Sometimes people would say Calvinism and Arminianism are two sides of the same coin. I personally don't think they are because they view God's sovereignty in salvation in opposing ways, in fact one school of thought started as opposition to the other.
But there is 2 truths that are two sides of the same coin, they are repentance and faith.
Sadly these 2 truths are misunderstood and even despised in this era.
People hate repentance because it implies we have wronged God, people misunderstand faith because it's not always explained clearly, and it runs against the grains of the popular notions of rationalism/free thinking.
But the servant of God has to tell people both truths, this requires Christians to die to the desire for the applause of other people. The apostle Paul rightly said that if I am still trying to please men, then I am no longer a servant of Christ.
Not only does our presentation of the gospel itself have to be true, but what do we tell people to do with the gospel also have to be true, and that is often the hard part because we run the risk of offending people when we tell them to turn from their sins.
But the effects of compromise are far worse than offending people. I've seen all kinds of softening of the biblical demand of repentance and faith in Christ, whether it be "just accept jesus into your heart", or by playing music to stir up people's emotions to induce some kind of response, the result is that we trade true spirituality for emotional feelings, and give people false assurance. A lot of people who made a decision without recognizing they should accept Jesus because they have offended God by their sins usually fall away and it'll be more difficult to engage them in gospel conversations again.
May the Lord help us to be faithful in this area.
Monday, December 21, 2015
Saturday, December 5, 2015
Strange and perplexing sovereignty
In my mind justice should be accomplished by just instruments. But God doesn't play by this rule.
In the OT he uses wicked Assyrian to judge wicked Israel, and when he's done he judges the Assyrians.
It's almost like kings and mighty armies are but toy soldiers in his hands.
Except human free choice is not always directly overruled in God's fulfillment of his plans. This is the most perplexing mystery in the sovereignty of God.
We see the same sovereignty in salvation, how can hard hearted men who's will is bent on hating and disobeying God trust in Jesus? It ultimately comes down to God's work in gifting faith and not human will, yet he doesn't do this in a completely mystical way, practical instruments like other people and the bible are always used. God's recorded words are always involved to engage the mind, heart and will of men to choose to trust Jesus in salvation. It's just that men cannot find out exactly how God's intervention and our choices mingle together.
In the OT he uses wicked Assyrian to judge wicked Israel, and when he's done he judges the Assyrians.
It's almost like kings and mighty armies are but toy soldiers in his hands.
Except human free choice is not always directly overruled in God's fulfillment of his plans. This is the most perplexing mystery in the sovereignty of God.
We see the same sovereignty in salvation, how can hard hearted men who's will is bent on hating and disobeying God trust in Jesus? It ultimately comes down to God's work in gifting faith and not human will, yet he doesn't do this in a completely mystical way, practical instruments like other people and the bible are always used. God's recorded words are always involved to engage the mind, heart and will of men to choose to trust Jesus in salvation. It's just that men cannot find out exactly how God's intervention and our choices mingle together.
A most perplexing thing
How is it that joy is so fragile and breaks so easily yet sorrow lingers on like skunk spray?
Why are we creatures so fragile and easily discouraged on this side of eternity?
I can be happily experiencing a joyful time with God and see some comment on social media and immediately be sad and/or angry. The effort it takes to regain that joy is greater than it took to kill it by viewing those comments (which took almost no effort at all.)
Is this normal?
Why are we creatures so fragile and easily discouraged on this side of eternity?
I can be happily experiencing a joyful time with God and see some comment on social media and immediately be sad and/or angry. The effort it takes to regain that joy is greater than it took to kill it by viewing those comments (which took almost no effort at all.)
Is this normal?
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Who does God help
It is often said that God helps those who help themselves, some people joke that's what Sarah and Abraham believed when she gave him Hagar.
But the good news is that God helps the helpless who cry out to Him. His grace is not unconditional in the sense that even those who do not respond receive it, but it is unconditionally in the sense that it is not given as a payment to any human ability or attempts to bargain with God, but to all who are willing to receive it His way.
*Edited for clarity. The 2nd sentence of the 2nd paragraph used to read "...even those who do nothing receive it".
But the good news is that God helps the helpless who cry out to Him. His grace is not unconditional in the sense that even those who do not respond receive it, but it is unconditionally in the sense that it is not given as a payment to any human ability or attempts to bargain with God, but to all who are willing to receive it His way.
*Edited for clarity. The 2nd sentence of the 2nd paragraph used to read "...even those who do nothing receive it".
Saturday, October 31, 2015
Three Short Segments - Hospital, grace, trust
Hospital
In a strange hospital there are three kinds of terminally ill patients, one kind refuses to acknowledge they're sick, one kind knows they're sick and celebrates, the last kind takes the medicine.
