Are you ready?

Maximise this video, turn up the sound, and brace yourself for some old fashioned gospel preaching from Al Martin.

This is not coming to a seeker-sensitive church near you!

(HT: Reformation Theology)

Filed under: Evangelical, Jesus Christ, Preaching, Religion, Repentance, Salvation, Saving faith, The Cross, The Gospel

Lausanne Movement

The buzz is picking up for Lausanne 2010. Wondering what it’s all about? In short, the Lausanne Movement is “a worldwide that mobilizes evangelical leaders to collaborate for world evangelization.” And in October 2010 the third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization is taking place in Cape Town, South Africa.

Here’s a brief history of the movement produced by the Lausanne Movement:

(HT: The Gospel Coalition)

Filed under: Evangelical, Evangelism, History, Jesus Christ, The Gospel, World missions

Monergistic Regeneration

From John Hendryx:

Since faith is infinitely beyond all the power of our unregenerated human nature, it is only God who can give the spiritual ears to hear and eyes to see the beauty of Christ in the gospel. God alone disarms the hostility of the sinner turning his heart of stone to a heart of flesh. It is God, the Holy Spirit, alone who gives illumination and understanding of His word that we might believe; It is God who raises us from the death of sin, who circumcises the heart; unplugs our ears; It is God alone who can give us a new sense, a spiritual capacity to behold the beauty and unsurpassed excellency of Jesus Christ. The apostle John recorded Jesus saying to Nicodemus that we naturally love darkness, hate the light and WILL NOT come into the light (John 3:19, 20). And since our hardened resistance to God is thus seated in our affections, only God, by His grace, can lovingly change, overcome and pacify our rebellious disposition. The natural man, apart from the quickening work of the Holy Spirit, will not come to Christ on his own since he is at enmity with God and cannot understand spiritual things (1 Cor 2:14). Shining a light into a blind man’s eyes will not enable him to see, because eyesight first requires a set of healthy eyes. Likewise, reading or hearing the word of God alone cannot elicit saving faith in the reader (1 Thess 1:4, 5) unless God plows up the fallow ground of our hearts and the Spirit “germinates” the seed of the word, opening our eyes to see Christ’s true beauty and excellency and uniting us to Him through a Spirit-wrought faith. So the problem of conversion is not with the Word or God’s Law but with man’s prideful heart. The humility required to submit to the gospel is, therefore, not prompted by man’s will but by God’s mercy (Rom 9:16) since no one can believe the gospel unless God grants it (John 6:63, 65). As an example of how the Spirit uses the means of the spoken word to disarm closed hearts, the Book of Acts records the work of the Holy Spirit during the preaching of the apostles and, in one instance, states that “the Lord opened her [Lydia's] heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul,” (Acts 16:14). The Spirit must likewise give all His people spiritual life and understanding if their hearts are to be opened and thus respond to Christ in faith.

Filed under: Doctrine, Evangelical, God's grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Man in Sin, Monergism, Power of the Gospel, Regeneration, Saving faith, The word of God

Only and always for Christ’s sake

“There is nothing in us or done by us, at any stage of our earthly development, because of which we are acceptable to God. We must always be accepted for Christ’s sake, or we cannot ever be accepted at all. . . . This is not true of us only when we believe. It is just as true after we have believed. It will continue to be true as long as we live. Our need of Christ doesn’t cease with our believing; nor does the nature of our relation to Him or to God through Him ever alter, no matter what our attainments in Christian graces or our achievements in behavior may be. It is always on His ‘blood and righteousness’ alone that we can rest.”

- B. B. Warfield, quoted by Elyse Fitzpatrick and Dennis Johnson in Counsel from the Cross(Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 2009), 19.

(HT: Of First Importance)

Filed under: Assurance, Christ our Mediator, Christ our righteousness, Doctrine, Evangelical, Gospel-centred, Jesus Christ, Justification, The Christian Life, The Cross, The Gospel

Grudem on Scripture’s Clarity

From Todd Pruitt:

The Bible is not locked away in esoteric mystery as theological liberals or postmoderns would have us believe. God gave us His Word (yes, I believe it is HIS Word) not to confuse or confound us but to reveal Himself to us. Belief in the clarity or perspicuity of Scripture is often miscast by the pomo/emergent/liberal crowd as arrogant. They assure us that their approach of not really knowing what the Bible means is a “humble apologetic.” But I wonder. Is it truly humble to say of God’s carefully crafted and fully inspired Word, “Who can truly know what it means?”

