J.C. Ryle on “Holiness”

“I fear it is sometimes forgotten that God has married together justification and sanctification.  They are distinct and different things, beyond question, but no one is ever found without the other.  All justified people are sanctified, and all sanctified people are justified.  What God has joined together let no man dare to put asunder. Tell me not of your justification, unless you have also some marks of sanctification.  Boast not of your Christ’s work for you, unless you can show us the Spirit’s work in you.  Think not Christ and the Spirit can ever be divided.” (Holiness, Ryle, pp.59)

Ryle’s point should be very clear here.  It is simply an explanation of two basic, but extremely controversial, implications of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Those that have been chosen by the Father in eternity past (Eph. 1:4) were redeemed by Christ’s blood, upon faith in the gospel.  Christ bore the wrath of God, becoming a curse, for the sins of man. Those that receive Christ as their Righteous Substitute by faith have their sins atoned for and receive the righteousness of Christ. They are declared righteous and this is what is meant by justification.  Choosing or election is done by the Father and justification is accomplished through the Son. Sanctification is the process by which the believer progressively grows in Christlikeness, repenting of sin, for the rest of his/her life.  This process is accomplished by the work of the Spirit in the heart of believers, because the flesh is wholly incapable of rendering holiness. The giving of the Spirit was an Old Testament promise of the New Covenant (Ezek. 36:26-27), effected and accomplished by Christ (Lk. 22:20, Heb 9:15).  To miss the harmony of the Godhead in salvation is to miss its incomparable beauty and strength.

In fact, this harmony is what Ryle is speaking of.  If one has truly been justified because of Christ, then he will be sanctified by the Holy Spirit.  There will be no disruption in the harmony of the Trinity.  The Father did not send the the Son to remove the penalty by dying for a people (church) who would remain unchanged and passionately pursuing sin.  That is illogical.  Scripture clearly tells us there will be a people, holy to the Lord, in the new heavens and new earth from every tribe, tongue and nation who love Jesus, which some have endured fiercest of persecutions, even death, for His namesake.  Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murders and idolaters, and everyone WHO LOVES AND PRACTICES FALSEHOOD. (Rev 22:15)

It is abundantly clear that those who love and practice falsehood are outside the presence of Christ reflecting they were never justified or born again.  But those who have truly been justified, their lives will be a demonstration of faith and good works because what God begins, He completes. (Phil. 1:6)

Paul exhorted the Corinthians to examine themselves, to see whether or not they were in the faith. (2 Cor. 13:15)  This living Word is for us today.

Do our lives bear the marks of holiness?  Let us examine ourselves at the heart level and see whether or not we’re in the faith.

If you’re truly born again, praise God for His grace and persevere by faith which comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ – the Scriptures (Rom. 10:17) and continually give yourselves over to prayer.

Without holiness, no one shall see the Lord. (Heb:12:14)

Holiness: It’s Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots

Grace & Peace,

d.

Counterfeit Gods by Tim Keller

Currently, our church book club ministry is reading Tim Keller’s Counterfeit Gods. It’s a great look at the various forms of idolatry that do or have the potential to enslave us.

I wrote a brief summary of chapter three, Money Changes Everything.

Read summary here.

Watch a short clip of Keller here about the book.

d.

Reverence

I vividly recall the first time my ears were exposed to hip hop. It was in Houston in the summer of 1982 and a cousin turned me on to the Fat Boys, Run DMC and Whodini. Prior to that, I had been a resident of Louisville, KY and my closest exposure to hip hop was disco music on contemporary radio.  I was hooked on hip hop the first time I heard it, not to mention the image of the emcees and DJ’s. Kangol hats, Cazal glasses, big rope chains, Adidas sneakers, and leather pants or jeans caught my eye. These were young black men communicating the commonalities of the urban culture in simple rhyme schemes using language I understood. I was 7 then.

One of hip hop’s classic songs is “I Used to Love H.E.R.” by Common, then known as Common Sense. It was a song that personified hip hop as a beautiful, yet unfaithful, forever changing, man pleasing woman that he loved. Common vividly painted the picture of how this woman (hip hop) went through many phases and lovers just to get a reputation, yet he longed for the day when she was in her purest form. He was hoping “she” would return to her better days.

