wordofgod

Thursday, November 9, 2023

How Do Christians in the Military Love Their Enemies and Do Good to Them?

Normandy Invasion, June 1944; Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching "Omaha" Beach on "D-Day", 6 June 1944. Photograph from the Army Signal Corps Collection in the U.S. National Archives via Wikimedia Commons.

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Daniel Rowlands served more than two decades in the United States Army as a helicopter and airplane pilot. He holds Master of Arts degrees in Biblical Studies and Theological Studies from Westminster Seminary California.

In response to the article “Christians and the Military,” the following comment was submitted by a Beautiful Christian Life reader:

I just read the article written today by Daniel Rowlands entitled “Christians and the Military.” I notice that there was no mention or comment about some of the most pertinent verses in the New Testament, Matthew 5:43-46, wherein Jesus himself commands us to love our enemies and do good to them. I would really appreciate Daniel’s perspective on this. Thank you very much. God Bless!

Dear Reader,

Surely this is an important topic since there are so many Christians serving in military forces around the world. As you correctly point out, Christians are called to love our enemies and to do good to them, even as God loved us while we were his enemies (Rom. 5:8-10). God is compassionate, merciful, and loving toward us.

God’s moral law that teaches us not to kill also carries with it the value of human life.

On the other hand, God is also just—the perfectly righteous judge. He has appointed government authorities as the means of carrying out his justice in this fallen world (e.g., Rom. 13:4). God’s moral law that teaches us not to kill also carries with it the value of human life. It includes the loving command to protect people from others who want to injure or kill them—to place a high value on all human life, even the lives of our enemies who are made in the likeness of God (James 3:9).

Love means protecting the defenseless. God teaches that life is his gift. He commands us to preserve not only our own lives but also the lives of others, and he has appointed government authorities in part for this purpose by means of just defense (e.g., Prov. 24:11). As I pointed out in my article, military forces established by God’s appointed authorities are legitimate.

Nowhere in Scripture does God command soldiers who are Christians to give up being soldiers.

Yet, the issue you raise seems to be related more to the question of Christians serving in the military, since Christians are called to love their enemies. First, as I pointed out in the article, nowhere in Scripture does God command soldiers who are Christians to give up being soldiers—in fact, on a few occasions our Lord commends them.

If serving in the military is antithetical to being a Christian, surely Christ Jesus would not have commended them. But how can the two be reconciled? How can loving one’s enemies be reconciled with being a soldier with the mission to kill an enemy?

It is loving to protect and defend the defenseless, and it is also loving to protect a wicked person from killing others.

As far as the command to love one’s enemies, it would be unloving to show favor toward an evil enemy against the defenseless by failing to protect those who do not have the means to protect themselves. Love also means coming to the aid of others. In other words, under the rule to love one’s enemies, would it be loving to permit an enemy to murder a defenseless person? It would not.

In fact, it is loving to protect and defend the defenseless, and it is also loving to protect a wicked person, an enemy if you will, from killing others—to bring that person to the point where they lay down their arms and give up their own evil ends. Thus, God has appointed and legitimized government authorities for this purpose; it is loving to defend the defenseless and the evil person from carrying out wickedness.

Christians are not to take justice into their own hands.

What a Christian is not to do is to take justice into their own hands. As Christians in Christ’s church, our sword is the word of God. Only legitimately appointed government authorities (Rom. 13:1-8) are agents of God’s justice, not individuals alone and not the church.

In sum, the whole counsel of God teaches us that military authority is legitimate, that Christians may serve in such military forces, and that loving our enemies does not mean to be unloving to the defenseless. In God’s wisdom he has provided the means for restraining evil and carrying out his justice in this fallen and sinful world. Of course, because we are all fallen and sinful, we are far from perfect; but God is good, and he will even use the evil acts of others to bring about his good ends.

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Wednesday, November 8, 2023

The Art of Sermon Illustrations

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.

Sermon illustrations are one of the most challenging aspects of preaching, in my opinion. I haven’t done a survey of preaching professors or textbooks, but I suspect that they would all say that preachers should employ good illustrations to help the congregation grasp the point you’re making in your sermon.

Well-meaning sermon illustrations can easily fall short in a variety of ways.

As important as illustrations are, there are many pitfalls related to the pursuit of the perfect illustration:

The personal story illustration. Personal stories can be effective illustrations, but they can also be counterproductive. I was seated in a congregation as I listened to the preacher open his message only to hear a member of the church sigh. I later asked this person why he did this and he told me, “I don’t like the fact that I have to sit through a ten minute story about the preacher’s personal life before I get to hear about the text of the sermon.”

