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Christ’s Pre-Ascension Message – Abide in Me

Jesus has two intimate calls to each of us: ‘Come to me.’—Matt. 11:28, and ‘Abide in me.’—John 15:4 

Perhaps you have heard and listened to the call of the Lord Jesus: ‘Come to me‘.  Just as important, is the ongoing invitation to stay close to the same loving Saviour and hear his admonition: ‘Abide in me.’ 

Many have never repented for not having come at the abiding call for a close union. You experienced that His Word offers the truth; all His promises He fulfils; He made you partakers of the blessings and the joy of His love. Was not His welcome to you most endearing, His pardon full, generously accessible, His love most sweet and precious?

Why do blessings we enjoy, the love and joy of your first meeting with your Saviour fade instead of deepening? Why do we become faint and feeble? 

What is the cause of our spiritual weakness?

At your first coming to Him, you had no reason to complain of disappointment: yet as time went on, somehow perhaps your expectations were not realized.  Often, you may wonder what the cause could be, that with such a Saviour, so mighty and so loving, your experience of salvation is still at a loss for a fuller true communing relationship. The answer is straightforward. You may have wandered from Him, or you may have rebelled.

The blessings He bestows are connected with His ‘Come to me’ and are only to be enjoyed in close fellowship with Himself. You may not yet fully understand, or did not rightly remember, that the call meant, ‘Come to me to stay with me.’ This union in a close relationship — was His object and purpose when He first called you to Himself. It was not to refresh you simply for a few days or months after your conversion, but with a continuum of the joy of His love and deliverance. He had destined you for something better than a short-lived blessedness — not an experience only to be enjoyed during one day in seven, or in times of particular need and prayer. We wander unbeknown in times due to stress, overwork, cultural influences, distractions, or of late: pandemic health fears.

We zig-zag emotionally at times, from desiring God to the pressing administrations of life’s business. Thus our joy diminishes or fully passes away. The anxieties and pressures of life can diminish our zeal.

Remember that Jesus has prepared for you a daily abiding indwelling of His Spirit. You can enjoy unbroken communion with His Spirit. It is this close fellowship He desired when he drew you tenderly: Come to me. Never forget that He added the conjoined call of loving Grace: Abide in me. — walking daily in close union, while allowing Christ’s Spirit to lead you. He will empower and direct you to live a vibrant, thriving life. As a result of this, the treasures of His presence will bring blessed rewards.

It was not that He said: Come to me and abide with me, but, Abide in me. Communion was not only to be unbroken but most intimate and complete. He opened His arms freely accept you, to press you to His bosom; He opened His heart, to welcome you there; He opened up all His Divine fulness of life and love, and offered to take you up into its fellowship, to make you wholly one with Himself. 

There is a depth of meaning to realize in His words: Abide in me.  He still pleads with a great lesson: Abide in me – without me, you can do nothing! By every motive that had induced you to come, did He not implore you and me to abide?

Was it the fear of sin’s curse that first drew you? The pardon you received by first coming can only be confirmed and thoroughly enjoyed while abiding in Him with all the blessings flowing from Him. Was it the longing to know and appreciate the Infinite Love that was calling you? Was it the weary longing to be made free from the bondage of sin, to become pure and holy, and thereby find rest, the rest of God for the soul? This entire calming union can only be realized as you abide in Him—only whilst walking in the Light with Jesus.

To enter into this promised inherited union in Christ is a foretaste of our promised glory. The presence of the Infinite One is granted only to those who abide in Him. This call is for you as it is for me: Abide in Him. You did well to come; you do much better to abide — share with Him in all the glory of His royal life and priesthood.

Some may have heard the words: Abide in me, yet did not know that such a life of abiding fellowship is possible and within reach. 

Others, though they believed that such a life was possible and sought after it, have never yet succeeded in discovering the secret of its attainment. And others, alas! will confess that it is their unfaithfulness that has kept them from the enjoyment of the blessing. When our Saviour would have kept them, they were not ready to stay; they were not prepared to give up everything and always, only, wholly to abide in Jesus.

What can you do now to abide in Christ?

To all such, now: in the name of Jesus, your Redeemer and mine, the blessed warning remains: Abide in me, lest you can do nothing. With its various aspects, the possibility, during wearying work and continual distraction, of keeping up with the world, instead of being kept in Christ’s abiding communion.

