Saturday, April 12, 2008
Iain Murray on Unity
It is one of the brightest hopes in the United States at the present time that Gospel preachers, from different denominational backgrounds, are being spontaneously drawn together in a common concern to advance the cause of Christ. This cause does not need new labels or structures; most of all it needs the anointing of the Spirit, more prayer, love, and humility. Announcements of success, or satisfaction with numbers, are to be feared rather than sought. God's work needs no publicity. A true advance and recovery will be marked by the sense of weakness and need which gives all glory to God. Let us not stop short of seeking a real spiritual awakening!
A Senior Saint on Unity By Iain H. Murray
Between 1875 and 1892 George Müller travelled the world preaching with seven objectives in view. The fourth of these was, "To promote among all true believers, brotherly love; to lead them to make less of those non-essentials in which disciples differ, and to make more of those great essential truth and foundation truths in which all true believers are united."
No real Christian could discount such an aim. Yet since these words were spoken no great advances have been made toward attaining this goal. How is that to be explained? I offer some reasons:
Unity has too often been pursued by those who are not advocates of the "great foundation truths." "Unity"—interpreted as organisational oneness—has been treated as a good remedy to stop the decline of Christian influence, with "fellowship" given priority over "doctrine," contrary to Acts 2:41.
The quest for unity around personalities and preachers (the threat in the Corinthian church) is never lasting, although it may seem to have short-lived success.
Müller’s call "to make less of non-essentials" is not exactly straightforward, and the very phrase is liable to misinterpretation.
True believers do disagree over some issues in Scripture—church government and the ordinance of baptism, for a start. Yet history has shown that all attempts to downplay these distinctives, and thus to end denominations, are going to fail. Believers are going to hold convictions on all that Scripture reveals. The policy of John Wesley and others to deem anything "not fundamental" as "mere opinion" is not good enough. Given the imperfect understanding of all Christians, and the need for corporate agreement on some secondary issues, denominations of one kind or another will remain.
Better for us to accept this fact and, as J.C. Ryle says, keep the walls as low as possible and shake hands over them often.[1] This is not to deny that the distinction between secondary and fundamental truths, while not always easy to determine, is an important one.
Christians agree that unity is the gift of the Holy Spirit (Eph 4:3). It follows that when believers experience more of his grace and power, the bond between them will grow. Conversely, what
William Hamilton once said is true, "The more carnal a Christian is, the more sectarian he will be." An outpouring of the Spirit always brings greater unity. What Daniel Baker reported as happening in the revival at Beaufort, South Carolina, was true in many parts of the States at the time of the Second Great Awakening:
"The effect no one can conceive who was not present. Politics were laid aside; business stood still ... The union of sects produced on the occasion was not the least striking feature of the event. Distinctions were laid aside. Christians of all denominations met and worshipped together; indiscriminately in either church, and the cordiality of their mutual attachment was a living commentary on the great precept of their Teacher, ‘Love one another.’"[2]
It was unity of this kind, then widely enjoyed, that gave rise to those great trans-denominational efforts of the nineteenth century which shaped the history of the world. I am thinking of missionary societies, Bible and Tract societies, in which there was wider co-operation than had been known before. Remembering this should restrain our controversies over issues which do not directly concern the gospel itself. George Whitefield would never have accomplished what he did had he not acted on the principle, "I despair of a greater union among the churches, till a greater measure of the Spirit be poured from on high. Hence, therefore, I am resolved simply to preach the gospel of Christ, and to leave others to quarrel by and with themselves."[3]
What are the needs in the contemporary scene with regard to unity?
In an age of doctrinal indifference, we need to be awake to the difficulty of obeying the injunction to "follow peace with all men" while contending for the faith. In that regard, we should do our utmost to avoid derogatory terms in speaking of fellow Christians. All distinctive identity labels should be used very sparingly. Christians are to love and serve one another in all circumstances.
We need to be alert to the threat that innocently adjusting services to the musical taste of modern culture poses to the reverent worship of God. God’s powerful works have always been accompanied more by awe, penitence, and silence than by noise and "celebration." Practice, as well as faith, needs to conform to the simplicity of the New Testament. The fear of God and the comfort of the Holy Spirit belong together (Acts 9:31). True worshippers should know something of what is said of Jacob: ‘He was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate of heaven’ (Gen 28:17)."
Instead of attempting to form new alliances and organizations, we need to discern what God is doing. His work will last for eternity. It is one of the brightest hopes in the United States at the present time that gospel preachers, from different denominational backgrounds, are being spontaneously drawn together in a common concern to advance the cause of Christ.
This cause does not need new labels or structures; most of all it needs the anointing of the Spirit, more prayer, love, and humility. Announcements of success, or satisfaction with numbers, are to be feared rather than sought. God’s work needs no publicity. A true advance and recovery will be marked by the sense of weakness and need which gives all glory to God. Let us not stop short of seeking a real spiritual awakening!
No real Christian could discount such an aim. Yet since these words were spoken no great advances have been made toward attaining this goal. How is that to be explained? I offer some reasons:
Unity has too often been pursued by those who are not advocates of the "great foundation truths." "Unity"—interpreted as organisational oneness—has been treated as a good remedy to stop the decline of Christian influence, with "fellowship" given priority over "doctrine," contrary to Acts 2:41.
The quest for unity around personalities and preachers (the threat in the Corinthian church) is never lasting, although it may seem to have short-lived success.
Müller’s call "to make less of non-essentials" is not exactly straightforward, and the very phrase is liable to misinterpretation.
True believers do disagree over some issues in Scripture—church government and the ordinance of baptism, for a start. Yet history has shown that all attempts to downplay these distinctives, and thus to end denominations, are going to fail. Believers are going to hold convictions on all that Scripture reveals. The policy of John Wesley and others to deem anything "not fundamental" as "mere opinion" is not good enough. Given the imperfect understanding of all Christians, and the need for corporate agreement on some secondary issues, denominations of one kind or another will remain.
Better for us to accept this fact and, as J.C. Ryle says, keep the walls as low as possible and shake hands over them often.[1] This is not to deny that the distinction between secondary and fundamental truths, while not always easy to determine, is an important one.
Christians agree that unity is the gift of the Holy Spirit (Eph 4:3). It follows that when believers experience more of his grace and power, the bond between them will grow. Conversely, what
William Hamilton once said is true, "The more carnal a Christian is, the more sectarian he will be." An outpouring of the Spirit always brings greater unity. What Daniel Baker reported as happening in the revival at Beaufort, South Carolina, was true in many parts of the States at the time of the Second Great Awakening:
"The effect no one can conceive who was not present. Politics were laid aside; business stood still ... The union of sects produced on the occasion was not the least striking feature of the event. Distinctions were laid aside. Christians of all denominations met and worshipped together; indiscriminately in either church, and the cordiality of their mutual attachment was a living commentary on the great precept of their Teacher, ‘Love one another.’"[2]
It was unity of this kind, then widely enjoyed, that gave rise to those great trans-denominational efforts of the nineteenth century which shaped the history of the world. I am thinking of missionary societies, Bible and Tract societies, in which there was wider co-operation than had been known before. Remembering this should restrain our controversies over issues which do not directly concern the gospel itself. George Whitefield would never have accomplished what he did had he not acted on the principle, "I despair of a greater union among the churches, till a greater measure of the Spirit be poured from on high. Hence, therefore, I am resolved simply to preach the gospel of Christ, and to leave others to quarrel by and with themselves."[3]
What are the needs in the contemporary scene with regard to unity?
In an age of doctrinal indifference, we need to be awake to the difficulty of obeying the injunction to "follow peace with all men" while contending for the faith. In that regard, we should do our utmost to avoid derogatory terms in speaking of fellow Christians. All distinctive identity labels should be used very sparingly. Christians are to love and serve one another in all circumstances.
We need to be alert to the threat that innocently adjusting services to the musical taste of modern culture poses to the reverent worship of God. God’s powerful works have always been accompanied more by awe, penitence, and silence than by noise and "celebration." Practice, as well as faith, needs to conform to the simplicity of the New Testament. The fear of God and the comfort of the Holy Spirit belong together (Acts 9:31). True worshippers should know something of what is said of Jacob: ‘He was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate of heaven’ (Gen 28:17)."
Instead of attempting to form new alliances and organizations, we need to discern what God is doing. His work will last for eternity. It is one of the brightest hopes in the United States at the present time that gospel preachers, from different denominational backgrounds, are being spontaneously drawn together in a common concern to advance the cause of Christ.
This cause does not need new labels or structures; most of all it needs the anointing of the Spirit, more prayer, love, and humility. Announcements of success, or satisfaction with numbers, are to be feared rather than sought. God’s work needs no publicity. A true advance and recovery will be marked by the sense of weakness and need which gives all glory to God. Let us not stop short of seeking a real spiritual awakening!
Puritan Quote of the Week From the Pastor's Desk
"The Christian's life should put his minister's sermon in print."
WILLIAM GURNALL
Biblical Authority and the Preacher By Dr Al Mohler
The inaugural issue of Christianity Today, dated October 15, 1956, featured an article by Billy Graham entitled, "Biblical Authority in Evangelism." The thrust of the article was clear -- without an unhesitant "thus saith the Lord" authority in preaching and evangelism, the message lacks all authority. The only authority that matters, Dr. Graham insisted, was the authority of the Bible as the Word of God.
Indeed, this confidence in biblical authority was, at least in part, the reason for the establishment of Christianity Today as the flagship journal of American evangelicalism under the editorship of Carl F. H. Henry.
Now, over a half-century after the publication of that article, Angie Ward of Leadership magazine began with Dr. Graham's article and then asked five preachers -- What, if anything, has changed?
I was pleased to answer her questions and to participate in the project. She also interviewed David Anderson, pastor of Bridgeway Community Church in Columbia, Maryland; John M. Buchanan, pastor of Fourth Presbyterian Church in downtown Chicago and editor and publisher of The Christian Century; Tullian Tchividjian, a grandson of Billy Graham and the senior pastor at New City Church in Margate, Florida; and Rick Warren, founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.
Her article, "Biblical Authority & Today's Preacher," is based on those interviews. The preachers interviewed represent something of a cross-section of American Protestantism, with John Buchanan representing liberal Protestantism and its most historic publication, The Christian Century (the very magazine to which Christianity Today was established to serve as an alternative)..
Suggesting the Old Testament prophets as models for preaching, Dr. Graham had referred to preachers as "mouthpieces for God." The magazine then asked if we should consider today's preacher to be a mouthpiece for God.
I answered:
I am certainly supposed to be a mouthpiece for Scripture, a human instrument through which the Scripture is heard and received by God's people. But the human preacher's authority only reaches the human ear. It is only God himself who can take his word from the human ear to the human heart.
I stand by this answer, and by the large comments I made in the interview about the fact that the preacher is actually a mouthpiece for God only when the Word of God is rightly preached. As the Reformers made clear, preaching is the means by which God speaks to His people as a gathered community. Through the preached Word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, God actually speaks to His people.
Dr. John Buchanan answered:
We need to be very careful about that. So many people have abused this, preachers need to be very careful before claiming they are God's mouthpiece. I think the preacher needs to be suggestive and not declarative. There are times in history when people (like Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Luther King) were called with some authority to say, "This is wrong." But we need to be cautious. One of our central doctrines is that we all fall short of the glory of God. Sin touches all of us. Our call is to study, pray, discern the word, then convey it to people.
The key issue here is his proposal that preaching should be "suggestive and not declarative." While the preacher must be modest concerning himself, his own abilities, and his inherent inadequacies, the preacher must not be merely suggestive in the pulpit. The "suggestive and not declarative" approach well defines most liberal Protestant preaching, but I think it also explains the decline of those churches and denominations. The earlier loss of confidence in the authority of the Bible inevitably leads to a declining authority of the pulpit.
Indeed, this confidence in biblical authority was, at least in part, the reason for the establishment of Christianity Today as the flagship journal of American evangelicalism under the editorship of Carl F. H. Henry.
Now, over a half-century after the publication of that article, Angie Ward of Leadership magazine began with Dr. Graham's article and then asked five preachers -- What, if anything, has changed?
I was pleased to answer her questions and to participate in the project. She also interviewed David Anderson, pastor of Bridgeway Community Church in Columbia, Maryland; John M. Buchanan, pastor of Fourth Presbyterian Church in downtown Chicago and editor and publisher of The Christian Century; Tullian Tchividjian, a grandson of Billy Graham and the senior pastor at New City Church in Margate, Florida; and Rick Warren, founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.
Her article, "Biblical Authority & Today's Preacher," is based on those interviews. The preachers interviewed represent something of a cross-section of American Protestantism, with John Buchanan representing liberal Protestantism and its most historic publication, The Christian Century (the very magazine to which Christianity Today was established to serve as an alternative)..
Suggesting the Old Testament prophets as models for preaching, Dr. Graham had referred to preachers as "mouthpieces for God." The magazine then asked if we should consider today's preacher to be a mouthpiece for God.
I answered:
I am certainly supposed to be a mouthpiece for Scripture, a human instrument through which the Scripture is heard and received by God's people. But the human preacher's authority only reaches the human ear. It is only God himself who can take his word from the human ear to the human heart.
I stand by this answer, and by the large comments I made in the interview about the fact that the preacher is actually a mouthpiece for God only when the Word of God is rightly preached. As the Reformers made clear, preaching is the means by which God speaks to His people as a gathered community. Through the preached Word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, God actually speaks to His people.
Dr. John Buchanan answered:
We need to be very careful about that. So many people have abused this, preachers need to be very careful before claiming they are God's mouthpiece. I think the preacher needs to be suggestive and not declarative. There are times in history when people (like Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Luther King) were called with some authority to say, "This is wrong." But we need to be cautious. One of our central doctrines is that we all fall short of the glory of God. Sin touches all of us. Our call is to study, pray, discern the word, then convey it to people.
The key issue here is his proposal that preaching should be "suggestive and not declarative." While the preacher must be modest concerning himself, his own abilities, and his inherent inadequacies, the preacher must not be merely suggestive in the pulpit. The "suggestive and not declarative" approach well defines most liberal Protestant preaching, but I think it also explains the decline of those churches and denominations. The earlier loss of confidence in the authority of the Bible inevitably leads to a declining authority of the pulpit.
As Martin Luther remarked, "Yes, I hear the sermon; but who is speaking? The minister? No indeed! You do not hear the minister. True, the voice is his; but my God is speaking the Word which he preaches or speaks. Therefore I should honor the Word of God that I may become a good pupil of the Word."
Friday, April 11, 2008
Why I am committed to expository preaching of God's Word? By Rev.Charles J. Paul
I am committed to the preaching of God's Word because the very lives of every person we meet depend upon what we say to them. We see today more hype then pure exposit preaching coming from the pulpits. God's people must be fed God's Word. To this point, below is a quote from Jeremiah boroughs book Gospel Fear written in the 1600's.
Why should you be committed to exposit preaching also? As God's children you must desire the pure meat of His Word. The mood lighting of the church will not help you to grow. Only the Word of God preached and taught to you on a regular basis will forever ignite your soul and renew your mind one verse at a time.
from Jeremiah Burrough's "Gospel Fear" (pages 80,81)
"It may be a use of a great deal of encouragement to all the ministers of God to preach to people. It may be that sometimes even they are discouraged, and think to themselves, "Lord, how hard are the hearts of men, and how difficult it is to work upon the hearts of men! I have labored with all my might. I have studied and sought to invent all the arguments I possibly could, the most moving arguments that I could possibly imagine. When I have been in my study, I have thought to myself, 'Surely if the Lord is pleased to bless these truths that I am to deliver, they will work upon the hearts of people.'" And when it comes to the preaching of that sermon, perhaps the minister finds that they are not at all stirred one whit. "Why, Lord, what shall I do then? I cannot think ever to speak things that are more powerful than those that I have spoken, and those have done no good. Therefore I am afraid I shall never do good."
"Oh, no, do not say so and do not think so. The Lord is pleased sometimes to show us our vanity this way, and to rebuke us. Many times the Lord will not go along with the ministry of the Word when it comes with the greatest power and the strongest arguments and, yet, at another time, the Lord will be pleased to bless a word that you only speak in passing. It may do more than all the others. There is scarcely any one faithful minister in the world who observes the work of God upon his ministry who does not find this to be true. Yet this is no argument why a minister should not labor with all his might and come with the strongest arguments. He is bound to do his duty. Aye, be not discouraged. He may afterwards prevail, and God, I say, may bless many things that come from him. And therefore, I would exhort those who are to speak to such an audience with the words of Ecclesiastes 11:6: "In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be a like good."
