By S. Michael Durham
If we squander God’s resources on frivolous things or we use them to do what pleases us, isn’t it a case of stealing what does not belong to us?
Our lives are not our own. Our possessions are not really ours. They have been entrusted to us, but we must wisely use them to invest in the future—Heaven’s future. We are often guilty of taking both life and possessions and wasting them on the temporal pleasures of this world.
Let me ask you four questions to see if you are innocent or guilty of wasting your Master’s goods.
1. Do you make plans without consulting the Lord?
If we make major life plans without prayer and a careful study of the word of God, then most likely we are flying solo. We are never independent of the Lord. We are co-laborers with Him. Jesus said of Himself, “I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner” (John 5:19). If this was the modus operandi of our Lord, how much more should we practice the same?
2. Do you spend money for your own pleasure without first gaining His permission?
Gaining permission ought not be too subjective. I’m not saying you must hear a voice of approval or have some internal impression. And the Bible does not forbid a Christian to purchase something that brings personal delight. However, how much do we possess that if we had truly been guided by biblical principles we would not own? Did you really pray and have peace of heart that God was also delighted in your purchase? If not, you wasted the Lord’s goods.
3. Do you live as if today is more important than heaven’s glory?
If today and your immediate gratification is more important than investing in the kingdom of God, then be certain you are wasting what belongs to God. Jesus said, “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). He went on to say don’t worry about today. The glory of the King and His kingdom is the motivation of a faithful steward.
4. Do you consider how you may minister to your brother or fellow man?
God has blessed us, not just so we can enjoy His blessings, but that we might bless others as well. If we are not in the habit of thinking about how we may be a blessing to others, then we are wasting the Lord’s goods.
Time will for stewardship will run out. It must run out and it will run out for you. I do not speak of just the end of life, but time for stewardship can run out or be severally reduced many ways. Your present ability to invest may end by debilitating health, economic ability decreased, or relationships may end leaving you no further opportunity to invest. Let us seize this moment and waste not another.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
The Question of Ownership
By S. Michael Durham
The greatest hindrance to good stewardship is to question God’s ownership of what you possess, including your life. It is so easy to see what God has given us as merely gifts and not investments in us. It is too easy for me to see my money as belonging to me and not the Lord God. Should the Lord press my heart to give away what I have saved for something I really wanted, it’s very difficult to turn loose of it. Why? Because I view it as mine.
This is where faith struggles and we must fight for the faith to believe that what seems to belong to us doesn’t. If the Lord Jesus says that it’s not mine but His, then faith must say, “No matter how much this money and these things feel like mine, Jesus has said they are His, and therefore they are.”
Job 41:11 ESV Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.
Psalms 24:1 The earth [is] the LORD’S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.
John Wesley had four questions that he would always ask himself before making any expenditure or purchase.
1. In spending this money, am I acting like I owned it, or am I acting like the Lord’s trustee?
2. What Scripture requires me to spend this money in this way?
3. Can I offer up this purchase as a sacrifice to the Lord?
4. Will God reward me for this expenditure at the resurrection of the just?
Part of the wicked steward’s problem in Matthew 25, was not so much that he questioned the talent really belonged to the Master, but he treated the talent of silver as it was his own. He treated it with contempt. It had no value to him. Truly, if it had been his, he would have spent it and squandered it. He didn’t care if it increased in worth, or not, so long as he had a good time. The lazy, unfaithful steward didn’t have a heart for His Master or His business. He probably congratulated himself that he didn’t take the money and spend it. He thought to himself that if the Master knew what was really in his heart, He would have thanked him that he buried it.
If we are to be faithful stewards we must renew the mind and stop seeing the possessions entrusted to us as our own. They belong to another. And so do we.
The greatest hindrance to good stewardship is to question God’s ownership of what you possess, including your life. It is so easy to see what God has given us as merely gifts and not investments in us. It is too easy for me to see my money as belonging to me and not the Lord God. Should the Lord press my heart to give away what I have saved for something I really wanted, it’s very difficult to turn loose of it. Why? Because I view it as mine.
This is where faith struggles and we must fight for the faith to believe that what seems to belong to us doesn’t. If the Lord Jesus says that it’s not mine but His, then faith must say, “No matter how much this money and these things feel like mine, Jesus has said they are His, and therefore they are.”
Job 41:11 ESV Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.
Psalms 24:1 The earth [is] the LORD’S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.
John Wesley had four questions that he would always ask himself before making any expenditure or purchase.
1. In spending this money, am I acting like I owned it, or am I acting like the Lord’s trustee?
2. What Scripture requires me to spend this money in this way?
3. Can I offer up this purchase as a sacrifice to the Lord?
4. Will God reward me for this expenditure at the resurrection of the just?
Part of the wicked steward’s problem in Matthew 25, was not so much that he questioned the talent really belonged to the Master, but he treated the talent of silver as it was his own. He treated it with contempt. It had no value to him. Truly, if it had been his, he would have spent it and squandered it. He didn’t care if it increased in worth, or not, so long as he had a good time. The lazy, unfaithful steward didn’t have a heart for His Master or His business. He probably congratulated himself that he didn’t take the money and spend it. He thought to himself that if the Master knew what was really in his heart, He would have thanked him that he buried it.
