There is much to be done before the Last Adam enters into the inheritance
that Adam lost. Man was created to put the world to come under his feet,
but Adam in awful rebellion brought sin and death instead of life and peace.
There are many things to be done before mankind, the world, and all things
are reconcile to God in Jesus Christ, and it may be a long time yet as many
parables of the Lord indicate. Suffering is an important part of the
redemption of the world and the sufferings of Christians are a participation
in the cross of Christ. But the Lamb is worthy—His character is commiserate
with the value of the Kingdom. There is no other worthy, though many try
to usurp His kingdom. They will fail, Babylon is fallen, and Christ is All.
Amen.
Worthy Is the Lamb - SermonAudio.com
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Monday, December 10, 2012
Ethical Larceny
Ho 2:8 "For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and
oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal."
Baal doesn't have any corn and wine. No idol does, for idols are
imaginary gods who are dead things who created and create nothing.
Idols don't have any oil or silver and gold. Any offering made them
must be taken from the gifts of God who created all things.
A woman who would take a fine gift given her by her husband who
loves her and present it to her adulterous lover will be counted foul
and corrupt. It would be theft of the highest order, base, and repulsive.
So is the one who seeks to endow his idols with moral values. There
is no one more morally dishonest than the atheist who claims to be
moral. Where do moral values come from? From himself? What of
the woman above who might pretend that the fine gift was not given to
her, that she did not receive it from her husband? Does that make her
gift moral?
Moral sense is one of the finest gifts that the Creator gave to the man
He created. The fact that some faint signs of this are seen in the
animals does not erase the fact that God is the Creator of them, and
leaves some traces of Himself in them, too, that man might learn.
When men turn from their Creator they will do things that even dogs
won't do. A penguin will show signs of missing her dead chick, but
men will kill their offspring without remorse. There is no natural
affection where there is no supernatural, from which it is received.
Can the atheist love his wife? Of course. But he does not know, or
admit, that his love is a gift from God that he misappropriates and
gives no thanks. He will expect his wife to appreciate his love,
however, even though it is stolen goods. Even Solomon, wise in
everything but wives, knew that a good wife is from the Lord. A
devout honest man loves his wife because she is a gift to him from
God. 1Th 5:18 "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of
God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
Most of all, we should thank God for conscience, without which
man is capable of horrors. 2Sa 22:29 "For thou art my lamp, O
LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness." Pr 20:27 "The
spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward
parts of the belly." The man with a thankful heart to His Creator is
capable of good deeds that even Greek gods could not do.
The withholding of thankfulness to the God who created us sears the
conscience and is the acid that destroys morality and decency.
Rom. 1:21 "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not
as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations,
and their foolish heart was darkened."
Jas 1:17 "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and
cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning."
There is much ethical larceny in the modern idolatrous world, as there
has always been. We even teach our children nowadays [check your
public school] that the first Thanksgiving in America was celebrated
because the Pilgrims wanted to thank the Indians for the harvest.
It is ignorance, of course, but culpable ignorance, ignorance of the
devout nature of the Pilgrim who knew that God was the source of
all their blessings, and were not ashamed of giving Him thanks.
oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal."
Baal doesn't have any corn and wine. No idol does, for idols are
imaginary gods who are dead things who created and create nothing.
Idols don't have any oil or silver and gold. Any offering made them
must be taken from the gifts of God who created all things.
A woman who would take a fine gift given her by her husband who
loves her and present it to her adulterous lover will be counted foul
and corrupt. It would be theft of the highest order, base, and repulsive.
So is the one who seeks to endow his idols with moral values. There
is no one more morally dishonest than the atheist who claims to be
moral. Where do moral values come from? From himself? What of
the woman above who might pretend that the fine gift was not given to
her, that she did not receive it from her husband? Does that make her
gift moral?
Moral sense is one of the finest gifts that the Creator gave to the man
He created. The fact that some faint signs of this are seen in the
animals does not erase the fact that God is the Creator of them, and
leaves some traces of Himself in them, too, that man might learn.
When men turn from their Creator they will do things that even dogs
won't do. A penguin will show signs of missing her dead chick, but
men will kill their offspring without remorse. There is no natural
affection where there is no supernatural, from which it is received.
Can the atheist love his wife? Of course. But he does not know, or
admit, that his love is a gift from God that he misappropriates and
gives no thanks. He will expect his wife to appreciate his love,
however, even though it is stolen goods. Even Solomon, wise in
everything but wives, knew that a good wife is from the Lord. A
devout honest man loves his wife because she is a gift to him from
God. 1Th 5:18 "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of
God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
Most of all, we should thank God for conscience, without which
man is capable of horrors. 2Sa 22:29 "For thou art my lamp, O
LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness." Pr 20:27 "The
spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward
parts of the belly." The man with a thankful heart to His Creator is
capable of good deeds that even Greek gods could not do.
The withholding of thankfulness to the God who created us sears the
conscience and is the acid that destroys morality and decency.
Rom. 1:21 "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not
as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations,
and their foolish heart was darkened."
Jas 1:17 "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and
cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning."
