Draw Me --Keith Green

Draw me, oh, draw me, please draw me, my Jesus.
Into your presence, where I cannot lie.
My soul is so thirsty, I cannot endure it.
And if I can't get closer, I surely will die.

Take me, oh take me, please take me, my Jesus.
Quickly, before I forget that I'm lost.
For so many times, my mind has deceived me,
That I really don't have to carry the cross.
That I really don't have to carry the cross.

I just need to know how to pray.
My wicked desires block the way,
Sometimes I have grieved you away,
I don't want to do that today.

Help me, oh help me, please help me my Jesus.
Save me from sins that I thought were all gone.
Kill me with kindness, and break through my blindness.
I know till I'm dead, I can never live on.
I know till I'm dead, I can never live on.

I just need to know how to pray.
My wicked desires block the way,
Sometimes I have grieved you away,
I don't want to do that today.

Draw me, oh draw me, please draw me my Jesus.

~Keith Green

Briers and Thorns

"For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. [8] But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned."

(Hebrews 6:7-8 ESV)

The phrases "briers and thorns" and "thorns and thistles" are repeated often in reference to Israel's fruitlessness in the Old testament. 

Briers and thorns are an example of the fruitless crop that sin bears in our lives. They are worthless for us in terms of providing nutrients, they consistently grow exactly where we don't want them to grow, and they are notoriously difficult to eradicate. A shoot, a slip of root, a seed is left behind after we dig them out, and they grow back as strongly as ever. 

Their tenacious nature is really a result of humanity's fall into sin. When Adam and Eve fell in the garden of Eden, God cursed the ground because of their sin, declaring to Adam that 

"cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field."  

(Genesis 3:17b-18 ESV)

Adam's original command from God to work the earth and keep it (Gen 2:15) is still in effect, but he will do his task in pain from now on. It has become really a thankless task--there will never be respite from the battle against the weeds. 

So too is our battle against sin in our lives. We cannot eradicate the evil tendencies of our heart. We are redeemed, but as Paul points out in Romans 7, our old man is still putting forth thorns, thistles, and briers, despite our best intentions. 

The world and its seductive pleasures easy choke the seed of the gospel that is not carefully and painfully tended. If we given up pulling the weeds in our lives or slack off, only doing a weekly weeding, when we should be pulling them out daily, the gospel will end up being choked out in our lives. As Jesus says in the parable of the Sower: 

"Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them."

(Matthew 13:7 ESV)

"As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful."

(Matthew 13:22 ESV)

We must be vigilant and keep fighting against our sin. 

"Thorns and snares are in the way of the crooked; whoever guards his soul will keep far from them."

Prov. 22:5

If we stop fighting the battle against sin, the weeds will take over and our defense against them will break down and fail. 

 "I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense, [31] and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down."

(Proverbs 24:30-31 ESV)   

However, thorns and thistles can also be a means of sending us back to God, as can been seen Hosea 2: 

[6] Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her, so that she cannot find her paths. [7] She shall pursue her lovers but not overtake them, and she shall seek them but shall not find them. Then she shall say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for it was better for me then than now.’

(Hosea 2:6-7 ESV)

The Lord hedges His harlot Bride in with thorns, forcing her to return to Him. He shows His steadfast love for His people, by punishing her for her sin, and yet He "allures" her into the wilderness where He will show her His love by giving her vineyards again (Hosea 2:14-15).

It is clear that briers and thorns are a direct consequence of God's judgement upon His rebellious people. In a passage written by Isaiah at the same time as the one written by Hosea, the prophet gives us the word of the Lord: 

[5:1] Let me sing for my beloved my love song concerning his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. [2] He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it; and he looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes. [3] And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. [4] What more was there to do for my vineyard, that I have not done in it? When I looked for it to yield grapes, why did it yield wild grapes? [5] And now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard. I will remove its hedge, and it shall be devoured; I will break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. [6] I will make it a waste; it shall not be pruned or hoed, and briers and thorns shall grow up; I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it. [7] For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are his pleasant planting; and he looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; for righteousness, but behold, an outcry!

(Isaiah 5:1-7 ESV)

God is extremely patient with us, and as the Vinedresser He tends us, giving us the refining experiences which are meant to produce good fruit in us. However, as Isaiah shows us, God's justice must be satisfied as well. If His vineyard does not bear good fruit after all that He does for it, it will be given up to the Judgement.

