on a different kind of quote game

I ran across six quotations in my reading recently. A certain thought struck me as I read them so I thought I would test it out on anyone who cares to comment. There are six quotations from six different individuals. They are similar in one respect, but distinct in another. They represent (according to the person providing the quotations) three variations of a certain point of view.

I am not asking you to guess the sources of the quotations. Rather, I am curious which of these quotations you would consider to be closest to the views of John Piper and why. It is possible that none of these views are close to his views.

If you want to guess who gave each quote, that is fine. I will reveal the sources in a later post.

QUOTE ONE

On the contrary, the life that God has given us is the life of His son. All whom He has called He has also justified, and all whom He has justified He counts as already glorified. God never begins anything that He does not bring to an end. The world may start that which it cannot finish, but God says: "He that hath begun a good work in you, will keep on perfecting it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1.6, Gk.). Here are all three of the great doctrines of God's work within us. He which hath begun a good work in you — that is justification — will keep on perfecting it — that is sanctification — until the day of Jesus Christ — that is glorification. There is no change in God, and there will be no change in His work in us.

QUOTE TWO

The apostle Paul gives us his own definition of the Christian life in Galatians 2:20. It is no longer "I, but Christ." Here he is not stating something special or peculiar — a high level of Christianity. He is, we believe, presenting God's normal role for a Christian, which can be summarized in the words: l live no longer, but Christ lives His life in me.

God makes it quite clear in His Word that He has only one answer to every human need — His Son, Jesus Christ. In all His dealings with us He works by taking us out of the way and substituting Christ in our place. The Son of God died instead of us for our forgiveness: He lives instead of us for our deliverance. ... It will help us greatly, and save us from much confusion, if we keep constantly before us this fact, that God will answer all our questions in one way and one way only, namely, by showing us more of His son.

QUOTE THREE

I want here boldly to assert that it is my happy belief that every Christian can have a copious outpouring of the Holy Spirit in a measure far beyond that received at conversion, and I might also say, far beyond that enjoyed by the rank and file of orthodox believers today. It is important that we get this straight, for until doubts are removed faith is impossible, God will not surprise a doubting heart with an effusion of the Holy Spirit, nor will He fill anyone who has doctrinal questions about the possibility of being filled.

QUOTE FOUR

The fullness of power is the heritage of every Christian! It may be an unclaimed heritage, but the power of God which enables a Christian to witness for Christ and win souls is the right of every Christian. Not to be filled with the Holy Spirit, not to be endued with power from on high, is to miss the highest good, and fail to claim the Highest blessing, offered to every child of God. ... That the power of Pentecost is for every Christian is made clear; first, by the promises which are to all alike; second, by the New Testament examples; third, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in every Christian makes the enduement for service logical for every Christian; fourth, by the fact that the soulwinning task demands supernatural power; and, fifth, because the Word of God clearly commands Christians to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

QUOTE FIVE

'I have been crucified with Christ,' says Paul. What does this mean? In principle, it means that my right to myself is annihilated, as His concern and love for others is expressed through me. Identification, that's the first thing. Not simply to die to myself, but to live in Him. Bless your hearts, evangelism isn't a 'project', it's a way of life! 'Feed My sheep. Identify yourself with My interests in other people,' says Jesus. Oh, to be so satisfied, identified with Jesus that my life is spoiled for everything but His will! Am I more concerned with my right to live, than with my daily dying to Him? Which are you more concerned about? Paul says, 'I die daily' — do you? Do I? Is that my major passion?

QUOTE SIX

It takes a long time to come to a moral decision about sin, but it is the great moment in my life when I do decide that just as Jesus Christ died for the sin of the world, so sin must die out in me, not be curbed or suppressed or counteracted, but crucified. No one can bring anyone else to this decision. We may be earnestly convinced, and religiously convinced, but what we need to do is come to the decision which Paul forces here. ... I cannot reckon myself "dead indeed unto sin" unless I have been through this radical issue of will before God. Have I entered into the glorious privilege of being crucified with Christ until all that is left is the life of Christ in my flesh and blood?

There you have it. Let me know what you think.

