forgiveness

  • Resurrection Sunday: Two Responses to the Son (Psalm 2)

    Psalm 2
    1  Why do the nations rage
    and the peoples plot in vain?
    2  The kings of the earth set themselves,
    and the rulers take counsel together,
    against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,
    3  “Let us burst their bonds apart
    and cast away their cords from us.”
    4  He who sits in the heavens laughs;
    the Lord holds them in derision.
    5  Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
    and terrify them in his fury, saying,
    6  “As for me, I have set my King
    on Zion, my holy hill.”
    7  I will tell of the decree:
    The LORD said to me, “You are my Son;
    today I have begotten you.
    8  Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
    and the ends of the earth your possession.
    9  You shall break them with a rod of iron
    and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.”
    10  Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
    be warned, O rulers of the earth.
    11  Serve the LORD with fear,
    and rejoice with trembling.
    12  Kiss the Son,
    lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
    for his wrath is quickly kindled.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

    In this Psalm, we find two responses to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is the King of kings:

    REBELLION and RAGE

    OR

    REVERENCE and REJOICING

    Those responses are a picture of the state of all mankind – because each and every one man, woman, boy and girl has either one or the other response to Jesus Christ.

    There is NO middle ground.

    We either disbelieve OR believe the Son.
    We either rebel OR reverence the Son
    We either reject OR embrace the Son.
    We either kiss OR spit on the Son.

    How we respond to the Lord Jesus Christ determines the destination of our eternal souls:

    Those who do not kiss the Son will be cursed and PERISH.

    Those who do kiss the Son will be blessed and LIVE.

    I John 5:12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

    Those of us who have kissed the Son, those who have believed on Christ, have life. Why? Because we have cleansed from our sins by His blood and have been credited with the perfect righteousness of Christ. Therefore, by faith in Jesus we are delivered from the wrath to come; we will stand safe and secure in God's coming judgment and dwell with God forever and ever. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Christ was punished in our place and fully satisfied the wrath of God. There is no refuge from God's wrath apart from faith in God's Son.

    Those who have not kissed the Son, those who have not believed on Christ, will perish under the just wrath of God. And perishing is not annihilation, but it is being sent away from the presence of God forever, and being punished with everlasting punishment of unquenchable fire in the place where their worm never dies. The word for eternal in Matthew 25:46 ("And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.") is the same word in both places: eternal punishment and eternal life is just that: eternal - you will be punished for your sins for all eternity unless you kiss the Son. Many people talk about Jesus being loving and kind, and yes He is, but when it comes to sin, He is coming again to judge the living and the dead, and Jesus Himself speaks of this punishment, e.g. - Matthew 25:46 and Mark 9:42-50; see also Isaiah 66:24; II Thes. 1:9. And in Revelation 6, we read of the wrath of the Lamb! Don't be deceived. Jesus came to earth and offered Himself as a sacrifice for sinners, so you might be saved from the wrath to come! Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled.

    In John 3, Jesus tells us that the default position of mankind, our natural state, the place in which each and every one of us has been born into is unbelief, i.e. - that position of rebellion and rage, in which we are perishing.

    18  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.



    Similar to what we find in Psalm 2, Paul explains the only two responses to the preaching of the Gospel and to the only Son of God:

    II Corinthians 2:14  But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. 15  For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16  to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.

    And we find that marked contrast in the responses of the two criminals who hung on either side of Jesus at Calvary:

    Luke 23:32  Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. 33  And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34  And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. 35  And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” 36  The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine 37  and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” 38  There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.”

    39  One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40  But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41  And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42  And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43  And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

    The events at Calvary are an authoritative and stunning illustration of the souls of all mankind along with their responses to the Son of God.

    The criminal who was saved feared God and humbled himself. He had come to see his position before a holy God, he acknowledged he was a sinner under condemnation, and he freely confessed his sinfulness and his inability to save himself, and embraced and worshiped the Son of God. As he kissed the Son, Jesus declared that man would be with Him in Paradise that very day. In contrast, the other criminal did not kiss the Son, and he would go away from the presence of the Lord and suffer the punishment of everlasting destruction for his sins.

    What is your response to the Son?

