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Godly Sorrow May Be Hard to Come By

Godly sorrow is demanded by James:

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up (James 4:7-10).

The idea is that we are supposed to fight for holiness and part of that fight means constantly evaluating ourselves to see where we are unfaithful. When we see signs of unfaithfulness we are supposed to stop dead in our tracks and repent. This includes grieving over past sins. It's the same idea presented by Paul in 2 Corinthians 7:10, "Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death."

It is clear that as Christians we are to cultivate a godly sorrow for sin in our lives. The end goal, though, is not sorrow, but joy. After all, "Come near to God and he will come near to you" and "Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up."

What makes cultivating this kind of godly sorrow difficult? Here are ten ideas.

(1) Hectic schedules. Business can be dangerous if it keeps you from having times of important, silent reflection.

(2) Ignorance of God's Word.I remember as a young Christian reading the Bible and thinking, "Really, that's a sin! I didn't know that." The better we know Scripture the more we will seek how we fall short and how much we need Christ.

(3) Love for the world. We can't be a friend of God's and a friend of the world. Godly sorrow points out the ways our allegiance with the world has grown and renews our commitment to love God more.

(4) Technology. Seems strange, I know. But I get so distracted by email and the internet that time that I could spend in prayer and private reflection is spent surfing for the latest news. By all means, thank God for technology, but put it aside long enough to search your heart.

(5) Brief quiet times. Brief quiet times may be better than no quiet times, but godly sorrow is usually a response to extended prayer and scripture meditation. Give significant time to the Word and then time to think about the Word and you'll be amazed how the Spirit begins to apply it to your life.

(6) Short sermons. It's been said that sermonettes make Christianettes. The point is that like a quiet time we need to be patient long enough to understand God's Word and have it applied. There are appropriate times for shorter messages. I love hearing the brief devotionals on Sunday evening here at MVBC. But there are times where some heaving Spiritual lifting is done. This is our Sunday morning sermon time. 

(7) Light songs.I'm so thankful for the songs we sing at MVBC. As we reflect on God and his work and on our need for him I am driven to godly sorrow and to godly joy all at the same time.

(8) Shallow prayers. Prayers is a time to wrestle with life's most important matters. It is a time to go to war against Satan. It is a time to lay yourself bare. It is a time to confess and cry over sin. Shallow prayers accomplish little. This does not mean prayers need to be long--though sometimes they will be long, but let them be meaty and let them ring of our utter dependence on and satisfaction with God.

(9) Hidden sin. Godly sorry will not take place while you are hiding (and thus holding onto) sin. Godly sorrow includes repentance, the heartfelt turning from sin. Let your sin be known. Open yourself up. Come near to God and he will come near to you.

(10) Unbelief. Ultimately, a lack of godly sorrow comes down to unbelief. Either the unbelief that you need God's forgiveness or the unbelief that God could forgive you. You do and he can. What great news is this! The same God who calls us to change our laughter into mourning will then turn our mourning into dancing again.

Eliot Mooney's Short Life

An amazing reminder that life is a gift from God.

HT: Justin Taylor

99 Balloons from Igniter Media on Vimeo.

DeYoung and Kluck Love the Church V

The book is still Why We Love the Church? by pastor Kevin DeYoung and journalist Ted Kluck. The point is still the fight to reclaim a passion for congregational life in a culture (both evangelical and secular) that finds the church to be unnecessary at best and harmful at worst.

In chapter 4, Kluck addresses the complaint that the church is boring. Some think it is. They think the problem is we don't have enough video clips. Kluck disagrees. Churches are boring when they don't understand the importance of their work. We gather together without a profound sense that God is at work equipping us to fight the fight. Kluck wants his life to mean something and can't figure out how that meaning can be severed from his relationship to a church. He writes:

At the end of my life, I want my friends and family to remember me as someone who battled for the gospel, who tried to mortify sin in my life, who fought hard for life, and who contended earnestly for the faith. Not just as a nice guy who occasionally noticed the splendor of the mountains God created, while otherwise just trying to enjoy myself, manage my schedule, and work on my short game (102).

Kluck isn't a pastor. He's a journalist. But he wants nothing more than to contend for the faith. That's good. When Christians gather, something big happens. Satan is not pleased. The Word is proclaimed as believers prepare to do battle. This is important work. Kluck gets it.

