Renewing Your Mind and Why It Matters

By Nancy Williams

Romans 12:1-2 (CSB)

Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

This is a verse that everyone of us needs to meditate on to remind us that our true worship is to be a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. We are called to glorify God.

To do this, verse 2 tells us that we are not to be conformed to this age. In other translation it says world and I like this translation of age to remind us that society, culture, popular opinion changes over generations and that is not what we are to follow.

We are told in verse 2 to not be conformed to this age but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind.

Our mind should not be like the world around us. Because we live in a sin fallen world, we need to remember that our minds are also sin fallen. Which means, our minds do not think correctly about our own sin and can have dark thoughts about the goodness of God. Just like our personality and emotions all of these parts of who we are, are in need of transformation. We are being made into His image which means, mind, personality and emotions need to be transformed which is part of the sanctification process. We are being transformed so that we can be pleasing to God.

Our minds, because they are sin fallen or corrupted by sin, do not need more education or knowledge – knowing more is not what will transform us. Let me say that again, knowing more is not what will transform our sinful mind. Just like our hearts our minds need the gospel to transform us.

When God created the heavens and earth He spoke, and it happened. Adam and Eve wanted to be like God and ate of the fruit allowing sin to enter the world separating us from knowing God until Christ came, lived a sinless life, died on the cross and rose again to pay the price so that we can have a right relationship with God. Until we have a right relationship with God fully surrender to the Lord, our minds cannot be renewed spiritually.

Isaiah 14:12-14 is an example of how we live our life apart from God. Some believe this passage is the fall of Lucifer, but it doesn’t fit with all of 14 so is probably talking about King Nebuchadnezzar who is a perfect example of someone who is not spiritually renewed. Let me read Isaiah 14:12-14

12 Shining morning star,

how you have fallen from the heavens!

You destroyer of nations,

you have been cut down to the ground.

13 You said to yourself,

“I will ascend to the heavens;

I will set up my throne

above the stars of God.

I will sit on the mount of the gods’ assembly,

in the remotest parts of the North.

14 I will ascend above the highest clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

The phrase “I will” is interesting, in the sense that every time it is said in Isaiah 14, it is being said by this king who wills to be like God. When the king said he will ascend to the heavens and set his throne by God or make himself like the Most High. It did not happen, even though he declared it and wanted the glory, the worship and fame. This is important because we still make these “I will statements” for our own glory but they look more like seeking myself-will, self-glory, self- gratification, self-righteousness and self-sufficiency. We make it all about us so it is easy to buy into this age’s thinking that you can have it your way, you deserve better, you can be whatever you want to be, be your own boss, maker of your destiny or no one has the right to tell you how to live.

This is why renewing the mind matters because the mind is sin fallen and needs the gospel verse 2 of Roman 12 reminds us that

“Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”

We need to transform our minds so that we know the good pleasing and perfect will of God. The word transform is the Greek word “Metamawfao” which is also used in Mark 9:2, Matthew 17:2 and 2 Corinthians 3:12-18.  In the Mark and Matthew passages it is used for the English word transfigured. In Matthew 17:2, He was transfigured in front of them, and his face shone like the sun; his clothes became as white as the light. This type of transformation or transfiguration is from the inside out. It is a spiritual transformation and needs spiritual things to help transform it.

2 Corinthians 3:12-18

“12 Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness. 13 We are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from gazing steadily until the end of the glory of what was being set aside, 14 but their minds were hardened. For to this day, at the reading of the old covenant, the same veil remains; it is not lifted, because it is set aside only in Christ. 15 Yet still today, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts, 16 but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

You see we are all born spiritually blind, we have a veil like Moses covering our face, until we understand what Christ did on the cross. We walk around dead in our trespass (spiritually blind). When we surrender our life and ask Jesus to be Lord of our life He replaces our veil with a helmet of salvation. This helmet of salvation helps us to seek and hunger for spiritual things. And one day Christ promises to come back and He is looking at those with veils and helmets and He is seeking all those with helmet of Salvation on to replace them with the crown of life. This is the Sanctification process making us more like Him.

Being Sanctified is an important part of our walk with God and one many of us do not understand.

There is a great quote by G.K. Chesterton “A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.” If we want to go against this age, we need to be alive in Christ and that happens with the renewing of our minds by putting our faith in Christ to remove our veil.

Romans 12:2

“Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”

So how do we spiritually renew our mind so that we can discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

It all starts with prayer.

Your first step is to pray – this is just not asking the Lord to help you with your wants and needs, but to help you in your transformation.

Specifically pray, for God to remove the blinders

Lord show me where I am still blind to my own sin.

Lord where am I aligned to this age and not your word?

Help me to be teachable, dying to my ways, seeking your ways

Lord where is my heart still hardened to your word

Lord where do I not want to obey

What I wills or self-wills do I need to repent of to the Lord

Where am I still seeking to be worshipped – help me to die to this

Renew me from the inside out

Give me eyes to see you, ears to hear you and a heart to love you more than anything else

Lord help me to be Kingdom minded

Help me to be humble

Lord why does this bother or frustrates me

How often do you truly pray like this? We should be praying this out of our breath daily, in every circumstance, minute by minute. In Paul E. Miller’s Praying life book, He calls these breath prayers, and they are part of our spiritual transformation.

Another type of prayer is a lament. What do you do with the grief, sorrow, or anguish you have? God’s word teaches us to lament. Do you know how to lament? This is a different type of prayer. The four elements of a good lament are (1) turning to God, (2)  complaining to God, (3) asking God, and (4) trusting God. There are great examples of how to do this in Dark Cloud, Deep Mercy. During Covid I was frustrated with all the complaints on Facebook, so I wrote and posted this lament.

How long oh Lord, will many live in fear? Seeking to hoard, and not share, forgetting to love you and others. How long oh Lord will men and women of God forget whom they worship? Is this what Moses felt with stiff neck people who do not worship or trust your name? Or Noah when he built an ark, did people see only the world not You. When will we fall on our knees and repent? Lord teach us to worship you apart from gathering in a building but gathering as family, friends and neighbors. Lord show us how to be faithful in worship, tithe and studying of your word without a building. Lord use the weeks we are apart to draw us closer to you. May this time bring us to a place where we will worship You and You alone. Use this time of isolation to heal our families, to help us think of others and most importantly draw us to trust you more. Lord use this time to prepare us for what is to come, may we have a better understanding of how our brothers and sisters in persecuted countries do life without a building. Lord may we be stronger, faithful, bold encouragers of Your word, so that the day you bring us back together will be an amazing time of celebration of who You are and what You have done. May it give us a glimpse of what heaven will be like when all your children, from every tribe and nation are together to worship You and only You.

Lamenting should help us to turn to God, complain only to God, asking God for help and trusting Him with the outcome.

Second Be in the Word

• Read daily and as you read pray – ask the Lord to show you His glory, His plan, His attributes, who He says He is

• Read a different translation – so that you don’t say I already know this

• Ask God to show you your own sin, where you need to grow, where do I need to repent, what do I need to obey and then do it.

• When reading a passage ask yourself How does this help me to love God more, and in light of this how should I be living and then start living this way. We are called to not just be hearers of the word but also doers. If you read something about unforgiveness, do you stop and then pray and go ask for forgiveness.

