Medical Team in Haiti (Susan Wright)

Dr. Susan Wright from Norway Ave is serving the suffering people of Haiti. Here is a message from the medical team in Haiti: "We were preparing to open the clinic this morning when we noticed a mother holding a very malnurished child...it was a 3 year old boy in the end stages of AIDS...it was a tough start to the day. The clinic is crowded today. We are seeing the second wave of problems, many severely infected wounds that are a result of th...e unsterile operating environments in the city. Keep praying!"

Without a King (A Study in the Book of Judges)

This Sunday I begin a new series in the book of Judges. The series title is called "Without a King" and the theme Verse: Judges 17:5 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.

Bible Study Resources

If you enjoy Bible Study and are looking for online resources click on the links I have listed on the front page of this blog. I love to study God's word and the resources that I have listed under links have been helpful to me - perhaps you will find them helpful also. If you know of other Bible study resources I hope you will share them with me - please send me your favorite links.

His Sovereignty in Election

God chose you in advance. He predestined before you before he created anything. You have faith in Christ because God gave it to you. You repented of your sins because God granted repentance. Faith and repentance are gifts from God. Why did you accept the Lord Jesus? Jesus said “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” You are not saved because you are intelligent or spiritually sensitive or morally good. You are saved because of God’s sovereign grace. No one can ever boast before God because he did it all. God has mercy on whomever he chooses, and he hardens the heart of whomever he chooses. It’s true. You can see it clearly when you read the Bible. He hardened Pharaoh’s heart so he could display his power and make his Name known throughout the world. He opened Lydia's heart to spread the gospel of Jesus throughout Europe. He hardened Israel's heart to bring Gentiles into his family. And when the full number of Gentiles come it all Israel will be saved. You may think it's unfair because who can resist his will. Be careful. You are not God's critic. Don't argue with the Almighty about his sovereignty. He may overwhelm you with a storm. You may hear him say "Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? Brace yourself like a man while I question you - since you know so much. Where were you when I created the foundations of the earth?" You, like Job, would cover your mouth with your hand and realize that he is the potter and we are the clay. Clay never protests - why did you make me this way. He knows what he's doing. He is God and you are not. Just accept the fact that he is totally righteous and all his decisions are just - even when you can't understand - even when it looks unfair. The secret things belong to God - the reveal things are available for us to read - most of what God has revealed is easy to understand but some things are perplexing and seem irreconcilable. I do not think it is impossible to reconcile God's sovereignty in election with human freewill. But both are clearly and repeatedly taught in scripture. When you read those sections you can hardly keep from asking questions. Just make sure that, when you ask such questions, you maintain a humble, submissive tone and let go of the illusion that you could ever comprehend the incomprehensible. Remember, "we know in part". Perhaps he will explain it in the question and answer room in heaven. Until then accept both doctrines (God's total sovereignty and human free will) and learn to live with the dissonance. Some believers can't stand it so they embrace one at the expense of the other. Don't make that mistake. You'll miss out on the blessing. What blessing? Security for you and praise for God - I'll explain the blessing in a minute. My point here is to encourage you to say "God is sovereign and we are free - I believe it even though I can't understand it" and let the tension it creates remain. Don't focus on freewill at the expense of sovereignty. Don't ignore or explain away passages that emphasize his sovereign will. How can you? I can't escape it because it keeps jumping off the page and hitting me in the face. To me, it is so clear and emphatic. Strong statements with stories that illustrate. Remember Rebekah? God spoke to her while she was still pregnant. Before Rebekah’s twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: not by works but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” It does not depend on our desire or effort it depends on God’s mercy. Mercy! That's what you need to focus on. His sovereign mercy. His love and grace. The truth of God's sovereignty in election was not revealed to perplex us. Why did he reveal it? For his own glory. To display his awesom power and absolute control. He also wanted to make us to feel secure. To reassures us of his love and mercy. The world will never spin out of his control. God gave us a little glimpse is scripture so we would understand that everything will conform to HIS will - not our will. He planned everything before it began. Christ was crucified before the creation of the world. He knew you, predestined you, called you, justified you and glorified you. Romans 8:30 takes my breath away. The entire scheme of human redemption in one verse - breathtaking! Read it carefully and notice that it is stated in the past tense. How can that be? God knows the future - even more, everything conforms to his eternal purpose. He can see the end from the beginning because he is the alpha and omega. The first and the last. He is the beginning and the end and everything in between. You died and your life is NOW hidden with God in Christ. God has ALREADY raised you and seated you with Christ in the heavenlies. What do you have to worry about? It's done - it's complete - in the mind of God you are with Jesus. You are saved and secure. Now, when you think about all these things that are too wonderful to understand - let it fill you with awe and wonder and say with Paul "Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Who has been his counselor? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever and ever! Amen!

