"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." Philippians 4:8 ESV
Paul exhorts us to learn to think on the right things; things that will enlarge your heart, mind, affections, and life. Here’s one practical but absolutely radical way that you can apply this verse and begin to think these things: talk to yourself instead of listening to yourself.
Martyn Lloyd Jones, in his profound book called Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Its Cure says: “Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Talking to yourself instead of listening to yourself is Philippians 4:8 in action. . There is magnificent truth, designed for our meditation and the enlargement and liberation of our soul. Speaking the truth to ourselves is a powerful means of us becoming what we ought to be.
Take a moment to examine your thinking yesterday. Did you spend most of your time speaking truth to yourself or listening to yourself? Most of us spend more time listening to lies than we do speaking truth to ourselves. And the listening process usually starts as soon as we get up. As we get out of bed, the listening begins and we are vulnerable to be at the mercy of our thoughts throughout the day. See, what we have each day is an internal conversation that never ends. It is ceaseless. It continues always within us. And so each day, throughout the day, we have two simple choices: We can either spend the day listening to ourselves, listening to ourselves in our constantly changing feelings and circumstantial interpretations, or we can declare war on our thoughts by talking to ourselves and speaking the truth. We can talk truth to ourselves. We can preach the gospel to ourselves, and we can address our fearful, worried, tempted, tempted, troubled, and tormented mind with the truth pf Scripture.
A great example of this is David in Psalm 42 and 121. Notice there is one voice speaking to David in Psalm 42:5. "Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?" David hears himself saying that he is depressed, discouraged, and anxious. But then David speaks to himself ,"Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God" (Psalm 42:5-6). Now David preaches to himself, "Soul, stop being depressed! hope in God, trust in God soul. He is my salvation. He is God!"
What are you mulling over these days? What does your mind return to again and again? Our thoughts cannot be trusted. And circumstances often lie to us. They lie to us, informing us that God isn't sovereign; God isn't wise, God isn't kind, God isn't active, God isn't present, God isn't for us—in fact, he has forgotten us. We, by the grace of God, must not be governed by our minds. We must not be governed by our faulty interpretation of circumstances. NO! We must take these truths in Scripture and then, by the grace of God, speak to your mind. By the grace of God cease listening to your mind and instead speak to your mind with the promises of God, and these promises will transform your mind from a shriveled up, small, troubled and enslaved soul into a large, beautiful, free and hopeful soul.
Here is how I preach to myself. I am feeling hopeless, "Bill, hope in God". I am getting impatient. "Bill, you must wait on God." I am feeling like my world is out of control. "Bill, God is sovereign and He is faithful and He is kind. He is God and He will intervene." I am feeling purposeless and going nowhere. "Bill, God will fulfill His promises and His purpose for our lives." My mind says God won’t forgive me. "Bill, Jesus says if I confess my sins He is faithful to forgive all my sins!" My mind says that I’m a loser. "Bill, you have been predestined to be conformed to the very image of Christ!" I feel that I’m all alone. "Bill, Jesus says that He will never leave me nor will He ever forsake me!" Jesus says, "I am with you always!" M y mind says, another boring meaningless day. "Bill, this the day the Lord has made! Redeem the time, make the most of every opportunity. Don't waste your life!"
The good news today is this: This moment, you can begin to talk to your mind. You can begin sowing truth to your mind. And if you begin this very moment, this will ensure that you will reap the effect of truth in your mind and heart, and life at some point in the future. If you are convinced—and I assume you are convinced by the apostle Paul—of the importance of this practice, and if you employ this practice, by God's grace this will have a transforming effect and make a noticeable difference in your life. Find the true, the honorable, the right, the pure, the lovely, the commendable, the excellent, and praiseworthy and think about it!
Talk to yourself instead of listening to yourself.
Striving to talk to myself soul expanding and heart enlarging truth,
Pastor Bill
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
THE BLIND EYE AND THE DEAF EAR
In over 32 years of ministry I have received a large share of compliments and criticism in my relationships with others. Oh how vulnerable we are to be influenced by man's opinions and words about us! Recently I have been the victim of some criticism and slander that has brought to my attention my failure in my response and the attitude and response that God would have me to have exercise towards my critics. I have learned the importance of what Charles Spurgeon calls having one blind eye and one deaf ear. It is good advice not only for pastors but for us all.
