Colin S. Smith's Blog, page 98

Do You Need to Recharge Your Soul?

I’m not techy.

Even though I work for a digital magazine and am grateful for the ability to get the gospel to more people because of it, I don’t love technology. I prefer paper and pen to computer and screens. I like the feel and smell (especially the smell) of “real” books, and I only like Kindle because my mom does. I get annoyed with the perpetual “my phone is better than your phone” arguments and still miss my pink Razr. It’s amazing to me how much fuss can result from a handful of metal, glass, and intricate wires. Does anyone else get tired of the constant push for “the latest and greatest” smart phone or device? It’s exhausting trying to keep up with the ever-changing trends.

Yet—

Revived by God

In God’s economy, there are no new upgrades required every three months. No new models release every year. No recalls are made due to design malfunctions. No, we simply need to be plugged into the Lord and have our systems recharged by his Word continuously.

The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul… (Psalm 19:7)

I don’t know about you, but this screams life to my heart. Through his prayer, David holds out a lifeline of hope to us. He directly counters condemnation by telling us the need for revival is hardwired into our hearts. We were not created to experience the staggering power of regeneration never to depend on God again. We were created to need his revival continuously as we ebb and flow this side of glorification. Every day we need the Lord to breathe life into our bones that still get dry and weary from sin and failure and weakness and troubles.

Your righteousness, O God, reaches the high heavens. You who have done great things, O God, who is like you? You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me again; from the depths of the earth you will bring me up again. (Psalm 71:19-20)

Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? (Psalm 85:6)

Plugged into God’s Word

At times, we attempt to plug into power outlets we weren’t created for. The result leaves us more depleted and in need of the only One who can revive our depleted hearts. In this society marred by sin, it is the Lord himself who restores and revives; therefore it is necessary for our survival to be plugged into the Word of God. This is no mistake or misstep. 

Maybe you need to be reminded, like I do, that our need for God is not a defect, but part of the Manufacturer’s intended design.

God is committed to reviving the hearts he awakened.
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Just as we plug in our phones every day, God has designed our new operating system (Ezekiel 36:25-27) to be daily charged by the ultimate Power Source because, while our heart and flesh may fail, he is the strength of our heart and our portion forever (Psalm 73:26). And this “plugging in” is not a once-daily surge from our quiet time, but a continual sustenance throughout the day. This isn’t a checklist; it’s a moment-by-moment communion with God that sustains our new hearts.

Almost two centuries before the first iPhone was released, George Müller penned the following words about recharging our souls:

I saw more clearly than ever, that the first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day was, to have my soul happy in the Lord. The first thing to be concerned about was not, how much I might serve the Lord, how I might glorify the Lord; but how I might get my soul into a happy state, and how my inner man may be nourished…I saw that the most important thing I had to do was to give myself to the reading of the Word of God and to meditation on it.

Alone with God

It’s not just the Psalmists and George Müller who recognized that God alone could fill thirsty souls—Jesus himself got alone with his Father to recharge.

Great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. (Luke 5:15–16)

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. (Mark 1:35)

And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. (Mark 6:46)

If the Son of God needed to recalibrate through communion with the Father, how much more do we?

When we, like Jesus, realize everything in our life flows out of our individual time with the Father, it changes the way we view our schedules and priorities and everything else. We submit to our need for the Holy Spirit to daily recalibrate our hearts, and we plug into him for the grace and strength to survive and thrive in our fallen flesh and fractured world.

As broken people living in a broken culture, our greatest need is to be plugged into the only One who can bring revival in our hearts. And the amazing news is that Jesus came for this purpose—to revive our hearts.

For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy; “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.” (Isaiah 57:15, emphasis mine)

He is committed to reviving the hearts he awakened.

Dependent on God

So how are your batteries?

Have you been recharged and refreshed by God’s Word today?
Do you need to get alone with God, to pray and praise him for who he is and what he’s done for you in Jesus Christ?
Have you remembered that he loves to revive dependent, humble, and lowly sinners?

Drink deeply of the endless life available to you through the Holy Spirit, brought about by the redeeming work of Jesus Christ. Take comfort in the reality that Jesus is in the process of restoring you completely to the Creator’s original design, and that one day you will be in his presence, fully charged by the light himself.

