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Pastor John explains the nature and effects of anxiety,

Think for a moment how many different sinful actions and attitudes come from anxiety. Anxiety about finances can give rise to coveting and greed and hoarding and stealing. Anxiety about succeeding at some task can make you irritable and abrupt and surly. Anxiety about relationships can make you withdrawn and indifferent and uncaring about other people. Anxiety about how someone will respond to you can make you cover over the truth and lie about things. So if anxiety could be conquered, a mortal blow would be struck to many other sins.

. . . One of the most important texts has been one I underlined when I was 15 — the whole section of Matthew 6:25–34. Four times in this passage Jesus says that his disciples should not be anxious.

• Verse 25: "For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life."
• Verse 27: "And which of you by being anxious can add a single cubit to his life's span?"
• Verse 31: "Do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?'"
• Verse 34: "Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow."

Anxiety is clearly the theme of this text. It makes the root of anxiety explicit in verse 30: "But if God so arrays the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will he not much more do so for you, O men of little faith?" In other words, Jesus says that the root of anxiety is inadequate faith in our Father's future grace. As unbelief gets the upper hand in our hearts, one of the effects is anxiety. The root cause of anxiety is a failure to trust all that God has promised to be for us in Jesus.

Future Grace, (Multnomah, 1995), 53–54, bulleted list added.

John Piper will lead a free seminar on theme of Future Grace March 16–17 at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. Watch his invitation.

Register online if you plan to attend. There is no cost for this seminar, including a free copy of the Future Grace.

It doesn't happen often, but it does happen — people see my son Paul and ask if they can pray for him.

At places like WalMart (where it has happened) I usually accept their offer after quietly and quickly assessing their motives and authenticity. And people are usually appropriate.

But a scenario occurred recently where I struggled to respond graciously. The Holy Spirit helped me in that moment as I could feel my pride being challenged. Here’s the story. 

A Prayer for Healing

We got to our church service a few minutes late. I plopped Paul down in the seats just outside the sanctuary while we got our bearings on who was going where. A gentleman noticed Paul and asked me what "disease" he had. I quickly told him that Paul is blind and autistic (I only give the full list when we have more time) and he asked if he could pray for healing. He said God heals people from blindness and he’s seen it.

People pray for Paul all the time at church, but generally don’t make such bold pronouncements about healing. I accepted his offer and he proceeded to ask for Paul to be healed of his blindness and his autism right there, through the power of the Holy Spirit and in Jesus’ name. It was very sweet, this stranger praying so fervently for my son.

But my own spirit was not seeing the sweetness then and I was getting irritated. Didn’t he think God created some like Paul just the way he is? Didn’t he think I had faith? Didn’t he think I prayed for my son?

He finished and said that he believed God could heal my son and was genuinely disappointed that nothing had happened. I responded that I knew God could heal him, but sometimes God is more clearly present in the sustaining grace and peace he grants when he doesn’t choose to heal in this age.

And that was it. I entered the sanctuary and didn’t see this gentleman again.

Greater Glory and Greater Help

My wife helped me understand what happened in its proper context: this gentleman saw a need and his immediate reaction was to pray.  He wasn’t challenging my faith or accusing me of anything, he just wanted to pray. He believed God could move.

And God answers prayer! Yet, God sometimes brings greater glory to himself — and greater help to his church — when he doesn’t do exactly what we ask of him. The one who knows the end from the beginning is in a much better place to determine how to answer the prayers of his saints. And he is always good, always just, always right, and always capable to do what he has promised.

I’ve decided that I’m glad this gentleman prayed, even if my heart wasn’t exactly right in the moment. And I hope he heard me — that I helped him see God’s sustaining grace is also a wonderful thing, that God's sustaining grace in this age is not at all a lesser gift than healing.

Maybe, in fact, it is a greater gift because we have less temptation to forget how weak we are. We are so utterly dependent on God's daily, continual help.

I have a new acronym.

Along with I.O.U.S. and A.P.T.A.T. and A.N.T.H.E.M. I now use A.I.M.S. to help me maintain my Christ-consciousness through the day.

Two times in his second letter Peter said he meant to stir us up “by way of reminder” (2 Peter 1:13; 3:1). This is what I need all day long. Reminders of massive truth.

