Isaiah 60:14, The Conversion of the Enemies of the Church

"The sons of those who afflicted you shall come bending low to you, and all who despised you shall bow down at your feet; they shall call you the City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel."

As a postmillennialist, I believe that Christ in the Gospel will conquer the predominant share of the world. There are frequent promises pointing to this in Isaiah, such as the one above. What makes this one especially precious is that it is an encouragement to us believers, that those who persecute us in this life will be humiliated by the conversion of their own children. Think about the humiliation of the parents of these Islamist terrorists who have become Christians. And here is a whole page dedicated to testimonies by converted former Muslims. While their former companions are killing Christians, such as this murder in Somalia, these new disciples of Messiah Jesus will sing His glories with us at the great marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-10).

This Messianic triumph is prophesied by this same Isaiah, in the well-known Christmas passage, chapter 9, especially verse 7, "Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end." God the Father has promised to subdue the enemies of Christ beneath His feet (see Hebrew 1:13). As we are His body, our enemies are His enemies, and He overcomes them before our eyes. Blessed be the Name of the Lord!

Sovereign Election: Thank God for His Gracious Discrimination!

Another excerpt from The Gospel Covenant, by New England Puritan Divine Peter Bulkeley. All arcane spellings, grammar, and emphasis are from the original. Words in brackets are my insertions for the sake of clarity. "&c" in the original has been edited to "etc.", in the modern fashion.

"In the Covenant of workes, God deales alike with all, that are alike in themselves; Looke how he deales with one, so will he do with another, if they walke in the same way; The same worke shall have the same reward, whether in good or in evill. They that are alike in sin, shall be alike in punishment. Justice, which is Gods rule in the covenant of workes, maketh no difference between persons that are equall in themselves. It hath its balance in its hand to give to everyone according to their works; It is no respecter of persons. Therefore God speaking of Baasha, I Kings 16:2-3, saith, that because he walked in the wayes of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, therefore God would make his house like the house of Jeroboam. They both make Israel to sin, and therefore they are both alike in punishment; so also he speaks of Jerusalem, Ezek. 23:31, that because she walked in the way of her Sister, that therefore he would give her cup into her hand. Hence saith the Apostle, Rom. 2:6 to 17, That every soul that continues in well-doing, shall have glory and honour, but unto the disobedient shall be tribulation and wrath, whether Jewes or Gentiles, etc. Where actions are alike, God will deal alike with all such as are under the covenant of workes: What is just towards one is just towards another, when actions and workes are alike; Now God will deale justly with all: he that commands us to give every man his due, Rom. 13:7, will not himself withhold due from any; here therefore God will alike deale alike with all. Let one fulfill the Law, and he shal live thereby; Let another fulfill it, and he also shall have the same life. Let one breake it, and he shall dye, and as many break it, shall lye under the same condemnation. But now it is otherwise in the covenant of grace; grace deales diversly with men that are equall in themselves; where there was no difference before, grace makes a difference, as Rom. 3:23-34. All have sinned, etc., there is no difference in ourselves, we are all shut up in condemnation by sin;but are all justified? No; but onely those that are of the faith of Jesus. Hence saith the Apostle, Rom. 9:10-13, that when Jacob and Esau were both in the same condition, neither of them having done either good or evill, yet grace put a difference betwixt them, and preferred one before the other; They were alike in themselves, yet they had not the like grace vouchsafed to them from God. Justice is due, but grace is free; Justice must doe right, but but grace may communicate itself, to whom, where, and in what measure it will. Hence is that in Rom. 9:15, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, etc., He doth not say, I will deal justly with whom I will, he cannot deale unjustly with any; But concerning grace he saith, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy. Therefore to manifest the goodnesse of his grace, the Lord sometimes preferreth those that seem least worthy, he sets the younger before the older, Jacob before Esau, Ephraim before Manasseh, and the Gentiles which were aliens from God, before the Jewes which counted themselves to be the onely people. Consider those two speeches in Mat. 20. The one ver. 14. Take that which is thine own, and go thy way: the other, ver. 15. I will do with mine own as I will. Here is our own, and God's own; our own is that which we look for according to our agreement which we have made with God, for the worke done. As those hyred into the Vineyard, they agreed with the Master of the Vineyard for so much; and that which they so agreed for, for their worke, that was their owne, due by justice; But that which was not by agreement, nor for worke, but comes by grace, that is Gods owne, with which he may do even as he will: our own is that which is due from Gods justice: Gods own is the gift of his free grace. To every one God will say, take thine owne. And where there is no difference in worke, justice will make no difference in wages. And if any begin to complaine that others are better dealt with then they, the Lord answers to such, I will do with mine owne as I will; Grace is mine own, and I owe it to none, I will shew it where I will; It is grace which makes the difference, herein may God deale diversly, giving more to one, lesse to another, as pleaseth him. And hereto agrees that in ver. 16. He that is first shall be last, and the last first. He that should be last in a way of Justice, shall become first in a way of grace; Those that Justice would set last and lowest, Grace will advance and set highest."

