Be Angry, and Do Not Sin

“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil. (Eph 4:26–27)

Those familiar with Ephesians 4:25–32 have likely been instructed, as have I, that St. Paul’s intent here is to warn us of taking anger too far—fester into bitterness or erupt into a rage—with possible consequences from improper thoughts or actions. While I certainly would not discount this idea seeing that the paragraph is a general warning against unrighteousness. That said, I would like to offer a different twist based on my reading of Psalm 4 from which the quoted portion is taken from verse 4.

Be angry, and do not sin.
Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still.

The first line has nothing new: St. Paul lifted that portion of the verse directly. The question comes from the second line: what did David intend with meditating and being still? Let’s compare line with the same in the Septuagint (LXX):

Be angry, and do not sin;
Have remorse on your beds
For what you say in your hearts.

Notice how it is expanded to give clarity. The psalmist is not intending that we be angry stopping short of sin, rather he is saying we are to be angry with or because of our sin (i.e., concupiscence in all manifestations), therefore be on guard and refrain from sin. This is nothing new. Consider St. Paul’s appeal to the church in Rome as he recounts the war within himself (Rom 7). Returning to the psalm, David appeals to men to consider their worthless condition apart from God and remember their current standing in Him, leading us to offer the sacrifice of righteousness and hope, which has first been received from our loving Lord. No other offering would be acceptable. David’s point, then, is to note that he can sleep at night knowing that he is clean before the Lord, and it is his desire that we would know the same and relish it.

How does David’s treatment more reflect on the apostle’s instruction to Ephesus? Rather than dwelling on what degree or what appropriate use of anger should be applied in an occasion, Paul appealed to Christians to have the same feelings toward their concupiscence and deal with it, advocating self-control from our position as new men in Christ (Eph 4:24) that we might also rest peacefully in the Savior.

I will both sleep and rest in peace,

For You alone, O Lord, cause me to dwell in hope. (Ps 4:8)

If Indeed...

Our pastor challenged the congregation to read five passages (one passage per day) and answer three questions from the daily passage.

• What does it say God is like?
• What does it say God has done?
• Why would He do that for me?

This was a good exercise: first, it forces us to review who God is and what He has done; and second, it causes us to examine Scripture with fresh eyes with hopes that we might see or understand something previously missed: likely from preconceptions from prior teaching. On one hand, this is good We should be so indoctrinated, catechized, or instructed (whichever term you prefer) that false teaching can quickly be identified and dismissed; on the other hand, if the body of learned doctrine is incorrect, there needs to be a re-evaluation and subsequent shift, however slight.

The final text was Colossians 1:13–23, which gives a grand portrait of Christ being very God and very man in every way, redeeming us, and being our head as we are His body the church. As wonderful as all this certainly is, St. Paul tells us something yet more wonderful/

For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister. (Col 1:19–23)

The fullness of what both God and man are dwells in Jesus in order that within Him all mankind might be reconciled to God. Consider the enormity of this! We who were at odds and cut off from our Creator are now in good stead through Jesus’ death. Where there was once conflict and hostility, peace now holds sway: we are holy, blameless, and above reproach. What a wonderful and comforting relationship has been won! As wonderful as all this certainly is, I was particularly struck by the last portion: if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister. St. Paul posits for the recipients at Colossae that for some hearers of this letter—and others who would come in the future—there is a real possibility of falling away from or abandoning the faith, therefore, no reconciliation in the end: a disturbing thought and rightfully so.

How are we to move forward vis a vis this warning? One way might be to rely on self-motivation to continual remain vigilant in the Christian walk and determine to press forward whatever the circumstance. Many believers take this path; however, this routinely leads to failure. Why? When faced with a rule or law, we automatically want to do the opposite of what was stipulated. Do you want me to eat a handful of freshly baked cookies? Tell me I can’t have one, then walk away. St. Paul stated this in a different way:

For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. (Rom 7:7–11)

Laws inflame our sinful desires, so any attempt to rely on personal will or strength to stay in the kingdom until the last day will always fail. The focus must be reversed leading to the second, and proper, course of action: rest in our Lord Jesus Christ. What do I mean?

Christians can be so shortsighted and forgetful. We tend to believe that once God brings us into His kingdom that His work is done, and now we take up our end of the bargain in everyday life. Some become negligent, losing sight of what we have been called to. Others become surprised by their weakness of resolve, tending to make more rules and disciplines to bolster resolve, but that is a self-defeating activity. Eventually, someone recognizes the absurdity of chasing rules. When that happens, some give up on the faith (the highly publicized examples of Joshua Harris and Marty Sampson are not uncommon). Better is to cling to the sweet promise: being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil 1:6). God is the One who strengthens and supplies.

Sadly, there are preachers offering the gospel of Jesus Christ as a self-help plan or a stoic regimen. It is neither. Instead, it is news that Jesus died, was buried, and rose again for you. Baptism is for you. The Lord’s Supper is for you. Confession and absolution are for you. All that we have been given in Christ is intended to keep us in Him. Let us hold fast our confession.

Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:19–25)

Believers Need the Law

But since believers are not completely renewed in this world, but the old Adam clings to them even to the grave, there also remains in them the struggle between the spirit and the flesh. Therefore they delight indeed in God’s Law according to the inner man, but the law in their members struggles against the law in their mind; hence they are never without the Law, and nevertheless are not under, but in the Law, and live and walk in the Law of the Lord, and yet do nothing from constraint of the Law.

