I am sure I have no idea what all Brittany Maynard was going through…. So many people have chimed in on the issue. I think I will refrain from doing so right now. Instead, I will let the video speak for itself and have us to consider there is another way to die. Lastly, may God bring comfort to the Maynard and McDonald families.
I enjoy reading Joni Eareckson Tada because of her perspective on suffering. She has personally helped me so much in my suffering.
If you are not familiar with her story – I encourage you…. get familiar!
Joni writes of Brittany M.:
“I understand she may be in great pain, and her treatment options are limited and have their own devastating side effects, but I believe Brittany is missing a critical factor in her formula for death: God. The journey Brittany — for that matter, all of us — will undertake on the other side of death is the most important venture on which we will ever embark.” Read more by Joni, click here: Joni Eareckson Tada
Here is another great post by John Piper on the issue.
The above video was copied from the guys at the Rebelution. You can check them out HERE.
I have a friend that likes to ask people who visit the church I belong to (Trinity CC): What are you looking for in a church? Whether we realize it or not we all have an answer to that question. We might not even be looking for a church, and yet, we still have an answer to that question.
Maybe it’s:
trendy music
a cool worship leader with a “tight” band
high octane youth group
a children’s program that competes with Nickelodeon
the look of the building
convenient parking
a relevant pastor
Small – home groups
programs
vision
charismatic
non charismatic
dynamic preaching
creativity
missional
and on and on and on it goes.
Jonathan Leeman, in his outstanding book Reverberation says: “Are any of these things bad? Not at all. Most are fine or even good. The question is, Where are we placing our confidence?”
I want to re-iterate what J. Leeman said – these are not bad things! Who doesn’t want relevant sermons, or a good band?!? BUT…..Where are we placing our confidence?
It seems to me that the church today is placing less and less of its confidence where we ought……in the Word of God. The result of a misplaced confidence is concerning.
4 things to look for in a church:
1.) Does the Word of God drive the church in all of its ministries?
The Word of God must be central to all the church does. The Word must drive. This is much more than just reading scripture or preaching from a passage of the Bible. It is the DNA of the church that hungers for the Word and gladly submits to God’s Word. So, what is driving the church? What or who is in the drivers seat?
2.) Due to the above, does the church have a conviction about preaching God’s Word?
We are in and seem to be headed for difficult days! Does your church preach God’s Word, without apology, and with conviction? If God’s Word is our confidence, then we should not be shy in our preaching and proclamation of it! The goal is not to be politically correct, the goal is to be biblically correct.
Pastors, the most loving thing you can do for your congregation is to preach the Word.
I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
(2 Timothy 4:1-5 ESV)
3.) Is the church God centered or man centered?
Who is at the center? You? Me? A pastor? Dynamic youth leader? a hard working deacon? or a long term member? When we make the church to be primarily about man, we miss out on the very reason we exist as a church. Why does the church exist? We exist, first and foremost, for the worship of God! ALL else falls into place UNDER this ultimate and primary purpose.
Have you noticed the Word of God is….. a God centered book?
4.) Does the church have a gospel culture?
What is a “gospel culture”?
It is one thing to “know” about the gospel. Anyone can know the gospel factually. One can even share the gospel with others. BUT, is the gospel functioning in the life of the church? Does the gospel permeate down into all the ministries of the church? The gospel is the focal point of the Word of God, oh that it would be the focal point of the church!
To read further about what the gospel is click here.
I hope you have found a good church where you love to worship God! There is no perfect church! The church I have the privilege of pastoring is always seeking to grow and is always needing to grow in the above! We have NOT arrived, no church has!
If you are lacking in conviction about these 4 questions above, pray, and ask God to help you to grow.
Or, if you do have a conviction, and you see ways in which your church is lacking in the above….. Get involved! God has given you a passion for the above for a reason. Get involved and help your church to grow in the 4 areas listed above.
Is there more than these 4 things to look for in a church? Sure. But, I hope these are at the core of your heart if you are currently looking for a church to call home.
Todays post in its entirety is from John Stemberger’s: Florida Family Action Alert.
Why I am for medical marijuana but against Amendment 2, Orlando Lawyer John Morgan’s deceptive campaign to legalize pot smoking across Florida.
By John Stemberger
This past year has been a real learning curve on the whole topic of medical marijuana. Thanks to a good friend of mine, who is a respected physician, I learned there really are some valid and legitimate medical uses for marijuana. Prior to this, I thought most of the medical marijuana talk was just an excuse to smoke dope by leftist potheads. But it is clear to me now that there are some very debilitating and painful conditions which only seem to respond to the active ingredient in cannabis.
In fact, earlier this year the Republican dominated legislature and also recognized this fact and passed a special bill to specifically legalize a special strain of marijuana called “Charlotte’s Web.” The drug isolates the helpful medical essence of marijuana and allows it to be taken in a non-euphoric, non-smoked form to treat various seizures in children and other serious conditions. The bill was signed into law by Governor Rick Scott and became effective June 2014.
Knowing this, you may also want to know why I am so adamantly against Amendment 2 and am encouraging everyone I know to “Vote No on 2”, the so-called medical marijuana amendment on November 4th. Here are at least ten reasons why this is one of the worst ideas in Florida’s history, and why it’s not what is seems on the surface.
