by Kimberly | Aug 20, 2013 | Books, Women & Books Together
This was another impactful chapter from Begg and Ferguson’s book Name Above All Names. I have learned that what I am experiencing in life helps determine how I will read a book – this one is no diferent. Here are some highlights from the “Suffering Servant” chapter:
1. Isaiah 53: “He carried our sorows” – Sin plays a harsh role in this world. Our sorrows are born from the sin in this world. But, we don’t need to carry them all by ourselves. We have communities: friends, blog readers (y’all), pastors, family members (some), but most of all we have a willing Jesus who already has born all of our sorrows and will continue to do so until He returns – (then we won’t have any because we’ll be perfect) – as He intercedes for us next to the throne of the Father. This is such a reassuring thought!
2. “How is it possible for the purpose of God to be at the heart of all this? How can Isaiah say – however reverently – that God is in control of it all, that it “was the will of the Lord to crush Him” (pg 140). This is an important doctrinal lesson to know and believe. If you can’t believe this fact – that God the Father was in charge of the darkest moment of history – then why would you believe that God is in charge of the darkest moments of your life?
3. “Our Lord’s outward posture here is expressive of the passion within” (pg 144). Though this quote is not talking about musical worship – I think the same principle applies. If we are passionate about God within – won’t we come to worship and participate in worship in an outward manner? That may mean different things like singing with a smile on our faces – singing loudly and expressively. It may mean getting on our knees or lifting our hands as far they can go and not caring about who sees (and also not being distracted by those who choose to worship in this manner). It may mean lifting our hands in prayer giving up our private worship to the God who sees. It will look different for different people – but we are all worshipers.
4. “All three persons would always be involved in everything God was doing. The Father would plan salvation, the Son would come to procure it, and the Spirit would be sent to apply it” (pg 144). Another important doctrine is the one of the Trinity. We can’t forget one of the persons of the Trinity in the work of salvation. I’ve learned a lot of this from Dr. Bruce Ware, a professor at SBTS, a gentle, humble, and brilliant father, husband, professor, and author. Our prayer life will change when we learn and love this doctrine. Our prayers of thanksgiving will change when we know and live this doctrine. Our corporate will worship will change when we see the magnificence of all the persons of the Trinity.
5. “My soul is overwhelmed” (pg 146). Jesus was a vulnerable Savior. He didn’t hide His true feelings. He was real with the disciples at the hardest moment of His life (up to this point). He wasn’t pithy or unreal with His disciples. He said He was overwhelmed. He ultimately knows that it is the will of His Father to crush Him – but He doesn’t hide His emotions (real, true, honest, not sinful) from those around Him. This is part of what makes Him the perfect Suffering Servant.
6. “It is this theology of the cross that we find here. God grant that in seeing Christ as the Suffering Servant we will be done once and for all with the superficial triumphalism that sadly emanates from too many Christian organizations and churches” (pg 155). How are you real and vulnerable with those in your church? How do you show compassion and true life with those in your church? Does everyone think you have it all together? I hope not. Because we are all sinners and have damaged lives but who are greatly redeemed by a compassioned Savior. Let us not diminish the work of Christ on the cross by having others think we have it all together.
Join me next week as we finish up the book! It’s been a great one for me!
by Kimberly | Aug 13, 2013 | Books, parenting, sin, Uncategorized, Women & Books Together
On the first page of this chapter in Begg’s and Ferguson’s book, Name Above All Names, I have scribbled, “this chapter resends hope to me on every page”. What an encouraging page to head back to after having read it many weeks ago – especially on a day when my pregnancy hormones are crazy and it seems like every email or text I receive just hits me in the wrong way. HOPE
Here are some thoughts from the chapter on Jesus: Son of Man:
1. “We are struck by how deeply embedded some of their character traits seem to be” (pg 103). As a parent – do you wonder what traits you are passing to your children? I think about that often now that I have two loveable boys of our own. My husband often says that is one of the hardest jobs in parenting: seeing your sin looking back at you. I think my parents did a good job of raising me – but as an adult I see where some of my traits come from and it is scary to think that I too could pass on some less than desirable or Godly traits to my boys. This is where hope comes in. God is a God of bringing hope and change into a family. Just because your family is one way doesn’t mean that those traits and cycles have to continue to the next generation. Sebastian’s life verse ends in hope for the children in the coming generation – the good of the Lord (Jer 32:39) Do you parent or live like there is hope in breaking the sin cycle in your family?