RELATED POSTS:

The Not-So-Quiet Quiet Time
12 Ways to Sit at Jesus’ Feet (When You Have Neither Quiet Nor Time)
The Trouble with Listening to Ourselves

The post Do You Need to Recharge Your Soul? appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Key Connections (June 29, 2017)

Why Didn’t God Send Jesus Right After Adam and Eve Sinned? (Randy Alcorn, Eternal Perspective Ministries)

It’s an amazing and wonderful thing to realize that God devised His plan, created us, and is perfectly executing the plan, so that we could enjoy Him. He was infinitely satisfied within Himself, the Godhead, before creation. He didn’t create for Himself; rather, at His pleasure He created for us.

The Three Sins Behind Your Discontent (Colin Smith, Unlocking the Bible)

There are three sins that lie behind discontent—pride, rebellion and unbelief. These are the original sins of the devil and his angels. They are sins that come from hell itself, and they continue in hell forever.

The Word Became Fresh: How to Preach From Old Testament Narrative Texts (Dale Ralph Davis, Preachers & Preaching)

God has given his word as a revelation of himself; if then I use his word rightly, I will long to see him, and he will be the focus of my study. We must read Old Testament narrative with a theocentric focus.

A Spiritual Barometer Check (Jason Helopoulos, The Christward Collective)

If we claim to know Christ but do not love the people He died for, we are simply deluding ourselves.

Renew Your Mind (Tim Challies, Challies)

This is the third entry in the series “Run to Win!” in which we are considering how God calls men like you to live with the same discipline, dedication, and self-control that an Olympic athlete brings to the pursuit of the gold.

Lord, Keep Me Desperate (Jon Bloom, Desiring God)

We all keenly feel our proneness to wander from the God we love. And we all want this terrible proneness to decrease.

The post Key Connections (June 29, 2017) appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

“Readers and Writers” Episode 2 with Courtney Reissig

We are made to create beauty, and we image God by doing that in our homes. (Courtney Reissig)

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Unlocking the Bible is thrilled to announce the launch of a new podcast: Readers and Writers with Colin Smith. We’ve started releasing weekly episodes, recorded live at The Gospel Coalition’s 2017 National Conference.

Our second guest is Courtney Reissig, who shares about her writing and her newest book from Crossway, Glory in the Ordinary: Why Your Work in the Home Matters to God. Here’s a summary of the book’s content:

Folding laundry. Weeding the garden. Cooking dinner. Changing diapers. Work in the home can seem so ordinary. Does any of it matter? Is there meaning in our most mundane moments at home?

When the work of the home fills our days, it is easy to get disillusioned and miss God’s grand purpose for our work. As image bearers of the Creator who made us to work, we contribute to society, bringing order out of chaos and loving God through loving others—meaning there’s glory in every moment. In this encouraging book, Courtney Reissig combats the common misconceptions about the value of at-home work—helping us see how Christ infuses purpose into every facet of the ordinary.

Listen to Pastor Colin’s interview with Courtney! (You can also subscribe to the iTunes podcast.)

The post “Readers and Writers” Episode 2 with Courtney Reissig appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

The Three Sins Behind Your Discontent

Hell is a place of perpetual discontent. People in hell are always angry and never at peace, always frustrated and never satisfied. That is surely the significance of our Lord’s words about “gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30).

There are three sins that lie behind discontent—pride, rebellion and unbelief. These are the original sins of the devil and his angels. They are sins that come from hell itself, and they continue in hell forever.

1. Discontent is a manifestation of pride.

These [the ungodly] are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage. (Jude 16)  

Discontent is a manifestation of pride. It flows from a heart that says, “I deserve better than God has given me.” This was the original sin of Satan himself.

In our letter of Jude, we have a reference to angels who, like Satan, were not content to be the servants of God, “angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling” (Jude 6).

Pride led some angels to say, “We deserve better than God has given to us!” God gave them positions of authority, but they were not content. They are not content now. They never will be. Thomas Boston says, “The devil is the proudest creature and the most discontented because pride and discontent lodge under one roof.”

