forgot to mention that I’m now blogging at youngcalvinist.com

I have been taking a class on the Theology of Jonathan Edwards and something struck my mind today and I had to write it down before it drifted away.

According to Edwards, “free will” as we know it does not exist. We do not make choices without cause, meaning that every choice that we make has already been determined by influences, circumstances, etc. Just think about how where you grew up, who your parents were, etc. influenced who you are today. For me, I find this particularly applicable with my favorite sports teams. There is no local NFL team and growing up in San Luis Obispo the 49ers were always on tv. So, I became a 49ers fan. I became an Angels fan rather than a Dodgers because when I turned the tv on one day and watched both teams, I enjoyed the style of play of the Angels and the enthusiasm of the announcers compared to that of the Dodgers. I didn’t have a “free choice” as such is often defined.

This makes me wonder, if God did elect in His sovereignty, a theology (Calvinism) that is often described as unfair, maybe this course of action by God is actually fairer than letting the influences of our life dictate our salvation.

First, we would never be saved because we are influenced to always reject Christ. If our hearts are dead and our eyes blind, we will always choose ourselves over God because that is what we are inclined to do.

Second, if we did have “free choice” and God did not elect some over others, our salvation would still not be dependent upon ourselves but our circumstances, influences and causes. If you were born in a Christian home chances are you have a better chance at becoming of a follower of Christ compared to a rural tribe in Africa who has never heard the gospel before.

So my thought is, and this is just a thought, I haven’t pondered it for longer than two hours, that God’s decree of election, if fully sovereign and having nothing to do with the individual, is far more “fair” than no election because I would rather have a sovereign, holy, mighty, omniscient, omnipotent God determining my fate than simple circumstances.

These ponderings bring me to my knees in humility and worship of a God who is more glorious than all that is or ever will be.

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Tonight I will be speaking for a few minutes to the college community at Grace, to which I am currently interning, about what I believe they should accomplish and be challenged by this semester. Though it is catered to college students I believe it is applicable to all.

As college students, who are essentially pursuing the foundation of life in our society, a career, it is essential to understand that what will bring the most fulfillment in this life, and the next, is not earthly pursuits, but Kingdom pursuits.

Not your kingdom, but God’s because our very purpose, our chief end, is to glorify God.

So what I believe the Lord has in store for this community this semester, is not just the furthering of His glory, but the building of a foundation of a life whose sole pursuit is His glory.

In light of this, there are four things I want to challenge you to think through this semester.

First, is your heart being transformed?

Does the gospel impact your heart? Is your faith moving from knowledge to understanding in that you do not just know who God is and what Jesus did, but you truly understand in your heart the magnitude of the very nature of God and our relationship to Him.

Do you act and speak like disciples of Christ should because it is what you are supposed to do or are you a disciple of Christ, doing that which pleases God because it is who you are.

Second, do you view sin as God does? Do you see sin for what it truly is, an abomination in the sight of the Lord, and treat it as such. Specifically, in this community, are we satisfied by the state of our hearts or are we ever seeking to become more and more like Christ and less and less like ourselves.

Third, do you show the grace of God with love and forgiveness?

Specifically, in this community, do you love each other and humbly serve each other as called for in the new commandment that Jesus gave his disciples, that they would love one another and be known by it.

Do you comfort those who are in need in our community, are you there to offer a hand when the one next to you trips and falls? Do you willing offer forgiveness to one another? Are you keeping each other accountable, not allowing anyone to slowly fade into the background?

And fourth and most importantly, is your life marked by a jealously fervent pursuit of the glory of God? Do you purposefully seek to glorify God in everything you do, from the way you treat your siblings to how you spend your money?

Are you defined by  what you wear, how you look, what video games you play, how good you are at ultimate frisbee, what school you go to, what your favorite sports team is, who you are dating, what books you have read and who your favorite theologians are or are you defined by your embracing of the rebellious and radical living of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, willingly submitting every other attainable glory in your life to the one glory that has captured your heart and structures your life, the glory of God.

Whose Kingdom are you building, your own or God’s?

After reading some posts on a forum about Jesus Christ and how his teachings and the New Testament view of salvation do not mix with the Old Testament, I began to reflect on my own understanding of righteousness and why Jesus Christ so perfectly fits with the Old Testament.

You see, if the law is the path to salvation it must be the path to righteousness because only the righteous can be saved. And that is where those who reject Christ in favor of the law are condemned, because the law cannot breathe righteousness. That is the very reason why Christ called out the pharisees and the young ruler, they did not understand that following the law meant much more than just the word of the law, they lost the spirit of the law.

Righteousness cannot be obtained by following the Mosiac law, it cannot be obtained by pursuit of enlightenment or spiritual wholeness, no, righteousness cannot be obtained by anything of ourselves. Righteousness can only be obtained by Jesus Christ, who was slaughtered by the Father as an eternal sacrifice for our unrighteousness.

This is clearly seen throughtout the Old Testament for those willing enough to open there eyes to the depravity of man and holiness of God. It is seen through God’s interaction with his creation, with Adam and Eve, with Isaac, with Moses and Joshua, with David and Ezekiel.

Because man cannot hope to satisfy God, following the law cannot undo the sins of the past and following the law cannot stop the sins of the future. Oh how I mourn for those who stand before my Mighty God and say to Him, “but I followed your commandments!” For this cannot be the truth, for there are none righteous, no not one. It is by God’s grace and mercy that we are allowed to be called sons of God, that our sins are washed away by the blood of the Lamb, and that we are made righteous in His sight through justification.

