“ Great truth. ” It is true: persecution means to suffer for Christ, not to suffer because of our sins or wrong doings, or for our bad attitudes, or for wordly causes.
“ Heartless worship. ” This was a blessed message, a good warning against the danger of heartless worship. I think that if Isaia 43:21 would be a reality in my life, my entire life would change. God help me!
“ Great study. ” Studying this text I came to the same conclusion. I am glad to find in this message the same interpretation. The passage applies today, bot oil is changed with today's medicine. Plus a good answer to Catholic and Charismatic wrong interpretations of the text.
“ Great lesson. ” Yes, we must never forget from what depths and darkness the Lord brought our in His salvation. And we must not follow again the paths of the past.
“ Sovereignty of God over all. ” This was a wise and useful teaching and counsel. What a comfort is the doctrine of the abslute sovereignty of God over human rulers and human affairs!
“ What is Preparationism? ” I believe the misunderstanding here is that the term preparationism is supposed that conviction of sin is the cause, and regeneration is the effect. But this is not what the Puritans taught. They taught that the law work was just what God does antecedently to regeneration to show a person his innate inability to believe, to repent, and act. He may suppose he knows this, but God allows him to struggle in his self righteous efforts to come to Christ out of MERCENARY motives so that he will learn that if God does not mercifully interpose he will inevitably perish. It is the act of God to convince natively obdurate and asleep sinners that they are sick and then the Physician becomes precious. It is objected that it is a discouragement to thirsting sinners who want to come. They would argue that real thirst and real desire is already a sign of regeneration. A sinner dead in sin can only hate God, he cannot thirst after him. His desires for sin therefore can only be a selfish desire to escape punishment, not to have Christ rule over him. see SermonAudio SID=5101012463110 and SID=51010131775
“ Confusing. ” I still find this teaching on the Law abolished as confusing. In Jeremiah 31:33 it is written that God writes, in the New Covenant, His Law, on our hearts, not a moral law of nature. In the old covenant, the moral aspects of the Law of Moses was external, now it is written on the hearts of believers. Not a natural law is written on the hearts, but the Law given through Moses.
5/19/13 1:58 AM
