Pastor Paul Allen

God greatness of power

2012-01-26T22:14:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via WikipediaAnd . . . the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe." (Ephesians 1:19)

The power of the triune Creator, as displayed in the resurrection of Christ, is directed toward us! We can be certain that we will never fully comprehend that, but the Scriptures provide several clear statements that will help us get some usable grasp on this resource:

1) We receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit indwells every believer (John 14:17; 1 Corinthians 6:19) and is therefore readily accessible to all believers (Ephesians 3:20).

2) We use the power of God every time we preach the gospel (Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 1:18), whether to one person or to thousands.

3) We learn of the power of God through "great and precious promises" (2 Peter 1:3-4). Indeed, those promises involve "all things that pertain to life and godliness."

4) We see the results of the power of God in our lives when our characters reflect "all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness" (Colossians 1:11).

The Lord desires "that |we| might be filled with all the fulness of God" (Ephesians 3:19) and "strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man" (v. 16). The purpose of this empowering is to be "rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith" (Colossians 2:7), "able to comprehend . . . the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge" (Ephesians 3:18-19).

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen" (vv. 20-21).

Glory, grace and God's holiness

2012-01-25T15:15:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via Wikipedia"To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved." (Ephesians 1:6)

The High Priest of Israel wore the inscription "holiness to the Lord" to illustrate to all who obeyed God that they were "accepted before the LORD" (Exodus 28:36-38). Joshua, as a type of all believers, was granted "places to walk" in the courts of God (Zechariah 3:7). Christ's disciples were commanded to "ask" the Father for "whatsoever," since they were chosen and ordained to "bring forth fruit" (John 15:16). We have permission to "ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" (Matthew 7:7).

But there is more! Not only are we accepted, we are "sealed with that holy Spirit of promise" (Ephesians 1:13), an "earnest |down payment, deposit| of our inheritance" (v. 14). We are "stablishe|d| . . . anointed . . . sealed" (2 Corinthians 1:21-22).

We are "confirmed" in everything (1 Corinthians 1:4-8), consecrated and sanctified to serve (Exodus 28:41; 1 John 2:27), and given the "earnest of the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 5:5) to empower our ministry.

The Holy Spirit does His work through a threefold ministry in our lives. He will work on Christ's behalf, through our witness, to bring conviction to those not yet in Christ (John 16:7-11). He will also minister to us as the teacher of our spirits to guide us into all truth (John 16:13; 14:17, 26; 15:26).

Furthermore, the wisdom, prudence, and knowledge of God are revealed to us through His work in us (1 Corinthians 2:9-10). All that is necessary for our "effectual working" (Ephesians 3:7) is "graced" to us so that we can "work out |our| salvation" (Philippians 2:12). We are "complete in him" (Colossians 2:10).

Spiritual blessings

2012-01-23T21:52:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia"God and Father . . . who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ." (Ephesians 1:3)

Given our high position in Christ, it follows that God would provide whatever is necessary to accomplish His purposes in and for us.

The "Beatitudes" of Matthew 5:3-12 provide a good illustration. Each "blessing" is designed to meet a need or fulfill a desire of God's "chosen" (Ephesians 1:4). The poor, meek, and persecuted are given ownership in the kingdom. The mournful are given God's special comfort. Those who hunger for righteousness are filled. The merciful will obtain mercy, the pure in heart will see God, and the peacemakers are identified as God's children. The longings of our souls and characters are all met by God.

The practical needs of "wisdom and prudence" are met, too (v. 8). Wisdom is knowledge focused toward useful application, and prudence is the ability to develop successful activities based on wisdom. The Word of God is the source of wisdom (Deuteronomy 4:1-6; Proverbs 1:1-6) and is inspired of God to be "profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works" (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Furthermore, He has "made known unto us the mystery of his will" (Ephesians 1:9). "Kept secret" in the days of the Old Testament prophets (Romans 16:25-26), it is now made clear to us so that we can show "unto the principalities and powers . . . by the church the manifold wisdom of God" (Ephesians 3:10). These spiritual resources are available for every believer "to profit withal" (1 Corinthians 12:7). We must pray that we do not waste these resources like the "wicked and slothful" servant in the parables of the talents and the pounds (Matthew 25:26; Luke 19:22).

Respecting God's Judgment

2012-01-23T17:25:00.000-08:00

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One of the most poignant episodes of the judgment of God occurred in the Old Testament case of Eli. Eli was a judge and priest over Israel. He was, for the most part, a godly man. But his sons were wicked and profaned the house of God. Eli rebuked them but did not fully restrain them. God revealed to Samuel that He would judge the house of Eli:

"Behold, I will do something in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them." (1 Sam. 3:11-13)

When Eli persisted in asking Samuel what God had said, Samuel finally told him. When Eli heard the words, he said: "It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him" (v. 18).

What seemed good to God was to punish the house of Eli. Eli recognized the Word of God when he heard it because he understood the character of Him whose word it was. A God before whom we need to have no fear is not God but an idol made by our own hands.

Eli said: "It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him." Can you make this affirmation from the depths of your heart in difficult times as well as good times?

1 Samuel 3:10: "Then the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, 'Samuel!Samuel!' And Samuel answered, 'Speak, for Your servant hears.'"

1 Samuel 3:18: "Then Samuel told him everything, and hid nothing from him. And he said, 'It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him.'"

Psalm 115:4: "Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands."

Marriage is all about God

2012-01-23T17:22:00.000-08:00

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Author: Tim Callies

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:31,32).

As he comes to the end of his teaching on marriage, Paul springs a giant surprise. He says that marriage is a mystery, that there is a hidden meaning in it and that until now this meaning has been hidden. The surprise is that marriage is a type or a picture or a display. Marriage is meant to be a portrait of something else. To show this he goes to the Old Testament, to the very first marriage of the very first man and woman. Let me give you some context.

The Mystery

God had created Adam and then allowed Adam to live by himself for a time so he could come to this understanding that in all of creation there was not a helper that was suitable to him. All the animals God had created paraded in front of Adam. Adam gave them names but saw that they were all very different from him. It’s not that he was lonely and pining away, but that God had him see that there was nothing or no one who was equal to him, no one who could help him carry out his God-given mandate. Adam had received his mandate from God, that he was to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it. But he knew that he could only do that with the help of something or someone that was like him.

Then God said, “It is not good for this man to be alone.” He caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep and he took one of his ribs and he fashioned a woman from it. He presented this woman to Adam in the first-ever wedding ceremony and the man immediately broke into a song of praise. Now he saw his helper, the one who would complement him and complete him and he sang out:

This at last is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called Woman,
because she was taken out of Man.

And then we read these words: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Now here, thousands of years later in this letter to the church in Ephesus, Paul returns to these words and says this: “This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.” Just like that, Paul gives a whole new meaning to marriage, a whole new purpose. He says that for all this time the joining of husband and wife in marriage has actually been a mystery, that it has been pointing to something else, something greater. Only now after the death and resurrection of Jesus are we able to see what it has been pointing to. The mystery is that the marriage relationship is a portrait of the relationship of Christ to his church. This relationship is the ultimate marriage, thereal marriage.

This means that your marriage is a portrait of the marriage of Christ to his church, which in turn means that marriage is all about the gospel. This is true whether you know it or not, whether you are a Christian or not. Marriage is not ultimately about relational fulfillment or sexual fulfillment or procreation. All of those things are tied up in it, but the ultimate purpose of marriage is to serve as a portrait of the real marriage. The question is, is your marriage a good portrait or a bad one? Is it an accurate one or a distorted one? Is it a masterpiece or is it kitsch?

The Wedding Portrait

Let me illustrate in this way. I want you to picture an artist who has been called by the king and told to come to his wedding. This artist has been given the task of painting the official wedding portrait of the bride and groom. So he gets there early, he sets up his easel, he gets out his paints and begins to mix them, to make the colors he will need. He prepares his canvas and brushes. When the bride and groom come, he sits for a long time and just looks at them and studies them. And then he begins to put paint on canvas. At first it is just lines and blobs, but as he keeps working, the people begin to take shape, the groom in his fine suit and the bride in her dress. And as he works, hour after hour, the portrait gets better and sharper and more accurate and more beautiful. First you can see the outline of their heads, then the shape of their faces, and then the expressions in their eyes. And when at last that artist is finished, he has painted a masterpiece, a stunning portrait of the bride and groom.

