Apologetics

18
Apr
2020
The Corona Virus

The Corona Virus

The Corona Virus 

I am writing these words during the unprecedented times of the Corona virus. Currently, we are living through a worldwide pandemic known as Covid19. Here in Britain – and elsewhere – we are under ‘lock down’ to prevent the virus spreading. This apart, every day the news reports a sad death toll. Many have lost their jobs as well as their loved ones. Normal life seems to be on hold, with the closure of non-essential shops, places of entertainment, restaurants and even churches. Thankfully, I still have a job, as technically I am a ‘key worker.’ Work though has introduced ‘social distancing’, as have the supermarkets. They have supplied us with hand sanitizer, and everywhere there are notices stressing the importance of hand washing. On a happier note, the country seems to be united in battle against the virus. On a Thursday night at 2000 hrs, we all go outside and give our beleaguered NHS workers – and other key workers – a well deserved and supportive round of applause. But do the Scriptures shed any light on the current Corona virus? Of course they do.

The Providence of God

Scripture teaches that behind every event, ultimately there lies the will of God. God is working His eternal purposes out. ‘For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory for ever. Amen’ (Romans 11:36). The events of this life then are not accidental but providential – ordained and foreordained by Almighty God. ‘God’s works of providence are His most holy, wise and powerful preserving and governing all His creatures and all their actions’ (Shorter Catechism). Almighty God is thus is control of the farthest planet, and Almighty God is thus in control of the minutest microbe. He is God. He is beholden to no one. He knows what He is doing and why He is doing it. It would appear that He is currently thwarting some of the modern day idols – sporting events have been cancelled; social gatherings of all kinds have been prohibited and the economy has taken a downturn. It would also appear that with so many events totally beyond our control, He is reminding us that we are not in charge, but that He is the One at the helm of the universe. The Corona Virus knocks away our earthly props and teaches us just how dependent we are on God. Whatever the circumstances, the Christian is called to trust God through thick and thin. ‘Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?’ (Genesis 18:25). He is under no obligation to explain His ways to us. ‘How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!’  (Romans 11:33). William Cowper wrote:-

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform
He plants His footsteps on the sea
And rides upon the storm

Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sovereign will

His purposes will ripen fast
Unfolding every hour
The bud may have a bitter taste
But sweet will be the flower.

Have faith in God

For the Christian, a time of crisis is an opportunity to trust in God and grow in faith. God has not vacated His throne! ‘The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, and His kingdom rules over all’ (Psalm 103:19). Testing times are to be trusting times, and the God of the Bible is infinitely worthy of your trust. The Bible often descries God as a ‘Rock.’ In Him we may find stability in unstable times. Isaiah 26:3,4 ‘Thou dost keep him imperfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because He trusts in Thee. Trust in the LORD for ever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.’

Be sensible

The Bible never encourages us to be presumptuous or reckless, but sane and sober minded. God uses means. He uses secondary causes. Thus we pray for daily bread – but also work so we can buy bread. We pray that God would protect us – but we also lock our doors. We pray for our unsaved friends – but also hand them a Gospel tract and even invite them to church. The Corona Virus reveals our fragility and vulnerability. It casts us on God. But this does not mean that we should not obey the government’s guidelines, so: observe your social distance; stay at home in isolation of you have the symptoms; be very careful about hygiene; seek medical advice is you are really smitten by the virus and have difficulty breathing.

Banish your fears with faith

While it is right and compassionate to be concerned about the present pandemic, fear is not compatible with faith. It is incompatible with knowing God as Father, Christ as Saviour and the indwelling comfort of God’s Holy Spirit. Isaiah 12:2 exclaims ‘Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.’

Fear is as needless as it is pointless and sinful. Why? Because our times are safely in God’s hands. Scripture reveals the He, in His providence, has foreordained both the day of our birth and the day of our death, and we will not die prematurely and we will also not breathe for a moment longer than God has foreordained. ‘In Thy book were written, ever one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them’ (Psalm 139:16).

So take heart. God is in control. Your days are in His care. You are immortal until He sees fit to call you home, whether by old age, illness, accident so-called, or even by the Corona Virus. God knows best!

Sovereign Ruler of the skies
Ever gracious, ever wise
All my times are in Thy hand
All events at Thy command

He that formed me in the womb
He shall guide me to the tomb
All my times shall ever be
Ordered by His wise decree

Plagues and deaths around me fly
Till He bids I cannot die
Not a single shaft can hit
Till the love of God sees fit.

Copyright, Timothy J Cross, 2020

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Providence, Salvation, Suffering, 0 comments
13
Nov
2019
TULIP

TULIP

One of my earliest memories is that of a family holiday in Holland. I have never been back since, but I can still recall the windmills, novelty clogs, the waterways of Amsterdam, a tour of an Edam cheese factory and the very friendly welcome which the Dutch people gave to us children. Most vividly of all though I can still picture the vast fields of  tulips. These seemed like a great sea of red, surging and rippling in the wind.

