Are natural disasters such as tornadoes an act of God’s judgment?
Yes and No.
Yesterday John Piper wrote a blog post in response to recent tornadoes in rural America. You can find the post here (http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/fierce-tornadoes-and-the-fingers-of-god). In this post he asked why God sent His judgment to rural America instead of one of the country’s major cities. He does not really make an argument for why he believes the tornadoes were an act of God’s judgment. He simply appeals to God’s sovereignty and assumes that they were an act of God’s judgment.
He then goes on to try and answer the question, “Why there and not here?”
Many of you know that I am not quick to criticize John Piper. In fact, I am quicker to come to his defense. I have profited greatly from his preaching and writing ministry. Many of my theological positions have been formed in light of things John Piper has taught me from God’s Word. There is enough truth in his blog post to cause hesitation on my part in writing a response. However, I have tried to articulate below what I believe to be a more accurate view, based on Scripture, of the recent tornadoes and other natural disasters. I have also given a brief critique of a couple of the articles I have read that were written in response to Piper’s article.
Scripture clearly teaches that prior to the Fall there was no pain and death (Genesis 1:31, 3:19). After the Fall, as a punishment for sin, both pain and death entered the world (Genesis 3:16-19). Therefore, we can conclude that all pain and suffering is a result of original sin. This includes tooth aches, pain in child bearing, cancer, war, and devastation caused by natural disasters. The glorious truth in all of it is that Jesus came and conquered death on our behalf and that one day He will return to make all things new (John 16:33; Revelation 21:5).
Scripture also teaches that in His sovereignty God does control nature (Luke 8:24). It also teaches us that God sometimes uses natural phenomenon in judgment. The flood, as recorded in Genesis 6-8, is the primary example of this. We also see in Genesis 19 God sending fire from heaven to destroy Sodom. The story of what looks like a tornado in Job 1:19 destroying the house that Job’s children were in and taking their lives is the example that Piper points out. However, the book of Job does not say that this was an act of judgment. It says that Satan was allowed to test Job.
Could God have prevented it from happening? Yes. Does Scripture teach that God caused these things to happen because He was judging Job? That is not how I read the story. Unfortunately, Piper quotes Romans 11 and calls it the response God gave Job. He also puts the references for Job 15:8 and 36:22 in the same parenthesis to show the similarities between Romans 11 and these two passages. However, Job 15 and 36 do not contain the words of God but rather Job’s friends, who most say often gave unbiblical counsel in the story of Job. All Piper had to do was turn over to Job 38 to find God’s response to Job. The idea there is not that unlike the words he quotes from Romans 11.
I think the proper conclusion is that God does sometimes use natural disasters to bring judgment. However, that is not always necessarily the case. We ought to be careful when calling things God’s judgment when we do not know the mind of God as Romans 11 says, “How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?’” This goes for the attacks on 9/11, earthquakes and tsunamis abroad, and tornadoes here at home.
It would have been correct for Piper to point out the devastation these tornadoes caused and say that they ought to serve as a wake up call to all of us that we are not promised another day. That seems to be the message of Luke 13:4-5 which Piper quotes. I don’t think Jesus is saying there that the tower fell as an act of God’s judgment. I think He is saying that life is brief and unless you repent you will perish spiritually. It would not make sense for Him to say that you will perish physically unless you repent considering we will all one day perish physically unless Christ returns before that time.
Piper has a very strong view of the sovereignty of God. Unfortunately, I think he has come to an unnecessary and unbiblical conclusion regarding why natural disasters happen as a result of that strong view. I too hold a very strong view of the sovereignty of God. John Piper and I are on the same team when it comes to Reformed doctrine. However, I think I have outlined a more biblical response to natural disasters above. Some natural disasters are God’s judgment. Not all of them are. We can use tragedy to proclaim repentance and faith to people as they consider their own mortality. We also ought to remember that God, in His sovereignty, is able to use even the most evil of situations for His glory and our good. The story of Joseph is a prime example (Genesis 37, 39-47, 50). Paul says as much in Romans 8:28, “And we know that God for those who love God all things work together for good,…”
Some have responded to Piper’s post with emotionalism and science. The emotional argument is that God doesn’t cause anyone to die. For them, the love of God is His supreme attribute and anything that conflicts with their view of His love must not be true. I would caution that we need to allow Scripture to guide what we believe to be true about God not our emotions. The other line of arguing makes a similar mistake. They say that tornadoes are a natural occurrence and that John Piper needs to read a science book to find out where tornadoes come from. The reality is that God is the creator of nature and He is powerful over it (Luke 8:24). If God wanted to cause a tornado in order to judge people He certainly could do it. He did something similar with the flood.
