To Live Is Christ

Check out this awesome video posted on the Reach Records website! The video is a "typography" of a song by Trip Lee called "To Live Is Christ" (from the 13 Letters album). This album features songs for all 13 of the Pauline epistles, with the above song detailing the book of Philippians.

The Glory of God & True Contrition

The other night I was reading a sermon by Jonathan Edwards called "Praise, One of the Chief Employments of Heaven." As Edwards spoke about the "transcendent glory and divine excellency of God," I had a revelation of how right John Piper is when he says that true remorse for sin only comes from beholding the glory of God. Here are some thoughts I wrote down at the time:

Man can be made to see that his actions are evil in relation to other men, but this pales in comparison with the profound sense of shame and humiliation he will feel when he sees the infinitely bright and glorious excellencies of Christ and realizes what he has traded them for — the complete and total opposite. This is why evil men will hide their faces in shame when the glory of God is displayed to them at the Judgment. Imagine people seeing all of the infinite perfections of God, his infinitely glorious and sweet love and mercies, and realizing that instead of pursuing and embracing Him, they sought satisfaction in Jerry Springer and South Park. As Paul Washer says, "They will melt like wax figurines in front of a blazing furnace." Imagine how the man will feel who, while beholding the supreme beauty of Christ, realizes that he has spent his entire life excelling in things that God utterly abhors and leading others to do the same. Hugh Hefner's soul will implode into a million pieces when he stands before the glorious throne of the Almighty and fixes his eyes on the breathtaking beauty of Jesus Christ!

Stunned by the Beauty of Christ

When you think of great religious leaders and what they are like, what comes to your mind? You may picture Moses and his miracles, the Pope and his piety, or perhaps Gandhi and his non-violent reform. But what I would like to do in these next few paragraphs is show you something that stunned me about the greatest religious leader that ever lived—Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God.

In Luke 7:36-50, Jesus sits down to dine with a Pharisee, a strict religious man among the Jews. A “sinful” woman (or prostitute) comes up and stands behind Jesus. She then begins to weep over his feet, wet his feet with her tears, wipe his feet with her hair, kiss his feet continually, and anoint his feet with perfume. The Pharisee objects, knowing that she is a prostitute...but how does Jesus react? Does he preach against prostitution? Does he stay quiet? No. He defends her and loves her with intensity. He tells her, “Your sins are forgiven”—a powerful declaration of his love—and finally, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Jesus—being one with God the Father—is perfect in righteousness, complete in holiness, and fierce in wrath against wickedness. But this same Jesus also loves contrite prostitutes. He loves those who are sorrowful over their sins, even if they have committed unspeakable acts against him. He loves them intensely and personally. He is not unwilling to befriend the lowest and most despised of our world. He humbles those who are proud and raises up those who are humble. When I read this passage from the gospel of Luke, I could not help but be struck with the beauty of Christ as he—the supreme leader of all religious leaders—condescended to this sinful woman and loved her openly among the Pharisees. And when I compare this wonderful blend of perfect righteousness and compassionate love to the gods of other religions—Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc.—I am stunned with the all-surpassing beauty of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Be Afraid You Women!

2:04 am

I woke up from a filthy dream tonight. Graphic, perverse lewdness passed through my mind that makes me angry and causes my heart to cry out, "Why does this filthy distortion of God's creation of sex run so wild and free in our world!?" Unchallenged and unpunished in most cases. But these men and women are storing up wrath for themselves on the day of God's wrath (Romans 2:5, as I once was too, but so thankfully my Lord delivered me). Oh, how I hate the lewdness of ungodly women! Men, I know, are perverted even more, but you perverse women! So pure, so delicate, so sacred has God made your sexuality - meant to be given purely and beautifully to your husband for the glory of God. But NO! You have fallen captive to the desires of wicked men and succumbed to the crowd of other vile women! Such perverse distortions of the goodness and holiness of godly sexuality. It makes me want to cry and burn with anger at the same time.

But my sinful flesh enjoyed it (at the time)! What tragedy! What corruption of a pure and holy spirit. I craved more, I wanted to hear, to see, to know. Why no conviction in this dream world tonight? No eschewment of sin, no sensitivity to the Savior's repulsion of it?

Wicked things passed through my mind: the way disgusting women dress, the way they flaunt their sexuality to their "lovers," the way they talk about perverted private things so openly and freely. SEX IS MEANT TO BE ENJOYED PRIVATELY BETWEEN MAN, WOMAN, AND CHRIST! Do not trample the sanctity of it and thus dishonor your God by publicly talking about private things!

Women walking about in Frederick's gear! Women describing their sexual exploits and desires! Women defiling their bodies with other women! I hate it!!

But why, O sinful flesh did you enjoy this so? Had you been exposed to this horrific lewdness while awake, you would have burned with hatred...or perhaps been utterly repulsed by its sickening and complete ungodliness to say the least...or vomited.

