Chapter 23 - Christ's People
We cannot love Jesus without loving what He loves: His church.
Jesus loves the church because:
1. The Father calls Him to.
2. The Spirit enables Him to.
3. It glorifies Himself as the Son, and He seeks His own glory properly, as God.
The church in the New Testament is called by the same names as Israel in the Old Testament.
Chosen, elect, beloved.
The church is the fullness of Christ, which means that in some way He is incomplete without us.
[He has voluntarily made it so; God is all-sufficient in Himself, of course.]
The church is made like Christ.
In His faith in God, we should imitate Him.
One day the church will be pure, as Christ is pure (1 John 3:3).
God "tolerates the world for our sake."
Chapter 24 - Christ's Wrath
Jesus knows the wrath of God more than anyone, experiencing it on the cross.
He will also execute it on the ungodly in the end.
When God appeared to judge in the Old Testament it was usually Jesus.
The angel of the Lord was Jesus. (Genesis 22:11-18; Exodus 3:2-12; Revelation 10)
Jesus spoke of the reality of Hell more than anyone in the Bible.
He Himself divides people, because He put Himself between God and sinners at the cross.
Some cling to Him; most "leap over" Him.
God appoints Jesus as judge. (John 5:27)
He has perfect knowledge of our works (Heb. 4:13; Rev. 3:1).
We don't emphasize Hell and the wrath of the Lamb as we ought.
"Hell glorifies Christ. If it did not, it would not exist."
12.02.2019
Knowing Christ - chapters 19-21
Chapter 19 - Christ's Death
The Son willingly went to His death. John 10:17-18.
The Father definitely appointed Him to it.
- "Not Judas for money, not Pilate for fear, not the Jews for envy, but the Father for love!"
God's will is one, not contradictory.
When Jesus asked for the cup to pass from Him, in Gethsemane:
- it shows He knew the horror of Calvary to come:
- He endured the cross, for the joy set before Him (Heb. 12:2).
If the Son wasn't willing, His death wasn't just.
His sacrifice was a sweet smell in God's nose (Ephesians 5:2).
- because of who He was as the Son of God.
Remember the Son's willingness and the Father's acceptance, of Jesus' sacrifice.
Chapter 20 - Christ's Resurrection
Essential to our faith [though Lewis missed it??]
Jesus predicted it.
The Father vindicated His Son by it.
The Spirit brought it about (Rom 1:4).
The Son raised Himself - John 10:18.
His Body: the same, but different...
- a firstfruits of our own.
Chapter 21 - Christ's Exaltation
His resurrection began His exaltation, and they are connected.
His ascension was not getting away from earth.
His res. shows Him to be Lord of all (Matt. 28:18).
His ascension was His path to glorification.
His arrival in Heaven, His reception by His Father, must have been glorious!
His enthronement as prophet, priest and king.
The Son willingly went to His death. John 10:17-18.
The Father definitely appointed Him to it.
- "Not Judas for money, not Pilate for fear, not the Jews for envy, but the Father for love!"
God's will is one, not contradictory.
When Jesus asked for the cup to pass from Him, in Gethsemane:
- it shows He knew the horror of Calvary to come:
- He endured the cross, for the joy set before Him (Heb. 12:2).
If the Son wasn't willing, His death wasn't just.
His sacrifice was a sweet smell in God's nose (Ephesians 5:2).
- because of who He was as the Son of God.
Remember the Son's willingness and the Father's acceptance, of Jesus' sacrifice.
Chapter 20 - Christ's Resurrection
Essential to our faith [though Lewis missed it??]
Jesus predicted it.
The Father vindicated His Son by it.
The Spirit brought it about (Rom 1:4).
The Son raised Himself - John 10:18.
His Body: the same, but different...
- a firstfruits of our own.
Chapter 21 - Christ's Exaltation
His resurrection began His exaltation, and they are connected.
His ascension was not getting away from earth.
His res. shows Him to be Lord of all (Matt. 28:18).
His ascension was His path to glorification.
His arrival in Heaven, His reception by His Father, must have been glorious!
His enthronement as prophet, priest and king.
11.20.2019
Concentration Camps Operating Today - Anybody Care?