Thorns and thistles are spreaders--almost impossible to eradicate. Except by fire, which will burn all the seed away. A drastic step will need to be taken: even if God's people repent of their sin against Him, they will still have to bear the consequences; if they don't repent, they will remain sterile forever and will end up burning for eternity.

If God's people do not bear good fruit, He will ensure that they bear a fruitless crop: as punishment (Isa 5:6). Also--if thorns and thistles are a result, it is also evident that the fruits of disobedience will be difficult to get rid of, like these plants. There are serious, long-term consequences for rebellion against God. We will always be vulnerable to our "pet" sins, despite the grace of God which allows us to fight against them. 

However, we have the victory in Christ Jesus, although we are still fighting the battle here until He returns again. Praise God! Our work is not in vain!

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."

1 Cor 15: 57-58 

Workmanship

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

(Ephesians 2:10 ESV)

We are His workmanship. This makes it clear that we cannot do anything to save ourselves. Christ is the one who does the work to save us for Himself: He made us and we are His. We are His creatures, His creations. We were made, and, through His blood, we are remade for a purpose: "for good works." 

We are "worked" by Christ. An image comes to my mind of a farmer working the land: he plows it, breaking up the hardened soil, plowing under the weeds and revealing the fresh dirt, ready for planting. He tests the soil for its nutrient profile, then fertilizes it for the crop He wants it to grow. This field gets a bit extra of that nutrient, that patch gets more of this one, depending on the seed to be planted there. He irrigates this section, but leaves another section dry (the crop growing here does best with "dry feet"). He directs the rain to fall here (for He is God and, unlike human farmers, can command rain and wind and sunshine as He likes) and withholds it there. He watches over His crop, and when the time is right and the crop is fully mature, He gathers it in.

The field cannot do any of this for itself. It cannot plow, plant, rain, or harvest, but is subject to the farmer's will.

Of course, the metaphor breaks down at a certain point. The field in my picture is truly passive. You cannot accuse it of intentionally harbouring weeds. However, our old nature can harbour weeds and can even cultivate them, if we are not careful to root them out at every opportunity. We are undergardeners in the garden that is us. We are called to tend what God has given us, bearing good fruit, not thorns and thistles. We are not just to bear showy leaves like the fig tree in Matthew 21, but good fruit as well.

This is why Paul says that we have been "created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them" (Eph 2:10). 

Walking implies action--we do not just sit back and watch our gardens grow weeds and briers, but rather we actively walk in the way that God has commanded, pulling the weeds and burning the briers, coming back again and again to hoe around the good plants, giving them room to flourish and allowing the access the the good nutrients that God has provided for them.

We have before us the grim warning of Isaiah 5: If the vineyard does not yield good fruit, it will be laid waste.  If God does not spare His covenant people of Israel, He will not spare us either. As Paul says,

"Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. 22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off." 

Romans 11:19-22

Thanks be to Christ who is the True Vine and who sustains us when we cannot sustain ourselves! 

"If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full."

John 15: 7-11

Trusting AND Trying

"[W]hen it comes to growth in godliness, trusting does not put an end to trying" (91). The Hole in Our Holiness ~ Kevin deYoung

"Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness."

(Psalm 37:3 ESV)

There is no resting on your laurels in the kingdom of God. There is no time behind the lines, no leave from the war--we're always in the trenches.

The Christian life is more of a Sisyphean endeavour--when we think we are getting somewhere, we are closer to falling than we would like to admit. That boulder of pride (or false humility) or anger (or repressed rage) or fear (or false confidence). . . the moment we think we have it conquered is the moment it slides back down the hill.


"So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand."

(Romans 7:21 ESV) 

Thank God for His grace. We don't have to do it ourselves.

However, we are still supposed to keep trying. We are to trust that our efforts to grow in godliness are of benefit and blessed by the Holy Spirit. 

"Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."

(1 Corinthians 15:58 ESV)

It is how we confirm our calling and election (2 Peter 1: 9). And because we are not saved by our works, we don't have to fear our failure.

