Inward spiritual conflict - healthy or unhealthy?

Does awareness of spiritual conflict within you lead you to despair? Does constant need to do battle with tendencies to sin cause you to doubt the genuineness of your Christian faith?

Bishop J. C. Ryle helps us to see that these experiences, far from being signs of ill spiritual health, are in fact vital signs of spiritual life! 

Sanctification … does not prevent a man having a great deal of inward spiritual conflict. By conflict I mean a struggle within the heart between the old nature and the new, the flesh and the spirit, which are to be found together in every believer (Gal 5:17). A deep sense of that struggle, and a vast amount of mental discomfort from it, are no proof that a man is not sanctified. Nay, rather, I believe they are healthy symptoms of our condition, and prove that we are not dead, but alive.

Quoted from J.C. Ryle, in Holiness (EP Books). Cited by A. Hoekema in Saved by Grace (Eerdmans).

Showing the face of Jesus in our worship

Here's a worthy goal to strive for in our weekly worship service:

... our worship, no different than the rest of our lives, pleases God when we represent his Son through it. This is more than a matter of choosing music that is properly respectful or adequately relevant. Our worship should show the face of Jesus to those who have gathered and to those who need to gather to worship him. They see him when they understand his gospel - making our task to represent that gospel in all we do.

Quoted from Bryan Chapell, "Re-presenting" Christ's Story, in Christ-Centered Worship (Baker Academic).

Horizontal and vertical dimensions of worship

It is easy to react against the so-called "seeker sensitive" worship services by swinging the pendulum to the other end: that worship is purely about pleasing God, not about us. Bryan Chapell points out that Christ-centered worship demands that we hold on to both:

The horizontal and vertical dimensions of worship actually cannot be isolated in any aspect of worship. Prayer is directed to God (recognizing his glory) but offers petitions for his people (expressing human love). Preaching that fails to show love for God's Word fails to bring him glory, but preaching that fails to express love for God's people also fails to glorify him. Praise glorifies the greatness of God, and simultaneously encourages God's people with the implicit message that such a great God still delights to hear them. Worship must be offered with concern for God's glory and the good of his people. Worship cannot be a reflection of the gospel without both concerns.

Quoted from Bryan Chapell, "Re-presenting" Christ's Story, in Christ-Centered Worship (Baker Academic).

Seminary: A place to prepare pastors?

A recent conversation with a seminarian friend highlighted that it is no easy task for seminaries and Bible colleges to figure out how to remain faithful and effective in preparing pastors and gospel workers for the churches in the coming years.

In his inaugural address as Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, entitled "Seminary: A Place to Prepare Pastors?", Timothy Z. Witmer draws out "Four Imperatives Required to Improved the Seminary as a Place to Prepare Pastors":

Imperative 1. Renew the Commitment to the Mission to Prepare Pastors

"Forming men for the ordained Gospel ministry as pastors, teachers, evangelists, missionaries, and other tasks specified by the church" ... is not the only thing that we do, but it is the heart of what we do and always has been since the seminary opens its doors.

Imperative 2. Embrace a Holistic Picture of Ministerial Formation

Our goal is to form a person, not a professional. Our commitment must not be merely the transmission of information but the transformation of character.

Imperative 3. Accomplish the Mission in Partnership with the Church

A vital partnership with the local church must be cultivated.  "It takes a flock to shape a shepherd".

Imperative 4. Review Our Approach in the Classroom

John Frame defines theology as "simply the application of Scripture to all areas of human life. We do not know what the Scriptures say until we know how it relates to our world" ... We must strive to answer the "So what?" question.

Read Dr Witmer's full lecture at Westminster Theological Journal 69 (2007): 229-46.

Is hell God's work or our own doing?

Following discussion is extracted from John Piper's sermon on Romans 4:1-5 entitled "God Credits Faith as Righteousness" - posted 10 years ago (August 1, 1999) but still helpful in prompting reflection on the biblical teaching on justification.

Responding to the following quote by Pope John Paul II,

"Hell us not a punishment imposed externally by God, but the condition resulting from attitudes and actions which people adopt in this life ... Eternal damnation is not God's work but is actually our own doing",

Piper comments:

The two negative statements in that quote are not Biblical. It is not true to say, "Hell is not a punishment imposed externally by God". And it is not true to say, "Eternal damnation is not God's work." ... because if hell is merely a self-imposed condition of sinning and separation from God, and not a God-imposed judicial sentence and punishment for breaking God's law, then justification by faith ... simply isn't necessary.