I just skimmed an article in the paper on the appeasement efforts against Hitler in 1938, titled "What Were They Thinking?" This is the usual response we have today to Hitler: how could we have let that happen?
The sad thing is, we are doing it again. Right now.
China is forcing thousands of its own Muslims into concentration camps against their will, separating families, in a mass effort at thought control, to stamp out Islam and replace it with faith in Communism and President Xi. The New York Times recently documented it, with leaks from within China's government.
It is true.
It is a travesty.
And we are doing nothing about it.
Xi is a modern-day version of Adolph Hitler, only more effectively controlling the information flow and thoughts of his people. China is showing other dictatorships that it is actually possible to censor the internet and more or less control what millions of people can read and see. I admit Xi hasn't yet moved to the final solution, but the logic of his totalitarian governance makes it entirely probable.
Meanwhile, Xi traipses around the globe offering eager nations his seemingly endless capital to borrow to boost their economies. Across the page from this article was Xi in Brazil shaking hands with its Trump-esque leader, who ran by denouncing China's human rights record. Now he's taking their money.
Why do we not oppose this with the same vigor we did Communist Russia in the Cold War?
Perhaps we think that method backfired? It led to mutual-assured destruction in an arms race. Do we think the risk is too great?
A more likely answer is that we have joined economically with China. I have friends and family that go there for work regularly. Their employers have high-stakes joint ventures with Chinese companies. We have believed the lie that Chinese business and the Chinese government are two separate and different things, under the illusion that China is becoming like America. The opposite is true. Just look at Hong Kong.
We should be willing to pay a HIGH price to stand against such an obvious violation of human rights going on in China. The Chinese politicians are masters of feigning offense and threatening to remove market opportunities, to get us to tow their line. We need to stop caving to their tactics and recover our moral compass.
The sad thing is, we are doing it again. Right now.
China is forcing thousands of its own Muslims into concentration camps against their will, separating families, in a mass effort at thought control, to stamp out Islam and replace it with faith in Communism and President Xi. The New York Times recently documented it, with leaks from within China's government.
It is true.
It is a travesty.
And we are doing nothing about it.
Xi is a modern-day version of Adolph Hitler, only more effectively controlling the information flow and thoughts of his people. China is showing other dictatorships that it is actually possible to censor the internet and more or less control what millions of people can read and see. I admit Xi hasn't yet moved to the final solution, but the logic of his totalitarian governance makes it entirely probable.
Meanwhile, Xi traipses around the globe offering eager nations his seemingly endless capital to borrow to boost their economies. Across the page from this article was Xi in Brazil shaking hands with its Trump-esque leader, who ran by denouncing China's human rights record. Now he's taking their money.
Why do we not oppose this with the same vigor we did Communist Russia in the Cold War?
Perhaps we think that method backfired? It led to mutual-assured destruction in an arms race. Do we think the risk is too great?
A more likely answer is that we have joined economically with China. I have friends and family that go there for work regularly. Their employers have high-stakes joint ventures with Chinese companies. We have believed the lie that Chinese business and the Chinese government are two separate and different things, under the illusion that China is becoming like America. The opposite is true. Just look at Hong Kong.
We should be willing to pay a HIGH price to stand against such an obvious violation of human rights going on in China. The Chinese politicians are masters of feigning offense and threatening to remove market opportunities, to get us to tow their line. We need to stop caving to their tactics and recover our moral compass.
11.19.2019
Death and Bach's Cantatas
I got to go to a church service I didn’t lead recently.
And not just any service. Lutheran Vespers with a Bach Cantata tucked in the middle.
It was glorious. The sermon was Bible-based but also expanded on the Cantata, which included such lines as "Human, you must die!" "Put your house in order." Like Handel's Messiah, many just like the pretty sound, but if you read the words in the program, you get full-boar Christian truth.
Written probably for a funeral, this Cantata is titled for its first line, "God's time is the best time."
Give a listen here.
And not just any service. Lutheran Vespers with a Bach Cantata tucked in the middle.
It was glorious. The sermon was Bible-based but also expanded on the Cantata, which included such lines as "Human, you must die!" "Put your house in order." Like Handel's Messiah, many just like the pretty sound, but if you read the words in the program, you get full-boar Christian truth.
