Thanks for listening to the latest podcast from Him We Proclaim with Pastor John Fonville. In this special series, we'll explore how the gospel speaks to our identity, our calling, and our confidence in Christ. Drawing from passages in Luke, Matthew, Ephesians, 1 Peter, and Jude, Pastor John unpacks themes like grace and vocation. The power of God's Word and the unshakable assurance we have in Christ's favor and goodness. Whether you're struggling with your calling, seeking clarity on your role in the church, or simply needing encouragement.
These messages will remind you of the sufficiency of Christ and the hope we have in the gospel. Stay tuned as we dive into today's message called The Struggle and Consolation of Scripture. You can take your scriptures and go to the book of Ephesians chapter 6. Ephesians chapter 6. We're gonna skip.
A couple of passages. Uh today doesn't morning, but go ahead and just turn to Ephesians chapter 6. While you do make this statement, the Christian life is characterized by struggle. The Christian life is characterized by struggle. In Ephesians chapter 6, verse 12, Paul writes this: He says, Look what he says.
He says, Mora, our struggle. That's it right there for our struggle. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against. Rulers against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. But look what Paul says.
He says, our struggle. The Christian life is a struggle. Look at Galatians chapter 5. Verse 17. And look what Paul says here.
He says that the Christian struggles against the flesh. He says, for the flesh. has desires that are opposed to the spirit. And the spirit has desires that are opposed to the flesh. hostile toward each other.
And he said that you cannot do what you want.
So it's this struggle against spiritual forces of wickedness. demonic forces, powerful evil forces that we struggle against, Paul says. And then Paul says, let's throw. Throw in your flesh. And you have this struggle, he says, you have this hostility, they're hostile towards each other.
The flesh desires, the Holy Spirit desires. And so you have this hostility. The struggle. This constant hostility, this constant struggle that we face is why the Christian life is hard. All right.
So for example, when we come to church and we're reminded that we have sinned and what? Thought word and deed. And we're very acutely aware of that. We have not loved God with our whole heart. Right.
loved each other or neighbor. Perfectly as ourselves. And so what happens is, as Christians, we have these struggles. We have these constant struggles that we face. Hence uh It becomes grievous at times because our slow progress in obedience just seems like this, this, just this constant.
bike tough mutter. Right. You're just stuck in the mud and you're just trying to grind it out. Paul tells us in the book of Romans, Romans chapter 7, that the process of sanctification and our consequent obedience from sanctification. He says that it's always imperfect.
Now, if you're a perfectionist and I Unfortunately, tend to have some of those tendencies. You just want everything to be just right, and that's not possible this side of eternity. It's just not. If you're a perfectionist, Romans chapter 7 is really tough to take. Because Paul says, this sign of eternity, this sign of resurrection.
Imperfection in this life is what we can expect. And so uh. We have this. constant characterization of a struggle. Can anybody in here identify with that?
If you can't. Talk to me afterwards. Or let's just go back to the beginning of the service and listen to the Great Commandment one more time. Love God perfectly, love your neighbor perfectly. That's the struggle right there.
But so what happens is, in the midst of these struggles, what we Yeah. is this. Consummation. Because contemplation carries us through the struggle. With hope.
With joy. Comfort.
So one of the most Common themes that I get from people who are Write to me. How podcasts or broadcasts that they've heard is how they struggle with a lack of comfort, a lack of consolation. Lack of assurance. I get these often, and I just wanted to share this letter with you. that I got from this soccer mom.
And this is what she said. She said, Hello, I've been listening to the podcast that you did with the allergy gals about. Lordship salvation. And she said, I'm almost in tears. I I am Mm-hmm.
lived under the teaching of lordship salvation for for almost 20 years. And I've never had assurance. Until this program. Twenty years. No assurance.
I can relate to that. She says this and she says, I can begin to tell you how grateful I am for this. Listen to this quote. I'm so relieved. I'm also slightly scared too because this is so opposite of what I've been taught my whole life.
