THE MOST DIFFICULT PART FOR ME IN THIS ENTIRE PROCESS came just prior to the first surgery. I mentioned in chapter 1 that it was a kick in the gut to think of my son potentially going blind -- even if in only one eye. I cried bitterly during the several days leading up to that first surgery. I pleaded to God for mercy to be extended to my son. God, please look favorably upon Joshua. Hear the cries of a broken father and mother. Answer quickly! (A discourse on these prayers can be found by clicking here. Reading that will serve as a prologue of sorts.)
Recently, a neighbor of mine asked how our family was faring during this entire process, and I honestly found it difficult to express to him my deep hurt. I was hurting for my son, but I was hurt that God was seemingly ignoring me. I wanted to remain strong, but I also wanted to express my pain. This neighbor is not a follower of Christ, and I wanted to somehow glorify God as I processed the pain. But I couldn't yet muster it. I could sense God was in the process of breaking me down, leading me to a place of complete dependence upon Him, and ultimately being able to glorify Him in the end.
But I honestly couldn't do that yet. In fact, it was just the opposite -- I was losing faith in Him. How could I tell this unbelieving friend and neighbor to have faith in God when my own faith was shaken? How could I offer to pray for or with my co-workers whose children are suffering more so when my own confidence in Almighty God was assaulted?
I expressed this to a good friend of mine one night before a church-league softball game. Doug is an older, well-respected member of the church and the community who is a godly and caring man -- and I trust him completely. I recounted to him my crisis of faith -- If God can, why doesn't He? I know I'm not the first person in the world to ever express this doubt; God is certainly no stranger to it.
I poured out my soul, bruised and battered as it was, to Doug. Did he mock my crisis of faith? Not in the least. In fact, I sensed he was hurting with me. I could see the pain in his eyes as he searched the scriptures hidden in his heart and mind for answers. And all he came up with was, Mike, I don't know. I am so sorry. I knew he was genuine. Ironically enough, he was at the time leading a book study on the very topic of Faith in the believer's life. I had hoped he held a magical answer. But alas! Quite honestly, it was the best counsel I had yet received. Another trusted man added later, We don't know why God does what he does, but you can still trust Him. Job is a case in point. These men were lighthouses of sorts in my stormy world at sea.
I've had conversations with other friends, though, who have suggested, You just need more faith that God will heal him. Or, Stand on the promises of healing. The problem with those suggestions is this: I don't see any scriptural support that God has promised to heal in this life -- even if we have the faith of a mustard seed. Yes, Jesus told his followers that if they simply had the faith of a mustard seed they could say to this or that mountain, 'Be gone', and it will be thrown in the ocean. But, obviously, none of the physical mountains have ever moved by man's spoken word, so He must have meant something entirely different from what we thought it to mean. Instead, mountains are only moved by His spoken word.
I have faith that God CAN heal, but I honestly doubt He WILL heal. Is this lack of faith a sure guarantee that Joshua will never be healed? I doubt it. We witness sick and dying people daily, and God doesn't appear to step in to reverse the natural course of life all that frequently. Part and parcel to the curse in the Fall is our appointment with pain, sickness, and ultimately death.
So is this "faith of a mustard seed" promise referring to what happens when we lay our cares on Him who walks with us, cares for us, hurts with us? Is this about the mystery of what happens in a man's soul when he places all of his cares upon the shoulders of the One who is strong enough to bear them? Is this about complete dependence on Him, on being "poor in spirit"?
The day I did just that was my best day in weeks. Remember when I said I sensed God was breaking me down? Well, I finally arrived at the point where I prayed, OK, God, there's nothing I can do about it. You have determined that it is in Your plan to not heal Joshua's left eye, at least not now anyway. I trust You with the care of his life.
It wasn't that I got to the intersection where I said, There's nothing ELSE I can do, so I guess I'll just trust you. It was simply that there is absolutely NOTHING I can do -- as if all is outside of my span of control in the first place. Nothing was ever in MY hands. When I got there, I was truly set free!
So, if you're reading this and you're faced with dark, ominous clouds looming overhead, have faith! Trust me, I know -- it's much easier said than done. You may be asking,
The questions are all cries from one-and-the-same heart. They are cries of desperation. But they are also the cries of broken people who progressively recognize we fully depend on God not only for daily provision, but for every breath that enters our lungs, for every beat of our heart, and for every step we walk.
You may be wondering how the ends will tie together. The end may not be for us to know, but we can know the One who holds the end in the palm of His hand. When we place our confidence in Jesus Christ, we need not have fear of what the end has in store.
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
6.27.2012
HOW NOW SHALL WE PRAY?
I have to be honest: I've never prayed as hard and as fervently as I did during this past week and a half. I pleaded and begged for God to show favor to my son, Joshua. I begged him to respond quickly (as did the Psalmist in chapter 69). No need has ever caused me such deep sorrow as has the need for my son's eye to be made whole again. I have petitioned God with some serious needs, and God has ultimately answered. But this one had the deep painfulness of a broken heart for my son.The reason for this post is because Joshua received a "get well" card from a well-intentioned lady from church today. She wrote, "Joshua, I will pray that God heals your eye. But I will pray for His will to be done." I get what she means. I understand her acknowledgement that God is sovereign and in complete control of our circumstances. I get it. But what kind of prayer is that??? I wasn't angry, but I was a little miffed. Obviously the need is much greater and more real to us than it is to her. I wouldn't expect otherwise. I'm not pointing fingers at her only, because I've been guilty of this very kind of prayer: "Dear God, if it's your will, will you please heal Mrs. Smith of her cancer? Amen." And then I'd go about my daily affairs.
Of course He will heal (or do whatever it is He desires) if it's His will. But if we're going to offer up weak prayers to God, then why pray at all? Why should we expect our needs to mean anything to God when they don't even cause us to break a sweat? Why should we expect our prayers to have any influence with God when we offer them so lightly, nonchalantly, cavalierly, sheepishly?
David Redding in 1960 wrote a book entitled "The Parables He Told". I like what he had to say in his commentary on the parables of the persistent neighbor and the persistent widow, each found in Luke 11:5-13 and Luke 18:1-8 respectively. "Those who take prayer so lightly they can't remember what it was they meant to pray for and never pray for the same thing two weeks in a row, who assume one mention is enough, at least to be mad about if He doesn't answer within the hour, make prayer a pity. ... Prayer demands determination and patience." (p.39)
See, we have two extremes set before us: (1) The will of God (something we don't know until the moment it is revealed) and (2) our intense desires that we present before Almighty God. In other words, how do we pray for something we want and yet desire God's will? Or how do we pray God's will when there's something we so desperately need?
