Natural Explanations and A Supernatural God

By J. Warner Wallace 2/6/2015

     I get lots of email from skeptics. Much of this email is related to miracles. People want to know why Christians are so quick to attribute an event (or healing) to the miraculous intervention of a supernatural God, especially when it appears that a natural force may be offered as an explanation. After all, even Moses reported that a “strong east wind” blew all night prior to the parting of the red sea ( Exodus 14:21 ). Maybe this natural occurrence was simply interpreted as a miracle after the fact. In a similar way, Thallus (the 1st Century Roman historian) attributed the darkness at the crucifixion to “an eclipse of the sun”; another reasonable natural occurrence that may have been misinterpreted as a miracle by those who were inclined toward the miraculous.

     Modern day Christians also make claims about the supernatural intervention of God, and to many skeptics, these claims seem unwarranted. When someone claims God healed them from cancer, but admits they underwent a year of chemotherapy and radiation, it’s difficult for non-believers to credit the healing to God. It seems just as likely the “natural” interaction of the treatment was responsible. See the problem? When skeptics find evidence “natural” forces or laws are in play, they quickly dismiss any claim of supernatural activity. But the involvement of “natural” forces does NOT preclude the activity of a “supernatural” God.

     Can God Use the “Laws of Nature”? | My dog, Baily, occasionally begs for a chew toy or dog treat. When one of these coveted items is sitting on the dining room table, she is frustrated beyond words (or barks). Bailey’s Corgi stature prohibits her from making the necessary leap to the tabletop. Her incessant whining will usually provoke one of us to come over and knock the treat from the table so it can fall to the ground for her. Without our intervention as a free agent, the natural force of gravity would never deliver the treat to Bailey. Strictly speaking, it could be said the force of gravity provided the treat. But we know our personal intervention was necessary, even though this intervention utilized the force of gravity as a means to an end. God most certainly works in the same way. God often engages the environment He created in a manner employing the physical laws reflecting His nature. Over time, we’ve observed and identified these divine characteristics and given them a title: “The Laws of Nature”. But the laws describing the interaction between material objects don’t preclude the existence or intervention of a Divine Free Agent who intercedes to “knock something from the table.” God’s free agency actively engages the laws reflecting his ordered, unified and consistent nature.

     A “Supernatural” God in the “Natural” World? | But how can we, as reasonable Christian observers, tell the difference between a series of “unguided,” “natural” occurrences, and a series of events guided by the hand of God? How can we differentiate between a purely “natural” event and a uniquely “divine” miracle? Well, I think we begin by recognizing all “natural,” physical processes in the universe are sustained by God ( Hebrews 1:3, John 5:17 ). The physics of the universe are simply a reflection of the active participation of God in his creation. It’s easy to separate the “divine” from the “natural” and think of the world in categories and boxes. Yet, this is not how the Christian Scriptures describe God’s creation. When we fail to see the forces of nature as the hand of God, we end up justifying all of God’s divine interaction as some form of “natural” coincidence. If we do this long enough, we’ll eventually fail to recognize those moments when God’s free agency is evident; those times when God clearly had to act dramatically to “knock something from the table.”

(Heb 1:3) 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,   ESV

(Jn 5:17) 17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”   ESV

     All of us, regardless of worldview, acknowledge the existence of at least one “extra-natural” cause. Whatever caused the universe and created all space, time and matter (the very definition of the ‘natural’ realm), must itself be non-spatial, a-temporal and non-material. This first cause is extra-natural by definition. If this extra-natural cause is personal, there is little reason to reject the reasonable possibility such a cause could choose to interact with its creation. So next time your inclined to attribute something miraculous to a “natural” cause, consider the source of all the physical laws governing the universe. The Divine Being responsible for these laws certainly has the power to act “miraculously”.

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James "Jim" Warner Wallace (born June 16, 1961) is an American homicide detective and Christian apologist. Wallace is a Senior Fellow at the Colson Center for Christian Worldview and an Adjunct Professor of Apologetics at Biola University in La Mirada, California. He has authored several books, including Cold-Case Christianity, God’s Crime Scene, and Forensic Faith, in which he applies principles of cold case homicide investigation to apologetic concerns such as the existence of God and the reliability of the Gospels.

• Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels

• God's Crime Scene: A Cold-Case Detective Examines the Evidence for a Divinely Created Universe

• Alive: A Cold-Case Approach to the Resurrection

• Cold-Case Christianity for Kids: Investigate Jesus with a Real Detective

• Keeping Your Kids on God's Side: 40 Conversations to Help Them Build a Lasting Faith

• Forensic Faith: A Homicide Detective Makes the Case for a More Reasonable, Evidential Christian Faith

How to Lose the Things You Love

By Stephen Witmer 7/5/2017

     In a fascinating 1942 essay, C.S. Lewis offered a “universal law” of human experience:

     Every preference of a small good to a great, or partial good to a total good, involves the loss of the small or partial good for which the sacrifice is made. . . . You can’t get second things by putting them first. You get second things only by putting first things first. (“First and Second Things,” in God in the Dock)

     In other words, overvaluing a lesser good results, paradoxically, in losing it. In a letter to his friend Dom Bede Griffiths, Lewis expanded on his observation, “Put first things first and we get second things thrown in: put second things first and we lose both first and second things.”

     Lewis applied his law of firsts and seconds to everyday life. The woman who makes her dog the center of her life loses “not only her human usefulness and dignity but even the proper pleasure of dog-keeping.” The man who focuses solely on the woman he loves, doing nothing but contemplating her, eventually loses the pleasure of loving her, as well as all the other things that make life rich and enjoyable. On a much larger scale, Lewis believed that the civilization of his day was imperiled because it had been putting itself first, rather than second to a higher good.

(Lk 6:24–26) 24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.
25 “Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry.
“Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.
26 “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.   ESV

     These four woes match the four Beatitudes that come immediately before them, each of which describes future blessing from God in his eternal kingdom (“you shall be satisfied, you shall laugh”). Correspondingly, the woes describe an eternal state of divine judgment upon God’s enemies.

