In this classic book “The Pursuit of Holiness“, Jerry Bridges sets out an almost exhaustive catalogue of principles by which one might consider what it means to seek a life of holiness. Usefully, the early parts of the work present not how to pursue holiness, but a systematic explanation of the relevance of holiness to the Christian, its essential root, origin and object in the Holiness of God, and the imperatives presented by scripture which motivate and define this search for holiness.

Jerry Bridges: The Pursuit of Holiness

Of particular value is the chapter entitled “obedience not victory” in which careful attention is paid to the way in which one measures holiness – particularly that one should not seek ‘victory’ in the pursuit of holiness (that being what we have won for us in Christ), but rather ‘obedience’ to God’s law (in light of what Christ has indeed done for us).

The work, as all books discussing holiness, treads a very thin line between a created legalism and Christian freedom in the Gospel. The author skilfully moves the discussion back to the Gospel or grace in a number of places, which is greatly to be valued given the topic at hand. That being said, there are places where the reader may feel the line has been crossed into an artificial legalism. As an example, the application of Romans 14 to produce a mandate to derive one’s “own convictions” according to how “God is leading [you]” and then hold them to be a rule one must be “careful not to violate” runs contrary to the intention of Paul to underscore freedom according to knowledge. Thus, whereas the Holy Ghost writes by Paul, “I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteems any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean” (Romans 14:14) it seems the author finds a mandate to figure out what God is leading one to esteem unclean and so declare it such unto one’s self.

That being said, the work as a whole stands solidly upon scripture and reflects Grace as its motivation and end. Although I think this is a good book which presents much value and encouragement to the discerning Christian reader, I do not recommend the book for new Christians or those who do not have a firm understanding of the Gospel and the doctrine of justification as the power with which Jerry Bridges brings to the table may easily overpower all other concerns.

This edition is read by Arthur Morey who does a wonderful job adding expression and interest to a text which is at times difficult and expresses complex concepts.

With thanks to the christianaudio reviews program who provided the review copy of this audio book

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Samuel Gregg of the Acton Institute wrote a great piece yesterday entitled Europe, Immigration, and Merkel’s Christian Values. In it, he sets out the argument made by the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, regarding the proper response to the influence of Islam within Europe.

Her argument, if I may summarise it yet further, is as follows:

  • Islam is not a threat but a challenge
  • The challenge is to our own identity
  • The response is a firmer foundation in Christianity
  • Cohesion then can be built around reflection on Judeo-Christian tradition

Angela Merkel

It is true to say that unless you know what values you hold you are unable to influence others with those values or reject and oppose contrary values. It’s also true to say that a nation which refuses to pin down its values will have great difficulty being able to know what they are. Yet, for all the merit her suggestion has, it is fundamentally and fatally flawed.

As part of this theme, she spoke at her party conference in Karlsruhe about the Christian view of mankind. The Christian view of mankind is certainly important, but I wonder quite what her speechwriters thought they were implying by the phrase.

Just what is the Christian view of mankind?

Well, St. Paul summarises it brilliantly in his letter to the Romans, a short extract of which is below:

Romans 3:10-13
None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.
Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.

Again, we read even as early as Genesis 6:5-6:

The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.

The Christian view of mankind is that we are all desperately wicked sinners, each one of us under the sentence of death, judgment and eternal condemnation.

As Ephesians puts it:

Ephesians 2:1-3
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

As regards those who deny Christianity, the Bible declares they are without excuse for their disbelief and hence subject to God’s wrath. It really puts a different perspective on the Christian view of mankind to realise that every single one of those of other religions and those of no religion are under God’s judgment and destined for eternal condemnation.

Romans 1:18-20
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

Now, I agree entirely with Angela Merkel if she really means what she said – if she means that we need to start using the Christian view of mankind: the view of man as lost, dead, wicked, unable to repent or turn back to God, and destined for hell.

However, I doubt this is what she has in mind. I doubt it because of the response she calls for. She calls for a return to promoting “Judeo-Christian values” in society. Such an act will not in any way solve the terrible problem of the mankind. You can cultivate and promote as many “Judeo-Christian values” as you like, but you will still remain a depraved sinful person, falling short of the Glory of God and subject to his wrath. The message Christianity has for the world is not the promotion of “Judeo-Christian values”. The work of a Christian is not to change the value system of the living dead.

