Eric E. Wright's Blog, page 4

Is Church Membership Optional? – Another in a series on essential doctrines for a proposed book.

When God adopts us into his heavenly family, he expects us to become members of a visible church on earth. At a time when many seem to be buying into a spirit of independence and self-reliance, we should affirm both the importance of local churches and the one universal Church.

Jesus came to establish one universal, invisible church containing all believers of all time. That invisible church is represented on earth by multitudes of local visible churches. He declared; “I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matt. 16:18). Before he ascended to heaven, he commissioned us to go into all the world and preach the gospel. Those who respond are to be taught to obey all he commanded and gathered into fellowship groups. (See Matt. 28:19-20.) At Pentecost, Peter preached and “those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts. 2:41,42). A local church is a gathered entity of baptized believers that is given to teaching, prayer, the fostering of fellowship and ensuring that believers remember the Lord through regularly celebrating the Lord’s table.

The New Testament nowhere conceives of believers living solitary lives, trifling with membership in a local church as if such membership is simply a matter of personal preference. The church is not a casual organization that one can join as if it is a social club. The word church in Greek is, ekklesia, meaning “called out.” Christians are “called out ones” from the world at large who gather with others in fellowship, worship, and service. Believers are “baptized into one body” (1 Cor. 12:13)—that is, the body of Christ. (See also Rom. 12:4-5; 1 Cor. 12:11,18,27.) In that sense it is a hallowed entity that we are insolubly connected to from our spiritual birth. It is the temple of God; (See 1 Cor. 3:16; Eph. 2:21,22; 1 Pet. 2:5.) and the bride of Christ. (See Eph. 5:25-32; 2 Cor. 11:2.).

The New Testament identifies churches by their geographic location. “The church in Jerusalem” (Acts 11:22,26). “The church in Antioch” (Acts. 13:1). “The church in Cenchrea” (Rom. 16:1). “The church of God in Corinth” (1Cor. 1:2). The church in Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, etc. While the choices in the west, in many locations are multiple, the implication is that upon conversion we join a nearby church that maintains a faithful commitment to biblical truth.

Neither a pope nor a pastor have ultimate authority in a church. Whether local or universal there exists only one ultimate authority, Jesus Christ. In the Great Commission he stated. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matt 28:18). He began his ministry preaching—“Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matt. 4:17). There can be no heavenly kingdom without King Jesus. While his disciples mistakenly thought of his rule in terms of an earthly empire, Jesus explained, “the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21). And thus, his disciples are those in whose hearts Jesus reigns as King. No local church can function probably unless it is recognizes and repeatedly reiterates that Christ is Lord and King. All believers must crown Christ as Lord of their life and walk in obedience to his commands. To the extent that he is not Lord, to that extent, neither our Christian lives nor our local church can function biblically. We must beware of giving to human leaders undue adulation.

Just as Christ trained apostles and delegated the extension of his kingdom on earth to them, so in each local church he appoints representatives to guide that church in the fulfillment of his purposes. The disciples who receive this delegated responsibility to organize, serve and lead the church are elders and deacons. The authority they receive from Christ to fulfill their tasks is always limited and subject to the principles he has laid out in Holy Scripture. Humility and submission to Christ must characterize their lives.

At first only deacons were chosen by the apostles to help in caring for the great number who had begun to gather. (See Acts 7.) As the churches matured, elders were also appointed. The New Testament uses three terms to describe these servants; elders (wise, mature men), overseers (administrators, leaders), and shepherds or pastors (to build up the church through teaching and encouraging). In choosing them, care should be given to their moral life and to their spiritual gifts. They are to be “above reproach, temperate, gentle,” and not novices. They are also to exhibit the gifts of hospitality, management, teaching, and preaching and “be able to encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it” (Titus 1:9). (See 1 Tim. 3:1-7, 5:17-20; Titus 1:5-9) It is wise to ensure that each church has multiple elders/pastors.

Deacons likewise are to exhibit Christian maturity in their families and in the community, and have an understanding of the “deep truths of the faith” (1 Tim. 3:8-10,12,13). Women with similar qualities should be chosen as deaconesses to work with women, but not to teach men. (Note how many women listed in Romans 16 aided Paul in his ministry.) Following the pattern in Acts 7 where the first deacons were chosen to serve tables, deacons and deaconesses are responsible for the general care of the church, such as dealing with the upkeep of buildings, finances, benevolences, etc. Since all of us are to grow in ministry ability, deacons are not precluded from developing gifts in other areas.

Every Christian has been given a spiritual gift or gifts by the Holy Spirit to use in building up the church and extending its witness into all the world. It is helpful to list the gifts under the categories of speaking gifts, serving gifts, and charismatic gifts. The speaking gifts are; apostleship (missionary church-planting), prophetic preaching, evangelism, teaching, shepherding (pastoring), encouragement, knowledge, and wisdom. The serving gifts are; general helpfulness, hospitality, giving, mercy, faith, discernment, and leadership (administration). The charismatic gifts are; healing, miracles, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. These charismatic gifts, in the view of this writer, confirmed the work of the Spirit in the church’s infancy, but are now of rare appearance. (For an explanation of my reasons for this conclusion see chapter 4 in Church -No Spectator Sport.) (For general material on spiritual gifts see Romans 12:4; 1 Cor 12:4-6,7-11,27-30; Eph. 4:11-16 and the aforementioned book.)

The purpose of gifts is, “to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ…no longer infants, tossed back and forth…by the cunning and craftiness of men…instead speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is , Christ…as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:12-16). As Paul describes in his comparison of the church to a body in First Corinthians twelve, every single believer—using his or her gifts—is necessary to the proper functioning of a church. “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts.”