2. “The kingdom of God will overwhelm all other kingdoms. The Kingdom of God will be established and will endure forevermore” (pg 105). I already dislike seeing ads for the Presidential race in 2016. Good that a new president will be coming either way, but not looking forward to the next 2+ years where the backbiting and slander will happen everywhere. And when the bad news comes on the news or as I watch previews for certain coming shows or movies – previews that revel in betrayal, sin, murder, affairs – I know that God is still on His throne and He will make all things right in His time. That brings me hope.
3. “The Son of Man is coming to the source of ultimate authority. It resides exclusively in the Ancient of Days, who is seated on the throne.” (pg 107). I’ve learned recently from Rob Rienow that any question of sin or dysfunction in this life is really a question of authority. Who is the ultimate authority in your life? Who is the ultimate authority in this world? If our answer is not God – we are wrong. Some will think and say and live and believe that they are their ultimate source of authority – but God created and gave life to everyone of us, so He is our ultimate authority. That is very hope-giving to me.
4. “The remarkable thing about this picture of Jesus is that He is never isolated from His people” (pg 108). I’ve actually thought much about this in light of some of the “suffering” and tears I’ve had over the last two months. Not all of my tears are hormone related. And one of the things that brings me the most comfort is that Jesus suffered. He had people slander him. Yet He believed and taught and lived truth and was planted firmly in the hand of God His Father. This brings me hope when I am going through trials.
5. “Kingdom grace brings more than forgiveness. It brings freedom from the powers of darkness and restoration to new life” (pg 118). My husband would probably like me to frame that quote. It was probably one of the most powerful in this whole book to me. Grace is the only thing that sets us free from the tyranny of listening to others, or repeating harmful lies to ourselves, by letting others’ thoughts control us, or by living in destructive habits that control our lives. Walk in light. Dwell in freedom.
by Kimberly | Aug 6, 2013 | Books, Uncategorized, Women & Books Together
We continue our look at Begg and Ferguson’s book Name Above All Names this week by thinking through their chapter on Jesus being the Conquering King. This chapter brings much hope to those who have an interest in politics, or really anybody who longs for a world as God created it to be.
Here are some of the thoughts I took away from this chapter:
1. I love how the authors point out that Jesus is everywhere in the Bible – not just the NT. On page 78 they include a little list of the general ways that Jesus is looked at in the pages of Scripture. The entire Bible is about Jesus. Jesus is eternal and only had an earthly beginning as a man when He was born through a virgin. But, if Jesus is in the entire Bible – we need to look at the whole Bible in light of the Gospel – the good news that Jesus did indeed come for us to make us reconciled to God. That is great news: especially when reading through the Law or the Prophets, or the lament psalms. What glorious hope for “Glorious Ruin“!
2. Thankfully we live on this side of the manger and the cross. Can you imagine being OT God-believers? Those especially living through the prophets and the judges and the silent years who were longing for the Messiah to come? Wondering who He would be and when He would come? May we live continually in the same wonder and amazement: believing that Jesus already did indeed come to show us the Father and will be one day returning to bring us to the Father – so that we might have eternal life – in knowledge of the Son! “All the hopes and fears, all the anticipations, all the dreams, all the OT promises of the One who would come and embody the great prophetic announcements about the Messiah – they are now all somehow coming to fulfillment there in Bethlehem.” (pg 85)
3. Friends – what are you longing for? Is there a job? Position? Relationship? Money? Something that you would want for your life that you think would make you happy? On page 86, the authors say that indeed many were longing for the True King – but all of the kings they were given fell short, because they were human and sinful. But, all of our longings are wrapped up in one person – or as John Piper puts it – God is the gospel. He is our everything! Nothing else will fill every longing. All of our longings will be unmet by earthly goods and relationships. Only One will suffice and surpass.
