At Even, When the Sun Was Set

At even, when the sun was set,

The sick, O Lord, around Thee lay;

O in what divers pains they met!

O with what joy they went away!

Once more 'tis eventide, and we,

Oppressed with various ills, draw near;

What if Thy form we cannot see,

We know and feel that Thou art here.

O Saviour Christ, our woes dispel;

For some are sick, and some are sad,

And some have never loved Thee well,

And some have lost the love they had;

And some are pressed with worldly care,

And some are tried with sinful doubt;

And some such grievous passions tear,

That only Thou canst cast them out;

And some have found the world is vain,

Yet from the world they break not free;

And some have friends who give them pain,

Yet have not sought a Friend in Thee;

And none, O Lord, have perfect rest,

For none are wholly free from sin;

And they who fain would serve Thee best

Are conscious most of wrong within.

O Saviour Christ, Thou too art Man;

Thou hast been troubled, tempted, tried;

Thy kind but searching glance can scan

The very wounds that shame would hide;

Thy touch has still its ancient power;

No word from Thee can fruitless fall;

Hear, in this solemn evening hour,

and in Thy mercy heal us all.

Henry Twells

1823-1900

posted in loving memory of Bapak Putra Wirakesuma

Hodja

Borrowed a book from a fifth grader and had a good (mostly sarcastic) laugh.
To enlarge, click on picture or open picture in new tab/ window.

arise

The first step towards fulfilling your dream is to wake up.

Dangerous Misconceptions

This picture is an example of society judging an Author without having read and studied his Book. Let us not be deceived.

Misconception: Unconditional love with conditions.
Truth: Unconditional love always, but many refuse to open their hearts and be loved and transformed from Grace to Grace. 


Misconception: Children eat apple, 4000 years grudge.
Truth: Adam and Eve chose to know evil, Jesus paved the Way back to righteousness plus 4000+ years of redemptive work. 


Misconception: Create rules for bronze aged desert tribe, applies to everyone, everywhere, always.
Truth: Rules were NOT made FOR bronze aged desert tribe but for all people. "[The Gentiles] show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness." Romans 2:15. 


Misconception: Have faith in me while I do nothing. 
Truth: Faith is hope stretching out its hands in the dark, a proof in itself, and there are numerous witnesses who would share their stories of miraculous intervention from the Divine. 


Misconception: Perform spectacular miracles, cease these miracles once man is able to record and document events.
Truth: Why ask for bronze age miracles to answer to modern world's problems? I am sure you are clever enough to tell the difference. 


Misconception: I have something to say, I'm only gonna tell one guy. 
Truth: God reveals his thoughts to those who listen to his heart, but there are too few who listen closely.

Murakami

Den Tod

Den Tod niemand zwingen kunnt
Bei allen Menschenkindern,
Das macht' alles unsre Sünd,
Kein Unschuld war zu finden.
Davon kam der Tod so bald
Und nahm über uns Gewalt,
Hielt uns in seinem Reich gefangen.
Halleluja!


Christ lag in Todesbanden
Martin Luther
Cantata BWV 4
Johann Sebastian Bach

View translation.

Originally published in Canto on 7 January 2007

My Begotten Son
Left His heavenly glory for a lowly birth
Treaded the path of earthly sorrows
Endured persecution from His own creation
Died a slow, torturous, and humiliating death

My precious, precious child
I already gave you My Begotten Son
What good shall I withhold from you?
Abide in Me
Trust Me

Highly Recommended Read:
John Piper explains why Calvinists are so Negative
By Ben Witherington III

Anita's response:
For many years I disliked Calvinists.

I knew a few Calvinists who were gracious and humble. And yet, most Reformed churchgoers seemed to take great pride in their ministers' expertise in explaining the wrongs and degrading other churches. Alas, many of their youths too had followed in that step and adopted the angry and arrogant "we know therefore we are best" attitude. Only less than a year ago I spoke with a 17-year-old who claimed that his Reformed church had the license for arrogance. I was shocked. What has the Doctrine of Grace become?

Even after I 'became' a Calvinist - I consider myself inter-denominational but attend Christian Studies lectures and Sunday services at a Calvinist church - I still am uncomfortable with the apparent smugness of many Calvinist/Reformed believers.

I would not have become a Calvinist myself had I not listened to (now) my pastor at a seminar in February 2008. During the four hour lecture and discussion about Love, Christian worldview and Post-Modernism, he did not even once trampled other denominations' dignity while maintaining his strong Reformed faith.

