Jesus Is Lord

"Jesus is Lord" is the distinguishing mark of Christianity (1 Corinthians 12:3, Romans 10:9). His disciples, enemies, and even casual followers heard the same message.

Jesus introduced the slave metaphor and drew direct connections between slavery and discipleship (Matthew 10:24-25, Matthew 25:21). He made no effort to adjust his message to make it more palatable to the worldly-minded. Those who tried to change the terms of discipleship were turned away (Luke 9:59-62).

How then do we understand John 15:14-15?

You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

The fundamental principle here is still obedience. Note it: "You are my friends if you do what I command you".

He's not suggesting that we earn His favor through service. He is saying that obedience is a true proof that someone is His friend. Obedience is the natural fruit of one who loves Him--a definite mark of saving faith in Him.

Is He telling them their relationship had somehow changed in verse 15? Is He indicating that they are now familiar, personal colleagues of His? Is He teaching that they are no longer under the slave-master metaphor? Is he making them His peers, no longer under His authority and obligated to submit to His will?

Not at all.

They are His friends as well as His slaves. A slave isn't owed explanation or reasoning. But Jesus had revealed all to his disciples (v. 15). They were more than slaves because they were privy to His thoughts and purposes (1 Corinthians 2:16).

A relationship with the Lord Jesus is more than an obligation to serve a Master--but never less.

I am quick to claim the titles "son" and "friend" as my own. I much more slowly adopt the title and position of slave. Yet, the master/slave relationship is the dominant metaphor used throughout the New Testament to describe our relationship to God.

I can find no examples in scripture of an individual saying, "I am a son of God" or "I am God's friend". However, the writers of the New Testament consistently introduce themselves as "slaves". Paul even describes another believer as a slave (Colossians 1:7, 4:12). Those who shepherd His people are His slaves (2 Timothy 2:24). It is a slave who received the Revelation of Jesus Christ to show to other slaves (Revelation 1:1). And in the end, it will be slaves who worship the Lamb (Revelation 22:3)

When the familial relationship is described, it is in the plural--"children", and "sons". We are God's children (1 John 3:2-3)! And this is a glorious position, to be sure. But the one we have claimed as Lord is our Master--and we are obligated to serve Him.

Obedience is Not Optional

God says that He expects us to: __________________. 

Too often, our response is a series of excuses, rationalizing, and statements about our position or liberty in Christ.

This would be fine...if we and God were peers.

It is, however, entirely inappropriate if God is our Lord, and we His slaves.

How does scripture depict our relationship?

"If you love Me"--then what? You'll give him a chance to convince you His way is in your best interest? Or is it, "If you love Me, you will keep my commandments" (John 14:15)?

"For this is the love of God, that we"--what? Wait until we feel led? Wait until we're exhorted correctly? Wait until "the Spirit" gives us some extra-biblical confirmation? Or is it, "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments..." (1 John 5:3)

Is the one called as a freeman to Christ his colleague? His equal? His debate opponent? Or, is he Christ's slave (1 Corinthians 7:22)?

Is not every member of my body to be presented as a "slave to righteousness", resulting in sanctification (Romans 6:19)?

If one argues, "we are not merely slaves, but also sons", the questions become more difficult and yet (I think), more obvious.

Is a son a peer to his father? Does a son not owe respect, honor, and obedience to his earthly father (Colossians 3:20, Malachi 1:6, Ephesians 6:1)? If so, is it not much more the case with our heavenly Father (Hebrews 12:9)?

When our response to divine commands is an excuse--we're acting like the serpent, not a slave. 

A slave, much less a son, doesn't get to choose whether he should obey. It's not optional nor voluntary. James makes that perfectly clear (James 4:17).

Fruit Inspectors

Peter Mead answers the tricky question of how to evaluate a profession in Christ:

It may be politically incorrect to be fruit inspectors, but surely we need a pastoral sensitivity with those around us in the church.  To neglect this matter has significant temporal consequences for the church, and eternal consequences for some!