“Slim was fresh, yo, when “she” was underground / Original, pure, untampered and down “sister” / Boy, I tell you, I miss “her”!”

Language is a unique phenomenon.  As a global medium of communication, it has many voices and creative faces of expression such as poetry and all of its devices, such as the one above.  It can be used to communicate complex or simple ideas or thoughts.  By the use of certain words and inflections, language can communicate emotion or feelings.  Also, language can communicate praise, honor, glory or abhorrence.  As an example of praise, consider the Psalmist in the 34^th Psalm verses 1-3.

¹I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
²My soul makes its boast in the LORD;
let the humble hear and be glad.
³Oh, magnify the LORD with me,
and let us exalt his name together!

See the beauty of language?!?

Upon my conversion in 1998, one of the first things I was convicted of was the music I was listening to. I was convinced the lyrics of Tupac, Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., Snoop Dogg, Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, A Tribe Called Quest, Busta Rhymes, etc. were incongruent with the commands of Scripture and weren’t going to aid in any renewal of my mind. In fact, that music stimulated the “old man” that was already put to death, since “the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14) Simply put, the Lord took away my desire to flood my mind with those godless songs.  Yet, I still craved a hip hop expression, but with a different focus.  Providentially, I stumbled upon Crossmovement and was ecstatic about what I was listening to. You can read more about it here.  What was so beautiful about this blend was the authentic expression of the urban culture submitting itself to the majesty of Jesus Christ.  Timberlands and theology!  The Lord is magnificent!

As Christian Hip Hop (CHH) gained wider acceptance in the church and being used as an evangelistic tool, there came an increase in production quality, business savvy, and marketability.  Not to mention, there was a sense of competition in being relevant to its secular counterpart.  Here’s where I think CHH began to decrease in its effectiveness.  It seemed to be more consumed with secular acceptance than with honoring the Lord. Certain emcees started rapping like secular rappers (not in content, but in inflection), incorporating production effects that were trendy for a season in the secular environment, watering down of the gospel and what I’ve noticed recently is a lack of reverent communication about God.  Like Common missed hip hop in her purest form, I miss CHH when it was primarily about the glory of Christ.

So what do I mean?  Here’s what I mean – hip hop has a list of demands.  More importantly, for the emcee there are “rules to the game”. To be considered a “dope emcee who kills it on the regular” one must be witty, clever, boastful, have multi-syllabic rhyme schemes, and communicate a point in a space of 3 verses or 48 bars.

But what should be the mark of a Christian emcee?  Aside from the fact that the first obligation is a credible Christian witness, a Christian emcee can be as “dope” as any emcee.  He/She can be creative, witty, clever, have multi-syllabic rhyme schemes and communicate a point in a limited space.  Obviously, what’s missing is that the Christian emcee shouldn’t be boastful, since his/her boast is in the Lord and his/her rhymes are supposed to be Christ glorifying.  But what should always be present is a sense of reverence, not only in the rhymes but in the delivery as well. This is what truly redeemed emceeing looks like.

Despite the great amount of truth in many songs, I’m afraid for the sake or pressure of having clever rhyme schemes or hooks, reverence appears to be on the decline for our God.  When God is referred to as some slang term for the sake of the rhyme scheme, reverence for God is lost.  When the emcee desires praise from men, reverence for God is lost.

Thankfully, all is not lost. Though not perfect, great examples still exist. Consider Timothy Brindle’s lyrics from “The Preciousness of Time” from his album Killing Sin.

On Wall Street a rich dude snorts lines/
His morning devotion is the New York Times/
And Time magazine at times it seems/
Time flies as if time had some wings/
But this is irony right/
While most spend the time of their life trying to have the time of their life/
Thinking lies are really true/
If you’re busy killing time the truth is time is killing you/
But you’re too cool- you love to take your time/
You fool- God can come and take your time/
Then He’ll search your mind and surely find your works are slime/
One sin’s an eternal prime it takes eternity to serve the time/
Reject Him and regret how your spurned this rhyme/
You offended the Divine/
In hell, like Michael Jackson, you’ll remember the time/
Once your time is up you blasphemer/
You can’t travel back with a flux capacitor/
It’s such a massacre when Christ is parting the sky/
You’ll want to go back in time like Marty McFly/
But you sharply despised Christ kindness my friend/
And He gave you a whole  lifetime to repent/
So next time you’re asking what time is it/
Know Christ can come to give times final tick/

Hear the whole song here: The Preciousness of Time

Did you notice the reverence of Christ in these lines? Did you notice man’s place in these lines? This song is flooded with the supremacy of Christ as the governor of time and how man is ultimately bound to God’s “timeclock”.

