RECALL NOTICE

Important Recall Notice

The Maker of all human beings is recalling all units manufactured, regardless of make or year, due to the serious defect in the primary and central component of the heart. This is due to a malfunction in the original prototype units (code named Adam and Eve), resulting in the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent units.

This defect has been technically termed "Sub-sequential Internal Non-Morality" or more commonly known as SIN, as it is primarily characterized by loss of moral judgment.

Other symptoms include (but are not limited to):

·       Loss of direction

·       Foul vocal emissions

·       Amnesia of origin

·       Lack of peace and joy

·       Selfish or violent behavior

·       Depression or confusion in mental component Fearful

The Manufacturer, who is neither liable or at fault for this defect, is providing factory authorized repair and service FREE of charge to correct the SIN defect.

The number to call in your area is F-A-I-T-H. Simply believe that Christ died for your sins, was buried and rose again, and your unit will be regenerated. No matter how big or small the SIN defect is, Christ will repair and replace it with:

·       Forgiveness

·       Love

·       Joy

·       Peace

·       Longsuffering

·       Gentleness

·       Goodness

·       Faith

·       Meekness

·       Temperance

Please see operating manual HOLY BIBLE for further details on the use of these fixes. [ See sections 1Cor. 15:1-4;  Eph. 1:7;  and Gal. 5:16-26 ].

WARNING: 

Continuing to operate any human unit without receiving this repair fully voids any and all Manufacturer's warranties (explicit and/or implied), exposing the owner to dangers and problems too numerous to list; including potential legal judgment for damage to other manufactured items including but not limited to other human units. Such continued operation shall result in the owner/operator being permanently impounded. [For free emergency service before it's too late: call upon the Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and gave Himself a ransom for our sins].

DANGER: 

Any and all human units not receiving this recall action shall be destroyed by fire. 

This action has been authorized by the Creator.

When A Tower Falls

Why do bad things happen to people? Doesn't the World want to know the answer to that question?

We read the answer in Genesis 3, but people love to discredit Genesis don't they? We Christians in our zeal to have people like us often disregard that book too. We are willing to embrace Evolution if it will make people like us enough to come sit in Church with us. OK not all of us act that way, and the faithful few of us here have probably just cried out in our hearts with anger at being accused of doing that.

But popular Lordship Salvation proponent John Piper is denying the truth of Genesis.

Recently a tornado hit Central Lutheran Church, Piper's explanation?

6. Conclusion: The tornado in Minneapolis was a gentle but firm warning to the ELCA and all of us: Turn from the approval of sin. Turn from the promotion of behaviors that lead to destruction. Reaffirm the great Lutheran heritage of allegiance to the truth and authority of Scripture. Turn back from distorting the grace of God into sensuality. Rejoice in the pardon of the cross of Christ and its power to transform left and right wing sinners.

This is the conclusion, his whole article can be found at Desiring God.

It's a shame when even an Open Theist has a more Biblically sound answer than a Calvinist.

With view of John Piper's use of Luke 13:4-5 Greg Boyd says the following;

Far from supporting John’s speculation about why a tornado broke a church steeple, it seems to me this passage directly assails it! It makes me want to ask John, “do you think that the folks at Central Lutheran church are more guilty than you or any others living in the Twin Cities?” And the only answer this passage allows us to give is an unequivocal “no!” In the fallen world in which we live, towers sometimes randomly fall; bridges sometimes randomly collapse; and tornadoes sometimes randomly do property damage – even to churches. That’s all there is to be said about it.

Read all that Greg Boyd had to say about this at his website.

Genesis 3 tells us that God cursed Creation. That's why bad things happen to people. Good people, and bad people... that's why cars rust, people get cancer, people die, why towers fall over, and why tornadoes hit both good and bad churches.

for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.

Genesis is a book that many try to re-interpret. It's amazing to me that the enemy knows how important this book is but most Christians do not. Do we not to have the Mind of Christ my Brethren and so able to see even more than our cursed enemy? Is not all that is Scripture Breathed of God?