If we are to be faithful stewards we must renew the mind and stop seeing the possessions entrusted to us as our own. They belong to another. And so do we.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
The Definition of Stewardship
By S. Michael Durham
The definition of stewardship is the Christian is a custodian or manager of the provision of God’s resources entrusted to him or her for the purpose of increasing those resources. Success is not dependent upon the steward’s preserving the Lord’s resources but increasing them. The faithful steward or manager increases the holdings of his Master.
The two faithful stewards in Jesus’ parable found in Matthew 25 were honored and rewarded because they did not just protect the Owner’s assets but increased them. The parable’s unfaithful steward was rebuked and punished because he only protected and did not increase the Owner’s asset.
But how do we increase the things God has entrusted to us? Not just by evangelism or by giving money to the church. This parable is not about winning the lost or financing the building fund. It is about being faithful and productive with what God has invested in you. For example, all believers have been forgiven. God has invested the grace of forgiveness. How then can I take the grace of forgiveness and increase it? By forgiving those who offend me. Now two people have experienced forgiveness.
Another example, the Lord has given me a mind to think and learn. In my study of the Bible, the Holy Spirit invests knowledge about God that helps me to grow. I take that information and by the power of the same Holy Spirit share it with someone else. Now two people have heard from God and not just one.
Yet another example, God in His kindness gives you money to purchase something to eat today. You take the money and not only buy you something to eat but someone else. This way two people are feed by the goodness of God and not just one person. God’s goodness is multiplied in your productivity of investing in someone besides you.
The key to effective stewardship is to remain conscious that we are not the possessors of anything within in our grasp. It all belongs to another—our Heavenly Father. The wonderful grace of God employs us in working with the Great Owner of All to not protect against loss, but to increase what is given to our care. Loss is not even possible, except if we hoard what He has committed to us.
What is in your custodial care that you have not increased yet? Do you still have the same amount you had when God first trusted you? Then you and the kingdom are suffering loss. You are losing the potential earnings that could be if you would learn to believe that all things given to you are for your sharing with others to the glory of God.
The definition of stewardship is the Christian is a custodian or manager of the provision of God’s resources entrusted to him or her for the purpose of increasing those resources. Success is not dependent upon the steward’s preserving the Lord’s resources but increasing them. The faithful steward or manager increases the holdings of his Master.
The two faithful stewards in Jesus’ parable found in Matthew 25 were honored and rewarded because they did not just protect the Owner’s assets but increased them. The parable’s unfaithful steward was rebuked and punished because he only protected and did not increase the Owner’s asset.
But how do we increase the things God has entrusted to us? Not just by evangelism or by giving money to the church. This parable is not about winning the lost or financing the building fund. It is about being faithful and productive with what God has invested in you. For example, all believers have been forgiven. God has invested the grace of forgiveness. How then can I take the grace of forgiveness and increase it? By forgiving those who offend me. Now two people have experienced forgiveness.
Another example, the Lord has given me a mind to think and learn. In my study of the Bible, the Holy Spirit invests knowledge about God that helps me to grow. I take that information and by the power of the same Holy Spirit share it with someone else. Now two people have heard from God and not just one.
Yet another example, God in His kindness gives you money to purchase something to eat today. You take the money and not only buy you something to eat but someone else. This way two people are feed by the goodness of God and not just one person. God’s goodness is multiplied in your productivity of investing in someone besides you.
The key to effective stewardship is to remain conscious that we are not the possessors of anything within in our grasp. It all belongs to another—our Heavenly Father. The wonderful grace of God employs us in working with the Great Owner of All to not protect against loss, but to increase what is given to our care. Loss is not even possible, except if we hoard what He has committed to us.
What is in your custodial care that you have not increased yet? Do you still have the same amount you had when God first trusted you? Then you and the kingdom are suffering loss. You are losing the potential earnings that could be if you would learn to believe that all things given to you are for your sharing with others to the glory of God.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
The Important Relationship Between Money and Salvation
By S. Michael Durham
Jesus was not afraid to say things that He knew would not be understood or be misinterpreted. Nor was He afraid to link things that most religious people would not link. Here in the text He links money with being saved.
Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
The importance of money is highlighted in the Bible in two people. One is Zacchaeus and the other is the young rich ruler. Both were wealthy men. Their attitude toward their wealth played a significant role in their eternities. For Zacchaeus he was joyfully willing to not just make restitution to all the people he had cheated, but he wanted to give them four times the amount he had swindled. Jesus’ response was, “Today salvation has come to this house” (Luke 19:9).
The young rich ruler had the very opposite attitude about his wealth. Jesus said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me” (Luke 18:22). But in this case it does not end as well as Zacchaeus’. The Bible says the young man walked away sorrowfully because he had great wealth.
