Spiritual Disciplines

Dangers of Spiritual Resolutions

/ Dennis Griffith / Leave a comment

I’ve been there. Likely, so have you.  The year begins with good intentions, and maybe even a strong start, only to fizzle days later.  The Statistic Brain Research Institute reports that 75% of New Years Resolutions are broken within the first week of the New Year.  No doubt most of the others go down soon thereafter.

Among the more frequent vows is a renewed commitment to read the Bible:

  • Read the whole Bible in one year
  • Read the Bible daily, or just more often

This seems a noble resolve. And as a church pastor, it is certainly one I applaud.  In fact, I often share some Bible Reading plans for anyone who endeavors to take up this challenge.  (Like this one: Bible Reading Plan for Slackers & Shirkers)

But in the brief (3 minute) video above, Steve Childers, of Global Church Advancement, offers a caution about making such resolutions – even resolutions such as to pray more or to read the Bible.

It may seem odd that I am posting such caution about making spiritual resolutions, especially since I commended the Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards in a post just yesterday.  But without denying the potential benefit of reflecting upon Edwards’ Resolutions, nor even the positive effects of increased Bible reading and prayer during the coming year, I think Childers makes a good point.

Consider this:

The state of our heart is of utmost importance as we practice spiritual disciplines. It’s possible to read our Bibles, pray, attend Lord’s Day worship, and even take the Lord’s Supper for all types of reasons. But unless we do it for God’s glory, and our joy in him, it does us no ultimate good.

Or as Charles Spurgeon reasoned:

“It is not enough to do the correct thing; it must be done in a right spirit, and with a 
pure motive. A good action is not wholly good unless it be done for the glory of God, 
and because of the greatness and goodness of his holy name.”

In no way would I ever dissuade anyone from increasing their spiritual vitality through partaking in such means of grace as prayer and Bible study. Nor does Childers.  But Childers does wisely warn against resolutions that may result in merely going through religious motions – even if those motions come more frequently.  Instead Childers points us to the source of all grace, and encourages us to avail ourselves of all that is offered.

Take a moment to watch the video, and to consider what Childers says.  For those who prefer to read, a transcript of the message can be read on Childers’ blog: Pathway Learning

How to Preach the Gospel to Yourself

/ Dennis Griffith / 1 Comment
Preaching Gospel to Self

Paul, in Colossians 2.6, instructs us: “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him…”  Simple words, but powerfully practical when unpacked.

How did we “receive” Jesus?  By faith and repentance – or by repentance and faith.  We are not quite sure which comes first, but perhaps that does not matter.  It may be that the order is different with different people. What matters is that genuine conversion involves both of these elements: Repentance of our sin and of all our desire and attempts to save ourselves through our good behavior; Faith in the gospel – the good news – of what Jesus has done on our behalf, and what is offered to us in him.

If these are the two elements by which we received Jesus then, according to the Apostle’s instruction, these are the two elements that should be characteristic of our day-to-day life in Jesus.  The old Puritan Thomas Watson once wisely noted: “Faith and repentance are the two wings by which we fly toward heaven.”  In other words, faith and repentance are not only the instruments by which the journey of salvation is initiated, these are the practices by which we travel.  These are the ingredients of spiritual growth leading to maturity.

The chart above reflects both faith and repentance, and provides a tool to help us be able to “preach the gospel to ourselves”.

It reminds us that when recognize sin in our lives, our response should not be to simply resolve to “stop it”. We need to discern its source.  In other words, the sin we see, the sin which shows itself in our behavior (and in our attitudes), has deeper roots and causes.  So, like an explorer commissioned to trace the a great river to discover its tributaries and its origin, we are called upon to discover what “root sins” are tributaries of our behavior, and ultimately what idols are the original source.  Once discovered – or even while in the process of discovery – “putting sin to death” requires that we confess it and repent of it.  All of it – the sinful behaviors, the attitudes that lead to it, and the idols that source it.  Growth in grace is greater than mere moral reform.  Growth in grace is a work of the Spirit upon the heart which eventually and inevitably leads to a change in behavior.

Yet growth in grace does not come by confession and repentance alone.  Such may lead to behavior change, if we feel guilty enough and desire to change. But that is not growth in grace.  Growth in grace requires that we believe what grace gives; that we ponder what is true, and good, and beautiful: chiefly among such things is the gospel, the good news of what God promises – and does – when we trust  in Jesus.  (Philippians 4.8)   Reminded of the truths of the gospel, our hearts change; they turn toward God, causing us to hunger to grow more like him, and enabling us to rely more on his promise that what he began he will complete.  (Philippians 1.6)

This is the spiritual discipline of preaching the gospel to ourselves.

