Category Archives: Studying_the_Word

Walking the Christian Life

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Walking is not that simple. It takes practice.

Walking like the world… that looks easy.
You create your own truth
and then you live by your own standards
always trying to choke back guilt.

Walking like a nominal Christian… that is not so easy.
You choose what to believe from the Truth,
and then you live by your own
standards most of the times trying to suffocate the Truth.

Walking like a Christian… that is not easy.
You don’t get to define Truth,
and then you are called to live by its standards
and proclaim Truth, never drown it.

I think of my children when they were little, and how their brains and legs knew how to walk. I loved to be there to hold their hands, and push them a little bit, and  hug them happily whenever they took a step. I was there too when they were insecure and fell, and cried, and were afraid to take a new step. And this is how our Christian life is.

We, Christians, are born of the Spirit. We can walk in Truth, our new nature is built for that, but it is also true that we need help and encouragement, someone to hold our hand and teach us. Someone who will hold us tight when we want to avoid the Truth. Someone who will pray with us whenever we are afraid to take another step.

Our Father in his goodness provides us with relationships that help us walk this Christian life; but more importantly, He has given us His Word and the Holy Spirit to teach us and encourage us to walk in the Faith.

Paul, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, gave us some instructions on how our walking should look like. As I read his epistles to the Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians, I marked down these verses, and I encourage you to read the whole epistles (not only the verses! That would be like cheating 🙂 ) to find them, meditate on them, pray about them, and put all diligence to walk in them:

Ephesians 2:1-2; 2:10; 4:1-3; 4:17; 5:1-2; 5:8-10; 5:15
Philippians 3:17
Colossians 1:10; 2:6-7; 4:5
I Thessalonians 4:10

Today is Saturday and maybe it is a good time to do this; read the epistles in one sitting, just like your favorite book, that one that is hard to put down, and find your delight in abiding in the Word.

I will be digging in the rest of the epistles this weekend to search more about how this walking in the Lord should look like.

We must be ready, this walk is not always easy, let us hold tight to the Father’s hand and depend on Him.

“Growth in grace is to know more of Christ, His excellence, preciousness, and fullness, through the teaching of the Holy Spirit. Growth in grace is to know more of our wretched, lost condition, our helplessness and unworthiness.” Mary Winslow

Have a most blessed weekend,

Becky

Truth and Love -Ephesians 4:15-

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John Stott writes in his commentary on Ephesians (referring to Eph. 4:1-16):

“Thank God there are those in the contemporary church who are determined at all costs to defend and uphold God’s revealed truth. But sometimes they are conspicuously lacking in love. When they think they smell heresy, their nose begins to twitch, their muscles ripple, and the light of battle enters their eye. They seem to enjoy nothing more than a fight. Others make the opposite mistake. They are determined at all costs to maintain and exhibit brotherly love, but in order to do so are prepared even to sacrifice the central truths of revelation. Both these tendencies are unbalanced and unbiblical. Truth becomes hard if it is not softened by love; love becomes soft if it is not strengthened by truth. The apostle calls us to hold the two together, which should not be difficult for Spirit-filled believers, since the Holy Spirit is himself ‘the spirit of truth,’ and his first fruit is ‘love.” There is no other route than this to a fully mature Christian unity.” (emphasis mine)

I read the Word of God and the words of godly men like Stott and Bonhoeffer, and many others, and I still feel like a broken vessel which knows not how to love others while embracing His Truth, while upholding God’s Word, while giving it preeminence and not compromising it. Stott says that “this should not be difficult for Spirit-filled believers,” I think that is the only line in this quote with which I do not agree. I find it one of the most difficult things to learn. I pray I will always be brave enough to stand strong on the Truth that is so often changed, but humble enough to recognize when I am not loving like Jesus would.

The more I ponder on these things, the more I recognize that only in God we can find perfect justice and perfect love.

Learning under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

*Thanks to Tim Challies who shared this quote on his blog today and to my friend Melissa who pointed it to me.

Predestination is the Heavenly Father’s Shout of Eternal Love

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Monergism Books

It has been refreshing to read Bryan Chapell’s commentary on Ephesians. The way he explains God’s sovereign election emphasizing His grace is beautiful and encouraging.

