The Godly Man's Picture

Thomas Watson’s classic The Godly Man’s Picture was one of the first puritan books I read. Here is a short section about a godly man’s love for the Bible.

A godly man shows his love to the Word written:

(a) By diligently reading it. The noble Bereans "searched the Scriptures daily" (Acts 17:11). Apollos was mighty in the Scriptures (Acts 18:12). The Word is our Magna Carta for heaven; we should be daily reading over this charter. The Word shows what is truth and what is error. It is the field where the pearl of price is hidden. How we should dig for this pearl! A godly man's heart is the library to hold the Word of God; it dwells richly in him (Col. 3:16). It is reported of Melanchthon that when he was young, he always carried the Bible with him and read it greedily. The Word has a double work: to teach us and to judge us. Those who will not be taught by the Word shall be judged by the Word. Oh, let us make ourselves familiar with the Scripture! What if it should be as in the times of Diocletian, who commanded by proclamation that the Bible be burned? Or as in Queen Mary's days, when it spelled death to have a Bible in English? By diligent conversing with Scripture, we may carry a Bible in our heads.

(b) By frequently meditating on it: "It is my meditation all the day" (Psa. 119:97). A pious soul meditates on the truth and holiness of the Word. He not only has a few transient thoughts, but leaves his mind steeping in the Scripture. By meditation, he sucks from this sweet flower and ruminates on holy truths in his mind.

(c) By delighting in it. It is his recreation: "Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart." (Jer 15:16) Never did a man take such delight in a dish that he loved as the prophet did in the Word. And indeed, how can a saint choose but take great pleasure in the Word? All that he ever hopes to be worth is contained in it. Does not a son take pleasure in reading his father's will and testament, in which he bequeaths his estate to him?

(d) By hiding it: "Your word I have hidden in my heart" (Psa 119:11) - as one hides a treasure so that it should not be stolen. The Word is the jewel; the heart is the cabinet where it must be locked up. Many hide the Word in their memory, but not in their heart. And why would David enclose the Word in his heart? "That I might not sin against you." As a man would carry an antidote about him when he comes near an infected place, so a godly man carries the Word in his heart as a spiritual antidote to preserve him from the infection of sin. Why have so many been poisoned with error, others with moral vice, but because they have not hidden the Word as a holy antidote in their heart?

(e) By defending it. A wise man will not let his land be taken from him but will defend his title. David looked upon the Word as his land of inheritance: "Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart." (Psa 119:111) And do you think he will let his inheritance be wrested out of his hands? A godly man will not only dispute for the Word but die for it: "I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God." (Rev 6:9)

(f) By preferring it above things most precious: (1) Above food: "I have treasured the words of His mouth More than my necessary food." (Job. 23:12). (2) Above riches: "The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of coins of gold and silver." (Psa. 119:72). (3) Above worldly honour. Memorable is the story of King Edward the Sixth. On the day of his coronation, when they presented three swords before him, signifying to him that he was monarch of three kingdoms, the king said, "There is still one sword missing." On being asked what that was, he answered, "The Holy Bible, which is the 'sword of the Spirit' and is to be preferred before these ensigns of royalty."

(f) By talking about it: "My tongue shall speak of your word." (Psa. 119:172). As a covetous man talks of his rich purchase, so a godly man speaks of the Word. What a treasure it is, how full of beauty and sweetness! Those whose mouths the devil has gagged, who never speak of God's Word, indicate that they never reaped any good from it.

(g) By conforming to it. The Word is his compass, by which he sets his life, the balance in which he weighs his actions. He copies out the Word in his daily walk: "I have kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7). St Paul kept the doctrine of faith, and lived the life of faith.

Psalm 86:15

I forgot to post it earlier but here is our fighter verse for the month:

But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. Psalm 86:15

I already have it memorized. It did not take very long. You can do it!

Every child is totally depraved

The Quote below is from one John Angell James. I have found him to be quite helpful in things relating to church polity. His book The Church Members Guide was a great help to me over the years to come to a place of understanding God's plan for the church. The quote is from a different book, The Sunday School Teachers Guide. Imagine saying what he says to a group of Sunday School teachers in most churches today. You might not have a pleasant experience, which proves his point well.

It is important for you, in all your exertions (principally teaching children in Sunday School), to bear in mind the total and universal depravity of the human race.

By total depravity, I do not mean that people are as bad as they can be; for in general they lie under strong restraints--and most do not sin with reckless abandonment. I do not mean that they are all equally wicked; for some are less sinful than others. I do not mean that they are destitute of everything useful, and lovely in society; for their social affections are often strong and praiseworthy. I do not mean that their actions are always wrong; the contrary is manifestly true.

What I mean by total depravity, is an entire destitution in the human heart by nature--of all spiritual affection, and holy propensities. In this view, every child is totally depraved.

