Salvation for those we don't think can respond

  I found this amazing post at Wrestling with an Angel. He deals with the question of salvation for his son with special needs. Here is an excerpt.

I am thinking about my 17 year old son who has the mental capacity of a 2 year old.

I know Jake is a sinner—boy do I know. And I know that he is in desperate need of a Savior. I also know that salvation comes through repentance and faith, neither of which have I ever seen or could imagine seeing in my son’s life.

He does not understand the cross, or the sacrifice that was made. He knows nothing of his Adamic nature or fallen state. I’m not even sure that he treasures Christ above Jelly Belly’s or Santa Clause. So how can he be saved? How is the gift of faith applied to his lack of comprehension of the gospel?

 Read the rest of the post here.

What you do reveals who you are

  What are you doing? You call yourself a Christian yet you do these things, even justifying that your actions are right before God.

You're not supposed to judge!

  I know, "judge not that you be not judged" (Matt. 7:1) But you forget scripture says that "if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged." (1 Corinthians 11:31)

"You don't know me! Only God sees the heart."

  I know God sees the heart and that should scare us all. I don't want to question your salvation. I want you to question it. The Apostle Paul wanted you to question your salvation when he said to examine yourself to see whether you are in the faith.(2 Corinthians 13:5)

"Well I believe in God."

Great, so do the demons!(James 2:19)

"I'm saved by faith and not works."

But can that faith save you?(James 2:14)

"Repentance? Yes I've repented."

 Well John the baptist said to bear fruits in keeping with repentance.(Luke 3:8)

  Look, more is at stake here than your pride. I'm worried about your soul. Many believe they are saved yet will be turned away by Jesus himself.(Matt. 7:21-23) Where is the evidence of your salvation? James said that faith without works is dead.(James 2:17)

"I didn't think we had to work for our salvation to try to earn it?"

 We don't do good works to get saved. We now are able to do good works because we are saved.(Ephesians 2:10) Salvation is a gift secured by Jesus dying for our sins on the cross and resurrecting to be our Savior.(Romans 6:23)

"I believe."

 Many claim they believe this, but then never bear fruit. Do you really have faith? Or do you merely believe these facts to be correct? There is a difference. James puts it this way.

 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. (James 2:14-17)

  Do you see what he is saying? If you see someone in need and say you care about their needs, yet do nothing for them - then do you really care? If you say you are a sinner who has repented and placed your faith in Jesus Christ to save you and yet this faith hasn't effected your lifestyle, actions, or worldview - then is this real faith?

But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. (James 2:18)

  James is saying "I believe, therefore I do." Our works are the result of our faith. If you believe Jesus had to die to cleanse you from your sins, then why would anyone want to continue on sinning willfully? If sin is what was leading you to death and hell, then why would you treat it as no big deal? You don't really believe these things you claim or you would act upon them.

Look to what Jesus said about our actions.

 “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.  (Luke 6:43-45)

What we do reveals who we are. Jesus didn't say to look to a person's confession, but to their fruit.

  So what fruit are you bearing?

  Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that anything short of perfection means you're lost. I'm saying that the bent of a redeemed life will be towards holiness and not sinfulness. Everyone will stumble, but those who have repented and trusted in Jesus will continue to repent and trust in Jesus. They will be broken over their sin, confessing that their actions were indeed sinful and seeking forgiveness. If you on the other hand try to justify your sin claiming that it isn't wrong, or not that wrong, or that it wasn't your fault, or everyone else is doing it, then there is cause for alarm. If you don't clearly see the danger of sin, then what did you need saved from? If what your doing now is OK, then what sins did you repent of in the first place.

 I know this sounds harsh but many have deceived themselves. They hear the Gospel call and admire it yet never heed its warning surrendering to it. 

I'll leave you with one last warning given by Jesus himself.

On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’  (Matt 7:22-23)

I'm special

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. Romans 12:3

When Christians act like the ex-Chain Smoker

Here is a great post I read on the Irish Calvinist Blog. How quickly we turn on those who are as we once were. Here is an excerpt.

  There are many things about the Christian life that are a mystery to me. One of the things that is a mystery and that chaffs my spirit is when a Christian begins to get something and then goes militant against his former ilk. You know what I mean; they begin to understand something theologically profound and impacting and then they are ready to shred anyone of their former friends because they do not get it.  Often times the refrain, “I can’t believe they don’t get this. Are they blind?!”


  A friend of mine has likened this to the ex-chain smoker who now can’t stand people who smoke. The guy used to suck down cigs like slurpies but now he is free from that vice and everyone else is suddenly an idiot.

 Read the rest of the post here.

Book Review: You Can Be Everything God Wants You To Be by Max Lucado

  This book is a breath of fresh air! Max Lucado's You Can be Everything God Wants You to Be is one you will read quickly and wish there was more of it. We can become so accustomed to thinking that living our Christian life is something we have to do, we forget that it is something God designed us to do. We were made for this. God individually designed each of us to uniquely display his glory, so why not honor him by doing what makes you - you!

  Max walks through finding your "sweet spot", which he defines as using "your uniqueness (what you do) to make a big deal out of God (why you do it) every day of your life (where you do it).

As for finding your God given talents, Max simply asks, "What have you always done well and what have you always loved to do?" He wisely suggests looking back at your childhood and reminiscing on what things captivated you. What did you often find yourself doing that you did well? So simple yet so revealing!