It leaves me wondering if the opposition to the Bible’sperspicuity has more to do with discomfort over what Scripture has made clear than it is about Scripture being truly indecipherable.

One of the great achievements of the Protestant Reformation was that the common man should have access to the Scriptures because much of what the Bible says is readily understood by the common man. Surely this does not mean that formal training is of no use. Indeed, formal training in the biblical languages, hermeneutics, and theology are extremely helpful in deepening one’s understanding of Scripture. I am deeply grateful for the fact that I was able to be formally trained in seminary. But the common layperson is not dependent upon those who are formally trained to understand those things in the Bible that pertain to salvation and godliness.

The latest issue of Themelios carries a helpful article by Wayne Grudem on Scripture’s clarity. Among the points that Dr. Grudem makes are the following qualifications:

1. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not all at once.

2. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not without effort.

3. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not without ordinary means.

4. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not without the reader’s willingness to obey it.

5. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not without the help of the Holy Spirit.

6. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not without human understanding.

7. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but never completely.

Read the entire article HERE.

Filed under: Biblical interpretation, Evangelical, Hermeneutics, Holy Spirit, The Bible, The word of God, Wayne Grudem

Every Moment of Every Day

“It’s no wonder that self-help books top the charts in Christian publishing and that counseling offices are overwhelmed. Our pride and our neglect of the gospel force us to run from seminar to seminar, book to book, counselor to counselor, always seeking but never finding some secret to holy living.

Most of us have never really understood that Christianity is not a self-help religion meant to enable moral people to become more moral. We don’t need a self-help book; we need a Savior. We don’t need to get our collective act together; we need death and resurrection and the life-transforming truths of the gospel. And we don’t need them just once, at the beginning of our Christian life; we need them every moment of every day.”

- Elyse Fitzpatrick and Dennis Johnson, Counsel from the Cross (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 2009), 30.

(HT: Of First Importance)

Filed under: Christ crucified, Discipleship, Doctrine, Evangelical, Gospel-centred, Grace, Jesus Christ, Sanctification, The Christian Life, The Cross, The Gospel

DA Carson – How can God allow suffering and evil in the world?

Also:

How do I know God exists? and How can God be loving yet send people to hell? from A Passion for Life on Vimeo.

(HT: Justin Taylor)

Filed under: Christ crucified, DA Carson, Evangelical, Jesus Christ, Suffering, The Cross, The Gospel, The word of God

Not Without Jesus

From Anthony Carter at the Gospel Coalition blog:

At a recent prayer meeting someone asked the question, “How do people make it in this world without Jesus?” The answer to that question is that they don’t.

There is a sentence of death over every one who has not professed faith in Jesus Christ. This sentence is executable at any moment. And the only reason that it is not executed and the sinner is not immediately experiencing the terrible judgment due for sin is because of the grace and mercy of God.

Yet, even more is the reality that instead of having the sentence immediately executed, millions of people experience the grace and mercy of sunshine and rain; seed time and harvest. The fact that there is any light or joy in the life of a sinner is owing to God’s desire to show mercy and to be longsuffering.

Nevertheless, those who have come into the knowledge of the truth and have experienced the forgiving grace of God in Jesus Christ are aware of the pending danger of judgment upon the unrepentant and thus we plead with them, even in the midst of God’s longsuffering and patience, to repent and believe. We plead with them because God will not strive with them forever and without repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ, judgment for their sin is coming. The sun they take for granted will be darkened, a perpetual night will grip their soul, and they will know the true nature of their sin and the necessary punishment for it. It is a terror just to contemplate. And so we say with all our energy, “Flee from the wrath that is sure to come! Flee to the mercy of Jesus Christ!”

Everlasting life is not possible without Jesus. Neither is life in this world. Those who acknowledge it in this world will have life in the next. Those who don’t, won’t.

