03.11.09
J.A. Matteson
"...and God gave them over...." Romans 1:24
The people of God are called out into a distinct relationship with the Creator of all things. They are to be a peculiar people, separated unto holiness as the Lord their God is holy, “put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth” (Ephesians 4:24). While longsuffering and merciful the Lord will not strive indefinitely with sin when hearts become dismally distant from His. There exists a dreadful transition zone, a tipping point, when persistent and willful defiance results in the provocation of divine wrath.
In any generation when the heart of a people grows numb to the leaven of the Spirit by pronouncing right as ‘wrong’ and wrong as ‘right’, judgment is as certain to fall as a blind man who trips over a large stone. Judgment is progressive—recall the plagues of Egypt—, observable, and commences as a result of the suppression the Word of the Lord, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18). Any who turn a blind eye to biblical revelation are teetering on the ledge of a perilous hillside. When the Word of the Lord is rejected something else takes its place and the only possibility is a psudo-truth that is demonically informed, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires” (2 Timothy 4:3).
The fruit of the initial stage of judgment is a sensual orientation where chastity and modesty are euphorically jettisoned, “Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them” (Romans 1:24). A pornographic culture with all of its trappings is the result. To what extent is the culture experiencing stage one?
The second stage is progressively worse—homosexuality becomes mainstream, “…God gave them over to degrading passions…women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural… men…burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts….” (Romans 1:26-27). On this point God’s moral law is explicit, “…do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived…nor homosexuals…” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10). Unrepentant homosexuality is categorically inconsistent with the new birth and any person professing Christ yet remaining in that lifestyle is on the wide road to destruction, hell bound, being tragically deceived by Satan. To what extent is the culture experiencing stage two?
The third stage is the loss of the general capacity to think correctly along moral lines, a spiritual dementia ensues whereby people simply cannot find their way back to the pathway of righteousness, “And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper” (Romans 1:28). The mind is now broken and no longer works as designed, professing to be wise people in this stage have become utter fools, “They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed” (Titus 1:16). To what extent is our culture experiencing stage three?
In addition to these three stages divine judgment may also include war, pestilence, and famine. Considering the forgoing, perhaps those called out by the Lord unto salvation need not look to the future for judgment, it has likely already arrived. And if so to what extent has the Church been infected by the debauchery of the culture? Has she lost her savor? Has she trimmed her lamp so low as not to be visible? Repentance in the culture begins with the household of God, “Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Repent and turn away from your idols and turn your faces away from all your abominations” (Ezekiel 14:6).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
The Spippery Precipice
03.09.09
J.A. Matteson
"I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered." Deuteronomy 10:2
Intimacy between the Lord and His bond-servant can place the servant on the slippery precipice of selfrighteousness. Indignation at sin is a fruit of the Spirit, to hate what God hates is praise worthy; however, assuming the seat of divine judgment is of the flesh, “Moses' anger burned, and he threw the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain” (Exodus 32:19).
It was not due to any inherent worthiness that Israel received the Law, to the contrary, it was due to transgressions, “Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions….” (Galatians 3:19). Shattering the tablets before the people may have served as a theatrical visual illustration of their breaking the covenant of the Lord, yet the reality is that as Adam’s progeny their breach of the Law occurred prior to it being written. The Lord did not command Moses to shatter the tablets—he took that bit upon himself. Moses’ display of human anger was raw emotion and it did not further the redemptive purposes of the Lord, “for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” (James 1:20).
Moses withheld the Law of the Lord from the people due to sin when the Lord intended for them to have it because of their sin. The Word of the Lord to sinners is given by grace and not merit and it serves to: reveal the holy character of God, man’s inability to live up to God’s standard of perfection, and to drive sinners by faith to Christ for eternal salvation. As with Moses the temptation of the Lord’s bond-servant is to withhold the Word of the Lord from the Lord’s people due to transgressions when the Lord would have His Word proclaimed to turn wayward hearts back to Him, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). To be “profitable for” is to be beneficial and helpful; to be administered “for correction” is to bring to light faults contrary to the Word of the Lord.
The manner by which the Word is to be presented is with humiliation lest the Lord’s bond-servant be caught-up in the sin of presumption with regard to his own spiritual condition, “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3). Let the ambassador of the Lord proclaim His Word in the darkest places, in the face of ramped degradation and licentiousness, amidst hostile opposition and competing views. It is the Word of the Lord that pierces the secret places and of the heart and reveals the things contrary to it. By it sinners are made righteous by faith and saints grow in grace as Christ if formed in them. It is the Word of the Lord that endures while all else eventually comes to not, it is reflective of His perfect love which does not diminish, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:8).
