Christian Devotional on "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life" (John 5:24)

Bible Verse "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life" (John 5:24).

Devotional The first implantation of the divine life in the soul is sudden. However, in most cases the advance of that work is very gradual. Let this be an encouragement to any who are saying hard and bitter things against themselves because of their small progress. The growth of divine knowledge in the soul is often slow—the work of much time and of protracted discipline. Look at the eleven disciples—what slow, tardy scholars they were, even though they were taught immediately from the lips of Jesus. And "who is a teacher like him" (Job 36:22)? They drank their knowledge from the very Fountain. They received their light directly from the Sun itself. And yet, even with all these superior advantages—the ministry, instructions, miracles, and example of our dear Lord himself—how slow of understanding they were to comprehend, and how "slow of heart to believe" (Luke 24:25), all that he so laboriously, clearly, and patiently taught them! Yes, the advance of the soul in the divine life—its knowledge of sin, of the hidden evil, the heart's deep treachery and intricate windings, Satan's subtlety, the glory of the gospel, the preciousness of Christ, and its own interest in the great salvation—is not the work of a day, nor of a year; but it is the work of many days, yes, of many years of deep plowing, long and often painful discipline, of "raging wind and tempest" (Ps. 55:8). But this life in the soul is not less real, nor less divine, because its growth is slow and gradual. It may be small and feeble in its degree, yet, in its nature, it is the life that never dies. How many of our Lord's beloved ones, the children of godly parents, brought up in the ways of God, are at a loss, in reviewing the map of their pilgrimage, to remember the starting-point of their spiritual life? They well know that they left the city of destruction—that by a strong and a mighty arm they were brought out of Egypt. But they were led so gently, so imperceptibly, so softly, and so gradually—"first a thought, then a desire, then a prayer"—that they can no more discover when the first dawning of divine life took place in their soul than they can tell the instant when natural light first broke upon chaos. Still it is real. It is no fantasy that he has inherited an evil principle in the heart. It is no fantasy that grace has subdued that principle. It is no fantasy that he was once a child of darkness; it is no fantasy that he is now a child of light. He may mourn in secret over his little advance, his slow progress, his weak faith, his small grace, his strong corruption, his many infirmities, his twistings aside like "a deceitful bow" (Ps. 78:57), yet he can say, "Though I am the 'foremost sinner' (1&#c2;&#a0;Tim. 1:15), and 'the very least of all the saints' (Eph. 3:8)—though I see so much within to abase me, and so much without to mourn over, yet this 'one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see' (John 9:25). I see that which I never saw before—a hatefulness in sin, and a beauty in holiness; I see a vileness and emptiness in myself, and a preciousness and fullness in Jesus." Do not forget, then, dear reader, that feeble grace is nevertheless real grace. If it but "hungers and thirsts" (Matt. 5:6), if it "only touches the fringe of his garment" (Matt. 14:36), it shall be saved.

Foremost sinner though I be,
Jesus shed his blood for me;
died, that I might live on high;
lived, that I might never die.
As the branch is to the Vine,
I am his and he is mine.

Oh! how great is Jesus' love!
Higher than the heavens above,
deeper than the deepest sea,
lasting as eternity;
Love that found me—wondrous thought!—
found me when I sought him not!

Only Jesus can impart
balm to heal the tortured heart;
peace that flows from sin forgiv'n,
joy that lifts the soul to heav'n;
faith and hope to walk with God,
in the way that Enoch trod.

Foremost sinner though I be,
Christ is all in all to me:
all my wants to him are known,
all my sorrows are his own;
safe with him from earthly strife,
he sustains the hidden life.

O my Savior, help afford
by your Spirit and your Word!
When my wayward heart would stray,
keep me in the narrow way;
grace in time of need supply
while I live, and when I die.

(William McComb, 1864; alt. by LEW 2007)

taken from OPC.org

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Mt. Rose OPC Christian Church in Reno Post Tags: Christian Encouragement

Christian Devotional on "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD" (Mal. 3:3). "Take away the dross from the silver, and the smith has material for a vessel" (Prov. 25:4)

Bible Verse "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD" (Mal. 3:3). "Take away the dross from the silver, and the smith has material for a vessel" (Prov. 25:4).