Jesus summarized the sorrow of the young man saying, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:24-25).
Jesus’ point was not being rich keeps you from knowing God and out of heaven. Zacchaeus was wealthy and he was converted. The issue is your satisfaction in money. If money satisfies you more than Christ, then it becomes a salvation issue. That’s the problem with materialism. Materialism is the philosophy of valuing the material over the spiritual. Seeking the material is not forbidden in the Bible. Seeking the material over the spiritual is.
What is your true attitude about the material? The Bible tells us that we have a natural inclination to love money, possessions and things. Being converted changes my heart and its desires, but it does not change my flesh. The root of the love of money still lies within in me. On top of this, is the chameleon-like tendency of the love of money or things. It can convince you that you don’t really love money more than Jesus. Therefore, it’s hard to detect sinful attitudes. Wrong actions can’t be ignored, wrong attitudes can. For your eternities sake you must learn to detect the spirit of materialism.
Jesus was not afraid to say things that He knew would not be understood or be misinterpreted. Nor was He afraid to link things that most religious people would not link. Here in the text He links money with being saved.
Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
The importance of money is highlighted in the Bible in two people. One is Zacchaeus and the other is the young rich ruler. Both were wealthy men. Their attitude toward their wealth played a significant role in their eternities. For Zacchaeus he was joyfully willing to not just make restitution to all the people he had cheated, but he wanted to give them four times the amount he had swindled. Jesus’ response was, “Today salvation has come to this house” (Luke 19:9).
The young rich ruler had the very opposite attitude about his wealth. Jesus said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me” (Luke 18:22). But in this case it does not end as well as Zacchaeus’. The Bible says the young man walked away sorrowfully because he had great wealth.
Jesus summarized the sorrow of the young man saying, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:24-25).
Jesus’ point was not being rich keeps you from knowing God and out of heaven. Zacchaeus was wealthy and he was converted. The issue is your satisfaction in money. If money satisfies you more than Christ, then it becomes a salvation issue. That’s the problem with materialism. Materialism is the philosophy of valuing the material over the spiritual. Seeking the material is not forbidden in the Bible. Seeking the material over the spiritual is.
What is your true attitude about the material? The Bible tells us that we have a natural inclination to love money, possessions and things. Being converted changes my heart and its desires, but it does not change my flesh. The root of the love of money still lies within in me. On top of this, is the chameleon-like tendency of the love of money or things. It can convince you that you don’t really love money more than Jesus. Therefore, it’s hard to detect sinful attitudes. Wrong actions can’t be ignored, wrong attitudes can. For your eternities sake you must learn to detect the spirit of materialism.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Going to Extremes
Error is something we all want to avoid. Yet in efforts to escape error, we often have a tendency to overcorrect, throwing us into a ditch on the other side of the road. In the latest RTM video, we explore this topic and learn how to stay Biblical while avoiding dangerous heresies.
Friday, June 4, 2010
An Abuse of the Sovereignty of God
By S. Michael Durham
Could it be that you rely upon the sovereignty of God in a way that God did not intend? Let’s take prayer for example. Do you pray thinking, “Why am I doing this? God’s will will be done.” Have you prayed and asked yourself the question, “What if this is not God’s will?” and then cease to pray? We all have done so.
Or have you felt uncomfortable when you realized you were not fulfilling your responsibility to share your faith, but then felt relieved because you believed that no sinner’s conversion was dependent upon your fulfilling your responsibility? Your hope was that in the end God’s sovereignty would ensure the elect’s salvation.
These are two examples of a misuse of the beautiful truth that God is sovereign. Jonathan Edwards said, “The sovereignty of God is His absolute, independent right of disposing of all creatures according to His own pleasure.” God’s sovereignty means He has authority to rule over all of His creation and the power to do so; thus, He controls all things according to His wisdom. If this is not true, then nothing is true or sure. Unless the Lord God sovereignly rules then all is helter-skelter. Romans 8:28 couldn’t be true and none of us could be sure that we have been delivered from sin by the blood of the Savior. It is necessary that one be in control who can do all things as He sees best. Frankly, I don’t know how anyone can pillow his head at night and not believe that God is sovereign.
But such confidence in God does not give license to disobey God. It seems throughout the centuries that there have been men who perverted this aspect of God to cover for their laziness or slothfulness. To say that men will be saved regardless of our efforts is absolutely absurd! It is overtly unbiblical. To use this blessed truth to excuse prayerlessness cannot be considered anything other than sinful.
God has ordained that men will only be saved through the preaching of His gospel and through the prayers of His redeemed (Romans 10:14-15). This is the absolute rule of the sovereignty of God. And any man who would use sovereignty to cancel out this divine rule is completely illogical. It is the law of the Divine Ruler of all creation.
