Saturday, April 30, 2011

the gospel — part 1

Today I embark on a multi-part series on the gospel.

God Justifies the Ungodly…
By Geoffrey R. Kirkland

Greek Text:
τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην·

Geoff’s Translation:
But to the one who does not work but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.

Discourse:
This verse encapsulates the core of the gospel in a succinct statement. There are numerous elements of the gospel that Paul combines in this verse that are essential to the saving message of Jesus Christ.
The sinner must come to recognize one simple fact. It is a most-easy truth to comprehend yet an overwhelming difficult truth to swallow. The sinner must admit that he is ungodly. The sinner must come to the end of himself and confess that he is utterly despicable in the eyes of a holy God. More than that, sinners are God’s enemies (Rom 5:10), sinners are hated by God (Ps 5:5), sinners who are prideful, arrogant, wicked, and perverted are hated by God (Prov 8:13). Every single person must first come to agreement with this foundational truth. Unless a sinner recognizes this and admits it, he cannot be saved.
The Scriptures teach that for the ungodly man who has no one to stand in his stead, come to his defense, and none to plead his case, God will eternally condemn him. By God’s Word, the present heavens are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men (2 Pet 3:7). The Old Testament Law declares that the righteous must be justified but the wicked must be condemned (cf. Deut 25:1ff). But here is, perhaps, one of the most shocking verses in the Scriptures. Proverbs 17:15 says that “he who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD” (emphasis added). That means that for God to justify an ungodly man would make God utterly abominable—it would go against His very nature and character. Thus, as an ungodly man, you cannot be justified by God.
Spurgeon put it this way:
If you are not lost, what do you want with a Saviour? Should the shepherd go after those who never went astray? Why should the woman sweep her house for the pieces of money that were never out of her purse? No, the medicine is for the diseased; the quickening is for the dead; the pardon is for the guilty; liberation is for those who are bound; the opening of eyes is for those who are blind. How can the Saviour and His death upon the cross and the Gospel of pardon be accounted for unless they be upon the supposition that men are guilty and worthy of condemnation. The sinner is the Gospel’s reason for existence. If you are undeserving, ill-deserving, hell-deserving, you are the sort of man for whom the Gospel is ordained and arranged and proclaimed. God justifies the ungodly.

I leave you with one final verse that we will elaborate on in the next post: Romans 5:6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Get the pdf of this article here.

More on the solution to this dilemma in the next post...

Friday, April 29, 2011

a few thoughts...

Here are a few random thoughts:

1. I preached on biblical integrity this week from Psalm 101 and preached to my own heart and soul. God convicted me greatly this week through the study of His Word.

2. I found an awesome online jazz station—jazz24/7.org. Live-stream here.

3. I get to work through Hebrews 3-4 today with my accountability/discipleship group. What an amazing exposition of Psalm 95 that auctor gives. (=Auctor is the affectionate name I give to the anonymous author of Hebrews—thanks, Dr. V.)

4. My mind marvels at the reality of this verse: τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην· (Romans 4:5 — "But to the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness). What a great reality! I get to preach this text this Sunday morning for our communion service. What better topic to preach with all boldness, authority, passion, and urgency than the gospel of Jesus Christ.

5. I shared the gospel with two Mormon teenagers on my bus yesterday. They saw me reading a book titled: The Canon of the New Testament: Its Origin, Development and Significance. After I insisted that the Bible is the only inspired word from God and that Jesus is fully God and fully Man and that He violently punishes all in hell who reject Jesus Christ without giving second chances after death, they refused to talk with me any more. They misquoted Scripture, gave references to the wrong books, and pulled out a cheat-sheet of verses. Finally, after I pulled out my Greek New Testament and read them a few verses about Jesus as very God of very God they had enough of me. Saddened for their souls, I prayed for them as I walked home.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

integrity -- holiness & faith...

JC Ryle writes:

"Whitefield, Wesley, and Rowlands taught constantly the inseparable connectionb etween true faith and personal holiness. They never allowed for a moment that any church membership or religious profession was teh proof of a man's being a true Christian if he lived an ungodly life. A true Christian, they maintained, must always be known by his fruits; and those fruits must be plainly manifest and unmistakable in all relations of life. 'No fruits, no grace,' was the unvarying tenor of their preaching" (JC Ryle, Christian Leaders of the Eighteenth Century, 28).