So here you are, friends, some borrowed words from this commentary to build your faith. But first, I would like to suggest that you first read Ephesians 1- 2:12, since it is from the commentary of these verses that the following quotes are taken.

“Paul uses the assurance of predestination to strengthen the church for her struggles against evil and discouragement. This perspective does not solve all our logical questions about predestination… Predestination was never meant to be a doctrinal club used to batter people into acknowledgments of God’s sovereignty. Rather, the message of God’s love preceding our accomplishments and outlasting our failures was meant to give us a profound sense of confidence and security in God’s love so that we will not despair in situations of great difficulty, pain, and shame.”  (See Eph. 1: 3-6)

 

“Paul is using the doctrine of predestination not to separate believers, not to instill pride in our being chosen, nor to vaunt any special knowledge of how God’s works, but simply to assure hard-pressed believers that God has loved them and does love them apart from any merit of their own. In other words, predestination is meant to to bless believers’ hearts. It is not meant for endless argument; it is not an excuse not to evangelize; it is our basis of comfort when we face limitations of our actions, will, and choices. We make mistakes at times by making predestination the source of our pride rather than the basis for assuring the beleaguered whoa re wrestling with their sin and the world’s trials. To such God says, “I loved you before the world began, so don’t doubt me know.” Predestination is the Heavenly Father’s shout of eternal love that echoes in our songs of thankful praise as our strength is renewed by the assurance of his care. When predestination is properly taught, it accomplishes what Paul says is his goal: praise to God for his glorious grace and peace to his people (vv. 3.6)”

 

“The concept of choosing, which sometimes raises questions about God’s fairness, is actually being used here to comfort God’s people [Eph.1:11-14]. Paul wants everyone to remember that we are loved not because of what is in us but because of what is in God. The loving faithfulness of God that is revealed in Christ is the cause of our being his. The locus, or cause, of the covenant people being God’s is moved from them to him; thay are his because of what is in his heart.”

 

“Nothing convinces me more of the need for the sovereign initiative of a loving God in my salvation that this assessment in Scripture of my total inability to save myself. The dead cannot save themselves.” (see Eph. 2:3)

 

“…I must remember to make sure what predestination is really about: the revelation of God’s kindness. Angry arguments and insistent harangues miss the mark when their goal is promoting the doctrine of predestination rather than advancing understanding of divine kindness…

We are not saved by right thinking any more than we are saved by right actions. There is no cause for boasting among those who know that their salvation is a gift of God. Rather, greater humility, love for God, and love for his people flow from those who recognize that their daily existence and eternal destiny are entirely a gift of God.” (see Eph. 2:1-10)

 

“Benjamin Warfield said that the heart of  Reformed Theology is not predestination but grace…God loving us entirely out of his mercy is the point we miss if we focus on the doctrine of his action rather than on the beauty of his kindness. We will never in this life fully understand the mysteries of his sovereignty, but we can grasp much of his love in his heart. Relishing the kindness of God is the goal that predestination rightly seeks and the emphasis that should remain our message. we will not in this life know why God chooses as he does, but we know enough of Him to rest assured that his choices are good, just, and loving.”

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

As For Me, I Will Meditate on Your Precepts.

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If you need encouragement to purposely meditate on God’s Word, please read Psalm 119 -today-.

I have been reading it and the more I read it and the more I consider it, I keep seeing that there really is no other way to meditate on God’s Word all day if we are not purposely doing something about it. It has to happen in real time. And how do we do it?

We could carry verses in our purses, inn our car, put them on the fridge, or hang them on our walls, and then we should not forget that they are there, but instead it would be good if we could make halts during the day to read and consider them, and pray them and then, live them while driving through the busy streets, or the moment we cook breakfast, or when we explain Math to our children or talk with them about their future, or when we are at Starbucks having coffee with our friends, or the times when we are with our husband in our room with the door closed.

Or we could also start (or continue) memorizing the Scriptures. This is a perfect way to meditate on the Scriptures all day; and yes, it is challenging, but so rewarding!