Written probably for a funeral, this Cantata is titled for its first line, "God's time is the best time."
Give a listen here.
11.11.2019
Knowing Christ - Mark Jones - chapters 15-18
15 – Christ’s Humiliation
Philippians 2:5-11 shows us the humbling and exalting of
Jesus.
No one ever stooped so low, because He came from such a
height.
The Incarnation wasn’t automatically a humiliation, as if
flesh is inferior stuff to get away from.
But being incarnate into His circumstances certainly was a humiliation.
His parents gave the sacrifice of the poor for Him. He was taught. He bore slander silently. He submitted to wicked powers. He had to wait years to minister to others,
though he was wise at 12 in the temple.
He had to listen to others when He knew more than them. His family thought He was crazy. Judas betrayed Him. Peter denied Him. They attributed His miracles to Satan. His trial was unjust. His crucifixion was physically humiliating
and painful. He was scorned and rejected
as prophet, priest and king. He
experienced death as His spirit parted from His body.
How can we complain of being humiliated when Christ bore so
much more, for us?
“Our glory is our humiliation.”
16 – Christ’s Transfiguration
Jesus will return glorious, no longer marred and humbled,
but with power like glimpsed at His transfiguration.
It happens after 6 days (Mark 9:2), so on the 7th,
a Sabbath hint. Sunday is now our day of
gladness and light.
The contrast with the crucifixion is striking. He spoke of
it as He came down the mountain.
God answered Moses’ prayer to “Show me Your glory,” at the transfiguration.
God declares Jesus His Son, and commands us to listen to
Him.
We need to listen to Him in the Scriptures, reading which,
Peter says is better than seeing Jesus transfigured (2 Peter 1:16-21).
We too will be transfigured – glorified – in our bodies at
the resurrection.
17 – Christ’s miracles
His miracles:
·
verified His ministry as from God.
·
ushered in a new creation.
·
Each point to the cross, the source of healing,
blessing and restoration.
·
Were more than acts of compassion and charity.
·
Announced a new age, like the wine at Cana.
·
Show us what the new creation will be like –
disease healed, sight restored, hunger fed, demons thrown out, life after death
·
Of exorcism show His victory over Satan accomplished
·
Show God’s own desire to restore all things
Jesus is all along now miraculously giving life to the dead
in regenerating and converting them to faith in Him.
18 – Christ’s sayings
His seven sayings from the cross were:
1.
Father, forgive them. He sought their repentance as He prayed, and
it was granted at Pentecost when many did repent. He prayed for His enemies, as they killed
Him. Can we be so kind to our enemies?
2.
Today you will be with me in paradise. The first saying is answered,
immediately! God is willing to forgive
and save miserable and repulsive sinners.
3.
Behold your mother. Jesus fulfilled the law (5th
commandment) at His death. [He also
provides spiritually for her, putting her in His believing family of disciples
instead of His unbelieving biological family.]
4.
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Only Jesus knows the depth of this cry. This was a new experience for Jesus, and His
descent into hell. He noticed God’s
withdrawal of favor and fellowship.
5.
I thirst.
Shows His physical suffering – dehydration – and also a picture of need
for God unmet (Isaiah 41:17).
6.
It is finished.
He fulfilled all righteousness.
The imputation was done, putting our sins on Him, and His righteousness
on us. The victory was won over Satan
and death.
7.
Into Your hands I commit My Spirit. The Father said “Very good” to His work. Christ’s death was voluntary.
These words comfort us, even as He said them in deep
distress.
11.05.2019
Talking to Teens about Sex and Culture // Gilead // Venker?
Just listened to an excellent series of talks to high schoolers by Rich Lusk, a pastor Alabama in my denomination, the CREC. I highly recommend them. A great Biblical response to the sexual rebellion/revolution in our culture right now, without overreacting into legalism ourselves or hostility against folks caught up in it.
World did a book review of Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson on their podcast today. Part of me hesitates to recommend it, though I quoted from it in last Sunday's sermon! The hesitation is because the author is a PCUSA liberal type. But the insight she brings is very edifying. It isn't wading through 80% chaff to find a few nuggets - there's food for thought on almost every page. The link is here and it starts at 19:20.
