I Loved Jacob but Hated Esau

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Recently I read in Malachi 1:2,3:

“I have loved you,” says the Lord.

“But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.”

We ask, perplexed and troubled, “What did Jacob do to deserve God’s love and what did Esau do to deserve His hatred?” The answer appears to be that, although both brothers were born sinners, deserving of God’s condemnation to eternal punishment, one, Jacob, for reasons hidden in the mind of the infinite God, was granted mercy through grace.

Every single human being since the creation of Adam and Eve was born a sinner, deserving of God’s condemnation to eternal punishment. This condemnation is the just penalty. And yet, for reasons hidden in the mind of the infinite God, some of we sinners have been granted underserved mercy through grace. Were God only just, 100% of all human beings would be eternally condemned. But, God is also merciful through a grace that escapes our ability to grasp. So some condemned sinners are yet granted an undeserved mercy. God is no less just due to this mercy.

John Calvin comments on the Apostle Paul’s use of this passage from Malachi (see Commentary on Romans 9:13):

I yet chose the one, and rejected the other; and I was thus led by my mercy alone, and by no worthiness as to works. I therefore chose you for my people, that I might show the same kindness to the seed of Jacob; but I rejected the Edomites, the progeny of Esau. Ye are then so much the worse, inasmuch as the remembrance of so great a favor cannot stimulate you to adore my majesty.” Now, though earthly blessings are there recorded, which God had conferred on the Israelites, it is not yet right to view them but as symbols of his benevolence: for where the wrath of God is, there death follows; but where his love is, there is life.

Finally, as I mentioned today, Calvin gives us stern warning about the human temptation to speculate wildly and even judge God in this matter. In his commentary on Romans 9:14 Calvin writes:

The predestination of God is indeed in reality a labyrinth, from which the mind of man can by no means extricate itself: but so unreasonable is the curiosity of man, that the more perilous the examination of a subject is, the more boldly he proceeds; so that when predestination is discussed, as he cannot restrain himself within due limits, he immediately, through his rashness, plunges himself, as it were, into the depth of the sea. What remedy then is there for the godly? Must they avoid every thought of predestination? By no means: for as the Holy Spirit has taught us nothing but what it behoves us to know, the knowledge of this would no doubt be useful, provided it be confined to the word of God. Let this then be our sacred rule, to seek to know nothing concerning it, except what Scripture teaches us: when the Lord closes his holy mouth, let us also stop the way, that we may not go farther.

So, we need not be perplexed and troubled about Jacob and Easu. Nor about all of humanity within God’s sovereign plan. What we must be is full of thankfulness for God’s mercy through the grace bought through Jesus Christ our Lord. Since we are outside of God’s counsel regarding judgement and mercy we must follow Christ’s command to:

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:19,20

The Wages of Sin, The Gift of Eternal Life

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So fundamentally important is the message of Romans 6 that it must be considered with the greatest of prayerful care. Whenever I’m at a loss for Biblical counsel there are two names that usually come to mind first, those being John Calvin and Charles Spurgeon (the “Prince of Preachers”). If I’m seeking theological precision and clarity I go to Calvin. If I’m seeking theological clarity combined with evangelical purpose I go to Spurgeon. The teaching in Chapter 6 is so distressing that we need the humane warmth of Spurgeon’s Christian love to guide us through this frightful maze.

The following excerpts are taken from Spurgeon’s sermon titled “Death and Life: The Wage and the Gift.” Although all of Chapter 6 is in view, Spurgeon’s focus verse is:

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”— Romans vi. 23.

With regard to the wages of sin:

Now this tendency is in every case the same, “the wages of sin is death” everywhere to everyone. It is so not only where you can see it operating upon the body, but where you cannot see it. I may perhaps startle you when I say that the wages of sin is death even in the man who has eternal life. Sin has the same deadly character to one as to the other, only an antidote is found.
You, my Christian brother, cannot fall into sin without its being poison to you, as well as to anybody else; in fact, to you it is more evidently poison than to those hardened to it. If you sin it destroys your joy, your power in prayer, your confidence towards God. If you have spent evenings in frivolity with worldlings, you have felt the deadening influence of their society. What about your prayers at night? You cannot draw nigh unto God. The operation of sin upon your spirit is most injurious to your communion with God. You are like a man who has taken a noxious drug, whose fumes are stupefying the brain, and sending the heart into slumber. If you, being a child of God, fall into any of the sins which so easily beset you, I am sure you will never find that those sins quicken your grace or increase your faith; but on the contrary, they will work you evil, only evil, and that continually.
Sin is deadly to any man and every man, whoever he may be; and were it not for the mighty curative operation which the indwelling Spirit of God is always carrying on upon the believer’s nature, not one of us would survive the deadly effects of even those sins of infirmity and ignorance into which we fall.
I wonder not that Paul cried aloud, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” If a man takes poison, if it does not absolutely kill him, it injures him, and thus proves its killing tendency. In certain places the air is pestilential, and though a very healthy man may pass through them and seem none the worse, yet this does not disprove the general deadly tendency of the malarious district, nor does it even prove that the healthy person is not secretly but really injured by having been there.
Evils caused by sin may be too deep to be at once visible, just as the most serious of diseases have their periods of incubation, during which the person affected has no idea of the ill which is hatching within him. Sin is in itself an unmitigated evil, a root which beareth wormwood. Sin is death. Wonder not therefore that the apostle saith, “the wages of sin is death.” As the sparks fly upward, and as the rain falleth to the ground, so sin leads to death. As the river takes its leap in the thundering cataract, so must the stream of sin create the fall of death.

With regard to the gift of God unto eternal life:

Thus I have set forth this doctrine, and I desire to apply it by adding a little more of practical importance. First, let us come at this time, one and all, and receive this divine life as a gift in Christ Jesus. If any of you have been working for it by going about to establish your own righteousness, I beseech you to end the foolish labour by submitting yourselves to the righteousness of God. If you have been trying to feel so much, or to pray so much, or to mourn so much, forbear from thus offering a price, and come and receive life as a free gift from your God. Pull down the idol of your pride, and humbly sue for pardoning grace on the plea of mercy. Believe and live. You are not called upon to earn life, but to receive it; receive it as freely as your lungs take in the air you breathe. If you are dead in sin at this moment, yet the gospel of life has come nigh unto you. With that gospel there comes the life-giving wind of the eternal Spirit. He can call you out of your ruin, and wreckage, and death, and make you live. This is his word, “Awake, thou that sleepest, and rise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee life.” Will you have it as a gift? If there be any true life in you your answer will be quick and hearty. You will be lost if you do not receive this gift. Your earnings will be paid into your bosom, and dread will be the death which will settle down upon you. The acceptance of a free gift would not be difficult if we were not proud. Accept it— God help you to accept it at once! Even that acceptance will be God’s gift; for the will to live is life; and all true life, from beginning to end, is entirely of the Lord.

In conclusion:

He delights to burst the bonds of death. Resurrection is one of his chief glories. He heralds resurrection work with trumpets, and angels, and a glorious high throne, because he delighteth in it. The living Jehovah rejoices to give life, and especially to give it to the dead. Corruption flies before him, grave clothes are rent, and sepulchres are broken open. “I am the resurrection, and the life,” saith Jesus; and so he is even at this hour. O God, save this congregation to the praise of the glory of thy grace, wherein thou hast made us to live, and to be accepted in thy well-beloved Son. Amen and Amen.

Blessings.

Christ’s Incarnation

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Christ’s Incarnation was necessary, not just incidental.  Here’s Jonathan Edwards’ exposition on the incarnation of Jesus, an excerpt from his ‘History of the Work of Redemption‘.

Christ became incarnate, or, which is the same thing, became man, to put himself in a capacity for working out our redemption. For though Christ, as God, was infinitely sufficient for the work, yet to his being in an immediate capacity for it, it was needful that he should not only be God, but man. If Christ had remained only in the divine nature, he would not have been in a capacity to have purchased our salvation; not from any imperfection of the divine nature, but by reason of its absolute and infinite perfection: for Christ, merely as God, was not capable either of that obedience or suffering that was needful. The divine nature is not capable of suffering; for it is infinitely above all suffering. Neither is it capable of obedience to that law which was given to man. It is as impossible that one who is only God, should obey the law that was given to man, as it is that he should suffer man’s punishment.

And it was necessary not only that Christ should take upon him a created nature, but that he should take upon him our nature. It would not have sufficed for Christ to have become an angel, and to have obeyed and suffered in the angelic nature. But it was necessary that he should become a man, upon three accounts.

1. It was needful in order to answer the law, that the very nature to which the law was given, should obey it. Man’s law could not be answered, but by being obeyed by man. God insisted upon it, that the law which he had given to man shall be honoured, and fulfilled by the nature of man, otherwise the law could not be answered for men. The words, “Thou shalt not eat thereof,” etc. were spoken to the race of mankind, to the human nature; and therefore the human nature must fulfil them.