In 1618 in Holland, the Synod of Dort was convened by the Dutch Reformed Church. The lasting outcome of this Synod was five articles, easily remembered by the acrostic T.U.L.I.P. The articles are known as the ‘Five Points of Calvinism’ and they give a very succinct summary of the Faith of the Bible. The five letters in the TULIP acrostic stand for:-

 

T – Total Depravity

U – Unconditional Election

L – Limited Atonement

I – Irresistible Calling

P – Perseverance of the Saints

 

Let us then consider these five points–also known as ‘The Doctrines of Grace’–a little more closely.

 

1. Total Depravity

‘Total depravity’ gives a biblical diagnosis of the human condition. As descendants of Adam, we are sinners who need to be saved, and ‘total depravity’ refers to our total inability to save ourselves. We are helpless and hopeless apart from God’s saving grace.

Total depravity does not mean that every one is as evil as it is humanly possible to be, but rather that sin has infected and affected us totally: by nature our hearts are dead towards God, so we do not naturally love Him; by nature our minds are ignorant of God – they are spiritually blind – so that we do not naturally know Him; by nature our wills – subject to our sinful nature – are disobedient towards God, so that we do not naturally seek Him or obey His law. Sin then has affected us totally. We need to be saved, but being spiritually dead in our sins, we are unable to save ourselves and reach out to God for mercy.

Total depravity then is the first point of the five points of Calvinism. There is a reason for this. How and where we start determines where we go. Defective views of human sin will lead to a defective view – or non-view – of salvation. We have to dig deep into the dark soil before we can build up high into the light. A correct diagnosis always precedes a correct cure. The biblical diagnosis  of the human condition is ‘Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me’ (Psalm 51:5). ‘None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands, no one seeks for God. All have turned aside, together they have gone wrong; no one does good, not even one’ (Romans 3:10-12).

 

2. Unconditional Election

 Unable to save ourselves, God alone can save. Unconditional election reminds us that the initiative in salvation is God’s, not ours. He is a God of sovereign grace. Before the foundation of the world, the eternal, omniscient God saw all humanity. Out of these, He exercised His divine prerogative, and chose an innumerable number for eternal salvation from their lost, condemned plight. He chose – or elected – these for eternal blessing, and by-passed others. His elect had not yet been born, so their salvation was solely due to God’s unconditional choice of them, not to their own merit or demerit.

Divine election has never been a popular doctrine, as it is such a blow to human pride and self-sufficiency. But the Bible teaches divine election throughout its pages:- ‘He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world …’ (Ephesians 1:4). ‘We know, brethren beloved by God, that He has chosen you’ (1 Thessalonians 1:4). To those who object to God’s divine right of choosing some and not others, the Bible’s reply is ‘let God be God.’ Romans 9:21 asks the rhetorical question ‘Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for beauty and another for menial use?’

 

3. Limited Atonement

Limited atonement – also known as ‘particular redemption’ teaches that Christ died to procure and secure the salvation of God’s elect – the forgiveness of their sins and their eternal peace with God. Christ died, not for everyone – certainly not for those lost in hell – but for a particular people: God’s elect. His death was thus a purposeful, not a pointless one. His death did not make salvation potential or possible, but rather it actually procured the salvation of God’s elect. Christ’s death then – the central point of the five points in every way – and the redeeming benefits of His death was limited – or confined – to God’s elect. It was not for the world in general, for if so, it would have been for no one in particular. Christ’s death was neither vague nor in vain, for Scripture teaches that Christ’s death was with a view to the actual salvation of a particular people: ‘He was wounded for our transgressions …’ (Isaiah 53:5). ‘He will save His people from their sins’ (Matthew 1:21). ‘Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her’ (Ephesians 5:25) et al.

 

4. Irresistible Calling

Irresistible calling is the next step in the divine plan of salvation, and is both logical and theological. Irresistible calling teaches that those whom God has chosen, and those for whom Christ died to redeem, will most certainly be called to saving faith in Christ in time. God, by His Word and Spirit is active in applying the work of Christ’s atonement to His people. He overcomes all the barriers of human inability, hostility and apathy, and draws them to the foot of the cross and enables them to trust the crucified Saviour for full salvation. Jesus Himself said ‘No one can come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws him’ (John 6:44) and ‘All that the Father gives Me (that is, His elect) will come to me’ (John 6:37).

 

‘Effectual calling is the work of God’s Spirit whereby convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of God and renewing our wills, He doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the Gospel’ (Shorter Catechism).

 

5. Perseverance of the Saints

The perseverance of the saints  refers to the divine preservation of God’s elect for eternal glory. They will not fall away, as God the Father does not cast out His children. The Bible teaches the eternal security of the Christian. Those chosen by God, redeemed by Christ and sanctified by His Spirit will never by lost but kept by God for eternal glory. Salvation is God’s work. It is He Who does the choosing, redeeming, calling and keeping, and nothing can frustrate, thwart, spoil or mar omnipotence.  ‘In Him, according to the purpose of Him Who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of His will, we who first hoped in Christ have been destined and appointed to live for the praise of His glory’ (Ephesians 1:11,12).

