The announcement that President-elect Obama had chosen Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at the inaugural ceremonies on January 20 came with formality but no fanfare. However, he now finds himself in a whirlwind, and he will not be the last. Pastor after pastor and church after church will face a similar challenge in short order. No matter how cool you think you are or think that others think you are, the hour is coming when the issue of homosexuality -- taken alone -- will be the defining issue in coolness. If you accept the full normalization of homosexuality, you will be cool. If you do not, you are profoundly uncool, no matter how much good work you do nor how much love and compassion you seek to express.
Albert Mohler "The High Cost of Being and Staying Cool"
Most American religious believers, including most Christians, say eternal life is not exclusively for those who accept Christ as their savior, a new survey finds. Of the 65% of people who held this open view of heaven's gates, 80% named at least one non-Christian group — Jews, Muslims, Hindus, atheists or people with no religion at all — who may also be saved, according to a new survey released today by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. This means 52% of Christians do not agree with the doctrines many religions teach, particularly conservative denominations. Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, calls the findings "a theological crisis for American evangelicals. They represent at best a misunderstanding of the Gospel and at worst a repudiation of the Gospel." Pew's new survey also found that many Christians (29%) say they are saved by their good actions; 30% say salvation is through belief in Jesus, God or a higher power alone, which is the core teaching of evangelical Protestantism; and 10% say salvation is found through a combination of behavior and belief, a view closer to Catholic teachings.
Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY, "Many Beliefs, Many Paths to Heaven?"
What you’re about to see should even be enough to shake awake a Rip Van Winkle or two in evangelical leadership. From the December 19, 2008 CitizenLink from Focus on the Family (FotF), we read where Karla Dial, guest reporter, tells us:
For nearly a decade, Glenn Beck has been spreading the conservative political gospel through his syndicated radio program, The Glenn Beck Show, and has done the same as the host of his call-in television program on CNN since 2006. He’ll move to the Fox News Channel in January. But these days, Beck is hoping to spread a more eternal sort of gospel through his new book, The Christmas Sweater. (Online source)
Note FotF informs us that Beck “is hoping to spread” a “gospel.” Then we’re told:
The story, though not strictly biographical, is Beck’s own. The sweater was a real gift from his mother when he was 13 — the last Christmas before she committed suicide. A brother also committed suicide, and another died of a heart attack when Beck was young. Beck spent several years addicted to drugs and alcohol, coming to the verge of suicide, before turning his life over to God at the age of 35. Now he has a message for readers and viewers about facing life’s storms, and finding hope and redemption… (Online source)
Here we find out that part of this “gospel” Beck “is hoping to spread” is that he turned “his life over to God” where he found “hope and redemption.” And then FotF asks Beck:
2. What message do you hope people take away from The Christmas Sweater?
I think the message that you can’t really escape is (that) the Christmas sweater is the metaphor for me of the atonement for Christ. We’ve all been given a gift. We celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus — but the real point is the death, and why He died. (Online source)
Man, this sounds great, right? Well, it would be except that what FotF doesn’t tell you is that Glenn Beck is a baptized and practicing member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons). Uh-huh; Beck is a Mormon, and you can hear his tear-filled conversion to the god (read: demon) of Mormonism in the video clip below (see Focus on the Family Link in my "For Fellow Aliens" blog). So now, in addition to reversing the Reformation, apparently FotF is also lining up in lock-step with the spiritually obtuse while Joel Osteen Blesses the Mormon Church as a Christian church. Ya just can’t make this stuff up folks.
Ken Silva, Apprising Ministries
In an interview with Nightline, President Bush discussed the Bible and faith. Although Bush is often perceived as a fundamentalist, some of his comments about the Bible may shock evangelical Christians. When Cynthia McFadden asked Bush whether or not the Bible was literally true, he said "probably not." He also suggested that those of other faiths pray to the same God. Bush was also open to the idea that creationism and evolution were not mutually exclusive. Although Bush is a favorite with evangelicals and conservative Catholics, his Nightline interview depicts him as quite moderate in terns of faith. Videos of the interview are available on youtube.
Tina Molly Lang, www.associatedcontent.com, Dec 11, 2008
NEW YORK (AP) — Neale Donald Walsch, best-selling author of “Conversations with God,” said Tuesday that he unwittingly passed off another writer’s Christmas anecdote as his own in a recent blog post. As a result, Walsch’s blog on the spirituality Web site Beliefnet.com has been shut down. The Web site said in a statement that Walsch had failed to properly credit and attribute material from another author. Walsch had written about what he described as his son’s holiday concert two decades ago in which children were to hold up letters spelling “Christmas Love.” One of the children held the “m” upside down, so the audience got the message “Christwas Love,” according to the retelling.
Author Candy Chand said in an interview Tuesday that she stumbled onto Walsch’s post when she ran “Christmas Love” through an Internet search engine. She immediately recognized her own words, from her story based on her son’s kindergarten Christmas pageant. She contacted Walsch and Beliefnet.
[...]
Walsch wrote on his blog Tuesday he was “truly mystified” about what happened and apologized. He said he had been telling the story for years in public talks and “somewhere along the way, internalized it as my own experience.” “As a published author myself, I would never use another author’s words as my own,” Walsch wrote. “Yet I have apparently done just that — although with no deliberate intent to do so.” Chand, of Rancho Murieta, Calif., said she did not believe Walsch’s account. “It’s pretty difficult for me to believe that someone has a memory lapse that is word for word my story,” she said. “He deleted the first paragraph. That’s it.”
Source: Best-selling “God” author faces plagiarism claim, AP, Jan. 7, 2009 — Summarized by Religion News Blog
Monday, December 22, 2008
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Fairest Lord Jesus
Fairest Lord Jesus
Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature,
O Thou of God and man the Son,
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul's glory, joy and crown.
Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing.
Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling starry host;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
Than all the angels heaven can boast.
Beautiful Savior! Lord of all the nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, praise, adoration,
Now and forever more be Thine.
Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature,
O Thou of God and man the Son,
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul's glory, joy and crown.
Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing.
Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling starry host;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
Than all the angels heaven can boast.
Beautiful Savior! Lord of all the nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, praise, adoration,
Now and forever more be Thine.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Operation Rescue Decries Rick Warren
by Ingrid Schlueter
Hats off to Troy Newman of Operation Rescue. Where in the world is the rest of the church? This just came through on Christian Newswire. (For very little, anyone can send out a press release on Christian Newswire. Is your pastor taking a stand on this? If not, you can! Let your voice be heard.)
Washington, DC - Operation Rescue issues the following statement, attributable to Troy Newman, regarding Rick Warren’s role in the upcoming Obama inaugural ceremonies:
Yesterday, Pastor Rick Warren issued a statement attempting to excuse his act of support for Mr. Obama, an ardent supporter of abortion, by saying, “The Bible admonishes us to pray for our leaders.” However, Pastor Warren’s participation in Obama’s Inauguration is tantamount to placing his stamp of approval on Obama and his policies that stand in direct opposition to Biblical truths.
The Bible clearly states in Ephesians 5:11 that as Christians we should have “nothing to do with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.”
Barack Obama not only supports the grievous sin of abortion, but has vowed to promote, subsidize, and protect it. The hands that shed innocent blood are among the things God particularly detests. As a minister of the Gospel, it is a betrayal of innocent children and, more importantly, betrayal of the God in whose image they are created to turn a blind eye to the shedding of innocent blood and join hands with those that are responsible for shedding it.
Instead of lending support to a man who clearly stands in opposition to God’s Law on the critical matter of child-killing, we fervently urge Pastor Warren to instead follow the examples of godly men who, throughout the Scriptures, boldly proclaimed God’s truth and exposed the sin of leaders in order to protect the people from that sin.
Just as Elijah rebuked King Ahab and John the Baptist rebuked King Herod, we urge Pastor Warren to have nothing to do with Mr. Obama’s administration, but rather, expose him and his sin to the world, so there might be repentance.
It is possible for Pastor Warren to pray for our leaders without giving his blessing to Mr. Obama’s administration with his participation in his Inaugural ceremonies. We urge Pastor Warren to, for the love of God, honor Jesus Christ instead of taking honor for himself, and decline to participate in Mr. Obama’s Inauguration.
Hats off to Troy Newman of Operation Rescue. Where in the world is the rest of the church? This just came through on Christian Newswire. (For very little, anyone can send out a press release on Christian Newswire. Is your pastor taking a stand on this? If not, you can! Let your voice be heard.)
Washington, DC - Operation Rescue issues the following statement, attributable to Troy Newman, regarding Rick Warren’s role in the upcoming Obama inaugural ceremonies:
Yesterday, Pastor Rick Warren issued a statement attempting to excuse his act of support for Mr. Obama, an ardent supporter of abortion, by saying, “The Bible admonishes us to pray for our leaders.” However, Pastor Warren’s participation in Obama’s Inauguration is tantamount to placing his stamp of approval on Obama and his policies that stand in direct opposition to Biblical truths.
The Bible clearly states in Ephesians 5:11 that as Christians we should have “nothing to do with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.”
Barack Obama not only supports the grievous sin of abortion, but has vowed to promote, subsidize, and protect it. The hands that shed innocent blood are among the things God particularly detests. As a minister of the Gospel, it is a betrayal of innocent children and, more importantly, betrayal of the God in whose image they are created to turn a blind eye to the shedding of innocent blood and join hands with those that are responsible for shedding it.
Instead of lending support to a man who clearly stands in opposition to God’s Law on the critical matter of child-killing, we fervently urge Pastor Warren to instead follow the examples of godly men who, throughout the Scriptures, boldly proclaimed God’s truth and exposed the sin of leaders in order to protect the people from that sin.
Just as Elijah rebuked King Ahab and John the Baptist rebuked King Herod, we urge Pastor Warren to have nothing to do with Mr. Obama’s administration, but rather, expose him and his sin to the world, so there might be repentance.
It is possible for Pastor Warren to pray for our leaders without giving his blessing to Mr. Obama’s administration with his participation in his Inaugural ceremonies. We urge Pastor Warren to, for the love of God, honor Jesus Christ instead of taking honor for himself, and decline to participate in Mr. Obama’s Inauguration.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Four Kinds of Universalism
by John M. Brentnall
From time to time the question is asked as to how many shall be saved. Shall all, regardless of their creed, worship, character and life-style? Or is this glorious privilege reserved for only some? The current claim that God gathers up all creation into His loving purpose should make us reconsider the question. For it is argued that if God's redeeming purpose is universal in scope, why should we any longer accept Christianity's arrogant claim to be the one true religion? Since there are many windows onto God', why should we continue to support Christian evangelization of the nations? As we are all 'going to heaven', why may not each of us go there in his own way, and leave others to go there in theirs? Such universalistic claims voiced by religious pluralists call for a Reformed response.
In general, we may identify four kinds of universalism. Three of them are false, while only the fourth is true.
1.RADICAL UNIVERSALISM.
John Hick, the author of such 'give-away' titles as God and the Universe of Faith, and God Has Many Names, argues that as there is only one God, who is accessible to all religions, the universe of faiths must not focus on any particular religion, even Christianity with its superior credentials, but on God Himself.
To some, this view may sound very plausible. Yet clearly Hick can reach such a conclusion only by mis-reading Holy Scripture, removing every distinctive tenet of the Christian Faith and rejecting the unique claims of Christ. Is it not expressly written that Holy Scripture was written to be believed (John 20.31), that Biblical Christianity should regulate all our faith and conduct (John 5.39; Eccles 12.13), and that Christ is the only Mediator between God and men, and therefore the only way to God (1 Tim 2.5; Acts 4.12; John 14.6)? On this ground alone Radical Universalism is to be rejected.
2.LIBERAL UNIVERSALISM.
Under the influence of the Jesuit Teilhard de Chardin, Vatican II and the papal encyclical Redemptor Hominis affirm that non- [Roman] Catholic religions reflect 'a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men', and that since Christ redeems mankind by virtue of His incarnation, all men shall ultimately be saved. Karl Rahner and Hans Kung adopt a similar approach, stressing like de Chardin the cosmic centrality of Christ.
Such avowed Protestants as Karl Barth and William Barclay also embrace universalism, one on the grounds that all are condemned in Christ's death but accepted in His resurrection, the other on the basis of the alleged universal Fatherhood of God and the universal scope of the Love of God in Christ.
Suffice to say that Holy Scripture expressly teaches the salvation of only the elect (Eph 1; Rom 9), and clearly implies that few will be saved (Luke 13.23-24; Isa 1.9). Along with Radical Universalism we must therefore reject Liberal Universalism.
3.EVANGELICAL UNIVERSALISM.
Recently some writers who profess to believe in the inspiration and authority of Scripture and to uphold the uniqueness and finality of Christ have popularized a brand of Evangelical Universalism that is more Arminian than Arminius. Clark Pinnock, in A Wideness in God's Mercy, and John Sanders, in No Other Name, are typical. Pinnock claims that certain Biblical pagan saints' (eg Jethro, Rahab and Cornelius) all received salvation through their own religions. For his part Sanders believes that the unevangelized may benefit from Christ's saving work without even hearing of it.
What shall we say to these things?
1] Firstly, Paul clearly states that faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God', and that while whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved', yet 'How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent?' (Rom 10.17,13-15).
2] Secondly, Peter expressly says of Christ: 'Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.' (Acts 4.12).
3] Lastly, our Lord Himself authoritatively claims: I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.' (John 14.6). It is therefore impossible to be saved without hearing the Gospel, receiving Christ as the only Mediator and going to God only by Him. At root this Evangelical Universalism is no better than its Radical and Liberal counterparts, and should be rejected as much as them.
4. BIBLICAL UNIVERSALISM.
In contrast to these erroneous forms of universalism, the Bible teaches a true universalism. It repeatedly states that God's saving purpose is universal in scope in that the 'elect from every nation' are embraced by it. As Geerhardus Vos says in his Biblical Theology, even the particularism of the Old Testament merely serves and leads up to the universalism of the New.
Hence John 3.16, both misunderstood and misapplied by Arminians, refers to the truth that God's love for our corrupt world (and not merely for the Jews) is so great that He is willing to save whoever believes on Christ from any and every part of it.
This too is why the apostles went at their Lord's command to 'the uttermost parts of the earth', preaching the Gospel of redeeming grace to all without exception, both Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, old and young. (Acts 1.8; Matt 28.19-20; Rom 10.12-13; 11:11-25).
Finally, when all the redeemed are assembled around the throne of God and of the Lamb, they shall have been gathered, not from this or that particular country, but 'out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation.' (Rev. 5.9).
Here is a universalism that is thoroughly Biblical. It embraces all who are sovereignly chosen by God the Father, lovingly redeemed by God the Son, effectually called and sanctified by God the Spirit, graciously invited to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, invincibly made willing to receive Him, freelyjustified and adopted into God's family by His grace, kept firmly by His power till their sanctification is completed, and joyfully welcomed into glory
They shall be brought with gladness great
And mirth on every side
Into the palace of the King,
And there they shall abide. (Psalm 45.15. Metrical Version.)
This is a universalism that leaves nothing to the vagaries of 'chance', the misplaced optimism of religious dreamers, or the 'free-will' of man, but which secures the salvation of God's chosen with absolute certainty. Oh may it be ours!
John M. Brentnall
From time to time the question is asked as to how many shall be saved. Shall all, regardless of their creed, worship, character and life-style? Or is this glorious privilege reserved for only some? The current claim that God gathers up all creation into His loving purpose should make us reconsider the question. For it is argued that if God's redeeming purpose is universal in scope, why should we any longer accept Christianity's arrogant claim to be the one true religion? Since there are many windows onto God', why should we continue to support Christian evangelization of the nations? As we are all 'going to heaven', why may not each of us go there in his own way, and leave others to go there in theirs? Such universalistic claims voiced by religious pluralists call for a Reformed response.
In general, we may identify four kinds of universalism. Three of them are false, while only the fourth is true.
1.RADICAL UNIVERSALISM.
John Hick, the author of such 'give-away' titles as God and the Universe of Faith, and God Has Many Names, argues that as there is only one God, who is accessible to all religions, the universe of faiths must not focus on any particular religion, even Christianity with its superior credentials, but on God Himself.
