Tried With Fire

Our Lord Jesus does recommend morality and good works, as all faithful ministers will do, and clears the moral law from many corrupt glosses put upon it by the letter-learned Pharisees. But before he comes to this, he talks of inward piety, such as poverty of spirit, meekness, holy mourning, purity of heart, and especially hungering and thirsting after righteousness. He then recommends good works as evidence that we have his righteousness imputed to us, and these graces wrought in our hearts. Matthew 5:16 says, "Let you light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." Then Jesus immediately adds in the next verse, "Do not think I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them (to take away the force of it as a rule of life) but to fulfill them (to obey it in its whole latitude, and give the complete sense of it)." Then he goes on to show how broad the moral law is. So our ...

I've been on a Dorothy Sayers kick thanks to these lectures by Jerram Barrs. Here is a list of recent Sayers' reads: Are Women Human?  - Two short but brilliant essays on how women are perceived and treated. Even though these were written in the 1930s, Sayers' questions are relevant today. Are women human? Or are they sort-of human but not fully human? Busman's Honeymoon - The last of the Lord Peter Wimsey novels and my favorite. Lots of depth in the relationship between Peter and Harriet. The friendly quotation quizzing between Peter and Chief Superintendent Kirk is quite fun. Clouds of Witness - 2nd mystery in the series where Peter's brother Gerald is accused of murder. Sayers makes a small allusion to Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey . Gaudy Night  -  Trouble at a woman's college at Oxford and final resolution of Peter's courtship of Harriet Vane. Strong Poison  - Introducing Harriet Vane in the dock for a murder she did not commit. Tw...

On April 14, 276 Nigerian school girls were kidnapped to be sold as "wives" by Boko Haram . This story was picked up by the media, setting off a flood of tweets with the hashtag #BringBackOur Girls. Politicians, celebrities, and the average person on the street called for the Nigerian government as well as the US to do something. To date, 219 girls are still missing . Unfortunately this is only one horrifying example of the global violence against women and girls. According to the statistics more girls have been killed in the last 50 years because they were girls than men killed in all the battles of the 20th century. This is rightly called gendercide because the victims are targeted based on gender alone. 1 As Christians, sin should be no surprise. Mankind has been corrupted at the root and chooses evil over good since the fall. But the sexual assault, sex trafficking, domestic violence, forced abortion, infanticide of girl babies, honor killings, rape as a weapon of w...

All believers, whether they are men or women, ought to be subject to Jesus Christ, for he is the Head of the church. He has bought her by his blood. Believers, therefore, are not their own, but are under the highest obligation to glorify and obey Christ in their bodies and their souls, which are his. But what is more, we find perfect freedom in his service. His commandments are holy, just, and good. Therefore, it is your highest privilege, O believers, to submit to and obey them. Earthly husbands may be so mean as to impose some things upon their wives, merely to show their authority, but it is not so with Jesus Christ. He can, and does, impose nothing except that which is conducive to our present and future good. George Whitefield Daily Readings , Randall J. Pederson, ed., Christian Focus Publications, 2010,  from the June 21 reading.

I'm posting at Out of the Ordinary today: According to Paul Tripp, one thing that is true for every middle-aged person is  our lives have not worked according to our plan.  He writes, "Our lives have taken twists and turns that we could have never imagined. Some of those turns have left us amazed and thankful while others caused profound pain and loss. In all our planning and our careful decision making, we are still caught up short, surprised by the details of our own existence." When I read this, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry because life has  not  turn out the way I planned. As providence would have it,  most of the unexpected and devastating game-changers occurred  after  I turned 40. Not a very warm welcome to midlife. Of course, there is always the temptation to avoid facing the unfulfilled expectations and shattered dreams. Isn't that what lies at the heart of a midlife crisis? The world is more than happy to distract us with it...

When God brought Eve to Adam, he received her with joy, and said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh" (Gen. 2:23). Adam and Eve were one flesh, and were to have one heart. The same terms are used in Scripture to express the believer's union with Jesus Christ. We are called Christians after Christ's name, and made partakers of Christ's nature. Out of his fullness believers receive grace for grace. O infinite condescension! O ineffable union! Hence it is that believers are said to be members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. Hence it is, that the apostle, speaking of himself, says, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Gal. 2:20). What an expression! How much it comprehends! The question was given to the Corinthians: "Do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? - unless indeed you fail to meet the test!" (2 Cor. 13:5). Agreeable to this is Colossians 1:27: "Christ...

The sinister truth about  durian. ..