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on our second message in Romans

As I study the book of Romans, I am confronted with a dilemma: too much information, too little time. My usual response to this dilemma is to move very slowly through verse by verse exposition. I am a little worried about this in Romans since, of all the books in the New Testament, this may be the one written up the most.

This Sunday we came to the first phrase (after last Sunday in the first word). The phrase is 'a slave of Jesus Christ'. The concept is so vital to understanding Paul's ministry that it begs us to pause and truly consider the implications of its meaing. Our message was entitled Mastered by Christ. I explored a bit of the background of slavery, both in Jewish thinking and in Greek/Roman society of the day. To apply the term to one's self is quite striking when you consider that the Rabbi's would excommunicate a man from the synagogue for calling another man a slave. But the important part of the phrase is not the condition of the one who uttered it, but the name of the master to whom he is attached. Our proposition developed this thought: The gospel begins in a life when the self-serving rebel submits his soul to the mastery of Jesus Christ. The bottom line for us is this - who masters you?

In our afternoon service I continued with my series on church philosophy, It's a Flock. The subtitle went this way: it needs shepherding (not merely leadership). My point was not to denigrate leadership. Of course the church needs leadership, but a particular kind of leadership, the shepherding kind. As I prepared for this message, I did a little internet search on 'sheep behaviour'. You will find many interesting sites with this search, I didn't realize how much was known of sheep psychology. One thing that surprised me was this: You must lead sheep, you can't drive them. The ministry of the shepherd to the sheep is one primarily of care: feeding, leading, medicating, guarding, and guiding. There are some aspects of shepherding that cause sheep discomfort (see wikipedia on 'mulesing') but primarily the leadership of the shepherd is tender watchcare over the needs of the sheep. Sometimes the sheep need prodding, but mostly they need feeding. We find the same parallel in the scriptural metaphors provided by our Lord in Jn 10 and by David in Ps 23, as well as throughout the Scriptures. While pastors have authority to some extent over their flocks, they must realize that the biblical pattern for the exercise of their authority is the tender watchcare of the shepherd, not the autocratic demanding stance of the CEO or a military general.

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on faith and works

I started a book by Elmer Towns today. It is our current selection for our reading group: Understanding the Deeper Life. I had not been aware that Towns subscribed to Keswick views, but it is quite plain from this book. He spend his undergraduate years at Columbia Bible College (now Columbia International University) under Robert McQuilkin. McQuilkin and Columbia are Keswick, hence the influence on Towns.

In his introduction, Towns alludes to his experience as the president of Winnipeg Bible College (now Providence College and Seminary) and makes a very interesting observation:

Later, my experience as president of Winnipeg Bible College refined the principles by which I lived. I had some Christian mysticism that was not based on the Bible. I was tested and found wanting. (I prayed all night on several occasions for money but I did not get it. The problem was I only prayed. I learned that my walk with God must be based on biblical principles, not feelings. (The colleged prospered when I not only prayed for money, but organized a financial outreach campaign. God honors both faith and works.)

In thinking about this, I immediately made some application to our ministry and the need for growth and souls. We are praying for souls. We are praying for growth. We aren't doing much. In years past, we have done many things - tried different types of outreaches, etc. I confess that the paltry results are demotivators.

A few years ago I was talking to a friend who planted a church over in the Lower Mainland. It is self-supporting now and pastored by another friend. I asked him what it took to build a church in Western Canada. He told me this: "You aren't going to like my answer. ... It's knocking on doors." He was right, I didn't like his answer. But he went on to explain, "I can't say that knocking on doors by itself did anything to build the church. We used to go around door-knocking offering in home Bible studies. We had some who were interested, most not. But as we worked, the church grew. The Lord blessed our efforts, often in ways we hadn't expected."

Well, I still don't like knocking on doors. But the point expressed by Towns and illustrated by my friend resonates with me. It is time to be doing something, not just praying. Faith is good, but let's work out our faith, eh?

While I can't imagine just doing a strict doorknocking campaign, I do think that we must be more active in evangelizing our community. That will mean becoming more visible to the community in some way, making contacts, and encouraging people to respond. I have a few notions percolating around in my brain, it is high time to take action on them and move forward.

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3