Lusk recommends Suzanne Venker, who I hadn't heard of before today.
Just a quick skim of this page shows it useful.
Her bio says she's been at the Federalist, which is a plus in my book.
World did a book review of Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson on their podcast today. Part of me hesitates to recommend it, though I quoted from it in last Sunday's sermon! The hesitation is because the author is a PCUSA liberal type. But the insight she brings is very edifying. It isn't wading through 80% chaff to find a few nuggets - there's food for thought on almost every page. The link is here and it starts at 19:20.
Lusk recommends Suzanne Venker, who I hadn't heard of before today.
Just a quick skim of this page shows it useful.
Her bio says she's been at the Federalist, which is a plus in my book.
10.31.2019
On Halloween
Also, I take more Jim Jordan's position on Halloween than Al Mohler's, for what it's worth.
Of course, we don't want to get caught up in the real rise of witchcraft today, and the occult has a real allure to some. But an intention to mock the devil and honor our forefathers on All Saints' Day - Nov 1) by celebrating in some way is great.
(All Hallow's Eve = Hallow's E'en = Halloween).
I might argue for a different way of celebrating than costumes and candy, but that's for another day.
Of course, we don't want to get caught up in the real rise of witchcraft today, and the occult has a real allure to some. But an intention to mock the devil and honor our forefathers on All Saints' Day - Nov 1) by celebrating in some way is great.
(All Hallow's Eve = Hallow's E'en = Halloween).
I might argue for a different way of celebrating than costumes and candy, but that's for another day.
Medical Bill Options // Preach the Word // Abortion in Michigan
So I think my Democratic congresswoman did something right.
Alistair Begg knocks it out of the park with this sermon: "Preach the word!"
- Price transparency in health care has long been a driver of higher costs. Your doctor says you need it, so you get it, no matter the cost, right? Only sometimes. Why not make sure doctors show you all the market options for treatment?
- I realize this breaks from my usual libertarian tendencies of letting the market sort itself out without governmental interference. But some markets are more imperfect than others, and if regulation moves them toward working more properly, it might be a good thing. I realize doctors are small businessmen who are already highly regulated. But sometimes they direct patients to the treatment they've made arrangements to sell, instead of taking into account what is best for the patient and what he can afford. The parallel with mechanics is a roughly accurate one.
- I haven't read the detail, and the article was short, so I might change my mind.
- Fun fact: the co-sponsor is from where I moved away from in Virginia. I think Slotkin and Spanberger are former CIA buddies...
Alistair Begg knocks it out of the park with this sermon: "Preach the word!"
- Much of the evangelical church today shows a lack of confidence in the Bible and in preaching it, by what they emphasize in a Sunday service, and how the preacher preaches. Is monologue dead? Psychologists will tell you today that it takes dialogue to persuade, after all. Begg gives a great answer.
- This has come to be true in mainstream and "normal" churches, not just the crazy liberal or megachurches out there. See a future post for more on this. If you're reading this there is a good chance you are in such a church. Give a listen, thinking about how things go where you worship on a Sunday morning.
Our pro-abortion governor
- Michigan governor Whitmer is pushing legislation removing most restrictions on abortion, as New York did a few months ago. Very sad, that a procedure that stops a baby's beating heart is only being referred to as health care for women, now. Lethally misleading.
- It's also disappointing to see her attempt to delegitimize the Republican legislature that stands in her way, by calling it a "gerrymandered legislature."
10.28.2019
Knowing Christ - by Mark Jones - chapters 11-14
Chapter 11 - Christ's Reading
A clever way of showing that the Old Testament is about Jesus.
Imagine Jesus reading it when He was 18 or 25 years old!
He read of His sufferings:
- Genesis 3:15 - His heel would be crushed
- Psalm 90:9 - He ended His days with a sigh
- Psalm 22 - He was forsaken by God on the cross
- 2 Samuel 15-17 contains a little-known parallel and foreshadowing of Christ's suffering.
- there are many more, of course
He read of His coming glory
- Isaiah 53 - He would see the fruit of His labor
- Psalm 110 - He would reign and subdue His enemies
- Psalm 2 - the Father would appoint Him King of kings, and give Him all the nations to own.