Excellent and true!

Monday, April 25, 2011

integrity -- do you have it?

Preaching on Psalm 101 has both convicted and consecrated my heart before the LORD.

Psalm 101:2 — I will give heed to the blameless way. When will You come to me? I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart.
(אַשְׂכִּ֤ילָה׀ בְּדֶ֬רֶךְ תָּמִ֗ים מָ֭תַי תָּב֣וֹא אֵלָ֑י אֶתְהַלֵּ֥ךְ בְּתָם־לְ֜בָבִ֗י בְּקֶ֣רֶב בֵּיתִֽי׃)

Chuck Swindoll gives 7 questions for you to take inventory of your spiritual integrity:

1. Have you been with a woman anywhere this past week that might be seen as compromising?
2. Have any of your financial dealings lacked integrity?
3. Have you exposed yourself to any sexually explicit material?
4. Have you spent adequate time in Bible study and prayer?
5. Have you given priority time to your family?
6. Have you fulfilled the mandates of your calling?
7. Have you just lied to me?

Sunday, April 24, 2011

thankful this resurrection day.

A few reasons why I am thankful today consist of the following:

1. I serve a Risen Savior who is alive and who has conquered death, hell, Satan, and sin—my sin.

2. God gave me the strength and boldness to go street-preaching in downtown Santa Monica last night with a friend.

3. I baptized two men in our college group today who testified boldly, clearly, and persuasively the power of the gospel that penetrates the hearts of sinners. God used the power of the preaching of His Word to save these two men.

4. I get to preach Amos 5 and Psalm 101 this upcoming week.

My heart is fully of joy.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

ever wondered how the NT manuscripts spread in the early days?

No, Paul didn't have Fed-Ex at his disposal. But here's a great quote from a commendable source:

"The circulation of a document began either from the place (or church province) of its origin, whether the author wrote it, or from the place to which it was addressed (if it was a genuine letter — formal epistles would be like other New Testament writings). Copies of the original would be made for use in neighboring churches. The circulation of a book would be like the ripples of a stone cast into a pond, spreading out in all directions at once. When a book was shared by repeated copying throughout a whole diocese or metropolitan area, the close ties between dioceses would carry it from one district to another, where the process would be repeated. From the moment the Christian church required the use of sacred books in addition to the Septuagint [the Greek translation of the OT], i.e., from the time that the worship service incorporated the reading and exposition of lessons taken not only from the Old Testament but also from other writings which were regarded as holy scripture, the number of New Testament manuscripts began to multiply. Thus the letters of Paul would naturally have been read first in the churches he founded, and then become a regular part of the sequence of liturgical lessons. This must have been the situation from the mid-second century, with the founding of each new church requiring the production of another New Testament manuscript."

From: Kurt Aland and Barbara Aland, The Text of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989), 55.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

martin luther on bible interpretation

He declared:

"The Christian reader should make it his first task to seek out the literal sense, as they call it. For it alone is the whole substance of faith and Christian theology; it alone holds its ground in trouble and trial."

Elsewhere Luther stated:

"The literal sense does it -- in it there is life, comfort, power, instruction and skill. The other is tomfoolery."

Quoted from Thiselton, New Horizons in Hermeneutics, 184.

Monday, April 18, 2011

psalm 100.3

Rarely do I post a text-critical note on the biblical text but I think this is important. So here's my take on Psalm 100:3.

ESV Psalm 100:3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his;

NIV Psalm 100:3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his;

NAU Psalm 100:3 Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;

Read the article here.

who — or what — is a CHRISTIAN?

Why is it that so many of us are often quick to associate who is and who is not a Christian by whether they: (1) go to church and (2) read their Bible?

Sadly, I'm even guilty of doing this myself. But, this amazes me. First of all let's establish the reality that going to church and reading the Bible does not make anyone a Christian. I firmly believe there are many people in the pews who are not saved and I believe there are people who read their Bibles who are still unsaved. So this does not make anyone a Christian.