Because what makes justification by faith so necessary, and so wonderful as the heart of the gospel, is that God is a just and holy judge who does indeed impose the punishment of hell on us externally.

You can either do away justification altogether, or you can change the meaning of it so that it no longer refers to God's acquitting us in court and reckoning us righteous, but instead refers to God's transforming our character and making us righteous ... And thus since hell is not the consequence of the damnation of God, heaven is not the consequence of justification of God. Instead since damnation is seen as the deterioration of character, justification is redefined as the improvement of character.

But ... that you can get right with God through improved character is not the gospel.

What then is the gospel? Piper concludes his exposition on Romans 4:1-5 in the following manner:

So here we are this morning as sinners on the brink of hell - not a mere self-imposed condition of alienation, but a God-imposed sentence of condemnation. How shall we escape? How shall we get right with God, be forgiven, acquitted, counted as righteous in his presence rather than guilty and ungodly? Answer: By trusting in the One who justifies the ungodly.

Christ died to pay our debt. Christ lived to provide our righteousness. When we despair of ourselves and trust the God who justifies the ungodly, God reckons our sin as punished on the cross, and God reckons Christ's righteousness as imputed to us.

Do you want to be right with God? Do you want to have under you a firm unshakable foundation for life and eternity? Do you want peace that passes all understanding? Trust in the One who justifies the ungodly.

On joy and pain

It is not possible to know real joy unless we also associate it with one of the indispensable features of life - suffering and frustration. The happiest people in the world are not those who have no suffering, but those who are not afraid of suffering - those who know that they can experience what one writer calls “winter sunshine".

Quoted from Ajith Fernando in "An Interview with Ajith Fernando", Crossway.blog

On God's love and God's wrath

"In itself, wrath, unlike love, is not one of the intrinsic perfections of God. Rather, it is a function of God's holiness against sin ... Where there is no sin, there is no wrath - but there will always be love in God
... God in his perfections must be wrathful against his rebel image-bearers, for they have offended him; God in his perfections must be loving toward his image-bearers, for he is that kind of God."

Quoted from D. A. Carson in The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God (Crossway).

"The relationship between God's love and his wrath can best be seen by considering two intermediate concepts, God's righteousness and his jealousy.
   - Without the wrath of God against those who finally disbelieve, God's love is no longer righteous.
   - When we see God's love, not as a sentimental affection, but as a covenantal commitment, we see it as a jealous love that leads to wrath when it is abused.
... Once we understand God's love, we know it as tough love, one that respects his standards of righteousness and burns in jealousy against those who betray it. God's wrath serves the purpose of his love, and his love is the richer for it: it bestows on his beloved the ultimate blessing of a sin-free world"

Quoted from John M. Frame in The Doctrine of God: A Theology of Lordship (P&R Publishing).

"Poverty Bible: woeful or wonderful?"

Came across a blog article entitled "Poverty Bible: woeful or wonderful?" while doing some research for a sermon on commandment#10 on covetousness, inviting discussion/debate on whether the World Vision/Bible Society effort to publish a Bible that highlights "over 2000 passages of scripture that speak of God’s attitude to poverty and justice.”

It is encouraging that there seems to be a concerted effort by various Christians groups to reinforce the Bible's teaching on God's attitude to poverty and justice - which many Christians (myself included) seem slow to listen & act.

But can't help but feeling the irony that this debate on the "poverty Bible" is one that only "rich" Christians can afford to have - i.e. the option of having a Poverty Bible in addition to regular Bible, Study Bible, Green Bible, One-year Bible, etc. etc. - even while they strive to champion the cause of the poor who can barely afford a meal on the table, let alone multiple Bibles each household.

What is the future of expository preaching?

This little video interview of Bryan Chapell (speaker for KVBC & EPS 2009) on What is the future of expository preaching (source: The Gospel Coalition) puts it simply yet plainly what is expository preaching and why it needs to remain as the foundation of our church ministries.

When the prayer meeting feels like a complaint session

The weekly prayer meetings can be the heartbeat of the church. But it can also be an extremely frustrating experience: members turning up for no other reason except out of a sense of duty, wondering why the group is always small, angry with others that we think should have been there, wanting to feel good about our own commitment and yet hardly feel inspired or encouraged by being there ... Am I the only one who feels this way?

