Author Archives: Stephen Rodgers

We Will Remember Thy Love More Than Wine

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Song of Solomon 1:4

Jesus will not let His people forget His love. If all the love they have enjoyed should be forgotten, He will visit them with fresh love. ‘Do you forget my cross?’ says He, ‘I will cause you to remember it; for at My table I will manifest Myself anew to you. Do you forget at I did for you in the council-chamber of eternity? I will remind you of it, for you shall need a counsellor, and shall find Me ready at your call.’

Mothers do not let their children forget them. If the boy has gone to Australia, and does not write home, his mother writes-‘Has John forgotten his mother?’ Then there comes back a sweet epistle, which proves that the gentle reminder was not in vain. So is it with Jesus, He says to us, ‘Remember Me,’ and our response is, ‘We will remember Thy love.’

We will remember Thy love and its matchless history. It is ancient as the glory which Thou hadst with the Father before the world was. We remember, O Jesus, Thine eternal love when Thou didst become our Surety, and espouse us as Thy betrothed. We remember the love which suggested the sacrifice of Thyself, the love which, until the fulness of time, mused over that sacrifice, and long for the hour whereof in the volume of the book it was written of Thee, ‘Lo, I come.’ We remember Thy love, O Jesus as it was manifest to us in Thy holy life, from the manger of Bethlehem to the garden of Gethsemane. We track Thee from the cradle to the grave-for every word and deed of Thine was love-and we rejoice in Thy love, which death did not exhaust; Thy love which shone resplendent in Thy resurrection. We remember that burning fire of love which will never let Thee hold Thy peace until Thy chosen ones be all safely housed, until Zion be glorified, and Jerusalem settled on her everlasting foundations of light and love in heaven.

1.23p

Weekly Links (3/25/2011)

If we don’t know that there is such a person as God, we don’t know the first thing (the most important thing) about ourselves, each other and our world. This is because…the most important truths about us and them, is that we have been created by the Lord, and utterly depend upon him for our continued existence. (Alvin Plantinga, Warranted Christian Belief)

by Stephen Rodgers

Since we already had one edition of the Weekly Links already this week, I figured I’d keep this one rather short for you, and just point out some resources you might not be aware of.

  • First of all, christianaudio.com is giving away audio copies of John Piper’s Jesus: The Only Way to God for FREE until 3/31.  This is in addition to the regular free book for March, which is RC Sproul’s The Holiness of God. Download both.  You won’t regret it. (AUDIO)
  • Furthermore, the audio files for the 2011 Shepherds’ Conference are now available. And yes, they are free as well.  You’ve heard Pastor Patrick preach on what he thoughtalready, but this is your chance to hear them all (all 35 of them!) for yourself.  (AUDIO)
  • And last but not least, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his book Desiring God, John Piper is going to preach through the book.  If you’ve never read this book before, this is a great time to do it, and get guidance from Pastor Piper as he goes through it again.  DG has a link explaining the details and offering discounted copies of the book if you’re interested.  (WEB)

That’s it for now.  Make sure you read the latest SPARK so that you know what’s happening at church.

See you Sunday!

Pro Rege

Surprised by Prayer

by Stephen Rodgers

First of all, apologies for the lateness of the article today. I didn’t know I was writing it until a few hours ago. I take small consolation in the fact that our beloved pastor has apparently been so overcome by his guilt in surprising me in this way, that he has fled the country.

No…not really. See me Sunday if you don’t get the joke. But let’s skip over that and move on to something more substantial: reflections on a particular aspect of the recent Singles Retreat. The theme of the retreat was “Dependence,” and if you haven’t yet read Pastor Patrick’s article that he wrote in response to the messages, I would commend it to you.

One of the messages was particular focused on prayer, particularly in regards to Romans 8:26-27. For those of you who aren’t as familiar with that passage, it speaks of how the Spirit intercedes on our behalf in our prayers. This passage sits at a nexus of several biblical themes: prayer (as the act of every believer, verse 26), the will of God (and how the Spirit will assist us in praying within it, verse 27), and even the work of each member of the trinity (in this passage, the Spirit intercedes before God on the behalf of the believer, just as Christ is said to do in Hebrews 2:17-18, 4:14-16, and 7:24-26).

When those messages are added to the media archive, I’ll be sure to include a link here. (Editor’s Note: they have been added). Meanwhile, I wanted to highlight three additional ways that we are dependent on God in prayer. These aren’t drawn from the retreat messages per se, but I think that all of them underscore our dependence on God.

