Republican presidential candidate John McCain has selected Sarah Palin as his running mate. Sarah Palin is the governor of Alaska and the first woman to ever be a vice presidential candidate for the Republican Party. I have already heard a couple of great comments about her. The basketball team that she played on nicknamed her "Sarah the Baracuda." And when she was in the Miss Alaska beauty contest she won Miss Congeniality and was nicknamed "Fire and Nice."
If you want to know more about Sarah Palin here is a short bio.
Also here is a great radio show by Albert Mohler in which he highlights Sarah Palin and her choice to have a Down Syndrome baby.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Doctrines of Grace
These are basic to the Christian faith and represent the essentials consistently taught during the first three centuries of church history. Unfortunately today we hear far too little because of the movement toward entertainment, events and popular stories. Folks we need to get back to Bible basics so that Christ is demonstrated as great!
Doctrines of Grace - Dr. Steven Lawson
Doctrines of Grace - Dr. Steven Lawson
Marriage Counseling
This is an excellent blog post by Dan Phillips at PyroManiacs on taking a real Biblical approach to marriage counseling. Please read and pass along as needed.
Some of the hardest, scariest, most dangerous, heart-wrenching work pastors do is marital counseling. (I can hear the Amen's from where I sit.)
The pastor is very much like baseball's relief pitcher. He's not called into action when
everything is going great, as a rule. No, the manager waves for him when it's the bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, score tied, and the opposition's power-hitter about to approach the plate.
Similarly, couples often come into the study grim-faced, tight-lipped, angry, bringing years of entrenched patterns of behavior, scar tissue, grudges, and angry memories. Bottom of the ninth. Bases loaded. The breathless crowd leans forward.
And ol' Pastor Bud is supposed to fix everything.
So he tries gamely, God help him. Depending on his orientation, maybe he talks about boundaries, or love language; maybe he tries to teach the husband to think and talk more like a woman. He carries some Bible water around, trying to put out this and that fire -- some of them raging, some of them long-smoldering, like the volcanic belly of Mount St. Helens.
But what if he didn't? What if he did something totally different?
What if, when the pair began to trade accusations, he held up his hand, and said, "Not yet. We can get back to that. What I want you to tell me now is what Jesus Christ means to you. Bob? You first. Then you, Tina."
And then for that entire session at least, all they talked about who Jesus is, who Jesus is to them, and what it means to be a Christian. They talk about their total depravity, about the holiness of God; about the person and work of Christ. They talk about how we are saved by sheer grace, through faith alone, in Christ alone. They talk about how the grace of God makes us new creatures, and how the very bread of the new man is the Word of God.
In very personal terms, they talk about how the Christian life is like a syllogism, where the Lordship of Christ is the major premise, and submission to His Lordship the minor, and all that follows is a matter of working out those two premises.
And what if then at the end, the pastor prays, and assigns homework? What if he hands them each a piece of paper with Genesis 2:24, Proverbs 2:17, Malachi 2:14, Colossians 3:18-19, Ephesians 5:21-33, and 1 Peter 3:1-7 on it, and says, "I want you to read these verses, and come back ready to tell me what God says that marriage is, and what God says your role in it is."
Then what if he just talks about that, next time? What if he sticks with the foundation of a Biblical view of marriage as a covenant? And, assuming the husband and wife do a decent job of summarizing their responsibilities, what if he asks, "Now, which of those God-given obligations was conditioned on whether or not your spouse does his or her part?"
Then what if he concludes that session saying, "Bob, Tina, I want you each independently to do a personal Bible study. Come back ready to tell me what the Bible says about vows and promises and oaths."
And then as the stunned couple turns to leave, what if he adds, "Oh, and when you come back next week, bring your wedding vows with you"?
Next time, if they work hard, they come back with verses like Numbers 30:2, Deuteronomy 23:21-23, Psalm 56:12, 61:4, 8, 76:11, Proverbs 20:25, and Ecclesiastes 5:5. They say that God absolutely expects everyone to keep the promises and vows he makes -- even if keeping those vows actually hurts (Psalm 15:4b).
And then, what if he has each one read his and her vows aloud? What if he then asks, "Are any of those vows contrary to the Word of God?"
If the answer is "No," what if he asks, "Which of those vows is conditioned on your spouse keeping his vows?"
And what if those Scriptures, and those vows, then formed the continuing context for the discussion of any and all marital frictions? That is, what if every complaint, every grudge is put in the context, first, of each person's humble submission to the Lordship of Christ, and second, of each person's sole sworn responsibility to keep his wedding vows from the heart?
Would it not be the case that they would normally be left with two categories of issues: (A) relatively trivial matters that can be readily dealt with in Biblical wisdom and grace, or (B) actual sins, which also can readily be dealt with by repentance, or may become objects of church discipline?
One more question. It may be loaded, but I ask sincerely: do you think that any marriage could be other than happy, where both husband and wife are constantly seeking God for grace heartily and individually to keep their wedding vows, and to fulfill His word? Where both are focusing on their own obligation before God, from the heart?
I close with a reflection on this penetrating thought, these powerful words, from C. S. Lewis:
The Christian promised God that he would keep these vows. The Christian led his spouse to believe she could wager her entire life on his personal commitment before God to those sacred vows.
What if Christian married people were actually expected to know, remember, and honor their wedding vows?
Some of the hardest, scariest, most dangerous, heart-wrenching work pastors do is marital counseling. (I can hear the Amen's from where I sit.)
The pastor is very much like baseball's relief pitcher. He's not called into action when
everything is going great, as a rule. No, the manager waves for him when it's the bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, score tied, and the opposition's power-hitter about to approach the plate.Similarly, couples often come into the study grim-faced, tight-lipped, angry, bringing years of entrenched patterns of behavior, scar tissue, grudges, and angry memories. Bottom of the ninth. Bases loaded. The breathless crowd leans forward.
And ol' Pastor Bud is supposed to fix everything.
So he tries gamely, God help him. Depending on his orientation, maybe he talks about boundaries, or love language; maybe he tries to teach the husband to think and talk more like a woman. He carries some Bible water around, trying to put out this and that fire -- some of them raging, some of them long-smoldering, like the volcanic belly of Mount St. Helens.
But what if he didn't? What if he did something totally different?
What if, when the pair began to trade accusations, he held up his hand, and said, "Not yet. We can get back to that. What I want you to tell me now is what Jesus Christ means to you. Bob? You first. Then you, Tina."
And then for that entire session at least, all they talked about who Jesus is, who Jesus is to them, and what it means to be a Christian. They talk about their total depravity, about the holiness of God; about the person and work of Christ. They talk about how we are saved by sheer grace, through faith alone, in Christ alone. They talk about how the grace of God makes us new creatures, and how the very bread of the new man is the Word of God.
In very personal terms, they talk about how the Christian life is like a syllogism, where the Lordship of Christ is the major premise, and submission to His Lordship the minor, and all that follows is a matter of working out those two premises.
And what if then at the end, the pastor prays, and assigns homework? What if he hands them each a piece of paper with Genesis 2:24, Proverbs 2:17, Malachi 2:14, Colossians 3:18-19, Ephesians 5:21-33, and 1 Peter 3:1-7 on it, and says, "I want you to read these verses, and come back ready to tell me what God says that marriage is, and what God says your role in it is."
Then what if he just talks about that, next time? What if he sticks with the foundation of a Biblical view of marriage as a covenant? And, assuming the husband and wife do a decent job of summarizing their responsibilities, what if he asks, "Now, which of those God-given obligations was conditioned on whether or not your spouse does his or her part?"
Then what if he concludes that session saying, "Bob, Tina, I want you each independently to do a personal Bible study. Come back ready to tell me what the Bible says about vows and promises and oaths."
And then as the stunned couple turns to leave, what if he adds, "Oh, and when you come back next week, bring your wedding vows with you"?
Next time, if they work hard, they come back with verses like Numbers 30:2, Deuteronomy 23:21-23, Psalm 56:12, 61:4, 8, 76:11, Proverbs 20:25, and Ecclesiastes 5:5. They say that God absolutely expects everyone to keep the promises and vows he makes -- even if keeping those vows actually hurts (Psalm 15:4b).
And then, what if he has each one read his and her vows aloud? What if he then asks, "Are any of those vows contrary to the Word of God?"
If the answer is "No," what if he asks, "Which of those vows is conditioned on your spouse keeping his vows?"
And what if those Scriptures, and those vows, then formed the continuing context for the discussion of any and all marital frictions? That is, what if every complaint, every grudge is put in the context, first, of each person's humble submission to the Lordship of Christ, and second, of each person's sole sworn responsibility to keep his wedding vows from the heart?
Would it not be the case that they would normally be left with two categories of issues: (A) relatively trivial matters that can be readily dealt with in Biblical wisdom and grace, or (B) actual sins, which also can readily be dealt with by repentance, or may become objects of church discipline?
One more question. It may be loaded, but I ask sincerely: do you think that any marriage could be other than happy, where both husband and wife are constantly seeking God for grace heartily and individually to keep their wedding vows, and to fulfill His word? Where both are focusing on their own obligation before God, from the heart?
