Joshua 11 - Israel's Northern Campaign

Joshua 11

Just as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua’s, and so Joshua did; he left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses (verse 15). 

Message: Israel's Northern Campaign

Time: Joshua "Yahweh saves" led Israel, under God's command, to victorious conquest of the Promised Land. The book spans about 25 years, beginning about 1406 BC. The conquest of Canaan, numerous military campaigns and regathering of the nation are major components. 

What the Lord is Saying: Joshua and the people continue to march through the Canaanite land and seize it. The Lord is on their side and continues to provide ways to conquer the land that on the surface don't seem possible. They are outnumbered and yet still prevail. God stills the water of the Jordan so they can cross, similar to the parting of the Red Sea with Moses. The fall of Jericho seems to be the improbable success that Israel has. Then the people of Ai are conquered. And then the southern kings come to ambush Israel but end up in a cave and are killed instead. And now in Joshua 11, it seems we have the story of the Northern kings. 

The first 5 verses of chapter 11 mentions all of these kings as "they came out...and encamped at the waters of Merom, to fight against Israel." The Lord speaks to Israel in verse 6, "Do not be afraid...I will deliver all of them slain before Israel; you shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.” As the Lord has done previously, he will provide the way to conquer foes. And this is what they did with verse 8 saying, "they struck them until no survivor was left to them." In verse 12, "Joshua captured all the cities of these kings." The text mentions in verse 19, "There was not a city which made peace with the sons of Israel except the Hivites living in Gibeon." And in verse 20, "For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, to meet Israel in battle in order that he might utterly destroy them, that they might receive no mercy." And this chapter ends in verse 23, "Joshua gave it [the land] for an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes." 

The people prevail. Why? Because the Lord delivers them and allows them to conquer their foes. It seems that some of the foes have an opportunity to enter into peace with Israel and perhaps save themselves from death. And yet, God hardens hearts.  

Matthew Poole (1624-1679; minister at parish church in London; puritan) states of this verse "It was the design of God’s providence not to soften their hearts to a compliance with the Israelites, but to give them up to their own animosity, pride, confidence, and stubbornness; that so both their abominable and incorrigible wickedness might be severely punished and that the Israelites might not be mixed with them, but be entire among themselves in the possession of the land." 

The idea of hardening hearts is an interesting one. It seems like God acts in a sovereign manner to harden or soften hearts. But in these words by Poole is the idea that God did not soften their hearts, but left them to their own desires. There is a free will choice that people have and with these Canaanites they already had an ere of animosity, pride, confidence and stubbornness. And this disposition by them would work to achieving God's sovereign plan. So he didn't make them that way, but he also did not soften their hearts to seek peace with the Israelites.  

Romans 1 speaks of God giving people over, again, not softening their hearts but allowing them to pursue their own agendas of trading God for a lie, worshiping the creature rather than the creator, men and women engaging in unnatural sexual relations, leaving them to their own desires. We are to pray that God would soften people's hearts and help them come to the realization that He is real. 

In this passage, the people would not engage in peace and so God hardened those hearts, fulfilling His divine providence and purpose for His called ones, the people of Israel and His promise given to them to give land to them and their descendants. 

I think this is a hard concept for skeptics to understand, but I suppose what I see is God's overall plan and in that plan there are people that know Him and seek peace with Him and there are those that do not. Yes God loves people, but He also has a plan and that must be remembered as well. 

Summary: Joshua's conquests continue, this time being the northern kings and their people. People could seek peace with Israel, yet for those with no desire, God hardens their hearts to achieve His providence for His people. 

Promise: From Tabletalk, "When we as Christians face seemingly impossible foes, we can be assured that the Lord will be with us as we look to Him."

Prayer: Heavenly Father, you are sovereign and your ways are true and right and perfect. You have a will for me and my life. I surrender to You. I trust in your way for me and do not carve out my own purpose, but submit and surrender to You. You have given people free will and in the process as people live they choose or do not choose you. Lord, soften hearts so that people will turn to You and we can continue to witness and see this in our lifetime. 

Note: If you are interested in other studies/devotions, check out my index of Bible Study's.

