CiTIZEN OF MANSOUL? WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?

John Bunyan is most noted for his great allegorical work, THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS. But he also wrote another allegory which is not as well known, THE HOLY WAR.

In my opinion, The Pilgrim’s Progress is one of the greatest works in Christian literature and should be read by all. But, that having been said, I would encourage all to read, THE HOLY WAR.

I am bringing this up because it is from this book that, for those who may have been wondering, I created the title of my blog: CITIZEN OF MANSOUL. Here is a very brief overview of the book:

Very cleverly John Bunyan married two words into one, MAN(S) SOUL. So what is Mansoul?

Mansoul was built by SHADDAI. It was constructed for His glory. It was constructed to showcase His glory. But the enemy, Diabolus, won the hearts of some of the townsmen and thereby lost full control of the town. As a result, there is a constant battle going on from within and from without. This battle, against Diabolus, is being waged by Emmanuel, Shaddai's Son. He is seeking to win back the town of Mansoul for His Father.

I have found that the book can at times be seen on two levels, one, a personal level (the individual Christian) and two, on a corporate level (all saints, the church). The names of the cities’ gates will help to show what Bunyan intended to illustrate in this allegory. Here are the names: Ear-Gate, Eye-Gate, Mouth-Gate, Nose-Gate, and Feel-Gate.

We (Christians) are under constant attack. The enemy of our souls seeks to tempt and wear us down by appealing to our senses, what we hear, see, speak, smell, and feel. This is on the individual level. On the corporate the attacks are the same.

Even though we know that the gates of hell will not prevail against us, the enemy is still attacking. Anything he can do to hinder the work of the Lord he will try. Both the enemies of Emmanuel and the friends of Emmanuel live side by side in the town of Mansoul. Emmanuel wants full control of Mansoul (Man’s Soul) and will stop at nothing to save his beloved elect town. Diabolus wants full control of Mansoul (Man’s Soul) and will stop at nothing to try to keep it.

I would encourage the reader to get a copy and read it. You will easily identify with the struggle. It gives a good picture of the spiritual battle that is taking place all the time, even when we are not aware of it.

FOXE'S BOOK OF MARTYR'S - BOOK REVIEW

I am part of the christianaudio Reviewer's Program. The following is my review of Foxes Book of Martyrs which I highly and heartily recommend. I recommend it both for the content (an historical record of Christian persecution and martyrdom) and for the audio production itself. Christian Audio (http://christianaudio.com/) offers this recording.

This Hovel Audio recording is read very well by Nadia May. The correct inflections and appropriate pauses make it easy to follow and absorb.

This work starts with the persecutions recorded in the biblical account of the Acts of the Apostles. But then, where the biblical account ends, this work presents an historical account of continued persecution ending with the story of Adoniram Judson (1788-1850), missionary to Burma.

The persecutions described in this book are at times very graphic. But despite this word of warning, this book should be listened to. Remember, similar persecutions continue in some parts of the world today. This book and others like it will create a sense of urgency and fervency in your prayers.

The pages of Scripture offers a good description of the men, women, and children portrayed in this book:

1 Peter 4:13-16 …rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. …yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.

MOVED ANY MOUNTAINS LATELY?

Matthew 17:14 and when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him." 17 And Jesus answered, "O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me." 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?" 20 He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."

How big is your faith? Is it like the grain of a mustard seed? If so, why are you not moving mountains? If not, why not?

These are questions we must ask ourselves. If any of you are like me, sadly you have not seen many mountains moved. We must go before God and ask Him to help us.

Another thought came to me while reading this - if I am not moving mountains then I must have a faith that is smaller than a mustard seed! How sad if that is true. Especially considering that Jesus called the mustard seed,

"the smallest of all the seeds on earth"

On another occasion the disciples were overwhelmed by their lack of faith,

"The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!. "And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you."

Lord, it would appear that at times we have faith that is less than a grain of mustard seed. Increase our faith! Lord, we believe but, help us in our unbelief! Help us to focus on you the One whose faith never faltered. The One whose faith sustains us even now. All Praise goes to you Lord Jesus, to the glory of the Father!

THE GOSPEL - CHRIST IS ALL IN ALL

Feb 25 2010
The Gospel Is For Christians

by Tullian Tchividjian

The great theologian B. B. Warfield on why the gospel is needed for believers:

"There is nothing in us or done by us, at any stage of our earthly development, because of which we are acceptable to God. We must always be accepted for Christ’s sake, or we cannot ever be accepted at all. This is not true of us only when we believe. It is just as true after we have believed. It will continue to be trust as long as we live. Our need of Christ does not cease with our believing; nor does the nature of our relation to Him or to God through Him ever alter, no matter what our attainments in Christian graces or our achievements in behavior may be. It is always on His “blood and righteousness” alone that we can rest."

I thought this quote used by Tullian Tchividjian in his post was worth passing on.
The extent of the Gospel's effect does not end with an initial salvation experience, with sins forgiven and heaven waiting for us. As B.B. Warfield says, "Our need of Christ does not cease with our believing".

In Colossians 1:3-6 we have a good description of the gospel at work:

"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing--as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth"

I would also suggest the reading of Philippians 1.

PRAY FOR EACH OTHER!

Psalm 35:12 They repay me evil for good; my soul is bereft. 13 But I, when they were sick-- I wore sackcloth; I afflicted myself with fasting; I prayed with head bowed on my chest. 14 I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother; as one who laments his mother, I bowed down in mourning.

In care group last night we were discussing what many have dubbed the Love Chapter, 1 Corinthians 13. It was pointed out that the admonitions to love are in the context of the church, our brothers and sisters. But as I read this passage I was convicted. There are times in which my love, specifically in prayer, for my brothers and sisters is far less than it should be.

This passage shows the depths of love the psalmist had for his enemies. How convicting it is to read that, in the midst of being repaid evil for good, the psalmist repays the evil with good, even praying for them as he would for a brother, sister, or his mother. Jesus himself said,

"But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven."

The psalmist grieving for his enemies, and laboring in anguished prayer for them, in itself is convicting. Then add to that the weight of Jesus' very words coming from his own lips. So I ask myself, if this is the way we should pray for our enemies, how much more should I labor in prayer for my brothers and sisters who are in Christ?!?!