I close with a reflection on this penetrating thought, these powerful words, from C. S. Lewis:
To this someone may reply that he regarded the promise made in church as a mere formality and never intended to keep it. Whom, then, was he trying to deceive when he made it? God? That was really very unwise. Himself? That was not very much wiser. The bride, or bridegroom, or the "in-laws"? That was treacherous. Most often, I think, the couple (or one of them) hoped to deceive the public. They wanted the respectability that is attached to marriage without intending to pay the price: that is, they were imposters, they cheated. If they are still contented cheats, I have nothing to say to them: who would urge the high and hard duty of chastity on the people who have not yet wished to be merely honest? If they have now come to their senses and want to be honest, their promise, already made, constrains them. (Mere Christianity [Macmillan: 1960], p. 97)Lewis, I believe, specifically had marital fidelity in mind. But why stop there? If one is expected to keep the promise about "forsaking all other," why not also his promise to "love her, comfort her, honour, and keep her in sickness and in health," or her promise to "obey him, and serve him, love, honour, and keep him in sickness and in health"?
The Christian promised God that he would keep these vows. The Christian led his spouse to believe she could wager her entire life on his personal commitment before God to those sacred vows.
What if Christian married people were actually expected to know, remember, and honor their wedding vows?
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Paul's timeline regarding Colossae
This contribution from Clinton E. Arnold is professor of New Testament language and literature and chair of the New Testament department at Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, California, where he has taught since 1987. The time line comes from his notes on Colossians that he writes for the new ESV study Bible.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Toad strangler
After a drought for the last year Charlotte is getting some serious rain today. I mean it has been raining cats and dogs I went outside and stepped in a "poodle."
Feelings, nothing more than feelings
One day there will be no more sorrow, physical pain, broken relationships or sin of any kind. But until then we deal with the flesh, world and the devil. Do you ever feel like this picture looks? Well the good news about justification is that God is NOT looking at your feelings He is looking at the blood of Jesus. So even when you don't feel great or even good you are still as justified as when you do.
Grace-Joy-Love
Notice in the chart that as grace comes down and joy rises the result is that love overflows. The love that overflows is what results and takes place in the horizontal relationships in our lives. But that is manifested as we are most satisfied in our vertical relationship with God Himself. And it is for this very reason that we are calling this class "learning and living the God-centered life." Because without knowing Him, NOT just knowing about Him the manifestation of love horizontally will show up as DUTY but not DELIGHT.
My devotion time is still in the book of Ezekiel. This morning with this model in mind I became thrilled in my reading of Ezekiel 36. As you know Ezekiel is prophesying to the southern kingdom (Judah) during the Babylonian Captivity. God gives this message to Ezekiel about Israel "these people have polluted the land with murder and by worshiping idols, so I poured out my fury on them." The result of disobedience has brought the very judgment of God on Israel. They have lost their land, the temple has been destroyed and they have been scattered. But in Ezekiel 36:22 God also gives this message to Ezekiel. "I am bringing you back but NOT because you deserve it."
STOP-LOOK-LISTEN
What do we call it when God gives us what we don't deserve? Answer- GRACE!!!
But there is more... God says in essence I am doing this for My glory or for the honor of My name. Well that is the grace coming down part of our chart but what about the joy that rises up? In Ezekiel 36:25-27 here is a list of the "I will's" from God:
1. I WILL sprinkle clean water on you
2. I WILL give you a new heart
3. I WILL give you new desires
4. I WILL take out your stony heart of sin
4. I WILL give you a new obedient heart
5. I WILL put My Spirit within you
And in doing so you will obey My laws and do whatever I command!
Have we as a body of believers been faithful to consistently meditate on these wonderful and glorious "I WILL'S" in Ezekiel 36? As you consider this in your own life and what God did for you that by the way you did not deserve does your JOY start to rise. There is far too little JOY in the lives of those within the church because we fail to understand and meditate on grace.
At the end of Chapter 36 God gives this final reminder to the people. "But remember says the Sovereign Lord, I am not doing this because you deserve it. O my people of Israel you should be utterly ashamed of all you have done!" Do we get the point? What is the one thing that Israel deserved and what is the one thing that you and I deserve?
We deserve condemnation, judgment and eternal punishment for how we have treated the name of God in our thoughts, words and actions! Oh dear leadership team please stop, meditate and pray on this fact! We need to have a recognition like Isaiah who said "WOE is me!" But God while we were still sinners, rebelling, hard of heart and wanting nothing to do with Him, instead He showers us with His GRACE! God gives us a new heart, new desires and His Spirit so that now we have the power and desire to do all that He commands! How much grace is that? Folks, that is AMAZING GRACE. Is joy rising yet?
How long should we teach on grace falling and joy rising? A week, a month, a year or how about a lifetime!
Sunday, August 24, 2008
If you want to be sexually relevant...
From the "A Little Leaven" Blog site:
Pastor Life Coach Paul Wirth of Relevant Church, the man who made national headlines because of his 30 Day Sex Challenge, has just released his sex challenge in book form.
Apparently,Pastor Life Coach Wirth hasn't done his homework. 30 Days of sex is no longer considered relevant by the culture's standards. In fact, 30 days is a drop in the bucket compared to the latest, greatest and most relevant books on sex and intimacy. One of these books is entitled "Just Do It: How One Couple Turned Off the TV and Turned On Their Sex Lives for 101 Days (No Excuses!)" and the other is called 365 Nights: A Memoir of Intimacy. (It is also important to note that neither of these 'new' books require you to read Bible verses before you take your clothes off. All you need is a willing partner.)
It looks like Relevant Church had better go back to the drawing board. 30 Days of sex is now considered passe, boring and irrelevant. It may be a good start for beginners and wimps but the real aficionados of intimacy have something much better to offer us.
We predict that some enterprising and relevantPastor Life Coach at some Seeker-Sensitive Church Self-Help Center will figure this out and will soon release their 365 Day Sex Challenge. Afterall, we have to give seekers what they want and meet their felt needs.
Apparently,
It looks like Relevant Church had better go back to the drawing board. 30 Days of sex is now considered passe, boring and irrelevant. It may be a good start for beginners and wimps but the real aficionados of intimacy have something much better to offer us.
We predict that some enterprising and relevant
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Here we go!
Nancy and I are excited to be part of a new Sunday School Class start up in our local church in Charlotte. It was almost four years ago that we launched a start up church that was disbanded in September of 2007. There were some very tough times but in the long run, we both feel the Lord used that four year period to further prepare us for pastoral ministry. Over the past year we have taken our time, prayed and sought the counsel of other Christian friends. And tomorrow we go back into a full time ministry mode with this particular Sunday School Class. We are part of a wonderful leadership team. Each couple is solidly committed to building Christ honoring relationships through the word of God. Our plan is to study 5 basic doctrines of the Christian faith:
1. Doctrine of God
2. Doctrine of man
3. Doctrine of Christ
4. Doctrine of the Spirit
5. Doctrine of salvation
It may have been easy just to step away from the local church after our start up church disbanded. But I am reminded of Heb. 10:25 "not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." This feels like a brand new start and I am exceedingly grateful to the Lord for providing this wonderful opportunity.
For those of you that come and read this blog, as the Lord may lay it on your heart would you pray for us. The goal of the class is simple. We exist to spread a passion for Christ and His word, in such a way that all we say and do will demonstrate His greatness!
1. Doctrine of God
2. Doctrine of man
3. Doctrine of Christ
4. Doctrine of the Spirit
5. Doctrine of salvation
It may have been easy just to step away from the local church after our start up church disbanded. But I am reminded of Heb. 10:25 "not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." This feels like a brand new start and I am exceedingly grateful to the Lord for providing this wonderful opportunity.
For those of you that come and read this blog, as the Lord may lay it on your heart would you pray for us. The goal of the class is simple. We exist to spread a passion for Christ and His word, in such a way that all we say and do will demonstrate His greatness!
Friday, August 22, 2008
Kingdom of God
A couple of years ago I had the privilege of studying and preaching on the gospel of Matthew. One of the key phrases concerns the kingdom of heaven (32 times). Most scholars conclude that the kingdom of heaven and kingdom of God is synonymous. A while back I came across this lecture from Steven Baugh on the Between Two Worlds blog site regarding "the Kingdom of God."
ESV study Bible introduction
This is a heads up on the ESV Study Bible from the Between Two Worlds blog;
Posted by James Grant
The ESV Study Bible Blog:
A few people have asked to be able to download the five-minute ESV Study Bible intro video so they can show it to their churches. We’re happy to oblige–even tubivores sometimes need to download videos.
Posted by James Grant
The ESV Study Bible Blog:
A few people have asked to be able to download the five-minute ESV Study Bible intro video so they can show it to their churches. We’re happy to oblige–even tubivores sometimes need to download videos.
Download the video in “glorious Quicktime” (as they say). It’s 83 MB at 640×360 resolution. To download, right-click (Ctrl-click on a Mac) and choose “Save Link as…” or “Save Target As….”
God's passion for His name
The Bible is God-centered not man-centered. One of the key categories we will deal with in our class is to show from the Bible that God is passionately God-centered. The first part of the Westminster Confession reads "the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." Even though that is true here is my revision "the chief end of God is to glorify Himself and enjoy Himself forever."
In Ezekiel 20 the LORD is speaking to Ezekiel about three specific events :
1. The Israelites worship of false gods while in Egypt
2. The Israelites disobedience of the law out in the wilderness
3. The children of the parents from the wilderness that disobeyed God even after they arrived in the land
In all three of these situations the LORD tell Ezekiel why he withdrew judgment and did not pour out His fury on them. We might think it was because He loved Israel and they were valuable to Him and therefore He knew they were "diamonds" in the rough so to speak. But this is not at all what the Bible teaches us about God as it regards these events. The reason that God did not pour out His fury nor bring judgment on them was "to protect the honor of His name."
