The Ocean of Divine Love

The love of God to His people was as eternal
as the eternity of His being, as everlasting as
His uncreated nature. "I have loved you with
an everlasting love." It panted, it yearned for
an outlet. It sought and found it in Christ.

Nowhere in the heavens above, or in the
earth beneath, or in the waters under the
earth; no star, no flower, no creature, so
reveals, expresses, and embodies the love
of God as the gift of His dear Son to die
for our sins!


Oh, what love is this!

"God so loved the world!"

So loved, that He gave Jesus!

Jesus is the most precious exponent of God's
love: Jesus descends from the bosom of His
love; Jesus draws aside the veil of His love;
Jesus is God's love expressed, God's love
incarnate, God's love speaking, laboring,
dying, redeeming! Beyond this it would
seem impossible that love could go.

Jesus is the channel through which the ocean
of Divine love washed the shores of this earth,
its soul healing waves spreading like a sea of
life over our sin tainted, curse blighted, sorrow
stricken humanity.

Oh, let every affection of our heart, every
faculty of our soul, every power of our mind,
every action of our life, embody as its grateful
response the words of the adoring apostle,
"Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable Gift!"


Octavius Winslow (1808-1878)

10 Questions Regarding Worship

1. What is worship?
2. Why is having a biblical understanding of worship so important?
3. How will a better understanding of worship improve my walk with God?
4. What makes for an 'appropriate response' in worship?
5. Why are God-encounters necessary for worship to occur?
6. In what ways can I be certain to have an encounter with God?
7. What if I struggle to want to worship God?
8. What should I desire so that I will worship God?
9. Do worship experiences and encounters with God just happen, or must they be planned ahead of time?
10. What is the biggest issue to face when it comes to corporate worship?

My answer to question #1 is that worship is an appropriate response to an encounter with God that results in God being glorified and the worshipper being humbled. I know that I have worshipped when I have encountered the living God and responded in an appropriate way to the revelation of who He is or what what He has done.

Happy Are the Mourners

Matthew 5:4

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

The last thing we want to be is sad. Mourning is seen as something connected with grief, loss, and death. We picture people at funerals, dressed in black, wiping their tears. Not exactly a pathway to happiness. But is this what Jesus had in mind?

What is meant by ‘mourning’ here?

‘Mourning’ here does not mean that we Christians are to be a melancholy and depressed people. Rather, this mourning is a spiritual mourning. Jesus sets forth here the inner attitude of mourning which comes about from an awareness and encounter with Almighty God. This is a mourning which occurs when one awakens to the reality that he dwells in a world separated from its loving Creator (Matt. 23:37-39), and when he himself senses his own distance from a holy God (Isa. 6:5).

Why are the mourners ‘blessed’?

Since this mourning is the emotional counterpart of being ‘poor in spirit’ (5:3), we can see that God calls those happy who have a right estimate and realistic view regarding themselves, the world they live in, and the God who created them. For this reason, they are called ‘blessed’, or ‘happy’, because they do not live blind to the truth as Jesus said some do (Luke 6:25).

But Jesus says that the primary reason they are blessed is because they are now in a position to receive the comfort God longs to give them. Paul, who lamented over his inescapable lostness in the cry of Romans 7:24, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” was also able to find and proclaim his joyful deliverance in the very next verse, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

Once again Jesus presents us with a paradox – the way up is down. “That is the astounding thing about the Christian life,” writes Martyn Lloyd-Jones. “Your great sorrow leads to joy, and without the sorrow there is no joy.”

How are we to mourn?

1. We must get into the presence of God.
2. We must ask God to give us the grace we need to be deeply affected by that which grieves God.
3. We must be willing to take action as we mourn to be God’s agents of redemption.

