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 In the kingdom of Christ, insubmission to the plain letter of Scripture, a wish to look into the secret purposes of God, and 'to be wise above what is written,' has, at all times in some measure, and at this time in particular, distracted the church, and tainted the simplicity of divine truth. So much of corrupted nature is there  in us, men will even here be thinking for themselves, and call their views deep, enlarged. These biblical freethinkers take the word of God for their rule, but then it is in a different sense - in any sense, they do not much care what, so it be but different from that in which any simple mind would understand it…..Such critics have made intellect seem the enemy of truth, which God could never mean it should be. He foresaw, indeed, that it would become so. He knew how powerful an instrument in Satan's hand would be the reasoning, questioning pride of man, when induced to array itself against the reception of the word.  When He determined to reveal to babes what was hidden from the wise and prudent, it was not that He held in abhorrence gifts He had bestowed; or that superior endowments made the creature an object of dislike to his Creator, that He should exclude him from His mercy. Impossible! But it pleased Him to clothe His Gospel in such a form, that non but the simple-minded could receive it; and while He gave His revelation in terms so plain, the way-faring man, though a fool, could not err therein, unless willfully choosing darkness rather than light…….

It pleased Him there should be but one way to divine knowledge; the ignorant, the poor, the simple, were ready to enter it, and his Spirit had only to unclose the gate- but for the wise, the learned, the disputatious, a previous process was required: 'If any man will be wise, let him become a fool.' They must go back and enter by the same gate of child-like ignorance, receiving the dictation of the Spirit without question and without dispute.  This the All-wise foresaw they would not do.  They would take His word as if it were the word of man, and examine it by the light of their own wisdom; and doing so, would either reject it wholly, receive only so much of it as they could fully explain; or, admitting its divine authority as a whole, would subject each separate part to whatever construction seemed most agreeable to their natural reason. Well might God foretell that not many such would be saved, although He named a way by which they might be.  That which seemed impossible with men, was possible with God. Some such are saved; not by conforming His plan of salvation to their character, and unclosing His mysteries to satisfy their wisdom, but by quite a different process. Touched by His Spirit, they consent to become fools, to read, believe and obey. But, alas! How often is this the end, when it should be the beginning; even of a religious course. What years of holy contentment are lost; what seasons of doubt and despondency endured, because men will reason when they should believe, or will have other guides for their belief, than the plain letter of the Scriptures! …………A Christian who…knows no right, no wrong, but according to God's revealed word. If he is questioned, there is his reason - if he is reproached, there is his defense - if he is in doubt, this, and this only, can resolve him. 

- Caroline Fry Wilson

From her book: Christ Our Example

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 FAITH , like a simple, unsuspecting child,

Serenely resting on its mother's arm
Reposing every care upon her arm,
Sleeps on his bosom, and expects no harm:

Receives with joy the promises he makes,
Nor questions of his purpose or his power;
She does not doubting ask, "Can this be so?"
The Lord has said it, and there needs no more.

However deep be the mysterious word,
However dark, she disbelieves it not;
Where Reason would examine, Faith obeys,
And "It is written," answers every doubt.

Faith, with a keen and realizing glance,
Revels in things yet distant and unseen,
And tastes a joy as exquisite, as true,
As if no veil of darkness hung between.

It is no cold, reversionary bliss,--
No distant hope the trusting bosom proves;
Faith has already wing'd the soul to heaven,
In search of Him whom seeing not she loves.

If clouds and darkness rest upon the soul,
Darkness is welcome, since it is His will;
In nature's saddest moments Faith can say,
"Though he should slay me, I will trust him still!"

In vain, with rude and overwhelming force,
Conscience repeats her tale of misery;
And powers infernal, wakeful to destroy,
Urge the worn spirit to despair and die.

As evening's pale and solitary star
But brightens while the darkness gathers round,
So Faith, unmov'd amid surrounding storms,
Is fairest seen in darkness most profound!

