The Relevance of Scripture | Part 1

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Pastoral, Practical, Preaching4 Comments

How is a 4,000 yrs old + book relevant for today? That is the question most people ask when they approach the Bible. They read about the Law, tent dwellers, and shepherds. They think back to a time where television and the internet were not even a glimmer in someone’s eye. Skyscrapers did not rule the air, nor were we immediately accesible through email, text message, or a mobile phone. With this in mind, how does such a foreign time remain relevant to us today?

Scripture is for Equipping

The apostle Paul tells us,

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

Paul informs us that every word of Scripture is God-breathed and useful in order to equip the man of God. Knowing that all Scripture is useful is part of Scripture being relevant for today, but there is another piece of the puzzle we must fill in before we have our answer [1].

Scripture is Written with a Purpose

Each writer had a specific purpose for the text he wrote, which is the missing piece to our puzzle. Modern writers write with purpose. They do not write a short story, poem, or book without a reason or purpose for doing so. In biblical times, it was no different. Every story, poem, and book in the Bible has a purpose for being there.

From Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 3, we know the purpose of the biblical writer was to thoroughly equip the man of God for every good work. The way the biblical writer equips is no different than how our modern writers would equip. They looked at the situations the readers were facing and wrote toward those ends.

Our Issues are More Similar Than You Think

Some of you may be thinking, those in biblical times did not face the same situations I do today. How could they? There time was much different than mine. Even though all the modern conveniences were not available, and their culture was not exactly like ours, the situations the writers and readers of the biblical text dealt with are strikingly similar.

From the beginning of the Bible we see writers writing about men who desire power, wanting to be their own gods (Gen. 3), adultery and enticing women (Gen. 39; Prov.1-8), as well as barrenness (Gen. 16 -17). Demon possession (Luke 4), Homosexuality (Rom. 1), Disunity in the church (1 Cor. 3; Eph. 4; Phil. 2), Lawsuits (1 Cor. 6), Marriage (1 Cor. 7; Eph. 5), Partiality (James 2), Speech (James 3), Enemies (Matt. 5), Judging others (Matt. 7), and Anxiousness (Matt. 6) are a few more purposes for which the biblical writers wrote. Even though our world’s may look a little different on the outside, we are all still dealing with the same things on the inside.

Fallen Condition Focus (FCF)

Bryan Chapell calls

The mutual human condition that contemporary believers share with those to or about whom the text was written that requires the grace of the passage for God’s people to glorify and enjoy him is the Fallen Condition Focus [2].

Our world, and the biblical writers world, is corrupt and fallen. Since our world and man is corrupt, we need the grace of God to instruct us in how to live. The Word of God is designed to do just that, to instruct us in how we are to live, and it was the writers of God’s Word, inspired by the Holy Spirit, who took up that task in their writings.

Conclusion

As you read through the text, you can be assured that God’s Word is relevant for you. The times may be different, but we are still fallen and corrupt, needing God’s grace to instruct us in how to live. The biblical writers, just like the writers of today, write with a purpose. Their purpose is to thoroughly equip us for every good work. They do so through the many stories, poems, letters, and books they wrote.

So then, when we approach a text of Scripture, we need to first determine what FCF the writer is seeking to address, then we need to identify how we are to respond biblically to the FCF the writer is addressing.

Next time

In my next post, I will look more specifically at how we are to determine the purpose of the biblical writer and the FCF he is addressing.

Resources

[1] Chapell, Bryan, Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon, 49.  See also pages 48-51.
[2] Ibid., 50.
Image: Adrian van Leen for openphoto.net CC:PublicDomain

Grace, Hope, and Holy Living

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Devotionals5 Comments

In 1 Peter 1:13, Peter tells Christians, based on the fact that God is a God of kept promises, that they are to confidently and fully set their hope on God’s future grace.

In order to grasp the magnitude of Peter’s command we need to look specifically at two words, which are grace and hope. Then we will look at what hope in future grace should produce in us, namely, holy living.

