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Post by Admin on Jun 9, 2023 15:48:28 GMT -5
JUN 9, 2023
Worldview and CultureApologeticsFalse Teaching
Who Are the Jehovah’s Witnesses?
7 Min Read
Who are the Jehovah’s Witnesses?
Over the past century and a half, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have become one of the most significant cults in the world. As of 2019, an estimated 8.7 million people adhere to the teaching and practice of this false religion worldwide.1
When did it begin?
In the late 1870s, Charles Taze Russell—a Restoration movement minister—began publishing his heretical doctrine in a periodical titled Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence. Russell grew up in a religious home, attending both Presbyterian and Congregational churches. As a teenager, however, he started questioning several essential Christian doctrines, such as the Trinity and eternal punishment. Having been a follower of the Adventist movement, an umbrella term for those influenced by nineteenth-century American preacher William Miller and his false prediction of Christ’s return in 1843, Russell insisted that Christ returned in nonvisible form in 1874. When his prediction that Christians would be resurrected in 1878 failed, Russell distanced himself from the Adventist movement. Russell started his own publishing company in 1881 called the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, which published as many as sixteen million copies of his books and pamphlets by the time of his death in 1916.
Who are the key figures?
In 1916, J.F. Rutherford was elected the second president of the organization. Though considerably less prolific as a writer than Russell, Rutherford took on the role as the unofficial infallible prophet for the organization. When Rutherford died in 1942, N.H. Knorr became the president of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Among the most famous Jehovah’s Witness of our day are the late musician Prince and tennis stars Serena and Venus Williams. Michael Jackson and Dwight D. Eisenhower also grew up as Jehovah’s Witnesses.
What are the main beliefs?
Jehovah’s Witnesses are most well known for denying the Trinity, the deity of Christ, the personhood of the Holy Spirit, and the doctrine of eternal punishment. Their false teaching on these subjects can be summarized under two main headings:
The Father alone is God. The Jehovah’s Witnesses hold to the sole deity of the Father on the basis that Jehovah (a frequently used English rendering of God’s covenant name in Hebrew) is represented as the only God in Scripture. Denying classical Trinitarian doctrine, the Jehovah’s Witnesses adamantly reject the idea that there are three persons in the Godhead. In their attack on historic Christian doctrine, the Jehovah’s Witnesses insist that a belief in three persons in the Godhead is equivalent to a belief in three gods.
Since the Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe in the triune God, they teach that Jesus is a created being—specifically, He is the archangel Michael. Although they refer to Him as “the only begotten of God,” Jehovah’s Witnesses insist that Jesus is the first of the created beings of God. They teach that Jesus agreed to be placed in the womb of the Virgin Mary in order to be a sacrifice for the sins of humanity. However, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that Jesus’ death propitiated the eternal wrath of God, since they do not believe in the deity of Jesus or in eternal punishment.
According to the Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Holy Spirit is not a person, let alone God. Rather, the Spirit is merely an emanating and active force of God.
No eternal punishment. Jehovah’s Witnesses insist that there is no eternal torment for unbelievers in the afterlife. In Jehovah’s Witness theology, the body and the soul are inseparable, so the soul dies with the body. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that physical death was the only thing Adam suffered when he fell in the garden. According to the Jehovah’s Witnesses, there is no immortal soul.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation 7:4 are 144,000 faithful Jehovah’s Witnesses who will go to heaven. The remainder of faithful Jehovah’s Witnesses will be resurrected and live forever on earth. Those who die without hearing of Christ or knowing God’s will in the Bible will be raised in the resurrection of the unrighteous and will have a second chance to believe in the teachings of the Jehovah’s Witnesses and obey God and to be included in the final inheritance of eternal life on earth. Anyone who does not attain to the eternal inheritance by failing to believe and obey the teachings of the Jehovah’s Witnesses will be annihilated.
Why do people believe this form of false teaching?
The Jehovah’s Witnesses insist that Scripture is the only source of divine revelation. This leads to the faulty conclusion that the Jehovah’s Witnesses are simply teaching the Bible. However, the organization also publishes and distributes millions of copies of The Watchtower magazine, which they treat as the infallible interpreter of Scripture, as well as other publications. Proselytizing is the central feature of their religion; the organization equips and sends all its members out into the world to make converts. The Jehovah’s Witnesses offer people a moralistic, monotheistic religion. Presenting a picture of morally clean families, good health, and upright behavior, the Jehovah’s Witnesses hold to false teaching that can feed a self-righteous spirit. Additionally, the Jehovah’s Witnesses are a multiethnic organization, a characteristic that is often lacking in other religious groups.
How does it hold up against biblical Christianity?
The triune God is the true and living God. Scripture consistently teaches that there are three persons in the Godhead (Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14). The Father is God (Isa. 63:16; Luke 11:2; John 4:23). The Son is God (John 1:1; Rom. 9:5; Col. 1:15–16; Heb. 1:3). The Holy Spirit is also God (Acts 5:3–4). The three persons of the Godhead are not three gods but three persons subsisting in the one God.
The Son of God is fully God. Jesus reveals Himself to be Jehovah (Ex. 3:14; John 8:58). Jesus claimed equality with the Father in the Godhead (John 8:58; 10:30). The Bible teaches that Jesus is God in every way that God is defined as God (Rom. 9:5; Phil. 2:5–6). Scripture reveals that “all things” were made through the Son (John 1:3; Col. 1:16). It is impossible for “all things” to be created by Him if He Himself was created. Scripture teaches that the Holy Spirit is a communicative divine person, the personal agent of supernatural revelation. David said, “The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me” (2 Sam. 23:2). Jesus affirmed the Spirit’s personal inspiration of Scripture when He cited Psalm 110, saying, “David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord” (Matt. 22:43). The writer of Hebrews appealed to the Spirit’s divine authorship of Psalm 95 when he wrote, “As the Holy Spirit says, ‘Today, if you hear his voice’” (Heb. 3:7). The Apostle Peter acknowledged the deity of the Spirit when he confronted Ananias, saying: “Why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit? . . . You have not lied to man but to God” (Acts 5:3–4).
The Nicene Creed (the early Christian statement of faith from AD 325) declares what Scripture teaches about the deity of Christ in relationship to the Trinity over against all early church heresies on the Trinity.
Eternal death is the destination of the wicked. Scripture teaches that God created man in His image with an immortal soul (Gen. 1:26; Eccl. 12:5–7). God’s judgment against man’s sin in the garden was eternal death. By his disobedience, Adam brought spiritual, physical, and eternal death on himself and his natural-born descendants (Rom. 5:12–21). Scripture uses the adjective “eternal” to qualify the nature of the punishment due to man for his sin (Jer. 20:11; Matt. 18:8; 25:46; 2 Thess. 1:9; Jude 6–7; see also Dan. 12:2; Mark 9:44). The idea that God annihilates the souls of men is contrary to the biblical teaching on the eternal justice of God. God the Son became incarnate to propitiate (satisfy) the eternal wrath of God for His people by His death on the cross. Jesus came to give eternal life to all those who trust Him for salvation (John 3:15–18). All sinners deserve eternal death—everlasting punishment—but Jesus rescues from this end everyone who trusts in Him alone.
How can I share the gospel with those who hold to this false teaching?
Focus on what the Bible teaches about the deity of Christ. The Jehovah’s Witnesses have their own highly inaccurate translation of Scripture—the New World Translation—that empties God’s Word of its many references to the deity of Christ. However, there are still several passages in it that are translated properly that attribute deity to the Son. You can take a Jehovah’s Witness to Isaiah 9:6 in the New World Translation and point out that the name of the promised Messiah is “Mighty God.” The New World Translation has also sought to change the wording of Hebrews 1, since it clearly attributes deity to Christ. However, in Hebrews 1:8, God the Father addresses the Son by the name Jehovah, citing Psalm 102:25–26. This is biblical evidence that Jesus is Jehovah. Finally, although the Jehovah’s Witnesses have attempted to strip from the Bible its many clear references to Jesus’ receiving worship from His disciples, Luke 24:52 is one passage they cannot avoid. Only God is to be worshiped. Jesus received worship; therefore, Jesus is God. However, while every English translation of Scripture rightly reads “they worshiped him” in Luke 24:52, the New World Translation reads “they did obeisance to him.”
Focus on the scriptural teaching about the just punishment for sin. Scripture teaches that “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). Physical death leads to eternal death for those under the wrath and curse of God. Jesus and the Apostles taught that the just penalty for sin is “eternal punishment” (Matt. 25:46; see also 2 Thess. 1:9; Jude 7). God is infinite and eternal; therefore, one sin against the infinite and eternal God deserves infinite and eternal punishment. Coming to terms with what our sin deserves is essential to seeing our need for the atoning sacrifice of the God-man, Jesus Christ. Conversely, if there is no eternal punishment, men should simply desire to live their lives for possessions and pleasure (1 Cor. 15:32).
This article is part of the Field Guide on False Teaching collection.
