What is Old and What is New

In the Gospel According to Matthew, right after a section of recorded parables, we read this: 

[51] “Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” [52] And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” 

Matthew 13:51–52 (ESV)

I have no idea what this means. 

I love it. It is wonderful and marvelous and mysterious. Important truths have been opened to me in the reading of this short little parable. But I don't really know what he is talking about. 

I do know that I genuinely want to be a scribe who has been trained for the Kingdom of Heaven. 

On this Mountain

In my personal Bible reading this morning I came across a passage of scripture that I don't think that I have ever noticed before. It is in Isaiah 25, and what initially caught my attention was the ESV Bible's heading for this chapter: it was titled -- God will swallow up death forever.

Quite often, as I am reading through these Old Testament Prophets, my brain will slip into neutral: I will still be reading, but I have ceased to process the words. Sometimes this happens because of my Adult A.D.D. Sometimes it is associated with the fact that it is a pronouncement of judgement against some ancient nation... the Moabites or the Ammonites or such. This isn't an excuse, and I hate that I do it, but I'm just being honest... I struggle. But then, I will come upon a passage that clearly speaks out about something directly connected to me. In this case it rings true to my own benefits found in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

After the crucifixion and after Christ is resurrected, there is a story in the gospels of Jesus walking along a road with a couple of his disciples. At first they don't recognize him, but he begins to explain to them that the Law and the Prophets (The Old Testament for us) is all about him! (Luke 24:27)

When you read these few verse, think of Christ. Think of how you have benefited... and rejoice!

Isaiah 25:6-9
[6] On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,
of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.
[7] And he will swallow up on this mountain
the covering that is cast over all peoples,
the veil that is spread over all nations.
[8] He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces,
and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken.
[9] It will be said on that day,
“Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us.
This is the LORD; we have waited for him;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” (ESV)

You are Serving the Lord Christ.

Tomorrow I am preaching the final message in a series that dealt with the points of our (Edgewood Baptist Church's) statement of faith. When I began this series, I thought that I would be able to wrap it up in a few weeks. I was planning on combining several of the points from the statement into single messages. I actually thought it might be a tad bit boring if I wasn't careful... and I really just wanted to use these points as a sort of filler until I started to exposit through the next book of the Bible. ... boy was I off ...

With each point of our statement, our confession of faith, I have found it to be a struggle to condense that point to just one week. It has been exciting. It has been enlightening. There are several things that I have learned, that I genuinely didn't know or didn't believe before I began this study. Well, tomorrow is not different.

We will be dealing with the final point, which is the reality of the return of Christ Jesus to this world. It is dealing with end times... last things. Over the past week, as I have studied this point, examining the relevant passages of scripture, I am genuinely being motivated to continue in the work of the ministry. As I have looked at how Jesus (and the Apostles) talk about the End, when we will see Him, it has been an encouragement to keep at it, because quite frankly... He is going to reward us.

Consider John Frame's words:

A Manger Scene is on Display

Consider this, my friends today,
    when baby Jesus, in a manger lay:
    that God's glory has been put on display,
    and in a most magnificent way,
    that as a baby, now grown to man,
    he has completed his most glorious plan.
Love can be seen, but with real clarity now,
    not just through, but by pain upon his brow.
    This is how God's love is best displayed,
    when justice met mercy on the cross that day.
    And only through birth and life and death
    did resurrection show its breadth:
Sin and Satan and Death defeated,
    no hold on Christ had they completed,
    now victorious he sits upon a throne
    and we through faith in Christ alone
    by grace are cleansed from sin: atoned!
    partakers in this glorious reality
    captured by his love: complete finality.
No other name have lips ever formed,
    that took the universe in such a storm:
    glory, grace, love, justice, his name,
    every knee will bow, one day, proclaim
    but this address to him completed
    first by Mary when... "I'll call him Jesus."
So consider this, my friends today,
    when baby Jesus in a manger lay:
    that God' glory has been put on display,
    and in the most magnificent way,
    that little baby will grow to man,
    he will suffer and die according to plan.
    so bend your knee in awe today:
    a manger scene is on display.

Encounters with Jesus - Book Review

I just devoured a book.

The book is called Encounters with Jesus: Unexpected Answers to Life's Biggest Questions by Timothy Keller and it was just great!  It is a series of encounters with different people taken from the life of Jesus. It includes such interactions as with the Woman at the Well and the nighttime meeting with Nicodemus. Many of these interactions come from the Gospel According to John, which is also helpful for the current series that we are going through at Edgewood Baptist Church.

