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A Theological Response to Terrorism by Jim Ehrhard

December 30, 2009 by ADMIN

A Theological Response to Terrorism by Jim Ehrhard

Events like those that we witnessed on September 11, 2001 in the destruction of the World Trade Center Towers in New York can raise a number of important theological issues for believers.  It is important that we not make wrong conclusions about events like these, but biblical conclusions that will result in biblical actions and attitudes.

In considering these, we must first recognize that, in spite of how terrible this event was, it is not the most tragic event in human history.  In fact, many of the events in the Bible were equally significant and devastating to the people of Israel.  One example would be the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzer in 586 B.C.  In that event, the entire city of Jerusalem was destroyed, including the temple, and most of the inhabitants were carried off into captivity.  While we rightly grieve over the losses related to the WTC destruction, it would hard to imagine the grief of the people of Israel in that event.  Fortunately, the testimony of Scripture includes the Lamentations of Jeremiah who, though grieving over the loss of his beloved city, continues to put his hope and trust in God.  He says,

This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.  It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him (Lam. 3:21-24).

His response serves as a model for our response to this and any other tragedy that we might encounter in this life.  No matter what the circumstances, one thing remains constant … God is faithful and worthy of our continued trust.

In this response, I want to provide you with four responses that we should not make, followed by a number of ways we can pray in this situation.

Theological Responses to Terrorism

1.  We should not say that God has done this.

In crises like this, I often hear believers (especially those who hold to the doctrine of God’s sovereign control over all things) say that this is the judgment of God and that God has brought such things on us.  Such statements are neither biblical nor helpful.  First, while it is true that God may use such events as a judgment (He did so in the destruction of Jerusalem), it is presumptuous to make such statements where we have no biblical revelation.  We simply do not know if these actions have anything to do with God’s judgment or not.  To make such a response is similar to telling a sick person that his sickness is God’s judgment.  The truth is, we do not know that to be true, and believers ought to refrain from making such statements.

Second, such statements tend to mislead people regarding the actions of God.  While it is clear that nothing can take place apart from the sovereign permission of God, God Himself does not do evil (James 1:13), even though He may use evil or allow it for His own purposes.  A perfect example of this is found in the book of Job where Satan tries to show God that Job only serves Him for the benefits he gets.  God grants Satan permission to afflict Job severely.  His cattle and donkeys are taken away by the Sabeans; his sheep and servants are destroyed by fire from heaven; his camels are stolen by the Chaldeans; and his children are killed by a great wind.   Notice we would attribute two of the events to human agents, and the other two we would normally attribute to “acts of God.”  Yet behind all this evil destruction was the person of Satan.

In the current situation, we cannot say if this is a judgment of God.  But we can say that God never does evil, though He may allow it for His own purposes.  Thus, we should be especially careful that we not say that God has done this.

2.  We should not question God’s sovereign control.

In times like these, there is a great temptation to question God’s sovereignty.  Many will ask, “Where was God when this happened?  If God is sovereign, then why didn’t He prevent this?”

When these types of things happen, we must continue to acknowledge what the Bible affirms … that God in His sovereignty often allows evil to run its course for His own purposes.  All of us, when we think about disasters like these, want God to act as a cosmic policeman, preventing people from exercising their free will to do evil deeds.  However, when we bring the same concept down to our own personal lives, we recognize that God often allows us to exercise our free will and do evil (even on a small, personal scale) that is contrary to His will.  God in His sovereignty has chosen to allow us our acts of personal sin.  When we consider the destruction of the WTC, we must acknowledge that it was done by acts of personal sin on a grand scale.  God has sovereignly allowed these as He has allowed ours.

3.  We should not think that such things will not happen.

I have heard many Christians in recent days say, that if we had prayed more, or if we had stopped abortion, these things would not have happened to us.  Again, like I noted in the first point, it is presumptuous to make such statements because God has not given us revelation as to the reasons He has allowed this.  But more than this, such statements are based on the false assumption that, if we did x, we would never have such problems.  Instead, the Scriptures caution against such thinking in general, warning us that even those who live godly lives are not immune to persecution and acts of evil (1 Thessalonians 3:3-4; 2 Timothy 3:12, etc.).  Even Jesus warned his disciples in Matthew 24:12 that, in the last days “lawlessness shall abound.”  We should pray more, and we should call our nation to repentance from its immoral actions, but we should not say that such things will not happen if we do … in fact, they may increase, because the godly are truly hated and because lawlessness will increase as we move toward the last days.

4.  We should not think that God is not involved.

God is involved.  He is sovereign and in control.  As I read through many passages, Psalm 10 stood out to me and reminded me of the proper response to a situation like this one.  While our situation may not be the same as that of the psalmist, the parallels are strikingly similar and our response ought to also be similar.  As you read through this Psalm, note the similarities to our situation and then I will note five (5) clear ways that God is involved.

