God The Great Artisan

Because God is the greatest of all artisans there is much beauty to be found in nature. Indeed all of creation is a masterpiece for us to behold. The world is God's magnum opus. The genius or talent of the artist can only imitate or distort what God has done. Man cannot but make an attempt to capture the beauty of things. The thing in and of itself, i.e. creation, is the most pure work of art in all aesthetics. Hear what our Lord says, "Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these" (Luke 12:27).

Both believers and unbelievers participate in observing the beauty of nature in that "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard" (Psalm 9:1-3). It is only the believer, however, that can fully appreciate and rightly glorify God's handy work.

As I walk through the park by my house and behold the mighty majestic Bald Cypress trees, how tall they are and how green their leaves are, I cannot help but that my thoughts avert to God the originator of them. When I smell a magnolia or a gardenia I think of the Lord who alone can make such aromas. As I hear the sound of running water I think of living waters. And when I see a raven I think of how God seems to have them call out specifically to me. Job observes that nature and animals speak truth to us, "But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee" (Job 12:7,8).

When I consider what beauty there is on earth and ponder what heaven must be like I say with the psalmist, "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?" (Psalm 8:4).

Newsletter 1209

Bacon Quote (Of Studies)

"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested; that is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly and with diligence and attention" (Francis Bacon Of Studies).

Thomas Wilcox Quote

"Be true to truth, but not turbulent and scornful. Restore such as are fallen; help them up again with all the bowels of Christ. Set the broken disjointed bones with the grace of the gospel. Confident Christian! despise not weak saints; you may come to wish to be in the condition of the most despised of them. Be faithful to others' infirmities, but realizing especially your own. Visit sick beds and deserted souls much; they are excellent scholars in experience.

Job 9:15 (Mercy)

"Though I were innocent, I could not answer him; I could only plead with my judge for mercy" (Job:915).

Thomas Broooks Quote (Hypocricy)

" A hypocrite is no saint, no holy man in truth, but one that puts on the name of a saint, and outwardly appears to be a saint" (Thomas Brooks The Hypocrite Detected).

Thomas Wilcox Quote (Providence)

"Judge not Christ's love by providence, but by promises. Bless God for shaking off false foundations, for any way whereby He keeps the soul awakened and looking after Christ; better sickness and temptations, than security and superficiality" (Wilcox Honey out of the Rock).

Thomos Wilcox Quote (Legalism)

"Do not legalize the gospel, as if part remained for you to do and suffer, and Christ were but half a Mediator and you must bear part of your own sin, and make part satisfaction" (Wilcox Honey out of the Rock Sermon).

Thomas Wilcox Quote (Grace)

"Christ is the mystery of the Scripture; grace the mystery of Christ"(Honey out of the Rock Sermon).

Spurgeon Quote

"Gainful are the loses that bring us nearer to God" (Spurgeon Salt Cellars Vol. 1)

Augustine Quote

"My entire hope is exclusively in your very great mercy. Grant what you command, and command what you will" (Augustine Confessions X xxix 40).

Priestcraft in the Protestant Church?

Under the old covenant it was necessary that a priest mediate between the lay people of God and God. The work of the priest, however, did not altogether preclude personal, experiential, and communal relations between the individual believer and God, though there were certain restrictions of a very complex nature. The old covenant people were loved of God, loved God, had faith in God, walked with God, prayed to God, sinned before God, repented before God, and lived morally before God, just as do new covenant believers. However, in this early dispensation of time in redemptive history there were certain outward means by which grace was dispensed, sins were covered, and atonement was made. The old covenant priesthood was ordained and sovereignly instituted by God whereby the priest was entrusted with certain ceremonial rites and rituals pertaining to private and corporate worship that was theirs alone to administer on behalf of the people of God. These many functions of the priest that ministered the required sacrifices, offerings, and observances for the people were all types that foreshadowed what was to come in the person and work of Christ, who by taking on the role of our great high priest tore down the wall that once in this sense separated the people from God. What the old covenant priest did in their sacrificial ministrations were successive being repetitive until Jesus came and made a singular, once for all, final, and most ultimate sacrifice for sin-that being the nature of his very own death-which having been as a substitution on behalf of his elect people from all ages, and out of all races, saves those that believe in him. Since this monolithic event we are no longer in need of a priest to mediate the various graces of God to us, but we may now boldly approach him as if we are priests ourselves (Hebrews, the whole book; 1Pet.2:9).

There is one God and one faith and based on the works of Christ there is free access to him (Eph. 4:4-6). Ultimately we do not have to answer to anyone but God as we will all stand before him to give an account of our selves and not that of another (Rom. 14:12). This is not to say that we do not have certain authorities that we are to submit to such as pertains to familial relations, pastors, and government (Heb. 13:17). Nevertheless, there is a tendency among certain people who by way of sinful regression drift back to a quasi old covenant way of thinking and fall victim to a type of priestcraft that rears the ugly head of prideful superiority above those that they perceive to not be as skilled in scriptural knowledge and doctrine, nor schooled by experience, or having gone through the same refining fires as they themselves. It is a great feat of self deception to think that one has cornered the market on wisdom and monopolized truth. "The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know" (1 Cor.8:2). God is God to all. His word is for all to share in. The wisdom that comes from knowing him and his word is there for all who ask and he gives liberally (James: 1:5). The word of God makes foolish the wisdom of the world (1 Cor. 3:19). In this sense there is superiority in that God awards the most simple minded a knowledge above all other secular knowledge. To know God is to know everything that is of eternal importance. It is to know the truth that gives the soul liberation and which enlightens the mind out of the darkness of falsehood and bondage to sin (Jn. 8:32). This is how the psalmist made such a high minded claim that he understood more than his teachers (Ps. 119:99). It is the almighty that gives understanding (Proverbs, the whole book Job 32:8).