Also,  consider shai linne.  Here’s  his song “The Glory of God” from his upcoming album, The Attributes of God on Lampmode Records. This album  was influenced by A.W. Tozer’s classic book, The Knowledge of the Holy.  Nothing is more reverential than focusing on the multifaceted attributes of God. Truly, this is lyrical theology. It is my estimation that the more we are in awe of God, the less we’ll focus on ourselves and more on Him.  In other words, our praise and reverence will be on display, not only in our words, but the very flow of our lives.   May we be a people who display reverent redemption!

The Glory of God – Shai Linne

Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,…

(Hebrews 12:28)

Soli Deo Gloria!

d.

Philippians 2:5-8

The Humility of Christ: Pt. 1

⁵Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷ but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. ⁸And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

The constant battle we all fight is an unjustified preoccupation with self. We fight for our rights. We live for our purposes. We seek to satisfy our desires & our pleasures.  Even our prayers are tainted, at times, with selfish ambition.  We, by nature, are full of pride.  Theologian, John Stott said, “Pride is more than the first of the deadly sins; it is itself the essence of all sin.”¹ It has been said that pride is the contention for supremacy with God.  At the core, pride is nothing more than self-glorification.  C.J. Mahaney has rightly said, “The proud person seeks to glorify himself and not God, thereby attempting in effect to deprive God of something only He is worthy to receive.”²

As the essence (or root) of all sin, pride manifests itself most clearly in the context of relationships.  If we have a high view of ourselves we will try to advance ourselves, look down on others, discount their desires or thoughts, grow easily irritated with others, display harsh behavior, become easily offended when others have wronged us and exact revenge.  James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5 tell us, among many other places in Scripture, that God opposes the proud.  Mark 9:34 gives us a great example of the self-aggrandizement of the disciples.  Mark 9:35 gives us a great example of self-abasement.

³³And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he (Jesus) asked them (disciples), “What were you discussing on the way?” ³⁴But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. ³⁵And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” (Mark 9)

This is precisely the same point Paul is making in Philippians 2:1-4. Paul is exhorting the Philippians to demonstrate their new birth by caring for one another, which can only be done when their hearts are not consumed with selfish ambition or pride.  Looking for and doing what will bring about the most amount of good for others requires humility.  This is the fight of sanctification every believer will fight until the day of glorification.

The basis of Paul’s exhortation, as previously stated, were the realities of the justified position the believers in Philippi stood. (2:1)  The mission behind Paul’s exhortation is the advancement the gospel. (1:27) Christ accomplished the mission (Mk. 10:45) that we’re called to proclaim with every fabric of our being.  The ultimate example in which the believers in Philippi could fix their gaze and take their cues from was Jesus Christ. Believers are being fashioned by God’s Spirit to bear the image of Christ. (Rom. 8:29) Paul demonstrates two distinct ways in which Christ humbled Himself – (1) identifying with humanity (vv6-7) and (2) the manner of death in which he subjected Himself. (v8)

To understand the depth of Christ’s humility we must first call attention to His glory as God, the 2^nd Person of the Trinity.  From everlasting, Jesus Christ is God. He’s always possessed the same attributes and privileges as the Father and the Holy Spirit.  In His high priestly prayer in John 17, Jesus prayed to the Father:

⁵And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

δοξῃ [doxēi]) is the Greek word for “glory” in the verse above and it is referring to the majestic and divine state of the pre-incarnate Christ.  Clearly, Jesus says He possessed this glory before the world existed and through His death and resurrection, He returned to that same glory.