We must be careful to make sure that Scripture is our authority as we seek to know how God interacts with the world. If Scripture teaches that God causes all tornadoes as acts of judgment then we need to affirm that. I do not believe Scripture teaches that He does.
What do you think? I am certainly open to correction. It is more than possible that I am wrong here.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Monday, January 24, 2011
Good Reasons to Date
I apologize for taking so long to update my blog. Updating this blog hasn’t exactly been my first priority over the last few weeks.
I want to start by saying that marriage is good. The truth of the words of our Lord in Genesis 2:18, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” becomes more evident to me as each day passes. I spent a little over a year and a half living completely on my own. No one home when I left in the morning and no one home when I returned in the evening. Now I am sent off in the morning with a kiss from my beautiful wife and return home to her kiss as well. It is good. I understand Genesis 2:18 better today than I did a little over 3 weeks ago. I trust that I will continue to understand it more as time passes.
With that being said, my last blog ended on somewhat of a negative note (not unusual for me). It even prompted one reader to respond by questioning my understanding of heterosexual attraction. Not once did I say dating was wrong. Not once have I said that we ought to ignore our feelings of heterosexual attraction. Give me a break. Don’t be ridiculous. If you come looking to pick a fight, do so over something a little more substantial.
Here is my list of good reasons to date.
1. Marriage is good – Dating ought to only be done with the intent of finding a spouse. If you cannot see yourself marrying the person you are dating, get out now before you become even more emotionally attached. Marriage is a good, God-ordained institution. How do you find someone to marry? You get to know them. That is what the dating relationship is for.
2. Companionship – Genesis 2:18 is clear that it is not good for man to be alone. The marriage relationship provides companionship unlike any other relationship. I have close friends but I do not share the same companionship with them that I share with my wife. The companionship found while dating is not the purpose of dating but is an added benefit not a necessary evil. Do note that the companionship found while dating is much different than the companionship found in marriage. There are certain topics of conversation that should not frequent the dating relationship that are fair game in the marriage relationship and ought to be a part of conversation in marriage. Some of these topics of conversation will begin to be talked about as you move closer to marriage but should definitely be avoided in the early stages of the dating relationship. It is not my intent to be legalistic and list out all of the types of companionship that ought to be avoided in dating. Just note that the companionship of a dating couple is not the same as the companionship of a married couple. You are dating to find the companionship of marriage and the companionship found while dating is an added benefit.
*I could say so much here regarding companionship. There is one thing I do want to point out though. One of the ways I can tell that a couple is getting too emotionally attached too fast and they are becoming dependent on each other in unhealthy ways is by how they spend their time. Are you with the person you are dating every single minute of your free time? Have you deserted your friends in order to spend every waking minute with the person you are dating? That is unhealthy. Both of you need time with friends of the same sex. Make time together and time apart a priority in your dating relationship.
3. Heterosexual attraction – God has created man for woman and woman for man. He has created us to be attracted to each other. The dating relationship creates lots of boundaries here that ought not to be crossed. You shouldn’t date someone that you are not physically attracted to. However, it is very easy (if we are not careful) for that physical attraction to become lust in the dating relationship. Be careful and draw firm lines in the sand to keep yourselves pure.
I am sure there are others but these are the three that come to mind right now. Leave some comments with others that you think of.
I want to start by saying that marriage is good. The truth of the words of our Lord in Genesis 2:18, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” becomes more evident to me as each day passes. I spent a little over a year and a half living completely on my own. No one home when I left in the morning and no one home when I returned in the evening. Now I am sent off in the morning with a kiss from my beautiful wife and return home to her kiss as well. It is good. I understand Genesis 2:18 better today than I did a little over 3 weeks ago. I trust that I will continue to understand it more as time passes.
With that being said, my last blog ended on somewhat of a negative note (not unusual for me). It even prompted one reader to respond by questioning my understanding of heterosexual attraction. Not once did I say dating was wrong. Not once have I said that we ought to ignore our feelings of heterosexual attraction. Give me a break. Don’t be ridiculous. If you come looking to pick a fight, do so over something a little more substantial.
Here is my list of good reasons to date.
1. Marriage is good – Dating ought to only be done with the intent of finding a spouse. If you cannot see yourself marrying the person you are dating, get out now before you become even more emotionally attached. Marriage is a good, God-ordained institution. How do you find someone to marry? You get to know them. That is what the dating relationship is for.