  A sticker on the cover of my copy that I received free from Nelson Publishers says that it is the "Perfect gift for the graduate." I 'd have to agree. Perfect for those wondering what they are going to do with the rest of their lives. A nice blend of optimism and realism, best summed up in the truth, "You cannot be anything you want to be. But you can be everything God wants you to be."

Evidence of the Resurrection

Evidence of the Resurrection: Part 1- Internal Evidence

Evidence of the Resurrection: Part 2 - External Evidence

Above are two links to Parchment and Pen. These are blog posts of Michael Patton's where he discusses evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Both are very interesting and compelling and neither is very long. Take a look if you get a chance and while your there bookmark his site it's worth visiting again.

Beta Test the ESV Online

Beta Test the ESV Online: "

The ESV Online is ready for public beta testing.

Sign-up to request an invitation and see what’s coming. We’d love to hear your impressions of the new ESV Online!

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I just got registered and took a look at the site and it looks good. I'll have to play with it for awhile see how it works. One nice feature is that you can access the ESV Study Bible resources.

Ready to Race!

This is Titus' car. Not sure if it will be the fastest but it definitely shows Scout pride.

This is Stephen's. "I'm a big fan of Sponge Bob!"

Nehemiah's car is still in production. Check back soon, I'll post his photo when the paint dries.

Blogging Thru: "P" By Grace Alone

Click here for the intro to this series of Blogging Thru: By Grace Alone T U L I P

The Letter "P"

Perseverance of the Saints

Perseverance of the saints most basically means that all the elect will be saved, none will be lost.

  As you can see through out this study, these doctrines flow one to the other. If man is born with a fallen nature unable and unwilling to choose to come to God (total depravity) then God must choose him (unconditional election). The sins of those whom he has chosen must then be atoned for (limited atonement). Conversion necessitates a new birth, regeneration, with a new nature that is now enabled by the Holy Spirit for repentance and faith (irresistible grace). Now if God purposely and sovereignly went to all the trouble of  electing, atoning and converting lost sinners it only stands to reason that God himself would see them through to glorification. 

The question we are faced with is "Can the elect lose their salvation?"

Neglecting Prayer

  Do you pray enough? Can a person pray enough?

  We all know that we should pray without ceasing and that everything should be bathed in prayer, but do we? We talk about prayer and things we need to pray about, but do we pray? We love to take and share prayer requests at our prayer meetings, but do we ever get around to praying for them? People ask us to pray for them all the time. Do we? If you're like me I always tell them I will. Do I? Sadly, only sometimes.

Without question prayer is essential to the Christian life.

Nobody would ever deny this.

So why don't we pray?

  Time would probably be the most common excuse. It's a big one for me. It's hard to find a moment to quiet my spirit and commune with God. Constantly racing back and forth between responsibilities makes it difficult  to come to a sudden stop and focus on prayer. Even when this is possible the chances of being left alone are slim. Scripture speaks of going to our prayer closet for this time alone. I may have to lock the door behind me.

  The truth may be we fail to comprehend the awesomeness of prayer. I don't always realize that I'm actually talking to God. He who created the heavens and the earth hears my voice. Can any of us grasp the greatness of this? Sadly, I often fail to. So many times I just go through the motions, speaking more to the air than to my Heavenly Father. This shouldn't be.

  The problem may be that I don't think about God enough. I think about what he wants me to do and what he has done for me, but I don't think nearly enough just about him. Things like who God really is and what are his plans and purposes. We should be in constant awe over him and his greatness; On our faces before him knowing that it is only by his mercy and grace that we are still breathing. We don't deserve his goodness. We don't deserve anything but death. And to think that this Great God sent his Son to die that we may live is almost too much to bear. We are not worthy. But worthy is the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world!

  We have the undeserved privilege of  fellowship and prayer with our God. I've taken this for granted for too long. Lord, forgive me!

Let us pray... 

Your Free Subscription to Living Hope!

  I am now managing the blog feed with FeedBurner. If you have previously subscribed to Living Hope you will have to re-subscribe using the link in the sidebar. I have also added the option of an e-mail subscription if you would prefer to receive the latest posts to your inbox. What are you waiting for? For you do not know what tomorrow will bring! (James 4:14)

Who needs an iPAD when you can have...

Blogging Thru: "I" By Grace Alone

Click here for the intro to this series of Blogging Thru: By Grace Alone T U L I P

The Letter "I"

Irresistible Grace

  So far we've looked at Christ's atonement for the elect, those who have been chosen by God unconditionally, who in there total depravity would have been unable to come to salvation otherwise. Now we face the question of, "How does this saving grace come to be applied to those individuals for whom it has been chosen?"

All men are born into a totally depraved state, the elect included. So then how are we delivered from the domain of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of his beloved Son?(Colossians 1:13)

Blogging Thru: "L" By Grace Alone

Click here for the intro to this series of Blogging Thru: By Grace Alone TULIP

The Letter "L"

Limited Atonement or Particular Redemption

This topic is extremely relevant with Easter approaching. Limited atonement deals with the question of "For whom did Christ die?" Was his blood shed for everyone, or for the elect only?

The debate centers on the necessary consequences of either position. The Bible clearly states that not everyone will be saved. So, if Christ died for everyone without exception, then He merely made salvation possible. He arranged for everyone to have the means of salvation if they would just take advantage of it. However, if Christ actually finished the work of redemption - if His death was completely sufficient and effective in securing salvation for guilty sinners - then the very fact that not everyone is saved forces us to conclude that Christ died only for His elect people. (page 63)

Here is closer look at both sides of the issue.