If my mind is empty or worldly, my faith languishes. My joy in Christ weakens. I need truth. “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).

My mind needs glory: “Set your minds on things that are above” (Colossians 3:2). I need to think on excellent praiseworthy reality:. “If there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8).

But my mind drifts into banal and trivial things. And my soul shrivels.

What shall I do? I “will call to mind” amazing things about God (Lamentations 3:21). I will “remember” his all-gracious covenant (1 Chronicles 16:15). I will set my mind on “the things of the Spirit” (Romans 8:5). I will “consider his wondrous works” (Psalm 106:7).

How?

Among other ways, with A.I.M.S. Through the day I will pause and ask, What are you’re A.I.M.S. And I will answer:

A. I will call to mind the stupendous truth that Jesus is ALIVE. (Luke 24:5–6)

“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.”

I. I will remember the breathtaking reality that Jesus is IN me. (Romans 8:10).

“Christ is in you.”

M. I will ponder the all-comforting fact that Jesus is MIGHTY. (Matthew 28:18).

"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

S. And I will savor the sweetness that Jesus is SATISFYING. (John 6:35)

"Whoever believes in me shall never thirst."

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Recent posts from John Piper —

• Why Did God Let Paul Become a Murderer?
• Encouragement for Old Sinners to Come to Christ
• Kids Feel What Parents Expressively Feel

A lot has changed since 1743 — but not everything.

The "true excellency of a minister of the gospel" is the same today as it was back when Jonathan Edwards preached an ordination sermon by the same title for a young Presbyterian pastor in Pelham, Massachuesetts.

Though in our own day we're surrounded by an abundance of resources and leadership tips, we'd do well to hear Edwards as relevant now as he would have been if we were sitting under his counsel 269 years ago.

Below is an outline of his sermon, "The True Excellency of a Minister of the Gospel."

Sermon Text — John 5:35

"He was a burning and a shining light; and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light." (KJV)

There are two initial observations:

1. Jesus declares what he has taken notice of in John ( cf. John 3:29–30; Luke 1:17)
2. The purpose for why Jesus does this is to show how great and excellent a person John was and therefore why he was worthy to have his testimony received by the Jewish hearers.

The method of the sermon is described by Edwards in seven steps that I've organized within his two categories of explanation and application.

Explanation

I. Christ has designed the appointment of the order and office of ministers of the gospel that they may be lights to the souls of men.

Edwards writes,

But God in infinite mercy has made glorious provision for the restoration of light to this fallen dark world; he has sent him, who is the brightness of his own glory, into the world, to be the light of the world. "He is the true light, that ligheth every man that cometh into the world" [John 1:9], i.e. every man in the world that ever has any true light. But in his wisdom and mercy, he is pleased to convey his light to men by means and instruments; and had sent forth his messengers, and appointed ministers in his church to be subordinate lights, and to shine with the communications of his light, and to reflect the beams of his glory on the souls of men. (88ff)

II. A "burning light" implies two things.

1. his heart be filled with much of the holy ardor of a spirit of true piety
2. he be fervent and zealous in his administrations

III. A "shining light" implies three things.

1. he be pure, clear and full in his doctrine
2. he be discrete in all his administrations
3. he be holy in his manner of life (examples to the flock)

IV. To be both a burning and shining light is manifest two ways.

1. His ministry is acceptable and amiable in the sight of God and men.
2. He will be likely to answer the ends of his ministry: by this means his ministry will not only be amiable, but profitable.

Edwards on the need for light and heat,

If a minister has light without heat, and entertains his auditory with learned discourses, without a savor of the power of godliness, or any appearance of fervency of spirit, and zeal for God and the good of souls, he may gratify itching ears, and fill the heads of his people with empty notions; but will not be very likely to reach their hearts, or save their souls. And if, on the other hand, he be driven on with a fierce and intemperate zeal, and vehement heat, without light, he will be likely to kindle the like unhallowed flame in his people, and to fire their corrupt passions and affections; but will make them never the better, nor lead them a step towards heaven, but drive them apace the other way. (96)

Application

V. How much it concerns gospel ministers to be burning and shining lights.

Edwards,

And hereby our ministry will be likely to be as beneficial as our office is honorable: we shall be like Christ, and shall shine with his beams; Christ will live in us, and be seen in his life and beauty in our ministry, and in our conversation, and we shall be most likely to be the means of bringing others to him, and of their receiving of his light, and being made partakers of his life, and having his joy fulfilled in them. (98)

VI. How gospel ministers go about becoming burning and shining lights.

1. be diligent in study
2. be diligent in the work of ministry to which you are called
3. be very conversant with the Holy Scriptures (i.e., know the Word). He explains, "Ministers, in order to their being burning and shining lights, should walk closely with God, and keep near to Christ; that they may ever be enlightened and enkindled by him" (100).

