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Better Than I Deserve

I am taking a course through Ligonier Connect called Understanding God's Sovereignty in Suffering. It has been an amazing course so far, and we came to a lesson called "Better Than I Deserve." After watching the lesson's video we are asked to answer a question or two about what we learned.

The first question that was listed was the one that I answered, and I thought it might be helpful to post my answer.

What do you really deserve?

In what ways has God given you things that you do not deserve? Conversely, how has He not given you things that you do deserve?

It is not that God owes me nothing. God owes me something: death. If we say that God owes me nothing it is secretly saying that our standing before God is neither justified or condemned. We are not in this foggy, middle ground of goodness and badness. We deserve death because the wage of sin is death. Our intentional and purposeful sin has separated us from God, but God made a way through Jesus so that what we deserve was taken and nailed to the cross. God has given His children grace, which is undeserved and unmerited by its very definition. We do not deserve a right and justified relationship with the perfect, loving, and holy Father of the universes. 

What I do not deserve is grace. What I do not deserve is to be justified. What I do not deserve is to be seen as blameless, sinless, and forgiven. But, Jesus has given us this in His sinless life, His voluntary and atoning death, and His triumph over the grave. 

We all deserve death, but Jesus sacrificially took our penalty through His death on the cross. We all do not deserve grace and forgiveness, but Jesus gives that to those who trust that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

God is so good to us. God is so gracious to us.

Jacob Luis Gonzales

What Is The Proper Response To Grace?

This article is a great explanation of how we are to respond to God's grace. When someone says that God is gracious (most likely you see me write that) or that God gives grace, what in the world are you supposed to do with that information? How we are to respond? 

One thing that I try to do with my website is connect people with solid and biblical views on the world around us. This article comes from Ligonier.

What Is The Proper Response To Grace?
By Derek Thomas 

There can be only one proper response to grace: a life of grateful holiness. Christ’s atoning death was “in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” (Rom. 8:4). 

There are two ways of understanding these words. One way is to view them as a statement of what our Lord achieved on the cross: He fulfilled what the law required by offering up a perfect obedience (the active obedience of Christ) and by meeting the law’s retribution for our sin by His death (the passive obedience of Christ). He fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law for us in His life and death. 

More likely, however, Paul is stating (what he will elaborate on later in this chapter) that Christians, whose sins are forgiven, now live in holy, obedient gratitude for the grace they have received. Grateful law-keeping is the saved sinner’s response to received grace. The rest of our lives are a way of saying, “Thank you.” 

Of course, salvation by grace rather than our performance can be seen as a license to sin (antinomianism). Paul’s response in Romans is something like this: if we are not tempted to think like that, we have not understood the gospel. The apostle anticipates our objection at the beginning of chapter 6: “Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?” (Rom. 6:1). 

Grace must raise the temptation to think we can sin as we please; if it does not, we have not understood the true extent of grace. However, at no time can we yield to the temptation to think this way (note Paul’s answer to his question in 6:1—“by no means”), because Christians are called to a life of holiness—holiness motivated by gratitude for all that God has done for them in the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

The key to subduing the downward drag of sin in our lives is to know the impulse of gratitude that follows the experience of forgiveness and reconciliation. Law-keeping out of love is the true path of holiness. 

Excerpt from How the Gospel Brings Us All the Way Home by Derek Thomas.

God's grace enables us to live godly lives that honor Him and proclaim Him to the people around us.

God is good and gracious.

Jacob Luis Gonzales

RefNet Radio Tab

 

 Good afternoon!

There is a newly added tab above that is called RefNet Radio. Check it out!

While I am at work I listen to this station. RefNet has solid, biblical, and trustworthy teaching 24 hours a day! I bet that if you listen to this and reflect on the amazing teaching, Jesus will draw you in a deeper relationship with Himself.

God Is Faithful to Preserve His Own

This article is very encouraging. God preserves His children all the way until the end. He is faithful and He keeps His promises. This article is courtesy of Ligonier.

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6) 

Philippians 1:6 develops the theme of God’s preserving grace—which ensures the perseverance of His own—in three points. 

First, Paul reminds us that since God has begun our salvation, we can rely on Him to complete it: “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion.” God always finishes what He starts, especially the salvation of His people. 

It is in this way that God’s preserving grace fits with the other doctrines of grace. God the Father chose us in eternity past, and the Bible says that God’s purpose in election must prevail (Rom. 9:11). God the Son offered an atoning sacrifice for these same elect people. Should they fall into condemnation, then His blood would have been shed for them in vain. But He insists that not one of them shall perish and none shall be plucked from His hand (John 10:28). Likewise, the Holy Spirit brought these same elect sheep to eternal life by the irresistible working of His grace. Should eternal life be lost, the Spirit’s work would prove ineffective. Therefore, as faith is the gift of God’s grace, the Christian’s perseverance is the work of God’s continuing grace. 

