R. C. Sproul has been teaching sound theology to the Church for many decades.  I have been using his St. Andrew's Commentary on Acts from time to time this year to help me prepare sermons.  Today, I came across this section in his commentary, which I quote / paste at length below without further comment.  Read it and you'll know why!

Government and Christian Practice

I believe I am supposed to submit to the civil magistrates even when I disagree with them, so while I will not endorse a candidate, I will try to influence my congregation on how to vote. The Word of God has much to say that is instructive for how we vote. First, we have to understand what a vote is. The word vote comes from the Latin votum, which means “will.” We have an opportunity in our country to express our will by casting our vote in favor of what we want to see happen in the government. In a very real though invisible sense, the ballot is a bullet. Anytime you cast your vote, you are asking that certain policies and laws be enacted, backed, and enforced by the full magnitude of the power of civil government. We are to be careful and thoughtful in the process. The purpose of voting is not what we can get from the government for ourselves. We are to vote for what is right, not for our personal gain.

Today there is no shame in someone’s saying, “I’m voting my pocketbook.” However, in order for the government to put money in people’s pocketbooks, that money first has to be taken from other citizens in order for them to receive it. The government does not produce anything; in other words, the government cannot give to someone what it does not first take away from someone else. When you vote for your own largesse, you are asking the government to use all its force to take from your brother and sister their private property and give it to you.

Several years ago I lodged in Mississippi at a hotel that was hosting a convention of the Mississippi Pork Producers Association. Affixed to walls and bulletin boards all over the hotel were large pie graphs that showed how Mississippi pork producers were using government subsidies in their private business. Far and away the largest segment in the pie depicted monies used to promote and advertise pork as the meat of choice. The pork producers would have little success if they were to ask producers of beef to turn over a portion of their market share, so they ask the government to take money from the profits of the cattlemen and others of us and give it to them. The request is perfectly legal, but it is also immoral and unethical to ask the government for a special subsidy for private enterprise. It is sin, but it is the American way. Washington is filled with lobby groups that do this every day. The lobbyists ask for legislation not for what is right or good for the welfare of the nation but for their vested interests. Voting your vested interests as a Christian is a sin. I plead with you not to join in this activity.

Several years ago, I had dinner with the chairman of the Senate Financing Committee. During our conversation, I asked the senator why he wasn’t attending to various issues that clearly needed to be dealt with at the time. He agreed that the issues I put before him were all important concerns but said he could not address them during an election year. So I said, “Senator, is there anybody in Washington who is thinking about the next generation instead of the next election?”

Alexis de Tocqueville said that there are two things that can destroy America. First, America can be destroyed by the rich and powerful who buy their way into office and use their wealth and power to exploit the poor. Second, America can be destroyed when people discover that they can vote for personal largesse. Either of those will destroy a nation and turn it into the tyranny of the majority. When economics are politicized, when people are encouraged to vote their pocketbooks rather than their conscience, national destruction will follow.

I heard one candidate in a presidential race say again and again that he planned to create a tax relief program for 98 percent of Americans. What about that other 2 percent? Are they to be robbed for the financial gain of the 98 percent? That is not God’s way. The Israelite tithe was established on a level playing field. Everybody was required to pay the same percentage; there was no graduated or progressive income tax in Israel. Nobody can play politics with the tithe. Some paid one hundred times more than another, but all paid the same percentage. He would not allow somebody to vote a tax on his neighbor that was not a tax on himself. If you vote for a 98 percent tax reduction, you are simultaneously voting for a 2 percent tax increase on others, an increase that you likely do not have to pay. That is not justice. That is not equitable. It is legalized theft, and we do it every day.

For years in England William Wilberforce lost vote after vote year in and year out when he pled with parliament for the abolition of slavery, but slavery was so connected to the economic welfare of England that his cries of protest went unheeded. He kept arguing and pleading and calling upon Parliament to stop the ungodly activity of man stealing. Finally England’s conscience was moved and slavery was abolished. Slavery is the second worst ethical issue ever to divide the United States of America. Even more serious than slavery is the governmental sanction on the wanton destruction of 1.5 million unborn human beings every year in this nation. My book about abortion, A Rational Look at an Emotional Issue, went quickly out of print. Ligonier has provided educational materials for churches, but pastors won’t use them for fear it will divide their congregation. I say, “So what? Let it divide the congregation. We’re talking about the sanctity of life here.”

