Who May Come?

I had a great time this morning with a dear Christian brother from Hillcrest over superiorly large pancakes (that still managed to leave me hungry before 11...). One of the many topics of our conversation was this: what is the bar to entry at our (or any) church?

Let's put it this way: Would a homosexual (with partner in tow) be "accepted" at Hillcrest? What do I mean by accepted? Welcomed in. Encouraged to believe the gospel. Asked back. Sincerely. Would a known area prostitute or a purveyor of pornography be welcomed, encouraged to believe and asked back?

Does a homosexual or a prostitute or a pornographer have to repent before he can hear the gospel? Here is a great test of where our heart is: suppose you came upon someone in an airport lounge. You strike up a conversation. Come to find out, they are a (enter some socially unacceptable sin here). Is it more important that they see their particular manifestation of depravity as something from which they need to repent of specifically, or is it more important that they encounter Christ? While these need not be mutually exclusive (and any encounter with Christ will, even if eventually, entail these particular sins), which is of priority? Is it possible to be a practicing homosexual (for instance) and be converted to Christ without (at that precise moment) not forsaking that particular sin?

Friends, this is the magnificence of the Gospel. Who may come? Anyone. A practicing homosexual? Yes. A flagrant prostitute? Yes. A middle-aged white guy who seems to have it all together? You bet. Even if he purveys porn? Of course. At the cross, no sin is more heinous than another, no sin so egregious to God that it is unable to be dealt with. The sin unto death is unbelief: the abject refusal to come. But again, here is the magnificence: it is Christ who deals with our sin on the cross, not we who must somehow lay it down of our own power so as to make ourselves meet to come in the first place!

We must have such faith in Christ that we are thoroughly convinced that he can and will transform any and all by the power of his gospel and that such transformation will take place through the proclamation of his gospel that we invite any and all to come.

Westminster Wednesdays: WCF 1.6b

Prudently Reasonable Circumstances

Previously, we saw that the rule of our faith and practice is what is either expressly set down in Scripture or that which can be deduced from Scripture by good and necessary consequence. That is to say that we can and must derive principles for living and tenets for believing from (and only from) Scripture.

However, there are two important caveats to this. First, we must acknowledge that while Scripture says much that is plain or logically deducible, the ability to read and/or infer is not sufficient to bring one to a saving knowledge of God. One can search the Scriptures in vain (regardless of ones logical ability or reading level!) and never find Christ. Only the inward illumination of the Spirit can enable anyone to realize their need for Christ or to run to him in repentance and faith. This is not a throw away line: it is vitally important to recognize that the divines themselves recognized that what is necessary is "right reason" - reason guided by the Spirit, opening up sin-shut eyes and unstopping depravity-closed ears.

Second, this paragraph reminds us that while the principles of faith and practice are only to be such as is set forth or deduced from Scripture, the exact circumstances of how those principles are worked out in the lives of God's people is at times not expressly set forth or concretely deduced. The circumstances particularly related to church government and worship are such that they must be ordered by "the light of nature and Christian prudence." Recall from several weeks ago that "the light of nature" is Confession-speak for human reason. We might say that the circumstances of Scriptural principles are at times left to prudent reason.

For example: we are commanded in Scripture to meet together on the "Lord's Day" (Rev 1:10), to pray (I Tim 2:1), to read the Word (Col 4:16), to have the word expounded (Acts 5:42), to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs (Col 3:16). We are not told what time to meet. We are not told in what kind of building to meet. We are not told what color the carpet must be (as if Paul would have known what that was). We are not told how long the prayers are to be, or in what order we are to pray. We are not told which portions of Scripture must be taught on which particular Sunday. We are not told what particular "style" of preaching we must adhere to. We are not told which hymns, which psalms or which spiritual songs to sing. We are not told that they must (or must not) be sung to the accompaniment of a particular kind of instrument (Paul certainly would not have known what a piano is, and I am convinced he would have thought an organ is an instrument of torture).

