Repentance

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. -1John 1:9

There is a simple truth in the Christian life that is easy to forget but that is essential to remember. What I am talking about is repentance.

Anybody who is a Christian understands in some form that the first step in coming to God for salvation is to confess his sins to God and repent.  The thing that is often misunderstood or forgotten though is that this isn’t just how we start our Christian walk, but it is also how we continue in our relationship with God.

The first of Martin Luther’s famous 95 thesis said, “Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ… willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance.” So we too must remember that when we fall into sin as a follower of Christ, our solution isn’t simply to say to ourselves “you gotta do better next time and avoid that temptation.” Sure that is true and part of the whole picture, but we must not begin there because that is simply repentance to ourselves. Sin is about breaking relationship with God and finding satisfaction in something rather than Him. It is committing adultery on God in front of his face.

When put in that light, would we really think it adequate to simply say to ourselves “do better”?  No, repentance is not simply a feeling of regret or remorse and a desire to do better. That is part of it, but biblical repentance is feeling remorse for our sin, acknowledging our guilt before God, asking for His forgiveness through Christ, and by God’s grace committing to turn away from that sin and live a new life. When that happens we can walk in confident faith that we are forgiven and that we will indeed be cleansed.  This is repentance, and when we truly repent, God will then give us the grace to truly do better and avoid the temptation next time.

I’m sure that many reading this already know what repentance is, but I offer up this reminder because I can’t even count how many times in my Christian walk I have gotten into a pattern of sin and eventually by God’s grace I would come to my senses and ask myself “why can’t I stop doing this?” Every time the answer is because I didn’t take it to God first in repentance and instead just tried to willpower it to death. Remember, all of life is repentance, and because of Christ, God is always willing to receive all who come to Him and ask for forgiveness. Then and only then we will actually have the power to overcome sin in our lives.

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I Think I Can’t, I Think You Can

The Little Engine that Could is a moralistic tale that elevates the power of positive thinking. In the story, a stranded train tries in vain to find an engine who will take it over the mountain to deliver its goods to little children. Finally, it finds a little blue engine who, while repeating the mantra, “I think I can, I think I can” is able to accomplish what had before hardly seemed possible.

This is a cute little story that is, in fact, entirely nonsense. All of us know that thinking positively about our own abilities is simply not enough. But if we change the little engine’s mantra just a bit we have a fairly accurate summary of what the Father of a demon-possessed boy tells Jesus in Mark 9 (v. 14-29). The man in this story doesn’t say, “I think I can, I think I can.” Ins­tead he says to Jesus, “I think I can’t, I think you can.”

This man faced a seemingly insurmountable problem. A demon had been casting his child into fits since childhood. In face of this huge problem the Father asks for two things that God loves to give, namely compassion and help (v. 22). But he prefaces these two requests with a bit of skepticism: “If you can do anything…” He does believe that Christ can help him otherwise he wouldn’t have asked. But he does have his lingering doubts. He doesn’t say, “you can do anything!” But, “If you can do anything.”

After Jesus replies by telling him that “All things are possible to him who believes” this father gives one of the simplest expressions of humble faith found in the Bible. It is a saying that every child of God can resonate with and it is definitely not “little blue engine” theology. He says, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief” (v. 24). This confession demonstrates faith without arrogance or presumption. And it gives us four points for dealing with the unbelief that every Christian experiences.

First, admit a problem.

We need to be real about our unbelief. Part of being real is understanding the limitations of our faith. Part of being real is using the labels that God has provided, not the ones we invent. Our “failures” or “slip-ups” are actually manifestations of unbelief. Every moral failure is ultimately a failure to believe the gospel. When we get angry when others let us down, for example, we may be failing to believe that God’s love is a sufficient comfort.

Notice, how this confession is made to Christ but in the presence of witnesses. We should get in the habit of being real with others about our unbelief.

Second, identify specifics.

This man had a general trust in Christ but he specifically had doubts that his son could be healed. This father had for years seen his son ravaged by this spirit. He had lost hope that anything could help him.There are areas in your life in which you have relinquished hope in God. Have you become content with your anger or rudeness, suspecting that God cannot provide a solution? Do you doubt that God can improve your marriage? Do you disbelieve that God can convert your neighbor? Where is your unbelief?

Third, re-pledge trust in God.

Something powerful happens when we verbally and sincerely communicate our faith in God to God. God loves to hear his children confirm their trust in him. Even when we are filled with doubts, it is important to focus our faith on God.

Fourth, ask God for help.

Come to Christ with your unbelief. Ask him to overcome your doubts. In the midst of our problems we tend not to look to God for help. We tend to try to make it on our own: “I think I can, I think I can.”" John Calvin suggests that this type of attitude is indicative of people who are engaged in a “mock-battle.” We need to realize that our enemy is real and strong. If we approach our troubles with the self-sufficient nonsense that the little blue engine did, we are certain to fail.

