True Prayer

"Calvin describes prayer as "the chief exercise of faith by which we daily receive God's benefits." Then he offers this compelling picture: "We dig up by prayer the treasures that were pointed out by the Lord's gospel, and which our faith has gazed upon." Imagine walking over a field where vast treasure lies buried. To make these riches your own, you need two things: a map and a spade. Scripture is your map and prayer is your spade....
"Prayer is more than a duty to be fulfilled; it is a gift to be enjoyed. There is a world of difference between 'having your quiet time' as a spiritual discipline and drawing near to God to possess what He promises you in Christ.

Since prayer is "the chief exercise of faith by which we daily receive God's benefits," it follows that the primary gifts you will receive go far beyond 'answers' to items or needs on your prayer list. Prayer is the means by which you lay hold of all that God has promised in your own life and in the lives of others for whom you pray."  - Colin S. Smith from Jonah (Navigating a God Centered Life)

The Pleasure of God in Bruising The Son

The Pleasures Of God was recently re-released with a whole new cover and a few revisions and changes, none that diminish this classic work. John Piper was influenced by Henry Scougal's book "The Life of God in the Soul of Man" being deeply moved by Scougal's work, Piper discovered new life and inspiration to put The Pleasures of God together. I'm thankful that he did, this work shouts clearly the love of God and all that He has done in the sending of His Son. Do your soul a favor and pick up a copy of The Pleasures of God, it's worth the time you'll invest in reading it. Here's just a sample of what you'll find inside.
"The Son was bruised because God-dishonoring sin could not be ignored. And why couldn't it be ignored? Why couldn't God just let bygones be bygones? Because God loves the honor of His name. He will not act as though sin, which belittles His glory, didn't matter. It cannot simply be swept under the rug of the universe, as though nothing awesome were at stake. The judge of all the earth will do right (Genesis 18:25). He will judge the world in righteousness (Psalm 9:8).
So God the Father makes an agreement with His Son that He will demonstrate to all the world the infinite worth of the Father's glory. How? By taking the punishment and suffering that our sin deserved." - Pg. 145

Incredible! all of my sin for His righteousness! Christ was condemned so that I might go free! What an amazing and astounding truth that is! May we live in light of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ each and every day that we draw breath!

The Explicit Gospel

I had the immense pleasure of attending Together For The Gospel this year. It's always a great time of encouragement and gathering for the incredible worship with Bob Kaufflin. The sound of 8000 voices together praising our God is just overwhelming to say the least.
Also, the big thing at T4G is the books! lots and lots of books! I toted 33 titles home with me for free! They all are great resources all focusing on one thing, the gospel! One of the books that I was hopeful would be in the stack was The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler, and I was so excited to see that it was! It's a great and important book. One that I think every Christian would benefit greatly from having in their library.
Here are just a few of the nuggets from this gem.

"When we look at the gospel from the air, through the grand narrative of the Scriptures, we see that the gospel is not just about God's forgiving us of sins and giving us eternal life, but also about what we are being forgiven for and what eternal life is like. We cannot, as some say, deny that God's plan to restore all things is the gospel (Matt goes on in chapter 10 to explain this a little further), because the Scriptures show us that Christ's atoning work is the good news for fallen creation. Through the good news of Jesus's life, death, and resurrection, we are reconciled to God in view of our inheritance of the "all things" God is also reconciling (Romans 8:32). In other words, viewing the gospel from the air shows us it's overarching narrative and reveals that it isn't just of first importance (see 1 Corinthians 15:3) but of all importance. It is imperative that our gospel take the shape of the Scripture's epic vision of God's redemptive plan. It is imperative that we embrace a gospel that is scaled to the glory of God." - pg. 172

What a refreshing and encouraging thought, the gospel is not about us! It is indeed all about God and His glory! We get the benefit of being included in it, but it ultimately is not about us. The chapter, Moralism and the Cross goes through and again reveals what the gospel is and what the gospel is not. There's a lot of great practical wisdom on fighting sin and striving for holiness in this chapter, one of the many things that stood out in this chapter was the following thoughts on the Lord's forgiveness and no longer remembering our sins.

"Now watch the three weapons of grace collide. In the middle of all that guilt and shame, I began to be reminded by the Scriptures that the old Matt Chandler is dead. the Matt Chandler who did those things (earlier Matt tells of things that he is not proud of in his past, not descriptive at all. Just in thinking about his past sins.) the Matt Chandler who sinned in those ways, was nailed  to that cross with Jesus Christ, and all of his sins-past, present and future were paid in full on the cross of Jesus Christ. I have been sanctified "once and for all" (Hebrews 10:10).

Matt goes on to talk about the specifics of this good news, "And I no longer need to feel shame for those things, because those things have been completely atoned for.
When we fight sin, we don't do so with our own unction. We fight sin with the weapons that grace gives us: the blood of Jesus Christ, the Word of God, and the promise of the new covenant, that Christ has paid for our shortcomings in obedience to the law by his perfect life imputed to us."