The relationship of Christ and the church, the gospel, is all about the marriage of a bride and groom; we, Christians, are the bride and Christ is the groom. This union of Christ and the church is the real marriage and our marriages are to serve as that portrait, that image of the ultimate reality.

So here is the happy ending to the story: Our marriages get to be a portrait of Christ and the church. What a privilege! Marriage is a display of the gospel. This means that whatever we do in marriage is meant to bring glory to Christ, and that is the happiest ending of all. Now that we know that, we can read those scary words like submission and headship and see that it is all going to work out really, really well.

Holiness of God

2012-01-22T21:51:00.000-08:00

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"According as he hath chosen us in him . . . that we should be holy and without blame before him in love." (Ephesians 1:4)

In the grand purpose of our "selection" into God's family, two key words are used:

"Holy" (Greek hagios) stresses dedication. A holy man or woman is distinctively God's, set apart for God's use, separated from the secular, and consecrated to God's service. All who are "chosen" are chosen to be holy.

The Colossian Christians were told to "mortify" the physical appetites, to "put off" their sinful mental attitudes and habits, and to "put on the new man . . . as the elect of God, holy and beloved" (Colossians 3:5-12). The focus is character.

"Without blame" refers to our reputations. This character will only be fully realized in heaven (1 Corinthians 1:8), but there is a present responsibility to "present your bodies a living sacrifice. . . . And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:1-2).

The character of holiness will become the cause of a lifestyle of blamelessness. We are to be the "sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world" (Philippians 2:15).

This holy and blameless condition will result in "the praise of the glory of his grace" (Ephesians 1:6), where God will someday "gather together in one all things in Christ" (v. 10).

What a magnificent thought! The purpose for which we have been chosen, predestined, redeemed, and forgiven is to be holy in character and blameless in reputation, so that when God gathers us all together in Christ, we will be the praise of the glorious grace of God!

Artemis was finished

2012-01-22T18:16:00.000-08:00

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Author: Tim Challies. Demetrius was right to be worried. The Ephesian silversmith made shrines for the goddess Artemis, and what kept him up at night—worrying about his job security—was the rapid growth of Christianity in his city.

Up until a missionary named Paul arrived, the silver trade in Ephesus had been rather lucrative. The worship of Artemis “brought no little business to the craftsmen” (Acts 19:24). But Christianity meant the end of idolatry, and this posed a threat to their livelihood. So Demetrius called the silversmiths together and said:

Men, you know that from this business we have our wealth. And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus but in almost all of Asia this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people, saying that gods made with hands are not gods. And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis may be counted as nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence, she whom all Asia and the world worship. (Acts 19:25-27)

The silversmiths wanted to defend the honor and majesty of their queen. More importantly, they wanted to keep their jobs. So “when they heard this they were enraged and were crying out, ‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!’ So the city was filled with the confusion” (Acts 19:28-29). A massive protest was held in the giant theater of Ephesus. For two straight hours, as many as twenty thousand people shouted, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” (Acts 19:34).

Eventually the city clerk was able to quiet the crowd. He said: “Men of Ephesus, who is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great Artemis, and of the sacred stone that fell from the sky?” (Acts 19:35). Yes, the whole world did know this, for the temple of Artemis was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It was 425 feet long and 220 feet broad, with 127 columns of white marble, each 60 feet high. It took two centuries to build it. Edwin Yamauchi calls it “the largest structure in the Hellenistic world and the first of such monumental proportions to be built entirely of marble.” Inside stood the ancient and enormous statue of Artemis herself.

The goodess seemed immortal, but Demetrius was right to be worried. The coming of Christ meant the end of the Artemis. She has now been tossed on the scrap heap of history. With the exception of a few scattered columns on a plan near Ephesus, the last fragments of her temple—a handful of coins and a few broken columns—are now on display in the basement of the British Museum in London.

The death of Artemis has turned Paul’s doxology into a hymn of triumph…

We find our rest in Christ

2012-01-22T14:25:00.000-08:00

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"But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark." (Genesis 8:9)

Unlike the raven, which Noah had sent out first, the dove could not live on the carrion floating on the flood waters. After nine months cooped up in the Ark, she had reveled in her freedom when Noah first released her from the window of the Ark. Unaware of the outside perils while safe with Noah, she flew gaily off into the open spaces beyond, just like many a professing Christian, eager to cast off the constraints of his or her parental religion. "And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness" (Psalm 55:6-7).

But the dove could find no rest away from Noah, whose very name means "rest"! His father, Lamech, by prophetic inspiration, had called his name Noah, saying, "This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed" (Genesis 5:29). So she finally returned, finding rest once again in Noah's outstretched hands.

Just so, the Lord Jesus, in His greater ark of secure salvation, is waiting at its open window, with arms outstretched, inviting all those weary of the doomed world outside to return to Him. "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30). Christ's message to the weary wanderer is: "I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, . . . return unto me; for I have redeemed thee" (Isaiah 44:22).

Called and Chosen

2012-01-22T14:07:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via Wikipedia"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world." (Ephesians 1:4)

The search for identity and meaning can drive one to great successes or tragic failures. For the Christian, however, the question is answered throughout Ephesians.

We are chosen! We are selected as a favorite out of "many |who| are called" (Matthew 22:14) "out of the world" (John 15:19). What a privilege! We are God's choice to bear His name, represent His cause, and share His glory throughout eternity.

In fact, we are "predestinated |previous boundaries set| . . . unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself" (Ephesians 1:5). And "if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:17).

Furthermore, we have been "accepted in the beloved" (Ephesians 1:6). That word, "accepted," is a specialized form of the word most often translated "grace." We have been "graced" by almighty God, who has set absolute boundaries around our lives and made us His children. We were purchased "through his blood" (v. 7) "that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar |that is, 'precious'| people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:14).

Moreover, we are forgiven (Ephesians 1:7)! Our sins are "covered" (Psalm 32:1); "cast" behind God's back (Isaiah 38:17); removed "as far as the east is from the west" (Psalm 103:12); "remember|ed| . . . no more" (Jeremiah 31:34); and cleansed "from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).

Hallelujah! Since we are God's children, we should have no identity crisis. We are a chosen, predestined, accepted, redeemed, forgiven, and holy people. Finally, we are predestined "to be conformed to the image of his Son" (Romans 8:29).

Abram worshipped God

2012-01-20T19:30:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via Wikipedia"And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him." (Genesis 12:7)

This is the first reference to Abraham building an altar in Scripture. Building an altar and making sacrifice to God denotes total dependence and reliance on Him. It implies saying no to self and yes to God--in effect presenting one's self in submission to God as a sinner, trusting Him for gracious handling of one's sin, and discounting one's value apart from His work. Building altars became a habit with godly Abraham, the "Friend of God" (James 2:23), and he practiced it many times during his life (see also Genesis 12:8; 13:4, 18).

We can surmise that at an early age, Abraham's son, Isaac, was taught this same practice. It doesn't seem that Isaac misunderstood or debated the situation, even when he himself was identified as the sacrifice to be slaughtered (Genesis 22:9). He fully trusted and worshiped the same God, and evidently agreed with Abraham's obedient act. Later, Isaac, himself, practiced altar-building at least once on his own (26:25).

Compare Abraham and his family to Lot and his family. Nowhere in Scripture does it say that Lot built an altar and recognized God as worthy of worship. No doubt as a direct result, Lot's wife, sons, and daughters totally rejected these ideas, preferring the sinful practices and mentality of Sodom. Lot was a true believer (2 Peter 2:7-8), but his lifestyle and lack of "altar-building" rubbed off on his family, to the detriment of himself and the people of God ever since.

Here is the question: Do we want to be Christians who ignore proper worship and total submission to God and have families who do likewise? We don't build physical altars today, but we do need daily times of family prayer.

Do your needs drive you to Christ?

