Trở về từ Xứ Xa, Ông Yuan–part 4
Chương 2
Tiết Lộ Bí Mật
Christopher: Ngày 15 Tháng 5, 1993
‘Lúc tôi đóng cửa bước ra, tôi thấy mẹ ngã xuống sàn. Tôi nghĩ, lại là một kịch bản gán tội nữa từ các bà mẹ người Hoa. Tôi đã thấy quá nhiều suốt những tháng năm bị kiểm soát bởi cảnh này. Hơn nữa, tôi chẳng phải là người Hoa. Tôi là người Mỹ, sinh ra và được nuôi dạy ở Chicago.’
-Christopher Yuan and Angela Yuan, Out of a Far Country: A Gay Son’s Journey to God. A Broken Mother’s Search for Hope (2011) / Trở về từ Xứ Xa: Hành trình của người con đồng tính quay về với Đức Chúa Trời và Hành trình của người mẹ đau khổ tìm thấy hy vọng (2022).
Xin mua ở đây
(GSiV: Phúc Âm Là Gì?; repentance; Gospel Grace Versus Dead Religion–part 6)
Phúc Âm cho Cơ Đốc nhân–part 2
Chương 1: Ai Cần Đến Phúc Âm?
‘Thông thường, chúng ta nghĩ Phúc âm là thông tin chỉ dành cho người hư mất. Ở đây chúng ta sẽ suy ngẫm về điều này và nghĩ về Phúc âm dành cho Cơ Đốc nhân, Phúc âm ấy chứa dựng hai yếu tố quan trọng: sự xưng công chính và sự nên thánh.’
-Ken Hanks
Buy e-book here
(or buy paper copy at your local Christian bookstore in Vietnam)
(GSiV: Phúc Âm cho Cơ Đốc nhân–part 1; Key materials on gospel grace ; GSiV Resource Page)
God alone generates stability: hope
‘Instead, I was hoping for a particular outcome. Whenever the desired outcome failed to materialize, I would despair. I needed to set my hope on God, regardless of the result. Much of our misery in trouble is due to misplaced hope — hoping in something or someone other than God himself. But quiet confidence in God alone generates stability and delight amid all the unhappy business of life.’
-Carolyn Mahaney
Read more here
(GSiV: hope; Ray Ortlund; Jerry Bridges; Scotty Smith)
Teaching us to long for heaven
- ‘That they may not become too complacent or delighted in married life, he makes them distressed by the shortcomings of their partners, or humbles them through wilful offspring, or afflicts them with the want or loss of children. But, if in all these matters he is more merciful to them, he shows them by diseases and dangers how unstable and passing all mortal blessings are, that they may not be puffed up with vain glory.’ (4:1:3)
- ‘It should not surprise us, indeed, if our natural feeling should be alarmed at hearing of our separation from this life. But it is intolerable that there should not be sufficient light and devotion in a Christian’s breast to suppress all that fear with an overwhelming consolation.’ (4:5:1)
- ‘But this we may positively state, that nobody has made any progress in the school of Christ unless he cheerfully looks forward to the day of his death and to the day of the final resurrection.’ (4:5:3)
-John Calvin, Golden Booklet [& Institutes, Book III, chp 6]
(GSiV: Heaven; John Calvin)
If the saved need God to will for them, how much more the lost
If the believing Psalmist asked God to “incline his heart,” and Paul in the NT looked to the Lord to “grant” what the Christians at Rome needed, and trusted that God would “empower” the Corinthians, and he confessed to other believers that it was “God who works in you, both to will and to work,” and acknowledged that it was God who would “fulfill every work of faith by his power,” and Peter said that prophecy itself came not by the will of the prophets but that they “spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit,” then it should be easy to accept that non-Christians, who live in darkness, need God to regenerate them so they can repent and believe. The saved were born not “of the will of man, but of God,” for the natural man “is not able to understand” spiritual things. The Lord’s mercies are undeserved; praise be to him for showing anyone mercy.
Psalm 119:36 (ESV) — 36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!
Romans 15:5 (ESV) — 5 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,
1 Corinthians 12:6 (ESV) — 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.
Philippians 2:13 (ESV) — 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
2 Thessalonians 1:11 (ESV) — 11 To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power,
2 Peter 1:21 (ESV) — 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
John 1:13 (ESV) — 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
1 Corinthians 2:14 (ESV) — 14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
Romans 9:15 (ESV) — 15 For [God] says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”
-GSiV
(GSiV: No Free Will: Bondage; The human will in bondage to sin; Traditionalism/Provisionism;
ĐỨC CHÚA TRỜI VÀ SỰ CỨU RỖI: Tín Lý Về Ân Điển Quyền Năng; How do we stop loving the darkness?; How the gospel works–election ; A God who can’t be stopped)
Phúc Âm cho Cơ Đốc nhân–part 1
- Chương 1: Ai Cần Đến Phúc Âm?
