'Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?'
- Micah 6:8
'Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.'
- Matthew 5:7
'Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.'
- 1 Peter 2:10
'Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.'
- Luke 6:36
'Most of us have not come to grips with the clear directive of Scripture that all Christians must have their own ministries of mercy.'
- Tim Keller, Ministries of Mercy, p. 43
Lead on, O King eternal,
till sin's fierce war shall cease,
and holiness shall whisper
the sweet amen of peace.
For not with swords' loud clashing
or roll of stirring drums
with deeds of love and mercy
the heavenly kingdom comes.
- Lead On O King Eternal, The Psalter Hymnal, verse 2
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
Christians, above all others, should be living examples of received mercy. The mercies we display should be reflective of the mercies we've been shown. We were the objects of deserved wrath. We were guilty, vile, helpless, and thoroughgoing enemies of God, but now through Christ we have been shown mercy. And, I dare say for many of us this mercy is scarcely comprehended. Christians who are not merciful are dull and do not understand the mercy they've been shown. We have committed treason of cosmic proportion, and yet God has shown us a treasurehouse of mercy. We deserved wrath…we received mercy. His dealings with His people are merciful, derived from His unfathomable love for Christ and for us in Christ. An awareness of mercy received begets mercy in the one shown it, because, truth be known, we cannot long comprehend God's mercies toward us without it effecting a resembling mercy in our own lives and demonstrated in mercy towards others.
It is our privilege and joy to wear mercy like a garment on display for others to see and experience, because we have been shown great mercy. May this church and all around us be filled with visible demonstrations of mercy received.
Pastor Dan
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
Loving What Christ Loves
"Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb."
- Revelation 21:9
'The New Testament is clear - to love Christ is to love the church.'
- R. Albert Mohler, preface to Why We Love the Church
'Imagine how much it means to his heart as we, his betrothed bride, look forward to even now to that great wedding day to come, as we look to him in love, and as we live our lives to the praise of his name.'- Richard Phillips, The Church, One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic, p. 132
'The church is not an incidental part of God's plan. Jesus didn’t invite people to join an anitreligion, antidoctrine, anti-institutional bandwagon of love, harmony, and reintegration. To be sure, He showed people how to live. But He also called them to repent, called them to faith, called them out of the world, and called them into the church.'- Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck, Why We Love the Church, p. 226
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
It is interesting to see the reaction of some Christians when you mention the church. Often there is an uncomfortable pause or an awkward glance. Love for the church has fallen upon hard times and curiously this is the case among many Christians. I'm under no illusion that the church can be a difficult thing to love at times, however, make no mistake, the church is loved by Christ. And as Christians we must love what Christ loves. Christ loves His betrothed bride. He has given His life for her and He continues to give Himself for her. His love for her is effectual, undiminished, unbreakable, strong, and eternal. To some Christians the church is an embarassment, an unfortunate and outlived appendage of a bygone era. To some the church only impedes true spirituality rather than fostering it. The reality is that true spirituality comes out of life within the church. The church is demonstrably loved by Christ. She may not be beautiful in the eyes of many, but for Christ He only has eyes for her.
May we truly love what Christ loves.
Pastor Dan
- Revelation 21:9
'The New Testament is clear - to love Christ is to love the church.'
- R. Albert Mohler, preface to Why We Love the Church
'Imagine how much it means to his heart as we, his betrothed bride, look forward to even now to that great wedding day to come, as we look to him in love, and as we live our lives to the praise of his name.'- Richard Phillips, The Church, One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic, p. 132
'The church is not an incidental part of God's plan. Jesus didn’t invite people to join an anitreligion, antidoctrine, anti-institutional bandwagon of love, harmony, and reintegration. To be sure, He showed people how to live. But He also called them to repent, called them to faith, called them out of the world, and called them into the church.'- Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck, Why We Love the Church, p. 226
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
It is interesting to see the reaction of some Christians when you mention the church. Often there is an uncomfortable pause or an awkward glance. Love for the church has fallen upon hard times and curiously this is the case among many Christians. I'm under no illusion that the church can be a difficult thing to love at times, however, make no mistake, the church is loved by Christ. And as Christians we must love what Christ loves. Christ loves His betrothed bride. He has given His life for her and He continues to give Himself for her. His love for her is effectual, undiminished, unbreakable, strong, and eternal. To some Christians the church is an embarassment, an unfortunate and outlived appendage of a bygone era. To some the church only impedes true spirituality rather than fostering it. The reality is that true spirituality comes out of life within the church. The church is demonstrably loved by Christ. She may not be beautiful in the eyes of many, but for Christ He only has eyes for her.
May we truly love what Christ loves.
Pastor Dan
Friday, August 14, 2009
Union with Christ Reprise
'My beloved is mine, and I am his….'
-Song of Solomon 2:16
'"Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.'
- Ephesians 5:31-32
What is that union which the elect have with Christ?
A. The union which the elect have with Christ is the work of God's grace, whereby they are spiritually and mystically, yet really and inseparably, joined to Christ as their head and husband; which is done in their effectual calling.
- Westminster Larger Catechism Q and A 66
'He who is not in Christ is not a Christian.'
