VFBC Blog - Valley Forge Baptist Church

Valley Forge Baptist Church

Why is Human Righteousness so Insufficient for Salvation?

4/26/2023

The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke 18:9–14 is rich with truth about the doctrine of justification by faith. It illustrates perfectly how a sinner who is utterly devoid of personal righteousness may be declared righteous before God instantaneously through an act of repentant faith. The parable is addressed to Pharisees who trusted their own righteousness (vv. 10, 11). Such confidence in one’s inherent righteousness is a damning hope (see Rom. 10:3; Phil. 3:9), because human righteousness—even the righteousness of the most fastidious Pharisee—falls short of the divine standard (Matt. 5:48). Scripture consistently teaches that sinners are justified when God’s perfect righteousness is imputed to their account (see Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4:4, 5; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 3:4–9)—and it was only on that basis that this tax collector (or anyone else) could be saved.
For the Pharisee to fast twice a week (v. 12) was more than is required by any biblical standard. By exalting his own works, the Pharisee revealed that his entire hope lay in his not being as bad as someone else. He utterly lacked any sense of his own unworthiness and sin.
The tax collector’s humility is notable in everything about his posture and behavior (v. 13). Here was a man who had been made to face the reality of his own sin, and his only response was abject humility and repentance. He contrasts with the Pharisee in virtually every detail. “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” He had no hope but the mercy of God. This is the point to which the law aims to bring every sinner (see Rom. 3:19, 20; 7:13; Gal 3:22–24). He was “justified” (v. 14), i.e., reckoned righteous before God by means of an imputed righteousness.

Continuing on in our Study of Colossians 3:9-19 - Putting on the New Man (P3)

4/20/2023

We explored the truth that Laying as the base, the Foundation of our response to God’s free, sovereign grace is His plan and initiative. We said that Because of God’s election, believers are holy and beloved. We said that the Greek word used is ‘Hagios’ (holy) that means “set apart,” or “separate.” God chose believers out of the mainstream of mankind and drew them to Himself. They are to be different from the world. Our conclusion was that when believers fail to act differently from the world, they violate the very purpose of their calling.

Click the link below to listen:
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https://youtu.be/yWp1qQgh11c

History - Calvin’s Mentor (Selected Passages)

4/13/2023

Few assume greatness by themselves. Behind the scenes often lies an older mentor, watching with pride. John Calvin exists as a hero in church history because of Guillaume Farel.
Farel was a traveling evangelist in France, full of fire and fury. He was likened to Elijah and was called the “scourge of priests.” He considered the pope the Antichrist and viewed the Mass as nothing but idolatry. Priests, wishing him dead, carried weapons under their cloaks to assassinate him. After one attempt on his life, he whirled around and faced the priest who had fired the errant bullet. “I am not afraid of your shots,” he roared.
He was small, sunburned, fiery, and powerful. His sermons were cannon blasts, and his oratory captivated the nation. He often said too much, and one friend cautioned him, “Your mission is to evangelize, not to curse.”
On April 12, 1523 Farel was forbidden to preach in France. He fled to Switzerland and wandered from town to town, turning stumps and stones into pulpits. When he entered Geneva, the city fathers and priests tried to make him leave. “Who invited you?” they demanded. Farel replied:

I have been baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and am not a devil. I go about preaching Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification. Whoever believes in him will be saved; unbelievers will be lost. I am bound to preach to all who will hear. I am ready to dispute with you, to give an account of my faith and ministry. Elijah said to King Ahab, “It is thou, and not I, who disturbest Israel.” So I say, it is you and yours, who trouble the world by your traditions, your human inventions, and your dissolute lives.

He was ridiculed, beaten, shot at, and abused. But he wouldn’t give up on Geneva. Several years later when young John Calvin came passing through, Farel spotted him and gave him a place to minister—and, as it turns out, a place in church history.

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Ahab went to meet Elijah, and when he saw him, Ahab shouted, “There you are, the biggest troublemaker in Israel!” Elijah answered, “You’re the troublemaker—not me! You and your family have disobeyed the Lord’s commands by worshiping Baal.” 1 Kings 18:16b-18
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Psalm 18 - A Joyous, Grateful Psalm