  1. God is the object of our prayers. Prayers in and of themselves are objectively useless. They may impart some sort of subjective experience of catharsis, but part from a deity who can both hear and respond, they are nothing more than baseless utterances. But we know from Scripture that God does hear our prayers, and that He is the final arbiter of that which will be. In directing our prayers to Him we can have full confidence that they are anything but useless. He may not always answer in the way we would hope, but we know that this is due to our own lack of understanding rather than a limitation on His part.
  2. God is the model for our prayers. Prayer can seem nerve-wracking at times; after all, what do to you say to someone who has not only seen the birth of our entire universe, but actually spoke the words that birthed it? Thanking him for a good day or asking him to impart His divine blessing on your pizza can seem downright trivial. How much more confidence should we have then since He has given us instruction on how to pray to Him? From the instruction of the Lord’s prayer to the examples of the psalmists, Scripture is full of models of prayer that please God. We have nothing less than the very words of God to tell us how to have words with God.
  3. God is the answer to our prayers. In Matthew 21:16, Jesus identifies Himself as the object of the prayer of Psalm 8:2. Hebrews 1:8-12 identifies Jesus as the object of some prayers in the Psalms as well. This may seem obvious, but think for a moment of what it means that we have a God who came down to us. We already touched on the fact that God hears and responds to prayer. But in His plan for redemption, God didn’t simply manipulate a few events; He personally involved Himself in the story. He condescended to His own creation. And before He left, He told us that He would one day do so again, and in the meantime we still have access to Him.

As I mentioned before, the theme of the retreat was “Dependence,” and I think it was a theme that was hammered home over and over again. But as I reflect on God and His gift of prayer, I can’t help but realize how this common experience ties us together as Christians. The first instance of prayer in the Bible is recorded in Genesis: the book of beginnings. The last instance of prayer in the Bible is recorded in Revelation: the book of new beginnings. Somewhere in between those two are the entirety of a people called by God, who in turn call upon Him. From Adam and Abraham to Peter and Paul to you and me, the same God has heard us all.

I’m not sure you can follow that thought and not feel very, very small.

What seem our worst prayers may really be, in God’s eyes, our best. Those, I mean, which are least supported by devotional feeling. For these may come from a deeper level than feeling. God sometimes seems to speak to us most intimately when he catches us, as it were, off our guard. (CS Lewis, Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer)

Peacemaker Chapter 3: Trust in the Lord and Do Good

by Cesar Vigil-Ruiz

Editor’s Note: You can listen to the class and download the handout.

The LORD’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him. (Psalm 32:10b) (NIV)

When you have a deeper understanding of how God relates to this world and His creatures, you get a better understanding of the purpose of conflict. This is what Ken Sande draws out as essential to seeing conflict the way the Bible presents it: as something God, in His sovereign power and goodness, purposely designed for us. You would think reading about the sovereignty of God would be discussed in situations solely dealing with theology—not so, according to Scripture. Without God’s “supreme, unlimited and totally independent” power (p.60), which is what sovereignty means, conflict could not be seen in any other light than what most people think: as a negative consequence natural in relationships, void of hope and resolution. This common view is what needs to be corrected by the truth of God’s sovereignty and goodness.

God is Sovereign

“One reason that Jesus and Paul trusted God so completely is that they knew he was in complete control of everything that happened in their lives. This perfect control is often referred to as ‘the sovereignty of God.’” (p.60)

What God alone has is power over everything that has happened, and also what will happen. His control extends to every government, as well as individual lives and where they go. What differs from society’s misconception of God is that He is very involved and wanting to know us individually, taking great interest in the details of our lives, like what Psalm 8:3-4 says: “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” What is included in this great control God has is control over many events in life that cause pain. One example comes from Isaiah 45:5-7, which tells us: “I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the LORD, who does all these things.” This shows greatest in the crucifixion of the only innocent man on the earth who has ever lived, and who is also the Son of God: “this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men” (Acts 2:23). Thus Sande writes,

Jesus did not die because God had lost control or was looking the other direction. God was fully in control at all times. He chose not to restrain the actions of evil men so that his plan of redemption would be fulfilled through the death and resurrection of his Son (Romans 3:21-26). (p.61)

Knowing this should not get us thinking that we have nothing to be held responsible for when in conflict (Matthew 12:36). We know that God ordains or orchestrates the events in our lives with a purpose in mind, including our conflicts, which should draw us to be ever more ready to handle conflict when it arises, because God designed this world knowing conflict would be inevitable.

