One of Newton’s letters is to a young pastor who is struggling with being very poor. Newton’s letter is full of comfort, and helping the individual to recognize the goodness of God in His sometimes inscrutable providences in this regard. He closes his letter with this bit of verse:
Oh may this always be my own heart!
As I mentioned in my last post, the Memorial Service for Giana was held at Clarkson Community Church on Saturday, where my dear friend Tony Bartolucci pastors. Giana is his 14 year old daughter. That service was just for the immediate family, both blood relatives, and the Church.
Yesterday, on Sunday afternoon, we held the public funeral service for Giana. And the text below is the sermon I preached there. Because of the very public nature of both their accident on Christmas Eve, and Giana’s rehab, this was a community wide service.
The text is below.
But if you would like to see the entire service, the video can be found HERE
Jesus Prayed for Giana
John 17:1-24
I want to center our attention today on vs. 24 – Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
The whole of John 17 has often been referred to as the place where “Jesus prays for His own.” The REAL Lord’s Prayer.
There have been countless prayers for Tony, Lois and Giana since the tragic crash on Christmas eve by so many of us.
But there is a reality that the child of God in Jesus Christ knows, that is of more comfort and benefit than can possibly be measured – it is the fact that Jesus prays for us.
Jesus prays for all of His saints in their trials.
That may sound somewhat strange to some of you.
If Jesus is God, and that He is, then why does He pray? Can’t He just act.
And let me give you just 2 reasons why that isn’t contradictory or odd.
1st., When Jesus was incarnate on the earth, He willingly set aside His reliance upon His own divinity, and depended upon God the Father’s providential care, and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He lived just as He calls Believers to do today.
He modeled that life for us in His own humiliation in coming in the likeness of fallen mankind.
And so – He prayed.
In the 2nd place – we know He STILL prays for us even as Romans 8:34 tells us: “Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”
Now, Jesus’ present prayers on our behalf is something mysterious to contemplate.
In reality this is nothing other than a reference to the internal dialog of the Triune Godhead over the cares, concerns and needs of God’s people.
It is an amazing thing to imagine isn’t it? That the God who spoke the universe into existence gives so much attention to we lowly and often rebellious creatures – but it is true. And if the Bible didn’t affirm it, it would be almost unthinkable.
This is the extraordinary comfort and joy of the true Believer in Jesus Christ.
On a side note just here – If you are not Christ’s today in saving faith – what might the dialog in the Trinity about YOU look like?
What do think God’s disposition is if you are not in right relationship with Him through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ?
If you are still in rebellion against His absolute claim on your life, by living it only for your own plans and purposes instead of His?
In very real ways – it is a question of the very highest and eternal importance. THE Question.
We’ll come back to that before we end – but right now, I want us to consider Christ’s prayers for His own.
In the passage before us, Jesus prays 4 specific things for those who are His own.
To PROTECT His own in faith, those whom He purchased with His own blood on the Cross – until they can come to final oneness with each other and Him.
That all who trust in Him alone for their salvation from God’s just and holy wrath against human sin, might come to “Oneness” with Jesus and the Father. A oneness that parallels the oneness of the Trinity itself.
To be set apart from all DAMNING deception, Sanctified – set apart by the truth – marked out as God’s own through the experiential knowledge of Gospel of saving grace by faith alone, in the substitutionary death of Christ alone on Calvary – apart from any worthiness, good works or merit of our own.
Lastly, That all who are His by faith, might be WITH Him – for all eternity, to see His glory.
It is this last petition that I want to focus on today; Jesus’ prayer, born out of His perfect, holy and intense desire – that those whom the Father has given Him, might be with Him to behold His glory. A glory that was His because of the supreme and infinite love of the Father for Him – and that is the highest blessing conceivable in the Divine mind to give us.
I. And here is a very great lesson in prayer and faith.
Jesus makes His request known – but note how He leaves the timing and means of it to the Father.
He prays for what He desires, but He does not demand it be done in a certain way, or at a certain time.
So it is this last petition – that we might be where He is to behold His glory – this wonder gets accomplished in two ways, at two separate times.
1st. This prayer will be finally accomplished through Jesus’ 2nd coming and the resurrection.
1 Thessalonians 4:16–18 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
The 2nd: For some, this comes to pass through the individual deaths of His saints throughout the ages.
As the Apostle Paul tells us in no uncertain terms: 2 Corinthians 5:6–8 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
In this way – as only Christians can know, the reality of our future hope breaks in upon the present – in His calling some of His own home now.
As He prays this for all who are His, yet not all go immediately into His presence as Giana has done already.
Jesus knew well how to submit to the Father’s disposing in His prayers.
How and when they were to be answered didn’t distress Him – He was in perfect peace to leave it up to the Father’s perfect love and wisdom.
And in this case, Jesus’ prayer in terms of His desire for Giana to be with Him, the Father thought best in His infinite and perfect wisdom and love – not only toward Giana, but toward Tony and Lois and all who loved her as well – to answer through her death.
Though in truth, we see that only through a glass darkly today.
II. NOTE: Jesus’ desire for Giana to be with Him, is not selfish in disregard for everyone else.
His desire is that she might obtain the highest blessing possible for anyone created in His image – to behold His glory – face to face – in which is manifested the sum of the infinite love of God the Father for Christ the Son.
And what must such a sight be? It is truly beyond description.
