Personal Presentation of the Sufferings

Excerpt from an Ask Pastor John response

What does Paul mean when he says he is "filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions"?

I think it's plain from the context and the wider teachings of Paul that he does not mean that he fills up by his sufferings what is lacking in the atoning worth of the death of Christ. When Jesus says, "It is finished" on the cross, all that had to be done to pay for the sins of all God's people was done. And nothing could be added.

So when Paul says, "By my sufferings I fill up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ," what he means is that the one thing lacking in the sufferings of Christ is the offer of those sufferings in person to those for whom he died. So in essence he is saying, "Alright, I will take the message of the cross—where Christ suffered for lost people—and in my own missionary sacrifices I will take that message to them and say, 'In me behold the love of God, as I sacrifice to come to you and preach to you, and risk my life and imprisonment to preach the gospel.'" That's the thing that he provides that is lacking.

Christ cannot personally offer himself to people today. In and through God's people—especially missionaries—he offers himself to them. And so they fill up what is lacking, namely, the personal presentation of the sufferings of Christ in their own bodies.

Harmony

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

LIVING IN HARMONY

Romans 8:38, 39
I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord

When I was born physically I had a father. As Marvin Anderson's son, is there anything that I could possibly do which would change my blood relationship to him? What if I ran away from home and changed my name? Would I still be his son? Of course! We're related by blood and nothing can change that. But is there anything I could do which would affect the harmony of our relationship as father and son? Yes, indeed! The harmony of our relationship was interrupted countless times by my behavior.

In the spiritual realm, when I was born again I became a member of God's family. God is my Father and I enjoy an eternal relationship with Him through the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18, 19). I am a child of God, in spiritual union with Him by His grace which I received through faith. My relationship with God was forever settled when I was born into His family. But is there anything I can do which will interfere with the harmony of my relationship with God? Absolutely. Living in harmony with God is based on the same issue as harmony with my earthly father: obedience. When I don't obey God, the harmony of our relationship is disturbed and my life is usually miserable as a result. I love my heavenly Father and I want to be in harmony with Him so I strive to obey Him. But even when we are in disharmony because of my disobedience, my relationship with Him is not at stake because we are related by the blood of Jesus Christ.

Paul was convinced that nothing could separate him from the love of God (Romans 8:35-39). Jesus said, "My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand" (John 10:27, 28 NIV ). Focus on your obedience to God so you may live in harmony with Him.

Prayer:

Thank You, heavenly Father, for the eternal relationship I enjoy with You because of the precious blood of Jesus. Teach me to obey that I may live in harmony with You.

Preservation

Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Matthew 6:13 RSV

No literature is more realistic and honest in facing the harsh facts of life than the Bible. At no time is there the faintest suggestion that the life of faith exempts us from difficulties. What it promises is preservation from all the evil in them.

On every page of the Bible there is recognition that faith encounters troubles. The sixth petition in the Lord's Prayer is "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." That prayer is answered every day, sometimes many times a day, in the lives of those who walk in the way of faith.

A Long Obedience

"Preserved from Evil", God's Message for Each Day by Eugene Peterson

Shield

But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head.

Psalm 3:3

Counsel

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

THE VALUE OF COUNSEL

Proverbs 11:14
Where there is no guidance, the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory

No one person has complete knowledge, and everyone has a limited perspective on the truth. God has structured the church in such a way that we need each other. I have made some dumb decisions that would never have been made if I had consulted someone. However, some people will only consult those who agree with them. That's a sign of immaturity.

At the same time, the counsel of others does have to be weighed. There is a fascinating account in Acts 21 where the Holy Spirit seemed to be warning Paul not to go to Jerusalem. Disciples in Tyre "kept telling Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem" (21:4). Then a prophet named Agabus gave a visual demonstration by binding himself and saying, "This is what the Holy Spirit says: 'In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt [Paul] and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles'" (21:11).

Everyone began begging him not to go. "Then Paul answered, '. . . I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.' And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, 'The will of the Lord be done!'" (21:13, 14).

Was the Holy Spirit guiding the disciples and Agabus? The information was mostly true, but the conclusion of the disciples wasn't. The Holy Spirit wasn't trying to prevent Paul from going; He was preparing Paul for the coming persecution. Paul was right in not wanting to take the easy way out.

