Boasting in Self is a Bigger Problem than we Realize

"Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law." (Romans 3:27–28)

It seems no matter how hard I try, I am predisposed to weighing my good works verses my bad works and believing I have something to boast in. Its a lie that I know is a lie but somehow, I find myself believing it all the time. If I am faced with a temptation on Monday and Tuesday and overcome it both days, my flesh is inclined to think that giving into it on Wednesday is not as big of a deal because, after all, I was a good boy the last two days. So in my evil mind I think that two days of success outweighs one day of failure and therefore I have a righteousness in which I can boast. This is one example of how works righteousness and self-justification creeps back into our thinking even after we have been drinking at the well of the gospel. One of the reasons works righteousness is so evil and useless is it leaves lots and lots of room for us to live in sin and believe we are doing just fine. The Pharisees and Sadducees in Jesus' day were masters of this craft. We can convince ourselves we are doing well as long as the good heap is taller than the bad heap. It seems no matter how many times I tell myself the gospel, I am inclined to think my dunghill of good deeds actually smells good enough and that its aroma is going to mask the smell of my other dunghill of bad deeds. But at the end of the day it all smells the same because its all flung-dung. (Phil. 3:8)

How can we grow in our ability to identify and neutralize this tendency we all have to rely on the righteousness of our flesh? Keep drinking! Telling yourself the gospel is not useless but is doing its work in your heart. What I mean is drink more deeply of it and never stop. Each time you do this you are eroding away your tendency to think highly of your personal righteousness. Keep confessing. Keep repenting. Keep preaching the gospel to your heart. Keep telling yourself the truth about the worthlessness of your righteousness and the priceless righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ revealed in the gospel. You will start to see all the ways you boast in your righteousness and also all the ways God has loved you in spite of your boasting and this revelation alone will change you. That's a sign you're growing in Christ! 

SOME THOUGHTS ON UNION WITH CHRIST

I am at a conference this week in Massachusetts which is focused on exploring further the topic of assurance. The first speaker rightly pointed out that our assurance of salvation flows from this union we have with the Lord Jesus Christ. So this got me thinking about how much we talk about our union with Christ at GCC. Probably not enough! Not only that, but I came to see that the topic of this Union relates well to what we have been looking at in Romans and it's going to come up in the chapters ahead.

One of the fallacies of modern Christian thinking is that all of the benefits of redemption come to us because of how hard we try, or how moral we are in comparison with the rest of society. If you were at worship this past Sunday, you know this already. The puritan theologian John Owen once wrote that union with Christ, "is the cause of all other graces that we are made partakers of; they are all communicated to us by virtue of our union with Christ. Hence is our adoption, our justification, our sanctification, our fruitfulness, our perseverance, our resurrection, our glory."

Paul has many beautiful statements about this in Ephesians. Notice how many times the preposition "in" appears in this section.

^"3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴  even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵  he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, ⁶  to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. ⁷  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, ⁸ which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹  making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.¹¹ In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, ¹² so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. ¹³ In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴ who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory." ( Eph. 1:3-14)

The benefits of redemption come to you because God chose you before the foundation of the world, not for any reason within you. In fact even your identity as a Christian begins here, not with your moral actions. Martyn Lloyd-Jones said: "For some reason or other, Christian people seem to be afraid of [this doctrine...Yet] according to this teaching in Ephesians 2 and elsewhere, you are not Christians at all unless you are joined to Christ and “in Him”…So often we say we are Christian because we're not Muslim or Buddhist, we're American, or we're Republican, or we grew up in church, or we made a decision long ago and signed a piece of paper. We base our identity as Christians in things that have little or nothing to do with our union with Christ. In fact, we base it more on ourselves and our choices than on Christ. Certainly, our choices bear witness to our union, but we need to learn to think differently. The only reason any of us believe is because God has chosen to unite us to Christ before the earth was even created. 

If we are in Christ, then it means we are tethered to him and hidden in him. He takes us with him in every step of his saving work in order that we might be blessed along with him. We share in his sufferings, his death and in his resurrection. We share in his sonship and therefore in his inheritance. Forgiveness is given to us because we have his righteousness. Heavens eternal joys are ours because we are in Christ.

A Prayer of Joy for Easter Sunday

A Prayer of Joy for Easter Sunday

By Scotty Smith

     But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 1 Cor. 15:20-26

     Exalted and resurrected Lord Jesus, with hearts full and hands raised we shout with joy, “The Lord is risen! He is risen indeed!” You didn’t lie or exaggerate. The cross is empty. The tomb is empty. Death is done. Satan crushed. Hopelessness is out of work. Despair is sent packing. Condemnation is condemned. Brokenness is fixin’ to become unbroken. O glad and glorious day of resurrection wonder!