Filed under: Christ our Mediator, Eternal Punishment, Evangelical, God's justice, God's mercy, Jesus Christ, Repentance, Saving faith, The Gospel

A Plain, Ordinary Christian

From Justin Buzzard:

What is an evangelical? John Stott once said, “An evangelical is a plain, ordinary Christian.” Justin Taylor summarizes a lengthier answer John Stott gave to this question in a lecture many years ago:

1. The Claim of Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism is not a novelty, and it is not a deviation. It is neither neither new nor odd.

2. The Distinctives of Evangelicalism

At the centre of the evangelical faith lies the Bible as our authority and the cross as our salvation.

By what authority do we believe what we believe?

* Catholics emphasize the church, the magisterium and the role of tradition.
* Liberals emphasize reason, conscience, and experience
* Evangelicals recognize tradition and reason, but as subordinate authorities to the only supreme authority, Scripture

How can I, a lost and guilty sinner, stand before a just and holy God?

* Catholics emphasize the priesthood and the sacraments as necessary to meditate salvation between God and us
* Liberals emphasize good works, individual and social righteousness, as at least contributing to our salvation
* Evangelicals affirm ministry, sacraments, and good works, but our focus is on the cross – what God has done in Christ for us

We affirm two unpopular but important words: inerrancy (Scripture in the original is without error in all that it affirms when interpreted correctly) and substitution (Christ died not only on our behalf but in our place, with the result that substitution is the very essence of atonement (not just a theory among many)

3. The Concern of Evangelicalism

As evangelicals we desire to bear witness to the unique glory of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Insisting on our distinctives is not on account of having a sinful party spirit, or because we are arrogant, angular, awkward, uncooperative, obstinate by temperament. No, it’s precisely because we are determined to proclaim and defend the unique glory of Jesus Christ.

We believe God has spoken fully and finally in Jesus Christ.

We believe God has acted fully and finally in Jesus Christ, especially in the finished work of the cross.

In Christ we have God’s last word to the world (revelation), and God’s last deed for the world (redemption). God’s word and work in and through Jesus Christ are hapax—final and finished once and for all and forever. Hapax (once for all and forever) in Christ is the essence of evangelicalism.

4. The Essence of Evangelicalism

The essence of evangelicalism is humility.

God’s revelation is necessary because we could not know God in any other way; God’s redemption is necessary because we could not achieve it by ourselves, or even contribute to it.

Without revelation we would be lost in our ignorance; without redemption we would be lost in our guilt.

Evangelicalism denies self-salvation and magnifies the grace of God.

If we are to commend evangelicalism, nothing greater is needed than humility.

Filed under: Christ crucified, Christ our Mediator, Evangelical, Gospel-centred, Jesus Christ, John Stott, The Bible, The Gospel

Cautiously Missional

I like this from Todd Pruitt:

“Missional” is a word that has come along in recent years with great excitement in many cases. Pastors, churches, and even seminaries have been bold to proclaim themselves “missional.” The problem is that it is a frustratingly slippery word. Brian MacLaren defines it one way and Mark Driscoll another. I don’t mind the word, indeed I wouldn’t mind adopting it so long as it means a commitment to advance the Gospel (as Scripture defines “Gospel”).

Ed Stetzer has written a helpful piece on the issue of “missional” at the Lifeway Research blog.

After some opening observations Stetzer then asks some questions:

All this provokes me to ask, “Why are so many missional Christians uninvolved in God’s global mission?” As the missional conversation continues and deepens, what has occurred that has led to our blindness to the lost world around us?

Stetzer offers the following thoughts that I believe are worthy of reflection.

1) In rediscovering God’s mission, many have only discovered its personal dimensions [as opposed to its global ones].

2) In responding to God’s mission, many have wanted to be more mission-shaped and have therefore made everything “mission.” [The result is that the special need for sending missionaries to foreign lands is made fuzzy and ultimately lost.]

3) In relating God’s mission, the message increasingly includes the hurting but less
frequently includes the global lost. [The emphasis is on relief of temporal suffering, rather than eternal suffering.]

4) In refocusing on God’s mission, many are focusing on being good news rather than telling good news. [As Stetzer says, "As many missional Christians have sought to "embody" the gospel, they have chosen to forsake one member of Christ's body--the mouth."]

5) In reiterating God’s mission, many lose the context of the church’s global mission and needed global presence. ["Hyper focus on our community" leads to a loss of focus on the wider world and God's mission in it.]