The missionary Hudson Taylor went against advice, and circumstances nearly destroyed him. But he, more than anyone, opened up China to the gospel. Sometimes people can tell you the truth, but they draw selfish conclusions. Sometimes we need to ascertain our own motives as well as those of the people we seek counsel from, for our motives can be in error as well. The value of counsel is to get an unbiased opinion from a spiritually sensitive person which you can add to the recipe of ingredients God is giving to guide you.

Prayer:

Lord, grant me the patience to gather information and seek godly counsel for my decisions.

Gospel

From the Gospel Coalition

Video: What is the Gospel? - John Piper

Endorsements

Concluding paragraph from I'm Gucci Little Piggy and I Endorsed This Post

...

Again, let me be clear. This is not about being politically active as a believer. This is not about liking one candidate over another. This is about pastors pushing politicians. I think it is the duty of pastors to attempt to discern what the Bible says about the pressing issues of our day - abortion, homelessness, war, poverty, the family. That's not only fair ground, that's simply trying to help your congregation follow Jesus in obeying what his Word teaches (cf., Matthew 28:20). Let's just make sure that it's Jesus we're encouraged to follow, not any one politician. My hope is that pastors who deeply care about the Gospel and its centrality in both our people and our pulpits will be careful seeking to remind everyone that there is only one Savior and his name is not Obama or McCain.

To do any less is to settle for something less.

"Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God."
- Psalm 20:7 (ESV)

Isaiah

Excerpt from interview with Ray Ortlund Jr on Isaiah and the ESV Study Bible:

6. So, what ‘prophetic message’ does the book of Isaiah bring to the church today?

I think Isaiah would have loved Calvin, who in the throes of decision wrote to Farel, “I am well aware that it is with God that I have to do.” We are always dealing with God. But little in the modern world makes us well aware of it. Isaiah became well aware of God. He came to realize how urgently relevant to all things is the One who says, “I, I am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior” (43:11). But Isaiah also saw that it’s the most natural thing in the world for us, without even realizing it, to redefine God in such a way that we can forsake him and still think of ourselves as good people.

That leads to Isaiah’s second prophetic message to us today. We are more wicked than we know. Isaiah himself went through a profound humiliation before God. He was a privileged man, and obviously a genius. People probably valued his opinions. But when he saw the holy King, he finally saw his own dirty self, no better than anyone else (6:1-5). But the grace of the King was feelingly applied to Isaiah, energizing him for a self-abandoning, God-glorifying life mission (6:6-8). As Charles Simeon wrote to a friend, “You have always appeared to me to be sincere. But your views of Christianity seemed to be essentially defective. You have always appeared to admire Christianity as a system; but you never seemed to have just views of Christianity as a remedy; you never seemed to possess self-knowledge or to know the evil of your own heart.”

Isaiah’s third and breath-takingly glorious message is that God will do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. He will preserve, purify and honor his people, drawing us out from all the nations as a glorious new humanity and, through the sin-bearing Servant, he will have us glorifying and enjoying himself in a renewed universe forever. No matter what terrors confront us in the world, no matter what sins we discover in ourselves, God will fulfill his saving purpose. “Be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create,” God says (65:18).

Protection

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

GOD'S PROTECTION

1 Peter 5:9
But resist him [the devil], firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world

I cannot accept someone saying, "The devil made me do it." No, he didn't make you do it; you did it. Somewhere along the line, you chose to give the devil a foothold. He merely took advantage of the opportunity you gave him. You have all the resources and protection you need to live a victorious life in Christ every day. If you're not living it, it's your choice. When you leave a door open for the devil by not resisting temptation, accusation or deception, you are vulnerable. And if you continue to allow him access to your life, he can gain a measure of control over you. You won't lose your salvation, but you will lose your daily victory.

Many Christians today who cannot control their lives in some area wallow in self-blame instead of acting responsibly to solve the problem. They berate themselves and punish themselves for not having the willpower to break a bad habit, when instead they should be resisting Satan in an area where he had obviously robbed them of control. Anything bad which you seemingly cannot stop doing, or anything good which you cannot make yourself do, could be an area of demonic control.

God's protection from demonic attack is not something you can take for granted irrespective of how you behave. This protection is conditional on your willingness to respond to God's provision. We are told to put on Christ and make no provision for the flesh (Romans 13:14), to put on the armor of God and to stand firm (Ephesians 6:11), to submit to God and resist the devil (James 4:7). If we irresponsibly ignore God's resources by failing to obey these commands, how can we expect Him to protect us?

Prayer:

Thank You, Lord, for the clear direction and mighty weapons You have provided for victory in spiritual warfare.

Seeing

... I was blind, now I see.