The Old Puritan Richard BAXTER wrote – “Doubtless, there is not such a thing as grief and sorrow known there: nor is there such a thing as a pale face, a languid body, feeble joints, unable infancy, decrepit age, peccant humours, dolorous sickness, griping fears, consuming cares, nor whatsoever deserves the name of evil. Indeed, a gale of groans and sighs, a stream of tears, accompanied us to the very gates, and there bid us farewell for ever. We did weep and lament, when the world did rejoice; but our sorrow is turned into joy, and our joy shall no man take from us.[1]
[So Jesus prayed] Father, I will, that those whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory which thou hast given me. ”Every word [of this prayer] is full of life and joy. If the Queen of Sheba had cause to say of Solomon’s glory, “Happy are [your] men, happy are these [your] servants that stand continually before [you], and that hear [your wisdom],” then, sure, they that stand continually before God, and see his glory, and the glory of the Lamb, are somewhat more than happy: to them will Christ “give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God;” and “to eat of the hidden manna.” (Rev. 2:7, 17.) Ye[s], “He will make them pillars in the temple of God, and they shall go no more out: and he will write upon them the name of his God, and the name of the city of his God, New Jerusalem, which come[s] down out of heaven from God, and his own new name.” (Rev. 3:12.) Ye[s], more, if more may be, “He will grant them to sit with him in his throne.” (Rev. 3:21.) “These are they who come out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb; therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sit[s] on the throne shall dwell among them: and the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and lead them unto living fountains of water; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. (Rev. 7:14, 15, 17.) And may we not now boast…“This is my beloved, O daughters of Jerusalem!” And this is the glory of the saints! O blind, deceived world, can you show us such a glory? “This is the city of our God, where the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” “The glory of God shall enlighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” (Rev. 21:3, 24.) “And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it, and his servants shall serve him, and they shall see his face, and his name shall be in their foreheads. These sayings are faithful and true, and these are the things that must shortly be done.” (Rev. 22:3, 4, 6.) And now we say, as Mephibosheth, ‘Let the world take all besides, if we may but see the face of our Lord in peace.’ If the Lord lift up the light of his countenance on us here, it puts more gladness in our hearts than the world’s increase can do. (Psal. 4:6, 7.)[2]
So it is, Giana is gone from us – now.
No, she is not an angel – Christians dying and becoming angels is a myth – she is instead higher than the highest angel, joined with her beloved Jesus who gave His life to purge her sins, and who her heart was designed to find its highest love and fulfillment in.
No, she isn’t playing soccer in some celestial field – she is in the court of her God and King – so transfixed by the wonder of His splendor and glory so as to be everlastingly filled with endless delight and joy.
But she IS gone from us – and so it is for us that we grieve, not for her.
And this I know about the Christ who prayed that she might be there with Him to behold His glory – He has done us no wrong, in wanting to give Giana the greatest gift of love of which He is capable.
And will we not by faith glory in it, though in this time and place, we grieve her absence from among us?
What parent would withhold what they know would be the ultimate joy and happiness and blessedness from their child if it were in their power to give it?
It was not in Tony & Lois’ power, but it was in Christ’s – and so He has done.
Now we can question the methods and means of how it is the Father fulfilled this prayer of Jesus in Giana’s case. But it is a fruitless inquiry.
The Scripture makes it clear that God’s thoughts are not ours, and that they are higher than we can search out.
But that doesn’t leave us just swimming in a sea of doubt and confusion either.
While we cannot fathom the details of His working in Giana’s injuries, her intermediate time of surgeries and rehab, and then her passing – we CAN know this. We are left with these 3 things:
a. That in His holiness, He cannot sin against us; He can do us no wrong.
b. That in His wisdom, He cannot err. If there were a wiser or better way – He would have done it.
c. That in His love, no matter whatever forces may be at work in this fallen world, He has done all things with perfect regard to the greatest benefit for Giana’s soul as well as ours.
His love admits of no flaws whatsoever.
So while she is not an angel,
While she’s not playing soccer,
While she is not in her resurrected body yet –
Giana IS with Her Savior – beholding, and perhaps even holding His nail-scarred hands.
She has entered into an eternal bliss with Him that will never fade, or diminish or grow tired – the inheritance of those who have been born again by the Spirit of God.
This is the assured joy and comfort that allow Lois and Tony and the rest who know Christ to grieve with such incredible hope.
III. Before we close – I want to come back briefly to one other petition of Christ’s in John 17.
It is for those of you who do not yet know Christ Jesus as your Savior and Lord.
He has prayed for you too. But not yet as He could for Giana and those who are already His by faith.
John 17:20–21 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
Here is a very great divine mystery, but nevertheless it is in the text.
If you are not a Christian today – if you have never been born again by the Spirit of Christ –
Made alive to your sinful and lost condition – of your state of being at war with God as to who has the right of supremacy over your life, soul and body – If you have never run to Christ to be forgiven of your sin upon the basis of Christ’s atoning death for sin, and been reconciled to God the Father through Him –
Based upon this petition, I bid you come to Him today!
He has expressed His desire to the Father that all those who will believe the testimony of His saints, like that of Giana, will not be turned away when they come for mercy and grace, but will be united with the rest of those who love and serve Him.
He WILL receive you if you come. He has prayed for you if you will believe the testimony about Him that the saints in every age have given.
And as surely as His prayer for Giana was answered in calling her home – He will answer this one, for all who believe and submit to His Lordship.
Let’s pray.
[1] Baxter, Richard & William Orme. 1830. The Practical Works of the Rev. Richard Baxter. . Vol. 22. London: James Duncan.