“How Many Jehovah’s Witnesses Are There Worldwide?” JW.org, accessed February 20, 2020, www.jw.org/en /jehovahs-witnesses/faq/how-many-jw/.[font
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Post by Admin on Jun 15, 2023 1:03:07 GMT -5
SEPTEMBER 2020
Who Is the True Israel of God?
by Nick Batzig
BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION, BIBLICAL THEOLOGY, & THE MINISTRY AND LIFE OF CHRIST
Editor’s Note: This post is part of a series on typology. Next post.
I recently read an article in which a noted Christian theologian was encouraging Christian churches to celebrate the Passover Seder. The author’s line of argumentation was not that God requires Christians to keep the Old Testament feasts and festivals but that by observing Passover, Christians can better remember the Jewish foundation of their faith as well as help foster improved Jewish-Christian relations. Strikingly absent from this article were any biblical references to Christ’s fulfillment of the old covenant feasts and festivals.
Yet the Apostle Paul, along with the other New Testament authors, in no uncertain terms explained that Jesus fulfilled each and every single shadowy and typical aspect of the old covenant ceremonial law (Col. 2:16–17), just as He came to fulfill all of the Old Testament promises and prophecies (2 Cor. 1:20). While Christians profess that Jesus is the fulfillment of all of the preparatory and anticipatory aspects of the Old Testament, many lack the overarching framework by which the individual parts find their place in the grand narrative of God’s plan of redemption. In short, Jesus fulfills every preparatory and anticipatory aspect of the history of redemption in the Old Testament in general—and in the history of Israel in particular—because He is the true Israel of God. He recapitulates—summarizes and repeats—Israel’s history in His own experience and work in order to secure for His people the blessings promised to Abraham.
While there are many places in Scripture to which we might turn when seeking to understand the biblical teaching about Jesus as the true Israel of God, the Gospel of Matthew develops it most fully. Matthew begins his account by focusing on Jesus as the son of David and the son of Abraham. By tracing Jesus’ lineage back to Abraham, Matthew explains to the covenant people that Jesus is the long-awaited and ultimate son of Abraham. Abraham is, of course, the father of the Jews—whom God called, in the days of the exodus—“my son” (Ex. 4:23). When God called the gentile Abram to Himself, gave him promises of redemption, and justified him only through his faith in the coming Redeemer, He turned him into the father of Israel. In order to properly understand Israel, we have to first understand Abraham. But in order to understand Abraham, we have to first understand God’s covenant plan of redemption—His eternal plan which He began to work out in time immediately after the fall of our first parents (Gen. 3:15).
In the Scriptures, Abraham stands as the covenant head of the people to whom God revealed Himself and His promise of redemption. The New Testament authors home in on the fact that God gave promises “to Abraham and to his seed.” The Apostle Paul goes a step further by suggesting that Christ is “the seed” (singular) to whom God was referring when He made His covenant promises with Abraham (Gal. 3:16 NIV). The point is clear: God gave promises to Abraham so that they might be passed down to Christ who would, in the fullness of time, fulfill them in His person and by His work. We see this in the divine dialogue that the writer to the Hebrews sets out from the Old Testament Scriptures (e.g., Heb. 2:10–16). The covenant promises that God gave to Abraham and to David had to make their way to the incarnate Christ. When the writer cites Psalm 2:7 and 2 Samuel 7:14 in Hebrews 1:5, he is helping us understand that God the Father was speaking to God the Son in the Old Testament about the covenant promises made to David.
The implications are large. In the Old Testament, everything that seems to be for the nation of Israel had to be passed down to Jesus, who then fulfilled the realities of the promises for us in His own person and work. This is how the Apostle Paul could say, “All the promises of God find their Yes in him [Christ]” (2 Cor. 1:20). It is also the reason why he could say of the Old Testament Scriptures: “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” (Rom. 15:4).
When we read of God’s promises of restoration that He gave Israel through the Old Testament prophets, we must do so through the lens of the person and work of Christ.
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When we read of God’s promises of restoration that He gave Israel through the Old Testament prophets, we must do so through the lens of the person and work of Christ. All of the judgment prophesied about the nation prepares us for the judgment that fell on Christ—the true Israel—for our sin. In His resurrection, Jesus secures the restoration that was promised so long before. When the Apostles appeal to Joel 2:28–32 in Acts 2:16–21 and Amos 9:11–12 in Acts 15:16–17, this is what they have in view. The fulfillment of those restoration promises occurs first in the risen or restored Son of Abraham, who will consummate them in a new heaven and earth.
What has been written only begins to scratch the surface of the way in which the Scriptures hold forth Jesus as the true Israel of God. In the forthcoming posts in this short series, we will consider New Testament expositions of pertinent Old Testament passages as well as the structured narrative that Matthew gives us to help us get our minds around the importance of this most marvelous—yet often overlooked—aspect of the history of redemption.
Editor’s Note: This post was first published on October 6, 2017.
Rev. Nicholas T. Batzig (@nick_Batzig) is senior pastor of Church Creek PCA in Charleston, S.C., and an associate editor for Ligonier Ministries. He writes regularly at Feedin
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2024 11:01:01 GMT -5
5 Ways to Pursue Contentment
Sarah Ivill
4 Min Read
When was the last time you looked at yourself in the mirror and wanted to change what you saw? In the past month, about what have you said, “I want that?” When your friend received the promotion, product, or prestige that you thought you would receive, what was your reaction?
Most people find it very difficult to be content. Contentment is difficult because we are fallen people living in a fallen world. No longer do we worship God alone and work for His glory. Until Jesus returns, we will battle the desire to want Christ plus someone or something else. But be encouraged. If you are united to Christ by faith, you can truly, though not perfectly, be content. The Bible teaches us at least five ways to pursue contentment.
1. Rejoice in the Lord.
Because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23), our hearts no longer worship God alone. We have “exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25). Therefore, if we are going to pursue contentment, we must return to worshiping God alone. Regardless of our circumstances, we must rejoice in the Lord:
Though the fig tree should not blossom . . .
yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation. (Hab. 3:17–18)
2. Trust in the Lord.
One of the reasons we find it hard to be content is because we don’t really trust that God loves us and is working all things for our good (Rom. 8:28). But when we “see what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God” (1 John 3:1) and believe that “for those who love God all things work together for good” (Rom. 8:28), then we can rest in His plans for our lives. Since He has “determined allotted periods and the boundaries of [our] dwelling place” (Acts 17:26), we can stop trying to control who we are and what we have, and instead, we can be content with the truth that the Lord is King over all, including our lives:
Trust in the Lord, and do good . . .
Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Ps. 37:3–4)
3. Keep an eternal perspective.
If we are living for the things of this world, we will never be content. Jesus exhorted His followers to “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:20–21). Paul taught Timothy, “Godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world” (1 Tim. 6:6–7). Instead of pursuing the pleasures of this world, we are to pursue “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness” and “take hold of the eternal life to which [we] were called” (1 Tim. 6:11–12).
4. Let your weaknesses magnify Christ’s power.
If we’re honest, we don’t like to be weak. Many of us have been taught to hide our weaknesses and display our strengths. But the Bible teaches that “when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). This is because our weaknesses reveal the sufficiency of Christ’s grace, and it is Christ’s power that “is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). Therefore, we can be “content with weaknesses” (2 Cor. 12:10).
5. Don’t covet what others have.
It’s very tempting to look at family members, friends, church members, neighbors, and co-workers and want what they have. We often wonder why God has withheld from us the very things for which we prayed, especially when they seem good and right to have, such as a spouse or children. But the Bible teaches us that God determined the time period in which each person will live, as well as “the boundaries of their dwelling place” (Acts 17:26). Best of all, in these moments and places ordained for us, God wants us to seek Him because “he is actually not far from each one of us, for ‘In him we live and move and have our being’” (Acts 17:27–28).
It can also be tempting to look around at others’ gifts and covet them, but “grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift” and He is the One who “gave gifts to men . . . for building up the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:7–8, 12). Therefore, we can be confident that we have the gifts Christ intended for us and need not covet another’s. Instead, we can encourage others to steward well the gifts they have received, so that “God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:10–11).
Ultimately, our discontentment is with God, who has ordained our circumstances. If you are battling this sin today, remember to rejoice and trust in the Lord, keep an eternal perspective, let your weaknesses magnify Christ’s power, and don’t covet what others have. Then, by God’s grace, you will be able to testify, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content . . . I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:11, 13).
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More from this teacher
Sarah Ivill
Sarah Ivill (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary) is a Bible teacher and conference speaker who lives in Matthews, North Carolina with her husband and four children, and is a member of Christ Covenant Church (PCA). She is the author of numerous books and Bible studies, including The God Who Hears and Luke: That You May Have Certainty Concerning the Faith. To learn more, please visit www.sarahivill.com.