Devotional Note the great and glorious end of this fiery process: both a righteous offering to the LORD and a vessel formed, prepared, and beautified— "a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work" (2 Tim. 2:21). Blessed result! Oh the wonders wrought by the fire of God's furnace! Not only is God glorified in the fire, but also the believer is sanctified. Have you ever observed the process of the craftsman in preparing his beautiful ornament? After taking it from its mold, skillfully and properly formed, he then traces upon it the design he intended it should bear, dipping his brush in varied hues of the brightest coloring. But the work is not yet finished. The shape of that ornament is yet to be fixed, the figures are to be set, the colors perpetuated, and the whole work consolidated. By what process? By passing through the fire. The fire alone completes the work. That is how it is with the chastened soul—that beautifully constructed vessel, which is to adorn the palace of our King through eternity—the gaze, the wonder, the delight of every holy intelligence. God has cast it into the Divine mold, has drawn upon it the image of his own Son with a brush dipped in heaven's own colors—but it must pass through the furnace of affliction, thus to stamp completeness and eternity upon the whole. Therefore, calmly rest in the hands of your Divine Craftsman. Do not ask for the extinguishing of a single spark until the holy work is completed. God may temper and soften—for he never withdraws his eye from the work for one moment—but your loss will be great if you lose the affliction unsanctified! Oh! If only we could more clearly see God's reason and the design in sending the chastisement, all marvel would cease, all murmuring would be hushed, and not a painful dispensation of our Father would afford us needless trouble. David's pen never wrote more sweetly than when dipped in the ink of affliction. And never did his harp send forth deeper, richer melodies than when the breath of sadness swept its strings. This has been the uniform testimony of the saints of God in every age. "It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes" (Ps. 119:71). "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your Word" (Ps. 119:67). Learn to see a Father's hand—yes, a Father's heart—in every affliction. It is not a vindictive enemy who is chastening you; it is a loving Friend. It is not an unfeeling stranger, but a tender Father, who, though he may cast you down in the dust, will never cast you away from his love. The Captain of your salvation—himself made perfect through suffering—only designs your higher spiritual promotion in his army, by each sanctified affliction sent. You are on your way to the mansion prepared for you by the Savior, to the kingdom bestowed upon you by God. The journey is short, and time is fleeting. Even though the cross is heavy and the path is rough, you do not have far or long to carry it. Let the deep-drawn sigh be checked by the throb of gladness which this prospect should create. "He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever" (Ps. 103:9). The wind will not always moan. The waters will not always be turbulent. The dull fog will not float forever along the sky, nor will the sunbeams be forever wreathed in darkness. Your Father's love will not always speak in muffled tones, nor will your Savior hide himself forever behind the wall or within the lattice. That wind will yet breathe music. Those waters will yet be still. That fog will yet evaporate. That sun will yet break forth. Your Father's love will speak again in unmuffled strains. And your Savior will manifest himself without a veil. Pensive child of sorrow! Weary pilgrim of grief! Timid, yet prayerful; doubting, yet hoping; guilty, yet penitent; laying your hand on the Head of the great appointed Sacrifice, you look up with tears, confessing your sin, and pleading in faith the blood of sprinkling. Oh, rejoice that this painful travail of soul is only the Spirit's preparation for the seat awaiting you in the upper temple where the days of your mourning will be ended. You may carry the cross to the last step of the journey—weeping even up to heaven's gate—but there you shall lay that cross down and the last bitter tear shall there be wiped away forever! Truly we may exclaim, "Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O LORD, and whom you teach out of your law" (Ps. 94:12).

Thy way, not mine, O Lord,
how ever dark it be!
Lead me by thine own hand,
choose out the path for me;
smooth let it be or rough,
it will be still the best;
winding or straight, it leads
right onward to thy Rest.

