should be loving and nurturing our families, working to support them and training our children up in the love and admonition of our Lord. We should be gathering together as a Church family to worship and praise the One who is our Salvation and our Strength, committing ourselves to proclaiming His name to all the earth. We should be dedicated bosses and employees, working honestly and fairly at our jobs as a witness to the character of Christ and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.

We should be living lives of faithful service, forsaking indolence and foolishness, so that when our Savior returns, He will not find us idle or behaving shamefully.

Unbeliever, what about you? The End of the World™ has become rather a joke, hasn't it? I am sorry for that, but I do urge you to take a sober look at your life and at the reasonableness of the Christian faith (yeah, I know, you've been told it's all smoke and mirrors - but have you actually read any Christian apologists with any semblance of an open mind?). Christ is not narrow - "whosoever will may come" (John 3:16, naturally) and be welcomed. Christ is not a killjoy - "I have come so that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). Christ does not ask you to come to Him blindly, but to count the cost carefully.

You know, there's a famous challenge given by Blaise Pascal, known as "Pascal's Wager." It basically says that, if you are an atheist and there is no God, you have lost nothing - but if there is a God, you lose EVERYTHING. However, if you are a Christian and there is no God, again, you have lost nothing.

But if you are a Christian and there is a God, you gain EVERYTHING.

Atheist futures: either neutral annihilation or eternal loss.

Christian futures: either neutral annihilation or eternal gain.

It's a poor reason to accept Christ, but perhaps it will put your feet on the path to understanding the depths of your own sin and the infinite love, grace, and forgiveness that Christ offers with an open hand.

At Pentecost (Acts 2), Peter stands up among the people in Jerusalem and quotes the prophet Joel. In Joel 2, God calls for Israel to repent and return to Him and then promises:

And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.
And also on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.
The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.
And it shall come to pass
That whoever calls on the name of the LORD
Shall be saved.
& For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance,
As the LORD has said,
Among the remnant whom the LORD calls.

NOW is the day of salvation; you do not know know the hour of your reckoning. NOW is the time, before it really is the End of the World.

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

 

In preparation for Resurrection Day (also known as Easter *grinz*)

You know, technology can be a pain and it can be dangerous - but it can also be a blessing. I was listening to my Christian "channel" on Pandora today, and a song by Shane and Shane came up that was PERFECT for today: "Before the Throne of God Above."

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong, a perfect plea:
A great High Priest, whose name is Love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.

Isn't it amazing that the God who created all the "infinite" universe - all the stars and galaxies, all the cells and atoms, all the people and animals that exist - would care so much for humanity that He came down to us and lived among us? Isn't it incredible that the God we sin and rebel against every day would still love us so much that He, in the Person of His Son, stands before the Father every moment, interceding for His children? Doesn't it fill you with awe that this perfect, holy, transcendent God would still be so involved with His creation and so desiring to reconcile us to Himself that He would bear all the punishment for our sins and pay the penalty in full on our behalf?!

My name is graven on His hands,
My name is written on His heart;
I know that while in heaven He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart
No tongue can bid me thence depart.

Christian, do you realize that nothing you do can ever make God love you more? Do you realize that nothing you do can make Him love you LESS? Do you realize that He has loved you with an everlasting love and has chosen you as His child from the foundations of the earth? Do you - and I - really understand that no matter how intensely and truthfully Satan may accuse us and bring up all our sin, the sacrifice of the only begotten Son of God as a propitiation for our sins has completely removed all the filthiness of sin? We stand efore God clothed in the perfect righteousness of His Son,m who loved us and gave Himself for our salvation.

Unbeliever, do you understand that God's mercy is deeper than the depths of the sea and more vast than all the heavens, and that He is willing and eager to gather you into His family and into eternal joy - if you will only listen to His Spirit calling your name and repent? The Perfect Father is waiting with open arms and will hold you close in His arms and pour out His love upon you if you will only come to Him!

When Satan tempts me to despair,
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look, and see him there
Who made an end of all my sin.

Satan is no longer my master; I have a new Master who desires only my eternal good. Satan has been defeated, and my new Master will no longer allow Satan to steal, kill and destroy me. Satan's power over me is broken forever, and if I resist him, he will flee. Instead of a callous slavemaster, I am now under the care and authority of the Loving Father who holds me in His hand and will never leave me nor forsake me. Though the devil may accuse me, I look upon the Author and Finisher of my faith: Christ Jesus, whose Spirit dwells within me... And greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world!

Because a sinless Savior died,
My sinful soul is counted free;
For God, the Just, is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me

Jesus cried out on the Cross, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!" The very Son of God, who always did all that the Father commanded and in whom the Father was well-pleased, prayed to His Father for my forgiveness - for your forgiveness! How could God not have heard His Son's prayer and granted it with all His heart?!

Jesus cried out, "IT IS FINISHED!" All the infinite debt for our sins has been completely satisfied - paid in full. Jesus' work on the Cross has fully appeased the just wrath God had toward us, and now His resurrected life brings us into the very presence of His Father. We are now clothed in the spotless white of Jesus perfection and are presented before the Throne of God without stain or blemish.

No further sacrifices, no other acts of atonement are required of us - they would, indeed, be blasphemous! Since Jesus' perfect, complete, and finished work of atonement has been accomplished, Christians are now free to live before Him in grateful love and joy. We can now follow Him in liberty, desiring to do His will out of love rather than fear. We have been loosed from the terror of the penalty of the Law and follow the Spirit of God because the Law is now written on our hearts.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Praise the One,
Risen Son of God!

Behold Him there, the risen Lamb
My perfect, spotless righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM,
The King of glory and of grace!

One in Himself, I cannot die
My soul is purchased by His blood
My life is hid with Christ on high,
With Christ, my Savior and my God
With Christ, my Savior and my God

So I look back to yesterday, Good Friday, and can mourn: it was MY sin that nailed Him to that Cross. But I also look back to Good Friday and rejoice, because Jesus knew my sin before I ever lived - and He loved me enough to provide the only way to gather me into His eternal kingdom.

I contemplate the stillness of this Saturday, when Jesus' body lay in the Tomb and Satan had apparently defeated God... I see that sad stillness and I look forward to Sunday, Resurrection Day, when Jesus rose from the grave in triumph over sin, death, and Satan. Jesus' resurrection is the proof of His completed work on the Cross - proof that God the Father had fully accepted the sacrifice of His Son on our behalf.

It. Is. FINISHED!

He is risen - He is risen indeed!

Christ has triumphed over my sin, and I can only live a life of loving gratitude and joy for all He has done for me.

Do you know Him? Have you bowed before Him to say "thank You"? Have you laid your life and hopes and dreams at His feet, knowing that He will remake them into an everlasting hymn of praise and glory to His name? Do you understand that though you give up your life to Christ, He will give it back to you transformed into holy perfection and multiplied to an eternal expression of His abundant life?

All I can do is echo His praises and point you to His perfection and love...

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Praise the One,
Risen Son of God!

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

Passover

Now the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails. You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover.

‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

‘So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat—that only may be prepared by you.

So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day throughout your generations as an everlasting ordinance. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses, since whoever eats what is leavened, that same person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or a native of the land. You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.’”

Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Pick out and take lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you. And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons forever. It will come to pass when you come to the land which the LORD will give you, just as He promised, that you shall keep this service. And it shall be, when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ that you shall say, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice of the LORD, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and delivered our households.’” So the people bowed their heads and worshiped. Then the children of Israel went away and did so; just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. (Exodus 12:1-28, NKJV)

A few thousand years ago, God called His chosen people out of Egypt - but not before He had brought a series of judgements upon the land where they lived. Most people think that these judgements were only against Egypt, but here you see that the Jews who did not listen to and obey God's command would also suffer the consequences of the wrath of God.

The blood on the doorposts pointed to the sacrifice required to pay for the consequences of sin "for without shedding of blood, there is no remission" of sin. (Hebrews 9:22) Someone, something, must be given up to placate the wrath of the Holy and Perfect God against the sins of man.

This past Sunday, Christians celebrated Palm Sunday commemorating  Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

God presented His perfect, unblemished Lamb - His only begotten Son - to His chosen people. At the exact right time, in precisely the right manner, Israel's rightful Lord and King entered Jerusalem to the shouts of praise from thousands of people:

Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”

All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

       “ Tell the daughter of Zion,
      ‘ Behold, your King is coming to you,
      Lowly, and sitting on a donkey,
      A colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:

      “Hosanna to the Son of David!
      'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’
      Hosanna in the highest!”

And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?” So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.” (Matthew 21:1-11)

God had returned to Jerusalem!

But only a few days later was Passover, the reminder of God's mercy in sparing the firstborn of Israel - and this time, God had provided His own Lamb, His judgement fell on that Lamb, and the Wrath of God wase poured out upon His Son who had offered Himself up as a propitiation for us all.

I would ask my brothers and sisters in Christ to keep His willing, loving sacrifice before us each and every day of our lives. Because Jesus suffered the full wrath of His Father in our place, we now walk in joyful freedom and loving obedience - or, we SHOULD. Let us fix our eyes upon Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our salvation, and run with perseverance the race He has set before us - looking only unto Him who loved us and gave Himself for us.

And I would ask - humbly, with earnest love - that my Jewish friends would turn their eyes upon Jesus and see that their long-awaited Messiah has come! He awaits them with open arms, longing to circumcise their hearts as they have circumcised their flesh. Just as God provided Abraham with the ram, so He has provided His own Lamb for the sins of His people so that the Law will no longer be a curse but a blessing!

As Paul - a Pharisee of Pharisees, a persecutor of Christ, and finally Christ's chosen apostle to the Gentiles - says of his people the Jews:

Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, “The man who does those things shall live by them.” But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down from above) or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.” (Romans 10:1-13)

And in the meantime, I wish everyone a Passover and Easter filled with thanksgiving and joy, friends and family, and prayerful contemplation of all that our generous, loving and sovereign God has done for us.

SHALOM!

Hi, I'm Gomer, the sheep...

Yeah, a weird title, I know. But it came out of listening to two different Christian programs today that really run together quite well. The first program was from Mark Driscoll at Mars Hill Church:

The second program is from Ravi Zacharias' program, "Just Thinking," from a four-part series called "Worship: A Clue to the Meaning in Life."

Pastor Mark speaks of the parable of the Lost Sheep, wherein the Good Shepherd leaves 99 sheep who are not lost to go search out the one who is lost and carries it home. Dr. Zacharias mentioned the prophet Hosea, who God called to marry a harlot named Gomer as a picture of God's relationship with Israel.

So, hello - I'm Gomer the sheep.

Sheep are dumb. They're weak, they're not very tough, and they often like to wander off and get lost. They're really too stupid to find their way back home, and when they're out away from the flock and the Shepherd, they tend to get into trouble and get beaten up, abused and into some really bad situations. Fortunately, if they belong to the Good Shepherd (in other words, if they really ARE a sheep and not a goat), He always searches them out, puts them on His shoulder and carries them back home. My Shepherd is always on the lookout for me, ready to rescue me from danger, clean me up and get me back with the flock so I can be safe, close to Him.