But as far as the old Adam is concerned, which still clings to them, he must be driven not only with the Law, but also with punishments; nevertheless he does everything against his will and under coercion, no less than the godless are driven and held in obedience by the threats of the Law (1 Co 9:27; Ro 7:18–19).

So, too, this doctrine of the Law is needful for believers, in order that they may not hit upon a holiness and devotion of their own, and under the pretext of the Spirit of God set up a self-chosen worship, without God's Word and command, as it is written:

You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes…. Be careful to obey all these words that I command you,… [but] everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it. (De 12:8, 28, 32).

Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration VI, 18–20

The Downcast Soul

Early last month, I read an invitation sent out for a ladies’ gathering:

How is your soul?

In Psalm 42 the psalmist asks the question: “Why are you downcast, O my soul?  And why are you disquieted within me?”

Lately I have met a few downcast souls within our family-of-God.  (I have been one of them!)  Things just don’t feel quite right and we are wondering what is happening to us, our thoughts, our souls?  We know God wants us to love him with our whole heart, soul, and strength.  But we feel tired and unable to muster up the strength.

Please, ladies, come to our dessert evening where we will explore scripture that instructs us how to take care of this soul God wants to be totally his.

The invitation prompted a question in my mind: How much mustered effort is enough?  And then there was another question: Who is the assumed effective agent in the process?  I am genuinely curious, because this afflicts everyone at some point in his or her walk with the Lord, and addressing the subject is a good step in the right direction.  I hope it is answered biblically at the gathering.

If the strength originates in or emanates from me, then the command to love (De 6:4–5) is nothing more than a plea to continually stir up passion or enthusiasm.  The effort will always be “just a bit more,” which ultimately leads to self-destruction as we continue to add man-made conditions in a never-ending quest for higher spirituality; whereas if the strength originates in God, then He must stipulate what is intended or how He will make this strength available.  Notice, then, the context of the command to love:

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.  (De 6:6–9)

A whole heart is not described as one wherein all one’s time and energy are given over to performing self-imposed tasks or goals, but in knowing the Scriptures to do them and not forget from Whom all things have been received (De 6:10–15).

Later in the month, I saw the following quoted from The Deep Place Where Nobody Goes by Jill Briscoe pertaining to the same gathering as above:

I ran to the Deep Place where nobody goes, and found Him waiting there.  “Where have you been?” He asked me.

“I’ve been in the shallow place where everyone lives,” I replied.  I knew He knew.  He just wanted me to admit I’d been too busy being busy.  “I’m running out…”  I began.

“Of course,” He said.  “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

He sat down on the steps of my soul and smiled at me.  Angels sang; a shaft of light chased away the shadows and brightened my daily day.  I smiled back.

“I’m such a fool…”

“Shhh,” He said, putting His finger on my lips.

He touched my hurried heart.  Startled, it took a deep breath and skidded to a near stop.  My spirit nestled into nearness in the Deep Place where nobody goes.
My soul spoke, then: He answered with words beyond music.  Where on Earth had I been?

Matters became clearer for me and prompted another question: What is the proposed solution for the downcast soul?  The Lord does desire and require full fealty, and like the children of Israel, we intend much but in the routine of life, we falter.  The desire and strength to follow wanes.  What had been our joy and delight becomes lackluster, even burdensome.  Or maybe the daily grind of life is not the issue, rather sudden difficult circumstances.

What is the cure for the downcast soul?
Jill Briscoe offers a romanticized mystical solution by referring the reader to a “Deep Place” to find intimacy with “Him.”  There are immediate problems with this solution, beginning with the obvious: if nobody goes there, how does the author get there?  How did she find the way?  Is there a road map of sorts, and who has access to these directions?  The story hints at a secret knowledge for inner peace that is available to only a few that find it—key elements of the ancient heresy of gnosticism.

Let it be known that I am willing to give Mrs. Briscoe some literary leeway, rather than rush to assign the moniker of abject heretic, but difficulties remain.  Who is “He?”  For certain he cannot be God, because as much as the story character wishes to confess sin, he cuts her off as if to say that it is not a problem.  The Lord calls us to confess, so that He might forgive us our sins, not cut us off mid-sentence.  And why are the two so intimate?  Notice the close contact and caressing are reminiscent of lovers.  What is actually being portrayed?  I assume no intention of salacious behavior, but something is amiss.

A better solution to the question of the downcast soul would be found with Psalm 42, which the ladies correctly referenced in the original communication above.  This is a good starting place, wherein the psalmist admits he is downcast being separated from the worship life in Jerusalem.  He longs for that communion and cannot understand why God has seemingly neglected him.  One can feel the wrestling within the psalmist as he describes his longing, yet the inability to fulfill it.  The situation is difficult, but the psalmist rests in the ongoing care of the Lord, reminding himself that He is faithful and will not abandon His people.