We will ache at sin

Where is our ache at sin’s devastation? Where is the mourning of the church at the violence of abortion and the pain of its living and dead victims? Where is the mourning of the church at the fracture of families because of the selfishness of men and women? Where is the mourning of the church at the way in which that pornography and prostitution has enslaved millions? Where is the mourning of the church at the realization that our city, nation, and planet is at war – not with opposing nations, cultures, and ideologies – we are at war with God Himself because we have abandoned our Creator for gods made in our own image?

We will grieve for the lost

“I am speaking the truth in Christ--I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit--that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.” (Rom. 9:1-3)

We will revel in our salvation

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.

Martyn Lloyd-Jones: “Now this is not only true at conversion; it is something that continues to be true about the Christian. He finds himself guilty of sin, and at first it casts him down and makes him mourn. But that in turn drives him back to Christ; and the moment he goes back to Christ, his peace and happiness return and he is comforted. So that here is something that is fulfilled at once. The man who mourns truly is comforted and is happy; and thus the Christian life is spent in this way, mourning and joy, sorrow and happiness, and the one should lead to the other immediately.”

A Panoramic Vision of God

We have started a sermon series through the book of Isaiah. Here are 15 scenes of God's glory in Isaiah from this past Sunday morning:

1.       God’s frustration over His people’s sin (Isa 1:10-15; cp. Isa 65:1-7)

2.       God’s glorious future for all people (Isa 2:2-5; 66:23)

3.       God’s passion for justice (Isa 3:13-15)

4.       God’s majestic holiness (Isa 6:1-8)

5.       God’s righteous wrath against an evil world (Isa 13:6-13; 24:1-13)

6.       God’s perfect redemption (Isa 25:6-9)

7.       God’s awesome greatness (Isa 40:12-18)

8.       God’s constant faithfulness (Isa 40:27-31)

9.       God’s complete forgiveness (Isa 43:25)

10.   God’s incredible power (Isa 44:24-28)

11.   God’s excellent sovereignty (Isa 45:1-7)

12.   God’s promised Servant-King (Isa 52:13-53:12)

13.   God’s amazing mercy (Isa 54:7-8; 55:1-2)

14.   God’s remarkable future for Israel (Isa 60:18-22; 65:17-25; 66:18-20)

15.   God’s full blessing for His servants (Isa 65:13-16)

39 times over 20 chapters (41-60), God speaks of who He is for His people: “I am your God…” (cf. Isa 41:10; 43:15; 46:9; 51:15).

This week's “things” from the wonderful wide world of the world wide web…

• Something that, though I appreciate the creative, out-of-the-box thinking behind it, is still a little too weird for me.

• Something I intend to use as a tool to help us pray for Muslims (Muslims will finish observing the holy month of Ramadan tomorrow).

• Something we need to ask ourselves regarding worship (you gotta read the whole article but the question is toward then end).

• Something well said about relationships and the truth of the Gospel.

Identifying the Idols in My Life

The place to begin is with knowing what an idol is and what an idol does. We are not referring to literal, pagan idols like the ones which dominated the ancient world of the apostle John's day or like those that dominate the Eastern world of our own day. We are referring to idols in a metaphorical way (which is the way the apostle intended in 1 John 5:20). As a metaphor, and according to the Bible, an idol may be defined as 1) anything which removes God from His rightful place and/or 2) anything which removes from God that which rightfully belongs to Him.

With this in mind, we may further identify three types of these “idols”:

1. Idols of God’s De-Glorification – of which John is chiefly concerned (bad theology or false doctrine; e.g., open theism, prosperity gospel, etc. cp. 1 John 2:18-24; 4:1-6; 5:7-10) “We call all too easily think we have him sewn up, we know all about him, we can predict his responses and even condition them. But what we have is not God. It is an idol of our own making, a thinly veiled excuse for worshipping ourselves.” (Jackman, p. 172)
2. Idols of Self-Glorification (i.e., wealth, fame, success: “The world is filled with self-made people who worship their creator.” cp. Psalm 10:3-6 and Matt. 6:24)
3. Idols of Self-Gratification (i.e., materialism, sexual sins, covetousness, any other pleasure pursuit; cp. 1 Cor. 10:5-7, 14; Eph. 5:5; Col. 3:5)

