Institute Illuminations

Revive us, Oh Lord!

2011-11-27T12:31:00.000-08:00

I just read a cool Bible verse. In Psalm 85:6, God's people are begging God, "Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?" I thought it was cool that they're asking God to revive THEM, because they know that they are dead and they can't come back to life on their own. Only God can bring the dead to life. If you are feeling distant from God, worn out, depressed, or like your spiritual life is dead, then cry out to Jesus and ask him to revive you! He alone is the one who gives life! You can celebrate that verse 8 goes on to say, "He promises peace to his people, his saints--but let them not return to their folly." If you need to be revived spiritually, call out to God and rely on his strength as you turn away from your sin. Verse 9 says, "Surely his salvation is near those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land," and verse 12 affirms, "The Lord will indeed give what is good."

Cultivating Distrust of the Certainties of Despair

2011-10-31T13:56:00.000-07:00

Cultivating Distrust of the Certainties of Despair

Book Review: "Just Do Something" by Kevin DeYoung

2011-06-27T16:16:00.000-07:00

Kevin DeYoung's Just Do Something in an excellent book for people trying to discern God's will for their lives. It's a relatively short book (122 pages and small-sized), but it's packed with many helpful insights.

The gist of this book is that when seeking God's will for our lives, we ought to "Seek first [God's] kingdom and [God's] righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well," (Matt. 6:33). DeYoung argues that as long as we seek God first in everything we do, then no matter what we do, we will please him. In other words, when we surrender our lives to the finished work of Jesus Christ to live in our place, die in our place, and rise again for us, we respond rightly by loving him and living in obedience to his commands in the Bible. When we put the glory of Jesus Christ as the predominant priority in our lives, then we can have peace knowing that whatever we do, it is covered by his work (not ours), and, thus, it is pleasing to him.

DeYoung teases this out in the second chapter, as he distinguishes between God's wills of decree, desire, and direction. God's will of decree is what God has ordained to happen according to his sovereign, divine pleasure. God's will of desire is what God has commanded in his Word--what he desires from his creatures. God's will of direction is his individual, specific plan for the who, what, where, when, and how of our lives. One of the many accurate and liberating statements DeYoung makes about God's will of direction is, "God does have a specific plan for our lives, but it is not one that He expects us to figure out before we make a decision," (24).

DeYoung discusses many insightful reasons why younger generations are so obsessed with finding God's will for their lives, and why this treasure hunt is leaving so many young people daunted, paralyzed, and ultimately, stagnant. DeYoung writes that we ought to disregard the idea that there is one right option out there that God wants us to choose, and if we don't find it and follow it, then we're failures. Instead, God most often uses the decisions we make to teach us about ourselves, the way he's wired us individually, and about his will of direction for our lives.

The most practical advice DeYoung offers readers by the end of the book is that they ought to ask God for wisdom in their decision-making, and that they ought to pursue it by regularly reading his Word, by asking for insight from godly friends and mentors, and by praying to God and growing closer to Him. I agree with the author that this is the best practical advice and approach we can utilize as we seek God's will of direction for lives. This approach will also allow to examine our own experiences and skills to help determine the direction in which God might be leading us.

I really enjoyed and appreciated this book. It reminded me that God is in control of my life, and that he promises to lead me and guide me. My job is to trust him, to love him, and to obey him to the best of my ability by the power of the Holy Spirit, and he will guide me where he wants me to go. I highly recommend this book for anybody in their teens and twenties.

DeYoung, Kevin. Just Do Something. Moody: Chicago, 2009.

Book Review: "Defying Gravity: How to Survive the Storms of Pastoral Ministry"

2011-06-27T15:52:00.000-07:00

Defying Gravity: How to Survive the Storms of Pastoral Ministry was written by Daniel Henderson, who is also known for his emphasis on prayer-based revitalization of large churches. This book is a basic introduction for pastors entering full-time ministry about what they should expect in ministry, and how to survive and thrive in ministry.

Using the analogy of commercial flight and flying in comparison with pastoral ministry, Henderson emphasizes the need for pastors to keep their eyes on nine important "gauges" in ministry. The nine gauges include:
1) Applied truth: Essentially, applying the Gospel message to oneself before preaching it to others.
2) Spiritual intimacy: Maintaining a close, personal relationship with Jesus while in ministry
3) Personal integrity: Living an above-reproach life 24/7
4) Biblical Identity: Living in the awareness of your identity in Christ
5) Genuine Accountability: Putting interpersonal accountability measures into your life
6) Eternal Significance: Prioritizing your life and work according to God's standards of success, not the world's standards of success
7) Healthy Family Life: Serving and spiritually-leading your family like they deserve
8) Indispensable Pain: Anticipating and enduring the sufferings in pastoral ministry
9) Captivating Call: Persevering in ministry by remembering one's call to ministry

The first few chapters of this book were a little slow; however, I enjoyed the subsequent chapters that addressed the gauges of ministry. This book does not bring anything significantly new to the discussion of pastoral leadership; however, it is a light, easy-to-read introduction to pastoral ministry. Before recommending this book to new pastors, I would probably recommend Spurgeon's Lectures to My Students and Derek Prime's On Being a Pastor (which, to be fair, I have not yet completed). For men who don't have time or energy to read these longer works, Defying Gravity would be a sufficient "Cliff's Notes" replacement.

Henderson, Daniel. Defying Gravity. Moody: Chicago, 2010.

Book Review: Appointed to Preach

2011-06-14T11:55:00.000-07:00

Appointed to Preach by David W. Hegg is a very helpful book both for men discerning their call to full-time preaching ministry, and also to those pastors conducting ordination councils.

The first half of the book is written for those men discerning whether they are called by God to enter the pastoral ministry. Hegg does a great job laying out the main things they should consider as they’re evaluating their call: character, affirmation of God’s people, desire, message, and gifts. Hegg demonstrates how all these criteria for evaluating one’s calling are grounded in Scripture.

The second half of the book gives the pastoral candidate an idea of what to expect during the ordination process, and it also provides the ordaining council a helpful model for what this process should look like. Hegg makes it clear that he believes the role of the council is not to try to encourage and pass men who may be unqualified for ministry, but to discern who truly is called to ministry and to affirm them.

This book was the most helpful work I’ve read that helps men figure out if they’re called to the preaching ministry and to ordination. It was an enjoyable read, I was challenged in areas in which I need to grow, and I highly recommend this resource to anyone considering the preaching ministry, or who will ever be part of an ordination council.

(Hegg, David. Appointed to Preach. Mentor Publishing: Glasgow, 1999)

Book Review: "Miraculous Healing" by Henry Frost

2011-04-07T17:04:00.000-07:00

Of "Miraculous Healing" by Henry Frost, Martyn Lloyd Jones wrote, "This is easily and incomparably the best book I have ever read on this subject." Having read that quote by such a trustworthy pastor-scholar as Lloyd Jones, I was interested in reading this book.

Frost attempts to analyze and discuss the topic of miraculous healing as objectively, and almost, as scientifically as possible. He begins by sharing five instances from his own life in which he or a friend of his was miraculously healed. He then shares five, very similar situations from his own life in which he or a friend of his was not miraculously healed. He then discusses the similarities and differences between the details of those situations. For instance, he notes that in all ten cases, medical means were not rejected; however, in several of those situations, healings happened in spite of medical treatment, not in light of medical treatment. Frost also notes that in the majority of his cases, people did not call for the elders of the church to pray over them; that the sick people all asked for healing with a spirit of submission to God's will, rather than a spirit of demanding God to heal them; that all the sick patients sought God's healing with faith in his healing power...etc.

The strongest point this book makes about miraculous healing is that it is all subject to the sovereignty of our loving, heavenly Father. God tells us to pray to Him, because it is good and right, and we know that the prayers of the righteous person are powerful and effective; that, however, does not guarantee healing. Should a miraculous healing not take place, we ought not beat ourselves over the head, blaming ourselves for not having demonstrated sufficient faith in God. That being said, we ought to follow the appropriate steps given in Scripture for seeking healing, such as confessing unconfessed sin, etc. We ought to pray during suffering for the healing we desire, while submitting that to the will of our all-wise, all-gracious, all-loving heavenly father. Many times, God will not provide a miraculous healing for reasons that only he knows. Other times, God will provide miraculous healing. In either case, his holy character does not change.

While I personally disagreed with a few of Frost's theological positions, I would commend this book to someone interested in a brief overview of the topic. The book was definitely dry at times, and I would be interested to look into other books on this topic from a reformed position.

What Does It Look Like to Receive the New Testament for the First Time?

2011-03-03T10:48:00.000-08:00

What Does It Look Like to Receive the New Testament for the First Time?

Book Review: "Decision Points" by George W. Bush

2011-02-06T20:05:00.000-08:00

Don't shoot me for saying this, but the reason I wanted to read this book was because of Oprah. That is, I saw an intriguing interview with George W. Bush on the Oprah show a few months ago, which made me interested in this book. She wasn't necessarily promoting his book; rather, she was just asking him about some of the controversial aspects of his presidency, while he was getting some free promotion for his book. When he said that the first chapter in the book was about him defeating his addiction to alcohol thanks to his faith in Jesus, I wanted to read it.

Thus far in my life, I would say that I've enjoyed 50% of the biographies I've read. I must say, this is probably one of the best autobiographical works I've read. Whether or not you like George W. Bush, this book will give you a new appreciation of him and of the presidency in general. "Decision Points" is largely about being a leader and making the decisions one believes are right, regardless of one's "approval ratings." I learned that most people have no clue what all information is available to the President when he makes decisions that he believes will be best for everyone. For instance, while many people criticized George W. Bush for entering Iraq, they were clueless about the hundreds of plausible terrorist threats that appear in a written report to the President every morning. Also, many people may not know that in addition to the U.S. intelligence on Iraq, Great Britain and other countries had gathered their own intelligence that led them to believe that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. Although no military forces have yet discovered WMDs in Iraq to date, the President had to decide whether to act on the information given to him by his own government and other nations, or whether he would sit back and risk other terrorists slipping through his fingers. The point is, the majority of the U.S. was criticizing its leader for his decisions, while most of them had no clue what he knew.

The book is divided into fourteen chapters of his presidential career, including: finding freedom in Jesus from alcohol, running for President, selecting the right leaders for his cabinet, stem cell research, 9/11, establishing post-9/11 anti-terrorist agencies, the war in Afghanistan, the war in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, AIDS, the Surge in Iraq, establishing international democracies, and the U.S. financial crisis. Each chapter offers a first-person perspective of what the President saw, knew, and did to navigate these crises.

This book is written very well. It is easy to read and goes by quickly. Each chapter is divided into smaller chunks, which makes the chapters much easier to digest. I learned much about the government, diplomacy, and international politics. It clarified my understanding of what was going on in Iraq and Afghanistan, and what the crucial issues at hand were. I also enjoyed and was a bit surprised by the frequency with which President Bush credited his faith in Jesus for leading him and carrying him many times. I also learned much about leadership: picking the right leaders to work with you, standing up for what you believe is right, owning and learning from your mistakes, making informed decisions, and not caring about what others think about you.

Obviously, any autobiography is biased toward the person writing about him/herself. That being said, I think this book gave Bush a much-needed and very beneficial apologetic for the decisions he made while President. I recommend this book highly to anyone who cares to learn more about U.S. politics, international relations, leadership lessons, and, of course, George W. Bush.

George W. Bush. Decision Points. Crown Publishers: New York, 2010.

Book Review: "Lectures to My Students" by Charles Spurgeon

2011-01-27T11:03:00.000-08:00

Lectures to My Students by Charles Spurgeon should be read by every pastor at least once. If you want to learn about preaching and pastoring, why not learn from one of the most effective communicators and soul-winners in history? This book is a collection of lectures he gave to students and future pastors at the Pastor's college. Spurgeon (1834-1892) has been given the title "the Prince of Preachers," due to his proliferation of Spirit-led preaching and the great number of people who became Christians as a result of his preaching. There are several biographies about Spurgeon, but for a short, helpful overview of his life, consider reading the "Heroes of the Faith" biography of Charles Spurgeon.

In this collection of 28 lectures, Spurgeon offers wisdom and practical advice on issues related to pastoral ministry and preaching, including: personal integrity, calling, prayer, choosing texts, preaching etiquette, the Holy Spirit, evangelism, dealing with interpersonal conflict, earnestness, and how to handle criticism. Some of my favorite chapters in this book were: "The Holy Spirit in Connection with Our Ministry," "Earnestness," "The Blind Eye and the Deaf Ear," and "Sermons--Their Matter."

I have countless underlinings in my book and notes in the margins--too many to share here. Walking away from this book, here are some of the main points that will stick with me:

1) The pastor must tend to his own soul and walk with Jesus before tending to the souls of others. Unless a pastor takes time to pray and read the Bible and serve and grow in his own joy in the Lord, he cannot serve others well. One cannot give away what one does not possess.

2) Any beneficial, eternally significant result of a sermon happens because of the saving activity of the Holy Spirit and the clear proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ. It matters not how well a man preaches or how charismatic is his personality if he does not have the anointing of the Holy Spirit. So, pastors must constantly pray for the Holy Spirit to work for them. Pastors must saturate everything they do with prayer, asking the Holy Spirit to cover and anoint their work, to move mightily among their flock, and to save lost souls. Only God can save people; we can not.

3) It is a great privilege to pray in a public church service. Do not seek to impress others with your words or knowledge. Do not say anything to detract from worship to God and glory to Him alone. Recognize that you are bringing not only your own request before God, but the requests of every believer present. Allow the different trials and blessings currently experienced by everyone in the church family to shape the content of your prayers. Be reverent, and be yourself. Written prayers are not necessary, but may be used some.

4) Preach Jesus Christ crucified in every sermon, because that is at the heart of the Gospel of Jesus. Preach Christ crucified and its implications for the lost, the found, the backslidden, the rich, the poor, the depressed, the hopeless, the elderly, the child, the man, and the woman.

5) Preach a combination of book-length and topical sermons, depending on the context in which you are preaching. Preach everything in the context of the larger text. If you are a traveling preacher, you obviously have but one sermon to preach with a crowd, so pray for divine wisdom as you discern which text to preach. While it appears that Spurgeon did not advocate preaching through a book of the Bible, it seems to me that his sermons would only have been further enhanced had they come in the context of series of sermons on the same book.

6) A preacher must be convinced of the urgency of the message he is preaching if he desires his audience to sense the same urgency. The preacher must be passionate and excited about the Word of God if he desires his flock to be the same. Do not be fake, but always remember the privilege you've been given to teach and preach the living Word of God, and allow your natural zeal for Jesus and his Word to fill you with authentic enthusiasm for preaching and hearing a message from God.

7) Seasons of depression, discouragement, and trial are to be expected. If you are preaching the Word of Christ, if you are united with Christ, you will suffer for Christ and with Christ. Make sure to give yourself regular breaks and Sabbaths, so that you can refresh your soul and reconnect with the Lord. Persevere, for God is with you.

8) Be a guy with whom other guys can relate. Socialize. Have some hobbies. Let others see you as a mere man, just as they are. This does not mean engaging in sin, but it does mean not putting oneself on a pedestal or allowing others to keep oneself there. Men and women want to know that you're a real person who struggles like they do, who enjoys the same things they do, and who lives where they live.

9) Embrace a balanced combination of studying books and studying life. While our primary energy should be spent in God's Word and studying it, also fill your extra time with commentaries and edifying reading. Head knowledge is no substitute for street knowledge, though. Learn about life wherever you can. Visit hospitals, jails, orphanages, and other places, so that you can enhance your worldview, your experiences, and your understanding of how the Gospel applies to the lives of everyone.

10) Conduct yourself privately and publicly in a way that is pleasing to God. Do not tout your intellectual and theological prowess. Do not constantly be in "attack mode," always looking for a spiritual discussion to win or a heresy to conquer. Stand firm in the truth of God's Word. Do not overreact or outburst during most theological discussions. Be patient with others, and maintain your humility. Act in a way that will win people to Christ and that will bring joy to the Lord.

11) Be yourself while preaching. Do not put your audience to sleep, but don't be someone you aren't. God has designed you with your unique personality and has sovereignly placed you to share His Word with the audience before you. Don't dramatize or act. Be genuine. Speak clearly and loudly and passionately. Vary the tone of your voice, so as not to be boring. Work at getting better at communicating. Preaching takes practice and more preaching to get better at it. Learn from excellent preachers, but be yourself, and make no apologies for that.

12) Expand your mission field by getting outside the church building. Get involved in the community. Eat where people eat, go to public parks, volunteer in local organizations, etc. Don't expect every lost soul to come to you. Jesus told us to go out and make disciples of all nations. Spend adequate time on your sermon, but get out and be with the sheep in their pasture.

13) Harsh comments will be thrown at you in ministry. You need to allow many of those comments to roll off your back. Consider what truth you may glean from all criticism, take the good, and leave the bad. Be able to bear some criticism. You don't really want others to think you're perfect, and you certainly don't want to be in danger of considering yourself flawless, do you? Don't allow comments to stick with you. Hear them, learn them, release them to God, and move on. Don't believe gossip you hear. Don't be paranoid about people out to get you. Don't worry about the people who don't like you. Live a life of such godly integrity that your actions will mute the accusations of your enemies. Do not make much of an abundance of praise or depreciation from others. Preach the truth of God's Word in love, and worry not whether people love you or hate you. Care only that you are faithful to God and have lovingly and accurately shared his Word.

14) Teach the full Gospel of Jesus, including the depravity of sinners, the necessity of the Holy Spirit's divine intervention, the atonement of Jesus, justification by faith, and the love of God in Jesus. Plead with your audience to repent and be saved and to love Jesus. Be bold in your proclamation of the Gospel, and do not feel as if you're asking the audience a favor to listen to God's Word, as though they would oblige Jesus to save them. They need Jesus, and they are going to hell without him. Work hard. Allow other trustworthy preachers to fill your pulpit from time to time, so that your audience can hear the Gospel from a fresh voice.

15) Use illustrations in preaching in order to help your audience more clearly visualize and comprehend the Gospel message. Be on the lookout for illustrations all around you. Read the news, read books, look at your own life, examine history, examine culture, and learn from a variety of sciences and studies. The more you learn about different areas of life, the more illustrations you are bound to find. Only use an illustration if it is helpful and clarifying, though. It should not add another layer of confusion to your message, but should reveal, bring into focus, and simplify another point you're trying to prove.

Although there are definitely certain sections of this book that are antiquated and fit for a specific time and place in history, the majority of Spurgeon's insights are still helpful, applicable, and can be translated into our world today. I highly recommend it to all pastors.

Charles Spurgeon. "Lectures to My Students." Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1979.

My Dream Punk Band

2011-01-03T16:51:00.000-08:00

I love punk music, mostly new school punk music. I'm not as into the old school stuff, but I like some of it. After much time thinking about this, here is the dream punk band that I would love to see come together someday!

Lead Vocals: Mike Herrera (MxPx)

This was the hardest spot for me to fill, because there are many great singers who could take this role. For me, it was a toss-up for me between Mike and Trever Keith. To be honest, I could go either way. I went with Mike, though, because of his overall songwriting skills, singing ability, and more melodic style. MxPx was the first punk band I ever got into (if you don’t include Plankeye), and Mike Herrera has been the band’s frontman for over 18 years. Further, it’s important to consider that the lead singer is often the leader of the band as far as stage presence, and Herrera has great stage presence, so it just makes sense.

Lead Guitar: Jackson Mould (Slick Shoes)

This one was a no-brainer. In fact, Jackson Mould might actually be able to be a punk band by himself. In the early days of Slick Shoes, he wrote all the lyrics, all the guitar parts, and was lead vocals. There are other great punk guitarists out there from whom to choose (e.g. Rufio, Saosin, Hangnail, Four Year Strong, Strung Out); however, I’m going with the guy who single-handedly introduced an entire generation to new school punk rock with an 80s flair, AND who is not ashamed to talk about Jesus! I’ll never forget the 99’ Tooth and Nail Winter Festival in Salem, OR; Jackson Mould and the Supertones were the only two musicians to take time in the middle of their set to share about Jesus Christ. Not that the other bands weren’t Christian, but on that day, Jackson Mould sealed his title as greatest punk guitarist ever in my book.

Backup Guitar / Backup Vocals: Trever Keith (Face to Face)

Trever Keith almost made it as lead vocalist, but I gave it to Mike for the reasons listed above. Also, Face to Face is doubly represented in my lineup, so I had to give extra cred to MxPx. Trever Keith not only has one of the coolest voices for a punk singer, but also is a great guitarist, too. On the Face to Face “goodbye” tour in 2005, Trever Keith was the only guitarist, playing all lead and rhythm parts, and it sounded great live. That’s pretty amazing, considering one of the key distinctives of Face to Face is their use of two guitars on their recordings. I should also mention that Trever Keith would only play backup guitar if it was in no way offensive to Jackson Mould. As I said earlier, does Jackson really need another guitarist? No. Does he even need other band members? Probably not. But, my guess is that Jackson would be humble enough to let Trever play, too, so I’m all for it!

Bass Guitar: Scott Shiflett (Face to Face)

This one was an easy one for me, because I’ve known it for a long time. Scott Shiflett is just the best punk bassist out there. He’s one of the only punk bassists I know who routinely does cool bass lines between verses and during the verses that isn’t simply the bass note the guitarist is playing. I don’t know much else about the guy, except that he is a great bassist AND a great backup vocalist. I would like to see Scott sing some backup vocals, too, but the prime backup position goes to Trever Keith.

Drummer: Travis Barker (Blink-182)

This was another easy one for me. I am at a point now, where I mostly listen to Blink-182 just to hear Travis Barker drum. I like Tom Delonge’s guitar parts, but it’s pretty much the Travis Barker show. I haven’t heard another punk drummer who plays like him. Granted, this isn’t my area of expertise, but from what my ears tell me they like to hear, they like to hear Travis Barker on drums. Off the top of my head, I would probably give honorable mention in this category to the drummers in Saosin and Four Year Strong.

Lyrics: Collaborative effort by Sick of Change and Broken Cedars

No punk band has better lyrics in my book than Sick of Change and Broken Cedars. So, they will work collaboratively to write the most unbelievable lyrics ever to be heard from a punk band. These bands have led me many times to moments of spontaneous worship, reminding me of the amazing love of God, and the wonder of his grace that he fully displayed by dying in our place on the cross for us and being resurrected from the dead. To this day, I have all of the lyrics from Broken Cedar’s first CD printed on my office wall. These guys will bring you into the throne room to worship Jesus!

Book Review: "Christian Beliefs" by Wayne Grudem

2010-12-28T12:36:00.000-08:00

Wayne Grudem's "Christian Beliefs" is the best introductory book I've found on the topic of Christian systematic theology. Condensed from Grudem's much longer and highly recommended work "Systematic Theology," "Christian Beliefs" addresses the most important biblical doctrines and the issues related to those doctrines. I've read this book twice, most recently with a group of six college freshman, for whom this book was a perfect primer on basic Christian theology. While the chapters are short (5-8 pages each), the strength of this book lies in the author's appropriate exegesis of Scripture and the book's abundance of biblical citations. Although some reviewers have written that the book is slanted toward Calvinistic believers, which it is in a few parts, I believe that this book simply addresses scriptural truths and allows readers to wrestle for themselves with the Bible. Grudem is a strong Calvinist, however, he is careful to allow flexibility in areas where difference of opinion is allowed within orthodox Christian teaching (e.g. eschatology, etc.). This book would be an excellent resource to use in a Sunday School class, a new believer's class, in a home group, with teenagers and young adults, or with Christians of any age who need to brush up on Bible-based systematic theology. I highly recommend this book!

Short Book Review: Counterfeit Gods by Tim Keller

2010-12-24T16:54:00.001-08:00

I'm sure there are dozens of online reviews of Tim Keller's Counterfeit Gods, but I want to throw in my two cents as well. Tim Keller is one of my very favorite Christian communicators to hear, be that through listening to his messages or reading his books. Keller is definitely one of the most creative and fresh voices today in the world of biblically faithful thinkers and cultural exegetes. What amazes me is how someone who is so intelligent and who thinks so deeply can articulate his profound insights through language everyone can understand. Counterfeit Gods is no exception.

The thesis of the book is that all sins are really different forms of idolatry, because they occur when people seek to find their purpose and acceptance in created things instead of in their Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ. Keller looks at some of the key idols that have plagued humanity for thousands of years, showing examples of those idols in the lives of people in the Bible, and then revealing how those idols play out in ou world today. These idols include romantic love, money, success, and power.

The end of the book gives readers some ideas about how to identify the idols in their lives, and how to replace them with greater affections for Jesus Christ. It is only when we find our greatest treasure and delight in Jesus Christ can we appropriately identify and rid our lives of the false gods in our lives.

This is an excellent book and very readable. I highly recommend it!

Timothy Keller. Counterfeit Gods. New York: Penguin, 2009.

Hallock CD Available

2010-12-24T15:22:00.001-08:00

My brother and I recently released our new CD, "Affections from Northampton, MA," which has 10 tracks recorded in the studio and 9 bonus tracks that we recorded at home (that's 19 songs total)! All the songs on this CD were inspired by a collection of Puritan prayers entitled "The Valley of Vision."