- Caroline Fry Wilson

From her book: Serious Poetry

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 "If any man in the world needs the special presence of God with them and His blessing in order to succeed, certainly ministers do.  For what is the design and end of their ministry? Is it not to open the eyes of sinners to turn them from darkness to light?  And from the power of sin and Satan to God and Christ? And who is sufficient for these things? In a work of this nature, what can ministers, of themselves, do? Verily, they may preach even to paleness and faintness, until the bellows are burnt, until their lungs and vitals are consumed, and their hearers will never be the better; not one sinner will be converted until God is graciously pleased, by the efficacious working of His Spirit, to add His blessing to their labors and make his word, in the mouth of the preacher, sharper than any two-edged sword in the heart of the hearer.  All will be vain, to no saving purpose, until God is pleased to give the increase. And in order to do this, God looks for their prayers, to come up to His ears.  A praying minister is in the way to having a successful ministry."

 John Shaw

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  "To sin is to love yourself at the expense of your neighbor.  More than that, it is to love yourself at the expense of God. Sin-shaped love expresses itself primarily in the form of narcissism.  It is self-absorbed love. This affection is hate masquerading as love, compelling us to engage in self-destructive behavior. Sin promises freedom and delivers slavery.  It speaks the language of friendship while treating us like enemies.  Sin is a cruel master who promises good wages only to reward our loyalty with hard service, disappointment and death.  For some reason, we return again and again to this false lover and expect a different result.

The answer to sinful lust is love - God's love, which comes to us from the outside, like the righteousness of Christ.  Adopting the language that Martin Luther used to speak of Christ's righteousness, we might call it 'alien love' because it does not originate with us. It is a love that begins with God and can come to us only as a gift. For the Christian, this greater love is the organizing force for all our other desires.  In this regard, love is not so much an emotion as it is a disposition. We might call it a divinely empowered direction for our lives.....What is true of lust is true of all capitol sins.  Change may require discipline, but it does not begin with discipline.  What is required is a miracle of grace." 

John Koessler

Dangerous Virtues: How to Follow Jesus When Evil Masquerades as Good

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  "True spiritual illumination comes from Scripture,  which is 'profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for every good work' (2 Tim. 3: 16-17).  As the man of God is equipped for every good work, we see that Scripture is not only indispensable, but also sufficient.  No other supposed sources of truth need be consulted to receive the spiritual illumination necessary for salvation. " 

Victor Kuligin

The Language of Salvation: Discovering the Riches of What it Means to be Saved

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A heart for others and their actual needs should be what stirs us 'to the heart' - we are to look on others, not for how they can encourage us, but how we may encourage the. The potential of lives forever changed should drive us, fulfill us, as it did our Lord - many did not respond as this group (later in Jesus' ministry), but it did not change His 'fulfilling sustenance' (doing the will of God and not allowing predictable norms to dictate the possibilities we look for) Our focus is to be looking for God's working (readiness for harvest) realizing He may have been "working on" someone long before we met them. 

- Don Lambert 

excerpts from his studies on John 6

You may listen to the sermon here: http://dbc.sermon.net/main/main/21629112

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What is it to wait on the Lord?

June 7, 2017

By: Rick Lambert

(When I was going through some of the most difficult trials I have ever experienced)

Is it a blessing or is it berating?

I'm talking about the trial of waiting;

That heavy weight of God's neglect that is ever-stating,

And the purposeless days that are so devastating.

The endurance it demands is perplexing,

And the energy it consumes is distressing.

The long days and lonely nights that keep me guessing

As I search and ponder what happened to God's blessing.

Each day, joy crumbles and is replaced with mourning,

And peace disappears into forlorning.

But such an event must become the loud warning

That my heart is being deceived into scorning.

Is waiting really as bad as I am thinking?

Perhaps it is a wonderful tool to stop me from shrinking

As it stares in silence at me without blinking.

Surely it cannot be present for my sinking.

Waiting actually seems painless in the scheme of its framing,

And maybe with God's good intentions are aiming.

However, it does hurt somewhere in my soul I keep exclaiming,

But one thing is for sure, it works toward my taming.

Why does it hurt; this great hour of testing,

That steals away my precious hours of resting?

Maybe it's my need for growth, God's Word keeps suggesting,

And the fruit of righteousness it is investing.

So, let's examine this unusual work in our seeking,

With hope that we'll see God's clear speaking.

For I'll see that it accomplishes a great work worth keeping,

And without this view, what will I do but continue weeping.

I can now see that waiting is the sound of patience preaching,

And clears away life's distractions so I can perceive God's teaching.

It can become the gracious renewal in the morn's beseeching,

And must be evening's consoling mercy that's far-reaching.

