The Old and The New

As the church debates and argues over traditional and contemporary, old ways and new ways, the same old and the changes needed, preparing for tonight's Bible study, I read and contemplated Hebrews 8:1-13. The words today really opened my eyes and heart to blessings I never noticed before. From Hebrews 7:26-28 in my reading today, the writer seems to make a very subtle, but important transition. From describing Jesus as a High Priest and expounding on how Jesus is different from the High Priest defined in the Levitical Law, notice in Heb. 8:1, the author declares that as believers Jesus is OUR High Priest, when he explains, 'the point... we have such a high priest'.

What does this imply? What do we get out of Jesus being OUR High Priest? As a believer by faith Jesus brings us into the New Covenant which contains better promises as Hebrews 8:6 declares. Promises talked about from Jeremiah 31:31-34. What does it promise?

1. In Hebrews 6:10, God will, instead of giving us the law on stone tablets, change our minds and hearts that we may be able to live accordingly to his law, not by our own effort, but by God giving us new life.

2. In Hebrews 6:10, God will, instead of us relating to Him through rituals and actions, restore true fellowship with him; true relationship

3. In Hebrews 6:11, God will, instead of limiting His presence to a select few, instead of seperating Himself with His people through a curtain and temple areas and rooms, will make himself known to all, not just the priest, but also shepherd too. His kingdom will be established and no will be ignorant of who is God.

4. In Hebrews 6:12, God will, instead of judging us on by horrid sin, will forgive and forget what we have done wrong. We will receive grace, receive undeserved favor from God.

Awesome what the New Covenant promises us. So am I saying that the Old is bad? Unimportant? Irrelevant? Am I saying that the new is better? Cooler? More Important? 'No, I am not'. Whether it be old or new, Traditional or Contemporary, Habit or Change, if these things are not rooted and empowered by Christ. Then it is all vanity and sin. I thank God that He offers all we need; the shed blood of a perfect and eternal sacrifice that blesses me beyond all blessing.

The Destroying Power of Good News

Closing up the second of six gatherings, teaching about the ministry of counseling, our professor, Freddy Baez, read Hebrews 12:1-2. This evening he spoke about fear. One of the points he made that struck me was that the sinful secret in my life are secret because of shame. Shame is the fuel and energy of secret sin. Shame tears you and I apart from the freedom and power of God because it chooses to cling, grasp, infest, and ultimately wants to destroy the spiritual life of God's children. Shame tells us not to do as the scripture tells us, which is to confess our sins before God and brothers, but produces a fear that motivates us to hide our sins. Shame paralyzes us and leaves us helplessly alone with our sin.

In the Hebrews 12:1-2, I am encouraged by the words 'looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame'. The verses are telling us that Jesus, the supplier and the completer of our faith, suffered through the anguish of the cross. But notice 'endured the cross' is further described and related to the fact that Jesus also suffered through the shame of the cross. Perhaps another way of saying it is Jesus knew and experienced the shame of the cross, but rejected the effects of shame of the cross. How did Christ rationalize or even fathom doing such a thing? As I understand it, Jesus suffered the cross and the shame for JOY. Jesus knew something way bigger and more important than death and shame.

So as I sit here blogging and pondering my awesome Lord, I understand a bit more about the Cross. I see how God has made a way for me to escape the trap of sin and shame. I see that with joy Jesus by the Cross came to destroy sin, destroy shame, destroy fear, and destroy death, came to destroy all the strongholds and fruit of sin and Satan and the flesh. This is very good news!

There's Something Living in There

My wife's is in her 2nd trimester of pregnancy. Today was a special day. I felt our baby moving in her womb for the first time! Feeling this very subtle, almost rhythmic movement felt weird, awesome, crazy, and scary all together in one. A very stupid thought, but there is something living in there!!!! WOWZERS!

