Rambles and Rambles

"Let no Christian parents fall into the delusion that Sunday School is intended to ease them of their..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:38:05 -0700

“Let no Christian parents fall into the delusion that Sunday School is intended to ease them of their personal duties. The first and most natural condition of things is for Christian parents to train up their own children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”

- C. H. Spurgeon (via leighaterror)

God's Painting

Wed, 22 May 2013 09:11:52 -0700

Society says that how the Bible lays out the roles in marriage is ancient and archaic. That it shouts inequality and is unfair. That the way to go now is by being “progressive”, letting everyone do as they please.

Take a paint brush and paint for example of a marriage. See the brush as the husband and the paint as the wife. In order for anything to be done correctly, they need each other. To paint a picture or paint a wall, both are needed equally. The paint is no greater than the brush and the brush no greater than the paint. However, they each have their differing roles in the scope of the project (marriage). The brush leads the paint where to strike the canvas, the speed, the pressure, the color. The paint is guided by the brush, not out of chauvinism, but rather out of duty to make sure the picture comes out correctly. The paint accepts and submits to the brush as the leader for without it, the picture will be incomplete, blank, or just splashes of color imitating what could and should be a masterpiece.

Neither one should see itself as greater than the other.

As the paint submits to the brush, the brush also takes care to watch over the paint. It makes sure to not stretch it too thin, to put too much pressure on it and to guide it appropriately so that the canvas or painting is not torn.

But beyond even those two, the brush and the paint, there is One more. One that without, there would be no painting, no movement of the brush, no masterpiece. The One Who, like the brush guiding the paint, guides the brush. The One who puts together the two and paints a masterpiece that neither the brush nor the paint may understand or be able to see until His work is finished; and during the process, the two must have faith in the Painter’s vision of what will come of their marriage.
The One, God, orchestrates each movement, creating something so beautiful that neither the brush nor the paint would be able to do on their own, nor out of order of duty and role.

These roles aren’t archaic. They’re for a purpose. For the One Who made both, to create a masterpiece of a marriage, and every time we try to reverse roles or change them around slightly or largely, all we are doing is creating havoc for the Painter and when brushes and paint are no longer of use, they’re thrown out and others who are willing and accepting of their true roles will be used for His glory.

The masterpiece is created in love and guidance. Who are we to interfere?

—Nathan Duerden—

Evaluating Our Suffering

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:51:54 -0700

“By no means let any of you suffer as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler.”
- 1 Peter 4:15

We must not presume that God blesses every possible kind of suffering a Christian may become involved in.

It’s quite obvious that some sufferings and trials are not part of God’s plan for us. Believers should never suffer because they’ve murdered, robbed, or done evil. But in today’s verse Peter mentions a fourth category—“a troublesome meddler”—whose meaning is not as apparent and whose application might be more in dispute.

“A troublesome meddler” interferes with everyone else’s business, and Paul says we should avoid such persons (1 Thess. 4:11; 2 Thess. 3:14; 1 Tim. 5:13). But I believe Peter also uses the term to refer to a political agitator, someone who actively tries to disrupt the normal function of the government. If this understanding is correct, then Peter is commanding Christians to be good citizens in their non-Christian cultures (cf. Rom. 13:1-7). We are to go to work, live peacefully, witness to others, and exalt Christ.

Believers are not to act like radicals who are intent on overthrowing existing authority or imposing Christian standards on society. Getting into trouble with your employer or being fired by him because of disruptive activities, even those done in the name of Christ, is not honorable but disgraceful.

Most believers would never even consider the possibility of being involved in militia groups that are engaged in separatist activities and are violently opposed to all legitimate governmental authority. Yet some Christians wrongly see validity in strategies of civil disobedience and violence as they oppose some government-sanctioned acts, specifically abortion. They are not satisfied with simply providing biblical counsel or material and educational assistance at a local pro-life agency, as many believers have done over the past twenty-five years. Therefore, if we would seek to promote what is right and redress injustices, we must use scriptural discernment regarding which strategies to implement or support. Similarly, the Lord wants us to evaluate all our trials and sufferings and be sure they are placing us in the center of His will. Otherwise, we can claim to suffer righteously when we are not and merely be “a troublesome meddler,” which is not pleasing to God.

