Tag: daily devotional

  • Body of Divinity: Why Sound Doctrine Still Matters 

    I have been doing some reading in Thomas Watson’s “Body of Divinity”. Watson was a Puritan, and the “Divinity” is from his sermons on the Heidelberg Catechism, published after he died in 1776. It’s readily available for free from many sources online, including https://digitalpuritan.net/

    I’m not affiliated with them in any way and can’t endorse everything on their shelves, but they are a great source of free Puritan works. The Puritans get a bad rap in the world today, but they have much godly wisdom to impart.

    Spurgeon said,

    “Thomas Watson’s Body of Practical Divinity is one of the most precious of the peerless works of the Puritans; and those best acquainted with it prize it most. Watson was one of the most concise, racy, illustrative, and suggestive of those eminent divines who made the Puritan age the Augustan period of evangelical literature. There is a happy union of sound doctrine, heart-searching experience, and practical wisdom throughout all his works, and his Body of Divinity is, beyond all the rest, useful to the student and the minister.”

    Unlike some, I am a fan of catechisms and statements of faith. They should not in any way replace Scripture, and where they conflict, Scripture should always be trusted over them. They help articulate what the Scriptures teach. 

    In his introduction, Watson says,

    “It is the duty of Christians to be settled in the doctrine of faith. The best way for Christians to be settled is to be well-grounded”

    I have to agree. It is, of course, possible for someone to be so theologically minded that they miss out on God’s love and grace in their lives. For the vast majority of Christians, this isn’t a risk at all.

    The Bible is clear that we need to know what we believe, why we believe it, and why it matters.

    Our doctrine matters because our faith is grounded in a very specific message.

    For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures… 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 ESV

    Our destiny is grounded in truth.

    In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, Ephesians 1:13 ESV

    But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits[a] to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 ESV

    We’re called to share the truth in a world of competing views and false teachers. We need to do our best to proclaim the truth and that requires understanding.

    The gospel is a sacred trust. We don’t often think of the gospel in those terms, but it is true.

    Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. Jude 1:3 ESV

    Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. 2 Timothy 1:13-14 ESV

    How well have you been guarding the truth entrusted to you? We can all use improvement.

    Read the Word. Study the Word. Apply the Word.

    Kevin

    SUMMARY

    Reading Thomas Watson’s Body of Divinity reminded me that doctrine matters. My faith rests on one unchanging message I’m called to guard and pass on.

     

    TAKEAWAY

    Your faith doesn’t rest on a feeling. It rests on a fixed message: Christ died, was buried, and rose again, exactly as Scripture said.

    The gospel isn’t yours to reshape. It’s a sacred trust, and you’re called to guard it and pass it down intact.

    You won’t get settled in what you believe by accident. Being well grounded means knowing what you believe, why you believe it, and why it matters.

    Check these posts out

    Right belief or right living?

    Read the Word

    Whirlymagigs and the importance of Bible reading

    Celebrate your identity in Christ

    In between born again and glory

  • Deeply rooted in Christ

    When we visited Steveston last week, we spotted this deeply rooted tree along the shore of Scotch Pond. At high tide, the roots are completely underwater. Despite the hardship, the tree seems to be thriving.

    The Bible uses the imagery of being well rooted many times for good reason. Being deeply rooted gives reliance and protection. All of us are rooted in something.

    Every person has faith in something or someone that carries them through life. It might be religion, or money, or their looks, family name or a myriad of other things that you might think of. The problem is that at some point all of those things will fail you. Only rooting yourself in Christ will hold.

    The prophet Jeremiah reminds us of the blessings of being rooted in the Lord.

    “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,

    whose trust is the Lord.

    He is like a tree planted by water,

    that sends out its roots by the stream,

    and does not fear when heat comes,

    for its leaves remain green,

    and is not anxious in the year of drought,

    for it does not cease to bear fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7-8 ESV

    We see a similar theme in the Psalms

    Blessed is the man

    who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

    nor stands in the way of sinners,

    nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

    but his delight is in the law[b] of the Lord,

    and on his law he meditates day and night.

    He is like a tree

    planted by streams of water

    that yields its fruit in its season, 

    and its leaf does not wither.

    In all that he does, he prospers. Psalm 1:1-3 ESV

    Our roots grow deeper when our faith is tested, and Jesus carries us through.  A faith that has never been tested likely has very shallow roots. God gives us times of struggle to help us grow. He lets the parts of us we don’t like to admit are still there surface so we can deal with them. He puts tough people and situations in our way to teach us and send our roots deeper than ever.

    Christ never promised us an easy, trouble-free life. He gives us circumstances and situations to help us grow and become more like Him.

    It isn’t all hardship, but we can rejoice in good times or bad, high tide or low, knowing that having our roots in Jesus will hold us, and we are blessed.

    May your roots run deep.

    Kevin

    SUMMARY

    We spotted this tree along the shore of Scotch Pond in Steveston. At high tide, its roots disappear completely, and yet it keeps thriving.

    TAKEAWAY

    We might root our lives in money, looks, family name, or a dozen other things, but every one of those will eventually let us down.

    Jeremiah and Psalm 1 both picture the faithful as a tree planted by water, its leaves green even in drought.

    Our roots grow deepest not in the easy seasons but in the hard ones, because that’s when Christ proves He’ll hold.

    You might also like

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    Why everyone knows the truth

    Reflections on the image of God

    Body of Divinyty – Sound doctrine still matters