2. Companionship – Genesis 2:18 is clear that it is not good for man to be alone. The marriage relationship provides companionship unlike any other relationship. I have close friends but I do not share the same companionship with them that I share with my wife. The companionship found while dating is not the purpose of dating but is an added benefit not a necessary evil. Do note that the companionship found while dating is much different than the companionship found in marriage. There are certain topics of conversation that should not frequent the dating relationship that are fair game in the marriage relationship and ought to be a part of conversation in marriage. Some of these topics of conversation will begin to be talked about as you move closer to marriage but should definitely be avoided in the early stages of the dating relationship. It is not my intent to be legalistic and list out all of the types of companionship that ought to be avoided in dating. Just note that the companionship of a dating couple is not the same as the companionship of a married couple. You are dating to find the companionship of marriage and the companionship found while dating is an added benefit.
*I could say so much here regarding companionship. There is one thing I do want to point out though. One of the ways I can tell that a couple is getting too emotionally attached too fast and they are becoming dependent on each other in unhealthy ways is by how they spend their time. Are you with the person you are dating every single minute of your free time? Have you deserted your friends in order to spend every waking minute with the person you are dating? That is unhealthy. Both of you need time with friends of the same sex. Make time together and time apart a priority in your dating relationship.
3. Heterosexual attraction – God has created man for woman and woman for man. He has created us to be attracted to each other. The dating relationship creates lots of boundaries here that ought not to be crossed. You shouldn’t date someone that you are not physically attracted to. However, it is very easy (if we are not careful) for that physical attraction to become lust in the dating relationship. Be careful and draw firm lines in the sand to keep yourselves pure.
I am sure there are others but these are the three that come to mind right now. Leave some comments with others that you think of.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Bad (Lame) Reasons to Date
As I think about dating I am reminded of all of the reasons that people date. Some are good reasons but many are not. I have attempted to compile a list of bad reasons that people date.
I have been intentionally blunt here in an effort to wake some of you up who fall into one or more of these six categories.
Bad Reasons People Date:
1. To look cool - The Christian who is seeking after God does not date to look cool or keep others from thinking that they are a loser because they can’t “get” a bf/gf. That is called being lame and finding your identity in someone outside of Christ. That is also called using the person that you are dating for your own gain. That is birthed out of a wrong understanding of the relationship between husband and wife. You would not be willing to marry someone who was using you for money, status, etc. Why are you willing to date someone who is using you for the same reasons?
2. To meet your needs – You do not date because you have “needs” (sexual or otherwise). The dating relationship is not the place for fulfilling your lustful desires (I use the term lustful in the context of dating but would not use the same terminology in the context of marriage). As you prepare for marriage you ought to be seeking to serve the other person rather than seeking to be served. Ephesians 5 is pretty clear on that.
3. To meet emotional needs – This goes along with the previous reason. While guys are sometimes susceptible to this, it is the ladies who most often fall into this trap. Your father hasn’t been the daddy he should have been. You have a need to feel loved that isn’t being met so you fall for the first guy who comes around and tells you that you are pretty. People will let you down. When you find your satisfaction in others you are setting yourself up for disaster. It is only in Jesus Christ that you can find true contentment and joy.
4. To taste all the flavors – Dating is not Baskin Robbins where you taste all the flavors to see which one you like best before you choose. That is setting yourself up for troubles later in life. If you train yourself now to discard your gf/bf as soon as “someone better” comes along, what makes you think that is going to change when you get married? It won’t. Just because you only have one bf/gf at a time doesn’t mean you aren’t a player (player is a tame way of putting it).
5. Revenge – If you are dating someone to get back at someone else that is really lame. Some date just to get back at a previous bf/gf/spouse. Some date to make their parents mad and get back at them. Both are stupid and childish.
6. Something to do – If you are bored make friends that are of the same sex. You do not need a significant other to entertain you. When you find a spouse you find a best friend. If you date only for something to do you are using the other person.
I have been intentionally blunt here in an effort to wake some of you up who fall into one or more of these six categories.
Bad Reasons People Date:
1. To look cool - The Christian who is seeking after God does not date to look cool or keep others from thinking that they are a loser because they can’t “get” a bf/gf. That is called being lame and finding your identity in someone outside of Christ. That is also called using the person that you are dating for your own gain. That is birthed out of a wrong understanding of the relationship between husband and wife. You would not be willing to marry someone who was using you for money, status, etc. Why are you willing to date someone who is using you for the same reasons?
2. To meet your needs – You do not date because you have “needs” (sexual or otherwise). The dating relationship is not the place for fulfilling your lustful desires (I use the term lustful in the context of dating but would not use the same terminology in the context of marriage). As you prepare for marriage you ought to be seeking to serve the other person rather than seeking to be served. Ephesians 5 is pretty clear on that.
3. To meet emotional needs – This goes along with the previous reason. While guys are sometimes susceptible to this, it is the ladies who most often fall into this trap. Your father hasn’t been the daddy he should have been. You have a need to feel loved that isn’t being met so you fall for the first guy who comes around and tells you that you are pretty. People will let you down. When you find your satisfaction in others you are setting yourself up for disaster. It is only in Jesus Christ that you can find true contentment and joy.