Why do you stand afar off, O LORD? Why do You hide thyself in times of trouble? 2The wicked in his pride persecutes the poor: let them be caught in the plots that they have devised.  3For the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire; He blesses the greedy, and renounces the Lord.   4The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God: God is in none of his thoughts.  5His ways are always prospering; Your judgments are far above, out of his sight: As for all his enemies, he sneers at them. 6He hath said in his heart, “I shall not be moved: I shall never be in adversity.”  7His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and oppression: Under his tongue is trouble and iniquity.   8He sits in the lurking places of the villages: In the secret places, he murders the innocent: His eyes are secretly fixed on the helpless.  9He lies in wait secretly, as a lion in his den: he lies in wait to catch the poor: He catches the poor when he draws him into his net.  10So he crouches, he lies low, that the helpless may fall by his strength.   11He has said in his heart, “God hath forgotten: He hides his face; He will never see.”

12Arise, O LORD! O God, lift up Your hand; Do not forget the humble.  13Why do the wicked renounce God? He hath said in his heart, “You will not require an account.” 14But you have seen; for you observe trouble and grief, To repay it by your hand.  The helpless commits himself to You: You are the helper of the fatherless.  15Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness until You find none. 16The LORD is King forever and ever: the nations have perished out of His land. 17LORD, You hast heard the desire of the humble: You will prepare their heart, You will cause Your ear to hear:  18To do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, That the man of the earth may no more oppress.

Aren’t the similarities in this passage striking?  Notice especially what the psalmist says about the evil man: “He has said in his heart, ‘God has forgotten … He will never see… You will not require an account.’”  But, beginning in verse 14, the psalmist notes five things about God’s involvement:

  1. He has seen. We may never know all the people who were involved in this terrorist plot.  But God has seen.  He knows every person who was connected with it in any way.  The wicked think they can hide from our justice system; but they can never hide from God.  He has seen.
  2. He will repay. Interestingly, the terrorists themselves are often told that, if they die in one of these suicide attacks, they will immediately go to Paradise and be attended by 70 virgins.  The opposite is true.  The minute they died, they were ushered into an eternal torment that will be far more painful than all of the pain and suffering they inflicted on the thousands of innocent victims in the WTC.  Many of these terrorists will be caught and punished by our government.  But the worst punishment we can inflict will pale before the punishment measured out by God.  He will repay.
  3. He will help the helpless. The anguish suffered by all many in this attack is difficult to imagine.  The Bible tells about comfort and peace that God brings even in the midst of unbelievable suffering.  He will help the helpless.
  4. He will break the arm of the evil man. God allows evil to flourish for a time, but He always brings the evildoers down.  It will happen again this time, whether through our efforts, or through the efforts of others.  Ultimately, the very presence of evil will be eradicated from this earth when the Prince of Peace comes to reign and rule.  One day soon, He will break the arm of the evil man.
  5. He is King Forever! While it may appear that evil is reigning, God is still seated on the throne and will be throughout all eternity.  He remains the sovereign Lord of the Universe.  He is king forever!

In light of all this, how shall we pray?

That God will provide comfort and healing for those who have lost loved ones and friends.

That He will provide wisdom and direction as our leaders make decisions.

That our country would seek justice and not vengeance.

That our citizens would not be dominated by hatred, but by love and justice.

That Christian workers would find an open door for the gospel in this time of crisis.

That our nation might be healed.

That people everywhere would recognize the brevity of life and seek to be prepared for eternity.

Posted in Jim Ehrhard, Reforming Reflections |

True Blessedness by Thomas Watson

December 30, 2009 by ADMIN

True Blessedness by Thomas Watson

Blessedness does not lie in externals.  That blessedness does not lie in externals, I shall prove by these five demonstrations.

(1) Those things which are not commensurate to the desires of the soul can never make a man blessed; but transitory things are not commensurate to the desires of the soul; therefore they cannot render him blessed.  Nothing on earth can satisfy. “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver” (Eccl. 5:10).  Riches are unsatisfying…

Because they are not real. The world is called a “fashion” (I Corinthians 7:31).  The word in the Greek signifies a mathematical figure sometimes a show or apparition.  Riches are but tinned over.  They are like alchemy, which glitters a little in our eyes, but at death all the alchemy will be worn off.  Riches are but sugared lies, pleasant impostures, tares, like a gilded cover which has not one leaf of true comfort bound up in it.

Because they are not suitable. The soul is a spiritual thing; riches are of an earthly extract, and how can these fill a spiritual substance.  A man may as well fill his treasure chest with grace, as his heart will gold.  If a man were crowned with all the delights of the world, nay, if God should build him an house among the stars, yet the restless eye of his unsatisfied mind would be looking still higher.  He would be prying beyond the heavens for some hidden rarities which he thinks he has not yet attained to; so unquenchable is the thirst of the soul until it comes to bathe in the river of life and to center upon true blessedness.