In this story, in the face of huge problems, Christ does what no one else could do. He rebuked the demon and healed the boy. On the cross, Christ issued the conclusive rebuke of Satan. Calvin says that “Christ has come to bridle his rage.” The only power we have to face trouble is God’s. In light of this, one of the best ways to face our problems is to turn to God and say: “I think I can’t, I think you can.”

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“Hi. How are you, enemy?”

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Matthew 5:43-47

The Sermon on the Mount is a very challenging sermon. This was the sermon that Jesus preached to His followers. (5:1) His aim was to show them how He fits into Redemptive History (5:17) and how they are to understand the revelation of the law in relationship to Him. (5:19-20) It’s in His sovereign interpretation of the law (5:21-47) that we are seriously challenged with His demands.

Perhaps the most difficult command is, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” (5:43) This command is contrary to our human nature. Our natural desire is to fight back against our enemies. It is to be silent to them unless we are engaging in an argument. The last thing on our mind would be to love them. So what does it mean to love our enemy? Read More »

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Christ’s Discipleship Manifesto

What does it mean to follow Jesus? In answer to that question, Jesus provides a simple yet sobering answer (in Mark 8:34-38). Every would-be disciple needs to address the following points that Jesus makes in his discipleship manifesto:

Answer the question, “Who is Jesus?”

That’s what Jesus asked the disciples a few verses earlier. The way you answer this question will profoundly shape your life. When Peter exclaims that Jesus is the Christ he is making a huge statement. He is saying that Jesus is the anointed one who fulfills the three Old Testament offices of prophet, priest and king.

Is this who Jesus is to you? Is he your prophet? Do you hang on his every word? Do you look to him for wisdom? Is he your priest? Are you trusting in his blood alone for your salvation? Is he your king? Do you joyfully submit to his loving rule in every area of your life?

Your answer is eternally significant but will not change the fact that he is Christ.

Place a value on your soul

Jesus asks, “What will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (v. 37). Is your soul worth risking? What will you give in exchange for your soul? A life of pleasure? A life of self-seeking? A life of orderliness and predictability? As you place an eternal value on your own soul, everything else will pale in comparison.

Desire to come after Christ (v. 34)

When Jesus talks about the man that desires to come after him he is raising the question: Is Christ worth following? Is such a desire to follow him warranted? Considering who he is, yes! This also raises the question of whether or not where he’s going is worth going. Is it? Is heaven a worthwhile pursuit? Considering what the Bible says about it, yes!

Deny yourself

Unless you deny yourself you cannot follow Jesus. We are naturally glory-seekers. The basic principal in natural man is a drive for self-glorification. The gospel turns that drive on its head. When God changes our hearts we are no longer driven to please ourselves. But we still war against the flesh. Therefore we must deny ourselves. Calvin said, “We are God’s own; therefore let every part of our existence be directed toward him as our only legitimate goal.” (The Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1952, p. 26). When this happens there is no place for seeking self glory.

Take up your cross

Dietrich Bonheoffer has famously said, “Christ bids us to come and die.” The cross represents the sufferings of Christ that we experience. To take up one’s cross is to embrace Christian suffering as part of God’s plan for our lives. How can cross bearing possibly be part of God’s plan for our lives? First, it is God’s plan for us to learn obedience through cross-bearing (Heb. 5:8). Second, cross-bearing directs us to the perfect justice of God (Gen. 18:25) which finds ultimate meaning in the cross of Christ.

Follow Christ

Follow him in the way he lived. More importantly, follow him to the cross. Lay down your life. Become crucified with Christ (Gal 2:20). The call of discipleship is radical!

Christ essentially says two things in the latter part of Mark 8: “I’m going to suffer and then be exalted. Christians will suffer and then be exalted. So what’s the connection between the two? Does Christ suffer and die as an example of how we should suffer and die as well? To a very small extent this is true.

But the greater reality is that he suffered and died as the ultimate self-denier for those who cannot go that far. He took up his cross for those who too often sneak away from their crosses. He lost his life so that those who can’t quite do the same can have eternal life.

And that’s good news for would-be disciples.