Suggestions for Prayer:
Pray that your church would always have biblical reasons for supporting any efforts at redressing social wrongs.

For Further Study:
What areas does Peter include in 1 Peter 2:11-19 when he encourages obedience to authority?

Letter About How To Relate To A Relative Who Is Homosexual

Mon, 20 May 2013 15:00:41 -0700

A good yet tough answer to this dilemma by Pastor John Piper. This can also be applied to friendships.

“I wrote this letter to a real person based on this real situation. We have altered names and a few details to sufficiently conceal the identities, but be assured this is a real situation involving real people, and the pastoral concern is painfully not made up.”

Dear Robert,

The situation that you and your parents are in is agonizing. I groan with you imagining what I might feel and do if one of my sons announced his homosexual orientation and his intention to affirm it and live in it, instead of bemoan it and renounce it and strive in chastity against its domination. It would be heart-breaking. I have seen parents’ hearts broken at Bethlehem. There is another family in virtually this identical situation only with a daughter. I could connect you if you wished. The pain of parents is one of the deepest kinds, it seems to me. Which is why Romans 8:32 is a trumpet blast of good news: he did not spare his own Son. His own Son! As if this were the hardest thing of all - to lose a Son. And add to that hours on the cross and in the grave to bear the sins of his people.

“What would Jesus do?” is a good, but precarious question. Are there any instances in Jesus’ ministry where he met, forgave, and admonished a person to forsake sin, and yet they did not change? I know of none. Peter temporarily denied him, but broke in great weeping and changed long term. The one possible example would be Judas, who was among the twelve as a thief and yet not driven out. It would seem dangerous to make Judas a typical case when in fact his whole role seems to be for the sake of fulfilling Scripture that Jesus might be betrayed by a confidant (John 13:18). What we do find in the Gospels is the warning from Jesus, “Sin no more, that nothing worse befall you” (John 5:14, cf. John 8:11). In other words, Jesus was incredibly merciful with people in the most horrid sins, and was willing to meet with them and talk to them and love them and touch them. But when the repentance and cleansing came, the expectation was that they would walk in a new way, and that if they did not, dire judgment would befall them. How he would relate to someone who turned away from his way after being forgiven is not described.

But there are hints that he would not have been lenient. Besides John 8:11, for example, there is the parable of the servant who was forgiven a 10-million-dollar debt and then went out and would not forgive a 10-dollar debt: Jesus described him as thrown into prison until he pay the last farthing (Matthew 18:23-35).

So it is not easy from the actual acts or words of Jesus to build a pattern of behavior toward unrepentant sinners in our circle of acquaintances or family.

But the case is different when we come to the letters of Paul. He gives counsel that goes further than Jesus did explicitly. For example, he said, in 1 Corinthians 5:9-13:

I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; 10 I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. 11 But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler - not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? 13 But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves.

The issue here becomes whether your brother is a professing believer or not. If he is, then this text is very relevant. So is 2 Thessalonians 3:14-15:

If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he will be put to shame. 15 Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

This is perhaps not what you or your mother, not to mention your dad, would want to hear, namely, that if Larry (not his real name) insists he is a believer, then your ostracism that Paul counsels is more extensive than you are already applying. In other words, if a professing believer lives in open, persistent, unrepented sin, then we are to treat him with an aching separation, that longs for his repentance and return, but does not spend time together in casual ways as if nothing seriously were not amiss.

Whereas if Larry is not a professing believer, then you would treat him like you would most other unbelievers, and not rule out having him for dinner in the hope that your friendship would win him to Christ. Both loving ostracism and loving connections are ways of winning. But Paul proposes one for professing believers and another for professing unbelievers.

