Ever wondered how God can be completely just and yet forgive sinners? Tozer lays it down right and proper with this one: http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=823071654412
Click on the green "play" button to listen to the message by this anointed preacher.
06 August 2009
05 August 2009
Ever seen yourself as a balloon?
We are in the midst of Vacation Bible School at Calvary Chapel El Cajon. Colorful balloons are tied daily to the handrail leading from the upper to lower hallway. In the morning when I come in to work, most of the balloons are laying on the ground, their limp ribbons bowed under the weight. Every day, however, a couple of the helium filled balloons are still in the air. By early afternoon all the balloons are smaller and on the ground. "There's a sermon here Ben," Pastor Dale remarked. So I thought about it awhile.
The only reason the balloon lifts from the ground is because the helium gas that filled it is lighter than air. The balloon in itself is inert and incapable of doing anything. A lot of our activities at VBS involve water balloons. My dad says, "It's amazing the fun you can have with a little water in a balloon." Again, the enjoyment that we find in balloons is due to the virtue of what we fill them with. Sometimes we find enjoyment of the noises we can make when we deflate them, but that is another lesson!
The fact is our souls without Christ can be compared to a balloon: lifeless, inert, and deflated. When a balloon is filled with helium, it has the capacity to lift itself from the ground. When we repent and trust in Christ as Savior, we are freed from the power of sin and death that binds us under eternal judgment in hell and receive the promise of eternal life in heaven. Yet this, like most physical examples of spiritual truth, breaks down at a point. There is only so much air that you can put in a balloon without bursting it. The Bible says that followers of Christ have been given the Holy Spirit without measure (John 3:34), who issues forth from us as water from a living spring.
It is true however, that we must seek this filling of the Holy Spirit in a moment by moment basis. As helium filled balloons will only float for so long, if we cease to fellowship with God through grieving or resisting the Spirit we will sink down without spiritual strength. This is not to say our salvation is in jeopardy, but we cease to walk in the victory God has given us through Christ. We will begin to be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. A root of bitterness can begin to grow unnoticed in our hearts. We lack sensitivity to the leading the Holy Spirit because our sin has separated us from His divine influence. We are overcome by our enemies as Samson was blinded, bound, enslaved, and imprisoned by the Philistines. He gave away his strength and we are no better or stronger in our flesh.
David prayed to God in Psalm 51:10-12: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. [11] Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. [12] Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit." This is the same spiritual renewal that we need and God is willing and able to help us. If we being evil know how to give good gifts to our children, how much more will our heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? When we humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD, it is He who lifts us up.
The only reason the balloon lifts from the ground is because the helium gas that filled it is lighter than air. The balloon in itself is inert and incapable of doing anything. A lot of our activities at VBS involve water balloons. My dad says, "It's amazing the fun you can have with a little water in a balloon." Again, the enjoyment that we find in balloons is due to the virtue of what we fill them with. Sometimes we find enjoyment of the noises we can make when we deflate them, but that is another lesson!
The fact is our souls without Christ can be compared to a balloon: lifeless, inert, and deflated. When a balloon is filled with helium, it has the capacity to lift itself from the ground. When we repent and trust in Christ as Savior, we are freed from the power of sin and death that binds us under eternal judgment in hell and receive the promise of eternal life in heaven. Yet this, like most physical examples of spiritual truth, breaks down at a point. There is only so much air that you can put in a balloon without bursting it. The Bible says that followers of Christ have been given the Holy Spirit without measure (John 3:34), who issues forth from us as water from a living spring.
It is true however, that we must seek this filling of the Holy Spirit in a moment by moment basis. As helium filled balloons will only float for so long, if we cease to fellowship with God through grieving or resisting the Spirit we will sink down without spiritual strength. This is not to say our salvation is in jeopardy, but we cease to walk in the victory God has given us through Christ. We will begin to be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. A root of bitterness can begin to grow unnoticed in our hearts. We lack sensitivity to the leading the Holy Spirit because our sin has separated us from His divine influence. We are overcome by our enemies as Samson was blinded, bound, enslaved, and imprisoned by the Philistines. He gave away his strength and we are no better or stronger in our flesh.
David prayed to God in Psalm 51:10-12: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. [11] Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. [12] Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit." This is the same spiritual renewal that we need and God is willing and able to help us. If we being evil know how to give good gifts to our children, how much more will our heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? When we humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD, it is He who lifts us up.
03 August 2009
Just a baseball glove...
Saturday our youth group had one of our favorite events, the "Thrift Store Dinner." We team up and rush off to neighboring thrift stores to find clothes that likely would never be sold unless there was a global time warp to the 1980's. We then wear these clothes to Souplantation, a local buffet-style restaurant. Some of our most memorable experiences together as a youth group have spawned from this event, and this year was no exception.
