Month: March 2022

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GOD’S ROD AND HIS MERCY

“’I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the LORD, that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when I atone for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord GOD’” (Ezek 16:62-63 ESV).

“Believers will never experience the wrath of God that they deserve. Though they do feel his discipline, such discipline is the act of a loving Father, not an angry Judge. The rod and stripes may be terribly painful, but they are used with love. God’s lovingkindness is not taken away from those who believe” John Calvin (ref#164, Mar 5th).

“I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him” (2 Sam 7:14-15 ESV).

“There is hope for your future, declares the LORD . . .For as often as I speak against him, I do remember him still. Therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him, declares the LORD” (Jer 31:17,20 ESV).

“All the tenderness, deep affection, acute sympathy, or true fidelity that you ever find or enjoy in the creature dwells in God” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, Jul 16th).

“And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,” (Col 2:13 ESV).

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JOYOUS CONFESSION

“Trusting in God to meet our needs breaks the power of sin’s promise to make us happier” John Piper (ref#220, p247).

“Every time you desire to do and choose to do what is right in God’s eyes, you celebrate the grace that is yours in Christ Jesus” Paul David Tripp (ref#190, Dec 17th).

“’Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever’ (Ps 73:25-26). These are the words of a man who learned the secret to contentment. When you are satisfied with the Giver, because you have found in him the life you were looking for, you are freed from the ravenous quest for satisfaction that is the discouraging existence of so many people. Yes, it is true that Your heart will rest only ever when it has found its rest in him” Paul David Tripp (ref#190, Jan 6th).

“Sin will rob you of happiness and joy and will give you a sense of condemnation because sin always ultimately breaks fellowship with God and therefore immediately casts us off from the source of all our blessedness. It is no use saying you want to walk with God and then deliberately sinning. The one thing that matters is fellowship with God” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, Oct 1st).

“The conscience only retains its tenderness and purity by a constant and immediate confession; the heart can only maintain its felt peace with God as it is perpetually sprinkled with the blood of Jesus. The soul, kept thus beneath the cross, preserves its high tone of spirituality unimpaired, amid all the harmful influences by which it is surrounded” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, Dec 2nd).

“Sin separates. But sin immediately confessed, mourned over, and forsaken brings God and the soul together in sweet, close, and holy fellowship. Praise Him for any evidence that sin does not have entire dominion” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, Nov 6th).

“God’s love is ‘an ocean without shores or bottom’” Dane Ortland (ref#382, p192).

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CONFESSION

“God commands all men to repent. Christians have enough to repent of daily” Edward Payson (ref#333, p328).

“[O]ur transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities” (Isa 59:12 ESV):

“Those who have been forgiven much love much. [T]he extent to which we realize and acknowledge our own sinfulness, and the extent to which we realize the total forgiveness and cleansing from those sins, will determine the measure of our love to God” Jerry Bridges (ref#192, p126).

“People who cover over their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy” (Prov 28:13 NLT).

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 ESV).

“We must by faith in God’s Word lay hold on the fact that we have died to the reign of sin and are now alive to God, under His reign of grace. Unless we do this we will find ourselves seeking to pursue holiness by the strength of our own wills, not by the grace of God. God has given us all the resources we need to pursue holiness” Jerry Bridges (ref#192, p77).

“We no longer live in the realm of sin” Jerry Bridges (ref#192, p71).

“Every person in the world who is a true believer has died to sin. We are not to ‘die more and more unto sin.’ We cannot possibly die to sin any more than we have. [W]e died to sin through our union with Christ. When Christ died to sin, we died to sin also” Jerry Bridges (ref#192, p64-65).

“Lord, like the publican I stand,

And lift my heart to Thee;

Thy pardoning grace, O God, command,

Be merciful to me.

I smite upon my anxious breast,

O’erwhelmed with agony;

O save my soul by sin oppressed,

Be merciful to me.

My guilt, my shame, I all confess,

I have no hope nor plea

But Jesus’ blood and righteousness;

Be merciful to me.

Here at Thy cross I still would wait,

Nor from its shelter flee,

But Thou, O God, in mercy great,

Art merciful to me.”

(LORD, LIKE THE PUBLICAN I STAND,

Words: by Thomas Raffles, Music: “Avondale,” by Charles H. Gabriel).

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REPENTANCE AND MY HEART

“Do not let my heart incline to any evil” (Ps 141:4 ESV).

“We pray, ‘Lord, forgive me my sins’ without getting specific and thus deceive ourselves into thinking we have ‘confessed and been forgiven’ when we have not. True confession of sin follows heart-felt repentance of specifically identified sins. And because the problem is in us, that can’t be done without the Spirit’s help” Carol J. Ruvolo (ref#228, p82).

“[W]e must not only correct outward actions but that those must begin with the heart; for though in the opinion of men we appear to change our life for the better, yet we will make little progress if our heart is not changed” John Calvin (ref#164, April 20th).

“[T]he natural product of the heart is changed by the Holy Ghost, when this natural love of sin is cast out, then takes place that change that the Word of God calls ‘repentance’” J.C. Ryle (ref#363, p35).

