liv2praz

CBMW evaluation of the 2011 NIV...

2011-07-29T11:01:00.001-04:00

its no secret that we live in a culture that seeks to feminize or neutralize everything and emasculate men and manhood. any discerning eye and ear can see that in our culture. but its disheartening to a whole new level when we see it in the church.

a few years ago, Zondervan published the more 'gender neutral' TNIV, which didn't do very well in sales and popularity. they've made some changes in the TNIV and are releasing a new 'version' as the 2011 NIV, which retains 75% of the translation errors that the TNIV had. this is not just an attempt to neutralize language that was originally neutral; its the neutralization of language that was originally masculine. its a huge deal, and churches that adopt the use of this version will instantly open doors to major doctrinal errors.

i won't belabor here, but just wanted to give a snapshot of the issue. but i do commend this link. the Counsel on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood has published an evaluation / report on the gender language of the 2011 NIV. we as Christians should read this and be informed... so that we don't get caught in this trap ourselves, and so we can help others who are uninformed. so check out the CBMW report here:

http://www.cbmw.org/Resources/Articles/An-Evaluation-of-Gender-Language-in-the

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deyoung reviews bell's 'love wins'

2011-03-15T20:30:00.002-04:00

check out kevin deyoung's excellent review of rob bell's new book 'love wins.'

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2011/03/14/rob-bell-love-wins-review/

i not only feel informed by the comprehensiveness of the review... but i feel challenged by deyoung to be a more intense student of God's Word... and to weigh every 'wind of doctrine' against Scripture.

of liberty in faith...

2011-02-25T10:04:00.004-05:00

so picture a beach. waves. a 6 year old kid out in the waves. the water is over his own head, but he's being held by his dad, who's chest-deep. the kid's face is extatic with enjoyment. he's riding the rushes of surging adrenaline. head barely above water. body raised up and over the breakers by his dad's grip... which is gentle enough not to harm, but firm enough to win his total confidence. the kid is having a blast. he's enjoying the intensity of an environment way beyond the capability of his own strength. why? because, whether he's conciously thinking about it or not, he's secure in the arms of his dad. he's 'charging' the waves with complete abandon because he knows his dad is strong enough for them. what reveals the anchor-hold of his confidence? imagine his face turn from abandoned joy to sheer terror if his dad were to let him go.

now switch scenes...

genesis 13... abram (later name-changed to abraham) and lot (his nephew)... find themselves in a sticky sitch. they're both rich in finance and assets, they're both in the same business (herdsman) and the geography can no longer support both of them and theirs. on top of that, their herdsmen are getting into it with eachother over who gets to use what pasture space. so abram takes lot up where they can look at all the surrounding land together. verse 8...

"then abram said to lot, 'let there be no strife between you and me and between your herdsment and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. is not the whole land before you? separate yourself from me. if you take the left hand, then i will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then i will go to the left.' and lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the jordan valley was well watered aeverywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of egypt, in the direction of zoar. ... so lot chose for himself all the jordan valley... and journeyed east."

several contextual things to consider:
-abram is the man. in 'rank,' if you will, he is senior to lot. he likely had authority to tell lot where to go... instead of giving lot the choice.
- abram and lot both have experience with famine (likely secondary to drought, considering the geography) and its effects on their livlihood... (see genesis 12.10). so water is kind of a big deal.
- abram isn't stupid. he's a pretty wise dude with experience. he's not rich and prosperous for being dumb at business. he can look just as well as lot can and see which land is well watered, by a river and fertile to the point of being likened to the garden of Eden. that has to be some crazy sweet real estate. this is kind of a bigger scale, more consequential version of standing over a plate with a friend looking at a sweet, beastly red robin kamakazie or peppercorn burger (my two favs, yes) sitting next to a 69 cent mcdonalds i'll-have-faith-that-its-really-meat wannabe burger and asking... "which one would you like?" seriously?

settling near a river was a job security of sorts, given their line of work. so its a huge deal that abram gives lot the choice of land. so how can a rich, prosperous business man give away the choice land?

i don't think these two scenes are all that different. one is a cute picture... the other one is more where rubber hits the road. but they both go back to essentially the same anchor-hold.

there's liberty in the secure hold of a father's arms.