"Therefore, let ministers go on and sow their seed and preach still. That which they have spoken (perhaps they have been delivering arguments that they thought would have moved the heart of a devil) has been opening the miserable condition of men and opening the riches of Jesus Christ. Well, there must be no discouragement; go on and sow your seed in the morning, and in the evening withhold not your hand. Go on and preach again and again, and let the Word of God be presented before the hearts of the people. Though it has not wrought at one time, yet it may work at another time. Yea, though you should grow weaker and weaker, yet for all that the Lord may do good to you, even when you are at your weakest. In 2 Timothy 2:25 the apostle says to Timothy, "In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves, if God, peradventure will give them repentance." Peradventure this day a truth may be handed from God to a soul - peradventure this text, peradventure that text, and so the soul may be brought in."
Here at Truth Matters we are committed to the preaching and teaching of God's Word. From daily online resources found at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001zOwFefCJIXk41g44SQvaQ7hBgkO2k7xMdDgXEXLImx9c-2iuRRV1j8blyYKVfX_s7YTbxwCZEIAaoli_d_QREST5cl6ATG8nNlohbHEHMiRkA5HofpObJPyuyewy7iRVto reverent Sunday Worship at Truth Chapel every Sunday at 10:30 am in Morgantown PA.
from Jeremiah Burrough's "Gospel Fear" (pages 80,81)
"It may be a use of a great deal of encouragement to all the ministers of God to preach to people. It may be that sometimes even they are discouraged, and think to themselves, "Lord, how hard are the hearts of men, and how difficult it is to work upon the hearts of men! I have labored with all my might. I have studied and sought to invent all the arguments I possibly could, the most moving arguments that I could possibly imagine. When I have been in my study, I have thought to myself, 'Surely if the Lord is pleased to bless these truths that I am to deliver, they will work upon the hearts of people.'" And when it comes to the preaching of that sermon, perhaps the minister finds that they are not at all stirred one whit. "Why, Lord, what shall I do then? I cannot think ever to speak things that are more powerful than those that I have spoken, and those have done no good. Therefore I am afraid I shall never do good."
"Oh, no, do not say so and do not think so. The Lord is pleased sometimes to show us our vanity this way, and to rebuke us. Many times the Lord will not go along with the ministry of the Word when it comes with the greatest power and the strongest arguments and, yet, at another time, the Lord will be pleased to bless a word that you only speak in passing. It may do more than all the others. There is scarcely any one faithful minister in the world who observes the work of God upon his ministry who does not find this to be true. Yet this is no argument why a minister should not labor with all his might and come with the strongest arguments. He is bound to do his duty. Aye, be not discouraged. He may afterwards prevail, and God, I say, may bless many things that come from him. And therefore, I would exhort those who are to speak to such an audience with the words of Ecclesiastes 11:6: "In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand; for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be a like good."
"Therefore, let ministers go on and sow their seed and preach still. That which they have spoken (perhaps they have been delivering arguments that they thought would have moved the heart of a devil) has been opening the miserable condition of men and opening the riches of Jesus Christ. Well, there must be no discouragement; go on and sow your seed in the morning, and in the evening withhold not your hand. Go on and preach again and again, and let the Word of God be presented before the hearts of the people. Though it has not wrought at one time, yet it may work at another time. Yea, though you should grow weaker and weaker, yet for all that the Lord may do good to you, even when you are at your weakest. In 2 Timothy 2:25 the apostle says to Timothy, "In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves, if God, peradventure will give them repentance." Peradventure this day a truth may be handed from God to a soul - peradventure this text, peradventure that text, and so the soul may be brought in."
Here at Truth Matters we are committed to the preaching and teaching of God's Word. From daily online resources found at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001zOwFefCJIXk41g44SQvaQ7hBgkO2k7xMdDgXEXLImx9c-2iuRRV1j8blyYKVfX_s7YTbxwCZEIAaoli_d_QREST5cl6ATG8nNlohbHEHMiRkA5HofpObJPyuyewy7iRVto reverent Sunday Worship at Truth Chapel every Sunday at 10:30 am in Morgantown PA.
We will also be holding our first annual Reformation Now! Conference. This years theme will be Reverence for God: What's It All About? on September 26-27, 2008 at Truth Chapel. More info will follow.
I pray that your desire to see a modern-day reformation in your own walk with Christ has been fueled by this ministry. If so I would love to meet you at this year's conference.
THE TRUE VINE
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 5:1-7; John 15:1-11The vineyard of the LORD Almighty is the house of Israel … Isaiah 5:7
Isaiah’s message is wrapped in beautiful language, with figures of speech borrowed from the everyday life of his listeners. In Isaiah’s parable, the vineyard represents God’s people. God gave his much loved people the best possible attention, carefully “planting” them in a fertile place where they could bear much “fruit” as an example to the surrounding nations. But the vineyard became corrupt and fruitless, eventually to be condemned and abandoned.
In the New Testament, Jesus tells us that he is the key to turning a worthless vineyard into one that yields a wonderful harvest. Jesus himself is “the true vine,” and his branches are the redeemed people of God. All who remain connected to Jesus “bear much fruit.”
Jesus emphatically asserts that he alone is the one who makes the branches fruitful. The only reason they bear fruit is because he grafts them to himself. Those that do not remain in him are like fruitless branches that wither and must be cut away and burned.
Do you experience this spiritual connection with the Lord Jesus?
Jesus empowers all who are grafted into him. He loves us, even as God the Father loves Jesus, his one and only Son. Jesus wants us all to bear fruit through self-giving love.
Prayer:Father, thank you for arranging for us to be redeemed by your Son and grafted into him. Help us so that by your Word and Spirit we remain in Christ and bear much fruit. Amen.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Servants Not Spectators By John MacArthur
I have often spoken out against all the pragmatic and “seeker-sensitive” approaches to contemporary worship because they tend to diminish the proper place of preaching and replace it with quasi-spiritual forms of sheer entertainment (music, comedy, drama, and whatnot). Any trend that threatens the centrality of God’s Word in our corporate worship is a dangerous trend.
But one of the most disturbing side effects of the seeker-sensitive fad is something I haven’t said as much about:
When one of the main aims of a ministry philosophy is to keep people entertained, church members inevitably become mere spectators. The architects of the modern megachurches admit that they have deliberately redesigned the worship service in order to make as few demands as possible on the person in the pew. After all, they don’t want the “unchurched” to be intimidated by appeals for personal involvement in ministry. That’s the very opposite of “seeker sensitivity.”
Such thinking is spiritually deadly. Christianity is not a spectator sport. Practically the worst thing any churchgoer can do is be a hearer but not a doer (James 1:22-25). Christ himself pronounced doom on religious people who want to be mere bystanders (Matthew 7:26-27).
Something is seriously wrong in a church where the staff does all the “ministry” and people are made to feel comfortable as mere observers. One of the pastor’s main duties is to equip the saints to do the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:12). Every believer is called to be a minister of some sort, with each of us using the unique gifts given us by God for the edification of the whole church (Rom. 12:6-8).
That’s why Scripture portrays the church as a body—an organism with many organs (1 Corinthians 12:14), where each member has a unique role (vv. 15-25), and all contribute something important to the life of the body. “And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it” (v. 26).
I can’t read that verse without thinking of Dizzy Dean. He was a Hall-of-Fame baseball pitcher, whose career peaked in the 1930s. His 1934 season has never been excelled by any pitcher in history. Dean won thirty games that year, a feat that hasn’t been repeated since (though Dizzy himself came close, winning 28 games the following year). But in the 1937 All-Star game, he took a hard line drive off his toe, and the toe was broken. It should not have been a career-ending injury, but Dean was rushed back into the lineup before the fracture was completely healed, and he pitched several games favoring the sore toe. That led to an unnatural delivery that seriously injured his pitching arm. The arm never fully recovered. Dizzy Dean’s major-league career was essentially over in four years.
Something similar happens in any church where there are non-functioning members. The active members of the body become overextended, and the effectiveness of the whole body suffers greatly. Even the most insignificant member, like a toe, is designed to play a vital role.
That truth has been one of the main foundations of my approach to ministry for many years. When I first became pastor of Grace Community Church in 1969, I taught a series on Ephesians, and we spent a great deal of time studying the principle of Ephesians 4:11—that the pastor’s duty is to equip the saints, and it is their duty to shoulder the work of the ministry.
Our people quickly embraced that simple idea, and it transformed our church in a remarkable way.
For one thing, we began to see dramatic growth. Within a matter of months, attendance on Sundays had ballooned to almost 1,000. About that same time, a well-known evangelical magazine asked a reporter to write an article about the growth of our church. He visited our services for several weeks, carefully observed how the ministry functioned, interviewed scores of people, and then wrote an article titled “The Church with 900 Ministers.”
That title perfectly summarized what has made Grace Church unique for all these years. Nowadays we have several thousand ministers, but the principle is still the same. Everyone is expected and encouraged to be involved in active ministry. Almost no one in our church would ever view ministry as the exclusive domain of professional clergy. If you want to be comfortable as a mere spectator, Grace Church is not the church for you.
I am not making a case for egalitarianism. Much less would I argue against the need for full-time vocational pastors who devote their whole lives to prayer, the study of the Word of God, and the training and equipping of the saints (cf. Acts 6:4; 1 Timothy 4:14-15; 5:17). The church needs leaders, and God has specifically called men to leadership and set them in places of authority in the church (cf. Hebrews 13:7, 17).
But the New Testament pattern is clear and inescapable: Every Christian is gifted and called to ministry. The spiritual gifts we are given are not for our own sake, but for the benefit of the whole body (1 Corinthians 12:4-7). “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them” (Romans 12:6, emphasis added).
I
n my experience, it is not difficult to motivate gifted people to minister. The gift of mercy, for example, might practically be defined as the desire combined with the ability to show mercy. A person truly gifted to teach wants to teach. All the average person needs is encouragement and opportunities to employ his or her gifts. If faithful leaders properly train, equip, and guide people to the right ministry opportunities, the church will flourish.
If you are a church leader, I hope you have embraced your duty to equip people for ministry. It is, after all, one of your main duties—if not the single most important task for leaders in today’s church.
If you’re a lay person, I hope you’ll find a place where you can use your gift in the work of the ministry. Maybe you’ll be used by the Lord to start an epidemic of lay ministry in your congregation.
But one of the most disturbing side effects of the seeker-sensitive fad is something I haven’t said as much about:
When one of the main aims of a ministry philosophy is to keep people entertained, church members inevitably become mere spectators. The architects of the modern megachurches admit that they have deliberately redesigned the worship service in order to make as few demands as possible on the person in the pew. After all, they don’t want the “unchurched” to be intimidated by appeals for personal involvement in ministry. That’s the very opposite of “seeker sensitivity.”
Such thinking is spiritually deadly. Christianity is not a spectator sport. Practically the worst thing any churchgoer can do is be a hearer but not a doer (James 1:22-25). Christ himself pronounced doom on religious people who want to be mere bystanders (Matthew 7:26-27).
Something is seriously wrong in a church where the staff does all the “ministry” and people are made to feel comfortable as mere observers. One of the pastor’s main duties is to equip the saints to do the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:12). Every believer is called to be a minister of some sort, with each of us using the unique gifts given us by God for the edification of the whole church (Rom. 12:6-8).
That’s why Scripture portrays the church as a body—an organism with many organs (1 Corinthians 12:14), where each member has a unique role (vv. 15-25), and all contribute something important to the life of the body. “And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it” (v. 26).
I can’t read that verse without thinking of Dizzy Dean. He was a Hall-of-Fame baseball pitcher, whose career peaked in the 1930s. His 1934 season has never been excelled by any pitcher in history. Dean won thirty games that year, a feat that hasn’t been repeated since (though Dizzy himself came close, winning 28 games the following year). But in the 1937 All-Star game, he took a hard line drive off his toe, and the toe was broken. It should not have been a career-ending injury, but Dean was rushed back into the lineup before the fracture was completely healed, and he pitched several games favoring the sore toe. That led to an unnatural delivery that seriously injured his pitching arm. The arm never fully recovered. Dizzy Dean’s major-league career was essentially over in four years.
Something similar happens in any church where there are non-functioning members. The active members of the body become overextended, and the effectiveness of the whole body suffers greatly. Even the most insignificant member, like a toe, is designed to play a vital role.
That truth has been one of the main foundations of my approach to ministry for many years. When I first became pastor of Grace Community Church in 1969, I taught a series on Ephesians, and we spent a great deal of time studying the principle of Ephesians 4:11—that the pastor’s duty is to equip the saints, and it is their duty to shoulder the work of the ministry.
Our people quickly embraced that simple idea, and it transformed our church in a remarkable way.
For one thing, we began to see dramatic growth. Within a matter of months, attendance on Sundays had ballooned to almost 1,000. About that same time, a well-known evangelical magazine asked a reporter to write an article about the growth of our church. He visited our services for several weeks, carefully observed how the ministry functioned, interviewed scores of people, and then wrote an article titled “The Church with 900 Ministers.”
That title perfectly summarized what has made Grace Church unique for all these years. Nowadays we have several thousand ministers, but the principle is still the same. Everyone is expected and encouraged to be involved in active ministry. Almost no one in our church would ever view ministry as the exclusive domain of professional clergy. If you want to be comfortable as a mere spectator, Grace Church is not the church for you.
I am not making a case for egalitarianism. Much less would I argue against the need for full-time vocational pastors who devote their whole lives to prayer, the study of the Word of God, and the training and equipping of the saints (cf. Acts 6:4; 1 Timothy 4:14-15; 5:17). The church needs leaders, and God has specifically called men to leadership and set them in places of authority in the church (cf. Hebrews 13:7, 17).
But the New Testament pattern is clear and inescapable: Every Christian is gifted and called to ministry. The spiritual gifts we are given are not for our own sake, but for the benefit of the whole body (1 Corinthians 12:4-7). “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them” (Romans 12:6, emphasis added).
I
n my experience, it is not difficult to motivate gifted people to minister. The gift of mercy, for example, might practically be defined as the desire combined with the ability to show mercy. A person truly gifted to teach wants to teach. All the average person needs is encouragement and opportunities to employ his or her gifts. If faithful leaders properly train, equip, and guide people to the right ministry opportunities, the church will flourish.
If you are a church leader, I hope you have embraced your duty to equip people for ministry. It is, after all, one of your main duties—if not the single most important task for leaders in today’s church.
If you’re a lay person, I hope you’ll find a place where you can use your gift in the work of the ministry. Maybe you’ll be used by the Lord to start an epidemic of lay ministry in your congregation.
Ways Parents Provoke By John MacArthur
In Ephesians 6:4, Paul writes, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” In our series these last two weeks, we’ve looked at both discipline (specifically, spanking) and instruction (specifically, evangelism). Today, we will look at the command to not provoke.
To “provoke . . . to anger” suggests a repeated, ongoing pattern of treatment that gradually builds up a deep–seated anger and resentment that boils over in outward hostility.
Such treatment is usually not intended to provoke anger. Here are eight ways in which parents can provoke their children to anger:
1) Well–meaning overprotection is a common cause of resentment in children. Parents who smother their children, overly restrict where they can go and what they can do, never trust them to do things on their own, and continually question their judgment build a barrier between themselves and their children—usually under the delusion that they are building a closer relationship. Children need careful guidance and certain restrictions, but they are individual human beings in their own right and must learn to make decisions on their own, commensurate with their age and maturity. Their wills can be guided but they cannot be controlled.
2) Another common cause of provoking children to anger is favoritism. Isaac favored Esau over Jacob and Rebekah preferred Jacob over Esau. That dual and conflicting favoritism not only caused great trouble for the immediate family but has continued to have repercussions in the conflicts between the descendants of Jacob and Esau until our present day! For parents to compare their children with each other, especially in the children’s presence, can be devastating to the child who is less talented or favored. He will tend to become discouraged, resentful, withdrawn, and bitter.
Favoritism by parents generally leads to favoritism among the children themselves, who pick up the practice from their parents. They will favor one brother or sister over the others and will often favor one parent over the other.
3) A third way parents provoke their children is by pushing achievement beyond reasonable bounds. A child can be so pressured to achieve that he is virtually destroyed. He quickly learns that nothing he does is sufficient to please his parents. No sooner does he accomplish one goal than he is challenged to accomplish something better. Fathers who fantasize their own achievements through the athletic skills of their sons, or mothers who fantasize a glamorous career through the lives of their daughters prostitute their responsibility as parents.
