Necessity of Sorrow and Savoring The Glory of God

Currently, I am rereading God is the Gospel by John Piper. I came across this quote, "One must taste the happiness of seeing and savoring God in the gospel before one can be truly sorrowful for not having more of that happiness. There is no contradiction between the necessity of sorrow for sin and the necessity of seeing and savoring the glory of God in the gospel. The sweetness of seeing God in the gospel is a prerequisite for godly sorrow for so long scorning that sweetness" (pg 109).

I believe this struck me because of the series I am currently preaching in Genesis. Genesis does not start in the garden where man sins but it starts with God and how He created all things. Genesis begins by showing how God prepared earth for man and that man was the pinnacle of God's creation made in his very own image. In chapter 2 of Genesis we see that God forms man with his hands out of the dirt and breathes his life into him. Then God declares (man does not make this declaration) that man should not be alone so he made him the perfect companion, woman. Man and woman are given rule over all things as God's vice regents on earth. These first 2 chapters in Genesis show God as Sovereign, holy, loving, relational, and gracious.

Because of the groundwork laid in Genesis 1 and 2, the events of Genesis 3 (the fall of man) are even more horrific. How could man turn and rebel against God after all He had done? Why would man reject God?

Thinking back to Pipers quote, because we have seen the beauty and splendor of God in Genesis 1 and 2 we now see the great sorrow of Adam and Eve's sin. If Genesis has begun with chapter 3 then we would not be nearly as grieved. But because it first started with the beauty and love of God and then progressed to man's sin we are filled with great anguish.

The greatness of the gospel is that we do not need to stay in anguish because Jesus came to die for our sins, cleansing us, and giving us his righteousness. The more we savor God the more sorrowful we become at our sins which only drives us to love God more because of the grace offered to us through Jesus Christ.

Is your life imitable?

Below is an excerpt from the book, The Trellis and The Vine by Colin Marshall and Tony Payne.
The passage is in the context of leaders investing in others helping them become more godly Christ-centered believers. As we are to imitate Jesus, Paul called his followers to imitate him; leaders are to be imitable.
"We must remember what sort of example it was that Paul was setting in his imitation of Jesus. It was the acceptance of hostility and social rejection-an embracing of the self-sacrificial path to suffering and mistreatment for the sake of others. As Edwin Judge argues, the kind of imitation Paul called for was quite counter-cultural in his day. It didn't consist of following particular ethical rules or traditions in imitation of one's spiritual master, but of giving up one's life for others. This "call to sacrifice one's own reasonable interest to a higher objective was a bewildering upending of the ethical life as the Greeks had refined it.""

Does God Hate Haiti?

This is copied from Albert Mohler's blog who I thought gave a pretty good answer.
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2010/01/15/does-god-hate-haiti/

The images streaming in from Haiti look like scenes from Dante’s Inferno. The scale of the calamity is unprecedented. In many ways, Haiti has almost ceased to exist.

The earthquake that will forever change that nation came as subterranean plates shifted about six miles under the surface of the earth, along a fault line that had threatened trouble for centuries. But no one saw a quake of this magnitude coming. The 7.0 quake came like a nightmare, with the city of Port-au-Prince crumbling, entire villages collapsing, bodies flying in the air and crushed under mountains of debris. Orphanages, churches, markets, homes, and government buildings all collapsed. Civil government has virtually ceased to function. Without power, communication has been cut off and rescue efforts are seriously hampered. Bodies are piling up, hope is running out, and help, though on the way, will not arrive in time for many victims.

Even as boots are finally hitting the ground and relief efforts are reaching the island, estimates of the death toll range as high as 500,000. Given the mountainous terrain and densely populated villages that had been hanging along the fault line, entire villages may have disappeared. The Western Hemisphere’s most impoverished nation has experienced a catastrophe that appears almost apocalyptic.

In truth, it is hard not to describe the earthquake as a disaster of biblical proportions. It certainly looks as if the wrath of God has fallen upon the Caribbean nation. Add to this the fact that Haiti is well known for its history of religious syncretism — mixing elements of various faiths, including occult practices. The nation is known for voodoo, sorcery, and a Catholic tradition that has been greatly influenced by the occult.

Haiti’s history is a catalog of political disasters, one after the other. In one account of the nation’s fight for independence from the French in the late 18th century, representatives of the nation are said to have made a pact with the Devil to throw off the French. According to this account, the Haitians considered the French as Catholics and wanted to side with whomever would oppose the French. Thus, some would use that tradition to explain all that has marked the tragedy of Haitian history — including now the earthquake of January 12, 2010.

Does God hate Haiti? That is the conclusion reached by many, who point to the earthquake as a sign of God’s direct and observable judgment.

God does judge the nations — all of them — and God will judge the nations. His judgment is perfect and his justice is sure. He rules over all the nations and his sovereign will is demonstrated in the rising and falling of nations and empires and peoples. Every molecule of matter obeys his command, and the earthquakes reveal his reign — as do the tides of relief and assistance flowing into Haiti right now.