Another good example is Psalm 77, which presents an apparently more dire condition.  Here the psalmist describes his constant entreaty marked by constant loud lament and outstretched hands.  Sleeplessness is his constant companion as he struggles with the idea that the Lord has forsaken him.  The psalm turns, however, as attention turns from his pain and proclaims:

Then I said, “I will appeal to this,
    to the years of the right hand of the Most High.” (Ps 77:10)

To what does Asaph appeal?  He appeals to what he has been taught in the Scriptures of the Lord’s mighty deeds in redeeming a people and the ongoing truth that He made His dwelling place with them.  It is these things that give the psalmist strength to persevere.

The solution, then, for the downcast soul is to remember: 1) God works on your behalf as demonstrated on the cross; and 2) there are great and precious promises, which explain to us what He freely bestows in Christ.

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all,

how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? (Rom 8:32)

Crucifying the Flesh

And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  (Gal 5:24)

True believers are no hypocrites.  They crucify the flesh with its evil desires and lusts.  Inasmuch as they have not altogether put off the sinful flesh they are inclined to sin.  They do not fear or love God as they should.  They are likely to be provoked to anger, to envy, to impatience, to carnal lust, and other emotions.  But they will not do the things to which the flesh incites them.  They crucify the flesh with its evil desires and lusts by fasting and exercise and, above all, by a walk in the Spirit.

Martin Luther, “Homily on the Epistle for Trinity XIV”, Church Postil

HT: Wil Weedon

I'm So Excited!

No, the title is not a reference to the 1982 song released by The Pointer Sisters, though I do remember when it hit the airwaves.  Instead, I would like to investigate the entire notion of getting excited for Christ being visibly exhibited both in worship and a fully committed life.  In 2010 David Platt introduced this idea with Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream which challenged Christians to eschew American values and rediscover the commitment of biblical discipleship.  In 2011 Kyle Idleman followed suit with his book Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus, wherein he compared a nonparticipant (fan) in sports or music with a participant (follower), encouraging the reader to be the latter.  While I appreciate both men’s desire to get Christians to reorient themselves and demonstrate faith by their works, they inadvertently put emphasis on the wrong thing.

Idleman, for an example, got his terms backwards.  The fully committed person, the one “all in,” is the fan.  What do I mean by that?  The word fan is short for fanatic.  Merriam-Webster (M-W) defines this: marked by excessive enthusiasm and often intense uncritical devotion, coming from the Latin fanaticus (inspired by a deity, frenzied).  In modern parlance, this person is in a spiritual and mental state more akin to demon possession than devotion, resembling the conduct of one confronted by Jesus:

He lived among the tombs.  And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces.  No one had the strength to subdue him.  Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones.  (Mk 5:3-5)

More appropriate might be a word used in the M-W definition above—enthusiasm—defined as:

• 1 a : belief in special revelations of the Holy Spirit
•     b : religious fanaticism
• 2 a : strong excitement of feeling : ardor
•     b : something inspiring zeal or fervor

These are divided between categories of religious and worldly, however, definition 1a is the sole New Testament use leaving the others to the realm of emotions.  It is within this latter sphere that most people use the word or its derivatives.  Looking at the history of the word, we see that “enthuse” comes from the Greek entheos (ἐνθεος: in god, or god within).  Simply put, an enthused person is one being driven by god-induced passions.  Most Christians I know will read this and think, “That’s right.  A believer needs to be passionate for the Lord.”  Actually, the reverse is true.

The ancient Greek understanding does not border on fanaticism as described above, but the degree of devotion towards a god or goddess drove followers to act out in irrational ways.  A biblical example of this type of behavior can be found in the Old Testament, wherein Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel.  Notice their behavior:

And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!”  But there was no voice, and no one answered.  And they limped around the altar that they had made.… And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them.  And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice.  No one answered; no one paid attention.  (1 Ki 17:26-29)

Driven by their fervor, the prophets performed all manner of invocation to get Baal’s attention to no avail.  While this is not a response from Greek idol worshipers, the passion exhibited is very similar to that employed in Athenian (and Roman) temples centuries later.

To be sure, there is a danger in giving undue consideration to etymological history over current usage, however background knowledge helps us understand that the enthused person is driven more by emotions than cognition.  For the Christian, this is particularly dangerous, since the resounding theme coming from most sectors of the Western church is the need for increased fervor by whatever means possible.  The two books mentioned at the beginning are examples of attempts to foment righteous fervor in the body of Christ.

Let me state that I am not opposed to passion and fervor.  A quick review of godly individuals in Scripture will attest to their zeal for the Lord’s things.  My complaint is with the means being used to stir up hearts.  Over and again, preachers and conference teachers will do their best to guilt believers into doing more for Christ out of duty: get with the program and help reach the world, or some part of it, for Christ; get to work in some ministry; do more for Christ’s kingdom.  While these imperatives are true, they will not sustain me.  In the end, I believe the attempts to stir the rank and file are closer in their rhetoric to a political campaign than to disciple-making.  We do not want to be caught up in the excesses.


Living in Iowa during the campaign season, I am bombarded early and often with slogans ad nauseum about how this candidate or that is a better leader, is more Christian in conduct, is attuned with Midwestern values, etc.  The advertisers make their appeal to a “typical Iowan” (whatever that may be) hoping to motivate voters to actively support their candidate and get involved, all of which sounds eerily like a typical preacher any given Sunday:

The culture is rotting around you.  You need to get to work.  Get out, and make a difference.  If you give you all, you’ll be taken care of.