Recently, our Men's Group started reading the Gospels. Thinking about our baby, I just realized how incredible it was that God began His journey on Earth in the womb of a woman. That Mary and Joseph may have also experienced the excitement of their miraculous son moving for the first time. I wonder if Mary and Joseph fully understood the Angel's message, Elizabeth's prophetic worship, or the gathering of shepherds and wise men at the birth of the Christ. Having a baby from a virgin mother should have been incredible enough!

Indeed, I am humbled. My God loved the world so much to step down from His glory, majesty, and power to come into the world by starting life in a human being's womb for 9 months.

May God grant our baby good health and grant our baby Christ-like parents to lead and shepherd his/her life to know Jesus Christ and his life, death, and resurrection.

Dwell Conference New York Audio

The audio from the Dwell Conference NY are up at the Act 29 Network website. I was listening to the Eric Mason talk tonight. He said something challenging about incarnational ministry. He basically said, and I am paraphrasing, for true incarnational ministry to be done at church, the members must be serving out of time spent with, having fellowship with Jesus. If not, the church will only be incarnating humans not Jesus. Because, through Jesus the Father is revealed and we receive the power of the Holy Spirit. Its such a basic truth that I keep on overlooking. I get caught up with the manner of doing, that I forget to evaluate the motivation and the meaning of doing something, which honestly is a fruit of self reliance rather than of Christ reliance.

I am reminded of Matthew 11:27-30. May I continually come to Jesus to take on His yoke to learn from Him, and in result come to know the Father.

Tomrrow's Struggle

After having such a great weekend, I know that going back to work tomorrow will be dreadful. But should it be? Every new day is a gift of God. Everyday is a day that God has planned out for me in eternity.

Lord, please take my bitter and ungrateful heart away. Help me to be of great faith knowing that you have blessed tomorrow for me through the shed blood of Jesus. Help me not to be discouraged. Help me to love You and others. Help me to serve at the workplace you have provided. Help me to be a witness to You through my words, actions, and thoughts. Please help me to get a full and satisfying rest. Help me Lord for you know my heart and the evil within. Help me to wake up tomorrow and know that you are nearby.

Satisfying Sunday

My Sunday was a good one. I met up some brothers in our 'Growth Group', where we're reading Humility by Mahaney together. We somehow began to talk about justification and sanctification. It was a good time wrestling with these truths. Its unbelievable sometimes to think by God's grace I've been placed in Christ and his righteousness. While at the same time, the Holy Spirit is also conforming us to Christ.

The sermon was titled 'Replacing Anxiety', preached out of Matthew 6:24-34. My pastor was trying to drive home the fact that God desires at this very moment for us to, by faith, lay our stresses, worries, and cares at His feet. It was very encouraging. And even more I kept on seeing how awesome and loving the Father is to give His Son to defeat the world and defeat how it attacks His people.

Lunch was Thai food with my wife at a nearby Thai placed called Chao Thai. We had roast pork over rice, spicy papaya salad, and spicy bean thread salad.

Then came choir practice, where we practiced the 'Lord is in his Holy Temple', 'Lift High the Cross', and 'A Mighty Fortress if our God'. It was good fun practicing and praising God with brothers and sisters.

My wife and I then went food shopping, came home, and had dinner. And here I am now blogging. Thank God for making this day a day filled with activities, but also filled with constant peace and satisfaction that comes only from Him.

All by Himself

Have you ever felt alone? How does that feel? I have felt a myriad of things. Sometimes it can be very lonely, other times very profitable, other times nerve wracking, and other times pathetic. Honestly, being by myself for the most part seems a bit improper. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy being by myself sometimes, but being around others just seem more enjoyable and sometimes even more natural than being alone.

I bring this up, because I have begun reading A.W. Pink's The Attributes of God. The first chapter is titled 'The Solitariness of God'. Pink tries to direct the reader to the fact that God is on a totally different level than us. That he has always been alone and everlasting in who he is. Without us he still exists and without us he can still be satisfied. That's our God. Many times I hear about God as a relational and loving God. This is true, but that many times we forgot that he is GOD, who is most holy, most just, most forgiving, and even most joyful. We are not necessary to God. This is quite humbling I must say.