4. To taste all the flavors – Dating is not Baskin Robbins where you taste all the flavors to see which one you like best before you choose. That is setting yourself up for troubles later in life. If you train yourself now to discard your gf/bf as soon as “someone better” comes along, what makes you think that is going to change when you get married? It won’t. Just because you only have one bf/gf at a time doesn’t mean you aren’t a player (player is a tame way of putting it).
5. Revenge – If you are dating someone to get back at someone else that is really lame. Some date just to get back at a previous bf/gf/spouse. Some date to make their parents mad and get back at them. Both are stupid and childish.
6. Something to do – If you are bored make friends that are of the same sex. You do not need a significant other to entertain you. When you find a spouse you find a best friend. If you date only for something to do you are using the other person.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Dating Part 1 of ?
Dating is a tricky subject with a wide variety of opinions on it even among professing Christians. The Bible does not lay out for us a formula to follow for dating success. However, it does provide us with principles that are extremely helpful in determining how to best honor God in a dating relationship.
I have chosen to write a series of blogs on the subject not as an expert but as someone who is just about done dating with the purpose of finding a spouse (this does not mean that I plan to stop dating my wife).
Can I just start by saying that dating is hard? I am glad to be almost done with it. Expressing emotions in the dating relationship in a way that honors God is difficult. It is difficult to show the person you are dating that you love and cherish them while avoiding the methods of demonstrating love that our culture tells us are necessary.
Standing up to the culture in this area is not easy but it is absolutely necessary for the Christian. We have developed these worldly mentalities in this area that excuse sin rather than confront it.
Teenagers are told to “behave” themselves but are not really expected to do so. We have developed this mentality where we expect teenagers to sin and then settle down later in life. What has been the result? 20 somethings and 30 somethings and even 40 somethings acting like immature children hopping from one relationship to the other without a care in the world. For some reason we think that teenagers will be teenagers and that there is nothing we can do to stop it. This is simply not true. Though our culture and maybe even your parents do not hold you to a very high standard, God does.
Adults are taught that they are adults now and can make their own decisions regarding their dating relationships. It is perfectly acceptable in our culture for two adults to spend the night together with no concern for their purity. Adults, just because you are “grown” now and think you can make your own decisions you do not get to disregard sexual purity.
I want to challenge anyone who finds themselves in a dating relationship or is not married to consider this issue. I want to encourage to you to stand up to the culture. Take a stand for purity.
Trust me on this. As someone who is almost done dating, I do not regret taking a stand for purity. I do not regret going out of my way to make sure that my dating relationship was pure and also that others had no reason to think otherwise.
If you take a stand for purity, I have a feeling you won’t regret it either. We could find countless people with regret stories about how they blew it in regards to purity. I doubt we could find a single married couple who took a stand for purity who regrets saving themselves for each other.
Make sure to check back soon for more posts on this topic.
*Disclaimer – I am well aware of the arguments over semantics regarding dating and courtship. I will choose to use the term dating here because I do not find it necessary to draw distinctive lines in unnecessary places. A proper formula for dating in my mind always includes the parents. My thoughts on this will be addressed more clearly in another post.
I have chosen to write a series of blogs on the subject not as an expert but as someone who is just about done dating with the purpose of finding a spouse (this does not mean that I plan to stop dating my wife).
Can I just start by saying that dating is hard? I am glad to be almost done with it. Expressing emotions in the dating relationship in a way that honors God is difficult. It is difficult to show the person you are dating that you love and cherish them while avoiding the methods of demonstrating love that our culture tells us are necessary.
Standing up to the culture in this area is not easy but it is absolutely necessary for the Christian. We have developed these worldly mentalities in this area that excuse sin rather than confront it.
Teenagers are told to “behave” themselves but are not really expected to do so. We have developed this mentality where we expect teenagers to sin and then settle down later in life. What has been the result? 20 somethings and 30 somethings and even 40 somethings acting like immature children hopping from one relationship to the other without a care in the world. For some reason we think that teenagers will be teenagers and that there is nothing we can do to stop it. This is simply not true. Though our culture and maybe even your parents do not hold you to a very high standard, God does.
Adults are taught that they are adults now and can make their own decisions regarding their dating relationships. It is perfectly acceptable in our culture for two adults to spend the night together with no concern for their purity. Adults, just because you are “grown” now and think you can make your own decisions you do not get to disregard sexual purity.
I want to challenge anyone who finds themselves in a dating relationship or is not married to consider this issue. I want to encourage to you to stand up to the culture. Take a stand for purity.
Trust me on this. As someone who is almost done dating, I do not regret taking a stand for purity. I do not regret going out of my way to make sure that my dating relationship was pure and also that others had no reason to think otherwise.
