Listening and the Pastor

By Matthew Miller 1/01/2013

     Pastors sense deeply the frustration of trying to get our message through to our people. Almost daily, our mailboxes are filled with flyers offering seminars on how we can tailor our sermons and use social media more effectively to “break through the clutter” of our communication age. Given that we have been called to be heralds and stewards of a divine message, we cannot be blamed for wanting to make sure we are being heard.

     But in this jostling for the attention of the flock, we are prone to miss the importance of listening — listening not only to the Lord (which others in this issue have addressed), but listening also to our people, as well as to the advice of fellow pastors and elders. Yet it is the Lord Himself who tells us in His Word, “Let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak” (James 1:19). “Every person” includes preachers, too.

     We must, like Paul and the author of Hebrews, have our fingers on the pulse of our people in order to gauge how best to feed them from the pulpit. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:2, “I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it” (see also Heb. 5:12). When I began my preaching ministry, one of my ninety-year old members gently chastened me after he heard a sermon in which I overshot the congregation. He said: “Can I give you a piece of advice from an old man? You need to keep the cookie jar within reach of the children’s hands.” It wasn’t until later that afternoon that I let his kind criticism penetrate my natural defenses, and I have been grateful for his feedback ever since. If we want to feed our people for real spiritual growth, we must know where they are at each stage along the way. “Know well the condition of your flocks” (Prov. 27:23). That takes some listening.

     We must also listen carefully to our members individually to discern where they really are with Christ. Paul says to the Galatians, “My little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!” (4:19). It is easy for pastors mistakenly to suppose that our supporters are spiritually healthy and our detractors are not. But there are always many who love the pastor who are far from Christ, and many who have complaints against the pastor that are well-grounded. We must listen more deeply, and ask ourselves whether we hear Christ being formed in our people — in their passing requests for prayer, in their words spoken from the hospital bed, in the way they voice their angst about the state of the country, do we hear the grammar of union with Christ in His death and resurrection? Do we hear the doctrine of sanctification personally embraced? Do we hear a present enjoyment of the kingdom of God coupled with a pining for its future consummation? Or do we hear instead hopes and sighs pulsing with the beat of moralistic therapeutic deism? They may lead ministries in our churches with enthusiasm and competence, but are they still terrified of dying? These are the things we must listen for not only in their words, but even in their tones.

     Lastly, we must listen to fellow elders and other pastors, as much for our personal well-being as for the sake of our ministries. Being ordained does not elevate us above the warning in Proverbs 21:2: “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes.” We all know men who lost their ministry positions not because of any great moral failure or glaring incompetence, but rather on account of stubbornness or discouragement that went unchecked with debilitating consequences. In such cases, it is not uncommon to learn that these men were relationally isolated, lacking the kinds of iron-sharpening-iron relationships with elders and other pastors that could have delivered a ministry saving rebuke or a soul-nourishing word of encouragement (Prov. 27:17; 27:6; 12:25).

     Years ago, J. Oswald Sanders observed in his classic Spiritual Leadership: “You can measure leaders by the number and quality of their friends.” Augustine was a man who prized friendship (reflections on friendship abound in The Confessions and in his sermons). John Calvin’s friendship with Pierre Viret (1511– 1571), as revealed in their many letters, shows Calvin’s longing for and great dependence on friendship. In our church’s recent search for a new director of music, my first question to the candidates was: “Tell me about your closest friends. Can you share any times when their counsel led you to change course?”

     Pastors need friendships with co-laborers. Every Timothy needs a Paul, and every Paul needs a Titus (2 Cor. 2:13; 8:23). If you find yourself without such friendships, you would do well to begin making this a matter of prayer. Sometimes the heart needs time to be prepared for friendship, so that our ears would then be open to what a godly friend might say.

     Yes, we must hear and heed the Lord first and above all. But, according to His Word, we must also listen to those under and alongside us. The quality of our lives and ministries depends on it.

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By John Walvoord (1990)

Jesus’ Pronouncement at the Occasion of the Passover and His Washing the Disciples’ Feet

     John 13:1–20. On the fateful night before His crucifixion, Jesus had gathered with His disciples to observe the Passover feast. Jesus Himself was looking beyond the immediate events of His death, resurrection, and later ascension into heaven to the present age between Pentecost and the rapture when God’s previously undisclosed plan to call a people from the church would be fulfilled. This discourse of  John 13–17 is called the Upper Room Discourse, but only the first two chapters are actually delivered in the Upper Room. As the observance of the Passover supper was underway, Jesus, knowing that Judas Iscariot had agreed to betray Him and that He had come from God and was returning to God (vv.  2–3 ), took a basin of water and a towel and began to wipe the disciples’ feet. Though not prophecy in itself, it anticipated the ministry of the disciples after Jesus was gone.

     There was an uneasy silence in the room as He went from one to another as they reclined, with their heads toward the table and their feet away from the table, on a couch that was only a short distance from the ground. It was customary when being invited to dinner to have a slave wash guests’ feet after their contact with the dirty streets. None of the disciples wanted to volunteer for this because it would be admitting that they were not the greatest, and now they were being rebuked by the fact that Jesus took this lowly work.

     When He came to Peter, Peter said, “You shall never wash my feet” (v.  8 ). Jesus replied to Peter, however, “Unless I wash you, you have no part of me” (v.  8 ). Peter then replied, “Not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!” (v.  9 ). The reply of Jesus distinguished between a person having a bath where his whole body is washed and a person having only his feet washed. Jesus told Peter, “A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you” (v.  10 ). Jesus, of course, was referring to Judas Iscariot (v.  11 ).

     Upon completing the task, Jesus asked them, “Do you understand what I have done for you?” (v.  12 ). Jesus said, “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you” (vv.  14–15 ).

     Jesus then predicted, “I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the scripture: ‘He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me.’ I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am He” (vv.  18–19 ). In this interchange with His disciples, Jesus predicted again that Judas Iscariot was going to betray Him to the chief priests.

Jesus Predicts His Betrayal by Judas Iscariot, His Denial by Peter, and His Departure

     John 13:21–38; cf. Matthew 26:21–25, 30–35; Mark 14:18–21, 26–31; Luke 22:21– 23, 31–34. After referring to the importance of accepting Him, Jesus said plainly, “I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me” ( John 13:21 ). The disciples did not know what to do about this statement (v.  22 ). But John the beloved disciple, who apparently was next to Christ at the table, asked Jesus, “Lord, who is it?” (v.  25 ). Jesus answered, “‘It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’ Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon. As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him” (vv.  26–27 ).

     Apparently, only John the apostle knew of the identification of Judas Iscariot as the one who would betray Jesus. Judas himself, after he had taken the bread, went out (v.  30 ).

     Jesus then announced to His disciples, “Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once” (vv.  31–32 ).

     Jesus then announced prophetically that He was not going to be with them much longer. He said, “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I will tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come” (v.  33 ).

     In the light of His separation from His disciples, Jesus gave them a new commandment, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. All men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (vv.  34–35 ).