The overly successful illustration. Preachers sit in their studies and meditate upon the text, and then, like a bolt of lightening, it hits them—they think of the perfect illustration. They use it that Sunday and the only problem is that it’s the only thing people remember about the sermon. The congregants remember every detail about the illustration but fail to remember the sermon or how it relates to the sermon.

The pointless illustration. Sometimes preachers employ an illustration, and, in and by itself, it seems to be fine. Yet, in reality it doesn’t really fit the message. It’s like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.

The funny illustration. Humor in a sermon is best used strategically and sparingly. For example, humor can be useful at times to give the congregation a much-needed emotional break from an intense subject. On the other hand, if you get the congregation rolling in the aisles, you may have distracted them from the text and it may be too difficult to reconnect them to it given their laughter.

The absent illustration. It could be that some preachers just plow through the text and never employ an illustration of any kind. We learn all about the intricacies of first-century dress and headwear but have no earthly idea how it bears upon twenty-first century life.

The illustration as the sermon. Some illustrations are so elaborate that they engulf the entire message. The preacher gives the equivalent of a parable but never explains its meaning or connection to the text.

The family illustration. You may think it’s ok to tell your congregation about your family’s faults and foibles, or brag about their skills and accomplishments, but exercise caution. Check first with your family before you talk about them in the pulpit—maybe they’d prefer to remain unmentioned. And as proud as you are of your family, perhaps it’s best not to brag about them from the pulpit.

The friend illustration. I tell my friends never to hang around pastors because sooner than later they’d end up as a sermon illustration. Because you went mountain bike riding with someone in your church and they lost their lunch after climbing a big hill (true story) doesn’t mean that you should mention them in Sunday’s sermon.

Preachers need to exercise much wisdom in employing sermon illustrations.

These are but a few examples of different sermon illustration pitfalls. But just because there are pitfalls doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use them. By all means, illustrate your message but do so wisely. Be cautious about telling personal stories. Does your congregation have to listen to your life’s story? Do they know more about you through your preaching than they do about Jesus?

Meditate and pray over your sermon text so that the Spirit would assist you in developing effective illustrations. The best illustrations are virtually transparent—the auditor hears and understands the illustration but it fits like the glove on a hand—the hand still has mobility and function and isn’t hampered by the glove.

Some of the best sermon illustrations are those that are connected to nature and common life.

Illustrate your message with stories from the rest of the Scriptures. Not only does this amplify the truth of your message, it reminds or teaches people about other portions of the Bible. Since you’re dealing with inspired narratives, you’re guaranteed to highlight rather than obscure the truth if you handle the text responsibly. As I said above, read broadly. Read the news, read novels, read history, read good fiction. This will expose you to a treasury of illustration material.

Keep an illustration journal if you need to—write down good illustrations for use later on. I also think some of the best illustrations are those that are connected to nature and common life. If you talk about unique experiences that few know, then you’re likely to put distance between your congregation and the text. But if you employ illustrations that most can identify with, then you’ll bring them closer to the text.

Tuesday, November 7, 2023

Trusting and Asking Our Father to Provide

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We are often tempted to set asking and trusting against each other, but of course it is a false choice. When a child asks his dad for breakfast, he trusts that his father can provide. It does not occur to him to sit and wait and think, “If my dad really loved me, I would not have to ask him for breakfast. He would just do it.” We adults do that to other adults frequently, but we should take a lesson from a child.

All creatures look to God as their provider.

Psalm 104 celebrates the Lord’s marvelous provision. Yahweh’s trees, the cedars of Lebanon, are watered abundantly (v. 16). The Lord provides for a wide variety of creatures (from stork to rock badger; vv. 16–18). He makes the moon to shine at night and the sun in the day (v. 19). As part of God’s perfect, all-wise providence, “Man goes out to his work and to his labor until the evening” (v. 23). All creatures look to God the Creator as their provider:

These all look to you,
    to give them their food in due season.
When you give it to them, they gather it up;
    when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
    when you take away their breath, they die
    and return to their dust.
When you send forth your Spirit, they are created,
    and you renew the face of the ground. (Ps. 104:27–30)

Now the animals to which the psalmist refers do not pray, but they, like us, are dependent upon God. When he gives life, they live. When he withdraws his support, they (and we) die and return to the dust from which we were taken. We are image bearers formed from the dust of the earth, animated by the Lord.

We are to ask our heavenly Father for all our needs.

