Hello everyone, welcome to the new year and before we uncork 2020 on the podcast I have a favor to ask of you we love to serve you on this podcast and we want to serve you even better in the year ahead and beyond and To serve you better means we need to know you a little bit better and to that end We put together a brief survey that takes just a few minutes to fill out It will be up until the end of January if you're willing to help us out go to desiringgod.org/survey That's desiringgod.org/survey And I'll mention that address again at the end of our first episode of 2020 which starts right now Pastor John some Christians believe in New Year's resolutions Other Christians mock resolutions and most Christians just simply avoid resolutions altogether But we are getting a number of email questions on this from both resolution setters and resolution haters So the question for you is this for the Christian are New Year's resolutions helpful Are they harmful or are they just a setup for eventual failure?

How should we think biblically about resolutions? Well as always Tony it depends on what you mean by resolutions if you mean Declarations of what you intend to do by dint of willpower Then that will not only probably fail If it doesn't fail, it's not Christian either. So if it fails it fails and if it succeeds it fails Because that's not what the Christian life is It's not lived that way not at the beginning of a year not at the beginning of a day or beginning of an hour You don't screw up your willpower to obey a command And resolve to do a thing by virtue of strong resolution and call that Christianity It's it's not the mystery of holiness is That we live our lives in the strength of another That is we walk by the Spirit We walk by faith in the power of another we depend on Another namely the Holy Spirit to do in us and through us what needs to be done So that another namely God will get the glory the principle Whether it's new year new morning new hour is first Peter 4 11 let him who serves Serve in the strengths that God supplies So you can paraphrase it let him who resolves to do a thing or not do a thing Resolve in the strength that God supplies so that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ to him be glory forever So yes, go ahead resolve Paul put it like this by the grace of God I am what I am and his grace toward me was not in vain on the contrary.

I Worked harder than any of them so he gets up in the morning and he says what do I have to do today? Well, I have to travel to Philippi. I have to make three tents tonight have to prepare a message for tomorrow morning I resolve to do those things and then he says though it was not I but the grace of God That was with me first Corinthians 15 10 or he says in Romans 15 8 I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished Through me to bring obedience to the Gentiles.

So he says we're going to Spain. Let's go. I resolve to go to Spain I've got this ambition to preach the gospel where Christ has not been named. Let's go and then he writes I'm not going to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me. So his Resolutions are empowered by sustained by worked through the grace of Christ which is Right at the heart of what it means to live the Christian life not just make resolutions Philippians 1 12 work out your salvation with fear and trembling for God is the one who is at work in you which could be paraphrased Resolve make a resolution with fear and trembling for God is the one who's the making the resolution in you That's the way to live the Christian life.

So my answer is yes, we should make resolves Lots of times not just at the beginning of a year whenever we feel Whenever we see something that we should be doing that we're not doing we should resolve do it Whenever we're not doing something that we should be doing and we recognize that we're not doing it We should resolve don't do it or did I say that backwards?

You know what? I mean? We got it Resolve not to do what you shouldn't do and resolve to do what you should do whenever you see that you're not doing it Or that you're doing it. God doesn't like for our hearts to be Irresolute the opposite of resolving is to be irresolute Decisive and here's what Elijah said about that How long will you go limping between two different opinions if the Lord is God follow him if bailed as God follow him?

So resolve this day who you're gonna serve get off the fence and and follow your Lord and I think there are a lot of Christians who are afraid of Resolutions and and the opposite of resolution is not this wonderful freedom of dependence on God to empower them It's sitting on a fence and not making any Commitments to be or do a certain certain thing Paul said this has been really important in my understanding Tony of tough decisions.

He said in Romans 14 5 one man esteems one day of another Another just seems everyday esteems everyday alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind That's amazing In other words, whether you go with saying all days are alike or whether you go with the steaming one day above another Don't be wishy-washy Don't waffle don't sit on the fence.

God doesn't like Irresolute hearts make up your mind decide resolve act So David says to the counselors of Solomon set your mind and heart to seek the Lord What is that but resolve set your mind and heart or about rea bowen? The Bible says he did evil for he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.

He didn't resolve to seek the Lord He just coasted in his life So here's here's a theology of resolution in a verse Tony. This is the most important Two verses in the Bible on New Year's resolutions. So everybody should just go get their Bible study these two verses They'll have a theology of resolution second Thessalonians 1 11 and 12 to this end We always pray for you that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill May God fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power That the name of the Lord Jesus may be glorified.

Everything is there. So here here they are You should resolve for good resolve good things in your life second This is pursued by faith so that it's a work of faith third God acts through that faith by his power fourth thus God fulfills the good resolve fifth thus Jesus gets glory That's the theology of resolution in in two verses second Thessalonians 1 11 to 12 so my answer is Not just at New Year's but all the time whenever we see we're falling short Resolve not to fall short and whenever we see something that needs to be done Resolved to do it.

So good. Thank you pastor John for that robust defense of resolutions Well, if this is my first read through the Bible What should I expect to see? so many great Bible reading questions arrive to us at the start of a new year like this one from a listener named Mike and Pastor John will adjust the expectations for first-time Bible readers next time on Friday when we return and until then if you're willing to help us Out go to our online survey go to desiringgod.org/survey.

That's desiringgod.org/survey