Humbled to Pray

Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth. Numbers 12:3

This verse is so convicting! How so? Well, for starters, I’m not that meek. I don’t think that I’m much like Moses at all. The Hebrew word (‘anaw) that the ESV translates as “meek” means, “humble.” See! Now you know why I’m not like Moses- I’m not very humble! But enough about me; let’s talk about Moses. Numbers 12:3 states that he was very humble, more than anyone alive at this time. The NET Bible suggests that the idea behind the Hebrew word ‘anaw is “more tolerant” or “longsuffering.” That helps us to better understand Moses. He was tolerant and patient with other people.

For instance, in Exodus 10:17 (after the 8th plague) Pharaoh pleaded with Moses to pray for him that Yahweh would forgive his sin and remove the plague of locusts. And Moses did it! He prayed for his enemy. Fast-forward to Exodus 32 where the nation of Israel breaks covenant with the Lord and worships the golden calf. How does Moses respond when Yahweh says that He is going to wipe them out? Moses intercedes! Moses also prayed for Miriam’s leprosy to be healed after she berated his leadership (Numbers 12:10-13) and for the Israelites after they grumbled about missing the food in Egypt (Numbers 14).

This is why Moses was humble. He was brought low by his own sinfulness that when he saw other sinners sinning, he was empathetic (remember, he killed a guy! See Exodus 2:11-15). And how did Moses respond to all of these people that let him down? He prayed for them. How convicting! I don’t know about you, but if I am ever passionate to pray for my “enemies” or those who let me down, I’m more inclined to pray an imprecatory prayer like Psalm 3:7. Well, maybe I wouldn’t pray that God would strike their cheek and knock their teeth out, but I might secretly desire it. Not so with Moses. He was so humbled by his own sin that he could extend grace and mercy to other sinners.

How about you? How do you respond when people doubt your leadership? How do you respond when people offend and hurt you? How do you respond when people let you down? How do you respond to your enemies? I often respond by rehearsing the pain and the wrongs. I often respond by having “conversations” in my head about what I will say to them, what harsh words I will speak to them to hurt them for hurting me. See! I told you I wasn’t like Moses! And I’m certainly not like Jesus. But He loves me and that’s why I’m trying to obey His command-

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either.” Luke 6:27-29

Let’s become a church that spends less time rehearsing wrongs and more time rehearsing the Gospel. Let’s spend more time turning the other cheek and less time wishing that God would strike our enemies’ cheeks. Let’s be humbled by our own sin so that we will actually love our enemies, do good to them, and bless them. Only constant Gospel rehearsal will humble us to pray like Moses.

Benji

Walking Through the Front Door Messy

O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. Psalm 139:1-4

If you stop and think about these verses, they are quite flabbergasting. God knows us. He knows every nook and cranny of any and everything about us. Before you said what you said to the person you talked to before you read this, God knew what you were going to say 10 million years ago. Psalm 139 is very humbling.

God knows everything about us and He still wants to be around us! He desires that we seek His face through prayer and yet we often struggle to pray. Or, we may honestly confess that we don’t desire prayer. Even if we come clean and say that we don’t like to pray or struggle to pray, God still wants to be around us. Amazing.

I’ve found these words from Paul Miller very encouraging-

“Learning to pray doesn’t offer us a less busy life; it offers us a less busy heart… A needy heart is a praying heart. Dependency is the heartbeat of prayer… Jesus wants to be with us without pretense when we come to him in prayer. Instead, we often try to be something we aren’t… Nothing exposes our selfishness and powerlessness like prayer… God also cheers when we come to him with our wobbling, unsteady prayers… The criteria for coming to Jesus is weariness. Come overwhelmed with life. Come with your wandering mind. Come messy… Don’t try to get the prayer right; just tell God where you are and what’s on your mind. That’s what little children do… The only way to come to God is by taking off any spiritual mask. The real you has to meet the real God. He is a person… Tell him where you are weary. If you don’t begin with where you are, then where you are will sneak in the back door. Your mind will wander to where you are weary… The very things we try to get rid of— our weariness, our distractedness, our messiness— are what gets us in the front door! That’s how the gospel works. That’s how prayer works… So instead of being paralyzed by who you are, begin with who you are. That’s how the gospel works. God begins with you. It’s a little scary because you’re messed up.” Excerpts from The Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World

God knows you. He knows you’re messed up. He knows that you have “issues.” And He still loves you and wants to be around you. He wants you to come messy- with your messy hair and messy life and messy family situation and all your crazy messiness. Come messy. That’s how the gospel works. That’s how prayer works. That’s how Jesus works!

Benji

Putting Promises to Work

For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. 2nd Corinthians 1:20

Life can be discouraging. Ministry can be discouraging. The apostle Paul wasn’t immune to this. Just read the first chapter of 2nd Corinthians! How did Paul overcome discouragement? He clung to the promises of God. And that’s exactly what William Bridge (1600-1670) suggests we do in his book, A Lifting Up for the Downcast-

“Are all your comforts gone, and would you fain have them restored? Then read and read the Scriptures much. If you cannot read them yourself, get some others to read them to you… The more full a man’s mind is, the more free from temptations and fears. Now Scripture matter is the most filling matter. The more you see Christ walking in the sweet shades of divine love toward poor sinners, the sooner will your faith revive, and your comforts be restored. And where can you see Jesus Christ walking, and taking His turns with poor sinners under the shades of divine love, but in the Scriptures? Stand there awhile, and you shall see Him, and your heart will say, And why not one turn of love with me, oh my Saviour? Study, read, and read much the Scriptures.

But, say you, if I do read the Scriptures, and read them much, I shall then meet with some promise, possibly many, and now I cannot apply them, discouraged as I am; I shall see the promises indeed, and say, There is such and such an old friend of mine, but it is now mine enemy; the promise will not own me, and I cannot apply it, and so it will do me no good.

You cannot tell what the promise will do till you come to apply it. The promise never yields its power and strength till it is applied; it works when it is put to work, and not before… It may be you look upon such and such a promise at a distance, and you say, Oh, there is my enemy; now it will not help me, it will sting me, it will undo me; but put forth your hand again to it, and it will become a promise, a rod in your hand, as comfortable as ever it was before.

And if the promise does not come to you, go you to it. Sometimes the promise comes to us, sometimes we go to it. When the promise comes to you, you have joy; when you go to it, you have peace, and this peace may last longer than the joy. But remember this as an everlasting rule, that your very relying upon the promise makes it yours.”

Are you discouraged? Are you downcast? Then read God’s word. And keep reading it. Find a promise and hang on to it. God’s promises work when you put them to work.