     The disciples did not concern themselves with the command of loving one another. As a matter of fact they had been contending among themselves as to who would be the greatest ( Luke 22:24 ). But they were very much interested in the fact that Jesus was leaving them. Simon Peter asked Jesus the question, “Lord, where are you going?” (v.  36 ). Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later” (v.  36 ). Peter persisted, however, and asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you” (v.  37 ). Jesus answered Peter, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!” (v.  38 ). No doubt, Peter was sincere in his profession of loyalty to Jesus Christ, but he did not know how weak he was. The prophecy of Jesus that Peter would deny the Lord three times before the cock crowed was to be literally fulfilled the following morning.

Jesus’ Revelation of God’s Provision for His Troubled Disciples

     John 14:1–31. The disciples were deeply troubled. They had heard Jesus announce that one was going to betray Him. They had heard Him tell Peter that he was going to deny Him three times. Most of all, they were concerned about the fact that Jesus said He was going to leave them and they could not follow then ( 13:36 ). At this point in their last night together, Jesus prophetically outlined God’s provisions for them as troubled disciples in a troubled world.

     Jesus, first of all, exhorted them to not be troubled, but He said that instead they should “trust in God; trust also in me” ( 14:1 ). This command can be literally translated, “Keep on trusting in God; keep on trusting in me.”  The secret of the untroubled heart in a troubled world is complete trust in God.  In exhorting them to do this, He was giving the whole answer. Recognizing, however, that all of us, including the disciples, are weak, the rest of the chapter outlines the support basis for this trust in God.

     In the light of His departure, Jesus promised them that He would return: “In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (vv.  2–3 ).

     This was an entirely new revelation to be contrasted to Christ’s earlier revelation concerning His second coming to judge the world. This was a coming with an entirely different context, and its purpose was to take them out of the world and take them to the Father’s house, which clearly refers to heaven, where Jesus has gone before to prepare a place for those who believe in Him. This is the first reference in the New Testament to what Paul later referred to as the rapture of the church ( 1 Cor. 15:51–58; 1 Thess. 4:13–18 ).

     The disciples were both emotionally and theologically unprepared to receive this truth, which John recorded many years later in this gospel. They did comprehend, however, that He was going to leave them. This was a devastating truth to them because they had been with Christ for three and a half years and had left their homes and their occupations in order to be His disciples. They simply did not understand what Jesus meant when He said He was going to leave them. Scripture records that Jesus had closed His remarks by saying, “You know the way to the place where I am going” ( John 14:4 ).

Predicted Events Relating To The Church

1. Rise of liberalism and rejection of fundamental biblical doctrines permeate the professing church.

2. Communism and atheism rise as major opponents of Christianity.

3. The ecumenical movement promoting a world church organized in 1948.

4. Increased moral chaos results from departure from biblical doctrines.

5. Evidence of spiritism, the occult, and Satan worship increases.

6. The church is raptured.

7. The Holy Spirit lifts the restraint of sin.

8. Super church movement gains power and forms a world church.

9. World church works with the Antichrist to secure world domination.

10. Super church is destroyed by the ten kings supporting the Antichrist to pave the way for worship of the world ruler as God.

11. Those who have come to believe in Christ as Savior since the rapture suffer persecution because they refuse to worship the world ruler.

12. Second coming of Christ occurs, and remaining Christians in the world are rescued and enter the millennial kingdom.

13. After the millennium the church is placed in the New Jerusalem in the new earth.

     Thomas, as he contemplated this sentence, did not know where Jesus was going, and probably the other disciples had the same problem. Thomas said to Jesus, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” (v.  5 ) This was a logical statement because if one does not know his destination, he does not know where he is going. This is a profound truth that affects all of our lives. Knowing our ultimate destination is a part of God’s program of reassuring troubled disciples. On the other hand, Jesus was referring to heaven, and certainly Thomas and the other disciples should have known that this was their ultimate destination.

     Jesus’ answer to Thomas was both profound and simple: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (v.  6 ). There are few statements in any language or any book that can rival this for profound truth.

     Jesus is the way or the road to heaven; this truth is not accepted by the world but is the mainstay of Christians who put their trust in God.

     Jesus also said, “I am the truth.” All things are true because of God’s laws and revelation, and Jesus is the source of this order in the universe. All truth is true only as it is related in some way to Jesus Christ as the truth.

     Jesus also declared, “I am the life” (v.  6 ). Again, the profound truth that only in Jesus are eternal life and blessing in the life to come possible. All the philosophies of the world and the schemes of men have never been able to substitute anything for God’s plan of Jesus as the way to heaven as the ultimate test of truth and the ultimate bestower of eternal life.

     In addition to having Jesus Christ as the way, the truth, and the life, the disciples also had a heavenly Father. Jesus said, “If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him” (v.  7 ). This time Philip spoke up: “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us” (v.  8 ).

     Jesus’ reply to Philip is at the heart of the Christian faith. Jesus said, “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves” (vv.  9–11 ).

     As God the Father has not been visible to man, the only way the Father can be known is through His revelation in Jesus Christ. Jesus has the same attributes as God the Father; as any true son, He was the replica, in effect, of His Father, though existing from eternity past, even as the Father has existed.

     Jesus brought this thought of the Father to its climax when He said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (v.  12 ).

     The startling statement that the disciples of Jesus could do greater works than Jesus Himself gave the disciples pause. The secret, of course, is the fact that Jesus said not that they would be greater than Jesus or do greater things in themselves than Jesus; but in partnership with Jesus at the right hand of God the Father and their ministry on earth, they would be able to accomplish more in that relationship than Jesus Christ could have had He remained on earth as an individual. The disciples could achieve multiplication of their numbers and reach out to more in the world as many individuals than even Jesus on earth would have been able to reach. Even the experience of leading one soul to Christ is in a sense a greater miracle than the creation of the entire world. The creation of the world did not cost God anything as He could speak and it would be done. But the salvation of a soul involved the death of His Son on the cross. The prediction that more would be accomplished in the world is seen in the millions of people who have put their trust in Jesus through the centuries through the work of many individual disciples.

     In keeping with this promise to be partners with Him at the Father’s right hand, Jesus urged them to pray, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it” (vv.  13–14 ). This, again, is a saying that confounds the wisdom of the world. The plan is that prayer in the name of Jesus by a disciple will ultimately be prayer in the will of God. Like a check requiring two signatures, any request signed by a believer, if it is signed also by Jesus Christ and is in His name, will justify the hope of the prayer being answered.

     Another important facet in God’s provision for troubled disciples was the promise of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever — the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (vv.  16–17 ).

