2 Chronicles 26
3 Sixteen years old was Uzziah when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Jecoliah of Jerusalem.
4 And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah did.
5 And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him to prosper.
More From 2 Chronicles 26
23 So Uzziah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the field of the burial which belonged to the kings; for they said, He is a leper....
Jesus Is In View
Uzziah was a great King of Judah and he accomplished much. But, in the end, he did make a serious mistake in the sight of the Lord, and leprosy was his payment for his mistake. And that is a message, a warning that all men, even kings, must bow to the will of God. It also points to the need for the coming, saving grace of Jesus Christ.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
John the Baptist - the Humble Life
Luke 3
12 Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do?
13 And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you.
14 And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what hall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages.
15 And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not;
It's Just That Simple
Here starts the Gospel theme that is important to me: living a simple and humble life. In Peter's words to Cornelius, "But in every nation, he that feareth God and worketh righteousness, is accepted by him."
12 Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do?
13 And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you.
14 And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what hall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages.
15 And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not;
It's Just That Simple
Here starts the Gospel theme that is important to me: living a simple and humble life. In Peter's words to Cornelius, "But in every nation, he that feareth God and worketh righteousness, is accepted by him."
Sunday, March 22, 2009
FW: Baptism of the Spirit
Matthew 3
11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
12 whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Real Baptism, From Chafer's Systematic Theology:
The Baptism of the Spirit is the Spirit's mighty undertaking by which He joins the individual believer to Christ's Body and thus to Christ Himself as the Head of the Body. Because of this great achievement on the part of the Spirit, the believer is from that moment in Christ and is thus brought under the influence of His headship. No influence could be more transforming, more purifying relative to position, or more vital in its outworking than that engendered by a removal from the fallen headship of Adam into the exalted Headship of Christ. No other transformation is comparable to this.
I have no special, unique, personal opinions on baptism to share. So, I have included Chafer's discussion above. His discussion is so wonderfully precise.
I don't know this for a fact, but, I am pretty sure that I have spent more time thinking about and studying and meditating over the doctrines related to baptism than anyone else.
11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
12 whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Real Baptism, From Chafer's Systematic Theology:
The Baptism of the Spirit is the Spirit's mighty undertaking by which He joins the individual believer to Christ's Body and thus to Christ Himself as the Head of the Body. Because of this great achievement on the part of the Spirit, the believer is from that moment in Christ and is thus brought under the influence of His headship. No influence could be more transforming, more purifying relative to position, or more vital in its outworking than that engendered by a removal from the fallen headship of Adam into the exalted Headship of Christ. No other transformation is comparable to this.
I have no special, unique, personal opinions on baptism to share. So, I have included Chafer's discussion above. His discussion is so wonderfully precise.
I don't know this for a fact, but, I am pretty sure that I have spent more time thinking about and studying and meditating over the doctrines related to baptism than anyone else.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Evangelism and Calvin
Luke 42
44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
I would like to be there when God applies his efficacious grace to a fellow sinner.
44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
I would like to be there when God applies his efficacious grace to a fellow sinner.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The King James Version
Proverbs 30
5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
I can't find any great Bible passages to support the argument that the King James Version is better than any other translations. There are good arguments to be made, but no good Bible passages.
That being said, I only read the King James Version. And I find John Gill to be the most reliable source of help for passages I can't readily comprehend. And, there are quite a few of those.
5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
I can't find any great Bible passages to support the argument that the King James Version is better than any other translations. There are good arguments to be made, but no good Bible passages.
That being said, I only read the King James Version. And I find John Gill to be the most reliable source of help for passages I can't readily comprehend. And, there are quite a few of those.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Churches - Smoldering Wick (Brused Reed, Smoking Flax) - the Website
Isaiah 42
1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
Churches Are Problematical
Smolderingwick.org is a website for fired, fallen and burnt out preachers. It shows us the church at its worse. The Church can be, I guess, problematical. Then again, the Church is not the end-state of Christianity - the Kingdom is.
Comments On Isaiah 42 From Rashi, A Medieval Hebrew Commentor:
1. "A breaking (bruised) reed he shall not break." Jonathan paraphrases: The meek, who are like a breaking reed, shall not break, and the poor, who are like a flickering candle, shall not be quenched.
2. "A flickering flaxen wick (smoking flax)." A wet flaxen wick, that is nearly extinguished. Their king will not rob the poor and will not break the poor and the weak.
3. "Neither shall he weaken nor shall he be broken (He shall not fail nor be discouraged)." He shall not be broken, “for the earth shall be full of knowledge of the Lord as water covers the seabed.”