Christians have come to know the Lord Jesus as their Good Shepherd Who gave His life to save them. This Shepherd will never abandon His sheep. He stated ‘My sheep hear My voice, and I known them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of My hand’ (John 10:27,28).

 

There then are the doctrines of grace – the so called ‘Five Points of Calvinism.’ With election in eternity past at one end, glorification at the other, and the cross of Christ in the middle, they are an all embracing statement of Christian doctrine:- Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Calling and the Perseverance of the Saints. C.H Spurgeon referred to these five points as ‘five great lamps which help to irradiate the cross; or, rather, five bright emanations springing from the glorious covenant of our Triune God, illustrating the great doctrine of Jesus crucified.’ He was right. When the five points of Calvinism truly grip the Christian’s heart, our response can only be that of praising and magnifying the grace of God and the God of grace as  revealed to us in His inerrant Word:-

 

Amazing grace how sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me

I once was lost but now am found

Was blind but now I see

The Lord has promised good to me

His Word my hope secures

He will my Shield and Portion be

As long as life endures

Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail

And mortal life shall cease

I shall possess within the veil

A life of joy and peace.

 

Timothy Cross

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Providence, Reformation, 0 comments
23
Jul
2019
The Holy Trinity

The Holy Trinity

The Holy Trinity

 

Glory be to God the Father

Glory be to God the Son

Glory be to God the Spirit

Great Jehovah, Three in One:

Glory, glory

While eternal ages run!

 

The doctrine of the divine Trinity is a Fundamental Christian belief and Christian distinctive. The doctrine of the divine trinity is often regarded as the touchstone of Christian orthodoxy. All false religions, cults and heresies are a denial of the Trinity in some way or other.

The final authority for Christian faith and practice is the Word of God, the Bible. It may then  surprise you to know that the word ‘Trinity’ is not actually used in the Bible to describe the Deity revealed there. Yet paradoxically, the word ‘Trinity’ could not be more biblical. Christian theologians coined the word as a way of describing the Tri-une nature of the One Who is revealed in the pages of Scripture. The Bible teaches that God is one and God is three. The Shorter Catechism  reads:-

 

Are there more Gods than one?

There is but one only, the living and true God.

 

How many persons are in the Godhead?

There are three persons in the God-head, the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory.

 

The Unity of God

The unity of God is a basic axiom of Scripture. If the Old Testament has a ‘creed’ it is Deuteronomy 6:4 which affirms: ‘Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. The Faith of the Bible is strictly – even intolerantly – monotheistic. God alone can declare ‘I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like Me’ (Isaiah 46:9). It is the strict monotheism of the Old Testament which is the rationale behind the first and foremost of the ten commandments where God states: ‘I am the LORD your God … You shall have no other gods before Me’ (Exodus 20:1,3). Jeremiah 10:10 declares ‘The LORD is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King.’ Hence both the seriousness and the folly of idolatry, that is, giving allegiance to anyone or anything other than the one, true God.

The Tri-unity of God

Whilst the Bible is very strict in its monotheism, it also reveals a distinction of Persons within the One true God – a Tri-unity. This is evident from the very first page of Scripture. The Bible begins ‘In the beginning God …’ (Genesis 1:1). The word for ‘God’ here is the plural word ‘Elohim.’ We then get a glimpse of this plurality when we read on and see that ‘the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters’ (Genesis 1:2) and also read that ‘God said …’ (Genesis 1:1 et. al.). The latter refers to God’s Word. John 1:1-18 – with its echoes of Genesis 1:1 – describes this Word of God as none other than the eternal Son of God Who, in the fullness of time became Man in the Lord Jesus Christ. We thus glimpse both the unity and the trinity of God – His tri-unity/diversity in unity – on the very first page of Scripture. The account of creation in Genesis 1 reaches its climax with the creation of man. The plurality within God’s unity is seen in that epochal event when we read that God said ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness’ (Genesis 1:26). The first chapter of the Bible tallies with the first chapter of the last book of the Bible, for Revelation 1:4,5 contains the opening greeting: ‘Grace to you and peace from Him Who is and Who was and Who is to come, and from the seven spirits Who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.’

The New Testament

It is in the New Testament, however, that the Trinitarian nature of the one true God comes into sharper focus. We see this notably in the baptism of the Lord Jesus by John the Baptist in the river Jordan – an event related by all three synoptic Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark and Luke. Taking Matthew’s account as our example, we see that:-

 

  1. ‘Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptised by him’ (Matthew 3:13) – a reference to God the Son, the second person of the Trinity.
  2. ‘When Jesus was baptised … the heavens were opened and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting on Him’ (Matthew 3:16) – a reference to God the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, and:-
  3. ‘lo a voice from heaven, saying ‘This is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased’’ (Matthew 3:17 – a reference to God the Father, the first person of the Trinity.