He bases this on Ecclesiastes 7:21, "Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you." When words are spoken do not let them weigh with you, do not notice them, or act as if you heard them. Spurgeon writes in his Lectures to My Students:
You cannot stop people's tongues, and therefore the best thing is to stop your own ears and never mind what is spoken. There is a world of idle chit- chat abroad, and he who takes note of it will have enough to do. He will find that even those who live with him are not always singing his praises, and that when he has displeased his most faithful servants, they have, in the heat of the moment, spoken fierce words which it would be better for him not to have heard. ..Tacitus describes a wise man as saying to one that railed at him, "You are lord of your tongue, but I am also master of my ears"--you may say what you please, but I will only hear what I choose.We cannot shut our ears as we do our eyes, for we have no ear lids, and yet, as we read of him that "stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood," it is, no doubt, possible to seal the portal of the ear so that nothing contraband shall enter. We would say to the general gossip of the village, and of the unadvised words of angry friends--do not hear them, or if you must hear them, do not lay them to heart.'
When stepping into a new congregation that is laced with backbiting and gossip, Spurgeon said,
It is the extreme of unwisdom for a young man fresh from college, or from another charge, to suffer himself to be earwigged by a clique, and to be bribed by kindness and flattery to become a partisan, and so to ruin himself with one-half of his people. Know nothing of parties and cliques, but be the pastor of all the flock, and care for all alike. Blessed are the peacemakers, and one sure way of peacemaking is to let the fire of contention alone. Neither fan it, nor stir it, nor add fuel to it, but let it go out of itself. Begin your ministry with one blind eye and one deaf ear.
Spurgeon encouraged for ministers to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear towards gossip, false reports, about yourself, and criticism. He applied this by warning those commencing on a new ministry that, “As soon as you enter your pastorate you may be waited upon by persons who are anxious to secure your adhesion to their side in a family quarrel or church dispute; be deaf and blind to these people, and assure them that bygones must be bygones with you, and that as you have not inherited your predecessors cupboard, you do not mean to eat his cold meat.”
He goes on to advise, “The blind eye and the deaf ear will come in exceedingly well in connection with the gossips of the place” ...Never hear what was not meant for you” ...To opinions and remarks about yourself, turn also as a general rule, the blind eye and the deaf ear”...In the case of false reports against yourself, for the most part, use the deaf ear” .
His advice was clearly given from personal experience drawn from years of pastoral ministry and those of us who follow in his steps would agree with his conclusion, “I have one blind eye and one deaf ear, and they are the best eye and ear that I have.
I recently read again the biography of another pastor who turned the blind eye and the deaf ear named Charles Simeon. He was wronged by Christians in so many ways during his 54 year service as the pastor of Trinity Church in Cambridge England. His policy towards compliments and criticism was the same: "My rule is never to hear or see, or know what if heard or seen or known, would call for animadversion from me. Hence I dwell in peace in the midst of lions"
In otherwords, it is best in life not to be too concerned what other people think or speak about us. When others speak well about us or flatter us, it can swell our heads with pride and self exaltation. Conversely when others criticize us or speak poorly of us we can become easily discouraged. If they lie or slander us, we can become angry and bitter. All these responses are sinful. Therefore, it is best for us to simply turn the blind eye and deaf ear and allow God, His word, and close friends to be the measure of our self assessment.
"Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God." 2 Corinthians 4:5
"For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends" 2 Corinthians 10:18
Seeking to turn the blind eye and the deaf ear and desiring only commendation and approval from God alone,
Pastor Bill
He bases this on Ecclesiastes 7:21, "Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you." When words are spoken do not let them weigh with you, do not notice them, or act as if you heard them. Spurgeon writes in his Lectures to My Students:
You cannot stop people's tongues, and therefore the best thing is to stop your own ears and never mind what is spoken. There is a world of idle chit- chat abroad, and he who takes note of it will have enough to do. He will find that even those who live with him are not always singing his praises, and that when he has displeased his most faithful servants, they have, in the heat of the moment, spoken fierce words which it would be better for him not to have heard. ..Tacitus describes a wise man as saying to one that railed at him, "You are lord of your tongue, but I am also master of my ears"--you may say what you please, but I will only hear what I choose.We cannot shut our ears as we do our eyes, for we have no ear lids, and yet, as we read of him that "stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood," it is, no doubt, possible to seal the portal of the ear so that nothing contraband shall enter. We would say to the general gossip of the village, and of the unadvised words of angry friends--do not hear them, or if you must hear them, do not lay them to heart.'
When stepping into a new congregation that is laced with backbiting and gossip, Spurgeon said,
It is the extreme of unwisdom for a young man fresh from college, or from another charge, to suffer himself to be earwigged by a clique, and to be bribed by kindness and flattery to become a partisan, and so to ruin himself with one-half of his people. Know nothing of parties and cliques, but be the pastor of all the flock, and care for all alike. Blessed are the peacemakers, and one sure way of peacemaking is to let the fire of contention alone. Neither fan it, nor stir it, nor add fuel to it, but let it go out of itself. Begin your ministry with one blind eye and one deaf ear.
