tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33556950375383074652023-11-16T10:09:23.988-08:00Bible-basedBible-based exists to challenge all of us with small parts of the Bible, along with a few comments on the implications of those passages on how we live our lives.Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-5382336785179987892022-02-08T17:13:00.001-08:002022-02-08T17:14:36.348-08:00Eutychus<p><a href="https://www.epchurch.org.au/index.php/podcast/alive-talk-4-eutychus/">This sermon</a> is about a young man named Eutychus, who fell to his death from a third-story windows, and was raised back to life by the apostle Paul. The text is <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts+20%3A7-12&version=ESV">Acts 20:7-12</a>.</p><p>In this message, I ask and seek to answer a number of questions:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Did Eutychus really die, or was he just knocked unconcious?</li><li>Did Paul raise Eutychus, or was it God?</li><li>Why this miracle?</li><li>How do we apply this today?</li></ul><div><br /></div><p></p>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-4903556551172322342019-06-11T02:21:00.001-07:002019-06-11T02:21:46.879-07:00Peter, Do You Love Me?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9juuShG8y9b0SG1pD_3KLbBLwjlbO_lm4vOGGwrvTZeFUkbGktLK8riwyakb5NN3onS8wtrMD5sxBUrakM6-7k2wEl-pAt2F4T1ZOwIShYsOz4Dk2STXbA0ySvM7hZEnD0f8d8m8bgUDO/s1600/fish.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="261" data-original-width="600" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9juuShG8y9b0SG1pD_3KLbBLwjlbO_lm4vOGGwrvTZeFUkbGktLK8riwyakb5NN3onS8wtrMD5sxBUrakM6-7k2wEl-pAt2F4T1ZOwIShYsOz4Dk2STXbA0ySvM7hZEnD0f8d8m8bgUDO/s200/fish.png" width="200" /></a></div>
This sermon by Rev. Gilbert Jansen focuses on John's account of the events surrounding the disciples waiting at Galilee, after the resurrection, to meet the Lord Jesus, and of the famous post-breakfast questions of Jesus, "Peter, do you love me?"<br />
<br />
The texts for this sermon were:<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+21%3A1-17&version=NKJV">John 21:1-17</a> (main sermon text)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+16%3A5-7&version=NKJV">Mark 16:5-7</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+138&version=NKJV">Psalm 138</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
Some points of interest from the sermon:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>The differentiation between<i> agape</i> and<i> phileo</i> love is discussed extensively (trust me: it's not boring).</li>
<li>Pointing out that <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+21%3A5&version=NIV">John 21:5 is better-translated in the NIV</a>.</li>
<li>Quote: "I <i>phileo</i> my wife, alright!"</li>
</ul>
<div>
There were many memories evoked for me in the rest of this service, too. I can hear my brother Peter coming over the top in the choir, and what I presume to be his six-week old son Danny crying throughout. In the pastoral prayer, Dad prays for Dorothea Meyer and Jean and Jimmy Goodsell.<br />
<br />
The apology about the problems with the delivery of the hymn books made me smile, and helped me date the sermon - Dad only labelled the tape "10/4", so the hymn books reference helped me be certain it was 1988.<br />
<br />
I also felt, more than ever, the truth of these words for my Dad as I heard him sing them again:</div>
</div>
<blockquote>
<div>
<b><i>I’ll praise my Maker while I’ve breath,</i></b></div>
<div>
<div>
<b><i>And when my voice is lost in death,</i></b></div>
<div>
<i>Praise shall employ my nobler pow’rs;</i></div>
<div>
<i>My days of praise shall ne’er be past,</i></div>
<div>
<i>While life and thought and being last,</i></div>
<div>
<i>Or immortality endures.</i></div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Links:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/db6cfu549dwl1q7/1988_04_10%20John%2021%2C%201-17%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen%20-%20Sermon%20Only.mp3?dl=0">The Sermon Only</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/mhwm6imzhw1rja1/1988_04_10%20John%2021%2C%201-17%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen.mp3?dl=0">The Entire Recording</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-24519250859551671642019-05-30T03:58:00.000-07:002019-05-30T03:58:31.203-07:00What are you doing here?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs5krstOOfBRWsndw0-nW_aBUEtZ0jROqroMB6oIpAw4E8sZc797gbDa8bzKbit0mS375VzUkjqDL4vdwRE6W4ZVOXFHmquSpiR5BytmW2JFmpsqz0Pyw6NAgVGV8nG-bbjLrXEx1oqxzq/s1600/empty-tomb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="250" data-original-width="246" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs5krstOOfBRWsndw0-nW_aBUEtZ0jROqroMB6oIpAw4E8sZc797gbDa8bzKbit0mS375VzUkjqDL4vdwRE6W4ZVOXFHmquSpiR5BytmW2JFmpsqz0Pyw6NAgVGV8nG-bbjLrXEx1oqxzq/s200/empty-tomb.jpg" width="196" /></a></div>
Our family arrived in Rockhampton in late 1985, just in time for me to finish grade two in a <i>third</i> school. Dad started leading the church services and preaching at St Stephen's immediately, as a "licentiate". That basically means that he had completed theological training at "The Hall", but that he hadn't yet been ordained or "called".<br />
<br />
Sunday 30 March 1986 was Dad's first Easter as minister of St Stephen's. The church was packed. Some ministers would have been glad, or flattered, or impressed. Some.<br />
<br />
After this sermon, most of the Christmas-and-Easter crowd refused to come back to hear the "crazy Dutchman" again, but some came back the very next week, and stayed.<br />
<br />
The texts for the service were:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+16%3A1-13&version=NKJV">Mark 16:1-13</a> (sermon text)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+24%3A13-27&version=NKJV">Luke 24:13-27</a> (sermon text)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+16&version=NKJV">Psalm 16</a> (not on the recording, but referred to)</li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<div>
Links:</div>
<div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/ilevj9h509xopai/1986_03_30%20Mark%2016%2C%201-3%2C%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen%20-%20Sermon%20Only.mp3?dl=0">The Sermon Only</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/qbi1wuyge3y2cug/1986_03_30%20Mark%2016%2C%201-3%2C%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen.mp3?dl=0">The Entire Recording</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-12917667832319502332019-05-23T02:05:00.002-07:002019-05-23T02:05:36.785-07:00The Word of God is Sufficient<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUspwP8bbg_t67ZBDYlYItCTcef8XykYgSO6BEYJpHZFAX-10izVxZYCMIUQqPaaF0JSFJ1DaNKJN-ZKl7DTleJqig3Pdt7Zba9Z_CM4FFJ2HdRwGUdj1Kfqkr1whvvy2AyLwyfsh8uV_R/s1600/tape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1030" data-original-width="1600" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUspwP8bbg_t67ZBDYlYItCTcef8XykYgSO6BEYJpHZFAX-10izVxZYCMIUQqPaaF0JSFJ1DaNKJN-ZKl7DTleJqig3Pdt7Zba9Z_CM4FFJ2HdRwGUdj1Kfqkr1whvvy2AyLwyfsh8uV_R/s200/tape.jpg" width="200" /></a>This sermon by Rev. Gilbert Jansen is about the parable of "The Rich Man & Lazarus", based on the following texts:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+16%3A19-31&version=NKJV">Luke 16:19-31</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+26&version=NKJV">Psalm 26</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
The service was held on 16 March 1997.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The files are in mp3 format, shared as links from my Dropbox account. The links below take you to a Dropbox page, where you get the option to play or download the file.</div>
<div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The second recording is of everything that was on the tape, which is basically everything after the sermon. There was a lot of noise on this tape, which I was able to edit out for the sermon; however, the filter I used caused a lot of additional distortion to the singing. Therefore, the section after the sermon is not edited. There is still a lot of distortion because the tape record level was too high.<br />
<br />
And... it was me that recorded it. You can see a picture of the tape in this post. That's my hand-writing for sure. I was just starting my second year of university...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Links:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/l97c6tx50djp694/1997_03_16%20Luke%2016%2C%2019-31%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen%20-%20Sermon%20Only.mp3?dl=0">The Sermon Only</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/k9xs7sygblbuz4t/1997_03_16%20Luke%2016%2C%2019-31%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen.mp3?dl=0">The Entire Recording</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-64060634058808813142019-05-21T01:14:00.002-07:002019-05-21T01:14:49.984-07:00Isolation: The Suffering of Christ<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3fMrAVH7mImvZqIPiTPGb3nda-t3YoteYpSnC-uy93BVx213HyQ8KvSoD6NAriWU8ehOZV1LZUv1s1sIrID4LU-ndJA_wbMshCVMO8OR7-tM4nPUtByBJdF_OejfiiSHkSP8TtAfdk-DV/s1600/rooster-crow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="260" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3fMrAVH7mImvZqIPiTPGb3nda-t3YoteYpSnC-uy93BVx213HyQ8KvSoD6NAriWU8ehOZV1LZUv1s1sIrID4LU-ndJA_wbMshCVMO8OR7-tM4nPUtByBJdF_OejfiiSHkSP8TtAfdk-DV/s200/rooster-crow.jpg" width="152" /></a></div>
This recording is from the church service held at St Stephen's Presbyterian Church, North Rockhampton, on Palm Sunday, 23 March 1986.<br />
<br />
The texts for this sermon are the parallel accounts of the betrayal, arrest, denial and trial of Jesus as recorded in:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke+22%3A39-65&version=NKJV">Luke 22:39-65</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+18%3A1-28&version=NKJV">John 18:1-28</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
This sermon describes the sufferings of Christ: focusing on his isolation throughout his life, culminating in his betrayal and farcical, illegal trial.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
This recording includes the final hymn of the service, introduced in Dad's typical style.</div>
<blockquote>
<i>In the cross of Christ I glory,</i><br />
<i>towering o'er the wrecks of time;</i><br />
<i>all the light of sacred story</i><br />
<i>gathers round its head sublime.</i><br />
