The Angel Appearing to the Shepherds by Thomas Cole; image from Wikimedia Commons.
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“‘I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel’” (Gen. 3:15).
Christmas is such a wonderful time with family, gifts, beautiful lights, and delicious food. All these things are such tremendous blessings God has given for us to enjoy and share with others. Yet, the story of Christmas didn’t just start in a manger in Bethlehem. It actually started thousands of years before, near the very beginning of human history, in the midst of a shame-filled and grace-filled situation. In fact, the Christmas story was the plan of God, and he gave our first parents, Adam and Eve, the first promise about Christmas when he confronted them about their terrible sin.
The Christmas story was the plan of God.
You see, Adam and Eve were the first human sinners: the first people to do something that our good heavenly Father said was bad. In fact, they decided it would be better to trust and be friends with Satan, God’s enemy and the one who secretly hated them, than to be friends with God who loved them and had given them a good life, a beautiful relationship with each other and himself, and a wonderful garden in which to live. When they sinned, Adam and Eve realized what a terrible thing they had done. They were ashamed and afraid of what God would do when he found them.
Even though they sinned terribly, God gave Adam and Eve grace.
Yet, God was merciful to Adam and Eve: he came to them when they had messed up terribly and gave them grace—love they did not deserve. He told Adam and Eve that there was hope for them. There would come a child who would fight Satan for them. God provided a covering for Adam and Eve (making clothing for them from an animal) and promised that he wouldn’t let them be friends with Satan, by making the children of the woman enemies with the children of Satan (Nancy Guthrie, Even Better Than Eden: Nine Ways the Bible’s Story Changes Everything about Your Story, p. 113). God forgave Adam and Eve, and he would make a way for them to be with their heavenly Father.
God promised to send a child who would fight against Satan and save God’s people.
Adam and Eve would wait for this child that would save them from evil and Satan. They would trust God that he would send a warrior child who would make it possible for Satan to be defeated and provide a way for them to dwell once again with God.
Adam and Eve didn’t get to see the Christ-child with their eyes, but they looked forward by faith to his saving work. The whole Bible is the story of how God is going to save sinners like Adam and Eve, and like you and me, through this child who would fight against Satan and save God’s people. The baby in the manger was really a mighty warrior.
Click below to read the entire Advent Sunday series!
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It’s not always easy to feel thankful. Christians around the world find themselves in various circumstances. Millions of believers reside in places where they can worship Jesus freely while millions in other parts of the world face life-threatening persecution for their faith. Many believers experience conditions of extreme poverty while others live in abundance. There are believers who enjoy good health and those who endure short and longterm illnesses. Some Christians experience great sorrows while others seem to live relatively peaceful lives.
Even with these wide differences, all believers can rejoice in the Lord. As the apostle Paul reminds us,
We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Rom 8:28)
Paul also comforts us that we can rest in God’s sovereign will because the Lord is with us through all the ups and downs of life:
Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Phil. 4:11–13)
Here are four reasons every Christian can be thankful to God today:
1. You are still alive.
Because you are alive, God still has more purpose for your life here on earth. Be thankful for another day to grow in the knowledge of your beloved Lord. Also, each day you have is another opportunity to love and serve God and your neighbor:
This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Ps. 118:24)
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Col. 3:17)
2. This present world is still here.
Because this present world is still here, God is still bringing people into Christ’s kingdom by the power of the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 3:9). Pray for God to redeem as many souls as is in his perfect will. Think of ways you can share the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ with people you come in contact with today:
But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect. (1 Pet. 3:15)
3. Satan won’t have the final word; God will.
Even though the world is filled with so much sorrow and evil, Jesus Christ has already reconciled the world to himself (2 Cor. 5:17). Evil will not exist forever. Nothing and no one can thwart God’s perfect will. The Lord’s good plans will be accomplished, and he will be glorified in all things. Christ will return, the old shall pass away, and the new will come:
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. (Rev. 21:4)
4. God will never forsake you.
Even though life can seem overwhelming at times, Christians can take heart that God is their heavenly Father who always cares for them (John 16:33; 1 John 3:1). The Lord has promised that he will never leave you or forsake you (Heb. 13:5), and he has a glorious eternity waiting for you that is beyond anything you could possibly imagine:
“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” (Matt. 10:29–31)
But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Cor. 2:9)
Thisarticlewas originally published atcorechristianity.comand was first featured at Beautiful Christian Life on November 21, 2018.
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There is no question among orthodox Christians, i.e., those who believe and obey God’s Word, who believe the catholic creeds, who have a substantial connection to the ancient church, whether Christians ought to seek to imitate Christ. The questions we need to ask are: How do we imitate Christ and to what end do we imitate him?
There are analogies between our faith and Christ’s, but we should be very cautious about talking about Jesus’ faith and ours as if they are the same thing.
They are not the same thing because Jesus was not a sinner who needed to be saved from the wrath of God and we are not the Savior. Yes, Jesus may be said to have exercised faith. He trusted his heavenly Father, but the trust he exercised was not that trust that we, by grace alone (salvation and faith are a gift), exercise.
Jesus’ trust in his heavenly Father cannot be said to have been a gift. He was not born in need of regeneration (i.e., he was not born dead in sins and trespasses). He was not in need of being raised spiritually from death to life. As we’ve seen here and here on the Heidelberg Catechism, God the Son was born innocent, righteous, and holy not for himself but for us (pro nobis). All his righteousness (HC 60) is credited to believers so that it is as if they themselves had done all that he did. In Christ, sola gratia, sola fide, it is as if we had never sinned or had any sin. Jesus trusted that his Father would keep the covenant (pactum salutis) they made before all worlds (John 17), and that his Father would vindicate him (i.e., that he would recognize his Son’s inherent and perfect righteousness).
