Monthly Archives: April 2019

Perseverance of the Saints

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Philippians 1:6 (NASB) 
6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB) 
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

My wife and I have been attending a Bible study at a neighbor’s home where a number of people attend.  There are many denominations represented, so the retired pastor who teaches it attempts to steer clear of doctrinal differences and focus on the gospel.  I have found that even so, it is inevitable that they occur.  At first, I thought this might be a problem for me.  But as I have listened to discussions, I realized that God was using this as a way for me to dig deep into the scriptures to help me understand and clarify my beliefs.  I know that some of these are closely held beliefs by sincere Christians who have come to conclusions different than mine.  There are many mysteries in the Bible that require us to carefully study, pray through, and not just merely read.

In early church history there were opposing groups surrounding whether a person can lose their salvation.  Calvin believed that once saved, saved forever.  It was one of the 5 points of Calvanism called Perseverance of the Saints.  An opposing group, believed that you could fall from grace and lose your salvation.  They were called the Armenians.  Denominations today have doctrinal statements that fall into one or the other of these.  And there are many other examples of doctrinal differences.  What is amazing is that the reason many people today attend a church is not because their doctrinal beliefs line up with that church.  Rather it is for other reasons, like the charisma of the pastor, the type of music used, or the types of programs that are offered.

We Christians will all probably be surprised when we get to heaven.  The mysteries will go away.  But in the meantime, we have been given the scriptures.  What a gift it is!

Can you describe the doctrines of faith that you believe?  Can you defend them in love; understanding the opposing view?  

Heavenly Father, thank You for the gospel of grace through Your Son, Jesus Christ.  Thank You for the mysteries of scripture that cause me to rely on the Holy Spirit to teach.  Thank You for giving me a thirst for the special revelation provided in the Holy Bible.  I pray that You would be honored in that pursuit and that I would use it to grow disciples for the glory of the Kingdom.  Amen.

Always praying for the glory of God,   

Adoption – A Picture of the Gospel

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Ephesians 1:3-12 (NASB)

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him 11 also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.

Family adoption is a legal process that takes someone who is not a blood relative and makes them family, just as if they were your blood relative from the very beginning. And that process is what happens when we are adopted by God and change from being one of His creation to one of His children. As in the family adoption, it is initiated by the parents. Our Father in heaven, knew before the foundation of the world that we would be one of His own. When you think about it, that is not only amazing, but actually what you would expect from a Holy, Sovereign God.

God gave me a life experience to know what it is like to adopt children. The process took two young boys that were not related to me and changed their legal status as if they were born of my blood. Their birth certificates are forever changed and I am their father. But the legal process is just the initial step. They then became my family, forever loved as my sons.

God has done the same for us who are His. Forever changed, forever loved, forever forgiven, just like the first born Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Father, thank You for the inheritance of eternal life through the sacrifice of Your Son. Thank You for my adoption into Your family. Thank You for the forgiveness of sin. Thank You for loving me when I was unlovable. I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Always praying for the glory of God,

Holy Spirit, Lead Us

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John 14:26 (NASB)

26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

“I have reason to suspect that many people are trying to give leadership in Christian churches today without ever having yielded to the wise and effective leading of the Holy Spirit. He truly is the Spirit of wisdom, understanding and counsel. He alone can bring the gracious presence of the living God into our lives and ministries.

You may think it out of place for me to say so, but in our churches today we are leaning too heavily upon human talents and educated abilities. We forget that the illumination of the Holy Spirit of God is a necessity, not only in our ministerial preparation, but in the administrative and leadership functions of our churches.”

A. W. Tozer Sermon: We Need Him More and More

Many churches today use detailed spiritual gift tests to determine where members should serve. While well intentioned, we are often called to serve God in areas where we have no spiritual gifts. Scripture is full of examples. And yet, because we organize our churches like we do our businesses, people are sometimes discouraged by leadership to serve where the Spirit leads them.

My wife is a true prayer warrior, the Spirit has gifted her with the ability to pray with and for others. However, several years ago, the Spirit led me, a person with no gift of prayer, to lead the prayer ministry at our church. I wrestled for many months telling God that I wasn’t the one to do that. Yet, He calls those that are weak, to demonstrate His power.

As Tozer said above, we often organize rather than let the Spirit lead us. Are we limiting the spread of the gospel by not allowing the Spirit to lead us?

Holy Spirit of God, lead us, direct us, organize us. I pray we will step aside and let Your glory be magnified by servants that are called by You alone. When You show your power through those that have no gifts, we will praise You. Forgive us for being enamored by gifts of others and not focusing on You. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.