Scougal on The Obedience of Christ

"For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous" (Romans 5:19).

The Puritan Henry Scougal reflects on the obedience of Christ in The Life of God in the Soul of Man:

He endured the sharpest of all afflictions and extremest miseries that ever were inflicted on any mortal, without repining thought or discontented word; for though he was far from a stupid insensibility, or a fantastic or stoical obstinacy, and had as quick a sense of pain as other men, and the deepest apprehension of what he was to suffer in his soul, as his "bloody sweat and sore amazement" which he professed do abundantly declare, yet did he entirely submit himself to that severe dispensation of Providence, and willingly acquiesce in it (p. 51).

May the Lord help us as we learn in the school of Christ to be obedient during times of suffering.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article 10.13.09

Scougal on Christ's Constant Devotion

Christ's Constant Devotion

"And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray" (Mark 6:46).

Last Sunday I mentioned that I have been reading Henry Scougal’s little devotional classic, The Life of God in the Soul of Man. Scougal was one of those men who lived his life well, even though he did not his live life long. He died June 13, 1678 when he was not yet twenty-eight years old.

In the first part of The Life of God in the Soul of Man, Scougal reflects on the life and example of Christ. Here is one his reflections on Christ’s prayer life:

Another instance of his love to God was, his delight in conversing with him by prayer, which made him frequently retire himself from the world, and with great devotion and pleasure spend whole nights in that heavenly exercise, though he had no sins to confess, and but few secular interests to pray for; which alas!, are almost the only things that are wont to drive us to our devotions; nay, we may say his whole life was a kind of prayer; a constant course of communion with God: if the sacrifice was not always offering, yet was the fire alive: nor was ever the blessed Jesus surprised with that dullness, or tepidity of spirit, which we must many times wrestle with, before we can be fit for the exercise of devotion.

May we also learn from Christ how to make our lives one of constant prayer.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: I am writing this morning (Wednesday) from Blacksburg, Virginia where I am traveling with Pastor Conrad Mbewe. Last night, he spoke to a group of students at the Graduate Life Center at Virginia Tech at an event sponsored by Ekklesia Church, a sister SBCV congregation. Pray for God to use that message to speak to the hearts of those who received it.

Note: Evangel article 10.7.09.

Ten Guidelines for Close Friendships

In last Sunday evening’s worship service I offered ten guidelines on the Biblical view of friendship. Here is a condensed outline:

Text: 1 Samuel 18:1-3

1. True friendship must be based on a common faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is a limit as to how close I can be with those who are not believers. See 2 Corinthians 6:14-15.

2. The purpose of Christian friendship is to spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

The first man’s need for companionship was part of his pre-fall condition. Cf: "It is not good for man to be alone" (Gen 2:18). The practical value of friendship is outlined in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.
For believers, however, beyond any natural or practical value, there is also a distinctly spiritual purpose to friendship (see Proverbs 27:6, 17; 1 Corinthians 15:33).

3. You can only have truly close friendships with a limited number of people.

Part of our human finitude is the fact that we cannot have true, warm, close friendships with a large number of people.

Even Jesus himself limited the number friends who were close to him (cf. Mark 9:2; John 11:3, 35; 15:23-25; 21:20).

4. It is good to seek a variety of friends within your local church.

See Titus 2:1-10.

5. If you want to make friends you must show yourself friendly.

See Proverbs 18:24.

6. If you are married, then your husband or wife must be your best friend.

The husband and wife share an inner sanctum of intimacy and closeness that cannot be shared with anyone else (Genesis 2:14).

7. It is good for your family to have encouraging friendships with other likeminded families.

8. Friendships should be personal.

This comment is needed for the internet age. I am skeptical of internet friends. As someone said, we need more "face time" than "face book."

9. We should not make an idol of friends.

Does a friend’s opinion of you, your actions, or you behavior have such hold on you that you desire more his approval than God’s? See Psalm 118:8.

10. We should seek above all the friendship of Christ.

We need to be Jesus-centered (John 15:13-17).

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 9/1/09.

Another note: I found two talks helpful in preparation: First, David Murray's Puritan Podcast on "Choosing Friends: Ten Fast Facts." Second, Michael Philip's talk on "The Puritan View on Friendship."