If Larry is a professing unbeliever, it seems to me that other factors figure into whether he and his friend are welcome to dinner. I would not think it is automatic, but certainly would not be ruled out from the start. The issues become wisdom issues with lots of implications. One is in need of great spiritual wisdom, as Paul says in Colossians 1:9. It may indeed be perceived as condoning the relationship. But maybe not - especially if steps were taken to make crystal clear that 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 is a major concern of your hearts:

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

In other words, if Larry is a confessed unbeliever in Jesus, then the door of connectedness is much wider than if he is a confessed believer.

This does not make your life easier. But I pray it will bring added light and give you some help in seeking the mind of the Lord in an agonizingly difficult and painful situation.

God is merciful and will help you (Hebrews 4:16; 13:5-6).

For the supremacy of God in all things,

Pastor John

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By John Piper. ©2013 Desiring God Foundation.
Website: desiringGod.org

amansman: Red and yellow, black and white. They are precious in...

Sat, 18 May 2013 09:46:11 -0700

amansman:

Red and yellow, black and white. They are precious in His sight.

putthison: The Man Who Thrifted A Ferrari Who’d have thought...

Sat, 18 May 2013 09:44:58 -0700

putthison:

The Man Who Thrifted A Ferrari

Who’d have thought you could thrift a Ferrari?

Matthew R. is an inveterate thrifter. He says he works seventy hours a week, and he’s been buying and selling second-hand clothes since 1998. Not long ago, he started a consignment service, Luxeswap, and not only do their auctions often crop up in our eBay picks, but I’ve personally trusted him to consign a number of clothes in the past. He’s one of the best menswear sellers on eBay. But truly: I had no idea.

This week, Matthew bought a Ferrari. With thrift store money.

Here’s how it happened…

Matthew started thrifting in the late nineties, and quickly learned that when he found something good that didn’t fit him, he could sell it on eBay and make a little dough. The first item was an Emporio Armani sportcoat. It sold for fifty bucks. Like most of us, Matthew took the extra money and spent it on clothes and small indulgences.

In 2007, he read a book called One Red Paperclip. It was written by a man, Kyle MacDonald, who traded a paperclip for a pen for a doorknob for a camping stove and on and on for a year until he had traded for a new house. Matthew thought: how could I turn my own little hobby into something special?

So he started a savings account.

His business money went into a business account. His personal money - the money from his own personal purchases - went into the savings account. And year after year, that money grew.

Then, last week, he took the money and bought a Ferrari.

Matthew says: “This car was born of things that nobody else wanted. Things that people discarded. I wanted to be able to say I thrifted a Ferrari. And I did.”

A genuinely remarkable achievement.

Confidence in God's Providence

Thu, 16 May 2013 11:38:00 -0700

“We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
- Romans 8:28

We will be better prepared for what God teaches us through trials if we have a basic understanding of His providence.

I believe it is vital that all Christians have an essential awareness of God’s providence if they want to be fully prepared to cope with life’s adversity. Providence is how He orchestrates, through natural means and processes, all things necessary to accomplish His purposes in the world. It is the most frequent way He works and controls the daily course of human events. The only other means the Lord uses to intervene in the flow of history is miracles. But He does not perform miracles in the same way now as He did during the days of Christ, the apostles, and the prophets. However, God has continuously used providence from eternity past to coordinate the infinite variety of factors necessary to accomplish His perfect purpose.

Think about it. The vast scope and endless outworking of divine providence, in which God draws together millions of details and circumstances to achieve His will each day, is a far greater miracle than the relatively uncomplicated, one-time supernatural occurrences that we usually term miracles. Belief in God’s providence is, therefore, one of the greatest exercises of faith we can have and a major contributor to our general preparedness and peace of mind as we encounter trials and hardships.

Paul trusted wholeheartedly in the providence of God, no matter how easy or challenging life was (Phil. 4:11). Joseph the patriarch stated his confidence in providence this way: “You [his brothers] meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (Gen. 50:20). Until we come to a similar acceptance of God’s providential control of everything, we will not fully realize the rich lessons He wants to teach us through trials, and we will not be able to apply the truth of Romans 8:28.

