I have been reading from the pen and therefore the mind of John Newton lately. I thank God for raising up this servant of His and using him in my life today so many years after his passing from this earth and going home to our Savior. I submit this quotation to you for your edification.

From, Wise Counsel, John Newton’s letters to John Ryland Jr.; pg 123 &124 Upon the occasion of Ryland’s frustration at seeing no progress with his then third prospect for a wife. 

“But if you cannot tell your complaints to me, you tell them to the Lord, which is a thousand times better. If it is a day of trouble with you then the promise, Psalm 50:15, is provided for you, and you have as much right to plead it, as you have to open a letter directed to J. Ryland junr. (exchange for your name here!)

I must refer the long delay, and every other possible grievance, to the scriptures of truth. If we were not creatures we might have a right to choose, if we were not sinners we might perhaps venture to complain of sufferings. If the Lord were not wise he might mistake our case; if He were not good he might deal hardly with us. If this life were our all, delays and crossings for one, two or three years would be of great importance. But reverse all these suppositions, say that we are creatures, sinful pardoned creatures, bought with the blood of Jesus, that our Saviour is our shepherd, that He is infinitely wise and good in himself, and has engaged his wisdom and goodness in our behalf; that He suffered for us, and calls us by grace that we may suffer for him (Acts 9:16); say farther that every event we are concerned in is under his immediate direction, and all to work for good; that what we call heavy is light and the long and tedious but momentary, as to our true existence and when compared with the weight of glory, and the length of eternity to which they lead. Let all these truths be planted like so many cannon in your defence and see whether self will and unbelief will dare to look them in the face.

Soli Deo Gloria

    In one of our Adult Sunday Morning Bible Studies we recently did a study on Biblical Hermeneutics. Here is a great article that applies some of what we learned to a very divisive contemporary issue.

The Bible’s Most Misused Verse

Marvin Olasky

    What’s the most misused verse of the Bible? The field of candidates is as crowded as the field of GOP presidential aspirants will be next year, but my choice is Matthew 25:40, “As you did to one of the least of these my brothers, you did to me.” Many people use that verse to vindicate everything from giving an alcoholic a dollar to adding to the US budget billions more for what passes as welfare – even though such spending does not help the poor to fare well.

In the 1960s, the Protestant debates concerning welfare essentially pitted theological liberals against evangelicals. In one corner stood the liberal National Council of Churches, which – in a great reversal from church positions of the 19th century—favored fighting poverty through forced redistribution by government. One ditty summarized well the influence of church liberals: “Brown a liberal education, in television grease /And roll in economics, seasoned well with peace; / Garnish with compassion, just a touch will do /And serve in deep humility; your philanthropic stew.”

In the other corner stood those who saw poverty as not only material but spiritual, and thus argued that church-based anti-poverty programs were likely to be much more effective than those emanating from Washington. The National Association of Evangelicals’ magazine, United Evangelical Action, saw dire consequences if worship of government increased: “In striving for total economic security for all men as the supreme goal, the churches may get something like the desired results through the help of friends, agencies, and the patronage of the state, only to discover that one day they are more in debt to them than to Christ.”

Christianity Today, then the major evangelical news magazine, argued against expanding welfare and for “faith in God [that] puts courage, compassion, and determination into the hearts of men. These are the qualities that conquer poverty and solve other social problems.” Today, though, evangelicals are not united on the need to fight poverty primarily through Christ’s grace rather than Caesar’s gifts. Some quote Jesus’ statement earlier in the chapter 25 of Matthew’s gospel –  “I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink…” — to argue that godly government means expanding welfare.

Liberal use of the Matthew 25 quotation (and many others) raises severe questions of biblical interpretation. To start with: Is the Bible divided against itself? The Old Testament emphasizes not alms but opportunities to glean, and not subsidies for sitting but exhortations to be industrious. If we use Matthew 25 to baptize the welfare state, even though its result has been two generations that never learned about the importance of work, what do we do with dozens of verses from Proverbs? Some example: “Lazy hands make a man poor… Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in slave labor…. The sluggard’s craving will be the death of him, because his hands refuse to work.”

Second, if we liberally play with Matthew 25, are we placing in opposition the teachings of Jesus and those of Paul? The apostle provided to the Thessalonians and us not a suggestion but a rule: “In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle… We gave you this rule: ‘If a man will not work, he shall not eat.’ We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.”