Every local church is responsible to administer two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Table. Baptism by immersion in water is to be administered to those who are converted through the Holy Spirit producing in them repentance toward sin and faith in Jesus Christ for their salvation. Baptism has no saving function but is rather a visible testimony of the saved person to his or her internal belief in Christ. By gathering around the Lord’s Table, where believers eat bread in memory of Christ’s body and drink wine in memory of Jesus’s shed blood, the church is regularly refreshed and brought back to its central belief in the atoning sacrifice of Christ

Local churches are responsible to encourage the fulfillment of Christ’s mission both in their own community and to the ends of the earth, especially among the unreached. “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded” (Matt. 28:19,20). It should be kept in mind that in contributing to the advance of the gospel we participate in hastening the return of Christ. “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:14).

It should be clear from the New Testament record of churches such as those in Galatia and Corinth that no local church is without defects. While our goal at all times should be to work toward “the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:12), yet we need love and patience to deal with imperfections. Our goal should always be to “maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3). Jesus prayed for unity among believers; so must we. We must ensure that there are no divisions or prejudices related to differences in race, class, gender, or wealth. We should also seek fellowship with churches that may not subscribe to all the details of our own denomination but maintain the essential truths of the gospel.

The discovery of grievous sins that threaten the unity and holiness of local churches require church discipline. Mathew 18 describes a four-step process aiming at restoration of the sinning brother or sister. First, the person immediately concerned is to approach the brother or sister privately using tact, humility and compassion. Secondly, if initial efforts are rebuffed, then one or two other mature Christians should join the first person in an effort to lead the offender to repentance. If the person remains adamant, then the matter should be brought to church leadership and then the whole church. If the sinning brother rejects even the urging of the whole church, discipline will need to be implemented including exclusion from the Lord’s Table. (For further discussion of this matter and a list of offenses that require church discipline see chapter ten in my book, Revolutionary Forgiveness.)

Local churches are meant to be spiritual communities, really families where we experience the love, fellowship, and encouragement we need as individuals. This is especially important in our day when society at large influences us to embrace a hyper-individualistic, ultra-busy lifestyle. Joe Hellerman wrote, “the New Testament picture of the church as a family flies in the face of our individualistic cultural orientation. God’s vision of the church as our first family offers a powerful antidote to the social ills of today.”

As members of God’s heavenly family, we are all meant to contribute to the creation of local churches that are dynamic, inspiring, and supportive communities. That means we will attend a local church, get to know its people, listen to their challenges, and use our gifts to build up each other.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

Jesus Bodily Resurrection – Another in a series on Essential Doctrines for a proposed book

Jesus is risen from the dead. He is alive. Paul writes to the Corinthians, “If Christ has not been raised your faith is futile; you are still in your sin” (1 Cor. 15:17). The reality of the physical resurrection of Jesus is at the very heart of the Christian faith.

Of course, skeptics from that day to this have tried to fabricate stories to deny the resurrection. Some have affirmed that Jesus merely swooned and then revived in the cool of the tomb, others that his disciples stole the body, or that the women went to the wrong tomb. Muslims even teach that Judas died in his place.

However, the facts about the resurrection are indisputable. Leading up to his arrest, trial and crucifixion Jesus, himself, predicted three times that he would die, be buried, and rise again the third day. (For example, see Luke 9:21-22, Luke 9:43-45, Luke 18:31-34.)

All four Gospels describe his resurrection. The small variations in the four accounts are just what we would expect from independent eye witnesses. Uniformity of multiple accounts would have been a sign of a fabricated account.

Those who were antagonistic to his person and teaching, having arranged his death, would have taken extreme measures to stamp out any rumour that circulated about his resurrection. They could have simply gone to the tomb and exposed this as false by showing witnesses his body. They did not and could not. All they could do was pay the guards to tell a fabricated story that the disciples had stolen his body.

The record is clear. On the third day, Jesus rose from the grave. The first to testify were women. When the centurion who supervised his crucifixion saw the manner in which Jesus triumphantly died, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God. There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;” (Mark 15: 40). The two Marys beheld the tomb in which he was laid. (Mark 15:47) Salome, mother of John, probably went with John to comfort Jesus’ mother, then rejoined the other two on Sunday. “And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him…they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves Who shall roll away the stone” (Mark 16:1-4). They found angels at the tomb and the stone already rolled away and the grave empty.

Seeing the empty tomb, the leader and younger of the group, Mary Magdalene, first told Peter and John then wandered into the attached garden in tears. There she encountered someone she at first thought was the gardener. “Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’” Suddenly recognizing this person, she cried out in response, “’Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher)” (John 20:16). Meanwhile Peter and John having run to the tomb went inside. John saw the linen grave clothes and the folded napkin “and believed” (John 20:8).

Note that the account of the resurrection states that women were the first witnesses. Such an account, unless it was factual, would not have been written in this male-dominated culture.

A number of other facts appear here. The women knew where the sepulchre was. The stone was enormous but rolled away. How if not by angels? The guards having fallen in fear at their appearance had run off to tell their superiors. The grave clothes of Jesus were lying there with the napkin used to cover his face, folded and set aside. If the body was stolen why would the grave clothes be left and the napkin so carefully folded?

The sudden appearance of the risen Christ utterly transformed the disciples. The frightened, despairing disciples who locked themselves in a room lest they be arrested, were transformed into fearless evangelists who gladly faced martyrdom rather than deny his resurrection. This radical change is inexplicable unless the resurrection actually happened, which it did. Fear and doubt gone, many gladly faced martyrdom rather than deny the gospel. From scattered disciples, overnight the church grow by leaps and bounds?

Why would two dejected men going home from Jerusalem, suddenly turn around and race back to tell the disciples that Jesus had met them on the road. (See Luke 24:13-35.)

