Here is a very good article about faith...

The author suggests it may be very good for witnessing to unbelieving relatives and friends.

Blog: Pyromaniacs
Post: King Herod, the believer

More on Jesus Christ, the Word

Here is more to chew on after December 21^st’s sermon from John 1:1-14, specifically about the word Word as it is attached to our Lord Jesus Christ.

John MacArthur provides more depth on the meaning of Christ as the Word in his commentary on the Gospel of John:

 

To the Jew a word was something concrete, something much closer to what we would call an event or deed. A word spoken was a deed done…What happens when God speaks? The answer is that something is instantly done. God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light’ (Gen. 1:3). God said, ‘So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth; it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it’ (Isa. 55:11). Thus the Jew would be somewhat prepared for the thought that the Word of God could somehow be seen and touched as well as heard and that the ‘Word’ might somehow find expression in a life. It would not be entirely strange for a Jew to learn, as the author of Hebrews puts it, that ‘God, “who at sundry times and in diverse manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son’(Heb. 1:1-2).

“Frightening News for Anyone Who Has a Conscience”

Click here to access this article on Zach Nielsen’s blog.

Ask A Question for Babies' Sakes

Blog: Between Two Worlds
Article: Ask Obama about the Freedom of Choice Act

Be Aware!

Blog: Between Two Worlds
Post: Newsweek's Revisionist, Religious Case for Gay Marriage

Death by Gift Certificate

I thought you might like to read this article titled "Death by Gift Certificate" from AlbertMohler.com.

CLICK HERE TO READ ARTICLE

The Christ of Christmas: A Quote from “Santa Christ?”, by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson

 

“There is…an element in the Gospel narratives that stresses that the coming of Jesus is a disturbing event of the deepest proportions. It had to be thus, for He did not come merely to add something extra to life, but to deal with our spiritual insolvency and the debt of our sin. He was not conceived in the womb of Mary for those who have done their best, but for those who know that their best is like “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6)—far from good enough—and that in their flesh there dwells no good thing (Romans 7:18). He was not sent to be the source of good experiences, but to suffer the pangs of hell in order to be our Savior.” (You will find the whole article by Dr. Ferguson HERE)

The Dark Deceptiveness of Darkness

 

“For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” 2 Corinthians 4:6

I’ve been thinking a lot about spiritual blindness (2 Corinthians 4:3) and darkness and how this darkness can be so deceptive. Lost people who are blind do not grasp that they are in darkness and, in fact, they prefer darkness. The Scripture says that they love it.

Consider John 3:19-20—“And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.” People loved the darkness!

This is why new birth by the Holy Spirit is needed. In darkness, people love what is wicked, sinful, and dark and despise the light (who is Christ, John 8:12), even though they are aware that their sin dooms them. “Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them” (Romans 1:32). Therefore, they need the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit to give them new hearts and affections that are soft toward God and embrace repentance and faith for rescue from darkness in Christ.

I urge you to pray for “darkness lovers” in your spheres of influence, that the Spirit of God would bring them to life and draw them to Jesus Christ! Pray in terms of the promise of Ezekiel 36:26-27—“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”

Iraqi Christians Threatened-- Pray!

Stalked - Where do 2 million Iraqis who have fled to neighboring countries go now?.

Giving Thanks Always, And For Everything

Preparing and preaching “Thankful Always and For Everything” from Ephesians 5:15-20 on Thanksgiving Sunday was very convicting and good for me.  I am thankful that the Word is so powerful and precise.  It is “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12, ESV).

May it be more and more true of us at Rocky Bayou Baptist Church that we be people who are noticeably and radically thankful people— thankful “always and for everything to God the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20).  How can we grow in such thanksgiving?  By being filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18).  As we submit ourselves to His control by drinking in the Spirit-authored Word of God (1 Corinthians 2:12-14), and asking the Father to fill us up with Him (Ephesians 3:14-20), and agreeing with the Holy Spirit’s purpose to glorify Christ in us (John 16:14), the outflow of our living will include “giving thanks always and for everything”.

For more on being thankful people, please read the article below, “When ‘Thank You’ Means ‘You Win, Lord’”, from Trevin Wax.  Thankfulness honors Christ!  Happy Thanksgiving Day to you!

When “Thank You” Means “You Win, Lord”

November 24, 2008

“Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?”
- Jesus, to the Samaritan who returned to thank Him (Luke 17:17)

The account of such flagrant ungratefulness on behalf of nine lepers, healed graciously by Jesus, seems shocking to us today. How could only one of ten come back and say “Thank you?”

Yet, in Jesus’ day, the absence of vocal thanksgiving was not uncommon at all. In fact, thanking someone for hospitality or for an act of kindness could actually be considered an affront to the host!

If a person in Jesus’ day received a gift from his neighbor, he would not dare thank the neighbor verbally. Instead, he would begin thinking of how he could return the neighbor’s graciousness by doing something above and beyond that which had been done for him.

The culture of honor and shame created a climate leading each person to try to “outshine” the other in acts of generosity. Relegating gratitude to simply saying “thank you” essentially implied that one would not return the favor, thus ending the “give-and-take” relationship.

Understanding this ancient mentality opens up a deeper meaning to the Samaritan’s action of thanksgiving.

Instead of clinging to his cultural pride, the healed leper renounced the game of “outshining” the other’s honor and threw himself at Jesus’ feet in worship. He was announcing his utter weakness in trying to repay the Master for the gift of healing.

More than showing recognition for his healing, the Samaritan was recognizing that Jesus had “won” - the honor was His! It was pointless to try to return so great a favor, senseless to seek to uphold personal honor.

When we come before God with thanksgiving, we are doing much more than showing Him gratitude for certain gifts and blessings He has bestowed on us.

More importantly, we are renouncing the game of seeking our own honor, humbly acknowledging that God has given us more than we could ever repay! He is the only one worthy of praise and nothing we will do can ever compare with His amazing grace.

written by Trevin Wax © 2008 Kingdom People blog

Nov. 16 Sermon Follow-up: God Uses Means to Speak the Gospel

In the last sermon from Jonah I reminded us that God uses means to speak out the truth and the good news of Jesus Christ.  Let us be ready to do so.

1 Peter 3:15 tells us to be ready to give a defense or reason or answer for the hope that is within us.  What about my life or yours would move others to inquire about our hope?  A convicting question, isn’t it?  Zach Nielsen’s blog (below) contains an on-target challenge to live life for Christ in such a way that people are befuddled and have to ask why.  What do you think?

Click HERE to access the article

Between Two Worlds: Fight FOCA

Between Two Worlds: Fight FOCA (The Freedom of Choice Act)

THE WORD IS LIFE

On the weekend of November 9^th I had the joyful experience of being with friends in Bradenton, FL, to share in Bethel Baptist Church’s 50^th anniversary. It was a sweet time! I am grateful to Bethel Baptist because the people there patiently loved and cared for me as Rynette and I ministered among them fresh out of seminary as their inexperienced assistant pastor.

On Sunday morning my dear friend, Don Windmiller, preached a great sermon about being a warrior for the Lord from Judges. I loved hearing Don again! Bethel’s present pastor, Joey Mimbs, graciously gave me ten minutes to speak that Sunday morning. I could have shared warm memories of our time at Bethel from 1979-85. But the Lord helped me to point the church to the importance of the Word of God as they looked ahead on their big anniversary. Here’s the outline of what I said?