Consider what the Psalmist says, and after reading each verse ask yourself, “What am I purposely doing to -keep, seek, meditate, etc… ?”

 

“Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with his whole heart…” (v.2)
“I will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn your righteous rules.” (v.7)
“With my whole heart I seek you,
let me not wander from your commandments!
I have stored up your word in my heart,
that I may not sin against you.”  (v.10-11)
“With my lips I declare
all the rules of your mouth.” (v.13)
“I will meditate on your precepts
and fix my eyes on your ways.
I will delight in your statutes;
I will not forget your Word” (v.15-16)
“Your testimonies are my delight;
they are my counselors.” (v.24)
” [I] find my delight in your commandments,
which I love.
I will lift up my hands toward your
commandments, which I love,
and I will meditate on your statutes.” (v.47-48)
“When I think of your rules from old,
I take comfort, O LORD.” (v.52)
“When I think on my ways,
I turn my feet to your testimonies.” (v.59)
“…as for me, I will meditate on your
precepts.” (v.78b)
“I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have given me life.” (v.93)
“Oh how I love your law!
It is my meditation all the day.” (v.97)
“Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.” (v.105)
“You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in your word.” (v.114)
“I open my mouyh and pant,
because I long for your commandments.” (v.131)
“I rise before dawn and cry for help;
I hope in your words.
My eyes are awake before the watches of the night,
that I may meditate on your promise.” (v.147-148)
“Great peace have those who love your law;
nothing can make them stumble.” (v.165)

Let us encourage one another to abide in the Word.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

*Please, feel free to download the image on this post for your personal usage (including your blog). I just ask that you don’t modify it and link to this blog. Thanks.

The Sermon on the Mount -One Blessing After Another-

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“Memorizing entire books or passages will keep intact God’s succession of ideas, without interruption. Many individual verses, memorized out of context, can give a false meaning…”

“Memorizing entire books or passages will keep intact God’s succession of ideas, without interruption. Many individual verses, memorized out of context, can give a false meaning”

Janet Pope, His Word in my Heart


“When the Lord Jesus preached His famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount, He began with the Beatitudes. Too many people read these as though they were a set of impossible hurdles. But Jesus was beginning His message as God loves to begin all His gospel work—with promises.

We are told in Scripture that the one who begins a good work in us will also be faithful to fulfill it. But we may also reason backwards—the one who will fulfill the good work is the one who began it. If He gives us the gift of seeing Himself, He also gives the gift of enabling us to be peacemakers. If He gives us the filling, He also gave us the hunger and thirst for righteousness to begin with.

This is the work that God gives us to do—that we believe in the one He has sent. The beginning, middle and end of all our duties is to trust in Him, to believe in Him, to rest in Him. Why? Because the just shall live by faith.”         Douglas Wilson

Becky

*Please feel free to download today’s image for your personal use.

More on this series:

A Project for the Busiest Months of the Year: Memorizing the Sermon on the Mount
Memorizing the Sermon on the Mount: A Printable Schedule

When My Mind Wanders

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You know how it goes, one day -almost without noticing- you entertain one thought, one worry, one doubt, one fear, one question, one… and then two days later, and then three days later, and the next week, and the week after that you have a wandering mind, with no limits whatsoever, your spirit is troubled, and of course, you feel heavy burdened.

What to do now?
Go back to the Word of God.

Go back to the Scriptures and mediate on them day and night.  Memorize God’s Word, pray it, recite it, mutter it. The Word of God will dissipate all doubts, all fears, it will strengthen your heart. It will help you fight those vain thoughts.

James Smith said,

“We must mix faith with the Word; seek to hold fellowship with God through every portion; and realize the presence of the Holy Spirit, who alone can render the Word profitable”

How true this is! Let us come, to the Word. Let us abide in it, let us persevere with all diligence to keep it in our heart and mind.

Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.”  How do we come to Him? We come to Him in prayer and we find Him in the Word. It is there where we hear Him speak to our need, to our troubled soul.

Is your heart troubled and your mind wandering today?

Go back to the Word of God.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

Recommended article:

Profiting from the Scriptures by J.C. Ryle

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