Sailboat Spirituality

/ Dennis Griffith / 1 Comment

Do you sometimes have difficulty understanding or remembering who does what in our Spiritual maturation? We get that it is God who must make us alive to believe (regeneration), and that he gives us the gift of faith to believe, which leads to salvation (justification).  But then what?  Surely there is something we must do.  What about spiritual disciplines? But then, how does grace work? What does the Holy Spirit do?

I love the imagery Jared Wilson offers in his excellent book Gospel-Wakefulness:

As long as we are thinking of achieving the fruit of the Spirit by our own efforts to be more fruitful and joyful, we may be working in their direction, but we’re getting there by the sweat of our brow.  We’ve embraced rowboat spirituality.   But think of the obedient work of the Christian life like a sailboat.  There are lots of things to do on a sailboat. Sailors don’t just sit there – at least, not for too long.  There are lots of working parts on a sailboat and lots of things to pay attention to. But none of those things make the boat go.  The boat doesn’t go unless the wind catches the sail.

What we are picturing here is the work of the Spiritual Disciplines in conformity with the law of God found in Scriptures, not as the means of propulsion, but as the means of setting the conditions for Spiritual fertility. In obedience, we till the soil of our hearts so that they are more receptive for the planting and growth of the Word in our lives.  We obey both in response to the Spirit’s awakening us and in order to raise the sail for the Spirit’s movement.

“If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” ~ Galatians 5.25

Sabbath Rest: The Above All Commandment

/ Dennis Griffith / Leave a comment

Like many people, I get easily wearied by many of the Sabbath debates. What can you do? What can’t you do?  While not unimportant, these questions miss the point.

Jesus told us:

“Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2.27)

In other words, Sabbath is a gift made or established by God for us. True, it is for God’s glory, and is therefore to be kept holy. (Exodus 20.8) But we must remember that our greatest good is wrapped up in God’s glory.  And as John Piper reminds us: “God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in him.”

God gave us the gift of the Sabbath as a means that we might be satisfied in him and thereby glorify him.

Sadly, the debate seems to revolve around polarized positions, with contemporary Pharisees on the one side and supposed free spirited antinomians on the other.  The Pharisee says: “Do”, or mostly “Don’t Do”.  The antinomian (which means “against Law”) holds to the notion that he can do as he pleases, and has no obligation.  The one squeezes the life out of the gift. The other, perhaps unwittingly, responds to God’s gift by saying: “No Thanks”.

In an article from Christianity Today magazine, Kevin Emmert winsomely makes a case for Sabbath observation.  Emmert rightly describes it as a spiritual discipline of resting.  And he acknowledges that this notion somehow seems antithetical to both our spiritual growth and God’s glory:

It is difficult, and ironic, to imagine rest as the most transformative element in the Christian life. For evangelicals especially, transformation and sanctification are closely linked to activity. We appropriately begin with the idea that our works do not merit justification (being declared righteous by God). We can do nothing to earn our salvation. But most of us imagine we must play an active role in our sanctification, the ongoing process of becoming more like Christ. Sanctification, we assume, involves work and effort on our part.

This is good news to evangelical ears. We like activities. We conduct Bible studies, participate in small groups, and attend prayer meetings. We engage in worship services and outreach. We like inspirational books that teach us how to become better Christians. We have a sense of duty that compels us to evangelize and demonstrate Christ’s love to those around us. Indeed, these activities are good and find their foundation in biblical teachings.

And this is precisely why we find it so difficult to imagine rest as the most transformative feature of the Christian life.

Yet Emmert convincingly contends that this discipline, perhaps more than any other, and certainly no less than any other, provides the greatest spiritual benefits:

Why is the Sabbath so important? After all, it’s a command to do nothing; it requires no activity or effort. And that may be precisely the point.

This “above all” command encourages us to trust in God in a way that no other activity can. So much more could be accomplished by adding another day of labor, but the Sabbath requires us to trust that God will provide for all our needs and that he will continue to manage the world without our help. The Sabbath is a practical reminder that we are completely dependent on God.

It is when we realize our complete dependence upon God that we experience how great a thing it is to have the right to call him “Father”.