Thomas, the doubting disciple declared that he would not believe unless he could touch Jesus wounds. After his resurrection Jesus came to Thomas and said, “‘Put your finger here, see my hands, Reach your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.’ Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” (John 20:27,28)

The conversion of the chief persecutor, Saul, is itself sufficient to convince us of the resurrection. On his way to arrest new believers, he was confronted by Jesus on the road to Damascus and almost overnight become one of the most effective evangelists of the new churches. (See Acts 9.)

Saul, whose name Jesus changed to Paul, declared; “What I received I passed on to you as of first importance that Christ died for our sins according to the Scripture, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelves. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living…then he appeared to James [Jesus brother] then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared me also” ( 1 Cor. 15:3-8). There were hundreds of witnesses alive at that time! Yes, the facts are irrefutable. Jesus died, was buried, and the third day rose again. He is alive forever more.

Because he lives, our salvation is possible. Without the risen and reigning Christ, the gospel would be powerless. But because he lives, as we’ll see in succeeding chapters, the new birth, justification, adoption, and the power to grow “in Christ” and live the seemingly impossible life of becoming more Christ-like and holy is possible. He lives to shepherd us as prophet, priest, and king. He lives to build his church. Her lives to welcome us into heaven at the end of our pilgrimage. The cross deals with our guilt but the risen Christ ever lives to help us deal with our daily temptations.  

[For a more detailed description of this subject from the pen of one who began his study as a skeptic read; Who Moved The Stone? By Frank Morison, Faber and Faber, London, first published 1930, often reprinted]

What, Seven Deadly Sins? You Can’t Be Serious!

“Sin” along with “wickedness” are words we don’t use much anymore. They are out of fashion, except as a label for what those terrible people in the news commit. Dorothy Sayers makes the caustic comment; “A man may be greedy and selfish; spiteful, cruel, jealous, and unjust; violent and brutal; grasping, unscrupulous, and a liar; stubborn and arrogant; stupid, morose, and dead to every noble instinct—and still we are ready to say of him that he is not an immoral man” (Sayers, p.75) Sayers may be overstating it a bit.

What might those seven deadly sins be that the church used to talk about? Oh, everyone can name one deadly sin, immorality or lust, but even that has disappeared under the banner of “freedom.” The media seeks to attract viewers by titillating the sensibilities of men and women. Adultery, fornication, promiscuity arouse little more than a ho hum from viewers. And with the pervasive presence of pornography, such “primitive” attitudes seem to most as passe.  

But what of the other six? In her book of essays, Sayers classes three as “warm-hearted or disreputable sins and the remaining four as cold-hearted or respectable sins.” Like everything else, our cultural mores are upside down. Christ expressed real animosity toward the hypocrisy of those who indulged in the so-called respectable ones.

In the first category is wrath with its step-children, violence, rancor, revenge, brawling, brutality, and war. Bar brawls. Quarrels with neighbours. Family violence centering on the abuse of wives and children. Why is this so prevalent? Of especial astonishment is the historic and wide-spread unreasoning animosity toward the Jewish people. And why has there been so much violence committed against Christians in various parts of the world?  

Then comes gluttony along with indulgence in alcohol and drugs. Sayers broadens this category to include the gluttonous consumption of goods. Discontent with what we have leads us to amass more and more. The state of garages throughout North America where there is not room for cars is a testament to this addiction to collection.

Aware of our human dissatisfaction, advertisers flatter and cajole consumers to create a greedy hankering about goods that are not really needed. Governments fan this lust in the view that healthy economies are built by fanning human dissatisfaction with one’s clothes, furniture, cars, and the size of our houses. Goods should be created that do not last too long so we’ll buy replacements or new styles.

Is addiction to our phone screens part of this failing? Just one more reel to enjoy. One more blog to read. One more post to tick off until the minutes wash into hours. And we wonder where did our time go. It’s a fear that we might miss something. This fear has become so pervasive that it has been labeled FOMO, fear of missing out.

Covetousness is incarnated in business corporations, stock companies, investment bankers—and us. It is labeled as enterprise. The genuine desire to prosper and succeed has been the impetus behind many laudable advances in society. It is only when it becoming a besetting drive that sacrifices moral and family values that it becomes harmful. Even some churches can succumb to this drive by coveting a larger sanctuary, more people, better music, or a more polished preacher to advance their reputation and fame rather than for the glory of God.

The Christian virtue that would deliver us from gluttony and covetous is contentment. Why not restrict purchases to what is really needed? Cultivating our relationship with God can provide a more fruitful satisfaction. Sayers has a thought here for the writer and artist. “If the artist lets his work be influenced by the consideration of marketing, he will discover that what he is producing is not art.”

Next comes envy which hates to see others happy. If one cannot possess whatever another has, the envious person longs to see that person’s enjoyment dashed to pieces. Sayers writes that “In love, envy is cruel, jealous, and possessive. My friend and my marriage partner must be wholly wrapped up in me …If we cannot be happy together, we will be unhappy together, but there must be no escape into pleasures that I cannot share.” (p. 93)

I wonder if the impetus behind so many scandal sheets and tell-all programs is a recognition that pandering to human envy can be very profitable. If we cannot have what our sports and TV heroes have, let’s hear the worst about them. Let’s destroy their reputations so we can feel good about what we have. It’s a war of the have-nots against the haves.

The sixth sin is sloth, a kind of tolerance of indolence. Sayers writes, “sin that believes in nothing, cares for nothing, seeks to know nothing, interferes with nothing, enjoys nothing, loves nothing, hates nothing, finds purpose in nothing, lives for nothing, and remains alive only because there is nothing it would die for.”

