Repentance

While I walked through my bedroom today I noticed My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers sitting on my wife’s night stand. It has been a long time since I had read anything from that particular book. I opened it up and read a selection on repentance. After reading it I did the hard work of self examination… and it proved to be a great experience. The following is that insert… enjoy

Conviction of sin is best described in the words: My sins, my sins, my Savior, how sad on Thee they fall. Conviction of sin is one of the most uncommon things that ever happens to a person. It is the beginning of an understanding of God. Jesus Christ said that when the Holy Spirit came He would convict people of sin (see John 16:8). And when the Holy Spirit stirs a person’s conscience and brings him into the presence of God, it is not the person’s relationship with others that bothers him but his relationship with God – “Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in your sight…” (Psalms 51:4). The wonders of conviction of sin, forgiveness, and holiness are so interwoven that it is only the forgiven person who is truly holy. He proves he is forgiven by being the opposite of what he was previously, by the grace of God. Repentance always brings a person to the point of saying, “I have sinned.” The surest sign that God is at work in his life is when he says that and means it. Anything les is simply sorrow for having made foolish mistakes – a reflex action caused by self-disgust.

The entrance into the kingdom of God is through the sharp, sudden pains of repentance colliding with man’s respectable “goodness.” Then the Holy Spirit, who produces these struggles, begins the formation of the Son of God in the person’s life (see Galatians 4:19). This new life will reveal itself in conscious repentance followed by unconscious holiness, never the other way around. The foundation of Christianity is repentance. Strictly speaking, a person cannot repent when he chooses – repentance is a gift of God. The old Puritans used to pray for “the gift of tears.” If you ever cease to understand the value of repentance, you allow yourself to remain in sin. Examine yourself to see if you have forgotten how to be truly repentant.

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Good Friday

Understanding sin is a vital element in understanding the Gospel. We cannot understand grace if we do not understand sin. We cannot understand mercy if we do not understand sin. We cannot understand redemption, salvation, or forgiveness if we do not understand sin. A right understanding and application of the Gospel begins with a right understanding of sin. This is why J.C. Ryle said, “He must first dig down very low if he would build high.”

Good Friday is all about knowing Christ to be a great Savior. But we will never know Christ as a Great Savior if we do not first know ourselves to be great sinners. We will never feel conversion if we do not first feel conviction–desperation always precedes deliverance. In other words, we will never own God’s glorious salvation if we do not first own our grievous sin.

If we do not recognize our need for the Gospel we will never tune in to the Gospel. This is why the cross of Christ must be central to our understanding of the Gospel. Because the cross is like a thermometer reminding me of my great sickness, while at the same time it is like a barometer reminding me of God’s great salvation. It shows me my disease and points me to the cure.

Praise God that he sent his Son not just to share in our weaknesses, but to bear our iniquities. Praise God that the Suffering Servant was not just wounded for our identification, but for our transgressions. Praise God that the Son of man came not just be a restoration of our humanity, but a ransom for our sin. Praise God that our Brother shared not just in our humanity, but shared in our humanity that he might become a high priest in the service of God, a high priest who offered himself once for all as our eternal redemption. Because without the shedding of blood there can still be identification with humanity, but there cannot be the remission of sin.

So with these thoughts in mind, find a quiet place to meditate on these glorious words:

O sacred Head, now wounded,
with grief and shame weighed down,
now scornfully surrounded
with thorns, thine only crown:
how pale thou art with anguish,
with sore abuse and scorn!
How does that visage languish
which once was bright as morn!

What thou, my Lord, has suffered
was all for sinners’ gain;
mine, mine was the transgression,
but thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior!
’Tis I deserve thy place;
look on me with thy favor,
vouchsafe to me thy grace.

What language shall I borrow
to thank thee, dearest friend,
for this thy dying sorrow,
thy pity without end?
O make me thine forever;
and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never
outlive my love for thee.

I wish this was my original piece... however... i enjoyed it so much that I wanted to share it with those who would have never seen it otherwise... Original Site.

The Studying Christian

Well... as of now I am in an intercession course for the next two weeks. I will definitely not have time to post the usual entries that I have been producing. However, I did want to post some blog entries I have come across that have really interested me.

Mark Driscoll posted "The Studying Christian" on his blog a couple of months ago. It is a Scriptural look at the importance and necessity of loving God with all ones mind. I thought it was interesting because growing up no one every gave me Scriptural reasoning for studying God's Word and ways... I was simply told to "have faith... and believe." There was never any encouragement to engage ones mind in this process of spiritual growth. I believe it would be advantageous to go through these texts given by Driscoll and evaluate how you have been using your mind to worship the Lord...

The following is straight from the Resurgence.

In following Jesus’ command to love God with “all our mind,” the Christian life is supposed to include regular times of study and learning. The goal of such study is to have what Paul called “the mind of Christ” so that we can live the life of Christ by the power of the Spirit of Christ.


Study

In John 17:17, Jesus prayed that we would study our Bible. He said, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” Therefore, to become more and more like Jesus we must have regular time in God’s Word. The Scriptures have much to say about the benefits of regular study.

Scripture regarding study


“For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.” (Ezra 7:10)

“Give me understanding to learn your commands.” (Psalm 119:73)

“Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.” (Proverbs 9:9)

“Wise men store up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool invites ruin.” (Proverbs 10:14)

“Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.” (Proverbs 23:12)

“A woman should learn in quietness and full submission.” (1 Timothy 2:11)

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)

“When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls [books], especially the parchments [Scriptures].” (2 Timothy 4:13)


To help us learn Scripture, we are told to:

Hear God’s Word (Luke 11:28; Romans 10:17), which means that listening to sermons, lectures, and audio Bibles is very beneficial.
Read God’s Word (e.g., Revelation 1:3) as Jesus often did.
Study God’s Word (e.g., Ezra 7:10; Acts 17:11) as Jesus often did, which caused people to be amazed at His insights (Matthew 7:28–29).
Memorize God’s Word (Psalm 119:11; Proverbs 22:17–19) as Jesus did, which enabled Him to freely quote Scripture as needed (e.g., Matthew 4:1–11).

Conclusion

Because Jesus humbly entered into history as a human being, He had to grow and learn just like we do (Luke 2:52). Subsequently, when we see Jesus frequently quoting Scripture from memory throughout His life, we must infer that He spent considerable amounts of time hearing Scripture, reading Scripture, studying Scripture, and memorizing Scripture.

Mark Driscoll's Blog