- Chương 2: Đời Sống Cơ Đốc Nhân
- Chương 3: Được Xưng Công Chính Là Gì?
- Chương 4: Được Nên Thánh Là Gì?
- Chương 5: Đời Sống Cơ Đốc Trọn Vẹn: Sự Cứu Rỗi
- Chương 6: Hội Thánh — Nơi An Toàn Của Ân Điển
-Ken Hanks
Buy e-book here
(or buy paper copy at your local Christian bookstore in Vietnam)
How the gospel works–election
‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him….’ (Ephesians 1:3-4)
Note, God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. Ponder that: God. Chose. Us.
Why do some people choose to trust Christ while others die in their sins? Is it because some people just make better decisions? Unfortunately, some teachers would say this. But according to the Bible, key concepts like predestination, election, choosing, foreordaining are there in Scripture to show how big God is. They also show who God is; he has a plan and is making it happen. These doctrines (predestination, election, choosing, foreordaining) assure our hearts of how sovereign God is and how much he loves his elect. If he hadn’t loved us first by choosing us (people), we’d never have chosen him.
- John 15:16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
- John 17:9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.
- 2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.
- Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation…”
- Revelation 13:8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.
- Revelation 17:8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.
If we get nervous when we hear predestination, election, choosing, foreordaining, we must ask our hearts why. Is it because we don’t like conflict and we know that Christians often fight over these concepts? OK, that’s legitimate. We shouldn’t like conflict. But God wants to teach us something wonderful and reassuring about himself through these doctrines. He is sovereign–and he is going to make sure his plans come to pass. Even sin and depravity won’t stand in his way.
- Job 42:1-2 Then Job answered the LORD and said: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
- Isaiah 45:7 I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the LORD, who does all these things.
- Exodus 4:11 Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?”
- Lamentations 3:37-38 Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? 38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?
- Deuteronomy 32:39 “ ‘See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand….’ ”
- Isaiah 46:9-10 remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
- Psalm 115:3 Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.
- Psalm 33:10-11 The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.
So, in one real sense, election is not the gospel. But it’s connected to it. It tells us why we believe–and why others don’t. It emphasizes how great God is.
(GSiV: Sovereignty verses;
Election; Atonement; Piper; Eternal security; Salvation; How do we stop loving the darkness?😉
Năm Luận Điểm: Ông John Piper–part 13
‘1. Sự phản nghịch của chúng ta chống lại Đức Chúa Trời là triệt để
‘Nếu không có ân điển của Đức Chúa Trời thì không có thỏa thích gì trong sự thánh khiết của Ngài, và không còn sự đầu phục tình nguyện dưới thẩm quyền tể trị của Chúa.
‘Tất nhiên, những người bại hoại hoàn toàn vẫn có thể rất mộ đạo và vô cùng nhân ái. Họ có thể cầu nguyện, bố thí và kiêng ăn như Chúa Jê-sus đã nói (Ma-thi-ơ 6:1-18).’
-John Piper, Năm Luận Điểm: Hướng Đến Một Trải Nghiệm Sâu Nhiệm Hơn về Ân Điển của Đức Chúa Trời, Việt 2020, (Five Points, 2013), tr. 19.
E-book of Piper’s, Năm Luận Điểm, now available
(GSiV: The human will in bondage to sin; Mọi sự đều tùy thuộc vào ý chỉ của Chúa: Luther; Election; Atonement; Piper; Eternal security;Salvation)
How do we stop loving the darkness?
Many of us know John 3:16, but how many of us know what it says after that?
- ‘Whoever believes in him [God the Father or the Son] 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. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.’ (John 3:18–21)
This passage shows that man is born loving the darkness; he delights in it. That means, man naturally loves lostness and darkness–that is, he loves his sin. Our hearts are bent that way; we are tainted all the way through.
But how do we ever get from being a person who, deep down inside, loves darkness and hates God, to someone who loves light, who loves God? If our theology doesn’t answer this question clearly from Scripture, we need to change our theology. The answer isn’t free will; it’s not prevenient grace; it’s not some people make better choices than others. The answer is–God.
The Lord is so kind that he actually gives us what we need. In John 3 after the Apostle John records Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, the Apostle also records John the Baptist speaking plainly: ‘A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven’ (John 3:27). How kind of our Lord to give us what we need–grace, gospel, faith, salvation.
He loved us enough to cause our new birth. ‘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…’ (1 Peter 1:3). Truly, what good thing do we have that God has not given us? (See 1 Cor 4:7; Phil 1:29; 2 Tim 2:25.)
