Blog Posts - Hernando Presbyterian Church (ARP)

LUCK

10/6/2015

During a sermon, the preacher made this statement: "Christians are people of LUCK." A gasp of horror rippled through the assembled worshipers. The preacher went on to clarify his point:
"We Christians are LUCKy because we are

Living
Under
Christ's
Kingdom."

In our society, when someone tells you ‘good luck’, he is wishing you well. However, this wish for your personal ‘luck’ cannot do anything. This luck refers to a series of events hopefully working in your favor, but the act of saying 'good luck' exerts no magical power at all. Hoping in luck achieves nothing!

By contrast, Jesus Christ already is the King of Kings. He already is qualified to rule. He has achieved salvation for His servants. He will return and His kingdom will come to full fruition. And that kingdom has certainly begun.

Observe, Rom.14:17- “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit”—ESV. "The kingdom of God IS." Jesus reigns in the hearts of His true subjects.

What Christians eat and drink is secondary to "righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." Our righteous King is the Prince of Peace (Is.9:6). We have been reconciled to God by way of Him and because of Him (Rom.5:1). Righteousness and peace are connected to a joy that is ongoing, despite the hardships of life. Such LUCK is assured because God has given people of Christian faith a reliable, all-wise, Righteous King. Thus, our hope in Jesus Christ is centered upon the provision of God and the strong ministry of the Holy Spirit.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”—Rom.15:13

Supernatural Kindness

10/1/2015

For over 10 years, a story has circulated in cyberspace:
A woman bought a book and a box of crackers before she boarded an airplane. Once on board, she settled down with her book, but she was already tired from a long day, so she dropped off to sleep. When she woke up, the man beside her had opened up the box of cookies, placed the box between them and was busily eating her cookies.
The woman did not want to make a scene, but she was annoyed that this stranger had the nerve to open her cookies and start eating. She was not about to let him have all her cookies so she reached in, got a handful, and started to eat herself. He then reached in and got another handful. She wanted to punch the guy; however, she was a Christian so she did not do that. But she made sure that whenever he ate a cookie, she ate a cookie. She was at least going get half of her cookies. It got down to the last one. With a smile, the man took the last one, broke it in two and gave her half. She thought, this guy has some nerve. He did not even say, 'thank you'.
A little later the plane landed, and the stranger left. She was glad to see that cookie thief go. She got up and began to collect her belongings. She opened her bag to put her book in, and saw her box of cookies.
In total shock, she realized that she had been eating his cookies that he had willingly shared with her. She was the rude and unthankful person who had been treated with startling kindness by this stranger.

To a point, this story conveys something of the love of God toward ungrateful sinners. But, the gospel of Jesus Christ is about more than a voluntary division of food, and more than a Divine willingness to share. The gospel is about something unnatural, something that it difficult for us to truly understand. The gospel is about supernatural kindness heaped upon God's former enemies who have received His Son as Lord and Savior. According to Luke 6:35b, God "is kind to the unthankful and evil."

Throughout Scripture, we read about promises of heavenly blessing for every true believer in Christ. Certainly, supernatural kindness is evident in God's communication of these promises to us. God has never been under an obligation to reveal anything to us; yet He kindly has revealed these wonderful promises.

Additionally, supernatural kindness is given every time a believer in Christ recognizes his or her sin and cries out for forgiveness from God. God is the Ultimate Forgiver. The Holy, Sovereign, All-wise Creator and Sustainer of the universe is mercifully inclined toward those who confess their sins to Him, in the Name of Jesus Christ. And He always will be.

Recall the moment of your conversion. Remember your startled wonder at the kindness of the Most High God lavished upon you. Bring to mind the stunned awe you experienced when you realized the scope and degree of God's love for you. Contemplate again the astounding spiritual reality: You who were once an enemy of God, full of ingratitude and wickedness---you have been brought into a condition and an estate of salvation by the eternally self-existent Being Who can get along just fine without you.

"But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life."--- Titus 3:4-7.

Praying for Discernment

9/23/2015

Eph.5:17- Therefore, do not be unwise, but understand what the Will of the Lord is.---NKJV

Bible study and a solid prayer life go together. In our devotion to God through Jesus Christ, we pray for discernment, that is, the capacity to recognize God's desired Will for His people. Divine guidance differs with regard to a Christian's vocation, selection of spouse, and so forth. But, there are clear guidelines in Scripture for essential Christian thinking and conduct to be sought after by all true believers.

The guidance of the Holy Spirit is in line with the Written Word of God. To put it another way: the Holy Spirit's guidance is never in opposition to the Gospel of Christ. Thus, praying for discernment affirms and adheres to those worldviews and practices agreeable to God's Word.