The Didache, one the most important extracanonical books of the early church, didn’t shrink from calling abortion what it is—murder—and said the church must never be involved in it. Today it has become part of the acceptable fabric of America, and nobody is crying foul. The church is not asking at this point for the state to become the church when we tell the state to stop sanctioning this holocaust. The church is asking the state to be the state, because the primary reason for the existence of the state in the first place is to protect, maintain, and sustain the sanctity of human life. When a state ceases to do that, it has become not only pagan but barbarian.

The primary issues in the presidential elections of today are involvement with the Middle East, terrorism, and the economy. Abortion is way down at the bottom of the list. Personally, I could not sleep if I ever cast a ballot for a candidate who supported abortion on demand. That trumps every other ethical issue of our time. I plead with you as Christians that when you walk into the voting booth, don’t leave your Christianity in the parking lot. Let your mind be informed by the Word of God. I have been studying theology all my life, and if I know anything about the character of God, I know that God hates abortion. There are other ways to deal with unwanted pregnancies than the physical destruction of the unborn. So I hope you vote your conscience, not your vested interest or your pocketbook. I hope you will vote for righteousness and justice as your conscience is informed by the Word of God. Until or unless we do that, God will give us leaders after our own hearts, which is a scary thing.

—St. Andrew's Expositional Commentary

R.C. Sproul’s The Holiness of God is one of the best books I've ever read. It is a modern theological classic. Sproul’s passion for holiness is contagious. I see how his life has been marked by this study, and I find that I want what he has. I want to be as excited about the character of God as he is. When I’ve read this book in the past it has always moved me to worship and I think it will do the same for you. Right now you can get your own copy of this excellent book for FREE by simply requesting it Here.

Here are just a few quotes from the book.

“Some modern theorists believe that the world was created by nothing. Note the difference between saying that the world was created from nothing and saying that the universe was created by nothing. In this modern view the rabbit comes out of the hat without a rabbit, a hat, or even a magician. The modern view is far more miraculous than the biblical view. It suggests that nothing created something. More than that, it holds that nothing created everything—quite a feat indeed!”

“The God we worship is the God who has always been. He alone can create beings, because He alone has the power of being. He is not nothing. He is not chance. He is pure Being, the One who has the power to be all by Himself. He alone is eternal. He alone has the power over death. He alone can call worlds into being by fiat, by the power of His command. Such power is staggering, awesome. It is deserving of respect, of humble adoration.”

“How we understand the person and character of God the Father affects every aspect of our lives. It affects far more than what we normally call the ‘religious’ aspects of our lives. If God is the Creator of the entire universe, then it must follow that He is the Lord of the whole universe. No part of the world is outside of His lordship. That means that no part of my life must be outside of His lordship. His holy character has something to say about economics, politics, athletics, romance—everything with which we are involved.”

"Only once in sacred Scripture is an attribute of God elevated to the third degree. Only once is a characteristic of God mentioned three times in succession. The Bible says that God is holy, holy, holy. Not that He is merely holy, or even holy, holy. He is holy, holy, holy. The Bible never says that God is love, love, love; or mercy, mercy, mercy; or wrath, wrath, wrath; or justice, justice, justice. It does say that he is holy, holy, holy that the whole earth is full of His glory."

Lastly here's some thoughts from men who are far smarter and wiser than I am. Jerry Bridges said,"Every Christian who is serious about his or her growth needs to read The Holiness of God. I profited greatly from this book." John MacArthur has said that "R. C. Sproul’s teaching on the holiness of God brought me face-to-face with the awful splendor of God’s majestic holiness in a new and fresh way. I was smitten with the realization that holiness is not merely a peripheral attribute of God; it is at the core of all He is and does. I realized then that this was precisely the message the church of our generation urgently needed―and still needs today."