And these two things are not the only two traits that flow from someone who is truly a Christian. Certainly going to Church is good but for a true believer it's not out of absolute necessity that he/she goes to Church but rather it's because there is a longing to be with God's people, to hear from God's Word, to pray with the saints, and to corporately worship with the redeemed. This is a heart-longing of a true believer.

Someone who is saved by Christ will also have a heart-longing to be in His Word. I can't fathom someone who claims to be a Christian not wanting to be in God's Word. That's as foolish as saying someone can live day to day without food and still get along with life just fine (that just doesn't happen). So being in God's Word is not out of necessity but out of love for Christ; out of a desire to be with Him; to learn from Him; to learn what He demands of us as we grow in holiness; and to fellowship with our Savior.

Being a Christian is not about doing things. Being a Christian is about serving Jesus Christ and whole-heartedly being in love with the One who died and took the Father's wrath in my stead. This, then, results in a LIFE of holiness and love for Him which includes Church, Bible reading, prayer, evangelism, holiness, worship, and on and on and on.

Rather than saying who is or who is not a Christian by whether they 'go to church' or 'read their Bible' perhaps it'd be better for us to stick close to the gospel and use that as our criteria. Those who have repented of sin and who have been delivered from God's wrath by Christ's blood through His grace and they are now walking daily with Christ bearing fruit for Him for His glory.

Perhaps this would be better — and a clearer testimony to the lost that we're not legalists or Roman Catholics but that we are sinners saved by grace by means of Christ who are now living, by the Spirit's enablement, to honor, love, and serve Jesus Christ.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

a brilliant plea from John Bunyan — don't love your sins.

From John Bunyan...

Lost sinner, I beg you to consider the state of those who die outside of Christ Jesus. Yes, I say, consider their miserable state, and think thus with yourself: "What, shall I lose an eternal Heaven--for short pleasure? Shall I buy the pleasures of this world at so dear a rate--as to lose my soul to obtain them? What advantage will these be to me--when the Lord shall separate soul and body asunder, and send one to the grave, and the other to Hell; and at the judgment-day, the final sentence of eternal ruin must be passed upon me?"

Consider, that the profits, pleasures, and vanities of this world will not last forever--but the time is coming, yes, just at the door, when they will give you the slip, and leave you in such a dreadful condition.

And therefore to prevent this, consider your dismal state, think thus with yourself: It is true--I do love my sins, my lusts and pleasures; but what good will they do me at the day of death and of judgment? Will my sins do me good then? Will they be able to help me when I come to fetch my last breath? What good will my money then do for me? And what good will my vanities then do, when death drags me away? What good will all my companions, fellow-jesters, jeerers, liars, drunkards, and all my harlots do for me? Will they help to ease the pains of Hell? Will these help to turn the hand of God from inflicting His fierce anger upon me? Nay, they will rather cause God to show me no mercy, to give me no comfort; and to thrust me down into the hottest place of Hell, where I will swim in fire and brimstone!

O consider, that your doom is forever, forever! It is unto . . .
everlasting damnation,
eternal destruction,
eternal wrath and displeasure from God,
eternal gnawings of conscience,
eternal continuance with devils.

O consider, that just the thought of now seeing the devil, makes your hair to stand straight up on your head. O but this--to be damned, to dwell among all the devils, and that not only for a short time--but forever, to all eternity! This is so astonishingly miserable--that no tongue of man, no, nor of angels, is able to express it!


Look to Christ and find refuge in the shadow of His wings. Find forgiveness in the atonement that He offers. God crushed Christ so that we may be pardoned. Consider your life and your conduct and look to Him today!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

revelation in a paragraph

Here is an excellent summary of the book of Revelation:

"The book of Revelation emphasizes the sovereign control of God over all reality. Not only does G0d, through the person and work of Jesus Christ, govern all human history, but he also gathers up all the apparently loose threads of reality in the glorious consummation of his purposes. The focus of Revelation is the gospel of the Lamb of God. The key to reality is the 'Lamb standing, as though it had been slain' (Rev 5:6). He alone is able to open the scroll and reveal the truth of God's kingdom. Here indeed is the magisterial hermeneutic. The almost oppressive emphasis on judgment in this book reminds us of the accountability of the human race before God. Accountability means that truth is there to be understood and received. Accountability also means that the final reference point for understanding and interpretation is the one before whom all are accountable. The beatific vision of the new heaven and the new earth belongs to those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 5:9-14; 7:13-17; 12:11)."