i'm not a scholar... and this is just my take on this event in abram's life. but worldly wisdom is what we see playing out in lot's decision making. its good sense to go for the fertile land consistent water source. what has been really sticking out to me in this passage is the intense faith of abram. the natural man would choose what seems wise in his own understanding. but what i see in abram is a man who is liberated by his trust in his Father.

what are the biggest factors in my vision and decision making process? do i look first at what makes good sense? at what my wisdom sees best? or am i anchored first in faith in the sovereign goodness of my Father... and liberated by that surety to move outside the box of what seems wise in my own understanding. this, to me, helps me see this familiar verse in a fresh light...

proverbs 3.5-7... 'trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord...'

paraphrasing a quote in closing (because i can't remember who originally said it)... may i trust in both the sovereignty AND the goodness of my Father God. He is always both... never one without the other. in His goodness, He desires the best for us; and in His sovereignty, He has the power to secure it.

there is no more secure or liberating anchor.

conviction or condemnation? what's the difference?

2010-07-28T10:50:00.017-04:00

conviction. condemnation.

what do these words bring up in your mind? are their meanings clearly different? do they seem like the same thing? or does thinking about them just bring up a muck of confusion?

whether or not we call them by their names, every Christian struggles at one time or another with understanding the difference between them. maybe not so much in defining them... but absolutely in working through them practically. the difference between them is huge, though... and critically important to our working out of obedience and experiencing freedom in Christ. i want to encourage us with this, but first i'll address a couple of things that i think will help 'set the stage'.

i think part of our struggle comes from our tendency to try to see right and wrong as polar opposites... with separate origins. white on one side; black on the other. conviction on one side; condemnation on the other. i know i personally battle this. i'm an INCREDIBLY black and white person. right is right; wrong is wrong; no confusion. its true that confusion is not the work of God, but the work of our enemy (1 cor. 14.33). so right IS right; wrong IS wrong. gray often stems from us blurring up the lines with our lame attempts to justify our sinful cravings. if we go back to the origin of who God is and who satan is... we find God to be creative in nature, while satan is corruptive. God created ALL things for His glory, man and his desires included. satan did not create new desires in man to wreck his heart OR objects for those desires to draw him to. instead, he simply twisted what God created with the introduction of sin. so now, the difference is that man seeks to expend his passions and resources to elevate, glorify and satisfy himself with his desires and the good things God has created... instead of elevating, glorifying and extolling God. i'll develop this briefly, but try not to go off on too far a tangent, as this isn't really the purpose here.

but look at any sin, and you can trace it back to an originally good thing. i'll go straight for a 'big' one. fornication/adultery/porn. the problem is not sex or our desire for it. God created sex and our drives. the problem is idolatry. sexual intimacy was created by God to be an awesome thing, enjoyed to the absolute heights of pleasure... and He set boundaries to preserve it. Satan did not create sex but he corrupted man's heart to desire his own satisfaction in sex on his own terms, outside of the boundaries God created for its enjoyment. satan did not create anything new... but he introduced sin, shifting our hearts to want to BE god, instead of worshiping our God. so i think understanding that... God as creative and Creator / satan as highjacker, perverter, liar... is important. satan's first conversation in scripture, in the garden, was 'did God really say?' how dangerous the ground we tread when we question the literality of God's Word.

so basically... God is the creator of all things good. satan is not creative... but corruptive.

moving back toward topic... i believe understanding this applies to the correct understanding of conviction and condemnation. how so? because when we believe that one thing is polar opposite from another, we logically expect them to look and act and present themselves in dramatically different ways. what i'd suggest is that conviction and condemnation stem from the same root. the difference is not where they come from. the difference lies in this... do we believe and apply the COMPLETE Gospel shown to us in Scripture, or do we listen to the enemy preach an INCOMPLETE gospel to us. did i just suggest that the enemy preaches the gospel? yes, i did. stay with me.

