Shortsighted, Even to Blindness

November 16, 2014 in Baptism, Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Bible - NT - Acts, Federal Vision, Justification, Meditations, Sanctification
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
During the height of the so-called Lordship Salvation controversy, there were teachers who wanted to claim that one could have Jesus as one’s Savior but not as one’s Lord. All that is necessary to be saved from judgment, so it was said, is to believe in Jesus. Thereafter one should and ought to make Jesus one’s Lord, to obey Him in the nitty gritty of life; but this making Jesus Lord was, as it were, optional. One could be saved by Christ and not manifest that salvation in a life of obedience.
How different have been the words of Peter in our text – and how different is his closing observation. He writes in verse 9: For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
The man who has been baptized into Christ and pronounced forgiven on the basis of faith in Him and yet who lives a life of sin and rebellion is still in his sins. He remains blind even though he claims that he has been brought into the light. He is wandering about in the darkness, still ensnared by the clutches of the Evil One. Such was Simon Magus in the book of Acts and such is many another who claims to believe in Jesus but denies Him with his life.
Peter will go on in the next verse to command his readers to “make their calling and election sure.” And one of the ways that God assures us that we have been called by Him is by working in us the virtues that Peter identifies: faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. God’s Spirit works in His elect to cultivate such virtues – and so the way we reveal that we are among the elect is by pursuing them with all diligence. Obedience is a fruit of faith – we are saved by faith alone – which just means that we are saved by Christ alone. And when Christ saves us, He doesn’t do a piecemeal job. He delivers us not only from the penalty of sin by forgiving us, He delivers us from the power of sin by sanctifying us.
And so reminded of our call to pursue virtue; of our deep need for the grace of God to free us from blindness; let us confess our sins to the Lord and ask Him to empower us for obedience. Let us kneel as we confess.

Neither Barren nor Unfruitful

November 9, 2014 in Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Bible - NT - John, Holy Spirit, King Jesus, Meditations, Sanctification
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
Our Lord Jesus has called us to faith, has brought us to Himself, that we might be fruitful servants. He has poured out His Spirit upon us that our lives might manifest the fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control. These graces of the Spirit Peter catalogues as faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. As followers of Jesus Christ we are to bear fruit in our lives. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Peter borrowed this fruitfulness imagery from Jesus. In John 15 Jesus spoke to the disciples and said:
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
What Jesus declares and Peter reasserts is that fruitfulness is not optional but mandatory. The one who is savingly connected to Jesus, connected to Him not merely formally but by a living and active faith, will bear fruit to the glory of His Name. And he will do so precisely because God gives His Spirit to produce such fruit in our lives. The Spirit grants us faith in Jesus that we might abide in Him and bear fruit. Thus, if we do not abide in Jesus, if we are without fruit, if we are barren and unfruitful, then we bear evidence that we have no living connection with the vine.
So Peter would remind us again today, even as our Lord Jesus told Peter himself, to give all diligence to our pursuit of virtue. By living in obedience to the Lord Jesus we reveal the reality of our faith and give witness to all men that Jesus has risen from the dead.

Reminded of our calling to be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of Jesus, let us kneel and confess our sins as one fruit of His work in our lives.

The Purpose of Marriage

November 4, 2014 in Adoption, Children, Marriage, Quotations, Reformation, Sanctification

“The ultimate purpose [of marriage] is to obey God, to find aid and counsel against sin; to call upon God; to seek, love, and educate children for the glory of God; to live with one’s wife in the fear of God and to bear the cross; but if there are no children, nevertheless to live with one’s wife in contentment; and to avoid all lewdness with others.”