Full post is at Cordeo

Abusing Matthew 18

Genuine heresy is a damnable thing, a horrible thing. It dishonors God and leads people astray. It misrepresents the gospel and entices people to believe untrue things and to act in reprehensible ways.

- D.A. Carson, Editorial on Abusing Matthew 18

Knowing vs. Tasting the Vinegar

Oh, brethren! conviction of sin is no slight natural work upon the heart. There is a great difference between knowing that vinegar is sour, and actually tasting and feeling that it is sour. There is a great difference between knowing that fire will burn us, and actually feeling the pain of being burned. Just in the same way, there is all the difference in the world between knowing the dreadfulness of your sins and feeling the dreadfulness of your sins. It is all in vain that you read your Bibles and hear us preach, unless the Spirit use the words to give sense and feeling to your dead hearts. The plainest words will not awaken you as long as you are in a natural condition. If we could prove to you, with the plainness of arithmetic, that the wrath of God is abiding on you and your children, still you would sit unmoved—you would go away and forget it before you reached your own door. Ah, brethren! He that made your heart can alone impress your heart. It is the Spirit that convinceth of sin.

- Robert Murray M'Cheyne, The Conviction of Sin

Scribbling Darkness on the Wall

A man can no more diminish God’s glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling ‘darkness’ on the wall of his cell.

- C.S. Lewis (HT @Challies)

Worst. Day. Ever.

The events of Thursday night and Friday must have been a surreal nightmare, a madman's collage. With "the triumphal entry" still in their minds, the apostles had suddenly seen everything turned on its head, beyond their darkest imaginations. They must have fallen asleep — assuming they fell asleep, since that was about all they were good at — with numbed hearts and bedazzled minds.

But then Saturday dawned. Reality hit. It had really happened. They were now waking up, for the first time in three years, with no Jesus. That meant no Messiah, no Lord.  No hope, no guide; no one who really knew what He was doing. No point to doing what they had all left their jobs and their lives to do.

And nothing had changed overnight. He died Friday. He was still dead, Saturday.

Horrible, throbbing reality settling down on their chests like a massive elephant. What now? Dear God in Heaven, what now? What do we do? What do we say? What do we tell the crowds? What do we tell our families? Do we go back with our tail between our legs, and beg for our jobs back? And what, what do we make of the world now, now that we had repented because the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand... and yet it seems more distant than ever?

- Dan Phillips via Pyromaniacs

Bearing Them for Christ, The Chief Shepherd

When Jesus called a group of unremarkable individuals to serve with him, he sent them out as spiritual shepherds to "the lost sheep of Israel." This mission defined their ministry as an extension of his pastoral service to those who were sick and in bondage. Their work was a reflection of the concerns of the Good Shepherd who gave his life for the flock. Every disciple was a shepherd called to the messy work of caring for people, of shouldering their various needs, and bearing them for Christ, the Chief Shepherd.

- Timothy S. Laniak, While Shepherds Watch Their Flocks

With All the Energy of His Holy Soul

We cannot fail to see in reading the Gospels that the Lord Jesus with all the energy of His holy soul spoke of the eternity of future punishment for the lost. It was this that brought Him from heaven, that led Him to plead with men, that made Him agonize for souls. It was this that led Him to the cross to open a way for men to escape the wrath of God. It is fitting, but most solemn, that nowhere in the entire word of God is the teaching as to future punishment so clear as in the Gospels, and from the lips of Him who said: "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

- Ridout, The Four Gospels

The Margin of a Shoreless and Fathomless Sea

We stand here on the margin of a shoreless and fathomless sea; and for my part I venture to think that the men who talk about the incredibilities and the contradictions of the orthodox faith would show themselves a little wiser if they were more conscious of the limitation of human faculty, and remembered that to pronounce upon contradictions in the doctrine of the divine Nature implies that the pronouncer stands above and goes around about the whole of that nature. So, for my part, abjuring omniscience and the comprehension of Deity, I accept the statement that the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit come together and dwell in the heart.