<br /></blockquote>
<div>
The file is in mp3 format, shared as a link to my Dropbox account. The link below takes you to a Dropbox page, where you get the option to play or download the file.<br />
<br />
Link:</div>
<div>
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/80nm21h4z7b7uxh/1986_03_23%20Luke%2022%2C%2039-65%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen.mp3?dl=0">Sermon & Final Hymn</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-43798004732381126452019-05-14T04:00:00.002-07:002019-05-14T04:00:48.432-07:00Let us Run the Race With Endurance<div>
The first sermon of my father, Rev. Gilbert Jansen, that I digitised was very well received, so I've moved quickly to complete the second. I can't promise to keep that rate up!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
This church service was held on Sunday 30 August 1987. As with the last one, the selection was fairly random. The scripture readings were:<div>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew+10%3A27-42&version=NKJV">Matthew 10:27-42</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews+12%3A1-11&version=NKJV">Hebrews 12:1-11</a> (key sermon text)</li>
</ul>
<div>
I've titled this post "Let us Run the Race With Endurance", because blog posts really need titles. But as far as a know, Dad never gave even one of his sermons a title. I think he felt that was a bit modern. If anyone can remember his reasons, let me know!</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
You may notice that Dad refers to the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews as the Apostle Paul, without explanation. I know that he had little doubt that this was the case, despite my best efforts to argue with him about it. He probably explained his views on its authorship at the start of this series.</div>
<div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The files are in mp3 format, shared as links from my Dropbox account. The links below take you to a Dropbox page, where you get the option to play or download the file.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The second recording is of the entire service: everything that was on the tape, including hymns, prayers and bible readings.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Links:</div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/ma9cej9k80l44ct/1987_08_30%20Hebrews%2012%2C%201%20to%2011%20-%20Sermon%20Only.mp3?dl=0">The Sermon Only</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/qpdiycgsl9r7pmn/1987_08_30%20Hebrews%2012%2C%201%20to%2011.mp3?dl=0">The Entire Service</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-91387330602555319792019-05-13T04:48:00.002-07:002019-05-14T01:15:24.375-07:00Rev. Gilbert Jansen on Romans 12Here is the first of the old cassette tapes of sermons of the Rev. Gilbert Jansen that I've digitised. This post, and future similar posts will have the label "Rev. Gilbert Jansen" attached, to make it easier to find (or avoid) similar content. I may create an index post later, if things get that far.<br />
<br />
This church service was held on Sunday 25 October 1987. The texts were:<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy+13%3A1-5%2C+18%3A15-22&version=NKJV">Deuteronomy 13:1-5, 18:15-22</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans+12%3A1-8&version=NKJV">Romans 12:1-8</a></li>
</ul>
The message is about the various gifts that all people in the church have, and how important it is that they use them, as functioning members of the body.<br />
<br />
The selection of this particular tape as the first to digitise was random; however, this sermon is a great example of my Dad's (in?)famous style of preaching. For those that didn't know him, he wasn't as angry as he sounded. That's passion you hear, forced through a second language, in a thick accent.<br />
<br />
The files are in mp3 format, shared as links from my Dropbox account. The links below take you toa Dropbox page, where you get the option to play the file, or download the file.<br />
<br />
The second recording of the entire service is just that: everything that was on the tape, including hymns, prayers and bible readings.<br />
<br />
Links:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/88mkjijygsj1eg6/1987_10_25%20Romans%2012%2C%201-8%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen%20-%20Sermon%20Only.mp3?dl=0">Click here to listen or download just the sermon as an mp3 file.</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/jgeds484r6tyw5y/1987_10_25%20Romans%2012%2C%201-8%20-%20Rev%20Gilbert%20Jansen.mp3?dl=0">Click here to listen or download the entire service as an mp3 file</a></li>
</ul>
<br />
Please feel free to offer any feedback or other comments in the comments section below.Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-48158657211787585052014-09-24T18:31:00.001-07:002014-09-24T18:31:21.364-07:00Pilgrim's Progress <a href="http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/8174805/Pilgrim%27s_Progress"
title="Wordle: Pilgrim's Progress"><img
src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/8174805/Pilgrim%27s_Progress"
alt="Wordle: Pilgrim's Progress"
style="padding:4px;border:1px solid #ddd"></a>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-50631772738116753522014-04-30T19:49:00.000-07:002014-04-30T19:49:53.460-07:00Koine Greek: Three Steps to Learning by ListeningI'd like to share a simple three-step technique that I've found very helpful while learning New Testament (Koine) Greek. This works if you frequently have access to an uninterrupted 20 minutes to listen to audio. For me, this is the daily drive to and from work. My car stereo reads mp3 files, and has a USB input to make things easier.<br />
<br />
<h3>1. Listen in English</h3><div>The aim of this exercise is to listen to a chapter at a time of the New Testament, first in English, and then in Greek. While listening in English, or your own native language, you're refreshing your mind about what the chapter is about: who does what to whom. You're listening out for:</div><div><ol><li><b>The narrative flow:</b> who does or says what to whom and in what order.</li>
<li><b>Patterns & Repeated Phrases</b>: Listen out for which phrases are repeated a lot, such as "Blessed are the..." or "Jesus replied, saying to them", or "Truly, truly, I say to you..." </li>
<li><b>Repeated Words</b>. Depending on the theme of the chapter, some words like: "bread", "life", "water", "love", "blood", "disciple" will be repeated a lot.</li>
</ol><div>If it achieves nothing else, you've just actively listened to a chapter of the Bible. You're ahead, regardless.</div></div><div><br />
</div><h3>2. Listen in Greek</h3><div>The next track you listen to is that <i>same </i>chapter in Greek. If you're not familiar with the language, or even the particular recording and its pronunciation scheme, this can be very daunting. Don't be daunted. Don't even <i>try</i> to understand: just listen, and let it wash over you. </div><div><br />
</div><div><b><i><u>Trying</u> to understand can be like trying to go to sleep: the <u>effort</u> will interrupt the very thing you want to do.</i></b> </div><div><br />
</div><div>Get the feel of the sound and the rhythm of the language. If you understand only <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">καὶ</span> and <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Ἰησοῦς</span>, then you've understood something. There are subconscious things going on during this process, so just relax. Seriously: stressfully trying to keep up won't help.</div><div>After doing this for a while - either by repeating the same chapter, or moving on to others - you'll find you have some words and phrases stuck in your head. It's a strange feeling, especially if you don't know what those words mean. I distinctly remember one of the first phrases that did this to me was <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Μετὰ ταῦτα</span>. All the time, this phrase was popping up. It stayed with me during the day: what does <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Μετὰ ταῦτα</span> mean?</div><div><br />
</div><h3>3. Read, Think, Look Up, Clarify</h3><div>The last part of the learning cycle is to sit down later (for me, it's in the evening), without the audio, and read the same chapter, as best you can. If you don't have a Greek New Testament or interlinear, you should try to get one. (Otherwise, the SBLGNT is available in heaps of <a href="http://sblgnt.com/download/">free downloadable</a> formats).</div><div>This follow-up time is when you can find those words and phrases that have stuck in your head, to find out what they mean. You should also find that the pronunciation of the words now comes more easily, especially if you've been pronouncing those words inconsistently with your pronunciation scheme (i.e. wrong).</div><div>As the Greek words and phrases come together with the meaning you understand from your English translation, you will be learning the grammar. This is no substitute for formal study of grammar (I like to memorise a paradigm as much as anyone), but it's a great parallel, reinforcing process. I've come to understand post-positives through this three-step process much better than reading grammar text books in isolation.</div><div><br />
</div><h3>0. Setting it all up</h3><div>Setting up is the technical part. If you find it daunting, or you're unsure if it's worth the effort, just do one or two books of the Bible, like John and Mark.</div><div>What you want to end up with is a file structure on your usb drive, or iPod or other mp3 player that has:</div><div><ul><li>A <b>folder (directory) for each book </b>of the New Testament. Most audio bibles do this already "01_Matthew", "02_Mark", "03_Luke", etc. Don't forget the number prefix: you don't want alphabetical order of books!</li>
<li>A <b>file for each English chapter</b> of that book inside each folder, numbered "01.mp3", "02.mp3", "03.mp3", etc.</li>
<li>A <b>file for each Greek chapter</b> of that book inside each folder, numbered "01g.mp3", "02g.mp3", "03g.mp3", etc.</li>
</ul><div>This way, the English file for chapter 1 will play first, then the Greek file for chapter 1, then the English file for chapter 2, etc. Separating books by folders - which is the normal way audio bibles tend to come anyway - allows books to be skipped through like "albums" on most mp3 players.</div></div><h4>Sourcing the Files</h4><div>Which versions of both the English and Greek audio bibles you use is up to you, but here's my advice.</div><div><br />
