“Pride” Is Nothing to Be Proud Of
As God’s Word teaches over and over, you, and all lost sinners, are called to recognize your sinful condition before God, acknowledge it, and repent by turning from it, and accepting the only remedy He has provided to deliver you from eternal death: the gift of eternal life. The saving remedy God provided was to send His Son Jesus Christ to this earth to live a sinless life and then to die in our place on the cross to atone for our sins.
LGBTQ pride is defined by the Left as the positive stance toward, and promotion of, lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and transgender people as a social group.
“Pride” is all about sex and gender, with the characteristic of having a sexual or gender identity that does NOT correspond to established norms of sexuality and gender, especially heterosexual norms. The term queer is used by both right and left to describe proponents of non-normative sexual identities, but with opposite meanings.
Queerness is an umbrella term, used by the Left, to include people who are not heterosexual or are not cisgender, i.e., all those who embrace LGBTQism. Originally meaning ‘strange,’ ‘odd,’ or ‘peculiar,’ queer gained a connotation of sexual deviance and came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships. This is how the word is still used by the Right.
More recently, queer activists, have tried to redefine the word as a deliberately provocative and politically radical term, and queer has become increasingly used to describe a broad spectrum of non-normative sexual or gender identities. Being queer to the Left is now viewed positively and is proudly included under their banner of “Pride.”
There is very much a dark side to Pride that springs from the extreme culture of sexual freedom that they have created, in which anything goes, sexually speaking. One of the big areas of concern is physical health. Think of diseases like AIDS and Monkeypox that particularly affect gay men. The Atlantic recently carried an article with the provocative headline: Gay Men Need a Specific Warning About Monkeypox.
There are many negative concerns with Pride beyond health, but my main concern with it is not physical, but spiritual and moral. In short, I believe the whole Pride agenda is wrong and profoundly immoral. Pride neither is nor has anything to be proud of.
Queer activists may retort, “How can you say that, Ostien; who are you to judge? Millions upon millions of people believe ardently in Pride and all it stands for. Look at the rainbow flags flying everywhere. The President of the United States is an strong supporter (despite being a ‘devout’ Catholic).”
You’re right, who am I to judge? But it isn’t I who is judging. My authority for calling Pride wrong and immoral is not from me. The authority for saying such is directly from the Word of the living God who created both you and me. He is there and He is not silent (Schaeffer). He didn’t just fill His Word with nice sayings and pleasant stories. He gave us commandments and law. He told us in no uncertain terms to keep his commandments, or suffer serious consequences.
His Word on sexual matters is particularly straight forward and clear, and it’s unequivocally condemnatory to all things Pride. Listen to the Apostle Paul in Romans 1:22-32:
Claiming to be wise, they became fools [i.e., those who suppress the truth], and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. … Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
This passage calls out negatively many practices touted by Pride devotees; v. 22 makes clear that such people may claim to be wise but instead have become fools.
Verse 32 presents your precarious position before God, if you approve or practice the sorts of sinful practices that Pride stands for, listed in the passage. The death spoken of there is not just physical death, which we all experience, but eternal death separated from God in hell.
If you are among the sinful followers and practitioners of Pride, you will die that second, eternal death, because God says in His Word that the wages of sin is death. However, all is not yet lost for you. You don’t have to remain in that fearful condition of facing eternal doom in hell.
As God’s Word teaches over and over, you, and all lost sinners, are called to recognize your sinful condition before God, acknowledge it, and repent by turning from it, and accepting the only remedy He has provided to deliver you from eternal death: the gift of eternal life.
The saving remedy God provided was to send His Son Jesus Christ to this earth to live a sinless life and then to die in our place on the cross to atone for our sins. He rose again and is now in heaven preparing a place for His people to dwell eternally with Him.
But note, that great privilege is only for His people, not for all people in the world. That raises the all-important question, how do you become one of God’s people? What must you do to be saved?
“Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).
“To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:16-18).
Believe in Christ now and your condemnation will be removed and you will be saved.
Douglas Ostien is a member of Chestnut Mountain Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) in Chestnut Mountain, Ga.
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Fight Like Men: Part 5 of Biblical Manhood Series
The Bible expects that men will act like men, worship like men, participate in the advance of Jesus’ Kingdom like men, by adopting the weapons of warfare like men, and by showing up looking like men, being groomed like men, and being dressed like a man. These things are a glory to a man, they are most suitable to his frame, and will equip us to fight in a way that glorifies our King.