In our hyper-active western world, we pretend to flee sloth at any cost. But Sayers perceptively uncovers the deceit we use to hide our indifference. She claims that the other sins are but cloaks we use to disguise “the empty heart and the empty brain and the empty soul of acedia (sloth)” (p.98) We hide our emptiness beneath a gluttonous consumption of foods or drinks or screen addiction. Covetousness forces us out of bed to pursue business with great intensity so we can acquire what we don’t need. Envy provides a smokescreen of gossip that soothes our jealousy. Wrath enables us to hide behind indignation over the evils of this dark world. (See p. 98)

Finally, we come to the basic sin, pride. It’s all about me and mine, my race and my country, my brand, my political party. We don’t need God. We can do it. And because our imagination can harness our skills and gifts, we make considerable progress. Witness our cities, our technology, even our agriculture.

Pride promotes a belief in the perfectibility of man and in inevitable progress. We imagine utopias we can build. It’s all about the kingdom of man. It is hubris, ego, pious plans for our victory. We’re sure we can make robots in our own image that will lead us into the promised land. No need for God and his kingdom. Unfortunately, we discover instead broken families, broken governments, broken neighbourhoods and the almost endemic presence of wars.

So there we have it. Seven deadly sins; immorality, wrath, gluttony, covetousness, envy, sloth, and pride. Their conquest is only possible through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit mediated through faith in Jesus Christ who died for our sins, to break their power over us and rose to conquer them in our lives. “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and world lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works” (Titus 2:11-14).

(This article is based on The Other Six Deadly Sins in Dorthy Sayers’ book, Letters to a Diminished Church – Passionate Arguments for the Relevance of Christian Doctrine, pp 75-101, Nelson, 2004)

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

Sanctification – Another in a Series on Essential Doctrines

Imagine buying a very old but classic car which is on the way to the junkyard. It’s a wreck. You are determined to bring it back to its original shape. The engine doesn’t work. The interior is dirty. The body is rusty and dented. This will not be the work of a day or a weekend but probably years. This is a picture of sanctification.

God finds us a spiritual wreck, destined for the hellish junkyard. Christ pays the price for our redemption. He buys us back; we are justified. We become his property, adopted into his family. We receive a new engine, a new heart. But that’s just the beginning. Now commences the work of sanctification, restoring in us what was destroyed by sin. This is the work of a lifetime.

Fundamentally, this process means becoming holy. “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’” (1 Peter 1:14-16). Thus, sanctification is the process of becoming less sinful in practice and more holy. It is the pursuit of holiness through obedience to God’s commands and repudiation of our evil desires.

Sanctification may be described in different ways, each of which is important to the process. It is obedience to God’s law, not as a work but as a definition of a good and wholesome life. As defined in the ten commandments holiness is acknowledging that God is our Lord, that we don’t idolize others, our home, our work, etc., that we don’t profane his name, that we set aside time each week for rest and worship, that we respect our parents, keep ourselves from violence, from immorality, lying, stealing and covetousness. (See Exodus 20, Deuteronomy 5.)

Sanctification means we engage in a process of loving God and others more and more. “Love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matt. 22:37-39).

In the sermon on the mount Jesus described sanctification in terms of adopting a series of attitudes that produce a happy life; honesty and humility about ourselves, grief for our sins, meekness, mercy, purity of heart, a bent towards helping promote peace among people, and endurance of persecution for doing what is right.

Paul writes that sanctification means developing character reflected in the fruit of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Gal. 5:22,23). How is this fruit manifest? By increasing love for neighbours, Christian brothers, and sisters, and even enemies. And how do we know there is an increase in love? For example, we might see conduct that is more patient and gentle, that creates peace between people instead of stirring up conflict, that continues over a period of time and doesn’t disappear quickly, or love that is shown in control of our speech.

Fruitfulness will also be manifest in developing skills that contribute to the extension of Christ’s kingdom, the growth of one’s church, and the development of other Christians. In this sense, sanctification involves a growing effectiveness and usefulness for Christ. That means, we recognize and develop our unique spiritual gifts; “so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ…no longer be infants, tossed back and forth…by every wind of doctrine” (Eph. 6:12-14). Some of these gifts are preaching, shepherding, evangelizing, teaching, mercy, hospitality, encouraging, helps, administration and so on. For example, an encourager will grow in a ministry of affirmation and encouragement. One with the gift of mercy will grow in comforting the sick, lonely, and grieving. An administrator will show growing skill at organizing what might otherwise become chaos. (See Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, 27-31; Eph. 4:10-13. For more information on this subject seek a good resource about spiritual gifts such as my book, Church No Spectator Sport, available from Amazon.)

Ultimately, sanctification means becoming more Christ-like. “And we who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18). As we are transformed—sanctified—into the image of Christ, we glorify God. The Shorter Catechism wisely answers the first question, “What is the chief end of man” by answering, “To glorify him and enjoy him forever.” Isn’t it interesting that enjoyment and glory are connected. Christ taught us to adopt the beatitudes in order to be blessed. When we adopt them, we glorify God.

Sanctification is a process. “Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). We will never be perfect in this life. We often stumble. We disobey. We fail to adopt Jesus’ beatitudes. Our spiritual fruit is stunted and our spiritual gifts misapplied. Why? Because each step forward is contested by three enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil. The world wants to conform us to its mold. The devil tempts us to sin. And within ourselves, we find remnants of the old nature warring against our new nature trying to get us to yield to sinful temptations and to conform ourselves to the world. The devil exploits this inner turmoil. We are exhorted to “resist him steadfast in the faith” (1 Peter 5:9).

A crucial aspect of sanctification is understanding this conflict. We are to “put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires. To be made new in the attitude of your minds, and put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 22-24). The apostle Paul describes his own inner turmoil. “I find this law [principle] at work. When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law. But I see another law at work in the member of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God–through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin” (Rom. 7:21-2).