Whatever God has decreed to come to pass, He has also decreed the means by which it is to come to pass. Isn’t it an amazing thing that we who are called “God’s fellow-workers” would think there is nothing for us to do in the economy of God, and that without us, the work would still be done? Does it not cross your mind that He may have sovereignly chosen you to ask for certain things according to His will? Have you considered that God has decreed you to bear forth His Son’s glory and that if you do not, you have violated the sovereign purpose of God?
One may argue that our failure to obey was decreed. Decreed because it was God’s desire for you to disobey? Nothing could be more absurd! Simply because God in His infinite wisdom allows sin does not in any way make our Holy God desire sin. What good are His commands to be holy, if He desires something contrary? Is He guilty of double talk? Again, preposterous! Leave to God how He works out the intricacies of these difficulties. And let us do what we are commanded to do, refusing to hide behind our good God’s sovereignty in order to shirk our duty.
Could it be that you rely upon the sovereignty of God in a way that God did not intend? Let’s take prayer for example. Do you pray thinking, “Why am I doing this? God’s will will be done.” Have you prayed and asked yourself the question, “What if this is not God’s will?” and then cease to pray? We all have done so.
Or have you felt uncomfortable when you realized you were not fulfilling your responsibility to share your faith, but then felt relieved because you believed that no sinner’s conversion was dependent upon your fulfilling your responsibility? Your hope was that in the end God’s sovereignty would ensure the elect’s salvation.
These are two examples of a misuse of the beautiful truth that God is sovereign. Jonathan Edwards said, “The sovereignty of God is His absolute, independent right of disposing of all creatures according to His own pleasure.” God’s sovereignty means He has authority to rule over all of His creation and the power to do so; thus, He controls all things according to His wisdom. If this is not true, then nothing is true or sure. Unless the Lord God sovereignly rules then all is helter-skelter. Romans 8:28 couldn’t be true and none of us could be sure that we have been delivered from sin by the blood of the Savior. It is necessary that one be in control who can do all things as He sees best. Frankly, I don’t know how anyone can pillow his head at night and not believe that God is sovereign.
But such confidence in God does not give license to disobey God. It seems throughout the centuries that there have been men who perverted this aspect of God to cover for their laziness or slothfulness. To say that men will be saved regardless of our efforts is absolutely absurd! It is overtly unbiblical. To use this blessed truth to excuse prayerlessness cannot be considered anything other than sinful.
God has ordained that men will only be saved through the preaching of His gospel and through the prayers of His redeemed (Romans 10:14-15). This is the absolute rule of the sovereignty of God. And any man who would use sovereignty to cancel out this divine rule is completely illogical. It is the law of the Divine Ruler of all creation.
Whatever God has decreed to come to pass, He has also decreed the means by which it is to come to pass. Isn’t it an amazing thing that we who are called “God’s fellow-workers” would think there is nothing for us to do in the economy of God, and that without us, the work would still be done? Does it not cross your mind that He may have sovereignly chosen you to ask for certain things according to His will? Have you considered that God has decreed you to bear forth His Son’s glory and that if you do not, you have violated the sovereign purpose of God?
One may argue that our failure to obey was decreed. Decreed because it was God’s desire for you to disobey? Nothing could be more absurd! Simply because God in His infinite wisdom allows sin does not in any way make our Holy God desire sin. What good are His commands to be holy, if He desires something contrary? Is He guilty of double talk? Again, preposterous! Leave to God how He works out the intricacies of these difficulties. And let us do what we are commanded to do, refusing to hide behind our good God’s sovereignty in order to shirk our duty.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Philosophy of Giving
Psalm 50:10 says, "For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills." God does not need anything we have. It is already His! Yet in His plans, He uses His people to provide the resources for His work through giving. So how should we approach giving? We take our cues from the Word of God through the Apostle Paul.
For an in depth look at why God using giving as a means to support His work, look under the Stewardship section on the topical page of RTM at http://realtruthmatters.com/topical.html .
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
For This Purpose
By S. Michael Durham
I was asked an interesting question today. If I never preached again, what would be the sum of my life and ministry? I answered without hesitation the purpose statement of RTM: “The recovery of New Testament Christianity by promoting the pursuit of Jesus Christ as the gospel.” I believe that God ordained that I live at this particular time in human history and as far as I can perceive, this is the need of my generation.
So much that is done in the name of Christ is derogatory to His holy name. A great deal of what is called Christianity is not. The gospel has become a cure-all for anything, mainly an avenue to fun and happiness. “Accept Jesus into your heart and your life will be so much better. You’ll have it made.” In other words, the gospel is the fast-track to the good life.
Frankly, that cheapens the person of Christ. He did not suffer the humiliation of becoming one of us, the degradation of His human existence, and the death of crucifixion in order that we live in comfort and ease on this earth. Money can purchase these things. He did what money cannot do. His life and death bought much more than temporal pleasure. Jesus brought us into proper relationship with God. The greatest challenge a person faces is not beating the Joneses or achieving the “good life.” It is how can I face holy God and death with my sin. Christ is the answer to that challenge. Through faith in Him I can sacrifice these few short years on earth and inherit forever with more wealth than Forbes’ richest will ever have. And because of the beauty and love of Jesus, my sacrifice in this world seems small if not a privilege.
