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From the Pastors at Joy

From the Pastors at Joy

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He Breaks the Power of Cancelled Sin

Romans 8:1-2 describe two precious blessings that come to us in Christ. In Christ there is no condemnation. This blessing deals with our objective freedom from the penalty of sin. And in Christ, we are set free from the law of sin. This blessing deals with our subjective freedom from the rule or tyranny of sin. Both come to us by virtue of being united with (i.e., in) Chri...

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Why Do Free People Continue in Sin?

In a blog post last week, we considered from Romans 8:2 that in Christ, believers have been set free from the law of sin and death. I ended that post by asking: what exactly is this freedom? If we are free, why do we still find such a struggle with sin inside of us? Does that ongoing struggle mean that I am not really free, and maybe even, not in Christ? These are the ques...

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Therefore

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Those are sweet words to the ears and hearts of those who believe in Jesus Christ! And the adverb "therefore" causes us to ask what came before it. Paul is basically saying, "In light of all that, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Why is there no condemnation? What is hi...

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Law of Spirit, Law of Sin

Among the abundant blessings that come to those who are in Christ Jesus (see last week’s blog post) is freedom from the law of sin and death: "For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death." So here is another blessing that comes to us in Christ: in verse 1, there is the blessing of justification (no condemnation in God...

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How Do We Become "in Christ"?

Romans 8 begins and ends with reference to some of the wonderful blessings that come to those who are in Christ Jesus:...

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No Condemnation, NOW

Romans 8 begins with the triumphant declaration, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Why does Paul say there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ? I would not have missed that word had it been omitted: “There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ.” That is such wonderful news that I would not have...

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Reading the Bible in 2015

As a new year dawns on us, I want to again take the time to encourage you to give yourselves to the regular habit and discipline of reading the Scriptures daily. Last year as a church we used a reading plan that took us through the New Testament over the course of the year. I’d like to encourage us to a bit more this year, though I’m mindful that no one plan is going t...

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The Bible and Slavery

In preaching on Titus 2:1-10 yesterday, I mentioned that I did not have time to dig into the use of the word "slaves," in verse 10, which is oftentimes troubling for readers of the Bible. It seems as though Paul is "ok" with the practice of slavery, in that he just instructs the slaves about how to carry out their work in a God-glorifying way. Though I didn't have time to...

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New Sermon Series: Grace Unto Godliness

In the movie It’s a Wonderful Life, George Bailey is a weary, broken man who, through no fault of his own, is going to be declared bankrupt. He stands on the town bridge, about to commit suicide. But then his guardian angel intervenes. The angel gives him a vision of what life would have been like if he’d never lived. He sees that his life counts, that it has...

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The Cry of a Calmed Heart

Yesterday I preached on Psalm 131, and David's calm and quieted heart. I mentioned a quote from David Powlison that put some flesh and blood on what a "noisy" heart sounds like. In hindsight, I wished I would have also referred to this short meditation from Paul Tripp, which I believe is a wonderful picture of a calmed, quieted soul. It's taken from his book, A Shelter ...

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