We grow more Christ-like by winning this inner battle. How? Through depending on the daily power of Jesus Christ who through the victory of the cross has broken our former bondage to our own sinful nature. We are free, but our own nature perpetually pesters us. How can we overcome? By depending upon the work of the indwelling Spirit who mediates our new freedom providing the internal motivation and power to adopt the beatitudes, bear the fruit of the Spirit, exercise the gifts of the Spirit. Learn to listen to the whispers of the Spirit who convicts us when we stray from God’s path. Learn to immediately confess failure or sin and pray for help from the Spirit. As discussed below, a disciplined devotional life and a knowledge of the armor of God will help immeasurably in developing the day-long sensitivity to the Spirit and the Word. 

We cannot win this conflict unless we are wholly committed to Christ. Being half-hearted doesn’t cut it. We need to realize this is spiritual warfare. “Be strong in the Lord [be sure He is our Lord]…put on the full armor of God so you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood…powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God” (Eph. 6:10-13). The text next outlines six pieces of armor; the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, gospel shoes, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. The passage concludes with an exhortation to pray.

Exegeting this important passage is beyond the scope of this book. However, the pieces mentioned here indicate the importance of the various doctrinal truths considered in this book. We need deep faith in the presence and work of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to ward off temptation—the shield of faith; an understanding of Scripture and ability to use it— the sword of the Spirit; confidence in our justification—the breastplate of righteousness; assurance of salvation—the helmet of salvation; a vision of reaching the unreached with the gospel—feet shod with the gospel of peace; and of course, prayer.

Every disciple of Jesus will develop a devotional life that includes Bible reading and study, prayer that balances worship, thanksgiving and intercession along with faithful attendance at a good church for fellowship, worship, and encouragement. Jesus prayed to the Father; “Sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth…My prayer is not for them alone I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message that all of them may be one” (John 17:17,20,21). (Many devotional helps can be found in book stores and online.)

The Westminster Shorter Catechism states: “The benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification are: assurance of God’s love, peace of conscience, joy in the holy Ghost, increase in grace, and perseverance therein to the end.” (Answer to Question 36)

Lest we conclude that the progress of our sanctification rests solely on our shoulders we need to consider the role of Christ as our ongoing prophet, priest and king.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

Adoption – Another in a Series on Essential Doctrines.

God created us to live in families. Of Adam, God said, “It is not good for man to be alone, I will make a helper suitable for him” (Gen. 2:18) and so he created Eve. Then out of that “one flesh” relationship children were born; Abel and Cain.

Unfortunately, after their fall into sin, tensions arose within the first family. “Cain was very angry” at God’s acceptance of Abel’s offering. Jealousy gripped Cain and he killed his brother Abel. Things escalated until the time of the flood when God was grieved at the spread of wickedness and violence. Wherever sin spreads, it leaves misery in its wake. This misery is exaggerated in the family. Husbands and wives may become bitter at each other and separate or commit adultery or just live miserable lives. Most grievously, children are affected. Some are abandoned. Some are orphaned. All are emotionally damaged by family breakdown. As a result, multitudes are lonely and hurting.

From the beginning, God’s rescue operation has included the restoration of families. But repairing human families is not always possible. Instead, God purposed to create spiritual families through adopting forgiven sinners into his own family. The instant sinners are converted they become children of God.

“To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God” (John 1:12,13). “In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ in accordance with his pleasure and will” (Eph. 1:5).

As God’s children a new spirit is implanted within us to deliver us from fear and loneliness and bondage. “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry “Abba” Father [Daddy]. The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” But that is not all. We become heirs of God. “Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ.” (Romans 8:15-17. See also Gal. 4:4-6.) This was predicted in Isaiah; see Isaiah 54:8,9 and 2 Cor. 6:18.

As adopted sons and daughters of God, we become brothers and sisters to all who are part of the family of God. Every church is meant to become a family where the loneliness, alienation, bitterness, and isolation is swallowed up in warm wave of acceptance and love. In the New Testament believers are often addressed as brothers and sisters, because that is what they are. “I commend to you our sister Phoebe…I urge you, brothers…” (Romans 16:1,17). “Tychicus, the dear brother…Peace to the brothers” (Eph. 6:21,23).

When I first began serving in an international mission, I was startled by the field leader calling me “bro”, short for brother. Although startled, it became an affectionate, encouraging word that reminded me that in our mission, as Christians, we were a family. And so it should be in every place, whether church or para-church where we serve as Christians.

In the church, God is re-creating a spiritual family that is meant to provide the support and companionship that has been weakened or destroyed by the effects of the fall. We may have been rejected or ignored by society, but “we are accepted in the beloved.” We may have been rejected by our parents or siblings. Alienated. Alone. Orphans. Widows. Widowers. Stumbling. Falling. Needy. The church is to be there to welcome us with open arms because it is the family of all the adopted. God, the Father is head of this Family. Christ is our elder-brother and Saviour. The Holy Spirit is our Comforter and Counselor.

In her article on community Sophie Lee quotes a number of studies outlining the toxic independence and loneliness of our modern culture. “The modern forces of loneliness, writes Derick Thompson in The Atlantic, have created a social ecosphere in which we are ‘both pushed and pulled toward a level of aloneness for which we are dysevolved and emotionally unprepared.’” She continues, “Americans are spending fewer hours socializing face-to-face than ever before. The rise in solitude seems to correlate with worsening health outcomes: Teen hopelessness, depression, and suicidal thought have been increasing almost every year in the past decade. Life expectancy in America, after rising for decades, has fallen to it lowest level since 1996…”

US surgeon general Vivek Murthy writes that the “epidemic of loneliness and isolation could be as deadly as smoking daily.” “Washington Post columnist Perry Bacon Jr., wrote about feeling a ‘church-sized hole’ after he left the church and joined the nones” (Sophie Lee, I Don’t Remember When I Realized I Didn’t Have A Community”, Christianity Today, July/August, 2024, pp 78,79)

Sadly, when we are conformed to the world by buying into the hyper-individualistic, ultra-busy lifestyle, we lose the community that God has created for us in the church. Lee quotes Joe Hellerman; “the New Testament picture of the church as a family flies in the face of our individualistic, cultural orientation. God’s vision of the church as our first family offers a powerful antidote to the social ills of today.”

