In Sunday’s Message, “How God Makes Christians,” Ryan unpacked the doctrine of election from 1 Peter 1:1-2. For Peter and his readers, the truth of God’s election of sinners to salvation was not understood as a matter for controversy, but for comfort.

At the close of Ryan’s sermon he mentioned several appropriate responses to the sermon. Some need to resolve to study this more from Scripture. Some need to accept what they have seen in Scripture. Others need to cherish what they’ve accepted.

Here are some resources to help you see, embrace, and cherish the doctrine of God’s electing love:

• “Bible Verses on the Love and Power of God,” a DSC Blog post with several dozen verses on the greatness of our need and the greatness of God’s love, including his election of sinners to salvation.
• “When God Speaks,” a sermon by Ryan Kelly on Ezekiel 37:1-14
• “Conversion: Now That’s How it’s Supposed to Go!,” a sermon by Ryan Kelly on Acts 16:6-15
• “God’s Part and Man’s Part in Salvation,” an article by John G. Reisinger
• “Chosen for Life: The Case for Divine Election,” a book by Sam Storms
• “Chosen by God,” a book by R.C. Sproul
• “The Pleasure of God in Election,” a sermon by John Piper
• “How Can I Help Someone Who Thinks They Aren’t Elect?,” a Q&A with John Piper
• “Pastoral Thoughts on the Doctrine of Election,” a sermon by John Piper

In addition, it may also be helpful to read the Elders Doctrinal Statement, which is more narrow and doctrinally specific than the doctrinal statement required for membership at DSC. Both are available on our Beliefs page. This document expresses the doctrinal understanding of Scripture that our elders share together and the doctrinal commitments that govern the teaching ministry of our church. Several sections will be helpful for you to read, including Section 3, “God’s Eternal Purpose in Election,” Section 7, “The Saving Work of Christ,” and Section 8, “The Saving Work of the Holy Spirit.”

Section 9 of the Elders Doctrinal Statement addresses a specific question raised by the doctrine of election: the relationship of gospel preaching and human responsibility.

9. The Offer of the Gospel and the Responsibility of Man

9.1 We believe that human beings are genuinely responsible for their decisions, actions, and motives. God’s providence mysteriously involves human wills and real choices in such a way that neither God’s sovereignty nor human will is violated or sacrificed for the reality of the other. This mysterious harmony is sometimes called “compatibilism” or “concurrence,” indicating that divine sovereignty and human responsibility are compatible and run concurrently through every decision and event. Often times in the Scriptures, complete divine sovereignty and genuine human responsibility are unblushingly affirmed in the same passage.

9.2 We believe that genuine human choices, though simultaneously and intimately involving God’s active providence, are made according to ability and desire. Sin’s effects have devastated our spiritual abilities and desires, so that it may be rightly said that “no man seeks after God.” Our spiritual waywardness, then, is the free, conscious, and repeated choice of those born into sin and under condemnation.

9.3 We believe that the gospel should and must be proclaimed in all the world and among all men. The legitimate gospel offer and genuine call to “believe and repent” is an offer to all, and a reality for those (and only those) who consciously and passionately confess, repent, believe, receive, and seek Christ—all synonyms for faith. God’s gospel call, in the Bible and through His people, is a genuine call to come, and those who do not come to Christ do not come precisely because they do not want to, choosing according to their wayward desires.

9.4 We believe that belief unto salvation is one of innumerable instances in the Scriptures where “concurrence” is essential to a proper and biblical understanding of divine sovereignty and human responsibility—neither negated, overruled, or dismissed by the other.

As we ponder the Word of God, meditate on God’s gracious election of sinners, and pray for the conversion of the lost, let’s keep in mind these important words from the famous 19th century preacher, Charles Spurgeon: “There is no more humbling doctrine in Scripture than that of election, none more promoting of gratitude, and, consequently, none more sanctifying. Believers should not be afraid of it, but adoringly rejoice in it.”

In Sunday’s sermon, “Recalibrating Expectations,” Ryan began a new sermon series through the book of First Peter, titled Between Two Worlds. The title of the series expresses an assumption at the heart of this book: we are “sojourners” on this earth (1 Peter 2:11).