     It may appear, at first sight, as though Jesus warns his hearers not to be rich, full, happy, or well-regarded. But, as J.C. Ryle pointed out long ago, Abraham and Job were rich, with plenty to eat; King David laughed and rejoiced; and Timothy had a good reputation, as did the seven men appointed to serve the church in Acts 6. So, what is Jesus actually warning against?

No Good Apart from God

     The key is the last phrase of the fourth woe: “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.” Jesus warns not against a good reputation per se, but specifically the sort of good reputation enjoyed by the false prophets. We’re in danger of divine judgment when we’re well-thought-of for ungodly reasons, when we say what’s not true to gain the good opinion of others, sacrificing truth for popularity.

     This helps us understand Jesus’s woes. Jesus doesn’t pronounce woe upon all who are rich, but upon those who find their consolation in riches rather than in God — who treasure their wealth above God. Jesus doesn’t pronounce woe upon all who are satisfied, but upon those who place the satisfaction of their appetites above God.

     Jesus doesn’t pronounce woe upon all joyful people, but upon those who seek happiness apart from God. The problem is not wealth, food, laughter, or reputation in and of themselves. It’s the idolatry of elevating such things above God. When that happens, the law of firsts and seconds applies, forever.

Do You Love It Enough to Love It Less?

     Consider the first woe: “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” God is a first thing. Money is a second thing. Yet we know it’s easy to trust money more than God, pursue it harder than we pursue God, and use it for ourselves rather than for God. Wealth may become our protector and comforter.

     Jesus says that if we put wealth above God, we’ve already received all the consolation we’ll ever get; namely, our present bank account, investment portfolio, and retirement plan. But this consolation will not last long, because God’s judgment will fall. If we pursue wealth more than God, we’ll lose God and also, eventually, our wealth.

     In Luke 12, Jesus tells a parable about a rich man who trusts in his wealth, plans to build bigger barns to store his crops, and looks forward to relaxing, eating, drinking, and being merry. God calls him a fool and tells him he’ll die that night. Jesus says, “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God” ( Luke 12:21 ). He valued God’s gifts over God, and therefore, in the end, was left with neither God nor gift.

What About Food?

     The same is true in Jesus’s second woe: “Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry.” It’s wonderful to prepare and eat a delicious meal. When God is firmly first in our lives, a world of guilt-free, God-glorifying culinary pleasure opens before us. We enjoy food more because we know who made it and gave it. Putting first things first, we get second things thrown in.

     But when we let our stomachs rule, we begin to live for meal times. We think about food too much. We draw too much comfort from it. We overeat. Thus, we minimize our present enjoyment of food, feeling stuffed, overweight, and enslaved. And in the end, we lose the enjoyment altogether. We’re hungry, dissatisfied, and empty forever.

Love Everything for God’s Sake

     No matter what gift you can think of — reputation, money, sex, influence, music, even the love of family and friends — the principle remains the same: the best way to destroy your joy in them (and, more importantly, your soul) is to seek them above or in place of God.

     Jesus is most emphatically not against our enjoyment of God-given pleasures. But if we place gifts before God, he warns we will lose both.

     Augustine prayed, “He loves Thee too little who loves anything together with Thee, which he loves not for Thy sake.” Jesus wants us to enjoy both God and his gifts. We will have both forever if — and only if — we keep God first.

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Stephen Witmer is the pastor of Pepperell Christian Fellowship in Pepperell, Massachusetts, and teaches New Testament at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He previously served with John Piper at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minnesota, and is a member of the editorial board of the Gospel Coalition's journal Themelios. He and his wife, Emma, have three children.

Stephen Witmer Books:

• 1     Revelation: A 12-Week Study (Knowing the Bible)
• 2     Eternity Changes Everything
• 3     Jonah: The Depths of Grace (Good Book Guide)

The Absurdity of Moral Relativism: A Student's Perpsective

By Sean McDowell 7/4/2017

     When I was a full-time high school teacher, one of my favorite assignments was to have my students develop a creative project to illustrate what would follow if moral relativism were true. Students wrote stories, composed songs, made short films, and more.

     My all-time favorite was a short poem written by a high school senior. She captures the moral absurdity that would follow if morality were truly relative to the individual:

     “If Relativism Were True”

     The trigger’s pulled, heart cold as stone. Body thrown into the sea. No tears are shed, though his brother is dead. He says “It was right for me.”

     A woman is bruised, all black and blue. She silently drinks her tea. Her husband’s eyes conceal the lies. He says, “It was right for me.”

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Sean McDowell, Ph.D. is a professor of Christian Apologetics at Biola University, a best-selling author of over 18 books, an internationally recognized speaker, a part-time high school teacher, and the Resident Scholar for Summit, California. Follow him on Twitter: @sean_mcdowell and his blog: seanmcdowell.org.Books By Sean McDowell

Books By Sean McDowell

• 1     Is God Just a Human Invention? And Seventeen Other Questions Raised by the New Atheists
• 2     A New Kind of Apologist: *Adopting Fresh Strategies *Addressing the Latest Issues *Engaging the Culture
• 3     The Beauty of Intolerance: Setting a Generation Free to Know Truth and Love
• 4     Same-Sex Marriage: A Thoughtful Approach to God's Design for Marriage (Thoughtful Response)
• 5     ETHIX: Being Bold in a Whatever World
• 6     More Than a Carpenter
• 7     77 FAQs About God and the Bible: Your Toughest Questions Answered (The McDowell Apologetics Library)
• 8     Apologetics for a New Generation: A Biblical and Culturally Relevant Approach to Talking About God (ConversantLife.com®)
• 9     Same-Sex Marriage: A Thoughtful Approach to God's Design for Marriage (Thoughtful Response)
• 10    Understanding Intelligent Design: Everything You Need to Know in Plain Language (ConversantLife.com®)
• 11    The Fate of the Apostles: Examining the Martyrdom Accounts of the Closest Followers of Jesus
• 12    The Bible Handbook of Difficult Verses: A Complete Guide to Answering the Tough Questions (The McDowell Apologetics Library)

The Ascension

By R.C. Sproul 3/1/2010

     These men had spent three years in a state of unspeakable joy. They had witnessed what no human beings before them had ever seen in the entire course of history. Their eyes peered openly at things angels themselves longed to look into but were unable. Their ears heard what ancient saints had a fierce desire to hear with their own ears. These men were the disciples of Jesus of Nazareth. They were His students. They were His companions. Where He went, they went. What He said, they heard. What He did, they saw with their own eyes. These were the original eyewitnesses of the earthly ministry of the Son of God.