The real message of Christianity

The message Christianity has for the world is entirely different. It is a message not of what we need to do but a message of what God has already done. It is the gospel message of the death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was sent to die on the cross for our sins – sent as a sacrifice to turn away the wrath of God, bearing our sins and redeeming mankind from slavery to sin and death.
Notice how St. Paul describes the matter of first importance – what that message is which he preached, and the power of that message to save:

1 Corinthians 1:1-5
Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.

Without this message of the bloody cross on which Jesus died for us there is no Christianity. The death of Christ for our sins is not an optional extra – it is the only message which actually addresses the Christian view of mankind. If the cross is missing, it is not Christian but merely Biblically-inspired moralism.

I suspect Angela Merkel knows better than this, and I am inclined to think it the work of a speechwriter. I suspect she does know that the solution to the growth of Islam and indeed secularism is the Gospel, the Gospel, and the Gospel. It is only through the Gospel that man can be saved – and the real ‘problem’ of Islam is not the values that Islam brings but the fact that so many Muslims are perishing having never even heard the Gospel of the saving work of Christ on the cross.

As it is written:

1 Corinthians 1:17-18
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

The danger of ‘forgetting’ the cross

There is another thing about which I need to warn. What is being done here in pushing ‘Christian values’ apart from the cross of Christ is actually very dangerous and deeply harmful. It’s not a neutral activity which helps in a vague way even if it leaves the main message of Christianity untouched. What happens when Christians promote ‘Christian values’ without the cross of Christ is that it leads many to believe themselves in good standing before God by keeping to a set of values and rules, when they are actually no closer to salvation than the devil himself. In so much as one encourages and condones the reduction of Christianity to a cross-less moral law, one implicitly denies the saving work of Christ by showing the world that to be a Christian is not to be saved by faith in Christ, but merely to live in a certain way. It doesn’t matter whether you have “Christian values” , “secular values” or “Muslim values” if you remain dead in your trespasses and sins and are destined for hell!

It should be clear by now that pushing “Christian values” in a society which is here today and gone tomorrow isn’t somehow more important than saving people from hell for all eternity. To do so in the name of Christ is akin to giving a child a snake when he asks for an egg: not just neutral but dangerous, deceptive and a gross abuse of trust.

It should also be clear by now that the message of Christianity is not at all palatable to Muslims or secularists. It is not even partly compatible. It is not a basis upon which they can build a society together. It is not something they can integrate into. True Christianity is enormously and intolerably offensive to Muslims and secularists – and if it isn’t – then what’s being taught or practiced is not Christianity.

1 Corinthians 1:22-24
For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

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For all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God and are justified freely by his grace

For all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God and are justified freely by his grace. Romans 3:23+

If you only understand one thing from the Bible, this should be it. We stand guilty before God – when we measure ourselves against his law we all fall flat. The good news then is that God justifies us (counts us sinless before him) by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ who died for our sins. This is the only way to be saved – because it does not matter how good we think we have been, we are still unrighteous and condemned to hell if measured by our deeds.

Romans 3:21-25
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.

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In him was life, and the life was the light of men

Diwali (divali/deepavali), known as the ‘festival of lights’ is a central festival of the Hindu religion. It is centered around the concept of the atman, an inner light which is beyond the physical body and mind. Awareness of this inner light brings about peace, transcendence, and an awakening to an unchanging infinite non-bodily nature. This ‘inner light’ is celebrated over a period of five days during which lamps and lights are prominently featured.

This festival is a deeply integrated part of Indian and Hindu culture, both in India and overseas. The prominence given to it within the community means that Christians with a Hindu background need to ask themselves important questions about the compatibility of their participation with Christianity.

