Through the death & resurrection of Jesus, His question to the rich young ruler, “Why do you call me good?”( Luke 18:19) gets turned upside down. It is the believer saying in astonishment and wonder to God, “Why do you call me good?” And that brings humble gladness where there was sadness and smugness.
Jesus was willing to called bad so you could be called good. He was slandered with a bad report so you could have an absolutely good résumé. If you have put your trust in Jesus’ goodness rather than your own, you are astonished because you know there is nothing in you that would make God call you good. And yet, He calls you good.
By having the perfect goodness of God credited to you through Jesus Christ, it is though God has thoroughly scrutinized you and given you full approval and delights in you. If you renounce your own incomplete and questionably motivated goodness as having any merit and put your trust in Jesus’ total goodness, God pronounces you good—not just forgiven, but scrutinized and approved of, and delighted in. That is what Jesus meant in Luke 18:14 by "justified" and "exalted."
Saturday, June 27, 2009
A Glorious Moment
I was stuck by this view of repentance:
"We see our first repentance and surrender to Christ as a glorious moment. But in talking to many believers, I get the impression that most of us consider the on-going repentance of the saved as a not-so-glorious experience. A sort of sad necessity.
We must not play down the seriousness of sin in the life of a believer. But we must come to terms with the fact that God’s grace is GREATER THAN ALL OUR SINS. Repentance is one of the Christian’s highest privileges. A repentant Christian focuses on God’s mercy and God’s grace. Any moment in our lives when we bask in God’s mercy and grace is our highest moment. Higher than when we feel smug in our decent performance and cannot think of anything we need to confess.
Whenever we fail, and fail we will, the Spirit of God will work on us and bring us to the foot of the cross where Jesus carried our failures. That is potentially a glorious moment. For we could at that moment accept God’s abundant mercy and grace and go forth with nothing to boast of except Christ Himself, or else we could struggle with our shame, focusing on that as well as our track record." (Muta Mahiaini, in Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace, 27, 28)
"We see our first repentance and surrender to Christ as a glorious moment. But in talking to many believers, I get the impression that most of us consider the on-going repentance of the saved as a not-so-glorious experience. A sort of sad necessity.
We must not play down the seriousness of sin in the life of a believer. But we must come to terms with the fact that God’s grace is GREATER THAN ALL OUR SINS. Repentance is one of the Christian’s highest privileges. A repentant Christian focuses on God’s mercy and God’s grace. Any moment in our lives when we bask in God’s mercy and grace is our highest moment. Higher than when we feel smug in our decent performance and cannot think of anything we need to confess.
Whenever we fail, and fail we will, the Spirit of God will work on us and bring us to the foot of the cross where Jesus carried our failures. That is potentially a glorious moment. For we could at that moment accept God’s abundant mercy and grace and go forth with nothing to boast of except Christ Himself, or else we could struggle with our shame, focusing on that as well as our track record." (Muta Mahiaini, in Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace, 27, 28)
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The Blood That Speaks Better
Here are some thoughts I had when teaching in Cain and Abel. In Hebrews 12 :22-24, the author declares, "But you have come… to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."
Abel’s blood cries out against Cain and injustice. Jesus' blood “speaks a better word” because it cries out on behalf of unjust people--you and me. Now the justice is not against us, but for us(Rom. 8:31).
Do you know what happens when you realize the blood of Jesus cries out on your behalf? The blood of Jesus changes Cain-like, “elderbrotherish” anger. It drives it out because it changes how you view what you are owed, and what think you deserve.You realize what you are owed is judgment—for your wrong deed and for the reasons you do the right things. You realize there is an outcry against you and you deserve the righteous wrath of God. You received mercy instead! You are loved!
Anger still wells up. But now you know why. And you learn to repent of self-righteous pride and your joy returns. More and more, you lose the anger of Cain, you become sweeter. You sense the privilege of being accepted. You see your life, no matter what you are going through as a gracious gift. You stop trying to justify yourself and tear down others down.You throw away your time sheet that says God owes you. You are no longer a grumpy Cain, but a sweet Abel.
Abel’s blood cries out against Cain and injustice. Jesus' blood “speaks a better word” because it cries out on behalf of unjust people--you and me. Now the justice is not against us, but for us(Rom. 8:31).
Do you know what happens when you realize the blood of Jesus cries out on your behalf? The blood of Jesus changes Cain-like, “elderbrotherish” anger. It drives it out because it changes how you view what you are owed, and what think you deserve.You realize what you are owed is judgment—for your wrong deed and for the reasons you do the right things. You realize there is an outcry against you and you deserve the righteous wrath of God. You received mercy instead! You are loved!