To some, this view may sound very plausible. Yet clearly Hick can reach such a conclusion only by mis-reading Holy Scripture, removing every distinctive tenet of the Christian Faith and rejecting the unique claims of Christ. Is it not expressly written that Holy Scripture was written to be believed (John 20.31), that Biblical Christianity should regulate all our faith and conduct (John 5.39; Eccles 12.13), and that Christ is the only Mediator between God and men, and therefore the only way to God (1 Tim 2.5; Acts 4.12; John 14.6)? On this ground alone Radical Universalism is to be rejected.
2.LIBERAL UNIVERSALISM.
Under the influence of the Jesuit Teilhard de Chardin, Vatican II and the papal encyclical Redemptor Hominis affirm that non- [Roman] Catholic religions reflect 'a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men', and that since Christ redeems mankind by virtue of His incarnation, all men shall ultimately be saved. Karl Rahner and Hans Kung adopt a similar approach, stressing like de Chardin the cosmic centrality of Christ.
Such avowed Protestants as Karl Barth and William Barclay also embrace universalism, one on the grounds that all are condemned in Christ's death but accepted in His resurrection, the other on the basis of the alleged universal Fatherhood of God and the universal scope of the Love of God in Christ.
Suffice to say that Holy Scripture expressly teaches the salvation of only the elect (Eph 1; Rom 9), and clearly implies that few will be saved (Luke 13.23-24; Isa 1.9). Along with Radical Universalism we must therefore reject Liberal Universalism.
3.EVANGELICAL UNIVERSALISM.
Recently some writers who profess to believe in the inspiration and authority of Scripture and to uphold the uniqueness and finality of Christ have popularized a brand of Evangelical Universalism that is more Arminian than Arminius. Clark Pinnock, in A Wideness in God's Mercy, and John Sanders, in No Other Name, are typical. Pinnock claims that certain Biblical pagan saints' (eg Jethro, Rahab and Cornelius) all received salvation through their own religions. For his part Sanders believes that the unevangelized may benefit from Christ's saving work without even hearing of it.
What shall we say to these things?
1] Firstly, Paul clearly states that faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God', and that while whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved', yet 'How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent?' (Rom 10.17,13-15).
2] Secondly, Peter expressly says of Christ: 'Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.' (Acts 4.12).
3] Lastly, our Lord Himself authoritatively claims: I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.' (John 14.6). It is therefore impossible to be saved without hearing the Gospel, receiving Christ as the only Mediator and going to God only by Him. At root this Evangelical Universalism is no better than its Radical and Liberal counterparts, and should be rejected as much as them.
4. BIBLICAL UNIVERSALISM.
In contrast to these erroneous forms of universalism, the Bible teaches a true universalism. It repeatedly states that God's saving purpose is universal in scope in that the 'elect from every nation' are embraced by it. As Geerhardus Vos says in his Biblical Theology, even the particularism of the Old Testament merely serves and leads up to the universalism of the New.
Hence John 3.16, both misunderstood and misapplied by Arminians, refers to the truth that God's love for our corrupt world (and not merely for the Jews) is so great that He is willing to save whoever believes on Christ from any and every part of it.
This too is why the apostles went at their Lord's command to 'the uttermost parts of the earth', preaching the Gospel of redeeming grace to all without exception, both Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, old and young. (Acts 1.8; Matt 28.19-20; Rom 10.12-13; 11:11-25).
Finally, when all the redeemed are assembled around the throne of God and of the Lamb, they shall have been gathered, not from this or that particular country, but 'out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation.' (Rev. 5.9).
Here is a universalism that is thoroughly Biblical. It embraces all who are sovereignly chosen by God the Father, lovingly redeemed by God the Son, effectually called and sanctified by God the Spirit, graciously invited to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, invincibly made willing to receive Him, freelyjustified and adopted into God's family by His grace, kept firmly by His power till their sanctification is completed, and joyfully welcomed into glory
They shall be brought with gladness great
And mirth on every side
Into the palace of the King,
And there they shall abide. (Psalm 45.15. Metrical Version.)
This is a universalism that leaves nothing to the vagaries of 'chance', the misplaced optimism of religious dreamers, or the 'free-will' of man, but which secures the salvation of God's chosen with absolute certainty. Oh may it be ours!
John M. Brentnall
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Paul Washer on American Evangelism
America is not gospel hardened. America is ignorant to the true gospel of Jesus Christ. We have taken the gospel and reduced it to the four spiritual laws or 5 things you should know. The question is not “Do you want to go to heaven?” The devil wants to go to heaven. Everybody wants to go to heaven, but they just don’t want to be there when they get there. The question is: “Since you have heard gospel preaching, has God done such a supernatural work of conversion in your heart through the Holy Spirit that now you hate the sin you once loved? That the god you hated and ignored you now esteem, love and seek?” It’s not “Do you want to pray a prayer/open up your heart and receive me?” John came to Israel preaching repentence. The first words out of Jesus’ mouth were “Repent!” Peter on the day of Pentecost says “Repent”. In America, we think we can manipulate a move of God, coercing people to be saved. Man is a spiritually dead, God-hating enemy of God. In order for that spiritually dead man to respond to the gospel call, it’s going to take a lot more than human manipulation. It’s going to take the supernatural, regenerating, recreating work of the Holy Spirit.
We live in a day where we think that in order to be relevant to our culture, we must be like our culture. We live in a day where we think that in order for the gospel to be relevant, we must somehow adapt it to the culture and nothing on the face of the earth or in the bowels of hell could be further from the truth. We are relevant not because we are like our culture, we are relevant because we are absolutely different. Our gospel has power, not because it is acceptable to carnal men, our gospel has power because is it a SCANDAL to men. Paul is not ashamed of the gospel, but his flesh had every reason to be. Imagine for a moment: we are not talking about a man who comes into the context of the bible belt. We are talking about a man that comes into the context of Jewish mythology, to Greek philosophy. Every concept the Jews had about the Messiah, contradicted the gospel of Jesus Christ. Every time the apostle Paul stood up, he seemed to carnal men to be nothing more than a raving madman. And every preacher that's ever been worth his salt, since that day, has had the same label put upon him. G. Campbell Morgan, when he would go up to the tower at Westminster to preach, he always said that he would quote the verse "Like a lamb led to the slaughter, and like a sheep before his sheerers". Why? He knew that unless God moved on his behalf with this gospel of God's dear son, absolutely nothing would happen. But we don't see power like that today. Why? Because we prop up a gospel with the carnal devices of men. We remove the scandal in the name of love, as though we had greater wisdom than God, to tweak His gospel here and there so it might be more palatable to men. The gospel of Jesus Christ; the flesh has every reason to be ashamed of it, but in that lies the power. Everything about about God's messiah contradicted everything that men beleived about the Messiah. Everything about God's salvation contradicts absolutely everything men believe about how salvation should be won and in what form it should take. And unless we realize that, we'll have no gospel here in this church, we'll have no power and we will see no true conversion. We have to be willing to join our master in being a SCANDAL.
That we preach Christ crucified in such a way as to exhault God almighty and to humble men, so that in learning to despise themselves, they esteem the gospel and are saved. The worst thing that could ever happen to a preacher and the worst thing that could ever happen to a church is to become civilized and respectable, for in that lies no power. We are pilgrims, we are strangers, we are awkward, we are dislocated, we find no home here, no place where we properly fit, because we have a city who's builder and maker is God. Our job is to take a gospel so covered up by the designs of men that it no longer has any power. It is our job to stip away all that faulty dress and to preach the bare bones of a gospel that is nothing more than a scandal, but in THAT we will see the power of God.
We live in a day where we think that in order to be relevant to our culture, we must be like our culture. We live in a day where we think that in order for the gospel to be relevant, we must somehow adapt it to the culture and nothing on the face of the earth or in the bowels of hell could be further from the truth. We are relevant not because we are like our culture, we are relevant because we are absolutely different. Our gospel has power, not because it is acceptable to carnal men, our gospel has power because is it a SCANDAL to men. Paul is not ashamed of the gospel, but his flesh had every reason to be. Imagine for a moment: we are not talking about a man who comes into the context of the bible belt. We are talking about a man that comes into the context of Jewish mythology, to Greek philosophy. Every concept the Jews had about the Messiah, contradicted the gospel of Jesus Christ. Every time the apostle Paul stood up, he seemed to carnal men to be nothing more than a raving madman. And every preacher that's ever been worth his salt, since that day, has had the same label put upon him. G. Campbell Morgan, when he would go up to the tower at Westminster to preach, he always said that he would quote the verse "Like a lamb led to the slaughter, and like a sheep before his sheerers". Why? He knew that unless God moved on his behalf with this gospel of God's dear son, absolutely nothing would happen. But we don't see power like that today. Why? Because we prop up a gospel with the carnal devices of men. We remove the scandal in the name of love, as though we had greater wisdom than God, to tweak His gospel here and there so it might be more palatable to men. The gospel of Jesus Christ; the flesh has every reason to be ashamed of it, but in that lies the power. Everything about about God's messiah contradicted everything that men beleived about the Messiah. Everything about God's salvation contradicts absolutely everything men believe about how salvation should be won and in what form it should take. And unless we realize that, we'll have no gospel here in this church, we'll have no power and we will see no true conversion. We have to be willing to join our master in being a SCANDAL.
That we preach Christ crucified in such a way as to exhault God almighty and to humble men, so that in learning to despise themselves, they esteem the gospel and are saved. The worst thing that could ever happen to a preacher and the worst thing that could ever happen to a church is to become civilized and respectable, for in that lies no power. We are pilgrims, we are strangers, we are awkward, we are dislocated, we find no home here, no place where we properly fit, because we have a city who's builder and maker is God. Our job is to take a gospel so covered up by the designs of men that it no longer has any power. It is our job to stip away all that faulty dress and to preach the bare bones of a gospel that is nothing more than a scandal, but in THAT we will see the power of God.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
As One With Authority
by Albert Mohler
In Matthew 7:28-29 we read: "And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes." In the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew takes us through the Sermon and we have heard Jesus set forth a vision of life in the Kingdom of God that transcends our moral imagination and explodes our theological comforts. We thought we knew what God required of us. No murder and no adultery, for example. But Jesus now demands no anger and no lust. "You have heard it was said," he begins, "but I say to you," he concludes.
Jesus refused to act like an argumentative theologian or a speculative moralist. He rejected rabbinical reasoning and moral casuistry. He warns of hell and commands that we love our enemies. He warns us not to trust our bank accounts or retirement plans but to lay up treasures in heaven. He reminds us that we cannot add a day to our lives nor an inch to our height, but assures us that our heavenly Father will clothe us in more glory than the lilies of the field and care for us even more than he cares for the birds of the air.
He tells us to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and promises that all these things will be added to us. We are instructed to judge a tree by its fruit, even as we shall be judged. We are to build our house upon a rock and not upon the sand, for the house on the rock stands while the house on the sand falls, "and great was the fall of it."
Jesus has turned our world upside down. The ones we thought were blessed are now cursed, and the ones we saw as cursed are promised to be blessed. We hear Jesus warn that some who sure look like prophets are false, and hear him say that his judgment will be definitive -- "I never knew you."
Then we hear from the crowd: "And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes."
The radical nature of Jesus' ministry and teaching is on full display here -- and it is all established upon his own authority. When Jesus teaches, he does not cite human authorities, enter into irrelevant debates, or cushion his words. He speaks on his own authority. He will make that authority clear by healing the sick, casting our demons, staring down the religious authorities, and, most clearly, by forgiving sins. At the end of Matthew's gospel, he will announce that all authority in heaven and on earth has been granted him, and he will send his disciples out into the world as ambassadors of the Gospel.
This is all about authority. There would be no Gospel but for the display of this authority. There would be no church, no salvation, no forgiveness of sins, no hope.
Matthew tells us that the crowds were astonished at his teaching -- astonished. They had never seen or heard anything like this. Every teacher they had ever heard cited other teachers as authorities. Their teachers hemmed and hawed, proposed and retracted, pitted one interpretation against another, and left themselves room for qualification.
The crowds recognized that Jesus teaches with an authority that is unprecedented and singular. He was teaching "as one who had authority, and not as their scribes."
The scribes were the licensed teachers of the law. They interpreted the law by investigating precedent and tradition. Their rulings were approximate and carefully hedged. Nothing was conclusive. Tradition was placed upon tradition; interpretation laid alongside interpretation.
Jesus has already told the crowd that their righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and the Pharisees. Now, the crowd sees that the scribes' authority is also just not enough. Once they have heard Jesus, they will never again listen to one without authority -- nor should they.
The situation Fred Craddock described still defines far too many pulpits today. His prescription was inductive preaching -- preaching that leaves the big questions unanswered; that lets the congregation come to its own conclusion. This is not the method of Jesus. Jesus uses induction in his teaching, but he never leaves the big questions unanswered, nor can we. He speaks as God. We speak as His preachers.
The preacher's authority is a delegated authority, but a real authority. We are assigned the task of feeding the flock of God, of teaching the church, of preaching the Word. We do not speak as one who possesses authority, but as one who is called to serve the church by proclaiming, expounding, applying, and declaring the Word of God. We are those who have been called to a task and set apart for mission; as vessels who hold a saving message even as earthen vessels hold water.
Our authority is not our own. We are called to the task of preaching the Bible, in season and out of season. We are rightly to divide the Word of truth, and to teach the infinite riches of the Word of God. There are no certainties without the authority of the Scripture. We have nothing but commas and question marks to offer if we lose confidence in the inerrant and infallible Word of God. There are no thunderbolts where the Word of God is subverted, mistrusted, or ignored.
The crowds were astonished when they heard Jesus, "for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes." Congregations are starving for the astonishment of hearing the preacher teach and preach on the authority of the Word of God. If there is a crisis in preaching, it is a crisis of confidence in the Word. If there is a road to recovery, it will be mapped by a return to biblical preaching.
Our hope and prayer is that you will go forth from here to fulfill a ministry of astonishment. To preach and teach and minister so that commas are turned back to periods, and question marks into exclamation points. Congregations long to have the thunderbolts brought down from the attic and loosed in their midst. They are starving for a word from God.
Go and astonish a church. Go and astonish the nations. Go and astonish sinners and saints alike. Go and astonish your generation. Go and astonish those who no longer even believe that they can be astonished.
Go and preach as one who has authority. Just remember always that the only true authority for ministry is biblical authority. May we always be mindful that the only authority that matters is God's authority, and that God's thunderbolts are what we must fear . . . and what we must seek.
If you go out and preach as one who has authority, you will be constantly amazed by what God does through the preaching of his Word. You will see those who hear you astonished -- and no one will be more astonished than yourself.
In Matthew 7:28-29 we read: "And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes." In the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew takes us through the Sermon and we have heard Jesus set forth a vision of life in the Kingdom of God that transcends our moral imagination and explodes our theological comforts. We thought we knew what God required of us. No murder and no adultery, for example. But Jesus now demands no anger and no lust. "You have heard it was said," he begins, "but I say to you," he concludes.
Jesus refused to act like an argumentative theologian or a speculative moralist. He rejected rabbinical reasoning and moral casuistry. He warns of hell and commands that we love our enemies. He warns us not to trust our bank accounts or retirement plans but to lay up treasures in heaven. He reminds us that we cannot add a day to our lives nor an inch to our height, but assures us that our heavenly Father will clothe us in more glory than the lilies of the field and care for us even more than he cares for the birds of the air.
He tells us to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and promises that all these things will be added to us. We are instructed to judge a tree by its fruit, even as we shall be judged. We are to build our house upon a rock and not upon the sand, for the house on the rock stands while the house on the sand falls, "and great was the fall of it."
Jesus has turned our world upside down. The ones we thought were blessed are now cursed, and the ones we saw as cursed are promised to be blessed. We hear Jesus warn that some who sure look like prophets are false, and hear him say that his judgment will be definitive -- "I never knew you."
Then we hear from the crowd: "And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes."
