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Boasting in Weakness

~ Appropriating the Cross of Christ for Life.

Boasting in Weakness

Tag Archives: Discouragement

Endure in Faith by Looking to Jesus

31 Wednesday Dec 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, Faith, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman

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1 Peter 5, Cross-bearing, Discouragement, Emotions, Enduring in Faith, Grace, Hardship, Hebrews 12, Isaiah 52, Isaiah 53, Looking to Jesus, Obedience of faith, Practical Theology, Psalm 22, Sanctification, The Sovereignty of God, Theology, Trials

“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” 1 Peter 5:10-11

Jesus lived and died believing God, and so should we. Jesus lived by the truth that “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). For example, it was His belief in the faithfulness of His Father to answer His prayers, that motivated Him to forego the luxury of sleep, in exchange for hours of uninterrupted prayer with God (Luke 6:12). It was also the Lord’s faith in God that sustained Him for forty days of fasting and testing in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-2). It was Jesus’ trust in God’s wisdom to ordain His cross-suffering and His trust in God’s power to deliver Him through resurrection, which gave Him the ability to submit to God’s will and endure the horrors of Roman crucifixion for His people. Jesus endured all of the afflictions of His earthly life and especially the afflictions that He suffered on the cross by believing in the promises of God.

The promises that Jesus relied upon throughout His life are found in the Old Testament Scriptures. All the books from Genesis to Malachi (the Old Testament) contain promises that God specifically made to the Messiah, who was the long awaited suffering servant of God (Isaiah 52:13- 53:11). For an example in Psalm 16:10 we read, “For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption.” In this verse, we see that God had promised Jesus He would neither abandon His soul to Sheol; that is, the grave, hell, or the pit; nor allow His Son’s physical body to decay in the grave after He died physically. It was Jesus’ belief in God’s ability and willingness to keep this promise (and other promises similar to it) that enabled Him to humble Himself in faith and become “…obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8).

When Jesus was on the cross He was thinking about God’s word. We know this because while on the cross, Jesus quoted from the Scriptures. Eyewitnesses of His crucifixion reported that when Jesus was being crucified, He cried out with a loud voice “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34). This quote is taken from Psalm 22:1 where the death, burial, and resurrection of the Christ was foretold. From this, we learn that when the Lord felt most troubled in His Spirit, He held most tightly to His Father’s promises. We should be mindful that Jesus’ confidence in the faithful fulfillment of the promises of God did not diminish the painful realities of His crucifixion. Jesus really bled, really hurt, and really died on the cross. His trust in God to raise Him from the dead did not belittle His cross-work. Conversely, it magnified it. Christ’s reliance on the promises of God throughout His life, and especially on the cross, magnifies the truth that we also can rely on God’s Word throughout the duration of our lives, and especially in the midst of our own afflictions. Since the Son of God was enabled to endure the agonies of the cross through His faith in the promises of God; we are assured that we will be enabled to endure in the obedience of our own faith, in the midst of our lesser trials, by trusting God and by relying on His promises.

If we truly desire to see God transform our lives, we must endure in our faith in God. We need to look to Jesus “…the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross…” (Hebrews 12:2); and be strengthened in our resolve to believe God. We must choose to persevere in our belief in God’s power to transform us, regardless of the many complex difficulties- which may be present in our lives. We need to rely on God’s ability and faithfulness to do all that He has said He would do for us, in us, and through us. God has commanded His people to believe Him. In all things- throughout the trials and afflictions of our live-  we must remember the promise of God that “…after you [we] have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” And, it is for this reason that we can all say, “To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen“

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From The Depths of Woe – Indelible Grace

27 Saturday Sep 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Call to the Cross, Cool Christian Tunes, Cross-Bearing, Encouragement, Music, On Prayer, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman

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Cross-bearing, Difficulty, Discouragement, Emotions, Grace, Hardship

From The Depths of Woe – Indelible Grace

The Words of this piece are from Martin Luther’s “Aus Tiefer Not Schrei ich zu Dir”-or in English “From The Depths Of Woe I Cry” (And no, I do not know German- that was a cut and paste). The hymn is based on Psalm 130. This rendition of the From The Depths Of Woe I Cry is distinct, intense, strong, and it has a ‘rugged beauty’- if you are in a season of waiting on God, if you are really feeling your need for His mercy and grace right now- this ones of you.

 

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Why Didn’t God Give Us a New Past?

12 Friday Sep 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Sovereignty of God, Walking in Newness of Life

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Biblical Femininity, Cross-bearing, Difficulty, Discouragement, Emotional Healing, Emotions, God, Grace, Physical Abuse, Practical Theology, Sanctification, Self-esteem, Sexual Abuse, The Glory of God

God gave us a new hope, a new Spirit, a new heart, and a new life, but He did not give us a new past: He decided to leave our pasts with us for the time being. God did this because He gets more glory by transforming our pasts than erasing them.

