Overcoming Satan's schemes (part 2)

We are to look to the incarnate word:

Again C. H. Spurgeon:

‘Above all, if we would successfully resist Satan, we must look not merely to revealed wisdom but to Incarnate Wisdom. Here must be the chief place of resort for every tempted soul! … He must teach us, He must guide us, He must be our All-in-all … The sheep are never so safe from the wolf as when they are near the shepherd. We shall never be so secure from the arrows of Satan as when our head is lying on the Saviour’s bosom. Believer, walk according to His example, live daily in His fellowship, trust always in His blood, and in this way you shall be more than a conqueror over the subtlety and craft of Satan himself.'

.

Overcoming Satan's schemes (part 1)

The following blog (and the next one) are part of a sermon on Satan's schemes.

We are to look to the written word:
C.H. Spurgeon said, ‘If you would successfully wrestle with Satan, make the Scriptures your daily commune. Out of this sacred Word continually draw your armour and ammunition. Lay hold upon the glorious doctrines of God’s Word; make them your daily meat and drink. So shall you be strong to resist the devil. And you shall be joyful in discovering that he shall flee from you … Let us fight Satan always with an “it is written,” for no weapon will ever fight the archenemy as well as Holy Scripture. Attempt to fight Satan with the wooden sword of reason, and he will easily overcome you. But use the blade of God’s Word, by which he has been wounded many times, and you will speedily overcome him.’

Here are three examples.
When Satan attacks you with accusations, reminding you of your past failings, grasp hold of Scripture’s promise: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). This is an absolute promise. As big as your sin was, it is as big as that. You don’t need to justify you what you did, instead agree with Satan that what you did was awful, but then delight in the cross where that sin was dealt with.
When Satan attacks you with temptations grasp hold of Scriptures commands. So when he suggests that there is no harm in taking a glance at that person whose very presence creates longing within you remember among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people (Eph. 5:3).
When Satan comes as the slanderer and accuses God of wrongdoing we need to be able to draw upon those texts that assure us that God is good. We may not know all God’s ways (Deut. 29:29) but we can know that he will do what is right. David writes in the Psalms: The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. The LORD is good to all; he is compassionate on all that he has made (Ps. 145:8-9).
I can’t see us being prepared for Satan’s schemes without embedding ourselves in God’s written word and I can’t see us being embedded in God’s word without the discipline of taking time to study in, meditate upon it and committing it to memory!

The triumph of Christ

This is how the great nineteenth century preacher Charles Spurgeon began a sermon on the triumph of Christ.

To the eye of reason, the cross is the centre of sorrow and the lowest depth of shame. Jesus dies a criminal’s death. He hangs upon the cross of a felon and pours out His blood upon the common mount of doom with thieves for His companions. In the midst of mockery, jest, scorn, and blasphemy, He gives up the ghost. Earth rejects Him and lifts Him from her surface, and heaven affords Him no light but darkens the midday sun in the hours of His extremity. Deeper in woe than the Saviour dived, imagination cannot descend. Satanic malice itself could not invent a blacker calumny than was cast on Him. Jesus hid not His face from the shame and spitting, and what shame and spitting it was! To the world, the cross must ever be the emblem of shame: to the Jew a stumbling block and to the Greek foolishness.
How different, however, is the view that presents itself to the eye of faith. Faith knows no shame in the cross except the shame of those who nailed the Saviour there; it sees no ground for scorn, but it hurls indignant scorn at sin, the enemy that pierced the Lord. Faith sees woe, indeed; but from this foe, it marks a fount of mercy springing. It is true it mourns a dying Saviour, but it beholds Him bringing life and immortality to light at the very moment when His soul was eclipsed in the shadow of death. Faith regards the cross, not as an emblem of shame but as a token of glory. The sons of Belial lay the cross in the dust, but the Christian makes a constellation of it and sees it glittering in the seventh heaven. Man spits upon it, but believers, having angels for companions, bow down and worship Him who ever lives though once was slain.

Draft vision

Last night I went for a walk and started thinking about what should be the vision for our church. The following is only a draft of some ideas.

