"Christians should never, ever, be surprised by evil" – Don Carson

"What is astonishing is that after the bloody century (20th) we have just come through, so many people think that if we simply sit around a table & talk we will sort it all out. This attitude is astonishingly naïve. Christians should never, ever, be surprised by evil. While we should always be horrified by evil, we should never be surprised by it…Hold few illusions about the world. There are many times we should be horrified – surprised, never...

...This world is constantly trying to convince itself that we are all pretty good, that we are all saying the same things, that evil is not an endemic & systemic part of us, & that if we are nice, everything will be all right. Certainly there is no merit in being un-nice! But to hide the disagreements, idolatries, greeds, injustice, God-defying arrogance, materialist hedonism, unbelief, & just plain malice of the world is worse that naïve – it is blind. Christians will look at the rawness of history & the prevalence of evil people who become worse & worse, & they will hold few illusions.” – Don Carson

saving, justifying faith in Christ, acceptance with God, & union with Christ - Jonathan Edwards

“The end of the doctrines and precepts of Christianity, is to bring about this sweet harmony between the soul and Jesus Christ… The grace of faith is often spoken of in Scripture as that by which especially the union between Christ and the soul is made. And therefore 'tis called in Scripture, a coming to Christ, and a receiving Christ. 'Tis a coming to Christ as being drawn to him: 'tis the opposite to disallowing and rejecting of Christ (1 Peter 2:7).

And therefore saving, justifying faith in Christ, don't consist merely in the assent of the understanding, nor only in the consent of the will; but 'tis the harmonizing of the whole soul with Jesus Christ, as he is revealed and held forth in the gospel.

'Tis the soul's embracing the revelation of Jesus Christ as its Savior. 'Tis the whole soul's entirely adhering to him and acquiescing in him, according and symphonizing with the revelation and offer of Christ as its Savior. There is an entire yielding to it, and closing with it; adhering to it with the belief, with the inclination and affection; admitting and receiving it with entire credit and respect as true, and worthy, and excellent.

Faith is no other than that harmony in the soul towards Christ that has been spoken of in its most direct act. And it may be defined [as] the soul's entirely uniting and closing with Christ for his Savior, acquiescing in his reality and goodness as a Savior, as the gospel reveals him. And hence it is that by faith that we are justified, not as commending us to God by its excellency as a qualification in us, but as uniting us to Christ. The foundation of persons' acceptance with God, is their union with Christ, or that relation to him, whatsoever that is, by which in Scripture we are said to be in Christ. And faith is that by which we are thus united; for it is the active uniting [and] closing with Christ as a Savior.”

Jonathan Edwards, The Sweet Harmony of Christ

http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4xODoxOToxLndqZW8=

a ground and a warrant to preach the Gospel to every human creature - John Newton

“That there is an election of grace, we are plainly taught; yet it is not said, “that Jesus Christ came into the world to save” the elect, but that he came to save, “sinners,” to “seek and to save them that are lost.” Upon this ground, I conceive that ministers have a warrant to preach the Gospel to every human creature, and to address the conscience of every man in the sight of God; and that every person who hears this Gospel has thereby a warrant, an encouragement, yea, a command, to apply to Jesus Christ for salvation; and that they who refuse, thereby exclude themselves, and perish, not because they never had, nor possibly could have, any interest in his atonement, but simply because they will not come unto him that they might have life.”

- John Newton, sermon “The Lamb of God, the great Atonement”

Christ's appearing to Moses in the burning bush - Jonathan Edwards

“One is Christ's appearing to Moses in the burning bush, which we read of in Exodus 3:2, "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed." This burning bush represents the church in Egypt that were persecuted there, and yet not consumed. But not only so, but it represents Christ in his passion; for it was Christ that appeared to Moses in that bush; as is evident, because he is called "the angel of the Lord." And it was not a created angel, but the angel of the covenant; as is evident, because he tells Moses that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and that his name is "I am that I am." This bush that he appeared in represents the human nature of Christ that is called the branch, and is the growth of the earth. It was not an high tree, but a low bush, to represent Christ in his state of humiliation, when he was as "a tender plant, and a root out of a dry ground."