Grace
I love you when you're good, I love you when you're bad.
But if you never trust me then this love can't be had.
Trust
How much does trust depend on evidence, and how much of it is a leap with understanding coming from the resulting experience? I don't know.
It's foolish to trust someone completely without knowing them and having seen some of their proven character, yet it's equally foolish to doubt everything and always distrust people on contact.
Distrust is often a result of pain, being disillusioned by the past, and bitterness. To break this cycle of death unconditional love is required. But people who can't trust anymore usually don't allow themselves to accept this initially. Keep persevering.
In a strange hospital there are three kinds of terminally ill patients, one kind refuses to acknowledge they're sick, one kind knows they're sick and celebrates, the last kind takes the medicine.
Grace
I love you when you're good, I love you when you're bad.
But if you never trust me then this love can't be had.
Trust
How much does trust depend on evidence, and how much of it is a leap with understanding coming from the resulting experience? I don't know.
It's foolish to trust someone completely without knowing them and having seen some of their proven character, yet it's equally foolish to doubt everything and always distrust people on contact.
Distrust is often a result of pain, being disillusioned by the past, and bitterness. To break this cycle of death unconditional love is required. But people who can't trust anymore usually don't allow themselves to accept this initially. Keep persevering.
Sunday, October 18, 2015
Friday, October 16, 2015
Ecclesiastes points to eternity
When asked what their favourite book in the bible is, sometimes people jokingly say Ecclesiastes because it's supposedly a book that paints a bleak picture of life .
But actually Ecclesiastes is a wonderful book because it points to eternal joy.
It is the filtered wisdom of an old man who summarizes his observations and experiences in life.
It describes the cyclic nature of life on earth and the grind of daily work
It describes the long term emptiness of hedonism
It teaches us how to enjoy life and not be self righteously over zealous
It reminds us of the brevity of life and that we will all leave this world one day
It points to life above the sun, where men's all is summed up in fearing God and obeying his commandments.
But actually Ecclesiastes is a wonderful book because it points to eternal joy.
It is the filtered wisdom of an old man who summarizes his observations and experiences in life.
It describes the cyclic nature of life on earth and the grind of daily work
It describes the long term emptiness of hedonism
It teaches us how to enjoy life and not be self righteously over zealous
It reminds us of the brevity of life and that we will all leave this world one day
It points to life above the sun, where men's all is summed up in fearing God and obeying his commandments.
Monday, April 6, 2015
When Christians sin - Hope in a messy situation
Christians arn't perfect, we still sin. In fact the bible says that whoever claims they have no sin is a self deceived liar. (1 John 1:8)
But there is a radical spiritual difference between a Christian and a lost person in regards to sin. The main difference is that even though sin is present in both persons, the Christian has the ability to say no to sin and put it to death because of the work God has done in his life:
1. Jesus not only saves from the penalty of sin, but from sin as a whole, which includes the power and dominion of sin,
2. the Holy Spirit has been given to the Christian to put sin to death (Romans 8:13)
3. the Christian is a new creation who's general pattern of thought and desire is for righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:17, Matthew 5:6)
But when Christians sin, things get messy. Sin defiles our conscience, even though we don't switch back and forth between saved and lost when we sin, our defiled conscience makes us loss assurance that we are saved, and feel as though we are lost because sin has clouded our view of Christ and broken fellowship with him.
There are usually 2 ways people deal with committed sin, either pretend it's ok and try harder not to do it, or acknowledge it's an evil committed against God and trusts that if we confess our sins, God will forgive us and cleanse us (1 John 1:9).
What's even more messy is that for a season, Christians can act like a lost man trying to clean himself by teeth gritting effort to not sin instead of confessing he has wronged God(The case of David after committing adultery with Bathsheba.).
I guess the lesson here is to really know what the bible says about the work God does in a person's soul in salvation, so that we benefit ourselves by
1. being humbled because of the presence of sin, to trust in God for victory over them and not to the flesh
2. not suffering from unnecessary guilt by believing in a standard for Christian different from the bible
3. not being deceived by false assurance, thinking we are saved when sin still has dominion over us.
and we benefit others by
1. not making a hasty judgment regarding the state of their soul when someone confesses sin to us,
2. knowing how to give truthful and loving counsel that are appropriate for the specific situation
Left to ourselves we are desolate, but the Lord is constant help to those who trust Him.