First, we have the example of Jesus praying in the garden of Gathsemane that many use to support their "if-it-be-Your-will" prayers. After He pleaded with the Father to spare him from His cup of wrath, Jesus closed his prayer, "...yet not as I will, but as You will."
What we often overlook in this prayer, however, is the intensity of Jesus' prayer. He prayed passionately and fervently -- as if the weight of all humanity rested on his shoulders alone -- and he pleaded to the Father for rescue. He prayed so intensely that the capillaries under his skin burst and mixed his blood with his sweat. It was only AFTER his intense prayer request for rescue that Jesus reassured the Father that he was submitted to the His will. Can I ask when the last time was that you prayed so zealously that you broke a sweat?
The other example we have is the persistence of the neighbor and the widow mentioned in the parables of Jesus named above. The subjects in these parables had such great needs that they presented their "petitions and requests" so persistently to their hearers that they reached a near point of annoyance. Their needs meant something to them, and they expected their hearers to relent. They expected response.
I wonder if our sheepish prayers "annoy" God. I wonder if they cause Him to take notice. Do we say, "Your will be done" because we truly desire God's will, or is it because we honestly don't even expect Him to answer? Do we subconsciously (or even consciously) believe God is going to remain silent just like He did last time we asked Him for something important? Did He not answer last time because that prayer, too, was painfully boring? Is our sheepishness a display of our lack of faith? Is it a cheap way of giving God an "out", as if to say, "God, You can just claim 'It's My will' if you don't want to answer this one...I'll understand."
So why should those prayers move the heart and hand of God if they don't hold any passion in our own heart? Redding continues, "To attract the notice of the Almighty, prayer must have something of the insistence, the perseverence, the intensity, of the undiscouraged host who kept banging away at his neighbor's door at night, or the undaunted widow who kept pestering the tough old judge with her problem and wouldn't give up until he gave in." (p.40)
Please don't mistake my words: God is sovereign; He is in complete control; He knows our hearts and desires.
But please don't miss this: Our prayers ought to mean something.
7.16.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 11 Reflections:
Chapter 11 - Holy Space and Holy Time
Quotable Sproul: "The celebration of the Lord's Supper involves sacred time in three distinct ways. First, it looks to the past, instructing believers to remember and show forth Christ's death by this observance. Second, it focuses on the present moment of celebration, in which Christ meets with His people to nurture them and strengthen them in their sanctification. Third, it looks to the future, to the certain hope of their reunion with Christ in heaven, where they will participate in the banquet feast of the Lamb and His bride."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 2 questions
1) "In what ways have you looked for a doorway to holy space? Do you go to a specific place -- in your home, in your church, in nature -- to feel closer to God?"
When I have felt closest to God's presense, it has always, always been on my knees. I can't focus on His presence when I'm walking or driving, although I can approach anywhere. However, on my knees in front of a couch or bed has always been most effective for me.
2) "What holy times can you pinpoint in your life?"
I can point to one most recently. I had been going through a very difficult time, a time when my good friend Mike "walked" with me and urged me to stand when I was on my back. He reminded me of God's everlasting faithfulness. When I was at my worst, Mike reminded me that I am a child of God and must fight the urge to throw in the towel and quit. He is truly a godly man, and I thank God for placing him in my life. Mike's reminding me of God's faithfulness and righteousness was truly a holy, God-glorifying time that brought many tears of thanks to my eyes.
Quotable Sproul: "The celebration of the Lord's Supper involves sacred time in three distinct ways. First, it looks to the past, instructing believers to remember and show forth Christ's death by this observance. Second, it focuses on the present moment of celebration, in which Christ meets with His people to nurture them and strengthen them in their sanctification. Third, it looks to the future, to the certain hope of their reunion with Christ in heaven, where they will participate in the banquet feast of the Lamb and His bride."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 2 questions
1) "In what ways have you looked for a doorway to holy space? Do you go to a specific place -- in your home, in your church, in nature -- to feel closer to God?"
When I have felt closest to God's presense, it has always, always been on my knees. I can't focus on His presence when I'm walking or driving, although I can approach anywhere. However, on my knees in front of a couch or bed has always been most effective for me.
2) "What holy times can you pinpoint in your life?"
I can point to one most recently. I had been going through a very difficult time, a time when my good friend Mike "walked" with me and urged me to stand when I was on my back. He reminded me of God's everlasting faithfulness. When I was at my worst, Mike reminded me that I am a child of God and must fight the urge to throw in the towel and quit. He is truly a godly man, and I thank God for placing him in my life. Mike's reminding me of God's faithfulness and righteousness was truly a holy, God-glorifying time that brought many tears of thanks to my eyes.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 10 Reflections:
Chapter 10 - Looking Beyond Shadows
Quotable Sproul: "...we not only fail to stop and smell the flowers, but we also fail to notice the glory of the flowers' Maker."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "Describe a recent experience in which God revealed himself to you through nature."
Every morning I drive to work, I experience God's glory in his creation in the sunrises He artistically designs. I love witnessing the development of the sunrise and cloud formations as I travel east, and I wonder how many busy drivers notice the glory of a majestic God developing before their very eyes.
2) "In what ways do we worship creation rather than the Creator?"
Those who do not notice the sunrise may be too focused on their jobs or other life-problems. We allow our life-issues to distract us too much from God's desire to attract our attention. When our life-issues become more important than God, we give worth-ship to creation that is due our Creator.
3) "How do things that are good, true, and beautiful reflect God's holiness? How does this truth help shape your priorities?"
God is good. God is true. God is beautiful. Just as art proclaims the wonder of the artist, so goodness, truth, and beauty reflect the very character of Almighty God.
Quotable Sproul: "...we not only fail to stop and smell the flowers, but we also fail to notice the glory of the flowers' Maker."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "Describe a recent experience in which God revealed himself to you through nature."
Every morning I drive to work, I experience God's glory in his creation in the sunrises He artistically designs. I love witnessing the development of the sunrise and cloud formations as I travel east, and I wonder how many busy drivers notice the glory of a majestic God developing before their very eyes.
2) "In what ways do we worship creation rather than the Creator?"
Those who do not notice the sunrise may be too focused on their jobs or other life-problems. We allow our life-issues to distract us too much from God's desire to attract our attention. When our life-issues become more important than God, we give worth-ship to creation that is due our Creator.
3) "How do things that are good, true, and beautiful reflect God's holiness? How does this truth help shape your priorities?"
God is good. God is true. God is beautiful. Just as art proclaims the wonder of the artist, so goodness, truth, and beauty reflect the very character of Almighty God.