2. It was needful to answer the law that the nature that sinned should die. These words, “Thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2.17) respect the human nature. The same nature to which the command was given, was that to which the threatening was directed.

3. God saw meet, that the same world which was the stage of man’s fall and ruin, should also be the stage of his redemption. We read often of his coming into the world to save sinners, and of God’s sending him into the world for this purpose.—It was needful that he should come into this sinful, miserable, undone world, in order to restore and save it. For man’s recovery, it was needful that he should come down to man, to man’s proper habitation, and that he should tabernacle with us: “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).

Blessings!

The Incarnation (3)

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Charles Spurgeon

From Christ’s Incarnation: The Foundation of Christianity. 

“Pause, reader, for a minute, and consider this great truth. See how every one of the Divine attributes is here magnified. Lo, what wisdom is here! The Eternal becomes man in order that God may be just, and yet be the Justifier of him that believeth in Jesus. What power also is here, for where is power so great as when it concealeth itself? What power, that God should unrobe Himself for a while, and become man! Behold, too, what love is thus revealed to us when Jesus becomes a man; and what faithfulness! How many promises and prophecies are this day fulfilled!

How many solemn obligations are this hour discharged! Tell me one attribute of God that you say is not manifest in Jesus; and your ignorance shall be to me the reason why you have not seen it to be so. The whole of God is glorified in Christ; and though some part of the Name of God is written in the material universe, it is best read in Him who was the Son of man, and also the Son of God.”

The Incarnation (2)

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Jonathan Edwards

Jonathan Edwards’ exposition of the incarnation of Jesus is an excerpt from his ‘History of the Work of Redemption‘. 

“Christ became incarnate, or, which is the same thing, became man, to put himself in a capacity for working out our redemption. For though Christ, as God, was infinitely sufficient for the work, yet to his being in an immediate capacity for it, it was needful that he should not only be God, but man. If Christ had remained only in the divine nature, he would not have been in a capacity to have purchased our salvation; not from any imperfection of the divine nature, but by reason of its absolute and infinite perfection: for Christ, merely as God, was not capable either of that obedience or suffering that was needful. The divine nature is not capable of suffering; for it is infinitely above all suffering. Neither is it capable of obedience to that law which was given to man. It is as impossible that one who is only God, should obey the law that was given to man, as it is that he should suffer man’s punishment.

And it was necessary not only that Christ should take upon him a created nature, but that he should take upon him our nature. It would not have sufficed for Christ to have become an angel, and to have obeyed and suffered in the angelic nature. But it was necessary that he should become a man, upon three accounts.

1. It was needful in order to answer the law, that the very nature to which the law was given, should obey it. Man’s law could not be answered, but by being obeyed by man. God insisted upon it, that the law which he had given to man shall be honoured, and fulfilled by the nature of man, otherwise the law could not be answered for men. The words, “Thou shalt not eat thereof,” etc. were spoken to the race of mankind, to the human nature; and therefore the human nature must fulfil them.

2. It was needful to answer the law that the nature that sinned should die. These words, “Thou shalt surely die” (Genesis 2.17) respect the human nature. The same nature to which the command was given, was that to which the threatening was directed.

3. God saw meet, that the same world which was the stage of man’s fall and ruin, should also be the stage of his redemption. We read often of his coming into the world to save sinners, and of God’s sending him into the world for this purpose.—It was needful that he should come into this sinful, miserable, undone world, in order to restore and save it. For man’s recovery, it was needful that he should come down to man, to man’s proper habitation, and that he should tabernacle with us: “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).”

The Incarnation (1)

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John Calvin

“The case was certainly desperate, if the Godhead itself did not descend to us, it being impossible for us to ascend. Thus the Son of God behoved to become our Emmanuel, the God with us; and in such a way, that by mutual union his divinity and our nature might be combined; otherwise, neither was the proximity near enough, nor the affinity strong enough, to give us hope that God would dwell with us; so great was the repugnance between our pollution and the spotless purity of God. Had man remained free from all taint, he was of too humble a condition to penetrate to God without a Mediator. What, then, must it have been, when by fatal ruin he was plunged into death and hell, defiled by so many stains, made loathsome by corruption; in fine, overwhelmed with every curse? It is not without cause, therefore, that Paul, when he would set forth Christ as the Mediator, distinctly declares him to be man. There is, says he, “one Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus,” (1 Tim. 2: 5). He might have called him God, or at least, omitting to call him God he might also have omitted to call him man; but because the Spirit, speaking by his mouth, knew our infirmity, he opportunely provides for it by the most appropriate remedy, setting the Son of God familiarly before us as one of ourselves. That no one, therefore, may feel perplexed where to seek the Mediator, or by what means to reach him, the Spirit, by calling him man, reminds us that he is near, nay, contiguous to us, inasmuch as he is our flesh. And, indeed, he intimates the same thing in another place, where he explains at greater length that he is not a high priest who “cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin,” (Heb. 4: 15).”