1. Bethel has always faithfully preached and taught the Bible. May it always be so! And I asked the preachers and teachers of the church to stand and receive the charge of Jeremiah 15:19—“Therefore thus says the LORD, ‘If you utter what is precious and not what is worthless, you shall be as my mouth.’” What an awesome privilege for God’s people—to share in the declaration and reception of and life response to God’s precious truths.

1. Be people who are ravenous for the Word. I chose the term “ravenous” deliberately. We must be ravenous for God’s truth because without it we shrivel and die. The Word is life to us! “It is no empty word for you, but your very life.”

1. Be people who obey the Word—for joy! Jesus said, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:10-11).

1. And be people who tremble at the Word because we need God to be for us, not against us. God said in Isaiah 66:2, “But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.”

I pray this for Bethel Baptist in Bradenton and for ourselves at Rocky Bayou Baptist Church!

Compassion for Lost People and Hell.

Blog: Oversight of Souls
Post: Applying the Doctrine of Hell

Praying on Election Day.

http://www.albertmohler.com/blog_read.php?id=2709

A Culture of Life in the Church

Blog: Between Two Worlds
Post: A (Counter)Culture of Life in the Church
Link: http://theologica.blogspot.com/2008/10/counterculture-of-life-in-church.html

Sermon Follow-up: Encouraging Adoption in Response to Abortion in America

Blog: Between Two Worlds
Post: True Religion
Link: http://theologica.blogspot.com/2008/10/true-religion.html

Preparing to vote!

Blog: Between Two Worlds
Exegeting Obama on Homosexuality

Abortion Is Morally Outrageous!

 

“I believe abortion is morally outrageous:

fatal for children,
damaging to women,
corrupting to men,
debasing to culture,
mangling to human reason and language,
and an assault on Jesus Christ, through whom all things were made.”

(quote from John Piper’s sermon, “The Darkness of Abortion and

the Light of Truth”, January 26, 2003)

Judgment and Compassion

On Sunday morning, Oct. 19, I said something like this in my sermon from Jonah 3 (“Jonah’s Second Chance”):

Proclaiming God’s impending judgment on sin is an expression of His compassion…Why? Because it is His call for sinful people to repent, and repentance is the first word of the gospel! And the gospel is good news! Mark 1:14-15 is beautiful—“Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’”

“Repent and believe the gospel!”

“Given the nature of sin, God, in His justice, could simply judge His people completely and immediately. But He, in love, desires to extend His mercy, forgiveness, and restoration to all of His people…In fact, the first word from the heart of God, revealed from Genesis through Revelation, is His urgent and loving call: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand!” Repentance from the beginning of time to the present hour has been, and remains, the most positive word from the heart of God!” (Henry Blackaby, in his forward to Repentance: The First Word of the Gospel, by Richard Owen Roberts)

Thank God that, out of His great heart of compassion, He declares His judgment against our sin and calls us to repent!

A moving article by an abortion survivor.

Be sure to view the videos contained within the article. They are worth your time.

Click here to access the article: “Abortion: The Strong Define the Rights of the Weak.”

Here's another powerful article...

Click here to view article.

I thought you might like to read this article...

"So, What's Really at Stake in the Gay Marriage Debate?  Part One" from AlbertMohler.com.

Pray for India and Iraq

Click here to access this article.

Approaching the Election

There are two important posts for you to read as you prepare to participate in the upcoming election. Both are found at www.theologica.blogspot.com and were posted on October 14, 2008. Here are their titles: (These are clickable links)

“A Call to Fast for the Protection of the Defenseless”

“Robert P. George: Voting for the Most Extreme Pro-Abortion Candidate in American History Is Not the Way to Save Unborn Babies”

See Also:

I thought you might like to read this article titled "The Abortion Question and the Future" from AlbertMohler.com.

"The Abortion Question and the Future"

Did Jonah Die Inside the Great Fish?

In my sermon’s introduction on October 12, 2008, I asked the question, “Did Jonah die inside the great fish?” We cannot conclude with absolute certainty that he did or did not.

I have very much reveled in the possibility/probability that Jonah died and was brought back to life! Here is the quote I read from Dr. John Piper, expanded a bit more:

 

“If you ask how a man can survive in the belly of a fish three days, the answer is, he probably can’t—any more than a person stay three days in the grave and live again. That’s why Jesus called it a ‘sign’. In Matthew 12:39 He says, ‘An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah, the prophet.’ Jesus knew this was no ordinary event. It was a miraculous sign of God’s gracious and powerful intervention. There is no point in trying to explain it away scientifically any more than the miraculous signs of Jesus’ ministry.” (Piper’s sermon, November 21, 1982)

And here is another quote, this one from RBBC’s Rusty Christensen, who wrote the following in his journal in October, 2006:

 

“Did Jonah actually die in the belly of the fish? I think he did and God resurrected him for the sole purpose of carrying out what He originally asked him to do. Consider—the grave simply gave up her dead—much like Jesus’ resurrection and those who were brought back to life when Jesus rose. The theological depth is greater—this is not simply that he almost died, and that God used a fish to bring him back to where he needed to be. But rather, he died—his life, his goals and his opportunities to be used of God for His glory have vanished. I think the language of Jonah supports the argument. (Sheol, the pit etc.) Consider…We are running around wasting our life—the exact opposite direction of what God is telling to do and where to go. We only realize our eternal mistake when it is too late. Jonah had a second chance.” (used with Rusty’s permission)

O, Dear Lord, grant us grace to live our lives today in your death-conquering, life-giving power! Thank you for your patience and compassion with Jonah--- and me. Amen.

Economic Crisis: Shall We Fear?

It’s Wednesday, October 8, 2008, and I read this on an online news page at 3:00 P.M.: “Deep Recession Imminent”. The markets have plummeted; banks are collapsing; the Fed and World Bank are scrambling to the rescue; the housing market is anemic; and jobs are threatened. Shall we fear?

Rynette and I talked about this last night before we prayed and went to sleep, and I was reminded that how we respond to the national/international financial emergency will show what and who we love, trust, and worship. I do not write this flippantly; I know what the gnawing sensations and adrenaline rushes of anxiety and fear are like. Through His Word our kind God has taught Rynette and me much about fear during the last year. He showed us that where there is fear, idolatry accompanies it.

I encourage you to war against fear and idolatry in these very unsettled times with truths found in the Word of God:

* The Lord does not change!

“For I, the LORD, do not change…” Malachi 3:6

* God is with you!

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my Righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

* Money won’t last!

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust (and faulty financial systems) destroy and where thieves (and greedy financiers) break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” Matthew 6:19-20

* Christ is worthy of your focus, not money!

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21

* God will take care of you!

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food (and finances)...Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow…” Matt. 6:25,34

* Pray and be thankful!

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

“Delivered Up for Our Trespasses”

“Delivered”…What a word! In “Jonah Points to Jesus”, my communion meditation on October 5, I invited the people to consider Romans 4:25. There we read: “…Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification” (Romans 4;24b-25).

“Delivered”…I love this word. Revel in it with me. Actually, revel in them with me because several Greek words are rendered “deliver(ed)” in the New Testament.

In Romans 4:25, “delivered up” is from the Greek verb “paradidomi”, meaning “to deliver over”. God the Father delivered His precious Son to die for our trespasses! “How deep the Father’s love for us, how vast beyond all measure!” How great His commitment to the display of His glory in grace and holiness and mercy and justice! The same Greek verb root is also found in Galatians 2:20 (and this moved me very much as I read it): “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself [delivered Himself up] for me.” “O, how He loves you and me!”