It is the job of the minister to preach himself out of a job in a certain sense by way of equipping the saints to do ministry Eph. 4:11). But this is not always the attitude of many pastors today who come across more as spiritual gurus rather than preachers equipping the saints to do ministry. To point this out to these well meaning preachers would be nothing less than insulting to them, a notion being repugnant, and terribly horrifying to them. This is a very slippery problem in that many are not even aware of it. Nevertheless, they continue own in their blindness never allowing anyone to have a voice without being overwhelmingly compelled to qualify everything a brother or sister may have by way of contribution, whether in voice or deed; as they are considered inferior in their bible knowledge and expertise, and all the while they are calling for such things as action to ministry from their parishioners; though in their minds it is really not you in particular they have in mind and want, but somebody that is more qualified for the job. We no longer "hire" within the local church but go without. And to attempt to do any ministry in the church that is not their idea, or the idea of someone influential, is futile at best. Friends this ought not to be found in our churches. No one has the right to behave in this manner. The word of God is not exclusive in this way. No one owns the rights to biblical interpretation. But let us not go to the other extreme either, where as it has been observed that a bible study is nothing more than a pooling together of collective ignorance. So let us yield to one another as we minister the Gospel to one another in love and humility knowing that we are all part of the body of Christ (Rom. 12:4-6) with various gifts, one not more dominant or important than the other, but all being such that if faithfully worked out are equally important and carry equal weight in the kingdom as service done to one another and to the one God of us all.
"Your truth does not belong to me nor to anyone else, but to us all whom you call to share it as a public possession. With terrifying words you warn against regarding it as a private possession, or we may lose it (Matt. 25:14-30). Anyone who claims for his own property what you offer for all to enjoy, and wishes to have exclusive rights to what belongs to everyone, is driven from the common truth to his own private ideas, that is from truth to a lie" (Augustine Confessions Ch. XII (34).

Ecclesiastes 7:13,14

"Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what he has made crooked? When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other" (Ecc. 7:13,14).

Thomas Brooks Quote (Chastening)

"Corrections are pledges of our adoption, and badges of our sonship, God had one Son without sin, but none without sorrow" Brooks Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices Banner Pg. 85 Note). "'As many as I love , I rebuke and chasten' (Rev. 3:19). Saints, saith God, think not that I hate you, because I thus chide you. He that escapes reprehension may suspect his adoption. God had one Son without corruption, but no son without correction" (Pg. 85,86).

Smiling at Frowning Providences

When the Christian finds himself to be under great afflictions and facing much adversity, which is the case for all Christians at one point or another in their lives (Job 5:7), he can either despairingly say, "I'm having a hard time seeing God in all of this." Note that Job's wife who knew that God was the ultimate source of Job's suffering, but sinfully advices Job to, "Curse God and die" (Job 2:9)! Or he can say, "The Lord is not far from it, he is not merely in it, but he is behind it!" Though we do not realize it at the time the former position is one of a faint hearted attitude and lacking of strong faith, but "How painful are honest words!"(Job 6:25). We think that we are solid until the time of testing comes and reveals hollow places in our faith that need some constructive attention. When it comes to this I am afraid that I have been more like Job's wife than Job, whose weakest moments have been greater than my strongest.

But what lessons we could learn and what relief we could be gained by considering that God was in absolute providential control of Job's destiny? How much better off we would be if we were to smile at frowning providences, especially in that we have the example of Job set before us! Let us faithfully believe as it is promised by God, that just as he was at the helm of Job's life, it is also true that he is the captain in ordering the direction and affairs of our lives. If we cannot seem to muster a smile during the bad times, for there is a time for everything, and suffering in itself is terrible, we have this assurance that God directs all things for his glory and our good. Now this is a joyful thought even in the worst of circumstances that though "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (Ps. 30:5). This was the bases for martyrs who died in pain, but went rejoicing and singing into heaven.

To accuse one of lacking faith or being substandard in integrity is an easy estimation to make by those that are strangers to affliction, and are on the outside looking in, not going through the same thing, is it not? How true it is that, "Men at ease have contempt for misfortune as the fate of those whose feet are slipping" (Job 11:5). And though it is true that this is a question of faith low minded empathy and high minded sympathy is what we want and need when going through troubling times, and further it ought to be the tools of counsel and instruction when dealing with our brothers and sisters who find themselves out to be under the scourging rod of God. We do not know what God may be up to in the various circumstances of people's lives.

Testing is the tool of working in us strong faith and though faith may at first be weak and strained under a heavy burden, it is what keeps us in that it stems from God, and it is strengthened all the more for it. However, the best as well as the worst of Christians have a tendency to have tunnel vision when it comes to spiritually trying matters. Like Jobs counselors we assume that God must have such and such a thing in mind. But God usually does his work in secret and mysterious ways that we cannot discern. The norm for us is not the normal way that God works.

The disciples probably assumed the coin in the mouth of the fish was relevant only to them and their taxes, but where did the coin come from other than another work of God in dealing with mariners that had found their providential lot to be that of an encounter with troubled seas? Whatever the case may be with this, it is a verity that God uses affliction for our good and for his glory. What we see as now being painful to us is but the work of a loving and disciplining father who will not permit us to be so prosperous that we do not attain to the fullness of himself that we are so desperately in need of.

So instead of asking where God is in our trials let our spirits find humble harmony with Job, who suffered far more than all of us, and acknowledge that it is God who is the dispenser of both good and evil. "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble" (Job 2:10)? Job had faith and this is what helped him through his trial. And how his faith was measured and developed more perfectly because of his trial! Unwavering faith, though it can be shaken yet it cannot be shattered, is what reveals the persevering believer from the falling apostate. If we have to ask where God is in the evil that befalls man we are in an indescribably terrible state as compared to having the peace of knowing that we are under the sovereign care of God who brings frowning providences, but only such that we might ultimately smile at.