- Alexander Maclaren

He Gladly Surrenders Himself

I cannot conceive it possible for anyone truly to receive Christ as Savior and yet not to receive him as Lord. A man who is really saved by grace does not need to be told that he is under solemn obligations to serve Christ. The new life within him tells him that. Instead of regarding it as a burden, he gladly surrenders himself – body, soul, and spirit- to the Lord who has redeemed him, reckoning this to be his reasonable service.

- Spurgeon via Truth Matters

The Tenderest Revelation Of His Perfect Love

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 

so must the Son of Man be lifted up, John 3:14 (ESV)

'The Son of Man must be lifted up.' And what does that mean? It means the same thing that He said when, near the end, He declared, "the hour is come that the Son of Man should be glorified." We are accustomed to speak--and we speak rightly--of His death as being the lowest point of the humiliation which was inherent in the very fact of His humanity. He condescended to be born; he stooped yet more to die. But whilst that is true, the other side is also true--that in the cross Christ is lifted up, and that it is His throne. For what see we there? The highest exhibition, the tenderest revelation, of His perfect love. And what see we there besides? The supreme manifestation of the highest power.

- Alexander MacLaren

Accounting for Our Losses, Crosses, and Persecutions

We have here one among many beautiful illustrations of the mind of Christ. He sees all that His people go through for His sake, and feels for all, from the highest to the lowest. He keeps account of all their losses, crosses, and persecutions. "Are they not all written in His book?" (Psalm 56:8) He knows how to come to their hearts with consolation in their time of need, and to speak peace to them when all men seem to hate them. The time when men forsake us is often the very time when Christ draws near, saying, "Fear not, for I am with you--be not dismayed, for I am your God--I will strengthen you--yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10)

- J.C. Ryle in The Gospel of John

Let Us Learn to Hate Sin

Let us learn to hate sin with a godly hatred as the root of more than half of our cares and sorrows. Let us fight against it, mortify it, crucify it, and abhor it both in ourselves and others. There cannot be a clearer proof that man is a fallen creature than the fact that he can love sin and take pleasure in it.

- J.C. Ryle in The Gospel of John

True Sons of God

"I know that you are Abraham's descendants,
but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.
I speak what I have seen with My Father,
and you do what you have seen with your father"
- John 8:37-38

"If God were your Father, you would love me,
for I proceeded forth and came from God;
nor have I come of myself, but He sent me"
- John 8:42

Jesus was essentially making the same point He made in verse 39--sonship is shown by obedience. Jesus put it very simply later in His ministry: "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). True sons of God show their love for Him by obeying His Son, not by persecuting His Son.

Do you see the two points Jesus has made to the Pharisees? He said: "Don't tell Me you're children of Abraham, because if you were children of Abraham, you would do the things that Abraham loved; but you hate the things that Abraham loved. And don't claim to be children of God, because if you were children of God, you would love the things of God; but you hate the things of God."

- R.C. Sproul in John

How You Feel About it Doesn't Change the Facts

Dan Phillips writes:

"Whoa whoa whoa, not so fast! Look, friend — how you feel about Route 49 doesn't change the facts: the bridge is out! My feelings aren't the map, your feelings aren't the map. Go that way, and you will die! I don't want you to die. I don't think it's loving or compassionate to give you bad information that means your death. The people who put up those signs and those obstacles knew what they were doing, and they did it because they care about people like you. It shouldn't be easy an comfortable to go down that road. It wouldn't be compassionate of me to focus on giving you a smooth ride to your own destruction, and it isn't "bold" and "daring" to head off to certain doom. Enabling you isn't really helping you. And look, I can show you other ways to go, or I can try to find other ways to help — but don't go that way! It'd be the end of you."

Read the whole parable...

