"Quote" of the Week

"I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called." Ephesians 4:1

I do not intend to spend any time at all proving to you the general truth that God is sovereign in His world. There is no need; for I know that, if you are a Christian, you believe this already. How do I know that? Because I know that, if you are a Christian, you pray; and the recognition of God's sovereignty is the basis of your prayers. In prayer, you ask for things and give thanks for things. Why? Because you recognize that God is the author and source of all the good that you have had already, and all the good that you hope for in the future. This is the fundamental philosophy of Christian prayer. The prayer of a Christian is not an attempt to force God's hand, but a humble acknowledgement of helplessness and dependence. When we are on our knees, we know that it is not we who control the world; it is not in our power, therefore, to supply our needs by our own independent efforts; every good thing that we desire for ourselves and for others must be sought from God, and will come, if it comes at all, as a gift from His hands.

Nor, again am I going to spend time proving to you the particular truth that God is sovereign in salvation. For that, too, you believe already. Two facts show this. In the first place, you give God thanks for your conversion. Now why do you do that? Because you know in your heart that God was entirely responsible for it. You did not save yourself; He saved you. Your thanksgiving is itself an acknowledgement that your conversion was not your own work, but His work. You do not put it down to chance or accident that you attended a Christian church, that you heard the Christian gospel, that you had Christian friends and, perhaps, a Christian home, that the Bible fell into your hands, that you saw your need of Christ and came to trust Him as your Savior. As you look back, you take to yourself the blame for your past blindness and indifference and obstinacy and evasiveness in face of the gospel message, but...you would never dream of dividing the credit for your salvation between God and yourself. You have never for one moment supposed that the decisive contribution to your salvation was yours and not God's.

There is a second way in which you acknowledge that God is sovereign in salvation. You pray for the conversion of others. In what terms, now, do you intercede for them? Do you limit yourself to asking that God will bring them to a point where they can save themselves, independently of Him? I do not think you do. I think that what you do is to pray in categorical terms that God will, quite simply and decisively, save them: that He will open the eyes of their understanding, soften their hard hearts, renew their natures, and move their wills to receive the Savior. You ask God to work in them everything necessary for their salvation...Thus, by your practice of intercession, no less than by giving thanks for your conversion, you acknowledge and confess the sovereignty of God's grace. And so do all Christian people everywhere.

Packer, J.I. Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press. 1991. 11-17

"Quote" of the Week

"God's sovereignty and man's responsibility are taught us side by side in the same Bible; sometimes, indeed, in the same text. Both are thus guaranteed to us by the same divine authority; both, therefore, are true. It follows that they must by held together, and not played off against each other. Man is a responsible moral agent, though he is also divinely controlled; man is divinely controlled, though he is also a responsible moral agent. God's sovereignty is a reality, and man's responsibility is a reality too. This is the revealed antinomy (mystery) in terms of which we have to do our thinking. " -J.I. Packer

NASHVILLE MISSION TRIP

We had a great mission trip to Nashville, TN. Our youth worked with Unity Covenant Church in Ashland City, TN. They loved the church because of its laid back style and feel. UCC is a great church that is being used by God to reach a group of people that have been overlooked by other churches in the community. They have Celebrate Recovery at their church which is an excellent ministry for those struggling with addiction, a biker ministry which has enabled them to minister to ex-cons--many who are struggling with drug and alcohol addiction and they also provide special services for those in law enforcement because they work odd hours and are often busy during Sunday morning service.

It was a great learning experience for the youth. They got to see a church that is different from the norm, but biblical in function.

I. A godly man prefers God before anything else in heaven.

Whom have I in heaven but thee. Ps. 73:25a

The main reason that the godly man has his heart set on heaven is that God is there. It is the dwelling place of his Lord. It is the place where God is gloriously present, where His love is gloriously manifested, where the godly will ultimately be with Him.

He will ultimately get to see God as He really is. He will get to love, serve, praise, and enjoy Him perfectly and forever. If God and Jesus Christ were not in heaven, he would not earnestly long for it.

II. It is the temper of a godly man to prefer God before all other things on the earth.

There is none upon the earth that I desire besides thee. Ps. 73:25b

That which was infused into his heart at his conversion is more precious to him than anything which the world can afford. The views which are sometimes experienced of the beauty and excellency of God are more precious to him than all the treasures of the wicked.

CONCLUSION

(A godly man) is happy because God, who is unchangeable, is his chosen portion. He remains happy because his chosen portion on which he builds as his main foundation for happiness, is above the world, and above all changes.

If a worldly-minded man could find a way to get for himself everything that he could ever want, so that it could never be taken away from him would he be content? No...because all of those earthly enjoyments on which he sets his heart are all fading. But how great is the happiness of those who have chosen the Fountain of all good, who prefer Him before all things in heaven or on earth, and who can never be deprived of Him to all eternity!

Edwards, Jonathan. God, the Best Portion of the Christian. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God and other Great Sermons by Jonathan Edwards. 137-150.

"Quote" of the Week

"The spirit of a truly Godly man prefers God before all other things, either in heaven or on earth." -Jonathan Edwards

Last week while Chris and I were on a mission trip in Nicaragua, the front building of our church caught fire and burned to the ground. Although it has been difficult, I do not in any way want to compare myself with other believers who have truly suffered for the cause of Christ. I did, however, think it would be a good time to discuss why God's people suffer. The outline below is taken from a chapter in John Piper and Justin Taylor's book, "Suffering and the Sovereignty of God."

WHY GOD APPOINTS SUFFERING FOR HIS SERVANTS

1. Suffering Deepens Faith and Holiness

Hebrews 12 tells us that God disciplines his children through suffering. His aim is deeper faith and deeper holiness. "He disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness" (Heb. 12:10).

2. Suffering Makes Your Cup Increase

By enduring suffering with patience, the reward of our experience of God's glory in heaven increases. "For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal" (2 Cor. 4:17-18).

3. Suffering is the Price of Making Others Bold

God will use the suffering of his devoted emissaries to make a sleeping church wake up and take risks for God. When Paul was imprisoned in Rome he wrote of this to the church at Phillipi. "Most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear" (Phil. 1:14).

4. Sufferings Fills Up What is Lacking in Christ's Afflictions

The suffering of Christ's messengers ministers to those they are trying to reach and may open them to the gospel. This was one of the ways Paul brought the gospel to bear on the people in Thessalonica. "You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit" (1 Thess. 1:5-6).

5. The Supremacy of Christ Is Manifest in Suffering

Suffering...is meant by God to magnify the power and sufficiency of Christ. When God declined to remove the suffering of Paul's "thorn in the flesh," he said to Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

Suffering with joy proves to the world that our treasure is in heaven and not on the earth, and that this treasure is greater than anything the world has to offer. The supremacy of God's worth shines through the pain that his people will gladly bear for his name.

Piper, John and Justin Taylor. Suffering and the Sovereignty of God. Wheaton: Crossway Books. 20006. 91-109.