Puritan Fellowship
Preaching with Power by Iain Murray
Iain Murray discusses the preaching ministry of D. Martyn-Lloyd Jones and the importance of preaching with power.
Pyromaniacs
Thanks for the universe (Thanks from Genesis 1:1, part one) by Dan Phillips
Thanks for the universe (Thanks from Genesis 1:1, part two) by Dan Phillips
Dan Phillips explains why believing the right interpretation of Genesis 1:1 is key to understanding the rest of Scripture. Parts one and two.
Reformation Theology
Monergistic Regeneration by John Samson
The importance of the Holy Spirit's role in salvation.
Ligonier Blog
Divine Repentance by R.C. Sproul
Dr. Sproul deals with the thorny issue, "Does God Change His Mind?"
LETTER II
Strength in Trial
by John Newton
(Letters written on the subjects of humility and depending on God 2/7)
May 31, 1769.
I was sorry I did not write as you expected, but I hope it will do now. Indeed I have not forgotten you; you are often in my thoughts, and seldom omitted in my prayers. I hope the Lord will make what you see and hear while abroad profitable to you, to increase your knowledge, to strengthen your faith, and to make you from henceforth well satisfied with your situation. If I am not mistaken, you will be sensible, that though there are some desirable things to be met with in London preferable to any other place, yet, upon the whole, a quiet situation in the country, under one stated ministry, and in connexion with one people, has the advantage. It is pleasant now and then to have opportunity of hearing a variety of preachers, but the best and greatest of them are no more than instruments; some can please the ear better than others; but none can reach the heart any farther than the Lord is pleased to open it. This He showed you upon your first going up, and I doubt not but your disappointment did you more good than if you had heard with all the pleasure you expected.
The Lord was pleased to visit me with a slight illness in my late journey. I was far from well on the Tuesday, but supposed it owing to the fatigue of riding, and the heat of the weather; but the next day I was taken with a shivering, to which a fever succeeded. I was then near sixty miles from home. The Lord gave me much peace in my soul, and I was enabled to hope He would bring me safe home, in which I was not disappointed; and though I had the fever most part of the way, my journey was not unpleasant. He likewise strengthened me to preach twice on Sunday; and at night I found myself well, only very weary, and I have continued well ever since. I have reason to speak much of His goodness, and to kiss the rod, for it was sweetened with abundant mercies. I thought that had it been His pleasure I should have continued sick at Oxford, or even have died there, I had no objection. Though I had not that joy and sensible comfort which some are favoured with, yet I was quite free from pain, fear, and care, and felt myself sweetly composed to His will, whatever it might be. Thus He fulfils His promise in making our strength equal to our day; and every new trial gives us a new proof how happy it is to be enabled to put our trust in Him.
I hope, in the midst of all your engagements, you find a little time to read His good Word, and to wait at His mercy seat. It is good for us to draw nigh to Him. It is an honour that He permits us to pray; and we shall surely find He is a God hearing prayer. Endeavour to be diligent in the means; yet watch and strive against a legal spirit, which is always aiming to represent Him as a hard master, watching as it were to take advantage of us. But it is far otherwise. His name is Love! He looks upon us with compassion; He knows our frame, and remembers that we are but dust; and when our infirmities prevail, He does not bid us despond, but reminds us that we have an Advocate with the Father, who is able to pity, to pardon, and to save to the uttermost. Think of the names and relations He bears. Does He not call Himself a Saviour, a Shepherd, a Friend, and a Husband? Has He not made known unto us His love, His blood, His righteousness, His promises, His power, and His grace, and all for our encouragement? Away, then, with all doubting, unbelieving thoughts; they will not only distress your heart, but weaken your hands. Take it for granted upon the warrant of His word, that you are His, and He is yours; that He has loved you with an everlasting love, and therefore in loving-kindness has drawn you to Himself; that He will surely accomplish that which He has begun, and that nothing which can be named or thought of shall ever be able to separate you from Him. This persuasion will give you strength for the battle; this is the shield which will quench the fiery darts of Satan; this is the helmet which the enemy cannot pierce. Whereas, if we go forth doubting and fearing, and are afraid to trust any farther than we can feel, we are weak as water, and easily overcome. Be strong, therefore, not in yourself, but in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Pray for me, and believe me to be,
Yours, &c.