“The heart of a saint that comes near to God is pained at the memory of old sins; and together with a present sweetness of Divine love, there is a sort of anguish at the thoughts of past iniquities” Isaac Watts (ref#333, p257).

“As every sin has the more need of pardon by how much the greater it is, so God will have the more glory in pardoning it by how much the greater it is” Joseph Caryl (ref#333, p171).

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REPENTANCE

“[P]eople experience the love of God in terms of sin, condemnation, and loss and what God has done about it” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#332 p525).

“[R]epentance embraces a change in the whole man, including his inclinations, purposes, and works. The works of men are visible, but the root of them is concealed. So the root must first be changed so that afterward it may yield fruitful works. We must first wash from the mind all uncleanness and conquer wicked inclinations so that outward testimonies may be added afterward. If any man boasts that he has changed and yet lives as he did before, it will be vain boasting for both conversion of the heart and change of life are necessary” John Calvin (ref#164, April 20th).

The road to repentance is godly sorrow (2 Corinthians 7:10). Godly sorrow is developed when we focus on the true nature of sin as an offense against God rather than something that makes us feel guilty. Sin is an affront to God’s holiness, it grieves His Holy Spirit, and it wounds afresh the Lord Jesus Christ. It also gratifies Satan, the archenemy of God. Dwelling on the true nature of sin leads us to godly sorrow, which in turn leads us to repentance.

“Having come to repentance, however, we must by faith lay hold of the cleansing blood of Christ, which alone can cleanse our conscience. In fact, it is faith in Christ and the assurance of the efficacy of His cleansing blood that leads us to repentance” Jerry Bridges (ref#192, p204-205).

“Repentance unto life is a saving grace, whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, does, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience” Albert N. Martin (ref#221, p15).

“I am elected to repent” Richard Baxter (ref#333, p195).

“[W]ithout repentance there is no salvation” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, Dec 24th).

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CHOOSING WRATH

“Vessel of clay! He who made thee has a right to destroy; far from seeking thy destruction, He labours to avert it. He menaces in mercy; and, if thou perishes, thou are self-destroyed” Francios Fenelon (ref#333, p244).

“They do not cry to me from the heart, but they wail upon their beds. Although I trained and strengthened their arms, yet they devise evil against me” (Hosea 7:14-15 ESV).

“The reason why sinners die, is not because there is no mercy for them in God, nor because Jesus Christ is either unable or unwilling to save them, but because they are not willing to come up to the terms on which the salvation is offered. He would, but they would not. He was willing to save them, but they were not willing to be saved by Him; this they may thank themselves for” Matthew Henry (ref#333, p252).

“[D]ominated by their own personal cravings, they shall receive a moral twist which will cause them to believe that which is fictitious. [H]aving set a high value upon this present age [they have] come to love it” (2 Tim 4:4,9 Wuest).

“The wrath of God is not declared against unrepentant sinners merely because of the sins they have committed, but because, when called to repent, they chose to continue in resistance, repeating the sins of the past in defiance of the light given them” Ellen G. White (ref#331, p62).

“[I]f we go on sinning willfully after having received a full knowledge of the truth, no longer for sins does there remain a sacrifice, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment and fiery indignation which is about to be devouring the adversaries” (Heb 10:26-27 Wuest).

“In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the LORD” (2 Chron 28:22 ESV).

“None can come to Jesus except the Father draws them. Yet sinners do not perish because they cannot come, but because they will not come” John Berridge (ref#333, p280).

The cross reveals sin for what it is and pronounces doom on the whole world. Only CHRIST’s death reconciles me to God. Believe in CHRIST or suffer GOD’s wrath. There is only two choices. (ref#189, Feb 21st).

“God is infinitely compassionate and infinitely ready to forgive so that it ought to be ascribed exclusively to our unbelief if we do not obtain pardon from him” John Calvin (ref#382, p160).

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JUDGMENT

“I either believe that my sins have been punished in the body of the Son of God or else they will be punished in me” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, Feb 21st).

“I will discipline you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished” (Jer 46:28 ESV).

“All humanity faces eternal judgment for sin” ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p2358).

“It is the tendency of all sin eternally to undo the soul. Every sin naturally carries hell in it! Therefore all sin ought to be treated by us as we would treat a thing that is infinitely terrible” Jonathan Edwards (ref#229, p70).

“’Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD. They say continually to those who despise the word of the LORD. ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you’” (Jer 23:16-17 ESV).

“The Lord is patient with his creation, but will surely return in judgment like a thief in the night” ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p2416).

“[W]e are superior to the whole world through God’s gratuitous pity, even though be nature we have nothing to boast of in ourselves. [W]e are all children of wrath, we can claim no superiority” John Calvin (ref#164, May 5th).

“[W]e have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God” (Rom 5:9 ESV).

“Christians are destined not for wrath but for salvation at Jesus’ coming” ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p2303).

“[W]hen we are being judged by the Lord, we are the subjects of a disciplinary judgment in order that we may not be condemned with the world” (1 Cor 11:31-32 Wuest).

“We who are in Christ no longer look to the future for judgment, but to the past; at the cross, we see our punishment happening, all our sins being punished in Jesus. The loved and restored you therefore trumps, outstrips, swallows up, the unrestored you. Not the other way around” Dane Ortland (ref#382, p187).