The Word tells me that waiting is good for those in God's making,

For it generously energizes me and protects me from breaking.

With precision and wilful intention I find it is a divine undertaking,

And accompanying it is grace to keep me from aching.

Waiting on God requires more than human coping,

For God's will and ways require great scoping,

Without this insight I am bound to keep moping,

But by looking deeper than how I feel, I can continue hoping.

To those who are waiting, God keeps you from fainting,

And with His finger, a beautiful vista is painting.

For this is His way with those whom he is sainting,

With the end result showing no signs of tainting.

Those who persist in their trust of him, he keeps us running

In order to show the glory of what we are becoming.

For waiting on God, we find he is not shunning,

But rather reveals wonderful blessings forthcoming.

With renewed strength we keep plotting,

And with the vigor of young eagles the prize we keep spotting.

For with life and growth comes trials and training for allotting.

Revealing a testament of God's faithfulness for our heart's jotting.

Is it a blessing or is it berating?

I'm talking about the trial of waiting;

It is a blessing God is creating,

Preparing us for eternity with him in our ultimate awaiting.

Quote of the Day

Let me add in conclusion, that the passage which I have chosen for my text (Rev 1:3), in which a blessing is promised to all who read or hear this prophecy, has long appeared to me, to be utterly inconsistent with the popular historical or polemical interpretations.  If such interpretations, or even the principles upon which they proceed, be true, the Apocalypse can be read and understood by the scholar and the man of learning only: by him who has penetrated into the secrets of history, and traced the rise and progress and downfall of dynasties and doctrines; but to the poor, the unlettered, and to those who read the words of the prophecy alone, to those, who from their inability perhaps to read, are forced to content themselves with hearing it read by others; to such it is impossible, on the principles of the historical commentators, the Apocalypse can be any thing but an enigma and a riddle.  How can they keep those things that are written in this prophecy, to whom the things written are unintelligible, and necessarily unintelligible?  How can they look for the time as at hand, if the time of the prophecy be spread already over nineteen centuries?    Surely then such a promise as that which is contained in the text, must be understood, as implying, if not as asserting, that in the words of the prophecy itself, carefully considered and diligently 'kept,' we have that can be necessary to the right understanding of it; and the reason that is given for our keeping them in our hearts, namely, 'because the time is at hand.' would seem to intimate, that the period within which the prophecy shall be accomplished, shall not be, not a long and tedious series of many centuries, but a brief and rapid space; for the approach of which, we are to watch, as men that know neither the day nor the hour of their Master's coming; 'looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior, Jesus Christ;' and ever bearing in mind the prophetic warning of our Lord and Savior. 'for as the lightning cometh out of the  East, and shineth even unto the West, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be."  

 

Excerpt taken from Six Discources on the Prophecies Relating to Antichrist in the Apocalypse of St. John by James Henthorne Todd

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The smiles of an encouraging, if not a believing world, have long followed the writers and preachers of evangelical truth, making smooth and pleasant their allotted tasks.  We believe that it will cease to be so:  the envoys and ambassadors of the Most High will be dismissed with ignominy on the approach of war, where in a time of apparent peace, they have been feted and applauded…… Shall any be found wanting?  Shall voices that in more halcyon days were heard on the Lord's side, grow now so confused and indistinct, that it cannot be known what is piped or harped?  Shall trumpets that were used to echo through the camp of Israel their notes of victory or warning, give now so uncertain a sound that none shall know whether to prepare themselves for battle,  for fight, or for submission?  It may be so. Men sometimes seem to want in things spiritual the wisdom and courage that not uncommonly characterizes the children of this world in their generation.  When the wind sets in, and the tide flows strong upon a rocky shore, the skillful mariner turns the vessel's head, makes for the sea , and calls all hands together to keep her off the land.  Our helmsmen are doing contrariwise:  they have set their sails to wind and their head to the tide, and are doing all they can to near the fatal shore.  In some instance they have gone the utmost length their principles will admit, to conform themselves to the fashion of the times, to avoid the imputation of extreme opinions, and relieve themselves of a name they would once have been ashamed to be without…..