[31] What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? [32] He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? [33] Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. [34] Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. [35] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? [36] As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”[37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

(Romans 8:31-37 ESV)

[3] His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, [4] by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. [5] For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, [6] and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, [7] and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. [8] For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. [9] For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. [10] Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. [11] For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

(2 Peter 1:3-11 ESV)

The Practice of Holiness

“People do not drift toward Holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.”
― D.A. Carson  

Holiness is not a habit. There is a reason we are called to practice spiritual discipline.

We must train ourselves in the practice of holiness. There is a reason Paul likens our lives as Christians to the training of an athlete. Athletes don't have a habit of training; they discipline themselves to train. And they don't just train for the fun of it, they have a goal in mind, a purpose.

[25] Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. [26] So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. [27] But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

(1 Corinthians 9:25-27 ESV)

Our practice of holiness is not running aimlessly; rather,  it is part of our sanctification, part of the refining process we must go through in order to become more like Christ. Being His image-bearers is not simple or easy; it takes work. Disciplining our bodies, our minds, and our spirits can be painful. As we are bent in the direction the Vinedresser wants us to grow, our branches may ache and long for release back to the way that they are naturally inclined to go. But He knows best how to tend His Vines so that they will bear the most fruit.

"For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."

(Hebrews 12:11 ESV)

Holiness requires conscious practice. It means vigilant self-examination, seeing ourselves as we truly are and identifying our sin. Speaking and confessing it, not keeping it to ourselves and hiding what we have done. We must be honest with ourselves and with God about our failures, and must pray for His grace,  that He will show us those sins we do not want to acknowledge, that He would heal us of our spiritual amnesia.

We need to be careful, however, that in our focus on personal holiness, we do not forget the goal--"holiness" without Christ is pompous and priggish Phariseeism. Navel-gazing will not make us holy. Once we look away from Christ to ourselves, we have lost sight of the goal.

True self-examination "[looks] to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God"
(Hebrews 12:2 ESV).

[6] If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. [7] Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; [8] for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. [9] The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. [10] For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

(1 Timothy 4:6-10 ESV)

Gleanings--War of Words: Getting to the Heart for God's Sake--excerpt

"War of Words: Getting to the Heart for God's Sake" ~ Paul Tripp

Absolutely a must-read!!  It is an excerpt from The Power of Words and the Wonder of God edited by John Piper and Justin Taylor.

 

So convicted by so much of this. 

Rubble

And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it. Nevertheless, we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst of them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. 

 Nehemiah 4:8-11

The enemies of Nehemiah and those rebuilding Jerusalem want to stop the work on the walls, while the builders themselves are discouraged because of the amount of work that is before them.

Many hindrances and weaknesses may come against us, tempting us to give up building our walls against the Deadly Three: Satan, our sinful flesh, and the world. In my last post, I discussed how we are to fight against the opposition from outside our walls The burning arrows are an obvious threat and we can usually see them in time to get our shields up, whether we are alone or in a group (testudo), and protect ourselves. I touched on another danger that we face, the nearly-silent flights of arrows that rain down upon us out of the night. However, the danger does not only come from outside our fortifications, it can also come from within, and often it is when we are preoccupied with these inward perils that the stealth arrows arrive from without. Even though we have set a watch against such sneak attacks, the guards are tired, distracted, or just plain curious, peering down into the castle to see what’s going on there.

Nehemiah and his companions were experiencing this problem. In Jerusalem, the builders are willing, but their first “wind” is gone. They are tired and sore– “The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed”–and the job is enormous! Rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem is no mean feat, but a monumental task—literally. Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel/Judah(the tribes are at this point split into two nations, each with their own king) and an ancient city at that, one that had been present when Israel arrived out of the wilderness to conquer Canaan. It was also the site of the glorious Temple of God built under King Solomon, and as one would expect such an important religious centre to do, Jerusalem had grown over the centuries. The Babylonians had torn down both the Temple and the city walls, and now a relatively small group of people were attempting to rebuild (see Nehemiah 3 for a list of those involved).

The builders are tired, particularly the bearers of burdens, who carry the stone and brick, and “there is much rubbish”–as one would expect when a city has been destroyed. It seems that there was so much rubbish, that it got in the way of the builders, delaying the work: “[A]nd there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.”