2012-01-20T18:57:00.001-08:00

Image via WikipediaOne aspect of praise we see in the Psalms involves acknowledging our needs, longings, and desires. But an awareness of our need is meant to drive us to the sufficiency and supply of the gospel – God has clothed himself in flesh! Jesus has perfectly fulfilled God’s law! Christ has suffered and died, becoming sin for us and enduring God’s wrath and judgment in our place! God has raised him from the dead!

Jesus is reigning and will one day return to bring salvation to all those who have placed their faith in him! He will right every wrong, establish his unending rule, and be the eternal joy of those who know him! These are truths that are completely outside of us and will never change.

Their implications for our lives are massive and eternal. Hope and comfort in trials doesn’t come from continually rehearsing our problems and needs but through remembering the compassionate, all-powerful Savior who cried out “It is finished!” for his people’s joy and his Father’s glory.

Moses and Glory

2012-01-18T19:27:00.000-08:00

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"And it came to pass, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses’ hand . . . that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him." (Exodus 34:29)

Moses had been alone with God forty days and forty nights, simply communing with God and receiving the tables with the Ten Commandments. When he finally descended, the glory of God so radiated from him that the people could not bear to look at his face, and he had to wear a veil even to speak to them.

The council of Jewish leaders had a similar experience as they interrogated Stephen concerning his Christian testimony: "And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel" (Acts 6:15).

None of us today ever seem to exhibit such glowing faces, nor is anyone likely to mistake us for an angel. But perhaps this is because we have not spent the time in His presence that Moses did; nor preached the Word in the wisdom and power of the Holy Spirit as Stephen did. Nevertheless, we should have a different countenance than before we met the Lord. Men should be able to say of us as it was said of Peter and John: "They marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus" (4:13).

In fact, God even promises that this will be so to the extent that we spend time in His Word, which itself is alive with the light of His glory. "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Corinthians 3:18).

May God enable us, therefore, to be "holding forth the word of life," even "in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world" (Philippians 2:15-16).

The Queen of Sheba heard of Solomon's fame

2012-01-17T20:14:00.000-08:00

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"And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions." (1 Kings 10:1)

A thousand years after the famous visit of Sheba's queen to the court of King Solomon, Jesus made a remarkable spiritual application of her experience. "The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here" (Matthew 12:42).

Solomon had prayed for wisdom, and the Lord gave him such legendary wisdom that the news even reached the distant land of Sheba, south of Ethiopia. We do not know what hard questions were confronting Sheba's queen at the time, but she finally decided she must find their solutions through Solomon and his God. God honored her searching faith, "and Solomon told her all her questions," so that she could testify that "the half was not told me. . . . Blessed be the LORD thy God" (1 Kings 10:3, 7, 9).

In Jesus Christ "are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3). He who had given Solomon his great wisdom promises us that "if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him" (James 1:5).

Truly the queen of Sheba will be a witness against our present generation in the coming day of judgment. People today turn to every variety of humanistic counselors for their training and guidance, but refuse to come to the one who is "made unto us wisdom" (1 Corinthians 1:30). The "Wonderful Counsellor" (Isaiah 9:6), who is far greater than Solomon, who said "I am . . . the truth" (John 14:6), and who promises that "the truth shall make you free" (8:32), is still inviting all from the uttermost parts of the earth to come.

2012-01-16T16:02:00.000-08:00

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In light of the debate over hell, universalism, and pluralism, should priority be given to certain attributes of God (e.g., holiness, love)?

It is the elevation of some attributes over others that has created much, if not all, of the confusion over the reality of hell and the fate of the unevangelized. What is needed is a recovery of the doctrine of divine simplicity which states that God is always and totally who he is all the time, that he is simultaneously ALL that ALL of his attributes reveal. When we give priority to one attribute over another, we ignore the biblical presentation of God and end up distorting the character of God to the point of creating a God based on our own preferences, sensibilities, and desires. The biblical word for such creation is idolatry. Ironically, when we emphasize one attribute over another, like love over holiness, we not only distort who God is, but ironically we do not even get the attribute we are emphasizing correct. A telling example of this is Rob Bell's book, in which he criticizes the doctrine of hell, appropriately titled, "Love Wins." Bell presents an ultimate being, void of holiness, justice, and righteousness, based largely upon his own sentimentalities. The result is a god who more closely resembles a neighbor we think we would like to have than a transcendent being worthy of devotion, fear, and praise. The key to holding love and holiness together is to allow God to define not only who he is, but to allow him to define the nature and scope of each of his attributes. The biblical presentation of the love and holiness of God is coherent and it is manifest beautifully at the cross of Christ. Fortunately, the God who spoke the universe into existence and sovereignly governs it is not limited by my
capacity to understand exhaustively who he is and what he does.

How can the discipline of biblical theology help in rightly seeing the Holy Spirit's work in the world and/or other religions?

The discipline of biblical theology encourages us to look to the Bible for the categories and vocabulary of theological inquiry. When we develop a biblical theology of the Holy Spirit, we find that the divine presentation of the work of the Spirit focuses on the glorification of the Son (John 16:4). This is not only the case now, but has been since creation and will be through to the consummation of all things. Many pluralists and inclusivists are currently turning to Pneumatology to justify their proposals. They hope that the Spirit might work in and through other religions (apart from the Son) to save those who have not placed their trust in the Son. The problem with this is that the Bible's own presentation of the Holy Spirit will not allow for that kind of separation. Biblical Theology forces us to recognize that the Bible is not pre-theoretical, but provides the forms and content of its own interpretation. Our theological inquiry and systematic constructions must be submitted to the authority of Scripture. Faithful Christians are not free to conjure up scenarios or experiment with new ideas, no matter how "compassionate" or "hopeful" the motivation, that run contrary to God's own self-revelation.

How do the religions of the world fit into God's plan of redemption? Is there truth in non-Christian religions?

These are really two different questions. With regard to the first, I would say that insofar as other religions do not tell the story of Jesus then they do not play a necessary role in God's plan of redemption. In that way, they "fit" into God's plan of redemption the way that sin and idolatry do.

I appreciate Daniel Strange's definition of non-Christian religions: "Non-Christian religions are sovereignly directed, variegated and dynamic human idolatrous distortions of divine revelation behind which evidence demonic deception. Being antithetically against yet parasitically dependent upon the truth of the Christian worldview, non-Christian religions are 'subversively fulfilled' in the gospel of Jesus Christ." [D. Strange, "For their Rock is not as our Rock," ETS National Meeting, 2011]

With that definition in mind and in answer to the second question, we should expect there to be some truth in other religions. It would be folly and ignorance to deny it. We are all created imago Dei and we are all witnesses to God's powerful self-revelation through creation and conscience. For example, other religions contain insights that mirror biblical wisdom on such topics as ethics, virtue, family maintenance, social justice, financial planning, etc. But Christianity, at its core, is not any of these things. Unless the story of Jesus is told, as presented by Jesus through his apostles, and unless there is encouragement and divine enablement to follow Jesus, then it is to that degree that other religions are fatally misleading, regardless of how "helpful" they may appear to be.

How should a Christian respond to the so-called universal atonement texts (e.g., John 12:32; Heb. 2:9; 1 John 2:2)?

By reading those texts in context. Unless one gets incredibly lucky, cherry-picking individual verses to justify a theological position while ignoring the immediate, book, and canonical contexts is always a recipe for disaster. A quick check of the context of these verses may not settle all the disputes about the extent of the atonement, but it is sufficient to reject universalist positions that demand that these verses teach that all will certainly be saved. For example, John is crystal clear in both his Gospel and in his letters that only those who believe in Jesus will be saved and there is a horrific judgment that awaits those who are not reconciled to God (John 1:11-12; 3:16; 5:24, 39; 8:24; 10:25-26; 11:26; 20:31; 1 John 1:1-3, 7; 5:10-13).

The writer of Hebrews is also emphatic on the same points (Heb 2:2-3; 6:4-6; 10:26-31). So the affirmations that Jesus draws all people to himself (John 12:32), that Jesus is the propitiation for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2), or that Jesus tasted death for everyone (Heb 2:9) cannot entail a universal reconciliation without exception. To cut directly to the chase on these examples, the contexts teach that Jesus draws all without distinction, both Jew and Gentile to himself (John 12:32), that the cross has universal and cosmic implications (1 John 2:2), and that Christ died and a bona fide offer of the gospel is available to all people (Heb 2:9), but not all will believe (note the limiting "many sons" who are brought to glory in 2:10).