    Some of you may claim to have kissed the Son. You may be a church goer and/or you may have been born into a Christian home. You may even be active in ministry. But have you been born again, and are you bearing fruits worthy of repentance? Are you kissing the Son – or do you continue to manifest a rebellious spirit against the Son and His commandments – ALL His commandments? Are you picking and choosing according to your fleshly desires? Do you continue to make excuses for sin or attempt to justify yourself? Do you love the Lord? Is Christ at the center of all your affections? Do you love God's Word and the Gospel message? Are you seeking to guard it? Do you love the truth and hate falsehood? Do you love the people of God? Do you pray for the welfare of God's Church? Do you love your neighbor?  Do you love holiness? Are you seeking to be holy and are you purifying yourself as God is pure? Does your sin grieve you and break your heart? (See First John.) Do you rage against God when you read God's Word – or do you bow yourself to Him and His teachings and His will for you and ask Him for power to submit yourself to His ways, however much they may cross your flesh and/or make no sense in comparison with the world's ways? Are you seeking to work out your salvation with fear and trembling? Know this: Jesus Christ knows every thought and intent of our hearts. We each stand naked before Him.

    Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13  And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

    You may be fooling your spouse, your children, or your friends; you may even be fooling your pastor or your elders, and you may even be fooling yourself, but know this: you will not fool God. God is not mocked. Your so-called kiss of the Son may be no more sincere than Judas' kiss in the garden of Gethsemane!

    In Psalm 130 we read:

    3  If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,
    O Lord, who could stand?
    4  But with you there is forgiveness,
    that you may be feared.

    Do you know the fear of the LORD? Do you understand that you are an unworthy worm, that you are dust and ashes – and apart from God's love, mercy and grace abounding to you in Jesus Christ, you would be headed to everlasting destruction? Have you contemplated that both your person and your sin is wholly an abomination to God, for He cannot even look upon sin, much less abide sin in His presence?

    Psalm 5
    4  For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
    evil may not dwell with you.
    5  The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
    you hate all evildoers.
    6  You destroy those who speak lies;
    the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
    7  But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
    will enter your house.
    I will bow down toward your holy temple
    in the fear of you.

    Yes, true believers have come to Mt. Zion and not to Mt. Sinai, we have been redeemed from the curse of the law – Hallelujah! – and therefore we have every reason to rejoice! – but that doesn't mean we treat our relationship with God flippantly, and that doesn't mean we can ever be lax about personal holiness. Let us take heed we do not fall into the sin of presumption! We should have a holy fear of God because we are now in the family of a holy God, we are in the presence of a holy God – and we should be humbled as we realize we are sons and daughters of God through Christ's merit alone.

    Nothing in my hand I bring,
    Simply to the cross I cling;
    Naked, come to Thee for dress;
    Helpless look to Thee for grace;
    Foul, I to the fountain fly;
    Wash me, Savior, or I die.
    (from "Rock of Ages" by Augustus Toplady)

    For the Christian, salvation is the gift of God! We are wholly undeserving of anything but eternal condemnation. Except for God's sovereign grace choosing us in Christ before the foundation of the world, we would remain under condemnation, headed straight for the Lake of Fire. Therefore, as we come to God, let us do so with a holy, reverential boldness, fully acknowledging we have come to kiss the Son by grace alone, and then we remain in Christ by grace alone!

    Hebrews 12:18  For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19  and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. 20  For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21  Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22  But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23  and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24  and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

    25  See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26  At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27  This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28  Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29  for our God is a consuming fire.

    As we understand our depravity in light of God's holiness, as we understand that the Son had to be forsaken of the Father as He became sin for us... O! rejoice with trembling! That is our acceptable worship! What other response can we have to immortal, infinite love for mortal, finite man!

    What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
    What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
    What wondrous love is this
    That caused the Lord of bliss
    To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
    To bear the dreadful curse for my soul!

    When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
    When I was sinking down, sinking down,
    When I was sinking down
    Beneath God’s righteous frown,
    Christ laid aside His crown for my soul for my soul,
    Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.
    (American Folk Hymn)

    Acts 17:29  Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. 30  The times of ignorance God overlooked, Acts he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31  because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.

    I John 5:11b ...Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11  And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12  Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

    13  I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.

    Related:

    Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Firetora.jpg / Public domain
    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meister_des_Aachener_Altars_001.jpg / CC BY-SA 3.0 / {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}
    Work found at http://www.artbible.info/art/large/429.html / CC BY-SA 3.0 / {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}

  • Lenten Reflections: Carpenter Parking Only? Holy Ambitions: The Blessedness of Washing Feet

    Luke 22:7  Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8  So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” ...

    14  And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. 15  And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 15  And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16  For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 17  And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. 18  For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19  And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20  And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

    24  A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. 25  And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. 26  But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. 27  For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

    Having been born of the first man Adam and being subject to the effects of the Fall, not a single one of us is any different than the disciples in our fleshly desire to be regarded as the greatest. Instead of having a Theocentric, Christocentric viewpoint, apart from the grace of God, my universe and your universe revolves around me, myself, and I !