Benji

Like Drinking Poison

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Ephesians 4:31-32

I know of two Christians who are angry at each other and won’t reconcile. The sad part is that they used to be very good friends. They used to spend time with each other, bear each other’s burdens, attend Bible study and prayer meetings together, serve alongside each other in ministry, etc and now they won’t even talk to each other. It’s so sad. But this story is not unique; it happens to many disciples. In fact, I have seen this numerous times in my life. Apparently it was happening in the church at Philippi (see Philippians 4:2-3). Maybe you’ve experienced this, too.

What do you do when this happens? The answer: rehearse the Gospel. That’s what Paul does in Ephesians 4:32-

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Unfortunately many people never get to verse 32. They stay stuck in the “bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander and…malice” of verse 31. Instead of reminding themselves that in Christ God has forgiven them of an ocean full of sin, they harbor bitterness and un-forgiveness. Instead of talking to the person that has offended them, they gossip about and slander the person. Meanwhile, as they nurse their hurts, they are actually doing harm to themselves.

There’s a quote I’ve heard many times (but no one seems to know who really authored it) that best captures how idiotic it is to harbor bitterness and un-forgiveness:

“Bitterness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”

It’s a little morbid, but true. When you harbor bitterness and refuse to forgive someone, you’re damaging yourself (and perhaps a whole church community!). If you’re struggling to forgive, think about Jesus. Think about the 10+ million sins that He has forgiven you of when you didn’t deserve it. Think about how good God has been to reconcile you to Himself. Rehearse the Gospel. Then forgive. And keep on forgiving (see Matthew 18:21-35). Pray for the hearts of all involved. Get outside help, if needed (see Philippians 4:2-3). Go to the person and talk. Tell them how you feel. Listen to their side. And watch God work. It’s amazing how a simple, honest conversation can be the catalyst for the Gospel to do its work.

Trying to remember that forgiven sinners forgive sinners,
Benji

Like a Weaned Child

O LORD, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forevermore. Psalm 131

I love this psalm. It’s probably one of my favorites. I love the imagery that David employs here. And it’s the perfect song for any of us that are stressing and worrying about life.

Somehow David has pulled off the miraculous. Life is chaotic. Life is stressful. And yet David doesn’t lift his heart up in pride by worrying about life, as if he was the solution. He does not assume to be God and claim to know how life should be. David’s eyes are not raised too high. He does not let all of the “unknowns” and “what ifs” occupy space in his mind. Thinking and stressing about all the marvelous and overwhelming issues of life are not consuming David.

David has calmed and quieted his soul. Just like a weaned child sitting in his mother’s lap, David is calm. What does the weaning process look like for a child? The child gets fussy and demands to nurse. The mother says “no” and the child gets fussy. The process continues until the child understands. Once the process is complete, the child can rest content when he sits in the lap of his mother. He is so close to that which used to provide tranquility and yet the child is not fussy or demanding. The child is calm.

David says that his soul is like that child. Life’s struggles are overwhelming him and yet David is calm. He’s not fussy or demanding. How? How is this possible when life is overwhelming? The answer: David’s hope is in the Lord. David knows that God is faithful. David knows that God has never let him down, therefore, he can trust Him. Never! Never has God let His people down! Why not trust this God? We would be crazy not to trust Him!

Got problems? Got burdens? Got stress? Then get Psalm 131. I mean get it real good into your heart. I mean, “get it.” Do you “get it?” Get it into your heart and rest because you hope in the Lord.

Praying that our souls would be like weaned, fussy-free children,

Benji

Entertaining Goats in Goatland

“If you think that you are called to keep a largely worldly organisation, miscalled a church, going, with infinitesimal doses of innocuous sub-Christian drugs or stimulants, then the only help I can give you is to advise you to give up the hope of the ministry and go and be a street scavenger; a far healthier and more godly job, keeping the streets tidy, than cluttering the church with a lot of worldly claptrap in the delusion that you are doing a job for God. The pastor is called to feed the sheep, even if the sheep do not want to be fed. He is certainly not to become an entertainer of goats. Let goats entertain goats, and let them do it out in goatland. You will certainly not turn goats into sheep by pandering to their goatishness. Do we really believe that the Word of God, by His Spirit, changes, as well as maddens men? If we do, to be evangelists and pastors, feeders of sheep, we must be men of the Word of God” (p. 23). William Still, The Work of the Pastor

http://www.wtsbooks.com/work-of-the-pastor-william-still-9781845505738

Grace Seminary Books

Here are the sample pdfs for our Grace Seminary classes (1 & 2 Timothy not included):

Living by the Book- Hendricks

Christian Beliefs- Grudem

The Gospel for Real Life- Bridges

Respectable Sins- Bridges

Living the Cross Centered Life- Mahaney

Jesus Loves You… and I’m Trying

“…and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you…” 1st Thessalonians 3:11-12

I once tweeted this on Twitter: “Jesus loves you… and I’m trying.” I’m sure some people raised their eyebrows and were confused. I know it sounds harsh. Shouldn’t a pastor love everyone? Yes. But pastors, like all humans, are sinners. Pastors don’t always love people… even in their church or immediate family!

So there you have it. The cat is out of the bag! I struggle to love people. I hope that brings some encouragement to you. I hope you realize that you are normal if you struggle to love people in your life- even if those people are at Grace Baptist Church. Even if one of those people you struggle to love is me! I’m okay with it. I’m okay with it if you admit your struggle and then call on God for grace to love me or the other “unlovables” in your life.

Paul knew this. Paul knew that “normal” humans are sinners who struggle to love other sinners. That’s why he prayed for the Thessalonians that the Lord would make them increase and abound in love for one another. Only the Lord can do it. Only God can enable you to love those people that you don’t love because God is the expert in loving people who are unlovable. Case in point: He loves you! (You did know that sometimes even you are unloveable, yes?) Thank God He loves us! God is love and He alone can enable you to love those people who get under your skin and whose very presence is like nails on a chalkboard to you.

Jesus loves you… and I’m trying.

Pastor Benji

Enjoying God

You can read chapter 1 of “Pleasures Evermore: The Life-changing Power of Enjoying God” by Sam Storms here: http://www.navpress.com/images/pdfs/9781576831885.pdf

I highly recommend this book!

A Prayer for a Grace-giving, Parental Tongue

Lord,

You created language. You made words. You communicated first. You know how we are to use our tongues. Your word says that we are to “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Ephesians 4:29). How often I, as a parent, do not give my kids grace-filled words! How often I nag and tear down! Would it kill me to affirm them once in a while? It certainly wouldn’t kill them. It would bring life. It would bring grace.

I have heard it said that we should say “no” to our children as little as possible. Sometimes I think this is all I say. I’m afraid I’m the “skipping record of ‘No!’” I have heard it said that 85% of our communication with them should be positive. I’m afraid I have that reversed. Lord, help me. I need You. Rotten, corrupting talk comes out of me like a river too often. Help me to build my children up. Let my words be sweet and fit the occasion. Don’t let me be the kill-joy parent who can’t laugh or cut up or smile. Please transform my tongue and my words by Your grace that I might impart Your grace to my children. May they enjoy You every moment that they are around me.