What should be our response to the question, "What about those who have never heard the gospel?"

Exactly what the Bible says - Go tell them! Honestly, it is frustrating to me that some Christians treat the awesome mandate to share the gospel as if it were an embarrassing problem to overcome by philosophizing and theologizing over the state of the unevangelized (which tragically helps no one, least of all the unevangelized). The gospel solves the problem of human sin; it does not create problems!

A few inclusivists and most pluralists are on record stating that religious others would be better off not hearing the gospel - it is far better to let them work out their "piety" within the framework of their own religious traditions. But the cross of Christ is a stumbling block, not because it distracts others from reaching God on the alternative path that they are on, but because humans are so sinful that the only means of salvation available is offensive to their fallen and pride-filled sensibilities. And yet, by the grace of God, when those who are called hear the gospel, they repent, believe and are saved. The biblical response to the question, "What about those who have never heard?" is an emphatic and unqualified "Go tell them!"

Bad Christians doesn't disqualify the gospel

2012-01-16T15:45:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaIt is undoubtedly true that there are many people in the world who have not heard the Gospel, often through no fault of their own. It is also true that the Christian Church has not always done everything it can to spread the message, and that many Christians have failed to live up to their calling as believers. It is not difficult to find “good” Hindus like Mahatma Gandhi, set them alongside “bad” Christians, and conclude that it is the Hindus who are closer to the teachings of Christ than his so-called followers are.

It is particularly easy to do this in Western countries, where “bad” Christians are easy to find and representatives of other religions may well be gurus teaching in university departments of religion, who are far removed from the “bad” adherents of their own faith. It is tempting to judge the truth of a message by the example its followers set, but important as that is, it is not enough. We must also examine the message itself and consider whether all religions really do embody the same principles, which Christians believe have been manifested with particular clarity in Jesus Christ.

JESUS: THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE
Who was Jesus? In human terms, he was a Jewish teacher who emerged from relative obscurity, preached for a few years to his own people, and was put to death for claiming to be God, or at least for claiming to have a relationship with God that Jewish thinkers of the time believed no human being could have. Some people were attracted to him because they sensed that he had a supernatural power which they wanted to tap into. He was a miracle-worker, and many people came to him for healing. He was a teacher of righteousness, and that appealed to others. He was a man of the people and accessible in ways that the Jewish leaders were not – it is hard to imagine someone like Caiaphas bothering to talk to Mary and Martha, for example, let
Image via Wikipedia alone the woman at the well in Samaria.

His disciples were ordinary people like Peter, James and John, or improbable ones, like Matthew the publican. This unusual combination has always had a certain appeal, and over the centuries men and women have been attracted to Jesus as a great moral and spiritual guide.

But is that enough? One of the remarkable things about the New Testament is that it tells us that in human terms, Jesus was a failure. The crowds that followed him to see his miracles turned against him when he was arrested and put on trial. His disciples ran away. At the end, only a thief on the cross next to him and a Roman centurion who watched him die seemed to have any idea who he was, and neither of them was ever heard from again (Luke 23:39-43; Matt 27:54.).

Had the Christian Church been nothing more than a society dedicated to the memory of a great but failed teacher, it would never have survived – or even got off the ground in the first place. The Church came into being because the Holy Spirit came into the hearts of Jesus’ erstwhile disciples, convicting them of the truth of what he had taught them about himself and empowering them to proclaim that message to others.

Before his death, Jesus had told them that this would happen. The disciples were upset when he said that he would have to go away from
Image via Wikipediathem before the Spirit could come, but he promised them that when that occurred they would be able to do greater things in his name than he had done while he was still with them (John 16:6-7). Jesus said that the Spirit would take his teaching and apply it in their lives, guiding them into an experience of the truth that he had proclaimed during his earthly ministry (John 16:12-15).

This truth was not an abstract set of principles or a moral code, but a personal knowledge of Jesus himself. Jesus had not hidden this knowledge from them but the disciples were unable to bear it on their own. Peter had actually confessed that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the living God, but Jesus had pointed out to him that this was not his own doing. It was only because God the Father had revealed it to him that Peter was able to say what he did (Matt. 16:17). Philip wanted Jesus to show them the Father, and Jesus pointed to himself: “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). Earlier, he had said the same thing to his Jewish critics: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). Jesus also told his disciples that he was the way, the truth and the life, and that no one could come to the Father except through him (John 14:6).
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Jesus was not just one revelation of God among many; he was unique. In him the fullness of the Godhead dwelt bodily (Col 2:9). In him, the disciples saw the glory of God fully manifested (John 1:14). In him they saw the love of God at work, providing the means by which human beings could come to the knowledge and experience of eternal life (John 3:16).

This way was open to everyone, both Jew and Gentile, and it was the same for all (Rom 1:16). Those who had worked all day in the vineyard (the Jews) got exactly the same reward as those who appeared at the eleventh hour (the Gentiles); there was to be no discrimination or second-class citizenship in the kingdom of God (Matt 20:1-16; Eph 3:6). In the Church, the Holy Spirit who was poured out on the disciples on the day of Pentecost was given in equal measure to every believer, because in Christ Jesus the barriers that previously divided one person from the next had been broken down and everybody was united in him (Gal 3:28).

THE GOSPEL OF SALVATION
The Apostle Paul was very clear about what this means: “Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying ‘Abba! Father!’ So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God” (Gal 4:6-7). This is what salvation is all about. It is not a matter of doing good in the hope that God will recognize that and reward us accordingly. It is not even a matter of believing the right doctrines or of having the best intentions. Those things have their place, but they are the result of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and not the basis on which he comes. The Gospel is a message of salvation proclaimed to those who are unworthy to receive it.

A man can keep all the commandments but turn away from Chr
Image via Wikipediaist in sorrow because he is missing the one thing necessary (Mark 10:17-22). A woman can give up everything she has in order to be healed, but without the saving touch of Christ it will all be in vain (Luke 8:43-44).

When Christians look at other religions and their adherents, this is how we must see them. A good Muslim or Hindu may be a moral person living according to the light that has been given to him, but that light is not enough to lead him to Christ. Judaism and Islam are monotheistic, “Abrahamic” faiths, but they have both rejected the claims of Christ.

For Jews he is not the Messiah and for Muslims he is not God in human flesh. Even if they are too polite to say so, Jews and Muslims regard Christian claims about Jesus as blasphemous, which they would hardly do if the Holy Spirit was present in them. The great Asian religions are more distant from us in theological terms, but they have little understanding of a personal God and Buddhism is actually atheistic. This does not sound like the work of the Holy Spirit!

THE SPIRIT WHO MAKES KNOWN THE SON
The Christian belief is that the Spirit has come into the world as the agent of the Son, with the specific purpose of making him known to us. His mission depends on the ascension of Christ to the right hand of God the Father, where he has taken up his kingly rule over all creation and the mediatorial role that he exercises on our behalf in the Father’s presence. His work cannot be understood apart from that context.

It is true that there were Spirit-filled people in ancient Israel who did not know Jesus personally, but that was because they lived before his coming. When he appeared, those who were still alive recognized him, like Simeon and Anna, who had waited patiently for him in the Temple (Luke 2:25-38). Occasionally we hear stories about people in previously unreached tribes who have responded to the Gospel like this, because God had been preparing their hearts for the message and they recognized it when they heard it.
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If the Holy Spirit is able to do that, why does he not prepare those who believe in other religions in the same way? As Christians, we do not insist that Christ is the only way to salvation because we think that we are morally or spiritually better than other people. We do not deserve the light that has been given to us, and if we are going to heaven we know that this is only because God has loved us in spite of ourselves.

In human terms, followers of other religions may well be better people than we are, just as there are many admirable atheists and agnostics who put us to shame in many ways. But it is by the grace of God that we are saved and not by our works (Eph 2:8-9). I cannot offer myself as a model for others to follow into the kingdom of God and would not try to do so. My calling is to preach Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and invite others to receive him, not me, into their lives (Eph 3:7-13).

