Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy, has caused us to be born again to a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)

This verse is a great picture of the reality of salvation in Christ. But it is even MORE amazing when taken in context…read the verses before!

“…who are chosen, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.” (1 Peter 1:1-2)

Why should I be able to say, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”? 

Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Peter presents several irrefutable, Scripturally sound, and God-honoring arguments in favor of blessing the Lord:

1. The doctrine of election. One of the most profound doctrines in Scripture. God, who is sovereign and omniscient, chooses those He will save. He does not choose based on our merits, our abilities, or even our “likelihood to respond.” He chooses out of His grace and love. (Romans 8:29-30.)
2. The foreknowledge of God. According to secular dictionaries, foreknowledge means “knowledge or awareness of something before its existence or occurrence.” [How many human beings (or supernatural beings, for that matter) do you know have foreknowledge, apart from God?] This doctrine is not limited to the New Testament. God, in the Old Testament, foreknew His chosen people, Israel. (Deut. 7:6.)
3. The mercy of God. “The LORD is slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression.” (Num. 14:18.) [Lovingkindness = mercy.] The word, “lovingkindness,” is the English translation of the Hebrew word, hesed - pity; merciful, mercy.
4. The grace of God. ”For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Eph. 2:8-9.) Grace is what sets Biblical Christianity apart from all other world religions. Every other religious system, including the “Christian” religion of Roman Catholicism, require human efforts or merits to gain salvation. As sinful human beings, there is NOTHING we can do to earn our salvation. We are saved by God’s grace alone!!

(Other important doctrines: the Trinity; the atonement; sanctification; the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Other arguments: the duty of the Christian – obedience; the peace found in Christ alone; the promise of eternal life; the assurance and security of salvation.)

So why should I bless the Lord?? Because He has blessed me more than I ever deserved!!

I don’t fully understand every facet of these doctrines. And I will never fully grasp every detail in this life. That is one thing I have to look forward to in eternity – learning from Christ Himself!

Bible Quizzing season has come once again at my church. This year we are memorizing the first two chapters of 1 Peter. I am looking forward to learning more from this great New Testament book. I am so grateful for my Savior & His inspired Word!!!

jazz hands:8/5/08

Love for all the saints…

“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.” (Colossians 3-5 ESV)

 

With these words, Paul sets the tone of a letter dedicated to the supremacy of the Christ. In no other letter are the nature of our Lord and his centrality to our salvation and new life so clearly and magnificently proclaimed. It is not surprising, then, that Paul offers thanks for their faith in Christ. But imagine for a moment that the sentence ran like this: “We always thank God, the Father or our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we have heard of the love you have for all the saints…”. There are two separate and equally important ideas here. Colossians is intensely practical, so it is no surprise that Paul begins with the love of the saints, to the very church itself, which above all earthly relationships ought most to be cognizant of the supremacy of its Lord.

 

I can scarce conceive of a more precious gift to earthly human life than that given in our brotherhood. I do not mean the familial relationship, but something that hints beyond the veil at the image in which we were created. Paul says to the Thessalonians, “How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of God because of you?” Indeed, the apostle uses the word “brother” a little more than 90 times by informal count! But as Lewis, in his momentous Four Loves reminds us, “The highest does not stand without the lowest.” And in our base, rebellious existence, those things which masquerade closest to the divine are those we most easily lift up as gods. Thus it is that friendship, not Eros, or affection, nor any other love of man, is often most deadly.

 

The supremacy of Christ in our love for the brethren is not just the character of the love, it is the difference between the church and “the foreigners and aliens” of Ephesians 2:19. But we are to be “fellow citizens with God’s people, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. (Eph. 2:20)” And so Paul says, “For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel” (Col 1:5 KJV). Our heavenly hope is established as the foundation of our love: the hope of the gospel, which is Christ. (2 Cor 4:3-6). Indeed, it is only in Christ that we are even able to love: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God” 1 John 4:7)

 

With Christ clearly shown as the foundation of our love, I will skip over the treasures of 1 John 4. I want to look at the practical significance of love based in the hope of Christ. Nowhere is this illustrated more clearly than in Hebrews 2:11-15, in which I find these three essentials of Christian fellowship.