Things are not so bad if one can say "God is behind the thing." To have to look for God in a bad situation is to be in a most miserable predicament. It is not that one merely has a problem when he cannot see God in an affliction, and has to look for his hand in the matter, but rather the more serious problem is that he does not see God altogether in the affliction to begin with. There is a problem with our language usage here. It is true that the devil did his worse to Job, but just as the devil had command over nature and evil men, it was God who had command over the devil.

"He wounds but he also binds up; he injures but his hands also heal" (Job 5:18). Job's pain was very real, he suffered a lot, and he cried, cursing even the day of his birth (Job 3:1), but not God, and in the end he found occasion for a smile. He was closer to God for his sufferings and the Lord blessed the latter part of his life more than the first (Job 42:12). "A gracious soul may look through the darkest cloud, and see a God smiling on him" (Thomas Brooks Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices Banner Pg. 86).

Thomas Brooks Quote (Sin angainst Mercy Devilish)

"To render good for evil is divine, to render good for good is human, to render evil for evil is brutish: but to render evil for good is devilish..." (Brooks Precious remedies against Satan's devices Banner of Truth Pg. 73).

John Calvin Quote (Salvation and Truth)

"One thing is certain, that these two things--salvation and the knowledge of the truth--are always inseparably joined together" (Calvin Treatise on the Secret Providence of God Reply to calumny I).

Thomas Brooks Quote (Meditating)

"Remember, it is not hasty reading, but serious meditating upon holy and heavenly truths, that make them prove sweet and profitable to the soul" (Brooks Precious remedies against Satan's Devices Banner of Truth Pg. 21).

The Just Dispensation of Evil by God and the Hardness of the Hearts of his Enemies

"The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was given power to scorch people with fire. They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him" (Rev. 16:8,9 NIV).

The general and popular consensus is that God does not have any hand whatsoever in the evil that befalls man. They rail, "If God was sovereign he could have prevented this evil. This evil is evidence that God does not exist." Or "God did not have anything personally to do with this evil. His presence is far from it. Rather it is the fruit of bad men that brought such and such evil on us. Or, maybe it is the work of the devil who keeps God at bay and busy trying to clean up his messes." This line of reasoning is backwards. We should not assume that God has no part by way of an active role in the disasters that there be. It is not that he has no control over them. He is the dispenser of them. We should not assume that God is distantly absent from evil when on the contrary he may be directly causing it. It is not that this evil happened because there is no God. It happened because there is a God! It is not that God sins or is "evil" in doing so, but that he is sovereign in the governing of the world and just in his punishment of man who in fact is sinfully evil. His justice is in no way compromised and vitiated when he punishes his enemies with plagues and other disasters. Furthermore the just recompenses of God manifestly make evident the true nature of his enemies by bringing to the surface and out into the intense sunlight the hardness of man's heart. But in spite of this and because of this he will not call on God for mercy in order that he might withdraw his fierce wrath, sheath his sword, and abate his anger, that they might no longer suffer under his mighty and terrible indignation. Instead they refuse to repent and give him the glory that is due his name. It is not that the wicked do not discern that God is punishing them with his vengeance and if they only knew this they would give him the honor that is due him. They know in their heart that it is God who is in control and it is him who plagues them. Their consciences' and flesh are seared, but it is not mother nature, chance, or bad luck that they curse. In their depraved hardened hearts it is God that they curse.

Thomas Brooks Quote (Repentance)

"...a true penitent doth not only loathe his sin, but he loathes himself, the vessel that smells of it; so Ezek. 20:43: 'And there shall ye remember your ways and all your doings, wherein ye have been defiled; and ye shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that ye have committed.' True repentance will work your hearts, not only to loathe your sins, but to loathe yourselves" (Brooks Precious remedies against Satan's devices Pg. 59 Banner of Truth).

Thomas Brooks Quote (Death)

"Death is not mors hominis, but mors peccati, not the death of the man, but the death of his sin" (Brooks A saint's Last Day is his Best Day Sermon note 1 Pg. 400 Vol. 6).

Thomas Brooks Quote (The Will)

"The saints cannot sin with a whole will, but as it were with a half will, an unwillingness; not with a full consent, but with a dissenting consent" Brooks Precious remedies against Satan's devices Note 35 Pg.47).

Thomas Brooks Quote (Sin)

"In a strict sense, there is no sin little, because there is no little God to sin against (Brooks Precious remedies against Satan's devices Pg. 45 (Note 32) Banner of Truth Trust 1993 Italics Mine).