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REBELLION AGAINST GOD

“We must hate all sin for what it really is: an expression of rebellion against God” Jerry Bridges (ref#192, p198).

“God cannot but look upon sin with infinite detestation” A.W. Pink (ref#269, p67).

“It’s hard to admit, but doing what is right isn’t natural for us. Sin turns us all into self-appointed sovereigns over our own little kingdoms. Sin makes us all self-absorbed and self-focused. Sin causes us all to name ourselves righteous. Sin seduces us into thinking we are somehow, some way smarter than God. Sin causes us all to trust in our own wisdom. Sin makes us all want to write our own rules. Sin makes us resistant to criticism and change. Sin makes our eyes and our hearts wander. Sin causes us to crave material things more than spiritual provision. Sin causes us to want and esteem pleasure more than character. In our quest to be God, sin causes us to forget God. It reduces us all to glory thieves, taking for ourselves the glory that belongs to him. All of this means that sin causes us to step over God’s wise boundaries in thought, desire, word, and action again and again. This is what’s natural for a sinner” Paul David Tripp (ref#190, Dec 17th).

“Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart” (Prov 21:2 ESV).

“Transgression means a desire to have our own way, a desire to do what we want to do. ‘Iniquity’ means perversion. [D]o you not see that so many things you do are twisted and perverted? Jealously and envy and malice—how horrible the twist! The desire that evil may come to someone, the dislike of praise of another—evil thoughts, bent, twisted, ugly, foul—‘iniquity’! And we are all guilty of iniquity” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, Dec 27th).

“The principle of self-confidence is the natural product of the human heart; the great characteristic of our apostate race is a desire to live, think, and act independently of God. Remember the divine and sovereign grace does not undertake the extraction of the root of this depraved principle from the heart of its subjects. The root still remains to the very close of life’s pilgrimage, though in a measure weakened, subdued, and mortified. It demands the most rigid watchfulness connected with ceaseless prayer, lest it should spring upward to the destruction of his soul’s prosperity, the grieving of the Spirit, and the dishonor of God” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, Oct 13th).

“If you are God’s child, you’re either giving in to sin or giving way to the operation of rescuing grace, but your heart’s never neutral” Paul David Tripp (ref#190, Mar 30th).

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OVERCOMING SIN BY PRAYER

“There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness, I am utterly bowed down and prostrate” (Ps 38:3-6 ESV).

“If you would not be taken in any of Satan’s snares, then be much in prayer. Prayer is a shelter to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge to the devil” Thomas Brooks (ref#379, p36).

“Take your temptation, drag the tempter to the throne of grace, and you are safe! Communion with God will put to flight all the hosts of hell” Octavius Winslow (ref#381, p44).

“If you would not be taken with any of Satan’s snares and devices, then keep up your communion with God. A soul high in communion with God may be tempted but will not easily be conquered. Communion with God furnisheth the soul with the greatest and the choicest arguments to withstand Satan’s temptations. Communion is a reciprocal exchange between Christ and a gracious soul” Thomas Brooks (ref#379, p35).

“[A] neglected prayer life is the beginning of all spiritual decline. [T]he affections have been set on the things of earth, instead of on the things of heaven” Charles Spurgeon (ref#34, Aug 11th AM).

“[I]f you fall from your communion with God, you will, as others do, fall before the face of every temptation” Thomas Brooks (ref#379, p35).

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DEATH OF SIN

“[A]bstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul” (1 Pet 2:11 ESV).

“Do I accept God’s verdict on sin in the Cross of Christ? Have I the slightest interest in the death of Jesus? Do I want to be identified with His death, to be killed right out to all interest in sin, in worldliness, in self—to be so identified with Jesus that I am spoilt for everything else but Him? The great privilege of discipleship is that I can sign on under His Cross, and that means death to sin. Get alone with Jesus and either tell Him that you do not want sin to die out in you; or else tell Him that at all costs you want to be identified with His death. The proof that your old man is crucified with Christ is the amazing ease with which the life of God in you enables you to obey the voice of Jesus Christ” Oswald Chambers ( ref#7, Dec 23rd).

“True repentance, furthermore, shows itself before the world in a thorough breaking off from sin. The life of a penitent man is altered. The course of his daily conduct is entirely changed. What God commands he now desires to practice; and what God forbids he now desires to avoid” J.C. Ryle (ref#363, p36).

“True repentance shows itself by producing in the heart a settled habit of deep hatred of all sin. He comes short of his own desires frequently. He finds in himself an evil principle warring against the Spirit of God. He finds himself cold when he would be hot, backward when he would be forward, heavy when he would be lively in God’s service. He is deeply conscious of his own infirmities. But still, for all that, the general bias of his heart is toward God and away from evil” J.C. Ryle (ref#363, p36).

“Knowing thus the faithfulness and justice of God and the power of the blood of Christ to deliver me and to cleanse me from the guilt and stain of my sins, I can with confidence go forward, knowing that all is clear, my conscience has been cleansed, and I can continue to walk with God” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#332, p 134).