This week a video was released showing a lunchtime conversation with a high executive at Planned Parenthood.  In the video, she discusses the harvesting and subsequent sale of aborted babies' internal organs.  She does this as she sips wine and nibbles at lunch.

The outrage has been quick and loud, as it should be!  I'm actually thankful God has used this video to further expose the depravity and evil of so many of those involved in America's ongoing, taxpayer-funded holocaust.

But there is an irony the size of the State of Alaska here.  Our outrage over the organs being sold, well, it comes a bit late, don't you think?  While I am sickened by the very thought of such a human organ harvesting business, I believe my outrage should be directed FIRST at the murder of that precious baby!  We would not be having this discussion about organ auctions at all if we did not allow human infants to have their tiny, beautiful heads "carefully"crushed.

Americans, where's the outrage?  When will we as American Christians finally be outraged enough at baby murder that we:

• Donate sacrificially to pro-life causes.
• Refuse to cast one more vote for anyone not standing in absolute defiance against abortion.
• Write, call, and meet with elected officials, insisting non-stop that they end this judicial tyranny of infanticide foisted on our country.
• Volunteer at local pro-life pregnancy centers.
• Join volunteers who witness on sidewalks outside abortion clinics, and beg mothers to re-consider.
• Refuse to financially support businesses and organizations who fund Planned Parenthood (no matter how valuable their work may appear, such as the Susan Koman Foundation and Girl Scouts of America).
• Love mothers wounded by an abortion enough to show gospel mercy and care for their bodies and souls.

When?

Please take 8 minutes to view this speech by a U.S. Senator from Oklahoma.  May God increase his tribe!

When it comes to sex, is God a "cosmic killjoy?" You might be surprised by the answer. Click to watch the thought-provoking video below.

Sex is amazing gift from God. As the creator, He is the one who made sex and it is right for us to praise Him for it. He also has given us boundaries and rules regarding sex ,but this is for our good. God is not a killjoy, in fact following his commandments and trusting in Him will actually lead to joy.

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing" (1 Peter 4:12-13).

Representative Randy Forbes (R - Va) leads the Congressional Prayer Caucus.  He has started a new initiative called "Faith-It-Forward."  You can learn more here.

While I am not questioning the Congressman's motive, and while I intend to do all I can through legal channels to protect 1st Amendment rights of all Americans, I find this particular effort both sad and amusing.

This is an attempt to gather all the stories of religious folks doing good in their world, as well as an effort to show off certain religious people who have proven quite successful in their occupational fields.  The bottom line, per Mr. Forbes, is "We need to change the narrative."  Forbes believes the narrative of religion (and it's obvious he has especially in mind Christianity) has been warped by mainstream media and those who oppose us.  In that he is surely correct.  But where he errs is in thinking we can somehow change people's minds by plastering how "good" we are all over Facebook!  And he errs in thinking we should expect the world to get our story right!

Sure, Jesus did say, "Let your light shine among men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven" (Matt 5:16).  But two things stand out here:

1. Jesus surely did not mean His followers were to conduct publicity or marketing campaigns to show off their holy living!  It should be noted that in the same sermon, Jesus also told His followers, "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven" (Matt 6:1).  Jesus went on to warn us of making a show of our prayers or generosity - the very thing this campaign is seeking to do!
2. Jesus' main concern is that God receive all the glory for any good done by His people.  So, Christians are to live in such a way that any praise is immediately and by default deflected upwards to God alone.

These are increasingly perilous times for the Christian Church and followers of Jesus.  I get that.  I am concerned by that, believe me.  I'm not keen on doing jail time for preaching God's Word, nor do I enjoy the ongoing erosion of our Constitutional freedoms and rights as Americans.  I am praying God will help us and turn our nation back towards the ideals that Founded the United States of America.

