By the Grace of God - I Am what I Am!

It's been a bit of a week of considering this age-old issue of "indwelling sin". For me it's one that tends to come and go depending on what I am reading. Yesterday I was considering John Piper and his decision to take a break to;

"... not making peace, but war, with my own sins".

I am so full of admiration for Piper's candour and honesty. My amazing friend Jon Cressey commented SO rightly; "I need 3 life times to have this much character". And I hope and pray that Piper returns from his leave refreshed and revived in his ministry and his marriage. But I hope that he is not disappointed if he returns and finds that his war on sin in his life maybe not over in the way he sees it.

I was amazed and thrilled to read Terry Virgo's latest "Firstline" in the latest Newfrontiers magazine where he deals with exactly this issue. The context to Terry writing the issue was strangely familiar;

"I was expounding Ephesians 2 and celebrating the fact that we are new creations, created in Christ Jesus. We are called ‘saints’, holy ones, and are certainly no longer regarded as ‘sinners’ ... After one of my previously mentioned sermons, a handsome young man approached me with, ‘Surely we are essentially still sinners aren’t we?’ He then began literally shedding tears and confessed to serious problems in the realm of sexual temptation".

Some may applaud the young man for his honesty and ask him to continue weeping over such sin. Terry did not.

"I opened Romans 6 with him for fifteen minutes, asking him Paul’s robust question, ‘Are we to continue in sin …?’ and showing him Paul’s even more forthright answer, ‘By no means!’ (King James, ‘God forbid!’). followed by his clear argument, ‘How shall we who died to sin still live in it?’. The young man seemed surprised, maybe expecting the answer, ‘Well of course we do still struggle with sin because essentially we are still sinners.’ Paul did not take that line!".

The result to Terry's wonderful personal teaching (I admit to feeling very jealous) was this;

"(Terry told him) As a new creation he has the power to rule his members. He was called to live free from slavery to sin because he was not a sinner but a saint. After our chat his countenance changed, his eyes looked brighter and I think a flicker of hope had replaced the inevitability he had felt that as a sinner he was still bound to sin".

Here is the MAIN point that perfectly (as Terry does so wonderfully and frequently for me) sums up the situation here;

"The Cross amazes me and fills me with wonder and worship, praise and thanksgiving! To insist on still calling myself a sinner could not add value to the Cross for me. Indeed, to call myself essentially a sinner actually dishonours the wonder of the gospel".

Surely that is the MAIN thing about the glorious Gospel! Terry goes on;

"If I insist on teaching that Christians are still essentially sinners, what is the Good News? Has anybody got some better news?".

I admit to a degree of frustration with my friends from Sovereign Grace Ministries. I dearly love a number of them and appreciate and value the emphasis on the Cross that they bring through some of their good teaching. However the emphasis and debates I have on indwelling sin (while loving the debates and discussion!) saddens me - that the door is wide open to condemnation and guilt and fear (emotions and feelings I am so familiar with) through being told; "You must do ... do ... do" rather than the Gospel emphasis; "It's done .... it's done .... it's done!".

A final word from Terry:

"Terry, are you saying that you never sin?’ Sadly in this age of conflict with the world, the flesh and the devil I do, but I sin as a saint with all the sadness and inappropriateness of it – not as a sinner with all the inevitability that that suggests".

Time to Step Upto the Block!

I was interested to read John Piper's latest blog; "John Piper's Upcoming Leave". For those who haven't read it - Piper announces that he is shortly going to go on leave until December 2010. Unlike his previous sabbaticals this will not be a flurry of productivity (usual Piper) with books that we can enjoy and benefit from. He wrote;

"In this leave, I intend to let go of all of it. No book-writing. No sermon preparation or preaching. No blogging. No Twitter. No articles. No reports. No papers. And no speaking engagements".

Bad news for Piper fans. Why is Piper doing this?

"I asked the elders to consider this leave because of a growing sense that my soul, my marriage, my family, and my ministry-pattern need a reality check from the Holy Spirit ... I see several species of pride in my soul that, while they may not rise to the level of disqualifying me for ministry, grieve me, and have taken a toll on my relationship with Noël and others who are dear to me".

There may be some who wonder why Piper is taking this leave and what's going on - and I confess I'm one of them. But my wondering about Piper the man is overridden by the challenge facing the generation he leaves for a season.

My friend Pete Day and I like to think of these living heroes of the faith as "teachers" in the analogy of a school. Students rely on full-time teachers that come day by day and impart knowledge (local pastor/teachers). But some key teachers only come part-time or sometimes once a term to teach a key lesson (apostles/prophets/national pastor/teachers). John Piper is to many thousands just that - a teacher that we value and love.

But he's going away - and there is nothing we can do about it. For those who over-rely on his teaching, his blogs, his Twitter, and his books - there is a problem! They are going to find a Piper-shaped void. I think that our generation has a challenge and an opportunity to step up and see the amazing productivity that John Piper rolls out month by month. He writes, he prays, he blogs, he tweets, he lives the message that he loves and believes in.

What about us? Do we moan and whinge that we don't have "time" to blog or write or tweet or share what is on our heart? Maybe there is nothing on our hearts! Maybe that is a truth we must honestly confront and go and live in the Word of God and under the hovering Presence of the Holy Spirit. Find the message! Live the message! And then write and share that message. Even if John Piper does return in December to us as he left us - if not better - (and we pray he does) - he will go to glory one day and will not be with us forever.

Where are the John Pipers of our generation? The visionaries who believe in and are prepared to die for the vision they have seen?

Hope for the Future by Remembering the Past

The tension between remembering the past and gazing to the future is a problematic one at times. Too many Christians tend to gaze fondly back at the past and say; "If only the old days ...". However I find that remembering God's actions in the past are one of the most sure and firm ways of encouragement and of building faith when the present seems to be absent or devoid of the manifest Presence of God. The devil tries to attack our faith by asking; "Does God really still do that today?". If we look back at the past we know for a sure fact He DOES and He WILL again!

So just a short quote from Restoration Magazine - November 1976. Arthur Wallis wrote this in the editorial letter;

"The Dales Bible Week almost defies description. At times waves of praise and worship seemed to roll over the congregation like the sound of many waters. At other times we knew the awesome silence of God's presence amongst us. The thousands present responded with the leap of faith to the ministry of the Word delivered in such rich anointing of authority and faith. What a tremendous foretaste of the ever increasing multitude who will fill the earth with the song of praise and share in the rule of righteousness".

He did it before! He can do it again!

