Blog Feed en In Prayer We Come as Humble Suppliants for Mercy <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><h3><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/content_images/2018/calvin225.jpg" style="margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px; float: right; width: 225px; height: 223px;" />by John Calvin</h3><p>In prayer, we yield all confidence in ourselves and humbly plead for pardon</p><p><strong>8. We come as humble suppliants for mercy</strong></p></div></div></div> Mon, 16 Sep 2019 21:24:51 +0000 john_hendryx 579098 at Slavery and the Idols of our Culture <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>An overwhelming number of our country&#39;s social problems are directly or indirectly realted to the idol of sex. You have abortion (millions dead), pornography (objectifying women), human trafficking (slavery), STDs, sex outside the covenant of marriage, perversions, the gnostic belief that our body is not core to our identity, and that is just scratching the surface. Our culture somehow is under the delusion it is promoting freedom in these things, but they are, in truth, creating a society which is under slavery of the worst kind. To call these sins out is, therefore, to desecrate the idols of our culture. Yet because we love those who are trapped in the bonds of sin we must speak and never give in to the fear of man. And you know, people do not easily let go from clinging to their idols.</p><p>The gospel is the only remedy. There is no law, no therapy, no will power that is powerful enough to wean people off their beloved idols. They are powerless, of themselves (as we were), to break their chains. Only Christ has the power to set them free from their cruel bondage. And in Christ we are free indeed. Love your neighbor by giving him the keys to freedom. Don&#39;t hold back. Declare the gospel. Counter-intuitive as it may be, it is through the weakness of preaching alone that the chains fall off.&nbsp;</p><p>Sex is beautiful creation of God. Lord forgive us for disfiguring your good purpose in it.&nbsp;</p></div></div></div> Fri, 13 Sep 2019 18:35:07 +0000 john_hendryx 579076 at The Gospel of Jesus Christ <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><a href="" target="_blank">PRINTABLE PDF</a><br /><br /><b>THE GOSPEL IS A MESSAGE ABOUT:</b></p><p><b>1. GOD</b></p><p><br />1. Is. 6:1-5, 5:16; Rev.4:8-11. God is Holy.</p><p><br />2. Dan. 4:35; Ps. 135:6. God is Sovereign.</p><p><br />3. 1 Jn. 4:8,16. God is Love.</p><p><br />4. Heb. 12:29. God is a Consuming Fire.</p><p><br />5. Gen. 17:1; Jer. 32:17; Is. 43:13; Amos 9:2-3. God is Omnipotent.</p><p><br />6. Ps. 139:1-6; Rom. 11:33-36. God is Omniscient</p><p><br />7. Jer. 23:23-24; Ps. 139:7-12. God is Omnipresent</p><p><br />8 Ps. 145:17. God Is Righteous.</p><p><br />9. Ex. 34:6-7. God is Merciful.</p><p><br />10. Rev. 29:11-15. God is a Judge.</p><p><br />11. Jn. 4:23-24. God is a Spirit.</p><p><br />12. 1 Jn. 5:7; 2 Cor.13:14; I Pet. 1:2. God is one God revealed in three distinct persons; Father, Son, &amp; Holy Spirit (trinity, not modalism).</p><p>13. Jn. 1:1-3, 14,18, 10:30-33, 17:5, 20:28; Acts 20:28; Rm. 9:5; Phi. 2:5-11; Col. 1:15-17, 2:9; I Tim. 3:16; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:1-12; II Pet. 1:1; Rev. 1:8. Jesus is God--YHWH.</p><p> </p><p><b>2. SIN</b></p><p><br />1. Gem. 2:15-17. Adam and Eve's disobedience resulted in spiritual and physical death.</p><p><br />2. Rom. 6:23. The wages of sin is death.</p><p><br />3. Dt. 6:4-5. However, before sin entered the world man's purpose was to serve God and glorify Him.</p><p><br />4. Matt. 22:34-40. Therefore, man is now living in an abnormal condition.</p><p><br />5. Rom. 3:10, 5:6-9; Lk. 5:31,32 There is none righteous, no not one!</p><p><br />6. Rom. 3:23. Everyone, without exception, is a sinner.</p><p><br />7. Rom 5:12. Adam's sin nature is inherited by all mankind.</p><p><br />8. Is. 64:6-7. God views our good deeds as “filthy rags.”</p><p><br />9. Eph. 2:8-9. God rejects our good works.</p><p><br />Ps. 51:5, 58:3. We are sinners from birth.</p><p><br />11. Jn. 3:19. Sinners love their sin.</p><p> </p></div></div></div> Sat, 07 Sep 2019 15:17:43 +0000 john_hendryx 579021 at Sinners Before an Infinitely Holy God <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>The following is a negative response by a visitor to the Christian belief that those who trust in their morality will end up in hell - that good morality is not what makes a Christian.