Joni Eareckson Tada's Reflections

It's been 50 years since that diving accident that left Joni a quadriplegic.  I really appreciate her balanced biblical message about suffering and healing and honoring Jesus this side of heaven.

"All Things for Good"

Helpful big-picture Bible reflections from John Piper on our great and good God!  "If you are given singleness instead of marriage as your life, it’s because the blood of Jesus secured the eternal good that singleness will do for you. Or if you’re given a disability or a disease that’s never healed in this life, it is because the blood of Jesus secured the eternal good that this disability will do for you."

"Think It Not Strange"

The team at Desiring God has released a collection of essays on "navigating trials in the New America."  John Piper's introductory video is brief but very helpful as we seek to understand the changing cultural landscape and the place of the church in the West.  The title echoes 1 Peter 4:12, "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you."
 

Twenty-Two Years Like a Day

I can appreciate all the vigorous debate over religious freedom and equal rights and the delicate interplay of diversity and unity within our society, and how it all plays out in relation to Christians and Muslims and atheists and gays and straights and everyone else--it's an important conversation (did I say "shouting match"?).  But so very much more pressing and profound and (in fact) hope-awakening are the deep things of Jesus' love and his sovereign goodness through the storms and all the way home to heaven.  My soul is helped ever so much more by the testimony of Greg Lucas (and the witness of Kara Tippetts, and of Elliott Orr) than by all the excitement of politically charged culture war disputes.

Peace the Passes Understanding

I have so much appreciated the thoughtful, humble, hopeful, honest, God-ward reflections of Kara Tippetts, even as she stepped up to the brink of her departure from this world.  Praying for her husband, pastor Jason Tippets, and for their four children.  (See also this excerpt from her book.)

Obscene Indifference

This New York Times editorial about the world's response to ISIS is sobering and serious.
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Alone, Yet Not Alone

Here's the song and a glance at the recording of it by Joni Eareckson Tada, "Alone, Yet Not Alone," which has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song from the movie, "Alone, Yet Not Alone."

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Trusting God through Trials

Very helpful, encouraging, challenging words of testimony from the Harms family.

Smooth Sailing?

The Lord definitely called Paul and Silas on mission to Macedonia—it was indisputable:  “And a vision appeared to Paul in the night:  a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’” (Acts 16:9).  So they sailed from Troas across the north Aegean Sea toward Philippi, Thessalonica and Berea.

And in so doing, the Lord definitely led his global ambassadors into places where they’d face fierce opposition and violent persecution.  At Philippi Paul and Silas were arrested, flogged, and shackled—all due to false accusations.  In Thessalonica a mob drove them out of town (they escaped by cover of darkness).  Then, after preaching in the synagogue of Berea, raging Thessalonian adversaries hunted Paul and Silas down, and they had to run for their lives once again.

This seems unsettling:  God leads his missionary team into Mace­donia, but then he doesn’t protect them from hostile powers and intense suffering while they’re proclaiming the gospel and planting churches there. What do we make of this apparent tension?

I say “apparent” because, in God’s scheme of things, all things work together for the good of his people (Romans 8:28).  It’s just that we must allow the Lord to achieve that good on his terms and in his time.  We may think it’s wrong for Christian witnesses to suffer harm as they spread the truth of Christ.  But have we considered the value of the testimony of Christians who find their true joy in the love of Jesus even though they suffer?  Don’t forget 1 Thessalonians 1:6:  the newly born-again believers there received the word of Christ amidst much affliction “with the joy of the Holy Spirit” (cf. James 1:2-4).

Or think back to Philippi (Acts 16):  what does it say to the jailer when his Christian prisoners, bleeding from flogging, feet fastened in the stocks, sing songs of praise to God in their dark cell?  We might assume it would have been better if Paul and Silas had been kept comfortable all along their mission journey, but that assumption is entirely now-centered and self-focused.  What about eternal conse­quences?  And what about the potential impact on unbelievers?

