Dan Lee
Genesis 50:15-20, Divine Sovereignty and Human ...

Joseph’s declaration in Gen. 50:20 reveals the breathtaking reality of concurrence. At the same time that men intend evil with their action, God intends good with that very action. The intentions reveal to us the two well-established and irrefutable doctrines of sovereignty and human responsibility. These two doctrines hold true to the farther extent of creation, including the fall of Satan, his presence in Eden, and the fall of man. All that has transpired perfectly accords with the eternal purpose of God. History is indeed the unfolding of the plan of God.

Dan Lee
John 17:22-26, For Love and Glory (Part-2)

Jesus prays regarding two kinds of glory. He speaks of glory in the present age for His people’s sanctification. God’s elect grow in conformity to Him as they behold His glory in Christ. Jesus also prays for future glory, that His people behold His full, divine, eternal glory in heaven. We are to behold the glory of God now for our sanctification and the glory of God in the future for our glorification.

Dan Lee
John 17:22-26, For Love and Glory

Jesus concludes His prayer with love and glory. Love is the focus of this sermon. The Lord prays that we would come to experientially know (taste) of the Father’s special love. This is the special love of the Father like His love toward His only begotten Son. Like that love, the Father loved His elect from eternity past and “in love predestined us to adoption as sons.” This is the love which Jesus wants us to savor. May the Holy Spirit reveal to us more and more of this awesome love of God.

Dan Lee
John 17:20-23, Salvation Blessing for the World

Jesus’ prayer reflects the heart of God that seeks salvation blessing for the world. Jesus sees the church as the vehicle by which the elect of God worldwide will come to faith in Him unto salvation. In this first installment on a two part sermon, we explore the facets of the church, our mission, our godliness, and the special love of God toward the elect (next sermon).

Dan Lee
John 17:14-19, A Dangerous Mission

Jesus’ prayer for His disciples is undergirded by the reality of a dangerous mission. He knows we will be hated by the world and targeted by the Devil. As such, we will need divine protection. Hence, He prays, “Keep them from the evil one.” Moreover, we will need to live holy lives if we are to make any meaningful impact for the gospel that reconciles and restored sinners to the holy and righteous Father. Our own lives would have to be sanctified in order for us to be useful to the Lord in leading the rest of His elect to this salvation. Therefore, the Lord prays, “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.” The word of God that has regenerated us is the same word that will sanctify our lives. May the Holy Spirit through His word evermore conform us to Christ that we would be like Him on earth and make disciples for His honor and glory.

Proverbs 27:1-2, Men of Wisdom

There is a need for a counter measure against our culture regarding the important topic of biblical manhood and biblical womanhood. In this series of studies from Proverbs 27, we look at what it means to be men of wisdom biblically. Biblical wisdom is what Christ possessed and this is the pathway to wisdom for our men and boys growing up to be men one day. May the Lord mold and shape into men who are first and foremost humble men.

John 11:36-40, Unbelief Grieves God (Part 2)

Unbelief is a chameleon. It takes on a different color at different times. In this scene at Bethany, we find the Jews expressing their distrust in the Lord with suspicion, questioning whether Jesus loved Lazarus at all. Jesus is grieved again at the sight of this unbelief. When Jesus gives the command for the tomb to be opened, Martha protests His command. She goes down in history as the woman who refused the Lord because of a smell. May the Lord keep us from such forms of unbelief, whether suspicion or excuses against His commands. Our sovereign God is fully capable of addressing all our concerns when He gives His good commands.

John 11:27-35, Unbelief Grieves God

Unbelief grieves the heart of God. In today’s passage, the grieved heart of God is seen in the incarnate Son of God upon whose face this grief is put on display through His nostrils and in His eyes. May the Lord help us to see the great evil of unbelief and grant to us a heart to embrace all that He’s given to us in the Scriptures and live as people of faith.

John 11:17-26, Believe in Me

In the midst of great mourning and disappointment, the Lord speaks words of great hope. But this hope is available only to those who believe in Him. In this portion of the gospel of John, we catch another facet of true faith in Christ, that Christ is everything to the believer. May the Lord draw us to find our soul’s full satisfaction in Him alone, even to the very end of life when we will desperately need Jesus as the resurrection and the life.

John 11:5-16, Trust the God of Providence (Part 2)

God knows where He’s headed and he knows how to get there. And this God of all wisdom is working all things after the counsel of His will to bring about His perfect effects to ultimately bring glory unto Himself through His Son. We trust God because He has a purpose and He has a plan. Furthermore, He calls us to participate in His will revealed in Scirpture. May the Spirit of our God strengthen us to trust in the God of providence so that we would walk after the example of our Lord, the incarnate Son of God, who was the epitome of perfect human trust in God.

John 11:1-4, Trust the God of Providence

John 11 is a demonstration of God’s providence. What is providence? Providence is God’s wise orchestration of all things (both good and evil) to achieve His good and eternal purpose. We often see the parts, but not the whole. But the whole is precisely what God sees. He is causing all things to work together for the good which aligns with His good and eternal purpose. This is what the Lord sees with the sickness of Lazarus. May the Lord grant us His perspective to trust in the God of providence.

Psalm 16:1-11, The Divine Joys of a Right Personal Relationship with God (Part 2)

There is no joy apart from God. In this second installment on our studies on divine joys, we again see the joys of God expressed in Psalm 16 and the right personal relationship with God that is the foundation of those joys. I experience divine joys when God is my refuge, my Lord, my treasure, my counselor and my Savior. May the Lord evermore mature us to be like Christ who Himself knew these joys to their fullness!