For Christians in the west, this world is feeling a little less like home with each passing year. Changing attitudes within our society toward Christianity and Christian convictions are a reality, and we should not be naive to the implications of these changes. Yet, our ultimate horizon is fixed and unmoving, for God “has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for [us]” (1 Peter 1:3-4).

But that isn’t now. Just last Thursday, evangelical Christian pastor, Louie Giglio, withdrew from his part in the upcoming Presidential Inauguration after pressure from all directions, including probably the White House, to do so. Why? Because fifteen years ago he preached a sermon stating what Christians have always believed concerning homosexuality. Justin Taylor pulled together some helpful analyses in follow up.

Also in follow up, Kevin DeYoung published a good example of how to think, feel, and speak as those who are looking to the horizon of a heavenly city. His entire post, “Let Freedom Ring,” is excellent, and so we’ve included it for you here:

On Thursday we learned that an evangelical pastor cannot say a benediction at the Presidential Inauguration because 15 years ago he affirmed the Bible’s prohibition of homosexual behavior. It was a sad day for evangelical Christians. A hard day. A frustrating day.

But let it also be our Independence Day.

Let us be free from the false hope that heroic deeds and quiet agreeableness can atone for the sin of orthodox conviction.

Let us be free from the wishful thinking that good works and good manners can appease the Great God Tolerance.

Let us be free from the misplaced assumption that faithfulness to God can go hand in hand with worldly congratulation.

If it is “anti-gay” to believe that the normativity of male-female sexual union is taught by nature and nature’s God then let us wear a Scarlet Letter around our necks. Christ bore much worse.

If the culture of free love is going to hate those who believe marriage was made with God-given limits then let the opprobrium fall on us. We will despise the shame.

If henceforth we shall be considered the scum of the earth for believing what the Church has taught for 2000 years then let us be the scent of death to some. We shall be the aroma of life to others.

And lest anyone think this is a call to arms or a manifesto of malediction, it is not. If we are reviled, we shall not revile in return. If we are hated we shall pray to God for more love. If we are excluded from polite society, we will still include all Christ-exalting, Bible-believing, broken hearted sinners in the fellowship of the redeemed. And if we are esteemed by some as better off dead, we will not cease to offer the words of life.

We will not stop serving where we can. We will not stop repenting when we sin. We will not stop speaking the truth about our Lord and about his law.

There are likely far bigger disappointments to come than the one that dropped last Thursday. We did not choose this culture war and it is not about to leave us alone. The media, the academy, the government, the libertine elite–they may sully our reputation and shame our convictions, but they cannot steal our joy. We can pray more, sing more, and smile more than any of the party-goers making mud pies in the slums. We do not have to fit in down here so long as we fit in up there. We do not need a president’s approval if we have the affection of our King. Our hearts and our Bibles are wide open. Our salvation is firm. Let freedom ring.

This vision of our ultimate horizon both relaxes us and strengthens us for faithful living. On Sunday, Ryan mentioned five words that capture various unbiblical approaches to our relationship to the world around us. We should not fight the world as an enemy. We should not force the world to live our way. We should not follow the world, as though we will win them by becoming more like them. We don’t flee the world as if Christ sent us into the world to hide from it. And we don’t faint from exhaustion.

We should think carefully and seriously about the changes in our world. The tragic and transformed vision of tolerance ever prevalent in modern society is insightfully unpacked by D.A. Carson in his book, The Intolerance of Tolerance. But even more important is our commitment to live faithfully in these times. That’s what Carson’s short book, From The Resurrection to His Return: Living Faithfully in the last days, is all about. Both are available at the Resource Center.

Finally, for a heavy but helpful read on the subject of the Christian’s relationship to and influence on the world, consider reading, To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World, by James Davison Hunter, available on Amazon.

In his message, “The Omni-God,” Ryan preached the scary and comforting reality of God’s omni-greatness from Psalm 139. God is all-knowing, he is all-present, and he is all-powerful. That is terrifying because we are sinners. But for those to seek their refuge from him in him, God’s omni-greatness is the greatest comfort. As Ryan said on Sunday, this psalm is theology on fire.