1. The Amendment will allow minors to smoke pot without parental knowledge or consent.
There are no restrictions on Amendment 2 for age, and those street corner dispensers will be able to give pot to minors without their parent’s consent or even notice. As a father of four children under the age of 13, this alone, frankly enrages me as a parent.
2. There are no restrictions on where in your neighborhood these “pot shops” can be placed.
Based on where they have set up pot shops like “pill-mills” in California and Colorado, and based on the language of this Amendment, you can expect “dispensaries” to pop up across the street from junior high schools, near churches, restaurants and other small businesses.
3. The only requirement for a so-called “caregiver” marijuana dispenser is that he or she be 21 years old.
Also “caregivers” are not required to have background checks, they could be convicted felons, and have no requirements for medical training. We used to call these people drug dealers and put them in jail. The opponents of Amendment 2 are appropriately calling it the “Drug Dealer Protection Act.”
4. Pot will be “dispensed” for any “other conditions” under Amendment 2.
While the ballot summary (the only part you will see when you vote) says that the drug is supposed to be given for “debilitating medical conditions,” the full text of what becomes law in the Florida Constitution (which you will not see on the ballot) says marijuana can be sold for any “other conditions.” So fatigue, insomnia, nausea or back aches will qualify you to smoke dope. This is the functional equivalent of legalizing pot for recreational use.
5. Amendment 2 expressly allows for “medibles” which are marijuana-laced candies, cookies, baked goods, soda pop and other foods attractive to children.
To really appreciate how bad this Amendment would be, look no further than to the states where this dangerous game has played out in California and Colorado. Just Google search images of the word “medibles” and you will find the hundreds of candies, cookies and baked goods laced with marijuana. And who did you think these “edible treats” will be marketed to? You guessed it–our children and grandchildren.
6. Amendment 2 gives complete civil and criminal immunity to all caregivers, growers, distributors and doctors selling pot.
Under the Amendment’s language, everyone in the process of growing, handling and distributing pot would be given complete civil and criminal legal immunity and allowed to operate free of liability. So if a caregiver hurts someone, there are no lawsuits or arrests that will come from the harm. It almost seems unbelievable but it’s true. How would you, as a small business owner, like to have complete immunity from law suits? But we are going to give unbridled constitutional immunity to everyone involved with dispensing pot?
7. The Amendment is strategically being used to try and help turn out voters on the far left for Charlie Crist.
Democrat gubernatorial candidate, Charlie Crist, is also a lawyer with John Morgan’s large personal injury firm based in Orlando. So, naturally having a law partner become Governor (again) could do quite a bit to help his law firm. In much the same way as many extreme conservatives don’t vote because they are fed up or don’t like the choices, the same thing happens with voters on the far left. Those voters who chose Ralph Nader instead of Al Gore are exactly the kind of voters that the “medical marijuana” Amendment will drive to the polls, who may not have otherwise come out-and who are more likely to vote for Democrat Charlie Crist. Morgan knows this and knows that in a tight race, like the one we have for Governor, having pot on the ballot could just make the difference in voter turn-out on the margins swaying a win for Charlie Crist.
8. John Morgan will most likely financially profit from this Amendment
Why do you think John Morgan is pouring tons of money and untold amounts of time into this campaign? To create an “army of angels” to do acts of compassion? Guess again. This video to the right of John Morgan “unhinged” is really all you need to see to understand who and what is really behind this Amendment. WARNING: this video is highly vulgar, raw and not suited for children to view.
9. We are within clear striking distance of defeating this Amendment.
A lot of people who don’t agree with this Amendment think it will probably pass because of some early polling showing a high percentage favorable to the idea of medical marijuana and so they are not taking serious actions to defeat it. When the campaign started, the issue was polling at 88% in favor of passage. Since then support for Amendment 2 has dropped a whopping 40% as people learn more about the dangers, loopholes and real motives behind those who are driving this Amendment. One of the latest polls from the Bob Graham Center shows those in favor of it are now at only 48% of the 60% needed to pass a Florida Amendment. We only need 41% of voters to vote NO to defeat this very bad amendment. The undecided votes could go either way and the deceptive ads are about to flood the airways and so this is going to be a very close vote. But we can defeat this if we all work hard to get the word out!
10. Virtually every major daily newspaper in Florida has come out against Amendment 2 in addition to the Florida Medical Association, and seven former Florida Supreme Court Justices.
Some of the most liberal newspapers in the state like the Tampa Bay Times have taken official positions against this dangerous Amendment and are encouraging a NO VOTE because they know this is really not a medical marijuana amendment but an attempt to allow the full blown legalization of marijuana for recreational use. The Orlando Sentinel has said “politics is coloring the debate,” and to vote No. The Tampa Tribune says it’s a “Trojan Horse.” The Jacksonville Times Union said it’s a “Stalking Horse for recreational use.” The Lakeland Ledger and the Bradenton Herald also recommended a “No Vote on 2.”
The bottom line is that everything about Amendment 2 is deceptive. And, if we are able to tell enough of our friends and family about this in the days we have left before the election, we can defeat this effort and save our state, our communities and our children a lot of heartache and problems that would not be easily reversed for years to come. Please – do not let Florida go to pot! For further information go to www.VoteNo2.org.