[2] Baxter, Richard & William Orme. 1830. The Practical Works of the Rev. Richard Baxter. . Vol. 22. London: James Duncan.
Yesterday, I had the privilege of preaching at the memorial service for Giana Bartolucci. This service was mainly for immediate family, and the Church Family at Clarkson who have all endured this tragedy together. Though the grief of her loss weighs heavy upon so many, its sits especially on her Mom & Dad – my dear, dear friends, Tony & Lois. Tony pastors the Clarkson Community Church in Clarkson NY.
Giana was only 14 when she passed. She succumbed to complications after surgery while still convalescing from the head-on collision Giana and Tony were in on Christmas Eve 2015. Months of being in the pediatric intensive care burn unit at Strong Memorial Hospital. Then off to neurological rehab to deal with her severe brain injury. And then this.
The testimony of the faithfulness and hope they have in Christ, by Tony and Lois through this all has been very public and profound.
Later today, we will have the public funeral service. Because so many in the community watched all of this unfold in the news and through associations of one kind or another – it will be a tremendous opportunity once again for the Gospel.
Below is the text of my sermon for yesterday’s memorial. Along with the remembrances of so many, it was a powerful day.
I’ll post the text of today’s funeral service later. And then on Monday, we will have the graveside committal.
Do pray for the Holy Spirit’s comforting for Tony, Lois, the families and their church. And for the Gospel to find purchase in the hearts of the lost who may be with us.
Jesus Wept.
John 11:1-35
Read: 1-5; 17-24; 32-37.
As you might have guessed, my focus this afternoon, on this occasion of such grief in the loss of Giana, is v. 35 – Jesus wept.
The entire passage is filled with circumstances and statements that are difficult to unpack.
And I do not want to give an exposition today, as much as to simply make a series of observations about things in this familiar and precious passage.
There are high and divine glimpses here that are not to be trifled with.
I. One such is found in v-33 “When Jesus saw her [Mary] weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.” (Repeated in 38)
The words that He was deeply moved and greatly troubled indicate far more than mere sympathy.
The words indicate anger and agitation.
Don Carson writes: [Jesus’] inward reaction was anger or outrage or indignation…It is lexically inexcusable to reduce this emotional upset to the effects of empathy, grief, pain or the like.[1]
While the text does not expand upon that, we can be certain that at the very least, He experienced anger and rage and grief over the effects – especially the final effect – of sin’s curse.
Every drop of pain, grief, suffering and woe in this life is directly traceable back to the Fall in Eden, and what that Fall has done to those made in His image, and most especially those redeemed by His blood.
And Jesus’ is not complacent in our pain – but as we see here in the most sweet and graphic terms, is that He is both outraged, and broken on our behalf.
Jesus WEPT.
God, Jesus, is never detached or indifferent to our suffering.
Jesus was not detached from the pain and confusion we experienced contemplating the accident itself which so severely injured Tony and Giana.
So tied is Christ to His people, that when the resurrected Jesus confronted Saul – soon to be Paul on the road to Damascus, He did not say “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting my Church?”
Or – Why are you persecuting my People?
Why are you persecuting my loved ones or even “MY Children”.
No – it was “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting ME?!”
II. There is a natural question which we cannot help but ask inwardly, even if we do not verbalize it. But it was expressed by some there at Lazarus’ tomb.
John 11:37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”
And we might well ask: If God loved us so, could He not, have prevented the Fall?
Or in our case today: If Christ loved Giana and Tony & Lois so, could, could He not have prevented this?
Yes.
But there is a love which is so high, which transcends our wishes, desires and conceptions of love to such a degree, that it overrides what we would expect as the normal expressions of love.
Who would ever have dreamed of a love so extraordinary, that God Himself would give His own Son to save the wretches we are?
Or of a love so divine and excelling that as the eternal Son of God, Jesus would leave His divine excellencies, joys and privileges, to come in the likeness of fallen man, to suffer and die in our stead, that we might be His?
Who would have fathomed such things if the Word of God hadn’t disclosed them?
Because of His great love, His divine love – that we might know the Father in grace and mercy beyond measure, He planned to raise us up from the dead instead or merely preserving us from the Fall.
This is so we might see the glory of God – glory that only God could know about Himself.
Do I understand that?
I confess, I do not.
But I haven’t the slightest doubt that Giana understands it right now. That all the saints who have preceded us to Jesus’ throne do.
And I am cast back upon the unbreakable and reliable Word of God and thus required to think it so, and to let my thoughts and my heart rest there.
III. We need to note here that Jesus wept even tho He knew the immediate joy which would be right around the corner.
And, He wept even though He knew the eternal joy which would be Lazarus’ eventually.
The immediacy of Lazarus’ death and the impact of that on Lazarus’ dear sisters, was not tossed off as frivolous.
He wept with them.
He hurt with them.
And even in the face of the fact that He would only moments later raise Lazarus from the dead!
It was not just a friend who wept here, JESUS wept.
How much more fitting then that we grieve sorely over the loss of Giana – though in light of the coming resurrection.
The hope and promise of that great day of reunion with Giana and all the saints in no wise diminishes the proper grieving we do now.
And Jesus taught us that so starkly and personally in this event.
IV. I’ve touched on this briefly already but let me say just a few more words on it: Jesus wept because of the effects of the Fall on humanity made in His image.
He wept because of the effects of the Fall on His own beloved friend.
