As High As The Heavens Are Above The Earth…
Psalm 103:10-14
(10) He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
(11) For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
(12) as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
(13) As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
(14) For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust.
Who Is Saving You?
The following comes from By Grace Alone by Sinclair Ferguson (p.75-76):
Your salvation rests not on what you have done but on what Christ has done. You, therefore, can be sure of it, no matter how weak the faith by which you hold on to Christ, no matter how strong the attacks and accusations of Satan may be.
Remember that you are not saved by increased levels of holiness, however desirable it is that you should reach them. Indeed, while we often say that we are “saved by faith” or by “faith in Christ,” as Benjamin B. Warfield shrewdly comments, it is not been faith in Christ that saves us. It is Christ who saves us – through faith. Your faith is a poor and crumbling thing, as is your spiritual service. Jesus Christ alone is qualified and able to save you because of what He has done. Cling to anything else and you are relying on flotsam and jetsam floating on a perilous sea. It will bring you down under the waves. If you should ever experience anything like the satanic attack Bunyan’s Christian endured, you will be lost. But cling to Christ Jesus and His righteousness, and nothing can sink you.
When you grasp that, you begin to realize why and how it is that you can live in the face of such demonic attacks as these. You are not pushed back on your own resources or spiritual qualities. You are able to rest exclusively on what Jesus Christ has done for you. For what He has done for you is absolutely perfect.
What Christ is doing in you is still incomplete. But in what Jesus Christ has done for you there is not a single tiny crack that the satanic arrows can penetrate. Jesus Christ is your shield.
My Soul Rejoiced With Joy Unspeakable
The following comes from The Life and Diary of David Brainerd by Jonathan Edwards (p. 69-70):
I had been thus endeavoring to pray, though as I thought, very stupid and senseless, for near half an hour; then, as I was walking in a dark thick grove, unspeakable glory seemed to open to the view and apprehension of my soul. I do not mean any external brightness, for I saw no such thing. Nor do I intend any imagination of a body of light somewhere in the third heavens, or anything of that nature; but it was a new inward apprehension or view that I had of God, such as I never had before nor anything which had the least resemblance of it.
I stood still, wondered, and admired! I knew that I never had seen before anything comparable to it for excellency and beauty; it was widely different from all the conceptions that ever I had of God, or things divine. I had no particular apprehension of any one Person in the Trinity, either the Father, the Son, or the Holy Ghost; but it appeared to be divine glory. My soul rejoiced with joy unspeakable to see such a God, such a glorious Divine Being; and I was inwardly pleased and satisfied that He should be God over all for ever and ever. My soul was so captivated and delighted with the excellency, loveliness, greatness, and other perfections of God, that I was even swallowed up in Him. At least to that degree that I had no thought (as I remember) at first, about my own salvation, and scarce reflected there was such a creature as I. Thus God, I trust, brought me to a hearty disposition to exalt Him and set Him on the throne, and principally and ultimately to aim at His honor and glory, as King of the universe. I continued in this state of inward joy, peace, and astonishment, till near dark, without any sensible abatement; and then began to think and examine what I had seen; and felt sweetly composed in my mind all the evening following. I felt myself in a new world, and everything about me appeared with a different aspect from what it was wont to do.
At this time, the way of salvation opened to me with such infinite wisdom, suitableness, and excellency, that I wondered I should ever think of any other way of salvation; was amazed that I had not dropped my own contrivances, and complied with this lovely, blessed, and excellent way before. If I could have been saved by my own duties, or any other way that I had formerly contrived, my whole soul would now have refused it. I wondered that all the world did not see and comply with this way of salvation, entirely by the righteousness of Christ.
Husbands and Wives
EPHESIANS 5:21-33
Out of respect for Christ, be courteously reverent to one another.
Wives, understand and support your husbands in ways that show your support for Christ. The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does to his church, not by domineering but by cherishing. So just as the church submits to Christ as he exercises such leadership, wives should likewise submit to their husbands.
Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting. Christ’s love makes the church whole. His words evoke her beauty. Everything he does and says is designed to bring the best out of her, dressing her in dazzling white silk, radiant with holiness. And that is how husbands ought to love their wives. They’re really doing themselves a favor—since they’re already “one” in marriage.
No one abuses his own body, does he? No, he feeds and pampers it. That’s how Christ treats us, the church, since we are part of his body. And this is why a man leaves father and mother and cherishes his wife. No longer two, they become “one flesh.” This is a huge mystery, and I don’t pretend to understand it all. What is clearest to me is the way Christ treats the church. And this provides a good picture of how each husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each wife is to honor her husband.
The Message, Eugene Peterson
Like this:
The Quantum Leap
Romans 8:31-39[31] What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? [32] He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? [33] Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. [34] Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. [35] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? [36] As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
[37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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Prior to coming to Immanuel Church last year, Meghan and I worked for Young Life in Wheaton, IL. Every summer, we’d take buses of kids to camp for the best week of their lives. Every third year, we’d go to a camp called Sharptop Cove in Jasper, Georgia. It’s a beautiful place. It has everything: waterslides, a lake, basketball courts, the BLOB, a frisbee golf course, horseback riding, mountain biking, etc. But it has one thing that I wish it didn’t have. It is called “The Quantum Leap.” “The Quantum Leap” is a 40 ft. phone pole that you need to climb, stand on top of, and then jump off of to hit a bell that is positioned up and beyond. Not an ideal thing for someone terrified of heights… like me!