The difference between Jesus and a political candidate, though, is infinite.  I don’t know about you, but I am not in any shape to “make a difference for Jesus” simply because I have nothing to give.  The Lord was (and is) God incarnate.  He willing went to the cross and died for my sin and the sin of the world, then rose from the dead and ascended into heaven until He returns.

How does passion get ignited?  How does zeal grow?  How do we get excited for Christ?  The answer is in the faithful teaching of God’s promises in Christ Jesus.  I have heard more than one message decrying doctrine as a lifeless edifice that must be removed for God to move, but the truth is that doctrine is what motivates people to share the good news of Jesus.  The faithful communication of the Lord’s precepts, commandments, statutes, and promises are those things in which the psalmists continually ask the congregation to rejoice.

Do you want those under your tutelage or within your sphere of influence to be motivated for the work of the kingdom?  Do not resort to behavior modification, brow-beating, or dangling carrots.  Give what they need—the full, undiluted Gospel.  Give the fullness of Christ and Him crucified.

The Christian Life: Cross or Glory? by Steven Hein – Book Review

The work of sanctification that God performs in the believer is important to grasp.  How does this process occur?  Assuming that God is active in our spiritual growth, to what extent are individuals active?  In order to answer these questions, Steven Hein has given the Church a help in understanding “the relevance of the crucified Christ for daily Christian living” (p. 1).  We will look at the book according to its three main sections.

The Cross Life of the Christian
The author begins by defining the difference between cross and glory in the Christian life by drawing from Martin Luther’s Heidelberg Disputation wherein the reformer spells out his understanding of what living under the cross looks like in light of a proper distinction between God’s Law and God’s Gospel.  This Law/Gospel paradigm is necessary for developing the thesis, so Hein gives an illustrative parable involving the relationship of a married couple to make his point.  The illustration works well in conveying the how one acts and reacts by following rules versus acting from joyful gratitude and freedom.  From there, he moves to the demands made by God in His Law and the paradoxical problem that we are required to meet them but are completely unable—except in Christ who met them fully.  And even there we stumble because of sin working in us.  Finally, there are chapters on justification and sanctification wherein the author establishes that just as surely as salvation is the work of God by grace through faith, so sanctification is by grace through faith.

The Experience of Living in the Cross
This short section is rather important because of the principles they investigate.  First, there is the conflict the apostle Paul describes in Romans 7—the internal struggle between the Old Sinful Self and the New Self in Christ.  Hein points out the changes of priorities and desires in the life of the Christian that conflict with the desires of the flesh to act out.  These struggles are real, and if allowed to escalate, can cause the believer to doubt God and His promises.  Examining different bases from which doubt can arise, the author answers how one ministers to the doubt.

Second, there is the conflict from without—tribulation or what Luther called tentatio (Latin).  The constant barrage on the believer from the world and the devil wears on the believer causing a holy anguish or anfechtung (German).  This is a normal course of the Christian life as noted in the first epistle of Peter and that of James and should cause us to look even more to the Savior and cling to Him, though as with the internal struggle, doubts may arise.

Faithful Living in the Cross
This section deals with what the life of the cross entails as it is lived out.  What does it look like in regards to good works performed for our neighbors and operating within the Reformation understanding of vocation—not our occupations, but the offices we have in life (i.e., spouse, parent, child, employer, employee, etc., each operating within specific boundaries and for specific reasons)?  What is the relation of our freedom in the Gospel compared to our obligation of doing good for our neighbor?  These areas and questions are addressed in a practical and biblical way, finally looking at our eternal destinies (heaven and hell) in relation to our lives, with a unique consideration of their actual locations.

Observations
Dr. Hein is an engaging writer.  I enjoyed perusing this book, especially because he based his arguments on Scripture.  I raise this, because he wrote from a confessional, Lutheran (LC-MS) perspective.  Most LC-MS authors I have read tend to rely heavily or primarily on the Lutheran Confessions while using Bible passages as reference.  The author does the opposite, and I believe this makes the book more accessible to the reader who would insist on the biblical primacy and also to the person not having the background in Lutheran dogmatics.

Some will be puzzled by or disagree with the Lutheran understanding of the Sacraments, Means of Grace, etc. that the author works through, since they firmly within the boundaries of his confessions.  However, these inform rather than distract from the thesis, making this work a solid, useful read for the average reader.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free of charge.  I was not required to write a positive review, and the opinions are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Focusing on the Correct Object

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.  (1 Co 10:13)

I memorized the above verse several years ago as part of a discipleship curriculum.  Though pulled out of context for the sake of of instruction, the verse contains comfort that temptations are not insurmountable, and there is a wonderful promise of God’s faithfulness and care for us in the midst of temptation.  While individuals run to this verse for help in dealing with whatever might be working in them, the next verse indicates a broader application:

Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.  (1 Co 10:14)

How does the comfort in temptation lead to the warning of idolatry?  At face value it is an unnatural progression, but context makes it clear.

The verses under question are part of a section that begins at the first verse of chapter eight with “Now concerning food offered to idols….”  The Corinthians had opportunity to buy meat offered to idols for personal use, and Paul was offering his learned opinion on the matter as one “entrusted with a stewardship” (1 Co 9:17).  He instructs them concerning their freedom to purchase the meat with clear consciences, however the better course is to set the freedom aside so as not to cause stumbling to the weak, drawing from his own life among them as an example to be self-controlled in their Christian lives.  Paul then uses the wilderness wandering of Israel as an historical example from which to drive home his point.

