Pages

Friday, March 29, 2013

What is Good Friday?

Source: Desiring God

Good Friday is not the darkness that must necessarily yield to light. It is not the winter sleep that contains and nourishes the seed of life within. It is the day on which human beings — human beings who wanted to be like gods — kill the God who became human, the love that became person; the day on which the Holy One of God, that is, God himself, dies, truly dies — voluntarily and yet because of human guilt — without any seed of life remaining in him in such a way that God’s death might resemble sleep.
  
Good Friday is not, like winter, a transitional stage — no, it is genuinely the end, the end of guilty humanity and the final judgment that humanity has pronounced upon itself. . . .
  
If God’s history among human beings had ended on Good Friday, then the final pronouncement over humankind would be guilt, rebellion, the unfettering of all titanic human forces, a storming of heaven by human beings, godlessness, godforsakenness, but then ultimately meaninglessness and despair. Then your faith is futile. Then you are still in your guilt. Then we are of all people most to be pitied. That is, the final word would be the human being.

 - Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Good Friday sermon of 1928 - 

Love Lustres at Calvary

 
Christ was all anguish that I might be all joy,
cast off that I might be brought in,
trodden down as an enemy that I might be welcomed as a friend,
surrendered to hell’s worst that I might attain heaven’s best,
stripped that I might be clothed,
wounded that I might be healed,
athirst that I might drink,
tormented that I might be comforted,
made a shame that I might inherit glory,
entered darkness that I might have eternal life.
My Saviour wept that all tears might be wiped from my eyes,
groaned that I might have endless song,
endured all pain that I might have unfading health,
bore a thorned crown that I might have a glory-diadem,
bowed his head that I might uplift mine,
experienced reproach that I might receive welcome,
closed his eyes in death that I might gaze on unclouded brightness,
expired that I might for ever live.

- The Valley of Vision, “Love Lustres at Calvary” -

Thursday, March 28, 2013

如果

If I am called to walk alone with Thee,
O Lord please give me this grace to do it.

If I am called to serve alone to Thee,
O Lord please give me this gift of the Holy Spirit to do it.

If the path that Thou are walking is a lonely path,
O Lord please give me this courage to walk this lonely path with Thee.

If Thy grace alone is sufficient for me,
O Lord teach me to live by Thy grace alone.

If to be a leader of Thy flock is a lonely job,
O Lord may Thy presence goes with me.

If I am to find joy in Thee alone,
O Lord let me rest in Thy rest alone.
 

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Are You His Sheep?

Jesus says: "I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen.
I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice,
and there shall be one flock and one shepherd."
John 10:16

  
He brings His sheep back to the Father
through different ways, in different places, at different time:
 
Some by miracles, some by ordinary circumstances.
Some by prosperity, some by poverty.
Some by illness, some by healing.
Some by despair, some by calamities.
Some through righteous man, some through wicked man.
Some in the hometowns, some in the foreign places.
Some at young age, some at old age.
  
He has His ways, and He has His timing.
  
Different sheep have different struggles
and stumbling blocks.
  
Some are Creator vs. science.
Some are Holy One vs. sinner.
Some are obedience vs. rebellion.
Some are presence vs. empty.
Some are faith vs. doubt.
Some confession vs. stiff-necked. 
     
___________________
   
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.
He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish,
but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9

Monday, March 25, 2013

I am Thine, O Lord (Draw me nearer)

I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,
And it told Thy love to me;
But I long to rise in the arms of faith
And be closer drawn to Thee.
 
Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessed Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.

 
 
Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the pow’r of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine.
 
O the pure delight of a single hour
That before Thy throne I spend,
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God
I commune as friend with friend!
 
There are depths of love that I cannot know
Till I cross the narrow sea;
There are heights of joy that I may not reach
Till I rest in peace with Thee.
 
- Fanny Crosby -
  
 ___________________
  
Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith,
having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience,
and our bodies washed with pure water. 
Hebrews 10:22
 

Friday, March 22, 2013

9 Reasons You Can Face Anything

Source: Desiring God

God’s sovereignty is a precious reality. Now chances are this truth didn’t seem too precious when it first confronted you. The natural, fallen response to hearing we aren’t the ones in control is to white-knuckle our will and refuse to bow. Humans tend to like the idea that we are the captains of our own destinies. Motivational glib like that will pack out self-help seminars. But sooner or later, and hopefully sooner, we learn how bankrupt it all is. We are not in charge, and that’s a good thing.