A faithful Christian cannot accept the claim that God is a bystander in world events. The Bible clearly claims the sovereign rule of God over all his creation, all of the time. We have no right to claim that God was surprised by the earthquake in Haiti, or to allow that God could not have prevented it from happening.

God’s rule over creation involves both direct and indirect acts, but his rule is constant. The universe, even after the consequences of the Fall, still demonstrates the character of God in all its dimensions, objects, and occurrences. And yet, we have no right to claim that we know why a disaster like the earthquake in Haiti happened at just that place and at just that moment.

The arrogance of human presumption is a real and present danger. We can trace the effects of a drunk driver to a car accident, but we cannot trace the effects of voodoo to an earthquake — at least not so directly. Will God judge Haiti for its spiritual darkness? Of course. Is the judgment of God something we can claim to understand in this sense — in the present? No, we are not given that knowledge. Jesus himself warned his disciples against this kind of presumption.

Why did no earthquake shake Nazi Germany? Why did no tsunami swallow up the killing fields of Cambodia? Why did Hurricane Katrina destroy far more evangelical churches than casinos? Why do so many murderous dictators live to old age while many missionaries die young?

Does God hate Haiti? God hates sin, and will punish both individual sinners and nations. But that means that every individual and every nation will be found guilty when measured by the standard of God’s perfect righteousness. God does hate sin, but if God merely hated Haiti, there would be no missionaries there; there would be no aid streaming to the nation; there would be no rescue efforts — there would be no hope.

The earthquake in Haiti, like every other earthly disaster, reminds us that creation groans under the weight of sin and the judgment of God. This is true for every cell in our bodies, even as it is for the crust of the earth at every point on the globe. The entire cosmos awaits the revelation of the glory of the coming Lord. Creation cries out for the hope of the New Creation.

In other words, the earthquake reminds us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only real message of hope. The cross of Christ declares that Jesus loves Haiti — and the Haitian people are the objects of his love. Christ would have us show the Haitian nation his love, and share his Gospel. In the midst of this unspeakable tragedy, Christ would have us rush to aid the suffering people of Haiti, and rush to tell the Haitian people of his love, his cross, and salvation in his name alone.

Everything about the tragedy in Haiti points to our need for redemption. This tragedy may lead to a new openness to the Gospel among the Haitian people. That will be to the glory of God. In the meantime, Christ’s people must do everything we can to alleviate the suffering, bind up the wounded, and comfort the grieving. If Christ’s people are called to do this, how can we say that God hates Haiti?

If you have any doubts about this, take your Bible and turn to John 3:16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. That is God’s message to Haiti.

Clothed in the Righteousness of Christ

On October 31, 1517 in Wittenberg, Germany a German monk took some sheets of paper and nailed them to a door. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever conceive of the impact those papers would have on the world. Those papers contained the 95 theses written by Martin Luther. All Luther wanted to do was begin a conversation with the hopes of centering people on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He wanted to make sure people understood what really happened with Christ died and when we place our faith in Him. While Luther's day was different from ours today, they are also very similar. I believe people have lost sight of the importance of the cross. So many other things are stressed in church that it seems as though the cross has often been put in the back seat or even worse, the trunk. May we make what Jesus did on the cross for you and me the epicenter of our lives.

 

"If you want to judge how well a person understands the gospel, ask him what he makes of the death of Christ, and what the message of the cross is." Quote by Jerry Bridges

 

Today we are going to be looking at the Righteousness of Christ as the first bookend. Next week we will look at two pitfalls that can occur when we do not keep the death of Christ central to our lives.

 

The Bible tells us we are all sinners. Roman's 5:12 says, "Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned." Romans 6:23 then tells us, "the wages of sin is death." Because of sin we all deserve to die, we are placed under the wrath of God.

Galatians 3:10 also shows us the punishment of sin, "For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them."

Basically this says anyone that has disobeyed God is cursed. It doesn't take much reading in the Bible to see that we have all broken God's commands.

 

Many people object to this truth because they want to say God is a God of love therefore he won't condemn me to eternal punishment. But this is faulty thinking. What this line of thought does is diminish God's other characteristics like His holiness and justice. God would not be just if he allowed anyone into heaven no matter how they lived. He also would not be holy if he placed unholy objects in his presence. We must not elevate God's love to such a degree that he ceases to be holy and just. God's holiness, justice, and love live in perfect harmony with one another.

 

So what hope is there for people if because of our sin we deserve punishment and we know that God will not just sweep our unrighteousness under the rug acting as though it is not really there?

This is where substitutionary atonement comes in.

 

Atonement means, "the satisfactory compensation made for an offense or injury, in which a price is paid on behalf of the offending party, resulting in their discharge from the obligation to pay the due penalty."

Another way of saying this it that atonement is the price paid to reconcile enemies.

 

"but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. " (Romans 5:8, ESV)

Notice that is says while we were sinners (this means we are enemies) Christ died for us. Here is another verse to help understand atonement a little better.