Anger still wells up. But now you know why. And you learn to repent of self-righteous pride and your joy returns. More and more, you lose the anger of Cain, you become sweeter. You sense the privilege of being accepted. You see your life, no matter what you are going through as a gracious gift. You stop trying to justify yourself and tear down others down.You throw away your time sheet that says God owes you. You are no longer a grumpy Cain, but a sweet Abel.
Spiritual Sight
"When a man is getting better he understands more and more clearly the evil that is still left in him. When a man is getting worse, he understands his own badness less and less." (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, 93)
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Relational Gospel Implications
Here are two more from Milton Vincent's A Gospel Primer:
Loving My Brothers and Sisters
The more I experience the gospel, the more there develops in me a yearning affection for my fellow Christians who are participating in the glories of the gospel. This affection for them comes loaded with confidence in their continued spiritual growth and ultimate glorification, and it becomes my pleasure to express to them this loving confidence regarding the ongoing work of God in their lives.[1]
With the gospel proving itself to be such a boon in my own life, I realize that the greatest gift I can give my fellow Christians is the gospel itself. Indeed, I love my fellow Christians not simply because of the gospel, but I love them best when I love them with the gospel![2] And I do this not merely by speaking gospel words to them, but also by living before them and generously relating to them in a gospel manner.
A Heart for the Lost
What effect do the gospel meditations of Romans 5-8 have on Paul? What emotions do they produce in him besides the obvious joy he feels while reciting them? Paul bares his soul at the beginning of chapter 9: “I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart.. for the sake of my kinsmen….”[3] Coming down from the heights of gospel meditation, Paul’s heart is devastated by a burden for his fellow Jews to experience the saving power of the gospel… Over time, my joy in the gospel will become increasingly tinged with grief, and the grief-stained joy will lend a God-inspired passion to my ministry to the lost.
[1] Phil. 1:3-7
[2] 1 Thess. 2:8
[3] Romans 8:35-39; 9:1-4
Loving My Brothers and Sisters
The more I experience the gospel, the more there develops in me a yearning affection for my fellow Christians who are participating in the glories of the gospel. This affection for them comes loaded with confidence in their continued spiritual growth and ultimate glorification, and it becomes my pleasure to express to them this loving confidence regarding the ongoing work of God in their lives.[1]
With the gospel proving itself to be such a boon in my own life, I realize that the greatest gift I can give my fellow Christians is the gospel itself. Indeed, I love my fellow Christians not simply because of the gospel, but I love them best when I love them with the gospel![2] And I do this not merely by speaking gospel words to them, but also by living before them and generously relating to them in a gospel manner.
A Heart for the Lost
What effect do the gospel meditations of Romans 5-8 have on Paul? What emotions do they produce in him besides the obvious joy he feels while reciting them? Paul bares his soul at the beginning of chapter 9: “I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart.. for the sake of my kinsmen….”[3] Coming down from the heights of gospel meditation, Paul’s heart is devastated by a burden for his fellow Jews to experience the saving power of the gospel… Over time, my joy in the gospel will become increasingly tinged with grief, and the grief-stained joy will lend a God-inspired passion to my ministry to the lost.
[1] Phil. 1:3-7
[2] 1 Thess. 2:8
[3] Romans 8:35-39; 9:1-4
How Needing the Gospel Leads to Sharing the Gospel
I have been moved by how Jack Miller connected living under the gospel with our motivation and courage to share the gospel:
And this may be the root of your problem with evangelism: you don’t understand the gospel—for yourself or anyone else! There are many Christians who have never fully grasped how lost in sin they really were, and how low God stooped to save them.
A person who has not heard God’s words of compassion for himself as a lost person can not communicate them to others. If, in your own mind, you have limited your need for the gospel, you will hardly identify with sinners in obvious need of saving grace. You feel removed from them, as you feel removed from the full impact of the gospel. The distance you feel from both the message and those who need to hear it soon disengages you from altogether from the enterprise of evangelism.
Apart from a soul hunger for Christ there is cure for the lukewarmness that forever crouches at the door or the self-satisfied Christian. A daily awareness that we must never stray from Calvary ourselves is the most important element in a God-honoring evangelism. As I experience the gospel as a message of a righteous God’s total forgiveness, and Christ as the magnetic, personal center of my life, evangelizing with a gospel of forgiveness is a natural and inevitable outgrowth. It breaks down my blinding pride; it reminds me of what our God of love has done for me… Having been humbled ourselves by our own present need, we approach the lost person with a new welcoming attitude… We will not be trying to do something alien to us. Personal witness will issue from our delight in God and appreciation of His grace in Jesus Christ. We will be able to receive strangers as friends… (Jack Miller, Powerful Evangelism for the Powerless, 44, 45)
And this may be the root of your problem with evangelism: you don’t understand the gospel—for yourself or anyone else! There are many Christians who have never fully grasped how lost in sin they really were, and how low God stooped to save them.