H.T. Fire and Ice
SWORD DRILLS
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God
by
Tony Zabala
"Those who regard vain idols Forsake their faithfulness, But I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving That which I have vowed I will say Salvation is from the LORD." (Jonah 2: 8-10)
Last time, we talked about the second and third purposes for evangelism which are loving God and loving your neighbor. We also looked at some practical ways as to how the Christian shows his love for God and love for his neighbor by simply following God's commandments concerning evangelism because when the Christian follows God's commandments he is showing his love for God and for his neighbor (Matt. 28: 19-20, Acts 1:8; John 14:15). Both the second and third purposes of evangelism of loving God and loving your neighbor stem from the primary purpose of evangelism which is the Christian evangelizes for the glory of God (2 Cor. 10:31). And we also explored the issue that even if the Christian follows God's commandments concerning evangelism, but fails to lead a holy life, ultimately, his evangelistic efforts will be in vain and not glorifying to God. The Christian gives glory to God in everything he does including his evangelism.
The Plan of Evangelism
So we have looked at the purpose of evangelism, now we will start looking at the plan of evangelism. It is always important to have a plan especially when it comes to evangelism. You don't want to go out haphazardly witnessing to your friend or neighbor or go out and do street evangelism without some type of plan in mind. In fact, the Bible promotes having a plan when you undertake any project. The king counts his army before going off to war and a person who builds his home counts his materials and sees if he has enough funds to finish the project (Luke 15: 24-31). They would be foolish if they didn't have some sort of plan. Likewise, it is the wise evangelist who formulates a plan prior to undertaking any type of evangelistic endeavor.
Trust in God's Sovereignty
The first point in the plan of evangelism is to trust in God's sovereignty. The sovereignty of God as defined by Easton's Dictionary states that God "has the absolute right to do all things based on His good pleasure" (Dan 4:25, 35; Rom. 9: 15-23; 1 Tim. 6:15; Rev. 4:11). God's attribute of sovereignty is probably the most comforting attribute of all of God's attributes especially for the Christian evangelist because the evangelist can rest on the fact that God is in control of all things especially in the salvation of the unbelievers he is witnessing to.
The salvation of the unbeliever does not depend on how perfect my Gospel presentation is or how many times I go out to evangelize or how I made that apologetic argument concerning the problem of evil. Ultimately, the unbeliever's salvation rests on the grace of God alone because man is dead in his trespasses and sins and he does not have the ability to come to God by his own freewill (Eph. 2: 1; Rom. 3:18).
In addition, it will take God's divine intervention through the power of the Holy Spirit to call, draw, and finally regenerate a dead sinner, who is a child of Satan. (John 3:8 ; 6:44, Rom. 8:29; 2 Cor. 5:17). So the evangelist must not put his trust in his evangelism presentation or his evangelistic efforts to save the unbeliever. The Christian must trust in God's sovereignty as to whether God chooses to save the unbeliever or not.
God's Sovereignty v. Man's Responsibility
So if God is sovereign over all things including evangelism, what is my responsibility in terms of evangelism? Does that mean that if God's sovereign over evangelism including the salvation of unbelievers, do I have to forgo my responsibility to evangelize as some extreme hyper-Calvinists believe? Well, no, just because God is sovereign over all things including the salvation of unbelievers, the Christian has still been commanded by God to proclaim the Gospel to every living creature (Matt. 28: 18-20; Acts 1:8).