Here’s the point:  when the Lord’s at work in our lives, his leading does not and is not supposed to mean smooth sailing.  So if you assume God owes you smooth sailing, think again.  And if your “faith” in Christ is conditional upon being granted smooth sailing, you need to get on your knees before the One who called you to take up your cross (Luke 9:23) and ask if it’s really faith that you have. 

Assuming we should have a comfy, cushy Christian lifestyle, and supposing that our witness in this world ought not to bring us into any kind of trouble, is just wrong-headed, unbiblical thinking.  Plus, that kind of self-oriented, comfort-driven vision for the church will divert us from Jesus’ mission.  He’s called us to go and make disciples among all the people groups of the world—including those in “hard” places (Matthew 28:18-20).  Scripture speaks with eyes wide open about the dangers:  “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12).  “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12).

Another part of the biblical picture, of course, is that the Lord will not give us more than we can handle (1 Corinthians 10:13), and that he’ll be with us, right beside us by his Spirit, as we face any and every kind of trial (Hebrews 13:5).  We’re never alone.  “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.  Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16).  The biblical picture, then, is not of Christian life bypassing suffering but of Jesus’ loving presence with his children in and through and beyond all of this world’s sorrow.

It is extremely important that those who make up a local church family—as disciples of Jesus Christ, as children of the living God, as citizens of heaven traveling together through this world—lock it down in their hearts:  trouble will come; the Lord does not intend to insulate you or me from pain.  In fact, in his wisdom and sovereign ingenuity the Lord orchestrates our lives so as to bring about great good and great gain through the afflictions we face while trusting in him:  our own hearts are reassured at the genuineness of our faith, nonbelievers are struck by the compelling joy of our authentic witness under pressure, and the Lord we love and trust is honored.  And that is GOOD.

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God Wins!

A remarkable expression of faith in Jesus Christ from a woman battling cancer:

God Wins from The Austin Stone on Vimeo.

Boston Bombing

Helpful thoughts from Tony Reinke on our responses to the bombings at the Boston Marathon.
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A Good Word on a Dark Day

I appreciate John Piper's reflections on the suffering Savior on this day when violence struck Newtown, Connecticut.
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Christmas Contentment

 
It’s especially fitting at Christmas time to reflect on Pastor Jeremiah Burroughs’s 1648 book, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment.  “Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition” (p. 19—note “every”).

There’s a “mystery of contentment” (ch. 2):  “It may be said of one who is contented in a Christian way that he is the most contented man in the world, and yet the most unsatis­fied man in the world; these two together must needs be mysterious” (p. 42).  “Mark, here lies the mystery of it, A little in the world will content a Christian for his passage, but all the world, and ten thousand times more, will not content a Christian for his portion” (p. 43).

This “passage/portion” distinction is really crucial.  It's like the interplay of Philippians 3 and Philippians 4:  in ch. 3 Paul is all restlessness and striving—discontent because he can’t get enough of Jesus (so he “presses on” to know Christ more fully); but in ch. 4 Paul is restful, at peace, non-anxious, joyful in the Lord, and content whether he has plenty or faces poverty.  The key is choosing your pleasures wisely: “If God gave you not only earth but heaven, that you should rule over sun, moon and stars, and have the rule over the highest of the sons of men, it would not be enough to satisfy you, unless you had God himself” (p. 43).

As for trusting God with your situation in life, Burroughs says this:  “Here lies the bottom and root of all con­tentment, when there is an evenness and proportion between our hearts and our circumstances” (p. 46).  Thus a believing heart thinks this way:  “The Lord has been pleased to bring down my circumstances; now if the Lord brings down my heart and makes it equal to my circum­stances, then I am well enough” (p. 46).

How do you calm your fretful heart?  “I know nothing more effec­tive for quieting a Christian soul and getting contentment than this, setting your heart to work in the duties of the immediate circum­stances that you are now in, and taking heed of your thoughts about other conditions as a mere temptation.”  Say to yourself:  “Well, though I am in a low position, yet I am serving the counsels of God in those circumstances where I am; it is the counsel of God that has brought me into these circumstances that I am in, and I desire to serve the counsel of God in these circumstances” (p. 52). 