There is much ethical larceny in the modern idolatrous world, as there
has always been. We even teach our children nowadays [check your
public school] that the first Thanksgiving in America was celebrated
because the Pilgrims wanted to thank the Indians for the harvest.
It is ignorance, of course, but culpable ignorance, ignorance of the
devout nature of the Pilgrim who knew that God was the source of
all their blessings, and were not ashamed of giving Him thanks.
Sunday, December 09, 2012
The Covenant
of Grace in the Old and New Testaments
Acknowledgement: Some material from
Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, III,
p223
Note 1: “Covenant of Grace” means the way the
Gospel of Christ is administered upon the earth. By
“Old Testament” we mean the time before the Cross and Resurrection of
Christ; by “New Testament” we mean the time after the Cross and Resurrection
of Christ. It might be considered the footprint of the everlasting Gospel upon the earth.
Note 2: Neither the Covenant of Works nor the Covenant of
Nature is considered in this chart.
We view them as an essential aspect of the Creature/Creation
relationship, and are binding upon all creatures in all ages, for it is
always sin to disobey God’s Commandments which are summarized in the First
and Great Commandments. We must love the Lord our God with all our Hearts,
with all our Souls, with all our minds and our neighbor as ourselves.
Note 3: The
Gospel is the promise of Grace in Jesus Christ, wherein God reconciles
sinners to Himself by fulfilling the Covenant of Works for them and
ultimately in them, to His glory and praise forever. The Covenant of Nature made with Noah
providentially provides for a restraint upon evil and direction of mankind
toward its appointed end. It too
operates throughout history and serves as a foundation for the Covenant of
Grace.
Note 4: The Law
is prominent in the Old Testament from the very beginning, and all of the Ten
Commandments are shown to be known in the book of Genesis. The precept, because of the hardening of
sin and the increase in numbers of the human race was written on Tables of
Stone, signifying the hardness of the hearts of Israel who could not look on
the glory of God [2 Cor. 3]. Moses, revealing
only the back parts of God, could not give Israel a true temple, sacrifice,
or mediator, but only a promise that Grace and Truth would come in the
appointed time. Precept and Promise exist side by side throughout the Old Testament. The law was given by
Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. When Christ came, the child hidden in the
womb of Israel comes forth into the light for a people prepared for Him.
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Scripture
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How the Old Testament and New
Testament Agree
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Genesis 3:15: The
Promise of Redemption, with sacramental signs.
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The Old, written by Moses in the Penteteuch, re-iterated and amplified the Promise with sacraments and signs pointing to
Christ [ I Cor. 10:11] and the fullness of the Promise. Moses also wrote of the law so that sin my be exceedingly sinful. The New fulfilled the Promise in Christ
with the old sacraments and signs passing away, replaced by new ones looking
back to Christ and looking forward to the fullness of the Promise.
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One Covenant of
Grace. Luke 1:68-79; Acts 2:39; 3:25
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Moses saw only
the hinder part of the glory of God, but it was the glory of Christ, none the
less. Because the glory of God was
obscured by the veil on the heart, the Covenant of Works was more prominent
that the world might understand the bondage of sin. The Glory of God is
revealed in the face of Jesus Christ. The Covenant of Works is seen as fulfilled in the active and passive
obedience of Christ, leaving the believer to obey God in joy and
thankfulness, freed from the bondage of sin and death.
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One Gospel:
Romans 1:2; Gal. 3:8; Heb. 4:2, 6; 2Tim. 3:15.
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Those in the OT
who believe in Christ [as coming] are justified as Abraham was. Those in the NT who believe in Christ [as
having come as Jesus of Nazareth] are justified as Abraham was.
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One Mediator:
Christ: John 1:1, 14; 8:58; Rom. 8:3;
2Cor. 8:9; Gal. 4:4; Phil. 2:6. Etc.
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He exercised His
office (John 8:56; 1Cor. 10:4; 1Pet. 1:11; 3:19; Heb. 13:8). He is the only mediator for all humans for
all time (John 14:6; Acts 4:12; 1Tim. 2:5).
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One way of
salvation: Faith.
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Matt. 13:17; Acts
10:43; 15:11; Rom. 4:11; Gal. 3:6,7; Heb. 11.
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Same promises and
benefits of God’s communion:2 Cor. 6:16; Rev. 21:3
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Forgiveness,
justification (Acts 10:43; Rom. 4:22); Eternal Life (Matt. 22:32; Gal. 3:18;
Heb. 9:15; 11:10; etc.). The road they
walked on was the same, but the light was different.
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How the Old Testament and the
New Testament Differ
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Old
Testament
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New
Testament
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Acts 13:32; Rom.
1:2
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Promise
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Fulfillment
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Col. 2:17
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Shadow
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Substance
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2 Cor. 3:6ff
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Killing
Letter
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Living
Spirit
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Rom. 8:15; Gal.
4:1ff; 22:ff; Col. 2:20; Heb. 12:18ff.
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Servitude
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Freedom
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John 4:21; Acts
10:35; 14:16; Gal. 4:4,5; 6:15; Eph. 2:14; 3:6
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Particular
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Universal
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