     This prophecy anticipated the dispensational change on the day of Pentecost. In the Old Testament, only a few were indwelt permanently and always with a view to special service for God. Beginning at Pentecost, every believer would and will be indwelt by the Spirit and have the same resource in the time of trouble. Even though Christ was going to leave them, He said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (v.  18 ). The amazing truth in this chapter is that not only will the Holy Spirit indwell every believer but also Jesus Christ will indwell every believer, a truth that was never mentioned in the Old Testament and was not realized by any saints prior to the day of Pentecost. Though the world will not be able to see Jesus, they will be able to realize that He is in heaven and, in effect, they will see Him (v.  19 ). Also, because Jesus Christ lives, they will also live (v.  19 ).

     In addition to the great truth that Christ Himself was going to indwell believers, an additional dispensational truth characteristic of the present age from Pentecost was predicted in verse  20: “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” The expression I am in you refers to Christ indwelling, but you are in me presents a truth foreign to the Old Testament but realized by Christians baptized into Christ. The gracious provision of God is not only that God is in us but also that we are vitally related to Jesus Christ and share the same eternal life. It is not too much to say that verse  20 is one of the great revelations of the New Testament and characterizes the present age as a distinct dispensation.

     Once again, Jesus referred to the need to obey His commands and to love Him. He promised, “He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him” (v.  21 ). The disciples did not show too much interest in the fact of the love of Christ or being loved by the Father, but Judas (not Iscariot) asked the question. “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” (v.  22 ). Jesus replied that a new relationship existed between Jesus and the disciples as well as the Father and the disciples. Jesus said, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (v.  23). Here was an additional fact: Not only Jesus and the Holy Spirit would indwell a believer but God the Father would also make their body His home. Those who do not love Jesus and obey Him know nothing of this marvelous truth (v.  24 ).

     Something of the tremendous future ministry of the Holy Spirit to the disciples was indicated in Jesus’ pronouncement: “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (vv.  25–26 ). This was to be realized, particularly by the disciples and the apostle John who was writing the gospel of  John many years after the events that are described, but it is also true that the Holy Spirit reminds all believers of the truth of God while we are listening to His teaching.

     The final work of God on behalf of the troubled disciples was His marvelous peace: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (v.  27 ). This remarkable statement came from Jesus who knew that in the next twenty-four hours He would die the awful death of crucifixion and His body would be in the tomb. What did Jesus mean by “my peace”? The peace that Christ was referring to goes beyond the prophecy of death and resurrection of Christ and beyond ascension to the ultimate disposal and judgment of all things.

     Jesus knew that in the end God would triumph and that His death on the cross would be rewarded by the heritage of millions of souls being saved. He also knew that though the disciples were troubled, their troubles were temporary and their ultimate peace was to be realized. The peace that Christ gives is more than a psychological peace, more than an act of human will, and one of the marvelous things that comes when a disciple of Jesus who puts his faith in God realizes the tremendous assets and provisions God has made for him as a Christian. Because of this, it is possible to be at peace even though a disciple may live in a troubled world.

     Jesus again referred to His departure and said that He was predicting it in advance and that they would know it was of God for Him to go to the Father and to come back (vv.  28–29 ). He told them that after He departed, “the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me” (vv.  30–31 ). His reference to the “prince of this world” is a reference to Satan, and He was referring, of course, to the continued activity of Satan during the period that Jesus was going back to the Father. The ultimate triumph over Satan, however, was assured. At this point in their evening together, they left the Upper Room and proceeded toward the garden of Gethsemane.

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Every Prophecy of the Bible: Clear Explanations for Uncertain Times

Doubt-Killing Promises

By Justin Taylor 1/01/2013

     Even though Charles Spurgeon lived about two hundred years after John Bunyan, I think Spurgeon regarded Bunyan as a friend. He said the book he valued most, next to the Bible, was The The Pilgrim's Progress: Both Parts and with Original Illustrations. “I believe I have read it through at least a hundred times. It is a volume of which I never seem to tire.”

     Perhaps one of the reasons Spurgeon resonated with this classic was its realistic portrayal of depression, doubt, and despair. Spurgeon and Bunyan, like their Savior, were men of sorrow, acquainted with grief (Isa. 53:3). When Bunyan went to prison for preaching the gospel, his heart was almost broken “to pieces” for his young blind daughter, “who lay nearer my heart than all I had besides.” Spurgeon’s depression could be so debilitating that he could “weep by the hour like a child”—and not know why he was weeping. To fight this “causeless depression,” he said, was like fighting mist. It was a “shapeless, undefinable, yet all-beclouding hopelessness.” It felt, at times, like prison: “The iron bolt which so mysteriously fastens the door of hope and holds our spirits in gloomy prison, needs a heavenly hand to push it back.” Spurgeon felt what C. S. Lewis describes after losing his wife, in one of the most honest and painful passages I have ever read. Lewis said that when all is well and life is happy, God seems present and welcoming with open arms.

     But go to Him when your need is desperate, when all other help is vain, and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and a sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside. After that, silence. You may as well turn away. The longer you wait, the more emphatic the silence will become. There are no lights in the windows. It might be an empty house. Was it ever inhabited?… Why is He so present a commander in our time of prosperity and so very absent a help in our time of trouble?

     Some will find that sense of bewildering despair hard to comprehend, perhaps even a bit exaggerated. But for those who have been there, it is all too real.

     For those who have felt trapped in Doubting-Castle, guarded by Giant Despair, take heart that the best of Christians have stayed there too. “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man” (1 Cor. 10:13). And for those who have never darkened its harrowing doors, “let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (v. 12).

     What is most instructive in Bunyan’s allegory is how Christian and Hopeful finally find the way of escape. Christian says:

     “What a fool I have been, to lie like this in a stinking dungeon, when I could have just as well walked free. In my chest pocket I have a key called Promise that will, I am thoroughly persuaded, open any lock in Doubting- Castle.” “Then,” said Hopeful, “that is good news. My good brother, do immediately take it out of your chest pocket and try it.” Then Christian took the key from his chest and began to try the lock of the dungeon door; and as he turned the key, the bolt unlocked and the door flew open with ease, so that Christian and hopeful immediately came out.

     What was the key? It was called “Promise.” God has given us “his precious and very great promises” (2 Peter 1:4).

     How do we know these promises will come true? Because “all the promises of God find their Yes in [Christ Jesus]” (2 Cor. 1:20).

     How do we take hold of these promises? By faith, in hope. God tells us, “call upon me in the day of trouble,” with the result that “I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me” (Ps. 50:15). As we believe His promises by faith, He gets all of the credit and the glory (Rom. 4:20).

     And did you notice where Bunyan says that the key was all along? In Christian’s “chest pocket.” I think Bunyan here is pointing us to Psalm 119:11: “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” We all know that “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12), But this “sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:17), cannot do its piercing, sanctifying, healing work if it remains simply on display in our homes rather than dwelling at home in our hearts. If we take God’s Word with us, if we meditate on it day and night, we will always have our weapon in battle no matter where we are.

     So, dear Christian, take God’s Word — especially His promises — into your heart today, by faith and in hope. And the next time you find yourself in Doubting-Castle, and hear the terrifying rumblings of Giant Despair at the double-bolted door, remember that you have had the key of escape all along. If the Son has set you free, you are free indeed.

