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Showing posts with label Everyday Living. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Everyday Living. Show all posts
How A Wondrous Love Was Afforded
"I just plead with you; when you're reading the bible, and you read water toy-text like, 'he loved you and gave himself for you,' you wouldn't go too fast over it. Linger! Linger! Linger! And plead with him that your eyes would be opened." - John Piper I once read that, "God is admirable because of his many diverse excellencies." I believe that. I mean, who would have ever thought that I'd find God's holiness an admirable thing? Or even better, who would have ever conceived that I'd praise him for his wrath? Even his mercy seemed a small thing before my encounter with Christ. Prior to Christ, I remember singing the song "Amazing Grace." In retrospect, the words, though obviously strong and passion-filled, meant little to me. After my conversion however - and after studying grace via reformed theology - I cried. God's grace is no small thing. And it is this, the topic of grace, that this blog entry will seek to discuss. Before we continue however, a question must be asked. The question will seek to bring clarity to the many caricatures people have about God, and their own presumptions as to why God is obligated to be merciful. Here is the question: How could a sin-hating and holy God, be anything but wrathful to the people deserving of his wrath? Let me pause here and explain the reasoning behind the question. The question has in mind a few things:
1. God is too holy to look upon sin (Hab 1:13)
2. Sin is exceedingly sinful and beyond measure. (Rom 7:13)
3. God hates those who do sin (Psa 5:5)
4. It is an abomination for God to justify the wicked (Pro 17:15)
5. Apart from faith in Christ, all are evil (John 3:18-19)
If indeed the Bible does teach that God is exceedingly and holistically pure, and that sin is of the most contemptible and most heinous acts done in the universe, and that it is right for all those who commit such abominations to suffer wrath - the questioned is again asked, how could God be merciful to such a people? Now that an explanation for the reasoning has been given, let us now seek to answer the question at hand. Consider with me Revelation 13:8.2. Sin is exceedingly sinful and beyond measure. (Rom 7:13)
3. God hates those who do sin (Psa 5:5)
4. It is an abomination for God to justify the wicked (Pro 17:15)
5. Apart from faith in Christ, all are evil (John 3:18-19)
"And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."
In answering the question at hand - namely, how it is possible for God to be anything but wrathful to such a sinful people, we come to see an amazing truth found in Revelation 13 and verse 8. There, we read that Jesus is the "lamb slain before the foundation of the world." But what does that mean; especially considering that Christ went to the Calvary's cross "in God's appointed time (Gal 4:4)," which came about 2000 years ago? Simply put, it means that in the eternal mind of God, he foreknew his plan to remain just while justify the ungodly. Therefore, we read:"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved"(Ephesians 1:3-6).
Notice that God's love act in electing certain individuals to salvation is not without God's justice being appeased. Christians are "blessed with all spiritual blessings 'in Christ.'" They are "chosen 'in Christ.'" And again, they are "made excepted in 'the beloved,' or Christ." It is because God "foreknew Christ before the foundations of the world"(1 Peter 1:20), and foreknew that he was going to be reconciling men to himself via Christ' atonement, that God is able to give the least of his common graces. Grace, the unmerited and undeserved favor of God - even the smallest of it - is only given because of Jesus' death. So in closing, the next time you enjoy a day at the beach, or when you smile and experience a caring hug from a loved one, stand in awe of the cost that made such seemingly small glories available for you. The Son of God was crushed in order to award grace on behalf on sinners. Therefore readers, be wise; be warned. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him (Psalms 2:10-12).
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Let Me Yet Tell you of a More Excellent Way: Jesus
"Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you." - Psalm 51:12-13
I have tired and tasted many things that were so good, that I just couldn't help share. As a child, candy and video games brought me so much fun that I wanted to share it with my friends. As a teen, facts of Michael Jordan and Bruce Lee enthralled me, and I couldn't help share with friends what I benefited from considering these men. As a Christian, I have tasted and come to know the goodness of the Lord Jesus. I cannot help tell sinners of his goodness. They too must see and repent. They too must know the unsurpassed glory of the Lord. They too must see the "this-is-too-good-to-be-trueness" of the realities of Christ.
Come sinner, let me tell you of Jesus!