Forgiveness in the Body

In Matthew 6:14 we read these words of Jesus, "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive you."

It sounds as if God's forgiveness of us is started by our forgiveness of others. But how can this be if we are justified by faith alone in Christ alone? If the forgiveness we receive in Christ is a gift (Eph. 2:4-5) how could it be that God's forgiveness of us depends upon our forgiveness of others?

The answer lies in the power of the Cross which not only justifies us but also sanctifies us. Jesus is describing the life of a disciple. A disciple's life is responsive to God's grace. A disciple does more than say nice things about his Master, a disciple lives like his Master. To quote Jesus later in the Sermon on the Mount, "A good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit." Forgiveness of others is the "good fruit" of a disciple.

We cannot rightly call ourselves Christians unless we regularly forgive others. After all that God has done for us in and through Christ how can we fail to forgive others? This seems to be what Jesus is saying. A true Christian is a forgiving Christian because he is forgiven.

We are far too easily wronged. The smallest slight sends us into convulsions. A friend fails to return our call. A spouse speaks sharply. A boss treats us like an employee. Love is supposed to cover all wrongs. Instead, we are consumed by the wrongs people do to us. The Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "You who cannot love another because of his imperfections have never yet seen your own face in the mirror. Your brother's infirmities may make you pity him; his graces must make you love him."

Christian, when we look in the mirror we are supposed to be overwhelmed by our spiritual "infirmities." Now think about the love on display for you on the Cross. There Christ died for your anger and resentment and bitterness and pride and deceit and lust and gossip and violence. Though Christ never shared in this sin, he died for this sin so that you would be forgiven. This is what Christ has done for you. Are you now dwelling on the wrongs others have done toward you?

A Dangerous Prayer

It seems one of the most dangerous prayers we could ever offer to God is simply, "Lord, help me see how much I need you." This prayer is dangerous for a couple of reasons. 

First, it is dangerous because in answer to that prayer God may allow us to suffer. It is in the suffering that we are most aware of our weakness, inability, insecurity, and utter dependence on others and, ultimately, on God. I went to breakfast this morning and was blinded by the sun until the waitress lowered the blinds. Then, all of a sudden, I could see. Suffering can be like the lowering of the blinds--all of a sudden we can see rightly. We should not pray for suffering but we should pray that we would see and experience our need for God. Then, in the suffering that will come, we will see God better (Phil. 3:10).

Second, it is a dangerous prayer because a Christian who sees his or her need for God is a dangerous Christian. A believer aware of his need for the Lord is not impressed by the world. The world won't meet his need. He is not impressed by people. People won't meet his need. He's not intimidated by money. Money won't meet his need. A believer aware of his need understands his need is met only by the Cross. Now, it is a crucified and risen Savior that impresses him. Nothing else. Such a believer is bold and confident and, yes, dangerous. Satan is not pleased when we see our need for Christ (Eph. 6:12).

DeYoung and Kluck Love the Church IV

I continue to be thankful for their book, Why We Love the Church? As a pastor, it seems self-serving to promote this book or even to devote time to defending the church. "Of course he wants people to go to church, he's the pastor!" But the truth is, I don't love the church because I'm the pastor, I'm a pastor because I love Christ's church. 

In chapter three, "The Personal: On Hurt and Heresy," DeYoung and Kluck admit that many churches have serious problems, but these faults shouldn't keep us from embracing a local church. "As Christians, and especially for those of us who are leaders, we need to take an honest look at ourselves and our churches. We all have imbalances. We all have specks to remove, and some of us have planks. We're kidding ourselves if we think our churches don't have weaknesses" (74).

Those who refuse to go to church and those who are in the church (but not happily) have tons of reasons. Some think the church is boring, some are tired of the corporate mentality, others are looking for something that feels more genuine. Regardless of our reasons for not liking the church or not going to church, it is worth looking inward for some answers. In a moment of genuine reflection, DeYoung writes:

In all honesty I can say that in the times I've been hurt by church people or been disheartened, the biggest problems, in the end, proved to be those that came from my own heart. This is not to discount external pressures or difficult situations or the ways in which Christians hurt each other. Yet even with all these outside factors, my main issue has been Kevin. I respond in sinful ways. I feel sorry for myself. I lose faith. I doubt the Word of God. I don't want to forgive. I stop hoping. I get embittered. I grow lazy. I don't stay in step with the Spirit. These are my sins from my heart. Others can make life difficult for me. I can make it unbearable (84)

Whatever our problems with the church may be--and we all have them, the problem may not fundamentally be with the church, the problem may be in our own hearts. With that, they close the chapter with four questions for those tempted to give up on the church.

