You have to be prepared for the possibility that God does not like you.

Check out "The Culture Culture", an excellent and convicting post on the prevalent biblical theme of differentiation, or antithesis, between God's people and the world, including contemporary applicability.


An excerpt:

"The difference, the antithesis, between us and the world isn’t that they have sin issues while we do not. The difference is two-fold. First, our sins have already been covered. Jesus died for them, and the Father is not angry with us. Second, we are committed to finding them out, rather than hiding them. Isn’t it gracious of God then to give us the glaring shamelessness of the world to make our own sins more known to us? May He in turn give us eyes to see."  ~R. C. Sproul, Jr.

READ "The Culture Culture"

To him, all good things, trout as well as eternal salvation, came by grace and grace comes by art, and art does not come easy.

As I cited in Sunday's sermon, a solid and succinct quote from Johnny Mac regarding the "grace of Christ" (e.g., Gal 1:6):

“The grace of Christ is God’s free and sovereign act of love and mercy in granting salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus, apart from anything men are or can do, and of His sustaining that salvation to glorification.”

Earn this.

What's wrong with this picture?Is this the right message to send to kids?

Of course, far too many adults have bought into the "God loves me when/because I'm worthy" tomfoolery as well.

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
-Romans 5:6-8, ESV

Like the song says, "For He alone is worthy, Christ the Lord."

At Providence Church this morning we're going to be partaking of the Lord's Supper, which is specifically for a people who recognize their need for God's grace because of their sins. The Lord's Supper is for a penitent people, who repent of their failings as they cling to Christ.

Consequently, at Providence Church we humbly pray together:

"We do not presume to come to this, Your table, merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in Your manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under Your table."

The Lord's Supper, like Christianity in general, is not for those who are worthy, but for those who realize they are not, but He is. The proud and/or worthy need not apply.