Various Scriptures - Prayer

Exodus 15:11

“Who is like You among the gods, O Lord?
Who is like You, majestic in holiness,
Awesome in praises, working wonders?

Message: The One to Whom We Speak

What the Lord is Saying: These lessons for this post are based upon R C Sproul's teaching series on Prayer. This lesson reminds us to consider the God that we approach in prayer. Over the years, society has become more casual and this can have an effect on how we view our supervisors and those over us as well, as more familiar and more of a friend. Yet, we need to remember the God who is majestic in holiness, as today's scripture mentions, awesome and one who works wonders. We can be familiar but we also need to be reverent and give him the respect He deserves. 

-----------------------------------------

Luke 17:7-10

7 “Which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come immediately and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, and [properly] clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink’? 9 He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he? 10 So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’”

Message: The One Who is Speaking

What the Lord is Saying: We are to come before God with awe and wonder. Today's passage is a reminder of the relationship between us the servant and Him the master. We don't approach God demanding God to work. We look to His grace and implore Him to be gracious to us. Always we must remember who we are - sinners, needing salvation and forgiveness by His grace. I have been speaking to a man lately online and He is appalled that God is not answering His prayers. I think there is something about us, often always comparing and always seeing others and what they have and thinking we should have the same. I know this is common for me as well. But God is not a puzzle to figure out how he works and us come up with the right formula to get him to do something. He is God and we must respect Him. 

-----------------------------------------

Psalm 34:3

O magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.

Message: Adoring our Lord and Maker

What the Lord is Saying: Thinking about the acrostic for of ACTS - Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication as a way to think about prayer. Many believe prayer to be difficult. As we learn to know more about God, we can't help but adore Him and begin to speak of that adoration. By adoring Him we also come before Him with humility, recognizing He is greater than us, has characteristics we don't have. And in adoration we make mention of those characteristics, like His holiness, worthy of praise, faithfulness, the salvation He gives us, His strength and His grace and mercy, to name a few. 

-----------------------------------------

2 Corinthians 7:9-10

9 I now rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to [the point of] repentance; for you were made sorrowful according to [the will] of God, so that you might not suffer loss in anything through us. 10 For the sorrow that is according to [the will of] God produces a repentance without regret, [leading] to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.

Message: The Prayer of Confession

What the Lord is Saying: I have been in dialogue with someone else who makes it clear that I John 1:9 is not a salvific verse and yet it is a verse that we come to maybe as a reminder of the importance of confessing our sin. I am not sure if she is saying this is something we don't do, but isn't it important to state before God that we are agreeing that we are sinners, that we need his forgiveness. And today's verse acknowledges a need to repent, to say I am sorry, to turn and go the opposite way. Attrition is sorrow for the consequence of sin. Contrition is sorrow acting against the holiness of God. 

-----------------------------------------

Colossians 4:2

Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with [an attitude] of thanksgiving;

Message: The Prayer of Thanksgiving

What the Lord is Saying: ACTS praying. Now onto T - Thanksgiving. All of our transgressions have at their root 2 primordial (created or developed from the beginning) sins: idolatry and ingratitude. Although changed by God into a new creation at salvation, we still have a tendency toward these sins. But by cultivating thankfulness in our life, thanking God we combat against these sinful tendencies. We also take God's blessings for granted, get absorbed with the present and forget to thank God for specific blessings. By thanking Him regularly we practice remembering and acknowledging that He is the provider of all. 

-----------------------------------------

Philippians 4:6

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Message: Supplication in Prayer

What the Lord is Saying: Supplication is making requests known to God. In today's passage we are to make our requests known to God and to be persistent (Luke 18:1-8). Supplication is requested of us, but we need to also remember to also stay balanced in Adoration, Confession, and Thanksgiving. Jesus intercedes for us and the Father wants to hear our prayers. The Holy Spirit also intercedes for us. He assists in praying in an unselfish manner. 

-----------------------------------------

Matthew 6:9-13

9 “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who is in heaven,

Hallowed be Your name.

10 ‘Your kingdom come.

Your will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.