But now I have a renewed passion for upholding God's sanctity, God's supremacy, and God's authority over His design and gift of sex. An unmovable zeal for the repulsion of sick, sexual distortions and an upholding of sex inside of heterosexual marriage. I now quake at the thought of dishonoring my God by recalling one of these filthy images. May God receive the glory for His creation of sex, and may man receive the gift in a holy fashion, as a reflection of what intimacy and love is like with Christ. In this and in unflinching devotion to purity before marriage, I am convinced lies the most fulfilling way to experience the gift of God.

A Description of 2nd Century Christians

Listen to this description of what 2nd century Christians were like, presented by the Christian philosopher Aristides to the emperor Hadrian in A.D. 125:

Those who oppress them [the Christians] they exhort [with the Word] and make them their friends. They do good to their enemies. Their wives, O King, are pure as virgins, and their daughters are modest. Their men abstain from all unlawful sexual contact and from impurity, in the hope of recompense that is to come in another world.

As for their bondmen and bondwomen, and their children, if there are any, they persuade them to become Christians; and when they have done so, they call them brethren without distinction.

They refuse to worship strange gods; and they go their way in all humility and cheerfulness. Falsehood is not found among them. They love one another; the widow's needs are not ignored, and they rescue the orphan from the person who does him violence. He who has gives to him who has not, ungrudgingly and without boasting. When the Christians find a stranger, they bring him to their homes and rejoice over him. When a baby is born to one of them, they praise God. If it dies in infancy, they thank God the more, as for one who has passed through the world without sins. But if one of them died in his iniquity or in his sins, they grieve bitterly and sorrow as over one who is about to meet his doom.

Such, O King, is the commandment given to the Christians, and such is their conduct. As men who know God, they ask from him requests which are proper for him to give and for them to receive; and because they acknowledge the goodness of God towards them, lo! on their account there flows forth the beauty that is in the world. The good which they do, they do not shout in the ears of the multitude, that people may notice; but they conceal their giving as a man conceals a treasure. They strive to be righteous as those who expect to behold the face of their Messiah and to receive from him the promises.

(taken from Richard Wurmbrand's book The Answer to the Atheist's Handbook, pp. 48-49)

This glorious description of the lives of 2nd century Christians shows that they were clearly obeying Jesus' words found in Matt. 5:16 -

"In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

Let us examine ourselves and ask this question - If a philosopher from our age gave a detailed description of our lives, would the description resemble that of the 2nd century Christians, bringing glory to our wonderful Creator, or would it instead bring shame to the beautiful face of Christ?

Letter to the Addict

My heart breaks for you. You are dead. Yet you live as though you are alive and healthy. I just want to scream WAKE UP!! To try to wake you from your coma of drugs and lies before it is too late. Oh Jesus, I've never experienced anything like the agony of hopelessness and emptiness I see in an addict's eyes. You don't fool me, and you don't fool yourself. Your soul is writhing in misery. Why do you try to satisfy the deep longings you have with drugs, pornography, alcohol, anger, sex?? You are a child of God, made in His image to portray who He is to His creation. Such potential for beauty, but such capacity for evil. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted. Oh, how I pray you would be broken! That your heart would break under the unbearable shame, guilt, fear, and pain you have. Pain and suffering do more to reveal the heart of a person than anything I've ever seen. They strip you of everything and leave you bare. You see how weak you really are. How you desire to be beautiful and clean and good. And how you can't! Oh the desperation to discover yourself. What a wretched person I am, you will say. But thanks be to God that He broke through the realm of His creation and entered as a man, Jesus Christ, and redeemed for Himself a people to be spotless and blameless through His blood. Spotless! Blameless! Guiltless! Do you see how your soul longs for this? Do you see that even after all your hands have wrought, He forgives? And that He does so by taking on Himself all the nasty, disgusting, embarrassing, humiliating, regretful, painful, evil things you have done?

Please. Look around you. Look up! We live in a world that screams "Glorious is our God." The sky sings of His beauty and expanse. The wind boasts of His mystery and power. But you are the loudest of all. Of all creation, only mankind was created in the image of God and shares in His emotions, spirit, desires, beauty, and glory. Please look deep into your heart. You were made for Him. You will find satisfaction in nothing else. Please consider my plea.

Dearest Jesus, may you open their eyes to your beauty, take away their despair, and satisfy their souls for the sake of your Name.

With tears and trust,
Rian

In the Midst of the Wilderness

I wrote this poem a while ago when I was "walking through the wilderness." Some of you may be experiencing this very thing right now, but find hope in Jesus and never give up the journey, even when it is hard! Pursue a passion and desire for truth, and seek God until He blesses you (Gen. 32:26). I was rescued from the wilderness recently, and God gave me a taste of Himself. If He allows me to go back into the wilderness again, I know that He will use it for good and will give me rest in Him. So, stay strong and fight to know the very God that created you to know Him!

Oh Lord, I am in the midst of the wilderness,
Heartache, yes, sorrow, depression, no rest.

I have felt you so near, many times,
Now it's hard to see, and you I can't find.

I get stuck in the swamp, and I can't get free,
Why, Lord, do I sit and think only of me?