It’s important to note that within Christianity there is also a belief in a light which can legitimately be said to bring peace, dispel darkness, give guidance, and bring a knowledge of the mysteries of the infinite etc.. This light is an essential part of the Christian faith. It is this light we read of when Simeon picks up the infant Jesus and declares him to be “a light to enlighten the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32), and the same light we see set out at the beginning of John’s Gospel. It’s the account found in John 1:1-14 which we’ll discuss today – and we’ll do so with special reference to Diwali and the Atman:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. (John 1:1-4)
In words echoing the start of Genesis (Genesis 1:1-3), we see the Word, Christ, from the creation of the world – through whom all things were made. This same Christ is God, and within him alone is life. This life, which is within Christ alone, is the only light for mankind. So, the light of Christianity is not an internal light, but an external light; it is not of one’s own being, but of God’s own being.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5)
We are in darkness, and it is the light which shines into the darkness; thus we do not find the light within ourselves, for it comes from God and is of God where it shines into our darkness.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. (John 1:6-8)
See how even when God has acted in a man to bear witness about the light, still he is not the light? The light is not a part of man, the light is not a part of his being, the light cannot ever be found from within. The light which shines into the darkness is the light of God, Jesus Christ – a light for man not a part of man.

The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. (John 1:9)
Again, how can the light come into the world, if the light here discussed is akin to the atman? This claimed atman is a part of a man’s own being and self, which needs to be discovered – it is not the external light of God but an internal light of man. Clearly, atman cannot be the true light – and as the true light is the true God; then atman is a false god – an idol – and thus the festival is a festival of idolatry.

He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. (John 1:10-11)
That so many will spend so much effort in the worship of this false God, atman, the impostor pretending to be the light which enlightens man, pretending to be God, should not be a surprise. John 3:19 explains “the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.” Our evil deeds are great; consider we are even conceived in sin and raised in iniquity (Psalm 51:5), each one of us knowing the revelation of God (Romans 1:19) yet turning away from him to worship false gods and idols (Romans 1:25). Although God made us, we refuse to acknowledge him as the one God.

Note this well:

  1. Christ is the only true light that shines into our darkness
  2. This same Christ who is the true light of the world is also fully God
  3. Sinful and wicked man created a lie that the true light is the atman, a part of man’s own being
  4. Thus, the lie puts man in the place of God – the archetype of all idolatry

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13)
Regard the great grace of God, his immense mercy to mankind – for he has torn a people for himself, ripped us from the darkness of hell by the blood of Jesus Christ. It is Christ who is the light of the world, the same Christ who alone is the way, and the truth, and the life (John 14:6).

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)
This very Christ, the only Son from the Father, who became man and took on our human flesh, also died for our sins and was raised again in glory. He alone is our light – and no other. Brothers, let us take great care never to give to any other the honour and glory which belongs to God alone. It is clearly the worship of a false God to celebrate, remember, parade, praise, or display this inner light of Atman to which Diwali refers.

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In the first century, letters would usually start off by stating the author, and then the recipient. In a way, it’s something we also do ourselves when we place our own address at the head of a letter, then the name and address of the person to whom we are writing. Of course, the formal layout of a letter has changed over recent years, and with the growth in branding and graphic design it is common to see complex and creative ways to present the sender’s details and identity. Letterheads, whether corporate or personal, increasingly try to add key information about the sender, such as services provided or values held.

It’s interesting then to see much the same take place in the writings of St. Paul, particularly in his letter to the Romans. As he had not previously visited the church in Rome he carefully designed his letterhead to not only identify himself but to give the reader important information about what he is, what work he undertakes, and what beliefs and values he holds.

Thus, he gives his name and appends his chosen tag-line as follows:

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ:
Romans 1:1-6

Paul's letter to the Romans comes complete with a detailed letterhead

Paul's letter to the Romans comes complete with a detailed letterhead

I’m not certain what management and branding experts would make of it, but it’s massively different from those usually held up as classic examples and best practice. Despite this, I personally think Paul’s letterhead does its job really well – not because it is eye-catching – but because through it Paul delivers so much information of such great importance both to him and to his reader. The most essential parts of Paul’s letter are set out here, even before he sets out who the recipient is!