We also see in the Scriptures our own suffering and glory, as we are united with Christ.
(Romans 8:18)
Chapter 12 - Christ's Prayers
Jesus needed to pray. It was part of His faithfulness to His Father while on earth.
He commands us to do what He did.
Communion with His Father was essential to His work on earth.
He prayed in Gethsemane:
- better than Adam in his garden
- submissive to His Father's will, yet asking
- the blood a sign of his intense agony, though perhaps not physically real
He prayed as our priest in John 17: it continues in heaven, now.
He prayed as a righteous man asks God for what He has promised.
Chapter 13 - Christ's Sinlessness
God hates sin. Jesus is God. For Him to sin is unthinkable.
Many Scriptures assert this: 1 Peter 2:21; John 8:46; 7:18; Isaiah 53:9; 1 John 3:5.
He was holy. He did what the law commands. He was a walking picture of law-keeping.
His sinless sacrifice pleased God.
We should be more pleased by it, than distressed at our sins.
He was made sin for us.
His death was a sin-bearing death more terrifying and spiritually painful than any other.
Chapter 14 - Christ's Temptations
Could Jesus have sinned? No!
He was always God, and it is unthinkable for God to sin.
His human will could not be contrary to His divine will.
He suffered temptation successfully in the wilderness, willingly, unlike Adam in the Garden.
He confronted Satan, as much as Satan attacked Him, in the wilderness.
- (Aragorn shows himself to Sauron in the Palantir, defying and provoking him.)
- Jesus had to believe He was God's Son, not prove it by a miracle
- Jesus had to take the way of suffering, not the short-cut of glory Satan offered.
- Jesus did not test God, experiment with Him, or give Him an ultimatum; nor may we.
His temptations were real: the more you resist successfully, the more force you feel.
A clever way of showing that the Old Testament is about Jesus.
Imagine Jesus reading it when He was 18 or 25 years old!
He read of His sufferings:
- Genesis 3:15 - His heel would be crushed
- Psalm 90:9 - He ended His days with a sigh
- Psalm 22 - He was forsaken by God on the cross
- 2 Samuel 15-17 contains a little-known parallel and foreshadowing of Christ's suffering.
- there are many more, of course
He read of His coming glory
- Isaiah 53 - He would see the fruit of His labor
- Psalm 110 - He would reign and subdue His enemies
- Psalm 2 - the Father would appoint Him King of kings, and give Him all the nations to own.
We also see in the Scriptures our own suffering and glory, as we are united with Christ.
(Romans 8:18)
Chapter 12 - Christ's Prayers
Jesus needed to pray. It was part of His faithfulness to His Father while on earth.
He commands us to do what He did.
Communion with His Father was essential to His work on earth.
He prayed in Gethsemane:
- better than Adam in his garden
- submissive to His Father's will, yet asking
- the blood a sign of his intense agony, though perhaps not physically real
He prayed as our priest in John 17: it continues in heaven, now.
He prayed as a righteous man asks God for what He has promised.
Chapter 13 - Christ's Sinlessness
God hates sin. Jesus is God. For Him to sin is unthinkable.
Many Scriptures assert this: 1 Peter 2:21; John 8:46; 7:18; Isaiah 53:9; 1 John 3:5.
He was holy. He did what the law commands. He was a walking picture of law-keeping.
His sinless sacrifice pleased God.
We should be more pleased by it, than distressed at our sins.
He was made sin for us.
His death was a sin-bearing death more terrifying and spiritually painful than any other.
Chapter 14 - Christ's Temptations
Could Jesus have sinned? No!
He was always God, and it is unthinkable for God to sin.
His human will could not be contrary to His divine will.
He suffered temptation successfully in the wilderness, willingly, unlike Adam in the Garden.
He confronted Satan, as much as Satan attacked Him, in the wilderness.
- (Aragorn shows himself to Sauron in the Palantir, defying and provoking him.)
- Jesus had to believe He was God's Son, not prove it by a miracle
- Jesus had to take the way of suffering, not the short-cut of glory Satan offered.
- Jesus did not test God, experiment with Him, or give Him an ultimatum; nor may we.
His temptations were real: the more you resist successfully, the more force you feel.