Evangelical Perfection

Does God command us do something that we cannot possibly do? Jesus said that Our righteousness must exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees. "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (mat. 5:20). We are furthermore commanded by Jesus to be perfect as he is perfect. "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Mat. 5:48). He also commanded the woman caught in adultery to, "God and sin no more" (Jn. 8:11).
The Pharisees were considered to be the quintessential example of morality in their day. How is it possible for our righteousness, mine in particular, to surpass that of the highest set earthly standard? Did Jesus mean that if we come to him in faith we would be imputed with his righteousness and as such we would be made perfect and have a righteousness that is far superior to the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees? I don't think this is the case, though such is the quality and nature of our imputed righteousness. Does Jesus mean that we ought to out do the Pharisees by flexing our moral muscles and more diligently keep the law of God outdoing them with a white knuckled tenacity and determinism? I do not think this is the case either. What then does Jesus mean?
The Pharisees had set out to keep the law of God without having a heart of faith. Romans 9:31,32 says, "But Israel which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law, For they stumbled at that stumbling stone." The stumbling stone is Christ. And also Matthew 15:8 says, "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me." The Pharisees were moralistic hypocrites. They prided themselves because of their birth right, as children of Abraham, and as being authorities on the word of God. However, they missed the exemplary example of righteousness found in their father Abraham--his faith. Not only did the Pharisees attempt to satisfy God by clinging to the letter of the law, they perverted and corrupted the law of God by supplanting it with the traditions of men. Their righteousness, therefore, was perceived as obnoxious self righteousness, hypocrisy, and vile filthiness equivalent to that of filthy rags. This is how the best of the best falls short in the eyes of God. He sees more sin in Godless morality than we see in our faults.
To truly and savingly know God one must have both a head and heart knowledge and conformity to God. The Pharisees had a vain and corrupted knowledge of God and were completely devoid of any true heart felt faith towards God. The two must harmoniously work together. It is the Spirit of God that brings the two together, applying us to Jesus and him to us. One taken by itself is insufficient for saving faith. The mind must be in conformity to the revealed word of God. Sometimes we are intellectually wrong but our heart might be right. And sometimes our heart may be out of sink with what we know in our heads to be right. Sometimes the two are both far from alignment with God's word. This is where sin gets a foot hold and arises in us. "The heart is desperately wicked who can know it?" says the prophet Jeremiah.
To be perfect in an absolute sense is impossible in this present world and in this present body. There will never be a time on earth when the elect are without sin. Only two men and one woman have known absolute perfection, Adam, Eve, and Jesus. The former two were only intimately acquainted with it for a season. The two fell into sin while the other triumphed over sin. So strictly speaking it is impossible that we, having inherited the sin nature of our father Adam, can be perfect in the literal sense.
However we might be perfect evangelically. This is the case if both our head and heart give an over all complete acquiescence to Christ. Though we sin in particular instances and our hearts are not perfect with God in a sense we, nevertheless, generally and overwhelmingly agree with God that his word is right and worthy to be kept and honored. Any fault lies not in the high standard that is set but in the sinner that is weak and low. It is as if a father tells his child, here is what is required of you and the child failing comes to the father and despondently says, I failed to do your will. Please forgive me." The father gladly embraces the child and says after Jesus "go and sin no more." The child loves the father though having failed and still being flawed and sinful there is a sense in which the child is perfectly accepted by the father. The child is disciplined and sanctified for it. A relationship between the child and father is as a result strengthened, even in spite of sin. Over all the child really wants to please his father. We love our Lord and saviour and are intent in our whole man to do his will. But we fail. He accepts us however on the basis that we know and believe his law to be good however sinful we may be. We would not change one iota of it if given the chance. We do not hate it for its supremeness but love it supremely. The religious hypocrite would change God's law to suit his own fancies if given the chance as an earthly sinful child would make up his own rules by which to live by. He hates the light of God's law in the heart of his heart. He would kill the law giver if the occasion presented itself. In fact those Pharisaical God haters did put the Lord to a shameful and murderous death. They had an outward show of righteousness but internally God was far from them. This is why Jesus said that to lust is to commit adultery and to hate is murder. They had the outward part right but an inward acquiescence to God's law was absent. This is how it is possible for one to be perfect and how it is possible for our righteousness to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees. For those that are pure at heart know that your good works are different from those that are not sanctified and your sin is different as well.
To not do a thing out of hypocritical hypocrisy for fear of loosing a reputation or out of fear of judgment by god, or on the basis of a false sense of righteousness is in a certain sense worse than to commit the actual sin. Though it is better, indeed commanded, that a sin not be committed whether one is a hypocrite or not. But though a Christian commit a certain sin he is still in a better state than a hypocrite, or atheistic moralist, both of which are not God's children. Because they are not sanctified by God and have no principle of life whereby to find cleansing for for their transgression and relief for their guilt. "And so David was said to be perfect in his heart towards God not turning from God except in the matter of the murderous plot against Uriah the Hittite and adulterous affair with Bathsheba. "David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite" (1 Kings 15:5). It was just in 1 Kings 15:3 that we are told that David's heart was perfect with the Lord. And in 1 Kings 9:4 we see that David walked "in integrity of heart", and in "uprightness."
He presumed on the grace of God in the matter of Uriah and Bathsheba but afterwards he repented in his heart over the sin. He sinned big but was as great and thorough in his repentance as he was hard in his sin. Just read of his repentance in Psalm 51! We know, however, that David committed more sins than the two that are mentioned. This is obviously the case due to the scriptures teaching on the depravity of man and the confessions of David himself throughout the Psalms. Another example of an evangelically perfect heart is found in the life instance of Asa. "But the high places were not removed: nevertheless Asa's heart was perfect with the LORD all his days" (1 Kings 15:14). And in the life of Hezekiah. "I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore" (2 Kings 20:3). An unfortunate case to the contrary is seen in this situation of Solomon. "For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father" (1 Kings 11:4). And so there are times when we may harbor iniquity in our hearts but we know that the Lord will not accept us and will be very displeased with us in such a condition. "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me" (Psalm 66:17-19). Therefore if we are to have a righteousness that far exceeds that of the Pharisaical hypocrite we must be perfect in out hearts towards God. True outward conformity to God's law is a right consequence of an evangelically perfect heart and is necessarily contingent on such a perfect heart. This is the real meaning and spirit of God's word.
It was on an episode of the Andy Griffith show where Barney rounded up everybody in town and threw them in jail for some trivial matter of the law such as jay walking. He like the Pharisees missed the point. They were ready to stone the woman caught in adultery. They caught her on the technicality of the law. But Jesus sent her away uncondemned. He also sent the religious hypocrites away with these words: "Let those without sin cast the first stone!" They knew that to lust after a woman was to commit adultery of the heart. And that to hate was to murder. And to "keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law (James 2:10,11).
So go and sin no more my brothers and sisters. And know that if you do, and you will, it does not vitiate the standard of God's law neither does your sin make you, as his children, any less evangelically perfect in his eyes (Hebrews 10:14). Though these things ought not to be, they are. And though sin ought not to be normative to us it is normal that we are, and ever will be sinners until the day of the redemption of our bodies. This is what separates a child from the hypocrite. A true child cannot be a hypocrite. This is a contradiction in terms for him. However he may take on the role of a hypocrite he is never at heart a true hypocrite, but has always confessed his sin and recognized his lot that he is both perfect and imperfect. We are perfect sinners. Not perfectly sinful, but perfect sinners!