What encouraging words! Did you catch that our fight with the sin that dogs us minute by minute, day by day is not done "with our own unction"? That is indeed good news! We are not alone in our battle with sin. Christ's strength is made perfect in our weakness.
I would highly recommend adding  The Explicit Gospel to your library, it's a great and practical reminder of just what the gospel truly is and that is an explicit declaration of the good news of Christ life and love toward us in spite of our deliberate and willful turning away from him. As the back cover states, "You know you know it...But then again, maybe you don't." We never move on from the gospel, only further on and further in.

Let The Light of Christ Shine!

I love Spurgeon, and one of my all time favorite devotionals is the wonderful Morning and Evening. Crossway has a great set with a forward from Alistair Begg, another favorite. Today's devotional actually coincided with what I was praying about today, that I would have a better awareness of Christ's presence and that His light would shine. So without further adieu, here is Mr. Spurgeon.....

“And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.”

— Genesis 1:4

Light might well be good since it sprang from that fiat of goodness, “Let there be light.” We who enjoy it should be more grateful for it than we are, and see more of God in it and by it. Light physical is said by Solomon to be sweet, but gospel light is infinitely more precious, for it reveals eternal things, and ministers to our immortal natures. When the Holy Spirit gives us spiritual light, and opens our eyes to behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, we behold sin in its true colours, and ourselves in our real position; we see the Most Holy God as he reveals himself, the plan of mercy as he propounds it, and the world to come as the Word describes it. Spiritual light has many beams and prismatic colours, but whether they be knowledge, joy, holiness, or life, all are divinely good. If the light received be thus good, what must the essential light be, and how glorious must be the place where he reveals himself. O Lord, since light is so good, give us more of it, and more of thyself, the true light.

No sooner is there a good thing in the world, than a division is necessary. Light and darkness have no communion; God has divided them, let us not confound them. Sons of light must not have fellowship with deeds, doctrines, or deceits of darkness. The children of the day must be sober, honest, and bold in their Lord’s work, leaving the works of darkness to those who shall dwell in it for ever. Our Churches should by discipline divide the light from the darkness, and we should by our distinct separation from the world do the same. In judgment, in action, in hearing, in teaching, in association, we must discern between the precious and the vile, and maintain the great distinction which the Lord made upon the world’s first day. O Lord Jesus, be thou our light throughout the whole of this day, for thy light is the light of men.

Jesus + Nothing = Everything!!

This is from Tullian Tchvidjian's blog...it was so good, had to re-post here! May this truth soak down deep into our souls and may we realize just how amazing the gospel truly is!

Last week my I was thrilled to see that my friend Justin Taylor highlighted on his blog Bo Giertz’s fictional work The Hammer of God. A relatively unknown book in Evangelical circles, Justin noted that Leland Ryken–longtime literature professor at Wheaton College–referred to Giertz’ book as “one of the best literary finds I have ever made.” I couldn’t agree more!

After sitting on my shelf uncracked for the better part of a year, I finally decided this past summer to read The Hammer of God(first published in 1941). I first heard about it from my friends Elyse Fitzpatrick and Mike Horton. I couldn’t put it down. It was simply breathtaking. Giertz was a master storyteller and theologian. Both of these gifts shine brightly on every page of this book. It tells three stories (novella’s) of three different pastors who learn in three different ways the nature and necessity of relying on God’s grace. It is law/gospel theology in captivating narrative form. You have to read it.

To whet your appetite, I want to share one part that I found especially illuminating for preachers. I need to first give some context, though.

Set in Sweden in the early 1800-s, Henrik is a young, remarkably gifted and fiery preacher who very much looks up to Justus Johan Linder, a preacher ten years his senior. Henrik is having a crisis of faith. Bothered by the behavioral worldliness all around him, he has become widely known for his passionate pleas and exhortations for people to stop sinning. He’s meticulous in his examination of sinful behavior both in and out of the pulpit. And it is bearing fruit. The church is packed every Sunday and licentious behavior is declining in the village. But, much to his surprise, “new sins” are popping up everywhere. He notices that while drinking and debauchery may be at an all time low, a self-righteous and legalistic hardness of heart has emerged in their place. While on the one hand Henrik is encouraged to see external worldliness dissipating, he’s remarkably discouraged to see a cold, loveless culture developing. Not only that, but now he’s beginning to realize the depth of his own sin. He feels like a hypocrite for preaching so strongly against the fruit of sin (behavior) while ignoring the deeper problem of sin’s root (unbelief). In despair over his own inability to be as good as he tells other people to be, he breaks down and confesses to Linder that he’s not even sure he’s saved. Linder’s response is pure gold:

Henrik, we must start again from the beginning. We have thundered like the storm [speaking of the way he and Henrik have preached God's Law], we have bombarded with the heaviest mortars of God’s Law in an attempt to break down the walls of sin. And that was surely right. I still load my gun with the best powder when I aim at unrepentance. But we had almost forgotten to let the sunshine of the gospel shine through the clouds. Our method has been to destroy all carnal security by our volley’s, but we have left it to the soul’s to build something new with their own resolutions and their own honest attempts at amending their lives. In that way, Henrik, it is never finished. We have not become finished ourselves. Now I have instead begun to preach about that which is finished, about that which is built on Calvary and which is a safe fortress to come to when the thunder rolls over our sinful heads. And now I always apportion the Word of God in three directions, not only to the self-satisfied [the bad people] as I did formerly, but also to the awakened [the "good" people] and to the anxious, the heavy laden and to the poor in spirit. And I find strength each day for my own poor heart at the fount of redemption.