To be redeemed means not only being forgiven for our sins, but being divinely adopted into a spiritual family as an antidote to our isolation and loneliness. That adoption includes not only our future joy among the heavenly community, but membership in a church down here which is meant to be a dynamic, supportive community.

These days we receive a lot of negative comments about the failure of the church, but we rarely hear the positive side. In the west at least, we are expected at the age of twenty or so to become independent. Hopefully, our human family is there to support us throughout our lives, but usually they retreat into the background until Thanksgiving and Christmas. Does that mean our need for a community of encouragement and support should recede? The toxic nature of western independence shows that this is a myth. Our need for community is basic to our humanness as created by God.

Let me illustrate from my experience. I largely grew away from my family in the late teens when I went to university. I was converted at age nineteen and immediately joined brothers and sisters in a Bible study community and then in a church. Next, I went to Bible College where I joined brothers and sisters in a college community. I married a Christian sister and together we next became part of a mission family. Then we returned to my church family and ever since we have been part of different church families. The common denominator has been God, the Father, who adopted me into his family, automatically making me a brother to other brothers and sisters. It has been these communities that God has used for seventy years to provide the fellowship, encouragement, prayer, and support that I have needed. They have been my immediate family, my community.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

The God-man, Mediator of a New Covenant – Another in a series on Essential Christian Doctrines.

Having willingly embraced the task of becoming our mediator, and being anointed by the Holy Spirit to an unlimited extent, Jesus perfectly fulfilled God’s law. Any reading of the Gospels makes crystal clear that Jesus was without sin of any kind. Jesus explained to those questioning him that he always kept the law of God, “I always do what pleases him [the Father]…Can any of you prove me guilty of sin?”(John 8:29, 46). When on trial, even pagan Pilate affirmed his freedom from guilt and sought to convince the crowd to release him.

The apostles testified to his sinlessness. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:20). “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth” (1 Peter 2:22). “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins and in him is no sin” (1 John 3:4,5). Hebrews explains that we have a high priest who can sympathize with our weaknesses, for he “was tempted in every way, just as we are—yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). He was “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). “He spoke the very words of God, for God gave him the “Spirit without limit” (John 3:34).

The eternal Son of God took on human flesh through the virgin birth, grew as the man Jesus, perfectly kept the law of God throughout his life and at the age of thirty he “began to preach, ‘Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near’” (Matthew 4:17). Of his teachings people commented, “No one ever spoke the way this man does” (John 7:46).

The four gospels plus the writings of his apostles describe the three years of his earthly ministry. He taught, he healed the blind, the lame, and the dumb. He even raised the dead. At the end of his gospel, John writes of how impossible it was to describe the whole scope of his life. “This is the disciple who testifies of these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true. Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would written” (John 21:24,25).

Almost a third of the gospels describe the most crucial last week in his life—his arrest, trial, crucifixion, and resurrection. As this week drew near, he began to prepare his disciples. At least three times “he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him and he will be raised on the third day’ and they were greatly distressed” (Matt. 17:22,23; Mark 9:30,31).

In the Garden of Gethsemane, knowing something of the utter desolation he would face in becoming our atoning sacrifice, he cried out in agony of spirit three times for the Father to let this cup pass from him. When he realized this was not possible, he prayed “nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.”

The Gospels describe his arrest in the Garden, the stages in his trial, the mockery of the soldiers, and his crucifixion on Friday. Mark’s account simply describes this climatic event.

“They bought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get. It was the third hour when they crucified him…At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi lama sabachthani?—which means, ‘My God, my God why have you forsaken me?…With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last’”  (Mark 1522,23,25,33,37).

Very early on the first day of the week, Jesus rose from the dead. He first appeared to Mary and some other women followed by Peter, the twelve and “after that he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time” (1 Cor. 15:6). Luke informs us in Acts that “until the day he was taken up to heaven, …he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:2-3). Finally, he gathered them on a mount in “the vicinity of Bethany” and “he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight” (Acts. 1:9).

The apostles summarize the saving implications of Jesus’ physical death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness, by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” ( 1 Peter 2:24,25). “Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit” ( 1 Peter 3:18,19). As the sinless God-man, Jesus Christ willingly became our substitute, in his death paying the penalty for our sins.

By dying for our sins, Christ became the mediator of a new covenant, a better covenant than that mediated by old covenant priests. “Because he lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself”” (Heb. 7:24-27).

Flowing from faith in that one sacrifice issue all of the blessings of salvation; regeneration, justification, adoption, sanctification and glorification—the astounding features of our complete salvation. We’ll consider each of these in turn in the chapters that follow.

Through his death, resurrection, and session at the Father’s right hand, he becomes not only our interceding high priest but our shepherd, the one who leads us ever deeper into the joy of the redeemed.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

The Virgin-born Saviour – Another in a series on essential Christian Doctrines.

We come in this post to the most essential truth of all, the historic reality of Jesus Christ, the only mediator between men and God. Seeking to describe this astonishing person with words is almost impossible. But we must try, because belief in his person defines our destiny.

But first, lest we hide our need of his salvation behind a smokescreen of imagined independence and self-reliance, let’s remind ourselves of our plight. “Your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear”—when you complain or cry for help. (Isaiah 59:2) We are separated from eternal help. Our sins are unforgiven. We stand guilty before the bar of divine justice. We face eternity in hell. Until we acknowledge our sins, God will not hear us. Instead, “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness” (Rom. 1:12). Who will intercede for us, fending off God’s wrath? Who will deliver us from our own blind self-righteousness?

“There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus who gave himself as a ransom for all men” (1 Timothy 2:5,6). Consider then, the arrival of this mediator.