 

1. Our brothers are chosen by God.

The scripture says, “Here am I, and the children God has given me.” If Christ himself received his church from the hand of the Father, don’t you imagine for a minute that you did any choosing. Remember what you were when you were called, the apostle warns; God chose the things that were not to nullify the things that are. The minute you slip past this, when you begin to congratulate yourself on the company you keep, you have forgotten the utter wretchedness of your nature. Pride creeps in, grace is forgotten, and a unified church is replaced by a people-focused club. This is the root of that favoritism that is so strongly condemned by all the apostles. Paul does not ask the Corinthians if they do not have homes of their own in which to dine to question their manners but to remind them that they are in God’s home, guests of his grace alone.

 

2. Christ in you, the hope of glory.

“They seemed to be a terror one to the other, for that they could not see that Glory each one on herself which they could see in each other.”

 

Jon Bunyan’s words capture the purpose to our fellowship. If we are looking at Christ, then we shall see His infinite nature manifest in the unique temple each Christian was made to be; if we seek to admire man, we will find only corruption and death. This is why Hebrews says, “I will declare you name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises.” Remember our text from Colossians is set in the middle of a prayer of thanksgiving. We are to praise Christ together (Eph 5:19-20, just for extra credit), we are to strengthen and minister to each other (1 Thess. 5-11), we are even to discipline each other (1 Cor. 6:1-6, and the result in 2 Cor 2:5-11). We may either build each other up in Him, or else tear each other down.

 

3. Hope laid up in heaven.

“After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb… And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’”

One might say that the church here and now is merely a dress rehearsal for eternity. Rather than attempt to wax eloquent, I turn again to Paul: “Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory…. We know that the whole creation has been groaning right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved.”

 

I have written before about joy, and “living longing.” But I would leave you with one last thought, the caution I borrowed earlier from the pen of C.S. Lewis. It is by no accident that I have refrained from using friendship with fellowship and brotherhood. Earthly friendship is a most tragic perversion. By it, men exalt the pride of life, they seek to mold one another into their own image. They worship themselves. They live for today, for tomorrow they will die. They use it to mask the wretched need of their souls. Reader, do not travel that path. You must live in Christ alone.

 

Nat Simmons:2/13/08

The Meaning of the Sign

from Pastor Tom’s sermon on Sunday…
(check out the audio on www.countrysidebible.org)

Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

Immanuel = God Among Us!

1. YHWH is the one and only true God. ["Prophecy is an effective apologetic for YHWH being the one & only true God!" --> "This should strengthen and confirm our faith in God!"]
2. YHWH is sovereign over human history. [i. He will bring lasting judgment on Judah for her sins. ii. He will order history to accomplish His salvation purposes.]
3. YHWH alone can provide physical deliverance.
4. YHWH alone can provide spiritual deliverance.

~-~

my thoughts…

What an encouraging statement?! God WILL accomplish HIS purposes…even through something as impossible as a virgin birth!!

There is also a challenge in this sermon to go through and read through the prophecies and see the fulfillments later on in history. What an amazing God we serve!! He promises to send salvation and then faithfully fulfills His promise (dotting every ‘i’ and crossing every ‘t.’ In other words, fulfilling His promise exactly as He said He would do!!)

I hope we will all take this Christmas day to remember the real reason we celebrate this season…the birth of our Lord & Savior Christ Jesus…and ultimately, the real reason He was even sent to be born as a human, to be the perfect sacrifice for sinful, undeserving, ungrateful humanity. Praise God for His perfect, indescribable gift – His one and only Son!!

jazz hands:12/25/07

An Evening with Spurgeon…

After reading my evening devotion, written by the great Charles Spurgeon, I was struck by the highly applicable message he shared with his readership. He took a “simple” verse and turned it into an almost life “mission statement.”