If you take a stand for purity, I have a feeling you won’t regret it either. We could find countless people with regret stories about how they blew it in regards to purity. I doubt we could find a single married couple who took a stand for purity who regrets saving themselves for each other.
Make sure to check back soon for more posts on this topic.
*Disclaimer – I am well aware of the arguments over semantics regarding dating and courtship. I will choose to use the term dating here because I do not find it necessary to draw distinctive lines in unnecessary places. A proper formula for dating in my mind always includes the parents. My thoughts on this will be addressed more clearly in another post.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Purple, Bullying, and the Cross
As you may have heard, today is Spirit Day in which those who wish to honor the memory of the teens who committed suicide due to bullying have been asked to wear purple. I don’t really know how many people are wearing purple who are out and about today because I have been sitting in my office at church basically all day.
I do think that it is important to add a little clarity to the situation as a follower of Christ. The following is my humble attempt.
Kids (and even adults for that matter) are bullied for all kinds of things (weight, looks, skin color, sexual orientation, and various other things). Bullying is never acceptable no matter what the reason. I do not have the right to treat any other person wrongly because they are different from me. This much is clear and anyone who says otherwise is just plain wrong.
With that being said, I want to be clear on what the Scriptures teach regarding homosexuality.
Leviticus 18:22 says, “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.”
Lest you think that homosexuality is only condemned in the Old Testament (though that wouldn’t be a valid argument for the dismissal of this verse even if it were true), look at Romans 1:26-27.
“For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.”
It is clear that the Scriptures teach that homosexuality is a sin. We must see it and deal with it as such.
How do the Scriptures teach us to deal with sin? We confront it but we do so with grace. We confront sin out of loving motives that seek restoration.
The challenging thing in dealing with this particular sin is that it is uncomfortable. It is much easier and comfortable to condemn a person with homosexual feelings to hell than it is to get involved in their life with a desire to see them come to repentance. However, this is not the appropriate response of the believer.
As Christians, we must never become accepting of homosexuality just like we must never become accepting of adultery, fornication, or any other sexual sin. We must stand against sin but we must stand against sin with a desire to see lives radically transformed by the message of the gospel.
We do not stand against sin by bullying. We do not stand against sin by standing on the street with signs that say, “God hates fags.” We stand against sin by confronting sin and calling people to repentance that they may find forgiveness in the cross of Christ.
I am not ashamed of this gospel. It is the power of God unto salvation for anyone who would place their faith in Jesus Christ including the person with homosexual feelings (Romans 1:16).
To the believer who has trusted Jesus as his/her Savior but still struggles with homosexual feelings, take heart in the words of Paul in Romans 7:24-25 regarding your struggle against sin.
“Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
Jesus Christ is your deliverer. He has saved you and will continue to sanctify you as you await your future glorification.
To the unbeliever who still delights in his/her sin, my prayer to God for you is that you might be saved. I pray that you might find redemption in the shed blood of Jesus Christ from the bondage of sin. My God is mighty to save and I pray that He will do just that in your life.
I do think that it is important to add a little clarity to the situation as a follower of Christ. The following is my humble attempt.
Kids (and even adults for that matter) are bullied for all kinds of things (weight, looks, skin color, sexual orientation, and various other things). Bullying is never acceptable no matter what the reason. I do not have the right to treat any other person wrongly because they are different from me. This much is clear and anyone who says otherwise is just plain wrong.
With that being said, I want to be clear on what the Scriptures teach regarding homosexuality.
Leviticus 18:22 says, “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.”
Lest you think that homosexuality is only condemned in the Old Testament (though that wouldn’t be a valid argument for the dismissal of this verse even if it were true), look at Romans 1:26-27.
“For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.”
It is clear that the Scriptures teach that homosexuality is a sin. We must see it and deal with it as such.
How do the Scriptures teach us to deal with sin? We confront it but we do so with grace. We confront sin out of loving motives that seek restoration.
The challenging thing in dealing with this particular sin is that it is uncomfortable. It is much easier and comfortable to condemn a person with homosexual feelings to hell than it is to get involved in their life with a desire to see them come to repentance. However, this is not the appropriate response of the believer.
As Christians, we must never become accepting of homosexuality just like we must never become accepting of adultery, fornication, or any other sexual sin. We must stand against sin but we must stand against sin with a desire to see lives radically transformed by the message of the gospel.
We do not stand against sin by bullying. We do not stand against sin by standing on the street with signs that say, “God hates fags.” We stand against sin by confronting sin and calling people to repentance that they may find forgiveness in the cross of Christ.
I am not ashamed of this gospel. It is the power of God unto salvation for anyone who would place their faith in Jesus Christ including the person with homosexual feelings (Romans 1:16).