Gomer was a harlot. Hosea married her and loved her and had two children with her - and she left a happy, secure and loving home and went back to her prostitution. Pretty confusing, isn't it? Why would she leave a good situation to go back to the filth and degradation of whoring herself out? Certainly one could understand if Hosea threw up his hands and had nothing else to do with her - but he doesn't. In obedience to God's command and as a beautiful picture of God's love for His wayward and rebellious people, Hosea searches Gomer out and takes her back as his wife. He never stopped loving her, and he returns her to her home and cherishes her. Just like God keeps searching out His sinful people and keeps pouring out grace into our lives, even when we don't deserve it!

So, hello again: I'm a stupid, weak, wandering, rebellious and sinful sheep named Gomer.

But my Husband, my Savior, my Shepherd keeps searching high and low, chasing after me and carrying me back to Himself, showing me His eternal love and pouring out His infinite grace upon my life. He holds me tight to His heart, and that small reflection in His eye - the one you have to get very, very close to see - that's where I am. He has clothed me in the righteousness of His Son, not for anything that I've done, but just because for some unfathomable reason He has chosen to set His love upon me!

And so, I'm happy to be a stupid sheep named Gomer - and by the grace and guidance of my Beloved Shepherd and Husband, I will get better and walk ever more closely to Him in love and worship.

How deep the Father's love for us,
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the chosen One,
Bring many sons to glory

Behold the Man upon a cross,
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection

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
(REPEAT)

Forgiveness: It Ain't for Sissies

The past few weeks, I've had the honor of team teaching in my Adult Bible study at church and we've been going through the Tale of the Prodigal Son from Luke (chapter 14, vv 14-32). Last week we discussed the forgiveness shown by the father in the parable and it provoked a passionate and intense discussion about what forgiveness looks like and how it works out in real life. I think, perhaps, the one thing that really fueled the flames was my statement that forgiveness is not a feeling but an action.

I'll say that again, and even put it in bold accents:

Forgiveness is not a FEELING
forgiveness is an ACTION

Romans 8

I think that Romans 8 is the most glorious, the most freeing, the most comforting, and the most uplifting chapter in the whole Bible (well, for me, anyway!). For ten years and more, Romans 8 is where I go when I need reassurance, when I need to remember God's love, and when I need to be reminded of just why I really do want to forsake sin and obey the infinite, awesome and holy God who loves me and gave Himself for me.

Earlier today, I'd posted on Facebook (via my Android YouVersion app) Romans 8:30 -

Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

This prompted a couple of "likes" and and a comment from a friend, and here is what I replied:

Romans 8 is probably my mostest favoritest in the whole Bible ;-) The picture of God's infinite kindness and mercy in forgiving all who come to Him through His Son is amazing!

And He doesn't just do that, but He also adopts us and gives us the right to call Him Father - DADDY! He promises us that He will work everything out to make it bring forth good things... He promises us that He will bring us to Himself (see the verse quoted above), and He promises that He is FOR US - and so nothing can really be against us.

Most of all, at the end of the chapter, He promises us that NOTHING can separate us from the love He has for us through His Son - nothing created, nothing above or below, no powers of angels or demons - NOTHING can separated us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord!

When I meditate on this chapter - and I've returned to it many, MANY times over the past 10 years - it keeps getting deeper and richer and more wonderful to me. I read it and praise the God who made me and who brought me out of darkness and into the glory of His salvation and His kingdom...

I meditate on these words and am astonished that people can refuse this glorious and beautiful eternal gift. How could anyone not see the infinite love that sent Jesus, willingly, to the Cross to die for the sins of His sheep?! How can anyone be told of this marvelous thing and NOT run to God and fling themselves at Him so He can catch us and hold us in His love forever?!

Oh, how I long for God to send His Spirit for the conviction of sin and the resurrection of some particular souls in my life! I know that I need a continual revival in my heart, and I know that I need to live a life of continual repentance and rejoicing in God's great goodness and mercy towards me, but how I long for His blessed and irresistable call to come to... my someone!

So, how DOES God talk to us today?

There is a very interesting discussion going on over at Pyromaniacs (an excellent blog; I sure hope you're reading it!) that is well worth your time. The comments, especially, are very interesting, but I'm not at all certain that some of us may not be talking at cross purposes.

Now, this is going to take some work on your part, and I urge you to read - carefully - the prefatory posts. The first one, Thinking Like a Slave, makes the point that

...whether we're talking about church attendance, or doctrine, or marriage, or any other area of Christian living. When we respond to Divine commandments with a "But" or a series of excuses, we echo the Serpent, and treat God as our peer — or our inferior.

This is not thinking like a slave. And make no mistake: if we are not slaves of God, then we are slaves of sin (Romans 6:15-23). But we are slaves!

So here's where the rubber meets the road: what do you do when faced with a clear commandment, with clear teaching of Scripture, that crosses your will?

Scripture clearly teaches that we are to be obedient to our Lord and Master - we are to be slaves to righteousness, slaves to our God and Savior.

No arguments there! When I have an argument with God, He's always right. When I want to disobey one of His commands, I am wrong and sinful. I say this to emphasise my desire to know and apply God's Word correctly, and also to affirm that I believe that Scripture is God's Word and completely authoritative, with no superior avenue of knowledge for what we need to know as Christians. I completely agree with Dan on that.

The next three posts by Dan that he cites are a series - one, two, three - and I confess that I'm having a bit of trouble digesting them myself (maybe, if you read them over, you can help me un-muddy my brain!) What Dan seems to be saying in these posts is that God speaks to us today ONLY through Scripture - which seems to me to completely negate any postion of the "fellowship" aspect of our relationship with Christ.

All right, then; you have the background (if you've done your reading!).

In the first post I linked, Dan gives a list of questions, and then asks, "To which one of these questions can you not even begin to give a clear, plain, simple, definitive, directly-Biblical answer?" The general consensus in the comments (including mine) is #11 - "How do I tell which feelings are God's way of nudging me to do something, or God "talking" to me, and which are just my flesh, my imagination, or something else?"

I think I'm going to step back a bit from my agreement that #11 is THE question, because I do believe there is a Biblical answer, and it is an answer that does not negate or dismiss our feelings at all - which is what I think Dan and those in complete agreement with him are at least strongly implying.

Now, I am not saying - at all! - that anything we might "feel in our spirit" (or however you chose to formulate the sentiment) can supercede Srcipture. The heart, after all, is desperately wicked and deceitful, and we are all contaminated by sin. So, when you get that "nudge" or "vibe" or whatever, you'd better test the spirits and make certain that these subliminals and emotions do, in fact, line up with Scripture. If they don't, then they are not of God and should be soundly rejected, and we should diligently immerse ourselves in God's Word and in prayer so that we may seek His aid in renewing our minds and bringing ourselves under His authority.

But Dan - and I may be reading him wrong! - appears to reject any of the touchy-feely (and gadzooks, I do dislike that, but it's the best phrase I have at the moment) part of our relationship with God. What about

• "The Spirit bears witness with our spirit..." (Romans 8:16)
• "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you" (Ps 32:8)
• "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths." (Prov. 3:5-6)
• "Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,'  Whenever you turn to the right hand  Or whenever you turn to the left. (Is 30:21)

All of these - yes, absolutely! - are through Scripture... But the way Dan presents it looks very cold and non-relational to me. Perhaps it is because I'm female and am more emotionally/relationally inclined (although that's a pretty broad sterotype, and on important matters such as this, I know I have to use my head equally!), but I cannot reconcile that view with what the Bible tells me about God being our loving Father who leads us, nurtures us, diciplines us, and has made us His children.

Now, Dan does make the point that some people use their feelings and hunches as an excuse to say, "God told me this, that or the other thing," and I concur that that is an unScriptural way of going about things. If I read, for instance, Romans 12:2 ("And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."), I have warrant to say, "God told me that I need to be more diligent in my study of His Word so that it gets down deep in my spirit and conforms me to the image of His Son." That's a Biblical "God told me" moment, in my opinion.

However, we cannot just spit out "God told me" and have no Scriptural foundation for our statement. We also have to be very careful when we use a phrase llike that, because some people use it like the prophets used "Thus sayeth the Lord" - and God is not adding to His revealed Word in this day and age.

So, in the main, I believe I agree with Dan; it's just that I think he's neglected a very real part of the relationship we have with God as His children. Relationships are not just based on propositional truth - cold, unfeeling facts and figures - they also have a emotional dimension. God gave us emotions and feelings and the need to have intimate relationship, particularly with Him. When these are all subjected to the test and authority of His written Word, I do not see how it is unbiblical to have them and use them appropriately.

So... Have I made a hash of things and completely misunderstood what he's saying?

What is the love of God doing to you?

The love of God is far more powerful than a million suns - but it can act in a similar way. For some, God's love melts them like wax and they bow to His love and sovereignty in gratitude and adoration. For others, His bright and passionate love hardens them like clay fired in a kiln and they reject Him and rebel against Him.

One reaction leads to peace with God and everlasting blessedness in His presence, while the other brings about destruction and punishment under His eternal judgment.

Are you here?

...do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who “will render to each one according to his deeds” (Romans 2:4-6)

Or are you here?

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7)

Think about it.

"Monster minds" - today's dose of John Calvin

This is from the Institutes, Book 1, chapter 5, section 4:

But herein appears the shameful ingratitude of men. Though they have in their own persons a factory where innumerable operations of God are carried on, and a magazine stored with treasures of inestimable value—instead of bursting forth in His praise, as they are bound to do, they, on the contrary, are the more inflated and swelled with pride. They feel how wonderfully God is working in them, and their own experience tells them of the vast variety of gifts which they owe to His liberality. Whether they will or not, they cannot but know that these are proofs of His Godhead, and yet they inwardly suppress them. They have no occasion to go farther than themselves, provided they do not, by appropriating as their own that which has been given them from heaven, put out the light intended to exhibit God clearly to their minds. At this day, however, the earth sustains on her bosom many monster minds—minds which are not afraid to employ the seed of Deity deposited in human nature as a means of suppressing the name of God. Can any thing be more detestable than this madness in man, who, finding God a hundred times both in his body and his soul, makes his excellence in this respect a pretext for denying that there is a God?

I find it very interesting that, while Calvin wrote this back in the 1500's, it is still so true today. We have "monster minds" running around everywhere we look. Leaders in science, politics, society, and - God help us! - even in religion, who use the minds and intellect given by God to deny that He exists!

God knows the human heart inside and out and centuries ago, He inspired a man to write the book of Ecclesiastes which says:

That which has been is what will be,
That which is done is what will be done,
And there isnothing new under the sun.
Is there anything of which it may be said,
“See, this is new”?
It has already been in ancient times before us.
There is no remembrance of former things,
Nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come
By those who will come after.

We are indeed a race of madmen...

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• Calvin's Institutes again: Yielding up our whole selves to God (cathousechat.com)

Israel 2010 - 10July - Part 1: worship on the Sea of Galilee, the Mount of Beatitudes, and the Primacy of Peter

OK, I think I'm sort of motivated after getting Day 2 posted. They are here and here, in case you need the links - and don't forget, you can always access ALL of the posts about the Israel trip (including the ones I posted via my Droid while still traveling) by clicking on my "Israel Tour 2010" category, down on the left column.