There are some things in the life of the church that deal with the whole church: particularly its government and worship. In these instances, it is up to the leadership to make decisions about such things: the when and where, for instance, of worship. These decisions must be both prudent and reasonable. They do not, however, have to be identical with every other congregations - otherwise there would be a Scriptural mandate! The same Spirit who led the prophets and apostles in the writing of Scripture, who provides inward illumination such that we come to a saving knowledge of the truth also is the Spirit of Wisdom, who will guide the church even in these things.

A quick word about the process of such decisions. In all things, they are made by some level of common consent. The congregation either votes on something major (like the calling of a new pastor, the election of elders, the sale of a building) or they submit to those men (!) who they have previously consented to submit to. This is a sobering reminder that those men chosen to lead are chosen as men to be submitted to!

From Sunday: July 24th

This Sunday morning, we looked at 1 John 3:19-24. Here the Apostle teaches us about assurance. As we face the daunting commands given to love as Christ loved, we are met with our own constant failures. How can we be assured that God is working within us? John provides three aspects of our assurance. First, our confidence is in Christ, whom we have grasped hold of through faith. Second, the Christ who saves is the Christ who transforms - so as we grow in grace and come to resemble our elder brother in desires and actions we see God's work within us as evidence of our faith. Third, we must recognize that both faith and works are a product of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. By these three aspects: our Spirit-wrought faith, our Spirit-inspired works and the inner testimony of the Spirit that we are children now, we can have confidence before God.

This Sunday evening, we looked at Deuteronomy 19:1-13 (no audio yet), where Moses provides instruction on the cities of refuge. These cities show us the nature of God: that he loves mercy and that he loved justice. We also saw how the cross of Christ most magnificently shows forth both the mercy and the justice of Christ, as each "kiss" upon the cross - God's mercy for sinners and his justice for sin.

Westminster Wednesdays: WCF 1.6a

What is both Good and Necessary

Today's post only deals with the first full sentence in this paragraph. Due to the length of the original post, it is being divided into two sections.

The sixth paragraph of the first chapter of the confession is one of the most important sections in the document. Once we recognize that the authority of Scripture resides in its nature as God-breathed and fully authoritative, what do we do with it?

First, we are told that the Bible provides for us all we need to know with regard to how we are to glorify God, how we are saved by and in his Son, what we are to believe and how we are to live in light of his saving grace. There is no other source of revelation as to what God's will for his people is. Scripture provides this instruction along two related yet different paths. The first is by expressly stating these things. We know what we are to believe concerning the resurrection of Christ on the third day because Scripture clearly and expressly states that he rose from the dead, that he did so with a human body, etc.

The second way we come to know God's will for our life, belief and practice is a little more complicated. Some things are expressly set down in Scripture, other things must be deduced from Scripture. In other words, Scripture teaches us some things as a matter of consequence derived from other things expressly set down in Scripture. For instance, much of the doctrine of the Trinity is based upon consequences of what is clearly set forth in the pages of Scripture. You will nowhere find the word "trinity" in the Bible, but that does not mean that trinitarian doctrine is "unbiblical".

The divines provided two important qualifications for these consequences. First they must be "good". That is, they must be based upon sound and right reason. They must "follow" from Scripture, and not contradict some other portion of Scripture. More on this in the discussion of paragraph seven. Second, the consequences must be "necessary". In other words, they may not merely be "possible" consequences, they must be inevitable given the fullness of Scriptural data.

This is saying that we can derive principles for faith and practice from all of Scripture - sometimes by what is expressly set down, others by what necessarily follows from the whole counsel of God. Further, the revealed and delivered will of God in Scripture is the only rule of faith and practice - we may not add any so-called additional revelation nor the traditions of men. What is promoted as something to believe or do which cannot be established on the basis Scripture, either directly or logically, is not and cannot be binding upon God's people. Yet, we see that both what is expressly laid down in Scripture and that which can be deduced by good and nessassary consequence IS Scripture, and must be adhered to. To reject, as an obvious example, the Trinity (on any ground) is to place oneself outside of the sphere of biblical teaching, and to declare oneself to be unsaved.