We are selling this CD in order to 1) help people worship Jesus through music, and 2) to help care for children in an orphanage we've visited in Juarez, Mexico, called "Rescue Ministries of Mexico." The CD is $10 (half of which goes to the orphanage; the other half pays for our cost to make the CD) + $3 S&H (if needed). We'd love to hear from you if you'd like to partner with us in this ministry and buy a CD for yourself or someone you love. Listen to some of the songs at:
www.purevolume.com/hallock

Book Review: The Unity of the Bible

2010-12-18T20:49:00.000-08:00

The following sentence alone persuaded me to purchase and read Daniel Fuller's The Unity of the Bible, "No book besides the Bible has had a greater influence on my life than Daniel Fuller's Unity of the Bible." Penned by John Piper, this recommendation convinced me that reading this work was a worthwhile investment of my time. I'm neither the most prolific nor the speediest reader I know, so plowing into this 460 page work was a lengthy endeavor for me. I really enjoyed this book, though, it taught me much, and it's very clear to see how it influenced Piper's theology and teaching.

In sum, this book is basically a primer on biblical theology, covering the storyline of the entire Bible and its unifying themes. Having focused almost exclusively on systematic theology during my seminary years, the study of which I thoroughly enjoy, this was a really refreshing way to view Scripture as the one unified book that it is. The book is divided into four parts: 1) The Value of the Inquiry (for the unity of the Bible); 2) The Foundations of Redemptive History; 3) Israel, The Lesson Book for the Nations; and 4) The Gospel Goes to the World.

The first part is "The Value of the Inquiry (for the unity of the Bible)." This introductory part lays the groundwork for viewing scripture as an integrated whole by giving evidence for the Bible's unity through the Old and New Testament canons. It then defines some of the essential elements for formulating a biblical worldview and contrasts that with the works-based worldviews of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. Thus, this section clearly reveals that all of the Bible teaches salvation by God's grace through faith in Jesus Christ from beginning to end.

The second part is "The Foundations of Redemptive History." In this section, Fuller more fully explores the account of the Fall of man and the entrance of sin into humanity in the book of Genesis. This is followed by a look at the nature of God, including His being a Trinity, his work of creation, and his purpose for humanity. Then, Fuller looks at the reason for justness of an eternal hell, followed by an exploration of the riches of God's mercy from the cross of Jesus (my favorite chapter), and God's promise to protect the seed of his chosen people.

The third part is "Israel, the Lesson Book for the Nations." This section looks at the life of Abraham, the purpose of the Old Testament Law, and the Kingdom of God in the Old Testament. One of Fuller's main points is that as in the New Testament, God's chosen people are reconciled to Himself by faith in God, which is evidenced by consequential works of obedience. Such a message of eternal salvation is directly opposed to a hopeless and non-biblical perspective that salvation is achieved through faith, supplemented by necessary obedience and works, the sum of which might earn one a righteous standing before God.

The fourth part is "The Gospel Goes to the World." This last part of the book examines the Kingdom of God during the life of Christ and the early church, in our current world, and in the future. A key point in this section is that Jesus Christ desires to save all people around the world whom he has elected, regardless of race, lineage, or geographical location. Fuller completes this section by discussing the future conversion of those Jews alive at the time of Christ's return.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from this book:

On the canonization of the Bible during the early church, "Such decisions singling out those documents that 'teach the truth' were not made in some church council attended by representatives from church districts scattered far and wide, as is sometimes claimed. Instead they were made informally at the grass-roots level, by small groups of Christians networked with each other in household churches located mostly around the eastern half of the Mediterranean," (62).

"God's ultimate purpose (in creation) is to increase his joy by sharing the blessing of the Trinity in creation. And while it constitutes a desirable goal that he took steps to attain, it is also his free act in that he finds so much joy just in transmitting his blessings to those who appreciate them that he wants nothing more," (136).

"Significantly, the first of the two steps involved in submitting to God's purpose corresponds to his necessary work of being a truly glorious God as a Trinity; the second parallels his free work of extending the goodness of his glory throughout the world he created. First, then we want to delight ourselves in God, looking to him to satisfy our need-love. Then we want to increase our joy by exercising benevolent love to all other people," (139).

"(Jesus) had no sweet frame o mind, like many martyrs, to help him endure his physical agony; rather, his most extreme anguish was that God was treating him like a sinner. His Father had forsaken him and had become his enemy, pouring out the full force of his wrath upon his Son," (213).

"Another way in which Jesus' resurrection is vital for the forgiveness of sins is made clear in Romans 4:24-25: 'God will credit righteousness--for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.' This passage implies that we could not be confident that Jesus had paid the penalty for our sins unless he had risen from the dead. Had he remained in the tomb, the conclusion would have been that he must be punished eternally like all other people who have 'sinned and [fallen] short of the glory of God' (3:23). But because he was raised, we know that we can be justified, or accounted righteous, before God," (216).

A note I wrote in the margin on p. 218: To help us understand the enormity of God's love for us, we must ask, "How valuable was God's love for His only Son, who he sent to die for us?" When we understand the enormity of God's love for his Son, then we can begin to understand the enormity of his love for us.

I really enjoyed Fuller's The Unity of the Bible, and it helped me understand better that the One and Only God is the author of all the Bible, that He is the creator of all things for His Glory, and that we can be saved into a relationship with Him only by faith in the grace he offers us through the life, death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus Christ. While this book definitely has much theological depth to it, I found myself often reading it as devotional reading. If you have not read a basic primer on biblical theology, this is the book for you!

Fuller, Daniel P. The Unity of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992.

Cooking with Jackson TV

2010-12-11T20:04:00.000-08:00

Make video fullscreen by pushing button in bottom righthand corner of video player.

How Can't You Love Owl City?

2010-11-02T16:59:00.000-07:00

Praise God for a majorly successful musician using his God-given influence to reflect the glory of Christ! Check out this link to hear Owl City's rendition of "In Christ Alone." The lyrics are very moving.

In Christ alone, my hope is found 
He is my light, my strength, my song 
This cornerstone, this solid ground 
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm 
What heights of love, what depths of peace 
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease 
My comforter, my all-in-all 
Here in the love of Christ I stand

There in the ground His body lay 
Light of the world by darkness slain 
Then bursting forth in glorious day 
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory 
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
 For I am His and He is mine 
Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
 This is the power of Christ in me 
From life’s first cry to final breath 
Jesus commands my destiny 
No power of hell, no scheme of man 
Can ever pluck me from His hand
 Till He returns or calls me home 
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand

Prayer for Teen Heroin Problem in Stanwood

2010-11-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

There's been much media coverage recently about the heroin epidemic among teenagers in Stanwood. I encourage all parents to communicate regularly with their kids about what's going on in their lives, who they're hanging out with, and what they're doing in their free time (especially during the hours of 2:30-5:30PM). Likewise, we need teenagers to communicate with "safe adults" in their lives about what they're seeing and doing in and out of school.

All sorts of factors contribute to teen issues like these, including peer pressure, easy drug availability, lack of parental involvement, etc. I feel strongly, though, that the reason so many teens are hooked on drugs and other "addictions" like peer pressure, sexual activity, and self-harming activities is because they are trying to fill an infinite hole in their hearts which only Jesus Christ can fill. Only when people surrender to the true love and grace that Jesus has for them, and which he has displayed for them through his death and resurrection will they find true rest from their problems and peace in whom God created them to be.

So, how do we introduce hurting teenagers to the only One who can heal their hearts?

First, and most importantly, we must pray for the Holy Spirit of God to move among our teenagers, to encounter and convict them, and to transform them by His power, which is something only He can do. If we try to go out and change the world without humbly asking for the the presence, power, and leading of the Holy Spirit, our efforts are all for nothing. Psalm 127:1 says, "Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain." We need to pray privately and corporately that God would move among our teens and transform them.

Second, we need to share and the show the love of Jesus Christ to these teens and their families. Instead of self-righteously viewing drug users as enemies, we must admit that we ourselves are no better than anyone, that we are all sinners in need of a Savior! As the body of Christ, we need to care for these students and their families through sharing the Good News of Jesus with them verbally, that there is hope for them in Jesus, and by showing them the Good News of Jesus actively through inviting them to church youth group activities, connecting them with caring adults, helping them make new friends who love Jesus, and giving them opportunities to share how they're really feeling and why they're living the way they are. Our current series at CYM is perfect for teens struggling with addictions, as we are watching testimonies from many famous athletes, actors, and musicians who have wrestled with such problems, and have since found peace and transformation in Jesus Christ!

I want to share three concluding thoughts: one is that I don't claim to be an expert on the issue of teen drug abuse, and I don't pretend to know all the specific answers about what strategies will work best for overcoming this problem. Only God knows that, and that's why we need to pray for divine wisdom. While I don't know how/if we can fully solve the secondary issues related to the problem of heroin use in Stanwood, I do know what THE primary answer is: for teenagers and their families to have a life-transforming friendship with Jesus Christ.

Second, we shouldn't naively assume that heroin use is the only major problem among our teens in Stanwood. Granted, it's what's hot on the headlines right now, but there are lots of other worrisome issues among our teens that deserve equal attention, like self-injurious activities, rampant sexual activity, alcohol and other drug abuses, etc. Again, the way to really help our teens is not merely to put a bandage on each of these problems, but to realize that these problems are merely symptoms of a much greater and more dangerous problem: spiritual emptiness.

Third, I encourage parents to continue to be informed about this problem and to participate in community dialogues taking place, like the recent discussion at Stanwood Middle School. The TV show 20/20 recently reported about the problem of heroin use among suburban teens, which you can watch here. (http://abc.go.com/watch/2020/SH559026/VD5594303/teens-hooked-on-heroin) I have not yet watched this, so view it at your own discretion.

My Youth Group Website

2010-09-20T16:43:00.000-07:00

I just created a new website for our youth group, if you're interested in checking it out. The web address is: www.cedarhomeyouth.com

"The Bible is About Jesus" by Tim Keller

2010-08-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

UnderOath Testimony

2010-08-26T16:28:00.001-07:00

I Am Living: Aaron Gillespie from Come&Live! on Vimeo.

Migrant Workers Service Day

2010-08-10T13:38:00.000-07:00

2,500 Miles of Sound Doctrine, Pt. 2

2010-07-28T20:12:00.000-07:00

Last summer, I shared a list of the sermons I listened to during our 2,500 miles on the road to visit our family. A few weeks ago, we made the trek to Wyoming again, and I was thankful to listen to several more messages, which 1) edified my wife's and my soul, and 2) made the drive go by much faster. I'm extremely thankful to have a wife who joyfully tolerates my incessant insistence to listen to a blitzkrieg of sermons and conference messages. Also, these aren't wimpy little 20-30 minute messages; these suckers are about an hour long each. :)Normally, I download about 50 messages online before we leave from monergism.com, desiringgod.com, and thegospelcoalition.com, and then I select from those MP3 files along the way whatever sounds most interesting. Without further ado, here's the list of messages I had the privilege of hearing, and, like last year, for which I wish I could have taken notes had I had a free hand (thanks again to my wife, for writing down these approximate titles in order as we drove):

1) R.C. Sproul, "Defending the Gospel in 50 Years of Ministry," T4G 2010 (Not gonna lie--this was a rough way to kick off the sermon parade at 6 in the morning. Pretty heady and dry stuff. Some good stuff, but it felt more like a lecture in seminary than a sermon, and I imagine that's what he intended it to be.)

2) John Piper, "Biography of Jonathan Edwards" (Like all his biographies, I was really interested by this one, especially since Piper loves Edwards so much. I could tell that this message was Piper's sharing just the tip of the iceberg his affections for Edwards. I never ever thought I would enjoy reading or listening to biographies, but Piper does it in a way that I really enjoy.)

3) Tim Keller, "Preaching to Christians and Non-Christians" (This was really good. Can't remember everything in it, but it was good.)

4) Tim Keller, "A Reason for God" (Not sure if that's the correct title of this message, but he basically shares how pastors need to incorporate apologetic arguments into their sermons addressing the questions listed in his book The Reason for God.)

5) Tim Keller, "How the Cross Changes Our Lives" (Keller elaborates on the Good News of Jesus, and how it affects how we relate to others.)

6) Tim Keller, "Your Plans, God's Plans" (This was a sermon about the mystery of following God's plans for our lives.)

7) John Piper, "10 Aspects of God's Sovereignty Over Satan and Suffering" from DG (This was a great message, and the first chapter of his book Suffering and the Sovereignty of God. A few notes I took during this message were:

-Only God is sovereign: Satan and suffering and people are not.

-God does not merely allow suffering. He wills it for a purpose in our lives.

8) David Powlinson, "God's Grace in Our Suffering" from DG (Powlinson uses the hymn "How Firm a Foundation" as the outline for his message. It is a good message more from the angle of a pastoral counselor. He shares that we must align our experiences with God's promises.)

9) D.A. Carson, "Third John" (Basically, Carson does an amazing job expositing the entire book in one sermon. He does a great job making applications for a younger generation. Great exposition.)

10) Tim Keller, "Gospel Neighboring" (Keller has great insights on Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan. One main takeaway was that we ought to care for the needs of others regardless of their religious beliefs or backgrounds.)

11) Mark Dever, "How Does Your Church Show the Gospel?" T4G 2010 (I didn't love this message. It was good, but as Dever confesses at the beginning, it's a different type of message than he normal gives: it's topical instead of expository. There was some really good stuff in it, but nothing groundbreaking.)

12) John Piper, "When I Don't Desire God, Pt. 1" from DG (This talk was mostly a primer about the book Desiring God, which preps the audience for the conference's subsequent messages. It was really good. One quote I loved was "Satan's problem is not doctrine, it's delight." In other words, Satan knows all about God, but he doesn't delight in Him.)

I still can't get over the fact that all these messages are available for free online. I remember going to the the National Youth Workers Conventions and paying $8/tape of each workshop I was unable to attend! What incredible resources for ourselves and our churches!

John Wooden's Love Story

2010-06-07T12:13:00.000-07:00

As my wife and I celebrate our anniversary one week from today, I pray and aspire for the kind of love and loyalty to her that John Wooden had for his wife:

Jesus Cleaned Up Our Spill

2010-06-07T11:57:00.001-07:00

A communion meditation I gave in church yesterday:

Communion Meditation

Dan Hallock

June 6, 2010

Over the past six weeks, there’s been one news story that’s dominated our media with constant headlines and images, and that’s the oil spill in the Gulf Coast. With up to a million gallons of oil gushing into the once pristine waters of the Gulf Coast every day, this spill has now been acknowledged as the worst oil spill in our country’s history. Compared to the Exxon Valdez disaster 20 years ago in Alaska, which spilled around 11 million gallons of oil, it’s estimated that the Gulf Coast spill has already leaked between 22 million and 47 million gallons in six weeks, and it hasn’t stopped yet.

Many of our southern states’ marshes have been turned into death zones for wildlife, and many beaches are beginning to resemble tar pits more than scenic getaways. One resident of Pensacola Beach, Florida, said, “I feel like I've gone from owning a piece of paradise to owning a toxic waste dump.” When I read those words, I was reminded of a different disaster with consequences much more severe for every one of us in here, and that’s the spill of sin into our lives. Our sin has taken each of us from owning a piece of eternal paradise to being part of an eternal toxic waste dump.

God tells us that every one of us has spilled sin on our souls, which has polluted every part of our being: our hearts, our thoughts, our bodies, and our eternity. Romans 6:23 tells us that the consequence of this spill of sin in our souls is eternal death and separation from God. It is a horrific disaster which we are unable to clean up on our own. Isaiah 64:6 says that even our best human efforts to get our lives right and to do good are but filthy rags before the Lord and are displeasing to Him.

God’s Word is clear that the only way for us to be made clean in God’s sight and for us to have a piece of Paradise again, is not for us to try to clean up our mess, but to allow God himself, Jesus Christ, to clean up our mess for us. And the way Jesus cleaned up our mess was by being perfectly Holy and Pure, he stepped into our sinful mess with us, and he actually took on our impurity. He became our sin for us when he was crucified on the cross. And if by faith, we pray to Him and accept his death on our behalf, if we surrender our souls to Him as our only Savior, and if we make him the Lord of our daily lives, then God assures us that we are made pure and acceptable forever in his sight. And, God promises that we will live in friendship with Him forever, beginning in this life on earth, and continuing when we pass on into Paradise for all eternity.

We should always remember that Jesus chose to come clean up our disaster not because God owes us anything, but because He loves each one of us passionately, He is merciful, and He wants us to be in his family forever.

So as we take communion today, and every time you hear about the oil spill in the news in coming weeks, remember how Jesus cleaned up the spill of sin in your own life because He loves you.

10 Truths from the Pentateuch

2010-05-31T14:16:00.000-07:00

Today, I finished reading through the Pentateuch (which rocked my world way more than I could have anticipated). I want to very briefly share 10 key truths (in no particular order) that God has taught me during my time in the first five books of the Bible :

1) God is sovereign (Gen. 1:1-2:25; Ex. 4:21; Deut 30:19-20). God is completely in control of everything that happens in this world. He is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Overseer of everything that happens. He changes the minds of men and hardens the hearts of men whenever he desires. We are foolish to think we are ever in control of our lives. While God gives us choices to make, His will prevails.

2) God loves His Children (Ex. 15:13; Deut. 7:8-9; Deut 32:1-47). God really, really loves His Children. He disciplines them, because He loves them. He shows them great faithfulness, mercy, and affection. He reveals his zealous desire to have a righteous relationship with them. He desires people from all nations to surrender to Him and to join his family.

3) God is extremely patient with us (Num. 14:18-19). God blesses humanity, and humanity rebels against Him. God protects his children, and his children reject Him. God performs miracle after miracle for and before Israel, and they complain and go worship other Gods. While God would be completely justified to dole out punishment immediately, He waits. He gives His children time to repent. We should not take for granted God's patience, though, because we know that our time is short and that God will not wait forever. God's great patience toward us, though, is because of his love for us, and we ought to remember his example of patience as we wait upon others.

4) God is just and righteous (Lev. 19:15; Deut. 16:20; Deut. 32:34-35). God does not allow evil to go unpunished. God is also, always completely right in his judgments. God will avenge evil in His timing, not necessarily in our timing. We must take great comfort in knowing that God always does what is right and fair. God also cares greatly about the poor, the downtrodden, the outcasts, and the oppressed. He desires that we leverage our rights, freedoms, and gifts to help those in need.

5) God is faithful to keep His Promises (Deut. 4:31; Deut. 7:9). Unlike men, God does not make promises and then retract them. God always keeps His promises, not because men are deserving, but because He is faithful to His own word, and to Himself. If God says He will do something, He will always do it--again, in His timing. We ought not question God's reliability, because He has never broken a a promise, and He never will.

6) God is holy (Ex. 22:31; Lev. 20:26). God is entirely separate from sin in any form or amount. God's standard is perfection, nothing less. He cares that we are to be free from sin in order to please Him. This is why we must make it our active aim to lean into the power of the Holy Spirit as we uproot any root of sinfulness, evil, or impurity in our hearts and lives. In order to be in relationship with God, we must be holy. We cannot come into his presence otherwise. God also metes out severe punishment upon anything tainted by sin. Sin is terrible--more terrible than we can fully understand--and God wants no part of it in our lives, not a root of sin, not a hint of sin.

7) God cares about the details in our lives (Ex. 25:9; Deut. 29:18). God gives very specific instructions for the building of His Tabernacle, the performing of sacrifices, the celebration of holy days, etc. If God cares greatly about the exact type and color of fabric used in His Tabernacle, built by men, then how much more does God care about every detail in the lives of His followers, created by Himself? God pays attention to and cares about the "little things in our lives: the comments that hurt us, the evil feelings we allow to root into our hearts, the way we use our pennies, the tone of our voices, the use of our minutes, etc. Every detail in our lives honors or dishonors God, and He cares. Every detail about our lives matters to God. He is filled with compassion toward us and cares about our desires, our hurts, our doubts, our insecurities, and our needs. He is ignorant about and indifferent toward nothing. Everything matters to God.

8) We can trust the unchanging character of God (Ex. 3:13-15; Deut. 32:3-4). God's character does not change; that is, He is immutable. When we do not understand the terrible circumstances God allows to enter our lives, we know we can trust Him, because we can trust the goodness of His character, evidenced by His words and actions. There are many difficult passages in the Bible to which our human minds do not have any easy answers. Life is often very hard, and our corrupted minds are truly unable to grasp the perfect and divine purposes of God. Despite the difficulty of our circumstances, though, we know we can trust the character of God: His goodness, His righteousness, His faithfulness, and His great love for us. This gives me great peace, because I know that I do not have all the answers that people might pose to me; but we can submit every question created by myself or others to the character of God and know with certainty that He is good, holy, awesome, and perfect.

9) Always Remember the Lord and His Commands (Nu. 15:39-40; Deut. 4:23; Deut. 8:18). To state it negatively, never forget the Lord and His commands. In the Pentateuch, God clearly articulates his commands and laws for His people. Then, He repeats them again. And again. And again. God does not want us ever to forget Him, because He is jealous for us, for our good, and for His glory. Severe punishments await those who turn away from their Maker, who worship false gods, and who go their own way. Also, God gives adults the responsibility to impart his Word to the next generation of His children, that they might likewise be faithful to him, and that all may go well with them.

10) Jesus Christ is more precious than anything (Gen. 3:15; Ex. 12:1-14; Lev. 16:1-34; Nu. 9:11-12; Deut. 7:6-9). Every verse in the Old Testament points to Jesus Christ for its fulfillment. Jesus Christ, God in flesh, is our everything. Jesus is our hope, Jesus is our salvation, Jesus is our sufficiency, Jesus is our Passover lamb, Jesus is our Lord, Jesus is our Savior, Jesus is our friend. Without Jesus, we have no hope in this life or after death. Without Jesus, we have no salvation in this life or after death. Without Jesus, we are insufficient before God in this life and after death. Without Jesus, we have not Passover lamb or sacrifice to atone for our sins to which we can cling in this life or after death. Without Jesus, we have no Lord in this life or after death. Without Jesus, we have no savior in this life or after death. Without Jesus, we have no friendship with God in this life or after death. Jesus is more precious than anything this world has to offer: material possessions, money, sex, fame, power, food, temporary happiness, people, accomplishments, music, art, entertainment, work, nature. With Jesus, though, we have everything we need for this life and after death.

E.M. Bounds and "Power through Prayer"

2010-05-31T13:40:00.000-07:00

My brother forwarded to me a chapter from E.M. Bounds' book Power through Prayer, which you can read for free here. Here are a few great quotes I want to share from a section called "Men of Prayer Needed" (The only thought I have to complement these quotes is that the Holy Spirit, in his sovereignty and divine will, moves whenever and however and in whomever he chooses. We are never good enough to preach the Gospel of Jesus, which is why we must rest entirely on faith in Christ for our salvation, for our identity in Jesus, for the unleashing of his power, and for our ongoing sanctification.):

The church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men.

The preacher is more than the sermon...the man, the whole man, lies behind the sermon. Preaching is not the performance of an hour. It is the outflow of a life....The sermon fades from memory; the preacher lives.

The preacher must throw himself, with all the abandon of a perfect, self-emptying faith and a self-consuming zeal, into his work for the salvation of men...It is not great talents nore great learning nor great preachers that God needs, but men great in holiness, great in faith, great in love, great in fidelity, great for God--men always preaching by holy sermons in the pulpit, by holy lives out of it.

The preaching man is to be the praying man. Prayer is the preacher's mightiest weapon. An almighty force in itself, it gives life and force to all. The real sermon is made in the closet. The man--God's man--is made in the closet. His life and his profoundest convictions were born in his secret communion with God. The burdened and tearful agony of his spirit, his weightiest and sweetest messages were got when alone with God. Prayer makes the man; prayer makes the preacher; prayer makes the pastor.

Win the Approval of God, Not Men

2010-05-19T14:12:00.000-07:00

Here’s a poster I threw together to encourage me to stay true to the Gospel of Jesus in ministry..I didn’t make the artwork, I just put the words over it.

I recently received one of the greatest insults I’ve yet received in ministry. A teenager said he/she left our youth group, because I’m too into Jesus. He/she said he/she goes to a youth group now where they play games all night and only talk about Jesus a little. At first I was a little hurt, but then I realized that I couldn’t have received a better insult in ministry. What better reason to have someone leave your flock than that you’re too into Jesus!

I imagine that parallels a lot of mindsets in adults and their expectations of the church, too. “Give me a church where I’m entertained, where the sermon is one big joke, where nothing is required of me but to sit, receive, and consume, where I’m not told to repent from sin, and where I’m not offended by the exclusivity of Jesus Christ and his radical commands for my life. Give me a place where I can claim as little of Jesus as possible and still be considered a Christian.” That’s definitely not the type of radical commitment you see Jesus demanding of his followers in Scripture.

I’m not against fun at church. I’m not against games. I think we should incorporate them, because they are types of God's grace in our lives. But they need to be applied in moderation, in the proper context, and never in replacement of Jesus. Jesus is not a joke, and many self-proclaimed Christians need to stop treating him like He is one.