AiG has a short article about the Word of the Lord in Genesis 2:17

but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Many have asked why Adam did not die that day. The answer is in the language my friends, the answer is in the language, not the translation.

Read more at AiG.

Because He Was Raised

Just a quick, but important I think, thought tonight. The Lord Jesus Christ was raised from death after He died for our sins. The Bible says He took on all the sins of the world. He willingly became guilty for every sin. The Bible says this propitiated, or appeased, God for all those sins.

Because the one who became guilty was raised we know something pretty amazing. The wages of sin is death, complete separation from God who is the Life by the way. But God was propitiated by the death of one who had no guilt of His own. Because He was sinless Himself He was able to pay for the guilt of others, He had no debt of His own to pay. And that God took Christ's payment and then raised Him back to life tells us that the payment was accepted in full.

The very fact that Christ was raised from death is our proof that God will forgive any and every sin if we put our faith in Christ. That Christ is alive shows us we have Eternal Security in Him and that salvation can truly be by faith alone. If any sin were not yet paid for in full, if there was anything that God would hold against the one who is in Christ then Christ Himself could not have been raised for He took on all the guilt of everything we have ever done. If we are in Him, as the Bible says those who have placed their faith in Him are, then we too will be raised to Life because He was.

Before The Lord Naked, A Faith Pleasing To Him.

Adam and Eve were naked before the Lord at the first but were not ashamed. However, after they ate The Fruit of the Knowledge of Good and Evil they became aware of their nakedness. That they were fully exposed for examination, they saw themselves as they were. Beings who fell far short of the Glory of God, and they hid.

God says of King David that he was a man after His own heart. And while I'm sure that there is depth of meaning in that statement beyond what I understand, there is one thing I can tell you. David knew he was “dark but lovely.” David knew he was a terrible mess of a man. Sinful in desire and practice. But he loved God and sought after Him. At times David would be in great peril with enemies surrounding him. Instead of taking the few moments of refuge available to sleep and rest David would stay awake through the night watches to be in the presence of the Lord. To praise Him.

At one point we read of David's wife catching him dancing naked before the Lord. Dancing. Naked. What was David doing? He surely wasn't hiding his “nakedness” from the Lord God Almighty. David was making the Lord his refuge. David was coming to the Lord God in full knowledge of his own lacking. If we read about David we clearly see that he was not what some might call a “Law keeper.” His life is not marked by “radical obedience.” It was marked by “radical faith.”

In some settings 2 Cor 13:5 is used to teach that Christians ought to be constantly examining themselves to ensure they are in the faith. This examination is then explained to be about “fruit” and “obedience.” For it is explained that we will “know them by their fruit” and if we love Him we will “obey His Commandments.” Yet it is completely ignored that the Apostle Paul's topic in 2 Cor 13 was not IF these were Christians. He had already addressed them as such, and assured them of as much. What was being discussed is their questioning of his Apostleship. We read in 2 Cor 13:3

“since you seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, who is not weak toward you, but mighty in you.”

He then makes a parenthetical statement about the Lord being crucified in weakness but now living in power. But he says “since you seek proof.... test yourselves.” The Apostle is saying, if you are indeed in Christ, and I was the one sent to you, and what I told you you received and you were saved then I am an Apostle and you ought recognize me as such. But what sort of test is the Apostle talking about? Surely if he instructs them to “test themselves” then a Christian ought to be able to test their salvation right? Read 2 Cor 13 and tell me if the Apostle tells them to look at their strengths or their weaknesses. Does the Apostle tell them that their strengths ought to assure them of their position in Christ? Or does he tell them to be assured by the power that Christ now works because He died in weakness?

Of judgment, either of others or of self the Apostle Paul tells us that we can not be “justified” by our own judgment or the judgment of other men. In 1 Cor 4:1-5 we read;

1 Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

What does this tell us? That even if we see nothing wrong in ourselves we are not justified. Even if we see ourselves as perfect we could be completely missing the mark. Not ourselves, but the Lord is the Judge. Because we do not see clearly. We do not see as the Lord sees. Therefore our confidence CAN NOT come from what we see. We are to “walk by faith, not by sight.” In fact it's impossible to please the Lord without faith. Judging our salvation by our performance is not faith. It's “fact finding” and “fruit counting.” But what is this that the Lord says that we will “know them by their fruit.” I want you to take note of what the Apostle Paul, who received his doctrine directly from the Lord Jesus Christ says in 1 Cor 4: 5

“Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts.”