John 9:25

Movie

The lyrics to Warren Barfield's song Love Is Not a Fight start out:

Love is not a place, to come and go as we please, is a house we enter in, and then commit to never leave, so lock the door behind you, throw away the key, we’ll work it out together, let it bring us to our knees



This song is part of the soundtrack of the new movie Fireproof coming out in September. It is from the same group that produced Facing the Giants.

Spiritual World Sensitivity

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

SPIRITUALLY AWARE

Hebrews 5:14
Solid food is for the mature who, because of practice, have their senses trained to discern good and evil

In many counseling cases I am able to sense in my spirit that something is wrong or that the real issue has not surfaced. Sometimes I seem to know what it is, but instead of blurting it out, I test it. For example, if I discern that the counselee may be in bondage to homosexuality, I don't say, "You're a homosexual, aren't you?" Rather, I test the impression at the appropriate time by asking something like, "Have you ever struggled with homosexual thoughts or tendencies?" If the Spirit's discernment in me is matched by His conviction in the counselee, usually the problem surfaces and we can deal with it.

Have you ever "known" that someone was a Christian before he or she even said anything about it? Have you ever sensed a compatible spirit with other believers? There is nothing magical about that; it's just the presence of the Holy Spirit bearing witness with your spirit. At other times the Holy Spirit warns you that the spirit controlling another person is not a compatible spirit.

If we would learn to be more spiritually aware in our churches and homes, God could keep us from plowing head-on into so many disasters. In the Western world our cognitive, left-brain orientation all but excludes discernment as our essential guide for navigating through the spiritual world. But the writer of Hebrews identified discernment as a mark of maturity: "Solid food is for the mature who, because of practice, have their senses trained to discern good and evil" (5:14).

A good systematic theology is the essential foundation upon which we build our lives. It is like the skeleton of our body. But dead orthodoxy is just that: dead! It is the Holy Spirit who gives life to the body. The church is in desperate need of biblically orthodox people who have also learned to be spiritually discerning.

Prayer:

Increase my sensitivity to the spiritual world, Lord, and keep me from the dangers of viewing life only from a human perspective.

7|22

Buckhead Church Summer Series held last night that featured worship leader Charlie Hall and Dan Kimball discussing his book They Like Jesus But Not the Church. Video Link.

Disagree Well

Out of Ur

"If there's anything I've learned from both conservatives and liberals, it's that you can have all the right political answers and still be mean. And nobody wants to listen to you if you're mean. One of the things we can do is learn to disagree well. I think there is a new conversation happening within evangelicalism in post-religious-right America that is much healthier. We can actually learn to disagree well."

-Shane Claiborne is a founding member of The Simple Way, a new monastic community in Philadelphia, and the co-author of Jesus for President. Taken from "Body Politic" in the Summer 2008 issue of Leadership journal.

Giving Thanks

A Psalm for giving thanks.

1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
2 Serve the LORD with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!

3Know that the LORD, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!

5 For the LORD is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Psalm 100

More Acceptable

To do righteousness and justice
is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.

Proverbs 21: 3

Disciple of Jesus

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

HIS DISCIPLE

Romans 12:1
I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice

An African pastor was overwhelmed by rebels who demanded that he renounce his faith. He refused. The night before they took his life, he wrote the following lines on a scrap of paper:

I am part of the "Fellowship of the Unashamed." I have Holy Spirit power. The die has been cast. I've stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals!

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by presence, lean by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought , compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, shut up, let up, or burn up till I've preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ.

I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops.

And when He comes to get His own, He'll have no problems recognizing me. My colors will be clear.

Prayer:

Lord, develop in me the perseverance and faithfulness to pursue Your goal for my life even in the face of rejection.

Ambition

Excerpts from Holy Ambition: To Preach Where Christ Has Not Been Named by John Piper

[Romans 15: 18-24]

...

Verse 20: “And thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else’s foundation.”

Paul was controlled by a holy ambition. I say he was controlled because he says in verse 22, “This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to you.” And he says at the end of verse 23, “I have longed for many years to come to you.” When you long to do something for years and years, but you don’t do it, something is controlling you. And what was controlling Paul and keeping him from going to Rome is that he was not finished with his ambition in the regions from Jerusalem to Illyricum. But finally, he says in verse 23, “I no longer have any room for work in these regions.” And then in verse 24: “I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain.”