Burroughs also says it more briefly:  “He has all things who has him that has all things” (p. 68).  “Many think, O if I had what another man has, how happily and comfortably should I live!  But if you are a Christian, whatever your condition, you have enough within yourself” (p. 78).  When “if only” beckons, sin is lurking very close by—beware!

“My brethren, the reason why you have not got contentment in the things of the world is not because you have not got enough of them—that is not the reason—but the reason is, because they are not proportionable to that immortal soul of yours that is capable of God himself”(p. 91).  That’s a 17th century way to say:  this world’s trinkets will never satisfy your heart’s deep longings.  There’s a God-shaped void in your soul and nothing can fill it but the all-satisfying and eternally magnificent Lord of glory himself (Gen. 1:27; Eccl. 3:11).

Burroughs sees this life as a voyage, and at Christmas this is vital:  “When you are at sea, though you have not as many things as you have at home, you are not troubled at it:  you are contented.  Why?  Because you are at sea” (p. 94).  “Thus it should be with us in this world, for the truth is, we are all in this world but as seafaring men, tossed up and down on the waves of the sea of this world, and our haven is Heaven; here we are travelling, and our home is a distant home in another world” (p. 95).

Wealth burdens the traveler four ways:  1) trouble (in one’s family and one’s dealings with others); 2) danger (“the sweet of prosperity invites the Devil and temptation”); 3) duty (of those given much God requires much); and 4) account (we’re all stewards, and those with great wealth have a great account to give to God) (pp. 103-107).

We must know three things about “God’s ways”:  1) “God’s ordinary course is that his people in this world should be in an afflicted condi­tion” (p. 115).  2) “Usually when God intends the greatest mercy to any of his people he brings them into the lowest condition” (p. 116).  3) “It is the way of God to work by contraries, to turn the greatest evil into the greatest good” (p. 117). 

And thus, “There is no work which God has made—the sun, moon, stars and all the world—in which so much of the glory of God appears as in a man who lives quietly in the midst of adversity” (pp. 122-23).  Does the glory of God shine in your life this Christmas?

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"My Chains"

Several of the letters God inspired the Apostle Paul to write were penned in prison.  In fact, it’s on account of declaring the message of Christ, Paul says, that “I am in prison” (Colossians 4:3), and he urges the church to “Remember my chains” (4:18; see also 1:24; 4:10).  Just imagine what it was like—chains on his ankles clanking, sores bleeding, rats scurrying, cold and dark … as he wrote!  Philippians, Philemon, Ephesians, and 2 Timothy are also prison letters.

I don’t know about you, but when my circumstances go south, I’m tempted to wallow in frustration over how things ought to go better for me—why do I have to put up with this?  It isn’t right!  (Etc.)  But that’s exactly what we don’t find in Paul’s Prison Letters.  Despite chains, he’s free to bless and encourage and build up believers as he shepherds them from a distance.  Just think what he says; consider the content and tone of this prisoner’s message as he writes the church at Colossae:

Colossians oozes with gratitude; Paul is grateful to the Lord for his brothers and sisters in Jesus, thankful for how they’ve learned and grown and given testimony to the Gospel in their mission (1:3; cf. 1 Thess 5:18).  How would my gratitude hold up if I were bound in chains?  How about you?

Colossians overflows with praise, with highest worship of the all-glorious, eternal Lord Jesus Christ, the Creator and Sustainer of “all things,” the Head of the Church, who is the very Fullness of God, the Preemi­nent Redeemer (1:15-20).  Praise from prison! (of course, we’ve seen this before [Acts 16:25]).

Colossians reports how Paul boldly, confidently rebukes the false teachers who propagate insidious error (2:8-23).  This is not a letter from a timid man, pining away with his chains, hoping someone might just pay attention to his “two cents” on the matter.  Rather, it’s a definitive, authoritative word, inspired by the God of the Universe, to defend and declare life-giving truth.