I do this because as a sinner I have a need of salvation that only he can meet and I believe that the same need is common to every human being. If I cannot save myself by my own efforts, then neither can anyone else, however good and admirable they may be. In short, it is because I know that God loves non-Christians and wants the best for them that I am moved to preach the Gospel, not because I am superior to them and feel some obligation to reach out to those who are less fortunate than I am.

It is the love of God and not a sense of superiority that compels me, as it compels all of us, to preach the saving Word of Christ to everyone, without exception or discrimination. Some of us may plant the seed, others may water it, and still others may reap the harvest, but however it works out in human terms, it is God who brings the work to fruition and not our human efforts (1 Cor 3:5-9). “There are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit, and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord, and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Cor 12:4-7).

This is how the Holy Spirit works in the world and this is how we detect his presence among us. As the Apostle John so succinctly put it: “By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God” (1 John 4:2-3).

It follows therefore that those who follow the spirit of non-Christian religions and ideologies do not have the Spirit of God in them, and that Christians who think otherwise have failed to exercise the discernment that John so strongly recommends to us. Author Gerald Bray

The danger of Inclusivism

2012-01-16T15:30:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via WikipediaWhat is inclusivism, how is it different than pluralism and exclusivism, and why is it important for Christians to think biblically about this issue?

Like exclusivism, inclusivism rejects pluralism, the view that all religions lead to God. Also like exclusivism, inclusivism holds that Jesus is the only Savior of humankind. But unlike exclusivism, inclusivism does not hold that one must trust Jesus as Lord and Savior in this life to be saved.

Inclusivists have a variety of reasons for this position, although not all inclusivists hold to all of the reasons. It is important for Christians to think biblically about this issue because the necessity of unsaved persons hearing the gospel in this life is at stake.

Who are the major players in each camp?

There are three major inclusivists: (1) Clark Pinnock (A Wideness in God’s Mercy, now deceased) and (2) John Sanders (No Other Name) defended inclusivism as open theist Arminians. (3) Terrance Tiessen (Who Can Be Saved?) defends inclusivism as a Calvinist.

Daniel Strange answered Clark Pinnock’s inclusivism in The Possibility of Salvation among the Unevangelised. Christopher Morgan and Robert Peterson co-edited Faith Comes by Hearing: A Response to Inclusivism, in which nine contributors answered the inclusivism of Terrance Tiessen.

How does Scripture answer the question, “Must a person explicitly believe the gospel of Christ in order to be saved?”

Scripture’s answer: Yes, especially based on key biblical texts such as John 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 10:17- 18. For example, Jesus says in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Likewise, Peter says in Acts 4:12, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

What about those who never hear the gospel?

They are lost and therefore we need to get them the gospel.

Is there a category for “holy pagans” in the Bible?

No. Inclusivist Terrance Tiessen admits that all the biblical figures others have claimed to be “holy pagans” (that is, people somehow saved apart from special revelation) actually had special revelation according to scriptural witness.

What role does general and special revelation play in the debate?

Exclusivists claim that special revelation, even the gospel, is necessary for salvation. All inclusivists claim that it is possible for unsaved persons to be saved through a positive response to general revelation. The problem is Scripture does not indicate that there is such a response, e.g., in Romans 1.

Does inclusivism damage the biblical understanding of evangelism and missions?

Some inclusivists support evangelism and missions. But I am concerned that if inclusivism continues to grow, it will indeed harm evangelism and missions. Why should believers risk their lives or their children’s lives if unsaved persons do not need to hear the gospel to be saved?

How has inclusivism impacted evangelicalism today and will such a view be around in the future?

Inclusivism has indeed impacted evangelicalism today as many Christians have found it attractive. It will grow in the future as more and more people base their faith on what they want to be true rather than on the teaching of Scripture, which is sometimes hard.

What advice would you give to pastors and students as they, in the words of Jude, “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints”?

Work hard to consistently and deliberately base their beliefs on Scripture rather
than on their desires. Love inclusivists and to treat them as they would want to be treated. Invest your life in promoting the gospel of Christ at home and abroad.

The Cruelty of Inclusivism

2012-01-16T15:20:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia
What does it look like when a church starts to assume that people can be saved without faith in Christ? If I had been left to guess, I might have said it would look much the same, only a bit flabbier: comforted by the thought that good Buddhists and religious Hindus will be saved, the church would lose its evangelistic zeal, of course – but otherwise, life would go on.
However, the situation in Britain today proves that guess wildly over-optimistic.

In the last few decades, the belief that people can be saved without trusting Christ has come to be the standard assumption here, even in relatively conservative Christian circles. And wherever that idea reigns, I am seeing a sickness that goes much deeper than apathy. More than no evangelism, it means no real evangel. Quite simply, that is because if ‘salvation’ is thought of as something other than being brought to know Christ, then that ‘salvation’ is something quite different to what Christ himself offers.

Let me back up a bit to tease that out. Jesus Christ does not reveal some ‘God-in-general’, nor does he offer some abstract ‘salvation’. Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, reveals a God who is, eternally, a Father. And that affects everything.

If, for example, God was not a Father, he could never give us the right to be his children. If he did not enjoy eternal fellowship with his Son, one has to wonder if he has any fellowship to share with us, or if he even knows what fellowship looks like. But given that the God revealed in Christ is a Father, the salvation he offers is all about fellowship – knowing him. Thus to say that it is not important to know Christ explicitly is to say that salvation is something else.

This was exactly the sort of thing the early post-apostolic Church fought so hard to get right. Take, for instance, the fourth-century debate between Arius and Athanasius. Arius’ prime error was that, ignoring the way, the truth and life, he defined God without the Son. He did not think he needed to know the Son in order to know God. Now Athanasius would be wonderfully relentless in detailing how catastrophic that idea was. If you do not know the Son, you cannot know that God is a Father, that he is, eternally, loving and life-giving. You cannot know that he is inherently gracious.

Thus you will be left with a very thin gruel of religion: a life of self-dependent effort under the all-seeing eye of a distant and loveless God who is not a Father and not like Christ.

And this is just what we see today: where faith in Christ is considered inessential for salvation, there people are left with little more than a boiled-down religiosity – a tedious God and a meagre salvation. It may wear Christian clothing – as Arius did – but anyone that thinks that knowing Christ is superfluous simply cannot have grasped how different the God he reveals is, the nature of his salvation, how great the assurance to be found in him. In which case, no wonder their Christianity seems lifeless and dreary.

At first glance, of course it seems more generous and attractive to ‘lower the bar’ of salvation and make knowledge of Christ unnecessary. But the joyless, unassured lives of so many Christians in Britain testifies to the fact that when knowing Christ is considered insignificant, there is truly no good news left. Author Michael Reeves

[Outside] the Church There is no Salvation... Sort of

2012-01-16T15:15:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via Wikipedia
The doctrine that "Outside the Church there is no salvation" (Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus), first expressed by the third century martyr/bishop, Cyprian, and to this day by the Roman Catholic Magisterium, is a matter of much confusion. At face value (when expressed by Rome) it points to the Catholic Church institution as the single location where humanity encounters divine grace. But it’s not that simple. In what follows, we will briefly consider how the exclusivity of Cyprian’s dictum relates to the inclusive emphasis of today’s Catholic Church.

The Vatican II document Lumen Gentium, promulgated by Pope Paul VI in 1964, is a helpful place to start:

Those also can attain to salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God and moved by grace strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience. Nor does Divine Providence deny the helps necessary for salvation to those who, without blame on their part, have not yet arrived at an explicit knowledge of God and with His grace strive to live a good life. (Lumen Gentium, 2.16; cf. Gaudium et Spes 1.22)

The necessary foundation of implicit knowledge is “invincible ignorance”—the state in which one is without access to Christian revelation. This is, for example, the pigmy, aborigine, or post Christian European who has never heard the gospel. Since such people have not received an opportunity to understand and respond to the explicit teaching of Christ, they are “inculpable.” Assuming this ignorance is genuinely outside of their control (that it is not due to prejudice or neglect) and that there is perfect contrition and a desire to do God’s will, then, moved by divine grace, these persons may pursue and lay hold of salvation through their conscience.

