First Newsletter Article

The past few months have been a time of praying for the Lord’s guidance to place my family where He wants to use us for His glory. Hamilton is the place the Lord has willed for my family to dig in our roots. I am overjoyed by the Lord’s blessing to shepherd the saints at Allison Avenue Baptist Church! Praise the Lord who answers our prayers.

When Joshua succeeded Moses and prepared God’s chosen people to enter the Promised Land, the Lord said, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it” (Joshua 1:8). The assembly devoted to Joshua’s leadership by saying, “Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you. Only may the Lord your God be with you, as He was with Moses” (Joshua1:17). Abiding in God’s Word is how we are to move Kingdom bound. The Word of God will be my staff, and Christ will be with us.

Jesus said, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me” (John 15:4). Let us be a church who abides in Christ to bear fruit to the glory of God.

July 2014 Newsletter

I love Sunday mornings. I love the church. I’m not talking about the building, nor am I referring simply to the event. I love being in the holy temple of the Lord’s presence in His gathering of the building in where our God is the architect and builder (Ephesians 2:19-22).

We the church gathers on Sundays to prove the Lord’s building in us by loving one another as Christ loves us (John 13:35, 15:12). As we have been studying the early church in Acts, we discover a devotion of the local church to gather regularly to study Scripture and enjoy fellowship (Acts 2:42). All of the “one another” passages in Scripture are in the enjoyment of Christ in our devoted fellowship. The worship service of God’s people assembled is to dig deep into the riches of the wisdom of God, rejoicing at His mercy, and marveling at His wondrous grace (Romans 11:33)!

So, let us gather with the saints. Let us gather thirsting for God’s presence and longing to see His glory in His temple (Psalm 42:4 63:1-2). Let us gather as His beloved to show His love to one another. Let us offer a tribute of praise to our God. Let us gather to praise our great God and Savior in the Name that is above all names, Jesus Christ our Lord. As Psalm 150 commands us,

Praise the LORD!

Praise God in His sanctuary;

    praise Him in His mighty heavens!

Praise Him for His mighty deeds;

    praise Him according to His excellent greatness!

Praise Him with trumpet sound;

    praise Him with lute and harp!

Praise Him with tambourine and dance;

    praise Him with strings and pipe!

Praise Him with sounding cymbals;

    praise Him with loud clashing cymbals!

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!

Praise the LORD!

May 2014 Newsletter

This month, I would like to speak directly to husbands and fathers. We men have a calling from the Lord to lead our family. 

First, we must first be trained in righteousness.

II Timothy3:16-17 reads, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and 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.” We must first believe and know the Scriptures we are to teach our family. The Bible corrects us where we fall short, trains us, and equips us for every good work, including the good work of loving and leading our wives and children.

Second, we read Scripture with our wives.

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her, that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word” (Ephesians 5:25-26).

Men, love your wives, not simply saying you love her, but from the heart of selflessness, give yourself up for her. Love your wives enough to learn the Scripture with her and allow God to convict sin and apply His grace in Christ Jesus. The Bible cleanses us and our wives; the Lord strengthens a holy marriage.

Third, we teach the Bible to our children.

“Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).

Not simply discipline and instruction, but making our children disciples of the Lord. We are to train up our children in the ways of God from His Word, for there is no better way to prepare them for the world. All other instruction is secondary to the instruction of God.

Husbands and fathers, nourish your family with the milk of the Word of God. Yet first, you must first long for the pure milk of the Word (I Peter 2:2).  You will teach and live what you desire. Desire God in His Word, and desire Him for your family.

Be Still and Know...

A verse in the Bible that manages to find its way on coffee mugs these days is Psalm 46:10, which reads, "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” Yet, if we maintain the American hermeneutic of reader-response, we will simply handle this beautiful verse in the mud of our own feelings rather than the glorious meaning of God's Word here.

Psalm 46 in Context

The theme in this Psalm is that God is our protection and that the glory of God will be praised in all His creation. Note the absence of man-centeredness in the themes. This Psalm is all about God: His might in protection and His greatness displayed in His creation. "God is our refuge and strength," says the Psalmist. Both our protection and our strength against our enemies are not a co-operating effort, nor does our strength and protection originate with us. The fortress of might belongs solely to God. Furthermore, God is a very present refuge and strength. God is with us.

Earthquakes and floods compromise the strength of foundations of buildings built by humans. No matter the amount of rebar or concrete, natural disaster has a force grander than its strength. Thus, these buildings of refuge have untrustworthy strength. God is a fortress with almighty strength that cannot be compromised by anything or anyone. His might is sovereign over all things; thus, all things (including kingdoms, world leaders, and people) "melt" simply by the voice of our sovereign God, like a candle to a flame. The voice of God that melts all the earth is a mighty fortress of refuge for those who love and trust Him, and is a melting fear that strikes the heart of men of disobedience! The voice of God is found in His Bible.