In the counsels of the godhead, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit determined to mount a rescue operation. The Son of God was chosen as the spearhead of this rescue. Remember, “He is the image of the invisible God…For by him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible…all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:15-17). Although he was the creator and sustainer of the whole universe, and eternally God, the Son, co-equal with the Father and the Spirit, he voluntarily agreed to become our Saviour.

In mounting this rescue operation, God, the Son, came down amongst us. As God, he is omnipresent, so in what sense did he come? He came setting aside something and embracing something else. He voluntarily set aside the independent exercise of his divine prerogatives—power, omnipresence, omniscience—and embraced humanity by being born as a real baby of the virgin Mary. (See Phil. 2:5-8.)

Mary was frightened when the angel announced his birth, but he said to her; “Do not be afraid, Mary. You have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David…the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:30-32, 35).

When Mary was found to be with child, her betrothed, Joseph, thought to divorce her quietly but an angel spoke to him. “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet” (Matt. 1:20-22). That babe was the prophesied one, the Messiah, promised from Eden on. No other child had 2000 years of prophecies about his coming. No other child came to atone for our sins. And no other child was virgin born through the conception of the Holy Spirit.

No wonder the writers of Christmas carols wax poetic;

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see,
Hail the incarnate Deity,
Pleased as man with man to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

The story of Jesus’s birth has beguiled people from all ages. It is charming. Who doesn’t love a baby. But a baby called Immanuel, God with us? A baby born in a manger? A birth heralded by a choir of angels? Who is this babe?

All babies have a beginning. Yet Christ always existed as the Son of God. “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:17). “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1,14). He himself testified, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, [first and last] who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty” (Rev. 1:8) 

Imagine this; the eternal creator of time who exists beyond time, came into time; the immaterial God took on a material body; the almighty God came as a helpless babe. God and man; the God-man. No avatar. No figment of someone’s superheated imagination. “In this way it came about that the two whole, perfect, and distinct natures, the divine and the human, were inseparably joined together in one Person, without the conversion of the one nature into the other, and without the mixing, as it were of one nature with the other; in other words, without confusion. Thus, the Son of God is both truly God and truly human, yet one person, Jesus Christ, the only mediator between God and man” (The 1689 Confession, chapter 8, 2.) Our mediator is one Person with two distinct natures.

In some mysterious way which is beyond our experience or understanding, the infinite, eternally existing Son of God came as Jesus, our Shepherd, Friend, Saviour, and Mediator.

Incredible? Yes. His body was not a phantom, not a mirage but a real flesh and blood body. As a baby, “the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him…when he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast” (Luke 2:40,42). Jesus went through all the stages of human development.

As man, he ate and thirsted and felt pain and became tired and wept. His disciples touched him. “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life [Jesus]” (1 John 1:1). An essential truth of the Christian faith that must be believed by all true Christians concerns the genuine human nature that Christ embraced without ceasing to be God, the Son. He is the eternal Son of God; truly God and truly man—two natures in one person. But how could he atone for our sins?

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

Can you hear creation praise or just the noise of modern life?

Noise and confusion; the sounds of war and hatred echo throughout the world. On our highways the relentless roar of traffic drowns the flutter of a butterfly.

But quietly, beneath the bedlam, sounds of joyful celebration can be heard from every corner of creation—but the sounds are only heard by those with ears to hear “the music of the spheres”.

The LORD is awesome in his creativity and sovereign power, love and grace. The beauty of his creation cries out for our notice and celebration. Sadly, our ears are often dumb and our eyes blind.

The writer of Psalm 148 primes our ears by crying out for every element of creation to praise God. Let us listen.

Praise the LORD from the heavens, praise him in the heights above.

Praise Him all his Angels

Praise Him all his heavenly host

Sun, moon and stars.

The moon and all the stars

You waters above the skies.

For he commanded and they were created. He set them in place

The great sea creatures and all ocean depths

Lighning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds

Mountains and all hills

Fruit trees and cedars

Wild animals and all cattle

Small creatures and flying birds.

Praise him kings of the earth and all nations, you princes and all rulers on earth

Young men and maidens, old men and children. Let them praise the name of the LORD for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth.

He has raised up for his people a horn [JESUS]; the praise of all his saints. Of Israel, the people close to his heart.

!!! Praise the LORD!!!!

What Is The Gospel? – Another blog in a series on essential doctrines of Jesus-followers.

The Gospel has done more for mankind than anything else; economic, medical, political, musical, literary. Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, left his disciples with a commission that is repeated at least six times in the New Testament. “Go into all the world and preach the good news (gospel) to all creation” (Mark 16:15). It is imperative that we have clarity about this transforming message that we are to preach.

And yet even during the time of the apostles, the gospel was being perverted. Paul wrote to the Galatians; “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned” (Gal. 1:6-8). Confusion about the gospel is damning.

So, let’s clarify. Because of its summary nature John 3:16 is helpful. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This verse states several fundamental new covenant facts: God loves the world, God gave his one and only Son because he loves the world, people are perishing but they can have eternal life, and receiving eternal life is contingent upon believing.

This raises several questions. Why is the world perishing? The world is perishing because of the Fall as a result of which “all (every single human who has ever lived) have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). What does perishing mean? Sin estranges us from God and dooms us to everlasting death in hell. “The wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness” (Rom 1:18). Jesus often warned of hell. “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41). Hell is a place of eternal torment and separation from God.

Who is Jesus? He is God’s only Son, and as established in earlier chapters in this series, he eternally existed as God but embraced humanity through being born of a virgin, he lived a perfect life and died upon the cross for our sins. In this sense God gave his Son to die as the atoning sacrifice for our sins and empowered him to rise the third day.

What response must people give to the gospel? Rescue requires belief that one is perishing and bound for hell as the consequence of one’s sin, faith in who Jesus is, and what he came to do. That belief rescues the believing person from doom. He receives salvation.