Your responsibility, dear Christian, is to faithfully proclaim the Gospel no matter what the result, give the best Gospel presentation you can, preach the best sermon you can, work hard in your evangelistic efforts, and leave the results of that unbeliever's salvation to God's grace and mercy alone (Eph. 2: 8-9; Rom. 9:15, Titus 3:5). We work hard in our evangelistic efforts because we want to glorify God in everything we do, but we always leave the results of that person's salvation to God (Jonah 2: 8-10; 1 Cor. 10:31).
It is God's declarative will to use Christians as his means to get the Gospel out despite the fact that ultimately salvation for the unbeliever rests on God's grace alone. Christians have the honor and privilege of proclaiming the King's Gospel message to a lost and dying world (2 Cor. 5:20). God dictates the ways as well as the means of our evangelistic efforts based on His sovereign grace. God uses sinful yet redeemed, imperfect, broken vessels as his agents to proclaim His Gospel to the world. As my old apologetics teacher used to say, "God uses crooked sticks to draw straight lines". Christians are those crooked sticks.
A Quote from J.I. Packer
I would like to end this article with a recommendation of J.I. Packer's book "Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God" and a quote from that book. Dr. Packer's book is excellent and he clearly shows the reader the importance of God's sovereignty in regards to evangelism. I finished this book for the second time earlier this year and I plan to read it again in the near future. Here is just one of Dr. Packer's many great insights from this wonderful book:
“It is necessary, therefore to take the thought of human responsibility, as it affects both the preacher and the hearer of the gospel, very seriously indeed. But we must not let it drive the thought of divine sovereignty out of our minds. While we must always remember that it is our responsibility to proclaim salvation, we must never forget that it is God who saves. It is God who brings men and women under the sound of the gospel, and it is God who brings them to faith in Christ. Our evangelistic work is the instrument that He uses for this purpose, but the power that saves is not in the instrument: it is in the hand of the One who uses the instrument. We must not at any stage forget that. For if we forget that it is God’s prerogative to give results when the gospel is preached, we shall start to think that it is our responsibility to secure them. And if we forget that only God can give faith, we shall start to think that the making of converts depends, in the last analysis, not on God, but on us, and that the decisive factor is the way in which we evangelize. And this line of thought, consistently followed through will lead us astray." (J.I. Packer, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, pg. 25, Intervarsity Press 1991)
Fight the Good Fight of Faith
Tony
Some Resources to Consider
Trusting God by Jerry Bridges
Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges
Practice of Godliness by Jerry Bridges
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer
The Sovereignty of God by A.W. Pink
Dr. Mohler's Blog
Newsnote: Boys Wearing Skirts to School? What's Going On? by Al Mohler
Dr. Mohler examines the gender confusion among our youth which is another sad consequence of postmodernism.
Adrian Warnock
Knowledge Puffs Up by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Adrian posts a quote from Martyn Lloyd-Jones who explains the dangers of studying Scripture for mere intellectual pursuit.
Ligonier Blog
The Gospel Is for the Broken by Rod Rosenbladt
Dr. Rosenbladt talks about the sad cases of Christian "alumni".
The Thirsty Theologian
Ignorance Above Other Sins by William Gurnall
A quote from William Gurnall concerning sin.
Reformation Theology
Election v. Self Sufficiency by John Samson
Why a true understanding of the doctrine of election is vital for the Christian?
"FIGHTING MAD" or other articles of interest
Daily News Los Angeles
Evangelist Tony Alamo sentenced to 175 years in federal prison
Delivered on Sabbath Morning, April 11, 1858, by the
REV. C. H. Spurgeon
At the Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens.
"But the very hairs of your head are all numbered."—Matthew 10:30.