I want to give my life to promote this good news, who is Jesus, to my generation. I want to live for a purpose that is more lasting, more important, and much larger than me. Therefore, my life and ministry requires that I expose the imitation in order to introduce the genuine. Easy, comfortable and painless? No, but then neither was what our Savior endured to give us this wonderful privilege of knowing Him who is eternal life.
I was asked an interesting question today. If I never preached again, what would be the sum of my life and ministry? I answered without hesitation the purpose statement of RTM: “The recovery of New Testament Christianity by promoting the pursuit of Jesus Christ as the gospel.” I believe that God ordained that I live at this particular time in human history and as far as I can perceive, this is the need of my generation.
So much that is done in the name of Christ is derogatory to His holy name. A great deal of what is called Christianity is not. The gospel has become a cure-all for anything, mainly an avenue to fun and happiness. “Accept Jesus into your heart and your life will be so much better. You’ll have it made.” In other words, the gospel is the fast-track to the good life.
Frankly, that cheapens the person of Christ. He did not suffer the humiliation of becoming one of us, the degradation of His human existence, and the death of crucifixion in order that we live in comfort and ease on this earth. Money can purchase these things. He did what money cannot do. His life and death bought much more than temporal pleasure. Jesus brought us into proper relationship with God. The greatest challenge a person faces is not beating the Joneses or achieving the “good life.” It is how can I face holy God and death with my sin. Christ is the answer to that challenge. Through faith in Him I can sacrifice these few short years on earth and inherit forever with more wealth than Forbes’ richest will ever have. And because of the beauty and love of Jesus, my sacrifice in this world seems small if not a privilege.
I want to give my life to promote this good news, who is Jesus, to my generation. I want to live for a purpose that is more lasting, more important, and much larger than me. Therefore, my life and ministry requires that I expose the imitation in order to introduce the genuine. Easy, comfortable and painless? No, but then neither was what our Savior endured to give us this wonderful privilege of knowing Him who is eternal life.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Moral Preaching vs. Gospel Preaching
By S. Michael DurhamWhat place do moral issues have in Christian ministry? Should we speak out loudly and often against those things that offend? Or do we remain silent believing that giving no offense is the better approach? I believe the answer is neither. Somewhere in the middle seems to be the method of Jesus and the apostles. And they should be our model.
In the Old Testament, the prophets were commanded to cry against the moral sins of their generation. John Baptist’s head was lifted from his body because he spoke out against the king’s sin of adultery. But neither Jesus nor the authors of New Testament epistles deal much about any one particular moral issue of that day. If there was any polemic aspect to their ministries it was against the religious establishment of their generation. Jesus’ harshest words were against the Pharisees (who were the ones who preached against the immoral issues of their day) and not the publicly immoral. The apostles warned Christians about sin—all kinds of sins—but in the few sermons we have in the book of Acts we don’t see any one issue, even idolatry, being condemned. The apostle Paul said that it was not his task or ministry to judge those who were outside the Church:
I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner--not even to eat with such a person. For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13).
I take from this a couple of things. One, sinners sin. What else are you to expect out of the unbelieving world? Second, God will put an end to the sinner, but until that day I am to preach the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ to him. I am by no means suggesting that we should never preach against sin, or that when we do preach against it we do so in a general way. Not at all! We must warn against sin. But warning against sin, and its ultimate consequence, is very different than making sinners feel as if we have already judged them.
The difference we see in the ministry of the Old Testament prophets and Jesus and New Covenant preaching is the remedy. In the Old Covenant period the Law was proclaimed. It was basically a message of morality. Keep the law and live. Break the law and die. However, the Apostle Paul says all law can do is arouse our sinful passions. It can never save. It may expose the sin, it may condemn the sin, but it also stimulates sinful desires. Morality preaching, in the end, leads to more sin. The apostle tells the Romans, “Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound” (Romans 5:20).
In this New Covenant era, the gospel is the only remedy for immorally bound people. It is the gospel, through the power of the Holy Spirit, which sets men free from sin and its issues. Should I never mention the great sins of our day such as abortion, homosexuality, etc.? Again, no not at all! But I should do so in the spirit of the New Covenant. Not in a condemning way, but hopefully. I should preach not only to expose the sin, but answer the sin with the gospel. I wonder if we have not become better at exposing sin, than expositing the gospel.
Today, some ministries operate just to see certain sins erased from our nation, as if those sins were eliminated, our nation would somehow be better. I too, pray these sins would be gone, never to be committed again. But even if that were so, men would still be lost in sin. If we would see men’s hearts changed, the law must only be used as Christ and the apostles used it. Not as a means of judging the sinner but exposing. There is a difference. The tax collectors and prostitutes knew that Jesus did not approve of their sin. There was no question where He stood on their immorality. But He loved them in such a way that they wanted to hear His answer to their sin. May the Spirit of Jesus be upon us and not the spirit of the Pharisee.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Is God’s Mercy Really Infinite?