The servant of the Lord may in anger be tempted to withhold God’s Word from his people due to their sin, but to do so is contrary to His will and demonstrates a lack of understanding by the preacher. It is through the agency of the Word as tutor that sinners are brought to repentance by the Spirit. Let not the man of God presume upon the Lord by withholding that which brings life, “… the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63).
The servant of the Lord must once and for all rid his mind of any notion that the dissemination of the Word of the Lord is predicated upon righteous deeds by the saints. They are saints by calling and not merit and it is not the preachers business to withhold their spiritual rations due them, “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). The man who faithfully labors in plowing and sewing the Word will in due season reap with great joy, “Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary” (Galatians 6:9).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
J.A. Matteson
"I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered." Deuteronomy 10:2
Intimacy between the Lord and His bond-servant can place the servant on the slippery precipice of selfrighteousness. Indignation at sin is a fruit of the Spirit, to hate what God hates is praise worthy; however, assuming the seat of divine judgment is of the flesh, “Moses' anger burned, and he threw the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain” (Exodus 32:19).
It was not due to any inherent worthiness that Israel received the Law, to the contrary, it was due to transgressions, “Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions….” (Galatians 3:19). Shattering the tablets before the people may have served as a theatrical visual illustration of their breaking the covenant of the Lord, yet the reality is that as Adam’s progeny their breach of the Law occurred prior to it being written. The Lord did not command Moses to shatter the tablets—he took that bit upon himself. Moses’ display of human anger was raw emotion and it did not further the redemptive purposes of the Lord, “for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” (James 1:20).
Moses withheld the Law of the Lord from the people due to sin when the Lord intended for them to have it because of their sin. The Word of the Lord to sinners is given by grace and not merit and it serves to: reveal the holy character of God, man’s inability to live up to God’s standard of perfection, and to drive sinners by faith to Christ for eternal salvation. As with Moses the temptation of the Lord’s bond-servant is to withhold the Word of the Lord from the Lord’s people due to transgressions when the Lord would have His Word proclaimed to turn wayward hearts back to Him, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). To be “profitable for” is to be beneficial and helpful; to be administered “for correction” is to bring to light faults contrary to the Word of the Lord.
The manner by which the Word is to be presented is with humiliation lest the Lord’s bond-servant be caught-up in the sin of presumption with regard to his own spiritual condition, “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3). Let the ambassador of the Lord proclaim His Word in the darkest places, in the face of ramped degradation and licentiousness, amidst hostile opposition and competing views. It is the Word of the Lord that pierces the secret places and of the heart and reveals the things contrary to it. By it sinners are made righteous by faith and saints grow in grace as Christ if formed in them. It is the Word of the Lord that endures while all else eventually comes to not, it is reflective of His perfect love which does not diminish, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:8).
The servant of the Lord may in anger be tempted to withhold God’s Word from his people due to their sin, but to do so is contrary to His will and demonstrates a lack of understanding by the preacher. It is through the agency of the Word as tutor that sinners are brought to repentance by the Spirit. Let not the man of God presume upon the Lord by withholding that which brings life, “… the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63).
The servant of the Lord must once and for all rid his mind of any notion that the dissemination of the Word of the Lord is predicated upon righteous deeds by the saints. They are saints by calling and not merit and it is not the preachers business to withhold their spiritual rations due them, “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). The man who faithfully labors in plowing and sewing the Word will in due season reap with great joy, “Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary” (Galatians 6:9).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Privileged Access
03.08.09
J.A. Matteson
"In whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him." Ephesians 3:12
Spiritual pettiness displays a diminished comprehension of intercession by exhibiting a preoccupation with the temporal over the eternal, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:3). The veracity of intercession is grace, its means is faith, and its end is the privileged access behind the veil into the most holy place for the redemption of sinners and sanctification of saints.
Let not a man presume upon the grace of the Lord by pursuing access before Him recklessly. Only by the atoning blood of Christ is a man able to come before the holy presence of El Shaddai, “since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (Romans 5:1-2).