Suggestions for Prayer:
Thank the Lord that His providence is always at work for your benefit. If this concept is new to you, ask Him to help you understand it better through His Word.

For Further Study:
Read more about Joseph in Genesis 39—50. Jot down some of his positive character traits. What events in the narrative were possible only because of providence?

Awesome gift from an awesome wife. Thank you, my love,...

Thu, 16 May 2013 10:15:21 -0700

Awesome gift from an awesome wife. Thank you, my love, @leighaterror ! She knows what I like.

Being Prepared for the Worst of Trials

Tue, 14 May 2013 21:42:16 -0700

“And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock.”
- Matthew 7:25

Faithfulness in discipleship will mean we are prepared for the worst possible adversity and trial.

People are often unprepared for life’s unexpected upheavals. This was vividly illustrated by the once-in-500-year floods that struck the Northern Plains of the United States in the spring of 1997. One community on the Red River in North Dakota was especially devastated by the surprising events. After working diligently for days to fortify levees against the swelling river, people in Grand Forks were hopeful. But one early morning in mid-April 1997, the relentless Red River broke through the earthen and sandbag flood barriers and inundated the entire town of 50,000. Few deaths or serious injuries occurred, but practically the entire population had to abandon homes and property to the muddy waters. It was one of the largest mass evacuations in the history of American disasters, and it will take many months, even years,before Grand Forks and surrounding towns can repair all the flood damage.

For believers, facing such an utterly unexpected trial can help them learn to grow closer to the Lord. And they can prepare themselves by resting in the truth of the prophet’s words: “The steadfast of mind Thou wilt keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in Thee. Trust in the Lord forever, for in God the Lord, we have an everlasting Rock” (Isa. 26:3-4).

Jesus emphasized the need for total self-denial by His followers and complete preparedness to face any challenge, even death (Matt. 10:38-39). If we are living daily as His disciples, no trial will catch us totally unprepared. We might be temporarily surprised and feel inadequate initially, but we won’t remain that way. We already know from our studies this month that a sovereign God has the right to bring certain trials and tribulations into our lives, and He is also more than able to give us every resource we need to endure (Phil. 4:11-13; 1 Peter 5:6-7).

Suggestions for Prayer:
Thank God for the strength and wisdom He gives through His Word so that you may be prepared for whatever trial He sends.

For Further Study:
Read 1 Peter 5:6-11, and spend some extra time meditating on or memorizing one or two of the verses. Write down one key thought that relates to being spiritually prepared for trials.

Hours of fun Hahahahaha.

Sun, 12 May 2013 18:43:24 -0700

Hours of fun

Hahahahaha.

megustamemes: A testament to how lazy I am.

Sun, 12 May 2013 18:42:02 -0700

megustamemes:

A testament to how lazy I am.

Trials' Lessons: Right Priorities

Tue, 07 May 2013 11:52:10 -0700

“For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
- Genesis 22:12

Trials from the Lord will reveal to believers what they love and appreciate the most.

Abig part of the reason for the Lord’s testing Abraham at Moriah was to show him what he valued most in life. The question God wanted Abraham to answer was, “Do you love Isaac more than Me, or do you love Me more than Isaac?” And the Lord was prepared for the drastic test of taking Abraham’s son’s life if that’s what was necessary for Abraham to give God first place in everything.

God also tries the sincerity of those today who claim to love Him (see Deut. 13:3; Matt. 22:36-37). Jesus was so concerned that we have our priorities right that He made this radical statement: “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26).

Christians must love Christ so much that by comparison they will seem to hate their families and themselves. In order to test this first love, God might in some dramatic fashion ask us to renounce the many tugs and appeals from family and place His will and affections first in our life.