And here is one other instance of the verb “deliver”, this one being from the Greek word “rhuomai”, meaning “to rescue from”. This is so great! Colossians 1:13-4-- “He [the Father] has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sin. “Hallelujah! What a Savior!”

So be glad in this with me. God the Father delivered up His only begotten, beloved Son, and the Son delivered Himself up to die, so that we might be delivered from the domain of darkness and be granted life in His kingdom, having redemption and forgiveness of sin! Delivered—what a sweet word!

20 Resolutions from James

These resolutions by Sinclair Ferguson are excellent as we continue to live out the book of James at RBBC.

Between Two Worlds: Sinclair Ferguson: 20 Resolutions from James

“And Count the Patience of Our Lord as Salvation”

The first chapter of Jonah is full of God’s patience! Behold and bless and worship and thank the Lord!

Jonah was a prophet of God; he heard God’s instructions to preach in Nineveh; he thumbed his nose at the LORD and defied Him, trying to flee “away from the presence of the Lord” (1:3). But in His patience God did not let Jonah go—He chased Him!

You know the story… God “hurled a great wind upon the sea” (1:4) and caused the lot to fall to Jonah (1:7). He used Jonah to bear witness to the ship’s crew about “the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land” (1:9). And when the sailors asked Jonah what to do (because Jonah’s God made the sea and surely controlled the sea) in order to calm the storm and save the ship, the prophet preferred to remain rebellious and die, rather than repent! So Jonah was pitched over the side to drown, and who could charge God with unfairness if He had let Jonah sink to the bottom!

But, behold God’s patience! Jonah did not drown; God pursued him. “The LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights” (1:17).

Believer, this is what God does for us when we know what He requires of us, and yet we choose to trust our own judgment and love sin more! Jonah was foolish; we are foolish. But God is patient! “But you, O LORD, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Psalm 86:15). He pursues us. He shows us that defiance will lead to shipwreck. And He beckons to us: “Repent! I will cleanse and forgive and restore you, for My glory, and My Son’s name’s sake, and for your joy” (1 Jon 1:9; John 15:11).

Let us rejoice in the Lord’s patience with us and be drawn in the wonder of His saving, sanctifying grace to eagerly trust and obey Him!

"Jonah and Joy": Sept. 23, 2003

The prophet Jonah disobeyed God’s specific command and commission to him and headed out to sea instead of cross-country to Nineveh. “Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me. But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD” (1:1-3).

What happened when Jonah tried to get away from God? “In his excellent preaching on Jonah, Donald Grey Barnhouse…noted that Jonah did not get to where he was going, since he was thrown overboard, and the he obviously didn’t get a refund on his ticket. So he paid the full fare and did not get to the end of his journey. Barnhouse said, ‘It is always that way. When you run away from the Lord you never get where you are going, and you always pay your own fare.” (from John MacArthur’s The Minor Prophets, vol. 1, page 216)

Think about it. Like Jonah, when we disobey the Lord’s commands and try to flee from Him, we never get where we want to go, the place of satisfaction and contentment. And we pay a price, a heavy price. But it need not be this way for us.

Our Lord Jesus does not call us to obey His commands (and commission) to keep us under His thumb or ruin our fun or limit us. He calls us to obey Him…FOR OUR JOY! “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be full” (Jon 15:9-11). What better place to abide than in Christ’s love? And what greater joy than that which Jesus gives? Full joy!

This is not to say that pursuing Christ in obedience will always be peaches and cream. No, but Jonah’s experience certainly shows us that disobedience is hardly preferable! It is true that going after the Lord Jesus will include difficulty and suffering from time to time. After he was stoned nearly to death at Lystra, he said, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). But such hardship and difficulty is not the same as being pitched overboard into a raging sea for having run away from God! Rather, it comes because of allegiance and love for Christ Jesus and serves to draw us closer to Him (Phil. 3:10 “…that I may share in the fellowship of His suffering”), increase our hope for glory ( 2 Cor. 4:17 “This light and momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison”), and work righteousness and holiness in us (Hebrews 12:6, 10-11). Therefore, suffering in pursuit of Christ and for His glory is far different and greater than suffering for our rebellion and disobedience to Him.

Will you choose the promise of joy in following Christ (Hebrews 12:1-2), even when it means suffering for His Name’s sake, or the emptiness of the self-authored life? Will you seek the eternal rewards of trusting and obeying Jesus (Matthew 5:11-12; 2 Cor. 4:17), or the momentary satisfaction of “self-determination” and fleeing from God that always lead to gaping un-fulfillment?

For more about suffering and following Christ, I recommend John Piper’s chapter on suffering in Desiring God. It is thoroughly biblical and Christ-honoring, and a huge challenge to most American Christians, including me.

What is the meaning of Colossians 1:24 in real life? Paul wrote, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His body, that is the church…” Certainly it does not mean that the Lord’s suffering was somehow lacking or deficient? What then?

Here is an excerpt from Desiring God to draw your interest, I hope—

The Blood Flowed from Our Wounds Like a Fountain There are countless examples in our own day of choosing to suffer for the purpose of Colossians 1:24 -- to complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions by presenting them to others through suffering.12 As I was writing this chapter in late 1995 a missionary letter describing such suffering came to my attention. I quickly E-mailed the missionary in Africa to confirm the facts. He spoke personally with Dansa and got his permission for me to quote this story in Dansa's words from the letter.

Around 1980 there was a time of server persecution from the local officials of the communist government in my area of Wolayta. At the time, I was working in a government office, but I was also serving as the leader of the Christian youth association fro all the churches in my area. THE communist officials repeatedly came to me to ask for my help in teaching the doctrines of the Revolution among the youth. Many other Christians were giving in because the pressure was very great, but I could only say no.

At first, their approach was positive: they offered me promotions and pay increases. But then the imprisonments began. The first two were fairly short. The third time lasted an entire year. During this time communist cadres would regularly come to brainwash the nine of us believers (6 men and 3 women -- one of whom would later become my wife) who were being held together. But when one of the cadres converted to Christ, we were beaten and forced to haul water from long distances and carry heavy stones to clear farm land.

The worst time came during a two week period in which the prison official would wake us early while it was still dark when no one could see and force us to walk on
our bare knees over a distance of up to 1 1/2 kilometers on the gravel road of the town. It would take us about three hours. After the first day, the blood flowed from our wounds like a fountain, but we felt nothing.

On another occasion one particularly brutal prison official forced us to lie on our backs under the blazing sun for six straight hours. I don't know why I said it, but when we finished I told him, " You caused the suns's rays to strike us, but God will strike you." A short time later, the official contracted sever diabeties and died.

When the communist govenemnt fell several years later, the head official invited us back to preach in the jail. At that time, twelve prisoners being held for murder received Christ. We have continued to minister in the prison, and there are now 170 believer s. Most of the prison officials have also beleived.

Only God can sort out all the influences that led to this remakable time of harvest among the prison inmates and officials. But surely it would be naive to think that the suffering of Dansa was not part of the compelling presentation of the reality of Christ in the loves of those who believed.

DON’T GRUMBLE… SHINE!

On September 7th the sermon text was James 5:7-11. Found in those verses is this—“Do not grumble against one another, brothers…” (verse 9).