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• 1     Everything Here Is the Best Thing Ever: Stories
• 2     Overcoming Sin and Temptation (Redesign)
• 3     The Power of Words and the Wonder of God
• 4     El sufrimiento y la soberanía de Dios (Spanish Edition)
• 5     Communion with the Triune God
• 6     Sex and the Supremacy of Christ

Christ and the Academy: An Interview with D.A. Carson

By D.A. Carson 1/01/2013

     Tabletalk: When did God call you to ministry and what were the circumstances that surrounded your call?

     D.A. Carson: I was well into a degree in chemistry at McGill University, with well-formed plans to pursue a PhD in organic synthesis, when the Lord began to tug me in another direction. God used several independent influences. The first was the pastor of the church I was attending in Montreal. He told me one summer that he wanted me to serve as his apprentice. I told him that he probably had me confused with someone else. After all, there were several in our college-and-careers group who were contemplating pastoral ministry, but I wasn’t one of them. He assured me that he had not made a mistake — I was the one he wanted. We had a substantial argument, and I “won.” I did not serve as his apprentice. But that was the first step in jogging me to consider a change of direction — and all the pastor was doing, of course, was obeying 2 Timothy 2:2.

(2 Ti 2:1–7) 2 You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. 3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.   ESV

     When I worked in a lab in Canada’s federal government (plugging away at a problem connected with air pollution), I discovered that some of my colleagues hated their work and longed for retirement, while others idolized their chemistry and dreamed of the big breakthrough that would win a Nobel Prize. I wasn’t in either camp. I thoroughly enjoyed what I was doing, but chemistry was not God. I was, after all, a Christian. At the time, I was devoting my weekends to helping another young man plant a church in the Ottawa Valley. That, too, began to tug at my heart. That autumn, I heard a missionary preach on Ezekiel 22, where God says, “I sought for a man to stand in the gap before me, but I found none.” The Spirit of God used that sermon to make every fiber of my being want to cry out, “Here am I! Send me!” So I never pursued graduate chemistry, and in due course, after more fledgling experiences in ministry, I went off to gain an MDiv in a small seminary in Toronto. That was the autumn of 1967.

     TT: Given the large quantity and high quality of work you are able to produce, what does your average workday and workweek look like?

     DC: My schedule varies so much from day to day and from week to week that it is difficult to give you a realistic picture. Many weeks during the academic term, my working hours are heavily tied to responsibilities at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS). One year in three, however, I have no regular lectures at TEDS—though I do maintain my PhD students. In essence, I wear four hats: TEDS responsibilities, preaching and lecturing here and there, The Gospel Coalition (TGC) responsibilities, and writing. Some of these overlap. For example, some of the writing is tied to lecturing, while some of the speaking is tied to TGC. But each of these domains imposes its own urgencies at different times: writing produces its deadlines, syllabi just have to be created by assigned dates, TGC conferences and other meetings have fixed spots in the calendar, and so forth. Three secrets of productivity, however, are worth mentioning: (1) Learn to fill in the little empty periods that clutter each day. (2) Don’t fritter. When you work, work hard; when you are not working, quit entirely. (3) Discover how different aspects of your work can leverage other aspects of your work. For example, choosing your reading to feed into things that you’ll be preparing over the next six or nine months adds to godly efficiency.

     TT: What is the best way for parents to prepare their children for the attacks on their faith they may face in college?

     DC: There is no formulaic answer and no guarantee. For a start, our children themselves are extraordinarily diverse. Many will be tempted by postmodern assumptions. Others will feel far greater threats from biologists, cosmologists, or psychologists who operate under the assumptions of raw atheism or, worse, functional atheism. All I can do is enumerate some values and practices in the home that seem to me to be wise, biblically faithful, and useful in mitigating the dangers. These are exemplary, not exhaustive.

     First, the home should encourage vigorous Christian understanding. The most dangerous seedbed for intellectual rebellion is a home where faith is sentimental and even anti-intellectual, and where opponents are painted as ignorant knaves, because eventually our children discover that there are some really nice people who are atheists and agnostics, and they can present arguments in sophisticated, gentle, and persuasive fashion.

     Similarly, the local church with young people who are heading off to college should be doing what it can to prepare them — first with a solid grasp of Christian essentials, and second with the rudiments of responsible apologetics.

     At the same time, both the home and the church should be living out a Christian faith that is more than intellectually rigorous. It should be striving for biblically - faithful authenticity across the board: genuine love for God and neighbor, living with eternity in view, quickness to confess sin and seek reconciliation, a concern for the lost and the broken, faithfulness in praise and intercessory prayer, a transparent delight in holiness, and a contagious joy in God. Even if our children are sucked into intellectual nihilism for a while, over the long haul it is important that they remember what biblically - faithful Christianity looks like in the home and in the church.

     Fourth, wisdom in shaping our kids demands more structure when they are young; more discussion, carefully monitored controls, and a safety net as they grow older; and a willingness, in most instances, to wait to be asked for advice when they have genuinely left the nest and are no longer dependent on our roof or our wallets.

     Finally, pray for them. Pray for them especially diligently when you recognize, as you repeatedly will, that unless the Lord builds the house, those who labor do so in vain.

     TT: Skepticism toward Christianity in academia has led to anti-intellectualism among certain evangelicals. How should evangelicals approach scholarship?

     DC: A long essay on this topic would only begin to explore the subject. I concur that some anti-intellectualism is nothing but a thoughtless reaction to the skepticism toward Christianity found in many academic circles. But some of it is the pride of those who can do things with their hands but who do not or cannot make much of intellectual pursuits. Intellectual arrogance is still arrogance; blue-collar arrogance is still arrogance. The right response, for the Christian, begins with repentance and contrition, and a generous recognition that God gives different gifts to human beings in general and to the church in particular. Where the anti-intellectualism is a defensive posture against skepticism in academia, surely the right Christian response is the example of the Apostle Paul, who was determined to bring every thought into submission to Christ. That means we ought to be encouraging our best and brightest to demonstrate love for God with their minds and hearts, taking on the strongholds of intellectual lostness with exactly the same kind of missionary zeal that we want to take on the strongholds of, say, Islam and Buddhism. Moreover, the need is not just evangelistic and apologetic. Much of this work should be motivated by a passionate desire to offer God our best in every domain of life, whether we are grinding valves on a motorcycle engine or wrestling with the magisterial voices of the Western philosophical tradition. The Kuyperian vision of not one square inch where Jesus does not say, “This is mine!” is not a restrictively geographical sweep.

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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).

The Coming of the Kingdom part 23

By Dr. Andrew Woods 03/02/2014

Evangelical Confusion

Today's evangelical world believes that the church is experiencing the Messianic kingdom. To address this type of confusion, we began a study chronicling what the Bible teaches about the kingdom. In this series, the biblical teaching on the kingdom has been surveyed from  Genesis to  Revelation. We have noted thus far that what the Old Testament predicts concerning an earthly kingdom was offered to Israel during Christ's First Advent. Yet, the nation rejected this kingdom offer leading to the kingdom's postponement. In the interim, the kingdom is future as God now pursues an interim program that includes the church.