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2024 11:02:10 GMT -5
5 Ways Covenant Theology Applies to Everyday Life
Sarah Ivill
4 Min Read
Our family goes to Christ Covenant Church. The school that meets on our campus, and is a ministry of the church, is Covenant Day School. Our denomination’s college, as well as the seminary, is named Covenant. Yet many people, even those who are part of such churches or academic institutions, do not understand the meaning of covenant theology, and therefore, do not understand why it matters for everyday life. So, I want to give you five reasons why covenant theology is important for daily living, which I hope will also inform your understanding of covenant theology overall.
1. Covenant theology reminds us of a perfect promise.
When someone breaks a promise to us and we are confused or devastated, covenant theology reminds us that Someone has made a better promise to us. There is no way that we could have reached out to have a relationship with the creator God. But amazingly, He has reached out to us by way of His covenant. He has promised, “I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people” (Lev. 26:12). You may be crushed today because of a broken promise, but take comfort, dear believer. God has chosen us in Christ to be His people and He always keeps His promises.
2. Covenant theology reminds us that the Bible is a living book.
When we are tempted to guide our lives by other books instead of first turning to God’s Word, covenant theology reminds us that the Bible is a better book. It reveals the bigger picture of who God is and who we are. Through His Word He reveals our need (seen in the covenant of works) and His perfect supply (seen in the covenant of grace). God’s Word will reveal to you “wondrous things” (Ps. 119:18). Its words “are pure words” (Ps. 12:6). It consistently testifies of Christ (John 5:39). It has the power to convert the soul (Ps. 19:7). It comforts God’s people (Rom. 15:4). Its author is God, and it is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16–17).
3. Covenant theology reminds us that Christ is the center of our story.
When we are tempted to believe that our suffering, sin, or service is the core of who we are, covenant theology reminds us that Christ is the center of our story, as well as the bigger story of redemption. In fulfillment of the covenant of redemption, Christ accomplished the redemption that God the Father appointed, and the Holy Spirit applies (see John 17:1–26; Eph. 1:3–14; Heb. 13:20). He is the second Adam who brought life instead of death (Rom. 5:12–21). He is the final Noah who saved His people through the cross (Col. 2:12–15). He is the final Abraham in whom all the families of the earth are blessed (Eph. 2:11–22). He is the prophet greater than Moses (Heb. 3:1–6). He is the final David who reigns in perfect justice and righteousness (Acts 2:25–36). And He defined His death in covenantal terms (Luke 22:20), revealing that He is the fulfillment of the new covenant, which is the climax of the covenant of grace.
4. Covenant theology reminds us of the implications of God’s free grace.
When we are tempted to believe that our good works add something to our salvation, or that our sin excludes us from salvation, covenant theology reminds us that justification and adoption are acts of God’s free grace, and sanctification is the work of God’s free grace (see the Westminster Shorter Catechism A. 33, 34, 35). Everyone deserves God’s wrath (Eph. 2:1–3). But God is “rich in mercy” and love and saves His people by grace (Eph. 2:4–5). This salvation is not a possibility, but a certainty (Eph. 2:6–7). God’s call is effective because God has purposed our salvation (Eph. 2:8–9). Therefore, we can be confident that God will complete the salvation He has begun in us (Eph. 2:10; Phil. 1:6). This in no way endorses licentiousness on the one hand, or legalism on the other. Instead, it frees us to “strive . . . for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14).
5. Covenant theology reminds us that believers are part of a community.
If we are tempted to think we can lead a life of individualism, covenant theology reminds us that believers are part of a different kind of community. When we are saved, we become part of the family of God. In this community, we are to serve one another with the spiritual gifts that Christ has given to us (Eph. 4:7–8). We are to grow up together, walking in truth, love, light, and wisdom (Eph. 4:25; 5:1–5, 8–9, 16–21). We are to gather together for worship on the Lord’s Day (Heb. 10:25). Recognizing Christ is king, and that His presence is with us, we are to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:18–20). As we do this, we must set our eyes on the city to come, the new Jerusalem, in which we will behold the face of our beloved Bridegroom, enjoy the spiritual blessings that are ours in Christ, celebrate the consummation of God’s promises, and stand beside those from every tribe, tongue, and nation to worship the Lamb of God forever (Rev. 22:1–5).
Covenant theology is of immense daily benefit because it points us to the gospel. Because of Christ, believers have received a better hope that is based on a better covenant, which is founded upon better promises that guarantee better possessions in a better country (Heb. 7:19, 22; 8:6; 10:34; 11:16).
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2024 11:03:11 GMT -5
TheologyGeneral TheologyCovenant Theology
5 Things You Should Know about Covenant Theology
Harrison Perkins
4 Min Read
Some topics are covered frequently enough in Reformed churches that it might be easy to lose track of the basics. One such topic is covenant theology. Let’s look at five things that Christians should know about covenant theology.
1. Covenant theology is about our relationship with God.
A covenant is a formal relationship. Marriage best exemplifies this kind of relationship (Mal. 2:14). Marriage is the most intimate bond two people can have. This supremely personal and loving partnership is also a legal arrangement. Covenants work in a like manner.
Covenant theology helps us better appreciate how God relates to us. Walking with the Lord would be very difficult if He were not clear about what our relationship with Him is like. If we had to guess about things such as how God feels about us, whether He accepts us, how He accepts us, and the best ways to pursue Him, then we would frequently feel uncertain about our standing with Him.
Covenant theology affirms that God clearly explains what our relationship with Him is supposed to be like. Holy Scripture is God’s written, clear revelation of how we can have a right relationship with Him. Because a covenant is a formal relationship, God gives us certainty about our relationship with Him as He commits to us in that fixed bond.
2. Covenant theology helps us understand the relationship between works and grace.
Ephesians 2:8–9 captures a critical aspect of how Reformation Protestants have understood salvation: “For 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.” Sometimes, we struggle to explain how this free offer of salvation by grace alone relates to the point in verse 10: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). How do we hold together the freedom grace brings with our responsibility to live well?
In the traditional Reformed understanding, covenant theology distinguishes between the covenant of works and the covenant of grace. God made the covenant of works with Adam before the fall, and it had the condition of perfect obedience. In the covenant of grace, brought by the second Adam, Jesus Christ, God accepts us as His people by faith in Christ’s atoning work alone. These two covenants clarify that works and grace are two different and opposed ways of seeking to secure salvation and right standing with God.
Covenant theology then helps us relate grace and works because our works cannot be the basis of our relationship with God, even though good works will be produced in the lives of true believers. Because our works are not the condition of God’s covenant with believers for salvation, they cannot be the reason that we are right with God.
3. Covenant theology helps us to see Christ in all of Scripture.
Colossians 2:17 explains that many features of Israel’s religious life “are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” Although the Old Testament period imposed many ceremonies on God’s people, these practices taught them about the One who had been promised in Genesis 3:15, the coming Redeemer in whom they were to place their faith. Because faith in Christ has been the only way of salvation since the fall, covenant theology reminds us that Christ is the substance of all God’s dealings with us in Scripture.
4. Covenant theology helps us to see the importance of the church.
In the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19–20, Jesus instructed the church to disciple all nations by “baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” These external ordinances of administering the sacraments and teaching God’s Word are the means of advancing our mission as God’s people.
Covenant theology reminds us not only that Christ is the substance of all the Scriptures, but also that He comes to His people to do His spiritual work upon us through the ordinary means of grace that He has given to His church. Westminster Shorter Catechism 88 reminds us that the church’s means of grace are the Word, sacraments, and prayer. These outward means, which deliver Christ as the substance of the covenant to believers, have often been called the covenant’s “external administration.” The church is a necessary part of the Christian life because it is how we participate in this external administration where we meet Christ.
5. Covenant theology helps us to have deeper assurance as we pursue holiness.
Ephesians 1:13–14 explains that the Spirit’s indwelling of believers in Christ is the guarantee of our everlasting life:
In him [Christ] you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
We have this divine Helper to spur us forward in holiness as we walk with Christ.
Covenant theology reminds us that our Spirit-empowered holiness is a gift that Christ has earned for us. Christ has fulfilled every condition of perfect obedience on our behalf. He equips us with His Spirit so that we can pursue Him in faithfulness. This gift of the Spirit is evidence that we already belong to Christ and have the assurance of life with Him in eternity.
This article is part of the 5 Things You Should Know collection.
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Post by Admin on Jul 24, 2024 11:04:11 GMT -5
TheologyGeneral TheologyCovenant Theology
5 Ways Covenant Theology Applies to Everyday Life
Sarah Ivill
4 Min Read
Our family goes to Christ Covenant Church. The school that meets on our campus, and is a ministry of the church, is Covenant Day School. Our denomination’s college, as well as the seminary, is named Covenant. Yet many people, even those who are part of such churches or academic institutions, do not understand the meaning of covenant theology, and therefore, do not understand why it matters for everyday life. So, I want to give you five reasons why covenant theology is important for daily living, which I hope will also inform your understanding of covenant theology overall.
