Coram Deo (May 2014)

When there’s something in the Word of God that I don’t like, the problem is not with the Word of God, it’s with me. —R.C. Sproul

Some Christians have had bad experiences with their parents and find it hard to relate to God as their Father. But while the deeds of our parents influence our understanding of God’s fatherhood, we must always remember that He is a perfect father, not prone to the faults of men and always concerned to protect us and provide for our well-being. God our Father never withholds good gifts from His children, and we can trust Him with all that we are.

To know that God knows everything about me and yet loves me is indeed my ultimate consolation. —R.C. Sproul

"If we take great comfort in the intercessory prayer of a friend or of a pastor, how much more comfort can we experience from the full assurance that Jesus is praying for us?" —R.C. Sproul from "The Comfort of Jesus' Prayers" in this month's issue of Tabletalk Magazine

Coram Deo: Sin’s use of the law to increase transgression and the crushing sentence of the law go hand in hand, though Paul does not fully delineate how. If the sentence of the law has been satisfied, however, we are free from sin’s power and are no longer in captivity to transgression (Rom. 7:6). Therefore, we can look to the law as our guide without having to suffer from the increase of sin via the law. In Christ, the law is satisfied and the Spirit enables us to resist sin.

"Today’s evangelicals generally think that if we offend someone by pressing the claims of the gospel too firmly or too plainly, we’ve done something terribly wrong. The reality is that if you think the gospel can be proclaimed in a way that is always appealing and never upsetting to unbelievers, you have the wrong idea about what the gospel message says." —John MacArthur from the weekend devotional "John 3:16 in Context" in this month's Tabletalk Magazine

Coram Deo: John Calvin comments, “The Holy Spirit so prepares the godly that they are ready and strive to render obedience to God; but as their ability is not equal to what they wish, Paul says, that he found not what he desired, even the accomplishment of the good he aimed at.” Christians are to be realists, not defeatists. We are not to expect perfection in this life, but neither are we on the losing side of the battle with sin. By the Spirit, we do progress in holiness as we aim for conformity to Christ.

Repentance is not just turning to something, it’s turning from something. —R.C. Sproul

You are converted not because of your own inherent righteousness, but because God converted you. —R.C. Sproul

The Scriptures are the very words of the living God. However, apart from faith in the Messiah and illumination by the Holy Spirit, our hearts only become harder. When you study the Bible, ask the Holy Spirit to help you guard your heart, to increase your faith in Christ Jesus, and to teach you God’s will through His Word.

"To get rid of predestination we have been willing to degrade our God into a godling." —B.B. Warfield

In His tender mercies, God has an incredible capacity to love the unlovely. —R.C. Sproul

Coram Deo: God the Holy Spirit does not accuse us; He convicts us and comforts us. That means that conviction by the Spirit will be followed by a sense of peace and cleanliness. If we have confessed our sins and still feel as if we have not been forgiven, it is likely that Satan and his demons are attempting to do their work of accusation in our lives. We must stand against them in such instances, reminding them of the surety of the Lord’s promises and thus our forgiveness in Jesus.