When I began this series on the fall and recovery of Biblical masculinity several weeks ago, little did I know that we were all about to witness a powerful and yet pitiful example of what fallen and impotent manhood looks like. Just as the brave Marines, holding the American flag atop a mound of rubble, on the war torn island of Iwo Jima, became a symbol for that entire era, so too will the slap heard round the world become a symbol of the weak and sickly manhood that is available today. Like the majority of the world, I had no idea that another award show filled full of opining elites had come and gone; that is until social media became a flurry with rumors that the fresh prince of Bel Aire slapped the Zebra from Madagascar.
Mildly intrigued, I went to youtube and saw the pitiful display.
And before we continue, let me begin with a few disclaimers. I detest celebrity culture. I despise award shows. I loath tabloid style gossip that thrives on who’s sleeping with who. And I have found that my life will be so much more productive, peaceful, and rewarding if I worry about what God has called me to do, rather than worrying about which celebrity is in rehab for shipwrecking their life. That may sound insensitive, but I have more than enough to fill my schedule with growing in the love God, fighting to prioritize my family, loving neighbor, serving the church, and being faithful to do the things God has entrusted to me to do with the precious seconds He has given me. Celebrity culture does not even crack the top billion on my list.
Yet, I am interested in what happened, if for no other reason than I think it poignantly and perfectly encapsulates the downfall of our society. But, being two weeks removed, I am not contributing to the cacophony of opinions on the matter, because Will and Jada Smith are not my point. I only bring Will Smith up as a microcosm for failed masculinity. Let me explain.
First, I am no expert on the comings and goings of the Smith’s, but you would have needed to live under a rock much larger than a comedian named Chris to think things were hunky dory in the Smith home. And while it is not my goal to air all of their soiled linens on this episode, I do want to point out that smacking Chris Rock for a joke was not at all a masculine act.
Masculinity would have been faithfulness to his own marriage vows over the years. Masculinity would not have stood idly by while his wife was sleeping with one of her son’s friends. Masculinity would have provided a home where his children did not grow up entitled and thoroughly perverted by his debauchery. In fact, after years of abdicating his responsibility as a man, his family has become the joke… The humor of Chris Rock was just the final straw atop an overly burdened ego.
This was not masculinity. This was not defending the honor of his wife. This was the petulant temper tantrum of a guilt ridden man, who knows what it is like to play a strong and successful male on television, but behind the mask, is a weak and pitiful example in real life.
This is why I say that this moment was the perfect encapsulation of modern culture and manhood. Mr Smith represents a generation of spoiled, entitled, emasculated boys, who would rather shift blame onto other people for their failures instead of facing the consequences of their decisions.
Mr. Smith showcased one way to fight, but it certainly was not how to fight like a Christian man, which is the topic of our present episode. Unlike Will Smith, or whatever societal image we may have seen of late, we need to know what it means to fight like a Christian man. We need to know how we are called to fight? Where are we called to fight? What we are fighting for? And who we are fighting for! That is what we will be answering today, and we will begin with understanding the battle.
Understanding the Battle
I hope it goes without saying that we are not called to fight with literal weapons. This is not a battle for geography, per se, this is a battle for the spiritual life and well-being of the world. We are called to make war with sin, make war against the kingdom of darkness, heralding Christ to all the nations, extending His Kingdom so that He may become greater as everything else becomes less. This war is a spiritual war, advanced in the souls of men, spreading out to the ends of the earth, putting everything under the feet of Jesus. But, before we can engage in that battle, we must first understand our enemy.
Understanding Our Enemies
When the Bible speaks about our enemy, we often get the picture of a serpentine dragon that is roaring about seeking whomever he may devour and that is certainly part of the story. We really do live in a world where the devil prowls about like a lion seeking whomever he may destroy (1 Peter 5:8). We know that Scripture tells us that this beastly fiend is the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4) and that the world, in some ways, is still under his dominion and authority (1 John 5:18-19). But we also live in a world where Christ has triumphed over and disarmed the devil (Colossians 2:15), bound him in order to plunder his kingdom (Mark 3:27), and has given us the ability to resist him (James 4:7) and to see Jesus’ Kingdom triumph over his (Mt. 16:17-19).
And while an exhaustive study on the devil would be helpful, the central point I want us to understand is that we are in a war and that Satan is one of our great enemies. He is a liar, a deceiver, and wants nothing more than to blind eyes and deceive the nations. As Christian men, we fight him by clinging to the truth, employing the means of grace, participating in the church and sacraments, by contending for the Gospel once for all delivered to the saints, and by seeking to see Jesus’ Kingdom extended to all the nations. Satan is our real enemy and as Christian men we are not called to tremble over him, but to wage war against him in Jesus’ name!