To love someone and then know that that person doesn't need us in anyway, can be very depressing. But that's telling only one part of the story I think. Yes, the Lord doesn't need me, but He finds pleasure in me, because He created me out of that solitariness. If this wasn't all true, my God would be based on my sinful self, and then there's no way God could be truly perfect.

Lord, no human can truly understand you, nor explain you, nor know you. But you Lord in your mercy and grace desire to let yourself be known to your children. For the knowledge of the glory of God is seen the face of Jesus Christ.

A Better Hope

I read today's entry from Of First Importance, quoting from John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 3.3.2 . As I see it, Calvin realized something very subtle, but very critical. For me to take repentance seriously, I must truly believe that I belong to God, meaning I have a true relationship with him as father and child, master and servant, husband and wife, shepherd and sheep, tree and its branches. That's something to really think about. Many times, I live out my life repenting of my sin in order to belong to God.

In bible study we read through Hebrews 7. The verses that hit home were verses 18-19. I have a better hope now that brings me near to God. This hope is Jesus Christ, who not only brings me near, but brings me into a relationship that makes me belong to God.

Its kind of crazy, God wants me to be his, not because I have it all right, but because he truly does love me. But at that same time, that love ought not leave me the same, but should change me. I have nothing to give, while God gave His Son as a huge testimony of His love for me. Very cool! How can I stay afar? Lord, help me run to you without tire!

I am Sick in the Head

I think I've come down with something. My head and body ache, especially my head. I was about to cancel from going to a Counseling Class I was registered to attend. But even though I felt like crap, my wife and I went. It was a very encouraging hour and a half. The class is taught by Freddy Baez, a professor at Alliance Theological Seminary, a Professional Therapist, and a preacher. Though I went sick, I still came home sick, but with a very encouraging word of God from Hebrews 13:20-21. This word help see how serving is a result of being saved by Jesus Christ. And that God is working in us to change us and equip us to serve him according to His will.
Lord help me continually come to the Great Shepherd who gracious leads me and helps me to serve you rightly.

Sporadic Thoughts from Alpha to Omega

This evening at prayer meeting, my pastor reminded the gathering about a certain theme in the Gospel of Matthew. When we start in chapter 1 verse 23, it says that Jesus will be called 'Immanuel - God with us' and in perfect closing in chapter 28 verse 20, Jesus tells His disciples that He will be with them forever.

Today, I also read John 5, where in verse 46, Jesus says to the people in Jerusalem, 'For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.' So the Torah, the first 5 books of the Old Testament, written by Moses, points us to Jesus.

Also in my Men's Group, a brother mentioned Isaiah chapter 6, where the prophet sees the Lord in the temple. This section of scripture is awesome, but what made this even more awesome to me is John chapter 12 verses 36-41. Focusing on verse 41, notice Isaiah is witness to who's glory? ---Jesus' Glory! Whoa! Isaiah in the temple saw Jesus! Even more John 1:1-3, proclaims that Jesus, the Word, was the source of all creation tying itself to the creation passage of Genesis 1! And even more, when at the end of the whole Bible, Jesus in chapter 22:13, proclaims himself to be the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.

I don't know why, but I find this all so amazing and exciting. From the beginning to the end, its is all about Jesus! But for what purpose? For me, I believe God really wants us to know Him through one channel Jesus. Everything else is just reflections, shadows. and incomplete views of God. May God the Father allow me to read my bible and seek for Jesus and find Him and Him alone through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Are You a Leader?

Continuing on the idea of leadership, a brother in Christ sent me a link from Desiring God. John Piper writes about Marks of a Spiritual Leader. Its a good reading that helps me both evaluate my inner and outer health, while also helping me focus my prayers to allow the Holy Spirit to change, modify, and/or adjust my life accordingly. Reading this also helps me understand more that character and practice are priority before any ministry or service can truly be successful.

I have tendencies to be more pragmatic than theological. Always want to be doing, which sometimes bars me from actually thinking through issues scripturally. Hopefully, through spending time with the Lord and the scripture, with my core group of brothers, while 'doing', and even while blogging, God will bring that balance to me.