First, we must note that the worship of these idols is often quite subtle and sometimes those who succumb to idolatry of this kind aren’t even aware of it – in fact, they may even believe they are worshipping the God of the Bible! Second, we must also be aware that frequently when we find we are following one of these idols, we are in actual fact under the influence of all three! Third, we must identify the motivation behind such idol-seeking – control. Think about it. Idols are made by men so that men, who believe that the gods can be manipulated, may use them to bring about their own desires. God frequently points out the irony of idol-worship to His people in the Old Testament (cf. Isa. 44:9-20).

But Jesus has given us an understanding so that we may know Him who is true (1 John 5:20)! “(Jesus) will win the supremacy he is owed. And he relentlessly undermines all that is not god to make room for the God who has redeemed our hearts.” Dan B. Allender and Tremper Longman III, Breaking the Idols of Your Heart (InterVarsity, 2008), p. 17

So, being mindful that we are all recovering idolaters (1 Cor. 6:9-11; cp. 1 Cor 12:2; Gal. 4:8-9), we must be vigilant in keeping ourselves from further acts of idolatry.

Why keep ourselves from idols?

1 John 5:21

"Little children, keep yourselves from idols."

We must not fail to keep ourselves from idols for idols will not fail to keep us from the joyful confidence we should enjoy as the children of God.

"Every Day"

In Your grace, You know where I walk
You know when I fall
You know all my ways
In Your love, I know You allow
What I cannot grasp
To bring You praise

Thank You for the trials
For the fire, for the pain
Thank You for the strength
Knowing You have ordained
Every day

Your great power is shown when I’m weak
You help me to see
Your love in this place
Perfect peace is filling my mind
And drawing my heart
To praise You again

In my uncertainty, Your Word is all I need
To know You’re with me every day (repeat)

By Joel Sczebel and Todd Twining
As recorded on the album "Come Weary Saints"
© 2008 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP)/Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI)

Video from Our 30 Year Anniversary

"Secret Sins" - More Than You Bargined For

Obadiah Sedgwick (1600-1658) writes on how harboring a secret sin ends up being more than you bargined for:

"There are, at the least, three horrible sins that you commit at once:

"First, that very sin that you would so conceal. Perhaps it may be a sin of the deepest dye. Yea, mark this: the most damnable sins are usually such that are committed insecret, as Sodom’s adulteries, and such fearful kinds of pollutions, murders, and treasons, etc.

"Second, hypocrisy, which is a screen to your sin, a holy cover for an unholy heart and practice. [This] makes thesinner so much the more vile in God’s eyes, by how much the more that he not only sins against God, but wrests, as itwere, something from God to cover and palliate his rebellion against Him.

"A third is atheism. If there is not formal atheism, yet, there is a virtual atheism. [It is] as if God were not God in secret, but only in public; that He could see in the light and not in the darkness; that His eye is as the eye of a man only, whereas He is a universal eye and is a Light without all darkness.Outward occasions can incline to secret sinnings. Beloved, there lies a snare against us in almost all society. We have such vile natures that as a spark of fire will easily kindle a box of tinder, [just] a word spoken, many times, kindles aworld of passion, of malice, of revenge within us! Yea, the misplacing of a look begets in us secret disdain and discontent! Yea, the casting of an eye may enflame the heart with excess of lust. Need we not then (putting all these things together) to search our inward frame to see what care we have about and against secret sinnings?"

Joy Defined

“Joy is an attitude produced by Holy Spirit which motivates us to maintain our focus on the Lord regardless of the situation and which enables us to recognize Him and offer praise to God for His power, provision, and grace.”

