Tag: Discipleship

God Is Greater

On By BrianIn Book of Isaiah, Virtue Miscellaneous1 Comment

In Isaiah 33, God reminds us that he is greater than all the things that come against us.

He Is Our Strength (v2) – He is our arm of strength for daily life. He gives us strength in the midst of those things that come against us. Indeed he gives us strength every morning. Each day there is a fresh supply of God’s mighty powerful strength to help us through our trials and struggles. He is our strength.

He Is Our Stability (v5-6) – He is the stability for our times – times of trouble, times of distress, times of difficulty. He is a sure foundation on which we can stand. He is a solid rock when the tempest blows all around us. He is exalted and dwells on high; he is not shaken by all that comes against us, and so we anchor ourselves to him. He is our stability.

He Is Our Salvation (v2-4, 6-12) – God not only gives us strength and stability in the midst of our trials, but in his perfect times he will save us from those trials. When God arises in our lives, all that comes against us scatters. He gobbles up the enemy. His judgment is like a great fire against all that comes against us. He is greater than those things that oppose us, and he will save us in his perfect time. He is our salvation.

And so we wait for him (v2). We don’t need to freak out about trials, threats, dangers, and struggles. We wait for Him with patience – resting in his strength and leaning on his stability. We wait for him with longing for the salvation that he will bring. This week, may we wait for Him who is greater than all that can come against us.

Seven Ways We Must Not Misuse God’s Name

On By BrianIn Ten Commandments1 Comment

The Third Commandment tells us to not take the name of God in vain – to not misuse his name. There are several ways that we can use God’s name in the wrong way, which we must not do:

First, we must not use his name in an oath and then not keep our oath (Leviticus 19:12). In our day that could apply to testifying in court or to our marriage vows before God.

Second, we must not use his name offering praise to him with our lips while our hearts are far from him (Isaiah 29:13). As we praise God’s name, our praise must be true – not just empty words.

Third, we must not put words in God’s mouth (Jeremiah 23:31). We ought not claim that God said something that he did not say. The other day I heard a local radio station tell us that “Jesus says” – and then go on to read from a bestselling book. But Jesus didn’t say those words, and so that is a misuse of his name.

Fourth, we must not use God’s name with contempt – speaking of God with scorn or ridicule or hatred.

Fifth, we must not use God’s name as a swear word. “Oh my God” should be reserved for our prayers, not as an empty utterance.

Sixth, we must not use God’s name in a flippant empty manner. For instance, when we say “God bless you” – do we mean it, or are we just throwing his name around?

Seventh, we must not use God’s name as a joke. Christians like to tell “Christian” jokes, but God must not be the punch line – God’s name is not a joking matter.

All of these ways that we misuse God’s name ought to make clear the positive requirement of the command. We must use God’s name with reverence and awe. He is a great and glorious God, and we must treat him as such. May God help us to honor his name.

Sermon Songs: Isaiah 32

On By BrianIn Isaiah Hymns

O God who reigns in righteousness
Whose truth and justice we confess
Who changed our lives and made us new
That we might turn and follow you

Lord give us strength that we might stand
As lights for you in this dark land
From temptation Lord help us flee
Your Spirit keep us from folly

Lord in the storms of life we face
You are our hiding, resting place
And in this dry and weary land
we find refreshment from your hand

O God our hope our coming King
Your promises and blessings bring
Your praise and honor we will sing
Dwelling secure under your wing

– From a sermon on Isaiah 32
(To the tune of the “Doxology”)

Church Connections

On By BrianIn Church Collection

Here are some good posts on church membership that I wish every Christian would read:

What Is Church Membership? – Jonathan Leeman (9Marks)

Is Church Membership Really Required – Ricky Jones (TGC)

6 Reasons to Be a Faithful Member of a Local Church – Paul Tautges

Twelve Reasons Why Membership Matters – Jonathan Leeman (9Marks)

9 Reasons to Not Make a Visual Image of God

On By BrianIn Ten Commandments

In the Second Commandment (Exodus 20:4-6), God commands us not to make for ourselves any graven or carved images of God. Why? Here are nine reasons:

First, God is the Creator, and so transcends his creation. Any visual image we could make is created, and could never fully represent the Creator God.

Second, God is Spirit, and so he doesn’t have a physical body. Any visual image we could make would be physical, and so misrepresent God.

Third, God is jealous (v5). God doesn’t want us creating false images of him, any more than a wife wants her husband to create false images of her. We must love God as he is.

Fourth, God is loving (v6). God loves us and we ought to respond by loving Him, not a false image of Him.

Fifth, God is omnipresent. Any image we could make would localize him in a specific place.

Sixth, God is glorious. No image could do justice to his glory, but would rather obscure his glory.

Seventh, God is sovereign. An image can be manipulated, but God cannot.

Eighth, God created us in his image. When we create an image of God, we make him in our image according to our biases. This flips the order of creation upside down.

Ninth, God is holy. When we create false images of God, we will follow those false images, which will inevitably lead us to sin. Or put another way: what we believe about God influences our behavior, and wrong views of God will influence our behavior in the wrong direction.

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

A Great Reward – Tim Challies
I was recently transfixed by Psalm 19 and David’s sheer joy at this great gift of God….

What Is Discernment? – Sinclair Ferguson (Ligonier)
So discernment is learning to think God’s thoughts after Him, practically and spiritually; it means having a sense of how things look in God’s eyes….

Are You Out of (Evangelism) Shape – Erik Raymond
Consider this: how would your day-to-day tasks look different if you did them with evangelistic intentionality?

Seduction and the Cost of Saying “No” – Mark Howard (TGC)
Our youth are engaged in a spiritual battle for their affections and their allegiance. Let’s not minimize the danger of our culture’s seduction, nor the cost that comes with our youth’s resisting the American way in the name of Jesus. 

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day!