Presumption upon the grace of the Lord can result in tragic consequences, as was the case with Nadab and Abihu who were struck down for their brash arrogance. Intercession affords the man of God manifold opportunities to give glory to the Lord for the redemptive activity of the Spirit: by giving thanks for those being saved, “many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand...all the people were praising God for what had happened” (Acts 4:4, 21); recognizing the sanctifying work of grace in the saints, “We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers” (1 Thessalonians 1:2); pleading for mercy on behalf of sinners to quell divine wrath, “O Lord GOD, do not destroy Your people….” (Deuteronomy 9:26); and requesting that spiritual wisdom and insight may be granted to believers, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18).
Through intercession the Lord reveals Himself to His servant; the servant speaks to God about men, and subsequently speaks to men about God. Unlike Moses who wore a veil over his face lest the children of Israel should behold the fading refracted glory of the Lord upon his face, the Spirit’s presence within the Christian does not diminish, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
The Apostle confidently yet cautiously measured his access to the throne of the Lord in respectful submission and adoration, “I bow my knees before the Father” (Ephesians 3:14), soberly aware that he came before the King of kings and Lord of lords. The Spirit works within the saint to reorient him to intercede along the line of divine redemptive priorities. And grace persists until the will is conquered and brought into alignment with heaven and it is at that place where heaven is moved through the intercessor, “Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (James 5:17). Submission produces requests from the saint that find their origin in the heart of the Lord, “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14).
Effective intercessors restrain from entertaining fleshly speculations as to the will of the Lord, by virtue of their time in His presence they know his mind along a particular line and are readily brought into conformity with it, “For who has known the mind of the Lord, that we will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). From the Father the divine will concerning men finds its genesis; the Son is the medium through whom the intercessor is received by grace, and the Spirit supplies unction and heavenly insight so that the intercessors prayers are effectual. The high priest was granted access into the holy of holies once a year on the Day of Atonement. The once and for all atonement of Christ rendered the temple veil of separation torn and obsolete, permitting direct access the Lord—“I AM”—for all who believe, by grace through faith. Unlike the high priest of old the believer now comes confidently and boldly before the throne of grace without a safety line tied to his body, to speak to God about men, and then men about God—as Moses and Christ. Let the servant of the Lord remain faithful to and diligent in intercession, cherishing it as a most sacred privilege and responsibility.
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
J.A. Matteson
"In whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him." Ephesians 3:12
Spiritual pettiness displays a diminished comprehension of intercession by exhibiting a preoccupation with the temporal over the eternal, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:3). The veracity of intercession is grace, its means is faith, and its end is the privileged access behind the veil into the most holy place for the redemption of sinners and sanctification of saints.
Let not a man presume upon the grace of the Lord by pursuing access before Him recklessly. Only by the atoning blood of Christ is a man able to come before the holy presence of El Shaddai, “since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (Romans 5:1-2).
Presumption upon the grace of the Lord can result in tragic consequences, as was the case with Nadab and Abihu who were struck down for their brash arrogance. Intercession affords the man of God manifold opportunities to give glory to the Lord for the redemptive activity of the Spirit: by giving thanks for those being saved, “many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand...all the people were praising God for what had happened” (Acts 4:4, 21); recognizing the sanctifying work of grace in the saints, “We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers” (1 Thessalonians 1:2); pleading for mercy on behalf of sinners to quell divine wrath, “O Lord GOD, do not destroy Your people….” (Deuteronomy 9:26); and requesting that spiritual wisdom and insight may be granted to believers, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18).
Through intercession the Lord reveals Himself to His servant; the servant speaks to God about men, and subsequently speaks to men about God. Unlike Moses who wore a veil over his face lest the children of Israel should behold the fading refracted glory of the Lord upon his face, the Spirit’s presence within the Christian does not diminish, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
The Apostle confidently yet cautiously measured his access to the throne of the Lord in respectful submission and adoration, “I bow my knees before the Father” (Ephesians 3:14), soberly aware that he came before the King of kings and Lord of lords. The Spirit works within the saint to reorient him to intercede along the line of divine redemptive priorities. And grace persists until the will is conquered and brought into alignment with heaven and it is at that place where heaven is moved through the intercessor, “Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (James 5:17). Submission produces requests from the saint that find their origin in the heart of the Lord, “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14).
