Jesus Thank You

Sunday night at church we sang the following lyrics. It is a joy to have them dwelling in my thoughts today.

Your Blood has washed away my sin
Jesus thank You
The Wrath of God completely satisfied
Jesus thank You
Once Your enemy
Now seated at Your table
Jesus thank You

Lover of my soul
I want to live for You
Lover of my soul
I want to live for You

As I am singing these lyrics with all my heart today, Andrew Mark is making a life-threatening decision. His cancer is killing him. It may be that The Lord is in the process of taking his slave home. It may be that The Lord will bring eternal glory to Himself by healing Andrew completely, giving him a whole new throat. It may be some combination in between. Regardless of the outcome, praise be to God for His Eternal Plan, providing the righteousness of Christ to Andrew and all of the Elect! I am overwhelmed with gratitude to my Master for His gracious gift of righteousness, yet weeping in my heart for the Marks.

Please pray for Andrew, Grace, A.J., and Gracie as they face their toughest decision to date. Only those who have endure such a trial can remotely understand what they are facing. Yet we can communicate the Love of Christ to them during this time through prayer, email, etc. Please be faithful to pray for the Marks. As they have been a blessing to Grace Bible Church, they continue to be a blessing to their body of believers in Minnesota.

The Anger of Man

Proverbs 15:1 reads:

A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.

I have always tried to apply this verse when dealing with authority or when dealing with "customers." If I am getting chewed out by a boss, I must respond with a soft answer to turn away his wrath. If I am responding to a customer who is irate, my soft answer will calm the offended party. I have even been the offended party and can describe an occasion when one of the Elders in our church diffused my anger with one sentence. It was an amazing example of godliness on his part, one which I hope to emulate daily. Without a doubt, this application is correct, but it is not complete. Please let me explain.

One major goal I have in rearing my children is to win their heart. One of my greatest concerns as a father is that my children will live their teenage years filled with the anger and rage of my youth. I hated Christ and all who were His. This was the reality of my youth. However, I have observed the reality of fathers with unbelieving sons who loved and were close to their dad. I cannot save my children, but I can live a life that communicates my love for them.

But how do I do that? What are some practical steps I can apply to achieve this reality? I believe Proverbs 15:1 answers one facet of this question. When my son disobeys, I must apply this verse. If I respond in anger, my harsh word stirs up anger in him. When my daughter has been asking questions for five minutes straight and will not permit my concentration, I must apply this verse. If I respond with a soft answer, her wrath is turned away. When my wife questions me while reading, diverting my concentration, how will I respond? A soft answer turns away her wrath, but my harsh word stirs up the anger in her soul.

As the head of my home, as a discipler, and as a leader, my words can either turn away the wrath of others or stir up the dregs of their heart. James advises me to use the soft answer. May the Lord, my Master, enable me to speak for His glory.

ETP or Else!

In Ecclesiastes 11:9-10, Solomon provides provocative council for his primary audience -- young people. He commands us to rejoice, to follow the impulses of our heart. He requires the young person to "follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes." He wisely instructs us to enjoy life, fulfilling our desires. Initially we think, "Yes! This is the command I have been looking for!" What a typical response for young people who are looking for someone to tell them what they want to hear.

Solomon, however, follows this command with a warning, "know that God will bring you to judgment for all these things." We are to remember that judgment is coming! Pastor Higgins made a keen observation. He pointed out that the warning of judgment immediately followed the command to rejoice in life. Why would God, writing through Solomon, instruct us to enjoy life then warn us of pending judgment if we do not?

The answer is invigorating! The solution is astonishing! The panacea is humbling! His conclusion: we are commanded to enjoy life because God's Glory depends upon it!

I still remember when the weight of this biblical truth moored to my understanding. It was devastating! If God's glory depends upon my enjoyment of Him, then I had not, at that point in my Christian life, glorified Him a SINGLE DAY! I had been a Christian for about seven years. My understanding was fed from John Piper's book "When I Don't Desire God." God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. My enjoyment of Christ brings God the most glory because I enjoy what I love. God is the only one deserving all of my enjoyment and therefore all of my love. Then, He overflows my cup so that His love abounds to others.

I am thankful to God for Solomon and his wise council. May God be enjoyed and loved by all His creation!

The Cross of Christ

C.J. Mahaney has posted an excerpt from a book by J.I. Packer and Mark Dever. The cited blurb is quite thought provoking, energizing the soul in hope of some day reading it! You can enjoy the quote here.

Holiness

Recently, I was listening to a message by R. C. Sproul on the Holiness of God. During the sermon, he mentioned that most Christians describe God's Holiness as purity. We value things that are completely pure. Pure gold, for example, is more valuable than an alloy. As humans, we tend to think of God as the pure gold and ourselves as the alloy. While it is true that God is pure, purity is not the essential meaning of holiness.

Sproul says that the idea conveyed by the word 'holy' is being different or set apart. It is the idea that God is unlike us. When Scripture teaches that God is holy, It means that God is different from us. He is unlike us. Yes, God is pure, perfect, whole, complete, and innocent. But the most basic contrast is His incongruity. He is different from us. He is God.

This morning, Pastor Zimmer briefly read through Hebrews 12. Although this is a familiar passage, today verse 10 struck me anew. The final phrase in verse 10 reads "so that we may share in His holiness." The subject of this passage is God's discipline. In eight English words the author spells out the purpose for God's disciplining us. He disciplines us "so that we may share in His holiness!" Applying the definition of holiness conveyed by R.C. Sproul, this means that God is disciplining us so that we may share in His 'differentness.'

I am pretty excited about this because it means that He is in the process of making me like Himself, that is unlike myself! He is making me different than what I am. He is making me into what He is. There is a change at work. Just as people know there is something different about God, people should know that there is something different about me!

I think this "difference" is evidenced by Spiritual fruit. People will know what kind of tree I am by the fruit produced. The fruit produced by a Christian is different, unlike that of the world. It stands out. So any Spiritual fruit produced in my life by the Holy Spirit is evidence of God making me different than what I am, due to the propitiatory sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Because of the work of Christ and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, every Christian is partaking in holiness -- becoming unlike who you were and more like who God is! The Creator uncreated who I was and is creating me like who He is!

May we live consistent with His Truth!

Request for Prayer

My friend Mike is a Youth Pastor in the Houston area. One of his students fell from a tree and broke 2 vertebrae and both arms. His name is Andrew. Here is the church website. Please pray for Andrew. Feel free to stop by and offer some encouragement. It sounds like Andrew could be in for an uphill battle, and he is not even out of the woods yet.