Third, the liberal reading of Matthew 25 even pits Jesus against Jesus. He could have turned stones into bread to feed all the hungry people in Israel, but instead he fed only those who came to hear him. And he didn’t feed them that quickly either: In Matthew 15, Jesus fed 4,000 men, along with women and children, only after they were with him, gaining spiritual nourishment, for three days.

One essential part of evangelical understanding is that the Bible, although written by many inspired authors over more than a millennium, has an essential unity. It’s wrong to pit Scripture against Scripture, so when one verse seems out of keeping with many others, we need to look at the whole of the Bible and then reexamine what seems off. So if Matthew 25:40 exhorts us to be compassionate, as it does, we need to understand what biblical compassion means.

Here’s what’s clear from studying 80+ biblical verses that explain God’s definition of compassion: It’s connected to repentance and deliverance. Note Nehemiah 9: “When they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers.” Crying out is essential: as Psalm 103 notes, “the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.” The New Testament tells us repeatedly that Jesus is the bread of life and the living water. We should not spiritualize away real material needs, but we should also not deny Christ by giving needy people only physical sustenance. We should challenge able-bodied, able-minded people to leave poverty, instead of enabling them to remain in poverty.

Helping widows, orphans, the sick, and others who temporarily cannot help themselves, is fine, but anything more than that is an anti-biblical trap into which some evangelicals are falling. Even Christianity Today no longer blows clear trumpet sounds, which is one reason why World magazine (with its doctrine of “biblical objectivity”) and CT are now nose-to-nose for the circulation leadership among evangelicals.

Here is how Jesus’ words, in light of his own teaching and the whole counsel of God, could be modernized for application to welfare statists: “I despaired and you gave me stew, when what I truly needed was my birthright. I was an alcoholic and you gave me money that I used to buy another bottle, while you walked away applauding yourself. I lived for immediate gratification and needed the discipline of work and family, but you gave me shelter without responsibility so that I did not have to look back or ahead. Now depart from me into the eternal fire.”

Those who profess Christ need to be careful to avoid the same pit.

Marvin Olasky is editor-in-chief of World, which is now the most-read news magazine from an evangelical perspective.

A very good friend of mine had this posted on his Church’s Site and it was so very good I wanted to share it with our readers as well.

Please listen to this video!

T4G 2010 — Session 8 — Matt Chandler from Together for the Gospel (T4G) on Vimeo.

OF

OUR NATION’S CHRISTIAN HERITAGE!

Had to add this and it is NOT a joke.

Very good, listen to it!

Each year we have a group of men made up of Elders, Deacons, Missionaries, and young men who are aspiring to serve the Lord in leadership at First Baptist Church of Sidney, in the pastorate, or on the mission field. This year we had ten men travel together to reflect on the challenges, responsibilities, and privileges that face the modern church. It was, as always, a great time of learning, bonding and being encouraged from the Word of God and from the lives of some of His gifted servants. If you are interested in learning more about this Men’s Leadership Conference go to parksidechurch.com or call FBC (607-563-8456) and we will be glad to answer any questions we can about this valuable conference for men in church leadership.

Here is just a taste of the Conference from the - 

General Session #6: Panel Question Time – All Speakers:

Panel Question Time from Parkside Church on Vimeo.

POST SCRIPT:  

One of my fellow Elders who had never preached before filled in for me while I was away on a week of vacation. What a great joy it is to see God challenge a man to preach a message and then see God bless when that man makes himself available to God for His purposes! I know attending this conference had a large part to play in the means God used to challenge Bob to step humbly behind a pulpit! It is God’s Word that we are to preach and not ourselves and we have such a great God to proclaim! You can listen to this message on this site under the “SERMONS” tab, May 30th.

     FBC is going through the wonderful experience of a “Church Baby Boom”! Our nursery is already rather crowded and we have more on the way. For a small church in a little village this is a very exciting problem; “Deacons we are going to need to enlarge the nursery”. Babies are truly a blessing from God and oh how we absolutely love each and every one of them with every fiber of our being!

     However the Scriptures teach us a radical truth about our babies; about all babies! Therefore it is a truth about each and every one of us for we all had our start in life as a baby! So prepare yourselves for some stark reality as you read concerning this hard truth. This, of course, has tremendous implications for Christian parenting and I would recommend to you some real help in the form of an excellent book; “Shepherding a Child’s Heart” by Tedd Tripp.

Every Baby Starts Life as a Little Savage!           

“Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me!” Psalm 51:5

     “Every baby starts life as a little savage. He is completely selfish and self-centered: he wants what he wants; his bottle, his mother’s attention, his playmate’s toys, his uncle’s watch, or whatever. Deny him these and he seethes with rage and aggressiveness which would be murderous were he not so helpless. He is dirty; he has no morals, no knowledge and no developed skills. This means that all children, not just certain children, but all children are born delinquent. If permitted to continue in their self-centered world of infancy, given free reign to their impulsive actions to satisfy each want every child would grow up a criminal, a killer, a thief, and a rapist.” (Reb Bradley, “Biblical Insights into Child Training”)

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

     “Remember that children are born with a decided bias toward evil, and therefore if you let them choose for themselves, they are certain to choose wrong. The mother cannot tell what her tender infant may grow up to be tall or short, weak or strong, wise or foolish all is uncertain. But one thing the mother can say with certainty he will have a corrupt and sinful heart! It is natural for us to do wrong. Our hearts are like the earth on which we tread let it alone, and it is sure to bear weeds!” (J. C. Ryle)

“Every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood.” Genesis 8:21

The Apostle Peter in his second epistle said, ^ESV 2 Peter 1:10 “Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.” It is God’s desire for us that we would have assurance of our salvation. Yet many professing believers do not have that blessing of assurance. There are a number of reasons why people lack assurance and one certainly must not exclude the fearful reality that assurance is lacking because salvation is lacking! Here is an excellent read from A. W. Pink for any genuine child of God who may be doubting their salvation due to a lack of humility.  For every truly regenerate person has a humble heart!  

You are a Filthy Pauper!   (Arthur Pink, “Identification of the Godly“)

“For this is what the high and lofty One says, He who lives forever, whose name is holy: I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is of a contrite and humble spirit.” Isaiah 57:15

A humble spirit or heart, is an infallible sign of regeneration; for the unregenerate are proud, self-satisfied, self-righteous.

Yet the very mention of the word “humility” seems to cut off many Christians. As they examine themselves, they discover so much pride at work within, that they are quite unable to persuade themselves that they have a humble heart. It seems to them that humility is one thing they most evidently lack. Now it will no doubt be a startling statement, but we unhesitatingly affirm that the great majority of God’s people are far more humble than they suppose!

FIRST, that the Christian reader possesses a humble heart, is plain from the fact that he confesses himself to be a Hell-deserving sinner. We do not have in mind what you say of yourself when in the company of your fellows, but rather what you feel and say of yourself when alone with God. Whatever pretenses you are guilty of before men when in the presence of the Omniscient One you are real, sincere, and genuine.

Now, dear reader, be honest with yourself: When on your knees before the Throne of Grace, do you freely and frankly acknowledge that if you received your lawful due, you would even now be suffering the dreadful fires of Hell? If so, a miracle of grace must have been wrought within you. No unregenerate person will or can honestly make such a confession to God for he does not feel he has done anything deserving of eternal punishment.

SECOND, if you own that “all your righteous acts are like filthy rags,” that is proof you possess a humble heart. Of course, we mean much more than your merely uttering those words as a parrot might, or even singing then during some religious service. We mean that when you are in the presence of the Lord, which is always the surest test, you personally realize that you have not a single meritorious deed of your own to commend you to His favorable regard.

We mean that, when bowed in His presence, in the calmness and quietness of your prayer-closet, you own without any qualification, that your best performances are defiled by sin and that in yourself, you are a filthy pauper!

If that is indeed your language before God it most certainly issues from a humble heart. The heart of the natural man thinks and feels the very opposite, and can no more loathe himself than transform himself into a holy angel.   {Idea of “self-esteem is done away with!}

THIRD, if you receive everything in the Scriptures as a little child that is another proof that a miracle of grace has been wrought within you and that you now possess a humble heart. By nature, all are “wise and prudent” in their own esteem.

The enmity of the proud carnal mind rises up against the sovereignty of God making one vessel to honor and another to dishonor; against the spirituality and strictness of the Divine Law which curses all who deviate the slightest from its holy demands; and against the endless punishment of all dying out of Christ. But the regenerate, though there is much they do not understand, accept without murmur or question all that is revealed in the Word. If you do, that is proof that your pride has been abased before God.

How thankful we should be that Scripture does not say that God dwells only in those who have complete victory over sin, or those who enjoy unbroken and unclouded communion with Him. Had those been the distinguishing features named then every one of us might well despair!

But every regenerate person has a humble heart. And if you, my reader, measuring yourself by what has been pointed out above, can discern such fruits and evidences of  humility then so far from its being presumptuous for you to look upon yourself as one saved and indwelt by God it would be most wicked presumption for you to do otherwise.