Check out Emmert’s short article: The Above All Commandment

Revised Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards

/ Dennis Griffith / 10 Comments

As a young man – a teenager, really – Jonathan Edwards set down on paper a series of thoughts and practices to help cultivate growth in grace.  (See 2 Peter 3.18)  Edwards then re-read this list at least once a week to keep his mind focused and renewed.  The result: A man of humble godliness, who was to become a significant spark used to ignite one of the greatest revivals known to history.  Even many unbelieving scholars admit Edwards may have been the greatest mind to have been born on the North American continent.

The Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards are still a practical and beneficial tool for spiritual cultivation.  But one problem for many is that the early 18th Century language makes it sometimes difficult to grasp what Edwards wrote.   I have taken it upon myself to attempt to translate Edwards’ meaning in hopes that these resolutions might be used by some who might otherwise feel discouraged by the archaic words.  And while I admit that there are a few of these resolutions that I cannot embrace, I will leave it to each individual to pick out anything that might seem worthy for adoption among his/her own personal resolutions.

***

Aware that I am unable to do anything without God’s help, I do pray that, by his grace, he will enable me to keep these Resolutions, so far as they are in line with his will, and that they will honor Christ.

NOTE: Remember to read over these Resolutions once a week.

1. Resolved:  I will DO whatever I think will be most to God’s glory; and my own good, profit and pleasure, for as long as I live. I will do all these things without any consideration of the time they take.  Resolved: to do whatever I understand to be my duty and will provide the most good and benefit to mankind in general. Resolved to do this, whatever difficulties I encounter, and no matter how many I experience or how severe they may be.

2. Resolved: I will continually endeavor to find new ways to practice and promote the things from Resolution 1.

3. Resolved: If ever – really, whenever – I fail & fall and/or grow weary & dull; whenever I begin to neglect the keeping of any part of these Resolutions; I will repent of  everything I can remember that I have violated or neglected, …as soon as I come to my senses again.

4. Resolved: Never to do anything, whether physically or spiritually, except what glorifies God.  In fact, I resolve not only to this commitment, but I resolve not to to even grieve and gripe about these things, …if I can avoid it.

5. Resolved: Never lose one moment of time; but seize the time to use it in the most profitable way I possibly can.

6. Resolved: To live with all my might, …while I do live.

7. Resolved: Never to do anything which I would be afraid to do if it were the last hour of my life.

8. Resolved: To act, in all respects, both in speaking and doing, as if nobody had ever been as sinful as I am; and when I encounter sin in others, I will feel (at least in my own mind& heart) as if I had committed the same sins, or had the same weaknesses or failings as others.  I will use the knowledge of their failings to promote nothing but humility – even shame – in myself. I will use awareness of their sinfulness and weakness only as an occasion to confess my own sins and misery to God.

9. Resolved: To think much, on all occasions, about my own dying, and of the common things which are involved with and surround death.

10. Resolved: When I feel pain, to think of the pains of martyrdom – both of Jesus and of Believers around the world;  and remind myself of the reality of hell.

11. Resolved:  When I think of any theological question to be resolved, I will immediately do whatever I can to solve it, … if circumstances don’t hinder.

12. Resolved: If I find myself taking delight in any gratification of pride or vanity, or on any other such empty virtue, I will immediately discard this gratification.

13. Resolved: To be endeavoring to discover worthy objects of charity and liberality.

14. Resolved: Never to do anything out of revenge.

15. Resolved: Never to suffer the least emotions of anger about irrational beings.

16. Resolved: Never to speak evil of anyone, except if it is necessary for some real good.

17. Resolved: I will live in such a way as I will wish I had done when I come to die.

18. Resolved: To live, at all times, in those ways I think are best in me during my most spiritual moments and seasons – those times when I have clearest understanding of the gospel and awareness of the World that is to come.

Continue reading →

Prayer a Priority?

/ Dennis Griffith / 1 Comment

Sometimes the truth hurts, doesn’t it?  Such is the case in a recent article by Jonathan Graf for Prayer Connect.  In the article titled Living Up to a Core Value Graf writes:

I was recently at a denominational gathering for a group that I know values prayer tremendously. In one of its core values it states: “Prayer is the primary work of God’s people.” I have no doubt that this group believes that. But when I look at what is emphasized in the group’s magazine, website, and materials that come out of its national office to churches, prayer is not placed in a position to make one think it was as important as other things – certainly not enough emphasis to show they believed it was the primary work of God’s people.

One of the primary reasons prayer is so weak in churches and in believers lives these days has to do with this “lip service” given to the importance of prayer. It seems enough for a church to say “we believe in prayer,” or “we want to be a praying church.” Our actions don’t seem to matter as much as simply saying that. The Apostle James (who was affectionately known as “Camel Knees” because of the callouses on his knees from kneeling in prayer) says, “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17). If we apply that truth to prayer, he is saying, if you say you believe in prayer, but that belief is not accompanied by activity and actions that prove that, then you don’t really believe it!

