Church, Wright and “Christianity and our Times”

 

In a day when churches and its pastors/teachers are using the pulpit for anything and everything but the true gospel message of salvation, it is high time for us to revisit what we believe and sharpen our swords/minds for spiritual readiness in battle.  I am reading through BB Warfield’s Works, which are, mildly put, “incredible” and was reminded of this article “Christianity and our Times” devotional I had linked from time past at the old SwordandShield site and thought it a good one to share.  Here are a few excerpts to whet your appetite.

“When we are asked why it is that there are so many persons who are indifferent to the claims of the Church, no doubt the safest answer to give is that it is for reasons best known to themselves. It seems, however, only a voluntary humility to profess to be ignorant of the fundamental basis of this indifference; an indifference, let it be well borne in mind, which is in no sense “modern,” but has characterized ever greater numbers as we go back in the history of the Church to the very beginning. It lies in a weak sense of sin and the natural unconcern of men who do not feel themselves sinners with respect to salvation from sin. For Christianity addresses itself only to sinners. Its Founder himself declared that he did not come to call the righteous but sinners; and its chief expounder declared with energetic emphasis that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. When Sir Oliver Lodge announces, in words the truth of which is sufficiently avouched by the chorus of approval with which they have been greeted by those presumedly spoken of, that “as a matter of fact the higher man of today is not worrying about his sins at all, still less about their punishment,” he has uncovered the whole explanation of the current indifference to Christianity. He might have extended his remark, indeed, to cover the lower as well as the higher man, of other days as well as this: there have always been men in sufficient abundance, both higher and lower, who have not bothered themselves about their sins. The open secret of the indifference of men of all classes in all ages to Christianity, so far as that indifference has existed, lies in the indifference of men to sin, and their consequent indifference to salvation from sin. Christianity makes no appeal to men who do not feel the burden of sin.”

“By “the fundamental theology of the Church” is meant especially the Church’s confession of that series of the redemptive acts of God, by which he has supernaturally intervened in human history for the salvation of sinful man, as interpreted and given their full caning in the revelation which he has made to his people in time past at sundry times and in divers manners through his servants the prophets, and in these last times in his Son speaking through the apostles whom he appointed as his representatives in founding his Church. This is not a mass of cunningly devised fables, but the substance of saving truth. And no message can be effective for the salvation of a lost world which does not stand for and teach in the face of all hesitation and unbelief, denial and opposition, those things which constitute the sum-total of this saving truth, as it has been set down for us in Holy Scripture. The message of Christianity concerns, not “the values of human life,” but the grace of the saving God in Christ Jesus. And in proportion as the grace of the saving God in Christ Jesus is obscured or passes into the background, in that proportion does Christianity slip from our grasp. Christianity is summed up in the phrase: “God was in Christ, reconciling the world with himself.” Where this great confession is contradicted or neglected, there is no Christianity.” –full article–

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Christianity & Our Times by Benjamin B. Warfield

“Thou Art A Fountain of Gardens…”

 

Title: “Thou Art A Fountain of Gardens…”

Author:  Matthew Henry

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“Thou art a fountain of gardens, A well of living waters, And flowing streams from Lebanon.  Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; Blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, And eat his precious fruits. ” Son 4:15-16

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One of my favorite books of God’s Word is the Song of Solomon…a beautiful book full of choice morsels for us to mediate upon and praise God for the promises it offers in Christ. We are here at last at March and I am looking forward to God’s creation springing forth from the earth in my garden and was reminded of the garden of God and us His caretakers tilling until He comes again. Be blessed this month to read the Song of Solomon in it entirety and mediate on the riches of His abundant gifts to you.__RW

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These seem to be the words of the spouse, the church, in answer to the commendations which Christ, the Bridegroom, had given of her as a pleasant fruitful garden. Is she a garden?

