The Gospel Pillar of God’s Faithfulness

Today’s Scripture reading from the ESV Bible Reading Schedule took me to Psalm 105. Through this Psalm the Lord moved me to ponder His faithfulness.

7 He is the Lord our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.
8 He remembers his covenant forever,
the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,
9 the covenant that he made with Abraham,
his sworn promise to Isaac,
10 which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant,
11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as your portion for an inheritance.”

One of the strong pillars of the gospel is the faithfulness of our covenant keeping God. Let’s be honest, day after day is filled with struggles and failures for the Christian. The more we grow in Christ the more we realize how far we are from his likeness. But then we are called, once again, to sink the roots of our faith into the good news of the gospel:

We, who were dead in sin, have been given new life through the power of his Spirit.

The Lord has provided an atoning sacrifice for all of our sin – yes, all of it.

The Lord has draped around our forgiven shoulders the prefect righteousness of his Son.

In Christ we now can stand unashamed before our God and can cry out “Abba, Father!” with the assurance that he hears us with unmatched tenderness and care.

We have a myriad of precious promises to trust in as we look at our own hearts and at the path he has laid before us in this life.

He is at work in us.

He is at work around us.

He holds us in his hand and is shaping us into his likeness.

And so much more.

Why are these glorious gospel promises reliable? How is it we can find solid comfort and hope in them? Because God is faithful. Let that truth ring in your ears… God is faithful. Ours is not a shaky, fleeting hope. No! It is hope built upon the very character and purposes of the Lord God Almighty whose judgments are in all the earth and who remembers his covenanents forever.

May the Lord use his Word, even today, to potently remind you of his faithfulness and provide you with comfort, hope and strength for today.

Gospel Blessings,

jc

Our Worth in Christ Alone

In a Christian culture saturated with self-esteem counsel and practical theology that subtly makes much of you and little of God, it is refreshing to read the following words from Jon Bloom, Executive Director of Desiring God Ministries, in his April letter to DG supporters:

To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ [2 Peter 1:1].

….[W]e ordinary Christians have obtained a faith of equal standing with Peter’s? Absolutely yes! There is nothing ordinary about the faith we’ve received. It has been given to us as a gift from the Lord Jesus, the same Lord who gave Peter his faith.

Peter had no illusion about who he was. He was an ordinary man chosen by an extraordinary Savior to fulfill and extraordinary calling through the power of an extraordinary Spirit. All that had made Peter extraordinary had come to him as a gift of grace from God. Apart from Jesus he was nothing. That’s why when Cornelius fell at his feet and worshiped him, Peter quickly pulled him up and said, “Stand up; I too am a man” (Acts 10:26).

The same amazing Savior has chosen you, cleansed you from all your sin, given you his perfect righteousness, and filled you with his Holy Spirit. “What the Lord has made clean, do not call uncommon” (Acts 10:15). Jesus has made you extraordinary, more than you know. Jesus has called you by name, appointed you to faithfully steward a particular calling, has a unique name for you that only he knows, and has prepared a place in his eternal kingdom especially for you. Peter considers you a peer, his sibling in God’s family.

Praise the Lord that we, the utterly unworthy, find our identity, life, hope and calling in the unsurpassed worth and power of the Lord Jesus! Gospel blessings as you serve our Lord today.

Cross Meditation

Edward Donnelly, of Reformed Theological College in Belfast, Ireland writes the following in his foreward to the book, The Cross He Bore-Meditations on the Suffering of the Redeemer:

We are too apt to hurry past the cross, to undervalue, in spite of ourselves, the supreme mystery of the ages by a shallow assumption that we know it all. We don’t and never will. But we need to take time to learn as much as we can. We need to ‘behold’, to ’survey’, to ’stand and stare’.

The author of the above mentioned book, Frederick S. Leahy (1922-2006), continues the theme in his introduction:

As the cross is central in God’s decrees, and in the actual redemption of his people, so it should be central in the thinking and experience of the individual Christian. It is my conviction, and at times my sad experience, that as the cross goes out of focus in the Christian’s life, coldness and backsliding set in…. If our meditation on the cross be meager, can our love for the Saviour be great?

May contemplation of the cross increase our awareness of the depths of our sin, the terror of God’s wrath, the extremity of Christ’s sacrifice, and the wonder of God’s grace and love. The Suffering Savior is our Substitute and “we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4).

Knowing is for Living

It is a treat when the first line of a book grabs you. This happened to me as I broke open the pages of The Christian Life by Sinclair Ferguson. In a modern church culture where the gospel is woefully tarnished for lack of use and believer’s lives are suffering as a consequence, it is encouraging to read the following right out of the gate:

When I first became involved in teaching God’s Word, I tended to assume that one of the great needs of Christians is to be instructed in the ‘deeper truths’ of the gospel. It was not long before experience (of my own life) and observation (of others’ lives) taught me how mistaken I had been. I began to see that in fact the ‘deeper truths’ (if there are such things) are really the old basic truths of the gospel. Far from being luxuries, they are necessities for Christian living (p.1, emphasis added).