There are several parallels between the elect of God who followed Moses out of the bondage of Egypt and the elect who followed Christ out of the bondage of sin: baptism of water, eating of spiritual food, drinking from the spiritual Rock.  Here the apostle goes on to explain that even though Israel had all these benefits, many fell along the way.

• Idolatry (1 Co 10:7) – Exodus 32:4-6
• Sexual immorality (1 Co 10:8) – Numbers 25:1-9
• Testing (1 Co 10:9) – Numbers 21:5-6
• Grumbling (1 Co 10:10) – Numbers 14:2; 29-37

In each case, the group succumbed to desires instead of believing the Word of the Lord and suffered the consequence of death.

The temptations faced by Israel were similar to those facing the Corinthian assembly.  Paul has already warned them in this epistle of immorality and grumbling, and wants to cover idolatry before venturing into the issue of testing wherein some were sick or had died for their disregard in the Lord’s Supper (1 Co 11:30).  By heeding correction and holding fast to the truth of God through the temptation, these believers could avoid the harsh discipline of the Lord awaiting them.

Temptations remain today for local assemblies of believers.  Some temptations are brought in by leaders who are not true shepherds but fierce wolves: their focus is on themselves. Other temptations are brought from outside because of their appeal for success in addressing whatever internal need has the immediate focus.  These same issues have occurred in the past and are nothing new, so take note that the apostle returned to his central theme:

Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.  (1 Co 15:1-5)

Keep the the focus, the central theme, Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Show Me the Blueprints!

I was interacting with one of Sandi’s cousins on Facebook earlier this week about our common state of joblessness and my status of being offered a less-than-desired position.  The exchange went like this:

• Jim: You're not the only one looking for a job, so hang in there. God has a plan for us!!!
• Me:  But I want to see the blueprints!
• Jim: I know how you feel trust me, I want to see it NOW is how I feel!

Later I was reading in Ecclesiastes and came across this:

When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done on earth, how neither day nor night do one’s eyes see sleep, then I saw all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun.  However much man may toil in seeking, he will not find it out.  Even though a wise man claims to know, he cannot find it out.  (Eccl 8:16-17)

That was actually comforting, because if I am able to figure out the plans of the Lord as they work out in my life, he ceases to be God.  He works all for my good (Rom 8:28) and disciplines me as a son (Heb 12:3-17).  The state of affairs is still frustrating, and I still complain it.  However, I am reminded that my attitude should be similar to David's in the psalms as he continues to rely on the Lord for working out the apparent injustice, though it may appear to come from the Almighty’s hand: he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness (Heb 12:10).

The Will of God, Your Sanctification

I am reading Paul's first epistle to the Thessalonians in the morning, and a sentence jumped out anew.  I think the punctuation in my ESV helped bring this to light.*

Paul wants to exhort the young church to continue on in Christ.  He has already remarked that their testimony is making amazing strides, so he supplies a warning to help them finish well.  First, he reminds them to remain steadfastly in what had been delivered through his instruction:

Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to live and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.  For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.  (1 Thess 4:1-2)

Paul was a model of consistency in his apostleship, varying only on how he would begin his proclamation of the gospel.  The message and practice for the foundling church never wavered.  Then he turns his attention to the sentence that stood out.

For this is the will of God, your sanctification:

that you abstain from sexual immorality;
that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor,

not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;

that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter,

because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you.  (1 Thess 4:3-6)

Paul wants to ensure that the believers understand that they have been sanctified (made holy, set apart) unto the Lord.  While a strict, narrow definition of holiness as used in the Bible does not contain a moral element, the application comes into play when applied to moral beings and how holiness is manifest among them.  That being so, Paul focuses on the topic of sexual immorality.

Thessalonica worship included the pantheon of Greek gods with its inherent lascivious worship and entertainment.  Paul gives a three-fold practical admonition in light of this: abstain from the illicit activity (testimony to unbelievers), exercise self-control (testimony before God), and do not cheat on a fellow believer (testimony to the church).  This warning helps to ward off what became a problem in Corinth (1 Cor 5:1-6).

For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness.  Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.  (1 Thess 4:7-8)

Paul reminds them that the Christian definition of holiness is the opposite of pagan holiness.  While the latter is marked by pleasing a deity through carnal passions, the former is marked by denying self and receiving the goodness found in fellowship with the deity.  This fellowship is marked by the very presence of God in the person of the Holy Spirit given freely to us, so to behave immorally is to wrong both the person with whom you engaged in the activity and God who dwells in you.  Do not attempt the excuse that you are consenting adults, surrendering to the heat of passion, or following cultural norms.  God is still grieved.

Jesus bore that sin on the cross.  Live like it means something,.


*  In case you are wondering, I assume that the Holy Spirit is the chief instigator.

And Such Were Some of You

Yesterday, our pastor completed a series on Judges entitled Scandalous Grace looking at how God's grace overrules in our lives for our good and his purposes, and also pointing out that four of those judges are mentioned in the faith chapter of the New Testament, Hebrews 11.

And what more shall I say?  For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.  (Heb 11:32-34)

These men were deeply flawed, yet the Lord used each of them and had them specifically called out by the writer of Hebrews.  This is both marvelous and confusing.