What Type of Leader are You?

A notion that was briefly touched upon at the NYC Dwell Conference was the idea of King, Priest, and Prophet. Mark Driscoll very briefly brought this up in the church planting context. The idea was to help a planter understand his own motivations/strengths better. Here is a broadcast from another conference where Pastor Mark describes these three critical roles in a church and its significance in a multi-site church. (BTW, towards the end he communicates his definition for church, which I must say is extremely thorough while very understandable).

This has really helped me understand more the conflicts I have experienced just being around some close brothers in Christ. Its help me understand that each one of us have certain tendencies when introduced to different situations and has allowed me to encourage and also accept my brothers for being who God made them to be.

Another interesting read is The Triple Cure: Jesus Christ - Our Prophet, Priest and King by Kim Riddlebarger, who briefly runs through Calvin's notion of Jesus fulfilling these 3 offices and the effect it has on us.

So what am I? I love thinking and trying to build structures and work flows that would help the church do the Great Commission. I highly value evangelism and discipleship, which I feel are two sides of the same coin where the coin as a whole is the Gospel. However, I am still trying to figure out how to do it. Anybody doing it? Please comment and post any resources and suggestions.

Cool Blog - Of First Importance

I stumbled upon a neat blog called 'Of First Importance'. Its premise is to provide a daily shot of Gospel Centered excerpts/quotes . One of the recent posting was an excerpt called 'More Than We Ever Dared Hope' from Tim Keller's Paul's Letter to the Galatians: Living in Line with the Truth of the Gospel. I received this bible study a long time ago, but I never got around to it. I guess it might be time to pick it up.

Regardless, as I was reading this entry, I couldn't help but think how radical and counter intuitive the Gospel can be. Many times I get caught up in what feels good to me not realizing the Gospel's work in my life is suppose to renew me and help me not see myself first, but God first. After I see God, I see myself in my true form, in my very needy form. However, this new vision cost a huge price.

The Cross allows me now to see myself as I should see, but I think I have trouble at times accepting how hopeless I am. But that's not all. The Cross shows me a hope that doesn't focus on me or my improvement, but on Jesus and how he has perfectly done it all.

Early on, when I first believed, this was a big problem I experienced. With every failure, I exerted effort to improve my situation, which ended in another failure, not realizing that the failures ought to have signified to me an ever increasing need for God, not an ever increasing need to find the solution in myself.

I guess we all have to go through something like this, in my case rapidly, until I understood God's grace. But still I need more. Whether its my character, deeds, words, or thoughts, may I not try to 'defend' myself, but accept my sin and come to the Cross and God's grace and believe in what is of first importance.

Sunday Thoughts - 'HEY LOOK!'

Sunday Worship preached from Matthew 28:16-20, Jesus' Great Commission to all His disciples then and now. I think about how I would be, standing there with the risen Jesus, and He tells me, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

The verses are a double edged sword to me, it comforts me and it fears me. Jesus tells me something direct, not as some parable, but as a command. Its commanding me to go to all peoples proclaiming the gospel, so that they may be followers of Jesus Christ through baptism and through the learning, understanding, and application of what Jesus has already commanded.

Wondering about what Jesus has commanded, these words come to mind, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Matthew 5:17) and "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:37-40).

Honestly, this is where fear creeps in, "How can I even think about making 'disciples' when I can't even live out what Jesus has commanded me? Doesn't Jesus know I can't live them out? Doesn't he know that I am inadequate at best? This is just way too much responsibility!"

So that was the struggle I was going through, pondering these verses this morning. And as I was beginning to feel a bit hopeless, feeling like a 'bad Christian', a failure, I kept on reading. Jesus words, 'And behold', lit up like a spotlight into my soul. Some other words for 'behold' are: gaze, perceive, see, give attention to. In Old English it would mean 'to keep'. In the Greek text, it would mean something like 'HEY LOOK!'

