Since I will be in Denver this weekend visiting my brother I am not anticipating doing much blogging so this should tide you over...
Read John 9. In part...
1As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" 3Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
I follow a pastor on Twitter by the name of Britt Merrick. He has a daughter named Daisy who is 1 of 80 children in North American this year who will be diagnosed with a recurring Wilms tumor. They had just battled cancer for 8 months and thought they had beaten it. She started experiencing stomach pains on their first family vacation in Hawaii in quite some time.
Now she is back in the hospital. There is a 30-50% cure rate. They were only able to remove 1/3 of it through surgery. Here is her picture...
http://ow.ly/i/2ALr
Today he tweeted that he had received an email from a girl suffering with cancer. She was going to kill herself until she heard his sermon from last Sunday. You can listen to it here:
http://realitycarpinteria.com/messages/current/index.html
God is indeed most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
We may not always understand why God allows certain things to happen. But sometimes He shows us very clearly why our earthly sorrow is necessary for the advancement of His Kingdom. That is a trade we should desire any day.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Our One Hope
Tim Vanderveld
Jul 11, 2010 at West Hills Community Church
Tim was our Associate Pastor of Worship for 1997-2004. He is now an Associate Pastor at Converge Church in Minneapolis. Tim contracted gall bladder cancer in 2007. Four months ago, he was given just six weeks to live. Needless to say, the Lord has extended Tim's life. Tim has used this gift of time to speak in support groups, classrooms and churches about where his hope lies. This morning, via Skype, he is sharing from God's word and relating from his own experience of what it means to walk through the valley of the shadow of death with Jesus as his Savior.
5 surgeries...24 rounds of chemo...30 rounds of radiation...36 formal messages given since being given just 6 weeks to live by doctors on March 7th. His prayer has shifted toward extending his life so he may share his story with as many people as possible.
The question he is most frequently asked is, "How are you handling this?" He says his answer is found in 1 Peter 3:15. His hope is in Jesus Christ. (By the way, I think verses 16-17 are also good rebuttals to the prosperity gospel...ESV says, "WHEN you are slandered"...not if.)
Where does this hope come from? Look at 1 Peter 1:3-9.
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a LIVING HOPE through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
When you find Jesus in your darkest moments the words out of your mouth should be praise, glory and honor. It can be hard but let your heart rejoice knowing that God's will is being done in your life. He broke down talking about the earthly sorrow he experiences when looking into the eyes of his wife of 29 years and children and knowing they will have to go on without him while attempting to balance the inexpressible joy he will have upon walking into glory. Once again, I was reminded of the phrase "sorrowful yet always rejoicing" which encapsulates our life here in this broken world as we await our eternal home.
No matter your age, your circumstance, your health...the one universal, unshakeable truth is that your hope is in Jesus Christ.
Thanks Tim. God bless you.
Jul 11, 2010 at West Hills Community Church
Tim was our Associate Pastor of Worship for 1997-2004. He is now an Associate Pastor at Converge Church in Minneapolis. Tim contracted gall bladder cancer in 2007. Four months ago, he was given just six weeks to live. Needless to say, the Lord has extended Tim's life. Tim has used this gift of time to speak in support groups, classrooms and churches about where his hope lies. This morning, via Skype, he is sharing from God's word and relating from his own experience of what it means to walk through the valley of the shadow of death with Jesus as his Savior.
5 surgeries...24 rounds of chemo...30 rounds of radiation...36 formal messages given since being given just 6 weeks to live by doctors on March 7th. His prayer has shifted toward extending his life so he may share his story with as many people as possible.
The question he is most frequently asked is, "How are you handling this?" He says his answer is found in 1 Peter 3:15. His hope is in Jesus Christ. (By the way, I think verses 16-17 are also good rebuttals to the prosperity gospel...ESV says, "WHEN you are slandered"...not if.)
Where does this hope come from? Look at 1 Peter 1:3-9.
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a LIVING HOPE through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
When you find Jesus in your darkest moments the words out of your mouth should be praise, glory and honor. It can be hard but let your heart rejoice knowing that God's will is being done in your life. He broke down talking about the earthly sorrow he experiences when looking into the eyes of his wife of 29 years and children and knowing they will have to go on without him while attempting to balance the inexpressible joy he will have upon walking into glory. Once again, I was reminded of the phrase "sorrowful yet always rejoicing" which encapsulates our life here in this broken world as we await our eternal home.
No matter your age, your circumstance, your health...the one universal, unshakeable truth is that your hope is in Jesus Christ.