New Wine Magazine - July 1983

This is one of my favourite copies of New Wine Magazine - the July 1983 edition - marking the release of Dr Ern Baxter's latest book; "I Almost Died!". I actually have it framed on my bedroom wall - and decided to put it into PDF format so that it is preserved and protected!

I will never forget probably "the" Shepherding Movement historian - S David Moore who wrote; "The Shepherding Movement: Controversy and Charismatic Ecclesiology" made a comment:

"...essential for an accurate history of the Shepherding movement is a complete collection of New Wine. The magazine published from 1969 through to 1986 was the principal publishing voice of the five teachers and the movement."

It is my belief that these journals - New Wine Magazine and the Restoration Magazine here in the UK - were the key and unique element for the Charismatic Movement. Far more people read these magazines than would usually sit down to read a "theological" tome so it is highly likely that the charismatic teachers such as Ern Baxter or Bob Mumford or Terry Virgo or Bryn Jones reached a massive audience at that time.

And their message should not be lost!

A Report from Christchurch, Newport (SGM)

I've probably been one of SGM's more outspoken critics over the past few years or so - but I have always hoped that if I was proved wrong then I wouldn't be afraid to say so. So today I went to a Sovereign Grace Ministries church for the first time in about five years for my nephew's dedication - Christchurch, Newport - which is very much the "flagship" SGM church in the UK pastored by Peter Griesley.

I had an amazing time in which I was indeed proved wrong and thought the best way to report on it was to use the "Ship of Fools - Mystery Worshipper" format. That will help me waffle less:

Denomination:

Sovereign Grace Ministries - a "family" of churches.

The building:

Intriguingly an old telephone exchange - and the building looks like one too.

The neighborhood:

The M4 motorway.

The cast:

Dave Taylor (the "Executive" pastor) who led worship and his band. Peter Greasley (the Senior Pastor).

What was the name of the service?

Sunday Meeting.

How full was the building?

There were 600 chairs laid out and I didn't see many empty chairs.

Did anyone welcome you personally?

Yes. There were car park attendants to direct my family mobile and were stewards on the door who smiled and said "Hello" and gave me an update leaflet. Peter Greasley the senior pastor also grabbed me and said "hello - great to see you" (I should add this is probably cheating as we had previously agreed to speak to arrange a meeting!).

Was your pew comfortable?

It was a grey plastic chair with minimal padding. Not the most comfortable - but also I have sat on far worse pews.

How would you describe the pre-service atmosphere?

Lively, loud and excitable.

What were the exact opening words of the service?

"Hello ... can anyone come and sit down and let's get started".

What books did the congregation use during the service?

None. There was a projector which displayed the words of the songs.

What musical instruments were played?

A guitar, keyboards, drums.

Did anything distract you?

They have an LED device up near the screen that flashes up a number allocated to parents, whose children are in creche or nursery. When we were singing songs I didn't know I found myself looking to see which parents were scuttling out.

Was the worship stiff-upper-lip, happy clappy, or what?

Very lively and passionate with lots of hands raised. There were no spiritual gifts (prophecy, tongues etc) however that I saw. The theme that kept coming through to me was the "Unchanging Faithfulness" of God. The highlight for me was singing a re-vamped version of; "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness".

Exactly how long was the sermon?

40-45 minutes or so (but didn't feel like that at all).

On a scale of 1-10, how good was the preacher?

I would say a 9.5 (only Terry Virgo, Rob Rufus or Ern Baxter get 10's). I've heard Greasley years ago and this was probably the best I've heard him preach.

In a nutshell, what was the sermon about?

Text: Romans 2. "A Matter of the Heart".

1. Outward religion cannot make you right with God.

2. Righteousness with God is a heart issue.

3. If you rely on religious rules then you had better keep them!

Which part of the service was like being in heaven?

The theme of grace, grace, grace that came through the worship and the sermon.

And which part was like being in... er... the other place?

Probably the walk up to the church - I hadn't been in Sovereign Grace Ministries churches for 5 plus years and I feared the worst.

What happened when you hung around after the service looking lost?

Peter Greasley the senior pastor found me and chatted about said meeting. I also had a brilliant catch-up with a friend I used to know from previous days which was great - we exchanged phone numbers. He was very real and welcomingly un-religious!

How would you describe the after-service coffee?

I didn't have any - I hate after-service coffee but we were told that if we were visitors we could skip the queue.

How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?

The church = 8 (it is still SGM after all). The neighbourhood = less. I did toy with the idea of being a commuting church-goer during the worship!

Did the service make you feel glad to be a Christian?

Yes - very much so.

What one thing will you remember about all this in seven days' time?

That it is stupid and naive to tar all churches with the same brush simply because they are in the same family of churches. And also to forget that God does amazing on-going works of grace in church pastors who are also human and can make mistakes and are as worthy of forgiveness as I have received said forgivness!

Cross or Crucified - does it really matter?

My thoughts have been caught up with the cross, the resurrection - all aspects of the gospel at the moment. I suppose there couldn't be a much better topic! Before I get onto what provoked this post, I have been reading quite a few books and blog posts specifically on the resurrection. I like the way Adrian Warnock put it in writing here;

"We must remember that the cross is just as empty as the tomb, and Christ is now glorified, having completed his work. The truth is, we cannot be truly cross-centered without also being empty grave-centered! Jesus was not just our prophet and priest—he is our reigning King. At the cross we learn true humility, our hopeless sinfulness, and our need of God. At the empty tomb we fully appreciate what Christ has achieved for us and receive power to live for him. A deeper, fuller insight into the truth of Jesus’ resurrection will cause our lives to be radically transformed".

So I wrote a post called; "A Truncated Gospel?" and the friend I learn so much from (and sometimes disagree with!) - Janelle - made a very valid comment. She said;

"Paul said that he preaches nothing else but Christ crucified, but we also know that when he says that he was talking about the whole gospel, not just literally the cross".

What got me thinking was her choice of words. She quite rightly said that Paul says he preaches nothing but "Christ crucified" (verb) and then said; "The cross" (noun). Paul was declaring that he would preach nothing but the action - the verb - what Christ did on the Cross. Was Paul saying that he would preach nothing but describing the historical event, time, date and detail of what happened there? I wonder ...

To change tack slightly - the popstar Madonna (who I like by the way) - caused great controversy in one of her recent tours; "Confessions on a Dancefloor". During the show the popstar appeared on a sparkling and glittering cross as though she was being crucified. Here she is;



So the question I have is:

Was that performance blasphemous? Or beautiful?