When we talk about our faith, we’re talking about the faith of fallen, sinful, mere humans.
We are not inherently, intrinsically righteous before God. We are righteous only on the basis of Christ’s righteousness imputed. That is why Genesis 15:6, “Abraham believed God and it was credited to him for righteousness,” is applied repeatedly in the New Testament to believers, to Christians, and not to the Christ. Yes, when we believe, we are certainly trusting that our Father will keep his promises to us, but those promises are made to us in Christ and we are praying in Jesus’ name. When Jesus prayed, he didn’t need a Mediator. Jesus is the Christ and we are his Christians. These are two distinct classes.
There are two dangers in talking about the imitation of Christ: 1) moralism; and 2) moralism. Let me explain. It has been claimed that “Christian” (Χριστιανός) means “little Christ.” That’s not quite correct. It means “a follower of Christ.” The word occurs only three times in the New Testament (Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1 Pet. 4:16) and it never means “little Christ.” That some think this way, however, illustrates the first danger—that of confusing the Christ and the Christian.
Doing so tends toward self-salvation, which is an impossibility, and is either born of a denial of the fall and its consequences (Pelagianism) or from downplaying the effects of the fall (semi-Pelagianism, Romanism, Arminianism). In the case of Pelagius, he set up two great examples for all humans to follow: Adam and Christ. He denied that “in Adam’s fall sinned we all.” He said that we’re all born Adam and that we may, if we will, do what Adam failed to do: obey God of our own will unto glory.
The apostle Paul, however, took a very different view (see Romans chapters 1–5; Eph. 2:1–4). According to Paul, when Adam sinned, we all sinned in him and when he died spiritually, so did we. By nature, after the fall, we are incapable of doing anything toward salvation. We are utterly helpless. To blur the line between Jesus and his people then creates the impression that if we only pull a little harder on our bootstraps, we can imitate Jesus unto acceptance with God and glory. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The second danger is closely related to the first, that of turning Jesus into the first Christian.
Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768–1834) did this by attempting to redefine Christianity as the recovery of Jesus’ religious experience. Some liberals who followed him, as J. Gresham Machen noted, blurred the line between Christ and the Christian by making Jesus into the first Christian do-gooder. That he was not. He did good, but not toward an earthly utopia, not merely as a prophet, but as the Savior of sinners and by way of inaugurating the kingdom of God. The kingdom, however, in the interregnum, is largely invisible especially to those who seek a kingdom of power and glory before the consummation. Jesus disappointed Judas, and he continues to disappoint those who continue to cry for Bar-Abbas.
Both of these dangers are quite present today. On the one hand, there is a reaction to antinomianism both real and perceived that tends to blur the line between Christ and Christian by talking incautiously about Jesus’ faith and ours, without explaining clearly the qualitative difference, as if Jesus had faith in just the same sense as we. That is a great mistake. We also face pressure to blur the line from those who, in various ways, want to see Christianity expressed more visibly in the world in concrete ways. A century later, we’re having the same discussions about the Social Gospel that we had in the early twentieth century. It’s frequently said now that our Christianity may just as well be seen as heard. In two words: uh, no.
We need to make some distinctions:
There is Imitation of Christ: Faith hath two eyes; one lookes to Christs merits that we may be saved; the other to his righteousness that we may be sanctified. In Imitation there be two things, Action and Affection. Action, for it is not enough to commend and admire the patterne, but we must follow it. Affection, for it is not enough to forgive because we cannot revenge. This is no sufficient imitation of Christs love; for he can, if he please, bruise sinners to pieces, and break them.[1]
Thomas Adams made a great point. We look first to Christ’s merits for us and then only should we talk about imitation—but talk about it we must.
There is a very necessary distinction in the way we talk about the imitation of Christ.
It is undeniably true that Christians seek to imitate Christ but, as Adams wrote, we look to Christ with two eyes, as it were. First, we look to him as Savior. If we fail to do this, we run the risk of falling into the Socinian error, as Samuel Rutherford noted in 1655:
The Socinian faith which looks to an exemplary Martyr whom God of no justice, but in vain, and for no cause delivered to death but of mere free pleasure whereas there might be, and is forgiveness without shedding of blood: contrair to Heb. 9. 22. Rom. 3. 24, 25 &c. even good works done in imitation of Christ.[2]
There are other ways to abuse the truth that Christians imitate Christ. The early English Presbyterian Thomas Cartwright warned about one of them:
RHEM. 7. [17. Tha character or the name.] As belike for the perverse imitation of Christ, whose image (specially as on the Rhood or crucifixe) he seeth honored and exalted in every Church, he will have his image adored (for that is Antichrist, in emulation of like honour, adversary to Christ) so for that he seeth all true Christian men to beare the badge of his Cross in their forehead, he likewise will force all his to have an other marke, to abolish the signe of Christ.[3]
The abuse here is to violate God’s law and justify by calling it “imitation.” These “imitations” are, of course, improper. We may not do as we will and call it the “imitation of Christ.” He alone determines how he is to be worshiped and adored. The sorts of things of which Cartwright complained grew out of the medieval attempt to replicate the life of Christ, quests that failed to honor the distinction between the Savior and the saved, between the Christ and his Christians.
Jesus is more than an example, but he is, in certain important ways, an example to us to imitate.