-Saint Augustine, Tractates on the Gospel of John,
quoted in Life in Christ by Mark Garcia, p. 56
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
These things have been running around in my mind for months now and I can scarcely take it in...all those who profess saving faith in Jesus Christ have been irrevocably joined to Him. Christ has become our Living Head and Husband, to the degree that union with Christ is the reality and marriage is a reflection of the reality. The saving work of Christ joins the believer to Him by faith and the two are inseparably linked. Christ's life becomes our life. Christ's death becomes our death. Christ's resurrection becomes our resurrection. Every imaginable satisfaction for us has been found and supplied in Christ. There is no lack to be supplied by our pitiable efforts. His salvation is full, free, complete, and cannot be improved upon. His mercy to us is superabundant. We have been given untold riches in and through Christ.
There are depths of grace yet unfathomed. We have been joined to Christ.
Pastor Dan
-Song of Solomon 2:16
'"Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.'
- Ephesians 5:31-32
What is that union which the elect have with Christ?
A. The union which the elect have with Christ is the work of God's grace, whereby they are spiritually and mystically, yet really and inseparably, joined to Christ as their head and husband; which is done in their effectual calling.
- Westminster Larger Catechism Q and A 66
'He who is not in Christ is not a Christian.'
-Saint Augustine, Tractates on the Gospel of John,
quoted in Life in Christ by Mark Garcia, p. 56
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
These things have been running around in my mind for months now and I can scarcely take it in...all those who profess saving faith in Jesus Christ have been irrevocably joined to Him. Christ has become our Living Head and Husband, to the degree that union with Christ is the reality and marriage is a reflection of the reality. The saving work of Christ joins the believer to Him by faith and the two are inseparably linked. Christ's life becomes our life. Christ's death becomes our death. Christ's resurrection becomes our resurrection. Every imaginable satisfaction for us has been found and supplied in Christ. There is no lack to be supplied by our pitiable efforts. His salvation is full, free, complete, and cannot be improved upon. His mercy to us is superabundant. We have been given untold riches in and through Christ.
There are depths of grace yet unfathomed. We have been joined to Christ.
Pastor Dan
Friday, August 7, 2009
Necessary Weakness
On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.
-1 Corinthians 12:22-26
“Within the body which is one, there is true diversity – a multiplicity of function which is necessary to its being a real body (1 Cor. 12:17-20). Each member with his particular function is necessary to the other member for the good of the body as a whole (vv. 17-21).”- P.T. O’Brien, The Church in the Bible and the World, p. 106
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
It has been said that a nation’s character can be assessed by the way it treats its weakest citizens. If that can be said for nations it is especially true for the church. How we relate to those who are weak is a reflection upon our maturity in Christian graces and the degree to which we understand the grace of God and the body of Christ. Christ’s body has weak members. When Paul addressed the Corinthians we are not sure what the weaker members looked like. They may have been those who were boisterous and unrestrained in their charismatic gifting. We do know, however, that their weakness was apparent and looked upon with a certain degree of disdain. We also know that they were indispensable. They were less ‘presentable’ but necessary. There was a tendency to keep them hidden and obscure and not to honor them as necessary and functionally important parts of the body. We tend to denigrate and disregard those who are different than us. So often, weakness is minimized and dishonored. If only the weak would get with the program, then we would have a strong church. Whatever the weakness, these people are a necessary part of the church, both generally and particularly. Christ Our Redeemer Church needs those who are weak to function properly. They have a vital part to play in our make up as a body. They are no less important than the strong and we must honor them as vital to the functioning of the body.
May God give us great grace to function together as both weak and strong in Christ’s body.
Pastor Dan
-1 Corinthians 12:22-26
“Within the body which is one, there is true diversity – a multiplicity of function which is necessary to its being a real body (1 Cor. 12:17-20). Each member with his particular function is necessary to the other member for the good of the body as a whole (vv. 17-21).”- P.T. O’Brien, The Church in the Bible and the World, p. 106
Dear Christ Our Redeemer Family and Friends,
It has been said that a nation’s character can be assessed by the way it treats its weakest citizens. If that can be said for nations it is especially true for the church. How we relate to those who are weak is a reflection upon our maturity in Christian graces and the degree to which we understand the grace of God and the body of Christ. Christ’s body has weak members. When Paul addressed the Corinthians we are not sure what the weaker members looked like. They may have been those who were boisterous and unrestrained in their charismatic gifting. We do know, however, that their weakness was apparent and looked upon with a certain degree of disdain. We also know that they were indispensable. They were less ‘presentable’ but necessary. There was a tendency to keep them hidden and obscure and not to honor them as necessary and functionally important parts of the body. We tend to denigrate and disregard those who are different than us. So often, weakness is minimized and dishonored. If only the weak would get with the program, then we would have a strong church. Whatever the weakness, these people are a necessary part of the church, both generally and particularly. Christ Our Redeemer Church needs those who are weak to function properly. They have a vital part to play in our make up as a body. They are no less important than the strong and we must honor them as vital to the functioning of the body.
May God give us great grace to function together as both weak and strong in Christ’s body.
Pastor Dan
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