The divine Trinity is thus seen at the outset of Jesus ministry, as it is also seen at its end, when Jesus gave His final ‘Great Commission’ to His disciples so: ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name (singular) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ (Matthew 28:19).

Triune Salvation

We have seen that the Bible reveals the divine Trinity in action at the creation of the universe, as related in Genesis 1: The universe was created through the action of both God’s Word – the Lord Jesus Christ  – ‘all things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made’ (John 1:2) – and God’s Spirit moving over the face of the waters.

The Bible also reveals that all three members of the Trinity cooperate in the sinner’s salvation – the new creation. Each divine Person has His distinct role in the divine economy in achieving the sinner’s eternal blessedness. 1 Peter 1:2, for instance, reads that Christians are ‘chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with His blood. Then Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:13 says to the believers in Thessalonica that ‘God chose you from the beginning to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.’ Christian salvation is thus a tri-une salvation. If we are saved it is because we have been chosen for salvation by God the Father in eternity past. He then sent His Son to procure our salvation through the shedding of His precious blood on Calvary’s cross. The Holy Spirit of God then applies this work of redemption to our hearts, convicting us of our sin and enabling us to trust in the crucified Christ, and so be reconciled to God the Father.

Christian salvation therefore is a result of the working of God the Holy Trinity. And Christian experience continues to be tri-une. Prayer is one of the Christian’s highest earthly privileges. Whilst all three members of the Trinity may be invoked in prayer, as all three are persons, normally prayer is a matter of coming to God the Father, through God the Son, in the power of the Holy Spirit – ‘through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father’ (Ephesians 2:18).

Every Christian grace and blessing therefore is a result of the operation of God the Holy Trinity. The Christian Faith is Trinitarian in doctrine, practice and experience. Hence, since the first century, it is fitting that public Christian worship has invariably been concluded by quoting the famous benediction of 2 Corinthians 13:12: ‘The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.’

The Christian Faith then – as revealed in Scripture, and defined in the subordinate standards of the Christian church – is distinctly, distinctively, distinguishingly and definitely Trinitarian. It is against this touchstone that all counterfeit faiths may be weighed in the balance and found wanting. True Christianity is Trinitarian in its doctrine, salvation, experience and praise:-

 

Almighty God to Thee

Be endless honours done

The undivided Three

And the mysterious One

Where reason fails, with all her powers

There faith prevails, and love adores.

 

Copyright Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Worship, 0 comments
23
Jul
2019
When We Don’t Understand

When We Don’t Understand

When We Don’t Understand

 John 13:7 contains these words of the Lord Jesus – words spoken in the Upper Room, as He washed His disciples feet, before His death on the cross: Jesus said ‘What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.’

               John 13:7 seems to have a wider application than just its original context. The verse reveals something of the way of God with His children. The verse suggests that at any one, particular moment, we may be in the dark concerning God’s dealings with us. We might not understand what He is doing in our lives at all. The verse also suggests that, happily, one day, all will be revealed and made plain, and, with our full hindsight, we would not want things to have been any other way at all.

Jesus’ words in John 13:7 are words to hold on to. We all have our disappointments. We all can get dreadfully disillusioned and disheartened. Circumstances sometimes knock the steam right out of us and leave us very downcast. ‘Why does life have to be like this?’ we ask. The Lord Jesus’ reply is: ‘What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.’ 

God Knows

 Almighty God is under no obligation to reveal the reason for everything to us. He is God, and as such is not obliged to explain His ways to His creatures. The secret things belong to the LORD our God … (Deuteronomy 29:29). This being so, we will not always be able to fathom His providential working in our lives. Romans 8:28 assures us that He is working all things for our ultimate blessing – but at any one moment we might not think or feel that way.

As an example of the above, consider Joseph in the Old Testament. He was rejected by his brothers. He was sold into slavery in Egypt. In Egypt he was unjustly put into prison. How did Joseph feel? Pained and perplexed for sure. Yet, sovereignly and secretly, God was working all things out for both his and the nations good. Hence, at the end of his life Joseph, with added hindsight could say to his brothers ‘As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good …’ (Genesis 50:20). At any one moment then we may not understand God’s dealings with us. ‘What I am doing you do not know now …’ The Psalmist said Thy way was through the sea, Thy path through the great waters; yet Thy footsteps were unseen.

We Know

 ‘What I am doing you do not know now …’ We are ignorant of much, for sure. Our understanding is limited. Yet, if we know our Bible and if we know the God of the Bible, what we do not know should not blind us to what we do know. We know that He knows! He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold (Job 23:10). We know that in everything God works for good with those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.