    "Satan is the leader chief,
    Bringing pride and unbelief,
    Stubborn wills and tempers vile,
    Wanton lusts that will defile."
    (John Berridge, Hymn 118)

    I loved this picture. → → → → → →

    Jesus the carpenter didn't come to earth expecting or seeking a reserved parking place. The Lord Jesus Christ humbled Himself, made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Himself the form of a servant. The Son of God came as one who serves! Our Lord was willing to take the lowest place. He was willing to wash feet. He was willing to die the most excruciating and humiliating of all deaths: death on a Roman cross. (Read Philippians 2.) He came not to be served but to give His life as a ransom for many! (Mark 10:35-44) Consider Christ's unfailing and willing obedience to His Father and His marvelous and perfect condescension to make a way for unrighteous and unworthy sinners to be reconciled to a holy God: the only true God who is light and in whom there is no darkness, the God who is holy, holy, holy, and cannot abide sin in His presence or even behold evil or look upon wickedness! (I John 1; Hab. 1:13; Psalm 5:4-5)

    In marked contrast, left to our own ways, each and every one of us ends up feeling entitled to get all the gusto we can get! We shout and pout and whine at even the scantiest offense against us: "I deserve!" "I have a right to ... "It's only fair!" "Did you see what that person did to me? I don't deserve this!"

    Well, what is it that we really deserve, my friends? The only thing we rightly deserve is eternal damnation, as Jonathan Edwards reminds us in his sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God":

    "The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours. You have offended him infinitely more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince; and yet it is nothing but his hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment. It is to be ascribed to nothing else, that you did not go to hell the last night; that you was suffered to awake again in this world, after you closed your eyes to sleep. And there is no other reason to be given, why you have not dropped into hell since you arose in the morning, but that God's hand has held you up. There is no other reason to be given why you have not gone to hell, since you have sat here in the house of God, provoking his pure eyes by your sinful wicked manner of attending his solemn worship. Yea, there is nothing else that is to be given as a reason why you do not this very moment drop down into hell."

    The fact that we have been given another day to live, and we are not cast away from the presence of the Lord into the lake of fire is all due to the mercy and grace of God in Christ. Our God is longsuffering, and Jesus Christ tarries returning, and all the while He calls out to lost, tired, thirsty, and hungry souls: "Whosoever will may come to Me! Come to Me and be saved from the wrath to come! Come to Me and find rest! Come to Me and drink! Come to Me and eat!"

    It is by the grace of God alone that any of us have repented of our sins and believed on Christ and received the gift of eternal life. Thanks be to God that our Judge is our Justifier and our eternal Intercessor – but apart from the Lord Jesus Christ where would we be? It was God's kindness which led us to repentance in the first place. Even our faith is not our own, it is the gift of God. What do we have that we have not received? How could the mind which was enmity against God ever begin to seek after God and be saved?! How could the soul which is dead in sin and transgressions ever come alive apart from the quickening breath of the Holy Spirit?

    And regarding what we think is fair...

    Was it fair that the Lord Jesus Christ bore the sin of many?
    Was it fair that the spotless Lamb was punished in the place of vile sinners?

    Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;
    he has put him to grief;
    when his soul makes an offering for sin,
    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
    the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
    (Isaiah 53:10)


    Matthew 23:1  Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2  “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, 3  so practice and observe whatever they tell you—but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice. 4  They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. 5  They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, 6  and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues 7  and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. 8  But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. 9  And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. 10  Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. 11  The greatest among you shall be your servant. 12  Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

    When we are honest with ourselves (by God's grace alone – for our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked!), each and every one of us would admit we love and lust after those places of honor and the best seats. We obsess over and we seek the affirmation and approval of men in one form or another.

    However, as Christians, because we are God's holy nation, we are to have holy ambitions. I regret to say that all too often our ambitions are no different than those of unbelievers. Our ambitions are focused on the here and now, rather than eternity, and so we end up filling up barn after barn after barn, but what treasures are we laying up in heaven? Are we gaining the world and losing our souls? Is not Christ far superior and all-satisfying to any and all things the world has to offer? Let us ask God's Spirit to come and examine ourselves and our affections. For those who know Christ, these things ought not even be named among us because we have been born again of the last Adam, the One who humbled Himself, and Christ's holy nature now dwells in us through His Holy Spirit, so we are enabled to humble ourselves and follow in His steps:

    John 13:2  During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, 3  Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, 4  rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist.  5  Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him...