Effective intercessors restrain from entertaining fleshly speculations as to the will of the Lord, by virtue of their time in His presence they know his mind along a particular line and are readily brought into conformity with it, “For who has known the mind of the Lord, that we will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). From the Father the divine will concerning men finds its genesis; the Son is the medium through whom the intercessor is received by grace, and the Spirit supplies unction and heavenly insight so that the intercessors prayers are effectual. The high priest was granted access into the holy of holies once a year on the Day of Atonement. The once and for all atonement of Christ rendered the temple veil of separation torn and obsolete, permitting direct access the Lord—“I AM”—for all who believe, by grace through faith. Unlike the high priest of old the believer now comes confidently and boldly before the throne of grace without a safety line tied to his body, to speak to God about men, and then men about God—as Moses and Christ. Let the servant of the Lord remain faithful to and diligent in intercession, cherishing it as a most sacred privilege and responsibility.
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
Friday, March 6, 2009
Towards Simplicity
03.06.09
J.A. Matteson
"Yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake." Philippians 1:24
By sojourning with the Lord in faithful obedience the manifest outcome for the Apostle was simplicity. Spiritual discernment entails distinguishing between the simple and the complex, cultivating the former while mortifying the later. The tendency of the flesh is to interpret life through the prism of complexity which distresses the mind and dilutes spiritual fruitfulness. The orientation of simplicity is always towards the cross while complexity redirects the mind to the cares of the flesh and the world, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24). Inherent to the fallen nature is complexity and the saint finds himself frustrated in his progress towards simplicity, “For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members” (Romans 7:22-23).
Simplicity perceives that the Lord’s bond-servant functions in the world as His conduit of grace and that His Master strategically places him in settings in accordance to His purposes of redemption, “my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else” (Philippians 1:13). Simplicity does not consider strange the circumstances of Providence, but rejoices in the knowledge that the redemptive current of grace engineered by the Lord is apt to flow through the life that remains in the Vine, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). Simplicity is Christo-centric while complexity is ego-centric; simplicity joyfully endures temporal harsh earthly realities with a view towards the surpassing eternal benefit of things not seen; simplicity reckons time immortal a precious jewel and considers the gain of this world as muck, “eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). Complexity is innate and instantaneous to the Adamic nature, simplicity is counterintuitive to the flesh and progressive in its development, “for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am” (Philippians 4:11).
Complexity hungers for glory from men; simplicity delights in honor from God. Complexity is prideful and persuaded it is entitled to be served; simplicity serves others as unto the Lord. Complexity filters decisions through the rubric of a personal cost-benefit analysis; simplicity is consumed with pleasing the Lord, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him” (2 Corinthians 5:9). Grace is tenacious and Providence lovingly affords unique twists and turns in each saint’s pilgrimage, lovingly designed to yoke his constitution to simplicity by breaking the bonds of complexity. The Apostle in personal reflection displays the simplicity which the Spirit cultivates, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). The bond-servant of the Lord who engenders simplicity will yield much fruit for his Master. And its characteristic concern is that the fruit of simplicity be developed in others through the Gospel, “Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory” (2 Timothy 2:10).
While on pilgrimage the saint’s heart rests in green pastures alongside still waters, and on that Day the fruit of his life—evidence of the indwelling Spirit—will bring praise, glory, and honor from the Author of simplicity, “Well done, good and faithful slave…enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:21).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
J.A. Matteson
"Yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake." Philippians 1:24
By sojourning with the Lord in faithful obedience the manifest outcome for the Apostle was simplicity. Spiritual discernment entails distinguishing between the simple and the complex, cultivating the former while mortifying the later. The tendency of the flesh is to interpret life through the prism of complexity which distresses the mind and dilutes spiritual fruitfulness. The orientation of simplicity is always towards the cross while complexity redirects the mind to the cares of the flesh and the world, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24). Inherent to the fallen nature is complexity and the saint finds himself frustrated in his progress towards simplicity, “For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members” (Romans 7:22-23).
Simplicity perceives that the Lord’s bond-servant functions in the world as His conduit of grace and that His Master strategically places him in settings in accordance to His purposes of redemption, “my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else” (Philippians 1:13). Simplicity does not consider strange the circumstances of Providence, but rejoices in the knowledge that the redemptive current of grace engineered by the Lord is apt to flow through the life that remains in the Vine, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). Simplicity is Christo-centric while complexity is ego-centric; simplicity joyfully endures temporal harsh earthly realities with a view towards the surpassing eternal benefit of things not seen; simplicity reckons time immortal a precious jewel and considers the gain of this world as muck, “eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). Complexity is innate and instantaneous to the Adamic nature, simplicity is counterintuitive to the flesh and progressive in its development, “for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am” (Philippians 4:11).