To the believer who has trusted Jesus as his/her Savior but still struggles with homosexual feelings, take heart in the words of Paul in Romans 7:24-25 regarding your struggle against sin.
“Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
Jesus Christ is your deliverer. He has saved you and will continue to sanctify you as you await your future glorification.
To the unbeliever who still delights in his/her sin, my prayer to God for you is that you might be saved. I pray that you might find redemption in the shed blood of Jesus Christ from the bondage of sin. My God is mighty to save and I pray that He will do just that in your life.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Humility: Continued Sanctification Part II
This blog post is continued from this post that I did about a week or so ago. The subject is humility and the material comes from a sermon I preached recently at Drakes Branch Baptist Church.
These are points three and four from that sermon. Five and six will follow sometime in the near future.
III. Humility is open to suffering.
Look at verses 22-23. Jesus doesn’t respond to this ridiculous request by His disciples as you and I would. Notice the gentleness with which He responds. He gently reminds them of the price of greatness.
What was the cup that Jesus was about to drink? Suffering. He was about to be spat upon, beaten, and murdered. Jesus knew suffering and in His suffering He knew humility. Jesus humbled Himself even to the point of death on a cross. The cup Jesus was about to drink was way worse than physical pain or emotional anguish. He was about to bear the agony of the sins of the world before a holy God.
The fact is that true humility in our lives will be demonstrated by a willingness to suffer. Why is this? Because we don’t value our physical lives more than we value the salvation of others and the advancement of God’s kingdom. This is the same humility before his fellow man that Paul experienced/wrote about in Romans 9:1-5.
Don’t miss the change that took place in the lives of James and John. They too would later learn about suffering. Jesus’ prophetic words to them in verse 23 did come to fruition. They did drink of His cup. They were baptized with the baptism that He was baptized with. We see in Acts 12:2 that James was martyred by Herod and we know that John was tortured and exiled to the Island of Patmos for his faith where he would write the book of Revelation.
True humility is open to suffering.
IV. True greatness requires humility.
How does the world measure greatness or success? Money, promotion, popularity, material possessions. Unfortunately, this is not just true of the world. The church has fallen into this same trap to the point where the things that we value are not much different than those of the world.
John MacArthur states, “Tragically, the cult of selfism has found its way into evangelical Christianity. Books, seminars, conferences, magazines, and organizations that promote self under the guise of personal spiritual development abound.”
But look at Matthew 20:25-28. This is not how God defines greatness. Jesus is providing for His disciples a radical redefinition of greatness.
We know from Scripture that God hates pride (Proverbs 16:5). But why is it that God hates pride so passionately?
Well, what is God’s primary goal? His glory.
Pride refuses to acknowledge dependence upon God and to bestow upon Him the glory that is due His name. Pride makes a name for itself rather than making a name for God. Pride takes many forms but has only one end: self-glorification.
Notice that Jesus does not condemn the disciples’ desire for greatness. He simply redirects it. He redefines greatness. If you want to be great, be humble.
We tend to think that one is great if he has people to serve him. Jesus says you are great if you serve. Be careful here. This does not mean that you serve for a little while and then God will lift you up to a place of prominence so you no longer have to serve anymore. Rather, you are great in God’s eyes when you serve because God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble.
C.J. Mahaney notes from Isaiah 66:2 that humility draws the gaze of our sovereign God.
So you want to be great? Find ways to serve and advance the kingdom of God rather than your own kingdom. Humble yourself before God and He will lift you up.
These are points three and four from that sermon. Five and six will follow sometime in the near future.
III. Humility is open to suffering.
Look at verses 22-23. Jesus doesn’t respond to this ridiculous request by His disciples as you and I would. Notice the gentleness with which He responds. He gently reminds them of the price of greatness.
What was the cup that Jesus was about to drink? Suffering. He was about to be spat upon, beaten, and murdered. Jesus knew suffering and in His suffering He knew humility. Jesus humbled Himself even to the point of death on a cross. The cup Jesus was about to drink was way worse than physical pain or emotional anguish. He was about to bear the agony of the sins of the world before a holy God.
The fact is that true humility in our lives will be demonstrated by a willingness to suffer. Why is this? Because we don’t value our physical lives more than we value the salvation of others and the advancement of God’s kingdom. This is the same humility before his fellow man that Paul experienced/wrote about in Romans 9:1-5.
Don’t miss the change that took place in the lives of James and John. They too would later learn about suffering. Jesus’ prophetic words to them in verse 23 did come to fruition. They did drink of His cup. They were baptized with the baptism that He was baptized with. We see in Acts 12:2 that James was martyred by Herod and we know that John was tortured and exiled to the Island of Patmos for his faith where he would write the book of Revelation.