The radical nature of Jesus' ministry and teaching is on full display here -- and it is all established upon his own authority. When Jesus teaches, he does not cite human authorities, enter into irrelevant debates, or cushion his words. He speaks on his own authority. He will make that authority clear by healing the sick, casting our demons, staring down the religious authorities, and, most clearly, by forgiving sins. At the end of Matthew's gospel, he will announce that all authority in heaven and on earth has been granted him, and he will send his disciples out into the world as ambassadors of the Gospel.
This is all about authority. There would be no Gospel but for the display of this authority. There would be no church, no salvation, no forgiveness of sins, no hope.
Matthew tells us that the crowds were astonished at his teaching -- astonished. They had never seen or heard anything like this. Every teacher they had ever heard cited other teachers as authorities. Their teachers hemmed and hawed, proposed and retracted, pitted one interpretation against another, and left themselves room for qualification.
The crowds recognized that Jesus teaches with an authority that is unprecedented and singular. He was teaching "as one who had authority, and not as their scribes."
The scribes were the licensed teachers of the law. They interpreted the law by investigating precedent and tradition. Their rulings were approximate and carefully hedged. Nothing was conclusive. Tradition was placed upon tradition; interpretation laid alongside interpretation.
Jesus has already told the crowd that their righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and the Pharisees. Now, the crowd sees that the scribes' authority is also just not enough. Once they have heard Jesus, they will never again listen to one without authority -- nor should they.
The situation Fred Craddock described still defines far too many pulpits today. His prescription was inductive preaching -- preaching that leaves the big questions unanswered; that lets the congregation come to its own conclusion. This is not the method of Jesus. Jesus uses induction in his teaching, but he never leaves the big questions unanswered, nor can we. He speaks as God. We speak as His preachers.
The preacher's authority is a delegated authority, but a real authority. We are assigned the task of feeding the flock of God, of teaching the church, of preaching the Word. We do not speak as one who possesses authority, but as one who is called to serve the church by proclaiming, expounding, applying, and declaring the Word of God. We are those who have been called to a task and set apart for mission; as vessels who hold a saving message even as earthen vessels hold water.
Our authority is not our own. We are called to the task of preaching the Bible, in season and out of season. We are rightly to divide the Word of truth, and to teach the infinite riches of the Word of God. There are no certainties without the authority of the Scripture. We have nothing but commas and question marks to offer if we lose confidence in the inerrant and infallible Word of God. There are no thunderbolts where the Word of God is subverted, mistrusted, or ignored.
The crowds were astonished when they heard Jesus, "for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes." Congregations are starving for the astonishment of hearing the preacher teach and preach on the authority of the Word of God. If there is a crisis in preaching, it is a crisis of confidence in the Word. If there is a road to recovery, it will be mapped by a return to biblical preaching.
Our hope and prayer is that you will go forth from here to fulfill a ministry of astonishment. To preach and teach and minister so that commas are turned back to periods, and question marks into exclamation points. Congregations long to have the thunderbolts brought down from the attic and loosed in their midst. They are starving for a word from God.
Go and astonish a church. Go and astonish the nations. Go and astonish sinners and saints alike. Go and astonish your generation. Go and astonish those who no longer even believe that they can be astonished.
Go and preach as one who has authority. Just remember always that the only true authority for ministry is biblical authority. May we always be mindful that the only authority that matters is God's authority, and that God's thunderbolts are what we must fear . . . and what we must seek.
If you go out and preach as one who has authority, you will be constantly amazed by what God does through the preaching of his Word. You will see those who hear you astonished -- and no one will be more astonished than yourself.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Continuing in the Word of His Grace
by Bob Hoekstra
I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able... Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed"... For this reason I have sent Timothy to you... who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church. (Acts 20:32; John 8:31; 1 Corinthians 4:17)
God's grace characterizes His word: "I commend you to God and to the word of His grace." This permeating presence of grace in the scriptures is what makes God's word so able to effect godly changes in our lives: "the word of His grace, which is able." This is why the Lord wants us to continue in His word: "continue in the faith" (Acts 14:22). Also, continuing in the word allows the Lord to remind us of things pertaining to grace, things we need to hear over and over again.
Jesus called professing disciples to continue in His word. "Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide [remain, continue] in My word, you are My disciples indeed'." It is impossible to truly live as a follower of Jesus without continuing in His word. The Christian life is lived by grace. The Bible is "the word of His grace." We cannot follow Jesus by grace apart from hearing regularly of His grace. The natural bent of our humanity (including, the flesh of true believers) is toward human works and law performance. This is one reason why the Lord wants us to hear of His effective grace day by day.
The ministry of reminding is part of this process. The Apostle Paul sent out his ministry partner, Timothy, to remind the saints of matters that he himself had previously expounded upon in all the churches. "For this reason I have sent Timothy to you...who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church." Later, after Timothy had become a pastor in Ephesus, Paul wrote urging him to remind the saints of some basic elements of grace (matters pertaining to the faithfulness of God). "This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. Remind them of these things" (2 Timothy 2:11-14). Such vital truths need to be considered repeatedly. The Apostle Peter knew that it would amount to spiritual irresponsibility to neglect the import of reminders. "Therefore I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know them, and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you" (2 Peter 1:12).
O Lord of persistence and patience, I confess the need to hear of Your grace day after day. I long to be a true disciple, living by grace. Please remind me of the necessity to be in the word of Your grace consistently, Amen.
The present verses again point us to our current theme, continuing in the word of God's grace. Only the grace of God is able to provide what is needed for the life we are called to live. This necessary grace is held forth for our learning and appropriating in "the word of His grace." This life-giving grace is to be lived in day by day (ideally, from childhood through old age).
Paul urged Timothy to continue in the biblical truth that he had been taught, truth about which he had become convinced. "Continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of." God's word not only instructs us in His ways, it also convinces us of their validity. In this process, God uses human instruments: "knowing from whom you have learned them." In Timothy's spiritual training, the Lord used the prophets of old (who were inspired to write the scriptures), as well as Paul (who discipled Timothy). Timothy's mother and grandmother were also a vital part of this process. "I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice" (2 Timothy 1:5). Thus, his spiritual nurture began in his childhood years. "From childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures." It is the will of God that children be raised upon the scriptures. "Do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4). If we were not raised upon the word, God wants to begin feeding it to us at new birth. "As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby" (1 Peter 2:2). If we have never had a serious diet of the word, today is now the day to begin.
As we are learning the word of God, its ability is unleashed in our lives. Saving grace is the first great matter the Lord wants to bring to us through the scriptures: "which are able to make you wise for salvation." People can be exceedingly foolish concerning salvation, until they are enlightened through the word of God . Some think they do not need to be saved. Others think they can somehow save themselves. The Bible reveals the necessary path for all: "through faith which is in Christ Jesus."
Dear God of my salvation, I praise You for Your word, which brought me the wisdom to trust in the saving grace of Christ. I thank You for every person You have ever used to bring me any aspect of Your truth. Please teach me more and more — and please use me to get Your word to others, in Jesus' name, Amen.
Hoekstra, Bob. "Still More on Continuing in the Word of His Grace," Day By Day By Grace. Blue Letter Bible. 19 Mar 2004. 5 Dec 2008.
I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able... Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed"... For this reason I have sent Timothy to you... who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church. (Acts 20:32; John 8:31; 1 Corinthians 4:17)
God's grace characterizes His word: "I commend you to God and to the word of His grace." This permeating presence of grace in the scriptures is what makes God's word so able to effect godly changes in our lives: "the word of His grace, which is able." This is why the Lord wants us to continue in His word: "continue in the faith" (Acts 14:22). Also, continuing in the word allows the Lord to remind us of things pertaining to grace, things we need to hear over and over again.
Jesus called professing disciples to continue in His word. "Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide [remain, continue] in My word, you are My disciples indeed'." It is impossible to truly live as a follower of Jesus without continuing in His word. The Christian life is lived by grace. The Bible is "the word of His grace." We cannot follow Jesus by grace apart from hearing regularly of His grace. The natural bent of our humanity (including, the flesh of true believers) is toward human works and law performance. This is one reason why the Lord wants us to hear of His effective grace day by day.
The ministry of reminding is part of this process. The Apostle Paul sent out his ministry partner, Timothy, to remind the saints of matters that he himself had previously expounded upon in all the churches. "For this reason I have sent Timothy to you...who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church." Later, after Timothy had become a pastor in Ephesus, Paul wrote urging him to remind the saints of some basic elements of grace (matters pertaining to the faithfulness of God). "This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. Remind them of these things" (2 Timothy 2:11-14). Such vital truths need to be considered repeatedly. The Apostle Peter knew that it would amount to spiritual irresponsibility to neglect the import of reminders. "Therefore I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know them, and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you" (2 Peter 1:12).
O Lord of persistence and patience, I confess the need to hear of Your grace day after day. I long to be a true disciple, living by grace. Please remind me of the necessity to be in the word of Your grace consistently, Amen.
The present verses again point us to our current theme, continuing in the word of God's grace. Only the grace of God is able to provide what is needed for the life we are called to live. This necessary grace is held forth for our learning and appropriating in "the word of His grace." This life-giving grace is to be lived in day by day (ideally, from childhood through old age).
Paul urged Timothy to continue in the biblical truth that he had been taught, truth about which he had become convinced. "Continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of." God's word not only instructs us in His ways, it also convinces us of their validity. In this process, God uses human instruments: "knowing from whom you have learned them." In Timothy's spiritual training, the Lord used the prophets of old (who were inspired to write the scriptures), as well as Paul (who discipled Timothy). Timothy's mother and grandmother were also a vital part of this process. "I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice" (2 Timothy 1:5). Thus, his spiritual nurture began in his childhood years. "From childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures." It is the will of God that children be raised upon the scriptures. "Do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4). If we were not raised upon the word, God wants to begin feeding it to us at new birth. "As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby" (1 Peter 2:2). If we have never had a serious diet of the word, today is now the day to begin.
As we are learning the word of God, its ability is unleashed in our lives. Saving grace is the first great matter the Lord wants to bring to us through the scriptures: "which are able to make you wise for salvation." People can be exceedingly foolish concerning salvation, until they are enlightened through the word of God . Some think they do not need to be saved. Others think they can somehow save themselves. The Bible reveals the necessary path for all: "through faith which is in Christ Jesus."
Dear God of my salvation, I praise You for Your word, which brought me the wisdom to trust in the saving grace of Christ. I thank You for every person You have ever used to bring me any aspect of Your truth. Please teach me more and more — and please use me to get Your word to others, in Jesus' name, Amen.
Hoekstra, Bob. "Still More on Continuing in the Word of His Grace," Day By Day By Grace. Blue Letter Bible. 19 Mar 2004. 5 Dec 2008.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Free Food, Bath, Clothing and Weapons for the Needy! Tell Your Friends!
by Charles Spurgeon
We know of a place in England still existing, where a dole of bread is served to every passerby who chooses to ask for it. Whoever the traveller may be, he has but to knock at the door of St. Cross Hospital, and there is the dole of bread for him. Jesus Christ so loveth sinners that He has built a St. Cross Hospital, so that whenever a sinner is hungry, he has but to knock and have his wants supplied. Nay, He has done better; He has attached to this Hospital of the Cross a bath; and whenever a soul is black and filthy, it has but to go there and be washed. The fountain is always full, always efficacious. No sinner ever went into it and found that it could not wash away his stains. Sins which were scarlet and crimson have all disappeared, and the sinner has been whiter than snow. As if this were not enough, there is attached to this Hospital of the Cross a wardrobe, and a sinner making application simply as a sinner, may be clothed from head to foot; and if he wishes to be a soldier, he may not merely have a garment for ordinary wear, but armour which shall cover him from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. If he asks for a sword, he shall have that given to him, and a shield too. Nothing that is good for him shall be denied him. He shall have spending-money so long as he lives, and he shall have an eternal heritage of glorious treasure when he enters into the joy of his Lord.
If all these things are to be had by merely knocking at mercy's door, O my soul, knock hard this morning, and ask large things of thy generous Lord. Leave not the throne of grace till all thy wants have been spread before the Lord, and until by faith thou hast a comfortable prospect that they shall be all supplied. No bashfulness need retard when Jesus invites. No unbelief should hinder when Jesus promises. No cold-heartedness should restrain when such blessings are to be obtained.
We know of a place in England still existing, where a dole of bread is served to every passerby who chooses to ask for it. Whoever the traveller may be, he has but to knock at the door of St. Cross Hospital, and there is the dole of bread for him. Jesus Christ so loveth sinners that He has built a St. Cross Hospital, so that whenever a sinner is hungry, he has but to knock and have his wants supplied. Nay, He has done better; He has attached to this Hospital of the Cross a bath; and whenever a soul is black and filthy, it has but to go there and be washed. The fountain is always full, always efficacious. No sinner ever went into it and found that it could not wash away his stains. Sins which were scarlet and crimson have all disappeared, and the sinner has been whiter than snow. As if this were not enough, there is attached to this Hospital of the Cross a wardrobe, and a sinner making application simply as a sinner, may be clothed from head to foot; and if he wishes to be a soldier, he may not merely have a garment for ordinary wear, but armour which shall cover him from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. If he asks for a sword, he shall have that given to him, and a shield too. Nothing that is good for him shall be denied him. He shall have spending-money so long as he lives, and he shall have an eternal heritage of glorious treasure when he enters into the joy of his Lord.
If all these things are to be had by merely knocking at mercy's door, O my soul, knock hard this morning, and ask large things of thy generous Lord. Leave not the throne of grace till all thy wants have been spread before the Lord, and until by faith thou hast a comfortable prospect that they shall be all supplied. No bashfulness need retard when Jesus invites. No unbelief should hinder when Jesus promises. No cold-heartedness should restrain when such blessings are to be obtained.
Monday, December 1, 2008
The Potty Driven Life
by Todd Friel
Mainstream evangelicalism is literally in the toilet.
Christ’s Family Church of Hastings, Minnesota is now using the bathroom as a way to reach out to lost souls. http://cfc.ccbchurch.com/app/
“Our men’s room (decorated in race car motif) gives members a reason to invite people to church. That is what Christ Family Church is all about; reaching those who have become disenchanted with religion but are searching for a relationship with Jesus Christ.”
That’s right. Toilet evangelism.
Somehow, a zoomy bathroom is supposed to save sinful souls. Even the local newspaper wrote an article titled, “Come for the Bathroom, Stay for the Service.” We have moved from John the Baptist proclaiming truth in the wilderness, to using a testosterone designed men’s room to lure people to a building. While there is nothing wrong with a nifty water closet, there is plenty wrong with using it to attract people to Jesus.
We implore people to come to the Savior, not come for the bathroom. We promote Jesus, not the amenities. Church is for Christians, not curiosity seekers. We win them to the Lord, not by being hip. Evangelism is to be done by church members, not the church bathroom.
How could we sink so low?
It all started with money. The prosperity Gospel promised, “Come to Jesus and you will be wealthy.” Then we promised health. “Come to Jesus and you will be healthy.”
Well that was just too “un-Biblical” for a new breed of evangelicals. We would never use cash and a pain-free life to bait people to “make a decision for Jesus.”
Instead, we decided to uncover people’s emotional needs and dangle those as a draw card to salvation. Self-esteem, loneliness, depression, discontentment, emotional scars, disobedient children, wayward spouses, low social status, low employment status, lack of purpose, a wayward golf swing. Gotta problem? Ask Jesus into your heart.
The seeker sensitive/felt needs movement was in business. And business was good.
But, it never takes long for man to grow weary of man-made methods. Just like every other offer from the world-system, it must continually be upgraded and repainted lest we grow bored. So a new, younger breed of evangelicals is cropping up offering to feed the flesh in an effort to attract people to their quarter million dollar sound systems.
Is your sex life crappy (That’s their word, not mine)? Then come to our church and we will help you have the “best sex ever.” http://www.mycrappysexlife.com/ Churches around the country are using the latest “sermon in a box” series, complete with billboards, post-cards and website design with two pair of feet wrapped up in the sheets, all in an effort to get people to visit their church with the promise to put a little zing into their nap time.
You got it. Come to Jesus, and your sex life will never be the same.
Just when you think, “That’s it, we have turned the Savior into a sex-enhancement tool; it can’t get worse than that.” Oh yes it can.