1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
Churches Are Problematical
Smolderingwick.org is a website for fired, fallen and burnt out preachers. It shows us the church at its worse. The Church can be, I guess, problematical. Then again, the Church is not the end-state of Christianity - the Kingdom is.
Comments On Isaiah 42 From Rashi, A Medieval Hebrew Commentor:
1. "A breaking (bruised) reed he shall not break." Jonathan paraphrases: The meek, who are like a breaking reed, shall not break, and the poor, who are like a flickering candle, shall not be quenched.
2. "A flickering flaxen wick (smoking flax)." A wet flaxen wick, that is nearly extinguished. Their king will not rob the poor and will not break the poor and the weak.
3. "Neither shall he weaken nor shall he be broken (He shall not fail nor be discouraged)." He shall not be broken, “for the earth shall be full of knowledge of the Lord as water covers the seabed.”
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Fuller on Reconciling Calvinistic and Arminian Texts
Matthew 28
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
From The Gospel Worthy of All Acceptation, by Andrew Fuller:
The truth is, there are but two ways for us to take: one is to reject them both [Calvinistic and Arminian texts], and the Bible with them, on account of its inconsistencies; the other is to embrace them both [Calvinistic and Arminian texts], concluding that, as they are both revealed in the Scriptures, they are both true, and both consistent, and that it is owing to the darkness of our understandings that they do not appear so to us. Those excellent lines of Dr. Watts, in his Hymn on Election, one should think, must approve themselves to every pious heart: --
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
From The Gospel Worthy of All Acceptation, by Andrew Fuller:
The truth is, there are but two ways for us to take: one is to reject them both [Calvinistic and Arminian texts], and the Bible with them, on account of its inconsistencies; the other is to embrace them both [Calvinistic and Arminian texts], concluding that, as they are both revealed in the Scriptures, they are both true, and both consistent, and that it is owing to the darkness of our understandings that they do not appear so to us. Those excellent lines of Dr. Watts, in his Hymn on Election, one should think, must approve themselves to every pious heart: --
But, O my soul, if truth so brightEnough said.........
Should dazzle and confound thy sight,
Yet still his written will obey,
And wait the great decisive day.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
1 Pe 3 Spirits in Prison - Exhortation
1 Peter 3
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
Why was Jesus preaching to the sometime disobedient? Did they end up in a fiery hell? I spent a lot of time trying to figure this passage out. Gill, Matthew Henry and Jamison, Fawcett, Brown did not provide satisfying explanations. What exactly is the current condition of these poor lost souls?
I have finally concluded that Peter, in telling of this incident, was exhorting his flock. Just as Jesus commands the various churches to repent in Revelantions. And the exhortation continues on through out the centuries.
Charles Sperry Chafer identifies 183 fundamental doctrines, and exhortation is not one of them. Maybe exhortation should be considered a fundamental doctrine. Another example of exhortation:
Revelations 2
15 So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicola'itans, which thing I hate.
16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
Why was Jesus preaching to the sometime disobedient? Did they end up in a fiery hell? I spent a lot of time trying to figure this passage out. Gill, Matthew Henry and Jamison, Fawcett, Brown did not provide satisfying explanations. What exactly is the current condition of these poor lost souls?
I have finally concluded that Peter, in telling of this incident, was exhorting his flock. Just as Jesus commands the various churches to repent in Revelantions. And the exhortation continues on through out the centuries.
Charles Sperry Chafer identifies 183 fundamental doctrines, and exhortation is not one of them. Maybe exhortation should be considered a fundamental doctrine. Another example of exhortation:
Revelations 2
15 So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicola'itans, which thing I hate.
16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Prayer - Longsuffering
2 Timothy 4
3 Giving no offense in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:
4 but in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,
5 in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings, in fastings;
6 by pureness, by knowledge, by long-suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,
7 by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
8 by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;
9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;
10 as sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
Prayer....Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for tempering my longsuffering with the comfort of your amazing grace....Amen.
3 Giving no offense in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:
4 but in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,
5 in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings, in fastings;
6 by pureness, by knowledge, by long-suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,
7 by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
8 by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;
9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;
10 as sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
Prayer....Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for tempering my longsuffering with the comfort of your amazing grace....Amen.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
The Will of God
Colossians 1
9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will....
I like this passages. It is so tentative. Paul does not pray that the the Colossians will be filled with the knowledge of the will of God. He prays that they "might" be filled with the knowledge of his will. On the other hand, we are so sure of the meaning of the Bible.
9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will....
I like this passages. It is so tentative. Paul does not pray that the the Colossians will be filled with the knowledge of the will of God. He prays that they "might" be filled with the knowledge of his will. On the other hand, we are so sure of the meaning of the Bible.
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