DURING THIS WEEK my mind has been much directed to the subject of Providence,and you will not wonder when I relate a portion of one day's story. I was engaged to preach last Wednesday at Halifax, where there was a heavy snow storm. Preparations had been made for a congregation of 8000 persons, and a huge wooden structure had been erected. I considered that owing to the severe weather, few persons could possibly assemble, and I looked forward to the dreary task of addressing an insignificant handful of people in a vast place. However, when I arrived, I found from 5000 to 6000 people gathered together to hear the Word; and a more substantial looking place it has not been my lot to see. It certainly was a huge uncomely building, but, nevertheless, it seemed well adapted to answer the purpose. We met together in the afternoon and worshipped God, and again in the evening, and we separated to our homes, or rather, we were about to separate, and all this while the kind providence of God was watching over us. Immediately in front of me there was a huge gallery, which looked an exceedingly massive structure, capable of holding 2000 persons. This, in the afternoon, was crowded, and it seemed to stand as firm as a rock. Again in the evening there it stood, and neither moved nor shook. But mark the provident hand of God: in the evening, when the people were about to retire, and when there was scarcely more than a hundred persons there, a huge beam gave way, and down came a portion of the flooring of the gallery with a fearful crash. Several persons were precipitated with the planks, but still the good hand of God watched over us, and only two persons were severely injured with broken legs, which it is trusted will be re-set without the necessity of amputation. Now, had this happened any earlier, not only must many more have been injured, but there are a thousand chances to one, as we say, that a panic must necessarily have ensued similar to that which we still remember, and deplore as having occurred in this place. Had such a thing occurred, and had I been the unhappy preacher on the occasion, I feel certain that I should never have been able to occupy the pulpit again. Such was the effect of the first calamity, that I marvel that I ever survived. No human tongue can possibly tell what I experienced. The Lord, however, graciously preserved us; the fewness of the people in the gallery prevented any such catastrophe, and thus a most fearful accident was averted. But we have a more marvellous providence still to record. Overloaded by the immense weight of snow which fell upon it, and beaten by a heavy wind, the entire building fell with an enormous crash three hours after we had left it, splitting the huge timbers into shivers, and rendering very much of the material utterly useless for any future building. Now mark this—had the snow begun three hours earlier, the building must have fallen upon us, and how few of us would have escaped we cannot guess. But mark another thing. All day long it thawed so fast, that the snow as it fell seemed to leave a mass, not of white snow, but of snow and water together. This ran through the roof upon us, to our considerable annoyance, and I was almost ready to complain that we had hard dealing from God's providence. But if it had been a frost instead of a thaw, you can easily perceive that the place must have fallen several hours beforehand, and then your minister, and the greater part of his congregation, would probably have been in the other world. Some there may be who deny providence altogether. I cannot conceive that there were any partakers of the scene who could have done so. This I know, if I had been an unbeliever to this day in the doctrine of the supervision and wise care of God, I must have been a believer in it at this hour. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together; he hath been very gracious unto us, and remembered us for good.
Now, when we look abroad into the world we see, as we think, such abundant proofs that there is a God, that we are apt to treat a man who denies the existence of a God with very little respect or patience. We believe him to be wilfully blind, for we see God's name so legible upon the very surface of creation, that we cannot have patience with him if he dares to deny the existence of a Creator. And in the matter of salvation: we have each of us seen in our own salvation such positive marks of the Lord's dealings with us, that we are apt to be somewhat censorious and harsh towards any who propound a doctrine which would teach salvation apart from God. And I think we shall be very apt this morning to think hardly of the man, who, having seen and heard of such a providence as that which I have just related, could fail to see God's hand. It seems to me that the hand of God in providence is as clear as in creation; and whilst I am sure that if saved at all I must be saved by God, I feel equally certain that every matter which concerns all of us in daily life, bears upon itself the evident trace of being the handiwork of Jehovah, our God. We must, if we would be true believers in God, and would avoid all atheism, give unto him the kingship in the three kingdoms of creation, grace, and providence. It is in the last, however, that I think we are the most apt to forget him; we may easily see God in creation if we be at all enlightened, and if saved, we cannot avoid confessing that salvation is of the Lord alone. The very way in which we are saved, and the effect of grace in our hearts, always compels us to feel that God is just. But providence is such a chequered thing, and you and I are so prone to misjudge God and to come to rash conclusions concerning his dealings with us, that perhaps this is the greatest stronghold of our natural Atheism—a doubt of God's dealings with us in the arrangements of outward affairs. This morning I shall not be able to go deeply into the subject, but very heartily can I enter into it, after being so great a partaker of his wonder-working power.
