Update for CF Young People

It is 3:00 o’clock in the afternoon, which on my schedule is about 8:00 o’clock in the morning. I prayed for you all last night, while you were having Bible study. My sister said that it went well. Not being to able to teach you all is driving me crazy already. But, thankfully, I am only working through Christmas.

Work is going great. My ears are a bit tired from talking on the phone, and my eyes from looking at a computer screen (Katie, Claire, and Kayla can endorse that from their own experience). 12 hours is a long time every night. But I really have nothing to complain about.

Since I began working at night (which is not very long ago) I have been thinking about how much I love the day. Living most of my waking hours in the dark has given me a new appreciation for the light. It reminds me of what Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5.

But you, brethren, are not of the darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; for you are all sons of light and of the day. We are not of night or of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvations through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him.

There seems to be an imperfect comparison between my experience and the Christian life. We are not people of the age, of this world, and of the night. Our citizenship is in heaven and we are people of the age to come—the day. Therefore we watch for and desire that light, having put on the helmet of “the hope of salvation.” Even though we see massive glimpses of God in the night (in the stars and moon), our true longing is for more than the reflected light of the moon. It is for the unrestrained glory of the sun.

Back to work in a couple of hours. Pray for me. I miss you all already. Romans 7 in January!

CF Bible Study, Romans 7:9-13: The Law is Good and Sin is Utterly Sinful

Annie’s Basement, November 14, 2007

9 I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died;
10 and this commandment which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me;
11 for sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.
12 So then the Law is holy and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.
13 Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.
Romans 7:9-13

There is a question we need to ask about Romans 7:7-25 as a unit. Why is it there? The purpose of this section is to prove that the law is not sin and that sin is. Why is this truth so important to Paul that he would take almost a whole chapter to lay it out? I think the answer is this: he loves justification, and wants us to get it right.

There are two possible responses to the first part of the chapter in which Paul explains that the law is what binds our marriage to sin and condemns us. You will either hate God and His law and spend your life trying to get rid of the law so that you can be free, or you will see, because of God’s revelation of His law, that your sin-nature is the behind death and seek to do away with it though justification. The reason Paul is so intent that we correctly understand this issue is that he wants us to choose the second response.

These verses are very practical for me because for years I responded in the truth of law’s condemnation in the wrong way. I thought, “if only God and His law did not exist, I could be free.” I saw the wrong problem and sought the wrong solution. What I needed was to be liberated from the guilt and dominion of my sinful nature through justifying union with Jesus, and then I could truly be free. Paul wants us to see that God and His law are not the deepest root in our punishment and bondage to sin, sin is. If we see that, we will not miss justification.

The Law Is Good because It Makes Us Die

Paul concludes in verse 12 that “the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous, and good.” Not only is it holy and righteous, it is even good. Why? Paul’s answer is that it caused him to die. Let’s see this in verses 7-12.

“I was once alive apart from the law,” he says in verse 7. This should immediately make us ask some questions. Doesn’t Paul say in Philippians that he was circumcised according to the law and “as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal a persecutor of the church; as the righteousness in the Law, found blameless?” What does it mean the he was alive apart from it? The answer is in verse 11; “Apart from the law sin is dead.” He was alive because sin was dead.

To comprehend this we need further back in the context. “I would not have known sin except through the Law (v. 7).” The life that he speaks of in verse 9 has to do with the mind. It means to be ignorant of sin (it was dead) and so to think that he is alive. It was a distortion of the reality.

All of this had a cause. He was apart from the Law. He knew the Law and even loved it, but it had not penetrated him. “But when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died.” In other words, when God took the Law and pierced him with it, exposing his sin, he understood that he was a dead man. He had been dead all along, but by the Law, he now saw it.

“And the commandment which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me.” The Law was Paul’s foundation and hope before his conversion. “It was to result in life.” He would have said, “Oh how I love your Law.” But all his life that same Law was condemning him. And when God took it and penetrated him with it, he began to know his sin; he died.

Is that a good thing? Yes! It is a tremendous blessing. Look at the logic. “But when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died; and this commandment which was to result in life, proved [I found] to result in death for me . . . So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.” The law is good because it make us die (know our sin) which we must do in order to live.