     But one day, these men heard from the lips of their teacher the worst of all possible news. Jesus told them that He was leaving them. He told them that the days of their intimate companionship in this world were coming to a hasty end. Imagine the shock and profound panic that filled the hearts of these disciples when Jesus said that it was just about over.

     In John 16 we read what Jesus said: “‘A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.’ So some of his disciples said to one another, ‘What is this that he says to us, “A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me”; and, “because I am going to the Father”?’ So they were saying, ‘What does he mean by “a little while”? We do not know what he is talking about.’

     “Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, ‘Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, “A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me”? Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you’” (John 16:16–22).

     Just shortly before this enigmatic statement, Jesus had said to His disciples: “But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” (vv. 5–7).

     In the first instance, Jesus says that their hearts will not simply be touched by sorrow or grief or disappointment, but there will be a fullness of sorrow that saturates the chambers of their hearts. They will be overcome with grief. Their mourning will reach the limits of its human capacity. But Jesus says the condition that they will experience will be temporary, that the sense of abandonment they may feel for a moment will give way to unspeakable joy.

     Jesus also explains why He must leave them. He says that it is expedient or necessary for Him to go away so that the disciples may be filled with the Holy Spirit. What sounds like an absolute disadvantage, Jesus promises will turn into an advantage. In Acts 1:9–11 we read, “And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’” The disciples watched Jesus leave them. They gazed, staring intently into the heavens as long as their eyes had any sight of Him, at which point two angels came and asked them why they were staring into heaven. The angels then told them that the same Jesus who visibly and bodily ascended would come in like manner at a later time.

     Luke tells us in his gospel account of the ascension (24:50–53): “Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God.” We notice here the complete fulfillment of what Jesus had predicted — the fullness of their sorrow that had completely engulfed them at the hearing of the news of His departure, had given way not only to contentment, not only to acceptance, not only to joy, but to a great and fulfilling joy. They returned from their last sight of Jesus with their hearts filled with elation. How can that be? The obvious answer is found in that the disciples came to understand the significance of the ascension. As hard as it was to fathom, they came to believe that Jesus’ absence from them was of more benefit than His bodily presence with them, the reason being where He was going and what He was about to undertake.

     In John 3:13 Jesus declared, “No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.” That verse sounds difficult at first glance when we realize that in the Old Testament, Enoch ascended into heaven in the sense that he was carried there, as was Elijah when the chariots of fire lifted him up into the heavens. When Jesus speaks of ascension, He’s not speaking of merely “going up.” He is speaking of something in technical terms. He is thinking in terms of the Psalms of Ascent that celebrated the anointing of a king (Pss. 120–34). When Jesus says no one ascends into heaven, it is true that no one ascends or goes to heaven in the same manner or for the same purpose that He went there. He was lifted up on clouds of glory in order to go to His Father for the purpose of His coronation as our King — as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He ascended into heaven to fulfill His role as our Great High Priest, interceding for His people daily. So as He sits at the right hand of the Father, exercising His lordship over the whole world and His intercession before the Father on behalf of His people, He improves our condition dramatically. Not only this, but before Pentecost could come and the Holy Spirit could be poured out upon the church, empowering the church for its missionary enterprise to the whole world, it was necessary for Christ to ascend so that together with the Father He might dispatch from heaven the Holy Spirit in all of His power.

     As hard as it is to imagine, the condition that we enjoy right now on this side of the atonement, on this side of the resurrection, this side of the ascension, and this side of Pentecost is, redemptively speaking, a greater situation than that which the disciples enjoyed during their three-year tenure in the presence of the Lord Jesus. We celebrate the ascension because we celebrate our King.

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Robert Charles Sproul, 2/13/1939 – 12/14/2017 was an American theologian, author, and ordained pastor in the Presbyterian Church in America. Dr. R.C. Sproul was founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries, an international Christian education and discipleship organization located near Orlando, Fla. He was also copastor of Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Sanford, Fla., chancellor of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. Dr. Sproul has contributed dozens of articles to national evangelical publications, has spoken at conferences, churches, and schools around the world, and has written more than one hundred books. He also served as general editor of the Reformation Study Bible.

     R.C. Sproul Books |  Go to Books Page

Are the Right Books in the Bible?

By Robert Jeffress 2023

     God didn’t announce that He was creating an Old Testament and then recruit authors to write books one through thirty-nine. He didn’t negotiate a five-book deal with Moses. He didn’t tell Nehemiah, “I’m going to slot you between Ezra and Esther.” He didn’t reject the first drafts of Obadiah and Nahum for being too long and say, “I already have enough major prophets! What I need are some minor prophets!”

     Likewise, the Gospel writers of the New Testament weren’t angling to get their biographies attached to the Old Testament. Paul, Peter, and John never stopped in the middle of writing a sentence to ask, “How can I put this more biblically?”

     In other words, the Bible writers didn’t know they were writing the Bible. In fact, the Bible as we know it — the canon of thirty-nine books in the Old Testament and twenty-seven books in the New Testament — didn’t exist until long after the Bible writers were dead. The uniqueness of God’s Word extends to the way it was compiled.

     Most of the Old Testament books were recognized as God’s Word as soon as they were written. The books of Moses (Genesis to Deuteronomy) immediately were placed next to the ark of the covenant to remind the Israelites of their importance (Deut. 31:24–26). The book of Joshua (Josh. 24:26), the books of Samuel (1 Sam. 10:25), and the books of the Prophets (Zech. 7:12) were similarly recognized.

