Breaking the Yoke of Sin

Excellent sermon by Tim Keller, from James 1, Breaking The Yoke Of Sin - YouTube. For ministers especially. 

What is your "fatal attraction" (wanting things badly)? What do I love more than God?…. Answer to temptation? "Fall in love with Jesus. Look at what He has done." 

Thomas Chalmers wrote: “The only way to break the hold of a beautiful object on the soul is to show it an object even more beautiful.” 

Keller says, You can’t just say no when you find out sin is due to the fact that your imagination has been captured by something. Therefore, the answer to temptation is spiritual passion, not just negation, not just discipline, not just to say no. You have to fall in love with Somebody.

Read also The Expulsive Power of a New Affection

Making us think….

・Japan once considered switching its national language to English — Quartz

・The Non-Negotiables of Gospel-Shaped Congregational Worship　“There is one mediator (Jesus Christ). There is one person who is leading us into the presence of God—and it’s not a guy on the stage with an acoustic guitar singing a really good song.” Mike Cosper

・Read Rachael Denhollander's full victim impact statement about Larry Nassar - CNN Here's a key portion from it: 

You have become a man ruled by selfish and perverted desires, a man defined by his daily choices repeatedly to feed that selfishness and perversion. You chose to pursue your wickedness no matter what it cost others and the opposite of what you have done is for me to choose to love sacrificially, no matter what it costs me.

In our early hearings. you brought your Bible into the courtroom and you have spoken of praying for forgiveness. And so it is on that basis that I appeal to you. If you have read the Bible you carry, you know the definition of sacrificial love portrayed is of God himself loving so sacrificially that he gave up everything to pay a penalty for the sin he did not commit. By his grace, I, too, choose to love this way.

You spoke of praying for forgiveness. But Larry, if you have read the Bible you carry, you know forgiveness does not come from doing good things, as if good deeds can erase what you have done. It comes from repentance which requires facing and acknowledging the truth about what you have done in all of its utter depravity and horror without mitigation, without excuse, without acting as if good deeds can erase what you have seen this courtroom today.

If the Bible you carry says it is better for a stone to be thrown around your neck and you throw into a lake than for you to make even one child stumble. And you have damaged hundreds.

The Bible you speak carries a final judgment where all of God's wrath and eternal terror is poured out on men like you. Should you ever reach the point of truly facing what you have done, the guilt will be crushing. And that is what makes the gospel of Christ so sweet. Because it extends grace and hope and mercy where none should be found. And it will be there for you.

I pray you experience the soul crushing weight of guilt so you may someday experience true repentance and true forgiveness from God, which you need far more than forgiveness from me -- though I extend that to you as well.

Throughout this process, I have clung to a quote by C.S. Lewis, where he says, my argument against God was that the universe seems so cruel and unjust. But how did I get this idea of just, unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he first has some idea of straight. What was I comparing the universe to when I called it unjust?

Larry, I can call what you did evil and wicked because it was. And I know it was evil and wicked because the straight line exists. The straight line is not measured based on your perception or anyone else's perception, and this means I can speak the truth about my abuse without minimization or mitigation. And I can call it evil because I know what goodness is. And this is why I pity you. Because when a person loses the ability to define good and evil, when they cannot define evil, they can no longer define and enjoy what is truly good.

When a person can harm another human being, especially a child, without true guilt, they have lost the ability to truly love. Larry, you have shut yourself off from every truly beautiful and good thing in this world that could have and should have brought you joy and fulfillment, and I pity you for it. You could have had everything you pretended to be. Every woman who stood up here truly loved you as an innocent child, real genuine love for you, and it did not satisfy.

I have experienced the soul satisfying joy of a marriage built on sacrificial love and safety and tenderness and care. I have experienced true intimacy in its deepest joys, and it is beautiful and sacred and glorious. And that is a joy you have cut yourself off from ever experiencing, and I pity you for it.

Sobibor and Denmark: World War 2

See Escape From Sobibor 1987 - YouTube free. During World War 2, around 600 Jews attempted a mass escape from a death camp. About 50 survived. It is very difficult to watch, but the end is hopeful. Resistance to evil is worth it.

Psalm 10:12, "Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand; forget not the afflicted."


In Denmark, the Nazis were attempting to implement the Danish Solution. However, 95% of more than 7,000 Jews were saved from the Nazis, and Christian faith made the difference. Pastor Dean Johannes Nordentoft, Oct. 1943 said, “Christians will be the first to fight this dirty anti-Semitism.” Pastor Ivar Lange of Frederiksberg Church, October 3, 1943, “I tell you that I would rather die with the Jews than live with the Nazis.” Kaj Munk, Danish Minister, Oct. 1943, “When here in this country pogroms have been started against a special group of our fellow countrymen, only because they belong to a special race, then the church has a right to cry out. This is breaking the constitution of Christ’s kingdom and is abominable to the Nordic way of thinking. The church must here be indefatigable.”

Though the badge (the Star of David) was not introduced in Denmark, King Christian X chose to side with the Jews. “The Jews are a part of the Danish nation.  We have no Jewish problem in our country because we never had an inferiority complex in relation to the Jews.  If the Jews are forced to wear the yellow Star, I and my whole family shall wear it as a badge of honor.”

Here is the protest by Danish Bishop Fuglsang-Damgaard against the proposed deportation of Danish Jews. It was read in Danish churches on Sunday, October 3, 1943. “We understand by freedom of religion the right to exercise our faith in God in accordance with vocation and conscience, and in such a way that race and religion can never in themselves be a reason for depriving a man of his rights, freedom, or property.  Despite different religious views, we shall therefore struggle to insure the continued guarantee to our Jewish brothers and sisters of the same freedom we ourselves treasure more than life itself. The leaders of the Danish Church have a clear understanding of the duty to be law-abiding citizens and would never revolt needlessly against those who exercise the functions of authority over us—but our conscience obliges us at the same time to maintain the law and to protest against any violation of rights.  We will therefore unambiguously declare our allegiance to the doctrine that bids us obey God more than man.”