Christ’s Family Church has turned Jesus into a bathroom enhancement tool. If your loved one does not have a desire to be wealthy, healthy or frisky…then invite them to church so they can have a unique experience while taking care of bodily functions.
What twisted hermeneutic was used to rationalize potty proselytism?
“Part of the mission statement at Christ Family Church is to ‘proclaim God’s reconciling love through Jesus Christ to neighbors, co-workers and friends.’ (How does that work? Come to Jesus and be regular?) The men’s room is just one of the many ways this church is trying to accomplish this mission (Nothing says “substitutionary atonement” like a groovy bathroom). As Pastor Paris likes to say: “We are willing to go to any lengths, use any means necessary, to bring people closer to Christ.” (Have you ever seen I Cor. 9 more twisted?)
“Scott Girnau thought it would be a great way to reach out to people who wouldn’t normally be reached (You know, bashful bladder types). Stereotypes need to be broken about churches (That dreadful stereotype that we Christians just don’t know how to go to the bathroom right). Too many people feel like they don’t belong (Nothing says “welcome” like a kitschy toidy). Our hope is that when a person may not necessarily feel welcome, he can walk into the bathroom and say ‘cool.’”
Wow, who knew? Just gussy up your church bathroom and make sure your guests have a steamy cup of coffee to inspire them to use the facilities (Hey, maybe the church Starbucks makes sense after all), and they are just one step closer to saying the prayer and really, really meaning it.
What is the saddest part of all this?
Many evangelicals no longer believe that Scripture is sufficient. They need tools to enhance the Gospel to get regular attenders. They clearly have no idea what the Gospel is. We have gone as low as we can go. Or have we?
Mainstream evangelicalism is literally in the toilet.
Christ’s Family Church of Hastings, Minnesota is now using the bathroom as a way to reach out to lost souls. http://cfc.ccbchurch.com/app/
“Our men’s room (decorated in race car motif) gives members a reason to invite people to church. That is what Christ Family Church is all about; reaching those who have become disenchanted with religion but are searching for a relationship with Jesus Christ.”
That’s right. Toilet evangelism.
Somehow, a zoomy bathroom is supposed to save sinful souls. Even the local newspaper wrote an article titled, “Come for the Bathroom, Stay for the Service.” We have moved from John the Baptist proclaiming truth in the wilderness, to using a testosterone designed men’s room to lure people to a building. While there is nothing wrong with a nifty water closet, there is plenty wrong with using it to attract people to Jesus.
We implore people to come to the Savior, not come for the bathroom. We promote Jesus, not the amenities. Church is for Christians, not curiosity seekers. We win them to the Lord, not by being hip. Evangelism is to be done by church members, not the church bathroom.
How could we sink so low?
It all started with money. The prosperity Gospel promised, “Come to Jesus and you will be wealthy.” Then we promised health. “Come to Jesus and you will be healthy.”
Well that was just too “un-Biblical” for a new breed of evangelicals. We would never use cash and a pain-free life to bait people to “make a decision for Jesus.”
Instead, we decided to uncover people’s emotional needs and dangle those as a draw card to salvation. Self-esteem, loneliness, depression, discontentment, emotional scars, disobedient children, wayward spouses, low social status, low employment status, lack of purpose, a wayward golf swing. Gotta problem? Ask Jesus into your heart.
The seeker sensitive/felt needs movement was in business. And business was good.
But, it never takes long for man to grow weary of man-made methods. Just like every other offer from the world-system, it must continually be upgraded and repainted lest we grow bored. So a new, younger breed of evangelicals is cropping up offering to feed the flesh in an effort to attract people to their quarter million dollar sound systems.
Is your sex life crappy (That’s their word, not mine)? Then come to our church and we will help you have the “best sex ever.” http://www.mycrappysexlife.com/ Churches around the country are using the latest “sermon in a box” series, complete with billboards, post-cards and website design with two pair of feet wrapped up in the sheets, all in an effort to get people to visit their church with the promise to put a little zing into their nap time.
You got it. Come to Jesus, and your sex life will never be the same.
Just when you think, “That’s it, we have turned the Savior into a sex-enhancement tool; it can’t get worse than that.” Oh yes it can.
Christ’s Family Church has turned Jesus into a bathroom enhancement tool. If your loved one does not have a desire to be wealthy, healthy or frisky…then invite them to church so they can have a unique experience while taking care of bodily functions.
What twisted hermeneutic was used to rationalize potty proselytism?
“Part of the mission statement at Christ Family Church is to ‘proclaim God’s reconciling love through Jesus Christ to neighbors, co-workers and friends.’ (How does that work? Come to Jesus and be regular?) The men’s room is just one of the many ways this church is trying to accomplish this mission (Nothing says “substitutionary atonement” like a groovy bathroom). As Pastor Paris likes to say: “We are willing to go to any lengths, use any means necessary, to bring people closer to Christ.” (Have you ever seen I Cor. 9 more twisted?)
“Scott Girnau thought it would be a great way to reach out to people who wouldn’t normally be reached (You know, bashful bladder types). Stereotypes need to be broken about churches (That dreadful stereotype that we Christians just don’t know how to go to the bathroom right). Too many people feel like they don’t belong (Nothing says “welcome” like a kitschy toidy). Our hope is that when a person may not necessarily feel welcome, he can walk into the bathroom and say ‘cool.’”
Wow, who knew? Just gussy up your church bathroom and make sure your guests have a steamy cup of coffee to inspire them to use the facilities (Hey, maybe the church Starbucks makes sense after all), and they are just one step closer to saying the prayer and really, really meaning it.
What is the saddest part of all this?
Many evangelicals no longer believe that Scripture is sufficient. They need tools to enhance the Gospel to get regular attenders. They clearly have no idea what the Gospel is. We have gone as low as we can go. Or have we?
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
by Todd Friel
Over thirty years ago, the great philosopher Paul McCartney asked, “What’s wrong with silly love songs?” Having given this over three decades of serious consideration (OK, at least several months), I have Sir McCartney’s answer.
It depends.
If you want to fill the world with silly love songs, there’s nothing wrong with that. But if you want to fill the church with them, I say, “Stop it!”
Tune into your “get you through your day” Christian music station and you will hear grown men, whining like love sick puppies, “Nothing else can take your place, or feel the warmth of your embrace.” Who are they singing to? The One who holds the universe together by the power of His word, or a chick?
Take the Quiz
Here are six phrases from six contemporary songs. Can you pick which phrases belong to secular songs and which to the sacred?
1. All I need to do is just be me, being in love with you.
2. My world stops spinning round, without you.
3. I never want to leave; I want to stay in your warm embrace.
4. I’m lost in love.
5. Now and forever, together and all that I feel, here's my love for you.
6. You say you love me just as I am.
The first three are from a popular Christian band called Big Daddy Weave, the second half are from Air Supply.
More and more of our Christian music is sounding one note: Jesus loves you soooooo much. Do I doubt for a second that Jesus loves His children? Nope, but it depends on what your definition of “love” is.
God “agape” loves His children. Agape love is not an emotions based, warm and fuzzy kind of love. Agape love is a self sacrificing, “I will help you despite how I feel” love.
William Tyndale was the first translator to use the word “love” for agape. Prior to the 16th century, the word “charity” best described agape. Leaving that debate aside, since Tyndale’s time, the English definition for love has expanded. Our modern day use of love ranges from a love for an object to physical love/sex (eros love). I love that new car. I love that girl. I love that God. That God loves me.
Not only do we use “love” in romantic ways to sing about God, we have added other romantic phrases to our Christian music repertoire: hold me, embrace me, feel you, need you. This criticism is not new, in fact, it has existed since Godly men began endeavoring to sing anything but the Psalms.
John Wesley considered an “amatory phrase” to be language that was more feelings based love than self-sacrificing agape love. John deleted “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” from one of his brother Charles’ collections because it was too romantic sounding.
Amatory Phrasing
Not only are musicians guilty of writing amatory phrases, but they are singing with amatory phrasing. Christian men sing with such romantic longing and neediness it makes me want to scream, “Man up!” Christian women are singing with such throaty breathiness you would think they had just run from their home to the studio. To whom exactly are they singing? Brad Pitt or the Savior?
There are two consequences to this “Jesus is my boyfriend/girlfriend” music. Needy, emotional women continue to need more counseling, self help books and conferences where they can spread their wings and soar. Men simply are not showing up for church. It is my belief they simply can’t stand the mood manipulating worship times designed to help them “feel the Lord’s embrace.”
Musical Mermaids
Without theology in music, we are offering fluff that will not comfort when bridges collapse and test reports are negative. Songwriters could provide true hope if they would write about the sovereignty of God rather than crying about “how safe I feel when Jesus is holding me.”
Charles Spurgeon had the same criticism of “Hymns for Heart and Voice” published in 1855. He condemned the hymns as being “little better than mermaids, nice to look at but dangerous because they cannot deliver what they promise.”
Is there anything wrong with being reminded that our God is our help from ages past? Of course not, the Psalms are loaded with promises of God’s comfort. But unlike the Psalms (and theology based hymns), contemporary music is void of the reason why we should not worry. We do not worry because someone purrs that we shouldn’t fret, but because God is our shelter in the stormy blast and our eternal home. Our comfort comes from knowledge, not caterwauling.
If you enjoy a silly love song now and then, knock yourself out. But leave them where they belong, in the world or in the bedroom, not in the church.
Over thirty years ago, the great philosopher Paul McCartney asked, “What’s wrong with silly love songs?” Having given this over three decades of serious consideration (OK, at least several months), I have Sir McCartney’s answer.
It depends.
If you want to fill the world with silly love songs, there’s nothing wrong with that. But if you want to fill the church with them, I say, “Stop it!”
Tune into your “get you through your day” Christian music station and you will hear grown men, whining like love sick puppies, “Nothing else can take your place, or feel the warmth of your embrace.” Who are they singing to? The One who holds the universe together by the power of His word, or a chick?
Take the Quiz
Here are six phrases from six contemporary songs. Can you pick which phrases belong to secular songs and which to the sacred?
1. All I need to do is just be me, being in love with you.
2. My world stops spinning round, without you.
3. I never want to leave; I want to stay in your warm embrace.
4. I’m lost in love.
5. Now and forever, together and all that I feel, here's my love for you.
6. You say you love me just as I am.
The first three are from a popular Christian band called Big Daddy Weave, the second half are from Air Supply.
More and more of our Christian music is sounding one note: Jesus loves you soooooo much. Do I doubt for a second that Jesus loves His children? Nope, but it depends on what your definition of “love” is.
God “agape” loves His children. Agape love is not an emotions based, warm and fuzzy kind of love. Agape love is a self sacrificing, “I will help you despite how I feel” love.
William Tyndale was the first translator to use the word “love” for agape. Prior to the 16th century, the word “charity” best described agape. Leaving that debate aside, since Tyndale’s time, the English definition for love has expanded. Our modern day use of love ranges from a love for an object to physical love/sex (eros love). I love that new car. I love that girl. I love that God. That God loves me.
Not only do we use “love” in romantic ways to sing about God, we have added other romantic phrases to our Christian music repertoire: hold me, embrace me, feel you, need you. This criticism is not new, in fact, it has existed since Godly men began endeavoring to sing anything but the Psalms.
John Wesley considered an “amatory phrase” to be language that was more feelings based love than self-sacrificing agape love. John deleted “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” from one of his brother Charles’ collections because it was too romantic sounding.
Amatory Phrasing
Not only are musicians guilty of writing amatory phrases, but they are singing with amatory phrasing. Christian men sing with such romantic longing and neediness it makes me want to scream, “Man up!” Christian women are singing with such throaty breathiness you would think they had just run from their home to the studio. To whom exactly are they singing? Brad Pitt or the Savior?
There are two consequences to this “Jesus is my boyfriend/girlfriend” music. Needy, emotional women continue to need more counseling, self help books and conferences where they can spread their wings and soar. Men simply are not showing up for church. It is my belief they simply can’t stand the mood manipulating worship times designed to help them “feel the Lord’s embrace.”
Musical Mermaids
Without theology in music, we are offering fluff that will not comfort when bridges collapse and test reports are negative. Songwriters could provide true hope if they would write about the sovereignty of God rather than crying about “how safe I feel when Jesus is holding me.”
Charles Spurgeon had the same criticism of “Hymns for Heart and Voice” published in 1855. He condemned the hymns as being “little better than mermaids, nice to look at but dangerous because they cannot deliver what they promise.”
Is there anything wrong with being reminded that our God is our help from ages past? Of course not, the Psalms are loaded with promises of God’s comfort. But unlike the Psalms (and theology based hymns), contemporary music is void of the reason why we should not worry. We do not worry because someone purrs that we shouldn’t fret, but because God is our shelter in the stormy blast and our eternal home. Our comfort comes from knowledge, not caterwauling.
If you enjoy a silly love song now and then, knock yourself out. But leave them where they belong, in the world or in the bedroom, not in the church.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
A Prayer by Billy Graham
'Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and Set us free. Amen!'
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Born Gay
from Born Gay or a Gay Basher? No Excuse by Frank Turek
After my last column, I got an e-mail from retired FBI agent Bob Hamer. Bob’s the author of a riveting new book that takes you undercover with him into the world of drug bosses, hit men, and his last assignment, the North American Man Boy Love Association (NAMBLA). After I sent him a copy of my new book on same-sex marriage, he wrote back:
“Thanks so much for sharing your book. It was powerful and I need to re-read it because it said so much. It actually brought back memories of the NAMBLA conferences I attended. I listened to men justify oral sex on 18 month olds. How often I listened to men claim their pedophilia was an inborn trait; it was natural, ‘this is the way God made me.’”
This “born that way” argument is fueling the case for same-sex marriage in California. Is it a good argument?
I know this is a difficult and emotional issue for many people, but I think the reasonable answer is no. Not only is the evidence for being “born that way” questionable, even if it were true, it should have no impact on our marriage laws.
First, after many years of intense research, a genetic component to homosexual desires has not been discovered. Twin studies show that identical twins do not consistently have the same sexual orientation. In fact, genetics probably explains very little about homosexual desires. How would a homosexual “gene” be passed on? Homosexuals don’t pass on anything because they don’t reproduce.
Second, the “born-that-way” claim is an argument from design— “since God designed me with these desires, I ought to act on them.” But the people who say this overlook something more obvious— they were also born with a specific gender. This raises the question: Why are you following your desires but not your gender? After all, we’re not sure if your desires were designed or the result of your upbringing, but we are certain that your anatomy is designed. So why not follow your anatomy rather than your desires? Ignoring your desires may be uncomfortable, but ignoring the natural design of your body is often fatal.
Third, even if desires are not a choice, sexual behavior always is. So even if a person honestly believes that he’s been born with homosexual desires, he is certainly capable of controlling his sexual behavior. If you claim that he is not—that sexual behavior is somehow uncontrollable—then you have made the absurd contention that no one can be morally responsible for any sexual crime, including rape, incest, and child molestation.
Fourth, being born a certain way is irrelevant to what the law should be. Laws are concerned with behaviors not desires, and we all have desires we ought not act on. In fact, all of us were born with an “orientation” to bad behavior, but those desires don’t justify the behaviors. For example, if you are born with a genetic predisposition to alcohol, does that mean God wants you to be an alcoholic? If someone has a genetic attraction to children, does that mean God wants you to be a pedophile? (According to pedophiles it does!) What homosexual activist would say that a genetic predisposition to anger justifies gay-bashing? (Born gay? What if the gay basher was born mean?)
Some will say, “But homosexual sex is about love.” One can say that, but what’s loving about sexual activity that creates numerous health problems, increases medical costs to everyone, and reduces the lifespan of homosexuals by 8-20 years? (A homosexual friend of mine fared even worse—he died at age 36 from AIDS.) Yes, I know—people of the same sex love one another. But if the sex act is medically dangerous, the best way to love the other person is not to have sex with him. In fact, most of our loving relationships are non-sexual.
Finally, even if we someday discover a genetic contribution to homosexual desires, that would not mean that the behavior is something the government should endorse. Yet that’s exactly what government-backed same-sex marriage would do— it would endorse and thus promote the false idea that marriage between a man and a woman is no better for children or society than marriage between same-sex partners.