Paul confirms the deity of Christ by saying he was in the form of God. This simply means that Christ was the external appearance of God and it carries the same idea of Jesus’ words to Phillip in John 14:9.  Paul goes on to say that Jesus didn’t count equality with God a thing to be grasped.  Although, He was fully God, for the sake of the mission of redemption, He didn’t hold on to all of the privileges of being God for His own selfish advantage. Instead, He made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Christ subjected Himself to the finiteness and limitations of humanity in a sin riddled world so that we could be freed from the power of sin and the wrath of God.  2 Corinthians 8:9 says:

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

Christ is not only our example of perfect humanity, but through His death and resurrection and by the power of the Spirit, we too can be humble and repent of pride.  If we’re too concerned about ourselves and building our “kingdoms”, we will never understand the wonderful plan of God’s redemption nor display His excellencies to a dark and dying world. For the sake of His fame and your joy, seek the good of others and ultimately their joy in Christ.

“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

(Luke 14:11)

 

1. John Stott, “Pride, Humility & God,” Sovereign Grace Online, September/October 2000.
2. C.J. Mahaney, Humility, (Multnomah Books, 2005), 32.

The Attributes of God: The Knowledge of God

“God is omniscient. He knows everything: everything possible, everything actual; all events and all creatures, of the past, the present, and the future.  He is perfectly acquainted with every detail in the life of every being in heaven, in earth and in hell.”  (Pink, p. 21)

“For I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them.” (Ezekiel 11:5)

How do these two truths affect your actions and your view of God?  It should affect us (mankind) a great deal if we contemplated them on a regular basis.  As it is, mankind is separated into two spheres: God’s redeemed children and God’s enemies.  For God’s enemies, these truths are readily rejected and as Pink stated, “Men would strip Deity of His omniscience if they could…”  This is because we’re naturally wired to oppose God in every measure and don’t want to feel the weight of guilt and shame.  But man will never have this “luxury”. Psalm 90:8 says,

 

You have set our sins before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.

 

Man cannot escape from the knowledge and the all seeing eye of God.  

For the redeemed, Pink said God’s omniscience should bring much comfort. Why?  For the Lord knows all things and has a covenantal love with His children.  When we doubt, He knows and is readily available to assure us. When we are wearied, He knows that we are but dust and strengthens us by His might.  Even when we find it difficult to pray, His omniscience trumps our difficulties. Isaiah 65:24 assures us that:

Before they call I will answer;
    while they are yet speaking I will hear.

 

Another reason the believer can rest in God’s knowledge is because God’s will is not contingent on man or secondary causes. Remember from chapter 2, God decreed all that has happened, what is happening now, and what will happen. The future is not only known by Him, but designed by Him.  Recorded and fulfilled prophecies readily point us to this fact.  We can’t think that future events just happen on their own accord and God simply has knowledge of them. To think that is to reduce the supremacy & sovereignty of God.  Pink logically states, “The cause of all things is the will of God.”  Psalm 33:10-11 says,

¹⁰The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
   he frustrates the plans of the peoples.
¹¹The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
   the plans of his heart to all generations. 

This is the grounds of His omniscience! What will be has been from eternity past because the Great I Am is!  

So what should our response be to His perfect knowledge? We should be amazed. We should be humbled. We should worship. We should grow in our confidence and trust.

Pink closes this chapter by saying, “He foresaw my every fall, my every sin, my every backsliding; yet, nevertheless, fixed His heart upon me.”

What love this is! 

Grace & Peace,

d.

The Attributes of God: The Decrees of God

“The decree of God is his purpose or determination with respect to future things.” (Pink, p.15)

Open Theism is a position held by some that deals with the knowledge of future things.  Moderate Open Theists will claim that God knows the future, but voluntarily limits His knowledge of the “free choices” of man to preserve man’s freedom.  Hyper Open Theists claim that the future is unknowable, even by God, because the future is non-existent.  Both of these positions are unbiblical and problematic for numerous reasons, which we will soon see.

In my first installment, one of the characteristics of God that was listed was God’s eternal nature. Eternity is no respecter of the dimension of time. Therefore, God is not bound by time.  “In the beginning, God…” (Gen. 1:1a)  He eternally exists outside of time and has created time.  This remains to be a difficult reality for us to grasp because our very existence is bound in time and in many ways defined by it. We are limited by the Limitless One.