Colossians may speak from behind bars, as it were, but it pulsates with hope of Christ’s appearing in all his glory, and to our union with him (3:4).  The Apostle’s anticipation of his Lord’s future full victory will not be squelched.

Colossians looks right past the obstacles of captivity to the advance of the Gospel, calling for prayer that God would open doors, pave the way and help his ambassadors speak the word of Christ—to make it clear, so that many might find true freedom (4:2-4)!

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A Precious Promise!

Hebrews 13:5 gives believers priceless comfort: God says, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” In other words, no circumstance in all the world (use your imagination) can separate Jesus’ loved ones from him. The Greek in 13:5 piles up negatives—five of them—to say with fierce certainty: the Lord NEVER abandons his children.

So too, our Good Shepherd offers similar promises of his invincible care in John 10:27-29: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”

Of course, Hebrews 13 also shows that sometimes God’s people do end up in prison (v 3). And 10:32-34 speaks of believers having their homes plundered and facing intense persecution. So this letter is not naïve; there’s no promise of sheer smooth sailing. If you’re inter­ested in Jesus in order to get a comfortable ride through this rugged world, think again: that’s not the Jesus of the Bible.

God promises to be with us, not to make life easy. “… neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

When Hebrews 13:6 declares “I will not be afraid,” a poignant ques­tion follows: “What can man do to me?” And, of course, people can do a lot of terrible things to us—steal from, malign, hurt, even kill us. That’s pre­cisely what Hebrews 13:3 and Romans 8:38-39 acknowledge. But fear not, that’s all they can do: all they can do is kill you.

What people CANNOT do to you is infinitely more important: Satan and his demons and anti-Christian enemies around us cannot touch our Heavenly Father’s love for us and our secure standing as his justi­fied, redeemed, adopted, chosen, forgiven children! In Christ your inheritance is secure (it’s “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,” 1 Peter 1:4; see also John 16:33; 1 John 4:4).

So then, with thanks for these priceless promises, make sure: 1) your hope in Jesus ultimately is centered on the eternal consolations of the life to come and not on being spared trouble today, and 2) your faith is ready to face and stand up under pressure.

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God's Loving Discipline

God’s Word from Hebrews 12 speaks of the Heavenly Father’s discipline. Ah, that word “discipline”—it has such vivid connotations! I wonder what you feel when you hear it?

It’s vital to understand the term the way God means it in his Word. If you equate discipline with punishment, it’s espe­cially crucial to stop, study and see what’s going on in Hebrews 12. Look at the term in context: “The Lord disciplines those he loves” (v 6); “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons” (v 7); “God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness” (v 10).

So it’s obvious that divine discipline is not destructive or some act of meanness or sheer cruelty or any such thing. Nor should we imagine that the Father’s discipline is “punishment” for our sins—since his just and holy wrath against the sins of his people zeroed in entirely on the cross: Christ takes our guilt on his shoulders, and the wrath of God is poured out upon him for it (see 9:28).

If we were to suppose that even the tiniest shred of divine punishment was coming our way in our adversities, we’d be saying that the cross was insufficient—inade­quate to bear the full weight of our guilt. We are not saved by the death of Christ plus by “paying our dues” through affliction! No, the hardships believers face are not punishment in that sense at all.

God’s discipline is positive and constructive; it’s a strategy of love and a means to help his children progress in holiness; it’s a training regimen to help us run fast and far in the race of faith (12:1).

A reticence to accept our various trials as divine discipline may be rooted in pride: “I’m in pretty good shape spiritually; I don’t need some radical surgery to cut away sin tumors; God is out of line to come at me with the scalpel!” Is there a root of such pride in your heart? Wouldn’t it be better to bow before the Lord and thank him for his discipline, assuming that there are many and deep sin faults in our lives that need his loving correction?

The poignant lyrics of the hymn, “How Firm a Foundation” (John Rippon, 1787), can help put things in perspective:

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,

My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;

The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design

Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

Trust the Father today: his design is to do you good!