At any rate, our first morning on the Sea of Galilee was beautiful! We woke up to the sun beginning to shine over the Golan Heights

And after breakfast (yummy, yummy - I love Middle Eastern cuisine!) we went out on a boat on the Sea of Galilee, and had an absolutely INCREDIBLE morning worship service:

More awesomeness under the fold...

Israel 2010 - 09July - Part Two: Megiddo, Nazareth, Cana and Tiberias

Wow - I finally seem to have come up against a size limit for a post here on TypePad! So, here's the second part of my post about Day 2 of our Israel tour... (part one is here)

 

 

"In God is our trust..."

My last post actually fits in neatly with what we studied today in church: Trust in God.

Seriously, my brothers and sisters in Christ, do we really trust in the God of Creation? Do we honestly place our hope in the covenant God of Israel? Do we place our full confidence in His unshakable and unbreakable promises? Do we rely completely on the power and faithfulness of our risen Lord and Savior?

That is the foundational question we must all ask ourselves: Is our trust in God alone, in Christ alone?

For Sunday morning Bible study, we just began a new section based on Ray Pritchard's book, Fire and Rain: The Wild-hearted Faith of Elijah. I really loved the way Mr. Pritchard describes Elijah:

Elijah was a mountain man. Because he came from the mountains, he was probably a bit uncouth. Because he came from the mountains, he wasn't very refined. Because he came from the mountains, he wouldn't have had the same level of education as those who were raised in the city of Jerusalem [actually, since Elijah prophesied to the Northern Kingdom, it might have been better for them to say "Samaria," since Jerusalem was the capitol of the southern kingdom of Judah -Kat].In that day, people from the city tended to look down their noses at men from the mountains the same way people today sometimes look down on folks who come from the hills. Hill people. Hillbillies. Elijah was like an Old Testament hillbilly. Before you laugh too much, remember this. You don't want to make those people mad. You'll lose that argument. You might lose something else, too. You don't want to mess with mountain folks. They're a tough breed.

Elijah was sent by God to Ahab, who was probably the wickedest king of the whole Old Testament. Elijah, a man with no genealogical background (very important to the Jews), a mountain hillbilly, stalked in to Ahab's throne room, and said:

And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word.” (I Kings 17:1, NKJV)

BAM!!!! 

Elijah spoke what God told him to say with no prelude, no buildup, and no waffling - and then he stalked right back out, back to his hills. O_o (<--- that's an emoticon for flabbergasted astonishment, in case you didn't know. Think two big eyes, hehe.)

Yo, Ahab? Dude, you just got served! The gauntlet is down, man... You are so wicked, so far from God, and so hardhearted, that God doesn't even have His prophet explain anything, he just speaks God's judgment bluntly and leaves. Ball's in your court, your kingship!

As Pritchard writes, "They're so far down in the pit, a city boy isn't up for that kind of job." No, sirree, gotta get an uncouth, no-nonsense, loud-mouthed hillbilly man to smack 'em upside the head with God's word, that's for sure!

Now, the point of our lesson this morning was, where the heck did Elijah get all that chutzpah?! Well, take a look at that verse.

"As the LORD God of Israel lives..."

Elijah served the living God. Ahab just worshiped ol' Baal, a fertility god made from the hands of men. If the rains didn't come, the crops wouldn't grow - and where would Baal's power be? A fertility god ruling over a drought-ravaged land certainly isn't very powerful or helpful, is he?

.But the God of Israel LIVES! He rules, He reigns, and He is in control over everything. It is in Him that we live and move and have our being, it is by His power that all the universe was created, and it is HE who upholds and sustains all creation. Baal? Hah, Baal is just a two-bit wannabe!

Elijah served this living and almighty God; why should he fear the king of Israel?

"As the LORD God of Israel lives..."

Elijah served the covenant-keeping God.

Hey, Israel, Who called your daddy Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees? Who sent Moses to all-y'all and plagued Egypt so bad that they threw all their riches at you and begged you to leave? Who was it again who destroyed their whole army when the pharaoh had a change of heart? Who was it who gave you the manna from Heaven and protected you through forty years in the wilderness? Who descended upon Mt. Sinai and gave you the Law? Who went before you into the Promised Land and delivered it to you? Who sent the Canaanites and Philistines to punish you when you sinned and left God's commands? Who sent judges to rescue you from the Canaanites and the Philistines when you cried out your pain to Him? Who gave you David and Solomon, the two greatest kings of history (save for One, of course)?

ISRAEL!!!! Who has been with you all this time, upholding His covenant with you and calling you to turn back to Him???

The LORD God of Israel, that's who!

So, what's Baal done for you lately? Not much? Yeah, that's what I thought, too...

Elijah served the living and almighty God who always keeps His promises and who watches over His people. Ahab? Meh, he's just a guy in a fancy robe.

"As the LORD God of Israel lives, before whom I stand..."

Elijah served in the presence of God.

The living God is everywhere, you know. There is no place we can run or hide and escape His presence. God knows everything as well, so there is no possibility of concealing ourselves and our true motives in the "privacy" of our minds. God is everywhere, and He knows everything - we all live in His presence each and every day...

But Elijah knew this. He knew to the very marrow of his bones that wherever he went, God was with him. Whatever he said at God's direction had the full force of God's power and truth. Whatever he did under God's leading had God's authority and effectiveness. Elijah lived coram deo, before the face of God, and he knew it!

Elijah served the living and almighty God who always keeps His promises, who watches over His people, and who goes with His servants to guide and protect them.

So, yeah, of course Elijah went in to Ahab's throne room and threw down that gauntlet with such confidence! After all, wouldn't you?

Ah, so maybe you wouldn't? Yeah, I'm there with you. I get far too caught up in the

• "What will they think?"
• "What if God doesn't come through?"
• "But I'm just nobody, how will they listen to me?"
• "Do I really need to do/say that right now?"

Let me tell you, Christian, I look at those attitudes in myself and think, "Gee, Kat, I guess you don't really trust Him much, do you?"

Do you see that in yourself as well?

Well, how can we work to increase our trust in God? It's all very well to say, "Well, buck up, buddy! Put your best foot forward! Stiff upper lip! Go get em, tiger!" and so on, but unless we base our trust and confidence on biblical truth, this bravado will crumble in the face of opposition fairly quickly. And this point leads me to Pastor Hank's sermon this morning, which dovetailed nicely with the Bible study lesson.

Hank's sermon was titled "Walking in Faith: the Cure for Unbelief," and his main Scripture came from Genesis 18:9-15. God has come to visit Abraham, and He tells him that Sarah will have a son the following year. Sarah, who is listening in secret, "...laughed within herself, saying, 'After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?'" She doesn't believe that God can do this! She thinks that this task is too difficult for God - the LORD God Almighty! - to perform!

Well... You know the story - the following year, Sarah gives birth to Isaac (whose name means "laughter" - and who God had named already: see chapter 17), so I suppose God got the last laugh after all ;-)

But Hank gave some good pointers on how to strengthen our faith and our trust in the living God who is faithful, trustworthy and able to do all things He purposes:

Trust God because of Creation - take a look at Genesis 1. Out of nothing, God brought forth everything! Can you imagine the power that must have taken? And do you realize that all that power didn't take even the least amount of effort on the part of our infinitely powerful God? Do you know that He is still keeping the universe going out of His own power (see Hebrews 1:3)?

When I look at creation - fallen and marred by sin as it is - I see the powerful hand of a good, loving and beautiful God, and I cannot help but have confidence that He will take care of His servants.

Trust God because of Conversions - did you know that all twelve of Jesus' disciples abandoned Him at His darkest hour? Oh, sure, Judas Iscariot betrayed Him and proved to be a false disciple, but all of the other "faithful" deserted Him in Gethsemane. Even Peter, who swore he would never leave Jesus, denied Him three times when a young girl challenged him. Throughout Jesus' earthly ministry, the disciples were continually scolded for their unbelief! And where did Christ find His followers when He came to them after the resurrection? Huddled together like frightened children in a locked room!

And yet, something happened to them between Jesus crucifixion and Pentecost, something amazing! They, like the Cowardly Lion, found their courage. But their courage wasn't a paltry medal - it was the Spirit of Christ, the Holy Ghost, who came into them and lived in them. The Holy Spirit empowered those men to go out and preach the Gospel and the resurrection with uncompromising power, and almost all of them died horrible martyrs' deaths for it. What changed?

From that time to this, God's Spirit has indwelt His people, giving them His fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. He has taken the dregs of humanity, filled them with His love and power and made them shining vessels of His grace and mercy. He has made millions of everyday sinners witnesses to who He really is.

When I look at all He has done - in me and in other Christians - I know that I serve a powerful God who makes cowards courageous.

Trust God because of Inspection - Have you ever really looked at Jesus? Really looked at the evidence? Have you ever put aside your materialistic, secular, smug intellectual "superiority," and come to examine the life of Christ? Have you studied why He came? There is so much evidence of God's power, love, kindness, mercy, perfection, and tenderness in just the four Gospels, that anyone who has come to them to seek and ask in humility and honesty is blinded by the glory of Christ and of His infinite love for us.

Lee Strobel, who used to be an atheist, did the research - and gave his life to Christ (the Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus is a must-read!). Josh McDowell was an agnostic (which is really simply a soft way of saying "atheist"), but when he went to the evidence, it piled up so high in Jesus' favor that he converted, and eventually wrote one of the best reference books on the subject ever: the NEW Evidence that Demands a Verdict. Just two examples - but two men who have documented their journeys and research, and have provided them for our benefit.

The more I look at Jesus, the more I read my Bible, the more I know I can trust God to do what He has said that He will do, and the more faith I have in His promises of things yet to come.

Trust God because of Distinction - Jesus is unique. He is the sine qua non. He has no equal or match. He is the God-Man who left eternal glory and came to live in persecuted poverty - all for the love of us. Unlike Buddha, Mohammad, Confucius, David Koresh, Jim Jones, all the popes, all the apostles, and any of us, He alone is God-made-flesh, and He alone has an empty grave. He laid His life down for us - it wasn't taken from Him, He gave it - and when the time was accomplished, He took it up again in His own power.

Only Jesus. All the Jesus-wannabes, all the other soi-disant "prophets" of God and "teachers of enlightenment" are dust and gone, their graves weathered by time. Jesus alone has the empty tomb; proof that He is who He said.

Only Jesus. The more I meditate on that fact, the more my faith in Him grow

Only Jesus. The more I fix my eyes upon the Captain of my salvation, the more He helps me lay aside the hinderences of sin, the more my confidence in Him blossoms.

Only Jesus. And maybe one day, as I journey towards full faith and trust in Him, I can be a hillbilly gal like Elijah!

He is risen!

Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”

She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).

Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’”

Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.

So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”

So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:1-29, NKJV)

Darkness over the land... the veil ripped

Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!” Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.

The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.”

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:45-54, NKJV)

Surely He has borne our griefs
      And carried our sorrows;
      Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
      Smitten by God, and afflicted.
      But He was wounded for our transgressions,
      He was bruised for our iniquities;
      The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
      And by His stripes we are healed.
      All we like sheep have gone astray;
      We have turned, every one, to his own way;
      And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

                                             (Isaiah 53:4-6, NKJV)

Yes, it really is GOOD Friday!