Spurgeon encouraged for ministers to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear towards gossip, false reports, about yourself, and criticism. He applied this by warning those commencing on a new ministry that, “As soon as you enter your pastorate you may be waited upon by persons who are anxious to secure your adhesion to their side in a family quarrel or church dispute; be deaf and blind to these people, and assure them that bygones must be bygones with you, and that as you have not inherited your predecessors cupboard, you do not mean to eat his cold meat.”
He goes on to advise, “The blind eye and the deaf ear will come in exceedingly well in connection with the gossips of the place” ...Never hear what was not meant for you” ...To opinions and remarks about yourself, turn also as a general rule, the blind eye and the deaf ear”...In the case of false reports against yourself, for the most part, use the deaf ear” .
His advice was clearly given from personal experience drawn from years of pastoral ministry and those of us who follow in his steps would agree with his conclusion, “I have one blind eye and one deaf ear, and they are the best eye and ear that I have.
I recently read again the biography of another pastor who turned the blind eye and the deaf ear named Charles Simeon. He was wronged by Christians in so many ways during his 54 year service as the pastor of Trinity Church in Cambridge England. His policy towards compliments and criticism was the same: "My rule is never to hear or see, or know what if heard or seen or known, would call for animadversion from me. Hence I dwell in peace in the midst of lions"
In otherwords, it is best in life not to be too concerned what other people think or speak about us. When others speak well about us or flatter us, it can swell our heads with pride and self exaltation. Conversely when others criticize us or speak poorly of us we can become easily discouraged. If they lie or slander us, we can become angry and bitter. All these responses are sinful. Therefore, it is best for us to simply turn the blind eye and deaf ear and allow God, His word, and close friends to be the measure of our self assessment.
"Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God." 2 Corinthians 4:5
"For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends" 2 Corinthians 10:18
Seeking to turn the blind eye and the deaf ear and desiring only commendation and approval from God alone,
Pastor Bill
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
LEARNING HABITUAL TENDERNESS FROM A MAN WHO WAS AMAZED BY GRACE
John Newton once said, "All I know is that I am a great sinner and Jesus is a great savior". Do you believe that? What does belief in my utter depravity and corruption and God's sovereign grace and mercy purchased by the blood of Jesus have upon my life and how I live? What affect does believing that I am a great sinner and Jesus is a great savior meant to have upon the way I relate to others?
Oh let us learn from John Newton! Born in 1725 and died in 1807, he is best know as the hymn writer of the great hymn Amazing Grace. He pastored two churches; Olney, for 16 years, and London, for 27 years. He was a contemporary and friend of John Wesley, George Whitefield, William Wilberforce, Henry Martyn, and Charles Simeon in the 18th century. In my opinion he was one of the greatest pastors in the history of the church. The reason that I feel this is because of what John Piper calls his habitual tenderness of spirit.
In scripture we are told to "not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and endurance inherit the promises" ( Hebrews 6:12). " Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their life and imitate their faith" (Hebrews 13:7).
John Newton was al leader exceedingly worthy for us to study and to imitate. He was a was a man who truly testified to the mercy of God towards him. He was throughout his life a man truly amazed by grace. At the end of his life his last will and testament reads:
I commit my soul to my gracious God and Savior, who mercifully spared and preserved me, when I was an apostate, a blasphemer, and an infidel, and delivered me from the state of misery on the coast of Africa into which my obstinate wickedness had plunged me; and who has been pleased to admit me (though most unworthy) to preach his glorious gospel.
Have you, like Newton, gotten over the sheer wonder of Jesus Christ's amazing triumphant grace? Newton reminds us that a believer who has been shown such grace and mercy should be characterized by a life of habitual tenderness. In writing to a friend he describes the believer's life:
"He believes and feels his own weakness and unworthiness, and lives upon the grace and pardoning love of his Lord. This gives him a habitual tenderness and gentleness of spirit. "
Sometimes in my own life and in other Christians I have been appalled at the lack of tenderness and grace towards others. Oh how easily we forget don't we? I feel especially that my Reformed brethren who hold so dearly God's free, sovereign, unconditional, persevering, preserving, faith producing, electing grace towards corrupt sinners like us should exemplify habitual tenderness of spirit!
The effect of knowing God's love and grace should be lavish love, kindness, and mercy towards others. Newton says, "Humble under a sense of much forgiveness to himself; he finds it easy to forgive others." Another time Newton wrote,“Whoever has tasted of the love Christ, and has known, by his own experience, the need and the worth of redemption, is enabled, yes, he is constrained, to love his fellow creatures. He loves them at first sight.”