I. She owns her dependence upon Christ himself to make this garden fruitful. To him she has an eye (Son_4:15) as the fountain of gardens, not only the founder of them, by whom they are planted and to whom they owe their being, but the fountain of them, by which they are watered and to which they own their continuance and well-being, and without whose constant supplies they would soon become like the dry and barren wilderness. To him she gives all the glory of her fruitfulness, as being nothing without him: O fountain of gardens! fountain of all good, of all grace, do not thou fail me. Does a believer say to the church, All my springs are in thee, in thee, O Zion? (Psa_87:7), the church transmits the praise to Christ, and says to him, All my springs are in thee; thou art the well of living waters (Jer_2:13), out of which flow the streams of Lebanon, the river Jordan, which had its rise at the foot of Mount Lebanon, and the waters of the sanctuary, which issued out from under the threshold of the house, Eze_47:1. Those that are gardens to Christ must acknowledge him a fountain to them, from whose fulness they receive and to whom it is owing that their souls are as a watered garden, Jer_31:12. The city of God on earth is made glad with the river that flows from this fountain (Psa_46:4), and the new Jerusalem has its pure river of water of life proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, Rev_22:1.

II. She implores the influences of the blessed Spirit to make this garden fragrant (Son_4:16): Awake, O north wind! and come, thou south. This is a prayer, 1. For the church in general, that there may be a plentiful effusion of the Spirit upon it, in order to its flourishing estate. Ministers’ gifts are the spices; when the Spirit is poured out these flow forth, and then the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, Isa_32:15. This prayer was answered in the pouring out of the Spirit on the day of pentecost (Act_2:1), ushered in by a mighty wind; then the apostles, who were bound up before, flowed forth, and were a sweet savour to God, 2Co_2:15. 2. For particular believers. Note, (1.) Sanctified souls are as gardens, gardens of the Lord, enclosed for him. (2.) Graces in the soul are as spices in these gardens, that in them which is valuable and useful. (3.) It is very desirable that the spices of grace should flow forth both in pious and devout affections and in holy gracious actions, that with them we may honour God, adorn our profession, and do that which will be grateful to good men. (4.) The blessed Spirit, in his operations upon the soul, is as the north and the south wind, which blows where it listeth, and from several points, Joh_3:8. There is the north wind of convictions, and the south wind of comforts; but all, like the wind, brought out of God’s treasuries and fulfilling his word. (5.) The flowing forth of the spices of grace depends upon the gales of the Spirit; he stirs up good affections, and works in us both to will and to do that which is good; it is he that makes manifest the savour of his knowledge by us. (6.) We ought therefore to wait upon the Spirit of grace for his quickening influences, to pray for them, and to lay our souls under them. God has promised to give us his Spirit, but he will for this be enquired of.

III. She invites Christ to the best entertainment the garden affords: “Let my beloved then come into his garden and eat his pleasant fruits; let him have the honour of all the products of the garden (it is fit he should), and let me have the comfort of his acceptance of them, for that is the best account they can be made to turn to.” Observe, 1. She calls it his garden; for those that are espoused to Christ call nothing their own, but what they have devoted to him and desire to be used for him. When the spices flow forth then it is fit to be called his garden, and not till then. The fruits of the garden are his pleasant fruits, for he planted them, watered them, and gave the increase. What can we pretend to merit at Christ’s hands when we can invite him to nothing but what is his own already? 2. She begs he would visit it, and accept of what it produced. The believer can take little pleasure in his garden, unless Christ, the beloved of his soul, come to him, nor have any joy of the fruits of it, unless they redound some way or other to the glory of Christ, and he will think all he has well bestowed upon him.

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JoyPals.com-”Heavenly Notes” March

Sissel “Ready to Go Home”

Sissel’s beautiful performance of “Ready To Go Home”

Ready To Go Home
(Andrew Gold / Graham Gouldman)

On the streets below these walls
Where I used to walk
Now I can barely crawl
All this darkness rising tall
Lord, shine a light for me
I’m waiting to be called
I’m ready to go home
I’m ready to receive forgiveness for my sins
I’m ready to begin
Take this river to the sea
Where the delta flows
The tide is washing over me
Take this soul to heaven’s door
Show me where tomorrow lies
I’m waiting to be born
I’m ready to lay down
I’m ready now to sleep
A promise I must keep
I’m ready to go home
So tired, I lay down with these memories
I breath shallow deep inside of me