• Memorize Scripture – I have hidden your word in my heart so that I might not sin against you. I have attached a list of 26 verses you should know. Like 1 Corinthians 10:31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.” Then whenever you are doing something, ask yourself am I doing this for the glory of God? Or 2 Corinthians 5:9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. Am I pleasing God?

Third, preach the Gospel to yourself daily

• Know the Gospel- Jesus lived a sinless life, died on the Cross and rose again and is the Son of God. Do you understand elements of the gospel: Like dying? Trees in the fall are the most beautiful during the dying process. We are most beautiful when we die to self. Or that you are being made new. Who we are today is not who we will be tomorrow and not who we will be in heaven.

• Read the gospel Primer – the poem or a section. One of my favorites is page 39 that takes about all things crucified. If we read this daily there would be more things we would die to, to be like Him.

• Remind yourself that Jesus died even for this

• Read from Valley of vision – sin, repentance, humility

• Listen to Gospel center music or old hymns. What can wash away my sins, nothing but the blood of Jesus, His mercies are new every morning, be hold our God or Come their fount of every blessing, bind my wandering heart to Thee Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it Prone to leave the God I love Here's my heart, oh take and seal it Seal it for Thy courts above

We all need things like Valley of Vision, Gospel primer, Sovereign Grace Ministries for kids and adults, Shane and Shane hymns to help us be reminded of God’s truth to our heart, soul, and mind.

Fourth,  Watch or listen to biblically sound sermons

• Pray before you watch or listen ask God to teach you to be more like Him Make sure that the people you are listening to exegesis scripture

• Take notes – review them ask questions like how does this help me love God more and in light of this how should I be living and then do it

Whenever the Pastor asks you to do something, do it as long as it is not sin, little steps of obedience like for Easter Pastor Steve ask you to give to our Global Partners did you do it? We all have something to give. Being faithful not only to hearing the word but doing the word.

Fifth, Be in an accountability/lifegroup

• Be willing to put yourself under authority- church membership, lifegroup, spouse, boss- if you are single like I am, ask someone to speak truth into you

• Pray that you will receive correction well, do not be defensive – Lord show me where this is true, where it is not, what do I need to change to be more like you.

• Share what you are struggling with and what you are putting off and putting on – be honest do not under exaggerate your sin or over exaggerate your feelings or situation.

• Share what you are learning, what you are struggling with and encourage others. When was the last time you had a conversation with someone about what God is teaching you or are you more excited to share about something that happened on a TV show?

• We all need to be Paul, and need a Paul in our life, we also need to be Barnabas and need to have Barnabas in our life. Who are you speaking truth to and who are you encouraging?

These five steps should help you to renew your mind so that you can be more like Christ by the renewing of your mind on spiritual matters so that you can be transformed from the inside out.

Some books that are helpful –

Praying life – Paul E. Miller

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy - Mark Vroegop Gospel Primer – Milton Vincent

Valley of Vision – Puritan Prayers

Conscience: What It Is, How to Train It, and Loving Those Who Differ -Andrew David Naselli, J.D. Crowley

That little voice in your head – Andrew David Naselli

The Gospel Bible Study – She Reads the Truth Apps

She reads the truth New City Catechism

Verses to know

1 Corinthians 10:31 – Life is all about giving God glory

2 Corinthians 5:9 – The one we want to please is God

Philippians 2:3-4 – Focus on others, not yourself

John 15:5 – We are totally dependent on God for success

Jeremiah 17:5,7 – Trusting in people will ruin you, trusting in God brings blessing Romans 12:18 – Do all you can do to seek resolution. Even then, you may not succeed.

Philippians 4:11-13 – The key to joy is not changing your circumstances but in being content

Hebrews 12:15 - Bitterness will ruin you

Philippians 4:8 – We are responsible for what we think about

Ephesians 2:10 – Christ saved us that we might do good works

John 10:27-28 -If we belong to Christ, He keeps us safe

Hebrew 13:17 – We are accountable to our church leaders

1 Timothy 6:10 – The love of money leads to other bad behavior Proverbs 24:26 – Truthful and gracious comments of a brother are gentle John 3:27 – God provides for our daily needs

James 4:1-3 – This is why we fight and quarrel

Psalm 84:11 - God’s overall provision and protection

Proverbs 13:15,21 – Life gets harder when we continue in sin Colossians 1:19,20 – God reconciles all things through Christ

James 1:2-4 – Consider all things joy

1 Peter 3:18 – Christ died once for all

Galatians 6:7-8 – The sowing and reaping principle.

2 Corinthians 5:14-15 – Christ’s love motivates my personal change Luke 6:43-45 - You say what you say because it’s in your heart to say it Proverbs 4:23 – Your heart is control center

Psalm 63:3 – God is better than life itself 

Thankful Counselees

By Wendy Wood

An often overlooked practice is the one of thankfulness. It seems like we believe thankfulness to be a childish activity that we mature on from to higher levels of theology and worship. We focus on getting our kids to say “thank you” at such an early age that often, it seems, we think of thankfulness as a childish way of responding. Once our children are consistently saying “thank you” when we give them something or serve them something, we move on to teaching higher level skills of thinking and doing. But, the Bible is clear that thankfulness is something we should never outgrow. The lists that include ungrateful people in scripture are among the worst lists of sins and evil people.  It’s not merely the words “thank you” that make the difference, it is the heart attitude of grateful dependence that changes an ungrateful person into a godly person.

Let’s consider some of the ways God talks about unthankful people in His word. 2 Timothy 3:1-2 says, “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy…” Here, ungrateful people are listed among those who love themselves and money more than God. They are proud and arrogant. Ungrateful people are those who think and feel that they deserve good things and good treatment from others. Because they think so highly of themselves (proud and arrogant), they are unable to see the ways that God blesses them through other people. Because they love themselves and money, they are focused on getting more for themselves and are never satisfied with what they have.  Unthankfulness is both the root and fruit of selfishness. It is the vicious cycle of thinking you deserve more than you have so you are not thankful for what you receive, which leaves you wanting more.

Another text that describes unthankfulness is Romans 1:21. Paul is describing the downward spiral of sin that takes people from not acknowledging God in creation and His attributes on display for the world to see to worshipping themselves and giving themselves over to complete depravity of every sexual indulgence.   “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” The link between honoring God and thanking God cannot be separated. When we see and know God for who He is, thankfulness is the only appropriate response in worship. God has graciously revealed Himself in creation, His word, and His Son. As we see His eternal power and divine nature on display, gratefulness for all that God is wells up inside of all His children.  In Romans 1:19, God calls not honoring Him not giving Him thanks both ungodly and unrighteous.  Ungodliness is the attitude of not thinking about God and unrighteousness is the actions that result from that.  An ungrateful attitude, an ignoring of who God is and what He does, leads to the unrighteous actions of greed, lust, disobedience, heartlessness, slanderous, and being unappeasable, just to name some (2 Timothy 3:1-5). 

