BlackCalvinist
Puritan Board Senior
From the latest Thinking Biblically Commentary:
Go listen:
http://theologicallycorrect.com/realaudio/God-WeTrustInYou.mp3
Then Go Read:
http://theologicallycorrect.com/ingodwetrust.html
Read with an open Bible. http://www.biblegateway.com if you're too lazy to flip pages.
Exerpt:
Enjoy, be edified. I know a lot of this preaches to the choir here at PB, but forward it on to your Arminian buddies
Go listen:
http://theologicallycorrect.com/realaudio/God-WeTrustInYou.mp3
Then Go Read:
http://theologicallycorrect.com/ingodwetrust.html
Read with an open Bible. http://www.biblegateway.com if you're too lazy to flip pages.
Exerpt:
See, this is real Christianity. Not the televangelism nonsense you see paraded in bookstores and in popular media. Not people rolling up and down the aisles, barking, laughing, and talking to the air, thinking they can speak something into existence. Not the "˜feel good about yourself´ fast-food Christianity that gets sold with a smiling face in front of crowds of thousands every weekend.
It´s not me centered. It doesn´t focus on what I will do, but moreso on what God has done. It´s not focused on me and how I am this and I am that and all I have to do is say a particular prescribed mantra and it all will come to pass. Instead it focuses on Who God is and how we are to trust Him, even though some of His ways seem to be the complete opposite of what we may consider "˜good´. It´s a real song "“ it reflects various aspects of the Christian life "“ joy, sadness, tragedy and triumph. It´s not a cotton candy Christian song "“ it doesn´t demand blessings, but instead focuses on afflictions and God´s providence in them.
It doesn´t say "œWe´ll meet up for a revival tent meeting and sing blessings down from heaven", but instead realizes that both calamity and blessing equally come from the hand of God. Job acknowledged this when God allowed Satan to strike his whole family dead, afflict his body and more "“ "œThe Lord gives and the Lord takes away "“ blessed be the name of the Lord." (Job 1:20-21) and in all these things, Job did not sin with his lips (Job 1:22, 2:10). Joseph acknowledged this rightly in Genesis 50 when he told his brothers that it was not them who brought him to Egypt, but God.
Think of it.
His brothers beat him, sold him into slavery, he was wrongly accused and imprisoned for a few years and had his name and reputation besmirched. His physical being was tortured as a slave. He had nothing but the former memories of his multicolored coat and his father´s blessing upon him. But then he arose in power as an advisor to Pharoah to become second in command under Pharoah. And it was at this time that he, being warned by God in a dream, did what was necessary to preserve not only Egypt, but all the surrounding nations as well. And in both Genesis 45 and 50 when he reunites with his brothers, he reminds them that he holds no animosity toward them. Only a heart that acknowledged the Sovereign rule of God in all of his seemingly senseless calamities could forgive and realize the purpose for his being put through so much.
This is something sadly missing from most church pulpits today. It´s something missing from most bookstores today. While one author writes about "˜Your Best Life Now´ (the same author who can barely get a public proclamation of the gospel accurate) and another writes about your "˜Purpose Driven Life´, Biblical Christianity is miles away from all-upbeat and positive messages. While folks write about "˜releasing the money anointing´, "˜walking in your authority´ and other topics that give more power to humanity than we really have, the scriptures speak of the apostle to the Gentiles learning to be content in whatever situation he was placed in (Phil. 4:11-12).
You see, most of the songs we see sung in church on Sunday mornings (and I am purposely excluding most reformed churches here) doesn´t pass the reality test. Yes, a lot of what´s sung in church on Sundays can rile up your emotions, make you feel really good about being there, and give you an uplifted feeling so that you felt you´ve "œdone church" or "œhad church". My African-American brethren know what I´m talking about.
But can "œIf you bind it on earth, I´ll bind it in heaven" pass the stake test ? Is it a song that you, if you were under persecution as the early church was, sing joyfully as Roman soldiers would be lighting the flames at your feet, your body being drenched in lamp oil ? Could it pass the test that many saints and sinners alike faced August 29-31, 2005 in Louisiana, Mississippi and other areas and you still sing it strongly and loudly as you see your home looking like little more than a pile of matchsticks with only a few discernable items being left ? As your loved one is swept from your hands by rushing waves of water, could you sing any of the popular gospel or contemporary worship songs with conviction of heart and clarity of mind ?
Think of the books you´ve spent time reading and the preachers you´ve listened to. Looking at the devastation in the gulf states, could you draw anything major of worth from the Christianity you´ve been exposed to on Sunday mornings, the various healing crusades and other "˜churchianity´ events ?
If you´re honest and really looked closely at it, some of you would probably answer no for the bulk of it. And if your answer is no, then you should be well aware that the "˜feel good´ Christianity you´ve been exposed to is really not Christianity at all, no matter how nice the people have been to you or how good and "˜empowered´ the messages made you feel.
If you´re consistent with a right view of the scriptures, you´d know it was blasphemous to attribute environmental calamities of this sort to Satan or think that these things were "œsomehow out of God´s control" or that "œGod was surprised by them and is just as sad as you are" as if He is wringing His hands in heaven, unable to act. No, the God of the scriptures is all-powerful and NO ONE (that includes you and your "˜confessions´) can stop His hand or question what He does (Daniel 4:34-35). So you´d have to come to the conclusion that it is the Lord who causes calamity (Isaiah 45:5-8) as well as blessing upon a city or a person.
Enjoy, be edified. I know a lot of this preaches to the choir here at PB, but forward it on to your Arminian buddies