God has no limits to his grace.  If we have been believers for any length of time, there should be little difficulty appreciating the length and breadth of that grace extending to sinful men and women.  Before believing the gospel, we Christians were living in open opposition to the Lord (1 Cor 6:9-11a; Eph 2:1-3) and went through a change of position effected in us by virtue of Jesus' atoning sacrifice (1 Cor 6:11b; Eph 2:4-9).  We are God's elect (Eph 1:4; Col 3:12; 1 Thess 1:4; Titus 1:1).  Thus far there are no surprises.

A confusion comes when the elect do not act like the elect.  Whether old covenant or new, there is an expectation that God's work will manifest itself in good works (Deut 6:5; Lev 19:18; 1 Cor 6:12-20; Eph 2:10), yet selfish cowards, mercenaries, and scoundrels have their purported faith highlighted.  What gives?  How did they get in?

The bewilderment stems from a misconception or misunderstanding of life as one of God's elect.  I was in attendance during an informal gathering of Christians.  After some discussion, one mature, God-fearing gentleman said that it was too bad there were no good examples of fathers or husbands in the Bible.  That statement is simply not true—just the opposite.  Those people revealed to us by the Lord are the best examples for us.  We need them, not just because God can work through the weak and sinful, but because we are the weak and sinful.  Those negative examples illuminate the problem Christians bring to scripture.  We tend to think

Because of the indwelling Holy Spirit, I will overcome faults and understand divine mysteries.  Those Old Testament characters were weak because they do not have what I have.

What arrogance!—I had.  And my attitude was not unique.  I ran around with immature Christians that felt the same way.  I now regularly meet Christians of every walk who feel this way.  Again, what arrogance that we think we are somehow more spiritual.  We are not immune.  The church in Corinth firmly believed they were better and could do as they pleased.  Compare Paul's first letter to Corinth (and Clement of Rome's later letter) alongside the book of Judges.  The similarities would be remarkable.  One could easily rewrite Judges 21:25 and place it at the end of 1 Corinthians.

In those days there was no king in Corinth.  Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

I do not wish to say that the church is wholly destitute or corrupt by virtue of pride.  True, some individuals and groups have gone off the rails: Jesus is still the head of the church.  Rather we recognize that we are no better than those on whom we look down at, and daily come before Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in all humility remembering that "there but for the grace of God go I."

Waiting on the Lord

Recently, I was asked (challenged?) to study the theme of waiting on/for the Lord as found in the Bible.  The context of the request was an effort to convince me that Christians should be led by "leading of the Spirit," not just from the words of scripture, as a sign of a deepening relationship with the Lord and increased maturity by relying on his direct leading.  The protagonist assured me that this line of thinking was correct because of his own experiences.  To be sure, his abundance of zeal to see his brothers and sisters in Christ grow is admirable.  Who was I to refuse?

I fired up a Bible program (Online Bible)* and found approximately 30 occurrences in the ESV of waiting on or waiting for the Lord.  The majority of passages were in Psalms and Isaiah with a smattering in Lamentations and the Minor Prophets.  Also, there are six to be found in Acts and the Pauline epistles.

In reviewing the context of each passage, the results fell into four general areas:

• 1.  Impending danger from the unrighteous has caused the person to request rescue, resting on the assurance that God is faithful to deliver.  Justice will come, but in the Lord's own time (Psa 52:9).
• 2.  The manipulations of the unrighteous are compared to the quiet assurance of the righteous.  There is no immediate threat but an acknowledgment of God's care (Psa 25:3, 5, 21; 27:14; 31:24; 37:7, 9, 34; 62:1, 5; Pro 20:22; Isa 40:31; 51:5).
• 3.  The nation or the individual is acknowledging the consequences of sin and is looking to the Lord to do what is right according to his character (Psa 38:15; 106:13; 130:5; Isa 33:2; 64:4; Jer 3:25-26; Lam 3:25-26; Hos 12:6; Mic 7:7).
• 4.  God's people are to have a long-range approach to life, always looking for the final coming of Messiah with the resulting resurrection and righteous reign (Isa 26:8; 49:23; Zeph 3:8; Rom 8:23-25; 1 Cor 1:7; Gal 5:5; 1 Thess 1:10).

One might disagree with how these are classified, however, the clear conclusion is that waiting on the Lord is a patient expectation for him to fulfill the commands, statutes, precepts, and promises he has revealed through the prophets and apostles.  These words are certain being God-breathed (2 Tim 3:16) and therefore firmly established in his high and holy name (Heb 6:13). God's word alone illuminates the heart and mind of man (Psa 119:105; John 3:19-21).

The experience of man cannot serve as a measuring rod for life.  The heart—even that of the believer—is deceitful and sick (Jer 17:9) and prone to following every wind of doctrine (Eph 4:14).  It is to keep unity in the faith (i.e., doctrine and practice) that the Lord gave gifts of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastor-teachers (Eph 4:11-13).  God wisely designed each person to feel and exhibit emotions as ways of rejoicing in are coping with the circumstances of life, but they make terrible guides.  Something more solid is needed.

Psalm 19:7-14
The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
Who can discern his errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

* My preference for quick searches.  I also have Logos, but that takes longer to boot up.