What King Solomon and "Number One Gun" Can Agree On

2010-05-14T21:59:00.000-07:00

Today, I listened to a song called "Life is What You Make It" by a band called Number One Gun. Some of the lyrics say (not in the following order), "I saw the way you move / You never stop to notice what you have / You wanna walk away but life is what you make it / This life is never gonna change, this life is never over."

For some reason, these words reminded me of King Solomon's words in Ecclesiastes 8:15-17: "So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun. When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man's labor on earth—his eyes not seeing sleep day or night- then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it."

I don't understand much of what Solomon says in Ecclesiastes, and maybe I never will. But, as I pondered two recurring themes that Solomon reiterates in Ecclesiastes--that life lived on earth is meaningless (without Christ) and that it is good for people to take enjoyment in the simple things in life (like good food and friends)--I realized that King Solomon had a well-developed theology of sin and its consequences for humanity. In short, I think much of what King Solomon is saying is that life is hard. It's that simple. Whether one is a follower of Christ or not, one should expect life on earth to be filled with hard situations and seemingly meaningless trials. Life is not easy, and we shouldn't be surprised by extreme difficulties, which are the result of sin's entrance into our world and its mutilation of God's intended life for us in relationship with Him.

In light of the awareness that life is and will continue to be hard as long as we live on this earth, we must daily stop, celebrate and enjoy the simple pleasures that God gives us in life, like friends, food, nature, music, and laughter. Life is not easy, so embrace the good times while you have them. That does not mean God wants us to engage in sinful behavior or selfish hedonism; it means that every good and perfect gift is from our Heavenly Father, and it would do us well to lap up every drop of those blessings, because we're not guaranteed tomorrow.

Obviously, Jesus Christ is our source of happiness for everything, and we ought only look to Him for our every need. My problem is that I often forget to look at what He's already given me to enjoy. Only because he is gracious does He give us foretastes of heaven when we encounter his gorgeous creation, moving music, life-changing conversations, and children giggling. It's right there in front of us, the simple things in which we truly see glimpses of heaven. And thankfully, for those of us who surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, life's trials, as hellish as they may be, are merely momentary afflictions in light of eternity. Soon and very soon, we will be with Jesus in person, and the idea of suffering will be a faint memory at most.

Life under the sun is not meaningless or hopeless if it is lived in union with Jesus Christ! Our difficult circumstances may seem purposelessly trying to our un-glorified, weary human eyes, but Jesus knows exactly what He's doing, and thankfully, he always has His Glory and our best in mind.

Life is what you make it. Enjoy every blessing God puts right in front of you, and trust that Jesus is good, even when life is not.

Book Review: Camano Island (Images of America)

2010-05-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

I consider myself very blessed to live on an island. Having spent the majority of my life in Wyoming and Colorado, I never would have imagined that I would someday live on an island. No, it’s not a tropical island, and it’s actually connected to the mainland by one road, but it’s still considered an island, and it’s called Camano Island. It is one of several medium-sized islands off the coast of Washington (about 40 square miles), located in the northern part of the Puget Sound. It is a beautiful, rugged island filled with coniferous trees, rocky beaches, bald eagles, and majestic views of the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges. If you have a boat, you can catch salmon, shrimp, cod, and halibut a few hundred yards from shore.

I work at a church in a small town called Stanwood, which is the town through which everyone must pass to access Camano Island. I wanted to learn more about the history of the area, so I was glad to read Images of America: Camano Island by Karen Prasse (Arcadia Publishing, 2006). This work is a pictorial history of Camano Island from the 19th Century to the mid-20th Century. I wouldn’t consider myself a history buff, but it is pretty cool to learn about the history of the place where one currently lives, or where one grew up. I thought I’d share a few of my reflections after reading this 126-page book.

The main industry in Camano Island’s history was logging. Although the island was first “discovered” by European explorers in the 18th Century, Camano Island wasn’t a logging headquarter until the Civil War era. Once a few businessmen saw the island’s potential for harvesting enormous volumes of 200-foot tall fir and Cedar trees, it didn’t take long to create a booming industry. Between 1860 and 1920, several logging companies spread across the island and harvested the majority of its gigantic trees. Because of the island’s easy access to the Pacific Ocean, trees were quickly harvested, sawed, and loaded onto ships destined for Europe, Asia, and South America. Prasse writes, “In 1860, a load of 402,000 board feet was shipped to Chile, and a more typical load of 76,000 board feet was shipped by schooner in 1861,” (12). The trees were so tall, that crewman sometimes cut holes into the top of the ships to accommodate the enormous specimen. By the 1920s, most of the big trees were gone, and because there wasn’t much money to be made on Camano Island anymore, most of the logging companies packed up and moved on.

Where the logging industry left off, the tourist industry on Camano Island picked up in the early-mid 20th Century. Taking advantage of the old logging roads, numerous beachside resorts were established on the island, offering weekend and summer-long getaways from big city life in Seattle. Families would drive up to the island, rent a cabin for the weekend, and enjoy camping, fishing, crabbing, and clamming. Also during this time, much of the real estate on the island was sold, which greatly limited access to it. What was only sixty years ago an island filled with camping areas, both public and private, is now an island with extremely limited public accessibility. The island now offers only a handful of public boat launches and even fewer places to campout. In addition, clamming is no longer allowed on the island and fishing productivity is not even close to what it was a half-century ago.

The pictures in this book are really intriguing, and looking at them made me even more interested in learning about this area. It’s pretty fascinating to study photographs of church picnics from one hundred years ago, and lumberjacks sawing off treetops 175 feet up, and antique ferries that used to transport families to the island, and fisherman catching salmon whose size puts to shame anything caught in this region nowadays.

If I have any criticism of this book, it’s that it is a European history of Camano Island, covering a very small window of history—only 150 years. Granted, that’s probably as far back as there is historical documentation; however, I would have appreciated learning more about the Native American occupation of Camano Island before the explorers took over, and I would also have enjoyed learning about the island’s rapid growth in population post-1950, which was significant. The author took a few modern day photos and compared them with pictures taken at the same location a hundred years ago, and it was fun to see the differences. I would have liked to see more of those.

The author does describe in a few parts the interaction between the European settlers and the Native Americans. In short, the author writes that the Native People were “promised many services they did not receive or only partially received, such as fishing rights, schooling and skills education, medical care, and vaccinations. Their lives were forever changed,” (8). To the author’s credit, I don’t think it was her intention to create a pre-European history of Camano Island in this work; perhaps, I’ll research it more on my own. I’ve read that Native Americans lived here for many years and caught salmon, picked berries, and clammed.

One thing I find ironic about Camano Island is that it sort of has a reputation these days for housing lots of “tree-huggers,” yet those same people would likely not be living here today had it not been for the roads and towns created by the logging industry. Not that I’m attempting to justify any excessive logging that may have taken place here; however, we must realize that some consumption and production of the land is required if we are to live here. It seems to me that moderation in both consumption and conservation must be the answer, especially as the population continues to grow.

I really enjoyed this book, which is part of a larger series of books called “Images of America” that appears to be worth investigating. I hope to continue to learn more about the history of this place in which I live, not only because it’s fun, but also because I think it will help me better understand the context in which I minister to people. I encourage you to learn more about the history of the place where you live, that you might better understand the shaping influences that have formed the community and people you know today, which will ultimately enable you to serve, reach, and love others around you more effectively by the grace of Christ!

How to Waste Your Pulpit

2010-04-14T13:21:00.000-07:00

Book Review: Finally Alive

2010-04-12T14:40:00.000-07:00

What does it mean to be "born again?" What does it look like to be a new creation in Christ? Finally Alive by John Piper is all about Jesus' teaching that one must be born again to see the Kingdom of God. It's a great book, and one of Piper's shorter books. I also thought it was one of his most accessible books intellectually. It is full of helpful insights into what it looks like to be born again. My thoughts resonate with Alistair Begg who celebrates the "crystal clear exposition" found in this book, and which is a distinctive of all of Piper's works I've read so far. He doesn't push any passage behind its intended meaning, but he also appropriately mines the depths of passages we often skim over or have difficulty understanding. I highly recommend this book, and here are a few of my favorite quotes:

On 1 Peter 1:22-2:3, "The good news preached to you--that's the imperishable seed; that's the living and abiding word of God through which you were born again....If people are to be born again, it will happen by hearing the word of God, centered in the gospel of Jesus Christ," (169).

On 1 John 5:1-4, "You don't love anybody if you don't love God. You may think you do. But John says in verse 2, 'By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God.' If you don't love God, you can't do anybody any ultimate good. You can feed them and clothe them and house them and keep them comfortable while they perish. But in God's mind, that by itself is not what love is. Love does feed and clothe and house--and keeps the commandments that include helping others know and love God in Christ. But if you don't love God, you can't do that. So if you don't love God, you can't love people in the way that counts for eternity," (136).

"The new birth is something that happens in us when the Holy Spirit takes our dead hearts and unites us to Christ by faith so that his life becomes our life," (83).

"One of the unsettling things about the new birth, which Jesus says we all must experience in order to see the kingdom of God (John 3:3), is that we don't control it. We don't decide to make it happen any more than a baby decides to make his birth happen--or, more accurately, make his conception happen. Or even more accurately: We don't decide to make it happen any more than dead men decide to give themselves life. The reason we need to be born again is that we are dead in our trespasses and sins. That's why we need the new birth, and that's why we can't make it happen. This is one reason why we speak of the sovereign grace of God," (77).

Read this book for the rest of Piper's thoughts on the new birth.

Book Review: The Pilgrim's Progress

2010-04-12T12:26:00.000-07:00

Charles Spurgeon is quoted as having said, "'Next to the Bible, the book that I value most is John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress." After reading that statement and other similar statements by authors and speakers I admire, I decided this was a book I needed to read. It seems like there must be a thousand different editions of this book, but I chose to read Crossway's 2009 illustrated version, edited by C.J. Lovik (see cover image). It was the first fiction book I've read in a while, and the only fiction book I've ever read which teaches such rich, orthodox Christian theology.

What makes this book even more fascinating is the story of how it was written. From the Publisher's Forward, "From 1655 to 1660, Bunyan preached regularly at the local Bedford Baptist congregation and in the surrounding towns. But because he had not been licensed to preach by the established Church of England, he was imprisoned in the primitive conditions of the Bedford Jail beginning in early 1661, where he languished for the next twelve years. It is during this period, however, that Bunyan most likely wrote the original draft of The Pilgrim's Progress, with a copy of the Bible providing his only reference material," (11).

In short, the book is about a man named Christian who, after capturing a glimpse of the future torment he will experience if he continues to live apart from Christ, leaves his home on a long journey, bound for the Celestial City. The story is an allegory for the journey of the Christian faith, with all of the trials, joys, and challenges a follower of Christ can expect to encounter in his/her life. Although the book was dry in a few parts, for the most part, I really enjoyed it. I think it's a book that everybody should read at least once, as it's packed with Scripture and profound truth for both non-Christians and Christians. Because there's so much symbolism in the book, each chapter includes numerous end-notes to explain important symbols in the story.
Bunyan does such a great job articulating the gospel in this story--over and over again. It's a gift to hear it, and we need to hear it every day.

I recommend this book to everyone with the suggestion that you read it slowly enough to ponder its symbolism sufficiently, so that you can apply it to your own life. This is not $1 Double Cheeseburger from McDonald's that you wolf down; this is a $50 steak dinner that you savor and eat one bite at a time. The version I read was re-written in today's language, but you can read or listen to the original version for free by clicking here.

Book Review: Through the Eyes of a Ragamuffin

2010-04-12T11:41:00.000-07:00

If you're not familiar with the music and life of Rich Mullins, you need to be. In His sovereignty, God placed Rich Mullins in my life as a beacon of light during some of the darkest days I've ever endured. I believe I was saved before listening to the music of Rich Mullins; however, God has used Rich's music to console me, to grow me, and to lead my heart to worship innumerous times. For a number of years, Rich contributed a bi-monthly article to "Release" magazine. Those articles are collectively shared in their entirety in the book The World as I Remember It: Through the Eyes of a Ragamuffin by Rich Mullins.

More than his musical prowess, I've always believed Rich Mullins to be a truly gifted poet and wordsmith. That is very apparent in these articles. If one was familiar with Mullins only through his writing, one probably wouldn't guess that in person and at his concerts, Rich often shared his thoughts and opinions with reckless, blunt abandon. He was so honest and so opinionated that I wonder if anyone ever truly agree with him on everything...I doubt it. I'm sure I wouldn't agree with him on everything, either. But, what I love about Rich is that he never wrote his music with the intention of glorifying himself or his own ideas, and he never performed his music in such a way to receive praise. He often ended his concerts by leading the audience in an acapella praise chorus, and then walking offstage mid-song, so that he would not be applauded.

For a glimpse into the mind of Rich Mullins, check out this book. But truly, the best way to get to know Rich Mullins, is to buy one of his CDs, listen to the whole thing, and read the lyrics. You can listen to all his music, watch all his videos, and read all his writings for free at http://www.kidbrothers.net/.

That's My King!

2010-04-01T21:32:00.000-07:00

We Saw a Whale!

2010-03-26T15:31:00.000-07:00

Over the past week, I've had the privilege to enjoy several of the unique wonders that the Great Northwest offers. My wife and I had heard that it was possible to spot migrating whales from the state park on our island, so we thought we'd give it a shot. We hung out at the beach for about a half hour, but since it was a chilly day, we were ready to head back to the car. Then, Cindy said, "Look, Dan--a whale!" Sure enough, we saw a gargantuan black back surface from the water about fifty yards from shore! Then, it blew a puff of air from its blowhole to create an 8-foot-high column of mist. It vanished back under water for what seemed like forever, when all of a sudden we saw its humungous tail raise gracefully into the air and down back into the water. It all happened so quickly, that I was only able to capture a few short videos. We saw it reemerge probably four or five more times, but it was booking it through the water northward. I'm pretty sure it was a Grey Whale. What a cool thing to see! Thank you, God!

Celebrating Dr. Shelley

2010-03-01T15:10:00.000-08:00

As I look back on the three intense years of academic study I spent at Denver Seminary (Fall 2004-Spring 2007), I reflect on what made that time so beneficial for me. It was a privilege to be taught by some of the most respected theological scholars in the world today (though stressful at times). I loved being part of the seminary community: meeting people from all walks of life, growing in mind and faith together, and joyfully suffering through Greek and Hebrew together. As great as those parts of seminary were, I think I was shaped most by the Holy Spirit’s work through a few caring individuals who took time to meet with me and invest in me every week. One of those men was Dr. Bruce Shelley.

My first encounter with Dr. Shelley was not a relational one, but a literary one. Before entering Denver Seminary, I wanted to learn more about this institution I was about to attend. So, I read a then recently-published book written about Denver Seminary’s patriarch Vernon Grounds, entitled Transformed by Love, written by Bruce Shelley. As I later learned more about Denver Seminary’s history, I noticed a few other names repeatedly pop up as significant figures in the life of the school, one of which was Bruce Shelley. So, my first impression of Dr. Shelley was as a writer, scholar, and key player on Denver Seminary’s team; however, I was pretty ignorant about how important his role truly had been.

To make a long story shorter, I learned in my first semester of seminary that one of the requirements for the Master of Divinity program was to establish a mentoring relationship with a “faculty” mentor who would be assigned to me, a “professional” mentor who worked in the field in which I planned on entering, and a “lay” mentor who attended my church. In the church my wife and I attended, and at which I would later serve as the director of student ministries during my time at seminary, were several men I really admired, but whom I thought would have neither the time nor desire to serve as my mentors. I barely knew them, and they barely knew me at all, but I decided it wouldn’t hurt to ask them. By God’s grace, both men agreed to serve as my mentors for the remaining years I would attend Denver Seminary.

Dr. Larry Lindquist, then Chair of the Youth and Family Ministries department, agreed to be my professional mentor. Larry was the perfect fit for me, because I desired to minister to teenagers and was also interested in working in academia down the road. And the joyful man who agreed to serve as my “lay” mentor during seminary? None other than Dr. Bruce Shelley—scholar, teacher, writer, pillar of Denver Seminary, and humble servant of the Lord. I now clearly see that is was through the loving expression of that last characteristic listed—humble servant of the Lord--that Dr. Shelley chose to serve me, a naïve twenty-two year-old, through a commitment to mentorship. Bruce and Carol Sparling, longtime Christian workers and friends of the seminary, served as my faculty mentors.

Dr. Shelley and I met one day per week for five semesters, late in the morning on the Denver Seminary campus. I’d normally “pick him up” in the library, where he would be writing passionately at a table covered with scattered papers, books stacked in piles, and his leather briefcase. During our first semester of mentoring, we met at the “old” Denver Seminary campus on the corner of Hampden and University. For the remainder of our time together, we met at the new campus on South Santa Fe. Dr. Shelley liked to meet outside as much as possible when the weather was nice. When the sun was too bright for his eyes, he would sport his stylish sunglasses. Sometimes we sat outside the café, sometimes we sat on a park bench, and sometimes we strolled around the campus to chat and get some exercise at the same time.

Looking back, I’m thankful that I didn’t know very much about Dr. Shelley before I asked him to mentor me; otherwise, I think I would have been too intimidated to talk to him. And when I did start to realize over time the true privilege it was to get to meet regularly with Dr. Shelley, he was so genuinely humble and down-to-earth, that it would have been difficult to be intimidated by him. In fact, I remember on several occasions being frustrated by his humility. I would try to compliment him or give him praise, and it was just like my words went in one ear and out the other, as though he’d never heard my words in the first place. Observing his internal attitude and external actions in response to words of praise was one of the first times in my life when I saw what true humility looked like, and in a good way, it was a bit frustrating for me.

Although I can’t possibly share all my affections for Dr. Shelley here, I want to share some of his attributes that I remember and admire most, as well as some of the lessons he taught me (in no particular order):

1) Dr. Shelley loved to laugh. Dr. Shelley’s demeanor in no way resembled the stereotypical, stern-browed, serious personality we often associate with scholars and professors. Dr. Shelley loved to laugh, and he had a great laugh. He had a full, hearty, life-filled, joyous laugh that was always accompanied with a big grin, and that would always make me smile. He loved to begin teaching and preaching times by sharing a funny, clean joke. I think that’s why he liked the Peanuts cartoons so much—they were filled with innocent, clean, often sophisticated, and genuinely funny humor. Even on the days we met when he wasn’t feeling well physically, it never stopped him from laughing.

2) Dr. Shelley was a truly humble man. I mentioned this briefly earlier, but I write it again, because it’s really true: Dr. Shelley was a truly humble man. In all of our conversations together, often concerning my own questions, doubts, and troubles, he could have played any card in his hand and trumped me in a second. Regarding my theological questions, he could have played the “scholar” card. Regarding my academic problems, he could have played the “professor” card. Regarding my personal trials, he could have played the “wise sage” card. Regarding the immaturity of my faith, he could have played the “faithful saint” card. My point is that, as a man much more meritorious than me, from every possible angle, he could have easily talked down to me, sought to impress me with his knowledge, belittled my problems, or crushed my self-esteem; but, he never did. Like Jesus, Dr. Shelley condescended to meet me where I was at, to love me where I was at.

Every semester, I had to write a new spiritual formation contract, which articulated my goals for personal and spiritual growth. Some of the themes of my contracts focused on prayer, life in ministry, and conflict management in the church. What I discovered near the end of my time at Denver Seminary was that for every contract I’d composed, Dr. Shelley had at one time earlier in his life written articles and even books on those exact topics—and he never told me! That’s just how he was…humble.

3) Dr. Shelley was a pastor. Never in my time knowing Dr. Shelley was he an official elder in the church or pastor on the church staff, but he might as well have been. He didn’t need a title, though, to permit him to minister to others. He couldn’t help but pastor everyone he encountered in our church. He did not come late to church and hide out in the back. He and his wife, Mary, were de facto greeters. They always went out of their way to make new people feel welcome, and would often follow-up with visitors. Both Mary and Dr. Shelley were quick to encourage others with their words, with their smiles, and with their actions.

Soon after Dr. Shelley agreed to mentor me, my wife and I found ourselves on the receiving end of the Shelleys’ heart for pastoring. Because we were new to Denver, the Shelleys wanted to treat us to lunch at their favorite Chinese restaurant. So, as a poor, disconnected seminary couple, we of course said, “Sure!” Afterward, Dr. Shelley was excited to drive us around a bit to show us the town. When we reluctantly informed him that we had several relatives who lived in Denver, Dr. Shelley humorously replied, “If I’d known you had family here, I wouldn’t have taken you out to lunch!”

At the end of my seminary experience, my wife and I candidated at a church in Washington state, and I just remember Dr. Shelley and Mary being so excited for us and encouraging toward us. Although we would dearly miss being a regular part of their lives, they never expressed anything but excitement for us, and for the plans they believed God had for us. That loving, pastoral touch was what we needed to spur us on toward the endeavors God had in store for us.

4) Dr. Shelley believed in academic excellence. Dr. Shelley helped me see how academic study is more than a means to an end; it is an act of worship. As such, we should seek to worship Jesus excellently through our academic labor. I’ve heard that Dr. Shelley was a challenging teacher, but I never really saw him in that context—only once, when he was serving as a “substitute teacher” in Dr. Wenig’s class one day. What I saw clearly, though, during my time with Dr. Shelley, was the high standard he had for his own work. He loved to write, and he worked hard at it. He worked harder at writing than I ever have, and it’s because he believed in academic excellence, which ultimately stemmed from his desire to worship Jesus with excellence.

From the very beginning of our relationship, I experienced Dr. Shelley’s academic rigor, especially in the area of writing. In one of the first emails I sent him, on January 23, 2005, I wrote, “Hey Dr. Shelley. It's Dan Hallock here. I just wanted to say thanks again for taking Cindy and I out to lunch last Sunday...we had a lot of fun!” The next day, I received a prompt, yet polite email in which Dr. Shelley shared that since he was going to mentor me, he might as well begin by helping me with my grammar. He went on to point out some of the grammatical errors in the email I’d sent him, and he also included the appropriate corrections. Needless to say, I was a bit embarrassed, having recently earned a Bachelor’s degree in English! Having shared that story, the truth is that he didn’t correct my grammar very often. I imagine there were many times when he could have corrected me, but he chose to bite his tongue instead.

5) Dr. Shelley was a superb teacher. Although I never had the privilege of taking a course with Dr. Shelley, I learned much about him during the one classroom session in which he served as a substitute teacher. In short, he was in his element. It was very obvious why so many people had spoken of his unparalleled teaching abilities. Watching him teach was like watching a firecracker go off. He was filled with passion, energy, and the Holy Spirit. He had a purpose and a lesson he wanted his students to learn. Walking away from that classroom session, it clicked in my mind that Dr. Shelley was one of those teachers from whom everyone wanted to learn. No doubt, he was a very challenging teacher; but, he was also a passionate and caring teacher, which is what set him above the rest.

6) Dr. Shelley was a superb preacher. Besides the obvious charisma he exuded in front of an audience, I was attracted to Dr. Shelley’s style of preaching because he preached from a manuscript. As a writer, I could identify with that preaching style, and I was encouraged to see that someone I really respected preached well while using a manuscript. Dr. Shelley was a wordsmith. He carefully crafted every phrase and sentence he wrote and preached. He did not have time for useless words. I think that’s one reason why he believed so strongly in revisions. Seeing him craft sentences that flowed like poetry, and then energetically deliver those sentences from the pulpit with the power of the Holy Spirit was a beautiful thing to watch and hear.

7) Dr. Shelley was passionate about church history. I never asked Dr. Shelley if he was surprised at the exponential growth in sales of Church History in Plain Language, but I bet he was. It’s truly a God-ordained occurrence to write a book on the topic of church history that people can’t put down—over 275,000 people, at that! The truth is, I think Dr. Shelley would have written that text if only his church at the time would have benefited from it. God put a passion in Dr. Shelley’s heart for the history of Christianity, and God put a passion in Dr. Shelley’s heart for spreading God’s love for His Church.

8) Dr. Shelley was faithful to Denver Seminary. Dr. Shelley loved Denver Seminary. He gave the greater part of his life to it, and he lived a long life. He joined the seminary staff in the 1950s, and he never left. Through the decades of the seminary’s highs and lows, Dr. Shelley hung in there with the faculty, staff, and students. He believed in God-glorifying, Bible-centered theological study, and he never wavered from that in all his years at the seminary. Even during times of major transition, like moving the campus to South Santa Fe, he was on board and supported the leadership fully. For Dr. Shelley, Denver Seminary was more than merely the school he worked at; it was his community. Even after he retired, he spent much time on campus, making himself accessible to the students, faculty, and friends he loved so much.

9) Dr. Shelley loved the local church. Dr. Shelley could hold his own when it came to scholarly discussions. He had no difficulty writing reviews of books and composing critical articles that only a select few intellects could grasp. If you look at the majority of his books, though, you don’t see titles written for scholars—you see titles written for laypeople: Church History in Plain Language, Theology for Ordinary People, Why Baptism?, etc. These examples of his works include content birthed from laborious academic study, but filtered into language and concepts that anyone could understand. Dr. Shelley did not write to impress himself or others. He worked hard and wrote well to serve others and to nourish the bride of Christ.

