Cruciformity ✞

May 04

Substitution: The Ground of the Atonement

“No one of the theories of the atonement states all the truth nor, indeed, do all of them together. The bottom of this ocean of truth has never been sounded by any man’s plumb-line. There is more in the death of Christ for all of us than any of us has been able to fathom…. However, one must say that substitution is an essential element in any real atonement” (A. T. Robertson, The Minister and His Greek New Testament, 40-41).

Apr 23

You Become What You Behold

You resemble what you revere, either for ruin or restoration - G.K. Beale

Mar 29

Jonathan Edwards on Heaven

“The enjoyment of God is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of earthly friends, are but shadows; but God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the ocean”

“It is a comfort to think of that [heavenly] state, where there is fullness of joy; where reigns heavenly, calm, and delightful love, without alloy; where there are continually the dearest expressions of this love; where is the enjoyment of the persons loved, without ever parting; where those persons who appear so lovely in this world, will really be inexpressibly more lovely, and full of love to us. And how sweetly will the mutual lovers join together, to sing the praises of God and the Lamb! (Diary, 16:768).

“If we can learn anything of the state of heaven from the Scripture, the love and joy that the saints have there, is exceeding great and vigorous; impressing the heart with the strongest and most lively sensation, of inexpressible sweetness, mightily moving, animating, and engaging them, making them like to a flame of fire. And if such love and joy be not affections, then the word ‘affection’ is of no use in language. Will any say, that the saints in heaven, in beholding the face of their Father, and the glory of their Redeemer, and contemplating his wonderful works, and particularly his laying down his life for them, have their hearts nothing moved and affected, by all which they behold or consider?” (Religious Affections, Yale 2:114).

“Therefore, their knowledge will increase to eternity; and if their knowledge, doubtless their holiness. For as they increase in the knowledge of God and of the works of God, the more they will see of his excellency; and the more they see of his excellency … the more will they love him; and the more they love God, the more delight and happiness … will they have in him.” (Misc. 105)

“And without doubt, God can contrive matter so that there shall be other sort of proportions, that may be quite of a different kind, and may raise another sort of pleasure in the sense, and in a manner to us inconceivable, that shall be vastly more ravishing and exquisite… . Our animal spirits will also be capable of immensely more, fine and exquisite proport in their motions than now they are, being so gross” (Misc. 182, 13:328).

“The best, most beautiful, and most perfect way that we have of expressing a sweet concord of mind to each other,” said Edwards, “is by music” (Misc. 188, 13:331). Thus in heaven, he continued, it is probable “that the glorified saints, after they have again received their bodies, will have ways of expressing the concord of their minds by some other emanations than sounds, of which we cannot conceive, that will be vastly more proportionate, harmonious and delightful than the nature of sounds is capable of; and the music they will make will be in a medium capable of modulations in an infinitely more nice, exact and fine proportion than our gross air, and with organs as much more adapted to such proportions” (Misc. 188, 13:331). In heaven, “there shall be no string out of tune to cause any jar in the harmony of that world, no unpleasant note to cause any discord” (8:371).

“How soon do earthly lovers come to an end of their discoveries of each other’s beauty; how soon do they see all that is to be seen! … And how happy is that love, in which there is an eternal progress in all these things; wherein new beauties are continually discovered, and more and more loveliness, and in which we shall forever increase in beauty ourselves; where we shall be made capable of finding out and giving, and shall receive, more and more endearing expressions of love forever: our union will become more close, and communication more intimate” (Miscellanies, 13:198).

“Heavenly lovers will have no doubt of the love of each other. They shall have no fear that their professions and testimonies of love are hypocritical; they shall be perfectly satisfied of the sincerity and strength of each other’s love, as much as if there were a window in all their breasts, that they could see other’s hearts. There shall be no such thing as flattery or dissimulation in heaven, but there perfect sincerity shall reign through all. Everyone will be perfectly sincere, having really all that love which they profess. All their expressions of love shall come from the bottom of their hearts” (Yale, 8:378).