Thank you John for all your hard work – I would encourage followers of the Gospel Connections blog to follow John and Florida Family Action! Click Here
A few weeks ago I enjoyed a coffee with my friend Sandy Robertson. He is a Pastor at New Covenant Church which is a church in the same town I pastor. Titusville, Fl. While we were chatting he said something I had heard many times before. But, you know that moment when the Spirit of God quickens you and you hear something you have heard before and yet it is as if you heard for the first time.
He said: “You know there is a reason why He is called the HOLY Spirit.”
That was it…. that simple…. and yet, so profound and true. It grabbed my heart. I hope it grabs yours today.
Why is the Spirit called the Holy Spirit?
1.) HOLY Spirit and HOLY Scripture
The word holy in the bible means to be set apart, consecrated, and blameless. The Bible is a Holy Bible. It is a “set apart” book – no other book like it on the face of the earth. And, the Spirit is not just any spirit – He is the Holy Spirit.
You say…. ok – so what?
I am amazed at how a believer will attest to the above few sentences and turn around and knowingly and blatantly do the opposite of what scripture says and then…. pull the Spirit in the ditch with them by saying: “I prayed about it and I feel lead this is what God (The Spirit) would have me to do.”
Nope…. The HOLY Spirit will NEVER lead you to do anything contrary to the HOLY Bible. The Holy Spirit ALWAYS, ALWAYS leads us to do what we find in Scripture.
Christian, let’s stop this nonsense of dragging the Spirit into our UN-holy living. Take up the Word of God, ask the Spirit of God to illuminate His Word, and follow Him.
2.) The Holy Spirit and salvation
It is the work of the Holy Spirit, in our lives, that brings us from death to life. See previous post: Trinity (12). It is the Spirit that makes us alive to the work of Christ (In His life, death, and resurrection.)
3.) The Holy Spirit and sanctification
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV)
Have you come to a place of faith in Jesus Christ?
Do you desire to grow in Godliness?
Do you find yourself repenting of sin and seeking to pursue righteousness?
Have you ever pursued a friend for accountability to help you overcome an area of sin?
Have you ever had the thought: I want to pray more or spend more time reading God’s Word?
Have you experienced conviction while reading Scripture, hearing the Word preached, or…….?
If you answered “yes” to these questions then Praise God and specifically Praise the Holy Spirit. Just as the Father and Son play a specific role in your salvation and your life as a Christian, so does the Holy Spirit.
He is day by day, moment by moment, growing you in Christ Jesus.
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)
Grab your coffee and consider today the glory of the Trinity!
We have had 12 posts on the Trinity. We have gone out into the “deep end”. You might be thinking: “ok, ok, the Trinity matters, but does it REALLY matter that much?”
Good question!
Here is an attempt to give a short Answer:
5 quick reasons why the Trinity REALLY does matter:
1.) Atonement Implications
“If Jesus is merely a created being, and not fully God, then it is hard to see how he, a creature, could bear the full wrath of God against all our sins. Could any creature, no matter how great, really save us?”
Wayne Grudem
Take the Son out of the Trinity….. and you and I are not and CAN NOT be saved!
Good news…. Jesus IS God!
2.) Trust Implications
The Trinity gives me reason to trust in God for salvation.
If the Father did not send the Son…
If Jesus did not come in human flesh, die, rise from the grave….
If the Spirit did not breath new life in us….
Then who, exactly, are we trusting in for salvation, forgiveness, eternity, etc and is it wise to do so?!?
Good news….. you can trust in the 3 in 1 for salvation!
3.) Worship and Prayer Implications
If the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit do not equal God…. why worship Him or pray to Him? Every prayer ever uttered “in Jesus name” is meaningless. The reason the words, “in Jesus name” carry meaning is because the Son is our mediator before the Father. We don’t come before the Father in prayer, in the name of our self or in the name of a priest. We come in the name of THEE great high priest – Jesus Christ. He is your mediator! If Jesus is not God, then Christians are the worst of idolaters!
Good news….you can come to the Father!
4.) Bible Implications
If the Trinity is not God, then the Bible and all of its teachings are meaningless and should NOT be followed.
Good news…. Father, Son, Holy Spirit = God!
5.) Gospel Implications
The Gospel IS Trinity
Meaning we experience our salvation by all of the Godhead.
“We are saved by the eternal purpose of the Father, by the atoning work of the Son, through the power and wisdom of the Spirit. We grow in our understanding of God’s grace as we see how each person of the Trinity interacts with the others to bring us out of darkness, into the light.”
John Frame Systematic Theology
Good news… the gospel IS good news because of the Trinity!
For Further Study:
The Father: Sends His Son into the world
1 John 4:14
The Son: Obeys the Father fully by living a perfect life and dying on the cross for to forgive us of our sins.
Phil 3:9
I Corinthians 15:3
The Spirit: Is sent by the Father and the Son to apply salvation to us.
John 15:26
Galatians 4:6
5 quick reasons to once again stand in awe of who our God is.