He goes on later in the chapter to state:

As we understand and appreciate the mercies of God we will live more fully for Christ (p.5).

As we find our minds expanded by the grace of God, our hearts should be correspondingly enlarged with love for him for all that he has done for us in Christ. This is turn should lead us to a richer experience of his love for us (p.7).

It is out of this richer experience of his love for us that we in turn are enabled & inspired to love others. Growth in our understanding of the gospel is key to our growth in Chrisitan living. Doctrine and godliness go hand in hand (Titus 1:1). As Ferguson so aptly puts it:

The conviction that Christian doctrine matters for Christian living is one of the most important growth points of the Christian life (p.2).

May the Lord create in our understanding rich gospel soil from which will grow abundant fruit for other’s good and his glory. Gospel blessings!

Gospel Reasoning in Dark Hours

Here is this week’s worship team update, I hope it is an encouragement:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

There is a wonderful progression of gospel reasoning in this week’s song selection. We begin with a sobering acknowledgment of life’s difficulties in singing God Moves in a Mysterious Way. Even in the darkness, the gospel reassures us that the Lord is in control, but that is only half the comfort. The gospel also tells us this is no cold sovereignty, rather, the Creator and Ruler of all things is also our heavenly Father who loves us and is pursuing our good for His glory. So, we reason thus:

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.
You fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.

In the light of that encouraging truth, we will then sing together of song of confident reliance upon the Lord found in Psalm 121:

I lift my eyes up, up to the mountains.
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from You,
Maker of Heaven; Creator of the Earth.

He will not let you slip.
He watches without sleep.
He is your constant shade.
He keeps you from all harm.
He will preserve your life
Now and forevermore.

Preaching this gospel reliance to ourselves in the midst of our struggles should then lead us to praise our God and King and call others to do the same:

All creatures of our God and King,
Lift up your voice and with us sing.
O praise Him! Alleluia!

….Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,
Praise God and on Him cast your care!
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

And from this grace-adjusted focus we can then move out in faith to the battlefield as we sing,

Lead on, O King Eternal,
We follow not with fears!
For gladness breaks like morning
Where’er Your face appears.
Your cross is lifted o’er us,
We journey in its light;
The crown awaits the conquest;
Lead on, O God of might!

May the Lord use this week’s songs to remind you of all the care, safety, blessing and growth that are yours in Christ. And may that truth inspire and enable you to live out the gospel to a lost and dying world. The providence of Almighty God is working intimately & personally for you because you are in union with Christ. He is the One who has called you into the fray and promised you His protection and strength. As is written so profoundly in our final hymn, How Firm a Foundation:

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.

Gospel Blessings,

Jason

Gal. 2:20

Song Sheet 04-13-08

The Joyful Christian

Just a quick note to check out today’s post on Already Not Yet entitled The Joyful Christian. There is a wonderful quote by Thomas Brooks from A Cabinet of Choice Jewels (1669). Brooks eloquently reminds us to keep our gaze fixed on Christ. One of the previous posts contains a solid article by Jerry Bridges entitled Gospel-Driven Sanctification (2003). The truth of gospel centrality spans the centuries!

Click over, dive in and enjoy! Gospel Blessings.

Why Gospel Novice?

Why choose such a title for my blog? Hmm… Self deprecation? False humility? Insecurity due to the lack of a seminary degree? Well, if you’re curious, I actually came across this title, or better yet this concept, when listening to Tim Keller speak at the 2006 Desiring God conference. His title was The Gospel in a Postmodern World and his second point, called Gospel Realization, was a salient moment in my Christian life.

For a number of years prior the Lord had been working on me and my wife. It all started with two sermons from CJ Mahaney entitled The Main Thing. This got us thinking and talking about the potentially significant ramifications of a perpetual focus on the gospel. At that time I was studying Ephesians and one of my main rescources was “The Doctor,” D. Martin Lloyd-Jones. I kept coming across the same idea, a kind of Christ centrality that had before evaded me. There was also at that time quite a bit of Spurgeon around (as is often the case) and almost everything he ever said or wrote drips with Christ centeredness. The questions started to rise and the concepts began to form, but all was still very foggy.

At that point the Lord brought my good friend, John, along (see his Gospel Driven Blog). The Lord used him to bring into more clarity the vital need for the truth of the gospel to break in not only on the lost, but on the believer as well. This revolutionized my and my wife’s lives. The Lord began to reveal the sweetness, the joy, the wonder of the gospel to us. We knew all of these truth intelectually, but were rarely struck by them personally. We had, as so many do, looked at the gospel as a first grade class which we now “knew” and should move on from, rather than looking at it as water – desperately needing a fresh drink if we’re to keep running the race, or as Mary Poppins’ carpet bag (excuse the crude comparison, but it works!). You know, the one she set on the table and proceeded to pull out standing lamps and plants and wall mirrors to the kid’s amazement!? The truth of the gospel had no bottom! We were infinately far from even begining to discover its wondrous depths!