First, are you rejecting the church or the faith? It may be easier to argue against people in the church than the theology of the church. "If Christians are interested in a Christianity free from doctrine, demands, and damnation, the aren't just sick of the church and its unflattering quirks; they're tired of the Christian faith altogether" (87).

Second, are you trying to have your cake and eat it too? In other words, in leaving the church some people run into the arms of the very things they tried to leave. Someone might leave the church because he hates institutionalism only to work at a parachurch ministry that is, itself, an institution. Another may want a church full of love for the body but then get upset when it is hard to break-in. Again, there is no perfect church.

Third, are you making an idol out of authenticity? "Godliness demands a lot more than just being real. In fact, godliness demands that we stop acting like we want to and start acting like Christ" (89). I want Mount Vernon to be transparent. Where appropriate, I want us to be honest about our sins and our struggles. I want our lives to overlap in such a way that we really are able to share. I also want us to present a faith that is, as DeYoung and Kluck put it, "pure, assured, and happy" because we are all of these things in Christ. That's not a lack of authenticity, it is faith.

Fourth, are you repeating the mistakes of the previous generation. Ours isn't the first generation to find segments of the church disillusioned with the church. DeYoung and Kluck point to the Jesus people of the 60s and 70s but we could go back even further. Hardly a decade went by in the early nineteenth century where a disgruntled group didn't start their own denomination. 

As for me, I can no sooner give up on the church than I can give up on Christ. The church I serve isn't perfect. There are lots of flaws, beginning with me. But we are eager to glorify God and enjoy him forever. We want to know one another. We want to see the gospel change our own hearts and our community. We aren't always sure how to do that, but we gather regularly to work on it and then go to our homes and workplaces to struggle some more. It's not pretty, but it's church.

DeYoung and Kluck Love the Church III

For those of you who may not know, I'm summarizing a book by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck entitled,Why We Love the Church. Today, chapter two, "Getting off the Road and Getting Back to Church." They nicely summarize the goal of the chapter:

To try to convince you that in the midst of the constant, low-level drone of conversation about community, culture, "missional," and "finding God," there is a place to worship, sing praises to our King, live in community, and grow in sanctification. And it's the church.

In this chapter, DeYoung and Kluck point out that there are evangelical Christians encouraging believers to abandon what some might consider a traditional church--pastor preaching to pews with people--in favor of a cutting-edge church--meeting in Starbucks to discuss what Jesus has been teaching you. With such a view in mind, Kluck responds:

I, for one, am thankful that I go to a church that isn't trying to be like my coffee shop. I'm glad that someone cares enough about the gospel to preach it to me in a powerful and convincing way. A way that has edges. A way that makes me feel uncomfortable. And I'm thankful that my church doesn't do this to make me feel awkward, unloved, or unwelcomed, rather for my sanctification and growth.

I like how Kluck puts it. Some may think that pastors are more interested in numerical growth than sanctification. I'm sure there are pastors like that. As a young pastor, I know the temptation that exists to long for pews that are filled with people. But people-in-the-pews can't be the ultimate goal. I labor over sermons and bible studies, I spend time with people over lunch and coffee and dinner because I want us all to grow to look more like Christ -- and the Lord uses sermons and discipleship in the context of the body of Christ to make that happen.

I am so thankful that the members of Mount Vernon free me up to have this kind of ministry. They free me up to study the Word of God to share the Word of God to preach the Word of God. They free me up to spend large chunks of time seeing how the Word of God is influencing people to be like Christ--to be sanctified. 

We all have a role in this. The church is a priesthood of believers. But DeYoung and Kluck are right--no matter how thrilling a Christ-conversation over a latte can be, there is still no replacement for committing yourself to the church. Most of us lead ordinary lives. We get up. We go to work. We struggle with sin. One of the ordinary means of grace that God has given us to live each day for his glory is, simply, the church. 