As we visited the Salvation Army Thriftstore looking for accessories (wigs, jewelry, ties, headgear), a baseball glove buried among helmets and cheap trinkets caught my eye. Could it be? No way! It was a genuine "Heart of the Hide" Rawlings Gold Glove Pro88. This is what I called a "six-finger" glove as a kid and was a symbol of status and skills. I looked at the price tag and my eyes lit up like I was 12 years old: $2.50. It is a glove that sells for $200 online at a fraction of the value. I laughed to myself, just having bought a shirt for $3.99 - clearly the person who priced the glove did not know what they had! Needless to say, I bought the glove and even played a little catch with my dad later!
Where the story becomes more interesting is I brought the glove to church to show a couple of people who I thought would appreciate the find. I showed it to two people who played college baseball: one has long retired from the game and the other is still playing. The first man I showed it was amazed at the condition and recognized the value of the glove. When he played many years ago he was able to buy a glove of this quality for half price and paid $100. It was my turn to be amazed when I showed the current player and asked, "What do you think this glove is worth?" He turned it over in his hands laughing and said, "Ten bucks?" I was incredulous! What? This is a Rawlings Gold Glove series! This is the "Heart of the Hide!" This glove sells for $200! Like the person who priced the glove, he didn't recognize the value of what he was holding. Much of my excitement came from the fact that the glove was very valuable and I received it for next to nothing.
As I mused upon the different responses, the glove is a great example of how people value or don't value Christ. One man, even through he plays baseball, did not recognize the true value of the glove. I believe many Christians do not comprehend the value of the relationship we can have with Christ through faith. I am not surprised that the person who marked the glove did not know how valuable a glove it was because he or she likely does not play baseball. The world looks at Christianity as a common thing without value. The brand of Christianity they are often exposed to has no more impact than any other religious faith or philosophy. This is a sad commentary.
What if the people in the church really knew the value of the relationship they possess with the Almighty God, Creator and Sustainer of the Universe? Like I gladly showed my new glove to several people with joy, we would never be ashamed to carry Christ with us. We would expose people to the Light of the World, Jesus Christ. We would treasure our salvation with thankfulness and freely share the Good News of the Gospel with others. I am broken by the fact that we can be more happy about earthly things like sports and find them easier to talk about than the vital relationship we have with God.
Do you value Christ? Do you recognize the value of your own salvation? It is likely that our estimation is closer to ten bucks rather than the priceless commodity salvation through faith in Jesus really is. John 14:6 says, "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." God has made a way to eternal life only through faith in Jesus Christ. What would a man give to simply prolong his life on earth? What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul? Let us not value God because of what we receive from Him, but praise Him for being worthy in Himself to receive all honor, glory, and praise.
As we visited the Salvation Army Thriftstore looking for accessories (wigs, jewelry, ties, headgear), a baseball glove buried among helmets and cheap trinkets caught my eye. Could it be? No way! It was a genuine "Heart of the Hide" Rawlings Gold Glove Pro88. This is what I called a "six-finger" glove as a kid and was a symbol of status and skills. I looked at the price tag and my eyes lit up like I was 12 years old: $2.50. It is a glove that sells for $200 online at a fraction of the value. I laughed to myself, just having bought a shirt for $3.99 - clearly the person who priced the glove did not know what they had! Needless to say, I bought the glove and even played a little catch with my dad later!
Where the story becomes more interesting is I brought the glove to church to show a couple of people who I thought would appreciate the find. I showed it to two people who played college baseball: one has long retired from the game and the other is still playing. The first man I showed it was amazed at the condition and recognized the value of the glove. When he played many years ago he was able to buy a glove of this quality for half price and paid $100. It was my turn to be amazed when I showed the current player and asked, "What do you think this glove is worth?" He turned it over in his hands laughing and said, "Ten bucks?" I was incredulous! What? This is a Rawlings Gold Glove series! This is the "Heart of the Hide!" This glove sells for $200! Like the person who priced the glove, he didn't recognize the value of what he was holding. Much of my excitement came from the fact that the glove was very valuable and I received it for next to nothing.
As I mused upon the different responses, the glove is a great example of how people value or don't value Christ. One man, even through he plays baseball, did not recognize the true value of the glove. I believe many Christians do not comprehend the value of the relationship we can have with Christ through faith. I am not surprised that the person who marked the glove did not know how valuable a glove it was because he or she likely does not play baseball. The world looks at Christianity as a common thing without value. The brand of Christianity they are often exposed to has no more impact than any other religious faith or philosophy. This is a sad commentary.
What if the people in the church really knew the value of the relationship they possess with the Almighty God, Creator and Sustainer of the Universe? Like I gladly showed my new glove to several people with joy, we would never be ashamed to carry Christ with us. We would expose people to the Light of the World, Jesus Christ. We would treasure our salvation with thankfulness and freely share the Good News of the Gospel with others. I am broken by the fact that we can be more happy about earthly things like sports and find them easier to talk about than the vital relationship we have with God.
