Desiring God Blog
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Motivating Joy
Puritan Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity:
If anything can make us rise off our bed of sloth, and serve God with all our might, it should be this, the hope of our near enjoyment of God forever.
(Design submitted by Jennifer Knight.)
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Degree in Hand, More Desperate Than Ever
Graduation is a high moment. It's like a wedding of sorts. All the many investments — the questions needing answers, the costs needing to be weighed — rise together in a public crescendo of accomplishment. Congratulations, here's your degree.
Tonight I graduate from seminary. The page of official training closes, and the real-world chapter, so it seems, is opened. It will be a high moment, indeed, and it would probably be a "higher" one if I was going into anything other than vocational ministry.
It has been four years of intense training, of deep learning and wrestling and sharpening of gifts, and now it's finished. But I won't feel strong when I walk through the exit — and perhaps that’s a mark of a good seminary experience. In fact, tonight when I gather with my band of brothers to walk across the stage, shake hands, smile, and receive our degrees, I will feel quite weak.
Two years ago I didn't want it to be this way. Then, I hoped that come graduation I’d be stepping out into the world of local church ministry as an evangelical Rambo. I wanted to be an ecclesiological blue chip, trained with all the skills and ready to play. But, no, that's not how it is now. I feel worn out, a little like an old dog, the grad with the asterisk, more aware of my failures now than ever before.
I feel weak.
And here's the thing: It seems this is exactly how God wants it to be. Remember what Paul said? “God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27)
Presumption has been decimated. Yes, God give us godly ambitions, please — I have some and want more. But before I can set my sights on changing the world for the glory of God, I need to wake up tomorrow morning. And I can't do that on my own. And I need to not ruin my children’s lives by being an absentee dad under the same roof. And I can't get this right on my own. I need to continue seeking God himself for who he is before I skip to expounding his word for others. And I can't produce these affections on my own.
I am desperate for him. Degree in hand, and more desperate than ever.
I have learned so many really good things in seminary — too many to count — and above them all, as the summary banner, I have learned how to stay Christian. What I mean is that I have learned to follow Jesus and be satisfied in all that God is, amid the stress of due dates and assignments and responsibilities outside the classroom that make the other stuff seem like drivel. I have gotten to know God more. I have learned of his faithfulness, how time after time after time he comes through. How he keeps good on his promises. I have learned that ministry is about pleasure and the real joy isn't found in our achievement, but in God. And despite my weaknesses, despite my leadership foibles and occasional illegitimate totality transfers (HT: D. A. Carson), the obstacle that keeps me from this greatest joy has already been overcome. Jesus Christ, the righteous, suffered for us the unrighteous that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18). God has made me his, and he is enough.
So though I may not feel strong, give me more of this kind of weakness. I think this is what seminary is supposed to do to you.
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"Fifty Reasons" eBook – Free in Eight Languages
If you've explored our Resource Library, you've likely discovered our Online Books section, which contains over 60 John Piper titles available in English as free downloads.
What you may not have discovered is the tab that enables you to sort them "By Language," which ultimately reveals a list of 25 other languages in which you can find free ebooks.
One of the most popular titles between these languages is Piper's book Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die, which is currently available for download in 8 different tongues:
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English – Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die
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German – Fünfzig Gründe, warum er kam, um zu sterben
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Hindi – पचास कारण की यीशु क्यों मरने आया
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Hungarian – Ötven ok, amiért Krisztus meghalt
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Persian – پنجاه دلیل چرا عیسی به دنیا آمد تا مصلوب شود
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Russian – Пятьдесят причин, по которым Христу надлежало пострадать и умереть
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Swahili – Je, Kwa Nini Kristo Alikufa Msalabani?
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Telugu – [title doesn't paste well]
(A sample is available in Traditional Chinese – 基督受死的50個理由)
Offering free translated ebooks is just one more way we're aiming to reach the world with the life-changing message that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.
Related posts:
- A Romanian Version of Our Website (5/11/12)
- Reaching the Muslim World — On the Web (5/4/12)
- Reaching the World Through the Web (5/1/12)
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A Celebration of Biblical Masculinity
I live in a culture that admires a man’s earning power, and his fertility, and his ability to rule his domain with an iron fist.
While Scripture certainly calls for a Christ-like masculinity that provides for and protects his family, the Bible takes a wrecking ball to the culture-based ideals of masculinity that are celebrated around the world.
By God’s grace, I enjoy the fruits of living with a man who demonstrates biblical masculinity. This is the kind of masculinity that emerges from the gospel, points back to the gospel, and celebrates the gospel in my home.
Unashamed
The masculinity I appreciate as a wife is of far greater value than wealth-earning power. It’s a masculinity that is unashamed of the gospel which is the power of God (Romans 1:16).
The unashamed masculinity I enjoy in my home leaves a legacy that is more enduring than prolific fertility. It’s masculinity that fervently loves others from a heart that has been born again, born not of seed which is perishable, but imperishable. True masculinity is reborn through the living and abiding word of God.
The unashamed masculinity I love to follow in my home is far more impressive than macho pride. It’s masculinity that is willing to take the painful shrapnel in the battle against his own sin, rather than run from sin and hide in the comfort of silence. It is a masculinity that willingly exposes its life to the iron-sharpening-iron of open and honest male accountability relationships.
The unashamed masculinity that guards the hearts in my home puts away rash, cutting words that pierce like a sword. My husband’s Christ-honoring masculinity understands the power of words, and he uses words to bring healing to me and our children.
The unashamed masculinity I cherish in my home is such that fixes its eyes on Jesus and turns its eyes away from all the vain things of this world that hold a potent charm over other men. My husband’s Christ-honoring masculinity flees from promises whispered by a hiss.
The unashamed masculinity I need in my home is concerned that others find their delight in God. Nothing quite says, “I love you” to me than when my husband is willing to humbly stand up to the things I pursue that obstruct my everlasting joy in God. His loving masculinity reassures me of Christ’s atonement made on my behalf, and of the privilege I have to boldly approach the throne of grace.
Unashamed masculinity has less to do with how many horses a man owns, or how fast he can run. Unashamed masculinity is about what a man does with the gospel.
Where can you see this unashamed masculinity? You see it whenever a man has peered into the empty tomb and found new motivation to lay down his own life to spread the gospel into the souqs of Casablanca, into the office spaces in Dallas, into the cafes in Geneva, into the shantytowns of Mumbai, into the barrios of Sao Paulo, and into the universities of Toronto.
My Unashamed Husband
My dear, godly, husband once explained to someone that he wasn’t able to shake hands because of the nerve disease in his arms. This person said, “That’s awful! Everyone can tell a real man by the firm grip of his handshake.”
I just smiled to myself.
I’ve watched my husband find his strength in the joy of the Lord. He has a firm grip on grace. And I can testify that he is “a real man” by his unashamed passion for the gospel.
When he cares for our family, our church, and our city with the gospel, he grabs hold of the gates of hell and shakes them without fear and without shame.
That is the kind of gospel-centered masculinity that I thank God for, and it’s the masculinity that I want to celebrate.
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Other posts by Gloria Furman —