I am reading a book with two of my sons. Tanner and Tim (9 and 14 yrs old). The book is titled: Big Truths For Young Hearts by Bruce Ware. Young hearts…. really? It seems to me to be: Big truths for old hearts too! As I read this to my kids I stand in awe of our God!
It is with that in mind that I want to share with you an excerpt from the book. The chapter is titled One God in Three Persons. The author is explaining that many analogies and illustrations that seek to describe the Trinity fall short of doing so.
Enjoy!
“A question often asked is whether there are any examples, any analogies or illustrations, to the Trinity that can help us understand how God is both one and three. Some have suggested that the Trinity is like a triangle – three sides make up one triangle, so you have three in one. This example helps for a bit, but when you think about it more deeply, you can see it isn’t quite right. You see, the Bible teaches that there is one God, and the Father is fully God, the Son is fully God, and the Holy Spirit is fully God – not three gods but three Persons, each of whom expresses fully that one God. But a triangle is not this way. Yes, it has three sides, but each of the sides is not fully a triangle, right? So, while a triangle shows one thing made up of three parts, it doesn’t show one thing that is fully expressed by each of the three parts.
Some have thought that perhaps the Trinity is like three men, say Peter, James, and John. They all are human, but they are three persons. Will this work to show us the Trinity? Here the problem is the opposite of the problem with the triangle. Each person is fully human, but in this example you not only have three persons, you have also three human beings. After all, Peter is a man, but a different man from James, who is a different man from John. So if we followed this illustration we would end up with three gods as well as three persons who are god.
Yet others have thought H2O (water) shows us the Trintiy since H2O can be three things: solid (ice), liquid (running water), and vapor (steam). But the same H2O molecules cannot be all three at exactly the same time. H2O is a good illustration of modalism (a false teaching of the Trinity that we’ll learn more about later) where God is first the Father, then the Son, and then the Spirit, one at a time. But the Bible teaches that God is Father, Son, and Spirit all at the same time. Each person lives eternally as God.
The closest thing I have imagined to the Trinity is drawing a circle using three colored markers (perhaps red, blue, and green). If you draw the same circle three times, with each color overlapping exactly the previous one, you have one circle. But the red line is not the blue line, and the blue line is not the green line. Yet all three lines enclose only one circle. While this illustration may work in a very small part, the truth is that there simply is nothing in our experience that shows us exactly what the Trinity teaches. Nothing quite works to show what it means for God to be one in his nature as the one true God, yet three in Persons as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each fully God. But we should not be surprised at this. After all, the Bible has told us many times that there is no one like the Lord (Exodus 8:10; 9:14; Deuteronomy 33:26; 34:11; Jeremiah 10:6-7). He is the one and only true and living God, and He also is unlike anything or anyone else.
There truly is no one like the Lord. He is one God, but that one God lives and is expressed through the three Persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each Person is fully God, yet each Person is also distinct from the other Persons. We have here a biblical teaching that in the end we must believe even though we cannot understand it fully. And what we can learn from this is that God is greater than we can imagine and more beautiful than anything we’ve seen. The doctrine of the Trinity calls us to wonder and marvel at just how great our God is.
Three in One and One in Three – This is God, and there is no other!”
When you think of the Jesus with His disciples in the upper room, what do you think of?
Communion?
Or, maybe the announcement of coming betrayal?
While that is true, I want to inject another thought into your upper room thoughts…….
A trinitarian thought.
When you think of the upper room, think of….. the Trinity and specifically the Spirit.
The Spirit? Yes, the Spirit!
It is in that upper room Christ gives us a promise that we would do well to consider.
John 14:16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever…
I want us to consider 2 words from John 14:16 today.
1.) Another
2.) Helper
Let’s tackle the “Helper” first and then we will come back around to the word “another”.
Re-read John 14:16. Did you catch the promise Jesus just made to His disciples. That promise is not only for His first disciples, it is for ALL disciples of Jesus Christ!
Jesus is telling those 1st disciples that He is going to be leaving them. Imagine the despair in the disciples hearts! Imagine the fear, the hopelessness, and defeat these men felt at that moment. Jesus, seeks to comfort them at that moment with these words –
“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever” (John 14:16).
Jesus is saying – I am leaving guys, but don’t despair.
I (THE SON) will ask the FATHER to send another HELPER (The Spirit)
Did you catch it? The Trinity is at work seeking to bring comfort to His disciples!
Helper = Parakletos
In the original language the word Comforter here (or Helper depending on your translation) is Parakletos. A parakletos was someone who advocated or stood alongside of another.
R.C. Sproul describes parakletos like this:
Some translations use the word “Comforter” instead of “Helper.” The Greek word that is translated as “Helper” or “Comforter” is parakletos; it is the source of the English word paraclete. This word includes a prefix, para-, that means “alongside,” and a root that is a form of the verb kletos, which means “to call.” So, a parakletos was someone who was called to stand alongside another. It usually was applied to an attorney, but not just any attorney. Technically, the parakletos was the family attorney who was on a permanent retainer. Any time a problem arose in the family…
Sproul, R.C. (2012-11-01). Who Is the Holy Spirit?: 13 (Crucial Questions Series) (Kindle Locations 290-297). Reformation Trust Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Jesus is saying to His disciples – yes, I am leaving you, but I will send ANOTHER Helper. (Parakletos) What incredible news for despairing disciples! You are not alone! I am sending you the Holy Spirit!