That kind of radical obedience, which is what Abraham had, always leads to God’s blessings. Jesus Himself was a perfect example of this principle. Because He was fully human as well as fully God, our Lord did not escape ordinary pain and hardship while on earth. As the Suffering Servant (Isa. 53), He learned completely what it means to obey through pain and adversity, all the way to His crucifixion (Heb. 5:7-9). As a result, the Son was exalted by the Father (Phil. 2:8-9).

God sometimes makes our path of obedience go through the experiences of trials and sufferings. But if we are faithful to His Word and will, those difficulties will teach us to value and appreciate God’s many blessings.

Suggestions for Prayer:
Pray that your priorities each day would stay in line with God’s.

For Further Study:
Read Deuteronomy 6:1-9. What must be the top priority for all believers?

“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac; and he who had received the promises was...

Sat, 04 May 2013 10:13:17 -0700

“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac; and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son.”
- Hebrews 11:17

The main reason God allows trials in the lives of Christians is to test the strength of their faith.

The memorable example in Genesis 22 of Abraham’s testing is perhaps the severest trial any human being has ever faced. When God told Abraham to offer his only son Isaac as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of Moriah (Gen. 22:1-2), Abraham no doubt was stunned. In terms of God’s nature, His plan of redemption, His promise to Abraham, and His love for Isaac, the entire concept was utterly inconceivable and unprecedented.

But in the face of all that, Abraham showed remarkable faith in dealing with this trial (Gen. 22:3-8). He did not second-guess God, as many of us would, but rather obeyed immediately (v. 3) and displayed the confidence that he and Isaac would return (v. 5) and that God would supply a lamb for the offering (v. 8). Then Abraham showed he was ready to obey completely.

Genesis 22 tells us he “bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to slay his son” (vv. 9-10). What unbelievable faith, and what a dramatic moment when God spared Abraham from the full cost of obedience (vv. 11-12)! The story clearly shows us the nature of true faith (Gen. 15:6) and why Abraham was later called the father of the faithful (Rom. 4:11-12; Gal. 3:6-7).

As heirs to Abraham and his extraordinary trust in God, we can also endure the most difficult trials and pass tests of faith that seem unimaginably severe at the time. God might want us to offer our own loved ones to Him and let them go His way rather than tightly holding on to them for our own purposes. However, if we look to God as Abraham did (Heb. 11:17-19), we can be confident in any trial and know with certainty that our faith has passed the test.

Suggestions for Prayer:
Pray that God would strengthen your faith even in the smallest of daily trials.

For Further Study:
Read 2 Kings 20:1-11 and 2 Chronicles 32:24-31. What was at the heart of Hezekiah’s difficulties (2 Chron. 32:25)? Why did God test him (v. 31)?

Jesus on God's love - Persecution

Wed, 01 May 2013 08:32:04 -0700

Pray for those who persecute you. - Matthew 5:44

Throughout the centuries the worst kinds of persecutions against Jesus’ followers have come from religious people. Persecution has been so strong against believers because they uphold God’s standards, which indict the sin and corruption of false religion. God’s Word unmasks hypocrisy in a most crucial area—humanity’s propensity for self-justification.

Knowing that persecution would be the world’s response to the Father’s truth, Christ assures us that we will be persecuted, just as He was (John 15:20). Thus His command that we pray for our persecutors is one every faithful believer will have some opportunity to obey, not just those who live in countries where Christianity is illegal or severely restricted.

The best way to have agape- love for those who persecute us is to pray for them. We might sense their sinfulness and intense hatred and ridicule of us. Those traits make it impossible to love the persecutors for what they are, but we must love them for who they are—sinners in need of God’s forgiveness and His saving grace. So we need to pray for them that they will repent and turn to Him for salvation, as we have already done.

Bear in mind, though, that persecutors will not always and only be unbelievers. Those professing to be fellow believers can give saints real grief and difficulty, too, but—as in every case—the first step in making right those situations is prayer. Jesus knew that prayer for persecutors can begin to knit our hearts with God’s in the matter of loving our enemies.