From the text I shall draw one or two points. First of all, the text says, "the very hairs of our head are all numbered." From this I shall infer the minuteness of providence. Again, inasmuch as it is said of believers that the hairs of their head are all numbered, I shall infer the kind consideration, the generous care, which God exercises over Christians. And then, from the text, and from our Saviour's reason for uttering these words, I shall draw a practical conclusion of what should be the spirit and temper of the men who believe this truth—that the very hairs of their head are all numbered.
I. First, then, our text very clearly teaches us THE MINUTENESS OF PROVIDENCE. Every man can see providence in great things; it is very seldom that you find any person denying that when an avalanche falls from the summit of the Alps, the hand, the terrible hand of God is there. There are very few men who do not feel that God is present in the whirlwind, and in the storm. Most men will acknowledge that the earthquake, the hurricane, the devastation of war, and the ravages of pestilence, come from the hand of God. We find most men very willing to confess that God is God of the hills, but they forget that he is also Lord of the valleys. They will grant that he deals with great masses, but not with individuals; with seas in the bulk, but not with drops. Most men forget, however, that the fact which they believe of providence being in great things involves a providence in the little, for it were an inconsistent belief that the mass were in God's hand, whilst the atom was left to chance; it is indeed a belief that contradicts itself; we must believe all chance or else all God. We must have all ordained and arranged, or else we must have everything left to the wild whirlwind of chance and accident. But I believe that it is in little things that we fail to see God; therefore, it is to the little things that I call your attention this morning.
I believe my text means literally what it says. "The very hairs of your head are all numbered." God's wisdom and knowledge are so great, that he even knows the number of the hairs upon our head. His providence descends to the minute particles of dust in the summer gale; he numbers the gnats in the sunshine, and the fishes in the sea. While it certainly doth control the massive orbs that shine in heaven, it doth not blush to deal with the drop that trickleth from the eye.
Now, I shall want you to notice, how little circumstances of daily life, when we come to put them all together, evidently betray their origin. I will take a Scripture history, and show how the little events must have been of God, as well as the great results. When Joseph was sent into Egypt by his brethren, in order to provide for them against a day of famine, we all agree with Joseph's declaration, "It was God that sent me hither." But now, if we notice each of the little ways through which this great result was brought to pass, we shall see God in each of them. One day, Joseph's brethren are gone out with the sheep; Jacob wants to send to them. Why does he send Joseph? He was his darling son; he loved him better than all his brethren. Why does he send him away? He sends him, however. Then why should it have happened at that particular time, that Jacob should want to send at all? However, he did want to send, and he did send Joseph. A mere accident you will say, but quite necessary as the basement of the structure. Joseph goes; his brethren are in want of pasture, and therefore leave Shechem, where Joseph expected to find them, and journey on to Dothan. Why go to Dothan? Was not the whole land before them? However Joseph goes there; he arrives at Dothan just when they are thinking of him and his dreams, and they put him into a pit. As they are about to eat bread, some Ishmaelites came by. Why did they come there at all? Why did they come at that particular time? Why were they going to Egypt? Why might they not have been going any other way? Why was it that the Ishmaelites wanted to buy slaves? Why might they not have been trading in some other commodity? However, Joseph is sold; but he is not disposed of on the road to Egypt, he is taken to the land. Why is it that Potiphar is to buy him? Why is it that Potiphar has a wife, at all? Why is it again that Potiphar's wife should be so full of lust? Why should Joseph get into prison? How is it that the baker and the butler should offend their master? All chance, as the world has it, but every link necessary to make the chain. They do both offend their master; they are both put into prison. How is it that they both dream? How is it that Joseph interprets the dreams? How is it that the butler forgets him? Why, just because if he had recollected him, it would have spoiled it all. Why is it Pharaoh dreams? How can dreams be under the arrangement of God's providence? However, Pharaoh does dream; the butler then thinks of Joseph; Joseph is brought out of prison and taken before Pharaoh. But take away any of those simple circumstances, break any one of the links of the chain, and the whole of the design is scattered to the winds. You cannot get the machine to work; if any of the minute cogs of the wheels are taken away, everything is disarranged. I think it seems very clear to any man who will dissect not only that, but any other history he likes to fix upon, that there must be a God in the little accidents and dealings of daily life, as well as in the great results that tell upon the page of history, and are recounted in our songs. God is to be seen in little things.