The Lord says we “will” know them by their fruit. A future tense. And the Apostle tells us not to judge “until” these things are revealed, right after showing us that we do not see clearly enough to judge right now.

But what of this teaching of the Lord that says we will know them by their fruit? In Mat 7:15-20 we read

15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

We're told to “beware” to be on guard as it were, and so we should. But when will we “know them by their fruits.” Well the Lord says that a good tree can't bare bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.” I don't know about you but I know MANY godly men who do both good things and bad things. Who teach good things and bad things. Who have godly moments and ungodly moments. Is a person a false prophet if they ever do something or teach something wrong? Since a good tree “can not” bear bad fruit? Or is a person automatically a “true prophet” the moment they do or teach something good, since a bad tree “can not” bear good fruit? I think we have this messed up. I really do.

When will the fruit be revealed by the only One who can honestly see it clearly now? When the trees are tested by fire. In verse 19 &20 He says

“Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”

When does this happen? Read on in Mat 7:21-23

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

In that day. What day? The Apostle Paul says in the day that the Lord comes He will reveal all. That's why we must “beware.” Must one beware not to pick a pare when you're looking for an apple? They are plainly visible are they not? But the Lord warns us that we must beware of false prophets. Why? Because they are not plainly visible. We can not now always see their fruit.

Before I get too far off track, why was David a “man after God's own heart?” Because he danced before the Lord naked, while our normal nature is to hide that nakedness from Him. Because when men seek to justify themselves, or to put it another way to seek assurance of their justification in themselves, they are not acting in faith in the One who died in weakness on our behalf but now moves powerfully in life.

Holiness. Being separated for the purposes of the Lord is something we need to focus on. But you know what we need more than holiness? More than obedience? More than doctrine? More than knowledge? More than anything else? We need faith. The faith that looks at the Cross and sees your full debt paid there. The faith that causes us to DANCE NAKED before the Lord Who has justified those who have repented to trust in His finished work on the Cross and His resurrection unto life.

That's why when we properly share our faith that we allow the Holy Spirit to expose the sinner's sin to them. So that they can see their nakedness. Not only to show them their desperate need, but also so that they can actually exercise their faith. That is repentance. To see your need and trust that it's met in Christ.

Then we see we are truly naked before the Lord, and that though dark, we are loved. If we have really repented we can dance before Him, even in that nakedness. That is a faith that pleases Him, because we come before Him fully Dependant on Him. Only by His righteousness. Thus we are truly vessels set apart for His use because He will truly get the glory for every good work. Our works won't be proof of us, but will be proof of Him.

What IS Repentance?

UPDATE 2: I have recently recorded an exhaustive video on the subject of Repentance which examines all usages of any word translated as any form of repent in both the Old and New Testaments. See the article Repentance Unto Life here.

UPDATE: I have a VERY short definition which may be helpful to read before you see this more complete argument.

When we teach about the Gospel it's important that we admit, and agree with the Bible that Salvation is by Grace through Faith alone. Eph 2:8-9 That means that Salvation comes by putting your faith in Christ and that's it. So what about Repentance then? Well it's linked to deliverance and eternal salvation in the Bible. This leaves us with the fundamental question – What IS Repentance? We must be very careful because the answer can destroy the essential doctrine of “by Faith alone” and turn the Gospel into a false gospel of salvation by works.

Let's see if we can figure it out.

We're going to start all the way back at the beginning. Well ok a few days after the beginning anyway. In Genesis 2:17 God declares that sin will result in death. The struggle between truth and falsehood begins in Gen 3:4 where the Devil says that God was lying. This will become very important later as we get to the Gospel. We read that the “Wages of Sin” is death in Romans 6:23. But really God said this in Gen 2:17 so it's nothing new.

