Mom

Photo by Vic Orenstein

(note: this post is not to shame moms into anything. Mothers day is coming and I wanted to post on the new found respect that I have for the role of parenting that came through this quote/thought process.)
Moms have a tough job. I have recently come to a greater respect for that seeing my wife carry out normal everyday tasks without motherhood responsibilities. Looking back I see in my childhood where I made it even more difficult for my mom. There have to be many joys that come with motherhood because I am fully aware of the emotional pains that my siblings and I have cause our mother over the years.

On a car ride this Sunday there was a quote by Charles Spurgeon that was brought to my attention. This has shaken me into a reality check of new proportions when pondering parenthood.
First the context for the mind blowing revelation is remembering this quote
"If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms around their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for. - C.H. Spurgeon

How important is the job of a parent? The responsibility of carrying the gospel and sharing it with your children. And even more so teaching them that god is sovereign and completely just.
With that being taught it must also be believed...
“seek God for yourself; or rather, God must seek you. You must have vital experience of godliness in you heart, or else you are lost, even though all your friends were in heaven. That was a dreadful dream which a pious mother once had, and told to her children. She thought the judgment day was come. The great books were opened. They all stood before God. And Jesus Christ said, "Separate the chaff from the wheat; put the goats on the left hand, and the sheep on the right. The mother dreamed that she and her children were standing just in the middle of the great assembly. And the angel came, and said, "I must take the mother, she is a sheep: she must go to the right hand. The children are goats: they must go on the left." She thought as she went, her children clutched her, and said, "Mother, can we part? Must we be separated?" She then put her arms around them, and seemed to say, "My children, I would, if possible, take you with me." But in a moment the angel touched her; her cheeks were dried, and now, overcoming natural affection, being rendered supernatural and sublime, resigned to God's will, she said, "My children, I taught you well, I trained you up, and you forsook the ways of God; and now all I have to say is, Amen to you condemnation." - C.H. Spurgeon

The gut wrenching thought, and yet how beautiful to know the perfect righteous God will always be just in His actions. And that no man will enter the without the cover of Christ's blood.
Ephesians 2:1-10

High Five- Sola Fide

Today continues our series on the 5 solas of the reformation. Click the following links for parts 1, 2, and 3. This week I have asked Jason Lapp to post in my place. I have written a guest post on his blog www.jrldailythoughts.blogspot.com. Also, if you have any interest in looking more into the seeming contradiction between James and Paul on this issue of justification by faith alone you can see my old post here.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Forsaking All I Trust Him

Let’s first look at a biblical definition of faith. Hebrews 11 is the best place I know to go to see a clear definition: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (1). Assurance and conviction are the two key words in the definition of faith. Assurance indicates this faith is not a blind faith but rather a given faith to see the realities of life and the reality of life eternal. We have the promises of God in his word to cling to as our hope. Conviction is our clinging to those promises. We hold fast to them because God has opened our eyes to see the truth about him from his word. The ESV Study Bible says, “Biblical faith is a confident trust in the eternal God who is all-powerful, infinitely wise, eternally trustworthy.”

Faith is an imparted gift from God to us so that we may see the reality of Jesus Christ and his accomplished work on our behalf at the cross. “A person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ” (Galatians 2:16). We are saved by grace alone (which we looked at last week) through faith alone in Christ alone. Grace is a gift given to us from God (Eph. 2:8-9). But we must remember faith is also a gift given to us from God. In this text in Galatians we read that we are “justified…through faith in Jesus Christ.” We read of God’s beautiful work of justification in Romans 5:

“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person – though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die – but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God” (6-9).

God can justify (declare us righteous) because of the work of his Son on the cross. He is able to turn his wrath away from us because he poured it out on Jesus. Faith is the assurance and conviction that Christ’s work on our behalf is sufficient. Only the Spirit’s work of opening our eyes to this truth are we able to cling to this promise. Faith is a great gift given to us.

If we can now look at another passage that has some confused about faith because of the teaching that faith is granted by our works. I also want to look at this text because it is a great way for those who claim to have put their faith in Christ to see whether they genuinely love Christ or not. James 2 says:

“What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (14-18).

Here is where we visible see faith worked out. Our lives completely change. If you are under the impression that works will save you then you are in dire need of Christ. No man will ever be declared right in the sight of a holy God for his own actions. Only the work of Christ can bridge that huge canyon.

But for those who have submitted by faith to Christ’s finished work it is impossible to go on with life as it was. We have been made new creatures in Christ. The old is passed away and all things are made new. Our faith will pour out in our service and love for others as we strive to magnify the Savior. The whole point of the justified life in Christ is to bring his name the glory. All of the believer’s conviction and assurance is found in trusting Christ’s work on our behalf. If you don’t know Christ I plead with you to repent and trust in him. Look at his promise that while you and I were weak, at the right time, he sent is Son to die in our place. The Father’s love is so great that he sent his only Son to bear the wrath we rightfully deserve. The text says he died for his enemies! None of us were seeking God yet he saves.

Grace upon grace,
JRL