The last paragraph of this Psalm is a call to worship this all-powerful God whose voice melts the earth and is a powerful fortress. "Come, behold the works of the LORD," commands the Psalmist. Behold which of His works? "How he has brought desolations on the earth," declares the Psalmist. God is a mighty fortress against His enemies and a God who is mighty in battle, making all wars cease and utterly destroying the armies of His enemies. He "breaks the bow and shatters the spear," destroying His foes and their weapons of war. God is a God that utterly destroys the kingdoms, the peoples, and the weapons that oppose Him. This destruction is from the hot melting power of His voice alone, with no contribution from us.

Be Still...

In the call for the faithful to worship this powerful and sovereign God comes the command to "be still." The word is הַרְפּ֣וּ (harpoo), which means to cease. This is under the phrase, "behold the works of the LORD," from verse 8. The works of the LORD are (1) ceasing wars and (2) ceasing His followers. In Hebrew parallelism, which is a form of poetry in the Hebrew language, the Psalmist beautifully uses the word מַשְׁבִּ֥ית (masbith) to illustrate ceasing wars in verse 9, then using a different word to cease (or "be still") the worshipers of God.

Imagine the scene of a lopsided battle. Tanks, helicopters, fighter jets against a weak enemy with sticks. A battle with God on our side is even more lopsided than this! The enemy stands no chance. God melts His enemies and breaks their weapons with His thunderous voice. This mighty God ceases all wars. In the same way, God ceases His worshipers! God commands us to be still in the very same way as the warriors that stood against Him. All of our opinions on life, all of our anxieties, and all of our striving are to be ceased in hearing the voice of God.

...and Know that I am God

Beholding the great might of our God who melts His enemies with His voice and causes His followers to be stilled leads to a knowledge of God. In Jeremiah 9:23-24, God says, "Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom" but "let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me." However, this is not simply an acknowledgement of God's glory and great works that is divorced from awe and wander. James 2:19 tells us that even the demons know God...and tremble! This knowledge of God melts His enemies and stills His followers!

The knowledge of God referred to here is not simply in our knowing about God, but a knowledge coupled with a ceasing (being still) from our trust in ourselves, leaning on our own understanding, and our works apart from loving God. To be still and know that YHWH is God is a knowledge that boasts in God, not boasting in our own ambitions or in jealousy. A knowledge of God with our boasting arrogance is a knowledge that is demonic (James 3:15). A worshipful knowledge of God boasts in the Name of God that is exalted among all the people and all His creation.

Application

Those called to behold the great works of God are called to be theologians and practitioners. First, we study the voice of God in His Word. Second, this study leads to obedience. Our words are not in self-defense or self-exaltation, but the words as learned in His Word. Our works are not self-preservation or self-ambitious, but works flowing from the grand knowledge of God. We are not craftsmen working on ourselves, but pots molded by God's Word for we are His craftsmanship to do His works in which God Himself prepared to do before He even created (Ephesians 2:10).

When our knowledge, our deeds, and our boasting are entirely dependent on God through His Word, God who gave all the knowledge and has done all the work receives all the glory. His Name is highly exalted in all His creation! Be still, cease in your selfish striving and arrogant boasting, rest in God and in the knowledge of Him, and you will have a mighty Fortress and a Strength that cannot be thwarted. We can persevere through all temptations that spring here in the wilderness. As Martin Luther put it in his hymn "A Mighty Fortress is our God," which he wrote to correspond to Psalm 46:

And though this world, with devils filled,

should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God hath willed

His truth to triumph through us.
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
his rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
one little Word shall fell him.

Causing Division and Creating Obstacles

In the closing of his epistle to the Romans, Paul writes, "I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them" (Romans 16:17). Paul is not appealing that Christians avoid any division, but those divisions contrary to the truth of the Scripture. Paul is appealing for Christians to unite in the truth of Scripture and to separate from those challenging the Word of Truth.

Unity in Truth is True Unity
This is not the post-modern message in the West, which defines unity as avoiding any and all division in tolerance of all beliefs and doctrines as equally valid and acceptable. For the apostle Paul, unity is found only in "the doctrine that you have been taught." Christ perfects, equips, and gifts His people through the Word "divided accurately" (II Timothy 2:15) until "we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes" (Ephesians 4:13-14). Paul contends that the saints are not brought to "the fullness of Christ" and perfected by smart preachers or human wisdom, but by Christ Himself through His perfect Word.

