Worldly Sorrow Vs Godly Sorrow

I've been provoked by several things I've read recently, in the Bible and in my 'Redemption' book. About the contrast between worldly sorrow and godly sorrow. A few thoughts on the ways you can distinguish worldly sorrow. One or all might apply:

     1. You're more worried about other people knowing what you've done than God knowing what you've done. You're more concerned about failing in the eyes of people, about their opinions, or knowledge of your short-comings than the actual offence committed against God.

     2. You can't forgive yourself. Although you might superficially accept that you're forgiven by God, you can't bring yourself to the same conclusion. To your mind, your standards, opinions and judgement has more weight than God's. You set yourself as a higher judge than Him. In a sense, your real god is yourself.

     3. You regret the consequences of your actions rather than the actual sin itself. The sin provides (or provided) you a payoff which you enjoy and don't regret. You might relive that experience, or continue to enjoy that specific part of the sin in a habitual cycle.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
Matthew 5:4

"For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death."
2 Corinthians. 7:10

Love Your Wife

"Children, like adults, always learn far more from what they see than from what they are told. One father said to us recently, 'I have realised that the best way to love my children is by loving my wife'".

Nicky & Sila Lee, The Marriage Book, p14

The Feeling of Inadequacy

I've been thinking about the feeling of inadequacy that we can often get in many areas of our lives. The feeling of inadequacy, even if that feeling is just a product of our own mind, often seems to produce the very thing itself.

Like if you're not very confident in a certain area, such as social situations, job interviews or a particular skill in your profession, it's tempting to shrink back and withdraw. You can get nervous and clam up a bit every time you're faced with that challenge. And in turn you all your fears are realised as you inevitably end up being pretty rubbish at the thing you were worried about. A bit of a vicious circle.

It seems that unless you use the nerves to drive you to be better, to pray hard, to engage and work hard, you're very much on the back-foot, on the losing end of the spectrum. In certain areas of my life I definitely have to switch off my brain, silence all those thoughts, and just get on with things.

But on a positive note, it does make you Weak Enough for God to Use.

The Greatest Gift

I recently watched a documentary on Ayrton Senna. The day he died, he was praying, and said God spoke to him. God told him that 'today, he would receive the greatest gift, God himself'.

Apart from being fairly amazing that God spoke to him in that way, it throws things into perspective. Whatever you think would be really great gifts (experiences, possessions, security, relationships, family), by far the greatest of them all is knowing God himself. It's the one gift we should treasure and pursue more than any other.

Blood, Sweat and Innovation

Watching the Mars Hill documentary was great. Just seeing how they were all complete amateurs and totally winging it. They pretty much just made it up as they went along. And they were really bold in the way they did everything. They worked really hard, had day jobs, and were prepared to be totally flat broke. Very inspiring, and a reminder that doing God's work isn't always easy or well paid.

One of the points that jumped out at me was Mark explaining that having very little finances required them to innovate. For example, they couldn't afford tape duplicators so they put their sermons online as mp3 downloads, and were one of the first churches to do so. They were also one of the first churches to have a website. They thought up the video campus as a way of overcoming the boundaries of time and space. And it was quite an eye-opener as to how ropey it was in the early days. They just learnt as they went along. Sometimes we're prone to not trying new ideas because it won't be that slick to begin with. But you have to try new things to get that momentum going.

The Expulsive Power of a New Affection

"The Puritan preacher Thomas Chaimers, in his sermon The Expulsive Power of a New Affection, said that desires for God and desires for sin cannot coexist in the human heart. They are two opposing "affections"—one will always push out the other. So, he said, "the only way to dispossess [the heart] of an old affection, is by the explosive power of a new one" (see Gal. 5:16-17). You can't just "stop it," because the it is always more than behavior. It is always rooted in your affections, in what you love—what you worship. Chalmers points the way forward: we worshiped our way into this mess, and by God's grace, we'll worship our way out."

Mike Wilkerson, Redemption, p38.
Thomas Chalmers, The Expulsive Power of a New Affection (PDF)

"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do."

Galatians 5:16-17

Worship: Basic Human Wiring

"We reflect God's glory by our worship of him, which means to hold him as the object of our deepest desires and as worthy of our imitation. Worship is not just singing songs in church; it's how we live our lives every moment of every day–every thought, word, deed, feeling and desire. You worship what you live for, whatever is most worthy of your attention and devotion. It is what drives you at the core, and it flows from the essence of who you are.

You can't turn it off. It's your basic human wiring. To not worship is not to live. It's like a garden hose stuck on full blast. You can aim it at the grass, the car, or the shrubs, but you cannot stop its flow."

Mike Wilkerson, Redemption, p29

Remembering Death

Steve Jobs had some good wisdom. I've read numerous articles on him since he passed away a couple of months back. Here are two quotes I found that are particularly striking. I love his awareness of death – that you can't take anything with you. But it's unbelievably sad that he left this earth without knowing Jesus.

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.”
Steve Jobs

“Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”
Steve Jobs

A Definition of Sin

"Whatever weakens your reason, whatever impairs the tenderness of your conscience, whatever obscures your sense of God, whatever increases the authority of your body over your mind, whatever takes away from your relish for spiritual things, that to you is sin, no matter how innocent it is in itself."

Susanna Wesley (John & Charles Wesley's mother)

Authentic Talk: Inch By Inch Growth

My second talk at 'Authentic' students and 20s group at Kings Church Eastbourne. Not especially eloquent, but gets the job done!

Inch_By_Inch_Growth.pdf

Authentic: Inch By Inch Growth from Sam Arnold on Vimeo.

Authentic Talk: Saved By Grace, Created For Works

First talk delivered to Authentic, the students and twenties group at Kings Church Eastbourne.