Another
Why does Jesus say: Another Helper?
The first Helper is Jesus Christ. He was our Helper by coming to us and taking on human flesh (John 1:14 “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…) God, in the flesh, walking among us! wow! Immanuel, God with us! And, if that is not amazing enough….. He then died for our sins, rose from the dead, and ascended to the right hand of the Father AND THEN He sent His Spirit to be ANOTHER Helper.
This Helper would not dwell among us, this Helper would dwell IN US! Are you kidding me?? If this is not gloriously amazing, you need to check your spiritual pulse!!
The first Helper (Jesus) atoned for our sin
The second Helper (the Holy Spirit) empowers us to live our lives for Christ.
Thank God today for your 1st and 2nd Comforters!
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When it comes to the Trinity, and we speak of the Father and the Son, we have categories to help us understand and grasp these persons of the Godhead. I have a father, I am a father, and I have sons, I am a son. But, when it comes to the Spirit we seem to be left scratching our heads a bit. The goal in these next few posts is to unpack a little bit of the Spirit in the Trinity.
So who is the Holy Spirit?
He is the 3rd person of the Trinity! Understanding that He is a person in the Godhead affects how we view the Spirit.
He is NOT an impersonal force of some sort
He is not a thing.
He IS a person and thus
He is personal!
Scripture always refers to the Spirit as a “He” or “Him” and never a “it”.
He IS a person of the Trinity – He IS God.
Does Scripture teach this? YES!
One quick example is found in Acts 5:1-4. In this text Ananias and his wife Sapphira sell a piece of property and seek to bring the proceeds and give the money to the apostles. The problem was that they were lying by saying their donation was more than what it was. Peter rebukes them by saying: “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit?” He then concludes his rebuke by saying: “you have not lied to man but to GOD.”
So, to lie to the Holy Spirit IS TO lie to God – Because the Holy Spirit IS God
Much more can be said here. For instance, Scripture speaks of the Spirit eternally which of course is an attribute of God Himself. For now, I will leave it at that. The Holy Spirit IS God!
In an effort to answer the 1st question (Who is the Spirit?) it might help us to ask a 2nd question:
What does the Holy Spirit do?
While He does many things (sanctifies, convicts, transforms) we might summarize all that He does by saying that the Spirit applies (or empowers) the work of Christ in our lives.
Christ’s work is an effective work, an empowered work, in our lives because of the work of the Spirit.
The Spirit’s work in Salvation:
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
(John 3:1-8 ESV)
Having once been dead in sin, we are now alive in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:1-6) We are born – again. We have been given new life. We were once spiritually dead – we are now spiritually alive.
Once dead – now alive in Christ Jesus – because of the work of the Spirit!
It is the Spirit of God who does this life giving! It is the Spirit who takes the spiritually dead and gives them new life. He gives life where there was no life.
Not unlike Lazerus being raised from the dead. Jesus spoke words of life. “Lazerus come forth” – and his once, dead body obeyed! The heart started to pump and blood began to flow again!
WOW – that is what has taken place (spiritually) in every person who places their faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ.
It has been said that all of Christianity stands or falls on Jesus’ resurrection. All of our previous claims can be deemed false, our faith will be in vain and we will still be in sin if Jesus was not raised from death to life.
In order for His resurrection to be believable, there must be witnesses. The Bible gives us several witness accounts. The apostle Paul in 1 Cor. 15 tells us that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. He then appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time and last of all He appeared to Paul also.
Jesus didn’t just appear to people, He did many signs. The apostle John said if every one of them were written down for us to know, he supposed that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written (John 21:25). Can you fathom that? John recorded Jesus’ life, death and resurrection so that we may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; that by believing we may have eternal life in His name (John 20:31).
Another thought that should provoke awestruck wonder is how Holy Scripture has been preserved for us today. Yet, how often do we take reading it for granted? Instead, we should read it as God the Father Himself speaking to us- very much like when He spoke directly to Moses or Abraham or Paul. He speaks to us through His written word and His word is His testimony that Jesus has been raised from the dead. What better witness do we need? But I have digressed a little.
What does the resurrection mean for us today?
It means that Jesus’ atoning sacrifice was acceptable to God the Father.
It means that God’s justified wrath has been satisfied.
Christ’s suffering and dying are complete.
All the punishment has been dealt out and received, there is none left for us.
All the ransom has been paid.
The innocent was punished and now the guilty that are in Christ Jesus go free.
It means that Jesus stands victorious over death, sin and Satan.
It means that for us who trust in Him and repent of our sin and live our lives for Him have the assurance of eternal life.
It means that our right standing before God has been made secure (Rom. 4:25).
It means that not even death can separate us from the love of God (Rom. 8:38-39).
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:1).
After forty days, He led his disciples out as far as Bethany and while they watched- He ascended to heaven (Luke 24: 50- 51, Acts 1: 9 – 10). Now He is seated at the right hand of the Father indicating that His work of redemption is complete. His ascension secures our future ascension and our home in heaven.