In our dark days, we may remind ourselves that we are not the only exception to the truth of Romans 8:28. Also, when we do not understand what God is doing in our lives, we may remind ourselves of the character of God Himself, as revealed in the Bible. This will encourage our faith and enable us to trust Him ‘in the dark.’ The Bible reveals that God is infinite in love and mercy. The Bible reveals that God is on the throne of the universe and is infinite in power. The Bible reveals that God is infinite in wisdom – He is incapable of making mistakes. All His ways are righteous. The Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and right is He (Deuteronomy 32:4). He is infinitely worthy of our trust, whatever our current circumstances.

We Will Know

 Finally, remember that one day, if we belong to Jesus, God will explain to us all that has pained and perplexed us here on earth. All will be revealed. He will unroll the canvas and explain the reason ‘Why?’ And our response will surely be to praise Him all the more for His love, wisdom and grace whose depths until then largely unknown to us. ‘What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.’

Sometimes then we are called to bide our time and exercise patience. We seek God’s grace to ‘hang in there’ by faith. All will be made plain in eternity, when God gives us the full light of heavenly glory. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood.

               I do not know what you are currently going through or have been through – just as you do not know what I have been through. Life has its pains and mysteries as well as its joys. When we do not know what is going on though, Jesus’ words give us courage: ‘What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.’ We walk by faith and not by sight, knowing that our God does all things well and that, one day, all will be revealed, and all will be revealed to be well.

William Cowper, no stranger to the dark and perplexing providences himself, wrote the following well-known hymn:-

God moves in a mysterious way

His wonders to perform

He plants His footsteps on the sea

And rides upon the storm

*

Deep in unfathomable mines

Of never-failing skill

He treasures up His bright designs

And works His sovereign will

*

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense

But trust Him for His grace

Behind a frowning providence

He hides a smiling face

*

His purposes will ripen fast

Unfolding every hour

The bud may have a bitter taste

But sweet will be the flower

*

Blind unbelief is sure to err

And scan His work in vain

God is His own interpreter

And He will make it plain

Copyright, Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Providence, 0 comments
23
Nov
2015

John Knox on Prayer

John Knox Wikipedia ImageWhen John Knox, the Scottish Reformer, was laid to rest in his grave, the Regent of Scotland said of him ‘There lies he who never feared the face of man.’ This reminds us of the paraphrase of Psalm 34: 9, which reads:-

Fear Him (that is, God) ye saints and you will then

Have nothing else to fear

Make you His service your delight

Your wants shall be His care.

I came across the following gem of a quote from John Knox. It concerns John Knox’s view of prayer. John Knox defined true prayer as:-

 

An earnest and familiar talking with God, to whom we declare our miseries, whose support and help we implore and desire in our adversities, and whom we laud and praise for our benefits received (cited in the Evangelical Times book review of August 2015).

 

Let us ponder and unpack this definition a little further:-

 

Talking to God

 

Prayer is ‘An earnest and familiar talking with God …’ said Knox. If that is true, it is indescribably wonderful and astonishing. If relatively few of us are granted the privilege of an audience with the Queen or the Prime Minister, how on earth can we ever get the ear of Almighty God – He who is the highest, unsurpassed and unsurpassable Authority of all? The Bible’s answer is that we can ‘through Jesus Christ our Lord’ – specifically ‘through our Lord Jesus Christ through whom we have now received our reconciliation’ (Romans 5:11). Jesus, by His death on the cross for our sins has reconciled all who believe in Him to God Himself. He has dealt with the enmity and alienation which separated us, namely our sin. ‘He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree’ (1 Peter 2:24). Amazingly, ‘through Him we … have access in one Spirit to the Father’ (Ephesians 2:18). Perhaps even more amazingly, through Christ, we are able to know and address God as ‘Father.’ ‘Adoption’ is one of the Bible’s many synonyms for Christian salvation:-

 

Adoption is an act of God’s free grace whereby we are received into the number and have a right to all the privileges of the sons of God (Shorter Catechism).

 

One of the Christian’s ‘adoptive privileges’ is being able to talk to God in prayer, coming to Him confident in His love, just as an earthly child comes to its father.  Prayer then is, as Knox said ‘an earnest and familiar talking with God.’ Christians know Him as ‘Father.’ The word ‘Father’ connotes authority, and the word ‘Father’ also connotes dependence, intimacy, affection and love. The God of the Bible is never reluctant to hear His children’s prayers!

 

Receiving from God

 

Secondly, according to Knox, in prayer ‘we declare our miseries’ to God and ‘implore and desire His support and help in our adversities.’ John Know himself certainly lived through difficult – even perilous – times and circumstances. But he turned to God in his difficulties and knew His help, support and mercy in and through them. Every Christian will also know difficulty and experience troubles. Ease is guaranteed in the next life, but not this life! It is ‘through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God’ (Acts 14:22). Yet in all our difficulties and troubles, we have a God to whom we can turn for help and support. His wonderful invitation still prevails: ‘Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you and you shall glorify me’ (Psalm 50:15).