You and I cannot undertake to remove all anxious obstacles; this Jesus Christ Himself alone must do by His Holy Spirit via abiding close union with His Spirit to lead and guide you. Each man or woman must acknowledge the need, realizing that there can be no true allegiance to our Lord without simply and heartily accepting this as one of His commands.

Meditate on this word of His calling us into abiding union, with an eye fixed on Him alone. Let us set ourselves in quiet trust before Him, waiting to hear His holy voice,—breathing its quickening Spirit within us, as He speaks: ‘Abide in me.’ The soul that truly hears Jesus Himself speak the Word receives with the Word the power to accept and to hold the blessing He offers.

And it may please You, blessed Saviour, indeed, to speak to us; let each of us hear Your heavenly voice. May the feeling of our deep need, and faith in Your wondrous love, combined with the sight of the wonderfully blessed life You are waiting to bestow upon us, constrain us to listen and to obey, as often as You speak into our heart: ‘Abide in me.’ Let day by day the answer from our heart be more apparent and fuller: ‘Blessed Saviour, I do abide in Thee.’

This may also interest: What we have if we abide in Christ.

This study is a modern edit and expansion by Glen Jackman of Andrew Murray’s  Abide in Christ: Thoughts on the Blessed Life of Fellowship with the Son of God (pp. 13–20). (1895, now in the public domain)

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What we have if we Abide In Christ

Here are a few of the results of abiding in close union with the Spirit of Jesus. What we have in Christ:

  • Answers to prayer. Jn. 15:7
  • Comfort, help and peace. Jn. 14:15–26
  • Increased confidence. 1 Jn. 2:28–29
  • Deliverance from judgment. Jn. 15:6
  • Discipline and correction. Jn. 15:2–3
  • Spiritual Fruit such as good works, and obedience to His Word. Jn. 15:5–8
  • Keeps one from sin., 1 Jn. 3:6
  • Power. 1 Jn. 2:24; 2:27
  • Salvation. Jn. 8:31
  • Unashamedness. 1 Jn. 2:28
  • The reward for abiding in Christ is confidence in the day of Judgement. 1 Co. 3:13–15

 Leadership Ministries Worldwide. (1996).

Mark Johnson, Uncategorized

Words by which Jesus began His ministry

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” — Isaiah 61:1 ESV
  • This blog text is written by Pastor Mark Johnson, a good friend of mine. Today he shared this thought on Facebook. These words of the prophet Isaiah were quoted by Jesus at the beginning of His ministry to redeem the human race. As we follow Christ, they will guide us as well. There are 4 significant thoughts that will influence how we live and make decisions:
  1. There is a focus on the poor. Throughout Scripture, this theme is sounded repeatedly. A good Sabbath afternoon activity would be to study what God says about poverty and how to relate to it. It may change our lives as we gather His teaching and act on them.
  2. The second emphasis is on the brokenhearted. There are a lot of hurting people around us. What if we planned to do something tangible each day to thoughtfully lighten specific pain for others
  3. Thirdly. Two words: liberty and captives. Offering freedom to those who are limited by personal evil is an important act of humility for each one of us.
  4. Finally: no limits. To anyone who has been captured by evil, the witness of the follower of Christ is “You’re free!”
As we look to Jesus, each of these becomes a reality. And what we offer to others on His behalf can be ours as well. What if each of us were to choose to live the reality of each of these victories continually in our pilgrimage?
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The Baptism of the Holy Spirit

Baptism Of The Holy Spirit is prophesied in the old testament. (Isa. 32:15; Joel 2:28, 29; Ezek 36:27). It is promised by the Father and the Son (Matt. 3:11; John 14:16, 17, 26).