</div><div><i>English:</i> Use one of the essentially literal translations, such as KJV, NKJV, NASB and ESV. The reason for this is that you want to recognise and match words and phrases between English and Greek. A dramatised version of <i>The Message</i> isn't going to help. I use the ESV, which is also my chosen version for normal reading, study and memorisation.</div><div><i>Greek:</i> You need to find a Koine audio recording that suits the pronunciation scheme that you want to use. <a href="http://www.letsreadgreek.com/resources/greekntaudio.htm">This page</a> includes a list of a number of available recordings, and provides information on the pronunciation schemes and also the quality of the recordings. I use, and highly recommend <a href="http://amzn.com/0899571204">this recording</a> by Dr Spiros Zodhiates, in modern Greek pronunciation. If you're in Australia, I suggest you use <a href="http://www.koorong.com/search/product/koine-greek-audio-mp3-new-testament-spiros-zodhiates/9780899571201.jhtml">Koorong</a>, rather than Amazon. I actually started with using John Simon's recordings at http://www.greeklatinaudio.com/ - though his reading speed is very, very fast. His pronunciation scheme is based on, but different to, modern Greek.</div><h4>Editing the Files</h4><div>Always create a working directory and copy your files there to work on them. Use an audio file tag editing program to make the name changes described above: don't sit around renaming each file by hand. I use <a href="http://kid3.sourceforge.net/">kid3</a>. </div><div>Each file should have the chapter number stored as the track number in it's tags, which can be used to create the "001.mp3" and "001g.mp3" type filenames. That is, you can create filenames based on track numbers. Kid3 can automatically add sequential track numbers to the files in a folder if required: other programs can probably do the same.</div><div>Only once your English and Greek audio files have been renamed in their separate folders should you copy the contents of each book's folder together. There's probably a quick way to do this, but I did it manually myself.</div><div><br />
</div><h3>Other Tips</h3><div>Here are some other tips I can share from my own experience with doing this:</div><div><ol><li><b>The Greek recording you use is important</b>. If the pronunciation is inconsistent, or the reading is without any intonation, or rhythm, then it'll be very hard to achieve what you're trying to do. This is why I like the recording by Dr Zodhiates I linked to above. He reads it like it actually means something. He actually gets quite emotional at times.</li>
<li>Start with books of the Bible with <b>simpler Greek and shorter chapters</b>. Simpler Greek gives you a better chance to start picking up the words and structure: e.g. John, Mark. Shorter chapters gives you a better chance to remember what happens in the chapter while stumbling along in the Greek: e.g. <i>not</i> Luke.</li>
<li><b>Be flexible and sensible in how you use your time. </b> It will typically take 15-20 minutes to listen to the chapter in both English and Greek. Depending on how much time you have, it can be helpful to listen to the Greek twice. Or, listen to a smaller part of the chapter, from the beginning, first in English and then Greek.</li>
<li><b>Read-a-long!</b> If you're able to listen to your Greek recording while following along - as best you can - in a Greek New Testament, then this is ideal. I rarely have opportunity to do this myself. This three-step listening scheme evolved because I was trying to use my commuting time more effectively. I could try to follow along with a GNT while driving, but as Jesus said, "<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">ὅτι Εἴρηται· Οὐκ ἐκπειράσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου.</span>"</li>
</ol><div>Give it a go. Please share your results, or any suggestions in the comments section below.</div></div>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-85379110411835504312014-04-28T21:45:00.000-07:002014-04-28T21:45:23.507-07:00Weep Now, Laugh Later<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ1x0nGS2jQ9WuJODNbbA6SLBWBy_1GdxZ8fip8tDr59sUqCULwbLyPSkB254Vsc3exjG1uCBo1-BAuB4Ys2h-4ryKms_s5pl-rW-9R1gBaB7UQUOm7ubhp3wOZOt8sSXpsLZyt1yyLkCZ/s1600/Despair_Man.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ1x0nGS2jQ9WuJODNbbA6SLBWBy_1GdxZ8fip8tDr59sUqCULwbLyPSkB254Vsc3exjG1uCBo1-BAuB4Ys2h-4ryKms_s5pl-rW-9R1gBaB7UQUOm7ubhp3wOZOt8sSXpsLZyt1yyLkCZ/s320/Despair_Man.png" height="200" width="145" /></a></div>The words of Jesus in Luke 6:21b and Luke 6:25b form a matched pair of a blessing and a woe, to say:<br />
<blockquote><i>”Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” ... “Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.”</i></blockquote><br />
What makes <i>you</i> cry? We’re all different, in this respect. Some people weep at the drop of a hat, and others only cry a few times in their lives. Most of us are in between these extremes.<br />
<br />
So, what makes <i>you</i> cry? Is it a sad moment in a book or a film? Is it the death of someone you love? Extreme pain? Betrayal? Or the memory of those gone for a long time? I think memories cause more tears to be shed than injuries do. But what about sin? Are you ever so sorry for your sins against God that you weep before him?<br />
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Most of us guard our emotions deep within our hearts, but weeping and crying bring those emotions very obviously out into the open. That’s the way God made us. <br />
<br />
There is nothing inherently sinful about laughing, or anything particularly holy and sanctified about weeping. The writer of Ecclesiastes told us that there are times for both. Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 4<br />
<blockquote><i>For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: ... a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;</i></blockquote><br />
And Paul wrote in Romans 12:15:<br />
<blockquote><i>Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.</i></blockquote><br />
Very shortly after saying, “Blessed are you who weep now”, Jesus said (in Luke 6:23) that those who are persecuted for the sake of his name should rejoice and leap for joy. Rejoicing in this life is not a sin.<br />
<br />
So why then does Jesus say it’s good to weep now and laugh later, and bad to laugh now and weep later?<br />
<br />
Well, in a way, it’s all about timing. There’s a time to weep and a time to laugh. Laughing is okay, but sometimes it’s time to weep. And in this fallen world, there are there a many occasions for weeping.<br />
<br />
Our sin and the sins of others give many reasons for the righteous to mourn. But the unrighteous will have a different attitude to sin. They will laugh, and say, “Don’t worry – be happy!”<br />
<br />
There are two ways of mourning over sin that characterise those in the kingdom. I’ll go into both of these in more detail over the next two posts, providing examples from scripture:<br />
<ol><li>Weeping in sincere sorrow and repentance over our own sins, which we have sinned against God.</li>
<li>Weeping over the ongoing consequences of sin in our own lives, and in the lives of others, both in the church and in the world.</li>
</ol>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-65197976488262020382014-04-08T00:27:00.000-07:002014-04-08T00:27:28.589-07:00Baptistic Sprinklings of CharityBaptistic denominations and fellowships are usually divisive by the definition of their own constitutions, though they are often blissfully unaware of this. I'm referring specifically to when church membership is denied to Christians whose only disqualification is that they were baptised as infants.<br />
<br />
Not all baptistic people feel that this should be the case, but those that don't remain a small minority.<br />
<br />
One of those in this beloved minority, whom I have a great deal of respect for, is John Piper. His sermon, <a href="http://www.desiringgod.org/sermons/how-important-is-church-membership"><i>How Important is Church Membership</i></a>, which I've previously posted <a href="http://bible-based.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/what-is-church-membership.html">here</a>, is an excellent summary of his own thoughts and feelings on the subject, thoroughly supported by scripture. This sermon also contains a summary of his own actions in attempting to right this wrong within his own congregation.<br />
<br />
Few other baptistic theologians share his views.<br />
<br />
I was therefore delighted and surprised when I recently started reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0802817130/"><i>Infant Baptism and the Covenant of Grace</i></a>, by Paul K. Jewett, a Baptist. Let me share a brief quote from the preface, on page 5 of this book:<br />
<br />
<blockquote><i>Though the traditional Baptist usage of closed communion, first challenged so eloquently by Robert Hall, has given way in our day to the more ultimate demands of Christian charity and unity, the practice of closed membership is still widely insisted on in Baptist circles. This, to me, is very unfortunate; for though the defense of infant baptism may not be a good cause, it does not follow that the people who make this defense are not good Christians and worthy members of the Christian church. To have the conviction that baptism should not be administered to infants is quite different from the intolerance that excludes all dissent from the fellowship of the church. Polemical theology that would serve a good purpose must be irenic, not divisive.</i><br />
</blockquote><br />
Small baptistic sprinklings of charity such as this are enough to encourage me to not lose heart, entirely.Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-31782603043089853932013-11-30T02:46:00.000-08:002013-11-30T02:46:00.111-08:00Poverty of Spirit is Possible with GodRead Luke 6:20<br />
<i>How can we be sincerely and consistently poor in spirit?</i><br />
<br />
How are we supposed to actually do all this? How can we be genuinely and continuously so poor in spirit, trusting in God, and sacrificially generous with our money? It’s more than not easy – it’s impossible. Jesus tells us it’s impossible, in the story of the rich young ruler in Luke 18, from verse 18.<br />
<br />
Read Luke 18:18. The man wants to be in the kingdom, and wants to know what he must do to get in. Because we understand grace, this question should be a red flag. We know it’s the wrong question: “How can I work my way to heaven?”<br />