4. Faith, works, grace? How do we live in light of these words? “Jesus has done everything that we needed to be saved from sin. He has done everything we needed in order for us to be saved from the judgment of death. And He has done everything necessary to set us free from the bondage of the Devil. In a word, He has done everything we need done for us but could never do for ourselves” (pg 89). A little note to myself in the corner below this quote is: do you live in the reality of this? A friend at church on Sunday told my husband in front of me that I am such the Proverbs 31 woman, singing my husband’s praises all the time. I said, I might do that, but you should see my floors. It was comical – but really – are we always striving to do more – or to live in the grace of God? Even this morning, after finishing a summer book study on Loving the Way Jesus Loves – I mentioned to the ladies present that if they were struggling with the thought that they can never live this out – go read Ryken’s Grace Transforming – because it teaches us so much about grace. Grace isn’t cheap – and it sure wasn’t free. It was costly. It costed Jesus’ life and will cost your life as you die and are hidden in Christ.
What were your takeaways? Or if you aren’t able to read the book with us – what thoughts come about after reading this post?
by Kimberly | Jul 30, 2013 | Books, Uncategorized, Women & Books Together
Out of all the chapters in this book, by far this is the one that has the most writing in my copy of the book! Jesus as being our Great High Priest is very applicable in my life right now, and it is reassuring to know that He is mine.
1. Trials. How many of us have never encountered a trial in our life? These trials look differently for each person, but just in case you need some ideas: death, financial hardship, loss of job, rejection by friends, being the target of gossip, saying something you’ll regret, burning dinner, infertility, children with struggles whether physically, socially, or mentally, getting along with others, moves… need I continue? What is our reaction to those struggles? Just now I was thinking how hard submission is. Jesus had to submit. He found it difficult (prayer in the Garden), yet He submitted.
2. Encouragement in Hardship. Pages 58-59 of this book should provide a believer, YOU, with great encouragement when facing any hardship – if you choose to look there. I’m not saying you never speak about your trials or your discouragements. The past few months have been difficult for me as I’ve been trying to learn wisdom in what I write, keeping much of it inside me. But, in all things, I need to be encouraged and persuaded to look to Christ. The book of Hebrews is such a little book that needs to be re-read often with new eyes. A former pastor, Andrew Davis of FBC Durham, preached an entire sermon series through every verse of Hebrews. I only caught the last year, but man, such impactful wisdom in that book and hope for the hurting. Also the Reformed Expository Commentary is one that you need to pick up if you are doing a study through this in depth book.
3. Bondage Breaker. Do you know that Jesus is your bondage breaker? He’s my bondage breaker! I no longer have to be enslaved to sin because Jesus freed me from it. He paid my debt and made me free! We can either listen to our sin and continue to be enslaved, or we can look to the One who has freed us! Are you enslaved to: fear of man, overeating, body images, perfectionism – you name it. What are you enslaved to, and how can you look to Jesus and accept the freedom He has already offered you?!
4. Forgiveness of others. Jesus was rejected by men yet still chose to die for the ones His Father gave Him. He was spat upon, beaten, laughed at, ridiculed, lied about, gossiped about, and still He said Father forgive them. As I’ve been thinking about what forgiveness looks like: yes, do you need to forgive? Absolutely. What we have been given we also need to give to others. Since we have been given it, we have no gospel-right to not forgive. But…does the relationship with the person need to look the same? If there is a person who has verbally abused you, yes, you should forgive, but no, you shouldn’t continue to subject yourself to that abuse. If you have loaned money to a person and they’ve not paid you back, forgive them? Yes. But loan more money to them in an unwise manner? Probably not. In all situations, pray for wisdom, ask for biblical counsel, act upon the Word…God will give you wisdom.
by Kimberly | Jul 22, 2013 | Books, Women & Books Together
I love all the implications for daily living that this book, and studying and knowing the names of Jesus, has in store for its readers. I hope you too are enjoying and learning and growing as you are pressing through this book!
Chapter 2 on Jesus being the True Prophet is no different. How has knowing and understanding Jesus better as the True Prophet changed your life this week? What did you underline or star or highlight or write notes about that will make a difference in how you live as a woman of God?