As I’ve shown in “Gay Marriage: Even Liberals Know it’s Bad,” legally equating the two types of relationships breaks the link between marriage and childbearing which leads to higher illegitimacy and a chain of negative effects that fall like dominoes—illegitimacy leads to poverty, crime, and higher welfare costs which lead to bigger government, higher taxes, and a slower economy. It also will result in homosexuality being imposed against the will of the people in our schools, businesses, and charities as it has in Massachusetts (click on that link if you doubt me). So even if you think there is nothing morally wrong with homosexual behavior, there is every reason to oppose same-sex marriage.
The bottom line is that desires, whatever their source, do not justify behaviors. In fact, there’s a word we use to describe the disciplined restraint of destructive behaviors– it’s called civilization. For any civilization to survive, quite a lot of restraint is going to be necessary.
The push for same-sex marriage does the opposite. Instead of restraining negative behaviors, homosexual activists are asking us not just to tolerate, but to endorse them. For the sake of civilization, we all need to restrain our destructive behaviors. At the very least we should not be demanding that the government endorse them—even if we think we were “born that way.”
After my last column, I got an e-mail from retired FBI agent Bob Hamer. Bob’s the author of a riveting new book that takes you undercover with him into the world of drug bosses, hit men, and his last assignment, the North American Man Boy Love Association (NAMBLA). After I sent him a copy of my new book on same-sex marriage, he wrote back:
“Thanks so much for sharing your book. It was powerful and I need to re-read it because it said so much. It actually brought back memories of the NAMBLA conferences I attended. I listened to men justify oral sex on 18 month olds. How often I listened to men claim their pedophilia was an inborn trait; it was natural, ‘this is the way God made me.’”
This “born that way” argument is fueling the case for same-sex marriage in California. Is it a good argument?
I know this is a difficult and emotional issue for many people, but I think the reasonable answer is no. Not only is the evidence for being “born that way” questionable, even if it were true, it should have no impact on our marriage laws.
First, after many years of intense research, a genetic component to homosexual desires has not been discovered. Twin studies show that identical twins do not consistently have the same sexual orientation. In fact, genetics probably explains very little about homosexual desires. How would a homosexual “gene” be passed on? Homosexuals don’t pass on anything because they don’t reproduce.
Second, the “born-that-way” claim is an argument from design— “since God designed me with these desires, I ought to act on them.” But the people who say this overlook something more obvious— they were also born with a specific gender. This raises the question: Why are you following your desires but not your gender? After all, we’re not sure if your desires were designed or the result of your upbringing, but we are certain that your anatomy is designed. So why not follow your anatomy rather than your desires? Ignoring your desires may be uncomfortable, but ignoring the natural design of your body is often fatal.
Third, even if desires are not a choice, sexual behavior always is. So even if a person honestly believes that he’s been born with homosexual desires, he is certainly capable of controlling his sexual behavior. If you claim that he is not—that sexual behavior is somehow uncontrollable—then you have made the absurd contention that no one can be morally responsible for any sexual crime, including rape, incest, and child molestation.
Fourth, being born a certain way is irrelevant to what the law should be. Laws are concerned with behaviors not desires, and we all have desires we ought not act on. In fact, all of us were born with an “orientation” to bad behavior, but those desires don’t justify the behaviors. For example, if you are born with a genetic predisposition to alcohol, does that mean God wants you to be an alcoholic? If someone has a genetic attraction to children, does that mean God wants you to be a pedophile? (According to pedophiles it does!) What homosexual activist would say that a genetic predisposition to anger justifies gay-bashing? (Born gay? What if the gay basher was born mean?)
Some will say, “But homosexual sex is about love.” One can say that, but what’s loving about sexual activity that creates numerous health problems, increases medical costs to everyone, and reduces the lifespan of homosexuals by 8-20 years? (A homosexual friend of mine fared even worse—he died at age 36 from AIDS.) Yes, I know—people of the same sex love one another. But if the sex act is medically dangerous, the best way to love the other person is not to have sex with him. In fact, most of our loving relationships are non-sexual.
Finally, even if we someday discover a genetic contribution to homosexual desires, that would not mean that the behavior is something the government should endorse. Yet that’s exactly what government-backed same-sex marriage would do— it would endorse and thus promote the false idea that marriage between a man and a woman is no better for children or society than marriage between same-sex partners.
As I’ve shown in “Gay Marriage: Even Liberals Know it’s Bad,” legally equating the two types of relationships breaks the link between marriage and childbearing which leads to higher illegitimacy and a chain of negative effects that fall like dominoes—illegitimacy leads to poverty, crime, and higher welfare costs which lead to bigger government, higher taxes, and a slower economy. It also will result in homosexuality being imposed against the will of the people in our schools, businesses, and charities as it has in Massachusetts (click on that link if you doubt me). So even if you think there is nothing morally wrong with homosexual behavior, there is every reason to oppose same-sex marriage.
The bottom line is that desires, whatever their source, do not justify behaviors. In fact, there’s a word we use to describe the disciplined restraint of destructive behaviors– it’s called civilization. For any civilization to survive, quite a lot of restraint is going to be necessary.
The push for same-sex marriage does the opposite. Instead of restraining negative behaviors, homosexual activists are asking us not just to tolerate, but to endorse them. For the sake of civilization, we all need to restrain our destructive behaviors. At the very least we should not be demanding that the government endorse them—even if we think we were “born that way.”
Monday, November 24, 2008
Three to Four Billion Barrels of Oil in North Dakota and Montana
3 to 4.3 Billion Barrels of Technically Recoverable Oil Assessed in North Dakota and Montana’s Bakken Formation—25 Times More Than 1995 Estimate—
Released: 4/10/2008 2:25:36 PM
Contact Information:
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey
Office of Communication
119 National Center
Reston, VA 20192 Geology Energy Program
Reston, VA - North Dakota and Montana have an estimated 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil in an area known as the Bakken Formation.
A U.S. Geological Survey assessment, released April 10, shows a 25-fold increase in the amount of oil that can be recovered compared to the agency's 1995 estimate of 151million barrels of oil.
Technically recoverable oil resources are those producible using currently available technology and industry practices. USGS is the only provider of publicly available estimates of undiscovered technically recoverable oil and gas resources.
New geologic models applied to the Bakken Formation, advances in drilling and production technologies, and recent oil discoveries have resulted in these substantially larger technically recoverable oil volumes. About 105 million barrels of oil were produced from the Bakken Formation by the end of 2007.
The USGS Bakken study was undertaken as part of a nationwide project assessing domestic petroleum basins using standardized methodology and protocol as required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 2000.
The Bakken Formation estimate is larger than all other current USGS oil assessments of the lower 48 states and is the largest "continuous" oil accumulation ever assessed by the USGS. A "continuous" oil accumulation means that the oil resource is dispersed throughout a geologic formation rather than existing as discrete, localized occurrences. The next largest "continuous" oil accumulation in the U.S. is in the Austin Chalk of Texas and Louisiana, with an undiscovered estimate of 1.0 billions of barrels of technically recoverable oil.
"It is clear that the Bakken formation contains a significant amount of oil - the question is how much of that oil is recoverable using today's technology?" said Senator Byron Dorgan, of North Dakota. "To get an answer to this important question, I requested that the U.S. Geological Survey complete this study, which will provide an up-to-date estimate on the amount of technically recoverable oil resources in the Bakken Shale formation."
The USGS estimate of 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil has a mean value of 3.65 billion barrels. Scientists conducted detailed studies in stratigraphy and structural geology and the modeling of petroleum geochemistry. They also combined their findings with historical exploration and production analyses to determine the undiscovered, technically recoverable oil estimates.
USGS worked with the North Dakota Geological Survey, a number of petroleum industry companies and independents, universities and other experts to develop a geological understanding of the Bakken Formation. These groups provided critical information and feedback on geological and engineering concepts important to building the geologic and production models used in the assessment.
Five continuous assessment units (AU) were identified and assessed in the Bakken Formation of North Dakota and Montana - the Elm Coulee-Billings Nose AU, the Central Basin-Poplar Dome AU, the Nesson-Little Knife Structural AU, the Eastern Expulsion Threshold AU, and the Northwest Expulsion Threshold AU.
At the time of the assessment, a limited number of wells have produced oil from three of the assessments units in Central Basin-Poplar Dome, Eastern Expulsion Threshold, and Northwest Expulsion Threshold.
The Elm Coulee oil field in Montana, discovered in 2000, has produced about 65 million barrels of the 105 million barrels of oil recovered from the Bakken Formation.
Results of the assessment can be found at http://energy.usgs.gov.
For a podcast interview with scientists about the Bakken Formation, listen to episode 38 of CoreCast at http://www.usgs.gov/corecast/.
Released: 4/10/2008 2:25:36 PM
Contact Information:
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey
Office of Communication
119 National Center
Reston, VA 20192 Geology Energy Program
Reston, VA - North Dakota and Montana have an estimated 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil in an area known as the Bakken Formation.
A U.S. Geological Survey assessment, released April 10, shows a 25-fold increase in the amount of oil that can be recovered compared to the agency's 1995 estimate of 151million barrels of oil.
Technically recoverable oil resources are those producible using currently available technology and industry practices. USGS is the only provider of publicly available estimates of undiscovered technically recoverable oil and gas resources.
New geologic models applied to the Bakken Formation, advances in drilling and production technologies, and recent oil discoveries have resulted in these substantially larger technically recoverable oil volumes. About 105 million barrels of oil were produced from the Bakken Formation by the end of 2007.
The USGS Bakken study was undertaken as part of a nationwide project assessing domestic petroleum basins using standardized methodology and protocol as required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 2000.
The Bakken Formation estimate is larger than all other current USGS oil assessments of the lower 48 states and is the largest "continuous" oil accumulation ever assessed by the USGS. A "continuous" oil accumulation means that the oil resource is dispersed throughout a geologic formation rather than existing as discrete, localized occurrences. The next largest "continuous" oil accumulation in the U.S. is in the Austin Chalk of Texas and Louisiana, with an undiscovered estimate of 1.0 billions of barrels of technically recoverable oil.
"It is clear that the Bakken formation contains a significant amount of oil - the question is how much of that oil is recoverable using today's technology?" said Senator Byron Dorgan, of North Dakota. "To get an answer to this important question, I requested that the U.S. Geological Survey complete this study, which will provide an up-to-date estimate on the amount of technically recoverable oil resources in the Bakken Shale formation."
The USGS estimate of 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil has a mean value of 3.65 billion barrels. Scientists conducted detailed studies in stratigraphy and structural geology and the modeling of petroleum geochemistry. They also combined their findings with historical exploration and production analyses to determine the undiscovered, technically recoverable oil estimates.
USGS worked with the North Dakota Geological Survey, a number of petroleum industry companies and independents, universities and other experts to develop a geological understanding of the Bakken Formation. These groups provided critical information and feedback on geological and engineering concepts important to building the geologic and production models used in the assessment.
Five continuous assessment units (AU) were identified and assessed in the Bakken Formation of North Dakota and Montana - the Elm Coulee-Billings Nose AU, the Central Basin-Poplar Dome AU, the Nesson-Little Knife Structural AU, the Eastern Expulsion Threshold AU, and the Northwest Expulsion Threshold AU.
At the time of the assessment, a limited number of wells have produced oil from three of the assessments units in Central Basin-Poplar Dome, Eastern Expulsion Threshold, and Northwest Expulsion Threshold.
The Elm Coulee oil field in Montana, discovered in 2000, has produced about 65 million barrels of the 105 million barrels of oil recovered from the Bakken Formation.
Results of the assessment can be found at http://energy.usgs.gov.
For a podcast interview with scientists about the Bakken Formation, listen to episode 38 of CoreCast at http://www.usgs.gov/corecast/.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
They Like Themselves
by Albert Mohler
USA Today is out with a report on a new research project that deserves our attention. It seems that high school graduates surveyed in 2006 consider themselves much more likely to succeed in life when compared to the self-assessment offered by graduates in 1975.
Researchers Jean Twenge and W. Keith Campbell are worried that these young people are showing signs of excessive self-esteem, which may set them up for disappointments later in life.
As USA Today reports:
Compared with the Baby Boomers who were seniors in 1975, 12th-graders surveyed in 2006 were much more confident they'd be "very good" employees, mates and parents, and they were more self-satisfied overall, say Twenge and co-author W. Keith Campbell of the University of Georgia. Between half and two-thirds of the Gen Y teens gave themselves top ratings, compared with less than half in their parents' generation. The report is in 'Psychological Science.'
Boomer parents "are more likely than their parents were to praise children — and maybe over praise them," Twenge says. This can foster great expectations or perhaps even smugness about one's chances of reaching "the stars" at work and in family life, she adds. "Their narcissism could be a recipe for depression later when things don't work out as well as they expected."
All this reminds me of Garrison Keillor's fictional community of Lake Woebegon, where all of the kids are "above average." That simply isn't possible, but there is good reason to believe that many current parenting strategies imply that it is.
In recent years, some observers have warned that children are not well served when parents lavish them with inordinate praise or with unrealistic assessments. The culture of earned recognition has given way to sports teams that award a trophy to every player and to contests in which every participant wins.
As they grow older, some children turn cynical about all this. They just begin to discount what their parents, educators, or other authorities tell them. Eventually, reality intrudes in the form of college admissions, athletic scholarships, or other dimensions of merited recognition. It may be that every player on the 8th grade team gets the same trophy, regardless of performance on the field. All that changes when it comes time for college athletic scholarships, however. Those are not passed out without regard for performance.
Other children bask in the glory of unmerited praise. Educators talk of children who insist that they should receive an "A" on a paper or test because "I am an 'A' person." Some children reach young adulthood with no real help from parents in understanding their place in the world -- or about what it might take for them to get where they want to go.
Roy Baumeister of Florida State University states his concern memorably:
"Many people who grew up in the '50s say, 'Nothing I did was ever good enough for my parents.' Now we're seeing the pendulum swing, and you hear from coaches and teachers who have been at it a while that kids have become more fragile. They don't take criticism well," he says.
"Thinking you're God's gift to the world is nice for you. It's a little harder for everyone else around you."
Every child is special. And we certainly hope that these children exceed all expectations about their future excellence in all areas of life. Nevertheless, a little reality might help, and some honesty as well.
When secular observers express this kind of concern, Christian parents should take particular notice. We should encourage our children to excellence in all things -- not so much for their self-esteem but for the glory of God. And, we must be honest with them about what this excellence would mean and what this standard will require.
That kind of reality therapy will be as good for the parents as for the children. As the Apostle Paul reminds us:
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. [Romans 12:3]
USA Today is out with a report on a new research project that deserves our attention. It seems that high school graduates surveyed in 2006 consider themselves much more likely to succeed in life when compared to the self-assessment offered by graduates in 1975.
Researchers Jean Twenge and W. Keith Campbell are worried that these young people are showing signs of excessive self-esteem, which may set them up for disappointments later in life.
As USA Today reports:
Compared with the Baby Boomers who were seniors in 1975, 12th-graders surveyed in 2006 were much more confident they'd be "very good" employees, mates and parents, and they were more self-satisfied overall, say Twenge and co-author W. Keith Campbell of the University of Georgia. Between half and two-thirds of the Gen Y teens gave themselves top ratings, compared with less than half in their parents' generation. The report is in 'Psychological Science.'
Boomer parents "are more likely than their parents were to praise children — and maybe over praise them," Twenge says. This can foster great expectations or perhaps even smugness about one's chances of reaching "the stars" at work and in family life, she adds. "Their narcissism could be a recipe for depression later when things don't work out as well as they expected."
All this reminds me of Garrison Keillor's fictional community of Lake Woebegon, where all of the kids are "above average." That simply isn't possible, but there is good reason to believe that many current parenting strategies imply that it is.
In recent years, some observers have warned that children are not well served when parents lavish them with inordinate praise or with unrealistic assessments. The culture of earned recognition has given way to sports teams that award a trophy to every player and to contests in which every participant wins.
As they grow older, some children turn cynical about all this. They just begin to discount what their parents, educators, or other authorities tell them. Eventually, reality intrudes in the form of college admissions, athletic scholarships, or other dimensions of merited recognition. It may be that every player on the 8th grade team gets the same trophy, regardless of performance on the field. All that changes when it comes time for college athletic scholarships, however. Those are not passed out without regard for performance.