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Christ Crucified: The Foundation of a Church’s Prosperity

From a sermon by Bishop J.C. Ryle, “Christ Crucified“:

The doctrine of Christ crucified is the foundation of a Church’s prosperity. No Church will ever be honoured in which Christ crucified is not continually lifted up. Nothing whatever can make up for the want of the cross. Without it all things may be done decently and in order; without it there may be splendid ceremonies, beautiful music, gorgeous churches, learned ministers, crowded communion tables, huge collections for the poor; but without the cross no good will be done. Dark hearts will not be enlightened, proud hearts will not be humbled, mourning hearts will not be comforted, fainting hearts will not be cheered. Sermons about the catholic church and an apostolic ministry, sermons about baptism and the Lord’s supper, sermons about unity and schism, sermons about fasts and communion, sermons about fathers and saints,-such sermons will never make up for the absence of sermons about the cross of Christ. They may amuse some, they will feed none.

A gorgeous banqueting room, and splendid gold plate on the table, will never make up to a hungry man for the want of food. Christ crucified is God’s grand ordinance for doing good to men. Whenever a Church keeps back Christ crucified, or puts anything whatever in that foremost place which Christ crucified should always have, from that moment a Church ceases to be useful. Without Christ crucified in her pulpits, a Church is little better than a cumberer of the ground, a dead carcass, a well without water, a barren fig-tree, a sleeping watch­man, a silent trumpet, a dumb witness, an ambassador without terms of peace, a messenger without tidings, a lighthouse without fire, a stumbling-block to weak believers, a comfort to infidels, a hot-bed for formalism, a joy to the devil, and an offence to God.

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Book Review: Life Lessons from a Calloused Christian

jonah2Life Lessons from a Calloused Christian – a practical study of Jonah with questions By Rev. William Boekestein

Review by Rev. Paul T. Murphy, Pastor of Messiah’s Reformed Fellowship, Manhattan, NY.

This is a great little book of sermons on the book of Jonah. I must confess that Jonah is my favorite book in the Bible.  In the interest of full disclosure I should mention that Rev. Boekestein is a former member of mine from Dutton URC in Michigan. Both of these facts make it easy for me to highly recommend this gem of a book.

Though originally preached as sermons, the material has been transformed into a study guide format. All five chapters conclude with questions that make this an ideal book for either group Bible studies or for one’s own personal devotions. Additionally, because the material had been  preached, the book brims with helpful application as well as explanation of the text. The sermonic format also serves to capture the power of the story that, in Scripture, is itself cogent and compelling.

The preface to the book sets the tone by immediately relating the story of Jonah to the average person today. Both believer and unbeliever can see themselves reflected in Jonah. Hence, Jonah serves as a means of self-examination. The preface also states up front a belief in the historical authenticity of the book. Its importance is “in order to use this book as the Holy Spirit intended it to be used we must regard it as real history”. This is documented later in chapter three along with reasons why historicity matters.

Each chapter begins with the text of Scripture and ends with questions for review and further thought. Each chapter contains a wealth of helpful information condensed into easy to understand reading.

I appreciated  Rev. Boekestein’s emphasis on the evangelistic/missionary (i.e. outward) calling of the Christian. “God sought Jonah that he might bless others; that is why he tracked him down. If he has sought you, please understand it is for no other reason than that you might bless others.” (p.35) And “ if God has rescued you through a work of grace, be prepared; he has rescued you in order to work for him.” (p. 49) This strikes a helpful balance to the primary focus – lessons from a calloused Christian, i.e. we are called to self-examination (inward) and therefore see our own calloused selves in Jonah.

While there are repeated mentions of the character of God in the study, I believe the book could have been strengthened by a stronger focus on God as a missionary God. Yet brevity precludes comprehensiveness. All in all this is a profitable book on Jonah and well worth one’s time in study. Hopefully it will help readers be less calloused and more selfless in their own walk with the Lord.

Life Lessons is available at Amazon.com or Reformation Heritage Books.

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On Resolutions: Why Do Good in the New Year?

Depending on when you are reading this, you may have already broken most or all of the resolutions you set for the new year. The old joke is that resolutions are made to be broken. And yet, we smile at that line somewhat reservedly. We do feel that we would like this year to be better than the last. But this really begs the question…why?

Why strive to do good in the new year? Or, more generally, why do good at all? The Bible addresses this question head-on giving three solid answers. We should do good for God’s sake, for our neighbor’s sake, and for our own sake. Read More »

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Only Theologians are Qualified to Love

Theologians are often viewed as being disconnected from the world. They are viewed as brainy, intellectually condescending, boring, and often have a long trail of letters following their names. When we think of people who are loving, the last ones to enter our mind are theologians. In reality, this couldn’t be any more the reverse. Theologians are actually the only people who are qualified to love. In order to understand this, we first have to ask, “Who are theologians?”