Let’s take a closer look at Paul’s letterhead, bit by bit:

1 Paul
First, like all good letterheads, he states his name – Paul; a name which in itself makes a statement, for Paul was once a Jew by the name of Saul, and was a violent persecutor of the Christian church (Acts 8:1-3). It was after he was intercepted by the resurrected Jesus that he started using the name Paul, although the way in which he gained the new name is not known today (Acts 9:1-6).

a servant of Christ Jesus
Notice, Paul does not describe himself as a Christian, but uses perhaps a better name, that of ‘a servant of Christ Jesus’. He defines himself not by the power he has, or those under his authority, but by the humility he has, and the authority to which he submits in servitude.

called to be an apostle
Jesus had given Paul the task of being an apostle to the Gentiles; an appointment which essentially involves bringing the Christian faith to non-Jewish people (Acts 9:15-16). It brings Paul into the group of twelve apostles who had first been sent out with authority from Jesus to all Israel (Matthew 10:1-4), of whom one had betrayed him and had taken his own life. Back when the apostles were first sent out to proclaim the good news, they had been told in no uncertain terms to only bring the message to Israel – not to the Gentiles, nor to Samaria (Matthew 10:5-6).

set apart for the gospel of God
So Paul himself, just as the earlier twelve apostles, has been set apart for the gospel (the specific good news) of God; but unlike the other apostles, he was sent not to Israel but to the Gentiles. Interestingly, this fulfils the promise of Jesus, who said that his message would go first to Jerusalem, then to Judea and Samaria, and then to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Paul, as servant of Christ, explains the matter of his work as being the gospel of God; and by his terms ‘chosen’ and ‘set apart’, attributes his very involvement to God.

2which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures
Next in his tag-line, Paul starts to lay out bullet-points regarding this gospel that he works for. First, it’s not a new-fangled idea, but one which was planned and announced long ago. Indeed it is true to say that this message regarding the good news was both foretold and believed even 2000 years beforehand, and many times between times (Genesis 12:3; Galatians 3:8).

3concerning his Son
The next bullet point tells us simply that the gospel is about God’s Son (Psalm 2:7); setting out the divinity of Jesus Christ, not merely a prophet or a man made a mouthpiece of God, but actually God.

who was descended from David according to the flesh
Almost anticipating our thoughts, we then read of the humanity of Christ: Paul tells us in unambiguous terms that Jesus was descended from King David by means of normal human descent, that which we term ‘flesh and blood’. Further, his descent from King David fulfills the promise of God to raise up a king to an eternal throne from his seed (II Samuel 7:12-13).

4and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead
However, these things are not merely believed because Jesus said them, but also proven; for this same Jesus after being crucified, after having died, and been buried, was then raised from the dead. Such power is only attributable to the Spirit of God himself, and by this act, all that which Christ claimed receives irrefutable testimony and witness from God. Paul rests his faith on this point, saying in another letter, “if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (I Corinthians 15:14).

Jesus Christ our Lord
Paul now takes us full circle, for having opened by telling us he is a servant of Jesus Christ, having explained that he is set aside for the Gospel of the Son of God, he returns by declaring the name of the Son, Jesus Christ. Not only does he do this, but he also writes that Jesus Christ is our Lord; by which in the first instance we are to understand that Jesus Christ was the Lord of Paul and the Christians in Rome, and by application to us as Christians, then also our Lord. Although this bullet-point almost duplicate Paul’s claim to be a ‘servant of Christ Jesus’, yet this change in perspective serves to exult the name of Jesus above all others – as Lord of all, just as the earlier statement humbled Paul as a servant.

5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship
Continuing his repetition of key points in his message, Paul returns to the theme of apostleship; again working hard to be absolutely clear that it is something which God has given to him, not something he has asked or earned of God. Thus, he links grace and apostleship, the first being the favour of God towards mankind, and the second the response to which Paul was called by this grace. Having set out the Lord he serves and the nature of his service, the next point is to explain what the end of his labour is, and how his work is relevant to the recipient.

to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name
This he achieves through a short but powerful statement, showing that his work of bringing the message of the Gospel is so that people will obey by having faith in it. Further, as it is the honest design of every loyal servant to labour for the sake of his Lord, so too the end of Paul’s work is for the sake of Christ, to the praise and glory of his name.

among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ:
Finally, he closes the address block by explaining what all this has to do with the Christians in Rome. Simply put, he states that his mission is to the nations (that is, away from Israel), and that this includes those in Rome. Yet, he does not finish the exercise without pointing out that even his recipients owe their faith and salvation in Christ not to their own work, but to the grace of God which has called them.