The baptism of the Holy Spirit is not to be confused with water baptism (which testifies to allegiance to Christ), which most of the disciples would have had John the Baptist do long before this occurred. Conversely, the initial baptism of the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost 50 days after the resurrection. Acts 1 says he gave proof of his resurrection for 40 days. Then he told the disciples to wait. The Holy Spirit came 10 days later post-Ascension. (Acts1:3-5, 9)

The Holy Spirit’s indwelling is a definite experience of the converted man or woman witnessed to, by the Spirit (Heb. 10:14, 15).  When I say converted, I mean the individual has exercised faith, has believed on the name of Jesus Christ as Lord by faith. Thus it is obtainable only by believers who are converted (John 7:39). And this belief is not class-specific, nor church specific, but a universal baptism of the Holy Spirit for all believers. (Acts 2:38, 39). Moreover, the indwelling Spirit is a necessity for true Christian living (John 16:13).

The Experience occurs Subsequent to Regeneration

Since it is given only to believers, one must be converted to receive Him (Acts 19:1-2, 5; Eph. 1:13). The Spirit dwells only in the individual given over to holiness and obedience by faith, and not in the unconverted man (I Cor. 3:16-17). There are several points that I would like to make:

The Resultant Signs of the Spirit’s Baptism are:

  1. It sanctifies, meaning purifies one from sin. (Acts 15:8,9; Rom. 15:16).
  2. Perfects in the unity of Christ’s love (Acts 4:31-33)
  3. Sheds God’s love into the heart (Rom 5:1-5).
  4. Gives spiritual power (Acts 1:8)

The Baptism with the Holy Spirit is promised:

This is baptism promised by Christ (Luke 24:49); promised just before Pentecost (Acts 1:5); it is a baptism coming evidenced as:

  1. A divine power (Luke 4:14 with Luke 3:21,22).
  2. A comforting power (John 16:7)
  3. Witnessing power (Acts 1:8)
  4. Power for spiritual boldness (Acts 4:31).
  5. Speaking power (Acts 2:1-4)

To Be Sought as a Divine Gift with Assurance:

We must realize God’s Willingness to Spirit-baptize us. (Acts 2:38,39). Activate your faith by looking up these texts by simply hovering over them:

  1. More willing than we think to give us this gift. (Luke 11:13).
  2. Visible tongues of fire symbolized its purifying effect at the original Pentecostal experience. (Acts 2:1-4).
  3. Oil symbolizes its spiritual healing (Rev 3:18) and illuminating power (Matt 25:1-4).

The effects of This Baptism of the Holy Spirit are several:

  1. The Holy Spirit’s offers inflowing availability, like rivers of living water. (John 7:38)
  2. Anoints the lips for verbal testimony. (John 15:26)
  3. Opens the soul for divine instruction. (John 14:26)
  4. Purifies the heart by faith. (Acts 15:8,9)
  5. Empowers us to walk obedient, keeping the divine statutes. (Ezek 36:27)
  6. Gives holy freedom and confidence through guidance. (Gal 5:18)
  7. Opens avenues for divine communion, as we call out to the Lord.  (II Cor 1:21-22)
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The Faculty of the Conscience

Here we will go into a deeper look at the faculty of the mind referred to as the conscience.

Your conscience is a gift from God, allowing you communion with the Holy Spirit to guide you in your redeemed life as you refer to the Word of God. It is the connective communicative path of union between God and man, whereby we hear the commands of God relative to obedience unto life versus disobedience unto death. It gives us an instinct that God has placed in our consciousness the echo of His Word, via this faculty – conscience — to know the difference between right and wrong. 

For example, Joseph’s brothers felt remorse of conscience after placing him in a pit before selling him to traders that took him off to Egypt and then sold him into slavery. (Genesis 42:21) The scriptures make it clear that the communication of God is via his Spirit to our spirit. The Holy Spirit speaks to our heart to guide us into holy conduct, wisdom, safety, prosperity and health. Your ears will hear him. Right behind you, a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left. (Isaiah 30:21 NLT) 

The clear conscience Paul could write to the Corinthian church stating that his conscience was clear regarding his faithful ministry to them: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace. (2 Cor 1:12 NIV)

Maintaining a clear conscience will ensure that we do not deviate from how the Lord leads us daily. Cling to your faith in Christ and keep your conscience clear.  Some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked. (1 Timothy 1:19 NIV) 

We want to keep our conscience clear – free of doubt that we have compromised obedience — as we are under a probationary period before the 2nd Advent of Christ when he comes to judge the world. The apostle Paul stated: My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. (1 Corinthians 4:4)