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God's Work and Our Weakness

I’ve found both of the following resources to be of great help for processing the struggles of this life under the sovereign oversight of God. What’s more, both stories help believers see how it really is true that God’s grace is sufficient for us and his power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Joni Eareckson Tada's book, "A Place of Healing," is available this month for free from https://christianaudio.com/. You can download and listen at your computer or from your MP3 player. Joni herself reads the book. (Obtaining this audio book requires registering and establishing an account.)

John Knight is interviewed regarding his spiritual pilgrimage in the aftermath of the birth of his son, Paul, who was born blind and with various other serious health issues. If you want to see (or just listen to) this interview, go to http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/interviews/john-piper-interviews-john-knight-part-1?lang=en. Note that at the bottom of the video there are links to parts 2 and 3 of the interview. John Knight also blogs at http://theworksofgod.com/.

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Disaster in Japan

For images from Japan, see the Boston Globe’s “Big Picture” galleries.

Here are a couple of very good options for contributing to disaster relief and the spread of Christ's love in Japan:

- Through SEND International

- Through Samaritan’s Purse

I appreciate the Prayer for Japan that John Piper recently posted:

Father in heaven, you are the absolute Sovereign over the shaking of the earth, the rising of the sea, and the raging of the waves. We tremble at your power and bow before your unsearchable judgments and inscrutable ways. We cover our faces and kiss your omnipotent hand. We fall helpless to the floor in prayer and feel how fragile the very ground is beneath our knees.

O God, we humble ourselves under your holy majesty and repent. In a moment—in the twinkling of an eye—we too could be swept away. We are not more deserving of firm ground than our fellowmen in Japan. We too are flesh. We have bodies and homes and cars and family and precious places. We know that if we were treated according to our sins, who could stand? All of it would be gone in a moment. So in this dark hour we turn against our sins, not against you.

And we cry for mercy for Japan. Mercy, Father. Not for what they or we deserve. But mercy.

Have you not encouraged us in this? Have we not heard a hundred times in your Word the riches of your kindness, forbearance, and patience? Do you not a thousand times withhold your judgments, leading your rebellious world toward repentance? Yes, Lord. For your ways are not our ways, and your thoughts are not our thoughts.

Grant, O God, that the wicked will forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Grant us, your sinful creatures, to return to you, that you may have compassion. For surely you will abundantly pardon. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord Jesus, your beloved Son, will be saved.

May every heart-breaking loss—millions upon millions of losses—be healed by the wounded hands of the risen Christ. You are not unacquainted with your creatures' pain. You did not spare your own Son, but gave him up for us all.

In Jesus you tasted loss. In Jesus you shared the overwhelming flood of our sorrows and suffering. In Jesus you are a sympathetic Priest in the midst of our pain.

Deal tenderly now, Father, with this fragile people. Woo them. Win them. Save them.

And may the floods they so much dread make blessings break upon their head.

O let them not judge you with feeble sense, but trust you for your grace. And so behind this providence, soon find a smiling face.

In Jesus’ merciful name, Amen.

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Preaching through Hebrews

This Sunday I’m beginning a sermon series on HEBREWS, “Christ Supreme.” The idea is to move through the letter from beginning to end, care­fully weighing each statement and closely tracing the line of thought, and setting out practical applications of God’s gripping truth along the way.

The Letter to the Hebrews is amazing. But one could say more: it’s complex, rich, demanding, deep, imposing, daunting … and simply breathtaking. Hebrews is like a rugged mountain peak, so the heights must be scaled with great care—and intense anticipation! Grappling with Hebrews is like standing at the rim of the Grand Canyon: it makes your legs ache with that sense of reverent wonder. The majesty of Christ is staggering! I'm praying for the Lord's all-important help in the preparation and proclamation side of things, and that he'd awaken (and re-awaken) Christ-exalting faith in the hearts of his gathered people.