God’s Children let this word of reminder go with you throughout the day!                

He Could Not Love You More!      (Charles Spurgeon)

“I have loved you, My people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to Myself!” Jeremiah 31:3   He loved you without beginning. Before years, and centuries, and millenniums began to be counted your name was on His heart! Eternal thoughts of love have been in God’s bosom towards you. He has loved you without a pause; there never was a minute in which He did not love you. Your name once engraved upon His hands has never been erased, nor will He ever blot it out of the Book of Life. Since you have been in this world He has loved you most patiently. You have often provoked Him; you have rebelled against Him times without number, yet He has never stayed the outflow of His heart towards you; and, blessed be His name He never will. You are His, and you always shall be His. God’s love to you is without boundary. He could not love you more for He loves you like a God; and He never will love you less. All His heart belongs to you!   “As the Father has loved Me so have I loved you!” John 15:9

DEATH – THE 8OO LB. GORILLA

     There is a series of commercials that you may have seen recently for Axa Equitable. For example one of the earlier ones shows a couple in bed and there’s someone talking to them about their finances. We cut to a Gorilla. He gets ready to leave and says something like, “but don’t listen to me. I’m just the eight hundred pound gorilla in the room”. Now, I believe for some reason they altered the idiom for when there’s an important issue that folks aren’t talking about it’s known as “the elephant in the room” rather than the gorilla. However,  the point of the commercial cannot be missed. You are not getting any younger; stop trying to ignore the obvious issue that you need to start a retirement program!

     Recently I used this as an illustration in a message regarding our current culture  trying to ignore the reality of death. It is very evident in our culture today that we don’t like to face the fact of dying; even though death is the reality of life! It has been pointed out that humanity has a 100% mortality rate! Yet in our western culture death has become the ignored obvious certainty for each and every one of us. We try hard not to think about it, most fear and hate the prospect of dying. Death has indeed become the “800 lb. gorilla in the room.” It is most certainly there, it is truly enormous in it’s implications, and yet many people try to pretend it is distant from them and really nothing of real importance for them to personally  consider. Often the only time we are willing to honestly face the obvious truth regarding death is when we are forced to do so because we have been confronted with the loss of a loved one.

     When I conduct a funeral I am always struck with the fact that one of the primary responsibilities the Bible assigns to the pastor is to prepare people for death. To seek to make clear to them concerning the promises of the Gospel so that they might live confidently here in this life in light of an assurance of being with God in eternity. In other words, one can really only “live” after they are adequately prepared for death. So, as a pastor I am often engaged in discussions about death. Oh what a joy it is to be able to share and declare the hope of the gospel! For the reality is that for the committed follower of Jesus Christ death is GAIN! The Apostle Paul expressed this hope when he said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain…My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.” Phil. 1:21 & 23b

      In just a very few days, I will be having a birthday! Especially neat is the fact that my Mother and my oldest Son share the same birth-date with me; Happy Birthday Mom and Ry! What is truly incredible to me is that I will actually be “The Double Nickle”; 55 years old! When did that happen? How did that happen? I didn’t see that coming! Where did the years, all those years, go? Well it is true! I am really going to be 55; and in such a youth crazed culture in which we find ourselves I need some biblical perspective on it. A favorite writer of mine, James Russell Miller who lived 1840-1912, supplied it for me so I thought that I would share it with all of my blog reading friends!

     By the way no presents please, just pray for me that, Lord willing, the “growth” described below will be true of my 55th year on earth.

Soli Deo Gloria 

OUR BIRTHDAYS!

J. R. Miller, “The Beauty of Every Day” 1910

     Some people come to birthdays regretfully. They do not like to think that they are growing older. But there is no reason for regret, if only we are living our years as we should live them, as we may live them. Empty years are a dishonor. Years filled with sin are blots in the calendar. We should be ashamed to come to a birthday at the close of a year of idleness, indolence, neglect, or unfaithfulness. Jesus said we must give account for every idle word we speak. It will be an unhappy reckoning that we must make, after an idle year, or for idle hours and days in a year.

     But there need never be a shadow of regret in coming to a birthday, when we have lived our best through all the days. If we go through a year walking with God we shall come to its close with enlarged life, with nobler character, with richer virtues in every way a more godly man or woman.

     Growth is a law of life. When growth ceases, death is beginning. God counts our age, not by our birthdays, but by the advances which His eye sees in our inner life. Growth, too, is not marked by height or weight or by accumulations of money or property or earthly honor, but by an increase in godly character.