Verse sixteen of chapter three of John is but a part of the explanation Jesus makes to Nicodemus about what is necessary to “enter the kingdom of God”, that is, the spiritual kingdom where God rules or the society over whom Christ reigns as Lord. During the course of that conversation Jesus explained to Nicodemus that he must be re-born, that is, regenerated. In later posts we’ll consider the meaning of regeneration.

But let’s further clarify the gospel by considering Paul’s description in his epistle to the Corinthians. “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you.…for what I received I passed on to you as of first importance that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared …to more than five hundred of the brothers as the same time, most of who are still living” (1 Cor 15:1-6).

Let’s summarize the gospel:

We need salvation from our sins for our sins break God’s laws and incur real guilt that requires punishment.Christ died for our sins. His death upon the cross atoned, or paid the penalty that our sins incurred before the bar of divine justice.Christ really died and was buried for three days. He did not merely faint or lose consciousness.Christ rose bodily from the grave. He was seen alive after his resurrection by many.To be saved from one’s sins one must receive as true these historical facts.Belief in this gospel also leads us to affirm as true the Scriptures which predict and describe the coming, life, death and resurrection of Christ.Belief in this Gospel leads to living a life as prescribed by the Scriptures, affirming its truth, and standing firm upon this belief over the remaining days of our life. (See perseverance of the saints in a following post.)

The gospel, then, is the message that all of us are sinners who can only be saved from the consequences of our sins by putting our faith in Jesus Christ, particularly his death to pay the penalty for our sins, his burial, and his resurrection on the third day.

The gospel includes an appeal. Note how Jesus began his ministry. “Jesus went into Galilee proclaiming the good news of God. ‘The time has some,’ he said, ‘the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!’” (Mark 1:14,15). Paul explained his ministry to the leaders of the Ephesian church. “I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus” (Acts 20:21).

The gospel calls sinners to respond with repentance and faith. Repentance is a confession of our sinfulness and a turning from a sinful lifestyle to embrace a lifestyle that pleases God. The 1689 Confession describes it as being characterized “by godly sorrow, a detestation of the sin.”

Faith is an affirmation of our belief in who Jesus is and what he has done for us along with a belief that he can save us from our sins. It is a turning from doubt to trust in God.

Responding to the gospel by repenting and believing leads to conversion. Steven Lawson of Ligonier Ministries describes conversion as: “a spiritual turning away from sin in repentance and to Christ in faith. It is a dramatic turning away from one path in order to pursue an entirely new one. It involves turning one’s back to the system of the world and its anti-God values.”

Converted sinners reject their old way of life and turn in a new direction. Following conversion, repentance and faith continue to characterize the believer’s attitude towards God because converted sinners are not perfect but subject to continuing temptations. But a sinner’s repentance and faith commences a wonderful new beginning that leads onward towards heaven and rescues us from going downwards toward hell.

Clarity about the gospel is a matter of spiritual life and death. Unfortunately, just as in the days of the apostles, many proclaim a false gospel. But any message that denies the deity and humanity of Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice for our sins is anathema. Any proclamation of “easy believism” that fails to call for repentance is a false gospel as is “decisionism” that emphasizes saying a set prayer for conversion or simply belief in Jesus without an emphasis on turning from sin and an ongoing walk of discipleship. So is any denial of human depravity and the reality of an eternal hell.

The chapters in a projected book, of which these blogs are part, further delineate the dimensions of genuine belief.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. If you appreciate this blog, please pass it on. If I can help you spiritually, let me know. Further articles, books, and stories at:  Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ; Eric’s books are available at: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-E.-Wright/e/B00355HPKK%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share)

An Inspirational Package of Books for Growth!

READ! GROW! SERVE! Check out these inspirational books for the growing Christian.

Revolutionary Forgiveness:
We cannot have clear consciences filled with peace if bitterness and anger rule. We must learn to forgive. Learn to live at peace with others. Answers the questions about forgiveness. Who takes first step, etc? https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0852345259/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i3

Church – No Spectator Sports:
A 460 page book encouraging the growth of the church by helping believers discover, develop and use their spiritual gifts in the context of the family of God. 17 spiritual gifts, at least one for each believer. Teaching, evangelism, mercy, discernment, helps, etc. Find yours & see how biblical churches operate. The biblical teaching on gifts illustrated in practice.
https://www.amazon.com/stores/Eric-E.-Wright/author/B00355HPKK?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

LEAD Technologies Inc. V1.01

A Practical Theology of Missions:
The church’s work of missions & how to do it. A thorough study, rooting missions solidly in the biblical text while giving modern, real-life examples of how missionary principles can be applied practically. Essential for every church.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1846251982/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

Through A Country Window:
#lovecountry S.C. Farm girl & city boy from Toronto trade suburban split-level for log house in the country. Vignettes of country life thru the seasons where the sky springs free. Barnyard theatre. Country Carousel. Wild spring river race. Claire Mowat calls it; “Joyful, wistful, and often funny, this is a books to delight the reader.”
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CGC7198C

Surprised by Grace:
The Wright’s story of how God shaped us in spite of our failures and limitations, into vessels He could use to extend His Kingdom. From childhood thru 16 years in Pakistan with 100 photos in coloured, b/w & ebook format.
https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0851LLHJN?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860

A Man’s Journey Through Grief:
Eric Wright, in honest and poignant prose, describes his struggles to reconstruct life after losing his wife of 61 years.

Are you going through grief and wonder if your reactions are unique? Or, are you trying to figure out how to help someone cope with the loss of a loved one? In this transparent memoir of his first year alone, the author describes his own journey through heartache to construct a new life of meaning and purpose without the love of his life by his side.
https://www.amazon.ca/Mans-Journey-through-Grief-Jesus-Followers/dp/B0C91KG18R

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