10) Dr. Shelley was a lifelong learner. Dr. Shelly would occasionally bring to our meetings a scholarly article he’d read, and he would ask me to read it and to report back to him what I’d learned. Dr. Shelley loved to learn, and he desired to show others how fun learning could be. Even into his eighties, Dr. Shelley would read when he was able and would continue to learn for his own personal growth.

During my years meeting with him, Dr. Shelley worked diligently on two main projects. The first project was a new chapter for the third addition of Church History in Plain Language. He spent much time in the Denver Seminary library reading articles, taking notes, learning, and writing. The second project was a book he was composing about his family history. I always wanted to get a “sneak peek” at that book, because it sounded really interesting to me, but I don’t think he wanted to spoil it until it was finished. With that book, he not only learned about specific people in his family tree, but also he learned about the historical circumstances surrounding those people. Dr. Shelley soaked up knowledge, and he always wanted more of it.

11) Dr. Shelley was compassionate. The first half of my seminary experience was difficult for me personally. Having recently graduated from college, being newly married, having relocated from rural Wyoming to urban Denver, having been disconnected from my church family, and having just started three years of intense study at seminary, I was overwhelmed and anxious, to say the least. I remember pouring out my heart to Dr. Shelley during our very first meetings, and I’m thankful I didn’t scare him off. I just remember how compassionate he was toward me, and how the expression on his face shared deep concern for my well-being. His words and friendship were more healing to me than he ever knew.

I’ll never forget feeling so humbled to have Dr. Shelley, a “saint” in my eyes, pray aloud for me in my broken state. Even though he was nearly eighty, he prayed with the faith of a child. I remember him praying that just as God loved the birds of the air, He loved me much more. Dr. Shelley’s compassion did not wear out, either. In the following years, he always asked with genuine concern about me, my wife, and our family. He truly cared, and he showed it.

12) Dr. Shelley was wise. I remember Scott Wenig referring to Dr. Shelley as a “wise sage,” and it was true! If you needed counsel, you couldn’t pick a better person to talk to than Dr. Shelley. His life experience combined with his love for the Lord made him one of the few, true “sages” of the Denver Seminary community. If you sought Dr. Shelley’s advice, he did not offer it flippantly. He was extremely thoughtful and prayerful. I remember many times asking for advice, and after taking a few moments to sit and think about his response, he would share his thoughts and then conclude by seeking the Lord’s wisdom through prayer.

13) Dr. Shelley did not waste his life. From a young soldier in Japan, to a student in California, to a professor at Denver Seminary, Dr. Shelley never wasted his life. He was never stagnant. What especially inspired me about his zeal for living, though, was how Dr. Shelley used his life in his retirement years. It always blew me away that Dr. Shelley was at our church, because he and Mary were the oldest couple in our church by far —and they participated joyfully! Our church had loud worship music and lots of young people, and neither of those things scared off the Shelleys. On the contrary, I believe one of the reasons they stayed there was because they were so young at heart. Many times, I remember telling myself, “I want to be exactly like Dr. Shelley when I’m his age. I don’t want to be the old guy who complains about everything. I want to encourage the young people, just like the Shelleys do.”

In addition to church life, Dr. Shelley devoted much of his time and energy into mentoring young men. At one point when he was mentoring me, I believe he was also meeting with three other students every week! Obviously, he really enjoyed investing in other people, which is a main reason why he left such a gigantic legacy.

14) Dr. Shelley taught me how to mow a lawn. Occasionally, I had the fun privilege of actually going to Dr. Shelley’s house and helping him out with his lawn. Sometimes he and Mary were out of town, and sometimes Dr. Shelley didn’t feel well enough to mow. He and Mary had a beautiful yard, so naturally, he wanted me to do a nice job when I mowed. Thankfully, he showed me how to mow perfectly straight lines in the grass—a technique he’d learned as a young man. Before you begin mowing a path in the lawn, set your eyes on one fixed point on the opposite side of the yard—a bush, a fencepost, etc. Then, as you begin to mow, keep your eyes focused on that fixed point the whole time—don’t look at the grass. Sure enough, it works! You should have a perfectly straight path which you can use as a guide for the rest of the rows!

Mowing memories may sound a bit silly, but I treasure them, because I felt honored to see a side of Dr. Shelley that many students didn’t get to see. I also loved it when I’d finished mowing the lawn, because Mary would have a glass of iced tea ready for me on the back porch! I treasured the times I got to sit with them in the shade on their back porch, sip on iced tea, and talk about life.

15) Dr. Shelley loved his family. I don’t think I ever had a meeting with Dr. Shelley when he didn’t talk about his family. He loved talking about his wife, his kids, and especially his grandkids! He always spoke so proudly of each of his children and their accomplishments. He also loved being able to watch his grandkids play sports and other extracurricular activities. Whenever we met, he’d give me the latest update on his grandkids. As much as Dr. Shelley was committed to Denver Seminary, he was much more committed to his family. He dearly loved his family, he spent time with his family, and he raised his children to know and love Jesus Christ.

As I look at this list of fifteen things Dr. Shelley has taught me, I realize that I didn’t explicitly point out the foundation upon which all of these were built: Dr. Shelley loved his Lord Jesus Christ with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his mind, and with all his strength. His faith in Jesus was the center of his world, and the light of Christ shone into every sphere of his life: work, church, and home. Dr. Shelley wasn’t perfect, but he entrusted his life and soul to the only One who is: Jesus Christ. May we learn from Dr. Shelley’s legacy, and apply our lives to worshiping Jesus Christ through such worthy investments as academic excellence, lifelong learning, spiritual mentorships, encouraging God’s Church, and loving others—all for God’s glory!

For those of us still on earth who trust in Christ, we look forward to the day when we get to meet Christ face to face, and when we will also be reunited for all eternity with our brothers and sisters in Christ, including Bruce Shelley. And, Dr. Shelley, if you ever read this in heaven someday, I know there are grammatical errors in this piece, and I apologize ahead of time. Thanks for showing me some grace.

Celebration in Pictures

2010-02-27T14:42:00.001-08:00

This pictures goes along with the blog entry about celebration. It's a picture I took of a wall in Mars Hill Church, which celebrates each and every person who was baptized this year. It's a really cool idea.

Highlights of Piper's Mars Hill Message

2010-02-27T14:38:00.001-08:00

Last night, I had the privilege of attending a sold-out event at Mars Hill Church in Seattle, featuring the preaching of John Piper. He only preached for about an hour, because he was pretty sick, and just got in from a trip to Egypt. What he did share, though, was just amazing and thought provoking (like always). I'm sure it will soon be available to watch for free on the Mars Hill website. I want to share with you just a few of the notes I took:

1) The more important that issues and questions become in life, the less I trust myself to be the source of wisdom to answer those questions. I'm always amazed at how confident people are to know all of life's answers apart from God's Word. I'm suspicious of my brain as the "source book" for life's issues and questions. (In short, the only source book we can trust is the truth that God's given us in the Bible.)

2) How do we reconcile the true, biblical message "God is love" with the true, biblical message that "God's passion is for His glory?

3) Do you feel more loved by God because He makes much of you, or because at great cost to Himself, He frees you to make much of Him?

4) Do I make much of God only because He makes much of me? This ultimately makes everything about me. This line of thinking says, "I'm happy to be God-centered, only because He is (your name here)-centered." Are we only glad to have God as our treasure, because we are His treasure? Ultimately, that makes us our treasure, not God.

5) The Bible says that God loves us for His glory because:
A. It rescues us from God-belittling idolatry which says "I am the endpoint of God's activity and glory."
B. It brings our joy out from self and into the infinite greatness of God, and thus, into total satisfaction.

5) No matter how glorified you will be someday if you are in Christ (which will be amazing, because you will be shining like the sun), you will never be sufficient to satisfy your soul, because your soul was made for God.

6) When Lazarus dies in John 11, Jesus tells Mary and Martha in essence (not a quote from Scripture), "I love you and I'm not going to heal your brother, because my glory is more important." (The point here is that although hard to fully understand, God's desire for his glory does not conflict with His love for us, even though human wisdom would say otherwise.)

7) In Christ, you will not be your highest treasure. Rather, God will treasure you enough to make Himself your highest treasure.

Then, when we concluded with worship and prayer at the end of the night, Pastor Tim Smith said a pretty profound statement in his prayer that struck me. It was something like, "Lord, even if we had all eternity to sing your praises, it still wouldn't be long enough to give you the praise you deserve. Thank you that we do have it, and that it isn't." In other words, thank God that we have all eternity to praise Jesus, but even as we sing for all eternity, God is so glorious that our eternal praise to him is still insufficient to provide him the proper worship He is due.

The Sad Sinfulness of An Un-Celebratory Heart

2010-02-27T13:59:00.001-08:00

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" -Philippians 4:4

I don't know nearly as much as I could, or perhaps should, about foreign (for me, non-American) cultures; however, one aspect of some foreign cultures which I think we should redeem for God's glory is the notion of celebration. I like that some cultures have week-long wedding celebrations. Why shouldn't we celebrate weddings for a week? Marrying your life partner, and publicly promising to devote your life to your spouse is a big deal! I like that some cultures celebrate rites of passages for teenagers entering adulthood. Independence from one's parents and making life's most important decisions for oneself is a big deal, and we should celebrate that! I like that citizens of a lot of other countries spend a lot less time at work, and a lot more time celebrating their families. Family is extremely important, and we should celebrate that!

In fact, I wonder if part of the reason for the American deterioration of God-ordained relationships and institutions like marriage, adulthood, and family is because we have failed to celebrate how important they really are. And, I wish I could write that the reason we Americans don't celebrate these blessed human relationships more is because we divert more of our energy into celebrating eternal decisions and victories; however, I can't. If anything, sadly, many Americans have likely made the good things of marriage, adulthood, and family into idols, and have deprived proper worship to what really matters: worship to Jesus Christ.

My whole point is this: I think God wants us to spend more time celebrating righteous things, namely Jesus Christ, but also the blessings and victories that Jesus gives us. I will also go so far as to assert that it is actually sinful not to celebrate the blessings God gives us. Whatever our reasons for not pausing to celebrate Christ and his blessings--be they busyness, discontentment, forgetfulness, or some other reason--it is sinful not to celebrate Christ and every good thing He gives us. What a sweet truth that is--that God calls us to take some time to stop being "productive" and to simply celebrate the blessing of knowing Him!

Specifically, I'm not thinking about savoring our material possessions and thanking God for spoiling us, which might be a tempting (mis)application of the message of this blog. I'm talking about taking time to do something special to celebrate daily victories over sin, to celebrate another year of marriage, to celebrate healings and deliverances, to celebrate baptisms, to celebrate people's decisions to follow Christ, to celebrate new life, and to celebrate a good day of ministry and serving others. In short, let us take time to celebrate what REALLY counts, with first priority going to eternal victories!

God knows what each of our struggles are, and He knows all the obstacles that prevent us from knowing him better. So, when we witness evidences of his grace in our lives, and evidences of his power working through us to conquer sin in our lives, let us celebrate! Let us not celebrate unrighteously, though, which is celebrating ourselves. Rather, let us celebrate Jesus Christ, and every good and perfect give that comes from Him, by which he gives us the opportunity to celebrate what an amazing, loving, faithful, redeeming, and freeing God He is!

1 Chronicles 16:8-12

⁸ Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.

⁹ Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.

¹⁰ Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

¹¹ Look to the LORD and his strength;
seek his face always.

¹² Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,

Psalms 32:9-11

¹⁰ Many are the woes of the wicked,
but the LORD's unfailing love
surrounds the man who trusts in him.

¹¹ Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!

Rock of Ages

2010-02-27T13:35:00.000-08:00

Lately, I have REALLY enjoyed listening to the CD "Together for the Gospel: Live," which includes live recordings of hymns sung during the worship time at the T4G conferences. Also, when I was at Mars Hill last night in Seattle, we sung a number of hymns, "redone" to contemporary music. Although some hymns really do have beautiful melodies, what I love about many old hymns is the clear, orthodox, Bible-based theology in them. The theology is so good in many of them, that I just enjoy reading them as poems, or psalms.

In fact, one hymn really stood out to me recently when I read it in D.A. Carson's "Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor." Although I'd sung the hymn "Rock of Ages" many times before, for some reason just reading its words revealed Christ's love to me in a new way. Simply awesome lyrics, and when combined with author's ability to fit into a meter and match it with a melody, it's just a Holy Spirit-led work of beauty. Here are the words:

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy wounded side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,
Save from wrath and make me pure.
Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.
While I draw this fleeting breath,
When my eyes shall close in death,
When I rise to worlds unknown,
And behold Thee on Thy throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.

You can read an interesting, short biography about the composer, Augustus Toplady, here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus_Toplady

Destroying and Redeeming the Idol of Music

2010-02-27T13:03:00.000-08:00

I thought this was a good video...especially for people who love to listen to, play, and perform music.

"Bruce Shelley: A Historian for the People" by Scott Wenig

2010-02-27T12:54:00.000-08:00

Here's an article published in "Christian History" by my friend, former pastor, and former professor, Scott Wenig, on the life of our friend Bruce Shelley.

The late author of the best-selling Church History in Plain Language had a passion for ministry through story.
by Scott Wenig

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

On Saturday, February 20, historian Bruce Shelley died at the age of 82 after having suffered a stroke a few days earlier. Dr. Shelley served for many years as a member of the Christian History advisory board. We asked his Denver Seminary colleague Dr. Scott Wenig to interpret the significance of Dr. Shelley's contribution to Christ's church. Here is his tribute:

"You must always ask the question of how this relates to ministry!" So exclaimed Dr. Bruce Shelley on countless occasions over his 40 plus years of teaching church history to students at Denver Seminary. After three decades of close contact with Bruce as a student, friend and colleague, I can't begin to recall the number of times I heard him say those words in both formal and informal settings. Ministry lay at the heart of all he said, did and wrote, be it in the study, the classroom, the pulpit, the Sunday school class or the home group bible study. He was concerned to teach others about Jesus Christ and his church, especially those he liked to call "ordinary people," the men and women who would never have the opportunity of formal theological education. So while he drew his living as a scholar of history in an academic setting, Bruce Shelley's primary focus was always on ministry to laypeople.

Both his writing and teaching reflected that singular passion. Dr. Shelley's main work, Church History in Plain Language, now in its 3rd edition, has sold over 100,000 copies, a feat almost unheard of for surveys of church history. One of the main reasons for its longevity and ongoing popularity is that it is built on the concept of story. Years ago, Bruce learned that to keep people listening—and reading—you must tell them a story. And that's something he did well for over 50 years. He regularly gave us stories from the history of the church, the Bible, his family and, of course, the beloved gang of characters in the cartoon Peanuts. Interspersing Martin Luther with Snoopy or John Wesley with Linus was no easy task but Bruce did so, always intent on communicating the story of the faith and the church in an engaging, entertaining, and thought-provoking fashion.

Dr. Shelley was the author or editor of over 30 books as well as scores of other articles and book reviews but he never wrote much for the academy or other academics. It's not that he was incapable; his fine scholarship on the concept and experience of martyrdom in the early church demonstrated that. Rather, he sought to commend Christian history to those believers—students and laity alike—who suffered from what he called "historical amnesia." That meant his calling was to be a historian for the people. By channeling his efforts in their direction, he could show them how to separate the permanent from the transitory and the latest ecclesiastical or theological fad from the true and orthodox faith of the past.

Bruce once described himself as a friend talking to friends about the church and its faith, be they believers or seekers, sales people or engineers, homemakers, or students. As a master teacher he knew that meant being clear above all else. To him, clarity was the first law of learning and foundational for all communication. So in an era before PowerPoint and video clips, he consistently used overhead transparencies, charts, pictures, stimulating questions, and a passionate teaching style whenever and wherever he taught. He wanted to connect and would leverage whatever he could to help him do so.

Those of us who had the privilege of sitting at his feet—either in school or church or both—were enormously blessed. We learned from his lips and his life what genuine Christianity was all about as well as how the saints of the past walked faithfully—and sometimes not so faithfully—with our Lord. Year after year, the faith of the church and the story of her history were clearly set forth for the purposes of ministry by Bruce Shelley. And for that, thousands of us ordinary people are eternally grateful for the gifts of his writing, teaching and friendship.

Scott Wenig is Associate Professor of Applied Theology at Denver Seminar and is the author of Straightening the Altars, a study of the English Reformation.

"Time and Eternity" by Craig Blomberg

2010-02-27T12:45:00.000-08:00

I enjoyed this blog entry by Craig Blomberg, who mentions the passing of my friend and mentor, Bruce Shelley. I highlighted my favorite parts.

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends. With the Lord, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Pet. 3:8)

In context, Peter is explaining that the apparent delay in Christ’s return should not be viewed from a human vantage point with respect to time. God’s timing is not our timing. From the viewpoint of eternity, even a thousand years can seem as quick as a day. God isn’t slow at all in bringing the end but wants to give people as much time as possible to repent (v. 9).

Extrapolating from the immediate context, there are many unanswerable questions about time and eternity with which philosophers wrestle. The end of Revelation 10:6, in older translations, was sometimes rendered, “time will be no more,” leading to the notion that the eternal state does not include a succession of moments. But modern translations recognize that this clause means, “There will be no more delay,” that is, before the end of human history as we know it. It may be that time is not something God created but simply an inherent part of the existence of any form of consciousness. We just don’t know.

What does seem clear is that, if I borrow models from mathematics and think about a line extending to infinity, then even the longest finite period of time is just a miniscule blip in that graph. Technically speaking, it can’t be graphed, because any definable segment of the line would still be too long! In more poetic forms that is what Peter was saying. And he wasn’t inventing the idea; he was quoting Psalm 90:4, a marvelous prayer of Moses reflecting on God’s sovereignty as he considered how fleeting life was.

Yesterday (Feb. 23), Denver Seminary’s Chapel was filled to overflowing with worshipers for Dr. Bruce Shelley’s funeral. For over 52 years, he had blessed and influenced thousands upon thousands of people through his Denver-based ministry of teaching, writing, preaching and mentoring. What a marvelous encouragement he always was to me ever since I came here in 1986. No one employed by our seminry apart from our patriarch, Dr. Vernon Grounds, has touched so many (though Dr. Gordon Lewis has perhaps come close). We are reminded of the two verses immediately after Psalm 90:4: “Yet you sweep people away in the sleep of death—they are like the new grass of the morning: In the morning it springs up new, but by evening it is dry and withered.” And yet we will be reunited with Bruce, and so many other loved ones who have gone before us, and countless others we will be thrilled to meet, for an eternity of reveling in God’s and each others’ company.

How much more can we look forward to never-ending, grand reunions with living Christians we wish were closer. How many baby boomers like me imagined when our high-school and college-graduating classes said their tearful goodbyes to people they thought they might never see again, that e-mail and facebook would make that abundantly possible decades later? How many foreign missionaries of past eras setting sail from their homelands never to talk to their families again could have even fantasized as science-fiction developments like Skype and webcams that now can put people in instant communication with each other from virtually anywhere in the world? How much more will we cherish eternal life that eliminates all barriers among God’s people, and most important of all, the barriers we cause ourselves through human sin, keeping relationships from being as perfectly loving and joyful as possible.

I often tell people that the hardest thing about my job is saying goodbye to ¼ of my closest friends every year. Maybe there’s a little exaggeration there, but not much. I love getting to know students. Few other jobs could possibly put one in touch with so many phenomenal servants of God. I wish I could develop a close relationship with every one of them but of course that is impossible. Circumstances lead one to acquaintance with many but deep friendships with only a few.

One of those graduates I counted as a close friend from several years ago had the opportunity to accept a ministry in Denver recently but was also being wooed by a ministry in another country. After months of waiting, with all signs suggesting that my friend would accept the call to Denver, at the last minute, with my excitement building to a fever pitch, the choice was made for the other ministry. I was stunned—both at the choice and how I was experiencing all four stages of grief simultaneously: disbelief, anger (especially at the other ministry for its “theft” of my friend), sorrow and, yes, also acceptance.

Ecclesiastes 4:10 says that God “has set eternity in the human heart.” I don’t pretend to understand much of what that involves, but I’m convinced a part of it has to do with the fact that even when we are physically present with our closest friends, every celebration, every special event, every happy memory goes by all to fleetingly. We are creatures who understand, however dimly, something of the unending sinless fellowship that we were made to have with God and each other and we long for it. When even feeble approximations of that fellowship are rudely snatched away from us in this life, whether through death or through departure, we intuitively recognize how wrong that is. Praise the Lord that one day this separation will be rectified—forever. And that’s a whole lot more than even a thousand years!

Blog Profile: Dave Kraft

2010-02-24T22:00:00.000-08:00

I just discovered a new blog that has a TON of helpful thoughts and resources for pastors and leaders. The blog is by Dave Kraft, who is the "coach" for the pastors at Mars Hill Church in Seattle. He has an upcoming book to be released called "Leaders Who Last," which looks really good. His blog includes tons of reviews he's written about leadership books, plus lots of blog entries about leadership lessons. His blog is located at http://davekraft.squarespace.com
Here are two entries I found that I really appreciated:

DREAM BIG AND DREAM FOCUSED
A few weeks ago I had an interesting and revealing conversation with a young man at Mars Hill Church. The bottom line was that he lacked any serious motivation and direction in his life and didn’t have a clue as to what he wanted to see happen in/through his life. I was reminded of the line from “Tombstone” spoken by Wyatt Earp, “I spent my whole life not knowing what I wanted out of life.” Those words have always haunted me and led me to pray that Jesus continues to give me clarity regarding what my life is all about. As this young man and I continued to talk about how he should go about getting some fizz in his Coke, gas in his tank, fire in his belly. I shared three things with him:

1. Determine exactly what it is you want to achieve;
2. Ask yourself what it will take to achieve it;
3. Pay the price and do what it takes, regardless of the cost or inconvenience to you.

The Gospel needs to be the foundation from which these three steps flow. It is imperative that I begin with who I am in Jesus and who He is in me. It is important to get in touch with my God-given passion, gifts and calling which will aid me in determining my unique contribution.

I often suggest to those young men I coach to start this process by getting away on a “Life Planning Retreat” for most of a day to think, pray and seek His will. Often this time jump starts a process that may take months or even years.

We are talking about a combination of both dreaming big and, at the same time, focusing on a few things to give my time and attention to…maybe only one thing over time. I was captivated by a statement from Meg Whitman, who is running for governor of California, “I want to be 100% good at a few things rather than so-so at a lot of things.”

Oh, to dream big and then focus your energy and time like a laser. You might not achieve all you dream of, but you most certainly will not achieve anything you don’t dream of.

OUCH! That Hurts!

What leader is there that has never been criticized? It goes with the territory. Harry Truman reportedly said, if you can’t stand the heat, then get out of the kitchen. If you want to be free from criticism, don’t become a leader--especially a church leader. Criticism is not bad. In fact, in many (if not most) cases it can be one of the better things that happens to you. It gives you the opportunity to practice patience, kindness, understanding, forgiveness, teachability, and the list goes on.

Here are three groups of potential critics.

1. Loyal friends. These people really love you and want what’s best for you and your ministry. Thankfully, they are willing to speak truth into your life and ministry. Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” Yes, some times friends wound us, but it is for our good, not to intentionally bring us harm. They really do love and care about you, your family and your ministry...really they do!

2. Helpful observers. These are people in your ministry world who have significant disagreements. At times they can be confrontational and feel the need to go public with their discontent. They are not out to “get you” or “destroy you.” They simply don’t agree with the direction you’re headed, a position you’ve taken, or a decision you’ve made. Let them talk, thank them, ask them questions to better understand their issue and listen with an open mind and heart. You might, for example, learn something about the way you make decisions and how you communicate those decisions. We need to engage these individuals and not make every disagreement a personal me-verses-them issue. Always ask if there is any truth to what they are saying. Check with your “loyal friends” to see what they think about the criticism offered by the “helpful observer.”

3. Hurtful observers. These people do have an agenda and are out to get you, cause you pain, torpedo the ministry. They can be wolves in sheep clothing. They want to draw you into a fight, use you and your ministry for their own ends. They are the people who are trying to get Nehemiah to come down from the wall and have discussions with evil intent. The best thing you can do is ignore them. Giving them time or fighting them only makes them stronger; they are getting attention. You will never satisfy them or keep them happy. When you have discussed one issue, there are a lot more where that one came from.

So!

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that all critics are in the third group.
Be willing to listen to anyone to learn if there is any sin for you to own and repent of
Pray for lots of wisdom to know whom to listen to and how much of your precious time you should invest with your critics...they can keep you pretty busy.

How Deep the Father's Love for Us

2010-02-17T09:08:00.000-08:00

Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom

"For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those
who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance
—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins
committed under the first covenant."
Hebrews 9:15

Review: Memoirs of An Ordinary Pastor

2010-02-15T21:46:00.000-08:00

Between reading D.A. Carson's Memoirs of An Ordinary Pastor and watching the winter Olympics in Vancouver, I've been on Canada overload this week! Memoirs is a short biography written by D.A. Carson about his father, Tom Carson, who was a faithful shepherd of God's people for the majority of his life in Canada. My review resonates most closely with Erwin Lutzer's review, who writes, "In a day when we honor megachurch pastors, it is refreshing to read this account of an ordinary pastor--representing the unsung heroes among us who do not aspire to greatness but rather to godliness and faithfulness."