Here are the verses and exactly the way it reads in the New American Standard Version:
Ezek. 20:9 "But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made Myself known to them by bringing them out of the land of Egypt.
Ezek. 20:14 "But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, before whose sight I had brought them out.
Ezek. 20:22 "But I withdrew My hand and acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations in whose sight I had brought them out.
Do you get the main point? It is not about the people of Israel it is about God Himself! God is most passionate about His name, His glory and Himself. May we learn to pray and live this way (God-centered) in a culture that is constantly trying its best to convince us and our children that life is about us!
In Ezekiel 20 the LORD is speaking to Ezekiel about three specific events :
1. The Israelites worship of false gods while in Egypt
2. The Israelites disobedience of the law out in the wilderness
3. The children of the parents from the wilderness that disobeyed God even after they arrived in the land
In all three of these situations the LORD tell Ezekiel why he withdrew judgment and did not pour out His fury on them. We might think it was because He loved Israel and they were valuable to Him and therefore He knew they were "diamonds" in the rough so to speak. But this is not at all what the Bible teaches us about God as it regards these events. The reason that God did not pour out His fury nor bring judgment on them was "to protect the honor of His name."
Here are the verses and exactly the way it reads in the New American Standard Version:
Ezek. 20:9 "But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made Myself known to them by bringing them out of the land of Egypt.
Ezek. 20:14 "But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, before whose sight I had brought them out.
Ezek. 20:22 "But I withdrew My hand and acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations in whose sight I had brought them out.
Do you get the main point? It is not about the people of Israel it is about God Himself! God is most passionate about His name, His glory and Himself. May we learn to pray and live this way (God-centered) in a culture that is constantly trying its best to convince us and our children that life is about us!
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Devotion in Ezkiel
This past week I have been reading in the book of Ezekiel. Do you know the most commonly repeated phrase in this book? It is the phrase "I am the LORD." Actually it occurs 67 times, more than any other book in the Old Testament. Ezekiel was written during Israel's exile to Babylonian. These were difficult days for the people of God and the message God gave through Ezekiel to the people was "I am the LORD." When Moses was hesitant about going back to Egypt to speak with God's people, he asked God who shall I say sent me? And God said to Moses "tell them I AM sent you." Folks, do we know how many problems would be immediately solved in the church today by really knowing He is the great I AM. God in essence was saying to them and He is saying to us I AM your comforter, I AM your protector, I AM your wisdom, I AM your peace, I AM your helper, I AM your provider, I AM your life. What need, what problem, what concern might you have right now? God is saying trust Me, depend on Me for I AM the great I AM.
Believe it or not!
I don't know, have never heard nor met Patricia King but here is a sample of her teaching. Folks, we are living the days of many false teachers. Each of us need to be good Bereans (Acts17:11) as we align our lives to the plumb line of God's word.
Yes, there is more. Have you heard of a mortuary ministry?
Part 2 of Believe it or Not!
Yes, there is more. Have you heard of a mortuary ministry?
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
To all brothers and sisters in Christ
This is a profound letter From Erik Raymond's Blog:
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I need you. I need you to help me. I need you to live your life in such a way that it intends to draw my attention to the glory and greatness of our God. I beg you not to sleep in tomorrow morning but instead to get up and read your Bible. Discover afresh the beauty of God in the sacred text. Dwell upon his faithfulness to his own promises. Muse upon his glorious gift of grace in the salvation of sinners like you and me. Write the Word of God upon your own heart so that it produces reverence for God.
Also, I urge you to spend time on your knees in prayer. And whatever you do, don’t fall asleep, don’t let your mind wander; don’t stop praying until you start praying. Drive yourself into humble submission before the great and infinite reservoir of grace that you might find help in your neediness.
As you leave and go about your day, please preach the glories of the gospel to yourself. Tell yourself afresh of the glorious gift of grace, the Lord Jesus Christ, that incarnation of holiness and love; hear again the words of John the Baptist, “Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1.29) Watch him obey the Law in your place, see his perfection in both speech and in deed. Hear him say afresh, “I always do what is pleasing to my Father” (John 8.29). Watch him march resolutely to the cross to purchase our redemption. See him pray for his executioners, evangelize his fellow cross-bearers, gasp for breath, commission his disciple, proclaim it is finished, and then give up his life. See him here and marvel. But don’t stop here! Run with the disciples to the tomb and stoop with them and see, see ‘the linen cloths by themselves’ and you too come away ‘marveling at what had happened’ (Luke 24.12). Rejoice at the reality of the living Savior who has given his life to vindicate the glory of God and rescue a people for himself.
Now as you leave, sing the doctrinal praise along with Paul “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 1.3ff) in tune with Peter with “joy inexpressible” (1 Pet. 1.8).
And now believer, come and talk to a Christian like me and tell me something. Tell me something eternal (Ps. 92.8)! Give me something for my soul (Matt. 4.4)! Tell me what impresses you about Christ (Matt. 8.27)! Tell me of the gospel’s power (Rom. 1.16)! Tell me of Christ’s success as a high priest (Heb. 7.27)! Tell me of his impending return (Matt. 24.30)! Tell me of the divine purpose in trials (Jam 1.3-5)! Tell me the perseverance of the saints (Jude 24)! Tell me of the ultimate success of the church (Matt. 16.18)! Tell me God’s gracious work in your life (2 Cor. 3.18)! Tell me of the purity and power of the word of God (Ps. 19.7ff)! Tell me of how you are praying for me (Col. 1.9ff)! Please…I need you to do this. My heart needs to hear continually of why Christ is so great (2 Pet. 1.12). So please Christian, don’t forget to tell me. Please…be a good friend (Heb. 3.13ff). And by the grace of God, I will return the favor to you.
Blessings
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I need you. I need you to help me. I need you to live your life in such a way that it intends to draw my attention to the glory and greatness of our God. I beg you not to sleep in tomorrow morning but instead to get up and read your Bible. Discover afresh the beauty of God in the sacred text. Dwell upon his faithfulness to his own promises. Muse upon his glorious gift of grace in the salvation of sinners like you and me. Write the Word of God upon your own heart so that it produces reverence for God.
Also, I urge you to spend time on your knees in prayer. And whatever you do, don’t fall asleep, don’t let your mind wander; don’t stop praying until you start praying. Drive yourself into humble submission before the great and infinite reservoir of grace that you might find help in your neediness.
As you leave and go about your day, please preach the glories of the gospel to yourself. Tell yourself afresh of the glorious gift of grace, the Lord Jesus Christ, that incarnation of holiness and love; hear again the words of John the Baptist, “Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1.29) Watch him obey the Law in your place, see his perfection in both speech and in deed. Hear him say afresh, “I always do what is pleasing to my Father” (John 8.29). Watch him march resolutely to the cross to purchase our redemption. See him pray for his executioners, evangelize his fellow cross-bearers, gasp for breath, commission his disciple, proclaim it is finished, and then give up his life. See him here and marvel. But don’t stop here! Run with the disciples to the tomb and stoop with them and see, see ‘the linen cloths by themselves’ and you too come away ‘marveling at what had happened’ (Luke 24.12). Rejoice at the reality of the living Savior who has given his life to vindicate the glory of God and rescue a people for himself.
Now as you leave, sing the doctrinal praise along with Paul “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 1.3ff) in tune with Peter with “joy inexpressible” (1 Pet. 1.8).
And now believer, come and talk to a Christian like me and tell me something. Tell me something eternal (Ps. 92.8)! Give me something for my soul (Matt. 4.4)! Tell me what impresses you about Christ (Matt. 8.27)! Tell me of the gospel’s power (Rom. 1.16)! Tell me of Christ’s success as a high priest (Heb. 7.27)! Tell me of his impending return (Matt. 24.30)! Tell me of the divine purpose in trials (Jam 1.3-5)! Tell me the perseverance of the saints (Jude 24)! Tell me of the ultimate success of the church (Matt. 16.18)! Tell me God’s gracious work in your life (2 Cor. 3.18)! Tell me of the purity and power of the word of God (Ps. 19.7ff)! Tell me of how you are praying for me (Col. 1.9ff)! Please…I need you to do this. My heart needs to hear continually of why Christ is so great (2 Pet. 1.12). So please Christian, don’t forget to tell me. Please…be a good friend (Heb. 3.13ff). And by the grace of God, I will return the favor to you.
Blessings
Bible Litmus Test
WARNING-WARNING - TAKING THIS TEST MAY BRING ON STRONG CONVICTION!
1. Do you spend more time watching favorite TV shows during the week than in Bible study, reading and devotion?
2. Do you know more facts about companies on the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ than the facts in your Bible
3. Are your recipe books are more marked up and gone through than your Bible?
4. Do you have more songs downloaded on your iPod than verses of Scripture in your heart?
5. You think Bible study is dry and boring
8. You don’t remember the last Bible verse that you memorized
9. Your Christian walk is defined more by “what you feel” instead of “what the word of God says”
10. You don’t have a system or plan in which to study the Bible
11. The main reason for your lack of Bible devotion time is a due to a busy lifestyle
12. When is the last time (not counting small group) that you carried your Bible to someone’s home and helped them worked through a major issue from the Scriptures?