</p><p><strong><em>Visitor</em></strong>:<br />I don&rsquo;t accept a belief system [like yours] that preaches equality. So even if I am a better human being I might deserve less in an afterlife?&nbsp;</p><p><strong><em>Response</em></strong>:<br />No one is good before an infinitely holy God. Anyone trying to approach the Sun would be instantly burned. How much more sinners trying to approach an infinitely holy God, apart from Christ.&nbsp;</p><p>If, because of our foolish decision, we end up stranded on an island and need to get back home 1000s of miles away. Consider: some people can&#39;t swim at all, others may be able to swim several miles. One is clearly a better swimmer than all the rest, but compared to the 1000s of miles necessary, the distance is negligible. I may swim one mile, the best swimmer 30 miles, but that only scratches the surface of the length needed for anyone to get home.&nbsp;</p><p>In that hypothetical example, I would be the worst swimmer in the group. The scum of humanity. But, in His mercy, God scrapped me off the bottom of the barrel. And His mercy keeps me off, none owing to myself. If there is hope for someone like me then there is hope for anyone.&nbsp;</p><p>When the prodigal son returned to his father after squandering everything, seeing him far off, the father ran to embrace him, then put the best robe on him and threw a party. But the older brother was angry with the father and refused to go in and celebrate, thinking he was more deserving. Self righteousness, it turns out, is just as much a sin as the other.</p></div></div></div> Tue, 03 Sep 2019 14:34:23 +0000 john_hendryx 578969 at How Do You Know All Things Can Be Explained by Natural Causes? <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><strong>Atheist</strong>: A supernatural explanation of the universe is wrong because it cannot be explained by natural causes.</p><p><strong>Response</strong>: Your assertion reveals an a priori commitment to naturalism. <em><strong>You conclude that all things must be explained by natural causes by assuming that all things must be explained by natural causes</strong></em>. This is a viciously circular argument - an arbitrary assertion, and as such, it is irrational. Why dismiss the possibility of creation? Any philosophy which arbitrarily&nbsp;(without justification) does away with ideas which are potentially true is poor philosophy.</p><p>Everyone has ultimate presuppositions which undergird their thinking but only the biblical explanation makes sense of the data of the real world we live in. The naturalistic explanation cannot account for things which underly the world, including logic, morality, free agency, meaning and the uniformity of the cosmos. The atheist uses all these things on a daily basis, of course, but cannot account for them. In fact, when held consistently, his view contradicts them. He is forced to behave AS IF these things have a basis, which is another way of saying he must pretend. On the other hand, the biblical view can account for all of them.</p></div></div></div> Mon, 02 Sep 2019 21:25:36 +0000 john_hendryx 578968 at Atheist Says You Should Not Lie to Your Children <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><strong>Atheist</strong>: It is wrong to teach the Bible to your children because you're lying to them.</p><p><strong>Response</strong>: Didn't you say you were an atheist who believes in evolution? Your assertion is actually self-refuting. I'll show why below.</p><p>First, I do believe lying is wrong. But for the sake of argument, if all human beings are merely chemical accidents, as you affirm, what does it matter whether I lie to someone, especially if it has survival value? How can you be outraged at mere chemical interactions?, since, according to you, that's what we are, and nothing more.</p><p>Second, as an atheist you claim there are no universally binding moral codes. Yet here you have appealed to some objective moral standard that you think is binding on me - that I am morally obligated to not teach the bible to my son. How do you know what is wrong, not just for yourself, but for others? By what standard?</p><p>You see, your assertion is self-refuting because, by appealing to objective morality, you just acknowledged that (although suppressed) deep down you believe in God, a universal lawgiver. For universally binding moral laws don't come from rocks.