But here's what I think we Christians have forgotten: America is an anomaly.  The freedom of religion we have enjoyed for a few hundred years has never been the norm.  Jesus promised to build His Church, not America!  And build the Church He has, with or without governmental endorsement.  Don't take my word for it.  Ask the brothers and sisters in China.  In Sudan. In North Korea.  In Syria.  In Myanmar.  In 1st century Rome.

So, dear American believers in Christ, be not shaken or surprised!  R. Kent Hughes once wrote, "Those God royally elects, He ruthlessly perfects."  God is perfecting His Bride.  Christ is purifying us, O Church.  Give Him glory!  As Peter urged persecuted believers in his day, "keep on rejoicing."

And do not forget that our identity and success has never been tied to the world's "narrative."  Indeed, the true narrative of the Church has been one of blood, sweat and cross-bearing.  Why would we expect anything less?  We do follow a crucified and risen Lord, don't we?  We need not worry about trying to make the world like us.  They never have.  They never will.  Read Jesus' words in John 16:18-27 again.

It's not us they primarily hate.  It's Jesus.  The world is still trying to crucify Him.  But it is our joyful job to just keep begging as Christ's ambassadors that sinners "be reconciled to God" (2 Cor 5:20).  And as those sinners, by God's saving grace, are reconciled, we shall once again be reminded that our Savior said, "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36).

“And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” Matthew 6:12

The nation and perhaps the world has been watching Charleston, SC this week.  A deranged and heart-dark young man murdered 9 worshipers in cold blood while they prayed together in a church building.  Perhaps this deluded racist hoped to spark more riots?  Cause even more bloodshed?  Wreak even more havoc in the aftermath?

Well, if he wanted these things, he picked the wrong venue.  He may well have gotten riots if he shot up a downtown nightclub or bar.  But he chose a Christian church.  A place where people learn Christ.

Those precious followers of Christ whose loved ones are being buried this week gathered in the courtroom recently to address the murderer.  One by one they announced love and forgiveness.  Not hate and bitterness.

While I do not want to disparage these brothers and sisters in Christ in any way, I do want to take the opportunity to remind the flock I pastor that despite best intentions, publicly announcing your forgiveness to an unrepentant person is not always the wisest or most biblical course of action.  Why?  How could forgiving someone be wrong?  I didn't say forgiving someone is wrong.  I said publicly announcing it may not be wise.  Let me explain.

I find the lack of understanding among Christians concerning forgiveness is wide-spread.  So, let me try and summarize the basics concerning biblical forgiveness, noting that I am indebted to my seminary counseling professor, Dr. Stuart Scott, for many of these insights:

• Forgiveness in the Bible, particularly in the New Testament, is viewed in two ways.  One, there is the heart attitude of forgiveness.  This type of forgiveness deals with our own hearts, and bids us release the offender to the sovereign hand of God.  This forgiveness says, “I will not hold this sin against you, nor will I allow your sin to make me bitter, or to make me harbor anger towards God or you.  I will guard my own heart before God and release you to Him.”  We can do this kind of forgiveness without ever telling the offender and without the offender ever repenting and asking for our forgiveness.  [Indeed it’s not really recommended to tell the person you’ve forgiven them in this sense if they’ve never repented, because it makes them think they’re now “off the hook” in the repentance department.]
• Followers of Christ are absolutely obligated and commanded to give this kind of forgiveness, whether or not the offender ever repents.  If we do not forgive from our hearts, releasing the person to God and refusing to allow bitterness to control us, then Jesus plainly states we are none of His (Matt 6:14-15).
• The second way forgiveness is presented in the NT is a pardoning transaction that reconciles the offended and the offender.  The first type of forgiveness deals with our own heart attitudes, but this type deals with an actual transaction whereby the two people or parties are brought together again on friendly terms.  This requires repentance on the part of the offender.  This is clearly the type of forgiveness Jesus had in mind in passages like Matthew 18:21-22 and Luke 17:1-4.  This is also the forgiveness God extends to us when we repent and turn to Jesus in faith (Mark 1:15).  O blessed reconciliation wrought for us by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross (Rom 5:6-11).  We were God’s enemies, but His grace has brought us near Him (Eph 2:11-22).  Praise God!  He forgives repentant sinners!
• So, forgiveness in the Bible is in two senses: one is vertical (between the offended and God), the other is horizontal (between the offended and the offender).  And both glorify God in Christ!

