“Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:18, ESV)
““All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up. Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor.”
(1 Corinthians 10:23–24, ESV)
Legalism seeks to win the approval and acceptance of another through right activities, while all the while harboring sin in the heart. Licentiousness swings to the other side and disregards all others in the pursuit of self-satisfaction and pleasure. Right in the middle of the double ruts of legalism and licentiousness lies the spiritual principle of love.
Biblical love originates in the love of God and then emerges in the heart of the believer, and so the actions are not forced and shallow, as they are in legalism. But this type of love is not self-love, but others-directed love. It is a love for God and a love for neighbor.
Because love for the approval of men and love of self are always easier and more satisfying to the the flesh than selfless love of others, legalism and licentiousness are attractive substitutes to many Christians. But Paul cuts through both of these with his words to seek the good of our neighbor.
Yes, our Christian liberty may allow us to do these things, but is it loving? Will it tear another down or will it bring spiritual confusion to an immature Christian? Why not simply give up our freedom because we love people more than our freedom in Christ? To place our own good over and above the good of others is selfish.
But the answer is not to cast off the commandments of God. Yes, Christ has fulfilled the law, but this doesn’t mean that they are useless as a guide for living. Instead, they provide us divine wisdom for living and showing love for others. “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved.” (1 Corinthians 10:31–33, ESV)
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”
(Psalm 133:1, ESV)
As Christians we know that there will be no final and eternal peace until Jesus comes and reigns forever. But we share the good news of the gospel because we know that there is still the need for peace in the tumultuous souls of the lost. Inner peace comes when there is peace with God because our sin debt has been paid by Jesus upon the cross of Calvary.
“For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”
(Colossians 1:19–20, ESV)
But there is another peace that we need to strive for as well. It is a peace and unity that emerges from our heart based upon the gospel of peace that unifies us as brothers and sisters in Christ and demonstrates the love of Christ to a watching world. In Jesus’ day the disunity that existed was mainly the distinction between Jew and Gentile. The gospel overcame that division so that Christ has created one Church, unified in the Savior, baptised in Christ, celebrating one communion, prepared to enter into one Kingdom.
“For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.”
(Ephesians 2:14–16, ESV)
When two women in the church of Philippi didn’t get along, Paul wrote, “I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord.” (Philippians 4:2, ESV). There is no mention of the color of their skin, by the way. It doesn’t say who was at fault. The basis of their unity is given: “agree in the Lord.”
When addressing the need for unity in his letter to the church that was in Rome, Paul stated that the unity they demonstrated would act as one clear voice for the message and glory of Christ: “May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” (Romans 15:5–7, ESV)
But what if you have been wronged by someone who claims to be a Christian? What if you have suffered unjustly for no reason of your own? Paul also addressed this in Romans 12, right smack in the middle of a section on not taking revenge and not seeking to avenge yourself, but leaving it to God. It says, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Romans 12:18, ESV)
The early church existed in the midst of a wicked world. Unity was common in most churches because they were led, not by emotion, politics, the flesh, or human reason and philosophy. Instead, where unity reigned it was because the Lord led his people through his Word and his people lived according to that revelation. We can never overcome the evil of this world by echoing that evil back in our response. “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21, ESV)
Frustration of injustice that leads to sinful anger, sinful speech, justification for sins committed, and promotion of anarchy, and chaos does not reflect the spirit of Christ. May we seek to address sin and the need for change within the church and within our culture and society by the means that God has given us–godly living, reasoned speech, loving service, gospel proclamation, person to person confrontation of sin committed, and a willingness to overlook some sins for the sake of love and unity.
“By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”
“Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord! Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore! From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!”
(Psalm 113:1–3, ESV)
What does the Bible mean when it extends a call to worship? Is it talking about quiet, solemn, personal times of devotion, or does it mean corporate praise with brothers and sisters in church? Well, both. As a matter of fact, in many ways, we can’t define “praise” in the context of a church service until we have understood how it must impact our heart attitude toward God on a personal level.
God, speaking through the prophet Malachi, despised the worship of his people. He said in Malachi 1:10, “Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand.” The people’s hearts were not right with God, so no matter what they sacrificed, it was not acceptable to him.