The violated conscience  A progressively violated conscience can lead to habits of disobedience that lead to a dangerous point of waywardness when one can no longer hear the Holy Spirit, or further when one can become devoid of the Spirit of Grace. In the last time, there will be scoffers following their ungodly passions. It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. (Jude 1:18-19) In fact, one can become entirely cut off from the Spirit’s leading: Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared…  (1 Timothy 4:2)

 Man very frequently opposes what he or she knows to be the will of God by a distinct perception of judgement communicated by the Spirit applying the Word of God to the conscience. One of the great Puritan theologians wrote of the conscience: “This is sin; God sees it; God will punish it,” causing a man to feel restless and anxious, often with a physical sensation of disturbance. Man frequently wishes that such an impression was not so lively; however, despite all opposition, such judgment frequently makes its presence felt relating to mans’ will. The will is presented with a judicial communication that he is standing against the Spirit. 1

Karl Barth of the conscience writes: We must constantly decide between the secularity and the sanctification of our existence, between sin and grace, between a human being who forgets God, which is absolutely neutral concerning Him and therefore absolutely hostile, and one which in His revelation is awakened by faith as one called into the church, to the appropriation of His promise. 2 

Yet Barth goes on to warn that our conscience may not be biblically grounded if not well-exercised in its use daily: It is obviously erroneous to state that the intellect of man, being in the state of sin, cannot err. This is directly contrary to Scripture, where we read that man is “blind” (Revelation 3:17), “having the understanding darkened” (Ephesians 4:18), and that “spiritual matters are hidden from the wise and the prudent” (Matthew 11:25). It also states that one can have a zeal, “but not according to knowledge” (Romans 10:2), that “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him” (1 Corinthians 2:14), and that there are “men of corrupt minds” (1 Timothy 6:5). 3

“Conscience” translated into the Dutch language (mede-wetenschap) means “knowledge of concurrence.” The conscience is man’s judgment concerning himself and his deeds, to the extent that he is subject to God’s judgment. The conscience consists of three elements: knowledge, witness, and acknowledgement. Willhelm Braekel expands on this: 4

  1. First, there is knowledge of the will of God at work. He commands or forbids every man with promises and threats. The conscience prescribes what must either be refrained from or be done. The more clearly and powerfully it does this, the better the conscience functions. Note the attribute of knowledge: Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right (Romans 2:14–15). 
  2. Secondly, there is the element of witness. After man’s obligation is held before him, it determines whether or not he has acted according to light and knowledge. The more painstakingly the conscience takes note of man’s deeds and his conformity to the commandment held before him, the more it keeps a precise record thereof, and the more clearly and powerfully it witnesses to man, the better it performs its duty. Note, they have a conscience that bears witness to their conduct—the witness to their conformity or lack of accordance to a commandment within God’s Word—is described by the apostle when he states: “their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right” (Romans 2:15)
  3. Thirdly, there follows an acknowledgement. The righteous God is also aware of this and will reward or judge him accordingly. The more clearly the conscience acknowledges the knowledge of God and is sensitive to it, and the more it either reassures itself concerning this or is powerfully affected as a result, the more faithfully the conscience performs its task. We acknowledge that God is aware and will either reward or punish. These activities of the conscience can also be observed in the following texts: “With Christ as my witness, I speak with utter truthfulness. My conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm it.” (Rom. 9:1 KJV); “By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God;” (1 John 3:19–21 KJV).

The conscience is either good or evil. It is good when it performs its duty well.  The conscience is good when:

  •  When our conscience immediately reveals and represents the will of God, obligating and stirring us up to do the will of God. “Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind” (Romans 14:5).
  • When our conscience is sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading, it may agitate or trouble us. “David got up and cut off the edge of Saul’s robe secretly. But it came about afterwards that David’s conscience bothered him because he had cut off the edge of Saul’s robe.” (1 Samuel 24:4-5)
  • Similarly, the conscience reassures us: “I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying; my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 9:1); “By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.” (1 John 3:19–21); “For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity” (2 Corinthians 1:12).
  • Someone is said to have an evil conscience whenever evil thoughts or deeds fills one with anxiety, fear, and remorse. This realization isn’t that the conscience is corrupt, but instead that it is performing its duty well, but it is referred to as evil because it convicts a person of evil thoughts or deeds.