It’s Pride Month! (1)

This may be hard to believe, but there is another understanding of “pride” that has its origins in the Christian experience.

The sin of pride is an excessive preoccupation with self and one’s own importance, achievements, status, or possessions. It is considered rebellion against God because it attributes to oneself the honor and glory that only God is due. Pride is also known as vanity. It is one of the seven capital sins and is the excessive love of one’s own excellence. Pride leads us to seek that which is above us and to wish to be more than God has created us to be. Sinful pride is refusing to recognize God’s sovereign role in everything, while “good pride” is recognizing that apart from God, we can do nothing and giving God the glory for our accomplishments.

As for me, I’ll stick with this understanding, thank you.

Well Said! (8)

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Abraham Lincoln’s final words in his 1852 eulogy on Henry Clay:

“Let us strive to deserve, as far as mortals may, the continued care of Divine Providence, trusting that, in future national emergencies, He will not fail to provide us the instruments of safety and security.”

This is the wisdom and character that Reformed theology used to produce 170 years ago. Now it primarily produces bogus reasons why Christians should support the Cultural Marxist oligarchy.

 

Happy New Year!

Our confidence in God’s providential action gives us the courage to face down the powers of wickedness. So go forth into 2023 with Christian faith, hope and love, remembering that “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Corinthians 13:6,7, NIV).

Embracing a Christianity with Tears (4)

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Christianity with Tears

Should we imagine that the leaders of our churches, who seek success in either congregation growth or control, have been immune to this process? Of course not! They have responded by recasting the Gospel to be about self-actualization, self-help and self-protection.  In effect, they have created “Christianity without tears.” J. I. Packer discussed this issue in the introductory essay to John Owen’s 1959 book, The Death of Death in the Death of Christ (emphasis added).

Without realising it, we have during the past century bartered that gospel for a substitute product which, though it looks similar enough in points of detail, is as a whole a decidedly different thing. Hence our troubles; for the substitute product does not answer the ends for which the authentic gospel has in past days proved itself so mighty. The new gospel conspicuously fails to produce deep reverence, deep repentance, deep humility, a spirit of worship, a concern for the church. Why? We would suggest that the reason lies in its own character and content. It fails to make men God-centred in their thoughts and God-fearing in their hearts because this is not primarily what it is trying to do. One way of stating the difference between it and the old gospel is to say that it is too exclusively concerned to be “helpful” to man—to bring peace, comfort, happiness, satisfaction—and too little concerned to glorify God. The old gospel was “helpful,” too—more so, indeed, than is the new—but (so to speak) incidentally, for its first concern was always to give glory to God. It was always and essentially a proclamation of Divine sovereignty in mercy and judgment, a summons to bow down and worship the mighty Lord on whom man depends for all good, both in nature and in grace. Its centre of reference was unambiguously God. But in the new gospel the centre of reference is man. This is just to say that the old gospel was religious in a way that the new gospel is not. Whereas the chief aim of the old was to teach men to worship God, the concern of the new seems limited to making them feel better. The subject of the old gospel was God and His ways with men; the subject of the new is man and the help God gives him. There is a world of difference. The whole perspective and emphasis of gospel preaching has changed.

I was laid-off from the Fortune-100 company for which I worked in 2010. I recall telling an Elder at my church about this setback. Her response was to the effect of ‘That could never happen to me because Jesus wouldn’t allow it.’  There we have the almost perfect crystallization of the “new gospel” as described by Owen.

So, now the complete avoidance of suffering has become our god. If an unwanted pregnancy occurs, we abort the child. If our marriage becomes difficult, we divorce. And coming soon (already here in parts of Canada and Europe) if an elderly parent becomes a burden we euthanize them. All of this is justified by our assumed right to an utterly painless, luxurious life; that is a life without tears.

Christ never promised this kind of life to His followers. In fact, he promised the opposite.

Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.

John 15:20

Yet, in the face of this explicit teaching by Christ and the example of His Apostles, many in the Western Christian Church insist on assisting the idolatrous project of building a society as a “Christianity without tears.”  The consequences of this apostasy have been severe, both for the Church and the society in which it exists.

If we hope to ever again embrace a Christianity with tears then we must return to the Scriptures to understand and then be renewed.