Here's a true story: In the 1990s, three sisters were arrested in Lansing, Michigan for a bizarre crime. These women had removed their clothes, smeared themselves with mustard and were riding around in a stolen van. They claimed they were reading the Bible when the Holy Spirit spoke to them. They took off their clothes, having read that in the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve were naked. They skimmed the parable in Mark 4:30-32 about a grain of mustard seed, and so they lathered on mustard. The stolen van, though, had no Biblical explanation. These women claimed they were under the direction of the Holy Spirit, but their behavior had nothing to do with the Holy Spirit's guiding them in the pure things of Christ.

Paul instructed Ephesian Christians to understand what the Will of the Lord is. The Holy Spirit will not steer obedient Christians into behaviors that conflict with Scripture and thus dishonor Christ. Therefore, the suitable approach to prayer is one of submission to the desired Will of God, in honor of Jesus, the sinless Son of God.

"Prayer is the soul's sincere desire Unuttered or expressed;
The motion of a hidden fire That trembles in the breast.
Prayer is the simplest form of speech that children's lips can try;
Prayer the sublimest strains that reach The Majesty on high.
Prayer is the contrite sinner's voice, Returning from his ways,
While angels in their songs rejoice And cry, 'Behold! He prays!'
O Thou by whom we come to God, The Life, the Truth, The way;
The path of prayer Thyself hast trod; Lord, teach us how to pray!"
---James Montgomery

Poured Out Prayer

9/21/2015

Readings: Ps.4:1-3; 5:1-8; 27:7-12; 38:9-22; 142:1-7

Ps.142:2- "I pour out my complaint before Him; I declare before Him my trouble.”

"What can I say when I pray?" Many believers in Christ quickly admit a personal sense of failure or neglect in prayer. They don't pray as often as they should--and they recognize their lack of discipline. When they pray, they speak forth fragmented thoughts which seem artificial and insufficient.

I don't always feel like praying. Sometimes when I pray, I feel clumsy. The words just don't seem to flow. But then, I remember to 'pray the Psalms' or I read the prayers in Neh.9 or Dan.9 before I pray. I commit myself to praying out loud if my silent prayer-thoughts begin to wander. And I bring to mind the reality that prayer is not about personal performance; my prayer life doesn't depend upon an ability to formulate logical or 'impressive' prayers, but upon the Supreme Name and Person of the Savior Who wants His disciples to pray.

If we worship God honestly, then our worship will involve poured out prayer. Our prayer times will convey our inmost thoughts to God and will reflect something of the perspective of Francois Fenelon.

Fenelon was a complicated and, at times, inconsistent man. In the late 1680s, he became enamored with the mystical writings of Madame Guyon; In 1696, Fenelon signed a document formally condemning Guyon's philosophies.

But, Fenelon was consistent when it came to compassion and a Biblical attitude about prayer. In 1697, after a house fire destroyed his library and manuscripts he was working on, he said to a friend: "I had rather the fire had seized my house than a poor man's cottage." And, Fenelon wrote these statements concerning poured out prayer:

Tell God all that is in your heart, as one unloads one's heart, its pleasures and its pains, to a dear friend. Tell Him your troubles, that He may comfort you; tell Him your joys, that He may sober them; tell Him your longings, that He may purify them; tell Him your dislikes, that He may help you to conquer them; talk to Him of your temptations, that He may shield you from them; show Him the wounds of your heart, that He may heal them; lay bare your indifference to good, your depraved tastes for evil, your instability. Tell Him how self-love makes you unjust to others, how vanity tempts you to be insincere, how pride disguises you to yourself as to others.
If you thus pour out all your weaknesses, needs, and troubles, there will be no lack of what to say.

Fighting

9/15/2015

Rick's fist slammed into my nose, knocking me back against the car seat. He screamed obscenities as he swung again. I blocked the punch and hit Rick in the throat, then opened the door of the parked car. Blood was starting to stream into my mouth, but I ignored it, and, grabbing Rick by the hair, started to pull him from the car. He struck me with two solid blows—and tried to stab me in the eye with his thumb—but somehow I held on. Soon, I was standing in the street, with Rick pulled halfway out of the vehicle. Still holding him by his hair, I punched his head. Then I hit him again.

At this point in time, Rick and I were pre-teen brothers waiting for our mother to drive us to school. Rick and I generally got along well, but this particular morning was not one of those congenial occasions.

Of course, fighting is not confined to a pre-teen age bracket. Many adults fight. In the past century, this planet has endured two world wars and an avalanche of other international fights. Attacks and counterattacks occur with sickening frequency. And the ‘adult’ fighting continues.

Sadly, the tendency to fight has infected the Church of Jesus Christ. I’ve read numerous articles about church fights and church splits. Perhaps you have been at a congregational meeting—or a church committee meeting---where the atmosphere turned ugly and vicious.