Unlike the other creatures, as image bearers we were made to be in communion with God the Father, in Christ the Son, through the Spirit. As his adopted sons, we are to ask him for all our needs. Thus, we confess:

125. Q. What is the fourth petition?

A. “Give us this day our daily bread,” that is: Be pleased to provide for all our bodily need, so that we may thereby acknowledge you to be the only fountain of all good, and that without Your blessing neither our care and labor, nor Your gifts can profit us; that we may therefore withdraw our trust from all creatures and place it alone in you. (Heidelberg Catechism)

God is both the immutable Father of lights, from whom every good and perfect gift comes (James 1:17), and the God who hears our prayers. Too often we are more like the rock badger (Ps. 104:18) than we are like adopted sons for Christ’s sake. The psalmist, however, says:

Yahweh is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them. (Ps. 145:18–19)

When we call out to God our Father to meet our needs, we call on him in faith, in trust and confidence for Christ’s sake that he hears our prayers and is, as is often said, “more willing to hear than we are to pray.” Sometimes we think that our material needs are beneath God’s attention. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is a lie of the Evil One to think this way, because our physical, material, and bodily needs (note: we are talking about needs not desires) are basic and they persist.

We call on him in faith, in trust and confidence for Christ’s sake that he hears our prayers.

If we stop looking to God, our needs are not going away. We will, we shall, look to someone or something. That one or thing is necessarily an idol. To refuse to look to our heavenly Father for our needs is a quick route to idolatry.

This is one reason why our Lord taught us:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matt. 7:7–10)

Observe the imperatives: “ask” (αἰτεῖτε), “seek” (ζητεῖτε), “knock” (κρούετε). Our Lord did not juxtapose trusting with asking. Asking is an expression of trusting. We do not ask those whom we do not trust. Refusing to ask is an act of unbelief. Imagine that you do not trust your co-worker. How do you relate to her? Do you confide in her? No. Do you ask her to help you with a project? No. Why not? Because you do not trust her. You fear that she will betray your confidence, that she will take your request for help as a sign of weakness on which she might capitalize. Asking is trusting.

“In him we live and move and have our being.”

To whom should we go but God? Who else can meet our needs? The apostle Paul prosecuted the pagans at Mars Hill for their blindness in calling upon gods who could neither hear nor speak to meet their needs. He remonstrated with them about the God who is, whom they knew by nature, whom they knew naturally and intuitively (though not savingly apart from God’s special, sovereign, regenerating grace):

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, “In him we live and move and have our being”; as even some of your own poets have said, “For we are indeed his offspring.” (Acts 17:24–28)

We know that Paul was referring to the universal, natural knowledge of God because he quotes not one but two pagan writers, most likely Epimenides of Crete (6th or 7th century BC), whom Paul also quoted in Titus 1:12 (“All Cretans are liars, evil beasts, and gluttons”). He also quoted a Greek poet from the 4th century BC. In other words, he takes these truths as self-evident to sane, rational people. In other words, these truths are so basic that one need not be regenerate to see them as true. To be sure, to appreciate them fully, as they should be appreciated, to believe them truly, one must be regenerated, but Paul was preaching the law to pagans from pagan writers.

Only God is capable of hearing our prayers.

That is how foolish it is to seek our daily well-being anywhere else and from anyone other than the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our friends tire. Our family disappoints. Only God is immutably faithful. Only God is omnipotent. Only God is omnipresent and immense. Only God is always nearby. Only in him do we live and move and have our being. Only he is capable of hearing our prayers. Only he never tires of hearing from us. Only he is able to help us.

Finally, did you notice in Psalm 104 (above) that one of the ways the Lord answers our prayers is work? We should not think that work is outside the Lord’s providence. No. Steady, gainful work, fulfilling our vocation before the Lord, is one of the ways the Lord provides. We pray for work, and then, by God’s grace, we go and do it. Through that provision and process he answers our prayers.

We are not praying for food, clothing, and other necessities to drop out of the sky. Sometimes the Lord does provide in unusual and marvelous ways, but that is why we distinguish between the ordinary and the extraordinary providence of God. We have no promise from God (whatever the quasi-pagan health and wealth preachers may say) that he will cause necessities to drop out of the sky. We do have a promise that he will use means, and work is one of those means.

Was Paul unbelieving when he said, “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” (2 Thess. 3:10)? Not at all. We are unbelieving when we treat God like a cosmic slot machine or as if we had to manipulate him to get what we want. The Lord uses means such as prayer and work to accomplish his purposes. Like believing children we trust him enough to ask for what we need, and as believing adults, we make use of the means he provides in answer to godly prayers.

Common Grace vs. Special Grace — What’s the Difference?