Do you value Christ? Do you recognize the value of your own salvation? It is likely that our estimation is closer to ten bucks rather than the priceless commodity salvation through faith in Jesus really is. John 14:6 says, "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." God has made a way to eternal life only through faith in Jesus Christ. What would a man give to simply prolong his life on earth? What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul? Let us not value God because of what we receive from Him, but praise Him for being worthy in Himself to receive all honor, glory, and praise.
02 August 2009
Finished Brainerd's Life and Diary today...
One of the things that stood out for me in Brainerd's diary is that salvation never seemed to come easily. People would sit under preaching unaffected for some time and then the Spirit would quicken them to great concern for their souls. For months and even years they would labor under the weight of their sin before surrender to Christ. After this season of wrestling, there is hardly a single instance of backsliding mentioned. A.W. Tozer once said that he loves a man to be stubborn in coming to Christ: if he can be easily be persuaded to follow Christ he will likely be easily disuaded to abandon Him. Jesus entreats a man to count the cost of following Him: it will cost you your life.
Here is a quote from the diary that I am compelled to agree with, and amazing that it was written in 1745! "Could not but think, as I have often remarked to others, that much more of true religion consists in deep humility, brokenness of heart, and as abasing sense of barrenness and want of grace and holiness than most who are called Christians imagine; especially those who have been esteemed the converts of the late day. Many seem to know of no other religion but elevated joys and affections, arising only from some flights of imagination, or some suggestion made to their mind, of Christ being theirs, God loving them, and the like."
In our day, the doctrine of repentance is more a byword than a watchword. We see little humiliation or brokenness for sin. It was Leonard Ravenhill who said of young men who desired to follow in his footsteps mourning (and I paraphrase): "They want my mantle, but they refuse my sackcloth and ashes!" How precious in the sight of God is a man who mourns over his sin, denying superficial comfort! God's wrath was arrested when He saw the Ninevites repent and fast. He withheld evil from Ahab, one of the most wicked kings of Israel, because he humbled himself when confronted with his sin!
It must be noted that repentance is an inner work, not an outer show. During the times of the minor prophets leading up to captivity, the children of Israel continued their sacrifices and fasts. However, they refused to give up their abominable idolatries. God said, "Is this the fast I have chosen, the putting on of sackcloth? Why don't you do righteously instead?" So often we would rather sacrifice than obey; we would rather fast from food than fast from our sin. In Luke 24 Jesus says that repentance and forgiveness of sins must be preached in His name. Without repentance there is no forgiveness.
Following Jesus is more than "elevated joys and affections." There are deep valleys of sorrow and tribulation, but Jesus is with us continually. Jesus says that in this world we will have tribulation but be of good cheer because He has overcome the world. If we humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD He will lift us up. A man in his strength can elevate himself a few feet above the ground: if we will humble ourselves and repent before our Holy Creator in faith, He will usher us into the heavens and eternal glory! Praise be to God, who gives us the victory through Jesus Christ our LORD.
Here is a quote from the diary that I am compelled to agree with, and amazing that it was written in 1745! "Could not but think, as I have often remarked to others, that much more of true religion consists in deep humility, brokenness of heart, and as abasing sense of barrenness and want of grace and holiness than most who are called Christians imagine; especially those who have been esteemed the converts of the late day. Many seem to know of no other religion but elevated joys and affections, arising only from some flights of imagination, or some suggestion made to their mind, of Christ being theirs, God loving them, and the like."
In our day, the doctrine of repentance is more a byword than a watchword. We see little humiliation or brokenness for sin. It was Leonard Ravenhill who said of young men who desired to follow in his footsteps mourning (and I paraphrase): "They want my mantle, but they refuse my sackcloth and ashes!" How precious in the sight of God is a man who mourns over his sin, denying superficial comfort! God's wrath was arrested when He saw the Ninevites repent and fast. He withheld evil from Ahab, one of the most wicked kings of Israel, because he humbled himself when confronted with his sin!
It must be noted that repentance is an inner work, not an outer show. During the times of the minor prophets leading up to captivity, the children of Israel continued their sacrifices and fasts. However, they refused to give up their abominable idolatries. God said, "Is this the fast I have chosen, the putting on of sackcloth? Why don't you do righteously instead?" So often we would rather sacrifice than obey; we would rather fast from food than fast from our sin. In Luke 24 Jesus says that repentance and forgiveness of sins must be preached in His name. Without repentance there is no forgiveness.
Following Jesus is more than "elevated joys and affections." There are deep valleys of sorrow and tribulation, but Jesus is with us continually. Jesus says that in this world we will have tribulation but be of good cheer because He has overcome the world. If we humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD He will lift us up. A man in his strength can elevate himself a few feet above the ground: if we will humble ourselves and repent before our Holy Creator in faith, He will usher us into the heavens and eternal glory! Praise be to God, who gives us the victory through Jesus Christ our LORD.
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