If the conscience does not perform the above tasks well, it is corrupt in and of itself, being remiss in its duty either in all or two of these activities. 5  The Spirit of truth enlightens a good conscience, and therefore always makes its decisions according to the standards of God’s holy Word. The conscience also may be distinguished as pure (1 Timothy 3:9; 2 Timothy 1:3); evil (Hebrews 10:22); defiled (Titus 1:15); weak (1 Corinthians 8:7); and seared (1 Timothy 4:2). 

The witness of our spirit. Our spirit witnesses that we are aligning with the Spirit of God. Further, it consists of the consciousness that individually, we possess the character of the children of God. John Wesley held that the testimony of a good conscience within our heart: is the testimony of a good conscience toward God; and is the result of reason and reflection on what we feel in our souls. Strictly speaking, it is a conclusion drawn partly from the Word of God and partly from our own experience. The Word of God says everyone who has the fruit of the Spirit is a child of God. Experience or inward consciousness tells me that I have the fruit of the Spirit, and hence I rationally conclude; therefore, I am a child of God. Now, as this witness proceeds from the Spirit of God and is based on what He works in us, this is called the Spirit’s indirect witness to man’s soul. The direct testimony of the Spirit is fully confirmed. How am I assured, continues John Wesley, “that I do not mistake the voice of the Spirit? By the testimony of my own spirit; by the answer of a good conscience toward God: hereby I shall know that I am in no delusion, that I have not deceived my own soul. The immediate fruits of the Spirit, ruling in the heart, are love, joy, peace, mercy, humbleness of mind, meekness, gentleness, long-suffering. And the outward fruits are the doing of good to all men, and uniform obedience to all the commandments of God”. Then, we may say that these two witnesses, God’s Spirit to man’s conscience, taken together establish the assurance of salvation.  6

1 Willhelm Brakel, The Christian’s Reasonable Service, Translated by Joel Beeke

2 Karl Barth, Dogmatics

3 ibid

4 Willhelm Brakel, The Christian’s Reasonable Service, Translated by Joel Beeke

5 ibid

6 John Wesley, (Wesley, Works, I, p. 92)

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The ethics of the Covid-19 vaccine

Several coronavirus vaccines developed in the States and globally were made from the cell lines of aborted children — healthy children who were murdered. Most notably, this includes a fetal cell line called HEK-293, from the kidney of a healthy girl aborted in 1972, and PER.C6, from the retina of a healthy boy aborted in 1985. Apparently, these and similar cell lines have been used since the 1960s to manufacture vaccines against rubella, chickenpox, hepatitis A, shingles, haemophilia, rheumatoid arthritis, and cystic fibrosis.

In June, Science magazine reported that at least five coronavirus vaccines under development in the States were created using one of the two human fetal cell lines. But by the Fall it became clear that the two leading vaccines here in the States, those from Moderna and Pfizer — the vaccines currently being shipped — do not contain these fetal cell lines.

Note: There are several clean vaccines NOT using aborted babies being developed currently. I am sure many anticipate using these alternative vaccines.

In the case of Moderna, this claim has since been called into question. But in either case, it was later reported that both Moderna and Pfizer used the HEK-293 cell line in the testing phase of their vaccines’ effectiveness.

So while there appears to be less of an ethical dilemma concerning the composition of the Pfizer vaccine, and possibly the Moderna vaccine, both raise yet another ethical dilemma for some pro-life people over the use of fetal cell lines in the testing phase.

As we record, ethically derived and ethically tested coronavirus vaccines are in process, but they are much slower in development and will likely be more expensive, rarer, and more difficult to get. That’s the prediction at least. So should committed pro-lifers get the fast, available, free vaccines? Or should they wait?

The following biblical logic is from John Piper, April 13, 2021, where he presents the ethical dilemma all Christians should acknowledge. 1

Let me make four kinds of observations, and hope and pray that these will give some guidance to our thinking and our feeling and our acting. And I think all three of those really matter, particularly in regard to the use of human organs or human tissue harvested from the killing of unborn children. And we need to say it with words like that; otherwise, we will conceal from ourselves what’s happened.