On the other hand, a thankful person is humble and knows his dependence on God.  He knows that He would have nothing and not even exist without God.  God is the giver of life, breath, and everything (Acts 17:25).  All that we have and all that we are, comes from God.  It is God who knit you together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139) and it is from God that every good and every perfect gift comes (James 1:17).  There is literally nothing that is not a gift from God.  First Corinthians 4:7 asks, “What do you have that you did not receive?  If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?”  Unthankfulness is a prideful response that lies and says “I did this” or “I’m responsible for this blessing”.  Ultimately, ungratefulness takes credit for what God has done.  

As Biblical counselors, we must cultivate thankfulness in our counselees.  We cannot change their hearts.  We cannot make a proud person humble or an ungrateful person thankful.  But, we can lead them to scriptures that open their eyes to truth.  First Thessalonians 5:18 says, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  It is God’s will for us to be thankful for whatever situation He puts us in.  The circumstance is God’s will for us, or whatever is happening would not be happening.  Therefore, we can be thankful in all circumstances because a good, wise, loving, sovereign God has placed us there.

Psalm 106:1 tells us to “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good!”.  God never stops being good.  We are often tempted (and so are our counselees) to think God is not good when our circumstances are bad.  However, we must fight the temptation to give into this lie.  God is good.  All the time.  ‘He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8;31).  God gave his very own Son. Paul argues from the greater to the lesser in making this argument that God will not withhold what we need.  If God gave us His most precious gift in His Son, is He going to withhold something small that we need?  Of course not!

First, we need to get our counselees thinking about the cross and sacrifice of Christ.  As they meditate on God’s love and goodness seen in the cross, a thankful attitude should start to grow.  Have your counselees meditate on the costly sacrifice of Christ taking all the sins of believers, past, present, and future sins, on Him as He suffered and died for them.  Second, have your counselees study God’s purpose for suffering.  When our counselees see that God counts suffering as a gift (Philippians 1:29) so that we are drawn closer to Christ and His heart, suffering takes on a great purpose.  Our counselees who love God will desire to give thanks for that which matures their faith and develops perseverance, character, and hope in Christ.  Third, have your counselees spend time daily writing down things that they are thankful for.  This typically starts as a list of things that are enjoyed.  But as your counselee matures in this discipline, encourage him or her to think of how God has given intangible gifts, even difficult circumstances or relationships, as an act of love.  Maybe it’s a conversation that involved uncomfortable conflict but ended in the counselee sharing the hope of Christ with someone.  Maybe it is a time when he or she is struggling with computer issues that result in your counselee stopping to pray and committing to trusting in God when things are not working out as hoped.  Fourth, make sure your counselee thanks God for each gift.  Thankfulness is given to someone.  When we pray and give thanks, we are acknowledging that God is truly sovereign and good.  We are not simply thanking the universe or thinking positive thoughts.  God is the giver of gifts and the receiver of specific thanks. 

A thankful person is humble and truly knows that they are nothing without God.  A humbly person is a godly person who lives in constant awareness of their dependence on God. This godly living produces the righteous acts of giving thanks and living obediently to God.

What do you need to give thanks for?

Bitterness (Part 2 of 2)

By Wendy Wood

In the last blog, bitterness was defined and its roots and growth were discussed.  You can read that article here.  In this second part, I want to lay out how to help someone repent of bitterness and display the fruit of a deep, abiding faith in the Lord.  

First, your counselee needs to see their bitterness as sin.  As the last article stated, anger, discontentment, and complaining are results of bitterness.  As the mind dwells on the trials and difficulties of life, rather than on God, bitterness grows and grows into rebellion.  Numbers 11 is one of my go-to scriptures to show the sinfulness of bitterness in one’s heart.  Moses and the Israelites are wandering in the desert.  God has continually promised good to the Israelites (Numbers 10:29) and he continually showed His presence in the cloud and pillar (Numbers 10:24).  And yet, the Israelites were bitter.  They focused on the hardships of life rather than God’s presence and goodness.  They were focused on what they thought they deserved, which was life on their own terms. Bitterness so turned their heart to negative thinking that their view of the past was skewed.  The Israelites now claim that life in Egypt was good and they wished they were back living as slaves because that was better than what God was providing for them (Numbers 11:5).  The Israelites were rejecting and rebelling against God’s provision and protection over them.  Numbers 11 shows how evil God sees the sin of bitterness.  “And the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled, and the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some of the outlying parts of the camps” (vs 1). As the people continue to complain, God’s judgment on their heart attitude is displayed in the form of a plague.  God takes seriously the sin of bitterness.  Remember, bitterness is our judgment of God’s goodness and providence in our lives.  When we complain and grumble, we are essentially telling God He has not been good to us.  That is the root of bitterness that must be uprooted.  

Ruth 1 is another passage to use to help your counselee see the destructive force of bitterness.  Naomi and her husband left Israel for the land of Moab.  We don’t know the exact motive for leaving but they chose to leave the promised land for a pagan nation. There had been a famine in Israel (Ruth 1:1) so Elimelech took his wife and two sons to Moab.  The sons married Moabite women (Ruth 1:4).  After a period of time, Elimelech and both sons died.   Naomi’s response is “Do not call me Naomi, call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.  I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty.  Why call me Naomi when the Lord has testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity on me? (Ruth 1:20-21)”. Naomi judges God’s providence in her life.  She charges God with wrongdoing for the death of her husband and sons. Naomi’s view of the past is again faulty. “I went away full” is not entirely true if they fled Israel during a famine.  Naomi’s bitterness has grown to the point of complaining and stubbornly choosing to see only what she lacks from her perspective.  She has a loving daughter-in-law by her side and God is about to place them in a loving, prosperous situation with Boaz.  Bitterness is short-sighted and in rebellion to God’s sovereign plan.

So first, help your counselee see their bitterness for the sin that it is.  Help them see that bitterness is judgment of God’s goodness, wisdom, and love.  Lead them to repent not just of the complaining, anger, and rebellious actions that have resulted from bitterness, but to repent of the false and evil lies they have believed about God.  Help them to put into words the unbelief they are expressing toward God and to ask God for forgiveness for those beliefs and thoughts.

The next step is helping your counselee renew their minds in the truths of God and His character.  Your counselee needs to meditate on scripture that tells of God’s goodness, grace, mercy, sovereignty, wisdom and love.  Your counselee needs to meditate on God’s promises for His children in the midst of suffering.  Your counselee needs to understand and embrace God’s purpose in suffering and pray to grow in being able to rejoice in suffering because we share in Christ’s suffering. Your counselee could study and meditate on 1 Peter 1:3-11, Romans 5:1-5 or James 1:2-4 to learn about God’s purpose in suffering.  They could study Ephesians 1, Romans 8, Job 38, 39, Isaiah 40 and other passages that speak of God’s goodness, wisdom, sovereignty, and love to help them trust God with hard circumstances or people.  I also use specific verses that counselees can memorize quickly.  Some of my favorite passages about God’s sovereignty and that He is working His perfect plan for my life are Job 42:2, Ephesians 1:11, and Psalm 139:16.  Romans 11:33-36 is a wonderful passage on God’s wisdom and that we as finite humans cannot fathom all that God understands as He governs this world.  Romans 8:31-39 points us to God’s love and that there is no circumstance that can separate us from God’s love.  Even more, those difficult trials serve God’s purpose in our lives to shape us more and more into the image of Christ.  