I like what Steve Lawson wrote in regard to Psalm 113:1. The word ‘praise,’ he said, “…carries the idea of an exuberance, radiance, jubilance, or celebration. It means to light up for God, to be radiant for God, to be shining forth for God, to boast in him, to brag in him.”[1]
That’s a great definition because it captures the joyfulness of praise. So, how can we get that back if it is missing, and how can we stoke the fire if it is present in us, but we want our passion to burn hotter? Let’s look at why the Lord is worthy of praise:
His Covenant (v. 1a)
The first line of verse 1 is sometimes given as Hallelujah which is the Hebrew word translated “Praise the LORD.” The “Yah” part is a shortened version of the holy name of God, “Yahweh.” This you’ll remember, is his covenant name, given to Moses at the burning bush by the Lord.
Why should we give praises to the Lord? Because he is our Lord. He has made covenant promises with his people, and of all people on the earth, we who are his children should give the loudest praises to him.
John Calvin wrote, “This psalm contains abundant reasons for all men without exception to praise God. The faithful alone being endued with spiritual perception to recognize the hand of God, the prophet addresses them in particulars.”[2]
What Calvin meant was that God commands men everywhere to give praises to God, but in their sin-filled blindness, they can’t see God the way we can. So we, who have been forgiven and set free from our bondage to sin, should give praise all the more because of this!
His Commitment (v. 1b)
The second line of v. 1 calls the “servants of the LORD” to praise God. If we are servants, that makes him our what? Master!
Later on, in the last part of the psalm, the psalmist demonstrates in greater detail the kind of things that the Master does for his servants—things such as lifting us up from the dust and ash heap of sin and death and placing us upon thrones. But even before we think about that aspect, we must remember that we are his servants because he redeemed us from our sin.
As his servants, we are called to praise our Master. Our Lord is so good to us. The Israelites traditionally sang this psalm and psalm 114 at the beginning of the Passover meal. As they retold the account of God’s great salvation from the hands of the Egyptians, they would remember how great and good God really is!
You know, the Lord didn’t have to commit himself to Israel, nor to the Church. He did so freely. Christ bound himself to His Bride willfully. It wasn’t a shotgun marriage! We aren’t as lovely as we need to be, but Christ keeps his commitment to us. O how we need to worship him!
His Character (v. 1c)
Notice the last praise of verse 1 is a call to praise “the name of the LORD.” The “name of the LORD” is a shorthand way of speaking about the character of God. His name encapsulates all that he is.
When you read you Bible, you read who this God is that loved and saved us. He is merciful and compassionate. Just ask Jonah! He is forgiving and kind—remember the woman caught in adultery?
He is holy, righteous, and just, and will come with the full wrath and fury he has promised. We see that in the way Christ suffered on the cross—the very punishment that was meant for you and me.
We see love on that cross as well, don’t we? Is your heart beginning to warm with praises toward our God? Tomorrow is the Lord’s Day. I pray the our voices and hearts will resonate with praise that will ascend to heaven and give the honor that is due God’s name.
[1] Steve Lawson, Holman Old Testament Commentary, “Psalms 76-150”, p. 205.
Today John Piper posted a short audio question and answer on the subject of the rapture of the church on his ministry website, Desiring God. I first learned about his post when it came across my Facebook stream this morning. The responses were mixed. Some said it didn’t matter, as long as we make it to heaven–that’s pan-eschatology; it’ll all pan out somehow. Then there are those who were quick to dismiss the idea of a rapture with no proof or substance. Then there were those who were genuinely wondering about this important subject.
The confusion, mockery and indifference toward this question is troubling. Although I disagree with John Piper’s answer to the question, I am glad he brought it up.
In his short 13-minute audio clip, Dr. Piper shares his understanding of what a few passages teach on the doctrine of the Second Coming of Christ and whether the Bible teaches that the Church will be removed before the future period of judgment that the Bible describes will come upon the whole earth. You can listen to it here and follow along with the transcription given.
I have great respect for John Piper and Desiring God, and I especially appreciate how he is very gracious in his treatment of the people who hold views that are different than his own. In this, I see true Christian humility in him.
With that said, I would disagree with him on his assessment of the pretribulational rapture and I would like to offer a few specific comments about his answer.