This is a great discouragement, but it also comes at a bad time. Judah’s enemies, and therefore Jerusalem’s, are mustering to stop the rebuilding entirely.

And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst of them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. (vs.11)

While Judah has inward trouble, their outer enemies also conspire against them. These enemies want to sneak in and surprise the workers, killing them and thus stopping the building.

However, the builders are not taken unawares. They have friends outside Jerusalem who know what Sanballat and his allies are planning.

And it came to pass that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall return unto us they will be upon you. Nehemiah 4:12

The warning of these Jews is emphasized– “[T]hey said unto us ten times”.Commentators agree that these were Jews who were not helping in the work rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, but remained in their homes among the heathen. Yet they still had enough fellow-feeling with their countrymen in Jerusalem that they came to give urgent warning: Sanballat and his allies will attack any place they can, therefore, beware!

Nehemiah doesn’t take this warning lightly, even though these other Jews were not helping in the building.

Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, theirs spears, and their bows. (vs 13)

In every place that Sanballat’s men could gain access, Nehemiah places heavily-armed families (probably including the women) to keep them out. It is interesting that Nehemiah first writes that he set a guard in the lower places, the most likely places of attack, and also on the higher places. Nehemiah is not going to give Sanballat opportunity to scale the walls.

We too should be setting guards all along our walls, in the more vulnerable places and in the more secure places—nowhere should there be an opportunity for any of the Deadly Three to breach our defenses. In a variation of the well-known saying, “The best offense is a good defense.” Even after the walls are complete, they must be guarded to prevent the enemy from sneaking in and working us ill from within. What good are walls if the enemy is not kept out?

Notice that it is after Nehemiah has prayed to God and set a round-the-clock watch that this warning is brought to him. An application can be made here: Staying in relationship with God and calling on Him in times of attack and temptation, whether it be a full-out assault or an insidious one, will be our best bet for victory. We need to have the Lord on our side if we want to win.

But the LORD is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge. Ps. 94:22

Defend your Fortifications

But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it. Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.
Nehemiah 4:7-9

When enemies threaten the walls of Jerusalem, walls being re-built for protection from such enemies, Nehemiah does as we should: he and those with him prayed and set a constant watch so that they would not be taken unawares.

We must build walls against our own enemies: Satan, the flesh, and the world. The building of such walls will be challenged. Therefore, we must pray to God for his strength and protection, and set a constant watch, so that we do not fall prey to temptations and “hinder” or even, break down, the building of the walls.

We can see in these verses that prayer alone is not enough to protect us–we must also be active in patrolling our fortifications. If we are not on guard and alert to the danger that surrounds us, our enemies can silently slip past our walls and destroy both them and us.

Some may protest that posting a guard is tantamount to heresy–this is “works,” not faith, and therefore, we are not trusting God for our complete protection. However, we are also commanded to

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23.

The word translated “keep” in the King James Version is the Hebrew verb meaning “guard, watch over.” It is plain that we are to guard our hearts, as other translations, such as the NIV, translate this verse. We are to have faith in God, but after placing our faith in God, we cannot just lie back and expect Him to do all the work. We cannot be passive.

Paul commands us to do as Nehemiah: pray and set a watch.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Eph 6:18 emphasis mine)

However, while we must pray and set a watch, we must also continue constructing the walls of protection. But how can we labour profitably when we are in constant danger? Nehemiah has a solution:

Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows… And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons;…They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded[archaic =loaded], every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. Nehemiah 4: 13, 16a, 17,18a

The builders are armed, so that they can defend themselves in case of attack. We must follow their example, and here the term “militant Christian” is very applicable. Earlier in Ephesians 6, Paul commands us to “put on the whole armour of God” (Eph. 6:11), to be armed “that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (same verse)

We are to

Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: (Eph 6:14-17)

Notice that we are not to take the “wiles of the devil” lying or even sitting down, but are commanded to stand. The Greek here can be translated “stand firm or immovable.” In other words, we must be ready to fight and hold the line, not allowing our enemies to gain even an inch of ground. The Christian life is not one of passivity, but activity. We must be girded for battle; we must be warriors!