10.25.2019
Give a Listen
Al Mohler was great today. He had me laughing out loud about the loony New York lawyers who want to grant elephants legal rights as people, and advocate against them being "illegally detained" at the Brooklyn zoo. He also made an excellent serious point that governments do not GRANT us rights.
He also pointed to an Australian Anglican archbishop's courageous speech against LGBT advocacy in the church, calling on such to go find a church that fits their views and stop ruining and compromising the Anglican church. Awesome.
He also pointed to an Australian Anglican archbishop's courageous speech against LGBT advocacy in the church, calling on such to go find a church that fits their views and stop ruining and compromising the Anglican church. Awesome.
10.18.2019
On Confessing Your Sins at Church
I come from a church tradition where we confess our sins and
hear a declaration of our pardon every week in the worship service.
How do we understand corporate repentance and pardon
declared in the worship service?
Two things must be said.
1. Our repentance is never perfect, and it isn’t the quality
of our repentance that saves us.
2. Our repentance needs to be heartfelt and sincere, as
opposed to formulaic, automatic or even hypocritical.
These two truths sometimes feel contradictory to us. In fact, some folks want to say the first so
strongly, they won’t allow the second. Others
are so pietistic in affirming the second that they forget the first.
So how does the minister assure people their sins are
forgiven after confession at church? Three
truths or phrases should be present in some way:
1. On the basis of God’s Word and Christ’s sacrifice
described there,
2. As you sincerely or honestly confess
3. God forgives you your sins.
This is not to say that number 2 is equally as important as
number 1, of course. True repentance isn’t
the part we contribute to our salvation, it is a gift God gives us.
Those who emphasize that the quality of our repentance doesn’t
save us will tend to want to ignore number 2 above. They overly objectify our salvation and don’t
leave enough room for the real experience of a broken and contrite heart. Those who emphasize that our repentance must
be heartfelt will tend to ignore number 1.
They overly subjectify our salvation, making it dependent on how
fervently we feel sorry, rather than the on the truth in God’s Word.
This is a part of our worship service that stays pretty much
the same each week. This can be good for
catechizing our children into the truth, but also carries with it the danger of
becoming rote and automatic in our thoughts and hearts. Confessing our sins together in church is not
meant as a replacement, so we don’t have to confess our sins personally. Rather, it is supposed to be a model of how
to confess our sins personally, just as the sermon should be a model of how we
read our Bibles on our own.
So, pray for a tender heart, truly sorry for your sins. And pray for reliance on God’s mercy found at
the cross for pardon for your sins.
10.16.2019
Great sermons on Answers to Prayer and Jealousy
I heard two excellent sermons recently, and commend them to you.
1. Nate Wilson spoke on Jesus in the Garden. Nate recently went through the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, so his message on Jesus praying and getting a no answer from God in the Garden is riveting. Sometimes God sends us to the cross, into the fiery trial, though we don't want to go. Don't define your faith or life by your feelings. As always, Nate has a way of bringing together many aspects of the Christian life of discipleship into one rich tapestry.
2. Alistair Begg spoke to college students on jealousy. Begg points out from James that conflicts arise often from jealousy, and that's borne out in my own experience. This can be hard to prove - the jealous person usually lies to himself or others that they aren't really jealous - they are standing on some principle instead. The solution is to preach incisively and for conviction, describing jealousy and its effects so that you see yourself. Begg does this very well.
1. Nate Wilson spoke on Jesus in the Garden. Nate recently went through the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, so his message on Jesus praying and getting a no answer from God in the Garden is riveting. Sometimes God sends us to the cross, into the fiery trial, though we don't want to go. Don't define your faith or life by your feelings. As always, Nate has a way of bringing together many aspects of the Christian life of discipleship into one rich tapestry.
2. Alistair Begg spoke to college students on jealousy. Begg points out from James that conflicts arise often from jealousy, and that's borne out in my own experience. This can be hard to prove - the jealous person usually lies to himself or others that they aren't really jealous - they are standing on some principle instead. The solution is to preach incisively and for conviction, describing jealousy and its effects so that you see yourself. Begg does this very well.