VII. What local congregations can do for their pastor

1. pray for him
2. be grateful

One neat thing about the blogosphere is the increasing accessibility to old gospel resources that would otherwise be buried in libraries. Case in point: J.C. Ryle Quotes.

This blog is a repository of Christ-centered content from the nineteenth-century Bishop of Liverpool — who was also the subject of John Piper's recent biographical message at the Desiring God Conference for Pastors.

In a recent post, Erik Kowalker highlights the top 25 posts over the past few years:

1. 5 Dangers For Young Men
2. 9 Lessons From God Concerning Sickness
3. 7 Marks of a Right Heart Before God
4. 5 Tips For Raising Godly Children
5. 8 Symptoms of False Doctrine
6. 5 Marks of True Repentance
7. 8 Profitable Ways to Read the Bible
8. 4 Great Doctrines to Always Keep in Mind
9. To Be A True Christian Will Cost You
10. Loving Christ…Practically
11. Do Not Be Surprised if the World Hates You
12. 7 Thoughts on Reading the Bible
13. 4 Costs of Becoming a Christian
14. 3 Simple Rules For Listening to a Sermon
15. 6 Marks of Regeneration
16. The 110th Anniversary of J. C. Ryle’s Death
17. The Personal Bible Reading of J. C. Ryle
18. Come to Jesus
19. 5 Gospel Warnings
20. The Great Cloud of Witnesses
21. The Reality of Hell
22. Do Not Tolerate False Doctrine
23. 5 Marks of a Forgiven Soul
24. Making Church Attendance a Priority
25. 5 Essential Doctrines to Believe In

We know that before Paul was born God had set him apart for his apostleship.

He who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles. (Galatians 1:15–16).

And we know that Paul became a Christian-hating (Acts 9:1), Christ-persecuting (Acts 9:5), zealot (Philippians 3:6; Galatians 1:14) before  he was converted. Forever after he would call himself “the chief of sinners” because of these wicked days (1 Timothy 1:15; 1 Corinthians 15:9).

We also know that God broke into Paul’s life dramatically and decisively to bring him to faith (Acts 9:3–19). Which means that he could have planned the Damascus Road encounter before Paul imprisoned and murdered Christians. But he didn’t.

His purpose, therefore, was to allow Paul to become the “chief of sinners” and then save him, and make him the apostle who would write thirteen books of the New Testament.

Why? Why do it this way? Why choose him before birth to be an apostle? Then let him sink into wicked and violent opposition to Christ? And then save him dramatically and decisively on the Damascus road? Why.

Here are six reasons. The first two are explicit in the biblical text. The last four are clear inferences from the first two. God did it this way . . .

1. To put the perfect patience of Christ on display.

“I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience.” (1 Timothy 1:16)

2. To encourage those who think they are too sinful to have hope.

“I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1:16)

3. To show that God saves hardened haters of Christ, who have even murdered Christians.

4. To show that God permits his much-loved elect to sink into flagrant wickedness.

5. To show that God can make the chief of sinners the chief of missionaries.

6. To show a powerless, persecuted, marginalized church that they can triumph by the supernatural conversion of their most powerful foes.

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Recent posts from John Piper —

• Encouragement for Old Sinners to Come to Christ
• Kids Feel What Parents Expressively Feel
• Five Reasons I Believe Romans 11:26 Means a Future Conversion for Israel

There are still lots of great titles available as part of our transition sale. You can read more about the reason behind the sale in Pastor John's update from last week.