A person who has not heard God’s words of compassion for himself as a lost person can not communicate them to others. If, in your own mind, you have limited your need for the gospel, you will hardly identify with sinners in obvious need of saving grace. You feel removed from them, as you feel removed from the full impact of the gospel. The distance you feel from both the message and those who need to hear it soon disengages you from altogether from the enterprise of evangelism.
Apart from a soul hunger for Christ there is cure for the lukewarmness that forever crouches at the door or the self-satisfied Christian. A daily awareness that we must never stray from Calvary ourselves is the most important element in a God-honoring evangelism. As I experience the gospel as a message of a righteous God’s total forgiveness, and Christ as the magnetic, personal center of my life, evangelizing with a gospel of forgiveness is a natural and inevitable outgrowth. It breaks down my blinding pride; it reminds me of what our God of love has done for me… Having been humbled ourselves by our own present need, we approach the lost person with a new welcoming attitude… We will not be trying to do something alien to us. Personal witness will issue from our delight in God and appreciation of His grace in Jesus Christ. We will be able to receive strangers as friends… (Jack Miller, Powerful Evangelism for the Powerless, 44, 45)
Sunday, June 7, 2009
An Exciting Example of Spiritual Renewal
This is narrative (in Tim Keller's Prayer Study Guide) I read about a spiritual renewal movement in Korea:
In 1903 in the city of Wonsan, there was a Canadian missionary, R. A. Hardie, who was studying prayer. He came upon Luke 11:13: “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” He was deeply convicted that his missionary work had been motivated by a desire to prove himself to others and God; that he had not based it on grace, prayer, and the Holy Spirit.. He gave this testimony to a Korean congregation, publicly repenting of his pride, hardness of heart, and lack of faith in Christ. This was electrifying in a largely Confucian culture where losing face was considered unthinkable. The people began to repent, pray, and seek the Holy Spirit in their midst. Awakening spread in and around the region of Wonsan and the churches began to grow.
At a Bible conference meeting on January 17, 1907 in the city of Pyongyang, a huge crowd gathered. The preacher concluded the sermon and called for prayer, encouraging them to pray aloud. The whole audience began to pray out loud and in unison. Suddenly they burst into a roar of prayer as people were feeling a strong urge to prayer. William Blair, a Presbyterian missionary, was present and later described the scene:
“The whole audience would break out into audible prayer, and the effect of that audience of hundreds of men praying together in audible prayer was something indescribable. Again, after another confession, they would break out into uncontrollable weeping and we would all weep together. We couldn't’t help it. And so the meeting went on until 2 a.m., with confession and weeping and praying. …We had prayed to God for an outpouring of His Holy Spirit upon the people and it had come.
William Blair says that after the week was over:
All through the city people were going from house to house, confessing wrongs, returning stolen property, not only to Christians but to heathens. A Chinese merchant was astounded to have a Christian walk in and pay him a large sum of money he had obtained unjustly years before. The whole city was stirred.
Harvie Conn, a missionary to Korea for many years, writes that
Confucianism made an idol out of hierarchical authority and was therefore deeply self-righteous. This led to the belief that no one of any real stature should repent. It represented a loss of face. But the gospel brought about a power encounter with the self-righteousness of the Confucian world-view at the heart of Korean culture. A new concept of humility and greatness in the gospel brought about an enormous shift in the lives of converts. In the revival, males especially, who had next to no ability to deal with shame and failure, experienced the love of God in the gospel through the Holy Spirit. It freed them to admit their flaws.
In 1903 in the city of Wonsan, there was a Canadian missionary, R. A. Hardie, who was studying prayer. He came upon Luke 11:13: “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” He was deeply convicted that his missionary work had been motivated by a desire to prove himself to others and God; that he had not based it on grace, prayer, and the Holy Spirit.. He gave this testimony to a Korean congregation, publicly repenting of his pride, hardness of heart, and lack of faith in Christ. This was electrifying in a largely Confucian culture where losing face was considered unthinkable. The people began to repent, pray, and seek the Holy Spirit in their midst. Awakening spread in and around the region of Wonsan and the churches began to grow.
At a Bible conference meeting on January 17, 1907 in the city of Pyongyang, a huge crowd gathered. The preacher concluded the sermon and called for prayer, encouraging them to pray aloud. The whole audience began to pray out loud and in unison. Suddenly they burst into a roar of prayer as people were feeling a strong urge to prayer. William Blair, a Presbyterian missionary, was present and later described the scene:
“The whole audience would break out into audible prayer, and the effect of that audience of hundreds of men praying together in audible prayer was something indescribable. Again, after another confession, they would break out into uncontrollable weeping and we would all weep together. We couldn't’t help it. And so the meeting went on until 2 a.m., with confession and weeping and praying. …We had prayed to God for an outpouring of His Holy Spirit upon the people and it had come.