Sin is the Problem. It Is Utterly Sinful

To find the root of condemnation and bondage to sin, you have to go deeper than the law. The law does both condemn and bind to sin, but Paul’s object is to show that it does so because of something deeper. He brings to light why the law results in death in verse 11. “The commandment . . . proved to result in death . . . for sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me (v. 10-11).” There is the root in our bondage and condemnation—our sin. It feeds off of the punishment of the law to reign inside of us. And all the while, it deceives into thinking that our feeble attempts at keeping the law will result in life.

Just to make sure that there are no misunderstanding or misconceptions of justification, Paul restates what he has said. “Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? [You could think that because of what he said in verse 10. “. . . the commandment proved to result in death for me . . .”] May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful (v. 13).”

God and His law are ultimately not what cause death. Sin, using the law, causes death. By this we see that sin utterly evil. It is so evil in Paul’s eyes that he uses the strongest word possible—sin. Sin is evil; it is sin. And not only is it sinful, it is utterly sinful because it uses that which is good to accomplish something so evil.

So the main point, meant to lead us to true justification, is this: God and his law are not the problem, the completely sinful nature of man is.

Now I want pull out three other lessons from this text.

Lesson 1: In order to live, you must die.

Martin Luther used to say something very true. “Before God saves a man, he damns him.” You must die to live. Unless you know your sin, you will never come to Jesus.

I am so afraid that some you are exactly like Paul before his conversion. You are alive apart from the law. You live a respectable life of general outward conformity to the Bible, and you think that it will result in life. Have you ever thought that maybe you are deceiving yourself, and all the while, your sin is killing you? That is the way sin works; it is a liar. Before Paul found life, he died. I pray daily that God will kill you with His law so that you will find Christ and live.

Lesson 2: Justification is utterly necessary and glorious because the sinful nature of man is utterly sinful.

This point is so clear from verse 13. If sin even comes near something good, like the law, it will always deceive and kill. Sin is completely and thoroughly sinful. We have to know that or we will not fully know the need for and the glory of justification.

I know people who do not understand this. As a result, they don’t fully understand (though they do partially) the necessity of the cross. To them, there is remnant of good inside of man that can, if correctly coaxed, respond to the good gospel. But in reality, there is no such remnant. Sin is utterly sinful. Man is totally depraved. Because of that, justification is desperately needed, even to buy the faith with which we take hold of it. And Christ should get all the glory for that faith and every other ounce of good ever wrought in anyone.

Lesson 3: The knowledge of what we were should cause us to rejoice in what we are and will be. And all of that should be rejoicing in the cross.

I get this from how Paul leads chapter 7 into chapter 8. All of this explanation of the sinfulness of sin culminates in Romans 8—Paul’s rejoicing that we are free. He cries out in verse 24, “who will deliver me from the body of this death.” And then he says, “There is no therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death (8:1-2).” You can feel the exultation of this man. The contemplation of what he was drove him to great joy in what he had and would become (8:10).

All of the rejoicing in our freedom from sin and death should be rejoicing in the cross of Jesus. Notice how these two are so closely knit in Paul. “The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death (v. 2).” Paul’s joy in his liberty from sin and death at its heart is joy in justification, because behind this freedom is union with Christ. “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (v. 1).”

I teach every week to create people who love justification. It should be everything to you. It is not just a part of your life. Jesus—with whom you have lived, died, and risen—is your life (Col. 3).

Bryan Elliff © 2007

CF Bible Study: God’s Purpose—the Obedience of Faith among Every Nation

Elliff’s Basement November 5, 2007

“. . . through Him we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles [nations] for His name’s sake.”
Romans 1:5

When Jesus went to Golgotha and gave His life on the cross, He was doing something that shook the uttermost parts of the earth. He was not simply giving His blood as the fulfillment of Jewish prophesies to redeem Israel. He was not even giving it to redeem people from every country of the world. What He did was pervasively world-shaking because He was giving His blood to purchase for God men from every nation on the earth (Rev. 5:9). I do not want us to miss this. Do not miss the all-nationsness of the cross. It is God’s unshakable purpose from eternity to create His Son’s bride, the church, from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And God has chosen that the church carry out that purpose by proclaiming this gospel to them.