Saved_By_Grace_Created_For_Works.pdf

Richard Foster on the Discipline of Confession

From 'Celebration of Discipline':

"The Bible views salvation as both an event and a process. To converted people Paul says, 'Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling' (Phil. 2:12) … The Discipline of confession helps the believer to grow into 'mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ' (Eph. 4:13)."
p181

"Confession is a difficult Discipline for us because we all too often view the believing community as a fellowship of saints before we see it as a fellowship of sinners. We feel that everyone else has advanced so far into holiness that we are isolated and alone in our sin. We cannot bear to reveal our failures and shortcomings to others. We imagine that we are the only ones who have not stepped on to the high road to heaven. Therefore, we hide ourselves from one another and live in veiled lies and hypocrisy."
p181-2

"Bonhoeffer writes: 'A man who confesses his sins in the presence of a brother knows that he is no longer alone with himself; he experiences the presence of God in the reality of the other person. As long as I am by myself in the confession of my sins everything remains in the dark, but in the presence of a brother the sin has to be brought into the light.'"
p184, Original quote: Bonhoeffer, Life Together

"It is the will to be delivered form sin that we seek from God as we prepare to make confession. We must desire to be conquered and ruled by God, or if we do not desire it, to desire to desire it. Such a desire is a gracious gift from God. The seeking of this gift is one of the preliminaries for confessing to a brother or sister."
p189

"These people are found by asking God to reveal them to us. They are also found by observing people to see who evidences a lively faith in God's power to forgive and exhibits the joy of the Lord in his or her heart. The key qualifications are spiritual maturity, wisdom, compassion, good common sense, the ability to keep a confidence, and a wholesome sense of humour."
p190

The First 11 Chapters

I recently listened to three sermons by Ken Ham from Answers In Genesis. Probably the most convincing talks I've heard that argue for a literal six day creation.

Some people laugh when you go on about dinosaurs, millions of years, evolution and all that jazz. Like it's just daft stuff, not real theology, and you just need to get past it. But Ham made a very interesting point in one of his talks... people read the first 11 chapters of the Bible and think it's ridiculous. And if the first 11 chapters of a book seem completely nuts, why would you keep reading?

On that basis, knowing a thing or two about dinosaurs, creation vs evolution and millions of years is actually fairly central to the gospel in our scientific age. If you can't get past the opening chapters of the opening book, you'll never get to Jesus.

Reflections on Eden

I really enjoyed reading Donald Miller's chapter 'Naked' where he reflects on Adam and Eve, in his book 'Searching For God Knows What'. One of his thoughts was that Adam might have taken about one hundred years to name all the species that God brought to him, and all the while he was alone, without Eve, who God had not yet created.

I think I like it for several reasons. Firstly, I love the idea that this perfect, unfallen world was around for a bit before everything went wrong in Genesis 3. When you read the first three chapters of Genesis it sounds like it was all over in a flash. Perfect ...blink... and we threw it all away. But we don't know how long that period of perfection might have lasted. The Bible has a habit of giving us the bare minimum amount of information.

Just the idea that things were perfect in the Garden of Eden for more than five minutes definitely appeals. I'm glad creation, as it was meant to be, was enjoyed by someone for a good few years.

Secondly, I also like the idea that naming all those animals could have been real hard work. A hundred years... that's more than our whole life. Adam was the original David Attenborough, and I bet the work was satisfying.

And finally, I like the idea that when everything was perfect, Adam was still lonely and needed Eve. Even though he had a perfect companionship with God himself. Most men need a wife, no matter how many friends they've got, and even with a perfect relationship with God the Father.

"He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD."
Proverbs 18:22

Reality

"My friend who owns the coffee shops told us, in a tone of kindness and truth, that nobody he knows who is successful gambles; rather, they work hard, they accept the facts of reality, they enjoy life as it is. "But the facts of reality stink," I told him. "Reality is like a fine wine," he said to me. "It will not appeal to children."

Searching For God Knows What, Donald Miller, p11.

Notes on Nahum

Personal notes written on the book of 1 Peter:

Notes_on_Nahum.rtf

Notes on Philippians

Personal notes written on the book of 1 Peter:

Notes_on_Philippians.rtf

Notes on Daniel

Personal notes written on the book of Daniel:

Notes_on_Daniel.rtf

Reading Up On Heaven

Reading Randy Alcorn's book on Heaven has been really interesting and insightful. You can start out slightly worried that you're becoming 'too spiritually minded to be of any earthly good' - a mildly perplexing phrase you hear bounced around the place; which I'm pretty sure is just plain wrong. The more I think about that phrase the more I am convinced the opposite is true. One can be too earthly minded to be of any spiritual good. That, I think, is by far the greater danger.

The more I think and learn about Heaven, the more I want to prepare for it. The more I contemplate how awesome the New Earth is going to be, the more willing I feel to lose my life in this one. Most of us are more than willing to endure a bit of pain and hardship if in the end there is a massive reward. What if the reward was far bigger and more amazing than you ever imagined? What if this life was, in reality, unbelievable short compared to the bigger picture?

Jesus taught us to lay up treasure in Heaven. He is into health and wealth, life, joy, peace and happiness... and many other good things we long for. He's just into the eternal sort. Everything in this life comes with a sell-by date and eventually withers away.

––––––

"Christian, meditate on heaven, it will help thee to press on, and forget the toil of the way. This vale of tears is but the pathway to the better country: this world of woe is but the stepping-stone to a world of bliss. And, after death, what cometh? What wonder-world will open upon our astonished sight?"

Charles Spurgeon.

––––––

"The man who is about to set sail for Australia or New Zealand as a settler, is naturally anxious to know something about his future home, its climate, its employment, its inhabitants, its ways, its customs. All these are subjects of deep interest to him. You are leaving the land of your nativity, you are going to spend the rest of your life in a new hemisphere. It would be strange indeed if you did not desire information about your new abode. Now surely, if we hope to dwell for ever in that "better country, even a heavenly one," we ought to seek all the knowledge we can get about it. Before we got to our eternal home we should try to become acquainted with it."

From Heaven by Randy Alcorn, page 5.
Original quote: J. C. Ryle, Heaven

The Confession of Evil

"The confession of evil works is the first beginning of good works"

Augustine of Hippo

Training the Flesh

"As Bonhoeffer says, 'If there is no element of asceticism in our lives, if we give free reign to the desires of the flesh ... we shall find it hard to train for the service of Christ.""

Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, page 165
Original quote: Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (London: SCM Press, 1964)

Richard Foster on the Discipline of Service

From 'Celebration of Discipline':

"Radical self-denial gives the feel of adventure. If we forsake all, we even have the chance of glorious martyrdom. But in service we must experience the many little deaths of going beyond ourselves. Service banishes us to the mundane, the ordinary, the trivial."
p158

"Of all the classical Spiritual Disciplines, service is the most conductive to the growth of humility ... Nothing disciplines the inordinate desires of the flesh like service, and nothing transforms the desires of the flesh like serving in hiddenness. The flesh whines against service but screams against hidden service. It strains and pulls for honour and recognition."
p161

"True service rests contented in hiddenness. It does not fear the lights and blare of attention, but it does not seek them either. Since it is living out of a new Centre of reference, the divine nod of approval is completely sufficient."
p160

One reality must be clearly understood in the life of service. The very fact that we are finite means that to say 'yes' to one task of necessity means saying 'no' to other tasks.
p172

Forever Deepening

"Theologian Sam Storms writes, "We will constantly be more amazed with God, more in love with God, and thus ever more relishing his presence and our relationship with him. Our experience of God will never reach its consummation. We will never finally arrive, as if upon reaching a peak we discover there is nothing beyond. Our experience of God will never become stale. It will deepen and develop, intensify and amplify, unfold and increase, broaden and balloon.""

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 179
Original quote: Sam Storms, "Joys Eternal Increase".

Settled Happiness

"C. S. Lewis said "The settled happiness and security which we all desire, God withholds from us by the very nature of the world: but joy, pleasure and merriment He has scattered broadcast. We are never safe, but we have plenty of fun, and some ecstasy. It is not hard to see why. The security we crave would teach us to rest our hearts in this world and oppose an obstacle to our return to God.""

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 166
Original quote: C. S. Lewis, The Problem Of Pain, 115.

Liberated by Death

"Death, though a curse in itself, was the only way out from under the Curse"

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 106

The War is Daily

"The outcome of the great war is not in question. It is certain. Christ will reign victoriously forever. The only question we must answer is this: Will we fight on his side or against him? We answer this question not just once, with our words, but daily, with our choices."

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 105

The Martyr Rate

"Voice of the Martyrs estimates that more than 150,000 people die for Christ each year, an average of four hundred per day."

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 67

Ecstasy Just Beyond

"In the words of C. S. Lewis, "All your life an unattainable ecstasy has hovered just beyond the grasp of your consciousness. The day is coming when you will wake to find, beyond all hope, that you have attained it, or else, that it was within your reach and you have lost it forever.""

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 37.
Original Quote: C. S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain, 118.

Randy Alcorn on Hell

"Hell will be agonizingly dull, small and insignificant, without company, purpose or accomplishment. It will not have it's own stories; it will merely be a footnote in history, a crack in the pavement. As the new universe moves gloriously onward, Hell and it's occupants will exist in utter inactivity and insignificance, an eternal non-life of regret and—perhaps—diminishing personhood."

Heaven, Randy Alcorn, pages 27-28

The Hiddenness of God (Part 6)

"Without holiness no one will see the Lord"
Hebrews 12:14

A pretty substantial reason why we will can't physically see God in this life, in our present, fallen state.

More Trials, More Joys

"More trials, more joys; more temptations, more triumphs; more prayers, more answers; more toils, more strength; more fights, more victories; and then come sickness, old age, disease, death. Is it over now? No! there is more yet-awakening in Jesus' likeness, thrones, harps, songs, psalms, white raiment, the face of Jesus, the society of saints, the glory of God, the fulness of eternity, the infinity of bliss. O be of good courage, believer."
Spurgeon

Joyful Unconcern

"Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."
Matthew 6:25-33

It's so easy to read this verse thinking "aha, if I seek first the kingdom, I'll have material provision and security." I must have read that verse so many times with that subtle thought process ticking away unnoticed. But then you realise there's a problem: your focus and heart is still set on material provision, not the kingdom of God.

Your 'seeking first the kingdom' is nothing more than a means to your true end, provision. So the kingdom of God is not first at all but second at best.

In an ironic sort of a way, if you're totally anxious about making ends meet, you actually need to just forget it. Forget it and worship God. Forget it and trust God. Be consumed with his gospel and count yourself expendable for his purposes. Pursue him first and perhaps things will fall into perspective.

But by all means, get a budget and be debt free. You're more useful to God that way.

Notes on 1 Peter

Personal notes written on the book of 1 Peter:

Notes_on_1_Peter.rtf

Clogged with Good Things

". . . shun anything that distracts you from seeking first the kingdom of God. It is so easy to lose focus in the pursuit of legitimate, even good things. Job, position, status, family, friends, security - these and many more can all too quickly become the centre of attention. George Fox warns, '. . . there is the danger and the temptation to you, of drawing your minds into your business, and clogging them with it; so that ye can hardly do anything to the service of God."
Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, p115

Apathy

I often wonder if one of the hardest sins to overcome is that of apathy: not caring. It has really close ties with unbelief and self-reliance. They're all interweaved and tangle you up in a net. It's what I naturally fall into when I take my eyes off Jesus and start to coast. It's like a slight angling of the heart away from God. Rubbish. Wake up wake up wake up!!