In addition, we began scrutinizing a series of texts that "kingdom now" theologians routinely employ in order to argue that the kingdom is a present reality in order to show that none of these passages, when rightly understood, teach a present, spiritual form of the kingdom. We began with the use of alleged "kingdom now" texts in the life of Christ, such as "the kingdom of heaven is at hand" ( Matt. 3:2; 4:17; 10:5-7), "seek first His kingdom" ( Matt. 6:33 ), "until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence" ( Matt. 11:12 ), "the kingdom of God has come upon you" ( Matt. 12:28 ), and "the kingdom of God is in your midst" ( Luke 17:21 ).

Born Again To Enter The Kingdom

Sometimes  John 3:3-5 is used to support the notion of a present, spiritual messianic kingdom. These verses say,

"Jesus answered and said to him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.' Nicodemus said to Him, 'How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?' Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.'"

Although the word "kingdom" is used twice in these verses, it is important to note that the term does not speak to the issue of the time of the kingdom's establishment. Rather, it is only used of a revelation of how one must enter the kingdom once it is ultimately established. In other words, when the kingdom comes, entrance into it will only be granted to those who have been born spiritually. Beyond this very little is said. Thus, of this verse and others like it, Sullivan notes,

"Because in these verses the Kingdom is not dealt with extensively, it is impossible to use such references to reach a meaningful understanding of the basileia." [1]

As has been mentioned earlier in this series, when the word "kingdom" is left undefined as it is here, its meaning must be developed from the Old Testament. This is especially true of  John 3:3-5. In this context ( John 3:9-10 ), Jesus expresses incredulity that Nicodemus, Israel's teacher, did not comprehend the new birth as an essential prerequisite for entrance into the kingdom. "Nicodemus said to Him, 'How can these things be?' Jesus answered and said to him, 'Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?'" Such incredulity relates to the fact that Nicodemus as Israel's teacher should have been well aware of  Ezekiel 36:24-27, which clearly explains the necessity of the new birth before entrance into the kingdom is permitted. These verses say,

"For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances."

These verses not only reveal the necessity of the spiritual birth prior to entrance into the kingdom, they also explain the specific time in history when the kingdom will be established. They occur in the section of the Book of  Ezekiel directly depicting Israel's end time program ( Ezek. 33–48 ). The overall context of this section is eschatological since these chapters relate to  Ezekiel's recommissioning to preach the nation's restoration ( Ezek. 33 ), the millennial David ( Ezek. 34 ), Edom's future destruction ( Ezek. 35 ), Israel's future political and spiritual restoration and reunification ( Ezek. 36–37 ), the Gog and Magog battle leading to the nation's restoration ( Ezek. 38–39 ), the millennial temple ( Ezek. 40–46 ), the millennial river ( Ezek. 47:1-12 ), the millennial land inheritance of Israel's tribes ( Ezek. 47:13–48:29 ), and the ultimate restoration of Jerusalem ( Ezek. 48:30-35 ). In other words,  Ezekiel 36:24-27 is found in a context predicting the return of Israel to her own land ( Ezek. 36:24 ), the future Tribulation period, and beyond. Thus, the very kingdom, entrance into which spiritual birth is a mandatory prerequisite, is a completely future reality since its very establishment is intimately connected with end time events. By leaving the word "kingdom" undefined in  John 3:3-5, Jesus presupposes this rich Old Testament background drawn from the prophet  Ezekiel as related to the kingdom's future arrival.

In sum, in  John 3:3-5, Jesus merely rehearses a well-known fact from  Ezekiel, the necessity of spiritual birth prior to entrance into the kingdom. By making such a scant statement and by not defining the kingdom, we must go to the source, the prophet  Ezekiel, in order to gain insight as to when the kingdom will arrive. As explained earlier, the context of the new birth is found within a larger context that points exclusively to the future for the kingdom's arrival.

Not Taste Death Until The Arrival Of The Kingdom

Matthew 16:27-28, represent more verses utilized by "kingdom now" theologians. They say,

"For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay every man according to his deeds. Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."

In verse  27, Jesus notes both the angelic manifestation as well as the final judgment associated with the coming of His kingdom. Because in verse  28 He indicates that there are some listening to Him who would not die until the coming of this kingdom, many assume that Christ established His kingdom in spiritual form at His First Advent.

However, this interpretation ignores the context of Christ's statement, which is found in the very next verses of the following chapter.  Matthew 17:1-13 describes Christ's Transfiguration, where Christ appeared in His glorified state. Since this glorified manifestation of Himself was a temporary appearance during His First Advent, His Transfiguration was a foretaste or a token of what the Son of Man coming in His glory and the splendor of His kingdom, as depicted in  Matthew 16:28, would be like. Thus, contextually, in  Matthew 16:28, Christ predicted that the Transfiguration would take place before some of His immediate audience had died. Christ's prediction in this regard was literally fulfilled six days later since the Transfiguration took place as recorded in the very next chapter. Unfortunately, the chapter division causes many to bifurcate Christ's prediction at the end of  Matthew 16 from the events at the beginning of  Matthew 17. However, it must be remembered that chapter divisions are artificial. They are not part of the inspired text, but rather were added much later in a well-intentioned but sometimes ineffective way of organizing and outlining the biblical text. Craven explains the full context of  Matthew 16:28:

The declaration of Jesus, "There be some standing here," etc.,  Matt. 16:28; Mark 9:1; Luke 9:27. This, according to the opinion of Chrysostom and others (see Lange Comm. on  Matt. 16:28 ), may find its fulfillment in the immediately following Transfiguration. In this event the Basileia was not merely symbolized, but in all its glory was for a moment set up on earth (comp.  2 Pet. 1:16–18 ). [2]

That  Matthew 16:28 was fulfilled in the Transfiguration of  Matthew 17:1-13 receives further support from the grammar of the passage. McClain explains,

"the conjunction with which chapter  17 begins clearly establishes the unbroken continuity of thought between  16:28 and  17:1, as also in the accounts of  Mark and  Luke where no chapter division occurs." [3]

Ice also demonstrates the continuity of thought between the two chapters:

All three accounts of the prophesied event speak of seeing and the kingdom.  Matthew says they will see "the Son of Man coming in His kingdom," emphasizing the person of the Son of Man coming.  Mark says, "they see the kingdom of God" and he adds that it will come "with power."  Luke simply says that "they see the kingdom of God." The transfiguration fits all aspects of the various emphases found in each of the three precise predictions.  Matthew's stress upon the actual, physical presence of the Son of Man is clearly met in the transfiguration because Jesus was personally and visibly present... Mark's emphasis upon a display of the kingdom with "power" was certainly fulfilled by the transfiguration. No one could doubt that the transfiguration certainly fit the definition of a "power encounter" for the disciples. That Jesus appears dressed in the Shekinah glory of God upon the Mount ( Mk. 9:3 ) is further evidence to the disciples that He was God and acted with His power.  Luke's simple statement about some who will "see the kingdom of God" is vindicated also by his account ( 17:28-36 ). Twice  Luke records our Lord describing the transfiguration with the term "glory" ( 17:31, 32 ). [4]

ENDNOTES

The Gospel-Driven Life: An Interview with Michael Horton

By Michael Horton 2/01/2013

     Tabletalk: Please tell us how you became a Christian.