13. Are you spending more time with the newspaper weekly than with your Bible?
1. Do you spend more time watching favorite TV shows during the week than in Bible study, reading and devotion?
2. Do you know more facts about companies on the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ than the facts in your Bible
3. Are your recipe books are more marked up and gone through than your Bible?
4. Do you have more songs downloaded on your iPod than verses of Scripture in your heart?
5. You think Bible study is dry and boring
8. You don’t remember the last Bible verse that you memorized
9. Your Christian walk is defined more by “what you feel” instead of “what the word of God says”
10. You don’t have a system or plan in which to study the Bible
11. The main reason for your lack of Bible devotion time is a due to a busy lifestyle
12. When is the last time (not counting small group) that you carried your Bible to someone’s home and helped them worked through a major issue from the Scriptures?
13. Are you spending more time with the newspaper weekly than with your Bible?
Monday, August 18, 2008
Bible Interpretation
The video below gives a good illustration how some in the church today interpret the Bible. You will see a man who has a picture of a butterfly or a moth but insists that it is a horse. What? This is hilarious but is an excellent example of how many come to the word of God. They already have decided what it says and then try to make the Bible fit into what they want say.
So is that a horse or a moth? If you are post-modern it can be whatever it is to you.
So is that a horse or a moth? If you are post-modern it can be whatever it is to you.
Learning and Living
This is a re-post of something that I wrote earlier this year. As I move closer to teaching a class on the basic doctrines of the Bible my heart is being stirred greatly by the LORD. As you can see by my article below, one can't teach doctrine in the midst of the calamity it must be learned beforehand. Oh that we in the church would get back to the cry of the Reformation which said "We will only believe and do what the Bible says."
Nancy and I have been privileged to invest the last 10 years in full time ministry. It has given me an opportunity to interview, talk to at length and train a number of people within the church. I am very concerned with a lack of understanding of the gospel. Several months ago I received a call from someone who has been in the church 30 plus years and they told me they were close to recanting their faith. This person went on to express their deep disappointment and frustration with God. The dialog went something like this "all that I have done for God and this is now what I get from God." This particular person has been through some significant suffering both emotionally and physically. What have we been preaching for the last 30 years in America? And what are people in the pews hearing from the pulpit and in Sunday School class when others teach the Bible? Well I can tell you what I think from these last few years as a pastor. They are being taught and buying into a "Burger King" theology. You can have the Christian life and the Lord Jesus your way! All you need to do is pray this prayer, or sign this card, walk the aisle, join the church or get baptized. In essence just write the date down in your Bible and if you ever question as to whether or not you are saved go back to the date and claim it.
Brothers and sisters in Christ what are we doing and what are we thinking! How about some teaching about the sovereignty of God who declares from Old to New Testament "I am God and there is no one like Me." How about your sin, that has offended this holy and just God and His wrath is on you and one day will be poured out in full measure against you. All this namby pamby, milk toast, get around the fire and sing kum-by-ya until someone has a spiritual thought makes me sick! How about the gospel which means in the Greek good news. But before a man can hear the good news he must recognize and take responsibility for the bad news. In our thoughts, words and actions we, yes we have sinned against a holy God who is also a just God. I mean what would we think if a judge in Charlotte, NC had a man in his courtroom who had raped an 8 year old girl and the judge let the man go free. We would yell at the loudest possible level and declare that judge was not fit to serve in that capacity and must be removed immediately. Well move the analogy to God who is just in all things. How can God possibly deal with our sinful, hateful and rebellious behavior that we have displayed toward Him? Surely if He is just, we deserve to be punished - right? The answer is yes and if you think deeply on this issue than your heart will confirm that the answer to that question is yes. But do you know that God in His great mercy and grace has made a provision for us through His son Jesus Christ to take away our sin past, present and future through His shedding of blood and death on the cross. And not only does He pay the full penalty for our sin (the just punishment that we deserved) but He also imputes His righteousness to our account! The gospel is good news in that it means we get God!
The person I was talking to several months ago did not understand this at all. They thought that when they became a Christian it meant in essence a blessing bank in which flowed out of that was health, wealth and prosperity. Wake up folks, this is a marketing of the gospel in a way where people want the blessings but not the Blessor, and all the gifts but not the Giver. And what they find out when the hard times come or some persecution arise that their spiritual house has been build on sand and not rock. What are we teaching people about God, about themselves, about Christ and about faith? Unfortunately and I say this we a great burden in my heart the church today for the most part is not preaching and teaching these great truths from Scripture. If you could hear these conversations, and see where people really are in relationship to information as opposed to transformation, I believe it would break your heart. Oh, that we would get back to the cry of the Reformation "we will only believe and do what the Bible says."
Nancy and I have been privileged to invest the last 10 years in full time ministry. It has given me an opportunity to interview, talk to at length and train a number of people within the church. I am very concerned with a lack of understanding of the gospel. Several months ago I received a call from someone who has been in the church 30 plus years and they told me they were close to recanting their faith. This person went on to express their deep disappointment and frustration with God. The dialog went something like this "all that I have done for God and this is now what I get from God." This particular person has been through some significant suffering both emotionally and physically. What have we been preaching for the last 30 years in America? And what are people in the pews hearing from the pulpit and in Sunday School class when others teach the Bible? Well I can tell you what I think from these last few years as a pastor. They are being taught and buying into a "Burger King" theology. You can have the Christian life and the Lord Jesus your way! All you need to do is pray this prayer, or sign this card, walk the aisle, join the church or get baptized. In essence just write the date down in your Bible and if you ever question as to whether or not you are saved go back to the date and claim it.
Brothers and sisters in Christ what are we doing and what are we thinking! How about some teaching about the sovereignty of God who declares from Old to New Testament "I am God and there is no one like Me." How about your sin, that has offended this holy and just God and His wrath is on you and one day will be poured out in full measure against you. All this namby pamby, milk toast, get around the fire and sing kum-by-ya until someone has a spiritual thought makes me sick! How about the gospel which means in the Greek good news. But before a man can hear the good news he must recognize and take responsibility for the bad news. In our thoughts, words and actions we, yes we have sinned against a holy God who is also a just God. I mean what would we think if a judge in Charlotte, NC had a man in his courtroom who had raped an 8 year old girl and the judge let the man go free. We would yell at the loudest possible level and declare that judge was not fit to serve in that capacity and must be removed immediately. Well move the analogy to God who is just in all things. How can God possibly deal with our sinful, hateful and rebellious behavior that we have displayed toward Him? Surely if He is just, we deserve to be punished - right? The answer is yes and if you think deeply on this issue than your heart will confirm that the answer to that question is yes. But do you know that God in His great mercy and grace has made a provision for us through His son Jesus Christ to take away our sin past, present and future through His shedding of blood and death on the cross. And not only does He pay the full penalty for our sin (the just punishment that we deserved) but He also imputes His righteousness to our account! The gospel is good news in that it means we get God!
The person I was talking to several months ago did not understand this at all. They thought that when they became a Christian it meant in essence a blessing bank in which flowed out of that was health, wealth and prosperity. Wake up folks, this is a marketing of the gospel in a way where people want the blessings but not the Blessor, and all the gifts but not the Giver. And what they find out when the hard times come or some persecution arise that their spiritual house has been build on sand and not rock. What are we teaching people about God, about themselves, about Christ and about faith? Unfortunately and I say this we a great burden in my heart the church today for the most part is not preaching and teaching these great truths from Scripture. If you could hear these conversations, and see where people really are in relationship to information as opposed to transformation, I believe it would break your heart. Oh, that we would get back to the cry of the Reformation "we will only believe and do what the Bible says."
Basic Layout of the Bible
Be amazed at the remarkable consistency in the layout between the Old and New Testament.
Old Testament Timeline
View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own.
The importance of Bible doctrine
Andrew Courtis writes 4 excellent articles on this subject:
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 1
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 2
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 3
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 4
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 1
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 2
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 3
Is Biblical Doctrine Really that Important? Part 4
Quote for the day
What is more important to man than God? He is everything. To know God is the primary, pre eminent pursuit of any human. And how is he, man, to study, to know God? God has shut Himself up, as it were, or limited Himself in His revelation to mankind through the channel of the written Word of God The Bible. This is the only authentic, true text to which we may turn. Anything God has of Himself or His blessings comes from Himself immediately, directly, and only to a human being through this book, God's Word. Consequently, to know God is to know the Bible; to know the Bible is to know God. If God is all important, then His Word is all important. In other words, The Word of God is as important as God Himself. As far as mankind is concerned, this is true. A hunger for God will mean, must mean, a hunger for the Word of God. Therefore, one must immediately realize if God's Word is as important as God Himself (for by it we can know and understand God), then how we interpret God's Word is just as important as God's Word. We must know exactly what it says so that we may know exactly what God says! - Buck Hatch, former professor at C.I.U.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
The litmus test for Revival is sound Doctrine
Dr. John Piper writes the following article concerning genuine revival.
Lee Grady, the editor of Charisma, one of the main charismatic magazines, has written a lament and critique of the Lakeland “revival” which is now in a tailspin over the leader's announced separation from his wife. Grady’s summons to pray for the church and our nation is right, and among his commendable questions and observations are these:
Lee Grady, the editor of Charisma, one of the main charismatic magazines, has written a lament and critique of the Lakeland “revival” which is now in a tailspin over the leader's announced separation from his wife. Grady’s summons to pray for the church and our nation is right, and among his commendable questions and observations are these:
- "Many of us would rather watch a noisy demonstration of miracles, signs and wonders than have a quiet Bible study. Yet we are faced today with the sad reality that our untempered zeal is a sign of immaturity. Our adolescent craving for the wild and crazy makes us do stupid things. It’s way past time for us to grow up."