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In his common grace, God provides many blessings for his creation, including food and shelter, sunshine and rain, the restraining of evil, and countless innovations and advancements. Special grace, which we find in God’s covenant of grace, is limited to those who trust in Christ alone through faith alone.

While both covenants are gracious, one is common in its administration and the other is special.

By contrasting the Noahic covenant (Genesis 9) with the covenant of grace (Genesis to Revelation), we recognize three key differences between each covenant:

The Noahic covenant is universal, whereas the covenant of grace is particular.
The Noahic covenant is temporary, whereas the covenant of grace is eternal.
The Noahic covenant is preservative, whereas the covenant of grace is redemptive.

In his redemptive plan, God instituted the Noahic covenant (“common grace”) to preserve the earth.

In the Noahic covenant, God made a promise to Noah to never again bring a flood to destroy the earth (Gen. 9:1–17). God instituted the Noahic covenant as a covenant of common grace to preserve the earth so that humans wouldn’t destroy each other and the Savior, Jesus Christ, could come at the appointed time in God’s redemptive plan:

“Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your offspring after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark; it is for every beast of the earth. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” (Gen. 9:9-11)

Theologian Louis Berkof points us to the helpful teaching of sixteenth-century Protestant reformer John Calvin regarding the universality of common grace:

This is a grace which is communal, does not pardon nor purify human nature, and does not effect the salvation of sinners. It curbs the destructive power of sin, maintains in a measure the moral order of the universe, thus making an orderly life possible, distributes in varying degrees gifts and talents among men, promotes the development of science and art, and showers untold blessings upon the children of men. (Berkof, Systematic Theology, Part IV:III)

God’s common grace is given to all, and we can take heart that God will continue to sustain creation until Christ’s return when all believers shall live with their Savior in glory for eternity.

The covenant of grace (“special grace”) is first mentioned in Genesis 3:15.

We find the first mention of the covenant of grace in Genesis 3:15 where God promises a savior to come who will crush the serpent’s head and conquer Satan, sin, and death forever.

“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)

The relationship that existed between God and Adam had a condition placed upon it, which was Adam’s obedience. The reward for obedience was life, and the consequence for disobedience was death. Adam represented all of humanity in this covenant (Rom. 5:12, 17-19).

The serpent, a fallen angel also called the devil, wanted the glory for himself (Isa. 14:12-15; Matt. 4:8-10; Luke 4:5-8). He enticed Adam and his wife Eve to disobey God by eating the only forbidden fruit in the entire garden, falsely claiming that the fruit would make them “like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:4-5).

There would be no covenant of grace without Christ, the mediator of the covenant.

Because of Adam’s disobedience and fall, all people bear Adam’s guilt, because Adam represented all humanity. Furthermore, Adam’s sin caused the corruption of his nature, and all his posterity—including you and me—now bear that same sinful nature.

Humans are utterly unable to keep God’s law perfectly because of their fallen state in Adam. Without the God-man, Jesus Christ, who was born in the flesh and kept God’s law perfectly and was the once-for-all sacrifice for sin, we would have no hope. Jesus is the mediator of the covenant of grace between God and humans, in which the righteousness of Christ is counted to them and eternal life is theirs, and this is all God’s gift.

As Michael G. Brown and Zach Keele write in Sacred Bond: Covenant Theology Explored,

The covenant of grace tells God’s story of redemption; it traces the unfolding drama from Genesis to Revelation. It shows us that the Bible is actually one book with one story, told on the stage of real human history. (p. 70)

One day the Noahic covenant will come to an end, but the covenant of grace is everlasting.

Even now God continues to uphold the Noahic covenant for us as he patiently waits for all God’s people to come to repentance. In the new heaven and new earth, there will no longer be a need for the Noahic covenant. Yet, the covenant of grace is God’s everlasting, unconditional, redemptive promise that all who are in Christ have been born again to new life by the Spirit. They are secure in their adopted status as God’s children and will enjoy their Savior for all eternity.

This article has been updated since its original publishing date of September 10, 2019.