Books

• The Power of Words and the Wonder of God $2
• With Calvin in the Theater of God $2
• For the Fame of God's Name $5
• A Holy Ambition $5
• Ruth: Under the Wings of God $3
• Velvet Steel $2
• Portrait of Calvin $2
• The Pleasures of God (Revised Edition) $5

CDs

• Hebrews: The Radiance of His Glory $3
• Trilogy: Desiring God, The Pleasures of God, Battling Unbelief $5

DVDs

• Open Their Eyes $5
• Thinking. Loving. Doing. $5
• Why We Believe the Bible $5

Study Guides

• Gravity and Gladness $5
• The Pleasures of God $5
• TULIP $5
• What's the Difference? $5

Journals

• Don't Waste Your Life Journals (Large, 3-Pack) $3
• Don't Waste Your Life Journals (Small, 3-Pack) $1

Ray Ortlund Jr.:

Wisdom is more than brains. It is more than morals. We could memorize the whole Bible, and mean it from the heart, without wisdom. Wisdom is skill, expertise, competence that understands how life really works, how to achieve successful and even beautiful results. We see a picture of wisdom in Exodus 35:31, where the word translated “wisdom” in Proverbs 1:2 is used for the skill of an artist adorning the tabernacle. We see wisdom in Jeremiah 10:9 where the expertise of goldsmiths is called “the work of skilled men,” or wise men. We see wisdom in Psalm 107:27 for the know-how of sailors, who use the winds and tides to make their way through the sea to their destination. Whether craftsmanship working with the materials of life or seamanship steering through the currents of life, so to speak, wisdom understands how real life can work well. Wisdom knows better than to walk onto the football field and hope the game will go well somehow; wisdom draws up a game plan that will score more touchdowns than the opponents because that plan takes into account not only the rules of the game but also psychology and timing and strategy and everything it takes to win. That is wisdom.

Ray Ortlund Jr., Proverbs: Wisdom that Works (Crossway; March 31, 2012), 28.

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Recent posts from "All Are Yours" —

• When God Speaks to Us
• Parents, Beware: Proverbs Are Not Promises
• How to Approach the Bible

Deuteronomy 6:20–21:

When your son asks you in time to come, "What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the Lord our God has commanded you?" then you shall say to your son, "We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand."

Charles Spurgeon:

Fathers and mothers are the most natural agents for God to use in the salvation of their children. I am sure that, in my early youth, no teaching ever had such an impression upon my mind as the instruction of my mother; neither can I conceive that, to any child, there can be one who will have such influence over the young heart as the mother who has so tenderly cared for her offspring.

We should especially tell our children our own experience… Perhaps, my friend, there is no testimony that you can bear which will be so useful, so interesting and so striking, as the testimony of what you have, yourself, seen and handled of the Word of Life.

Tell the gospel as you find it in the Bible, but set it in the frame of your own experience of its preciousness! Tell your son how you sinned and how the Lord had mercy upon you. Tell him how he met with you, how you were brought to seek his face, how you were born again, how you received a new heart and a right spirit. He will think the more of this great change because it happened to his father, or to his mother, or to some kind friend. And, perhaps, if he is not himself converted as a child, in his later life he may think of what you told him or the remembrance of his mother’s God may rise before him when he is far away from the scenes of his youth and has spent many years in foolish vanities — and he may even then turn to God, beckoned back to the great Father’s House above by the memory of his godly father and mother here below.

Charles Spurgeon, "Brought Out to be Brought In."

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Recent posts from "They Still Speak" —

• The Battle We Fight Is Thine! (Richard Sibbes)
• The Global Reach of a Praying Mother (Octavius Winslow)
• C. S. Lewis on the Danger of Love (Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

Desiring God is seeking an experienced front-end developer to join our web team on-site in Minneapolis. This person will work together with the director of marketing and lead web developer to develop the Desiring God website.

The ideal candidate will . . .

• Appreciate that web standards, accessibility, and usability are essential to uphold.
• Find joy in taking flat design comps and making them interactive interfaces.
• Have intermediate-level skills with XHTML, CSS, Photoshop, and Illustrator that are rooted in best practices, validation, testing, compatibility, and performance.
• Be talented users of JavaScript libraries such as Scriptaculous, Protype or jQuery - but especially jQuery (and can write basic JavaScript by hand when necessary).
• Keep up with forward-focused technology (CSS3, HTML5, latest CMS versions, APIs, OpenID, semantics, microformats).
• Generally have experience with server-side code such as PHP or Ruby on Rails and enjoy learning more from the development team.
• Have unparalleled attention to detail when maintaining the sanctity of original designs.
• Provide reliable ballpark estimates for front-end tasks/deliverables.
• Enjoy variety in their work, but remain committed to projects that take weeks of focused effort to complete.

