Is hell separation from God?

Read this, from the Desiring God Blog.

Regarding hell, consider what is recorded in Revelation 14:9-10:

“And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.’”

Those in hell, who worshiped the beast, are “tormented…in the presence of the Lamb.” Doesn’t this suggest that, in some way, God is present even in hell? Certainly this view would accord with the testimony of David, who wrote in Psalm 139:7-8,

“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!”

Consider, also, these verses of Scripture:

Deuteronomy 4:24, “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.”

Isaiah 33:14, “The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling has seized the godless: ‘Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?’”

Hebrews 12:29, “…our God is a consuming fire.”

These and other Scriptures suggest to me that one great reason hell is the place of torment that it is to the lost sinner is because God is there. How grateful we should be, who have been redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ. Because Jesus bore the wrath of God on the cross, we shall spend eternity in the presence of God without ever seeing His wrath. We shall never experience the “everlasting burnings”.

Words spoken at a granddaughter’s funeral

Pastor John Piper’s daughter-in-law and son, Abraham, recently lost their baby girl who was stillborn at full term. I encourage you to please pray for the parents and family as they deal with this very sad loss. I also encourage you to read these words that Pastor John spoke at his granddaughter’s funeral. Seldom have I read such moving words.

“Emergent” heresy?

Let me confess from the outset that I don’t know a whole lot about “Emergent” or the “Emerging Church” movement. However, what I do know or have heard is not encouraging. This movement’s desire to take a fresh look at what Jesus taught and to present to the world “a new kind of Christian” seems to me to be nothing more than a foolish and misguided quest which will ultimately lead away from the saving message of the gospel and the truth embodied in Jesus Christ. Yet, there are many who seem to be quite taken with what the Emergent movement offers.

Master blogger, Tim Challies, has taken the time to read the latest book by Brian McLaren, an “elder statesman” in the Emergent movement, and write a review. Whether or not McLaren’s views accurately reflect the views of the movement, I do know that his writings are influential. I encourage you to read Challies’ review. If his reading of McLaren is accurate, I think McLaren is a writer Christians would do well to avoid.

To preachers: Know what you’re preaching about, or sit down

Here’s something for preachers…and any professing Christian who would tell others of Christ. I found it while browsing blogs just a while ago. It is a quote from Charles Spurgeon:

“A man ought to know what he is preaching about, or else let him sit down. If I had any doubt about the matters I preach from this pulpit, I should be ashamed to remain the pastor of this church; but I preach what I do know, and testify what I have seen. If I am mistaken, I am heartily and intensely mistaken; and I risk my soul and all its eternal interests upon the truth of what I preach. If the gospel which I preach does not save me, I shall never be saved, for what I proclaim to others is my own personal ground of trust. I have no private lifeboat; the ark to which I invite others holds myself and all I have.”

—Charles Spurgeon, The Soul Winner, p. 173

(HT: Justin Buzzard)

Leaning on the Lord

Sometimes, I wish God had other ways and means of producing endurance and furthering sanctification than the offensive or frustrating actions of other people. But, if these people are God’s means of making me better, then thank God for them! God can use people to help you and me be more patient, more gentle, more quick to listen and less quick to speak. He can use people to cause us to pray with a greater sense of need and urgency. That’s good. Needy is a good state to be in when what you need is God. “Apart from me you can do nothing,” said Jesus (John 15:5)—and that’s true. We can do nothing of eternal significance, nothing which will please God, apart from the grace of God in Jesus Christ.

I encourage you, as I encourage myself this Sunday night, to thank God for those people and situations that irritate and aggravate and try your patience and elevate your stress. Since God is sovereign, we know these things would not happen if God did not permit them. This means God has provided you and me with a special opportunity to lean and depend upon Him. Run to Jesus and demonstrate to your antagonists that “he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). When others act like the devil, pray for the grace to act like Christ. Lean upon the Lord, humble yourself before Him, admit your powerlessness and depend upon His strength. And stay right there: helpless, humble and depending upon God.

I’m a witness: God will help you. He has helped me.

Prayer request, and thoughts on the sovereignty of God

Please pray for our brother, Thabiti Anyabwile, his wife Kristie, their three children, their church, the people of Grand Caymen Island, and anyone else in the path of the possible category-5 hurricane that has been forecasted to strike that tiny island in the Caribbean sometime tomorrow night. Please pray that our sovereign God, who controls every storm, will mercifully spare life and property.

You can read Brother Thabiti’s meditation on God and calamity, here. The ways of God in the midst of calamity are, indeed, mysterious. Our puny minds can’t fathom these things. We can know this, however: God is Almighty; and He is in control.

That’s all I need to know.