Ask Yourself

Which has been the hardest for you to deal with—persecution from without or from within the family of God? Why is prayer such a powerful tool in combating the hard feelings this dredges up in you?

Messengers of Peace

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:59:51 -0700

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:9).

When Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:9), He was referring to a special group of people whom God called to restore the peace that was forfeited because of sin. They may not be politicians, statesmen, diplomats, kings, presidents, or Nobel Prize winners, but they hold the key to true and lasting peace.

As a Christian, you are among that select group of peacemakers. As such you have two primary responsibilities. The first is to help others make peace with God. There is no greater privilege. The best way to do that is to preach the gospel of peace with clarity so people understand their alienation from God and seek reconciliation. Romans 10:15 says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good things!” The early church preached peace through Christ, and that is your privilege as well.

Your second responsibility is to help reconcile believers to one another. That’s a very important issue to God. He won’t accept worship from those who are at odds with each other. They must first deal with the conflict (Matt. 5:23-24). That is especially true within a family. Peter warned husbands to treat their wives properly so their prayers wouldn’t be hindered (1 Pet. 3:7).

Peacemakers don’t avoid spiritual conflicts—they speak the truth in love and allow the Spirit to minister through them to bring reconciliation. If you see someone who is alienated from God, you are to present him or her with the gospel of peace. If you see two Christians fighting, you are to do everything you can to help them resolve their differences in a righteous manner.

Of course to be an effective peacemaker you must maintain your own peace with God. Sin in your life will disrupt peace and prevent you from dispensing God’s peace to others. Therefore continually guard your heart and confess your sin so that God can use you as His peacemaker.

Suggestions for Prayer:

Pray for those close to you who don’t know Christ. Take every opportunity to tell them of God’s peace.

For Further Study:

Read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21.

• How did Paul describe the ministry of reconciliation?
• What was Christ’s role in reconciling man to God?

Risking True Peace

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:44:54 -0700

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:9).

People often define peace as the absence of conflict, but God sees it differently. The absence of conflict is merely a truce, which might end overt hostilities but doesn’t resolve the underlying issues. A truce simply introduces a cold war, which often drives the conflict underground, where it smolders until erupting in physical or emotional disaster.

James 3:17 says, “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable.” Godly wisdom, purity, and peace go hand- in-hand. Peace is wisdom in action and is never established at the expense of righteousness. It brings righteousness to bear on the situation, seeking to eliminate the source of conflict and create right relationships. Feuding parties will know true peace only when they are willing to admit that their bitterness and hatred is wrong and humbly seek God’s grace to make things right.

Some people equate peacemaking with evading issues, but true peace can be very confrontive. In Matthew 10:34 Jesus says, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” That may seem to contradict Matthew 5:9, but it doesn’t: Jesus knew that sinful people have to be confronted with the truth before they can experience peace. That can be a painful and difficult process because people usually have a hostile reaction to the gospel before they finally embrace it. Even believers will sometimes react negatively when confronted with God’s truth.

Being a biblical peacemaker has its price. You can expect to upset unbelievers who openly oppose God’s Word as well as believers who compromise its truth for the sake of maintaining “peace” among people of differing doctrinal persuasions. Some will call you narrow-minded and divisive for dealing with controversial issues. Some will misunderstand your motives or even attack you personally. But that’s been the path of every true peacemaker— including our Lord Himself. Take heart and be faithful. Your efforts to bring peace show that you are a child of God.

Suggestions for Prayer:

Ask God for the boldness never to compromise His truth.
Pray for those you know who are suffering for the sake of the gospel.
For Further Study:

Read Luke 12:51-53, noting how the gospel can bring division even among families.

Dealing Radically With Sin

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 23:46:23 -0700

If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell. - Matthew 5:29–30

We must be willing, as Jesus teaches here, to relinquish whatever is necessary to protect us from evil and preserve righteousness. Mutilation will not cleanse our hearts, but Jesus’ figurative words call for dramatic severing of any impulse that could lead to sin (cf. Matt. 18:8–9).