When I looked for other instances of the word “grumble” in the Word I came to Philippians 2:14-15—“Do things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world…”

Do you see it? When our lives as Christ’s followers are without grumbling and questioning, we are like lights shining for others around us to see. Grumbling is dark and commonplace in the world and natural to most people. But it isn’t for us as Christians. It is noticed by others when grumbling and questioning is absent from our lives.

Grumbling? Do you do it? By God’s grace, put it to death…and shine!

Pray for the People of Haiti

Please pray for the people of Haiti. There is a special place in RBBC’s heart for Haiti—Heart of the Bride, led by Tony Gibson, ministers among children there and some of our church family have been short-term missionaries there. Dan and Tracy Shelton are pursuing adoption of two Haitian daughters and dealing with a very trying process.

And Haiti has been devastated by one storm after another! Hundreds have died, roadways and bridges are washed out, homes are destroyed, food supplies are short, and the country has been almost deforested.

So pray and seek other ways to show Christ’s love, too.

And here is something more to move our hearts for Haiti:

Slavery in Haiti
September 8, 2008 By: John Piper
Category: Commentary, International Outreach

It is a good thing that people from all ideologies are talking about the horrors of human trafficking. Don’t let the “trendiness” of it dampen your indignation. If a liberal champions a good cause woe to conservatives who put their head in the sand.

Doug Nichols has been on the cutting edge of caring for street children since before some of you were born. He is one of my heroes. As Founder of Action International, Doug draws my attention to child slavery in Haiti. The children are called restavéks(stay-withs).

He writes: “Let me share a few paragraphs from the recent book A Crime So Monstrous, by Benjamin Skinner:

…Slaves are everywhere. Assuming that this is your first trip to Haiti, you won't be able to identify them. But to a lower-middle-class Haitian, their status is 'written in blood.' Some are as young as three or four years old. But they'll always be the small ones, even if they're older. The average fifteen-year-old child slave is 1.5 inches shorter and 40 pounds lighter than the average free fifteen-year-old. They may have burns from cooking for their overseer's family over an open fire; or scars from beatings, sometimes in public, with the martinet, electrical cables, or wood switches. They wear faded, outsized castoffs, and walk barefoot, in sandals or, if they are lucky, oversized shoes...

You may see their tiny necks and delicate skulls straining as they tote five-gallon buckets of water on their heads while navigating broken glass and shattered roads.

These are the restavéks, the 'stay-withs,' (child slaves) as they are euphemistically known in Creole. Forced, unpaid, they work from before dawn until deep night. The violence in their lives is unyielding. These are the children who won't look into your eyes.

Nationwide the number of restavéks ballooned from 109,000 in 1992 to 300,000, or one in ten Haitian children, in 1998, to 400,000 in 2002."

“Preaching to Ourselves”

Following the sermon from James 4:13 – 5:1-6 on August 31, I asked you to see the connection between James 5:1-6 and Luke 12:13-21, and to preach truth to yourself as you battle for your joy in Jesus! That joy—joy in Jesus Christ—is infinitely sweeter and more valuable than seeking joy in money and stuff. And it is eternally rewarding, not eternally condemning!

Preaching to ourselves…It is a great thing to learn and grow in.

Yesterday I read a brief quote from Milton Vincent’s A Gospel Primer for Christians. It links with the book of James. The most breath-taking statements in James are these: “Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God…God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:4 and 6) By God’s kindness and grace, I don’t want to be God’s enemy! O, I don’t want God to oppose me! I want to be humble and receive His grace—“more grace” (4:6). And I’m sure you agree with me if you are in Jesus Christ by grace through faith.

How do we oppose pride and humble ourselves before the Lord? One way is by preaching the gospel to ourselves. Here is the quote from Vincent:

“Preaching the gospel to myself each day mounts a powerful assault against my pride and serves to establish humility in its place. Nothing suffocates my pride more than daily reminders regarding the glory of my God, the gravity of my sins, and the crucifixion of God’s own Son in my place. Also, the gracious love of God, lavished on me because of Christ’s death, is always humbling to remember, especially when viewed against the backdrop of the Hell I deserve.”

I encourage you. Join me in preaching the gospel to yourself for the glory of Jesus Christ in and through you, and the pummeling of pride, and your submission to God, and your battle against temptation, and the defeat of self-sovereignty (James 4:13-17), and the bridling of your tongue, and your cherishing of Christ more than anything else, and your growing effectiveness in witness and missions, and…

Sept. 2, 2008

We are continually inundated with subtle or not-so-subtle messages that happiness, goodness and success in life are relative to the amount of wealth and possessions we acquire. But the opposite is true. In fact, the pursuit of happiness in money and stuff is ultimately dissatisfying and deadly!

James says so in chapter 5:1-6 and his brother, the Lord Jesus, says so in Luke 12:13-21. Both these passages are very good to preach to ourselves when battling for our joy in Jesus. Notice the similarities in the two texts please; James apparently paid attention to his Lord.

James 5:1-6

Luke 12:13-21


Let’s pray for one another, that we will go hard after Christ and our joy in Him (John 15:11).

Pastor Carey

August 21, 2008

“Humble yourselves before the Lord…Do not speak evil against one another” (James 4:10-11).

In a jointly written article by Tim Keller and David Powlison, the authors ask the question, “Should You Pass On Bad Reports?” One of the Scripture passages they expound on is James 4:10-11—“Humble yourselves before the Lord. Brothers, don’t slander or attack one another.”

They write further: “The verb ‘slander’ simply means to ‘speak against’ (Gk. Kata-lalein). It is not necessarily a false report, just an ‘against report’. The intent is to belittle another. To pour out contempt. To mock. To hurt. To harm. To destroy. To rejoice in purported evil. This can’t mean simple disagreement with ideas—that would mean that we could have a debate over a point…James warns against attacking a person’s motives and character, so that the listeners’ respect and love for the person is undermined.”

Something to ponder and pray over.

MEDITATING ON JAMES-From Pastor Carey

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it…” (Joshua 1:8)

“I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.” (Psalm 119:15-16)

I encourage you to meditate on the Word of God—to savor it, delight in it, examine yourself in its light, and ponder its application to your life. “Meditate” in the Hebrew language means to speak the Word to yourself. This is what I’ve been doing during these past several weeks of concerted prayer in our church family.

In prayerfully turning James 4:7 over in mind, I was convicted about the nature of my sin and given a weapon to use in the fight against sin. That verse explains how to humble myself and reads, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” As I preached these words to myself the Spirit showed me that sin is submitting myself to the devil and resisting God! This what Adam and Eve did in the garden and it’s what I do when I sin in my mind or attitudes, with my tongue, or by my actions. I reverse the imperative verbs of James 4:7. I believe the Evil One’s lies and reject the Lord’s instructions, even though I know full well that Christ calls us to obey Him so that His full joy may be in me (John 15:11).

When this struck me I was horrified! I don’t want to prefer the devil over Christ!

This understanding serves as a piece of equipment in my arsenal against stepping into sin. I think of it as part of the “shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one” and “the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God” (Ephesians 6:16-17). When temptation comes to violate God’s Word and discount His commandments and promises to me, it helps me to think, “Do I really desire to believe the devil and distrust God?”

Thus meditating on one verse, James 4:7, has resulted in help for battling sin and building faith in the Lord Jesus. And I encourage you to grow in meditation on the Scriptures so that your delight in the Lord increases, and that you are more thoroughly equipped to pursue the obedience of faith, and that your understanding of Truth is deepened.

COMING ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 17: James 4:11ff.