Our God and Father is more than able to deliver us from whatever ails us. If though, in His superior wisdom, He sees fit not to do so, He will surely give us grace to live within the boundaries of the providence He has ordained for us. He has promised ‘My grace is sufficient for you’ (2 Corinthians 12:9). Prayer is a chief means of ‘tapping in’ to the all-sufficient sustaining grace of God. Finally, according to Knox, true prayer is also a matter of:-

 

Giving praise and thanks to God

 

When Knox states that prayer entails ‘lauding and praising God for our benefits received’ he was reiterating the teaching and exhortation of Scripture. The Psalmist wrote ‘Bless the LORD O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits’ (Psalm 103:1,2).

If we were to write down on paper all the benefits which almighty God, the ‘fount of every blessing’ bestows on us, we would be in danger of clearing the world of trees! Our God has given us life. Our God has sustained our lives to the present moment. He has fed us, clothed us, protected us and led us. He has bestowed on us infinite earthly blessings – and if we are Christians, we know that He has bestowed on us eternal blessings: the ‘solid joys and lasting treasures which none but Zion’s children know.’ We refer here to ‘the unsearchable riches of Christ’ (Ephesians 3:8) – the benefits which accrue to us by the death of Christ at Calvary: the forgiveness of sins, His imputed righteousness, peace with God, the sure hope of eternal life ET CETERA! God Himself is the one ‘whom we laud and praise for our benefits received.’ And when we numerate our blessings, we realise that we have just cause for doing so.

John Knox then knew a thing or two about prayer. His definition is not the final word on prayer, but it is well worth weighing and pondering. Let us have it in full again. True prayer is, he said:-

 

An earnest and familiar talking with God, to whom we declare our miseries, whose support and help we implore and desire in our adversities, and whom we laud and praise for our benefits received.

 

© Timothy Cross

 

 

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Prayer, Reformation, Worship, 0 comments
09
Oct
2014

September 11th

‘9/11’

 

Who could ever forget September 11th, 2001? ‘9/11’, as it is widely known, was the day when three thousand and forty five people suddenly lost their lives in a cruel, calculated terrorist attack in New York. The ramifications and repercussions of the day are still with us. It was a day which changed the world. The very mention of 9/11 triggers off in us our recollections of where we were and what we were doing at the time, and the mixed emotions of disbelief, numbness, sadness and outrage we then felt.

Writing as a Bible-believing Christian, and not as a politician, I ask the question: Does the Bible cast any light on that black day in the autumn of 2001? It does indeed:-

 

The Sovereignty of God

 

The Bible encourages us to see God’s providence behind absolutely everything that happens, with no exceptions. Behind ‘secondary causes’ – even the evil intentions of wicked men – there yet lies the sovereign will of God. The Shorter Catechism  reminds us that ‘The decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counsel of His will, whereby, for His Own glory, He has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass.’

We are forced to admit our limitations here. In fact, confessing our ignorance is a mark of intelligence. God’s ways are sometimes beyond us. After all, He is God! We, being finite creatures cannot always comprehend the infinite God. We can say though that He knows what He is doing, and He is worthy of our trust. ‘‘My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD’ (Isaiah 55:8). ‘How unreachable are His judgements, and how inscrutable His ways’ (Romans 11:33). God is infinitely different. ‘There is none holy like the LORD, there is none besides Thee’ (1 Samuel 2:2).

 

The Sin of Man

 

            The Bible diagnoses all the sorrow and disharmony of the world as being the result of human sin. Sin puts us out of fellowship with our Maker and each other. Sin manifests itself in myriads of painful, destructive ways. Romans 3 tells us that ‘all men, both Jews and Greeks, are under the power of sin’ (v.9), and then – as we remember 9/11 – goes on to say that one of the consequences of sin is this: ‘Their feet are swift to shed blood, in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they do not know’ (vv. 15,16).

As sinners, we are all in need of salvation. And it is the Christian Gospel which ‘is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith’ (Romans 1:16).

 

The Fragility of Life

 

            Days such as September the eleventh remind us that life is brief and fragile, eternity is ever near, and this world is, at best, very uncertain. ‘You do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes’ (James 4:14). The shocks of this world can act as a wake-up call to us. We cannot assume a tomorrow or a next week. How vital it is therefore to be right with our Maker, as we could face Him at any time. The only way to be right with our Maker is to know that our sins are forgiven. The only way to be sure that our sins are forgiven is to trust in the Lord Jesus, God’s Son, the Saviour of sinners. Decisions in time affect eternity. Decisions on earth affect whether we will spend eternity in heaven or in hell. Hence 2 Corinthians 6:2: ‘Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.’

            In Luke 13, the Lord Jesus was asked about a certain tower which fell on eighteen people, killing them instantly. Jesus here refused to get involved in the kind of theological speculation and debate which 9/11 brought in its wake. Instead, He gave the stark warning: ‘Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish’ (v.5).