Satisfaction comes from knowing that in Jesus Christ you have all you need.
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I deserve better than God has given me! If I catch myself thinking like that, I have to take myself in hand. I have to say to myself, That is the opposite of everything I believe! I believe God has given me abundantly more than I ever deserved. What I deserve is hell on earth followed by hell in hell. But God has loved me. God gave his Son for me. 

God has blessed me with every spiritual blessing in Christ. He has given me all that I need for life and godliness. In all things his love surrounds me, and in all things he pursues his great purpose, which is also my purpose, that a true likeness of his Son, Jesus Christ, be formed in me.

Discontent is a hellish sin because it is a manifestation of pride.

2. Discontent is an expression of rebellion.

In the Old Testament, we have the story of Job, a good and godly man who was greatly blessed by God. His family was blessed, his business was blessed. Job was living the dream, and then one day through a series of disasters, he lost everything. Job said, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21).

The discontented person says something different. The discontented person says, “The Lord gave, but he should have given more,” or, “The Lord has taken away, and he should not have done that.” Jude talks about “harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against God.”

Discontent is a hellish sin because, at its heart, it is an expression of rebellion against God. The clay says to the potter, “Why have you made me like this?” (Romans 9:20). “God, you should have done something different!” That’s rebellion, and the Scripture says, “Who are you to speak like that to God?” (Romans 9:20).

3. Discontent is a fruit of unbelief.

You see this is Exodus 17. God’s people had been greatly blessed. He brought them out of slavery in Egypt, and he provided manna to feed them in the wilderness. Often those who are most blessed are most discontented!

Then God’s people came to a place where there was no water. Now that is a legitimate concern. And there are times in life when we may have legitimate concerns about how God will supply what we need. But their legitimate concern metastasized into unbelief. They tested the Lord by saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?” (17:7).

They were redeemed people, but they lost confidence that God was with them. If you no longer believe that God is with you, you will no longer be confident that he will supply what you need. And it will not be long before the grumbling begins and you find yourself sliding into the hellish sin of discontent.

Deal with Discontent

I hope you are in a place of saying, “I didn’t think too much about this before, but now I see that I need to deal with this hellish sin wherever it rears its ugly head in my life. I need to get beyond the idea that moaning and complaining doesn’t matter. I need to get serious about moving from anger to peace, from frustration to satisfaction, and from anxiety to trust.”

Thank God there is a Savior to whom we can come. Ask him to forgive this hellish sin if you see it in your life today. Ask him to cleanse you and wash this from your heart. Then ask him to help you grow in contentment.

Here is what you will find:

Peace in life comes from knowing that everything that concerns you is in the hands of the Savior who loves you.
Satisfaction lies in knowing that in Jesus Christ you have all you need.
Trust begins when you know that he is faithful, and those who look to him are never put to shame.

Alan Redpath says,

There is nothing—no circumstance, no trouble, no testing—that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment. I refuse to panic. And as I lift up my eyes to him…no circumstance will cause me to fret, for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is—that is the rest of victory!

RELATED POSTS:

The Secret to Being Content
How I Found Peace in My Pain
Six Ways to Respond to God’s Steadfast Love

The post The Three Sins Behind Your Discontent appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Eight Reasons to Cling to Scripture in Suffering

Recently, a friend and I were interviewed on a radio show about the book we’d written on suffering. One of the host’s questions struck me: In the midst of the refiner’s fire, how do we keep from going through the motions? How do we have a sense of the abundance God promises us?

I immediately thought of Psalm 119:50: “This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.” And so I responded, “I have to be in God’s Word every day.”

Eight Reasons to Cling to Scripture in Suffering

Are you suffering right now? Would you say along with the psalmist that you’re afflicted? If your answer is no, this life guarantees that all of us will hurt in some degree before we meet the Lord. If your answer is yes, take heart; you are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who’ve known suffering in all its depths…and have endured.

Whether affliction has touched or devastated you, God promises in his Word to be your help, just as he did the psalmist. See in Psalm 119:49-56 eight reasons to cling to Scripture in your suffering:

1. Scripture will give you hope when you feel hopeless.

Remember your word to your servant,

   in which you have made me hope. (v. 49)

When circumstances seem hopeless, how do we not despair? We open our Bibles and behold God’s salvation plan from Genesis to Revelation. God speaks to us through Scripture so we may know the hope to which he has called us (Ephesians 1:18). And what is this hope?