The crux of the matter is best captured in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Matt 18:23-35).  Without belaboring the point, we may easily summarize the truth in this way: “The Forgiven Forgive!”  An unforgiving spirit (vertical) or an outright withholding of forgiveness in the face of obvious repentance (horizontal) are sure signs that genuine salvation in Christ has simply not taken root in your heart.

Just as we are called to love as Jesus loves, so too we are commanded to “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph 4:32).  That’s a verse we recite many times a week in our house!

So, while the spirit of those saints in Charleston is commendable, they may have been a bit wiser to have simply told the criminal, "May God forgive you and have mercy on your soul."  This is a bit different and a more biblical approach than just saying, "I forgive you" when the person has shown zero remorse.

Jesus hung a cross and demonstrated both kinds of forgiveness.  Looking on His tormentors in pity, He prayed, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."  Jesus did not look at them and say, "It's alright.  I forgive you."  But Jesus did forgive a repentant criminal hanging beside him!  He told that man, "Today you will be with Me in Paradise!"

We do well to look to the example of our sinless Savior in these matters.  Only then will we be able to "forgive one other, even as God in Christ has forgiven you."

And yes, we pray for a sweeping revival across this land of true, biblical forgiveness.  First from God to repentant sinners as He draws them to faith in Christ.  And second from persons to persons, starting within the church, and flowing out into the streets and farms of this nation.  Soli Deo Gloria!  

Thanks to Bruce Jenner's recent public "transformation," it seems transgenderism is front and center in American pop-culture.  A missionary friend of mine who works primarily in New England sent me a picture this week of a transgender bathroom sign in Boston.  He called it "a sign of the times."

Indeed.  A "sign."  Of our sinful depravity which we now celebrate, embrace, promote, flaunt and force upon everyone, everywhere.  While the world is being terrorized by radical Islamists, and our cities are ablaze with violent crime, our State Department is busy trying to force the LGBT agenda on the rest of the world, especially "backwards"Africa and Asia.  But America is the Nation going backwards.  And downwards.

I believe the Church of Jesus Christ is called to extend kindness and love to every person, including those suffering from the sinful delusion called "gender confusion."  I want to state that up front.  There is no justification for mistreating a transgendered person, or a person who expresses confusion in these matters.  They are a human, made in God's image, like me.  They are a depraved sinner, like me.  They have no hope of heaven apart from the saving grace of Jesus Christ, like me.  They need to repent of their sin and trust Jesus for the forgiveness of sins, like me. They need to learn as believers in Jesus to fight sin and temptations to sin by the power of His Spirit and Word, like me.  They may not share the same sins and temptations, but they are no less or more in need of the saving love of Jesus than I am.  So, in many ways, we are the same.  To say it again, in the most important ways, we are the same.

That said, a genuine love for a person who is transgendered or gender-confused, must constrain us to tell the person the things I just said above!  It is not loving of a doctor who knows the disease and the cure to withhold that information from a dying patient.  It is hateful.  Despicable.  A crime!

And the transgendered community, and those experiencing gender confusion, are dying.  Consider a recently published, long-term study of this community in Sweden here.  In brief, the researchers found that those who had undergone sex-change surgery were now:

• 20 times more likely to commit suicide.
• 5 times more likely to attempt suicide.
• 3 times more like to require psychiatric hospitalization.

Does this look like a picture of health and happiness?  Did changing "sex" fulfill these people?  You see, this thing called "transgenderism" is merely another manifestation, or symptom, of the true human condition - sin.  Jesus said we do what we do and say what we say and think what we think because of resident evil - sinful hearts, minds, and wills (Mark 7:14-23).  Denying or ignoring or rejecting God's creative design of humans as distinctly "male and female" (Genesis 1:27) will never give us joy and fulfillment in life.  We sinners are always looking for joy and satisfaction and love in all the wrong places.