     The first Greek translation of the Old Testament, known as the Septuagint, was written between 250 and 150 BC. It contains every book in the Old Testament, which means the Old Testament canon was complete by at the latest 150 BC, and perhaps as early as 400 BC. Jesus affirmed the completeness of the Old Testament by His reverence for the Word of God.

     Jesus also told us the order the books should be in

Luke 24:44 (NASB95) Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”

     There are equally compelling reasons to believe that the twenty-seven books of our New Testament are the only ones that met the lofty standards for inclusion. Virtually every one of them was written by an apostle (Matthew, John, Paul, Peter) or under the supervision of an apostle (Mark’s Gospel was likely supervised by Peter).

     The Synod of Hippo, a council of leading Christian bishops, officially ratified the twenty-seven books of the New Testament in AD 393. However, most of those books had been recognized by the early church hundreds of years earlier. Significantly, there has been no attempt to add to or delete from the canon of the New Testament since its ratification at the end of the fourth century.

Couldn’t Other Books Be Added to Scripture?

     The New Testament writer Jude described the Christian faith as having been “once for all handed down to the saints” (v. 3). The Greek word translated as “handed down” describes an activity that is completed. God has finished depositing all the truth we need to know about Him in the Bible. He is not speaking fresh words to writers today.

     That’s not to say that the only way God gives us direction is through the Bible. God can lead believers today through prayer, circumstances, wise counsel, and even our desires. Yet we should realize that any revelation from God that people claim to receive apart from the Bible is subjective and therefore subject to error.

     Later versions of the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, included additional books, some of which are known as the Apocrypha (which means “hidden” or “doubtful”). However, these books are not part of the Old Testament canon. They don’t measure up to the standards required for a book to be recognized as God’s Word. For one thing, they were written long after the other books of the Old Testament. For another, they contain historical errors. And none of these books claims to contain the Word of God.

     The gnostic gospels, made famous in the Dan Brown book (and the Tom Hanks movie) The Da Vinci Code, are excluded from the New Testament. They weren’t written by apostles, even though some bear the names of apostles. They were composed between one hundred and two hundred years after the time of Christ, making them far less reliable than the four Gospels, which were written within decades of Jesus’s life on earth. Finally, the gnostic gospels were rejected by church leaders because they claimed Jesus was purely a divine spirit, not human.

What the Bible Means for Us Today

     Acknowledging that the Bible is inspired, unified, inerrant, canonized, and complete doesn’t begin to do justice to its potential. If that’s all the Bible is, then it’s nothing more than a valuable historical document, a keystone for modern archaeology, a literary marvel, and maybe—just maybe—the best evidence we have of an intelligence higher than our own. It’s something for museums, history buffs, and aficionados of the supernatural.

CONTRADICTION? NOT NECESSARILY

     Critics argue that contradictions in the Bible make it less than reliable. But does the Bible really contain contradictions? A closer look at a few so-called contradictions tells a different story:

     In 1 Corinthians 10:8, Paul described a plague in the Old Testament that killed 23,000 Israelites. Yet the account by Moses in Numbers 25:9 says 24,000 died. Contradiction? Not necessarily. Paul said 23,000 Israelites “fell in one day,” while Moses said the total number of victims was 24,000. Perhaps not everyone who contracted the plague died within twenty-four hours.

     In his account of Jesus’s resurrection, Matthew said there was an angel at the tomb. In John’s account, there were two angels. Contradiction? Not necessarily. Perhaps Matthew decided to focus on the one angel who spoke, while John was more interested in the total number of angels Mary witnessed when she arrived at the empty tomb.

     Matthew 5–7 and Luke 6 record two versions of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. Contradiction? Not necessarily. It could be that Jesus preached the same message in two locations at two different times. But a more probable explanation is that some Gospel accounts offer accurate paraphrases of what Jesus said rather than direct quotes. So both accounts capture the essence of Jesus’s message.

     But the Bible is more than that. The writer of Hebrews gave us a sense of how much more: “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (4:12).

Robert Jeffress, What Every Christian Should Know: 10 Core Beliefs for Standing Strong in a Shifting World (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2023)

Psalm 119:121-144

By Don Carson 6/27/2018

     One of the great themes of scripture, and one that surfaces with special frequency in Psalm 119, is that the unfolding of God’s words gives light; “it gives understanding to the simple” (119:130) in at least two senses.

     First, the “simple” can refer to people who are foolish, “simpletons” — those who know nothing of how to live in the light of God’s gracious revelation. The unfolding of God’s words gives light to such people. It teaches them how to live, and gives them a depth and a grasp of moral and spiritual issues they had never before displayed.

     Second, God’s words expand entire horizons. A few paragraphs earlier the psalmist wrote, “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are ever with me. I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes. I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts” (Ps. 119:97-100). The psalmist is not saying that he has a higher IQ than that of his teachers, or that he is intrinsically smarter than his enemies or brighter than all the elders. Rather, he is claiming that constant meditation on God’s instruction (his “law”) and a deep-seated commitment to obey God’s precepts provide him with a framework and a depth of insight that are unavailable to merely brilliant scholars and well-trained political leaders.

     One of my students may serve as illustration. He barely staggered out of high school. He had never been to church. When he asked his father about God, his dad told him not to talk about subjects like that. He joined the United States Army as a lowly GI, and lived a pretty rough life. At various times he was high on LSD. Eventually he joined the Eighty-second Airborne, and started carrying his Gideon Bible as a good-luck charm to ward off disaster when he was jumping out of airplanes. Eventually he started to read it — slowly at first, for he was not a good reader. He read it right through and was converted. He went to one of the local chaplains and said, “Padre, I’ve been saved.” The padre told him, “Not yet, you’re not” — and inducted him into some catechism. Eventually he found a church that taught the Bible. He came off drugs (and six months later many of his army drug pals were busted), eventually left the army, squeaked into a college, grew mightily, and is now in the “A” stream of Greek in the divinity school.