I once visited a young woman who was confined to a padded cell and was in a state of catatonic shock. She was a Christian and had been raised in a Christian family, but her mother had ceaselessly pushed her to be the most popular, beautiful, and successful girl in school. She became head cheerleader, homecoming queen, and later a model. But the pressure to excel became too great and she had a complete mental collapse. After she was eventually released from the hospital, she went back into the same artificial and demanding environment. When again she found she could not cope, she committed suicide. She had summed up her frustration when she told me one day, “I don’t care what it is I do, it never satisfies my mother.”
4) A fourth way children are provoked is by discouragement. A child who is never complimented or encouraged by his parents is destined for trouble. If he is always told what is wrong with him and never what is right, he will soon lose hope and become convinced that he is incapable of doing anything right. At that point he has no reason even to try. Parents can always find something that a child genuinely does well, and they should show appreciation for it. A child needs approval and encouragement in things that are good every bit as much as he needs correction in things that are not.
5) A fifth way provocation occurs is by parents’ failing to sacrifice for their children and making them feel unwanted. Children who are made to feel that they are an intrusion, that they are always in the way and interfere with the plans and happiness of the parents, cannot help becoming resentful. To such children the parents themselves will eventually become unwanted and an intrusion on the children’s plans and happiness.
6) A sixth form of provocation comes from failing to let children grow up at a normal pace. Chiding them for always acting childish, even when what they do is perfectly normal and harmless, does not contribute to their maturity but rather helps confirm them in their childishness.
7) A seventh way of angering children is that of using love as a tool of reward or punishment—granting it when a child is good and withdrawing it when he is bad. Often the practice is unconscious, but a child can sense if a parent cares for him less when is he disobedient than when he behaves. That is not how God loves and is not the way he intends human parents to love. God disciplines His children just as much out of love as He blesses them. “Those whom the Lord loves He disciplines” (Heb. 12:6). Because it is so easy to punish out of anger and resentment, parents should take special care to let their children know they love them when discipline is given.
8) An eighth way to provoke children is by physical and verbal abuse. Battered children are a growing tragedy today. Even Christian parents—fathers especially—sometimes overreact and spank their children much harder than necessary. Proper physical discipline is not a matter of exerting superior authority and strength, but of correcting in love and reasonableness. Children are also abused verbally. A parent can as easily overpower a child with words as with physical force. Putting him down with superior arguments or sarcasm can inflict serious harm, and provokes him to anger and resentment. It is amazing that we sometimes say things to our children that we would not think of saying to anyone else—for fear of ruining our reputation!
In closing, consider the confession of one Christian father,
My family’s all grown and the kids are all gone. But if I had to do it all over again, this is what I would do. I would love my wife more in front of my children. I would laugh with my children more—at our mistakes and our joys. I would listen more, even to the littlest child. I would be more honest about my own weaknesses, never pretending perfection. I would pray differently for my family; instead of focusing on them, I’d focus on me. I would do more things together with my children. I would encourage them more and bestow more praise. I would pay more attention to little things, like deeds and words of thoughtfulness. And then, finally, if I had to do it all over again, I would share God more intimately with my family; every ordinary thing that happened in every ordinary day I would use to direct them to God.
To “provoke . . . to anger” suggests a repeated, ongoing pattern of treatment that gradually builds up a deep–seated anger and resentment that boils over in outward hostility.
Such treatment is usually not intended to provoke anger. Here are eight ways in which parents can provoke their children to anger:
1) Well–meaning overprotection is a common cause of resentment in children. Parents who smother their children, overly restrict where they can go and what they can do, never trust them to do things on their own, and continually question their judgment build a barrier between themselves and their children—usually under the delusion that they are building a closer relationship. Children need careful guidance and certain restrictions, but they are individual human beings in their own right and must learn to make decisions on their own, commensurate with their age and maturity. Their wills can be guided but they cannot be controlled.
2) Another common cause of provoking children to anger is favoritism. Isaac favored Esau over Jacob and Rebekah preferred Jacob over Esau. That dual and conflicting favoritism not only caused great trouble for the immediate family but has continued to have repercussions in the conflicts between the descendants of Jacob and Esau until our present day! For parents to compare their children with each other, especially in the children’s presence, can be devastating to the child who is less talented or favored. He will tend to become discouraged, resentful, withdrawn, and bitter.
Favoritism by parents generally leads to favoritism among the children themselves, who pick up the practice from their parents. They will favor one brother or sister over the others and will often favor one parent over the other.
3) A third way parents provoke their children is by pushing achievement beyond reasonable bounds. A child can be so pressured to achieve that he is virtually destroyed. He quickly learns that nothing he does is sufficient to please his parents. No sooner does he accomplish one goal than he is challenged to accomplish something better. Fathers who fantasize their own achievements through the athletic skills of their sons, or mothers who fantasize a glamorous career through the lives of their daughters prostitute their responsibility as parents.
I once visited a young woman who was confined to a padded cell and was in a state of catatonic shock. She was a Christian and had been raised in a Christian family, but her mother had ceaselessly pushed her to be the most popular, beautiful, and successful girl in school. She became head cheerleader, homecoming queen, and later a model. But the pressure to excel became too great and she had a complete mental collapse. After she was eventually released from the hospital, she went back into the same artificial and demanding environment. When again she found she could not cope, she committed suicide. She had summed up her frustration when she told me one day, “I don’t care what it is I do, it never satisfies my mother.”
4) A fourth way children are provoked is by discouragement. A child who is never complimented or encouraged by his parents is destined for trouble. If he is always told what is wrong with him and never what is right, he will soon lose hope and become convinced that he is incapable of doing anything right. At that point he has no reason even to try. Parents can always find something that a child genuinely does well, and they should show appreciation for it. A child needs approval and encouragement in things that are good every bit as much as he needs correction in things that are not.
5) A fifth way provocation occurs is by parents’ failing to sacrifice for their children and making them feel unwanted. Children who are made to feel that they are an intrusion, that they are always in the way and interfere with the plans and happiness of the parents, cannot help becoming resentful. To such children the parents themselves will eventually become unwanted and an intrusion on the children’s plans and happiness.
6) A sixth form of provocation comes from failing to let children grow up at a normal pace. Chiding them for always acting childish, even when what they do is perfectly normal and harmless, does not contribute to their maturity but rather helps confirm them in their childishness.
7) A seventh way of angering children is that of using love as a tool of reward or punishment—granting it when a child is good and withdrawing it when he is bad. Often the practice is unconscious, but a child can sense if a parent cares for him less when is he disobedient than when he behaves. That is not how God loves and is not the way he intends human parents to love. God disciplines His children just as much out of love as He blesses them. “Those whom the Lord loves He disciplines” (Heb. 12:6). Because it is so easy to punish out of anger and resentment, parents should take special care to let their children know they love them when discipline is given.
8) An eighth way to provoke children is by physical and verbal abuse. Battered children are a growing tragedy today. Even Christian parents—fathers especially—sometimes overreact and spank their children much harder than necessary. Proper physical discipline is not a matter of exerting superior authority and strength, but of correcting in love and reasonableness. Children are also abused verbally. A parent can as easily overpower a child with words as with physical force. Putting him down with superior arguments or sarcasm can inflict serious harm, and provokes him to anger and resentment. It is amazing that we sometimes say things to our children that we would not think of saying to anyone else—for fear of ruining our reputation!
In closing, consider the confession of one Christian father,
My family’s all grown and the kids are all gone. But if I had to do it all over again, this is what I would do. I would love my wife more in front of my children. I would laugh with my children more—at our mistakes and our joys. I would listen more, even to the littlest child. I would be more honest about my own weaknesses, never pretending perfection. I would pray differently for my family; instead of focusing on them, I’d focus on me. I would do more things together with my children. I would encourage them more and bestow more praise. I would pay more attention to little things, like deeds and words of thoughtfulness. And then, finally, if I had to do it all over again, I would share God more intimately with my family; every ordinary thing that happened in every ordinary day I would use to direct them to God.
What the Needy Need Pro Ecclesia (For the Church) by Rev. Richard D. Phillips
Since we live in a fallen world, our greatest strengths have a way of giving birth to our greatest weaknesses. This is why some churches that emphasize a strong Bible-preaching pulpit are less vigorous in ministries of mercy. One inner city Presbyterian church participated in a study regarding mercy ministries. The study commended the church for its vigorous efforts to minister to the needy and the lost. But the study report expressed this approval in telling language: it said that the church "is deeply committed to teaching and preaching biblical doctrine; however, it also has a heart for mercy ministry." This is how many people have learned to think: they are surprised that a church that is strong in the Word would also be strong in good deeds. When the pastor of this particular church received the report, he requested one significant revision. It should be changed to say that because they are deeply committed to biblical doctrine, therefore they have a heart for mercy ministry! And this is how it should be in all our churches!The reality is that any church that fails to minister the merciful love of God is failing in its witness to the merciful heart of God. Jesus said, "Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 5:16). Likewise, a church that is little interested in works of mercy is not pleasing to our Lord. The Christians that Jesus will commend on the Last Day are those to whom He will say, "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.... Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me" (Matt. 25:35-40).So how do churches lead their members to recognize the necessity of merciful deeds? What causes Christians to act spontaneously in the kind of mercy Jesus commends? I want to offer three ways in which our churches can cultivate a spirit of mercy within its members.First, we motivate mercy ministry by teaching the full biblical doctrine of salvation. We rightly emphasize repentance from sin, forgiveness of sin, and the hope of glory in heaven. Yet it is not merely our souls that are saved by God's grace. Our lifestyles are also redeemed. And God's saving grace within any community -- a family, church, city, or nation -- will result in increased mercy and justice. The Old Testament vision of salvation is replete with this emphasis. God frequently complained against the lack of justice and mercy among His people, and He continually urged the Israelites "to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God" (Mic. 6:8). The New Testament does not let up on this emphasis, as can easily be seen in the parables of Jesus and in Paul's pastoral epistles. So as we teach salvation, we must present the peace and love that God gives to His people, both of which are manifested in ministries of mercy and kindness to others.Secondly, churches can accomplish much by modeling mercy within their own congregational life. Some of this involves targeted ministries to the surrounding communities. We should look around and see what types of needs are obvious. If there are homeless people, the church should have a homeless outreach. If there are elderly, there might be a visitation ministry. If there are internationals, the church might reach out with hospitality. But beyond this is the simple modeling of ordinary mercy. Do we notice the disabled in our midst and make provision for their participation? Do we care about the problems the elderly have in getting to church? Are we involved in ministry to the shut-ins? The church should not be a compartment in life where one participates in mercy ministry. Rather, the church should be a community in which the practice and habits of mercy are learned and trained.Thirdly, we must always remember that the greatest mercy is that which brings the good news of Jesus Christ to the lost. Are we inspiring church members to personal evangelism? Many people think that the Reformed faith de-motivates Christians from sharing the Gospel. But when we realize the costly mercy by which God has saved us, the natural result is that we would look with mercy on the world. The Bible says that we love because God loved us, we forgive because God has forgiven us, and we give because of what God has given to us. If we understand the sovereign mercy that has saved our souls, we will be merciful to others by presenting a living and loving witness to the Gospel of Christ. One of the strongest statements of God's sovereignty in salvation occurs in Jonah 2:9 where the prophet prays, "Salvation belongs to the LORD." But that great doctrinal statement is accompanied in the previous verse by a lament for the state of the lost, who by their idolatry "forsake their hope of steadfast love" (v. 8). Like Jonah, who cared little for the Gentiles until he understood his own salvation, it is when we truly appreciate the sovereign mercy by which we have been saved that we will no longer struggle to feel mercy for the dying world
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
The Profile of a Godly Mother By John MacArthur
I once came across an interesting article on motherhood by a man named W. L. Caldwell written back in 1928. Here's what he said:
Well may we pause to pay honor to her who after Jesus Christ is God's best gift to men, mother. It was she who shared her life with us when as yet our members were unformed, into the valley of the shadow of death she walked that we might have the light of life. In her arms was the garner of our food and the soft couch for our repose. There we nestled in the hour of pain; there was the playground of our infant glee.
Those same arms later became our refuge and stronghold. It was she who taught our baby feet to go and lifted us up over the rough places. Her blessed hands plied the needle by day and by night to make our clothes. She put the book under our arm and started us off for school. But best of all, she taught our baby lips to lisp the name of Jesus and told us first the wondrous story of a Savior's love.
Caldwell went on to say, "The pride of America is its mothers. There are wicked mothers like Jezebel of old. There are unnatural mothers who sell their children into sin. There are sin cursed rum soaked and abandoned mothers to whom their motherhood is the exposure of their shame. I am glad to believe, however, that there are comparatively few in this class."
Is that true? Are there merely a few unfaithful mothers? Maybe that was the case in 1928, but it's sadly not so today. High rates of illegitimacy and divorce reveal the contemporary abandonment of marriage--motherhood's foundation. Annual abortions number in the millions, which shows the heart of many mothers has grown cold.
Millions of children whose mothers allow them to see the light of day cower in fear under angry abuse. And countless are the mothers who ignore, neglect, or abandon their children in pursuit of self-centered "fulfillment"--motherhood is an inconvenient interruption to their lifestyle.
For better or worse, mothers are the makers of men; they are the architects of the next generation. That's why the goal of becoming a godly mother is the highest and most noble pursuit of womanhood. God has specially equipped women for that very purpose, and in Christ, women can experience profound satisfaction in that divinely ordained pursuit. They can be who God created them to be.
Ladies, please pay attention. There are so many who would capture your interests today, to tear you away from God's high calling on your life. "Focus on your career," "Buy more stuff," "Pamper yourself"--you've heard it all, I'm sure. Don't buy what they're selling--it's all a lie.
With that in mind, I want to encourage you this Mother's Day to consider one biblical example of motherhood. It's Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, an emblem of the grace of womanhood. You can read all about her in 1 Samuel 1 and 2.
Hannah became a mother by faith. In the opening verses of 1 Samuel, she is introduced as a childless woman. But God granted her a precious gift and she became the mother of one of the greatest men who ever walked the earth. As you follow this account, you'll see the profile of a godly mother.
Devoted to Her Husband
Contrary to popular opinion, the most important characteristic of a godly mother is her relationship, not with her children, but with her husband. What you communicate to your children through your marital relationship will stay with them for the rest of their lives. By watching you and your husband, they are learning the most fundamental lessons of life--love, self-sacrifice, integrity, virtue, sin, sympathy, compassion, understanding, and forgiveness. Whatever you teach them about those things, right or wrong, is planted deep within their hearts.
That emphasis on marriage was very evident between Elkanah and Hannah. They were dedicated to the faithful worship of God (1:3), and they were dedicated to loving one another (1:4-8). Their situation--being unable to have children together--was like an open wound. But it was an experience that drew out of Elkanah tender expressions of love for his wife.
At a particularly low point in Hannah's discouragement, Elkanah comforted his wife with these words: "Hannah, why do you weep and why do you not eat and why is your heart sad? Am I not better to you than ten sons?" (1:8). That may not seem like a tremendous comfort to you, but he was appealing to the satisfaction they enjoyed in their marriage. Notice the effect: Hannah was encouraged--she started to eat and drink again (1:9), and she went to the temple to seek the Lord (1:9-11).
That's the kind of marriage to which a godly mother is devoted--dedication to loving God, dedication to loving one another. That's the soil where godly mothers grow and flourish.
Devoted to Her God
Hannah struggled through acute pain and adversity. She was barren, she had to share her husband with another woman--one who could produce children, and she had to endure the pain of that woman's cruelty (1:6-7). And though Hannah was tempted to despair (1:8), she received the encouragement of her husband, turned to the Lord, and poured out her heart to Him in humble devotion (1:9-18).
Like many women today, Hannah struggled with the pain of infertility. She wanted God's best, to be a mother. In her sadness, Hannah didn't complain to her husband--there was nothing he could do about it--and she didn't fight back when Peninnah tormented her. Instead, Hannah trusted God through prayer.
That's a beautiful characteristic. She understood that God was the source of children, that God alone could alter her sterility. Her distinctive virtue was her constant faith. First Samuel 1:12 says, "It came about as she continued praying before the Lord". Her prayers were constant. She stayed there praying with a broken heart, pouring out tearful prayers. Hannah knew where to go with her problems.
Hannah was quite different from many today who long for children; she wasn't seeking a child for her own fulfillment. Childless parents today spend millions on infertility treatments--medications, special diets, egg-harvesting, even in-vitro fertilization. They worry and fret and sin in their continued anxiety.