July 29, 2008

I am grateful to the Lord for speaking a strong, loving message to us through Pastor Dale last Sunday. In particular the Holy Spirit dealt with me about prayer, in James 4:2-3-- “You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” I was moved to check my motives in praying. Am I asking wrongly? Do I long for more of God and His will to be made known and done?

Thank you, Dale, for opening the Word to us on Sunday!

Also, please read the following article from Tim Challies (http://www.challies.com/) and be challenged and helped--“Who Is In Control?”
Click Here to be directed to the article.

Blessings of grace to you, Pastor Carey

July 21, 2008

The following article, "Me, Myself and iPhone", is a good example of the difference between "wisdom from below" and "wisdom from above"-- James 3:13-18. Please read it reflectively and prayerfully.

Me, myself, and iPhone

Technology can be an instrument for gratitude or for idolatry Vern Poythress. Ten years ago a few visionaries were predicting the era of
"ubiquitous" computing, when all kinds of appliances would contain computerized links to the rest of the world. Now it is upon us, in the form of cell phones.

A capable cell phone today has more computing power than the computer
that took the Apollo astronauts to the moon. It gives instant access not only to your friends' voices but to all the information on the internet. Are you keeping up or falling behind in the race for the latest electronic fashions?

Science and technology get a lot of attention because of the new gadgets they spin out. I love science, because it displays God's wisdom
(Proverbs 8:22-31). I love technology, because it shows what great gifts God has given to us, and what great human capacity God has given us to exercise dominion (Genesis 1:28-30). But I see hopes placed in science and technology that they cannot fulfill. Science, it is said, will solve the problems of world hunger. It will bring world peace. And more and better technology will solve the problems introduced by lesser technology.

Well, sometimes; and in some ways. Maybe science will find an efficient way to harness nuclear fusion to produce clean power—or maybe not. But we can be awash in technology and still be hate-filled or lonely. You can have 200 friends on Facebook and have no one who really knows you, no one who loves you.

Sometimes science only increases the problem. If, instead of seeing the
wisdom of God in it, you listen to the propaganda of scientism, it will solemnly assure you that you inhabit a faceless, lonely, materialistic universe that is heading only toward ultimate death. And the gadgets of technology become Band-Aids to cover spiritual wounds and empty hearts. One more electronic game or one more DVD movie or one more pop song holds back the slide into boredom and depression. We search for one entertainment after another to keep back the dread of facing the hollow inside.

God will not be mocked (Galatians 6:7). If you sow a "me"-centered
life, you will reap a harvest of emptiness. If you hope in the human wisdom of science, it will fail. Knowledge it may offer, by the truckload. But when such knowledge is detached from the God who gave it, it cannot give you wisdom to know yourself or to know God. The technology in which you hoped will mock you and testify to your ingratitude to God.

We have lost our way. Christ answers, "I am the way" (John 14:6). The
world is founded on Christ, by whom all things were created, in whom all things hold together (Colossians 1:16-17). From Him we can have eternal life in fellowship with God: "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die" (John 11:25-26). His power, manifest in His resurrection, is the foundation for all science and technology. The Bible says that Christ "upholds the universe by the word of His power" (Hebrews 1:3). His upholding sustains the regularities on which science and technology constantly depend. His wisdom is behind the knowledge and beauty in science. What is most astounding is that you can know Him personally, and have your rebellion healed. And then you will know that He, the King of the universe, loves you and understands you. If you are grateful to Him, you will have science and technology in perspective.

—Vern S. Poythress is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at
Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, where he has taught for 30 years

Copyright © 2008 WORLD MagazineJuly 26, 2008, Vol. 23, No. 15

July 16, 2008: "The Tongue and Pride"

God’s conviction in my life concerning the exercise of my tongue (see James 3:1-12) continues. I found a list of “manifestations of pride” and immediately noticed that quite a few of them are directly or indirectly connected with the tongue. James 3:5 says, “So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts (there’s the pride) of great things.”
I encourage you to read over the list prayerfully, inviting the kind, convicting, freeing work of the Spirit to lead you to repent where needed. Here is the list:

1. Complaining against or passing judgment on God (see Exodus 17).

2. A lack of gratitude in general.

3. Anger.

4. Seeing yourself as better than others.

5. Having an inflated view of your importance, gifts and abilities.

6. Perfectionism.

7. Talking too much.

8. Being focused on the lack of your gifts and abilities.

9. Talking too much about yourself.

10. Seeking independence or control.

11. Being consumed with what others think.

12. Being devastated or angered by criticism.

13. Being un-teachable.

14. Being sarcastic, hurtful, or degrading.

15. A lack of service.

16. A lack of compassion.

17. Being defensive or blame-shifting.

18. A lack of admitting when you are wrong.

19. A lack of asking for forgiveness.

20. A lack of biblical prayer.

21. Resisting authority or being disrespectful.

22. Voicing opinions of preferences when not asked.

23. Minimizing your own sin and shortcomings.

24. Maximizing others sin and shortcomings.

25. Being impatient or irritable with others.

26. Being jealous or envious.

27. Using others.

28. Being deceitful by covering up sins, faults, and mistakes.

29. Using attention-getting tactics.

30. Not having close relationships.

“Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility, for ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you…” 1 Peter 5:5-6

July 15, 2008: Recommended Sermon

In my July 6th sermon I referred to C.J. Mahaney’s powerful sermon about the crucifixion of Christ from Mark 15. I strongly recommend it.

HERE IS THE LINK

Clicking this link will initiate a download of an mp3 file. You can save it to your computer and then double-click to play the file in your default media player. (Windows Media Player, for example)

July 8, 2008 : "Taming the Tongue"

A very provocative, strong statement is found in James 3:8—“No human being can tame the tongue.” Is this true? Does it mean that we are without hope, stuck with a tongue that is a destructive “fire…set on fire by hell…a world of unrighteousness… [and] a restless evil, full of deadly poison” that stains the whole body?

What about your tongue?

Please meditate on James 3:1-12 and prayerfully prepare yourself for the sermon on July 13.

July 3, 2008 : Right Belief Can Be Dead

“You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder” (James 3:19).

“There are many people who give mental assent to the reality of God, mental assent to the reality of Christ, the facts of the gospel. I admit to you that orthodox theology is better than heresy, but orthodox theology may not be enough. You want to know something? There’s no such thing as a liberal demon…All demons believe in the Trinity and the deity of Christ. All demons believe on the death of Christ on the cross for the sins of the world…There is no such thing as a heretical demon. They believe everything orthodox, everything. And they shudder. Why? That word means to bristle, to have the hair stand on end; they are in a high degree of terror. Men have intellectual faith and demons have emotional faith. Men say ‘I believe that’ and it stops. Demons say ‘I believe that’ and their hair stands on end because they understand the implications…The demons go one better than men, they go one better than religious phonies, they shudder, they shake, they’re in grave fear.”

(John MacArthur’s sermon on James 2:14-20)

What kind of faith is yours? Have you been brought forth by the word of truth so that your life produces fruit in keeping with salvation (James 1:18)? “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

The Law of Liberty in James and Galatians

“If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well…So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty” (James 2:8, 12).

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Galatians 5:13-14)

James does not define the “law of liberty” in chapter 1, verse 12. But in verse 8 he does. And James sounds a lot like Paul in Galatians 5.

“For both of them, love is the natural fruit and the necessary evidence of being justified by faith (Galatians 5:6, James 2:17). Love is the kind of law that governs us when we are freed from condemnation by the blood and righteousness of Christ. And we will be judged under this law of liberty. If we have not loved, we will perish, because there will be no evidence that we are born again and justified by faith.”

