Elyse Fitzpatrick

No Fluff, No Bricks, Just Good News

elyse

Join me in Reading Romans 1-8 in March

We all have an insatiable appetite for good news. In years past I’d wait for the mail to come, feeling hope bubble up when the postal truck finally went by. Maybe there will be good news today. So I’d run to the mailbox only to find it crammed full of advertisements, or worse yet, bills.

Nowadays we constantly check our inbox, Facebook, Twitter, texts, and news sites to see if there’s any good news—or at least something to break the monotony. Generally speaking, there isn’t much more than an occasional giggle, a Hmm, that’s interesting, or more commonly, And I care that you tried a new shampoo today why? Seems like I check these sites to find something to cheer my heart or satisfy me. Yet I always come away empty. And I don’t think I’m alone.

The Lord understands our longing for good news. Proverbs 15:30 says, “good news refreshes the bones.” Likewise 25:25 reads, “Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.” I do need refreshment. My soul is thirsty for that cold water.

So here’s some good news for you: You don’t have to wait for the mailman. There is a fountain of refreshment available to you right now.

The Bad News and Good News You Weren’t Expecting

Paul saw himself as that proverbial voice of “good news from a far country” to the church at Rome, and by extension, to all of us. The headlines of the good news are writ large in 1:16-17:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “the righteous shall live by faith.”

Paul’s primary point in Romans is to help us understand and believe the gospel, the good news that all God’s demands have already been satisfied by Jesus Christ, his Son. He wants us to know that the gospel is more than lifeless word. When believed, it carries with it the power to transform the heart by assuring us that all our sins are forgiven and that Jesus Christ lived perfectly in our place.

But in order to prepare us to receive and appreciate the good news, Paul began his letter with some pretty bad news: Neither the irreligious Gentile (chapter 1) nor the religious Jew (chapter 2) have obeyed God’s rules for righteousness. None of us measure up. It will be good to remember this when you’re reading about the disobedience of both Gentile and Jew, so you don’t think Paul is trying to get you to try harder to be good in order to earn God’s favor. No, he’s telling you that all your efforts won’t be good enough. Once you understand this, you’ll begin to thirst for the good news to come, and you’ll really rejoice when he brings it to you.

Let me leave you with these thoughts: There is good news, but it’s not the news you were expecting. The good news is that you’re more sinful and flawed than you ever dared believe. Chapters 1 and 2 will teach you that. The rest of the good news is that you’re more loved and welcomed than you ever dared hope[1], as chapters 3-8 will demonstrate.

So let’s get reading. Let me know what you’re learning through Crossway’s blog and I look forward to connecting with you there.

 

D-I-S-C-I-P-L-I-N-E-D Eating

How can we be self-controlled in our eating? Does that mean that we should eat only a certain number of calories, avoid sugar, eliminate foods with fat, or perhaps a combination of all three?

The easiest thing in the world for me to do would be to tell you exactly what you should eat. But that’s a rather simplistic approach that doesn’t take into consideration a variety of factors. Besides, chances are you have been on diets like that before, and you and I both know how they usually end. I’m not saying that it is wrong to follow a preplanned diet, as long as it is not a fad diet. But even if you are following a preplanned diet perfectly, that doesn’t mean that your eating is pleasing to the Lord.

I can lust over a cup of nonfat frozen yogurt in exactly the same way that I can over a chocolate shake. I can also become enamored with my appearance and worry that I might gain weight, which wouldn’t please God. No, there are other criteria for you and me to consider as we develop our personal plan for disciplined eating.

I have listed twelve questions you can ask yourself in order to determine whether your eating is sinful or not. To help you remember these points, I’ve developed the acrostic “D-I-S-C-I-P-L-I-N-E-D Eating.”

As you consider the following, some of the answers will be obvious. Others will take some time and careful thought. Stop now and prayerfully ask God to help you as you think about how to make your eating habits more pleasing to Him.