Running With Enlarged Hearts

I will run in the way of your commandments when you enlarge my heart! Psalm 119:32

Ever have a day where you are so overwhelmed with the Gospel, where you can’t believe all that God is for you in Christ, where you just simply want to honor and obey Him? I mean one of those days where you are full of the joy of the Lord and you can truly say with the psalmist, “Your testimonies are my delight” (Psalm 119:24).

I hope you have. And I hope it is common. But have you ever had a day where your heart was cold to the things of the Lord, a day where you weren’t too excited about living for Him? If you’re like me, I’m sure you have. What do you do on a day like that? How do you stir up your heart so that there is a desire to obey?

Let me suggest something that I have learned from Psalm 119:32. When you have “one of those days” ask God to widen and expand your heart so that you may walk in His ways. Actually, the psalmist says that when the Lord expands and enlarges his heart, he will run in the way of the Lord’s commandments. This suggests a willing, volitional desire to be obedient. Not just a desire to walk or stroll or mosey along in the Lord’s ways. This is a desire to take off running and sprinting like an Olympic athlete!

How do you get out of the “starting blocks” on a day where you’re indifferent to the Lord? You ask Him to enlarge your heart so that you desire to live for Him. And that desire can only be brought about by the Lord. Take a moment now and ask the Lord to enlarge your heart so that you joyfully run in the way of His commandments.

Moving from moseying to a full sprint by His grace,
~Pastor Benji

Fighter Verses

Here’s the link to the Bible reading plans that I mentioned in the sermon today: http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2011/12/27/bible-reading-plans-for-2012/

Also, here’s information on the Fighter Verse app (we’re doing ESV Set 2-2012): http://www.fighterverses.com/set-2-core-esv/week-52/

Getting the “Happy” in “Happy Thanksgiving”

In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ Acts 20:35

In Acts 20, as he is heading out to Jerusalem, Paul addresses the elders at Ephesus and charges them to remain faithful in shepherding the flock that Jesus purchased with His blood (Acts 20:28). He concludes his farewell speech by quoting a saying of Jesus as a motive for serving others. This saying is not included in the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John), but found only here in Scripture. While a very popular saying (even in pop culture), the truth of Jesus’ words must be at the forefront of our thinking when we don’t want to serve others.

Why does Paul say, “remember the words of the Lord Jesus?” Because we often forget that giving to others is better than receiving. Our sinful hearts love to be served and receive from others (and there is nothing wrong with being served by others). But the hard part is remembering that it is better to serve than to be served. In fact, this was the very mission of Jesus!

But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:25-28

There is more blessing in serving than being served. Jesus modeled it; Paul preached it. The next time you are tired, weary, exhausted, depleted, fatigued, drained, and “all tuckered out”- remember the words of the Servant Jesus- “it is more blessed (Greek: Μακάριόν= Happy) to give than to receive.”

When you gather around family and friends today to celebrate Thanksgiving, remember the words of Jesus. Be a servant. Be the last one in line to eat. Offer to wash all the dishes. Get people re-fills on their drinks. Don’t take the last cookie or piece of pie! Keep before you the blessing and the joy and the happiness that you will receive as you serve.

“looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

~Pastor Benji

What a Lanky, Emaciated, Wig-wearing Pastor Can Teach You About Glorifying God

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

Puritan pastor Jonathan Edwards has had a tremendous impact on my life, even though he often used big words that I don’t know. Reading his infamous sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” in high school literature class started me on a journey of learning from this lanky, emaciated Puritan pastor who happened to wear a powdered wig (like many of the founders of America). One of my heroes wore a powdered wig! I don’t wear and don’t ever plan on wearing a powdered wig. Edwards’ fashion sense has not shaped me (you can thank me later), but the mind beneath that powdered wig has had a significant impact on my life.

What I’ve learned from Jonathan Edwards the most is the importance of joy in the Christian life. Listen up-

God is glorified within Himself these two ways: 1. By appearing… to Himself in His own perfect idea [of Himself], or in His Son, who is the brightness of His glory. 2. By enjoying and delighting in Himself, by flowing forth in infinite . . . delight towards Himself, or in his Holy Spirit…
So God glorifies Himself toward the creatures also in two ways: 1. By appearing to… their understanding. 2. In communicating Himself to their hearts, and in their rejoicing and delighting in, and enjoying, the manifestations which He makes of Himself…

God is glorified not only by His glory’s being seen, but by its being rejoiced in. When those that see it delight in it, God is more glorified than if they only see it. His glory is then received by the whole soul, both by the understanding and by the heart. God made the world that He might communicate, and the creature receive, His glory; and that it might [be] received both by the mind and heart. He that testifies his idea of God’s glory [doesn't] glorify God so much as he that testifies also his approbation of it and his delight in it. (Miscellanies)

Re-read that last paragraph.

What Edwards is saying is that God is only partially glorified in the lives of His people if we only affirm the truths we know about Him. It’s not enough for us to merely see or understand God’s glory. We must take the next step and delight in it. We must delight in what we see or understand about Him. God wants our minds and our hearts (feelings, affections) to embrace His glorious presence.

God is glorified not only by His glory’s being seen, but by its being rejoiced in. When those that see it delight in it, God is more glorified than if they only see it.

The person who glorifies God the most is the person who-
1) Affirms (testifies) to all that the Bible says about God.
2) Delights in all that the Bible says about God.

It’s not enough to only know the facts about God. Those facts must travel from our brains to our hearts. But how do we get the truths that we affirm about God to stir our affections? We have to pray like the Psalmist:

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Psalm 90:14

We have to ask God to stir our hearts, to satisfy us. It’s a daily task. It’s a moment-by-moment prayer that we must pray. While we are on this side of eternity, we have to ask God to stir and arouse our affections for Him. It will not always be this way. One day, we will see God in all of His glory and we will enjoy, rejoice and delight in Him. Edwards preached about this in a Thanksgiving sermon in November 1734:

…they there see God. This is a blessedness promised to the saints, that they shall see God (Matt.8). That they see God, sufficiently shows the reason why they praise him. They that see God cannot but praise him. He is a being of such glory and excellency, that the sight of this excellency of his will necessarily influence them that behold it to praise him. Such a glorious sight will awaken and rouse all the powers of the soul, and will irresistibly impel them, and draw them into acts of praise. Such a sight enlarges their souls, and fills them with admiration, and with an unspeakable exultation of spirit. (“Praise, One of the Chief Employments of Heaven”)

One day we will see God in all His glory and we will be awakened, aroused and irresistibly drawn to enjoy Him and delight in Him. Until then, we must ask God to arouse and awaken us to know Him and delight in Him. Until then, we must ask God to satisfy us in the morning with His steadfast love that we might rejoice and be glad all our days. May God make us a church that longs to see Him and enjoy Him, both now and for eternity!