Christ was said to have dwelt in this bush. Deuteronomy 33:16, "With the good will of him that dwelt in the bush." So Christ dwells in the human nature, betabernacled in flesh. This bush burned with fire to represent how the human nature of Christ suffered in the fire of God's wrath. As the bush burned and was not consumed, so Christ's human nature suffered extremely, endured the wrath of God, but yet did not utterly perish, but revived again out of the flame. God did not leave his soul in hell, nor suffer his Holy One to see corruption. The fire spent all its force upon the bush; but yet because of the divinity that dwelt in it, it was impossible it should be consumed. So the wrath of God spent all its force on the man Christ Jesus; but yet because of the divinity that dwelt in him, it was impossible that he should be utterly destroyed, but came to life again on the third day, and ascended up to heaven.”

- Jonathan Edwards, The free and voluntary suffering and death of Christ

http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4xODoyMjoxLndqZW8=

“For how long am I married to Jesus Christ? Is it only until I fall into sin?” - Martyn Lloyd-Jones

An exposition by Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Romans 7:1-4, especially on verse 4

“Every one of us who is a Christian is married to the Lord Jesus Christ…
…‘Or do you not know, brothers’, says the Apostle (‘for I speak to them that know the law), that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives?’(Rom. 7:1) Nothing can terminate that but death. Then to bring it right home he says, ‘For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage’ (Rom. 7:2). Nothing but death can put an end to it – ‘while he lives’. That is his illustration, & we must apply the illustration to ourselves as we are married to the Lord Jesus Christ. For how long am I married to Him? Is it only until I fall into sin? Does my falling into sin mean I drop out of the relationship & have to be married again to Him, & then sin & drop out & be married again & again? What utter nonsense! No, let us realize that the relationship is legal & lasting. I am married to Him, & I remain married to Him until one or the other of us dies; but neither the One or the other of us can ever die! Says the Apostle in Romans chapter 6:9; ‘We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.’ He cannot die again. There is my Husband, He cannot die, & I am joined to Him.
But the Apostle has also reminded us that we cannot die either. We have finished with death because we have finished with Law, which alone has the power to prescribe death: ‘The sting of death is sin, & the strength of sin is the law.’ It is the Law that demands death; so as I am dead to the Law I am dead to death – so I cannot die. The husband cannot die, & because He is the ‘death of death & hell’s destruction’, the wife cannot die. It is an indissoluble marriage, it will last throughout the countless ages of eternity. Law is a tremendous & a majestic power; nothing can put an end to its enactments & its prescriptions save death. But we are in a position in which we are above & beyond Law & death – we are married to Christ forever. That is why the Apostle says at the end of Romans chapter 8, when he sums up all this; ‘For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to’ – what – ‘to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Rom. 8:38, 39). We have been married to Christ eternally; He will never let us go; we are His forever and forever.”

- Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Exposition of Chapter 7:1 – 8:4 The Law: Its Functions and Limits

http://www.amazon.com/Romans-Martyn-Lloyd-Jones-7-1-8/dp/0851511805

Illustrations from a sermon by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, part III

"… I was once in a country town, and I said to my host, when I went to bed, “I have to be in London to-morrow, and I cannot get up in time for my work unless I leave by a train which I can catch readily enough if you wake me at six o’clock.” Well, my host was an Irishman, so he woke me at five o’clock; and when I sat up in bed, I said, “What is it?” He said, “You have only another hour to sleep.” The consequence was that I missed my train. If he had only wakened me at the proper time, and said, “Now you must get up,” I should have dressed at once; but as he said, “You have only another hour to sleep,” of course I slept that hour, and another one as well, for I was weary. The same principle applies to you. If I say to you, “Go home, and think it over all the week,” I shall be giving you a week in which to remain in rebellion against God; and I have no right to do that. I shall be giving you a week in which you are to continue an unbeliever; and he that is an unbeliever is in peril of eternal ruin, for “he that believeth not shall be damned.” Worse than all, the week may lead to many other weeks; to months, perhaps, and years; perchance to a whole eternity of woe. I cannot give you five minutes. God the Holy Ghost speaks by me now to souls whom God hath chosen from before the foundation of the world, and he says, “To-day, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” The Holy Ghost says “To-day, even today.” “Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”…

… I believe that the act of faith was very well set forth in the statement of a poor imbecile. They said that he was an idiot; but I think that he had more real sense than many a man who boasts of his intellect. Some one said to him “John, have you got a soul? “No,” he said, “I ain’t got no soul.” “Why, John, how is that?” He replied, “I had a soul once, but I lost it, and Jesus Christ found it, so I have just let him keep it.” There is the whole philosophy of salvation. You have lost your soul; Christ has found it. Let him keep it. God bless you! Amen.”