Have you ever wondered why Christians refer to this as "GOOD Friday"?

Isn't this the day that Jesus suffered and died? Isn't this the day when He was beaten and scorned? Isn't this the day that He was whipped until flesh was hanging of Him in bloody strips? 

Isn't this the day He was forced to carry the instrument of torturous death upon His shoulders to the place He would die?

Isn't this the Day?

"This is My body, which is broken for you..."

"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."

"...who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

"...to give His life a ransom for many."

"But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance."

That's why we call it "GOOD Friday." We look at the Cross and see the terrifying price Jesus paid for our sin. We look on the Cross and see the filthiness and depths of our sin.

We look at the Cross and see the infinite love of God for His children, that He should send His willing Son to bear His Father's wrath against sin.

I look at the Cross, I remember Jesus suffering, and I see my sins against my holy and perfect Creator punished. I see my Savior, who paid the debt I could not pay.

Yes. It is, indeed,

GOOD FRIDAY!

A meditation for Holy Week: Grace vs. Works (or, "Am I refighting the Reformation?")

In our Christian life, we often walk a fine line that balances between faith and unbelief, credulity and skepticism, legalism and lawlessness, grace and works. Many - most! (including myself) - stumble toward one side or the other, forgetting that inspired tension that characterizes the true Christian walk.

How can I rely fully upon Jesus' work on the Cross, God's sovereign will, and the Holy Spirit's work in me, while still working out my salvation, running the race, and being a diligent disciple of Christ?

Monday evening, I read a post from Parchment and Pen and then yesterday, I listened to a podcast from Renewing Your Mind featuring Sinclair Ferguson (watch it here, but I don't know how long it will stay at that link). Each caught my attention, and it seems to me that they dovetail together beautifully.

Michael Patton at P&P crafts a solid metaphor for the "carnal Christian" as a resident of "Starting Line Village." These Christians begin their Christian life - they assert their belief in Jesus - but they never do anything with it. It puts me in mind of James' epistle where he says:

Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

and also:

What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.

James is making the point, not that are saved by faith PLUS works, but that a proclaimed faith that has no works is a false faith. The natural response to an authentic faith is a growing display of the fruit of the Spirit and of the works OF faith. Our work and effort springs out of our gratitude for what God has done for us through His Son, Christ Jesus. However, it is a good thing to remind ourselves that, even though God created us for good works, even if we were to live perfect lives, we are at best "unprofitable servants," doing only what is expected of us and no more. No act we do, no work we perform, no sacrifice we make, can surpass (much less equal) the work of Christ on our behalf.

Patton says:

I have often said that it is easier to tell when someone is a true Christian than to tell if they are not. In other words, some people wear their conviction on their shoulder. The power of the Holy Spirit could not be clearer. Their passion, understanding, grace, humility, and faith are clearly evident in everything they do. I know and can state with a great degree of confidence that they trust in Christ and are saved. They are in the race and they are running. Others, however, it is hard to tell. They may say they are saved, but I am not convinced with the same degree of conviction. They may be convinced, but I am not. I am not saying they are not saved, I just don’t know. Some live in a perpetual state of doubt, failure, and terrible sin. They may be in the race, but they are not running. However, even when they are at their worst, I cannot say with the same degree of confidence that they are not saved than when I can say someone is saved.

To get right down to it, there IS such a thing as false faith, and if your faith has produced no fruit - of character or of works - then you need to sit down and soberly, truthfully examine yourself to see whether you ARE in the faith. If you have no changes in your life which are due to the awe and gratitude you have for all that God has done for you, then you need to worry and repent. If you have no holy dread of God's judgment and righteousness and no desire to be an active disciple of Christ, then you need to consider whether your faith is truly given to you by God, or if you're just playing the Christian game because it makes you feel good about yourself.

If you think Christianity is simply to make you feel good about yourself and make you a better person, then you have it completely wrong. Christianity is all about glorifying God and making Him look good! Yes, He takes us and changes us for the better, but only so that we may bring Him even more glory as we worship Him in Eternity. God takes broken, ugly, disgusting, unrepentant rebels, and out of grace turns them into little reflections of His perfect Son - just because He loves us, just because He can.

I highly recommend the podcast by Sinclair Ferguson (and, oh, don't I loooove that Scots accent!) that I linked above (here it is again), because he does a wonderful job of defining that line between faith+works and faith leading to works.

Again, it is that critical balance that Ephesians 2:8-10 states so well:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

How much more clearly can God say that HE has saved us by His sovereign grace, gifting us with the re newal of spirit that permits us to place our faith in the completed work of His Son, and that we have nothing to contribute to it? All we can do is display what God has done IN us by doing the good works He has prepared so that His goodness shines OUT of us.

And, dang, it's good to be writing again! ;-)

God's encouragement for me today

From Isaiah 51:

"Listen to Me, My people;
And give ear to Me, O My nation: 
For law will proceed from Me, 
And I will make My justice rest 
As a light of the peoples. 
My righteousness is near, 
My salvation has gone forth, 
And My arms will judge the peoples; 
The coastlands will wait upon Me, 
And on My arm they will trust.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, 
And look on the earth beneath. 
For the heavens will vanish away like smoke, 
The earth will grow old like a garment, 
And those who dwell in it will die in like manner; 
But My salvation will be forever, 
And My righteousness will not be abolished. 
Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, 
You people in whose heart is My law: 
Do not fear the reproach of men, 
Nor be afraid of their insults. 
For the moth will eat them up like a garment, 
And the worm will eat them like wool; 
But My righteousness will be forever, 
And My salvation from generation to generation. ... (vv. 4-8)

I, even I, am He who comforts you. 
Who are you that you should be afraid 
Of a man who will die, 
And of the son of a man who will be made like grass? 
And you forget the LORD your Maker, 
Who stretched out the heavens 
And laid the foundations of the earth; 
You have feared continually every day 
Because of the fury of the oppressor, 
When he has prepared to destroy. 
And where is the fury of the oppressor? 
The captive exile hastens, that he may be loosed, 
That he should not die in the pit, 
And that his bread should not fail. 
But I am the LORD your God, 
Who divided the sea whose waves roared— 
The LORD of hosts is His name. 
And I have put My words in your mouth; 
I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, 
That I may plant the heavens, 
Lay the foundations of the earth, 
And say to Zion, ‘You are My people." (vv. 12-16)

Father I thank You for being my Rock and my Salvation. Thank You for giving me comfort and strength. You alone are God, and Your power upholds the universe. You are my God; who shall I fear? Father, let me walk in Your love and peace today. Draw me ever closer to You, and have Your way in me so that I am conformed to the image of Your Son. Help me learn how to let my light so shine before men that they may see my good deeds and glorify You.

U.K. Church Leaders: "Wives, submit to your husbands"

The sermons sparked outrage among many churchgoers, especially women.

One woman said she was "disgusted."

"How can they talk that way in the 21st century?" she told the Daily Mail.

(Daily Mail Online via FoxNews)

How can they talk that way? Well, because it just happens to be BIBLICAL. I note that the original article also adds "be silent," which Fox's excerpt does not mention.

Nevertheless, it is a biblical command that women should respect their husbands and accept their leadership - after all, honey, if you don't respect and love him enough to follow him, why are you (why DID you) marry him?!

One thing that's really, REALLY irritating to me is that the "women, submit to your own husbands" verse is almost ALWAYS quoted alone. In context, the husband is called to LOVE the wife who is submitting to him as Christ loved the Church.

Just for those who don't know - Christ DIED for His church! Jesus loved His people so much that He came to give us life. He came to people who were sinful, hateful, rebellious, and who didn't want to love God...

BUT!!!

For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8, New King James Version)

God loves us so much that He came and DIED for us, even when we still hated Him.

So, Ladies, you need to see this video (and, yeah, it's long, but WATCH IT ALL!!!) with your husband (or boyfriend).

And then.... THEN!!! You both need to watch Pastor Mark talk to the man in your life...

Yes, it will take you two or more hours to watch both videos. BUT... After you see and consider BOTH videos, after you understand the responsibilities and duties that each party in a marriage has... Who, really, is being a slave?! Who is being a doormat? Who has the more difficult calling? Who is called to be Jesus and live the harder, more sacrificial life...????

Wives... We should cover our heads and bow in shame for the insolence and rebellion we show to the men who live the Christ-like life of sacrifice and selfless love. We should repent of our arrogance, pride and selfishness when we marry. We should turn away from our demands to be firstoneonlyBETTER over our men and our demands that they be less than they could be, less than they were made to be...

Lord Jesus, please! Bring reconciliation, bring humility and unselfish love to the men and women who are married. Reveal Yourself to them: the humble, loving sacrifice You made to redeem Your people - the example Husbands should follow - and the loving obedience and submission to Your Father that every wife should emulate.

REPENT!!!! Oh, by God's mercy and grace... Repent!

Folks, we Christians in the United States (and I do include myself) are selfish, complacent and unfeeling.

We live in the richest nation on earth - resources, opportunities, finances, families - and yet, although America is the most generous nation on earth, the Christian Church has not stepped up to the plate and given to God's work proportionately to the blessings He has HEAPED upon us.

I am convicted and shamed by my own selfishness and concern for the future. I need to be slapped in the face with God's promises to provide for the needs of His children and His promise to pour out blessing to faithful givers. He does not promise financial blessings, but rather to bless the influence and grace of our inheritance in Heaven.What a treasure could be waiting for us, if we only open wide our hands and give back to God that which is already His!

Yes, for some, He will add blessing upon blessing financially - because He has found faithful servants (or is testing the servants whom He has blessed with financial assets) who will still put His Kingdom before their own needs. God is searching for men and women to bless richly so they can bless others according to His provision in their lives.

Pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church spent 30+ hours in Haiti after the earthquake. I ask you to please watch the whole video... And then do what God lays on your heart.

We in America have been given riches beyond measure. The poverty line in Haiti is roughly $1300.00 a year, and 80% of the population can't even make that...

As Christians, we have no percentage guideline for giving to the Church in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Folks, for us, Jerusalem is our home, Judea is our community/state, Samaria is our nation... And the "end of the earth" is all our brothers and sisters in Christ who need our help to spread the wonderful Gospel of Salvation.

Do you earn $10,000? Can you offer $10 - at least???? Do you earn $60k? Can you give $500? Do you earn whatever, and realizing the blessings God has given you - just by being born to this prosperous and blessed country!! - you realize you need to give back to His Kingdom by loving, supporting and encouraging your brothers and sisters in a far country?

Please watch the whole video... and then give all that you possibly can to rebuild, uplift and encourage the Church in Haiti and all her people.

Galatians 2:20 - verse of the day

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Thank You, Jesus!

"God gave the best He had...

... to save the worst He could find."

Have you ever thought about that? It would be like you or me taking in the molester and murderer of our child, paying the penalty of his horrific crime, and accepting him and cherishing him as if he were a most beloved member of the family.

How amazing!