  1. Doubt: Do I doubt (for whatever reason) that I can eat this food without sinning?
  2. Idolatry: Does eating this particular food demonstrate a heart either of independence—“I can do whatever I want”—or a heart longing for pleasure—“I know that I don’t need this for my sustenance, but I love the feeling of the sweet coldness”?
  3. Stumble: If I eat this, will it cause a weaker Christian to stumble?
  4. Coveting: Am I eating this just because I saw someone else with it and I’m coveting it?
  5. Inroad: If I eat this, will it create an inroad for sin?
  6. Praise: Can I eat this food with thanks and gratitude? Is my heart overflowing with songs of praise to God?
  7. Life: Would eating this food harm my health in any way?
  8. Illustrate: Am I modeling good eating habits for others and encouraging them to be self-disciplined, or do I encourage others to self-indulge?
  9. No: Am I able to say no to this even if I know that I can eat it without sin?
  10. Emotions: Does the desire to eat this flow out of a heart of anger, fear, frustration, or depression?
  11. Distract: Will preparing or eating this food distract me from something better that God has for me to do?
  12. Enslaved: Does it bring me under any kind of bondage?

All of this, of course, can be summed up by one question: In my eating and drinking, am I glorifying God? (1 Corinthians 10:31).

(Excerpted from Love to Eat, Hate to Eat by Elyse Fitzpatrick, published by Harvest House Publishers.)

The Gospel Cure

Upon brief reflection it’s easy to see that the remedy du jour for treating depression solely with medication is based upon very specific assumptions: that its genesis is always within the body (primarily the brain) and that we do not have an inner, invisible mind that directs brain activity. If that is true, then anesthetizing uncomfortable feelings is the wisest choice. However, if Scripture teaches something different, specifically that we have both a brain and a mind (or inner man), then categorizing depression solely as a dysfunction of the brain and turning to medicine first (thereby silencing the emotional voice of the mind) will unavoidably impede the important heart-work that God-ordained suffering is meant to produce. Of course, there might be times when medicines are a viable option, but because there are such wonderful graces at our disposal and because there are so many drawbacks with the use of anti-depressants, perhaps medicines should be considered the last line of defense, rather than the first.

Well, then, you might wonder, what is the scriptural cure for spiritual depression? This question begs another one: Should we assume that there will always be a cure for discomforts in this life? Isn’t it true that Christians recognize that suffering is part of what it means to live in this sad world? Don’t we believe suffering in itself is frequently beneficial to our lives, as it (and all things) come to us through the hands of a loving Father (Rom. 5:3–5)? Of course, that’s not to say that we shouldn’t seek to alleviate suffering when appropriate (1 Cor. 7:21), but rather to inject perspective into our search for wisdom. So let’s rephrase our quest: If there were a practical wisdom to help the depressed, where would we find it? In Jesus Christ, of course (1 Cor. 1:30).

“All progress in the Christian life depends upon a recapitulation of the original terms of one’s acceptance with God” (John Stott, The Cross of Christ, p. 27). This delightful quote points us to an enduring remedy for all our ills, even that of spiritual depression. Every step we take in our Christianity, especially as we learn to war against inclinations to be introverted, self-critical, angry, anxious, bitter, hopeless, unbelieving, or fainthearted, depends upon an intentional revisiting of the Gospel. After all, what does a sad person need more than to be gently, yet continually, reminded of the good news? Over and over again, we’ve got to remember His suffering on our behalf: His incarnation, sinless life, substitutionary death, bodily resurrection, and ascension. In a nutshell, we have to intentionally consider Jesus, especially during those dark hours when we’re tempted to think only of ourselves. And although every one of us needs a daily dose of Gospel-recapitulation, those of us who feel the blows of Giant Despair need it even more.

What would this Gospel-recapitu-lation look like? It would simply look like encouraging the fainthearted with the truth about Jesus Christ. The depressed person needs a deep draught of encouragement, not trite banalities like, “Cheer up, things are bound to get better,” or “You’re not so bad. You’re really a wonderful person.” No, the depressed need strong medicine like, “God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that…we might live with him” (1 Thess. 5:9–10).

The counter-intuitive truth that the depressed person needs to hear isn’t “you’re really a wonderful person,” but rather, “you’re more sinful and flawed than you ever dared believe.” When he bemoans that he’s “such a failure,” we should agree with him, at least on one level. We should agree that we’re all failures to the point that the perfect Son of God had to die before we would be able to have fellowship with Him. Every one of us has utterly failed to love God or our neighbor. We fail not only because we don’t love as we should, but also because we think we should be able to. We don’t really believe God’s assessment of the depth of our depravity. We can be freed from over-scrupulous consciences, from the incessant viewing and reviewing of our disappointments, when we realize that we shouldn’t expect success or to be well-treated. No, we deserve failure, abandonment, and wrath. Here’s one powerfully freeing facet of the Gospel message: We will never live up to our own standards! Neither will anyone else! In fact, the deception that we should be able to do this flows from a proud belief in our own abilities, self-sufficiency, and self-righteousness — beliefs that fly right in the face of the Gospel. We’re not in need of minor adjustments; we’re desperate for an all-sufficient Redeemer. The depressed person should ask, “What do I think I deserve? What am I expecting of myself, of others? Do I really believe that I’m as sinful and weak as Scripture says I am? Do I believe that I should be successful, appreciated, or sinless?”