…the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places. (vv. 19-20)

Our circumstances may feel hopeless, but Scripture reminds us we are not. God raised Jesus from the dead, and with that same power, someday he will raise us to glory in his presence!

2. Scripture will right your perspective when trials come.

This is my comfort in my affliction,

   that your promise gives me life. (v. 50)

Suffering shakes us from the delusion that this world is our home. It proves to us that our ultimate comfort can’t be in possessions, plans, or people—because any and all of these can be stripped from us. So when affliction comes, where do we turn for true comfort?

The psalmist prays in his affliction, “I know now that true comfort is found in the eternal reality that my soul is safe because of your salvation. And no affliction can strip that comfort from me.” God’s promise of eternal life gives us right perspective when trials come.

3. Scripture will guard you from the evil that suffering exposes.

The insolent utterly deride me,

   but I do not turn away from your law. (v. 51)

How do we react to suffering? We resist, grumble, grow bitter, rage in anger, ignore problems, numb the pain. And at the worst, we reject God. This isn’t to say we shouldn’t react to suffering, or that every angle of these responses is sinful; grief, confusion, and lament are biblical, and we should bring even our messiest emotions to God.

Cling to God’s Word today, and he will comfort you in your affliction.
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But more often than not, suffering exposes sin. Like a hammer chipping away at the rough edges of our hearts, our God uses suffering to rid us of sin and restore in us a softened, submitted spirit to his refining work. Though our flesh, the world, and the enemy “utterly deride” us, to turn us away from God, Scripture guards and shields us with the truth. God leads us to his Son, the only One who kept his law perfectly and covers us in this perfection when we trust him.

4. Scripture will anchor you in eternal realities.

When I think of your rules from of old,

   I take comfort, O Lord. (v. 52)

From beginning to end, God and his Word stay the same. He doesn’t change, even though our circumstances do. When trials come and people disappoint us and the future looks unclear, we can take comfort in God’s “rules from of old.” What a balm for our souls!

We can choose to open our Bibles every day, to “think of,” or meditate on, God’s Word to us. A sure and steadfast anchor, Scripture grounds us in eternal realities when temporal ones threaten to overwhelm our gaze and shake our confidence. Our comfort in our affliction is that we serve an immoveable God, even in impossible circumstances.

5. Scripture will change your affections.

Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked,

   who forsake your law. (v. 53)

In the thick of affliction, it can feel like suffering is our biggest problem—but in actuality, sin is. Suffering may destroy our bodies, but sin destroys the soul.

One great blessing of suffering, then, is that it points us to the deeper soul-disease we’ve been rescued from by Christ. The more we see the gravity of sin in God’s Word, the more we’ll begin to hate it as God does. He will use Scripture as an instrument to conform and change our affections as we see and love his goodness more and more.

6. Scripture will lead you to praise even in your wandering.

Your statutes have been my songs

   in the house of my sojourning. (v. 54)

To “sojourn” is to be a stranger on the earth, to wander in a place that isn’t truly home. All of us are sojourners, then, because we wait for a better country. At home with Jesus, we will be settled, secure, and satisfied—finally and forever.

Until that day, we sojourn in our earthly tents, facing the elements of this life. But here the psalmist proclaims how he’s able to praise God in such uncertainty: Scripture! God’s Word has been a springboard for worship, his song in suffering. We also need God to tune our hearts to his truth and plans through Scripture, so we too can sing in times of suffering.

7. Scripture will help you endure the darkness.

I remember your name in the night, O Lord,

   and keep your law. (v. 55)

In the dark night of the soul, suffering shakes our faith and causes us to doubt God’s goodness. But Scripture will help us remember what’s true so we can endure.

God’s Word is our lifeline, leading us to truth when trials tempt us to believe lies. And it’s our food and water, when affliction saps us of spiritual strength. “In the night,” run to the Word, remember all God has spoken to you and promised in Jesus, and you will endure the darkness.

8. Scripture will sustain your obedience.

This blessing has fallen to me,

   that I have kept your precepts. (v. 56)

Suffering makes obedience hard. When all we want to do is control our circumstances, grow bitter, ignore the pain, turn inward, or despair, God’s Word will help us resist these things to walk in his Spirit. As we fix our eyes on Christ, we will be transformed into his likeness and filled with spiritual strength for obedience and faith—and this is a blessing from God’s hand.