 

The Comfort of God

 

            Amidst the difficulties, perplexities, disappointments and even the devastations of this life, Christians have a resource of which the world knows nothing. We have a God to Whom we can turn. ‘The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; He knows those who take refuge in Him’ (Nahum 1:7). ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though the waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult’ (Psalm 46:1-3).

 

The Promise of Peace to Come

 

            Christians know – on the authority of the Bible – that this world will not remain the way it is now for ever. One day, God will right all wrongs. He will punish evil doers eternally, and bring in His Kingdom of everlasting righteousness and peace. We pray for this future blessing every time we pray ‘Thy Kingdom come.’

            The ultimate goal of all history is the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when He comes again, there will be cosmic redemption. ‘According to His promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells’ (2 Peter 3:13). ‘They shall beat their swords into plough shares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more’ (Isaiah 2:4).

September the eleventh – 9/11. It is a day which will be for ever etched upon world history and in our minds and memories. Strange to report, but I have heard unbelievers audaciously railing against Almighty God for that human tragedy. How we react to devastation reveals much about the state of our souls. We either turn against God, or we seek Him more earnestly – cleaving to His promises and asking Him for help and comfort, being reassured from the Bible that He is actually working all things out for our good, and that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

As you read this though, I am aware that you may have your own version of 9/11 – a particularly sad and devastating day when your circumstances changed suddenly, and your whole world caved in. If so, may the following be balm to your troubled soul:-

 

O Child of God, this grief

That bows your spirit low

Is yours but half, for Christ Himself

Still shares His people’s woe

 

His wisdom planned it out

Then bore it on His heart

Till gently on your untried back

Love laid the lesser part

 

So take it with all joy

Together bear the cross

For while you suffer, He distils

A heaven from your loss

 

Beneath His secret will

Subscribe with ready pen

Add to this sorrow God has sent

A resolute ‘Amen’

 

Each day spend out in faith

Nor prove His labour vain

Cast still on Christ the pressing weight

Who only can sustain.

 

Article Copyright Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Providence, 1 comment
10
Sep
2014

Tolerance

TOLERANCE: A CHRISTIAN VIRTUE?

 

In 1 John 4:1, the Apostle John – an intimate of the Lord Jesus – gives the following exhortation and warning to Christians: ‘Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are of God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.’

In our 21st century, multi-cultural, multi-faith, multi-lifestyle society, ‘toleration’ is definitely one of the spirits of the age. It is enjoined as a good, even a ‘Christian’ virtue. Thus one Nick Pratt (sic) is quoted in the Metro of 19/10/12 as being very angry when his son George was prohibited from joining the Scouts due to his professed atheism. Said Mr Pratt: ‘Christianity is meant to be about being tolerant, forgiving and understanding …’ But is a blanket ‘tolerance’ truly ‘of God’? What happens when we ‘test the spirits’?

 

  1. Consider the Person of God

 

Contrary to common belief, the God of the Bible is actually revealed as an intolerant God. He brooks no rivals for He has no rivals. Idolatry – that is, giving worship and honour to anyone or anything other than the one true God – is condemned in the Bible throughout its pages. The God of the Bible is jealous and zealous for His own glory. Thus in Exodus 34 He commanded His people to break down the altars and pillars of the false gods found in the land of Canaan. His reason for this was Himself. He affirmed ‘you shall worship no god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God’ (Exodus 34:14). The true God therefore is not tolerant but jealous. He demands, requires and is worthy of our exclusive obedience, allegiance and worship. He alone can affirm ‘I am the LORD, that is my name; my glory I give to no other’ (Isaiah 42:8). And in the very first of the Ten Commandments – the summary of the moral law – God commands: ‘You shall have no other gods before me’ (Exodus 20:3). The Shorter Catechism explains:-

 

The first commandment requireth us to know and acknowledge God to be the only true God and our God, and to worship and glorify Him accordingly.

 

The first commandment forbiddeth the denying or not worshipping and glorifying the true God as God and our God; and the giving of that worship and glory to any other which is due to Him alone.

 

  1. Consider the Law of God

 

The God of the Bible exercises no tolerance at all when it comes to the breaking of His law. As God our great creator, He has the right to lay down His law and demand obedience to it. Breaking His law is serious solely from the fact that it entails a rebellion against Himself – treason against the King of kings.  So in Galatians 3:10 we read ‘it is written ‘Cursed be every one who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law and do them.’’ So the God if the Bible is completely intolerant when it comes to punishing law breakers. They are liable to His ‘curse.’ Non Christians who rebel against God can expect His merciless judgement in the life to come. And even Christians who lapse and flout God’s law, can expect His chastisement in this life, for the God of the Bible is inflexible when it comes to the law He has laid down. The slightest infringement brings punishment: ‘For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it’ (James 2:10).

