I find myself in the midst of a crisis which calls for MUCH prayer. It reminds me of events not too long ago when we were pleading to God for the lives of our boys on three different occasions. In all three of those situations, we were powerless to do anything, and God was all we needed and could ask for.
So, this is a similar situation for some friends of ours - I know what they are feeling right now - desperation for God to do a good work and thereby glorifying Himself. There are a number of people praying for them. Why? Because we all believe that God listens to the prayers of His saints and may act upon them.
Does this sound strange for the Almighty Sovereign God to act upon the prayers of His saints? It is not. Do not forget, Greg Wood, that God could have ordained your prayers to be that which God would act upon, thus bringing about His good plan. God ordains the end and the means to get to that end. Do not forget that your prayers show your dependency upon God. Do not forget that prayer is great blessing, the blessing of communion with your joyful heavenly Father. God has not put the universe in motion, given natural laws, stepped back, and said "Good luck!" No, He is involved in every aspect of the creation, but especially that of His moral creatures. We are not alone, we are not hopeless.
This truth of the Sovereignty of God gives me faith in Him, reverence for Him, and love for Him - and I hope that it does for you too. He gets the credit for every good in this world, and I can know that everything is done for the good of His saints (Rom. 8:28). Nothing is meaningless. Further, when God ordains a prayer as His means of acting - that prayer will be effective and nothing can stop Him.
Now come Lord Jesus, strengthen your children and their little child. Let your glory be seen and loved. Let your name be exalted. Defeat the RSV. To you, the only wise God, be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen!
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Is Church Membership Biblical? Part 1
A couple of Sundays ago, the band came over to our house for lunch after the morning service. The topic of church membership came up in conversation. We asked the question, "What is church membership?" A great conversation followed, which showed that people have real concerns about "membership" and what that might communicate to people.
Here I would like to ask the question, "When the Bible speaks of the church, does it ever put forward anything that resembles church membership?" Or restated: "Does God guide His flock in ways that make local church membership a useful means of grace?"
Observation #1
Our church is moving forward in establishing/growing its leadership. We will have our second elder soon, and I am sure there are more to follow. One of the charges given to elders is that they are to pay careful attention to themselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made them overseers, and to care for the church of God (Acts 20:28). So, it seems that a reasonable question for an elder is, "Who is the flock for which I am an overseer?" Obviosly, the elders in Ephesus were expected to understand Paul when he made this statement, and Paul spoke of a particular duty to protect some group of people called a "flock." But, how are these people identified?
So, my observation here is this: The elders are to guard a certain set of people, and by having those people make a commitment to that particular church family, agreeing to come under that elder leadership, this role is fulfilled. You can call that church membership if you want to, but what is needed is knowledge of the flock that is to be guarded. Note that this doesn't give us any indication as to how formal this was (written versus verbal).
Would elders be responsible for everyone who ever darkened the door of one of the church's gatherings? I cannot imagine the answer being yes. Wouldn't they be responsible though for those who wanted their godly shepherding? But you may say, "there was just 'the church' in those days, each city with a set of believers, and so the elders were responsible for all of them. But, would elders in our day be responsible for all of the believers in their city, though they may never come to the elders' particular gathering of believers? I think it is reasonable to say "no." So this seems to indicate that people need to commit to being members of one another, in the sense that we have members of our physical body. People need to come under the leadership of the elders, and entrust to them the right to hold them spiritually accountable.
More reasons for us to be committed to a local church are to come...
Here I would like to ask the question, "When the Bible speaks of the church, does it ever put forward anything that resembles church membership?" Or restated: "Does God guide His flock in ways that make local church membership a useful means of grace?"
Observation #1
Our church is moving forward in establishing/growing its leadership. We will have our second elder soon, and I am sure there are more to follow. One of the charges given to elders is that they are to pay careful attention to themselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made them overseers, and to care for the church of God (Acts 20:28). So, it seems that a reasonable question for an elder is, "Who is the flock for which I am an overseer?" Obviosly, the elders in Ephesus were expected to understand Paul when he made this statement, and Paul spoke of a particular duty to protect some group of people called a "flock." But, how are these people identified?
So, my observation here is this: The elders are to guard a certain set of people, and by having those people make a commitment to that particular church family, agreeing to come under that elder leadership, this role is fulfilled. You can call that church membership if you want to, but what is needed is knowledge of the flock that is to be guarded. Note that this doesn't give us any indication as to how formal this was (written versus verbal).
Would elders be responsible for everyone who ever darkened the door of one of the church's gatherings? I cannot imagine the answer being yes. Wouldn't they be responsible though for those who wanted their godly shepherding? But you may say, "there was just 'the church' in those days, each city with a set of believers, and so the elders were responsible for all of them. But, would elders in our day be responsible for all of the believers in their city, though they may never come to the elders' particular gathering of believers? I think it is reasonable to say "no." So this seems to indicate that people need to commit to being members of one another, in the sense that we have members of our physical body. People need to come under the leadership of the elders, and entrust to them the right to hold them spiritually accountable.
More reasons for us to be committed to a local church are to come...
Who is at the Center of God's Universe?
Premise 1: Righteousness is defined as esteeming (through emotions, thoughts, and actions) that which is infinitely worthy of being esteemed.
Premise 2: God is righteous.
Conclusion: God's righteousness means that He esteems Himself most highly in the universe. In other words, God is the center of His own universe. He is the most God-centered being there is, and there is no unrighteousness (e.g. selfishness) in His doing so.
Credits: John Piper gave this definition of righteousness in a sermon on Romans 9. I am sure that Jonathan Edwards said or influenced the conclusion.
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