Your counselee needs to transform their mind to the truth of God’s word.  Help them create a list of scriptures that combat the lies about God and unbelief in their heart.  The list may be different from counselee to counselee depending on how they have sinfully interpreted their situation.  But it is through scripture that the Holy Spirit will transform and renew their mind.

Third, your counselee needs to put on Chrislikeness.  Where bitterness has led to complaining, anger, and rebellious actions, the new creation in Christ must put on thankfulness, contentment, love and good deeds.  As your counselee is renewing their mind in Truth, have them write out a “Thankful List” every single day.  As they embrace God’s purpose in suffering, they can give thanks in all circumstances because God is always at work to fulfill His redemptive plan. Psalms commands us to “enter his gates with thanksgiving in our hearts”.  Thankfulness is the gateway to God’s presence.  It grows our dependence and humility before Him.  Thankfulness is key in the life of every believer. 

Your counselee will need to put on humble responses to trials.  Rather than anger when a difficulty comes, your counselee must demonstrate trust in God by responding with prayer and contentment.  Belief in who God is and that He will do what He has promised is demonstrated in our response to the moment to moment situations of daily life.  A heart that is settled on God’s goodness, sovereignty, wisdom, and love at all times is able to respond with gentleness and peace in the face of trouble.  Help your counselee to plan out and be resolved to trust the truth about God in their specific circumstances.  For example, if your counselee has been bitter about a situation at work, plan for the next time their boss makes a decision that negatively impacts your counselee.  Be very specific.  “When my boss does ________, I will __________”.  The list should include prayer, scripture recitation and prayer that the counselee would trust God’s plan and purpose in the situation.  The list should include specific ways the counselee will respond with words and actions that honor and glorify God.

As your counselee continues to pray and study God’s word, actively repenting of bitterness, searching for ways that they are not trusting in God’s attributes, and actively putting on attitudes, words, and actions that honor God, they are transformed from bitterness to contentment and thankfulness.

Bitterness (Part 1 of 2)

By Wendy Wood

Bitterness is an attitude of the heart that is becoming more and more frequent in the counseling room.  Bitterness affects every aspect of life and is truly dangerous to the spiritual health of people.  Bitterness is rooted in pride.  Bitterness is grounded in thoughts like,  “that shouldn’t have happened to me” or “I don’t deserve that treatment” or “that person doesn’t deserve my forgiveness”.  Self is the center of these thoughts. All of these thoughts are really a judgment on God’s providence in our lives.  Bitterness comes when we are resentful that difficult circumstances or people have made our life difficult and we don’t choose to trust God that He really is good, loving, and wise in working His plan for our lives out.

So let’s look at the progression of becoming bitter so that we can see how to help someone uproot bitterness from their heart. This first post will deal with how bitterness grows, and part two will address how to help a counselee repent and uproot bitterness from their heart.  

Bitterness starts with a hurt.  The hurt may be a loss of a job or a loved one dying, a situation that causes pain.  The hurt may be a friend betraying you or a boss who belittles you.  These hurts are caused by being sinned against.  Bitterness begins to grow when the hurt that has occurred is not seen as God’s purpose in your life to make you more like Christ.  Rather than surrendering to God’s plan in the hurt, the person dwells on the hurt, rehearses the event or situation over and over in their mind, and thinks that “if only” this hadn’t happened, life would be good.  The painful event becomes the focus of their thoughts rather than fixing their eyes on Christ and choosing to see suffering from God’s perspective.  Hebrews 12:15 warns against bitterness and Ephesians 4:31 tells us to get rid of bitterness.  Bitterness is the choice to not forgive a sinner and to not trust God in difficult circumstances.

As the root of bitterness takes hold, typically the bitter person starts to get angry.  It may start “small” at first.  They may make negative comments about people and life circumstances.  They may internally get frustrated more easily as others sin against them.  Anger grows, however.  With bitterness residing in the heart, anger becomes a lifestyle.  Small hurts are responded to with an out-of-proportion response of frustration.  Bitterness grows from a mental framework to outward expressions of impatience and self-righteousness.  James 1:19-20 tells us that man’s anger does not bring about the righteousness of God.  Anger over our circumstances, whether sinned against or just situations that happen from living in a sin-cursed world, reveals that we are playing judge in God’s place and not trusting His perfect plan.

From an angry lifestyle a bitter person becomes stubborn.  Picture the Israelites wandering the desert.  The Israelites didn’t like their circumstances.  They were unsatisfied with their food, drink, leaders, and living situation.  In Numbers 11 as they grumble and complain, God calls them “stiff-necked” people.  They don’t see any good around them despite the fact that God’s presence is visible in the form of a pillar of cloud and fire.  They are not thankful for the food that God provides daily for them.  They are stubbornly choosing to focus on what doesn’t feel good to them and they fail to see God at work.  A bitter person becomes stubborn in their thinking similarly to the Israelites.  The bitter person will think or say “he’ll ALWAYS be like that” or “she will NEVER change”.  Psalm 81:11-12 says,  “But my people did not listen to my voice; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own counsel.”  This is dangerous territory to be in.  A stubborn mindset is neglecting God and choosing to be ungrateful.  Romans 1 tells us that those who are ungrateful to God are on their way to rebellion, and that is the next step for bitter people.

In rebellion, a bitter person thinks, “God’s way hasn’t worked out for me.  I’m going to do it my way.”  Rebellion comes from a hardened heart that has refused God’s goodness in hard times and in being sinned against.  Rebellion is rooted in the thinking that “my way is better than God’s way”.  It may be that the bitter person chooses to have sex with a boyfriend or girlfriend because God hasn’t provided a spouse for them so they will try to accomplish “marriage” their own way.  It may be that a spouse stops asking for forgiveness because their spouse doesn’t repent, and the bitter person thinks that being humble isn’t working.  It could be an employee who isn’t being recognized for their work so they stop working as hard because they think ‘what’s the point?”. “No one else works hard and they get the same pay.”  Rebellion is trusting in self rather than God.  Hebrews 3:7-12 warns,  “Do not harden your heart.. Where your fathers put me to the test...They always go astray in their heart… they shall not enter my rest”.  The Israelites are again the example of bitterness turning to rebellion.  They did not enter God’s rest because they rebelled against him.

This rebellion started with unforgiveness and a lack of trust in God’s goodness in suffering.  To look back at this all beginning with hurt that wasn’t dealt with biblically is eye opening to the danger of unforgiveness and judging God’s providence in our lives.  This counselee needs help to see God accurately, to understand the amazing gift of forgiveness that they have received from God, understanding suffering from God’s perspective, and the danger of pride in the heart.  Repentance is the only way out of bitterness.  We’ll examine that in the next blog.

Thankfulness Pushes Anxiety Away

Paul Tautges

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Col. 3:15-16

Luke 17:11–19 tells of the time when Jesus healed ten lepers but only one of them returned to show his gratitude. Christ had healed the leper physically—but, much more importantly, our Lord had also healed the leprosy of the sin in his heart. According to Jesus, this man’s faith made him “well” (Luke 17:19). What distinguished this man from the other nine? He met Jesus as his Savior, not just as a healer. As a result, he became a new creature in Christ. And his soul-saving encounter produced in him a heart of thankfulness.