Ryle: On the regular hearing of preaching

Last week I included some of J. C. Ryle’s exhortations in the booklet "Thoughts for Young Men" on the use of the "public means of grace." Ryle continues this line of thought by commending the regular hearing of the preaching of the gospel:

I dwell on this point too, because of the strong anxiety I feel that every young man should regularly hear the preaching of Christ's gospel. I cannot tell you how important I think this is. By God’s blessing, the ministry of the Gospel might be the means of converting your soul, of leading you to a saving knowledge of Christ, of making you a child of God in deed and in truth. This would be cause for eternal thankfulness indeed. This would be an event over which angels would rejoice. But even if this were not the case, there is a restraining power and influence in the ministry of the gospel, under which I earnestly desire every young man to be brought. There are thousands whom it keeps back from evil, though it has not yet turned them unto God. It has made them far better members of society, though it has not yet made them true Christians. There is a certain kind of mysterious power in the faithful preaching of the Gospel, which tells insensibly on multitudes who listen to it without receiving it into their hearts. To hear sin cried down, and holiness cried up, to hear Christ exalted, and the works of the devil denounced, to hear the kingdom of heaven and its blessedness described, and the world and its emptiness exposed—to hear this week after week, Sunday after Sunday, is seldom without a good effect to the soul. It makes it far harder afterwards to run into any excess of riot and profligacy. It acts as a wholesome check upon a man’s heart. This, I believe, is one way in which that promise of God is made good, "My word shall not return unto Me void" (Isaiah 55:11). There is so much truth in that strong saying of Whitfield, "The Gospel keeps many a one from jail and the gallows, if it does not keep him from hell."

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 8/27/09

J. C. Ryle on the Diligent Use of the Public Means of Grace

J. C. Ryle (1816-1900) was an evangelical Anglican bishop who wrote and preached often on personal holiness. One of his classic works is a booklet titled, Thoughts for Young Men. You can usually find a free copy on our tract table in the sanctuary. One section of the book is titled "Special Rules for Young Men" and includes the exhortation to make us of "all public means of grace." By this Ryle meant, "the instruments which God is pleased to use in order to accomplish salvation and sanctification in the hearts of men: the preaching of the Word, Bible reading and study, prayer, baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and godly fellowship with others." Below is an excerpt:

Be regular in going to the house of God whenever it is open for prayer and preaching, and it is in your power to attend. Be regular in keeping, the Lord's day holy, and determine that God's day out of the seven shall always be given to its rightful owner.

I would not want to leave any false impression on your minds. Do not go away and say I told you that going to church made up the whole of Christianity. I will tell you no such thing. I have no wish to see you grow up formalists and Pharisees. If you think the mere carrying of your body to a certain building, at certain times, on a certain day in the week, will make you a Christian, and prepare you to meet God, I tell you flatly you are miserably deceived. All services without heart-service are unprofitable and vain. They only are true worshipers who "Worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks" (John 4:23).

But the practices of Christianity are not to be despised because they are not saviors. Gold is not food, you cannot eat it, but you would not say it is useless, and throw it away. Your soul's eternal wellbeing most certainly does not depend on the practices of Christianity, but it is certain that without them, as a general rule, your soul will not do well. God might take all who are saved to heaven in a chariot of fire, as He did Elijah, but He does not do so. He might teach them all by visions, and dreams, and miraculous interventions, without requiring them to read or think for themselves, but He does not do so. And why not? Because He is a God that works by means, and it is His law and will that in all man's dealings with Him means shall be used. No one but a fool would think of building a house without ladders and scaffolding, and just so no wise man will despise means.

I dwell on this point, because Satan will try hard to fill your minds with arguments against the practices of Christianity. He will draw your attention to the numbers of persons who use them and are no better for the using. "See there," he will whisper, "do you not observe that those who go to church are no better than those who stay away?" But do not let this move you. It is never fair to argue against a thing because it is improperly used. It does not follow that the practices of Christianity can do no good because many do them and get no good from them. Medicine is not to be despised because many take it and do not recover their health. No man would think of giving up eating, and drinking because others choose to eat and drink improperly, and so make themselves sick. The value of the practices of Christianity, like other things, depends, in a great measure, on the manner and spirit in which we use them.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article August 18, 2009

The Prayer of Asa

Asa was one of the few kings in Judah who receives a generally favorable review by the writers of Scripture. According to 2 Chronicles 14:2, "Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD his God." He is praised by the Chronicler, in particular, for the fact that "he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves. And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment" (2 Chron 14:3-4). Asa oversaw a time of spiritual revival and reformation among his people.