Source I am thankful for: Cooler nights and fans - Our AC died a few days ago. The unit is quite old and it was only a matter of time. Of course once it gets hot, everyone's AC has trouble, so the problem won't get diagnosed until Monday. In the meantime, I'm grateful it didn't die when the temps were in the upper 90's. I'm also thankful for fans and a home warranty. Simple pleasures such as nice hot cup of tea, a chocolate chip muffin, and a good book. Family and friends who look after my parents - Distance is tough when your folks get older. I am very thankful for my sister and brother-in-law who are close by as well as the saints in my parent's church who help them in so many ways. Wise counsel from the saints - Thanking God for the help He provides through the body of Christ. The local church - There may be more scenic and culturally stimulating places to live, but be it ever so humble and even boring at times, there's no place like ho...

What! Will not all the arguments I have mentioned, prevail you to leave the husks, and return home to eat the fatted calf? What! Will you thus requite our Savior's love? That should be far from you! Did he come down and shed his precious blood to deliver you from the power of sin, and will you spend your youthful strength and vigor in the service of it, and then think to serve Christ when you can follow your lusts no longer? Is it right that many who are endowed with excellent gifts, and are thereby qualified to be supports and ornaments of our church, should, notwithstanding, forget the God who gave them their gifts, and employ themselves in things that will not profit? O why will they not arise and be zealous for the Lord of hosts? Doubtless, when death overtakes them, they will wish they had, and what hinders them to begin now? Do you think that anyone has ever yet repented that he began to be religious too soon?  But how many on the contrary, have repented that they began when ...

Active Spirituality: Grace and Effort in the Christian Life , Brian G. Hedges, Shepherd Press , April 2014, 144 pages. What is the Christian life all about? Do we rest or run? Does any effort on our part conflict with the grace of God? How do we know we're saved? What about continuing struggles with sin? Have you ever asked these questions? I certainly have. In Active Spirituality: Grace and Effort in the Christian Life ,  author Brian Hedges provides biblical and pastoral answers to these and other questions. While there are many books on Christian growth, Active Spirituality has taken a unique tack. These topics of the faith are discussed in the form of 31 letters from the author to a fictional young believer. As far as the book's style, the letters are engaging and very believable. They are interspersed with scripture and quotes and are well-anchored in the gospel. As far as the content, Active Spirituality couldn't have come at a better time. Sanctification ...

Sitting: At my desk and listening to the birds perform their morning chorus. They sound so happy and cheery. I could use a little of that pep this morning. Drinking A nice hot cup of Uganda tea. Listening: To the whir of my new-to-me work computer. It's amazing the difference sufficient RAM makes. By comparison, my old machine was powered by a snails mired in molasses. Still preferring: Mac environment to Windows. I'm trying to make sense of the ins and outs of the latest version of Word. It's not streamlined or intuitive. Too many unnecessary clicks IMO. Hoping: The weeds grass can wait until this week-end for a trim. It's not a meadow yet. Trying: To finish the reading I had scheduled for May. My reading plan has taken a few detours which isn't unexpected. Needing: Another bookshelf. The books are starting to pile up again. It's so hard to say no when you find a great deal on a used book in great condition. Getting up: To grab some breakfast and...

In the Christian life, we never stop learning from the Word or from the circumstances where God has placed us. Midlife is no exception. Sure there may be the jokes and over-inflated expectations thanks to the advertisement industry, but it's a great time to learn God's grace, perhaps in different ways than we did 20-30 years. I hope you'll join the ladies at Out of the Ordinary as we take the month of June to write about middle-age and what God has been teaching us.

When I was young, my sister and I would play house. If we were in the mood, we would go back in time to "the olden days" and imagine we were a pioneer or colonial family. We even used a cardboard tube from Christmas wrapping paper as a pump handle and made sure we did not turn on the tap in the play sink. But we didn't know how hard life was back then. It never dawned on me, as a child, that Laura and her family nearly starved to death during that long, hard winter . Families in the community banded together and held a Pride and Prejudice Ball several years ago. I sewed matching regency ball gowns for my daughter and myself. We attended English country dance lessons in preparation. It was so easy to romanticize about life in that era especially after watching the Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle version over and over again. But we were pretending to be the gentry, not servants or the working classes who had no ability to "quit the sphere" in which they were born. ...

The imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ is a comforting doctrine to all Christians. To you, sinner, who ask what you must do to be saved, how uncomfortable would it be to tell you, by good works, when perhaps you have never done one good work in all your life.  This would be driving you to despair. Indeed, no: "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved," (Acts 16:31). Come to Jesus by faith, and he will receive you. You have no righteousness of your own to depend upon. If you are to be saved, it is by the righteousness of Christ, through his atonement and sacrifice for sin. His righteousness must be imputed to you, otherwise you cannot be saved. There is no difference between you, by nature,  and the greatest criminal; the difference made is all owing to the free, rich, and underserved grace of God. Come by faith to Christ. Do not come, Pharisee-like, telling God what you have done, how often you have gone to church, received the sacraments, fasted, prayed, or the li...