The bulk of the controversy was among Catholics - to whom of course the icon of the Cross is seen as sacred. Madonna achieved her goal - she wanted people to talk about the song and her passion for bringing awareness to the orphans dying in Africa and religious people argued and disapproved of her (something she doesn't care very much about). But what about the song? Is there anything sacred about the actual "cross" itself?

I would argue not.

Crucifixion was a well-known practice of execution designed not simply to kill the condemned but to mutiliate and dishonour them in the worst possible way. It was such that the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 21:23) actually said; "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree". The thousands upon thousands who were crucified by the Romans died in shame - but none of them achieved anything for us. Only one crucifixion (verb) achieved salvation for all mankind - and that was of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Son of God was prepared to literally die the worst death - so we could experience the best life!

"He left His Father’s throne above
So free, so infinite His grace—
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race".


He took love to Calvary! People often wonder what drives and motivates martyrs to walk with their heads held high to their deaths. I really believe it is nothing but love. Again I am prepared to fully conceed here that this is a too particular a discussion. Much of my concern lies with those (such as SGM) who to me over-emphasise the Cross at the expense of other aspects of the Gospel. But I fully admit that I am not privy to the preaching day-to-day that goes in in the USA churches and maybe the balance there is fully corrected. In which case - praise God!


The gospel is so completely gloriously wonderful in all its facets - why on earth would we want to single out one part? The life of Christ is indeed awesome. He lived and walked this very earth and experienced and suffered and was tempted in all points like as we - yet He sinned not. His death was unspeakably awful (and one that we could never and should never think we can imagine or grasp) - but love compelled Him there. His resurrection was glorious and triumphant as the powers of hell groaned in defeat. His ascension was something we can only dream of as He took His seat at the right hand of God and poured forth the Holy Spirit - "this which you now see and hear".

For us!

A Truncated Gospel?

It's been a few months or so since I have spoken about a subject very close to my heart - the "neglected" resurrection. It's never far from my thoughts though - just like my other favourite topics of theological discussion. Such as the Holy Spirit, His baptism, filling, gifts and Presence or the Song of Solomon! It doesn't take much for me to begin considering the importance of the resurrection though. Usually an over-use of the word; "The Cross" achieves it.

That's happened twice this week. I read a blog post that quoted Chris Tomlinson who asked the question;

"Can we talk about the Cross too much"?

My thought was - no surely we can't if we are talking about the WORK that Christ accomplished on the Cross. The taking of our sin in place of us. The pure and spotless sacrifice. But if we are talking about the Cross as a sentimental icon and sing emotive songs such as "The old rugged Cross" - about a Saviour hanging "there" - then yes, I think we can.

The second thing that brought this issue of the gospel and the neglected resurrection to my mind was reading a blog called "The Wartburg Watch". It is a blog written by two Southern Baptist women in the USA and of course is named after Martin Luther. They take an critical look at some of the church's more legalistic and assumed practices (it won't be to everyone's taste). But the particular blog post that caught my eye was titled; "A Deficient Gospel" - reviewing C J Mahaney's small book; "A Cross-centred Life". The interesting thing is that I have read this small book some years ago but even I didn't notice this (not being Mahaney's greatest fan).

Mahaney builds his book premise around the verse - 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 - that he cites as saying;

"Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you…. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins.”

From that Mahaney builds his theology around what he calls; "The main thing". However the "Wartburg Watch" saw something;

"Here’s why I believe Mahaney teaches a “deficient gospel”. Did you notice that he places a period after the phrase “that Christ died for our sins”? Paul, who was writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, places a comma after the word “sins”. Well, maybe the translators actually inserted punctuation, but what is of vital importance is what Mahaney fails to include.

Now let’s go back to his original question: “What’s really the main thing in your life?” In other words, what is of “first importance”? Here is Paul’s complete response in 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 (ESV): “that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.”

And this was their comment - that I loved so much I posted it today on my Twitter account.

"You see, a crucified “Saviour" ... is of no use unless He is resurrected".

Sounds obvious doesn't it? And many who speak adoringly of "the Cross" will impatiently probably snap that of course they know that Jesus Christ is resurrected. But I've discovered that one's theology and living tend to adapt to the vision of Jesus Christ that you persistently speak of and think about. If we as Christians (I believe) persistantly visualise Jesus Christ hanging broken and naked on a Cross, neglected and alone - then our theology will adapt to that belief. You will not develop a powerful optimistic missiology or eschatology and you may not have an adequate view of the Holy Spirit either.

Am I wrong? Prove me so. The emphasis of popular evangelicalism by "homies" such as Mahaney or Mark Driscoll urge us to spend much time at the foot of the Cross. Indeed Mahaney wrote in his book;

"When you’re tempted to doubt God’s love for you, stand before the cross and look at the wounded, dying, disfigured Savior, and realize why He is there. I believe His Father would whisper to us, “Isn’t that sufficient? I haven’t spared My own Son; I deformed and disfigured and crushed Him – for you. What more could I do to persuade you that I love you?”

It sounds incredibly emotive doesn't it? But is it actually biblical? When Stephen the first martyr was being stoned for his belief in Christ - I suspect that he may have been tempted to doubt God's love. No one who believed in Messiah had died for their beliefs and maybe Stephen wondered for a second if it was real. But he didn't see; "A wounded, dying, disfigured Saviour". Rather he saw;

" .... gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God ...Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

It is a vision of the fully alive and ascended Jesus Christ as Lord that will give us cause to NEVER doubt the love of God for us. Not trying to imagine what it looked like at Calvary. After all - let us never forget this compilation of verses from the New Testament that lead us inevitably and unquestionably to the understanding that it is the ASCENDED and resurrection Lord Jesus Christ who pours out the Holy Spirit that really gives us certainity of the love of God for us.

"Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing (Acts 2:33 - ESV) .... For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father (Romans 8:15 - KJV)".

For me there is a complete gospel that leads me on from staying stuck considering my indwelling sin. It leads me from deep appreciation and awe and wonder at what Jesus did for me back 2000 years ago but on to the empty Cross and empty tomb and the thrill of hearing the victory echoes of heaven as He entered in with a host and sat down at the right hand of the Father until all His enemies have been put under His feet.

So a complete Gospel?

1. He came to earth in the incarnation - very God and very man.

2. He lived a perfect and spotless life - "tempted in all points like as we - yet without sin".

3. He died a death - taking our sin upon Him and becoming sin for us.

4. He rose victoriously binding principalities and powers by taking away the Law.

5. He ascended on high taking "captivity captive".

6. He sat down enthroned on high until His enemies are made His footstool - and poured out "this which you know SEE and HEAR" - the promised Holy Spirit who cries out "Abba! Father!"'.