The simple fact is, if the Lord hadn’t made sure we would come to his family out of the darkness, we never would have come.
- John 1:5 ‘The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’
- John 6:37 ‘All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.’
- 2 Corinthians 4:6 ‘For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.’
- Colossians 1:12–13 ‘giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,’
- Romans 5:5 ‘and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.’
We shouldn’t run from these doctrines because they make some people uncomfortable. We rejoice. They bring our hearts comfort; they should cause all Christians to rejoice in God’s kindness and sovereignty. These verses show that God can’t be stopped. They provoke us to praise him.
-GSiV
(GSiV: No Free Will: Bondage; The human will in bondage to sin; Traditionalism/Provisionism;
Lãnh đạo bằng tình yêu, Ông Strauch–part 2
Kết nối tình yêu với công tác lãnh đạo
Hãy nôn nả tìm kiếm tình yêu thương…
1 Cô. 14:1
‘Không hề quá khi nói rằng Kinh Thánh là quyển sách về tình yêu. Câu chuyện Phúc âm “Đức Chúa Tròi yêu thương thế gian, đến nỗi đã ban Con một của Ngài” là câu chuyện tình vĩ đại nhất mọi thời đại. Vì tình yêu thương bao la của Đức Chúa Tròi dành cho chúng ta, nên chúng ta phải hết lòng, hết linh hồn, hết trí và hết sức mà kính mến Giê-hô-va Đức Chúa Tròi, và yêu người lân cận như chính mình (Mác 12:30-31). Dù đúng là đòi hỏi kính mến Đức Chúa Tròi và yêu người lân cận là bổn phận áp dụng cho tất cả các tín hữu thật, nhưng tôi vẫn tập trung sự chú ý của mình vào đề tài tình yêu khi áp dụng cho người lãnh đạo và nhà giáo Cơ Đốc. …’
-Alexander Stauch, Lãnh đạo bằng tình yêu, tr. 7.
(GSiV: để đọc: Becoming more humble; để nghe: Leadership: Alexander Strauch bằng tiếng Việt–part 1)
Cut Satan’s throat with his own sword
‘When the devil tells us we are sinners and therefore damned, we may answer, “Because you say I am a sinner, I will be righteous and saved.” Then the devil will say, “No, you will be damned.” And I will reply, “No, for I fly to Christ, who has given himself for my sins. Satan, you will not prevail against me when you try to terrify me by telling me how great my sins are and try to reduce me to heaviness and despair. On the contrary, when you say I am a sinner, you give me armor and weapons against yourself, so that I can cut your throat with your own sword and tread you under my feet, for Christ died for sinners. My sin is on his shoulders, not mine. So when you say I am a sinner, you do not terrify me but comfort me immeasurably.’
-Martin Luther, commenting on Galatians 1:4
Read more
(GSiV: Luther; Key materials on gospel grace )
Năm Luận Điểm: Ông John Piper–part 12
Chương 3. SỰ BẠI HOẠI HOÀN TOÀN
‘Khi nói về sự bại hoại của loài người, chúng ta ngụ ý về tình trạng tự nhiên của con người khi chưa có bất kỳ ân điển nào mà Đức Chúa Trời dùng để chế ngự hoặc biến đổi họ.
‘Tính triệt để của sự bại hoại đó rõ ràng không có nghĩa là con người làm mọi điều ác mà khả năng mình có thể thực hiện được. Hiển nhiên là con người có khả năng tiến hành nhiều điều ác cho nhau hơn là những gì đã có. Nhưng nếu con người bị chế ngự không thực hiện hành vi tội ác bằng những động cơ không xuất phát từ sự vui lòng đầu phục Đức Chúa Trời, thì ngay cả “đức hạnh” của người ấy đã là xấu xa trong mắt Ngài. Rô-ma 14:23 nói rằng, “điều chi không bởi đức-tin thì điều đó là tội-lỗi.”7 Đây là lời cáo buộc triệt để cho hết thảy “đức hạnh” tự nhiên, không xuất phát từ một tấm lòng hạ mình nương cậy vào ân điển Chúa.’
-John Piper, Năm Luận Điểm: Hướng Đến Một Trải Nghiệm Sâu Nhiệm Hơn về Ân Điển của Đức Chúa Trời, Việt 2020, (Five Points, 2013), tr. 17-18.
E-book of Piper’s, Năm Luận Điểm, now available
(GSiV: The human will in bondage to sin; Mọi sự đều tùy thuộc vào ý chỉ của Chúa: Luther; Election; Atonement; Piper; Eternal security;Salvation)
QUYỀN NĂNG CAO CẢ CỦA ĐỨC CHÚA TRỜI Ở VIỆT NAM (Ê-phê 1:4-5) 