Over this Summer I’m reading ‘Joy unspeakable’ by the Welsh preaching legend of 20th century, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. I would highly recommend anyone, especially those of you involved in Revive, getting hold of it and reading it.

As I was reading it today I came across this quote which resounded in my heart as being true and timely for where the Church is in Wales in this generation…

“The greatest need at the present time is for Christians who are assured of their salvation…the thing that was so obvious about New Testament Christians was their spirit of assurance. They were so certain that they were ready to be put to death”

During the Mission we sang a lot of hymns. We realized very early on that as we were doing mission, preaching Jesus everyday, we needed a deep & steadfast assurance, hope and joy in the gospel. And the hymns did just that. I can remember after one team teaching session where Ben Franks had unpacked Colossians 1 for us, celebrating the truth that we had been reconciled to God through the blood of Christ, we sang “In Christ alone”. I’ve sung and led that song hundreds and hundreds of times and yet, after having heard the gospel, having preached the gospel and having sung of the glories of the gospel, I suddenly had an overwhelming sense of assurance that led me to genuinely abandon any sense of fear, compromise or reservation that was within me.

After that hymn I shared with the team the sentiment expressed by Lloyd-Jones in the quote above. When we see all that we’ve gained through God’s grace in the gospel (forgiveness of sins, hope of eternal life, joy through sorrow, relationship with Jesus, the Holy Spirit, a Church family & so much more), how can we not give all our life for the cause of making Jesus famous? We have nothing to lose. We have already gained everything we need in Christ. The apostle Paul consistently reveled in this truth. Just check out his soul soaring proclamation that “to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil 1:21) or his rock solid confidence that “we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” even in the midst of “tribulation, distress, persecution, nakedness, famine and sword” (Rom 8:35-37). For the early Church, the assurance of all Christ had won through the cross, resurrection and ascension led to bold and radical mission.

What Wales needs today is the same. For too long the Church has been too tame because satan and the world have robbed our sense of joyful assurance in grace. We’ve lived in too much awareness of the present and not enough awareness of the past (what Jesus has done for us, 1 Pet 1:3) and the future (what God has stored up for us, 1 Pet 1:4).

Lloyd-Jones argues that the distinctive way the early Church received this deep rooted assurance was through the infilling power and presence of the Holy Spirit. He is our great need. Because when He is poured out in power, as seen throughout the book of Acts, salvation comes, disciples are made and churches are established and strengthened in grace.

Join with me in praying for the Church throughout this nation. That God would fulfill our great need of assurance in Him through the Holy Spirit and that as a result we would see His gospel proclaimed with boldness to the ends of the earth, for the glory of God and the salvation of His chosen people.