Here we come to the other eye, of which Adams wrote. William Perkins points us in the right direction as we seek to understand how it is that we imitate Christ. We do so not as “little christs,” not in order to be accepted by God, but because he is the Christ and because we have been accepted. As such, by his free favor alone, through faith alone, by the Spirit we are united to him. We imitate him thus:
First, as Christ Jesus when he was dead rose againe from death to life by his own power, so we by his grace, in imitation of Christ, must endeavour our selves to rise up from all our sins both originall and actual unto newnes of life. This is worthily set downe by the Apostle, saying, We are buried by baptisme into his death, that as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glorie of the Father, so we also should walke in new nesse of life: and therefore we must endeavour our selves to show the same power to be in us every day, by rising up from our owne personall sins to a reformed life. This ought to be remembred of us, because howsoever many heare and know this point, yet very few do practise the same.[4]
We seek to die to sin and live to Christ. This is the basic structure of the Christian life. Perkins made clear the distinction between Christ and the Christian. He rose again “by his own power.” We endeavor to “rise up” metaphorically from our sins. We are identified with Christ in baptism, to the end that we might walk in the new life, in Christ. We imitate the Savior by seeking to live as saved people.
Herman Witsius is also helpful here:
LXXXIX. But yet, as it is very desirable to have likewise an example of perfect holiness upon earth; so God has not suffered us to be without one; for he sent his own Son from heaven, who hath left us the brightest pattern of every virtue, without exception, “that we should follow his steps,” 1 Pet. 2:21. It was a part of Christ’s prophetical office, to teach not only by words, but by the example of his life, that both in his words and actions, he might say, “learn of me,” Matt. 11:29. The imitation of him is often recommended by the apostles, 1 Cor. 11:1. 1 Thess. 1:6. 1 John 2:6.
Christians are to think of themselves as Christ’s servants who attend to his Word.
We are not accepted by God because of virtues formed in us by grace and cooperation with grace. That was the medieval theology and piety that the Reformers and Reformed Churches rightly rejected, but we did not reject the notion that God does form virtues in us. Christ did set an example for us. As Witsius noted, that’s the clear teaching of Scripture.
XC. It has been very well observed by a learned person, that we are to distinguish between imitation, whereby we are said to be μιμηται, imitators of Christ, 1 Cor. 11:1; and between following, by which we are commanded to follow Christ; between “follow me,” Matt. 16:24, and “follow after me,” Matt. 10:38. For the former denotes a conformity to an example: the latter, the attendance of servants going after their masters; which words are generally confounded by writers in their own language, though they ought by no means to be so.[5]
The death we are to die is real but figurative. When Christ called us to take up his cross, he was not calling us (as they do in the Philippines each spring) literally to be nailed to a cross. That’s why we don’t take pilgrimages to Jerusalem to re-trace the steps of Christ. That borders on superstition. We are to walk in his footsteps as he obeyed his Father and as he loved his neighbor. The death we are to die daily is to sin.
The norm for our Christian life is not, as noted above, what we imagine we should do in order to imitate Christ. Rather, we are to think of ourselves as his servants who attend to his Word. We obey him according to his command, and we imitate him in the way that he instructed. As we seek to imitate him it is ever with the consciousness that it is he who has saved us and not we ourselves—not even in cooperation with grace. Our imitation is in recognition of the categorical distinction between Christ and Christian, Savior and saved.
1. Thomas Adams, A Commentary Or, Exposition Upon The Divine Second Epistle General Written By…St. Peter (1633), 14.
2. Samuel Rutherford, The Covenant of Life Opened, 285.
3. Thomas Cartwright, A Confutation Of The Rhemists Translation, Glosses And Annotations On The New Testament, 734.
4. William Perkins, An Exposition Of The Apostles’ Creed, 243–44.
5. Herman Witsius, The Economy of the Covenants Between God and Man: Comprehending a Complete Body of Divinity, trans. William Crookshank, vol. 2 (London: T. Tegg & Son, 1837), 44–45.
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Often, the most basic of God’s commands are the hardest for us to obey. We may ask ourselves whether or not we would have the faith to offer up a child to God—as Abraham did when he was called to offer up Isaac—while never really stopping to ask ourselves whether or not we have the faith to obey the most basic new covenant commands.
Take, for instance, Paul’s statement in 1 Thess. 5:18:
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you all.
When we consider such a command, we must ask ourselves the following questions: Am I thankful in all circumstances? What about when times are difficult? What about when I have experienced some particular trial? The Lord commands us to “count it all joy when we fall into various trials” (see James 1:2). How can I be thankful and joyful in the midst of a painful trial? The answer, of course, is found in all that the Scriptures teach us about trials. Here are ten reasons Christians can be thankful in trying circumstances:
1. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because we deserve eternal judgment and whatever we are experiencing short of that is a mercy.
2. We can be thankful in trying circumstances precisely because we have already been redeemed by Christ, blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, and sealed with the Spirit until the possession of the eternal inheritance.
3. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because we know that our God doesn’t make mistakes. There is nothing that falls outside of his sovereign eternal decree. As the hymn writer put it, “What e’re my God ordains is right.”
4. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because all that God is doing in our lives is for his glory and our conformity to the image of his Son.
5. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because we can be confident that God will not waste any of the lessons that he is seeking to teach us in the difficult, as well as enjoyable, circumstances in which he places us in life.
6. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because we know that we will be able to extend to others who experience similar difficult circumstances the same comfort that we receive from the God of all comfort.
7. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because we know that God’s purpose is to make us whole and complete, lacking nothing.
8. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because it is better for us to be in a place of weakness that shows us our need for God, than to be in a place of plenty and prosperity and forget about him.
9. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because we are being pruned to bear more fruit. The Lord is removing the dross and refining the gold.
10. We can be thankful in trying circumstances because they serve as a stage on which the deliverance and provision of God’s grace in Christ may be displayed in our lives. The Lord brought Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the fiery furnace in order to teach them that he would stand with them in the furnace and bring them out unharmed. Jesus brought the disciples into the storm to teach them about his power to still the wind and the waves with a word.
So if you find yourself in a place where you are having a hard time being thankful, meditate on these ten biblical truths that will strengthen you in faith to give God glory and to give thanks in all circumstances—including trying ones—no matter how difficult they may be.
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In more than ten years of vocational ministry, there is one thing I’m most concerned about with regard to Christian men. It’s not feminization. It’s not acting like boys rather than men. It’s so much more threatening than all of that.
Here’s what I know. God’s word is powerful. It lays out all of the necessary practices that God has prescribed for boys to grow into courageous, focused, discerning, encouraging, and compassionate leaders. It teaches that there are certain disciplines crucial to our spiritual development from “‘baby Christians” to maturity in our faith. Yet, when I teach in small group settings, there is one thing I’m always challenged on, and that’s growth in those disciplines.
Where has all the growth in godly disciplines gone?
In Luke 11:1, one of Jesus’ disciples said to him, “Lord teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” Stop! Hold the phone! There are three things to take note of here. First, this disciple understood something that few today ever come in contact with. There is a prescribed way that the Lord has taught us to pray. Yes, he hears even the most meager of prayers, but God intends for our praying to align more and more with his will as we mature. Second, prayer is a spiritual discipline. “Lord teach us to pray.” Third, learning to pray is a process (e.g. “as John taught his disciples”).
Teaching men in the church to develop in the spiritual disciplines is critical to the future of the church. Many men in churches view pursuing the development of these disciplines as something only people in ministry should do, when in fact, the pursuit of developing these disciplines should be the norm.
It should be normal for the majority of men in the church to gather in prayer throughout the week. It should be common for men in the church to join with each other at various times to discuss, uphold, and submit to God’s word. Instead, in many situations, those things only happen when there has been a tragedy, a loss, or some sort of earth-shaking disagreement.
What’s my biggest concern for Christian men in our time? It’s that so many men are simply not pursuing maturity in Christ. We have traded faithful progress aligned with biblical sanctification for preservation that is aligned with our own comfort.
We are crippled by comfort.
My point is, it’s incredibly difficult for us to scratch our heads in good conscience and wonder why the modern church is scraping for lay leaders, when relatively few of the men that should be in that position have been groomed to be lay leaders. What we are left with are men who are excellent in their respective crafts professionally but are crippled when it comes to leading in a way that points forward with regard to God’s kingdom.
I was just speaking with someone the other day who, when talking about their community group taking more ministry initiative, said, “I don’t know how in the world we would ever be able to do something like that when the men in our group won’t even pray during group prayer time.” In my opinion, if we want leaders—patriarchs, earth-moving, world-changing men—in our congregations, our focus needs to shift. We need to help men realize that studying, understanding, and teaching the Bible isn’t just for people who go to seminary.
We need men to realize that the only way we will ever learn the deepest parts of another man’s heart in our congregation is to pray with him—often. We need to reignite the adventure that is found in following Jesus and help men develop the skills necessary to navigate each life situation according to God’s word, so they can finish the race with strength and fortitude.
The days of sitting on our heels are over.
There has never been a more critical time in our nation for men, not to begin stepping up to change the trend, but rather to begin bearing down on the essentials of their own ability to lead—and preparing for the moment God calls them to do it. The days of sitting on our heels and enjoying the efforts of others fulfilling our ministry responsibilities are over.
What’s the answer? First, we have to remove the stigma that a deep commitment to personal development in the spiritual disciplines is only for the “ultra holy.” Second, we have to commit to placing a laser focus on learning to read—and teach—God’s word well. Finally, it’s time to stop spoon-feeding stunted converts who have been leeching off the church since their profession of faith. We need to help men grow up in Christ by means of tough love and edification.
This article was originally published on January 16, 2018.
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When my son died in 2006, it was hard—even painful—for me to read my Bible. While I knew other bereaved parents and had struggled to understand why God would allow the death of their child to occur, it became all too real when my family experienced the same excruciating loss.
Grieving people can be filled with doubts and questions. These four books are a lifeline of much needed comfort, wisdom, and encouragement for Christians who are struggling to hold on to their faith:
A close friend of mine (who is also a bereaved parent) gave me this book right after my son died. I cannot adequately express the comfort I received from reading this firsthand account by someone who lost his wife, mother, and young daughter in a car accident due to a drunk driver. Jerry Sittser made me feel like I was not alone and that there was someone who understood my loss. This book will help grieving Christians to see God's sovereign and loving hand in the most difficult moments of life. Click here for Amazon link.
These reflections by C. S. Lewis weren't written to be published, but thankfully they were anyway. Lewis gives a raw account of his doubts regarding his Christian faith after losing his wife Joy to cancer. Lewis also finds his hope in God and encourages us to do the same along the way. Click here for Amazon link.
In this gem of a book first published in 1956, theologian Loraine Boettner (1901-1990) explains what the Bible says about life after death versus alternate views that are unsupported by Scripture. Be sure to read the section on why Christians should not want their loved ones who die in the Lord to return to this present world. Boettner helps believers to hold less tightly to this world and hope more in the glorious future that awaits them as God's children. Click here for Amazon link.