—Graeme Goldsworthy, Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics, 84.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

God does what he wants, when he wants, where he wants, with whom he wants, all the time.

And that's God's sovereignty simplified.

Spurgeon put it this way:

"Opposition to divine sovereignty is essentially atheism. Men have no objection to a god who is really no god, a god who shall be the subject of caprice, who shall be a servile follower of their will, who shall be under their control. But a God who speaks and it is done, who commands and it stands fast, a God who does as he will among the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of this lower world, such a God as this they cannot endure. And yet, it is not essential to the very being of God that he should be absolute and supreme? Certainly to the scriptural conception of God, sovereignty is an absolute necessity."

I love Spurgeon and I want to join the band of men and women who proclaim with unequivocal and unashamed confidence that God is the sovereign King. Anyone who reads the Bible for very long cannot deny it.

Praise God His dominion and His sovereignty.

Monday, April 11, 2011

a quote that hangs over me as i work...

I love this quote by Edward Payson (1783-1827) that hangs over me in my office as I prepare sermons:
"If you should this moment be called to the bar of God, what sentence have you reason to suppose He would pass on you? Pause and reflect, and let conscience answer ... Will you dare offer to your Judge those vain and frivolous excuses with which you now quiet your conscience and deceive yourself? Will you dare come to the bar of God and tell Him that He was a hard master? That His Law was too severe? That His Word was unintelligble? That you could not learn your duty? That you were unable to repent and believe? Consider, O consider well what answer you are prepared to give. See that it be such an one as you dare rest your hopes upon and defend at the bar of a heart-searching Judge. Consider all these things, none to deliver! Let this consideration rouse you from your lethargy to lay hold on the hope set before you. Do not stand lingering and delaying as did Lot in Sodom, but suffer me to hasten you as the angels did him. For the wrath of God is upon the state in which you now are, and the fiery storm of divine vengeance is ready every moment to burst upon your heads. O then fly, fly quickly, fly immediately! Escape for your lives; look not behind you, but hasten to the mountains pointed out, even to Christ, the eternal Rock of ages, lest ye die. As sure, O sinner, as thy soul liveth, as sure as God lives, there is but a step between thee and death. But flee now unto Christ, and your soul shall live!"
I only wish I could have heard Payson preach.

how do you pray?

Read my latest article on one way that we can “improve” as we pray to God. I’ve called it: Are your prayers theologically accurate?

*note: I do not intend to criticize in any sense of the term; rather, I simply intend for us to think about how we pray and contemplate if there is a way that we can pray more accurately and theologically-precise as we pray.*

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

preach with all authority — God encouraged my heart this afternoon...

God encouraged my heart with these quotes on preaching today. I am reminded that preachers must preach with fire, as men who have gone wild for God. Preaching is gospel-centered madness!

“Preaching is theology coming through a man who is on fire. A true understanding and experience of the Truth must lead to this. I say again that a man who can speak about these things dispassionately has no right whatsoever to be in a pulpit; and should never be allowed to enter one.” (Martin Lloyd-Jones)

“From the beginning of the sermon to its end, the all engrossing force of the text and the God who speaks through that text must dominate our whole being. With the burning power of that truth on our heart and lips, every thought, emotion, and act of the will must be so captured by that truth that it springs forth with excitement, joy, sincerity, and reality as an evident token that God’s Spirit is in that word. Away with all the mediocre, lifeless, boring, and lackluster orations offered as pitiful substitutes for the powerful Word of the living Lord. If that Word from God does not thrill the proclaimer and fill [him] … with an intense desire to glorify God and do His will, how shall we ever expect it to have any greater effect on our hearers?” (Walter Kaiser)

“When you study well, then you can say with a finger pointing right at them: “This is what the Word of God says.” (Jack Hughes)

“Preach with all authority and let no one disregard you.” (The Apostle Paul, Titus 2:15)

So, let us pray for men who will take God's Word and preach it with all authority, passion, boldness, and accuracy as a conduit allowing the water of the Word to pass from the Divine Source to the thirsty soul.

a clear statement of sovereign election

I love God's Word. It is so clear.