Asa was soon challenged, however, on the international front. Zerah the Ethiopian came against him with a great host against him. On the eve of battle, Asa cries out to the Lord in prayer, saying:

LORD, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O LORD our God; for we rest on thee, and in they name we go against this multitude. O LORD, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee (2 Chron 14:11).

Here are five points to consider in determining how this prayer might serve as a model for how believers should pray:

1. It begins with an acknowledgement both of the Lord’s complete sovereignty and his utter awareness of all needs. As Isaiah said: "Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear" (59:1).

2. It recognizes that although God may use human means to accomplish his purposes, he is not dependent upon them. In fact, he often chooses to aid those who have no power precisely so that he alone might receive all glory. Consider the paring down of Gideon’s army in Judges 7:2: "The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me." Consider also the Lord’s comfort to the apostle Paul: "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor 12:9).

3. It proceeds to a cry of help out of weakness and need ("help us, O LORD our God").

4. It confesses absolute rest and confidence in God in the face of the enemy ("for we rest in thee…").

5. It recalls that God has pledged himself to be our God and pleads with the Lord not to vindicate the one praying but the one prayed unto ("O LORD, thou art our God…").

The Chronicler proceeds to relate how the Lord was pleased to answer this prayer: "So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled" (2 Chron 14:12).

Let us learn from the prayer of Asa as we bring our petitions before him.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 8/5/09.

Boston on Growing in Christ

Last Sunday I made reference in my sermon to Thomas Boston’s analogy of growth that should be expected in the Christian’s life:

Though every part of the man is renewed, there is no part of him that is perfectly renewed. As an infant has all the parts of a man but none of them come to perfect growth, so regeneration brings a perfection of parts, to be brought forward in the gradual advances of sanctification.

May we continue to "grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ" (Eph 4:15).

Grace and peace, JTR

Note: Evangel article (7/15/09)

A Transformed Hope

Romans 8:15: For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father." 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

I recently read a book by Joel Beeke on the doctrine of adoption [Heirs With Christ: The Puritans on Adoption (RHB, 2008)]. In one chapter, Beeke writes of how our adoption as God’s sons transforms our view of the future:

God’s child is like a poor peasant who has been taken out of the mire and raised to the position of prince of the realm. The adopted prince lives in the palace, has free access to the king, and enjoys the king’s favor, love and protection. The prince tells the king that he cannot comprehend the greatness of the king’s love; it is unspeakably great to him. The king responds: "You have not begun to see the extent of it. Your inheritance is coming to you."

If our present privileges as God’s adopted children are so great that the world cannot grasp them, our future prospects are so glorious that even we cannot fully grasp them. As 1 Corinthians 2:9 says, "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." Because God is our Father and we are his adopted children, we have a full inheritance awaiting us. The best is yet to be. Today we experience great blessings, despite our infirmities and sins; but one day we will be in glory, free from sin and living in perfect communion with God. Our heavenly Father keeps the best surprises for His children until the end, when He will turn all their sorrow into joy.

May God open our eyes to perceive all the promises, privileges, responsibilities, and hopes that have been granted us as sons of God through Christ.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for June 24, 2009.

Self-Understanding

Note: This article below is adapted from the conclusion to last Sunday’s morning sermon from Romans 2:12-16.

In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel (Romans 2:16).

I recently read Ian Murray’s biography of Professor John Murray (The Life of John Murray [Banner of Truth, 2007). John Murray lived from 1898 to 1975. He was born in Scotland but spent the bulk of his adult life in the United States, teaching first at Princeton Seminary and then for decades at Westminster Seminary outside Philadelphia. I have been reading his classic commentary on Romans in preparation for this sermon series.