But there is a radical spiritual difference between a Christian and a lost person in regards to sin. The main difference is that even though sin is present in both persons, the Christian has the ability to say no to sin and put it to death because of the work God has done in his life:
1. Jesus not only saves from the penalty of sin, but from sin as a whole, which includes the power and dominion of sin,
2. the Holy Spirit has been given to the Christian to put sin to death (Romans 8:13)
3. the Christian is a new creation who's general pattern of thought and desire is for righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:17, Matthew 5:6)
But when Christians sin, things get messy. Sin defiles our conscience, even though we don't switch back and forth between saved and lost when we sin, our defiled conscience makes us loss assurance that we are saved, and feel as though we are lost because sin has clouded our view of Christ and broken fellowship with him.
There are usually 2 ways people deal with committed sin, either pretend it's ok and try harder not to do it, or acknowledge it's an evil committed against God and trusts that if we confess our sins, God will forgive us and cleanse us (1 John 1:9).
What's even more messy is that for a season, Christians can act like a lost man trying to clean himself by teeth gritting effort to not sin instead of confessing he has wronged God(The case of David after committing adultery with Bathsheba.).
I guess the lesson here is to really know what the bible says about the work God does in a person's soul in salvation, so that we benefit ourselves by
1. being humbled because of the presence of sin, to trust in God for victory over them and not to the flesh
2. not suffering from unnecessary guilt by believing in a standard for Christian different from the bible
3. not being deceived by false assurance, thinking we are saved when sin still has dominion over us.
and we benefit others by
1. not making a hasty judgment regarding the state of their soul when someone confesses sin to us,
2. knowing how to give truthful and loving counsel that are appropriate for the specific situation
Left to ourselves we are desolate, but the Lord is constant help to those who trust Him.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Bad enough for grace
I stumbled upon this article and found it really helpful. Especially these lines:
"Someone gets wonderfully converted and we all rejoice, then promptly saddle them with spiritual disciplines to help them "grow." They’re not Christians two weeks before they feel like worse failures than they ever did as an unbeliever. Maybe they were dealing crack before conversion, but at least they didn’t feel hypocritical about it.
What if we let a new convert breathe in some grace for a while? Until--I don't know--they die?"
A great deal of my depression and a sense of loneliness comes from the fear of being rejected and criticized by others after they know who I truly am. So I will put up a mask and pretend things are ok when they are not.
Maybe there is wisdom in not revealing all the nitty gritty details of life to others, because they may not be able to handle it, but with God it's different. He bids us to come just as we are. And that's a great relief.
"Someone gets wonderfully converted and we all rejoice, then promptly saddle them with spiritual disciplines to help them "grow." They’re not Christians two weeks before they feel like worse failures than they ever did as an unbeliever. Maybe they were dealing crack before conversion, but at least they didn’t feel hypocritical about it.
A great deal of my depression and a sense of loneliness comes from the fear of being rejected and criticized by others after they know who I truly am. So I will put up a mask and pretend things are ok when they are not.
Maybe there is wisdom in not revealing all the nitty gritty details of life to others, because they may not be able to handle it, but with God it's different. He bids us to come just as we are. And that's a great relief.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Saving faith
The book of James is great because it puts into perspective a really important topic (perhaps one of the most important and urgent topic of all time), that is, "what does saving faith look like?"
Church goers often hear we are saved by grace through faith, but many don't know what faith is or they do not posses saving faith.
James' writing on this topic can be summarized below:
1. Reading the scripture is like looking in a mirror
2. There is a faith that is like what the demons have, this faith does not save
3. Saving faith produces works
Reading the scripture is like looking in a mirror
The Bible as God's word wrestles with our mind and heart when we read it. There are parts that enlighten our minds on certain topics, there are parts that are hard to understand and make us scratch our heads. There are parts that make us rejoice, there are parts we wish were not there and are tempted to deny.
The Bible is described as many things, James describes it as a mirror, where a man, when hearing the word of God is like looking at himself in the mirror. Proverbs says a man's heart is like deep water, who can know it? Without God's word we are ignorant of sin and our need for Christ and salvation, because the human heart is so complex and hard to understand. But God's word reveals to us what sin is, and pinpoints the problem accurately, because God sees the human heart clearly.
In this way, the word is like a mirror. People can be deceived into thinking they have faith simply by knowing and factually agreeing what the bible says, but never remembering what the bible shows about our need for a savior.
Faith of demons
James goes on to engage some who profess faith, saying you say you have faith, good for you. Even the demons believe and tremble. But they will never be saved.
Demons believe who God is, demons know God's character and power very well, that's why they tremble. But they never submit to Christ, they never look to the Son on the cross to pay for their sins. Their faith is not saving.