We will now notice, in the minutiae of providence, how punctualprovidence always is. You will never wonder more at providence, than when you consider how well God keeps time with himself. To return to our history—how is it that the Ishmaelites should come by just at that time? How many thousand chances there were that their journey might have been taken just before! There certainly was no special train to call at that station at that particular time, so that Joseph's brethren might arrange to go and call him. No such thing. And yet if there had been all this arrangement, it could not have happened better. You know Reuben intended to fetch Joseph out of the pit half an hour later, and "the child was not." God had these Ishmaelites ready: you do not know how he may have sped them on their journey, or delayed them, so as to bring them on the spot punctually at the identical moment.
To give another instance, there was a poor woman whose son had been raised from the dead by Elisha; she, however, had left her country at the time of famine, and had lost her estate. She wanted to get it back; God determined that she should have it. How was it to be done? The king sends for Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, and he talks to him: he tells him one instance about a woman who had had a child raised from the dead. How strange! in comes the woman herself. My lord, this is the woman; she comes to obtain her suit. Her desire is granted, just because at the very moment the king's mind is interested concerning her. All chance, was it not? Nothing but chance? So fools say; but those who read Bibles, and those who have judgment, say there is something more than chance in such a coalition of circumstances. It could not be a mere coincidence, as men sometimes say; there must be God here, for it is harder to think that there is not God than that there is. And whilst a belief in God may be said by some to involve a great stretch of faith, the putting him out of such things as this, would involve an infinitely greater amount of credulity. No, there was God there.
There is another instance that I remember in the New Testament history. Paul goes into the temple, and the Jews rush upon him in a moment to kill him. They drag him out of the temple, and the doors are shut against him. They are just in the very act of killing him, and what is to become of poor Paul's life? Five minutes longer and Paul will be dead, when up comes the chief captain and delivers him. How was it that the chief captain knew of it? Very probably some young man of the crowd who knew Paul and loved him, ran to tell him. But why was it that the chief captain was at home? How was it that the ruler was able to come on a moment's emergency? How was it that he did come at all? It was only just a Hebrew, a man that was good for nothing, being killed. How was it that he came, and when he came the streets were full; there was a mob about Jerusalem? How did he come to the right street? How did he come at the exact nick of time? Say, "It is all chance!" I laugh at you; it is providence. If there be anything in the world that is plain to any man that thinks, it is plain that God
LETTER I
Our Good Shepherd
by John Newton
(Letters written on the subjects of humility and depending on God 1/7)
March 18, 1767.