May He Establish Your Hearts Blameless in Holiness

And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.  (1 Thess 3:12-13)

I swear on the very Logos, who for me is greatest God,

source from source, of the immortal Father,

image of the archetype, a nature its begetter's equal,

who descended even into human existence from heaven;

I swear I will not, diabolically minded, cast off the Great Mind

with heretic mind, nor the Word with heretic word.

If I should sunder the divinity of the luminous Trinity,

hearkening to the will of this inimical age;

if the great seat should ever goad my mind to madness,

or should I lay on my hand with heretical desire;

if I should prefer a mortal guardian to God,

securing my line to a weak rock;

if I should ever have a haughty spirit in good fortune,

or confronted with ills, conversely fall feeble;

if feigning righteousness I should dispense a justice somehow skewed;

if the supercilious should receive my esteem before the holy;

if seeing the base somehow at peace or crags on the route of the noble

I should veer from the right path;

if envy should dissolve my spirit; if I should mock

the stumbling of another, even one unholy, as if holding my own step secure;

if my mind should collapse with tumid anger, and if unbridled

my tongue race and my heart turn a wonton eye;

if I should hate someone fruitlessly, and if I should punish

my enemy stealthily or even openly;

if from my home I should dismiss a beggar empty-handed,

or a spirit still thirsting for a heavenly word;

may Christ attend another more gently, but as for my efforts,

even up to my white hairs, may the breeze take them.

By these laws I bind my existence.  And should I achieve

the fulfillment of my desire, Eternal Christ, thanks be to you.

Gregory Nazianzen, Poemata de seipso 2.1.2
Trans. Suzanne Abrams Rebillard

Reconciled and Steadfast in Christ

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him.  (Col 1:21-22)

Again he lays down also the manner of the reconciliation, that it was "in the body," not by being merely beaten, nor scourged, nor sold, but even by dying the most shameful death.  Again he makes mention of the Cross, and again lays down another benefit.  For He did not only "deliver," but, as he says above, "Who made us qualified" (ver. 12), to the same he alludes here also.  "Through" His "death," he says, “to present you holy and without blemish and above reproach before Him."  For truly, He has not only delivered from sins, but has also placed amongst the approved.  For, not that He might deliver us from evils only, did He suffer so great things, but that also we might obtain the first rewards; as if one should not only free a condemned criminal from his punishment, but also advance him to honor. And he hath ranked you with those who have not sinned, yea rather not with those who have done no sin only, but even with those who have wrought the greatest righteousness; and, what is truly a great thing, has given holiness which is before Him and being above reproach.  Now an advance upon blameless is above reproach, when we have done nothing either to be condemned for, or charged with.  But, since he ascribed the whole to Him, because through His death He achieved these things.  "What then," says one, "is it to us?  We need nothing."  Therefore he added,

if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.  (Col 1:23)

Here he strikes a blow at their listlessness.  And he said not simply "continue," for it is possible to continue wavering and vacillating; it is possible to stand, and continue, though turned this way and that.  "If indeed you continue," he says, "stable and steadfast, and not shifting."  Wonderful!  What a forcible metaphor he uses!  He says not only not tossed to and fro, but not even moved.  And observe, he lays down so far nothing burdensome, nor toilsome, but faith and hope—that is, if you continue believing, that the hope of the things to come is true.  For this indeed is possible.  But as regards virtuous living, it is not possible to avoid being shaken about, though it be but a little; so what he prescribes is not grievous.

John Chrysostom, Homily on Colossians, IV

Confessing the Holy Spirit's Sanctifying Work

I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy Christian* Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting.  Amen.

This article (as I have said) I cannot relate better than to Sanctification, that through the same the Holy Spirit, with His office, is declared and depicted, namely, that He makes holy. Therefore we must take our stand upon the word Holy Spirit, because it is so precise and comprehensive that we cannot find another.  For there are, besides, many kinds of spirits mentioned in the Holy Scriptures, as, the spirit of man, heavenly spirits, and evil spirits. But the Spirit of God alone is called Holy Spirit, that is, He who has sanctified and still sanctifies us.  For as the Father is called Creator, the Son Redeemer, so the Holy Spirit, from His work, must be called Sanctifier, or One that makes holy.  But how is such sanctifying done?  Answer: Just as the Son obtains dominion, whereby He wins us, through His birth, death, resurrection, etc., so also the Holy Spirit effects our sanctification by the following parts, namely, by the communion of saints or the Christian Church, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting; that is, He first leads us into His holy congregation, and places us in the bosom of the Church, whereby He preaches to us and brings us to Christ.

For neither you nor I could ever know anything of Christ, or believe on Him, and obtain Him for our Lord, unless it were offered to us and granted to our hearts by the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the Gospel.  The work is done and accomplished; for Christ has acquired and gained the treasure for us by His suffering, death, resurrection, etc.  But if the work remained concealed so that no one knew of it, then it would be in vain and lost.  That this treasure, therefore, might not lie buried, but be appropriated and enjoyed, God has caused the Word to go forth and be proclaimed, in which He gives the Holy Spirit to bring this treasure home and appropriate it to us.  Therefore sanctifying is nothing else than bringing us to Christ to receive this good, to which we could not attain of ourselves.

