Christ Church

A Two-Fold Grace (Philippians #4)

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

The apostle urged the Philippians to walk in a manner that was worthy of the gospel of Christ. But he does not just offer a generic “be nice” sort of exhortation. The thing that is worthy of the gospel is unity in the gospel. When many minds, voices, and hands come together to strive for the advancement of the gospel, this is something that adorns the gospel itself—in the same way that apples adorn an apple tree.  

THE TEXT

“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake; Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me” (Philippians 1:27–30). 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Paul’s exhortation to the Philippians is that they are to have their conduct fit together well with the gospel of Christ (v. 27). When our behavior is worthy of the gospel, we are not talking about anything like merit. We are not earning the gospel, or deserving anything through our works. Rather it is simple matter of consistency—do our lives go together with the gospel as preached? What Paul means by this is that he wants them to be unified. He wants to come and see that reality in them, or if he is absent, he wants to hear about it (v. 27). He wants them to stand fast in one spirit, and he is eager for them to be striving together for the faith of the gospel in one mind. One spirit, one mind. 

Being unified in the gospel like this is bound to provoke opposition, and the fact that Christians can be fearless in the face of such opposition is a terrifying thing for the persecutors (v. 28). Remember that true Christian likemindedness is the fast road to being called a cult member. And also remember from earlier in the chapter that how to live is Christ, and to die is more Christ. This places the Christian completely out of the persecutor’s reach, and this is deeply unsettling to them. It is proof that they are sons of perdition, and that you are among the saved (v. 28). The Philippians had been given a two-fold gift, a two-fold grace—not only to believe in Christ, but also to suffer for Him (v. 29). They had seen Paul go through this sort of trial, and they had also heard of his imprisonment—and now they were going through it all themselves (v. 30). 

LIKE-MINDEDNESS IS NOT GROUPTHINK

I have sometimes thought that atheists and infidels must run secret versions of “Vacation Bible School” for all the infidel children. This is where they first learned to quote verses like “judge not lest ye be judged.” And they sing little songs to help them remember everything. Another thing that unbelievers do is this. They first complain about all the divisions among Christians. “Look at all the denominations. You guys can’t even get along.” And yet when the grace of God is poured out on believers, such that there is true unity of mind in evidence, their response is to accuse everyone of belonging to a cult. So wisdom is vindicated by her children (Luke 7:32). 

FEARFUL PERSECUTORS

We sometimes imagine that the enemies of God are much more bold than they actually are. Herod the Great sat on a throne, but he certainly sat on it nervously. He was spooked by news of a baby. And his son, Herod Antipas, was threatened by a fierce man who lived in the desert, and who lived on a diet of locusts and honey. But why? John the Baptist had no regiments. The apostle Paul was once held prisoner by Felix, and as the apostle spoke of things like righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come (Acts 24:25), it was Felix who trembled. And when Pilate was talking to Jesus, holding the power to condemn Him in his hands, with a mob outside shouting, when they repeated what Jesus had said, it was Pilate who feared (John 19:8).

We might here repurpose the words of the economist Thomas Sowell, who once said, “It’s amazing how much panic one honest man can spread among a multitude of hypocrites.” 

When the grace of God surrounds Christians in a time of persecution, this communicates something to everyone involved. The believers know that God “will never leave them or forsake them.” They know that God is with them, and so they are deeply encouraged. But this presence of God is noticed by everyone—not just the believers. As Paul puts it here, this celestial calm is an evident token to them of their perdition.  

A TWO-FOLD GRACE

The Philippians had been given a two-fold gift. The first gift was that of believing in Christ in the first place. But if a man were to say to his wife, “not only did I give you the bracelet, I also gave you the necklace,” how many gifts did he give? That is correct—two. If Paul says that not only was the gift of faith given to them, but also the gift of suffering, we can see that faith in God through Christ is itself a gift of God. 

Scripture teaches us this in various places. Peter says that we have obtained a precious faith through the righteousness of God and Christ (2 Pet. 1:1). Paul says that we saved by grace through faith and that [faith] is not of yourselves, but is rather a gift of God—lest anyone boast (Eph. 2:8-10). And the faith that healed the crippled man was a faith that was “by him” (Acts 3:16).

And so just as faith is a gift from a sovereign God who knows exactly what He is doing, so also are all the persecutions that have broken out over the centuries. When the apostles were flogged for their preaching (Acts 5:40), what was their response?

“And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name” (Acts 5:41).