From Sunday: July 17th

In the morning, we looked at 1 John 3:10-18, where John exhorts his readers to love one another, even as Christ Jesus loved us. Christ loved us such that when we were still enemies he came and died for us. This shows us that Jesus is the means by which alone we can come to understand what true love is, as well as the measure we are to use to examine our own love. We are to love as he loved. Especially important is the question of "who are we to love?" Jesus answers that very question, both in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 10:25-37) and in his actions on the cross.

In the evening, we looked at Deuteronomy 18:9-22 (no audio yet). Here Moses teaches the Israelites regarding the final office of authority: that of the prophet. Moses shows that God appoints prophets to speak forth His word to His people, and thus they arrive with the full authority of God. However, there will be pagan prophets (those who claim to speak in the name of other gods) and false prophets (those who claim to speak in the name of the Lord, but do not). Therefore, Moses teaches how to tell them from the true prophet and that they are not to listen to them.

Westminster Wednesdays: WCF 1.4 and 5

The Authority of Scripture

Why do we listen to Scripture? Why is the word capitalized? What makes it any different than any other collection of writings, old or new? In today's sections, the Westminster Confession of Faith instructs us as to the nature of the authority of Scripture, as well as our apprehension of that authority.

First, the nature of Scripture's authority. Scripture is authoritative not because I say so, nor because a group pastors, teachers or princes gather and say so, nor because the whole of the church gathers and says so, nor even because the Confession says so, but only because of what it is. The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the very Word of the Triune God. Because it is authored by God, it must be received as having the full authority of God himself.

All well and good (at least in theory), but how do we come to know that it is the Word of God and not just the word of men? Sure it claims to be divine. So do many other writings. How do we know this one is the real deal? Section 1.5 begins with a number of ways we can be moved to recognize the importance and validity of Scripture. First, the church tells us that the Bible is the Word of God. Second, as we read it we can be moved by its content, majesty,comprehensiveness and usefulness, all providing ample arguments that the Bible is the Word of God. This, however, in and of itself only goes so far.

Something more than this is needful for us to come to a right understanding of who we are because of sin, of who God is in relation to us, of who Christ is, what he came to do and to what kind of life he calls us. That "something more" is work of God's Spirit. The Holy Spirit works within such that we come to a full and settled persuasion that the Bible is God's Word: incapable of being wrong because it comes from his mouth and therefore fully authoritative over me, my life and my way of thinking. He works both by and with the Word as we read it and hear it read and proclaimed.

Absent this work of the Holy Spirit, we get what I call the "Book of Eli" phenomenon. (Spoiler Alert!) In that movie, the main character goes through a post-apocalyptic nightmare to deliver a copy of the Bible to a museum housing all the great works of the past. The book is taken from him before he can deposit it there safely, but he recounts the book to the keeper of the museum by memory. We rejoice with those around us and those on the screen: God's Word has been secured from the hands of evil men and will be a powerful agent of redemption in the years to come. And then the curator places it right along side any number of other religious books - the Koran, etc. You see, absent the inward working of the Holy Spirit, none of us (and I mean none) would ever realize that the book we now treasure so much is more than just another work (however much more grand) of human wisdom and insight.

What is at stake is the issue of the authority of Scripture. We (whoever "we" are) do not give it authority. If we did, it wouldn't really be authoritative! We would remain the ultimate authority, ready to take back our authority at a moments notice: perhaps when science offers a more plausible or less socially embarrassing explanation; perhaps when Scripture begins to meddle in my own private affairs; perhaps when it simply becomes more convenient to believe something else. No, Scripture calls us to one response: total submission to its message. And God in his mercy provides the only solution to the problem of our dead, stony and rebellious hearts: the indwelling power and inward persuasion of his Holy Spirit.

From Sunday: July 10th

This past Lord's Day morning, we looked at 1 John 3:4-10. Here John shows us how habitual and perpetual sin is incongruous with the new life we have in Christ Jesus. Christ came to bear away our sins upon the cross and to destroy the insidious works of the Devil. Because we have victory in Christ, because Christ has translated us out of the kingdom dominated by Satan and his rebellion against God and into his own kingdom wherein dwells righteousness, we must be those who put sin to death and raise up righteousness to new life in our mortal bodies. We do this by the indwelling power of the Spirit, demonstrating by our lives the reality of the radical change that the triune God has planned, accomplished and applied in us.