     He was absorbing the words of God. It transformed his life, and gave him more insight than many of his teachers. The unfolding of God’s words “gives understanding to the simple.”

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Don Carson is research professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, and co-founder (with Tim Keller) of The Gospel Coalition. He has authored numerous books, and recently edited The Enduring Authority of the Christian Scriptures (Eerdmans, 2016).

     Don Carson Books |  Go to Books Page

Muslims Still Trying to Keep Messiah Out of Jerusalem

By Israel Today Staff 02-24-2019

     Thousands of Palestinians, chanting “Allahu Akbar!” (Allah is great) and waving Palestinian flags broke through into the Golden Gate area that leads up to the Temple Mount over the weekend.

     Israel had closed the area by court order in 2003 after Hamas and the Islamic Movement activists engaged in subversive activities against the state. Sheikh Abdel Azim Salhab, chairman of the Islamic administration of the Muslim religious areas on the Temple Mount, praised the Palestinians for using force to enter the Golden Gate site. He said they were now moving to open the way for Muslims to enter on a daily basis.

     Abdel Kader, the senior Fatah (PLO) official, said that Friday’s events on the Temple Mount were part of an effort “to stop settlers from defiling al-Aqsa Mosque.” He said that the Palestinians who stormed the Golden Gate, “scored a big victory on behalf of all Arabs and Muslims.”

     The area known as the Golden Gate is one of eight gates in the walls surrounding the Old City of Jerusalem. The Golden or Eastern Gate faces the Mount of Olives and allows the most direct access to the exact spot where Solomon’s Temple stood. In Hebrew it is called Sha’ar Harachamimi, “Gate of Mercy,” because of its proximity to Holy of Holies and the Mercy Seat. To this day it remains one of the most important places for Jewish prayer.

     The gate was sealed by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman in 1541 to prevent the return of the Jewish Messiah through the gate as foretold in the Hebrew Bible. Jewish literature details that when the Messiah (the promised deliverer of the Jewish nation as prophesied in the Jewish bible) arrives, he will enter Jerusalem through the Eastern, or Golden Gate. The Turkish invaders also planted a Muslim cemetery in front of the gate to keep Jews away, as it is considered unclean for a Jew to enter a Muslim cemetery.

     Jesus entered Jerusalem through the gate around 30 A.D. (long before it was blocked by the Ottomans) as he came down from the Mount of Olives and entered the Temple according to Luke 19:28-48. Once inside the city, Jesus said that he would not be seen again until Jerusalem acknowledges him as Messiah (Matthew 23:37-39).

Luke 19:28-48 28 And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. 36 And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. 37 As he was drawing near — already on the way down the Mount of Olives — the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, 48 but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.

---

Matthew 23:37-39 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 38 See, your house is left to you desolate. 39 For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”   ESV

     The Golden Gate is presently considered by the Arabs to be their exclusive property. It remains sealed up and blocked off and Muslim authorities refuse to allow Jews to pray in the area. Crashing through the gate and shouting Allah is Great may feel like a victory to Palestinians concerned with mundane political disputes. According to biblical prophecy, however, one day the Messiah’s feet will touch upon the Mount of Olives and he will walk straight down and right through the Golden Gate to set Jerusalem free from her bondage and bring an everlasting peace, for both Arab and Jew.

     

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Read The Psalms In "1" Year

Psalm 72

Give the King Your Justice
72 Of Solomon.

15 Long may he live;
may gold of Sheba be given to him!
May prayer be made for him continually,
and blessings invoked for him all the day!
16 May there be abundance of grain in the land;
on the tops of the mountains may it wave;
may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may people blossom in the cities
like the grass of the field!
17 May his name endure forever,
his fame continue as long as the sun!
May people be blessed in him,
all nations call him blessed!

18 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous things.
19 Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory!
Amen and Amen!
20 The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended.

ESV Study Bible

By John Walvoord

Judgment on the Wicked

     In contrast to the promises of reward for the righteous, the  Psalms frequently speak of the destiny of the wicked.

     Psalm 1:1–6. The contrast between the blessed man, who delights in the Law of God, and the wicked is introduced. The wicked are compared to the chaff blown away by the wind (v.  4 ). The wicked will not stand in the time of judgment (v.  5 ). The Lord’s blessing will be on the righteous, while “the way of the wicked will perish” (v.  6 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 6:8–10. The wicked are promised that in the future they will be ashamed and dismayed and disgraced. This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 9:1–20. God will judge the righteous and govern the people with justice, which will involve a judgment on the wicked ( Rev. 19:15; 20:11–15 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 10:16. After recounting the sins of the wicked, the psalmist declared that “the nations will perish from his land” (v.  16 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 11:6. God “will rain fiery coals and burning sulphur” on the wicked, and “a scorching wind will be their lot” ( Rev. 20:11–15 ).

     Psalm 21:8–13. The judgment on the wicked is described: “In his wrath the LORD will swallow them up, and his fire will consume them. You will destroy their descendants from the earth, their posterity from mankind” (vv.  9–10 ). The  Psalm closes by extolling the Lord’s might (v.  13 ). The destruction of the nations was fulfilled in history and will be in prophecy.

     Psalm 25:3. The wicked “will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse.” This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 27:1–14. David extolled the Lord as his salvation. He declared, “When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall” (v.  2 ). In the time of trouble God will keep him safe (v.  5 ). He was confident that he would see the goodness of God (v.  13 ). This was fulfilled in David’s lifetime ( 1 Kings 2:10–11 ).

     Psalm 28:1–9. David implored the Lord to come to his aid. He declared concerning the wicked: “Since they show no regard for the words of the LORD and what his hands have done, he will tear them down and never build them up again” (v.  5 ). As a shepherd, the Lord will carry His people forever (v.  9 ). This is fulfilled in history.