<br />
Read Luke 18:19. Jesus is trying to help him, and reminds him that noone is good, no-one is righteous.<br />
<br />
Read Luke 18:20-21. When Jesus presented him with the law, which nobody can keep, the ruler responded with spiritual pride. He trusts in himself, that he is righteous. He <i>should</i> have responded like the tax collector, and beat his breast and said, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Instead, he says, “I’m not a sinner. The law: I’ve done that since I was a kid.”<br />
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Read Luke 18:22-23. The rich young ruler was trying to serve God and money, so Jesus told him to get rid of the money. But he chose the money.<br />
<br />
Read 18:24-27. Jesus makes a massive statement here. Just like it is impossible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, it is humanly impossible for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. But there’s good news: <i>What is impossible with men is possible with God.</i><br />
<br />
It is God who changes hearts. God removes the heart of stone, and replaces it with a heart of flesh. You and I are rich, by the standards of the world today, and by the standards of history. Only God can change our hearts, by his grace, so that our reliance and worship of our wealth can be overcome, and that we can truly become poor in spirit, and trust solely on God for our salvation, and for everyone else, and enter the kingdom of God.<br />
<br />
Do you want to be blessed by God and enter his kingdom?<br />
<ul><li><b>Be Poor in Spirit:</b> Confess that you have no moral or spiritual worth to bring to God</li>
<li><b>Trust God</b> for mercy in Jesus Christ, like a child trusts his father, and ask him to save you.</li>
<li><b>Be Obedient.</b> Walk in the good works that God has prepared for you, being generous with the money God has given you.</li>
<li><b>Stay Poor in Spirit and Be Humble.</b> Never forget or cease to acknowledge that you are his unworthy servant.</li></ul>In the book <i>What Jesus Demands from the World</i> John Piper wrote, <blockquote>“The joy of the humble does not reside in being deserving, but in receiving mercy.”</blockquote>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-77960515530633606422013-11-28T02:39:00.000-08:002013-11-28T02:39:00.046-08:00Spiritual Poverty & MoneyRead: Luke 6:20 and Luke 6:24<br />
<br />
The point of the last few posts has been that “poor” in these verses means spiritual poverty, and “rich” means spiritual pride. So what about money?<br />
<br />
Previously I’ve made the point that “Jesus uses figurative speech, all the time.” This combined blessing and curse is an example of figurative speech. If the poor are blessed and the rich are cursed, then the literal interpretation is that there’s some kind of net worth borderline: less money and you’re in, and more money and you’re out. <br />
<br />
This is obviously not the case, and as I said we know from Matthew 5 that Jesus also said “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” This blessing and curse are primarily about our spirit, and our heart.<br />
<br />
<i>But I think it goes much too far to say that these sayings have nothing to do with money at all.</i><br />
<br />
We are in the kingdom by being poor in spirit – confessing that we have nothing spiritual or morally valuable to bring to God – and by trusting in him for salvation.<br />
<br />
<i>But those that are in the kingdom will treat money very differently to those that are outside of the kingdom.</i> In fact, I think that money is the main application of being poor in spirit for us today.<br />
<br />
The poor in spirit bring nothing to God, and trust him for salvation. The poor in spirit also trust God for everything else, through all of life. We trust him for food and clothing. We must trust him when circumstances look hopeless, and when our life looks like its not worth living.<br />
<br />
Money enters the equation in at least these two ways:<br />
<ol><li>Having money gets in the way of trusting God for our needs.</li>
<li>Our generosity with money shows our trust of God.</li></ol><br />
<b>1. Having money gets in the way of trusting God for our needs.</b> This is almost certainly your problem, today. I know that it’s mine. Maybe one or two of us are exceptions, but I doubt it.<br />
<br />
Read Luke 12:29-31, the well-known passage where Jesus says “don’t be anxious about your life”, and “consider the ravens” and “consider the lilies”.<br />
<br />
“Do you have the clothes you are wearing, and will you eat another two meals today <i>mainly</i> because you were seeking first after God’s kingdom and trusting him to provide the clothes and food?”<br />
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In this passage, in Luke 12, Jesus is telling some of the poorest people to not be anxious about where they’ll find their clothes, or how they’ll put another meal on the table. They were anxious because they were poor and weren’t certain how they’d afford these things. We have the exact opposite problem.<br />
<br />
When was the last time you were tempted to worry about the bare necessities of life? Worried about clothing, shelter and food? We’re not tempted to worry about these things because we are so incredibly wealthy. Our fridges, freezers and cupboards are full of food. If we need more, we go down to Coles or Woollies and spend a fraction of our money on a range and quality of foods that would have amazed King Solomon.<br />
<br />
You are actually among the richest people in the world. I want to quote the beginning of <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/aussies-the-worlds-richest-people-credit-suisse-20131009-2v7qy.html">an article that was in the <i>Sydney Morning Herald recently</i></a>. The figures of wealth in this article are net worth: take the value of all your assets, and then subtract your liabilities. They aren’t annual income figures.<br />
<blockquote>Australians remain the richest people in the world, by one measure at least.<br />
<br />
The median wealth of adult Australians stands at $US219,505 ($233,504) - the highest level in the world, according to the Credit Suisse 2013 Global Wealth Report, released on Wednesday.<br />
<br />
Median wealth is the midpoint between richest and poorest, meaning that 50 per cent of the population has more than $233,504, and 50 per cent less than that.</blockquote><br />
Our wealth gets in the way of us trusting God for what we need. We trust our money, our jobs, our savings, our investments, our insurance, our friends and family. We even trust the government to stop us from becoming naked and starving.<br />
<br />
We are not poor. We are so rich, that we should tremble at the thought that we could be trusting our money more than our God. We cannot trust our money to provide for our needs, and still be poor in spirit. And only the poor in spirit inherit the kingdom.<br />
<br />
The second way that money relates to being poor in spirit is that: <b>2. Our generosity with money shows our trust in God.</b><br />
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Jesus has a lot to say about wealth, and money. His commands about money are radical, and obeying them means trusting God. Starting in Luke 6.<br />
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Read Luke 6:30, Luke 6:35 and Luke 6:38. Jesus says to give generously and lend without expecting anything in return, and trust God that he will reward you, and be more generous than you’ve been.<br />
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Read Luke 12:15-21. Again, Jesus gives a dire warning to those who are selfish with money and possessions: you die and enter judgement, and someone else gets the stuff.<br />
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Luke 12:22-34 is the passage we looked at earlier about seeking the kingdom of God first, and all the other things will be added to you. Now read Luke 12:32-34. These are radical commands.<br />
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Read Luke 16:13. When you trust money, you serve money. You cannot serve God, and money. You can’t trust God, and trust money.<br />
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Luke 16:19-31 is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man went to Hades in torment, and Lazarus went to Abraham’s bosom. In verse 25, Abraham said to the rich man, “Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.” That sounds very familiar, doesn’t it:<br />
<blockquote><i>Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.</i></blockquote><br />
So we should pay attention to this parable, to better understand what it means to be poor in spirit, or not so poor in spirit, like the rich man. And what was the sin of the rich man, that he didn’t repent of? It’s implied by the situation:<br />
<br />
Read Luke 16:19-21<br />
<br />
It’s not a sin to be rich, to wear nice clothes and to feast sumptuously. But this rich man had Lazarus laid at his gate, who was poor, sick and suffering. All he wanted was the leftovers; the table scraps. He desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. He only wanted the floor sweepings, and it seems he didn’t even get that. The rich man kept his money to himself, and had no love or compassion for Lazarus. He is then held responsible for his treatment of the poor man Lazarus at his gate.<br />
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You and I are physically rich. We live in sturdy, comfortable houses, wear great clothes and eat the best food in the world. Who is lying at your door: poor, sick or suffering? <br />
<br />
We live in a much smaller world now, than Lazarus. My wife and I bought some books and other stuff online the other day from a <a href="http://www.canonpress.org/store/pc/home.asp">shop in Idaho</a>, while sitting on the couch, using my iPad. If I can buy from a shop on the other side of the world without leaving the living room, then my doorstop beside which the poor are lying must also be global. Surely God holds me responsible for how I use my money to help the poor and suffering in Emerald, and the rest of Australia and across the world.<br />
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Do you help the poor with your money? Or are you clinging to your money more than you should, and helping the poor and destitute, especially the Christian poor, less than you should? <br />