Scottish theologian Thomas Boston (1676–1732) buried six of his ten children, and his wife most likely suffered from a longterm mental illness. Based on a seven-part sermon series Boston preached on Ecclesiastes 7:13, The Crook in the Lot gives one of the most thorough, helpful, and comforting explanations ever written on God's sovereignty and wisdom in the afflictions we face in this life. You can buy the book by clicking on the title above, or you can print out the three-part exposition at Christian.net like I did. I carried one of the sections around with me everywhere I went for months after my son died. Every Christian who is facing one of life’s “hard providences” will benefit greatly from this resource. Click here for Amazon link.
This article has been updated since its original publishing date of November 20, 2017.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning Beautiful Christian Life LLC may get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through its links, at no cost to you.
The preacher who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes lacked contentment until he came to the true conclusion by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit about living life “under the sun.” He did, however, give us glimpses of contentment while “striving after the wind” of worldly pursuits.
God wants us to enjoy all the good gifts he has given us.
For example, rather than being anxious about food and drink and work (Matt. 6:25ff), the preacher writes,
There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God. (Eccl. 2:24)
Five times the preacher repeats the wisdom of contentment and even enjoyment in what we eat and drink and the work we do. He wants to make sure we understand that living under the sun, meaning while we live in this age on earth, is to be enjoyed by being content and happy with the meals God provides and while laboring in the work God gives to us. The grace of God gives us these good gifts in contrast to our "striving after the wind."
“Striving after the wind” is futile—it is like trying to grab a breath of air with your hand.
What does the preacher mean by “striving after the wind?” In Ecclesiastes 1:14, he writes,
I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
He uses the phrase “striving after the wind” nine times. Six of those times he relates it to “vanity” (e.g., Eccl. 2:17; 4:4; etc.). The Hebrew word that is translated as “vanity” could also be translated as “breath” or “vapor,” which fits “striving after wind.” “Futile” is another appropriate translation of the Hebrew word. In other words, “striving after the wind” is futile—it is like trying to grab a breath of air with your hand. You can’t do it. It is like a vapor that disappears in a moment. Many things that we pursue in this life hoping to find satisfaction and happiness and contentment in them are striving after the wind—futile vanities because they are like a breath or a vapor that evaporates in an instant.
We chase after things of the world only to be faced with our own mortality.
The preacher lists our common pursuits: wisdom and knowledge (Eccl. 1:17); pleasure (Eccl. 2:1); houses and landscaping (Eccl. 2:4-6); possessions (Eccl. 2:7); and wealth (Eccl. 2:8). All of these vaporize in a moment and even those that appear to last are given to others at that point of our death (Eccl. 6:2). Whether righteous or wicked, we all die like the animals from dust to dust (Eccl. 3:19-20). We chase after all these things of the world hoping to find contentment only to be faced with our own mortality—our death that takes us from this life naked as we came into it (Eccl. 5:15). In fact, the wisdom of God poetically reminds us,
It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart. (Eccl. 7:2)
We are to lay to our heart that at some point all of us will face the death of this body; therefore, we should be content with what God has given us, especially the enjoyment of the food we eat, the liquids we drink, and the labor of our work. All of these are gifts from God to give us joy and happiness.
“Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”
Rather than striving after what doesn't last or merely becomes another’s after our passing, be satisfied with whatever God has provided to us. Don’t be lazy—don’t try to escape to a wilderness and demand God provide contentment. As God gives good gifts to us he often does so through the means of human labor—the work of a garden or farm, the patience that comes from waiting on the fruit of the vine, a fine wine, and the joy and satisfaction of serving others and the Lord through our vocations.
The preacher declares the end of the matter in Ecclesiastes 12:13:
Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
And what God commands is that we are to love God and love our neighbor (Deut. 6:5; Lev. 19:18, Matt. 22:36-40). We are to be content with the good gifts God gives to us while being careful not to anxiously strive after the wind, after the things that do not last. Rather, seek God through faith in his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, for only in him do we find the eternal contentment and joy in the life to come.
This article was originally published in Beautiful Christian Life’s June 2024 monthly newsletter, “Contentment.”
Prisonnières huguenotes à la Tour de Constance (salon de 1892); image from Wikimedia Commons.
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Editor’s note: This is part three of a BCL series on Marie Durand by pastor and author Campbell Markham. Campbell’s translations of Durand's letters are included at the end of each installment. Clickhere to read part oneandhere to read part two.
The memory of those rivers of blood…makes nature tremble. — Antoine Court, 1756
A boulder toppling into a stream may alter and direct its course ever after. In the same way, certain historical events have changed and channelled the culture and mindset of entire peoples for many centuries. You cannot understand the English apart from 1066, Gloriana, Waterloo, and the Blitz. You cannot understand an American apart from the Pilgrim Fathers, the War of Independence, Gettysburg, and Pearl Harbor. You cannot understand an Australian apart from the Endeavour, Burke and Wills, the Ashes, and Gallipoli.
Marie Durand’s eighteenth-century church community cannot be understood apart from the sixteenth-century French Religious Wars, the Saint Bartholomew’s Massacre of 1572, the Edict of Nantes in 1598, the Dragonnades, the Revocation in 1685, and the Camisard Rebellion of 1702–1704.
The “French Religious Wars” describes a series of eight civil wars fought out between 1562 and 1598. An estimated three million people perished, fifteen percent of the French population. Although the antagonists wore their inherited religious labels of “Protestant” or “Catholic,” social and political struggles were the true causes of these wars. A right devotion to the religion of the Bible—which brings reconciliation with God and our enemies—would have extinguished the flames of war.