Everything you talked about It's completely different from everything I've ever been taught. The topic of 1 John being a spiritual test. Work. And repentance that you have to do before you can come to Christ for salvation. I never understood how grace.
Grace alone were without works. can grant salvation.
So I thought I was just not mature enough to understand the relationship between the two. I was taught that if someone became a believer, Hmm. This is what we shouldn't do. We shouldn't be watching their lives very closely to make sure they're saved. to question your salvation.
And to question their salvation if you don't see that living righteously. And so she says, so I always felt judged. By other Christians, and she says, I wondered what they thought of me. Like as like as if I'm a real Christian. question.
Listen to this. It has been all. Yeah. Living. in this mindset.
For 20 years. It has been Awful. But Now I feel like a weight has been lifted off of me, and I can finally rest. in the assurance of Christ's love for me. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you. I cannot wait to look until I learn more of God's grace and goodness. Quite a ladder, isn't it? This letter that I got is not uncommon.
It's common. This is where, as Jerry Bridges says in his book, The Gospel from Real Life, he says, you find most people living lives of quiet desperation. It's no different. And what the reformers dealt with In the sixteenth century, There's a Got a little pamphlet that Ashley Knoll wrote. And it's fantastic and he describes very briefly what the mindset was of these medieval believers in the sixteenth century Listen to what he says.
He has walked into any medieval parish church, and above the chancel arch was a painting of Jesus as judge. It dominated the whole interior of the nave. There on high before every parishioner's eyes, Christ sat in judgment. He sat in judgment at the general resurrection, sending some people to the devils in hell, while sending others to being welcomed by angelic choirs into heaven. He has that.
The entire Medieval machinery Mm. the enti medieval piety was designed to shield the soul from Christ's doomsday. Anger. The constant threat of terror must have at times seemed oppressive. This this O present view of Christ as John and left the Christian in the 16th century.
Yeah. Also, as you just heard from the soccer mom in the 21st century, in a state of a state of weariness. Void of consolation, void of assurance, void of comfort. And so Nola points out in his book that over against this oppressive view of Christ is this angry judge sitting up in heaven, ready to condemn people every time they sin. He says that these English reformers wanted the English people to know that Christ was first and foremost.
A good shepherd. who brings back his lost sheep. by the power of his self-sacrificing love. A very different message. Because in the 16th century, that's a All those people heard, Christ is your judge.
You're going to stand before Christ and He condemns sinners and be afraid, be filled with terror, be oppressed. And this is what that soccer mom heard her whole life. You've got to repent. to being right with Christ. All right.
And so, this is why Thomas Cranner, who wrote the Book of Common Prayer. wrote these four comfortable words because People were coming into the reformers churches. They had never received comfort. You walk into the front door, and what do you see? This great, big, huge picture of Jesus.
Damning sinners to hell. Welcome to church, right? But they came into the church and they heard Thomas Cramner's Liturgy and they heard these four comp words, comfortable, concealing words. And this is what We're so different. It's like that sucker mom, she says.
I was a bit afraid because I had been taught something so different my whole life. And that's exactly what happened with these people in the 16th century. They came into the church and you go, this is.
so different. We have not heard this. What what did they hear? This is what Thomas Kretner said. He said, here.
Here, what comfortable words our Savior Christ says to all All who truly turn to him. What you hear him saying to sinners, come to me. Uh oh. labor and are heavy laden. And I will give you rest.
God's love world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him not perish but have everlasting life. The thing is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. And once again, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and he is. the propitiation for our sins. That's consolation.
Comfort, that's assurance. This is why this is important because Thomas Krettner understood that. This constitution is what we have to hear over and over and over. Why? Because our struggle never ends.
Richard said that's a great. Anglican theologian, he said this, he says, as when troubled in conscience for our sins, Satan. Ann or Is to present Christ to the afflicted soul as most severe judge. Armed with justice. He says, but Let us present him to our souls as offered to as an offering to our view of God himself holding out what a scepter of mercy.