11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread.

12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’]

Message: The Model Prayer

What the Lord is Saying: The Lord's Prayer is an example of the kind of prayer that honors God. 'Our Father' reminds us of an intimate relationship we have with God, believing in Christ alone for our salvation. God's name is 'hallowed' or honored as holy on the earth. There is prayer for 'God's kingdom come' and 'will to be done' which is Jesus asking that God's kingdom which is the people that call Jesus Savior, Lord, recognize their sin, that Jesus has now removed the stain of sin on their lives through His shed blood and rising from the dead -- this like-minded kingdom of people is what Jesus wants to see - that everyone will call upon the name of God to be saved. Whiteheart in 1989 had the great song, "Let the kingdom come" which holds to the same idea. And oh how this should be our request each day - O God, May your kingdom come. May people continue to surrender to God and trust in His salvation, instead of making their own way to find worth and meaning in their life. Would you please bring people to a confession of faith and I pray those people would then live their lives obedient to your will. That people everywhere would walk by faith in You. From here Jesus speaks to personal needs - "our daily bread", our agreeing with God of our sins, "forgive us our debts" while also how we relate to one another and keep peace amongst one another and unity and oneness "forgive our debtors," preserve us from 'temptation' and be far away from the schemes of the devil. - I realize the 10 commandments set up in a similar way - God first then ourselves and our relationship with others.   

-----------------------------------------

James 5:16b-18

16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

Message: Does Prayer Change Things?

What the Lord is Saying: The simple answer to this question today and often all questions of evangelism and any good works is God has requested that we be obedient and that our obedience matters. Our lives matter. And so while texts like Ephesians 1:11 may state that "God works all things after the counsel of His will" that statement does not absolve us from being involved. God wants us. I believe we are God's gift to Jesus (John 17:24) and as a gift we are intended to serve a purpose. God has shown in His word the effect of our praying and so we continue to pray and talk to Him. I still think it is easy in this thinking to not pray and not be involved. But that moves to disobedience. Prayer is not about changing God's will but being involved in God's will. Thank you God for wanting me, for expecting me to be involved and for working through me. In all of that work may you be glorified. 

My Utmost for His Highest - June 6th - Work Out What God Works In

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. - Philippians 2:12-13

    Your will agrees with God, but in your flesh there is a disposition which renders you powerless to do what you know you ought to do. When the Lord is presented to the conscience, the first thing conscience does is to rouse the will, and the will always agrees with God. You say--"But I do not know whether my will is in agreement with God." Look to Jesus and you will find that your will and your conscience are in agreement with Him every time. The thing in you which makes you say "I shan't" is something less profound than your will; it is perversity, or obstinacy, and they are never in agreement with God. The profound thing in man is his will, not sin. Will is the essential element in God's creation of man: sin is a perverse disposition which entered into man. In a regenerated man the source of will is almighty. "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." You have to work out with concentration and care what God works in; not work your own salvation, but work it out, while you base resolutely in unshaken faith on the complete and perfect Redemption of the Lord. As you do this, you do not bring an opposed will to God's will, God's will is your will, and your natural choices are along the line of God's will, and the life is as natural as breathing. God is the source of your will, therefore you are able to work out His will. Obstinacy is an unintelligent 'wadge' that refuses to be enlightened; the only thing is for it to be blown up with dynamite, and the dynamite is obedience to the Holy Spirit. 

    Do I believe that Almighty God is the source of my will? God not only expects me to do His will, but He is in me to do it. 

- From Oswald Chambers, "My Utmost for His Highest" - Classic Edition

Highlights and Underlines are courtesy of Mom from her print edition

My Utmost for His Highest - April 17th - Neck or Nothing

Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved *said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea. - John 21:7

    Have you ever had a crisis in which you deliberately and emphatically and recklessly abandoned everything? It is a crisis of will. You may come up to it many times externally, but it amounts to nothing. The real deep crisis of abandonment is reached internally, not externally. The giving up of external things may be an indication of being in total bondage.