2 Corinthians 7.8-10... 'for even if i made you grieve with my letter, i do not regret it - though i did regret it, for i see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. as it is, i rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. for you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. for godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.' (emphasis mine)

in his previous letter, paul had addressed sin in the corinthian church. his shining the light of the truth on their sin caused grief... as it should. when our regenerate hearts see our sin in the light of God's holiness and demands of obedience, our hearts should grieve. sin and the Spirit cannot live in harmony together. the Spirit shines light on sin... and if we tolerate sin in our hearts then we grieve the spirit (eph. 4.30, eph. 4.17-32). this 'grief' we experience over seeing and understanding our sin is conviction. dictionary.com defines convict as... 'to prove or declare guilty of an offense; to impress with a sense of guilt.' when we're convicted, we see our guilt of an offense. conviction is a work or the Holy Spirit and is evidence of the grace of God at work in our hearts. love is the driver of God's discipline of His own. hebrews 12.5b-6 and proverbs 3.11-12 -- 'my son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. for the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.' (emphasis mine) so, conviction reveals sin and shows guilt, and discipline is love. it is NOT condemnation to see our sin, grieve over it, and in that moment feel the weight of it. conviction is grace. discipline is mercy. seeing our sin is the Spirit at work.

now, here's the pivotal moment. what differentiates conviction from condemnation? it is what we DO with it.

'for godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.'

we can call conviction godly grief , and condemnation worldly grief. when the Spirit convicts us of sin in our lives, we MUST go to the cross. our God is holy and just! sin against Him demands punishment. guilt demands sentence. romans 6.23 tells us that the wages of sin is death. but it ALSO tells us that the free gift of grace is eternal life. CHRIST lived perfection FOR us. we must pursue obedient lives in Christ, but we do so because we're forgiven, NOT to purchase our forgiveness or pay for our sins. here are two verses that i preach to myself when i'm feeling condemnation...

Isaiah 53.5-6 - 'But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. all we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.' (emphasis mine)

notice the exchange! is there any confusion here over who paid for ALL the sin and who experiences the FULLNESS of grace?? NO! CHRIST bore the wrath; WE know the grace. praise Him!! NOW... if that is true... then what is the implication for us when dealing with seeing sin in our lives? GO TO THE CROSS! charitie bancroft penned the hymn that says it way better than i could... 'when satan tempts me to despair, and tells me of the guilt within [condemnation] / upward i look and see HIM there, who made and end to ALL my sin / because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free / for God the just is satisfied to look on HIM and pardon ME!'

NOW, because of that exchange...

Romans 8.1-3 -- 'there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. for the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. for God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh...'

conviction is when, by the illumination of the Spirit in our hearts, we see our sin. it produces repentance that leads to salvation without regret. condemnation is when we DON'T apply the whole gospel to conviction. we see our sin, but we try to bear the weight of it and pay for it ourselves... which is why it is an endless cycle of despair. because we can't pay for our sin. if we could, Christ crucified would have been unnecessary.

so i said that satan preaches the gospel to us. this is what i mean. satan tells us that we're sinners (romans 3.23). that we're corrupt and worthless (romans 3.10-12; psalm 14.1-3; psalm 53.1). that we're disconnected from God without hope of reconciliation (ephesians 2.12). that none with sin in their hearts can stand before the Lord in His holiness (1 samuel 6.20). that we have to be clean before we can even think about coming to God (psalm 24.3-4). that we deserve to die (romans 6.23). that there's nothing we can do to be forgiven (romans 3.20). now what does all of that do to your heart? sounds hopeless, doesn't it? its SUPPOSED to! all of this is Scripture. (side note: are you seeing how dangerous it is for your heart to NOT know the whole Word?) all of this is true! but satan's lies that he uses to press our hearts down under condemnation are not stand-alone realities. they're half-truths. they're scriptural realities taken out of context (not that they're not true, because they are; but incomplete truth is truth out of context). we can even look at satan's tempting of Jesus in matthew 4. did satan say, "look at this great evil! go for it!' no. he used scripture and recitation of the attributes of God's character out of context to try to trip Jesus up. why should we expect any different? here's the thing: satan preaches the 'gospel' without Christ. all of the scriptures above are true. but they're meant to lead us to Christ. if we don't move from those to Christ, not only are we missing the point of those truths, but we're inevitably going to live in condemnation.

we WERE sinners, BUT CHRIST came into the world to save sinners (1 timothy 1.15). in our sin, we WERE corrupt and worthless, BUT CHRIST bore our corruption on the cross, and IN CHRIST we are clean and worthy because of HIS righteousness (2 corinthians 5.21). we WERE disconnected from God without hope of reconciliation, BUT IN CHRIST we have been united with Christ in his death AND resurrection (romans 6.5) and reconciled to God, in Him (colossians 1.21-22; 2 corinthians 5.18; romans 5.10). and THERE... IS... THEREFORE... NOW... NO... CONDEMNATION!! what's the qualifier?? to THOESE who are IN CHRIST JESUS!! for the Spirit of Life has set us FREE from sin and death. (romans 8.1-2). PRAISE HIM!! PRAISE HIM!!