Jesus is now our great high priest since He was the once and for all sacrifice and He was the priest that offered the sacrifice (Heb. 4:14). As our great high priest, Jesus continually prays for us (Rom. 8:34, Heb. 7:25). Wow, can you imagine that? I am so grateful that my mom prays for me and my family every morning and evening, but how much more the Son of God always praying for the redeemed?
So far, we have only touched on the glories of God the Father and God the Son. Next, we will explore and mine the glories of God the Holy Spirit. Come, let us behold Him!
The doctrine of the Trinity can too often be categorized as a mystery, but yet pages of Holy Scripture reveals so much about the Trinity that can lead us to awestruck wonder and passionate worship often leaving us undone.
The next two posts will be on the second person of the Trinity- Jesus the Son of God. This post will focus on the sending of Jesus and His death for sin. The next post will focus on His resurrection and ascension.
In the Godhead, each member is fully God, eternally God and equally God. Jesus is not one third God and two thirds other. Each member of the Trinity is equal in essence and nature. Though the three persons are one in so many ways, they are also distinct in several ways. For instance, they are distinct in roles, functions and they differ in how they relate to one another.
When we look at the creation account:
we see that God the Father spoke the world into being
God the Son carried out these creative words (John 1:3, Col. 1:16, Heb. 1:2)
and God the Holy Spirit was moving over the face of the waters manifesting God’s presence in His creation (Gen. 1:2).
In salvation history:
God the Father planned redemption (Eph. 1:4)
and sent God the Son who accomplished redemption for us (John 3:16, Gal. 4:4, John 6:38, Heb 10: 5-7).
God the Father and God the Son sent God the Holy Spirit to apply redemption to us (John 14:26, 16:7).
What blows away how we think about the categories of authority and submission is that though the Father and the Son are both fully God, Jesus submitted Himself to the Father’s will and obeyed Him perfectly; not counting equality a thing to be grasped (Phil 2:6). Wow! What display of profound love for His Father!
At the appointed time in redemptive history, God sent His Son to redeem us, so that we might receive adoption as sons and daughters. Because we are now sons and daughters, God sent the Spirit of His Son to bear witness with our spirit to give us assurance that we are indeed members of God’s family, and if members then we are no longer slaves- we are now heirs through God (Gal. 4:4- 7). Amazing!
But this gift of membership to God’s family and becoming heirs through God came at a great cost. Because without the shedding of blood there is no forgives (Heb. 9:22), our redemption came at the cost of Christ’s precious blood.
Jesus the sinless One was horrifically beaten as He took on our sin on the cross. He suffered the wrath that was reserved for us. The Father turned His face away and for the very first time in the history of eternity, Jesus experienced separation from His Father’s love. In eternity past, Jesus experienced perfect harmony and fellowship with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now he was spurned- for us. As a father, one of the things that hurts me most is seeing one of my sons getting hurt and their blood shed on their clothes or on the ground, can you relate? Jesus ransomed us not with gold and silver but with His precious blood (1 Peter 1:18 – 19). Oh depths of the Father’s love for us!
When the Father imputed our sin to Jesus, Jesus became our substitute. But He didn’t just leave us sinless or morally neutral, He imputed Jesus’ righteousness to us (2 Cor 5:21). Now we who believe in Him are declared righteous! We have been justified, and we have been brought near.
I can not begin to tell you how encouraged I was this past Sunday in our time of prayer. If you were there, I am sure you were encouraged as well! If you were not there, you too should be encouraged to know your church is gathering to pray!
We all should be encouraged: Not because there was a certain “number” of people that came out to pray. It is NOT about numbers…. Rather, be encouraged because the number of people that came out to pray represents our hearts. It reveals desire. God is at work, stirring us to pray, asking Him to move in our midst.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR RESPONSE TO: Gospel transformation shapes our lives in being – “DEVOTED TO PRAYER!!!”
Romans 12:12
Let’s join together again this Sunday at 9:15. And, let’s once again fill up the Resolved room – asking God to do what only He can do!
2 Quick Thoughts:
“Only BY God and only FOR God”
1.) As you pray, (Once a day), and as we gather to pray this Sunday, (Once a week).
Let’s pray for what God alone can do!!
Consider Gideon:
When God whittled down Gideon’s army he did not do so randomly. God had a very real purpose.
Judges 7:2 “The people with you are too many for me to give the Mideanites into their hand. Lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand saved me.’”
So, as you know, God brings the number of Gideon’s army to a terrifying small number of people. Imagine if you were Gideon!! He starts with a small army of 32,000 people and ends with an army of 300 people!!
Why?
So Israel would NOT boast in themselves and say – “we saved ourselves”. NO – God takes them down to 300 so that ALL the surrounding nations would recognize the power of the living God, and Israel would give ALL THE GLORY TO GOD FOR THE VICTORY!
Trinity Community Church – Let’s pray prayers that:
when God moves…. all we can say is – “All Glory be to God”!
And, we will say this because we will know that what has taken place is only BY God and FOR God.
The victory or the answers to our prayers are NOT about us.
Not to us, O LORD, not to us, But to Your name give glory Because of Your lovingkindness, because of Your truth
Psalms 115:1
One of the things we are praying for is life changing transformation. Salvation! Salvation is not natural, it is supernatural. It is not accomplished by man. It is a work done by the sovereign hand of God alone.