1. Covenant theology reminds us of a perfect promise.
When someone breaks a promise to us and we are confused or devastated, covenant theology reminds us that Someone has made a better promise to us. There is no way that we could have reached out to have a relationship with the creator God. But amazingly, He has reached out to us by way of His covenant. He has promised, “I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people” (Lev. 26:12). You may be crushed today because of a broken promise, but take comfort, dear believer. God has chosen us in Christ to be His people and He always keeps His promises.
2. Covenant theology reminds us that the Bible is a living book.
When we are tempted to guide our lives by other books instead of first turning to God’s Word, covenant theology reminds us that the Bible is a better book. It reveals the bigger picture of who God is and who we are. Through His Word He reveals our need (seen in the covenant of works) and His perfect supply (seen in the covenant of grace). God’s Word will reveal to you “wondrous things” (Ps. 119:18). Its words “are pure words” (Ps. 12:6). It consistently testifies of Christ (John 5:39). It has the power to convert the soul (Ps. 19:7). It comforts God’s people (Rom. 15:4). Its author is God, and it is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16–17).
3. Covenant theology reminds us that Christ is the center of our story.
When we are tempted to believe that our suffering, sin, or service is the core of who we are, covenant theology reminds us that Christ is the center of our story, as well as the bigger story of redemption. In fulfillment of the covenant of redemption, Christ accomplished the redemption that God the Father appointed, and the Holy Spirit applies (see John 17:1–26; Eph. 1:3–14; Heb. 13:20). He is the second Adam who brought life instead of death (Rom. 5:12–21). He is the final Noah who saved His people through the cross (Col. 2:12–15). He is the final Abraham in whom all the families of the earth are blessed (Eph. 2:11–22). He is the prophet greater than Moses (Heb. 3:1–6). He is the final David who reigns in perfect justice and righteousness (Acts 2:25–36). And He defined His death in covenantal terms (Luke 22:20), revealing that He is the fulfillment of the new covenant, which is the climax of the covenant of grace.
4. Covenant theology reminds us of the implications of God’s free grace.
When we are tempted to believe that our good works add something to our salvation, or that our sin excludes us from salvation, covenant theology reminds us that justification and adoption are acts of God’s free grace, and sanctification is the work of God’s free grace (see the Westminster Shorter Catechism A. 33, 34, 35). Everyone deserves God’s wrath (Eph. 2:1–3). But God is “rich in mercy” and love and saves His people by grace (Eph. 2:4–5). This salvation is not a possibility, but a certainty (Eph. 2:6–7). God’s call is effective because God has purposed our salvation (Eph. 2:8–9). Therefore, we can be confident that God will complete the salvation He has begun in us (Eph. 2:10; Phil. 1:6). This in no way endorses licentiousness on the one hand, or legalism on the other. Instead, it frees us to “strive . . . for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14).
5. Covenant theology reminds us that believers are part of a community.
If we are tempted to think we can lead a life of individualism, covenant theology reminds us that believers are part of a different kind of community. When we are saved, we become part of the family of God. In this community, we are to serve one another with the spiritual gifts that Christ has given to us (Eph. 4:7–8). We are to grow up together, walking in truth, love, light, and wisdom (Eph. 4:25; 5:1–5, 8–9, 16–21). We are to gather together for worship on the Lord’s Day (Heb. 10:25). Recognizing Christ is king, and that His presence is with us, we are to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:18–20). As we do this, we must set our eyes on the city to come, the new Jerusalem, in which we will behold the face of our beloved Bridegroom, enjoy the spiritual blessings that are ours in Christ, celebrate the consummation of God’s promises, and stand beside those from every tribe, tongue, and nation to worship the Lamb of God forever (Rev. 22:1–5).
Covenant theology is of immense daily benefit because it points us to the gospel. Because of Christ, believers have received a better hope that is based on a better covenant, which is founded upon better promises that guarantee better possessions in a better country (Heb. 7:19, 22; 8:6; 10:34; 11:16).
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Post by Admin on Jul 26, 2024 20:29:24 GMT -5
How Is Jesus the Bread of Life?
Joshua Owen
3 Min Read
In John 6:48, we hear the first of Jesus’ seven “I am” statements. Six of these sayings include a predicate nominative—bread (John 6:48), light (John 8:12; 9:5), door (John 10:7, 9), good shepherd (John 10:11, 14), resurrection and life (John 11:25), and the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6 )—which tells us something about the person and work of Jesus. One of these sayings, John 8:58, has no predicate nominative, but stands as Jesus’ ownership of the divine name, “I am,” which the Lord revealed to Moses when the prophet asked to know God’s name (Ex. 3:14). The absolute statement in John 8:58, “Before Abraham was, I Am,” makes it clear that each of the “I am” statements of Jesus is an affirmation of His deity. Because the Jewish religious leaders did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah, they judged this statement to be blasphemous. So, “they took up stones to cast at Him” (John 8:59). They understood the truth Jesus proclaimed about His divine nature, but they did not believe Him. As we will see as we examine the first of the “I am” statements, this unbelief is no small matter. Jesus’ words are a matter of life and death.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life,” during a long conversation He was having with His followers (John 6:48). This discourse came just after the feeding of five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish (John 6:5–14) and occurred just before Passover and the Feast of Tabernacles (John 6:4). Both events provide important context for understanding what it means for Jesus to be the Bread of Life.
Unbelief is no small matter. Jesus’ words are a matter of life and death.
At the Feast of Tabernacles, the people celebrated the care that God showed the Israelites in the desert after they were rescued from slavery in Egypt. The desert was not a hospitable place. It was characterized by the lack of resources needed to sustain human life, such as food, water, shade by day, and light by night. Yet, through their journeys in this wasteland, the Lord of all the earth proved to be a generous host, supplying all their needs out of His riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19; see 1 Cor. 10:1–4). One of the first miracles of provision was God’s supply of their daily bread. When the people first saw this bread, they did not know what it was, so they called it manna. Psalm 78:23–25 recalls the goodness of the Lord in providing bread in the desert:
Yet he commanded the skies above
and opened the doors of heaven
and he rained down on them manna to eat
and gave them the grain of heaven.
Man ate of the bread of the angels;
he sent them food in abundance.
In John 6, the Jews demanded that Jesus prove Himself by performing a miracle like Moses had performed in giving their fathers manna. Jesus corrected them, explaining that it was not Moses, but His Father who gave them the manna. He further explained that He is Himself the manna or bread from heaven that would nourish their souls. The manna was a good gift from God that nourished the bodies of the Israelites for forty years before they entered the promised land. But those who ate the manna died. Jesus said, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life” (John 6:54).
When Jesus fed the five thousand, He was reenacting what God had done in the days of Moses to show that He is the Lord who provides. But when the people came looking for Him again, He warned them that they were being driven by the wrong appetite. They were laboring for the food that perishes. Instead, they should labor for the food that endures to everlasting life. Then Jesus explained that He is that Bread of Life.
The language of bread and of eating His flesh and drinking His blood refers clearly to the human nature of Jesus. To believe on Jesus is to receive the sacrifice of His human life. Yet, the “I am” statements also speak of the divine nature of Jesus. So He is not only received by faith in His sacrifice, but also by faith in His indestructible life as God who became incarnate. Eating is a fitting way of describing saving faith because what is eaten gets inside to nourish life and strengthen health. Yet, unlike food for the body, the life of Christ in the believer is not burned up and exhausted by the exercises of love. His eternal life sustains a Godward life forever.
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Post by Admin on Jul 29, 2024 17:33:08 GMT -5
How Is Jesus the Resurrection and the Life?
Jordan Stone
3 Min Read
The wise teacher of Ecclesiastes speaks about a place that grows godliness, and the location may surprise you. He says,
It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting. (Eccl. 7:2)
Again, he reminds, “The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning” (Eccl. 7:4).
You might know what he means. Attending a funeral or visiting a cemetery can do a soul good as eternal realities press ever nearer.
John 11 brings the reader to a house of mourning. The Spirit brings us here so that we might learn something about death’s despair and defeat. The eleventh chapter of John “is one of the most remarkable in the New Testament,” writes J. C. Ryle, “for grandeur and simplicity, for pathos and solemnity, nothing was ever written like it.”1
The Situation
The text opens with Jesus receiving a report that his friend Lazarus is sick (John 11:3). Mary and Martha had surely heard about, and maybe even seen, Jesus’ power over sickness. They believe if Jesus hurries, He can save Lazarus.
Jesus’ response is not one anyone would have expected.
John reports: “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was” (John 11:5–6). The little word “so” is the word ordinarily translated as “therefore.” Thus, the text more literally says, “Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, therefore . . . He stayed two days longer.” Interestingly, His love led Him to wait. His delight in His disciples caused Him to delay. He stayed so that the suffering and sickness would take its full course.
We are always learning this great lesson in Christ’s school. How many times have you asked the Lord to do something, and He doesn’t answer immediately? Or He doesn’t answer in time? See that the lack of action may be nothing more than His love at work, His plan and purpose to do immeasurably more than all you can ask for or imagine.