Murray was known for his gravity, his seriousness, and his piety. Many consider him a modern day Puritan. He was particularly known for the seriousness with which he kept the Sabbath.

In the biography, a former student describes a time when he and Dr. Murray were guests in the home of the Freeman family. The conversation turned to the subject of human sinfulness, and Dr. Murray began vigorously to hold forth the doctrine of total depravity. The hostess protested: "But Mr. Murray, we know that you are not as bad as that." Though probably meant as a compliment, Murray did not smile. Instead, he fixed his gaze on her and replied in his sternest tone: "Mrs. Freeman, if you knew what a cesspool of iniquity this vile heart of mine is, you would never say such a thing!" (p. 99).

Truly, it is the most godly men who understand to the greatest degree their absolute and utter need for Christ. The more we understand about ourselves, the less we think about ourselves, and the more we admire Christ.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article June 16, 2009

The Centrality of Christ

Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: (Romans 1:3-4).

One of the speakers at the conference I attended last week challenged the ministers to read, speak, and think more about Christ. In his commentary on Romans 1:3-4, Martyn Lloyd-Jones offers the following observation:

The first point which we have to make is that the gospel is concerning God’s Son. That is the nerve, the heart and the very centre of the gospel. There is no such thing as the Christian gospel, and there is no such thing as Christianity, apart from Him. Christianity, by definition, is Christ Himself….

Now that is what constitutes the whole uniqueness of the Christian gospel. Take any religion that you like; you will generally find a man’s name associated with it; but in none of these can it be said that the particular man is absolutely essential. You have Buddhism, but you can have Buddhism without Buddha. You have Confucianism, but you can have Confucianism without Confucius. It is more or less an accident that a particular man happens to put forward the teaching, but the man himself is not essential to the teaching; what is vital in all these religions is the particular teaching. But here, when you come to the realm of the Christian faith, the whole position is absolutely different. Take away the Person and there is no message at all. There is no teaching. There is nothing. The connection, in other words, between our Lord Himself, as a Person, and Christianity is obviously something which is of central significance [Romans: The Gospel of God (Banner of Truth, 1985): pp. 98-99].

Let us always remember that Christ is at the center of our faith and our life.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article 6/2/09.

Your mind is like a garden

In the "Spiritual Disciplines Within the Church" Sunday School track last week the topic was "Why Learn in the Church?" In the course of the conversation the class discussed the command to love God with our minds (Mark 12:30) and Don Whitney’s analogy of the mind as a garden (in Spiritual Disciplines Within the Church [Moody, 1996]): pp. 183-84):

Loving God with all your mind means loving Him with what you mentally initiate. Your mind is like a garden. The things you mentally initiate are the plants you purposely put in your garden, the things that you go out of your way to bring into your mind. A wise person will turn to the place where Holy Scripture is proclaimed so that the truth can be planted in his mental furrows. Further, you can receive not only biblical teaching from godly men and women within the church, but also experience counsel on seeding your mind with Christian biography, theology, spiritual classics, tapes, music, etc.

You also express love for God with your mind by what you mentally cultivate. Both weeds and good plants will grow in your thought-patch. If you want a successful garden you must learn to cultivate the right plants. Otherwise you’ll have a tangled overgrown confusion.

One way to till the right plants, that is, to develop the thoughts and thought-patterns that grow in God-loving ways, is to learn in a place that continually cultivates Godward thoughts. The church does that…. If you aren’t learning in the church you are certainly cultivating mental weeds that choke out love for God.

Third, you love God with you mind by what you mentally tolerate. You don’t want to permit anything and everything that wanders or sneaks into the garden of your gray matter to remain. Just as you’d try to keep certain birds, rabbits, and other animals out of your backyard garden, so you shouldn’t tolerate harmful things in your mind. You show your love for God by what you refuse to think about as well as by what you do think about. The truth of Scripture learned in the church will stand guard against those enemies that would ruin your garden…. God wants us to devote our minds to things that increase the harvest of our love for Him, and learning in the church helps us do that.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 5.19.09.