It was an honor to be so dishonored. It was a grace to be disgraced. Notice how this suffering meant to them that they were “counted worthy” to be shamed for the sake of His name. And our text in Philippians tells us to let our conduct be worthy of the gospel that we are striving to advance. And so what does this mean? It means like-mindedness through shared suffering.

And following the Christ who has gone before us.

Read Full Article

The Conveyor Belt of Time (Philippians #3)

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

The great Augustine once said that in the affairs of men, the dead are replaced by the dying. Isaac Watts memorably rendered Psalm 90 this way: “Time, like an ever-rolling stream/Bears all its sons away;/They fly forgotten, as a dream/Dies at the opening day.” “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).

But there is more to this wisdom than simply recognizing how fleeting our lives are. We need something to compare it to, and that something is one in the order of Melchizedek, with the power of an indestructible life (Heb. 7:16). Without the baseline of eternal life, our earthly lives are not even fleeting.

THE TEXT

“For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith; That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again” (Philippians 1:19–26).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The mere fact of the preaching of Christ, whether from good motives or bad, is going to redound to Paul’s salvation. This will happen through their prayers, and the supply of the Spirit of Christ (v. 19). Whatever happens, Paul’s intense expectation and hope is that he will be bold and not ashamed, whatever happens to his body. That body may live or it may die, but may Christ be magnified either way (v. 20). He then sums it up this way—to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Put another way, to live is Christ, to die is more Christ (v. 21). If he continues to live, that is why he is working so hard—it is what his labor is all about (v. 22). But he doesn’t know what he would choose if it were up to him. One of the reasons for being familiar with the King James is that it makes you acquainted with great phrases like I wot not, which means “I cannot tell.” How else would you learn that? Paul is torn between two options. To depart and be with Christ would be far better for Paul (v. 23), but to remain would be the greater blessing for the Philippians (v. 24). Paul is confident of the short-term outlook because that is what the Philippians need for their edification in joy (v. 25), which would be an abundant joy when Paul is restored to them again (v. 26). And it is likely that Paul was released for a time—he was executed in his second Roman imprisonment.

CONVEYER BELT OF TIME

Everyone in this room is in the process of dying. It unlikely that we will all die in the same instant, but it is more than likely that we will all die. Unless the Lord comes, we are all of us headed in that direction at 60 seconds per minute, 60 minutes per hour, 24 hours per day, and 365 days per year. We have no access to a switch that can turn this conveyor belt off. Given this inexorable reality, you would think that we would spend a little more thought regarding our preparations for that glorious (or very grim) day. It is going to happen, like it or not. And every second of your remaining time is in the very palm of God’s hand.

“Lord, Make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; That I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; And mine age is as nothing before thee: Verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah” (Psalm 39:4–5).

NOW PAUL WAS CERTAINLY PREPARED

We can see in this passage how thoroughly prepared Paul was. This was because his confidence was in the living Christ who made sure that Paul’s only option was between life and Christ, on the one hand, and Christ and life, on the other.

Now the only possible preparation that generates this kind of confidence is a basic, profound, evangelical faith in the resurrection of Christ (Rom. 6:4), and in the justification that rests upon that resurrection (Rom. 4:25). This is the only way that a sinner—like you and like me—could possibly come to the day of his final reckoning, the day when he will take his last step in this world, and be able to step across the threshold to the next world with no condemnation written on his forehead (Rom. 8:1).

This message of justification by faith alone was the lifeblood of Paul’s preaching ministry—you can see it throughout his writings. It is the distinctive Pauline touch.

“The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:56–58).

Only the grace of an imputed righteousness, a righteousness alien to us, can possibly deal with the stain that we dare not carry into the next world.

LIFE, NOT SURVIVAL

We are not Darwinists; survival is not our highest value. Christ is our highest value. Christ is Lord. We love the Lord, crucified and risen, and He is a God who reciprocates. “Precious in the sight of the Lord Is the death of his saints” (Psalm 116:15).

Read Full Article

Envy Everywhere (Philippians #2)

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

Scripture teaches us that envy is an insidious sin. It is a destructive and soul-rotting force, and has the ability to go anywhere. It is found with the lowly and among the mighty. Envy lurks in slums and struts in kings’ palaces. We need to be far more wary of this sin than we usually are.