A Sovereign Protector I Have

A Sov’reign Protector I have,
Unseen, yet forever at hand,
Unchangeably faithful to save,
Almighty to rule and command.
He smiles, and my comforts abound;
His grace as the dew shall descend;
And walls of salvation surround
The soul He delights to defend.

Inspirer and Hearer of prayer,
Thou Shepherd and Guardian of Thine,
My all to Thy covenant care
I sleeping and waking resign.
If Thou art my Shield and my Sun,
The night is no darkness to me;
And fast as my moments roll on,
They bring me but nearer to Thee.

Kind Author, and ground of my hope,
Thee, Thee, for my God I avow;
My glad Ebenezer set up,
And own Thou hast helped me till now.
I muse on the years that are past,
Wherein my defense Thou hast proved;
Nor wilt Thou relinquish at last
A sinner so signally loved!

- Augustus Toplady (1740-1778)

A Conversation based on Matthew 7:7-11

Father: “It is my will that you eat lunch today.”

Son: “Okay, so at lunchtime can I ride my bike instead of eat lunch?”

Father: “No. That is not my will.”

Son: “But if I ride my bike, I can go somewhere to be fed.”

Father: “But if you trust that I want to feed you, you need not go anywhere else. Just ask for lunch and I will give it to you.”

Son: “Very well. Since your will is that I eat lunch today, please feed me.”

Father: “Wonderful! Here is a fish and some bread!”

Son: “Wow. You actually answered my prayer!”

Prayer is Alignment

E. Stanley Jones: “Prayer is surrender--surrender to the will of God and cooperation with that will. If I throw out a boathook from the boat and catch hold of the shore and pull, do I pull the shore to me, or do I pull myself to the shore? Prayer is not pulling God to my will, but the aligning of my will to the will of God.”

This Week's Things...

Some "things" I've stumbled across this week...

• Something that got me all emotional (Bernie Blakely emailed this to me).
• Something that pictures grace wonderfully (and it involves football!).
• Something that if ever sold, I would never buy.
• Something that is long overdue.

Here’s a snippet of thought heading into the message on Sunday from 1 John 5:14-15:

1 John 5:14-15

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.

And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

The word “ask” here is the Greek word aiteō. There are many words that paint the picture of prayer in NT Greek, but John chooses a word which is consistent with the picture God wants to impress upon His children. As we take in the meaning of these verses, we see why this word was chosen. One of the helpful tools I have on my shelf above my computer is R.C. Trench’s Synonyms of the New Testament. Trench shows us the distinction between the Greek synonyms aiteō and erōtaō – both of which can be translated similarly:

“The distinction between aiteō and erōtaō is as follows. Aiteō is the more submissive and suppliant term. It is consistently used to refer to an inferior’s seeking something from a superior (Acts 12:20), of a beggar’s seeking alms from a potential donor (Acts 3:2), of a child’s seeking something from a parent (Lam. 4:4; Matt. 7:9; Luke 6:11), of a subject’s seeking something from a ruler (Ezra 8:22), and of a man’s seeking something from God (1 Kings 3:11; Matt. 7:7; James 1:5; 1 John 3:22). In classical Greek, erōtaō never means “to ask” but only “to interrogate,” or “to inquire.” Like rogare (inquire), erōtaō implies an equality between the one who asks and the one who is asked – as a king with another king (Luke 14:32) – or if not equality, than a familiarity that lends authority to the request.”

Fascinating, isn’t it? And Trench isn’t through just yet. Check out the theologically weighty nugget which follows:

“It is noteworthy that Jesus never used aitein or aiteisthai to refer to himself when speaking to God on behalf of his disciples, for his is not the petition of the creature to the Creator but the request of the Son to the Father. Jesus’ consciousness of his equal dignity and prevailing intercession appears whenever he asks (or declares that he will ask) anything of the Father, because he always uses erōtō or erōtesō, and asking on equal terms (John 14:16; 16:26; 17:9, 15, 20), and never aiteō or aitēsō.”

Wow.

Some "things" for this week...