4/11/2023

David wrote psalm 18 after the Lord had delivered him from the hand of Saul and all his enemies. It is a joyous, grateful psalm. Some of the same themes we found in Psalms 16 and 17 are repeated here. But among the new elements in this psalm are the following.
First, the language of this psalm abounds in colorful nature metaphors (especially in vv. 7–15)—a fairly common feature of Hebrew poetry. When God answered, “the earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook”; “smoke rose from his nostrils,” and fire from his mouth. “He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet” (18:7–9); alternatively, “He mounted the cherubim and flew; he soared on the wings of the wind” (18:10). “The Lord thundered from heaven,” his voice resounded; “he shot his arrows … great bolts of lightning.” The “valleys of the sea were exposed” at the blast from the Lord’s nostrils (18:13–14).
This is marvelous. Just because these are not the metaphors we commonly use today does not mean we cannot appreciate them, or grasp what the psalmist is telling us. God’s power is ineffable; he controls even nature itself, which simply does his bidding; the most terrifying displays of power in nature are nothing more than the results of his commands. The metaphorical language can extend to how the Lord rescued David: “he drew me out of deep waters” (18:16)—though of course David was not in danger of literal drowning. But it must have felt like it more than once, when Saul and the army were hot on his trail.
Second, while many lines in this psalm describe in wonderful, sometimes metaphorical language how God has helped David, others picture God strengthening David to enable him to do what he had to do. “With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall” (18:29). “It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great” (18:32–35).
Perhaps God does not strengthen us to make war. But in a theistic universe, we confess God gives us strength to write computer programs, to sort out administrative problems, to change yet another diaper, to study the Greek text of the New Testament, to bear up under insult.

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“The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!” (18:46).
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The Flying Scotsman (Christian History)

4/9/2023

Eric Liddell was a missionary kid born in China. At age seven his parents enrolled him in a boarding school in Britain, and he spent most of his childhood separated from them. But school officials encouraged him to devote himself to sports, and young Eric soon developed an athlete’s physique. He also began flexing his spiritual muscles, rising early each day to meet the Lord in prayer and Bible study.
When Eric entered the university he broke one record after another in sporting events. His sister wrote their parents in China, saying, “Every week he brings home prizes. We’ve nowhere to put them all.” As his fame grew an innovative Scottish evangelist named D. P. Thomson eyed him as an intriguing prospect for the ministry. He invited Eric to share his testimony with a group of men in Armadale, and on April 6, 1923 Liddell made his debut in public evangelism. By the time he arrived at the Paris Olympics that summer, Eric was known worldwide as a powerful athlete and as an outspoken Christian who, despite refusing to race on Sundays, could win the gold.
But fame didn’t stop him from following his parents to China. He arrived there as a missionary in 1925. When the Japanese invaded in 1937, he remained; and in 1943 he found himself interned in a camp outside Peking. Conditions were horrible. Eric ministered day-by-day, praying with the sick, coaching the children, witnessing to the lost. At times, though, his head throbbed. He began visibly weakening. On February 21, 1945, he died. An autopsy revealed a massive brain tumor.
A camp survivor was asked the reason for Liddell’s influence at the camp. She replied that every morning at 6 a.m. he would rise and light the peanut-oil lantern on the little dormitory table just enough to illumine his Bible and notebook. There he would silently meet God at the start of each new day. It was the Flying Scotsman’s lifelong habit, she said, and the secret of his power.

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I have not yet reached my goal, and I am not perfect. But Christ has taken hold of me. So I keep on running and struggling to take hold of the prize. … I forget what is behind, and I struggle for what is ahead. I run toward the goal, so that I can win the prize of being called to heaven. Philippians 3:12-14a
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Tree of Shame - The Horror and Honor of Good Friday

4/7/2023

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…Even death on a cross.
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The apostle dares to add this obscenity as the low point of his Lord’s self-humbling. Jesus “humbled himself,” Paul says, “by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8).
Today, with crosses on our steeples, and around our necks, we scarcely perceive the original scandal of such a claim. But to any new hearer in the first century, Jew or Greek, Paul’s words were almost unimaginable. Crucified?
We grimace today at the thought of nails being driven through human hands and feet. We squirm at a crown of thorns pressed into the brow, piercing the skin, sending blood streaming down the face. And once these violent acts had torn flesh and bone, the pain of crucifixion had only begun. Hours later, many bled out; others died of asphyxiation, eventually too decimated to even breathe. This was not just death, but torture unto death. It was nauseatingly gruesome.
But not only was it calculated to amplify and prolong physical pain; it was designed, almost psychotically, or diabolically, to utterly shame the victim. The horror of the cross was not only that it was done, but that it was done to be seen. It was not only literally excruciating but humiliating in the extreme.
Some of us might find the tune of “The Old Rugged Cross” too light for the weight of Good Friday, but the second line of George Bennard’s 1913 lyrics captures well the significance of the cross in the ancient world: “the emblem of suffering and shame.”