So, 'HEY LOOK!', Jesus will be with me FOREVER. Why is this the very last part of the Great Commission? For me, its really important. Being a Christian is pretty hard, living out the expectations of the Great Commissions can be even harder. But this is my only comfort and I believe the most important part of a Christian's life; 'BEHOLD JESUS!' Look at Jesus. Gaze at Jesus. For what? Because in Him, it is fulfilled. In Him, there is no fear. In Him, I am not my own, and so much more.

I can't help, but feel that my inadequacies in my life are caused simply by the fact that I am not looking at Jesus, at what He has done, at what He is doing, and what he will do. May God give me the spiritual and physical eyes to see Him. When I am doing that correctly, perhaps the Great Commission will not be another command to write onto my legalistic tendencies, but as I look at Jesus, behold Jesus, my life will be changed and I will be more and more a part of Jesus' Great Commission.

(Click on Gaze to read a great chapter in Tozer's Pursuit of God)

Home Sweet Home

This past week I was in Atlanta, GA for some work training and last night I finally returned home to my beautiful pregnant wife. I had been delayed 2 hours because of rainy weather in New York City, so it made my desire to get home so much more urgent. I reached my apartment door at 1:00 am and to my pleasant surprise, as I was pulling my keys out, I hear the door being unlocked. Even though I had told her to go to sleep first, my lovely wife was waiting for me all that time. Better than that, the smile on her face was priceless and I could see the comfort, relief, and happiness she was experiencing. She's a a tough little lady and to see her like this made me know how much she loves me and missed me this past week.

I wonder how I will be when our King finally returns and brings us home?

Confessing My Sin

Have you ever gotten on your face down on the floor to confess your sins before God? I can't help but read Psalm 51, and see King David, after grievously sinning, prostrated, crying, and begging for forgiveness and restoration.

As I continue to return over and over again to this psalm to confess my own grievous sins before God, I always notice something new, whether it be a truer conviction, an encouragement, a truth unnoticed, or a corrected faith. I love coming to Psalm 51, not because I become a better person reading it, but that through the Holy Spirit, I come know God more in His might, mercy, and holiness.

Allow me to share how God revealed Psalm 51 to me the other morning.

Verse 1-5: I come to God knowing that my God is a God of mercy and love, and He alone is capable of cleansing my sin which has contaminated me, which no astringent or soap can suffice. If I haven't recognized it, I recognize it now in God's presence how sinful I am. I have chosen to do, say, and or think those things which express hatred towards God, and by nature I am a hater of God.

Verse 6-10: But a beam of hope shines in. God tells me he looks at my heart and there is where he will change me. Lord have mercy on me for my heart is 'deceitful above all things, and desperately sick'. Only you can cleanse me. Only you can give me comfort and joy from what I have caused myself. May your mercy and love come before your justice. Lord I beg you, please do not just cleanse me but create in me a heart that knows no sin.

Verse 11-13: Please do not leave me. Your presence is my only desire. Let your Holy Spirit continue to teach me who I am and who You are; continue to open my eyes to Your Cross and Your Salvation, giving me hope and joy, showing me how I, a sinner, have need of you. Continue you to show me how good your Gospel is and I will share this Gospel to others, so they may experience your holiness and mercy.

Verse 14-15: I praise you my Lord for you have shed your blood for the blood I have shed. you have done what I do not deserve. Your grace has changed me. It has shown me how incredible your love is for me and I will praise you over and over again!

Verse 16-19: Lord, let me not forget that it is you who saves me. For whatever actions I perform before men and before you, can not satisfy the guilt of my sin. You do not accept mere actions, but you look into my heart and desire humbleness, knowing how messed up I am with no other hope but You and what you have done at that Cross. Then and only then, by the Cross, when you are my only hope and joy, my only peace and portion, my only goal and delight will my actions be pleasing to you.

My heart aches, knowing how awesome God is and knowing what he requires. He simply wants us to need Him. He has provided the Cross as the way for our sins to be forgiven. No actions to prove anything, just run to him and allow his grace to reach the most inner parts and be SAVED! May I preach this to myself everyday.