The saints “will so perfectly see at the same time, how that ‘tis turned to the best, to the glory of God, or at least will so perfectly know that it is so; and particularly, they will have so much the more admiring and joyful sense of God’s grace in pardoning them, that the remembrance of their sins will rather be an indirect occasion of joy” (Misc., 432).

“To pretend to describe the excellence, the greatness or duration of the happiness of heaven by the most artful composition of words would be to darken and cloud it, to talk of raptures and ecstasies, joy and singing, is but to set forth very low shadows of the reality, and all we can by our best rhetoric is really and truly, vastly below what is but the bare and naked truth, and if St. Paul who had seen them, thought it but in vain to endeavor to utter it, much less shall we pretend to do it, and the Scriptures have gone as high in the descriptions of it as we are able to keep pace with it in our imaginations and conception” (Cited in Gerstner, 3:544; sermon on Isa. 3:10).

Mar 15

Great words on affirmation

Puritan Richard Baxter said, “They love those who best esteem them highest. The fault of these admirers can be extenuated and easily forgiven. If you would have his favor, let him hear that you have magnified him behind his back and that you honor him…”

John Calvin says, “We readily believe those whom we know to be desirous of our welfare, connecting the hearing of those around us with our manifest goodwill toward them, which is made manifest by commending them when they reflect Christ.”

Mar 09

“For too long, we’ve called unbelievers to ‘invite Jesus into your life.’ Jesus doesn’t want to be in your life. Your life’s a wreck. Jesus calls you into his life.” — Russell Moore, Christianity Today, “A Purpose Driven Cosmos,” February 2012, Vol. 56, No. 2, Page 31. (via sixsteps)

Feb 22

Internalizing the Word



The challenge had been laid down. My dad said he wanted us to memorize one hundred verses over the year. I was 11. One hundred verses seemed daunting, and I wondered how I’d ever do it. But since our church was celebrating 100 years, part of the challenge to the congregation was to take in and memorize 100 verses.

 

One of the great privileges of growing up in a Christian home was the modeling, encouragement, and practice of spiritual disciplines as a family. It was a simple routine: after supper, dad would pull out his Bible and get us to repeat one phrase at a time.

 

The simple modeling of how to memorize Scripture helped me. Waking up early, I’d find my father shaving in front of the bathroom mirror with 3x5 cards, typed verses on them which he’d recite in the flowery old English of the King James Version.

For memorizing Scripture, Dad would give a financial reward - a future reward: Canada Savings Bonds.

 

I learned from my father’s example that the Word of Christ needs to dwell in us richly (Col 3:16). Either the Book would keep us from sin, or sin would keep us from the Book. Hiding God’s Word in our hearts was one of the key tools to help us not sin against the Lord (Ps. 119:11). Meditating primarily happened through the memorization of the Word, and meditation would bring about delight in the Lord (Ps. 1:2).

 

I learned the practical value of memorizing Scripture. I found verses coming to my mind throughout my life when I was faced with temptation. Verses provided wisdom, direction, and counsel. Even when I sinned, the Word came to mind, convicting me. There is immense value in memorizing Scripture. It’s a long-term investment that provides counsel (Ps. 119:24), gives you weapons to fight the fight of faith (Eph. 6:17), and may just reward you in ways you never expected!

 

For me, the rewards of Scripture memory paid off in a way I never expected. Those mature Canada Savings Bonds were cashed in when I purchased a ring and asked a young woman to be my wife!!!

 

BibleSo pick up your Bible. Go phrase by phrase through a passage.  And let the Word of Christ dwell richly in you!