1. Our vision should centre on seeking to please God.

Pleasing God should be our ultimate goal. This should effect all that we do. It should challenge both our public and private actions (knowing that God sees everything), it should challenge how we view people we find difficult in the congregation (remembering how much the quality of our fellowship matters to him), and it should challenge the attitude to those we come in daily contact with (keeping in mind that God is good to all and desires that all people come to repentance).

2. The gospel should be at the heart of all we do.
Our aim is not simply to meet people's felt needs. We want to bring people into contact with the truth. We believe that the gospel contains God's rescue plan to the core problems of sin and hell. We also believe that God's salvation brings people into an experience of life in all its fullness. We remember that we are commanded not simply to make converts but disciples.

3. Conversion should make people more compassionate.

Think of people like Wilberforce, Barnardo and Booth. Their faith prompted them to care. That makes sense when we consider that we follow a compassionate God and Saviour. Sometimes people wonder what the relationship between evangelism and social action is. It helps if we realise that social action is an aspect of holiness. We know that we are called to be holy. We know that holiness can help lead people into the kingdom, but we don't simply seek to be holy for that purpose. We know that holiness has value in itself. We seek to be holy to please God.

4. Richhill is not our only mission field.

Many of our members spend over eight hours of every working day in various work places (particularly in Armagh, Portadown and even Belfast). This provides invaluable opportunities to honour God and witness to him there. These members do not simply go as individuals, they go as an extension of our community. We want to help support and equip them in the mission that they have to these places.

Some of our members live in places outside Richhill (including Loughgall, Armagh, Portadown and Hamiltonsbawn). Through them our mission extends to these places too.

Yet Richhill does have a special place in our mission because it is here that we are centred and here observed being in community. We also recognise that we are a part of a Christian community in Richhill that is bigger that simply Richhill Methodist Church.

Christians have always had a concern for their fellow-believers in other places. We are enriched with our links to places like Lira in Uganda.

5. Community is an essential part of our witness.

Jesus spoke of the impact that a community of love will have on the observing world. It is essential that we care for one another. Grace and holiness must be at heart of this fellowship. In grace we accept people, like ourselves, with failed pasts and from differing backgrounds. As members of the church we realise that we are accountable to the fellowship and even submit ourselves to its discipline. We can expect that the devil will seek to sow division, if we are not a people who practice forgiveness we will help him achieve his aims.

6. Our vision is not just for the lost.

We are commanded to do good to all, especially those who belong to the family of believers (Gal. 6:10). We are to seek opportunities to serve one another to the glory of God. We meet to encourage and build one another up. We are hoping to be a people who grow in God together. We do not want to be static in this faith but increasing in maturity.

7. Contact and flexibility are essential to how we meet social needs.

We operate as a dispersed people centred in a village. This will effect any social projects that we attempt. My belief is that flexibility is key to how we operate in this setting. A couple of years ago we were made aware of the need and opportunity to run English language classes for new residents. This was a very valuable activity. It also was one that ran its course. We should stand ready to meet similar needs, as they arise, in the future. In terms of the new building I think it will be more beneficial to design general spaces rather than specialist spaces.

8. A people depending on God.

Finally, let's be a people of prayer. Let's ask him to guide us. Let's long for him to give us the opportunity to act for his glory as we speak the truth and act with compassion.

Five books (and five books)

Virtual Methodist and Jools are doing this thing where you list five books that have changed the way you read the Bible. I want to simply list five books that have influenced me and five books I have in my study that I know I should read.

Five books that have influenced me:
1. Don Carson, How Long, O Lord?

I purchased this book on the recommendation of John Wonnacott (who takes no responsibility for any of the contents you may disagree with). I was in Edgehill and about to do a summer placement in Sri Lanka. I thought that the issue of suffering might become more pressing in the context of the two-thirds world. What struck me about this book was how thoroughly engaged with the Biblical text Carson is. When I discussed suffering with some people they simply answered 'I think ...' which caused me to appreciate the reasoning of this book even more.

I know that Northern Ireland is filled with Carson-phobes and Carson-philes, I among those who read a lot of what he writes.