 
    Have you deliberately committed your will to Jesus Christ? It is a transaction of will, not of emotion; the emotion is simply the gilt-edge of the transaction. If you allow emotion first, you will never make the transaction. Do not ask God what the transaction is to be, but make it in regard to the thing you do see, either in the shallow or the profound place.

    If you have heard Jesus Christ's voice on the billows, let your convictions go to the winds, let your consistency go to the winds, but maintain your relationship to Him.

From Oswald Chambers, "My Utmost for His Highest" - Classic Edition

- Highlights and Underlines are courtesy of Mom from her print edition. 

My thoughts

The context of this verse from John is some of the disciples in a boat fishing. Jesus stood on the beach, the shore. Peter sees Jesus on the shore and hears his command to them to throw their net on the other side of the boat as they were not catching any fish. Upon seeing Jesus, Peter jumps from the boat to get to Jesus. 

Thus, in this passage is Jesus calling Peter, but Jesus also is calling me often. Do I run to Him because it is Him or do I wait for an emotion that will incite me to go towards Him? Do I do what He calls or do I wait for an explanation or to be properly equipped or educated? I must approach Him out of a transaction of my will. Hear Jesus calling and go to Him, without delay. My relationship is with Him. 

Acts 26:12-18 - Faith and Sanctification

 Acts 26:12-18

12 “While so engaged as I was journeying to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, 13 at midday, O King, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining all around me and those who were journeying with me. 14 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15 And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; 17 rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, 18 to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’

Message: Faith and Sanctification

Time: Clearly written by Luke, this book follows the lives of Peter and then Paul after Jesus' ascension into heaven. The book was completed about 62 AD as Paul sat in prison. It provides an account of the growth of the Church and spread from Jerusalem, from a small group of frightened believers in Jerusalem transformed into an empire-wide movement of people who had committed their lives to Jesus Christ, and it should help us to be bold and have zeal in our walks with God.

What the Lord is Saying: 

The thing that has already amazed me about this teaching and truth about the fact that good works are separate from saving faith, though clearly testifying to others of the faith we have, is the notion that those good works are being done without an expectation of receiving something. Thus, they are truly good. They are a response of our commitment not in order to earn favor with God. And therefore the motive or reason we do them is pure. It is untainted. 

I am not sure there is really much in my life that is done where I am not hoping to get something in return for it. I work hard but a paycheck is always at the end of two weeks. Granted, I often work beyond my 40 hours and so maybe this shows my commitment to the work, but still I am getting paid. Volunteer work I think shows our true desire to serve and give of ourselves. 

Sanctification is the inward transformation we experience from the point of our conversion. It is the state or process of being set apart as holy. At the point of conversion, God accepts us not on the basis of who we are and what we have done, but on the basis of Jesus Christ and who He is and what He has done.  And this is by faith. Yet, after conversion is the process of sanctification or being made holy in the life of the believer. It is the process whereby we move the needle to actually look like Jesus. This is also by faith.  

According to Tabletalk, there are 2 ways scripture speaks of sanctification: 

1. Positional or Declarative Sanctification -- At the moment of trusting in Christ alone for salvation I am set apart as God's holy person. "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." - I Peter 2:9-10 Thus, in God's sight I am holy. I am a "new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17). 

2. Progressive Sanctification - Until I am glorified, I am unholy in practice. Thus, I engage with the Lord in the process of sanctification. Daily I die to self and live unto Christ, seeking to obey Him in all things. Here I am becoming in my experience what I am already in God's sight. "Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation." - I Peter 2:11-12. And this process is work. It is faith in God to work this out in me, but it is also work by me choosing behavior that will glorify God. Romans 8:13 - "for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live." As Paul records so clearly in Philippians 2:12-13 -- "work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure."

Wow, this is an amazing truth. I am declared holy by faith, but daily I choose holiness. Acts 26:18 - "receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me." Thus, I am living my entire life by faith. Faith that God has declared me accepted and faith that He continues in me to be holy. 

Promise: As Tabletalk records --- we are justified by faith, but even the sanctification and good works that follow our justification are based on faith. 