Romans 5 says that, while we were enemies of God - sinful, rebellious, and altogether ill-deserving of His love and kindness - Jesus died for us. He didn't wait for us to be sorry; He didn't wait for us to get our act together. No. The very Breath of Heaven saw our hopeless and vile condition, and came to seek and save the lost.

The very worst He could find.

You and me.

Isn't He AWESOME?!

The King of Christmas: Living Water

Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”. (John 4:10-14, NKJV)

On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:37-38, NKJV)

They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:16-17, NKJV)

It's been so crazy this season! So many things are happening, and we are preparing for so many changes, that time has just raced along and slipped right by me. True, my time management skills - off the job, anyway - are not the best, but there never seem to be enough minutes in the day. As you can see, I'm hardly keeping up with this Advent series (although I am adding to the archives as I can - one post a day, remember! Aiiigh! LOL)

Yesterday as I was driving home, I heard something on the radio or off of the music on my Droid (I can't remember) that made me think of John 4:10 - "living water." I don't recall what it was exactly, but "living water" popped right into my head, and I thought, "Oh, Lord, I'm so tired and so thirsty... I need to be refreshed by You!"

When it comes to drinking water, I am really terrible! I'll sip some wine, savor coffee, swill sweet tea, gulp milk and so on, but I forget the pure, refreshing perfection of cold, clear water. Our bodies need to be properly hydrated to function properly; why do I expect anything different for my spirit and soul?

Jesus sits by the well and calls us to come to Him and drink from the Living Water. Drink fully and drink deeply, for there is a never ending supply to refresh and renew us. The more of Him we drink, the more of Him flows out from us to refresh and renew everyone we meet!

Jesus, let me come to You and drink. Let me immerse and lose myself in You. Clothe me in Your perfection, and may Your life and power renew my spirit every day!

Just another example of "religious" behavior and the fallenness of man

As the owner of several energy-efficient light bulbs and a recycled umbrella, I'm familiar with the critiques of "ethical consumption." In some cases, it's not clear that ostensibly green products are better for the environment. There's also the risk that these lifestyle choices will make us complacent, sapping the drive to call senators and chain ourselves to coal plants. Tweaking your shopping list, the argument goes, is at best woefully insufficient and maybe even counterproductive.

But new research by Nina Mazar and Chen-Bo Zhong at the University of Toronto levels an even graver charge: that virtuous shopping can actually lead to immoral behavior. In their study (described in a paper now in press at Psychological Science), subjects who made simulated eco-friendly purchases ended up less likely to exhibit altruism in a laboratory game and more likely to cheat and steal.

via www.slate.com

See, the thing is, this is really a form of legalism. People mentally get on board a mindset that makes them "good," and so they don't have to extend that "goodness" to all aspects of their lives.

Just like the Pharisees of Jesus' day, these people take on an outer righteousness which has nothing to do with their actual character or spiritual maturity. I can understand this; after all, following a set of rules can be very easy, and you don't have to think too much or really examine yourself to see if you're a "good" person.

True character and true spiritual maturity are much harder. One must always question motives and actions, and be held up to a higher standard. For the Christian, that standard is Jesus - and we know we never can attain that standard of perfection in word, thought or deed while we are here on earth.

Thank God that Jesus didn't just come to show us the standard! He also died and rose again to clothe us in His righteous perfection and to empower us to be conformed to His image. One day, we will be in Heaven with Him, we will see Him face to face, and we will finally be perfected and forever freed from legalism, self-righteousness, and pharisaic actions. We will shine forth with His glory... and finally be able to get it absolutely right!

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.(Romans 8:22-25, ESV)

May God grant that we soon see our hope and faith revealed in full!

The King of Christmas: our Redeemer

Look down from heaven and see,
from Your holy and beautiful habitation.
Where are Your zeal and Your might?
The stirring of Your inner parts and Your compassion
are held back from me.
For You are our Father,
though Abraham does not know us,
and Israel does not acknowledge us;
You, O LORD, are our Father,
our Redeemer from of old is Your name. (Isaiah 63:15-16, ESV)

Redeemer. Someone who buys us back out of slavery. A kinsman who comes to rescue and avenge us. A Savior who loves us so much that He comes to pay the debt we owe and take us home. 

Redeemer. The God who loves us when we were unlovely, hateful, rebellious sinners and pours out His grace in our souls. The God who washes us clean from every taint of sin and adopts us into His intimate family. The only God who makes final, perfect peace between Himself and man.

I know You had me on Your mind

When You climbed up on that hill

For You saw me with eternal eyes

While I was yet in sin

Redeemer Savior Friend

Every stripe upon Your battered back

Every thorn that pierced Your brow

Every nail drove deep through guiltless hands

Said that Your love knows no end

Redeemer Savior Friend

Redeemer redeem my heart again

Savior come and shelter me from sin

You're familiar with my weakness

Devoted to the end

Redeemer Savior Friend

So the grace You poured upon my life

Will return to You in praise

I'll gladly lay down all my crowns

For the name of which I am saved

Redeemer Savior Friend

Oh, Jesus, my great Kinsman-Redeemer! I thank You for the great love and grace You came to show us. You came so humbly! You, the great God and Creator, left Heaven and laid aside Your glory so that You could come and buy Your children out of sin and slavery. You rescued us from Your own just wrath, and transfered us to Your Kingdom of light, love and grace. I praise You, my Savior, for all the powerful kindness You have poured out upon me. Let Your light so shine through my life that You are glorified and worshiped by all who see it!

The King of Christmas: our Advocate

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. (1 John 1:8 - 2:1, ESV)

What is an "advocate"? An advocate is one who pleads our case, who defends us and intercedes on our behalf. An advocate is a helper, someone who comes alongside us to aid us, comfort us, and to guide us in the ways of righteousness.

Jesus was born into a stable so that He could become our Advocate.

We have all sinned against a holy God - all of us. It does not matter the degree of our sin, for any violation of God's laws and His requirements for righteousness makes us guilty before Him. In ourselves, we have no way to make ourselves right before God: we cannot live perfect lives from our first breath, and we have no way to pay the penalty for our rebellion.

So what can we do?

That's the point. We cannot do anything; Jesus Christ has done it all. He came to live a perfectly righteous life in complete and whole hearted obedience to His Father. He came to die the death that we all richly earned with our mutiny against our Sovereign Lord and God. When God sends His Spirit to convict us of sin and draw us to Christ, the perfection of Jesus' life is given to us and the full payment of His death takes away our sin so that we may stand before God.

Are Christians perfect? No, not here on earth. Here, we struggle with temptation and sin, and we frequently fail to walk in obedience and fellowship with God. But that does not put us back into the kingdom of darkness, subject to God's wrath! Jesus was born, He lived and He died to reconcile us to His Father, but He also rose again to be our Advocate.

Every moment of every day - humanly speaking - Jesus stands before His Father and intercedes for His brothers and sisters, His friends. Each and every day, Christians have to live by the grace which has saved us and by the continuing grace that is transforming us into the image of Christ. Each and every moment, Christ is our Advocate, applying His blood and His righteousness to our imperfect lives and making them perfect in the eyes of God.

We are hidden and renewed in Jesus Christ our Advocate. Our hope is solely in Him.

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy wounded side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure;
Save from wrath and make me pure.

Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.

Thank You, Jesus, for coming to live for me. Thank You, Lord, for dying for my sin and paying my debt. Thank You for living inside me, for helping me, for being my Friend and my Defender. Thank You, Jesus, for loving me so much that You came to be born in a humble stable!

The King of Christmas: the Word

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1, 14, ESV)

The Word, the Logos, the second Person of the Trinity... became flesh!

This quote from the Gospel of John is well known, but I wonder how often any of us really meditate on it? What does it really mean that "the Word became flesh"? What does it mean that "the Word was God"? Well, let me try to unwrap this for you a little bit.

Ancient Greek philosophy used this word to describe several things: the source and order of the universe, rational discourse, and the idea that divine power kept the universe moving. John's Gospel is directed mostly to the Greek culture, and so the Spirit's inspiration led John to use this concept from their culture and apply it to Jesus. John was saying to his Greek readers, "Look, the Source and Power of the universe isn't just a concept or a 'force.' The Logos you are trying to understand is God Himself. God put on flesh and came to live with us, and we saw Him! He's real!"

Over and over and over again, I come back to tis one concept: God Almighty, Holy God, God who is pure and perfect, left the glories of Heaven, laid aside the prerogatives of His deity, and was born as a helpless Baby to a poor young couple in a smelly stable far from their home.

The Source of all creation, the Power that keeps it chugging along, came to earth and grew up like us, worked like us, made friends, wept, ate, learned, slept, laughed, walked and spoke... like us!

How great a love, how deep a compassion He must have for His rebellious people! And what an amazing display the Living Word made when He came to live out the vast love of God before our eyes.

Father, let Your Word of truth and love be strongly proclaimed this Christmas season. May Your Son, the Logos which created the world and holds it together, be revealed to us. May Your Spirit convict us of sin and guide us to the humble stable and to the torturous Cross so the Son may be born in our hearts and reconcile us to You. Hallelujah, Christ the Savior is born!

The King of Christmas: the Servant of the Lord

Today is the beginning of Advent: the celebration of the God who humbled Himself and came to seek and save the lost.

And we are all lost without Him! We are lost in our sin, unable to help ourselves and unwilling to submit ourselves to the rule of our rightful and gracious King. But the most wonderful thing about Christmas, the heart of the whole season, is God Himself. God in the Person of the Son came down to earth, was born as a real baby, grew up and lived His perfect life in our sight, and then died to pay for our sins and to provide a way for the holy, pure God to reconcile with unrighteous sinners.

Jesus came to us as the Servant of the Lord.

Behold My Servant, whom I uphold,
   My Chosen, in whom My soul delights;
I have put My Spirit upon Him;
    He will bring forth justice to the nations. (Isaiah 42:1, ESV)

God sent His Son, His Chosen, to bring justice to all the world. He sent Him quietly, humbly to a little, no-account town, to be born in a rude stable, attended only by His earthly parents, some animals, and poor shepherds.

Behold, My Servant shall act wisely;
   He shall be high and lifted up,
   and shall be exalted. (Isaiah 52:13, ESV)

All His life, Jesus would act wisely and in accordance with His Father's will. Jesus would teach sinful people what it looked like to live wholly dependent upon God, trusting Him fully, and living sinlessly. And indeed, Jesus is high and lifted up - at the moment in Heaven and by His chosen people, but in the future He will be esteemed and worshiped by all tribes and tongues and nations.

Who else has been called "the servant of the Lord"? Moses, of course. Moses, who left the riches and privilege of being a prince of Egypt and became a humble shepherd in the wilderness - just like Jesus, who left the glory of Heaven and came to live among us. David, too, was called the servant of the Lord - a poor, unknown shepherd boy, who God raised up to be the king of Israel, a man after God's own heart - just like Jesus, who lived in poverty, died an ignominious death, and is now raised up to sit at the right hand of the Father in Heaven, and who is the King of kings. Both Moses and David pictured the coming Christ, the Promised One, in their lives. Both men pointed to the coming glory of Immanuel - God with us.