By S. Michael Durham
Does infinite mercy mean no judgment? Is God’s mercy the guarantee of reprieve? If I say God’s mercy has run out for America have I contradicted infinite mercy; have I stated that His mercy has limits? What do we mean when we say God’s mercy is infinite?
First, we do not mean that divine mercy precludes judgment. The Bible says definitively that there is judgment now and a great day of judgment is coming. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18). Paul goes on to say in the second chapter of Romans, “But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’” (Romans 2:5, 6). Somehow mercy and judgment can both exist and both remain infinite.
Second, on a positive note, judgment can be the exercise of mercy. If the word mercy means kindness, then it is kindness for God to exercise His judgment for the sake of His glory, His people and the cause of righteousness. Therefore, infinite mercy is not contradicted in the dispensing of infinite wrath. Isaiah didn’t see any contradiction when he prophesied of the Messiah’s reign, “In mercy the throne will be established; And One will sit on it in truth, in the tabernacle of David, Judging and seeking justice and hastening righteousness” (Isaiah 16:5). The throne of Christ will be established by mercy so that He may execute the triumph of righteousness. David rehearses the same thought about Israel and Pharaoh’s army. What was mercy to one was judgment to another: “To Him who divided the Red Sea in two, for His mercy endures forever; and made Israel pass through the midst of it, for His mercy endures forever; but overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea, for His mercy endures forever” (Psalms 136:13-15).
Therefore, if God should put an end to us as a society and a nation, we should not say that His mercy has ended. It is because of mercy that He does not allow evil to continue or allow us to sin in a more vile way (if it can be imagined that our sinning could become more vile).
But this is not just true for a nation; it is also true for the individual. God’s mercy to the sinner cannot be underestimated nor presumed upon. He is unbelievably good to the most wicked of sinners. He allows them to prosper or grants them many opportunities to hear the gospel. Can you call such mercy by any other name? His lovingkindness is infinite in measure. Yet, there comes a day when His mercy is not inexhaustible toward the sinner, but for the sake of all that is named good the sinner is cut down and brought under the infinite judgment of God. Although the sinner does not experience God’s mercy, we can be sure that mercy did not end. In mercy judgment was executed. Infinite mercy demands infinite judgment.
Does infinite mercy mean no judgment? Is God’s mercy the guarantee of reprieve? If I say God’s mercy has run out for America have I contradicted infinite mercy; have I stated that His mercy has limits? What do we mean when we say God’s mercy is infinite?
First, we do not mean that divine mercy precludes judgment. The Bible says definitively that there is judgment now and a great day of judgment is coming. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18). Paul goes on to say in the second chapter of Romans, “But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’” (Romans 2:5, 6). Somehow mercy and judgment can both exist and both remain infinite.
Second, on a positive note, judgment can be the exercise of mercy. If the word mercy means kindness, then it is kindness for God to exercise His judgment for the sake of His glory, His people and the cause of righteousness. Therefore, infinite mercy is not contradicted in the dispensing of infinite wrath. Isaiah didn’t see any contradiction when he prophesied of the Messiah’s reign, “In mercy the throne will be established; And One will sit on it in truth, in the tabernacle of David, Judging and seeking justice and hastening righteousness” (Isaiah 16:5). The throne of Christ will be established by mercy so that He may execute the triumph of righteousness. David rehearses the same thought about Israel and Pharaoh’s army. What was mercy to one was judgment to another: “To Him who divided the Red Sea in two, for His mercy endures forever; and made Israel pass through the midst of it, for His mercy endures forever; but overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea, for His mercy endures forever” (Psalms 136:13-15).
Therefore, if God should put an end to us as a society and a nation, we should not say that His mercy has ended. It is because of mercy that He does not allow evil to continue or allow us to sin in a more vile way (if it can be imagined that our sinning could become more vile).
But this is not just true for a nation; it is also true for the individual. God’s mercy to the sinner cannot be underestimated nor presumed upon. He is unbelievably good to the most wicked of sinners. He allows them to prosper or grants them many opportunities to hear the gospel. Can you call such mercy by any other name? His lovingkindness is infinite in measure. Yet, there comes a day when His mercy is not inexhaustible toward the sinner, but for the sake of all that is named good the sinner is cut down and brought under the infinite judgment of God. Although the sinner does not experience God’s mercy, we can be sure that mercy did not end. In mercy judgment was executed. Infinite mercy demands infinite judgment.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Thoughts on Plodding On as an Unknown Christian
By Mack Tomlinson
(This blog was written by a dear friend of mine, Mack Tomlinson. Mack serves as co-pastor of Providence Chapel in Denton, Texas. He also maintains a ministry as an evangelist and conference speaker. Michael Durham)
In our church prayer meeting just last night, we were praying about the fact that it is not in the great exciting moments of conferences or big events in which the Christian faith is truly lived out, but rather in the daily grind, the mundane, the regular routine of getting up in the morning, saying, "In the name of Jesus, left leg, get out of bed! Right leg, you too!", then doing every day the simple, unexciting things you have been given to do-- dressing and going to work, seeing the same people every day in the same location within the same walls, and doing it over and over again. It's in changing diapers for the pleasure and honor of Christ. Or taking care of your home, your family, your health, your normal and routine life-- doing the little things faithfully and well. Living with regular and real faithfulness in your local church, loving the brethren and walking with them. It's not in attending conferences or doing something exciting, but in living out a normal life where you have been put, and doing that with joy and contentment--that is what glorifies Jesus Christ the most. God's glory will be seen the most through me when I get past thinking I might be a John Piper one day and just be me to the fullest extent. My impact will not be in my changing a nation single-handedly, but in living as a real Christian in front of my wife and children.