My absolute favorite chapter in this book was called The Two Advocates. It is about a discussion that Jesus has with his disciples near the end of his earthly life. In that discussion, which occurred during the Last Supper, Jesus gives some incredible insight into His own relationship with the Father and with His people. He also introduces us to the Spirit of God as "another comforter" as the King James Version states it. Keller's explanation of the Spirit as a second advocate (or comforter) and the role of Christ as the first advocate was extremely enlightening.

This chapter, along with the rest of the book, was originally part of an ebook series and can be purchased individually under the title The Two Advocates (Encounters with Jesus Series). If you can't afford to get the entire book, this chapter is well worth its purchase price.

There were several other portions of this book that I found to be extremely helpful. Specifically the encounters after the resurrection that deal with the purposes of the Ascension. Also the encounters with Jesus and Nicodemus as contrasted with the Woman at the Well. Altogether, this book was not only educational, it was enjoyable to read.

Please consider clicking on through with the links that I have provided to pick this book up.

Our Advocate has a Great Case!

I am about two thirds of the way through the book Encounters with Jesus: Unexpected Answers to Life's Biggest Questions by Timothy Keller. I normally try to wait until I finish a book and then just give a nice little review, but this section I just read in the chapter "The Two Advocates" is well worth mentioning on its own.

This portion that I have included parallels some thoughts that I have also had, but as is the case with an exceptionally talented author, Timothy Keller has phrased it much better than I ever could have. I know this is a long quote, but it is worth it.

In the early days after becoming a Christian, I first heard of this idea that Jesus Christ somehow "intercedes" for me before the Father. I got this out of the book of Hebrews, where Jesus is depicted as our great high priest who stands before the Father for us, as priests in the Old Testament did for the people. When I first heard the idea of Jesus Christ representing me before the Father, it made me think of him going before the throne like this: "Good morning, Father, I represent Tim Keller. And my client, I admit, is having a very bad week. He's broken three or four promises he made to you. He has broken several of your laws that he knows and acknowledges. He has sinned a lot this week. He deserves to be punished -- but cut him a break, please, Father? For my sake? I really ask that you give him another chance." That's how I imagined him speaking. And I also imagined the Father saying in reply, "Well, all right. Okay. For you, one more chance." 

Now the trouble with that imaginary scenario is that Jesus does not have a case; he is simply pleading for another chance. And I remember thinking, "I wonder how long even Jesus can keep that sort of thing up?" I wondered when the Father would finally say, "That does it! I've had it!" But my imagination was ill-informed. It is not sufficient for a lawyer to just resort to tugging on the heartstrings of the jury or the judge, or to try to delay the verdict, or to appeal to technicalities. The lawyer doesn't need spin or emotional manipulation -- but a real case. And that is just what Jesus has. 

What is his case? John goes on to tell us in I John 2:2. First he says, "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins." When Jesus goes before the Father, he is not actually asking for mercy for us. Of course it was infinitely merciful of God to send Christ to die for us, but that mercy has now been granted, so Jesus does not need to beg for it. I John 1:9 says that "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins." Notice that it does not say that if Christians confess their sins God forgives because he mercifully gives them another chance. No, it says he forgives because he is faithful and just. To not forgive us would be unjust. How could that be? 

The best way for you to get an acquittal for your legal client is not to hope you can get some sympathy from the court. The best way is to show that your client must be acquitted under the law. You want to be able to say with integrity and conviction, "This is the law, and the law demands my client's acquittal." You want to make a case that is not based on how the court feels at the time but is open ans shut according to the law. And Jesus has one! Jesus Christ can say, in effect, "Father, my people have sinned, and the law demands that the wages of sin be death. But I have paid for those sins. See, here is my blood, the token of my death! On the cross I have paid the penalty for these sins completely. Now if anyone were to exact two payments for the same sin, it would be unjust. And so -- I am not asking for mercy for them; I'm asking for justice." 

That, if Jesus' claims are true, is an infallible case. This is why John could say that when Christians confess their sins they are forgiven because the justice of God now demands it!

If you are interested in reading the rest of this book, you can click on through to the Amazon site and have it on your Kindle or Kindle Reading App in under a minute.

Keep following this blog for the review of this book as soon as I am finished reading it.

Temptation - Book Review

Temptation: Applying Radical Amputation to Life's Sinful Patterns by Jay Adams is a short book, only about 32 pages in length, and is part of a series of books providing Resources for Biblical Living.

Facing ongoing sin in one's life can be a troubling and frustrating part of Christian Living. I would doubt that there is a Christian out there that would honestly say that they haven't had struggles, or battles, with sin. In this book, Jay Adams begins by inviting the reader to consider sins in their own life that they may be struggling with, then he describes the two main tendencies offered in Christian circles on how to face sin.  These two options are: "(1) inaction on your part in lieu of contemplation and prayer; or (2) obedience to biblical commands that leads to growth."