Other children bask in the glory of unmerited praise. Educators talk of children who insist that they should receive an "A" on a paper or test because "I am an 'A' person." Some children reach young adulthood with no real help from parents in understanding their place in the world -- or about what it might take for them to get where they want to go.
Roy Baumeister of Florida State University states his concern memorably:
"Many people who grew up in the '50s say, 'Nothing I did was ever good enough for my parents.' Now we're seeing the pendulum swing, and you hear from coaches and teachers who have been at it a while that kids have become more fragile. They don't take criticism well," he says.
"Thinking you're God's gift to the world is nice for you. It's a little harder for everyone else around you."
Every child is special. And we certainly hope that these children exceed all expectations about their future excellence in all areas of life. Nevertheless, a little reality might help, and some honesty as well.
When secular observers express this kind of concern, Christian parents should take particular notice. We should encourage our children to excellence in all things -- not so much for their self-esteem but for the glory of God. And, we must be honest with them about what this excellence would mean and what this standard will require.
That kind of reality therapy will be as good for the parents as for the children. As the Apostle Paul reminds us:
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. [Romans 12:3]
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Why Rick Warren Has Critics
by Chris Carmichael
Like it or not, all of us have to judge people by how much we can clearly assess and delineate their convictions; and even if we don’t necessarily agree with their stated positions, at least it is preferable to those who remain vague or unsure of themselves, especially when they seem more concerned about being liked by everyone than being true to their principles.
In light of this truth, it should come as no surprise that Rick Warren has cultivated many critics within Christianity who are coming to see that his inconsistent teachings are an indication of a double-minded man. Truly the Saddleback pastor has exhibited strong signs of being a Christian flip-flopper on many occasions, and this has made many discerning Christians rightfully wary of him, especially considering the prominence and influence of his ministry.
FLIP-FLOP #1: WARREN PROMOTES KEN BLANCHARD AS A CHRISTIAN LEADER, THEN HE DOESN’T, AND THEN HE DOES AGAIN. In Abanes’ book Rick Warren and the Purpose that Drives Him, Warren admits that Ken Blanchard is “not a deep Christian,” and that Blanchard did not have the spiritual discernment to know whether The Celestine Prophecy was a heretical book or not. Yet despite all this, in 2003 Warren openly promoted Blanchard in his pulpit as someone who could train Christian leaders. So which is it? Is Blanchard truly called to train Christian leaders, or is he a person who started a ministry before he had gained the spiritual maturity to do so? Based on Warren’s own words and other solid evidence, critics have real cause to question Warren’s discernment in this matter.
FLIP-FLOP #2: WARREN DENIES ANY CONNECTION WITH THE NEW AGE, YET HE SOMETIMES AFFILIATES WITH NEW AGE PROPONENTS AND THEIR TEACHINGS. It has been documented that Warren recently joined with the John Templeton Foundation, an organization which promotes spiritual humanism, to be a judge in their “Power of Purpose” Essay Contest. The winning essay, for which Warren cast his vote, was written by August Turak, a false teacher in New Age “Self Knowledge” who claims a “divine spark” within every person.
FLIP-FLOP # 3: WARREN CLAIMS A COMMITMENT TO THE AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE, BUT MANIPULATES IT TO FIT HIS TEACHING. In The Purpose Driven Life, Warren makes the wonderful statement that “the Bible must always have the first and last word in my life” (pg. 187). Earlier in the book, however, Warren proves that he likes the first word, but not always the last. Case in point, on page 53, Warren claims to fully quote Proverbs 16:4 by citing it as such, and yet only provides the reader with the first half of the verse which reads, “The Lord has made everything for his own purposes.” Strangely, Warren leaves off the last part of the verse which adds ominously, “even the wicked for punishment.”
The question any good Berean would ask is, why would Warren edit this verse? But of course there can only be one reason: if Warren revealed the whole verse then it would completely undermine his skewed teaching that everyone is made by God for only a positive, self-affirming purpose.
FLIP-FLOP #4: WARREN CONDEMNS SYNCRETISM, BUT IMPLEMENTS IT IN HIS MINISTRY AND TEACHINGS. In his book defending Warren, Abanes maintains that because Warren has specifically condemned syncretism (the mixing of God’s truth with other religions and philosophies) at Saddleback, then critics have no cause to say otherwise (pg. 91). Yet what are discerning Christians to think when Warren expresses “self-esteem” pop-psychology in the March 2005 article for Ladies Home Journal? Or what about his advocacy of personality testing (based on Carl Jung’s occult-inspired teachings) to find out how Christians are gifted for church service? And what are we to think about Warren’s utilization within the church of Peter Drucker’s human management theories which come, not from God’s word, but from secular humanism and other man-centered philosophies?
FLIP-FLOP #5: WARREN HAS BROKEN TIES WITH SCHULLER, BUT STILL MIRRORS MUCH OF HIS SELF-ESTEEM TEACHINGS. Warren disavowed any theological ties to Schuller, yet recently wrote an article for Ladies Home Journal on self-esteem, which reads like a condensed version of Schuller’s book, Self-Esteem: The New Reformation. Considering that self-esteem has no place in Christian theology whatsoever, is it any wonder that critics of Warren find this common teaching on loving yourself to be very telling?
This is not to say, of course, that Warren is the Devil incarnate or a raging heretic. But it is well within our Christian responsibility to raise objections when a prominent Christian leader like Warren is inconsistent and displays a certain lack of biblical integrity in both his teaching and in his behavior. And until such time as Warren is willing to acknowledge these major lapses in judgment, openly repent of them, and display some biblical consistency in the future, then he will continue to see godly objections to his ministry, and rightly so.
Rick Warren undoubtedly will always have critics, but if he truly desires to eliminate the bulk of legitimate biblical criticism against him, he must do one thing first: stop being a Christian flip-flopper.
- Source: Discerning a Christian Flip-Flopper: Why Rick Warren Has Critics, by Chris Carmichael, Christian Unplugged
Like it or not, all of us have to judge people by how much we can clearly assess and delineate their convictions; and even if we don’t necessarily agree with their stated positions, at least it is preferable to those who remain vague or unsure of themselves, especially when they seem more concerned about being liked by everyone than being true to their principles.
In light of this truth, it should come as no surprise that Rick Warren has cultivated many critics within Christianity who are coming to see that his inconsistent teachings are an indication of a double-minded man. Truly the Saddleback pastor has exhibited strong signs of being a Christian flip-flopper on many occasions, and this has made many discerning Christians rightfully wary of him, especially considering the prominence and influence of his ministry.
FLIP-FLOP #1: WARREN PROMOTES KEN BLANCHARD AS A CHRISTIAN LEADER, THEN HE DOESN’T, AND THEN HE DOES AGAIN. In Abanes’ book Rick Warren and the Purpose that Drives Him, Warren admits that Ken Blanchard is “not a deep Christian,” and that Blanchard did not have the spiritual discernment to know whether The Celestine Prophecy was a heretical book or not. Yet despite all this, in 2003 Warren openly promoted Blanchard in his pulpit as someone who could train Christian leaders. So which is it? Is Blanchard truly called to train Christian leaders, or is he a person who started a ministry before he had gained the spiritual maturity to do so? Based on Warren’s own words and other solid evidence, critics have real cause to question Warren’s discernment in this matter.
FLIP-FLOP #2: WARREN DENIES ANY CONNECTION WITH THE NEW AGE, YET HE SOMETIMES AFFILIATES WITH NEW AGE PROPONENTS AND THEIR TEACHINGS. It has been documented that Warren recently joined with the John Templeton Foundation, an organization which promotes spiritual humanism, to be a judge in their “Power of Purpose” Essay Contest. The winning essay, for which Warren cast his vote, was written by August Turak, a false teacher in New Age “Self Knowledge” who claims a “divine spark” within every person.
FLIP-FLOP # 3: WARREN CLAIMS A COMMITMENT TO THE AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE, BUT MANIPULATES IT TO FIT HIS TEACHING. In The Purpose Driven Life, Warren makes the wonderful statement that “the Bible must always have the first and last word in my life” (pg. 187). Earlier in the book, however, Warren proves that he likes the first word, but not always the last. Case in point, on page 53, Warren claims to fully quote Proverbs 16:4 by citing it as such, and yet only provides the reader with the first half of the verse which reads, “The Lord has made everything for his own purposes.” Strangely, Warren leaves off the last part of the verse which adds ominously, “even the wicked for punishment.”
The question any good Berean would ask is, why would Warren edit this verse? But of course there can only be one reason: if Warren revealed the whole verse then it would completely undermine his skewed teaching that everyone is made by God for only a positive, self-affirming purpose.
FLIP-FLOP #4: WARREN CONDEMNS SYNCRETISM, BUT IMPLEMENTS IT IN HIS MINISTRY AND TEACHINGS. In his book defending Warren, Abanes maintains that because Warren has specifically condemned syncretism (the mixing of God’s truth with other religions and philosophies) at Saddleback, then critics have no cause to say otherwise (pg. 91). Yet what are discerning Christians to think when Warren expresses “self-esteem” pop-psychology in the March 2005 article for Ladies Home Journal? Or what about his advocacy of personality testing (based on Carl Jung’s occult-inspired teachings) to find out how Christians are gifted for church service? And what are we to think about Warren’s utilization within the church of Peter Drucker’s human management theories which come, not from God’s word, but from secular humanism and other man-centered philosophies?
FLIP-FLOP #5: WARREN HAS BROKEN TIES WITH SCHULLER, BUT STILL MIRRORS MUCH OF HIS SELF-ESTEEM TEACHINGS. Warren disavowed any theological ties to Schuller, yet recently wrote an article for Ladies Home Journal on self-esteem, which reads like a condensed version of Schuller’s book, Self-Esteem: The New Reformation. Considering that self-esteem has no place in Christian theology whatsoever, is it any wonder that critics of Warren find this common teaching on loving yourself to be very telling?
This is not to say, of course, that Warren is the Devil incarnate or a raging heretic. But it is well within our Christian responsibility to raise objections when a prominent Christian leader like Warren is inconsistent and displays a certain lack of biblical integrity in both his teaching and in his behavior. And until such time as Warren is willing to acknowledge these major lapses in judgment, openly repent of them, and display some biblical consistency in the future, then he will continue to see godly objections to his ministry, and rightly so.
Rick Warren undoubtedly will always have critics, but if he truly desires to eliminate the bulk of legitimate biblical criticism against him, he must do one thing first: stop being a Christian flip-flopper.
- Source: Discerning a Christian Flip-Flopper: Why Rick Warren Has Critics, by Chris Carmichael, Christian Unplugged
Thursday, November 20, 2008
The Progression of a Fool
Notes from Adrian Rogers' sermon:
"How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?
Proverbs 1:22Level One
The identifying marks of being simple (naïve):
• He loves simplicity
• He lacks understanding
• He is led easily
• He is living in danger
A child loves simplicity and living his lifestyle. Who can blame him if he isn’t taught differently? Proverbs 1:22 “How long, O Simple ones, will you love being simple? He doesn’t want any restrictions put on him. He also lacks understanding: Proverbs 9:4-6: “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!" To him who lacks sense she (wisdom) says, come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.” He is led easily. Proverbs 14:15 “The simple believes every word.” Madison Avenue loves the teenager, because they believe anything and are easily led. The Hebrew word for simple means “open”. If grown people feel a strong compulsion to conform, how much more will your teenager do it? They are living in danger: Proverbs 22:3 “The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.” If you give a young teenager the keys of your car without warning him and instructing him and praying for him, he will take the keys of your car, get a friend and go get beer and get drunk and go through town at 80 miles per hour and get into an accident. They do not have the ability to see the danger that is down the road. He thinks he is going to live forever. He doesn’t understand and he doesn’t see the problems that are out there. Sound familiar? You were like that when you were a teenager.
Level Two
The identifying marks of being a scoffer (smart aleck):
• He delights in his scorning
• He defies instructions
• He despises the one who corrects him
• He is destined for destruction and damnation
He delights in his scorning. Proverbs 1:22 “How long will scoffers delight in scoffing?” It gives him a feeling of superiority. He defies instruction: Proverbs 13:1: “A wise son hears his father’s instruction, but a scorner hears not rebuke.” You can’t tell a smart aleck anything…he already knows everything. You might as well be talking to a brick wall; he will tune you out. He despises the good and the godly. Proverbs 15:12 “A fool despises his father’s instruction.” You correct a scorner and he may not open his mouth, but he will look at you with his eyes he’ll be saying “I hate your guts.” Proverbs 9:7, 8 “Whoever corrects a scoffer get himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury. Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you.” Tell him what is right, and he will insult you to your face. He is destined for destruction. Proverbs 13:1, 13 “A wise son hears his father’s instruction, but a scorner hears not rebuke.” “Whoever despises the words shall be destroyed.” He can laugh his way to hell, but he can’t laugh his way out. He is destined for destruction, but you can’t tell him anything…when you talk to him, it is like pouring water on a rock. At one time, he was gullable, naïve and open. But now he’s not that way.
Level Three
The identifying marks of being a fool (rebel):
• He rejects wisdom
• He ridicules righteousness
• He rejoices in sin
• He is reserved for hell
He rejects wisdom. Proverbs 1:22 “fools hate knowledge”. The other two are known by what they love; the fool is known by what he hates. He literally hates knowledge. Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” He ridicules righteousness. Proverbs 14:9 “Fools mock at sin.” Anything that is holy they put down, anything that is unholy they laugh at. He rejoices in sin. Proverbs 10:1”A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is the grief of his mother. Folly is a joy to him” Isaiah 5:20 “Who unto them who call evil good and good evil, that put darkness for light and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” He is reserved for hell. Proverbs 17:10 “A rebuke is more effective for a wise man than a hundred blows for a fool.” The problem is his moral sense has been destroyed and his conscience has been perverted. You take a fool and beat him, you won’t change him. Lock him up in prison and he’ll come out a worse criminal. Take away his privileges; he’ll just hate you more and more. He is SET. There is hardly (if any) hope for a fool according to scriptures. But God is merciful.
The difference between a godly man and a fool is the difference between David and Pharoh. When David sinned, Nathan rebuked him and he repented. But when Pharoh sinned, and Moses rebuked him, the bible says he hardened his heart all the more. And as the plagues got worse, Pharoh got further and further away from God. The more the stripes were laid on his back, the harder the fool called Pharoh went deeper and deeper into sin.
"How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?
Proverbs 1:22Level One
The identifying marks of being simple (naïve):
• He loves simplicity
• He lacks understanding
• He is led easily
• He is living in danger
A child loves simplicity and living his lifestyle. Who can blame him if he isn’t taught differently? Proverbs 1:22 “How long, O Simple ones, will you love being simple? He doesn’t want any restrictions put on him. He also lacks understanding: Proverbs 9:4-6: “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!" To him who lacks sense she (wisdom) says, come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.” He is led easily. Proverbs 14:15 “The simple believes every word.” Madison Avenue loves the teenager, because they believe anything and are easily led. The Hebrew word for simple means “open”. If grown people feel a strong compulsion to conform, how much more will your teenager do it? They are living in danger: Proverbs 22:3 “The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.” If you give a young teenager the keys of your car without warning him and instructing him and praying for him, he will take the keys of your car, get a friend and go get beer and get drunk and go through town at 80 miles per hour and get into an accident. They do not have the ability to see the danger that is down the road. He thinks he is going to live forever. He doesn’t understand and he doesn’t see the problems that are out there. Sound familiar? You were like that when you were a teenager.