Richard Foster on the Discipline of Simplicity

From 'Celebration of Discipline':

"Simplicity is freedom. Duplicity is bondage. Simplicity brings joy and balance. Duplicity brings anxiety and fear. The preacher of Ecclesiasties observes that 'God made man simple; man's complex problems are of his own devising' (Eccles. 7:29)"
p99

"To attempt to arrange an outward life-style of simplicity without the inward reality leads to deadly legalism."
p100

Speaking of contemporary culture: "Because we lack a divine Centre our need for security has led us into an insane attachment to things ... We crave things we neither need nor enjoy ... We are made to feel ashamed to wear clothes or drive cars until they are worn out. The mass media have convinced us that to be out of step with fashion is to be out of step with reality. It is time we awaken to the fact that conformity to a sick society is to be sick."
p100-101

"if riches increase, set not your heart on them."
Psalm 62:10

Speaking of Jesus: "He saw the grip that wealth can have on a person. He knew that 'where your treasure is, there will your heart be also,' which is precisely why he commanded his followers: 'Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth' (Matt 6:21, 19)"
p103
—
I suppose there's quite a difference between generating a high income and laying up treasures. You could have a lot of resources, being rich in terms of your bank balance, and yet refuse to use that bank balance in acquiring many possessions. Instead, we use those funds for resourcing the Kingdom. I've never thought it was wrong to be rich, but yet there is a very direct command not to lay up for ourselves treasure on earth. 'Set not your heart on them'. When you hear Christians that are very rich, but live a modest life and give really generously, it's incredibly powerful. They've adopted a level of discipline, self-control and love for Christ that is very evident in their outward behaviour.

"Sell your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail"
Luke 12:33

"Take heed, and beware of all covetousness; for a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions"
Luke 12:15

"He calls all who would follow him to a joyful life of carefree unconcern for possessions: 'Give to every one who begs from you; and of him who takes away your goods do not ask them again"
Luke 6:30

"Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and hurtful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction"
1 Tim 6:9

"Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, "I will never fail you nor forsake you"
Hebrews 13:5

"Simplicity is the only thing that sufficiently reorients our lives so that possessions can be genuinely enjoyed without destroying us."
p105

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well."
Matt 6:25-33

"The central point for the Discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first and then everything necessary will come in its proper order"
p106

"As Jesus made clear in our central passage, freedom from anxiety is one of the inward evidences of seeking first the kingdom of God. The inward reality of simplicity involves a life of joyful unconcern for possessions."
p107

Richard Foster on the Discipline of Study

From 'Celebration of Discipline':

"The purpose of the Spiritual Disciplines is the total transformation of the person. They aim at replacing old destructive habits of thought with new life-giving habits. Nowhere is this purpose more clearly seen than in the Discipline of study."
p78

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."
Philippians 4:8

"Many Christians remain in bondage to fears and anxieties simply because they do not avail themselves of the Discipline of study ... Jesus made it unmistakably clear that the knowledge of the truth will set us free. 'You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free' (John 8:32). Good feelings will not free us. Ecstatic experiences will not free us. Getting 'high on Jesus' will not free us. Without a knowledge of the truth, we will not be free."
p79

"Jesus, as you remember, reminds us that it is not just the truth but the knowledge of the truth that set us free (John 8:32)."
p82

"As I mentioned earlier, one of the principle objects of our study should be ourselves. We should learn the things that control us. We observe our inner feelings and mood swings. What controls our moods? Why do we like certain people and dislike others? What do these things teach us about ourselves?"
p91

A Matter of Life, Sin & Death

Two particular lines that jumped out at me from the Movement men's retreat:

"The more you give yourself to sin, the less dividends it pays."

"Until you have something to die for there's nothing to live for."

Richard Foster on Fasting

"Some have exalted religious fasting beyond all Scripture and reason; and others have utterly disregarded it."
John Wesley

"Perhaps in our affluent society fasting involves a far larger sacrifice than the giving of money."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p66

"More than any other Discipline, fasting reveals the things that controls us. This is a wonderful benefit to the true disciple who longs to be transformed into the image of Christ. We cover up what is inside us with food and other good things, but in fasting these things surface. If pride controls us, it will be revealed almost immediately. David writes, 'I humbled my soul with fasting' (Ps. 69:10). Anger, bitterness, jealousy, strife, fear — if they are within us, they will surface during fasting."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p67

"Fasting helps us keep our balance in life. How easily we begin to allow nonessentials to take precedence in our lives. How quickly we crave things we do not need until we are enslaved by them ... Our human cravings and desires are like rivers that tend to overflow their banks; fasting helps keep them in proper channels. 'I pommel my body and subdue it,' says Paul (1 Cor. 9:27)."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p68

Just Wait

A little snippet of wisdom I heard recently that is most definitely laced with truth and applicable to many, many areas:

"Delayed gratification increases pleasure"

Your Head In The Game

When we think of Heaven it's so easy to yearn to be there and almost wish this life away. But it's really important to remember that all the action takes place here. There's a passage in the bible that describes the saints in Heaven looking down and cheering us on. It's almost like a huge sporting event with a stadium full of heaven's saints and us as the players on the field. We have to remember that we only get one shot at this. When the whistle is blown, the score is final and our performance is over. Whether we scored goals, defended well, or put in a totally half-hearted effort, it's all scrutinised on the action replays. When you're on the pitch, you've got to have your head in the game and give it everything, rather than wishing it all away.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us"
Hebrews 12:1

Without Signposts

"The safest road to hell is the gradual one — the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts."
C. S. Lewis

Observations from Gardening

I feel like God teaches me some practical lessons every time I do a bit of gardening. Hope that doesn't sound too bizarre! It's like a workshop on tending to your soul. Here are my thoughts:

→ If you want to get rid of a weed, you have to uproot it. You have to dig beneath the surface, to it's point of origin which is unseen, and remove it entirely. It's exactly the same with sin. We can try and prune back our external behaviours, but really we must dig down and expose the root. Core beliefs, thought patterns, habits and idols.

→ The reason the weed is removed isn't just because we don't like that particular weed, but it's to create something much more beautiful in it's place. Our pursuit of holiness is tending to our soul like a well pruned garden. Over time, something very beautiful can developed.

→ Choosing not to tend to your garden does not prohibit growth. It just allows the wrong growth. The longer it's left unchecked, the more severe and extensive the weeds become. If our sin is left to develop, it will become more severe over time. We will become a mangled mess of thorns and thistles.