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I recommend some impulse generosity. Just like impulse buying, impulse generosity is instantaneous. If your heart is moved to help the poor, then it’s not complicated. Get onto your internet banking and give the <a href="http://barnabasfund.org/AU/"><i>Barnabas Fund</i></a> or <a href="http://www.opendoors.org.au/"><i>Open Doors</i></a> a few hundred dollars. While you’re there, set it up to happen every month. Or buy some extra groceries while you’re shopping and drop them off at the <a href="http://www.centralhighlands.com.au/business/neighbourhood-centre-emerald-district-social-development-assoc-inc"><i>Neighbourhood Centre</i></a>.<br />
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Give from the heart, generously. Don’t do it to be seen by others, or that will be your only reward. If you do it to be noticed and admired, it won’t be from the heart, and it won’t be generous.<br />
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-88537648569132646612013-11-27T02:22:00.000-08:002013-11-27T02:22:00.408-08:00Spiritual Poverty & Salvation: Unworthy Servants Saved by GraceSomething to ponder: Do you think that if you chose to give $100 to your pastor today, that he would deserve it? We’ll come back to that in a moment.<br />
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The poor in spirit are saved by trusting God: this is what <i>grace</i> is all about. What does “grace” mean? The textbook definition is: <i>undeserved favour</i>. Consider “underserved” – it means you don’t deserve it, and you haven’t earned it. Grace, or a free gift, is undeserved.<br />
<br />
Let’s say I give my pastor $100 – as a free gift. That would be grace. No matter how wonderful you think he is, he is underserving of that gift. If he deserved it, then I was just paying what was owed, and it wasn’t a gift. That would be wages.<br />
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If you agreed that your pastor $100 was something he deserved, then you should pay him that money as soon as possible. If he deserves it from you, you owe it to him. You have an outstanding debt. <br />
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A gift cannot be earned – grace cannot be earned. If you do earn it, it stops being a gift.<br />
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Consider Romans 4:4 – “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due.”<br />
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Read: Ephesians 2:8-10.<br />
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God’s mercy in salvation is a gift, by grace. It’s not your own doing. You don’t deserve it, at all, not even a little bit. If you’ve been saved, there’s nothing you’ve done that you can point to that says, “here is why I deserved God’s mercy”. <br />
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Your good works and my good works are the <i>outcome</i> of our salvation, not the cause. We are created to go and do the good works that God has already prepared in front of us to do. God wrote that to-do list before he saved you.<br />
<br />
And here is a grave warning: do not for one moment think that after a lifetime of obediently doing these good works that he has prepared for you to do, that you have now earned any part of your salvation. Don’t think that you’ve paid any of it back, or that you’ve “given something back to God”. If you believe you’ve put something back into the moral scales, then grace is no longer grace, and you are trying to be saved by works, and you will fail.<br />
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This is why being poor in spirit is not just for a moment of confession and repentance at the time of salvation. Being poor in spirit is an all-of-life condition for those in the kingdom. <br />
<br />
Jesus described what our attitude should be after performing all the works that God has prepared for us to do.<br />
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Read: Luke 17:7-10. <br />
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Not many people have that as a wall text in their living room. Few of us have this as our true self-assessment and confession to God. I’m not talking about new believers here, but those who have spent decades serving God, doing what he has commanded. This is what it looks like to finish the race, remaining poor in spirit.<br />
<br />
The practical application of this is simple, but difficult. Check your attitude often. If you see yourself as an unworthy servant of our Lord Jesus Christ: all is good. Otherwise, you’re humility is being replaced by pride. What a wonderful job I’m doing.<br />
<br />
I want to give that definition of being poor in spirit I gave a few posts ago once gain, so you can think about whether I’ve shown that definition is correct or not:<br />
<br />
<blockquote><i>To be poor in spirit means to humbly acknowledge that I am spiritually and morally bankrupt, with nothing to commend me to God. I am spiritually worthless.</i></blockquote>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-40529823332721751582013-11-26T02:15:00.000-08:002013-11-26T02:15:00.729-08:00Spiritual Poverty & Salvation: Trusting GodRead: Luke 6:20<br />
<br />
Spiritual poverty – being poor in spirit – is most important, and most obvious, in the process of salvation. The difference between spiritual poverty, or humility, and spiritual pride is illustrated in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector.<br />
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Read: Luke 18:9-14.<br />
<br />
The Pharisee in this parable has great spiritual pride. He not only thinks he has high moral worth, he even boasts about it to God himself. I thank you God, that I am so worthy and moral, and not like that other scum.<br />
<br />
The tax collector is poor in spirit. He knows he has nothing to bring to God, and he confesses it openly, with tears. He begs God for mercy, and he receives mercy and forgiveness. He is justified, and made right with God. The Pharisee remained in his sins.<br />
<br />
There is a step between spiritual humility and receiving God’s mercy, and a step between spiritual pride and receiving God’s judgment. <br />
Note verse 9: they <i>“<u>trusted in themselves</u>, that they were righteous”.</i><br />
<br />
Spiritual pride says that I have all the righteousness I need: I’m fully self-contained. Spiritual pride is therefore trusting in myself, that I am righteous. The one who has spiritual pride trusts in himself.<br />
<br />
But nobody’s morality meets God’s standard, no matter how good they make themselves look to other people. So the one who trusts in himself, or herself, is not saved. Whatever benefit this spiritual pride or “spiritual richness” has is for this life only. <i>Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.</i><br />
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On the other hand, the tax collector, poor in spirit, trusted in God by calling out to him for mercy. This was a genuine cry out to God to be saved, trusting that he would, and it was answered. <i>Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.</i><br />
<br />
<i>For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.</i><br />
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Spiritual pride is subtle and dangerous. You can become proud of all the good things: your bible knowledge, your serving, your preaching, your prayer life, your sexual purity, your evangelism. You can even become spiritually proud of how humbly you clean the toilet without receiving any recognition.Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-54450265608809813162013-11-23T01:10:00.000-08:002013-11-23T01:10:11.612-08:00Blessed are you who are PoorRead: Luke 6:20<br />
<br />
What does it mean to be poor in spirit? The closest single word that describes poor in spirit is “humble”. I want to give a more detailed definition, and then try to convince you from scripture, in future posts, that this definition is correct.<br />
<blockquote><i>To be poor in spirit means to humbly acknowledge that I am spiritually and morally bankrupt, with nothing to commend me to God. I am spiritually worthless.</i></blockquote>Not only does what I just said go against our culture, it goes against our human nature. <i>It is offensive.</i> But Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.”<br />
<br />
Being poor in spirit is a state of complete repentance before God. It’s not something that can be put on or acted out. It’s not self-pity, or self-hate or self-loathing.<br />
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Being poor in spirit is also not about having no value as a person. We have value. As Jesus said, “we are of more value than many sparrows.” We have value to God, but we have no moral goodness of our own. It is in this way that we are spiritually worthless.<br />
<br />
So what is the opposite of poverty of spirit? What does it mean to be “rich in spirit”. It means that I have spiritual and moral value, and I have some redeeming features to offer God. It means I deserve God’s mercy, or even that I don’t need God’s mercy.<br />
There’s no blessing for the “rich in spirit”; there’s only a curse: a pronouncement of woe.<br />
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-51203467229353306032013-11-20T19:34:00.002-08:002013-11-20T19:34:50.335-08:00Motivated<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://cdn.movember.com/uploads/images/2013/Mo%20Community/Mo%20Rated%20Barbers/MG573%20MRB%20Mo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="78" src="http://cdn.movember.com/uploads/images/2013/Mo%20Community/Mo%20Rated%20Barbers/MG573%20MRB%20Mo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
This year, I find myself doing the "Movember" thing, again. And, I could really do with a donation. I'm lagging, in a big way. Click <a href="https://www.movember.com/au/donate/payment/member_id/681088/">here</a> to donate to my Mo.<br />
<br />
The rest of this post is copied from the Movember website, to give you an idea of what Movember is all about:<br />
<br />
<strong>Campaign Strategy & Goals</strong>:<br />
We will get men to grow moustaches and the community to support them by creating an innovative, fun and engaging annual Movember campaign that results in:<br />
• Funds for men's health program investment<br />
• Conversations about men's health that lead to:<br />