Here are some implications that I am working on in my own life from the truths that I read in chapter 2:
1. Boldness in our witness. If there is one spiritual discipline that I’m weak in (I promise you there are others), then witnessing it the biggest lack. And I don’t usually put myself in situations where I would need to present the gospel. “We will be endued with a sense of confidence, a God-emboldened confidence, and the kind of confidence that will allow us to be courageous in the face of all the challenges of our day.” (p 50) I think this one paragraph has to do with more than just witnessing. I think we all need to be ready to stand for Truth – in a world that is so full of half-truths and philosophies that go against what the Bible teaches. The Bible indeed has to be our standard, because it is the very words and breath of God.
2. Teach the Word. You may not have any in-front ministry with ladies in your life, but I’m sure you are teaching someone. You may be teaching your children at home. You may be witnessing (sharing life) with those in your workplace or neighborhood. You may be on a college campus and every word you say in class for discussion or at parties or in your dorm room will speak volumes about Christ and who He is to you. “So the present prophetic ministry of Christ never introduces bizarre or strange or new and fanciful notions. No, it is found in the opening up of the Word.” (pg 47) This is so important today. Many Christians are believing and practicing what goes against the truth of the Word of God. If Jesus preached its truth, shouldn’t we live it and preach it as well?
3. Compassion in our relationships. I remember taking a spiritual gift inventory during my first semester or so at seminary. I scored a negative in the mercy department. A sweet friend and I had about the same score. But, over the past almost 15 years of knowing her, we have seen each other grow in grace in that department. We as believing women need and must be grounded in the Word. But, we also need to be like our True Prophet, and have compassion on those we are around. “Some of us are good at boldness but not so good at compassion. We gravitate to all the bold verses but turn away from the gospel’s call to show genuine empathy.” (p 51) I think genuine empathy and compassion is hard for people who tend to be more holiness/legalism mindset. But, that should really be the opposite. If we strive to be holy, then we should all the more know that we aren’t, and have compassion on those who aren’t holy and struggle with the same sins we struggle with. Empathy and compassion doesn’t mean letting people live in their sins. We need to call people to live to Christ – in honor of the glory and wonder of the cross.. But, we need to show great compassion, as our True Prophet did, to those who we are ministering to.
What did you learn this week?
by Kimberly | Jul 15, 2013 | Books, Uncategorized, Women & Books Together, Worship
I hope you have all enjoyed reading this week’s first chapter in Alistair Begg’s and Sinclair Ferguson’s new gem of a book on the person of Christ. It has been a blessing to me and I’ve been learning much from their study and have thrilled at their writing and teaching style.
How these weekly studies will go, for the next 7 weeks, is this: I hope you will come to each Monday having read the chapter for that week, but if you haven’t, feel free to join in anyway. I guarantee you will get more out of this blog each week if you have read the material. I won’t walk through the chapter, but more offer my gleanings and what I’ve learned in light of the author’s writings. In the comment section, you can either comment on what you’ve read in the book, on the blog, or something else you’ve read in pertaining to the subject matter at hand. Everyone will interact with each other.
Here are some of my reflections on Chapter 1:
1. Why study Jesus?
“They (the names of Jesus) express the incomparable character of Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. Reflecting on them better prepares us to respond to the exhortations of Scripture, to focus our gaze upon Him, and to meditate on how great He is.” (pg 15)
The study of Jesus greatly enhances our worship. True worship, if you remember John 4, has to be through Jesus. If you look at the hall of faith in Hebrews 11, they were worshiping the Yawheh God through the future faith in the coming and reign of Jesus. My husband has been reading a Dennis Johnson book in preparation for his DMin class on preaching – the entire book is on how the entire Bible points to Christ. The Old Testament, New Testament, the 400 years of silence in between. Jesus has everything to do with our yesterdays, todays, and forevers. According to Sinclair in another sermon, God is a speaking God – and through the person and work of Jesus is one of the primary ways God chose to speak.
There are many types of religious affiliations in the world, that is an understatement. However, one distinct person separates true Christian, gospel-centered worship from every other religion in the world: Jesus. Others have works, ladders, lists, and good deeds, but as a former pastor of mine said, Christianity doesn’t equal DO, it equals DONE. Does your worship, both daily and on Sunday among other believers, center on the person and work of Jesus? If not, something is most definitely missing.