Although this is somewhat a minor point in this issue, it is still one worth mentioning. The listener’s question and the answer that John Piper gives are couched in such a way that Piper begins with the assumption that the rapture is an additional coming of Christ. This begins to formulate the idea that those who believe and teach this doctrine of a pretribulational rapture are said to believe in effect three comings of Christ—his incarnation, his coming to rapture the Church and his final return in judgment. Although there may be some who would describe the rapture as a separate return of Christ, many, if not most of those who subscribe to a pretribulational rapture would describe the return of Christ as being a singular event occurring in two stages. They would point to the fact that at the rapture as described in 1Thess 4:16-17, Christ does not fully descend to the earth, but partially descend to the earth and then the Church ascends and meets Jesus in the clouds, from where they return to heaven together.
This distinction is important because by stating the issue in terms of a second and third return of Christ strikes those considering the issue as being out of tune with what most Christians are familiar with—the Second Coming of Christ. By couching it in terms of “two comings of Christ in the future,” the issue is already slanted toward the view that this idea of a pretribulational rapture is unbiblical.
Additionally, the listener “Nick” who posed the question that John Piper answers describes the question of the rapture as a “huge debate,” and Nick is correct in this. And although Dr. Piper is gracious in his explanation and response to Nick, his answer does not address the depth of this issue with any seriousness at all. I would not expect that John Piper would spend much time answering this question in the format that he has on Desiring God’s blog, knowing that many books have been written on this subject. Neither would I expect that the arguments that John Piper gives would wrestle with the complexities surrounding the timing of the rapture.
But what I would expect is that the question would not be answered in such a way that a reader would be given the impression that the answer is easily arrived at with a cursory look at a few passages. This is evidenced in the way that Piper sets up his argument. He pits his teenage self against someone he describes as a “very reputable Old Testament scholar—a really scholarly Old Testament scholar” with the question of the rapture. Young John Piper gives the scholarly scholar one shot—give me your best verse! I thank the Lord that this is not the way that doctrine is decided!
However, Dr. Piper does not explain his post-tribulational view of the rapture with one text. To do so, he uses 1 Peter 4:12, 2 Thessalonians 1:6-8 and 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3, 8. He adds to these 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, Matthew 25:6 and Acts 28:15 to bolster his argument. The problem here is that just as Piper uses multiple texts to uphold and defend his view of the rapture being at the end of the tribulation, he does not allow for those who hold to a pre-tribulation rapture to do the same. Instead, he sets up a straw-man argument—the scholarly Old Testament scholar gets one single text to prove his view—his best text! And then Piper dismisses it with these words, “God’s promise to keep us from the hour of trial probably doesn’t mean that we are taken out of the world, but rather that God will keep us from the faith-destroying effects of the hour of trial. He will guard us. He will protect our faith.” (Emphasis mine)
Dr. Piper doesn’t defend his understanding of this text exegetically, but theologically. I agree with him that God guards and protects us and guides us through time of trial, in general. But Scripture also removed some of God’s people from trials as well—such as men like Enoch and Elijah, who also were taken from this world without dying. The existence of these men being translated from the earth without dying doesn’t prove the rapture is pretribulational, but neither does John Piper’s dismissal of Revelation 3:10 as “probably” not meaning what he already has said he doesn’t believe.
The answer to the rapture’s timing is not as simple as John Piper’s answer makes it seem. I need to say this because all too often I have seen more and more people mock and vilify those who hold to a pretribulational or premillennial viewpoint with absolutely no proof or substance. John Piper has not been this way in his responses, as is evidenced by his respectful comments about his father and his childhood church which both held to the pretribulational rapture view.
But Dr. Piper might do his readers a great service to point them to those who can fairly represent both his view as well as the views he does not believe and allow the truth of the text to stand. A good place for someone to read a stronger representation of the pretribulational rapture view would be Richard L. Mayhue’s “Why a Pretribulational Rapture?” in The Master’s Seminary Journal. For a more scholarly response to John Piper’s post-tribulational view and the objections he makes to a pretribulational rapture, see Paul Feinberg’s articlehere.
When all the texts are considered and the Bible is examined, I still believe that the pretribulational rapture view is the most biblical. I know many will not agree. What I would like to see is not division and mean-spirited name-calling, but rather a humble desire to study the Word for ourselves and to graciously contend for our convictions with others in a spirit of grace and love. One day, we will know more fully those things which are not so clear right now. Until then, may we seek truth in love.
“And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.”
Luke 1:38, ESV
This morning I read from the book of Jonah. I have been pondering the incarnation for the last several days and the wonder of Christ’s birth, and then I read Jonah. To put it lightly, Jonah had problems. Massive spiritual problems. I’ll come back to him in a bit.