Martin Luther, Large Catechism: Apostle's Creed, 35-39

* The well-known form of this creed uses Catholic here in the sense of universality, not allegiance to the bishop of Rome.  Luther altered the wording to avoid confusion and reflect what the creed intended.

Freedom from the Truth Leads to Lawlessness

Man-made or divine, from Scripture or from history, nothing is sacred once mixed with the cocktail of freedom.  Lawlessness brings with it the spiritual gift of immediate and total authority.… Whatever else anyone has to say, they cannot assail the firm belief in Christian freedom and your soul's liberty.

• "Humility" is knowing that truth can never really be known.
• "Mercy" is looking the other way when your friend is active in what those old, legalistic people would dare to call sin.
• "Wisdom" is knowing that all those traditions and doctrines that were here before you were most likely made up by ignorant, totally bigoted people and don't really have a point anyway.

…

Receiving the past is what makes us who we are.  It forms us as something bigger than ourselves.  It helps us grow on a foundation  raised above isolation and ignorance, and it aids us in passing on what we learn to those who come after us.  The handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, and information from generation to generation is exactly what Dr. Luther once pointed out God wants all Christians to do when he wrote, "God solemnly commands us in Deuteronomy 6:6-8 that we should always meditate on His precepts, sitting, walking, standing, lying down, and rising.  We should have them before our eyes and in our hands as a constant mark and sign."  (Large Catechism, Longer Preface 14).

Jonathan Fisk, Broken, 210-211, 212

Making Time for What Is Important

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.  (Ephesians 5:15-16)

Do the words sting?  This is what I desire, that you should suffer the pain caused by the words, in order to be delivered from the disgrace caused by the actions.  Now I say this for there are some, much less responsive than this audience here, who do not become ashamed at my words, but even speak at length in defense of their behavior.  And if you ask, "Who is Amos, or Obadiah, or what is the number of the Prophets or of the Apostles?" they cannot even open their mouth.  But with regard to horses and charioteers,* they can compose a discourse more cleverly than scholarly teachers or statesmen.  Furthermore, after all this they say: "What harm, now?" and "What loss?"  Indeed, it is for this reason that I am groaning, namely because you do not know that the thing is harmful, and have no perception of the evil.  God has given you a limited period of life to serve Him, and if you squander it vainly and fruitlessly, and to no purpose, do you still seek to learn what the loss is?  If you completely squander your days entirely on Satan's pomps,† do you consider that you are not doing anything wrong?  Though you ought to spend your entire life in prayers and supplications, while actually you waste your life, fruitlessly and for your damnation, in shouting and tumult and base words and quarreling and unlawful pleasure and deeds of sorcery—even after all this do you ask "What loss is there?"  You are not aware that time must be expended more sparingly than anything else.  If you spend gold, you will be able to replenish your supply, but if you lose time you will repair the loss with great difficulty for a small amount has been dispensed to us in the present life.  Therefore, if we do not use it as we ought, what shall we say when we depart to the next life?

John Chrysostom, Homilies on John, 58.5‡

* Popular sports of the fifth century.
† Magnificent displays
‡ My thanks to Scott who sent me the quote in an e-mail this past weekend.

Teach Chastity, Not Abstinence

Matt Richard has posted a one-page article on the benefits of teaching chastity rather than abstinence.  Here is one paragraph.

The teaching of chastity doesn’t limit itself to a mere line in the sand that is intended to only bind sexual actions before marriage but rather it comprehensively addresses the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of sexually purity in all aspects of life.  Furthermore, where abstinence only addresses those that are single before marriage, the teaching of chastity speaks to everyone; youth, adults, single people and those that are married.  It speaks about fidelity, purity and the sacredness of sex in view of the way God graciously anticipated intimacy to be.

Download the PDF here.

Tullian Tchividjian on Sanctification

Tullian Tchividjian is firing on all cylinders as he teaches on how we should be understanding God's word, how Jesus is the true center, and what it means for the believer.  Take the time to watch it; then watch it again.  Then share it with those who watch over your assembly and have them do the same.

Tullian Tchividjian - 20/20 Collegiate Conference 2012 - Session 3 from Southeastern Seminary on Vimeo.

Sanctification: Living the Life

Sanctification, if it is to be spoken of as something other than justification is perhaps best defined as the art of getting used to the unconditional justification wrought by the grace of God for Jesus' sake.  It is what happens when we are grasped by the fact that God alone justifies.  It is being made holy, and as such, it is not our work.  It is the work of the Spirit who is called Holy.  The fact that it is not our work puts the old Adam/Eve (our old self) to death and calls forth a new being in Christ.  It is being saved from the sickness unto death and being called to new life.

In German there is a nice play on words which is hard to reproduce in English.  Salvation is "Das Heil" which gives the sense both of being healed and of being saved.  Sanctification is "Die Heiligung" which would perhaps best be translated as "being salvationed."  Sanctification is "being salvationed," the new life arising from the catastrophe suffered by the old upon hearing that God alone saves.  It is the pure flower that blossoms in the desert, watered by the unconditional grace of God.

Sanctification is thus simply the art of getting used to justification.  It is not something added to justification.  It is not the final defense against a justification too liberally granted.  It is the justified life.  It is what happens when the old being comes up against the end of its self-justifying and self-gratifying ways, however pious.  It is life lived in anticipation of the resurrection.

Gerhard Førde