“So you can see that James and Paul put partiality…in the context of your eternal judgment. This is not a light thing. How we treat others is the evidence of our relation with Christ. If we have been set free from sin’s condemnation and dominion by Christ, then we live in liberty. And in this liberty there is a law—the law of liberty, that is, the law of love. We will judged under this law. And this law says, “Do not show partiality (favoritism; don’t play favorites!) on the basis of race or riches (or any other thing.)”


(quotes from John Piper’s sermon on James 2, January 18, 2004)

May 12, 2008

I love the missionary heart of Psalm 96:10—“Say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’”

On Mother’s Day, May 11, I encouraged our moms (and dads and grandparents and other adults, too) to “teach and show your children that God is worthy to be made known and to have a heart for the peoples” of the world, and to “encourage your children toward a “Say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’” life!”

Parents, you will be able to do this as you, more and more, embrace this heart and mindset—that the great, big, glorious God of Psalm 96 is worthy to be worshiped and worthy to be declared and made known among all peoples of the world!

What is your dream for your kids? To get a great job and have a nice family, including grandkids you can dote on? To have a huge house and all the amenities of American convenience and comfort? There is a much greater dream to impart to your children—that of being a part of God’s work in reaching all the peoples with the great gospel of Christ!

I know a young man, Mike, (now married and an expectant daddy) who is completing his training for reaching unreached people for Jesus in the Philippine Islands. I’ve known him since he was a pre-schooler and was his pastor for 14 years. During adolescence he went through a rebellious stage for a while; and then God used our youth pastor to impart a vision of God’s captivating greatness and Mike was never the same! He couldn’t be and didn’t want to be! One short-term visit to the Philippines did it and his life’s course was set for spreading the glory of Christ’s great name and gospel to those who have not heard!

I also know Mike’s mother. When her son laid down his rebellion and began headlong pursuit of obedience to Christ, she was thrilled—until she realized that her all-American dream was being supplanted by Mike’s “all peoples of the world with the gospel” dream. It was hard for her to think of Mike (and probably her daughter-in-law and grandbabies) half way round the world for years at a time, living in the wilds of Asia. Hers was a very dear vision of the future and one difficult to give up. “Lord, Mike is yours, I know, but do you really want him over there? Can’t you use him here?” But as a lover of Christ she came to support Mike and will willingly, and sadly, release him and his family to their calling very soon.

What is your dream for your children? Will you encourage them toward a “Say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’” life?

May 6, 2008 : "Pursuing Peace and Pummeling Pride"

Pursuing Peace and Pummeling Pride

I saw it on Sunday morning during our Celebration Service marking “the end of the beginning” of Peacemaker focus at Rocky. It was during that very sweet hymn, “It Is Well With My Soul” and at first I was struggling to sing it from my heart. And this truth came clear—I cannot be a peacemaker and nurture pride at the same time. So, by God’s grace, I confessed my pride as sin before God and sang that magnificent verse:

“My sin—oh, the bliss of this glorious tho’t:

My sin not in part, but the whole

Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul.”

At the conclusion of the Celebration Service I encouraged all of you to commit yourself to be a Peace Pursuer by implementing the Biblical principles of peacemaking.

“Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil” (1 Peter 3:10-12).

Again, pride obstructs the pursuit of peace with others. In her testimony on Sunday morning Elaine Bandy specifically spoke of overcoming pride so that she could seek restoration and peace with her long-time friend. Pride is at the root of unforgiveness, self-justification, “punishment” of those who have offended us, destructive bitterness (see Hebrews 12:14-15), and self-righteousness (or the need to “right” instead of righteous in God’s sight).

Therefore, as you seek and pursue peace I urge you to pummel pride! Be a Peace Pursuer and a Pride Pummeler! How can you pummel or beat down pride? Two Biblical thoughts:

1. Captivate yourself with God and humble yourself before Him!

“For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, who name is Holy: ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite” (Isaiah 57:15).

Be amazed at God! He is the High and Lofty and Eternal and Holy One, Who dwells in the High and Holy Place, and also with those who are humble before Him!

2. Live out the gospel!

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:30-32).

“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other, as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful” (Colossians 3:12-15).

April 24, 2008

Following last Sunday’s Peacemaker sermon from Luke 15, I recommend an excellent book from Dr. John MacArthur. A TALE OF TWO SONS:THE INSIDE STORY OF A FATHER, HIS SONS, AND A SHOCKING MURDER. You may buy it on line at Christianbook.com, or at other booksellers.

April 16, 2008

As we continue in our Peacemaker focus in the Sunday morning preaching and in our LIFE groups, our attention will turn to the subject of forgiveness on April 20. Luke 15 will be our biblical text. Please anticipate Sunday morning by reading and meditating on Luke 15:1-32.

A great enemy of the grace of forgiveness in our relationships is bitterness. As you seek to internalize and implement biblical peacemaking in your life, I encourage you to prayerfully read the article included below by Pastor Thabiti Anyabwile (First Baptist Church of Grand Cayman). May the Lord be pleased to deliver us from unforgiveness and bitterness by the power of His gospel of peace!

How the gospel empowers us to overcome the temptation toward pride and unforgiveness

By Thabiti Anyabwile

I remember the first time my oldest daughter tasted a lemon. She must have been around a year old, and she kept begging for the alluring yellow fruit tantalizingly adorning the rim of mom's iced tea.

We thought we'd get a little chuckle and teach her not to beg by giving her a taste. Her eyes brightened as we passed the lemon wedge to her. She took it straight to her mouth with both pudgy little hands. Whomp! She took a big hunkin' bite of the lemon with all eight little teeth!

The clinched eyes and flexed neck muscles told the entire story. She hadexpected a happy yellow taste, and what she received was a surprising bitter jolt.

What we didn't expect was what followed. The corners of her eyes slightly watery, she glanced at mom and me, and then took another hunkin' bite of the lemon! She loved that bitter taste! And for her first couple of years, lemon wedges were a delicacy for her.

Spiritual Bitterness

My daughter's love for lemons taught me something about spiritual bitterness: It's addicting. A bitter response can be as alluring as a glistening yellow lemon peel holding out the promise of a happy taste. Of course, bitterness doesn't announce itself so that we may know it right away and avoid it. Often, bitterness calls to us in the voice of "justice" or "wisdom," or some other more noble action like "self-protection." So, when we bite into it, our spiritual teeth clinch, our neck muscles flex, and our jaws lock hard. But then we grow accustomed to it and begin to think of it as our friend.

Many Christians struggle with bitterness—a harsh, hard to bear, stinging, pain-inducing, resentful, and unpleasant attitude. Generally in Scripture, "bitter" is used to describe the suffering and pain that people experience at the hands of others. The labor of the Israelites was bitter (Ex. 1:14). Unfaithful kings caused bitter suffering for Israel (2 Kings 14:26). Mordecai wailed loudly and bitterly at the news of Haman's plot against the Jews, and so did Peter after denying the Lord (Esther 4:1; Luke 22:62). Sometimes, even life itself can feel bitterly burdensome to a person in despair, as Job experienced (Job 3:20-21). Often sin and spiritual poverty result in bitterness of soul (Prov. 5:4; 27:7; ad. 7:26; Jer. 2:19; 4:18). And sadly, we are often bitter with those closest to us. This is why Colossians :3:19 insists, "Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh [or bitter, KJV] with them."