But, he is not our only enemy. The Bible tells us that we actually have three enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil.
The world, according to Scripture, is the realm of sinful humanity who live by lies, hate the church, and are opposed to the Lordship of Christ. Think about it this way, Jesus is the King over His people, the elect, and we have become citizens of His glorious Kingdom to do His bidding. Well, in the same way, the serpent is the prince and power over his tyrannical kingdom, the world, and the reprobate are both pleased and equipped to do his bidding as well.
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7 Reasons God Allows Sin to Remain in Believers
Through the indwelling sin that remains, Christ is glorified. While the enemy, sin, dwells in us, Christ’s grace and Holy Spirit are at work in us so that the enemy cannot overcome, domineer, or destroy us. Because of indwelling sin, we know that we cannot justify ourselves, but can only be justified by the perfect obedience of Christ, which we lay hold of by faith. In this, Christ is glorified.
Why do Christians still struggle with sin? Why does God allow it to remain and not kill it immediately like he will do when we see him face to face and reach our glorified state? Every believer has asked these questions when the war against flesh and Spirit becomes tiring, but they are not without answers. Below, Thomas Boston gives seven reasons sin is not immediately eliminated from the believer’s life.
1. God has ordered the matter of the believer’s sanctification that sin is left to be active in their souls while here on earth, for their further humiliation. For example, God gave Paul a thorn in the flesh to keep him humble. And so we find David, after his grievous fall, grows in the grace of humility.
2. The Lord allows sin to remain in His people so they are stirred to the frequent exercise of prayer. The soul feels the continual need of pardon, and therefore must be much lying at God’s footstool. When His children grow remiss in their duty, the Lord sometimes allows them to fall into some grievous sin to awaken them and wound their conscience, so that they cry to Him like a child who falls into a fire.
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Deceived?
Written by T.M. Moore |
Thursday, April 28, 2022
All who ignore or resist the Word of God are deceived and living in the darkness of unbelief – even many who profess faith in Jesus Christ, as Spurgeon insisted. But when Jesus Christ opens the mind of people, nothing can keep them from seeing the light of truth, so that their hearts burn within them, and they want to know more of this life-changing Good News, and share it eagerly with others. All who have the mind of Christ, and who are pressing on toward maturity in that mind, are called to proclaim to our unbelieving age – and our complacent fellow believers – the full meaning of Christ’s resurrection and the truth of His Kingdom.And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Luke 24.45
More than Enthusiasm
In the 19th century, well-known preacher Charles Spurgeon attracted great crowds to the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London. People were enthusiastic about his powerful and eloquent preaching, and his renown as a herald of God’s truth spread far and wide.
Spurgeon was one of several preachers in his day who drew many to their services of worship. But Spurgeon was skeptical. He put no stock in numbers. He understood just how easy it can be for people to be deceived into thinking they know the truth, when in fact, their minds have never been opened to the Word of God. A person in whom the mind of Christ is operating in a mature manner doesn’t just get excited about hearing the Word; the mature believer is moved to act in obedience on what he hears (cf. Phil. 3.7-15).
As Spurgeon explained to his students, “Thousands are congratulating themselves, and even blessing God that they are devout worshippers, when at the same time they are living in an unregenerate Christless state, having the form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.”
Spurgeon knew that mere enthusiasm for the things of Christ – worship, church, eternal life, the Bible, and all the rest – does not necessarily indicate a mind that is growing to maturity. Only Jesus Christ can open a person’s mind to the truth, and only when He does will that person hear the Scriptures and the saving message of the Kingdom of God, so that the mind of Christ is quickened in him, and growth toward maturity begins.
A strong soul requires a well-kept heart and a mature mind which is continuously open and obedient to the things of Christ.
A New World
When Jesus opened the minds of His disciples to understand the teaching of Scripture, theirs became a new and vastly more interesting world. They became new people, with new priorities and power, and a new commitment to pursue eternal horizons stretching out in every direction in their lives.
For three years, the disciples followed Jesus, watching His works and listening to His words; but, in the end, they all abandoned Him. Even after the resurrection they didn’t understand the significance of what had happened, and they seemed ready to return to the lives they’d known before following Jesus. We find many of them, in John 21, heading back to their old lives as fishermen, filled with wonder and confusion over the resurrection of Jesus, but clueless as to the real implications of that world-changing event for their lives.
Their minds were full of information, experiences, and fond memories of Jesus; but their minds had not yet been opened to the reality of the Kingdom of God.
Hindrances to Obedience
What hinders people from hearing the Word of God so that they are moved not just to enthusiasm but to obedience?Read More
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