Revelation 2:26, If you can't run, then walk!

"The one who conquers and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations."

The same thought is found in Matthew 10:22 (and the parallel in Mark 13:13), "The one who endures to the end will be saved."

And in James 1:12, "Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those that love Him."

In his commentary on the Gospel account of the death and resurrection of Christ, 16th-Century Presbyterian Robert Rollock gleans great encouragement for the believer from these verses.

"Look ay thou persevere; if thou may not run, go; yet, if thou may not go, fall down upon thine hands and feet, and creep as it were a snail or a worm, albeit it were but two feet in the day; and, as ever thou wouldst be safe, lie not still. It stands thee upon life and death; thou must wear away, and night and day thou goest ever to this end; and if this outward man decay, grow in the inward man; and as thou growest weak in this life, strive to be strong in that heavenly life that thou art to go to."

I know that I am not Superchristian, able to make leaps in sanctification in a single bound. No doubt, you feel that way, too. But I know that, by God's grace, I can make some advance today. And tomorrow I will be better still. As Rollock reminds us, from the verses above, "It is not said, 'He or she that runs shall be crowned,' but, 'He or she that continues to the end shall be crowned."

NC Governor Acknowledges 500th Anniversary of Birth of Calvin

In response to a request from the First Presbytery (North Carolina congregations) of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, the Honorable Governor of North Carolina Beverly Perdue sent the presbytery the following letter:

State of North Carolina
Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301

Beverly Eaves Perdue
Governor

August 10, 2009

Dear Friends,

On behalf of the State of North Carolina, it is a pleasure to join the First Presbytery [of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church sic] in recognizing the 500th Anniversary of the birth of John Calvin, French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. His teachings are the foundation of the Presbyterian and other reformed churches and have guided generations of Christians across the globe.

During a time when heretical views were condemnable by death, John Calvin worked to reform the Catholic Church. His scholarship helped lead a movement of religious change across Europe and inspired his masterpiece, Institutes of the Christian Religion.

John Calvin’s influence can be felt in how we live and govern. His notions of freedom of men and liberty are principles that helped form our nation, and it is my privilege to honor John Calvin and his teachings as part of our heritage.

Sincerely

Bev Perdue

The Incompatibility of the Covenants: Grace versus Works

"For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, 'Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.' Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for 'The righteous shall live by faith.'"
 - Galatians 3:10-11

In verse 10 Paul refers to what is traditionally entitled the Covenant of Works. The Westminster Confession of Faith (VII:2) explains this: "The first covenant made with man was a covenant of works, wherein life was promised to Adam, and in him to his posterity, upon condition of perfect and personal obedience." Adam was promised eternal life after perfectly fulfilling all the commands of his Creator, in nature, intent, and action. In his created state, Adam was capable of this state of holiness, would have been confirmed in that state, and his posterity would have inherited that native holiness.

However, as every child in Sunday school has learned, Adam broke the covenant, disobeying God in eating from the forbidden tree. He provoked the wrath of God, and forever forfeited the eternal life promised in that covenant, for himself and his posterity.