1. We should never do evil that good may come.

First observation: in Romans 3:8, some of Paul’s adversaries accused him of “do[ing] evil that good may come.” Paul responded to this, that it was a slanderous charge. In other words, he distanced himself from that kind of ethical stance. And I think we should too. We shouldn’t do evil that good may come.

“God alone has the infinite wisdom to manage an entire world of sin in which he can turn horrible things for good.”

God alone has the infinite wisdom to manage an entire world of sin in which he can turn horrible things for wise and good purposes. He never tells us that we have such wisdom; we don’t. We are to live our lives guided by the principles he reveals in his word, not by our calculations about how much evil we can join in for some greater good.

So, if we really believe that the killing of unborn children is abhorrent to God and falls into the category of the shedding of innocent blood, for which God’s judgment fell, we should not think of turning this wickedness into a wonder drug to save our lives. We should not do evil that good may come. That’s my first observation.

2. We value Christ and his kingdom more than security or health.

Second, God frequently, in the Bible, calls us to do things and avoid things that are very costly to us personally, in order to demonstrate that Christ and his ways are more precious to us than safety or security or comfort, and that we sacrifice in order to do what’s right. When we are told not to return evil for evil (Matthew 5:38–39), or that we should love our enemies (Matthew 5:43–44), or turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39), or go the extra mile (Matthew 5:41), or do good to those who hate us (Luke 6:27), all of those kinds of commands are designed to show that we are not in bondage to this world, and that the deepest contentment of our lives does not flow from needing to avoid risk or show vengeance.

By denying ourselves comfort or satisfaction or safety for the sake of testifying to Christ’s value to us, and testifying to the sanctity of another person’s life, or testifying to our hope for another person’s well-being, or testifying to our confidence in God’s reward beyond the grave, when we deny ourselves in that way, we aim to exalt Christ and his ways over mere self-preservation.

So, if a scientist avoids using tissue and organs harvested from babies killed in abortion, or if an ordinary citizen avoids using a medication that they know has been developed specifically through such harvesting and research, the aim is that the Christian conscience is preserved and Christ is made much of as more valuable than any security or safety or health we might get through sin.

3. We testify to the sanctity of life.

Third, avoiding such research and avoiding the use of the products of such research is only one way of testifying to the truth and value of Christ in the sanctity of the unborn persons. But another way that should be added is the proactive engagement in whatever way we can to speak and act against the taking of innocent human life in the womb and the use of those children for research and experimentation.

So, I’m saying renunciation (that is, the avoidance part of our ethics), which is being asked about — Do we avoid the medication? — the renunciation of the use of such drugs has value. Yes, it does. And supplementing that value should also be the proactive engagement of resisting and discouraging abortion and the use of aborted babies in research.

4. God blesses principled action in his name.

And the final observation, the fourth one that I would make, is the one that’s most difficult to articulate but maybe the most important. The observation is that acting on principle — in this case, the principle that we do not want to be complicit in the desecration of dismembered human beings — acting on principle often does not look like the most obvious way to be a blessing to the greatest number people.

“God honors integrity and principled action that is rooted in his truth and his beauty and his worth.”

For example, if you try to act on the principle of not participating in the desecration of these children by avoiding medicines developed from their dead bodies, someone will say, “But look, look at all the good that is coming through the medication.” And they will say that they can’t see the good that may be coming from your principled action. So, what I’m saying here is this: God has ways of honouring and blessing and multiplying the effectiveness of principled action in his name, which, to the human calculation, may appear futile.

This is certainly the case with many martyrdoms in history, for example, or other kinds of sacrificial principled actions, which didn’t look like they were going to have any payoff at all for the suffering person or their family, or for the cause of Christ — just a dead-end street at the stake of suffering. The sufferers simply acted because their consciences wouldn’t let them do otherwise, while the world sees that as futile and foolish. “Just save yourself and your family and others, and stop denying yourself the privilege of life or health or prosperity.”

And my point again is this: God is God. He honours the integrity and principled action that is rooted in his truth and his beauty and his worth, even where the world cannot see the point. We have no idea what explosive effects, in the depths of God’s providence and purposes, our principled action might unleash by God’s grace.

So, I’m saying, let’s not act as researchers or as ordinary consumers in a way that desecrates the bodies of unborn victims and treats those children as though they can be killed and their tissue harvested for our benefit.

