Category Archives: 1 Corinthians

“The gospel and envy” by Jonathan Edwards

“The gospel scheme, all of it from beginning to end, tends to the contrary of this spirit of envy. The Christian form of doctrine doth abundantly hold forth those things which militate against a spirit of envy.

The things which they teach us of God are exceedingly contrary to it.

For there we are taught how far God was from grudging us the most exceeding honor and blessedness, and how He has grudged us nothing as too much to be done for us, and nothing as too great and too good to be given us.

He hath not grudged us His only begotten Son, that which was most precious and most dear of all to Himself.

For what was dearer to God than His only begotten, dearly beloved Son? He hath not grudged us the highest honor and blessedness in union with Him.

The doctrines of the gospel teach us how far Jesus Christ was from grudging us anything which He could do for or give to us.

He did not grudge us a life spent in labor and suffering.

He did not grudge us His own precious blood.

He hath not grudged us a sitting with Him on His throne in heaven, and being partakers with Him of that heavenly kingdom and glory which the Father hath given Him, and sitting with Him on thrones judging the world, though we deserve to be had in infinite contempt and abhorrence by Him.

The Christian scheme of doctrine teaches us how Christ came into the world to deliver us from the fruits of Satan’s envy towards us.

The devil being miserable himself envied mankind that happiness which they had, and could not bear to see our first parents in their happy state in Eden, and therefore exerted himself to the utmost to ruin them, and accomplished it.

The gospel teaches how Christ came into the world to destroy the works of the devil, and deliver us from that misery into which his envy has brought us.”

–Jonathan Edwards, Charity and Its Fruits, in Ethical Writings, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, Vol. 8, Ed. Paul Ramsey (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1749/1989), 224.

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“Earnestly seek humility” by Jonathan Edwards

“Let all be exhorted earnestly to seek much of an humble spirit, and to endeavor to be humble in all their behavior toward God and men. Seek for a deep and abiding sense of your comparative meanness before God and man.

Know God. Confess your nothingness and ill-desert before Him. Distrust yourself. Rely only on God. Renounce all glory except from Him. Yield yourself heartily to His will and service.

Avoid an aspiring, ambitious, ostentatious, assuming, arrogant, scornful, stubborn, willful, leveling, self-justifying behavior. And strive for more and more of the humble spirit that Christ manifested while He was on earth. Consider the many motives to such a spirit.

Humility is a most essential and distinguishing trait in all true piety.

It is the attendant of every grace, and in a peculiar manner tends to the purity of Christian feeling.

It is the ornament of the spirit.

It is the source of some of the sweetest exercises of Christian experience.

It is the most acceptable sacrifice we can offer to God.

It is the subject of the richest of His promises.

It is the spirit with which He will dwell on earth, and which He will crown with glory in heaven hereafter.

Earnestly seek, then, and diligently and prayerfully cherish a humble spirit, and God shall walk with you here below, and when a few days shall have passed, He will receive you in the honors bestowed on His people at Christ’s right hand.”

–Jonathan Edwards, Charity and Its Fruits, in Ethical Writings, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, Vol. 8, Ed. Paul Ramsey (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1749/1989), 251.

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“The main business of the Christian life” by Jonathan Edwards

“Our subject exhorts us to seek a spirit of love, to grow in it more and more, and very much to abound in the works of love.

If love is so great a thing in Christianity, so essential and distinguishing, yea, the very sum of all Christian virtue, then surely those that profess themselves Christians should live in love, and abound in the works of love. For no works are so becoming as those of love.

If you call yourself a Christian, where are your works of love?

Have you abounded, and do you abound in them?

If this divine and holy principle is in you, and reigns in you, will it not appear in your life, in works of love?

Consider what deeds of love have you done?

Do you love God?

What have you done for Him, for His glory, for the advancement of His kingdom in the world?

And how much have you denied yourself to promote the Redeemer’s interest among men?

Do you love your fellowmen?

What have you done for them?

Consider your former defects in these respects, and how becoming it is in you as a Christian hereafter to abound more in deeds of love.

Do not make excuse that you have not opportunities to do anything for the glory of the God, for the interest of the Redeemer’s kingdom, and for the spiritual benefit of your neighbors.

If your heart is full of love, it will find vent and then you will find or make ways enough to express your love in deeds. When a fountain abounds in water, it will send forth streams.

Consider that as a principle of love is the main principle in the heart of a real Christian, so the labor of love is the main business of the Christian life. Let every Christian consider these things.

And may the Lord give you understanding in all things, and make you sensible what spirit it becomes you to be of, and dispose you to such an excellent, amiable, and benevolent life, as is answerable to such a spirit, that you may not love only in word and tongue, but in deed and truth.”

