A Portentous Old Parishioner

Charles Dickens (1812-1870)

Charles Dickens, in his book "Our Mutual Friend," writes of a pastor and his wife traveling for a wedding. At the train station this happens:

"That worthy couple were delayed by a portentous old parishioner of the female gender, who was one of the plagues of their lives, and with whom they bore with most exemplary sweetness and good-humor, notwithstanding her having all infection of absurdity about her, that communicated itself to everything with which, and everybody with whom, she came in contact. She was a member of the Reverend Frank's congregation, and made a point of distinguishing herself in that body by conspicuously weeping at everything, however cheering, said by the Reverend Frank in his public ministration; also by applying to herself the various lamentations of David, and complaining in a personally injured manner (much in arrear of the clerk and the rest of the respondents) that her enemies were digging pitfalls about her, and breaking her with rods of iron. . .This very exacting member of the fold appeared to be endowed with a sixth sense, in regard of knowing when the Reverend Frank Milvey least desired her company, and with promptitude appearing in his little hall. . ."

pp 707-708, Wordsworth Classics Edition

Sunday Post for Shepherds - Be Certain

"Be certain all the hairs of your 

head are numbered. 

Be certain your good Father 

hath appointed bounds, 

over which the devil dare not look." 

John Bradford, Bradford's Works, Vol 2, page 79

Sunday Post for Shepherds - Remember

"Remember that all you have is at Christ's commandment. Remember He lost more for you than you can lose for Him. Remember you lose not that which is lost for His sake, for you shall find much more here and elsewhere. . .Remember you shall die; and when and where and how you cannot tell." John Bradford, quoted in Five English Reformers by JC Ryle, page 137

Latimeric Philosophy

"If you will not die eternally, live not worldly." 

Hugh Latimer, English Reformer (1487-1555)

Sunday Post for Shepherds - While You Are In This World. . .

"Feed you tenderly, with all diligence, the flock of Christ. Preach truly the Word of God. Love the light, walk in the light, and so be you the children of light while you are in this world, that you may shine in the world to come, bright as the sun, with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost." 

From Works, Vol 1 pp 50-57, by Hugh Latimer (1487-1555), 

English Reformer, Bishop, Chaplain, and Martyr

Be Loving God

"The love of God is required no less than our conversion and the keeping of all the commandments; for the love of God is our true conversion." - Martin Luther, The Bondage of the Will, Revell edition, page 164

Take the Trouble

"Pray tell me, what can a man do in the realm of theology and the sacred writings, if he has not even reached the point of knowing what the law and the gospel are, or, if he does know, scorns to observe the distinction? He is bound to mix up everything, heaven with hell and life with death, and will not take the slightest trouble to know about Christ." - Martin Luther, The Bondage of the Will, Revell edition, pages 163-164

Get Ready for Grace

"The Diatribe constantly imagines a man who either can do what he is commanded, or at any rate knows that he cannot. But such a man is nowhere to be found. If there were such, then, in truth, either the commanding of impossibilities would be absurd, or the Spirit of Christ would be in vain. But the Scripture sets before us a man who is not only bound, wretched, captive, sick and dead, but who, through the operation of Satan his lord, adds to his other miseries that of blindness, so that he believes himself to be free, happy, possessed of liberty and ability, whole and alive. Satan knows that if men knew their own misery he could keep no man in his kingdom; God could not fail at once to pity and succour wretchedness that knew itself and cried to Him, for God is proclaimed with mighty praise throughout the Scripture as being near the broken-hearted. Thus Isaiah 61 bears witness that Christ was sent 'to preach the gospel to the poor, and to heal the broken-hearted'. Hence, the work of Satan is to hold men so that they do not recognize their wretchedness, but presume that they can do everything that is stated. But the work of Moses the lawgiver is the opposite of this--namely, through the law to lay open to man his own wretchedness so that, by thus breaking him down, and confounding him in his self-knowledge, he may make him ready for grace, and send him to Christ to be saved. Therefore, the function performed by the law is nothing to laugh at, but is most emphatically serious and necessary." - Martin Luther, The Bondage of the Will, the Revell editon, pages 161-162

The Blindness of Reason & Impotence of the Law

"So the words of the law are spoken, not to assert the power of the will, but to illuminate the blindness of reason, so that it may see that its own light is nothing, and the power of the will is nothing. 'By the law is knowledge of sin,' says Paul (Rom 3:20). He does not say: abolition, or avoidance, of sin. The entire design and power of the law is just to give knowledge, and that of nothing but sin; not to display or confer any power. This knowledge is not power, nor does it bring power; but it teaches and displays that there is here no power, and great weakness. What can 'knowledge of sin' be, but knowledge of our weakness and badness? He does not say: 'by the law comes knowledge of power or goodness'! All that the law does, on Paul's testimony, is to make sin known. It is from this passage that I derive my answer to you: that by the words of the law man is admonished and taught, not what he can do, but what he ought to do; that is, that he may know his sin, not that he may believe that he has any strength." - Martin Luther, The Bondage of the Will, the Revell editon, pages 158-159

On Fighting the Fight of Faith

"Let us not run away when it is most time to fight. Remember, none shall be crowned but such as fight manfully; and he that endures to the end shall be saved. You must now turn all your cogitations from the peril you see, and mark by faith what follows the peril, either victory in this world of your enemies, or else a surrender of this life to inherit the everlasting kingdom." - John Hooper, in a letter from prison to his friends, three weeks before being burned to death in Gloucester.