- Greater awareness and understanding of the health risks men face<br />
- Men taking action to remain well<br />
- When men are sick they know what to do and take action<br />
<br />
<strong>Program Goals</strong>:<br />
<strong>Living with and Beyond Cancer</strong><br />
Men living with prostate or testicular cancer have the care needed to be physically and mentally well.<br />
<br />
<strong>Staying Mentally Healthy, Living with and Beyond Mental Illness</strong><br />
• Men are mentally healthy and take action to remain well<br />
• When men experience mental illness they take action early<br />
• Men are not treated differently when they experience a mental illness<br />
<br />
<strong>Men's Health Research</strong><br />
We will fund innovative research that builds powerful, collaborative teams that accelerate:<br />
• Improved clinical tests and treatments for prostate and testicular cancer<br />
• Improved physical and mental health outcomes for men Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-2143118766993894142013-11-11T02:46:00.000-08:002013-11-11T02:48:49.244-08:00The Sermons in Luke So FarA while ago, I put an introductory sermon of mine on the gospel of Luke onto this blog. I now have the entire sermon series (to date), available for download. Left-click on the sermon titles below and you'll be taken to Dropbox, where there are links to the mp3 downloads.<br />
<br />
<table><tbody>
<tr><td><b>Date Preached</b></td><td><b>Text</b></td><td><b>Title / Link</b></td></tr>
<tr><td>27/02/2011</td><td>Luke 1:1-4</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/nhvdjuif44urjnk/2011_02_27%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2001%20-%2001%20to%2004.mp3">That You May Have Certainty</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>15/05/2011</td><td>Luke 1:5-24</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/dgre8q5wy8kycrz/2011_05_15%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2001%20-%2005%20to%2024.mp3">God's Plan</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>10/07/2011</td><td>Luke 1:26-56</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/qoe78lf8umwiyib/2011_07_10%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2001%20-%2026%20to%2056.mp3">Mary</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>19/02/2012</td><td>Luke 2:1-21</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/buzr2jt00p1sboq/2012_02_19%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2002%20-%2001%20to%2021.mp3">While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>1/07/2012</td><td>Luke 2:22-52</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/nwq6r2eqea225gz/2012_07_01%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2002%20-%2022%20to%2052.mp3">Born Under the Law</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>26/08/2012</td><td>Luke 3:1-20</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/umfrcouay8o15th/2012_08_26%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2003%20-%2001%20to%2020.mp3">Repent!</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>7/10/2012</td><td>Luke 3:21-4:15</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/1ntbeq16baquaex/2012_10_07%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2003%20-%2021%20to%2004%20-%2015.mp3">Fighting Temptation</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>20/01/2013</td><td>Luke 4:14-44</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/grwr05vwhw7gu1x/2013_01_20%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2004%20-%2014%20to%2044.mp3">The Synagogue Back Home</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>10/03/2013</td><td>Luke 4:42-5:26 </td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/whdnaes9xkwotk3/2013_03_10%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2004%20-%2042%20to%2005%20-%2026.mp3">Three Miracles</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>4/05/2013</td><td>Luke 5:27-39</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/v3kwvy9arsivfz9/2013_05_04%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2005%20-%2027%20to%2039.mp3">Fasting</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>7/07/2013</td><td>Luke 5:27-32, 6:1-39</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/z1wq6o3geepgl68/2013_07_07%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2005%20-%2027%20to%2032%20and%2006%20-%2001%20to%2039.mp3">Lord of the Sabbath</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>13/08/2013</td><td>Luke 6:12-49</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/pvrrktb0a76bqel/2013_08_13%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2006%20-%2012%20to%2049.mp3">The Sermon on the Mount</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>13/10/2013</td><td>Luke 6:20, 24</td><td><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/myoy5ioku0zsjzg/2013_10_13%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2006%20-%2020%20and%2024.mp3">Blessed are you who are Poor</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Please let me know in the comments if you have any trouble with any of these links.Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-6478599394987806362013-11-09T22:11:00.000-08:002013-11-19T17:09:00.812-08:00What is Church Membership?<b>Context:</b>There is a discussion occurring within our church at the moment on the nature of church membership, especially in light of the current constitutional requirement that members be baptised as believers, by immersion. This is my initial contribution to that discussion. I thought I should post it here, as it might be helpful to others.<br />
<hr /><br />
<h3>Introduction</h3>The purpose of this paper is to explain what I believe is the biblical meaning of church membership. This paper explores the importance of church membership, and how it should be considered in relation to other issues. Its relationship to baptism is specifically discussed.<br />
<br />
In coming to the subject of church membership and then as it relates to baptism, I seek first to remind the reader of the definitions and distinctions of the invisible church, the visible church and the local church.<br />
<br />
<h3>Membership of the Invisible Church</h3>In the New Testament, the saints are described as members of the one body in Christ:<br />
<blockquote>For as in <i>one body</i> we have many <i>members</i>, and the <i>members</i> do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are <i>one body in Christ</i>, and <i>individually members</i> one of another. (Romans 12:4-5, ESV)</blockquote>People from all sorts of backgrounds and social classes are baptised by the Spirit into the one body of Christ, and become members of that body:<br />
<blockquote>For just as the <i>body</i> is one and has many <i>members</i>, and all the <i>members of the body</i>, though many, are <i>one body</i>, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were baptized into <i>one body</i> – Jews or Greeks, slaves or free – and all were made to drink of one Spirit.<br />
For the body does not consist of <i>one member</i> but of <i>many</i>. (1 Corinthians 12:12-14, ESV)</blockquote>From these, and other passages, it is clear that the person that comes to Christ in faith and repentence, being born again by the Holy Spirit, and being washed by the blood of Christ – such a person becomes a member of Christ’s body, the church (or assembly, from ekklesia). Although an individual can have a great assurance of <i>his own</i> salvation, the membership of the assembly of Christ is known only by the Godhead:<br />
<blockquote>But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only <i>those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.</i> (Revelation 21:27, ESV)</blockquote>This collection of all genuine believers – God knows who they are – is sometimes called the <i>invisible church</i>, not because its members can’t be seen, but because it’s members can’t be distinguished by any but God.<br />
<br />
<h3>The Visible Church</h3>Grudem writes:<br />
<blockquote>On the other hand, the true church of Christ certainly has a visible aspect as well. We may use the following definition: <i>The visible church is the church as Christians on earth see it.</i> In this sense the visible church includes all who profess faith in Christ and give evidence of that faith in their lives. (Systematic Theology, Wayne Grudem, p. 856).</blockquote>The key difference between the visible and the invisible church, is that Christians don’t have perfect vision, and cannot see into hearts. There are tares among the wheat, and sheep that are straying from the fold.<br />
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The visible church across the world is called the<i> universal church</i>, or the <i>catholic church.</i><br />
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<h3>The Local Church</h3>The <i>local church</i> is the clearest and smallest manifestation of the visible church. A local church is a congregation of believers meeting together in an organised fashion, usually under the authority of its elders. Depending on the type of church government, local assemblies may be tied, strongly or loosely, to assemblies in other places, within denominations. Depending on the type of church government, people in other places may, individually or corporately, have a degree of authority over the teaching and practice in a particular assembly. Nevertheless, the local church remains the key expression of the visible church.<br />
<br />
There is a scriptural basis for the local church, even when the congregation is very small. For example:<br />
<blockquote>“The churches of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with <i>the church in their house</i>, send you hearty greetings in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 16:19, ESV)</blockquote><br />
<h3>Membership of the Local Church</h3>Is it important for a local church to define, by means of a list, which individuals or households are members of it – and in so doing define those which are <i>not</i> a members of it (i.e. everybody else)? I would argue: yes, and that this is what church membership is, and what church membership means.<br />
When looking to summarise the biblical evidence for a defined church membership, I could do no better than to quote verbatim the following section entitled “Five Strands of Evidence”. This is from the notes of a sermon by John Piper entitled “How Important is Church Membership?”. <br />