…we are apt to talk a little too vaguely about opinion - as if all religious truths were matters of opinion, subjects of reasoning, exercises of judgment.  It is not so.  The most important truths of the Gospel are not opinions - they are matters of revelation, and therefore matters of fact.  A positive declaration, statement, or command in the Holy Scriptures excludes opinion - forbids opinion - stamps on opinion the sin of unbelief.  There are more of such things  in the book of God than some people are aware of; and the 'I think,' and 'I don't think' of common talk, grates harshly sometimes on the considerate believer's ear; falls unbecomingly sometimes from the inconsiderate believer's lips.  He who insists upon such truths as these, however imperatively, is not dogmatical: he who condemns all contradiction and contravention of them, is not uncharitable; while the believer who when called upon to contend for the faith, from deference to opinion concedes or compromises, or withholds these plain declarations of the word of God, is a traitor or a coward, and no true soldier of the Lord Jesus Christ.  

 

Excerpt taken from Christ Our Law - by Caroline Fry Wilson

https://snickerdoodlesquotes.blogspot.com/

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"…our society is strongly individualistic and 'me-centered.'  We have a tendency to 'look out for number one' and often have less regard for others.  Whereas in many of our organizations and structures individuality is encouraged, there is little place for it in the body of Christ.  Can you imagine an arm proclaiming its independence from the rest of the body?  Not only would the arm become gangrenous and rot away, but the body would be damaged by its absence.  While the world tends to teach us to be self-focused, as believers we must endeavor to be others-focused.  This is expressed in Jesus's command to deny ourselves....... Many believers today envision the Christian faith as more of a picnic or a walk in the park than a bloody sacrifice of the self, but the former is not the biblical portrait."

 Ten Things I Wish Jesus Never Said by Victor Kuligin

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"We should have it so happen that, when our life's story is written, whoever reads it will not think of us as 'self-made men', but as the handiwork of God, in whom his grace is magnified.  Not in us may men see the clay but the Potter's hand."

- Charles Spurgeon - From the book: Living By Revealed Truth: The Life and Pastoral Theology of Charles Haddon Spurgeon by Thomas Nettles

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Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her...(Eph 5:25)

Gave himself to die to redeem it.  The meaning here is, that husbands are to imitate the Redeemer in this respect.  As he gave himself to suffer on the cross to save the church, so we are to be willing to deny ourselves,  and to bear toil land trial, that we may promote the happiness of the wife.  It is the duty of the husband to toil for her support; to provide for her needs; to deny himself of rest and ease, if necessary, in order to attend on her in sickness to go before her in danger; to defender if she is in peril; and to be ready to die to save her.  Why should he not be?  If they  are shipwrecked, and there is a single plank on which safety can be secured should he not be willing to place her on that, and see her safe at all hazards to himself? But there may be more implied in this than that a man is to toil, and even to lay down his life for the welfare of his wife.  Christ laid down his life to save the church; and a husband should feel that it should be one great object of his life to promote the salvation of his wife.  He is bound so to live as not to interfere with her salvation, but so as to promote it in every way possible.  He is to furnish her all the 'facilities' that she may need, to enable her to attend on the worship of God; and to throw no obstacles in her way.  He is to set her the example; to counsel her if she needs counsel, and to make the path of salvation as easy for her as possible.  If a husband has the spirit and self-denial of the Savior, he will regard no sacrifice too great if he may promote the salvation of his family.  - Albert Barnes

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It is a great mistake when we fret over the human instrument which smites us, and forget the hand which uses the rod.  If I strike a dog, he bites my stick; poor creature, he knows no better; but if he could think a  little he would bite me, or else take the blow submissively.  Now, you must not begin biting the stick.  After all, it is your heavenly Father that uses the staff; though it be of ebony or of blackthorn, it is in his hand.  It is well to have done with picking and choosing our trials, and leave the whole matter in the hand of infinite wisdom."

Charles Spurgeon
From his book: Talks to Farmers

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…Spurgeon observed many, 'who, by hearing continually the most precious doctrine that belief in Jesus Christ is saving, have forgotten other truths, and have concluded that they were saved when they were not, have fancied they believed when as yet they were total strangers to the experience which was not grounded upon the divine word rightly understood, 'nor proved by any facts in their own souls.'  They resented any suggestion of self examination by gospel tests as 'an assault upon their assurance' and 'defended their false peace by the notion that to raise a question about their certain salvation would be unbelief.' Their ill-placed certainty has put them in a hopeless condition and they ignore biblical warnings and admonitions by 'their fatal persuasion that it is needless to attend to them.'  Their historical knowledge of the work of Christ has settled them in a conviction 'that godly fear and careful walking are superfluities, if not actually an offense against the gospel.' 