Suffering and Scripture go hand-in-hand. So cling to God’s Word today—seek him in the pages of your Bible—and you will be comforted, even in your affliction, by God’s promise of life in Jesus Christ.

[Photo Credit: Lightstock]

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Don’t Listen to Yourself – Talk to Yourself

We are deeply influenced by the world around us. Daily we’re bombarded with a thousand images – from the news we watch, to the sermons we hear, to the people we meet. Our affections, attitudes, moods, beliefs, and, ultimately, our actions are swayed, cemented, and interpreted by the voices we listen to.

Yet no voice is so influential in a person’s life as their own.

Paul David Tripp makes this point in his daily gospel devotional, New Morning Mercies, when he writes, “No one is more influential in your life than you are, because no one talks to you more than you do. We never stop talking to ourselves….The things you say to you about you, God, and life are profoundly important because they form and shape the way you then respond to the things that God has put on your plate.”

It’s true. Whether we realize it or not, we are in constant communication with ourselves – commenting internally on everything we encounter. We are dictating the narrative we believe based on our interpretation of the world around us.

And that can be a very dangerous thing.

How to Think About Self-Talk

The secular self-help movement places enormous emphasis on the power of self-talk. They do this because they rightly recognize that what we say to ourselves informs our beliefs. But here’s where this movement fails: It tells us we can achieve self-salvation through the right self-talk. If we just exercise the psychological “power of positive thinking,” we can do anything; we are set free to create reality and follow our dreams.

But that’s not what Paul Tripp was getting at – and it’s not what Scripture says when it teaches the importance of truthful self-communication.

Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. (Proverbs 4:23)

This is not a call to speak affirmations in the mirror or boost your self esteem. It’s a call to be careful how you think because thoughts have consequences. As humans, our hearts are naturally deceptive and our innermost desires are infected with sin (Jeremiah 17:9). Even though God has saved us, we still wrestle with the flesh. That means sometimes we’re tempted to preach a false gospel to ourselves and believe the lies we hear.

Positive self-talk (that discounts reality) is not going to help us. But truthful self-talk is. That’s what it means to “keep our hearts with all vigilance” – we buffer it with the truth. Ground it, root it, mold it with truth.

Soak your thoughts in Scripture and surround yourself with honest voices.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Philippians 4:8)

Six Truths to Preach to Your Heart

But how do we do that? Especially in moments of suffering or disbelief, when truth seems painful, fuzzy, or far away? We re-center ourselves on the truth of God’s Word (Romans 12:2). That’s where reality is found.

So here are six truths to preach to your heart today from the Word:

1. God is faithful (Exodus 34:6-7).

When you’re seeking to gospel self-talk, you must start with God, not you. And what better place to begin meditating than his unfading faithfulness? “The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.’”

2. God has saved me (Galatians 2:20).

You are no longer your own. You are not enslaved to sin. Your identity is firmly fixed in Christ. “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

3. God is with me (Romans 8:9-15).

The Spirit indwells every believer and helps bear with them, put sin to death, and pursue righteousness. “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”

4. God is in control (Psalm 47:7-8).

He holds the whole world in his hands and that’s a source of comfort and worship, not fear and anxiety. “God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne.”

5. God forgives me (1 John 1:9).

We still sin. We still fail. But there is forgiveness in the mercy of God. When we repent and feel the bitter horror of our sin, God promises to forgive us: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

6. God will keep me (Romans 8:35-39).

God will bring every one of his children through this life to a better one. He will hold you fast. He will keep you. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

God’s Word will not fail. That’s where you’ll find truth. So preach this truth to your heart. That’s gospel self-talk.

[Photo Credit: Lightstock]

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The Number One Reason to Trust the Bible

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15 Marks of a Disciple of Jesus

Christianity is not a club.

Jesus does not want cheerleaders or groupies. Following Christ is not about T-shirts, slogans, or hashtags. Jesus calls us to be children of his Father. He calls us to be his disciples.

Because Jesus has a unique role in God’s plan of salvation, he is more than an example. The best mirror we find in the Gospel accounts is not Jesus, but his disciples.

