Thread:

Scripture says that God is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last (Isaiah 41:4; 44:6; Rev. 1:8; 22:13).

He is not Alpha and Psi, the first and the next-to-last. He has the first word, and He will have the last word.

1/ The notion that God in His sovereignty created a being free from His decrees is absolute nonsense. He can no more cede part of His sovereignty than He can cede part of His holiness, righteousness, wisdom or power. Sovereignty isn't just a thing He does; it is who He is.

2/

Looking back at the Begg matter, here's what I see:

1. Alistair Begg chose publicly to share some truly terrible advice he'd given, on his internationally-heard program with tens of thousands of hearers.

1/ 2. We who loved Alistair and his ministry were startled. We explained our position Biblically, reaffirmed our love for him, expressed hope that he would re-think and make correction, and said we had no intention of cancelling or disowning him for this one sour note.

2/

To any such person, I would say that we were created by the good and wise God, but that we as a race have rebelled against Him. I'd say that the perversity of sin drives us all to find ways to express our hatred of Him and our rejection of His Lordship and Godhood.

1/

https://twitter.com/autumnsensucht/status/1626331951195103232

Disordered, counter-creational sexuality is one of those rebellions, a way of sending "hate-letters" to God.

But God cannot be un-Godded. Creation cannot be overruled. So we will ultimately find nothing but despair and defeat in our attempts to override God's creation...

2/

In saving us, God does something more marvelous than either cringing before or violating our "free will."

He 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘴 it.

To understand this Biblically, first we have to understand the 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 Biblically.

1/ The will is not some independent, sovereign, self-existing entity, somehow magically able to transform itself without causation. The will is simply the heart, making choices. It is the elective function of the heart.

It is "free" in that it can and will desire and choose...

2/

Reading Ephesians 2 in Greek again, it strikes me as if a new thought, just how vividly Paul depicts our conversion as an act of God's sheer, sovereign, monergistic grace.

Third word is a present active participle: "And you, BEING dead" etc. Nuance aside, it was our state.

1/8 And the picture gets no better. Whatever happened to us happened WHILE WE WERE STILL DEAD in sin (v. 1), at the time we WALKED in full accord with the world and its dark puppet-master (v. 2), ENSLAVED to the whims and cravings and delusions of our flesh (v. 3).

2/8

Thinking of writing a post titled "Of Leprechauns, Fairies, Ex-Christians And Other Fictional Creatures."

But that's similar to the title of another post: bit.ly/3xpPbw9 The heart of it would be: Anytime someone claims to be an ex-Christian, he reveals that he never knew what it is to be a Christian. Step one in conversion is to deny yourself. You pick up your cross. You follow Jesus. Baptism just declares this to the world: it says,...

2/

You know what they say: if, when you take your finger out of a glass of water, you leave a hole — then, you're indispensable.

@RealRLimbaugh is like that.

There are many fine talk show hosts, but there is only one Rush. NOBODY does what he does the way he does it.

1/ I've listened to Rush since 1988. I remember the first time I heard him, driving in the high desert of CA—this big, robust, cheerful voice saying things that absolutely no other person was saying in public. Speaking (in many ways) for me, like no other public voice was doing.

2/

Important: I don't know for a fact how much Trump's personal opinions re. the whole LBGTQ+ nightmare-world differ from Biden's. I do know this, for a fact: Trump appoints judges who recognize my right to think, say, preach and live what I believe about this and other issues.

1/4 I know this, because that is what Trump has done.

Biden, by starkest possible contrast, would appoint judges who would remove those rights. I know this, because he has said so, and because that is what his party does.

2/4

Begone Unbelief (Newton; tune same as O Worship the King)

1. Begone unbelief, my Savior is near,
And for my relief will surely appear:
By prayer let me wrestle, and He will perform,
With Christ in the vessel, I smile at the storm.
1/7 2. Though dark be my way, since He is my guide,
’Tis mine to obey, ’tis His to provide;
Though cisterns be broken, and creatures all fail,
The Word He has spoken shall surely prevail.
2/7

Here's what I'm constantly pushing back against. It goes like this:

1. Some big-name evangelical celebrity, his platform large and secured, makes a pronouncement to the effect of, "If only SOMEONE would stand up and preach the pure Word and Gospel of God without compromise!" 2. Idealistic young men hear this, and respond, "Me! I will do this! That's exactly what I want to do!" Which is good — as far as it goes.

3. But given who made the original statement, they mentally supply "...he will have a ministry as visible and fruitful and broad as mine..."

We live in a lost world, filled with people who either have false hope, or no hope at all. This weekend reminds of the one and only genuine reason for eternal hope: Christ's death for sinners, and His bodily resurrection.

If you believe that, then you attend a church... ...that preaches those truths.

Times like this are times that — sometimes — lost people will more seriously accept invitations to attend a church.

So ask! Ask cashiers, servers, neighbors; unbelieving spouses, friends...don't assume they'll say "No." Reach out with love.