Martin Luther Quote (The Preacher's Theme and the Christian's Preoccupation))

"...The great and important article of faith, called 'the forgiveness of sins'...is the one great and difficult art of a Christian, where he will have enough to learn as long as he lives, so that he need not look for anything new, higher or better. ...For this is, as has been said, the skill and the wisdom of the Christian, but it is so high and great that even all the beloved Apostles could not speak enough of it; and yet it meets the painful misfortune that no art is mastered as soon as this. There is no greater theme for a preacher than the grace of God and the forgiveness of sin, yet we are such wicked people, that, when we have once heard or read it, we think we know it, are immediately masters and doctors, keep looking for something greater, as though we had done everything , and thus we made new factions and divisions. I have now been teaching and studying this subject with all diligence for many years (more than any one of those who imagine they know it all), in preaching, writing, and reading, yet I cannot boast of having mastered it and am glad that I still remain a pupil with those who are just beginning to learn" (Luther The Righteousness of the World and of the Christian, and the Power on Earth to Forgive Sins Sermon Points 1, 12, 13).

Augustine Quote (The Mark of a Christian Brother's Mind Respecting Brotherly Love)

"Do they desire to join me in thanksgiving when they hear how, by your gift, I have come close to you, and do they pray for me when they hear how I am held back by my own weight? ...A brotherly mind will love in me what you teach to be lovable, and will regret in me what you teach to be regrettable. This is a mark of a Christian brother's mind, not an outsider's--not that of 'the sons of aliens whose mouth speaks vanity, and their right hand is a right hand of iniquity' (Ps. 143:7 f.). A brotherly person rejoices on my account when he approves me, but when he disapproves, he is loving me. To such people I will reveal myself. They will take heart from my good traits, and sigh with sadness at my bad ones. My good points are instilled by you and are your gifts. My bad points are my faults and your judgements on them. Let them take heart from the one and regret the other. Let both praise and tears ascend in your sight from brotherly hearts, your censers. ...But you Lord...Make perfect my imperfections (Augustine Confessions Bk. X. iv. (5).

Thomas Watson Quote (Sanctification)

"A moral person [that is outside of Christ (my emphasis)] has a secret antipathy against grace: he hates vice, and he hates grace as much as vice. The snake has a fine colour, but a sting" (Watson A body of divinity Pg. 243 1986 edition).

Augustine Quote (Judging)

"The human race is inquisitive about other people's lives, but negligent to correct their own. Why do they demand to hear from me what I am when they refuse to hear from you what they are" (Augustine Confessions Book X iii (3)?

Abraham Booth Quote (Love)

"Pretensions to love, without obedience, are glaring hypocrisy; and obedience, without love, is mere slavery" (Abraham Booth The Reign of Grace, Chapter on Sanctification, Reiner Publications 1976, Pg. 206).

Augustine Quote (Mercy)

"Let mercy triumph over justice (Jas. 2:13), for your words are true, and you have promised mercy to the merciful (Mat. 5:7)" (Augustine Confessions Bk. IX 35).

Augustine Quote (The two Cities)

"...two cities have been formed by two loves: the earthly by the love of self, even to the contempt of God; the heavenly by the love of God, even to the contempt of self" (Augustine The City of God Bk. xiv 28).

The Fearful Fugitive and his Flight to God from Sin

When I said, My foot slippeth; thy mercy, O LORD, held me up.
-Psalm 94:18

Lord, I know that there is a difference between fearing God out of love of sin and fearing sin out of love of God, as well as loving God out of fear of sin. And so Lord, help me to love you as much as I hate sin and to hate sin in proportion to my love for you. God grant me the strength to be more diligent in work and devotion to you as I have been so diligent to pursue sin. If sin has lent a hand in the advancement of Satan's kingdom how much more ought my love of you keep me about my Father's business? O that I was as diligent in my Father's kingdom as I have been in the matter of worldly things. If an almost relentless procession of sinful thoughts can so occupy and assault my mind, cannot a truly affectionate heart rooted in and devoted to you, eternal God, infinitely occupy my thoughts and that to the the renewing of my mind? Thoughts of one will by necessity prevail over the other. So teach me to love you with all my heart mind and soul. Give me grace that I will never let my watchful guard down and allow my conscience to be sorely wounded by sin again. Lord, sometimes I feel as if I am a fearful fugitive fleeing from sin and its consequence. It is as if Pharaoh and all of the Egyptian army are fast on my heels. But Lord, I find comfort in this thought: if I am a fugitive it is not from your authority but from that of Satan's rule and dominion. You have not rewarded me evil for evil, but good for evil. Though it is a true principle that we reap what we sow, I have not always reaped the reward of iniquity, but the produce of grace. In this your mercy has been great towards me. It is but mere superstition that we get what we deserve. This sort of karma is what pagans believe not understanding your gracious nature. Keep me from falling, Lord. When my foot begins to slip it is your mercy o Lord that holds me up. Let me have a foothold that is sure that I might diligently flee from sin into your loving arms.

Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked (Book Review)

This book ought to be required introductory reading for any new Christian. In it Jeremiah Burroughs makes distinctions between the nature of the sins of believers and the sins of unbelievers. It is fundamental to the understanding of what it is like and what it means to be a Christian that is still subject to sin. He observes that our justification is perfect, while our sanctification is imperfect. It can be a great source of confusion, and a great burden to bear, for a Christian to not understand this. Furthermore, that it is normal to be in this condition while we await the day of our final state of sanctification. Burroughs points out that though we sin we also have a principle of life by which to live by. And though we sin our sin is not the same as that of an unbeliever.