People can be deceived this way, where they think just believing in God is good enough(in the sense that we agree with what he has revealed about his character). But this is no good, because this is like a sick man who agrees with everything about the properties of the medicine, he says "yup, it comes in powder form, yup, I need to mix it with about 250 mL of water, and yup, It'll taste bitter and it'll make me well, but do I want to take it? Nah." In the same way, people can know God's character inside out, and even become scared when thinking about God's justice, or having warm thoughts when thinking about God's love and mercy, but never repenting and believing in the gospel.
Faith with works
Jesus tells us a parable of soils. 3/4 of the soils have the seed planted but don't produce fruit, the last one is good soil and produces fruit. James puts this into plain language and says that faith without works is like a body without soul, it's dead. Dead faith cannot save.
James uses the example of Abraham, where God tested him by telling him to kill Isaac. Abraham believed in God and it was accredited to him as righteousness. the faith of Abraham was proven by his action, he was willing to kill Isaac because he believed God will be true to his promise of making a nation out of his son, and that God can even raise his son from the dead in order to do it.
In the same way God tests us, so that we may have assurance that our faith is the real deal. But many fail God's test of faith, just like 3/4 of the soils, either forgetting the word, being drawn away by riches and goodness of the world, or backing out when suffering and persecution comes.
Which side are you on in these three categories? Do you remember what the bible has shown you about yourself? Do you recognize God's character and trust in Christ who died on the cross for you sin and rose again? Do you persevere and continue to trust God when trials come?
O may God have mercy on us, and grant us repentance so that our hearts would be good soil ready to receive the word!
Church goers often hear we are saved by grace through faith, but many don't know what faith is or they do not posses saving faith.
James' writing on this topic can be summarized below:
1. Reading the scripture is like looking in a mirror
2. There is a faith that is like what the demons have, this faith does not save
3. Saving faith produces works
Reading the scripture is like looking in a mirror
The Bible as God's word wrestles with our mind and heart when we read it. There are parts that enlighten our minds on certain topics, there are parts that are hard to understand and make us scratch our heads. There are parts that make us rejoice, there are parts we wish were not there and are tempted to deny.
The Bible is described as many things, James describes it as a mirror, where a man, when hearing the word of God is like looking at himself in the mirror. Proverbs says a man's heart is like deep water, who can know it? Without God's word we are ignorant of sin and our need for Christ and salvation, because the human heart is so complex and hard to understand. But God's word reveals to us what sin is, and pinpoints the problem accurately, because God sees the human heart clearly.
In this way, the word is like a mirror. People can be deceived into thinking they have faith simply by knowing and factually agreeing what the bible says, but never remembering what the bible shows about our need for a savior.
Faith of demons
James goes on to engage some who profess faith, saying you say you have faith, good for you. Even the demons believe and tremble. But they will never be saved.
Demons believe who God is, demons know God's character and power very well, that's why they tremble. But they never submit to Christ, they never look to the Son on the cross to pay for their sins. Their faith is not saving.
People can be deceived this way, where they think just believing in God is good enough(in the sense that we agree with what he has revealed about his character). But this is no good, because this is like a sick man who agrees with everything about the properties of the medicine, he says "yup, it comes in powder form, yup, I need to mix it with about 250 mL of water, and yup, It'll taste bitter and it'll make me well, but do I want to take it? Nah." In the same way, people can know God's character inside out, and even become scared when thinking about God's justice, or having warm thoughts when thinking about God's love and mercy, but never repenting and believing in the gospel.
Faith with works
Jesus tells us a parable of soils. 3/4 of the soils have the seed planted but don't produce fruit, the last one is good soil and produces fruit. James puts this into plain language and says that faith without works is like a body without soul, it's dead. Dead faith cannot save.
James uses the example of Abraham, where God tested him by telling him to kill Isaac. Abraham believed in God and it was accredited to him as righteousness. the faith of Abraham was proven by his action, he was willing to kill Isaac because he believed God will be true to his promise of making a nation out of his son, and that God can even raise his son from the dead in order to do it.
In the same way God tests us, so that we may have assurance that our faith is the real deal. But many fail God's test of faith, just like 3/4 of the soils, either forgetting the word, being drawn away by riches and goodness of the world, or backing out when suffering and persecution comes.
Which side are you on in these three categories? Do you remember what the bible has shown you about yourself? Do you recognize God's character and trust in Christ who died on the cross for you sin and rose again? Do you persevere and continue to trust God when trials come?
O may God have mercy on us, and grant us repentance so that our hearts would be good soil ready to receive the word!