Ben Witherington III:
"All too often, the apparent intellectual coherency of a theological system is taken as absolute and compelling proof that this view of God, salvation,the world must be true and all others be heresy, to one degree or another. But it is perfectly possible to argue logically and coherency in a hermeneutical or theological circle with all parts connected, and unfortunately be dead wrong-- because one drew the circle much too small and left out all the inconvenient contrary evidence. This sort of fault is inevitable with theological systems constructed by finite human beings ... The truth of God and even of the Bible is much larger than anyone's ability (or any collection of human being's abilities) to get their mental calipers so firmly around it that one could form it into a 'coherent theological system' without flaws, gaps, or lacunae ... in the end our posture should be that of Anselm -- 'fides quaerens intellectum' faith seeking understanding, not 'intellectus quaerens fidium' Understanding seeking and defining and limiting faith." (read more)

13Hakuna jaribu lo lote lililowapata ambalo si la kawaida kwa wanadamu. Na Mungu ni mwaminifu; hata- ruhusu mjaribiwe kupita uwezo wenu. Lakini mnapojaribiwa atawapa na njia ya kutokea ili mweze kustahimili.
1 Wakorintho 10:13

Oh, that was in Swahili. Maybe this one:

13πειρασμος υμας ουκ ειληφεν ει μη ανθρωπινος πιστος δε ο θεος ος ουκ εασει υμας πειρασθηναι υπερ ο δυνασθε αλλα ποιησει συν τω πειρασμω και την εκβασιν του δυνασθαι υμας υπενεγκειν
ΠΡΟΣ ΚΟΡΙΝΘΙΟΥΣ Α΄ 10:13

Or this?

13 你 們 所 遇 見 的 試 探 ， 無 非 是 人 所 能 受 的 。 神 是 信 實 的 ， 必 不 叫 你 們 受 試 探 過 於 所 能 受 的 ； 在 受 試 探 的 時 候 ， 總 要 給 你 們 開 一 條 出 路 ， 叫 你 們 能 忍 受 得 住 。
歌 林 多 前 書 10:13

Different versions, same concern: the way out - how, where, and when exactly?

Too many people love only when they like to.

Scientific Proof of God's Existence?

Many thanks to Dan Vander Lugt.

Is it inconsistent, as Richard Dawkins claims, for believers in God to look for scientific explanations of natural things, if they don’t think it is necessary to seek scientific proof of God’s existence?

Because the natural world has been created and designed by God, it reflects His power and divine nature (Rm 1:20). However, God is of an entirely different order of being. He is not physical, but Spirit, of a higher dimension of being that encompasses our universe but which cannot be directly observed and measured by the physical sciences.

But if God can’t be directly investigated by physical science, are there no compelling reasons to believe that He exists? Someone with a naïve faith in evolution might say there are no compelling reasons, but more objective scientists acknowledge that the rational basis for God’s existence is being continually strengthened as science progresses.

Even if it could be demonstrated at some future time that evolution is a seamless natural process with no “gaps” where God can be demonstrated to supernaturally intervene, atheists have to account for the components and circumstances that make the process possible. Physicists who believe in the probability of God’s existence don’t do so because of gaps in evolutionary theory, but because of the mind-boggling, overwhelming complexity of the circumstances within which natural macroevolution would have to occur.

One of the most startling developments to come from modern physics is that the universe, in some very fundamental way, seems to have been “designed” or “tuned” to produce life and consciousness. Actually, what physicists have discovered is that there are a large number of “coincidences” inherent in the fundamental laws and constants of nature. Every one of these coincidences or specific relationships between fundamental physical parameters is needed, or the evolution of life and consciousness as we know it could not have happened. The collection of these coincidences is an undisputed fact and, collectively, have come to be known as the “Anthropic Principle.” (From the essay, “The Holistic Anthropic Principle,” by Joseph P. Provenzano and Dan R. Provenzano.)

The fact that circumstances of such infinite, or nearly infinite, complexity exist as the necessary background to life implies design. It’s hard to see how Dawkins and other atheists consider it more reasonable to believe that the infinite complexity of the natural world is rooted in chance.

The existence of randomness as part of the process of evolution within the space/time universe is not evidence against design. Randomness itself appears to be an aspect of the design, making possible the development of self-aware, free beings (such as we are). Thus the existence of randomness and freedom within the context of natural law imply a much higher order of complexity than a mere “clockwork universe.”

So it isn’t unreasonable to believe in God, even if we can’t “explain” or “define” Him in scientific terms. The choices are to either take the mind-boggling complexity of a universe containing self-aware beings as mere accident, or to assume that the complexity we see within and around us is evidence of a supernatural God.

View source.