Complexity hungers for glory from men; simplicity delights in honor from God. Complexity is prideful and persuaded it is entitled to be served; simplicity serves others as unto the Lord. Complexity filters decisions through the rubric of a personal cost-benefit analysis; simplicity is consumed with pleasing the Lord, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him” (2 Corinthians 5:9). Grace is tenacious and Providence lovingly affords unique twists and turns in each saint’s pilgrimage, lovingly designed to yoke his constitution to simplicity by breaking the bonds of complexity. The Apostle in personal reflection displays the simplicity which the Spirit cultivates, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). The bond-servant of the Lord who engenders simplicity will yield much fruit for his Master. And its characteristic concern is that the fruit of simplicity be developed in others through the Gospel, “Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory” (2 Timothy 2:10).
While on pilgrimage the saint’s heart rests in green pastures alongside still waters, and on that Day the fruit of his life—evidence of the indwelling Spirit—will bring praise, glory, and honor from the Author of simplicity, “Well done, good and faithful slave…enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:21).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
On Foreign Soil
03.04.09
J.A. Matteson
"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." Philippians 3:20
Slumbering soldiers on foreign soil behind enemy lines quickly find themselves in mortal peril. The life of faith requires that the saint press on toward the goal of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus and be constantly on guard against temporal sidetracks that hinder progress in grace. The realization of desired attainments in grace appears elusive for the weary pilgrim, yet the Lord in His goodness has ordained that grace be extended towards His saints ensuring their progress in their travels towards the New Jerusalem, for the Apostle confidently asserts, “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
Human governments and citizenships are instituted by God and are a shadowy representation of a supreme heavenly reality. All earthly authority is delegated and subject to the Creator who upholds all things by the power of His word. To be a citizen of a human government is to enjoy particular protections and provisions that are withheld to aliens. The Bill of Rights to the Constitution of the United States of America extends privileges to its citizens. And unlike earthly citizenships which may be acquired either by birth or immigration, citizenship in the kingdom of heaven can only be acquired by rebirth, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
The outworking of the heavenly citizenship within the saints is Christlikeness. Pilgrims trod the battlefields of the mind, remaining in mortal combat against the desires of the flesh, while at the same time faithfully endeavoring to pluck from the flames through the agency of the Gospel the living dead. The battlefield on which the pilgrim finds himself is a perpetual place of violence and horror where endurance remains a continual plea. The Lord has extended to the pilgrim positive graces so that he may not loose heart; viz., purification, protection, and provision. Providences, in that the citizen of heaven is to interpret every circumstance—from the largest to the smallest—as lovingly engineered for the purpose of transforming him into the likeness of his Lord, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28); purification, in that fleshly lusts are being daily mortified by the power of the indwelling Spirit, yielding increasing fruitfulness to the Lord, “For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust…For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:4, 8); protection, for the armies of heaven are sentinels against the frontal assaults of Satan and his fallen world system, “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them” (Psalm 34:7); the provision of spiritual and natural graces, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18), and “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
Let the man on pilgrimage to the New Jerusalem rejoice that the end of his sojourning is glory on high. Pilgrims sojourning upon the earth are foreigners keeping a watchful gaze heavenward, eagerly awaiting their Savior and the fist glimpse of the City whose foundation and walls are not made by human hands. And as the ocean mist and Autumn flower are momentary their weary pilgrimage will soon conclude and they will be at the City gate.