(2) That which cannot quiet the heart in a storm cannot entitle a man to blessedness; but earthly things accumulated cannot rock the troubled heart quiet; therefore they cannot make one blessed.  If the spirit be wounded, can the creature pour wine and oil into these wounds?  If God sets conscience to work, and it flies in a man’s face, can worldly comforts take off this angry fury?  Is there any harp to drive away the “evil spirit?”  Outward things can no more cure the agony of conscience than a silken stocking can cure a gouty leg.  When Saul was sore distressed (I Samuel 28:15), could all the jewels of his crown comfort him?  If God be angry, whose “fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him” (Nahum 1:6), can a wedge of gold be a screen to keep off this fire?  “They shall cast their silver in the streets; their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord” (Ezekiel 7:19).  King Belshazzar was carousing and ranting it.  “He drank wine in the golden vessels of the temple” (Daniel 5:3), but when the fingers of a man’s hand appeared, “his countenance was changed” (verse 6), his wine grew sour, his feast was spoiled with that dish which was served in upon the wall.  The things of the world will no more keep out trouble of spirit, than a paper sconce (shield) will keep out a bullet.

(3) That which is but for a season cannot make one blessed; but all things under the sun are but “for a season”, therefore they cannot enrich with blessedness.  Sublunary delights are like those meats which we say are a while in season, and then presently grow stale and are out of request.  “The world passeth away” (I John 2:17).  Worldly delights are winged.  They may be compared to a flock of birds in the garden, that stay a little while, but when you come near to them they take their flight and are gone.  So “riches make themselves wings; they fly away as eagle toward heaven” (Proverbs 23:5).  They are like a meteor that blazes but spends and annihilates.  They are like a castle made of snow lying under the torrid beams of the sun. Augustine says of himself, that when any preferment smiled upon him, he was afraid to accept it less it should on a sudden give him the slip.  Outward comforts are, as Plato says, like tennis balls which are bandied up and down from to another.  Had we the longest lease of worldly comforts, it would soon be run out.  Riches and honor are constantly in flight; they pass away like a swift stream, or like a ship that is going full sail.  While they are with us, they are going away from us.  They are like a posy of flowers which withers while you are smelling it; like ice, which melts away while it is in your hand.  The world, says Bernard, cries out, “I will leave you, and be gone.”  It takes its salute and farewell together.

(4) Those things which do more vex than comfort cannot make a man blessed; but such are all things under the sun, therefore they cannot have blessedness affixed to them.  As riches are compared to wind (Hosea 2:1) to show their vanity, so to thorns (Matthew 13:17) to show their vexation.  Thorns are not more apt to tear our garments, than riches to tear our hearts.  They are thorns in the gathering, they prick with care; and as they pierce the head with care of getting, so they wound the heart with fear of losing.  God will have our sweetest wine run dregs, yea, and taste of a musty cask too, that we may not think this is the wine of paradise.

(5) Those things which (if we have nothing else) will make us cursed, cannot make us blessed; but the sole enjoyment of worldly things will make us cursed, therefore it is far from making us blessed. “Riches are kept for the hurt of the owner” (Ecclesiastes 5:13).  Riches to the wicked are fuel for pride: “Thy heart is lifted up because of thy riches” (Ezekiel 28:5); and fuel for lust: “when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery” (Jeremiah 5:7).  Riches are a snare: “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts which drown men in perdition” (1 Tim. 6:9).  How many have pulled down their souls to build up an estate!  A ship may be so laden with gold that it sinks; many a man’s gold has sunk him to hell.  The rich sinner seals up money in his bag, and God seals up a curse with it.  Woe to him that ladeth himself with thick clay” (Habbakkuk 2:6).  Augustine says that Judas for money sold his salvation, and the Pharisees bought their damnation; so that happiness is not to be fetched out of the earth.  They who go to the creature for blessedness go to the wrong box.

If blessedness does not consist in externals, then let us not place our blessedness here.  This is to seek the living among the dead.  As the angel told Mary concerning Christ, “He is not here, he is risen” (Matt. 28:6), so I may say of blessedness, It is not here, it is risen; it is in a higher region.  How do men thirst after the world, as if the pearl of blessedness hung upon an earthly crown!  O, says one, if I had but such an estate, then I should be happy!  Had I but such a comfort, then I should sit down satisfied!  Well, God gives him that comfort and lets him suck out the very juice and spirits of it, but, alas, it falls short of his expectation. It cannot fill the hiatus and longing of his soul which still cries “Give, give” (Proverbs 30: 15); just like a sick man.  If, says he, I had but such a meat, I could eat it; and when he has it, his stomach is bad, and he can hardly endure to taste it.  God has put not only an emptiness, but bitterness into the creature, and it is good for us that there is no perfection here, that we may raise our thoughts higher to more noble and generous delights.  Could we distill and draw out the quintessence of the creature, we should say as once the emperor Severus said, who grew from a mean estate to be head of the greatest empire in the world: I have, says he, run through all conditions, yet could never find full contentment.

To such as are cut short in their allowance, whose cup does not overflow — be not too much troubled; remember that these outward comforts cannot make you blessed.  You might live rich and die cursed. You might treasure up an estate, and God might treasure up wrath.  Be not perplexed about those things the lack of which cannot make you miserable, nor the enjoyment make you blessed.

Wherein blessedness consists

Having shown wherein blessedness does not consist, I shall next show wherein it does consist.  Blessedness stands in the fruition of the chief good.

(1) It consists in fruition; there must not be only possession, but fruition.  A man may possess an estate, yet not enjoy it.  He may have the dominion of it, but not the comfort, as when he is in a lethargy or under the predominancy of melancholy.  But in true blessedness there must be a sensible enjoyment of that which the soul possesses.