10.14.2019
Knowing Christ - by Mark Jones - chapter summaries
Chapter 8 - Christ's Faith - Psalm 22:9
Jesus lived by faith during His earthly ministry.
Jesus knew the struggle to live by faith. He "learned obedience" (Hebrews 5:8).
Jesus can only impute to us what He had: perfect faith and obedience.
Jesus' faith provides us a pattern to follow.
Chapter 9 - Christ's Emotions - Mark 3:5
Our problem is not that we have emotion, but that we express them wrongly.
Jesus had and expressed emotions without sin.
Jesus had pity and felt compassion, but did not receive mercy.
Jesus felt anger, and it is sometimes right for us as well. He received the Father's wrath.
Jesus was joyful, since it is a fruit of the Spirit. Not a circumstantial happiness or mere delight in living, but exulting in freeing captives and winning the victory over Satan and death. But He took on dark, God-forsakenness on the cross, too.
Jesus was sorrowful at Lazarus' tomb, and over the unbelief of Jerusalem.
Chapter 10 - Christ's Growth - Luke 2:40, 52
Christ grew in grace, or favor, with God and men.
So there is some form of grace that is not a response to sin, but a more general kindness or favor.
His communion with God was by the Spirit.
He developed as a boy and as a person.
God's favor on Jesus was both unconditional, and dependent on Christ's obedience (John 10:17; 15:10).
The cross was a reversal of Eden. In Eden the trees were attractive but gave death since they were forbidden. At Calvary the tree was repulsive but gave life, since God sent Jesus there. When Adam went to the tree it brought our ruin; when Jesus went to His tree it brought our restoration!
Jesus lived by faith during His earthly ministry.
Jesus knew the struggle to live by faith. He "learned obedience" (Hebrews 5:8).
Jesus can only impute to us what He had: perfect faith and obedience.
Jesus' faith provides us a pattern to follow.
Chapter 9 - Christ's Emotions - Mark 3:5
Our problem is not that we have emotion, but that we express them wrongly.
Jesus had and expressed emotions without sin.
Jesus had pity and felt compassion, but did not receive mercy.
Jesus felt anger, and it is sometimes right for us as well. He received the Father's wrath.
Jesus was joyful, since it is a fruit of the Spirit. Not a circumstantial happiness or mere delight in living, but exulting in freeing captives and winning the victory over Satan and death. But He took on dark, God-forsakenness on the cross, too.
Jesus was sorrowful at Lazarus' tomb, and over the unbelief of Jerusalem.
Chapter 10 - Christ's Growth - Luke 2:40, 52
Christ grew in grace, or favor, with God and men.
So there is some form of grace that is not a response to sin, but a more general kindness or favor.
His communion with God was by the Spirit.
He developed as a boy and as a person.
God's favor on Jesus was both unconditional, and dependent on Christ's obedience (John 10:17; 15:10).
The cross was a reversal of Eden. In Eden the trees were attractive but gave death since they were forbidden. At Calvary the tree was repulsive but gave life, since God sent Jesus there. When Adam went to the tree it brought our ruin; when Jesus went to His tree it brought our restoration!
10.11.2019
Pray for the Kurds
The international news is just appalling these days.
Besides Apple and the NBA caving to China (soon after it felt the need to stand up to North Carolina's medieval policy of having separate bathrooms for men and women), now our president withdraws troops from the Kurdish region of Syria. Immediately following, Turkey attacked the Kurds, feeling free to do so now that we had left.
Bringing our troops home, and not getting entangled in foreign conflicts, sounds great on paper, but this is an instance where we were actually preventing real harm. And we see the immediate effect when we leave: military assault across borders, loss of life, and disregard for human rights. The Kurds are a distinct people without a country of their own after the West drew national lines without regard to them. Religiously, they are a mix of Yazidi, Christian and Muslim - this classical Christian school there is worth supporting.
The real culprit in all this is Turkey's president Erdogan, but our own president deserves plenty of blame for this foolish and immoral move. When you see evil intent, know you can restrain that evil, and deliberately withdraw and let it happen, you've lost your moral compass. While Trump is admirable in his courageous stand against the liberal media and in other areas, we really need a better Republican candidate in 2020.