But there is one more servant who should be mentioned. One more person who was a humble servant, submitting to God's will even though she didn't completely understand it: Mary.

And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?"

And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy— the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:30-38, ESV)

I don't understand it all, God. I cannot begin to grasp the width, height and depth of Your love for Your people. But I do see that You love a humble, willing servant. You cherish Your Son, who descended from Heaven to live among us as a servant to all, loving us, healing us, saving us. Father, please let Your Spirit have His way in my heart. Make me like Your Son, serving in joy, humility and patience, so that I may earn Your "Well done!" in Heaven when You call me Home. Thank You for Your wonderful salvation that You have worked in my life. I pray that You will call many of Your children to trust in You this Christmas season so that Your name and Your grace and Your love may be proclaimed throughout the world. All glory to our Savior Jesus, Servant of the Lord Most High!

The King of Christmas, Advent series for 2009 - next post... final post

Wednesday morning Spurgeon: He goes before us

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Always First in Fellowship
"He goeth before you into Gailee; there shall ye see Him, as He said unto you" (Mark 16:7).

Where He appointed to meet His disciples, there He would be in due time. Jesus keeps His trust. If He promises to meet us at the mercy seat, or in public worship, or in the ordinances, we may depend upon it that He will be there. We may wickedly stay away from the appointed meeting place, but He never does. He says, "Where two or three are met together in my name, there am I"; He says not, "There will I be," but, "I am there already." Jesus is always first in fellowship: "He goeth before you." His heart is with His people, His delight is in them, He is never slow to meet them. In all fellowship He goeth before us. But He reveals Himself to those who come after Him: "There shall ye see him." Joyful sight! We care not to see the greatest of mere men, but to see Him is to be filled with joy and peace. And we shall see Him, for He promises Himself to them. Rest assured that it will be so, for He does everything according to His word of promise: "As he said unto you." Catch at those last words, and be assured that to the end He will do for you "as he said unto you."

Jesus promised that He would never leave us nor forsake us, and as Spurgeon notes, He has promised to go before us as well. These great promises, along with so many others, bring great comfort to me - especially when I'm in a very Romans 7 mood, like today:

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched [woman] that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

I get so tired of dealing with the sin in my life; it's very wearying! I keep falling into the "I've got to DO something for God" attitude, and forget entirely that He wants me to love Him, to know Him, and to worship Him first and foremost. Again and again I fail and turn away, and again and again He calls me back and guides me on the path He wants.

He reminds me over and over again that He calls weary and burdened people to Himself, and He gives them rest:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Instead of casting all my cares upon Him, I keep insisting on carrying them myself - how foolish I am! Why can't I remember the simple truth in that old Sunday school song, "Jesus loves me, this I know... [I am] weak, but He is strong"?

Additionally, I need to remember that Romans 7 does not end in the hopeless cry of "Who will rescue me?!" but rather with this joyful declaration:

Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Jesus will rescue me, Jesus has rescued me, and Jesus will continue to rescue me all the days of my life and forever into eternity future. There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus! 

So I need to cling to the promises that Jesus will go before me and never leave me, and also trust Him when He says

... He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Phil 1:6)

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. (Phil. 2:12-13)

God cannot lie, and so I know that the work He has begun in me will be completed in His time and by His power to the praise and glory of His name.

Jesus has gone before me. He has never left me, but He also calls me come into His presence and find rest. He wants me in fellowship with Him, to receive love, grace, and strength to serve Him each day. His abundant kindness surrounds me every moment of every day, and the joy and gratitude I feel for that simple truth should fill my life with praise for my great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

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Your Tuesday Spurgeon - with some John Calvin, too!

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The Leadership of Our Guide

"Howbeit when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all Truth" (John 16:13).

Truth is like a vast cavern into which we desire to enter, but we are not able to traverse it alone. At the entrance it is clear and bright; but if we would go further and explore its innermost recesses, we must have a guide, or we shall lose ourselves. The Holy Spirit, who knows all truth perfectly, is the appointed guide of all true believers, and He conducts them as they are able to bear it, from one inner chamber to another, so that they behold the deep things of God, and His secret is made plain to them. What a promise is this for the humbly inquiring mind! We desire to know the truth and to enter into it. We are conscious of our own aptness to err, and we feel the urgent need of a guide. We rejoice that the Holy Spirit is come and abides among us. He condescends to act as a guide to us, and we gladly accept His leadership. "All truth" we wish to learn, that we may not be one-sided and out of balance. We would not be willingly ignorant of any part of revelation lest thereby we should miss blessing or incur sin. The Spirit of God has come that He may guide us into all truth: let us with obedient hearts hearken to His words and follow His lead.

It's interesting that I just finished up Chapter 5 of Book One in Calvin's Institutes yesterday. This chapter is entitled, "The Knowledge of God Conspicuous in the Creation and Continual Government of the World," and Calvin's main point seems to be that even with all the evidence from Creation around them and the witness of their conscience within them, fallen man persists in his willful suppression of the truth, and chooses to worship the false gods and demons conjured by his own fancies.

Spurgeon makes the point that, unless God guides us, we are to prone to fall into error. It is only in God that "true truth" is found, because all truth is God's truth. Spiritually, we cannot know the truth, because in our natural state, we are dead men - zombies immersed in sin's clutch, and the puppets of Satan. It is only when the Holy Spirit comes to convict us of sin and give us new life that we can turn to God and to the truth.

If we do not receive that new life from God, then

In vain for us, therefore, does Creation exhibit so many bright lamps lighted up to show forth the glory of its Author. Though they beam upon us from every quarter, they are altogether insufficient of themselves to lead us into the right path... When Paul says that that which may be known of God is manifested by the creation of the world, he does not mean such a manifestation as may be comprehended by the wit of man (Rom. 1:19); on the contrary, he shows that it has no further effect than to render us inexcusable (Acts 17:27)... But though God is not left without a witness, while, with numberless and varied acts of kindness, He woos men to the knowledge of Himself, yet they cease not to follow their own ways, in other words, deadly errors. (Institutes, Book 1, chapter 5, sec. 14)

We cannot plead ignorance, without being at the same time convicted by our own consciences both of sloth and ingratitude. It were, indeed, a strange defence [sic] for man to pretend that he has no ears to hear the truth, while dumb creatures have voices loud enough to declare it...But while man must bear the guilt of corrupting the seed of divine knowledge s wondrously deposited in his mind, and preventing it from bearing good and genuine fruit, it is still most true that we are not sufficiently instructed by that bare and simple, but magnificent testimony which the creatures bear to the glory of their Creator. For no sooner do we, from a survey of the world, obtain some slight knowledge of Deity, than we pass by the true God, and set up in His stead the dream and phantom of our own brain, drawing away the praise of justice, wisdom, and goodness from the fountain-head, and transferring it to some other quarter. (Ibid., sec. 15)

Thus, when Truth makes Himself known to us, we need to be very careful and humbly give Him the praise and glory, rather than ourselves. After all, compared to Him, we are certainly not "all that!" We need Him - we desperately need Him! - to teach and guide us, to lift us up out of the pit and place our feet on Christ, the solid Rock of our Salvation.

I mourn that I came to this so late in my life. The salvation I professed when I was a young teenager did not produce any fruit until my 30's, and so many years were wasted! So many habits and thought patterns now need to be broken and confessed, and I struggle with them daily. I pray that as God continues His work in me I will be more and more faithful, humble and obedient to His call and leadership in my life.

Um, yeah, er... About that Calvin's Institutes thing?

Can you tell I've fallen waaaaay behind on that? I mean, nothing since May?!

*sigh*

I guess, sometimes, I really set myself up for failure... But, on the other hand, my daily Bible readings are going quite well, and Tabletalk has been a huge help with that.

At any rate, I'm trying to get back to the Institutes, and have backed up a little to Book One, chapter four, "the Knowledge of God Stifled or Corrupted, Ignorantly or Maliciously," and these two sentences caught my eye:

Mingled vanity and pride appear in this, that when sinful men do seek after God, instead of ascending higher than themselves, as they ought to do, they measure Him by their own carnal stupidity, and, neglecting solid inquiry, fly off to indulge their curiosity in vain speculation. Hence, they do not conceive of Him in the character in which He is manifested, but imagine Him to be whatever their own rashness has devised.

Isn't that so true? All this "spirituality" these days is nothing but vain and prideful people making a little god in their own image. They don't like it when their God-given conscience reminds them of God's law in their hearts when they do something which offends Him, and so they'll say, for instance, "Oh, God is love, so He loves me no matter what I do!"

Well, that's true - but it's extremely one-dimensional. If you're a Christian, IF you're one of God's children, He will never leave you nor forsake you, and His love for you is perfect and unchanging. Nothing you do can make Him love you more, and nothing you do can make Him love you less. BUT! He loves His children too much to allow them to be disobedient and willful. God's plan is to conform His children to the image of His Son, and those who He loves, He will discipline when necessary.

And that applies only if you're His child; unbelievers do not have God's favor, they do not have His firm and unchanging love, and they bear His wrath, not His loving correction.

Wait... Was that a contradiction? Doesn't the Bible say that God loves the world? Yes, it does. After all, He causes the sun to shine and the rain to fall on the wicked and the righteous. He gives life to us all, and allows us to enjoy this glorious world He created, eat food He has provided, have friends and family and possessions - good and evil, saved and unsaved together receive the abundant blessings poured out from His hand.

But God's love for the unsaved is accompanied by His wrath, and one day His love will be taken away from those who refuse His Son's sacrifice, and they will eternally endure His righteous judgment and condemnation. Too many people stop at the end of John 3:16, and forget to read what follows:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

So, be very careful about the character of God. Be very careful to align your view of Him with how He has revealed Himself in the Bible. If you think He is only love and ignore His wrath, as in the example above, you may be in danger of not understanding your deep need for His mercy and salvation. If you go too far to the other side, you only see His wrath and judgment, and that may keep you from seeing that He loves you and is willing to rescue you if you will only trust and believe in Him.

Father, please help me to be wise and not stupid. Help me to see You as You are, and not how I wish You to be. Keep me from idle curiosity and vain speculation, but rather help me be grounded in Your word so I do not succumb to rash imagination. Let me live in Your presence, faithfully following the Captain of my salvation, Your perfect Son, Jesus Christ my Savior.

Amazing how archaeology keeps supporting the Bible...

A team of Egyptian archeologists have discovered ancient coins belonging to the era of Prophet Joseph bearing his name and image in the country.

...

Several coins belong to a period in which Joseph had lived in Egypt and bear his name and portrait. The unprecedented find from the time of the Pharaohs, provides decisive scientific evidence disproving previous theories that ancient Egyptians conducted their trade through barter. NAT/SC/DT

via www.presstv.ir

I hope that more information is published about these coins; the research on them should be fascinating. And, I'd love to see pictures, too!

UPDATE: Ah, there's quite a bit more information here.

Ten Commandments on ABC's Nightline - ABC News

via abcnews.go.com

I found this out from a post over on Mars Hill Church's FaceBook page, since ABC interviewed Pastor Mark for the second Commandment, "You shall have no other gods before Me."