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
J.A. Matteson
"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." Philippians 3:20
Slumbering soldiers on foreign soil behind enemy lines quickly find themselves in mortal peril. The life of faith requires that the saint press on toward the goal of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus and be constantly on guard against temporal sidetracks that hinder progress in grace. The realization of desired attainments in grace appears elusive for the weary pilgrim, yet the Lord in His goodness has ordained that grace be extended towards His saints ensuring their progress in their travels towards the New Jerusalem, for the Apostle confidently asserts, “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
Human governments and citizenships are instituted by God and are a shadowy representation of a supreme heavenly reality. All earthly authority is delegated and subject to the Creator who upholds all things by the power of His word. To be a citizen of a human government is to enjoy particular protections and provisions that are withheld to aliens. The Bill of Rights to the Constitution of the United States of America extends privileges to its citizens. And unlike earthly citizenships which may be acquired either by birth or immigration, citizenship in the kingdom of heaven can only be acquired by rebirth, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
The outworking of the heavenly citizenship within the saints is Christlikeness. Pilgrims trod the battlefields of the mind, remaining in mortal combat against the desires of the flesh, while at the same time faithfully endeavoring to pluck from the flames through the agency of the Gospel the living dead. The battlefield on which the pilgrim finds himself is a perpetual place of violence and horror where endurance remains a continual plea. The Lord has extended to the pilgrim positive graces so that he may not loose heart; viz., purification, protection, and provision. Providences, in that the citizen of heaven is to interpret every circumstance—from the largest to the smallest—as lovingly engineered for the purpose of transforming him into the likeness of his Lord, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28); purification, in that fleshly lusts are being daily mortified by the power of the indwelling Spirit, yielding increasing fruitfulness to the Lord, “For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust…For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:4, 8); protection, for the armies of heaven are sentinels against the frontal assaults of Satan and his fallen world system, “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them” (Psalm 34:7); the provision of spiritual and natural graces, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18), and “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
Let the man on pilgrimage to the New Jerusalem rejoice that the end of his sojourning is glory on high. Pilgrims sojourning upon the earth are foreigners keeping a watchful gaze heavenward, eagerly awaiting their Savior and the fist glimpse of the City whose foundation and walls are not made by human hands. And as the ocean mist and Autumn flower are momentary their weary pilgrimage will soon conclude and they will be at the City gate.
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
A Proper Reckoning
03.03.09
J.A. Matteson
"And you were dead in your trespasses and sins...." Ephesians 2:1
The incomprehensive aspect of grace is the object of its affection. The holy One who transcends all things and who upholds all things is, has been, and forever will be perfect light and life in His person. The Lord’s natural and just response to anything unholy is to eliminate it as pollution. The essence of sin is cosmic treason against the Creator and its due penalty is death. Sin is as an odious plague in God’s universe which justice demands must be quarantined and utterly annihilated, like a lethal virus in the body, and the sons of Adam are sinners by nature putting them in a perilous position before their Creator, “Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest” (Ephesians 2:3).
The Hebrew sacrificial system highlighted God’s perfect life in contract to the state of death found in sinners. No sacrifice that had a defect was a permissible offering as it was symbolic of a life short of divine perfection, thus leading to death. Similarly no diseased person was permitted in the camp—near the presence of the Lord—for the same reason. Per the Law pious Hebrews would not touch or approach a dead body and avoided the sick so as not to become ritually unclean. To head off any possibility of boasting in the flesh the Apostle reminds his readers of their natural state of hopelessness and helplessness, nothing meritorious being found in them. They, as with the rest, were three times dead: dead in their bodies through observable decay eventually leading to the grave; dead in their minds through the outward workings of the corrupt desires of their thinking, their wills, and emotions; dead in their spirits being destitute, cut off, totally blind, and deaf to God. Their lives were marked as insurrectionists and an utter abomination before the Lord.
That they now find themselves in a state of grace is a genuine miracle and the Apostle underscores the wonder of it, “even when we were dead in our transgressions…we were made alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” (Ephesians 2:5). To be dead is to be unresponsive along the natural order of things. The dead have no ability to respond to external stimuli, they cannot see, they cannot hear, think, or move; all of their senses have been rendered useless. The dead can do only two things: occupy space and stink. The Apostle’s use of the term “dead” to describe the unregenerate is not a clever literary exercise; rather, it is a sober theological description of the unregenerate human condition born into the bondage of sin and at enmity against God, “There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God” (Romans 3:10-11). As children of Abraham—children of promise—the Apostle enlightens his readers by informing them that they were enabled by the power of the Spirit with eyes to see, ears to hear, and a will to respond positively to the Gospel so as to be saved; except for grace they would not have responded to God’s call, “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). Lazarus, dead four days in the tomb and in a state of decay, had no natural ability to hear and respond to the call of Christ; the Living Word quickened him, enabling him to come forth.
So to the Living Word quickens sinners to new life leaving no basis for boasting except in the Lord, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) and raised us up with Him…” (Ephesians 2:4-6). The wombs of Sarah, Rebecca, and Elizabeth were dead and God performed a miracle by bringing forth life from death. In like manner His wondrous love and power toward the children of Abraham—those who in the likeness of him have been justified by faith—supernaturally deliverers them from death, calling them forth by name to Life, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27). Where then is boasting of being in Christ? It is left at the foot of the cross as we are His workmanship; by his amazing grace He gave us new life and not we ourselves.