     Jesus, because you’ve been raised from the dead, preaching the gospel is not useless, it’s essential. Faith in you is not futile, but fertile. We’re no longer encased in our sins, we’re fully wrapped in your righteousness. Those who’ve “gone to sleep” in you are not slumbering in a void, they are celebrating in glory. Hallelujah!

     Because you have been raised from the dead, we are less to be pitied than anybody and more to be grateful than everybody (1 Cor. 15:14-19). Everything has changed and everything is changing. You are the firstfruits and guarantee of a whole new order—the “new creation” dominion of redemption and restoration. The decay in our earthly bodies will give way to the delights of our resurrection bodies. Hard stories will be redeemed. Hot tears will be wiped. Hallelujah!

     Jesus, because you’ve been raised from the dead, the kingdom of this world has already become, and will be fully manifest as, “the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ” (Rev. 11:15). You’re already reigning, and you will reign forever and ever. All evil dominions, wicked authorities, and malevolent powers have already been defeated by you, and one Day will be completely eradicated by you. Hallelujah!

     Jesus, your death is the death of death, and your resurrection is the resurrection of all things. Oh, the wonder, the glory, the grace of it all! In light of this great hope and because this gospel is true, free us from the pettiness and emptiness of simply living for ourselves. May your compelling love propel us to live for you, for you died for us and have been raised again (2 Cor. 5:14-15). Again we shout even louder, “The Lord is risen. He is risen indeed!” So very Amen we pray, in your treasured and triumphant name.

Originally posted on Scotty Smith's blog "Heavenward" 

Good Friday is Coming

My former pastor said to me once: “Sunday comes every three days.” It sure feels like that most weeks! Likewise, I have noticed the holidays seem to come every three weeks! I can hardly believe Good Friday and Easter are just a few days away. Wasn’t it just three weeks ago when we celebrated Christmas?

I found myself thinking about Good Friday while reading in Exodus chapters 28-29. This is one of those sections where many who started to read the Bible in a year drop out. Chapter 28 gives a detailed description of the garments worn by the priests. They were very ornate: bells, tassels, precious stones and gold, all of it incorporated into some high quality threads. Chapter 29 is where we find instructions regarding the consecration of the priests which involved sacrificing several animals and getting their garments stained with blood. “[T]ake some of the blood on the altar and some of the anointing oil and sprinkle it on Aaron and his garments and on his sons and their garments. Then he and his sons and their garments will be consecrated.” (Exodus 29:21, NIV) Have you ever caught a glimpse of the butcher at the grocery store? It was like that! Aaron the High Priest (and brother of Moses) had blood-red garments, stained with the blood of numerous sacrifices. I can only imagine what those garments smelled like.

             So how did this lead to thoughts about the death of Jesus Christ? The Old Testament sacrificial system was meant to communicate two basic principles: God is holy and we are sinful and need to be cleansed. The perpetual butchering of these animals demonstrated the severity of our sin. Even the High Priest was sinful and had to wear sacred garments covered in blood just to perform sacrifices for God’s people. We live in a day where sin is rarely mentioned in pulpits. I once inquired about a worship leader position at a mainline denominational church in Maryland. I told the Associate pastor the types of songs I use in worship emphasize Christ’s death and our sin forgiven in Christ. The minister mockingly referred to them as ‘bloody Jesus songs’. He was not interested in such silliness and clearly thought I was an idiot because it’s just too archaic for modern people, not to mention it is offensive to call people ‘sinners.’ Offensiveness is a concern God has but of a different kind: he is deeply concerned about how we have offended him! But, because he is good, merciful and loving, he has made it possible for human beings to have those offenses forgiven. God made sure the Israelites saw and smelled the seriousness of sin in every drop of animal blood that was shed on their behalf. “[T]he law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. (Hebrews 9:22, NIV)

The emphasis on their sin and need for cleansing was not meant to hopelessly weigh them down under the burden of their sin, but to point them to the last and final sacrifice of Jesus Christ where the burden of sin is lifted forever. The Old Testament priesthood and the sacrifices foreshadowed Christ’s work as High Priest who offered, not the blood of animals, but his own blood which he shed for the forgiveness of sin. But this does not mean sin is now a non-issue we can ignore. The cross itself is a constant reminder of the seriousness of sin and of how humans still offend God today. It still communicates the two basic principles of God’s holiness and our sin and need for cleansing. Upon the cross, God the Father tore Jesus to pieces. He turned his back on his beloved Son who was our substitute. Jesus was a bloody mess! Yet, it was just the tip of the iceberg of judgment and wrath Jesus was enduring on the cross. Mel Gibson didn't even come close! Our sins and guilt were laid upon him and he bore the wrath we deserved. That is what makes Good Friday so Good. I am happy to sing those bloody Jesus songs all the time because it is constant reminder of what Jesus has done for me and how he continues to forgive me every day. Your blood has washed away my sin! Jesus, thank you!