so TO HELL with satan and his condemnation! don't let satan preach an incomplete gospel to you... which really isn't the gospel at all. if you've surrendered your life to Christ, you're His now. know and believe the whole gospel! when you experience conviction... repent. behold the Holy God who cannot tolerate sin... AND behold Christ who paid for all your sin! see your sin and grieve over it... but do not forget to move from that to BUT CHRIST. behold God's wrath and justice. but do NOT behold them without ALSO beholding Christ on the cross, bearing ALL of that wrath and satisfying ALL of that justice.

2 corinthians 5.21 -- 'for our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God'

PRAISE HIM!! THANK Him for the grace of conviction. repent and know total forgiveness in Christ crucified. live in the VICTORY we have in CHRIST, because of the cross!! and send condemnation back to hell where it came from, by every day preaching the complete gospel to your own heart... and believing it!

Embracing Accusation

shane and shane

the father of lies
coming to steal, kill and destroy
all my hopes of being good enough
i hear him say, 'cursed are the ones
who can’t abide.'
he’s right; halleluia, he’s right!

the devil is preaching the song of the redeemed
that i am cursed and gone astray
i cannot gain salvation
embracing accusation

could the father of lies
be telling the truth of God to me tonight?
if the penalty of sin is death, then death is mine
i hear him say, 'cursed are the ones who can’t abide.'
he’s right; halleluia, he’s right!

the devil is preaching the song of the redeemed
that i am cursed and gone astray
i cannot gain salvation

oh the devil’s singing over me an age old song
that i am cursed and gone astray
singing the first verse so conveniently
oh, but he’s forgotten the refrain -- JESUS SAVES!!

Be Still, My Soul

2010-07-22T11:07:00.004-04:00

i've been contemplating a lot lately how peace and rest in our lives are often something that we're called to command our hearts to. i think often we tend to think that peace is just supposed to 'happen' to us... and we even feel condemned sometimes if we feel restless. i wish i had time to go into more thoughts on this. but as i've been reading through some psalms, more often than not, we find the psalmist in a difficult place of trouble, trial or persecution... and we find him confessing his unrest and commanding his heart to rest in the Lord. Psalms 62, 77 and 131 just a few examples of this. i have many thoughts on this topic... but for now, i commend the lyrics of this old hymn to you. if you're struggling with peace and rest... read the psalms and sing this hymn to yourself. do what this hymn writer is doing... tell yourself of who God is, what He's done, why He's trustworthy... and command your heart to rest in the Lord.

'be still, my soul'

katharina a. von schlegel

be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
leave to thy God to order and provide;
in every change, He faithful will remain.
be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend
through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.
be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
to guide the future, as He has the past.
thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
all now mysterious shall be bright at last.
be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.
be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
and all is darkened in the vale of tears,
then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
who comes to soothe thy sorrow and thy fears.
be still, my soul: thy Jesus can repay
from His own fullness all He takes away.
be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
when we shall be forever with the Lord.
when disappointment, grief and fear are gone,
sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
be still, my soul: when change and tears are past
all safe and blessèd we shall meet at last.
be still, my soul: begin the song of praise
on earth, believing, to Thy Lord on high;
acknowledge Him in all thy words and ways,
so shall He view thee with a well pleased eye.
be still, my soul: the Sun of life divine
through passing clouds shall but more brightly shine.

love, to give

2009-11-24T16:12:00.002-05:00

so its been quite a while since i've finished a song. i've started several, but if you're a songwriter, you know that that is often an incomplete process. i tend not to write a lot of songs, but try to put a lot into the ones i write... which doesn't necessarily make them better... just keeps me from writing a lot of them. heh.

at any rate, its interesting how sometimes in songwriting... for me anyway... i write a piece of a song, thinking it's going in a certain direction, then can't finish it... then at a later time, the rest of it comes, and i realize the reason i didn't finish it is because i hadn't yet lived the experiences that would write the song. this is one of those. i'm limited on time, so i won't make good on my typical tenedency to probably over-write a novel legnth preface to posting lyrics... but then, maybe that's the best with lyrics... to let others get out of it what it means to them.