The Statement
Four days after Lazarus died, Jesus finally arrives at the mournful house. Martha races to Jesus, and upon meeting Him says: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you” (John 11:21–22). The seed of faith is clearly present in Martha. Jesus assures her that “your brother will rise again” (John 11:22).
Rags of unbelief ensnare us and garments of sin cover us. There is nothing we can do, as it was with Lazarus, to make ourselves alive.
“I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day,” Martha replies (John 11:24). A great debate over the resurrection raged between the Pharisees and the Sadducees during Jesus’ day. The question was whether there would be a resurrection at the end of history. Martha was on the Pharisees’ side theologically when it came to resurrection. She believed Lazarus would rise again—then, at the end of the age. But Jesus is talking about now. Thus, He says: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25–26).
This is the fifth “I am” statement in John—and it is stunning. Jesus is saying: “I don’t just teach the resurrection; I am the resurrection. I don’t just preach God’s power for life; I am God’s power for life. Don’t merely believe it; believe in Me.” True faith is not mere trust in information and facts about Jesus. Rather, it is belief in Him—the One in whom all truth resides.
The Certainty
When Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out,” the dead-man-come-to-life becomes a walking parable of salvation. He is a living monument to Jesus who is resurrection and life. After Lazarus rises, Jesus commands, “Unbind him, and let him go” (John 11:43–44).
What a portrait of the gospel! The Bible says we are dead in our sin. Rags of unbelief ensnare us and garments of sin cover us. There is nothing we can do, as it was with Lazarus, to make ourselves alive. But God makes dead sinners alive when they believe in Jesus. The Savior died in the place of sinners, rose again, and so holds the keys to death and hell. He calls to us, “Come out. Turn from your sin and trust in Me. I will loose you from the bonds of sin and set you free.”
May we see the sign, hear the statement, and respond like Martha to the fifth “I am” saying: “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God” (John 11:27).
J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on John (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 2012), 2:256.↩
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Post by Admin on Aug 2, 2024 12:23:55 GMT -5
Transcript
NATHAN W. BINGHAM: Joining us this week for the Ask Ligonier podcast is Dr. Burk Parsons. He serves as the senior pastor at Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Sanford, Florida. Dr. Parsons, how can a Christian be sure that they’re saved?
DR. BURK PARSONS: The question of assurance is a very serious question, and it is a question that each and every one of us faces in our lives, sometimes when we’re younger in the faith, but even sometimes when we’re older in the faith, sometimes when we’re mature believers. It is a question that I’ve been asked many times as a pastor from both younger Christians and then even sometimes, and I’ll even say surprisingly sometimes, from older saints—because it’s a multifaceted question. Now, how can I be sure I’m saved? How can I know for certain that I’m a Christian? How can I know for sure that I’m going to be with Jesus in heaven when I die?
And the reason it’s such a significant and multifaceted question is because really, in many ways, much of the Bible is written to help us answer that question. So many of the books of Scripture, the Psalms, the book of Job, so much of what we see even in Romans is addressing this very question: In the midst of suffering, in the midst of our own sins, how can we know that we’re actually Christians? Because when we really face the realities of our sinfulness, and our doubts and our despair, and our worries about the future and about our lives, we know ourselves, we know our hearts. We know how sinful we are and how sinful we can be. We wonder: “Am I really a child of God? Am I really born again? Is the Holy Spirit really at work in me?”
And in truth, the answer to this question—“How can I be sure I’m a Christian? How can I know for sure I’m saved?”—is a question that really needs to be answered in a very thorough way that takes a long time. But my hope is today just to answer this question briefly by considering just a few factors that we need to consider when we’re asking that question of ourselves.
The first question is, Do I believe? Do I actually believe? Do I actually trust Jesus Christ? And belief is resting in Christ. It’s not just having a mental ascent or a cognitive awareness that He exists, but trusting Him, putting our lives in Him. Do we trust Him? Do we fully depend upon Him?
Then another question is, Do we live according to that faith? A Christian is someone who trusts Jesus Christ, and Christ alone, by grace alone. We know that. And that Christian will always live a life filled with fruit and works, “which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them,” as Paul says in Ephesians 2:10. We are made to bear fruit, made to do good works. And so, if a Christian is never bearing fruit or doing good works, should he doubt his salvation? Absolutely. Because one of the biggest problems that we face in the world today and in the church is not a lack of assurance, but false assurance—people who think they’re Christians who actually aren’t because their faith is not genuine and they are not demonstrating the reality of their faith by their lives and by their fruit.
And so, we first need to ask, Do we believe? And then we need to ask, Are we bearing fruit and showing forth that faith? This is James’ point in James 2. And again, it’s something that we see throughout Scripture: Are we truly children of God? Are we truly believing Him? And are we demonstrating that faith in our lives?
And one of the ways in which we demonstrate that is not just bearing good fruit, but also, when we sin, we bear the fruit of repentance. And that’s what the Apostle Paul reminds the Romans of in chapter 2 and verse 4 when he says, “Do you not know that the kindness of God is meant to lead you to repentance?” God’s kindness leads us to repentance, and so one of the difficult—and maybe a little strange for people to hear—but one of the ways we know we’re Christians is by our repentance. Because true repentance—that’s not just feeling bad for our sins, but true repentance—we’re actually broken and contrite over our sins, we’re humbled by our sins, and then we confess those sins, and then we also strive to consecrate ourselves to a new way of living or thinking. And so, that’s real repentance, and that’s what God does in His kindness. And so, if we’re truly repenting, we can know that we’re Christians.
You see, repentance and the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, sometimes it makes us feel like, “Well, maybe we’re not true Christians because of this great convicting work that the Spirit is doing in my heart.” But that’s one of the signs that we’re actually children of God. That’s one of the signs that the Spirit of God is at work in us by convicting us and bringing us to repentance.
Now, another thing that I think is very important that has given me great encouragement over the years as a pastor in talking with people, and even in my own life, is what the author of Hebrews writes in Hebrews 12. And I’ll just read verses 5-8:
And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.”
It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
Now, this is a beautiful passage from Hebrews 12, and one of the key points that we need to focus on for our purposes in this question is, Have we been disciplined by God? Have we come under the loving chastisement of our heavenly Father? If we have, then we can know that we are His because those whom the Lord disciplines, He loves. And if He doesn’t discipline us, it means we’re not really His children. I mean, we as parents, we don’t go out and discipline other children that we don’t know; we discipline our children, just as the Father disciplines us.
And so, we can know for certain that we are Christians if when God disciplines us, He shows us our sin and restores us lovingly, and He welcomes us into His open arms. That is how we know we are His children.
Ways to Listen
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Post by Admin on Aug 23, 2024 15:34:49 GMT -5
John Calvin and the Doctrine of Irresistible Grace
Keith Mathison
6 Min Read
In 1610, the followers of the Dutch pastor and professor Jacob Arminius drafted a protest called “the Remonstrance.” The document contained five negative statements that rejected specific Calvinistic doctrines, followed by five articles stating Arminian doctrines. Among the Calvinistic teachings with which the Remonstrance took issue was the doctrine of irresistible grace.
In the fourth negative statement, the Arminians rejected the following:
That the Holy Spirit works in the elect by irresistible grace, so that they must be converted and be saved; while the grace necessary and sufficient for conversion, faith, and salvation is withheld from the rest, although they are externally called and invited by the revealed will of God.
The statement of the Arminian doctrine was then presented in the fourth article on Resistible Grace:
Grace is the beginning, continuation, and end of our spiritual life, so that man can neither think nor do any good or resist sin without prevening, co-operating, and assisting grace. But as for the manner of co-operation, this grace is not irresistible, for many resist the Holy Ghost (Acts vii).
The publication of the Remonstrance led to a lengthy debate between Calvinists and Arminians in the Netherlands. Eventually, in order to resolve the debate, the Dutch Estates General called an ecclesiastical assembly, the Synod of Dort, which met from November 1618 until May 1619. In addition to the approximately seventy Dutch delegates present, there were twenty-six delegates from eight foreign nations, including England, Switzerland, and parts of Germany. The synod set forth its conclusions in the Canons of Dort. This document contains “the decision of the Synod of Dort on the five main points of doctrine in dispute in the Netherlands.” Each main point in the canons contains a positive exposition of the Calvinist doctrine, followed by a rejection of the corresponding Arminian error.
The synod’s defense of the doctrine of irresistible grace is found in Main Point III/IV of the canons. After setting forth the effects of the fall upon human nature and the inability of the light of nature or of the law to convert fallen man, the synod declares that what neither nature nor the law can do, God “accomplishes by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Art. 6). In eternity, God chose His own, and within time He effectively calls them and grants them faith (Art. 10). The Holy Spirit supernaturally regenerates God’s chosen ones in an incomprehensible manner (Arts. 11–13). This regenerating work is irresistible: “all those in whose hearts God works in this marvelous way are certainly, unfailingly, and effectively reborn and do actually believe” (Art. 12).
The Westminster Confession of Faith, which was completed in 1646, sets forth the same doctrine of irresistible (or effectual) grace that was defended at Dort. Its statement of the doctrine is found in Chapter 10, “Of Effectual Calling.”