All too often in Protestant churches, Mary, the mother of Jesus, has scorn heaped upon her because there are some who have taken this woman of God and have worshipped her. But that isn’t Mary’s fault! From my reading of the New Testament, Mary was a gracious and beautiful example of incredible faith that we should emulate–such as the passage I cite in Luke 1:38 above. Yes, Mary was a sinner, and she too needed a Savior. But look beyond this and see her humble submission as well.
I’ll let the scholars handle the age of Mary, but I think most agree that this woman was still very young. But her words, particularly in what has been called the Magnificat (Lk 1:46-55), show a spiritually mature child of God. She is not a scholar, nor of the priestly line. She is a simple, humble woman from a back-woods town who is preparing to marry a humble carpenter. That is why her words should stop us in our tracks: “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”
She is saying through the angel to the Lord God, “I am yours. Do with me whatever you see is right. I am nothing, you are everything. Whatever you want, I will submit to you wholly.” O, how we need more people of God with this heart! But she isn’t alone in the Bible.
In the Old Testament, we find Abram willing to leave everything he has ever known–land, family, language, comfort, safety, the familiar, the safe. He leaves it all because he is following his God (Gen 12:1-4). Again, the spirit of Father Abraham is that the Lord is Sovereign. He commands, and we joyfully follow; even into the unknown darkness. Later, when he has received his son Isaac after many years of waiting, Abraham is asked to sacrifice this beloved gift (Gen 22:1-19). There is no argument, or pleading with God to reconsider what he is asking. Genesis 22:3 simply says that Abraham rose early in the morning and set out to obey his Master.
I saw this same commitment to humble submission when I recently re-read the book of Hosea. In Hosea 1:2-3 it says:
“When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.”
(Hosea 1:2–3, ESV)
We can understand the purpose of God in doing this because the Bible is clear about the reason for this request–to be a shockingly visible illustration of the way that Israel was toward the Lord God. But that didn’t make Hosea’s obedience and heartbreak any easier. The shame he endured as God’s man must have been unbearable at times as his unfaithful wife continued to bear children fathered by other men. Yet, Hosea continued to faithfully and humbly submit to all that the Lord asked of his servant.
That brings us back to Jonah.
Mary endured shame, scorn and great pain in order to bring the Savior into the world. Abram left everything and was willing to sacrifice his most beloved son. Hosea walked his entire life in the darkness of a broken relationship for the cause of illustrating the enduring love of God in the face of rebellious and idolatrous Israel.
And Jonah…he sulked and ran and was enraged because he wanted to be the master of his life. Jonah wouldn’t rejoice at the repentance of the lost. He wouldn’t rejoice at his salvation from the fish’s belly and a new opportunity to be used by God. He wouldn’t even enjoy life, but would rather be struck dead because he was such an angry little man.
John Paton
I recently read the biography of the great missionary to the Pacific, John Paton. In Paton’s day, the church had taken on the attitude of Jonah. They loved their comfort and ease. They didn’t like it when men and women of God wanted to take the gospel to the world because they didn’t want their comfort to be unsettled. Some were bribed with money to stay. Some were belittled and treated with contempt–being told that God would’t use them because they were ungifted. Some said that the primitive people would never be able to appreciate the fine education they had earned, so why waste it? Others were so fearful of the dangers of cannibalism and disease that they forbid anyone from going to these people. Serve Jesus in England, where it is safe. You can serve Jesus here. WE need him too!
But Paton, and a few others accepted the call and braved the hardship and ridicule heaped on them back home and face the dangers in the Pacific. They humbly submitted their lives to the Sovereign they loved more than life itself. Most died, but the Lord raised up many more servants until the Pacific was won for Christ.
But the Jonah spirit is alive and well in many hearts and churches today. I take comfort in the fact that there are also still in Christ’s church Mary’s and Abraham’s and Hosea’s among us. Those who will submit to the Lord their God with joy and humility. If that is you, don’t allow the Jonah spirit in the church to dissuade you. See the joy in the hardship. Know that the Lord is greater than any hardship you may endure. As Luther wrote,”Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; the body they may kill, God’s truth abideth still. His kingdom is forever!”
And if you see too much of Jonah in your own heart, then Jonah’s message to Ninevah is God’s message to you too. Repent. This life isn’t for you. It isn’t about you. It’s about Jesus. Humble yourself before the mighty hand of God, and he will lift you up (1Pet 5:6).
Always Reforming 