The Same Spiritual Meat and Drink (1 Cor 10:3-4)

4/5/2023

By: Reformer Martin Luther

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(They) did all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink.
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Among us one element (bread) alone is not to be offered to the communicant; he who wants the Lord’s Supper should receive the whole of it. We have preached and practiced this long enough and cannot assume that there should be any one unable to understand it; yet if there be one so dense, or claiming to be so weak that he cannot grasp the true meaning of it, we will excuse him; it is just as well that he remain away. For any one to hear God’s Word so long, to have himself coddled like a child, and after all to continue saying, I do not understand, is not a good sign. For it is impossible for you to hear so long and still be unenlightened; since then you remain blind it is better for you not to receive the Lord’s Supper. If you cannot grasp the Word that is plain, clear and certain, you can not grasp the sacrament; for the sacrament would be nothing, if there were no Word.
Moreover this Word has now resounded again and again throughout the world, so that even they who oppose it know it. These, however, are not weak but obdurate and hardened; they set their heads against the doctrine which they hear us prove from the Scriptures with such clearness that they are unable to reply or establish the contrary. Therefore it is out of the question for us any longer to yield or to endure them, since they defy us and maintain as their right what they teach and practice. We wish to receive both elements in the Lord’s Supper, just because they wish to prevent us from having them. The thought of causing offense no longer applies to them. The Roman bishops have forbidden both elements as contrary to God’s ordinance and command. If now we wish to confess Christ we must receive both elements, so that the people may know that we are Christians and abide by the Word of God. When we go to the Lord’s Supper people can see who they are that have heard the gospel; they can observe whether we lead Christian lives. So this is a distinct mark whereby we are recognized, whereby we also confess the name of God and show that we are not ashamed of his Word.

Why are our Choices in Life so Important? (Selected Passages)

4/3/2023

In Deuteronomy 30:11–14, after remembering the failures of the past and the prospects for the future, Moses earnestly admonished the people to make the right choice. The issue facing them was to enjoy salvation and blessing by loving God so wholeheartedly that they would willingly live in obedience to His word. The choice was simple, yet profound. It was stated in simple terms so that they could understand and grasp what God expected of them (v. 11). Although God had spoken from heaven, He had spoken through Moses in words every person could understand (v. 12). Neither did they have to search at some point beyond the sea (v. 13). The truth was there, through Moses, now in their hearts and minds (v. 14). All the truth necessary for choosing to love and obey God and thus avoid disobedience and cursing, they had heard and known (v. 15).
In v. 15, Moses pinpoints the choice—to love and obey God is life and good; to reject God is death and evil. If they chose to love God and obey His word, they would enjoy all God’s blessings (v. 16). If they refused to love and obey Him, they would be severely and immediately punished (vv. 17, 18). Paul, in speaking about salvation in the New Testament, makes use of this appeal made by Moses (Rom. 10:1–13). Like Moses, Paul is saying that the message of salvation is plain and understandable.
So “choose life” (v. 19). Moses forces the decision, exhorting Israel on the plains of Moab before God (heaven) and man (earth) to choose, by believing in and loving God, the life available through the New Covenant (see v. 6). Sadly, Israel failed to respond to this call to the right choice (see 31:16–18, 27–29). Choosing life or death was also emphasized by Jesus. The one who believed in Him had the promise of eternal life, while the one who refused to believe faced eternal death (see John 3:1–36). Every person faces this same choice.

Video - The Resurrection of Jesus Christ: Myth, Hoax or History” (P1)

4/3/2023

In mid-First Century AD we find Paul preaching in Athens, Greece and speaking of the truth of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ in the face of multiple false doctrines and Philosophies held forth by the unredeemed in that place. We begin here, looking at the steps Paul uses to start his argument in the face of their blasphemous unbelief.

To take a look just click the link below:

https://youtu.be/m6BVWaLDPXs

Understanding the Justice of God (Matthew 20:28)

3/31/2023

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“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
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Why the cross? Why didn’t God simply say, “Look, everyone, I know you have sinned against Me, but I am going to pardon you right now. It’s okay. I forgive all of you!”
God didn’t do that because it doesn’t work with His nature and character. The justice of God requires obedience and sacrifice. He could not accept us into fellowship with Himself unless we paid the penalty—or someone paid it on our behalf.
Romans 3:25 tells us, “For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past” (NLT).
The cross demonstrates the justice of God. At the cross of Calvary, the love and justice of God met. Yes, God had to satisfy His justice. The Scriptures say, “The person who sins is the one who will die” (Ezekiel 18:20 NLT), “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23 NLT), and “without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22 NLT).
God was saying, “My righteous requirements must be met. But I love humanity, and there is no way they can do it on their own. So, I must help them.” Therefore, He sent Jesus to bridge the gap.
This is why Jesus Christ is the only way to God. People like to say that all roads lead to God. It really concerns me when I hear Christians parrot statements to that effect. There is only one path. There is only one way. If that were not true, then why did Jesus have to die? If all roads lead to God, then why did Jesus go through the anguish, torture, and pain of the cross?

The primary reason Jesus came to this earth
was to die for our sins.