William Blair says that after the week was over:
All through the city people were going from house to house, confessing wrongs, returning stolen property, not only to Christians but to heathens. A Chinese merchant was astounded to have a Christian walk in and pay him a large sum of money he had obtained unjustly years before. The whole city was stirred.
Harvie Conn, a missionary to Korea for many years, writes that
Confucianism made an idol out of hierarchical authority and was therefore deeply self-righteous. This led to the belief that no one of any real stature should repent. It represented a loss of face. But the gospel brought about a power encounter with the self-righteousness of the Confucian world-view at the heart of Korean culture. A new concept of humility and greatness in the gospel brought about an enormous shift in the lives of converts. In the revival, males especially, who had next to no ability to deal with shame and failure, experienced the love of God in the gospel through the Holy Spirit. It freed them to admit their flaws.
Flattery verses Divine Love
This is a poem I wrote about moving from a god of the imagination to the Living God:
The thought of Your love flatters me like a commercial
When I think You are like me,
And leaves me where I am.
The taste of Your love as you reveal it
awes me like the aurora, when I see your incomparable and lavish mercy on the cross,and draws me out of myself.
There is no moral magnet in me
that attracts your love,
It all resides in You and is given not as a wage due.
Your love is a relentless pursuit of a rebel,
And feels like a kind of death as it subdues,
And yet never am I more alive and free t
han as your yoked servant.
The thought of Your love flatters me like a commercial
When I think You are like me,
And leaves me where I am.
The taste of Your love as you reveal it
awes me like the aurora, when I see your incomparable and lavish mercy on the cross,and draws me out of myself.
There is no moral magnet in me
that attracts your love,
It all resides in You and is given not as a wage due.
Your love is a relentless pursuit of a rebel,
And feels like a kind of death as it subdues,
And yet never am I more alive and free t
han as your yoked servant.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Liberation from Self-Love
Here is more Vincent:
Compared to greater endeavors, self-love is mundane and tiresome. Consequently, the more thoroughly I can be done with such tedium, the freer my soul will soar to its God-intended heights.
One of the leading causes of my natural tendency to self-love is fear. I fear that if I do not love myself there will no one to love me quite so well. An even more significant cause of self-love is a lack of persuasion that there is someone out there who is worthy to be loved more than I. Arrogance lies beneath both of these causes: I love myself supremely because I am the most worthy person I know to be loved and because I think I can do a better job at it than anyone else. Such arrogance makes me dangerous, yet it is deeply ingrained in my flesh.
Thankfully, the gospel frees me from the shackles of self-love by addressing both of these causes. First, the gospel assures me that the love of God is infinitely superior to any love I could ever give myself.[1] And the deeper I go into the gospel, the more I experience the truth of His claim and thereby know how far His love surpasses even my own.[2] His astonishing love for me frees me up to move on to causes far greater than myself.[3]
Secondly, the gospel reveals to me the breathtaking glory and loveliness of God,[4] and in so doing, it lures my heart away from the love of self and leaves me enthralled by Him instead. The more I behold God’s glory in the gospel, the more lovely He appears to me. And the more lovely He appears, the more self fades into the background like a former love interest who can no longer compete for my affections.[5] (Milton Vincent, A Gospel Primer)
[1] John 15:13
[2] Rom. 8:32
[3] 2 Cor. 5:14
[4] 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 Tim. 1:11
[5] Phil. 3:7,8
Compared to greater endeavors, self-love is mundane and tiresome. Consequently, the more thoroughly I can be done with such tedium, the freer my soul will soar to its God-intended heights.
One of the leading causes of my natural tendency to self-love is fear. I fear that if I do not love myself there will no one to love me quite so well. An even more significant cause of self-love is a lack of persuasion that there is someone out there who is worthy to be loved more than I. Arrogance lies beneath both of these causes: I love myself supremely because I am the most worthy person I know to be loved and because I think I can do a better job at it than anyone else. Such arrogance makes me dangerous, yet it is deeply ingrained in my flesh.
Thankfully, the gospel frees me from the shackles of self-love by addressing both of these causes. First, the gospel assures me that the love of God is infinitely superior to any love I could ever give myself.[1] And the deeper I go into the gospel, the more I experience the truth of His claim and thereby know how far His love surpasses even my own.[2] His astonishing love for me frees me up to move on to causes far greater than myself.[3]
Secondly, the gospel reveals to me the breathtaking glory and loveliness of God,[4] and in so doing, it lures my heart away from the love of self and leaves me enthralled by Him instead. The more I behold God’s glory in the gospel, the more lovely He appears to me. And the more lovely He appears, the more self fades into the background like a former love interest who can no longer compete for my affections.[5] (Milton Vincent, A Gospel Primer)
[1] John 15:13
[2] Rom. 8:32
[3] 2 Cor. 5:14
[4] 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 Tim. 1:11
[5] Phil. 3:7,8
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