     Michael Horton: My parents were faithful Baptist believers, although my mom was really the spiritual leader in the home when it came to daily devotions together and encouraging me to pursue the faith for myself. I’m grateful to them and to those churches that fostered Bible memorization and taught me some of the basics of the gospel, even though it was more Arminian by default. When I began wrestling with the doctrines of grace, my mom was my main conversation (or argument) partner, and eventually both of my parents embraced the Reformed faith. My dad’s faith was reignited, too, and he became my greatest encourager.

     TT: Please tell us a little bit about White Horse Inn and Modern Reformation, and how they seek to serve the church today.

     MH: During my college years at Biola, a group of us sponsored a conference with J.I. Packer, W. Robert Godfrey, and Rod Rosenbladt. I had already become friends with Kim Riddlebarger. At the conference, a wealthy brother in Christ offered to give us a major gift to start something, so we decided to start a local “theology talk show.” It was live, and we also had call-ins. Based on that success in Los Angeles, we took the program nationwide. Then, we also started a bulletin that became Modern Reformation magazine. Ken Jones joined the crew a few years later.

     It’s hard for us to believe now, but Kim, Rod, Ken, and I have been doing the White Horse Inn now for nearly twenty-five years, and Modern Reformation is two decades old. So, we’re profoundly grateful for what we’ve seen the Lord do with a few loaves and fishes over the years.

     We’re very much inspired by the work of Ligonier, and our goal is to help Christians know what they believe and why. We’re not a church, but we hope that by having deeper conversations about the great truths of Scripture, we can spark similar conversations around the world. By God’s grace, that’s exactly what we’re seeing—in 120 countries.

     TT: Some argue that your emphasis on the law/gospel distinction borders on Lutheranism. What is your view, and how do you respond to your critics?

     MH: Great question. Lutherans and Calvinists disagree about some important issues. However, there’s a tendency today to obscure those areas of shoulder-to-shoulder agreement. This is one of those areas. The law/gospel distinction is deep in our Reformed tradition: in John Calvin, the Second Helvetic Confession, our formative theologians of the post-Reformation era, the Puritans, and all the way to the present. At the same time, Lutherans and Calvinists also embrace the “third use of the law” (namely, to direct Christian obedience).

     I’m very encouraged to see a new generation of Reformed Christians exploring the wealth of our historical theology, and they are seeing this distinction all over the place in our tradition.

     TT: What is the basic thesis of your recent trilogy of books (Christless Christianity, The Gospel-Driven Life, and The Gospel Commission)?

     MH: Christless Christianity addresses the church’s message today in the light of the God-centered and Christ-exalting teaching of Scripture. The Gospel-Driven Life argues that while Scripture certainly guides our lives, the gospel is the power of God unto salvation: for sanctification as well as justification.

     As we move off point in our message, the result is mission creep. That’s the concern in The Gospel Commission, as I unpack the vision, mission, and strategy of the church from Christ’s mandate. So the first book takes off the bandage to examine the wound, the second proposes a cure, and the third explores what it means not only to get the gospel right but to get it out.

     TT: What are some attitudes and actions that show we may have forgotten our ongoing need for the gospel?

     MH: It’s easy to trivialize the gospel, turning it into a slogan. Then we take it for granted, as something we needed to hear to “get saved,” but now we can “move on” to more ostensibly important topics like how to save our marriages and families or engage in the culture wars. Before long, the result is what sociologist Christian Smith calls moralistic therapeutic deism. There is a thinning out of the Christian message. We exhibit this tendency in many ways, but we have to realize that Pelagianism—“self-help salvation”—is the default setting of our fallen hearts. We live in a narcissistic culture, and it’s easy to turn God into a supporting actor in our life movie rather than be swept into His story of redemption.

     TT: How is the West’s move to a post-Christian society harmful and helpful to the church?

     MH: It helps to be shaken a little bit from the smug confidence that we live in a Christian culture and a Christian nation. The church has always been more faithful when it has had to go back to its own resources, as a marginalized group, and recover its own voice—hearing God’s voice again in the Scriptures—without all of the cultural trappings. When were we ever really a “Christian society”?

     On the other hand, the explicit relativism and nihilism of our culture today is a tremendous influence on Christians as well as society at large. God is big enough and the gospel is powerful enough, through the mighty working of the Spirit, to ensure the success of God’s mission. When we recover our confidence in the power of God’s Word and Spirit, the condition of the cultures in which God has placed us will seem far weaker and less of a threat by comparison. Christ is Lord, whether the nations acknowledge Him or not, and He is still building His church.

     TT: What books are you working on currently? What books do you hope to work on in the near future?

     MH: I just finished Pilgrim Theology. It’s a more accessible (and much shorter) alternative to my recent systematic theology, The Christian Faith. I’ve also been working on comments for Joshua in a new ESV study Bible and am about to start writing a book on Calvin’s piety.

     TT: What is the theology and mission of Westminster Seminary in California, where you serve as a professor of theology?

     MH: Our motto is “For Christ, His Gospel, and His Church.” Committed to the inerrant Scriptures, Westminster Theological Seminary in California has the highest standards for learning the biblical languages, systematic and historical theology, church history, and practical theology. I especially appreciate the fact that we’re all on the same page, moving in the same direction, rooted deeply in the Reformed confessions and passionate about reaching the world with the gospel.

     All professors are expected to be active in their churches as associate ministers, and that emphasis on seminary education as a cooperative venture with churches is key to everything we do. I also draw constant encouragement from the vibrant, zealous, and thoughtful student body each year.

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Glorious Liberty (Prayer)

By Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892)

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     God bless our country, and the sister country across the flood, and all lands where Thy name is known and reverenced, and heathen lands where it is unknown. God bless the outposts, the first heralds of mercy, and everywhere may the Lord's kingdom come and His name be glorified. Glory be unto the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost ; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Read The Psalms In "1" Year

Psalm 102

23 He has broken my strength in midcourse;
he has shortened my days.
24 “O my God,” I say, “take me not away
in the midst of my days—
you whose years endure
throughout all generations!”

25 Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 They will perish, but you will remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
27 but you are the same, and your years have no end.
28 The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
their offspring shall be established before you.

God’s Unspeakable Gift (Prayer)

By Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892)

     OLORD, many of us feel like the lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. Come by this way and make the lame ones perfectly sound. O Lord, Thou canst do by Thy servants to-day what Thou didst by them in the olden time. Work miracles of mercy even upon outer court worshippers who are too lame to get into the holy place.

