Hello Again Friends, I just read an excellent Post by Bryan Loritts: Tomorrow at Fellowship we continue in our series on the book of James
by looking at 2:1-13. Our investigation of the text necessitates that I
take a few moments to discuss the doctrine of election. The reason for
this is because James, in his argument that Christ-followers are never
to show partiality, argues that God did not play favorites based on
worldly categories of status when he saved us. In fact, James would go
onto say, “Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen
those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the
kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?” (emphasis mine).
The word chosen in verse 5 points us to the beautiful
doctrine of election. The doctrine of election simply means God’s
sovereign initiating choice to save certain individuals, adopting them
into His family, independent of prior merit. The doctrine of election
postures God as the Divine Initiator, and not me. In essence, the
doctrine of election says that God chose me, and I did not choose him, i
merely responded to his incomprehensible act of initiating grace.
Election has unfortunately been the focal point of much controversy
throughout church history, and I am not here to pick a fight with
anyone. In fact, I write this post primarily to the members and
attenders of Fellowship Memphis. I will say it in my message tomorrow
that belief in the doctrine of election is not necessary in order to be
saved, and therefore it is not necessary to join our church. There have
been many wonderful saints of God throughout the years who have thought
and taught very differently from me on this subject, and I am sure they
will be seated much closer to King Jesus than I when we get to heaven.
Time in my message does not permit me to give all of the reasons why I
believe in the doctrine of election, so let me lay out eight reasons
why I have come to embrace this doctrine:
1. The Bible Teaches It. I am amazed at how the doctrine of election keeps coming up in every section of the Scriptures. God chose Israel- Psalm 33:12; Deuteronomy 6:7; Isaiah 41:8-10. Jesus chose the disciples- John 6:70. God chose us the church- Romans 9.
2. Jesus Taught Election. This is similar to my first point, but it’s so significant that it warrants it’s own point. Calvin did not coin the term election.
Election is a thoroughly biblical word that Jesus used a lot, centuries
before Calvin was even born. Matthew 24:15 and following, Mark 13:27
and Luke 18:7 are but a few examples of Jesus teaching on election.
3. Total Depravity. I believe in the doctrine of
total depravity which says that every aspect of my life has been marked
by sin because of Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the garden. The doctrine
of total depravity does not say that I am as sinful as I could be
(degree), but there is nothing in my life that has not been touched by
iniquity (extent). If this be the case, then I could not possibly
choose God on my own initiative without God initiating with me. Dead
people (Ephesians 2 description of us) do not make choices.
4. Intensifies My Worship. For God to choose a
wandering sheep, wayward sinner, totally depraved man like me who was
mired in self-righteousness and in rebellion against God defies awe and
comprehension. Quite frankly, if I believe that I chose God, like one
would choose what they would have for dinner, where’s the amazement in
that? The doctrine of election keeps me on my face before God, bringing
a depth and intensity to my worship over the one who would choose me in
spite of me.
5. God, Not Me. The doctrine of election sets the
trajectory of my salvation on the sovereignty of God and not on the free
will of man. This then promotes a faith that is God made, and not man
made. God, His Son Jesus Christ and the Sweet Holy Spirit are at the
center of my affections, not me.
6. Intensifies Evangelism. Because God pursues me,
he also calls me to be a vessel that he uses to pursue others. Let me
remind us that the same guy who wrote Romans 9 (that great passage on
election/predestination) is the same one who logged thousands of miles
on land and sea preaching Christ, sharing his faith, and seeing many
come to the Lord. Paul, the greatest writer on the doctrine of
election, was at the same time one of the greatest evangelist’s.
Evangelism and election are not foes, they are joined at the hip.
7. Freedom in Evangelism. Also, the doctrine of
election frees me in evangelism. Isn’t it liberating to know that
because it is God, not our choices who saves? Because of this I need
not depend on clever arguments (though I want to be prepared) or trendy
presentations in witnessing, I just need to, well, witness, testify what
God has done in my life and share the good news with others, leaving
the results to God. The pressure really is off!