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

Seeing and delighting in the Triune God,
~Pastor Benji

Of Donkeys and Dishwashers

** Since preparing for and moving to California, I have let the blog go (like the many other times over the years!). But I’m back, sort of. I write a newsletter for our church each week, so I thought I’d start putting it here each Thursday. And maybe I’ll start blogging other days too!

Now the day before Saul came, the LORD had revealed to Samuel: “Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have seen my people, because their cry has come to me.” 1 Samuel 9:15-16

In 1st Samuel 9 we see a beautiful picture of the sovereignty of God working behind the scenes of one family and a nation. On the surface, it seemed like it was just an ordinary day on the farm where Saul lived. Nothing special. Chores abounded. Animals needed to be fed. Just run-of-the-mill farm stuff. But there was a crisis at the “Circle K Ranch” (Saul’s father was Kish, hence, the “Circle K Ranch”). The crisis: lost donkeys! Everybody panic!

Well, that’s how the Kish family reacted. Of course, it doesn’t seem like much to the modern reader. Just a few donkeys. What’s the big deal? But to Kish it was a big deal. Think of how you’d react to losing a few paychecks? That’s the crisis that the Kish family is facing.

So Daddy Kish sends Saul out to look for the lost donkeys. While Israel was looking for a king, Saul was looking for donkeys. But there’s something else happening behind the scenes. The Lord was preparing the way for Saul to become king of Israel. Saul had lunch plans (that he didn’t know about yet) that included Samuel because Yahweh had put it on His calendar. Even though the people of Israel were rejecting Yahweh as king, still Yahweh responds in mercy to work salvation for His people. He’s that kind of God. Merciful. Gracious. Even when His people abandon Him.

So what can we gather from this story? 2 things:

1) God is providentially working behind the scenes of our lives to expand His kingdom for the good of His people. Saul was just looking for donkeys. Nothing too exciting. Just run-of-the-mill farm chores. Just mundane life “stuff.” And yet God was preparing the way for Saul to become king in order to save His people from the Philistines.

Are we any different? Don’t we do hundreds of mundane tasks and chores everyday? Take out the trash, tuck the kids in bed, pay the bills, feed the dog, clean the toilets, etc. What God is saying to us is that even in the midst of all of these mundane tasks, He is quietly working behind the scenes to extend His kingdom for the good of His people.

Doesn’t that make you want to sing the Doxology? Doesn’t that make you want to worship? What kind of God are we dealing with? One that somehow is bringing about His kingdom for our good in the midst of washing dishes, changing diapers and commuting to work.

Ordinary, daily tasks become the stage for the Lord to do His work. Kind of changes how you view loading the dishwasher, doesn’t it?

2) God is sympathetic and tender towards His people… even when they rebel against Him. God is amazing! Israel has complained about wanting a king (see 1st Samuel ch.8), ignored the Lord’s warning about what the king will be like, and yet still the Lord has heard their cry. Amazing. A stubborn, rebellious people still get the ear of the King of the Universe. This of course does not downplay their sin. It is hideous. It is vile. It is rebellion. It is cosmic treason. Yet God is still merciful and hears their cries.

What kind of God are we dealing with? One that is tender and compassionate. He loves His people and waits for their cry for mercy that He might be merciful. What a tender God we have! Our rebellion cannot outdo His mercy when we repent.

The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.
For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust. Psalm 103:8-14

Let “donkeys” occupy your thoughts today:

~ If you’re out “looking for donkeys” (i.e. doing mundane tasks) don’t forget that God is quietly working behind the scenes for your good.

~ If you’re “acting like a mule” today and you’re stubbornly kicking against His mercy to revel in sin, snap out of it. Repent. Cry out to Him. And He will listen and respond with tender mercy and grace.

What kind of God are we dealing with here?

I don’t have Him totally figured out yet, but I’ve seen enough of Him in Scripture that I want to worship Him right now. I suggest you do the same.

~Pastor Benji

What Diotrephes Can Teach You

I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. 3 John 1:9-11

Today’s devotional will be short and sweet: selfishness is evil. We see this in a man named Diotrophes. He liked to put himself first in everything. Diotrophes would have loved Burger King because they hold out this promise: “Have it your way.” We, too, may fall into the “Diotrophes trap” by wanting our own way in everything. Consider these questions:

In your marriage, are you always wanting your way?
In church, do you want your musical preference/style to dominate the songs we sing?
In any area of your life, do you want to be #1?

Don’t forget today what John is stressing: selfishness is evil. The antidote to selfishness is not more will power, but the power of the Gospel. Look to Jesus when you want your way-

Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Philippians 2:4-7

Praying that we never wear #1,

Benji

Page #843 in Your Hymnal

And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” Isaiah 6:3

“To say that God is holy is to say that He is set apart, distinct from us. And because of his set apart-ness, there is no way we can fathom all of who He is. To the Jews, saying something three times demonstrated its perfection, so to call God ‘Holy, Holy, Holy’ is to say that He is perfectly set apart, with nothing and no one to compare Him to. That is what it means to be ‘holy.’” ~Francis Chan, Crazy Love (p.31).

Think about that.

God is “different, different, different.”

He is “set apart, set apart, set apart.”

He is “unique, unique, unique.”

There is no thing and no one like God. Period. He is in a category all by Himself. And yet Jesus humbled Himself and took on the form of a slave (see Philippians 2:1-11). And He calls us to be holy too-

“but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’” 1st Peter 1:15-16

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” 1st Peter 2:9

Just as God is holy, different, unique, and set apart from creation, we too are to be holy, different, unique, and set apart from unbelievers. Grace has changed us and we’re to reflect that by the way we live.

So whatever you do today, be-

“different, different, different”
“set apart, set apart, set apart”
“unique, unique, unique”

for God’s glory.

~Benji

Surely Goodness & Mercy… Stop Calling Me Shirley!

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Psalm 23:6

Every time I read this verse, 2 things always come to mind. One is of substance, the other is amusing. Let’s start with the amusing…

I heard the story of a woman who had twin girls and this verse was the inspiration for their names. She named her girls:

1} “Shirley Goodness”
2} “Anne Mercy”

Clever.

Now on to more substantial things…

Several days ago I proposed that disciples need to be pursuing God with determination, like one army chasing another army (Psalm 63). But did you know that God also chases us down? When David says that goodness and mercy shall follow him all the days of his life, he is speaking of the LORD who chases us down. The Hebrew word for follow is the same word used in Psalm 63:8 where David says he pursues/chases God. Here, in Psalm 23, it is God doing the chasing! God pursues His people! We might expect David’s enemies {v.5} to be chasing him down. But instead, God’s mercy and goodness pursue David. Here we have a beautiful picture of the LORD pursuing the people He loves.

Look over your shoulder today. God is pursuing you!