(2) Blessedness lies in the fruition of the chief good. It is not every good that makes a man blessed, but it must be the supreme good, and that is God.  “Happy is that people whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 144:15).  God is the soul’s rest (Psalm 116:7).  Now that only in which soul acquiesces and rests can make it blessed.  The globe or circle, as is observed in mathematics, is of all others the most perfect figure, because the last point of the figure ends in that first point where it began.  So, when the soul meets in God, whence it sprang as its first original, then it is completely blessed.  That which makes a man blessed must have fixed qualifications or ingredients in it, and these are found nowhere but in God.

In true blessedness, there must be meliority (the quality of being better); that which fills with blessedness must be such a good as is better than a man’s self.  If you would ennoble a piece of silver, it must be by putting something to it which is better than silver, as by putting gold or pearl to it.  So that which ennobles the soul and enriches it with blessedness, must be by adding something to it which is more excellent than the soul, and that is God.  The world is below the soul; it is but the soul’s footstool; therefore it cannot crown it with happiness.

Another ingredient is delectability: that which brings blessedness must have a delicious taste in it, such as the soul is instantly ravished with.  There must be in it spirits of delight and quintessence of joy, and where can the soul suck those pure comforts which amaze it with wonder and crown it with delight, but in God?  “In God,” says Augustine, “the soul is delighted with such sweetness as even transports it.”  The love of God is a honeycomb which drops such infinite sweetness and satisfaction into the soul as is “unspeakable and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:18).  A kiss from God “s mouth puts the soul into a divine ecstasy, so that now it cries out, “It is good to be here.”

The third ingredient in blessedness is plenty; that which makes a man blessed must not be too scanty.  It is a full draught which quenches soul’s thirst; and where shall we find plenty but in Deity?  “Thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures” (Psalm 36:8); not drops but rivers!  The soul bathes itself and is laid, as it were, a-steeping the water of life.  The river of paradise overflowed and empties its silver streams into the souls of the blessed.

In true blessedness, there must be variety.  Plenty without variety is apt to nauseate.  In God, there is “all fullness” (Colossians 1: 19).  What can the soul want, but it may be had in the chief good?  God is “the good in all good things”.  He is a sun, a shield, a portion, a fountain, a rock of strength, an horn of salvation.  In God, there is a complication of excellencies.  There are every moment fresh beauties and delights springing from God.

To make up blessedness there must be perfection; the joy must be perfect, the glory perfect.  “Spirits of just men made perfect” (Heb. 12:23).  “Blessedness must run through the whole.”  If there be the least defect, it destroys the nature of blessedness, as the least symptom of a disease takes away the well-being and right temperature of the body.

True blessedness must have eternity stamped on it. Blessedness is a fixed thing; it admits of no change or alteration. God says of every child of his, “I have blessed him and he shall be blessed.”  As the sunshine of blessedness is “without clouds”, so it never sets.  “I give unto them eternal” (John 10:28).  “And so shall we ever be with the Lord” (I Thess. 4:17).  Eternity is the highest link of blessedness.  Thus we have seen that this diamond of blessedness is only to be found in the Rock of Ages. “Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.”

Posted in Reforming Reflections, Thomas Watson |

The Worst Things Work for Good to the Godly by Thomas Watson

December 30, 2009 by ADMIN

The Worst Things Work for Good to the Godly by Thomas Watson

Do not mistake me; I do not say that of their own nature the worst things are good, for they are a fruit of the curse; but though they are naturally evil, yet the wise over­ruling hand of God disposing and sanctifying them, they are morally good.  As the elements, though of contrary qualities, yet God has so tempered them, that they all work in a harmonious manner for the good of the universe.  Or as in a watch, the wheels seem to move contrary one to another, but all carry on the motions of the watch: so things seem to move cross to the godly, yet by the wonderful providence of God work for their good.

The evil of affliction works for good to the godly.

It is one heart-quieting consideration in all the afflictions that befall us, that God has a special hand in them: “The Almighty hath afflicted me” (Ruth 1:21). Instruments can no more stir till God gives them a commission, than the axe can cut of itself without a hand.  Job eyed God in his affliction: therefore, as Augustine observes, he does not say, “The Lord gave, and the devil took away,” but “The Lord hath taken away.” Whoever brings an affliction to us, it is God that sends it.

Another heart-quieting consideration is, that afflic­tions work for good.  “Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans, for their good” (Jeremiah 24:5).  Judah’s captivity in Babylon was for their good.  “It is good for m that I have been afflicted” (Psalm 119.71).  This text, like Moses’ tree cast into the bitter waters of affliction, may make them sweet and wholesome to drink.  Afflictions to the godly are medicinal.  Out of the most poisonous drugs, God extracts our salvation.  Afflictions are as needful as ordinances (1 Peter 1:6).  No vessel can be made of gold without fire; so it is impossible that we should be made vessels of honor, unless we are melted and refined in the furnace of affliction. “All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth” (Psalm 25:10). As the painter intermixes bright colors with dark shadows, so the wise God mixes mercy with judgment.  Those afflictive providences which seem to be prejudicial, are beneficial.  Let us take some instances in Scripture.