Grace

The context tells us God’s grace will be given to us at the revelation, or return of Jesus Christ. This means God has given us a measure of His grace now, but it is not all the grace He will pour out on us. When Christ returns, God will pour a final measure of grace on us bringing us into a state of glorification. The body of death Paul talks about that hinders him in living completely for Christ will be put away and we will receive our glorified bodies. Sin will no longer reign in our members, rather, we will be perfect.

So we see: (1) Our final salvation is completed in the future, at the return of Jesus Christ. (2) It is God’s grace and nothing else that will provide us with eternal salvation. (3) It is God’s future grace we are to place our hope in.

Now that we understand we are to place our hope in God’s future grace and what that grace will accomplish for us, namely, eternal salvation. We need to look at hope, understanding it from a biblical perspective.

Hope

The Bible defines hope differently than our modern secular society. Hope in modern English has the idea of a wish that is uncertain.

For example, if we are going to a ball game this weekend with our family, we may hope it does not rain. We don’t know if it will or will not rain, but our wish is that it will not.

So then, hope in modern English carries the idea of wishfulness, but not certainty.

In biblical terms, hope is defined differently. Instead of a wishful thought, hope is certain. When Peter tells us to put our hope in the grace that will be poured out on us at the return of Christ, he is telling us something we can be confident in. Jesus’ return and the grace that will be poured out on us then is certain. Meaning Christ’s return and the grace we will receive at His return is not a wishful thought, it will happen.

Knowing what God’s grace will accomplish for us, and that He is a God of kept promises, means we should fully place our hope in God’s future grace, knowing for certain His grace will be poured out on us at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Hope in God’s Future Grace Leads to Holy Living

Our hope in God’s future grace is not just the key to heaven, but it also is the key to holy living. If we don’t hope in God’s future grace alone, trusting in faith that He will pour out that final measure of grace on us at Jesus’ return, then living a holy life will not follow.

A holy life will not follow because it is pointless. If we don’t believe God will provide us with eternal life, then why would we live according to His commands? In other words, if the promises of God are not more satisfying to us than sin, why would we not sin?

All of this means that before we can live holy lives, it is important that our hope be in God alone, that we believe life with God for eternity is better than sinning now.

Challenge

So I must ask: Do you hope in God alone, realizing He will provide you with more satisfaction than sin ever will? If you don’t, then you will not live a holy life.

Image: dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Rejoice in the Lord in the New Year

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn DevotionalsLeave a comment

I though it right to start the New Year off with a dose of Spurgeon. Read what he has to say about rejoicing in and magnifying our Savior in the New Year. May we all see our salvation in Jesus as a cause to rejoice in the New Year.

We will be glad and rejoice in thee (Son of Solomon 1:4)

Be Glad and Rejoice in the God

We will be glad and rejoice in God. We will not open the gates and begin the new year on a note of sadness. Rather, we will sing to the sweet strains of the harp of joy and the high sounding cymbals of gladness.

O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise unto the rock of our salvation (Psalm 95:1).

We, the called and faithful and chosen, we will drive away our griefs and set up our banners of confidence in the name of God. Let others lament over their troubles.

Magnify the Lord with Joy

We who have the sweetening tree to cast into Marah’s bitter pool will magnify the Lord with joy. Eternal Spirit, our perfect Comforter, we will never cease from adoring and blessing the name of Jesus. Jesus must have the crown of our heart’s delight. We will not dishonor our Bridegroom by mourning in His presence. We are ordained to be the minstrels of the skies. Let us rehearse our everlasting song before we sing it in the halls of the New Jerusalem.

We will be glad and rejoice – two words with one meaning – double joy, blessing upon blessing.

Should there be any limit to our rejoicing in the Lord even now? What riches are laid up in Jesus! What rivers of infinite bliss have their source and every drop of their fullness in Him!

Concluding Prayer

Sweet Lord Jesus, You are the present inheritance of Your people. Favor us this year with such a sense of Your preciousness that from its first to its last day, we may be glad and rejoice in You. Let January open with joy in the Lord and December close with gladness in Jesus.