2. F. F. Bruce, Is the New Testament Reliable?

This book is no page-turner, however neither is it long! I found it reassuring to see an evangelical who held a significant post in a secular university defend the historicity of the New Testament. The thing that remained with me is his comment that if the New Testament were not a religious text its authenticity would be beyond question.

3. Don Carson Showing the Spirit.

This is an exposition of 1 Corinthians 12-14. The reason this makes it onto this list is for its closing chapter. Here Carson surprised me by defending the idea of tongue-speaking in today's church, seeing the gift of prophecy as having a revelatory content, and even speaking graciously about John Wimber. It made me feel more confident to explore the use of these gifts (particularly prophecy) in our church context. [If this was an accurate list of books that impacted me Carson's The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God would also be on it. But that would be too much Carson for some].

4. Steve Arterburn and Fred Stoeker, Every man's battle.

This book is far too American for many. It deals with the theme of sexual purity and I found it a very helpful, though incomplete, look at the topic.

5. Ernest Lucas, Can we believe Genesis today?

I call myself an agnostic on such issues as the duration of creation etc. (in order to save me from getting into heated debates on something that I do not see as being of central importance) so I do not stand over everything that Lucas writes. It is also a while since I read this book so I can't remember all his arguments. However I found this very interesting reading. Lucas appears to hold credible scientific and theological qualifications which added weight to what he writes.

Five books I have in my study I know I must read/finish:

I buy more books than I read. I know that the following would be very useful to read/finish if I would only take the time.

1. Ken Bailey, Jesus through middle eastern eyes. Recommended by Melvin Tinker (whose sermons I think are excellent).

2. John Stott, The Cross of Christ. I was really enjoying this and then put it down for too long. It surely remains a significant book in light of all the debates on the atonement.

3. K. A. Kitchen, On the reliability of the Old Testament. It looks both heavy and dry but would seem to be a key evangelical text on this issue.

4. Don Carson, The Cross and Christian Ministry. It is recommended by people like C.J. Maheney, in his great little book Living the cross-centred life.

5. Dallas Willard, Renovation of the Heart.

Why do we make democratic decisions?

Here's a thought: 'Democracy: why do we make democratic decisions?'

After all it was the crowd that complained against Moses in the wilderness, it was a democratic decision not to enter the promised land when the twelve spies returned, it was a democratic decision the crowd made to release Barabbas and have Jesus crucified and it was not by democracy that the early church chose a successor to Judas. So why do we think that we should make decisions as to who would be leaders in our church by a democratic vote?

Angels at work for us

Corrie ten Boom wrote of a remarkable experience at the Nazi Ravensbruck prison camp:

Together we entered the terrifying building. At a table were women who took away all our possessions. Everyone had to undress completely and then go to a room where her hair was checked.

I asked a woman who was busy checking the possessions of the new arrivals if I might use the toilet. She pointed to a door, and I discovered that the convenience was nothing more than a hole in the shower room floor. Betsie [her sister] stayed close behind me all the time. Suddenly I had an inspiration, "Quick, take off your woollen underwear," I whispered to her. I rolled it up with mine and laid it in a bundle in a corner with my little Bible. The spot was alive with cockroaches, but I didn't worry about that. I felt wonderfully relieved and happy. "The Lord is busy answering our prayers, Betsie," I whispered. "We shall not have to make the sacrifice of all our clothes."

We hurried back to the row of women waiting to be undressed. A little later, after we had had our showers and put on shirts and shabby dresses, I hid the roll of underwear and my Bible under my dress; but I prayed, "Lord, cause Thine angels to surround me; and let them not be transparent today, for the guards must not see me." I felt perfectly at ease. Calmly I passed the guards. Everyone was checked, from the front, the sides, the back. Not a bulge escaped the eyes of the guard. The woman just in front of me had hid a woolen vest under her dress; it was taken from her. They let me pass, for they did not see me. Betsie, right behind me, was searched.

But outside awaited another danger. On each side of the door were women who looked everyone over for a second time. They felt over the body of each one who passed. I knew they would not see me, for the angels were still surrounding me. I was not even surprised when they passed me by; but within me rose the jubilant cry, "O Lord, if Thou dost answer prayer, I can face even Ravensbruck unafraid."