God has disclosed to us in His Word that He acts according to the counsel of His own will (Eph. 1:11).  He consults no one about His will and He has purposed to glorify Himself in all that He decrees.  He will not let the exaltation of His Name ultimately be left in the hands of creatures.  Because He is eternal, His decrees are eternal.  With respect to His decree, we see this most clearly in the death of Christ.  The LORD spoke through Isaiah in the 53^rd chapter,

¹⁰Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;
he has put him to grief;
when his soul makes an offering for guilt, 

It was the will of the LORD to crush him. It was the decree of God the Father to crush His Son, Jesus, for the atonement of His people. Luke records for us in Acts 2:22-23, 

²²“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— ²³this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.

The crucifixion of Jesus was according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, though done by the hands of lawless men.  God decreed Jesus’ death and the method by which he would die before time, and in time Jesus died exactly how the Father decreed it.  God always accomplishes His will. 

* To say God doesn’t know the future is to deny God’s omniscience.

* To say God doesn’t know the future is to deny God’s omnipresence. 

* To say God doesn’t decree all things is to deny His sovereignty, wisdom and omnipotency.

To believe in that kind of god leaves us hopeless and living in a world predicated by fate and chance. 

Believer, continually be comforted by Romans 8:28.

d.

The Attributes of God: The Solitariness of God

Recently, I outlined an extra-biblical reading list for the remainder of 2011 to aid in keeping my mind and heart focused and sharpened against the desires of my flesh, the world and the devil.  However, my reading is not only as a means of defense, but also to aid in serving the brethren and engaging the lost.  My goal is to read key works on the basics such as Theology Proper (the study of God), Christology (the study of Christ), Pneumatology (the study of the Holy Spirit), Soteriology (the study of salvation), Ecclesiology (the study of the church), Eschatolology (the study of last things), personal holiness and the like.

Today, was the beginning of my trek and I started with a A.W. Pink’s classic book, The Attributes of God. I started with “Theology Proper” because it establishes the foundation and interpretation of all other reading since everything stems from the nature, character and will of God.  Without a proper knowledge of God, the source of all truth, we abandon ourselves to lies and continue to lay bricks for the road of destruction.

In the preface, Pink starts by quoting Scripture:

“²³Thus says the LORD:”Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, ²⁴but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me,…” (Jeremiah 9:23-24a)

Do we understand and know the Lord as we ought?  Do we possess that desire?  If we’re honest, we’ll answer that we don’t.  Much to our dismay, we are unjustifiably preoccupied by lesser things; some necessary and some unnecessary.  Plus, we’re in a lifelong battle of killing the sin in our hearts that vies strongly against God.  However, we are not without power.  We have the Holy Spirit who testifies of Christ and allows us to cry out “Abba! Father!”, as reconciled and adopted sons and daughters.  Therefore, we should strive in His power and by His strength to endeavor to grow in the grace and knowledge of God.

Pink begins the first chapter, The Solitariness of God, by declaring people generally don’t meditate on the perfections of God; namely His solitariness or His essence of being untouchably distinct or separate from all of His creation.  Because we were created in the likeness and in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27), there is the ability to understand some particular things about God because we share certain qualities.  These are commonly referred to as communicable attributes.  Some of these are love, grace, mercy, holiness, righteousness, and justice.  However, His solitariness is something we cannot share in, nor understand apart from the help of the Spirit.

Consider how the Holy Spirit moved Moses to speak of God in Exodus 15:11:

¹¹“Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods?
   Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
   awesome inglorious deeds,doing wonders?

These questions rhetorically speak of God’s unmatched character and excellency.  Consider a few more observations Pink made concerning the solitariness of God.

• There was a time when creation, even heaven, didn’t exist, but God’s glory did because He is from everlasting.
• There was a time when angels, nor humans were praising Him and He was still altogether wonderful.
• He is self-contained, self-sufficient, and  self-satisfied.
• He was under no compulsion to create out of necessity or deficiency.
• He created all things simply to display His glory.
• God could’ve very well chosen not to create and He still would be The Perfect One.

Perhaps one the most humbling observations  Pink made was that God gains nothing from our worship as it pertains to His intrinsic worth.  What Pink is saying is that God’s glory and worth isn’t contingent on our praise or adoration.  Surely, we are called to praise Him, which Pink terms our praise as manifestative glory, but not intrinsic glory.  God’s glory isn’t increased or diminished by any outside agency’s recognition, acceptance or rejection of Him. He is altogether lovely!  We are very small.  He is big!  Ponder Isaiah 40:9-31.