Instead of writing a summary of Tom Carson's life, I want to reflect on some of the valuable lessons I've learned from the life of this faithful servant-shepherd. I hope to be like Tom Carson in the following ways, because it was in these ways that I think he most imitated Jesus Christ:

1) Tom Carson loved the Lord with all of himself. Tom Carson's life was built upon Jesus and driven by the good news of Jesus Christ. He began his day in communion with the Lord by reading Scripture and spending much time in prayer. Don writes of his father, "Dad's practice in private prayer was to kneel before the big chair that he used and pray loudly enough to vocalize, so as to keep his mind from wandering. Outside the door we could hear him praying, even if we could not hear what he was saying," (72). Tom's roommate in seminary wrote about him, "His prayer life is a challenge and rebuke to most of us," (30). His desire to evangelize the lost was the overflow of a forgiven heart that loved Jesus.

2) Tom Carson loved God's Word. He spent time daily reading and studying chapters from the Old Testament and New Testament. He spent a lot of time memorizing his Bible in both English and French. He was not a man who thrived on conflict with other Christians; however, he loved God's Word so much that he could not help but correct pastors when they misinterpreted or misapplied biblical passages. Faithfulness to God's Word was one area in his life on which he would not budge.

3) Tom Carson worked very hard in ministry. Whether in the role of senior pastor or lay elder in the church, Tom labored with all his energy for the Lord. He spent long days not only studying God's Word and in prayer, but also, having a loving shepherd's heart, he spent many hours in visitation every day. Most of his labor for Jesus was never paid, and if he was paid, he was underpaid. He and his household were poor. They did not have money to keep up with the Joneses, and from what I can tell, that wasn't Tom's desire. He gave up all his time, energy, and money to serve others. When he wasn't working hard outside the home, he was working hard in the home, serving his wife, doing chores, fixing things, etc. It does not appear that he had much appreciation or room for "leisure time" in his life; perhaps, too little room for this.

4) Tom Carson loved his wife by serving her well. Tom loved his wife through his actions and through his words in all their years of marriage--over 50. He demanded respect for his wife from his kids and did not tolerate any of their sarcasm or comments that could potentially hurt her. One of the more moving chapters in this book is Chapter Nine: "Marg's Alzheimer Years," which records Tom's dedication to his wife to the very end of her life, and the joy he took in serving her in their old age. D.A. writes, "We cannot remember a single occasion when Dad said anything derogatory about Mum," (133). He loved his wife by serving her well, and he showed his children and church what it looked like to love your wife.

5) Tom Carson put his family first. As busy as he was with ministry, Tom always made sure that he was there for his family, and that his family got the best part of him--not the leftovers. He loved to joke around with his kids and to play with them. He was a godly father and spiritual leader of his household. "Usually family devotions took place after the evening meal. Everyone had to have a Bible because each person read a verse, turn and turn about, invariably starting with Mum, until the chapter or other unit was finished. Older friends remember little Jimmy, still in a high chair, holding his Bible, required to "read" his verse when his turn came around by repeating the words, phrase by phrase, as another member of the family read them out to him. This part of the exercise was inviolable, regardless of visitors, including friends from school, all of whom had to be given a Bible and participate by reading his or her verse as it came up," (70). A pastor's ministry is pointless if he doesn't love his family well. Tom knew this, and he made sure his family never took second place.

6) Tom Carson was a lifelong learner. Tom spent A LOT of time studying the Bible. More than that, even in the last year of his life, he was constantly increasing his knowledge of Greek and Hebrew. He also spent time reading books in addition to the Bible that were edifying. He even spent a lot of time revising and reading documents and books by friends and peers. He was constantly learning and increasing his knowledge; however, his passion was learning more and more of God's Word.

7) Tom Carson was a humble team player. Tom was totally capable of preaching, teaching, and shepherding as a senior leader; however, he mainly desired to be used where it would most help the church. After having been a senior pastor for many years, Tom later submitted himself under the leadership of a younger lead pastor, who was gifted differently than Tom and who did things differently than Tom did them. Tom loved the church, though, and he wanted to serve the Lord wherever he was needed. Tom ended up doing much of the shepherding and filled the pulpit whenever necessary, all without remuneration.

8) Tom Carson had great faith in Jesus. For Tom, his faith in Jesus was not artificial; it was the bedrock of his life. Even when trials came through persecution from the civil authorities to conflict in the church to watching his wife suffer from Alzheimer's, he trusted in God. He truly believed that God was sovereignly in control of all his life, and he staked his life on God's promises in Scripture.

9) Tom Carson was faithful. Tom was faithful to his wife, to his family, to his church and ministry, to his friends, and to God. When he committed to something, he didn't just give up on it. He worked hard at it. He cared for his friends and had their backs. He didn't choose a church that would make him look great; he chose a church that he felt God was calling him to faithfully serve. He was patient.

10) Tom Carson was driven with a sense of "gospel urgency." Tom suffered for the gospel of Christ. He did not hide in the four walls of the church. He took the message of Jesus to the world, and he lived in a world that didn't like Protestants. He knocked on doors, handed out literature, hosted Bible studies in his home, helped organized after school youth programs, etc. He suffered for Jesus. He spent much of his time reaching Roman Catholics with the message that Jesus is our only priest, and he received much resistance, including threats, persecution from law enforcement, and hurtful letters. Despite the world's resistance, he was never content with being quiet about the gospel. He lived it, preached it, taught it, and unashamedly shared it with his neighbors and community.

11) Tom Carson never wallowed in self-pity. Tom Carson had many opportunities to play the victim; probably because he was one in many ways. He was poor. He did not get paid much at all. He was harassed for his beliefs both by non-Christians and Christians. He had low attendance in his churches. He did not see voluminous fruit in his ministry (much of which was no fault of his own, but was largely related to socio-historical factors). Despite all this, Tom didn't feel sorry for himself. If anything, he blamed himself and was too hard on himself, which was something he struggled with his entire life.

12) Tom Carson was a man of godly conviction. Several times in his life, Tom took a stand for what he knew was right, even when he was standing alone. Whether it was confronting an irresponsible pastor or fighting for resources that would spread the gospel, if Tom felt like it was the right thing to do, he gave everything for it. When money was stripped away from him for a new building for ministry, he took out a huge personal loan to show how much he believed in the project. Many times, he was bad-mouthed by other Christian leaders because of his convictions; however, he stood firm to his beliefs, which were always centered around spreading the gospel message.

In addition to these thoughts, D.A. shares some extremely helpful reflections on his dad's ministry on pages 92-96, which I can't record here. A few areas of Tom's life which I'd be more interested to learn about would be more specifics about the calling he felt to the churches at which he served, and his theology of election, which D.A. only mentions briefly in passing as being a key part of not only his father's theology of salvation, but also of life and ministry.

This was a very edifying book, and I highly recommend it! We need to be reminded what life and Christian ministry is truly about, and this book does it. This review refers to the 2008 edition of this book, published by Crossway (Wheaton).

Faithfulness to the Gospel

2010-02-13T22:53:00.000-08:00

More great applications from Gordon Fee's NICNT commentary on 1 Corinthians, page 164:

"But God's Word to us is that faithfulness, not success, is what God requires of his servants. On the other hand, although not intended so by Paul, by implication it is also a word to those who preach and teach, that they recognize themselves as "under trust." Their "trustworthiness" is finally going to be judged by the Lord himself, on the grounds of their being faithful to the trust itself, the gospel. In that hour none of our self-evaluations as to our worth in the kingdom is going to count for a thing, only our faithfulness to the gospel itself."

All Things Are Yours

2010-02-11T11:25:00.000-08:00

I read some really great, thought-provoking thoughts on 1 Corinthians 3:21-23 in Gorden Fee's NICNT commentary (p. 154). First, I'll type the passage, followed by the commentary: "So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, ²²whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, ²³and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s."

"For Paul the death and resurrection of Jesus marked the turning of ages in such a way that nothing lies outside Christ's jurisdiction. In the form of the cross God has planted his flag on planet Earth and marked it off as his own possession; hence the "world" is his. So also with the whole of existence ("life" and "death"), which are immediately placed into eschatological perspective ("the present and the future"). Because in Christ Jesus both "life" itself and therefore "the future" are ours, "death" is ours as well, as is "the present." We die, but "life" cannot be taken from us; we life the life of the future in the present age, and therefore the present has become our own possession. For those in Christ Jesus, what things were formerly tyrannies are now their new birthright. This is the glorious freedom of the children of God. They are free lords of all things, not bound to the whims of chance or the exigencies of life and death. The future is no cause for panic; it is already theirs."

"Growth By Remembering" by Tullian Tchividjian

2010-02-02T15:31:00.000-08:00

I thought this was a great blog entry by by Tullian Tchividjian:

My friend Elyse Fitzpatrick has taught me a ton about the gospel. Through her many excellent books, she has taken me to gospel depths that have changed my life. During the most difficult year of my life (2009) Elyse provided gospel-drenched counsel and insight that, in a very real sense, saved me. Thanks Elyse!

This morning, as I was re-reading a portion of her book Because He Loves Me: How Christ Transforms Our Daily Life, I was recaptured by a truth that I preached just yesterday. In my sermon on Colossians 1:9-14, I said:

It’s important to note that in these verses Paul doesn’t pray for something the Colossian Christians don’t have. Rather, he prays they will grow in their awareness and understanding of what they do have. Christian growth doesn’t happen by working hard to get something you don’t have. Christian growth happens by working hard to live in the reality of what you do have.

I used to think that when the Bible tells us to work out our salvation, it meant go out and get what you don’t have—get more patience, get more strength, get more joy, get more love, and so on. But after reading the Bible more carefully I now understand that real gospel fruit happens, not as we “work harder” but only as we continually rediscover the gospel. You could put it this way: rediscovering the gospel is the hard work we’re called to.

You see, the secret of the gospel is that we become more spiritually mature when we focus less on what we need to do for God and focus more on all that God has already done for us. The irony of the gospel is that we actually perform better as we grow in our understanding that our relationship with God is based on Christ’s performance for us, not our performance for him.

With this same idea in mind, Elyse writes:

One reason we don’t grow in ordinary, grateful obedience as we should is that we’ve got amnesia; we’ve forgotten that we are cleansed from our sins. In other words, ongoing failure in sanctification (the slow process of change into Christlikeness) is the direct result of failing to remember God’s love for us in the gospel. If we lack the comfort and assurance that his love and cleansing are meant to supply, our failures will handcuff us to yesterday’s sins, and we won’t have faith or courage to fight against them, or the love for God that’s meant to empower this war. If we fail to remember our justification, redemption, and reconciliation, we’ll struggle in our sanctification.

I guess you could say that Christian growth does not happen first by behaving better, but believing better–believing in bigger, deeper, brighter ways what Christ has already secured for sinners.

I closed yesterday by saying:

Let me summarize what Paul is saying in this whole section (v.9-14): You will grow in your understanding of God’s will, be filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding, increase in your knowledge of God, be strengthened with God’s power which will produce joy filled patience and endurance (v.9-12a) as you come to a greater realization that you’ve already been qualified, delivered, transferred, redeemed, and forgiven (v.12b-14)

Al Mohler's Reflections on Haiti

2010-01-27T13:07:00.000-08:00

Dr. Al Mohler's reflections on the earthquake disaster in Haiti are the most helpful I've read yet.

Does God Hate Haiti?

By Dr. Al Mohler

President, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

The images streaming in from Haiti look like scenes from Dante's Inferno. The scale of the calamity is unprecedented. In many ways, Haiti has almost ceased to exist.

The earthquake that will forever change that nation came as subterranean plates shifted about six miles under the surface of the earth, along a fault line that had threatened trouble for centuries. But no one saw a quake of this magnitude coming. The 7.0 quake came like a nightmare, with the city of Port-au-Prince crumbling, entire villages collapsing, bodies flying in the air and crushed under mountains of debris. Orphanages, churches, markets, homes, and government buildings all collapsed. Civil government has virtually ceased to function. Without power, communication has been cut off and rescue efforts are seriously hampered. Bodies are piling up, hope is running out, and help, though on the way, will not arrive in time for many victims.

Even as boots are finally hitting the ground and relief efforts are reaching the island, estimates of the death toll range as high as 500,000. Given the mountainous terrain and densely populated villages that had been hanging along the fault line, entire villages may have disappeared. The Western Hemisphere's most impoverished nation has experienced a catastrophe that appears almost apocalyptic.

In truth, it is hard not to describe the earthquake as a disaster of biblical proportions. It certainly looks as if the wrath of God has fallen upon the Caribbean nation. Add to this the fact that Haiti is well known for its history of religious syncretism -- mixing elements of various faiths, including occult practices. The nation is known for voodoo, sorcery, and a Catholic tradition that has been greatly influenced by the occult.

Haiti's history is a catalog of political disasters, one after the other. In one account of the nation's fight for independence from the French in the late 18th century, representatives of the nation are said to have made a pact with the Devil to throw off the French. According to this account, the Haitians considered the French as Catholics and wanted to side with whomever would oppose the French. Thus, some would use that tradition to explain all that has marked the tragedy of Haitian history -- including now the earthquake of January 12, 2010.

Does God hate Haiti? That is the conclusion reached by many, who point to the earthquake as a sign of God's direct and observable judgment.

God does judge the nations -- all of them -- and God will judge the nations. His judgment is perfect and his justice is sure. He rules over all the nations and his sovereign will is demonstrated in the rising and falling of nations and empires and peoples. Every molecule of matter obeys his command, and the earthquakes reveal his reign -- as do the tides of relief and assistance flowing into Haiti right now.

A faithful Christian cannot accept the claim that God is a bystander in world events. The Bible clearly claims the sovereign rule of God over all his creation, all of the time. We have no right to claim that God was surprised by the earthquake in Haiti, or to allow that God could not have prevented it from happening.

God's rule over creation involves both direct and indirect acts, but his rule is constant. The universe, even after the consequences of the Fall, still demonstrates the character of God in all its dimensions, objects, and occurrences. And yet, we have no right to claim that we know why a disaster like the earthquake in Haiti happened at just that place and at just that moment.

The arrogance of human presumption is a real and present danger. We can trace the effects of a drunk driver to a car accident, but we cannot trace the effects of voodoo to an earthquake -- at least not so directly. Will God judge Haiti for its spiritual darkness? Of course. Is the judgment of God something we can claim to understand in this sense -- in the present? No, we are not given that knowledge. Jesus himself warned his disciples against this kind of presumption.

Why did no earthquake shake Nazi Germany? Why did no tsunami swallow up the killing fields of Cambodia? Why did Hurricane Katrina destroy far more evangelical churches than casinos? Why do so many murderous dictators live to old age while many missionaries die young?

Does God hate Haiti? God hates sin, and will punish both individual sinners and nations. But that means that every individual and every nation will be found guilty when measured by the standard of God's perfect righteousness. God does hate sin, but if God merely hated Haiti, there would be no missionaries there; there would be no aid streaming to the nation; there would be no rescue efforts -- there would be no hope.

The earthquake in Haiti, like every other earthly disaster, reminds us that creation groans under the weight of sin and the judgment of God. This is true for every cell in our bodies, even as it is for the crust of the earth at every point on the globe. The entire cosmos awaits the revelation of the glory of the coming Lord. Creation cries out for the hope of the New Creation.

In other words, the earthquake reminds us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only real message of hope. The cross of Christ declares that Jesus loves Haiti -- and the Haitian people are the objects of his love. Christ would have us show the Haitian nation his love, and share his Gospel. In the midst of this unspeakable tragedy, Christ would have us rush to aid the suffering people of Haiti, and rush to tell the Haitian people of his love, his cross, and salvation in his name alone.

Everything about the tragedy in Haiti points to our need for redemption. This tragedy may lead to a new openness to the Gospel among the Haitian people. That will be to the glory of God. In the meantime, Christ's people must do everything we can to alleviate the suffering, bind up the wounded, and comfort the grieving. If Christ's people are called to do this, how can we say that God hates Haiti?

If you have any doubts about this, take your Bible and turn to John 3:16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. That is God's message to Haiti.

God's Grace in Jesus' Lineage

2010-01-25T23:30:00.000-08:00

Tonight, I finished reading the book of Genesis. When I was only halfway through the book, I told my wife how surprised I was, once again, by some of the ridiculously sinful characters and stories included in Genesis. Reading some of the stories in Genesis seriously reminded me of something you'd see on a trashy talk show like Jerry Springer: men trying to rape other men, daughters getting their dad drunk so they can get in bed with him, jealous men killing their brothers, wives buying their husbands concubines, husbands giving their wives away to protect their own heads. Needless to say, it's important to remember that just because certain stories are included in the Bible doesn't mean that God permits or promotes the behavior of the people in those stories. The Bible is a historical book. Its stories are true, and are often unattractive and full of shameful decisions and consequences, because those are some of the trademark by-products that result from the selfish choices that sinful humans make.

One thing that continued to surprise and puzzle me while I read Genesis was why God chose the people he did to be Jesus' ancestors. One example is God's blessing upon Jacob and not upon Esau. Esau did some bad stuff, like selling his birthright due to an utter lack of self-control. But, Jacob did some bad stuff, too, like lying to his father and deceiving him into giving his blessing by dressing up as his older brother. Those are just two examples of the terrible things those guys did. It puzzled me that even after committing such premeditated, hurtful sins, God would still grant Jacob his blessing.

After chewing on this problem for a while, I realized something: what human being could ever be good enough to be in Jesus' lineage? What human being could ever be good enough even to be mentioned in the same sentence as Jesus Christ? Nobody. Not one. That's the whole message of the Gospel. Nobody is worthy, but God offers us life in His Son because of his righteousness, not ours. It doesn't do any good to try to compare sins to figure out who is more or less sinful. If you're tainted by sin at all (and every one of us is), then you're unholy and unfit to be in relationship with God. But, because of Christ's gracious death on the cross, through which we can claim the righteousness of God, we are more than relatives of Jesus; we are co-heirs with Jesus (Rom. 8:17).

Thus, we see God's grace and Good News in the lineage of Jesus, and we are reminded that we are no better than any of those "sinners" in the Old Testament, and we are no better than any of the "sinners" in our neighborhoods and cities. "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it," (James 2:10). Thank God for his grace, for his pursuing love that won't leave us alone, and for the purity that we have already received by faith from his blood shed on the cross, which alone allows us to say, "Jesus is my friend."

The Gospel in Genesis: The Proto-Evangelium

2010-01-25T23:08:00.000-08:00

I was really intrigued by some thoughts from Dr. Richard Hess of Denver Seminary, which I read in the seminary's Christmas devotional this year. Here's an excerpt from that entry:

"I will make an enemy out of you and the woman, and out of your seed and her seed. He will crush you with respect to the head and you will crush him with respect to the heel." -Genesis 3:15

At first blush, this verse seems simple enough...however, more is involved. It is unusual for the woman to have seed. Normally, the man bears seed and it is his seed that one might expect as a reference here. The fact that the seed belongs to a woman opens the door to a greater interpretation regarding the virgin birth and the coming of Jesus Christ. This verse is often called the proto-evangelium, or "the early gospel" because here, before Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23, Luke 1:27, or Luke 1:34 lies the beginnings of an expectation that would be fulfilled in the incarnation of Jesus Christ who comes to earth in the form of a baby born of a virgin.

In this sense, the struggle between the woman's child and the snake--notice God speaks to the single snake, not its descendants--also has greater significance. The serpent is of course the Devil and the coming of Christ sparks the greatest struggle between two enemies in the history of the world. Although the serpent appears to win with the death of Jesus on the cross, Jesus' final victory over the serpent begins with the resurrection and is promised to be complete in Revelation 12, where the woman and her son overcome Satan.

Thus the promise of the birth of Jesus and the story of our redemption begins the moment of the first sin in Genesis 3. Grace follows the sin and provides for our redemption through the birth and sacrifice of God's Son, Jesus Christ.

Helping Haiti through Ebay

2010-01-25T23:01:00.000-08:00

What "stuff" do you have lying around your house that either a)you don't need, or b)you can do without? Consider selling it on Ebay to help earthquake victims in Haiti! Through February, Ebay is not charging seller's fees to list items whose profits will go to help Haiti! It's really cool. You can even pick the organization you want the proceeds of your sale to go to (e.g. World Vision, Red Cross, etc.). I've got something on there right now, so we'll see if it sells... Anyways, I know that not everyone can afford to give more cash, but this is a good way to give away your valuables to help those who really need it!

Driscoll's Stories from Haiti

2010-01-25T22:54:00.000-08:00

Don't miss this message if you haven't seen it yet. Caution: there are a few very graphic images:

Spurgeon: Preach Christ

2010-01-25T11:24:00.000-08:00

"Of all I wish to say this is the sum; my brethren, preach Christ, always and evermore. He is the whole gospel. His person, offices, and work must be our one great, all-comprehending theme. The world needs still to be told of its Saviour, and of the way to reach him. Justification by faith should be far more than it is the daily testimony of Protestant pulpits; and if with this master-truth there should be more generally associated the other great doctrines of grace, the better for our churches and our age."

From Spurgeon’s Lectures to My Students (Chapter 5: “Sermons — Their Matter”).

Miracles in Progress

2010-01-22T15:12:00.000-08:00

Lots of non-Christians will say they don't believe in Christianity, because they don't think the Bible is historically accurate. It blows my mind to hear a person say that because the Bible does not offer an exhaustive account of the history of dinosaurs, then it can't be true. And because it can't be true, then the Bible's record of Jesus' life and claims aren't trustworthy. As a result, they might say, there's no evidence that Jesus is God. Interesting logic, to say the least.

So, the task at hand for believers is how to respectfully disagree with non-believers in a way that brings honor to Jesus, while also seeking to bring non-believers to faith in Christ. To respond to this argument, there are lots of apologetic approaches one could take. One could argue for the historical reliability of the Bible; one could argue for the sufficiency of God's revelation of dinosaur history in the Bible; one could begin by putting the dinosaur question aside and arguing for the person of Jesus; one could examine extra-biblical ancient writings to argue for the "Jesus of history"....and on, and on.

Another apologetic method that jumped out to me today, which a Christian could use in a conversation with a person who suggests that empirical evidence is the only road to truth, is asking, "Do you believe in miracles? Have you ever witnessed something or experienced something truly miraculous--something that empirical and scientific evidence couldn't explain?" It's possible that one might glibly answer that question with a simple, "No, I don't believe in miracles." However, I truly believe that after reviewing his/her life, every single person in the world would be very hard-pressed to say with the utmost honesty and conviction that they had never experienced or witnessed anything miraculous. Perhaps, they just need to put new glasses on. They're looking through bad lenses. Miracles are all around them, but they don't see them, either out of ignorance, or because they choose not to see them.

Defined by dictionary.com, a "miracle" is "an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause." In other words, I believe a miracle to be any evidence of God's grace that we encounter. I witnessed a miracle a few nights ago when I took out the trash and recycling dumpsters to the curb at one in the morning (I'd forgotten to take them out earlier, and had to get them out there for the garbage men to pick up the following morning). After leaving the trash cans at the curb, I walked back up my driveway and simply looked up. I was stunned by the beautiful radiance of the glowing moon whose reflection scattered across the ocean waves, the millions of white stars twinkling in the sky, the planets which shone a bit more brightly than the stars, and seeing my breath rise into the cold night air. I live in the state of Washington, which is very rainy and cloudy for a great portion of the year, so I don't see stars too often (unlike the skies of Wyoming, my "homeland"). There were no noises to be heard. It was completely silent. I was reminded right then and there that "it's not about me," that all of this existed not for my glory, but for God's glory. I was witnessing a miracle. Possibly, I was especially stunned by this scene, because it was a "miracle in progress" that I could have easily missed. God wanted the miracle of that peaceful night to happen, regardless of whether I noticed it or not. That's because he didn't create it for me. He created it for Him. He just blessed me with the privilege of witnessing His glory!

Often, in the middle of the night, I peek my head into my one year-old son's room to make sure he's okay. Everytime I look at him, I am reminded that he is a miracle in progress. In my mind, he's the cutest little boy ever, but especially watching him while he's sleeping, seeing his little chest rise up and down so peacefully as God fills his lungs with air, hearing him inhaling and exhaling, watching his fingers and toes twitch while he's dreaming away--those are miracles, evidences of God's grace. Empirical evidence can explain how his little body breathes in and out, but it can't explain why it does. It can't explain what gives him air in his lungs, what holds together all the little molecules in his body so perfectly, or why I feel like I'm in the presence of an angel when I tip-toe through his nursery in the middle of the night.

One reason I believe the topic of miracles has such great potential for fruitful, spiritual conversations is because there are so many miraculous happenings that even non-spiritual people acknowledge as "unexplainable." I read an article today about the return of UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, after a long bout with a serious case of diverticulitis. Suddenly and unexplainably healed from his condition, Lesnar could only articulate his experience as "a miracle." Lesnar said of the doctors, "They were dumbfounded,” he said. “They couldn’t find signs of anything wrong with my stomach. It’s just a miracle to me...I’ve had three or four different opinions and colonoscopies and CT scans...There’s literally no sign of anything even existing in there.”