This doctrine is found as well in the Westminster Larger Catechism, Question 67.7 We see, then, that by the seventeenth century, the doctrine of irresistible grace was considered to be an established point of Reformed orthodoxy. Here the Reformed churches were following the lead of John Calvin, who had simply set forth the teaching of Scripture.
Because salvation is God’s work, from beginning to end, perseverance ultimately depends on Him. It is a free gift of God, not a reward based on man’s merit.
As we have seen, the doctrine of irresistible grace involves several doctrinal issues, including effectual calling and regeneration. Calvin addressed these themes in his biblical commentaries, his Institutes of the Christian Religion, and in several treatises, including one specifically addressed to the topics. Calvin found the doctrine of effectual grace in several texts of Scripture. One of the clearest of these references is John 6. Commenting on verse 44, Calvin explains how God draws sinners to Himself.
The statement amounts to this, that we ought not to wonder if many refuse to embrace the Gospel; because no man will ever of himself be able to come to Christ, but God must first approach him by his Spirit; and hence it follows that all are not drawn, but that God bestows this grace on those whom he has elected. True, indeed, as to the kind of drawing, it is not violent, so as to compel men by external force; but still it is a powerful impulse of the Holy Spirit, which makes men willing who formerly were unwilling and reluctant.
Jesus had said, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him” (John 6:44a). As Calvin explains, this verse clearly expresses the truth that God is sovereign in man’s salvation. Man does not initiate the process, for he cannot come to Christ unless God acts first. This is the case because man is dead in sin, and a dead man can do nothing for himself.
Calvin’s most extended systematic treatment of the doctrine of irresistible grace is found in his 1559 edition of the Institutes. Here Calvin explains that God must begin the good work of salvation in us because our wills are evil and set against Him. Man’s will cannot turn to the good in its own power, but must be changed by God. As Calvin explains, this divine change is efficacious:
He does not move the will in such a manner as has been taught and believed for many ages—that it is afterward in our choice either to obey or resist the motion—but by disposing it efficaciously.
Because salvation is God’s work, from beginning to end, perseverance ultimately depends on Him. It is a free gift of God, not a reward based on man’s merit.
In 1542, the Dutch Roman Catholic theologian Albert Pighius wrote a work titled Ten Books on Human Free Choice and Divine Grace. Pighius was critiquing Calvin’s teaching on the subject of free will and predestination as found in the 1539 edition of the Institutes. In 1543, Calvin wrote a response to Pighius titled The Bondage and Liberation of the Will. This book contains Calvin’s most extended treatment of the relationship between God’s grace and man’s will. In it, Calvin sums up his argument against Pighius in the following statement:
But all that we say amounts to this. First, that what a person is or has or is capable of is entirely empty and useless for the spiritual righteousness which God requires, unless one is directed to the good by the grace of God. Secondly, that the human will is of itself evil and therefore needs transformation and renewal so that it may begin to be good, but that grace itself is not merely a tool which can help someone if he is pleased to stretch out his hand to [take] it. That is, [God] does not merely offer it, leaving [to man] the choice between receiving it and rejecting it, but he steers the mind to choose what is right, he moves the will also effectively to obedience, he arouses and advances the endeavor until the actual completion of the work is attained.
Contrary to Pighius, Calvin affirms that grace is efficacious:
[In the Institutes] I say, then, that grace is not offered to us in such a way that afterwards we have the option either to submit or to resist. I say that it is not given merely to aid our weakness by its support as though anything depended on us apart from it. But I demonstrate that it is entirely the work of grace and a benefit conferred by it that our heart is changed from a stony one to one of flesh, that our will is made new, and that we, created anew in heart and mind, at length will what we ought to will. For Paul bears witness that God does not bring about in us [merely] that we are able to will what is good, but also that we should will it right up to the completion of the act. How big a difference there is between performance and will! Likewise, I determine that our will is effectively formed so that it necessarily follows the leading of the Holy Spirit, and not that it is sufficiently encouraged to be able to do so if it wills.
In his teaching on the subject of saving grace, Calvin merely followed the doctrine set forth in the Scriptures. The doctrine of efficacious grace is necessary because of the state of fallen man. Man is born dead in sin (cf. Rom. 5:12; Eph. 2:1; Col. 2:13), with his mind and heart corrupted (Gen. 6:5; Jer. 17:9; Rom. 8:7–8; 1 Cor. 2:14). He is a slave to sin (Rom. 6:20; Titus 3:3) and therefore unable to repent and come to God (Jer. 13:23; Matt. 7:18; John 6:44, 65). Because of this, man must be born again (John 3:5–7). Those whom God elected and for whom Christ died are brought to life by the Holy Spirit (John 1:12–13; 3:3–8; 5:21; Eph. 2:1, 5; Titus 3:5). God gives them faith and repentance (Acts 5:31; 11:18; 13:48; Eph. 2:8–9; Phil. 1:29; 2 Tim. 2:25–26), and they are justified.
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Post by Admin on Aug 23, 2024 15:49:54 GMT -5
Charles Spurgeon on Calvinism: Irresistible Grace
Steven Lawson
4 Min Read
Charles Spurgeon affirmed the doctrine of irresistible grace. This is the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit, who convicts, calls, draws, and regenerates elect sinners. This work unfailingly results in the faith of all those chosen. All whom the Father chose in eternity past and all those for whom the Son died are those whom the Spirit brings to faith in Jesus Christ. None whom the Father elected and for whom Christ died fail to believe. The Holy Spirit grants repentance and faith to these elect sinners and ensures their conversion.
This irresistible call is distinct from the general call of the gospel. The former is extended only to the elect and cannot be resisted. The latter is extended to all who hear the gospel and is resisted apart from the Spirit’s effectual call. Spurgeon explained:
The general call of the gospel is like the common “cluck” of the hen which she is always giving when her chickens are around her. But if there is any danger impending, then she gives a very peculiar call, quite different from the ordinary one, and the little chicks come running as fast as they can, and hide for safety under her wings. That is the call we want, God’s peculiar and effectual call to his own.
This effectual call always secures its desired effect—the salvation of God’s own.
God’s sovereign call, Spurgeon affirmed, is far more powerful than any man’s resistance: “A man is not saved against his will, but he is made willing by the operation of the Holy Ghost. A mighty grace which he does not wish to resist enters into the man, disarms him, makes a new creature of him, and he is saved.” This means no one is beyond the saving power of God:
Difficulty is not a word to be found in the dictionary of heaven. Nothing can be impossible with God. The swearing reprobate, whose mouth is blackened with profanity, whose heart is a very hell, and his life like the reeking flames of the bottomless pit—such a man, if the Lord but looks on him and makes bare His arm of irresistible grace, shall yet praise God and bless His name and live to His honor.
In short, no human heart is so obstinate that the Spirit cannot conquer and convert it.
Spurgeon described how the Spirit had conquered his own stubborn heart:
When He first came to me, did I not spurn Him? When He knocked at the door, and asked for entrance, did I not drive Him away, and do despite to His grace? Ah! I can remember that I full often did so until, at last, by the power of His effectual grace, He said, “I must, I will come in;” and then He turned my heart, and made me love Him.
Just as the Holy Spirit turned Spurgeon’s heart, so He does in all those chosen by the Father, causing them to believe in the Son.
Spurgeon gloried in this triumph of God’s sovereign grace. God’s immutable will, he proclaimed, is far greater than man’s stubborn will:
Oh! I love God’s “shalls” and “wills.” There is nothing comparable to them. Let a man say “shall,” what is it good for? “I will,” says man, and he never performs; “I shall,” says he, and he breaks his promise. But it is never so with God’s “shalls.” If He says “shall,” it shall be; when He says “will,” it will be. Now He has said here, “many shall come.” The devil says, “they shall not come;” but “they shall come.” You yourselves say, “we won’t come;” God says, “You shall come.” Yes! There are some here who are laughing at salvation, who can scoff at Christ, and mock at the gospel; but I tell you some of you shall come yet. “What!” you say, “can God make me become a Christian?” I tell you yes, for herein rests the power of the gospel. It does not ask your consent; but it gets it. It does not say, will you have it? But it makes you willing in the day of God’s power.
Moreover, Spurgeon declared that irresistible grace makes even the most resistant hearts receptive to the offer of salvation. Listen to the enormous confidence in his preaching of the gospel:
If Jesus Christ were to stand on this platform tonight, what would many people do with Him? If He were to come and say, “Here I am, I love you, will you be saved by Me?” not one of you would consent if you were left to your will. He Himself said, “No man can come to Me except the Father who hath sent Me draw him.” Ah! We want that; and here we have it. They shall come! They shall come! Ye may laugh, ye may despise us; but Jesus Christ shall not die for nothing. If some of you reject Him there are some that will not. If there are some that are not saved, others shall be. Christ shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hands. They shall come! And nought in heaven, nor on earth, nor in hell, can stop them from coming.