That brings us to the end of Paul’s letterhead. It would be nice to think you might have learned something good about branding and marketing, but I suspect that might be better studied elsewhere. On the other hand, I hope you have learned a little about Paul, and the Gospel regarding Jesus Christ which he served with such passion and determination. The actual body of Paul’s letter to the Romans is considered by some to be the central book of the Bible, and with good reason; so please do have a read of the rest, if you’ve not done so recently.

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A reading from the third chapter of ‘All of Grace’ by C. H. Spurgeon focused on God’s promise to justify unrighteous and unholy sinners, which means both you and I are included:

The full text

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We continue our discussion of the seeming contradiction between total depravity (that doctrine which expresses that fallen man is unwilling and unable to do any good work apart from the grace of God) and the common experience of seeing good done amongst those who have no faith in the living God.

In the first section, we identified that there is always a sinful motivation behind every work which appears to be good apart from faith, for the purpose of the work is never the glorification of God – which is to say, it is not with the intention that good be done but that good be done for personal reason or benefit. We established that in these cases, the author of the good is God, but the author of the evil is man.

In this section, the question shifts to whether it is a fact of Biblical pedigree that God works through the wicked and evil acts of man to achieve the ends of good, or if it is only by chance that good occurs out of evil. We will do this by discussing a number of passages from the Bible to show how it is that God has so designed things that an evil and wicked man in his wrongdoing might bring about good not through repentance and faith but through continuance in sin.

God so arranges matters so that he authors good even through acts of human wickedness

In the book of Isaiah we encounter God revealing his plan to use the sinfulness of a wicked man to achieve a military victory. The man in question is the Rabshakeh, or field-commander, of the King of Assyria who was ready to invade Judah. This is the design God revealed through Isaiah to King Hezekiah of Judah “Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land” (Isaiah 37:7). Indeed, “the Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left Lachish”, thus in his wicked zeal for military conquest was he led away – it was his wish to support his evil king in the work of invasion and subjugation which kept him from Judah. That there was good done is undeniable, for Judah was protected and her prayers answered, yet that good was not on the part of the man who decided to do it – for he thought only of evil conquest and never of bringing relief to Judah.

Perhaps one of the most memorable accounts of God’s design to bring about good through the pure evil of man is that of Joseph, sold into slavery to Egypt by his very own brothers out of deep jealousy and greed. Yet, with what words does Joseph comfort them when at last he reveals himself as so powerful a person in Egypt? Truly, Joseph said to them, “as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20). It was truly good to save so many from famine, and to glorify God so greatly, and yet we can in no means imagine that Joseph’s brothers had any intention other than the most terrible of evils when they sold him into slavery. We see here again that God does act to use the evil of man to produce good effect, as testified by scripture.

More than four centuries later, Moses was to bring Israel out of Egypt again, which by time the country had become a place of the most horrific slavery. Now, we know that it was with faith that Moses acted and he did so through the grace of God; yet let us look to the effect of the great evil within Egypt. What has the effect of this brutal treatment and enslavement been throughout history and even until today? Surely, it is not less than that which Moses expresses in “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place” (Exodus 13:3). The power of Egypt and the wicked enslavement of Israel stands to demonstrate in the most vivid way the great power of God which exceeds the full power of the greatest nation of that time, and the love of God which brought Israel from the depths of human bondage to the heights of freedom under God. No more notable action is recorded between the time of Noah and the time of Christ than this great deliverance, and it stands above all else to glorify God and as a witness to his name amongst all generations. So, the great blessing of the power of the Lord is revealed not by the evil acts, but in response to the evil acts; the great good of the deliverance being in no way attributable to Egypt for causing the need for exodus but only to God himself.