Joseph’s brethren throw him into a pit; afterward they sell him; then he is cast into prison; yet all this worked for his good.  His abasement made way for his advancement; he was made the second man in the kingdom. “Ye thought evil against me, but God meant it for good’ (Genesis 50:20).  Jacob wrestled with the angel, and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint.  This was sad; but God turned it to good, for there he saw God’s face, and there the Lord blessed him.  “Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, for I have seen God face to face” (Genesis 32:30).  Who would not be willing to have a bone out of joint, so that he might have a sight of God?  King Manasseh was bound in chains.  This was sad to see — a crown of gold exchanged for fetters; but it wrought for his good, for, “When he was in affliction he besought the Lord, and humbled himself greatly, and the Lord was entreated of him” (2 Chronicles 33:11-12). He was more beholden to his iron chain, than to his golden crown; the one made him proud, the other made him humble.

Job was a spectacle of misery; he lost all that ever he had; he abounded only in boils and ulcers.  This was sad; but it wrought for his good, his grace was proved and improved.  God gave a testimony from heaven of his integrity, and did compensate his loss by giving him twice as much as ever he had before (Job 42:10).  Paul was smitten with blindness.  This was uncomfort­able, but it turned to his good.  By that blindness, God made way for the light of grace to shine into his soul; it was the beginning of a happy conversion (Acts 9:6).

As the hard frosts in winter bring on the flowers in the spring, and as the night ushers in the morning star, so the evils of affliction produce much good to those that love God.  But we are ready to question the truth of this, and say, as Mary did to the angel, “How can this be?”  Therefore I shall show you several ways how affliction works for good.

(1) As it is our preacher and tutor — “Hear ye the rod” (Micah 6:9).  Luther said that he could never rightly understand some of the Psalms, till he was in affliction.  Affliction teaches what sin is.  In the word preached, we hear what a dreadful thing sin is, that it is both defiling and damning, but we fear it no more than a painted lion; therefore God lets loose affliction, and then we feel sin bitter in the fruit of it.  A sickbed often teaches more than a sermon. We can best see the ugly visage of sin in the glass of affliction.  Affliction teaches us to know our­selves.  In prosperity, we are for the most part strangers to ourselves.  God makes us know affliction, that we may better know ourselves.  We see that corruption in our hearts in the time of affliction, which we would not believe was there.  Water in the glass looks clear, but set it on the fire, and the scum boils up.  In prosperity, a man seems to be humble and thankful, the water looks dear; but set this man a little on the fire of affliction, and the scum boils up — much impatience and unbelief appear.  “Oh,” says a Christian, “I never thought I had such a bad heart, as now I see I have; I never thought my cor­ruptions had been so strong, and my graces so weak.”

(2) Afflictions work for good, as they are the means of making the heart more upright. In prosperity, the heart is apt to be divided (Hosea 10:2). The heart cleaves partly to God, and partly to the world.  It is like a needle between two lodestones; God draws, and the world draws.  Now God takes away the world, that the heart may cleave more to Him in sincerity.  Correction is a setting the heart right and straight. As we sometimes hold a crooked rod over the fire to straighten it; so God holds us over the fire of affliction to make us more straight and upright.  Oh how good it is, when sin has bent the soul awry from God, that affliction should straighten it again!

(3) Afflictions work for good, as they conform us to Christ. God’s rod is a pencil to draw Christ’s image more lively upon us.  It is good that there should be symmetry and proportion between the Head and the members.  Would we be parts of Christ’s mystical body and not be like Him?  His life, as Calvin says, was a series of sufferings, “a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3).  He wept and bled.  Was His heart crowned with thorns, and do we think to be crowned with roses?  It is good to be like Christ, though it be sufferings.  Jesus Christ drank a bitter cup; it made Him sweat drops of blood to think of it; and, though it be true He drank the poison in the cup (the wrath of God), yet there is some wormwood in the cup left, which the saints must drink.  Only here is the difference between Christ’s sufferings and ours; His were satisfactory, ours are only castigatory.

(4) Afflictions work for good to the godly, as they are destructive to sin. There is much corruption in the best heart; affliction does by degrees work it out, as the fire works out the dross from the gold, “This is all the fruit, to take away his sin” (Isaiah 27:9).  What if we have more of the rough file, if we have less rust!  Afflictions carry away nothing but the dross of sin.  If a physician should say to a patient, “Your body is distempered, and full of bad humors, which must be cleared out, or you die; but I will prescribe physic which, though it may make you sick, yet it will carry away the dregs of your disease, and save your life;” would not this be for the good of the patient?  Afflictions are the medicine which God uses to carry off our spiritual diseases; they cure the tumor of pride, the fever of lust, the dropsy of covetousness.  Do they not then work for good?

(5) Afflictions work for good, as they are the means of loosening our hearts from the world. When you dig away the earth from the root of a tree, it is to loosen the tree from the earth; so God digs away our earthly comforts to loosen our hearts from the earth.  A thorn grows up with every flower.  God would have the world hang as a loose tooth which, being twitched away, does not much trouble us.  Is it not good to be weaned?  The oldest saints need it.  Why does the Lord break the conduit-pipe?  So that we may go to Him, in whom are “all our fresh springs” (Psalm 87:7).