Sunday, November 5, 2023

Q&A: 7 Aspects of the Nature of Marriage According to the Bible

We have received a lot of questions on the Beautiful Christian Life Facebook page regarding what constitutes a legitimate marriage in God’s sight. Here are seven questions and answers on the topic of the nature of marriage according to the Bible:

1. Can people be married in their hearts?

Nowhere in the Bible does it state that a true marriage exists where people agree in their hearts that they are husband and wife. In the Bible there is always a legal aspect to marriage. This is why a certificate of divorce had to be issued if the marriage was dissolved under the Mosaic covenant (Deut. 24:1-4; Matt. 19:7-8) and why Joseph was going to quietly divorce Mary after he learned she was pregnant, as there was a marriage contract in force even though their marriage had not been consummated yet:

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. (Matt. 1:18-19)

Waiting for a period of time between the signing of the marriage contract and the actual consummation of the marriage was common practice during the time of Joseph and Mary’s betrothal. In his book Backgrounds in Early Christianity, church historian Everett Ferguson writes the following about Jewish marriage in the first century:

The marriage was a contract between families. It was effected in two stages: the betrothal (or ‘acquisition’ of the bride) and the wedding proper (taking the bride into the husband’s home). The betrothal had the legal force of marriage and could be broken only by divorce (cf. Matt 1:18-19).” It was accomplished by the bridegroom paying the bride-price (or part of it) or delivering a deed. The customary written contract (ketubah) included the husband’s duties to his wife and the sum due her in the event of a divorce or his death” (p. 74).

The bride in all her special adornments was joyfully escorted to the groom’s house for the wedding ceremony. Along with the pronouncement of seven blessings, the marriage contract was read at the ceremony, which took place under a canopy (huppah). The wedding was then celebrated for seven days (Ferguson, p. 74).

2. Why do we have to sign a piece of paper to make a marriage legal?

People wonder why a man and woman have to sign a document in order to be married. In the Ancient Near East, in which biblical history took place, a written document was commonly associated with covenants. According to Ligonier Ministries,

The signing of a piece of paper is not a matter of affixing one’s signature in ink to a meaningless document. The signing of a marriage certificate is an integral part of what the Bible calls a covenant. Biblically, there is no such thing as a private marriage contract between two people. A covenant is done publicly before witnesses and with formal legal commitments that are taken seriously by the community. The protection of both partners is at stake; there is legal recourse should one of the partners act in a way that is destructive to the other. (“God’s Will and Your Marriage,” part 1)

Christians are called to obey governing authorities. If there are laws regarding marriage in the country where a Christian man and woman reside who are seeking to marry, they need to obey them as long as they are not disobeying God in doing so:

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. (Rom. 13:1-2)

3. Does having sex with someone equal marriage (the “two become one flesh” passages)?

Some people think that two people are married if they have had sexual intercourse with each other based on the two-become-one flesh passages:

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” (Gen. 2:24)

Having sex with someone, however, does not equal marriage. Because it was common practice in the Ancient Near East to have a formal marriage contract in force before the consummation of the marriage, in Genesis 29 it is likely that Laban tricked Jacob by putting Leah’s name in the contract rather than Rachel's:

Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went in to her.(Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” (Gen. 29:21-25)

Additionally, Tamar slept with Judah and got pregnant (Gen. 38), but it was never a marriage. Judah had wrongly denied Tamar her right as was required in the Levirate marriage laws of the time to seek to bear children for her deceased husband through her husband's brother:

“If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband’s brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her. And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel.” (Deut. 25:5-6)

It is important to note that the Levirate marriage laws are no longer in force today as the Mosaic covenant, with its related civil and ceremonial laws, has been abrogated by the death and resurrection of Christ. Christians now live in the new covenant era.

4. Does a Christian couple need to be married by a minister?

A Christian marriage is a covenant in which promises are made in God's name, and God is the witness to seal the oath and judge if the oath is broken. The marriage covenant is between the man and woman, and God is the witness. The minister is the officiant of the ceremony. What constitutes a legal marriage differs from culture to culture. In the Old Testament, priests had no role in marriages.

While the Bible does not state that a pastor must be an officiant of a wedding to validate a marriage, this is the custom in the church today. Yet, there is no requirement that a Christian must have a church wedding. Marriage is officially a common institution. A justice of the peace or equivalent is fine.

5. Why didn’t Adam and Eve have a marriage license or formal wedding ceremony?

The marriage of Adam and Eve was unique because they were the only two living people at the time. Marriage ceremonies became necessary once there was a community of people. God was both the officiant and the witness in the marriage of Adam and Eve:

And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. (Gen. 2:22-25)

There now exists a civil realm in which God has appointed leaders, and the civil realm usually enacts laws regarding marriage, which Christians are called to obey (Rom. 13:1-2).