8. I’m in Good Company. There are a host of godly
men and women throughout church history who have believed passionately
in the doctrine of election. This is both comforting and affirming.
The only two names I will call is Jesus and Paul.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Friday, March 14, 2014
Twelve Reasons Why Membership Matters
1.It’s
biblical. Jesus
established the local church and all the apostles did their ministry through
it. The Christian life in the New Testament is church life. Christians today
should expect and desire the same.
2. The
church is its members. To be “a church” in the New Testament is
to be one of its members (read through Acts). And you want to be part of the
church because that’s who Jesus came to rescue and reconcile to himself.
3. It’s
a pre-requisite for the Lord’s Supper. The Lord’s Supper is a meal for the
gathered church, that is, for members (see 1 Cor. 11:20, 33). And you want to
take the Lord’s Supper. It’s the team “jersey” which makes the church team
visible to the nations.
4. It’s
how to officially represent Jesus. Membership is the church’s
affirmation that you are a citizen of Christ’s kingdom and therefore a
card-carrying Jesus Representative before the nations. And you want to be an
official Jesus Representative. Closely related to
this…
5. It’s
how to declare one’s highest allegiance. Your membership on the team, which
becomes visible when you wear the “jersey,” is a public testimony that your
highest allegiance belongs to Jesus. Trials and persecution may come, but your
only words are, “I am with Jesus.”
“The very boundaries which are
drawn around the membership of a church yields a society of people which
invites the nations to something better.”
6. It’s
how to embody and experience biblical images. It’s
within the accountability structures of the local church that Christians live
out or embody what it means to be the “body of Christ,” the “temple of the
Spirit,” the “family of God,” and so on for all the biblical metaphors (see 1
Cor. 12). And you want to experience the interconnectivity of his body, the
spiritual fullness of his temple, and the safety and intimacy and shared
identity of his family.
7. It’s
how to serve other Christians. Membership helps you to know which
Christians on Planet Earth you are specifically responsible to love,
serve, warn, and encourage. It enables you to fulfill your biblical
responsibilities to Christ’s body (for example, see
Eph. 4:11-16; 25-32).
8. It’s
how to follow Christian leaders. Membership helps you to know which
Christian leaders on Planet Earth you are called to obey and follow. Again, it
allows you to fulfill your biblical responsibility to them (see Heb. 13:7; 17).
9. It
helps Christian leaders lead. Membership lets Christian leaders
know which Christians on Planet Earth they will “give an account” for (Acts
20:28; 1 Peter 5:2).
10. It
enables church discipline. It gives you the biblically
prescribed place to participate in the work of church discipline responsibly, wisely, and
lovingly (1 Cor. 5).
11. It
gives structure to the Christian life. It places an individual Christian’s
claim to “obey” and “follow” Jesus into a real-life setting where authority is
actually exercised over us (see John 14:15; 1 John 2:19; 4:20-21).
12. It
builds a witness and invites the nations. Membership puts the alternative
rule of Christ on display for the watching universe (see Matt. 5:13;
John 13:34-35; Eph. 3:10; 1 Peter 2:9-12). The very boundaries which are drawn around the membership of a church
yields a society of people which invites the nations to something better.
(This is an excerpted from Jonathan Leeman’s
forthcoming book What Is Church Membership? From
Crossway, 2012).
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
What Kindness Looks like...
In this text, Paul
urges the Galatians to walk by the Spirit, bear each other's burdens, and do
good to everyone.
I. What
does the Spirit of Kindness look like?
Being a Spiritually-led Believer
Being a Spiritually-led Believer
Kindness
is a by-product of being a Spiritually-led
believer—having a right (or intimate) relationship with God and
one's neighbors.
a. Walk by the Spirit
Gal 5:17 For the desires of the flesh are against the
Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are
opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
Tim Keller defines Kindnes:
Chrestotes – kindness
Definition – Practical kindness with
vulnerability out of deep inner security.