Qualified candidates will joyfully agree to Desiring God's Affirmation of Faith, as well as embrace the vision of John Piper's book Desiring God. To learn more about the requirements for this position, or to apply, please send Josh Etter an email with your resume.

We shouldn't open our books without praying, but we'd better pray without opened books.

I think B. B. Warfield would give a thumbs up here. In his salty essay, "The Religious Life of Theological Students," Warfield explains that study should be devotional. He says that study itself is a "religious exercise of the most rewarding kind." And while this is all true, he doesn't stop here. He goes on to say there are other religious exercises that demand our "punctual attention." There are other aspects of our devotional life that can't be neglected "without the gravest damage" to ourselves.

Praying Is About Joy

Throw all the aspects of our devotional life into a hat and tell me to draw one. No doubt there are good arguments for why each is non-negotiable. Fair enough. But still, there's a particular emphasis on prayer. We must pray.

Now don't hang your head. And don't be fearful of being incentivized by something that starts like [cue crotchety voice] "Well Martin Luther . . . ".

At the end of the day, we'll pray if we love to pray. So the pitch thrown in this post is a simple fastball. It's the 'bread and butter' four-seamer that claims prayer for the theology student is more a matter of joy than necessity. It's a matter of joy in that we get to know God.

Revelation Isn't Normal

The aim of our study is to know God, not merely things about him. But there is so much about him, so many words, so many commentaries, journal articles, textbooks, lectures, assignments. As the stack of books and papers thicken, presumption sets in like a Canadian cold front. The windshield of our eyes freezes over. We can't see that far ahead so we forget where we're going. Our noggins get stuck down in a book. I mean really stuck. All books and no fun. Loads of information and no sense of revelation. No sense of the miracle that the stuff we're reading about God is about God.

If we don't shake out of it we'll read ourselves to entitlement, as if we should know these things about God, the one whom we as sinners have no business in knowing.

He owes us nothing. Turn the defrost on, we're looking up again. That we can know anything about him! Anything true about him! That we can know him! God calls us into fellowship, not a classroom. He, being rich in mercy and great in love, gives us words that we might delight in the fullness of all that he is for us by the death and resurrection of Jesus.

For Fellowship Sake

It's not about ideas, it's about a person. And the best way to remember this is to close the book and speak to him.

Pray. Tell the Father all your heart. Thank him for the Scriptures. Cast your Hebrew syntax anxieties on him. Marvel to him that he knows every star and tends his flock like a shepherd. Marvel that he really did choose you in Christ before the foundations of the world. Marvel that he was there the Friday Jerusalem fell dark. Marvel that he saw the empty tomb happen. Marvel that his triune glory will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.

Do this for your gladness. Prayer transforms information into intimacy — he is our God, our Father, Jesus our Savior, the Spirit our Comforter. And while we want to keep this in mind while we're reading, pushing aside our books for moments of communion is invaluable. Close your books and pray.

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How to Stay Christian in Seminary:

• Introduction: Seminary: Life or Death?
• #1: Know Your Value of Values
• #2: Be Fascinated with Grace
• #3: Love That Jesus Calls the Weak
• #4: Study the Word for More Than Words

Compiling church member names and contact information into a directory is useful for a number of reasons: it helps members connect, it reminds pastors of the souls they are accountable for, and as Mark Dever stresses, it encourages pastors and members to pray for one another.

Church directories may be full-color and printed with family pictures, or text-based and photocopied into a booklet, or, more commonly today, posted online in the members’ section of a website. The work required to manage and update the information is no small task, but often it pales in comparison to the task of motivating a whole church to get their pictures taken.

For all its uses and challenges, there’s one fundamental premise behind member directories, and that is the point of Pastor John’s brief article from 1983: “He Knows My Name! He Knows My Name!”

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Recent posts from "Piper's Pen" —

• How God's Glory Shines in Christian Marriage
• What Does It Mean to Be a Pilgrim?
• The Pastor's Role in World Evangelization

Richard Sibbes:

Nothing is stronger than humility, which goes out of itself, or weaker than pride, which rests on its own foundation. . . . And this should be particularly observed because naturally we aspire to a kind of divinity, in setting about actions in the strength of our own abilities; whereas Christ says, ‘Without me ye’, the apostles, who were in a state of grace, ‘can do nothing’ (John 15:5). He does not say, you can do a little, but nothing.