Perhaps the biggest exponent of this concept was the twentieth century theologian, Karl Rahner: The “anonymous Christian” in our sense of the term is the pagan after the beginning of the Christian mission, who lives in a state of Christ’s grace through faith, hope, and love, yet who has no explicit knowledge of the fact that his life is orientated in grace-given salvation to Jesus Christ… There must be a Christian theory to account for the fact that every individual who does not in any absolute or ultimate sense act against his own conscience can say and does say in faith, hope and love, Abba within his own spirit and is on these grounds in all truth a brother to Christians in God’s sight. (Theological Investigations, Vol. 14, Chp. 17.)

This view seeks to reconcile God’s universal will, as expressed in passages such as 1 Tim 2:4 (that “God desires all people to be saved”) with the necessity of faith in Christ (Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus). It implies that all people have some opportunity to believe, precisely because God is at work in all people. Where is the locus of this work? It is through general revelation, which includes other religions and one’s moral sensibilities. It may even apply to the atheist insofar as such a person is motivated by grace with sincere contrition. How the atheist is said to believe in God introduces the category of anonymity. Thus, because it is God who manifests himself through one’s conscience, a person can genuinely believe, even though he or she perceives the object of belief to be something other than God. Accordingly, one’s encounter with transcendent reality (anonymous as it may be) is regarded as a divine experience.

The theory of anonymous Christianity has fit like hand-in-glove in today’s relativistic culture where the subjective reputation of truth is the plat du jour. In this epistemological universe, doctrine is regarded as the product of one’s own creation. Perhaps it is for this reason that sociologists of religion at Catholic University recently reported that 88% of American Catholics say “how a person lives is more important than whether he or she is Catholic.” In addition to demonstrating the practical significance of theology, it offers new meaning to Cyprian’s nulla salus. Author: Chris Castaldo

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The doctrine of inclusivism

2012-01-16T15:08:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via Wikipedia
What is inclusivism? While inclusivists believe Jesus is the only Savior and that no person can be saved by anyone but Jesus, what sets the inclusivist apart is his belief concerning the necessity (or lack thereof) of sinners to trust in Christ for their salvation. For the exclusivist, it is necessary that a sinner have faith in Christ to be saved. However, for the inlusivist, while faith in Christ is best, it is not the only way to be saved. In other words, those who have never heard of Christ may very well be in heaven one day since they responded genuinely to the general revelation that was available to them.

As you might have guessed, the debate over inclusivisim has caused quite a stir in evangelicalism. The theological contours of the debate cannot be quarantined either. Everything is impacted by an inclusivist view, including general revelation, divine justice, one's view towards world religions, one's understanding of Old Testament "pagans," and the nature of saving faith itself.

And it would be naive to think that inclusivism has not affected Baprists to Pentecostals as well. While many Christians have affirmed the exclusivity of the gospel, other have differed. Some have all made the argument that the unevangelized may be saved through general revelation. Even those in other religions can be saved through general revelation, though other religions are not a means of salvation. Others, go even farther, arguing that not only general revelation but other religions contain truth sufficient for salvation.

But is this what Scripture teaches?

Jesus is the only way to God.” “One must place faith in Christ in order to be saved.” Most evangelicals affirm both of these statements as representative of biblical teaching. However, a number of evangelical leaders teach that Jesus is the only way to God (affirming statement 1), but that hearing and believing the gospel is not always necessary for salvation (denying statement 2). We call this position “inclusivism.” In other words, sincere adherents of other religions may be saved unknowingly through Jesus’ work.

Perhaps some find this view attractive because it softens the exclusive claims of Jesus without completely doing away with them. We can go right on saying “Jesus is the only way” while acknowledging the possibility that people outside the Christian faith may still be saved. Unfortunately, adopting the inclusivist approach does harm to our Christian witness by lessening the urgency of taking the gospel to people who have never heard of Jesus Christ. It also represents a capitulation to Western notions of “fairness,” subjective views of faith, and worldly descriptions of “goodness.”

Evangelism
Evangelism for the inclusivist isn’t telling people, “Trust Jesus before it’s too late!“ Instead, it implies that even though it may not matter what one does with Jesus in this life for one’s eternity, Jesus is still better than all the other religious options. Many non-Christians find this view patronizing. It’s offensive to claim that Hindus or Jews wind up in heaven through Jesus when they most assuredly did not believe in Christ. Inclusivism lightens the burdened conscience of the Christian who is not active in fulfilling the Great Commission. It does not soften the offense of the gospel to those who want nothing to do with Christ.

Fairness
Inclusivists believe it is unfair for some people to have access to God’s salvation while others perish without ever hearing the gospel. But even if the gospel were accessible to everyone, would the good news be accessible to every person equally? Is it not unfair that a person who lives sixty years may have more opportunities to hear the gospel than the person who dies suddenly at the age of thirty? The inclusivist position fails to show how a view of universal accessibility of salvation resolves the issue of “fairness.” In fact, inclusivism fails to show how God must be held accountable to this notion of fairness in the first place.

Faith
Today’s world tends to see “faith” as a purely subjective emotion, divorced from objective content and made effective by the intensity and sincerity with which a person exercises belief. By adopting a similar stance, inclusivists downplay the importance of faith’s objective content. Biblical faith, in contrast, finds its expression in both the objective content of the Christian gospel (the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ) and the subjective feelings that indicate true heart transformation (trust and sincerity).

Goodness
Inclusivists are distressed by the idea that good people who adhere to other religions would be consigned to hell. But lurking behind this protest is the unbiblical assumption that heaven is somehow deserved. Furthermore, who determines what is good? We cannot simply adopt the world’s standard of “goodness” and apply it uncritically to the people around us. Scripturally speaking, the problem is not that good people do not go to heaven; the problem is there are no good people.

Instead of adopting an inclusivist position, evangelicals ought to be “inclusive exclusivists.” We believe that Jesus is the only way to God and that faith in Christ is necessary for salvation (exclusivism), and we evangelize because the call to salvation is radically inclusive. We are to call all people everywhere to repentance and faith: people from every tongue, tribe, and nation; people of every color, ethnicity, and background; yes, even people who claim other religious identities. It is because of the exclusive nature of Christianity that the offer of the gospel is so radically inclusive. Christ calls all people everywhere to repentance.
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God is my refuge

2012-01-16T14:28:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia"I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust." (Psalm 91:2)

This marvelous psalm of life and security follows a psalm of frailty and death (Psalm 90) written by Moses, who may have been the author of this psalm as well. For our devotional study today, attention is called to the change of personal pronoun throughout, implying a dialogue between three speakers.

The psalm begins as a godly teacher, or prophet, or perhaps an angel, bestows a benediction upon the believer: "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (Psalm 91:1), ascribing the security of the believer to the character of God.

The believer responds to this blessing by avowing his trust in God and in His character (v. 2).

To the testimony of the believer, the first speaker replies, expounding on the former blessing, detailing the protection provided by God (vv. 3-8) and the blessings of that care. Note, "because thou |the believer| hast made the LORD |Jehovah|, which is my |the speaker's| refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone" (vv. 9-12).

At the end, Jehovah Himself responds, confirming all that the speaker has said: "Because he |the believer| hath set his love upon me |Jehovah|, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation" (vv. 14-16).

Why I hate religion, But Love Jesus

2012-01-16T14:04:00.000-08:00

12 MILLION VIEWS = BIBLICAL ACCURACY?

JEFF BETHKE'S RESPONSE TO THE INACCURACIES OF 'RELIGION'

I just wanted to say I really appreciate your article man. It hit me hard. I’ll even be honest and say I agree 100%. God has been working with me in the last 6 months on loving Jesus AND loving his church. For the first few years of walking with Jesus (started in ’08) I had a warped/poor paradigm of the church and it didn’t build up, unify, or glorify His wife (the Bride). If I can be brutally honest I didn’t think this video would get much over a couple thousand views maybe, and because of that, my points/theology wasn’t as air-tight as I would’ve liked. If I redid the video tomorrow, I’d keep the overall message, but would articulate, elaborate, and expand on the parts where my words and delivery were chosen poorly… My prayer is my generation would represent Christ faithfully and not swing to the other spectrum….thankful for your words and more importantly thankful for your tone and fatherly like grace on me as my elder. Humbled. Blessed. Thankful for painful growth. Blessings.