7.13.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 9 Reflections:
Chapter 9 - God in the Hands of Angry Sinners
Quotable Sproul: "If God is holy at all, if God has an ounce of justice in His character, indeed if God exists as God, how could He possibly be anything else but angry with us? We violate His holiness; we insult His justice; we make light of His grace. These things can hardly please Him."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "How do you respond to Jonathan Edward's sermon ["Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"]? Is it compassionate?"
I have an audio copy of this sermon read by Max Mclean, and it is gripping. I've read it and listened to it, but hearing it is much more poignant. People today seem to think God's holiness and righteousness contains only mercy and compassion, rather than also containing wrath and justice. In fact, God's holiness demands justice!
Do I think the sermon is compassionate? Ironically, yes...but I'll explain. While it is painful to hear about the wrath of Almighty God, I think it would be more painful to experience His wrath. Unfortunately, wrath is what many will experience! As difficult as it is to hear where I need to be better in my marriage, I appreciate when my wife tells me where I am slipping. Therefore, it is more compassionate for her to tell me the truth than to hide it.
2) "How does understanding God's wrath help you honor Him as a holy God?"
As mentioned in my last post, understanding God's holiness helps me live in the realization that He watches my every move and many of those moves hurt Him. However, I am a child of God, chosen by Him, and I will not experience His divine wrath because Christ experienced it for me. Therefore, I have more desire -- not obligation -- to live a life that honors and pleases God.
3) "In what ways do you need God to help you love Him?"
In thought. In word. In action. In ALL ways!
Quotable Sproul: "If God is holy at all, if God has an ounce of justice in His character, indeed if God exists as God, how could He possibly be anything else but angry with us? We violate His holiness; we insult His justice; we make light of His grace. These things can hardly please Him."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "How do you respond to Jonathan Edward's sermon ["Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"]? Is it compassionate?"
I have an audio copy of this sermon read by Max Mclean, and it is gripping. I've read it and listened to it, but hearing it is much more poignant. People today seem to think God's holiness and righteousness contains only mercy and compassion, rather than also containing wrath and justice. In fact, God's holiness demands justice!
Do I think the sermon is compassionate? Ironically, yes...but I'll explain. While it is painful to hear about the wrath of Almighty God, I think it would be more painful to experience His wrath. Unfortunately, wrath is what many will experience! As difficult as it is to hear where I need to be better in my marriage, I appreciate when my wife tells me where I am slipping. Therefore, it is more compassionate for her to tell me the truth than to hide it.
2) "How does understanding God's wrath help you honor Him as a holy God?"
As mentioned in my last post, understanding God's holiness helps me live in the realization that He watches my every move and many of those moves hurt Him. However, I am a child of God, chosen by Him, and I will not experience His divine wrath because Christ experienced it for me. Therefore, I have more desire -- not obligation -- to live a life that honors and pleases God.
3) "In what ways do you need God to help you love Him?"
In thought. In word. In action. In ALL ways!
7.12.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD : Chapter 8 reflections:
Chapter 8 - Be Holy Because I am Holy
Quotable Sproul: "When we major in minors and blow insignificant trifles out of proportion, we imitate the Pharisees. When we make dancing and movies the test of spirituality, we are guilty of substituting a cheap morality for a genuine one. We do these things to obscure the deeper issues of righteousness. Anyone can avoid dancing or going to the movies. These require no great effort of moral courage. What is difficult is to control the tongue, to act with integrity, to reveal the fruit of the Spirit."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 5 questions
1) "What does it mean to you to be holy, to live a holy life?"
I often think of holiness as perfection, but the more I reflect on it, the more I see my daily holiness as reverence for God's holiness. To be holy is to live a life that shuns evil behavior and walks in the mindfulness of God's all-consuming presence. To live as though God is actually present ought to keep us from sin, the same way that we would live if our mothers were watching.
2) "How are you trying to renew your mind?"
Still I'm baffled. What surprises me most is that God would choose to save people just like me. I wouldn't at all find it unjust if God wiped us all out -- even those of us who are born-agains. I am amazed that He would save even one! Why me?
4) "What fruit has the Holy Spirit been developing in your life?"
I think this question is like the question that cannot be answered by an idiot: "What would you like to learn today." "Well, I don't know what I'd like to learn because there's so much I don't know...you tell me." I feel like I'm in that boat, but I guess I'd like to practice God's presence more than I do. Is growing in holiness a lot like humility? Just as it's prideful to say I'm humble, is it self-righteous to say I'm holy? Can we know we've got it and admit we've got it? Or will we always -- especially as we grow in it -- be more aware of our wretchedness and God's holiness and continually think we've not yet arrived? I think so.
Quotable Sproul: "When we major in minors and blow insignificant trifles out of proportion, we imitate the Pharisees. When we make dancing and movies the test of spirituality, we are guilty of substituting a cheap morality for a genuine one. We do these things to obscure the deeper issues of righteousness. Anyone can avoid dancing or going to the movies. These require no great effort of moral courage. What is difficult is to control the tongue, to act with integrity, to reveal the fruit of the Spirit."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 5 questions
1) "What does it mean to you to be holy, to live a holy life?"
I often think of holiness as perfection, but the more I reflect on it, the more I see my daily holiness as reverence for God's holiness. To be holy is to live a life that shuns evil behavior and walks in the mindfulness of God's all-consuming presence. To live as though God is actually present ought to keep us from sin, the same way that we would live if our mothers were watching.
2) "How are you trying to renew your mind?"
Renewal of my mind has been a very long, difficult process. I have accountability partners to help keep me in check. Most times it works, but throughout time it needs to be checked. My accountability partners are my good friend Mike (the pastor) and my wife...and I hate answering their tough questions.
3) "How do you respond when you realize that God has justified you by transferring to your account all of Christ's righteousness?"Still I'm baffled. What surprises me most is that God would choose to save people just like me. I wouldn't at all find it unjust if God wiped us all out -- even those of us who are born-agains. I am amazed that He would save even one! Why me?
4) "What fruit has the Holy Spirit been developing in your life?"
Over the past few months, I have seen myself being more compassionate to peoples' hurting that I have been in the past. Maybe it's because I've hurt so much lately that God has been able to use it to break me. I'm not saying I go cry over peoples' problems, but I am more sympathetic to what they think and feel.
5) "In what ways do you want to grow in holiness?"I think this question is like the question that cannot be answered by an idiot: "What would you like to learn today." "Well, I don't know what I'd like to learn because there's so much I don't know...you tell me." I feel like I'm in that boat, but I guess I'd like to practice God's presence more than I do. Is growing in holiness a lot like humility? Just as it's prideful to say I'm humble, is it self-righteous to say I'm holy? Can we know we've got it and admit we've got it? Or will we always -- especially as we grow in it -- be more aware of our wretchedness and God's holiness and continually think we've not yet arrived? I think so.