The thankful leper’s conversion illustrates the new-creature expectation that is found in many New Testament letters—the expectation that sinners saved by grace will be filled with gratitude. The larger context of today’s verses is God’s command to believers to “put off the old self with its practices” and “put on the new self ” (Col. 3:9–10).

Two spiritual disciplines cultivate an attitude of gratitude.

Let the peace of God rule your heart.

An attitude of gratitude is directly connected to whether or not the peace of God rules our hearts. Having the peace of God is different from being at peace with God. Peace with God is positional—it is related to who we are in Christ. We are no longer enemies but friends, submissive kingdom citizens, and children (see John 15:15; Col. 1:21–22; 1 John 3:2). But the peace of God is experiential—it’s a calm assurance that guards our inner person through Word-based trust, the Holy Spirit, and prayer (see Isa. 26:3; Rom. 14:17; Phil. 4:6–7). When God’s peace rules our hearts, anxiety has a harder time getting in. It’s far too easy for us to search for quick fixes to our worries, such as rearranging our circumstances. (Difficult job? Find another one. Difficult relationship? Avoid the other person.) While this may provide us temporary relief, long-lasting experiential peace comes from positional peace. In order for us to quell our anxieties, we must first be made right with God.

Let the Word of Christ richly dwell within you.

Meditating on the Word permits it to sink deeply into our inner person. It challenges and changes our minds’ worries and our hearts’ fears, which produces joy. This joy then produces a desire in us to sing Christ-exalting praise. It seems clear from this text that a thankful spirit flows from a heart that is touched by grace, controlled by the Spirit, and fed by the Word.

So when we are anxious, we should ask, “What’s going on in my heart?” More than likely, we lack the attitude of gratitude that flows from the rule and enrichment of the Word.

Though anxiety and ingratitude are common bedfellows, they should not be a lifestyle for those who know Christ.

• Reflect: When do you sing praise to God? Is the Sunday gathering of God’s people the only time when you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs? If so, why?

• Reflect: What changes do you need to make concerning your intake of the Word through reading, study, and memorization? If you are not sure how to make these changes, find a mature Christian and ask for help.

• Act: Begin a “why I’m thankful” list in your journal, and add to it as the Spirit brings to your mind ways in which God’s grace has been poured into your life.

[Adapted from the 31-day devotional, Anxiety: Knowing God’s Peace]

Poste at: https://counselingoneanother.com/2020/11/25/thankfulness-pushes-anxiety-away/

A Theology of Thanksgiving

by Dustin Crowe

In our day and age of more-more-more where “Thanksgiving” is the waiting season between Halloween and Christmas, gratitude often takes a back seat. By relegating giving thanks to an occasional add-on in the Christian life—either on Thanksgiving Day or when God blesses us in an undeniable way—we miss out on how it’s meant to tune our hearts toward God on a daily basis.

It’s easy to blame “the world” around me, but I’ll admit that while I know God is the source of all things in my life, it doesn’t mean thanksgiving makes it into my day-to-day rhythms as it should. I go through most days taking God’s gifts for granted. I’d prefer getting things over giving thanks. And when I don’t get what I want, I complain. With all the difficulties and stresses of 2020, I’ve noticed my heart gravitating toward groaning and murmuring rather than choosing thanksgiving.

To fight our fallen inclination toward grumbling, we need to give thanks. But thanksgiving involves more than naming blessings. “I’m thankful for family. I’m thankful for church. I’m thankful for pumpkin pie and all its various spinoffs.” I’m not the thanksgiving police here to slap anyone on the wrist for giving thanks, but I’d love to see Christians move from merely being thankful to being thankful to Someone.

Thanking God by acknowledging his gifts is a great place to start, and it’s better than not thanking him at all. But giving thanks isn’t limited to naming blessings; it’s knowing the One behind them. When we give thanks, we acknowledge something to be from the Lord and it stirs up worship because it tells us what he’s like. Thanksgiving helps us better enjoy the gift because we also see the love and goodness of the Giver behind it.

Thankful…to God

In the Bible, thanksgiving is much more than a quick nod of the cap for all the goodies in life. David Pao writes, “Thanksgiving…is an act of worship. It is not focused primarily on the benefits received or the blessed condition of a person; instead, God is the center of thanksgiving.”1 Giving thanks takes us beyond recognizing God and into enjoying God.

As we give thanks to God, we not only confess we would have nothing good apart from him (James 1:17; 1 Corinthians 4:7), but we also consider who he is. Biblical thanksgiving is a response to more than God’s gifts and acts. It’s a response to what we learn about him through those gifts and acts.

I’m not just saying we should value the giver more than the gifts. I’m suggesting that as we give thanks for the gifts—which we can truly and deeply enjoy—we should also look through the gift to learn more about the person who gave it. In doing so, we will enjoy and love the giver even more.

Ask, “What does the nature of this gift tell me about the giver? What does it tell me about what they want for me or how they’re seeking my good? How does this provide insight into their heart, character, intentions, and attributes?”

Biblical Examples of Thanksgiving

In Paul’s thanksgiving prayers (Colossians 1:3; Ephesians 1:16; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14), he praises God and recognizes the grace and power of God at work in their gospel-growth. There’s a rich theology of God under every statement of thanksgiving to God.

Consider the story of Jesus healing ten lepers in Luke 17:11-19. There’s one man in particular who not only “praises God with a loud voice” (17:15), but he also falls “on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks” (17:16). The healed Samaritan doesn’t just see Jesus as a person who did something for him; he falls to his feet in thanksgiving because he sees Jesus as his healer, deliverer, and savior. The joy isn’t only in what he received from Jesus, but it’s also in what was discovered about Jesus.

This kind of God-centered, worship-filled thanksgiving shows up throughout the Psalms (such as Psalm 9, 30, 100, 103, and 138). In Psalm 103, for example, David begins by blessing God for specific actions on behalf of his people (1-5). As he continues, we see that God’s actions reveal his attributes and heart toward his people. David thanks God for His actions but also worships God as those actions reveal a God who is righteous and just (6), merciful and gracious (8), unswerving in love (8), a compassionate father (10), and understanding of our weaknesses (14).

The gifts, works, and actions of God are windows allowing us to see who God is, and who he is for us. A theology of thanksgiving to God is therefore a conduit of communion with God. Gratitude for what God has done produces worship because of who God is.

Growing in Gratitude

Thanksgiving involves saying thank you to God for his acts and gifts but also worshipping God because of what those things tell us about him. We first recognize God as the source of what we have to be grateful for. The second, more neglected step, is we must stop and think about what these gifts tell us about him. Thanksgiving moves from recognition of what God has done to revering Him as a God who does such things. 

It’s good to give thanks to God for a material blessing. It’s even better to perceive in that blessing a God with a generous heart eager to provide for his children. It’s good to give thanks to God for a spiritual blessing, such as our adoption in Christ, but it’s more impactful when you simultaneously delight in a God who clears your charges and embraces you in his loving arms.

Thanksgiving to God for his gifts and actions reveals God to us in bigger and clearer ways. See God at work and know him through what you see. Fight grumbling with gratitude.