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How I Choose To Deal With My Depression
"The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone in silence when it is laid on him; let him put his mouth in the dust-- there may yet be hope; let him give his cheek to the one who strikes, and let him be filled with insults. For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men" (Lamentations 3:25-33).Top Stories
A Look At God's Gay Children
In a recent Examiner article entitled "Christianity and God's Gay Children," author Angela Boatright-Spencer, an Episcopal Priest, writes that "since the time of both Leviticus and Paul, we have learned a great deal about sexual orientation, chiefly that it is primarily not a choice -- it is one's nature."Read article here: Christianity and God's gay Children. I have to say that Mrs. Spencer does a great deal of assuming, rather than acknowledging what is to be clearly taught in scripture. Before I continue with my thoughts, I want to preface by saying the following: this blog is in no way written to bash homosexuals, nor is it necessarily written as a rebuttal or critique to Mrs. Spencer's article. My aim in this blog is simply to assert what the scriptures teach, and to speak truth in place of what may be well-intended assumptions. Again, the goal is not to have any sort of altercations with the gay community, but only to present truth in the hopes that those who are gay by nature - and this is Mrs. Spencer's own words - may see their need for a new nature, and thereby trust in Jesus as the means to that end. All sinners, whether gay or straight, are in need of Jesus. This article seeks to reiterate why that is so.
Consider again the author's words..."we have learned a great deal about sexual orientation, chiefly that it is primarily not of choice, but of one's nature." A great truth needs to be seen and understood here. However, before we see this truth, we must deal with false assumptions that lead to wrong conclusions. The writer assumes that since one is gay primarily by nature and not of choice, they are fine as they are, so long as they live a moral Christian life viz-a-viz the "love law;" love God, love people, do on to others as you'd have others do on to you, and so on. Who in their right mind would assume that since one is born predisposed to anger, he or she ought to have "the right" to murder? No one in their right mind will draw that conclusion from such an assumption, whether the assumption is right or not. If then it is wrong to murder despite one's predisposition to it, why assume another sin - albeit homosexuality, is right to practice if one is born gay? To assume one sin over the other shows a partiality and a preference for particular offenses. To use the words of Romans 1 and verse 18, it shows that..."men by their unrighteousness suppress the truth."
Earlier I mentioned that we need to acknowledge a great truth. What is this great truth? The great and important truth is seen in Jesus' own words..."unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). We must not assume that since God is our Creator, we are his children, and are therefore in a love relationship with him. It is written..."to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12). In all honestly, one is not a child of God by mere fact of being his creation, but by divine right or appointment. God grants the right of being called his children to those who receive Jesus and believe in him. Now that being said, what does it mean to receive and believe in Jesus? Simply put, receiving and believing in Jesus entails much more than mere acknowledgment of certain facts. Believing in Jesus involves trusting in his worth alone for your justification of sins. When a person understands their utter worthlessness before God, and see themselves as an offender and opposer of God in the way they break his laws and fail to rightly love him, they cling solely to Jesus alone. No man but he has lived a life of complete righteousness.
He alone has never sinned - not even in thought or deed. And more than living a sinless life, he was offered as an atoning sacrifice for sin, in order to appease God's holy wrath. Still yet, he was resurrected on the 3rd day to fulfill scripture, validate his claims as God, and to offer justification to all those who trust in him. His perfect life was given on behalf sinners in order that those who trust in him might become the righteousness of God. In other words, those who trust in Him could have his perfect life credited to their account, while their sins be imputed in his body whereby it is punished for God's justice sake. This, incidentally, is why all sinners - whether straight or gay, need to be "born again." Homosexuality, like all sin, occurs as a result of our nature. It is given via our first birth, hence the need for being "born again." As mentioned before, being born a certain way by nature does not give us the right to break our Creator's laws. Therefore God says in his mercy to all who would believe, "repent and believe the gospel that your sins may be forgiven."