He wept because of the sorrow this brought upon Lazarus’ sisters whom He also loved personally.
There is not the slightest doubt in my minds that Jesus weeps with us today.
V. And because all these things are so, it is thus we see the profound delight He has in being able one day to wipe every tear away from the eyes of those He has purchased with His blood.
And we should note that the text of Rev. 21:4 says “He” – He personally shall attend to our tears in the New Heavens and the New Earth.
This is something He reserves for Himself.
He does not relegate it to us to do for one another.
He does not pass it off to the highest archangel in Heaven.
No, this – He reserves for Himself.
He wants to come to each one, and be the one who touches our every grief and sorrow, and draws every atom of pain and suffering from it – by the touch of His own nail scarred hand.
VI. No one can argue that there is something difficult to comprehend in John 11:1–6 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 3 So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
But note how 5 & 6 are to be fitted together: 5 Now Jesus LOVED Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 SO, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.”
SO when He heard, He stayed 2 days longer.
And here is a very high and difficult lesson to learn – We need to see here too that Christ’s love for us isn’t one iota less when His providences are painful and confusing, than when they are pleasant and clear.
The text says BECAUSE He loved Lazarus, He waited.
And we may equally say BECAUSE Christ loved Giana, and Lois, and Tony, He did not raise her up at this time – but took her home.
And in all of that: Jesus wept.
Jesus wept.
So we weep.
And that, not alone – but in chorus with the very Son of God.
The One who gave His life for her.
The One who will one day raise her up in a new and glorified body like His own.
The one who has ushered her into His eternal glory with unspeakable joy and sweetness unimaginable.
I want to close with something which has been such a blessing to my own soul in contemplating it over and over, and I trust will be so for you.
I steal it verbatim, with absolutely no apologies from a sermon given by Sam Storms on Jonathan Edwards’ view of Heaven.
I want us to taste and savor something of Giana’s present bliss. And just what it is Tony and Lois gave Giana up to when they committed her into the care of Christ when she departed this earth.
Negative: “Nothing which shall offend the most delicate eye”
Abrasive, irritating, agitating or hurtful
Harmful, hateful, upsetting or unkind
Sad, bad or mad, harsh, impatient, ungrateful or unworthy
Weak or sick or broken or foolish
Deformed, degenerate, depraved, or disgusting
Polluted, pathetic, poor or putrid
Dark, dismal, dismaying or degrading
Blameworthy, blemished, blasphemous or blighted
Faulty, faithless, frail or fading
Grotesque or grievous – Hideous or insidious
Illicit, illegal, lascivious or lustful
Marred or mutilated, misaligned or misinformed
Nasty or naughty, offensive or odious
Rancid or rude, soiled or spoiled – Tawdry or tainted, tasteless or tempting
Vile or vicious, wasteful or wanton – None of it!
What WILL we see there? What IS Giana seeing there right now?
Everywhere she turns her eyes, there is nothing but…
Glory and grandeur and beauty and brightness
Purity and perfection and splendor and satisfaction
Sweetness and salvation and majesty
Only and all that is adorable and affectionate
and beautiful and bright
Brilliant and bountiful and delightful and delicious, delectable and dazzling
Elegant and exciting and fascinating and fruitful
Glorious and grand and gracious and good
Happy and holy and healthy and whole
Joyful and jubilant and lovely and luscious
Majestic and marvelous, opulent and overwhelming
Radiant and resplendent, splendid and sublime
Sweet and savory, tender and tasteful
Euphoric and unified –
And all of this for Hell deserving sinners like you and me.
And why? Because she’s looking at the face of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let’s Pray.
[1] Carson, D. A. 1991. The Gospel according to John. (The Pillar New Testament Commentary). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.
In this letter of Newton’s, a small portion of which I share below – he is giving advice to a friend who is going to attempt to go to print in correcting someone else’s doctrinal errors. I found this solid, informative, and grace filled. Enjoy!
As to your opponent, I wish, that, before you set pen to paper against him, and during the whole time you are preparing your answer, you may commend him by earnest prayer to the Lord’s teaching and blessing. This practice will have a direct tendency to conciliate your heart to love and pity him; and such a disposition will have a good influence upon every page you write. If you account him a believer, though greatly mistaken in the subject of debate between you, the words of David to Joab, concerning Absalom, are very applicable: “Deal gently with him for my sake.” The Lord loves him and bears with him; therefore you must not despise him, or treat him harshly. The Lord bears with you likewise, and expects that you should shew tenderness to others, from a sense of the much forgiveness you need yourself. In a little while you will meet in heaven; he will then be dearer to you than the nearest friend you have upon earth is to you now. Anticipate that period in your thoughts; and though you may find it necessary to oppose his errors, view him personally as a kindred soul, with whom you are to be happy in Christ for ever. But if you look upon him as an unconverted person, in a state of enmity against God and his grace, (a supposition which, without good evidence, you should be very unwilling to admit,) he is a more proper object of your compassion than of your anger. Alas! “he knows not what he does.” But you know who has made you to differ. If God, in his sovereign pleasure, had so appointed, you might have been as he is now; and he, instead of you, might have been set for the defence of the Gospel. You were both equally blind by nature. If you attend to this, you will not reproach or hate him, because the Lord has been pleased to open your eyes, and not his. Of all people who engage in controversy, we, who are called Calvinists, are most expressly bound by our own principles to the exercise of gentleness and moderation. If, indeed, they who differ from us have a power of changing themselves, if they can open their own eyes, and soften their own hearts, then we might with less inconsistence be offended at their obstinacy; but if we believe the very contrary to this, our part is, not to strive, but in meekness to instruct those who oppose, “if peradventure God will give them repentance to the acknowledgment of the truth.” If you write with a desire of being an instrument of correcting mistakes, you will of course be cautious of laying stumbling-blocks in the way of the blind, or of using any expressions that may exasperate their passions, confirm them in their prejudices, and thereby make their conviction, humanly speaking, more impracticable.