Two issues raised by Psalm 139 are worth exploring further: prayers against the wicked, and the value of unborn human life.

Language of Hatred in the Psalms 

For 18 verses, David reflects on God’s personal knowledge of every detail of his life, and his active presence in every place and every at stage of life. Then, in verse 19 we read this:

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
They speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies take your name in vain.
Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.

Not only does that sound a little left field, it sounds a little out of bounds for Scripture. In his message, “Praying Against what God is Against,” Ryan addressed the meaning of this kind of language that we find here and elsewhere in the Psalms. As we see even from this text, David’s emotions are not vindictive or ultimately concerned with himself, but with God and his glory. In other words, David is against what God is against. Loving God in all his righteousness means hating what is unrighteous. And this isn’t arrogantly condescending. David’s next words show us the incompatibility of this kind of love for righteousness with self-righteousness: “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”

As Christians praying this psalm, we consider Jesus on the cross, where God’s righteousness, and thus his hatred for sin, was mingled with his mercy for sinners. And in praying against what God is against, we remember Paul’s words in Ephesians 6:12, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Behind all opposition to God is the great Opposer, Satan. And victorious over all opposition to God is God himself, with his Son, and all those who take refuge in him (1 Corinthians 15:57).

In view of the holiness of God, we see that David’s turn in verse 18 is not random or repugnant, but right. Thankfully, Tim Keller is right: “There’s no refuge from him; there’s only refuge in him.” When we read words like these, we can praise God for his justice, his victory over his enemies, and his mercy toward anyone who will come to him.

Abortion and the Offense of Human Autonomy

A second issue of importance raised by this psalm concerns the unborn. This psalm was not written to address the issue of abortion, but this psalm does have clear implications for the seriousness of this issue, since this psalm speaks so clearly to the value of life in the womb. As Ryan said, God and his Word are not unclear as to when life begins. God is the great knitter of life. Life is his work, and his work in the womb is illustrative of his power, his intimate care for every human person, his creativity, and his wisdom.

In light of the life-knitting omni-greatness of God, we see that abortion is not merely an assault on life in the womb, but an assault on the very Giver of life himself. In fact, it is the Giver of life that gives life it’s intrinsic value in the first place. The broad acceptance and even celebration of the murder of children in the womb is a reminder of our plight as human beings who suppress the truth about God in our unrighteousness. Ryan said it well this week in a discussion about the subject: “What makes the taking of a life – whether at 6 weeks or at 96 years – so wrong is its astounding self-autonomy; that it so brazenly (yet casually!) removes God from the picture. It pretends that he simply is not there,  or doesn’t know, or doesn’t care. It pretends that someone else or something else brings about life, that someone else or something else sustains life.”

In light of this, there are a number of ways we can pray as we reflect on this psalm. We should praise God for his intimate and personal care for us – a care that extends even to the earliest and most private moments of our lives. We should praise God for his life-weaving work and pray against the idols, ideas, and structures embedded within our culture that promote the destruction of this life. We should recognize what we are capable of as sinners, and say with David, “See if there be any grievous way in me, and led me in the way everlasting!” For those who have committed or approved of the sin of abortion, pray for forgiveness from God, and rest in that forgiveness. Jesus’ death is sufficient for this, and God is pleased to grant forgiveness to those who flee to him for it. Pray Psalm 51. Pray Psalm 32. Remember the words of Psalm 103:11-12, where David writes,”For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” It’s really true. And we should pray for opportunities to share with men and women who are considering or who have committed an abortion about the Giver of life who gives eternal life through Jesus Christ.