Jeremiah Burroughs Quote (The Shortcoming/Futility/and Damnation of the Moralist)

"You may do good things in particular acts, better than others that are godly, and yet you may perish eternally, and they may be saved in the day of Jesus Christ" (Burroughs Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked Second Sermon Pg. 123).

Jeremiah Burroughs Quote (The Goodness/Sin of Unbelievers)

"Sin in a wicked man defiles all his actions, so as to make his very actions, the best of his actions, to be turned into sin. While you are an unregenerate man, your sin is of such a contagious nature, that it makes all your actions sin. Even your best actions turn to sin. In Psalm 109:7 the text says, 'Let his prayer become sin.'" (Burroughs Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked Second Sermon Pg. 125).

Jeremiah Burroughs Quote (Indwelling Sin)

"God hates the workers of iniquity, but He does not hate the saints even though they have iniquity in them" (Burroughs Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked ,Second Sermon Pg. 125).

Jeremiah Burroughs Quote (Indwelling Sin)

"The Lord by allowing spots to continue in His own people, exercises their faith, humility, and patience, as well as other graces" (Burroughs The Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked, First Sermon Pg. 112).

Jeremiah Burroughs Quote (Indewelling Sin)

"God has reserved the time of full cleansing of his people, for another world. Christ could cleanse His people presently from all their spots if He desired. Surely, this is the case. But because they are to live in this world for now, Christ sees that it would not benefit them to be wholly cleansed from sin now and live in a sinful world. This world is not worthy of the saints. Even if you consider them with all their infirmities, still, the world is not worthy of them. Yet it is not for the world to have the saints live here without their spots. If the world is offended that Christians have their spots. then let them be offended. Let Christians be stumbling-blocks to them. It is without a doubt, that many saints are stumbling blocks to many souls. The world, they rejoice when they see the sins that are in the saints" Burroughs Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked First Sermon Pg. 111.

Augustine Quote (The Spirit and the Flesh)

"And so the Spirit, supereminent from the beginning, was 'borne above the waters.' To whom can I expound, and with what words can I express, the weight of cupidity pulling us downwards into the precipitous abyss and the lifting up of love given by your Spirit who was 'born above the waters'? To whom can I communicate this? How can I speak about it? For it is not about literal places where we sink down and rise up. This symbolic language contains a resemblance, but also a difference. It means our feelings and our loves. The impurity of our spirit flows downwards because of our love of anxieties, and the holiness which is yours draws us upwards in a love of freedom from anxiety"(Augustine Confessions Bk. XIII Pg. 277).

Timothy Rogers Quote

"We shall have no cause to murmur at their (the wicked) present undisturbed case and their seeming welfare; for their happiness is not real but apparent, and all the goods that are bestowed upon them are but mean and low in themselves, though our erroneous and blind judgments think them to be somewhat great and considerable. ... they ought rather to be looked on as an argument of God's wisdom than as any objection against his providence; for He understands the just value of things, and knows that the best of these worldly goods are bad enough to be thrown away upon the worst of men" (Rogers Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy Pg. 58).

Forgiveness (Colossians 3:13)

"Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye" (Col. 3:13).

It is noteworthy to observe that there is no factor of contingency as relates to the parties in question here. Forgiveness is altogether void of qualifiers. There will be many times that we are offended without any remorse and with seeming impunity as respecting our offender. Whatever the case is regarding the state of the offender - i.e. whether they are sorrowfully, contrite, and truly penitent - it is no less than Christ-like that we are forgiving of one another. The nature of the offense is no matter of importance either seeing that Christ forgave us all manner of sin. It is always easier to forgive those who repent and ask for our forgiveness as opposed to those that do not. But how shall we ever grow in grace if there is no strain on our part? What profit is it if we love only those who love us (Matthew 5:46)? Or if we salute our brethren only (Matthew 5:47)? Should we not rather pursue a higher level of perfection and righteousness than that which the Pharisees had, but only outwardly attained to (Matthew 5:48)? Let us not worry so much about the motives of others, whether they be right or wrong, and instead make sure that our spiritual attitude is one which is marked by that high grace and righteous act (Mat. 5:20 ff) of forgiveness. Let God be the judge of others and we ourselves be as we are: forgiven; and how we ought to be--forgivers of others. Who knows but that grace may be wrought about in those with exceedingly hard hearts? Were our hearts any less hard than others? Are we not at risk of becoming bitter and finding out that our hearts have once more become hardened if we do not forgive? Is not our love of Christ the fruit of him having first loved us? And does not goodness bring about repentance? Were we not such sinners as these when Christ died for us? Are we not still as such sometimes? Let us imitate God on the matter of forgiveness. He so often forgives us and can we not do that which has been done for us? We must do away with any notion of justice on our part when it comes to the grace of forgiveness. What we seek is not justice but vengeance dressed in her clothes. It is not possible to err and go too far in forgiving. But if there was room for error, what a glorious way to err! It is better to forgive than not. And when at all in doubt--forgive. If we don't forgive neither will our Father in heaven forgive us. There is no justice to be had at all when it comes to this subject. We are faced with only three options: that of vengeance, bitterness, and that of forgiveness. Forgive and forget my friends (Isa 43:25).

Augustine Quote (Justification)

"But just as there is a difference between light which illuminates and that which is illuminated, so also there is an equivalent difference between the wisdom which creates and that which is created, as also between the justice which justifies and the justice created by justification" (Augustine Confessions Book xii Pg.255,256).

Timothy Rogers Quote

"He recompenses good works far above their merit, but punishes crimes far below their demerit" (Rogers Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy)Pg. 48).

Psalm 143:2

"...enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified" (Psalm 143:2).