<blockquote>While I copied the “Five Strands of Evidence” section of Piper’s sermon into the paper I’m handing around, I’d like to refer the reader of this blog-version to that sermon with <a href="http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/how-important-is-church-membership">this link</a>. If you are reading this paper, please take the time to read the “Five Strands of Evidence” section at <i>Desiring God</i>, because it forms an important part of the flow within this document.</blockquote><blockquote>The entire sermon is downloadable in both video and audio formats, and is very useful on understanding this subject from a baptistic viewpoint.</blockquote><br />
<h3>Exclusion of Membership of the Local Church</h3>Ordinarily, the decision to accept or exclude applicants from church membership would be made by the elders of a congregation. The elders would assess, as best as they are able, whether the candidate is a confessing follower of Christ, showing the signs of rebirth, and connection to the vine by bearing the fruit of the Spirit (John 15:1-8, Romans 8:5-8, Galatians 5:16-26, Ephesians 2:10, James 2:18, 1 John 3:6-8). In short, the elders look for signs of a <i>lively faith</i>.<br />
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When would a request for membership be refused? This will normally only happen when the elders have grave doubts about the applicant’s confession of faith, based on the lack of fruit in his or her life. This will also occur by default when applicants are excluded by means of pre-determined criteria. This is discussed in the next section.<br />
<br />
What does exclusion from church membership mean and how serious is it (especially when the fruits of a lively faith exist)? In the same sermon notes quoted above, John Piper writes:<br />
<blockquote>... if we say, “Even though you are born again and a member of Christ, you may not be a member of this church,” that seems to undermine the person’s faith and the meaning of the local church. It seems to undermine faith because from one angle, exclusion from membership is like front-end excommunication before membership has happened. When you excommunicate a member from the church, according to Matthew 18:17, you “let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” In other words, you love him and try to win him as an unbeliever. That sounds really serious. Are we saying to those we exclude from membership that they are in the category of an unbeliever?<br />
And saying no to a genuine believer who is part of the universal body of Christ seems to undermine the meaning of the local church as an expression of that universal church.</blockquote>According to the meaning and purpose of church membership that I understand from scripture, and that I’ve tried to summarise here, exclusion of a person from church membership is a very serious issue and not to be taken lightly. If a genuine believer is excluded, it is especially serious, and brings to mind the partiality within the Christian synagogue condemned by James (James 2:1-13).<br />
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<h3>Exclusion from Membership by Membership Criteria</h3>In many congregations, as it is in our congregation, a list of requirements for church membership is created, approved and published by the congregation or its leadership. These requirements, where they exist, pre-judge whether those seeking membership can even be considered by the elders for suitability. The requirements act as a kind of elimination criteria, preventing the need for the elders to assess the suitability of the most obviously unsuitable candidates. Such requirements may be clearly reasonable and just, such as insisting that members confess Jesus Christ as Lord. Such requirements may be just as clearly unreasonable and unjust, such as insisting that members have white skin. Nevertheless, the documented requirements for membership represent the absolute minimum criteria of acceptability for membership candidates.<br />
<br />
The congregation as a whole – consisting of its members – is responsible for these criteria, or whether they even exist. If the criteria are such that the doors into the local congregation are narrower than the doors into the kingdom of heaven, then the local church will have a more closed, exclusive group of members than the universal church.<br />
<br />
Such exclusivity systematises the serious and difficult issue of exclusion from church membership. <br />
<br />
<h3>Baptism as a Membership Criterion</h3>Baptism is very important. It is also more than a little controversial. There are diverse views on the meanings, the modes and the appropriate recipients of baptism. These views are held with a similarly diverse range of passions, from ambivalence to dogmatism.<br />
<br />
The most common ground on baptism is that all believers must be baptised. I agree that baptism is a reasonable and biblical criterion for church membership: those entering into the New Covenant must be baptised.<br />
<br />
Nevertheless, restricting the <i>definition of baptism</i> as a criterion for church membership to the baptistic definition of believers’ baptism <i>only</i>, by immersion <i>only</i>, makes the door into the local church far narrower than the door into the universal church, or indeed the invisible church: the true body of Christ. Such a limited definition of baptism is not explicit in scripture and is certainly not the historic practice of the Christian church.<br />
<br />
Should baptism be a criterion of church membership at all? I believe that it should. Nevertheless, I would be comfortable to be a member of a church that made an allowance for unbaptised people to become members, if they provided the elders with a robust and satisfactory defence from scripture of their refusal to be baptised, alongside the usual evidences of a lively personal faith, and that it was not just the case of some personal fancy or church tradition taking priority over scripture.<br />
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<h3>Re-Baptism to Satisfy Baptism as a Membership Criterion</h3>I am a believer, and I am baptised. I was baptised as a baby, by the mode of sprinkling. By some, my baptism is not considered to be baptism. That is, the sign and seal of the covenant applied to me is considered wrong enough to be no sign or seal at all. It’s certainly considered wrong enough to exclude me from church membership based on baptistic criteria.<br />
<br />
I have been asked, more than once, if I would consider re-baptism. It was a question I asked myself long before anyone ever asked me. I have given the matter no small amount of thought and prayer. I have concluded that to accept re-baptism would be a lie, by:<br />
<ol><li>Declaring my baptism to be invalid, while I know it to be valid.</li>
<li>Declaring baptism of the infants of believers to be invalid, while I believe it to be commanded, and have been obedient to that command.</li>
<li>Declaring baptism by sprinkling or pouring or other non-immersive modes to be invalid, while I believe all of these modes to have at least as much scriptural warrant as immersion.</li>
</ol>To accept re-baptism would be a grave hypocrisy, making a mockery of the sacrament. Ironically, it would make me a serious candidate for excommunication. I would rather die.<br />
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<h3>Concluding Thoughts</h3>I have sought to explain in this paper what I see as the biblical view of church membership: what it means, and specifically what <i>exclusion</i> from church membership means and why it is a serious matter. If the reader disagrees with what I’ve put forward, the questions then remain:<br />
<ul><li>What is church membership and what does it mean?</li>
<li>What does it mean to exclude someone from church membership?</li>
</ul>If church membership and exclusion from it mean roughly what I’ve written, then the following question must be considered:<br />
<blockquote><b><i>Is conformance to a view and practice of the appropriate meaning, mode and recipients of baptism more important than excluding from church membership those who otherwise appear to be genuine believers?</i></b></blockquote>On the subject of infant baptism: I intend to soon write a brief explanation and defence of covenantal infant baptism, to help others less familiar with the practice better understand its meaning and its scriptural basis. For now, I would ask that the following points be prayerfully pondered:<br />
<ul><li>What is the position of the children of believers within the church? In the New Covenant? Before God? Are they inside or outside? What do the scriptures tell us about children and the church?</li>
<li>If the New Covenant is better, and has better promises (Hebrews 8:6), and if the scope of inclusion in the New Covenant is greater, by bringing in the Gentiles (Ephesians 2:11-22), then why – according to the baptistic view – has the scope also been <i>narrowed</i> in the transition from the old to the new, by the <i>exclusion</i> of the children of believers? And if they were excluded in the transition of covenants, why was this change not more <i>explicitly stated and expounded</i> in scripture, the way the inclusion of the Gentiles was?</li>
</ul><br />
Edit (20/11/2013): Fixed paragraph breaks.<br />
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-69966470052157586142013-11-04T16:18:00.000-08:002013-11-04T16:18:44.379-08:00Faith, Not WorksRead: Romans 9:30-33<br />
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Most Christians understand, at least in theory, that salvation within the New Covenant, in Christ, is by faith and not works (Ephesians 2:8-9).<br />
<br />
On the other hand, many believers assume that within the Old Covenant, from Abraham to Moses to John the Baptist, salvation was on the basis of works, and not faith. This passage (Romans 9:30-33) is very clear: many within the Old Covenant were not counted righteous because <i>they also</i> thought that they could attain it by works, and not by faith.<br />
<br />
It is one thing that those within the Old Covenant fell over the stumbling block laid in Zion, but why do so many Christians today also stumble when they look at the saints of the Old Testament?<br />
<br />
Consider also the teaching of Romans 4:3-8:<br />
<br />
<blockquote><i> For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:<br />
<blockquote>“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;<br />
blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”</blockquote></i></blockquote><br />
