Your COMPASS for the Journey on the PATH of Discipleship: May 29-June 4, 2011
Posted by Isaac Butterworth | Filed under Discipleship, Puritans, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation
Your COMPASS for the week of May 29 through June 4 is not only being published early but also in full. Uncontrollable circumstances made this necessary. If you logged on expecting to see the entries for Friday, May 27, and Saturday, May 28, you may find them here.
Sunday, May 29, 2011 IN CHRIST
Compass:
Ephesians 1:3-14 ‘…You were also included in Christ….’
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
Map:
Last week, we began to reflect on our union with Christ. This week, we want to consider the manner in which we are united with Christ. John Flavel, a seventeenth century Presbyterian pastor, stressed that ‘there are only two ligaments, or bands of union betwixt Christ and the soul, viz. the Spirit on his part, and faith on ours.’
Journey:
To be united with Christ, to be in union with him, is the state the Scriptures describe as being ‘in Christ.’ Take a moment to read Ephesians 1:3-14, and, as you do, count how many times Paul uses the phrase, ‘in Christ’ or ‘in him.’
Monday, May 30, 2011 DRAWN TO CHRIST
Compass:
John 6:44 ‘No one can come to me unless the Father…draws him….’
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.
Map:
Stephen Yuille says: ‘Christ must take hold of us before we can take hold of him.’ Scripture tells us that the great mass of people are ‘darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God’ (Ephesians 4:18). Outside of Christ, our will is in bondage to sin. Therefore, God must draw us to Christ.
Journey:
If you are reading this, it is likely that God has drawn you to his Son, Jesus Christ. Thank him that, although ‘your were once darkness…, now you are light in the Lord’ (Ephesians 5:8). (Note the phrase, ‘in the Lord,’ which has the same meaning as the phrase, ‘in Christ.’)
Tuesday, May 31, 2011 NO ‘BARE PROPOSAL’
Compass:
Romans 3:10-11 ‘…There is no one who seeks God….’
10 As it is written:
“There is no one righteous, not even one;
11 there is no one who understands,
no one who seeks God.
Map:
Flavel contends that God ‘powerfully and effectually’ inclines us to himself. But, he says, this is no ‘bare proposal,’ as though God merely proposes Christ to us and then leaves us to make a decision. If he did, Stephen Yuille says, we would never choose Christ.
Journey:
There is much talk in religious circles about ‘choosing Christ.’ Compare such talk to Jesus’ words in John 15:16: ‘You did not choose me, but I chose you….’ We exalt the freedom of the will when we should exalt the sovereignty of God. Humble yourself before Scripture’s assessment of fallen humanity.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011 THREE CONDITIONS OF THE SOUL
Compass:
James 5:20 (KJV) ‘…He which converteth the sinner…shall save a soul from death….’
Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
Map:
According to Flavel, the soul is endowed with understanding, will, and affections. When God created the first humans, their condition was one of innocence. The three faculties functioned properly. But the Fall plunged humanity into a second condition, that of degeneration. The soul was damaged, darkening the mind, stiffening the will, and hardening the heart. But, Flavel says, ‘by regeneration [the third condition of the soul], this disordered soul is set right again.’
Journey:
This third condition of the soul is what the Bible calls conversion (Isaiah 6:10; James 5:20), or, as Flavel puts it, ‘the turning of the whole man to God.’ Pray for others, that their mind, their will, and their heart may be turned to God.
Thursday, June 2, 2011 TAKING HOLD OF CHRIST BY FAITH (1)
Compass:
Romans 5:1-2 ‘…We have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.’
1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Map:
Flavel writes: ‘Three things must be wrought upon man before he can come to Christ: His blind understanding must be enlightened; his hard and rocky heart must be broken and melted; his still, fixed, and obstinate will must be conquered and subdued.’ Christ sends forth the Holy Spirit to enlighten our minds and soften our hearts. We, in turn, perceive the glory of God in Christ and willingly embrace him by faith.
Journey:
The Holy Spirit subdues our will and frees it from bondage so that we may then take hold of Christ by faith. Offer a prayer of thanksgiving for the bliss that is yours because, before God, you are (in Francis Thompson’s words) ‘defenseless utterly.’ (Listen to Richard Burton read Thompson’s poem, ‘The Hound of Heaven.’)
Thursday, June 3, 2011 TAKING HOLD OF CHRIST BY FAITH (2)
Compass:
Acts 8:34-38 (KJV) ‘…If thou believest with all thine heart….’
34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
Map:
According to Flavel, faith has five ingredients: (1) knowledge (we must understand the truth about Christ); (2) assent (we must agree with this truth); (3) approbation (we must esteem Christ as the complete remedy for our sins); (4) consent (we must receive Christ); and (5) acceptance (we must accept the terms upon which Christ is offered to us in the gospel).
Journey:
Flavel viewed faith as engaging the three faculties of the soul. Knowledge and assent are acts of the understanding. Approbation is an act of the affections. Consent and acceptance are acts of the will. In 2 Corinthians 13:5, Paul says, ‘Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith….’ As you do, you will find that your mind (your pattern of thinking) has been renewed, that your heart (the seat of your affections) has been transformed, and that your will (your ability to consent) has been empowered by the Spirit.
Saturday, June 4, 2011 REVIEW
Next week, we will consider the blessings of union with Christ. We are using Stephen Yuille’s book, The Inner Sanctum of Puritan Piety, to follow the teachings of John Flavel, a Presbyterian pastor in seventeenth century England. As Flavel read the Scriptures, he saw that there are two ‘bands of union’ between Christ and believers: Christ takes hold of us by his Spirit, and we take hold of Christ by our faith.
Photo Credit: Tempo de refletir by Eduardo Amorim