To the Christian Rich - Your Wealth is Gift

"Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all. For man does not know his time. Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them." - Ecclesiastes 9:11-12

The Issue of the Potsherds of the Earth

"Pride of heart thinks nothing too high for the man, and so arraigns before its tribunal the divine proceedings, pretends to see through them, censures freely and condemns. But humiliation of spirit disposes a man to think awfully and honorably of those mysteries of Providence he is not able to see through. . .What else can possibly be the issue of the potsherds of the earth dashing against the Rock of ages, but that they are broken to pieces? All men must certainly bow or break under the mighty hand of God (Rom 11:33; Job 41:8)." - Thomas Boston, from The Crook in the Lot, Christian Heritage edition pages 136 & 139

Do Not Seek Happiness. Seek God.

"If you seek righteousness more than happiness you'll get both. If you seek happiness more than righteousness you'll get neither . . . 

The person who is happy is always the one who has stopped trying to be happy . . .

The less you're concerned about happiness, and the more you're concerned about God, the happier you get . . . 

Aim at heaven you get earth thrown in. Aim at earth you get neither . . .

Happiness is brought about not by controlling your environment but by controlling your allegiances."  - Tim Keller commenting on Psalm 1 concerning the search for happiness.

Keller makes the biblical point that happiness is always a byproduct of a pursuit of something else, something fundamental to the character of our Creator. This is why the Bible repeatedly promises blessing to those who strive for purity, holiness, contentment, etc; to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, not happiness. "Happiness is always and only a byproduct of seeking something else more than happiness." The Bible nowhere says that blessed is the one who seeks blessedness.

More Mind, More Joy

"Christianity is always NOT the absence of thinking, 

but the presence of more thinking."

Tim Keller, commenting on Romans 8, and the need for the mind in the pursuit of happiness

The Final & Eternal Yes

"For there are many prayers not to be answered till we come to the other world (Ro 7:24) and there all will be answered at once." 
Thomas Boston, from Crook in the Lot, page 76 of the Christian Heritage edition

To the Christian Rich - Faith is Better than Gold

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls. -- 1 Peter 1:3-9

The Pain of Love as a Means of Grace

Thomas Boston (1676–1732)

"So do men oftentimes find their greatest cross, where they expected their greatest comfort. Sin hath unhinged the whole creation, and made every relation susceptible of the crook."

From Crook in the Lot, by Thomas Boston, page 37 in the Christian Heritage edition

I Trust Jesus; and Sometimes I Hate Him.

For we maintain that a man is justified by faith

apart from observing the law.

Romans 3:28

Still pondering the meaning of the Protestant Reformation, the above text comes to mind. It is faith alone that ties a person to God savingly. No wonder this came to Martin Luther as exceedingly good news, since he is known to have said that he sometimes hated God. You see, it is not your love for God that ties you to Him, or brings you into His family, or gets you a seat at the Father's table, or moves Him to welcome you in. It is your faith in His Son.

None of this is to belittle the great and first commandment that we love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Dt 6; Mt 22), or to minimize the sinfulness of hating the Lord. It is to distinguish correctly the most significant biblical categories of Law and Gospel. That we love God with all our being is a command, and command keeping does not bring us to God. That is the point of the Bible verse above. God justifies a person by faith alone without regard to one's command keeping.  Astounding. Unbelievable really, until He makes one believe. Salvation is gift, and that's why it is gospel (good news).

Sunday Post for Shepherds - Your Title is Empty

"Saul died because he was unfaithful to the LORD; he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance, and did not inquire of the LORD. So the LORD put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse. All Israel came together to David at Hebron and said, "We are your own flesh and blood. In the past, even while Saul was king, you were the one who led Israel on their military campaigns. And the LORD your God said to you, 'You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will become their ruler.'"

 1 Chronicles 10:13-11:2

It's not the man with the title that the people followed. It's the man with the courage. It's the man who actually, functionally, and biblically shepherded the flock while claiming no title. Saul was ever proud of being king. This contributed to his inability to lead God's people. He believed the kingdom was his and the people his servants. David believed the kingdom was God's and the people his responsibility. "Pastor" is just a word. "Pastoring" is a calling, and a labor. God hasn't selected you to be a pastor. He has selected you to pastor, meaning shepherding a people - His people. The Apostle Paul reminded pastor Timothy that he was to "fulfill his ministry" (2 Ti 4:5), not protect his delusions. Authority is given to magnify service.

I have met so many of you set upon being respected because you are the pastor; because you have the title, regardless of whether you're actually bibically qualified for the task and are "spending and being expended for souls" (2 Co 12:15). Stop it. Humble yourself. Forget yourself. "Inquire of the LORD." Do the Bible. Serve the people, and so lead them as their shepherd. Kill the Saul within you. Be a David.

"Some of the men of Manasseh defected to David when he went with the
Philistines to fight against Saul. . .Day after day men came to help David, 
until he had a great army, like the army of God." 

1 Chronicles 12:19&22

Merica

The wicked freely strut about 

when what is vile is honored among men.

Psalm 12:8