Martin Luther

And then there was Love

November 2, 2014 in Bible - NT - 1 Corinthians, Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Homosexuality, Love, Marriage, Meditations, Sanctification, Sexuality
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
As we have made our way through Peter’s exhortation here in his second epistle, we have learned of the necessity of personal virtue and the way in which that virtue is to manifest itself in our treatment of others. Last week we considered Peter’s words to add to godliness brotherly kindness. Today we consider his command to add to brotherly kindness love.
Love is the culmination of Christian virtue. Unfortunately, as a result of Romanticism, it is often misunderstood. Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, for example, defines love as “a feeling of strong or constant affection for a person.” But biblically love is not at bottom a feeling – that is not its proper genus. While love often shapes, governs, and informs our feelings, it is not itself a feeling. Far better the simple declaration of Hartley Coleridge, Is love a fancy or a feeling? No. No, love is not a fancy or a feeling; for feelings come and go but love remains constant, like immaculate Truth. It is a fixed reality, a covenant oath. As Shakespeare would have it, love is not love which alters when it alteration finds, or bends with the remover to remove: O no; it is an ever-fixed mark, That looks on tempests, and is never shaken…
Paul gives the most compelling description of love in the thirteenth chapter of his letter to the Corinthians:
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;
Love, in other words, is not self-centered but other-centered, not primarily a feeling but a heart-centered commitment, longing to give joy and delight to another. Paul goes on:
[Love] does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails…
Away with the absurd notion that love is merely a feeling. Today we are told to countenance all kinds of wickedness in the name of Merriam-Webster’s definition of love: we should embrace homosexual unions because they “love” one another; we should turn a blind eye to fornication because they “love” one another; we should sanction no-fault divorce because they just don’t “love” one another any more. But Merriam-Webster is wrong: love is not a fancy or a feeling.
So what of you: how have you been defining love? Do you truly love the brethren? Are you truly loving your spouse? Have you loved your children? For we are to add to brotherly kindness love.

Reminded of our calling to practice true love, to be committed to the true good of others and to labor unceasingly for that good, let us kneel and confess our sin to the Lord.

Add to Godliness Brotherly Kindness

October 26, 2014 in Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Ecclesiology, Election, Federal Vision, Holy Spirit, John Calvin, Meditations, Reformation, Sanctification
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
Thus far in Peter’s exhortation we have learned to employ all diligence as we add to our faith virtue, to our virtue knowledge, to our knowledge self-control, to our self-control perseverance, and to our perseverance godliness.Today we consider his command to add to godliness brotherly kindness.
Webster defines kindness as “the quality or state of being kind; having or showing a gentle nature and a desire to help others : wanting and liking to do good things and to bring happiness to others.”
Having urged us to achieve godliness, Peter now highlights the way that godliness of character is to shape our interaction with other people. And interestingly enough he insists that it should manifest itself in “brotherly kindness”: not in miserliness, not in grumpiness, not in super-spirituality, but in open hands and open hearts, wanting and liking to do good things and to bring happiness to others,especially to those who are of the household of faith.
One of the purposeful emphases of the CREC is a commitment to what we call “sunny Calvinism.” Calvinism is simply a nickname which summarizes the biblical teaching that God is the Lord over heaven and earth. He rules and reigns in human affairs and nothing can thwart His purposes or destroy His work. Has he spoken and will he not do it? Has he determined and will he not bring it to pass? God is the Lord – it is He who saves us and not we ourselves; it is he who preserves us and not we ourselves. In ourselves we are hopeless and corrupt, inclined to all evil. But God in His grace and mercy sent His Son Jesus to deliver us from sin and death; sent His Spirit to give us a heart to believe and a mind to understand. Grace, grace, all grace!
So this is Calvinism – and it is glorious good news! What we could not do weak as we were because of our sinful nature, God did in sending His own Son as the propitiation for our sins. So given this glorious good news – ought we not to be “sunny”? Joyful? Grateful? Thankful? And ought not this sunny, joyful, grateful and thankful disposition manifest itself in brotherly kindness? Absolutely!
Too often, however, the glorious truths of God’s Sovereignty, the unity of the Old and New Testaments, and our inability to save ourselves as human beings are twisted into a cudgel with which to beat our fellow Christians and those who don’t know Jesus. God is Sovereign and in control of all things – so let me show how true that is by doubting your salvation if you don’t understand it. God has been revealing His purpose to save the earth from sin and death ever since our rebellion against God in the Garden – so let me show how true that is by being a jerk and thwarting your salvation. We are unable to save ourselves – so let me show you how true that is by refusing to share with you the good news of Christ’s death and resurrection.
As Reformed folk we need to cultivate brotherly kindness.We are called to add to our godliness brotherly kindness – having or showing a gentle nature and a desire to help others : wanting and liking to do good things and to bring happiness to others. So are you looking for opportunities to practice kindness? This is our calling; this is our privilege.

Reminded of our calling and that we often refuse to help others when we are able, let us kneel and confess our sins to the Lord.