Colossians 3:24, “knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

Here is the devotion:

“Ye serve the Lord Christ.”
- Col 3:24
To what choice order of officials was this word spoken? To kings who proudly boast a right divine? Ah, no! too often do they serve themselves or Satan, and forget the God whose sufferance permits them to wear their mimic majesty for their little hour. Speaks then the apostle to those so-called “right reverend fathers in God,” the bishops, or “the venerable the archdeacons”? No, indeed, Paul knew nothing of these mere inventions of man. Not even to pastors and teachers, or to the wealthy and esteemed among believers, was this word spoken, but to servants, aye, and to slaves. Among the toiling multitudes, the journeymen, the day labourers, the domestic servants, the drudges of the kitchen, the apostle found, as we find still, some of the Lord’s chosen, and to them he says, “Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.” This saying ennobles the weary routine of earthly employments, and sheds a halo around the most humble occupations. To wash feet may be servile, but to wash his feet is royal work. To unloose the shoe-latchet is poor employ, but to unloose the great Master’s shoe is a princely privilege. The shop, the barn, the scullery, and the smithy become temples when men and women do all to the glory of God! Then “divine service” is not a thing of a few hours and a few places, but all life becomes holiness unto the Lord, and every place and thing, as consecrated as the tabernacle and its golden candlestick.

“Teach me, my God and King, in all things thee to see;
And what I do in anything to do it as to thee.
All may of thee partake, nothing can be so mean,
Which with this tincture, for thy sake, will not grow bright and clean.
A servant with this clause makes drudgery divine;
Who sweeps a room, as for thy laws, makes that and the action fine.”

 

Lately, my life has been bombarded with the stress of making decisions about degrees and career choices. What a great and timely reminder?! Ultimately, whatever I end up choosing, if I pursue God’s glory in that decision, the degree or career does not matter. As Spurgeon said, “The shop, the barn, the scullery, and the smithy become temples when men and women do all to the glory of God! Then ‘divine service’ is not a thing of a few hours and a few places, but all life becomes holiness unto the Lord, and every place and thing, as consecrated as the tabernacle and its golden candlestick.“

jazz hands:12/11/07

 

 

Ambassadors of the Gospel

Over the next couple of weeks, I want to look at a favorite analogy of our Christian walk, that of ambassador. Paul himself is the first to use the title in Ephesians 6:19-20 “…that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” Now the great thing here is that Paul really understood what it meant to be an ambassador. Throw aside, if you will, all our modern “advantages”, and return to a time when communication was far slower and more difficult, travel more dangerous, and the power of kings absolute.

A king, of course, prefers first of all to order his will and be done with it, but even the Caesar’s could not extend their will everywhere. And when a king does not rule somewhere, why then, he must find another way of exerting his will or protecting his interests. And here’s the rub, try as he might, a king just cannot be everywhere he doesn’t control to deal with every issue concerning him, especially when his empire is vast and his caravan slow! So, the king must appoint someone to watch his interest for him. An ideal ambassador is exactly like his king: in motive, in power, and in nature. I think you see where I’m getting at with this.

Now, Ephesians 6 introduces the first and primary attribute of the ambassador, to which everything else is incidental. The ambassador must speak. He must in all things proclaim the will of his Lord, announce his purpose and interests, and persuade his hearers to action. He speaks in accord with the instructions given him, but he also speaks from his knowledge of his Lord, and what he says comes with authority. Because of this great trust, the ambassador must not speak his own opinion or will; he is in no way his own person, but everything he does will be viewed as an extension of the one he represents. For this reason, most ambassadors have been either great statesmen (accustomed to putting the good of the state above their own) or great politicians (accustomed to lying convincingly)!

Thus Paul prays that he may speak boldly (as befits the greatest King), and of the gospel (the interest of his King in this world). He also asks for instructions, the words to say, as should we. And, of course, these words are given us in the written word, but they also come from our intimate personal knowledge of the one we represent.

“For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” (1st Cor 2:16, KJV)

In His Service,

Nat

“Great is the Lord!”

I’ve been reminded of this fact as I experience various trials in my life. It is so refreshing when I am forced to rely, not on my own strength, but on a great God, who loved me to the extent that He sent His one and only Son to be the payment for my sins.

Psalm 40:16 says, “May all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who love Your salvation say continually, ‘Great is the Lord!’” (This comes from the ESV; the NASB, at the very end of the verse, says, “‘The Lord be magnified!‘”)

“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when His glory is revealed….Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.” 1 Peter 4:12-13, 19

jazz hands:11/27/07

Looking Forward to Glory

I still have not finished writing on love, as my personal blog hinted about. But I wanted to share what I’ve been thinking about in the last several weeks, much of it inspired by my study of love.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10 reaffirms that we are to live longing.