Prayer: O God, you are glorious and it is a wonder to understand You and Your words of truth. Thank you for this message that I needed to hear this day. That I am a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy person, possessed by You. You have declared me accepted and in Christ. I am a new creation. And yet each day I live, I make choices to be united with You or not united with You. I pray that daily I would dies to self and live unto Christ. I want to be united with your Spirit and live in a manner that is glorifying to You. Thank you for giving me this strength each day and working in me, giving me the will and the work so that I will glorify You. 

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines celebrating the 500th year of the Reformation. The month of June is about justification; May was about solus Christus - Christ Alone; April, salvation by grace alone; March, the sovereign providence of God; February, the doctrine of revelation and the various aspects of the doctrine of Scripture that sola Scriptura seeks to preserve; January, the doctrine of God.

Mankind's Condition - The Sins of the Gentiles - Though born with God being evident, Gentiles do not honor God or give thanks, look to their selves for truth, and God gives them over to their sin, and in the process God's wrath is sin which will culminate on the Day of the Lord. The Sins of the Jews - Jews thought their status meant only Gentiles were true sinners. Romans 2 and 3 explains that Jews are just as guilty before God. 

The Law Speaks - The Law and Accountability - the Law reminds us we are sinners and doing good will not outweigh this bad; I am condemned. Righteousness According to the Law - The Law can make one righteous if obedient to all, but we are sinners. Human Inability - man cannot make himself righteous because he is a sinner. 

Only Justified through Christ (God) - The Obedience of One - with Jesus all obedience was completed in Him which resulted in Him taking on all sin; we trust only in His words, not ours. God's Initiative In Justification - God initiates the act of justification through the work of Christ alone; he saves us out of His kindness. Faith and Justification - no one is continually righteous; only through Jesus one will be made righteous; to be made righteous one must believe in God, ask for His mercy. 

Saved by Faith - Faith and Righteousness - Faith is what God uses in us to build the bridge to being accepted by God and restored to a right relationship with Him. Justification and Sin - Nothing changes the fact that we are sinners, but our status before God changes by Christ's obedience as this declares us to be righteous. Not by any of our works - Justification is by faith alone. By adding any work, we must add all works. Why Faith - Faith is the instrument [or what we do] to usher in to our life the finished act of righteousness. 

Faith Works - What is Saving Faith - Saving faith is not simply understanding truth, it is believing the truth is true and then living by that truth. Justification and Our Good Works - Once God declares us righteous by the righteousness of Christ, we cannot help but do what is right. Keeping Grace Gracious - if being restored to God's plan is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works. Don't mix the two. Keep them separate. But keep them both extremely valuable.

Titus 2:11 - Is Grace Cooperative

Titus 2:11 - For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,

Message: Is Grace Cooperative?

Time: Paul is the author, written in AD 63. Paul went with Titus to the island of Crete and evangelized there before Paul left Titus there in a position of leadership. The book speaks of living right as guided by Truth.

What the Lord is Saying:

The issue: How free is the human will after the fall of Adam.

Humans beings are free to make choices. But our freedom is limited by our desires. Freedom is doing what we most want to do. Apart from God's grace, the only thing that we want to do is sin. In order to do what is truly good and pleasing to God, grace must change our hearts. It is only the regenerate person that understands the things of God.

I go back to an idea that I have been focusing on: the horizontal and the vertical. The horizontal is our life lived with one another and the life I live for myself. In this life there is freedom: each day there are choices to engage in good acts and bad acts as they relate to man's relationship to man. Much good has been done by men and women on this horizontal level. We should not ever diminish these acts. But there is the vertical - man's relationship with God. Without God's grace there is no vertical, only a horizontal. Grace brings the vertical into my life because sin removed the vertical. Without grace, I will only live on the horizontal. With grace, I can carry out the things of God. Thus, today's text states in Titus 2:11 - For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men. Salvation is a God thing and it is needed to make me right vertically, right with God.

The debate that I have been looking at is - can man get to God on his own or must God intervene? And is this intervention completely by God or is man involved?