The Importance of an Endless Hell

"Unholy as we are, we are disqualified from saying that infinite holiness doesn't demand everlasting punishment. By denying the endlessness of Hell, we minimise Christ's work on the cross. Why? Because we lower the stakes of redemption. If Christ's crucifixion and resurrection didn't deliver us from an eternal Hell, his work on the cross is less heroic, less potent, less consequential, and thus less deserving of our worship and praise. As theologian William G. T. Sheds put it, "The doctrine of Christ's vicarious atonement logically stands or falls with that of eternal punishment."
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 25

"Many books deny Hell. Some embrace universalism, the belief that all people will ultimately be saved. Some consider Hell to be the invention of wild-eyed prophets obsessed with wrath. They argue that Christians should take the higher road of Christ's love. But this perspective overlooks a conspicuous reality: In the Bible, Jesus says more than anyone else about Hell (Matthew 10:28; 13:40-43; Mark 9:43-44)."
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 25

Randy Alcorn on Naturalistic Assumptions

"We succumb to naturalistic assumptions that what we see is real and what we don't see isn't. God can't be real, we conclude, because we can't see him. And Heaven can't be real because we can't see it. But we must recognise our blindness. The blind must take by faith that there are stars in the sky. If they depend on their ability to see, they will conclude there are no stars"
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 13

Satan and Heaven

"Satan hates the New Heaven and the New Earth as much as a deposed dictator hates the new nation and new government that replaces his. Satan cannot stop Christ's redemptive work, but he can keep us from seeing the breadth and depth of redemption that extends to the earth and beyond. He cannot keep Christ from defeating him, but he can persuade us that Christ's victory is only partial, that God will abandon his original plan for mankind and the earth."
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 11

Edwards, Resolved

"In his early twenties, Edwards composed a set of life resolutions. One read, "Resolved, to endeavour to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can."
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page 5

Mortality

"As human beings, we have a terminal disease called mortality. The current death rate is 100 percent. Unless Christ returns soon, we're all going to die. We don't like to think about death; yet, worldwide, 3 people die every second, 180 every minute, and nearly 11,000 every hour. If the Bible is right about what happens to us after death, it means that more than 250,000 people every day go either to Heaven or Hell."
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page xix

"Show me, lord, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure."
Psalm 39:4-5

Prayer Ocean

"We could change the whole atmosphere of a nation if thousands of us would constantly throw a cloak of prayer around everyone in our circle or nearness. 'Units of prayer combined, like drops of water, make an ocean which defies resistance.'"
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p54

Child-Like Confidence

"The reason God answers prayer is because his children ask"
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p49

"Jesus taught us to pray for daily bread. Have you ever noticed that children ask for lunch in utter confidence that it will be provided. They have no need to stash away today's sandwiches for fear none will be available tomorrow. As far as they are concerned, there is an endless supply of sandwiches. Children do not find it difficult or complicated to talk to their parents, nor do they feel embarrassed to bring the simplest need to their attention. Neither should we hesitate to bring the simplest requests confidently to the Father."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p50.

I've heard pretty much the same account of prayer from three different sources in the last two weeks. I think God might be pointing something out to me...

Richard Foster on Prayer & Compassion

"... the bible tells us that great miracles are possible through faith the size of a mustard seed. Usually, the courage actually to go and pray for a person is a sign of sufficient faith. Frequently out lack is not faith but compassion ... Compassion was an evident feature of every healing in the New Testament ... In fact, if we genuinely love people, we desire for them far more than it is within our power to give, and that will cause us to pray."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p49

Strength For Today

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Matt 6:34

I was thinking about Rach Pavey's contribution at church a few weeks back about 'strength for today' - that God doesn't give you strength for the year, or for a decade or a month. He gives you strength for one day at a time. Rach is experiencing this to the extreme, but I was thinking that it's an incredibly important principle to learn in general life. Hard times or not.

You see it over and over again in scripture. Manner falls from Heaven - God provides out of thin air for his people when all natural means of provision are absent. But they're commanded to gather only enough for one day. God wants our confidence set firmly in him. In the Lord's prayer Jesus gives us a template - to pray for our daily bread. Nothing more. And the Lord's prayer itself sounds like a daily prayer. Daily we ask for strength against temptation, daily we forgive, daily we seek first God's kingdom and daily we pray for deliverance from evil.

I was wondering, off the back of this, if a lot of lethargy and apathy in out struggle against sin is born out of thinking too far ahead. We think about whether we can struggle and fight week in week out, year upon year, for the rest of our lives. The task seems impossibly big and we collapse under the weight of it. We don't even try. But if you broke it down and just focused on today, the next 16 hours you're awake, suddenly it sounds okay. One day at a time. And tomorrow - we wake up and do the same.

This no doubt has a similar application in a number or other areas. Provision, health, singleness, marriage, work, relationships... pretty much anything about you life that causes worry, stress and anxiety.

Abiding

"If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you"
John 15:7

That word 'abide' means to dwell within, to consistently live in Christ and have his words living in us. It's a call to consistency, on a daily basis. It's not a fluctuating obedience or discipline, it's total trust in Jesus, in our hearts and minds, and backed up by our actions. It's an unshakeable belief that every word of God is true, right and good. What I believe this verse is saying is that as we enter into this state, our prayers become more inline with God's thoughts. What we ask for, how we ask and why we ask will be more Christ-like, and perhaps our prayers will have a greater degree of success.

A Reason For Pain And Death

"God uses suffering and impending death to unfasten us from this earth and to set our minds on what lies beyond"
Heaven, Randy Alcorn, page xix

Satan Vs Holy Leisure

"In contemporary society our Adversary majors in three things: noise, hurry, and crowds. If he can keep us engaged in 'muchness' and 'manyness,' he will rest satisfied."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p19

"The church Fathers often spoke of Otium Sanctum, 'holy leisure.' It refers to a sense of balance in the life, an ability to be at peace through the activities of the day, an ability to rest and take time to enjoy beauty, an ability to pace ourselves ... we must pursue 'holy leisure' with a determination that is ruthless to our diaries."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p31