But if like these medieval believers In the 16th century, we believe that the Christian faith is designed to shield us from Christ, who's this angry judge. Constantation will escape us. There's no comfort. Robert Trell, in his book on justification, he says this. It is impossible that there can be true and strong love fixed And that person from whom we dread the greatest evil.
What he's saying is this: if we just view God apart from Christ as this whole Harsh judge. You can't have comfort and you can't love God. As Ash Null points out, we cannot love God until we understand His self-sacrificing love for us in His Son. Why? What does Heidelberg Catechism question five remind us of?
It says this: as by nature, by our fallen nature, we're inclined to hate God and to hate our neighbor. What is it that makes me be inclined to love God and to love my neighbor? It's ha the incre It's having this view of Christ. Who holds out Mercy to us. That's where comfort comes from Now Let me help you understand this from Martin Luther's life.
His life illustrates this perfectly, just like that soccer mom's letter who wrote to me. Because, like so many medieval believers, Luther. understood God's righteousness didn't mean this. His active righteousness, which is his justice, his avenging justice, by which he punishes sin. And so he says, Because of God's righteousness, which punishes sinners and punishes sin, he says, I admit that I hated God.
But When he was sitting in the tower of the castle church at Wittenberg, He wasn't meditating on this text in the book of Romans about the righteousness of God. And just listen how this conversion took place from hating God to loving God. Being oppressed to Be in Freed. He says The oh. I live this mock without reproach.
I felt that I was a sinner before God with an extremely disturbed conscience. I could not believe that he was placated. by my satisfaction.
Well I didn't love God. I hated God. I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners. and secretly, if not blasphemously, I was angry with God. As if indeed it is not enough that miserable sinners eternally lost through original sin are crushed.
every kind of God's law. Without having God add pain to pain by the gospel, because they thought the gospel was just God's law. He's saying God has pain by the gospel, by the gospel threatening us. with his righteousness and his wrath.
So I rage with a fierce and troubled conscience. You think that's the struggle? Nevertheless, I beat importunately upon Paul at that place, most ardently desiring to know what St. Paul wanted. At last, by the mercy of God, meditating day and night, I gave heed to the context of these words: the righteousness of God.
Excuse me, in it, the gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed. As is written, he who through faith is righteous shall live. There, I began to understand that the righteousness of God is that by which the righteous lives by a gift of God, namely faith. And this It is The meaning. The righteousness of God is revealed by the gospel, namely this passing of righteousness with which the merciful God.
justifies us by faith. I felt Now, here's the change. Here I felt that I was altogether born again. And that entered paradise itself through open gates. They're a totally other face.
of the entire scripture showed itself to me. Let's go back to the soccer mom just for a moment. Listen to Washington Road. It has been awful living with this mindset. That's exactly what Luther was saying, It's the exact same mindset.
But she says, but I felt like a weight has been lifted off of me and I can find rest. in the assurance of Christ. The soccer mom is just saying what Luther said. This is what every Christian says, when in the midst of their struggle with sin, with the flesh, with the devil. They come to see Christ holding out to them a scepter of mercy.
They have a view of God in Christ. forgiving sin and being gracious to sinners. This comforting power of his self-sacrificing love. John says this, and this is love, not that we love God. But that he loved us.
and send His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. That's love. Hence Luther coming to understand this, went from hating God to loving God. He went from being oppressed by this disturbed conscience to entering, he says, Into the gates of paradise. He now viewed God not as this oppressive judge.
But as a Merciful God who justifies sinners by grace alone, through faith alone, and Christ alone. And just like Luther, just like this soccer mom who wrote to me. We have to be constantly reminded. of this gospel-consoling view of God. Why?
Because our sanctification in our consequent obedience I'm not sanctification. They're both imperfect in this life. Therefore, we struggle. And this is why we have to come and receive this. constant concentration over and over and over that our salvation is found in Christ.
By grace, Through faith. Period. That's it. That's consolation. Mm.
And as Luther says, this consolation is a gift of God. A God who is unspeakably gracious, just a couple weeks ago, I get this message from the book of Jude. Listen to God's promise again. Listen to this comfort. Think about your struggle and put your struggle into this promise.