Another testimony to this miracle was UFC President Dana White, who said, "It’s been a crazy ride...Forget about the career side. He was looking at a different quality of life if he needed this surgery. Basically the doctors said he got a lottery ticket. It’s a miracle.”

It wasn't a lottery ticket. It was God's grace and supernatural intervention in Lesnar's life that healed him. I don't know where Lesnar and White are in their relationships with God, but to my knowledge, they don't claim to be Bible-believing followers of Christ. Yet, neither one of them can deny that they've witnessed a supernatural act. It's "super"-natural, because it can't be explained by the natural world. The only logical explanation is that something outside of the natural world intervened and affected what would have been the natural course of events.

Look for the miracles all around you. God's grace surrounds you. He's allowed you to breathe while you read this blog. He created the eyes you're using to read this blog. He's pumping the blood through your brain that enables you to understand what you're reading. You don't have to look far to find a miracle. You need only to start with you.

Of course, the greatest miracle of all is God's super-natural intervention into the natural world in the form of a person, Jesus Christ, God's Son. What a miracle to have the fullness of God dwell in bodily form! What a miracle that God was able to redeem us from our sin by suffering our eternal punishment on a cross! What a miracle that Jesus did it!

IDEA Acronym for Preaching

2010-01-22T15:09:00.000-08:00

Here's one more helpful thing DeYoung shares about preaching: using the IDEA acronym.

When you come to a passage there are four things you can do: illustrate, defend, explain, apply. I rearranged the order from seminary class so the four points make a convenient acronym: IDEA. Most young preachers, and probably most preachers in general, gravitate toward "explain." We do best at studying the text and communicating what we learned to others. If the passage is especially obscure or controversial, it makes sense to land heavy on the E. But sometimes the passage is relatively simple. In this case, don't spin your wheels on endless word studies that basically repeat with synonyms what everyone can see immediately in the text.

Most preachers, myself included, need to incorporate the I, D, and A more often. One note on the D while I'm at it: it is rarely wise to spend a lot of time defending what your people don't need defended. For example, in most churches you can probably skip the 15 minute intro on the Pauline authorship of Ephesians. Likewise, don't waste time defending your interpretation against esoteric objections in the commentaries that no one in your church would ever think of.

"Illustrate" and "apply" are the hardest to do well. It requires a different part of your brain. You need to think creatively. You need to imagine what your people are or might be going through. You need to avoid the temptation to offer quick sermony points of application like "Don't let money be your idol" or "Some of you need to trust God with your time." Probe deeper. Use one good, personal illustration or one concrete point of application rather than firing application-buckshot with little imagination.

So remember, for every text and every point you can illustrate, defend, explain, or apply. It's an IDEA whose time has come.

How DeYoung Puts Together His Sermons

2010-01-22T15:06:00.000-08:00

I love learning how different communicators put together their messages. Kevin DeYoung recently shared what his sermon prep looks like on his Gospel Coalition blog:

While there are certain elements every pastor will want to incorporate (study and prayer for example), there is no one way to put a sermon together. Just like there is more than one way to skin a cat I suppose (a curious and inviting phrase that). So all I can talk about is what I do to get ready for Sunday.

In case you’re interested, here goes…

1. I plan out my series at least six months in advance. This takes time all by itself. Usually during a study week I’ll map out a new series. So, for example, last July I opened my Bible and several commentaries and plotted out the beginnings of a long series on Mark. I wish I could say I read through Mark several times at this stage, but I don’t. I skim through it and read quickly through several introductions. I’m not doing study work as much as I am trying to get the lay of the land and figure out how to break up the text. Of course, if I need to adjust along the way–because I need to slow down or speed up or because of another issue that must be addressed from the pulpit–I adjust.

2. Theoretically I start sermon prep on Tuesday morning, but I often struggle to get unburied from a weekend of things that have piled up, so I may not start my studies until Wednesday morning. I have to work quickly, more quickly than I like at times, because we have a separate Sunday evening service that I usually preach at too. My process for the evening sermon is roughly the same for the morning sermon, except I usually have less time and the whole process gets compressed. I wish it weren’t so, but it is.

3. So let’s say I start Wednesday morning on the AM sermon. First off, I’ll translate the Greek. If I preaching from the Old Testament, I’ll look at the Hebrew, but I rarely go through and translate it. This is partially because my Hebrew is not as good as it should be, and just as importantly, because OT passages are often longer narratives. Doing a translation of 50 verses of Hebrew would simply take me too much time. If you can do it faster, God bless you. But my Greek is still in decent shape and NT preaching passages are usually much shorter. So I start with translation, using helps as I need them.

4. Once I have my translation written out on a pad of paper and I’ve double-checked it with the ESV to make sure I didn’t completely botch something, I stare at it for awhile. I pray. I think. I jot down notes. I write down questions. I let my mind wander down rabbit trails (you never know where they might lead). I may start on some word studies (using Bible Works, concordances, sometimes Kittel or Colin Brown, etc.) or I may pick a book off the shelf that addresses some idea that text has brought to mind. I read through my translation several times, slowly and prayerfully. I’m simply trying to see what I can see (what God wants to show me) and making a note of it. Once in awhile, God drops down a sermon outline from heaven and I just run with it. Those are wonderful moments, but rare. Usually, I get a mess of ideas and I’m not quite sure what to do with it.

5. Next, I go to the commentaries. Everyone’s different, but I don’t find it helpful to read from seventeen commentaries. They often say the same things. I’d rather find the best commentaries and skip the rest. But, like I said, some preachers benefit from reading everything they can on a passage. For me, I use 3-4 commentaries. For Mark, I’m using Edwards, Lane, France, and Calvin (always Calvin). I underline important or new ideas and jot down a few notes as I read. Quite often I’ll check out an older one-volume commentary like Matthew Henry or Jamieson, Fauccet, and Brown or even a sermon by Chrysostom just to guard against chronological snobbery. I pick my commentaries by talking to other pastors, reading the Carson and Longman books on commentaries, and checking Keith Mathison’s site. I tend to stick with series that have proven helpful in the past and are laid out in a way that works for me (NICNT, NICOT, Pillar, NIGCT, BST, and Tyndale, less often NAC and BECNT). One caution: I find that I cannot go to Stott or Piper too quickly. They always seem to get the outline “right.” If I look at their material at the outset, it is tempting to lean too heavily on them.

6. Having looked at the text on my own and consulted the commentaries, now I need to tackle the hardest part of sermon preparation: how to organize all this information. This is where a good sermon is won or lost. I must be ruthless, and sometimes am not, about cutting out any nuggets (oh how precious!) that do not serve the overall argument of the sermon. I was taught “big idea preaching,” that every sermon should have only one main thought. I don’t follow the method closely, but I do think about the 3:00 AM test: “Pastor, sorry to call you in the middle of the night, but quick, in a sentence, tell me what you sermon is about!” If I can’t describe the point of my sermon in a sentence I’m not ready to move on in the sermon-making process. This means first knowing the point of the passage and then understanding how I am going to preach it. So Mark 1:40-45 may be about Jesus healing a leper and how this leads to increasing opposition in chapters 2 and 3, but the point of my sermon will be: Jesus can make you clean.
The process of organizing a sermon feels very organic to me. I think and pray and chisel away until the basic outline feels right. But two specific questions are often helpful. (1) Should this sermon be inductive or deductive. An inductive sermon lands at the main point. A deductive sermon states the main point and then offers supporting or explanatory evidence. Inductive often feels more like telling a story. Deductive feels more like making a case. Either approach can work. (2) A second question is: do I start with the text or start with the congregation. Many preaching teachers say you have to start with the congregation and then show how the text speaks to the need you’ve raised. But starting with the text can work just as well. So I could start a sermon on Mark 1:40-45 with a story of sinful uncleanness or I could start with the placement of this story in Mark’s gospel. Personally, I find it best to vary the way I start a sermon. Sometimes I have an illustration, sometimes background information, sometimes I just jump right in.
Danger: beware the sermon that is held together as “five things about…” or “three observations from the text…” Theses sermons can work. I’ve preached them before. I’ve heard great sermons like this. But these kinds of outlines usually signify that the preacher doesn’t know how all the interesting stuff he learned really fits together.

7. I should write my conclusion last so I know where am I going and make sure that I don’t rush at the end. But even if I don’t write it out, I almost always have an idea of how I am going to land the plane. I want to finish with a bang (which could be loud, soft, imperative, or indicative). I don’t want information overload at the conclusion. This is where I want to really be preachin’. The last five minutes are the most important part of the sermon. For most preachers, because it’s at the end, it’s the part they give the least attention to. It shows.

8. Once I know the basic outline and where I am going to end up, I start putting flesh on the skeleton. For me this means a combination of detailed outline and written out paragraphs. I usually start by dropping ideas, illustrations, exegetical points under my main headings. I go back to the commentaries one more time to see if I’ve forgotten any valuable and pertinent information.

9. My outline, at this point, is not quite tohu wabohu, but it is sloppy. So I need to go sharpen the focus, work on transitions, and add illustrations.

10. The outline is done, six pages of shorthand notes and full paragraphs that I may read verbatim. I set it aside and come back to it Saturday evening where I pray through the outline and (hopefully) make some more cuts and tweaks. I don’t take one hour of study for each hour in the pulpit. Sermon prep takes 10-15 hours for one sermon, and I preach around 45 minutes. Without one iota of false humility I can say that I am still learning how to be a better preacher–the study, the outline, the delivery, the whole nine yards. Mostly I pray for grace-soaked truth and truth-filled grace. And fresh unction from the Holy Spirit week after week.

The Gains of Christian Reading

2010-01-19T17:35:00.000-08:00

On the Metropolitan Tabernacle website, I found this short and helpful argument for the importance of Christian reading.

Gains of Christian reading--when united to a sincere devotional life

Readers are far better equipped for serving the Lord as witnessing Christians, shepherds of others, or teachers in any department of the church.
They will be ‘bigger’ people whose minds are far more alive, active and awake through their entire lives. Intelligence and mental energy will be stimulated and will continue growing, continuing bright and sharp into old age. Regular reading enlarges the ability to think, and increases powers of expression.
Readers help their churches to withstand false teaching so that they do not fall prey to the avalanche of errors of these last days. Would you be an anchor in the church? Christian reading boosts discernment.
Readers are greatly helped in deep trials and barren times because they are given a clear view of how God deals with His people, seeing them through to victory.

Hints on using this programme

Read the way that suits you. Whether fast or slow, read naturally. (They say that slow readers retain more than fast ones.)
Read and think. Let books give you food for thought. Assess what you read. Think it over in spare moments.
Read and talk about it. Share impressions and recommendations. This will greatly enrich all your spiritual conversation, and it is one of the best ways to seal your knowledge in your mind.
Read and be challenged. Let a good biography fire you up. Let a doctrinal book lead you to prove God. Let a devotional book stir self-examination and love to Christ.
Read systematically. Don’t read only one kind of book (e.g. biography) so that your knowledge is lopsided. This programme takes you through a full range of vital topics in rotation. This secures the greatest benefit.
Read always. Always have a book ‘on the go’. However little time you may have to spare in any week, try to read - even if only a few pages. Once broken, the reading habit recovers slowly, sometimes after months or years.
Read but don’t steal. Your first priority throughout life is to read God’s Word. Other reading must never raid Bible reading time. Only the Word is infallible and authoritative, and all other books are good only as they promote Bible understanding and application.

Piper at Angola Prison

2010-01-12T15:31:00.000-08:00

I think it is so cool that John Piper is preaching in prisons and offering Q & A! You can watch it online at the links below, plus I'll include his description of this ministry.

One of the growing ministries of Desiring God is the outreach to prisoners. Those of you in the Philippian Fellowship hear about this more often than the rest of our website guests.

On Thursday a team of four of us stopped in at Angola Prison in Angola, Louisiana. Warden Burl Cain was very gracious to take us into his world, even the most painful part of it.

Here is what he said three years ago in Decision Magazine about this prison:

This prison is the largest maximum-security prison in America. It is one of the most famous prisons in the whole world. It has only murderers, rapists, armed robbers and habitual felons. The average sentence is 88 years, with 3,200 people in one place serving life sentences. Ninety percent of the inmates will die here. This is a place of hopelessness, so if Angola can change, the rest of the country’s prisons can’t say, “We can’t do this.”

For those who know prison culture from the inside, this place is astonishing. On a campus of 18,000 acres, which is mainly farm land, the prisoners raise virtually all their food and eat three meals for a total cost of $1.45 each. The fish and crawdads that we ate were from "the Farm.”

There is a local extension of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary in the prison and about 140 prisoners are enrolled. There are six churches in the prison and they train their own pastors. They send trained “missionaries” to other prisons to plant churches. They do this without using any tax money. But O the money—and lives—it saves!

Violence in the prison is rare. Courtesy and respect is pronounced. The ministry team of women who were visiting at the same time we were said they were treated with more respect from prisoners here, than in many places on the “outside.” Public profanity is not allowed.

The 42-inch church bell hangs high over the chapel in a prisoner-built tower. They rescued the bell from storage where it had been put after falling and killing a man. Some of the prisoners say: The bell killed a man and we killed a man, but now the bell and we serve the Lord Jesus.

Warden Cain says: I am as nice as they let me be and as mean as they make me be. Given the job he is given to do, it is a good motto.

I saw the Warden’s “nice” as we sat for half an hour with G.B., a prisoner on Death Row whose death by lethal injection the Warden will oversee in January. There are over 80 on death row, some now for over 14 years as appeals go on. The Warden asked me to share the gospel with G.B. Never have I felt a greater urgency to say the good news plainly and plead from my heart. The thief on the cross is a hero on Death Row.

The Warden answered all G.B.’s questions about what the last day would be like and who from his family and the press could be there. He gave G.B. unusual privileges for these last seven weeks. He was manifestly compassionate while stating the facts with precision. I took G.B.’s picture with my phone and said I would pray for him. (Perhaps you would too.)

I preached with all my heart to those who could fit in the chapel, and to the rest by closed circuit television. G.B. (and three others on Death Row) told me they’d be watching. I pulled no punches:

For 90% of you the next stop is not home and family, but heaven or hell. O what glorious news we have in that situation. And believe me it is not the prosperity of Gospel. Jesus came and died and rose again not mainly to be useful, but to be precious. And that he can be in Angola as well as Atlanta. Perhaps even more.

Crossing Rivers with God

2010-01-03T00:19:00.000-08:00

After God appoints Joshua with the unimaginably intimidating role of Moses’ replacement as leader of the Israelites (Joshua 1), He gives him the daunting task of crossing the Jordan River in order to conquer neighboring nations and to claim the land set apart for God’s people. In Joshua 1:9, God tells Joshua, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

As I’ve recently faced obstacles in my own life, I’ve come back to this scripture for encouragement. Even though God was speaking to Joshua, who was the human leader of God’s children at that point, I believe this passage also applies to us, since we are God’s children and co-heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17). Upon studying this verse a little bit, I noticed that God commands Joshua to do four things: 1) God commands Joshua to be strong; 2) God commands Joshua to be courageous; 3) God commands Joshua not to be terrified; 4) God commands Joshua not to be discouraged.

As amazed as I am to read that God thinks I'm capable of displaying those qualities, what I find most helpful and most intriguing in this verse is the reason it offers for how we can attain these things: “for,” or “because,” God will be with us wherever we go. It is because of God's presence that I can righteously possess and display those qualities listed; not because of my own self-confidence or self-merit. After reading that God's presence is what enables me to have those qualities, I wondered, “How does God’s presence with me enable me to be courageous, strong, not to be terrified, and not to be discouraged?” Yes, I believe that God’s surrounding presence with me wherever I go is real. I can take some comfort from knowing that he is always with me; however, that’s sometimes too abstract for me to grasp. I mean, is God’s presence with me more than just some invisible cloud that follows me around wherever I go? Yes, of course. I think that the awareness of God’s presence is just the tip of the iceberg of what this verse is suggesting. At a very elementary level, Joshua 1:9 alone deconstructs any argument one person might have for deism, which is the belief that God created the universe, and then he abandoned it. Theism, on the other hand, is the simple belief that there is a God who created the universe and who is present with his creation. But for me, to be truly en-couraged by Joshua 1:9, I need to know more than mere theism. Knowing that God is immanent and surrounds me probably won't drive me to put my life on the line for him.

In short, I draw encouragement from this scripture because I believe God is saying not only that He will be around Joshua physically, but also that he will be actively at work within and around Joshua. Applying this truth to those of us who have accepted Christ’s atoning death on the cross for us, I am encouraged to know that God is actively at work to complete in me the faith which He authored, and He is chomping at the bit to see me claim and appropriate the freedom for which he died and set me free. That God is with us means not only that we have God’s presence, but also that he is sovereignly in control of everything—not only around us, but also in us. God is not static. But at the same time that God is working, he also expects us to do some work of obedience, so that we can be tested and purified and blessed with more of His grace and strength and freedom.

Understanding God’s active work around me, in me, and for me, better helps me understand and appropriate a verse like 2 Timothy 1:7, which says, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” It means that the Holy Spirit, which lives in me and which has sealed me for God’s eyes, is working powerfully and lovingly and disciplinarily within me. It means that anything within me (such as sinful timidity) which does not exhibit or reflect a spirit of righteous power and love and discipline is not from God; it is from the flesh or from Satan. Whatever its source really doesn’t matter much to me. What matters is that I rebuke it, repent of its lies, and focus on the true promises God gives me in Scripture. I can celebrate and stand in awe of the fact that the perfect, righteous, holy God of the universe indwells me and is actively creating something beautiful in me by means of Christ’s atonement for me on the cross, and because He loves me. That God is with me means that He is working in me, even when I don’t quite know how, because He promises that He is not only the Creator of my faith, but He is also the Finisher of my faith. He won’t let me go, and He won’t let me stay how I am. He’s not done shaping me, and He won’t be done until I look like Christ. And while I can thankfully look forward with hope to the future day when God promises he will perfect me after my life on this earth, I can also celebrate with thanksgiving that my sanctification is currently happening. God is with me, and He is at work right now—not because I have earned the privilege of His presence, but because He is incomprehensibly gracious.

Looking only at the fruit mentioned in Joshua 1:9 and 2 Timothy 1:7 that God is creating within us, His children, as He surrounds and fills us with His presence, we should be unspeakably encouraged that God’s Holy Spirit empowers us to be strong, courageous, not terrified, not discouraged, powerful, loving, and self-disciplined. And the reason why God’s presence is so crucial for us to attain these blessed qualities is quite simply because we cannot truly and righteously possess any of these victorious qualities on our own strength or by our own merit. It is all because of Jesus, and it is all for the glory of God.

Only God can give us what we need to cross rivers; however, He does require that we obey Him by relying on His strength to put our foot in the water.

Review: The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges

2009-12-19T16:46:00.001-08:00

The Discipline of Grace is the first book I’ve read by Jerry Bridges, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. If I made any mistake in reading it, it was that I read it too quickly. This is one of those books that one should probably read every three-five years, because every paragraph is loaded with meaty insights that ought to make one pause, reflect, and meditate.

The big idea that prevails throughout the book is summarized on the back cover, “Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace.” In short, everyone needs the Good News of Jesus Christ all the time. This year, one of my spiritual themes has been this simple question: What exactly is the Gospel of Jesus Christ? I have enjoyed listening to dozens of sermons by preachers and scholars like D.A. Carson, Tim Keller, Mark Driscoll, Matt Chandler, John Piper, and Alistair McGrath to discover how they define the Good News. Out of all those names, I think Jerry Bridges, in this book, summarizes the Gospel as clear as or clearer than anyone else. In fact, as I read this book, I couldn’t help but estimate that Bridges has likely influenced the thinking of many of these men.

I wish I would have read this book before I attended seminary. It lays down an excellent groundwork not only for understanding the Gospel, but also for understanding key theological concepts and ideas. I even learned theological ideas in this book that I don’t recall learning in seminary (or, perhaps, they were ideas I’ve since forgotten from that whirlwind called “seminary). In fact, one of my favorite parts of this book is Bridge’s numerous, yet simple definitions of important theological terms, like: discipline, transformation, grace, redemption, union, etc. Getting a grasp on some of these words would have been really beneficial for me before entering seminary, since I did not have a theological undergraduate degree.

To conclude this short review, I’m going to cite some of my favorite quotes from this book. I really look forward to reading more of Bridges’ books; however, this book also convicted me of a trap I am susceptible to falling into: reading lots of books about God while neglecting to spend much time reading the book OF God. So, one of my resolutions after reading this book is to spend more leisure time reading and studying the Bible, even when I’m not preparing a lesson on it.

All of the following quotes are taken from The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges (NavPress: Colorado Springs, 2006). Here are some quotes:

“Christ has already borne the curses for our disobedience and earned for us the blessings of obedience. As a result we are now to look to Christ alone—not Christ plus our performance—for God’s blessings in our lives. We are saved by grace and we are to live by grace alone,” (19).

“We need to continue to hear the gospel every day of our Christian lives. Only a continuous reminder of the gospel of God’s grace through Christ will keep us from falling into good-day—bad-day thinking, wherein we think our daily relationship with God is based on how good we’ve been,” (21).

“It is only the joy of hearing the gospel and being reminded that our sins are forgiven in Christ that will keep the demands of discipleship from becoming drudgery. It is only gratitude and love to God that comes from knowing that He no longer counts our sins against us (Romans 4:8) that provides the proper motive for responding to the claims of discipleship,” (21).

“Notice though, what compelled or motivated Paul in such a strong manner. It was not a continual challenge to be more disciplined, or more committed, or more holy. Rather it was his constant heartfelt awareness of Christ’s love for him,” (25).

“We should always view ourselves both in terms of what we are in Christ, that is, saints, and what we are in ourselves, namely sinners,” (41).

“Note that Owen speaks of Christ bearing the iniquity of our holy things—that is, the sinfulness of even our good works. As another Puritan preacher was reputed to have said, “Even our tears of repentance need to be washed in the blood of the Lamb,” (44).

“It is God the Father who initiated the whole plan of salvation. It is God the Father who provided the sacrifice of His Son to satisfy His justice and appease His own wrath. When we are acutely conscious of our sin and that God’s wrath must somehow be hanging over us, we need to remember that God the Father Himself is the One who devised a way whereby His wrath against sin might be fully executed apart from our experiencing the force of that wrath,” (57).

“To preach the gospel to yourself, then, means that you continually face up to your own sinfulness and then flee to Jesus through faith in His shed blood and righteous life,” (59).

“It is the death of Christ through which He satisfied the justice of God and averted from us the wrath of God that is the basis of all God’s promises of forgiveness. We must be careful that, in preaching the gospel to ourselves, we do not preach a gospel without a cross. We must be careful that we do not rely on the so-called unconditional love of God without realizing that His love can only flow to us as a result of Christ’s atoning death,” (60).

Chapter four has an excellent discussion on what it means to be united with Christ. He explains the difference between our legal union with Christ, which is our status before God as justified by the blood of Christ, and our vital union with Christ, which is our ongoing, organic, active union with Christ as we abide in Him and He in us.

The Discipline of Grace is a 250-page book, and these are only quotes from the first quarter of the book. I would recommend this book to all Christians, but especially to more mature believers who want to learn how to grow into a deeper walk with Christ, and who need a reminder that God loves them as they are in Christ, but he isn’t finished with them yet.

Review: The Mortification of Sin by John Owen

2009-12-19T16:44:00.000-08:00

The Mortification of Sin by John Owen (Abridged). A short book by a Puritan? Yes, and an excellent one at that! This was my first time reading a book by John Owen, and I loved it! It’s amazing to me how God’s truth is timeless. I believe that’s why books about the human condition, and our need for God’s grace is timeless, too—it never changes! Owen wrote this book in 1656, and it could easily have been written and published by any number of reformed authors today.

The Mortification of Sin is a book written for Christians about how to eradicate sinful practices from their lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. He explains why mortification of sin is a necessity for Christians, why mortification of sin is only possible with the help of the Holy Spirit, why mortification is only possible for Christians, why not mortifying sin is so deadly for us, and how Christians ought to go about mortifying sin in their lives.

I read the abridged version of this book, which made it only 130 pages, and easy to read. I found myself underlining sentence upon sentence, paragraph upon paragraph. A few of the important ideas with which this book leaves me are: 1) Never underestimate the hideousness of your sin before a perfectly holy God, and 2) Ridding your life of sin is only possible with the help of the Holy Spirit, who lives and works in Christians. I really enjoyed reading about the Holy Spirit’s active involvement in our sanctification.

Here are a few quotes I especially enjoyed from this book, taken from The Mortification of Sin (Abridged) by John Owen (Banner of Truth: Edinburgh, 2004):

“We need to recognize the enemy we are dealing with and resolve that it is to be destroyed by all means possible. The battle is a vigorous and hazardous one that deals with the issues of eternity…We need to be intimately acquainted with the ways, wiles, methods, advantages, and occasions which give lust its success. This is how men deal with their enemies. They search out their plans, ponder their goals, and consider how and by what means they have prevailed over them in the past. Then they can be defeated,” (37).