Newton, John, Richard Cecil. 1824. The works of the John Newton. . Vol. 1. London: Hamilton, Adams & Co.
John Newton received a letter from a friend asking for some guidance on how someone should pray in a group setting – like a prayer meeting. His thoughts are so good, I couldn’t help but pass them on – though I’ve edited them down a touch for the sake of space and readability.
In writing his thoughts, Newton strikes on some key issues which make our prayer meetings less then enjoyable, and thus suggests how they might be both sweeter, and be of greater advantage to all who attend.
I think you’ll enjoy this greatly – and I for one – needed to hear some of his correctives for myself.
Thoughts on the Exercise of Social Prayer
I account it a great mercy…at this time, when iniquity so generally abounds, there is a number, I hope a growing number, whose eyes affect their hearts, and who are stirred up to unite in prayer for the spread of Gospel knowledge, and a blessing upon our sinful land…As the Lord has promised, that, when he prepares the heart to pray, he will graciously incline his ear to hear, who can tell but he may yet be entreated for us, and avert the heavy and justly-deserved judgments which seem to hang over us?
[I wish it were the case] that our hearts might be so affected with a sense of Divine things, and so closely engaged when [in prayer], that…little circumstances [had no power] to interrupt and perplex us, and to make us think the service wearisome, and…tedious. But as our infirmities are many and great, and the enemy of our souls is watchful to discompose us, if care is not taken by those who lead in social prayer, [it may actually] become a burden, and an occasion of sin. Complaints of this kind are frequent, and might, perhaps, be easily rectified.
The chief fault of some good prayers is, that they are too long: not that…we should pray by the clock, and limit ourselves…to a certain number of minutes; but it is better…that the hearers should wish the prayer had been longer, than spend half…of the time in wishing it was over. This is frequently owing to an unnecessary enlargement upon every circumstance…as well as to the repetition of the same things. If we have been copious in pleading for spiritual blessings, it may be best to be brief and summary in the article of intercession for others; or if the frame of our spirits, or the circumstances of affairs, lead us to be more large and particular in laying the cases of others before the Lord, respect should be had to this intention in the former part of the prayer. There are, doubtless, seasons when the Lord is pleased to favour those who pray with a peculiar liberty; they speak because they feel; they have a wrestling spirit, and hardly know how to leave off. When this is the case, they who join with them are seldom wearied, though the prayer should be protracted something beyond the usual limits. But I believe it sometimes happens, both in praying and in preaching, that we are apt to spin out our time to the greatest length, when we have in reality the least to say. Long prayers should in general be avoided, especially where several persons are to pray successively; or else even spiritual hearers will be unable to keep up their attention. And here I would just notice an impropriety we sometimes meet with, that, when a person gives expectation that he is just going to conclude his prayer, something not thought of in its proper place occurring that instant to his mind, leads him as it were to begin again. But, unless it is a matter of singular importance, it would be better omitted for that time.
The prayers of some good men are more like preaching than praying. They rather express the Lord’s mind to the people, than the desires of the people to the Lord. Indeed this can hardly be called prayer. It might in another place stand for part of a good sermon; but will afford little help to those who desire to pray with their hearts. Prayer should be sententious, [in the sense of short and pity, not wordy] and made up of breathings to the Lord, either of confession, petition, or praise…,—a simple and unstudied expression of the wants and feelings of the soul.
[T]oo close attention to the method and transitions…gives an air of study and formality, and offends against that simplicity which is so essentially necessary to a good prayer. It is possible to learn to pray mechanically, and by rule; but it is hardly possible to do so with acceptance, and benefit to others. When the several parts of invocation, adoration, confession, petition, &c. follow each other in a stated order, the hearer’s mind generally goes before the speaker’s voice, and we can form a tolerable conjecture what is to come next. On this account we often find, that unlettered people, who have had little or no help from books, or rather have not been fettered by them, can pray with an unction and savour in an unpremeditated way; while the prayers of persons of much superior abilities, perhaps even of ministers themselves, are, though accurate and regular, so dry and starched, that they afford little either of pleasure or profit to a spiritual mind. The spirit of prayer is the fruit and token of the Spirit of adoption. The studied addresses with which some approach the Throne of Grace, remind us of a stranger’s coming to a great man’s door; he knocks and waits, sends in his name, and goes through a course of ceremony, before he gains admittance; while a child of the family uses no ceremony at all, but enters freely when he pleases, because he knows he is at home. It is true, we ought always to draw near the Lord with great humiliation of spirit, and a sense of our unworthiness. But this spirit is not always best expressed or promoted by a pompous enumeration of the names and titles of the God with whom we have to do, or by fixing in our minds beforehand the exact order in which we propose to arrange the several parts of our prayer. Some attention to method may be proper, for the prevention of repetitions; and plain people may be a little defective in it sometimes; but this defect will not be half so tiresome and disagreeable as a studied and artificial exactness.