In Colossians 3, Paul commands the local church to have hearts ruled by the peace of Christ and put on love, "which is the perfect bond of peace" (Colossians 3:14-15). Our understanding of true unity and peace and love of Christ are not to simply take verses out of context and redefine the meaning. Paul finishes in verse 16 with, "Let the Word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all teaching and admonishing one another..." Our peace and love of Christ is ruled ultimately by Scripture, which so abundantly takes up residence in our hearts that we teach and admonish one another. Christ washes His local church with His Word (Ephesians 5:26), and Paul commends the God-breathed Scripture for "teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness," which equips us for every good work (II Timothy 3:16-17).

Unity in the truth of Scripture is the only true unity Christ graces for His church. Unity in the truth means not to have a problem with authority of Christ in His perfect Word, but to have problems with authority from any other source, including a self-distrust.

The Singularity of Truth
Paul consistently speaks of the truth (singular, not plural) of Scripture. Paul states that unashamed believers can "rightly divide the Word of Truth," claiming Scripture to be one, cohesive, consistent, non-contradictory revelation of truth. Paul supposes that, although difficult to understand at times, the Scripture is clear and speaks of truth, giving full authority to the Word's Author and no authority to the reader. In other words, the reader is not permitted to suggest truth into Scripture that is not there, but the Author reveals truth to the reader that did not know. For instance, Paul commands the local church in Ephesus to "Speak the truth in love." Not truth(s), or kindly suggest an opinion and happily agree that everyone has their own opinion or "personal interpretation", or be kind and "lovingly" never confront anyone with the truth of Scripture, but speak the TRUTH.

The singularity of truth in Scripture contends that God is sovereign; in other words, God is in full control and fully capable of revealing truth to us in a clear manner. Our reading of Scripture must be of an attitude of complete dependence and trust in God to reveal truth to us, lest we claim partial or complete sovereignty of truth. Remember, Scripture tells us that without Christ we are blinded by Satan (II Corinthians 4:4), not dimly seeing. Without Christ we are dead in our trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1), not merely sick or wounded. To challenge truth with our opinions or to suggest parts that we do not like are antiquated or contradictory challenges God's sovereign authority in His Word, which causes divisions and sets up obstacles in the church.

Avoid Division
Paul goes so far as to command the local church in Rome to avoid those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the truth of Scripture. Avoid them. Paul suggests that in order to serve Christ and not be a people-pleaser, we are to be united in the gospel (again, singular) and reveals that if anyone including angels preaches another gospel contrary to Scripture, that person is eternally accursed (Galatians 1:6-10). Paul handed false teachers "over to Satan" for spinning a different teaching of the gospel.

To remove people from congregation in church discipline or to correct others with the Scripture seems intolerant or divisive in this day and age. However, biblically speaking, we are to unite in the truth of Scripture alone, and avoid and separate ourselves from those teaching otherwise. Some might suggest that Christians can unite with others to get work done. However, to compromise truth for pragmatism sets the church up for human cunning and deceitful schemes, placing what we do above the truth.

However, Paul does command the local church to be "eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4:3). We must yearn for unity, but unity is something the local church maintains (guard, keep) not creates. Unity in the truth of the Word of God is given to us by Christ, not made up by groups of people in our own opinions and suggestions while leaning on our own understanding. We must be eager, with gut-gripping yearning for the saints to be unified in peace bound by Christ's love and provided by His Word of Truth.

Praying for Power to Distrust Self

Today in my quiet time, I read from The Valley of Vision prayer entitled "The Infinite and the Finite." This line captivated me:
"Let me live a life of self-distrust..."
This prayer parallels Jeremiah 17, where the LORD says, "Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind" and "the heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick" (Jeremiah 17:5, 9). Our Savior instructs us, "out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders" (Matthew 15:19).

This worldview opposes what we are taught by our culture. Disney character Cinderella teaches us to "just follow your heart." The late Steve Jobs told college graduates that the "most important" thing to do is "have the courage to follow your heart and intuition." Yet, God tells us that our hearts are untrustworthy and wicked.

Self-distrust does not come naturally to sinful people. Such trust and such leaning on our our way of thinking and feeling about the world, people, and self is the corruption of our nature. The Word of God demands us to lay this trust entirely aside and be renewed in by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:22-24). Such a renewed mind is the good news of Jeremiah 17:7-8:

Blessed is the man who trusts in
     The LORD
And whose trust is the LORD.
For he will be like a tree planted
      by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat
      comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year
      of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.

By grace through faith in Jesus Christ, we are blessed to trust not in our own heart nor be tossed by the winds of wisdom of this corrupt world, but our trust will be found in God. Our trust must not be found in the imperfect and temporary, but in the perfect and eternal. A heart that trusts in our majestic God trusts His eternal Word. As Isaiah 40:8 says, "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever." The wisdom of this world dries and shifts over time, but the Word of God is trustworthy and eternal.

May our gracious God renew our minds and hearts with His Word, not trusting in our own hearts nor allow us to reign over ourselves, but "teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom" (Psalm 90:12).