Why live a Cross-centred life when you can live a gospel-centred life and take the most glorious message to the waiting and desperate lost?

Christians Fitting the Cliche? Or Being Salt and Light?

Anyone who reads this blog will know that I love to stir things up and question the status quo (translated often as "the mess we are in"). One of my guilty secret pasttimes when I get back from work is to watch "America's Next Top Model" - a famous US reality T.V show. It's just something I enjoy daily while winding down after work.

They have been replaying previous series and I have been following with interest the progress of two Christian young women on the programme. Both are clearly evangelical and have displayed this quite evidently. For example one of the gay models had her girlfriend come visit. The two Christian girls made it quite evident that they disapproved of this visit and would not greet the visitor when she arrived. Instead they stayed in their bedroom and "prayed" and read the Bible until the visitor had safely left. Understandably this disgusted the other models in the competition.

The final showdown was when the models were sent to Paris and were asked to pose nude with diamonds as part of a couture show. The two Christians were offered the chance to wear flesh-coloured body tape but refused to take part. However the twist to the tale was that one of the Christian girls flashed herself inappropriately to the fashion director previously when watched (unseen) by Tyra Banks - the show's creator. The judges questioned the Christian model on her apparant hypocrisy - to which she had no answer.

Here's the scene:



So the question I have is this. Do these Christian women represent what's right and what's good and moral about religion? Are they good ambassadors for the gospel? Or maybe they are victims of media clever editing? Or actually are they typical of "religious" Christians who say one thing and then behind closed doors when they think no one is watching - act somewhat differently?

I have an opinion (of course!) but I'm not going to give it. I am absolutely amazed with a quote I read of Dr Stanley Jebb - he wrote it many years ago in a "Restoration Magazine" that I am reading currently. He may not believe it anymore - but I think it's excellent;

"Have eyes wide open to see the grace of God in each other. Any fool can see the negative things in a life".

John MacArthur on How to Minister to Legalists

I was interested to read the following answer given by John Macarthur at the Shepherds Conference in the USA. I'm not sure I agree with it - but John Macarthur usually demands some consideration to his statements. The question was this;

"How would you approach a congregation trapped in years of legalistic tradition?"

The answer;

1. Love them by not needlessly offending them.

a - Advice. “I would not attack legalism. I would not preach on Christian liberty. I would not assault their consciences either by flaunting liberty on a personal level.”

b - Scriptural principle. “I think there is a very important principle that comes at the end of 1 Corinthians 10 . . . . Do you offend the non-believer, or do you offend your weaker brother? The answer in that text is you offend the non-believer, and the message that the non-believer gets is that you love one another. . . . You defer always to the weaker brother.”

c - Definition of legalism. “In many cases when you’re talking about legalism, you’re not talking really about works-salvation. You’re talking, I assume, about an approach to the Christian life that is needlessly restrictive and narrow and artificially constructed around certain behaviors that aren’t even biblical issues.”


d - Application. “What you need to do is to understand that’s where they are, and you want to demonstrate love to them because that’s how people know that Christ has changed your life, because you are demonstrably sacrificial and loving to those people who maybe think differently than you do.”

2. Understand that convictions—whether right or wrong—inform the conscience.

a - “You also have to understand that the conscience is a mechanism given by God to everyone. It is a device. It is a mechanism by which we are excused or accused, right (Romans 2)? It is informed by our convictions. Conscience is informed by conviction.”

b - Illustration. “I suppose no one has a more highly informed and aggressive conscience than a Muslim terrorist, right? They do what they do with passion to the point of their own suicide, believing that they’re gonna end up with seventy-two virgins on pillows in the next life. Their conscience frees them to do what they do because it is informed by a set of convictions that have been drummed into them.”

3. Slowly re-educate their conscience by exalting Jesus.

a - Challenge. “When it comes into the Christian realm, you have a dilemma between re-informing them [and] at the same time that you don’t train them to ignore their conscience or after they’re re-informed, they’re gonna be used to doing what their conscience tells them. That’s why Paul is so clear on that at the end of Romans. . . . You can’t train people to ignore conscience. You have to take the long-term approach to re-inform the conscience.”

b - First step. “I would suggest that the first way to do that is to move people off the rules they live by on to the person of Jesus Christ, and just preach the glories of Christ. Get in a Gospel and stay there until those people have been liberated from rules to love for Christ, until they have been literally swept away in awe and wonder over their affections for Jesus Christ. Rather than try to instruct them on the biblical disciplines, which again is just another set of rules, let them be lost in wonder, love, and praise over the person of Christ, and you watch those things begin to disappear.”

So what do we think? Not radical enough? Or hitting a godly and fair balance?

Ryan Rufus Talks about "Sanctification by Grace"

A lot of Christians like to talk about sanctification and there are many approaches to it. Some tend on the more legalistic and like to talk about "indwelling sin". Their hope is that by focusing on how dreadful sin is they may become more horrified by it and thereby stay away from it. While one applauds their zeal, the question is; "Does it work?". Ryan Rufus presents a different approach to sanctification that I think deserves a hearing.

Here he talks about his second book; "Sanctification by Grace";

Sanctification by Grace - Ryan talks about his book. from City Church on Vimeo.

Defying Gravity!!

When I was growing up in Dunstable at my home church - New Covenant Church - there was a book circulating round the All-Age Bible School. It was called; "Living Above the Level of Mediocrity" by Charles Swindoll. I must confess I never read the book - I wasn't old enough and still haven't to this day. But the title of it always stuck with me. Christians - in the main - tend to excel at living a life of mediocrity.

Words like; "Safe", "Maturity", "decently and in order" are all very much words in the Christian vocabulary. Whereas other just as valid words in the Word of God like; "Martyr" and "hero" and "die for the faith" aren't spoken about as much! If you talk about martyrdom or going to the nations to spread the gospel - many Christians look at you oddly. Helen Keller once said;

"The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.”

I fear that many Christians don't have much vision. Sure we may believe we are hear to "bear witness" - but do we really believe that the Gospel of God is THE power - and the only power that He has given to transform this world? Sure we may believe that God has the sovereign right and power to heal and intervene in time and space - but do we believe that He has given that authority to us here and now by His Holy Spirit to do the job ourselves?

I was listening to a song from the musical; "Wicked" while I was at the gym the other day. It really excited me because I think it actually sums up the call to Christians to live "above the level of mediocrity".



"Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes: and leap!

It's time to try
Defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
And you can't pull me down!