- "True revival will be accompanied by brokenness, humility, reverence and repentance—not the arrogance, showmanship and empty hype that often was on display in Lakeland."
- "A prominent Pentecostal evangelist called me this week after Bentley’s news hit the fan. He said to me: “I’m now convinced that a large segment of the charismatic church will follow the anti-Christ when he shows up because they have no discernment.” Ouch. Hopefully we’ll learn our lesson this time and apply the necessary caution when an imposter shows up."
Charismatics will not be the only ones who follow the Antichrist when he rises. So will the mass of those who today in thousands of evangelical churches belittle the truth of biblical doctrine as God’s agent to set us free (John 8:32).
Discernment is not created in God’s people by brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance. It is created by biblical truth and the application of truth by the power of the Holy Spirit to our hearts and minds. When that happens, then the brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance will have the strong fiber of the full counsel of God in them. They will be profoundly Christian and not merely religious and emotional and psychological.
The common denominator of those who follow the Antichrist will not be “charismatic.” It will be, as Paul says, “they refused to love the truth.”
The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)
Our test for every Lakeland that comes along should first be doctrinal and expositional. Is this awakening carried along by a “love for the truth” and a passion to hear the whole counsel of God proclaimed?
Stay Alert Christians!
Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned:and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple Rom 16:17-18
Saturday, August 16, 2008
If unique is what you seek then look again...
In a day when the seeker-friendly and post-modern churches want to offer a unique approach, it just so happens they all end up looking the same. I happened to be browsing some popular church websites and was amazed at the similarity between the layouts and graphics. Maybe they each use the same web design company and get a huge discount. But I thought these were the cutting edge guys who were going to bring a fresh and unique approach to church. It looks to me like they are copying each other.
Michael Phelps and the glory of God
OK, this will be my final post regarding Michael Phelps and his incredible achievements at the Olympics. As I have been watching and reflecting on what Michael as been able to accomplish my question is "why am I drawn like a magnet to watch him swim?" And it finally hit me that within the core of my soul I am hard wired to admire greatness. And I admire greatness in such a way that it diminishes me to the point I forget self and then magnify the object of my affection. As I have watched Michael Phelps win race after race I am admiring the best swimmer in the world. And if I compare myself to him, I look like the infant wading around in the baby pool.
Why do we like to see a beautiful sunset on the ocean? Because as we look at the ocean and the sunset we forget ourselves and delight in the object of our affection. We in essence love to be diminished in view of something that is much greater than ourselves.
That is why we go and watch a professional football or basketball game. It is the reason we go to the movies or skiing in the Rockie Mountains. We are programmed to be awed by things that are great.
Now bring all that over into our relationship with God Himself. When we read His word from Genesis to Revelation He reveals the greatness of His name. In each page we can look and meditate on a spiritual sunset at the beach, or mountain top view at peak season during the fall. At those times we are reminded of our smallness and we are actually for a moment or two able to forget totally about self. Yes, as I have watched Michael Phelps swim 4 laps in an Olympic size pool for that brief moment I admire the greatness of his ability and at the same time forgetting about me.
My prayer is that we in the church will return to God's word in such a way that He will be the primary focus of our attention and affections. In doing so we will see Him as He is - great, majestic and glorious and us as we are - weak, small and needy. At that moment I become satisfied in Him as He becomes magnified in me!
Why do we like to see a beautiful sunset on the ocean? Because as we look at the ocean and the sunset we forget ourselves and delight in the object of our affection. We in essence love to be diminished in view of something that is much greater than ourselves.
That is why we go and watch a professional football or basketball game. It is the reason we go to the movies or skiing in the Rockie Mountains. We are programmed to be awed by things that are great.
Now bring all that over into our relationship with God Himself. When we read His word from Genesis to Revelation He reveals the greatness of His name. In each page we can look and meditate on a spiritual sunset at the beach, or mountain top view at peak season during the fall. At those times we are reminded of our smallness and we are actually for a moment or two able to forget totally about self. Yes, as I have watched Michael Phelps swim 4 laps in an Olympic size pool for that brief moment I admire the greatness of his ability and at the same time forgetting about me.
My prayer is that we in the church will return to God's word in such a way that He will be the primary focus of our attention and affections. In doing so we will see Him as He is - great, majestic and glorious and us as we are - weak, small and needy. At that moment I become satisfied in Him as He becomes magnified in me!
Congratulations Pastor Greg and Daniell
Here is a blog site "shout out" to Pastor Greg and his lovely wife Daniell with their new baby. What a little bundle of joy! Blessings guys to you and the whole family.
Friday, August 15, 2008
When church dies
This from the Borean Blog Site:
"Death (of a Church) occurs when unbelievers are allowed to take over ministries in the church. It happens when a church becomes more concerned with form and liturgy than it is with life on a spiritual level. Death occurs when a church becomes more concerned about welfare and social ills than it is about salvation. It happens when a church loves systems more than it loves Jesus Christ. And it happens when a church becomes more concerned with material things than spiritual reality. That's how a church dies. It all is a result of sin.
Sin--in any form that the church tolerates, whether it is in the members or the leaders. Tolerance of sin begins the cycle; then comes the tolerance of unbelievers in the church until no one cares who is a believer or an unbeliever. The end comes when the man who runs the church isn't a believer. Sins of commission and omission kill a church little by little. When that happens, Christians become carnal. Soon afterwards, unbelievers come into the church, and then a total tolerance for sin exists. The church begins to die, and the people who really love Jesus Christ leave only to be replaced by people who don't know Him." —John MacArthur
"Death (of a Church) occurs when unbelievers are allowed to take over ministries in the church. It happens when a church becomes more concerned with form and liturgy than it is with life on a spiritual level. Death occurs when a church becomes more concerned about welfare and social ills than it is about salvation. It happens when a church loves systems more than it loves Jesus Christ. And it happens when a church becomes more concerned with material things than spiritual reality. That's how a church dies. It all is a result of sin.
Sin--in any form that the church tolerates, whether it is in the members or the leaders. Tolerance of sin begins the cycle; then comes the tolerance of unbelievers in the church until no one cares who is a believer or an unbeliever. The end comes when the man who runs the church isn't a believer. Sins of commission and omission kill a church little by little. When that happens, Christians become carnal. Soon afterwards, unbelievers come into the church, and then a total tolerance for sin exists. The church begins to die, and the people who really love Jesus Christ leave only to be replaced by people who don't know Him." —John MacArthur
Purpose Driven Problems...
This is a radio show post from Chris Rosebrough's show called "Fighting for the Faith."
The show starts with a guy (Dutch Sheets) who leads a concert of students and he exegetes his own dream or vision. Hmmm... The lyrics are "mess us up...mess us up..."
You might find this hard to believe but here it is on you tube.
VERY IMPORTANT! PLEASE LISTEN TO AUDIO SEGMENT BELOW
But the main content of the show deals with the Granger Community Church (6th most influential church in America) where the following statistics have been revealed:
Granger’s own qualitative study revealed that:
47% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe in salvation by grace.
57% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe in the authority of the Bible.
56% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe Jesus is the only way to eternal life.
Folks many mainstream orthodox evangelicals have been talking about the potential dangers of the seeker-friendly church growth movement in America. And now we see that these potential dangers have in fact become a reality. There are so many churches in America that fall under this type of ministry focus.
Below I have posted the last 11 minutes of Chris's radio show where you hear the senior pastor reveal the stats.
Seeker-Friendly Alert! - Seeker-Friendly Alert! - Seeker-Friendly Alert
The show starts with a guy (Dutch Sheets) who leads a concert of students and he exegetes his own dream or vision. Hmmm... The lyrics are "mess us up...mess us up..."
You might find this hard to believe but here it is on you tube.
VERY IMPORTANT! PLEASE LISTEN TO AUDIO SEGMENT BELOW
But the main content of the show deals with the Granger Community Church (6th most influential church in America) where the following statistics have been revealed:
Granger’s own qualitative study revealed that:
47% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe in salvation by grace.
57% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe in the authority of the Bible.
56% of those attending Granger DO NOT believe Jesus is the only way to eternal life.
Folks many mainstream orthodox evangelicals have been talking about the potential dangers of the seeker-friendly church growth movement in America. And now we see that these potential dangers have in fact become a reality. There are so many churches in America that fall under this type of ministry focus.
Below I have posted the last 11 minutes of Chris's radio show where you hear the senior pastor reveal the stats.
Seeker-Friendly Alert! - Seeker-Friendly Alert! - Seeker-Friendly Alert
Herding the Emerging
“Trying to define the Emerging church is a bit like herding cats.”
-Todd L. Miles, “A Kingdom without a King? Evaluating the Kingdom Ethic(s) of the Emerging Church,” SBJT (Spring, 2008 ) p. 88.
-Todd L. Miles, “A Kingdom without a King? Evaluating the Kingdom Ethic(s) of the Emerging Church,” SBJT (Spring, 2008 ) p. 88.
O Great God
Read the words from the song "O great God." This is from the Valley of Vision CD that is part of Sovereign Grace Ministries.
