Reformed

In this series of posts, we’ll look at some of the terms used to try and capture what we believe and value. Words have meaning, but divorced from context they could be misunderstood. Understanding how words are defined and used is essential, so this week we’ll look at what we mean by: reformed.

To be reformed is to identify yourself with the principles of the Protestant Reformation that took place under individuals like Martin Luther and John Calvin. These men and others like them challenged the Catholic church in their day over a number of essential theological issues. This event in history started the Protestant movement to which groups like the Presbyterians and Baptists trace back their roots. By using the label “reformed,” we are identifying ourselves to the principles of the Reformation.

There were five Latin slogans that captured the essence of the biblical teaching recovered during the Reformation. They are: Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone); Sola Fide (Faith Alone); Solus Christus (Christ Alone); Sola Gratia (Grace Alone); Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone).

It’s important to note that to be reformed is not to say that we follow a system outside of Scripture. Another slogan during the Reformation was ad fontes (to the source!). This meant the Reformers were interested in returning to biblical Christianity and biblical Christianity alone. All traditions and practices must be measured and weighed by the sure authority of the Scriptures. To be reformed is to subscribe to the same doctrines that Paul, the other apostles, and Jesus himself ascribed to.

Click the “Distinctives” category below for more posts in this series.

Complementarian

In this series of posts, we’ll look at some of the terms used to try and capture what we believe and value. Words have meaning, but divorced from context they could be misunderstood. Understanding how words are defined and used is essential, so this week we’ll look at a fairly new theological word: complementarianism.

What is complementarianism? Like most “isms” it describes a set of beliefs. It was coined recently to describe the biblical idea that men and women have equal dignity and value before God, yet men and women have distinct and complementary roles in the home and in the church. The opposing view, egalitarianism, views men and women as equal in value and roles. For example, egalitarians support both men and women serving as a pastor in a church, whereas complementarians understand Scripture to reserve the role of church leadership to qualified men (1 Tim 2:12-14).

To be a complementarian means that you are going against the grain in today’s society. To believe in certain roles for men and women that the two cannot share seems so foreign today. Complementarians are accused of degrading women and viewing them as less valuable than men. But those accusations are not sustainable. Consider the trinity—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. All 3 persons of the trinity are equal in value and dignity yet they each serve in different and complementary roles. It is not degrading to Christ when he submits to the Father and does the Father’s will. It does not follow that because Christ serves a different role than the Father that he is somehow less valuable. The same applies to the roles of men and women.

It is important to remember that both men and women get their worth and value because they are both made in the image of God and they are both heirs of the grace of life (1 Peter 3:7).

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.Genesis 1:27

Click the “Distinctives” category below for more posts in this series.

Abiding Love Conference

Our good friends at Calvary Grace recently had their annual conference entitled Abiding Love. Ryan Fullerton from Immanuel Baptist Church in Louisville was the main speaker this year. It was a great conference with powerful preaching that was encouraging, convicting, and full of grace and truth.

Here is the audio from the plenary sessions by Ryan Fullerton:
The Necessity of Love (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)
The Shape of Love Part 1 (1 Corinthians 13:4-5)
The Shape of Love Part 2 (1 Corinthians 13:6-7)
Love is Eternal (1 Corinthians 13:8-13)

Here is the audio from the plenary session by Terry Stauffer:
Receiving Love in the Midst of Suffering

You can listen to all the audio from the conference by visiting the Calvary Grace website here.

You can’t take one and not the other

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” …Then he will say to those on his left, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”Matthew 25:31-34, 41

This section of Scripture was part of our reading plan this week. As Jesus teaches, he speaks many times on hell and the coming judgment. He does this not out of hate or cruelty, but out of a loving compassion for those who are living apart from God and are facing the real danger of God’s wrath.

This warning seems to many to be uncharacteristic of a loving God. They would say, “A loving God would never send anyone, even the wicked, into an eternal hell!” The Bible is clear that not everyone will be inherit the future kingdom of God, so many today suggest that those who do not enter the kingdom are judged and then cease to exist—they are annihilated. So those who’ve truly followed Jesus will enter the eternal kingdom, and those who do not cease to exist.

But, if we deny the eternality of hell, we must also deny the eternality of a heavenly kingdom. We can’t reject one and take the other. The very clear word of God puts them both side by side, parallel to each other, and does not give the option to throw out what we don’t like but keep what we do.

And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.Matthew 25:46

Eternal punishment or eternal life. A future judgment is real, the most loving thing to do would be to warn people and tell them how they might find life.

Will you pray for me?