Of ourselves, how easily we are overcome! How weak we are to resist! We are as reeds shaken with every wind. We shake at the very noise and thought of poverty, disgrace or losses. We give in immeditately. We have no power over our eyes, tongues, thoughts or affections, but let sin pass in and out. How soon we are overcome by evil, whereas we should overcome evil with good. . .

Therefore in all, especially difficult encounters, let us lift up our hearts to Christ, who has Spirit enough for us all, in all our [needs], and say with good Jehoshaphat, "We have not might… neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee" (2 Chronicles 20:12); the battle we fight is thine.

The Bruised Reed, 114–115, paragraphing added.

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Recent posts from "They Still Speak" —

• The Global Reach of a Praying Mother (Octavius Winslow)
• C. S. Lewis on the Danger of Love (Bonhoeffer)
• The Indelible Mark of a Mother's Prayer Training (J. C. Ryle)

Tribulation is here, and we need to know God's word.

This is the gist of chapter 7 in Greg Beale's A New Testament Biblical Theology. In 37 pages, he lays out how the eschatological tribulation has been inaugurated with Jesus and the church. It's here, now. Tribulation Already

Telltale marks of the tribulation, according to Daniel 7–12, include persecution and deception through false teaching. The apostles were mindful of how present these things were in their own day, especially the rise of false teaching. John even drops the A-word (antichrist) in 1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 1:7. Though it seems to have not yet reached its climax, the tribulation clearly has begun (the whole period between Christ’s two comings), and Christians are called to persevere.

On the corporate level, a major part of this perseverance is church elders (gently) correcting insidious doctrines that raise their head within the covenant community (see 2 Timothy). As individuals, the best antidote is to understand temptation — and know the Bible.

Deception All Over Again

Beale observes that the same ways Satan deceived Adam and Eve at the beginning of history are reproduced by the biblical authors to characterize his deception at history's end. On this note, Beale shows how we can learn from the initial failure to trust God's word:

Eve was deceived because she did not know God's word sufficiently or did not esteem it highly enough. . . . [W[hen confronted by the satanic serpent, Eve either failed to remember God's word accurately or changed it intentionally for her own purposes. First, she minimized their privileges by saying, “We may eat,” whereas God had said, “You may eat freely.” Second, Eve minimized the judgment by saying, “Lest you die,” whereas God said, “You will surely die.” Third, she maximized the prohibition by affirming, “You shall not . . . touch” (becoming the first legalist in history), whereas God originally said only, “You shall not eat.”

If Adam remembered God's word, then he did not trust it, since he did not come to Eve's aid when she failed to recollect the word rightly in the face of the serpent accusations. Adam and Eve did not remember God's word adequately, and they “fell.” When the defense of God's word is taken away, all kinds of satanic lies come to fill the void, the desire to resist temptation breaks down, and sin inevitably occurs. (222)

Beale explains, "Jesus Christ, however, knew the word and, by obeying it, established himself as God's true last Adam and true Israel. . . . Jesus succeeded against exactly those temptations in which Adam and Israel failed because he remembered God's word and obeyed it" (222).

Know and Believe God's Word

Beale concludes with application for where we live:

The heart of the matter is this: do Christians know God's word, do they believe it, and do they do it? If not, then the lies of the evil one will slip into our lives and churches ever so subtly. When this happens and the process goes unchecked and uncorrected, then the deceptions begin to pour in like an overflowing river (cf. Revelation 12:15). . . Do Christian families make God's word the center of their homes? Do pastors set aside sufficient time to study God's word in preparation for Sunday sermons in order to "be diligent to present yourself approved to God as workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15)? If not, then the false teaching of those "who have gone astray from the truth" will make inroads into the church (2 Timothy 2:18). (223)

Spiders, hedonism, revivals, and the mysteries of the trinity — Jonathan Edwards's mind was rich and his writings are prolific. Digestible overviews of his life and writings are always appreciated.