An Old Best Friend I Despise.

A preacher once said that my old best friend will take me farther than I'll want to go, leave me longer than I'll want to stay, and will cost me far more than I'll want to pay. You have an old friend like this? I sure you do. This old friend of mine is 'Sin'. You have a old friend named 'Sin'?

Don't you hate sin? When I first became a believer, one unexpected thing I experienced was that the struggle and fight against sin would intensify. You notice that? Before, I didn't know right from wrong. I led my life in ignorance doing everything to make MYSELF happy. Even when my conscious told me that I was doing something immoral, I'd easily brush it aside by trying to do a good 'moral' thing to balance it out. And to be honest, I still find myself rationalizing my sinfulness that way, thinking that doing good would make me right.

But Christ is proclaiming to you and me something different. His blood is our testimony that we can not do anything to make things right. Only Christ can do it, because 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, 'For our sake he(the Father) made him(the Son) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.' So God took the penalty of sin which we all deserved and let Christ face the penalty, so that you and I would not have to bear that penalty. What an exchange?!?!

But why do I still sin, if the above is true? Obviously, we all aren't perfect and holy. but something extremely radical has occurred when all our faith is in Christ. 1 John 1:8-10 tells us, 'If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.' God's Word testifies that he knows us and our sin. And right now even if you don't feel like it. Christ is telling us to come to him, confessing and knowing God has come as a perfect man to die and save us from what we deserve, so we can experience a relationship with God as 1 John 1:3 says, '...indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our/your joy may be complete.' What grace is this?

If you struggle with sin of any kind, check out these series sermons from John Piper titled, 'How to Kill Sin'. Message One, Two, Three. These messages have provided me with hope and strength to fight sin through God's ways and not my own.

Prayer is For Lazy People?

I read a quote by Hudson Taylor a couple days ago. He said, 'When we work, we work, but when we pray, God works.' I have been pondering the truth of this statement since. Is working wrong? Should I give up doing everything and just pray that God will do it for me? Does God desire for me to be lazy? But doesn't James 2:17 say, "So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead?" At the same time doesn't Psalm 46:10, "Be still, and know that I am God. ...".

Do you experience the struggle to figure this out? My discipler/spiritual mentor once taught me that when I supposedly hear something 'Christian', never accept it until I have wrestled with it. Many times we will read one piece of scripture and find another that seems to contradict the first. My mentor exhorted me to live in the tension of the scripture, because that's where spiritual growth and understanding are acquired.

So I have been pondering Taylor's quote and wrestling with whether prayer replaces work. So far, what I have begun to understand is that it is a matter of trust in either self or God. I read 2 Chronicles Chapter 20 this week . Here, the kingdom of Judah discovers the pending attack it will face from 3 enemy kingdoms, described as 'a great multitude'.

Naturally, Jehoshaphat, Judah's king, is afraid, but what is odd to me is that the scriptures do not tell us that he prepared to evacuate the city, nor did he begin to ready his army, but he 'was afraid and set his face to seek help from the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.' Moreover, the King, before all the peoples, prays to the LORD acknowledging God's power and rule over the kingdom and gives an account of God's promise to His people. God replies through a prophet that He will be with them as they go out to battle, but they will not need to fight. The next morning they go with Jehoshaphat's exhortation to 'believe in the Lord your God'. He also sends them with people who will sing praise to God as they walk to battle. Please read the marvelous thing that occurs in verses 22-24.

Another verse that came to mind is from 1 Samuel 16:7 that God looks at our hearts, which contain what we trust, our joys, our fears, our worries, and our sin. So prayer is not an act by which I force God to do what I should be doing. Rather it is an act of faith, which ought to surrender to God myself, my strength, my wisdom, my intentions, my sin and declare God's Might, God's Authority, and God's Righteousness over whatever I need to do. And then, do it trusting that God is in control.