Wash me and I will be whiter than snow

Snow is just beginning to fall - again. Yesterday's snow covered the ground and now, weather.com is calling for several inches more. I am watching snow fall out my office window. It is beautiful. The ground is covered with white snow. It reminds me of God's forgiveness. I am thinking of two passages - Psalm 51 and Isaiah 1. After David's sin with Bathsheba he wrote Psalm 51:7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. 8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. 9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. 13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you. Years later God spoke to Israel through the prophet Isaiah and said in Isaiah 1:16 wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, 17 learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. 1 Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. 18 "Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; 20 but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword." For the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Today, by the grace of God, I want to stop doing wrong and learn to do right. But you have to help me Lord. I am powerless without you. Fill me with your Spirit! Make me. Move me. I am willing to be obedient and nothing in me (at this time) wants to resist you. Lord, my sins are like scarlet - they are red as crimson - wash me now - make me white as the snow falling outside my window. Lead me in your path forever - keep me white and pure and strong.

Try The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)

I use online resources for Bible study most of the time. I began preaching twenty years ago when nearly all my resources were in printed books - large, thick volumes. I remember doing word studies - thumbing through those large volumes, referencing and recording, etc. It used to take a long time to find what you were looking for - Not anymore! The availability of (free) online Bible resources and tools makes a huge differencee! Here's one of them. Try The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE). I use it a lot. I have several Bible tools and go-to resources - this is one of them. Here's a little summary of the ISBE from Studylight.org - "Welcome to the The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia on StudyLight.org! Containing 9448 entries cross-referenced and cross-linked to other resources on StudyLight.org, this encyclopedia can be classified as a required reference book for any good study library. This practical, authoritative, and complete classic reference encyclopedia explains every significant word in the Bible and Apocrypha. It gives detailed information on the language and literature of Bible lands, and the historical and religious environments of the people of the Bible in articles by nearly 200 scholars. All scripture references and reference to other entries within the text have been linked. To use this encyclopedia to it's full potential, follow all the links presented within the text of the entry you are reading." Ready to try it? Just visit http://www.studylight.org/enc/isb/

New look

I gave my blog a new look. Still haven't figured out all the available gadgets - in the process of adopting the new look I apparently deleted links and followers - sorry about that. I added a few links - the new controls on blogger are more user-friendly. But I still don't know how create breaks - blogger doesn't recognize them -that's why my post are w/o paragraphs - I don't like it but I don't know how to fix it.