15 Marks of a Disciple of Jesus

Here are fifteen things we learn about being a disciple of Jesus from the Gospel of Luke.

1. A disciple is called (Luke 5:1–11).

Jesus didn’t need a recruiter. He called and his disciples “left everything and followed him.” Likewise, God calls us as disciples, not because we are worthy, but because of his grace (2 Timothy 1:9).

2. A disciple is taught (Luke 6:20–49).

Jesus spent a lot of time teaching his disciples about reality. Who did the Messiah come for? Who is worthy of salvation? What is the kingdom of God? We are just as ignorant and resistant to the truth; we need instruction.

3. A disciple is a follower (Luke 7:11).

Inherent in the definition of a disciple is one who does not choose his own direction, causes, or values. Disciples follow Jesus.

4. A disciple is aware of the kingdom of God (Luke 8:9–10).

Jesus reveals truth to his disciples that is obscured to others. Because God’s kingdom is not worldly or political, we must be taught the values and requirements of the King.

5. A disciple is a servant (Luke 9:14–17).

Jesus’ disciples got their hands dirty, distributing multiplied food to the hungry people. Sometimes walking with Jesus means picking up bread crusts and fish bones.

6. A disciple is sent to proclaim the kingdom of God (Luke 9:1–6; 10:1–12).

Jesus sent his twelve apostles and then seventy-two others as laborers in a plentiful harvest (Luke 10:2). As those sent with a message to proclaim, his disciples were in danger as lambs among wolves (Luke 10:3) because they were announcing a different king. The heavenly kingdom they announced valued peace (Luke 10:5) and healing (Luke 10:9), not riches and power. Challenging existing authority structures is often unpopular.

7. A disciple confesses Jesus as the Christ (Luke 9:18–20).

Peter famously confessed Jesus as “the Christ of God.” This is the most important question we face as well: Who do you say Jesus is? We must answer this daily, reorienting our priorities, passions, and purpose around the Messiah.

8. A disciple is a witness (Luke 10:23–24).

The apostles walked with Jesus. Many longed to see what they saw. This is part of God’s “gracious will” (Luke 10:21). We also witness the love and power of Jesus through his Word and his work in the world. The arena is much bigger now, but his disciples still sit court-side.

9. A disciple denies himself and takes up his cross (Luke 9:23–27).

A disciple’s life was not glamorous or lucrative. It was full of hardship and danger. Make no mistake—if your highest values are comfort, peace, and safety, you will lose your life. But if you lose your life for Jesus’ sake, you will save it.

10. A disciple is committed (Luke 9:57–62).

Jesus teaches that following him is not easy; it requires everything. “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

11. A disciple is a cross-bearer and a cost-counter (Luke 14:26–33).

Following Jesus is serious and costly. It may cost family and friends; it may cost time and comfort; it may even cost your life. Jesus says, “Any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”

12. A disciple is rebuked by Jesus (Luke 18:15–17).

When we submit to Jesus as Lord, we acknowledge his perfection, wisdom, and authority to correct us—and we need a lot of correction! The disciples were rebuked by Jesus, and if we do not know the same, we’re probably not encountering the Lord. This ongoing process happens as we read his Word and interact with his people. God’s rebuke is evidence of his love for his children.

13. A disciple praises God (Luke 19:33–40).

When disciples see Jesus clearly, the “King who comes in the name of the Lord,” they rejoice and praise the Father who sent his Son. Following Jesus is not primarily about doing, but worshiping.

14. A disciple spends time with his Master (Luke 22:11, 39, 45).

In the hours before his arrest, Jesus yearned for time with his disciples. They ate with him, talked with him, and sang with him. As God changes our hearts and gives us new desires, chief among them will be love for him. We seek and spend time with those we love.

15. A disciple is redeemed, comforted, and dispatched to the world (Luke 24:36–53).

Jesus seeks out his disciples after his resurrection, though they were absent at his crucifixion and burial. He speaks peace and comfort to them. He died for their sins and rose from the grave so they also could have new life. As he sent his disciples into the world with the promise of the Spirit (v. 49), so he also sends us.

Disciple, Will You Take Up Your Cross?