He puts it in a picture:
"A company of travellers fall into a pit: one of them gets a passenger to draw him out. Now he should not be angry with the rest for falling in; nor because they are not yet out, as he is. He did not pull himself out: instead, therefore, of reproaching them, he should shew them pity. . . . A man, truly illuminated, will no more despise others, then Bartimeus, after his own eyes were opened, would take a stick, and beat every blind man he met."
The default response of those shown grace is to love all people. When Newton speaks to unbelievers he speaks like this:
A well-wisher to your soul assures you, that whether you know these things or not, they are important realities. . . . Oh hear the warning voice! Flee from the wrath to come. Pray thee that the eyes of your mind may be opened, then you will see your danger, and gladly follow the shining light of the Word.
Newton had a firm grip on doctrine but he also knew how important it was to live and feel and speak what he knew and believed. What we believe can be discredited by failing to live and speak in the spirit of what we believe. Therefore, he says,
"The Scripture, which . . . teaches us what we are to say, is equally explicit as to the temper and Spirit in which we are to speak. Though I had knowledge of all mysteries, and the tongue of an angel to declare them, I could hope for little acceptance or usefulness, unless I was to speak 'in love."
Listen to what he says in this regard to his fellow Calvinists:
Of all people who engage in controversy, we, who are called Calvinists, are most expressly bound by our own principles to the exercise of gentleness and moderation. . . . The Scriptural maximum, that "The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God," is verified by daily observation. If our zeal is embittered by expressions of anger, invective, or scorn, we may think we are doing service to the cause of truth, when in reality we shall only bring it into discredit."
John Newton had drunk deeply from the fountain of grace, the cross of Jesus Christ. Have you? He was filled with joy and overflowing for those who weren't. His own self description of how he lived is days says:
Two heaps of happiness and misery; now if I can take the smallest bit from one heap and add to the other, I carry a point. If, as I go home, a child has dropped a halfpenny, and if, by giving it another, I can wipe away its tears, I feel that I have done something. I should be glad to do greater things, but I will not neglect this"
The cross of Jesus is the source of all love, mercy, and tenderness of spirit towards others. We all need to live our lives in very close proximity to the shadow of the blessed cross. For when we live beneath its shadow gratitude, amazement, and humility will be pervasive in our souls. listen to the amazement that Newton felt at the age of seventy-two:
"such a wretch should not only be spared and pardoned, but reserved to the honour of preaching thy Gospel, which he had blasphemed and renounced . . . this is wonderful indeed! The more thou hast exalted me, the more I ought to abase myself."
He wrote his own epitaph:
JOHN NEWTON,
Clerk,Once an Infidel and Libertine,A Servant of Slaves in Africa,Was,by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior JESUS CHRIST,Preserved, restored, pardoned,And appointed to preach the Faith He had long laboured to destroy,Near 16 years at Olney in Bucks;And [28] years in this church.
Glad-hearted, grateful lowliness and brokenness as a saved "wretch" was probably the most prominent root of Newton's habitual tenderness with people. The hymn we know as "Amazing Grace" was written to accompany a New Year's sermon based on 1 Chronicles 17:16, "Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me thus far?"
"Amazing grace! How sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me,I once was lost, but now am found,Was blind but now I see."
May amazement and habitual tenderness of spirit characterize your life as you see and savor the restoration and pardon that was blood bought and freely given to you by the undeserved grace of our great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Pastor Bill
Oh let us learn from John Newton! Born in 1725 and died in 1807, he is best know as the hymn writer of the great hymn Amazing Grace. He pastored two churches; Olney, for 16 years, and London, for 27 years. He was a contemporary and friend of John Wesley, George Whitefield, William Wilberforce, Henry Martyn, and Charles Simeon in the 18th century. In my opinion he was one of the greatest pastors in the history of the church. The reason that I feel this is because of what John Piper calls his habitual tenderness of spirit.
In scripture we are told to "not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and endurance inherit the promises" ( Hebrews 6:12). " Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their life and imitate their faith" (Hebrews 13:7).
John Newton was al leader exceedingly worthy for us to study and to imitate. He was a was a man who truly testified to the mercy of God towards him. He was throughout his life a man truly amazed by grace. At the end of his life his last will and testament reads:
I commit my soul to my gracious God and Savior, who mercifully spared and preserved me, when I was an apostate, a blasphemer, and an infidel, and delivered me from the state of misery on the coast of Africa into which my obstinate wickedness had plunged me; and who has been pleased to admit me (though most unworthy) to preach his glorious gospel.