Prepared Spontaneity

Paul Tripp writes:

Parenting is all about living by the principle of prepared spontaneity. You don’t really know what’s going to happen next. You don’t really know when you’ll have to enforce a command, intervene in an argument, confront a wrong, hold out for a better way, remind someone of a truth, call for forgiveness, lead someone to confession, point to Jesus, restore peace, hold someone accountable, explain a wisdom principle, give a hug of love, laugh in the face of adversity, help someone complete a task, mediate an argument, stop with someone and pray, assist someone to see his heart, or talk once again about what it means to live together in a community of love.

Read More...

Awake to Sin's Sinfulness

Think, moreover, of all the misery and sorry that sin has caused, and is causing at this very day. Pain, disease, and death--strifes, quarrels, and divisions--envy, jealousy, and malice--deceit, fraud, and cheating--violence, oppression, and robbery--selfishness, unkindness, and ingratitude--all these are the fruits of sin. Sin is the parent of them all. Sin it is that has so marred and spoiled the face of God's creation.

Young men, consider these things, and you will not wonder that we preach as we do. Surely, if you did but think of them, you would break with sin forever. Will you play with poison? Will you sport with hell? Will you take fire in your hand? Will you harbour your deadliest enemy in your bosom? Will you go on living as if it mattered nothing whether your own sins were forgiven or not--whether sin had dominion over you, or you over sin? Oh, awake to a sense of sin's sinfulness and danger! Remember the words of Solomon: "Fools," non but fools, "make a mock at sin." (Proverbs 14:9)

- J.C. Ryle in Thoughts for Young Men

Guilty and Abominable in the Sight of a Holy God

Young men, if you did but know what sin is, and what sin has done, you would not think it strange that I exhort you as I do. You do not see it in its true colours. Your eyes are naturally blind to its guilt and danger, and hence you cannot understand what makes me so anxious about you. Oh, let not the devil succeed in persuading you that sin is a small matter.

Think for a moment what the Bible says about sin--how it dwells naturally in the heart of every man and woman alive (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23)--how it defiles our thoughts, words, and actions, and that continually (Genesis 6:5; Matthew 15:19)--how it renders us all guilty and abominable in the sight of a holy God (Isaiah 64:6; Habakkuk 1:13)--how it leaves us utterly without hope of salvation, if we look to ourselves (Psalm 143:2; Romans 3:20)--how its fruit in this world is shame, and its wages in the world to come, death (Romans 6:21, 23).

- J.C. Ryle in Thoughts for Young Men

Servanthood as Worship - A Clarion Call to Worship God by Serving Others

With the title, Servanthood as Worship: The Privilege of  Life in a Local Church, it would be obvious to conclude that based on the cover this book is about service. While that would be a correct conclusion, this book is really about the gospel. In fact, it is so saturated with the gospel that one could give this book to a non-believer with complete confidence that the message of salvation would be clearly presented multiple times. At just under one hundred pages, author Nate Palmer's book is accessible, loaded with scripture, arrestingly convicting, and utterly encouraging.

Chapter titles like Context, Glory, Appreciation and Subjection lead the reader through a logical approach to the topic of servanthood. Each chapter begins with an intriguing illustration intended to pique the reader's interest. I especially enjoyed the story heading Chapter 2 where Mr. Palmer recounts historical events from the mid-1700s that were discovered while researching his genealogy. I chuckled at the thought of a vegan butcher (Chapter 7), and imagined being the prince of the 550 square meter nation of Sealand (Chapter 4). Even if you don't enjoy reading or don't read very much, you will find Servanthood as Worship to be straightforward, and readily understood. The nine chapters are relatively short (only about ten pages each), and CruciformPress has done a beautiful job in laying out the manuscript in a practical, eye-friendly manner.

Though accessible, Servanthood as Worship, is not watered-down. Its not a scripture commentary, but its pages are saturated with scripture. I find great pleasure in reading books that are so centered on God's Word that you can scarcely turn a page without being confronted by God's perspective on the topic. This is one of those books. Beginning with the creation account, Mr. Palmer postulates and then proves that "All our service for God begins and ends with service from God."