Unlimited
Together we're unlimited
Together we'll be the greatest team
There's ever been
There's no fight we cannot win
Just you and I
Defying gravity
With you and I
Defying gravity

So if you care to find me
Look to the western sky!
As someone told me lately:
"Ev'ryone deserves the chance to fly!"
And if I'm flying solo
At least I'm flying free

To those who'd ground me
Take a message back from me
Tell them how I am
Defying gravity
I'm flying high

Defying gravity
And soon I'll match them in renown
And nobody ...
Is ever gonna bring me down!".

I hate the fact that it's been a couple of years since I last did something that could be classed as "defying gravity". One of the reasons why flying to Hong Kong for the "Glory and Grace Conference" was so shocking to me was because I felt God call me to go just a month before the event. It was scary and terrifying flying off around the world on my own to a city I'd never visited before in a conference with Christians I had never met. But it was the most amazing time of my life!

I want this year to be the same. I want to "defy gravity"! And I want to send a message to those "who would ground" me. Sadly those who would ground us tend to be Christians and often Christians who think they know us. So this year I have certain goals and aims!

1. I have a meeting planned with an SGM leader here in the United Kingdom next month. I am dreading it. I'm scared. But I want to go through with it to finally bring closure on that nasty chapter on my life. I am full of faith that it can get sorted and that I hope my relationship with my family will get sorted.

2. There is another "Glory and Grace Conference" in October and I do hope to go - even if I have to go on my own! I am full of hope and faith it will be a catalyst moment that will propel me to greater levels.

And there are just two - but I am looking for more! You see the thing I dread the most is getting to the end of my life and having regrets that I lived a "normal" life - going to work, paying taxes, getting married. That's all valid. But if we don't change the world that we live in for the glory of God - then what's it all about?

Time to fly!

Money .... Money .... Money (In a Rich Man's World)

The issue of money is always a rather sensitive one (particularly in Western culture) and it seems even more sensitive when it comes to church leaders. Charismatic tele-evangelists are frequently lambasted in the media (both religious and non) for their overly extravagant lifestyles, private jets and so on. I think as a result many newer church leaders have become somewhat more private about the handling of finances.

I was intrigued therefore to see a post on "SGM Survivors" (the blog that takes a perhaps more objective look at the popular Sovereign Grace Ministries) that concerned C J Mahaney and his financial giving and in particular - his gifts to Southern Baptist Seminary. This information comes from the financial statements of a publication of Southern Baptist Seminary themselves - so I must emphasise this is not gossip or hearsay but the truth.

Here's what I can make out - C J Mahaney has given large sums of money to Southern Baptist Seminary over a period of years (2005 to 2008 are covered) - both from himself personally and from Sovereign Grace Ministries themselves. These gifts mean that C J Mahaney was given certain honoury titles such as; "President's Council" or "Distinguished Associate" in recognition of these gifts.

Now here's what I want to make abundantly clear.

"SGM Survivors" are discussing the implications of this giving and unsurprisingly are extremely suspicious about it. There are suggestions being drawn that Mahaney has bought himself to celebrity status and so on. There are questions being discussed as to why Mahaney and SGM would give so generously to a seminary that they do not send their prospective leaders to and are not even from the same denomination. But I (and no one apart from Mahaney himself) know the truth of these questions - and NO ONE (apart from Mahaney and his Lord) know the motives behind this extremely generous giving. A gift of an equivalent of £65, 000 in a year is more money than I can even dream of!

I do know that Matthew 6:2 makes it clear what the Lord Jesus Christ thinks of public giving and giving for the wrong reasons. In essence He says;

"They have had their reward in full".

Suggesting the earthly acclaim will be all they receive. The Gospels make it clear that private and secret giving is what brings pleasure to God - and again, I have am sure that Mahaney gives generously and privately (I hope). In the past I would have probably delighted in anything that made Mahaney and SGM look bad - and I think that these annual generous gifts to a theological seminary may be seen as good or bad whatever your perspective.

I think it raises a good question however - and one I have not thought of for a couple of years. Why is it "better to give than receive"? The Bible says so - but can it be right to give with the sole aim of gaining something? Yes - unquestionably. The whole doctrine of Christian hedonism (as taught by by Sam Storms and John Piper) that I am really enjoying re-visiting teaches this. However - the greatest and most highest pleasure must come surely from the sole joy of knowing you have the smile of your beloved heavenly Father.

I learned the most about giving at the Stoneleigh Bible Weeks and the Brighton Conferences when Terry Virgo would recount frequent anonymous blessings heaped on people who would give in faith. God must surely get the most glory when the beneficiary does not know who he or she has received the financial blessing from - and can only give thanks to God.

I remember reading a story about C H Spurgeon going to Bristol to raise money for London's orphans. He raised £300 which was probably an equivalent of Mahaney's £100, 000 - but heard the Lord telling him to give the money to George Mueller in Bristol and his orphanage work. He wrestled but obeyed the Lord in the end and went back to London. When Spurgeon returned to London, he found an envelope on his desk containing more than £300. The Lord had returned the £300 he had obediently given to Mueller, with 300 shillings of interest!

But Spurgeon never knew where that envelope came from. That anonymous giver will have their reward in heaven says the Word of God.

Tributes to Arthur Wallis!

I am still really enjoying my new "Restoration Magazine" collection - and was interested and moved to read tributes that were written in light of Arthur Wallis's death. I have always known of the impact Arthur had on the charismatic scene in the United Kingdom but it was interesting to read the personal tributes from many charismatic leaders.

For example Terry Virgo wrote;

"I would probably have never written a book if it were not for Arthur".

Ern Baxter wrote;

"We weren't destined to meet in some formally pre-prepared setting. We met in the men's toilet's and looking at each other blurted out, "You must be ..."!

And Stanley Jebb wrote;

"Arthur impressed me by his biblical outlook. In the early 1960's when a number of us were working out and studying the subject of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, Arthur was a great encouragement. His clear teaching and insistence on going back to the Word of God for answers was a challenge and an inspiration to all".

The other tributes are below. Thank God for fathers in the faith! This is one of the reasons why I could never attend a youth church or a student church (despite the fact that I'm too old!). Of course there are abuses and excesses and leadership manipulation - but the fact is that we need fathers and mothers in the faith. Arthur Wallis was clearly one such to many - and many of my generation I am sure have benefited from his indirect influence on men that we see as fathers in the faith today - such as Terry Virgo or Ern Baxter.

Back to Transcribing - Rob Rufus and Stanley Jebb!!