Thanks Tim. God bless you.
Prayer
"Prayer is not mainly where we give God our to-do list, but where we ask God for help in accomplishing His to-do-list." - Mark Driscoll
Yet no one calls on your name or pleads with you for mercy.Therefore, you have turned away from us and turned us over to our sins. (Isaiah 64:7)
Prayer is our access to God. When we relate to God, we cannot help but be changed. And if we are changed, then our situation changes because we are no longer the same person we were before our prayer. The Bible says prayer is character forming. It increases our faith and without faith it’s impossible to please God and know God’s blessing (Heb. 11:6).
Prayer is also a valued coping practice. Prayer conditions us to cast our troubles onto God and depend on God’s care and sufficiency. Rather than borrow tomorrow’s troubles, prayer keeps us focused on what is at hand and what we can do.
Prayer is likewise a clarifying agent. Nothing clears my head better than a time of prayer. It helps me see a situation more clearly and from different perspectives.
Prayer is a change agent. It changes a person and thus that person will respond to situations differently. When our way of responding changes then people’s responses to us changes as well. The cycle is changed.
One of my favorite theologians is P. T. Forsyth, the Scottish pastor who was born in 1848 and died on November 11, 1927. Forsyth studied under the greatest theological minds of his time, yet he discovered that talking about God is not nearly as helpful and edifying as talking to God. Forsyth is credited with launching a new theological movement that put the person of Jesus Christ front and center in our spiritual lives and theological thinking.
At an ominous time when the world seemed hell-bent on war, Forsyth preached about the sin of prayerlessness. He said the “the worst sin [of all] is prayerlessness.” Prayerlessness is the root cause of human misery.
The Apostle James teaches, “Draw near to God and God will draw near to you” (4:8). Forsyth notes, “We are left by God” because of our “lack of seeking God.” And due to our failure to seek God, we become estranged from and abandoned by others.
Prayer is the great producer of sympathy; it puts us in touch with others. When God fills our hearts, God in turn makes more room in our hearts for others and for their conditions.
Forsyth taught that not wanting to pray is the sin behind sin and it ends up with our not even being able to pray. Failing to pray, we starve ourselves and thus we become spiritually emaciated and helpless.
The unfortunate historic record of World War I revealed Forsyth to be a true prophet.
I think he’s the prophet we need to heed in today. I only hope that asking candidates about their practice of prayer is a result of our growing appreciation to be in continual fellowship with God and all others. I further hope we are not guilty of asking candidates to be responsible for acts of faithfulness about which we ourselves might be derelict.
If we can be prayerful in all things, then we just may witness a new movement of grace in our time.
Reverend Greer is the pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania. You can contact him at awakenings@mountainhomemag.com
http://www.strategicrenewal.com/strategic-renewal-e--devotional/do-less-pray-more-three-attitudes-to-cultivate-intimacy-with-god/
www.bloggingtheologically.com/2013/07/12/a-holy-boldness-in-prayer
Yet no one calls on your name or pleads with you for mercy.Therefore, you have turned away from us and turned us over to our sins. (Isaiah 64:7)
Prayer is our access to God. When we relate to God, we cannot help but be changed. And if we are changed, then our situation changes because we are no longer the same person we were before our prayer. The Bible says prayer is character forming. It increases our faith and without faith it’s impossible to please God and know God’s blessing (Heb. 11:6).
Prayer is also a valued coping practice. Prayer conditions us to cast our troubles onto God and depend on God’s care and sufficiency. Rather than borrow tomorrow’s troubles, prayer keeps us focused on what is at hand and what we can do.
Prayer is likewise a clarifying agent. Nothing clears my head better than a time of prayer. It helps me see a situation more clearly and from different perspectives.
Prayer is a change agent. It changes a person and thus that person will respond to situations differently. When our way of responding changes then people’s responses to us changes as well. The cycle is changed.
One of my favorite theologians is P. T. Forsyth, the Scottish pastor who was born in 1848 and died on November 11, 1927. Forsyth studied under the greatest theological minds of his time, yet he discovered that talking about God is not nearly as helpful and edifying as talking to God. Forsyth is credited with launching a new theological movement that put the person of Jesus Christ front and center in our spiritual lives and theological thinking.
At an ominous time when the world seemed hell-bent on war, Forsyth preached about the sin of prayerlessness. He said the “the worst sin [of all] is prayerlessness.” Prayerlessness is the root cause of human misery.