7.06.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 7 Reflections:
Chapter 7 - War and Peace with a Holy God
Quotable Sproul: "When God signs a peace treaty, it is signed for perpetuity. The war is over, forever and ever. Of course we still sin; we still rebel; we still commit acts of hostility toard God. But God is not a co-belligerent. He will not be drawn into warfare with us. We have an advocate with the Father. We have a mediator who keeps the peace. He rules over the peace because He is both the Prince of Peace and He is our peace."
"Our peace with God is not fragile; it is stable. When we sin, God is displeased, and He will move to correct us and convict us of our sin. But He does not go to war against us. His bow is no longer bent, and the arrows of His wrath are no longer aimed at our hearts. He does not rattle His sword every time we break the treaty."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 4 questions
1) "Has God ever engaged you in an honest struggle, as He did Jacob? What was the outcome?"
I must first say that I don't hear a distinctly audible voice that I am willing to credit to God. However, I do hear reason and conscience, and those "voices" are formed by God's written word itself. After all, if the Bible contains all that is necessary to correct lives into holiness, then God realistically no longer needs to "speak", since the Holy Spirit does it through the Scriptures.
That said, I regularly hear, "What on earth are you doing? You know better, Michael." What hurts most is when I hear those words when I'm in the process of considering certain sins. Sometimes I wish the "voice" came standard equipped with a two-by-four to knock me upside the head every time I fought against conscience. If that were so, I'd probably be in a completely vegetative state by this point in my life.
2) "Have you ever challenged God, as Job did? What was God's response?"
During my recent struggle that I only briefly mentioned in prior posts, I routinely asked of God, "Do you even care? Are you even there? If so, do something about it!" Because I have a very godly friend in my life, and because I've taken to studying God's word extensively, I heard God's replies in two forms. First, my good friend reminded me of God's faithfulness in trying circumstances, and he reminded me that He indeed cares. The other reply came from Job's book. "Who are YOU? Where were YOU when...? What makes YOU think...?" With those, I'm immediately humbled; not always to submission, but often stubbornly humbled.
3) "What does it mean to you personally that Christ's death offers us unending peace with God?"
Wow, this is a mind-boggling thought. I have a difficult time understanding how God does it. After all, I'm vengeful, I like movies where the bad guys receive their just "pay-backs", I can be harsh when people do me wrong. But I have only proven that I am so UNlike God. I don't understand, first of all, why God would dare or care to choose to save me. That baffles me. But secondly, I cannot even fathom why God continues to love me after all the hurt I've caused Him and all the rebellion I've done. Yahweh is truly an amazing God.
4) "How will you worship God for giving us unlimited access to Himself?"
I wish I could say I will worship Him with my life, but I'd be fooling myself. Every time I commit to honoring Him with my very being, I mess it up. Completely! Whether by thought, word, or deed, I mess it up. All I can give is my best. When I mess up, I hope I have the wisdom and teachableness to learn and not do again what I had just done. And when I succeed, I hope I have the humility and strength to avoid boasting in myself and what I had just accomplished.
Quotable Sproul: "When God signs a peace treaty, it is signed for perpetuity. The war is over, forever and ever. Of course we still sin; we still rebel; we still commit acts of hostility toard God. But God is not a co-belligerent. He will not be drawn into warfare with us. We have an advocate with the Father. We have a mediator who keeps the peace. He rules over the peace because He is both the Prince of Peace and He is our peace."
"Our peace with God is not fragile; it is stable. When we sin, God is displeased, and He will move to correct us and convict us of our sin. But He does not go to war against us. His bow is no longer bent, and the arrows of His wrath are no longer aimed at our hearts. He does not rattle His sword every time we break the treaty."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 4 questions
1) "Has God ever engaged you in an honest struggle, as He did Jacob? What was the outcome?"
I must first say that I don't hear a distinctly audible voice that I am willing to credit to God. However, I do hear reason and conscience, and those "voices" are formed by God's written word itself. After all, if the Bible contains all that is necessary to correct lives into holiness, then God realistically no longer needs to "speak", since the Holy Spirit does it through the Scriptures.
That said, I regularly hear, "What on earth are you doing? You know better, Michael." What hurts most is when I hear those words when I'm in the process of considering certain sins. Sometimes I wish the "voice" came standard equipped with a two-by-four to knock me upside the head every time I fought against conscience. If that were so, I'd probably be in a completely vegetative state by this point in my life.
2) "Have you ever challenged God, as Job did? What was God's response?"
During my recent struggle that I only briefly mentioned in prior posts, I routinely asked of God, "Do you even care? Are you even there? If so, do something about it!" Because I have a very godly friend in my life, and because I've taken to studying God's word extensively, I heard God's replies in two forms. First, my good friend reminded me of God's faithfulness in trying circumstances, and he reminded me that He indeed cares. The other reply came from Job's book. "Who are YOU? Where were YOU when...? What makes YOU think...?" With those, I'm immediately humbled; not always to submission, but often stubbornly humbled.
3) "What does it mean to you personally that Christ's death offers us unending peace with God?"
Wow, this is a mind-boggling thought. I have a difficult time understanding how God does it. After all, I'm vengeful, I like movies where the bad guys receive their just "pay-backs", I can be harsh when people do me wrong. But I have only proven that I am so UNlike God. I don't understand, first of all, why God would dare or care to choose to save me. That baffles me. But secondly, I cannot even fathom why God continues to love me after all the hurt I've caused Him and all the rebellion I've done. Yahweh is truly an amazing God.
4) "How will you worship God for giving us unlimited access to Himself?"
I wish I could say I will worship Him with my life, but I'd be fooling myself. Every time I commit to honoring Him with my very being, I mess it up. Completely! Whether by thought, word, or deed, I mess it up. All I can give is my best. When I mess up, I hope I have the wisdom and teachableness to learn and not do again what I had just done. And when I succeed, I hope I have the humility and strength to avoid boasting in myself and what I had just accomplished.
6.30.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 6 Reflections:
Chapter 6 - Holy Justice
Quotable Sproul: "God does not always act with justice. Sometimes He acts with mercy. Mercy is not justice, but it also is not injustice. Injustice violates righteousness. Mercy manifests kindness and grace and does no violence to righteousness. We may see nonjustice in God, which is mercy, but we never see injustice in God."
"The false conflict between the two testaments may be seen in the most brutal act of divine vengeance ever recorded in Scripture. It is not found in the Old Testament but in the New Testament. The most violent expresssion of God's wrath and justice is seen in the Cross. If ever a person had room to complain of injustice, it was Jesus. He was the only innocent man ever to be punished by God. If we stagger at the wrath of God, let us stagger at the Cross. Here is where our astonishment should be focused. If we have cause for moral outrage, let it be directed at Golgotha."