Ephesians 3:16-21

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:16-21
New International Version

Dooyeweerd
Do-Ye-Weird

Bible Versions

On Choosing a Bible: How to Choose a Translation
A lecture video by Ben Witherington III, Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky.

“I have no desire to make an idol of holiness. I do not wish to dethrone Christ, and put holiness in His place. I fear it is sometimes forgotten that God has married together justification and sanctification – one is never found without the other. All justified people are sanctified, and all sanctified are justified.” – John C. Ryle


Believers said to be elect "through sanctification of the Spirit”. They are predestinated "to be conformed to the image of God's Son". They are chosen "that they may be holy". They are called "with a holy calling". They are that they may be "partakers of holiness". Jesus is a complete Saviour. He does not merely take away the guilt of a believer's sin, He does more – He breaks the power (1 Pe. 1:2; Rom. 8:29; Eph. 1:4; Heb. 12:10).


"Sanctification is a qualification indispensably necessary unto those who will be under the conduct of the Lord Christ unto salvation. He leads none to heaven but whom He sanctifies on the earth. This living Head will not admit of dead members." – John Owen

--------------------------------------------------


Holiness
A Sermon by J.C. Ryle
Bath Road Baptist Church


-- EXCERPTS --


"Holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord."
- Hebrews 12:14

The wise man tells us, "There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh – a time to keep silence, and a time to speak" (Ecc 3:4,7); but there is no time, no, not a day, in which a man ought not to be holy. Are we?




I. What true practical holiness is – what sort of persons are those whom God calls holy.


A man may go great lengths, and yet never reach true holiness. It is not knowledge – Balaam had that: nor great profession – Judas Iscariot had that: nor doing many things – Herod had that: nor zeal for certain matters in religion – Jehu had that: nor morality and outward respectability of conduct – the young ruler had that: nor taking pleasure in hearing preachers – the Jews in Ezekiel's time had that: nor keeping company with godly people – Joab and Gehazi and Demas had that. Yet none of these was holy! These things alone are not holiness. A man may have any one of them, and yet never see the Lord.


What then is true practical holiness?


a. Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God. It is the habit of agreeing in God's judgement – hating what He hates – loving what He loves – and measuring everything in this world by the standard of His Word.


b. A holy man will endeavour to shun every known sin, and to keep every known commandment. He will have a decided bent of mind toward God, a hearty desire to do His will – a greater fear of displeasing Him than of displeasing the world, and a love to all His ways.


c. A holy man will strive to be like our Lord Jesus Christ. He will not only live the life of faith in Him, and draw from Him all his daily peace and strength, but he will also labour to have the mind that was in Him, and to be "conformed to His image" (Rom. 8:29).


d. A holy man will follow after meekness, long-suffering, gentleness, patience, kind tempers, government of his tongue.


e. A holy man will follow after temperance and self-denial. He will labour to mortify the desires of his body. "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway" (1 Cor. 9:27).


f. A holy man will follow after charity and brotherly kindness.


g. A holy man will follow after a spirit of mercy and benevolence towards others.


h. A holy man will follow after purity of heart. He knows his own heart is like tinder, and will diligently keep clear of the sparks of temptation.


i. A holy man will follow after the fear of God. I mean the fear of a child, who wishes to live and move as if he was always before his father's face, because he loves him.


j. A holy man will follow after humility. He will desire, in lowliness of mind, to esteem all others better than himself.


k. A holy man will follow after faithfulness in all the duties and relations in life.


l. A holy man will follow after spiritual mindedness. He will endeavour to set his affections entirely on things above, and to hold things on earth with a very loose hand. He will not neglect the business of the life that now is; but the first place in his mind and thoughts will be given to the life to come.


I do not say for a moment that holiness shuts out the presence of indwelling sin. No: far from it. It is the greatest mystery of a holy man that he carries about with him a "body of death;" – that often when he would do good "evil is present with him"; that the old man is clogging all his movements, and, as it were, trying to draw him back at every step he takes (Rom. 7:21). But it is the excellence of a holy man that he is not at peace with indwelling sin, as others are. He hates it, mourns over it, and longs to be free from its company. The work of sanctification within him is like the wall of Jerusalem – the building goes forward "even in troublous times" (Dan. 9:25).


Neither do I say that holiness comes to ripeness and perfection all at once, or that these graces I have touched on must be found in full bloom and vigour before you can call a man holy. No: far from it. Sanctification is always a progressive work.


And this I do boldly and confidently say, that true holiness is a great reality. It is something in a man that can be seen, and known, and marked, and felt by all around him. It is light: if it exists, it will show itself. It is salt: if it exists, its savour will be perceived. It is a precious ointment: if it exists, its presence cannot be hid.