The Apostle James teaches, “Draw near to God and God will draw near to you” (4:8). Forsyth notes, “We are left by God” because of our “lack of seeking God.” And due to our failure to seek God, we become estranged from and abandoned by others.
Prayer is the great producer of sympathy; it puts us in touch with others. When God fills our hearts, God in turn makes more room in our hearts for others and for their conditions.
Forsyth taught that not wanting to pray is the sin behind sin and it ends up with our not even being able to pray. Failing to pray, we starve ourselves and thus we become spiritually emaciated and helpless.
The unfortunate historic record of World War I revealed Forsyth to be a true prophet.
I think he’s the prophet we need to heed in today. I only hope that asking candidates about their practice of prayer is a result of our growing appreciation to be in continual fellowship with God and all others. I further hope we are not guilty of asking candidates to be responsible for acts of faithfulness about which we ourselves might be derelict.
If we can be prayerful in all things, then we just may witness a new movement of grace in our time.
Reverend Greer is the pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania. You can contact him at awakenings@mountainhomemag.com
http://www.strategicrenewal.com/strategic-renewal-e--devotional/do-less-pray-more-three-attitudes-to-cultivate-intimacy-with-god/
www.bloggingtheologically.com/2013/07/12/a-holy-boldness-in-prayer
Friday, July 16, 2010
Pretty Cool...
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. – Fifty years ago, Roger Woodward earned bragging rights as one of the few people to survive a plunge over Niagara Falls.
Not that he ever used them.
For sure, the 7-year-old miracle boy who tumbled over the brink after a boating accident is part of the colorful folklore of the Falls. His story is told in the same breath as the fame and fortune-seeking adventurers led by schoolteacher Annie Taylor's 1901 barrel ride with her cat.
Woodward and his family sought to resume normal life after he and his 17-year-old sister, Deanne Woodward, were rescued from the Niagara River after being tossed from family friend James Honeycutt's 12-foot aluminum boat on July 9, 1960.
"We were just two kids out with a family friend for a day on the water," Woodward says now. "It turned tragic. A man lost his life, and quite literally by the grace of God we were thankful that my sister and I were saved."
For 34 years, Woodward and his sister never talked about it, not even to each other. Their parents thought it best they move on. But Woodward remembers the immediate interest from the outside world was overwhelming, so much so that his father hooked the family's trailer to a truck and moved in the dead of night from Niagara Falls.
He marked the 50th anniversary by listening with his wife, Susan Woodward, to a rebroadcast of a radio special about the accident.
"To this day, every time I hear the story I can smell the water," he said.
For Woodward, the worst part was the brutal ride through suffocating whitewater where he was tossed from Honeycutt's boat after it struck something, became disabled and was pulled into the powerful rapids.
"This water looks like it's as big as a house with the waves and the rocks," he says. "One minute you're pulled underwater, you can't breathe, you wonder if you're ever going to breathe again. The next second you're thrown up into the air and you come down and you're glancing off of rocks as you're going through the rapids."
He says there was a peaceful moment, though — while he was going over the brink of the Falls.
"I was floating in a cloud," he says. "I had no sensation of up or down. I didn't have any sensation in my stomach like you might have on a roller coaster ... that moment when your stomach is in your throat."
He doesn't remember hitting bottom. He may have been protected from the rocks by what's known as a water cone, a formation that bursts from the surface after water and air drop with such force, Niagara Falls historian Paul Gromosiak said.
"It's like a hand reaching out," Gromosiak explained. "It had to be that — or a miracle."
"Miracle" was what the newspaper headlines declared over black-and-white photos of the blonde, blue-eyed boy clinging to a life ring before being pulled onto the Maid of the Mist tour boat, which was nearby when he bobbed to the surface at the churning base. He looks as though he's smiling — but he was in shock.
All these years later, it's difficult to say how that moment may have affected the life of the carpenter's son who loved the outdoors.
It was his first boat ride and could have been his last. Instead, Woodward developed a love of boating, became a certified diver, even joined the Navy during the Vietnam War. But you won't find him on the upper Niagara with a 7.5-horsepower motor like the one that powered Honeycutt's boat.
"I'm a person of common sense and very safety minded," he said.
Woodward is drawn to stories of survival on the high seas, accounts of circumnavigating the globe, with their underlying themes about persevering through the worst nature has to offer.
"I like the part of survival, the way they find a way to survive in dire circumstances," he said.