Not Hannah. Hannah was willing from the start to give the child back to God, for life (1:11). It wasn't about her. It wasn't about getting what she wanted. It was about self-sacrifice, giving herself to that little life to give him back to the Lord. After coming to that place in her heart, after expressing her desires to the Lord in prayer, she experienced the peace of humble devotion to God. She "went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad" (1:18).
Devoted to Her Home
According to His perfect will, God gave Hannah a son--Samuel.
And Elkanah had relations with Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. It came about in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked him of the Lord." (1:19-20)
Hannah named her son in remembrance of God's goodness, and she devoted herself to her motherly responsibilities--she was fully committed to her home. The time came for one of the annual trips to Shiloh, and Elkanah came to Hannah to prepare her for the trip.
Then the man Elkanah went up with all his household to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and pay his vow. But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, "I will not go up until the child is weaned; then I will bring him, that he may appear before the Lord and stay there forever."
When God gave the child, Hannah dedicated herself to raising him. She would be devoted to that task for several years, knowing her time with him was short. That's so different from what you see today, isn't it? Women have babies, and a couple of months later they slam the baby in some day care center and take off for the job.
Not Hannah. She was totally committed to stay in the home until that little life was trained. She had important work to do--nursing, loving cherishing, instructing. Hannah understood how vital those early years are, when 90 percent of personality is formed. She prepared him in those formative years for a lifetime of service to God--such a high calling.
Don't mistake her devotion to raising Samuel for the modern tendency to make the child the center of the universe. Hannah discharged her responsibility as a steward--one day she had to give Samuel back. It wasn't about fulfilling her deepest needs through her child. It was about fulfilling her oath to God. It was about being faithful to her calling to be a godly mother.
For those of you who are mothers, think about Hannah this Mother's Day. Be devoted to your husband; be devoted to your God; and be devoted to your home in the fear of the Lord. That's your high calling and your greatest joy.
For those of you whose mothers are still living, recognize your mother this Mother's Day for the things she did well. Look in love beyond any of her shortcomings and honor the one who introduced you to life.
Well may we pause to pay honor to her who after Jesus Christ is God's best gift to men, mother. It was she who shared her life with us when as yet our members were unformed, into the valley of the shadow of death she walked that we might have the light of life. In her arms was the garner of our food and the soft couch for our repose. There we nestled in the hour of pain; there was the playground of our infant glee.
Those same arms later became our refuge and stronghold. It was she who taught our baby feet to go and lifted us up over the rough places. Her blessed hands plied the needle by day and by night to make our clothes. She put the book under our arm and started us off for school. But best of all, she taught our baby lips to lisp the name of Jesus and told us first the wondrous story of a Savior's love.
Caldwell went on to say, "The pride of America is its mothers. There are wicked mothers like Jezebel of old. There are unnatural mothers who sell their children into sin. There are sin cursed rum soaked and abandoned mothers to whom their motherhood is the exposure of their shame. I am glad to believe, however, that there are comparatively few in this class."
Is that true? Are there merely a few unfaithful mothers? Maybe that was the case in 1928, but it's sadly not so today. High rates of illegitimacy and divorce reveal the contemporary abandonment of marriage--motherhood's foundation. Annual abortions number in the millions, which shows the heart of many mothers has grown cold.
Millions of children whose mothers allow them to see the light of day cower in fear under angry abuse. And countless are the mothers who ignore, neglect, or abandon their children in pursuit of self-centered "fulfillment"--motherhood is an inconvenient interruption to their lifestyle.
For better or worse, mothers are the makers of men; they are the architects of the next generation. That's why the goal of becoming a godly mother is the highest and most noble pursuit of womanhood. God has specially equipped women for that very purpose, and in Christ, women can experience profound satisfaction in that divinely ordained pursuit. They can be who God created them to be.
Ladies, please pay attention. There are so many who would capture your interests today, to tear you away from God's high calling on your life. "Focus on your career," "Buy more stuff," "Pamper yourself"--you've heard it all, I'm sure. Don't buy what they're selling--it's all a lie.
With that in mind, I want to encourage you this Mother's Day to consider one biblical example of motherhood. It's Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, an emblem of the grace of womanhood. You can read all about her in 1 Samuel 1 and 2.
Hannah became a mother by faith. In the opening verses of 1 Samuel, she is introduced as a childless woman. But God granted her a precious gift and she became the mother of one of the greatest men who ever walked the earth. As you follow this account, you'll see the profile of a godly mother.
Devoted to Her Husband
Contrary to popular opinion, the most important characteristic of a godly mother is her relationship, not with her children, but with her husband. What you communicate to your children through your marital relationship will stay with them for the rest of their lives. By watching you and your husband, they are learning the most fundamental lessons of life--love, self-sacrifice, integrity, virtue, sin, sympathy, compassion, understanding, and forgiveness. Whatever you teach them about those things, right or wrong, is planted deep within their hearts.
That emphasis on marriage was very evident between Elkanah and Hannah. They were dedicated to the faithful worship of God (1:3), and they were dedicated to loving one another (1:4-8). Their situation--being unable to have children together--was like an open wound. But it was an experience that drew out of Elkanah tender expressions of love for his wife.
At a particularly low point in Hannah's discouragement, Elkanah comforted his wife with these words: "Hannah, why do you weep and why do you not eat and why is your heart sad? Am I not better to you than ten sons?" (1:8). That may not seem like a tremendous comfort to you, but he was appealing to the satisfaction they enjoyed in their marriage. Notice the effect: Hannah was encouraged--she started to eat and drink again (1:9), and she went to the temple to seek the Lord (1:9-11).
That's the kind of marriage to which a godly mother is devoted--dedication to loving God, dedication to loving one another. That's the soil where godly mothers grow and flourish.
Devoted to Her God
Hannah struggled through acute pain and adversity. She was barren, she had to share her husband with another woman--one who could produce children, and she had to endure the pain of that woman's cruelty (1:6-7). And though Hannah was tempted to despair (1:8), she received the encouragement of her husband, turned to the Lord, and poured out her heart to Him in humble devotion (1:9-18).
Like many women today, Hannah struggled with the pain of infertility. She wanted God's best, to be a mother. In her sadness, Hannah didn't complain to her husband--there was nothing he could do about it--and she didn't fight back when Peninnah tormented her. Instead, Hannah trusted God through prayer.
That's a beautiful characteristic. She understood that God was the source of children, that God alone could alter her sterility. Her distinctive virtue was her constant faith. First Samuel 1:12 says, "It came about as she continued praying before the Lord". Her prayers were constant. She stayed there praying with a broken heart, pouring out tearful prayers. Hannah knew where to go with her problems.
Hannah was quite different from many today who long for children; she wasn't seeking a child for her own fulfillment. Childless parents today spend millions on infertility treatments--medications, special diets, egg-harvesting, even in-vitro fertilization. They worry and fret and sin in their continued anxiety.
Not Hannah. Hannah was willing from the start to give the child back to God, for life (1:11). It wasn't about her. It wasn't about getting what she wanted. It was about self-sacrifice, giving herself to that little life to give him back to the Lord. After coming to that place in her heart, after expressing her desires to the Lord in prayer, she experienced the peace of humble devotion to God. She "went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad" (1:18).
Devoted to Her Home
According to His perfect will, God gave Hannah a son--Samuel.
And Elkanah had relations with Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. It came about in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked him of the Lord." (1:19-20)
Hannah named her son in remembrance of God's goodness, and she devoted herself to her motherly responsibilities--she was fully committed to her home. The time came for one of the annual trips to Shiloh, and Elkanah came to Hannah to prepare her for the trip.
Then the man Elkanah went up with all his household to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and pay his vow. But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, "I will not go up until the child is weaned; then I will bring him, that he may appear before the Lord and stay there forever."
When God gave the child, Hannah dedicated herself to raising him. She would be devoted to that task for several years, knowing her time with him was short. That's so different from what you see today, isn't it? Women have babies, and a couple of months later they slam the baby in some day care center and take off for the job.
Not Hannah. She was totally committed to stay in the home until that little life was trained. She had important work to do--nursing, loving cherishing, instructing. Hannah understood how vital those early years are, when 90 percent of personality is formed. She prepared him in those formative years for a lifetime of service to God--such a high calling.
Don't mistake her devotion to raising Samuel for the modern tendency to make the child the center of the universe. Hannah discharged her responsibility as a steward--one day she had to give Samuel back. It wasn't about fulfilling her deepest needs through her child. It was about fulfilling her oath to God. It was about being faithful to her calling to be a godly mother.
For those of you who are mothers, think about Hannah this Mother's Day. Be devoted to your husband; be devoted to your God; and be devoted to your home in the fear of the Lord. That's your high calling and your greatest joy.
For those of you whose mothers are still living, recognize your mother this Mother's Day for the things she did well. Look in love beyond any of her shortcomings and honor the one who introduced you to life.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Growing in Knowing Christ By Dr John MacArthur
The apostle Paul perfectly expresses the most earnest desire of every true follower of Christ: “That I may know him” (Phil. 3:10).
“Knowing Christ,” in the Pauline sense is not the sort of mystical relationship many people imagine. Paul wasn’t longing for some secret knowledge of Christ beyond what is revealed in Scripture. He wasn’t asking that private messages from Christ be whispered into his ear.
In fact, the knowledge of Christ Paul sought was anything but mystical. What he longed to know was the power of Christ’s resurrection, the fellowship of His sufferings, and conformity to His death.
We err greatly if we think of intimacy with Christ as some lofty level of mysterious, feelings-based communion with the Divine—as if it involved some knowledge of God that goes beyond what Scripture has revealed. That idea is the very heart of the gnostic heresy. It has nothing in common with true Christianity.
Just what do we mean, then, when we speak of intimacy with Christ? How can we pursue knowing Christ the way Paul had in mind in Philippians 3:10? Scripture suggests at least five aspects of true intimacy with Christ:
The Intimacy of Faith
Notice what prompts Paul’s comment about knowing Christ in Philippians 3:10. He had already spent several verses describing his life before Christ (4-6). He cited all the spiritual advantages he enjoyed as a Pharisaic Jew. But then he declared that he had discarded all those spiritual advantages for Christ’s sake: “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” (vv. 7-8).
As a Pharisee, Paul had sought to earn God’s favor by legal obedience. But he came to realize that the law sets a standard he could never meet. And so he scrapped all his own works of righteousness as if they were filthy rags (cf. Isa. 64:6). This does not mean that he ceased doing good works, of course, but that he gave up trusting in those works for his salvation. Instead, he put all his faith in Christ—and was clothed in Christ’s perfect righteousness instead of his own imperfect works.
This is the doctrine known as justification by faith. Scripture teaches that our sins were imputed to Christ, and He paid the full penalty for them in His death. Now Christ’s own righteousness is imputed to us, and we receive the full merit of it. Without this reality we could enjoy no relationship whatsoever with a holy God.
Moreover, justification by faith—because it means we are clothed in Christ’s own righteousness—establishes the most intimate imaginable relationship between the believer and his Lord. It is an inviolable spiritual union. That’s why Paul often described believers as those who are “in Christ.”
In other words, all true intimacy with Christ has its basis in faith. In fact, no relationship with Him whatsoever is possible apart from faith (Heb. 1:1). As the apostle Peter points out, we love Him by faith, even though we have not seen Him (1 Pet. 1:8).
The Intimacy of True Worship
In Hosea 6:6 the Lord says, “I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, and in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”
That verse means we should not imagine that worship consists of rote acts of religious ritual—like sacrifices, burnt offerings, and other ceremonies. Instead, we need to realize that real worship is grounded in the true knowledge of God.
If we want God to delight in our worship, we must think rightly about Him. The very essence of idolatry consists in wrong thoughts about God. And conversely, true knowledge of God means knowing Him as He is revealed in Scripture.
To put it another way, sound doctrine, not liturgy and ritual, is the litmus test of whether our worship is acceptable.
Right thinking about God is therefore essential to true intimacy with Him. Anyone who would know Him intimately must know what He has revealed about Himself. And again, this does not mean we should seek some mystical knowledge about God. All we can know with any certainty about God is what is revealed in Scripture. Those who would know the true God in the true way must therefore seek to be thoroughly familiar with His Word.
The Intimacy of Prayer
Jesus himself taught us to seek intimacy with God through private prayer. Prayer is where the worshiper pours out his heart to God. And Jesus Himself stressed the importance of private prayer: “when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret” (Matt. 6:6).
He was confronting the practice of the Pharisees, who loved to pray publicly, for show. Jesus was not teaching that prayers should never be offered publicly, for there are obviously times when Scripture calls us to corporate prayer.
But the true Christian seeking intimacy with God will pray most often, and most fervently, in private. The true audience of all our prayers is God Himself. And if we understood what an incomprehensible privilege it is to be invited to come boldly before His throne of grace, we would surely spend more time there, pouring out our most intimate thoughts, fears, desires, and expressions of love to Him.
The Intimacy of Obedience
Jesus said to the disciples, “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” (Jn. 15:14). Thus Christ Himself made obedience to Him an absolute requirement for true spiritual intimacy.
Let no one claim intimacy with Christ whose life is marked by disobedience rather than submission to Him. Those who refuse to obey Christ as Lord cannot claim to know Him as a friend. Scripture plainly declares that He is Lord of all (Acts 10:36), and He is therefore entitled to demand our allegiance to His Lordship.
As a matter of fact, those who withhold that allegiance are His enemies, not His intimates (cf. Jas. 4:4). That’s why true intimacy with Him is utterly impossible without unconditional surrender to His divine authority.
Again, this takes the matter of intimacy with Christ out of the realm of the mystical and defines it in terms that are intensely practical.
The Intimacy of Suffering
Returning to Philippians 3:10, we note once again what kind of intimacy with Christ Paul was seeking: “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.”
Of course, we easily understand why Paul wanted a share in the power of Christ’s resurrection. But why did the apostle desire to know the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings and be conformed to His death?
We can be certain that Paul had no perverse love of pain and suffering. Elsewhere he testified how he repeatedly besought the Lord to deliver him from a “messenger of Satan” that was like a thorn under his skin (2 Cor. 12:7).
In the midst of that experience Paul discovered that God’s grace is sufficient to see us through all our sufferings. Moreover, God’s strength is made perfect in our weakness (v. 9).
God gives a special measure of grace to those whom He calls to endure suffering. In a familiar passage in the Beatitudes, Jesus said this about suffering:
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you (Matt. 5:10-12).
There is a special blessedness known only to those who suffer for Christ’s sake. Those who would desire true intimacy with Him must be willing to endure what He endured.
Add all those things together to get the full picture: True intimacy with Christ involves suffering, obedience, much prayer, a good knowledge of God’s Word, and a life of faith.
Notice that those are not advanced skills for second-level Christians. They are the most elementary issues of the Christian life. That underscores the truth that intimacy with Christ is not some sort of mystical secret. It is the whole point of our life in Christ. Indeed, it is the chief end for which we were created: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
Monday, April 07, 2008
The Mature Man: Biblical Perspectives on Being a Man in Our Time By Thomas Bjerkholt
The mature man, who is he? He is responsible. He takes responsibility for his own life and that of others. The mature man is responsible and grown up, in contrast to the one who is irresponsible and childish. He takes personal and moral responsibility – in his home, at his work-place, in the church and in society. The Bible calls us to realize this mature man. And I am deeply convinced that the exhortations that are addressed to men and fathers in the New Testament will contribute to this taking place. Many are obviously skeptical to that today. Because question-marks are being put to the validity of the exhortations, both to those that are directed to the man, but, not least, to those directed to the woman. But let us approach the subject by listening first to some voices from our own time.
A Modern, Insecure Man
What do today’s people think about being a man or a woman? The answers are not unambiguous. One can sense insecurity. Men especially have become more insecure about what it means to be a man and a father. The ideal of equality can lead to the blurring of the differences between the sexes. But the thoughts and emotions are not always in accord. Listen to what the well-known Norwegian author Erlend Loe says in an interview:
We have grown up in a time of fundamental changes. Not of the kind ‘the nation must be built up, we’re threatened by an external enemy’, but of something as important as what is a man and what is a woman. Boys and girls were meant to be so very identical. Even as a child I realized this was rubbish … And so they (the parental generation) have upset the gender role pattern, which is good, completely necessary, but it has had some consequences. I believe my generation will experience long term effects with relation to something as big as daring to believe in love. You only have to speak to people who have been the victims of divorce; they struggle for years afterwards … The number of possibilities and amount of information means you have to be a rock to see what is important. There is so much garbage. I think many get lost there. And when the responsibility for your life only depends on you, I think the development will leave many disappointed and half-bitter destinies behind in the ditch (from the Oslo newspaper Dagbladet 06.02.04).