There is no place for pride among those who follow Jesus (Luke 22:24–27). We are called, taught, directed, equipped, and corrected by our Master. We cannot meet our greatest need—reconciliation with God—and we often bristle at this reality.

But Jesus is a loving Savior. When we confess our pride, he graciously restores us. Our sin-debt has already been paid, so he doesn’t hold it against us. He is also the Risen King, who replaces our pride with humility, through the work of his Spirit within us.

Jesus continues to call us today. Will you take up your cross as a disciple and follow the One who was taken up on the cross for you?

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“Readers and Writers” Episode 1 with Jen Wilkin

Most of us have an underdeveloped vocabulary around what’s true about God. (Jen Wilkin)

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Unlocking the Bible is thrilled to announce the launch of a new podcast: Readers and Writers with Colin Smith. We’ve started releasing weekly episodes, recorded live at The Gospel Coalition’s 2017 National Conference.

Our first guest is Jen Wilkin, who shares about her writing and her newest book from Crossway None Like Him: 10 Ways God Is Different from Us (and Why That’s a Good Thing). Here’s a summary of the book’s content:

God is self-existent, self-sufficient, eternal, immutable, omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, sovereign, infinite, and incomprehensible.

We’re not.

And that’s a good thing.

Our limitations are by design. We were never meant to be God. But at the root of every sin is our rebellious desire to possess attributes that belong to God alone. Calling us to embrace our limits as a means of glorifying God’s limitless power, Jen Wilkin invites us to celebrate the freedom that comes when we rest in letting God be God.

Listen to Pastor Colin’s interview with Jen! (You can also subscribe to the iTunes podcast.)

The post “Readers and Writers” Episode 1 with Jen Wilkin appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Bible Q&A: Is Jesus the Messiah, or the Misleader of Millions?

Question: In the Old Testament the devil already exists, and God says that he will send others to test his faith. This person will be of good spirits and have the ability to perform miracles to stray the weak-minded. In the New Testament, Jesus arrives, a man who has the ability to perform miracles and stated the only way to God is through him. We have alters, huge statues, pictures, so many other items with Jesus on it that many kneel to pray to, while God says do not build alters or create images to worship him. There is no doubt that Jesus is real, but is he true or the misleader of millions? Just a question I have been thinking about.

Answer: Hi Davis, this is Pastor Tim. This is a really good question, one that I began to ask myself about 25 years ago.

We will inevitably find imperfect people following Christ in imperfect ways as soon as we begin to look at the church (statues and pictures of Christ, etc.). But I want to commend you, the place to look for the answer to your question is in the Word of God. What does the Bible say about the Messiah? Is Jesus the Messiah, or is he an imposter? A crazy man? Or the Son of God?

I believe there are at least two helpful ways to go about answering your question:

1. The four Gospels were written to answer this question.

Think for a moment about what the apostle John says, “These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31). In other words, John’s Gospel and the other Gospels were written to provide evidence (for someone like you to weigh) to determine whether or not he is truly the Savior of the world. So, read John’s Gospel and ask yourself, “Does Jesus fit the profile of the Messiah (or the Christ)?”

2. Look at the Old Testament prophecies.

A second way to answer your question would be to look at the Old Testament prophecies that predict the coming Messiah. Does Jesus fit the profile? Or is he an imposter?

I’ve found this article very helpful in identifying some major prophecies concerning the Messiah. By all means, this is not the only resource, but it is highly accessible. An article that you might find even more helpful is this one. This article shows the Old Testament reference and prophecy, and then where it is fulfilled by Jesus in the New Testament.

Praying, Davis, that God will give you light as you open his Word,

Pastor Tim

[Photo Credit: Lightstock]

RELATED POSTS:

Bible Q&A: Who Really Has the Authority on Earth, God or Satan?
Who Then Is This Jesus Christ?
Why Modern-Day Christians Need the Minor Prophets

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When a Friend’s Joy Is Your Sorrow

Romans 12:15 tells us to “rejoice with those who rejoice” and “weep with those who weep.” Obeying this command is listed as a mark of true faith, one that demonstrates care for Christian brothers and sisters. Indeed, the ability to empathize in each other’s joys and sorrows is key to health and longevity in any friendship. And nothing tanks a friendship faster than the absence of that ability.