Long-time Psychiatrist-in-Chief at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Paul McHugh said this:

“At the heart of the problem is confusion over the nature of the transgendered. ‘Sex change’ is biologically impossible. People who undergo sex-reassignment surgery do not change from men to women or vice versa. Rather, they become feminized men or masculinized women. Claiming that this is a civil-rights matter and encouraging surgical intervention is in reality to collaborate with and promote a mental disorder.”

McHugh went on to say that America is supporting a "psychiatric misadventure."

"A woman shall not wear a man's clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman's clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God" (Deuteronomy 22:5).  

God minces no words.  His will and Law in this matter are clear.  But take heart!  There is hope for all us "abominations."

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us - for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree' - in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith (Galatians 3:13-14).

Stop looking for joy and fulfillment in your gender, in your confused mind, in your friends and family, in your bank account, in your appearance, and in your surgical alterations.  Look to Jesus, the Man of all men, who came to set both male and female free in the deepest parts of our souls (Gal 3:28).  Jesus can free us, even from the sin of gender-confusion, sex re-assignment, and mass perversion.

O transgendered sinner, repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ!  

How does God use our marriages to change us?  To grow us in holiness?  To reveal our sins and shortcomings and encourage us to look only to Christ for satisfaction?  How can we gain clearer vision, that we might see God at work in our marriages and come to embrace the everyday grace of the gospel?  How can my marriage be rescued from its primary nemesis - my own selfishness?

Marriage Matters - A 12-week study using Winston Smith's book by the same title aims to answer these very questions, and more!  Join us each Sunday at 9:30 am (June 7 - Aug 23) as we seek to build our marriages on the sure foundation of God's saving love and glory in the gospel of Jesus Christ.   For more information, contact Pastor Keith.

Marriage Matters by Winston Smith is about the Extraordinary Change that can come through Ordinary Moments. The Kindle ebook edition is just $2.50. Drawing on his extensive experience as a marriage counselor Winston Smith, offers a simple yet powerful prescription for changing your marriage. He shows how examining the everyday disappointments and irritations in your marriage will help you understand yourself, your spouse, and your need for God's love. Change begins with seeing day-to-day interactions from a different perspective, taking simple steps to love one another more effectively, and then learning how to take those steps over and over again. Interactions that used to devolve into pointless annoyances and fights can become an opportunity for God's activity and love to become increasingly evident and powerful.

"You son of a perverse, rebellious woman!"  

I'll give you three guesses who said this line.  HINT: It was a father to a son.

If you turn your Bible to 1 Samuel 20:30 you will see this line being yelled out in anger.  King Saul was fuming mad at his son Jonathan because Jon had a deep friendship with David.  That is the David who was to be king of Israel one day.  Saul's jealousy drove him mad, literally.  He went coo coo for coco puffs.  Crazy.

Saul expected his son to treat biological family ties as more important than righteousness.  Pleasing your earthly father is to trump pleasing your Heavenly Father.  Well, we still do this today, but that is a subject for another time and place.  For now, let me just close out this three part blog series with these words:

Men, never, ever, insult your wife backhandedly while yelling at another person!  

The New Living Translation renders Saul's mad fit like this: "You son of a whore!"

Gulp.  I can only imagine how icy Saul's bedroom became after that cold, cruel, thoughtless comment.  Irony is, he was really only insulting himself.  After all, he did choose to marry that "perverse, rebellious woman."  The remark spoken in anger said far more about Saul than it did his wife.

The same holds true for our words spoken in anger, my brothers.

"The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God" (James 1:20).

"And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness.  The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell . . . no human being can tame the tongue" (James 3:6-8).

Dear Lord, only You can tame our tongues.  Please help us, O God.  Help us own our angry, unrighteous, hurtful words.  Help us confess and repent and seek forgiveness from those our words have bludgeoned.  Make us like Jesus.  Help us speak words of blessing and inspiration and value over our wives, our children, our friends and church family.  For the sake of Christ's Word in and among and through us.  Amen.