This was what burned in the heart of the apostle Paul. He lived and died, not just as an evangelist to his neighbors and fellow countrymen, and not just as an evangelist and church planter to other countries and peoples. Though he was both of those things, they were not foremost in his heart. Before everything else, he lived and died as an evangelist and church planter, or missionary, to those who have not heard the gospel so that the gospel would go out with its saving power to every people on the earth. He burned to bring about the obedience of faith in those for whom Christ had died among all the nations. Look at this passion in Romans 15:18-21.

“For I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has already accomplished through me, resulting in the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed [the obedience of faith!], in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, so that I would not build upon another man’s foundation; but as it is written, ‘They who had no news of Him shall see, and they who have not heard shall understand.’”

At first look, this desire to go where Christ has not been named so as not to build upon another’s foundation seems to be the raving of a megalomaniac; an insane desire for self-exaltation in being the only one to get glory for building the house. It is either that or something much more profound. I think this drive to go where no one has gone and to build where there are no foundations is the outworking of Paul’s vision for bringing about the faith that Christ had purchased for His people among every nation. He had been hindered in coming to the Roman Christians because his first aim was that “They who had no news of Him shall see, and they who have not heard shall understand.”

I pray that God might give this same passion to some of us. There are around 15-16,000 people groups in the world, and 6-7,000 of them are unreached. May Christ give us a heart like Paul’s to fulfill His command to make disciples of all the nations!

The Result and a Question

The result of this drive in Paul’s life was profound suffering. He described some of it in 2 Corinthians 11. “I have been in . . .labors . . . in imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from robbers, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.”

So the question I want to ask and answer tonight is: What is the underlying principle in Paul’s zeal for frontier missions that would cause him to pursue it despite such deep suffering?

For His Name’s Sake

The answer is in our text, Romans 1:5. “. . . to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles [nations] for His name’s sake.” Arcing over Paul’s fervor for frontier missions was a driving passion for the fame of Jesus Christ. All of his zeal for the nations to obey in faith was fueled by a desire for the name of Jesus to be famous. To fully comprehend this, we need to see how the obedience of faith among all the nations achieves great fame for Christ. I see three primary ways.

1. The faith of the nations furthers the glory of Jesus because blasphemers are turned to worshipers.

There are millions of people on the earth who do not give honor to God. That drove Paul. “Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image made like corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures (Romans 1:22-23).” And for that the wrath of God is justly revealed.

Paul understood that the abomination of idolatry and paganism is not derived from ignorance—thinking that if only they knew, they would worship—but from a God-hating nature. All nations fully know that there is a God to be honored in everything. “That which is know about God is evident within them; for God has made it evident to them (Romans 1:19).” But, even though they live underneath the sky that God created and stare into faces made in His image, they willfully give honor and glory to anything but Him.

The conception of missions today is sadly man-centered. We think that our main goal is give the nations knowledge so that they can be happy. But it is evident that the nations already have enough knowledge to blaspheme. The Bible clearly shows that there is a far higher goal. The glory of God is that goal. At the heart of missions should be a yearning that the Lamb, who is “worthy to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing (Rev. 5:12),” have what is His.

2. The faith of the nations furthers the glory of Jesus because it satisfies the blood of the cross and thereby displays the grace of God.

The glory of the grace of God is the ultimate end of the universe. And, as we saw a few weeks ago, the justifying cross of Jesus is the center-point of that end. But it is not the center-point if God’s glory if does not actually accomplish its intended purpose. For it to glorify the grace of God it must actually bring the forgiveness and the grace that it was meant to bring. A death of Christ that does not justify those for whom it was died does not magnify Christ.

In some sense, then, we have a part in bringing Christ the glory of the cross, because we are the instruments who, by proclamation of truth mingled with faith in our hearers, bring this redemption to God’s chosen people. So we preach to every tribe and tongue and people and nation because the Lamb has purchased people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation for His name. We preach to fulfill what the cross has accomplished and so to give Jesus the full glory that He has brought to Himself.

3. The faith of the nations furthers the glory of Jesus because this saving faith leads to their eternal worship and joy.