Psalm 119:18 Luke 24:45

"Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law" (Ps. 119:18).
"Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures..." (Lk.24:45)

Prayer

"I hate vain thoughts: but thy law do I love" (Psalm 119:113).
O Lord how I long to see you in your word! My fleshly body is too weak to search out your word as I should and my mind, in and of itself, is sorely limited and diseased with sin. Thoughts that ought to be turned to behold your mercy, goodness, and glory seem to be intercepted and turned into all manner of distractions. I am puzzled at this and wonder if the reason and source leading to this torturous state is external in nature, due to the intense spiritual warfare that is waged behind the scenes of our soul, and is common among those that profess your name, or if it is solely the result of my own carnal self. Perhaps it is both. Regardless of the truth of this, I need your grace and help. Deliver me from the distractions that accompany such a fallen mind as mine. Strengthen my body. Give me opportunity, motivation, and ambition to study and apply your word. Prevent any external spiritual attacks on my soul that would separate me from you, preventing me by way of distraction or temptation from a closer walk with you. Give sight to my minds eye. Renew my mind so that I may behold you more closely. Even if I had a mind that is more able and intellectually capable it would be limited respecting spiritual things. But this is not the case. There is not anything in me that enables me to sufficiently know truth that is divine. All such knowledge of and intimacy with you must come from you alone. I am too weak to remove these hindrances and barriers. But you are sovereign and able to do all that I ask and much more. Take pity on me respecting this request to know you and answer my prayer.

On Judging others and Ourselves

If we are content with the present state of our moral condition, believing ourselves to have already obtained to an accceptable degree of righteousness, and see no further need for mortification of sin, or no need to strive after righteousness at all, we have too high of a view of ourselves. Even if sudden or constant awareness of our own ever present sin stuns us, we have too high a view of ourselves. If we are overly conscious of, and shocked by, sin in the lives of others (whether they are believers or not) to the point of unlawfully judging them, and finding ourselves to the contrary of and not taking pity on them, earnestly and lovingly desiring their restoration, we have too high of a view of ourselves. We ought to be shocked by sin, but not surprised as to the extent and effects of depravity that still remains in the fleshly bodies of those of us who are the children of Abraham, and indeed which is present in all of the sons of Adam.

Timothy Rogers Quote

"It is a strange thing that any good people should be so passionate and hasty as some are. They are quickly enraged, and hard to be reconciled; and there are many who will keep their anger for several months and, it may be, years at a time. Oh, how this is unlike that God whom they call their Father in heaven, who is slow to wrath, and whose anger towards them is but for a moment! And what an honor and a privilege would it be to resemble Him! If He were not more patient with His creatures and His children than they are with one another, what confusions, what woeful punishments would the world be filled with! 'Anger resteth in the bosom of fools' (Ecclesiastes 7:9). ...Hasty, passionate people are commonly the weaker sort of Christians. ...What differences have been kept up in churches, in families, among acquaintances and friends, for a long period of time, whose anger should have been like that of God, but for a moment! We are unwilling to pardon our enemies, or the injuries of our friends; and God is most ready to forgive us all. ...Seeing that the anger of God is but for a moment, then it is better, as for the temporal effects of it, to fall into the hands of God than into the hands of men. (Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy Rogers 42-45).

Disquietness of Soul and the Remedy to it

There are some of us that suffer with spiritual melancholy and though we know of the cure (Christ) our spirits, nevertheless, are oftentimes despondent, anxious, downcast, tormented, weighted down with the cares of this world, burdened with doubts, assaulted by the devil, and wrongly suffer under a sense of the guilt of sin and dreadful fear of eternal damnation. Like the psalmist so often expressed it is as if God has forsaken us, that he does not hear and answer our prayers, that our bones are broken, that our strength has failed us, and that we are brought to the very brink of death. There are seasons when minutes seem to pass like hours, which in turn seem to pass like days, and days pass like months. Then there are periods of time when our days seem to vanish as quickly as a vapor. There seems to be nowhere for the soul to find comfort and release from such a relentless and horrible condition. No amount of doctrinal understanding, reading, praying, church ordinances, or counseling from ministers and friends will quite our spirits. We seem to be in utter despair and without all hope. being careful that we do not miss the mark of salvation we go too far, becoming sinfully obsessive with the matter. Our minds simply will not give us rest. All is night and there is no sun to shine on our faces. Winter is constant and there are no summer days. There are Storms but no calm.
If this is your case, as it is so often mine, consider this for a possible remedy: There are only four ways to live our earthly lives in lieu of our definite and indubitable eternal destiny that awaits us. (1) We can live with a constant vexation of spirit, which I believe to be more self-inflicted than any thing else, only to find out that we were never saved, and will in the end, after suffering a seemingly hell on this earth suffer a real hell after we die. (2) We can psychologically convince ourselves to go through life with the attitude of eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die; to live without a care in the world, but again only to find out that in the end we are lost. With this approach to life we face sure damnation if we are wrong about what may await us. This does seem to be better though in a sorted sense than suffering twice. (3)We may live with a constant downcast spirit only to find out that in the end we did have saving grace. In essence this is hell on earth and bliss in heaven. Such a state is contrary and inconsistent to the promises, blessings, and the peace (even in the storms of life) that come from knowing God. (4) We can live by faith in Christ for our righteousness and throw sinful concerns and caution to the wind of the Spirit of God, living a life that is free of the heavy burdens that weight us down. It is then that we will enter into heaven having lived as if we are already in its suburbs now. And as if there was no heaven or hell at all, what has one lost? I know that this is not the case though. Let us ask ourselves, "do we really have faith?" Do we really believe that we have Christ for our righteousness no matter our past, present, or future sins? Doubt is a reality but assurance may be obtained. Let us not rest until we have it!
"His favor towards you, will make you blessed; but nothing but the sense of it will cause you to rejoice" Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy Timothy Rogers P.238).
"Rejoice evermore." (I Thess. 5:16)

Timothy Rogers Quote

"The enemy of our souls is full of rage, but that which fills him with fury may yield us comfort, because we know that his time is short. 'The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly' (Romans 16:20) (Rogers Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy Pg.31,32).