    12  When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? 13  You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. 14  If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15  For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. 16  Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17  If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

    Blessed are we if we do them.
    Blessed am I if I do them.

    Romans 12:1 starts off with Paul's urgent appeal:

    I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

    In other words, IF we have truly known the glorious mercies of God in Jesus Christ in saving us, how can we do anything but present ourselves and all our affections and all our ambitions to God, so He might purify us and conform us to the image of His Son? The phrase spiritual is the Greek word logikos, meaning "rational" or "reasonable." In other words, IF we are Christ's, it is only rational, it is only reasonable, it is only logical for us to present ourselves to God, or as the KJV puts it, such a offering of ourselves is our "reasonable service." Any other response to the love of God in Christ is patently irrational, illogical, unreasonable, and unspiritual!

    1  I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
    Blessed are we if we do them.
    Blessed am I if I do them.

    By the power of God at work in us, may we be strengthened to will and to do them, and enter into and enjoy God's all-surpassing and unparalleled blessedness: the life, peace and joy of the LORD!

    "When I survey the wondrous cross
    On which the Prince of glory died,
    My richest gain I count but loss,
    And pour contempt on all my pride."
    (Isaac Watts)

    "Lord, give me humility, or I perish."
    (George Whitefield)

    Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land,
    who do his just commands;
    seek righteousness; seek humility;
    perhaps you may be hidden
    on the day of the anger of the LORD.
    (Zephaniah 2:3)

    Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
    (Matthew 5:5)

    But the meek shall inherit the land
    and delight themselves in abundant peace.
    (Psalms 37:11)

    The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the LORD,
    and the poor among mankind shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
    (Isaiah 29:19)

    Related:

    Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Photo credits:

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eug%C3%A8ne_Delacroix_Christ_on_the_Cross_(sketch)_1845.jpg / CC BY-SA 3.0 / {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FootWashing.jpg / CC BY-SA 3.0 / PD-US

    Work found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TwinBarnsBarnstars.jpg by Royalbroil / CC BY-SA 3.0

  • Lenten Reflections: Come now, consider – Consider His ways!

      
    Come now, consider – Consider His ways!
    Come now, consider – Consider His grace!

    Freely rendered Himself a sacrifice
    For all our sin, spotless Lamb paid the price

    For all us rebels, first the Jew, then the Gentile
    He was crucified at the Place of a Skull

    Jesus, God's ransom, bought our release
    There Immanuel hung, between two thieves

    Became a curse, died upon the tree
    It pleased the LORD to put Him to grief

    Wounded, bruised, and chastised for our peace
    Through the cross our souls He did redeem

    God's just wrath our Savior fully absorbed
    Glory's grace from Calvary richly poured

    Sovereign mercy spanned the great gulf fixed
    From the burning, we were called and plucked

    "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."
    What shall we say then? Is there injustice with God?

    To show His power in us, God's glorious display:
    Vessels of mercy for the renown of His great name

    Born of God – not of blood, nor of the will of flesh or man
    Not of works, that God's purpose of election might stand

    Enmity ceased, the end of all strife
    No longer dead, but quickened to life

    His sheep once scattered among the nations
    Now gathered and seated in heav'nly places

    Our iniquities purged, we sup with Him above!
    Yet how scant our devotion! How puny my love!

    Reconciled through His precious blood
    How dare we sin against matchless Love?

    O! Consider Him! Consider His ways!
    O! Consider Him! Consider His grace!

    Can we claim to know Christ's all-surpassing worth
    If our affections remain fixed on this earth?

    Come now, consider – Consider His grace!
    Come now, consider – Consider your ways!

    Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.
    (Haggai 1:7)


    I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
    (Amos 4:11)

    Colossians 3:1  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. 5  Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth...

    Related posts:

    Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.
    Work found at http://artbible.info./art/large/103.html / {{PD-Art|PD-old-100}}

naphtali_deer

About me...

Christian hedonist in training. Pressing on to know more and more of the joy of the LORD. Pleading with God to rend the heavens and revive and refresh my own soul, as well as His Church, to His praise, honor and glory.

Thank God. He can make men and women in middle life sing again with a joy that has been chastened by a memory of their past failures. ~ Alan Redpath

My other websites

tent of meeting: Prayer for reformation & revival

(See also Zechariah821. Zechariah821 is a mirror site of tent of meeting, found on WordPress)

deerlifetrumpet: Encouragement for those seeking reformation & revival in the Church

RSS feed

RSS feed