Behold your God!

Grace & Peace,

d.

It’s All a Matter of Interpretation

It’s all a matter of interpretation. This is the mantra of our non-absolutists friends and also, unfortunately, many in the church when it comes to the correct interpretation of Scripture.  I say unfortunately because there are many who do not believe in the absolute truth of Scripture.  Once you remove the idea of absolutes, authority is lost as well.  Therefore, the Scriptures mean whatever the reader desires them to mean, usually to coddle their sin, always to their own detriment.  But I can’t say that “it’s all a matter of interpretation”  is entirely false.  It just depends on how it’s interpreted – based on the author’s intent, not the reader’s subjective bias. Reading 101.  

It often boggles my mind (not really) how some people voraciously scrutinize the Scriptures seeking to prove its “falsehood and unreliability” without applying the same measure of scrutiny to the daily paper or current news journal. Now if you’re going to fight, fight fairly.  Also, what weakens the rejecters position is that more than likely the basic rules of the science of interpretation (hermeneutics) haven’t been applied honestly.  Now if you’re going to fight, fight intelligently.

In the realm of Scripture, correct interpretation is a must for various reasons. Some of which are (1) to understand the nature and  character of God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) (2) to understand the revealed will of God (3) to understand ourselves (4) to understand sin and (5) to understand the gospel and its implications.   Scripture clearly attests its authority and its efficacy concerning these things.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. (2 Tim. 3:16-17, ESV)

With such a claim, it is our duty to rightly divide the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15).  Notice the emphasis on “rightly”.  This means there is a wrong way to interpret Scripture, and it is done far too often.  The first step in understanding how to correctly interpret Scripture is to submit to its authority. The ultimate Author of Scripture is God, not man.  The second step is to understand the unique literary qualities of the Scriptures.  The Bible is composed of several different genres of writings.  Within the genres, various literary devices are used to help emphasize meaning.

Genre: Law, History, Wisdom, Poetry, Gospel, Epistles, Prophecy, and Apocalyptic Literature

Literary Devices: Allegory, Anthropomorphism, Hyperbole, Simile, Metaphor, etc.

Each genre and literary device, when present, must be considered when seeking to attempt to correctly interpret Scripture due to the varying nuances.

For example, the book of James is an epistle and the book of Proverbs is wisdom literature. Because each of these belongs to different genres, certain rules apply respectively. Or when we say “the arm of the LORD”, we can’t take that literally because the LORD is Spirit. This is an example of the literary device of anthropomorphism.  Several misinterpretations of Scripture are believed due to poor hermeneutics and eisegesis, rather than exegesis.  We must know when to take the Bible literally and when to understand when a literary device is being employed to emphasize a point, lest we end up making mistakes like this.

  

A few resources worth purchasing:

* A Basic Guide to Interpreting the Bible: Playing by the Rules / Robert H. Stein

* Dig Deeper: Tools for Understanding God’s Word / Nigel Beynon & Andrew Sach

* 40 Questions about Interpreting the Bible / Robert L. Plummer

d.

Suffering Well

Through my extended journey through Philippians, one of the most reassuring things about this epistle is Paul’s attitude considering that at the time of his writing he was in chains for the gospel. This is one of Paul’s prison epistles. The reoccuring theme / word in this epistle is joy or rejoice.  In fact, the fourth verse of the fourth chapter exhorts the Philippians and us to rejoice always, which includes short and long seasons of diverse trials.

Recently, I have been getting an onslaught of news from various brothers and sisters in the faith about various trials they are experiencing.  One of the most reoccuring trials I hear are people dealing with health issues, even some that are life threatening.   My heart goes out to them and my prayers go up for them.  May the Lord extend them more grace to deal with these trials and ailments if He doesn’t choose to heal them.   That grace is the increasing assurance in the abundant promises of the gospel.

The implications of the gospel are mighty against battling despair, depression, anger, frustration, and apathy that tend to accompany trials or afflictions. 

These implications are mighty because they point us to Christ!

