Monday morning is for...

Study.
[and coffee].

Bible open. Notepad and pen to the ready. Articles to look at and coffee brewing.

My question that I am mulling over today is how I read the bible - how do I read scripture? More specifically how do I read the OT and the NT...

Some Monday morning questions to ponder over:

Do I believe that the NT interprets the OT?
 Or 
Do I think the OT interprets the NT?

Does the NT tell me that I need to re-read the OT in a different way and that Jesus re-interprets the OT for me...or does the OT interpret what Jesus and the apostles are saying and therefore the OT does not need interpreting from the NT?

Is the Trinity in the OT? ... Or does God just like talking to himself? ...

These are just questions floating around. Not really for anyone to answer, but feel free to comment!

Edwards warns us to not flatter ourselves

"Sinners in the hands of an Angry God" sounds like a sermon to avoid. But if I was to encourage you to read or listen to a sermon that will grip you, shock you, warm your heart and bring you to your knees, I would suggest reading this sermon. This is surely not for the faint hearted but if any Christian was to read this sermon by Jonathan Edwards and come away feeling anger towards Edwards and bitterness towards God then they come away not understanding the sermon at all. I really believe that this sermon was designed to arouse the heart to the acknowledgement that we have a very Holy God that is angry at sin and sinners and yet a very gracious God for not allowing us all to perish right at this very moment.

Edwards says -

"Almost every natural man that hears of hell, flatters himself that he shall escape it; he depends upon himself for his own security; he flatter himself in what he has done, in what he is now doing, or what he intends to do"

Edwards wasn't just preaching to the non Christian here, but also the Christian. Do we flatter ourselves in thinking that our works get us out of hell? That God owes us grace and freedom because of what we are doing right now? Edwards warns us against this and warns us to repent of this because - "God has laid himself under no obligation, by any promise to keep any natural man out of hell for one moment...till he believes in Christ."

It is only in Christ that we have any promise of eternal life with God. It can only rest in Christ and nothing more. If we think for one moment that its our doing and God owes us, we will be in for a shock. Read this amazing sermon and let your heart see how gracious God is over your life and repent and start relying on Christ for your salvation instead of who you are and what you are doing. Read it here.