Thankful for His relentless goodness and mercy,
Benji

Grace At Work

We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.
2 Thessalonians 1:3-4

What in the world is God doing in His church? Sometimes we may not see how He is working, but we must remember that He is always at work. Sometimes we have to look for evidence of grace. The Thessalonian church, however, made God’s work of grace visible. So Paul gives thanks to God for the evidence of grace that he sees in the church at Thessalonica. What did he see?

1} Their faith was growing abundantly. They were continuing to believe God’s word despite the severe persecution they were undergoing {see 2 Thessalonians 1:5}.

2} Their love for one another was increasing. This was a true sign that they were Jesus’ disciples {see John 13:35}.

3} They were steadfast in the midst of persecution and affliction. This steadfastness meant that they were remaining calm while they awaited the outcome of their suffering.

These 3 evidences of God’s grace in the Thessalonian church can easily be turned into 3 prayers that you can pray for the church. Will join me in praying that our faith grows abundantly, our love for one another increases, and that we would remain steadfast in the midst of trials? It will only happen by His grace!

Looking for evidence of His grace,
Benji

The (Possible) Martyr You Tuck Into Bed Every Night

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. Revelation 6:9-11

How often do you think of martyrdom? Probably (if you’re like me) not as much as you should. Why should we think about being killed for Jesus? Who wants that to occupy their minds? The answer to these questions is very important when it comes to fulfilling the mission that Jesus gave to the church to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:16-20).

What is the correlation between martyrdom and discipleship, you ask? For us, it is this: we need to be discipling others with a view to martyrdom. Verse 11 implies that there is a predetermined number of martyrs who will give their lives, be martyred, die for Jesus: “…until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been…” And some of those martyrs may be in your local church. Perhaps the child in your Sunday school class has been elected by God to be a martyr for Jesus? If that is possible, how important is discipleship for your church? What if one of your children was one of the numbered martyrs? How important then is family worship, prayer and Scripture reading for your household? Or, for your “future martyr?”

May God give grace to His church so that we work hard to see Christ formed in each disciple {Galatians 4:19}, so that it would be said of us “they loved not their lives even unto death” {Revelation 12:11}.

A possible martyr with you,
Benji

Pursuing God

My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. Psalm 63:8

I love this verse. Here we have a great marriage of God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility. David is declaring that his soul clings to God. And yet God is involved in action too: God’s right hand upholds David. I think that’s why David says in verse 5 that God satisfies him and he’s singing joyfully (“My soul will be satisfied…my mouth will praise you with joyful lips…”). What a wonderful Gospel truth! God sustains His people.

But David doesn’t just sit back basking in God’s sovereign “upholding hand.” He’s moved to action. He says his soul clings to God. The NET Bible translates this verse as, “My soul pursues you.” It’s an interesting Hebrew word that David uses. He pursues God. This Hebrew word is used in other passages where one army pursues another army with determination {see Judges 20:45; 1 Samuel 14:22; 1 Chronicles 10:2; Jeremiah 42:6}. David is pursuing with determination the God who upholds him.

Are you pursuing God with determination? Are you chasing Him down like one army does another? He is there upholding you… go chase Him down.

Praying that we pursue Him,
Benji

Luke, It’s Your Destiny…

Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone, and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith, that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. 1 Thessalonians 3:1-4

I hear people say this a lot: “It’s my destiny.” Whatever it is that they desire in life (job, spouse, house, money, etc), somehow they are convinced that it is their destiny to have it. Fair enough. Maybe it is. Who am I to disagree with someone over their destiny?

But I do know something about our destiny as disciples of Jesus. Disciples can say with assurance, “It’s my destiny,” when it comes to suffering. Paul knew this. He was convinced that the church was destined to suffer. That’s why he sent Timothy back to the Thessalonians. He knew that suffering would come to the Thessalonians and he wanted to remind them of this truth. Paul feared they would be discouraged and give up when suffering came their way. In fact, Paul says that he kept telling the Thessalonians over and over that they would suffer affliction for following Christ. He wanted to get it into their head so he told them repeatedly and then sent Timothy back to remind them anew.

So on behalf of pastors all over the world, let me remind you again that you will suffer for Jesus Christ. It’s your destiny!

You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.
You will suffer for following Jesus. It’s your destiny.

Suffering alongside you,
~Benji

Growing and Going

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Colossians 1:9-10

You can’t help but notice Paul’s emphasis on “knowledge” in his letter to the Colossians. First, he prays that the Colossian church would be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding {v.9}. Then he prays again that the Colossian church would increase in the knowledge of God {v.10}.

Alright, Paul. We get your point. We need to increase in the knowledge of God. Got it.
But if you know Paul, he won’t settle there. In fact, he again prays for the Colossians and other area churches in ch. 2 that they would begin to comprehend the riches of the Gospel, namely Jesus Christ as the source of all wisdom and knowledge-

“…that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Colossians 2:2-3

Later in ch. 3 Paul encourages these believers to be renewed in knowledge as part of the sanctification process-

“…and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” Colossians 3:10

Why all the emphasis on growing in our knowledge of God? I think Paul keeps stressing it in his letter because he knows that if the Colossian church is going to make any difference in the world they must keep increasing in their knowledge of God. Knowledge of God affects every area of the Christian life: evangelism, discipleship, sanctification, missions, giving, serving, etc.

That’s why Paul will ask the Colossians to pray for open doors of evangelism for his ministry and knowledge on how to do it effectively {see Colossians 4:2-6}. The Colossians too will need wisdom in how to live the Gospel out in a pagan world {see Colossian 4:5-6}. If they don’t grow in the knowledge of God, they won’t make a difference in the world.

Perhaps the reason churches and believers aren’t making a difference for the Gospel today is that they have stopped growing in the knowledge of God? Let’s make it personal: perhaps the reason we aren’t sharing the Gospel and discipling others is because we have stopped growing in the knowledge of God?

I think D.A. Carson is spot on: “The greatest incentive to evangelism, witness, and mission emerges from a church’s deepening knowledge of God.”

Want to share the Gospel more? Grow in the knowledge of God. Want to witness more to neighbors, co-workers and family? Grow in the knowledge of God. Want to be missions-minded? Grow in the knowledge of God.

If we are ever to be a church that evangelizes, witnesses and stays on mission, we have to be people of the Book, not people of books about the Book. We must be Scripture-saturated. We must, as Paul exhorted the Colossian church-

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” Colossians 3:16

If you are filled with and increasing in the knowledge of God, you can’t help but be thankful for the Gospel:

“…giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:12-14

When you begin to comprehend all that God is for you in Jesus Christ, you can’t help but share it with others! When you begin to grow in your understanding of who the Triune God is, it should lead to a sharing with those in your lives. Perhaps a memorable way to remember this devo is this: “Growing leads to going.”

Go grow so you can go!
~Benji

The Long Nose of God?

“The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Exodus 34:6

Did you know that God has a long nose? Really! I’m not making this up. God says so Himself. In Exodus 34:6 God tells Moses that He has a long nose. What typically gets translated as “slow to anger” in most English translations is the Hebrew expression “erek apayim” which is literally “long of nose.” The expression can mean slow to anger, patient or longsuffering. The Hebrew idiom “long of nose” was used to describe someone who was patient or slow to anger {see Proverbs 14:29}. Conversely, a person “short of nose” {see Proverbs 14:17} was considered to be impatient or quick-tempered, much like our English idioms “hothead” or “short fuse.”

But there is more to this than God just having a long nose. The theology of this Hebrew idiom is what must impress us: God is patient with His people. We do not perish or get what we deserve precisely because God is patient!

The psalmist said it this way:

The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger {long of nose} and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities. Psalm 103:8-10

Because of what God the Father has done for us in His Son Jesus Christ, He does not deal with us according to our sins. That’s the hope of the Gospel! May God grant us the ability, by His Spirit, to plumb the depths of His mercy, grace, faithfulness, steadfast love and… unending patience.

Often short of nose,

~Benji

Courtesy Shmourtesy

“to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.” Titus 3:2

Sometimes when I read God’s word, a phrase jumps out at me like I’ve never read it before. Ever have that happen? A few weeks ago I had been reading the book of Titus several times, over the course of a few days, and all of a sudden, “Bam!” – there it was: “show perfect courtesy toward all people.”

It’s easy for me to be courteous to people that I like or who aren’t currently getting under my skin (Yes, people get under my skin. You do know that I’m a sinner, don’t you?). But I find it very difficult to be courteous, let alone show “perfect” courtesy, to those who bother me. In those moments of struggle, I need God’s grace more than ever. That’s probably why Paul mentioned God’s transforming grace earlier in the letter to Titus-

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” Titus 2:11-13

God’s grace can help you be perfectly courteous to your spouse when you’re discussing your finances, when you’re putting kids to bed, when you’re stuck in traffic, when you’re behind someone in the grocery store and they have 45 items in the 20 items and under lane, etc.

God’s grace is perfect for any situation where you need to show perfect courtesy. All you have to do is ask.

So, the next time you find yourself around difficult people (who are just like you!) show them perfect, God-empowered courtesy…even if they don’t deserve it. Because that’s the essence of grace- we don’t deserve it.

Trying to show perfect courtesy,
~Benji

Spiritual Amnesia- Part 2

So the people of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And their daughters they took to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons, and they served their gods. And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth. Judges 3:5-7

Yesterday’s post focused on “spiritual amnesia.” We saw that when the Gospel fades from our memory we will inevitably forget that we have been cleansed from our sins. But there is another element to spiritual amnesia: amnesia produces apostacy. That’s why the Scriptures are replete with warning passages about not remembering what the Lord has done for us (see Deuteronomy 4 & 6).

Just like the Israelites, when we fail to remember all that the Lord has done for us, we are on our way to Baal and Asheroth. We’ll find something to worship. We’ll forsake the Creator for creation (see Romans 1:18-32).

And that’s why we celebrate the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We want to remember what the Lord has done for us in the Gospel. He has given us 2 signs that point to the reality of our salvation. And He has done this because He knows we’re prone to forget. That’s grace!

Remembering the Gospel,
~Benji

Spiritual Amnesia

“One reason we don’t grow in ordinary, grateful obedience as we should is that we’ve got amnesia; we’ve forgotten that we are cleansed from our sins. In other words, ongoing failure in sanctification (the slow process of change into Christlikeness) is the direct result of failing to remember God’s love for us in the gospel. If we lack the comfort and assurance that his love and cleansing are meant to supply, our failures will handcuff us to yesterday’s sins, and we won’t have faith or courage to fight against them, or the love for God that’s meant to empower this war. If we fail to remember our justification, redemption, and reconciliation, we’ll struggle in our sanctification.” Elyse Fitzpatrick

The Most Hair-raising, Spine-tingling, Blood-curdling, Bone-chilling, and Nerve-racking Scene in the Bible

Below is the first sermon in a series that I preached a few years ago titled, “The Gospel-Centered Life: Boasting in the Cross Day by Day”

“The Most Hair-raising, Spine-tingling, Blood-curdling, Bone-chilling, and Nerve-racking Scene in the Bible”
Matthew 26:36-46; 27:45-50

Today we begin a new mini-series on the Gospel. I’m calling this new series, “The Gospel-Centered Life: Boasting in the Cross Day by Day.” We will spend the next few weeks looking at the Gospel, explaining what it is, what it means, and just how important it is for us. You may have come here thinking that the Gospel message is just for sinners who have not turned from their sins and turned to Jesus. But I hope to show you over the next few weeks that the Gospel is for Christians. And hopefully you and I will learn more fully what it means to live the Gospel-centered life.

So whenever you hear me say Gospel, think cross. And whenever you hear me say cross, think Gospel. The 2 terms are inter-changeable and mean and stress the same thing: that Jesus came to die for sinners. That is what the Gospel means and that is the truth that we must center our lives around.

Now let’s build the foundation of what the Gospel is from God’s Word.

But let me warn you. To understand the Gospel, we must go to the darkest, most hideous places any human being could go. We must see things that no one wants to see.

One of the most frightening and hideous scenes from the Bible will unfold before our eyes today. No Hollywood horror movie can compare with the horror that we are going to see today, what Jesus saw that night in the garden of Gethsemane; what He experienced at Golgotha. We will see in God’s Word today what Jesus saw on that night before He was betrayed and what He experienced the day He died.

We will get front row seats to one of the most hideous, frightening, alarming, terrifying, petrifying, hair-raising, spine-tingling, blood-curdling, bone-chilling, horrifying, nerve-racking, fearsome, unnerving, and eerie scenes in the Bible. We are going to Gethsemane and then to Golgotha.

What was this most horrifying scene? Turn with me to Matthew 26:36-46.

The first truth that we’ll see here is that-
JESUS EXPERIENCED UNBOUNDED TORMENT OF SOUL AS HE CONFRONTED ABSOLUTE WRATH AND TOTAL ABANDONMENT FROM HIS FATHER. LOOK AT VERSES 36-38…

Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.”

Let’s set the context. Jesus had just celebrated the Passover with His disciples {Matthew 26:17-29}, where He inaugurated the New Covenant, which would come to fulfillment later on the cross and through His resurrection. After this they went to the Mount of Olives where Jesus told the disciples that they would all abandon Him {Matthew 26:30-35}. Of course, the disciples did not believe Jesus and they all affirmed that they would never abandon Jesus.

Let me interject a quick note here about the disciple’s assurance of themselves that they would never fall away: we must be very careful if we think that we would never abandon the Lord or turn away from Him. We must be very careful to not think that we are so spiritual that something like this would not happen to us. Only His grace keeps us faithful.

After this solemn announcement of their falling away, Jesus and His disciples went to the Garden of Gethsemane. Gethsemane was situated on the Mount of Olives just east of Jerusalem. And this becomes the setting of one of the most horrifying scenes of the Bible. It is here in Gethsemane that Jesus will experience unbounded torment of soul as He confronts total abandonment and absolute wrath from His Father.

So Jesus takes Peter, James and John with Him away from the other disciples in order that they may go pray together. Matthew tells us that Jesus, “began to be sorrowful and troubled.” These 2 words connote a deep distress, a deep grief, trouble, anguish.

Then Jesus confides in these 3 disciples about the emotional torment which He was undergoing. LOOK AT VERSE 38…

Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.”

Here we see a different word for “very sorrowful” in Greek. Matthew uses an even more intense word in v. 38 than v.37. Now, the distress of Jesus is even more heightened. He is “very sad, deeply grieved.” The full weight of what was about to transpire was quickly descending upon Jesus.

So we must ask ourselves, what is it that is causing Jesus to be overwhelmed in this way? Is it His impending death and the physical suffering that will precede it? Or is there something more hideous and appalling than the physical suffering that He must endure?

What Matthew is driving home to us is that-
JESUS EXPERIENCED UNBOUNDED TORMENT OF SOUL AS HE CONFRONTED ABSOLUTE WRATH AND TOTAL ABANDONMENT FROM HIS FATHER.

And so Jesus leaves the disciples to pray to His Father. LOOK AT VERSE 39-44

And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.

It is going to take a miracle for us to begin to see what is transpiring here. This horrific scene is so far beyond our understanding. We’ll only begin to scratch the surface today. But we must plunge ourselves into the darkness of this scene and pray for our eyes to be opened to see what Jesus saw before Him.

As the old hymn Give Me A Sight, O Savior states,
“Oh help me understand it, help me take it in-
what it meant to Thee, the Holy One, to bear away my sin.”

And this is what we need to see: Here in the garden of Gethsemane Jesus is beginning to confront head on the deepest agony of the cross. And this agony will go beyond the physical suffering of the cross. What causes Jesus to be so overwhelmed here is the contents of the “cup” that He must drink.

Picture Jesus with His face on the ground. Overwhelmed by what is about to come about, He prays, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

Luke 22:44 states that Jesus was sweating so much that His sweat was “like great drops of blood falling to the ground.”

But, why? Why all the stress and emotional torment? Why all of the agony? Why is Jesus’ sweat like great drops of blood? Why is He praying to the Father?

His request to His Father reveals the answer: “let this cup pass from me.”

But what is this cup? What is Jesus talking about? What is in this cup that Jesus saw that He does not want to drink?

The contents of the cup are the most hideous, the most frightening, most alarming, most terrifying, most petrifying, most hair-raising, most spine-tingling, most blood-curdling, most bone-chilling, most horrifying, most nerve-racking, most fearsome, and most unnerving thing that any human being can face.

The contents of the cup are the wrath of a holy God intended for your sins and mine. That is what is troubling Jesus in the garden. He is coming face to face with the wrath of God.

JESUS EXPERIENCED UNBOUNDED TORMENT OF SOUL AS HE CONFRONTED ABSOLUTE WRATH AND TOTAL ABANDONMENT FROM HIS FATHER.

The cup of wrath is spoken of in Scripture as the judgment of God in several places:

Psalm 75:6-8
For not from the east or from the west
and not from the wilderness comes lifting up, but it is God who executes judgment,
putting down one and lifting up another.
For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup
with foaming wine, well mixed,
and he pours out from it,
and all the wicked of the earth
shall drain it down to the dregs.

Habakkuk 2:16
The cup in the Lord’s right hand
will come around to you,
and utter shame will come upon your glory!

Jeremiah 25:15-17, 27-29
Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.” So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it…
…“Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink, be drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of the sword that I am sending among you.’ “And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: You must drink! For behold, I begin to work disaster at the city that is called by my name, and shall you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth, declares the Lord of hosts.’

Isaiah 51:17, 20-23
Wake yourself, wake yourself,
stand up, O Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup of his wrath,
who have drunk to the dregs
the bowl, the cup of staggering…
…they are full of the wrath of the Lord,
the rebuke of your God. Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,
who are drunk, but not with wine:
Thus says your Lord, the Lord,
your God who pleads the cause of his people:
“Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;
the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;
and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors…

Revelation 14:9-10
And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.

So the cup that Jesus asks to be removed from Him is a picture of the wrath of God. No wonder Jesus falls on the ground and prays to His Father. He has come face to face with the reality that He will bear the sins of mankind and He will become the target of Gods righteous wrath.

So it is not the physical suffering of the cross that Jesus is asking to be removed from. It is a pain that is far greater and far deeper- He will become the center of God’s wrath and anger and in that moment He will be completely abandoned by His Father.

JESUS EXPERIENCED UNBOUNDED TORMENT OF SOUL AS HE CONFRONTED ABSOLUTE WRATH AND TOTAL ABANDONMENT FROM HIS FATHER.

This is why Jesus experienced unbounded, unlimited torment of souls, and distress, and agony: He would experience His Father’s wrath and be abandoned on the cross.

What makes this setting, the garden of Gethsemane, so interesting is that Gethsemane means, “olive press.” In Jesus’ time they would take olives and roll a massive rock over them until all of the oil was pressed out. And so it is here in the olive press that Jesus will be pressed and squeezed in His soul as He confronts His destiny to redeem the elect people of God.

William Lane says that Jesus went “to be with the Father for an interlude before His betrayal, but found Hell rather than Heaven open before Him” {Commentary on the Gospel of Mark, p. 516.}

This is why Jesus asks His Father if there is another way. “Is there some alternative? If there is some way, Father, would you provide it? Do I have to separated from You? Must you abandon me and pour out Your wrath on Me?”

Obviously Jesus hears nothing. So He prays a second time. “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” Jesus hears nothing. He knows He must drink the cup.

Then he prays a third time {Matthew 26:44}. But He knows that this is the way. This is His Father’ will. He must experience God’s wrath and anger. He must be separated from the love of His Father.

He must drink the cup of God’s wrath to its dregs. He must drain every drop of God’s righteous anger.

And why? Let these familiar words give you one reason why Jesus became the target of God’s wrath. Let these few familiar words segue us to our next truth: “For God so loved the world that He gave…”

Don’t you love those words! So familiar, but see them anew today! Because the reality is this, as C.J. Mahaney has so eloquently put it:

“As we watch Jesus pray in agony in Gethsemane, He has every right to turn His tearful eyes toward you and me and shout, ‘This is your cup. You’re responsible for this. It’s your sin! You drink it.’ This cup should rightfully be thrust into my hand and yours. Instead, Jesus freely takes it Himself…so that from the cross He can look down at you and me, whisper our names, and say, ‘I drain this cup for you- for you who have lived in defiance of Me, who have hated Me, who have opposed Me. I drink it all…for you’” {Living the Cross Centered Life, p. 82}.

Next we’ll see that-
JESUS DEMONSTRATED INCOMPREHENSABLE LOVE AS HE EXPERIENCED AND EXHAUSTED THE FULL FURY OF THE INTENSE, RIGHTEOUS WRATH OF GOD. LOOK AT MATTHEW 27:45-50…

Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

When Jesus died the violent, bloody death on the cross, He demonstrated incomprehensible love. This kind of love you and I will never fully understand or comprehend. His love for you and I and His love for the Father and the Spirit is what prompted Him.

What kept Him on the cross? The nails you say? No! His passion to do the will of His Father and His love for sinners like you and me held Him on the tree.

And what a moment this was! Even the sky responds! Three hours of darkness as Jesus is drinking from the cup that He saw in Gethsemane. Here on the cross Jesus is drinking up every last drop of God’s anger for you and me. He is experiencing and exhausting the full, fury of the intense, righteous wrath of God…for you and me!

Oh, how we need eyes to see this! But even Scripture itself draws a veil over what transpired there at the cross. In this moment Jesus is God-forsaken. “…The physical suffering that Jesus endured was only a feeble picture of the suffering of His soul. And part of that suffering was the real forsakenness by His Father, His utter abandonment b God” {Jerry Bridges, The Gospel For Real Life, p.51-52}.

Jesus takes on the sins of the entire world in that moment on the cross. All of humanity’s sins are piled on Him. And so He becomes the target of God’s righteous wrath.

This is why Matthew tells us, “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Richard Allen Bodey says that, “Nowhere in the Bible do wee encounter any mystery that so stagers the mind and shocks the Christian consciousness as this tortured cry from the lips of our dying Savior” {Voice From the Cross: Classic Sermons on the Seven Last Words of Christ, p. 57-58}.

Jesus is not questioning His Father as to why He is being forsaken. He is quoting Psalm 22 and fulfilling it. Jesus, who lived in closest fellowship with the Father, is in this moment abandoned by the Father. We don’t know fully in what sense it happened, but we know that Jesus was indeed abandoned by His Father as He died as a substitute for our sins.

R.C. Sproul described this scene of Jesus bearing the sins of the world in the presence of the Father as, “the most grotesque display of ugliness imaginable” {Saved From What?, p.84}.

You and I cannot even begin to imagine the horror that Jesus felt as the sin of humanity was placed on Him. We cannot imagine the horror that the Father and the Spirit felt as they looked upon Jesus and then turned away.

In this moment Jesus was forsaken by His Father. He drank the cup of wrath for you and me. Jesus exhausted the cup of wrath. Every last drop was consumed by Him for us. For those of us who trust in Him, the cup is empty. There is no more!

Jerry Bridges says, “However, as we contemplate with wonder Christ being made sin for us, we must always keep in mind the distinction between Christ’s sinlessness in His personal being and His sin-bearing in His official liability to God’s wrath. He was the sinless sin-bearer. Though He was officially guilty as our representative, He was personally the object of the Father’s everlasting love and delight. Even as Jesus hung on the cross bearing our sins and enduring the full fury of God’s wrath, He was at the same time the object of His Father’s infinite, eternal love. Should this not make us bow in adoration at such matchless love, that the Father would subject the object of His supreme delight to His unmitigated wrath for our sake?”{The Gospel For Real Life, p.52-53}.

JESUS DEMONSTRATED INCOMPREHENSABLE LOVE AS HE EXPERIENCED AND EXHAUSTED THE FULL FURY OF THE INTENSE, RIGHTEOUS WRATH OF GOD.

And so the cry of abandonment, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” echoed from the cross.

“This cry represents the most agonizing protest ever uttered on this planet. It burst forth in a moment of unparalleled pain. It is the scream of the damned- for us” {R.C. Sproul, as quoted in C.J. Mahaney’s, Living the Cross Centered Life, p.89}.

Why does Jesus cry out the “scream of the damned?” So you and I will never have to. He was damned by God for your sin, my sin. He cried out in agony so that you and I never will have to.

We have all sinned enough in the past 24 hours to deserve a cross-death. God would be just to pour His holy, righteous anger out on all of us. But instead, He offers amnesty. Because Jesus died in our place, we can be forgiven.

God treats Jesus like a sinner so that He can treat you and I- sinners that we are- as if we were righteous!

That’s good news! That’s the Gospel.

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2nd Corinthians 5:21

Today, is Easter, we celebrate the fact that Jesus not only died on the cross, but God raised Him from the dead. He is alive! And He can raise you up from the deadness of your trespasses and sins if you trust in Him.

He offers amnesty to you today if you turn from your sin, bow to His Lordship over your life, and trust in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross.

There are 2 kinds of people here today:

1} Rebels. You have not trusted in Christ. And if you don’t, God will be just in sending you to an eternal Hell where you will pay the penalty for your sins for eternity.

Your options: rebel or repent.

2} Pardoned Rebels. You have trusted in the work of Christ. I say to you, “Pardoned rebels, rejoice!”

The contents of the cup: the most hideous, the most frightening, most alarming, most terrifying, most petrifying, most hair-raising, most spine-tingling, most blood-curdling, most bone-chilling, most horrifying, most nerve-racking, most fearsome, and most unnerving thing that any human being can face has been faced by Jesus for you.

The cup is empty for you pardoned rebels…rejoice!

Our Puny Capacities

This pretty much sums up life post-Fall/pre-Glory:

“But no one in this earthly prison of the body has sufficient strength to press on with due eagerness, and weakness so weighs down the greater number that, with wavering and limping and even creeping along the ground, they move at a feeble rate. Let each one of us, then, proceed according to the measure of his puny capacity and set out upon the journey we have begun. No one shall set out so inauspiciously as not daily to make some headway, though it be slight. Therefore, let us not cease so to act that we may make some unceasing progress in the way of the Lord. And let us not despair at the slightness of our success; for even though attainment may not correspond to desire, when today outstrips yesterday the effort is not lost. Only let us look toward our mark with sincere simplicity and aspire to our goal; not fondly flattering ourselves, nor excusing our own evil deeds, but with continuous effort striving toward this end: that we may surpass ourselves in goodness until we attain to goodness itself. It is this, indeed, which through the whole course of life we seek and follow. But we shall attain it only when we have cast off the weakness of the body, and are received into full fellowship with him”- John Calvin (Institutes, 3.6.5)

What is Faith?

John Calvin’s Trinitarian definition of faith: “a firm and certain knowledge of God’s benevolence towards us, founded upon the truth of the freely given promises in Christ, both revealed to our minds and sealed upon our hearts through the Holy Spirit.”