     Psalm 34:1–22. David prophesied, “Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned” (v.  21 ). Judgment on the wicked was certain, but the righteous will be delivered (v.  19 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 37:1–40. David declared, “For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land” (v.  9 ). One of the important promises given to Israel was possession of the land. David again declared judgment on the wicked: “But their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken” (v.  15 ). David stated, “But the wicked will perish: the LORD’s enemies will be like the beauty of the fields, they will vanish — vanish like smoke” (v.  20 ). That the wicked will be cut off because of their sin is repeated in this psalm (vv.  22, 28, 38 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 50:1–23. In the psalmist’s indictment of the wicked (vv.  16–22 ), God declared, “But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face” (v.  21 ). God will deliver the righteous in times of trouble (v.  15 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 52:1–9. David declared that God would bring the wicked “to everlasting ruin” (v.  5 ), that God “will uproot you from the land of the living” (v.  5 ), and make the wicked the ridicule of the righteous (vv.  6–7 ). Their judgment will be in contrast to the reward of the righteous.

     Psalm 55:16–23. David declared that God “will bring down the wicked into the pit of corruption; bloodthirsty and deceitful men will not live out half their days” (v.  23 ). But God will sustain the righteous (v.  22 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 59:9–17. David expressed his confidence that God will bring down the wicked because of their sins and will manifest His power “to the ends of the earth” (v.  13 ). God was his fortress and refuge in times of trouble (vv.  16–17 ). This was fulfilled in David’s lifetime.

     Psalm 60:12. David declared his confidence that “with God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies” (v.  12 ). This was fulfilled in David’s lifetime.

     Psalm 63:9–11. David declared that God would judge His enemies: “They who seek my life will be destroyed; they will go down to the depths of the earth. They will be given over to the sword and become food for jackals” (vv.  9–10 ). This was fulfilled in David’s lifetime.

     Psalm 64:7–10. David predicted that God would shoot down his enemies with arrows and bring his enemies to ruin (vv.  7–8 ). The righteous would rejoice and take refuge in God (vv.  9–10 ). This was fulfilled in David’s lifetime.

     Psalm 68:21. God will “crush the heads of His enemies, the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins” (v.  21 ).

     Psalm 69:22–28. David predicted that his enemies would incur the wrath of God (v.  24 ). David prayed, “May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous” (v.  28 ). This was fulfilled in David’s lifetime and will be in eternity ( Rev. 20:11–15 ).

     Psalm 72:1–4. Judgment on the wicked in the future kingdom is prophesied: “He will judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice” (v.  2 ). God will “crush the oppressor” (v.  4 ). This will be fulfilled in the millennium.

     Psalm 73:27. Judgment will fall on the unfaithful. “Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you” (v.  27 ). This is fulfilled in history and in prophecy ( Rev. 20:11–15 ).

     Psalm 89:1–4. Christ as the son of David will possess his throne forever. This will be fulfilled in the millennium and eternity.

     Psalm 89:30–37. God will crush the foes of David. He declared that He will punish the sons of David who sin against Him (vv.  30–32 ). God declared, “I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness” (v.  33 ). God’s purpose to fulfill the Davidic covenant was declared explicitly (vv.  34–37 ). This is fulfilled in history and will be fulfilled in the millennium.

     Psalm 91:1–8. God will protect the righteous but will cause the wicked to perish. This is fulfilled in history.

     Psalm 92:7–15. God declared that the wicked will be destroyed forever (vv.  7, 9, 11 ), but the righteous will flourish. This is fulfilled in eternity.

     Psalm 94:11–23. The armies of the wicked will be destroyed. This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 108:13. This  Psalm declares that God would be victorious over the enemies of Israel. This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 110:1–7. The ultimate judgment of Christ on the nations of the world, particularly at His second coming, is prophesied: “The Lord is at your right hand; he will crush kings on the day of his wrath. He will judge the nations, heaping up the dead and crushing the rulers of the whole earth” (vv.  5–6 ). This will be fulfilled in the millennium ( Rev. 19:11–15 ).

     Psalm 125. This  Psalm of worship declares, “But those who turn to crooked ways the LORD will banish with evildoers” (v.  5 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 145:1–21. God is the refuge of the righteous. David declared, “The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy” (v.  20 ). This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

     Psalm 147:6. A similar thought was declared, “The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.” This is fulfilled in history and prophecy.

          __________________________________________________________________

Every Prophecy of the Bible: Clear Explanations for Uncertain Times

The Continual Burnt Offering (Mark 11:25-26)

By H.A. Ironside - 1941

July 8

Mark 11:25  And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.   KJV

     Those who have entered into the kingdom by new birth (John 3:5) are all forgiven sinners who stand before God on the ground of pure grace. Nevertheless, as children in the family of God, they are subject to the Father’s discipline and are under His government.  The moment our responsibility as sinners having to do with the God of judgment ended, our responsibility as children having to do with our Father began.  In this new relationship we are to display the activities of the divine nature and therefore are called upon to act in grace toward any who may offend us. If we fail to do this, we will be sternly disciplined in order that the government of God may be maintained.

     It is the Father who deals with the members of His own family and who will not overlook harshness or lack of compassion on the part of His children toward their erring brethren.


John 3:5  Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.   ESV

How sweet, how heavenly, is the sight,
When those that love the Lord
In one another’s peace delight,
And thus fulfill His word!

When free from envy, scorn, and pride,
Our wishes all above,
Each can his brother’s failings hide
And show a brother’s love.

The Continual Burnt Offering: Daily Meditations on the Word of God

The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Translated by Henry Beveridge

     4. Therefore, it is not the principal part of a sacrament simply to hold forth the body of Christ to us without any higher consideration, but rather to seal and confirm that promise by which he testifies that his flesh is meat indeed, and his blood drink indeed, nourishing us unto life eternal, and by which he affirms that he is the bread of life, of which, whosoever shall eat, shall live for ever--I say, to seal and confirm that promise, and in order to do so, it sends us to the cross of Christ, where that promise was performed and fulfilled in all its parts. For we do not eat Christ duly and savingly unless as crucified, while with lively apprehension we perceive the efficacy of his death. When he called himself the bread of life, he did not take that appellation from the sacrament, as some perversely interpret; but such as he was given to us by the Father, such he exhibited himself when becoming partaker of our human mortality, he made us partakers of his divine immortality; when offering himself in sacrifice, he took our curse upon himself, that he might cover us with his blessing, when by his death he devoured and swallowed up death, when in his resurrection he raised our corruptible flesh, which he had put on, to glory and incorruption.