(6) Afflictions work for good, as they make way for comfort. “In the valley of Achor is a door of hope” (Hosea 2:15).  Achor signifies trouble.  God sweetens outward pain with inward peace.  “Your sorrow shall be turned into joy” (John 16:20).  Here is the water turned into wine.  After a bitter pill, God gives sugar.  Paul had his prison-song.  God’s rod has honey at the end of it.  The saints in affliction have had such sweet raptures of joy, that they thought themselves in the borders of the heavenly Canaan.

(7) Afflictions work for good, as they are a magnifying of us. “What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him, and that thou shouldest visit him every morning?” (Job 7:17).  God does by affliction magnify us three ways: (a) in that He will condescend so low as to take notice of us.  It is an honor that God will mind dust and ashes.  It is magnifying of us, that God thinks us worthy to be smitten.  God’s not striking is a slighting;  (b) Afflictions magnify us, as they are ensigns of glory, signs of sonship, “If you endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons” (Hebrews 12:7).  Every print of the rod is a badge of honor;  (c) Afflictions tend to the magnifying of the saints, as they make them renowned in the world.  Soldiers have never been so admired for their victories, as the saints have been for their sufferings.  The zeal and constancy of the martyrs in their trials have rendered them famous to posterity.  How eminent was Job for his patience!  God leaves his name upon record: “Ye have heard of the patience of Job” (James 5:11). Job the sufferer was more renowned than Alexander the conqueror.

(8) Afflictions work for good, as they are the means of making us happy. “Happy is the man whom God correcteth” (Job 5:17).  What politician or moralist ever placed happiness in the cross?  Job does.  “Happy is the man whom God correcteth.”

It may be said, How do afflictions make us happy?  We reply that, being sanctified, they bring us nearer to God.  The moon in the full is furthest off from the sun: so are many further off from God in the full moon of prosper­ity; [but] afflictions bring them nearer to God.  The magnet of mercy does not draw us so near to God as the cords of affliction.  When Absalom set Joab’s corn on fire, then he came running to Absalom (2 Samuel 14:30).  When God sets our worldly comforts on fire, then we run to Him, and make our peace with Him.  When the prodigal was pinched with want, then he returned home to his father (Luke 15).  When the dove could not find any rest for the sole of her foot, then she flew to the ark.  When God brings a deluge of affliction upon us, then we fly to the ark of Christ.  Thus affliction makes us happy, in bringing us nearer to God.  Faith can make use of the waters of affliction, to swim faster to Christ.

(9)  Afflictions work for good, as they put to silence the wicked. How ready are they to asperse and calumniate the godly, that they serve God only for self-interest.  Therefore God will have His people endure sufferings for that He may put a padlock on the lying lips of men.  When the atheists of the world see that God has a people, who serve Him not for a livery, but for love, it stops their mouths.  The devil accused Job of hypocrisy, that he was a mercenary man; all his religion made up of ends of gold and silver: “Doth Job serve for naught? Hast not thou made a hedge about him?” “Well,” says God, “put forth thy hand, touch his estate” (Job 1:9).  The devil had no sooner received a commission, but he falls a breaking down Job’s hedge.  Still Job worships God (Job 1:20), and professes faith in Him: “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him” (Job 13:15).  This silenced the devil himself.  How it strikes a damp into wicked men, when they see that the godly will keep close to God in a suffering condition, and that, [even] when they lose all, they yet will hold fast their integrity.

(10) Afflictions work for good, as they make way for glory (2 Corinthians 4:17). Not that they merit glory, but they prepare for it.  As ploughing prepares the earth for a crop, so afflictions prepare and make us meet for glory.  The painter lays his gold upon dark colors, so God first lays the dark colors of affliction, and then He lays the gold color of glory.  The vessel is first seasoned before wine is poured into it; the vessels of mercy are first seasoned with affliction, and then the wine of glory is poured in.  Thus we see afflictions are not prejudicial, but beneficial, to the saints.  We should not so much look at the evil affliction, as the good; not so much at the dark side of the cloud, as the light.

From A Divine Cordial (1663).  Currently published as All Things for Good by Banner of Truth Trust (1994).

Posted in Reforming Reflections, Thomas Watson |

Gift and Grit (In that Order) by John Piper

December 30, 2009 by ADMIN

Gift and Grit (In that Order) by John Piper

Thoughts on Human Effort and Divine Enabling

Question: If God is the one who gives our varied measures of faith, should we pursue greater faith?

Answer: Yes!  With all our might!  Through prayer, word, fellow­ship, an obedience.

Faith is a gift of God.  Romans 12:3 says, “Think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned to him” (RSV).  God measures to each believer a measure of faith. Ephesians 2:8 says, “By grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God” (RSV).  The word “this” refers to the whole act of God, including the accomplishment of salvation on the cross and the appli­cation of salvation through faith.  Philippians 1:29 says, “To you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake.”  Believing and suffering are both gifts from God.  Similarly repen­tance (the flip side of faith) is called a gift of God (2 Timothy 2:25; Acts 11:18).  The revelation of Christ to the heart that makes faith possible is also a gift (Matthew 16:17; 2 Corinthians 4:4, 6).