1 Chronicles 16:8-9

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!
Sing to him; sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!

When I reflect upon the last year of my life, I cannot help but fall to my knees in praise and worship of my Savior. He is who He says He is. He is faithful. He is true. He is hope. He is love. He is life.

The past year has been the hardest of my life. I was thrown into a pit of darkness, one I could not climb out of. My heart was ravaged, beaten into despair, with no joy to heal the wounds.

But my cries were heard! And how they were heard! The joy that was gone for so long, so long that I had forgotten its taste, rushed back into my life like a hail storm. I was plummetted with joy, swallowed in the light of Christ. The darkness that would not lift was not just defeated, but completely obliterated.

My tear-filled prayers were answered in a way I could not have imagined, the blessings undeserved.

How does one respond to such an act? Is there a response? My life is how I respond. Devotion of it to Him, who not only saved me from my sin, but rectified my relationship with Him and then going even further, blessed me with blessings that I never could have thought to pray for. The Lord is gracious. The Lord is worthy of our praise, of my Praise! How blessed is the name of the Lord! How blessed are the works of the Lord!

But I know that my life has not been blessed for my own glorification, but for His! My life is His!

There is an old man who lives on the same floor as me, an old man who is happier than anyone I have seen, though I have never seen him with a friend, nor heard him speak of one. He walks about talking to himself, smiling and laughing as if a mad man. I heard he had a wife, lost her in a fire. The same fire that burned down his house. I heard he was rich, inherited a large sum of money, but lost it all in one bad day on Wall Street. The postman says he is cursed, once owned half of New York before he was struck blind. They say God hates him. He must have done something to anger Him. But no one has ever  spoken to him, the scar on his face scares even the most confident. He has tried to speak to us, but no one can understand his rambling about hope in death. Some are afraid if they get too close they might catch whatever ails him. But he doesn’t seem to notice. Happier than everyone else I say. Maybe they should catch whatever ails him.

It is rare to go through a time in your life when you can look back a year and not recognize yourself. To look at the decisions, the events, the failures and trials and be able to measure the changes within one’s self.

This is one of those times. If the walk of a disciple of Christ is up a staircase I just leapt a story. And not on my own, no! Only by the grace of God. Only through the answer of prayer and the work of the Holy Spirit!

Yet, there is so much work to be done! My heart is still wicked, still deceiving and manipulative. But it’s not as strong as it once was. No, it is weaker than it has ever been, enabling me to shut down its temptations and run, no, sprint after Christ.

I have found myself in awe of His work and the blessings He has given me despite my sin. I do not deserve them! Oh, but how I cherish them! And the one who made them possible, the Son of the Living God, the one who was slaughtered on the cross bearing my sins. And now, as I look back on the mistakes of my life, I cannot see them, for the memories are covered in a crimson red.

I’ve told environmentalists that if they think humanity is wrecking the planet, wait until they see what Jesus does to it.

John MacArthur

Never doubt the Lord’s faithfulness. Never. Do not question His love. The Lord hears our cries. He hears us when we are suffocating in the darkness, broken and whithering in the suffering of this world. He hears us when we cry out for our Father, for deliverance, for hope. He hears us when we cry out for Light.

Never doubt the Lord’s faithfulness. Never. Do not question His love. For His hand is sovereign and His will perfect. He is not a man, that he should lie, nor change his mind. He cannot make mistakes. He hears our cries before we speak them, He knows our suffering before we feel it. His spirit cries out for us and He hears it.

Never doubt the Lord’s faithfulness. Never. Do not question His love. When the prayers become moans of agony and the darkness rains upon the earth, there is hope. He will deliver.

The light, the joy of God, has pierced the clouds of darkness and washed my heart in a sea of love. Not because of blessing, not because of gain, but because of Him and the promises of hope.

Joy is not found on this earth, it cannot be bought, it cannot be earned, it cannot be built. No, it is the Father’s. And when one determines that they will not allow earthly suffering to remove that joy, when one determines that their joy should solely come from the Father through a full understanding of the cross and what was accomplished on it, joy cannot be defeated, cannot be lost.

We cannot forget the gospel, we cannot forget the Son. We cannot forget that we were lost and now are found. We need to recapture the hope of salvation, the hope of heaven. When we see life for what it is, a vapor, and God for who He is, our Lord, we realize that our life on this earth and our happinesses from it is but trivial compared to eternity with our Father.

While I’m Waiting by John Waller
Psalm 5:3, 27:14, 33:20, 37:7, 38:15, 40:1, Isaiah 30:18, Lamentations 3:24

“The explanation for this song is simple, I was waiting on God and I was hurting when I wrote the lyrics. I probably wouldn’t have written a song if my friend, Mike, hadn’t encouraged me to document what I was going through during that time. I’m sure there are few people who can’t relate to this song, but the important thing to remember while we’re waiting on God is to not just wait but to actively wait. Serve, worship and be faithful with what you have, where you are… “even while (you) wait.”

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience

While I’m waiting
I will serve You
While I’m waiting
I will worship
While I’m waiting
I will not faint
I’ll be running the race
Even while I wait

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it’s not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait

I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting on You, Lord