*This article is adapted from Dustin Crowe’s new book, The Grumbler’s Guide to Giving Thanks: Reclaiming the Gifts of a Lost Spiritual Discipline.

Footnotes
1David Pao, Thanksgiving: An Investigation of a Pauline Theme (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2002), 28.

Dustin Crowe

Dustin Crowe serves as pastor of discipleship at Pennington Park Church. He is the author of The Grumbler’s Guide to Giving Thanksand Finding Satisfaction in Christ. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram (@indycrowe) or visit his blog (indycrowe.com).

Posted at: https://ftc.co/resource-library/blog-entries/a-theology-of-thanksgiving/

Grumbling: A Family Tradition

David McLemore 

So, how’s your quarantine going?

Isn’t it wonderful? We can’t go anywhere. We can’t do anything. All our plans are canceled. Maybe you can work from home like me, but I find it just makes my house unbearable at times. My kids are stir-crazy and I’m ready to get back to normal.

Normal. Remember those good old days? Like when we went to restaurants and sporting events and concerts. We had all we needed. But now? Look at us now. We’re basically prisoners! And for what? A virus? Come on!

Whose fault is this anyway? Surely, “they” could’ve stopped this. It didn’t have to be this bad. But they’re a bunch of failures. We always knew it, didn’t we? Can’t get anything right on a normal day, and when crisis knocks on the door, well, there goes our lives.

A LONG LINE OF GRUMBLERS

If walls could talk, would they, like a child, repeat the echoes of your grumbling? Mine would. I’m an expert grumbler. It’s too cold in winter and too hot in summer. The food was good but the service was slow. The night was long but sleep was short. Nothing is ever just right. Has it ever been? Reading the Bible, it appears my disposition isn’t mine alone. We come from a long line of grumblers.

Perhaps nowhere in the Bible is this clearer than in the story of Israel’s wanderings during the Exodus from Egypt. While isolated in the desert, God’s people quarreled with Moses because there was no water to drink—admittedly a big problem in the middle of the desert (Ex. 17:1–2). Moses responded by asking, “‘Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?’ But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses” (Ex. 17:3).

This was hardly their first go at grumbling. By chapter 17, they’ve been at it for a solid two months as they entered the Desert of Sin (Ex. 15:24; 16:2, 7–9, 12). Yes, God led them out of slavery in Egypt but their nomadic desert life didn’t satisfy their appetites. Oh, remember the meat pots and fullness of bread in Egypt! Better to die there with full bellies and no freedoms than in deliverance with empty stomachs! Does God know what he’s doing?

The middle chapters of Exodus (15–17) are a master class in the art of grumbling. Paul said, “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction” (Rom. 15:4). But rather than submitting to the tutelage, I find my proverbial stomach too empty. I place myself among the frustrated Israelites, joining their ranks instead of learning their lessons. Who can blame me? It’s a family tradition.

DO ALL THINGS WITHOUT GRUMBLING

As the pages turn from the Old to New Testament, the family line and its tendencies don’t appear to improve very much. We don’t have the contextual details as we do with our desert-dwelling ancestors, but we find the Apostle Paul confronting what must have been a similar situation in the Philippian church. “Do all things without grumbling,” he says (Phil. 2:14).

Were they hungry and thirsty too? Did they find God less than who he promised to be?

I hear Paul’s words and I want to obey. I really do. The problem is, it’s hard. Some people seem never to have had a bad day. I wonder if I’ve ever had a good one. And these days of quarantine aren’t helping.

Every hour brings worse news than before. Sure, I have my moments of peace and contentment. But in all things? What do you mean by all, Paul?

Maybe it’ll help to define the word grumbling.

NO COMPLAINT OR DISPUTE

Grumbling must be distinct from complaint. Complaint feels too formal. I never go that far. I’m not filling out a form or sending an email. I’m not bringing this before the elders or anything. I’m just voicing my displeasure—informally and off the cuff, you know? No big deal, really. It’ll pass.

A complaint might get me somewhere, but I’m not looking for a handout. I’m not the kind of person who wants to speak to the manager. I just hope the waiter overhears me wondering where he is. I hope he sees my face as I take that first bite of less-than-expected taste. I just hope the two-star Facebook review I posted is filled with agreeing comments. Maybe things will start to change then, but probably not.

The real difference, in my opinion, lies here: a complaint gets you something you feel cheated out of, but that’s not my angle. I’d much rather let everyone know it’s their general failure in life that’s caused my displeasure. You know, like God leading a people into the desert with a meek leader like Moses and a severe lack of basic provisions like food and water. How can someone like that be trusted in trying times?

So maybe the lesson is this: to complain is to ask God why he’s not giving water in the desert and plead for him to provide; to grumble is to say there’s not water because God doesn’t care. The first seeks to obtain something. The other seeks only to destroy.

In Philippians 2:14, Paul commands the people not to grumble but also not to dispute. Grumbling rarely disputes anyone’s decisions. It doesn’t rise that high. It lays low in the water, like the roar of a wave that comes crashing all around. It might get you wet, which can be annoying, and it has enough salt and sand to rub you the wrong way, but the grumble isn’t there to argue. Arguing requires facts and reasoning. Grumbles don’t. The grumble grows out of emotions. The catalyst is the way one feels, which influences the way one thinks. The grumble doesn’t want to take anyone to court; it just wants everything fixed—now.

ACCUSATION

The problem, however, is that the grumble does inevitably take someone to court. The Israelites’ grumbling soon rose to Moses and then to God. How did God hear grumblings? The murmur was louder than they thought.

God got involved, which seemed to be an overreaction, really. Grumblings wither and fade. Once it’s off the chest it’s like mist in the morning, right? But Moses took it to God. He asked, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me” (Ex. 17:5). God’s answer was weighty. “Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb” (Ex. 17:5–6a). God received their grumbling as an accusation against himself. He stood trial.

I think I’m beginning to see the lesson. Though it doesn’t look like it initially, grumbling is accusation. The Israelites weren’t merely venting their frustrations. They were accusing God of not being a provider. In fact, they were saying he was worse than Pharaoh. He must not have thought it through. A million people in the middle of the desert. “Yeah, God. Great idea.”

Their grumbling was a viral event, not quarantined to a small few. It was airborne and highly contagious. If I jumped in the DeLorean and headed back to that ancient and sandy land, I wouldn’t hear the story of God’s great rescue but the story of God’s great scandal: desert life without water. If I knew nothing of their history, I might be prone to think Egypt was a land of Eden and Pharaoh a king of kings.

The people had a point. What good is emancipation if you die a few weeks later with a parched tongue and cracked lips? They looked at their life and could see only the grim circumstances staring back at them. They forgot the plagues in Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, and the manna from heaven. They forgot their Rescuer, Deliverer, and Redeemer. The roar of their grumbling drowned out the song of their Savior. God had done mighty things before, but they disbelieved he could do them again. Rather than the path God was taking them, all they saw were walls. And those walls echoed to and fro throughout the land.

WATER FROM THE ROCK

God heard their grumbling, and he stood on the rock before them. Then he told Moses, “You shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink” (Ex. 17:6).

