October 23, 2012…Core Aspects of Christian Faith – Powerful Teaching by Pastor John MacArthur

“Becoming a Christian means being sick of your sin, longing for forgiveness and rescue from present evil and future hell, and affirming your commitment to the Lordship of Christ to the point where you are willing to forsake everything. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: it isn’t just holding up your hand or walking down an aisle and saying, ‘I love Jesus.’”

–John MacArthur

Best-selling author and Pastor John MacArthur reminds us that God is sovereign, that nothing happens without the will of God, including one’s Salvation.  He talks in more detail about Salvation as the sole will of God (sole sovereignty) versus how good we are as Christians and persons (evaluation).

“Whom He justified, these He also glorified (Romans 8:30)”

He also reminds us that God chooses to love us (Deuteronomy 7:6-7), but He is not obliged to do so.  Pastor MacArthur tries to bring light to our love/hate relationship with God making several references to contradictions found in the Bible.

MacArthur advises to submit ourselves to God’s will (chapters 2 & 3), live Christian-ly correctly (ch. 4) and confess our flaws to receive the God’s Grace (ch. 5 & 6).

“Many people claim to follow Jesus. Many people claim to be His disciples, and many always have. But in these verses in Matthew, our Lord pointed to the proof of genuineness. This is the mark of a real follower of Christ.”

– in reference to Matthew 10:38-39.

This is a great little book, highly recommended for new believers and fresh reminders for those who have walked for a while.  Would recommend  the other two companion books in this series:  “The Truth About Grace”, and “The Truth About Forgiveness”.

Well Done, good and faithful servant Dr. Graham, Well Done, May 1, 2012

I requested Billy Graham’s “Nearing Home” book in November of 2011.  I have deeply admired Dr. Graham, his ministry, divine wisdom, and love for his Lord and Savior.  I have always believed him to be our modern-day prophet.  In this day, there are few that can even come close to that title.  He has always held himself to the Lord’s standards, and not only preached it, but lived his life as an example for the Lord.  Even with all my deep respect, love and admiration for this man that I have never met personally, it was with a little hesitation that I requested this book.  And thus, put off reading it until just recently, April of 2012.  Really, my hesitation was purely selfish – not wanting to face the inevitable fact that Billy Graham was nearing leaving this sinful world to live eternity with his Lord and Savior.   The thought of Billy Graham not on this earth to “be our lifeline, our connection to God” was a bit scary to me.  Yes, it sounds like I am glorifying Billy Graham, rather than his Maker.  But truly, that’s probably how the Israelites felt after Moses died – not really worshipping the man, but respecting the man whom God used so mightily.  So, with that said, realizing I must lean on the Lord, I finally picked up “Nearing Home” late April of 2012, with a box of Kleenex’s nearby, just in case my little heart became soft.

Right off the bat I was hit with my own purpose, calling and demise in my life.  What have I done for the Lord?  Have I lived my life for Him?  Have I followed in His calling for my life?  Will He say “Well done” when my days on earth are done?  These are questions we will all have to answer for.  For me, there certainly are days that I am not proud of.  Dr. Graham encourages us to “not retire from life”, but until our dying breath, God has a reason for keeping us here.  What a statement of hope that is!  We are commanded to care for others; “feed my sheep” were the words Jesus spoke to Peter before He ascended into Heaven.  Dr. Graham wisely states, “even if on our death bed, or an invalid, fill your mind with the knowledge of the Lord, as you impact those around you with hope”.

The love that is in the pages of this book totally shattered my hesitation, and actually encouraged and lifted my eyes upward.  Not only does Dr. Graham give practical advice to those who are in their elderly years, but he also gives wisdom to those who are younger:  to plan for the future, to think about your actions today that may affect your tomorrows, to practice forgiveness (“one of the most beautiful words in the human vocabulary” – I love that!), to build our lives on Christ.  Then, by the time we are elderly, our roots will have developed and strengthened, knowing that our present is not our future.  What wisdom.

In conclusion, I loved the last paragraph that Dr. Graham used in the introduction of his book:

“Someday our life’s journey will be over.  In a sense, we all are nearing home.  As we do so, I pray that you and I may not only learn what it means to grow older but, with God’s help, also learn to grow older with grace and find the guidance needed to finish well”.

Amen.  Thank you, Dr. Graham for your words about "Life, Faith and Finishing Well”.