French Protestants saw these wars as the necessary armed defense of their property and lives from Catholic aggression, of their right to live and worship as Protestants. French Protestant scholars agonized over God’s purposes in these violent struggles and what form resistance should take: whether to passively and patiently suffer persecution, whether to take up arms against tyranny, or whether to flee. This practical-theological struggle continued well into the eighteenth century and is manifest in a number of Marie Durand’s letters and the dreadful decisions that she was required to make.
The Fourth Religious War erupted from the Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, which commenced on August 24, 1572. This tragedy needs special mention because of the deep mark it left on both the Huguenot psyche and Catholic-Protestant relations for many generations. Certainly, its reverberations were felt by Marie Durand’s community in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Antoine Court, for example, the leader of the restoration of the Protestant church in France from 1715, wrote in 1756 about “the memory of those rivers of blood […] of that Saint Bartholomew’s Day, the thought alone of which makes nature tremble.” Louis Bourgeon, a specialist on the Massacre, wrote in 1987 how its scale and ferocity had left its mark well beyond the eighteenth century: “The history of Saint Bartholomew’s continues to this day to be the cause of a spirit of passion, conscious or not.”[1]
A number of causes underlay the tragedy. From 1560, three mutually hostile religio-political movements divided France: the Huguenots (French Protestants), moderate Catholics represented more or less by Catherine de’ Medici and her second son Charles IX (r. 1560–74), and the reactionary Catholic League associated with the house of Guise. Amplifying this hostility was the military threat of Protestant nations to the north of France, which had the potential to turn the Huguenots into a fifth column.
In August 1572, thousands of Protestants assembled in Paris for the marriage of Marguerite de Valois to the Protestant Henri III of Navarre. On August 22, Gaspard de Coligny (1519–1572), prominent Huguenot nobleman and Admiral of the French navy, was shot and wounded by a pro-Guise assassin. Coligny refused to leave Paris, putting Catherine and Charles in a bind. A Huguenot army stood to the north, and Protestants within the city threatened retaliation. Catholic Parisians, long antipathetic to the Huguenots, and perhaps fearing for the life of the King and the royal family, took up arms. Catherine and Charles agreed to a pre-emptive strike against Coligny and twenty to thirty Huguenot leaders.
The killing spiralled out of control, and some three thousand Huguenots were slain in Paris and tens of thousands in the provinces, including a thousand in Lyons, the so-called Vêpres lyonnaises. It was said that “the Seine ran red with blood”: the blood of murdered Protestant men, women, and children.
Pope Gregory XIII celebrated the butchery by having a special medal cast with the motto, Ugonottorum strages, “Slaughter of the Huguenots.” Many came to think that King Charles had personally joined in with the killing, shooting Huguenots from a first-floor window. Such memories, some real and some possibly not, have scarred the Huguenot mindset to this day.
The Saint Bartholomew’s massacre, decades of civil war, and deep cultural and religious aversion constituted the brittle context within which the throne descended upon the Protestant Henri Bourbon, King of Navarre from 1572, and sponsor of the Edict of Nantes.
The Edict of Nantes, so critical to Huguenot and European history, will be described in Part 4.
Marie Durand Letter 6 — to Anne Durand
[Written to her orphaned niece Anne, born 1729, after twenty-one years of imprisonment. It describes clothes that Marie had made for Anne and instructions about some complicated family finances. She assures Anne of her love.]
To Monsieur Chiron, at the Taconnerie, in Geneva,
to pass on, please, to Mademoiselle Durand,
in Onex, Geneva, with a package
The Tour de Constance, June 22, 1751
You are no doubt surprised, my darling daughter, that I have been so slow to reply to you. I wanted to sew you six blouses, and this was the cause of the delay. Be assured that I love you as much as if you were my own child, and so long as you are always very modest, you will find in me all the tenderness of a true mother. I have plans for you that you cannot imagine, and I hope, with the help of God, to make you happy one day. Pray to the Lord that he will bless and meet the needs of those who work for my freedom, and then I will bring you near to me. And I will do my utmost to ensure that you do not lack anything.
Your letter gave me great pleasure, for I feared that you no longer lived. The Lord returned you to full health; I am told. I give him thanks and pray that he will continue to do this for you.
You will receive six new blouses of white cloth, decorated with muslin. They are not elegant but will be useful. You will also receive a skirt of satin poplin, and a dress with two silk ribbons, two pairs of cotton stockings, and two woollen camisoles. If they fit you, let me know so that I can make you some more winter woollens. Moreover, you will receive a taffeta vest embroidered with silk lace. This is all I can say for the moment. Everything is folded in towelling and oil cloth, well packed.
I will give you, my darling child, all the help that I am able to give you. If I can retrieve some funds from my property, I assure you that it will only be for you, for I would not even withhold my heart to support you. But, my darling daughter, I must pay what is owed. I wait for God to provide these things.
I will make sure to order you a dress, a skirt and a vest, and stockings for winter. Tell me if what I have sent you fits; or if you would prefer things smaller, or whatever suits you. I will go without many things for this; but it doesn’t matter. I will do this for you, my darling child. I will also make sure to get you some blouses by what I earn from spinning.