Grace and Peace, Jeff

What is religion? (Laura Ortberg)
Is it hypocrisy? By ‘religion,’ do we really mean the way of the Pharisees and the Sadducees and the Westboro Baptist Church? Because if so, we are in trouble.

Is it absurdity? Is it, like Bethke said, “putting perfume on a casket?” Is it legalism – “behavior modification, like a long list of chores?” Because if so, we are in a lot of trouble.

I’m guessing Bethke doesn’t actually hate religion. In fact, I would bet my last dollar that he loves it. As we are told in James, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” In fact, it sounds strikingly similar to where Bethke claims ‘religion’ falls short: “Why does it build huge churches, but fails to feed the poor/Tells single moms God doesn’t love them if they’ve ever had a divorce?”

Unfortunately, those things that make for nice rhymes rarely encompass the necessary nuance of a mysterious God, which is probably why most Christian music gets such a bad reputation. (Surely in all of this, Bethke’s most egregious crime was rhyming ‘invention’ and ‘infection,’ or perhaps ‘mention’ and ‘spectrum.’) Our theology is a rich and varied one, and I value that Bethke can freely express his views as much, as I cringe when I hear them reduced to such simplicity.

What Bethke was really protesting, it would seem, is faith without works. Empty rhetoric and selfish thinking. Building testaments to our own greatness and abandoning the widow and the orphan. What we need now is not less religion, indeed, but more than ever.

Healthy Godly Sexuality

2012-01-16T13:51:00.000-08:00

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Understanding God’s Design for Sex and Marriage by Challies.com

The Meaning of Marriage by Tim Keller. This book looks at the friendship and companionship and sex and everything else God has packaged into the marriage relationship. It celebrates it all and it does it within the greatest context of all—the gospel of Jesus Christ. (Check out some of the free resources related to this book.)
This Momentary Marriage by John Piper. Piper puts a lot of effort into writing about the link between the union of husband and wife and the union of Christ to his church.You can listen to or watch (for free) the sermon series this book came from.
Sex, Romance, and the Glory of God by C.J. Mahaney. Mahaney does a good job of challenging men to be godly husbands. The enduring wisdom here is never to touch your wife’s body until you’ve touched her heart and her mind. Read my review.
Sex and the Supremacy of Christ: Desiring God’s 2004 National Conference - free audio (and some video) of messages by Mark Dever, Albert Mohler, David Powlison, Carolyn McCulley, the Mahaneys and, of course, Piper.

Fighting Against Sexual Temptation

Sexual Detox by me. This is a book for guys in which I try to help you reorient your understanding of sex, both in the big picture and in the act itself, according to God’s plan for this great gift. I want to help you detox from all the junk you’ve seen, all the lies you’ve believed. (Read the blog series this book came from.)
Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is) by Joshua Harris. In this easy to read, easy to digest, book for all audiences, Harris analyzes lust in light of the gospel and helps guide you in fighting against it and celebrating purity. Readmy review.
Covenant Eyes - Covenant Eyes is a computer program that holds people accountable to what they view online by automatically sending their surfing history to a selected accountability partner or group. They also provide internet filtering software.
This article, “Spiritual Healing in the Midst of a Husband’s Addiction to Pornography,” includes an interview with Vicki Tiede that seeks to offer some words of help to women who are struggling with the effects of a husband’s addiction to porn.
Day One Publications has several helpful booklets:

Recovering from Sexual Failure

Setting Captives Free - This ministry offers free courses designed to help people escape from all kinds of habitual sins, including sexual impurity, through the grace and power of Jesus Christ.
Addictions: A Banquet in the Grace by Edward T. Welch. A theological and practical book about finding hope and help in Jesus so that we are no longer mastered by our addictions.
Undefiled - This book by Dr. Harry Schaumburg is about finding redemption from sexual sin. It seeks to help couples find restoration for breaking or broken relationships.
Dr. Schaumburg is also the founder of Stone Gate Resources, a counseling ministry that offers “Biblical Intensive Counseling” workshops for couples who are in need of intensive and immediate help. If your marriage is on the rocks due to sex-related issues, this is a good place to seek help.

Jesus is the Lord of peace

2012-01-15T16:48:00.001-08:00

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"Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all." (2 Thessalonians 3:16)

Isaiah's great prophecy of Christ's first advent identified "his name |as| Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). The peace He brings is personal, as we see in our text: "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). But it is also effective in society at large, a fact borne out in verse 5 of "Crown Him with Many Crowns."

Crown Him the Lord of peace, Whose peace a scepter sways
From pole to pole, that wars may cease, And all be prayer and praise!
His reign shall know no end, And round His pierced feet
Fair flowers of Paradise extend Their fragrance ever sweet.

"Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom" (Hebrews 1:8). The King of this kingdom is none other than our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As the angel announced the birth of Christ, he prophesied: "And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end" (Luke 1:33). "And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Isaiah 2:4).

Perhaps the best thing about His eternal, righteous, peaceful kingdom is that we will be there. "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God" (Revelation 2:7). "Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:5)!

How God answers prayer!

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The gift of eternal life

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Image via Wikipedia"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23)

Verse three of the majestic hymn "Crown Him with Many Crowns" speaks of life--eternal life--made possible by the death of the Creator of life. This was followed by His retaking life and returning in victory from the grave. The hymn expresses it well.

Crown Him the Lord of life, Who triumphed o'er the grave,
And rose victorious in the strife For those He came to save.
His glories now we sing Who died and rose on high,
Who died, eternal life to bring, And lives that death may die.

As in our text, eternal life is a "gift of God," made possible "by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel" (2 Timothy 1:10). The penalty for sin had to be paid, and so "Christ died for our sins" (1 Corinthians 15:3). But in order to fully vanquish death and offer forgiven sinners eternal life, He "rose again the third day" (v. 4) "wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25).

Then, "when he had by himself purged our sins, |he| sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high" (Hebrews 1:3). "Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? . . . Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55, 57).

Although eternal death has been vanquished, we still face physical death. Yet there will come a day when "God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" (Revelation 21:4).

The challenge of New Testament Worship

2012-01-11T15:10:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaImage via WikipediaImage via WikipediaIn the New Testament, the ancient offerings are replaced by the worshipers themselves. Worship is quite literally the act of offering ourselves to God. This was the apostle Paul's point when he urged us "to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship" (Rom. 12:1). When we gather with other believers to "offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name" (Heb. 13:15), we are offering ourselves to him anew, body and all. It is precisely the sort of wholehearted offering Jesus had in mind when he said that the Father is seeking those who will worship him "in the Spirit and in truth" (John 4:23–24).
In the Old Testament, the place of worship and everything about it was considered holy. Worshipers were taught to approach that "sacred space" with awe and reverence. Today, God's people, both individually and corporately, do not visit that sacred space; they constitute that sacred space. Paul instructed the Athenians that God does not live in temples made by human hands (Acts 17:24), but his point was not that God has no earthly dwelling place. God dwells in a temple made with his own hands; he dwells within his people. Their bodies have quite literally become his earthly abode (1 Cor. 3:16–17).

The question for us, then, is this: When we gather for worship, does this sacred event generate within us any similar sense of "awe and reverence"? As Richard Foster says, when the early believers in Acts met for worship,

they were keenly aware that the veil had been ripped in two and like Moses and Aaron they were entering the Holy of Holies. No intermediaries were needed. They were coming into the awful, glorious, gracious Presence of the living God. They gathered with anticipation, knowing that Christ was present among them and would teach them and touch them with His living power. (Celebration of Discipline, p. 141)

Is this how we come to worship?

