Tag: John Piper

Jesus, The Devil and Suffering

~ fundyreformed ~ 3 Comments

Christians, like everyone else suffer pain and sorrow in this world. Many blame such suffering on the devil, from a praiseworthy desire not to blame God. Other Christians do blame God and doubt his provision and love for them. How could God let this happen to me? She was such a good person, it just doesn’t seem fair!

Worldly-wise secularists take a more intelligent position, they think. God isn’t there; or if He is, He isn’t concerned enough or able to interact in such a way to help prevent us from suffering. They grin and bear suffering, and encourage those friends and family who are suffering. And really, most Christians do this as well. But they won’t say God can’t intervene, rather they will credit God for helping them through the suffering.

With the recent tragedy of the I-35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis, my pastor John Piper gave an explanation of the Reformed view of suffering. God controls all things and has a purpose in everything that happens. He wasn’t surprised by the bridge collapse, and He is at work helping the grieving and suffering, as well as working out many other hidden designs in and through this single tragic event. Most Christians generally agree, although they might hesitate to affirm that God plans and causes such tragedies to happen.

On the opposite spectrum, Greg Boyd, also a Minneapolis area pastor, spoke out against Piper’s view. Boyd, representing the open theist position, claimed that God was surprised by the event as well, and in no way planned or caused it to happen. As I said above, in some respects Boyd’s position is noble. He doesn’t want anyone to blame God for the evil suffering caused by the bridge collapse. But as Denny Burk has shown, in his response to Boyd’s post, Boyd’s position doesn’t stack up with Scripture. Most of evangelicalism would also agree that God certainly knew of the event before it happened (the traditional view of God’s omniscience). [For several Reformed responses to open theism click here.]

But even for those of us who affirm God’s exhaustive foreknowledge and omniscience, we still struggle with how God can let evil happen to Christians. Isn’t the devil to blame too?

I bring up all of this as background to an excellent new article by John Piper which is available online. He discussed the roles of Jesus and the Devil in suffering with his daughter, and shared his conversation with us. The verse in question is Revelation 2:10 “Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

I encourage you to check out the article and ponder this issue now, before suffering comes your way. “When Satan Hurts Christ’s People: Reflections on Why Christians Suffer Losses” by John Piper.

And if you would like, you can subscribe to these weekly devotional articles [feed here] by John Piper or sign up for a free email subscription.

John Piper on Small Groups and Perseverance

~ fundyreformed

I’m getting ready to pick up my series on man-centered Christianity (see posts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5) again. And I thought highlighting what my pastor, John Piper said in a recent message would help move us back into thinking about perseverance, eternal security, and God-centered Christianity.

Every year Pastor Piper preaches a message in the Fall, encouraging us to get involved with small groups. And as is often the case, this year, his text was Hebrews 10:19-25. You can read the printed version of the message here, as well as easily find links for watching or listening to the message online, or even downloading it (for free). What follows is an excerpt (transcribed imperfectly by me) from that message dealing specifically with the doctrine of perseverance.

…toward the end of the age, when the day [of judgment] draws near… [meeting together in small groups] will be essential increasingly. Have you ever thought about that?…

The Bible says that in the last days there will be times of great difficulty… it’s not going to get easier to be a Christian, it’s going to get harder to be a Christian. So what’s your plan for staying a Christian?

Or do you have this cavalier lackadaisical, eternal security thing that you can just live like the devil and do whatever you want and you’re gonna’ go to heaven no matter what. That’s not the biblical doctrine of eternal security. The biblical doctrine of eternal security is that the evidence that you are eternally secure is that you’re following the biblical means to stay safe in Jesus. And He’ll keep you—[for] those [in] whom he began a good work, He completes the good work. Yes, He will and He’ll do it by putting you into the kind of groups that will sustain your faith.

So, I take this real seriously: that as the day comes, the need for being together in mutually praying, mutually ministering, mutually encouraging groups goes up not down. Don’t think, “Oh the end’s almost here. Quick, Lord Jesus come! And I’m just holing up in my basement, or wherever.” Don’t hole up—unless you hole up with 8 or 10 other people, and of course if 8 or 10 people are there, then the Holy Spirit’s gonna’ move and you will learn that you don’t hole up. You go out and risk your lives to testify to Jesus.

To that I say amen! I encourage you to listen to the entire message. And more importantly, to get involved in small groups for the sake of your perseverance in faith!

Romans 14 by John Piper

~ fundyreformed ~ 4 Comments

I encourage you all to listen to these sermons on Romans 14.

I wish I had understood the message of Romans 14 a long time ago. It speaks to how we relate to others who have differing positions on nonessential issues. The passage says that how we treat others is vitally important, but which position we have on nonessential issues is not as vitally important. (The text clearly says it is viatl for us to welcome one another, irrespective of position, rather than charging us to have the correct position.)

Piper does a great job in this series and the first couple sermons really present an overview of the whole chapter that is priceless.

Here are the links.

UPDATE: I updated the links 12/17/2007.