Have you ever been asked to pray for something then forgot? I think this has happened to most Christians. What can we do to improve in this area? Here are two suggestions to help us pray more effectively for each other.

1. When someone asks you to pray for them, pray for them right then and with them. If it is after church on Sunday, step aside and pray with them. If it is on the phone, pray with them over the phone. If it is over email, pray for them as soon as you read the email then respond and tell them you just prayed for them.

2. When someone asks you to pray for them, follow up next week. Write yourself a reminder or ask them to tell you next week how it went. Hearing how God answers prayer is a great encouragement for us to continue praying. When you pray with someone, follow up to see how God answered your prayers or see if there is something more specific you can pray for. After discussing with them be sure to pray together again, continuing to ask God to work or praising him for answering prayer.

Let us pray for each other, encouraging each other and teaching each other to pray and wait on God to hear and answer his people.

Reflections on Matthew 11

If you happen to be following along in the Bible Reading Plan, you’ve likely read through Matthew 11. The beginning of the chapter begins with a curious statement from John the Baptist.

Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’Matt 11:2-3

Apparently while John was in prison he was concerned over whether Jesus really was the promised Messiah (God’s chosen King and Savior). It’s likely that John thought Jesus was going to setup his physical kingdom, bringing blessing to those who repent and judgment on those who do not. Jesus responds, but in an indirect way.

And Jesus answered them, ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.’Matt 11:4-5

Jesus answers by pointing to what he was doing—the signs of the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament. The blind receive sight (Isa 35:5); the lame walk (Isa 35:6); the deaf hear (Isa 35:5); the dead are raised (Isa 26:19); and the good news is preached to the poor (Isa 61:1). What Jesus was doing gave proof of who he was. He was the promised one, there is no need to look for another.

Later in the chapter those same mighty works are mentioned. Those mighty works point to Jesus as the Messiah and they demand a response—repentance.

Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent.Matt 11:20

So what is the proper response to who Jesus is? We are to repent, turn from our sin, turn from living for ourselves and living for Jesus Christ. He promises us rest when we do. No longer are we seeking the approval of others or trying to earn favor with God. Rather, we find rest in Jesus, peace with God and forgiveness of sins. Jesus is the Messiah and we must respond in repentance and come to him as little children.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.Matt 11:28-29

2014 Bible Reading Plan

Jesus says in John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Knowing God is eternal life, and the primary means whereby we grow in our knowledge of God is through his self-revelation—the Bible. God’s Word is large, and can be quite a challenge to read. Encouragement from others and using a reading plan can really help you read through the Bible.

In 2014, we are going to start reading together using a reading plan first developed by Robert Murray M’Cheyne. The reading plan involves reading from different portions of the Bible each day. Following this plan, you can read through the entire Bible in one year and Psalms and the New Testament twice (this involves reading both readings in the chart below). Some may prefer to go at a slower pace and use the same plan to read through Psalms and the New Testament every year, and the Old Testament every two years. This involves reading “Reading 1” in 2014, and reading “Reading 2” in 2015.

The following chart contains the readings for first few days in January. The entire plan is available here.

Date Reading 1 Reading 2
January 1 Genesis 1, Matthew 1 Ezra 1, Acts 1
January 2 Genesis 2, Matthew 2 Ezra 2, Acts 2
January 3 Genesis 3, Matthew 3 Ezra 3, Acts 3

The Dangers of Reading Plans

There are dangers involved with reading plans. They can become a formality (in which Bible-reading degenerates into a lifeless duty); self-righteousness (we pat ourselves on the back for doing the daily reading and ticking the box); careless reading (we read fast to get it done and don’t tremble at the Word of God); and having the plan becomes a yoke too heavy to bear. If the plan becomes a burden, try doing it in two years rather than one. If you’ve missed many days, read the current days reading rather than trying to catch up. Another time, perhaps a Sunday afternoon, can be used catch up on missed readings. The goal is not to cast a burden on us, but to use the plan as a help to meditate on God and his word. These dangers are real and we must all strive to avoid them.

The Advantages of Reading Plans

Although there are many dangers, the advantages of reading plans outweigh the dangers. Advantages include: reading of the entire Bible in an orderly manner over the course of a year; no wasting of time deciding what portion of Scripture to read each day; improved spiritual conversations between parents and children and between friends when everyone is individually reading the same portions of Scripture; a greater opportunity for pastors to reference passages of the Bible in their praying and preaching and individual conversation with church members who have just read those same passages; the strengthened bond of Christian love and unity among Christians who are reading the Scriptures together; and growth in knowledge of the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27).

God has revealed himself so that we might know him, so let us read his word together.