We simply must continue to believe the gospel for our sanctification and look forward to the eschatalogical implications of it - a glorified body, a new heaven and new earth, free from the presence of sin and its effects and reconciliation with Christ.  It is a battle of faith to understand that this world and our earthly tents are not final. We are citizens of heaven awaiting our return home and we will be fit with new bodies for eternity. REJOICE!  Our suffering is only for a little while.

While we can be comforted that our suffering here is not final, we still battle with the question of why? Why has the Lord appointed or permitted suffering for His children?  Here’s where we must be cautious in examining the Lord and His ways, lest we sin against Him like Job.  We must let God speak through His Word and rest in that. 

Scripture tells us that there is a suffering that is actually a gift of grace (Philippians 1:29), it’s designed to sanctify us (James 1:2-4), deepens our intimacy with Christ (Psalm 119:75, Philippians 3:10) and loosens our affections for this world.

Scripture also tells us in Romans 8:28 that all things (including your trials and sufferings) are working together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.  What’s implicit about Romans 8:28 is that all things are meant to glorify God! Our suffering, in one way or another, is a vehicle God uses to get glory from us for Himself as we see Him as Ultimate.

Grace & Peace,

d.

Philippians 2:1-4 : Part 2

A Call to Unity & Humility: Implications of the Gospel

“1So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of your look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:1-4 ESV)

Having seen the five realities of the Philippians’ relationship with God through Christ and the Holy Spirit and to one another as the church, Paul expresses that his joy would be satisfied seeing the implications of these realities demonstrated in their lives.  These implications are:  (1) being of the same mind, etc. – v2, (2) the absence of rivalry or conceit – v3a, (3) considering others more significant than themselves – v3b and (4) being concerned about the interests of others – v4.

When we read these exhortations, it should be readily apparent that Paul is calling for the demonstration of unity by way of humility displayed through selflessness or being others-centered.  Also, it should be apparent that these exhortations are linked to one another for a glorious reason.

As previously mentioned, redemption not only reconciles believers to God, but also to one another.  We are members of one body (Rom. 12:5), where Christ functions as the head (Eph. 4:15).  Redemption also calls us away from autonomous rebellion and into loving submission to Christ and the mission of God, which is to call a people to Himself through the proclamation of the gospel.  The church is a product of God’s mission and is also called to be His agent of mission until the 2nd advent of Christ. If the church is going to carry that out by the power of the Spirit, and manifest the wisdom of God (Eph. 3:10-11) and the Lordship of Christ (Phil. 2:11), then we must understand the significance of Paul’s exhortation to be of the same mind, maintaining the same love, being united in spirit and intent on one purpose.

Countering his positive command in verse 2, Paul offers a negative command at the beginning of verse 3.  To fulfill Paul’s desire, the Philippian church is also called to move away from their natural propensity to be self-absorbed.  For rivalry, Paul used the Greek word eritheia, which carries the idea of promoting oneself as in a political election through unfair means.  For empty conceit, the Greek word kenodoxia literally means a groundless vain opinion of oneself.  These two sins are nothing more than two types of pride.  The former being destructive and the latter being deceptive.  How can the church be effective in its mission if we are more concerned about promoting ourselves, demoting others and insistent on thinking unjustifiably more highly of ourselves than we do of Christ?  Posturing oneself for personal glory is antithetical to the faith. Essentially, it’s satanic.  For this is what ushered the fall of man – a desire to be like God.  James’s epistle gives us some added insight to rivalry as the same Greek word is used in 3:14 and 3:16 for selfish ambition.
 

14But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.

 

How sobering is this? Selfish ambition is unspiritual, demonic and the source of disorder and every vile practice.  Wherever we see the lack of fruit in our lives or in the church collectively, be sure that selfish ambition is a reason.  Wherever we see a pattern of sin in our lives or the in the church collectively, be sure selfish ambition is a reason.  When we have set our faces against God in rebellion, a host of rebellions will surely follow. This is why James says that that kind of “wisdom” is not from above and this is why Paul is exhorting the Philippians to not conduct themselves that way.  Instead, wisdom from above looks like James 3:17-18 and shows itself not standing in contradiction to the the sum of the Law, but identical to it.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
(Matt. 22:37-40)

In carrying out these two commands by the power of the Spirit, we will not be rivalrous or conceited, but indeed make manifest the beauty of the gospel.

Grace & Peace,

d.