Spurgeon was as courageous as a lion in proclaiming the saving message of Christ. He drew that courage from his belief that the Holy Spirit will turn the hearts of those chosen to believe on Christ. Simply put, Spurgeon knew that the Spirit guarantees that God’s Word will not return to Him void. Irresistible grace is triumphant grace.
This article is part of the Charles Spurgeon on Calvinism collection.
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Post by Admin on Aug 26, 2024 22:35:42 GMT -5
TheologySalvationAdoption
How Is God Our Father?
Robert Letham
4 Min Read
The full biblical revelation of God is that He is eternally the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One and indivisible. The Father is the Father of the Son. His name is the Father. Only God can name Himself. The name the Father denotes that He generates the Son eternally in the unity of the indivisible Trinity. Father is His personal (hypostatic) name. It tells us that He does not name Himself by any element in the creation He has made. This is who He is.
The name is not a metaphor. Neither is it something we should conceptualize on the basis of what human fathers are like. It is the revealed name, given by God, for the trinitarian hypostasis (person) who begets the Son and spirates (or proceeds) the Holy Spirit. We are to view elements of creation in terms of God’s revelation, not vice-versa. Paul’s remark about “the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named” (Eph. 3:14–15) rules out thinking from created realities and applying them to God.
Although God brought all other entities into existence, it can be said only in a very loose way that He is the Father of all. He is Father of all only insofar as He is the Creator. The Bible indicates that it is an amazing reality that He is Father: “See what kind of love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God” (1 John 3:1). This is entirely out of our hands, a sovereign bestowal of kindness and grace. It is patterned in some way on the relations between the Father and the Son.
We bear the family likeness because we are united to Christ, who is the eternal Son of the Father. This is evident insofar as Jesus was rejected by His contemporaries; they did not recognize Him for who He is. Similarly, the world does not realize who we are precisely because it did not realize who He was (1 John 3:1).
As the eternal Son, now enfleshed, Jesus’ customary way to refer to God was as His Father. It was highly unusual—some think it unprecedented—for an individual to call God “Father.” Due to sin, people typically see God as far off. Jesus encouraged us to pray, “Our Father,” since, as His disciples, we are united to Him, the Son, by the Spirit, and so come to bear the family likeness as His children.
The name is not a metaphor. Neither is it something we should conceptualize on the basis of what human fathers are like. It is the revealed name, given by God.
Following from this, the Father—together with the Son—has poured out the Holy Spirit so that we cry, “Father!” (Rom. 8:15–16, Gal. 4:4–6). The expression “Abba! Father!” reads as Abba (Aramaic), Patēr (Greek). Both words mean the same thing: “Father.” Some preachers claim that Abba means “Daddy,” but this is not the case; it is an instance where a cute comment gets taken up and repeated ad nauseam.1 Rather, the term means that whoever we are, Jew or Greek, whatever language we speak, we have the identical relation to God through Christ, are now His children, and have access to the Father. Moreover, the relation to the Father that we have been given is identical to that which the Son has in eternity; His by nature, ours by sheer grace.
In short, we have been made the adopted children of God in Jesus Christ. He is the natural Son, the eternal Son; we were not sons but we have been made so by grace.2 Christ always was and is the Son; we were strangers and aliens but now we have been brought near.
We should banish from our minds, as far as we can, all personal experiences of our own human fathers. For some, these memories may be painful; for all of us they are misleading, for we all fall short. The one model—and the model for human fatherhood—is that of the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, as recorded in metaphorical language:
Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk;
I took them up by their arms,
but they did not know that I healed them.
I led them with cords of kindness,
with the bands of love,
and I became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws,
and I bent down to them and fed them. (Hos. 11:3–4)
The image of the returning prodigal in Jesus’ parable springs to mind in which “while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him” (Luke 15:20).
So, whoever we are, in Christ we have “access in one Spirit to the Father” (Eph. 2:18). Let us draw near, confessing our sins, in the sure and certain knowledge that He will receive us and lavish His kindness on us for the whole of eternity. The Father’s love will then be universally evident for, since we are His children now, when Christ returns in His unfettered glory, we shall see Him as He is and be like Him, to the glory of the Father (1 John 3:2).
James Barr, “Abba Isn’t ‘Daddy,’” Journal of Theological Studies 39/1 (1988), 28–47.↩
I use “sons” in its generic sense, following biblical language, to express the identity of our relation, women and men, to the Father that the Son has.↩
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Post by Admin on Aug 29, 2024 8:34:52 GMT -5
Megan Taylor
Aug 28, 2024
We often see ourselves as the heroes of the stories we read. We identify with noble characters like Atticus Finch, Elizabeth Bennett, and Frodo Baggins—rarely do we align ourselves with flawed figures like Bob Ewell, Mary Bennett, or Gollum. This tendency extends to how we view the early church in the New Testament. Just as we picture ourselves as the virtuous protagonists, we imagine the early church as an ideal community—a flawless model of what our own church should be. Yet, just as we overlook our own imperfections, we fail to recognize that the early church was far from perfect, much like our own congregations today. We are quick to embrace a vision of the church as a spotless bride but are surprised when we encounter its blemishes and wrinkles on Sunday morning. But Christ does not call us to love a perfect, idealized church. He calls us to love the church as it truly is—imperfect, often frustrating, yet still the beloved body of Christ.
Charles H. Spurgeon quipped, “If I had never joined a church ‘till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all; and the moment I did join it….it would not have been a perfect church after I had become a member of it.” In other words, you’ll never find the perfect church, but if you did, you’d just ruin it! There is no church that is perfect this side of heaven, it’s precisely these imperfections that challenge us to love more deeply and sincerely.
So, how do we love our church despite its flaws? Paul gives us some helpful markers in Romans 12:9-13 that help us cultivate love for God’s people—principles that are just as necessary for the twenty-first-century church as they were for the first-century church when they were written:
Verse 9: “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.”
As we know from marriage, love is not merely a feeling, but a commitment. But love does not mean wholesale embrace of all things. Genuine love requires genuine hate of evil, so loving the church does not mean tolerating evil if it arises. But what if we were not so quick to leave our churches over minor issues? Or a major issue that is being dealt with faithfully? What if we treated our relationship with the church more like a covenant and less like a customer? When Paul describes Christ’s love for the church, he says Christ, “nourishes and cherishes it” (Ephesians 5:29). To love the church, we must first hold fast to it faithfully and cling to it in love, cleave to it for the long haul, even when it’s not easy.
Verse 10: “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.”
The word “outdo” has the meaning of taking the lead, going before, going out of your way so serve. Christians must be the first to take the step in showing honor, in considering others needs above our own. Our love for the church will not grow if we do not see our brothers and sisters in Christ — yes, even the neediest and the most time-consuming of those — as worthy of our affection and honor. Think of the most faithful church member you’ve known and the ways they honor those around him. What would it look like for you to outdo him? Is affection and honor your posture towards your church? Do you seek out ways to serve and encourage one another?
Verse 11, “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.”
New Year’s resolutions have taught us that enthusiasm comes easiest at the start of a new endeavor. How many of us have joined a church with excitement, only to feel that enthusiasm taper off the longer we stay there? Paul reminds us that serving one another requires fervor, not growing weary in our service, being enlivened through the Spirit to do good works. And so simply put, we should look forward to Sunday morning. We should be eager to involve ourselves in the life of the congregation, to serve our brothers and sisters, with the motivation that it is the Lord we are ultimately serving.
Verse 12, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”
These three traits are borne of perseverance. They are more internal dispositions of the heart than external steps towards our neighbor. Disillusionment and discouragement crop up naturally. Hope, patience, and constancy come with effort. Loving your church does not start with changing your church, it starts with a changed heart that is tuned by prayer and rooted in patience and hope.
Verse 13, “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.”
“Contribute” and “seek” are action words. Being a member of the church does not mean sitting, waiting for opportunities, and passively receiving. It is dynamic and challenging. It means inviting in not just those you enjoy, but those who are less enjoyable, and have nothing to give you in return. To contribute to the needs of the saints is to know their needs. That means going deeper than small talk after the service. It means we should pray for those who irritate us, and care for those who drain your time and resources. It's easy to love who we like, but it goes against the grain of the world to love the unlikeable. In doing so, we show Christ’s love and hospitality to an unwelcoming world.
Above all, we must remember that Christ Himself loves the church. We are called to love the church not because it is flawless, but because it is His. Loving the church means embracing our role within this imperfect community, recognizing that we are all recipients of grace, and journeying together in sanctification. Like Spurgeon, may we come to agree that the church, “Imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us.”
Megan K. Taylor earned her MA in Theological Studies from Westminster Theological Seminary. She and her family lives in Sanford, Fl where she works for Ligonier Ministries and is a member of Saint Paul’s PCA.
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BibleBible InterpretationBible studyBiblical Expositionbiblical fidelityBiblical interpretationBiblical StudiesBiblical TruthChristian ChurchChristian ExperienceChristian LifeChristian LivingChurchchurch growth; healthy churchchurch health
How to Love Your Church
Megan Taylor
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Post by Admin on Sept 1, 2024 20:27:46 GMT -5
What Happens to Your Soul When You Die?