</p><p>I believe atheists have morals. There are many very moral atheists that I personally know..We know atheists have morals. Off course. They were created in God's image so they cannot escape the fact that we are moral beings. That is not the question at all. The question is how do atheists account for universally binding morality? Atheists claim to be moral relativists but then turn around and say that other people are morally wrong. That is a contradiction. As soon as you say <em>others </em>are immoral, you are no longer a relativist. <br /><br />It is one thing to say you have moral preferences for yourself, it is quite another to be morally outraged and say OTHERS are morally obligated to follow your morality. I ask again, by what standard? Yours?</p><p>----</p></div></div></div> Thu, 29 Aug 2019 16:27:19 +0000 john_hendryx 578897 at Can Objective Morality be Arrived at by Unaided Reason Alone? <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><strong>Atheist: </strong>Objective morality can be arrived at with reason alone and we should all be obligated to live by it. Right is simply what makes the most people happy.</p><p><strong>Response: </strong>I am not sure you understand the implications of your assertions. Given your worldview you have no reason to believe in a moral imperative that is true for everyone. Who decides? And to whom is everyone accountable? And by what standard? In an accidental universe, whatever happens, just happens. Chemical reactions simply follow the law of physics.</p><p>To claim that morality is OBJECTIVE is like saying that they are like the laws of logic, which are true for everyone, regardless of where they were born and what culture they were brought up in. The law of non-contradiction, for example, is true regardless of whether you were born in Mexico or Indonesia. And, as you know, these abstract and immaterial laws of logic do not change with time and are always true without exception. Is that what you mean by objective morality? And what is to prevent your neighbor from creating a different morality than you? Why should your view be the accepted view?</p><p>In an accidental universe why would there be universal standards? Therefore it is quite plain that morality could never be objective in a strictly atheistic material universe. To claim something like right is something that makes the most people happy is to make an arbitrary assertion. Why should people be obligated to follow THAT particular preference? And even if they did, they might have a different definition of happiness. And how could one chemical reaction be morally obligated to another? If we are merely the reaction of chemistry over time why does anyone deserve respect?</p></div></div></div> Thu, 29 Aug 2019 02:06:47 +0000 john_hendryx 578896 at Repentance in the Ordo Salutis <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Repentance is not forsaking sin that you may turn to Christ. It is turning to Christ that you might forsake sin.</p><p>When we trust in Jesus Christ we do not simply go to a generic Jesus, but to Jesus Christ, the Savior from sin (Matt 1:21). You do not merely believe in Jesus' existence to be saved (James 2:19) but you trust in him to redeem you from the guilt and tyranny of sin. So when you initially go to him in faith, that us what you are trusting in him for.</p><p>The command to repent and believe does not assume the moral ability to do so. For this to happen, the Holy Spirit must show us the misery of our sin and create in our heart the desire to be free from it (Ezek 36:26, John 6:63, 65) Then initial repentance is, seeing we cannot save ourselves from sin, we turn to Christ to rescue us from it. That turning to Christ could be called initial repentance because you no longer want to be under the tyranny of sin, but since you cannot break the shackles of sin yourself you still need Christ, so the actual forsaking of sin only occurs when Christ has broken its bondage and liberated us from its tyranny.</p><p>So if people are taught they must first clean themselves up BEFORE Christ will accept them, you have no small doctrinal error.