This does not mean faith is static or that we should not pursue it more and more.  In 2 Thessalonians 1:3, Paul says, “Your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another.”  In 2 Corinthians 10:15, Paul says that he hopes their faith will “increase.”

Therefore it is clear that faith should grow and not remain static.  The fact that God gave you yesterday’s level of faith does not mean that his will for you today is the same measure of faith.  His purpose for you today may be far greater faith.  His command is to “trust in him at all times” (Psalm 62:8, RSV) and to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18, RSV).

God commands what he wills and grants in measure what he com­mands, but we should always pursue what he commands.  He says, “Work out your salvation…for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13).  God does not say, “Since I work, you shouldn’t.”  He says, “Because I do, you can.”  God’s gift does not replace our effort; it enables and carries it.

We say with Paul, “[God’s] grace toward me was not in vain.  On the contrary, I worked…” (1 Corinthians 15:10, RSV).  The gift of grace produced the grit of hard work.  It is not the other way around.  He goes on, “I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me.”  Even Paul’s working is a gift of grace.  Yes, it feels like our effort.  It is an effort!  But that is not all it is.  That is not what it is at root.  If it is virtuous, it is God’s “working in us to will and to do his good pleasure.”  God “fulfill[s] every good resolve and work of faith by his power” (2 Thessalonians 1:11, RSV).  He equips us “with everything good that [we] may do his will, working in [us] that which is pleasing in his sight” (Hebrews 13:21, RSV).

Therefore let us press on to the greatest faith possible with all the means of grace God has given.  Let us be like Paul and strive “with all the energy which be mightily inspires within [us]” (Colossians 1:29, RSV).  And when we have labored, let us not think more highly of ourselves than is necessary but say with Paul, “I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought through me…by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:18-19, RSV).  There is a place for grit in the Christian life (“I worked hard”), but it is preceded by and enabled by gift (“It was the grace of God”).  Therefore all grit is living by faith in future grace.

From A Godward Life: Savoring the Supremacy of God in All of Life by John Piper.

Posted in John Piper, Reforming Reflections |

The Spirit Sealing by A. W. Pink

December 30, 2009 by ADMIN

The Spirit Sealing by A. W. Pink

Closely connected with the Spirit’s work of witnessing with the Christian’s spirit that he is a child of God, is His operation in sealing.  This appears clearly from 2 Corinthians 1:19-22 and Ephesians 1:13.  The riches of the Christian are found in the promises of God, and these are all “Yea and Amen” in Christ: unless, then, our faith he built upon them, it is worthless.  It is not sufficient that the promises he sure, we must he “established” upon them.  No matter how firm the foundation (be it solid rock), unless the house he connected therewith, actually built thereon, it is insecure.  There must he a double “Amen:” one in the promises, and one in us.  There must be an echo in the Christian’s own heart: God says these things, so they must be true; faith appropriates them and says they are for me. In order to have assurance and peace it is indispensable that we be established in and on the Divine promises.

The Christian’s riches lie in the promises of God: his strength and comfort in his faith being built upon them.  Now the same Divine power which delivered the Christian from the kingdom of Satan and brought him into a state of grace, must also deliver him from the attacks of the enemy upon his faith and confirm him in a state of grace.  Only God can produce stability: only He can preserve that spark of faith amid the winds and waves of unbelief, and this He is pleased to do—“He which hath begun a good work in you will finish it” (Philippians 1:6).

Therefore are we told “Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ… is God.”  Observe carefully it is not “hath stablished,” but “stablisheth” — it is a continuous process throughout the Christian’s life on earth.  In what follows the apostle shows us what this “stablishing” consists of, or how it is accomplished: “and hath anointed us… who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our heart” (2 Corinthians 1:22).  Each of these figures refers to the same thing, and has to do with the “stablishing” or assuring of our hearts.  Under the Old Testament economy, prophets, priests, and kings were authorized and confirmed in their office by “anointing” (Leviticus 8:11; 2 Samuel 5:3; 1 Kings 19:16).  Again; contracts and deeds of settlement were ratified by “sealing” (Esther 8:8; Jeremiah 32:8-10).  And a “pledge” or “earnest” secured an agreement or bargain (Genesis 38:17, 18; Deuteronomy 24:10).  Thus the sure estate of the Christian is first expressed under the general word “stablisheth,” and then it is amplified under these three figurative terms “anointed, sealed, earnest.”  It is with the second of them we are now concerned.

It may be asked, But what need has the Christian of attestation or confirmation of his state in Christ—is not faith itself sufficient proof?  Ah, often our faith and the knowledge we have of our believing in Christ is severely shaken; the activities of indwelling sin stir up a thick cloud of doubt, and Satan avails himself of this to tell us our profession is an empty one.  But in His tender grace, God has given us the Holy Spirit, and from time to time He “seals” or confirms our faith by His quickening and comforting operations.  He draws out our hearts anew unto God and enables us to cry “Abba, Father.”  He takes of the things of Christ, shows them to us, and brings us to realize that we have a personal interest in the same.