God is Good

If all we knew was that God is in control of all that takes place, we would have a right to be afraid, since we would not know if He could do anything He pleases, which would either be good or bad. The great joy for Christians is that God has revealed Himself as good, and for our good in the most pure sense. Psalm 62:11-12a says: “Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, and that to you, O LORD, belongs steadfast love.” So, every trial that we go through is also for our good:

God also uses our trials to teach us how to minister to others when they are suffering (2 Cor. 1:3-5). Through our trials, we can set an example that will encourage others to depend on God and remain faithful to his commands (2 Cor. 1:6-11). (p.63)

One promise God has given to His people is that of 1 Corinthians 10:13, which tells us, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” He does this in 2 ways:

  1. Sometimes He takes the problems away once they have fulfilled their purpose in our lives (2 Cor. 1:3-11).
  2. He leaves problems in our lives, giving us the strength that is enough to win the battle over them on a daily basis, which shows His sustaining grace (2 Cor. 12:7-10).

Ken Sande sums up our response to this truth is

“…instead of wasting time and energy trying to figure out things that are beyond our comprehension, we need to turn our attention to the promises and instructions that God has revealed to us through Scripture. The Bible tells us that God is both sovereign and good, so we can be sure that whatever he has brought into our lives can be used to glorify him, to benefit others, and to help us grow.” (p.65)

The Path Has Been Marked

What these truths should lead a Christian to is trust in our God. “Trusting God means that in spite of our questions, doubts, and fears we draw on his grace and continue to believe that he is loving, that he is in control, and that he is always working for our good. Such trust helps us to continue doing what is good and right, even in difficult circumstances” (p.65). Among the godly who have shown great trust is Job (Job 42:2-3), Joseph (Gen. 37-50), David (Psa. 37:1-6), Peter and John (Acts 4:24, 27-29), and Paul (2 Cor. 4:7-18). Modern day examples include Jim and Elisabeth Elliot, as well as Joni Eareckson Tada. She writes (Sande quotes),

If examining the sovereignty of God teaches us anything, it teaches us that real satisfaction comes not in understanding God’s motives, but in understanding his character, in trusting in his promises, and in leaning on him and resting in him as the Sovereign who knows what he is doing and does all things well. (p.69)

What led to this trust is a recognition and conviction that God really is in control of all that happens in one’s life, and an unswerving commitment to stay firm in that truth, which comforts in the hardest of times, knowing that any and every trial, suffering, persecution comes not as an unexpected act by someone or some natural disaster, but ultimately by a God who loves us and will do all He can to show us His grace for our good. Even if it hurts, you can never accuse God of not wanting you to see Him in it and that He will get you through it, when you trust Him.

Trust Is a Decision

How you view God will deeply affect the way you see conflict. If you see God as solely sovereign but not good, He would be an accurate description of how Christopher Hitchens views God: a heavenly dictator. If He is good but not sovereign, you have a Santa Claus figure who cannot do a thing when trouble comes. The goal is not just resolved conflict, but a trust in the living God, who is both sovereign and good. Real resolution comes from a full trust in the God of Scripture who has spoken and has already resolved the deepest conflict that is the root of all other conflicts: the broken relationship between man and God in their full rebellion against His authority, character, and law. Our trust in God to help us resolve conflict comes from His willingness to send Jesus, His Son, to die on a cross for our sins and to remove the wrath that God has for everyone who continues to reject the only way of getting back to Him. They trust in their own “power” and “goodness” to get by in this world, including resolving conflicts, that never addresses the heart of the issue, and lives like those who say “‘peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14). Our God saves, our God heals, and our God strengthens when we feel our weakest, because He is our strength, He is our healer, and He is our Savior.

LBC Weekly SPARK – March 22, 2011

by Pastor Patrick Cho

Dear LBC Family and Friends,

I hope you are doing well and walking in the Lord. March has been a tremendously busy month with the Mission Bowl tournament and singles retreat, but the month has also been a huge blessing. Much of ministry is a learn on the job kind of thing, and the Lord has been gracious to teach me more and more to depend on Him in all circumstances.

I wanted to let you know of a prayer request. As some of you are aware, Mike Chon, Cesar Vigil-Ruiz, John Kim, and I will be heading to Argentina this week to meet up with the church in Tucuman to talk through missions planning. We would appreciate your prayers for God’s grace to provide safe travel, good communication while we are there, and a profitable trip. We will be away from March 23-30, which means that we won’t be around this weekend. Pastor Wonbin Song will be preaching for us so please show him gracious hospitality and kindness, as I know you will.