The Duties of Parents

Jacobus Koelman (1632-95) was a Dutch pastor and prolific Christian writer. His best known book was a treatise titled The Duties of Parents in which he instructs parent on how to disciple and nurture faith in their children. Here are a few of his exhortations to parents:

33. Accustom your children at an early age to be still and reverent when there is praying, singing, or Scripture reading in the family. Let them know that you greatly value it if on those occasions they sit still and do not speak or do anything.

34. Take your children to church at an early age, even though they do not yet understand anything. Accustom them to the service of God and to the holy worship services—to sit still and to be silent. Let it not be too much trouble for you to take your children along with you, just as in olden times the Israelites took their children along with them to the solemn rites of religion. Do not permit them to sleep, to play, or to speak to you in church. Do not give them anything to eat in church, but when they come out of the church with you, then give them something if they sat still….

36. Teach them to read, and send them to school that has a pious schoolteacher, male or female, with whom the children learn godliness and the first principles of religion. In addition, ask the schoolmaster or schoolmistress to keep a special eye on your children. If you are able, pay them something extra for their concern and effort. But also if you are poor, you must send your children to school so that they learn to read and write, for it is most useful and necessary for them to be able to read Holy Scriptures and good books. Besides, it is an important means of enabling them to be well instructed with a view to their salvation. This may not be neglected by any parents who seek what is good for their children. However, if the schools are very bad (as they usually are), then teach them yourself to spell and to read, and encourage them if they learn well and take pleasure in it….

38. Let them learn the Lord’s Prayer by heart, and tell them that the Lord Christ has prescribed that prayer. Also, explain, insofar as it is possible, what those words mean. However, do not let them pray that prayer every time but only now and then. It would be better to let them use a few words from that prayer in your own prayer, the prayer with which you lead them in prayer, insofar as they can understand that.

Source: Jacobus Koelman, The Duties of Parents (Baker Academic, 2003): pp. 49-50.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article May 12, 2009.

Without Excuse

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” (Romans 1:20 AV).

Paul says that we ought to be able to look around at the created order and know that there is a God. One commentator on this verse observed, “There is enough evidence of God in a flower to lead a child as well as a scientist to worship him. There is sufficient evidence in a tree, a pebble, a grain of sand, a fingerprint, to make us glorify God and thank him” (James Boice, Romans, Vol. I, p. 143). One Old Testament counterpart to Romans 1:20 is Psalm 19 which begins: “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork” (v. 1).

One look into the human heart; one look into human culture; one look at the created order, ought to awaken in us a knowledge that there is a God. It should not awaken mere theism. But we ought to know the triune God of the Bible. We ought to know Christ. But, again, the problem is that sinners suppress this truth. They say they do not have enough evidence. They say they cannot know for sure. Or, perhaps, worst of all, some are oblivious to his existence.

In the last statement in v. 20 Paul declares: “they are without excuse.” The Greek word used here (anapolgetos) is the root for the English words “apology” and “apologetics.” They have no apologetic against God’s condemnation. God’s wrath against those who reject the gospel is not unjust. They have broken his law and his righteous character demands that his holy wrath be satisfied.

Imagine a man who is driving along in his car. He is speaking on his cell phone and eating his lunch, and he does not notice the signs that warn him to slow down as he approaches a construction zone. He then does not notice the signs that instruct him to change lanes for his own safety, and he hurtles through a barrier striking and killing a worker. As the police pull him from his car and place him under arrest, he protests, “Wait. You can’t do this to me. I didn’t see the signs. I didn’t know I was breaking the law. How can you possibly hold me responsible for my actions.” And they would say to him, “No. I am sorry my friend. You are without excuse and you must stand before the judge and give an account for your actions.”

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 5.5.09. The devotion above is adapted from last Sunday’s morning message on Romans 1:18-23.

Closing Reflections on Mark's Gospel

Last Sunday I preached the 52nd and final message in our Sunday morning expositional series through the Gospel of Mark. The first message in the series was preached on September 16, 2007. As I conclude the series, I thought of five things that this study of Mark impressed on me:

1. The focus on the gospel. The first words of the book are, "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" (1:1). Among the final words are the Great Commission: "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature" (16:15). In between these two book-ends is the good news of the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord.