Any peace and hope we have in our lives right now can be traced back to the fact that God alone is God, that he is the sovereign power behind everything. And this has future-creating wonder. God’s sovereignty, John Piper explains, is not mainly a theological problem with the past, but an invincible hope for tomorrow.
God’s sovereignty means the good he intends for his children will not be deterred. This means we can face anything. All his promises to us will be fulfilled. Pastor John lists nine such promises. By the blood of his Son, God has promised infallibly...
  1. I will meet all your needs according to my riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19).
  2. My power will be made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).
  3. I will strengthen you and help you and hold you up with my righteous right hand (Isaiah 41:10).
  4. I will never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).
  5. I will not let any testing befall you for which I do not give you grace to bear (1 Corinthians 10:13).
  6. I will take the sting away from your death with the blood of my son (1 Corinthians 15:55f).
  7. I will raise you from the dead imperishable (1 Corinthians 15:52).
  8. I will transform your lowly body to be like my glorious body, by the power that enables me even to subject all things to myself (Philippians 3:21).
  9. I will do this without fail because I am absolutely sovereign over everything and therefore, I can do all things, and no purpose of mine can be thwarted (Job 42:2).
- Jonathan Parnell -

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Though No One Joins Me

I have decided to follow Jesus.
  
Though no one joins me, still I will follow.
  
The cross before me, the world behind me.
  
- Sadhu Sundar Singh -
  
  
  If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 
If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. 

As it is, you do not belong to the world, 
but I have chosen you out of the world. 
That is why the world hates you. 

Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' 
If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. 
If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.
  
John 15:18-20 
 
 
I have given them your word and the world has hated them, 
for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 
 
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world 
but that you protect them from the evil one. 
 
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 
Sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth. 
 
As you sent me into the world, 
I have sent them into the world.
 
John 17:14-18, part of the Jesus' high priestly prayer
    
 ___________________
  
If you do not satisfy with who she is,
most probably she will not appreciate for who you are.

* * *

If it is Thy calling for me to serve Thee alone without a partner,
give me Thy grace to do it,
give me a name better than sons and daughters.
    

Conviction

On March 16, 1742, Jonathan Edwards’ congregation entered into a covenant.
Everyone in the church fifteen and older made promises.


In all our conversation, concerns, and dealings with our neighbor,
we will have strict regard to rules of honesty, justice, and uprightness.”
 
“And furthermore we promise that we will not allow ourselves in backbiting.”
 
“And we promise that we will be very careful to avoid doing any thing to our neighbor 
out of a spirit of revenge.”
 
“And if any of us find that we have an old secret grudge against any of our neighbors,
we will not gratify it but cross it, and endeavor to our utmost to root it out,
crying to God for his help.”
 
“And those of us that are in youth do promise never to allow ourselves
in any diversions or pastimes, in meetings, or companies of young people…
to rob God of that honor which he expects.”
 
“And furthermore we promise that will strictly avoid all freedoms and familiarities
in company [which] stir up a lust…that we cannot in our consciences think
 will be approved by the infinitely pure and holy eye of God.”
 
“And we now appear before God, depending on Divine grace and assistance,
solemnly to devote our whole lives, to be laboriously spent in the business of religion.”

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

"Feed My Sheep"

The Lord says to me:
"But what if this is the way that you are going to have more of Me?
What if I am on this path?"

- Jason Meyer - 
  
Sometime I really can't find a companion to share my feeling.
A man who is almost triple of my age told me that 
it is a lonely thing to be a leader.
 
Maybe this is what this man who is triple of my age feels
when he is pastoring his flock, who are much younger than him.
  
Maybe this is what they feel,
when three of them, pastoring that small group of sheep.
    
O Lord, will Thy Presence with me, as I lead them?
Let Thy Presence go before us.
If Thy Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 
  
O Lord, You say to love You is to take care and feed Your sheep.
If  this is the way for me to love Thee,
Teach me Thy ways so I may lead your flock toward Thee.
Teach me Thy ways so I may know Thee and continue to find favor with Thee.

 ___________________
  
 Moses said to the LORD, 
  
"You have been telling me, 'Lead these people,' 
but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. 
You have said, 'I know you by name and you have found favor with me.' 
  
If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways 
so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. 
Remember that this nation is your people.
  
The LORD replied, 
  
"My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.
  
Exodus 33:12-14

Thursday, March 7, 2013

God in Christ: The Price and the Prize of the Gospel

The redeemed have all their objective good in God. God himself is the great good which they are brought to the possession and enjoyment of by redemption. 

He is the highest good, and the sum of all that good which Christ purchased. God is the inheritance of the saints; he is the portion of their souls.