As many of you know my transcribing has been through a quiet patch - it is so incredibly difficult finding the time to sit down with a glorious sermon and type it out. Working 07:30 to 18:30 many days followed by an intense gym session (I'm training for a half marathon at the end of the month in Brighton!) - it is so hard to find the time! I hate that excuse. I've never had any patience with pastors who have told me that they can't do this or do that because they are "too busy" - but am slowly beginning to understand how busy life can often be.

However I've started two transcribing projects - one is a sermon by the wonderful Rob Rufus. I neglect this servant of God at my peril. It sounds over the top - but hell does not want anyone listening to Rob. He has such an insight into the doctrines of grace that the devil will do anything (including sowing suspicion, lies about him and City Church International) to just stop hearing what he preaches! But everytime I do listen to Rob - my soul is immeasurably blessed. I am typing his message: "“Wisdom for 2010” - the first sermon of 2010 on the 3rd of January 2010 at City Church International.

I love the opening sermons of the year at City Church International - it often lays down the gauntlet for what to expect from the year and this sermon is no different. Rob starts by making a statement about what he expects from 2010. A small part of me cringes when preachers make prophetic statements about what God may do. That's no fault on the part of the preachers. That is a fault on my small faith. I am scared of daring to believe. But Rob said;

"But I am deeply impressed after five weeks of waiting on God – I am deeply impressed that 2010 is a year of blessings that will surpass ANY previous year for the people of grace! You could say that is one of those optimistic, New Year hopes again! No – no. I am believing that for 2010 the will of God is to bring unprecedented blessings for the people of grace that is beyond any previous year we have EVER experienced! That will always be with difficulties and hardships. The blessings will cause many more hardships to come at you but you will be so blessed you will handle it well!"

Rob then moved on to state what he feels will be the devil's main strategy in 2010;

"I am also deeply impressed by the Spirit of God when the enemy’s main strategy and main plot will be to con us through false wisdom out of the blessing. I pray that everyone who listens to this message hears this – the enemy’s main strategy will be to con us through false wisdom or fake wisdom or worldly wisdom or “human” (1st Corinthians) wisdom or the “wisdom of this age” – to give us convincing cons as to what we should do and he will try to get us out of place and position for the unprecedented jubilee of God".

Again I think there is a balance here that is truly biblical. C S Lewis saw it and portrayed it accurately in his "Screwtape Letters". Some Christians completely ignore the devil's presence and blame all hardships, failures and down times on our "flesh" or I guess SGM may call it "indwelling sin". Essentially if something is going wrong in your life then it's your fault and your sin to blame. The other extreme is the more triumphalistic charismatic stream that blame every hardship on a demon of something or other (Derek Prince perhaps typified this teaching best) - and the way to handle this is to exorcise "everything".

I think Rob strikes a mature and sensible balance. There IS a devil and he DOES have an army of demons who ARE actively present in trying to bring down Christians. Rob makes the case that the devil doesn't really care what the issue is he assaults us with. He isn't bothered if Christians live an immoral life or a deceitful life. What he is bothered about is that we lose faith in God. And Rob defines faith as;

"Faith is a good opinion about God. If you have any suspicion towards God then you are listening to a demonic voice; “Did God really say?”.

A good opinion about God. Some Christians may be shocked at that - how can we not have a good opinion about God? But the question is - who do we normally blame when things are tough? Some Christians even dare to say things like; "I'll trust God IF He does this for me". No - true faith is having a good enduring opinion about God and never asking; "Did God really say ... ?".

And being a true gospel preacher Rob then expounded the wonders of the Cross of Christ like I've never heard before. Read this:

"Faith is easy when we have a clear picture of Christ crucified.

1. He wore a crown of thorns so that you and I can wear a crown of glory!

2. On the Cross He was rejected so that you and I can forever and ever be sons of the Father.

3. On the Cross HE looked up and His Father wasn’t there, so that forever we can look up forever the smiling face of our Father is there – after our worst sin, the smiling face of the Father will ALWAYS be there, because that sin was put on Jesus and the face of the Father was withdrawn from Jesus. The great exchange means that forever we can look up and our Father’s face will NEVER not be there and will always be smiling!

It is impossible for Father to withdraw His face! If He ever does then He must implode into oblivion and to nothingness and non-existence because He has violated the law of double jeopardy and has lost all credibility. He cannot punish the same sin twice! Father is permanently there with love and favour and position to desperately want to bless you if you will repent and change your thinking and return to grace!

4. He was made your sin so you may be made His righteousness.

5. He died young so that you can live long.

6. He created the heavens and earth and on the Cross lost everything so we can gain everything! We gain the universe the New Testament says!

7. One of the last things Jesus saw was His garments being gambled over by soldiers while He hung naked so we can be clothed in favour.

8. He took our curse so that we can receive His blessings. In all these things, persecutions, disappointments, betrayals we are more than conquerors through Christ who loved us! We rest in the finished work of the Cross!".

True Cross-centered preaching will inevitably build faith. How can we not look at the Cross of Christ in it's true glory and not have a good opinion about God? The trouble is I have sat through too many allegedly "Cross-centred" sermons that are nothing to do with the true Gospel because those sermons raised condemnation and produce legalism and "lists of things" to do. I love the way that Rob Rufus broke down why the Cross was the master plan of God - to bring about the salvation of many!

I've taken up too much time - other than to say that the other sermon I am working on is a recent sermon of Stanley Jebb's that he preached at a church near Southampton on worship. It's interesting to hear. I hope to publish Rob's sermon soon!

Sam Storms at Desiring God Conference for Pastors!

If I had an unlimited budget then there is no doubt that one of my greatest pleasures would be to "conference-hop" over the earth and manage to hear the great names that I admire and respect. I was extremely excited to hear that Sam Storms was the keynote speaker at John Piper's conference for pastors at Desiring God this year. The conference has just ended and blog updates can be found at the Desiring God blog. Adrian Warnock has taken a slightly different approach but still reflects on the conference extremely well.

Sam's topic (unsurprisingly) was Christian hedonism. It is a doctrine I am familiar with but Adrian Warnock said quite rightly that it is something we need to be reminded of. In fact he said;

"The message of Christian hedonism is intoxicating!".

I like that. Sam Storms third message dealt extremely practically with the issue of combating sin and this is something I am increasingly becoming passionate about. I have made no secret of the fact that the SGM/Mahaney approach of speaking about "indwelling sin" and the processes of accountability trouble me. Frankly I don't think they work and actually give sin a platform that it does not deserve and take away from the power and finality of the Cross.