Lyrics
O great God of highest heaven
Occupy my lowly heart
Own it all and reign supreme
Conquer every rebel power
Let no vice or sin remain
That resists Your holy war
You have loved and purchased me
Make me Yours forevermore
I was blinded by my sin
Had no ears to hear Your voice
Did not know Your love within
Had no taste for heaven’s joys
Then Your Spirit gave me life
Opened up Your Word to me
Through the gospel of Your Son
Gave me endless hope and peace
Help me now to live a life
That’s dependent on Your grace
Keep my heart and guard my soul
From the evils that I face
You are worthy to be praised
With my every thought and deed
O great God of highest heaven
Glorify Your Name through me
O Great God_sample music
Lyrics
O great God of highest heaven
Occupy my lowly heart
Own it all and reign supreme
Conquer every rebel power
Let no vice or sin remain
That resists Your holy war
You have loved and purchased me
Make me Yours forevermore
I was blinded by my sin
Had no ears to hear Your voice
Did not know Your love within
Had no taste for heaven’s joys
Then Your Spirit gave me life
Opened up Your Word to me
Through the gospel of Your Son
Gave me endless hope and peace
Help me now to live a life
That’s dependent on Your grace
Keep my heart and guard my soul
From the evils that I face
You are worthy to be praised
With my every thought and deed
O great God of highest heaven
Glorify Your Name through me
O Great God_sample music
Basic Christianity 101
1. God does everything that He does for His own glory. And in the Bible there is much support for this statement but for now just think it over. God is constantly in the business of displaying and magnifying Himself.
2. Since God does it this way, He in fact preserves for mankind the best thing that we could ever have or want which is Himself. Because God is the one thing and the only thing in the universe that can genuinely scratch the itch in the soul of man.
3. God does not just offer but rather demands that we rejoice, delight and be satisfied in Him!
The overarching strategy in life is to have a clear understanding of God's "why" or His purpose as we come to the Bible. It only make sense that we should align ourselves and our lives under the plumb line of His purpose. Therefore our objective is live daily, in such a way, that when people in our sphere of influence here us speak and watch us act, they see a demonstration of the greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ!
Pastor B. - "The Glory of God"
2. Since God does it this way, He in fact preserves for mankind the best thing that we could ever have or want which is Himself. Because God is the one thing and the only thing in the universe that can genuinely scratch the itch in the soul of man.
3. God does not just offer but rather demands that we rejoice, delight and be satisfied in Him!
The overarching strategy in life is to have a clear understanding of God's "why" or His purpose as we come to the Bible. It only make sense that we should align ourselves and our lives under the plumb line of His purpose. Therefore our objective is live daily, in such a way, that when people in our sphere of influence here us speak and watch us act, they see a demonstration of the greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ!
Pastor B. - "The Glory of God"
Thursday, August 14, 2008
A gold medal appetite
Phelps lends a new spin to the phrase "Breakfast of Champions" by starting off his day by eating three fried-egg sandwiches loaded with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions and mayonnaise.He follows that up with two cups of coffee, a five-egg omelet, a bowl of grits, three slices of French toast topped with powdered sugar and three chocolate-chip pancakes.
At lunch, Phelps gobbles up a pound of enriched pasta and two large ham and cheese sandwiches slathered with mayo on white bread - capping off the meal by chugging about 1,000 calories worth of energy drinks.
For dinner, Phelps really loads up on the carbs - what he needs to give him plenty of energy for his five-hours-a-day, six-days-a-week regimen - with a pound of pasta and an entire pizza.
He washes all that down with another 1,000 calories worth of energy drinks.
That's 12,000 calories a day--six times what the average man should have.
Problems with the Seeker-Friendly model
This is an excellent article from the Covenant Theology blog site.
Though it may be tough for some to read, it is spot on as to its evaluation of the seeker friendly movement. As some icing on the cake to verify this article refer to my blog article on Bill Hybels whose church, Willow Creek has been a leader in the seeker-friendly initiative. In a blog article I posted sometime ago, Bill Hybels says this model in essence has not worked and it was the biggest wake up call of his adult life.
1.) It assumes that unsaved people are a good judge of their own Spiritual needs. We have twice examined the marketing questionnaires used by church growth pundits, and they are clearly a promise to give the "unchurched customer" what he wants. The result is that the world begins to influence (and even dictate) to the church how to operate in regards to worship, preaching, and evangelism. What the "unchurched" person needs is not a church that makes him feel comfortable, convenient, or fulfilled. What he needs is to be born again, and that information cannot be obtained by marketing research.
"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9)
2.) It assumes that the unsaved are seeking God. It overinflates human nature and treats the unchurched like “customers” as opposed to Satan’s slaves. Therefore, if we just use the right method, or appeal to the sinner in just the right fashion, we can get them to our church. We even promise them "a better life" or some sort of temporal fulfillment in order to get them to come. What is the problem?
"And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil." (John 3:19)
"The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one." (Psalms 14:2-3)
"as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God." (Romans 3:10-11)
Depite protests to the contrary, these scriptures are very clear. No one seeks God. The unbeliever may be seeking a god. He may be seeking some cosmic force or spiritual guide to help him through the difficulties of life, but he does not desire the true God, because his deeds are evil.
This flies right in the face of the popular teaching of our day, which suggests that each person has a "God shaped void" in their souls, and that the reason they sin is because they are trying to fill this void with the wrong things, like drugs and sex. I recently had a Christian lady, speaking of a lost person bound in iniquity, suggest that "this person is crying for help but doesn't know it". With all due respect, this is pure psychobabble. It doesn't even make any sense. What the sinner needs isn't "help" to fill some mystical "God shaped void", but rather new life. Only God can give this, and he has ordained the foolishness of preaching to bring this about.
"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3:3)
3.) It mistakes "decisions for Christ" for true conversion and "church involvement" with discipleship. Simply making a superficial "decision for Christ" does nothing of eternal value. Christ will never taste sweet to an unbeliever until he has been exposed to the bitterness of his sin and the terror of God's wrath. While the raisings of hands and the racings to altars may spark jubilance among the church growth crowd, Charles Spurgeon's message regarding such is right on the money.
4.) It holds that sabbath Worship is for the purpose of reaching the lost, as opposed to worshipping God. As I stated in the title of the post that sparked this discussion, Worship is for Christians Only. Worship in and of itself is not an evangelism tool that should be reshaped and catered to the desires of the unchurched. Worship is an act of God's people giving thanks and glory to Him alone. God may indeed use Biblical worship to convert the lost, but that is not it's primary purpose. Furthermore, repentance and confession of sin are preconditions to worship, and should always be included in the worship service.
"Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations-- I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly." (Isaiah 1:13)
5.) It confuses "contextualizing" the gospel with changing it, the former being an attempt to make it understandable in a given culture, and the latter being an attempt to satisfy itching ears. The real problem isn't the fact that Christians are engaging non-Christians or having dialogue with them. It is what is being discussed that is the problem. Marketing can only work if the seller has a product that the comsumer wants. Therefore, the truth of the gospel (which is an offense) must be altered. This is particularly true of our self-absorbed, postmodern culture. The majority of church ads today focus on the fact that the messages are "positive and uplifting". Thus the difficult parts of Christianity are either sugar-coated (ie. Hell means you won't be with God), or totally ignored. The words "Sin", "Hell" and "Repent" are slowly being removed from the church lexicon and are being replaced by phrases such as "sinful habits", "felt needs", and "purpose". Thus Jesus Christ is rarely presented as a Savior who can redeem from sins and God's wrath, but rather as a therapist who can meet your "felt needs" and help you fulfill your purpose. Despite objections to the contrary, the message has clearly changed.
6.) It equates numeric growth with church health and vitality. (In fact, more often then not, the reverse is true.) I was castigated in a recent post by suggesting that the masses being reached by the church growth movement are the results of superficial evangelism, while very little true conversion is taking place. In contrast, the church marketing proponents are pushing the fact that these crowds are evidence of "bearing fruit", but are they really? (We've already seen evidence to the contrary above.)
The hands-down champion of this methodology is Bill Bright. CBN.com reports that "...139 million people around the globe know Jesus Christ as their Savior because of his ministry, Campus Crusade for Christ International". Still, he has much work to do, as he has set his goal at 1 Billion. (With just 6 Bill Bright's we can finish up the Great Commission in a very short time.) A distant second is the singer Carman, who has "seen well over one million concert salvations". Similar reports are coming in from all over, but with much more modest numbers. "LivePrayer.com ... finished up its 64th month online at the end of 2004 with 100,000 reported decisions for Christ." The military is also being turned upside down as "Chaplains affiliated with the Assemblies of God led a record number of people to salvation in Jesus Christ last year: 38,992. The total significantly exceeds the 27,498 salvations of 2003." In another event, "More Than 59,000 Make Decisions For Christ During Louisiana Campaign".
Does anyone really believe these incredible numbers? If only a small portion of these were true converts, the culture would look much different than it does.
7.) It focuses almost entirely on evangelism, while ignoring the more important duties of the church such as worshipping God, feeding the sheep, holding fast to sound doctrine, and church discipline.
This is my own example from Pilgrim in a Foreign Land that will support this point.