(This was a very powerful chapter, so to choose just one passage would not do the chapter justice -- pardon the pun. But to choose more would be re-writing the entire chapter.)
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 4 questions
1) "In what ways does God's justice frighten you? In what ways does it comfort you?"
God's justice frightens me because I fully recognize that I truly deserve it. We so frequently hear people cry out, "We want justice!" But to beg that of God would be foolish. But His justice comforts me becuase the question arises: What good is mercy without justice? If it weren't for God's justice, mercy would be cheap and easily available to all without cost. If it weren't for His mercy, God's justice would seem impossibly harsh, and impossible to please Him. It is utterly astonishing that God would show mercy on just one person, since we are all truly deserving of His divine justice.
2) "What is your response when you realize that you deserve to die because of your sin?"
I agree that I deserve to die. But I've grown up with this notion all my life, so it's easy for me to comprehend. When I speak to friends who are not Christians, however, they tend to think I am too hard on myself when I sin. Their response is, "Quit beating yourself up. You are a good person." But I have a difficulty distinguishing where the line between being one who deserves God's divine justice stops, and where the line begins as being one who is precious and valuable in His sight. I want to be faithful to God's holiness, fully recognizing that I am not holy. (I don't like to say I am un-holy, because that implies I was once holy and now am not. Instead, I never have been holy, except -- and only except -- through Christ.) But I also want to be faithful to recognize that in Christ I am a new creation -- even when I sin -- and because of that I am very precious to God. To say I'm worthless to Him is to say the price Jesus paid for the justice I deserve was unnecessary. I need to see myself as God sees me. After all, my price tag was very high!
3) "What is your response when you realize that God's justice demanded Christ's death for you?"
The second paragraph that I quoted above containing the phrase that Jesus is the ONLY perfect man (person) ever to be punished by God stabbed me in the gut. When I look at my guilt -- or lack of innocense -- I cannot fathom why Jesus took the punishment I deserved. Oh, if I could only apply this principle to my life and how I deal with other people. Why didn't Jesus contend for His innocense? I know I would have.
4) "In what ways has God demonstrated His mercy to you?"
In the chapter, RC provided an example of when he was a college professor. He assigned to his students three term papers due at specific times throughout the semester. When the deadline arrived for the first paper, only 25 students hadn't completed the assignment and pled for mercy in the form of an extention. It was granted. When the second deadline arrived, 50 students pled mercy. Again it was granted. When the third deadline arrived, 100 students pled mercy, having not completed the assignment they knew months prior was due on a specific day. Rather than granting mercy, he meted out justice...flunking all the students for not completing the assignment. "That's not fair!" they cried out. What was not fair, however, was that he gave them mercy in the first place. Twice! What was not fair was that the students who completed the assignments on time were made fools for turning their papers in on time while the others were rewarded for their procrastination.
I'm not like the student who cries, "That's not fair!", because I know the justice due to me is perfectly fair. In fact, it would actually be right thing for God to do! Instead, I'm very much like that student who continues to take mercy for granted and push for forgiveness and mercy. I continued to step on God's holiness, suspecting He will be merciful yet again. But I would hate to discover where God's patience is exhaused.
Quotable Sproul: "God does not always act with justice. Sometimes He acts with mercy. Mercy is not justice, but it also is not injustice. Injustice violates righteousness. Mercy manifests kindness and grace and does no violence to righteousness. We may see nonjustice in God, which is mercy, but we never see injustice in God."
"The false conflict between the two testaments may be seen in the most brutal act of divine vengeance ever recorded in Scripture. It is not found in the Old Testament but in the New Testament. The most violent expresssion of God's wrath and justice is seen in the Cross. If ever a person had room to complain of injustice, it was Jesus. He was the only innocent man ever to be punished by God. If we stagger at the wrath of God, let us stagger at the Cross. Here is where our astonishment should be focused. If we have cause for moral outrage, let it be directed at Golgotha."
(This was a very powerful chapter, so to choose just one passage would not do the chapter justice -- pardon the pun. But to choose more would be re-writing the entire chapter.)
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 4 questions
1) "In what ways does God's justice frighten you? In what ways does it comfort you?"
God's justice frightens me because I fully recognize that I truly deserve it. We so frequently hear people cry out, "We want justice!" But to beg that of God would be foolish. But His justice comforts me becuase the question arises: What good is mercy without justice? If it weren't for God's justice, mercy would be cheap and easily available to all without cost. If it weren't for His mercy, God's justice would seem impossibly harsh, and impossible to please Him. It is utterly astonishing that God would show mercy on just one person, since we are all truly deserving of His divine justice.
2) "What is your response when you realize that you deserve to die because of your sin?"
I agree that I deserve to die. But I've grown up with this notion all my life, so it's easy for me to comprehend. When I speak to friends who are not Christians, however, they tend to think I am too hard on myself when I sin. Their response is, "Quit beating yourself up. You are a good person." But I have a difficulty distinguishing where the line between being one who deserves God's divine justice stops, and where the line begins as being one who is precious and valuable in His sight. I want to be faithful to God's holiness, fully recognizing that I am not holy. (I don't like to say I am un-holy, because that implies I was once holy and now am not. Instead, I never have been holy, except -- and only except -- through Christ.) But I also want to be faithful to recognize that in Christ I am a new creation -- even when I sin -- and because of that I am very precious to God. To say I'm worthless to Him is to say the price Jesus paid for the justice I deserve was unnecessary. I need to see myself as God sees me. After all, my price tag was very high!
3) "What is your response when you realize that God's justice demanded Christ's death for you?"
The second paragraph that I quoted above containing the phrase that Jesus is the ONLY perfect man (person) ever to be punished by God stabbed me in the gut. When I look at my guilt -- or lack of innocense -- I cannot fathom why Jesus took the punishment I deserved. Oh, if I could only apply this principle to my life and how I deal with other people. Why didn't Jesus contend for His innocense? I know I would have.
4) "In what ways has God demonstrated His mercy to you?"
In the chapter, RC provided an example of when he was a college professor. He assigned to his students three term papers due at specific times throughout the semester. When the deadline arrived for the first paper, only 25 students hadn't completed the assignment and pled for mercy in the form of an extention. It was granted. When the second deadline arrived, 50 students pled mercy. Again it was granted. When the third deadline arrived, 100 students pled mercy, having not completed the assignment they knew months prior was due on a specific day. Rather than granting mercy, he meted out justice...flunking all the students for not completing the assignment. "That's not fair!" they cried out. What was not fair, however, was that he gave them mercy in the first place. Twice! What was not fair was that the students who completed the assignments on time were made fools for turning their papers in on time while the others were rewarded for their procrastination.