The only way we can fight, however, is if we have the equipment to do so. Paul tells us that we are to be fully clad for battle. We cannot just go out onto the battlefield with only our sword–we would be utterly vulnerable. Notice that while we have one weapon “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,” we have to don a lot of armour:

“loins girt about with truth;”“the breastplate of righteousness;”“shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;”“the shield of faith;”“the helmet of salvation.”

Every vulnerable place is protected: our hips (loins), heart, feet, and head. These are the places where temptations are most likely to strike: through our desires/lusts (loins), our emotions (heart), our daily walk/life (feet), and our intellect (head).

I purposely neglected one piece of armour: “the shield of faith.” This piece of armour provides protection wherever is it needed, but also has a special function. Paul says,

Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

The importance of bearing a shield is made clear in the following example.

In the movie, Timeline, scientists have discovered a way to teleport objects and people from one place to another. However, by accident they discover that they can use this technology to go back in time. A freak wormhole connects the teleportation device to a time in medieval France just before a horrific battle takes place between the English, who have captured a French castle, and the French, who have this castle under siege.

During the seige, the English longbow men shoot burning arrows down upon the French troops. The only way the French can protect themselves is by raising their shields over their heads. The shields of the soldiers overlap, forming a large shell of protection from the fiery arrows.

This defensive technique was also used by the Roman legionaries during New Testament times, and was known as testudo, which means tortoise in Latin. Testudo was primarily used to protect the soldiers from arrows and other missiles.

It is significant that Paul says “Above all”. The phrase “Above all” could be replaced by “Most importantly” or “More than these,” and the meaning would seem to be unchanged. However, as indicated by my example, “above all” illustrates one of the ways “the shield of faith” can protect us. Not only can we use it in hand-to-hand combat, but we can raise it against “the fiery darts of the wicked” that come at us from above, seemingly out of nowhere. The “shield of faith” can be used singly, but it is especially effective when used in groups. The shields of other Christians added to mine can provide a larger space of protection, a bigger shell.

The English in Timeline do not send only burning arrows against the French, but also send unlit arrows which descend upon the unsuspecting French, invisible against the night sky. These arrows are undetectable until they are close enough that the French soldiers can hear the wind whistling through the fletchings (the guiding feathers on the ends). Even though they will not set fire to the grass or the soldiers’ clothes, these arrows are more deadly, since soldiers cannot see them and therefore cannot prepare for their impact as quickly as they can for the “fiery darts.”

Not all of the arrows against us will be burning and obvious. Some will appear suddenly out of the night and catch us off our guard if we are not careful and alert. Nehemiah took precautions against such stealthy night attacks:

And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us: our God shall fight for us.So we laboured in the work: and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared.Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labour on the day.
So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes,So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes,saving that every one put them off for washing.Nehemiah 4:19-23 (emphasis mine)

Nehemiah set a guard, gathered his people together, and remained clothed, ready for battle. He also placed his faith in God, confident that He would fight for them. The belief that “our God shall fight for us” did not mean that Nehemiah and his fellow-builders could let down their guard or put down their weapons–they still had to fight–but because the Lord was on their side, they could count on Him giving them the victory. Just as all those who believe in Him can.

I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place. The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?The LORD taketh my part with them that help me: therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.Ps. 118: 5-8

Book Talk: The Knowledge of the Holy ~ A.W. Tozer

The Knowledge of the Holy ~ A.W. Tozer

"Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God, just as her most significant message is what she says about Him or leaves unsaid, for her silence is often more eloquent than her speech. She can never escape the self-disclosure of her witness concerning God" (Chp 1, pg 1). 

This book shows us how we can know and worship God better by learning about His attributes, defined by Tozer as "whatever God has in any way revealed as being true of Himself" (12) [italics original].

Tozer makes it clear that we must be careful to maintain a true understanding of Who God is, otherwise

"Left to ourselves we tend immediately to reduce God to manageable terms. We want to get Him where we can use Him, or at least know where He is when we need Him. We want a God we can in some measure control. We need the feeling of security that comes from knowing what God is like, and what He is like is of course a composite of all the religious pictures we have seen, all the best people we have know or heard about, and all the sublime ideas we have entertained" (8).

 We have to be careful not to reduce God in this way because otherwise what we are worshiping is no longer God, but an image, and we have become idolators. Tozer makes this clear in his first chapter:

"Among the sins to which the human heart is prone, hardly any other is more hateful to God than idolatry, for idolatry is at bottom a libel on His character. The idolatrous heart assumes that God is other than He is--in itself a monstrous sin--and substitutes for the true God one made after its own likeness" (3).