As Christians it is not so difficult for us to embrace the reality of the intrinsic worth of unborn human life. It can, however, be difficult to live wisely in the world, loving our neighbors both inside and outside the womb. Here are several resources to help us think carefully about this issue and our responsibility with respect to the unborn:

• The Case for Life: Equipping Christians to Engage the Culture, a book by Scott Klusendorf
• Abortion Rites: A Social History of Abortion in America, a book by Marvin Olasky
• Defending Life: A Moral and Legal Case Against Abortion Choice, a book by Francis J. Beckwith
• Embryo: A Defense of Human Life, a book by Robert P. George
• “Abortion Is About God,” a video by John Piper
• “Abortion: Why Silence and Inaction Are Not Options for Evangelicals,” chapter by Justin Taylor in Don’t Call It a Comeback: The Same Evangelical Faith for a New Day. An interview with Justin Taylor about the need for and nature of evangelical engagement on abortion.
• “Mr. Candidate, How Does Religion Inform Your View on Abortion?,” an article by Amy Hall
• Pro-Life Traning, a ministry of Scott Klusendorf
• “The Great Tragedy of the 2012 Election,” an article by Garrett Kell
• “Ten Reasons Why It Is Wrong to Take the Life of Unborn Children,” an article by John Piper
• “Love Your Unborn Neighbor,” a sermon by John Piper
• “An Interview with Robert P. George on Roe vs. Wade,” by Justin Taylor

In closing, here are some important words Garrett Kell to those who have committed an abortion and to those who believe it is morally acceptable:

If you have committed an abortion, I want you to know there is a refuge in Jesus. He will heal your wounds. There is no sin so great that he cannot forgive and no sin so small that does not need to be forgiven. If you will confess your sins and turn to him in faith, he will wash away all your guilt and all your shame. Come to Christ.

If you support abortion, I encourage you to spend time in prayer and ask God to show you if abortion pleases him or not. Ask a Christian to help you learn what God’s Word says. I know you already have deeply rooted ideas. I did too. But I encourage you to take the time to read what God says about life and who has the right to give and take it away. I encourage you to start with Psalm 139.

In Sunday’s sermon, “From Restlessness to Contentment,” Ryan preached from Psalms 130-131. Together, these two psalms that take us from crying to calm, from restlessness to rest, and from pride to trust. These are timely psalms for an age of busyness, noise, and self-promotion.

Here are a few resources on this psalm, the theme of contentment, and preaching God’s Word to ourselves:

• “‘Peace, be still’: Learning Psalm 131 by Heart,” David Powlison
• “Contentment,” Timothy Keller
• “Forgiveness: the Foundation for Fear (Psalm 130:3-4),” Sam Storms
• “How to Really Talk to Yourself,” Ryan Kelly

Ryan quoted part of Powlison’s article that is worth including here. In what he calls an, “anti-Psalm 131,” Powlison clarifies the meaning of Psalm 131:

My heart is proud (I’m absorbed in myself),
and my eyes are haughty (I look down on other people),
and I chase after things too great and too difficult for me.
So of course I’m noisy and restless inside, it comes naturally,
like a hungry infant fussing on his mother’s lap,
like a hungry infant, I’m restless with my demands and worries.
I scatter my hopes onto anything and everybody all the time.

This Sunday, Ryan preached a message from Psalm 104, “God’s Intimate and Intricate Care for Creation.” Psalm 104 encourages us to look to God’s creation with wonder, curiosity, and delight.

Ryan quoted from former Wheaton English professor, Clyde Kilby’s, “Resolutions for Mental Health“:

At least once every day I shall look steadily up at the sky and remember that I, a consciousness with a conscience, am on a planet traveling in space with wonderfully mysterious things above and about me. . . .

I shall not fall into the falsehood that this day, or any day, is merely another ambiguous and plodding twenty-four hours, but rather a unique event, filled with worthy potentialities. . . .

I shall open my eyes and ears. Once every day I shall simply stare at a tree, a flower, a cloud, or a person. . . .

I shall sometimes look back at the freshness of vision I had in childhood and try, at least for a little while, to be a “child of the pure unclouded brow, and dreaming eyes of wonder.”

Psalm 104 is one of many psalms that focus on God’s glory in creation that we have heard preached in our series through the Psalms, Pour Out Your Heart to Him. Here are a few others:

• “How Majestic!“ – Psalm 8
• “A Picture Worth a Thousand Words” – Psalm 19:1-6
• “Lord of the Storm” – Psalm 29
• “Nothing to Fear, the Lord is With Us” – Psalm 46
• “The Growing Crescendo of God’s Praise” – Psalm 96
• “The Dark Side of Creation” – Psalm 97