This is thought-provoking! Loe sees the necessity of questioning the traditional gender-roles. But at the same time he sees that the extreme equality principle is what he calls ‘rubbish’. The question of what it means to be a man or a woman is for him ‘fundamental’. But then there is also the problem that ‘the responsibility for your life only depends on you’ … It’s here that we Christians can answer : No, God has created us as man and woman, each with our own identity. And the responsibility for our lives doesn’t rest on us. We have a divine word that points to a design for being a man and for being a woman!
Longings in Our Own Time
Are we who want to follow the apostle’s words about men and women promoting an old-fashioned and reactionary masculine ideal? When we still want to claim that God has given the man a special responsibility in the home and the church, are we then upholding a masculine ideal that is oppressive and outdated? No way! For there are many voices in our time that express a longing for this mature man who takes responsibility.
In an interview with Dagbladet (The Magazine 12.01.02) the well-known Norwegian journalist Åsne Seierstad says this among other things:
I dream of a "Carl Larsson home". A large, white house at Vindern (a place in Oslo) with garden furniture, a jug of fruit juice here and a bunch of flowers there. And then I stick my head out to the children on the veranda and call out that the buns are ready …
What does your future husband look like? He must be someone who wants something. Who has a project that is greater than himself. And greater than me (!) One who pulls me along with him and has drive. If not I get exhausted. Since I am so self-willed he has to be someone who stands up for himself and says: "Yes, Åsne. We’re doing it" I don’t think it’s so easy to find him.
No, he isn’t so easy to find! But perhaps we can help her by boldly building up men of authority in the image of Christ through our preaching and teaching! Because it is after all thought-provoking to read what Åsne Seierstad says. She wants a strong and mature man who desires something. Thus she confirms something that I’ve always claimed: No woman wants soft men they can manipulate how they want. They want kind, but mature men.
Listen to another voice of the time, the well-known Norwegian crime writer Fredrik Skagen. He has helped to start an organization called ‘Men against violence’. The main aim of the organization is to work towards men behaving with respect and courtesy towards women, respecting boundaries and refraining from any kind of violence. In an article in Adresseavisen newspaper (15.04.02) he says the following : "Some people think that this [the work of the organization] is going to be an affair for soft men. They’re wrong, completely wrong. It’s a part of the very most important aspect of a man’s identity to take care of women and children. That’s what it’s about, that and nothing else" (My italics).
What else are these voices other than a cry for mature, adult men who will be both strong and mild, firm and sensitive? The way is not far to what the Bible calls us men to be. No these voices are in fact confirming what the Bible says.
A last example. Let me take a detour to something that happened in my student days at theological college, in the beginning of the 70s, when the feminist movement seriously hit our society and lead to the college altering its view on women priests. "Man and woman" was strenuously debated. Professor in Systematic Theology, Leiv Aalen, took part actively in the debate. I remember that many laughed at him when he once said something along the lines of "the man represents to a greater degree the active and persistent principle, the woman the more passive and receptive". This was really to speak "against the current", and as I’ve said, the old man was laughed at. But look : At Aruna Development and Culture Centre in Son in Norway the couple Lisbeth Lind and Øivinn Øi work with courses on living together. In an interview with the newspaper Aftenposten (22.01.95) they say: "We try to accentuate and not least to enhance the typical gender differences. And because in our culture we’ve been so preoccupied with smoothing over them, that in itself becomes an important thing. – While the woman in her foundation is love itself and constitutes its passive principle, the man is created to love, to be the practicing part. Because he constitutes the firm, unshakeable principle, it matters more for the woman to find a man she likes the ‘direction’ of and whom she can stretch herself after, than to influence him to see things differently. Otherwise she can quickly end up with a weakling or the negative cold shoulder". This couple would scarcely have laughed at professor Leiv Aalen! But theological students did. Now those who’ve been quoted here will scarcely rejoice over a view that leads to a No to female pastors, But my claim is that what we read here about man and woman is closely tied up with the masculine ideal that we find in the Bible, yes, amazingly close to the Bible’s thoughts about men and women and their differences.
The Need for Positive Manliness
Today’s men are often insecure about their own identity. The reasons can be many. But one of the main reasons is undoubtedly the fact that so many boys grow up alone with their mother, or experience difficult situations when a new partner moves in with her. The absence of a good man is a fundamental problem for all too many young boys. The fact that so many boys today grow up without a faithful and good father at their side is, according to the Norwegian social anthropologist Jan Brøgger "without historic parallels". The results of this are among other things an increase in violence, because male energy isn’t being channeled in a healthy way. The police inspector Arne Danne in Stockholm said therefore in an interview several years ago, "The reason for the violence is that men no longer bring up men. In the whole of the western world the need is the same : positive manliness".
Jesus of Nazareth : The True Man
Eivind Berggrav, who was a bishop in Norway, wrote the book The Man Jesus in 1921. He characterizes Jesus with these qualities : wise, manly, strong and free. He stresses the balance in Jesus’ personality : "In Jesus’ character there is a remarkable interaction between the authoritarian and the mild", he says. Jesus has power and strength in himself. He is the man of action who wants to improve, change, lift and ennoble. Berggrav compares Jesus to the male figures within Buddhism and Islam : "When we think about Buddha’s crossed arms and place him next to Jesus whose hands are always active, then in spite of all its spiritual refinement and beauty Buddhism nevertheless becomes a bed-ridden religion". On the other hand in Islam the man appears as one-sidedly cold and oppressive. "He may have a certain fire, but lacks depth and warmth", writes Berggrav. In the book The Wild Man Richard Rohr is preoccupied with similar ideas. The man’s energy has to be tamed, he says. The man’s authority must be a compassionate authority. Manliness implies action, responsibility, decisiveness.
It is this we find in perfect balance in Jesus. He is the Lion of Judah. He is the Lamb. He grasps the whip and clears out the temple court. He cries at the grave of Lazarus. He had the courage to reprimand the Pharisees and the scribes. He dared to show weakness when the trial was at its hardest—in Gethsemane. We see that love and strength, tenderness and firmness, mercy and truth are in perfect balance in him. Therefore Jesus is in a special way the true model for all men.
Ephesians 5:25-33
The Christian man is obliged to live in the same way that Jesus did in relation to his bride, the church. There is no text in the whole Bible that will protect women and children better than a brave and practical preaching of this passage. For this is how the husband must live, says Paul : Just as Jesus invests his whole life in service for his bride, so shall the husband’s life be a continuous service for his wife and his children. We sing about Jesus : "He walks by my side, he leads me along, he doesn’t grow tired as I do. And in mercy he guards me the whole day long, he never lets me down". As men we can feel a great inadequacy in relation to such an ideal. Who of us does not get tired? No, we are only human beings. None of us can be wholly and completely like the Master. But what a marvelous picture to aim at! The man Paul portrays for us is the one of authority and maturity who takes responsibility. He is a servant. He wants to lift and protect his bride, love like Christ, forgive, comfort, listen, lead. God has laid on him a responsibility that every husband should be aware of—in Jesus’ name.
C.S. Lewis has some interesting observations on this: "Christian law has crowned the husband. It has given him—or should I say ‘inflicted on’ him—a kind of leadership. The perfect embodiment of this leadership is not in the husband we all wish to be, but in him whose marriage is more like a crucifixion. The anointing for this dreadful coronation is not seen in the joys of a man’s marriage but in its sorrows. The husband who has a leadership that is Christ-like—and that is the only kind that is allowed—will never give up". Lewis is thinking here of the difficult marriage where the partner is difficult, demanding, unloving—and whatever it may be. As Christ loves sinners and endures, so will the husband’s Christ likeness become extra distinct when he remains faithful during "the bad times".
To Call the Man to Responsibility and Give Him Courage
In Isaiah 32:2 we find a beautiful picture of the good man: He shall be "like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land." This is a picture that is wholly in line with what modern psychology has said about the ideal relationship between the man, the woman, and the child : The woman must embrace the child, the man must embrace both the mother and the child! The man as protector and guardian, as life-giver and as the firm rock. Again: We will never manage it fully. We need God’s grace and power. But is there a more lovely picture to paint for our time?—A young couple visited me in church a while ago. They were living together. "I don’t know if I dare get married", he said. No, this lack of courage to take on commitment and responsibility marks more and more people. The young of today can "bungee jump", seek the challenges of extreme sport and set off for remote corners of the world in search of adventure. But the courage for commitment and responsible love "in good days and bad" is being lost by steadily more and more. The Church of Christ and we who preach God’s word must give them that courage and call them to their true image, in Jesus Christ!
Male Leadership interview with Dennis Rainey and Barbara Rainey
Q: In your articles and on radio, you talk about male leadership in the home. But it's also clear that, when you and Barbara are making a decision, you have a lot of interaction with each other. So what happens when Dennis feels strongly one way and Barbara feels strongly another way?
Dennis: First, I think it is clear that the Bible teaches that the husband is responsible for the direction of his home, family, and marriage. And so he is what is called "the head of the house." To me, that means it is my responsibility to go prayerfully before God and with my wife to consider the circumstances and to make a decision. If we can't come to a consensus, it falls upon me to make a decision. And we prefer it that way-if you have a "roleless marriage" where there is no final authority, that creates a greater ambiguity.
Barbara: And insecurity too. It seems to me they would be in a state of indecision.
Dennis: In those marriages, it seems that the stronger personality would win regularly.
Question: Do you ever make a decision to go with Barbara's option rather than your own?
Dennis: Absolutely. Any good leader knows that you need to gather all the facts and enlist those who may know the situation better than you before you make the decision. In many situations with the children, for example, Barbara will be far more versed and have much more insight into what is going on with the child emotionally and circumstantially. There have been numerous times when we have disagreed and I have asked her to go with me on decision. But there have been, I would guess, just as many where she has disagreed with me and I have changed my mind and gone with her.
Barbara: You've been real good about deferring to that woman's intuition in our relationship. There have been times when I just can't explain why I feel this is the right thing to do with a child. Unless you feel you have a strong case for another choice, you go with what I'm feeling. That validates me as a woman- that my opinions are worth considering and you are going to listen to them.
Dennis: I think we've developed a good amount of trust over the years as we have discussed so many decisions. We've learned that we need the other's input and advice. She will help me avoid problems, and vice versa.
The one area where I typically have not gone with Barbara's opinion over mine repeatedly is in the area of schedule. She has such a mother's heart in wanting to see our children develop their gifts, and it's easy for her to overcommit them and herself. I've seen the toll that takes on her. On more than one occasion I've urged her not to head in certain directions because of the need to protect our home. I feel part of my responsibility is to spiritually, emotionally, and physically protect my family, not merely from evil but from overscheduling, from busyness, and from activity. A good shepherd doesn't lead any faster than the sheep can follow!
Barbara: We went through a time when I was making a lot of decisions regarding the kids without Dennis because I knew how busy he was. I assumed I was saving him some grief, but as a result I was getting everyone overcommitted. I needed the protection that he offered when we make those decisions together. I'm glad to have him to help make decisions. And to tell me if I am wrong.
Generation to Generation by Rev. Joshua Harris
When I turned twenty-one, my dad gave me this simple advice: “Find men that you want to be like and then sit at their feet.” As I launched into manhood, he was reminding me that the lessons I needed most wouldn’t be found in a textbook — they’d be written in the heart and life of a godly man. I needed to get close enough to this man that I could observe his character and be shaped by his example. I needed a mentor. I didn’t realize at the time how important and prescient my dad’s counsel was. But less than a year later, God brought me across the path of C.J. Mahaney, the man who would mentor me, train me in pastoral ministry, and eventually install me as his replacement in the church he founded and led for nearly thirty years. Looking back, I’ve become even more aware of what a rare gift God gave me in my relationship with C.J. Sadly, my experience is unique.
There are many young adults who desire to sit at the feet of mature Christians. But how many older Christians are willing to let them sit there?C.J. let me into his life even though it involved personal inconvenience. He literally invited me into his home (I lived in his basement for a year); he guided my study, exposed me to great theology, and both encouraged and constructively critiqued my fledgling attempts at leadership and preaching. So for me the power of a mentor is no abstract concept. I know the difference that personal example, friendship, and on-the-job discipleship makes. Every part of my life — as a follower of Christ, as a husband and father, and now as a pastor — has been shaped by the investment my friend made, and continues to make, in my life.
One of the reasons I love to tell my story is because I hope it will inspire older Christians to take the time to mentor the up-and-coming generation of believers. Most of us know that mentoring the next generation is a good idea. And of course it’s unarguably biblical. Proverbs 13:20 calls the young to be companions of the wise — the implication being that some wise person will be willing to let the less-wise be their companion. The Psalms speak of one generation commending the mighty acts of God to the next (Ps. 145:4). And of course, the New Testament example of Paul teaching and training Timothy models the importance of mentoring in the spread of the Gospel and the building of the church. So we can agree that mentoring is good. But do we do it? And if we don’t, is the problem that we’re too busy? Or could it be that we don’t mentor because we lack real conviction? And could our lack of conviction be the result of failing to apply the truth of the Gospel to our view of the next generation? How does the Gospel relate to this topic? First, it’s the essential motive for Christian mentoring. As Christians, we have a message — one composed of true facts about real events — that is bigger and more important than any one of us.
The good news of Jesus and His death and resurrection for sinners is the world’s only hope. It’s the only way of salvation for mankind. The obvious implication is that passing this saving message on to people who will be here after we’re gone is the most important thing we can do during our lifetime. Our legacy, our reputation, our heritage is really unimportant. A building or company or denomination with our name on it will do the world little good. But if we can teach, train, and disciple men and women to trust in, love, and proclaim the message of Christ and him crucified, then we’ve accomplished something worthwhile.
This kind of Gospel-centered view of life leads to proactive mentoring. And this is exactly what is needed today. Members of the older generation need to take it upon themselves to pursue younger Christians to mentor and disciple them in the faith. Let’s be honest. They might not be beating down the door to sit at your feet. They might not look to you with adoring eyes, amazed by your knowledge. You might not be a “cool” old person. Don’t let that stop you. If you’re motivated by the Gospel, it shouldn’t stop you. Remember, it’s not about you. It’s about the Savior. It’s about what He has done. Whether or not you have the added fuel of feeling wanted, needed, and in demand, you can go out and seek to serve. But what if you can’t relate to the younger generation? Again, this is where the Gospel comes into play.
The Gospel strips away the façade of “generation gaps” and reminds us that, regardless of our age, we all have something in common — we’re all sinners in need of the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The Gospel smoothes out the bumps of cross-generational friendships. It reminds us that, regardless of our age, we have a lot in common.
It was God’s grace that led me to realize as a young man that I needed a mentor to advise and train me in ministry. And it was God’s grace that prepared a godly older man to be that mentor. Two decades earlier, in the early days of his ministry, C.J. had made a promise to God. He had always longed for but never truly found a godly, older mentor for himself. And so he told God that if he ever had the chance to be that mentor to a younger man, he wouldn’t pass up the opportunity. He wouldn’t be too busy. When I came along he didn’t see me as a nuisance. He didn’t see me as a threat.
His first concern wasn’t preserving his position. He saw me as a young man in whom he could invest in so that the most important truth — the truth of the Gospel — could be passed on. What a refreshing perspective. Our job isn’t to fend off the next generation. Our calling as lovers of the Gospel is to equip the next generation to surpass us in faithfulness and effectiveness. Somewhere there’s a young man or woman praying for a mentor. Get ready. You could be God’s answer to that prayer.
There are many young adults who desire to sit at the feet of mature Christians. But how many older Christians are willing to let them sit there?C.J. let me into his life even though it involved personal inconvenience. He literally invited me into his home (I lived in his basement for a year); he guided my study, exposed me to great theology, and both encouraged and constructively critiqued my fledgling attempts at leadership and preaching. So for me the power of a mentor is no abstract concept. I know the difference that personal example, friendship, and on-the-job discipleship makes. Every part of my life — as a follower of Christ, as a husband and father, and now as a pastor — has been shaped by the investment my friend made, and continues to make, in my life.
