Uncategorized (Page 8)

October 22: The church has been and always will be persecuted. Everyone watches us. If we die in faith, hope, and love, it can change the history of nations. If we fail to stand in love and hope for our faith, nations often can reject Christ.FROM A MISSIONARY WHO WORKS IN CHINA AND NORTH KOREAYou can read more through The Voice of the Martyrs’ app available on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prayer-calendar/id432550884?mt=8) or Google Play (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.persecution.prayercalendarhd)

“We glorify God when we show the world the goodness of his attributes and the goodness of his gospel, including our unity in Christ.”   Vanhoozer, Kevin. Biblical Authority After Babel: Retrieving the Solas in the Spirit of Mere Protestant Christianity (Brazos Press: Grand Rapids, MI, 2016). 180.

Theological debate is a necessary part of the the church’s existence, unfortunately not every debate is useful, nor carried on with the right motives.  John Webster provides 4 purposes for which a theological debate must aim: “Theological debate must (1) be within the communion of saints and have as its aim the furtherance of communion; (2) magnify the truth of the gospel; (3) have an eye to the catholicity of Christian confession; and (4) trust in the illuminating power of…

“It is, therefore, by the benefit of prayer that we reach those riches which are laid up for us with the Heavenly Father. For there is a communion of men with God by which, having entered the heavenly sanctuary, they appeal to him in person concerning his promises in order to experience, where necessity so demands, that what they believed was not vain, although he had promised it in word alone. Therefore we see that to us nothing is promised…

Here are some thoughts from John Calvin on the relationship between faith and good works.   we define justification as follows: the sinner, received into communion with Christ, is reconciled to God by his grace, while, cleansed by Christ’s blood, he obtains forgiveness of sins, and clothed with Christ’s righteousness as if it were his own, he stands confident before the heavenly judgment seat. After forgiveness of sins is set forth, the good works that now follow are appraised otherwise…

There are four types of people in the world when it comes to their relationship with God. Which are you?