Besides Apple and the NBA caving to China (soon after it felt the need to stand up to North Carolina's medieval policy of having separate bathrooms for men and women), now our president withdraws troops from the Kurdish region of Syria. Immediately following, Turkey attacked the Kurds, feeling free to do so now that we had left.
Bringing our troops home, and not getting entangled in foreign conflicts, sounds great on paper, but this is an instance where we were actually preventing real harm. And we see the immediate effect when we leave: military assault across borders, loss of life, and disregard for human rights. The Kurds are a distinct people without a country of their own after the West drew national lines without regard to them. Religiously, they are a mix of Yazidi, Christian and Muslim - this classical Christian school there is worth supporting.
The real culprit in all this is Turkey's president Erdogan, but our own president deserves plenty of blame for this foolish and immoral move. When you see evil intent, know you can restrain that evil, and deliberately withdraw and let it happen, you've lost your moral compass. While Trump is admirable in his courageous stand against the liberal media and in other areas, we really need a better Republican candidate in 2020.
10.10.2019
SCOTUS and ChiComs
The transgender revolution at the Supreme Court.
Oral arguments were heard on some transgender cases Tuesday.
All I've seen in the print and mainstream media screams "rights of transgender people!" "Fired for being trans?!"
Only Al Mohler reported Justice Alito's question: aren't you asking us to do what the Equality Act seeks to enact?
Exactly.
The Equality Act was passed by the House, but the Senate will not pass it. These cases are just asking SCOTUS to get done what Congress won't. The country is deeply divided over these issues, and it is an undue process to ask the courts to pick a side. This is what Roe v. Wade and Obergefell did, too: legislate from the bench, creating out of thin air a whole new set of "rights" they find in the Constitution, to fit with the sexual revolution: abortion, homosexuality, and now the transgender confusion.
Notice the common thread in what is sought:
We are legally prosecuting and codifying our sexual rebellion against God, demanding that we call good what God calls evil.
The NBA in China
The Communists are getting smarter.
China's have for years now been using the economic benefits that capitalism gives them as a carrot, enticing the world to its markets. But there's a catch: tow the party line. Don't speak out when we brutally repress Muslim minorities or try to take away Hong Kong's civil rights.
Well, thankfully not everyone goes along. One team coach voiced support for the Hong Kong protesters. Even though it was just a sentence or two, and quickly taken down, the ChiComs are having none of it. As a totalitarian regime, they seek total control. But can they manage the demand their own people have for American sports?
This is a major theater in the ideological warfare between democracy and dictatorship.
American business should stop siding with the latter. Their willingness to compromise ethically to get Chinese markets and money is appalling. Don't give up your civil rights as the price for doing business with China.
Oral arguments were heard on some transgender cases Tuesday.
All I've seen in the print and mainstream media screams "rights of transgender people!" "Fired for being trans?!"
Only Al Mohler reported Justice Alito's question: aren't you asking us to do what the Equality Act seeks to enact?
Exactly.
The Equality Act was passed by the House, but the Senate will not pass it. These cases are just asking SCOTUS to get done what Congress won't. The country is deeply divided over these issues, and it is an undue process to ask the courts to pick a side. This is what Roe v. Wade and Obergefell did, too: legislate from the bench, creating out of thin air a whole new set of "rights" they find in the Constitution, to fit with the sexual revolution: abortion, homosexuality, and now the transgender confusion.
Notice the common thread in what is sought:
We are legally prosecuting and codifying our sexual rebellion against God, demanding that we call good what God calls evil.
The NBA in China
The Communists are getting smarter.
China's have for years now been using the economic benefits that capitalism gives them as a carrot, enticing the world to its markets. But there's a catch: tow the party line. Don't speak out when we brutally repress Muslim minorities or try to take away Hong Kong's civil rights.
Well, thankfully not everyone goes along. One team coach voiced support for the Hong Kong protesters. Even though it was just a sentence or two, and quickly taken down, the ChiComs are having none of it. As a totalitarian regime, they seek total control. But can they manage the demand their own people have for American sports?
This is a major theater in the ideological warfare between democracy and dictatorship.
American business should stop siding with the latter. Their willingness to compromise ethically to get Chinese markets and money is appalling. Don't give up your civil rights as the price for doing business with China.
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