Both of these methods, though often set as opposing methods, are actually missing the correct approach.  In other words, there are aspects of both that are true, but they must be taken together. I agree with this basic premise, true Biblical change is an absolute dependence on God, that we are working whole heartedly to accomplish. What many misunderstand in this is that since my sanctification (spiritual growth) is entirely dependant on God, then I can work with confidence!  Consider this passage of scripture:

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

Can you see these two concepts working side by side?  It is not, "... God is doing his part and I am doing my part." Instead it is, "God is doing all of it so that I can do it!"

My issue, like most, is that instead of truly working, with the confidence that God is working, I want to gradually eliminate sin from my life when he calls me to stop sinning today.  This is where this little book is especially helpful. The main focus is on the concept of "radical amputation" which is pictured in Christ's teaching in Matthew 18 about the cutting off of hands and the poking out of eyes. What Jesus actually says is,

And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire. (Matthew 18:8-9, ESV)

Cutting off is so abrupt. It is so final. So much I want to hang on to the availability to sin in my attempt to stop sinning. I want to be gradual in the process. I don't want it to cost me very much.  That is not Jesus' approach. On this gradual walking away from sin, Jay Adams said something that was quite helpful in putting it into perspective:

"The proposal to 'wean' oneself from sin is as offensive as if one were to cut off a dog's tail, one thin slice at a time."

He goes on to say, in response to a Let God... mentality:

To many, the unbiblical (though seemingly spiritual) manner of putting off sin is to follow a quietistic course of action. In the final analysis -- without going into methods of various sorts -- what quietism is saying, 'God has promised to eliminate sin in my life, and only he can do so. I will therefore leave the matter in his hands. In his time, he will do so.' But this is nothing more than a pious cop-out. God has already told you the time -- it is now. The sin is to cease at once.

If you are struggling with sin in your life, then I want to recommend that you get this book. It is direct and to the point, which is what those who are in sin are needing and wanting to hear.

(This book was provided by NetGalley.com for reviewing purposes.)

The Trilemma...

Originally a radio broadcast, eventually a book... Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

(I've probably posted this quote before, but I am an old blogger now, and I am starting to repeat myself.)

Faith and Works

After the last sermon I preached, someone that visited our church thought I was preaching a works-based salvation. Now, honestly, I don't believe in a works-based salvation.  But, after I thought about it, I have been accused of that before.  I'm telling you though, I believe that salvation comes by God's grace alone, and it is worked through God-gifted faith. (Eph. 2:8-9) I am not upset at all about the question, I am a school teacher... I love being questioned!  But I do want to mention this because there seems to be some confusion among many Christians that I know when it comes to the relationship between faith and works.

Another example of this happened a few weeks ago.  There was a prominent Pastor in the area that did some teaching on the topic of eternal security. He taught that you cannot lose your salvation, so to speak, but that you can walk away from the faith. Now, I don't want to put words in the mouth of this Pastor, and I believe him to be a godly man, who loves Jesus, but I would disagree with him.  At the same time, I would also disagree with many of the baptists in my town who believe in an eternal security that has no evidence except a person's declaration of belief.

Normally I would say that I fall somewhere between those two camps of thought, the eternal security camp and the no eternal security camp... In this case I won't say that I am between them, instead I am more off to one side, and I would classify both of those camps as basically the same error.

They have a weak view of God's salvation.

Need of Jesus

Lord Jesus,
I am blind, be thou my light,
   ignorant, be thou my wisdom,
   self-willed, be thou my mind.
Open my ear to grasp quickly thy Spirit's voice,
   and delightfully run after his beckoning hand;
Melt my conscience that no hardness remain,
   make it alive to evil's slightest touch;
When Satan approaches may I flee to thy wounds,
   and there cease to tremble at all alarms.
Be my good shepherd to lead me into the green pastures of thy Word,
   and cause me to lie down beside the rivers of its comforts.
Fill me with peace, that no disquieting worldly gales
   may ruffle the calm surface of my soul.
Thy cross was upraised to be my refuge,
Thy blood streamed forth to wash me clean,
Thy death occurred to give me a surety,
Thy name is my property to save me,
By thee all heaven is poured into my heart,
   but it is too narrow to comprehend thy love.
I was a stranger, an outcast, a slave, a rebel,
   but thy cross has brought me near,
                 has softened my heart,
                 has made me thy Father's child,
                 has admitted me to thy family,
                 has made me joint-heir with thyself.
O that I may love thee as thou lovest me,
   that I may walk worthy of thee, my Lord,
   that I may reflect the image of heaven's first-born.
May I always see thy beauty with the clear eye of faith,
    and feel the power of thy Spirit in my heart,
    for unless he move mightily in me
    no inward fire will be kindled.