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A Lesson in Motives
"Each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done." - 1Corinthians 3:13Believer, a day is coming when your works will be tried by fire. Will they be as fine gold and silver, or as wood and stubble? Christian, have you considered the motive for your striving? Well might you say, "I do what I do that the Lord may be glorified." Yet, have come to understand that the Lord does not need you? More yet, have you yet come to see that "without Christ you can do nothing" (John 15:5)? Your very life is in the hand of the Lord, and not one breathe of yours is independent of his sovereign will. You who cannot even breathe on your own, what can you do for God, or what can you give that he may repay you (Rom 11:35)? You will do well to mediate on Christ' words in John 15 and verse 5! Having said all of that, I want you to know that I do not write this to quench your fire, or discourage you from your responsibilities to the Lord. As it is written..."For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them" (Eph 2:10). Nevertheless, I write this in the hopes that you may consider your motives. In speaking of the false teaches of his day, Christ said: "they do their works to be seen by others." Yet even I - a believer no less - have been guilty of this. I have been guilty of doing work for the Lord, albeit even good works, yet have greatly neglected him. Countless times have I told men to pray, yet I myself have failed to pray. I have witnessed to many men, and told them to read their bibles. Yet even in this, I have played the hypocrite. Oh Christian, consider your motives!
By the grace of the Lord, I have learned some great lessons. First, I have learned that there has never been a great man of God. Rather, there have only been weak and pathetic sinners whom God has been pleased to save and use to display his glory. This has been a great lesson for me, as I no longer look to men as ones in whom I should emulate. Now I only look to Christ. Even more, I now realize that as God's son, I am not loved more or less for what I do or don't do, but am loved as Christ because of what Christ accomplished alone. No longer am I deceived into thinking that my doings for God will make me more acceptable in his eyes; now I know that I am accepted in the beloved - and that because of what he accomplished on my behalf. This has been revolutionary for me, as it has freed me from my striving for God's approval, and my striving with wrong motives. Second, I have learned that the great things in the Christian faith is not necessarily dying as a missionary, or even having the opportunity to do full time ministry. The great things of God are recorded in 1 Thessalonians 4, verses 3 and 4.
"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." This extends to all areas of life; from how you work to how you interact with others. I have learned that the great things of the Lord entail being faithful in the little things. Therefore, I resolve to be a good worker. I aim to always be on time, and to work hard as working onto the Lord. Furthermore, I aim to be a good son and brother and friend and church member. I practice self-denial, and beat my body into submission that I may be holy onto the Lord. This is Christianity. As it is written, "if any man would be my disciple, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (Matt 16:24). Learning this has put things into perspective for me, as I have not only realized that God does not need me to speak in churches or doing street evangelism (although he graciously allows me these luxuries), but that it would be sin for me to do these things without first aiming to, and yet mastering, the things aforementioned. Finally, I have learned perhaps the greatest lesson of all.
I have learned, and am still learning, the importance of humility and the folly of pride. I have considered well the implications of Paul's words to the Corinthians. For in those words, I learned that it is God who makes me to differ from another, and those differences, whatever ability or attribute they may be, is given by God. Therefore, it is incredible inane for me to boast as if I have in and of myself produced whatever I may be good at (1 Cor 4:7). Oh what great a lesson this was, and I thank my God for having taught it to me! Finally believer - and I write this to the many young Christians I know - let me leave you with a last word of encouragement. As you already know, "only what is done for Christ will last." Therefore, I encourage you to take chances, and to witness, and to dream great dreams! Yet in saying this, I not only want you to consider your motives, i.e., why it is you desire doing great things, but to truly understand that being faithful, and having contentment, is indeed great gain! So all that being said, whatever you do, whether you eat or drink or play sports or witness or teach, or whatever else, do it all to the glory of God! In this the promise is given - and I am speaking of seeking God's glory as described in Matthew 6:33 - "all that you ask will be given you" (Matt 7:7).
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D.L. Hughley interviews Mark Driscoll
I like Mark, but I'm not sure I like the way he did this interview. Of course, I do not know his heart and so I give him the benefit of the doubt. What are your thoughts?
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When We Were Young...
Shout out to my dude, Marc Bazemore again! Thanks for holding me down with an updated blog look. You always come through for me, I appreciate you!Remember when we went out that one time and you were like..."Yo, I didn't get any numbers tonight, let me get that one girl you are about to talk to," and you ended up marrying her? That's still funny to me! We had some wild and crazy times back then, huh?