True humility is open to suffering.
IV. True greatness requires humility.
How does the world measure greatness or success? Money, promotion, popularity, material possessions. Unfortunately, this is not just true of the world. The church has fallen into this same trap to the point where the things that we value are not much different than those of the world.
John MacArthur states, “Tragically, the cult of selfism has found its way into evangelical Christianity. Books, seminars, conferences, magazines, and organizations that promote self under the guise of personal spiritual development abound.”
But look at Matthew 20:25-28. This is not how God defines greatness. Jesus is providing for His disciples a radical redefinition of greatness.
We know from Scripture that God hates pride (Proverbs 16:5). But why is it that God hates pride so passionately?
Well, what is God’s primary goal? His glory.
Pride refuses to acknowledge dependence upon God and to bestow upon Him the glory that is due His name. Pride makes a name for itself rather than making a name for God. Pride takes many forms but has only one end: self-glorification.
Notice that Jesus does not condemn the disciples’ desire for greatness. He simply redirects it. He redefines greatness. If you want to be great, be humble.
We tend to think that one is great if he has people to serve him. Jesus says you are great if you serve. Be careful here. This does not mean that you serve for a little while and then God will lift you up to a place of prominence so you no longer have to serve anymore. Rather, you are great in God’s eyes when you serve because God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble.
C.J. Mahaney notes from Isaiah 66:2 that humility draws the gaze of our sovereign God.
So you want to be great? Find ways to serve and advance the kingdom of God rather than your own kingdom. Humble yourself before God and He will lift you up.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Humility: Continued Sanctification
This will be the first of two or three blog posts on the subject of humility.
I recently spent the morning and evening services at Drakes Branch Baptist Church preaching on humility. This is not because I am an expert on the subject. In fact, I am much closer to being an expert on pride than humility.
The study pointed me in the direction of several excellent resources that I definitely recommend to you.
1) C.J. Mahaney has written an excellent book entitled Humility: True Greatness. The book tackles the subject from a very helpful and practical angle.
2) There is also a book by Andrew Murray entitled Humility: The Beauty of Holiness. This is also a good book but is different from Mahaney’s book as it looks more at what is biblical humility than teach you how to produce it.
3) The third resource was a video of a discussion of the subject between James MacDonald and C.J. Mahaney. This is also a must view and I have included a link to it below.
I entitled my Sunday morning sermon, “Humility: Continued Sanctification.” The reason for that is I am convinced that there is nothing that proves my continual need for sanctification like my need for humility does.
I presented six main points in working through the text of Matthew 20:17:28. I have listed them below and have briefly expounded on each of them.
I. The source of pride goes back to the fall. (Genesis 3:1-6)
How did Satan first temp Eve in the garden? He told her that if she at of the fruit then she would be like God. That sounded good so she ate. The very first sin committed by man was that of pride. In fact, pride even goes before that when Satan was kicked out of heaven for his desire to be greater than God. It is pride that Satan used to tempt Jesus in the desert and it is pride that Satan uses to tempt us today. We must be aware of Satan’s antics when it comes to pride.
II. Pride is deceitful and runs rampant.
This point digs into the text of Matthew 20. Jesus has just finished teaching on His coming suffering when the mother of James and John along with her sons comes up to him seeking places of prominence in the kingdom. Notice the audacity of their request. They were essentially saying that they deserved these prominent places more than anyone who had ever lived. More than Abraham? More than Moses? More than David? More than John the Baptist? Beware of pride believer. If James and John could fall into this trap after personally hearing the Savior teach on suffering, how much easier is it for us to fall into this same trap? Pride is deceitful.
Notice the response of the other disciples to the request that James and John made. They recognize the pride in the request of James and John. Is it not easier to recognize pride in the lives of others than it is to recognize it in your own life? Have others examine your life that they might point out the pride in your life.
Even though the other disciples recognize the sin in James and John’s lives, they are being prideful themselves. It is not just that they don’t think James and John deserve these places of prominence but rather that they think they deserve them. We see this same pride show up several times throughout Scripture in the lives of the disciples. We see it in the argument amongst the disciples on the way to Capernaum (Mark 9). We also see it at the Last Supper as the disciples argue about who is the greatest (Luke 22:24-30). The other disciples manifest pride here in two forms. 1) Self-righteousness and 2)Selfish ambition.
Do not become self-righteous here believer. Recognize that this is you. Do not look at the disciples and say, “Stupid disciples, what were they thinking?” If you do, you fall into the exact same trap that they did.
I am often more quick to point out the faults in others’ lives than I am to recognize them in my own life. My guess is that you are as well. Do you often compare yourself to others? I am guilty. The number one killer to unity in the church is pride. My ideas are better than your ideas. I am a better teacher than you. Or maybe you recognize that you are not such a good teacher and you find yourself in despair or jealous over someone else’s giftings.