Prayer Problem-Solving

"If we turn on our television set and it does not work, we do not declare that there are no such things as electronic frequencies in the air or on the cable. We assume something is wrong, something we can find and correct. We check the plug, switch, circuitry until we discover what is blocking the flow of this mysterious energy that transmits pictures. We know the problem has been found and fixed by seeing whether or not the TV works. It is the same with prayer. We can determine if we are praying correctly if the request comes to pass. If not, we look for the 'block'; perhaps we are praying wrongly, perhaps something within us needs changing, perhaps there are new principles of prayer that need to be learned, perhaps patience and persistence are needed. We can listen, make the necessary adjustments, and try again. We can know that our prayers are being answered as surely as we know the television set is working."
Celebration Of Discipline, Richard Foster, p47-8

Richard Foster On The Importance of Prayer

Quotes from Celebration Of Discipline by Richard Foster

"Prayer catapults us on to the frontier of the spiritual life. Of all the Spiritual Disciplines prayer is the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communication with the Father."
p42

"To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us. If we are unwilling to change, we will abandon prayer as a noticeable characteristic of our lives."
p42

"All who have walked with God have viewed prayer as the main business of their lives."
p43

"John Wesley says, 'God does nothing but in answer to prayer'".
p43

"For those explorers in the frontiers of faith, prayer was no little habit tacked on to the periphery of their lives; it was their lives. It was the most serious work of their most productive years."
p43

"For these, an all those who have braved the depths of the interior life, to breathe was to pray."
p44

"Certain things will happen in history if we pray rightly. We are to change the world by prayer. What more motivation do we need to learn this loftiest human exercise?"
p45

Tweak, Test and Re-Adjust

It occurred to me the other day that we don't always need to completely scrap and revise our efforts when something isn't quite working well enough. Often it's just a series of minor changes that together can be very effective. Like fine-tuning an engine.

I think I'm always tempted by the 'scrap-it-and-do-things-completely-differently' approach as it can offer a solution that seems the most radical. But if you get your sensible pants back on, problem solving is best because you adjust one bolt at a time. You eventually see just how influential each component is, and end up with a greater working knowledge.

Over the years I've found this to be massively true in my work as a self-employed designer, in my diet, in my personal finances, in leading a life group and probably a few other areas as well. Sometimes I need the reminder though – don't quit. Tweak, test and re-adjust.

The Everyday Things (Part 2)

Health and Fitness - I've realised that it's crazy to think that God's not interested in you being slim, fit and healthy. The only reason Jesus was able to carry his cross an endure the beatings was because he was in shape. The only reason he was able to walk all those miles and execute his ministry well was because he was a healthy man and a good steward of his body.

I've realise that I've been holding on to my gym routine with a closed fist, not showing it to God. I felt a while back that God whispered 'three times a week' in my ear, regarding how many times I should crank out my routine. I ignored that for a while and kept going everyday.

However, I've now tried the three-times-a-week approach and realised how utterly vital it has been to have that extra time for reading, meditation and prayer. It's so refreshing. And it's perfectly doable from a weight-control point of view. It helps you feel more well-rested and peaceful. Listening to God is always best. Sometimes it just takes a while for the penny to drop.

Should Our Hands Be Empty?

I guess one thing that I might want to revise or clarify regarding my previous journal entries on giving, money and contentment is that I can lean a bit too much towards poverty theology - i.e. God is pleased when our hands are empty.

Although it's very good to be content no matter how little we have, God requires us to be a good steward of his wealth, no matter how much we're given. In the parable of the talents, he says 'to whom much is given, much will be demanded'. This means that to some of us, God will give much. In this sense, it's a bit of a cop-out just to give it all away as quickly as possible in an act of 'worship'. It avoids responsibility. God might require a much better, much more thought out approach to the stewardship of his resources.

The Hiddenness of God (Part 5)

"Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.""
Exodus 20:18-19

People sometimes flippantly remark that if God was real, he should just show himself. Truth is, most of us get nervous just with human authority. Like the police stopping your car, your headmaster rebuking you as a child, or an assessment with your employer. What if God did just appear... the Commander-In-Chief of the Universe. What if his appearing was immediately followed by a confrontation?...

"Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?""
Revelation 6:15-17

Perhaps his apparent hiddenness is, for the time being, a form of his grace.

Eternal And Conscious

It's mind-blowing to think that everyone who ever existed is still conscious. Their bodies may have died decades, centuries or millennia ago, but they're all still conscious. My friend who died when we were 14, is still thinking, seeing, hearing, moving, speaking, feeling. Maybe even smelling, touching and breathing. As are both my Grandad and Great Grandad, who I knew well but died when I was young. For all those killed in the Haiti earthquake a year ago and the Japanese tsunami a week ago; they're all still conscious. We just don't know where. Heaven or Hell - they're somewhere.

Resolved

I watched a feature on Songs Of Praise yesterday of this elderly female missionary who went out and worked her whole life in Africa. One of the comments she made that really struck me was that when you get old and look back, the only thing that really counts is your works of service to God. It must be very pleasing to reach a certain age and know, "I have not waisted my life".

"Resolved, that I will live so as I shall wish I had done when I come to die ... Resloved, to endeavor to my utmost to act as I can think I should do, if, I had already seen the happiness of heaven, and hell's torments."
Jonathan Edwards (1703 – 1758), written in his early twenties.

D.L. Moody & Early Public Speaking

Some encouraging words from the biography of D.L. Moody. We may very well be weak, imperfect, under-experienced and aware of all our shortcomings. But to be used by God in all of it... awesome!

"While still retaining a reluctance to engage in public speaking, he, nevertheless, did engage in it, and his efforts were owned of God. He made mistakes; stumbled through his periods and perpetrated innumerable grammatical blunders. Yet he grew to ignore these shortcomings, almost as though they were non-existent. His chief, his only concern was to deliver a message of cheer, hope and salvation. None was more conscious of the imperfect character of his public utterances than he himself. But this consciousness did not deter him, and great spiritual blessing accrued."
D.L. Moody - Soul Winner, Cheshire Mann, p33

"It is an open question [he said in later years], whether, at any time during my public ministry, was the thing I tried to do more signally owned of God, than in the days when I faltered and blundered in my efforts to reach the lost. This I can say, without any sense of misgiving. God knew my heart. He realized how I yearned to bring men to His feet. And He supplied in rich abundance all, and everything I lacked. It was His work and He richly fulfilled His promise. His work not returned unto Him void."
D.L. Moody - Soul Winner, Cheshire Mann, p33-4

Incredibly Hard Workers (Part 2)

The words of D.L. Moody...