Don’t get me wrong: Sometimes, conflict in the Church is unavoidable. Sometimes, a stand must be taken and the authority of Scripture must be defended. Sometimes, it is vital to safeguard the uniqueness of Jesus Christ and the sufficiency of His Gospel.

At other times, however, some churchgoers who fight may prefer to fight. It is possible that most church fights are prompted by the collective thrill of ecclesiastical combat. When that happens, barbs and fevered rhetoric and character assassination tend to supplant biblical trademarks of God-honoring truth and Christian love.

In the 1st century A.D., churches in Galatia had problems with fighting. Paul’s letter to the Galatians----while affirming the importance of Christ and His Gospel—discouraged the sinful tendency to simply fight for the sake of fighting. In Gal.5:14, Paul quoted the command to “love your neighbor as yourself.” In v.15, he wrote:”If you bite and devour one another, beware, lest you be consumed by one another.” Then, after contrasting the ‘works of the flesh’ with the ‘fruit of the Spirit’, he declared: “Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another” (v.25).

In Matt.5:9a, Jesus said “Blessed are the peacemakers” instead of “Blessed are those who fight all the time.” Eph.4:3 instructs us to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” instead of “make sure you get in the last word.” 1 Peter 4:8 begins with the language “Above all things have fervent love for one another” instead of a recommendation to “deliver a crushing rhetorical punch to all churchgoers who disagree with you.”

The final verse of Scripture says: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen” (Rev.22:21).

Therefore, we do well to heed the words of John Newton’s hymn-prayer:

"May the Grace of Christ our Savior And the Father's boundless love,
With the Holy Spirit's favor, Rest upon us from above.

Thus may we abide in union With each other and the Lord,
And possess, in sweet communion, Joys which earth cannot afford."

One Thing is Certain

9/14/2015

"For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." --Romans 8:38-39

It has been said: "The only predictable thing about life is that life is unpredictable."

Unwelcome and unwanted surprises. Fractured romances and ruined friendships. Broken promises. A health crisis. Tax increases. Automotive accidents. Sudden unemployment. Crimes against law-abiding citizens. Snipers on college campuses.

Unpredictability rears its ugly head, despite our careful efforts to plan for every circumstance. Uncertainty fosters dread and despair as we wonder: 'When will the next catastrophe be thrust upon us?'

The apostle Paul lived in a world of uncertainty. He knew that really bad things could happen to him at any moment. In Acts 20:22-23, he told the Ephesian elders: "And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me."

Nevertheless, Paul was certain that no matter what unhappy surprises might befall him, he was Divinely loved. Additionally, Paul was sure that "nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." The immediate us here were those saints Paul addressed throughout this epistle. But, the us also includes all true believers in Jesus Christ. He is the Savior of all who believe, in every era.

Nothing will separate us from this astonishing love. Nothing in the future will separate genuine, repentant children of God from the Heavenly Father. No assortment of tragedies and financial hardships and relational disasters will disconnect born-again Christians from the loving King Who died and rose for His people.

In a world of ruthless uncertainty, one thing is certain: People of faith in the Crucified and Risen Lord are permanently loved. If you abide in Jesus, you are loved with an unbreakable, supreme love. If you suffer for being a Christian, you are still loved. If you experience treachery from other people, you remain loved and saved by God.

When you feel overwhelmed with pain and grief, remember the words of George Matheson:
O Love that Wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee
I give Thee back the life I owe, That in Thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.

Both

9/14/2015

"Distributing to the needs of the saints; practicing hospitality."--Rom.12:13.

When he was much younger, R.C.Sproul was asked a question by a Methodist minister: "The Church of Jesus Christ. Is it an army, or a hospital?" R.C.'s quick answer was: "The Church is an army!"

In time, R.C. realized that the Church is both an army and a hospital. The Church has been called to soldier forth in the Strong Name of Christ, speaking forth His truth with firmness and determination; The Church also has been commanded to help the hurting, to comfort and enrich and minister to those who are wounded by the hardships of life in a sin-ravaged world.

Standing against what is evil is Biblical (Rom 12:9); but so is Christ-honoring ministry that provides help and hope to those who struggle and grieve (12:15).

"Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do be done with love."--1 Cor.16:13-14.

Motivations

9/14/2015

"They all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ."--Phil.2:21.ESV

A few months ago, a ministry colleague told me: "Approximately 30% of the Desoto County population is churched, and 70% is unchurched."

People are forthcoming in their claims and reasons for rarely/never darkening the door of any local church: They've been wounded by the church, they find church services uninteresting, they complain that churches are always asking for money,etc. There could be an element of truth to some of these allegations.