Will God punish all who have broken His law? Yes. But the Good News of the Gospel is that sinners may be pardoned and escape from the punishment they deserve, for in His wisdom and mercy, God devised a way whereby sinners could be justly pardoned. In sending His Son to die in the sinners place, and take their punishment, God was true to both the justice and love which lies at the heart of His nature. Calvary was the supreme demonstration of both God’s love and wrath – wrath in condemning sin, and mercy in pardoning the believing sinner: ‘to prove at the present time that He Himself is righteous and that He justifies those who have faith in Jesus’ (Romans 3:26). Which leads us to:-

 

  1. Consider the Salvation of God.

 

The Bible is intolerant when it comes to salvation, for according to the Bible, the salvation Christ procured at Calvary is an exclusive one – there is no other pardon for sin and there is no other way of salvation apart from the sacrifice of Christ on the cross: ‘And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under haven, given among men by which we must be saved’ (Acts 4:12).

There were those in the province of Galatia who preached an alternative way of salvation from the cross of Christ. They ‘did it their way.’ In response, far from enjoining toleration, the Apostle Paul expressed his indignation and wrote one of the most intolerant letters of the New Testament. It is doubtful whether Galatians pass the censors today. Paul was gripped by the necessity of the cross –  its indispensibility for our salvation and the futility of seeking salvation anywhere else. ‘If justification were through the law (that is, our own efforts) then Christ died to no purpose’ (Galatians 2:21), he wrote.

 

So the exclusive nature of the Christian Faith does not sit easily with the current spirit of the age. Christian belief and behaviour are contrary to the current tide and world view which promotes ‘tolerance’ whilst, paradoxically, is increasingly intolerant of the Christian Faith. The words of the Saviour however still remain: ‘I am the way and the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but by me’ (John 14:6).

Having considered something of the intolerance of the God of the Bible, along with the intolerance of His law and His salvation, the question is begged as to why He does not intervene straight away in fearful judgement. Isn’t our current world a total affront to Him? The answer is as follows. Paradoxically, again, the Bible reveals that almighty God is long-suffering as well as intolerant. In His great mercy, He tolerates sinners for a while. He exercises His patience with them so that they may come to Christ and be saved. Yes, intolerance is part of His holy nature. But He amazingly has His elect people, destined for eternal glory. So although He will surely intervene one day, He withholds His final judgement so that Christ’s church – the church of the redeemed – may be built. As Peter explained: ‘The Lord is not slow about His promise as some count slowness, but is forbearing toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance’ (2 Peter 3:9). So whilst God’s intolerance is to be revered, His forbearance is fuel for our praise. Apart from the latter, we would not have come to saving faith in Christ.

 

Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Bible, Worship
10
Sep
2014

Christianity is No Myth!

Christianity is no myth

 

I suspect that Dan O’Neill’s column concerning the ‘myth of Christ’ was written with his tongue firmly in his cheek (Echo, December 12th). The historical reality of the One born at Christmas  is confirmed every time we write the date. We currently live in the year 2012, or more fully, 2012 AD – that is, the ‘Year of our Lord’, 2012 years after the birth of Christ.

Dan also states that Matthew’s account of Christmas is based on ‘myths predating Christianity.’ This is not so. Matthew himself was one of the twelve disciples of the Lord Jesus. The information for his Gospel was thus gained first-hand, ‘at source.’ As a former tax officer, Matthew was used to the careful handling and presentation of hard facts. Matthew’s account of the first Christmas is complemented by Luke’s Gospel. Luke himself was a medical doctor. He was thus a scientist who only dealt with empirical evidence – and this he wrote down in his Gospel, after careful research.

What next of the aspersions Dan casts on Christ’s ‘virgin birth’?  The virgin conception of Christ is revealed in the Bible as a matter of fact, and  contained in all the historic creeds of Christendom. Whether this is believed or not depends on our presuppositions. If we believe in God, miracles such as the virgin birth of Christ present no difficulty, as the Almighty is not subject to our human limitations – ‘For with God nothing will be impossible’ (Luke 1:37). Interestingly, the fullest account of Christ’s virgin conception is contained in Luke’s Gospel. Dr Luke was not incredulous. The likelihood is that he gained the intimate details from Mary herself when he gained her confidence and, as it were, ‘took her into the surgery.’

All the above, of course, is of no concern to many, as the recent census reveals a decline in religious affiliation. A significant Christian minority however is still with us. These alone know the joyful reality behind Christmas –  the ‘Good News of a great joy … a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord’ (Luke 2:10,11). A cursory scan of the Echo shows that we all need a Saviour. The Christian Gospel proclaims that the Christ Who was born at Christmas is God’s own gracious provision for our deepest need.

 

Dr Timothy Cross

18 Virgil Court

Grangetown

CARDIFF CF11 6PE

 

Tel. 02920224856

 

 

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Bible