Second, Paul says that God, having begun His work in our lives, “will bring it” to completion. This indicates that God not only guarantees the completion of our salvation, but is actively involved in the believer’s life to bring this to pass. God works in our lives in the way a craftsman works to finish a product he has created. He smooths out the lines, sands the rough places, and puts its pieces together in proper proportion. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes:

God does not merely initiate the work and then leave it, he continues with it; he leads us on, directing and manipulating our circumstances, restraining us at one time and urging us on at another. Paul’s whole conception of the Church is that it is a place where God is working in the hearts of men and women.

God’s work is manifested in His will playing out in our lives. This is what Paul says a bit later in Philippians: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:1–213). Being a Christian is not easy.  Persevering in faith requires warfare with sin, labor in prayer, plowing in God’s Word, and performing His will in the world. We are God’s workmanship, Paul says, and this means we are called to “good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). God will see to it that His work for each of us is carried to completion. By His preserving grace, He will carry us to our destination in heaven. We are called to work this out, but, Paul insists, God is all the while working it in us (Phil. 2:13). 

Third, we can see in Philippians 1:6 our certainty of successful “completion” if God’s saving work truly has begun in us. Far from dreading the future, as we must if we look for signs of hope within ourselves, every believer possesses a hope that is certain for the most joyful, glorious, and holy destiny through faith in Jesus. 

One of the reasons I love Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress is the portrait he paints of the eternity God has secured for every believer. Speaking of the believer’s entry into heaven, he writes:

I saw in my dream the two men enter the gate. As they did, they were transfigured. They had garments that shined like gold. Harps and crowns were given them. The harps for praise and the crowns for honor. Then I heard in my dream all the bells in the city rang again for joy. It was said to them, “Enter into the joy of your Lord.”

This may be a fanciful rendering from the Bible’s promises, but still it is our future history and not fantasy. For as Paul insists, God brings us to completion. One of the meanings of the Greek word translated as “bring to completion” is “bring to perfection.” That is what God has promised to do for every sheep who hears Christ’s voice and who shows the reality of his or her faith by following after Him through life. Whatever hardships, disappointments, or failures await us in this world, a Christian can anticipate the certain fulfillment of David’s exultant words in Psalm 16:11: “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” 

Terribly flawed though we all are now, God will bring our journey to completion and us to perfection, so that arrayed in perfect holiness we will live forever in His love. 

Adapted from What’s So Great about the Doctrines of Grace? by Richard Phillips. Download the digital edition free through July 31, 2013.

I hope this article is encouraging, and I pray that you are all having a great day.

Jacob Luis Gonzales

Disciple-Making is Ordinary Christianity

Another great article from Ligonier. I want to write on this topic very soon because this idea of how we make disciples is not what I completely believe on the topic, but this article does give me a better feeling for a broader definition of discipleship.

What is your job as a Christian? If God gave you a job description for the Christian life, what would he put on it? 

At the core of the Christian’s job is the task of discipleship. We read this clearly in our Lord’s pre-ascension words: 

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Mt. 28:18–20) 

What does it mean to make disciples? A disciple is a learner and a follower of Jesus. When we make disciples we are working to see people who do not follow Jesus come to follow him (conversion) and then teaching them to faithfully follow Jesus in every area of their lives (maturity). 

Many Christians hear this and file it away in a cabinet of idealism. Sure, I’d like to disciple people but I really can’t. They feel like discipleship is above their pay grade. Is this true? Is discipleship something that only pastors, elders and the “mature” do? Or is it for everyone? 

Here is my main point: disciple-making is ordinary Christianity. It is fundamental to it. Like learning to count and say your alphabet in the natural realm, there is scarcely any part of the Christian life where discipleship does not touch. In so far as Christianity is a community faith, it is a disciple-making faith. 

There may be a dozen different paradigms flying around when you hear discipleship. Some people insist on reading a book, meeting for coffee, eating a meal, working out, etc. All of these may aid the work of discipleship but they are not a prerequisite for or the necessary substance of it. Jesus never gave us a program for discipleship but he gave us his example and a broad, far-reaching command to do it. As a result, we have great freedom and a great burden for discipleship. 

What does it look like? When Jesus commands us to make disciples he intends for us to live our lives in obedience to him in the presence of other people (believers and unbelievers). This intentional living seeks to show others the worth and the power of Christ. In short, we let people in to see how we live out the Christian faith. 