6. How does the relational nature of earthly marriage point us to Christ?

Some Christians think that the biblical teaching about the church being the bride of Christ is an analogy of earthly marriage; yet, it is actually the other way around. According to theologian J. V. Fesko, it is earthly marriage that points us to a far greater relationship:

Marriage is the union between a man and a woman where the two individuals become one flesh as the apostle Paul tells us in the fifth chapter of Ephesians. The marital union, however, is a relationship that points to the greater relationship between Christ and the church….Union with Christ is also called mystical because as A. A. Hodge explains, “It so far transcends all the analogies of earthly relationships, in the intimacy of its communion, in the transforming power of its influence, and in the excellence of its consequences.” (J. V. Fesko, “A More Perfect Union?” Modern Reformation, May 2, 2007)

The special union a married couple has with each other is an earthly, temporal representation of the surpassing intimacy and love all believers have in their eternal union with Christ.

7. How does the legal nature of earthly marriage point us to Christ?

The legal nature of earthly marriage, while dissoluble due to sin, is meant to exist until death parts a couple. Legality also implies consequences for failure, such as we find in the Old Testament where Hosea’s marriage to the prostitute Gomer was a warning to Israel not to play the harlot with the Lord and instead return to him and be faithful. If Christ were not faithful to his bride, the church, he would be liable to judgment, which is impossible (Heb. 6:13; 2 Tim. 2:13). The union between Christ and the church is indissoluble—believers are beloved by Christ and forever belong to him:

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. (Eph. 5:25-28)

Just as the legal aspect of marriage provides security for both spouses and any children from their union, so does God’s justification of all who are in Christ provide security for believers that their salvation is secure, grounded in Christ’s finished work on their behalf. And all this is because of God’s unfathomable love for the world.

Thursday, November 2, 2023

8 Attributes of God We Encounter at the Cross

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.

How can God be loving if he sent his Son to die on a cross for the sins of others? Why couldn’t he just forgive everyone instead of putting his Son through all that suffering? The answer is that God can never deny himself; therefore, he must uphold all of his attributes. And we find no clearer evidence of this than at the cross.

Because he is spirit, God is always purely all of his attributes in complete perfection and unity. It is impossible for God’s mercy to override his justice. His holiness never conflicts with his love. Here are eight attributes of God we encounter at the cross, along with related Scripture passages and helpful quotes from respected theologians:

1. We encounter the holiness of God at the cross.

R. C. Sproul, The Holiness of God, p. 38: “When the Bible calls God holy, it means primarily that God is transcendentally separate. He is so far above and beyond us that He seems almost totally foreign to us. To be holy is to be ‘other,’ to be different in a special way.”

Related Bible Verses:

And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” (Isa. 6:3)

“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” (Mark 1:25)

For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. (Heb. 7:26)

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. (1 Pet. 2:9)

2. We encounter the righteousness of God at the cross.

Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 74: “The fundamental idea of righteousness is that of strict adherence to the law. Among men it presupposes that there is a law to which they must conform…. [and] though there is no law above God, there is certainly a law in the very nature of God, and this is the highest possible standard, by which all other laws are judged.”

Related Bible Verses:

God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day. (Ps. 7:11)

For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face. (Ps. 11:7)

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matt. 6:33)

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (Rom. 3:23-25)

3. We encounter the justice of God at the cross.

John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II.17.4: “It is especially worth-while to ponder the analogy set forth by Paul: ‘Christ…became a curse for us,’ etc. [Gal. 3:13]. It was superfluous, even absurd, for Christ to be burdened with a curse, unless it was to acquire righteousness for others by paying what they owed. Isaiah’s testimony is also clear: ‘The chastisement of our peace was laid upon Christ, and with his stripes healing has come to us’ [Isa. 53:5]. For unless Christ had made satisfaction for our sins, it would not have been said that he appeased God by taking upon himself the penalty to which we were subject.”

Related Bible Verses:

Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him;

    he has put him to grief;

when his soul makes an offering for guilt,

    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;

the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied;

by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,

    make many to be accounted righteous. (Isa. 53:10-11)

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. (Gal. 6:7)

And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. (Col. 2:13-14)

Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. (Heb. 2:17)

4. We encounter the goodness of God at the cross.

Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics: God and Creation, Vol. 2, p. 211: “But whatever virtue Scripture ascribes to God, it always presupposes that that virtue is his in an absolute sense. Knowledge, wisdom, power, love, and righteousness are uniquely his, that is, in a divine manner. His goodness, accordingly, is one with his absolute perfection.”

Related Bible Verses:

Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind! (Ps. 31:19)

You are good and do good; teach me your statutes. (Ps. 119:68)

The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. (Nah. 1:7)

And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” (Mark 10:18)

5. We encounter the wrath of God at the cross.

A. W. Pink, The Attributes of God, p. 75: “A study of the concordance will show that there are more references in Scripture to the anger, fury, and wrath of God, than there are to His love and tenderness.”