• Something that one church has written which helps clarify the Bible’s distinction between deacons and elders. Worth reading!
• Something that made for a touching and appropriate parable.
• Something that is one of the coolest tools to assist in verse memorization – a verse card maker! Try it!
• Something that summarizes the essential truths of discipleship! These biblical axioms really ought to be at the heart of our disciple-making efforts at church. Don’t be surprised if you see these reappear in another venue. Foundational Tenets of Christian Discipleship (by Dennis Rogers): Listed below are some core foundations of biblical discipleship. Though not exhaustive, this list highlights what Scripture teaches about what it means to be a follower of Christ.

1. Christian discipleship is the ongoing transformation of an individual's becoming like Jesus in character and purpose as he grows in intimacy with Him (see Matt. 5:48; Eph. 4:13-15; Phil. 2:5).

2. Christian discipleship addresses every dimension of life. It is concerned not only with doing the right thing in every circumstance but also with doing the right thing for the right reason (see Phil. 1:27).

3. Christian discipleship is progressive in nature. When someone stops growing in intimacy with Christ, he ceases to be healthy in his discipleship (see John 15:4).

4. Christian discipleship is a work of grace. It is the Holy Spirit who transforms life, not someone who tries to be good. The term disciplined grace describes this process. While God transforms, a believer's spiritual practice creates the transforming environment in which the Holy Spirit works (see Phil. 2:13; 1 Tim. 4: 7-8).

5. Christian discipleship always manifests itself in ministry to others. Every Christian has been spiritually gifted for the purpose of service (see 1 Pet. 4:10).

6. Christian discipleship was intended by Christ to be reproductive. Those who follow Jesus' life and teaching will be prepared to eagerly share their faith experiences and to invest themselves in the spiritual nurture of others (see Matt. 28:18-20; 2 Tim. 2:2).

7. Christian discipleship is centered in the life of a local church, where the fellowship of other disciples encourages, teaches, and safeguards the believer's discipleship process (see Heb. 10:24-25).

Words that Hymnify 1 John 5:6-12

In 1746 (30 years before there was a United States of America!) Charles Wesley penned the following hymn. A beautiful way to think about 1 John 5:6-12!

Spirit of faith, come down, reveal the things of God,

And make to us the Godhead known, and witness with the blood.

’Tis Thine the blood to apply and give us eyes to see,
Who did for every sinner die hath surely died for me.

No man can truly say that Jesus is the Lord,
Unless Thou take the veil away and breathe the living Word.
Then, only then, we feel our interest in His blood,
And cry with joy unspeakable, “Thou art my Lord, my God!”

O that the world might know the all atoning Lamb!
Spirit of faith, descend and show the virtue of His Name;
The grace which all may find, the saving power, impart,
And testify to all mankind, and speak in every heart.

Inspire the living faith (which whosoever receive,
The witness in themselves they have and consciously believe),
The faith that conquers all, and doth the mountain move,
And saves whoever on Jesus call, and perfects them in love.

This Week's Things...

Now here are some “things” I’ve come across the past few days:

• Something that is going to cause more problems for Christian, gospel-centered counseling and church-based counseling.
• Some awesome pics! By the way, one night last week after family prayer, my son Benjamin remarked before bed: “It’s amazing that God can be our friend and He is the Creator of everything!!!” We had just watched some of Shark Week on Discovery channel and we had finished praying by praising God for His wisdom in creating even sharks!
• Some quotes from one of my favorite preachers of all time which get me fired up about preaching!
• Some incredible curriculum for children’s ministry (and its free!)
• Something that separates – dare I say his name (gulp) – Calvin from some Calvinists!

The Transforming Power of Faith

God is at work here in the lives of His people. I am excited to arrive at 1 John 5. Here is what we’ll be talking about on Sunday:

¹ Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

² By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments.

³ For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

⁴ For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.

⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

(1 John 5:1-5 ESV)

The first 5 verses take some thought to see the connections John (and the Holy Spirit) were making. But when these connections are perceived, wow, does the light come on! In my reflection, I was reading a commentary and the following stood out:

“So God calls us to a life of faith, demonstrated by love for him and for one another, by obedience to his commands and by victory over the world. As we exercise that faith, we find that it works. God keeps his promises, and fulfills his Word. As we believe that when God says ‘Do this’, or ‘Not that’, he knows what is best for us, we do what he says, trust him with the consequences and prove him to be true. When we are living that way, the world cannot trap or deceive us. This sort of faith is the only way to victory. When we think carefully about them, at root all our defeats are failure of faith; failures to trust or obey, or both. The potential, God’s dynamic, is always on supply. What faith does is to connect my situation to God’s resources, rather like plugging my electrical machinery into the power circuit. Only then will the light of God’s truth overcome the darkness of this world’s lies, and the warmth of God’s love expel the coldness of this world’s self-centeredness.” (David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters, p. 144)

Can’t wait for Sunday!

Gospel-centered Questions

From the eBook Fight Clubs: Gospel-centered Discipleship by Jonathan Dodson at Resurgence...

“Here is a list of questions that are intended to get at heart motivations and

drive us to the gospel. This is a provisional list. I hope you will improve

upon it.

1. What are you desiring more than anything else?
2. What do you find yourself day dreaming or fantasizing about?
3. What lies are you subtly believing that undermine the truth of the gospel?
4. Are you astonished with the gospel?
5. Where have you made much of yourself and little of God?
6. Is technology stealing attention from your family?
7. Is work replacing your spouse’s place in your heart?
8. Where do your thoughts drift to when you enter a social setting?
9. What fears are paralyzing your heart from enjoying God?
10. What consumes your thoughts when you have alone time?”

Some 'things' for this week...

Here are a few things I hope will provoke your thinking and encourage your hearts...

• Something that challenges me and gives me hope as we step forward (this is a must read!)
• Something that reminded me of Jesus’ words in John 15:18-22 (though one should keep in mind John 16:33!).
• Something that reminds me of why I love the hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”

My wife and I sailing...

It's not exactly a cruise (just a ferry), but it was fun nonetheless!

Another View Across the Bay

I love the ocean! This was the view from outside the restaurant where
we ate dinner. So relaxing.

Seattle Vacation

So we are having a great time with family and friends here in Seattle. The weather's been great and Pike Place Market was a blast today. Exhausting in a good way.

Ahhh, vacation!

Got up this morning and am enjoying the view from Whidbey Island
across the Puget Sound.

Our New Youth Pastor with Our Youth Group

Wow! I can post from my iPhone! Get ready, here we come Seattle!

Things for this week...

Okay, here are a few things I’ve come across this week…

• Something that I find fascinating regarding the “average” size of churches in the US…
• Something that confirms our biblical intuitions…
• Something that sounds way too creepy…
• Something that encourages me regarding the ‘father of English hymnody’…

1 John 3:17-34: Overcoming the Barrier of Insufficient Follow-Through

Have you ever found yourself in situation where you encountered someone in real need and where you thought that you should do something to help? But soon you found yourself wrestling with that thought. And then you found yourself thinking of many reasons why you shouldn’t help out in this circumstance. So you do much less than what you originally were prompted to do, or perhaps you do nothing at all, and once the opportunity has passed, a question haunts you, “Was that what Jesus would have done?” But you silence that troubling thought with yet more rationalizations for why your decision was a reasonable, wise, maybe even loving one after all.

It is exactly this kind of scenario that the Apostle John has in mind when he writes…
19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.

There have been many ways in which this passage has been interpreted. Much of the difference stems from the way these verses are translated…

• NKJV: And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.
• NASB: We shall know by this that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before Him...
• ESV: By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him...
• NIV: This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence...
• NLT: Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God.