Many, perhaps most people who pray in public, have some favourite word or expression, which recurs too often in their prayers, and is frequently used as a mere expletive, having no necessary connection with the sense of what they are speaking. The most disagreeable of these is, when the name of the blessed God, with the addition of perhaps one or more epithets, as, Great, Glorious, Holy, Almighty, &c. is introduced so often, and without necessity, as seems neither to indicate a due reverence in the person who uses it, nor suited to excite reverence in those who hear. I will not say, that this is taking the name of God in vain…[but] should be guarded against. It would be well if they who use redundant expressions had a friend to give them a caution, as they might with a little care be retrenched; and hardly any person can be sensible of the little peculiarities he may inadvertently adopt, unless he is told of it.
There are several things likewise respecting the voice and manner of prayer, which a person may with due care correct in himself, and which, if generally corrected, would make meetings for prayer more pleasant than they sometimes are.
Very loud speaking is a fault, when the size of the place, and the number of hearers, do not render it necessary…I do not deny but allowance must be made for constitution…yet such will do well to restrain themselves as much as they can. It may seem indeed to indicate great earnestness, and that the heart is much affected; yet it is often but false tire. It may be thought speaking with power; but a person who is favoured with the Lord’s presence may pray with power in a moderate voice; and there may be very little power of the Spirit, though the voice should be heard in the street and neighbourhood.
The other extreme, of speaking too low, is not so frequent; but, if we are not heard, we might as well altogether hold our peace. It exhausts the spirits, and wearies the attention, to be listening for a length of time to a very low voice. Some words or sentences will be lost, which will render what is heard less intelligible and agreeable. If the speaker can be heard by the person furthest distant from him, the rest will hear of course.
The tone of the voice is likewise to be regarded. Some have a tone in prayer, so very different from their usual way of speaking, that their nearest friends, if not accustomed to them, could hardly know them by their voice…It is pity, that, when we approve what is spoken, we should be so easily disconcerted by an awkwardness of delivery; yet so it often is…It is more to be lamented than wondered at, that sincere Christians are sometimes forced to confess, “He is a good man, and his prayers, as to their substance, are spiritual and judicious; but there is something so displeasing in his manner, that I am always uneasy when I hear him.”
Contrary to this, and still more offensive, is a custom that some have of talking to the Lord in prayer. It is their natural voice, indeed; but it is that expression of it which they use upon the most familiar and trivial occasions…If a man was pleading for his life, or expressing his thanks to the king for a pardon, common sense and decency would teach him a suitableness of manner; and anyone who could not understand his language, might know by the sound of his words that he was not making a bargain, or telling a story. How much more, when we speak to the King of kings.
I shall be glad if these hints may be of any service to those who desire to worship God in spirit and in truth, and who wish that whatever has a tendency to damp the spirit of devotion, either in themselves or in others, might be avoided. It is a point of delicacy and difficulty to tell any one what we wish could be altered in his manner of prayer: but it can give no just offence to ask a friend, if he has read a letter on this subject, in A Collection of Twenty-six Letters, published in 1775.[1]
[1] Newton, John, Richard Cecil. 1824. The works of the John Newton. . Vol. 1. London: Hamilton, Adams & Co.
I just got home from my Dad’s Memorial service. We formally laid him to rest in his 95th year, the vast majority of which he walked with His God.
With 3 sons, all in ministry, you can imagine that a LOT was said. And there were many precious things said by others who came from all parts (the Parkers and Cohens from S. Carolina); the Bergerons – who I didn’t get to see from New Hampshire, and Ferguson extended clan from Canada. And so very many others who made it a wonderful day indeed – so many who I didn’t get to greet and thank personally.
My small part was to compose a brief eulogy which I leave you with here. I trust it is a blessing to those who go on to read it.
The picture above is of Dad snuggling with his great-grandson Jackson.
Eulogy:
The practice of eulogies began around 200 years before Christ with the Greek poet Callimachus.
It was called an “elegy” back then, and was just an outpouring of emotion at the loss of a loved one.
Gradually it shifted to include some facts and memories about the one lost, and I am glad it did – for it paves the way for what I want to say today.
My Dad, our Dad, Ray Ferguson was a great man.
I use that word carefully because greatness in many minds has certain connotations, and Dad’s greatness was different from that.
Dad never wrote a book.
He never broke any of the celebrated records of human achievement.
He never obtained world-wide fame or acclaim.
He never climbed Pike’s Peak or Everest.
He never built anything nor established a school or other institution.
But he was still a very great man.
I could talk about how Dad, having no good father figure of his own, came to be such a devoted family man.
Or how his sense of humor ran the gambit from semi-funny “puny” jokes – to practical jokes.
If I only had a nickel for every time he told the “what’s the difference between a hill, a pill and the Mississippi River?” joke,
Or answered the phone: “City Morgue, you stab’em, we slab’em.”
Or asked someone: “Strictly as an outsider, what is your opinion of the human race?”
I could talk about his being his own car mechanic until he wasn’t able any more, and was always his own electrician and plumber – even when that meant setting Nancy & Ivan’s house on fire sweating a joint.
Or getting censured by the umps at the Church softball league we were in for heckling the other team too much.
How when Kenny and I were younger (I won’t say little) and bought a bunch of firecrackers – and other assorted incendiary devices – when we were on a trip to Canada / we confessed as we drew near the border that we had them.
Dad was not happy, but his solution made Mom even less happy.