Related Bible Verses:

The Lord is a jealous and avenging God;

the Lord is avenging and wrathful;

the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries

and keeps wrath for his enemies. (Nah. 1:2)

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit. (1 Pet. 3:18)

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. (Rom. 1:18)

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Rom. 12:19)

6. We encounter the mercy of God at the cross.

Charles Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, August 17: “…deserved mercy is only a misnomer for justice. There was no right on the sinner’s part to the kind consideration of the Most High; had the rebel been doomed at once to eternal fire he would have richly merited the doom, and if delivered from wrath, sovereign love alone has found a cause, for there was none in the sinner himself.”

Related Bible Verses:

“Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36)

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 Cor. 5:21)

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved. (Eph. 2:4-5)

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Heb. 4:16)

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (1 Pet. 2:24)

7. We encounter the love of God at the cross.

John Murray, Redemption Accomplished and Applied, p. 27: “The propitiation of the divine wrath, effected in the expiatory work of Christ, is the provision of God’s eternal and unchangeable love, so that through the propitiation of his own wrath that love may realize its purpose in a way that is consonant with and to the glory of the dictates of his own holiness.”

Related Bible Verses:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:16-17)

“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Rom. 5:8)

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (1 John 4:10)

8. We encounter the simplicity of God at the cross.

Michael Horton, The Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the Way, p. 229: “Simplicity reminds us that God is never self-conflicted. In God’s eternal decree, even in the most obvious example of possible inner conflict (namely, the cross), justice and mercy, righteous wrath and gracious love, embrace…. At the place where the outpouring of his wrath is concentrated, so too is his love.”

Related Bible Verses:

Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations. (Deut. 7:9)

Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him. (Isa. 30:18)

It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Rom. 3:26)

That is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. (2 Cor. 5:19)

If we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself. (2 Tim. 2:13)

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

The Danger of Drifting Away from Jesus

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.

All day long we hear voices telling us that the problems of this world are the most important issues of life. We listen to those voices. The consequence is that we are distracted from the most important issues to which the Bible calls us to give our attention.

In the book of Hebrews, many of these early Christians were facing great persecution and were contemplating apostatizing back to Judaism as the solution. The author is deeply concerned about this problem and is making clear the importance of receiving God’s redemptive revelation that is being spoken through Jesus, a revelation far superior to that of the angels.

The heart of the concern of the author of Hebrews is the danger of drifting away from Jesus’ voice.

It is from heaven that the Son of God is speaking to us in an intimate way through the ministry of the gospel, giving us everything that is needed for us to persevere through this life. But the author of Hebrews, after explaining the superiority of Jesus to the angels and as seated at the right hand of God, now gives a sobering warning:

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? (Heb. 2:1-3)

Some people are concerned that these warning passages in Hebrews, if left alone, will undermine the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. The Scriptures are clear, salvation cannot be lost. All those given to the Son by Father have eternal life, and nothing can take that free gift away. But the effect of these warnings is often lost when we immediately explain them away in fear of insinuating that salvation can be lost. These warnings are not in conflict with God’s preserving power in the believer’s life; in fact, they are precisely one of the means he uses to preserve his sheep.

The pathway to apostasy begins with drifting.

Within any church community, there are those drifting, and God wants everyone to take seriously the call not to drift from the voice of Jesus.

The description of drifting would have been familiar to the audience as the author uses a nautical metaphor to help them. When a ship entered a harbor, everyone knew that a captain had to be extremely well disciplined and trained to bring the ship to the port. Perception can be disorienting in large bodies of water. A boat can drift off course quickly and without recognition. With this metaphor in mind, the author applies the concern to the spiritual state of Christians.

The pathway to apostasy, which was happening among these early Christians, begins with drifting. Drifting is not something one actively does; it is something that passively happens because of what one is not doing.

The vitality of the Christian life is centered on one’s connection to the Word of God.

As one pastor observed, drifting results through “a failure to keep a firm grip on the truth, through carelessness and a lack of concern.” We are called to “pay the most careful attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away.” God calls us to the great responsibility of being disciplined to listen carefully to his Word. The vitality of the Christian life is centered on one’s connection to the Word of God.

“Drifting is not something one actively does, it is something that passively happens because of what one is not doing.”

A lot of people listen to sermons, but it doesn’t mean they have heard them. The truth of the Word has to be taken into the heart and believed. It is through the voice of Jesus, in his Word, that we have power, strength, and help to keep us from drifting in the Christian life.

We drift when we refuse to hear God’s Word on Sunday, giving it no real place in our lives.