In 1 Corinthians 10:4, Paul looks back at this event and makes the shocking statement that Christ was the Rock. The water the people drank didn’t come from nowhere. It came from the judgment of God in Christ. Moses didn’t strike an inanimate object. He struck the Lord himself. Grumbling always strikes, and, ultimately, it always strikes the Lord.

But the gospel tells us that God takes that strike himself. Instead of standing on the rock and blasting the Israelites away, he stands on the rock and bears the punishment. This was just the beginning of God’s long-suffering. What started as a grumble in the desert rose to a cry in Pilate’s court: “Crucify him!” (Luke 21:23).

Alone on the cross, instead of grumbling, Jesus took our grumblings upon himself as the representative Grumbler. He died under them, struck by the judgment staff of God. When the soldiers came to Jesus to ensure his death, they “pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water” (John 19:34). That water was, as Paul says, the same spiritual drink the Israelites drank in the desert (1 Cor. 10:4). It came from a rock back then but came in Christ once for all on the cross. A drink of living water for all of us grumblers.

That’s the real family tradition—God’s grace for grumblers.

So how’s your quarantine going? Mine’s better than ever before, thanks for asking. I have all I need.

David McLemore is an elder at Refuge Church in Franklin, Tennessee. He also works for a large healthcare corporation where he manages an application development department. He is married to Sarah, and they have three sons. Read more of David’s writing on his blog, Things of the Sort.

Posted at: https://gcdiscipleship.com/article-feed/grumbling

What Makes It Possible for the Christian to Rejoice in the Midst of Pain and Anxiety?

By R.C. Sproul

In 1993, my wife and I were involved in an historic train wreck. The crash of the Sunset Limited into an inlet from Mobile Bay killed more passengers than any Amtrak accident in history. We survived that eerie accident but not without ongoing trauma. The wreck left my wife with an ongoing anxiety about being able to sleep on a train at night. The wreck left me with a back injury that took fifteen years of treatment and therapy to overcome. Nevertheless, with these scars from the trauma we both learned a profound lesson about the providence of God. Clearly, God’s providence in this case for us was one of benign benevolence. It also illustrated to us an unforgettable sense of the tender mercies of God. In as much as we are convinced that God’s providence is an expression of His absolute sovereignty over all things, I would think that a logical conclusion from such a conviction would be the end of all anxiety.

However, that is not always the case. Of course, our Lord Himself gave the instruction to be anxious for nothing to His disciples and, by extension, to the church. His awareness of human frailties expressed in our fears was manifested by His most common greeting to His friends: “Fear not.” Still, we are creatures who, in spite of our faith, are given to anxiety and at times even to melancholy.

As a young student and young Christian, I struggled with melancholy and sought the counsel of one of my mentors. As I related my struggles, he said, “You are experiencing the heavy hand of the Lord on your shoulder right now.” I had never considered God’s hand being one that gave downward pressure on my shoulder or that would cause me to struggle in this way. I was driven to prayer that the Lord would remove His heavy hand from my shoulder. In time, He did that and delivered me from melancholy and a large degree of anxiety.

On another occasion I was in a discussion with a friend, and I related to him some of the fears that were plaguing me. He said, “I thought you believed in the sovereignty of God.” “I do,” I said, “and that’s my problem.” He was puzzled by the answer, and I explained that I know enough about what the Bible teaches of God’s providence and of His sovereignty to know that sometimes God’s sovereign providence involves suffering and affliction for His people. That we are in the care of a sovereign God whose providence is benevolent does not exclude the possibility that He may send us into periods of trials and tribulations that can be excruciatingly painful. Though I trust God’s Word that in the midst of such experiences He will give to me the comfort of His presence and the certainty of my final deliverance into glory, in the meantime I know that the way of affliction and pain may be difficult to bear.

The comfort that I enjoy from knowing God’s providence is mixed at times with the knowledge that His providence may bring me pain. I don’t look forward to the experience of pain with a giddy anticipation; rather, there are times when it’s necessary for me and for others to grit our teeth and to bear the burdens of the day. Again, I have no question about the outcome of such affliction, and yet at the same time, I know that there are afflictions that will test me to the limits of my faith and endurance. That kind of experience and knowledge makes it easy to understand the tension between confidence in God’s sovereign providence and our own struggles with anxiety.

Romans 8:28, which is a favorite for many of us, states that “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (NKJV). There’s no other text that demonstrates so clearly and magnificently the beauty of God’s sovereign providence than that one. The text does not say that everything that happens to us, considered in and of itself, is good; rather, it says that all things that happen are working together for our good. That is the master plan of God’s redemptive providence. He brings good out of evil. He brings glory out of suffering. He brings joy out of affliction. This is one of the most difficult truths of sacred Scripture for us to believe. I’ve said countless times that it is easy to believe in God but far more difficult to believe God. Faith involves living a life of trust in the Word of God.

As I live out the travail that follows life on this side of glory, hardly a day goes by that I am not forced to look at Romans 8:28 and remind myself that what I’m experiencing right now feels bad, tastes bad, is bad; nevertheless, the Lord is using this for my good. If God were not sovereign, I could never come to that comforting conclusion — I would be constantly subjected to fear and anxiety without any significant relief. The promise of God that all things work together for good to those who love God is something that has to get not only into our minds, but it has to get into our bloodstreams, so that it is a rock-solid principle by which life can be lived.

I believe this is the foundation upon which the fruit of the Spirit of joy is established. This is the foundation that makes it possible for the Christian to rejoice even while in the midst of pain and anxiety. We are not stoics who are called to keep a stiff upper lip out of some nebulous concept of fate; rather, we are those who are to rejoice because Christ has overcome the world. It is that truth and that certainty that gives relief to all of our anxieties.

Posted at: https://www.ligonier.org/blog/what-makes-it-possible-christian-rejoice-midst-pain-and-anxiety/

In the Pandemic, Give Thanks...

Gethin Jones

In Paul's first epistle to the Thessalonians, the Lord commands us, saying, "In all things, give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

As I write these words right in the heart of Paris, the novel coronavirus has been spreading rapidly — especially in the Paris region — and the whole of France has just been placed under quarantine for a minimum of two weeks. We may leave our homes for one of five reasons, and each time, we have to print or write out a signed declaration explaining our reason for going out, or risk being fined. As President Macron declared in announcing the quarantine, "We are at war." And this after a draining winter of mass strikes, and a year of occasional unrest.

In 387 AD, after a period of crisis and social upheaval in Antioch, John Chrysostom said the following in his Homilies on the Statutes:

“Not only did he rescue us from shipwreck, but he allowed us to fall into such distress and permitted such an extreme peril to hang over us. Thus also Paul bids us 'in every thing give thanks.' But when he says, 'In every thing give thanks,' he means not only in our deliverance from evils but also at the time when we suffer those evils.”[1]

So while we stay indoors, and wash our hands, and look out for each other and our neighbours, and keep our distance, and pray for the sick and the bereaved and the "at-risk," how do we also give thanks? 

Here are some reflections:

1) Let us give thanks, because this is from the Father's hand.