One of the reasons I love to tell my story is because I hope it will inspire older Christians to take the time to mentor the up-and-coming generation of believers. Most of us know that mentoring the next generation is a good idea. And of course it’s unarguably biblical. Proverbs 13:20 calls the young to be companions of the wise — the implication being that some wise person will be willing to let the less-wise be their companion. The Psalms speak of one generation commending the mighty acts of God to the next (Ps. 145:4). And of course, the New Testament example of Paul teaching and training Timothy models the importance of mentoring in the spread of the Gospel and the building of the church. So we can agree that mentoring is good. But do we do it? And if we don’t, is the problem that we’re too busy? Or could it be that we don’t mentor because we lack real conviction? And could our lack of conviction be the result of failing to apply the truth of the Gospel to our view of the next generation? How does the Gospel relate to this topic? First, it’s the essential motive for Christian mentoring. As Christians, we have a message — one composed of true facts about real events — that is bigger and more important than any one of us.
The good news of Jesus and His death and resurrection for sinners is the world’s only hope. It’s the only way of salvation for mankind. The obvious implication is that passing this saving message on to people who will be here after we’re gone is the most important thing we can do during our lifetime. Our legacy, our reputation, our heritage is really unimportant. A building or company or denomination with our name on it will do the world little good. But if we can teach, train, and disciple men and women to trust in, love, and proclaim the message of Christ and him crucified, then we’ve accomplished something worthwhile.
This kind of Gospel-centered view of life leads to proactive mentoring. And this is exactly what is needed today. Members of the older generation need to take it upon themselves to pursue younger Christians to mentor and disciple them in the faith. Let’s be honest. They might not be beating down the door to sit at your feet. They might not look to you with adoring eyes, amazed by your knowledge. You might not be a “cool” old person. Don’t let that stop you. If you’re motivated by the Gospel, it shouldn’t stop you. Remember, it’s not about you. It’s about the Savior. It’s about what He has done. Whether or not you have the added fuel of feeling wanted, needed, and in demand, you can go out and seek to serve. But what if you can’t relate to the younger generation? Again, this is where the Gospel comes into play.
The Gospel strips away the façade of “generation gaps” and reminds us that, regardless of our age, we all have something in common — we’re all sinners in need of the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The Gospel smoothes out the bumps of cross-generational friendships. It reminds us that, regardless of our age, we have a lot in common.
It was God’s grace that led me to realize as a young man that I needed a mentor to advise and train me in ministry. And it was God’s grace that prepared a godly older man to be that mentor. Two decades earlier, in the early days of his ministry, C.J. had made a promise to God. He had always longed for but never truly found a godly, older mentor for himself. And so he told God that if he ever had the chance to be that mentor to a younger man, he wouldn’t pass up the opportunity. He wouldn’t be too busy. When I came along he didn’t see me as a nuisance. He didn’t see me as a threat.
His first concern wasn’t preserving his position. He saw me as a young man in whom he could invest in so that the most important truth — the truth of the Gospel — could be passed on. What a refreshing perspective. Our job isn’t to fend off the next generation. Our calling as lovers of the Gospel is to equip the next generation to surpass us in faithfulness and effectiveness. Somewhere there’s a young man or woman praying for a mentor. Get ready. You could be God’s answer to that prayer.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
The Lord's Supper by Thomas Watson (1620-1686)
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is My body." Then He took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Matthew 26:26-28
"Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it." This shadowed out Christ's death and passion with all the torments of His body and soul. "It pleased the Lord to bruise Him," Isaiah 53:10. When spices are bruised—then they send forth a sweet savor. So, when Christ was bruised on the cross—He sent out a sweet fragrance. Christ's body crucifying—was the breaking open of a box of precious ointment which filled heaven and earth with its perfume.
QUESTION. What was the cause of Christ's suffering?
ANSWER. Surely not for any desert of His own. "The Messiah shall be cut off—but not for Himself," Daniel 9:26. In the original it is, "He shall be cut off, and there is nothing in Him." That is—there is no cause in Him, why He should suffer. Why, then, was His blessed body broken? It was for our sins. "He was wounded for our transgressions," Isaiah 53:5. The Hebrew word for "wounded" has a double emphasis. Either it may signify that He was pierced through as with a dart, or that He was profaned. He was used as some common vile thing—and Christ can thank us for it. "He was wounded for our transgressions." So that, if the question were put to us, as once was put to Christ, "Prophesy to us—who smote You?" Luke 22:64, we might soon answer that it was our sins which smote Him! Our pride made Christ wear a crown of thorns. As Zipporah said to Moses, "A bloody husband are you to me," Exodus 4:25, so may Christ say to His church, "A bloody spouse you have been to Me—you have cost Me My heart's blood!"
Concerning Christ's suffering upon the cross, observe these things:
1. It was a BITTER death. "He was broken." The very thoughts of His suffering, put Him into an agony. "Being in agony, He prayed more earnestly, and He sweat, as it were, great drops of blood falling down to the ground!" Luke 22:44. He was full of sorrow. "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death!" Matthew 26:38.
2. It was a LINGERING death. It was more for Christ to suffer one hour—than for us to have suffered forever. But His death was lengthened out. He hung three hours on the cross. He died many deaths before He could die one.
3. It was a PAINFUL death. His hands and feet were nailed, which parts, being full of sinews, and therefore very tender—His pain must be most acute and sharp. And to have the envenomed arrow of God's wrath shot to His heart—this was the direful catastrophe, and caused that outcry upon the cross, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me!" The justice of God was now inflamed and heightened to its full. "God spared not His Son," Romans 8:38. Nothing must be abated of the debt. Christ felt the pains of hell, though not locally, yet equivalently. In the Lord's Supper, we see this tragedy acted before us.
4. It was a SHAMEFUL death. Christ was hung between two thieves, Matthew 27:38. It was as if He had been the principal malefactor. Well might the lamp of heaven withdraw its light and mask itself with darkness, as blushing to behold the Sun of righteousness in an eclipse. It is hard to say which was greater, the blood of the cross—or the shame of the cross, Hebrews 12:2.
5. It was a CURSED death. Deuteronomy 21:23. This kind of death was deemed exceedingly execrable, yet the Lord Jesus underwent this, "Being made a curse for us," Galatians 3:13. He who was God blessed forever, Romans 9:5—was under a curse!
6. Also, consider the SWEETNESS of it to us. Christ's bruising—is our healing. "By His stripes, we are healed," Isaiah 53:5. Calvin calls the crucifixion of Christ, the hinge on which our salvation turns. Luther calls it a gospel spring opened to refresh sinners. Indeed, the suffering of Christ is a deathbed cordial. It is an antidote to expel all our fear. Does sin trouble? Christ has overcome it for us! Besides the two thieves crucified with Christ, there were two other invisible thieves crucified with Him—sin and the devil.
QUESTION. What is meant by Christ's taking the cup?
ANSWER. The cup is figurative of the wine in it. By this, Christ signified the shedding of His blood upon the cross. When His blood was poured out—now the vine was cut and bled. Now was the lily of the valleys dyed a purple color. This was, to Christ, a cup of astonishment, Ezekiel 23:33. But to us, it is a cup of salvation. When Christ drank this cup of blood, we may truly say that He drank a toast to the world.
It was precious blood, 1 Peter 1:19. In this blood, we see sin fully punished and fully pardoned. Well may the spouse give Christ of her spiced wine and the juice of her pomegranate, Song of Solomon 8:2, when Christ has given her a draft of His warm blood, spiced with His love and perfumed with the Divine nature!
"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." This is a mercy of the first magnitude, the crowning blessing. "Who forgives your iniquities, who crowns you with loving-kindness," Psalm 103:3-4. Whoever has this charter granted, is enrolled in the book of life. "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven," Psalm 32:1. Under this word, "forgiveness of sin"—are comprehended all heavenly blessings: justification, adoption, and glory—in respect of which benefits we may, with Chrysostom, call the Lord's Supper, "the feast of the cross!"
See in this text, as in a looking-glass, God's infinite love displayed.
(1) Behold the love of God the Father in giving Christ to be broken for us! That God should put such a jewel in pledge—is the astonishment of angels. "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son," John 3:16. It is a example of love, without a parallel. It was a far greater expression of love in God to give His Son to die for us—than if He had voluntarily acquitted us of the debt without any atoning sacrifice at all. If a subject is disloyal to his sovereign, it argues more love in the king to give his own son to die for that subject—than to freely forgive him the wrong.
(2) That Christ should suffer death. "Lord," said Bernard, "You have loved me more than Yourself; for You laid down Your life for me." The emperor Trajan tore off a piece of his own robe to bind up one of his soldier's wounds. But Christ tore off His own flesh for us! Nay, that Christ should die as the greatest sinner—having the weight of all men's sins laid upon Him—here was most transporting love! It astonishes all the angels in heaven!
(3) That Christ should die freely. "I lay down My life," John 10:17. There was no law to coerce Him, no force to compel Him. It is called the offering of the body of Jesus, Hebrews 10:10. Nothing could fasten Jesus to the cross—but the golden link of love!
(4) That Christ should die for such as we are. What are we? Not only vanity—but enmity! When we were rebelling—He was dying! When we had weapons in our hands—then He had the spear in His side! "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8.
(5) That Christ died for us when He could not expect to be at all bettered by us. We were reduced to poverty. We were in such a condition that we could neither merit Christ's love—nor requite it. For Christ to die for us when we were at such a low ebb, was the very quintessence of love. One man will extend kindness to another as long as he is able to requite him. But if he is fallen to decay, then love begins to slacken and cool. But when we were engulfed in misery and fallen to decay, when we had lost our beauty, stained our blood, and spent our portion—then Christ died for us. O amazing love, which may swallow up all our thoughts!
(6) That Christ should not repent of His sufferings. "He shall see the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied," Isaiah 53:11. It is a metaphor which alludes to a mother who, though she has suffered greatly, does not repent of it when she sees a child brought forth. So, though Christ had hard travail upon the cross, yet He does not repent of it—but thinks all His sufferings well-bestowed. "He shall be satisfied." The Hebrew word signifies such a satiating, as a man has at some sweet banquet.
(7) That Christ should die for us—rather than for the fallen angels. They were creatures of a more noble extraction and, in all probability, might have brought greater revenues of glory to God, Yet, that Christ should pass by those golden vessels and make us 'clods of earth' into 'stars of glory'—O the hyperbole of Christ's love!
(8) Yet another step of Christ's love, for like the waters of the sanctuary—it rises higher: that Christ's love should not cease at the hour of death! We write in our letters, "your friend until death." But Christ wrote in another style, "your Friend after death!" Christ died once—but loves forever. He never withdraws His affection to us. He is making the mansions ready for us, John 14:2. He is interceding for us, Hebrews 7:25. He has finished dying—yet He has not finished loving. What a stupendous love is this! Who can meditate upon His love—and not be in ecstasy? "May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it!" Ephesians 3:19. When you see Christ broken in the Lord's Supper, think of this love.
See, then, what entire affection we should bear to Christ, who gives us His body and blood in the Supper. If He had anything to part with of more worth, He would have bestowed it upon us. "He gave Himself for us to redeem us." Titus 2:14. O let Christ lie nearest our hearts! Let Him be our Tree of Life—and let us desire no other fruit. Let Him be our morning Star—and let us rejoice in no other light.
As Christ's beauty—so His bounty should make Him loved by us. He has given us His blood as the price—and His Spirit as the witness of our pardon. In the Lord's Supper, Christ bestows all good things. He both imputes His righteousness, and imparts His loving-kindness. He gives a foretaste of that supper which shall be celebrated in the paradise of God. To sum up all, in the blessed supper, Christ gives Himself to believers—and what more could He give? "Dear Savior, how should Your name be as ointment poured forth!" The Persians worship the sun for their god. Let us worship the Sun of righteousness. Though Judas sold Christ for 30 pieces of silver—let us rather part with all, than this pearl of great price. Christ is that golden pipe, through which the golden oil of salvation is transmitted to us.
Was Christ's body broken? Then we may behold sin odious in the red looking-glass of Christ's sufferings. It is true, sin is to be abominated since it turned Adam out of paradise and threw the angels down to hell. Sin is the peace-breaker. It is like an incendiary in the family that sets husband and wife at variance. It makes God fall out with us. Sin is the birthplace of our sorrows—and the grave of our comforts. But that which may most of all disfigure the face of sin and make it appear abominable is this—It crucified our Lord Jesus! It made Christ veil His glory and lose His blood.
If a woman saw the sword which killed her dear husband—how hateful would the sight of it be to her! Do we count that sin light—which made Christ's soul heavy unto death? Mark 14:34. Can that be our joy—which made the Lord Jesus a man of sorrows? Isaiah 53:3. Did He cry out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" And shall not those sins be forsaken by us—which made Christ Himself forsaken? O let us look upon sin with indignation! When a temptation to sin comes, let us say, "Is not this the sin which poured out Christ's blood!" Let our hearts be enraged against sin.
When the senators of Rome showed the people Caesar's bloody robe, they were incensed against those who slew him. Sin has rent the white robe of Christ's flesh, and died it a crimson color. Let us, then, seek to be avenged of our sins. Under the Law, if an ox gored a man so that he died, the ox was to be killed, Exodus 21:28. Sin has gored and pierced our Savior! Let it die! What a pity is it for sin to live—which would not allow Christ to live!
Was Christ's body broken? Let us, then, from His suffering on the cross, learn this lesson—do not wonder if we meet with troubles in the world. Did Christ suffer—who "knew no sin," and do we think it strange to suffer—who know nothing but sin? Did Christ feel the anger of God? And is it much for us to feel the anger of men? Was the Head crowned with thorns? Must we have our bracelets and diamonds—when Christ had the nails and spear going to His heart! Truly, such as are guilty may well expect the lash—when He, who was innocent, could not go free.
EXHORTATIONS
Branch 1. Was Christ's body broken for us? Let us be deeply affected with the great love of Christ. Who can tread upon these hot coals, and his heart not burn? Cry out with Ignatius, "Christ, my love, is crucified!" If a friend should die for us—would not our hearts be much affected with his kindness? That the God of heaven should die for us—how should this stupendous mercy have a melting influence upon us! The body of Christ broken—is enough to break the most flinty heart. At our Savior's passion, the very rocks cleaved asunder. "The rocks split apart," Matthew 27:51. He who is not affected with Christ's love—has a heart harder than the rocks! If Saul was so affected with David's mercy in sparing his life, 1 Samuel 24:16, how may we be affected with Christ's kindness who, to spare our life—lost His own! Let us pray that, as Christ was fastened to the cross—so may He be fastened to our hearts.
Branch 2. Is Jesus Christ spiritually exhibited to us in the Lord's Supper? Let us then set a high value and estimate upon Him.
1. Let us prize Christ's BODY. Every crumb of this Bread of life is precious. "My flesh is food indeed," John 6:55. The manna was a lively type and emblem of Christ's body, for manna was sweet. "The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey." Exodus 16:31. It was a delicious food. Therefore it was called angel's food for its excellency. So Christ, the sacramental manna, is sweet to a believer's soul. "His fruit was sweet to my taste," Song of Solomon 2:3. Everything of Christ is sweet. His name is sweet. His virtue is sweet. This manna sweetens the bitter waters of Marah.
Nay, Christ's flesh excels manna. Manna was food—but not medicine. If an Israelite had been sick, manna could not have cured him. But this blessed manna of Christ's body, is not only for food—but for medicine! Christ has healing under His wings, Malachi 4:2. He heals the blind eye, the hard heart. Keep this medicine next to your heart—and it will heal you of all your spiritual distempers.
Also, manna was corruptible. It ceased when Israel came to Canaan. But this blessed manna of Christ's body will never cease. The saints will feed with infinite delight and soul satisfaction upon Christ to all eternity! The joys of heaven would cease—if this manna would cease. The manna was put in a golden pot in the ark to be preserved there. So the blessed manna of Christ's body, being put in the golden pot of the Divine nature, is laid up in the ark of heaven for the support of saints forever. Well, then, may we say of Christ's blessed body—it is food indeed. In the field of Christ's body, being dug upon the cross—we find the pearl of salvation!
2. Let us prize Christ's BLOOD in the Lord's Supper. It is drink indeed, John 6:55. Here is the nectar and ambrosia, which God Himself delights to taste of! This is both a balsam and a perfume. That we may set the higher value upon the blood of Christ—I shall show you seven rare supernatural virtues in it:
1. It is a RECONCILING blood. "And you were once alienated and hostile in mind because of your evil actions. But now He has reconciled you by His physical body through His death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before Him." Colossians 1:21-22. Christ's blood is the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Nay, it is not only a sacrifice but a propitiation, 1 John 2:2, which denotes a bringing us into favor with God. It is one thing for a traitor to be pardoned—and another thing to be brought into favor. Sin rent us off from God—Christ's blood cements us to God! If we had had as much grace as the angels—it could not have wrought our reconciliation. If we had offered up millions of sacrifices, if we had wept rivers of tears—this could never have appeased an angry Deity. Only Christ's blood ingratiates us into God's favor—and makes Him look upon us with a smiling aspect. When Christ died, the veil of the temple was rent. This was not without a mystery, to show that through Christ's blood—the veil of our sins is rent which interposed between God and us.