Abraham was saved by grace through faith. David was saved by grace through faith. To see the Old Covenant as one of salvation by works is to look at it either in ignorance, or as a Pharisee, tripping over the stumbling block that was laid in Zion. But we must not to stumble over him: instead, whoever believes in him shall not be put to shame.<br />
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-90912516251585487042013-10-30T18:29:00.000-07:002013-10-30T18:29:01.190-07:00Not of Blood, Nor of the Will of the FleshRead John 3:1-21<br />
<br />
This passage is interpreted by some to mean that a person is <i>born again</i> through the action of being <i>baptised</i>. Being "born of water and the Spirit" is taken to mean baptism. Because being <i>born again</i> refers to the process of <i>regeneration</i>, this doctrine (teaching) is called <i>baptismal regeneration</i>. I don’t think that scripture supports this understanding, and I’d like to outline why I think that.<br />
<ol><li>From John 3 it is clear that you must be born again, or regenerated to see the kingdom of God. The first issue with connecting baptism to being born again is that the thief on the cross went straight to paradise, but wasn't baptised (Luke 23:39-43). </li>
<li>The saints of the Old Covenant weren't baptised. Does that mean that Abraham, Moses, David and Elijah are outside of the kingdom? Or are we to take it that Jesus meant, "from now on", or perhaps "from Pentecost"? But Jesus is speaking in the present tense. Unless Nicodemus was born again, if he'd died that night, he wouldn't have gone into the kingdom.</li>
<li>Jesus says to Nicodemus, "Are you a teacher of Israel and you don't know these things?" Jesus clearly expected a teacher of the Old Testament to be familiar with the concepts he was discussing. If being born again "of water and the spirit" refers to the new institution of baptism, then Jesus could hardly expect him to know this was a requirement of entering the kingdom. This phrase points to the Old Testament, and is also related to point (2) above. Being born again must be an Old Testament principle, not just a New Testament one.</li>
<li>Being born again "of water and the spirit", as prophesied in the Old Testament, points to (among other passages) Ezekiel 36:25-27:<br />
<blockquote>25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.</blockquote></li>
<li>The Ezekiel passage above points to cleansing and washing of past sins, and to being born again with a new heart. This process is linked to the Holy Spirit. This is consistent with Titus 3:5, which refers to "the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit". That is, being born again has two components: washing the filth of the old man, and "starting again" as the new man. There are similar themes are in Romans 6, Colossians 2:6-15.</li>
<li>The point of Jesus in John 3 is that the Holy Spirit is like the wind which blows where it wishes. In John 1:12-13, regeneration is said to be not of "the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God." Titus 3:5 further says regeneration is "not because of works done in righteousness." <br />
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Baptism, however, is an action or a work - done perhaps in righteousness - and is performed entirely by human will. Humans decide when and how baptism is performed. The Holy Spirit is not confined to this, and is not forced into making people born again simply because someone baptises them, and will not be prevented from making people to be born again just because nobody has baptised them. The Holy Spirit is God, and is not a human puppet.</li>
<li>Baptism and being born again remain clearly and closely linked, but the first is a sign and seal of the second. There are very few good reasons for a believer <i>not</i> to be baptised on entering the covenant. One biblical example of a good reason to not be baptised is being in the process of being crucified: I do not doubt that the thief on the cross was born again. I am sure many men and women have been born again, coming to faith in Christ, in situations such that they weren't able to be baptised before their deaths. These will be in the kingdom.</li>
<li>Many other passages link being born again and/or adoption to faith, with no mention of baptism. 1 John 5:1 and Romans 8:14.</li>
</ol>Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-65610877416317119012013-08-11T22:27:00.000-07:002013-08-11T22:27:00.800-07:00Read Luke 5:27-32<br />
Levi left everything, and then threw a party for Jesus. Who did he invite? People he knew: other tax collectors and other low-lifes of society. The Pharisees were not impressed.<p>In reply, Jesus says that he came to heal the sick, rather than the healthy, to be healed, and to call sinners, rather than the righteous, to repentance and salvation.<p>But isn’t everyone spiritually “sick”? Isn’t everyone a sinner? Who are these “well” people that <i>don’t</i> need the physician or these “righteous” people who <i>aren’t</i> called to repentance?<p>These “righteous” are self-righteous. They are righteous is their own eyes, but not before God. <p>Jesus doesn’t disagree with the fact that the tax collectors and everyone at the party are sinners. But does Jesus consider the Pharisees to be righteous? Absolutely not. <p>Jesus hated self-righteousness and hypocrisy, because it’s the worst kind of un-righteousness. This is why Jesus was so uncompromising with the Pharisees: they knew the scriptures, so they should have known better. If you’re not convinced that Jesus identified the Pharisees generally as rotten-to-the-core hypocrites, read Luke 11:37-44, and Luke 12:1.<p>When Jesus said to the Pharisees, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” he meant something like this: “While you are stuck in your hypocrisy, pointing the finger at others, there is no call of repentance and salvation for you. You need to know and confess that you are a sinner, that you’re sick and in need of a doctor. You need to know that you are poor, a captive of sin, and blind and oppressed before you can be healed.”<p>What category do you place yourself in? The righteous who needs no repentance, or the sinner who needs saving?<p>If you see yourself as righteous, and in no need of repentance, let me tell you plainly: you’re not. If you need more convincing, leave a comment.<p>If you recognise that you’re a sinner, but have faith in God, through the work of Christ, then you’re a true Christian brother or sister.<p>If you <i>don’t </i>have faith in Jesus, and <i>don’t </i>acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Saviour then you desperately need to confess to him that you’re a sinner, and repent, and be healed by the great physician. <p>The truth is: I can’t tell what’s in your heart. I’m quite easy to fool, but not God. The self-righteous exist within the body of Christ: they look and sound and act like our brothers and sisters, but inside are “full of greed and wickedness”. It’s a fearful thing. That’s why the Word says, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”<br />
Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-11122380188793046482013-08-04T22:01:00.000-07:002013-08-04T22:01:27.244-07:00Would you Follow?Read Luke 5:27-32<br />
Tax collectors were the most despised group in Jewish society, at about the same social level as prostitutes. “Tax collectors and sinners” is a phrase we see pop up many times in the gospels. The tax collectors were Jews that had sold out to the Roman Government, in a big way. Each tax collector was required to extract a certain tax quota from the people. Anything they could extort beyond that went into their own pockets. They were extortionists who collected money for the oppressive Roman overlords, and skimmed off the top for themselves. They were thieving traitors.<p>Levi was sitting at his tax booth, when Jesus came past and said, “Follow me”. And Levi got up, left everything and followed him. This was a huge sacrifice: clearly a bigger sacrifice than that made by the fishermen who left their nets. The fisherman could return to their nets later, should they change their minds. Once a tax collector gave up his lucrative post, he couldn’t just go and get it back. It was a government position, and men were lining up for the job. Levi made a truly life-changing decision when he left it all to follow Jesus.<p>Would I be willing to leave everything, if that’s how I was called to follow Jesus? What about you? If Jesus was calling you to leave everything, and go to Asia, or Africa, or Central Australia, would you leave <i>everything</i> and follow him? Exactly how we are called appears to be different for different people, <i>but if you were sure of the call</i>, would you follow?Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-80247081943803702732013-03-07T15:44:00.000-08:002013-03-07T15:44:00.527-08:00I Will Exalt You; I Will Praise Your NameRead: Isaiah 25:1<br />
God isn’t hidden: he has done wonderful things. The Bible is filled with accounts of men and women who have interacted with a knowable God, who has made known his plans and made promises, and then fulfilled his plans and kept his promises. He is who he is, but he does not keep all of who he is to himself.<br />
We praise God because he has done wonderful things. Praising him only adds to our experience. For example, a great piece of art such as a painting, a novel, or a piece of music, is only half-enjoyed until it has been praised to others.<br />
Praising our praiseworthy God only brings more joy to our soul, as well as more glory to God.<br />
Has God done wonderful things in your life, fulfilling his plans and promises? Is your response to exalt him, and praise his name?Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355695037538307465.post-25586854856720061722012-10-23T02:32:00.000-07:002012-10-23T02:32:33.925-07:00That You May Have CertaintyPlease read Luke 1:1-4<br />
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<a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/nhvdjuif44urjnk/2011_02_27%20Bernard%20S%20Jansen%20-%20Luke%2001%20-%2001%20to%2004.mp3">This link is to an mp3 file</a> of the first in a series of sermons I'm preaching on the Gospel of Luke.<br />
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This sermon provides a basic overview of Luke's gospel. I preached it at <i>Emerald Christian Assembly</i> on 27 February 2011.Bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13194421719317300410noreply@blogger.com0