5. It only remains that the whole become ours by application. This is done by means of the gospel, and more clearly by the sacred Supper, where Christ offers himself to us with all his blessings, and we receive him in faith. The sacrament, therefore, does not make Christ become for the first time the bread of life; but, while it calls to remembrance that Christ was made the bread of life that we may constantly eat him, it gives us a taste and relish for that bread, and makes us feel its efficacy. For it assures us, first, that whatever Christ did or suffered was done to give us life; and, secondly, that this quickening is eternal; by it we are ceaselessly nourished, sustained, and preserved in life. For as Christ would not have not been the bread of life to us if he had not been born, if he had not died and risen again; so he could not now be the bread of life, were not the efficacy and fruit of his nativity, death, and resurrection, eternal. All this Christ has elegantly expressed in these words, "The bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world" (John 6:51); doubtless intimating, that his body will be as bread in regard to the spiritual life of the soul, because it was to be delivered to death for our salvation, and that he extends it to us for food when he makes us partakers of it by faith. Wherefore he once gave himself that he might become bread, when he gave himself to be crucified for the redemption of the world; and he gives himself daily, when in the word of the gospel he offers himself to be partaken by us, inasmuch as he was crucified, when he seals that offer by the sacred mystery of the Supper, and when he accomplishes inwardly what he externally designates. Moreover, two faults are here to be avoided. We must neither, by setting too little value on the signs, dissever them from their meanings to which they are in some degree annexed, nor by immoderately extolling them, seem somewhat to obscure the mysteries themselves. That Christ is the bread of life by which believers are nourished unto eternal life, no man is so utterly devoid of religion as not to acknowledge. But all are not agreed as to the mode of partaking of him. For there are some who define the eating of the flesh of Christ, and the drinking of his blood, to be, in one word, nothing more than believing in Christ himself. But Christ seems to me to have intended to teach something more express and more sublime in that noble discourse, in which he recommends the eating of his flesh--viz. that we are quickened by the true partaking of him, which he designated by the terms eating and drinking, lest any one should suppose that the life which we obtain from him is obtained by simple knowledge. For as it is not the sight but the eating of bread that gives nourishment to the body, so the soul must partake of Christ truly and thoroughly, that by his energy it may grow up into spiritual life. Meanwhile, we admit that this is nothing else than the eating of faith, and that no other eating can be imagined. But there is this difference between their mode of speaking and mine. According to them, to eat is merely to believe; while I maintain that the flesh of Christ is eaten by believing, because it is made ours by faith, and that that eating is the effect and fruit of faith; or, if you will have it more clearly, according to them, eating is faith, whereas it rather seems to me to be a consequence of faith. The difference is little in words, but not little in reality. For, although the apostle teaches that Christ dwells in our hearts by faith (Eph. 3:17), no one will interpret that dwelling to be faith All see that it explains the admirable effect of faith, because to it it is owing that believers have Christ dwelling in them. In this way, the Lord was pleased, by calling himself the bread of life, not only to teach that our salvation is treasured up in the faith of his death and resurrection, but also, by virtue of true communication with him, his life passes into us and becomes ours, just as bread when taken for food gives vigour to the body.

6. When Augustine, whom they claim as their patron, wrote, that we eat by believing, all he meant was to indicate that that eating is of faith, and not of the mouth. This I deny not; but I at the same time add, that by faith we embrace Christ, not as appearing at a distance, but as uniting himself to us, he being our head, and we his members. I do not absolutely disapprove of that mode of speaking; I only deny that it is a full interpretation, if they mean to define what it is to eat the flesh of Christ. I see that Augustine repeatedly used this form of expression, as when he said (De Doct. Christ. Lib. 3), " Unless ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man" is a figurative expression enjoining us to have communion with our Lord's passion, and sweetly and usefully to treasure in our memory that his flesh was crucified and wounded for us. Also when he says, "These three thousand men who were converted at the preaching of Peter (Acts 2:41), by believing, drank the blood which they had cruelly shed." [635] But in very many other passages he admirably commends faith for this, that by means of it our souls are not less refreshed by the communion of the blood of Christ, than our bodies with the bread which they eat. The very same thing is said by Chrysostom, "Christ makes us his body, not by faith only, but in reality." He does not mean that we obtain this blessing from any other quarter than from faith: he only intends to prevent any one from thinking of mere imagination when he hears the name of faith. I say nothing of those who hold that the Supper is merely a mark of external profession, because I think I sufficiently refuted their error when I treated of the sacraments in general (Chap. 14 sec. 13). Only let my readers observe, that when the cup is called the covenant in blood (Luke 22:20), the promise which tends to confirm faith is expressed. Hence it follows, that unless we have respect to God, and embrace what he offers, we do not make a right use of the sacred Supper.

7. I am not satisfied with the view of those who, while acknowledging that we have some kind of communion with Christ, only make us partakers of the Spirit, omitting all mention of flesh and blood. As if it were said to no purpose at all, that his flesh is meat indeed, and his blood is drink indeed; that we have no life unless we eat that flesh and drink that blood; and so forth. Therefore, if it is evident that full communion with Christ goes beyond their description, which is too confined, I will attempt briefly to show how far it extends, before proceeding to speak of the contrary vice of excess. For I shall have a longer discussion with these hyperbolical doctors, who, according to their gross ideas, fabricate an absurd mode of eating and drinking, and transfigure Christ, after divesting him of his flesh, into a phantom: if, indeed, it be lawful to put this great mystery into words, a mystery which I feel, and therefore freely confess that I am unable to comprehend with my mind, so far am I from wishing any one to measure its sublimity by my feeble capacity. Nay, I rather exhort my readers not to confine their apprehension within those too narrow limits, but to attempt to rise much higher than I can guide them. For whenever this subject is considered, after I have done my utmost, I feel that I have spoken far beneath its dignity. And though the mind is more powerful in thought than the tongue in expression, it too is overcome and overwhelmed by the magnitude of the subject. All then that remains is to break forth in admiration of the mystery, which it is plain that the mind is inadequate to comprehend, or the tongue to express. I will, however, give a summary of my view as I best can, not doubting its truth, and therefore trusting that it will not be disapproved by pious breasts.