RC Sproul Message - Is Grace Cooperative - In this message RC Sproul begins his lecture by reciting a quote by Joseph Arminius in which he upholds the lost condition of man following Adam's sin or his sin and mentions that the only way man can be brought to salvation is through the act of grace into that person's life. He mentions that Arminius began as a pure Calvinist and Augustinian but then he got wrapped up in a debate with someone and in that process began to move further and further away from the reformed doctrine.

Early on he speaks of preventing grace and prevenient grace. "Pre" means before and "venient" - coming before so this is 'grace that comes before something." Grace comes before conversion. There are also those who look at internal grace and external grace. External grace is something that happens outside of ourselves, outside of our soul. Internal grace would be something that God does inside of us. For Arminius, grace is not limited to an external operation of the Holy Spirit, but also God's internal operation. However, he then goes to say that all persons have their own will and can refuse the call of the Holy Spirit. So even though it is internal (God doing something inside of us), it is not irresistible. He says the grace of regeneration is sufficient to convert. It is all a person needs to be liberated from spiritual bondage. The grace is enough. But it is not inherently efficient as it does not always affect conversion or regeneration. Thus, prevenient grace or grace that comes before man's choice to then choose whether or not he wants that grace.

Calvin however speaks that the calling of God is effectual. Here the Spirit effects what it intends and thus, it cannot be rejected. Thus, grace is internal and effectual. But for Arminius it is internal but can be rejected. Arminius says that if man does not submit to the grace, the fault lies with man. Pelagius would though deny this for Pelagius believes that God does not have to help a person be saved. But Arminius says that God does have to help, but man can reject. Arminius seeks to not make God accountable to people rejecting Him whereby with Calvin the onus is completely on God as to man being saved or not saved. While Arminius believes that the rejecting by man means that the fault rests on him, he also does not believe that the acceptance of man does not rest on man being virtuous. To believe this would mean that man has something to boast about and this would contradict what Paul says in Ephesians 2:9.

Arminius gave a famous example of a rich man coming to a beggar to offer him a gift. The beggar does nothing to earn the gift, and to receive it simply reaches out his had to accept the gift. But the beggar can also not reach out his hand and therefore be content in his position of being poor. Billy Graham even stated that God does 99% and man does 1% whereby reformers would say that for the drowning man, the person would drown and then God would pull him out of the water and resuscitate him to life.

After Arminius died in 1609, some of his disciples in the Synod of Dort were called upon to consider the five articles of Remonstrance. It was in response to these five articles that we received the five points of Calvinism.

[I was thinking of this question - most of the proof text I think about Calvinist thought, namely whether man is involved at all in salvation, comes from Paul's writings (and also Hebrews). Is it possible that Augustine and Calvin concluded their points on man having no place in saving man from Paul alone or is that line of thinking consistent throughout the Bible? Stated another way, is Jesus a Calvinist? Is God and the Old Testament writers Calvinist? This is a side-note question of mine. Some people have made the assertion that if we only follow the red letters or Jesus' words then we won't come to the conclusion of grace alone.]

RC Sproul Message - Born to Sin - In this message RC Sproul begins speaking about Jonathan Edwards and his book, Freedom of the Will, written in 1754. That book is very theological and philosophical and technical. It was written after Edwards had been removed from his church in Northampton and began a ministry to the Indians at Stockbridge (both in Massachusetts).

Edwards deals with the question - "What is the will anyway?" Philosophers often looked at the mind, the affections, and the will OR the mind, the heart, and the will. Edwards felt it was important to distinguish between the mind or thinking and the will or choosing. He says they are interrelated. In analyzing the will, the making of human decisions or choices, he looked first at the law of causality. Causality is every effect must have a cause. Thus, he analyzed human choices as effects with causes. The choices we make are made for a reason and the mind supplies the reason. Thus, the choices we make are what we deem to be good for us, though, Edwards use of the word good isn't necessarily morality, but rather good is what is pleasing to us. Thus, the good is what is most pleasing to me, at this moment, and to choose what I want. Thus, this is the role of desire in the making of choices. The mind deems a particular action to be good and pleasing to us. For example, when one is hungry, those hunger pains alert the mind and then the mind through choosing decides to eat, in order to meet the need of hunger, in order to please himself.