Woodward said he heard countless times that "God had his hand on you that day" or "God must have some important mission for you to accomplish in life." But it wasn't until 20 years later that the boy who had not regularly attended church was encouraged by a friend to go after finding himself troubled by nagging "why am I here?" questions.
"From that day forward I was able to answer that one huge question," he said, "and the answer to the question was this: God saved me that day, July 9, 1960, because he knew at age 27 that I would come to know him as my savior."
It led him to the ministry for two years, but he spent most of his working life in the corporate world, in the office products and telecommunications industries.
Not that he ever used them.
For sure, the 7-year-old miracle boy who tumbled over the brink after a boating accident is part of the colorful folklore of the Falls. His story is told in the same breath as the fame and fortune-seeking adventurers led by schoolteacher Annie Taylor's 1901 barrel ride with her cat.
Woodward and his family sought to resume normal life after he and his 17-year-old sister, Deanne Woodward, were rescued from the Niagara River after being tossed from family friend James Honeycutt's 12-foot aluminum boat on July 9, 1960.
"We were just two kids out with a family friend for a day on the water," Woodward says now. "It turned tragic. A man lost his life, and quite literally by the grace of God we were thankful that my sister and I were saved."
For 34 years, Woodward and his sister never talked about it, not even to each other. Their parents thought it best they move on. But Woodward remembers the immediate interest from the outside world was overwhelming, so much so that his father hooked the family's trailer to a truck and moved in the dead of night from Niagara Falls.
He marked the 50th anniversary by listening with his wife, Susan Woodward, to a rebroadcast of a radio special about the accident.
"To this day, every time I hear the story I can smell the water," he said.
For Woodward, the worst part was the brutal ride through suffocating whitewater where he was tossed from Honeycutt's boat after it struck something, became disabled and was pulled into the powerful rapids.
"This water looks like it's as big as a house with the waves and the rocks," he says. "One minute you're pulled underwater, you can't breathe, you wonder if you're ever going to breathe again. The next second you're thrown up into the air and you come down and you're glancing off of rocks as you're going through the rapids."
He says there was a peaceful moment, though — while he was going over the brink of the Falls.
"I was floating in a cloud," he says. "I had no sensation of up or down. I didn't have any sensation in my stomach like you might have on a roller coaster ... that moment when your stomach is in your throat."
He doesn't remember hitting bottom. He may have been protected from the rocks by what's known as a water cone, a formation that bursts from the surface after water and air drop with such force, Niagara Falls historian Paul Gromosiak said.
"It's like a hand reaching out," Gromosiak explained. "It had to be that — or a miracle."
"Miracle" was what the newspaper headlines declared over black-and-white photos of the blonde, blue-eyed boy clinging to a life ring before being pulled onto the Maid of the Mist tour boat, which was nearby when he bobbed to the surface at the churning base. He looks as though he's smiling — but he was in shock.
All these years later, it's difficult to say how that moment may have affected the life of the carpenter's son who loved the outdoors.
It was his first boat ride and could have been his last. Instead, Woodward developed a love of boating, became a certified diver, even joined the Navy during the Vietnam War. But you won't find him on the upper Niagara with a 7.5-horsepower motor like the one that powered Honeycutt's boat.
"I'm a person of common sense and very safety minded," he said.
Woodward is drawn to stories of survival on the high seas, accounts of circumnavigating the globe, with their underlying themes about persevering through the worst nature has to offer.
"I like the part of survival, the way they find a way to survive in dire circumstances," he said.
Woodward said he heard countless times that "God had his hand on you that day" or "God must have some important mission for you to accomplish in life." But it wasn't until 20 years later that the boy who had not regularly attended church was encouraged by a friend to go after finding himself troubled by nagging "why am I here?" questions.
"From that day forward I was able to answer that one huge question," he said, "and the answer to the question was this: God saved me that day, July 9, 1960, because he knew at age 27 that I would come to know him as my savior."
It led him to the ministry for two years, but he spent most of his working life in the corporate world, in the office products and telecommunications industries.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Pursue Holiness in Christ
We are, we are, we're caught in the in between
Of who we already are and who we are yet to be
And we're looking for love but finding we're still in need
It's only what we have lost will we be allowed to keep
And we're waiting but our eyes are wandering
To all this earth holds dear
Look at all the pretty things
That steal my heart away
I can feel I'm fading
'Cause Lord I love so many things
That keep me from Your face
Come and save me
Nobody stumbles into godliness.