That's the effect of bitterness. It hurts and it hardens. But from where does this sour water flow?

Bitterness springs from an unforgiving and proud heart. Typically, bitter persons are convinced of their own righteousness in the face of offense (pride), and equally convinced that others are wrong and deserve justice at their hands (unforgiving). There likely has been some real injury clone to them. Perhaps there has been the unkind word received, some broken promises, some praiseworthy deed overlooked, or even physical abuse of some sort. But the bitter person responds in a way that loses sight of his or her own heart and sin, and of the cross of Calvary. To be bitter is to forget the gospel. And forgetting the gospel is neglecting to take the medicine that heals all wounds.

The Gospel and Bitterness

In two short sections of his epistle, James helps us to understand how bitterness forgets the gospel. He writes:

"With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt [bitter] flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water" (James 3:9-1,2).

Here we learn that bitterness is blindness. First, the bitter person cannot see that our Fellow man is made in God's likeness. Instead, the bitter person thinks of others as opponents to be conquered, enemies to be attacked, threats to be neutralized, or weaklings to be trampled. Second, bitter people lose sight of the holiness of God. "Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing." James tells us "this should not be." But the bitter cannot see that hypocrisy is displeasing to God (Matt. 6:1-18). The bitter tend to think that "God understands," meaning he will look lightly on their sinful outlook. They are blind to his holiness. And third, this of course means they are blind to their own hearts. All that the gospel rests upon—the sinfulness of man, the holiness of God, and the universal need for the Savior—is not seen by soi ir-hearted people.

James continues his instruction to us in 3:13-16:

"Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such wisdom' does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice."

Overcoming bitterness requires that we begin by asking ourselves a question: Are we wise and understanding in God's sight and the judgment of our church family? Do we live by the wisdom of the gospel or the wisdom of this world and the devil?

It's a sobering question designed to help us see ourselves with the more reliable assessment of God and God's people. And it's a question answered objectively. If we are wise and possess understanding, we must "show it by [our] good life, by deeds done in humility that comes from wisdom." Pride and bitterness cannot coexist. And a life stirred to love and good deeds cannot live alongside a resentful, harsh, and critical heart.

Second, overcoming bitterness requires ruthless honesty and humility. Sins of the heart are sometimes the most deceptive and the most easily concealed. The fact that others cannot see our hearts and that we can be deceived by our own thoughts and feelings is a great disadvantage to us. Like my daughter's love for sour lemons, we can come to love and coddle—to "harbor"—bitterness. So, wherever we discover it by the grace of God, we must acknowledge the truth about bitterness and cultivate ht

The truth is that bitterness is rooted in sinful pride, jealousy of others, and selfishness. And the fruit of a bitter heart is always pain and destruction. We mustn't hide from these facts and be deceived by the momentary allurement of "control" and "self-protection" and "just desserts." The anger of man does not lead to the righteousness of' God. So, we must be truth loving, never denying the truth. And we must not brag about shameful things, including bitterness.

Third, in the power of Jesus Christ and his Spirit, with hearts longing for true worship of our glorious God, we must heed the counsel of Ephesians 4:31-32—"Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."

How has God in Christ forgiven us? Completely. Where have our Sins been laid? On the back of the crucified and resurrected Savior. So, where then should the offense of others be placed? On his back, nailed to the cross. Our Savior knew the sting of bitterness—from the jeers of the crowd, the mocking and scorn, and the gall-soaked sponge, to the agony of God's wrath against sin.

This is why Christian kindness and compassion take the form of forgiveness. We are to "get rid of all bitterness" and "every form of malice" like so much garbage better suited for trash heaps. And we do that by considering that this is just what God did with our sin when his Son was crucified outside the camp.

Leaving Bitterness Behind

Today, my daughter looks at me with surprise that she ever liked lemons. They are the tartest things she can drink of now. So it will be with the people who lean on the forgiveness of God in Christ and calls upon the resources of' the gospel to battle bitterness. By God's grace, they will one day look at their bitter past and treatment of others surprised they ever gave themselves to such a sour life.

__________________________________

Thabiti Anyabwile is the pastor of First Baptist Church of Grand Cayman inthe Cayman Islands. He has authored two books, The Faithful Preacher and his latest The Decline of African American Theology. Pastor Anyabwile will be one of the featured speakers at the 2008 Peacemaker Conference in Orlando.

April 7, 2008

After “Criticism and the Cross”, the Peacemaker sermon on April 6, it was beautiful that Pastor Carey Dean obeyed the Spirit’s prompting to call us to prayer in couplets and open our lives to humility, thereby opposing pride and its destructive power. I had a sweet, quiet time of prayer with a man who was sitting in the front row where I usually sit during gathered worship. And the subdued, holy hum of prayer was lovely to hear in the worship center.

May God be pleased to grace us with desires to battle pride and humble ourselves before Him! Here are three passages from Isaiah that help us know how we can do this:

1. Seek God and His glory and be astounded!

“In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above Him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said:

‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;

the whole world is full of His glory.’

And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said, ‘Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” Isaiah 6:1-5

2. Seek to be broken over sin so that you may be revived!

"And it shall be said, ‘Build up, build up, prepare the way, remove every obstruction from my people’s way.’ For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the heart of the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.’” Isaiah 57:14-15

3. Tremble at God’s Word!

“All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at My word.” Isaiah 66:2

March 31 - "Do You See Conviction of Your Sin as a Happy Thing?"

The fourth in our Peacemaker sermons rose out of Psalm 32. The thrust of the text and the sermon begs the question: Do we think of conviction of our sins as a good, happy thing? We ought to, because the Word tells us that conviction brought David to confession leading to his testimony—

"Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit” (32:1-2).

Conviction brought him to a place of great happiness and joy because it moved him to confess his transgression and sin and iniquity to God.

Conviction for David was miserable (and all of you who have experienced the Spirit’s convicting work know of this misery): physical symptoms, heavy conscience, a sense of the Father’s displeasure, and sapped strength. Then he

“acknowledged his sin to [God] and did not cover [his] iniquity…and [God] forgave the iniquity of [his] sin” (32:5).

And God blessed him, and He blesses us when we confess our sins (1 John 1:9).

Therefore, it is true that God’s conviction of our sin is a good and happy blessing for us.

Because all of us want to be blessed by Him, it makes sense that we would welcome and invite His convicting work in us.

Do we? If we don’t we are choosing against joy and blessedness and preferring sin and misery.

"Blessed is the one…”

Do we believe this?

March 27, 2008 - "Reasons For Good Friday"

I was moved by a little poem by Jane Kenyon and surprised to find it quoted at the end of a washingtonpost.com column by Michael Gerson in which he reviews Timothy Keller’s book, The Reason for God. The column’s title is “Reasons for Good Friday”, and here is the poem—

The God of curved space, the dry

God, is not going to help us, but the Son

whose blood spattered

hem of His mother’s robe.

March 19, 2008 - "Let Judas Shake You"

“Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‘What will you give me if I deliver Him over to you?’ And they paid him thirty pieces of silver.”
Matthew 26:14-15

Today Chris Quinlan, our great Communications/Technology Director, reminded me that he will portray Judas in the Passover presentations on March 21 and 22. That conversation came just minutes after reading this brief commentary by John Piper, found in the blog section of desiringgod.org:

“Judas left the fellowship of the twelve apostles after the anointing in Bethany and arranged to betray Jesus for 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14-15). But when they met again at the last supper, there he was! Near enough to dip into the Savior’s cup.”