2. The centrality of the cross. I remarked several times in the study that Mark has been called "a passion narrative with an extended introduction." This Gospel reminds us of the centrality of the cross work of Christ in our faith. Maybe the key verse of the Gospel is found in Mark 10:45: "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

3. Jesus is our great prophet, priest, and king. I was struck by how Jesus is presented as a prophet who predicts things that will happen from where his disciples will celebrate the Passover (14:13-16) to his second coming at the end of the ages (13:26-27). He is a perfect priest who is also the perfect sacrifice offered to God. He is the king whose coronation is in humiliation. As Peter confessed, "You are the Christ" (8:29).

4. The continuity and harmony of the four canonical Gospels. In reading Mark, I was often comparing Matthew, Luke, and John. I was reminded of God’s wisdom in these four distinct witnesses, all of which aim to bring the hearers to believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that believing we might have life in his name (John 20:31-32).

5. The reliability of the traditional text of Mark including the ending of the Gospel. This study of Mark gave me opportunity to think again about issues related to the text of Scripture and to reaffirm that the ending of this Gospel is Markan, inspired, and canonical.

Mark has been a faithful companion and teacher over the past year or so. I know I am the better for this study, and I pray it has been a blessing to our body.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel 3.17.09

The Great Commission in Mark

Mark 16:15: "And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’"

All the Gospels agree that among the last things that the risen Jesus did on earth was commission or send out his disciples. There is a centrifugal quality to the Christian life, an outward focus. Jesus did not tell his disciples:

"Go into a monastery and pray."
Or, "Go withdraw from the world and look deep within yourselves."
Or, "Go build a wall around yourselves and have nothing to do with anyone who does not believe in me."

No, he says, "Go into all the world…." This is even more amazing when you consider that Jesus was saying this to a group of Jewish men who at this point considered it taboo even to have table fellowship with Gentiles.

Notice three important things about this commission:

First, the Biblical method is preaching. What is preaching? Preaching is a man in Christ standing to speak from the Word of God about the things of God in order to draw together and edify the people of God.

Preaching is the preferred method of Biblical ministry.

Second, the Biblical message is the gospel. The word "gospel" means "good news." It refers to the "good news" about what God has been pleased to do in the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Third, the Biblical mandate is universal. They are to go and preach the gospel "to every creature." The gospel is to be preached without discrimination to every single human being as God’s unique image bearers within the creation.

The apostles were not only to go to their fellow Jews, but to all nations.
They were not only to go to men, but also to women.
They were not only to go to the adults, but also to the children.
They were not to go to the elite, but also to the lowly.
They were not only to go to the wealthy, but also to the poor.
They were not only to go to the educated, but also to the illiterate.
They were not only to go to those whom they deemed most likely to respond, but also to those they deemed least likely to respond.

There is a universal mandate for this gospel preaching ministry.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article 3/10/09.

Why Join a Church?

One of the classes we are offering in the new quarter of Sunday School at JPBC is called Spiritual Disciplines Within the Church and is being taught by Steve Belcher. The class is based on the book by Don Whitney of the same title published by Moody in 1996. Some of you may also remember that we had Don Whitney, who now teaches at the Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville, do a weekend conference at JPBC a few years ago.

In this book Whitney examines what we might call the "corporate" spiritual disciplines. These are the things we do together with the church that help us grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whitney also has a valuable book on developing personal or individual spiritual disciplines (Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life [NavPress, 1991]; in fact in the month of March 2009 you can download an abridged audio of this book for free here).

Some of the questions Whitney’s book and Steve’s class are asking (and answering) include the following:

Why go to church?
Why seek baptism in the church?
Why join a church?
Why listen to preaching in the church?
Why worship in the church?
Why witness in the church?
Why serve in the church?
Why fellowship with the church?

In the chapter on "Why Join a Church?" Whitney provides the following Biblical reasons why a Christian should join a church:

• You prove that you are not ashamed to identify with Christ or his people.
• You stop being an independent Christian.
• You participate in a stronger, more unified effort of God’s people.
• You have a greater opportunity to use your spiritual gifts.
• You openly demonstrate the reality of the Body of Christ.
• You participate in a more balanced ministry.
• You demonstrate your commitment to "the proper working of each individual part."
• You encourage new believers to commitment to the local body of Christ.
• You encourage a ministry when you consider it faithful and join it.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: From Evangel article 3.4.09.