Sin requires death. Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. Heb 9:22

We get to Cain and Abel in Gen 4. Where we seen an example of how we can't approach God on our own terms – only on His. Abel took God at His Word and obeyed Him. Cain on the other hand, choose to give God something he thought was valuable. It was a sacrifice, but it was not what God required. God declares that sin requires death and so sinful man can not approach God without the shedding of blood. Abel brought a blood offering, Cain brought vegetables.

Cain was a sinner and so had the seed of disobedience in him – just as all we descendants of Adam do. I'm sure Cain intended to please God, but because he refused to do so in accordance with what God asked God was not pleased at all.

We run into the very same issue today when we are told to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. To so many preachers and ordinary people Repentance means to feel sorrow and pledge to change your ways. Now godly sorrow does work repentance, a la 2 Cor 7:10, but sorrow is not a requirement nor an ingredient of Repentance. Nor is changing your behavior or even declaring that you will or want to change your behavior a part of Repentance. Although these things DO often happen in one's life after they have repented a la Acts 26:20. How do I know these are not part of Repentance? The Bible never says they are part of it. Only that they can be results of, or even things that lead up to Repentance – but not always. Further we constantly see Paul preaching about holy living to Christians who are already saved – thus having already repented.

So now we know what Repentance isn't.. that's helpful.. what IS it?

Well the Greek word that is translated into the English word “Repent” is metanoeō and it carries the meaning “to change your mind.” This is a word that gets used to mean anything from changing your mind about a decision you had made to changing your opinion about something. Many people add to the word as it is used in Scripture. When you read it in Scripture try just replacing the word Repent with the phrase “change your mind” or “a change of mind” So when God says to repent of sins what does that mean. Well let's say “change your mind about sins” That still doesn't clear it up all the way. But it does get rid of the “stop sinning so you can be saved” sort of repentance that get preached so often.

Let's see how the mind of the unsaved person works for a moment. Prov 20:6 tells us that men proclaim their goodness. People esteem themselves as good but God says none are good except Him. Matt 19:17, Mark 10:18, Luke 18:19. Our very thinking nature is against God. Rom 8:7.

Part of the Gospel says that Jesus Christ died for our sins. I Cor 15:3. In order for a man to believe that someone died for his sins, he must realize that he has sins that are terrible enough to deserve death. This is repentance. This is the change of mind. I'll break it down.

No one asks for medical treatment for cancer unless they believe they have cancer.

Before the man thought he was good. Now he knows he is a sinner deserving of death.
Before his thinking was against God. He didn't even think sin was sinful. Now he agrees with God that sin deserves death.

Repentance alone is not enough to save a person. Repentance unto life includes not only the change of mind about self, and the right alignment of our thinking to agree with God but also the putting our faith in Christ Jesus. Who died for our sins, because death was deserved and required, and that it was enough as in accordance with what God said He needed in Scripture, that He was sinless and the Christ (which includes the meaning that He is God) and that He rose again in the flesh. I Cor 15:1-8.

So if you believe this, that it applies to you and your sins, and that it does save then you have repented unto life. You have changed your mind and put your faith in Christ Jesus. Rom 10:9 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

When we want to change our ways to be more acceptable to God it's an honest and good emotion. Just like Cain's wanting to please God by offering Him the fruit of his labor in the fields. But just as Cain learned so must we, no man can approach God except the way that God has said. Jesus said I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father but through Me. John 16:6 We can want to change our ways and that is a good thing. That is the fruit of Repentance. But if we think, or worse preach that a man must do this, even want to do this in order to be saved then we are declaring that works are required for Salvation and it's not “by Faith alone.” God says it's by grace we saved through faith and that not of ourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast. Eph 2:8-9. If we do this we preach another gospel which isn't a gospel at all. Gal 1:6-7

We can not approach God on the basis that we want to make ourselves better, or that we will. We can only approach God by the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ. That all of our sin was paid for. If we believe, or preach, that we need to make ourselves even the slightest bit better in order to be saved then we are making Grace of no effect. Gal 5:4

This is not to say that Christians should not strive to live holy lives, that is an entirely different subject. Today I am writing about about repentance that leads to salvation, not discipleship.

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