"God is not a hard taskmaster; and, in later years, I have learned, that to do your best work, you cannot afford to neglect the common laws of health."

From D.L. Moody, Soul Winner by Chester Mann

The Marks of a True Believer

I was listening to a sermon today that said generous giving was a mark of a true believer. Without it, your salvation could be in question. It was one of those statements that I agreed with to some extent, but couldn't agree in the fullest. I had to pick apart why that was. And here's where I got with my thinking...

While generous giving is certainly a mark of a believer, it is really just one of many, many signs. The real and true mark of a believer is regeneration, which is the bigger, wider picture of what is going on in a believers life. Giving, in this sense, is like one particular branch of a much bigger tree. You would certainly hope that it was there, but it doesn't, in itself, make the tree.

The trouble with gradual sanctification is it takes someone time to grow. Just like a tree, the more it grows, the stronger it gets and the more branches, shoots and fruit it produces. But in the beginning, there's hardly anything to see. It's barely a twig. It might only have one leaf.

So really, generous giving is just one of many marks that you are likely to see in a mature believer. It's a single mark of a much greater evidence: regeneration.

Spurgeon made me laugh...

“There is dust enough on some of your Bibles to write ‘damnation’ with your fingers.”

Charles H. Spurgeon, “The Bible” in Spurgeon’s Sermons, Vol. 1, 33.

Clinton E. Arnold On Community

From 3 Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare:

"Much spiritual vulnerability comes from being detached from the body of Christ."
p128

"The message and the community go hand in hand. When a person becomes a Christian, the Holy Spirit not only unites the person to Christ, but also to other Christian. Believers need each other as they grow to maturity.
     There are not many themes in the New Testament about which more is said than community. Yet it appears that there is less community now in the church than at any other time in history."
p128

Clinton E. Arnold On The World, The Flesh & The Devil

"It is crucial to recognize that these three influences do not work separately but in concert. It is extraordinarily difficult, if not impossible, for us to make sharp distinctions among the three in trying to understand our own personal struggles and those of other people."

Illustration and quote taken from 3 Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare, p35

Clinton E. Arnold On Satan

From 3 Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare:

"Satan not only works in blatantly evil ways but he also works in ways that appear right and good. He can masquerade as "an angel of light" (2 Cor. 11:14)."
p54

"One of Satan's key ploys has been deception. If he can't prevent people from turning to Christianity, he can alter the Christianity to which they turn and make it into something that is not Christianity at all."
p60

"Satan continues his work of deceit, attempting to pervert a true and proper understanding of Christ ... Groups such as the Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Christian Scientists all teach a different Jesus than the one revealed in the Bible and confessed by the church throughout the centuries."
p62

"The classic way Satan operates is by enticing believers to sin, which has garnered him the title "the tempter" (1 Thess. 3:5). According to John, this has been one of the devil's primary modes of operation since the beginning (1 John 3:8).""
p97

"As "the Accuser," the Evil One brings indictments to God continuously against believers (Rev. 12:10). He likewise reminds believers of their shortcomings, unworthiness, and sin. By stimulating feelings of guilt, he hopes to keep Christians from feeling well-assured in their relationship to Christ and unworthy to receive his empowering grace."
p99

"Tertullian asked rhetorically, "What man is there to whom an evil spirit does not adhere, even at the very gates of his birth, waiting to ensnare his soul?"
p109

"As Martin Luther said regarding the devil in his famous hymn, "one little word shall fell him". That word is Jesus."
p112

Clinton E. Arnold On Prayer

From 3 Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare:

"The very act of prayer is an admission that "there is someone greater than I" and that "I am not able"."
(Ephesians 3:14 – For this reason I kneel before the Father)
p43

"Prayer is communication with the commander-in-chief during the battle. Our awareness of the battle heightens our sense of need to stay in constant touch with our superior officer, who can resupply us and provide us with our orders."
p46

"Prayer is more than just vocalizing a list of needs to God. Prayer involves asking God how we should pray and then acting on the promptings and impressions the Spirit places on our minds."
p46

"God is near. We have the privilege of entering his presence regularly as children."
p46

"The heart and essence of spiritual warfare at any level is prayer."
p187

"Part of the ministry of the Holy Spirit is in providing direction an guidance in how we pray (Eph. 6:18)"
p188

Lessons From Clinton E. Arnold

Some great quotes and one-liners I lifted from 3 Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare by Clinton E. Arnold...

"The Christian life is a lifelong struggle, not a one-time fix."
p36

"The struggle is a daily affair. The wrestling event for the Christian is not over in twelve minutes or even half an hour."
p38

"This is not a time to settle down and relax. This is a time for mission and doing the work of the kingdom."
p38

"There are certain periods of time, however, when Christians face a flurry of terrible difficulties or when temptation seems to come with unusual power."
p38

"We often do not realize the extent to which naturalistic assumptions have permeated our thinking."
p30

"Very little of what we do is disconnected from how we think."
p66

"Eternal life is just as much a present experience as a future aspiration (cf. John 17:3)."
p21

"Spiritual warfare is an integral part of the entire Christian experience. It is a fact of life. To think that a Christian could avoid spiritual warfare is like imagining that a gardener could avoid dealing with weeds."
p19

Radical Generosity

A great point from Tim Keller's 'Radical Generosity' sermon: if you wanted to give 10%, you could. Because if you suddenly took a 10% pay cut you would simply make do. It would be painful – but you would make it work.

Giving - A Theory (Part 2)

Why is it that the poorest people are often the most generous? It's both awesome and humbling.

Only One Question

There's so many questions surrounding Christianity like pain and suffering, the Big Bang, evolution and the hiddenness of God. There's so many things that clutter your mind. But what you realise after a while is that everything stacks behind this one big question.

Was Jesus Christ the Son of God?

If he was, and is, nothing is impossible.