After letting us know the bad position we would have put everyone in had they been discovered coming back into New York State – Dad collected our stash. Pried off a hubcap – sealed them up in there, and abetted our mischievous act by helping us smuggle them in.
Or I could wax on how he instructed us on how to stuff a potato up the tailpipe of a victim’s car to harmlessly prevent it from starting – or how to run a wire from the hot terminal on the master cylinder to the positive terminal on the horn so that the victim’s horn would blow continuously while their brake lights were on.
And many, many more antics.
Those were all great things, but not what made him great.
That said, let me note some of true marks of Ray Ferguson’s type of greatness.
While I attempt that, please note, this is not an attempt at hagiography.
The truth is, as it has been noted by others, that great men have great flaws, and that was as true of my Dad as of anyone else.
But he did have significant touches of greatness, some of which I hope may one day be noted of me.
I’ll mention just a few. There were in fact many to choose from.
Herein was one of those mixed realities that afflicts all those who know Jesus Christ savingly – some to greater or lesser degrees.
I do not know anyone who was more pained by his own sinfulness, while at the same time being more awed and grateful at the great grace he had received in Christ Jesus.
Very few sermons of his didn’t include a reference to his own salvation by starting with the words: “I remember the day…”
He ached to sin no more. And he knew that sin’s only answer was in the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary.
Dad loved the Gospel of sovereign grace, because he knew he had been rescued from his own condemnation through no work of merit of his own – but only the sole and sovereign act of God in carrying out His electing love.
By that I do not mean that he spent inordinate amounts of time locked away from life in the prayer closet like a hermit.
Rather that he believed that God met him when he prayed, that Christ had truly opened that door for the Believer through His death, burial and resurrection. And many here can attest to the fact that that WAS our experience when he prayed for us – that Dad entered God’s presence with his prayers, and that God would hear, and answer.
He believed greatly in prayer because he believed in a great God who greatly answered prayer.
And one of the greatest gifts he left us as his children, and me in particular, is that he taught us to pray.
For a number of years, the 6am prayer time at ECF consisted of only Dad and myself. And those were precious moments I will never forget, and be eternally grateful for.
Most mornings after that prayer time, he and I would go for breakfast and invariably that time was spent in discussing the great truths of Scripture and the things we had both been reading or contemplating that had stirred our souls.
He read it and studied and taught it and preached it as best and as often as he could.
All of us can attest to his repeated phrase when counseling us on debating either doctrine with anyone, or those bound in darkness by the cults: “sew them up to the Bible” he would say.
He believed and knew the truth was to be found there, and he loved it. And wanted others to love it too.
In this he always exhibited a very great authenticity.
And sometimes, while he loved to give to and do for others, he could sometimes make it hard to love him in return.
Nevertheless, he stood by his convictions and lived to them as much as he was able.
This particular aspect of his greatness also demonstrated itself in his unbreakable loyalty.
Could he freeze you out at times? Yes. But that never crossed over into abandonment.
Those who were “his” – within his sphere of love and influence, would always be his in his heart and mind – no matter what.
While Dad dearly desired to be well thought of by others, he never sought to be thought of as other or more than what he was – he never sought to be thought of as occupying some higher social station or having accomplished something he hadn’t.
He never sought fame in the desire for being well thought of by those who knew him.
And seeing himself as kind of everyman in this way – no one was too low or two high to have him care for their souls.
Dad was no stranger to being able to deliver sharp censures and rebukes.
But if you knew him, you always knew that underneath it was a deep commitment to the recipient – that he wanted them to be better for the exchange, and not worse off afterward.
There are any number of other things I could comment on here, but time does not make that practical.
What I will close with, is going back to 2 of the things I’ve mentioned already, since they are the ones which will always guide my memory of Dad most, until we meet again around the throne of Jesus:
Dad taught me to love God’s Word, and to love the God of the Word; and to pray.
And those are bestowals of the richest and most blessed kind.
They are treasures with eternal ramifications and benefits. They are great gifts indeed.
Love you Dad.
I am so glad you are with the Jesus who loved and died for you, and whom you so loved, and lived for.
See you soon.
1 PETER Part 22
CONCLUSIONS
1 Peter 5:12-14
AUDIO FOR THIS SERMON CAN BE FOUND HERE
We now come to the final portion of this very provocative and insightful letter, penned by the Apostle Peter to Christians exiled from Rome because of their beliefs – and scattered throughout a broad region nearly the size of California.
These are places where Paganism and local gods, deities and superstitions run wild – and where Christianity has made very few inroads.
The culture is overwhelmingly hostile to the Christian worldview, and especially its morality and values.
And for the most part, these Christians are in isolated little pockets with few other Christians to turn to for support or even prayer.
They are misunderstood, discriminated against, and looked upon with suspicion and disdain. Relocated here against their will as if they were enemies of the State.
It is to Christians under these circumstances that Peter writes to give them a reminder and digest of just what it means to BE a Christian, and to live the Christian life under these extreme pressures.
So when we come to these closing words, Peter takes the time to summarize all he has said so far, but condensing it into this compact phrase: 1 Peter 5:12 “this is the true grace of God.”
In other words – THIS – what he has written by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit – is what TRUE Christianity looks like lived out in this present world.
However else some may characterize the Christian life –
Christianity is NOT some method of getting the universe to give us what we want, nor to bend God’s arm to our way of doing things to accomplish our dreams.
Instead, Christianity restores us to living lives committed to God’s plans and purposes in the World through His Church.