God is their wealth and treasure, their food, their life, their dwelling place, their ornament and diadem, and their everlasting honor and glory. 

They have none in heaven but God; he is the great good which the redeemed are received to at death, and which they are to rise to at the end of the world. 

The Lord God, he is the light of the heavenly Jerusalem; and is the ‘river of the water of life’ that runs, and the tree of life that grows, ‘in the midst of the paradise of God’. 

The glorious excellencies and beauty of God will be what will forever entertain the minds of the saints, and the love of God will be their everlasting feast. 

The redeemed will indeed enjoy other things; they will enjoy the angels, and will enjoy one another: but that which they shall enjoy in the angels, or each other, or in anything else whatsoever, that will yield them delight and happiness, will be what will be seen of God in them.

- Jonathan Edwards - 
 

Sunday, March 3, 2013

The Reason for the Hope that You Have


Thanks for coming out today. I’ll try to make this brief and get right to the point.

Some people are really upset because they think I believe God does not approve of homosexual behavior. Well, I’d like to clarify: that is what I believe. Like everyone I believe some actions are good and some are not. We all have some form of morality. Thankfully, on a lot of topics most everyone agrees. Almost everybody agrees that murder is wrong and stealing is wrong and telling a bold-faced lie is wrong. But on other topics, we don’t all agree. That’s part of life. That’s part of being human. We have different views on raising children, on religion, on sex before marriage, on marriage itself, and on a hundred other issues.

I’m a Christian. That doesn’t mean I think I’m better than anyone. In fact, I’m a Christian because I know how bad I am and that I need a Savior. But as a Christian I believe the Bible. I believe God is smarter than I am. I believe God tells us about himself, tells us how to be saved, and tells us how to live in this book. That’s actually what most Americans have believed about the Bible throughout our history. I understand that some people in this country don’t believe in God or the Bible. I understand that some people interpret the Bible differently. But I think the Bible is pretty clear that sex is a gift to be experienced in the context of marriage between a man and a woman. I’m challenged by this teaching too. I am tempted to sin in a thousand different ways, including ways that involve my sexuality. But if God tells me what’s right and wrong in the Bible, I have to trust him. If Jesus is really Lord, then he gets to the call the shots.

I don’t expect everyone in a free country to agree that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord or that the Bible is the inspired word of God. But in a free country I expect that we can hold to different views without automatically resorting to shame and ridicule. I hope that my fans will understand that we can still root for the same team or watch the same movies even if we believe in some different things. I also hope my critics will try to understand why billions of people all around the world believe what I do about God, the Bible, Jesus Christ, faith, and marriage.

So the short answer to your question is: Yes I do still believe God designed sex for marriage between a man and a woman. And yes, I’m still accepting the invitation to speak. I don’t fault you for you doing your job. And I don’t deny your right to disagree with me in the strongest terms. But I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m not going to let you dictate the terms of this conversation. I’m not going to be intimidated by bad press. And I’m not going to live my whole life trying to prove that I’m something I’m not. It ain’t gonna happen.

I’m a Bible-believing Christian. There, I said it. I’m out of the closet.  I’m not bitter. I’m not on a crusade. I just think it’s time to stand up and say enough is enough. I don’t like making people angry. But I can’t live my life to make you happy.

I don’t think I have anything else to say about the subject. If you want to know what I believe and what Christians are like, I’d be happy to take you with me to church anytime. I hope you all have a great day, because that’s what I plan on having now that this is over.

- Kevin DeYoung -

 ___________________

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. 
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone 
who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. 
But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, 
so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ 
may be ashamed of their slander.
1 Peter 3:15-16
  

Friday, March 1, 2013

What Faith Is & What Faith Isn't

Source: YouVersion

He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)

What faith is?
  • Faith is believing the Word of God and acting upon it knowing that God promises a good result. 
  • Faith always involves a surrender to the will of God. 
  • Faith always keeps its eyes on the faith source.
What faith isn't?
  • Faith is not faith in faith.
  • Faith is not faith in my ability to move anything.
  • Faith is not a device that manipulates the will of God.
  • Faith is not positive thinking.
  • Faith is not just believing, because the bible says even the demons believe and fear and tremble.
The word of faith movement ultimately teaches people to have confidence in the gifts that God wants to give you, have enough faith and it's yours! Say it and claim it! That's not faith, that's covetousness. That's not faith that's inordinate affection. Loving the gift instead of the giver.

Surrender to the will of God, if he prospers you great!
If he doesn't that's great too because God always knows what you need most.
Keep your eyes on God and not the objects or gifts!

 ___________________

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 
and certain of what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1