- Charles Haddon Spurgeon, An urgent request for an immediate answer

http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols37-39/chs2231.pdf

Illustrations from a sermon by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, part II

“…In this very place, I once urged those who were undecided to go home, and write down, either the word “Saved,” or “Lost,” and sign their name to the paper. One man, when he got into his house, asked for pen and paper; and when his wife enquired why he wanted it, he said he was going to do what the parson said, and write down “Lost.” She refused to fetch him the paper if he was going to do that. So he got it himself, and put down a capital L, when his little girl climbed up in the chair behind him, and said, “No, father, you shan’t do that, I’d rather die than you should do that”; and the child’s tears fell on his hand as she spoke. What my sermon had failed to do, those tears accomplished; the strong man was bowed, and yielded himself to Christ; and when they got up from their knees in that little room, he took the pen, and changing the L into an S, wrote “Saved.” He was saved because he came face to face with the fact that he was lost. His ill answer startled both himself and his child. May God work the like change in you, both for your own sake and also for the sake of your loved ones!...

… I think sometimes God treats men as Benjamin Franklin treated the man who stood loafing in his bookshop, and at last took up a book, and said, “How much is this?” Franklin replied, “A shilling.” “A shilling?” he said, “a shilling?” and he would not give the price. After staying about ten minutes, he said: “Come, Mr. Franklin, now what will you take for it?” Franklin answered, “Two shillings.” “No,” he said, “you are joking.” “I am not joking,” said Franklin: “the price is two shillings.” The man waited, and sat a while, thinking. “I want the book,” he drawled out; “still, I will not give two shillings. What will you take for it?” Franklin said, “Three shillings.” “Well,” the man said, “why do you raise your price?” To which Franklin responded, “You see, you have wasted so much of my time that I could better have afforded to take one shilling at first than three shillings now.” Sometimes, if men come to Christ at the very first invitation, it is a sweet and easy coming. See how dear young children often yield themselves to Christ, and how peaceful is their entrance into the rest of faith! But when people wait, when they postpone believing, when they violate conscience, when they tread down all the uprising of holy thoughts within them, it becomes much harder for them to trust in Christ than it would have been when he was first preached to them. I come, therefore, to you again, and say, “If ye will deal kindly and truly with my Master, tell me: and if not, tell me; and tell me now.”

- Charles Haddon Spurgeon, An urgent request for an immediate answer

http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols37-39/chs2231.pdf

Illustrations from a sermon by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, part I

“…A pastor in Edinburgh, in going round his district, knocked at the door of a poor woman, for whom he had brought some needed help; but he received no answer. When next he met her, he said to her, “I called on Tuesday at your house.” She asked, “At what time?” “About eleven o’clock; I knocked, and you did not answer. I was disappointed, for I called to give you help.” “Ah, sir!” said she, “I am very sorry. I thought it was the man coming for the rent, and I could not pay it, and therefore I did not dare to go to the door.” Many a troubled soul thinks that Jesus is one who comes to ask of us what we cannot give; but indeed he comes to give us all things. His errand is not to condemn, but to forgive. Miss not the charity of God through unbelief. Run to the door, and say to your loving Redeemer, “Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof; but as thou hast come to me, I welcome thee with all my heart...

…John B. Gough tells a story of how he was fetched from a railway-station to speak one night, and the cab that was sent for him had a broken window. He noticed that the man who came in the cab put a handkerchief over his head as he sat close up against the hole in the window, and then he observed that he put his head against the window. Mr. Gough said, “Have you a cold in your head?” “No,” he said, “but there is a nasty hole in this pane of glass, and I am afraid that you may take cold. I am sticking my head into the hole to shield you, for you taught me to be a man and a Christian.” Such gratitude as that was most touching; and if we can bring any to Christ, I am sure they will be very grateful to us. If we can lead them to Jesus, they will feel as if they could not do too much for us; therefore out of love to them, having so many who are now our dear children in Christ, we would plead with them, and say, “Give us a good answer, and say ‘Yes’ to the overture of our Master’s Son.”

- Charles Haddon Spurgeon, "Lo, I Come": Application

http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/2203.htm

- Charles Haddon Spurgeon, An urgent request for an immediate answer

http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols37-39/chs2231.pdf