Henrik is captivated by the “new” way in which Linder is preaching and he asks about the results. “Do you note any difference?”

Linder answers:

In the first place, I myself see light where formerly I saw only darkness. There is light in my heart and light over the congregation. Before, I was in despair over my people, at their impenitence. I see now that this was because I kept thinking that everything depended on what we should do, for when I saw so little of true repentance and victory over sin, helplessness crept into my heart. I counted and summed up all that they did [to clean up their act], and not the smallest percentage of debt was paid. But now I see that which is done, and I see that the whole debt is paid. Now therefore I go about my duties as might a prison warden who carries in his pocket a letter of pardon for all his criminals. Do you wonder why I am so happy? Now I see everything in the sun’s light. If God has done so much already, surely there is hope for what remains.

The way Linder describes the transformation that took place in his preaching is almost identical to the transformation that took place in mine (and Chuck’s-click here). I have a long way to go (bad habits die slowly), but a number of years ago a Copernican revolution of sorts took place in my own heart regarding the need to preach the law then the gospelwithout going back to the law as the way to keep God’s favor.

Preachers these days are expected to major in “Christian moral renovation.” They are expected to provide a practical “to-do” list, rather than announce, “It is finished.” They are expected to do something other than–more than–lift up before their congregations eyes Christ’s finished work, preaching a full absolution solely on the basis of the complete righteousness of Another. To be sure, preachers need to “load their guns with the best powder when aiming at unrepentance”, but far too often a preacher’s final word to Christians is law and not Gospel. To finish a sermon asking “What would Jesus do?” instead of announcing “This is what Jesus has done!” is to betray the final word God speaks over Christians.

“Life is a web of trials and temptations”, says Robert Capon, “but only one of them can ever be fatal–the temptation to think it is by further, better, and more aggressive living that we can have life.” Given this sobering statement, it would seem that many preachers unwittingly lead their congregations “into temptation” by implying (not explicitly stating, of course) that you can live your way to life. The fact is, however, that you can only “die [your] way there, lose [your] way there…For Jesus came to raise the dead. He did not come to reward the rewardable, improve the improvable, or correct the correctable; he came simply to be the resurrection and the life of those who will take their stand on a death he can use instead of on a life he cannot.” After our preaching of the law rightly pushes people under water, we all too often lead them to think that they must “save” themselves by giving them swimming lessons: “Paddle harder, kick faster.”

I want the last word I speak over Christians when I preach to be the last word God speaks over Christians–”Paid in full.” The Gospel always has the last word over a believer. Always. When it’s all said and done there are two types of sermons: Jesus + Nothing = Everything or Jesus + Something = Everything.

May God raise up a generation of bold preachers who storm the gates of works-righteousness in all its forms (both religious and secular) with nothing more and nothing less than:

In my place condemned he stood, and sealed my pardon with his blood. Hallelujah, what a Savior.

A Magnificent Exchange

This is taken from the Covenant Life website, great excerpt from Piper on Christ's righteousness that He gives us for our sin.

From “God Justified the Ungodly,” a sermon by John Piper:

2 Corinthians 5:21 is one of the most breathtaking passages about this great gift of imputed righteousness. “For our sake he [God] made him [Christ] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

Christ knew no sin. He was a perfect man. He never sinned. He lived perfectly for the glory of God all his life and in his death. He was righteous. We, on the other hand have all sinned. We have belittled the glory of God. We are unrighteous.

But God, who chose us in Christ Jesus before the foundation of the world, ordained that there would be a magnificent exchange: He would make Christ to be sin—not a sinner, but sin—our sin, our guilt, our punishment, our alienation from God, our unrighteousness. And he would take the righteousness of God, that Christ had so awesomely vindicated, and make us bear it and wear it and own it the way Christ did our sin.

The point here is not that Christ becomes morally a sinner and we become morally righteous. The point is that Christ bears an alien sin and suffers for it, and we bear an alien righteousness and live by it.

God Will Use You Even in Weakness!

"If God has called you, then he has given you what you need to do the job. You may not have all that others have, or all you wish you had, but you have what God wants you to have. Accept it, be faithful to use it, and in due time God will give you more.
‎Give yourself time to discover and develop your gifts. Accept nothing as a handicap. Turn it over to God and let him make a useful tool out of it. After all, that’s what he did with Paul’s thorn in the flesh."- Warren Wiersbe