Edwards states that all choices are caused by something. They don't just happen. And what causes choices are inclinations. Thus, choices are motivated or driven by inclinations. Edwards understood that as humans we are complex. At times, we have very complex desires and motives within our lives. Paul reverberates this idea in Romans 7:19 - For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do. What Paul seems to be saying that in him are competing desires and competing inclinations. In Christ is the desire to always do those things that honor God, but in his flesh is desires contrary to the Spirit and sometimes I follow these desires. Edwards might say to Paul that at the time of your choice to sin, you have a stronger desire to not do what is pleasing to God than you have in yourself to please God. Thus, there is a conflict of inclinations. Thus, Edwards states that we always choose according to the strongest inclination at the moment.

This is not determinism which is being controlled by external forces that coerce us, such as our environment and place in which we live and grow up. Atheists believe in determinism, meaning we are a product of our environment. What Edwards is focused on instead is self-determination in which the choices we make are determined by us. What Edwards is getting at is our choices are determined by us and my desires and what my mind deems to be most good for me at the moment. There is a desire continuum we have. Some desires are strong while others are mild. Thus freedom is the power to choose according to your inclinations.

For example, the doctor may recommend and I may agree that I need to lose 30 pounds as losing pounds has a myriad of positive outcomes. But, my desire to lose those pounds varies from moment to moment. After eating a thanksgiving meal I have no desires to eat more and want to lose pounds, but when I am hungry and a chocolate sundae is presented before me, my desire for that sundae is greater than my desire to lose weight. Thus, the desire continuum. We have different degrees of desires, but without an inclination there wouldn't be a choice is what Edwards argues.

Yet, Edwards is arguing with pagan philosophers and even other theologians which might say that the will is not indifferent, but has a prior bent, disposition or inclination. To be really free it would have an equal means to go to the right or the left. Edwards says an indifferent choice is an irrational concept. If I choose one thing over another for no other reason whatsoever, like choosing which way to go at a fork in the road with no reason to choose either way, how would that have any moral significance. Intent is essential to a moral decision, to a voluntary act. To be a moral decision, there has to be a reason or intent. But he says the idea of an indifferent choice is a nonsensical concept.

What Edwards is most famous for is his distinction between our natural ability and our moral ability. This is similar to Augustinian's distinction between free will and liberty. Edwards says, "We have the natural ability to make choices." We have natural ability that is not coerced by outside forces. What we lack, according to Edwards, is the moral ability to choose the things of God. Because in the fall, we lost our disposition, our desire, our inclination for God. We don't choose God because we don't want him. We cannot choose what we do not want. We have no natural inclination for the things of God until the Holy Spirit creates that in our soul. Thus back to the vertical, Edwards is stating that we lack, on our own, the ability to see that God is what we need the most in our lives, and in turn meets us on the vertical, on our own. The only way our heart is inclined to the things of God is God coming to us and once God comes, we cannot resist Him. Thus, grace is not cooperative.

Summary: On the horizontal, man is capable of making choices, based upon his inclinations and desires. The problem is that apart from grace, we only desires the things of this world, the things that do not save us, that are not of salvation, that therefore are not of God. To do the things of God, God must intervene in our lives and this intervention is not resisting. If God calls us, we will respond.

Promise: Paul says that the grace of God has brought salvation to all people, thus God has saved all sorts of people. The gospel must be preached to all people.

Prayer: Father, your word is alive and true. I seek truth. Even as I spend time talking to people that are coming from a myriad of faiths, I want to make sure that the truth of who you are and how salvation happens or how I am made to be free from sin happens. Guide me into truth always. Thank you for saving me and making me whole and giving me new life. I live now in obedience to You and I do not want that to ever be muddy or unclear. You are my God and I am yours. You love me and in response I love You and others and want You to be in the life of all others I am near. Save. Save people. Keep on saving people. 

My Utmost for His Highest - October 20 - Is God's Will My Will?