There's a cutsey little quiz - "How big a sinner are you?" sort of thing - which, biblically speaking, is pretty worthless. The only way to pass the test is to get nothing less than 100% perfect non-sinner - and if you get that, you're a liar. We are ALL sinners and have fallen short of the glory of God, and ALL worthy of wrath and condemnation.

The quiz's middle range was "Earth Angel:" You're not perfect, but God knows you're trying, and that's all that counts. BEEEEEEEEEEEP! Wrong! One hundred percent perfection is the standard, and if you fail at any point, you are condemned. As it says in the epistle of James,

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.

That is why Christ had to come and die for our sins - there is no way any of us can live as perfect and sinless in any part or our life! Jesus, in His love and mercy for us, came down and lived a perfect life FOR us, and then died the death we should have so that the penalty and punishment for our sins could be paid in full. When He saves us, He clothes us in the perfect righteousness of His life, while at the same time applying His shed blood to completely pay for our sins - past, present, and future.

Christians can now live in freedom from the penalty of sin. Instead of following and obeying because we're terrified of the consequences - cringing and wincing like beaten dogs - now we can obey out of love and awe at all our great Savior has done for us.

At any rate, it looks like an interesting series, although I note a few flinch-worthy items:

1. I don't see the fifth Commandment, "Honor your father and mother," anywhere
2. The use of "Do not kill" vs. "Do not murder," along with an article about a person who teaches people how to commit suicide (!!!!)
3. A discussion of adultery/open marriage as a good thing (I didn't actually read/watch that - the squick factor was pretty much pegged for me)

I'm sure there are several more, which really shouldn't surprise me in a secular production. Still, props to Nightline for even discussing the topic, I suppose...

Thursday morning Spurgeon

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"The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon"   (Psalm 92:12).

These trees are not trained and pruned by man: palms and cedars are "trees of the LORD," and it is by His care that they flourish. Even so it is with the saints of the LORD: they are His own care. These trees are evergreen and are beautiful objects at all seasons of the year. Believers are not sometimes holy and sometimes ungodly: they stand in the beauty of the LORD under all weathers. Everywhere these trees are noteworthy: no one can gaze upon a landscape in which there are either palms or cedars without his attention being fixed upon these royal growths. The followers of Jesus are the observed of all observers: like a city set on a hill, they cannot be hid. The child of God flourishes like a palm tree, which pushes all its strength upward in one erect column without a single branch. It is a pillar with a glorious capital. It has no growth to the right or to the left but sends all its force heavenward and bears its fruit as near the sky as possible. LORD, fulfill this type in me. The cedar braves all storms and grows near the eternal snows, the LORD Himself filling it with a sap which keeps its heart warm and its bough strong. LORD, so let it be with me, I pray Thee. Amen.

via www.crosswalk.com

While we are not righteous in ourselves, and although we only poorly reflect the holiness and glory of God, still we are His. He has given us the beautiful raiment of the perfection of His Son, and we may stand before Him with all our sins covered and paid for by the shed blood of Christ.

Father, may we never forget but instead grow ever more aware of Your great love for us. Mold us and make us, shape us as the potter does the clay, until we are conformed to the image of Your Son.

Forgive us our pride and stubbornness, which lead us to do things our way and not Yours. Help us to follow after You humbly, willing to be led and taught by the only One who knows the end from the beginning and who works all things together for good. Help us - help me - put ourselves aside and live for You. Help us be people whose lives are a praise and a sweet aroma to You, so that we may flourish like the palm and grow strong like the cedar.

Jack Black: an idiot of colossal proportions

The 40-year-old "comedian" Jack Black went on the "dark side" during the MTV Awards praying to the devil.  Black, who was promoting  a heavy metal video game called Brütal Legend, asked the "Dear Dark Lord Satan" to bless the rock star nominees with "continued success in the music industry."

via christianpress.com

This is one reason why I never watch any of these award shows anymore. I mean, why should I? I think the only award show that doesn't seem to go out of its way to offend Christians (besides the Dove Awards - d'uh!) is the Country Music Awards. Country music appears to be the only genre outside of Christian Music where it's still wrong to bash Christians.

Of course, I see idiocy like this - I mean, asking Satan to bless anything! [rolls eyes] - and I am reminded of Galatians 6:7-8 -

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

God is perfectly able to mete out perfect justice; He is merely being patient until His appointed time.

Frankly, I wouldn't want to be in Jack Black's shoes - I'm far more content to be covered by the Blood and Righteousness of Christ, considering that's the only way to escape the wrath of God...

"... the things that are unseen are eternal."

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18, ESV)

This is a timely reminder for me. In today's Scripture reading (2 Cor. 4, for the New Testament portion), Paul speaks about his ministry. He stresses that the Gospel is not about him or any of his fellow workers, but rather about Christ. Everything he does, all the trials he goes through, all the physical torments he's endured are all to proclaim Christ in power and in truth.

Paul also reminds his readers that it is not his power, but God's - we are all but crude earthen vessels: unattractive, fragile, and unworthy. But God has chosen His children, flawed though we may be, and placed within us a treasure beyond compare: God Himself has chosen us as His dwelling place!

And so, "we do not lose heart." Even though I fail, even though I reflect His perfect glory in a chipped and damaged mirror, still His Spirit dwells within me, a pearl beyond price, a treasure more beautiful than gold or diamonds.

My outer being is cracked and worn, an unassuming and drab earthen vessel. What people can see of me is slowly being worn away, aging and decaying - and that's normal. That's OK. I know that I am only a sojourner and pilgrim on an earth that is not my home. This is a momentary affliction, transient and finite.

But that which is within me is eternal and glorious! By God's grace, His Spirit within me is changing and molding me so that one day I really will be fit for the "eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." This eternal part of me shows through the cracks occasionally, trying to widen and enlarge them so that it can shine through more and more, renewing me, reviving me, remaking me in the image of Christ.

One day, the vessel will shatter, or dissolve, or disappear, and the Unseen will be Seen, and I shall behold the face of my God and Savior to be clothed in a new vessel which will perfectly reflect His infinite glory for all eternity.

How often we get caught up in the here-and-now, forgetting that we are immortal beings, created in God's image. Some of us cannot help it because we are only crude and worthless vessels with nothing inside. The here-and-now is all these empty vessels have; it is the closest to Heaven and perfect joy they will ever come.

But those of us who are members of God's family - God's Chosen People, claimed and redeemed by the shed blood of His Son - must look beyond what we can see and touch and taste and feel. We must live for and remember our infinitely greater hope: this is the closest to Hell we will ever come, for the Treasure within us will one day break free, and

...no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
   nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love Him (1 Cor. 2:9)

Thus, the question is: What is hidden in your earthly, worn, flawed vessel? Is it more of the same? Or is it the glorious treasure of God's Spirit dwelling within you? Are you a vessel destined for destruction? Or have you placed yourself into the Potter's hand so that He may transform you into a worthy vessel to bear the weight of glory beyond comprehension?

Christian, do not lose heart. The way can be hard, you may be discouraged, but God has promised to complete His good work in you. Continue in the race, take up your cross, do the work He has laid before you, and follow diligently after Him, for it is God's plan and His power working in you to do His good pleasure.

Christian, do not lose heart. The God of all truth has given His promise, and He will fulfill it. The Day has been appointed, and He will return for His own.

And then,

this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

    "Death is swallowed up in victory."

Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

(crossposted to Virginia Virtucon)

Your Monday dose of Charles Spurgeon: Faith's Checkbook for August 31

Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for

   "All flesh is like grass
   and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
   and the flower falls,
but the word of the Lord remains forever."

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

via www.biblegateway.com

Spurgeon only quotes the last verse, "...but the word of the Lord remains forever. And this word is the good news that was preached to you" and then adds:

Image via Wikipedia

All human teaching and, indeed, all human beings shall pass away as the grass of the meadow; but we are here assured that the Word of the LORD is of a very different character, for it shall endure forever. We have here a divine gospel; for what word can endure forever but that which is spoken by the eternal God? We have here an ever-living gospel, as full of vitality as when it first came from the lips of God; as strong to convince and convert, to regenerate and console, to sustain and sanctify as ever it was in its first days of wonder-working. We have an unchanging gospel which is not today green grass and tomorrow dry hay but always the abiding truth of the immutable Jehovah. Opinions alter, but truth certified by God can no more change than the God who uttered it. Here, then, we have a gospel to rejoice in, a word of the LORD upon which we may lean all our weight. "For ever" includes life, death, judgment, and eternity. Glory be to God in Christ Jesus for everlasting consolation. Feed on the word today and all the days of thy life. (via CrossWalk)

Indeed. The Word of God does last forever, and it will not return to Him void. It will accomplish what He means it to do, and none can gainsay its power and effectiveness. It reveals that the wisdom of man is still absurdity compared to the wisdom of God.

Let unsaved men rail against God. Let them try to deny Him. Let them ignore the truth of His existence and who He is witnessed by Creation itself. Let them shake their fists in His face...

... at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10-11)

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. (Galatians 6:7-8)

Let them.

One Day, God will mete out His perfect justice, and they will stand mute before Him.

His Word - the written word and the Living Word - will prevail.

In depth study: Romans 5:1

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1, ESV)

My thoughts on Spurgeon's Bible meditation inspired me to get serious again with my study of the book of Romans. For several years, it has been my desire to memorize Romans 5 through 8 (and who knows, maybe one day the entire book!), and it has unfortunately been an on-again off-again ambition.

But Spurgeon inspired me to try again, so I pulled out Romans 5 and am giving it another go. This time, I'm going to try not to memorize, exactly, but rather to really get to know each verse - to take it apart, put it back together, kick the tires, and understand how it actually works.

One good thing that has already happened is that I got a chance to show the Darling Munchkin a glimpse into the fascinating and rewarding world of serious Bible study. I took her to the Blue Letter Bible site and demonstrated some of the wonderfully powerful study tools they have. The Blue Letter Bible's resources are what I use when I'm doing a down-and-dirty-serious study, so pretty much all of my citations here will be from them. It's a fantastic site, and I am grateful for all their hard work!

So, let's begin...

The monster brain-exploding post from Hades is on its way

Yesterday's post about the Bible meditation from Spurgeon totally grabbed me up into some serious Bible study. So, for the past - oh, I dunno - six hours? (cumulative), I've been doing a study on Romans 5:1

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

It's FIVE PAGES, printed, already - but thank God I'm writing my last point right now (well, OK, at this particular moment I'm procrastinating), so it's probably 85% done.

ONE verse. FIVE (probably will end up seven) pages!

And where was this motivation when I had to write essays in school?! ;-)

Anyway, I should have it done and edited by this afternoon, so... Be ready!

God Above Human Philosophy - Charles Spurgeon

Image via Wikipedia

"For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent"   (1 Corinthians 1:19).