Opposite – Envy. Unable to rejoice other’s joy
Counterfeit – Manipulative good deeds. “Right
hand knowing what left hand is doing.”
Self-congratulation and self-righteousness..
The purpose of the Spirit
The ultimate purpose of the Spirit’s operation in
the Christian is to change us into the likeness and character of Jesus Christ.
(cf. Rom.8:29 – “He predestined us to be conformed to the likeness of his Son.”
and Eph.4:13 – “Till we reach maturity, the fullness of the stature of
Christ.”) So the ultimate goal is not some kind of general comfort, strength or
power, but concrete, practical change in our character — how we think, feel,
and act habitually and naturally.
b. Walk in
Healthy Relationships with others= Love God=we can help to love others
Gal 5:15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out
that you are not consumed by one another.
c.
Walk in submission to the Power of The Holy Spirit
Gal 5:17 For the desires of the flesh are against the
Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are
opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
Gal 5:20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits
of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,
Gal 5:21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.
I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not
inherit the kingdom of God.
Walk in submission to the Power of The
Holy Spirit is bank on the mercy of God and entrust ourselves to his Spirit
for help:
John Piper
writes …the mentality behind the fruit of
the Spirit is the mentality of faith depending
upon grace. People who bear the fruit of the Spirit know they are worthy only
of condemnation. They know that the only pay they can earn is
the wrath of God. Therefore, they have turned away from self-reliance and look
only to mercy in Christ who "loved us and gave himself for us"
(2:20). They do not expect anyone to be their debtor because of their worth.
Any satisfaction will be a free gift of grace. They bank on the mercy of God
and entrust themselves to his Spirit for help. And out of that mentality of
faith depending on grace grows not "works" but "fruit":
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness . . .
Gal 5:22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Gal 5:24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have
crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Gal 5:25 If we live by the Spirit(community with the
Spirit) let us also keep in step with the Spirit.
Gal 5:26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one
another, envying one another. (Live in community with our neighbors)
Let’s
recap--What does it mean to Walk in submission to the Power of The Holy
Spirit ?
First, it means that the Holy Spirit lives in you (communion)and you desire the things of God vs 17. Second, it means to be open and sensitive to the influence of the Holy Spirit and not the Law. vs. 18. Third, it means to pattern your life after the influence of the Holy Spirit and not the flesh. In verse 18-20, let's look at the patterns of the flesh again...
First, it means that the Holy Spirit lives in you (communion)and you desire the things of God vs 17. Second, it means to be open and sensitive to the influence of the Holy Spirit and not the Law. vs. 18. Third, it means to pattern your life after the influence of the Holy Spirit and not the flesh. In verse 18-20, let's look at the patterns of the flesh again...
II. What
are some Bible illustrations of kindness?
Kindness
In The Word
Chris
Evans who wrote the book Fruit At Work,
God encourages us towards kindness throughout his word, when giving the law God
call us to out for others in the community
Lev 19:9 “When you reap the harvest of your land, you
shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the
gleanings after your harvest.
Lev
19:10 And you shall not strip your vineyard bare,
neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave
them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the LORD your God.
If you
want to see what a little kindness can do, read the book of Ruth. By letting
the poor pick the remaining rain from his field, Boaz ended up with Ruth as his
wife (which created the family line that bore King David and, ultimately,
Jesus). Another very applicable verse is in Leviticus that deals with
kindness, seen in chapter 19:33-34.
Lev
19:34 You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with
you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were
strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
III. What
does the gospel say about kindness and what does it look like?
The life
of Jesus Christ--that's the greatest, most complete picture of kindness we'll
ever know. God saw a whole lot of hurt, brokenness and despair. He saw people
with no hope of breaking free from pain and suffering. And so He sent his Son
to the rescue. There wasn't any logical reason for him to do that. No one
deserved His kindness—we really brought the suffering on ourselves (see Romans
3:23).