“For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.”

I’m away from my church and home a lot, so I often find myself longing to return. This is all well and good, but it really is just a picture of the way we ought to live. In my studies, I’ve been pondering the awesome import of John’s statement that “God is Love”. This means that everything God does and has ever done has been to or for His Glory and IN His Love. He allowed our rebellion so that He might lavish His Love on us, making us His Children, so that it might not be by anything we had done. He sealed us with His Spirit, so that fallen man, incapable of even comprehending, much less living in, love, might love Him. 1st John says we are to “rely on his love” and remain in it. And this is how we love God: by doing what He commands.

But my point for today is this. Human friendship is often a tragic thing. It is summed up in the making much of each other. The goal is always horizontal, it’s a focus on what I can get from you, and vice versa. Furthermore, it’s frail: C.S. Lewis was correct in saying that friends are drawn together because they share something in common. But this is not what we are called to do. We are commanded to love one another, and interestingly, John says that this is the very same thing “to do as God commands.” In other words, if we are personally living longing, if we are living with a focus on our personal relationship with Jesus Christ, than our building each other up TO THE SAME goal is only natural. After all, HE is what we share in common. And this is a beautiful thing, because it means we are not focussed on each other, but on praising and glorifying our great God! And this is not a fragile thing, we will continue in it forever.

Reader, challenge yourself, do you have friends for life, or brothers for eternity?

Nat Simmons:11/14/07

Who Can Fathom Immeasurable Love?

Once again, I have found the Puritan prayers from The Valley of Vision presenting the truth in a refreshing light.

The prayer I read this time is entitled “Freedom.” It speaks of the process of salvation and sanctification.

The last half of the prayer focuses on the knowledge of God. This is definitely an important part of a believer’s sanctification – knowing God. To know God, His attributes, His desires, His commandments, etc. is to know how to live, in order to best please Him!

Here is this section of the prayer, “Freedom,” p. 100:

~~~

Who can fathom immeasurable love?

As far as the rational soul exceeds the senses,

so does the spirit exceed the rational in its knowledge of thee.

Thou hast given me understanding to compass the earth,

measure the sun, moon, stars, universe,

but above all to know thee, the only true God.

I marvel that the finite can know the Infinite,

here a little,

afterwards in full-orbed truth;

Now I know but a small portion of what I shall know,

here in part,

there in perfection,

here a glimpse,

there a glory.

To enjoy thee is life eternal,

and to enjoy is to know.

Keep me in the freedom of experiencing thy salvation continually.

~~~

What a challenge?! After reading this prayer, I am compelled to seek to know more about the God I serve. It certainly is a challenge, but isn’t it also an encouragement? In eternity, we will know God perfectly…not in the sense of exhausting the knowledge of God, because that will never happen…but in the sense that we will be in His perfect presence forever!

jazz hands:11/3/07

 

Joy! Part 2

How, then, did Paul intend for joy to be our safeguard? The first clue comes with the summary of chapter three, found, oddly enough, in the first verse of chapter four: “Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends.” This is a bookend. With this statement, Paul takes what appears at first glance to be a chapter of glorious but independent ideas, and draws them together to give the magnificent application of his introductory command “rejoice in the Lord”!

1. To rejoice is to live longing. Paul’s concluding point in chapter three lays the foundation: “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” As David has shown us, only in God’s presence is “fullness of joy.” What we have here is only a foretaste of our inheritance. Jesus himself says, “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” Paul writes in Romans, “Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.” When speaking of the faith that comes from hope, the writer of Hebrews states “Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” Paul’s longing is apparent in chapter one “….I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.” And greatest of all, “…Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). Amen!!