Feb 20

Great quotes from Luther’s Commentary on Galatians

 

The world bears the Gospel a grudge because the Gospel condemns the religious wisdom of the world. Jealous for its own religious views, the world in turn charges the Gospel with being a subversive and licentious doctrine, offensive to God and man, a doctrine to be persecuted as the worst plague on earth. As a result we have this paradoxical situation: The Gospel supplies the world with the salvation of Jesus Christ, peace of conscience, and every blessing. Just for that the world abhors the Gospel.Read more at location 43 
We exalt our calling, not to gain glory among men, or money, or satisfaction, or favor, but because people need to be assured that the words we speak are the words of God. This is no sinful pride. It is holy pride.Read more at location 83
By His resurrection Christ won the victory over law, sin, flesh, world, devil, death, hell, and every evil. And this His victory He donated unto us. These many tyrants and enemies of ours may accuse and frighten us, but they dare not condemn us, for Christ, whom God the Father has raised from the dead is our righteousness and our victory.Read more at location 90
The article of justification must be sounded in our ears incessantly because the frailty of our flesh will not permit us to take hold of it perfectly and to believe it with all our heart.Read more at location 115
   

Grace remits sin, and peace quiets the conscience. Sin and conscience torment us, but Christ has overcome these fiends now and forever. Only Christians possess this victorious knowledge given from above. These two terms, grace and peace, constitute Christianity. Grace involves the remission of sins, peace, and a happy conscience. Sin is not canceled by lawful living, for no person is able to live up to the Law. The Law reveals guilt, fills the conscience with terror, and drives men to despair. Much less is sin taken away by man-invented endeavors. The fact is, the more a person seeks credit for himself by his own efforts, the deeper he goes into debt.Read more at location 117
   


We find no rest for our weary bones unless we cling to the word of grace.Read more at location 126
 

Worldly peace provides quiet enjoyment of life and possessions. But in affliction, particularly in the hour of death, the grace and peace of the world will not deliver us. However, the grace and peace of God will. They make a person strong and courageous to bear and to overcome all difficulties, even death itself, because we have the victory of Christ’s death and the assurance of the forgiveness of our sins.Read more at location 128

   

Feb 11

The Essentials of Christianity

Being a Christian doesn’t only mean that you subscribe to a certain set of doctrines. There are other equally important things that must be true. Jonathan Edwards explains.

It is essential to Christianity

Religious Affections, 334; bullets added.

Feb 10

The Grace of Adoption

From Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity:


“We have enough in us to move God to correct us, but nothing to
move him to adopt us, therefore exalt free grace, begin the work
of angels here; bless him with your praises who hath blessed
you in making you his sons and daughters.”

Feb 04

Me Worship?

There’s nothing quite like taking a child through the check-out line at the grocery store.  After spending a long time walking along or sitting in the shopping cart, marketers know that a well-placed chocolate bar, pack of gum, or a colourful candy wrapper will grab the child’s attention as they wait for the clerk to scan each item.  And that eye-catching item becomes more than appealing - it becomes a must have.  And every adult has had to address this challenge of wants.  “But I neeeeed it!” the child will cry.

 

As adults, we think that we learn to be self-controlled.  But in many cases, we just mask this child-like impulse of having everything now with more sophistication.  “Buy now, pay later!”  Credit cards, rewards programs, even drive-thru restaurants tell us that we can have instant gratification: “Have it your way, right away!!!”

 

But the cross work of Christ points us in a different direction.  Christ teaches us to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him to the place of crucifixion, the place of denying our wants and wanting what our Father wants (Luke 9:23).  And for the rest of our lives, we battle against self-fulfillment.  It’s a daily battle.  It’s killing sin before sin kills your soul (Romans 8:12-17).

 

We wrestle with our desires on a daily basis, and we want to desire what our Father longs for.  We are called to wrestle with these questions from Monday to Saturday.  What about Sunday?  When it comes to the church gathered, do we come on Sundays so that our needs might be met?  Do we judge Sunday on what I get out of it?  Do we seek fellowship where there are the programs that I want or what make my kids happy and include the kind of people I like?  Are we teaching our children and teens that church is about them?  Or i, or s Sunday another day of daily denial, taking up the cross, and following Christ?  In other words, have we made the church all about me, or is it all about God?

 

We gather each Sunday to remember that we have been united to Christ in his death and resurrection.  Old desires crucified, new desires given by God. 

 

So as you come on Sunday, what’s it all about?