In other words, we must deal radically with sin, as Paul says, “I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Cor. 9:27). If we don’t purpose to carefully control the worldly influences around us, they will control us. Those we can’t control we should not hesitate to discard.

Cutting off harmful influences will not necessarily and automatically turn a corrupt heart into a pure one. But just as external acts of murder or adultery reflect internal hearts of sin, the outward act of fleeing sinful effects reflects the inward attitude that seeks holiness and God’s will rather than human pleasure.

Jesus reminds us again that His standards of righteousness are humanly impossible to attain. We have all been murderers and adulterers in our hearts, and often we don’t realize this because of sin’s subtlety and blinding effect. But the impossibility of measuring up to divine standards points to our need to receive a new heart and turn over our helplessness to His sufficiency.

Ask Yourself

How have you practiced this kind of severing in your Christian life? What familiar sins and seductions have proven so injurious in your past, it’s best if they’re just never in the same room with you?

Learning to Fail

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 10:10:17 -0700

Learning to Fail:

“The current generation of young men has been coddled and over-protected.”

Desire, The Root Sin of Adultery

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 09:36:40 -0700

You have heard that it was said, “You shall not commit adultery”; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. - Matthew 5:27–28

The seventh commandment protects the sanctity of marriage, and anyone who relies on external righteousness to keep it is prone to break it. Just as anger equals murder, lustful desire equals adultery.

In Jesus’ admonition, “looks” indicates intentional and repeated gazing. Therefore He means purposeful looking that arouses lust. In contemporary terms, it condemns a man who sees an X-rated movie, watches a salacious television show, or visits pornographic websites. It encompasses any thought or action done to arouse sexual desire.

Jesus is not referring to accidental exposure to sexual temptation. It is no sin if a man looks away from a provocative scene. It is the continued look that Christ condemns, because that demonstrates an adulterous heart. And by inference this prohibition would apply to women also, who must not gaze at men or dress in seductive ways to elicit stares.

In earliest redemptive history, Job understood these principles: “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin? … If my step has turned from the way, or my heart followed my eyes, or if any spot has stuck to my hands, let me sow and another eat, and let my crops be uprooted” (Job 31:1, 7–8).

If the adulterous heart gives in to temptation, the godly heart will protect itself, praying, “Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, and revive me in Your ways. Establish Your word to Your servant, as that which produces reverence for You” (Ps. 119:37–38; cf. 2 Tim. 2:22).

Ask Yourself

What could replace your next lustful thought or glance? Instead of focusing on what God has graciously restricted, what blessings, privileges, and freedoms can capture your attention instead?

Reconciling With Others

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:45:36 -0700

Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent. - Matthew 5:25–26

The time for reconciliation with others is always now, just as it is with salvation. Tomorrow may be too late. No excuse is valid to allow bitterness, anger, hatred, or any other sin to keep us separated from another person. Jesus illustrates here that we should make good on any debt or settle any grievance before it is too late and we’re imprisoned.

In the Roman Empire, two opponents at law could settle an issue on the way to court, but not after a judge became involved. To avoid judgment and imprisonment, the guilty person had to pay “the last cent,” or everything owed in debt.

Being thrown into prison and not being able to get out until a debt is paid is Jesus’ analogy to the Father’s punishment. We can’t miss the Son’s teaching here: we must make every effort possible, with no delay, to mend any broken relationship with a brother before we can avoid divine chastening and have a right relationship with God.

We know that because of sin, none of us is ever completely at peace or perfectly related to another. And since it’s impossible to have perfectly right attitudes toward others or God, no worship is ever fully acceptable. All of Jesus’ teachings in this passage and the rest of the Sermon on the Mount show us again the utterly perfect standard of God’s righteousness and the absolute impossibility of our meeting that standard on our own.

Ask Yourself

There’s no denying the pain of strained and severed relationships. But there’s nothing like knowing you’ve done everything you can to make it right. Can you live in the Lord’s peace even if nothing changes?