Resource

Spurgeon, Morning and Evening: January 1, Evening

Thinking Out Loud: How is God a Christian’s Judge?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Practical2 Comments

A perplexing question has had me racking my brain for several days now. In what way are we as Christians judged by God? The text that has motivated this question is 1 Peter 1:17, which says

“And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile,” (1 Pe 1:17).

Context

Verse 17 comes in the midst of Peter telling his readers to place their hope in Christ alone (13), to not be conformed to their former way of life (14), but instead to be holy as God is holy (15-16). So then, the context deals with Christian conduct. More specifically, Peter wants his readers to understand that their profession of Jesus Christ as their Savior should also result in transformed living.

Verses 13, 14, 15-16 provide commands to live a certain way, as well as they provide the motivation for such living. Verse 17 seems to follow suit. It provides a command, “conduct yourselves in fear”. It also provides a motivation, God is both the Father of those who profess Christ to be their Savior and the Judge of all.

How Can God Be The Judge of Christians?

Verse 17 says God judges all impartially according to their works, which should lead to us conducting ourselves in fear during our earthly stay. Commentators and preachers differ in regard to what this judgment on Christians could be.

  • Some hold it is a judgment regarding rewards (Rom 14:12; 2 Cor. 5:10-11).
  • Others skip over the phrase, “who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds,” opting only to deal with the word fear. They then conclude fear means we need to live in reverence to God.
  • While others hold a tension between fear referring to reverence for God, and also a fear of God’s judgment.

What I Think

Based on Peter’s mentioning of God as Father and Judge, the context calling for believers to live a transformed life as a result of their salvation, as well as Romans 2:6-11, 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, and John 3:36, I think Peter is presenting a tension here. A tension both John and Paul present in their writings and one that is evident in the passages above.

The tension I think Peter is presenting is that our faith in Christ should produce good works (Gal. 5:21; 1 Cor. 6:9-11). It is these works that are judged, proving that we are Christians. So then, on the one hand, our fear is to be one of reverence and respect for God. On the other hand, we are to fear God as judge, knowing that if we do not finish the race (1 Cor. 6:9-11), we will not inherit the kingdom of God. Even if at one time we did great works for the kingdom, we must continue to live a righteous life throughout our time here on earth. In other words, we must finish the race. God is not a partial judge, no matter how much good we have done for the kingdom.

I don’t believe our righteous living earns us salvation, but I do believe it proves our salvation since it would not be possible to live righteously without the Holy Spirit residing in us. The Holy Spirit would not reside inside of us, if we did not believe Christ to be our Savior.

Final Questions: I Want Your Thoughts

Those are my thoughts. I want to know what you think. To help facilitate that, here are my final questions:

  • Am I on the right track believing there is a tension between God as Father and Judge, or am I missing something?
  • Do you also see a tension between our faith and works, with our works, or obedience, proving our faith?
  • Do you believe fear in 1 Peter 1:17 is referring to reverence only, or both reverence and judgment?
  • Do you believe Peter is talking about our rewards in heaven? If so, how would those rewards motivate us to live holy lives now?
  • What do you make of verses like 1 John 4:18-21, which tells us those who fear have not been perfected?

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Battling the War Within

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Discipleship, Practical5 Comments

How do we win the war? What war you ask? The war within. Paul tells us there is a war going on inside of us. He says,

For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members (Rom. 7:22-23)

The redeemed and natural man are waging war inside us. Even though there is a war inside of us, it is a war we are capable of winning. In Christ we have the power to kill the flesh (Rom. 8), destroying its dominion over us. The killing of the flesh is what John Owen calls the mortification of sin, which is the title of one of his books. In The Mortification of Sin, Owen provides believers with ways they can do battle with the natural man.

Instead of providing you with all the ways we can kill, or mortify sin (you will have to read the book for those), I would like to provide you with the place we must begin. My thesis, or rather Owen’s thesis, is as follows:

Only Believers Who Rely On the Work of the Holy Spirit Can Mortify the Flesh

Mortifying the flesh in the power of the flesh by means of bodily exercises, self-performances, and legal duties such as wearing rough clothing, making vows and penances, and disciplining yourself is vanity. In regards to such disciplines, Owen says,

Even if some are not neglecting the things appointed by God to lead to mortification, they may not be using them in their proper place and order. Praying, fasting, watching, meditation, and the like, certainly have their use for the business at hand, but many consider them as the fountain and not the stream coming from the fountain. These actions are the means only, and are subordinate to the Spirit and faith (15-16).