I'm not like the student who cries, "That's not fair!", because I know the justice due to me is perfectly fair. In fact, it would actually be right thing for God to do! Instead, I'm very much like that student who continues to take mercy for granted and push for forgiveness and mercy. I continued to step on God's holiness, suspecting He will be merciful yet again. But I would hate to discover where God's patience is exhaused.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 5 Reflections:
Chapter 5 – The Insanity of Luther
Quotable Sproul: “But we are unjust, and therein lies our dilemma. Luther’s legal mind was haunted by the question, How can an unjust person survive in the presence of a Just God? Where everyone else was at ease in the matter, Luther was in agony.”
Allowing God's holiness to touch our lives - 4 questions
1) “When you look into the mirror of God’s holiness, what do you see? What do you learn about yourself and about God?”
The reflection is not very attractive. Scriptural authors emphasize the futility of comparing ourselves with ourselves – others like us. Instead, we ought to compare ourselves to the Almighty. When I compare myself with others, I look pretty good. I’m usually a nice guy, usually polite, I don’t abuse my wife. But when I look at myself with God’s perspective, I see dirty rags. But of course, that’s when I look at myself if I were not covered by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I’m not perfect and never will be. Instead, I’m sinfully dirty inside. That is why Christ’s sacrifice was so necessary, because I’ll never be able to perfect myself to meet God’s holy standard. Jesus perfects what is ugly and sinful.
2) “What do you do with your guilt about your sin?”
Guilt is a double-edged sword. Satan would love for us to live perpetually under the burden of sin’s guilt. Guilt has a way of oppressing us when used improperly. But, God has sanctified guilt through Jesus Christ and permits it to impact us so we will use it as a tool to gauge our lives. If I feel guilt, it most likely is due to unresolved sin in my life. Sometimes, however, it is much easier said than done to deal with my guilt and beg God for His forgiveness. Oh, how Satan would love for us to believe God would never invite us back to Him after we’ve sinned.
3) “What does ‘the just shall live by faith’ mean to you personally?”
In my job, we have official orders that tell us what we CAN do and what we SHALL do. The SHALL’s are not to be diobeyed; the CAN’s can, because they are more permissive. As the SHALL’s tell me as a professional what I must or must not do, I think the same is true of this passage. But not in the way many think. Because of Christ, I have been justified. Therefore, I am just. The holiness of God has proven that I am filthy, and unable to cleanse myself. And, therefore, I need God to cleanse me. I have faith, because I am justified, that it is only Jesus Christ who justifies me and makes me clean. Therefore, I have eternal life because I have faith in Christ to justify me, since, after all, I cannot do it myself.
4) “How can you worship God for justifying you?”
I can worship God for justifying me because his mercy and justice are simultaneously proven in my salvation. His mercy, because I don’t deserve it; His justice, because it’s justice I deserve, but He has pierced Jesus Christ with the penalty of His righteous justice due to none other than me.
Quotable Sproul: “But we are unjust, and therein lies our dilemma. Luther’s legal mind was haunted by the question, How can an unjust person survive in the presence of a Just God? Where everyone else was at ease in the matter, Luther was in agony.”
Allowing God's holiness to touch our lives - 4 questions
1) “When you look into the mirror of God’s holiness, what do you see? What do you learn about yourself and about God?”
The reflection is not very attractive. Scriptural authors emphasize the futility of comparing ourselves with ourselves – others like us. Instead, we ought to compare ourselves to the Almighty. When I compare myself with others, I look pretty good. I’m usually a nice guy, usually polite, I don’t abuse my wife. But when I look at myself with God’s perspective, I see dirty rags. But of course, that’s when I look at myself if I were not covered by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I’m not perfect and never will be. Instead, I’m sinfully dirty inside. That is why Christ’s sacrifice was so necessary, because I’ll never be able to perfect myself to meet God’s holy standard. Jesus perfects what is ugly and sinful.
2) “What do you do with your guilt about your sin?”
Guilt is a double-edged sword. Satan would love for us to live perpetually under the burden of sin’s guilt. Guilt has a way of oppressing us when used improperly. But, God has sanctified guilt through Jesus Christ and permits it to impact us so we will use it as a tool to gauge our lives. If I feel guilt, it most likely is due to unresolved sin in my life. Sometimes, however, it is much easier said than done to deal with my guilt and beg God for His forgiveness. Oh, how Satan would love for us to believe God would never invite us back to Him after we’ve sinned.
3) “What does ‘the just shall live by faith’ mean to you personally?”
In my job, we have official orders that tell us what we CAN do and what we SHALL do. The SHALL’s are not to be diobeyed; the CAN’s can, because they are more permissive. As the SHALL’s tell me as a professional what I must or must not do, I think the same is true of this passage. But not in the way many think. Because of Christ, I have been justified. Therefore, I am just. The holiness of God has proven that I am filthy, and unable to cleanse myself. And, therefore, I need God to cleanse me. I have faith, because I am justified, that it is only Jesus Christ who justifies me and makes me clean. Therefore, I have eternal life because I have faith in Christ to justify me, since, after all, I cannot do it myself.
4) “How can you worship God for justifying you?”
I can worship God for justifying me because his mercy and justice are simultaneously proven in my salvation. His mercy, because I don’t deserve it; His justice, because it’s justice I deserve, but He has pierced Jesus Christ with the penalty of His righteous justice due to none other than me.
6.18.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD: Chapter 4 Reflections:
Chapter 4 - The Trauma of Holiness
Quotable Sproul: "People have an appreciation for moral excellence, as long as it is moved a safe distance from them."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "Is your view of God's holiness like Peter's? Do you want to run from it?"
Absolutely! I find, however, that when I am living more in line with God's moral will for my life, that I am less afraid of His holiness than when I am not in line. But I wonder how much of my thought-expectations for how I live is instilled by what others (ie, the Church) think I should do and how I should behave, instead of how God wants them. Do I live my life to please others? Or to please God's holy standards? Do others shape my behaviors? Or does God, by drawing nearer and nearer to Him every day? The latter ought to be the case, but I often think it is the former.
2) "Have you ever experienced the trauma of God's holiness?"
Based on my answer to number 2, I don't know if the trauma I've felt was delt by God's holiness, or my thoughts of others' expectations on me. Because I have sins that regularly beset me, I often feel as though I cannot go to God for forgiveness. I often don't have the desire to repent of certain behaviors or thoughts. I want forgiveness, but I fight change. I'm certain it is one of Satan's schemes, to tell us we shouldn't bother God if we don't want to change ourselves. But then again, who brings us to a point of change? It is certainly not me. Calvinism teaches we are totally depraved, unable to rescue ourselves, and unable to even recognize that we need to be rescued. So, it is difficult to answer this question, because I have difficulty discerning the origin of my "trauma".