Add to Perseverance Godliness

October 20, 2014 in Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Bible - NT - Matthew, Bible - NT - Titus, Bible - OT - Psalms, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Sanctification, Singing Psalms, Worship
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
Thus far in Peter’s exhortation we have learned to employ all diligence as we add to our faith virtue, to our virtue knowledge, to our knowledge self-control, and to our self-control perseverance. Today we consider Peter’s admonition to add to our perseverance godliness.
Webster defines godliness as “the quality or state of being spiritually pure or virtuous; devoutness, piety, sanctity.” We might define it more simply as the quality or state of becoming more like God – reflecting the moral character of God in our lives.
Jesus instructs us in the Sermon on the Mount that we are to be perfect even as our Heavenly Father is perfect. We are to become like our Lord – an observation we will consider at length in the sermon this morning. To be godly, therefore, is to enjoy the sum of all virtues – it is the goal of our sanctification: becoming like God. We persevere not for perseverance sake but that we might reflect the character of God.
Godliness is often set in opposition to worldliness – becoming increasingly like the world. Paul reminds us in Titus 2:11–12:
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,
God’s grace teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age. This is one of God’s purposes in salvation. So how do we grow in godliness? As with all graces, we grow in godliness only by the grace and mercy of God. As Paul said, it is the grace of God that teaches us to be godly in this present age. Peter likewise reminds us God’s divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. God is the One who teaches us to be more like Him; He holds us by the hand and shapes us into His image.
One of the primary means God uses to cultivate godliness in our lives is worship. We worship God and as we worship Him we become more like Him, we become godly. Worship fixes our eyes on the Lord and shapes the trajectory of our lives. Just like driving – where you fix your gaze determines where you go.
This is one reason God has given us an extensive collection of psalms in the biblical canon – psalms that we can sing so that we become more like God; psalms that we can imitate as we compose new songs to the praise and worship of the Lord. We are to grow in godliness and God has given us the psalms to help accomplish this.
So how intentional have you been to memorize the psalms, to sing them in times of temptation and struggle, and to use them as you labor against the Evil One? One of the reasons we have psalm sings as a congregation is to enable us to fight more effectively. We don’t sing the psalms just so we can sound pretty or edgy or manly – we sing the psalms so that we can become more godly.

So reminded of our calling to become more like God by worshiping Him, let us confess that we have often taken our eyes off the Lord and drifted toward worldliness. Let us kneel as we confess together.

Depraved Creatures

October 15, 2014 in Depravity, Holy Spirit, John Calvin, Quotations, Sanctification, Sin

“Let men therefore acknowledge, that inasmuch as they are born of Adam, they are depraved creatures, and therefore can conceive only sinful thoughts, until they become the new workmanship of Christ, and are formed by his Spirit to a new life… Nor is it any proof to the contrary, that carnal and profane men often excel in generosity of disposition, undertake designs apparently honourable, and put forth certain evidences of virtue. For since their mind is corrupted with contempt of God, with pride, with self-love, ambition, hypocrisy, and fraud; it cannot be but that all their thoughts are contaminated with the same vices… We must, therefore, acquiesce in the judgment of God, which pronounces man to be so enslaved by sin that he can bring forth nothing sound and sincere. Yet, at the same time, we must remember, that no blame is to be cast upon God for that which has its origin in the defection of the first man, whereby the order of the creation was subverted. And further, it must be noted, that men are not exempted from guilt and condemnation, by the pretext of this bondage: because, although all rush to evil, yet they are not impelled by any extrinsic force, but by the direct inclination of their own hearts; and, lastly, they sin not otherwise than voluntarily.”

John Calvin, Commentary on Genesis 8:21.

“Then the Lord said in His heart, ‘I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth…'”

Add to Self-Control Perseverance

October 14, 2014 in Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Mosaic Law, Reformation, Sanctification
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
We have been making our way through Peter’s exhortation here in his second epistle. He has instructed us to employ all diligence as we add to our faith virtue, to our virtue knowledge, and to our knowledge self-control. Today we consider his exhortation to add to our self-control perseverance.
Webster defines perseverance as “the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult; continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition; steadfastness.”
It is appropriate that Peter places this quality here following his admonitions to acquire virtue, knowledge, and self-control. For it is easy to practice virtue for a day; easy to grow in knowledge by reading the Word of God for a week; easy to manifest self-control for a time. We’re all familiar with our New Years’ Resolutions and how effective they typically are. “I’m going to exercise regularly; lose weight; read my Bible through in a year; pray daily.” We start out well – but soon our resolution is put to the test. Shall we persevere?
Spiritually the same principles apply. By the grace of God, all those whom the Spirit gives new life will most certainly persevere in the faith. Nothing shall overcome our faith – not the onslaughts of the Evil One, not hard trials and providences, not the disappointments of life nor the betrayal of friends nor the dissolution of our local congregation. The Spirit so works within His people that He shall not fail to bring to completion the good work that He has begun in our lives. Thanks be to God!