I can truly say, that I bear you upon my heart and in my prayers. I have rejoiced to see the beginning of a good and gracious work in you; and I have confidence in the Lord Jesus, that He will carry it on and complete it; and that you will be amongst the number of those who shall sing redeeming love to eternity. Therefore fear none of the things appointed for you to suffer by the way, but gird up the loins of your mind, and hope to the end. Be not impatient, but wait humbly upon the Lord. You have one hard lesson to learn, that is, the evil of your own heart: you know something of it, but it is needful that you should know more; for the more we know of ourselves, the more we shall prize and love Jesus and His salvation. I hope what you find in yourself by daily experience will humble you, but not discourage you; humble you it should, and I believe it does. Are not you amazed sometimes that you should have so much as a hope that, poor and needy as you are, the Lord thinketh of you? But let not all you feel discourage you; for if our Physician is almighty, our disease cannot be desperate; and if He casts none out that come to Him, why should you fear? Our sins are many, but His mercies are more: our sins are great, but His righteousness is greater: we are weak, but He is power. Most of our complaints are owing to unbelief, and the remainder of a legal spirit; and these evils are not removed in a day. Wait on the Lord, and He will enable you to see more and more of the power and grace of our High Priest. The more you know Him, the better you will trust Him; the more you trust Him, the better you will love Him; the more you love Him, the better you will serve Him. This is God's way: you are not called to buy, but to beg; not to be strong in yourself, but in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. He is teaching you these things, and I trust He will teach you to the end. Remember the growth of a believer is not like a mushroom, but like an oak, which increases slowly indeed, but surely. Many suns, showers, and frosts pass upon it before it comes to perfection; and in winter, when it seems dead, it is gathering strength at the root. Be humble, watchful, and diligent in the means, and endeavour to look through all, and fix your eye upon Jesus, and all shall be well. I commend you to the care of the good Shepherd, and remain, for His sake,
Yours, &c.;
H.T.: Fire and Ice
Institute for Nouthetic Studies Blog
Imitation by Jay Adams
Jay gives practical principles on how we can be imitators of the Apostle Paul.
Pyromaniacs
Settled Certainty by Phil Johnson
Are Christians displaying arrogance when they claim personal assurance of salvation?
DeYoung the Restless and the Reformed
Prayerlessness is Unbelief by Kevin DeYoung
Excellent and convicting article by Kevin on prayer and what our lack of prayer reveals about our Christian walk.
Desiring God Blog
9 Ways to Know the Gospel of Christ is True by John Piper
The White Horse Inn Blog
From A Movement to a Church by Michael Horton
Are parachurch ministries replacing the church? Dr. Horton's first post in a series of articles dealing with this issue.
"FIGHTING MAD" or other articles of interest
Ligonier Blog
Asking the Most Important Question by R.C. Sproul
Dr. Sproul on the importance of Christians believing their assurance of salvation.
SWORD DRILLS
"Loving God and Loving Our Neighbor
Through Our Evangelism"
by
Tony Zabala
"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And He said to him, " 'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.' "This is the great and foremost commandment. "The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' (Matt. 22: 36-39)
Last time, we took a look at the primary reason why Christian's evangelize which is to glorify God. We glorify God not only in our evangelistic efforts, but we also found out that if there are any sin issues that we refuse to deal with despite the fact that we continue to evangelize we will not bring glory to God and our evangelistic efforts will be in vain. Today, we will take a look at the next two reasons why Christians' evangelize, and that's because they love God and love their neighbor.
Jesus and the two greatest commandments
In Matthew 22: 36-39, our Lord is asked a question by one of the Scribes. The Scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees were always trying to catch our Lord in a trap by asking him trick questions. On this day, the Scribe's question was, "Teacher, which is the great commandment of the Law?" Jesus, adeptly answered him by summing up the whole moral law, "You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is the great and foremost commandment. "The second is like it, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself.', thereby fulfilling the whole moral law.
How does the Christian fulfill those two great commandments? The Christian shows his love for God by obeying the first four commandments of the 10 commandments or moral law. The Christian shows love for his neighbor by obeying the last six commandments of the 10 commandments.
How do we show our love for God through our evangelism?