i will say this, though. relationships with people are hard. and i'm not speaking just of romantic relationships... though that's included... but i mean a more broad sense of the word. all relationships. they're hard because our hearts, because of sin, are more interested in our own good than the good of others. when wronged, we want to justify ourselves. when hurt, we want to defend. when people let us down, we want to throw our hands up and say, 'screw it! i don't need people.' at least i know i see these responses in myself. but that's not how Christ loved. His love preceded His demand. He didn't wait for us to commit and demonstrate our loyalty before He extended His unconditional love. now, His love demands response, yes... but that's another conversation. but i think its consistent with scripture to say that He first loved us, when we were unlovely. 'but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.' -romans 5.8

at any rate... this song is fruit of my own wrestling with this. in ideal, i should love like Christ did. in reality, i battle my own sin and selfishness. this is a conflict that i'm confident will demand my attention for the duration of my life... but praise God there is growth in grace.

love, to give
(c) 2009 joshua codispoti

i'm weary of this war
why does a battle rage between what's right and what is real?
there's gotta be a love
that's bigger than subjective wax and wain of how we feel
but here i stand, with blood on my hands
as guilty as the next man of the crimes that i oppose

but i want to love
to give of myself
without thinking of myself
to put your good above my own
i want to embrace
to spread wide my arms
without the fear of a knife
cause what is love if it's not a sacrifice?

this isn't black and white
it never was
so why am i so unsettled by the grey
sure, wrong is on your side, but its on mine too
though my pride would have you bearing all the blame
but we're all sinners, and my heart it feels the sting
of what loving people brings
when love for self gets in the way

but i want to love
to give of myself
without thinking of myself
to put your good above my own
i want to embrace
to spread wide my arms
without the fear of a knife
cause what is love if its not a sacrifice?

love is patient, love is kind
says your good is worth more than mine
bears all things, does not insist on its own way
its own way

i search for what is real
and find the Lover of my soul
and how my heart must make Him feel
i claimed love a million times
then i played the whore
and sold myself for whatever promised thrill
but it was then, when hate ran through my veins
He was the display of grace that gives love before demand
and because of that love...

i want to love
to give of myself
without thinking of myself
to put your good above my own
i want to embrace
to spread wide my arms
without the fear of a knife
cause what is love if its not a sacrifice?

the angels rejoice...

2009-09-23T12:08:00.008-04:00

my small group wrapped up our study of daniel last night. what an awesome study it's been! i could write at legnth about it with no problem... and maybe i'll take that up another time. but in my prep study through chapter 12, the final chapter, i was really struck by one thing in particular. its kindof a rabbit trail off the main course of the chapter (or actually three chapters, as 10-12 are one conversation). so the setting is daniel standing on the Tigris riverbank and an angel appears and hovers over the river. daniel 5-6 -- obviously angelic... body like crystal, face like lightning, eyes like flaming torches, arms and legs gleaming like burnished bronze, and whose single voice echoed as a multitude of voices (notice the similies here... it was too outside of daniel's box for definition, so all of his descriptions are comparisons to things he does understand). so daniel responded probably like most of us would -- vs 8-9, he freaked and passed out! the angel raises him up, he regains conciousness, and they begin a conversation... and that's chapters 10-12.

ever watch a movie where the camera perspective keeps changing back and forth, so you see things from different perspectives? 'vantage point' is one i can think of - great flick! (unless you're my friend amy, who just kept getting pissed off at having to watch the same events over and over... lol!) well, daniel seems to have this perspective shift from natural to supernatural and back again... and at times they collide, and you see that they actually have tangible interaction. daniel granted interpretation of visions and dreams (ch 2, 3, 5)... the fourth figure in the furnace (ch 3)... the closing of the lions mouths (ch 6)... visions and angels showing up to interpret them to daniel (7-12)... a demon assigned to Persia delaying the angel's response to daniel's request and connected implication that conflicts on earth reveal ongoing spiritual warfare in heavens (ch 10). anyway... all that to say that i've been intrigued by the ongoing collision of natural and supernatural in the book of daniel. so yeah... all that to preface... 8)

in chapter 12, as this conversation at the riverbank continues... daniel notices (apparently for the first time during this convo) that there are two other angels standing there... one next to him and one on the other side of the river. one of them then asks the angel hovering over the river, 'how long shall it be till the end of these wonders?' so now we have an angel, standing there with daniel, obviously curious about this whole drama unfolding.