Therefore, we must be all the more diligent to add to our self-control perseverance – for as we persevere we display the Spirit’s work in our lives. One fruit of the Spirit’s presence is perseverance. To give up, to turn away from Christ, to abandon the faith, to become spiritually cold and lifeless, is to reveal that the Spirit has not been at work in our lives. But to persevere is to display His grace to the world.
So are you weary? Are you faltering in some commitment you have made? Is your marriage challenging? Is your work hard? Is it difficult to show respect to the authorities that God has placed in your life? Then the Word of the Lord comes to you today: persevere! Continue steadfastly in the work of the Lord. Perseverance is “the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult; continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition.” Don’t give up.

Reminded of our calling to persevere, let us confess that we often find ourselves giving up in our hearts; we become discouraged and downcast; we have need of God’s forgiveness and the grace of the Spirit to empower us to persevere. So let us kneel as we confess our sins to the Lord.

Add to Knowledge Self-Control

October 5, 2014 in Bible - NT - 2 Peter, Bible - NT - Galatians, Bible - OT - Proverbs, Ecclesiology, Law and Gospel, Meditations, Sanctification
2 Peter 1:5–9 (NKJV)
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
For the last couple weeks we have been studying Peter’s exhortation here in his second epistle. He has instructed us to employ all diligence as we add to our faith virtue and to our virtue knowledge. Today he exhorts us to add to our knowledge self-control.
Webster defines self-control as “control over your feelings or actions; restraint exercised over one’s own impulses, emotions, or desires.” While self-control is sometimes an unpopular subject, it is one that is frequently addressed in Scripture – in both the Old and New Testaments. Solomon tells us in Proverbs 16:32, He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. And later in 25:28 he reminds us, Whoever has no rule over his own spirit Is like a city broken down, without walls. In the New Testament, Paul teaches us that self-control is one of the fruits of the Spirit and that a lack of self-control is evidence of a people under God’s judgment.
So let us note a few things: first, self-control is a gift of God’s Spirit. And so if we would grow in self-control we must seek it from God Himself. This reminds us to pray regularly for God’s grace and mercy. When the Spirit is at work in our lives, we will gain increasing self-control. Despite the claims of some, the Spirit doesn’t primarily manifest Himself in miracles and signs and wonders. His primary work is the hum-drum work of equipping us to resist that second bowl of ice-cream.
Second, self-control is a Christian virtue which we are to develop with all diligence. We are to gain increasing control over our feelings and actions, over our impulses, emotions, and desires. The feeling of anger wells up within us – we need to control it. The impulse to spend money and go into debt strikes us – we need to control it. The desire to look at pornography assaults us – we need to control it.
This diligent cultivation of self-control is something that applies to adults and children alike. Parents, one of your primary duties is to teach your children self-control. And children, one of your primary callings is to develop self-control in your youth. You want to lay in bed all day; control your feeling and get up. You want to open your lips and be disrespectful; control your impulse and speak respectfully. Self-control is a Christian virtue which we are to develop with all diligence.
Finally, Peter’s calling to add to knowledge self-control means that we are to use the various means at our disposal to cultivate this virtue. We are to study, observe, and gain knowledge of ourselves and the world, so that we can become increasingly self-controlled. So how are you doing? Teens, are your music choices helping you cultivate self-control? Music is one of the most powerful means for strengthening virtue and, on the other hand, destroying inhibitions, destroying self-control. What is your music doing for you? What do the musicians you listen to want it to do? Concerts are a good indication of the direction the music you’re listening to leads. Study. Think. Consider. Add to your knowledge self-control.

Reminded that we are to be a people who control our emotions and actions, let us confess that we often fail to do so. We are often driven by our impulses, controlled by our feelings, governed by our desires. So let us confess our lack of self-control to the Lord and kneel as we’re able.