Have you, like Newton, gotten over the sheer wonder of Jesus Christ's amazing triumphant grace? Newton reminds us that a believer who has been shown such grace and mercy should be characterized by a life of habitual tenderness. In writing to a friend he describes the believer's life:
"He believes and feels his own weakness and unworthiness, and lives upon the grace and pardoning love of his Lord. This gives him a habitual tenderness and gentleness of spirit. "
Sometimes in my own life and in other Christians I have been appalled at the lack of tenderness and grace towards others. Oh how easily we forget don't we? I feel especially that my Reformed brethren who hold so dearly God's free, sovereign, unconditional, persevering, preserving, faith producing, electing grace towards corrupt sinners like us should exemplify habitual tenderness of spirit!
The effect of knowing God's love and grace should be lavish love, kindness, and mercy towards others. Newton says, "Humble under a sense of much forgiveness to himself; he finds it easy to forgive others." Another time Newton wrote,“Whoever has tasted of the love Christ, and has known, by his own experience, the need and the worth of redemption, is enabled, yes, he is constrained, to love his fellow creatures. He loves them at first sight.”
He puts it in a picture:
"A company of travellers fall into a pit: one of them gets a passenger to draw him out. Now he should not be angry with the rest for falling in; nor because they are not yet out, as he is. He did not pull himself out: instead, therefore, of reproaching them, he should shew them pity. . . . A man, truly illuminated, will no more despise others, then Bartimeus, after his own eyes were opened, would take a stick, and beat every blind man he met."
The default response of those shown grace is to love all people. When Newton speaks to unbelievers he speaks like this:
A well-wisher to your soul assures you, that whether you know these things or not, they are important realities. . . . Oh hear the warning voice! Flee from the wrath to come. Pray thee that the eyes of your mind may be opened, then you will see your danger, and gladly follow the shining light of the Word.
Newton had a firm grip on doctrine but he also knew how important it was to live and feel and speak what he knew and believed. What we believe can be discredited by failing to live and speak in the spirit of what we believe. Therefore, he says,
"The Scripture, which . . . teaches us what we are to say, is equally explicit as to the temper and Spirit in which we are to speak. Though I had knowledge of all mysteries, and the tongue of an angel to declare them, I could hope for little acceptance or usefulness, unless I was to speak 'in love."
Listen to what he says in this regard to his fellow Calvinists:
Of all people who engage in controversy, we, who are called Calvinists, are most expressly bound by our own principles to the exercise of gentleness and moderation. . . . The Scriptural maximum, that "The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God," is verified by daily observation. If our zeal is embittered by expressions of anger, invective, or scorn, we may think we are doing service to the cause of truth, when in reality we shall only bring it into discredit."
John Newton had drunk deeply from the fountain of grace, the cross of Jesus Christ. Have you? He was filled with joy and overflowing for those who weren't. His own self description of how he lived is days says:
Two heaps of happiness and misery; now if I can take the smallest bit from one heap and add to the other, I carry a point. If, as I go home, a child has dropped a halfpenny, and if, by giving it another, I can wipe away its tears, I feel that I have done something. I should be glad to do greater things, but I will not neglect this"
The cross of Jesus is the source of all love, mercy, and tenderness of spirit towards others. We all need to live our lives in very close proximity to the shadow of the blessed cross. For when we live beneath its shadow gratitude, amazement, and humility will be pervasive in our souls. listen to the amazement that Newton felt at the age of seventy-two:
"such a wretch should not only be spared and pardoned, but reserved to the honour of preaching thy Gospel, which he had blasphemed and renounced . . . this is wonderful indeed! The more thou hast exalted me, the more I ought to abase myself."
He wrote his own epitaph:
JOHN NEWTON,
Clerk,Once an Infidel and Libertine,A Servant of Slaves in Africa,Was,by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior JESUS CHRIST,Preserved, restored, pardoned,And appointed to preach the Faith He had long laboured to destroy,Near 16 years at Olney in Bucks;And [28] years in this church.
Glad-hearted, grateful lowliness and brokenness as a saved "wretch" was probably the most prominent root of Newton's habitual tenderness with people. The hymn we know as "Amazing Grace" was written to accompany a New Year's sermon based on 1 Chronicles 17:16, "Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me thus far?"
"Amazing grace! How sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me,I once was lost, but now am found,Was blind but now I see."
May amazement and habitual tenderness of spirit characterize your life as you see and savor the restoration and pardon that was blood bought and freely given to you by the undeserved grace of our great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Pastor Bill
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