During the recent conversation between John Piper and Douglas Wilson, mention was made of moderator Joe Rigney's trip to New Saint Andrews College in Moscow, Idaho in March of 2010. Joe is Assistant Professor of Theology and Christian Worldview at Bethlehem College and Seminary where he teaches undergraduates in the Christian Worldview Program and courses on Jonathan Edwards at the seminary. It was on the trip to NSA that Joe delivered an introduction to Jonathan Edwards, his theology, his writings, and his life and legacy. A video of the lecture and ensuing Q&A session is online. Timestamps follow.

 

Lecture time-markers —

04:14 — 1. Edwards on the Trinity

14:06 — 2. Edwards on Creation

18:27 — 3. Edwards on God's End in Creation

32:06 — Conclusion

Q&A time-markers —

34:04 — Edwards on typology

37:56 — First recommended Edwards books to read

39:55 — Edwards on God's direct creation and the place of causality

43:00 — Edwards and the classical tradition (Aristotle, Augustine, etc)

45:27 — Dante, Locke, and Edwards's influences

47:02 — Edwards on spiders

49:14 — Edwards's faults and weaknesses

51:36 — The Great Awakening and how Edwards processed it

56:46 — The Enlightenment and its influence on Edwards

59:40 — Edwards's legacy

Joe has also written a series of blog posts on Jonathan Edwards:

• Three Points on Edwards's History of Redemption
• All of History is Redemptive History
• Five Purposes of God in the Work of Redemption
• Two Tensions in Edwards’s View of History
• What Is the River of History?
• Where Do We Find Jesus in the Old Testament?

If you are old and fear that Christ will not accept you for having sinned away the better part of your life, let Jonathan Edwards compel you. This is from a sermon titled “No Obstacle to the Pardon of the Returning Sinner,” based on Psalm 25:11, “For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great.”

I am afraid God will not accept of me, when I offer him only mine old age.

To this I would answer

Hath God said anywhere, that he will not accept old sinners who come to him? God hath often made offers and promises in universal terms; and is there any such exception put in?

Doth Christ say, All that thirst, let them come to me and drink, except old sinners? Come to me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, except old sinners, and I will give you rest? Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out, if he be not an old sinner?

Did you ever read any such exception any where in the Bible? And why should you give way to exceptions which you make out of your own heads, or rather which the devil puts into your heads, and which have no foundation in the word of God?

Indeed it is more rare that old sinners are willing to come, than others; but if they do come, they are as readily accepted as any whatever. . . .

You say your life is spent, and you are afraid that the  best time for serving God is past. . . as if it were for the sake of the service which persons are like to do him, after they are converted, that he accepts of them. But a self-righteous spirit is at the bottom of such objections. . . .

But if they are willing to accept of Christ when old, he is as ready to receive them as any others; for in that matter God hath respect only to Christ and his worthiness.

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Recent posts from John Piper —

• Kids Feel What Parents Expressively Feel
• Five Reasons I Believe Romans 11:26 Means a Future Conversion for Israel
• Pray and Ponder Yourself into Sync with Paul's Sense of Wealth

The doctrine of hell is important — and extremely unpopular.

In this episode of Theology Refresh, David Platt talks about the priority of God's word as we approach this doctrine and faithfully serve the gospel in light of its reality.

Platt explains that hell is the manifestation that our sin against an infinitely holy God warrants infinitely eternal punishment. Moreover, when we minimize the reality of hell, we actually malign the mercy of God — because central to the fact of hell is that it is escapable. Jesus has endured the wrath of God on our behalf so that all who trust in him will be delivered from God's wrath and brought into fellowship with him forever.

Stream or download the 13-minute audio.

Recommended resources on the doctrine of hell:

• Hell Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents Eternal Punishment, multiple authors.
• Hell on Trial: The Case for Eternal Punishment, Robert Peterson
• Whatever Happened to Hell?, John Blanchard
• What Is Hell?, Christopher Morgan and Robert Peterson
• Erasing Hell: What God said about eternity, and the things we made up, Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle

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Recent Theology Refresh podcasts —

• Ed Stetzer on Spiritual Warfare
• Darrin Patrick on Biblical Complementarity
• Ray Ortlund on Union with Christ

In this two-minute video that Talitha and I made at home, I give a snapshot of how the Lord teaches me deep things through my little grandchildren. The lesson is simple. But the summons is for a miracle to happen deep in my life — again and again.