If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. 7Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; 8for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. - 1 Timothy 4:6-8 (ESV)
The word train in verse 7 (and perhaps in verse 6 as well though I don't know for sure) is derived from the Greek word for "sweat". Serious effort is required.
Mark Driscoll posted this quote today on Facebook and Twitter: "Here, then, is the real problem of our negligence. We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy." - RC Sproul
We have bought into the lie that there are big sins and small sins...sins we should be ashamed of and sins that are acceptable...sins that can harm us and sins that we can live with. We do not whole-heartedly pursue holiness because we like our sin. It brings us pleasure, comfort and the perception of control. And we don't battle it like we should because we are spiritually lazy...having also believed the lie that the Christian life should be one of smooth sailing into eternity. Laziness also comes from not understanding the weight of our sin and/or the holiness of God.
5Put to death therefore what is earthly in you:sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6On account of these the wrath of God is coming." - Colossians 3:5-6 (ESV)
We don't like to talk about the wrath of God because it isn't very warm and cuddly and certainly doesn't make us feel good. It also doesn't lend itself to full churches and offering plates on Sunday morning. But there can be no question regarding God's wrath toward sin. God has two ultimate responses to sin: The slaughter of his son, Jesus Christ; and the physical reality of hell. Spend even a little time thinking about the stark terror and tragedy of those two things and you can't help but gain a deeper understanding of how seriously we are to take every sin. It's not a battle to take lightly and certainly not one to put off until tomorrow. This is not to be looked at legalistically apart from grace but to be seen through God's Word as working out our salvation with fear and trembling through His strength and what He has already done for us.
Of who we already are and who we are yet to be
And we're looking for love but finding we're still in need
It's only what we have lost will we be allowed to keep
And we're waiting but our eyes are wandering
To all this earth holds dear
Look at all the pretty things
That steal my heart away
I can feel I'm fading
'Cause Lord I love so many things
That keep me from Your face
Come and save me
Nobody stumbles into godliness.
If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. 7Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; 8for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. - 1 Timothy 4:6-8 (ESV)
The word train in verse 7 (and perhaps in verse 6 as well though I don't know for sure) is derived from the Greek word for "sweat". Serious effort is required.
Mark Driscoll posted this quote today on Facebook and Twitter: "Here, then, is the real problem of our negligence. We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy." - RC Sproul
We have bought into the lie that there are big sins and small sins...sins we should be ashamed of and sins that are acceptable...sins that can harm us and sins that we can live with. We do not whole-heartedly pursue holiness because we like our sin. It brings us pleasure, comfort and the perception of control. And we don't battle it like we should because we are spiritually lazy...having also believed the lie that the Christian life should be one of smooth sailing into eternity. Laziness also comes from not understanding the weight of our sin and/or the holiness of God.
5Put to death therefore what is earthly in you:sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6On account of these the wrath of God is coming." - Colossians 3:5-6 (ESV)
We don't like to talk about the wrath of God because it isn't very warm and cuddly and certainly doesn't make us feel good. It also doesn't lend itself to full churches and offering plates on Sunday morning. But there can be no question regarding God's wrath toward sin. God has two ultimate responses to sin: The slaughter of his son, Jesus Christ; and the physical reality of hell. Spend even a little time thinking about the stark terror and tragedy of those two things and you can't help but gain a deeper understanding of how seriously we are to take every sin. It's not a battle to take lightly and certainly not one to put off until tomorrow. This is not to be looked at legalistically apart from grace but to be seen through God's Word as working out our salvation with fear and trembling through His strength and what He has already done for us.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Grace-driven effort
"Grace is not opposed to effort. It's opposed to earning". - Dallas Willard
These are my notes from Matt Chandler's sermon on 6/6/10. I have heard the following quote used a lot lately and he unpacks it in this sermon so I thought it was worth writing down as much as I could.
"People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated." - D.A. Carson
Nobody accidentally becomes godly. So how do you pursue godliness without stepping outside what has freely been given to you and instead find yourself pursuing a Christian checklist of godly behavior? Christian living requires movement. It's not static. The following are 6 ways that godliness is properly pursued through grace-driven effort.
1) Grace-driven effort comes from a new heart. The idea of regeneration. Romans 1 - walking in darkness and God justifies us and gives us eyes and ears to see and hear. The legalist pursues God out of pride that comes from living up to a certain standard. The motivation is applause of men. The idea of godliness to a legalist usually involves killing one sin with another, i.e. killing lust with self righteousness. But no matter which wins...sin wins.