As Jesus said in the parable of the sower, the cares of this life and the deceitfulness of riches can choke the word so that there is no growth. He also said that some, due to hardship and persecution because of the Word, walk away from it all. Drifting occurs when we are careless with God’s Word, not internalizing and believing what’s being said to us. We drift when we refuse to hear God’s Word on Sunday, giving it no real place in our lives.

On the author’s mind is the lesson that we should learn from Israel. The center psalm of the entire Psalter is Psalm 81. Here the author rehearses Israel’s greatest failure:

“O Israel, if you would but listen to me!… But my people did not listen to my voice, Israel would not submit to me.” (Ps. 81:8ff)

If the new covenant people who have received a superior voice of revelation in the voice of Jesus himself, will not listen to him, the author draws the appropriate conclusion: “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Heb. 2:2)

The evidence of someone who is persevering, by grace, has to do with how the Word is being heard. As Jesus said, “if you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed.” (John 8:31)

Staying on course requires giving our hearts to hear Jesus speak to us.

What is pulling us away from listening to the voice of Jesus to drift? Politics? The cares of this life? Riches? The popular philosophies of the age? What sin is easily ensnaring you? Drifting away from Jesus doesn’t require any effort, but staying on course requires giving our hearts to hear Jesus speak to us.

“Pay attention” (προσέχειν) was a word used in early Greek to mean to hold course by securing your anchor. Jesus’ voice in his Word should anchor us. We should be a centered people in Christ’s Word. No wind, storm, or fear can drift us away when we are anchored by the voice of Jesus.

If you witnessed your son in a boat drifting toward a huge waterfall that he didn’t know was behind him, wouldn’t you as a father call to him, throw out a the line, and anchor him? Wouldn’t you care enough to say, “Son you’re drifting to that edge! Anchor the boat!”

Our heavenly Father calls out to us to pay close attention to his beloved Son’s voice—he is keeping his children. God loves us enough to say, “Sons and daughters, don’t drift from the voice of Jesus: “‘This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!’” (Luke 9:35). Anchor yourselves, dear Christians, in Christ’s voice, for his voice will keep you and preserve to the end in his power.

Thursday, November 9, 2023

God’s moral law that teaches us not to kill also carries with it the value of human life.

Nowhere in Scripture does God command soldiers who are Christians to give up being soldiers.

It is loving to protect and defend the defenseless, and it is also loving to protect a wicked person from killing others.

Christians are not to take justice into their own hands.

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Wednesday, November 8, 2023

Well-meaning sermon illustrations can easily fall short in a variety of ways.

Preachers need to exercise much wisdom in employing sermon illustrations.

Some of the best sermon illustrations are those that are connected to nature and common life.

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Tuesday, November 7, 2023

All creatures look to God as their provider.

We are to ask our heavenly Father for all our needs.

We call on him in faith, in trust and confidence for Christ’s sake that he hears our prayers.

“In him we live and move and have our being.”

Only God is capable of hearing our prayers.

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While both covenants are gracious, one is common in its administration and the other is special.

In his redemptive plan, God instituted the Noahic covenant (“common grace”) to preserve the earth.

The covenant of grace (“special grace”) is first mentioned in Genesis 3:15.

There would be no covenant of grace without Christ, the mediator of the covenant.

One day the Noahic covenant will come to an end, but the covenant of grace is everlasting.

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Sunday, November 5, 2023

1. Can people be married in their hearts?

2. Why do we have to sign a piece of paper to make a marriage legal?

3. Does having sex with someone equal marriage (the “two become one flesh” passages)?

4. Does a Christian couple need to be married by a minister?

5. Why didn’t Adam and Eve have a marriage license or formal wedding ceremony?

6. How does the relational nature of earthly marriage point us to Christ?

7. How does the legal nature of earthly marriage point us to Christ?

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Thursday, November 2, 2023

1. We encounter the holiness of God at the cross.

2. We encounter the righteousness of God at the cross.

3. We encounter the justice of God at the cross.

4. We encounter the goodness of God at the cross.

5. We encounter the wrath of God at the cross.

6. We encounter the mercy of God at the cross.

7. We encounter the love of God at the cross.

8. We encounter the simplicity of God at the cross.

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Wednesday, November 1, 2023

The heart of the concern of the author of Hebrews is the danger of drifting away from Jesus’ voice.

The pathway to apostasy begins with drifting.

The vitality of the Christian life is centered on one’s connection to the Word of God.

We drift when we refuse to hear God’s Word on Sunday, giving it no real place in our lives.

Staying on course requires giving our hearts to hear Jesus speak to us.

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