Children and Worship

Note: Last Sunday evening (2/8/09) I did a practical teaching, offering seven points on the topic of children in corporate worship. Here are my abbreviated notes:

1. It is appropriate for children to be included in the corporate worship gatherings of the church.

• Children have a capacity to serve the Lord (cf. 1 Sam 2:18).
• The people worshipped as one man in the days of Ezra (cf. Neh 8:3).
• NT worship assumes an intergenerational gathering (cf. Eph 5-6).

2. It is good for families to sit together in worship.

It is good for children to see their parents worshipping. Children understand that they and their family are not alone in the faith. It also provides a corporate witness. We see children as a blessing and not a burden (cf. Psalms 127-128).

3. Children need training in how to behave during worship services.

The Christian view is that children are a blessing and that they are stamped with the image of God. But it also recognizes that children are sinners who need guidance, instruction, and correction (cf. Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15; 29:17).

4. It is good for children to develop the disciplines of obedience and self-control.

Asking a child to sit quietly during a worship service is valuable for many reasons. First, children usually learn more than we give them credit. Second, even if they gain little in factual knowledge they learn other things. They learn obedience. They learn self-control. They learn that some occasions call for formality and reverence. Finally, they learn that not all things in life are designed primarily to suit them.

5. It is good for families with small children to be mindful of the needs of others in the worship service.

The key verse is Romans 12:10: "Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another."

I see two believers coming to a door in an eternal stalemate. One says, "After you." And the other says, "No after you." Each puts a priority on serving the other.

Parents will be mindful of how others (particularly those without children, like singles and older persons) might be distracted by what, for them, is normal.

6. It is good for the congregation to be patient and understanding of the needs of those with small children.

Those without children, likewise, will be especially understanding, patient, and supportive of the needs of families with children.

7. It is good for parents to take practical steps in training their children:

• Talk with children about what your expectations are for their behavior during corporate worship.
• Before you come into worship, take your child to the bathroom and explain that he will not be allowed to get up unless it is an extreme emergency.
• Model proper behavior in your own attitude and actions.
• Help your children participate in the service. Examples: Holding a hymn book together, standing, praying, reading, etc.
• Encourage older children to take notes on the sermon.
• Train proper behavior in family worship.
• Discuss the worship service over Sunday lunch or throughout the week.

JTR

Note: Evangel 2.11.09.

I cannot slip through his fingers because I am one of his fingers

John 10:29: My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.

1 Corinthians 12:27: Now you are the body of Christ and members individually.

I recently read this account (in Joel Beeke, Living for God’s Glory, p. 117):

The great Scottish preacher Ebenezer Erskine (1680-1754) once visited a woman on her death bed and lovingly tested her readiness for heaven. When she assured him that she was ready to depart and be with Christ because she was in that hand from which no one could pluck her, Erskine asked, "But are you not afraid that you will slip through His fingers in the end?"

"That is impossible because of what you have always told us," she said.

"And what is that?" he asked.

"That we are united to Him, and so we are part of His body. I cannot slip through His fingers because I am one of His fingers. Besides, Christ has paid too high a price for my redemption to leave me in Satan’s hand. If I were to be lost, He would lose more than I; I would lose my salvation, but He would lose His glory, because one of His sheep would be lost."

May all those who are in Christ share in this assurance of our salvation.

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article 1.27.09.

For I have many people in this city

Acts 18:9 Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, "Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; 10 for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city."

In Acts 18, Luke records how Paul came to minister in the city of Corinth. He stayed with Aquila and Priscilla and worked alongside them as "tentmakers" (see Acts 18:2-3). Though working to support himself, Paul was also busy in ministry: "And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks" (v. 4).

When Silas and Timothy arrived in Corinth to offer their support, Paul "was compelled by the Spirit and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ" (v. 5). When these opposed and blasphemed, Paul turned his attention to the Gentiles (v. 6). Paul’s ministry was not without fruit. One of those converted was a Gentile God-fearer named Justus who lived next to the synagogue (v. 7). Another was Crispus, "the ruler of the synagogue," who believed on the Lord together with his household (v. 8). Luke adds: "And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized" (v. 8). Note the fundamental Biblical pattern: the gospel is heard, believed, and only the converted are baptized.