Taking the reader on a journey following the crimson thread of redemption, the author makes brief stops at the patriarchs, the incarnation, the death of Christ, and His glorious resurrection, ascension, and exaltation. Commenting on the future, he writes, "We still have one more supremely dramatic and momentous act of Christ's service to witness: One day he will come again to bring all believers into eternal and perfect union with him in heaven. We will be united with Christ in a great wedding in Heaven, where neither sin nor hardship dwell. There, we will worship and serve God for eternity, even as we enjoy the fruits of his service to us." A book this permeated with scripture could easily have become heavy and daunting to the casual reader. But the author's appealing approach to the theological bedrock supporting Christian service made it a delight to read rather than a drudgery.

Upon hearing about the book, I was apprehensive that the chasm between works-based salvation and salvation by grace through faith might be narrowed ever so slightly. But make no mistake--the sinful condition of an unregenerate soul is clearly exposed when the author defines total depravity. He explains, "This phrase doesn't mean we are as bad as we could possibly be, or that we are incapable of any moral good. But it does mean that sin has affected every area of our life." Just a few sentences later when describing the burden of our fallen sin nature, he quips, "We are, all of us, unable not to sin." We are "rebellious outlaws, deserving of God's just wrath". In our depravity we find "loving God impossible on our own". But darker still, our corruption "renders us unable to save ourselves from God's justice." Mr. Palmer reasons, "Until we grasp what we are, we will never ask for what we need--a Savior." Having laid this foundation, the good news of the gospel is a refreshing respite: what is impossible with man is possible with God (Matthew 19:26). "Where we could never earn salvation, Jesus could and did earn it...then he granted us the benefit of his accomplishment, even when we were as weak and helpless and condemned to death as that bleeding criminal on a cross." 

Concluding Chapter 5, Mr. Palmer writes, "As the Spirit operates through the Word of God to give us a clear understanding of who we are, who God is, and what God has done for us in Christ, the gospel will increasingly inspire our service, define our service, and be reflected in our service. Service becomes a grateful response to Christ's sacrificial service to us." With this context in mind, the reader is lovingly urged on towards Christ-like love demonstrated by selfless service. I was convicted about my own pride when confronted with 1 Corinthians 13:1-2 in Chapter 7. Who, after all, wants to be "nothing more than a noisy gong". I was exhorted to love purely when when he explained the love between the members of the Godhead. "There is no bickering or jealousy, no uncertainty or fears, no suspicion or questioning of motives". Finally, I was challenged to increase my passion for the lost because, "Jesus did not wait until [I] was lovable before he loved and welcomed [me]." What a joyful thought that I can "engrave people's hearts with God's love" by "seeking to love and serve them as Christ has done" for me.

"When Biblical, gospel-centered service in Christ's name is present at the center of a local church, it forms a brilliant nucleus radiating out into a dark world." The thought of servanthood being a vehicle by which the lost can be won for Christ encouraged me to more consistent and heartfelt service. Serving God really ought to be my "grateful response to the gospel"! I will continue to reflect on the message of Servanthood as Worship with the hope that in so doing my life will be changed to more closely parallel my Savior's: "He went to places and he served people that were unholy, unfashionable, inconvenient, unattractive, unhealthy, and dangerous. he lost sleep and skipped meals in order to meet needs and speak truth. He did not make exceptions; therefore we cannot." Quoting Thomas Boston, Mr. Palmer writes, "A servant must not do what he pleases, but be at the will of his master. Thus a godly man is a servant. He is wholly at God's disposal." 

Servanthood as Worship is a well-thought-out, gospel-centric approach to service. It is a clarion call to "worship God by serving others". I enthusiastically recommend this book, and consider it one to revisit whether I need to be convicted to serve more faithfully or encouraged to serve more joyfully.

Servanthood as Worship is available now from CruciformPress