Is there exciting emotion in rising at 4:00 or 5:00 am and driving in the dark morning hours to a factory or on a freeway to a building to do menial tasks that no one seems to appreciate or notice? The fact is, most all of us will never be known for anything other than this-- what kind of person were we? what kind of life did we truly live day in and day out? were we faithful, kind, genuine, trustworthy, committed, dependable, real, and humble? Is fame or faithfulness more attractive to me?
I thought about a certain famous actor and how many people would probably choose to spend a day with that person if they could choose only one. Simply because they are famous. Then I thought about that same actor and remembered that the primary thing about his private life is that he is totally commited to a religious cult that deceives millions of people. So why would anyone in their right mind choose such a person as their number one pick? Simply because they're famous, no other reason.
The problem is this-- we still have in our minds a wrong view of true greatness. It is not the Brad Pitts, Tom Cruises, Oprahs, Joel Osteens, and Katie Courics of this world that have true greatness.
It's the mother no one knows about who really cares for her children month after month and gives the strength of her years to raising them.
It's the father who goes to work every day in a place no one has heard of and earns a living to provide.
It's a teacher who prepares lesson plans regularly to teach and impact 20 kids, helping them to go to college, and living like the Saviour before their watching eyes.
It's the faithful deacon who does the many unseen things every week to serve the saints month after month and year after year, and in doing so, he is serving the Saviour and storing up riches in a heavenly kingdom.
It's the loving and committed pastor who prepares and preaches to ten or twenty people and sees it just as important as preaching to two thousand, because he does it for the eternal welfare of their souls and he does it unto Christ. He will never be on tv and doesn't want to be. He's not building a big kingdom and doesn't want to.
These are the real heroes, the really great ones.
Kevin DeYoung has hit the nail on the head when he says:
I am thinking now of two men who I respect as much as any people I have ever known. One is a retired teacher who has lived the Christian life in a deep, consistent, and rich way while teaching school daily for probably forty years. He has never really traveled that much, is not known outside the sphere of his own small circle, has never written a book or been interviewed, and has never been on the conference circuit as a speaker.
Yet his life has been a powerful force in the lives of many people widely, just because of the way he has lived his life while simply plodding on, truly living for Jesus daily in a full way. His life has shown that the kingdom of God is not in words, but in power and in living it out quietly and irresistibly.
The other man was a simple, faith-filled preacher who usually preached in churches of 100 or less, often in churches that had less than 30 people in them. He was never known outside his own little circle of churches and friendships. He never wrote a book and did not even read many books outside the Bible. But he read the Bible through probably over 100 times in his life and prayed hours daily. He loved others and lived a simple, yet amazing life of faith, and saw the power of God come many times to the conversion of many people. He saw God do amazing things that few ever see. The famous preachers today would never have heard his name, yet he out-shined them and out-lived them all. He just plodded on, not desiring to be somebody, but desired to know Someone and truly live for Him.
It's those guys I want to be like. There really is something to be said for plodding on in an unseen, unknown way to the glory of God. The glory is not in being known or in doing something "great" for which you will be remembered. The glory is in living for Jesus daily, consistently, to just keep plodding on, even if no one ever knows who you are.
(This blog was written by a dear friend of mine, Mack Tomlinson. Mack serves as co-pastor of Providence Chapel in Denton, Texas. He also maintains a ministry as an evangelist and conference speaker. Michael Durham)
In our church prayer meeting just last night, we were praying about the fact that it is not in the great exciting moments of conferences or big events in which the Christian faith is truly lived out, but rather in the daily grind, the mundane, the regular routine of getting up in the morning, saying, "In the name of Jesus, left leg, get out of bed! Right leg, you too!", then doing every day the simple, unexciting things you have been given to do-- dressing and going to work, seeing the same people every day in the same location within the same walls, and doing it over and over again. It's in changing diapers for the pleasure and honor of Christ. Or taking care of your home, your family, your health, your normal and routine life-- doing the little things faithfully and well. Living with regular and real faithfulness in your local church, loving the brethren and walking with them. It's not in attending conferences or doing something exciting, but in living out a normal life where you have been put, and doing that with joy and contentment--that is what glorifies Jesus Christ the most. God's glory will be seen the most through me when I get past thinking I might be a John Piper one day and just be me to the fullest extent. My impact will not be in my changing a nation single-handedly, but in living as a real Christian in front of my wife and children.