In His grace,

Pastor Patrick

Here are some announcements for this week:

  1. Sunday Services – For the Sunday School hour this week, GraceLife will not be meeting. You are welcome to sit in on the Peacemaker class in the sanctuary or in Fundamentals of the Faith in Room 107. All the children’s and youth classes will also be meeting.
  2. Friday Night Bible Studies – The Friday night Bible studies will be meeting this week except for the UCSD Campus Fellowship. They will not be meeting due to spring break. Visit the church website for more details about the affinity groups.
  3. Ultimate Frisbee – We will be participating in the Hope Harvest International Ultimate Frisbee tournament this Saturday. This will be at the Nobel Recreational Center. The tournament begins at 9:00am and will be running pretty much all day. If you are interested in coming out to cheer on our team, please contact Teddy Yu for details.
  4. Men’s Breakfast – On Saturday, April 2, we will be having the first of several men’s breakfasts at the church. This will be a time of fellowship and prayer as well as an opportunity to examine the theme of biblical manhood. We will meet at the church from 7:00am to about 9:00am.
  5. Members Meeting – Our next members meeting will be on Sunday, April 10, at 4:45pm, at the church. All members are highly encouraged to attend as the elders present some important matters. Please make an effort to be there. As always, dinner will be provided.
  6. LBC Banquet – The annual all-church banquet will be on Sunday, May 22, at 4:45pm. This year, the banquet will be at the church. The cost for tickets is only $35/adult (children 0-12 are free)! This is a wonderful time to reflect on the Lord’s kindness this past year to the church. Please mark your calendars!
  7. Vacation Bible School – VBS will be from June 20-24 this year, from 9:00am-5:00pm each day. Please mark your calendars! You can talk to Josh Liu or Abram Kim for more details or for registration.

Learning to Lean

by Pastor Patrick Cho

This past weekend, we had the opportunity to sit under the teaching of Pastor James Lee of Pillar Bible Church as he gave three challenging messages on the topic of dependence and prayer. It was a wonderful time to study God’s Word, but a convicting time of evaluating our hearts and prayer life. Sadly, prayer is a much neglected and downplayed discipline. Many believers do not give it much effort because they doubt that it will do any practical good. This reflects not only our poor faith and understanding, but also our tendency towards self-sufficiency and self-reliance. These are blatant displays of our pride.

One of the hardest truths about living the Christian walk is that it requires a daily taking up of the cross (Mark 8:34). One realizes that if he wants to grow in faith, it is going to require the painful process of pruning (John 15:2). But what results is greater faith, greater maturity, and greater reliance upon the Lord. Because of this, the Christian joyfully accepts trials (James 1:2-4). He understands that it is worth it to sell all to obtain the pearl of great price (Matt. 13:45-46).

Paul understood this truth well and gladly accepted the exchange. He referred to the hardships he faced as a result of the gospel as light momentary affliction, and compared it to an eternal weight of glory to be had in heaven (2 Cor. 4:17). He understood that in his weakness, God’s strength could be put on display (2 Cor. 12:9-10).

It is very difficult to be in the place where you do not know what to do, what to say, or even what to think about a hard situation or your difficult circumstances. It can be a terrifying experience to be at the end of yourself, where all you can do is pray and trust in God. There is a certain amount of faithlessness that most Christians struggle with when they get to that point because of the sense of vulnerability, powerlessness, and ignorance.

But still, the truth remains that there could be no better place for the believer. In Christ, and with Paul, we can boast about our weaknesses. As we lean on the Lord, how much more will we be amazed at what He accomplishes through us? And when we see spiritual fruit, we can confidently praise God because we know it was Him and not us. This is a difficult road, indeed, but a glorious one as well. The one who takes to this road will see the Lord more clearly, will know the Lord more deeply, and will experience His power more consistently.

Weekly Links (3/21/2011)

by Stephen Rodgers

Thanks for your patience.  The earthquake/tsunami/nuclear reactor catastrophe in Japan last week and the Singles’ Retreat last weekend pushed the Weekly Links to today.  Also, before we get to the Weekly Links, I wanted to point out that John Piper has some comments on the situation in Japan, and Desiring God has put up a list of Christian relief organizations as well.

First of all, I wanted to direct your attention to the Recommended Resources page, particularly the Software and Study section.  It used to just be the “Software” section, but I added “and Study” so that I would have somewhere to put resources like Biblegateway.com, CCEL, and the NET Bible.  Enjoy!