Filed under: Christ our Mediator, Doctrine, Evangelical, Evangelism, Jesus Christ, Missional living, Missions, The Christian Life, The Gospel, The Great commission, The word of God, World missions

Why I Abominate the Prosperity Gospel

John Piper explains why the so-called “prosperity gospel” is not the gospel.

Filed under: Biblical exposition, Christ our treasure, Discipleship, Evangelical, John Piper, Prosperity gospel, Worldliness

A Great Disturbance: repentance as a way of life

“Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, in saying ‘Repent,’ intended that the whole life of believers should be repentance.” Martin Luther, Thesis 1

According to Schaff, History of the Christian Church, VII:160, Luther was attacking the medieval notion of sacramental penitence. That kind of “repentance” could be limited to isolated outward acts, leaving the rest of our lives safe from the mega-upheaval of true repentance. Luther contended that real repentance opens us up to endless personal change, leaving nothing about us untouched.

When Luther posted his Theses, he undermined self-reinforcing Christianity, which is no Christianity, and he launched a new era of self-challenging Christianity, which is the power of the gospel.

In Karl Barth’s commentary on Romans, he entitles his section on Romans 12-15 “The Great Disturbance.”

The whole world needs gospel disturbance.

(HT: Ray Ortlund)

Filed under: Discipleship, Doctrine, Evangelical, Jesus Christ, Martin Luther, Repentance, Sanctification, The Gospel

A Great Summary of Gospel Ministry

From David Wayne:

There is so much right with this quote in so many ways . . .

We declare what has been accomplished, not what we would like to be accomplished.

It’s on a live blog of the Desiring God National Conference for a talk by Doug Wilson.  Gospel ministry is all about what Christ has accomplished, yet it seems to me that most of what passes for life and ministry in the church is focused on what we would like to be accomplished, hence we miss Christ.

Of course I suppose you could argue that it is permissible, even necessary to discuss what could/should be accomplished based on what has been accomplished.  But it would help if we discussed this in reference to what Christ would like to accomplish, and then make sure we limit ourselves in this regard to what is revealed in the Word, to keep our own imaginations out of it.

And of course there is one thing yet for Christ to accomplish – the second coming and the bringing in of the new heavens and new earth.

 

Filed under: Christ crucified, Christian Ministry, Doctrine, Evangelical, Gospel-centred, Jesus Christ, Substitutionary Atonement, The Christian Life, The Church, The Gospel

The gospel of unconditional grace

“To preach the Gospel of the unconditional grace of God in that unconditional way is to set before people the astonishingly good news of what God has freely provided for us in the vicarious humanity of Jesus. To repent and believe in Jesus Christ and commit myself to him on that basis means that I do not need to look over my shoulder all the time to see whether I have really given myself personally to him, whether I really believe and trust him, whether my faith is at all adequate, for in faith it is not upon my faith, my believing or my personal commitment that I rely, but solely upon what Jesus Christ has done for me, in my place and on my behalf, and what he is and always will be as he stands in for me before the face of the Father. That means that I am completely liberated from all ulterior motives in believing or following Jesus Christ, for on the ground of his vicarious human response for me, I am free for spontaneous joyful response and worship and service as I could not otherwise be.”

- TF Torrance

(HT: Of First Importance)

Filed under: Christ our Mediator, Christ our righteousness, Christ our treasure, Discipleship, Doctrine, Evangelical, God's grace, Jesus Christ, Union with Christ, Worship

What is true of Him

 

“God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 2 Timothy 1:7

We must think of suffering in a new way, we must face everything in a new way. And the way in which we face it all is by reminding ourselves that the Holy Spirit is in us. There is the future, there is the high calling, there is the persecution, there is the opposition, there is the enemy. I see it all. I must admit also that I am weak, that I lack the necessary powers and propensities. But instead of stopping there . . . I say, “But the Spirit of God is in me. God has given me his Holy Spirit.” . . . What matters . . . is not what is true of us but what is true of Him.

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression, page 100.

(HT: Ray Ortlund)

Filed under: Attributes of God, Discipleship, Evangelical, God centredness, Holy Spirit, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Warfare, The Christian Life, The word of God