THE TEXT

“But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel. What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice” (Philippians 1:12–18).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Paul has noted that he was imprisoned (v. 7), and he rejoiced in the fact that the Philippians were partakers together with him in his suffering. But he then goes on to note another advantage that had fallen out from his imprisonment. Because he was locked up, the gospel was advanced (v. 12). In other words, they locked up the preacher, and the sermon was set loose. The fact that he was chained was known throughout the whole praetorium, as well as elsewhere (v. 13). The praetorium comes from the word praetor, which means magistrate or leader. You could have a praetorium in places other than Rome (e.g. Pilate had one—Mark 15:16), but this usage, together with the reference to the Christians who were part of Caesar’s household (Phil. 4:22), indicates that Paul was imprisoned in Rome. Because Paul’s imprisonment had made a splash, this was an encouragement to others to take up the task of preaching without fear (v. 14). Paul did acknowledge that some were doing this out of envy and strife, wanting to make things a bit hotter for Paul (v. 15)—but others were doing this from good motives. The envious ones were not sincere, but were trying to make things worse for Paul (v. 16). The word for contention here should be understood as selfish ambition. Paul’s arrest had opened up a lane for them, you see. And if he stayed in prison, the lane would stay open. The true brothers were trying to do the same thing Paul was seeking to do, which was to promote the gospel (v. 17). Remember that the men guilty of this were probably not low-level flunkies. But so long as the message was not tampered with, Paul didn’t mind. As long as Christ was preached, he was not only content, but also in a state of joy over it (v. 18).

A RECAP ON ENVY

Envy is more than mere jealousy or covetousness. It wants more than simply to have what the other has—it wants the other to lose it. Envy is therefore bone rot (Prov. 14:30). There can be a real temptation to envy sinners their “carefree” ways, but don’t do it (Prov. 23:17). Envy is a powerful sin, and who can stand before it (Prov.27:4)? The patriarchs betrayed Joseph out of envy (Acts 7:9). The opposition to the apostles in Acts was envy-driven (Acts 13:45; Acts 17:5). Malice and envy are a true spiritual cancer.

The religious leaders of God’s covenant people were wracked with envy, which is what drove them to reject their Messiah and crucify him. Pilate knew how court politics worked, and he could smell their envy (Matt. 27: 18; Mark 15:10).

It is at least possible that Judas was driven by envy as well. We are not told this explicitly, so hold it loosely. But the incident at the house of Simon the leper in Bethany is what apparently moved Judas to the point of his treachery (Mark 14:10). And Judas was the son of a certain Simon (John 6:71; John 13:26), so he may have been from Bethany, and would have known Mary, and Martha, and Lazarus who lived there (John 11:1). The word for murmured refers to a deep emotion, not just a mild complaint (Mark14:5), and Judas was the spokesman for the angry disciples (John 12:4). I think Judas thought he was the smartest one in the room and was going to force the Lord’s hand. He had seen Jesus walk on water. He had seen Lazarus raised. He had seen the multitudes fed. He knew that if he arranged a checkmate for the Lord, the Lord would be forced to use His power to (finally) do the right thing. When that plan backfired on him spectacularly, he committed suicide over it (Matt. 27:5). The fact that Jesus really loved Mary, Martha and Lazarus didn’t help (John 11:5). And then there was the fact that Judas had asked Mary out once, and she had turned him down flat. Okay, that one’s not in the text.

HOW GOD CRUCIFIED ENVY

God used the crucifixion of Christ as His instrument for breaking their central tool. When we preach the cross, we don’t just draw the symbol of a cross. So as we utilize the symbol, placing it on steeples and such, we are pointing to something else. And what we are pointing to is the story. When we preach the gospel, we are telling the story of what happened when the Lord was crucified. We don’t just give the ‘theological’ meaning of it, although that is crucial. We tell the story. And that means that, until the end of the world, the central story of all history will be told, and in that story, the central villain is envy. And so consequently, the death of Christ was the death of envy.

And when striving, envious preachers preach, they are cutting their own throats, just as the devil did when he stirred up the mobs to call for the Lord’s blood (1 Cor. 2:8).

SO REJOICE WHEN THEY TRY THIS KIND OF THING

So back to Paul. He is in chains in Rome, and there are professing Christians, preachers, who are trying to augment his trials for the sake of their own ambition. The incongruity does not make Paul cynical. He laughs, he rejoices, and he will continue to rejoice.

The God who in His sovereignty brought so many threads together in the crucifixion of His Son, upending the devil’s kingdom by it, is certainly able to upend all the envious and teeny efforts to supplant God’s appointed representatives. Should we worry about it? Not a bit of it. The elect are all already secured. Christ already died for them, and nothing can be done to unwind that.