Kim Riddlebarger
4 Min Read
We’ve all thought about it. What happens the moment we take our last breath, our heart stops beating, and our soul departs from our now dead body? Truth be told, most of us fear dying, even if we do not fear death. Dying is often a painful struggle. Dying often occurs in a sterile, clinical environment and is usually an ugly process. However, by trusting in the promise that death means entrance into eternal life in the presence of the Lord, as well as trusting in the power of Christ to raise the dead, Christians need not fear the outcome of death even if we experience trepidation regarding the process of dying.
Stories and legends about death and dying abound. This is the case, in part, because the Scriptures do not describe the process of dying, although they do speak of several individuals who died but were raised back to life by Jesus. Lazarus comes to mind (John 11) among others (e.g., the widow of Nain’s son in Luke 7:11–17). But we do not possess any firsthand account (including from Lazarus) of what these people experienced when they died. We can only but wonder what Lazarus was thinking when he died a second time, this time to enter eternal life. Now, we do know what our resurrection bodies will be like, since Paul gives us a remarkable description of the complete transformation that takes place when Christ returns and we are raised imperishable (1 Cor. 15:35–49). But there is not much biblical data on the intermediate state—that period of time when the souls of the believing dead await the resurrection of their bodies and the final and complete overturning of the curse (death).
It is also the case that the very nature of the question (What happens to our soul when we die?) lends itself to speculation. I recall my saintly grandmother (a pastor’s daughter) recounting bedside vigils with dying church members. She described how before breathing their last, a dying person would often open their eyes, look heavenward, express some sort of joy and expectation, then surrender to the inevitable. She believed these saints were given a brief glimpse of what (or who) awaited them. That may be, but it is just as likely that the biochemical reactions within the brain to a body shutting down produces all kinds of sensory activity. Such accounts, however sincere, are anecdotal and provide no basis on which to build doctrine.
We’ve all heard stories about those who supposedly died and then returned from the afterlife. Such stories are fascinating, which explains the existence of the cottage industry of books written about near-death experiences that spin tales of the author’s personal visit to heaven before returning to write a book about their experience. These books usually reveal encounters with the dearly departed, they often include descriptions of heaven (usually exaggerated earthly scenes), accounts of meeting Jesus, talking with God, and descriptions of heavenly things.
We immediately enter the glorious presence of the Lord, where we await the resurrection of our bodies at the end of the age.
But all of these likely spurious accounts conflict with what we know the Bible says about entrance into the presence of God. Isaiah 6:1–7 comes to mind. Isaiah is overcome by his unworthiness when given a vision of the Lord. The biblical accounts of encounters with God—such as Moses’ glimpse of the Lord’s glory (Ex. 33:18–23) or Jesus’ appearance to two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:37)—produce fear if not terror at being in the presence of the Holy God. The biblical accounts do not square with the casual, if not trivial nature of the “I saw heaven” or “I walked with Jesus” genre of literature. Since the Bible does not describe the process or the reflections of the dying, many have sought to fill in the gap with fabricated stories. Sadly, they’ve been very successful. Many people accept these legends as truth.
Thankfully, the Bible gives us two points of reference regarding the intermediate state that help prepare us for death. First, in several well-known passages, Paul specifically addresses the matter of what happens to believers between the time they die and when Christ returns. According to 2 Corinthians 5:8, Paul teaches that at the moment of a believer’s death, we immediately enter into the presence of the Lord. The Apostle writes, “We would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” Paul also spoke of how he desired “to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Phil. 1:23). When we die, we are immediately “with Christ” and enter into the presence of God. This is usually what we mean when we speak of “heaven.”
Second, the heavenly scene described by John in Revelation 4–6 gives us a glimpse of that previously unseen reality we will experience upon dying. We who have trusted in Christ alone will join the redeemed saints before the heavenly throne in the presence of God. We are conscious, aware of where we are, and joyfully praising God. To put it simply, this heavenly scene is the clearest image we have of what happens to our soul when we die. In these three chapters, John gives a glorious image of heaven, where God dwells among His people until the resurrection of our bodies at the end of the age. This is what heaven is—the redeemed dwelling in the presence of the Holy God, ascribing all praise and glory to our Creator and Redeemer.
While the scene is wonderful, and in many ways beyond our comprehension, it is worth noting that the saints in heaven are crying out, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Rev. 6:10). Those already in God’s presence before His throne—who have died before us and are now experiencing the intermediate state, the time between death and the Lord’s return—long for that day when Jesus Christ returns to earth on the day of resurrection and judgment.
So, what happens to the souls of believers when we die? We immediately enter the glorious presence of the Lord, where we await the resurrection of our bodies at the end of the age.
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Post by Admin on Sept 4, 2024 23:15:48 GMT -5
The Blessing of Godly Grandparents
Robert Carver
4 Min Read
The Scriptures make clear the necessity for God’s people to pass down a godly heritage. Knowledge and commitment to the truth must be passed on to the following generations (see Ps. 71:15–17; 78:4–8). Proverbs 17:6 describes the delightful situation in which righteousness has prevailed for at least three generations:
Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
and the glory of children is their fathers.
Counsel to Grandchildren and Grandparents
Consider first the wider circle of this text: on its perimeter you find grandchildren and grandparents. The first line speaks of the mutual joy that they share with each other. It was a happy day when your grandparents heard that you came into the world. From then on, they followed with interest your development and progress and activity, particularly in the spiritual realm.
Note these counsels to grandchildren:
Give honor/respect to your grandparents. We live in an age of eroding respect.
Be thankful for and to your grandparents. You would not be here without them.
Keep in touch with your grandparents. It is easy for them to become forgotten members of the family because you do not see them as often.
Be helpful to your grandparents. They have come to the time in their lives when they cannot do the physical things that they once did.
Be a crown on the head of your grandparents. Don’t be an ornament of shame or embarrassment to them.
Similarly, note these counsels to grandparents:
Don’t give up on your grandchildren. Don’t ever give up on them. Yes, they may do some things that you never did, or behave in ways that you don’t fully approve of, but in your youth, you were probably not always the paragon of good sense and uprightness.
Look to influence your grandkids. Thoughtfully seek to give gifts that will encourage them in their walk with Christ. Encourage them in your conversations with them. Does your talk ever turn to spiritual things and to their walk with Christ?
Pray for your grandkids. Even if you don’t get to see them very often, you can still pray for them very often. This is one of the greatest ministries you can have to them because you are making your appeal to the One who can do significantly more in their lives than all that we can ask or think (Eph. 3:20).
Counsel to Children and Parents
Now consider a narrower circle in the text: this “inner line” focuses our attention on children and their fathers (parents).
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward. (Ps. 127:3)
In ancient Israel, children were clearly seen to be a gift from God—a gift to be treasured. Conversely, to be childless was a thing of great disappointment and was looked upon culturally as a sign of divine displeasure. But while it may have been such in some circumstances (see 2 Sam. 6:23), both then and now it is only a working out of God’s divine providence in our fallen world, in which there is not a one-to-one correlation between our perceived blessings (or lack thereof) and God’s pleasure or displeasure (Eccl. 8:14; John 9:1–3).
The Scriptures make clear the necessity for God’s people to pass down a godly heritage.
Note these counsels to children:
Obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right (Eph. 6:1–2; Ex. 20:12).
Obey them promptly and sincerely. Note that Jesus was obedient to His parents (Luke 2:51).
Make your parents proud. Not just in athletics, or music, or drama, but give them reason to find joy in your progress of faith (Phil. 2:19–30).
Fathers, the children that you brought into the world will remain your children for as long as life will last. Not only are you to provide what they need to live in this world but also an atmosphere in which you are preparing them for the world to come. Children do not go to heaven on the basis of their parents’ profession of faith, nor their dedication as a baby, nor their baptism as an infant. There must be a loving atmosphere where they see the faith lived out as a daily reality, not just as a Sunday thing. Knowing Christ as Savior and Lord is the only way to enter heaven.
Note these counsels to fathers:
Lead your children in worship. This includes both corporate worship and family worship.
Bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Shepherd their hearts. Teach them by word and by example.
Discipline them. Do it with wisdom, so that it is natural for them to obey. Do it with love, so that it is a pleasure for them to obey. Do it with firmness, so that it is advisable for them to obey.
Pray for them. Charles Spurgeon noted, “We must never cease to pray for our children until they cease to breathe. No case is hopeless while Jesus lives.”
Conclusion
In conclusion, what should we as godly grandparents, who have limited time left in this world, desire that our grandchildren see in us? First, may they see that our walk with the Lord is a thing of first importance in our lives (Matt. 6:33). Second, may they see that our worship of the Lord is essential. With us, the Lord’s Day is a nonnegotiable (Heb. 10:25). Third, may they see that we have a passion for the lost to come to Christ—He is their only hope
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