Darkness turning to light / What is dead being made alive in Christ Jesus….. SALVATION!
Church, we can not produce that! Programs won’t produce salvation. Neither will preaching, right parenting, or evangelism.
Yes, He chooses to use us.
Romans 10:14 – How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him uof whom they have never heard?1And how are they to hear vwithout someone preaching?
By all means we preach, parent, and evangelize. These are all great things, but outside of the Spirit of the Living God moving…. we can not bring about a single salvation! But the Sovereign God is able! So, we pray for MANY salvations.
O, that we would see such a move of the Spirit of God in our community that we would stand back and say “only God” and “to You alone be the glory!”
2.) On a very quick, practical note:
Last week there was standing room only for the prayer meeting. How incredible is that?!? 2 things to consider:
a.) As you arrive make your way into the room and away from the door so that people who continue to come in are not bottlenecked at the doorway.
b.) For our men: Unless you have a health issue or back issue, etc…. Offer your seat to the ladies!
Last post we looked at the importance of first knowing God the Father as the Father in the Trinity.In part 2 we are going to build on that truth and see how this speaks to the wonder of God the Father for us.
The foundation of this truth is clearly expressed in Jesus’ high priestly prayer in John 17
“Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.” John 17:24 (ESV)
We saw that God the Father elected and gave a group of people to the Son as an expression of His Love. Here we see that God the Son is asking that the elect be treated just as the Son Himself! Jesus wants us to see the glory (the life-giving, overflowing, super-abounding love) that the Trinity shared before the foundation of the world! (See 17:5 as well)
We are promised, by God the Son Himself, to be brought up into the Love that has been shared for all eternity within the Godhead. This is what Peter is getting at when he wrote that God “granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature…”(2 Peter 1.4).
We have a precious and very great promise: to be human partakers in the “perfect triangle of Love”; to be caught in the crossfire of the Father’s love for the Son and Spirit; to experience, in human form, the eternal love-relationship of the Trinity!
Let’s come down from the heights of this dizzying Love for a moment:
How does this look in day-to-day living?
Actually, let’s not come down from the heights of this dizzying Love- Let’s instead see our day-to-day living in light of it! This really changes everything…
We can look at Scripture and see how the Son:
obeyed and accomplished all that the Father sent Him to do (John 17; Phil. 2.1-11).
was a faithful Son (Heb. 2.17; 3.6)
with whom God is well pleased (Matt 17.5).
He perfectly did everything that the Father asked.
He failed in nothing!
This means that the Son ‘has it made’…and so do all those who are in the Son!Everything that makes up our true identity; everything like our forgiveness, favor, blessing and eternal life- has been purchased by the Son and sealed to us by the Spirit!
The Father, of the Son of God, is now our Father…
to quote the old King James: Believest thou this?
This is the beauty of John 1:12 “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”
Every benefit that the Son enjoys is a benefit conferred upon those who are in Christ the Son!
The value of your relationships (husbands/wives/sons/daughters/friends/etc) are based upon the glorious success of the Son’s relationship to the Father: priceless.
Your standing before God the Father is not determined by your sin- it is determined by the Son.
The Father bestows his Love upon you- not because you’re as awesome as you think you are- but because the Son is more awesome than you know.
Our hearts should soar with Mary’s when she heard the words from the risen Christ “but go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” John 20.17
It is a baffling irony that this doctrine is the most important for Christians today and yet it is, perhaps, one of the most neglected.
It can be intimidating to confront (or rather, be confronted by) such a unique, deep, and soul-challenging doctrine as the doctrine of the Trinity. Yet, for the Christian, there is nothing left but to dive in- we must know our God because our God has drawn us to Himself. The simple fact is: we cannot know God if we do not know the Trinity.
The Father in the Trinity is the basis for…the Father for us.
I am posting a two-part series on the Father.
In part one, we will look at who the Father is in the Trinity.
In part two we will look at the Father for us.
To rightly know the Father for us we must know the Father in the Trinity.
“God is Love” (1Jn 4:8,16) This is one of the most basic truths we know about God. But often it is read in the context of “God is love, and so God loves me and saves me.” While this is true, we are missing a point that is definitional to who God is. God is Love. He has always been Love. He will always be Love. But, how can a God be Love before He created anyone to love? We believe God is one, so how could He love anyone before he made us?
Enter: TRINITY!
Before anything was ever created, the Father, Son and Spirit existed in perfect harmony and unity.
Consider:
By the Spirit, the Father loved the Son and
the Son loved the Father.
God was totally full and complete in and of Himself.
He had no need to create.
He was not lonely.
He didn’t have a “human-shaped hole” in His heart that could only be filled by you or me.
To understand this is to begin to rightly understand the Trinity.
To be a Father is, by nature, to be life-giving. It is no surprise, then, that the Father freely chose to create a Universe in which He could bring others into the glorious overflow of the love of the Trinity. The nature of true love is to share in the bounty of love!
Within this “perfect triangle of love” the love of the Father for the Son (through the Spirit) expressed itself by creating a universe in which an elect people could exist.