This verse is a threatening so far as the worldly wise are concerned, but to the simple believer it is a promise. The professedly learned are forever trying to bring to nothing the faith of the humble believer, but they fail in their attempts. Their arguments break down, their theories fall under their own weight, their deep-laid plots discover themselves before their purpose is accomplished. The old gospel is not extinct yet, nor will it be while the LORD liveth. If it could have been exterminated, it would have perished from off the earth long ago. We cannot destroy the wisdom of the wise, nor need we attempt it, for the work is in far better hands. The LORD Himself says, "I will," and He never resolves in vain. Twice does He in this verse declare His purpose, and we may rest assured that He will not turn aside from it. What clean work the LORD makes of philosophy and "modern thought" when He puts His hand to it! He brings the fine appearance down to nothing; He utterly destroys the wood, hay, and stubble. It is written that so it shall be, and so shall it be. LORD, make short work of it. Amen, and amen.

via bible.oneplace.com

This is today's devotional from Charles Haddon Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook devotional, hosted at OnePlace.com. It really reminded me that in 1 Corinthians 1 and 2 the Apostle Paul reminds us that God's wisdom - the only true wisdom - is disdained by unsaved man:

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Cor 1:18)

For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. (1 Cor 1:25)

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor 2:14)

So I should not be surprised when unsaved people heap scorn and derision upon God's Word and His people. They cannot help it, because they are dead in sin, they are hostile to God

For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:7-8)

I need to remember that God is God! He is above all things and there is nothing and no one that can thwart His will. When He brings history to a close, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Therefore, it doesn't matter what eyebrows are raised when I say I believe in a literal six day creation. It doesn't matter that people's jaws drop in astonishment when I say I believe in the miracles of the Bible. It doesn't matter when people roll their eyes and mock me when I say I believe in the literal, physical resurrection of Jesus from the dead. It doesn't matter when people laugh and say, "Oh, you just use religion as a crutch!"

My faith is in Christ, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. His Spirit lives in me and has raised me from spiritual death and given me His wisdom and His love and His promises.

So let them mock.

But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me. (2 Tim 1:12)

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• -Have the Bones of the Apostle Paul Really Been Found? (answersforthefaith.com)

Well, if you're speaking biblically....!

* Religious attitudes are a major source of sexual prejudice. For LGBT people of color, many of whom are regular churchgoers, the conflict is acute. More than half of LGBT people of color interviewed feel treated like sinners by their ethnic and racial communities, and faith communities are among the places LGBT people of color feel least accepted;

via www.salon.com

It's a very interesting article, but this particular paragraph jumps out at me. To be perfectly frank, if unrepentant sinners are "treated like sinners by their... faith communities" (specifically, Christian faith communities), I'm surprised that they're so surprised!

Look, I understand that Christians still sin (hello! I look in the mirror every day!), and that some churches and denominations often pick the sin of homosexuality as a convenient target and seem to use it as the "unforgivable sin." I understand that, and I condemn it - because we are all still sinners, and even Christians stumble and fail in their walk with God every day.

But the point is that a Christian is to live a life of repentance. When we are confronted by God's Word with sin in our lives, we are to renounce that sin and turn away from it - but too often we're far more inclined to try and twist Scripture to make it say something it doesn't so that we can remain in our sin.

Frankly, that's hardly a godly and holy thing to do, folks! When you read the Bible at face value, it says that homosexuality (and stealing, and lust, and coveting, and bitterness, and laziness, and...) is a SIN. Period. And the Bible is quite clear on what we are supposed to do with people who claim to be Christians but who refuse to put away (or even TRY to put away) their sin:

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father’s wife. And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you.

It's a serious and solemn thing to have to do. And the goal of this excommunication is NOT for the "good" Christians to get all hoity-toity and I'm-so-much-better-than-you about it. No. The Christians who remain in the church are to pray diligently that the lost sheep will repent and return. Those who remain are to consider their own lives and strive to diligently follow their Savior. Those who haven't had to be cast out are to walk carefully and humbly, lest they, too, should fail in their witness for Christ.

So, if you're an LGBT person who is feeling condemned by your (hopefully) Bible-believing church, how about you take a look at God's Word with the rest of us sinners, and work with Him to change your life to reflect His holiness and righteousness? Because, frankly, the rest of us liars, cheaters, shirkers, fornicators, and coveters would like to help you conquer sin while you help us do the same.

Just sayin'.

This morning's verse... (UPDATE: and song)

Yep. Two days in a row in my quest to get back to regular, consistent Bible reading (hey, one day at a time!)!

This morning the reading selection from the Old Testament included Psalm 59, and these verses really continue the theme I began yesterday:

But I will sing of Your strength;
   I will sing aloud of Your steadfast love in the morning.
For You have been to me a fortress
   and a refuge in the day of my distress.

O my Strength, I will sing praises to You,
   for You, O God, are my fortress,
    the God who shows me steadfast love.

And Third Day does it again with their song, "Born Again":

Today I found myself,
After searching all these years,
And the man that I saw,
He wasn't at all who I'd thought He'd be,

I was lost when You found me here,
And I was broken beyond repair,
Then You came along and sang Your song over me

Chorus 1

It feels like I'm born again
It feels like I'm living
For the very first time
For the very first time,
In my life

Verse 2

Make a promise to me now,
Reassure my heart somehow,
That the love that I feel,
is so much more real than anything
[Born Again Lyrics On http://www.elyricsworld.com/ ]
I've a feeling in my soul,
And I pray that I'm not wrong,
That the life I have now,
It is only the beginning

Chorus 2

It feels like I'm born again
It feels like I'm living
For the very first time
For the very first time

It feels like I'm breathing
It feels like I'm moving
For the very first time
For the very first time

Bridge

I wasn't looking for something that was more,
Than what I had yesterday,
Then You came to me,
Then You gave to me,
Life and a love that I've never known,
That I've never felt before

Final Chorus

It feels like I'm born again
It feels like I'm living
For the very first time
I'm living for the first time

It feels like I'm breathing
It feels like I'm moving
For the very first time
I'm living for the first time,
In my life

I waited on the LORD, and He inclined to me and heard my cry

My post this morning about some of the frustrations I've been having with my walk with God has drawn some wonderfully encouraging and helpful feedback (thank You, God, for these friend's You've given me!), and I decided to do a sort of follow-up based on a couple of songs I was listening to on my way home this evening.

Verse of the Day

Since my brother Michael posted Micah 6:8 for his verse today, I thought I'd post mine... Mainly because I'm having issues with it. Since the beginning of June, I've been having real issues with reading my Bible daily - heck, reading it WEEKLY - and it's getting me down. My nasty, sordid sins are creeping back into my life, and I haven't been in the Word so it can lead me to the Cross for forgiveness and cleansing... [headdesk]

Not. GOOD! [gives self a Jethro slap]

So... I thought I'd give myself some scriptural help. First, from John's first epistle:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

And then from the magnificent book of Romans:

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Reading my Bible, turning to my Father for help and forgiveness... These aren't things that I have to do as much as they are things that I get to do because of His love and sacrifice.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to occupy myself the next little while by catching up on my Father's love letter to me, and having a good, long talk with Him.

For your Fourth of July meditaion, the National Hymn "God of Our Fathers"

"God of Our Fathers" was written by Daniel C. Roberts in 1876 (one would assume for our Centennial) and set to music already composed by George William Warren. The CompleteLee Blog has a little Bible study, and goes a little deeper into the history of the song. More information can be found here, here and here.

God of our fathers, whose almighty hand,
Lead forth in beauty all the starry band
Of shining worlds in splendor thro' the skies,
Our grateful songs before Thy throne arise.

And how ungrateful we have become, to turn away from the One True God who brought this country into being. How sad that the songs lifted up in faith and praise to Divine Providence have faded into a background murmur! How foolish we have become, to deny His presence and power, which are proclaimed throughout Creation!

Thy love divine hath led us in the past,
In this free land by Thee our lot is cast;
Be thou our ruler, guardian, guide and stay,
Thy word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.

Father, we have turned astray from the faith and love that built this nation under Your guidance. We reject Your good law and immerse ourselves in sin and unrighteousness, we kill our own children for convenience's sake and praise vain and selfish people rather than simple, honest and good citizens. Father, lay Your hand upon this nation once again to turn us back to You in faith, trust and obedience!

From war's alarms, from deadly pestilence,
Be Thy strong arm our ever strong defense;
Thy true religion in our hearts increase,
Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.

Only God can bring peace, and where the Spirit of God is, there is true liberty. It is the freedom to act with dignity and self-control, simply and humbly living for others according to God's will. It is the peace which passes all understanding, with which we can face the greatest bounty and the sorrows of war with hope and confidence, keeping our eye on the God who holds all history in His hand.

Refresh thy people on their toilsome way,
Lead us from night to never ending day;
Fill all our lives with love and grace divine,
And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine.

Return, O Lord! Return to us and turn our hearts to You! Renew within us a right spirit, renew our minds with the washing of Your grace and Your word! Take away our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh that love Your commands and long to obey them! Make us into a people of praise, living Your precepts, worshiping You in spirit and in truth. Let Your work in this nation and in our hearts and lives be proclaimed to the glory of Your name throughout the world!

And though I despise the heresy of their church, you can't deny the beauty of the voices of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir:

Morning thoughts from Calvin's Institutes

I've just started reading Institutes of the Christian Religion, and it is slow going. It takes a lot of thought because I really want to understand it as well as remember it.

This is the passage which really came to my attention this morning; it's from Book One, chapter 2 "What it is to know God - tendency of this knowledge" (I've made some small changes in the text to make things a wee bit more clear) -

For, first of all, the pious mind does not devise for itself any kind of god, but looks alone to the one true God; nor does it feign for Him any character it pleases, but is contented to have Him in the character in which He manifests Himself, always guarding, with the utmost diligence, against transgressing His will, and wandering, with daring presumption, from the right path.

He by whom God is thus known, perceiving how He governs all things, confided in Him as his guardian and protector, and casts himself entirely upon [God's] faithfulness - perceiving Him to be the source of every blessing, if he is in any strait or feels any want, he instantly recurs to His protection and trusts to His aid - persuaded that [God] is good and merciful, he reclines upon Him with sure confidence, and doubts not that, in the divine clemency, a remedy will be provided for his every time of need - acknowledging Him as his Father and his Lord, he considers himself bound to have respect to His authority in all things, to reverence His majesty, aim at the advancement of His glory, and obey His commands - regarding [God] as a just judge, armed with severity to punish crimes, he keeps the judgment seat always in his view. Standing in awe of it, he curbs himself, and fears to provoke [God's] anger.

The whole point of this section seems to me to be that, the better one knows God - the real and only God - as He has revealed Himself to us in Scripture and the created world, the more one desires to be more like Him. The better I know God, the more I understand His will for me to be holy and righteous like Him. The better I know my Bible, the better I know God, and the better I know HOW God wants me to act, think and worship.

I think a selection from Psalm 25 would be suitable to wrap this up:

Good and upright is the LORD;
   therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in what is right,
   and teaches the humble his way.
All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness,
   for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

For your name’s sake, O LORD,
   pardon my guilt, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the LORD?
   Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
His soul shall abide in well-being,
   and his offspring shall inherit the land.
The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him,
   and he makes known to them his covenant.
My eyes are ever toward the LORD,
   for he will pluck my feet out of the net.

The Sunday Gospel

I've gotta get this out... This is a "reprint," so to speak, of my response to a discussion I've been having with friends. We started with the topic of church discipline, and I had to say some very... hard things. So, below the fold is my response to these dear friends: