Lunes, Hunyo 25, 2012

nuggets of thoughts

The Old (biblical) Spirituality and the New (unbiblical) Spirituality

The old spirituality teaches that man is totally depraved and he needs to repent (Romans 3:10; Romans 3:23; Matthew 3:2; Luke 5:32; Luke 13:3/5; 1 John 1:9)). Only through the precious blood of Christ shall he be cleansed from his sins (1 John 1:7; Hebrews 9:11-28).  Jesus died on the cross for His own that they will be redeemed and justified and be free from the fires of eternal hell (John 3:16).

The old spirituality teaches that salvation comes only to those who receive Jesus Christ by faith, through the grace of God, and not through good works so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9).  


The old spirituality teaches that there are only two commandments: love God above all (Deuteronomy 6:5) and love others as yourself (Leviticus 19:18). There is no commandment to love oneself for we already love ourselves (Ephesians 5:29).  On the contrary, Christ tells us to deny ourselves (Luke 9:23).  The Apostle Paul in his second letter to Timothy, admonishes him to avoid people who will be lovers of self in the last days (2 Timothy 3:2).

The old spirituality teaches that Jesus Christ alone is the Way to the Father (John 14:6) and there is no other.  The Almighty God is Spirit and He is in Heaven and He is to be worshipped in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).

The new spirituality says that there is a divinity inside of every man that makes him at par with God.

The new spirituality also says that man should love himself first in order to be able to love others.  He should learn to forgive himself whenever he commits a sin for him to find peace.

The new spirituality accepts the belief that all roads lead to God; that one can worship God through different manners, images and representations, that God is the god of the other religions, Christian or otherwise.

The new spirituality says that Jesus Christ died for all, that faith alone doesn’t save but should be accompanied by acts of benevolence.

Offense

A Christian who has departed from the false religion of his birth to become a born-again believer oftentimes feels the repulsion or rejection of his own family and of those whom he considers his friends.  He has become an offense to the people he grew up with, or people he got acquainted with along the way.  These are the people who never really knew the Word of God, Jesus of the Bible, for they are not encouraged to read the Bible, in its pure and undiluted version. These are the people who were not taught the doctrine of man’s total depravity and his need for repentance; that by God’s sovereign grace, faith is instilled in the believer to accept Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour and Lord. They will ask him, “Why, what happened to you?” as if he has just committed a spiritual blunder or has suddenly become a religious infidel. 

1 Corinthians 1:18 "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish, foolishness; but unto us which are saved, it is the power of God."

“If you are true Christians, you will not have the love of worldlings; you cannot have it. They will be sure to ridicule you and call you fools or hypocrites or something equally uncomplimentary. Well, then, cling the more closely to one another.”   Charles Spurgeon, At the Master’s Feet

Loss of love

One of the greatest tragedies of life is the loss of someone we love.   Separation because of death, sickness, misunderstanding, unforgiveness, or indifference, more than anything else breaks the heart that loves purely and completely. One deals with a different kind of grief in this kind of loss.  Healing takes time but just the same, healing takes place.  For the believer, there is no wound that God doesn’t heal.

Chastisement

God doesn’t allow His children to stay fallen in a life of folly and sinfulness.  He is the Heavenly Father who chastens His own for their sanctification, His will and purpose for them.  For every sin or disobedience, there is a corresponding punishment and discipline.  Chastisement is painful; it is not an enjoyable thing to be chastised, but it is necessary.  Like a bitter pill to be swallowed, like the physical pain a doctor has to inflict on the patient, chastisement is needed to heal the sick, to sanctify the sinner, to conform him to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.

 “For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”  Hebrews 12:6

The Solid Rock 
Edward Mote, 1834, alt.
William B. Bradbury, 1863

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus' name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
When darkness seems to hide His face, I rest on His unchanging grace.
In ev'ry high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the vale.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
His oath, His covenant, His blood support me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way, He then is all my Hope and Stay.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
When He shall come with trumpet sound, oh, may I then in Him be found:
Dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
  
" For God alone my soul waits in silence; from Him comes my salvation.  He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.”
Psalm 62:1-2


Lunes, Mayo 21, 2012

nuggets of thoughts

Measurement 

Academic excellence or superior knowledge or high educational attainment should not be the basis the goodness of a person is measured.  Professional or material success is not the pinnacle of a person’s achievement.  It is the godly character, moral integrity or the spiritual wisdom one possesses as a Christian that a person is fondly regarded or remembered for. 

Real friend or faux ami

It takes years in order to find the genuineness of a true friend.  It takes tests and trials to discover whether one is a true friend or un faux ami (a false friend).

In friendship, titles are stripped, everyone is equal; no one is superior over the other; the bond is based on love and respect.    

Pain in the neck

Some of these are friends/relatives/neighbors who have the habit of borrowing money but tenaciously refuse to return it at the promised period.  Some borrow because of poverty, or for emergency reasons; others for business purposes.  Some have the capacity to pay; others don’t have.  It’s just that there are those who are shamelessly stubborn or unwilling to pay, or have no word of honor at all.  

There are people who live on borrowing, whose lifestyle revolves around borrowing, living beyond their means, but fail to fulfill their obligations because of the mountainous debts that have accumulated by their constant borrowing.

“Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.”  Romans 8:13

The heart’s affections


“… The challenge of biblical sanctification is that it is first at the level of the soul and the affections.

Where does your heart and affections run where you are alone? Do you love to come and commune with Christ by faith? Is Christ glorious and precious to your inner man? …”

The lonely Christian

Emotions are dangerous especially if they are left unguarded.  Even a Christian suffers from emotions that are not the fruits of the Holy Spirit.  A feeling of desolation, abandonment and despair will make a lonely Christian an easy prey to the wrong people, or people of unbiblical “Christian” persuasion.  If the Christian is raised or is deeply rooted in a doctrinally sound church, he will persevere and not be swayed.  Above all, if he constantly clings to God through His Word in every predicament then God’s loving protection and the wisdom of the Holy Spirit shall be his armour in this spiritual and emotional battle.
 
That is why the lonely Christian longs for the company of people of his faith.  The brethren and especially the leaders of the church should therefore be perpetually guarding the flock before the sheep loses its way and walks along the precipice.

Righteousness

“Blessed (truly happy) are they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness – not after happiness.  Do not go on seeking thrills; seek righteousness.

Seek for happiness and you will never find it, seek righteousness and you will discover you are happy – it will be there without your knowing it, without your seeking it.

Do you want to know supreme joy? Do you want to experience a happiness that eludes description?  There is only one thing to do, really seek Him, seek Him Himself, turn to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.”

-Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression

Solus Christus

Jesus Christ alone is the source of salvation.  The blood He shed and nothing else cleanses the sinner from his sin. Jesus Christ alone through His death on the cross paid for the sinner’s sin-debt, imputing on the sinner God’s righteousness, justifying him, saving him from eternal damnation.

“Let me put it plainly, I will not make my boast, I will not glory, even in my orthodoxy, for even that can be a snare if I make a god of it.  I will glory only in that Blessed Person Himself by whom this great thing has been done, with whom I died, with whom I have been buried, with whom I am dead to sin and alive unto God, with whom I have risen, with whom I am seated in the heavenly places, by whom and by whom alone the world is crucified unto me and I am crucified unto the world.  Anything that wants to come into the centre instead of Him, anything that wants to add itself on to Him, I shall reject. Knowing the apostolic message concerning Jesus Christ in all its directness, its simplicity and its glory, God forbid that anyone of us should add anything to it.  Let us rejoice in Him in all His fullness and in Him alone.”

-Dr. Martyn Lloyed-Jones, Spiritual Depression


Poetry
 Goodbye
by maria maqui

Good bye is a lonely word;
It strikes a lonely cord.
But it resonates with freedom;
It liberates the heart
From its wrong affections.





Linggo, Abril 15, 2012

nuggets of thoughts

Dark Nights
When dark nights haunt you, go to Jesus.  He alone comforts, knows our needs, what’s good for us.  Do not go around in circles:  read the Word of God, find solace in Him.

The Truth
The Christian is not a searcher of truth but a proclaimer of the Truth, since he has found the Truth in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God.  Other “truths” that proclaim otherwise are not truths but lies.

Good Works
Kindness, generosity, charity, and other good works are either works of the flesh or works of the Spirit.
Man generally does good works to please himself, to boost his self-esteem, to feel good.  This kind of benevolence is the fruit of the flesh.  It aims not to please God.  This kind of good works therefore does not count to God.  "But we are all are as unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags..." Isaiah 64:6.
A Christian does good works because he loves God.  Loving others is God’s command and so he follows him by loving others, for it is impossible to love God without following His command.  His good works thus become the fruits of the Spirit.  He helps others and shows acts of kindness because he loves God and wants to please God, not himself.

Rewarder
God is the rewarder, not man.  The natural man is basically self-centered.  He wants to receive rather than give.  
The Christian who gives does not expect returns or rewards from man.  He gives to glorify his God.  God in return blesses in manifold forms.  He uses man or circumstances  to show His pleasure to His children.  
 
Irony
There are times when the people we love and who are true to us are those who do not know Jesus Christ of the Bible.  In other words, they are those who practice a different kind of Christianity or spirituality.  They are either unbelievers or do not have God at all.
And so we grieve over the fact that these people close to our hearts shall not inherit the Kingdom of God.  However, we do not lose hope, because as long as we live and these people are alive, we continue to pray for them, that one day God will change their hearts.

Knowing God First
The first service a Christian can give others is to tell them of the Gospel of Christ.  Man has to know of his total depravity, his need to repent of his sins, and his need for a Savior.  The Christian has to tell him who God is in the Person of Jesus Christ.  Modern teachings will help us find the answer to the question “Who am I?”  The Christian should teach man the answer to the question “Who is God?”
In knowing God through Jesus Christ, man will know himself, find the meaning to life and the ways by which he should live his life.  Jesus Christ is revealed only through the written Word of God, the Bible.

Impact
Those that create an impact in our lives are people who are there for us when we are sick.  It is in period of sickness that we feel lonely and think of the loved ones that are not with us, those who are not around anymore or those who live in far places.  And so people who show their love or kindness by being with us during sickness are the ones who touch us the most.

Poetry
Alienated
by maria maqui

Two worlds alienated;
Separate, distinct, dissociated;
One loving, reaching, but empty-handed;
The other the object, the subject, the dearly beloved.

Martes, Enero 17, 2012

Man’s inhumanity to man
Man after the fall inherited the disobedience of Adam.  His heart pulsates with sin and wrongdoing.  He is depraved and will either be saved or damned according to the Sovereign Will of God.
Atrocities inflicted by man to a fellow human being are never a rare occurrence in everyday life.  The first sin of murder was committed by a man against his own brother.  Esau hated his brother Jacob; Joseph was sold and almost killed by his eleven brothers.
Parents and children are not free from internal conflicts.  Abuse and bitter rows exist right within the home.
Children become resentful, disrespectful, ungrateful, and disobedient…while there are those that continue to love and respect their parents in spite of unavoidable family disagreements and disharmony, there are the Cain types who become the black sheep or crosses on the shoulder and thorns in the flesh…

When the thrill is gone
There are instances in life when man finds excitement, exhilaration and challenge in everything that is new.  In relationships like friendships and love and romance, in meeting new people, in handling new jobs and businesses, in venturing in new careers and fields of interest, one is throbbing with wonder and adventure in exploring this new experience.
He relishes the action and the kicks and the perks, and enthusiasm is at its peak.  The whole process itself keeps the person going.
But some things in life come to an end.  Certain levels have to be reached.  Whether in mid or at the zenith, oftentimes the verve and vivacity will wear off, the element of thrill and excitement is gone, and what used to be wonderfully new becomes  dull, commonplace, mediocre.  (This is with the exception of situations when one becomes a failure in reaching his goal, which is an altogether another story.)
Pursuing or courting a woman by a man in love, befriending or “wooing” a newcomer in a church, starting on a new career or business venture, all these entail passion and earnestness.  But when one finally gets his valued dream, or successfully attains his purpose or gets accustomed to what was once unfamiliar but palatable, things begin to change…for the better or for the worse.  EITHER he continues to love and  cherishes and nurtures the person, the object, or the experience …or he gets disenchanted, turns cold, finds them boring, and takes them for granted.  

Pathetic
This pathetic emotion called misplaced love, idolatrous love, hopeless fascination, foolish fixation…
It creeps over you like cancer.  It is a malady of the heart that cripples your sense of judgment, leads you astray, warps your logic, blinds your eyes to the hard fact that the idol you relentlessly pursue has feet of clay, isn’t as brilliant and grand and sublime and spectacular and adorable as you stupidly think…because just like you and anyone else he is marred with physical and character imperfections; a fallible man that came from the dust.
It is a malady of the heart called sin.
And so this pathetic emotion doesn’t give you peace.  It pricks your conscience; it deprives you of a healthy spiritual life and an intimate relationship with your God.  You very well know it’s an exercise in futility and unrighteousness but your foolish heart is humanly unconquerable.  You are wavering between disillusionment and holding on to the false god of your dreams.  
And so a piece of sanity and fear of God He mercifully left in you dictates that you destroy that temple you have built for that silly idol of your imagination. The cracks have begun to show and so you will have to finish tearing it down.
It will take time and tears and strength and obedience but most of all it will only be achieved by the merciful and awesome grace of God…