Though God pardons sinners and makes great provision for expressing His mercy, He will never negotiate His justice. If we fail to understand that, the cross of Christ will be utterly meaningless to us.
Category: Quotes
Shadow Versus Substance
Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ (Col. 2:16-17).
Tempted to Envy
We might envy the old covenant saints because we do not usually see great seas parted, manna falling from heaven, and other “spectacular” displays of God’s power. But we are in a far better position than the old covenant saints, for we see Christ more clearly than they ever did.
Should Be Grateful
Let us be grateful for the era in which we live and never try to go back to life under the legal bondage that characterized those who lived before the coming of Jesus.
Question for Reflection
- Do you realize many practices and acts in the Old Testament point to Jesus?
Resources
Table Talk Magazine, Shadow Versus Substance, February 14, 2011 (headings mine)
Get More Out of Scripture Today
I am convinced that the greatest devotional need for most of those reading this article – even those committed to spending time in the Bible every day – is to meditate on Scripture.
It seems a common experience for people to read the Bible and then, as soon as they close it, to forget everything they’ve read.
People are seldom changed by what they immediately forget.
Why Can’t We Remember?
Do most people somehow lack the mental equipment necessary to remember something they just read? I think the forgetfulness occurs mostly because people spend two or three seconds reading one verse, then two or three seconds with the next verse, and so on until they are finished. How much does anyone remember of thoughts they considered for just two seconds?
Reading the Bible was never intended to be the primary means of absorbing the Bible. Reading is the starting place, but meditation is the absorption of Scripture.
And it is the absorption of Scripture that leads to the experiences with God and the changes in our lives that we seek when we come to the Bible.
Why is Our Time In Scripture Not More Profitable?
The main reason more Christians don’t find their daily time in the Scriptures more profitable has little do with the strength of their memory, the level of they education, or their IQ; rather, the problem is very simple: a lack of meditation on Scripture.
How Do We Meditate on Scripture?
There are many ways to meditate on the text of Scripture, such as:
- Repeating the verse or phrase with emphasis on a different word each time.
- Rewriting the verse or phrase in your own words.
- Looking for applications of the text.
- Formulating a principle from it.
- Asking what question is answered or problem is solved by it.
- Praying through the text.
- Select something from your reading and ask: “How does this text relate to the gospel and the Jesus?” Maybe you will select a single word, a character in the narrative, or the main idea of the passage. From it you may see, for instance, (a) something that shows our need for the gospel, or (b) an example that points to something Jesus is or (c) something Jesus did in an even greater way, or (d) an illustration of one of the effects of the gospel upon those who believe.
Challenge
If you spend just sixty seconds meditating on a verse of Scripture, do you realize that may be ten to twenty times as long as you would normally consider that verse? Reserve at least a minute in your Bible reading time today, choose a verse, and [meditate on it using one of the means above. You may start by] ask[ing], “How does this text relate to the gospel and to Jesus?”
Questions for Reflection
- Do you spend time meditating on God’s Word?
- How could meditating on God’s Word change the way you do your daily devotional reading?
Resources
Table Talk Magazine, Seeing the Gospel in the Word of God, by Donald Whitney, February 26-27, 2011 (headings and bullets mine)
The Soul Shaping Reality of the Gospel
We need a little perspective here. Our situation in the U.S.A., relative to Christians elsewhere, is not unusually difficult. It is true that we are now moving away from a time when Christianity has had some cultural acceptance. After all, consider how popular it has been to be “born again.”
But let us remember that outside the U.S.A., there are Christians who live under tyrannies, such as from Islam, or in extreme poverty, or surrounded by horrible political corruption, or are subject to rampant crime. Our situation is really not that bad!
What the Message Isn’t
What it requires is that we have some conviction about biblical truth, some savvy about the culture in which we are living, and the spine to preserve our identity as believers.
It is a temptation to think that by being nice and accommodating we can make the Christian gospel seem like a great little addition to everyone’s life.
But the gospel is not a great little addition. It is a soul-shaking, costly demanding reality. The church cannot hide this fact!
The gospel is not about self-therapy. Despite our pressured, taut, nerve jangling age, the Christian message is not there just to make us feel better about ourselves or more able to cope.
What the Message Is
It is about coming before our great God and Savior, confessing our sins, entrusting ourselves to Him, and surrendering our claim upon ourselves to Him.
What is Needed
What is most needed, and what is most lacking in the church, is a little character in differentiating its message from self-help therapies and marketing strategies. Our deficiency is not that we lack the right technique. It is that we often don’t have a real alternative.
Questions for Reflection
- Do you see the church as an alternative faith community to the culture?
- How can we live as an alternative faith community?
Resources
David F. Wells, The Soul-Shaping Reality of the Gospel, an interview in Table Talk Magazine, January 2011.
Life is About God
At its very roots, life is about God. Whether you shake your fist at him, consider him so distant that his existence is irrelevant, or tremble before him because you feel that you are under his judgment, the reality is this:
the basic questions of life and the fundamental issues of the human heart are about God.
Life is about knowing him or avoiding him. It is about spiritual allegiances. Whom will you trust in the midst of pain? Whom will you worship?
Questions for Reflection
- Do you realize all of life is about God?
- How are you responding to God?
Resources
Edward T. Welch, Depression: A Stubborn Darkness, 46.
Relationships with Flawed People
Everyone…is a flawed human being still in need of redemption. No one around you has a completely pure heart. No one is totally free of sinful thoughts, desires, cravings, or motives. No one always says the right thing. No one always makes the right choices. No one is always noble in his intentions. No one is free from acts of selfishness or self-aggrandizement. No one is completely loyal. No one always has your back.
Because of this, relationships in the body of Christ are messy and unpredictable.
They are the places where we experience some of our most gratifying joys and heart-wrenching pains. It is godly and responsible to be afraid of how sin can create power struggles, divisive ally groups, critical and judgmental attitudes, self-centered complaining, disloyalty, and ultimately division.
Question for Reflection
- How have you grown from relationships with flawed people?
Resources
Paul David Tripp, Dangerous Calling, Confronting the unique challenges of pastoral ministry, 127-28.
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