Read Full Article

The Road Love Travels (Philippians #1)

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

Philippi was a Roman colony that had been planted in Macedonia, northern Greece. It was settled as a place where Roman soldiers could retire. Paul wrote this letter while imprisoned somewhere, and various places have been suggested as possible locations. The mostly likely scenario is that he wrote this letter while imprisoned at Rome (around 62 A.D.). The references Caesar’s household, not to mention the praetorium, are consistent with this (Phil. 1:13; Phil. 4:22).

THE TEXT

“Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace. For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:1–11).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Some of Paul’s letters had a co-author, like this one with Timothy, and some, like Romans or Ephesians, had Paul as the sole author (v. 1). Paul and Timothy wrote this epistle as slaves of Christ, and they wrote to the saints at Philippi, together with the bishops and deacons (v. 1). This is followed by the standard salutation of grace and peace from the Father and Son. I believe the Spirit is not mentioned because He is that grace and peace (v. 2). Every time Paul thinks of the Philippians, he thanks God for them (v. 3). He rejoices before God in all his prayers for them (v. 4), rejoicing in their partaking (koinonia) in the gospel from the start down to the present (v. 5). Paul is confident that God is the kind of God who finishes whatever He starts (v. 6), and will do so down to the day of Christ. It is fitting for him to think this way because the Philippians were co-partakers (that word again) of his chains, and of his defense and confirmation of the gospel. God Himself can testify how much Paul loves the Philippians in the deep affection of Jesus Christ (v. 8). But however deep it all is, that is not enough for Paul . . . he wants their love to abound “more and more” in knowledge and all discernment (v. 9). This will enable them to approve what is excellent, and it will render them sincere and blameless until the day of Christ (v. 10). They will do this filled with the fruits of righteousness, brought into being by Jesus Christ, with the result that God receives glory and praise (v. 11).

WHERE THE ACTION IS

Notice how Paul and Timothy address the congregation of saints directly. The letter is written to “all the saints at Philippi”—that is where the action is. Paul does address the rulers in the church, but does so as an afterthought. He speaks to the congregation, and then adds the phrase “the bishops and deacons.” The word for bishop (episcopos) is being used here synonymously with presbyteros, or elder. Note the plural—this is not the solitary monarchical bishop of the second century. The church was governed by a session of men as elders or bishops, and also was served by a band of deacons. Nevertheless, Paul speaks directly to them all—their rulers are not their mediators.

DEEP AFFECTION

The AV refers to the love of Christ here with the phrase the “bowels of Jesus Christ.” This is more reflective of the original than the word affection does by itself (NKJV, ESV, NASB). Paul loves the Philippians with an intense love that Jesus Christ Himself churns up in his gut.

God does not love us because He is divine and that is technically His job. Too many Christians think of the love of God as something that is rarefied and disinterested and objective and theological, and totally, completely pure and detached. We tend to think that the love of God is so pure that it is scarcely even interested in us.

This is not even close to being biblical. God so loved the world that He gave . . . gave what? His only begotten Son (John 3:16). And when that love of God is ministered to us through our fellow saints, it flows through those personal channels in personally turbulent ways.

THE ROAD LOVE TRAVELS

With this said, it would be a grave mistake to think that the essence of love is sentimental turbulence. The thing that is turbulent about it is the opposition that genuine love always provokes. Love is a kayak in a stretch of white water.

Biblical love has a brain. It is intelligent. Notice the progression that we see in this passage. Paul has a profound love for the Philippians, and he is asking God that their love would abound. Abound in what? He wants their love to abound more and more in knowledge. And in discernment (v. 9). He is not looking for an emotional vat of sentimental goo. This knowledge and discernment will lead them to approve what is excellent (v. 10). This in turn will keep them sincere and without offense until the day of Christ. It will fill them up with the fruits of righteousness, and in a way that will glorify God (v. 11).

So notice love > knowledge/discernment > approval of excellence > sincerity/blamelessness > fruits of righteousness. This is not some emotional spasm. There is a direction to it because growth in love is a growing up into love. And this is only possible because growth into love is to grow up into our Lord Jesus Christ.

Read Full Article

Cultural Revolution and the Sons of Issachar

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

You have no doubt noticed that we live in tumultuous times. Many of you have learned that you should no longer say things like “now I have seen everything,” because that sentiment always seems to be refuted by events in the middle of next week. In our time, we have seen a number of transitions, in which a pattern of escalation can readily be seen. We began with certain cultural issues, of a very serious nature. There was the sexual revolution of the sixties, followed by its bloody reckoning in the 1973 Roe decision. A few years later, in a speech to the 1992 Republican National Convention, Pat Buchanan coined the phrase culture wars. And now, according to certain insightful observers, we are on the threshold of a cultural revolution, similar in outlook to what Mao launched in China in 1966.