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Recent posts from John Piper —

• Five Reasons I Believe Romans 11:26 Means a Future Conversion for Israel
• Pray and Ponder Yourself into Sync with Paul's Sense of Wealth
• Read Your Bible More and More

Any time a selfish sinner is tasked with leading other selfish sinners in a Godward direction — whether in families, friendships, small groups, churches, or broader movements — there’s going to be trouble.

Take Moses, for example. No Old Covenant leader was as meek as Moses (Numbers 12:3), had more intimate interaction with God (Exodus 33:11), and was more unjustly and harshly criticized by those he led.

Here’s an overview of Moses’ experience as a spiritual leader:

• At first the Israelites rallied behind him (Exodus 4:31), but when Pharaoh increased their work they lost faith (Exodus 5:21).
• Then after the Passover Moses was their hero (Exodus 12:28)! But that quickly evaporated on the seashore when Pharaoh’s army showed up (Exodus 14:11).
• Then the sea opened for them and closed on the Egyptians and Moses was the best leader ever (Exodus 14:31). That is, until they came to Marah and found bitter water (Exodus 15:24).
• But God sweetened the water and that was great! Until they got hungry. Then Moses took a serious dive in the polls (Exodus 16:2).
• Then the manna fell and that was marvelous! Until they got thirsty again. Then they wanted to stone Moses (Exodus 17:4).
• In Exodus 18, they were wearing Moses out with their disputes. Thank God for Jethro!
• Then Moses tarried on Mount Sinai with God. This earned him a “no confidence” vote and the people elected a golden calf to lead them (Exodus 32). Not exactly a high water mark for the majority.
• Then they got sick and tired of eating boring old miracle manna. So Moses cried out to God: “I am not able to carry all this people alone… If you will treat me like this, kill me at once” (Numbers 11:14–15). Yikes. God mercifully gave Moses some elders.
• Then, to add heartbreak to insult, Miriam and Aaron publicly opposed Moses because of his interracial marriage (Numbers 12).
• Next, the twelve spies’ presented their Promised Land Report, And the people threatened to depose Moses and Aaron and stone Joshua and Caleb (Numbers 14).
• Then Korah led a coup and God wiped out the rebels. But the people blamed… yep, Moses (Numbers 16:41).
• Then they got thirsty again at Meribah. So they grumbled against Moses, who lost his temper and struck the rock. The people got water but Moses was barred from Canaan (Numbers 20).
• Now, one would think the lesson might sink in, but again the people complained against Moses about food and water. And they got fiery serpents (Numbers 21).
• And after all this, many Israelites rejected the Lord and embraced Baal (Numbers 25). Sigh.

Moses is a reminder that spiritual leadership is hard and sometimes heartbreaking. It is accompanied with adversity and opposition. A prophet may have honor, but not usually among those who know him best (Matthew 13:57).

So if we believe that, who in the world would want to be a Christian leader? Only a servant (Matthew 23:11).

A servant-leader:

• like Jesus, doesn’t hope in people’s approval (John 2:24–25), he hopes in God (Psalm 43:5);
• is not defensive, but leaves his vindication to God (Isaiah 54:17).
• like Moses, he faithfully teaches and lives by God’s word (Deuteronomy 32:47);
• doesn’t hope in his own giftedness, but “in God who raises the dead” (1 Corinthians 1:9);
• believes that he is God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works (Ephesians 2:10);
• believes that God is always at work in his work (Philippians 2:13);
• believes that humble, faithful planting and watering (1 Corinthians 3:6) in reliance upon Jesus will yield fruit (Matthew 25:21), even in the midst of painful controversy and resistance;
• and ultimately, he believes that the cross of Jesus — the worst rejection, adversity, and opposition ever faced — and his triumph over death guarantee us that no labor in the Lord will ever be in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Spiritual leadership may be hard and heartbreaking, but it is always hopeful because of where the hope is anchored. Moses’ reward was not the peoples’ admiration, and not even the Promised Land. God was his reward (Hebrews 11:26). And any servant-leader whose reward is God can weather the storms with overcoming faith and joy.

Any leader whose reward is something else will not last.

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Previous posts from Jon Bloom —

• Don't Give Up
• Jesus Chooses and Uses Failures
• If We're Going to Be Skeptical, Be Skeptical of Our Perceptions