This sounds to good to be true. I don't fully trust this understanding. I don't have that much faith. I want it though. I want to fully trust that God is in control and I am not. Now, standing here trying to grasp it and live it, all I have is one thing. What's bringing me closer and closer to trusting God is what He did at the cross. My lack of faith comes from the fact that I don't deserve the privilege of prayer. But Jesus died at the cross to buy me that privilege. As the old hymn sings, 'Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.' What grace is this? I owe him my strength that He would give me His strength to live and serve and see His glory. What grace is this I find in my Lord Jesus? So, I will pray not to see my glory, but his glory.

Have You Truly Embraced the Gospel?

While on the exercise bike this morning, I was reading chapter 2 of God is the Gospel by John Piper (click the link for online version at DesiringGod.org). And again, Piper did the usual thing to me when I read his books. I was thinking, "Man, I need to read this over again". The chapter titled "The Gospel - The Biblical Scope of its Meaning" went over the substance and the promises of the Gospel. Some of the section headings are:
-There is a Living God
-The Arrival of God's Imperial Authority
-Jesus: A Savior Who is Christ, The LORD
-Christ Died for Our Sins in Accordance with the Scriptures
-Jesus, Risen from the Dead...
-...The Promise of the Spirit
-The Promise of Salvation For All Who Believe
-What the Cross Purchased makes the Cross Good News
-The Good News of Peace with God and Each Other
-The Good News Promises Eternal Life

I hope you are getting the weightiness and value of this chapter. However, Piper makes something very clear that there is an awfully dangerous way of 'not knowing' the Gospel. He ends the chapter with this clarification:
"Now the point of this book must be pressed. The point is that the precious gospel events and gospel blessings that I have outlined in this chapter do not suffice to make the gospel good news. What makes the gospel finally and supremely good news has not yet been mentioned. ... But for the most part the good things mentioned in this chapter as essential parts of the gospel are not the final good of the gospel and would not prove to be good for us at all if the unmentioned supreme good were not seen and embraced. That good is God himself seen and savored in all his glory. Focusing on facets of a diamond without seeing the beauty of the whole is demeaning to the diamond. If the hearers of the gospel do not see the glory of Christ, the image of God, in all the events and gifts of the gospel, they do not see what finally makes the gospel good news. If you embrace everything that I have mentioned in this chapter about the facets of the gospel, but do it in a way that does not make the glory of God in Christ your supreme treasure, then you have not embraced the gospel."

Well that final statement is a very telling one. Is the Gospel serving my selfish intentions, or am I embracing God as the ultimate gift of the Gospel? I don't have an absolutely positive answer right now. Lord willing as I learn more and more to pick up my cross and follow Christ, the gospel will be as it should be in my life.

Birth of this Blog

The other day I was pretty discouraged. Sharing this with a brother in Christ, we started trying to flesh out what was wrong with me.

A few weeks ago, I was at the Dwell Conference (www.dwellconference.com). While Mark Driscoll was exhorting and encouraging the audience about the centrality of the Christ, he said something like, "If you are not serving God out of love and passion for Christ, Jesus will oppose you!". I left the conference defenseless before God. This statement has haunted me since, because in all honesty, it forced me to really begin to evaluate my life and my motivations. And I realized that the ground I was standing on was not entirely reliant on a love and passion for Christ.

I guess my discouragement wasn't from knowing my sin or my present condition, but more about 'what do I do now?'. 'Yes! Throw myself at Christ', but what does that look like? And as I continued to chat with my spiritual brother, Revelation Chapter 7 came alive into my thoughts. And instantly, I felt like the Holy Spirit was showing me the goal, the whole purpose of it all. I will be in the presence of my Lord Jesus Christ, in all His Glory, worshiping Him, with all those who have put their faith in Him. Him who was slain for our sins that we may be washed clean and white by His shed blood.

So, I am here writing hoping someone might read my entries, peer into my life as a believer in Christ and know that there is someone out there who struggles with his faith. But all this to know of God's grace towards a sinner, and that one day I and everyone who's following Jesus will be clothed in white robes, partying with the Lord.