Back to being what we were made to be – His image bearers.
To serve as His representatives in this World, displaying His excellencies and accomplishing His will.
This, Peter contends, is the “TRUE” grace of God – not what men want to make it out to be.
And we’ll come back to unpack that in a fly-by survey of the letter’s key themes in a moment.
So his closing is both simple and profound: It breaks down into 6 statements.
Silvanus is the Latinized version of the name of someone most of us are already familiar with from Acts 15.
In that passage: Paul & Barnabas had been at Antioch in Syria, revisiting some places where they had previously preached the Gospel.
While they were there, some Jewish men came down from Jerusalem, telling the Gentile Christians they had to be circumcised and follow the Law of Moses in able to be saved.
Acts 15:1 “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”
This created quite an uproar as you might imagine – Paul seeing this as a direct attack upon the Gospel of grace: Salvation through the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ alone.
So off went Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem to put the matter before the Church leadership there.
And when the Leadership discussed and debated it all – it is Peter who summarized the issue saying: Acts 15:7–11 “And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, 9 and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. 10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”
Acts 15:19–21 “Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, 20 but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood. 21 For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues.”
They then sent a letter conveying these things back to those Gentile Believers in Antioch, and with the letter, sent some of their own so that Paul & Barnabas would not be looked upon with suspicion as though they did this on their own.
And so Acts 15:22 notes: “They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brothers.” Along with them. Vs. 32 there notes that these 2 men were “prophets.”
This same Silas later in the chapter becomes Paul’s chief ministry companion taking the place of Barnabas.
Silas then would have been quite well known in Christian circles, and if Peter not only used Silas as his amanuensis, but also was the one who actually delivered this letter – it would have great confirmation attached to it.
In other words, he wasn’t just giving them some advice, he sent the letter to goad them into accepting its contents and living out its principles with Apostolic authority.
That is his final call. Don’t abandon these things or let them slip – this is Christianity as God has given it – what it looks like to live as having obtained God’s highest favor in Jesus Christ – DON’T LET IT GO!
The reference here to Babylon is somewhat disputed, but most take it as a reference to Rome where Peter now was, and as a symbol of his unity with them that even there, he too was in “exile” – even as the Jews in the OT were during their Babylonian captivity.
ALL Christians are in a sense in exile, until we come to our true home, the New Jerusalem which will come down out of Heaven at the end of all things. As per: Rev. 3:12 and Ch. 21.
Being in Rome was no less being in exile than being thrown out of Rome and into the regions where they were.
Because this is a spiritual reality, not a spatial or geographical one.
Which leads us back them to Peter’s Conclusions: It is his 2nd statement which is so pregnant with meaning – This is the TRUE grace of God – that they, and we – need to stand firm in.
If what he has written is to be understood as “the true grace of God” – what IS that true grace that we are to stand firm in?
And for this, we go back to survey Peter’s key themes in the letter.
Christians are:
Christians are to have:
1 Peter 1:3–5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Christians are to:
1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.
Christians respond to these things:
1 Peter 2:13–17 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
1 Peter 3:9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
1 Peter 3:13–16 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
Christians are not to be distracted from :
Both Elders and Non-Elders.
Christians must remember our:
a. Revealing in Christ’s Character Holiness as opposed to the passions of the flesh and the values of this world.
1 Peter 2:9–12 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
b. Prefiguring of God’s final judgment. 1 Peter 4:17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?
Christians are facing:
1 Peter 5:6–9 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
What he has written to them, regarding how to live as strangers and exiles in this present hostile world, IS what the true faith looks like. This is Christianity at its core.
This then dispels a very pervasive, but unspoken myth about being a Christian that persists among many today.
That is, that simply BEING a Christian is the key goal – we might call it a biological mindset of Christianity.
I AM all Christian, that’s all there is.
But God in His creation shows us quite a different picture.
Yes, when a human egg is fertilized, at that very moment, that fertilized egg is as truly and biologically human as he or she will ever be.
They aren’t some other species which then grows into becoming a human being – that ARE a human being.
But, they are not meant to simply BE a human being, they are never meant to remain a zygote.
They are meant to grow up into the fullness of their humanity and all that that implies.
This then is the very same reality with the Christian.
To become one, but never to grow more into Christ’s likeness,
Never to take on walking like a Christian, thinking like a Christian, feeding yourself and taking on spiritual responsibility is a sad and tragic anomaly – it is anything BUT the Christian life.
Peter is telling his readers AND us, the TRUE grace of God takes on a certain appearance and does not stop at being simply a “biological” child of God – but a one who lives out that life in the real aspects of life in this fallen world.
The true grace of God is our knowing His favor in Jesus Christ, irrespective of external trials and tribulations. And knowing that as we stand in this favor, we are not to retaliate sinfully against those who sin against us – but putting all of our hope in what will be ours at Christ’s return, depend upon His indwelling Spirit to respond in gentleness and right submission, while protecting and growing His people and His Church, resting in His sovereign hand, and living as eschatological lights in the world, and as indicators of God’s coming wrath on sin. Knowing all the while that we will be opposed spiritually, but remaining steadfast by the strength He imparts.
This, is what Christ has purchased for us by His blood. Not a bare salvation – but a glorious one – growing more and more into His own image by the presence and power of His indwelling Spirit.
It is the “habitual” coming to Jesus that separates the true Christian life, from the mere “christian” religionist. We live, only in that we seek Him continually.
ResponsiveReiding 