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Faithful men handling God's word faithfully
I've watched some G3 conference videos, it's refreshing to see faithful men who preach the bible faithfully, passionately, and without concern for human opinions. You can check it out here:
https://new.livestream.com/g3conference
https://new.livestream.com/g3conference
Monday, January 26, 2015
Idols are cruel.
Idolatry is the greatest evil a person can commit. It is a direct offense against who God is, and it does great harm to ourselves.
Idols offer pleasure and power, but only temporary and at a great cost.
To receive blessings, Canaanites sacrificed their children to Moloch by burning them alive.
To receive a quick pleasure, people destroy the temple of God for a one night stand.
To receive power, people destroy each other for Mammon.
The real God is merciful. His blessings cost us nothing (in the sense that we don't have to sacrifice to Him first to receive blessings), but costed Him His beloved Son,
His benefits are everlasting, those who go to Him through Jesus will by no means be cast out, reconciled sinners will never become enemies, no power in the universe can pluck the Christian from the love of God.
Moloch, immoral sex, and Mammon will be done away with, so will the temporary benefits they give. What is reaped from worshiping these gods is eternity under the wrath of God, this is a great cruelty to trade temporary pleasure for your soul.
Of course, these gods will never tell you that. Some are demons who love to lie, others have no mouths to speak.
Idols offer pleasure and power, but only temporary and at a great cost.
To receive blessings, Canaanites sacrificed their children to Moloch by burning them alive.
To receive a quick pleasure, people destroy the temple of God for a one night stand.
To receive power, people destroy each other for Mammon.
The real God is merciful. His blessings cost us nothing (in the sense that we don't have to sacrifice to Him first to receive blessings), but costed Him His beloved Son,
His benefits are everlasting, those who go to Him through Jesus will by no means be cast out, reconciled sinners will never become enemies, no power in the universe can pluck the Christian from the love of God.
Moloch, immoral sex, and Mammon will be done away with, so will the temporary benefits they give. What is reaped from worshiping these gods is eternity under the wrath of God, this is a great cruelty to trade temporary pleasure for your soul.
Of course, these gods will never tell you that. Some are demons who love to lie, others have no mouths to speak.
Friday, January 23, 2015
Believing and obeying.
I was perplexed and puzzled for the longest time on faith and works.
For the longest time I was confused about what real faith is, and what it means to be saved apart from works.
So passages like Ephesians 2:8 and James 1:19-24, 2:8-6 made me really suspicious of the trustworthiness of scripture.
The fault is not with scripture, but me.
I was denying the need for response to God's word, both my view of grace and works was twisted.
Grace was twisted to be throw up my hands and let God do everything. When I do good, it's God's honor, when I sin, it's God's fault. (Do you know what's wrong with this kind of mindset?)
Works was twisted to include repentance. I thought repentance was no different than trying hard to not sin, and morally perfecting myself. What I was doing was denying aspects of my life that are sins (If I just watched porn this time, it's ok, God'll understand and forgive if I ask later.), and denying my need to stop.
But God was good to me, even though I was so confused and going coocoo in the head, He didn't leave me to perish in my stupid thoughts. I eventually realized that repentance starts with recognizing my sins, and faith starts with recognizing the sufficiency of Christ's righteous life, His finished work on the cross for a double transfer (my sin debt for his righteous blessing), and his resurrection for hope in the future resurrection of the saints.
Whoever I trust, I listen to. So there comes works that are according to the Law of Christ.
I hope this is helpful to whoever is reading this that are going through the same thing.
For the longest time I was confused about what real faith is, and what it means to be saved apart from works.
So passages like Ephesians 2:8 and James 1:19-24, 2:8-6 made me really suspicious of the trustworthiness of scripture.
The fault is not with scripture, but me.
I was denying the need for response to God's word, both my view of grace and works was twisted.
Grace was twisted to be throw up my hands and let God do everything. When I do good, it's God's honor, when I sin, it's God's fault. (Do you know what's wrong with this kind of mindset?)
Works was twisted to include repentance. I thought repentance was no different than trying hard to not sin, and morally perfecting myself. What I was doing was denying aspects of my life that are sins (If I just watched porn this time, it's ok, God'll understand and forgive if I ask later.), and denying my need to stop.
But God was good to me, even though I was so confused and going coocoo in the head, He didn't leave me to perish in my stupid thoughts. I eventually realized that repentance starts with recognizing my sins, and faith starts with recognizing the sufficiency of Christ's righteous life, His finished work on the cross for a double transfer (my sin debt for his righteous blessing), and his resurrection for hope in the future resurrection of the saints.
Whoever I trust, I listen to. So there comes works that are according to the Law of Christ.
I hope this is helpful to whoever is reading this that are going through the same thing.
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