Sam Storms summarises the various approaches to dealing with sin well:

"I think Christians have typically employed three tactics in their efforts to help others fight sin:

1. Labor to portray sin in the ugliest possible terms, hoping and praying to frighten people into righteous living.
2. Revert to legalism by producing long lists to corral our impulses.
3. Argue that the problem is the presence of desire for pleasure in the human soul".

He summarises;

"The only way you can conquer one pleasure is with another greater and more pleasing pleasure. The only way to break the bondages in which our people find themselves is by cultivating a passion for joy and delight in beholding the beauty of Jesus".

And concluded;

"People are in bondage to sin today because they are bored stiff with God, and that's our fault. If your people don't hear you speak the same truths that Paul did and if they don't sense the enthusiasm in you that was in him, they will just go home and turn on whatever anesthetizes their pain".

I realise that to some who view grace seriously - this may not be enough. To others like those who still see indwelling sin - this may be too much. But I found this message encouraging and challenging. And above all if it makes us re-think the wonder of what Christ did at the Cross then it's going to be worth-while!

Past, Present, Future ... !!

I read an interesting quote by Marcel Pagnol:

“The reason people find it so hard to be happy is that they always see the past better than it was, the present worse than it is, and the future less resolved than it will be”

I was very interested to watch Songs of Praises tonight (the only remnant really of Christianity on UK terrestrial TV). Normally I find that programme cringe-worthy but tonight they were showing the large charismatic church in Peterbrough - Kingsgate Community Church - led by Dave Smith (who incidentally I heard at Life in the Spirit Conference). The church is large enough that it attracts famous national speakers such as Terry Virgo, Greg Haslam and Stuart Bell. And I noticed that the Songs of Praise event was led by Noel Richards. The congregation were dressed in brightly coloured clothing (some were indeed wearing ties which Stanley Jebb would note).

Did I enjoy it? I did mainly. I can't help but find some aspects to the church's attempts to show a "contemporary but real" image to the watching world. Sometimes it seems that the church tries so hard to be contemporary that it just looks cheesy. So on the one hand you have dry and dull and dusty tie-wearing Christians (advocated by Stanley Jebb) and on the other a church full of people who frankly look like they have swept the entire collection of the United Colours of Benetton off the shelf. Which is worse? Or which is better?!

But that aside - my heart rejoiced greatly that there is a BIG church not far from me which is unafraid to proclaim the gospel set on fire by the life of the Spirit. I am one of those who believe passionately that BIG attracts attention. After all - Chris Moyles took interest in this church and I have yet to hear him go to some small chapel of tie-wearing conservative evangelicals. This evening's "Songs of Praise" got me thinking about words that I love;

"Hope! - Vision! - Anticipation! - Excitement!".

Is anyone else fed up of the depression and formalism that much of life brings? Everyone finds their own excitement and anticipation in their own favourite things. Such as booking a summer holiday (which I've done!). But - call me odd - I find holy convocations of tremendous excitement. Something about seeing a massive group of God's people together worshipping in one - reminds me of what we have to look forward to in heaven. So I've put together a string of Restoration Magazine posters advertising the rapidly approaching Dales Bible Weeks with my very own Ern Baxter as keynote speaker. Here they are:

So that quote again:

"The reason people find it so hard to be happy is that they always see the past better than it was, the present worse than it is, and the future less resolved than it will be”.

The past wasn't perfect (but we thank God for it). The present isn't so bad (because Jesus said He would never leave us or forsake us). And the future is resolved actually (because He promised that as surely as He lives ALL the earth WILL be filled with the glory of the Lord!).

Prophecy-Inspired Facebook?!

Or Facebook-inspiring prophecy?!

Whichever - I decided to walk home from work tonight to clear the cobwebs after one of "those" days. However unfortunately I didn't have my IPOD with me and I get bored easily during an hour walk so decided to read my Facebook status updates on my mobile phone and my attention was grabbed by a wonderful C H Spurgeon quote that my firebrand friend Janelle Phillips posted;

"So, when you feel any inclination to put the crown of glory on your head, just fancy that you hear God saying to you 'Wait til I am dead before you put on my crown.' As that will never be, you had better leave the crown alone and let Him to whom it rightfully belongs wear it." - Charles Spurgeon, "The Soul Winner"

Anyone who knows me well know that I love C H Spurgeon and so was reading the quote with interest when I felt the Holy Spirit speaking and saying something to the effect of;

"And you will find that when you cast that crown before Me in worshipful surrender then I will give you a crown and a royal robe as an expression of My abundant love for you and the crown I give far exceeds the one you would keep".

Crowns! That thought/prophecy/whatever came from the wonderful verse in 1 Peter 2:9; "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation". We are royalty! Crowns are part of our inheritance that God and God alone will bestow (not for any other reason that His lavish grace) like He crowned His beloved Son in Hebrews 2:7.

I remembered a childhood awesome hymn that we used to thunder out in my home church in Dunstable - "Love Divine, all love's excelling". As a child I was always amazed that when the hymn reached the climax - "Changed from glory into glory ...", all the elders on the platform and most of the adults would lift their hands in worship. That never left me seeing that. It was a tragedy that progressively the worship in our church became more and more formal and outwardly more and more miserable.

Here's the lyrics for those who don't know them;

"Love Divine, all loves excelling,
Joy of heaven, to earth come down,
Fix in us thy humble dwelling,
All thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, thou art all compassion,
Pure unbounded love thou art;
Visit us with thy salvation,
Enter every trembling heart.

Come, almighty to deliver,
Let us all thy grace receive;
Suddenly return, and never,
Never more thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve thee as thy hosts above,
Pray, and praise thee, without ceasing,
Glory in thy perfect love.

Finish then thy new creation
Pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see thy great salvation,
Perfectly restored in thee,
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise!"

I remember being in Hong Kong at the "Glory and Grace Conference" and actually having a vision of something as to what it would be like to cast our crowns before Him. Crowns of tears shed in loneliness but resolute faith. Crowns of simple belief in the New Covenant that God is good and His love for us is real!

The Bible Week Phenomenon

Is reminiscing a sign of age?!

Ah well - I was excited to find this small advert in one of the many Restoration Magazines I am reading tonight (that is scanned and at the bottom of this post). The Bible Weeks were a key part of the 1970's to 90s and some indeed have carried on (such as Grapevine) whereas others such as Stoneleigh Bible Week have closed down. Why were they such a part of the Charismatic Movement? William K Kay comments in his academic thesis; "Apostolic Networks in Britain - New Ways of Doing Church" - that;

"The big public events of the Dales and Downs Bible Weeks brought restorationism to public notice in the 1970's. Before then it's following had been small and invisible. The big Bible weeks made a resounding declaration and established a trend".