And that brings me back to Keller. In his message at the DG 06 conference he hit the proverbial nail on the head when he stated,

If you think you really understand the gospel, you don’t. If you think you really haven’t even begun to understand the gospel, you do…. [W]hat we need is a lifelong process of of more and more deeply realizing the wonder of the gospel…. Religion is ‘I obey therefore I’m accepted,’ the gospel is ‘I’m accepted because of what Jesus Christ has done for me, therefore I obey.’

The clarity with which he spoke about the gospel was the final push into what has undoubtedly become the driving perspective and passion of our lives. I highly, highly recommend you listen to Keller’s message (linked above) and tune in especially to that second point (although the whole message is wonderful).

Once someone begins, by grace, to grasp gospel centrality there is personal revolution. Once a group of people begin to grasp it there is revival. As Keller put it, “A revival is when the wonder of the gospel is recaptured.”

When I pridefully think I ‘get’ the gospel, I am reminded, “No, you don’t! You don’t even begin to get it!” So, I am a gospel novice. Praise the Lord that He continues to reveal more and more facets of the gospel diamond as the days go by and praise Him that He has given us an eternity to explore greater depths still.

May the Lord embrace us with the transforming reality of His full and wondrous grace.

Gospel Blessings!

jason

The Challenges of Gospel Ministry

I came across the following on Gospel Muse (please see my blog roll). These very insightful quotes are from Mike Bullmore:

“One of the greatest challenges, yet one of the most important tasks, of pastoral ministry is to help people actually see the connections between the gospel and the thinking and behavior that make up their everyday lives. We know well the centrality of the gospel message but in order for it to have a functional centrality it must be clearly, carefully and consistently connected to the real issues—issues of thought and conduct—of people’s lives. This kind of ministry is most greatly needed.“

…and the second:

“A local church is healthy to the degree that:

1) Its pastor-teachers are able – accurately, effectively, and broadly – to bring the gospel to bear specifically into the real lives of the people; and

2) Its people have a deep personal understanding of and deep personal appreciation for the gospel so as to be able to live in the good of the gospel daily.

I call this the functional centrality of the gospel.”

May the Lord continue to shape leaders for His church with this kind of perspective.

Powlison’s Prayer

I was recently speaking to our youth about the necessity of slowing down and approaching their personal time with the Lord in His Word prayerfully and patiently. That discussion rose out of a statement in the April 2 installment of Faith’s Checkbook by Charles Spurgeon where he wrote: “Not by hasty reading but by deep meditation we profit by the Word of God.”

In chapter 2 of David Powlison’s book, Seeing With New Eyes, he explores some practical implications of Ephesians. As he prepares to take us into the Word he tells us, “We must lean hard on God” (p. 36). He gives the following prayer which I in turn give to you in hopes that this will help you develop or maintain a prayerful, patient and expectant mindset as you approach your Lord in His Word:

Our heavenly Father, you have spoken such wonderful things. They are true, but we stumble in the dark. Overcome our hearing-impaired, sight-impaired, mind-impaired, heart-impaired natures. Our God, you let us glimpse what is true and right, holy and perfect, what is worthy of adoration. You give us a glimpse of Christ Himself. Paul blazed with light in Christ, and we want to blaze with light also. Make us know you better. Help us, our Father, we pray in the name of your Son, Jesus, who has brought us into life. Amen.

May the Lord, in His grace and by the power of His Spirit, give you some rich, personal time with Himself through the Scriptures today.

Weekly Worship Update

Weekly, I send our church worship team the necessary info for the week’s set of songs. Along with that I like to give a brief bit of gospel encouragement. I’ve decided to start to post these mini exortations along with our Song Sheet for your encouragement as well. I hope these words help draw and keep your focus on Christ as your all in all:

Greetings in the name of our Savior and King, Jesus Christ. I hope this e-mail finds you fighting the fight of faith.  Faith in what, you ask? Faith in who? Is it just a warm feeling? A blind leap? Not at all. Ours is a faith that is planted firmly on the Rock…

…a faith in the gospel grace of our Lord, given to us through His Son…

..a faith that rests on the completed work of our Redeemer…

…a faith that trusts in the full forgiveness of the Lord through the blood of Christ and the righteous, unalterable standing we now have in Him…

…a faith that is assured of the Father’s love for us demonstrated in the sacrifice of His own Son…

…a faith in the Lord’s patient, steadfast dealing with us because of our intimate, inseparable union with Christ…

…a faith that believes what the Lord has begun in us He will one day complete…

…a faith that looks outside of our abundant sins of commission and omission and looks to the atoning sacrifice of our Savior…

…a faith that continually repents of sin and trusts that we have an Advocate before the throne, even Jesus Christ the righteous…

…and that is just the tip of the Rock that spans all time and eternity and serves as the solid foundation for our faith.

My friends, be continually feeding your faith in Christ, and out of that faith love one another. May the Word of God dwell in you richly, and may the lyrics on this week’s Song Sheet be a small encouragement toward a full and lasting faith.

Gospel Blessings,
Jason
Gal. 2:20

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