The kingdom that I seek
is thine; so let the way
that leads to it be thine,
else I must surely stray.
I dare not choose my lot;
I would not if I might:
choose thou for me, my God,
so shall I walk aright.

Take thou my cup, and it
with joy or sorrow fill
as best to thee may seem;
choose thou my good and ill.
Not mine, not mine the choice
in things or great or small;
be thou my Guide, my Strength,
my Wisdom, and my All.

(Horatius Bonar, 1857)

taken from OPC.org

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Mt. Rose OPC Christian Church in Reno Post Tags: Christian Encouragement

Reformed Q&A: Is Sanctification a Part of the Gospel?

Question:

I had a discussion recently concerning sanctification. From that discussion came this question: Is sanctification a part of the gospel, and why? I won't tell you what my take was for fear of bias.
Thanks.

Answer:

You perhaps know that one of the debates the Reformers had with the Roman Catholic Church, perhaps the debate after the authority of Scripture, was on the nature of the gospel. How is a person made right with God? The Catholic Church thought that the teaching of the Reformers that a sinner is justified, declared righteous in Jesus Christ alone by faith alone through grace alone, would lead to ungodliness! That is frequently how an emphasis on free and sovereign grace is seen. The fear is that if we come to Christ and have our sins removed by their being laid to Christ's account and we receive Christ's perfect righteousness accounted as our own righteousness (usually called "double imputation" or "Christ's active and passive obedience"), people will have no "incentive" to godly living. That charge has never disappeared either!
The solution the Catholic Church offered was to mix justification with sanctification, to merge the two parts of God's working. But, of course, we being sinful creatures ended up with a works-righteousness mixture, Christ saving us so that we might save ourselves. The Reformers, looking at Scripture, knew that this could never be. Paul wrote to the Galatians "yet we know that a person is not justified by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified" (2:16). Here Paul protects us from the confusion or melding of justification and sanctification.
The Westminster Shorter Catechism is so helpful in this too:

Question 33: "What is justification?"

Answer: "Justification is an act of God's free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone."

The sinner is established in Christ complete and without offering to God any of his own righteousness or obedience. If any of our efforts infiltrate our "gospel" it is the proverbial drop of poison in the cup, one drop of my efforts at self-salvation poisons the whole. So the Westminster divines were carefully to make this justification an act of God's grace, a decisive, complete act, sovereignly performed by a merciful God based on the merits and death of the Son of God alone.
But the Catechism also clearly defined sanctification:

Question 35: "What is sanctification?"

Answer: "Sanctification is the work of God's free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness."

From an act to a work, from a declaration about a person to a work within a person, a work of renewal and transformation, is the distinction which the divines clearly saw.
What we can say, putting these together, is that the person who is truly justified through faith in Jesus Christ will also be sanctified by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the way Paul expressed it in Galatians 2:20. "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 for me." Paul will go on in Galatians to show that the person who is not justified through faith in Christ Jesus will display the deeds of the flesh rather than the fruit of the Spirit (chapter 5). This is because the new birth is truly from above (John 3), a supernatural act of God's power making a spiritually dead sinner to live unto God, as Paul so powerfully sets out in Ephesians 2:1-10. Sanctification, the internal renewal and change of the sinner by the power of God, will and must take place; however, it is a fruit of the gospel rather than the gospel itself.
If we do not keep these things clear, we will drift into the confusion of the Roman Catholic Church. The gospel calls us to repent of our sins and to flee to the Son of God for both deliverance from the guilt and penalty and for new power against sin's mastery; however, we bring nothing to the transaction save a brokenness over sin's offense to God and "an apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ" (Shorter Catechism Q. 87), but it is all ours, not because we have been made holy (the infused righteousness of Rome's version) but because the receiving and resting upon Christ alone for salvation, as he is offered to us in the gospel (Shorter Catechism Q. 86), means empty hands receiving forgiveness and righteousness by faith alone.
I hope this is helpful. If you have questions, please contact me.

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Mt. Rose OPC Christian Church in Reno Post Tags: Question and Answer