These, particularly the last one, are almost totally ignored. Instead, we feed goat food to goats in the hope that they will magically become sheep. Meanwhile the sheep are starving. Bible illiteracy is at an all time high, and as we can see by the Barna Research above, many of our "Born Again Christians" don't know enough about what they believe to be Christians. Those who reject the Doctrine of Hell, for example, have no business being named among the redeemed. This is due to the fact that just about everything in the "church growth" church is focused on the "unchurched", with one goal, to make sure that more people attend next week's service than last week's.
The church growth movement defends it's marketing methodology because it seems to be "bearing fruit", but is it really doing so? Are we really bringing people into the kingdom with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or are we merely bringing them into the church pew with entertainment and therapy? That is a question that must be asked, though it is sure to invoke the ire of those in the church marketing crowd. Maybe they know they won't like the answer.
Though it may be tough for some to read, it is spot on as to its evaluation of the seeker friendly movement. As some icing on the cake to verify this article refer to my blog article on Bill Hybels whose church, Willow Creek has been a leader in the seeker-friendly initiative. In a blog article I posted sometime ago, Bill Hybels says this model in essence has not worked and it was the biggest wake up call of his adult life.
1.) It assumes that unsaved people are a good judge of their own Spiritual needs. We have twice examined the marketing questionnaires used by church growth pundits, and they are clearly a promise to give the "unchurched customer" what he wants. The result is that the world begins to influence (and even dictate) to the church how to operate in regards to worship, preaching, and evangelism. What the "unchurched" person needs is not a church that makes him feel comfortable, convenient, or fulfilled. What he needs is to be born again, and that information cannot be obtained by marketing research.
"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9)
2.) It assumes that the unsaved are seeking God. It overinflates human nature and treats the unchurched like “customers” as opposed to Satan’s slaves. Therefore, if we just use the right method, or appeal to the sinner in just the right fashion, we can get them to our church. We even promise them "a better life" or some sort of temporal fulfillment in order to get them to come. What is the problem?
"And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil." (John 3:19)
"The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one." (Psalms 14:2-3)
"as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God." (Romans 3:10-11)
Depite protests to the contrary, these scriptures are very clear. No one seeks God. The unbeliever may be seeking a god. He may be seeking some cosmic force or spiritual guide to help him through the difficulties of life, but he does not desire the true God, because his deeds are evil.
This flies right in the face of the popular teaching of our day, which suggests that each person has a "God shaped void" in their souls, and that the reason they sin is because they are trying to fill this void with the wrong things, like drugs and sex. I recently had a Christian lady, speaking of a lost person bound in iniquity, suggest that "this person is crying for help but doesn't know it". With all due respect, this is pure psychobabble. It doesn't even make any sense. What the sinner needs isn't "help" to fill some mystical "God shaped void", but rather new life. Only God can give this, and he has ordained the foolishness of preaching to bring this about.
"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3:3)
3.) It mistakes "decisions for Christ" for true conversion and "church involvement" with discipleship. Simply making a superficial "decision for Christ" does nothing of eternal value. Christ will never taste sweet to an unbeliever until he has been exposed to the bitterness of his sin and the terror of God's wrath. While the raisings of hands and the racings to altars may spark jubilance among the church growth crowd, Charles Spurgeon's message regarding such is right on the money.
"If the professed convert distinctly and deliberately declares that he knows the Lord's will but does not mean to attend to it, you are not to pamper his presumption, but it is your duty to assure him that he is not saved. Do you imagine that the Gospel is magnified or God glorified by going to the worldlings and telling them that they may be saved at this moment by simply accepting Christ as their Saviour, while they are wedded to their idols and their hearts are still in love with sin? If I do so, I tell them a lie, pervert the Gospel, insult Christ, and turn the grace of God into lasciviousness."
4.) It holds that sabbath Worship is for the purpose of reaching the lost, as opposed to worshipping God. As I stated in the title of the post that sparked this discussion, Worship is for Christians Only. Worship in and of itself is not an evangelism tool that should be reshaped and catered to the desires of the unchurched. Worship is an act of God's people giving thanks and glory to Him alone. God may indeed use Biblical worship to convert the lost, but that is not it's primary purpose. Furthermore, repentance and confession of sin are preconditions to worship, and should always be included in the worship service.
"Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations-- I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly." (Isaiah 1:13)
5.) It confuses "contextualizing" the gospel with changing it, the former being an attempt to make it understandable in a given culture, and the latter being an attempt to satisfy itching ears. The real problem isn't the fact that Christians are engaging non-Christians or having dialogue with them. It is what is being discussed that is the problem. Marketing can only work if the seller has a product that the comsumer wants. Therefore, the truth of the gospel (which is an offense) must be altered. This is particularly true of our self-absorbed, postmodern culture. The majority of church ads today focus on the fact that the messages are "positive and uplifting". Thus the difficult parts of Christianity are either sugar-coated (ie. Hell means you won't be with God), or totally ignored. The words "Sin", "Hell" and "Repent" are slowly being removed from the church lexicon and are being replaced by phrases such as "sinful habits", "felt needs", and "purpose". Thus Jesus Christ is rarely presented as a Savior who can redeem from sins and God's wrath, but rather as a therapist who can meet your "felt needs" and help you fulfill your purpose. Despite objections to the contrary, the message has clearly changed.
6.) It equates numeric growth with church health and vitality. (In fact, more often then not, the reverse is true.) I was castigated in a recent post by suggesting that the masses being reached by the church growth movement are the results of superficial evangelism, while very little true conversion is taking place. In contrast, the church marketing proponents are pushing the fact that these crowds are evidence of "bearing fruit", but are they really? (We've already seen evidence to the contrary above.)
The hands-down champion of this methodology is Bill Bright. CBN.com reports that "...139 million people around the globe know Jesus Christ as their Savior because of his ministry, Campus Crusade for Christ International". Still, he has much work to do, as he has set his goal at 1 Billion. (With just 6 Bill Bright's we can finish up the Great Commission in a very short time.) A distant second is the singer Carman, who has "seen well over one million concert salvations". Similar reports are coming in from all over, but with much more modest numbers. "LivePrayer.com ... finished up its 64th month online at the end of 2004 with 100,000 reported decisions for Christ." The military is also being turned upside down as "Chaplains affiliated with the Assemblies of God led a record number of people to salvation in Jesus Christ last year: 38,992. The total significantly exceeds the 27,498 salvations of 2003." In another event, "More Than 59,000 Make Decisions For Christ During Louisiana Campaign".
Does anyone really believe these incredible numbers? If only a small portion of these were true converts, the culture would look much different than it does.
7.) It focuses almost entirely on evangelism, while ignoring the more important duties of the church such as worshipping God, feeding the sheep, holding fast to sound doctrine, and church discipline.
This is my own example from Pilgrim in a Foreign Land that will support this point.
These, particularly the last one, are almost totally ignored. Instead, we feed goat food to goats in the hope that they will magically become sheep. Meanwhile the sheep are starving. Bible illiteracy is at an all time high, and as we can see by the Barna Research above, many of our "Born Again Christians" don't know enough about what they believe to be Christians. Those who reject the Doctrine of Hell, for example, have no business being named among the redeemed. This is due to the fact that just about everything in the "church growth" church is focused on the "unchurched", with one goal, to make sure that more people attend next week's service than last week's.
The church growth movement defends it's marketing methodology because it seems to be "bearing fruit", but is it really doing so? Are we really bringing people into the kingdom with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or are we merely bringing them into the church pew with entertainment and therapy? That is a question that must be asked, though it is sure to invoke the ire of those in the church marketing crowd. Maybe they know they won't like the answer.
Revival at Lakeland?
Todd Bentley is an evangelist who has been leading what some have labeled as a revival in Lakeland, Florida. It seems this past week that Bentley told his staff that his marriage is ending. Here is an excellent article by J. Lee Grady called "Life after Lakeland: sorting out the confusion."
It shows how desperate we are today in the church for consistent and solid teaching of Bible doctrine in order that people don't fall into error!
It shows how desperate we are today in the church for consistent and solid teaching of Bible doctrine in order that people don't fall into error!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
The ESV Study Bible
Here is another sample of the new ESV Study Bible that is scheduled to be released this fall. In the attachment below you will find the book of Jonah. I have heard personally from one theologian that says this will be the finest study Bible published to date. Check it out and if you have not pre-ordered then do so today. If you want more information click on this LINK.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
False teaching alert
Why do so many evangelicals act as if false teachers in the church could never be a serious problem in this generation? Vast numbers seem convinced that they are “rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing—and do not know that [they] are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17).In reality, the church today is quite possibly more susceptible to false teachers, doctrinal saboteurs, and spiritual terrorism than any other generation in church history. Biblical ignorance within the church may well be deeper and more widespread than at any other time since the Protestant Reformation. If you doubt that, compare the typical sermon of today with a randomly chosen published sermon from any leading evangelical preacher prior to 1850. Also compare today’s Christian literature with almost anything published by evangelical publishing houses a hundred years or more ago.
Bible teaching, even in the best of venues today, has been deliberately dumbed-down, made as broad and as shallow as possible, oversimplified, adapted to the lowest common denominator— and then tailored to appeal to people with short attention spans.
This article is from Dr. John MacArthur's blog called Pulpit Magazine.
In order to read the whole article click on this LINK.
Death by Love
Mark Driscoll the senior pastor at Mars Hill in Seattle has a new soon to be released book called "Death by Love."
The video below deals with a number of different life situations that each of us in some way, shape and form can relate. As you might have concluded the answer to each of these hard life scenarios is the Lord Jesus Christ.