Level Two
The identifying marks of being a scoffer (smart aleck):
• He delights in his scorning
• He defies instructions
• He despises the one who corrects him
• He is destined for destruction and damnation
He delights in his scorning. Proverbs 1:22 “How long will scoffers delight in scoffing?” It gives him a feeling of superiority. He defies instruction: Proverbs 13:1: “A wise son hears his father’s instruction, but a scorner hears not rebuke.” You can’t tell a smart aleck anything…he already knows everything. You might as well be talking to a brick wall; he will tune you out. He despises the good and the godly. Proverbs 15:12 “A fool despises his father’s instruction.” You correct a scorner and he may not open his mouth, but he will look at you with his eyes he’ll be saying “I hate your guts.” Proverbs 9:7, 8 “Whoever corrects a scoffer get himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury. Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you.” Tell him what is right, and he will insult you to your face. He is destined for destruction. Proverbs 13:1, 13 “A wise son hears his father’s instruction, but a scorner hears not rebuke.” “Whoever despises the words shall be destroyed.” He can laugh his way to hell, but he can’t laugh his way out. He is destined for destruction, but you can’t tell him anything…when you talk to him, it is like pouring water on a rock. At one time, he was gullable, naïve and open. But now he’s not that way.
Level Three
The identifying marks of being a fool (rebel):
• He rejects wisdom
• He ridicules righteousness
• He rejoices in sin
• He is reserved for hell
He rejects wisdom. Proverbs 1:22 “fools hate knowledge”. The other two are known by what they love; the fool is known by what he hates. He literally hates knowledge. Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” He ridicules righteousness. Proverbs 14:9 “Fools mock at sin.” Anything that is holy they put down, anything that is unholy they laugh at. He rejoices in sin. Proverbs 10:1”A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is the grief of his mother. Folly is a joy to him” Isaiah 5:20 “Who unto them who call evil good and good evil, that put darkness for light and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” He is reserved for hell. Proverbs 17:10 “A rebuke is more effective for a wise man than a hundred blows for a fool.” The problem is his moral sense has been destroyed and his conscience has been perverted. You take a fool and beat him, you won’t change him. Lock him up in prison and he’ll come out a worse criminal. Take away his privileges; he’ll just hate you more and more. He is SET. There is hardly (if any) hope for a fool according to scriptures. But God is merciful.
The difference between a godly man and a fool is the difference between David and Pharoh. When David sinned, Nathan rebuked him and he repented. But when Pharoh sinned, and Moses rebuked him, the bible says he hardened his heart all the more. And as the plagues got worse, Pharoh got further and further away from God. The more the stripes were laid on his back, the harder the fool called Pharoh went deeper and deeper into sin.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
John MacArthur on the Doctrine of Election
"My own struggle with the doctrine of election comes from my emotion. It comes from the influences of my fallen heart. It comes from my expectation that everybody ought to have a right to make a choice. And it also comes from the early years of my Christian experience when I didn’t understand what it meant to be depraved. As a young Christian, I didn’t understand how really dead the sinner is. That is the bottom line issue here. Salvation has to be all of God if you understand the doctrine of human depravity. If you understand what it means to be utterly unable to do right, unable to know God, dead in trespasses and sin in the most profound kind of unalterable death about which you can do nothing, and if you understand there is no human merit, there is no human effort, there is nothing we can do to alter that situation or to please God. Out of the doctrine of what I call utter human inability comes the doctrine of election. It was when I understood the sinfulness of man and the total inability of the sinner to do anything about his condition that I was left with nothing but the doctrine of election to solve that problem. That doesn’t, of course, as we said today, solve all of the tensions...we’ll have to wait for heaven to come to a full understanding of that."
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Our Hope is in Heaven
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. Revelations 21:1,2 and 5
In 2001, my parents built a beautiful new home, with every detail to their specifications. I remember walking through that home in awe of the sparkling marble countertops, the pristine cabinets and the perfectly polished wood floors. It was hard to imagine a time when this house would be anything but spectacular. My parents diligently continue to take great pride and effort in keeping it in top condition, and yet, in fifty years, this house will show signs of wear and tear, depending on the level of attention it is given by its caretaker.
Just think of this: HEAVEN WILL NEVER WEAR DOWN. Everything there will ALWAYS be new, always be clean, always sparkle like a bride prepared for her groom. In times when there are many people who are discouraged and disillusioned, we all need to rememberthat our hope is not here on this earth. God tells us that: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” Just imagine…NO ONE has even thought of the things that God has prepared for you in heaven! No one! Be encouraged to endure to the end, dear Christian!
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Why I Don't Evangelize
by Erik Raymond
There have been periods of my Christian life where I have, by God’s grace, enjoyed fervent zeal towards evangelism. However, there are other spells of indifference and flat out negligence. To be honest, I really hate the way this fluxes.
I have tried different things to rev myself up and stimulate faithfulness, but at the end of the day it comes down to two things: 1) my view of God, and 2) my view of others
My View of God
When I think about evangelism as proclaiming “the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2.9) I begin calibrating my heart with the reality of the message proclaimed. For in the gospel, we speak of the most God-exalting truth available, and the most effective truth available; for it (the gospel) is the power of God for salvation (Rom. 1.16).
I need to spend more time at my Master’s feet, learning to pray like a Christian, for it is indeed the instruction of Jesus that his disciples pray with a God-centered zeal, “Hallowed by your name”. Yes, I must truly want this. I must truly desire to see the name of my God exalted. Lord, make your name hallowed, make it holy, for it is being disregarded, vindicate yourself through the proclamation of the gospel.
This is good for me spiritually. It is good to find myself seeing the disparity between my will and my Father’s. And it is good to run back to him for a healthy calibration! In evangelism we are proclaiming the glory of God by declaring his excellencies, knowing that this brings God pleasure, honor and glory, regardless of whether or not the individual is converted.
My View of Others
On the other hand I am convicted by my own lack of love for others. This is really an outflow of the first, for if I do not love God rightly how can I love my neighbor?!
So here I am walking the planet with a pharisaical mindset, ignoring the greatest need for people. What is wrong with me? I can talk to them about the weather, sports, politics, food or whatever, but Jesus? This is not on my tongue.
Why? Why can I walk by the man or woman who has been beaten by the affects of sin and not open my mouth? There they sit, ever afflicted by the beatings, like the young man voyaging from Jerusalem to Jericho who fell upon robbers (Luke 10.30-34) and I am like the Levite or the preist who just walked on by. I have a medicine cabinet strapped to my back and I ignore them like they are not even there? Why? I do not love them. Perhaps you can relate?
One thing that has been particularly helpful relative to loving others with the gospel is to look into people’s eyes. No I did not just go off the deep end. We live in a society where we fly by one another without even noticing each other, and when we look for more than the accepted 2.8 seconds, suddenly we are psychotic. What I am advocating is to look at people. Watch them, pray for them, look into their eyes as they speak to you. Hear their heart cry for relief. When you are filled with divine love for the glory of God and fueled for a love for your neighbor, a good healthy look into a person’s eyes will convict you to the quick to evangelize and cease from meaningless dialogue about such futile things as the weather, the news or other distractions.
In this vein I was struck by Alex Montoya’s words in his helpful book, Preaching with Passion. Montoya is a professor at The Master’s Seminary in Sun Valley, CA. Montoya writing in the context of loosing compassion for people:
“That is when I retreat to a small taco stand in the barrio of East Los Angeles, to a place where real people live. I order a cup of coffee and sit with my back against the wall. Then I watch, I observe, I read, and I listen intently for the heart cry.
A group of gang-bangers come in for a snack—one in four will die before the age of eighteen; two of the others will end up in prison. All are doomed to a hard life. A young mother comes in with her brood of youngsters. It is obvious they are poor. They share drinks. They live in poverty; some will never see a forest or snow. An old drunk staggers in, begging for a meal. He is quickly thrown out. That was somebody’s baby boy. A mother at one time cradled that man and nursed him….I look, I listen until I hear their cries, until their souls cry out to me, “Please help, I’m perishing!” until the tears pour forth from my melted heart! I am in love with humanity once again.”
Perhaps you can relate to my tension. If you struggle like I do, I’d encourage you to pray to God that you might love him more, more along the lines with which he loves himself. And likewise that he would be kind to cause you to love others more, more along the lines with which he loves others. Pray that God would let you hear folks’ hearts cry and that would open your mouth to speak the words of eternal life, joy and grace. We do know why we do not evangelize and this fact should bring us back to the reason why we must.
There have been periods of my Christian life where I have, by God’s grace, enjoyed fervent zeal towards evangelism. However, there are other spells of indifference and flat out negligence. To be honest, I really hate the way this fluxes.
I have tried different things to rev myself up and stimulate faithfulness, but at the end of the day it comes down to two things: 1) my view of God, and 2) my view of others
My View of God
When I think about evangelism as proclaiming “the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2.9) I begin calibrating my heart with the reality of the message proclaimed. For in the gospel, we speak of the most God-exalting truth available, and the most effective truth available; for it (the gospel) is the power of God for salvation (Rom. 1.16).
I need to spend more time at my Master’s feet, learning to pray like a Christian, for it is indeed the instruction of Jesus that his disciples pray with a God-centered zeal, “Hallowed by your name”. Yes, I must truly want this. I must truly desire to see the name of my God exalted. Lord, make your name hallowed, make it holy, for it is being disregarded, vindicate yourself through the proclamation of the gospel.
This is good for me spiritually. It is good to find myself seeing the disparity between my will and my Father’s. And it is good to run back to him for a healthy calibration! In evangelism we are proclaiming the glory of God by declaring his excellencies, knowing that this brings God pleasure, honor and glory, regardless of whether or not the individual is converted.
My View of Others
On the other hand I am convicted by my own lack of love for others. This is really an outflow of the first, for if I do not love God rightly how can I love my neighbor?!
So here I am walking the planet with a pharisaical mindset, ignoring the greatest need for people. What is wrong with me? I can talk to them about the weather, sports, politics, food or whatever, but Jesus? This is not on my tongue.
Why? Why can I walk by the man or woman who has been beaten by the affects of sin and not open my mouth? There they sit, ever afflicted by the beatings, like the young man voyaging from Jerusalem to Jericho who fell upon robbers (Luke 10.30-34) and I am like the Levite or the preist who just walked on by. I have a medicine cabinet strapped to my back and I ignore them like they are not even there? Why? I do not love them. Perhaps you can relate?
One thing that has been particularly helpful relative to loving others with the gospel is to look into people’s eyes. No I did not just go off the deep end. We live in a society where we fly by one another without even noticing each other, and when we look for more than the accepted 2.8 seconds, suddenly we are psychotic. What I am advocating is to look at people. Watch them, pray for them, look into their eyes as they speak to you. Hear their heart cry for relief. When you are filled with divine love for the glory of God and fueled for a love for your neighbor, a good healthy look into a person’s eyes will convict you to the quick to evangelize and cease from meaningless dialogue about such futile things as the weather, the news or other distractions.
In this vein I was struck by Alex Montoya’s words in his helpful book, Preaching with Passion. Montoya is a professor at The Master’s Seminary in Sun Valley, CA. Montoya writing in the context of loosing compassion for people:
“That is when I retreat to a small taco stand in the barrio of East Los Angeles, to a place where real people live. I order a cup of coffee and sit with my back against the wall. Then I watch, I observe, I read, and I listen intently for the heart cry.
A group of gang-bangers come in for a snack—one in four will die before the age of eighteen; two of the others will end up in prison. All are doomed to a hard life. A young mother comes in with her brood of youngsters. It is obvious they are poor. They share drinks. They live in poverty; some will never see a forest or snow. An old drunk staggers in, begging for a meal. He is quickly thrown out. That was somebody’s baby boy. A mother at one time cradled that man and nursed him….I look, I listen until I hear their cries, until their souls cry out to me, “Please help, I’m perishing!” until the tears pour forth from my melted heart! I am in love with humanity once again.”
Perhaps you can relate to my tension. If you struggle like I do, I’d encourage you to pray to God that you might love him more, more along the lines with which he loves himself. And likewise that he would be kind to cause you to love others more, more along the lines with which he loves others. Pray that God would let you hear folks’ hearts cry and that would open your mouth to speak the words of eternal life, joy and grace. We do know why we do not evangelize and this fact should bring us back to the reason why we must.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Why Do Christians Suffer?
by Bill Bright
Without warning, something can happen that will change your life forever:
A loved one is disabled by an accident or illness.
A promising career is cut short by an injury.
A child is born disabled or sick, or dies.
A marriage crumbles; children choose not to follow Christ.
A fire, flood, or earthquake destroys your home or business.
A loved one is killed in battle, by terrorists, a gang, or by thieves.
How do you react? Do you fall apart? Do you become bitter? Do you question God?
Life is filled with suffering because we live in a world that has been corrupted by sin. Each of us will experience some measure of agony during our lifetime. Its form and duration will vary, but it will come. At times, you may feel overpowered by seeming tidal waves of adversity. You may find yourself flailing in an ocean of pain, anguish, or despair.
In the midst of such difficulties, your mind may scream questions like, “Why did this happen to me?” or “God, where are You?”
A dear friend, at age 17, entered into a lifetime of severe suffering. As Joni Eareckson dove into a bay, she broke her neck and had to be pulled from the water. Since then, Joni has been unable to feel or move her arms and legs. The suffering she experiences is more than most of us will ever be able to understand. In her sorrow, Joni asked a question that I am sure all of us have pondered when going through great difficulty or tragedy: “What possible good can come out of what I am now going through?” She also asked, “Why me?”
How many times have you had something happen to you and asked that same question—a question that seems to be the universal cry of those who suffer? “The suffering and pain,” Joni explains, “have helped me mature emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Pain and suffering have purpose. I believe God was working in my life to create grace and wisdom out of the chaos of pain and depression.”
Esteemed Oxford scholar and author C.S. Lewis said, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”1
Suffering is a catalyst that produces spiritual change. God intends suffering to draw you into His loving arms. Satan (a very real foe), however, tries to use hardship as a wedge to pry you away from God. As a result, whenever a crisis enters your life, so does the temptation to doubt God’s love, goodness, and faithfulness. You are then faced with a crucial, daily decision. Will you trust God to work in your circumstances or turn your back on Him as you seek relief or comfort in other ways? Your faith in God and attitude toward Him ultimately determine whether your trials will make you a better person or serve as tools for your destruction.
Jesus explains, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness” (John 10:10). God loves you and has a great plan for your life. However, that plan for your good includes suffering.
It is often during times of suffering that we learn to refocus our lives on God. David confessed in Psalm 119:71, “The suffering You sent was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to Your principles.” God has a purpose for every difficulty you encounter. Although this purpose is seldom obvious at the time, you must always remember that God does not want to destroy you through adversity. Rather, He wants to shape you for His glory and to conform you to the image of Christ. He does not send suffering to crush you; He wants you to triumph through suffering.
Let us consider seven benefits God brings out of adversity. You can remember them by the acrostic TRIUMPH. God uses suffering to produce…TRIUMPH
Training in obedience
Refinement of your character
Intimacy with your compassionate God and Savior
Understanding of the hurts of others
Maturity for ministering to others
Perseverance in difficult times
Hope for the future
(for the rest of this wonderful article, see the link (to the left) under Questions Corner "Why Do Christians Suffer?"
Without warning, something can happen that will change your life forever:
A loved one is disabled by an accident or illness.
A promising career is cut short by an injury.
A child is born disabled or sick, or dies.
A marriage crumbles; children choose not to follow Christ.
A fire, flood, or earthquake destroys your home or business.
A loved one is killed in battle, by terrorists, a gang, or by thieves.
How do you react? Do you fall apart? Do you become bitter? Do you question God?
Life is filled with suffering because we live in a world that has been corrupted by sin. Each of us will experience some measure of agony during our lifetime. Its form and duration will vary, but it will come. At times, you may feel overpowered by seeming tidal waves of adversity. You may find yourself flailing in an ocean of pain, anguish, or despair.
In the midst of such difficulties, your mind may scream questions like, “Why did this happen to me?” or “God, where are You?”
A dear friend, at age 17, entered into a lifetime of severe suffering. As Joni Eareckson dove into a bay, she broke her neck and had to be pulled from the water. Since then, Joni has been unable to feel or move her arms and legs. The suffering she experiences is more than most of us will ever be able to understand. In her sorrow, Joni asked a question that I am sure all of us have pondered when going through great difficulty or tragedy: “What possible good can come out of what I am now going through?” She also asked, “Why me?”
How many times have you had something happen to you and asked that same question—a question that seems to be the universal cry of those who suffer? “The suffering and pain,” Joni explains, “have helped me mature emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Pain and suffering have purpose. I believe God was working in my life to create grace and wisdom out of the chaos of pain and depression.”