Underlying all of this, however, is one simple, basic truth: For whatever reason, the unchurched person is insufficiently motivated to attend any church.
Barring certain exceptions (such as a relentless work schedule on Sunday), the obvious truth is: The unchurched don't want to become churched.

People do what they are motivated to do. Given the glut of churches in Desoto County, a genuinely motivated person could find a congregation that doesn't wound people, a church that doesn't continually harass people to give more money, and so forth. But, they lack the motivation---the interest--- to become involved with a church.

Paul wrote about a commonplace self-centeredness in his era: "They all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ." In two millennia, things haven't changed much. Plenty of people today seem to be more interested in their own accumulation of material stuff than in the glorious truths of Jesus Christ. Numerous individuals constantly obsess about their own career advancement, their own leisure activities and time-consuming hobbies, but Jesus' honor and beauty and glory seldom enter into their thinking. The prospect of gathering together with other people in order to thank God for His Son is repugnant to them.

Thanks be to God that He saves some people. He saves His people, though, so they can focus on the Savior given to them. When people truly understand Who Jesus is, and all that He has done for His people, they will WANT to praise Him and thank Him---even in the presence of other believers outside the pale of their comfortable family unit. And: They will not find Jesus to be greedy or spiteful--- or uninteresting.

Paul phrased things well when he wrote to the Church in Colosse: " As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving."--Col.2:6-7 (KJV)

The Results of Biblical Inspiration

9/14/2015

2 Tim.3:16- "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness"
---NKJV

Biblical inspiration is not the same as human motivation. When we speak of Biblical inspiration, we are referring to the activity of the Holy Spirit upon the Biblical authors; this activity of inspiration guaranteed that what the authors wrote was the Word of God.

Theologians have discussed various theories and mechanics of Biblical inspiration; however, the Bible has little to say about the precise mode(s) of inspiration. To put it another way: Prophecies, visions, narratives, parables and discourses are recorded truthfully in the Word of God, but the process of inspiration is not dealt with at length in the Scriptures.

The priority in Scripture is upon the Results of Biblical inspiration. One result of inspiration is that we have the Word of God written. The Bible that we read has been inspired of God and given to us by God.

Another result of Biblical inspiration is the practical value of Scripture. The truths of Scripture are helpful and constructive for our spiritual life. Paul writes that ALL Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is therefore spiritually profitable.

All of Scripture is to be proclaimed as well as studied (see 2 Tim.4:1-2). 'Doctrine' is a dirty word among some people, but it is in fact a Biblical term. How can you think Biblically if you have no clue as to what the Bible teaches? How can you communicate Biblical truths if you've never learned them?

Scripture is profitable for 'reproof and correction'. Scripture has the tendency to do more than step on our toes. Scripture guides us, sometimes brutally, to the feet of Jesus Christ, the Living Word. We need to be corrected and guided because we are sinners in daily need of a Savior.

Additionally, Scripture can train us Christians in righteousness. God has not left us in ignorance, wondering what He is like or puzzling over what He may or may not require. For people to be saved, they must believe in the One Whom God has sent (John 6:29). The supreme result of Biblical inspiration is to inform and enlighten people about the grace of God and the Gospel of Christ.
May we prayerfully learn God's Word about Him. May we grow in our daily relationship with the Living Word.

Wonderful

9/14/2015

Readings: Ps.19:7-11; 119:17-24

"Your testimonies are wonderful; Therefore, my soul keeps them."---NKJV

When it comes to driving a vehicle, there are many rules involved. You must stop at every stop sign, you must wait your turn at a four-way stop, you must obey persons who direct traffic, you are commanded to obey speed limit signs.

Arguably, most of these rules are necessary. If you habitually refuse to stop at stop signs, you will probably receive a substantial number of traffic tickets, not to mention the endangering of your own life and the lives of others. 'Waiting your turn' at a four-way stop is basic courtesy as well as a prevention of personal injury. Thus, many of these rules are necessary.

But it would be extreme to say these rules are wonderful. Sitting in a traffic jam is not a wonderful experience---unless you enjoy squandering time and consuming expensive fuel. American drivers have varied opinions of what is a fair speed limit and what is an overconservative speed limit for particular areas. Many Americans on tight schedules evaluate certain speed limits as restrictive and stupid, rather than wonderful.

The Psalmist evaluated the testimonies and commands of God as being 'wonderful'. Therefore, not only are God's words necessary, but they are also wonderful. Why are they wonderful? Because the wonderful Author of salvation has given us His Word. The Divine Author of Scripture has revealed truths in line with His wonderful character.

The Psalmist added: "My soul keeps them." We Christians devote ourselves to the directives of God because we trust and love the wonderful One Who has given them to us.

"You are good, and do good; Teach me Your statutes."---Ps.119:68.