Audio version

1 John Piper (@JohnPiper) is the founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is the author of more than 50 books, including Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist and most recently Providence.

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The meaning of the Fear of God

Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. Ecclesiastes 12:13

There are many today who have a false conception of the word “fear” used in connection with a healthy respect for the Lord.  The following excerpt puts the true meaning of “fear” into perspective.

Many words in the English language have several strikingly different definitions. For example, anger can mean unbridled temper or it can mean righteous indignation. Love can mean lust or unconditional commitment. Normally we think of fear as an unpleasant emotion tied to anxious concern or outright terror of being harmed. But there is another definition of fear that can lead to something good and wonderful. The fear of God is complete awe and respect for him, a realization that everything he says about love and justice is true. Because God is great and mighty, and because he holds the power of life and death in his hands, a healthy and reverent fear of him helps us to respond to him as we should. This draws us closer to him and to the blessings he gives. 1

1 Beers, Gilbert; Beers, Ron. The One Year Mini for Men (p. 117). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

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Christ’s Atonement Death Teaches Obedience

“He learned obedience” (Hebrews 5:8)

Let us look at our Lord’s life to see what true obedience can teach us. First, it is clear that he lived his life in a close personal relationship to God – his and our heavenly Father. Unless we have similar access to His abiding fellowship with God – with the three in one God via the Holy Spirit — all our attempts to live in full obedience will fail. It is God’s holy presence, consciously abiding with us, that guides us as He keeps us steadfastly obeying Him.

Flawed obedience is always the result of a defective abiding in the Lord’s presence. A life entirely under the power of God’s Spirit allows for obedience to flow to us as living water – and our thoughts and actions are its natural unified outcome. The defective life must be acknowledged, then admitted to God, with no delusional, self-justifying escape – it is confessedly a life of broken, irregular fellowship with God. It is a life that must be healed, must make way for a full and healthy spiritual life; then only can full obedience become possible. The secret of true obedience is the return to close and continual fellowship with God.

The author of Hebrews noted that Christ “learned obedience.” And why was it necessary for Christ to present his obedience as learned obedience? What do we learn from observing our Lord’s life as he neared his death on the cross? What is the blessing He brings us? Mark these words: “Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him.” (Hebrews 5:8-9 NLT)

Suffering is unnatural to us who live in this human flesh – it calls for the surrender of our will. To surrender our will entirely to God is a pivotal shifting of our mindset, psychological suffering as we deal with the temptation to disobey. This is because, all our life we have lived in inherited disobedience, as the first Adam’s progeny.

As our High Priest, who would soon become our advocate at the right hand of God, Christ needed a demonstrable rejection of earthy leadership – a highly evident public form of suffering that the people would understand as a contradistinction to His love – that in Gethsemane He might appear to us, to learn to obey, to give up His will to the Father at any cost – on our behalf in the final act of redemption of mankind. “Not my will, but thy will be done”. As we know Jesus suffered injustice when the leaders and the people cried out: crucify Him. Nothing touches man’s conscience to unite with God. Injustice by the evils of fallen mankind contrasted with the beauty of a life of love and kindness as displayed by our Lord whilst he walked on earth.

He needed to learn obedience, that, as our great High Priest, as the final proving, that He might be exemplified as our teacher, as our exemplar, as absolutely perfect. He learned obedience, He became obedient unto death, that He might become the author of our salvation. He became the author of salvation through obedience, that He might save those ‘who obey Him.’

Obedience, was with Him, absolutely necessary to demonstrate; it is with us absolutely necessary to inherit, salvation from sin. The very essence of salvation is—obedience to God. Christ as the obedient One saves us as His obedient ones. Whether in His suffering on earth or in His glory in heaven, whether in Himself or in and through us, obedience is what the heart of Christ is set upon.

On earth Christ was a learner in the school of obedience; in heaven, He teaches it to His disciples here on earth. In a world where disobedience reigns unto death, the restoration of obedience is in Christ’s hands.

As in His own life, so in us, He has undertaken to maintain it. He teaches and works it in us, unto true life anew.