This is a letter to German Führer Adolf Hitler in Denmark on Oct. 3, 1943. Signed by Danish Bishops also read in church. “We will never forget that the Lord Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem of the Virgin Mary, according to God’s promise to the Chosen People of Israel. Persecution of the Jews conflicts with the humanitarian conception of the love of neighbors and the message which Christ’s church set out to preach. Christ taught us that every man has a value in the eyes of God. Persecution conflicts with the judicial conscience existing in the Danish people, inherited through centuries of Danish culture. All Danish citizens, according to the fundamental law, have the same right and responsibility under the law of religious freedom. We respect the right of religious freedom and to the performance of divine worship according to the dictates of conscience. Race or religion should never in themselves cause people to be deprived of their rights, freedom, or property. Notwithstanding our separate religious beliefs we will fight to preserve for our Jewish brothers and sisters the same freedom we ourselves value more than life. The leaders of the Danish Church clearly comprehend the duties of law-abiding citizens, but recognize at the same time that they are conscientiously bound to maintain the right and to protest every violation of justice. It is evident that in this case we are obeying God rather than man.”

Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz was a German Nazi, but he made a different choice. “I will assume responsibility for everything I am going to do (informing the Jews of the Denmark Solution about to be implemented). I am consoled by my strong faith that good deeds can never be wrong.” September 26, 1943, diary entry

Rabbi Marcus Melchoir, Chief Rabbi of Copenhagen, “I have very important news to tell you.  Last night I received word that the Germans plan to raid Jewish homes throughout Copenhagen to arrest all the Danish Jews for shipment to concentration camps.  They know that tomorrow is Rosh Hashanah and our families will be home.  The situation is very serious.  We must take action immediately.  You must leave the synagogue now and contact all relatives, friends, and neighbors you know are Jewish and tell them what I have told you.  You must tell them to pass the word on to everyone they know is Jewish.  You must also speak to all your Christian friends and tell them to warn the Jews.  You must do this immediately, within the next few minutes, so that two or three hours from now everyone will know what is happening.  By nightfall tonight we must all be in hiding.”

"The Spirit of God upon the Word of God."

The Rise of Reformed Charismatics | Christianity Today

Quotes from the article:

"Often men have acted as though one has to choose between reformation and revival. Some call for reformation, others for revival, and they tend to look at each other with suspicion…. But reformation and revival do not stand in contrast to one another; in fact, both words are related to the concept of restoration. Reformation speaks of a restoration to pure doctrine, revival of a restoration in the Christian’s life. Reformation speaks of a return to the teachings of Scripture, revival of a life brought into proper relationship to the Holy Spirit…. The great moments in church history have come when these two restorations have occurred simultaneously. There cannot be true revival unless there has been reformation, and reformation is incomplete without revival. " Francis Schaeffer

“So you’ve got the corner on orthodox faith. Great. Show me how that’s going to heal my marriage. Show me how that’s going to remove depression and shame out of my life. To engage with a broken city, orthodoxy alone doesn’t cut it. You also need power.” Dihan Lee

“The Cross needs to be preached. The Cross, the suffering, is the way of renewal. It’s where man is transformed.” Oscar Merlo

“The cracks are starting to appear, though, and there is a sense of God’s redemptive movement breaking out." Joshua Ryan Butler

'Lord, send a God-centered Christ-centered Spirit-empowered sovereign revival, please! It's the only hope for Japan!'

The Reformation and Martin Luther King. Jr.

Read How the Protestant Reformation led to Martin Luther King, Jr. - The Washington Post

"Luther’s legacy left such an impression on King that he changed his name, and the name of his then-5-year-old son, to Martin Luther King. (He) centralized the cross of Christ as the particular revelation of God’s love that empowers and guides social action."

“Christians are to be taught that he who gives to the poor or lends to the needy does a better deed than he who buys indulgences.” German Martin Luther's 43rd thesis

“Christians should be taught, he who sees his neighbor in distress and, nevertheless, buys indulgence is not partaking in the Pope’s pardons, but in the wrath of God.” 45th

James 2:2"My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism." Read more from James 2

"But he was pierced for our transgressions…."

It Doesn’t Get Any More Personal | Christianity Today

Eusebius of Caesarea: "And the Lamb of God not only did this, but was chastised on our behalf, and suffered a penalty He did not owe, but which we owed because of the multitude of our sins; and so He became the cause of the forgiveness of our sins, because He received death for us, and transferred to Himself the scourging, the insults, and the dishonor, which were due to us, and drew down upon Himself the appointed curse, being made a curse for us."

"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way;and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:5–6

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On the Mountain….

Excellent sermon! Tim Keller - On the Mountain - YouTube

“Thou who hast first loved us, O God, alas! We speak of it in terms of history as if Thou hast only loved us first but a single time, rather than that without ceasing. Thou hast loved us first many times and everyday and our whole life through. When we wake up in the morning and turn our soul toward Thee – Thou art the first – Thou hast loved us first; if I rise at dawn and at the same second turn my soul toward Thee in prayer, Thou art there ahead of me, Thou hast loved me first. When I withdraw from the distractions of the day and turn my soul in thought toward Thee, Thou art the first and thus forever. And yet we always speak ungratefully as if Thou hast loved us first only once.” Soren Kierkegaard, from The Prayers of Kierkegaard