So how do we show our love for God through our evangelism? The first thing we must do, simply, is to follow God's commands concerning evangelism. First off, we show our love for God by keeping His commandments. Jesus said in John 14:15, "If you love me you will keep my commandments". If you want to show your love toward God through your evangelism all you have to do is follow His commands to "evangelize":
“And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mark 16:15)
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matt. 28: 19-20)
". . .but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." (Acts 1:8)
Another way that we show our love for God through our evangelism is to be concerned about the things that God is concerned with. The Christian shows love toward God by caring about the things that God is concerned about. One concern that God has is to seek and save those that are lost. Jesus said in Luke 19:10, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." Jesus concern for the lost was the same love and concern that the Father has for the lost as illustrated in the parable of the lost sheep where the Shepherd (God the Father) in the parable was concerned, cared for, and even went after that one lost sheep (Luke 18:12-14).
Jesus, the Son, has the same love and concern for the lost like God the Father has, and likewise, as His adopted children, we should have the same care and concern for the lost as well. Now that we have looked at two reasons how we show love toward God through over evangelism, let's now look at how we show love toward our neighbor through our evangelism.
How do we show our love for our neighbor through our evangelism?
Once again, we show our love to our neighbor through our evangelism by following God's commandment to proclaim the Gospel to our neighbor. The greatest love you can show your neighbor is to proclaim the Gospel to him. To tell your neighbor that they are lost, dying sinners without hope unless they repent of their sins and put their trust in faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior is the greatest love you can ever show your neighbor.
Paul stated in Romans 10:15, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!" The Gospel is "good news" despite the fact that your neighbor may despise and reject you for your faithfulness in proclaiming it. As a Christian, you are an ambassador and a representative of Christ called out to bring the Gospel of peace to unbelievers who are currently at war with God because of their sinful and wicked ways (2 Cor. 5:20).
If God so chooses, he may save that person you are witnessing to through the power of the Holy Spirit and that person will no longer be at war with God (John 3:8; Rom. 9:15). That's why Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). One characteristic of a son of God is that he is a "peacemaker" who is a bearer of the "Gospel of peace" and the proclamation of that Gospel of peace through the power of the Holy Spirit can turn a wicked sinner who is at war with God and an enemy of Christ into a son of God, who is at peace with God, and a friend of Christ.
Another way that we can show love toward our neighbor through our evangelism is by showing our compassion to them (Matt. 25: 35-40; Jam. 4: 14-17). Whether it be listening to their troubles or meeting their physical needs, we show our love to our neighbors through our evangelism by showing compassion toward them by meeting their needs and using that as a springboard to present the Gospel to them. However, none of this matters, if you don't lead a holy life that is pleasing to God.
You still need to lead a holy life
Living a holy life is vital to our testimony and shows our love for God and for our neighbor through our evangelism. God commands us to lead holy lives. (Matt. 5:8; 1 Tim. 4:8; 1 Pet. 1:16). As I stated in a previous post, I have met many Christians or professing Christians over the years who are skilled evangelists, have zeal for evangelism, and desire to honor God through their evangelism, but do not lead holy lives. There is usually some sin issue they will either deny or ignore and still insist on evangelizing despite their sinful behavior. This always leads to disastrous results.
That's because they are measuring their Christian lives through their evangelism rather than first and foremost living a life that's glorifying to God and bearing the fruits from their evangelism through the holy life that they lead. Remember, it's all about God's glory as I pointed out the last time. Your life does not honor or glorify God in any way if you still continue to evangelize and have a sin issue in your life that you are either denying or ignoring. Jesus said, "If you love me you will keep my commandments" (John 14:15). Loving God means that the Christian follows all of God's commandments not merely the commandments to evangelize.
Finally, you are neither showing love to God or to your neighbor if you continue to evangelize and not deal with your sin issue. You will eventually bear the fruits of your sinful behavior and you will bring reproach to yourself, your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, and most importantly to Christ Himself. That's something to seriously consider.
Fight the Good Fight of Faith
Tony
Some helpful resources to consider:
Words to Winners of Souls by Horatius Bonar
The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges
The Practice of Godliness by Jerry Bridges
One Thing You Can't Do In Heaven by Mark Cahill
Humility by C.J. Mahaney
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer
Holiness by J.C. Ryle
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