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
J.A. Matteson
"And you were dead in your trespasses and sins...." Ephesians 2:1
The incomprehensive aspect of grace is the object of its affection. The holy One who transcends all things and who upholds all things is, has been, and forever will be perfect light and life in His person. The Lord’s natural and just response to anything unholy is to eliminate it as pollution. The essence of sin is cosmic treason against the Creator and its due penalty is death. Sin is as an odious plague in God’s universe which justice demands must be quarantined and utterly annihilated, like a lethal virus in the body, and the sons of Adam are sinners by nature putting them in a perilous position before their Creator, “Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest” (Ephesians 2:3).
The Hebrew sacrificial system highlighted God’s perfect life in contract to the state of death found in sinners. No sacrifice that had a defect was a permissible offering as it was symbolic of a life short of divine perfection, thus leading to death. Similarly no diseased person was permitted in the camp—near the presence of the Lord—for the same reason. Per the Law pious Hebrews would not touch or approach a dead body and avoided the sick so as not to become ritually unclean. To head off any possibility of boasting in the flesh the Apostle reminds his readers of their natural state of hopelessness and helplessness, nothing meritorious being found in them. They, as with the rest, were three times dead: dead in their bodies through observable decay eventually leading to the grave; dead in their minds through the outward workings of the corrupt desires of their thinking, their wills, and emotions; dead in their spirits being destitute, cut off, totally blind, and deaf to God. Their lives were marked as insurrectionists and an utter abomination before the Lord.
That they now find themselves in a state of grace is a genuine miracle and the Apostle underscores the wonder of it, “even when we were dead in our transgressions…we were made alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” (Ephesians 2:5). To be dead is to be unresponsive along the natural order of things. The dead have no ability to respond to external stimuli, they cannot see, they cannot hear, think, or move; all of their senses have been rendered useless. The dead can do only two things: occupy space and stink. The Apostle’s use of the term “dead” to describe the unregenerate is not a clever literary exercise; rather, it is a sober theological description of the unregenerate human condition born into the bondage of sin and at enmity against God, “There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God” (Romans 3:10-11). As children of Abraham—children of promise—the Apostle enlightens his readers by informing them that they were enabled by the power of the Spirit with eyes to see, ears to hear, and a will to respond positively to the Gospel so as to be saved; except for grace they would not have responded to God’s call, “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). Lazarus, dead four days in the tomb and in a state of decay, had no natural ability to hear and respond to the call of Christ; the Living Word quickened him, enabling him to come forth.
So to the Living Word quickens sinners to new life leaving no basis for boasting except in the Lord, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) and raised us up with Him…” (Ephesians 2:4-6). The wombs of Sarah, Rebecca, and Elizabeth were dead and God performed a miracle by bringing forth life from death. In like manner His wondrous love and power toward the children of Abraham—those who in the likeness of him have been justified by faith—supernaturally deliverers them from death, calling them forth by name to Life, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27). Where then is boasting of being in Christ? It is left at the foot of the cross as we are His workmanship; by his amazing grace He gave us new life and not we ourselves.
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Rescued From Evil
03.01.09
J.A. Matteson
"Who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father." Galatians 1:4
There exists today a dreadful, deceitful, diabolical, and deadly delusion; viz. a man can be justified by faith and remain unchanged in his nature. In this errant paradigm atonement and sanctification are divorced from one another; however, Scripture forcefully refutes the assertion. Justification is by faith alone, but justifying faith is never alone.
Surrendering up his spirit on the cross Christ declared, “It is finished.” Concise was the utterance and cosmically profound the implication. His was the quintessential emancipation proclamation to heaven and hell that the work His Father had commissioned Him to perform had been completed; atonement had been made for the elect sheep given to the Son by the Father, “…and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21).
Inextricably intertwined with the atonement is sanctification; the atonement ensures a positional and practical sanctification. To have ones sins atoned for is to enjoy the imputed righteousness of Christ and a right standing before the Father, no longer an object of divine wrath. To enjoy intimacy with the Father by means of justification is to be the recipient of grace which finds its ultimate expression in Calvary. Behold how marvelous is the promise of the Apostle, “that He might rescue us from this present evil age.” Allow the full impact of the atonement to overwhelm you: for it delivered (a completed action), is delivering (a continuing action), and will deliver (a future action) the saints from “this present evil.”