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Fellowship to the Glory of God
I'm pretty much a mad man, so sometimes I pray like this: "Lord make me otherworldly! Do not let me live as I am; this "normal" person, when Christians should be so much more. Make me so effected by the reality of your trues that I cannot help live in light of eternity." I call myself a mad man, by the way, because I wonder if I understand the effects and ramifications of what I ask? I wonder if I am able to bare such a cross. Nevertheless, this ignorant mad man continues to pray as he is lead. Having said all that however, tonight I saw something of the power of God to change people. This is the same power I aim to see in my own life! Tonight, I hung out with a family from my church who, by God's grace, are coming out of their comfort zones and really looking for ways to practically honor the Lord. I will not go into great detail as to how they are practically living out coming out of their comfort zones, but I will mention that I see the power of God working in them. LORD, I marvel at the works of your hand, and I bless you for the Chesley's! Be pleased to bless them and to grow them in your graces, that they may benefit from the joy that comes from knowing you!
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Life: You can live with it...You can't live without it
"And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock." - Matthew 7:25I feel bad writing this blog because I have not yet begun to see a real storm. If I were to tell of some of the "storms" that occur in my life, I feel blogger.com may erase my account and you the reader, may write me hate mail. For that reason, I choose to remain somewhat ambiguous about my life's storms - that is to say - "my life's annoyances."Recently, I heard it said from a boy of understanding... "In this life, rains will fall, floods will come, and winds will blow. The one who has been founded on the Rock however, will not fall." In my life, rains do fall. Sometimes they fall so fast and hard that I cannot see, and I'm overwhelmed from worry. Also in my life, floods come (usually in the form of bills). At the raising of these "floods," I am left cripple from panic, and the sinister Mr. Hyde to my usually Dr. Jekyll persona, is revealed. Lastly - and as not to be left out - the winds do blow in my life as well. Now grated, what may seem to you as a fan blowing paper on the carpet, usually appear to me as something out of a Sci-Fi movie. You know the ones that deal with out of space, and where black holes are sucking any and everything into itself? My "windy" moments are something like that to me. I know the image is backwards, but try to work with me here; use your imagination.
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Sorrow and the Sovereignty of God
"Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?" - Lamentations 3:37-38I have a friend who has taught me to "speak to myself" rather than listen to myself. By speaking to myself, she means that I should speak the words of God to myself instead of listening to my feelings. How does this help? Well, in a situation that may not be comfortable or particularly good, I can remember God's words, and so have comfort in troubled times. Today, this same friend has called me with sad news: her car had been stolen. Worst of all, she has to travel to college in another state, and she no longer has a car (for the moment, at least). Has God now fallen a sleep on the job? Has he broken his promise of "never leaving his people" (Hebrews 13:5)? Certainly the Holy One of Israel cannot lie, therefore take comfort in these words, Kiesh:
"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).
P.S. It's okay to cry. Cry until you can't cry anymore. After that, remember the Lord and be amazed!
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Blog's New Look
"A real man don't gotta say 'no homo.'" - Jadakiss To my second oldest friend in the world, Marc Bazemore:
Check the quote from one of your own poets, bro. I could say "thank you and I love you" without having to reiterate the popular slang, right? LOL! Thanks for holding me down with the new blog look bro. I appreciate you!
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Brotherly Love
"But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes" (1 John 2:11)I'm sorry for hanging up on you, Jay!
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Should I get the HTC Fuze?
I know that I'm only a pilgrim passing through a world that's not my home, and that all things pass away, but I really want to get this cell phone. As a Christian, here's what plays out as reasons why I shouldn't get it.
1. If I can't afford it.
2. If it is a means to stumbling in to sin -e.g., causing pride, etc.
3. If its causing me to use my money in an unwise way.
Here are some reasons why I would get it:
1. If I needed it.
2. If I had the money to buy it.
3. If I like.
Should I get it? Man... I really want this phone!
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Identify Theft
Romans 8:28 is one of those all-purpose scriptures that gives you peace in any situation. Today I found out that money was withdrawn out of my savings account, and now I have to go through the whole ordeal of having my bank card changed. After being upset - and I'm still a bit annoyed - I was able to remember some comforting words..."all things work together for the good of those who love God" (Rom 8:28).
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