that got me thinking... two things. first, there are angels watching the events on earth. second, they don't know what's coming and they're curious about it. so i started looking up some stuff about angels watching events on earth and what stokes their fires. if you're not curious about angels for the sake of angels... i'm with you... angels don't really get me that excited and i'm not trying to too make much of them. but stick with me here...

there are 5 things in Scripture that made the angels in heaven rejoice. by themselves, they're interesting. but to ovserve the theme when you look at them in sequence is awesome!!

1. job 38.4-7 :: '...the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy.' -- this is an account of creation. 'morning stars sang together' references the creation of light, and 'sons of God' here represent the pre-humanity host of heaven before God's throne. so the angels rejoiced over the creation of the earth.

2. luke 2.13-14 :: 'and suddenly there was with the angel [announcing Christ's birth to the shephards] a multitude of heavenly host praising God and saying, 'glory to God in the highest...' here, the angels rejoiced over the arrival of Jesus as man on the earth.

3. luke 15.7-10 :: '... just so, i tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.' here, we have the angels getting stoked over the salvation of sinners! noticing the trend yet?

4. revleation 5.9-12 :: '...and they [living creatures and elders] sang a new song, saying, worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, for You were slain, and by Your blood you ransomed people for God frome very tribe and language and people and nation ... and i heard around the throne... the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, 'worthy is the Lamb who was slain...'' so here, we have thousands of thousands of angels rejoicing in the arrival of the ransomed Church of God in heaven!

5. revelation 19.1-7 :: '...i heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, 'hallelujah! salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for His judgements are true and just; for He has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of His servants. ... then i heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude... crying out... 'hallelujah! for the Lord our God the Almighty reigns...'' lastly, here, we have the angels in heaven rejoicing as God accomplishes the final judgement of Satan and returns to reign!

progression :: creation of the earth --> the arrival of Christ as man to be the ransom for sinners --> the actual salvation of sinners --> the arrival of the ransomed church in heaven --> the final judgement of evil and Christ's return to reign, victorious, forever!

1 peter 1.12 says, about the things of God's salvation of sinners... 'thing into which angels long to look.'

what stokes the angels? what gets these heavenly beings, who've never sinned and enjoy the physical presence and glory of God even right now, absolutely rivited with suspense? its exactly what we should be getting stoked about! the story of redemption!

let us not think that when this life is over, we'll be done with the gospel! revelation 5.11-12... even HEAVEN never gets over the gospel! the angels and the saints around the throne are worshiping right now in the SAME reality our worship should be founded in!!

'WORTHY is the LAMB who was SLAIN!'

old testament and new testament -- equally relevent?

2009-09-15T13:06:00.003-04:00

so i've recently been thinking about the old testament (OT) and the new testament (NT) and my view of them... and have been quite humbled by my perspective. i've always loved the OT, but i've found, to my shame, that i tend to look at it as a collection of narratives that show more of the judgement side of God's character than the mercy that is... and has always been... equally present and manifested. if God is eternal... and God is mercy... than God has always BEEN mercy, just as he is today... just as he is always just, and has always been just. his justice is no less present in the NT... and same with his mercy in the old. i was reading in A.W.Tozer's 'knowledge of the holy', and came across this:

'mercy is an attribute of God, an infinite and inexhaustible energy within the divine nature which disposes God to be actively compassionate. both the old and new testaments proclaim the mercy of God. but the old has more than four times as much to say about it as the new. we should banish from our minds forever the common but erroneous notion that justice and judgement caracterize the God of Israel, while mercy and grace belong to the Lord of the church. actually, there is in principle no difference between the old testament and the new. in the new testament scriptures there is a fuller development of redemptive truth, but one God speaks in both dispensations, and what he speaks agrees with what He is. wherever and whenever God appears to men, he acts like himself. whether in the garden of eden or the garden of gethsemane, God is merciful as well as just. he has always dealt in mercy with mankind and will always deal in justice when his mercy is despised. thus he did in atediluvian times; thus when Christ walked among men; thus he is doing today and will continue always to do for no other reason than that he is God.' --Tozer, 'Knowledge of the Holy', chptr 18

i've been going through Genesis, and my small group has been studying the book of Daniel over the last couple of months, and i have to say this is resounding loudly with me! growing up how i have, and being exposed to the incredible, Gospel centered teaching that i've been exposed to, its no new concept that the OT points forward to the Gospel, and the NT walks forward IN it... with the entirety of Scripture and our existance centered around it. but its also no secret that we as believers forget the obvious. and i'm thankful for the reminder. going through Daniel has been EVERY BIT as relevant to new testament living as Romans... just in different perspectives, but pointing at the same ultimate target - our supreme God, made accessible to us through Christ.