Which is why Johannah Reardon's article on "The Art of Group Prayer" was such a breath of fresh air. In fact, it was so positively and helpfully encouraging that our prayer group read and talked through it together at prayer meeting last night.

Johannah wrote about how a group member's complaint became a wake-up call to how they handled prayer time in their group. It directed them to God's Word, where they didn't find prayers about "arthritis, unruly children or rotten work conditions", but "powerful, life-changing" prayers that were "full of God's power and glory" (e.g. look at Paul's prayer in Ephesians 1:16-23).

Not that we shouldn't pray about arthritis, unruly children or rotten work conditions (ironically, our group conceded that health, family & work issues dominate our prayer agenda!). Rather, Johannah suggests that we transform our prayers by "putting them into the bigger context of what God wants to do in our lives"by remembering 3 key principles:

1) MAKE THEM GOD-CENTERED, i.e. remember who we are talking to. One church member put it this way: "think not KNOW-HOW, but KNOW-WHO". Extolling God's virtues prayerfully (ef. Ephesians 1:16ff) surely carried Paul further than any listing of complaints. When our prayers are God-centered, we can "pray victoriously in the midst of whatever [we are] praying".

2) MAKE THEM PRAISE-FILLED, i.e. focus on praising God for what he has done. Trust that God knows what he's doing, even in times when we're painfully aware that we don't! God may deliver us from trouble, or he may not! But one thing we know - whichever is his will, he will equip us with everything we need to face the situations he put us in.

3) MAKE THEM LIFE-CHANGING, i.e. focus expectations not only on how God could change the circumstances around us, but also (and especially so) how God might want to change us!

Johannah's small group prayers changed after their wake-up call. Instead of a complaint session, prayer time became "an incredible opportunity to gain the wisdom, direction and power of the King of kings who rules all time and place".

May God bring about the same transformation to our prayer meetings! Amen.

KVBC & EPS 2009 with Bryan Chapell

It's time again for the annual Klang Valley Bible Conference (KVBC) & Expository Preaching Seminar (EPS).

This year, we're excited to have for the first time Dr Bryan Chapell (Covenant Theological Seminary) with us. He will be preaching on God's Great Plan (expositions on Daniel) at KVBC and leading a series on Christ-centered Preaching at EPS. We're also very excited to be able to bring EPS to Penang for the first time this year.

Dr. Chapell's itinerary in Malaysia:

Oct 4 (Sun), 10am  :  Preach at City Discipleship Presbyterian Church (CDPC)
Oct 6-8 (Tue-Thu), 8.15pm  :   Klang Valley Bible Conference, Tropicana Golf Club, PJ
Oct 7-8 (Wed & Thu), 9.30am :  Expository Preaching Seminar, Tropicana Golf Club, PJ
Oct 9-10 (Fri 8pm & Sat 9.30pm) :  Expository Preaching Seminar, Wesley Methodist, Penang
Oct 11 (Sun), 9am & 11am  :   Preach at Wesley Methodist Penang
 

On cheap grace and false assurance

"It is true ... that no man enters the kingdom because of his obedience; but it is equally true that no man enters the kingdom who is not obedient. It is true that men are saved by God's grace through faith in Christ; but it is equally true that God's grace in a man's life inevitably results in obedience. Any other view of grace cheapens grace, and turns it into something unrecognizable.

Cheap grace preaches forgiveness without repentance, church membership without rigorous church discipline, discipleship without obedience, blessing without persecution, joy without righteousness, results without obedience.

In the entire history of the church, has there ever been another generation with so many nominal Christians and so few real (i.e. obedient) ones? And where nominal Christianity is compounded by spectacular profession, it is especially likely to manufacture its own false assurance."

Quoted from D.A. Carson in Sermon on the Mount: An exposition of Matthew 5-7 (Spring Harvest Publishing).

Finishing Well - Interview with John Piper & John MacArthur

Stumbled upon an interview with John Piper & John MacArthur at the 2007 Desiring God conference on the theme: "Stand - A call for the endurance of the saints".

What great encouragement from these 2 men of God that what really matters in life & ministry is living and leaving a legacy of finishing well!