Acts 13:48 Ἀκούοντα δὲ τὰ ἔθνη ἔχαιρον καὶ ἐδόξαζον τὸν λόγον τοῦ κυρίου καὶ ἐπίστευσαν ὅσοι ἦσαν τεταγμένοι εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον·

Acts 13:48 And when the Gentiles heard these things they rejoiced and glorified the Word of the LORD and as many who were appointed (τεταγμένοι) unto eternal life believed.

God's Word is so clear. God had already appointed (τεταγμένοι) and marked out whom he would elect. Those whom he elected believe when they hear the Gospel—in God's sovereign timing.

Some qualm at the idea of God's sovereignty and human responsibility and say that they are irreconcilable truths. The better way to see the issue is that they beautifully go together because Scripture puts them together—not as foes, but as friends. Those whom God has already appointed (sovereignty, unconditionally, determinatively) to eternal life will believe the Gospel at the moment God ordains.

In other words: those who believe the Gospel show that they are those who have been appointed unto eternal life.

Praise God for His sovereignty in our election.

interesting story at our church Sunday morning...

I've never before had a man in our own church shake the dust off his feet as a sign of contempt at me. We were praying in a side room before the morning worship service.

A man walks up and asks if we can give him a Bible so he can go perform a music concert. We eagerly offered him a Bible—but he demanded it be KJV (King James Version). I kindly responded by saying that that's a good translation but we use the NIV as our pew Bible at the Church. Then the rocket began to launch. Then he began to raise his voice and tell me how many errors we had because we didn't use the KJV.

So about five minutes before the service is to begin, I began to walk the man over to our front doors of the Church where I proceeded to open the door for him to walk out (at this point he was very loud). He continued to tell me that he pities me on the day of judgment because I, as a pastor, am leading my people down a heretical path. He then went on to say that Jesus didn't die on a cross (which in God's great sovereignty I just read about 1,000 pages for one of my PhD classes on the history of those who deny Jesus actually died on a 'cross'). At any rate, I kindly told him to leave.

Then He came back through the other door to the Church and asked where the pastor is. Then someone brought him to me—and he was flabbergasted!

He then stood on the front steps of our church and officially shook the dust off his feet because of our heresy that we don't teach from the KJV and that we teach that Jesus died on a cross bearing my sin and the Father's wrath.

Sound heretical to you? Not a chance!

Sunday, April 3, 2011

sobering reminder — God is the Judge.

The Judge!

(by James Smith, 1856)

"God is the Judge!" Psalm 75:7

There is one supreme judge of what is right and wrong--and that judge is Jesus. He is qualified to judge, and He is appointed to sit in judgment on all the actions of men, and to reward every one according to his works.

But it is not to God's final judgment we are about to refer--but to the present. Many professors talk, or seem to feel, as if great mistakes were made, and therefore they justify themselves in complaining. But Jesus is Judge of what is right, and what is best.

His wisdom is infinite;
His knowledge comprehends the past, the present, and the future;
His power is omnipotent;
His mercy is from everlasting to everlasting, and is over all His works;
His love to His people surpasses knowledge.

This being the case, there can be no question that Jesus is the best Judge of what is right, and of what should be.

God is the Judge--as to our PERSONS. Some wish they had more strength, some that they had more health, some that they had more beauty, some one thing, some another thing. Some imagine that they are too tall--and some not tall enough. Some are crooked, or otherwise deformed--and are grieved that they are not straight or well formed.

But God is the Judge, and our formation, size, shape, appearance, etc, are all according to His will; and if according to His will--it must be best. Beware of how you sit in judgment on the wisdom of God, or think yourself capable of improving His plans.

God is the Judge as to who should be born--their size, shape, appearance, and every other particular. Therefore be silent before Him; be satisfied with your lot, and believe that by and bye you will see a reason for what tries or troubles you at present. If you were humble, you would not be much affected by what man may think, or what man may say--but would bow before God, and say, "If I can honor You by being deformed, or destitute of beauty, or weak, or diseased--it is enough. May Your will be done, Your name be hallowed, Your glory be advanced--and I am content; more--I am well-pleased!"


