“Tremendous words written in the book of a most merciful God!”

The nature of our fallen nature is that it will be less clear to ourselves than to anyone else. J.C. Ryle puts it into perspective here…

‘Concerning the guilt, vileness and offensiveness of sin in the sight of God, my words will be few. I say “few” advisedly. I do not think, in the nature of things, that mortal man can at all realize the exceeding sinfulness of sin in the sight of that holy and perfect One with whom we have to do. On the one hand, God is that eternal Being who “charges His angels with folly” and in whose sight the very “heavens are not clean.” He is One who reads thoughts and motives as well as actions and requires “truth in the inward parts” (Job 4:18; 15:15; Ps. 51:6). We, on the other hand—poor blind creatures, here today and gone tomorrow, born in sin, surrounded by sinners, living in a constant atmosphere of weakness, infirmity and imperfection—can form none but the most inadequate conceptions of the hideousness of evil. We have no line to fathom it and no measure by which to gauge it. The blind man can see no difference between a masterpiece of Titian or Raphael and the queen’s head on a village signboard. The deaf man cannot distinguish between a penny whistle and a cathedral organ. The very animals whose smell is most offensive to us have no idea that they are offensive and are not offensive to one another. Fallen men and women, I believe, can have no just idea what a vile thing sin is in the sight of that God whose handiwork is absolutely perfect—perfect whether we look through telescope or microscope; perfect in the formation of a mighty planet like Jupiter, with his satellites, keeping time to a second as he rolls round the sun; perfect in the formation of the smallest insect that crawls over a foot of ground. But let us nevertheless settle it firmly in our minds that sin is “the abominable thing that God hates”; that God “is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity, and cannot look upon that which is evil”; that the least transgression of God’s law makes us “guilty of all”; that “the soul that sins shall die”; that “the wages of sin is death”; that God will “judge the secrets of men”; that there is a worm that never dies and a fire that is not quenched; that “the wicked shall be turned into hell” and “shall go away into everlasting punishment”; and that “nothing that defiles shall in any wise enter” heaven (Jer. 44:4; Hab. 1:13; James 2:10; Ezek. 18:4; Rom. 6:23; Rom. 2:16; Mark 9:44; Ps. 9:17; Matt. 25:46; Rev. 21:27). These are indeed tremendous words, when we consider that they are written in the book of a most merciful God!‘

J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 7.

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What is Really Important?

As I hear people debate how to move the church forward, whether in light of our current Episcopal controversies, or just simply debating how to structure our church for tomorrow, it worries me to hear what the primary concerns can be for most people.  In the opening chapters of John’s Revelation, Jesus speaks to the visible churches.  He encourages some to persever and others to repent.  It is, in fact, the last direct word from Jesus given to the Church Catholic before He returns.  He knows that for centuries His people will be being slaughtered.  He knows His church will be constantly tempted to sloth and compromise.  He knows that at times she will be overrun with corruption and other times she’ll be conquered by heresy.  He knows of every schism she’ll ever face.  More importantly, He knows exactly what His church needs.  So, what does He tell Her?  This is J.C. Ryle’s commentary on those seven letters

But I want you to observe that you will not find the Lord, in any of the epistles, dwelling upon church government or ceremonies. He says nothing about sacraments or ordinances. He makes no mention of liturgies or forms. He does not instruct John to write one word about baptism, or the Lord’s Supper, or the apostolical succession of ministers. In short, the leading principles of what may be called ‘the sacramental system’ are not brought forward in any one of the seven epistles from first to last.

Now why do I dwell on this? I do it because many professing Christians in the present day would have us believe these things are of first, of cardinal, of paramount importance.

There are not a few who seem to hold that there can be no church without a bishop, and no godliness without a liturgy. They appear to believe that to teach the value of the sacraments is the first work of a minister, and to keep to their parish church the first business of a people.

Now let no man misunderstand me when I say this. Do not run away with the notion that I see no importance in sacraments. On the contrary, I regard them as great blessings to all who receive them ‘rightly, worthily and with faith’. Do not fancy that I attach no value to episcopacy, a liturgy and the parochial system. On the contrary, I consider that a church well administered, which has these three things, and an evangelical ministry, is a far more complete and useful church than one in which they are not to be found.

But this I say, that sacraments, church government, the use of a liturgy, the observance of ceremonies and forms, are all as nothing compared to faith, repentance and holiness. And my authority for so saying is the whole tenor of our Lord’s words to the seven churches.

I never can believe, if a certain form of church government was so very important as some say, that the great Head of the church would have said nothing about it here. I should have expected to have found something said about it to Sardis and Laodicea. But I find nothing at all. And I think that silence is a great fact.

You can read the rest here

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Free Will, Sin, Bondage

From time to time the Reformed faith has been accused of focusing so much on our inherent sinfulness that we fail to recognize the new heart God has given us, and thus fail to teach how we may shed sin and grow in holiness.  In this passage from his sermon on Matthew 21, The Good Doctor (Martin Luther) describes why it is essential for us to understand our slavery to sin if we are to become holy.  You can read the rest here.

You ask, how shall we begin to be godly and what shall we do that God may begin his work in us? Answer: Do you not understand, it is not for you to work or to begin to be godly, as little as it is to further and complete it. Everything that you begin is in and remains sin, though it shines ever so brightly; you cannot do anything but sin, do what you will. Hence, the teaching of all the schools and monasteries is misleading, when they teach man to begin to pray and do good works, to found something, to give, to sing, to become spiritual and thereby to seek God’s grace. 

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A Life or Death Matter

J.C. Ryle says “A doctrine which is needful to salvation can never be too sharply developed, or brought too fully into light.” It makes sense. If something tells us whether we will spend eternity in heaven or hell, we should figure out what it is telling us! So, I’ve included, for your enjoyment, his words on the differences and similarities of justification and sanctification. Enjoy!

In what, then, are justification and sanctification alike?

(a) Both proceed originally from the free grace of God.  It is of His gift alone that believers are justified or sanctified at all.

(b) Both are part of that great work of salvation which Christ, in the eternal covenant, has undertaken on behalf of His people.  Christ is the fountain of life, from which pardon and holiness both flow.  The root of each is Christ.

(c) Both are to be found in the same persons.  those who are justified are always sanctified, and those who are sanctified are always justified.  God has joined them together, and they cannot be put asunder.

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