Despite this fruit, Paul was apparently discouraged. In Acts 18:9-10, Luke tells how the Lord himself spoke to Paul and gave him the encouragement to speak and not be silent (v. 9). The Lord promised to be with Paul and to protect his life (v. 10). At the end of this encouragement, the Lord added, "for I have many people in this city" (v. 10). With this Paul stayed another year and six months, "teaching the Word of God among them" (v. 11).

As we consider this passage, let us think about our own ministry in the city of Charlottesville and the surrounding area. Yes, we have our own Corinth all around us. As Jeremiah wrote to the Israelites in exile, we should "seek the peace" of our city (Jeremiah 29:7). The greatest peace is, of course, knowing Christ. Like Paul we want with boldness to testify to one and all that Jesus is the Christ. If discouraged, we should also heed the Lord’s words to Paul: "for I have many people in this city." Indeed, as in Corinth so in Charlottesville, there are many people that the Lord has appointed to salvation in this city (cf. Acts 13:48: "and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed"). Yes, many will reject the gospel, but there are also many who will believe. We do not know who will respond. It might, in fact, be the very person we think least likely.

Let this give us great boldness in ministry in this place in this new year!

Grace and peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle

Note: Evangel article for 1.15.09.

A 600 Year Old Christmas Letter

Note: The following article was posted on the blog of Tom Ascol, Executive Director of the Founders Ministry (founders.org), in December 2006:

John Huss (Jan Hus) was a forerunner of the Protestant Reformation. He was a Czech university professor whose extensive writings earned him the ire of the Roman Catholic Church. He was excommunicated, condemned and executed for his teachings against the papacy and Roman Catholic errors. On July 6, 1415 he was burned at the stake while singing, "Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me." His ashes were scattered in the Rhine River.Two years before his death, Hus wrote the following Christmas letter to his church in Prague while he was under the ban from the Roman Church. Many of its expressions reflect the desires of my own heart for my family, church and friends.Have a blessed Christmas!

***

To the Praguers
25 December 1413
Dearly Beloved!

Albeit I am now separated from you so far that it perhaps is not fitting that I preach much to you; nevertheless, the love that I have for you urges me that I say at least a few brief words to your love.

Lo! dearly beloved; as it were an angel today said to the shepherds: "I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people." And suddenly a multitude of angels cried aloud, saying: "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good will toward men."

Rejoice that today the infinitely Great is born a child, that there may be glory to God in the highest.

Rejoice, because today is born the Reconciler, in order to reconcile man with God and angel, that there may be glory to God in the highest.

Rejoice, because today One was born to cleanse sinners from their sin, to deliver them from the power of the Devil, and to save them from eternal perdition, and bring them into eternal joy, that there may be glory to God in the highest.

Rejoice with a great joy that today a King is born to us, to dispense the fullness of the heavenly kingdom; a Bishop, to grant eternal benediction; the Father of the future age, in order to keep us as His children with Himself forever.

A loving Brother is born to us, a wise Master, a safe Leader, a just Judge, in order that there may be glory to God in the highest.Rejoice, you wicked, because the God-priest was born, who grants to every penitent absolution from all sins, that there may be glory to God in the highest.

Rejoice, because today the bread of angels, namely, God, became food for men, to refresh the hungry with His glorious body, that they may have peace on earth.Rejoice, that the immortal God is born, so that mortal men may live in eternity.

Rejoice, because the rich Lord of the Universe lies in a manger as poor, that He may enrich us needy ones.Rejoice dearly beloved, that what the prophets prophesied is fulfilled, that there may be glory to God in the highest.

O, dearly beloved, should there be but little rejoicing over these things? Nay, a mighty joy! Because a Redeemer is born to us, to free us from all misery, a Saviour of sinners, a Ruler of all His faithful; there is born a Comforter of the sorrowful, and given us the Son of God, that there be to us great joy, to God in the highest and on earth peace to men of good will.

May the God born to us this day deign to grant us that good will, peace, along with joy! Amen.

JTR

Note: Evangel article 12/25/08.