 

2. To rejoice is to live loving. So far we have shown that joy comes from our assured hope of living in the presence of God forever, made possible by our reunion to God through Christ’s redemptive work. This is very good, it is, indeed the means to our joy. But, as John Piper says, “being forgiven for our sins and being acquitted in court for capital crimes and being counted righteous before a holy God is so manifestly a happy situation” that we occasionally lose sight of the real end of justification. This is why Paul’s first positive statement on joyful life in chapter 3 (the very first statement is a warning) proclaims: “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” Peter sums it up like this, “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. We are told not merely to rejoice, but to rejoice in the Lord! I hope to write more on love at a later time, but the central point is this, neither justification, nor joy, nor any of the blessings of righteousness are of the slightest import next to the command of Ephesians 5:1: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Joy is the natural state of the soul that loves God. For this reason, Galatians lists the fruits of the Spirit in order as love, joy, and peace; and 1 Corinthians declares “Now I know in part, then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

 

 

3. To rejoice is to live exhorting. Verse 17 concludes the call to “press on” by commanding: “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.” If our joy is in our longing to be fully reunited with the Savior we love, and if there are others who share in God’s great salvation, then we obviously have a cause for fellowship with each other. (1 John 1:4) Philippians 2:1-4 demonstrates our responsibilities: “If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, than make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.” Time and again we are commanded to remind each other of our love for Him, to exhort each other, to speak to each other “in Psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs” (Ephesians 5:19). And John writes again, “I have no greater joy than to hear my children are walking in the truth” (3 John 4).

 

4. To rejoice is to live proclaiming. In Philippians again Paul says, “Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.” (1:18). If we live longing and loving and exhorting the brethren, we are focused on things so grand and glorious in their import that whatever befalls here should not even begin to break in on our joy in Christ. This is the heart of our witness. “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. (Philippians 1:27) “Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make know among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:24-29.

 

I hope you have enjoyed this journey through joy as much as I have. I also pray that you may be as convicted as I have been! I wish to say one last time that the first two actions, longing and loving are inseparable in focus, and that exhorting and proclaiming are the natural results of a life lived with that focus.

 

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Romans 15:13).

Nat Simmons:10/27/07

“In fear and much trembling…”

Last night, at the home fellowship, our group covered the passage of 1 Corinthians 2:1-16. Each time we meet I come away with something to apply to my life…but this week, more than the others, I found something that should have a great impact on the daily worship of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Here is the section that impacted me the most:

~~~

“And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.”

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

~~~

Several questions arose in my mind as to what this “fear and trembling” referred to. When considering the history of Paul’s missionary journey leading up to this letter, I discovered that Paul came out of dangerous circumstances in such places as Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens. Is Paul in “fear and much trembling” because of these circumstances? It might seem that way when considering the history surrounding this letter, but when considering the context of the passage, I came to a different conclusion.

I believe Paul was “in fear and much trembling” because he was dealing with the divine word of God! He refused to preach to the Corinthians with “persuasive words of wisdom.” (By the way, these persuasive words mentioned by Paul are really more destructive than can be seen in a mere first reading. According to John MacArthur, these words “rob the gospel of its power!”) The gospel is God’s message…not a concoction of man! Paul desired to preach to the Corinthians by the “demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that [their] faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.” Based on the context of the passage, Paul was fearful of an all-powerful, holy, sovereign God…the same God who created the world; provided a Savior – His only Son; promised a future inheritance to those who would believe; and sustains those who believe, in order for them to obtain their promised inheritance…this God provided the written word of the Bible, to point us to the Savior of the world – His Son, Jesus Christ!

Now can you see why Paul was “in fear and much trembling?” To speak with the “persuasive words of wisdom” would be in direct violation of the Author of the Holy Scriptures! ["All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17; "But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God." 2 Peter 1:20-21] The passage just before 1 Corinthians 2 spoke about how God chooses to use His wisdom to “shame the wise…and…the things which are strong.” It is also the passage which says, “so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, ‘LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.’” Paul wanted to boast in the Lord by preaching God’s gospel, not his own human thoughts.

~~~

This all led me to the following questions:

Do I live in fear (reverence) of an all-powerful, holy, righteous, perfect, sovereign God – who did not even spare His only Son?

How do I handle, or approach the word of the living God?

Do I tremble at His word?

Do I try to convince others (especially non-believers) with my own opinions or thoughts about how man is to be saved? (In other words, do I “water down” the gospel so that it won’t be offensive to non-believers??)

~~~

These questions are hard to contemplate…but in the end, they must be answered!

This passage has certainly changed how I view my approach to the living word of God; it has also changed how I approach others with the gospel of Jesus Christ!

jazz hands:10/26/07