I learned that you had sent to our lawyers the bill of exchange that you had with Rey. Urge them to pay you, to honour this bill. If you would like me to repay that which is owed you, I would give it to you with interest; and with your interest and whatever else I could add, this would relieve you. At the very least I would preserve your funds for you. But if you believe your relatives, you will get nothing of it, for I know that they are scarcely inclined to please you. Do not think that this is to pay my debts; I want only that they be paid from the sale of my goods. But I would like to preserve these funds for you, because with this sum and that which I could give you, I could set you up quite decently. While waiting, as I told you, for the interest, or as much as I can give you, the little pension or your little job could maintain you. As for me, I vow to you on my conscience that I do not want to profit from anything that is yours. After that, do as you like; but as I hope that God will deliver me, and if God gives me this grace, I will not leave you in a strange land. I would not want you to spend what is yours without benefit to yourself.
I have a favour to ask of you: to write to M. Peirot or to M. Blachon, to oblige M. Riou de Jarja to send me the receipt of the payment of a loan of four-hundred livres that my late father had borrowed in your favour. The said Riou only gave to your dear father one-hundred livres; and he wants me to pay him the full four hundred. He made it clear that the three-hundred livres will be for you. But you cannot trust in a conscience that you do not know; and this applies to Rey. Besides, he gave me very bad excuses, especially considering how badly this upset my affairs, because my debts would have been paid earlier if this had been settled. In which case I could have helped you sooner. So I plead with you to write to these lawyers to oblige that gentleman [Riou] to send me a receipt; that you claim nothing of this sum, and that you do not want anyone to make me repay anything that your dear father had not received. Plead with them again not to send a receipt in the name of the one who administers my goods, but only in my own name. I hope that you will give me this pleasure, and I swear to you on my conscience that you will have no cause to regret this, for I yearn only for you.
In reply, tell me how much it would cost for enough thread for a piece of lace, for something which will suit you. One of my friends, of great distinction, pleaded with me for this information. I will send you the money for the thread; and as for the style, she wanted to choose this for me; but I said that we had to know how much this would cost. We want to make quite fine lace, two fingers wide. Work out the cost and write it down for me. My friend produces good work, in my opinion; friends are always good.
Charge the bill for this letter to me, so that it doesn’t fall into your aunt’s hands, nor those of your uncle Brunel, so that you will not owe them a cent. As I told you, they are not by any means on your side, not even your grandmother. Do not repeat anything of what I tell you; do this for your own good; you only have me to support you. It will be better if I repay your grandmother, supposing they haven’t paid.
They tell me that you have married. I don’t believe this at all, and I will not advise you about this again. God will provide. Only be modest, and I will never abandon you. Be totally convinced of this my darling child, for my whole life I will make it my inviolable obligation to be your good and sincere aunt,
La Durand.
All my companions give you a thousand compliments. They pray for you with all their heart. Give my personal regards to all your friends. Your grandmother sends you her regards. She is very thin and is always the same. Reply as soon as you have received the package and pay attention to all that I have told you.
Don’t think that your grandmother cares a cent for you. She is very disgruntled but doesn’t act as if this were the case. Send her your regards, as you were accustomed to in whatever you write to me. And plead with her to insist that your uncle pay you. Make her really feel your misery. Tell her to return to me each […], whatever she can. Burn my letter.
[After twenty-two years of imprisonment. Marie offers to manage Anne’s finances, urges her to work hard, to be wise and godly, and not to rush into marriage.]
to Mademoiselle
Mademoiselle [Anne] Durand, at Onex, near Geneva
The Tour de Constance, April 27, 1752
The time must seem very long to you, my darling daughter, and no doubt you think that I have entirely forgotten you. But if that is the case, banish the thought. It does me a great injustice, for I would sooner forget myself. Know for certain that I have engraved you in the depths of my heart.
Always be very modest, my darling daughter. Let love for God, and fear of him, rule your conduct. Be assiduous in your work, for those who do not work must not eat, says Saint Paul. Besides, idleness is the mother of every vice.
I have not yet been able to do what I promised you, but with God’s help I will do it. For your sake I will deprive myself even of necessities.
About what is owed you, matters have been put right; they must give you a hundred pistoles. I spoke to your uncle Brunel; he says that if you would like him to, he will give me your money, and I will invest it for you, and you will receive the interest. If you agree with this plan you can be certain that I would not deprive you of a mite; on the contrary I will use what I have to help you more than I could help myself. If you judge this suitable, you can write to your uncle or to whomever you like; but at least take care not to do this badly. For since God wanted very much to favour you with this little inheritance do not lose it by your mistakes. In this way I leave you free to take account of whatever seems good to you, provided that it benefits you. Follow these instructions carefully.
Writing to you, I felt troubled by the thought that if I pay postage for these letters that they might not reach you. A woman promised to deliver this to you.
About the points you raised, I couldn’t yet order you the money. But if I can, believe me I will do it. Reply first with a receipt of my letter, for I ache to know your news. You can write to me by return post.
Your grandmother is still the same, she pays her compliments. All my poor companions kiss you. I repeat this to you again, my darling child: love virtue, be gentle, patient, and humble, genial to everyone you know. Moderate that vivacity which sometimes harms the body, and salvation. I swear to you that I will always love you more than myself. Pay full attention to all that I tell you.
Adieu, my darling child. I wish you stronger health with heaven’s gracious gifts and all kinds of favours; and I will never cease to have for you the same feelings of tenderness and friendship.
Your good and affectionate aunt,
La Durand.
Pay close attention to all that I say to you and send me your earliest reply. Let me know how you are going. You delighted me when you told me that you have no desire to marry. Always conduct yourself in this way. God will by his grace change the situation, and with his help we may yet be together.
[1] Jean-Louis Bourgeon, "Les Légendes ont la vie dure: à propos de la Saint-Barthélemy et de quelques livres récents," Revue d'histoire moderne et contemporaine (1954-) 34, no. 1 (1987): 102.