What happens, though, when a friend’s joy is your sorrow? When the very thing that makes their heart burst is making yours break? How do you keep the rejoicing end of Romans 12:15 with sincerity?

I’ve entered into a season when my dearest friendships are full of these opposing concurrences. And I’m aware of the tension between desiring not to dampen their joy while also not wanting to trivialize my own grief or behave in a disingenuous way.  In an effort to relieve that tension in a way that honors both the Lord and the friendship, these are the steps I’ve found to be both necessary and affirming. 

1. Rule out jealousy.

When faced with sorrow at a friend’s joy, first identify whether what you feel is truly sorrow or jealousy. Jealousy is sinful, and Scripture is clear about its destructive effects. Envy drove Rachel to loan out her marriage bed (Genesis 30). Proverbs ranks jealousy worse than wrath and warns that it will rot us from the inside out (Proverbs 27:4; 14:30). James cautions that where envy leads, only disorder and evil follow (James 3:16).

A good way to discern whether what you feel is jealousy or sorrow is to look at the feelings that arise in you. When you think about your friend and this joy they’re experiencing, what do you feel toward them? Is it anger? Do you feel you deserve this joy more than they do? Do you wish you had this joy instead of them? Do you resent them for having it?

If these are true for you, you are giving in to the deceit of jealousy. Confess your jealousy to the Lord, and pray for his help to overcome it. If instead what you feel is happiness and gratitude on behalf of your friend, but it stirs up sadness, grief, or longing in you, you are simply feeling the throb of sorrow.

2. Pray for their joy.

This might seem obvious, but intercede on behalf of your friends for their joy. Ask the Lord to grant their desires out of his goodness. Then when his answer is yes, you will share in the rejoicing because you shared in the praying. Genuine prayer leads to genuine praise…even when the Lord’s answer is yes to a friend, but no to you.

Prayer leads to praise, even when the Lord’s answer is yes to a friend, but no to you.
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I recently experienced this when my friend shared the news of her pregnancy. I was thrilled for her. And while I felt this surge of gladness for my friend, a wave of sorrow swept over me, as I was reminded that I am without marriage and children. But the sorrow did not negate the joy I felt for her. I had been praying for a baby for my friend for some time. So when she told me she was pregnant, my gratitude to the Lord for his goodness to her let me rejoice with her.

Prior prayer enabled me to sincerely rejoice with my friend in the moment, and continued prayer will keep me rejoicing with her in the months and years to come. Romans 12:12 lays this out. Being constant in prayer is what enables us to rejoice in hope while being patient in tribulation (and sorrow).

3. Pour yourself into their joy.

When a friend’s joy stirs sorrow, the flesh will tempt us to draw away and turn inward. But Galatians 5:13 warns us against giving opportunity to the flesh, and instead calls us to serve one another through love.

A friend finds their dream home, and you’ve just lost yours. Help with the move. Pray for the home to be used for God’s glory as you pack boxes. When a friend announces the arrival of another child as you enter into another year of infertility, bring a meal and offer to babysit. Ask the Lord for opportunities to use your strengths and abilities to serve your friend in their joy.

When we serve, sowing care and joy into the life of a friend, we reap the same. This guards against jealousy, strengthens the friendship, and helps us see the Lord’s good purposes in times of sorrow.

4. Be glad and sad.

John Piper so aptly says, “Joy and sorrow in the Christian life are not sequential, but simultaneous. We are called to rejoice always, and yet sorrow breaks like waves over our lives.” We see this in God’s Word.

In Philippians 3:1, Paul commands God’s people to rejoice and then, just a few verses later, speaks of how he has suffered the “loss of all things.” He put out the call to rejoice in the midst of his sorrow. In 1 Peter 3:6, Peter says we can rejoice in our salvation even though we are grieved by various trials. And in Hebrews 12:2, we are told to look to Jesus who endured the cross for the joy set before him. Jesus experienced immeasurable joy in knowing his death would provide the ultimate joy of salvation for us. But in his death, he experienced immeasurable sorrow as he took on the sin of the world.

So we can be both glad and sad. We can rejoice with a friend while sorrow weighs on our hearts. We do this, fixing our joy in Christ with the promise he leaves in John 16:22: “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.”

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