By studying the attributes of God as revealed in Scripture, we can, with the Holy Spirit's help, worship the true God, not our own idols of Him.

      "An attribute . . . is not a part of God. It is how God is, and as fair as the reasoning mind can go, we may say that it is what God is, though, as I have tried to explain, exactly what He is He cannot tell us. . . .

      The divine attributes are what we know to be true of God. He does not possess them as qualities; they are how God is as He reveals Himself to His creatures. Love, for instance, is not something God has and which may grow or diminish or cease to be. His love is the way God is, and when He loves He is simply being Himself." (16).

This is a short, but very, very sweet book. Tozer's living relationship with God comes out in every line and continually points the Christian to Him. A true blessing to read!

Gleanings: The Pursuit of Christ

"[Union with Christ] reminds us that the pursuit of holiness is also the pursuit of Christ. We aren't interesting in being virtuous just to be good people. Our first love is Jesus. Holiness is not ultimately about living up to a moral standard. It's about living in Christ and living out of our real, vital union with him" (98). [my emphasis]

Kevin deYoung, The Hole in our Holiness 

Growing in the Kingdom: Part 2 "Pruned"

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.2 Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. (John 15: 1-2, 4-7, 16)

It is clear from these verses that we are called as Christians to bear fruit out of our faith in Christ. Christ assures us that we are chosen by Him and, abiding in Him, we will bear fruit and this fruit will also abide. Only when we live out of Him and His nourishing grace do we blossom and grow.

However, it is also very clear that we are not just left to grow on our own, sending forth a shoot here and a side branch there—those who live in Christ as the Vine are also under the care of the Father the Vinedresser. One of the consequences of bearing fruit out of Christ is that God will work in our lives in such a way that we will be forced to bear more.

We are loved by the Father so much that He wants to make us better and more fruitful members of His Kingdom. We must have faith that this painful pruning is for our good.

The fact that God disciplines his children means he loves us enough to correct us.  . . . Love does not equal unconditional affirmation. Love entails the relentless pursuit of what is for our good. And our good is always growth in godliness.  

(Kevin deYoung, The Hole in our Holiness 73)

This is sanctification as process (deYoung), and it is painful. The Reformers made this clear right at the beginning of the Heidelberg Catechism. Lord's Day 1, where they wrote: 

1 Q. What is your only comfort in life and death? 

A. That I am not my own,
but belong with body and soul,
both in life and in death,
to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ.
He has fully paid for all my sins
with His precious blood,
and has set me free
from all the power of the devil.
He also preserves me in such a way
that without the will of my heavenly Father
not a hair can fall from my head;
indeed, all things must work together for my salvation. 

Therefore, by His Holy Spirit
He also assures me of eternal life
and makes me heartily willing and ready
from now on to live for Him.

"All things must work together for my salvation."  

No matter what happens, what kind of pruning He does in our lives, it is ALWAYS for our good.

[38] And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. [39] I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. [40] I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. [41] I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

(Jeremiah 32:38-41 ESV)

Despite Israel's sin and continual turning away, God always had their good in mind. 

And so He does ours. 

Much Fruit 

It is the branch that bears the fruit,
That feels the knife,
To prune it for a larger growth,
A fuller life. 

Though every budding twig be lopped,
And every grace
Of swaying tendril, springing leaf,
Be lost a space. 

O thou whose life of joy seems reft,
Of beauty shorn;
Whose aspirations lie in dust,
All bruised and torn,   

Rejoice, tho' each desire, each dream,
Each hope of thine
Shall fall and fade;
it is the hand
Of Love Divine 

That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That thou, whose life has borne some fruit
May'st now bear much. 

~ Annie Johnson Flint

Gleanings: The Holiness Gap

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mind-the-gap.jpg

There is a gap between our love from the gospel and our love from godliness. This must change. It's not pietism, legalism, or fundamentalism to take holiness seriously. It's the way of all those who have been called to a holy calling by a holy God.

Kevin deYoung, The Hole in Our Holiness: Filling the Gap 

between Gospel Passion and the Pursuit of Godliness