And with that out of the way, we can get to a few other links that you might like…

  • A few weeks ago I posted a link to an audio version of the Westminster Shorter Catechism. If you’re not sure exactly what the WSC is, then perhaps you would like to hear Curtis Allen and DA Carson rap an explanation for you? (Trust me, this is probably the only time you’ll ever hear DA Carson holler “west side!”) (AUDIO)
  • Over at the Ligonier blog, RC Sproul Jr. has an article entitled 5 Things I’m Surprised I Can’t Find in the Bible. In it, he highlights a number of issues where Christians hold to different opinions.  (WEB)
  • I can’t remember how I found it, but there’s a video on Youtube that shows word clouds for all 66 books of the Bible (for those who don’t know what a “word cloud” is, it’s basically a grouping of words from a particular document, where words with higher frequency counts are represented in larger font). (VIDEO)
  • Over at Triablogue, they recently had a great article with an excerpt from a book describing Christianity’s Influence on Friendship. (WEB)
  • And this one goes out to all the hard-working servants in our own Youth Ministry.  In 2002 John Piper delivered a powerful challenge to men and women who are responsible for leading youth and college ministries.  You can listen to or download the sermon here. (AUDIO)

There you go!  Thanks again for your patience.

Pro Rege

I Have Exalted One Chosen Out of the People

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Psalm 89:19

Why was Christ chosen out of the people? Speak, my heart, for heart-thoughts are best. Was it not that He might be able to be our brother, in the blest tie of kindred blood? Oh, what relationship there is between Christ and the believer! The believer can say, ‘I have a Brother in heaven; I may be poor, but I have a Brother who is rich, and is a King, and will He suffer me to want while He is on His throne? Oh, no! He loves me; He is my Brother.’ Believer, wear this blessed thought, like a necklace of diamonds, around the neck of thy memory; put it, as a golden ring, on the finger of recollection, and use it as the King’s own seal, stamping the petitions of thy faith with confidence of success. He is a brother born for adversity, treat Him as such.

Christ was also chosen out of the people that He might know our wants and sympathize with us. ‘He was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin.’ In all our sorrows we have His sympathy. Temptation, pain, disappointment, weakness, weariness, poverty-He knows them all, for He has felt all. Remember this, Christian, and let it comfort thee. However difficult and painful thy road, it is marked by the footsteps of thy Saviour; and even when thou reachest the dark valley of the shadow of death, and the deep waters of the swelling Jordan, thou wilt find His footprints there. In all places whithersoever we go, He has been our forerunner; each burden we have to carry, has once been laid on the shoulders of Immanuel.

‘His way was much rougher and darker than mine
Did Christ, my Lord, suffer, and shall I repine?’
Take courage! Royal feet have left a blood-red track upon the road,
and consecrated the thorny path for ever.

1.23a

Praying Through Disaster

by Elder Mike Chon

(Editor’s note: Given the recent disaster in Japan, the Weekly Links has been delayed to bring you this article instead.)

The recent catastrophic disaster in Japan is a solemn reminder of the fallen world we live in and God’s impending judgment on this world. It appears that it is going to get worse before it gets better in Japan. A “natural” disaster is not something uncommon, but when these things occur many are left with questions and too many have trivial answers.

We need to be careful before we presume on God and assume that somehow God has given us the knowledge of why this happened, when it happened, and to whom it happened. God warns against assuming that people suffer more in this world because of some sin they committed (Luke 13:1-5). Some of us are too quick to give the “God is sovereign” answer and walk away from the horrific reality of the magnitude of the disaster that just occurred. Some of us may just think that it was “bad luck” and that “nature” just didn’t like them. Many of us in America are too busy with our own lives to even take time to consider how we should respond to such a disaster on the other side of the world.

One thing is certain, thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people have had their lives completely changed from this earthquake and the subsequent tsunami. During times when the world cannot give comfort, when the world cannot give an answer, and when the world has no solutions, people begin to search for something. When we realize that our lives can be completely turned upside down in a matter of moments, when all our hopes and dreams can be taken away, suddenly the people begin to search for something. Sooner or later people begin to realize that their understanding of the world is deficient. They cannot understand how and why something like this can happen. They need answers from the only One that can give answers.

This is the time to pray for the people of Japan. This is not the time to debate why this happened. We need to pray for those families that have been devastated and for their daily needs. We need to pray for people to go and preach the gospel to the people of Japan. We need to pray for the gospel to reach the people of Japan to show them the glory of God in the face of Christ. We need to pray for people to turn from their sin and turn their lives to the one and only Lord of this world. Apart from the financial support that they will need to recover, the people of Japan desperately need our prayers for God to display His glory. Let us kneel before our Lord and pray for the people of Japan.