 

"For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. " (2 Corinthians 5:21, ESV)

 

Let's break this down into 2 parts, here's the first half:

"For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin…"

 

Who is that knew no sin? Jesus Christ the Son of God. In John 8:46 he challenges the Pharisees to point out any sin that he has committed. "Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?"

Gal 3:13 says, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree."

Jesus Christ became a curse for you me because he bore yours and my sins. Isaiah 53:6 says, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." God laid the iniquity (our sin) on Jesus. It wasn't because Jesus was on a tree that he was cursed it was because of our sin that put him on the tree. We had to have a substitute because we could not pay the penalty of our sins. There had to be perfect sinless sacrifice. The sacrifice also had to be human. In order to perfectly atone for man's sins their needed to be a perfect man. This is why in Phil 2:7 it says Jesus came born in the likeness of men that he might die on the cross for our sins.

 

Here we have briefly seen that Jesus has come to take our sins upon himself and receive our punishment. He has become our substitute. But it does not stop there, now it even gets better.

 

Now let's look at the second half of the verse:

"So that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

 

Jesus did not just come that our sins would be removed but he also came that we might receive his righteousness which was only possible after the debt for our sin had been paid. He clothes us in his righteousness (Isaiah 61:10).

 

Col 1:21-22

"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, "

 

Notice the words, "holy", "blameless" and "above reproach." Are these descriptive words not usually referred to someone else, namely Jesus Christ. But now because of what Jesus Christ has done for you and me, paying the penalty of sins, we can now stand before God our Creator holy, blameless, and above reproach. How amazing is that!?

 

Do you now understand why Paul made statements like:

 

"For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. " (1 Corinthians 1:18, ESV)

 

"but we preach Christ crucified " (1 Corinthians 1:23a, ESV)

 

"For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. " (1 Corinthians 2:2, ESV)

 

Paul was very blunt, he preached Christ crucified and nothing else. To him nothing else matters and the same should be for us today. Oh the we today would be so bold also to declare that Jesus Christ dying on the cross for our sins that we might be declared righteous was all that mattered.

 

Remember the book of Galatians? Galatians was written because Judaizers has come in and tried to add works to the cross. In essence they were saying the cross was not enough there must be more. Listen to how Paul addresses this apostasy:

"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. " (Galatians 1:6–9, ESV)

 

Paul says whoever presents another gospel, whether it be him or even an angel let him be accursed. Nothing is more central to the gospel than the cross.

Paul, at the end of his letter to the Galatians say, "But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world" (Galatians 6:14, ESV). Paul's only boast is in the cross. It is at the cross where our sin was put to death and we become a new creation clothed in the righteousness of Christ, made holy in the eyes of God.

 

The book of Hebrews is an excellent read in understanding how Jesus was our perfect sacrifice. Here's a quick excerpt:

"And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds," then he adds, "I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more." Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. " (Hebrews 10:10–22, ESV)

 

How to win others to Christ

1 Corinthians is such a wonderful book. This book really shows how Satan attacks man and that only by the grace of Christ can we live victorious lives. I especially love chapter 9. In chapter 9 Paul talks about how he does everything so others can know Christ. He doesn't even accept payment for preaching the Word (which he could rightfully do 9:9-11, 14) so that he offers no possible hindrance to the Gospel. Although in 9:19-23 Paul says something that has puzzled many people.

1 Corinthians 9:19–23 (ESV)

¹⁹ For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. ²⁰ To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. ²¹ To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. ²² To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. ²³ I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings.

 

Some people have said that this make Paul seem like a wishy washy people pleaser. That he is willing to change doctrine and beliefs so that he is accepted in whatever group he happens to be currently in. But that interpretation is dead wrong and does no justice to the text. Paul has been talking about for some length now on how we as Christians are to look out for our neighbor. Here are just a few passages that show Paul's concern for others:

1 Cor. 8:9

⁹ But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.

1 Cor. 8:12

¹² Thus, sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ.

 

1 Cor. 9:12b

but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ.

 

1 Cor. 9:18

¹⁸ What then is my reward? That in my preaching I may present the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.

 

Paul is not wishy washy he is actually showing how firmly grounded he is in the Gospel. He is so gospel-centered that he is willing to sacrifice his freedoms so others might come to see the beauty of the gospel (after all isn't that what Jesus did by leaving heaven and coming to earth to die for our sins; he gave us his freedom so others could no Christ). Paul understands not everyone is as free as he is, he knows that people are at different places in their spiritual maturity, therefore he takes extra precautions so as not to become a stumbling block to anyone. How amazing would it be if we earnestly disciplined ourselves to live the same way Paul did? If we were constantly looking out for others, it sure would be hard to fight over something. In order for this to happen it has to start with YOU! You cannot wait for someone else to start looking out for out, you need to start looking out for others and loving them unconditionally. After all, Paul is loving the Corinthians and they are not returning that same love to him. Paul's motive for loving others is not based on being loved in return but rather what Christ has done for him.