Every Christian is a theologian. Theology is defined simply as the study of who God is. All Christians have thoughts about God; He is holy, He is eternal, He is unchangeable, He is sovereign, He is merciful. These thoughts of the qualities and characteristics of God form a Theology.  Therefore all Christians have a theology and are thus, in a broad sense, theologians. But what is the connection between theology and love? Read More »

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That’s Christmas

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On Giving and Getting Gifts

A couple of years ago in preparation for the Christmas holiday my extended family got together and all decided that everybody’s money was tight, so we were going to work out a gift exchange “program” instead of our usual everybody-give- gifts-to-everybody approach. Our plan was to still buy gifts for the increasing number of children, but the adults would pull one name out of a hat and buy only that person a gift. We even had a questionnaire for each adult to fill out with your likes, dislikes, shoe size, and waist measurement. Some people were kind enough to go so far and put some specific things they wanted. The last stipulation was that we were to spend around $30 for the gift. In response to this my brother, who has a knack for seeing through things like this said, “So our gift exchange is going to be a bunch of people exchanging $30 with each other: ‘Here’s your $30’, ‘Oh thank you so much, here’s your $30…’”

Tis’ the season for gift giving again and in light of that, I have noticed many people seem to misunderstand exactly what giving and receiving a gift means. Sadly this is true even among Christians, who of all people should understand the true meaning of a gift.

The first ditch we can fall into is to be a grudging gift giver – to have the attitude that the only time we are to give a gift is if we, too, are to get something back of equal value. The example above is based on just that premise. We can’t have people giving out gifts to 25 people when only 10 of those 25 people are going to give gifts back. That’s not “fair” to give 25 gifts and only get 10 back, right? And that is precisely where the problem is. Fairness is a question of justice, but the very concept of a gift has nothing to do with being fair or just. I could cite the definitions of the very word to prove my point but I don’t think I need to. We all know what giving a gift should be, and that it should be given freely without any expectation of payment in return.

The second ditch on the other side of the road is to be a guilty gift getter. This is the person who feels obligated to repay a gift they receive. Often fueled by the presence of the grudging gift giver (real or perceived), this person is motivated by guilt and fear of being judged of being cheap. After all, the Bible does call us to be generous, so why not want to give a gift in return for a gift? Well, that’s all well and good if you feel like freely giving a gift in return. What I am talking about though is the problem of being motivated by guilt and fear. If that is your motivation, it is not a gift.

So why do we fall into these ditches? While we can list many reasons for falling into either of the ditches, the main reason for both is that we lose sight of the true gift giver, who invented and defined the very concept of a free gift. We forget exactly how needy we are and how unimaginably giving our God is. We forget the Gospel of God’s free grace, and that “by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).

How then do we avoid these two ditches? First, if you tend to be a grudging gift giver, meditate on how God gives us his gifts. The root sin here is pride, so humble yourself by remembering how needy you are and how undeserving you are of God’s gifts. Realize that every day you take more from God than you could ever pay back, even if you wanted to (Acts 14:17, James 1:17). God created you; He preserves you; and even in our rebellion, He provides our redemption and reconciliation through Christ. And He does all this not begrudgingly nor conditionally, but joyfully and freely.

Once we are humbled by how freely God gives to us, and that all of our gifts to others are just an overflow of His grace, how can we not be cheerful givers? So if you are the type of person whose gifts usually have strings attached, challenge yourself this year to give like God. Give more than you normally would. Be careful that you don’t even give a subtext of expecting something back. When you give like this, you will be happier because you will be more like God.

Second, if you tend to be a guilty gift getter, you may have a good sense of your unworthiness before God. But there are a few things for you to remember as well. Remember how freely God gives and that when getting a gift from God, our only job is to receive it with thanksgiving. Even the greatest gift of God’s own Son is to be received by faith, not by anything you do. Let that remind you and define for you how you are to receive all gifts. There is no need to feel guilty or ashamed of how unworthy you are, God knows that and gives to you anyway.

The biggest problem for the guilty gift getter though, is the fact that often people don’t give like God does. Gifts are often given with strings attached, and the receiver can rightfully perceive this and feel ashamed. In this case remember that they are the ones with the problem, that they are the ones that don’t understand the meaning of a gift. So if you tend to feel guilt when receiving a gift, challenge yourself to receive like God says you should – with hearty thanksgiving, regardless of the true motives of the giver. Don’t try to delve into whether people think you should give something back, or whether you are cheap. Free yourself from the fear of judgment and be a happy gift getter.

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    Life Reformation is a group of evangelical Christians from various denominations, whose purpose is to facilitate the propagation of biblical religion as expressed in the best of the Protestant tradition. As fragmented, confused and ineffective as the church often seems today, we are eager to use Life Reformation as a means of bringing God-centered people together to be equipped and encouraged in the gospel. We clearly recognize that the church is God’s primary structural means of Christian instruction, worship and fellowship. We also are respectful of the various traditions and bible-believing denominations in our area.
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