To change this state of the mind, and produce a holy bias; to create a new disposition; to turn all the affections into a new channel, and cause them to flow towards God and heaven, is the work of the omnipotent and eternal Spirit!

(J. A. James, "The Sunday School Teacher's Guide" 1816)

What is a Healthy Church?

Would you know a healthy church if you saw it? Is it a large building with lots of people? Is it a socially conscious community? Does it have contemporary music? Is the Bible opened and read through with thoughts given on each passage? Does it have a good children’s ministry? None of these questions really gets to the heart of what is a healthy church.

What is a Healthy Church? That is the title of the book of the month for June. It is by Mark Dever, Pastor of the historic Capital Hill Baptist Church in Washington D.C. In it he explains what the nine marks of a healthy church are. Expositional Preaching, Biblical Theology, Church Membership, Church Discipline, Discipleship and Growth are some of the areas of discussion. He also covers such issues as when you should or shouldn’t leave a church, what a true church is and is not, and what your church says about your Christianity.

With a keen insight into the Bible and the heart of a Pastor Mark Dever helps believers to understand just what Jesus expects of His Church. A healthy church is a Biblical church. A healthy church is fulfilling its God given role in the lives of the Saints. A healthy church points people to Christ and His gospel. A healthy church exists for God’s glory.

All of Mercy

From Matthew Henry's comments on the parable of the prodigal son.

"His father saw him-- there were eyes of mercy;
he ran to meet him-- there were legs of mercy;
he put his arms round his neck-- there were arms of mercy;
he kissed him-- there were kisses of mercy;
he said to him-- there were words of mercy;
Bring here the best robe-- there were deeds of mercy;

Wonders of mercy-- all mercy!

Oh, what a God of mercy he is!

Oh, what a precious reception for one of the chief of sinners!"


This kind of mercy we often take for granted. Tonight as I read it I was struck with the thought of God' s redeeming love for such a sinner as I. If I were to receive what I deserve, I would receive Hell. Yet for His own glory He has chosen to save me from this fate and place me into His beautiful kingdom. Amazing!

But God continues to express and deluge me with with such mercy as I seek to follow Him down the Narrow Road. I can't make it. He has. I stumble. He stands. I despair. He is steadfast. I am week. He is strong.

I will arrive safely home. Jesus has promised me this (John14:3). And when I get there He will continue to pour out His grace and mercy upon me forever.

Ephesians 2:5-7 "even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."

Amen! Come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Book of the Month

I have heard stories from Spurgeon to Jim Cymbala about the effectiveness of their preaching being directly related to the prayers of their church members. I think that there is truth to this line of thinking. God, through prayer, inflames the affections of His people with with His own passion. Because God has seen fit to reveal Himself through the folly of preaching, He works into His saints a love for preaching. We should then expect to be a people who pray for our pastors and their sermon each week.

That brings me to the book of the month this month. "Praying for Sunday" by Dr. Michael Fabarez is a challenging little book. In it we are exhorted to pray earnestly for the transformational proclamation and eager reception of God's Word each and every Sunday. Bryan Chapell, President of Covenant Theological Seminary, says "When God's people pray for their pastor to be equipped for such moments, then preaching becomes something truly supernatural. The preacher will be strengthened by such prayer, and the people will hear sermons as they have never before have."

So this is not just a book for my benefit, as the Pastor, but for the entire congregation. My hope is that every member of our church would get a copy of "Praying for Sunday" an put it into practice. We will be a deeper, healthy, more mature, in love with Jesus, preaching loving church for it.

A thought from Calvin

"Now there is a fear which would most willingly flee from the judgment of God but which, being unable to do so, dreads it more than ever. True godliness does not lie here. It consists, rather, of a pure and true zeal which loves God as a real Father and looks up to Him as a real Lord; it embraces His righteousness and detests offending Him more than it does dying.

And all those who have this zeal do not set about rashly fabricating a god in line with their own wishes. Instead they seek the knowledge of the true God from God Himself, and do not conceive of Him as being different from what He reveals Himself to be and what He makes known to them."

These words from the pen of John Calvin in his book A Truth for all Time (which is actually the original edition of the Institutes) caught my attention this afternoon. I have known many Christians that "hear from God". Whether this is a "peace" about a situation or the Lord "impressing" something on our hearts, it is all "fabricating a god in line with their own wishes." When pressed these folks usually admit that whatever they "felt" is not as authoritative as the Word of God and yet many are making decisions based on these subjective feelings rather than on the wisdom that comes from the Bible.

Those who have an awe-filled, God saturated vision of life are those who are spending the most time looking into the place where He has already revealed Himself, in the pages of sacred Scripture. The Word of God has everything that we need for life and godliness. Seek to know God more by carefully studying the Bible. Learn more fully from Him in His Book and leave the feelings and impressions to the foolish and thoughtless opinions of the falsely spiritual. They are an offense to God. We however would rather die than to risk offending our Father.