3) "Describe a time when you were comforted by God's holiness."
I am always comforted by God's holiness when I remember that His holiness is what drew me to Him in the first place. I would/could never recognize God if His holiness hadn't first drawn me. After all, His holiness permits the Holy Spirit to draw me to Him, not Him to me. My sin would forever separate me from God if it weren't for His holy desire to rescue me from the pit. Thank you, God!
Quotable Sproul: "People have an appreciation for moral excellence, as long as it is moved a safe distance from them."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "Is your view of God's holiness like Peter's? Do you want to run from it?"
Absolutely! I find, however, that when I am living more in line with God's moral will for my life, that I am less afraid of His holiness than when I am not in line. But I wonder how much of my thought-expectations for how I live is instilled by what others (ie, the Church) think I should do and how I should behave, instead of how God wants them. Do I live my life to please others? Or to please God's holy standards? Do others shape my behaviors? Or does God, by drawing nearer and nearer to Him every day? The latter ought to be the case, but I often think it is the former.
2) "Have you ever experienced the trauma of God's holiness?"
Based on my answer to number 2, I don't know if the trauma I've felt was delt by God's holiness, or my thoughts of others' expectations on me. Because I have sins that regularly beset me, I often feel as though I cannot go to God for forgiveness. I often don't have the desire to repent of certain behaviors or thoughts. I want forgiveness, but I fight change. I'm certain it is one of Satan's schemes, to tell us we shouldn't bother God if we don't want to change ourselves. But then again, who brings us to a point of change? It is certainly not me. Calvinism teaches we are totally depraved, unable to rescue ourselves, and unable to even recognize that we need to be rescued. So, it is difficult to answer this question, because I have difficulty discerning the origin of my "trauma".
3) "Describe a time when you were comforted by God's holiness."
I am always comforted by God's holiness when I remember that His holiness is what drew me to Him in the first place. I would/could never recognize God if His holiness hadn't first drawn me. After all, His holiness permits the Holy Spirit to draw me to Him, not Him to me. My sin would forever separate me from God if it weren't for His holy desire to rescue me from the pit. Thank you, God!
5.31.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD - Chapter 3 Reflections:
Chapter 3 - The Fearful Mystery
Quotable Sproul: "The things in the list (holy ground, holy Sabbath, holy tithe, holy bread, holy nation, holy water, holy ones, etc) are not holy in themselves. To become holy they first must be consecrated or sanctified (set apart as different) by God. God alone is holy in Himself. Only God can sanctify something else. Only God can give the touch that changes it from the commonplace to something special, different, and apart."
IMPORTANT: "ONLY GOD CAN". Remember that, because I will touch on it shortly. My friend, Terry, brought up an interesting thought in one of her recent comments, leading me to the wonder of God and how we can be ourselves, yet holy, sanctified, and different at the same time.
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "In what ways is God an awe-ful mystery to you?"
I am gripped by Yahweh's ever-eternality -- not about His future eternality, but His past. I cannot fathom something/someone NOT having a beginning, but I can imagine no end. But no beginning? Impossible to comprehend.
2) "Does God's mystery comfort you or frighten you?"
In one sense, it freaks me out. In another, it comforts me. It scares me because, compared to Almighty God, I am but a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. It would be an easy thing for God to snuff out my candle, so-to-speak. Yet, God's eternality is comforting because in all of His glory, He decided to create creation. It is awe-inspiring that an eternal God would step out and create something He could/would love. And to think He would sacrifice Himself for His own creation and hold my life in the care of His hands baffles me.
3) "What do you learn about yourself as you comprehend the mystery of God's holiness?"
Early in the chapter, Dr. Sproul addressed the issue of what it means for God to be holy. "When the Bible calls God holy, it means that God is transcendentally ('to climb across', 'exceeding usual limits') separate...To be holy is to be 'other', to be different in a special way."
God's holiness is more than another of His many attributes. For instance, while God is pure, the holiness of God is not exclusive to His purity. Purity is contained within His holiness. Christians often mistakenly think we are "holy" if we are "pure". Well, in and of ourselves, we can never be pure. There is nothing WE can do to purify ourselves; it is all up to God to purify. Remember the snippet from the first quote...ONLY GOD CAN. Only He can make us holy and set us apart. Not us. When we try to do it, it looks superficial, arrogant, and judgmental. In essence, God makes us holy at the instance of our conversion. We are automatically different, set apart from God's perspective. Our purity and uprightness of the way we choose to live is an altogether separate matter.
The Apostle Paul addressed this in his "old man / new man" theory. When we are saved, we become a new creation, while at the same time occupying an old creation. The new man and the old man walk step-by-step with each other, but we must battle the desires of the old man while living as the new man. Check out Paul's epistle to the Ephesians (chapter 4) for more insight.
Quotable Sproul: "The things in the list (holy ground, holy Sabbath, holy tithe, holy bread, holy nation, holy water, holy ones, etc) are not holy in themselves. To become holy they first must be consecrated or sanctified (set apart as different) by God. God alone is holy in Himself. Only God can sanctify something else. Only God can give the touch that changes it from the commonplace to something special, different, and apart."
IMPORTANT: "ONLY GOD CAN". Remember that, because I will touch on it shortly. My friend, Terry, brought up an interesting thought in one of her recent comments, leading me to the wonder of God and how we can be ourselves, yet holy, sanctified, and different at the same time.
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "In what ways is God an awe-ful mystery to you?"
I am gripped by Yahweh's ever-eternality -- not about His future eternality, but His past. I cannot fathom something/someone NOT having a beginning, but I can imagine no end. But no beginning? Impossible to comprehend.
2) "Does God's mystery comfort you or frighten you?"
In one sense, it freaks me out. In another, it comforts me. It scares me because, compared to Almighty God, I am but a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. It would be an easy thing for God to snuff out my candle, so-to-speak. Yet, God's eternality is comforting because in all of His glory, He decided to create creation. It is awe-inspiring that an eternal God would step out and create something He could/would love. And to think He would sacrifice Himself for His own creation and hold my life in the care of His hands baffles me.
3) "What do you learn about yourself as you comprehend the mystery of God's holiness?"
Early in the chapter, Dr. Sproul addressed the issue of what it means for God to be holy. "When the Bible calls God holy, it means that God is transcendentally ('to climb across', 'exceeding usual limits') separate...To be holy is to be 'other', to be different in a special way."