The promise is to the saints of all generations and is indicative of the personified object which assaults them; i.e., Satan. “This present evil” is also experienced by the saints in the fallen world system and individually by way of the flesh which wages war against the Spirit. Positional sanctification takes place at conversion (a completed action) at which time His Spirit indwells the renewed life so that the saint is compelled toward practical sanctification, mortifying the flesh by the power of the Spirit (a continuing action), and finding its fulfillment in glory at death (a future action), “And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). An atonement divorced from practical sanctification is a ruse and the devil’s counterfeit, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
The redeemed life is not a reformed life, it is a new life. The new does not come until the old dies and the seal of the Spirit is the guarantee of fruitfulness unto God, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). The life that professes love for Christ but is void of His fruit is miserably self-deceived because His seed does not indwell him. Let the man who continues in wanton sin take stock in the affections of his heart for he is traversing the wide and perilous road to utter destruction, “And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure…No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God” (1 John 3:3, 9).
Keenly aware of this premise the Apostle concludes, “…but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27). Positional and practical sanctification is recognized, then, not by profession alone, but by the fruit of righteousness which the Spirit produces. The Lord Jesus Christ underscores the unbreakable link of justification and sanctification, “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples” (John 15:8). The man who professes Christ to the world in word will find validation in his deeds, proving himself a disciple.
The man who professes Christ in word but whose life is an arid wasteland of unrighteousness displays empty rhetoric. Unless he repents and throws himself down at the foot of the cross certain destruction awaits him, “behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
J.A. Matteson
"Who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father." Galatians 1:4
There exists today a dreadful, deceitful, diabolical, and deadly delusion; viz. a man can be justified by faith and remain unchanged in his nature. In this errant paradigm atonement and sanctification are divorced from one another; however, Scripture forcefully refutes the assertion. Justification is by faith alone, but justifying faith is never alone.
Surrendering up his spirit on the cross Christ declared, “It is finished.” Concise was the utterance and cosmically profound the implication. His was the quintessential emancipation proclamation to heaven and hell that the work His Father had commissioned Him to perform had been completed; atonement had been made for the elect sheep given to the Son by the Father, “…and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21).
Inextricably intertwined with the atonement is sanctification; the atonement ensures a positional and practical sanctification. To have ones sins atoned for is to enjoy the imputed righteousness of Christ and a right standing before the Father, no longer an object of divine wrath. To enjoy intimacy with the Father by means of justification is to be the recipient of grace which finds its ultimate expression in Calvary. Behold how marvelous is the promise of the Apostle, “that He might rescue us from this present evil age.” Allow the full impact of the atonement to overwhelm you: for it delivered (a completed action), is delivering (a continuing action), and will deliver (a future action) the saints from “this present evil.”
The promise is to the saints of all generations and is indicative of the personified object which assaults them; i.e., Satan. “This present evil” is also experienced by the saints in the fallen world system and individually by way of the flesh which wages war against the Spirit. Positional sanctification takes place at conversion (a completed action) at which time His Spirit indwells the renewed life so that the saint is compelled toward practical sanctification, mortifying the flesh by the power of the Spirit (a continuing action), and finding its fulfillment in glory at death (a future action), “And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). An atonement divorced from practical sanctification is a ruse and the devil’s counterfeit, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
The redeemed life is not a reformed life, it is a new life. The new does not come until the old dies and the seal of the Spirit is the guarantee of fruitfulness unto God, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). The life that professes love for Christ but is void of His fruit is miserably self-deceived because His seed does not indwell him. Let the man who continues in wanton sin take stock in the affections of his heart for he is traversing the wide and perilous road to utter destruction, “And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure…No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God” (1 John 3:3, 9).
Keenly aware of this premise the Apostle concludes, “…but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27). Positional and practical sanctification is recognized, then, not by profession alone, but by the fruit of righteousness which the Spirit produces. The Lord Jesus Christ underscores the unbreakable link of justification and sanctification, “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples” (John 15:8). The man who professes Christ to the world in word will find validation in his deeds, proving himself a disciple.
The man who professes Christ in word but whose life is an arid wasteland of unrighteousness displays empty rhetoric. Unless he repents and throws himself down at the foot of the cross certain destruction awaits him, “behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2).
Copyright 2009 Immutable Word Ministries ("...the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8)
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