What is the major difference in these translations? Primarily, the difference is in the way in which one word is rendered. It is the word the NKJV and NASB translates “to assure”, the ESV “to reassure”, the NIV “to set our hearts at rest”, and the NLT “to be confident”. What is this word? The Greek word behind these translations is the word peithō. What is the problem? It is a verb used 52 times in the NT but which never quite carries the idea of “assure” or “reassure” or “to be confident”. The NIV translation is completely surprising as “to set our hearts at rest” is a very novel approach.

Peithō in Greek means “to persuade” or “to convince” with the related meanings of “to trust” or “to obey” (cp. Matt. 27:20; Luke 16:31; 18:9; Acts 14:19; 18:4; 26:28; Rom. 8:38; 2 Tim. 1:12):

• Matt. 27:20: But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus.
• Luke 16:31: “But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’”
• Luke 18:9: Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted (read “had convinced themselves”) in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others…
• Acts 14:19: Then Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there; and having persuaded the multitudes, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead.
• Acts 18:4: And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks.
• Acts 26:28: Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.”
• Rom. 8:38: For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come…
• 2 Tim. 1:12: For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.

The other reason why we shouldn’t take this word as “assure” or “reassure” here is because John already has a word that he uses to convey that concept. It is the Greek word parresian:

• And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. (2:28)
• Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. (3:21)
• Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. (4:17)
• Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. (5:14)

So, in keeping with the way this verb is consistently translated, let’s re-read the verse with this meaning:
19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and persuade our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.

What John is talking about here is convincing your “heart” to follow through on the prompting we have in verses 17-18. When we do this – when we follow through and our love finds practical expression by helping those in need – it is one of the great sources of assurance that we are who God says we are. Our “hearts” will often object to calls to be sacrificially generous and will seek to “shut down” on others in need (s.v. 17). This barrier of insufficient action must be overcome. We must face our inclinations otherwise and our hard-heartedness and persuade our hearts to love like Christ.

Some "things" for this week...

• Some things that sabotage the process to true self-knowledge…
• Something I think everyone at Immanuel should follow…
• Something that you would never get see if it wasn’t for the internet (and the story of how this codex was discovered is even more amazing!)…
• Something that reminded me that God is bigger than my prayers…

Have a great weekend!

A thought from this Sunday’s Sermon – 1 John 3:16

“By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.”

The “ought to” here in this verse shouldn’t be understood as something that would be a nice thing to do if one feels like it or when one gets around to it (e.g., “I really ought to wash the car today”).
This is the Greek verb opheilo, which means “to owe” and “to be obligated”. It is often used in the context of financial obligations (Matt. 18:28, 30, 34; Luke 16:5, 7; 7:41; Philemon 1:18) or in the sense of obligations that are due to vows which have been made (Matt. 23:16, 18). Jesus uses this verb when He tells the disciples that they “ought to” wash one another’s feet (John 13:14). Paul uses the verb to express the obligation that the spiritually strong have toward the spiritually weak (Rom. 15:1). So what bearing does this have on 1 John 3:16? Instead of reading this as a really good suggestion, this has the weight of a serious command. Additionally, the construct of the verb carries with it the idea of continual action! So the second half of this verse could rightly be translated “we are under the continual obligation to be laying down our lives for the brothers.”

That packs a punch, doesn’t it? But why are we obligated like this? The first half of the verse tells us why: “He (Jesus) laid down his life for us”. Because He did this, we now have come to know love and have come to experience the love of God. John uses this verb opheilo again in 4:11: “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

You have acquired a love debt. Having come to be loved by God you must never cease loving and you must realize that the debt of love you owe to others can never be paid off. It should be no surprise that our powerful little verb opheilo appears in Romans 13:8: “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” Should this be seen as a grievous burden? Absolutely not! The moment we stepped into the love of God, He poured out His love into our lives (Rom. 5:5) so that now we can love others the way God wants us to love others.

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.
10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
(1 John 4:7-12)