This is not a new danger in the church. Look at the church at Corinth. Why do you think Paul devoted 1 Cor. 12 to a discussion of spiritual gifts and unity? There must have been a problem that he felt it necessary to address. Samuel Brengle wrote, “The axe cannot boast of the trees it has cut down. It could do nothing but for the woodsman. He made it, sharpened it, and he used it. The moment he throws it aside, it becomes only old iron. O that I may never lose sight of this.”
I am often so prone to recognizing the negative in the lives of others rather than identifying evidences of the grace of God in their lives. I must work to recognize the ways in which God is working in the lives of those around me.
Stay tuned as we continue to discuss this topic over the next day or two with one or two more posts covering the content of my sermon(s).
I recently spent the morning and evening services at Drakes Branch Baptist Church preaching on humility. This is not because I am an expert on the subject. In fact, I am much closer to being an expert on pride than humility.
The study pointed me in the direction of several excellent resources that I definitely recommend to you.
1) C.J. Mahaney has written an excellent book entitled Humility: True Greatness. The book tackles the subject from a very helpful and practical angle.
2) There is also a book by Andrew Murray entitled Humility: The Beauty of Holiness. This is also a good book but is different from Mahaney’s book as it looks more at what is biblical humility than teach you how to produce it.
3) The third resource was a video of a discussion of the subject between James MacDonald and C.J. Mahaney. This is also a must view and I have included a link to it below.
I entitled my Sunday morning sermon, “Humility: Continued Sanctification.” The reason for that is I am convinced that there is nothing that proves my continual need for sanctification like my need for humility does.
I presented six main points in working through the text of Matthew 20:17:28. I have listed them below and have briefly expounded on each of them.
I. The source of pride goes back to the fall. (Genesis 3:1-6)
How did Satan first temp Eve in the garden? He told her that if she at of the fruit then she would be like God. That sounded good so she ate. The very first sin committed by man was that of pride. In fact, pride even goes before that when Satan was kicked out of heaven for his desire to be greater than God. It is pride that Satan used to tempt Jesus in the desert and it is pride that Satan uses to tempt us today. We must be aware of Satan’s antics when it comes to pride.
II. Pride is deceitful and runs rampant.
This point digs into the text of Matthew 20. Jesus has just finished teaching on His coming suffering when the mother of James and John along with her sons comes up to him seeking places of prominence in the kingdom. Notice the audacity of their request. They were essentially saying that they deserved these prominent places more than anyone who had ever lived. More than Abraham? More than Moses? More than David? More than John the Baptist? Beware of pride believer. If James and John could fall into this trap after personally hearing the Savior teach on suffering, how much easier is it for us to fall into this same trap? Pride is deceitful.
Notice the response of the other disciples to the request that James and John made. They recognize the pride in the request of James and John. Is it not easier to recognize pride in the lives of others than it is to recognize it in your own life? Have others examine your life that they might point out the pride in your life.
Even though the other disciples recognize the sin in James and John’s lives, they are being prideful themselves. It is not just that they don’t think James and John deserve these places of prominence but rather that they think they deserve them. We see this same pride show up several times throughout Scripture in the lives of the disciples. We see it in the argument amongst the disciples on the way to Capernaum (Mark 9). We also see it at the Last Supper as the disciples argue about who is the greatest (Luke 22:24-30). The other disciples manifest pride here in two forms. 1) Self-righteousness and 2)Selfish ambition.
Do not become self-righteous here believer. Recognize that this is you. Do not look at the disciples and say, “Stupid disciples, what were they thinking?” If you do, you fall into the exact same trap that they did.
I am often more quick to point out the faults in others’ lives than I am to recognize them in my own life. My guess is that you are as well. Do you often compare yourself to others? I am guilty. The number one killer to unity in the church is pride. My ideas are better than your ideas. I am a better teacher than you. Or maybe you recognize that you are not such a good teacher and you find yourself in despair or jealous over someone else’s giftings.
This is not a new danger in the church. Look at the church at Corinth. Why do you think Paul devoted 1 Cor. 12 to a discussion of spiritual gifts and unity? There must have been a problem that he felt it necessary to address. Samuel Brengle wrote, “The axe cannot boast of the trees it has cut down. It could do nothing but for the woodsman. He made it, sharpened it, and he used it. The moment he throws it aside, it becomes only old iron. O that I may never lose sight of this.”
I am often so prone to recognizing the negative in the lives of others rather than identifying evidences of the grace of God in their lives. I must work to recognize the ways in which God is working in the lives of those around me.
Stay tuned as we continue to discuss this topic over the next day or two with one or two more posts covering the content of my sermon(s).
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