 From the book: Living By Revealed Truth: The Life and Pastoral Theology of Charles Haddon Spurgeon by Thomas Nettles

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Leaders, this is not the finish line.  This is the starting point.  We're aiming too low, even when we're hitting our target.  Again, if spiritual maturity is typically measured by daily Bible reading as individuals, and if discipleship (if it happens) is typically measured by the reproduction of sound doctrine and maybe Scripture memory, and if leadership is qualified by theological education (and perhaps business savvy for directing growth strategies and managing staff recruits), then we're functionally gnostic.  We've focused our efforts on the acquisition of spiritual knowledge in the mind while disregarding the spiritual significance of daily life in the physical world.  An incomplete gospel is an incorrect Gospel.


From the book: Leveling the Church: multiplying your Ministry by Giving it Away - By Micah Fries and Jeremy Maxfield

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(Speaking of Heb 10:24-25)This passage calls us to regular gathering together as a church community.  It could be easy to assume that this simply means that we all need to be together so we can worship together, but the beginning of that passage says otherwise.  In verse 24, the author frames for us why we need to gather together:  in order to push one another to 'love and good deeds.'  This strikes us as a more intimate expectation.  This call reveals an awareness of each other's lives and an intimacy with how those lives are lived.  We are specifically encouraged to gather together so we can be in each other's business.

From the book: Leveling the Church: multiplying your Ministry by Giving it Away - By Micah Fries and Jeremy Maxfield

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"…we have repurposed the Christian faith in a way that is generically individualistic.  We claim that we don't need the church to worship, that we can worship anywhere.  We claim that no one can judge us.  We claim that our relationship with God is our business alone.  We have even taken the process of spiritual development, and narrowed it down to an individualistic activity.  The height of Christian maturity, in many American churches, is a consistent quiet time…….

Among conservative evangelicals, there are many who are guilty of this radical individualism in ways that are not readily apparent.  Consider, how we regularly judge the success of a worship service.  We leave and say things like, 'That was great! I really got fed today!'  That sounds mature, and faithful.  It sounds like we are prioritizing good biblical teaching, but it is actually in opposition to biblical worship.  When we judge the effectiveness of a worship service by what it does for us, we have made ourselves the object of the worship experience.  Faithful worship is not measured by how much we are filled up, but rather how much we are emptied and worship is about sacrificing ourselves in our worship of the only God Who is worthy.""

From the book: Leveling the Church: multiplying your Ministry by Giving it Away - By Micah Fries and Jeremy Maxfield

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"A fellow lecturer told his Bible class that it did not matter whether the biblical character Job was real or fictional.  For him, the point off Job's book is to teach us about suffering, and the historicity of Job is immaterial to that lesson.  I cannot disagree more strongly, and hopefully this illustration will help clarify why. 

Suppose you are going through a difficult time in your life.  Perhaps it is from the death of a close relative or you struggle with debilitating illness. Just like the psalmist who felt abandoned by God in his deepest time of need, you feel lost and adrift in your suffering, with no sense of God's care.  In this state, you ask me to bring you wise counsel and comfort.

I tell you a story about a man who built a spaceship to travel to Venus.  Due to a technological breakthrough, he was able to equip his vessel with heat-resistant panels, making it safe to venture close to the sun.  Unfortunately, along the way the panels failed and his eyes were burned out of their sockets.  With all hope seemingly lost, in his despair he called out for help and God rescued him.

What would your reaction be to my story?  Would you thank me for the incredible comfort I gave you?  Or would you look at me with a glare, wondering how I expect this silly story to assist you?....Fiction can provide little comfort for the realities of life.  It is akin to telling someone struggling through financial difficulty, "Don't worry, you'll win the lottery."  Or to a man who lost his legs in a car accident, "Let me read you a story about a man who drank some sugar water and his legs grew back overnight."

The real God of creation acts in the real events of human history.  Our Christian faith is not rooted in esoteric platitudes or ethereal propositional truths to which we grant our mental assent.  Our faith is rooted in concrete experiences, with God breaking into history in amazing ways…"

- Victor Kuligin - From his book: Snubbing God: The High Cost of Rejecting God's Created Order