Paul says in Romans 15 that Christ became incarnate as a Jew “for the Gentiles [nations] to glorify God for His mercy; as it is written, ‘Therefore I will give praise to You among the Gentiles, and I will sing to your name.’ And again he says, ‘Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people.’ And again, ‘Praise the Lord all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise Him (Romans 15:8-11).”

Do you see what he is saying? Christ lived and died as a Jew so that the nations would glorify God’s grace. How will they do that? In their eternal joy in God and overflowing worship. “Rejoice, O nations, with His people!”

I have been to the Swiss Alps. I can remember standing near the edge of a precipice and looking at the mountains and thinking that this was one of the most delightful, powerful, and beautiful sights I had ever seen. In my delight in those mountains, they were glorified as being what I saw them to be. Likewise, when the nations become a part of God’s trinitarian pleasure in Himself, that pleasure shouts that God is infinitely pleasurable, powerful, and beautiful.

Not only is Christ made famous by that fact that the nations will no longer blaspheme, and not only because the cross will be satisfied, but also because of the blood-bought joy that the nations will have in Him for eternity.

“I Am With You Always”

I have a final word of warning and encouragement. If you go and live and die for this, it will likely result for you in suffering like Paul’s or worse, because the nations do not want you to come. They are by nature God-haters. That is clear by the very fact that they look at this magnificent creation and refuse to give God honor for it. And so, unless God restrains them (which He often does), they will kill you the very moment you even mention the name of Jesus as a savior from their sins. Jesus once said to His disciples, “Behold, I send you out as sheep among wolves.” To go to the nations is to walk as a sheep into a pack of wolves.

I find great encouragement from this verse because of what it says in the beginning. “. . . through Him [Christ] we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles . . .” There is no way you can go and preach the gospel to murderous cannibals, like John Paton for instance, without getting killed. It is impossible unless you are surrounded and preceded by the grace of Jesus. This work is hopeless without the grace of Christ. And what I find in this verse is that we have it!

After commissioning his followers to go and make disciples of all the nations [the same words that Paul used], Jesus said, “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matt. 28:20).” If you go out as sheep among wolves to bring about faith among all the nations for Jesus name’s sake, take hold of this promise, “I will be with you!”

Bryan Elliff © 2007

Becoming Children: the Character of True Humility

Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 18:3-4

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7

Genuine humility toward God does not mainly consist of worthless self-abasement, but of childlike trust. Jesus’ disciples once came to Him and asked, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 18:1)?” Jesus answer is profound. Taking a child to himself, he said, “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matt 18:4).” In other words, whoever trusts God as child trusts his guardians and providers—exalting God’s power and grace in this way—is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Here we need to draw out a distinction. There is a difference between a humble spirit toward God and a humble spirit toward other people. The Biblical portrayal of humility between fellow creatures is meek service. “Regard one another as more important then yourselves (Philippians 2:3).” But Jesus’ portrayal of humbleness toward God has a different emphasis. It is centered in trust and reliance.

Often the true object (and therefore the true nature) of humility is lost. Perceiving and contemplating the depth of your sinfulness, weakness and deadness is often seen as the ultimate goal. But Jesus’ description of humility points to a greater goal—honoring God by trusting like a child. Understanding your sinfulness and weakness may be a means but it is not the ultimate objective. While it is essential to know your sin and helplessness, it is merely a step to confidence in God that is divested of any hope in anything else. Like a child who knows his own lack of strength rests his whole confidence in his father, so Christ commands us, in our total weakness, to trust our Father. And so the aim of true Godward humility is childlike trust.

There is a reason behind this object. When a child fully trusts his father to protect and provide, the father’s grace and ability is greatly magnified. The Eighteenth-century pastor Jonathan Edwards once preached a sermon called God Glorified in Man’s Dependence, in which he attempted to show that God is magnificently glorified in the fact that the redeemed must completely depend on Him for all their good. The title of this sermon strikes the core of what I am saying. True humility consists in childlike, and therefore God-glorifying, dependence.

To seek to be humble, then, is not a burden. It is throwing off our burdens to be carried by our Redeemer. “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God . . . casting all your anxiety upon Him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:6-7).”

Humility is not a struggle to debase yourself. It is a joyful struggle to exalt God through a deep confidence in Him to move through your weakness and sin for your good and His name.

Bryan Elliff © 2007