2. Christ's blood is a QUICKENING blood. "Whoever drinks My blood, has eternal life," John 6:54. It both begets life—and prevents death! "The life of any creature is in its blood," Leviticus 17:11. Sure enough, the life of our soul—is in the blood of Christ. When we contract deadness of heart, and are like wine which has lost its spirits—Christ's blood has an elevating power; it puts vivacity into us, making us quick and lively in our motion. "They shall mount up with wings as eagles," Isaiah 40:31.
3. Christ's blood is a CLEANSING blood. "The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all our sin," 1 John 1:7. As the merit of Christ's blood pacifies God—so the virtue of it purifies us. Christ's blood is heaven's bath. It is a laver to wash in. It washes a crimson sinner—milk-white! The Word of God is a looking-glass to show us our spots—and the blood of Christ is a fountain to wash them away! "On that day a fountain will be opened—to cleanse them from all their sins and defilement!" Zechariah 13:1.
But this blood will not wash—if it is mingled with anything. If we mingle our good works with Christ's blood—it will not wash! Let Christ's blood be pure and unmixed--and there is no spot which it cannot wash away! It purged out Noah's drunkenness, and Lot's incest! Indeed, there is one spot so black that Christ's blood does not wash away—and that is the sin against the Holy Spirit. Not but that there is virtue enough in Christ's blood to wash it away—but he who has sinned that sin—will not be washed. He despises Christ's blood and tramples it under foot! Hebrews 10:29.
4. Christ's blood is a SOFTENING blood. There is nothing so hard, that it cannot be softened by this blood. It will soften a stone! Water will soften the earth—but it will not soften a stone; but Christ's blood mollifies a stone. It softens a heart of stone. It turns a flint—into a spring. The heart, which before was like an adamantine rock, being steeped in Christ's blood, becomes soft—and the waters of repentance flow from it! How was the jailer's heart dissolved and made tender when the blood of sprinkling was upon it! "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" Acts 16:30. His heart was now like melting wax. God might now set whatever seal and impression He desired upon it.
5. Christ's blood COOLS the heart.
First, it cools the heat of sin. The heart naturally is full of distempered heat. It must be hot—being set on fire by hell. It burns in lust and passion. Christ's blood allays this heat—and quenches the inflammation of sin.
Second, it cools the heat of conscience. In times of spiritual desertion, conscience burns with the heat of God's displeasure. Now, Christ's blood, being sprinkled upon the conscience—cools and pacifies it. And, in this sense, Christ is compared to a river of water, Isaiah 32:2. When the conscience burns and is in agony—Christ's blood is like water to the fire. It has a cooling, refreshing virtue in it.
6. Christ's blood COMFORTS the soul. It is a good remedy for fainting fits. Christ's blood is better than wine. Though wine cheers the heart of a man who is well, yet it will not cheer his heart when he is greatly afflicted—or when the pangs of death are upon him. But Christ's blood will cheer the heart at such a time. It is best in affliction. It cures the trembling of the heart!
A conscience sprinkled with Christ's blood can, like the nightingale, sing with a thorn in its breast. The blood of Christ can make a prison—become a palace. It turned the martyr's flames—into beds of roses. Christ's blood gives comfort at the hour of death. As a holy man once said on his deathbed when they brought him a cordial, "No cordial like the blood of Christ!"
7. Christ's blood PROCURES HEAVEN. Israel passed through the Red Sea to Canaan. So, through the red sea of Christ's blood—we enter into the heavenly Canaan. "Having boldness therefore to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus," Hebrews 10:19. Our sins shut heaven—Christ's blood is the key which opens the gate of paradise for us! Hence it is, that one calls the cross "the tree of salvation" because that blood which trickled down the cross, distills salvation. Well, then, may we prize the blood of Christ and, with Paul, determine to know nothing but Christ crucified, 1 Corinthians 2:2. King's crowns are only crosses—but the cross of Christ is the only crown!
Branch 3. Does Christ offer His body and blood to us in the Supper? Then with what solemn preparation should we come to so sacred an ordinance! It is not enough to do what God has appointed—but as He has appointed. "Prepare your hearts unto the Lord," 1 Samuel 7:3. The musician first puts his instrument in tune—before he plays. The heart must be prepared and put in tune—before it goes to meet with God in this solemn ordinance of the Lord's Supper. Take heed of rashness and irreverence. If we do not come prepared, we do not drink—but spill Christ's blood! "Whoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord," 1 Corinthians 11:27. "That is," said one, "he shall be judged a shedder of Christ's blood."
We read of a wine cup of fury in God's hand, Jeremiah 25:15. He who comes unprepared to the Lord's Supper turns the cup of the Lord's Supper—into a cup of fury. Oh, with what reverence and devotion should we address ourselves to these holy mysteries! The saints are called "prepared vessels," Romans 9:23. If ever these vessels should be prepared—it is when they are to hold the precious body and blood of Christ.
The sinner who is damned—is first prepared. Men do not go to hell without some kind of preparation. "Vessels prepared for destruction," Romans 9:22. If those vessels are prepared which are filled with wrath—much more are those to be prepared who are to receive Christ in the Lord's Supper. Let us dress ourselves before a Scripture looking-glass, before we come to the Lord's Supper; and, with the Lamb's wife, make ourselves ready.
How should we PREPARE for the Lord's Supper?
1. We must come with SELF-EXAMINING hearts. "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread," 1 Corinthians 11:28. It is not enough that others think that we are fit to come—but we must examine ourselves. The Greek word "to examine" is a metaphor taken from the goldsmith who carefully tries his precious metals. So before we come to the Lord's Supper, we are to make a careful and discerning trial of ourselves by the Word. Self-examination is difficult. It is hard for a man to look inward—and see the face of his own soul. The eye can see everything, but itself.
But this work is necessary because, if we do not examine ourselves, we are at a loss about our spiritual estate. We know not whether we are savingly interested in the covenant—or whether we have a right to the Supper. Also, because God will examine us. It was a sad question the master of the feast asked, "How is it that you are here—without a wedding garment?" Matthew 22:12. So it will be terrible when God shall say to a man, "How did you come in here to My table—with a proud, vain, unbelieving heart? What have you to do here—in your sins. You pollute My holy things!"
What need, therefore, is there to make a heart search before we come to the Lord's Supper! We should examine our sins that they may be mortified, our spiritual needs that they may be supplied, our graces that they may be strengthened.
2. We must come with SERIOUS hearts. Our spirits are feathery and light—like a boat without ballast, which floats in the water but does not sail. We float in holy duties and are full of vain excursions, even when we are to deal with God and are engaged in matters of life and death. That which may fill our hearts with seriousness, is to consider that God's eye is now especially upon us—when we approach His table. "When the King came in to view the guests, He saw a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes," Matthew 22:11. God knows every communicant, and if He sees any levity and indecency of spirit in us, unworthy of His presence—He will be highly incensed and send us away with the guilt of Christ's blood—instead of the comfort of it.
3. We must come with INTELLIGENT hearts. There ought to be a competent measure of knowledge, that we may discern the Lord's body. As we are to pray with understanding, 1 Corinthians 14:15, so ought we to communicate at the Lord's Supper with understanding. If knowledge is lacking, it cannot be a reasonable service, Romans 12:1. Those who do not know the meaning of the Supper—do not feel the comfort of it. We must know—God the Father in His attributes, God the Son in His offices, God the Holy Spirit in His graces. Some say they have good hearts—yet lack knowledge. We may as well call that a good eye—which lacks sight.
4. We must come to the Lord's Supper with LONGING hearts. Say as Christ, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover," Luke 22:15. If God prepares a feast—we must get an appetite. As David longed for the water of the well of Bethlehem, 2 Samuel 23:15, so should we long for Christ in the Lord's Supper. Holy desires are the sails of the soul which are spread to receive the gale of a heavenly blessing. For the exciting of holy desires and longings, consider:
(1) The MAGNIFICENCE and ROYALTY of this supper. It is a heavenly banquet. "The Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine—the best of meats and the finest of wines," Isaiah 25:6. Here in this Supper, is the juice of that grape which comes from the true Vine. Under these elements of bread and wine, Christ and all His benefits are exhibited to us. The Lord's Supper is a repository and storehouse of celestial blessings. Behold here, life and peace and salvation set before us! All the sweet delicacies of heaven are served in this feast!
(2) To provoke appetite, consider what NEED we have of this spiritual feast. The angel persuaded Elijah to take a little of the cake and jar of water that he might not faint in his journey. "Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you," 1 Kings 19:7. So truly we have a great journey—from earth to heaven. Therefore, we need to refresh ourselves along the way. How many sins have we to subdue! How many duties to perform! How many needs to supply! How many graces to strengthen! How many adversaries to conflict with! So that we need refreshment along the way. By feeding upon the body and blood of the Lord in the Supper—we renew our strength as the eagle.
(3) Consider CHRIST'S READINESS to dispense divine blessings in this ordinance. Jesus Christ is not a sealed fountain—but a flowing fountain. It is but our crying—and He gives us food. It is but thirsting—and He opens the conduit. "Let the thirsty ones come—anyone who wants to. Let them come and drink the water of life without charge!" Revelation 22:17. As the clouds have natural proneness to drop down their moisture upon the earth—so does Christ delight to give forth of His gracious virtues and influences, to the hungry soul.
(4) There is no danger of EXCESS at this supper. Other feasts often cause gluttony; it is not so here. The more we take of the Bread of life—the more healthful we are, and the more we come to our spiritual maturity. Fullness here, increases our comforts. In spiritual things there is no extreme. Though a drop of Christ's blood is sweet, yet the more, the better; the more, the sweeter. "Drink abundantly, O beloved!" Song of Solomon 5:1.
(5) We do not know how long this feast may last. While the manna is to be had—let us bring our baskets! God will not always be spreading the Supper-table. If people lose their appetite, He will take the Supper away.
(6) Feeding upon Christ sacramentally, will be a good preparation to sufferings. The Bread of life—will help us to feed upon the bread of affliction. The cup of blessing—will enable us to drink of the cup of persecution. Christ's blood is a choice wine which strengthens. Therefore, Cyprian tells us, when the primitive Christians were to appear before the cruel tyrants, they were accustomed to receive the Lord's Supper, and then they arose up from the Lord's Supper as lions breathing forth the fire of heavenly courage. Let these considerations be as sauce to sharpen our appetites to the Lord's Supper. God loves to see us feed hungrily upon the Bread of life.
5. If we would come prepared to this ordinance, we must come with PENITENT hearts. The Passover was to be eaten with bitter herbs. We must bring our myrrh of repentance which, though it is bitter to us—is sweet to Christ. "They shall look upon Me whom they have pierced—and mourn for Him," Zechariah 12:10. A broken Christ is to be received with a broken heart. We who have sinned with Peter—should weep with Peter. Our eyes should be filled with tears—and our hearts steeped in the brinish waters of repentance. Say, "Lord Jesus, though I cannot bring sweet spices, and perfume Your body as Mary did—yet I will wash Your feet with my tears." The more bitterness we taste in sin—the more sweetness we shall taste in Christ!
6. We must come with SINCERE hearts. The tribes of Israel, being straitened in time, lacked some legal purifications. Yet because their hearts were sincere and they came with desire to meet with God in the Passover, therefore the Lord healed the people, 2 Chronicles 30:19-20. Bad aims will spoil good actions. An archer may miss the mark as well by squinting—as by shooting short. What is our design in coming to the Lord's Supper? Is it that we may have more victory over our corruptions and be more confirmed in holiness? Then God will be good to us and heal us. Sincerity, like true gold, shall allow for some grains of impurity.
7. We must come with hearts fired with LOVE to Christ. The spouse said, "I am sick with love," Song of Solomon 2:5. Let us give Christ the wine of our love to drink—and weep that we can love Him no more. Would we have Christ's exhilarating presence in the supper? Let us meet Him with strong endearments of affection. Basil compares love to a fragrant ointment. Christ delights to smell this perfume! The disciple who loved most—Christ put in His bosom.
8. We must come with HUMBLE hearts. We see Christ humbling Himself unto death. Will a humble Christ ever be received into a proud heart? A sight of God's glory, and a sight of sin—will humble us. Was Christ humble—who was all purity? And are we proud—who are all leprosy? O let us come with a sense of our own vileness. How humble should he be, who is to receive alms of free grace! Jesus Christ is a lily of the valley, Song of Solomon 2:1, not of the mountains. Humility was never a loser. The emptier the vessel is, and the lower it is let down into the well—the more water it draws up. So the more the soul is emptied of itself, and the lower it is let down by humility—the more it fetches out of the well of salvation. God will come into a humble heart to revive it, Isaiah 57:15.
9. We must come with HEAVENLY hearts. The mystery of the Lord's Supper is heavenly. What would an earthworm do here? He is not likely to feed on Christ's body and blood who, with the serpent, eats dust. The Lord's Supper is called "communion," 1 Corinthians 10:16. What communion can an earthly man have with a heavenly Christ? First, there must be conformity before communion. He who is earthly is no more conformed in likeness to Christ—than a clod of dust is like a star. An earthly man makes the world his god. Then let him not think to receive another God in the Lord's Supper. O let us be in the heavenly altitudes and, by the wing of grace, ascend!
10. We must come with BELIEVING hearts. Christ gave the Lord's Supper to the apostles, principally as they were believers. Such as come faithless—go away fruitless. Nor it is enough to have the principle of faith. We must exert and put forth the vigorous actings of faith in this ordinance.
(1) Let us exercise the EYE of faith. Faith has an eagle's eye. It pierces into things far remote from sense. Faith takes a prospect of heaven. It discerns Him who is invisible, Hebrews 11:27. It beholds a beauty and fullness in Christ. It sees His beauty shining through the lattice of the ordinance. Faith views Christ's love, streaming in His blood. Look upon Christ with believing eyes and you shall, one day, see Him with glorified eyes!
(2) Let us exercise the MOUTH of faith. Here is the bread broken. What use is there of bread—but to feed on? Feed upon the Bread of God. Adam died by eating; we live by eating. In the Lord's Supper, the whole Christ is presented to us—the Divine and the human nature. All kind of virtue comes from Him—mortifying, mollifying, and comforting virtues. Oh, then, feed on Him! This grace of faith is the great grace to be set to work, at the Lord's Supper.
QUESTION. But does the virtue lie simply in faith?
ANSWER. Not in faith considered purely as a grace—but as it has respect to the object—Christ. The virtue is not in faith—but in Christ. Faith is the ring, Christ is the precious stone. All that faith does, is to bring home Christ's merits to the soul—and so it justifies. The virtue is not in faith—but in Christ.
QUESTION. But why should faith carry away more from Christ in the Lord's Supper, than any other grace?
ANSWER 1. Because faith is the most receptive grace. It is the receiving of gold, which enriches. So faith, receiving Christ's merits and filling the soul with all the fullness of God—must be an enriching grace. In the body, there are veins that suck the nourishment which comes into the stomach and turns it into blood and spirits. Faith is such a sucking vein—which draws virtue from Christ. Therefore it is called a precious faith, 2 Peter 1:1.
ANSWER 2. Faith has more of Christ's benefits annexed to it, because it is the most humble grace. If repentance would fetch justification from Christ, a man would be ready to say, "This was for my tears." But faith is humble; it is an empty hand—and what merit can there be in that? Does a poor man, reaching out his hand, merit an alms? So because faith is humble, and gives all the glory to Christ and free grace, hence it is that God has put so much honor on it. Faith is the grace to which Christ and all His merits belong. Therefore, above all graces, set faith to work in the Lord's Supper. Faith fetches in all provisions. This is the golden bucket, which draws water out of the well of life.
But there is a spurious faith in the world. Pliny tells of a Cyprian stone which is, in color and splendor, like the diamond—but it is not of the right kind. It will break with the hammer. So, there is a false faith which sparkles and makes a show in the eye of the world—but it is not genuine; it will break with the hammer of persecution.
11. We must come to the Lord's Supper with LOVING hearts. "Purge out the old leaven," 1 Corinthians 5:7. The leaven of malice will sour the ordinance to us. We must come with bitter tears—yet not with bitter spirits. The Lord's Supper is a love-feast. Christ's blood was shed not only to reconcile us to God—but to one another. Christ's body was broken to make up the breaches among Christians. How sad is it that those who profess they are going to eat Christ's flesh in the Lord's Supper—should tear the flesh of one another! "Whoever hates his brother is a murderer!" 1 John 3:15. He who comes to the Lord's Supper in hatred—is a Judas to Christ—and a Cain to his brother! What benefit can he receive at the Lord's Supper, whose heart is poisoned with malice?