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It is a good thing to be controlled by a holy ambition. Are you controlled by a holy ambition? I am calling it “holy” because its aim is holy—to see people from all the nations who have never heard of Jesus believe in him and become obedient to him and be saved by him from their sin and from God’s wrath. And I am calling this ambition “holy” because it comes from God and his holy word, as we will see in a few moments. It is right and it is good to be controlled by a holy ambition.

Do you have a holy ambition? Not everyone should have Paul’s ambition. One plants another waters (1 Corinthians 3:6-8). Each has his own gift (1 Corinthians 7:7). Each stands for falls before his own master (Romans 14:4). But I think God would be pleased if each of his children had a holy ambition.

...

So my answer to the question Where does your holy ambition come from? is this: It comes from a personal encounter with the living Christ (not necessarily as dramatic as the Damascus road) shaped and informed and empowered by the written word of God. As you meditate on the law of the Lord day and night (Psalm 1:2)—as you immerse yourself in God’s word—he comes and takes some truth of that word and burns it into your heart until it is a holy ambition. If that hasn’t happened yet, saturate yourself with the word of God and ask him for it.

God doesn’t lead us into ambitions that are pointless—that you will regret at the end of your life. There is always a need to be met—not a need in God, but in the world—by a holy ambition. Holy ambitions are not about self-exaltation. They are always a form of love. They always meet someone’s need.

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Gifts

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

HOW GOD WORKS

Deuteronomy 8:6
You shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him

I believe in miracles, and I accept as fact every one recorded in the Bible. I believe that our entire Christian experience is a miracle. It simply cannot be explained by natural means. And God's power is seen in other miraculous ways today, but must He always prove Himself by stepping outside His created order? If God doesn't primarily guide us through His Word (which never changes) and take into account the fixed order of the universe, how can we ever have any stability? How can we make any plans if God doesn't reveal His ways and then stay consistent with them?

God is not capricious in His dealings with man. He has clearly established His ways and He is faithful to them. I believe God has revealed His ways and we are to walk in them. The question is, how does God work through human responsibility and the natural order of the universe to bring about His will? Somehow He works through a less-than-perfect church, orchestrating human affairs in such a way as to guarantee the outcome of the ages. What really impresses me is His timing, not His miraculous interventions.

Notice how Jesus responded to those who insisted on a sign: "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet" (Matthew 12:39). Satan wanted a sign too. He said, "If You are the Son of God throw Yourself down" (Matthew 4:6). To this Jesus responded, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test" (verse 7 NIV ). Jesus was saying that the sign we need is the Word of God, and we are to use the Word to guard against Satan's temptations to force the Lord to prove Himself.

I think it is better to prove ourselves to God rather than demand He prove Himself to us. We are the ones being tested, not God. "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15).

Prayer:

Lord, I want to be responsible to use the gifts You have given me and lay aside sin and fruitless activities.

Indispensable

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Wednesday, August 20, 2008 - When You’re “Dumped On”

What is the difference in your job and your work? Our work will give us an opportunity to exercise the gifts we have–the abilities God has given us, whereas our jobs may not use our gifts. The use of our gifts always brings fulfillment and joy into our lives.

Another difference is:

2. Your job will result in income; your work may never result in income.

We all are willing to go to our jobs each day primarily because we get a salary or compensation at regular intervals for performing that job. I'm not saying you can't enjoy doing your job and that there aren't other motivational factors involved. But there are very few who would continue going to their job each day without compensation.

Your work may never pay you a dollar, but it will pay benefits that cannot be valued in earthly terms. When you are doing your work, what God has called you to do, you're putting deposits in God's heavenly bank, where thieves can't steal it and rust cannot destroy it. Our work certainly brings compensation, but it's deposited in a different bank and held as a long-term investment.

In our society where people are valued by the size of their salaries and bank accounts, this is a totally different perspective and one we have to adjust to. It's one of those areas where we must fight not to allow the world to shove us into its mold, into its way of thinking. What have you been sending on ahead to deposit?

3. There is always someone else who can do your job; there is no one else who can do your work.

You know, if you called your employer tomorrow and said, "I'm not coming back; you won't see me again," guess what? They would survive. It might cause some temporary problems, but somebody soon would move into your shoes, learn your job and do it.

However, you are indispensable when it comes to your work. If you don't do the work God has called you to do, it will go undone. Now, that's a pretty frightening thought–and quite frankly, it should frighten us to think that we could miss the work God has called us to do.

Those people you interact with every day are your special "people group," that can be reached uniquely by you. If you don't use your gifts to do God's work for the people in your world, nobody else will fill in the gap.