Taken from Walking in Newness of Life: Experiencing the Power of God in Resurrection by Identifying with Christ in His Death and Burial (p.98).

 

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A Brief and Practical Application on the Sovereignty of God

06 Saturday Sep 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Sovereignty of God

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Cross-bearing, Difficulty, Discouragement, On Prayer, Painful Relationships, Practical Theology, Sanctification, The Sovereignty of God

God hates gossip, slander, and other forms of maligning people. God wants us to love our neighbors – not treat them hatefully by talking about them behind their backs, or, even, insulting them to their faces. When God is using a difficult person to sanctify us, the goal should be to allow that person to be used by God to help make us holy; not to tell them off or to be the one that gets the last dig. We do not want to miss the whole “Sovereignty of God” concept in our sanctifying relationships. Instead, we want to remember that the Lord divinely appointed all the difficult people in our lives, so that we can learn how to be more like Jesus who “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly” (1 Peter 2:23, NIV).

Taken from Walking In Newness of Life (p.87).

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Personal Red-Sea Experiences?

03 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, Testimony, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Sovereignty of God

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Cross-bearing, Difficulty, Discouragement, Emotional Healing, Emotions, Obedience of faith, Practical Theology, Resurrection, Sanctification, The Sovereignty of God, Theology, Trials

The cross is the  place where our weaknesses and God’s sovereignty make sense.  When we bring our weaknesses, brokenness, and messed up pasts to the cross of Christ, we can start to grasp the weight of the truth that Jesus, of His own volition, identified Himself with our frailty through the incarnation, and then willfully identified Himself with our brokenness on the cross, so that by sovereign grace, we can identify with Him in His powerful resurrection life. It is at the cross of Christ that we begin to understand that Christ is not the indifferent Sovereign Bystander that some assume Him to be. But that our Lord is the voluntary Sovereign Substitute, who has voluntarily identified Himself with our weaknesses through His cross. And it is at the cross that we learn that the Lord overcomes all of our pain, because it is the cross that leads us to experience the resurrection.

We find at the cross that the Lord is not at all the Silent Witness to our brokenness, neediness, and weaknesses, but that He is, in fact,  the Silent Lamb, who has been slaughtered for them, and that He is the Sovereign Lord who even now, by the power of an indestructible life, rules over them.  When we begin to understand the cross-work of Christ, we can begin to understand in a very personal way the massive and life-changing reality of the sovereign power and deep love that God has for each of His children. For, the cross is not the end of experiencing the redemptive power of God, but it is actually the means to the experiencing the resurrection power of God.  At the cross we  begin to really appropriate the awesome truth that God is most certainly and most emphatically sovereign over all things in life – working them all to the end for our good and His glory (Romans 1:4; 6:3,4; 2 Corinthians 13:4).

God has given each one of us our own personal Red Sea Experience – some life changing providence intended by God to lead us to a desperate need of experiencing the awesome power of God in resurrection. These events, as painful as they may be, are all part of God’s perfect sovereign ordering of our lives. Our personal Red Sea Experiences are the practical outworking of the sovereign grace of God in our lives. Each one ordained to the end that we would turn to Christ in saving faith; experience the powerful redemption of the cross, and know the depth of the love of God and the power of His sovereignty more intimately through our union with Christ. So embrace the cross and experience the sovereign power of God in resurrection.

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Jason Meyer: The God Who Comforts the Downcast

28 Thursday Aug 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Encouragement, Exhortation, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Sovereignty of God, Uncategorized

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Cross-bearing, Difficulty, Discouragement, Emotions, Grace, Hardship, Obedience of faith, Practical Theology, Sanctification, The Sovereignty of God, Trials

Dr. Jason Meyer just preached this sermon on August 16th. After listening to it, I thought I have to post this sermon to this blog. It just seems to encompass so many of the ideals of Boasting in Weakness. For example, in this sermon he addresses experiencing providentially ordained afflictions, receiving the comforting (strengthening) grace of God, and, in so doing, bringing glory to God through our weaknesses and our trials. Furthermore, Pastor Meyer totally gets the whole appropriating the cross of Christ for life concept. He makes the point that the Apostle Paul intentionally communicates a paradigm for the Christian life in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (which is the defining principle in my understanding of the Christian life; and therefore, it is my personal paradigm for life).

This sermon is a great word, totally edifying, totally the perfect message for someone struggling under the heavy weight of afflictions and in need of  an encouraging word from the Lord.

http://hopeingod.s3.amazonaws.com/video/20140817_JMeyer.mp4

 

 

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Weary in Prayer?

25 Monday Aug 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, Music, On Prayer, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, Uncategorized

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Cross-bearing, Difficulty, Discouragement, Emotions, Grace, Hardship, Intercession, Obedience of faith, On Prayer, Practical Theology, Sanctification, Trials, Weariness

“Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.” (Isaiah 35:3-4).