Romans 2:4 “God’s
kindness leads us to repentance”. (NIV)
God’s
kindness and love changes our hearts so that we are not bound to the spiritual
death associated with our ultimate loving of other things. His kindness changes
us from desiring the things of the world, and gradually directs our affections
to find a better, greater contentment and joy in Him. In essence, His
kindness trumps sin in terms of what our hearts value and love! That’s
incredible!
In other
words, the more attractive we find God, the less our hearts desire ungodliness.
Finding Him as our pleasure changes our hearts (repentance), turning our
affections from sin and onto Him. And the more we pursue after Him in love, the
greater victory we have over sin. Our hearts change. Repentance
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
A Theological Test
Do you know your doctrine?
If you are interested, you can take a little theological test.
Following are 20 basic Christian Doctrine questions.
by Matt Slick
| 1. How many Gods are there in the universe? | |||||||||||||||||
| A. | One | B. | Two | C. | Three | D. | Many | ||||||||||
| 2. The Trinity is . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Three separate Gods | B. | One God who took 3 consecutive | C. | One God in three persons | D. | A completely false doctrine | |||||||||||||
| 3. Jesus is . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | God in flesh | B. | An angel who became a man | C. | A good man | D. | A great prophet | ||||||||||||||
| 4. How many natures does Jesus have? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | One | B. | Two | C. | Three | D. | More | |||||||||||||||
| 5. The Holy Spirit is . . . | |||||||||||||||||||
| A. | An invisible force like radar | B. | A divine spark in all of us | C. | Third person in the Trinity | D. | A god | ||||||||||||
| 6. Sin is . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | There is no sin | B. | A misinterpretation of reality | C. | A state of mind | D. | Breaking God's Law | |||||||||||||||
| 7. Human nature is basically. . . | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Good | B. | Sinful | C. | Neutral | D. | Divine | ||||||||||||||
| 8. In what manner did Jesus rise from the dead? | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | As a spirit | B. | In the same body he died in | C. | He did not rise from the dead | D. | The disciples made up the resurrection story | ||||||||||||||
| 9. Hell is . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Right here on earth | B. | A state of mind | C. | A place of eternal fire and torment | D. | There is no hell | |||||||||||||
| 10. Heaven is . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Right here on earth | B. | A state of mind | C. | A place of eternal joy and peace with God | D. | There is no heaven | ||||||||||||||
| 11. Salvation is . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | A condition of mental awareness | B. | Within our own essence | C. | Universal resurrection | D. | Deliverance from the eternal consequence of sin: damnation | |||||||||||||||
| 12. Salvation is attained by . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Grace through faith after all you can do | B. | Grace through faith | C. | A state of your mind | D. | Obeying all of God's laws | |||||||||||||||
| 13. The Devil is . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | An equal and opposing force to God | B. | Not real | C. | A figment of people's minds | D. | An angel who rebelled against God | ||||||||||||||
| 14. The Bible is . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | The inspired word of God | B. | A nice history book | C. | Full of contradictions and errors | D. | A story book of metaphors | ||||||||||||||||
| 15. The Rapture is . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | A serious head rush | B. | A New Age meditation philosophy | C. | The catching up of God's people into the sky at Jesus' return. | D. | An Old Testament Jewish feast | ||||||||||||||||
| 16. Adam and Eve . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Were the first man and woman created by God | B. | Were evolutionary representatives of homo sapiens | C. | Are mythological figures | D. | Never existed | |||||||||||||||
| 17. How many ways are there to God? | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Just one. Through Jesus | B. | Many ways | C. | As many ways as there are people | D. | It depends on the religion | ||||||||||||||
| 18. When you die . . . | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | You go to purgatory | B. | You go to heaven or hell | C. | You don't exist anymore | D. | You are reincarnated | |||||||||||||||||
| 19. Evolution . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | Is how we got here | B. | Is not a viable option for Christians | C. | God used evolution to bring man into existence | D. | Proves there is no God | ||||||||||||||
| 20. Why did God create us? . . . | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A. | As an experiment | B. | He was bored | C. | To save us, love us, and have us love Him | D. | For pawns in his cosmic game | ||||||||||||||
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