let us search the Scriptures... digest them and let them compose our existance... but let us not neglect the provisions of grace in the old testament in a false notion that they are any less 'relevant' to our lives today.

'for the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.' --hebrews 4.12 (esv)

'all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.' --2 timothy 3.16-17 (esv)

'...as of first importance...'

2008-10-14T15:06:00.002-04:00

a reminder that our worship must, without exception, be centered on the person and work of Jesus Christ...

'for i delivered to you as of first importance what i also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures.' -1 cor. 15.3

'the cross stands for all that was accomplished through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God. it focuses on his substitutionary death at calvary but includes everything that gave meaning to that act. his preexistent state in glory. his incarnation. his life of perfect obedience. his suffering. his ressurection. his ascension. his present intercession and reign in glory. his triumphant return. it is Christ's atoning sacrifice for our sins that the new testament writers continually return to as a main focus both for worship and for life.' -bob kauflin

'Christ is to us just what his cross is. All that Christ was in heaven or on earth was put into what he did there... you do not understand Christ until you understand his cross.' -p.t. forsyth

'as long as You are glorified'

2008-09-15T16:35:00.002-04:00

i've really been appreciating the truth in this song recently. i know that God is good... i've seen it many times. but i don't always believe it in my present circumstances.

its good to be reminded that God IS good, and everything He does is in orchestration of His perfect, loving, good plan for our lives. my desire for my own comfort in this life wars in my mind with God's design of sometimes using difficulties as a chisel on my heart in my sanctification. but though i sometimes cease to belive and falter in my praise... He is faithful... and ALWAYS good.

'as long as You are glorified'
mark altrogge

shall i take from Your hand your blessings
yet not welcome any pain
shall i thank You for days of sunshine
yet grumble in days of rain
shall i love You in times of plenty
then leave You in days of drought?
shall i trust when i reap a harvest
but when winter winds blow, then doubt?

oh let Your will be done in me
in Your love i will abide
oh i long for nothing else, as long
as You are glorified

are You good only when i prosper
and true only when i'm filled?
are You King only when i'm carefree
and God only when well?
You are good when i'm poor and needy
You are true when i'm parched and dry
You still reign in the deepest valley
You're still God in the darkest night

(c) 2008 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI)

are we penetrating the world?

2008-09-02T18:00:00.003-04:00

so i just came across this quote from Bill Hull in my prep for lifegroup tonight (my church's name for small groups). i have no time to expound on what i'm thinking about it, but i will pose a question. for those of us who go to corporate worship on sunday mornings at our church... what are we doing with what we're being taught? are we leaving with intention to grow in grace with the truth we've just heard, that we may affect the world for the glory of Christ and the salvation of the lost?

'the test of a congregation, apart from personal holiness, is how effectively members penetrate the world. american churches are filled with pew-sitting, sermon-tasting, spiritual schizophrenics, whose belief and behavior are not congruent.' - Bill Hull

in all honesty, that cuts me deeper than i want to admit. oh that, for the fame of Christ and the glory of His Gospel, we as a church would prove this wrong...

'...be killing sin, or it will be killing you...'