God's holiness is more than another of His many attributes. For instance, while God is pure, the holiness of God is not exclusive to His purity. Purity is contained within His holiness. Christians often mistakenly think we are "holy" if we are "pure". Well, in and of ourselves, we can never be pure. There is nothing WE can do to purify ourselves; it is all up to God to purify. Remember the snippet from the first quote...ONLY GOD CAN. Only He can make us holy and set us apart. Not us. When we try to do it, it looks superficial, arrogant, and judgmental. In essence, God makes us holy at the instance of our conversion. We are automatically different, set apart from God's perspective. Our purity and uprightness of the way we choose to live is an altogether separate matter.
The Apostle Paul addressed this in his "old man / new man" theory. When we are saved, we become a new creation, while at the same time occupying an old creation. The new man and the old man walk step-by-step with each other, but we must battle the desires of the old man while living as the new man. Check out Paul's epistle to the Ephesians (chapter 4) for more insight.
5.26.2008
THE HOLINESS OF GOD - Chapter 2 Reflections:
Chapter 2 - Holy Holy Holy
Quotable Sproul: "It's dangerous to assume that because a person is drawn to holiness in his study that he is thereby a holy man. There is irony here. I am sure that the reason I have a deep hunger to learn of the holiness of God is precisely because I am not holy. I am a profane man -- a man who spends more time out of the temple than in it. But I have had just enough of a taste of the majesty of God to want more. I know what it means to be a forgiven man and what it means to be sent on a mission. My soul cires for more. My soul needs more."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "Isaiah's response to God's revelation of his holiness was, 'Woe is me.' What is your response?"
I'm doomed without Christ. Doomed!
2) "In what ways do you need to be refined by the fire of God's holiness?"
Like the hair on my arm that was singed by a weekend bonfire, my mind needs searing. My thoughts have turned angry and pain-filled as of late. And I don't like it one bit. If the mind is the devil's playground, then my playground needs a grounds-keeper. If the full armor of God serves as my mind's protection, then I need to don it once again.
3) " What aspect of God's holiness, as described in this chapter, causes you to worship him more fully?"
Most definitely His grace in forgiveness. As described in Isaiah's situation, God took a sinful man, cleansed his filthy lips, changed his heart, and made him a holy man with a mission. I find it very interesting that God can -- and does -- use sinful people to accomplish His plans despite our sinfulness. If God can use King David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Saul of Tarsus, and Peter, I think I have a chance.
Quotable Sproul: "It's dangerous to assume that because a person is drawn to holiness in his study that he is thereby a holy man. There is irony here. I am sure that the reason I have a deep hunger to learn of the holiness of God is precisely because I am not holy. I am a profane man -- a man who spends more time out of the temple than in it. But I have had just enough of a taste of the majesty of God to want more. I know what it means to be a forgiven man and what it means to be sent on a mission. My soul cires for more. My soul needs more."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "Isaiah's response to God's revelation of his holiness was, 'Woe is me.' What is your response?"
I'm doomed without Christ. Doomed!
2) "In what ways do you need to be refined by the fire of God's holiness?"
Like the hair on my arm that was singed by a weekend bonfire, my mind needs searing. My thoughts have turned angry and pain-filled as of late. And I don't like it one bit. If the mind is the devil's playground, then my playground needs a grounds-keeper. If the full armor of God serves as my mind's protection, then I need to don it once again.
3) " What aspect of God's holiness, as described in this chapter, causes you to worship him more fully?"
Most definitely His grace in forgiveness. As described in Isaiah's situation, God took a sinful man, cleansed his filthy lips, changed his heart, and made him a holy man with a mission. I find it very interesting that God can -- and does -- use sinful people to accomplish His plans despite our sinfulness. If God can use King David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Saul of Tarsus, and Peter, I think I have a chance.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD - Chapter 1 Reflections:
Chapter 1 - The Holy Grail
Quotable Sproul: "We often confuse the words "hallowed be your name" with part of the address, as if the words were "hallowed is your name." In that case the words would merely be an ascription of praise to God. But that is not how Jesus said it. He uttered it as a petition, as the first petition. We should be praying that God's name be hallowed, that God be regarded as holy."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "When you think of God as holy, what comes to your mind?"
I consider God's holiness as something more that what He does -- His thoughts, actions, words, etc. It is so much more about who He is, and it seems that it is not simply that God IS holy, that God IS perfect, that God IS righteous. God's holiness defines His character, His essence, His personality -- something vastly different from my own.
2) "Are you attracted to God's holiness?"
I am extremely attracted to His holiness, yet I am so afraid of it. I love the thought of my very being being completely transformed into something that it is not, something holy, righteous, pure. In my sinfulness, however, I am deathly afraid of standing before His Holiness, despite knowing that through Jesus Christ and what He has done for me, I can approach Him confidently. If the wretchedness of my lifestyle (thoughts, words, actions, etc) can be revealed to me while I am alive, I can only imagine in horror what would be revealed if I stood immediately before Him.
3) "What does it mean for you to be holy in the coming week?"
Obviously, it first means that my personhood, including my behaviors, must glorify a holy God in my day-to-day living. But even more obvious than that, it means a whole lot more than simply philosophizing about it. Writing about being holy is one thing, putting it into practice is another.
Quotable Sproul: "We often confuse the words "hallowed be your name" with part of the address, as if the words were "hallowed is your name." In that case the words would merely be an ascription of praise to God. But that is not how Jesus said it. He uttered it as a petition, as the first petition. We should be praying that God's name be hallowed, that God be regarded as holy."
Allowing God's Holiness to Touch Our Lives - 3 questions
1) "When you think of God as holy, what comes to your mind?"
I consider God's holiness as something more that what He does -- His thoughts, actions, words, etc. It is so much more about who He is, and it seems that it is not simply that God IS holy, that God IS perfect, that God IS righteous. God's holiness defines His character, His essence, His personality -- something vastly different from my own.
2) "Are you attracted to God's holiness?"
I am extremely attracted to His holiness, yet I am so afraid of it. I love the thought of my very being being completely transformed into something that it is not, something holy, righteous, pure. In my sinfulness, however, I am deathly afraid of standing before His Holiness, despite knowing that through Jesus Christ and what He has done for me, I can approach Him confidently. If the wretchedness of my lifestyle (thoughts, words, actions, etc) can be revealed to me while I am alive, I can only imagine in horror what would be revealed if I stood immediately before Him.
3) "What does it mean for you to be holy in the coming week?"
Obviously, it first means that my personhood, including my behaviors, must glorify a holy God in my day-to-day living. But even more obvious than that, it means a whole lot more than simply philosophizing about it. Writing about being holy is one thing, putting it into practice is another.
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