The actions Owen mentions, without the gospel as its fountain, are only performed by men while they feel a conviction of sin. After their guilt passes, they quit seeking to kill their sins, which results in their sin returning to its former dominion over time (17). To completely keep the flesh at bay, men must be believers. Owen says, “There is no self-endeavour that can accomplish mortification. Almighty energy is necessary for its accomplishment” (17). To try to kill the flesh by the work of the flesh without the work of the Spirit is vanity.

The Work of the Holy Spirit

As believers, we are given the Holy Spirit, who resides inside of us. He works in our hearts to root out our fleshly desires, “by causing our hearts to abound in grace and the fruits that are contrary to the works of the flesh” (17). The Holy Spirit causes us to see the grace of God for what it is, a free gift to sinners who deserve nothing but death. He also works in our lives to manifest the fruit of the Spirit, which serves to restrict the works of the flesh (Gal 5:19-21) (18).

While restricting the works of the flesh through the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit takes away our stony heart and “brings the cross of Christ into the heart of a sinner by faith, giving us communion with Christ in His death, and fellowship in His sufferings” (18). By taking away our heart of stone and bringing us into fellowship with Christ in His death and sufferings, we are empowered to root sin out of our lives because Christ has defeated the grip of sin once and for all in His death, burial, and resurrection.

We Work Along With the Holy Spirit

Even though the Holy Spirit works in our lives, we are responsible for mortifying the flesh as well. Owen believes the Spirit “works in us and upon us, as we are able to be wrought in and upon, and yet He preserves our own liberty and free obedience” (See especially Phil. 2:13) (19). The Holy Spirit works on our understandings, wills, consciences, and affections, as long as we allow Him (19).

Conclusion

We can win the war within us, but it is a war that can only be won if we are a believer. For if we are not a believer in Christ, there is no war to be fought, only slavery exists. Those who are not saved by the blood of Christ are enslaved by the Prince of this world. No amount of work will ever break the bondage of that slavery. Only the power of Christ can free us from the enslavement of Satan.

Once Christ has broken the bonds of the flesh, we are free to war against our worldly lusts. A war that we can and will win as Christ’s children. A war the Holy Spirit empowers us to fight.

To those who try to fight the flesh without first believing in Christ, Owen says,

They try many perplexing ways and duties, to keep down sin, but, being strangers to the Spirit of God, they find it is all in vain. They combat without victory, have war without peace, and are in slavery all their days (20).

May we all understand that the war within is not won alone. Rather, it is only won through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and our subsequent belief in His person and work. Our belief in Christ brings the Holy Spirit into our lives, allowing us to take up combat against the natural man.

Resources

All references refer to John Owen’s The Mortification of Sin: abridged and made easy to read by Richard Rushing, The Banner of Truth Trust, 2004.

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What’s Next?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Devotionals8 Comments

Last Friday, I graduated. After a two and half year sprint to the finish, I finally walked across the stage to receive my degree. After which, a celebration with friends and family ensued. Amidst all the fun, excitement, sadness, and recollection of memories, a question continued to arise: Now what? To which I answered: I don’t know.

Truly, I do not know what is next for my wife and me, but as I ponder and pray for the Lord’s will to be done, I am reminded of a few verses from the book of James. He writes,

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit” – yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:13-15)

As I reflect on these verses in James, my answer to the question posed by my family and friends must not only be I don’t know, but also I will do whatever the Lord wills. Since I do not know the Lord’s will, I now wait patiently in prayer asking the Lord to reveal His plan to me.

May we all cast our future on the Lord, seeking His will for our lives instead of our own, not seeking to take what is in the world for ourselves, but to serve others by attending to both their physical and spiritual needs.