2) Grace-driven effort uses the weapons of grace...the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13), the Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and the promises of the new covenant (Hebrews 9:15). Where you have earned the wrath of God, Christ has intervened. The Scriptures are the primary weapon against the residual effects of the old creature. The legalist uses the Law to try to conform to perfection but it has never worked for anyone. It's an arrogant thought to think you are the one who can pull it off.
3) Grace-driven effort attacks the roots and not just the branches. You can't separate your heart from your thoughts and actions. The latter is an indicator of the former. You get to the heart so the behavior may be changed.
4) Grace-driven effort fights for a reason that goes well beyond easing our conscience and finding temporal peace. It's not built on, "Oh, I feel bad about me." It says, "I have grieved the Holy Spirit and have sullied the image of the Creator of the universe." Our hearts break because God has been so good to us and we have mocked Him with our thoughts and actions. David says, "I have sinned against you alone." Conviction is a great indicator of a heart issue. Our motivation sbould not be, "I hate this about me." Paul says to be wary of worldly sorrow as it leads to death in the end. Godly sorrow leads to repentance.
5) Grace-driven effort comes from being dead to sin not just forsaking it. The believer will not serve sin because his nature is contrary to sin. You don't have to say "yes" to your sin. You are not bound to it any longer.
6) Grace-driven effort is rage-filled and violent toward residual sin inside of us. Our holiness wants to murder sin in our heart...mortifying the flesh. The legalist doesn't necessarily want to kill sin...they want to train it. So if they need some comfort it is there to run back to rather than running to God. Sin will eventually turn on you and kill you no matter how much you have tried to control it. We need to understand that when sin takes us out it isn't just about us...there is always collateral damage to others in our lives.
Colossians 3:11 - "Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all."
http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/some-proven-weapons-in-the-fight-for-holiness
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2011/06/14/gospel-driven-effort/
These are my notes from Matt Chandler's sermon on 6/6/10. I have heard the following quote used a lot lately and he unpacks it in this sermon so I thought it was worth writing down as much as I could.
"People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated." - D.A. Carson
Nobody accidentally becomes godly. So how do you pursue godliness without stepping outside what has freely been given to you and instead find yourself pursuing a Christian checklist of godly behavior? Christian living requires movement. It's not static. The following are 6 ways that godliness is properly pursued through grace-driven effort.
1) Grace-driven effort comes from a new heart. The idea of regeneration. Romans 1 - walking in darkness and God justifies us and gives us eyes and ears to see and hear. The legalist pursues God out of pride that comes from living up to a certain standard. The motivation is applause of men. The idea of godliness to a legalist usually involves killing one sin with another, i.e. killing lust with self righteousness. But no matter which wins...sin wins.
2) Grace-driven effort uses the weapons of grace...the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13), the Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and the promises of the new covenant (Hebrews 9:15). Where you have earned the wrath of God, Christ has intervened. The Scriptures are the primary weapon against the residual effects of the old creature. The legalist uses the Law to try to conform to perfection but it has never worked for anyone. It's an arrogant thought to think you are the one who can pull it off.
3) Grace-driven effort attacks the roots and not just the branches. You can't separate your heart from your thoughts and actions. The latter is an indicator of the former. You get to the heart so the behavior may be changed.
4) Grace-driven effort fights for a reason that goes well beyond easing our conscience and finding temporal peace. It's not built on, "Oh, I feel bad about me." It says, "I have grieved the Holy Spirit and have sullied the image of the Creator of the universe." Our hearts break because God has been so good to us and we have mocked Him with our thoughts and actions. David says, "I have sinned against you alone." Conviction is a great indicator of a heart issue. Our motivation sbould not be, "I hate this about me." Paul says to be wary of worldly sorrow as it leads to death in the end. Godly sorrow leads to repentance.
5) Grace-driven effort comes from being dead to sin not just forsaking it. The believer will not serve sin because his nature is contrary to sin. You don't have to say "yes" to your sin. You are not bound to it any longer.
6) Grace-driven effort is rage-filled and violent toward residual sin inside of us. Our holiness wants to murder sin in our heart...mortifying the flesh. The legalist doesn't necessarily want to kill sin...they want to train it. So if they need some comfort it is there to run back to rather than running to God. Sin will eventually turn on you and kill you no matter how much you have tried to control it. We need to understand that when sin takes us out it isn't just about us...there is always collateral damage to others in our lives.
Colossians 3:11 - "Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all."
http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/some-proven-weapons-in-the-fight-for-holiness
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2011/06/14/gospel-driven-effort/
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