I want you, I need you, it's easy sometimes,
But now, more than ever, please come to my mind.

Prayer and conversation, I think not of you,
I am so caught up in me, what do I do?

Help me escape from depending on myself,
Oh God, I am ready, can I cry out for help?

Lord, where I am, will you hear my call?
Or depending on myself, will you let me fall?

Teach me, rebuke me, please use discipline,
Then I will love you, instead of the praise of men.

One thing, Lord, I ask you now - please help,
I always will fall when I depend on myself.

You sent me your servants, they teach me so well,
I must humble myself, then I will be able to tell,

How to make it through the wilderness,
Show me your glory, save me from hell.

Truth and reality, I must seek your face,
Show me, Lord, in the midst of this fog, your grace.

The light in the darkness, shall not disappear,
If you grant me a new heart, eyes to see, and ears to hear.

I want it, I need it, how can I survive?
Breathe in my body, you're the One who keeps me alive.

Truth, more Truth, I need more of Christ,
I want to know more of his sacrifice.

So, in this body, I may also be,
Like your precious servant, the One who died for me.

He walked in the wilderness 40 days,
Let me not forget temptation he had in so many ways.

He endured it with the Word and stood against Satan,
He glorified God, the Maker of Earth and Heaven.

Grow in faith and love, you have to go through this,
Keep going and trust me, to the end of the wilderness.

With my strength, you shall stand,
Don't grow weary, hold my hand.

I will walk with you, let me lead you,
With Christ, there's nothing you can't do.

Yes, the wilderness may come and go,
But everything has a season to grow.

You, my child, are a seed that I shall nourish,
Soil you, protect you, water you, then you shall flourish.

Be patient, as I am with you, my daughter,
You had a bad dad, now I'm your new Father.

I must teach you and love you, and some discipline,
Then go to the sea, become fishers of men.

You'll grow in knowledge, a new heart within,
Loving the Truth, and hating sin.

Set your eyes on things above,
And your mind on my Love.

The hope that awaits if you finish the race,
Seeing my glory, yes, even my face.

Run to win, persevere, and fight,
Run from the darkness, seek only the Light.

You are being trained in righteousness,
So stand firm, dear child, in the midst of the wilderness.

Crucifying the American Dream

I was going to write up something formal and technical for this topic, but instead I’m just going to explode on this page, because a passion for the violent crucifixion of the American Dream has been burning in me all day long. The American Dream is a phenomenon that causes lethal problems for both unbelievers and believers alike. For unbelievers, it stands in the way – like a mighty fortress – of them ever coming to know and treasure their Creator. For believers, it looms overhead, threatening to choke out their seeds until they spiritually die (Matt. 13:22; Luke 8:14). Sometimes it may have more subtle effects in the life of a genuine Christian. Small slivers of the American Dream can creep in unnoticed and slowly weaken our love, passion, and joy in our glorious Savior. The American Dream causes distractions in our lives that can divide a true Christian’s sole passion for God Himself to other “good” things like career advancement, enjoyable family time, and other vain happenings that do not count for eternity. Now this may sound a little harsh, but we need to make sure that we do not let so-called “good” things keep us from the best things. Enjoyable family time may be nice, but it is a burger and fries compared to the filet mignon of suffering, striving and giving everything you have for the Kingdom of God. For those of us who have tasted of the Heavenly gifts, who have experienced the profound, supernatural joy and pleasure that only comes from God and true fellowship with Him, we must declare all-out nuclear holocaust against the American Dream and its many manifestations. At all costs, do not let America suck you away from your infinitely glorious Creator so that you waste time you will never get back on fleeting pleasures instead of feasting on the glory and majesty of God Almighty!

Crucifying the American Dream in our lives could play out in a number of different ways. It could mean getting rid of your house that is filled with “stuff” and various distractions and moving into a cheap apartment that requires much less time and attention to maintain. It could mean quitting your soul-shrinking, secular job and volunteering to become a missionary for your church or some missionary-sending organization. It could also mean identifying some alternative, godless enjoyment that has taken root in your life, such as watching sports or some sitcom, and cutting it off so that you have more time to spend building up your treasures in Heaven by serving God and doing things that matter for eternity. If you’ve ever drank from the Fountain of Living Water, you know that you didn’t do it by watching Everybody Loves Raymond, or some other “clean” television show. You drank deeply from the Fountain of Living Water when you and your small group went out in 10-degree weather to give food and clothing to the homeless, and Christ’s love was poured out and displayed mightily through your actions. You drank deeply from the Fountain of Living Water when you joyfully dug into the Scriptures and God revealed a new and glorious truth to you through His Word. Do not allow yourself to settle for small, worldly enjoyments that leave your soul feeling empty. Embrace the Glory of Christ, cast off each and every hindrance you have, and run your race in such a way that Jesus is magnified to the world as such a great Treasure that someone would sell everything they own in order to have the magnificently glorious Son of Man instead! (Heb. 12:1; Matt. 13:44-45)