This is what gets a lot of us women in trouble on a daily basis. We are seeking to do everything we need to do: whether our jobs, schooling, motherhood, being a wife, serving others, being a homemaker, etc. in our own strength. However, knowing Jesus and what He has done for us as believers, and daughters and co-heirs, will enable to us to free our minds from a perfectionist mindset and set our hope and our calling on Him.
2. Scripture is more than knowledge, it is doing.
As my husband and I studied the book of James for most of 2012, I read weekly or daily the verses about doing the Word of God, not just listening, reading or knowing it (James 1). This was so convicting. Often times we ourselves, or others in our presence, will spout Scripture, but often times we fail to do what we know.
As the authors talk about Jesus being the Seed of the Woman, the reason the Seed was needed was because of sin. And the action of sin in the garden was not listening and obeying the Word of God. God has spoken very clearly as to what Adam and Eve were to do and not do – however, they both chose to turn away from the spoken word of God and do their own thing. “The distinctive feature of this tree is what God had said about it.” (p 16).
Sweet friends, how do we fight this battle daily – the battle of our minds? We fight this battle daily with some of the following (and think for yourself what some of yours might be): putting our hope in status, a clean house, happy kids, a husband, a successful career, etc. (other than putting our hope in Jesus); worrying and being fearful (this only tends to get worse in our sinful nature once we have children); fighting our own battles (wanting to be the justifier instead of waiting for God to act on our behalf), etc. We need to memorize and act upon the Scriptures that God has so graciously spoken to us. We only do this by choosing to believe in the Gospel every minute of every day.
3. Conflict Resolution.
I once had the opportunity to hear Ken Sande speak at Southern Seminary. A gracious man, he taught his listeners about means of being a peacemaker. There are some helpful resources on his website, so if you aren’t familiar with his ministry, I would encourage you to “google” him.
We have conflict in our lives (between friends, church members, spouses, children, bosses, family) because of a great conflict that was started in the Garden of Eden. This ultimate conflict will eternally be won by Jesus, but there are daily ramifications of conflict for us in this world. “When Christ appeared, he came to undo what the Serpant had done. By His life and ministry and ultimately through his death and resurrection, he destroyed all the works of the Devil.” (p 20)
Oh, isn’t this a happy thought? When there is conflict in our lives, we can rest assured that we know who will be the Victor. I really don’t know anyone who loves conflict; I certainly don’t. In our marriage, we strive to resolve conflict as soon as possible. But this conflict between the Seed of the Woman and Satan has been going on for centuries. And the outcome is still secure – Jesus wil be victorious.
So dear one, when you find it hard to battle the conflict daily – that battle of sin and of the flesh and of the war that Paul speaks about in Romans 6-7 – please take heart that this is not an eternal battle – but one that Jesus has already won!
4. There will be pain.
Since everyone knows this…I can move on from this point. Wait. As I think about the ladies I know who are doing this book study with us here on the blog – I know their stories (most of them). I know the pain in their lives – pain today, pain yesterday, knowing that pain will certainly come in the future. Lost jobs, lost loved ones, unsaved loved ones, difficult family circumstances, family members with lifelong disabilities or illnesses, betrayal of friends, etc. – pain is so real in our lives.
I found much hope in this statement by the authors: “We must not allow ourselves to be tricked into thinking that if things are going well with us, then we can be sure of God’s love. For life can often seem dark and painful. Things do not always go well for us. Rather, we look to the sacrifice of the cross and the demonstration God gave there of His love. This is the proof I need. This is the truth I need to hear if the lie is to be dispelled” (p 33).
This last month of my life has been a very hurtful one. But, I’ve actually had much comfort that has come from friends speaking the Gospel truth into my life – words of hope and life that have dispelled (somewhat, honestly, at this stage in the game) lies. I’ve had a husband and close friends who point me to what God has said about me in His Word and that has given me much hope.
Ladies – there will be hurt. There will be pain. But, as the authors of this book and the glorious Bible has said, Jesus gets the victory. Pain will one day lose all of its sting. Pain can no longer have the victory if we believe in Jesus. That is a great HOPE! In your hurt – where do you find hope?
What have you gained from the book this week? What was your most applicable takeaway? What thoughts have you read here that have triggered some new thoughts in your understanding of this truth about Jesus?
Join us next week as we reflect on chapter 2!