“One of the choicest and most important parts of spiritual wisdom is to find out the subtleties, policies, and depths of any indwelling sin; to consider where its greatest strength lies—how it uses occasions, opportunities, and temptations to gain an advantage. We need to find out its pleas, pretences, and reasonings, and see what its strategies, disguises and excuses are! We need to set the Spirit against the craft of the old man; to trace this serpent in all of its turning and windings, and to bring its most secret tricks out into the open. We must learn to say; ‘This is your usual method; I know what you are up to.’ So to be always ready is the beginning of our warfare…We need to continue to attack our lusts daily with the spiritual weapons that are most detrimental to it. This is the key to warfare. Even when we think that a lust is dead because it is quiet, we must labour to give it new wounds and new blows every day (Col 3:5),” (37).

“There is no death of sin without the death of Christ,” (41).

“We must not be concerned only with that which troubles us, but with all that troubles God. God’s work is to have full victory, and universal obedience, not just the victory over the sins which trouble our soul,” (51).

“Set your faith upon Christ for the killing of your sin. His blood is the great sovereign remedy for sin-sick souls. Live in the light of Christ’s great work, and you will die a conqueror. You will, through the good providence of God, live to see your lust dead at your feet,” (116)

“Therefore, let your soul, by faith, dwell on such thoughts as these:
I am a poor, weak creature; unstable as water, and I cannot excel. This corruption is to hard for me, and is the doorway to the ruin of my soul. I do not know what to do.
My soul has become parched ground, and a habitation of dragons. I have made promises and broken them. I have made vows, but I did not keep them. Many times I have been persuaded that I have gained the victory, and that I should be delivered, but I was deceived. Now I plainly see that without some great help and assistance, I will perish and be forced to abandon God.
But yet, though this is my state and condition, I will lift up my hands that hang down, and strengthen my feeble knees, for, behold, the Lord Jesus Christ has all the fullness of grace in His heart, and all the fullness of power in His hand. He is able to slay all of these enemies. There is sufficient provision in Him for my relief and assistance. He can take my drooping, dying soul and make me more than a conqueror (Rom. 8:37)” (118).

“Though it seems a long time to you while you are in your trouble and perplexity, yet the victory shall surely come in the appointed time from the Lord Jesus Christ. When it comes, that will be the best season for its accomplishment. If you can raise up your heart to a settled expectation of help from Jesus Christ, keeping your eyes upon Him, ‘as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master’ (Ps. 123:2), when they expect to receive something from him, your soul will be satisfied, and He will assuredly deliver you. He will slay your lusts, and your latter end will be peace. Look for it from His hand with an expectation of when and how he might do it. ‘If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established’ (Isa. 7:9 AV),” (120).

“The Holy Spirit…alone clearly and fully convinces the heart of the evil, guilt, and danger of the corruption, lust or sin that is to be mortified…This is the specific work of the Holy Spirit. He convicts of sin (John 16:8). He alone can do it…The preaching of the Word brings the truth that men are sinners and guilty before God. It may communicate the nature of sin, and the fact that man is guilty. This light, however, is not powerful nor does it lay hold of the soul…There are wise and knowledgeable men, but devoid of the Spirit, who do not consider some things to be sin at all, but which are clearly the movings of lust. It is the Spirit alone that can do, and does do, this work,” (129).

“The Spirit is the Author and Finisher of our sanctification. He gives new supplies and influences of grace for holiness and sanctification when our resolve to resist is weakened (Eph. 3:16-18),” (130).

What is Crouching at Your Door?

2009-12-17T14:13:00.000-08:00

Today I read a passage which I'm sure I've read before, but it popped out to me like never before. The verse is Genesis 4:7, in which God is confronting Cain after Cain presented an unacceptable sacrifice to Him. Cain is angry, because God was pleased with Abel's sacrifice, but not with his. God knows what Cain is thinking and feeling. Cain is unwilling to admit that he did anything wrong. Later, in the book of Hebrews (11:4), we read that Abel's sacrifice is pleasing to God because of his faith, and Cain's sacrifice is displeasing to God because of his lack of faith. Instead of confessing his own sin, Cain points the figure at his brother, and is then filled with more sinful thoughts to hurt his brother, which he eventually acts out by killing Abel.

In Genesis 4:7, God tells Cain, "If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." The imagery of sin "crouching at your door" reminded me of 1 Peter 5:8-9, where Satan is depicted as a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. In the Genesis passage, we are told to respond to sin by mastering it; that is, to be filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit, who enables us to kill the sin in our lives. In 1 Peter, we are to respond to Satan by resisting him and by standing firm in our faith in Jesus Christ.

I guess what really stood out to me about this passage is that it depicts both sin and Satan as active forces that are pursuing us. They are not passive, and they are not neutral forces. They are actively pursuing us, because they want to "have us" and "devour us." Sin cannot have us without also devouring us. We must take sin seriously, and be on guard against the subtle ways it seeks to infiltrate its way into our lives. I think much of the time, the sin in our lives that is most problematic is the sin which we don't see easily, not necessarily the sin we know we struggle with.

And when the light of Christ reveals sin in our lives, may we not respond to it by sinning again, like Cain did in proud denial of his own guilt. Rather, let us be disgusted by the ugliness of our sin, and then let us be encouraged by the Spirit as we confess our sin to our Lord Jesus Christ who has already died to free us from our sin and its effects, and let us be filled with the Spirit as we seek to repent of our sin daily. May we continue to be on guard against and to be purified from sin every day of our lives by the power of the Holy Spirit and by God's Word of Truth, which sanctifies us (Jn. 17:17).

Jesus is a Friend of Mine

2009-12-14T19:45:00.001-08:00

No blog would be complete without this video on it! (Make sure you turn down the blog music in the "choose your tunes" menu on the right.)

Message from Matt Chandler

2009-12-07T23:15:00.000-08:00

I imagine there are a million blogs out there with this message from Matt Chandler on them, but I wanted it on mine, too. It is truly inspiring, and we should keep him and his family in our prayers. Check it out on this page (you have to scroll down):
http://fm.thevillagechurch.net/blog/pastors/

From Calvin to Bridges...

2009-11-30T22:22:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to say that I am FINISHED reading John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion! It was a challenging and rewarding endeavor, but I'm very glad to have completed it! I'd like to take some time to reflect on how this experience has shaped me, and hopefully I'll get to share that here sometime in the future.

So, now what? Do I continue the blog or no? I'm not sure what I'll do in the long run, but in the short run, I'd like to continue to post some of my thoughts and reflections in general.

Right now, I'm in the middle of about 4 books, but one that I've spent a lot of time reading lately is Jerry Bridges' The Discipline of Grace. I plan to post a summary/review of his book as soon as I finish it. As my brother says about Bridges' writing, and as I soon learned firsthand after starting this book, it is "gold." I have underlined much of this book, and I confess that I've probably read the book too quickly.

Because I don't want to re-type the entire book here, I will just share one quote from the book that I enjoyed: "It is not our contrition or our sorrow for our sin, it is not our repentance, it is not even the passing of a certain number of hours during which we feel we are on some kind of probation that cleanses us. It is the blood of Christ, shed once for all on Calvary two thousand years ago but appropriated daily or even many times a day, that cleanses our consciences and gives us a renewed sense of peace with God," (58).

Only 14 Readings Left!

2009-11-18T00:18:00.001-08:00

I'm not going to lie: I'm pretty pumped to be done reading Calvin for a while! I'm a little ahead of the reading schedule at this point, on page 1429, and I only have 14 readings left to go! We've had a good run, Calvin. Here's my favorite quote from recent readings:

"This is the wonderful exchange which, out of his measureless benevolence, he has made with us; that, becoming Son of man with us, he has made us sons of God with him; that, by his descent to earth, he has prepared an ascent to heaven for us; that, by taking on our mortality, he has conferred his immortality upon us; that, accepting our weakness, he has strengthened us by his power; that, receiving our poverty unto himself, he has transferred his wealth to us; that, taking the weight of our iniquity upon himself (which oppressed us), he has clothed us with his righteousness," (1362).

"9 Ways to Know the Gospel of Christ Is True" by John Piper

2009-11-06T12:05:00.000-08:00

1. Jesus Christ, as he is presented to us in the New Testament, and as he stands forth from all its writings, is too single and too great to have been invented so uniformly by all these writers.

The force of Jesus Christ unleashed these writings; the writings did not create the force. Jesus is far bigger and more compelling than any of his witnesses. His reality stands behind these writings as a great, global event stands behind a thousand newscasters. Something stupendous unleashed these diverse witnesses to tell these stunning and varied, yet unified, stories of Jesus Christ.

2. Nobody has ever explained the empty tomb of Jesus in the hostile environment of Jerusalem where the enemies of Jesus would have given anything to produce the corpse, but could not.

The earliest attempts to cover the scandal of resurrection were manifestly contradictory to all human experience—disciples do not steal a body (Matthew 28:13) and then sacrifice their lives to preach a glorious gospel of grace on the basis of the deception. Modern theories that Jesus didn't die but swooned, and then awoke in the tomb and moved the stone and tricked his skeptical disciples into believing he was risen as the Lord of the universe don't persuade.

3. Cynical opponents of Christianity abounded where claims were made that many eyewitnesses were available to consult concerning the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

"After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep" (1 Corinthians 15:6). Such claims would be exposed as immediate falsehood if they could. But we know of no exposure. Eyewitnesses of the risen Lord abounded when the crucial claims were being made.

4. The early church was an indomitable force of faith and love and sacrifice on the basis of the reality of Jesus Christ.

The character of this church, and the nature of the gospel of grace and forgiveness, and the undaunted courage of men and women—even unto death—do not fit the hypothesis of mass hysteria. They simply were not like that. Something utterly real and magnificent had happened in the world and they were close enough to know it, and be assured of it, and be gripped by its power. That something was Jesus Christ, as all of them testified, even as they died singing.

5. The prophesies of the Old Testament find stunning fulfillment in the history of Jesus Christ.

The witness to these fulfillments are too many, too diverse, too subtle and too interwoven into the history of the New Testament church and its many writings to be fabricated by some great conspiracy. Down to the details, Jesus Christ fulfilled dozens of Old Testament prophecies that vindicate his truth.

6. The witnesses to Jesus Christ who wrote the New Testament gospels and letters are not gullible or deceitful or demented.

This is manifest from the writings themselves. The books bear the marks of intelligence and clear-headedness and maturity and a moral vision that is compelling. They win our trust as witnesses, especially when all taken together with one great unifying, but distinctively told, message about Jesus Christ.

7. The worldview that emerges from the writings of the New Testament makes more sense out of more reality than any other worldview.

It not only fits the human heart, but also the cosmos and history and God as he reveals himself in nature and conscience. Some may come to this conclusion after much reflection, others may arrive at this conviction by a pre-reflective, intuitive sense of the deep suitability of Christ and his message to the world that they know.

8. When one sees Christ as he is portrayed truly in the gospel, there shines forth a spiritual light that is a self-authenticating.

This is "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God" (2 Corinthians 4:6), and it is as immediately perceived by the Spirit-awakened heart as light is perceived by the open eye. The eye does not argue that there is light. It sees light.

9. When we see and believe the glory of God in the gospel, the Holy Spirit is given to us so that the love of God might be "poured out in our hearts" (Romans 5:5).

This experience of the love of God known in the heart through the gospel of Him who died for us while we were yet ungodly assures us that the hope awakened by all the evidences we have seen will not disappoint us.

(First posted as a Taste & See Article in 1999)

How I Spent My Halloween

2009-11-02T16:19:00.000-08:00

It's been a whie since I've gone to a concert I was PUMPED about afterwards, but Halloween night I experienced an unforgettable SKILLET concert with a group of teens! This is the video the lead singer took during the concert from the stage. I found myself around 40 seconds into the video! Skillet put on an incredible show and have taken Christian concerts to another level in my book--pyrotechnics, unbelievable sound quality, lights, excellent musicianship, elevating hydraulic stages within the stage, a live cellist and violinist, and every band talked about Jesus! I would highly recommend this concert tour to any/all youth pastors and youth groups!
CROWD CAM: Seattle, WA 10.31.09

Skillet | MySpace Video

Book Review: Rethinking the Successful Church by Samuel D. Rima

2009-10-26T11:55:00.000-07:00

Rethinking the Successful Church by Samuel D. Rima is one of the very best books I've ever read on the topic of church ministry and pastoral success. It is a book that should be read by every pastor, church leader, and seminarian. In short, the book blows up all the typical standards that most pastors and churches use to gage success in the church. Rima reveals how churches and pastors have been contaminated by a world that mainly values quantitative success: good offerings, mall-sized church buildings, large church staffs, lots of visitors, and many church members. The remedy that Rima offers to counter our flawed evaluative systems is short, but sweet: find serenity in God's sovereignty.

The book begins with an analysis of our obsession with mega-churches and false ministry "success," and the mistake many churches make in attempting to apply formulas to replicate ministry success. Rima then examines how our definitions of ministry success as pastors and churches are often "sick" and are not aligned with a healthy understanding of God's sovereignty. He explores why pastors feel the need to measure their success by numbers, and why so many pastors are consequently burning out, debilitating churches, and leaving the ministry. In order to heal our sickness as churches and pastors, we must restart as square one and redefine what true success looks like. We can only begin to do that by understanding the loving sovereignty of God as our stimulus to trust God with reckless faith. Only when we begin to understand and believe that God is control of our ministries, and that we aren't, can we experience true serenity in ministry that God desires for us.

Near the end of the book, Rima offers several qualitative means we should use to measure true success in ministry. By asking these six questions that probe the qualitative health of our ministry, we are on the road to true ministry success:
1) What is the current state of my relationship with God?
2) Am I truly enjoying ministry?
3) How am I treating the people I minister to and those who serve with me?
4) How am I handling the suffering that is an inevitable part of ministry?
5) How well am I empowering others for effective public ministry?
6) How much joy do I derive from the success of my ministry colleagues?

I wish I could type up a list of my favorite quotes from this book; however, I'm certain I would end up re-typing most of the book. Almost every sentence in my copy is underlined. You just need to read it for yourself. That being said, I will share one great quote I marked last night as I finished the book:

"At some point on our ministry journey we have got to realize that we can build the biggest church in the world and actually see thousands of people coming to Christ, and still be an abysmal failure in the eyes of God. If our motives are impure, our methods dubious, and our personal character and spirituality seriously flawed, I do not believe God considers us successful. When people come to Christ through the ministry or work of such a ministry practitioner it speaks more of God's faithfulness to his Word than it does that minister's success," (173).

Rethinking the Successful Church by Samuel D. Rima is one of those books that ought to be read and re-read once every other year for pastors in ministry. Every time I sat down to read this book, I felt refreshed, encouraged, nurtured, and more affectionate for Christ. I look forward to reading this book again, as well as more books by this author. This book is very inexpensive, and you should buy it today at: http://www.amazon.com/Rethinking-Successful-Church-Serenity-Sovereignty/dp/0801091179/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256589558&sr=1-4

Calvin on Sacraments...

2009-10-26T11:47:00.000-07:00

"A sacrament is...an outward sign by which the Lord seals on our consciences the promises of his good will toward us in order to sustain the weaknesses of our faith; and we in turn attest our piety toward him in the presence of the Lord and of his angels and before men," (1277).

"Augustine calls a sacrament 'a visible word' for the reason that it represents God's promises as painted in a picture and sets them before our sight, portrayed graphically and in the manner of images," (1281).

"Hence, any man is deceived who thinks anything more is conferred upon him through the sacraments than what is offered by God's Word and received by him in true faith. From this something else follows: assurance of salvation does not depend upon participation in the sacrament, as if justification consisted in it. For we know that justification is lodged in Christ alone, and that it is communicated to us no less by the preaching of the gospel than by the seal of the sacrament, and without the latter can stand unimpaired. Augustine's statement is just as true: there can be invisible sanctification without a visible sign, and on the other hand a visible sign without true sanctification," (1290)

A Very Short Review of Desiring God by John Piper

2009-10-19T12:47:00.000-07:00

I'm proud to say that I've finally finished a reading a book that's taken me over a year to digest: Desiring God by John Piper. Besides the fact that the content of this book is like a spiritual steak which must be savored and chewed slowly, it's also a big steak--about 370 pages (which includes an epilogue and 80+ pages of appendices).

To be honest, I don't even know where to start with this book--except to say that it has profoundly influenced the way I understand what it means to follow Christ. Following Christ is about enjoying Christ more than anything else. Piper's big idea in the book, which has become a familiar phrase in modern reformed circles, is: The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever. It's a simple concept with profound implications.

Piper uses the beginning of the book to articulate this big idea, and then he fleshes out throughout the rest of the book what it looks like to enjoy Christ in various arenas of life, like: conversion, worship, love, Scripture, prayer, money, marriage, missions, and suffering. In addition to the ten chapters in this classic book, Piper also includes an epilogue and five appendices in the most recent printings of the book. One of the appendices I really enjoyed reading was "The Goal of God in Redemptive History."

I highly recommend that every Christian read this book, with this forewarning: I've found Piper's works to be extremely thoughtful (as in "thought-full") and profound, and I think it's important not to rush through his books. In order to grasp what he's saying, it requires time and effort to soak it all in. The ideas in this book have the potential to radically transform and shape the way one trusts and obeys Christ.

Having now read/studied two books by John Piper, I can honestly say he's one of my favorite authors. I look forward to reading many more of his books, so the only question I must answer now is: which one should I tackle next?

Fishing Pics

2009-10-17T11:56:00.000-07:00

Yes, I do more than read Calvin. I actually have hobbies. :) If you don't believe me, here are some pictures I took last week of some pink salmon I caught. Around here, they call them "humpies," because the males develop a hump on their back when they're spawning. I'm pretty sure I've caught more fish in the past month than I have in all of the 2+ years I've lived in Washington!

Calvin on Church Discipline

2009-10-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

I've just finished reading Calvin's section on the purpose and proper usage of church discipline, and I really enjoyed it. I'm not going to lie--the past 150 pages have been a dry spell for me and Calvin. Oh, I've done the reading. But, it was dry. Real dry. At least, that's my opinion. I can only glean so much at this point in my life about the inner workings of the bowels of the government and corruption of the ancient Roman Catholic church.

All that being said, Calvin and I are on good terms again, and I'm actually enjoying what I'm reading. So, let's get back to the topic at hand--church discipline. What I loved about this section was Calvin's unapologetic and bold argument for (the proper usage of) church discipline. It seems to me that in 21st Century American Christian Churches, "church discipline" is a topic we'd prefer to avoid. For sure, it is sinful for church authority and discipline to be abused; however, it's also sinful for church authority and discipline to be under-used. Calvin makes such a great point that the point of church discipline is not to hurt individual followers of Christ and the corporate church body, but to help both through the proper application of discipline.

This section was just an encouragement to me as someone in ministry, not because I'm hungry for power or because I look forward to opening up a big can of church discipline, but because it reminded me that church discipline is a biblical mandate, not a man-made invention. It made me not feel bad about correcting others when it's appropriate. As a pastor, I don't have to feel guilty about disciplining others when I must. It reminded me that discipline is to be done with kindness and with the intention of restoring Christians to a right relationship with Christ and others. Overall, I came away with the conclusion that the best way many of our Protestant churches can love our flocks better is by more boldly asserting church discipline--not by asserting it less.

Here are some excerpts from Calvin that caught my attention:

"Let pastors and presbyters be especially watchful to do this, for their duty is not only to preach to the people, but to warn and exhort in every house, wherever they are not effective enough in general instruction," (1230).

"Some sins are private; others, public or openly manifest. Of the former, Christ says to every individual: "Reprove him, between you and him alone" [Matt. 18:15]. Paul says to Timothy of open sins: "Rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear" [1 Tim. 5:20]," (1231).

"Public sins are those witnessed not by one or two persons, but committed openly and to the offense of the entire church. I call secret sins, not those completely hidden from men, as are those of hypocrites (for these do not fall under the judgment of the church), but those of an intermediate sort, which are not unwitnessed, yet not public," (1234).

"The church claims for itself nothing unreasonable but practices the jurisdiction conferred upon it by the Lord. Now, that no one may despise such a judgment of the church or regard condemnation by vote of the believers as a trivial thing, the Lord has testified that this is nothing but the publication of his own sentence, and what they have done on earth is ratified in heaven. For they have the Word of the Lord to condemn the perverse; they have the Word to receive the repentant into grace [Matt. 16:19; 18:18; John 20:23]," (1232).

Quoting Chrysostom, "If you fear a man, he will laugh at you; but if you fear god, you will be revered also among men," (1233).

"Nor is it enough if he, who by setting a bad example through his misdeed has gravely injured the church, be chastised only with words; but he ought for a time to be deprived of the communion of the Supper until he gives assurance of his repentance. For Paul not only rebuked the Corinthian in words but banished him from the church, and chided the Corinthians for bearing with him so long [1 Cor. 5:1-7]. The ancient and better church kept this procedure while lawful government flourished. For if anyone had committed a crime that caused offense, he was ordered first to abstain from partaking of the Sacred Supper, then to humble himself before God and witness his repentance before the church," (1234).

Calvin, quoting Augustine: "Let a man mercifully correct what he can; let him patiently bear what he cannot correct, and groan and sorrow over it with love," (1239).

A few interesting links...

2009-10-17T11:05:00.000-07:00

Here are a few interesting blog entries worth noting, written by author Kevin DeYoung. The first link is a biblical argument for church membership. The second link is a review of what sounds like a fascinating book written about why people are converting from Roman Catholicism to Protestantism:

1) http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2009/10/02/few-more-thoughts-on-church-membership/

2) http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2009/10/16/walking-with-jesus-as-a-former-catholic/

Reflections on The Invention of Lying

2009-10-13T11:34:00.000-07:00

1 Corinthians 1:18-21

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate." Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.”

Tonight, my wife and I took advantage of a rare opportunity for us—to leave our one year-old for the evening in the hands of his grandparents (visiting from Colorado), so that we could go to a movie together. I’ve been wanting to see the new movie by Ricky Gervais (creator of The Office), entitled The Invention of Lying.

Having followed Gervais through interviews with the media during the past few years, I knew beforehand that he isn’t a believer. In fact, I’m pretty sure he’s an atheist. Since most of his comedic material is so juvenile and light-hearted, though, I hadn’t anticipated that his newest movie would be so heavily slanted toward his spiritual beliefs.

I found The Invention of Lying to be a fascinating, disturbing, creative, depressing, honest film with a very few funny and even heart-warming parts. From a Christian philosophical standpoint, I would summarize this movie as a non-Christian, postmodern commentary on the absurdity of a theistic worldview; or, as an atheistic manifesto promoting subjective truth; or, as a subtly satanic deception to blind people from the truth and to nurture religious skepticism. I don’t use these descriptions to try to degrade the movie, but to describe it accurately. In fact, except for the use of the word “satanic” in the lattermost description, I imagine Gervais would agree with my descriptions.

The basic premise of the movie is that Gervais lives in a world where nobody can lie, where nobody has ever told a lie, and where nobody can comprehend the very idea of lying. It is a world of zero creativity—fiction does not exist, art does not exist, imagination does not exist. Further, tact and thoughtful discretion does not exist, either. People do not tell white lies to make people feel better, and they do not hold back any thoughts they might be thinking. If they don’t like a person, they tell them. If they don’t like what they’re wearing, they tell them. If they are thinking something embarrassing, they tell everyone around them.

The movie begins to get interesting when Gervais creates the first lie, unexpectedly and even surprising to himself. He soon realizes that he is the only person who can lie, and since nobody else can comprehend what lying is, then they believe that the lies he tells them are the truth. So, when he tells the bank teller that he has $800 in his bank account, when in fact he only has $300 in his bank account, the teller insists that the computer has made an error, because it would be impossible for a man not to tell the truth.

The point at which the movie takes an intriguing and surprising twist is when Gervais’ mother is on her deathbed. He rushes to her side to be with her during her last minutes. She is distraught and truly scared about the idea of ceasing to exist and entering into eternal “nothingness.” Because it pains him so deeply to see his mom in terror, it hits him that he can create a lie to give her hope. So, he tells her the “lie” that she needn’t fear death, because there is hope after death. He tells her the “lie” that when she dies, she will be with all her friends and family, and she will be young again, and there will be no more pain, and she will receive a mansion, and she will be happy for all eternity. Although I found it disturbing that the idea of heaven was framed as a lie, this scene was actually quite moving, as Gervais describes heaven without actually calling it that.

Soon thereafter, Gervais’ mom dies; however, the doctors and nurses who were listening in on his revelations about the after-life are still hanging on his every word and are fascinated that he has all this insight which no one has ever heard before. When word gets out about his gift of prophecy, it leads to a chaotic, massive crowd of people camping out on his lawn to await further revelations about the afterlife.