Psalms 94:18

"When I said, My foot slipeth; thy mercy, O Lord, held me up (Ps. 94:18).

Timothy Rogers Quote

"Nor are the degrees of your sorrows here proportional to the degrees of your approaching glory" (Rogers Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy Pg. 30).

Why we Fall

Sometimes we are brought low that we might rise up.

Psalm 73:3

"For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked (Psalm 73:3).

Paradoxes of the Christian Faith

Here are a few paradoxes of the Christian faith that distinguish the spiritual state of the believer from that of the unbeliever. As relating to sanctification we might find comfort in that the worst Christian is "better" than the best moralist. For the one is sanctified by God while the other is not. The most ignorant believer is more knowledgeable and wise than the worlds leading atheistic erudite. The poorest Christian, though a pauper to this world, is more wealthy than the richest unbeliever. The one will inherit a heavenly kingdom while the other clings to worldly possessions that have merely a temporal value and is not lasting. The most afflicted Christian is more comforted and blessed than the most surreal; the deaf more sensitive to hearing; and the blind more sightful. The hungry and thirsty are more filled; the imprisoned more free; the fatherless visited; the aged renewed; the dying living; the mourning comforted; the despondent comforted; the forsaken not abandoned; the vexed of spirit are at peace; and the guilty guiltless. There is hope for the hopeless and health for the sick. In failing there is success and it is only in being lost that one can be found. It is only in the loosing of one's life that there is the attaining of life.
These are but a few.

Organized Religion

Organized religion impedes the progress of true religion.

Timothy Rogers Quote

"If we are true Christians...we must expect more trouble from the corruptions of our hearts, from the world, and from the devil" (Rogers Trouble of mind and the Disease of Melancholy Pg.23).

a Kempis Quote

"No one is a worse enemy to himself than himself" (Meeting the Master in the Garden Pg. 52).

Honoring the Puritans

Having read the Puritans for some time now, and falling ever more in love with them, I wish to give tribute to them.

Thanks to men like Don Kistler, previously unavailable Puritan works that have been out of print for many years are readily at hand to us. The benefits of reading the Puritans cannot be expressed! They are incalculable.
Their writings are a very pure source of theology. The style of their writing is characterized by that of beauty, and their element of descriptive language is unparalleled. Every word and thought that is expressed is only that which helps the health of the soul of man and is glorifying to God.
If there are means of grace other than the word of God itself, I say "Here is one!" Indeed their preaching is a wonderful means of grace. Though being dead they yet speak.
No contemporary writings out-shine those of the Puritans. There are only a select few modern-day authors that I will read, and normally they themselves are fans of the Puritans. Read everything you can get your hands on!

Timothy Rogers Quote

"Though the kind hand of our Friend may put us to pain, yet He is but searching our wounds in order to find a cure" (Rogers, Trouble of Mind and the Disease of Melancholy Pg. 22).

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones Quote

"It takes the same grace of God to save the most respectable person in the world as (it does) the most lawless person in the world" (Lloyd-Jones Spiritual DepressionPg. 71).

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones Quote

"Satan who, though he cannot rob us of our salvation, can definitely rob us of our joy" (Lloyd-Jones Spiritual Depression Pg. 69).

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones Quote

"Unhappiness is a condition which does afflict Christian people. There is in this, therefore, a strange kind of comfort which is nevertheless very real. If anyone reading my words is in trouble, let me say this: The fact that you are unhappy or troubled is no indication that you are not a Christian; indeed I would go further and say that if you have never had any trouble in your Christian life I should very much doubt whether you are a Christian at all. There is such a thing as false peace, there is such a thing as believing delusions. The whole New Testament and the history of the Church through the centuries bear eloquent testimony to the fact that this is 'a fight of faith', and not to have any troubles in your soul, is therefore, far from being a good sign" (Loyd-Jones Spiritual Depression 65,66).

Job 11:6

"Know therefore that God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth" (Job 11:6)

Timothy Rogers Quote

"He is God and not man; there is more compassion and real pity in Him than in the most compassionate or tender-hearted man we ever knew. He is God and not man. He whom we have offended, and who can destroy us, is the first to begin to seek reconciliation with us. This is not the manner and way of men, who think that those who have offended them ought to be the first to make advances towards repairing the breach. There is no attribute in the displaying of which the great God glories so much as in this one of mercy; and it is by this that He would be known (Exodus 34:5-7)"(Rogers Trouble of Mind and the disease of Melancholy Pg. 17,18).

Misdemeanors and Felons

There are many "good" Christians (hypocrites too) that view themselves in their own eyes as merely misdemeanors while viewing others as felons--treating them as such. But there is a fundamental doctrinal error here, that is, in the eyes of God there are no misdemeanors, but we are all felons having committed high treason against God. Perhaps compared to others some of us might be quite the criminal, but compared to God we are all guilty of a capital offence. Some fine Christians have need of a fresh understanding of this having drifted far away from their own impressions of guilt while undergoing their conversion experience. Consider this and let us treat one another as equals respecting our sinful conditions; sympathizing with one another: seeing that we all truly suffer under the harshness of that remaining law of sin, as we await our final day of redemption. Some are suffering more than others. Don't add to the pain! Remember how Jesus treated the moral elite compared to the "sinner." The one was treated with contempt while the other received a more mitigated and gracious demeanor from the Lord. Let us be cautious that we do not prove to be such as were the Pharisees, Scribes, and Lawyers of old, but as Christ who says "Your sins are forgiven."

a Kempis Quote

"The just person is sad beyond belief because all the fires of vice can't be extinguished. So why does God permit this? In order to keep humankind forever humble and incessantly imploring divine help" (Thomas a Kempis Meeting the master in the Garden Pg. 42).

a Kempis Quote

"The devout who loves God accepts as coming from God the bitter with the sweet, knows whom to thank (a Kempis Meeting the Master in the Garden Pg. 34).