Later that evening, we regathered to study Deuteronomy 18:1-8. Moses provides additional instructions for the Levitical priesthood. As always, Old Testament teaching on priests is designed to draw our minds higher than the mortals to which it is addressed and to attain thoughts of our great and perfect high priest, Jesus Christ. He is the pure and perfect sacrifice who stands in the presence of God interceding on our behalf and ministering the benefits of redemption that he has secured by his finished work. By such, he calls us to delight in him and serve him with gratitude in our whole life.

Westminster Wednesdays: WCF 1.2 and 3

Our Only Rule of Faith and Practice

Section two of chapter one sets our for us the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments. These combined books now comprise Holy Scripture. "Now" because as we saw in 1.1, God has chosen to cease the former ways of communicating his will to his people. Absent from this list are the "books commonly called Apocrypha." Note that the divines did not condemn the Apocrypha as being of no use. Rather they rightly understood that these books are not part of the canon of inspired and therefore inerrant books written under the superintendence of God. They are not to be given any more authority than any other human writing.

The Holy Scripture, however, are to be given special authority. They are "given by inspiration of God." This is not in a 19th century Romantic notion of inspiration, but rather refers to the fact that Paul speaks of Scripture as though it were "breathed out by God" (2 Tim 3:16, a loose translation of the specific word Paul uses). Because it is "God-breathed", the Scriptures have supreme authority in the church and are the rule of faith and life. This means that when we have questions about what we are to believe and how we are to live, Scripture is our guide and measure. Chapter 20, on Christian Liberty and Liberty of Conscience, will have a great deal to say about other so-called sources of authority. As well, section six of chapter one will give us some guidelines as to how we can use Scripture as our rule. But for now, it is important to note that we have a rule, that it is God-breathed and that it is sufficient to instruct us in what we are to believe and how we are to live.

Sections two and three are doing something a bit more subtle as well. By inference, the divines are squashing the perennial complaint against the confession that it is a standard on par with Scripture. That men place the Westminster documents on par with Scripture is a sure sign they have not studied it closely! These sections demonstrate that no mere human document can claim authority over Scripture. And yet we can make the opposite error in assuming that the confession has no authority. To be sure, it has no inherent authority: such is reserved for Scripture alone. Yet it does have a derived authority. Because the confession is a faithful and careful communicator of the truth of Scripture, what it communicates has the authority of Scripture. By communicating truth, the confession is normative: that is we must conform our thinking and our practice to what it teaches. But, this is only true because it communicates the truth of Scripture!

This opens up a number of side issues that I will try to tackle separately, such as why even have a confession, how easy should it be to change the confession and what should I do if I disagree with the teaching of the confession. Check back later for discussion of these other concerns.

From Sunday: July 3rd

In the morning, we looked at 1 John 2:28-3:3. Here John reminds us of the great love with which the Father has loved us. Though we were unlovely, he chose to love us. By the sending of his Son to die for our sins, we have been reckoned righteous in his sight. Yet, our God has not stopped here: he has continued to pour out his love for us in calling us his children and in making us fellow heirs with Jesus Christ. Of course, being a child of God has concomitant responsibilities: now that we are God's children we must act like it.

In the evening, we looked at Deuteronomy 17:14-20. Moses dictates a variety of requirements for kings, which we interpreted as: relying on God's power, not technology; relying on God's presence, not alliances; and relying on God's providence, not money. Of course, we may have to use technology, form alliances and we certainly need money. Yet we must not rely upon these things as though they were what provided security and salvation. In addition, we saw the importance of the law for the king and how the king was really more of a steward than a "king like all the other nations." Of course, any talk of kings draws our mind towards our great and perfect king, Jesus himself and so we considered how Jesus fulfills the requirements of a king in this section of Scripture.