II. Why practical holiness is so important.


Can holiness save us? No: not a whit.


Why then is holiness so important? Why does the Apostle say, "Without it no man shall see the Lord"?


a. We must be holy, because the voice of God in Scripture plainly commands it.


b. We must be holy, because this is one grand end and purpose for which Christ came into the world. Believers said to be elect "through sanctification of the Spirit”. They are predestinated "to be conformed to the image of God's Son". They are chosen "that they may be holy". They are called "with a holy calling". They are that they may be "partakers of holiness". Jesus is a complete Saviour. He does not merely take away the guilt of a believer's sin, He does more – He breaks the power (1 Pe. 1:2; Rom. 8:29; Eph. 1:4; Heb. 12:10).


c. We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we have a saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.


d. We must be holy, because this is the only proof that we love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.


e. We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we are true children of God.


f. We must be holy, because this is the most likely way to do good to others. Our lives will always be doing either good or harm to those who see them. They are a silent sermon which all can read. Your life is an argument that none can escape.


g. We must be holy, because our present comfort depends much upon it. We are sadly apt to forget that there is a close connection between sin and sorrow, holiness and happiness, sanctification and consolation.


h. We must be holy, because without holiness on earth we shall never be prepared to enjoy heaven. Heaven is a holy place. The Lord of heaven is a holy Being. The angels are holy creatures. Holiness is written on everything in heaven.




Now perhaps you think praying, and Scripture-reading, and hymn singing, dull and melancholy, and stupid work – a thing to be tolerated now and then, but not enjoyed. You reckon the Sabbath a burden and a weariness; you could not possibly spend more than a small part of it in worshipping God. But remember, heaven is a never-ending Sabbath. The inhabitants thereof rest not day or night, saying, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty," and singing the praise of the Lamb. How could an unholy man find pleasure in occupation such as this?


You may say, "It was never meant that all Christians should be holy, and that holiness, such as I have described, is only for great saints, and people of uncommon gifts." I answer, "I cannot see that in Scripture. I read that every man who hath hope in Christ purifieth himself" (1 John 3:3) – "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord."


You may say, "It is impossible to be so holy and to do our duty in this life at the same time: the thing cannot be done." I answer, "You are mistaken. It can be done. With Christ on your side nothing is impossible. It has been done by many. David, and Obadiah, and Daniel, and the servants of Nero's household, are all examples that go to prove it."


You may say, "If I were so holy I would be unlike other people." I answer, "I know it well. It is just what you ought to be. Christ's true servants always were unlike the world around them – a separate nation, a peculiar people; – and you must be so too, if you would be saved!"


You may say, "At this rate very few will be saved." I answer, "I know it. It is precisely what we are told in the Sermon on the Mount." The Lord Jesus said so. "Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it" (Matt. 7:14). Few will be saved, because few will take the trouble to seek salvation. Men will not deny themselves the pleasures of sin and their own way for a little season. They turn their backs on an "inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away." "Ye will not come unto Me," says Jesus, "that ye might have life" (John 5:40).


The Lord Jesus said so, that men must take up the cross daily, and that they must be ready to cut off hand or foot, if they would be His disciples. It is in religion as it is in other things, "there are no gains without pains." That which costs nothing is worth nothing.


"Let not men deceive themselves," says [John] Owen; "sanctification is a qualification indispensably necessary unto those who will be under the conduct of the Lord Christ unto salvation. He leads none to heaven but whom He sanctifies on the earth. This living Head will not admit of dead members."


I have no desire to make an idol of holiness. I do not wish to dethrone Christ, and put holiness in His place. I fear it is sometimes forgotten that God has married together justification and sanctification – one is never found without the other. All justified people are sanctified, and all sanctified are justified.




III. A word of advice to all who desire to be holy.


Would you be holy? Would you become a new creature? Then you must begin with Christ. You will do just nothing at all, and make no progress till you feel your sin and weakness, and flee to Him. He is the root and beginning of all holiness, and the way to be holy is to come to Him by faith and be joined to Him. Christ is not wisdom and righteousness only to His people, but sanctification also. "Without Christ we can do nothing" (John 15:5).


Holiness is the work He carries on in their hearts, by the Spirit whom He puts within them. He is appointed a "Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance" as well as remission of sins – "To as many as receive Him, He gives power to become sons of God" (Acts 5:31; John 1:12, 13). Holiness comes from Christ. It is the result of vital union with Him. It is the fruit of being a living branch of the True Vine.