However, while justice would surely have allowed God to take no further concern with His rebellious children, in His love and grace He chose to establish a second covenant, the Covenant of Grace. As the Confession continues (VII:3), "Man by his fall having made himself incapable of life by that covenant [i.e., of works], the Lord was pleased to make a second, commonly called the Covenant of Grace; wherein He freely offereth unto sinners life and salvation by Jesus Christ, requiring of them faith in Him that they may be saved, and promising to give unto all those that are ordained unto life, His Holy Spirit, to make them willing, and able to believe." Or in Paul's words (Rom. 1:17, Gal. 3:11, from Habakkuk 2:4), "The righteous shall live by faith."

If you look to your works to justify you before God, then you are relying on a Covenant that will now save no man, because its standard is perfection, in nature, intent, and action. For us, the fallen descendants of Adam, there is only one hope, and that is faith in the works and person of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Christ, the Mediator of the Covenant of Grace and Foundation of Our Assurance

This is my second post devoted to a passage of "The Gospel Covenant" by Peter Bulkeley. The first can be read here, with relevant links. Note that arcane spelling and grammar are in the original.

"For comfort to such as are entred into covenant with God, by the Mediation of the Lord Jesus, the Mediator of the covenant; here is their comfort, that this covenant so made, can never be disanulled or broken off. Satan will not be wanting [lacking] to make a breach, if possible he can; he envieth this uniting of God and man in covenant one with another; As soon as ever he saw a Covenant passed between God and our first parents, he presently bestirred himself to make a breach between them, hee did then cast between them melon epidos, an apple of strife (as I may so call it), to draw man to violate the covenant of obedience, which God had bound him in, and so he broke asunder the covenant between God and us; And were our covenant now without a Mediator, as the former was, he might prevaile against us and make a new breach, as he did before; but now here is our stay and strong assurance, that if we be once taken into this covenant of grace, this covenant will hold; Though God might in his justice breake with us, and we would break with him through our sinful infirmity and backsliding disposition that is in us, yet the Mediator the Lord Jesus Christ, standing between God and us, keeps us together, that we can never fall asunder: he pleads with the Father to reconcile him to us, when he is angry with us; he pleads also with us, and when we are going back from God, he brings us to him againe, by renewing in us repentings before him; he draws the heart again before the Throne of Grace, powers upon us the spirit of grace and supplication, puts in our mouths words of confession, and stirres up in us sighs and groans of spirit, intreating the Lord that, though we have gone back from him, yet he would again receive us graciously, Hosea 14:2. And thus by means of this our blessed Mediator and Advocate we are holden and continued in covenant with God, so as the covenant of his grace and peace made with us, stands fast through Christ, notwithstanding our manifold declinings and turnings back from him."

Hosea 14:2, "Take with you words and return to the Lord; say to Him, 'Take away all iniquity; accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips."

Also, John 10:27-30, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one."

Hermeneutics for the Millennium: Sometimes People Work Too Hard to Miss the Obvious

"For a thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night."
- Psalm 90:4

This thought is repeated in II Peter 3:8, "with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day."

Roman Numeral 1000

Revelation, chapter 20, contains the phrase "thousand years" six times in the first seven verses. And many Christians take that as a literal, countable, one thousand years, neither more nor less. This literalistic interpretation has become predominant, in spite of two relevant facts: first, that the phrase recurs in a chapter otherwise full of symbolic, even mysterious, imagery; and second, that isn't the way the phrase is otherwise used in Scripture.

Historically, Protestants have used the phrase "the analogy of faith" to express the same principle that we now phrase as "scripture interprets scripture." The difference is that historical Protestants meant it as using clearer passages to interpret the more obscure. Yet, in this case, modern evangelicals take an obscure passage to force an interpretation on passages which were easier to understand before the insertion of Revelation 20.

As indicated by Moses in Psalm 90, and the Apostle Peter in his second epistle, "a thousand years" is used to indicate a time beyond our conception, but representing an indefinite period of time in which God completes His purposes. That interpretation brought into Revelation 20 makes sense, but the literalist interpretation of Revelation 20 imposed on Psalm 90 and II Peter makes nonsense. Which is likely to be the purpose of God?