In terms of statistics William Kay stated;

"By 1987 it was estimated that restorationist numbers in the UK as a whole had grown from 20,000 to 75,000; indeed by 1987 there were some 20 Bible Weeks a year in the UK catering for 100,000 people ... the cry that God had finished with denominations seemed all too obviously confirmed".

Those who are familiar with UK charismatic history will know that as the Dales Bible Week reached it's heights in the early 1980's and Bryn Jones encouraged other Bible Weeks to begin in different locations of the UK. This generous and pioneering spirit demonstrates that Bryn was far from trying to build his own empire - but his spirit was for God to be famous throughout the nations.

The Downs Bible Week began under Terry Virgo and Coastlands down on the south coast of England which then became the famous Stoneleigh Bible Week near Coventry.

The South and West Bible Week began near Bristol in south-west England under Tony Morton - which has now become New Wine and Soul Survivor .

And my home church - New Covenant Church in Dunstable - began the Anglia Bible Week first held at Chadacre and then the Royal Norfolk Showground. Ern Baxter was our main visiting speaker in 1982, 1983, 1984 and 1985 saw Bob Mumford visiting - with Peter Parris and Peter Lewis also contributing to ministry alongside Stanley himself.

So here is the advert for the first Anglia Bible Week below. The logo of the tree was famous among us as kids. Each year we were given badges with the logo on and each year the colour would change.

Restoration Magazine - 1975 to 1992

I have been very excited to have received a CD through the post with the ENTIRE collection of Restoration Magazines in PDF format from the Revival Library! It has been a continued source of frustration to me trying to hunt down and find these key foundational magazines to much of my charismatic heritage.

I've got a massive collection of New Wine and Restoration Magazines from my home church in Dunstable when much of the charismatic past was being erased. However there were large gaps in both magazines. David Moore has written possibly the most academic review of the Shepherding Movement in particular and said;

"...essential for an accurate history of the Shepherding movement is a complete collection of New Wine. The magazine published from 1969 through to 1986 was the principal publishing voice of the five teachers and the movement."

It is commonly understood in academic study in general that journals are an essential part of any research - even more useful than many books. Books are written and are often out of date as soon as they are published whereas the journal can tend to keep up to date with the rapidly changing scene of life. I think the same is true for church life and was definately so in the Pentecostal/Charismatic Movement.

The spiritual scene was changing so rapidly as God poured out His Spirit on the church that in our experience it was the New Wine Magazine (Ern Baxter, Charles Simpson, Bob Mumford, Don Basham and Derek Prince) and of course Restoration Magazine that was key. For those who don't know - Restoration Magazine was started by Bryn Jones and Harvestime Publications but was unique in that for some years it united other apostles and prophets in the United Kingdom such as Bryn, Keri Jones, Terry Virgo, Tony Morton, Arthur Wallis and my senior pastor Dr Stanley Jebb.

There are 106 magazines on the CD that will keep me busy reading for a while. I have already printed off some articles that caught my attention already - here's a few;

1. Report from the Lakes Bible Week 1975 - from Restoration Magazine - September/October 1975.

2. Report from the Dales Bible Week 1977 - from Restoration Magazine - September/October 1977.

3. "Taking the Nations" by Ern Baxter - from Restoration Magazine - November/December 1977.

4. "How to Interpret the Scriptures" by Stanley Jebb - from Restoration Magazine - November/December 1979.

5. "Growing Churches - Clarendon Church Hove" (now Church of Christ the King in Brighton) - from Restoration Magazine - July/August 1981.

6. "The Best is Yet to Come" by Arthur Wallis - from Restoration Magazine - March/April 1983.

And there are just a few! I am sure there will many Pentecostal/Charismatic quotes (I have already posted one amazing quote from Larry Tomczak) to come from these amazing articles. But already I am finding they are feeding my ache for a new flood of renewal and revival from God. The 1970's and 80's were indeed a unique and amazing time and an extrordinary blessing and demonstration of the grace of God. Do I wish that I had been born a little earlier? Sometimes. I'd have loved to have followed Ern Baxter's ministry in person.

But I do believe without a shadow of doubt that the best is yet to come!

The Earth is the Lord's!!

The Bible - the very Word of God - is so full of declarations of TRUTH that it staggers me how Christians, the church and I struggle with disbelief, doubt and fear. There is no ambiguity in the Word of God. It just states it. Such as;

"The earth is the Lord's and all it contains, the world and all that dwell in it".

Another favourite Scripture of mine is Numbers 14:21;

" ... but indeed, as I live, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the LORD".

Pete Day and I have been communicating lots this week - mainly getting excited my discoveries on the "Revival Library" - the Restoration Magazine collection and the Arthur Wallis conference notes. Pete commented on something very interesting - he said;

"I keep getting the sense that there is going to be a wonderful marriage of grace with restoration. Until we heard of Rob we were passionate about restoration, and then restoration took a back seat while I began to hear of grace. And now restoration is coming back into my thinking... but in the context of grace. When the two go together it is divine combustion!!".

This was such a vital comment for me. What is the point of grace unless the object is that the farthest reaches of Planet Earth hear of the glory and wonder of what Christ achieved on the Cross for us? Surely if we keep grace to ourselves then we will become as bad as the early Charismatic Movement days when they saw the baptism of the Holy Spirit as a "personal experience" to be kept private along with their "private prayer language - tongues". Rubbish! This is something to be shouted from the rooftops!

So this article from Ern Baxter is key to be read. It is from the New Wine Magazine - January 1985 and is entitled; "The Earth is the Lords". Read it here!

Here are some quotes from the articles;

"The gospel is destined to be victorious in time, space and history. Jesus Christ will remain in heaven until all things spoken of by the prophets have come to pass".

Victorious! That is a phrase that we don't hear often these days in Christianity and I'm not sure why. It's back to my first statement in this blog - that the Word of God makes statements that have yet to be believed and acted upon. For example the Word of God stated that when Jesus died on the Cross He completely and finally defeated principalities and powers and put them under His feet! Another statement from the Word of God that Ern Baxter actually quoted in his article;

"All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth".

Ern commented on that verse;

"That means in the United States of America, Jesus Christ has all authority. In the (now ex) Soviet Union, Jesus Christ has all authority. In China Jesus Christ has all authority. It means that there isn't a better gospel coming. There isn't a better Jesus yet to be revealed. It's done! It's finished!".

So as Pete Day said - let's not neglect the glorious array of truths that the Word of God has promised. Grace has come to us in glorious abundance for a reason - that the lost may hear and believe!