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What is a soul and what happens to the soul of a Christian upon physical death?
Upon death believers are immediately placed in the presence of their Savior.
In the Geneva Study Bible, theologians helpfully point out that
Each human being in this world consists of a material body animated by an immaterial personal self. Scripture calls this self a “soul” or “spirit.”[1]
Our souls will live forever, and believers’ souls will experience blessedness at their death. In Luke 23:42-43, we read:
And [the thief on the cross] said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
For Christians, the parting of the body and soul at death will immediately place them in the presence of Jesus Christ. The thief on the cross, Christian martyrs burned at the stake, and Christians succumbing to illness, old age, or sudden tragedy will instantly upon death have the comfort of being with their Savior. This comfort is so real and certain that the apostle Paul could write,
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.” (Phil. 1:21-23; see also 2 Cor. 5:8)
The believer’s body and soul will be reunited when Christ returns at the consummation.
The believer’s separation from the body is only temporary. The Heidelberg Catechism, first published in 1563, is a highly regarded summary of the Christian faith and has the following to say about the resurrection of the body:
Q. What comfort does the resurrection of the body offer you?
A. Not only shall my soul after this life immediately be taken up to Christ, my Head, but also this my flesh, raised by the power of Christ, shall be reunited with my soul and made like Christ’s glorious body. (Heidelberg Catechism, Q & A 57)
This world is uncertain, and the mode of leaving it is also hidden from us. We can rejoice, though, that our Savior Jesus Christ has in his resurrection defeated death and hell and thereby secured a place for us in heaven with him forever. He will welcome us into his loving arms the moment our eyes close in earthly death. Whether we live or die, he cares for us and will bring us through to himself.
Rejoice, therefore, that you have a steadfast loving Shepherd, Savior, and Lord who holds your life, body and soul, in his loving hands and waits to welcome you to himself.
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“Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked?” — Ecclesiastes 7:13
You may be wondering why God has allowed various afflictions in your life. In an introduction to eighteenth-century Scottish pastor and theologian Thomas Boston’s book The Crook in the Lot, J. I. Packer describes a “crook” this way:
But in Thomas Boston’s usage the crook is the crooked, that is the uncomfortable, discontenting aspects of a person’s life, the things that the Puritans called losses and crosses, and that we speak of as the stones in our shoe, the thorns in our bed, the burrs under the saddle, and the complaints we have to live with; and the lot is the providentially appointed path that God sets each of his servants to travel. (Thomas Boston, The Crook in the Lot: Living with That Thorn in Your Side, pp. 7-8)
It is helpful to consider God’s purposes in your adversities so that you can respond in a manner that brings glory to him. Here are seven reasons according to Boston why God makes a “crook” in a person’s lot, along with related Bible passages:
1. The trial of one's state, whether or not one is in the state of grace.
Even though we know from reading the book of Job that God allowed Satan to tempt Job to curse God through all the calamities Job faced, including the loss of his children, his wealth, and even his health, Job was not privy to that knowledge:
And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” (Job 1:8-11; see also 1 Pet. 4:12)
2. The excitation to duty, weaning one from this world, and prompting him to look after the happiness of the other world.
The apostle Paul, once a persecutor of Christians, came to a place in his life where he knew it was better to be with the Lord when his work in this world was finished:
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. (Phil 1:21-24)
3. The conviction of sin.
Joseph’s brothers were convicted of the sin they thought had been hidden for years when coming before the governor of Egypt (Joseph, although unbeknownst to them) to buy grain because of the famine.
Then they [Joseph’s brothers] said to one another, “In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” (Gen. 42:21)
4. The correction, or punishment, for sin.
While God forgave the repentant David for his sins of adultery and murder, David still faced consequences for his actions.
“Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.” (2 Sam. 12:9-10)
5. The prevention of sin.
Joseph had cause to be prideful when he was young because his father favored him, and dreams indicated that his brothers would bow down to him (Gen. 37:1-11). Although his years spent as a slave and a prisoner were great trials for Joseph (Gen. 39-40), he learned humility of spirit during that time, which would be needed for the work the Lord had for him to save God’s people from the famine to come. After Joseph asked Pharaoh’s chief cup bearer to speak to the ruler about his unjust imprisonment, he still remained in prison for two more years:
“In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office, and you shall place Pharaoh's cup in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer. Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house. For I was indeed stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the pit”….Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him. (Gen.40:13-15; 23)
6. The discovery of latent corruption, whether in saints or sinners, for the due humiliation of sinners.
Even Moses, who spoke with God face-to-face, failed to obey perfectly. After Moses struck the rock at Meribah to bring forth water instead of speaking to it as God commanded him to do, God did not allow Moses or Aaron to enter the promised land (Num. 20:7-11):
And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” (Num. 20:12).
7. The exercise of grace in the children of God.
Paul had a crook in his lot that he asked the Lord to take away, but God refused in order to show the power of Christ in Paul’s weakness:
So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Cor. 12:7-9)
Christians do not need to fear the “crooks” God allows in their lives but can instead rest in God’s faithfulness. Boston reminds us to keep our focus on God’s grace, even in our suffering:
The truth is, the crook in the lot is the great engine of Providence for making men appear in their true colours, discovering both their ill and their good. And if the grace of God is in them, it will bring it out, and cause it to display itself. It so puts the Christian to his shifts, that however it makes him stagger for awhile, yet it will at length evidence both the reality and the strength of grace in him.
While we will not always know why God has made a crook in our lot, we can always trust that he is using it for good and his glory in the lives of his beloved children.
This article was originally published on June 4, 2019.