8. First of all, we are taught by the Scriptures that Christ was from the beginning the living Word of the Father, the fountain and origin of life, from which all things should always receive life. Hence John at one time calls him the Word of life, and at another says, that in him was life; intimating, that he, even then pervading all creatures, instilled into them the power of breathing and living. He afterwards adds, that the life was at length manifested, when the Son of God, assuming our nature, exhibited himself in bodily form to be seen and handled. For although he previously diffused his virtue into the creatures, yet as man, because alienated from God by sin, had lost the communication of life, and saw death on every side impending over him, he behoved, in order to regain the hope of immortality, to be restored to the communion of that Word. How little confidence can it give you, to know that the Word of God, from which you are at the greatest distance, contains within himself the fulness of life, whereas in yourself, in whatever direction you turn, you see nothing but death? But ever since that fountain of life began to dwell in our nature, he no longer lies hid at a distance from us, but exhibits himself openly for our participation. Nay, the very flesh in which he resides he makes vivifying to us, that by partaking of it we may feed for immortality. "I," says he, "am that bread of life;" "I am the living bread which came down from heaven;" "And the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world" (John 6:48, 51). By these words he declares, not only that he is life, inasmuch as he is the eternal Word of God who came down to us from heaven, but, by coming down, gave vigour to the flesh which he assumed, that a communication of life to us might thence emanate. Hence, too, he adds, that his flesh is meat indeed, and that his blood is drink indeed: by this food believers are reared to eternal life. The pious, therefore, have admirable comfort in this, that they now find life in their own flesh. For they not only reach it by easy access, but have it spontaneously set forth before them. Let them only throw open the door of their hearts that they may take it into their embrace, and they will obtain it.

9. The flesh of Christ, however, has not such power in itself as to make us live, seeing that by its own first condition it was subject to mortality, and even now, when endued with immortality, lives not by itself. Still it is properly said to be life-giving, as it is pervaded with the fulness of life for the purpose of transmitting it to us. In this sense I understand our Saviour's words as Cyril interprets them, "As the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself" (John 5:26). For there properly he is speaking not of the properties which he possessed with the Father from the beginning, but of those with which he was invested in the flesh in which he appeared. Accordingly, he shows that in his humanity also fulness of life resides, so that every one who communicates in his flesh and blood, at the same time enjoys the participation of life. The nature of this may be explained by a familiar example. As water is at one time drunk out of the fountain, at another drawn, at another led away by conduits to irrigate the fields, and yet does not flow forth of itself for all these uses, but is taken from its source, which, with perennial flow, ever and anon sends forth a new and sufficient supply; so the flesh of Christ is like a rich and inexhaustible fountain, which transfuses into us the life flowing forth from the Godhead into itself. Now, who sees not that the communion of the flesh and blood of Christ is necessary to all who aspire to the heavenly life? Hence those passages of the apostle: The Church is the "body" of Christ; his "fulness." He is "the head," "from whence the whole body fitly joined together, and compacted by that which every joint supplieth," "maketh increase of the body" (Eph. 1:23; 4:15,16). Our bodies are the "members of Christ" (1 Cor. 6:15). We perceive that all these things cannot possibly take place unless he adheres to us wholly in body and spirit. But the very close connection which unites us to his flesh, he illustrated with still more splendid epithets, when he said that we "are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones" (Eph. 5:30). At length, to testify that the matter is too high for utterance, he concludes with exclaiming, "This is a great mystery" (Eph. 5:32). It were, therefore, extreme infatuation not to acknowledge the communion of believers with the body and blood of the Lord, a communion which the apostle declares to be so great, that he chooses rather to marvel at it than to explain it.

10. The sum is, that the flesh and blood of Christ feed our souls just as bread and wine maintain and support our corporeal life. For there would be no aptitude in the sign, did not our souls find their nourishment in Christ. This could not be, did not Christ truly form one with us, and refresh us by the eating of his flesh, and the drinking of his blood. But though it seems an incredible thing that the flesh of Christ, while at such a distance from us in respect of place, should be food to us, let us remember how far the secret virtue of the Holy Spirit surpasses all our conceptions, and how foolish it is to wish to measure its immensity by our feeble capacity. Therefore, what our mind does not comprehend let faith conceive--viz. that the Spirit truly unites things separated by space. That sacred communion of flesh and blood by which Christ transfuses his life into us, just as if it penetrated our bones and marrow, he testifies and seals in the Supper, and that not by presenting a vain or empty sign, but by there exerting an efficacy of the Spirit by which he fulfils what he promises. And truly the thing there signified he exhibits and offers to all who sit down at that spiritual feast, although it is beneficially received by believers only who receive this great benefit with true faith and heartfelt gratitude. For this reason the apostle said, "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ"? (1 Cor. 10:16.) There is no ground to object that the expression is figurative, and gives the sign the name of the thing signified. I admit, indeed, that the breaking of bread is a symbol, not the reality. But this being admitted, we duly infer from the exhibition of the symbol that the thing itself is exhibited. For unless we would charge God with deceit, we will never presume to say that he holds forth an empty symbol. Therefore, if by the breaking of bread the Lord truly represents the partaking of his body, there ought to be no doubt whatever that he truly exhibits and performs it. The rule which the pious ought always to observe is, whenever they see the symbols instituted by the Lord, to think and feel surely persuaded that the truth of the thing signified is also present. For why does the Lord put the symbol of his body into your hands, but just to assure you that you truly partake of him? If this is true let us feel as much assured that the visible sign is given us in seal of an invisible gift as that his body itself is given to us.

     Christian Classics Ethereal Library / Public Domain

     Institutes of the Christian Religion