2008-08-29T12:01:00.003-04:00

so i've been reading john owen's 'the mortification of sin'. i just started it actually... only a couple of chapters in, but i'm already hooked. intensely convicting! its like one of those addictive pains. you know what i mean? like when you get a canker sore... it hurts like crap! but you can't stop poking it with your tongue. ok... so am i the only one that does that? anyway... if i just lost you... come back. heh heh... ;)

what i mean by that is that in reading it, i feel as thought i am willingly subjecting myself to an assault (which is really the truth)... but a much needed one. as much as i'd love to sit here and type out a bunch of thoughts... i don't have the time or the thought for it right now. but i want to post some quotes from it, that if nothing else, might encourage you to pick up the book. perhaphs i'll get some time to post some processed thoughts on it later. for now though... read these through the lens of the Gospel. God is holy, and demands perfect holiness... which is a standard that we cannot meet. but there is SO MUCH JOY in understanding and reveling in the reality that Christ became man and lived in perfect holiness, and then died, taking to the cross ALL of our sin, and imputing to us the perfect righteousness that God demands! and the same grace that saved us, trains us in righteousness (titus 2.11), and provides us ALL we need to live a life glorifying to God (2 tim. 3.16-17).

colossians 3.5a, 'put to death [mortify] therefore what is earthly in you...'

here are some of the lines that have hit me the hardest... mostly from chapter two...

'do you mortify? do you make it your daily work? be always at it whilst you live; cease not a day from this work; be killing sin, or it will be killing you.'

'sin aims always at the utmost: everytime it rises up to tempt or entice, might it have its own course, it would go out to the utmost sin of that kind. every unclean thought or glance would be adultery, if it could; every covetous desire would be oppression; every thought of unbelief would be atheism, might it grow to its head. men may come to that, that sin may not be heard speaking a scandalous word in their hearts; that is, provoking to any great sin with scandal in its mouth: but every rise of lust, might it have its course, would come to the height of villainy. its like the grave, that is never satisfied. and herin lies no small share of the deceitfulness of sin, by which it prevails to the hardening of men, and so to their ruin (heb. 3.13). it is modest, as it were, in its first motions and proposals; but having once got footing in the heart by them, it constantly makes good its ground, and presseth on to some further degrees in the same kind.'

'let not that man think he makes any progress in holiness, who walks not over the neck of his lusts. he, who doth not kill sin in his way, takes no steps towards his journey's end. he, who finds not opposition from it, and who sets not himself in every particular to its mortification, is at peace with it, not dying to it.'

'the root of an unmortified course is the digestion of sin, without bitterness in the heart. when a man hath fixed his imagination to such an apprehension of grace and mercy, as to be able without bitterness to swallow and digest daily sins, that man is at the very brink of turning the grace of God into lasciviousness, and being hardened by the deceitfuness of sin.'

'mortification from a self-strength, carried on by ways of self-invention, unto the end of self-righteousness, is the soul and substance of all false religion in the world.'

nuovo inizio...

2008-08-26T10:15:00.004-04:00

so there's always a first post. i've been sitting here for a few minutes trying to come up with something clever or catchy to start this thing with, but alas, in my lack of present creativity, a humble beginning will have to do. i'm no stranger to blogging (www.xanga.com/liv2praz), and i will keep my xanga up for old or new readers, but i've been out of it for a while, and i'm a bit bored of xanga's format and limitations. so, i'm starting new here... partly for a new look and features, partly in attempt to stimulate creativity... or at least verbal expression. God has done so much in my life in the last couple of years. i have not desired much through this past season to be very expressive about it. but that is changing... so here goes...

i love to post lyrics to songs as well as personal thoughts or lessons the Lord is teaching me. my goal with this is appropriate, honest expression of the work the Lord is doing in my life... and general edification to all who read. i am a wreck of a sinner, saved by God's grace, through Christ crucified... rescued FROM slavery to sin, and TO slavery to Christ.

this song has become my favorite as of late. i am affected every time i sing it, because it is my story. what an awesome thing it is realize God's initiative in my salvation... and to worship Him from that starting point. even the fact that my heart responded to His grace is an evidence that His grace was already at work!

all i have is Christ
(by devon kauflin)

i once was lost in darkest night
yet thought i knew the way
the sin that promised joy and life
had led me to the grave
i had no hope that You would own
a rebel to Your will
and if You had not loved me first
i would refuse You still

but as i ran my hell-bound race
indifferent to the cost
You looked upon my helpless state
and led me to the cross
and i beheld God's love displayed
You suffered in my place
You bore the wrath reserved for me
now all i know is grace

hallelujah! all i have is Christ!
hallelujah! all i have is Christ!

now, Lord, i would be Yours alone
and live so all might see
the strength to follow Your commands
could never come from me
oh Father, use my ransomed life
in any way You choose
and let my song forever be
'my only boast is You!'

(c) 2008 sovereign grace praise (BMI)