By the way, I've recently written a couple book reviews on the church. They can be found here and here.

Preparing for Sunday

One of the best things we can do as God's church, as God's people, is prepare ourselves to hear God's Word preached. To think of Sunday morning not as a disruption in our schedule but as the climax of our week. What a joy it is to gather with God's people, to share in the glories of the Cross, to be transformed together by the Word of God. God has spoken. 

So how can we prepare? Let's start by crucifying sin. By examining our own hearts for signs of rebellion against God and putting it to death. Pastor Sinclair Ferguson in The Christian Life, put it this way: 

We must affirm in this context that crucifying sin is a central practical issue in Christian experience. This neglected area of truth must be recovered, and in our present culture must be taught to younger and older Christians alike. Undoubtedly one of the reasons some younger Christians make shipwreck of their faith is because they have never learned how to deal with indwelling sin, or, what is worse, have been encouraged to see it as an irrelevance. It is one of the signs of our morally-confused church life today that there is so much hesitation here. We have lost confidence in the clear commands of Scripture (158-59).

So, join me as we prepare for Sunday by taking time to examine our hearts and confess our sin before God. Pride, lust, envy, anger--it is all there. As we humble ourselves before God he will lift us up!

DeYoung and Kluck Love the Church II

My observation is that as people grow tired of hearing about the atonement, salvation, the cross, and the afterlife, they grow tired of church. Because the more that sin and redemption and heaven and hell recede into the background, the more the church becomes just one among several options for making a difference in the world. (51)

This is how Kevin DeYoung ends the first chapter of his book, written with Ted Kluck, Why We Love the Church. They examine two reasons the church is criticized today: first, the church is losing people and, second, the church has lost its mission.

In answer to the first question, they point out that in reality, it is mainline Protestant congregations (think liberal, as in, "Jesus didn't really rise from the dead") and Roman Catholic churches that are losing members in serious numbers. They uncover statistics that show attendance at evangelical churches (think conservative, as in, "Jesus really did rise from the dead") has grown as a percentage of the total U. S. population.

We should still be concerned about church growth, but the question we have to keep coming back to is do we trust God to use his Word, his gospel to grow the church? DeYoung and Kluck offer several helpful questions on this order:

• Are we believing the gospel?
• Are we relying on the power of the gospel?
• Are we getting the gospel right?
• Are we adorning the gospel with good works?
• Are we praying for the work of the gospel?
• Are we training up our children in the gospel?
• Are we trusting God's sovereignty in the gospel?

Regarding the mission of the church, there are a growing number of churches prioritizing social outreach over evangelistic outreach. This is not helpful. Though churches ought to care for the community, if they lose sight of their primary mission: preaching, teaching, praying, evangelizing--they will no longer be churches. They will be, instead, civic centers.

The more we remind ourselves of the gospel, and sobering news that because of our sin we are in desperate need of a Savior, the less tempted we will be to mistake the church's mission. The authors are right: "There's a danger that when people get disinterested in the gospel, they get disinterested in the church, they've left the only institution whose mission aims for eternity and whose gospel is truly good news."

DeYoung and Kluck Love the Church I

These days, spirituality is hot; religion is not. Community is hip, but the church is lame. Both inside the church and out, organized religion is seen as oppressive, irrelevant, and a waste of time. Outsiders like Jesus but not the church. Insiders have been told they can do just fine with God apart from the church.

This is how Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck begin their book, Why We Love the Church: In Praise of Institutions and Organized Religion. They wrote it because they don't want our generation to give up on the church--and that is exactly what so many are doing. As they write in the introduction, some are convinced the church is no longer capable of fulfilling the great commission--like a car with a broken head gasket, the church is broken! Others have been hurt by the church. Since coming to MVBC I've met with more than one person who has a personal horror story of how the church failed to be, well, the church. Then there are those who think the church thrived in the first century only to spiral down ever since. Finally, some are convinced, theologically, that the church as a formal gathering is not necessary. 

Because I am so thankful for DeYoung's and Kluck's diagnosis, I want to walk through their book, right here. My hope is that their insights will increase our desire to serve the local body of Christ.