–Jonathan Edwards, Charity and Its Fruits, in Ethical Writings, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, Vol. 8, Ed. Paul Ramsey (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1749/1989), 147-148.

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“Hail, King Jesus” by D.A. Carson

“When Paul writes to Christians in the city of Corinth in about the middle of the first century, he describes Jesus as the king with all of God’s sovereignty mediated through Him: ‘For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death’ (1 Cor. 15:25-26).

Death will die. This, of course, picks up exactly what happened in Genesis 1, 2, and 3. Over against this massive rebellion that tried to de-god God, a rebellion that brought only death and decay, stands Jesus Christ. King Jesus has already beaten death, and He continues as God’s own king in David’s line.

Yet though He is a man in David’s line, He is the one who is called ‘Mighty God, Everlasting Father’ (Isa. 9:6). And He will reign until He has destroyed the last enemy: death itself. This is why the church stands up and sings, again and again, ‘Hail, King Jesus.’

We need a king-one who is perfectly righteous, who cannot be corrupted, who is entirely good, in whom there is never any taint of evil. He powerfully saves and transforms His people, who come to Him and gladly acknowledge His Lordship.

Hail, King Jesus.”

–D.A. Carson, The God Who is There: Finding Your Place in God’s Story (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2011), 79.

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“Inconceivable love” by Jonathan Edwards

“The work of redemption which the gospel makes known, above all things, affords motives to love. For that work was the most glorious and wonderful exhibition of love that ever was seen or heard of.

Love is the principal thing that the gospel dwells on when speaking of God and of Christ. It brings to light the love eternally existing between the Father and the Son, and declares how that same love has been manifested in many things.

The gospel manifests how Christ is God’s well-beloved Son, in whom He is ever well pleased and how He so loved Him, that He has raised Him to the throne of the mediatorial kingdom, and appointed Him to be the judge of the world, and ordained that all mankind should stand before Him in judgment.

In the gospel, too, is revealed the love that Christ has to the Father, and the wonderful fruits of that love, particularly in His doing such great things, and suffering such great things in obedience to the Father’s will, and for the honour of His justice, and law, and authority, as the great moral governor.

In the gospel there is revealed how the Father and Son are one in love, that we might be induced, in the like spirit, to be one with them, and with one another, agreeably to Christ’s prayer (John 17:21-23).

The gospel also declares to us that the love of God was from everlasting, and reminds us that He loved those that are redeemed by Christ, before the foundation of the world and that He gave them to the Son and that the Son loved them as His own.

The gospel reveals, too, the wonderful love of both the Father and the Son to the saints now in glory– that Christ not only loved them while in the world, but that He loved them to the end.

And all this love is spoken of as bestowed on us while we were wanderers, outcasts, worthless, guilty, and even enemies. This is love, such as was never elsewhere known or conceived.”

–Jonathan Edwards, Charity and Its Fruits (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1852/2000), 19-20.

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“Humility” by Jonathan Edwards

“Let all be exhorted earnestly to seek much of a humble spirit, and to endeavor to be humble in all their behavior toward God and men. Seek for a deep and abiding sense of your comparative meanness before God and man.

Know God. Confess your nothingness and ill-desert before Him. Distrust yourself. Rely only on God. Renounce all glory except from Him. Yield yourself heartily to His will and service.

Avoid an aspiring, ambitious, ostentatious, assuming, arrogant, scornful, stubborn, wilful, levelling, self-justifying behaviour. And strive for more and more of the humble spirit that Christ manifested while He was on earth.

Consider the many motives to such a spirit. Humility is the most essential and distinguishing trait of all true piety. It is the attendant of every grace, and in a peculiar manner tends to the purity of Christian feeling. It is the ornament of the spirit.

It is the source of some of the sweetest exercises of Christian experience. It is the most acceptable sacrifice we can offer to God. It is the subject of the richest of His promises. It is the spirit with which He will dwell on earth, and which He will crown with glory in heaven hereafter.

Earnestly, then, and diligently and prayerfully cherish, a humble spirit, and God shall walk with you here below. And when a few more days shall have passed, He will receive you to the honours bestowed on His people at Christ’s right hand.”

–Jonathan Edwards, Charity and Its Fruits (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1852/2000), 155-156.

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“You were bought with a price” by D.A. Carson

“Christian leaders worthy of the name will constantly be aware that they owe fealty and devoted allegiance to only one Person: to the Lord who bought them.”

–D.A. Carson, The Cross and Christian Ministry, (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2004), 98.

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