     But there are many who feel like that man when he was restored. We would follow our Restorer, the Prince of Life, into the temple, leaping and walking and praising God. He has gone into the temple in the highest sense, up to the throne of God. He climbs, and we would follow, up the steps of the temple one by one, made meet. We would come nearer and nearer to the throne of God.

     O Lord, Thou hast done such great things for us that we feel the drawings of Thy love. "The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying : Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee." Draw us nearer, Lord, draw us into the inner Sanctuary ; draw us within the place which once was hidden by the veil which Christ has rent ; bring us right up to the throne of grace, and there beholding the glory of God above the Mercy Seat may we have communion with the Most High. Heal all our diseases and forgive us all our trespasses.

     Still, Lord, though healed of a former lameness so that now we have strength, we need a further touch from Thee ; we are so apt to get dull and stupid ; come and help us. Lord Jesus. A vision of Thy face will brighten us ; but to feel Thy Spirit touching us will make us vigorous. Oh! for the leaping and the walking of the man born lame. May we to-day dance with holy joy like David before the Ark of God. May a holy exhilaration take possession of every part of us ; may we be glad in the Lord ; may our mouth be filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing, "for the Lord hath done great things for us whereof we are glad."

     To-day help Thy people to put on Christ. May we live as those who are alive from the dead, for He is the quickening Spirit ; and may we feel Him to be so. Is any part of us still dead. Lord quicken it. May the life which has taken possession of our heart take possession of our head ; may the brain be active in holy thought ; may our entire being, indeed, respond to the life of Christ, and may we live in newness of life.

     We would fain fall down on our faces and worship the Son of God to-day. It is such a wonder that He should have loved us ; and He has done such wonderful things for us and in us that we may still call Him God's unspeakable gift. He is unspeakably precious to our souls. Thou knowest all things, Lord ; Thou knowest that we love Thee. May that love bubble up to-day like a boiling cauldron, may our hearts overflow; and if we cannot speak what we feel, may that holy silence be eloquent with the praise of God.

     Lord, send Thy life throughout the entire Church. Lord, visit Thy Church, restore sound doctrine, restore holy and earnest living. Take away from professors their apparent love for frivolities, their attempts to meet the world on its own ground, and give back the old love to the doctrines of the cross, the doctrines of the Christ of God; and once more may free grace and dying love be the music that shall refresh the Church, and make her heart exceeding glad.

     Just now when the earth is waking up to life, Lord, wake up dead hearts ; and if there are seeds of grace lying dormant in any soul may they begin to bud, may the bulb down at the heart send forth its golden cup and drink in of the light, the life of God. Oh! save to-day. "Thy King in the midst of Thee is mighty : He will save." Our very heart is speaking now much more loudly and sweetly than our lips can speak. Lord save sinners ; great High Priest have compassion on the ignorant and such as are out of the way. Great Shepherd of the sheep gather the lambs within Thine arm ; find out the lost sheep ; throw them on Thy shoulders and bring them home ejoicing.

     We ask that everywhere there may be great numbers added to the Church. Thou who didst bring in five thousand so soon, bring in five thousand in many and many a place. We read the statistics of Thy Church with great sorrow; how small an increase ! Lord multiply us with men as with a flock ; increase the people, and increase the joy. Make us to joy before Thee as the joy of harvest.

     Lord, we pray for our country with all our heart ; and as Thou biddest us we pray for those in authority, for the Sovereign as supreme, for the Court of Parliament, for all magistrates and rulers. We pray also for the poorest and the down-trodden. The Lord look upon the poor of this world, and make them rich in faith, and comfort them in heart by the Holy Ghost. The Lord save the nation. Let Thy light and Thy truth go forth to the most distant parts of the earth ; " let the people praise Thee ; O God let all the people praise Thee." Give us the times of refreshing. May we have a visit from Christ by the power of His Spirit ; and until He come may there be a blessed halcyon time of peace and salvation.

     "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven." And do Thou come Thyself, great King. May our eyes, if it please Thee, behold Thee on earth ; but if not, if we fall asleep ere that blessed array, we can say, "I know that my Redeemer liveth ; and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."

     Bless every Sunday-school teacher, every tract distributor, every open-air preacher. Bless, we pray Thee, all Bible-women and nurses, deacons and missionaries of the City Mission, Bible readers and all others who in any way seek to bring men to Christ. O God the Holy Ghost, work mightily, we pray Thee ; flood the world with a baptism of Thy power, and "let the whole earth be filled with a knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." We ask all in that dear name which made the lame man whole, which is sweet to God in heaven and dear to us below ; and unto Father, Son and Holy Ghost be glory, world without end. Amen.

Dealing with Lust

By Joseph Pipa Jr. 2/01/2013

     They are as close as our skin, the troika of lusts described by the Apostle John: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life (1 John 2:16). These inordinate and forbidden longings of the sinner are the fountain of sin, as James points out when teaching that God does not tempt us to sin: “But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death” (James 1:14–15 NASB).

     The natural man is in bondage to his lusts (Rom. 3:10–18), but at our conversion, because of our union with Christ, we are delivered from the dominion of lusts: “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (6:12–14).

     God, however, in His inscrutable wisdom, determined to leave within His converted sons and daughters a remnant of sin; and that remnant resides in the lusts. Hence, the same Apostle who announced that we are dead to the dominion of sin chronicled his struggles: “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want” (7:18–19).

     We all are well aware of the struggle with the besetting sins of our lusts. They come clothed in lots of different garbs, including materialism, power, and pride. But here I will focus on the problem of sexual lust. We all recognize that sexual failure is an epidemic in today’s church. Hardly a week passes that we do not learn of another church leader who has been exposed in adultery, fornication, homosexuality, or pornography.

     Sexual temptations are everywhere; we are bombarded by sexual temptation via clothing (or lack thereof), television, billboards, songs, suggestive language, and solicitations on Facebook. Take, for example, pornography. No longer does a person have to walk into a store and purchase pornographic material—it is as close as the privacy of your computer screen, and it is powerfully addictive.

     But do we have to succumb? The answer, as noted above, is no. We are not under the dominion of sin. However, we need to take daily precautions. Foundationally, our families and churches need to foster a culture of chastity, emphasizing sexual purity in thought, dress, language, and behavior. Such a culture begins with parents in the home and office-bearers (pastors and church officers and their wives) in the congregation.

     We must carefully use the means of grace—public worship, preaching, prayer, sacraments, fasting, and private and family worship. Above all, we must cling to Christ.

     We also need to develop habits that will help guard the heart. In the booklet Impure Lust (Pocket Puritan Series) (The Pocket Puritan Series) by John Flavel (May 31,2008), John Flavel gave seven directions for dealing with lust:

     1. Beg of God a clean heart, renewed and sanctified by saving grace. We must always begin with the heart, for it is the fountain of all else (Matt. 15:19), and God promises to answer our prayers as we pray according to His will (John 14:13–14). We must seek the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit.