From this point forward in the movie, Gervais is viewed as a Mosaic or Christ figure. To appease the crowd, Gervais records his made-up fantasies about the afterlife on the backs of two tablets (pizza boxes), and proclaims them to the crowd in a scene reminiscent of Moses on Mt. Sinai offering the Ten Commandments to the Jews. He has ten “truths” to share with everyone, which include the fact that there is an invisible man in the sky to whom everyone must answer, that this invisible man is in charge of every good and bad thing that ever happens, and that if you do 3 bad things, then you will not get to be happy in the afterlife, but you will suffer for eternity.

Without giving away all of the movie, I’ll just say that the movie takes off from there, and people react to these divine revelations in a number of ways. What’s most fascinating to me, though, is to see how Gervais, the author and director of this film, interprets and portrays the message of Christianity from an atheistic/agnostic perspective, and how he unfortunately misses the center of the Christian message: the grace of God poured out to humans through Christ’s death on the cross. He misses the scandalous good news of Christ, which declares that NOTHING we do or don’t do could ever earn us salvation or take us beyond God’s reach. We are saved by believing Jesus Christ, and by accepting through faith his sacrifice in our place for our sins so that we could be reconciled to friendship with God.

What a tragedy it is that Gervais does not mock the true Gospel. By explaining in the film that the way to get right with the invisible man in the sky is to be good and not to do bad things, the proclamation of a false gospel of salvation by works is perpetuated to viewers. However, perhaps the very reason the gospel is not portrayed in the movie is because Gervais has never grasped it in his own life. I appreciate that he mocks the idea that salvation by works is ridiculous; however, I find it tragic that he communicates this to be what Christianity teaches, because I think it will lead many further away from God. Ironically, in a movie where he’s supposed to be revealing the truth, he’s only perpetuating fiction.

In addition to the inaccurate articulation of the Gospel of Christ, this movie also deceives by declaring that lying is good for humanity. The movie says that lies give us hope for this life and for eternal life. Lying to other people to make them feel good about themselves is better than sharing the truth in love to them, because the end result is that it makes this world a better place. Sharing the lie about the outrageous fantasy of life after death is beneficial to our society, because it makes us happy and gives us hope. The perspective that the path of lying is the path to the greatest benefit is an interesting one; however, it is superficial, un-thoughtful, and self-defeating.

Upon sharing with the masses the fantasy of life after death, we see through a fascinating lens how Gervais, the writer of this film, believes people would respond to this news if they really believed it. Instead of seeking to live a good life, most people turn to alcohol and sex and every other form of hedonism to fill the time during the remainder of their days on earth. People figure that if they have heaven to which they can look forward after death, then this life really doesn’t matter, and they might as well do those things which lead them to death sooner, rather than later. Gervais’ point is that the truth proclaimed by Christians actually does more harm to people than good.

This atheistic understanding of how one should respond to truth is very different from how Christ says we should respond to truth. Instead of pursuing things that lead to death and that do not glorify God in this life, we should be “living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God,” (Romans 12:1). We should not take for granted the grace of Jesus Christ offered to us, re-crucifying him with our sinful lives. Instead, because we believe the Holy Spirit enters us upon believing in Christ, and then regenerates us and gives us a new heart, we now have a desire to love God with our lives however possible. We pursue joy not in death and sin, but in Christ, who is life.

The movie concludes with the message that lying is subjective. We ought not to follow any set of objective truths for our lives; rather, we should follow the subjective truths found in the desires of our own hearts. In one of the final scenes, Gervais tells his beloved not to follow what the invisible man in the sky says is true, but to follow what she believes is true in her own heart. This scene is a very accurate depiction of the belief systems of many people in our postmodern age.

In sum, I credit Gervais for writing a creative story of fiction. Viewers must remember that the world in which the movie’s plot occurs is a fictitious world where nobody can lie. It is not the world in which we live. It is not truth, and because it is not truth, we ought not to take our cues for determining truth from it. The truth is that people do lie. The truth is that Jesus Christ was a real person, and that he really did die to save those who would believe in him. The truth is that heaven does exist and hell does exist. The truth is that we have an enemy who wants us to believe that these truths are man-made lies.

For vulgarity reasons alone, I wouldn’t recommend this movie to most people. Truly, I think the only people who might benefit from watching this movie would be thinking Christian leaders who are strong in their faith. Anyone else ought not to waste time contemplating deception, as this movie might persuade one who is weak in his/her faith to exchange the truth for a lie (Romans 1:25).

Cool Display of Furthering God's Kingdom, Not a Congregation

2009-10-11T17:19:00.000-07:00

Job Security: Future Youth Ministry for Centenarians

2009-10-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

In Isaiah 65:17-25, we find a description of what to expect in the New Heavens and the New Earth. I love verse 20, which says "he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth." On the time-line of eternity, a 100 year-old man is just a child! In this present world, what we consider to be an exceptionally long life is but an exceptionally short life in the New Heavens and the New Earth. This passage gives us much to hope for:

Isaiah 65:17-25
¹⁷ "Behold, I will create
new heavens and a new earth.
The former things will not be remembered,
nor will they come to mind.

¹⁸ But be glad and rejoice forever
in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight
and its people a joy.

¹⁹ I will rejoice over Jerusalem
and take delight in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying
will be heard in it no more.

²⁰ "Never again will there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not live out his years;
he who dies at a hundred
will be thought a mere youth;
he who fails to reach ^a]">[a] a hundred
will be considered accursed.

²¹ They will build houses and dwell in them;
they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

²² No longer will they build houses and others live in them,
or plant and others eat.
For as the days of a tree,
so will be the days of my people;
my chosen ones will long enjoy
the works of their hands.

²³ They will not toil in vain
or bear children doomed to misfortune;
for they will be a people blessed by the LORD,
they and their descendants with them.

²⁴ Before they call I will answer;
while they are still speaking I will hear.

²⁵ The wolf and the lamb will feed together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox,
but dust will be the serpent's food.
They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain,"
says the LORD.

The Gospel in Isaiah

2009-09-28T12:36:00.000-07:00

In The Reason for God, pastor Tim Keller writes about how he's almost positive that his Hindu next-door neighbor is a better man than he. The Hindu man appears to be a more loving husband and father, a very laborious and faithful worker, and as friendly as can be. If we were given friendship with God based on how good we acted, then there's no doubt that the Hindu man would be best friends with God. However, the Bible makes it very clear that we're not given friendship with God based on anything we do, but based on what God has done for us. By sending his son Jesus Christ to die for our sins on the cross, God created a way for us to exchange our sinfulness for God's righteousness. Jesus became our sinfulness, so that we could become his righteousness. Only by accepting God's gift of grace, that is salvation through Jesus Christ by faith, can we have atonement for our sins and be friends with God.

This message was presented to me very clearly this morning as I read Isaiah 57:12-13, which says, "I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not benefit you. When you cry out for help, let your collection of idols save you! The wind will carry all of them off, a mere breath will blow them away. But the man who makes me his refuge will inherit the land and possess my holy mountain." Our good works are of no worth apart from Jesus Christ. They cannot earn us Christ. Only Christ can give us Christ. He already paid for our sin. The only questions we must answer are: 1 ) Will I accept his payment for me? 2) Will I spend the rest of my life learning how to love God back?

(As a side note, if you want to read the gospel in the OT, read Isaiah 53! Prayerfully read and re-read each verse, and you will be humbled and broken and awestruck by the love of God!)

14 Baptisms Video

2009-09-27T08:33:00.001-07:00

A picture is worth a thousand words…

2009-09-26T13:32:00.000-07:00

A picture is worth a thousand words...

One summer night, two fishermen were on a mission. They stood on the pebbly shoreline, casting their lines into the water…over and over again. The pink lures at the end of their lines returned to them after each cast…too quickly, and with no results. In the distant sea, salmon leapt into the air and back into the water, just often enough to keep the fisherman there. Ironic: the fish had the fishermen hooked, but the fishermen had no fish hooked.

The rhythm of the poles lifting into the air and dropping again was hypnotic. Time stood still as the men stared at their lines, yearning to feel the slightest yank. With the orange sun setting over the horizon on the far side of the sea, the light grew darker and the air grew colder. The waves splashed against the beach over and over, the water licking the sand.

Then, as the fisherman in the water pulled his rod tip back, A HIT! The rod tip jerked down toward the water, and then back up again, quickly and constantly over and over again. With all his might, he held on for dear life. The fisherman on the shore dropped his pole and with everything that was in him shouted, “Whatever you do, keep your tip UP!” Easier said than done. The fisherman in the water struggled to hold onto the pole, leaning back toward the beach and praying that his line wouldn’t break.

After the invisible beast stripped more and more line off the fisherman’s reel, the fisherman on the shore coached him, shouting, “Walk BACK toward the beach! Walk all the way back to the bathroom if you have to! Just KEEP WALKING BACK! We’re NOT losing this fish!” So, the fisherman in the water listened to him. He began to walk backward in his waders. The more he walked back, the more line stripped out, the more he kept reeling in, the more he walked back.

Suddenly, as the fisherman with the ecstatic rod neared the fisherman on the shore, the latter came to grips with what he had to do. He revealed and realized what had to happen as he spoke, “I think I’m gonna go in for it.” The two fishermen looked at each other in the eye, surprised at the words that had been said. With a mutual understanding that this is what had to be done, they solemnly nodded at each other in agreement.

The fisherman on the shore picked up the large fishing net off the beach, and bravely and boldly trudged into the water in his jeans to face the invisible beast. Now, their roles had switched—the fisherman with the reel stood on the shore, and the fisherman with the net stood in the water. As the fisherman in the water walked deeper and deeper, the invisible beast made his presence known with sporatic splashes on the surface of the water. The splashes came closer and closer to him. “KEEP WALKING BACK!” he cried to the other fisherman.

Then, as the fisherman on the shore took another step backward, the fisherman in the water swooped his net down into the sea! He raised the net up, but it was empty. Then, the rod tip jerked erratically again, and the fisherman on shore desperately yelled, “Do it again!” So, the man in the water swooped his net down again into the sea and brought it back up. But, the elusive beast had escaped him again.

“Do it ONE MORE TIME!” shouted the fisherman on shore. With a look of determination on his face, the fisherman in the water rained the net down into the sea as if he’d never do it again. As he lifted it up out of the water, he screamed, “WE GOT IT! WE GOT IT!”

The fisherman on shore furiously reeled the rest of his line in as the fisherman with the netted treasure walked ashore. He lifted the beast up, out of the net and raised it into the air like a Greek hero claiming his trophy! This beast of a fish belonged to BOTH fisherman. Neither could claim it as belonging only to one of them. As both fisherman looked the beast into the eye, they knew they had done something great. Even the now visible beast knew it was part of something much bigger than itself.

The fishermen proudly cradled the beast in their hands as the crowds fled to the fisherman to witness the treasure for themselves. Two fisherman were made heroes that night, and the sea bade farewell to one of its greatest invisible beasts.

The End.

(Thanks for the great story and memory, Jordan!)

Brothers, Tell Them Not to Serve God!

2009-09-19T21:46:00.000-07:00

This quote from a fascinating sermon by John Piper called, "Brothers, Tell Them Not to Serve God!" You can read the whole sermon at http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Articles/ByDate/1995/1564_Brothers_Tell_Them_Not_to_Serve_God/

"So let us work hard, but never forget that it is not us but the grace of God which is with us (1 Cor. 15:10). Let us obey now, as always, but never forget that it is God who works in us both the will and the deed (Phil. 2:13). Let us spread the gospel far and wide and spend ourselves for the sake of the elect, but never venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought in us (Rom. 15:18). In all our serving may God be the giver and God get the glory."

Treasuring Him

2009-09-15T23:58:00.000-07:00

Some seriously gifted people are doing some seriously cool things with video to spread the gospel!

Piper: Football or Christ?

2009-09-15T23:55:00.000-07:00

Football in and of itself is not wrong, of course. Like anything, though, if it is abused, it can rob us of our affections for Christ.

Christian PUNK?

2009-09-14T23:18:00.001-07:00

Can punk music be redeemed for God's glory? Without a doubt, YES! By stirring our affections for Christ, many Christ-infused bands are doing and have been glorifying Christ for years! Here are some very worshipful lyrics by such a punk band:

“All You Are” by Sick of Change

Lord Take My Heart Just As It Is Breaking
Pour All You Are Into Me
You Know Me More Than I Could Ever Know Myself
As I Go To Sleep
Send Me An Angel To Lay Over Me
So That I May Have Sweet Dreams Of You
And Your Plan For Me
Your Grace Goes Farther Than Any Eye Can See
You Reign Above, You're My First Love
Though The Seasons May Change
You Will Always Remain The Same
Please Give Me Strength In This Life
So I Can See You In The Next One
As I Go To Sleep
Send Me An Angel To Lay Over Me
So That I May Have Sweet Dreams Of You
When I Fall Short Of Your Blessings
Your Love Is There For Me
Making Me Holy, Anointing Me
Lord Reside In Me, Make Me Holy

Isaiah 48:17-18

2009-09-11T16:10:00.000-07:00

"This is what the LORD says--your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: 'I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea. Your descendants would have been like the sand, your children like its numberless grains; their name would never be cut off nor destroyed before me."
(emphasis added)

Understanding God through Isaiah

2009-08-28T12:43:00.000-07:00

In the past few days, I've spent time reading and reflecting on Isaiah chapters 42 and 43. Obviously, every verse is the inspired Word of God, but there have been some select verses that have totally stood out to me for one reason or another. In fact, I found myself underlining what seemed like every verse in both chapters! I thought to myself, "You could write an entire systematic theology based only on these two chapters!"

So, I thought I'd share some of the verses that stood out to me, and I hope they penetrate your heart, as well. It's especially powerful when, as you read each verse, you ask yourself, "How is Jesus Christ revealed in this verse?" And as a note biblical interpretation, these verses often refer to Israel, as God's chosen people, citing a partial fulfillment of these scriptures; however, many are also referring to Jesus Christ, the complete fulfillment of God's revelation, and our Total Redeemer. (P.S. I'll also highlight some of the key phrases that struck me.)

Isaiah 42:1, "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations."

Isaiah 42:5-8, "This is what God the Lord says--he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it. I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give glory to another or my praise to idols."

Isaiah 42:12-13, "Let them give glory to the LORD and proclaim his praise in the islands. The LORD will march out like a mighty man, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies." (I love the second part of this verse, because it reminded me of a scene from one of my favorite movies, Braveheart. I just love the idea of God as a powerful warrior-leader, who stirs up his troops to action, and who defeats his enemies. The difference between God and a human military leader, though, is that God is infinitely stronger than any man, and God has already won the battle over sin because of Jesus' death and the redemption offered to us through him."

Isaiah 42:21, "It pleased the LORD for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious."

Isaiah 43:1-3a, "But now, this is what the LORD says--he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."

Isaiah 43:4, "...you are precious and honored in my sight...and...I love you."

Isaiah 43:6-7, "I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth--everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made."

Isaiah 43: 10-12, "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed--I and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,' declares the LORD, 'that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?"

Don't Waste Your Life Quotes

2009-08-18T23:26:00.000-07:00

The theme for every youth group night this fall will be “Don’t Waste Your Life,” which is inspired by a book of the same name, written by Pastor John Piper. If you didn’t get a chance to read DWYL this summer, I’m including here 2 pages of some of my favorite quotes from the book, which can serve as the “Cliff’s Notes” version of the book (and which does not do justice to the book when read in its entirety). As you familiarize yourself with some of the big ideas of this book, I hope it sparks for you some topics of spiritual interest to discuss with your families this fall.

“The Bible says, ‘You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body’ (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)…You are in one of two groups: Either you are a Christian, or God is now calling you to be one…If you are a Christian, you are not your own. Christ has bought you at the price of his death. You now belong doubly to God: He made you, and he bought you. That means your life is not your own. It is God’s. Therefore, the Bible says, ‘Glorify God in your body.’ God made you for this. He bought you for this. This is the meaning of your life,” (9).

“God created me—and you—to live with a single, all-embracing, all-transforming passion—namely, a passion to glorify God by enjoying and displaying his supreme excellence in all the spheres of life. Enjoying and displaying are both crucial. If we try to display the excellence of God without joy in it, we will display a shell of hypocrisy and create scorn or legalism. But if we claim to enjoy his excellence and do not display it for others to see and admire, we deceive ourselves, because the mark of God-enthralled joy is to overflow and expand by extending itself into the hearts of others,” (31).

“God calls us to pray and think and dream and plan and work not to be made much of, but to make much of him in every part of our lives,” (38).

“When you put your trust in Christ, your bondage to the world and its overpowering lure is broken. You are a corpse to the world, and the world is a corpse to you…The world is no longer our treasure. It’s not the source of our life or our satisfaction or our joy. Christ is,” (57).

“So biblical faith in Jesus must mean that we trust him to give us what we need most—namely, himself. That means that faith itself must include at its essence a treasuring of Christ above all things…The way we honor Christ in death is to treasure Jesus above the gift of life, and the way we honor Christ in life is to treasure Jesus above life’s gifts,” (70-71).

“There is more of God’s glory to be seen and savored through suffering than through self-serving escape. Paul puts it like this: ‘Though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison’ (2 Corinthians 4:16-17),” (73).

“On the far side of every risk—even if it results in death—the love of God triumphs [Romans 8:38-39]. This is the faith that frees us to risk for the cause of God. It is not heroism, or lust for adventure, or courageous self-reliance, or efforts to earn God’s favor. It is childlike faith in the triumph of God’s love—that on the other side of all our risks, for the sake of righteousness, God will still be holding us. We will be eternally satisfied in him. Nothing will have been wasted,” (95).

“To make others glad in God with an everlasting gladness, our lives must show that he is more precious than life. ‘Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you’ (Psalm 63:3). To do this we must make sacrificial life choices rooted in the assurance that magnifying Christ through generosity and mercy is more satisfying than selfishness,” (107).

“When was the last time someone asked you about ‘the reason for the hope that is in you?’ That’s what Peter said we should always be ready to give an answer for: ‘Always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you’ (1 Peter 3:15). Why don’t people ask us about our hope? The answer is probably that we look as if we hope in the same things they do. Our lives don’t look like they are on the Calvary road, stripped down for sacrificial love, serving others with the sweet assurance that we don’t need to be rewarded in this life. Our reward is great in heaven (Matthew 5:12)! ‘You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just’ (Luke 14:14). If we believed this more deeply, others might see the worth of God and find in him their gladness,” (109).

“Sometimes I use the phrase “wartime lifestyle”…It tells me that there is a war going on in the world between Christ and Satan, truth and falsehood, belief and unbelief. It tells me that there are weapons to be funded and used, but that these weapons are not swords or guns or bombs but the Gospel and prayer and self-sacrificing love (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). And it tells me that the stakes of this conflict are higher than any other war in history; they are eternal and infinite: heaven or hell, eternal joy or eternal torment (Matthew 25:46),” (112).

“The better questions to ask about possible behaviors is: How will this help me treasure Christ more? How will it help me know Christ or display Christ? The Bible says, ‘Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God’ (1 Corinthians 10:31)…How can I portray God as glorious in this action? How can I enjoy making much of him in this behavior?” (119).

“The greatest cause in the world is joyfully rescuing people from hell, meeting their earthly needs, making them glad in God, and doing it with a kind, serious pleasure that makes Christ look like the Treasure he is. No war on earth was ever fought for a greater cause or a greater king,” (123).

“At the heart of the meaning of work is creativity. If you are God, your work is to create out of nothing. If you are not God, but like God—that is, if you are human—your work is to take what God has made and shape it and use it to make him look great,” (139).

“Speaking the good news of Christ is part of why God put you in your job. He has woven you into the fabric of others’ lives so that you will tell them the Gospel… ‘Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ’ (Romans 10:17)… ‘You are…a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light’ (1 Peter 2:9),” (152).

“The following quote from B.B. Warfield, a teacher at Princeton Seminary who died in 1921… ‘Now dear Christians, some of you pray night and day to be branches of the true Vine; you pray to be made all over in the image of Christ. If so, you must be like him in giving… “Though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor”… Objection 1. “My money is my own.” Answer: Christ might have said, “My blood is my own, my life is my own”… then where should we have been? Objection 2. “The poor are undeserving.” Answer: Christ might have said, “They are wicked rebels…shall I lay down my life for these? I will give to the good angels.” But no, he left the ninety-nine, and came after the lost. He gave his blood for the undeserving. Objection 3. “The poor may abuse it.” Answer: Christ might have said the same: yea, with far greater truth. Christ knew that thousands would trample his blood under their feet; that most would despise it; that many would make it an excuse for sinning more; yet he gave his own blood. Oh, my dear Christians! If you would be like Christ, give much, give often, give freely, to the vile and poor, the thankless and the undeserving. Christ is glorious and happy and so will you be. It is not your money I want, but your happiness. Remember his own word, “It is more blessed to give than to receive,’” (165-166).

(All quotes from Don’t Waste Your Life by John Piper, Crossway Books: Wheaton, 2007).

Maier Family Article

2009-08-17T16:52:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to a newspaper article written about some of my friends, the Maier family:
http://www.scnews.com/news/2009/0804/news/004.html

Gospel-Centered Bath Time

2009-08-13T13:30:00.000-07:00

A few nights ago, while I was helping my 11-month-old son take a bath, I saw a beautiful illustration depicting the difference between a person driven by religion and a person driven by the true Gospel of Christ.

My son, Jackson, used to hate baths. He would scream and cry when we tried to place him in the tub. Then, when we managed to get him seated, he would fight us with his whole body, struggling to stand up and get out of the tub. Trying to bathe him was a major ordeal for several months.

Then, something happened one night a few weeks back. Jackson discovered for himself that bath time is actually a lot of fun. Now, he loves taking baths--almost to an unhealthy extreme. We can't keep him out of the bathroom during the daytime! He crawls in there when we're not looking, leans over the ledge of the bath and looks down into the tub, dreaming about being in there. When we undress him before bath time in the evening, he cries because we're not getting his clothes off fast enough. Then, when he's been in the bath long enough, and it's time for bed, we can't get him out of the tub! He loves it! He screams when we take him out! I think he'd spend all day in the bath if he could.

This stark change in attitude points to the correct and incorrect motives people have for being "Christian." People who are driven by religion hate bath time. They hate obeying God inside their hearts, but they do it, because they feel like they have to. They don't enjoy giving their time to God, but they do it, because they want to be "good," which they believe will ultimately get them into heaven. They are tired and drained by doing good works, but they do them out of obligation and fear.

On the other side of the fence, people who are driven by the Good News of Christ love bath time! The thought never crosses their mind that bath time is a laborious chore they must complete to win God's favor. Instead, they look at bath time much differently. They can't wait to spend time with God. They can't believe that they get to be part of God's work on earth! They are amazed and pleased that God calls them to rest, and that they get the privilege of fellowshiping with him through their prayers, their thoughts, their actions, and the sacrifices of worship they make to praise him.

They know that nothing they do can earn them the privilege of being friends with God. They just celebrate that God has saved them through Christ's death for them, and they have faith in the goodness and grace of God for salvation. They don't have to do anything for God, but they look forward to the opportunity to do so, because they know that every opportunity to serve is ultimately an opportunity to serve God. Gospel-centered followers of Christ take deep joy in worshiping God through obedience to his Word in every deatil of their lives. They find extreme joy in knowing that God loves them, and they truly love him back.

May each one of us never get caught up into religion--doing things for God in order to win his favor. Instead, may each one of us embrace Christ through faith in the Good News he offers us by the sacrifice he died out of his mercy for each one of us. Bath time is intended to be a blast, not a burden!

Back to Calvin....More "Best of"

2009-08-13T13:01:00.000-07:00

Although I haven't written much about my reflections on The Institutes this summer, I'm proud to say that I am continuing to power through it. I thought I'd share a few of the great quotes I've marked in my book:

On predestination:
"'For as we know not who belongs to the number of the predestined or who does not belong, we ought to be so minded as to wish that all men be saved.' So shall it come about that we try to make everyone we meet a sharer in our peace," (964).

Quoting Augustine on the importance of preaching the truth:
"...And we are unwilling to say what we can say by the testimony of Scripture. For we are afraid, forsooth! to offend by our speaking him who is not able to receive the truth; but we are not afraid lest by remaining silent he who can receive the truth may be involved in falsehood," (962-963).

Quoting Pseudo-Augustine on divine election:
"The Lord can therefore also give grace...to whom he will...because he is merciful, and not give to all because he is a just judge. For by giving to some what they do not deserve,...he can show his free grace...By not giving to all, he can manifest what all deserve...It should be added that [God] is debtor to no one, for 'no one has first given to him, that he should demand something back' [Rom. 11:35p.]," (959-960).

On our election's purpose:
"Yet Paul teaches that we have been chosen to this end: that we may lead a holy and blameless life [Eph. 1:4]," (960).

Quoting Augustine on God's glory displayed through his will to allow good and evil:
"We most wholesomely confess what we most correctly believe, that the God and Lord of all things, who created all things exceedingly good [cf. Gen. 1:31], and foreknew that evil things would rise out of good, and also knew that it pertained to his most omnipotent goodness to bring good out of evil things rather than not to permit evil things to be..., so ordained the life of angels and men that in it he might first of all show what free will could do, and then what the blessing of his grace and the verdict of his justice could do," (956).