God is the Judge--as to our CIRCUMSTANCES.

Whether I am to be rich, or to be poor;
whether I am employer, or employed;
whether I am healthy, or sick;
whether I thrive, or go to wreck--
God is the Judge as to which is best. He is Judge as to the nature or number of my mercies, trials, troubles, comforts, crosses, losses, bereavements and varied changes.

I cannot tell what would be best--what would really do me good. I must . . .
bow to the wisdom of the All-wise God,
accept the appointments of His Grace, and
be satisfied with the arrangements of Infinite Love.

If there was anything like 'chance' in the world--I might complain, or wish for an alteration. But since God exercises His judgment, and has ordained my lot--it is for me to approve of it, and seek grace that I may honor Him in it.


God is the Judge--as to our EVENTS. Many things are sent to try us; and they try our thoughts, our faith, our fortitude, our patience, our humility, and our perseverance. How things may end--we do not know. What certain providences are intended to produce--we are not informed. But we may rest assured of this--that . . .
God's ends will be accomplished,
His purposes will be performed, and
the predictions of His Word will be fulfilled.

We may, therefore, very safely leave all results to God. The path of duty is plainly marked out. We should walk in that path, taking no thought for the morrow. We should . . .
trust God's promises,
walk by God's precepts,
observe God's providences;
and then we may say, "I have nothing to do with the future, for God is the Judge! He puts down one--and sets up another."

Christian, are you tempted to complain of your lot? Or, do you wish to choose for yourself? It is better to leave it with God--and try to believe that it is best to be as you are, and where you are. There is no doubt that you can glorify God exactly where you are, more than anywhere else.

You can do all that God wishes you to do--right where you are. It is not a change of circumstances--so much as a change of heart that you need. You need more grace and contentment--rather than more health, or wealth, or beauty. Depend upon it, God has made no mistake! And if your body is not so finely formed, or you are not so indulged with health, or so favored with gifts as some are--it is all right, for God is the Judge! It is HIS doing, and "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"

Defer to God's judgment,
lie low before God's throne,
seek to be filled with God's Spirit--
and so you will be satisfied to have all things ruled by God's will.

He does according to His will in heaven--and there is no complaint or repining there. And he does according to His will on earth--and there should be no dissatisfaction with God's allotments.

We have too high an opinion of ourselves, and of our own judgments; and while this is the case, we shall attempt to invade the rights of the Most High God, or to dictate to the Supreme Ruler! Man--poor, vain man--would gladly be judge! He would take the throne of his Maker! He would . . .
snatch the rule from His hand,
judge His justice,
be the God of God!

But who are you that replies against God? Shall the thing formed say unto Him that formed it, "Why have you made me thus?"

God is the Judge! Therefore be silent all the earth, before the Lord!

RESOLVED 2011

Join us for RESOLVED. June 24-27, 2011 @ Palm Springs, CA.

Watch the promo video here.

Email me to receive more info.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

what is your greatest sin?

What is your greatest sin?

Could it be that you can echo the prayer of a Puritan:

My sin is not so much this or that particular evil,
But my continual separation, disunion, distance from thee,
And having a loose spirit towards thee.

Oh that we would be sensitive to our sin. Sin it not always the sheer act of committing sin but it can also include the omission of what we should be doing. When we are separated in heart, disunified with Christ, distanced from Him, or even if we possess a “loose spirit” towards Christ, we have sinned.

I am reminded of Deuteronomy 6:5 (which Jesus quotes in Matt 22) that we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and strength. When we fail to do this constantly and perfectly we have sinned.

So let us get on our knees, repent, and beg for God’s strength—enabled by the Sovereign and Powerful Spirit—to change. Let us not be separated, disunified, or distant from Christ. Rather, let us rejoin our hearts to His, unify our mind with His, draw near to Him with boldness and fear, and have a firm, tight, unified resolution in spirit to glorify Jesus Christ in everything we do.

You could sum all this up by saying: when we don’t have a God-centered perspective all the time, we sin.
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)