Now, picture this, my cabin of 10 sophomore guys (fearless, modern-day Bravehearts, Gladiators, etc.) are getting on their harnesses and helmets and lining up for their turn at the base of the telephone pole. While they’re talking about what they’re going to do after “The Quantum Leap” is over, I’m about 10 feet away, having a heart to heart conversation with the college-aged staff person that was in charge of this death trap.
Now, as you look at the line of high school students on the right side of your screen and then the heart to heart conversation that was ensuing between me and the staff guy on the left side of your screen, we’re going to double-click on me and the staff guy so that you can ‘hear’ what I had to say. “Have their been any accidents this summer? Have you heard of any accidents in past summers? How long have you been doing this job? Will you double, triple check my harness? If I fall, you’ve got me, right?” You see I was about to entrust my LIFE to this person. I wanted him to convince me that he wasn’t going to let me die!
In a parallel way, all of life is like “The Quantum Leap.” Everyone is depending on someone or something to keep them safe, to make them feel okay. If you are a Christian, the one you are depending on to keep you safe, to make you feel okay is God – He is the one holding the rope. And although you know he is totally reliable to keep you, you have your questions. You aren’t totally convinced. For example, when you are looking for a job and can’t find one, when you are feeling overwhelmed with the demands of being a mom, or when you are waiting for the results of some blood tests, or when you are experiencing suffering of various kinds, we inevitably question the reliability of God’s love for us. Deep down, we fear that he might drop us (or even that he is dropping us).
In Romans 8:31-39, it’s as though Paul is giving us God’s response to the questions of our heart! In these verses, God is out to CONVINCE us that he’s got us and he’s never letting go. God wants us to know that his love for us can be trusted NO MATTER WHAT! My hope for you is that you will be increasingly convinced that God’s love for you can be trusted!
God addresses the following questions: 1) Are you sure my enemies won’t succeed against me? (v. 31) 2) Will you really give me all things? (v. 32) 3) Are you positive that you will never charge or condemn me? (v. 33-34) 4) Is there really NOTHING that can separate me from your love? (v. 35-39).
In short-form, here’s his reply:
- Our enemies will never succeed against us because Jesus willingly allowed them to succeed against himself on the cross in our place.
- We can be sure that we will receive ‘all things’ because Jesus willingly experienced the loss of all things on the cross in our place.
- We can be sure that God will never charge or condemn us because Jesus was willingly charged and condemned by God in our place.
- We can be sure that NOTHING will separate us from the love of God because Jesus was willingly separated from the love of God on the cross in our place.
Thy Mighty Grasp of Me
Let me no more my comfort draw
from my frail hold of thee,
in this alone rejoice with awe
thy mighty grasp of me.
-John Campbell Shairp
In His Hands
‘Twixt gleams of joy and clouds of doubt
Our feelings come and go; our best estate is tossed about in ceaseless ebb and flow. No mood of feeling, form of thought is constant for a day; but thou, 0 Lord, thou changest not: the same thou art alway.
I grasp thy strength, make it mine own, my heart with peace is blest; I lose my hold, and then comes down darkness, and cold unrest. Let me no more my comfort draw from my frail hold of thee, in this alone rejoice with awe—- thy mighty grasp of me.
Out of that weak, unquiet drift that comes but to depart, to that pure heaven my spirit lift where thou unchanging art. Lay hold of me with thy strong grasp, let thy almighty arm in its embrace my weakness clasp, and I shall fear no harm.
Thy purpose of eternal good let me but surely know; on this I’ll lean—let changing mood and feeling come or go— glad when thy sunshine fills my soul, not lorn when clouds o’ercast, since thou within thy sure control of love dost hold me fast .
John Campbell Shairp
There Is Only One Good Guy
My little guy Isaac loves playing good guys vs. bad guys. The game usually ends up with him tackling Lily, his little sister. For whatever reason, he talks about good guys and bad guys all the time. Here’s a gospel truth that I share with him that you’ll hopefully be encouraged by:
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- We’re all bad guys.
- There was only one truly good guy that has ever lived.
- That one good guy has declared that his bad guys are now good, and he’s now on a mission to make them good like himself.
The Garden of Gethsemane
(This picture and many more can be found here)
Matthew 26:36-46
Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again. Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
In this garden, Jesus prayed. In this garden, Jesus was suffered alone. In this garden, Jesus saw the infinite suffering that was in front of him, and he said, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”
He said yes to the suffering so that the Father could say yes to you.
That We May Believe
I came across the following quote by Augustine in Moo’s Commentary on Romans (NICNT, p. 588):
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God does not choose us because we believe, but that we may believe.