“When our family read this for devotions last night I was angry at the absolute wickedness of Judas coming back to eat Passover with the one he had just sold. I said to my daughter, evidently with more emotion that she was used to, ‘That is utterly wicked!’”

“She said, ‘What is so wicked?’ I said, ‘What if I went out tonight and arranged for a cruel man to kill you on the way to school tomorrow morning? That would be horrible. But then would it not be wicked to high heaven if I came home, after arranging your murder, and had devotions with you and prayed with you?’

“She was shaken.”

“Small wonder that Jesus said, ‘It would have been better for that man (Judas) if he had never been born’ (Matthew 26:24).”

“Let us be shaken this week, again and again.”

Powerful. O Lord, that I may not pretentiously follow you and call you my Lord and then sell you out for the temporary pleasures of sin! Shaking is good, so do shake me at the thought of such betrayal. Amen.

March 13, 2008 - "Taking Sin Seriously"

Since March 9^th’s sermon my mind has returned again and again to Matthew 7:1-5 and I’ve been amazed at the Lord’s thorough knowledge of human nature. It is common to all of us—an unwillingness to take logs out of my own eyes and a ready willingness to search for and extract specks from others’ eyes. Why? Is it because the logs are to close to really see? Have we become so used to having eye logs that they don’t irritate us anymore? Is it ego protection and fear to admit our sin and wrong, born out of stubborn pride?

Judge not that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of you eye, when there is the log in your own eye?’ You hypocrite, firs take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:1-5

On March 11, Rynette and I read this in Spurgeon’s Morning by Morning devotional:

Beware of light thoughts of sin. It is sadly true, that even a Christian may grow by degrees so callous, that the sin which once startled him does not alarm him in the least. By degrees men get familiar with sin. The ear in which the cannon has been booming will not notice slight sounds. At first a little sin startles us; but soon we say, "Is it not a little one?" Then there comes another, larger, and then another, until by degrees we begin to regard sin as but a little ill; and then follows an unholy presumption: "We have not fallen into open sin. True, we tripped a little, but we stood upright in the main. We may have uttered one unholy word, but as for the most of our conversation, it has been consistent." So we palliate sin; we throw a cloak over it; we call it by dainty names. Christian, beware how thou thinkest lightly of sin. Take heed lest thou fall by little and little. Sin, a little thing? Is it not a poison? Who knows its deadliness? Sin, a little thing? Do not the little foxes spoil the grapes? Doth not the tiny coral insect build a rock which wrecks a navy? Do not little strokes fell lofty oaks? Will not continual droppings wear away stones? Sin, a little thing? It girded the Redeemer's head with thorns, and pierced His heart! It made Him suffer anguish, bitterness, and woe. Could you weigh the least sin in the scales of eternity, you would fly from it as from a serpent, and abhor the least appearance of evil. Look upon all sin as that which crucified the Saviour, and you will see it to be "exceeding sinful."

As we at RBBC give ourselves to growing in biblical peacemaking and development of a culture of peace as a church family, let us beware ego-defensive pride that leads to destruction (Proverbs 16:18) and invite the Holy Spirit to apply Matthew 7 to our calloused consciences so that we may obey Christ’s command to take logs of sin out of our own eyes. We know that Jesus Christ took our sins seriously; let us take our sin seriously, too.

“Look upon all sin as that which crucified the Saviour, and you will see it to be “exceeding sinful”.

March 3, 2008 - "Unity and Sound Doctrine"

On Sunday morning we saw in Ephesians 4 that there are five commitments needed to cultivate and demonstrate peace and unity in the body of Christ. I want to expand on thoughts regarding the second one, commitment to sound doctrine (see verses 4, 5, 14 and 15).

Last year doctrinal controversy erupted in our church, causing much pain and loss in our fellowship. So should we just step around doctrinal questions for the sake of unity and peace? No! The apostle Paul would say, “Absolutely not!” “Without sound doctrinal teaching, the body of Christ will dissolve into a myriad of personal opinions on issues that God Himself has defined in His Word” (The Powerful Witness of Unity, March 2, 2008).

But God’s Word calls us to deal with doctrine humbly, gently, patiently, and lovingly, as we eagerly maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:2-4). Such a God-given disposition of humility is the attitude necessary as priorities of doctrine are discussed and decided upon.

Humility, but not wishy washiness… We must “beware of a modern mistake here. Humble does not mean wishy washy when it comes to truth…It is a great mistake to confuse humility with uncertainty. But many today do confuse them. They think that the only humble demeanor is the uncertain, vague, iffy demeanor.”

“Is that what Paul meant? The only way to preserve the unity of the Spirit is to be vague and uncertain in your grasp of truth? He didn’t seem to be that way…G.K. Chesterton put his finger on the problem…in a little book called Orthodoxy:

“What we suffer from today is humility in the wrong place. Modesty has moved from the organ of ambition. Modesty has settled on the organ of conviction, where it was never meant to be. A man was meant to be doubtful about himself, but undoubting about the truth; this has been exactly reversed. Nowadays the part of a man that a man does assert is exactly the part he ought not to assert—himself. The part he doubts is exactly the part he ought not to doubt—the Divine Reason.”

“The humility that leads to unity is not uncertainty and doubt and vagueness and confusion. It is the demeanor that says: I am not the center; truth is the center and I submit to the truth and go where it leads. I am not king; God is King. My will is not the law; God’s Word is the law. I don’t tell God how many faiths (beliefs) are acceptable to Him; He tells me. I don’t define the foundation of the unity of the Spirit; God does.”

(Sermon by J. Piper, Nov. 8, 1992)

Therefore, let us humbly pursue God-honoring peace and unity in the Spirit, committed to sound doctrine.

SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT!

SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT!
From Pastor Carey

Here is the text of 1 Peter 3:10-12—“Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

As we grow together in the gospel of peace and develop knowledge and skills required for Christ-exalting, biblical peacemaking, 1 Peter 3:10-12 is a great passage to believe and act on! Shall we expect God’s blessing on us as we seek peace and pursue it? Yes! Why? Because “the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.” When we are in Christ by the grace of God by faith in Jesus Christ, we have assurance that the Lord is aware when we go after living out the great peace gospel! Plus, we know that He is listening when we talk with Him about our efforts to make peace with others! Or to put it another way, we have an ally in our peacemaking, a Divine Ally whose name is Jesus Christ!

“We have an ally who is eager (His ears are open and His eyes alert!) to see us make peace with others. And this Ally is not distant or passive. He is near us, and He is ready to place all of His resources at our disposal. As Ephesians 1:18-20 indicates, our Savior wants us to ‘know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead…’(emphasis mine).”

“Our Ally is ready to come to our aid. Seek His counsel; bank on His limitless resources; trust that He will never leave your side as you seek peace with others.” (quote adapted from sermon materials for week #1 of the “Peacemaking Church”)

The people of Rocky are already experiencing blessings on their peacemaking initiatives and it is sweet to celebrate! Rynette and I share in a LIFE group with a man who has experienced “miraculous” blessing in a business conflict and resolution. What a joy to hear his testimony in our LIFE group meeting last Sunday night! And I heard another great peacemaking testimony during a staff meeting on February 25.

So be encouraged! Be on the lookout for conflicts/opportunities in which to live out the gospel, relying on your Ally, the greatest Peacemaker of all—Christ Jesus!