Igniting Hearts

In Luke 24, after Jesus' resurrection, two men were walking along the road to Emmaus discussing the events of Jesus' crucifixion and burial. Jesus walked near them and, having not been recognized by the two men, asked the two men a series of simple questions. The two men had hoped Jesus was the Messiah, but suffering and death seemingly quashed those hopes. Jesus answered His rhetorical question, "Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?" with "beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself" (Luke 24:26-27).

The necessity of the sufferings of the Messiah before entering His glory is answered by biblical study into the Old Testament Scriptures. Jesus began with Moses (the Pentateuch) and all the Prophets (writing prophets) and interpreted all the Scriptures what the Messiah is said to fulfill in prophecy. No doubt, a great deal of biblical typology was utilized by our Lord to explain "the things concerning Himself." Along the nearly seven mile trek, Jesus informed these two men of all the Old Testament teachings on what the Messiah was to endure and how Jesus fulfilled all of the prophecies. The Old Testament is filled with Christ on every page!

After Jesus explained the Scriptures, the two men recognized Him and Jesus vanished. Then, the two men said, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” Their hearts burned during Jesus talking with them and during the explanation of the Scriptures. Before Jesus taught the Scriptures to them, these two men were discouraged and doubted that Jesus was the Messiah, even at the news of His empty tomb (Luke 24:21-24). How were their eyes opened and hearts ignited?

Word and Spirit

The Word of God alone has the power to open the eyes of the spiritually blind and grant to sinners the perfect righteousness from God (Romans 1:16-17). The faithful teachings of the Word of God is the mode Jesus used to open the eyes of these two men as well as His own disciples after His resurrection (Luke 24:44-45). Persuasive techniques and philosophy cannot open blind eyes. The saying heard often in churches today is modeling Christ for the world, also known as "living out the gospel." We are to display the greatness of the glory of Christ, but our moral modeling is not the gospel. Jesus did not play charades making the two men on the road to Emmaus guess what He was talking about. Jesus spoke to them and explained the Word of God to them. We are messengers of God with a message that is to be spoken. The gospel is a spoken event.

The Holy Spirit accompanies the Word of God spoken to give sight to the spiritually blind. The Apostle Paul told the church in Thessalonica, "For we know, brothers loved by God, that He has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake" (I Thessalonians 1:4-5). The power of the Holy Spirit regenerates (that is, cause to become born-again) the chosen people of God when the Word of God is spoken from a believer with full conviction. Acts 16:14-15 describes how Lydia had her heart opened by the Lord to understand the biblical teachings of Paul. Commenting on this passage, the reformer John Calvin said, "we see that not faith alone, but all understanding and knowledge of spiritual things, is the peculiar gift of God, and that the ministers do no good by teaching and speaking unless the inward calling of God be thereunto added." We must believe and speak of what we believe to ignite the regenerating fire within the hearts of sinners.

Seed Spreading

In the Parable of the Sower (or Soils), Jesus tells of four types of soil (hearts of people) that the seed (the Word of God) falls upon. Three of the four soils produce nothing that lasts, while the "good soil" is the person who hears the Word of God and understands it, then produces fruit for the glory of God (Matthew 13:23). Although the Word of God accompanied by the power of the Holy Spirit is the only way to ignite a sinner's heart toward repentance and faith in Christ Jesus, such evangelism is no guarantee that all will be saved. If we take the percentage of the soils (75% unsaved), the vast majority of the faithfully spoken Word of God falls on those who will never believe in Christ as Lord and Savior.

Does the Word of God thus fail? The LORD says in Isaiah 55:10-11,

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
   and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
   giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall My word be that goes out from My mouth;
   it shall not return to Me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
   and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

The Word of God accomplishes its mission of igniting the flame inside the heart of God's chosen people. The good news is that God's Word does not return to God empty at all, but returns with a most blessed harvest of once dead sinners now with clean hands and a pure heart gathering around His glorious throne praising Him!

The flip side to this good news of salvation is that God's Word purposes many to condemnation because of the hardness of their hearts. The temptation for the Christian is to change tactics or reword the gospel for to suit the taste of our hearers. When we are spreading the seeds of the Kingdom, we do not hinder the power of God in the gospel spoken by softening the impact on the hearts of sinners in any way. To pervert or peddle the Word of God, but we preach the whole counsel of God with full conviction that the Word of God would accomplish its purpose to save some and condemn others (II Corinthians 2:14-17).

Igniting the hearts of sinners toward a bright flame of repentance and faith in Christ Jesus is a supernatural wonder by the sovereign grace of our God. God has given us a message to spread to all people without hesitation, addition, or subtraction. The message with the Spirit has the power to save sinners for the glory of God! Let us resolve simply to grab the sack of seeds and sow. Nothing less will save sinners.