Need of Jesus,
from Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, 
pg 102.

A Theologian Discusses Harry Potter...

From Justin Taylor's Blog:

Jerram Barrs—Professor of Christian Studies and Contemporary Culture at Covenant Theological Seminary, and Resident Scholar of the Francis A. Schaeffer Institute—talks about his love for the book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. (Warning: contains spoilers!)

I think this is worth a few minutes of your day.

The G.O.S.P.E.L.

What is the G.O.S.P.E.L.?

G.O.S.P.E.L. from Humble Beast Records on Vimeo.

via NHCC

It's Friday

The charge sheet against Jesus...

(via Justin Taylor)

"Unto the Coming of the Lord"

While studying and reading through the commentaries that Study Light offers on James 5:7-11, I came across this quote from Barnes Notes on the New Testament concerning the phrase, "unto the coming of the Lord."

Unto the coming of the Lord. The coming of the Lord Jesus--either to remove you by death, or to destroy the city of Jerusalem and bring to an end the Jewish institutions, or to judge the world and receive his people to himself. The "coming of the Lord" in any way was an event which Christians were taught to expect, and which would be connected with their deliverance from troubles. As the time of his appearing was not revealed, it was not improper to refer to that as an event that might possibly be near; and as the removal of Christians by death is denoted by the phrase "the coming of the Lord"--that is, his coming to each one of us--it was not improper to speak of death in that view.

It is a good thing to understand that all of the New Testament writers weren't confused about the return of the Lord.  I have heard people say that before, that those authors were expecting Christ's final return to be within their lifetimes. Whether or not they did, I felt that this quote brought a little more clarity to the instances in the N.T. that refer to Christ's return.

Give me Jesus!

I've heard this song before, but I really enjoyed this version and thought I would share with you.

Fernando Ortega - "Give Me Jesus" from Adamson.TV on Vimeo.

[via Justin Taylor]

stop working for -- start working out

"Faith in Jesus Christ is when you stop working for your salvation and start working out your salvation."

What do I mean by this?

True faith in Jesus Christ is a faith in a person. I am trusting that all of the details of my salvation are taken care of in Him. Every prayer that needs to be prayed, every attitude that needs to be right, every thought that needs to be subdued, every motive that needs to be corrected... Everything was done in Him. Every ceremonial obedience, every bit of adherence to the Law of God, every ounce of Love for God, the sum of the love for our neighbors was accomplished in Christ. He did it ALL.

So, in faith, I stop working for it. I stop working to be righteous. I stop working to be accepted by God. No longer do I do anything because I believe that God will look more favorably on me because of these actions. My one, and I mean ONE, hope is that God the righteous and good judge of the universe will look upon Jesus Christ as my very own righteousness!

Now I begin to work!

I work now, not for these things, but because of these things. I work, not for what I will get, but for what I have already received. I work, not because of debt alone, but because of a debt of gratitude. I am eternally thankful.  The more I trust that he did everything and that I did nothing for my salvation, the more I want to do.

So, I plead with you today to abandon being good for goodness' sake.  Give it up.  You can't be.  Stop working for your salvation, put your faith in Jesus Christ and start working out your salvation.

Infinitely Perfect Righteousness

"We can begin each day with the deeply encouraging realization, I'm accepted by God, not on the basis of my personal performance, but on the basis of the infinitely perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ."

-John Owen

The Defining Factor

At church, I have been preaching through the Sermon on the Mount.  I started sometime last July, and I am just now in the final few verses of this amazing sermon.

This last week I looked at a "hard saying", as some might call it and I preached it.  I didn't go to several other passages to soften it or explain it in a certain light, I just preached what Jesus preached.  The section that I am referring to comes from Matthew 7:21-23.  In this passage, Jesus states plainly, "It doesn't matter if you call me Lord, if you do the Father's will.  In fact, if you don't do the Father's will, you won't go to heaven."  (Obviously this is my own paraphrase of His statements.  If you thought that was harsh, you should read the original!)

Well, if anyone is interested in hearing some Harmless Thoughts on this passage, right click here to download the message.  Print off some notes here.

we are surrounded by fruit

We are surrounded by fruit!   Evaluate it before you eat it!

Yesterday I preached through the next part of the Sermon on the Mount.  In this section, Jesus warns His disciples of the reality of false prophets.  This warning is important because (1) as humans, we have the potential of being deceived and (2) there exists a being who is known as the deceiver.

He is the great deceiver and we can be deceived. He is the father of lies and we can be lied to.  He is a trickster and we can be tricked.  This is not a good combination, therefore a warning.

If you would like to download this sermon, right-click this link and choose save.

Fruit Inspectors