A perceptive observer of our contemporary church scene might be forgiven for scratching her head over such a question, wondering whether we have grown oblivious to the significance of our own gathering. How often, she might ask us, do you prepare for Sunday as if it mattered, guarding, for example, Saturday nights so as to be fresh and focused the next morning? How come our pre-service gathering so often sounds more like a bowling alley than a people meeting to offer themselves anew to their God? How is it we are we so susceptible to the lure of personality and entertainment up front, obscuring the God-centered purpose for which we have met? How prevalent is the notion that we can worship just as well at home, or on the golf course, or before a TV screen—or perhaps forfeit worship altogether due to inconvenient weather, the priority of other things, or who may be preaching that week?

What is quality worship?

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The first is derived from God's instructions regarding holiness. The core idea of holiness in both the Old and New Testaments is "set-apartness." Whether it be food, days, vestments, utensils, places, offerings, or God's people themselves, to be holy is to be peculiar, dedicated to the Lord. To sanctify something is to set it apart as special for God. The "unholy" is thus not only what is profane but also what is ordinary or "common." God is holy and he desires his people to be holy. Everything we offer him is to be marked by its holiness. He expects us to demonstrate in every aspect of our relationship to him the special regard he deserves.

A second consideration is the biblical idea of "the firstfruits." This does not refer to any specific type of thing placed on the altar; rather it is a description of the quality of the offering: the choicest of the fruits, the firstborn. God demands that we give him our best. The people of Malachi's day dishonored the Lord by bringing him inferior worship offerings. They sniffed at God's expectations and said, "What a nuisance this is" (Mal. 1:13). Not surprisingly, God was incensed by their contemptuous, "anything will do" attitude toward worship. "Cursed is the cheat," he warned them, who has a suitable sacrifice but offers up something less. God requires our best in everything we bring him.

A third consideration is costliness. This has nothing to do with dollar amounts. The impoverished widow offered the Lord a tiny sum, but in Christ's estimation it amounted to "more … than all the others" (Mark 12:41–44). The point here, rather, is our willingness to expend ourselves sacrificially for the Lord's sake. This spirit of sacrifice was famously modeled by King David when he approached Araunah about purchasing his threshing floor as a place of worship (the future site of Solomon's temple, as it turned out). Araunah offered to donate not only the land but also his sledges and yokes for the wood and his oxen for sacrifices. But the king refused his gift. David would not offer to the Lord, he said, that which "cost me nothing" (2 Sam. 24:24). Instead, he bought the land at full price and then dedicated it to the Lord. It was a costly gift, one that proved acceptable to God.

What is worship?

2012-01-11T14:39:00.000-08:00

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What is worship, after all? It's the act of acknowledging and praising God as God; indeed, as our God. It is the adoring response of grateful creatures to their Maker. In worship we come before God with awe and reverence, focusing on him in loving contemplation, celebrating him for who he is and what he has done. We willingly bow before him in surrender, delighting in the privilege of extolling his worthiness. In worship we join our small voices with the celestial choirs in a grand chorus magnifying the Creator and declaring his excellencies: his purity, his power, his beauty, his grace, his mercy, his love.

From the beginning, God has called his people to public worship. It's everywhere in the Bible, and with good reason: our corporate worship pleases God. What's more, we need it as well. Everyone who has ever built a campfire knows how quickly lone embers cool and die. But gather those embers and they create a furnace effect that burns hot. Corporate worship is designed to generate that furnace effect in God's people. Those around us warm our spirits, encourage our faith, and hold us up when we're faltering.

As Martin Luther famously put it, "At home, in my own house, there is no warmth or vigor in me, but in the church when the multitude is gathered together, a fire is kindled in my heart and it breaks its way through."

"Do not neglect the gathering of yourselves together," says the writer to the Hebrews (10:25). We come to faith as individuals, but Christ places us instantly into his body, and we require that body for the purposes of worship. There are aspects of worship we cannot fulfill alone. The Lord's Table, for example, belongs to the community; celebrate it when you "come together," says the apostle (1 Cor. 11:18, 33). So also baptism, corporate prayer, the public reading of Scripture, the teaching of Scripture, the corporate confession of sin: all these and more are designed for corporate worship.

John Piper on why we love movies, apps, clothes more than Jesus

2012-01-10T14:27:00.000-08:00

Image via WikipediaWhat should you do if you know someone who seems to be more excited about movies than Jesus?

Many professing Christians give little evidence of valuing Jesus more than the latest movie they have seen. They know all the details, actors and plot of the movie The Ghost Protocol or they follow carefully their favourite pop star, or the latest clothing they bought. Or the latest app they downloaded. Or the latest game they watched. Something is amiss.

We are not God and cannot judge with certainty and precision what’s wrong. There is a glitch somewhere. Perhaps a blindness going in, a spiritual deadness at heart, or a blockage coming out.

Or some combination.
Christ doesn’t appear supremely valuable.
Or isn’t felt as supremely valuable.
Or can’t be spoken of as supremely valuable.
Or some combination.

Instead of dampening their enthusiasm for movies, clothing, apps, and events, let that go as an expression of God-given personality. Instead, model expressive joy in Jesus. Over time, if there is no resonance from their heart with your joy, query them humbly:

I love your enthusiasm for the things you get excited about. You’re so free and expressive about good movies and nice clothes and cool apps. It seems odd to me that you don’t seem to be as expressive about the way yo

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u feel about Jesus and what he’s done for us. Have you thought about why that might be?

The point of this query is to help them see that the problem is not joyfully loving good created things. The problem is the apparent absence of similar affections for Christ.

If similar affections for Jesus are not possible, then the specter of idolatry becomes serious. But they may sense this themselves without your having to start with that indictment, if you draw their attention not to the excitement that’s there, but to what’s missing.

We don’t want them to lose their exuberance about anything good. We want Christ to be supreme in their hearts so that all their exuberance comes under him and for his sake. When Jesus is felt as supremely valuable in our hearts, all other values gradually become properly ordered and purified.

May the Lord give you great courage and wisdom as you help people awaken to the supreme value of Jesus. Author: John Piper

Trust Christ

2012-01-09T22:33:00.000-08:00

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"But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." (John 20:31)

During the late 1800s, a time of rampant skepticism, vital Bible doctrines were abandoned by many, including the Creator’s kingship over creation and its inhabitants. The need remains to crown Him King in all areas of life. Note the hymn’s second verse:

Crown Him the Son of God Before the worlds began,
And ye, who tread where He hath trod, Crown Him the Son of man,
Who every grief hath known That wrings the human breast,
And takes and bears them for His own, That all in Him may rest.

Jesus Christ, God the Son, possessed great glory, given by God the Father "before the foundation of the world" (John 17:24). Then, even though "all things were made by him" (John 1:3), "God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons" (Galatians 4:4-5).

While in human form, Jesus preferred to call Himself the "Son of man" and chose to live a life of poverty and suffering. "The Son of man hath not where to lay his head" (Matthew 8:20). He chose to suffer these things so that He could fully identify and empathize with our problems. "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).

Thankfully, because "he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows . . . and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:4, 6), we can be forgiven and find rest in Him. "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

Believers will cast their crowns before God's throne

2012-01-09T15:41:00.000-08:00

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"The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." (Revelation 4:10-11)

As Christians, we are promised crowns of various sorts. Those we have ministered to are our "crown of rejoicing" (1 Thessalonians 2:19), our "joy and crown" (Philippians 4:1). We have the "crown of righteousness" (2 Timothy 4:8) for service to the Lord. If we endure, we will "receive the crown of life" (James 1:12) and the "crown of glory" (1 Peter 5:4). These crowns are "incorruptible" (1 Corinthians 9:25), lasting for eternity. But of what use will crowns be in glory?

We will willingly cast our "crowns"--our accomplishments performed in service of Him--at His feet as an act of worship, for all we are and have done has been a gift from the almighty sovereign creator/Savior. Even today we can crown Him King of every area of our lives. The grand old hymn "Crown Him with Many Crowns" relates this and reminds us to look ahead.

Crown Him with many crowns, The lamb upon His throneHark! how the heavenly anthem drowns All music but its own!
Awake my soul and sing Of Him who died for thee
And hail Him as thy matchless King Through all eternity.

There will come that day when we form "a great multitude . . . Before the throne, and before the Lamb" (Revelation 7:9) singing "the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works" (Revelation 15:3). The theme of our song will be that "God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).