     2. Walk in the fear of God all the day long, and in the sense of his omniscient eye that is ever upon you. How often our behavior is dictated by who is watching. We forget that He sees all.

     3. Avoid lewd company, and the society of unclean persons; they are panderers for lust. Evil company corrupts good manners. Remember that this direction not only includes our personal contacts but those we encounter through movies, music, books, magazines, and computers.

     4. Exercise yourself in your calling diligently; it will be an excellent means of preventing this sin. You have heard the adage, “Idleness is the Devil’s workshop.”

     5. Put a restraint upon your appetite: feed not to excess. This direction does not mean that we may not enjoy God’s good gifts of food and drink, and the pleasure of feasting with friends, but it is a sober reminder that if we pander to our physical appetites in one area, we will be more prone to fall in other areas.

     6. Choose a spouse and delight in the one you have chosen. One of the liberating insights of the Reformation is that within marriage, sex is for pleasure and is a God-given protection against unlawful lusts.

     7. Take heed of running on in a course of sin, especially superstition and idolatry: in which cases, and as a punishment of which evils God often gives up men to these vile affections (Rom. 1:25–26). Sin inevitably breeds sin.

     In these ways, the church may guard her people. Practice and teach these things.

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The Continual Burnt Offering (Romans 3:21)

By H.A. Ironside - 1941

September 13

Isaiah 46:13 I bring near my righteousness; it is not far off,
and my salvation will not delay;
I will put salvation in Zion,
for Israel my glory.”

Father, Thy sov’reign love has sought
Captives to sin, gone far from Thee;
The work that Thine own Son hath wrought
Has brought us back in peace and free.
And now as sons before Thy face,
With joyful steps the path we tread
Which leads us on to that blest place
Prepared for us by Christ our Head.
--- J. N. D.

Reading God's Word

By Richard S. Adams 08-282021

     Have you ever been sitting with friends or family and watched as one person continues to check their phone? Doesn't it make you feel they would rather be somewhere else?

     We've all been talking with someone when suddenly they get a call on their smart phone and abruptly our conversation either ends or is put on pause. There appear to be no social manners when it comes to smart phones, but isn't that typical of our times? People don't read, they skim. People are distracted, they partially hear what you say which leads to many misunderstandings. Who is the author of confusion? When was the last time you really knew someone was really listening to you?

     You can be talking with someone on the phone and when they get another call, they put you on hold. It doesn't matter that they called you. When they finally get back to you, if they remember you, they say I have another call, as if you did not know it. Then they say I need to take that call. What really bothers me is when I catch myself doing it. I do not want to be a part of this disrespect for others, but I have been guilty of saying, "Lily is calling, I have to go."

     Who hasn't heard the person, male or female, in the grocery store who talks loud enough for everyone to be a party to their conversation? Are they trying to be rude? I don't think so. I think they are simply unaware of anyone else.

     When I am on the phone with Lily, she is my priority. I rarely say I have to take this other call. I say rarely because she tells me never say never.

     There is an interesting story in the Gospel of John that is so different from today. Six days before the Passover, Jesus went to a dinner being held in his honor at the house of Simon the Leper. Lazarus, Martha, Mary and others were there. I assume that Lazarus, Martha and Mary were good friends of Simon the Leper since Martha was serving. Maybe Simon's house was bigger or just better suited to entertaining.

     When we expect company Lily tries hard to make everything just right, so it is easy for me to imagine Martha hurriedly trying to get everything ready. She wanted her sister to help her, but Mary was seated at the feet of Jesus. Mary was not checking her smart phone as she sat with Jesus. Instead, she was listening so intently to what Jesus was saying that she paid no attention to the pleas of her sister. Despite Martha asking for help, Mary had chosen to listen to Jesus. When Martha complained to Jesus that she needed Mary's help Jesus said,

     Luke 10:42 (ESV) 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

     Mary had chosen to listen to Jesus rather than help her sister. I'm sure she knew her sister was stressing trying to get things ready for all the guests, but Mary was seated before Jesus. The apostle John tells the reader that this was the Mary who anointed the head of Jesus with expensive perfume. (John 12:1-12) I can't help but believe there was a connection between her listening to Jesus and later anointing Him with perfume for His burial.

     I am of the opinion that listening to Jesus, reading God's Word, is the most important form of worship we can offer. I do not write that only because of this story of Mary of Bethany, but also because it is so difficult for many people to sit at the feet of Jesus, in other words, to read their Bibles. The darkness in this world does not want anyone to read God's Word. If we plan to read our Bibles then expect a flood of distractions. Why? Because the Bible tells us the unfolding of God's Word is light.

     Psalm 119:130 (ESV) The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.

     In my mind I see a scroll being opened in the dark and like a candle being lit in a dark room the darkness shrinks back.

     I will not list all the excuses people think are reasons why they cannot read their Bibles. We've all heard them. People make time to watch their favorite television program(s), YouTube Channel(s), play their favorite video game(s) … or they say the Bible is too difficult. Too difficult means they do not want to expend the energy and time to learn God's Word.

     What did Jesus say about this?

     Luke 11:9–13 (ESV) 9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

     Yes, this passage is about the Holy Spirit and prayer. Before sitting down to read God's Word we should always pray and ask for God's help. God's help means the Holy Spirit. God wants you to read His Word. God wants you to understand His Word. God wants you to love Him and when we sit before Jesus and learn His Word we will love Jesus. To know Him, not just about Him, but to really know Him is to love Him.

     The Bible also tells us that things will not always be the way they are today. Just because there is a wealth of information about the Bible today does not mean it will always be.

      Amos 8:11 (ESV) “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord GOD, “when I will send a famine on the land — not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.

     Isaiah 55:6 (ESV) 6 “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near;

• Feb 5     Prosperity and the Camp Fire
• Feb 7     Job 6:14-23
• Feb 10     Spontaneous Generation
• Feb 14     Hindsight
• Feb 18     The Cure For Despair
• Feb 22     RE: Job's Friends
• Feb 23     Job 23:14
• Feb 25     No Time To Text
• Mar 5     Polemics and Caricature
• Mar 6     Ecclesiastes 3:14 | Grace
• Mar 25     The Corona Virus
• Apr 20     Death and My Master's Voice
• May 10     Ruth | Relationships
• May 25     Jesus and the Passover
• June 2     Extension Cords
• June 18     Lincoln City 6/2/18
• July 14     Tom - Gen and Revelation
• July 15     Knowledge and World Peace
• July 16     The Church as Lobbyist
• Aug 3     Have You Noticed
• Sept 1     Branches Ran Over The Wall
• Sept 2     1 Cor 9:1-2
• Sept 2     Many Young Folks Get This
• Sept 13     Reading God's Word
• Nov 27     The Way The World Is
• Nov 30     The Renewal Of Israel
• Dec 11     Open Door
• Dec 20     Replacement Theology