</p><p>Calvin said, </p><blockquote><p>"Forgiveness of sins can never come to anyone without repentance, because only those afflicted and wounded by the awareness of sins can sincerely invoke God's mercy... But at the same time that repentance is not the cause of forgiveness of sins....the sinner does not dwell upon his own compunction or tears, but fixes both eyes upon the Lord's mercy alone." -John Calvin 3.4.3</p></blockquote><p>No repentance unless God grants it in Christ (2 Tim 2:25-26)</p></div></div></div> Mon, 26 Aug 2019 20:25:14 +0000 john_hendryx 578868 at Why do Christian's Always Talk About Salvation? <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>What do Christians mean when they say that people need to be "saved"?</p><p>Do we mean that people need to just modify their behavior and obey God's law? It would be great if it were that simple, but that is not what we mean. </p><p>It means, rather, that human beings are prisoners, captives and slaves to their idols, to their own lusts, to the world system and to the devil. That we cannot extract ourselves from these things because, like those who have Stockholm syndrome, we have fallen in love with our captors, i.e. we love those things which are doing us the most harm. And while we all vaguely recognize that something is not right in the world and with the nature of human beings, we tend to shrug this off, suppress and ignore it, and willingly come under the illusion that we live in freedom. We cling to the falsehood of human progress and and think human ingenuity will somehow deliver us from ourselves and our problems. </p><p>We pridefully hold to the false idea that we are something and can do something to make things right. But in the end we cannot extract ourselves from our captivity. No wisdom, no plan, no power, no understanding, and no technology can do so. The problem runs far too deep in us for that. Like the Hebrews in Egypt we are slaves needing rescue from our captivity. The tyranny of our idols and lusts are too powerful for nature to conquer. We need redemption from the outside. </p><p>So salvation is not behavior modification. No. We are too entangled in the web of our own making to get out. We first need supernatural intervention by One like us who breaks the bonds and leads us out of slavery. Then, and only then, after being freed from our captors are we free to do right, to love mercy and do justly and to walk humbly with our God.</p></div></div></div> Thu, 22 Aug 2019 17:49:57 +0000 john_hendryx 578794 at Be Content With Your Present Condition <div class="field field-name-field-body field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><h3>by Thomas Brooks</h3><p>If the saints have such an excellent, such a transcendent, and such a matchless portion, oh then, let them be content with their present condition, let them sit down satisfied and contented, though they have but a handful of meal in their barrel, and a little oil in a cruse, 1 Kings 17:12. O sirs, in having of God you have much, in having of God you have enough, in having of God you have all; and why then should you not sit down quiet with your present allowance? Certainly, if much will not satisfy you, if enough will not satisfy you, if all will not satisfy you, nothing will satisfy you: Heb. 13:5, 'Let your conversation be without covetousness (or love of silver, as the Greek word signifies); and be content with such things as you have (or as the Greek hath it, ἀρκούμενοι τοῖς παρουσιν, be content with present things): for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.' There are five negatives in the Greek, 'I will not, not, not, not, not leave thee nor forsake thee;' fully to assure and fully to satisfy the people of God that he will never forsake them, and that he will everlastingly stick close to them. What doth this unparalleled gemination, 'I will never, never, never, never, never,' import but this, 'I will ever, ever, ever, yea and for ever and ever take care of thee, and look after thee, and be mindful of thee.' Though they had changed their glory for contempt, Heb. 11:36–38, their fine raiment for sheep-skins and goat-skins, their silver for brass, their plenty for scarcity, their fulness for emptiness, their stately houses for holes and caves, and dens of the earth, yet they are to be contented and satisfied with present things, upon this very ground, that God will always cleave to them, and that he will never turn his back upon them.</p></div></div></div> Tue, 20 Aug 2019 23:48:09 +0000 john_hendryx 578778 at