How to cope with your self - die and stay dead

One of life’s most difficult challenges is coping with our self – sin, insecurity, guilt and anxiety - I call them the big four – sinful addictions, nagging insecurities, crippling guilt, and paralyzing anxieties. Everybody deals with them. Where do they come from? Inside. Nothing good lives in me i.e. in my sinful nature. Jesus said “For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean.' " (Mark 7:21-23). C.S. Lewis was right when he wrote "Look for yourself and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin and decay." Does that sound strange? It contradicts nearly every philosophy and theory of psychology about the self. I am familiar with the humanistic approaches because I have been teaching current psychotherapies to counselors in training for several years. The humanistic theories assume that human nature is good and the answer to problems with addictions, insecurity, guilt/depression, anxiety/stress lies within. They emphasize self-acceptance, self-fulfillment, self-actualization, etc. These ideas are so popular in mainstream culture some Christians accept it as true and even superimpose these notions on Christianity. But Jesus never taught such things. Jesus taught us to die to self and the older I get the more I understand why I need to die to myself. I am becoming increasingly aware of two things simultaneously – my own depravity and God’s amazing grace. When I look inside I see a heart that is desperately wicked – the cravings and desires of my sinful nature frighten me. I am capable of anything. At the same time, I am totally amazed by God’s grace and love. The blackness of my depravity is the backdrop of God’s grace and love. As my awareness of sin abounds, God’s grace super-abounds. That’s the best way I know to cope with myself - die and stay dead. The more I realize who I am the more I want to die and let Jesus live my life. If you don’t know who you really are you may not want to die. Luther wrote that man must come to a knowledge of himself, be terrified of himself, and be crushed as a prelude to receiving and appreciating God’s grace, forgiveness, and new life in Christ. I was crucified with Christ. I died with him and I want to stay dead. Staying dead is the most difficult part for me. I really don't know the best way to stay dead. Denying myself - it works sometimes. Avoiding triggers - yeah, sometimes. But my old man doesn't need a trigger to surface - he is stronger than me - I cannot control him or tame him or domesticate him - he wears me out! He's too much for me - I wish Jesus would just kill him or take him completely out of me so there would be no more struggle - O, I long for that day. Until then, I try to do what Paul said in Romans 6, 7, and 8. To "reckon" or "consider" myself dead - this way I don't respond because dead men don't lust - they aren't proud or rude or self-seeking - they are just dead. How can we cope with our self and the big four - sinful addictions, nagging insecurities, crippling guilt, and paralyzing anxieties? Jesus is the answer. My part is to die and stay dead. That's my prayer. I pray that I can just think of myself as a dead man. Dead to sin. Dead to law. Dead to the lure of the world system. One thing for sure - the answer does not reside in me - just sin. I want to die so Christ live my life.

How to confront

God sometimes prompts us to restore a friend who is trapped in glaring flagrant sin and he gives us instruction on how to do it. Galatians 5:1Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4Each one should test his own actions. Today I read a story writen by Chuck Smith (pastor of Calvary Chapel)that illustrates the passage above. Chuck Smith writes "Years ago a close friend operated a delivery business to grocery stores. During his rounds he met the wife of a man who owned a small market. They began to kid around with one another and, before long, they were meeting regularly to drink coffee and to talk. They soon fancied themselves in love, left their families, and moved in together. That's when this man's wife, also a dear friend, called us and asked if we would pray for him. Meanwhile, the minister of the church where our friends had been attending paid a visit to the man. The pastor told him that he had a vision of a black hearse and if the man didn't leave this woman and go back to his wife, they were going to carry him out of that room feetfirst. This heavy-handed approach only made the man more angry and entrenched him in his immoral decision. His wife then called me and asked if I would talk to him. I agreed to go and found my friend living in a shabby garage apartment on the bad side of town. When I saw his filthy little home, I was struck by how much he had lost. His wife and daughters were beautiful people. His home was in a wonderful area. This man had sold his soul for a crust of bread. As he came to the door, a look of shame covered his face. He was very polite and invited me to come in and sit down. As I looked around at my friend's new life I thought, Oh, God! How could he give up so much for so little? My heart was breaking because I loved this man. The sight of what he had fallen into tore me apart. I found myself unable to conceal my feelings, and much to my embarrassment I began to weep. I was overcome with grief, and when his lover emerged from the kitchen all I could do was sob. I finally got so embarrassed I said, "I'm very sorry. I know I came over to see you, but I just can't talk right now." I got up, left, and went home feeling like a fool. Here my good friend's wife wanted me to visit him and make an appeal for reconciliation, and all I could do was sit there and cry. The next morning I received a phone call with news that left me in shock. My friend had returned to his wife and family just hours after my visit. What did God use to achieve this miraculous healing of a fractured relationship? Not a holier-than-thou attitude, to be certain. His Spirit had created in me a spirit of meekness and brokenness that led to a joyful reconciliation. I thought I had blundered terribly - but I discovered that whenever we choose to walk in the Spirit, God delights to work powerfully In stunning and unexpected ways. Walking in the Spirit is an amazingly practical proposition. It doesn't mean that we float through life with a halo over our head and an angelic smile on our face. We can be spiritually minded and still relate to people about earthly things. Some believers react so strongly against the pervasive worldliness of our culture that they lose the ability to communicate with their friends, relatives, and neighbors. Walking in the Spirit doesn't take us out of reality; it allows us to function in reality with optimum effectiveness."

Long time no see

It has been a long time since I posted anything. My schedule has been heavy. It still is.