The elect were chosen by the Father from before the foundation of the world (Eph 1.3-6), they were given to the Son by the Father (John 6.37), they were given the promised Spirit by the Father (Luke 24.49); and through the obedience of the Son and the sealing of the Spirit, the elect will be glorified in eternity (Rom 8.28-30).
This is called “Salvation History” or the “History of Redemption”. The whole sweep of human existence has come about by the overflowing of the love of the Father for the Son in the Spirit. You are here because the live-giving, overflowing, super-abounding love of the Father is being expressed to the Son through the Spirit…all to the glory of God!
When we believe this we realize that our position before God is not dependent upon our performance. God’s love for us is not based upon how good you are. God’s love for you is based on the Father’s love of the Son, and we are sealed in that love by the Holy Spirit.
We grasp in vain for “easy” Trinity explanations. Most of the time our explanations fall short and our pictures… well, they are inaccurate representations of the glory of the Trinity!
True or False?
1.) The Trinity is like having different names for one person:
This is False
Some say: It is like a dad. He is a dad, a husband, and sometimes he is an employee at work. Different names for the one guy. Dad / Husband / Employee. Simple…. Right? Wrong….
This misses the glory of the Trinity. The Trinity is NOT 1 God with 3 roles. The Trinity is 1 God 3 persons and each of the 3 persons is fully God.
One God
3 Persons
All Fully God
Lets try another True or False:
2.) The 3 leaf clover:
The Trinity is like a 3 leaf clover. 3 parts and yet it is 1 clover.
This is False.
Yes, the 3 leaves each make up the one clover, but each leaf is only part of the clover. The Trinity contains a greater glory! The Trinity is: each part of the God-head does not make up a separate part (leaf). Rather, each aspect – Father / Son / Holy Spirit is fully God! Each is fully God! Uhhhh WOW!
3.) The Trinity is like H20: Steam / Water / Ice True or false?
This is false.
This is false because H20 is not fully water, fully steam, or fully ice at the same time. Rather, each has its own properties and its own characteristics. Once again, the glory of the Trinity supersedes our attempts to contain it with our human analogies.
So, what analogy can we pull from? Well, actually the Bible does not give us an analogy. Maybe that is because any analogy diminishes the glory of the Trinity?!?.
Certainly, we see the Bible teach about God the Father (and we get what a father is) and Jesus is God’s Son (and we get that too). But, we fail to make the full connection. We might say: I am a father to my children and at the same time I am a son to my parents. But, even still, I am never a father to my parents or a son to my children.
There are other variations that shoot off of the above examples, but you get the idea.
1 God / 3 persons / Fully God = mystery!
No human analogy is going to match it. We strive in vain for a human illustration to match the glory of the Trinity. But, if there were an illustration that could rightly contain it….. the Trinity would take on a lesser glory!
Once again: 1 God – 3 persons – all are fully God.
Do you struggle with the mysteries found in God? While we want to wrestle with who God is, I would encourage you to glory in the mysteries of God. Those mysteries further reveal we are NOT God! There is a Creator and we are the created. He is without limits and we are limited.
How big is your Trinity? Is it big enough to wow you? Or have you reduced to your created minds ability to contain it?
Praise Him!
* Credit is given to Wayne Grudem and Bruce Ware on much of the above. While, the above is not a quote from either of them, none the less, they and others have formed much of my thoughts and examples given.
We so easily make God to be who we want Him to be. We like a God who is fashioned in our own image. Thankfully, we have the Word of God to adjust our thinking. To think rightly about who God is, is to think biblically. We don’t need to guess, nor do we need to make it up.
God’s Word was written to reveal God to us. It is God… on God. He makes Himself known so that we can know Him! Did you catch that? The Bible reveals God – we can know Him! As a Christian, I want to know God – but not just any ol’ image of God that I conjure up. I want to know Him AS HE IS! And He is: Father / Son / Holy Spirit.
One of the ways He makes Himself known is by the Trinity. The 3 in 1. Think about it: While the Trinity is beyond our ability to fully comprehend, the Trinity is also easy to comprehend. Meaning, we can easily grasp aspects of the Trinity. How helpful is the Trinity for us to begin to know God!
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
All the aspects of each begin to give us a picture of who God is.
Wayne Grudem defines the doctrine of the Trinity as:
God eternally exists as three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and each person is fully God, and there is one God.
Wayne Grudem Systematic Theology
What would we do without the Trinity?
It is the Trinity that helps us to know who God is, what He has done, and how He is involved in sinful man.
It is much more than knowing Trinity “facts”. Much more than knowing the Trinity factually, the Trinity is: Father – Son – Spirit. But we will get to that in future posts. For now, just consider how awesome it is that God reveals Himself as He does…. Trinity!
How Big is your Trinity?
Is the Trinity you hold to, the Trinity of the Bible? If it is NOT, then you are creating a god in YOUR image. YIKES!
Consider Today:
Do you hold to God – 3 in 1? Or do you minimize one aspect of the Godhead? Does your God have the Father? Does your God have the Son? Does your God have the Spirit? Consider the implications if your view of God is lacking in any of the 3 persons we have in God.
goods, soda pop and other foods attractive to children.