How are we, as Christians, to understand and respond to all of this?

THE TEXT

“And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment” (1 Chronicles 12:32).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Our text is part of the record of how David consolidated his reign over all of Israel, during the time when the house of Saul was being combined with the house of David. Judah, David’s tribe, brought in 6800 warriors (v. 24). Simeon, from the north, contributed 7100 men (v. 25). Levites are mentioned (vv. 26-28), some warriors but others no doubt priests. Ephraim brought in a large number (20,800) and the half tribe of Manasseh did the same (18,000). But the really striking thing about this passage is what is said about the wise men of Issachar. There were two hundred of them (v. 34), and their brothers with them were under their authority. The thing they contributed, ranked up here with tens of thousands of skilled warriors, was the fact that they understood the situation and they had a plan. They were oriented, and they were ready for action.

SUMMARY OF OUR SITUATION 

In his book on preaching, John Stott says that the preacher stands between two worlds, which is also the title of his book. The preacher must understand the text, and be able to state faithfully what that text is saying. Because it is the Word of God, the meaning of it does not twist or shift from age to age. “The words of the Lord are pure words: As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” (Psalm 12:6). The silver is always pure, and this silver is always silver.

But a preacher must also be a son of Issachar. He must be able to exegete the times, so that he can apply the constant Scriptures to an inconstant world. The challenge in exegeting the times is that men are slippery, and confused, and deceptive, and constantly changing. Man is unstable as water, and because he is a sinner, it is always dirty water.

There are secular thinkers who understand the times pretty well, but because they don’t have the Word, they are lost in the chaos, however accurately they might see the chaos. There are biblical preachers who understand the text of Scripture well, but who have no idea how it might ever apply to anything. They are like an arms expert who knows how to assemble and disassemble a rocket launcher in a factory somewhere, but who has no idea what to do with it on the field of battle.

The sons of Issachar were not like this. They understood the times, first thing, and they knew how the Word of God should inform the plan of action.

THE PERENNIAL TEMPTATION

Becoming a son of Issachar can at times be pretty lonesome. “Who’s that guy, going off about his ‘rant thing’ again?”

“This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me: There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it: Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man. Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard. The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good” (Ecclesiastes 9:13–18).

In David’s time, such men were recognized and heeded. But David’s son Solomon recognized how easy it is to neglect, overlook, or forget such men. But that still doesn’t matter. Wisdom is still better than weapons of war. Wisdom is still better than strength. The city is still delivered, and so we should always remember the wisdom of Ronald Reagan’s desk plaque. “There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn’t mind who gets the credit.”

WHAT ISRAEL SHOULD DO

We of course are not the chosen nation the way Israel was. But we are a nation that has fallen steeply away from the faith we once professed, and we are under the severe chastisements of God for our apostasy. So under this heading, I am merely saying what this “Israel” should do.

  • Worship God: our culture is in the state it is in because of all the true worship rendered to false gods, and all the false worship rendered to the true God. We become like what we worship, and this is no less true of societies than it is of individuals (Ps. 115). Worship the Most High God as though He were the Most High God.
  • Tie family ties tighter: Love your wife. Respect your husband. Educate your children in the Lord. Be done with porn. Sit down at your dinner table together. Confess your familial sins, especially anger and bitterness (Luke 1:17). Sing. Read stories where the bad guys are defeated.
  • Read books that orient you: You may be distressed because you don’t think you are among the sons of Issachar. But nothing prevents you from reading books that the sons of Issachar write. As a starter pack, try Strange New World (Trueman), Christianity and Liberalism (Machen), Idols for Destruction (Schlossberg), Love Thy Body (Pearcey), and The God of Sex (Jones).
  • Review your doctrinal commitments: I would begin with your postmillennialism, then move on to the covenant, and then on to Calvinism. Get these truths, and the biblical basis for them, down into your bones.
  • Muster your courage: “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: But the righteous are bold as a lion” (Proverbs 28:1). The church lockdowns and masking orders (and such) were simply a beta test, seeking to find out how soft the church was. The answer for them was “pretty soft.” And so you need to be prepared for the time when the church is ordered to meet just once a month in order to help “fight climate change.” You need to know beforehand that you are part of a church that will not comply.

Read Full Article