Matthew 6:21, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be,” also speaks directly to the depressed. In some ways, depression is a slow, painful death of desire, the heart-sickness that comes from repeatedly having hope deferred (Prov. 13:12). Hope that sustains the heart when pursuing a treasured desire has faded (or disappeared) in the depressed. What, then, do you treasure? What do you think would bring you happiness? Who or what are you worshiping? What would give your life meaning? Whose life do you covet?

The joyous truth is that perhaps this painful depression is the Lord’s way of revealing false gods to you: gods of success, romance, acceptance, security, reputation. Is your heart sick? What hoped-for desires have been withheld? Why do you love them like you do? Why has a loving God withheld them from you?

Bathing our soul in the Gospel message will powerfully transform the locus of our treasure. Rather than cherishing success or self-approval, we can learn to cherish the Lord because He’s lavished such love upon the undeserving (1 John 4:7–10). All-satisfying treasure is found in this Gospel message: “It’s true that I’m more sinful and flawed than I ever dared believe, and that truth frees me from the delusion that I’ll ever be able to approve of myself; but I’m also more loved and welcomed than I ever dared hope, and that truth comforts and encourages me when my heart condemns me and my darling desires are all withheld. It assures me that although I struggle with accepting myself, the Holy King has declared me righteous. What I’ve really needed — forgiveness, welcome and enduring love, have all been given to me in Christ.

“This is the freeing truth you can learn through your depression: You weren’t created to love and worship anything more than you love and worship God; and when you do, you’ll feel bad. God has made you to feel pain when you’ve got other treasures that you’ve placed above Him. He wants you to treasure Him” (Elyse Fitzpatrick,
Will Medicine Stop the Pain? p. 102).

We can fight against weariness, despair, and hopelessness when we consider Jesus, how he authored and, yes, even completed our faith (weak though it seems); how “for the joy that was set before him [he] endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” We are to “consider him…so that [we] may not grow weary or fainthearted” (Heb. 12:2–3). Rather than considering ourselves, our record, humiliation, and failure, we’re to consider Him.

The depressed person needs to repeatedly hear this lovely statement, “Take heart, my son, your sins are forgiven.” In Matthew’s gospel we read of a paralytic who was brought to Jesus by his friends. Although we don’t know who they were, we can surmise what they wanted. What were they hoping for? Healing, of course. This invalid and his friends were hoping that Jesus would enable him to walk. But Jesus had a different perspective on this man’s true need. Instead of saying initially, “Be healed. Rise and walk,” he said, “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven” (Matt. 9:2–3).

The depressed don’t simply need to feel better. They need a Redeemer who says, “Take heart, my son, my daughter; what you really need has been supplied. Life no longer need be about your goodness, success, righteousness, or failure. I’ve given you something infinitely more valuable than good feelings: your sins are forgiven.” This forgiveness permanently cleanses not only outward conspicuous sin, but also hidden unbelief, faithlessness, pride, self-sufficiency, and apathy. Rather than the Gospel being ancillary to the life of the depressed, everything else in life needs to be ancillary to it.

Like the paralytic’s friends, we must bring our fainthearted brothers and sisters to Jesus. His sweet truth is to be lovingly communicated to them through a wise and patient community of faith. Encouragement to believe Gospel truth rather than Satan’s lies and support to step out in faith, whether that means simply opening the blinds or taking a walk around the block, need to come to them through others who know they are just like the depressed: immeasurably unworthy but nevertheless immeasurably loved jars of clay filled with life-transforming treasure. In this way, the Gospel is not only recapitulated but reincarnated before the suffering.

The power to transform the depressed belongs to God alone, thus we trust that “he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence.…So we do not lose heart. Though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day” (2 Cor. 4:14, 16).

(from Tabletalk Magazine, March 1, 2008)

2012 Girl Talk message

Author and biblical counselor, Elyse Fitzpatrick shares what worry is, what Jesus says about why we worry, and what He has done so that we don’t need to worry. Elyse has a way of using examples from her own life that vividly illustrate all these aspects of worry.