When a succession of  trials come into our lives, we can get worn-down; we can develop weak hands and feeble knees. This is what happened to Moses in Exodus 17. You remember that Moses had the dubious task of leading a difficult and trying people through the barren wilderness of the ancient near east. After many a long and trying mile, moving this unhappy people from one dry, arid place to another dry, arid place in the dessert, Moses leads them to a place (Rephidim) to set up camp. At Rephidim, the Israelite-malcontents threaten to kill Moses. Their contention with him? They were thirsty, and he had led them to a place that had no water. (I am sorry, but that is just wrong…) Then, after rescuing his life from their hostile hands by getting them some water to drink, the nation of Amalek sets out to battle with the Israelites. At this point, Moses is required to intercede for the people of God – (the same ones that had just threatened his life because they were thirsty) – as the nation’s victory rested squarely on Moses’ intercession for them. And, as to this work of intercession? Well, Holy Writ tells us: “Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary…” (Exodus 17:11-12). You see, Moses’ arms got tired- that is, his arms of intercession got tired- maybe his serial trials left him feeling worn-out and run-down.

Sometimes, when we have a series of trying circumstances, we have to deal with difficult people, and stressful situations, we also become weary in our intercession. It is then that that we can look to Moses and learn from him- to keep believing God, keep praying, and keep waiting on Him by trusting in the awesome life-giving promises of His Word. We see this truth illustrated in the life of Moses in this Biblical narrative. Exodus 17:12 reads: “…so they took a stone and put it under him [Moses], and he sat on it while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun” (Ex.17:12). You see, just when Moses felt like he was at the end of his intercessory rope- God sent his brother and another trusted companion to help him to rest his weak hands and feeble knees. They did this by giving him a seat on a rock, and holding his arms up. We see here two examples of God’s good provision of sustaining grace for prayer. God gave Moses exactly what he needed to finish the race- to stay the course. The Lord gave Moses the strength to carry on- He gave Moses every necessary thing that he needed to come through the battle victorious. We know this because Exodus 17:13-16 closes the historical account of the battle at Rephidim with this record: “And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

In the same way, we who are in Christ can be confident that God will give us His merciful sustaining grace when we need it. The Lord will provide all the means that we need to finish the race- to stay the course. He will give us strength to carry on. And, just like He gave Moses exactly what he needed to come through the battle victorious; He will give us everything that we need to come through our own battles victorious, as well. Only let us believe God- as Moses did. Let us lay hold of the awesome faithfulness of the Lord our Banner. Let us heed the admonition of Hebrews 12:12-15 to “…lift your [our] drooping hands and strengthen your [our] weak knees, and make straight paths for your [our] feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.” And, most importantly, let us “See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God…” And, how can we do this in practical terms? How can we fail not to receive that awesome sustaining grace of God? Well, the same way Moses did, of course. We can take a seat and rest those feeble knees of ours on the Lord God- the Rock of our Salvation (Isaiah 26:4, 44:8). We can do whatever we have to do to keep those arms of intercession up. Whether that means that we seek the aid of brothers and sisters to join us in prayer, or we tarry in the Word longer than usual- refusing to leave our prayer closets until we hear from God in His Word and choosing to remember both the admonition and the promise of Scripture: “Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God, will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”

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If It Is Soul-Destroying… It Is also Heart-Breaking.

20 Wednesday Aug 2014

Posted by Beth Hogan in Boasting in Weaknesses, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, False Teachers, Reformed Theology, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman

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2 Timothy 3:1-9, Bad Doctrine, Depressed Christians, Discouragement, Emotions, False Brothers, False Teachers, Idolatry, Liars, Practical Theology, Prosperity Gospel, Satan

Wretched: Matt Chandler: Maybe this is why you are depressed.

I never thought about it – quite like this before – but, it is sooooo true: bad theology is really depressing. After all, anything that is soul-destroying is also heart-breaking. Todd Friel with his usual insightful candor, really powerful preaching from Matt Chandler, and a diagnostic for any Christian struggling with depression- this is a sound word about one of the many problems that result in the life of a  Christian that holds to bad doctrine (like the prosperity gospel), or listens to false teachers. Well worth the 5 minutes and 38 seconds needed to watch. .

WARNING: Some of the images on this clip are graphic and not recommended for the eyes of young children or weak stomached Arminian women.

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Born in 76, saved in 95, happily married since 96, moved from MA to TX in 97- did the reverse two years later. First child born in 99, second and third children (twins) born in 01, fourth child born in 03, fifth child born in 04- started homeschooling the same year. Moved from MA to NY in 05 and then moved again from NY to PA in 09- In all of it, totally feeling my weakness, absolutely embracing the cross, and in an amazing way experiencing the resurrection grace of God. So, I figured why not just boast in it? Hence, Boasting in Weakness: Appropriating the Cross of Christ for Life- 2014.

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