Let Christ Teach Us “He learned obedience.” And that learning was during his greatest trial on our behalf. And now that He teaches it, He does so first and most by unfolding the secret of His own obedience to the Father in the garden of Gethsemane. Our power of true obedience is to be found in the clear personal relationship with God. It was so with our Lord Jesus.

Observe His teaching ahead of the cross. He said: For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.” (John 12: 49-50; see also John 8:28, 5:30, 8:16)

Dependence upon a present fellowship and operation of God, a hearing and a seeing of what God speaks and does and shows, is what He taught prior to the cross; and this continued in Gethsemane and as Christ hung on the cross.

Our Lord spoke of His relation to the Father as the type and the promise of our relation to Him, and to the Father through Him. With us as with Him, the life of continual obedience is impossible without continual fellowship and continual teaching. It is only when God comes into our lives, in a degree and a power which many never consider possible — when His presence as the Eternal and Ever-present One is believed and received, even as the Son believed and received it, that there can be the hope of a life in which every thought is brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

The church has a need for this continual teaching. The imperative need of the continual receiving our orders and instructions from God Himself is what is implied in the words: “This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus” (Revelation 14:12 NLT)

With the commander of an army, the teacher of a school, the father of a family, it is not the code of laws, however clear and good, with its rewards or threats, that secures true obedience. Rather it is the personal living influence, wakening love and enthusiasm; it is the joy of ever hearing the Father’s voice, that will give the joy and the strength of true obedience. It is the voice that gives the power to obey the word; the word without the living voice does not avail.

We must learn to listen to what the Word of God speaks to us in our devotions, and like Christ, we can hear, follow and obey our God. We must allow the Spirit of the Lord to speak to us intimately, as we abide in Him.

Modified edits by Glen Jackman: Andrew Murray, The School of Obedience, pp 41-47

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The Miracles and what they achieved

The Miracles (as presented from the Gospel of John)

The miracles are amazing in themselves and offer mankind ongoing blessings. Scripture shows that:

They are proof Jesus is the Messiah  Still, many in the crowd believed in him. They said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more signs than this man?” John 7: 31

Divided reasoning by the miracles Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.”  But others asked, “How can a sinner perform such signs?” So they were divided.  John 9:16 

They were used to testify  Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me,  John 10:25

They were used as a defence Jesus said to them: “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”  John 10:32 

They are used to stop unbelief and prove Jesus is God’s Son Jesus said: “Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” John 10:38 

They made the Pharisees acknowledge Jesus was performing many signs Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. “What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many signs.  John 11:47 

Used to promote belief “If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.” John 11:48

They drew men to seek Jesus “Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him.” John 12:18

They prove that Jesus and God are One Jesus said: “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.” John 14:11

To display God’s Glory When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” John 11:4 

They pronounce Judgement Jesus said: “If I had not done among them the works no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet they have hated both me and my Father.” John 15: 24

By believing you may have eternal life Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe[a]that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.   John 20:30-31

There are many reasons for the miracles!  – From forgiveness, mercy and justice, right down to God’s final Judgement at the 2nd Advent of Christ.

Article by Catherine Jackman

 

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Power to Live for God

As long as we live we will face temptations. When we don’t allow the Lord to lead us by His Spirit we must acknowledge our mistake when we become aware that we have sinned. From time to time, we may sense the a warning from God’s Spirit. If not heeded, we may next sense guilt and perhaps the shame of slipping back into our old way of living. The apostle Paul noted: For when you were tricked into complacent sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. Romans 6: 20-21

Obedience to God may seem difficult, but let’s look at how God will help you overcome the devil by looking at a few scriptures:

  • Let Love Motivate If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.  John 14:15-17 NLT
  • Keep Alert Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41 ESV
  • It’s God’s Work You must be even more careful to put into action God’s saving work in your lives, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him. Philippians 2:12-13 NLT

Jesus is our example. When facing troubles, he would rise early and go to a quiet place and pray for strength. Follow his example — remove yourself from the temptation and immediately ask God for help. Don’t dialogue with Satan. He has strategies of attack to trick and lie and destroy the smartest people on earth. Don’t forget that you have the power of the Holy Spirit within you to prompt you to obey in times of temptation. Paul had advice for this experience of overcoming:

  • What God requires, he also empowers. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become entirely committed children of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6: 22-23