The same blessed truth is found again in Ephesians 1:13.  It is important to note the order of the three things there predicated of saints: they “heard,” they “believed,” they were “sealed:” thus the sealing is quite distinct from and follows the believing, as the believing does the hearing.

There are two things, and two only, upon which the Spirit puts His seal, namely, two mighty and efficacious works: first, the finished work of Christ, whereby He put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself; and second, upon His own work in the hearts of those who believe.  In legal documents, the writing always precedes the witnessing and sealing: so here, the Spirit writes God’s laws on the heart (Hebrews 8:10), and then He seals the truth and reality of His own work to the consciousness of the recipient.

The main intent of “sealing” is to assure, to certify and ratify. First, the Holy Spirit conveys an assurance of the truth of God’s promises, whereby a man’s understanding is spiritually convinced that the promises are from God.  Neither the light of reason nor the persuasive power of a fellow-mortal can bring any one to rest his heart upon the Divine promises: in order to do that, there must be the direct working of the Holy Spirit—“Our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance” (1 Thessalonians 1:5): the “much assurance comes last! Second, He gives the believer an assurance of his own personal interest in those promises: and this again is something which none but the Spirit can impart.  We do not say that this sealing excludes all doubting, but it is such an assurance as prevails over doubts.

There are many uses of a “seal” such as proprietorship, identification, confirmation, secrecy, security; but in Ephesians 1:13 the immediate thing stated is the sealing of an inheritance: we have obtained an inheritance by faith, and having believed we are “sealed.”  What is the specific use of a “seal” in connection with an inheritance?  It may either be the making of the inheritance sure to a man in itself, or making the man know that it is his—assuring him of the fact. Now it cannot be the former, for nothing is needed to make Heaven sure once a sinner truly believes—the moment he lays hold of Christ, the inheritance is certain.  So it must be the latter: to make us sure, to persuade our hearts the inheritance is ours.  It is this the Spirit accomplishes in His “seal.”

The Holy Spirit is never called a “Seal” as He is an “Earnest” (2 Corinthians 5:5): it is only in relation to an act of sealing that this figure is associated with Him; thus it is a distinct operation of His “in our hearts” (2 Corinthians 1:22).  It is not the stamping of God’s image upon the soul (as many of the Puritans supposed) that is referred to in Ephesians 1:13, for that is done before believing, and not after.  The order of truth in that verse is very simple and decisive: in the gospel salvation is offered—it may be mine; faith accepts that offer so as to make salvation mine; the Spirit seals or confirms my heart that salvation is mine.  Thus in “sealing” the Spirit authenticates, certifies, ratifies.

Observe that He does this in His special character as “the Spirit of promise.”  He is so designated because, first, the Spirit was the great and grand promise of the New Testament (John 14:26; 15:26, etc.) as Christ was of the Old Testament. Second, because He works by means of the promises.  Third, because in His whole work He acts according to the everlasting covenant, which, as it respects the elect, is a Covenant of Promise (Ephesians 2:12).  When He seals home a sense of the love of God and gives the soul a view of its interest in Christ, it is done by means of the Word of Promise.  It was so when He “sealed” Christ (John 6:27) and consecrated Him to the work of redemption.  The Father said by an audible voice from Heaven, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased:” this was repeating what had been pronounced in the purpose of Jehovah the Father concerning the Mediator (Isaiah 42:1); this the Holy Spirit brought home in power or “sealed” upon the mind of Jesus at that time.

The “sealing” or assuring operations of the Spirit are known to the believer in two ways.

First, inferentially: by enabling him to perceive His work in the soul and from it conclude his regeneration.  When I see smoke I must infer a fire, and when I discern spiritual graces (however feeble) I reason back to the Producer of them.  When I feel a power within combating my corruptions, and often thwarting my intentions to indulge the lusts of the flesh, I conclude it is the Spirit resisting the flesh (Galatians 5:17).

Second, intuitively: by a Divine light in the heart, by a Divine authority felt, by the love of God shed abroad therein.  If I have any hope wrought in me, either by looking to Christ’s blood or perceiving grace in me, it is by the power of the Spirit (Romans 15:13).  The Spirit brings to the mind of the Christian the sacred promises.  He shows us the good contained in them, the grace expressed in them, the perfection and freeness of Christ’s salvation declared by them; and thereby He seals them on our mind and enables us to rest thereon.  He shows us the veracity and faithfulness of God in the promises, the immutability of the everlasting covenant, the eternity of God’s love, and that He hath by two immutable things (His word and His oath), in which it is impossible for Him to lie, given a firm foundation for strong consolation to us who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us in the gospel (Hebrews 6:18).  It is in this way that “the God of all grace” doth, by the Spirit, “stablish, strengthen, settle us” (1 Peter 5:10).  It is by the Spirit’s operations that the Christian’s fears are quietened, his doubts subdued, and his heart assured that a “good work” (Philippians 1:6) has been Divinely begun in him. The Spirit indwelling us is Christ’s seal (mark of identification) that we are His sheep; the Spirit authenticating His own blessed work in our souls, by revealing to us our “title” to Heaven, is His sealing us.

Posted in A. W. Pink, Reforming Reflections |

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