Let me give you some examples: 

Discipleship happens when a guy wants to be married but doesn’t have a game-plan for how to go about it. He asks another brother for guidance and help. This brother takes him out for lunch and talks through some biblical and practical principles. He then commits to pray for him, to be available for questions, and to meet occasionally to talk about his progress. 

Discipleship happens when a mom with two toddlers drops something off that she borrowed from another sister at church. During the exchange they get to talking and the young mom expresses her feelings of fatigue and failure to measure up to her perceived standards of motherhood. The other woman listens to her, reminds her of Scripture, prays with her, and then continues to come alongside of her for encouragement in the gospel. 

Discipleship happens when a dad points out a scantily dressed lady and tells his teenage sons that what they see is not beauty. He explains to them what beauty is as it relates to God’s character and will. He continues to tell, show, and emphasize the true beauty that God delights in (1 Pt. 3:3–4). 

Discipleship happens when a brother notices another brother is running hard after his job and neglecting his family and ministry. He comes alongside of his brother to remind him of the true and lasting treasure, and the proper perspective on work. 

Discipleship happens when a mom is at the park with her children. At one point the kids become unruly and she patiently, graciously but faithfully, disciplines her children. There are many watching eyes around her. Both the believing and unbelieving women are intrigued. Conversations begin and soon the fruit of the Spirit points to the matchless worth of Christ. 

Discipleship happens when a home-school mom breaks away with free time only to go to the same coffee house hoping to make new friends and open doors for sharing the gospel. 

Discipleship happens when a single woman senses another single woman’s discontentment in being single. She makes it a point to come alongside of her for encouragement in the goodness of the gospel. 

These are just everyday, ordinary occurrences. In fact, I picked them from the ordinary lives of people in our church family. It is this ordinary work that pushes the church ahead toward maturity while protecting her from spiritual shipwreck. 

But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. (Heb. 3:13–14) 

Discipleship is the ordinary practice of believers. You could say that Christianity is more than discipleship, but it is not less. We are our brother’s keeper. It’s in the job description.  

Erik Raymond is pastor at Emmaus Bible Church in Omaha, Nebraska, and he writes regularly at his blog, Ordinary Pastor. 

I love the article because it paints a broader stroke of how discipleship is done in the body of a healthy church. Healthy churches are making disciples. Healthy Christians are making disciples. This should not be extraordinary. This should be ordinary.

Jacob Luis Gonzales

How the Trinity Works Together in Salvation

Amazing Article I found on the theology of salvation. This is a little heady, but I thought it was awesome! Click HERE to read more articles from this website.

One of the most important insights of Reformed theology is the unity of the works of the Trinity. Calvinists believe that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are united in the work of redeeming lost mankind. We do not believe that they act against one another or even on one another, but with one another in our salvation. For instance, Jesus did not die to convince the Father to change His attitude toward us from enmity to love. Rather, Jesus died on the cross because of the Father’s love for us, as John 3:16 says: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” The Father and Son are united in their work for the salvation of those who believe: the Father electing and sending His Son; the Son atoning for the sins of those chosen and given to Him by the Father (John 6:37–40). The same harmony exists between the Son and the Spirit. Jesus did not die for the sins of all people, only to have the Holy Spirit apply the benefits of His work merely to some. Rather, the Holy Spirit regenerates precisely the people for whom Jesus offered His atoning death, so that the work of the second and third persons of the Trinity harmonizes perfectly.

This emphasis on the unity of the Trinity in salvation may be seen in the doctrines of grace as organized by the TULIP acrostic. The doctrines of grace start with a problem: T—man’s total depravity. The answer to this problem is brought about by the unified work of the Trinity. It begins with unconditional election, which is focused on the Father’s sovereign purpose in predestination. Salvation is then accomplished by the atoning work of Jesus on the cross, which, according to limited atonement, was offered for those elected by the Father. This salvation is then sovereignly applied to those same elect individuals by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit, which is the point of irresistible grace. Therefore, just as unconditional election describes the grace of the Father and limited atonement describes the grace of the Son, irresistible grace presents the grace of the Holy Spirit. While acknowledging that where one member of the Trinity acts, all are involved, we may identify irresistible grace as the Holy Spirit’s own doctrine of grace.

This brief excerpt is from What’s So Great about the Doctrines of Grace? by Richard Phillips. Download the digital edition free in July, 2013.

This is so awesome to think about. God, His Son, and His Spirit all work together in perfect harmony, unity, and as a community to save His children! Amazing!

God is good and He saves His children.

Jacob Luis Gonzales