By God’s help, immersion in Hebrews will rivet our eyes on Jesus Christ. At the heart of this letter is the argument and passion that Christ reigns supreme. The glory of God revealed in his Son is a treasure of matchless worth. And so, above all else, cling to Christ—or come to Christ, if you don’t yet trust him!

Hebrews is brutally realistic about the world’s appeals to turn back from the Lord and find our security in lesser “gods,” even though they can never truly satisfy our thirsty souls. But Satan will try to anesthetize you with the delirium of disinterest in Jesus and the vain hope of worldly security and the lazy attitude that quickly labels Hebrews “too difficult”: be warned.

This letter brings a no-nonsense message, confronting hypocrisy and pointing the way of authentic faith. Numerous warnings against sin and spiritual immaturity grab the reader’s attention: don’t turn back from Christ—you’ll lose everything!

Hebrews helps us understand the relationship between the testaments. How is the Old Testament valid for today’s Christian, and in what sense is it superseded by a new way of relating to God: how new is the New Covenant? Getting this right is immensely important if we intend to treat the whole Bible with respect as God’s relevant word for our day and every day.

Sound kind of heady? It is—and “hearty” too. It’s no secret that God’s Word makes demands on your mind; healthy faith calls for careful study. And among the biblical books, it may be that Hebrews leads the way in this regard! We live in a profoundly impatient culture that shuns thoughtful reflection and rushes on to action: do, do, do. What about you? Too busy to study? All that “academic” stuff not your cup of tea? I guess you’re saying you only have time for baby-bottle spirituality.

Finally, Hebrews prepares believers for the real trials and temptations that we hit along the discipleship path. Following Jesus is a joy; no other life can meet your heart’s deep longings. But following Jesus can also be hard. Perseverance is a necessary dimension of authentic faith in Christ, and in order to stand firm, God’s people need to be pulled and pushed (i.e., encouraged and warned) to cling to Christ all the way to glory. Hebrews is God’s gift to his church to do just that.

(For Goshen Baptist Church sermon audios, click here.)

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Imprecatory Psalms

In Psalm 69:22-28 David cries out to God in a prayer of “imprecation.” That means cursing or condemning: his appeal is that destruction would be brought upon those who are God’s and his enemies. “Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous” (69:28 ESV).

What do we do with such fierce verses? Are there people who, as enemies of God, should be the target of such prayers today? Here are three key Christian responses to the imprecatory Psalms:

Recognize that you deserve God’s righteous wrath. You and I are only spared justice and welcomed into God’s friendship by sheer mercy. We’ve sinned and snubbed God’s honor—regardless of whether our sins are glaring or more socially acceptable. Take no comfort in the idea that you’re “not that bad.” Fair compensation for our sin would be spiritual and eternal death (Rom 6:23).

Follow the biblical line of thought to that destination where the longing for justice points. That is, listen to your heart as it cries out for enemies of God and of his people to get what they deserve, and then see how he deals with that injustice. How does the Scripture story unfold so as to provide resolution for the guilty sinners? Answer: the cross. We’re “justified” (i.e., declared not guilty) through the death of Christ in our place (e.g., 2 Cor 5:21; Rom 3:24; 5:8). And this justification, this pardon for violations of God’s just and holy standards, is realized in any given person’s life not on the basis of deserving but as a gift, a gift to all who believe in Jesus—who entrust their lives forever into his care.

Then redirect your righteous rage against God’s enemies who insult and abuse and even murder Christians, and release it at the cross. That is, transfer your soul fury into prayer that injustices committed will be dealt with—fully and finally—in the way God has established in his New Covenant, the final chapter in his grand plot of conflict resolution. Refuse to cultivate hatred for enemies, but instead obey Jesus: “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you” (Luke 6:27-28 ESV). In fact, if we harbor hate in our hearts, we’re saying that the cross was not sufficient to satisfy a just God! Don’t go there. Be content with his good plan for meting out justice in this world, and pray for the Lord’s life-changing hand to bring more and more sinners into his justifying grace.

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