Is there exciting emotion in rising at 4:00 or 5:00 am and driving in the dark morning hours to a factory or on a freeway to a building to do menial tasks that no one seems to appreciate or notice? The fact is, most all of us will never be known for anything other than this-- what kind of person were we? what kind of life did we truly live day in and day out? were we faithful, kind, genuine, trustworthy, committed, dependable, real, and humble? Is fame or faithfulness more attractive to me?
I thought about a certain famous actor and how many people would probably choose to spend a day with that person if they could choose only one. Simply because they are famous. Then I thought about that same actor and remembered that the primary thing about his private life is that he is totally commited to a religious cult that deceives millions of people. So why would anyone in their right mind choose such a person as their number one pick? Simply because they're famous, no other reason.
The problem is this-- we still have in our minds a wrong view of true greatness. It is not the Brad Pitts, Tom Cruises, Oprahs, Joel Osteens, and Katie Courics of this world that have true greatness.
It's the mother no one knows about who really cares for her children month after month and gives the strength of her years to raising them.
It's the father who goes to work every day in a place no one has heard of and earns a living to provide.
It's a teacher who prepares lesson plans regularly to teach and impact 20 kids, helping them to go to college, and living like the Saviour before their watching eyes.
It's the faithful deacon who does the many unseen things every week to serve the saints month after month and year after year, and in doing so, he is serving the Saviour and storing up riches in a heavenly kingdom.
It's the loving and committed pastor who prepares and preaches to ten or twenty people and sees it just as important as preaching to two thousand, because he does it for the eternal welfare of their souls and he does it unto Christ. He will never be on tv and doesn't want to be. He's not building a big kingdom and doesn't want to.
These are the real heroes, the really great ones.
Kevin DeYoung has hit the nail on the head when he says:
Until we are content with being one of the million nameless, faceless church members and not the next globe-trotting rock star, we aren’t ready to be a part of the church. In the grand scheme of things, most of us are going to be more of an Ampliatus (Rom. 16:8 or Phlegon (v. 14) than an apostle Paul. And maybe that’s why so many Christians are getting tired of the church. We haven’t learned how to be part of the crowd. We haven’t learned to be ordinary. Our jobs are often mundane. Our devotional times often seem like a waste. Church services are often forgettable. That’s life. We drive to the same places, go through the same routines with the kids, buy the same groceries at the store, and share a bed with the same person every night. Church is often the same too — same doctrines, same basic order of worship, same preacher, same people. But in all the smallness and sameness, God works — like the smallest seed in the garden growing to unbelievable heights, like beloved Tychicus, that faithful minister, delivering the mail and apostolic greetings (Eph. 6:21). Life is usually pretty ordinary, just like following Jesus most days. Daily discipleship is not a new revolution each morning or an agent of global transformation every evening; it’s a long obedience in the same direction.
It’s possible the church needs to change. Certainly in some areas it does. But it’s also possible we’ve changed — and not for the better. It’s possible we no longer find joy in so great a salvation. It’s possible that our boredom has less to do with the church, its doctrines, or its poor leadership and more to do with our unwillingness to tolerate imperfection in others and our own coldness to the same old message about Christ’s death and resurrection. It’s possible we talk a lot about authentic community, but we aren’t willing to live in it.
I am thinking now of two men who I respect as much as any people I have ever known. One is a retired teacher who has lived the Christian life in a deep, consistent, and rich way while teaching school daily for probably forty years. He has never really traveled that much, is not known outside the sphere of his own small circle, has never written a book or been interviewed, and has never been on the conference circuit as a speaker.
Yet his life has been a powerful force in the lives of many people widely, just because of the way he has lived his life while simply plodding on, truly living for Jesus daily in a full way. His life has shown that the kingdom of God is not in words, but in power and in living it out quietly and irresistibly.
The other man was a simple, faith-filled preacher who usually preached in churches of 100 or less, often in churches that had less than 30 people in them. He was never known outside his own little circle of churches and friendships. He never wrote a book and did not even read many books outside the Bible. But he read the Bible through probably over 100 times in his life and prayed hours daily. He loved others and lived a simple, yet amazing life of faith, and saw the power of God come many times to the conversion of many people. He saw God do amazing things that few ever see. The famous preachers today would never have heard his name, yet he out-shined them and out-lived them all. He just plodded on, not desiring to be somebody, but desired to know Someone and truly live for Him.
It's those guys I want to be like. There really is something to be said for plodding on in an unseen, unknown way to the glory of God. The glory is not in being known or in doing something "great" for which you will be remembered. The glory is in living for Jesus daily, consistently, to just keep plodding on, even if no one ever knows who you are.
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