If God is in control, then I know the devil is not in control. If God rules, then I know evil men and women don’t have the last word. And if I am in God’s hands, ultimately, I am “safe and secure from all alarms.” Our God reigns, He is sovereign, He is in control; and if, through Christ, we are resting in Him, we’ll be all right.

Psalm 47

1Clap your hands, all peoples!
Shout to God with loud songs of joy!
2For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared,
a great king over all the earth.
3He subdued peoples under us,
and nations under our feet.
4He chose our heritage for us,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves.

5God has gone up with a shout,
the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.
6Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
7For God is the King of all the earth;
sing praises with a psalm!
8God reigns over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.
9The princes of the peoples gather
as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
he is highly exalted!

Pray that people, everywhere, would come to acknowledge and rest in this truth. And pray for the safety of our brother, Thabiti, and his family.

A godly way to complain

What should one do when you have seemingly legitimate reasons to complain? Is there a godly way to complain?

I don’t have a complete answer—and I don’t have time to flesh this out fully—but here is a thought that came to me the other day: If I must complain, I should complain to God. Consider these verses from the psalmist, David:

“With my voice I cry out to the LORD; with my voice I plead for mercy to the LORD. I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him” (Psalm 142:1-2).

“Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice” (Psalm 55:17).

This, to me, seems the safest way to complain. If my complaint is legitimate, God knows and has the power to do something about my situation. If my complaint is illegitimate, God knows that too, and he will let me know about it. But, perhaps best of all, if “I pour out my complaint before him”, the less likely I will be to pour out something before others that will be inappropriately negative, and the easier it will be to project a positive attitude which will more clearly reflect the Savior.

If something or someone is bothering you to the point that you are tempted to complain, tell God about it—“pour out [your] complaint before him”. David said, “He hears my voice”. We must remember that the heavenly Father hears his children. He’s concerned; he cares. And God doesn’t have office hours; we can come to him at any time: “evening and morning and at noon”. He’s never too busy. His door is always open.

If we will take our complaints directly to God, we will see that our problems aren’t so big after all when seen in the light of his awesome greatness.

I’m still here!

I haven’t forgotten about the readers of this blog. I am just very busy right now. If God brings it to mind, would you, kindly, pray for me? I need much wisdom, patience…and sleep (notice what time I’m posting this). Thanks so much. If I have some time in the next few days, I will try to write some more.

Praise break

After listening to the video clip of Brother Taylor in the previous post, I just have to stop and praise God (excuse me, please):

Glory! Glory!! GLORY!!!! Hallelujah!! Wonderful Savior! Blessed Redeemer! My Lord and my God! Great God! Holy God! Worthy God! Hallelujah! Lord, I bless You! I praise You! I worship You! Hallelujah! You’re worthy to be praised! You’re WORTHY to be praised! Glory to God! HALLELUJAH!!

Oh my!

I think I’ll play that clip again!

I’m reminded of Psalm 145:

1I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
2Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.
3Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.

4One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your might acts.
5On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
7They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

8The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9The LORD is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
10All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD,
and all your saints shall bless you!
11They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
12to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

[The LORD is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.]
14The LORD upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
15The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
16You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
18The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
20The LORD preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

21My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD,
and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

Why don’t you try that? Let your “mouth…speak the praise of the LORD”. Get by yourself, if you have to, and open your mouth! Speak God’s praise! “Show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9 KJV). “Let the redeemed of the LORD say so…” (Psalm 107:2a)!

Even if you have to praise God alone (because people in church will look at you like you’re strange if you say anything out loud), do it!

I said, do it!

It will do your soul good. And the Lord will be pleased.

Take some time out today, and praise the Lord Jesus.

“He’s my Rock, my Sword and Shield”

Read and consider these passages of Scripture:

Psalm 3:3; 18:2, 31; 28:7; 31:3; 33:20; 62:2, 6-7; 71:3; 84:11; 94:22; 95:1; 115:9-11; 119:114; 144:2; Song of Solomon 2:1; Ezekiel 1:16 and Revelation 22:16

And think on these words, also:

Job 14:14; Psalm 62:5; 130:5 and Galatians 5:5

Considered in the light of Scripture, the sentiment of this old gospel song should be clear:

He’s my Rock, my Sword and Shield,
He’s my Wheel in the middle of a wheel,
He’s the Lily of the valley,
He’s the bright and morning Star;
I don’t care what people say,
I’m going down on my knees and pray;
I’m gonna wait right here for my Jesus ’til He comes.

Now, listen to and watch the video clip above of the late Charles Taylor and the Charles Taylor singers, recorded in 1962. I think you’ll agree: Jesus is ALL RIGHT!!