In the preface to his commentary on the Psalms, John Calvin writes that the psalter “teaches us and leads us to bear the cross, which is a true test of obedience.” And what does it mean to bear the cross? It means that, “as we renounce our own affections, we submit ourselves entirely to God, and so let him govern us and arrange our lives that the miseries that are the most sore and bitter to our nature become sweet to us, because they proceed from him.”[2]

When God gives, whatever he gives, we give thanks. He has revealed himself to be that good, and that trustworthy. We can know that all that he has given is working together for good for those who love him, and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). So let us give thanks because this is from the Father's hand.

2) Let us give thanks because it is good to give thanks to God.

In Psalm 92:1 we read and sing, "It is good to give thanks to the Lord." The Psalmist doesn't merely say that it is polite, or correct manners, to give thanks to the Lord — it is a good thing. Why is that? Let's consider what's going on. The Father gives, and we thank him. What is that other than communion and fellowship? It is a simple expression of our glorifying and enjoying God.

3) Let us give thanks to God for our daily bread.

We mostly do thank him for providing for our needs, and yet many of us in the so-called developed world have not had to worry all that much about where to find food. Often, when we hear sermons on the Lord's Prayer, some comment is made on how many of us don't have to worry about this kind of thing all that much in our affluent societies, but that we should remember how the Lord provides anyway. But as many around us panic buy, those who have abstained, and those who are "at risk," even while having the means to buy food, have had to be more concerned about how to find it. Let us pray that, as the Lord continues to provide for our needs, he will instil in us an ever-deepening gratitude for all his good gifts.

4) Let us thank God for the wonder of being made in his image.

As we find ourselves further apart from other people, whether strangers or loved ones, even the most introverted among us can feel a certain sting at the prospect of isolation. Why is this? We are being deprived of the company of beings that have been made in the image of God. It is an incredible thing — and it can be sore to be without it. So let us thank God for such a wonder, and for the relatives and friends that we have been able to enjoy, and, Lord-willing, will enjoy again one day soon.

5) Let us thank God for the Church.

As we find ourselves unable to gather physically, and having to make do virtually, let us consider the countless times we have been able to gather with God's people at the Heavenly Mount Zion and worship Him over our lifetimes so far. Let us thank God for that. Let us also pray that the day will come soon when we can resume doing so, and especially the day when we will do so once for eternity at Christ's return. Let us pray for this period of isolation to have a positive impact on those who, until now, may have been half-hearted in their involvement in the local church. It could result in people saying "See, we all did just fine without gathering." But let's pray that many more would say, "I missed this. This is wonderful. How could I have been comfortable skipping this?" And let us pray for such enthusiasm to pique the curiosity of our, and their, neighbours.

6) Let us thank God "for such redemption."

The first question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism make it clear that Christians are the people who have an unshakeable comfort in both life and death. The second question and answer lists the three things we need to know "in order to live and die in the joy of this comfort" — guilt, grace, and gratitude. In particular, I need to know "how I am to be thankful to God for such redemption."

So what do we need to thank God for? All the things I've mentioned above, or redemption? The answer, of course, is, "Yes." Or rather, the answer is "Don't separate them too sharply." There is a sense, of course, in which our redemption is a particular thing for which we thank God. But, while not everything we have to give thanks for is redemption per se, everything we have to give thanks for is because of redemption. And that in at least two ways:

a) The reason anyone receives and enjoys anything good in this world is that the Lord is restraining evil in his common grace, and exercising great patience. And why is that? Because God "is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) He is patient, and he is restraining evil, and maintaining order and goodness, all so that more people may have the opportunity to repent.

b) As we noted above — why does our Father give us any good thing? So that we may enjoy it, and return thanks to him. So that we may have communion, or fellowship, with him. And that is what redemption is for. He doesn't redeem us for the sake of redeeming us. He redeems us for the sake of communing with him.

So even in these difficult, dark, sore days, let us give thanks. Let us gratefully commune with God as redeemed ones, united to Christ Jesus — for that is what God wants.

Gethin Jones is a minister in the International Presbyterian Church. He’s serving with UFM Worldwide alongside La Chapelle de Nesle, a reformed evangelical church in central Paris.

Related Links

"Home Visitation: The Worst of Times, the Best of Times" by Chad Van Dixhoorn

"Ten Ways COVID-19 Can Work for Our Good" by Brian Najapfour

"I Am Thy Shield: Calvin on Genesis 15" by Aaron Denlinger

"Facets of Faith in Crisis" by Bruce Lowe

My Portion Forever: Finding God's Joy in Our Pain [ Download ]

Amidst Darkness: Suffering, Solace, and the Psalms by James Boice [ Download ]

Notes

[1] Peter Gorday, ed., Colossians, 1–2 Thessalonians, 1–2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 99.

[2] Jean Calvin, Commentaires de M. Jean Calvin Sur le Livre des Pseaumes, (Geneva: Conrad Badius, 1561),  Vol. I, ii-iii; Author’s translation.

Posted at: https://www.reformation21.org/blog/in-the-pandemic-give-thanks

Gratitude or Impurity

Jay Younts | Shepherd’s Press

Gratitude or impurity—you can have one but not both!  The language of the heart and mouth is an indication of the direction of the heart. People whose speech is dominated by a thankful spirit are often people who are grateful for the mercy extended to them by God.  However, impure, profane speech reflects just the opposite of gratitude.  This kind of talk frequently indicates an angry heart and movement towards the impure and profane. For example, the Ephesians had woven impure speech into the life of the church to the point where Paul addressed this issue specifically. Ephesians 5:4 describes the importance of gratitude.

But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.

In the first part of the verse, Paul directs that there should be no obscene, foolish talk or any coarse jesting. The Linguistic Key to the New Testament provides important definitions for these terms:

• Obscene talk: shameful, filthy or obscene speech

• Foolish talk: laughing at something without wit

• Coarse jesting: using humor to turn something neutral into something off-color. In other words, the Ephesians were masters of the art of double-entendre.

The language Paul condemns is a broader category than what we generally define as swearing. God has a higher standard for our speech than simply not swearing. What does the higher standard look like?

Paul says the put on response to impure speech is gratitude. He says that gratitude should dominate your speech, not the impure talk of the world. This contrast is striking. It is not simply replacing one set of words with another set of words. God wants your grateful heart. He wants your faithful, trusting heart. He wants your submissive, humble heart. When He has these things from you, profanity and even lust will not be an issue.

If your talk acknowledges that God has sovereign control over your life, and that He is working all things together for your good, you will express gratitude, not frustration or rebellion. 

If your everyday talk is ungrateful and complaining, you reflect the ungodly culture around you. If, on the other hand, your everyday talk expresses gratitude and joyful acceptance for God’s Providence, you will have no need for the kind of language described in Ephesians 5:4. Both your words and your attitudes will honor God, not defy Him.

The point is that if your speech is not dominated by gratitude then your words will mimic the world around you. You will unwittingly prepare your children to fall prey to the temptation of profanity, lust, and lack of gratitude. Without gratitude, there is no real defense against the ungrateful, self-pitying attitude that profanity represents. This is the message that Paul gave to the Ephesians. This is the message God wants you to give to your children.

Posted at: https://www.shepherdpress.com/gratitude-or-impurity/?fbclid=IwAR2huS-d6yGTlLMiG1SnMbAz7lnT2sXQXAvc_492EsSXdRdXeKBpn0plO2o