Now to him who is able. Why? Because we're not able.
Now, to him who is able, who doesn't struggle, because we do struggle.
Now, to him who is able, because he's all-powerful, we're not all-powerful. And weak. To him who is able, who has no needs. But we have Tons of them. Put your struggle into God's promise.
Listen to this comfort. Now to him who is able, And I'll just paraphrase it like this. Through all your struggles and all your struggles. to him who was able to keep you from stumbling. And to make you stand.
In the presence of His glory, blameless. with great joy. That's comfort. That's making it to the end. That's assurance.
That's Consolation in the struggle. That's where we have to place our faith. That's where we have to take all our struggles. that we experience it in this life. and put them in God's promises.
Why is God a God of promise? Because God is a God of grace. And all of his promises Hmm. I'm His Grace. And if wasn't gracious, he wouldn't promise.
King who was able. He is able.
So as we reflect on this this Uh Almost contradiction of struggle, but consolation, these things that are hostile toward each other as we think about this as. Morning, remember this. Concentration. Comfort.
Like grace is received Not. Earned But because we have this legal disposition that remains within us in this life, we're prone to think of God's consolation, of his comfort to us, of his assurance to us, as conditioned upon our performance. But because consolation is based on grace. We have to learn this lesson. Uh earn his constellation and buy our performance.
First. And second, we don't lose his consolation or forfeit it. by our failures. This is what Jerry Bridges says in his book, The Disciplines of Grace. I think you've heard this before, but it's a great statement that he makes.
He says, Your worst days. And we've all had those, right? Your worst days are never so bad that you're beyond the reach of God's grace. And your best days are never so good that you're beyond the need. of God's grace.
You see, our consolation is based upon a promising God who is exceedingly gracious and faithful to keep his promises to us. And so he is. He is, as Nejude says, He is able to keep you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless. With great joy. Faultless.
Perfect.
So oh as Let me wrap this up this morning. Let's give attention to these comforting words. Which Thomas Kramner so beautifully wrote for us, as we'll hear again in just a moment. But listen to the gospel. Hear it.
Here. Hear the promises and take all your struggles and place them into God's promise. And here are these comfortable words that our Savior Christ says. those who turn to him. He says, Come to me.
All labor. and are heavy laden. And I will give you rest. God's love. Loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him not perish, but have everlasting life.
This anus trust. worthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners. And John says this, he says, if anyone sins, We have advocate. with the Father. Jesus Christ righteous.
He is the propitiation for Our sins. That's where we go in our struggle. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this. Consider the only comfort that you've given to us in your gospel.
We thank you for this simple yet profound truth that changes everything. We thank you for St. Louis. Lutheran like this soccer mom. who discovered that Christ is not this oppressive judge.
But is merciful God Forgiving sinners for Christ's sake. And I pray that you would help us to have this vision of God. placated before our eyes our faith today. And help us. Lord in our struggles that that we go through, that help us to take them and bring them in.
lay them. into your promises. and to place our faith. And the God who is able to keep us. and to present us.
Faultless, blameless. before your glory with great joy. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. John Fawnville sends his thanks for listening today.
And before we wrap up, can I tell you about an encouraging book you might want to get soon? It's called Hope and Holiness: How the Gospel Enables and Empowers Sexual Purity. You're not alone if you've tried to conquer sexual temptations and tried all the methods available only to find yourself feeling defeated again. This book may be just what you're looking for. With his shepherding heart, John shows that the gospel, not practical steps or more self-discipline, is God's provision for the power to live a life of sexual purity.
and it's available to every Christian. What I like is the book is available in three convenient ways. paperback, audiobook, or Kindle. The links are in our podcast descriptions or just search for Hope and Holiness by John Fonville on Amazon to get a copy for you and it's a wonderful book to go through with a small group. Him We Proclaim is a ministry of Paramount Church in Jacksonville, Florida.
You can find us at paramountchurch.com. We'll talk again soon.