What Graf is getting at could be – and should be – applied to any Core Value of a church or organization. After all, if something is not put into practice is it really a value at all?  And the same could probably be said regarding many of our supposed spiritual disciplines.  But about prayer many  especially seem to be prone to pontification without participation.

By the way, Prayer Connect is a new magazine and e-journal well worth reading.

A Praying Life

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Praying Life“Lord, teach us to pray.”   That’s the request of the disciple of Jesus. (Luke 11.1)  That’s a request that should not be limited to ages past or the pages of the Bible. It is the heart request of any disciple of Jesus. 

My friend, Paul Miller is Jesus’ tool to answer that request in this generation.  In his book, A Praying Life: Connecting With God in a Distracting World, Paul helps people like me, people who sometimes struggle in knowing how or what to pray; people who find their minds wandering often whenever trying to commit longer periods of time to pray; people who sometimes wonder if God get’s tired of these simple, random, and inarticulate petitions.

Paul reminds us what it means to be a child of God, and the implications that has for our prayer life. He helps us see that God will never reject those who come to him with a child-like heart, and therefore will certainly not be disappointed in us if we come to him with child-like characteristics.  Paul “redeems” the mind-wandering, and sets us free to enjoy our Father in prayer.

Check out a sample chapter and a review from NavPress.

Looking at Lent With a New Lense

/ Dennis Griffith / 1 Comment

calendar

My friend Nathan Lewis has published a post that I think would be beneficial for some who do not come from a church background that observes the litugical calendar.  

One of the primary emphases of the Season of Lent is repentace.  On the ecclesiastical calendar it is a time when Christians are encouraged to fast, sacrifice, and to recognize how easily we are prone to become dependent upon things rather than on God.  It is intended to be a time of reflection and renewed commitment to dependence upon the Lord.  But in non-litugical circles Lent is ignored, if not even scoffed about.  Contemporary Evangelicals often point to the deadness of ritualistic practice, and  eschew it altogether.

I am not part of a litugical tradition. Nor am I necessarily encouraging anyone to embrace litugical practices. (Though I recognize the substance and number of posts this week might give some a reason to question that assertion.)  But I do wonder if there might be some benefits “normal” Believers might be able to glean from our litugical side of the Family of God.  Maybe there are some things that we can consider that would break us out of our own dull routines.  It seems possible that we may be able to engage in some practices without them inherently leading to ritualistic deadness.

That’s the idea Nathan takes on in his post. He poses the question: “I can repent 365 days a year, so who needs Lent?” Then he wrestles with some of the common objections to Lent, and offers some insights about how we might benefit from a different kind of reflection during these next several weeks.

To read Nathan’s post click: Lent 2009.

Faithfulness vs. Floating Along

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Here is a helpful insight from D.A. Carson, in his book For the Love of God, that reminds us that while, as  Christians, we are Justified and freely forgiven by God through Faith alone in Christ alone, we grow in Spiritual maturity by God’s grace AND our diligent faithfulness:

People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord.  We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.

A sobering reminder to avail ourselves in the means of grace.

Wisdom Wanted

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I’ve been reading – and re-reading – through Proverbs the past several days.  I have no specific aim in doing this. I have just sensed I am lacking wisdom and perspective.

Billy Graham has said that, in addition to whatever else he was reading at the time, it was his pattern to read five Psalms and one chapter of Proverbs each day.  Then, at the beginning of each new month, he would begin again reading through the Psalms and Proverbs.  According to Graham: Psalms “teach me how to get along with God;” Proverbs “teach me how to get along with my fellow man.”

It sounds like sage counsel to me.

Solitude

/ Dennis Griffith / 1 Comment

 My friend, Seaton Garrett, has developed a great series called Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Disciplines.  Here is an excerpt from part 6 on Solitude:

Try an experiment sometime today, get alone for ten minutes and try to be still and quiet. Note how your body responds, where your mind wonders off to, what emotions or feelings you experience. See if it’s not true.

Most of the time I get three responses from people when we do this.

  1. Restlessness and a desire to get out of there asap. 75% (not addicted, huh?)
  2. They fall asleep. 5% (maybe a sign we’re out of balance?)
  3. Relief that they can stop running at warp speed. 20%

In solitude you are likely to encounter God, and yourself. Both can be pretty scary.

To read the whole post click: Solitude

Great series, Seaton.