“CHRIST WILL DO ALL FOR YOU, OR NOTHING FOR YOU.” –J. GRESHAM MACHEN

"But when he who had set me part before I was born,1 and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles (Gal 1:15-16a ESV)."

Paul is arguing against Judaisms in the church at Galatia.  Judaizers were 'Christians' who were forcing Gentiles to adopt or practice Old Testament Jewish laws as an essential part of the gospel (called works of law).  Paul declared this to be a different gospel (1:6) and a contrary gospel (1:8).  As part of his argument that the genuine gospel is purely of grace he makes three claims about his salvation, that God set him apart literally in his mothers womb, that God called him by grace, and that God revealed Jesus to him.  Notice that God is the subject and the one doing the in all three of these actions.  God set him apart prior to birth, hence not any work on his part.  God also called him by grace, and last God found great pleasure in revealing his Son to Paul.  This last statement is reminiscent of 2 Cor 4:6, where Paul describes God as having shone in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.  He compared this to the act of creation where God said 'let there be light.'  In the same way, God acted upon our minds so that in a moment, for the first time, we saw the glory of God in Christ.  His point in the three claims is that salvation and even sanctification is work of God and not the work of man. 

18 Myths Singles Believe

18 Myths Singles Believe

I found these EXCELLENT POINTS on Perry Nobles' blog and have gotten much grieve from some singles in our church because I have been preaching on marriage (sounds like he is also) so I thought this would be good for all singles to read!

#1 – Being miserable is the result of being single…getting married will solve all my problems.
#2 – I’ve messed up in my past and do not deserve anyone good. (See I Corinthians 6:9-11, especially focus on verse 11!)
#3 – Ephesians 3:20 isn’t true for me and my future spouse…I need to settle.
#4 – This relationship that I am in isn’t what I would like my marriage to be like..but when we get married I can change this person.
#5 – Having sex will simplify things and cause the person I am dating and myself to have so much more in common.  (See I Corinthians 6:18-20)
#6 – This person is not God’s best for me…but if I rush through the process of dating and getting married then I have God backed into a corner and He has to bless me because He loves me, right?  (See Deuteronomy 6:16)
#7 – Marriage isn’t that big of a deal…if my first one does not work out then I can drop them and start over.  (See Malachi 2:13-16)
#8 – Getting married isn’t going to alter my lifestyle…I am still going to be able to live like I did when I was single, the only difference is I’m going to get to have more sex.
#9 – I am going to get to have sex anytime I want.
#10 – We are going to cuddle all of the time.
#11 – The things that really get all over my nerves about this person won’t bother me as much when we get married.
#12 – The fact that we do not agree on what we believe when it comes to Jesus and the church will not impact the way we raise our kids. (See II Corinthians 6:14 and Amos 3:3)
#13 – We should live together before we get married to give it a “trial run,” after all, you would not buy a car without test driving it first.  (See Hebrews 13:4)
#14 – I need to keep as many secrets about my past from this person as possible; after all, my past issues won’t impact this relationship at all.
#15 – All of my friends are married…I am not…something is obviously wrong with me.
#16 – The way I handle my money now will not impact my future marriage.
#17 – When I get married my spouse will meet all of my needs.
#18 – Dating is tough…marriage is easy!

Are your spiritual taste buds changing?

Found this quote by J.C. Ryle while reading some blogs today.  Have the book but have not read it!  Sounds like I should!:

The man whose soul is “growing” takes more interest in spiritual things every year. He does not neglect his duty in the world. He discharges faithfully, diligently, and conscientiously every relation of life, whether at home or abroad. But the things he loves best are spiritual things. The ways, and fashions, and amusements, and recreations of the world have a continually decreasing place in his heart. He does not condemn them as downright sinful, nor say that those who have anything to do with them are going to hell. He only feels that they have a constantly diminishing hold on his own affections, and gradually seem smaller and more trifling in his eyes. Spiritual companions, spiritual occupations, spiritual conversation, appear of ever-increasing value to him. Would any one know if he is growing in grace? Then let him look within for increasing spirituality of taste. (Holiness, 107)