Esteemed Oxford scholar and author C.S. Lewis said, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”1
Suffering is a catalyst that produces spiritual change. God intends suffering to draw you into His loving arms. Satan (a very real foe), however, tries to use hardship as a wedge to pry you away from God. As a result, whenever a crisis enters your life, so does the temptation to doubt God’s love, goodness, and faithfulness. You are then faced with a crucial, daily decision. Will you trust God to work in your circumstances or turn your back on Him as you seek relief or comfort in other ways? Your faith in God and attitude toward Him ultimately determine whether your trials will make you a better person or serve as tools for your destruction.
Jesus explains, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness” (John 10:10). God loves you and has a great plan for your life. However, that plan for your good includes suffering.
It is often during times of suffering that we learn to refocus our lives on God. David confessed in Psalm 119:71, “The suffering You sent was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to Your principles.” God has a purpose for every difficulty you encounter. Although this purpose is seldom obvious at the time, you must always remember that God does not want to destroy you through adversity. Rather, He wants to shape you for His glory and to conform you to the image of Christ. He does not send suffering to crush you; He wants you to triumph through suffering.
Let us consider seven benefits God brings out of adversity. You can remember them by the acrostic TRIUMPH. God uses suffering to produce…TRIUMPH
Training in obedience
Refinement of your character
Intimacy with your compassionate God and Savior
Understanding of the hurts of others
Maturity for ministering to others
Perseverance in difficult times
Hope for the future
(for the rest of this wonderful article, see the link (to the left) under Questions Corner "Why Do Christians Suffer?"
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Take This Quiz
1. A preacher and his wife are very, very poor. They already have 14 kids. Now she finds out she’s pregnant with the 15th. They’re living in tremendous poverty. Considering their poverty and the excessive world population, would you consider recommending she get an abortion?
2. The father is sick with sniffles, the mother has TB. Of their four children, the first is blind, the second has died, the third is deaf, the fourth has TB. She finds she’s pregnant again. Given this extreme situation, would you consider recommending abortion?
3. A white man raped a 13-year-old black girl and she’s now pregnant. If you were her parents, would you consider recommending abortion?
4. A teenage girl is pregnant. She’s not married. Her fiancé is not the father of the baby, and he’s upset. Would you recommend abortion?
In the first case, you would have killed John Wesley, one of the great evangelists in the 19th century. In the second case, you would have killed Beethoven. In the third case, you would have killed Ethel Waters, the great black gospel singer. If you said yes to the fourth case, you would have declared the murder of Jesus Christ!
God is the author of life, and He has givenevery single individual supreme value. Each life—whether inside or outside the womb—should therefore be valued by us. God knows the plans He has for each individual and has written in His book all the days ordained for us before one of them came to be. When we presume to know better than God who should be given life, we are putting ourselves in the place of God and are guilty of idolatry.
The Titanic
by Ray Comfort
The story of the Titanic has incredibly close parallels to the biblical plan of salvation. Just as the great pleasure ship struck an iceberg and sank, this great world—with all its inhabitants—is slowly sinking into the cold grip of death. As with the Titanic, where only those passengers who believed that they were in impending danger looked to the lifeboats, so only those who believe that they are in mortal danger will look to the Lifeboat of the Savior, Jesus Christ. The great “iceberg” that will take the world to an icy grave is the Moral Law—the Ten Commandments.
Here is the evidence that we are sinking: Jesus said that if we look with lust, we commit adultery in our heart. No one who has had sex outside of marriage, or any liar, or any thief will enter heaven. The Bible says that if we hate someone, we are guilty of murder. We fail to put God first. We make a god in our image. We break all the Commandments. If we stay with the “ship,” we will perish on the Day of Judgment, when all of our sins come out as evidence of our guilt. God, however, is rich in mercy and doesn’t want anyone to go to hell. He made a way for us to be saved. Jesus Christ, the One whom the Bible calls the “Captain of our salvation,” gave His life so that we could have a place in the lifeboat. He took our punishment upon Himself, suffering on the cross for us. We broke God’s Law, but He paid our fine. Then He rose from the dead, defeating death. The moment we repent and trust in Him alone for our eternal salvation, God will forgive us and grant us the gift of eternal life.
Don’t hesitate. You may wait until it’s too late! It was reported that some of the lifeboats that left the Titanic early were only half full. Many more on board could have been saved, but they refused to believe that the great “unsinkable” ship was sinking. They perished because their faith was misguided. Don’t be like them. Believe the gospel. Repent and trust Jesus Christ today ...and God will never let you down.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Taxpayers Will Fund Abortions -- Obama's Claim to "Govern from the Center" and "Find Common Ground" Null and Void
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Members of the team Barack Obama has put together confirmed over the weekend that the incoming president will immediately overturn executive orders President Bush put in place as soon as possible after he takes office. The Bush orders have protected taxpayers on key pro-life issues.
The advisors confirm the concerns pro-life advocates had during the presidential election campaign.
They indicated Obama would overturn a Bush policy that prevents forcing taxpayers to fund groups that perform or promote abortions in other countries. Known as the Mexico City Policy and first instituted during the Reagan administration, President Bush expanded the policy to make sure no State Department funding goes to the pro-abortion groups.
Obama would also overturn President Bush's policy against funding any new embryonic stem cell research.
Put in place in August 2001, the policy prevents taxpayers from paying for new embryonic research that involves the destruction of human life. Bush directed most of the public funding for the science to adult stem cells, which are more ethical and have proven more effective than their embryonic counterparts.
Embryonic stem cells, in addition to including the destruction of days-old unborn children, has yet to work in humans because of significant problems after they are injected into the body -- ranging from the growth of tumors to immune system rejection issues.
The Washington Post reports that the transition team members are working with top special interest groups and leading pro-abortion members of Congress on prioritizing the executive orders that Obama will reverse.
President Bill Clinton overturned the Mexico City Policy on his first day in office and the reports indicated Obama will too.
Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion business, told the Post that she expects Obama to rescind the protections on taxpayer-funded abortions and abortion counseling immediately after his inauguration.
"We have been communicating with his transition staff" almost daily, Richards said. "We expect to see a real change."
The Post also indicates that Rep. Diana DeGette, a Colorado Democrat who has been one of the primary members of Congress pushing for embryonic stem cell research funding, prodded Obama during the campaign to make it a priority.
She told the newspaper that supporters of funding the destructive and unproven research have already drafted language for an executive order that Obama can use.
Responding to the news, Patrick J. Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition told LifeNews.com that Obama's making taxpayers fund abortion takes away from his claims to want to govern from the center and find common ground on abortion.
Mahoney said "it would greatly increase abortions around the world. It would also create a scenario in which American evangelicals and Catholics would be paying for abortion referrals through their tax dollars."
"If President-elect Obama reverses this policy, it would show a complete and blatant disregard for the faith values of millions of American Christians as well as expanding the violence and tragedy of abortion worldwide. America should be exporting justice and human rights, not brutality and violence," he said.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
What if my Leaders Are Wolves?
by Pastor Anton Bosch
Are you convinced that the leaders of your church are wolves in sheep’s clothing?
If so what should you do?
The answer to that question is not very easy because there is a chance that your assessment may be wrong. The various characteristics Jesus lists in Matthew 23, and that we have discussed over the past few weeks, could be very difficult to measure in absolute terms. The line between a strong leader and an abusive one often runs very thin.
So get advice. Speak to another pastor, elder or experienced brother and ask them to confirm or allay your fears. Please note that I am not encouraging gossip. Do not discuss your concerns with just anyone. Preferably seek the counsel of someone who can be trusted, who is not in your church, and who has experience in these matters. Even then, it is very easy to exaggerate the bad and underemphasize the good. So, try to be as objective and as honest in your report as possible.
Once the advisor makes the judgment, then abide by it. Don’t go around looking for advice that will suit your agenda. Unfortunately, those who find themselves in abusive situations are often isolated from any outside ministry and it would be hard for them to find good counsel, but it is important nonetheless to get good advice.
(The reason I advocate getting outside counsel is because if the leaders are abusive and indeed wolves, they will simply deny the charge and convince/intimidate you into believing that what they are doing is right.)
Should you discover that your leaders are indeed abusive, then what should you do?
Well, the Scripture is clear – go to the one with whom you have the problem and tell him his fault alone. (Matthew 18:15). His response will go a long way to confirm or deny your fear. If he is a godly man he will respond in a godly way but if his response is one of anger, vindication, victimization - or in any way negative – then your hunch has been confirmed. If you are satisfied with the response of the brother, then try to build on that and see if there is a change in him, or in your attitude. A true shepherd will leave you without any doubt that he is a true shepherd.
If, however, his response is negative then you have a real problem because the next step is to take witnesses with you. (Matthew 18:16, 1Timothy 5:19). The first problem is that in an abusive situation, most folk will be so intimidated that they will not be willing to testify. And the second problem is that most believers do not have what it takes to confront a wolf who is entrenched in leadership. This leaves you with only one option: run for your life.
Too many people remain in churches where the leader is a wolf because they feel that they can fix the situation. Do not be deceived. Someone who is not in a very powerful position in leadership themselves will never be able to change a situation where the leaders are wolves. I do not know of a single example where those under the domination of an abusive leader have ever been able to bring about significant change. Have you ever noticed, that Jesus never even tried to convert the scribes and Pharisees, except for the two who came to him (Nicodemus and Joseph)? Why do you think He did not try to transform the synagogues with their system of scribes, rabbis and lawyers?
Jesus warned: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.” (Luke 12:1). And in Matthew 16:11&12 He says: “How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? – but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Thus Jesus refers to both the hypocrisy and the doctrine of these leaders as leaven. Why did he not refer to it as dirt or weakness or some other analogy? Why is it leaven? Because there is a cure for filth, weakness, a lack of understanding and even sin, but there is no cure for leaven.
Once a little leaven gets into the lump of dough, it will penetrate at a microscopic level until the whole lump is infected with the yeast. (1Corinthians 5:6, Galatians 5:9). Paul says the only way to purge leaven out is to make a clean break with the source of the leaven and to have a new lump of dough. (1Corinthians 5:7). If the source of leaven is one of the believers, it is relatively easy to put him out of the church (after following Matthew 18), but if the source is a/the leader, it becomes almost impossible to deal with. Either way, distance has to be put between you and the source of the leaven.
One of the popular errors propagated by abusive leaders is that as long as the believers are in submission to the leaders, the Lord will reward those believers for their submission but the leaders will be judged for the error. Thus they tell you not to worry too much about where the church is going – that is up to the leadership and even if the whole church is led astray, the followers will be fine because they are being obedient and it is not their task to discern right from wrong.
This is a sure sign of a church that is already deep into heresy. “Each of us shall give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12). Even in the Old Testament it was established that “all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; the soul who sins shall die.” (Ezekiel 18:4). And “each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor” (1Corinthians 3:8). Each one of us is responsible before the Lord and, while shepherds will give an account for the flock, the sheep will never be able to blame their failure on the shepherd.
In Revelation 2:18-23, Jesus speaks about Jezebel (a symbolic name for an actual person in the church of Thyatira) “who calls herself a prophetess (who) teach(es) and seduce(s) My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.” (verse 20). While He pronounces a severe judgment on her, He judges the church for allowing her to continue her evil work, but even more startling, Jesus says that He will also “kill her children with (eternal) death” (verse 23). This means that those who are followers of false prophets will be judged with the same judgment as the false prophets! So don’t think you can continue following false shepherds and not be contaminated with their error, or worse, be condemned with the same judgment.
To those who find themselves in a false religious system God says: “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4
Are you convinced that the leaders of your church are wolves in sheep’s clothing?
If so what should you do?
The answer to that question is not very easy because there is a chance that your assessment may be wrong. The various characteristics Jesus lists in Matthew 23, and that we have discussed over the past few weeks, could be very difficult to measure in absolute terms. The line between a strong leader and an abusive one often runs very thin.
So get advice. Speak to another pastor, elder or experienced brother and ask them to confirm or allay your fears. Please note that I am not encouraging gossip. Do not discuss your concerns with just anyone. Preferably seek the counsel of someone who can be trusted, who is not in your church, and who has experience in these matters. Even then, it is very easy to exaggerate the bad and underemphasize the good. So, try to be as objective and as honest in your report as possible.
Once the advisor makes the judgment, then abide by it. Don’t go around looking for advice that will suit your agenda. Unfortunately, those who find themselves in abusive situations are often isolated from any outside ministry and it would be hard for them to find good counsel, but it is important nonetheless to get good advice.
(The reason I advocate getting outside counsel is because if the leaders are abusive and indeed wolves, they will simply deny the charge and convince/intimidate you into believing that what they are doing is right.)
Should you discover that your leaders are indeed abusive, then what should you do?
Well, the Scripture is clear – go to the one with whom you have the problem and tell him his fault alone. (Matthew 18:15). His response will go a long way to confirm or deny your fear. If he is a godly man he will respond in a godly way but if his response is one of anger, vindication, victimization - or in any way negative – then your hunch has been confirmed. If you are satisfied with the response of the brother, then try to build on that and see if there is a change in him, or in your attitude. A true shepherd will leave you without any doubt that he is a true shepherd.
If, however, his response is negative then you have a real problem because the next step is to take witnesses with you. (Matthew 18:16, 1Timothy 5:19). The first problem is that in an abusive situation, most folk will be so intimidated that they will not be willing to testify. And the second problem is that most believers do not have what it takes to confront a wolf who is entrenched in leadership. This leaves you with only one option: run for your life.
Too many people remain in churches where the leader is a wolf because they feel that they can fix the situation. Do not be deceived. Someone who is not in a very powerful position in leadership themselves will never be able to change a situation where the leaders are wolves. I do not know of a single example where those under the domination of an abusive leader have ever been able to bring about significant change. Have you ever noticed, that Jesus never even tried to convert the scribes and Pharisees, except for the two who came to him (Nicodemus and Joseph)? Why do you think He did not try to transform the synagogues with their system of scribes, rabbis and lawyers?
Jesus warned: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.” (Luke 12:1). And in Matthew 16:11&12 He says: “How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? – but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Thus Jesus refers to both the hypocrisy and the doctrine of these leaders as leaven. Why did he not refer to it as dirt or weakness or some other analogy? Why is it leaven? Because there is a cure for filth, weakness, a lack of understanding and even sin, but there is no cure for leaven.
Once a little leaven gets into the lump of dough, it will penetrate at a microscopic level until the whole lump is infected with the yeast. (1Corinthians 5:6, Galatians 5:9). Paul says the only way to purge leaven out is to make a clean break with the source of the leaven and to have a new lump of dough. (1Corinthians 5:7). If the source of leaven is one of the believers, it is relatively easy to put him out of the church (after following Matthew 18), but if the source is a/the leader, it becomes almost impossible to deal with. Either way, distance has to be put between you and the source of the leaven.
One of the popular errors propagated by abusive leaders is that as long as the believers are in submission to the leaders, the Lord will reward those believers for their submission but the leaders will be judged for the error. Thus they tell you not to worry too much about where the church is going – that is up to the leadership and even if the whole church is led astray, the followers will be fine because they are being obedient and it is not their task to discern right from wrong.
This is a sure sign of a church that is already deep into heresy. “Each of us shall give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12). Even in the Old Testament it was established that “all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; the soul who sins shall die.” (Ezekiel 18:4). And “each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor” (1Corinthians 3:8). Each one of us is responsible before the Lord and, while shepherds will give an account for the flock, the sheep will never be able to blame their failure on the shepherd.
In Revelation 2:18-23, Jesus speaks about Jezebel (a symbolic name for an actual person in the church of Thyatira) “who calls herself a prophetess (who) teach(es) and seduce(s) My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.” (verse 20). While He pronounces a severe judgment on her, He judges the church for allowing her to continue her evil work, but even more startling, Jesus says that He will also “kill her children with (eternal) death” (verse 23). This means that those who are followers of false prophets will be judged with the same judgment as the false prophets! So don’t think you can continue following false shepherds and not be contaminated with their error, or worse, be condemned with the same judgment.
To those who find themselves in a false religious system God says: “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues” (Revelation 18:4
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