For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication. - I Thessalonians 4:3

It is not a question of whether God is willing to sanctify me; is it my will? Am I willing to let God do in me all that has been made possible by the Atonement? Am I willing to let Jesus be made sanctification to me, and to let the life of Jesus be manifested in my mortal flesh? Beware of saying--Oh, I am longing to be sanctified. You are not, stop longing and make it a matter of transaction,--"Nothing in my hands I bring." Receive Jesus Christ to be made sanctification to you in implicit faith, and the great marvel of the Atonement of Jesus will be made real in you. All that Jesus made possible is made mine by the free loving gift of God on the ground of what He performed, my attitude as a saved and sanctified soul is that of profound humble holiness (there is no such thing as proud holiness), a holiness based on agonizing repentance and a sense of unspeakable shame and degradation; and also on the amazing realization that the love of God commended itself to me in that while I cared nothing about Him, He completed everything for my salvation and sanctification (Romans 5:8 - But God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us). No wonder Paul says nothing is "able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:39)." 

Sanctification makes me one with Jesus Christ, and in Him one with God, and it is done only through the superb Atonement of Christ. Never put the effect as the cause. The effect in me is obedience and service and prayer, and is the outcome of speechless thanks and adoration for the marvelous sanctification wrought out in me because of the Atonement. 

Jeremiah 12

I have been starting to read the Bible through - following the M'Cheyne Reading Plan "Secret."

Today I read from Jeremiah 12 and prepared this outline based upon my thoughts from Enduring Word. 

What the Lord is Saying:

JEREMIAH'S QUESTION AND GOD'S ANSWER

Jeremiah's question to God - verses 1-4

• You are righteous God (1)
• Why does the way of the wicked prosper (1)
• The wicked have fruit which you plant (2)
• These wicked know God (speak it) but far from Him (their mind) (2)
• But, you Lord know me (3)
• Prepare the wicked for slaughter (judgment) (3)
• Because meanwhile the land mourns as this seemingly unfairness continues (4)

God's answer to Jeremiah - verses 5-6

• The Lord points him to the real issue - namely he has asked Jeremiah to do something and his response is to look around at the wicked and question their fruit (5)
• The Lord points out that Jeremiah is therefore questioning this present challenge, so how will he fare when the Lord asks him to do something else (5)
• The small challenge was adversity from family (11:21), the larger challenge will be adversity from those outside of family (6)

JUDAH AND HER ENEMIES

God abandons His People to their enemies - verses 7-8

• Jeremiah speaks to the future when God will give his dearly beloved into the hand of their enemies (7)
• Lord - "My people roar against me" - they rebel so God rejects them for a time (7)
• Judah will be as conspicuous as a speckled bird to its enemies and will provoke their opposition (8)

The mournful harvest of the Land - verses 10-13

• As judgment comes the land will be desolate (10-12)
• But the enemies (Babylonians) should take no pleasure because their harvest is because of the fierce anger of the Lord (13)

A promise of retribution and a promise of restoration - verses 14-15

• Even though God used Babylon as an instrument of His judgment, He would nevertheless judge them for their free will evil and brutality against Judah (14)
• Then he will have compassion on Judah (15)

A merciful promise to the nations - verses 16-17

• The Lord extends his grace even to the opposing Babylonians (16)
• Turning to the Lord is great blessing; Turning from the Lord is great judgment (17) 

Summary: I thought this was an interesting reading, namely because it starts with a question many people voice and that is, why do the wicked prosper. But the Lord's response is to not answer the question, but instead wonder why the question was asked and is concerned for Jeremiah and if he is asking this question now, then how will he handle future challenges. Jeremiah then speaks of the Judah being given over to the Babylonians and the judgment which will come from Judah's rejection of God. Eventually, he will have compassion, but Babylon will be the instrument of his judgment, and yet he still holds them accountable for their actions. The Babylonians can return and embrace the Lord. 

Promise: Even though God used Babylon as an instrument of His judgment, He would nevertheless judge them for their free will evil and brutality against Judah.

Prayer: Thank you Lord for the way in which Your word speaks. Questions that we think are new are not. Keep my eyes focused on You. Bring healing to the enemies of God. Draw them to you. Thank you for saving me and providing me compassion. Help me to be faithful to that call.