Would you continue holy? Then abide in Christ. He says Himself, "Abide in Me and I in you, – he that abideth in Me and I in him, the same beareth much fruit" (John 15:4, 5). "I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. The life that I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God" (Heb 12:2; Phil 4:13; Gal 2:20).

--------------------------------------------------

Click here for a complete version of this sermon.

Called By God

From My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers


I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ’Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’ Then I said, ’Here am I! Send me’ —Isaiah 6:8

God did not direct His call to Isaiah — Isaiah overheard God saying, "... who will go for Us?" The call of God is not just for a select few but for everyone. Whether I hear God’s call or not depends on the condition of my ears, and exactly what I hear depends upon my spiritual attitude. "Many are called, but few are chosen" (Matthew 22:14). That is, few prove that they are the chosen ones. The chosen ones are those who have come into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ and have had their spiritual condition changed and their ears opened. Then they hear "the voice of the Lord" continually asking, "... who will go for Us?" However, God doesn’t single out someone and say, "Now, you go." He did not force His will on Isaiah. Isaiah was in the presence of God, and he overheard the call. His response, performed in complete freedom, could only be to say, "Here am I! Send me."

Remove the thought from your mind of expecting God to come to force you or to plead with you. When our Lord called His disciples, He did it without irresistible pressure from the outside. The quiet, yet passionate, insistence of His "Follow Me" was spoken to men whose every sense was receptive (Matthew 4:19). If we will allow the Holy Spirit to bring us face to face with God, we too will hear what Isaiah heard — "the voice of the Lord." In perfect freedom we too will say, "Here am I! Send me."

Yahweh Jireh

Yahweh Jireh - The Lord will provide, indeed;
and you will be responsible for managing those gifts and resources.

Be wise.

Efficiency and Effectiveness

Peter Drucker (1909-2005), an influential business guru, is often quoted for his saying:
Efficiency is doing the job right.
Effectiveness is doing the right job right.

Interestingly, a parallel can be found in the poetic and prophetic writings of Isaiah (ca. 8th century BC):

Does the plowman keep plowing all day to sow?
Does he keep turning his soil and breaking the clods?
When he has leveled its surface,
Does he not sow the black cummin
And scatter the cummin,
Plant the wheat in rows,
The barley in the appointed place,
And the spelt in its place?
For He instructs him in right judgment,
His God teaches him.
For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
Nor is a cartwheel rolled over the cummin;
But the black cummin is beaten out with a stick,
And the cummin with a rod.
Bread flour must be ground;
Therefore he does not thresh it forever.
Break it with his cartwheel,
Or crush it with his horsemen.
This also comes from the Lord of hosts,
Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance.
(Isaiah 28:24-29, NKJV)

The Many Words for Love

Someone once wrote: Love is another word for pain.

That is true, but only partially.
Consider the many faces of Love:

Love suffers long

Love is another word for Pain

and is kind;

Love is another word for Kindness

love does not envy;

Love is another word for Contentment

love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;

Love is another word for Humility

does not behave rudely,

Love is another word for Courtesy

does not seek its own,

Love is another word for Selflessness

is not provoked,

Love is another word for Serenity

thinks no evil;

Love is another word for Forgiveness

does not rejoice in iniquity, rejoices in the truth;

Love is another word for Righteousness

Bears all things,

Love is another word for Strength

Believes all things, hopes all things,

Love is another word for Faith

Endures all things.

Love is another word for Perseverance

(1 Corinthians 13: 4-7)

Love can indeed be painful. Nevertheless, somewhere down the road (most) people learn to be less self-centered and (begin to) see that in loving and giving, there is joy, peace, and fulfillment. People then learn to be less reactive and more responsive towards Love.

Consider:
Mothers who sacrifice their rest, even their lives, for their babies.
Parents who endure the troubles caused by their children.
Husbands who bear demanding professions to provide for their families.
Wives who forgo their careers to raise families.
Married couples withstanding each other’s weaknesses and annoying habits.
Engaged couples who sacrifice a more comfortable lifestyle to save up for marriages.

Even God Himself. Because of Love Christ “made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant… humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death on the cross.” (Philippians 2:7-8)

YET

“Therefore God also has highly exalted Him…” (Philippians 2:9)

Consider:
The peace in watching your loved ones sleeping.
The joy of parents when seeing their children utter their first words, and walk their first steps.
The excitement of becoming grandparents.
The intimacy of couples who have together endured years of hardships.
And more.

Yes, Love is rewarding.

If

By Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting;
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating;
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream — and not make dreams your master;
If you can think — and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on”;

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings — nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty-seconds' worth of distance run —
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And — which is more — you'll be a Man, my son!