The belief that a man can be subject to the most brutal and complete death, entombed, and then raised back to life three days later is one that is totally miraculous. That sort of thing just doesn't happen. But it did. According to Josh McDowell it is the most well documented fact in history. (See his book, The Resurrection Factor).

If Jesus Christ was God himself, all these other questions become secondary.

Does God exist? Absolutely.
Is the universe six thousand or thirteen billion years old? Either. He could create it in an instant.
Is the Bible the perfect word of God? Jesus seems to think so.
Is there a reason and an answer for every question you could possibly think of? There absolutely must be.

So all in all, Jesus really is the cornerstone. Every line of thought, every reason, every question and answer stems from him. When it comes to his divinity, we have an inexplicable sum of evidence, and no explanation to the contrary.

Totally Human, Totally Divine

"As Jesus Christ was totally human and totally divine, so is the bible."
ESV Study Bible, Crossway, p2569

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work."
2 Timothy 3:16-17

I was debating the nature of the bible with a friend as to whether it was the perfect word of God, completely infallible and without error, or just a normal book like any other. Trustworthy to some extent, but ultimately flawed. I obviously subscribe to the former and not the latter. But here's a thought:

It's either totally perfect and infallible, or it's unbelievably dangerous. Like a bowl of chocolate ice cream with shards of glass ground in. You wouldn't touch it. No matter how hungry you were.

If the bible distorts our picture of Jesus, if the gospel wasn't quite recorded right, if some of the truths and commandments aren't wholly accurate then we really are bleeding from the inside.

Jesus only gave us two options: either he's the Son of God, or a delusional madman. And the bible presents the same scenario. It repeatedly claims to be the unadulterated word of God. It's either accept or reject, there's no middle ground.

"The words of the LORD are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times."
Psalm 12:6

Try, Try, Try Again

I once read a No Fear poster that said "You miss 100% of the shots you never take". Trouble is, most of us don't set ourselves a goal. We don't know where we're running and we've got nothing to shoot at. It can feel a little unproductive.

A goal has to be clearly defined. You've got to mark it out exactly and play towards it. It pretty much applies to everything in your life that your life that you want to be fruitful in: generous giving, bible reading, daily prayer, dating your wife, health and fitness, leading a life group, earning a living... on and on. You've got to mark out your goal and track your progress.

If you take the picture further, most of the excitement games like football isn't found in the goals themselves. There might only be two or three in 90 minutes. It's in all the action leading up to them: the passing, the tackling, the shots from 40 yards that ricochet off the post. It can all be really exciting. And I guess it's the same in life. You don't always succeed on your first attempt. But it's exciting seeing how close you came. You try, try, try again until that ball is in the back of the net.

Correct Approach

With regard to preparing life group bible studies (or any sort of preaching or teaching), there is nothing worse than a indolent, slothful approach. The word of God is "sharper than any double-edged sword" (Hebrews 4:12). It's not the sort of thing you just pick up and chuck at your friends.

It's the thing you work at and sweat over. You rehearse your swing over and over until you get it perfect. You constantly push yourself to become more skillful and accurate.

I've come to the conclusion that if you can't do your absolute best on a given topic, on a given week, for whatever reason, it's good to just leave it. As my dad always use to say, "if you're going to do the job, do it properly".

Life Group Talk: Giving

Here's a link to a PDF of a talk on giving that I recently did for my life group. It combines various re-written blog posts from this site and some new, original thoughts on the subject.

http://www.sa-design.co.uk/blog/Giving_Jan_2011.pdf

It also refers to this article titled "The Sandra Bullock Trade":

http://www.sa-design.co.uk/blog/Giving_Jan_2011_The_Sandra_Bullock_Trade.pdf

Enjoy!

Spurgeon on Salvation, Sin, Satan and the Saved

Quotes from 'Christ's Glorious Achievements'

"For myself, I love to live near a sinner's Saviour. If my standing before the Lord depended upon what I am in myself and what good works and righteousness I could bring, surely I should have to condemn myself a thousand times a day."
p18

"To believe is, to trust, to confide, to depend upon, to rely upon, to rest in."
p18-19

"There is no difference between one believer and another as to justification. So long as there is a connection between you and Christ the righteousness of God is yours. The link may be very like a film, a mere spider's line of trembling faith, but, if it runs all the way from the heart to Christ divine grace can and will flow along the most slender thread"
p20

"Come, look up, ye believers who are burdened with a sense of sin. While you chasten yourselves and mourn your sins, do not doubt your Saviour, nor question His righteousness."
p21.

"... for only by regeneration can we know ourselves to be the true seed."
p34.

"You must not think the devil cares much about you : the battle is against Christ in you."
p41.

""If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature." Read, and the reading will be accurate, "He is a new creation." This is a very sweeping statement. A man in Christ is not the old man purified, nor the old man improved, nor the old man in a better humour, nor the old man with additions and subtractions, nor the old man dressed in gorgeous robes. No, he is a new creature altogether."
p70.

Spurgeon on Salvation and the Unsaved

Quotes from 'Christ's Glorious Achievements'

"The reason why many do not come to Christ is not because they are not earnest, after a fashion, and thoughtful, and desirous to be saved, but because they cannot brook God's way of salvation ... Proud man wants to save himself, he believes he can do it, and he will not give over the task till he finds out his own helplessness by unhappy failures."
p7.

"The law is that which, as sinners, we have above all things cause to dread; for the sting of death is sin, and all the strength of sin is the law ... Yet strange infatuation ! like the fascination which attracts the gnat to the candle, though it burns its wings, men by nature fly to the law for salvation, and cannot be kept from seeking life by it."
p8.

"It were easy work to save men, if they could but be made willing to receive the gospel, but they will not even hear it ... You bring them right up to the light, and flash it upon their eyes, but they wilfully and deliberately close their eyelids to it. You set upon them life and death, and plead with them even unto tears that they would lay hold on eternal life; but they choose their own delusions. So long and patiently must they be sought that this seeking work as much reveals the gracious heart of Jesus as did the saving work which He fulfilled upon the bloody tree."
p125-6.