| | A Consecrated Body by John Murray
Topic: | | Description: The physical body is not evil; the Roman Catholic church alleges that sin had its source in the body, when bodily appetites transgressed the dictates of reason; but Scripture teaches that the body is honorable: the body was created before the spirit, death is an evil because it separates the body and spirit, and the final step in redemption is the reuniting of body and spirit at the resurrection; Paul's practical exhortation accords to the body great importance in the process of sanctification; use of our body must be guided by what is pleasing to God; presenting our bodies for holy living is a service and devotion to God; use of the body must not be conformed to the present evil age; it is difficult to practice the Christian faith, because this evil age constantly pressures us to adopt its customs; but the present age will pass away, and if our conduct is patterned on this age it will bring us into perdition.
| | 3569 downloads | Rating:  /
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| | Afflictions of God's People by John Murray
Topic: | | Description: Jeremiah's devotion to the interests of the church; mysterious reasons for many dark providences; self-humiliation for sin; hope in God's mercy and faithfulness; God Himself is our portion; waiting on God during dark providences; God in holy sovereignty always does what is right; vindicating God in our afflictions.
| | 1183 downloads | | Rating: /
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| | Christ Among His People by John Murray
Topic: | | Description: Some have more respect for numbers than for God's presence among the assemblies of His people; when God's people assemble for worship they express the unity of Christ's body; those assemblies are the way that God's saving purposes are promoted in the world; expectation of Christ's permanent presence with his people in heaven gives incentive to gather together now in foretaste; Christ has graciously made provision for the minimum number in a particular place; “in his name” means that 1) they gather principally because Christ has commanded them to do so, 2) his people are united to Him in bonds of love and obedience, and 3) there must be unity in confessing Christ as Son of God; when we come together in this way we can be certain He will be present; if we go away disappointed it is not that he failed to keep his appointment to meet with us but because we failed in faith and expectation of His promise; to despise the day of small things is to despise God's presence with His people.
| | 1109 downloads | | Rating: /
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| | Death and Christ's Lordship by John Murray
Topic: | | Description: We should not be so attached to this world that we would be unwilling to be called out of this world; it is appropriate to pray that our life be prolonged so that we may labor for the interests of God's kingdom here, but something is radically wrong in our relationship to Christ if we cannot be resigned to being called out of this world; the preeminent desire of Paul was that Christ would return so that death would not be necessary at all, because it is not Christian to desire death as such; death itself is the wages of sin, and is the last enemy that will be destroyed by Christ; the disembodied state is the ideal in pagan thought, but the scriptural concept is that death will be swallowed up in the victory of the resurrection; the present body is a temporary abode, but the resurrection body is everlasting; the governing principle of Christian faith and love and hope is that we be well-pleasing to Christ; there is joy and liberty in commitment to Christ's absolute lordship.
| | 975 downloads | | Rating: /
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| | Eligibility for Communion by John Murray
Topic: | | Description: Who is eligible to partake of the Lord's Supper? The bread and wine are not only signs but also seals of our communion with Christ; this text gives four basic characteristics of those who are in communion with Christ: 1) they are called by God the Father into relationship to Christ, by an efficacious summons that initiates our possession of salvation, so that we belong to Christ; 2) they are called to be saints, everyone united to Christ by faith is a saint, consecrated to God and pure in character. What are our controlling ambitions with respect to holiness? 3) They exhibit obedience of faith, an enduring commitment to Christ as absolute Lord, whole-souled devotion that brings every thought captive to Christ; 4) they are beloved of God, who delights in those who reflect his own perfections, by nature we have nothing but God in sovereign grace makes us after his image in holiness. We must not drag down these standards of eligibility for communion which have been set by God.
| | 965 downloads | Rating:  /
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