If one drinks poison—surely food will do him no good. Such as are poisoned with bitterness and malice, are not the better for the sacramental food. He who does not come in love, to the Lord's Supper, has nothing of God in him, for "God is love," 1 John 4:16. He knows nothing of the gospel savingly—for it is a gospel of peace, Ephesians 6:15. He has none of the wisdom which comes from heaven, for that is gentle and easy to be entreated, James 3:17. Oh, that Christians were rooted and cemented together in love!
Shall devils unite—and saints divide! Did we thus learn Christ? Has not the Lord Jesus loved us to the death? What greater reproach can be cast upon such a loving Head—than for the members to smite one another? May the good Lord put out the fire of contention and kindle the fire of love and amity in all our hearts.
12. We must come with PRAYING hearts. Every ordinance, as well as every creature—is sanctified by prayer, 1 Timothy 4:5. Prayer turns the Lord's Supper, into spiritual nourishment. When we send the dove of prayer to heaven, it brings an olive leaf in its mouth. We should pray that God would enrich His ordinance with His presence; that He would make the Lord's Supper effectual to all those holy ends and purposes for which He has appointed it; that it may be the feast of our graces—and the funeral of our corruptions; that it may be not only a sign to represent Christ—but an instrument to convey Christ to us, and a seal to assure us of our heavenly union. If we would have the fat and sweet of this ordinance—we must send prayer before, as a harbinger, to bespeak a blessing.
Some are so distracted with worldly cares, that they can scarcely spare any time for prayer before they come to the Lord's Supper. Do they think the tree of blessing will drop its fruit into their mouth—when they never shook it by prayer! God does not set His mercies at so low a rate—as to cast them away upon those who do not seek them! Ezekiel 36:37. Nor is it enough to pray—but it must be with fervency and intensity of soul. Jacob wrestled in prayer, Genesis 32:24. Cold prayers, like cold suitors, never succeed. Prayer must be with sighs and groans, Romans 8:26. It must be in the Holy Spirit, Jude 20. "He who will speak to God," said Ambrose, "must speak to Him in His own language which He understands, that is, in the language of His Spirit."
13. We must come to the Lord's Supper with SELF-DENYING hearts. When we have prepared ourselves in the best manner we can—let us take heed of trusting our preparations. "When you have done everything you were told to do, you should say—We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty." Luke 17:15. Use duty—but do not idolize it. We ought to use duties to fit us for Christ—but we must not make a Christ of our duties. Duty is the golden path to walk in—but not a silver crutch to lean on. Alas! What are all our preparations? God can spy a hole in our best garments. "All our righteousness is as filthy rags," Isaiah 64:6. When we have prepared ourselves as hoping in God's mercy, we must deny ourselves as deserving His justice. If our holiest services are not sprinkled with Christ's blood—they are no better than shining sins and, like Uriah's letter, they carry in them the matter of our death! Use duty—but trust Christ and free grace for acceptance with God. Be like Noah's dove. She made use of her wings to fly—but trusted in the ark for safety.
We see how we are to be qualified in our coming to the Lord's Supper. Thus coming—we shall meet with embraces of mercy. We shall have not only a representation, but a participation of Christ in the Lord's Supper. We shall be filled with all the fullness of God.
Branch 4. Has Christ really and truly died for us? Then when we are at this gospel ordinance, let us remember the Lord Jesus there. The Lord's Supper is a Christ-remembering ordinance. "This do in remembrance of Me," 1 Corinthians 11:25. God has appointed this spiritual festival, to preserve the living memory of our dying Savior. A Sacrament-day is a commemoration day. Remember Christ's passion. "Remembering the wormwood and the gall," Lamentations 3:19. If the manna was to be kept in the ark, so that the memory of it should be preserved—how should the death and suffering of Christ be kept in our minds as a memorial, when we are at the table of the Lord?
Remember the glorious benefits we receive from the broken body of Christ. We usually remember those things which are advantageous to us. Christ's broken body is a screen to keep off the fire of God's wrath from us! Christ's body being broken—the serpent's head is broken! Christ being broken upon the cross—a box of precious jewels is broken open! Now we have access to God with boldness. The blood of the cross has made way to the throne of grace. Now we are made sons and heirs—and to be heir to the promise, is better than to be heir to the crown! Christ having died, we are made near akin to the blessed Trinity. We are expectants of glory. The bloody way of the cross—is our milky way to heaven. Jesus Christ drank gall—that we might drink the honey streams of Canaan. His cross was stuck full of nails—that our crown might be hung full of jewels! Well may we remember Christ in the blessed Lord's Supper!
But the bare remembrance of Christ's death is not enough. Some who have a natural tenderness of spirit may be affected with the history of Christ's passion—but this remembrance of Christ has little comfort in it. Let us remember Christ in the Lord's Supper rightly.
Let us remember Christ's death with JOY. "God forbid that I should glory—except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ," Galatians 6:14. When we see Christ in the Lord's Supper crucified before our eyes—we may behold Him in that posture as He was in upon the cross, stretching out His blessed arms to receive us. O what matter of triumph and acclamation is this! Though we remember our sins with grief—yet we should remember Christ's sufferings with joy! Let us weep for those sins which shed His blood—yet rejoice in that blood which washes away our sins!
Let us so remember Christ's death—as to be conformed to His death. "That I may be conformed to His death," Philippians 3:10. Then we remember Christ's death rightly—when we are dead with Him. Our pride and passion are dead. Christ's dying for us—makes sin die in us. Then we rightly remember Christ's crucifixion—when we are crucified with Him. We are dead to the pleasures and preferment's of the world. "The world is crucified unto me—and I to the world," Galatians 6:14.
Branch 5. If Christ has given us this soul festival for the strengthening of grace, let us labor to feel some virtue flowing out of this ordinance to us. It would be strange if a man should receive no nourishment from his food. It is a discredit to this ordinance—if we get no increase of grace. Shall leanness enter into our souls—at a feast of fat things? Christ gives us His body and blood for the augmenting of faith. He expects that we should reap some profit and income, and that our weak, feeble faith—should flourish into a great faith. "O woman, great is your faith," Matthew 15:28. It would be good to examine whether, after our frequent celebration of this holy supper, whether we have arrived at a great faith.
But I would not discourage infant believers. If your grace is not risen to the bigness and proportion of a great faith—but is of the proper kind—it shall find acceptance with God. God, who bids us to receive him who is weak in faith, Romans 14:1, will not Himself refuse him. If your faith is not grown to a cedar, yet is a bruised reed—it is too good to be broken, Matthew 12:20. A weak faith can lay hold on a strong Christ! A palsied hand may tie the knot in marriage.
Only do not let Christians rest in lower measures of grace—but aspire after higher degrees. The stronger our faith—the more sweet influence we draw from Christ. This is that which honors the blessed Lord's Supper—when we can show the increase of grace and, being strong in faith, bring glory to God, Romans 4:20.
Branch 6. Has Christ provided such a blessed banquet for us? He does not nurse us abroad—but feeds us with His own breast—nay, with His own blood! Let us, then, study to respond to this great love of Christ. It is true, we can never parallel His love. Yet let us show ourselves thankful. We can do nothing satisfactory—but we may do something out of gratitude. Christ gave Himself as a sin-offering for us. Let us give ourselves as a thank-offering for Him. If a man redeems another out of debt—will he not be grateful? How deeply do we stand obliged to Christ—who has redeemed us from hell! Let us show thankfulness four ways:
1. Let us show our thankfulness to Christ, by COURAGE. Christ has set us a copy. He did not fear men—but endured the cross and despised the shame. Let us be steeled with courage, being made ready to suffer for Christ, which is, as Chrysostom said, to be baptized with a baptism of blood. Did Christ bear the wrath of God for us—and shall we not bear the wrath of men for Him! It is our glory to suffer in Christ's quarrel. "The Spirit of God and of glory rests upon you," 1 Peter 4:14. Let us pray for furnace grace. Be like those three Hebrew children. "Be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods!" Daniel 3:18. They would rather burn—than bow!
We do not know how soon an hour of trial may come. Oh, remember, Christ's body was broken! His blood was poured out. We have no such blood to shed for Him—as He shed for us!
2. Let us show our thankfulness to Christ, by FRUITFULNESS. Let us bring forth the sweet fruits of patience, heavenly-mindedness, and good works. This is to live unto Him—who died for us, 2 Corinthians 5:15. If we would rejoice the heart of Christ, and make Him not to repent of His sufferings—let us be fruitful in obedience. The wise men not only worshiped Christ—but presented unto Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:11. Let us present Christ with the best fruits of our garden: Let us give Him our love—that flower of delight. The saints are not only compared to stars for their knowledge—but spice trees for their fruitfulness. The breasts of the spouse were like clusters of grapes; Song of Solomon 7:7.
Christ's blood both kills sin—and makes the heart fruitful in grace.
3. Let us show our thankfulness to Christ, by our ZEAL. How zealous was Christ for our redemption! Zeal turns a saint into a seraphim! A true Christian has a double baptism—one of water, the other of fire. He is baptized with the fire of zeal. Be zealous for Christ's name and truth. Zeal is increased by opposition. It cuts its way through the rocks. Zeal loves truth most, when it is disgraced and hated. "They have made void Your law; therefore I love Your commandments above gold!" Psalm 119:126-127.
How little thankfulness do they show to Christ—who have no zeal for His honor and interests! They are like Ephraim. "Ephraim is a cake not turned," Hosea 7:8, baked on one side—and dough on the other. Christ most abominates a lukewarm temper, Revelation 3:15. He is nauseated with such professors. The location of England is seated between the torrid and frigid zones. The climate is neither very hot nor cold. I wish this were not the temper of Christians, and that our hearts were not too like the climate we live in. May the Lord cause the fire of holy zeal, to always be burning upon the altar of our hearts.
4. Let us show our thankfulness, by universal SUBJECTION to Christ. This is to make the Lord's Supper, in a spiritual sense—a feast of dedication, when we renew our vows and give ourselves up to God's service. "Truly I am Your servant," Psalm 116:16. "Lord, all I have is Yours. My head shall be Yours to study for You; my hands shall be Yours to work for You; my heart shall be Yours to adore You; my tongue shall be Yours to praise You!"
Branch 7. If Jesus Christ has provided so holy an ordinance as the Lord's Supper, let us live suitably to it. Have we received Christ into our hearts? Let us show Him forth—by our heavenliness. Let us show forth Christ by our heavenly words. Let us speak the language of Canaan. When the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles, they spoke with other tongues, Acts 2:4. While we speak the words of grace and soberness—our lips are fragrant with perfume, and drip with honey.
Let us show forth Christ by our heavenly affections. Let our sighs and breathings after God, go up as a cloud of incense. "Set your affections on things above," Colossians 3:2. We should do by our affections, as the farmers do by their corn. If the corn lies low in a damp room, it is in danger of corruption. Therefore, they carry it up into their highest room that it may keep the better. So our affections, if set on earth, are apt to corrupt and be unsavory. Therefore, we should carry them up on high above the world that they may be preserved pure. Breathe after fuller revelations of God. The higher the lark flies—the sweeter it sings. The higher our affections are raised towards heaven—the sweeter joys we feel.
Let us show forth Christ by our heavenly lives, Philippians 3:20. Hypocrites may, in a pang of conscience, have some good affections stirred—but they are as a flushed face, which comes and goes. But the constant tenor of our life must be holy. We must shine forth in a kind of angelic sanctity. It is not enough to have the image of Christ in the heart—but there must be something of Christ manifest in the life.
The scandalous lives of many communicants are a reproach to the Lord's Supper, and tempt others to infidelity. How odious it is, that those hands which have received the sacramental elements—should be unjust! That those eyes which have been filled with tears at the Lord's Supper should, afterwards, be filled with envy! That those teeth, which have eaten holy bread, should grind the faces of the poor! That those lips, which have touched the sacramental cup, should greet a harlot! That the mouth which has drunk consecrated wine, should be full of coarse jesting! That they who seem to deify Christ in the Supper, should vilify Him in His members! In a word, that such as pretend to eat Christ's body and drink His blood at church, should eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of bitterness in their own houses! Proverbs 4:17.
These are like those Italians I have read of, who, at the Lord's Supper, are so devout, as if they believed God to be in the bread—but in their lives are so profane, as if they did not believe God to be in heaven! Such as these are apt to make the world think that the gospel is but a religious cheat. What shall I say of them? With Judas, they receive the devil in the sop, and are no better than crucifiers of the Lord of glory. As their sin is heinous, so their punishment will be proportional. "They eat and drink damnation to themselves," 1 Corinthians 11:29.
Oh, that such a luster and majesty of holiness sparkled forth in the lives of communicants, so that others would say, "These people have been with Jesus!" And their consciences may lie under the power of this conviction, that the Lord's Supper has a holy and transforming virtue in it!COMFORT to God's people.
1. From Christ's broken body and His blood poured out, we may gather this comfort—that it was a glorious sacrifice.
It was a sacrifice of infinite merit. Had it been only an angel that suffered, or had Christ been only a mere man, as some blasphemously dream—then we might have despaired of salvation. But He suffered for us—who was God as well as man. Therefore, the apostle expressly calls it "the blood of God," Acts 20:28. It is man who sins. It is God in our nature who dies!
This is sovereign medicine to believers. Christ having poured out His blood—now God's justice is completely satisfied. God was infinitely more content with Christ's sufferings upon mount Calvary—than if we had lain in hell and undergone His wrath forever! The blood of Christ has quenched the flame of Divine fury! And, now, what should we fear? All are enemies are either reconciled or subdued. God is a reconciled enemy--and sin is a subdued enemy. "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is Christ who died!" Romans 8:34. When the devil accuses us—let us show him the cross of Christ! When he brings his pencil and goes to paint our sins in their heinous colors—let us bring the sponge of Christ's blood, and that will wipe them out again! All bonds are cancelled. Whatever the law has charged upon us, is discharged. The debt-book is crossed out—with the blood of the Lamb!
It was a sacrifice of eternal extent. The benefit of it is perpetuated. "He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us," Hebrews 9:12. Therefore, Christ is said to be a Priest forever, Hebrews 5:6, because the virtue and comfort of His sacrifice abides forever.
2. Christ's blood being shed, believers may lay claim to all heavenly privileges. Wills are ratified by the death of the testator. "A testament is of force after men are dead," Hebrews 9:17. It is observable in the text that Christ calls His blood "the blood of the new testament." Christ made a will or testament, and gave rich legacies to the saints: pardon of sin, grace, and glory! The Scriptures are the scrolls wherein these legacies are registered. Christ's blood is the sealing of the will. This blood being shed, Christians may put in for a title to all these legacies. "Lord, pardon my sin. Christ has died for my pardon. Give me grace; Christ has purchased it by His blood."
3. Is Christ's blood shed? Here is comfort against death. A dying Savior, sweetens the pangs of death. Is your Lord crucified? Be of good comfort! Christ, by dying, has overcome death. He has cut the lock of sin where the strength of death lay! Christ has knocked out the teeth of this lion! He has pulled the thorn out of death—so that it cannot prick a believer's conscience. "O death, I will be your plague," Hosea 13:14. Christ has disarmed death and taken away all its deadly weapons, so that, though it may strike, it cannot sting a believer. Christ has drawn the poison out of death. Nay, He has made death friendly. This pale horse carries a child of God home to his Father's house! Faith gives a right to heaven; death gives us possession of heaven! What sweet comfort may we draw from the crucifixion of our Lord! His precious blood paints the pale face of death, into a glorious and beautiful complexion.
Here is a DARK side of the cloud, to all profane people who live and die in sin. They have no part in Christ's blood. Their condition will be worse, than if Christ had not died. Christ, who is a loadstone to draw the elect to heaven—will be a millstone to sink the wicked deeper in hell! They must feel the same wrath which Christ felt upon the cross! And, because they cannot bear it all at once, they must be undergoing it to eternity! 2 Thessalonians 1:9. So inconceivably torturing will this be—that the damned do not know how to endure it—nor how to avoid it!
Sinners will not believe this until it is too late. Wicked men, while they live, are blinded by the god of this world. But, when they are dying, the eye of their consciences will begin to be opened, and they shall see the wrath of God flaming before their eyes—which sight will be but a sad prologue to an eternal tragedy!
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