Indeed, the destruction of evildoers as a means to glorify God is not an isolated theme. For example, Paul writes in Romans 9:22, “what if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction”. Here we gain a glimpse into God’s eternal decrees, and their purpose. First, the wickedness of men fitted to destruction, and secondly that the purpose of his longsuffering is to show his wrath and to make his power known. Here we discuss the reprobate, to whom we can certainly attribute no good works; but yet there is good produced – for through them God will reveal some of his own power and glory. To this we find agreement from Proverbs 16:4 which states that “The LORD has made everything for its purpose,
even the wicked for the day of trouble”; so even the reprobate have a purpose to fulfill for God, and yet their fate verifies immediately that the good work of achieving this purpose (that God be glorified) is not a good work of their own authorship.

Still further, those who work great evil bring glory to God in a most notable way, should God through his grace deliver them and bring them to faith. Take the example of St. Paul himself – he writes to the Galatians of the effect of his testimony of deliverance that ‘they only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they glorified God because of me.’ (Galatians 1:23). If God is glorified, then good is done, and yet the cause for this glorification is Paul’s conversion from wicked persecutor of the church to dedicated preacher of the Gospel and apostle to the Gentiles. Nobody imagines that the then Saul did a good work in becoming a wicked persecutor! Although these evil deeds were used by God that He might be glorified, yet those evil deeds remain evil. The author of the evil works remains Saul, the author of the good which came from them is unambiguously God alone.

At length then, we arrive at the most powerful of all events. Nowhere in history is there a more powerful example of God using pure evil and wickedness to bring about good than in the cross of Christ. The crucifixion of Christ came to pass in such a way that evil was committed by all classes of man; Roman and Jew, Priest and Peasant, Governor and Governed, King and Solider, Disciple and Doubter. Never was such an injustice before committed as the putting to death of the Son of God, that is, God himself. Such an evil had the world never committed beforehand, even before the time of Noah or at any time since. Yet, such good had the world never seen either; for it was through the cross that we are reconciled to God through the forgiveness of sin.

No man defended Christ, for by the end all of them had turned out of the way, even Peter denied him. No man can claim to have been the author in any way of the good of the cross, although so many men contributed to the work of the cross. What man contributed to the cross was pure wickedness, and so the good of the cross is entirely and undeniably the work of God. As Peter said to the men of that day, “this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men” (Acts 2:23). Yet, even as it came to the time of the greatest of evil and men were plotting the very event, Christ looked to the good, as he declared “the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified” (John 12:23).

I hope that we have, through discussing this selection of events, demonstrated that God does work through the evil that man designs to bring about the good which God designs. If it were alleged that this is a small selection of events and not representative of the whole of the Biblical record, the point would be well conceded. Whilst we have established that such a means of action exists by showing that it is used, we have not discussed the frequency or nature of its use or the application of this doctrine to us today.

Therefore, in the third and final part of this series, we will discuss the doctrine often termed ‘common restraining grace’ in more detail as we investigate ways in which God oftentimes acts to restrain fallen and faithless man from causing evil despite man’s continued and consistent design to cause evil. In it, by referring to Biblical texts, we will tie together our inability to do good apart from faith and the work of God in bringing forth good (even from evil) to discuss whether (and if so how) God presently intervenes in the world even today.

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We obtain salvation by just one work; and the work which is commanded is to believe in Christ, the saviour sent of God (John 6:29). Nothing more is required to inherit eternal life than this!

John 6:27-29
27 Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.
28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?
29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Whilst is is written that good works are found in those who are saved (e.g. James 2:14), this repentance and striving for obedience to God’s law is caused by belief in Christ and his work; it is the proper fruit of Christ in those who are saved and not the means by which they become saved.

As Paul writes, if salvation is obtained because of the righteousness of our own good works, then Christ has died in vain (Galatians 2:21). There would be no need for Christ were it possible for man to become righteous through his own efforts.

Romans 3:
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

We are all sinners and condemned before God according to our own wickedness. None of us are ‘good enough’ to escape the eternal damnation. We must, at all costs and at all times, cling to our own possible hope of salvation, Jesus Christ. This is the Gospel – that Christ died for our sins, calling us to repentance and forgiveness of sins in his name.

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