This book is available to be pre-ordered at this LINK.
The video below deals with a number of different life situations that each of us in some way, shape and form can relate. As you might have concluded the answer to each of these hard life scenarios is the Lord Jesus Christ.
This book is available to be pre-ordered at this LINK.
Justification and Sanctification
Here is a quick review on the differences between justification and sanctification:
Justification refers to my status;
Sanctification to my state.
Justification is about God's attitude toward me changing;
Sanctification is about God changing me.
Justification is about how God looks on me;
Sanctification is about what he does in me.
Justification is about Christ dying for my sins on the cross;
Sanctification is about Christ at work in me by the Holy Spirit changing my life.
Justification - Sanctification
Justification refers to my status;
Sanctification to my state.
Justification is about God's attitude toward me changing;
Sanctification is about God changing me.
Justification is about how God looks on me;
Sanctification is about what he does in me.
Justification is about Christ dying for my sins on the cross;
Sanctification is about Christ at work in me by the Holy Spirit changing my life.
Justification - Sanctification
- Legal Standing - Internal condition
- Once for all time - Continuous throughout life
- Entirely God's work - We cooperate
- Perfect in this life - Not perfect in this life
- Same in all Christians - Greater in some than in others
Monday, August 11, 2008
What does the author mean?
I am fascinated with Romans 1:16 in which the apostle Paul writes "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." If one looks closely at the context it is apparent that Paul is writing this to Christians. For example look in Romans 1:6-7 we see the words the called of Jesus Christ; to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints.
Now that we have the context which is to Christians let us examine the verb believe. In this sentence the verb is in the present tense which means constant, habitual and on going. Therefore we see that the gospel is the power of God for Christians who continue to believe on a daily basis. Whoa! Just think about that sentence, what the verb means and what Paul is really saying. There are so many today that describe their Christian experience in terms of a past tense event. When you talk to many people in the church they say things like when I got saved. But it is less frequent to hear Christians talk about being saved daily. Salvation as the apostle Paul uses the word in Romans is a past, present and future tense word. My point in this brief blog article is that we need to preach the gospel to ourselves on a daily basis! This is the very power of God in our lives. Keep reading, studying, thinking and then applying the word of God.
Now that we have the context which is to Christians let us examine the verb believe. In this sentence the verb is in the present tense which means constant, habitual and on going. Therefore we see that the gospel is the power of God for Christians who continue to believe on a daily basis. Whoa! Just think about that sentence, what the verb means and what Paul is really saying. There are so many today that describe their Christian experience in terms of a past tense event. When you talk to many people in the church they say things like when I got saved. But it is less frequent to hear Christians talk about being saved daily. Salvation as the apostle Paul uses the word in Romans is a past, present and future tense word. My point in this brief blog article is that we need to preach the gospel to ourselves on a daily basis! This is the very power of God in our lives. Keep reading, studying, thinking and then applying the word of God.
The Shack
Dr. Albert Mohler, Jr. comments on the new popular book especially in Christian circles called "The Shack." Here is a short commentary on the book that he gives on his daily talk show. As of this show the book was as high as #7 on Amazon.com. Dr. Mohler is recognized as one of the great evangelical leaders of our day and a brilliant theologian. As a little preview to this audio segment he is very concerned about the theology expressed by the author. Dr. Mohler is also bothered that many Christians don't understand basic doctrine enough to be upset by this book. Dr. Albert Mohler's review of "The Shack"
Olympic coverage
If you are part of the baby boomer generation then you remember only having 3 channels on the TV. Since television watching was limited we always tuned in and stayed up for the Olympic coverage. The United States today set a world's record in the men's 4 x 100 free relay in BEIJING. Therefore if you happened to be asleep or missed the race which was phenomenal you can watch it HERE.There is a story within the story so to speak. The team from France said they wanted to come over to the Olympics and smash the Americans. The comment was made by their team captain Bernard. Here is a picture of some of the French team after they got SMASHED! Could you say they got FRENCH FRIED?
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Seeker-Friendly Theology
And now for the best way to draw a crowd consistently via the American way:
Challenging our youth about genuine salvation
Here is a video from Paul Washer that is as strong as bear's breath. My suggestion is that you go grab a cup of coffee and a notebook with pen. Take some good notes and share them with your own children as it relates to the gospel.
Back to blogging after a men's retreat
It is good to be back after a men's retreat in the mountains of North Carolina. I had the privilege of leading and teaching "Learning and Living the God-centered Life." A special thanks to Kelly Bartlett for again using his gift of administration. His friendship and ministry to me has been so encouraging through the years. Anyway since I have been away the blog posts have stopped and again it is good to be back.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Is man basically good or evil?
This is an article I copied from Travis Carden's website.
The subject is on the doctrine of "Total Depravity." By definition total depravity (or total inability) says that all men, as a consequence of the Fall, are born morally corrupt, enslaved to sin, at enmity with God, and unable to please Him or even of themselves to turn to Christ for salvation. (Thus the necessity of a gracious, unconditional election.) Here is a sweeping survey of the biblical support for the doctrine.
The question we are asking is the following:
The subject is on the doctrine of "Total Depravity." By definition total depravity (or total inability) says that all men, as a consequence of the Fall, are born morally corrupt, enslaved to sin, at enmity with God, and unable to please Him or even of themselves to turn to Christ for salvation. (Thus the necessity of a gracious, unconditional election.) Here is a sweeping survey of the biblical support for the doctrine.
The question we are asking is the following:
Is man basically good or basically evil?
- Ecclesiastes 7:29 - "Behold, I have found only this, that God made men upright, but they have sought out many devices."
- Romans 5:7-8 - For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
- Romans 5:12,19 - through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned... through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners
- Job 15:14-16 - "What is man, that he should be pure, or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? Behold, He puts no trust in His holy ones, and the heavens are not pure in His sight; how much less one who is detestable and corrupt, man, who drinks iniquity like water!"
c.f. Ecclesiastes 9:3
All men? Are there any exceptions?
- Psalm 143:2 - And do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no man living is righteous.
- Romans 3:23 - for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
- Isaiah 53:6 - All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way;
- 2 Chronicles 6:36 - there is no man who does not sin
- Romans 3:9-12 - What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, "There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.
- 1 John 1:8,10 - If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we say we have not sinned, we make [God] a liar and His word is not in us.
- Mark 10:18/Luke 18:19 - And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone."
c.f. 1 Kings 8:46; Psalm 53:1-3, 116:11, 130:3, 143:2; Proverbs 20:9; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Jeremiah 2:29; Micah 7:2-4, Mark 10:18; Luke 18:19; James 3:2; etc., etc.
Are people good deep down?
- Mark 7:21-23 - "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man."
- Psalm 5:9 - There is nothing reliable in what they say; their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue.
Are men totally depraved? Is every faculty of the person corrupted?
Heart/Thoughts (Deceitful)
- Jeremiah 17:9 - "The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?"
- Ecclesiastes 9:3 - the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.
- Genesis 6:5 & 8:21 - Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually... from youth.
- Psalm 36:1-2 - Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart; there is no fear of God before his eyes. For it flatters him in his own eyes concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
- Proverbs 28:26 - He who trusts in his own heart is a fool
c.f. Ecclesiastes 8:11; Psalm 94:11; Mark 7:21-23
Mind/Understanding (Depraved)
- Romans 1:28-31 - And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being... without understanding
- Titus 1:15-16 - to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled
- Ephesians 4:17-18 - So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart;
- Jeremiah 10:7-8,14 - For among all the wise men of the nations and in all their kingdoms, there is none like You. But they are altogether stupid and foolish. Every man is stupid, devoid of knowledge
Will/Choosing (Enslaved)
- John 8:34 - "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin."
- 2 Timothy 2:25-26 - if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
- Titus 3:3 - For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another.
- Romans 6:6 - our old self was crucified with Him... so that we would no longer be slaves to sin. But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient... and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
- Romans 6:20 - For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.
- Romans 7:14 - For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.
c.f. John 8:31-32,36; Galatians 4:9; 2 Peter 2:19
Affections/Desires (Perverted)
- Romans 1:24-27 - Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.
- 2 Timothy 3:2-4 - For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God
- Proverbs 21:10 - The soul of the wicked desires evil
- Isaiah 32:6 - For a fool speaks nonsense, and his heart inclines toward wickedness
- John 3:19 - "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil."
- John 8:44 - "You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father."
c.f. Genesis 3:16; Psalm 4:2, 140:8; Proverbs 10:23; 2 Peter 2:13
et al (Utter Ruin)
- Titus 1:15-16 - to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled
- Romans 7:18 - I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh
- Isaiah 1:5-6 - The whole head is sick and the whole heart is faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head there is nothing sound in it, only bruises, welts and raw wounds, not pressed out or bandaged, nor softened with oil.
Can men still do good when they want to?
- 1 Samuel 24:13 - "As the proverb of the ancients says, 'Out of the wicked comes forth wickedness'"
- Matthew 7:18 - "A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit." (c.f. Luke 6:43)
- Romans 8:7 - the mind set on the flesh... does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so
- Jeremiah 13:23 - Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Then you also can do good who are accustomed to doing evil.
- Genesis 6:5 & 8:21 - Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually... from youth.
- Titus 1:15-16 - to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed.
c.f. Job 14:4; Matthew 12:34; John 15:5; Romans 14:23
What is the natural disposition of man toward God?
- John 3:20 - "For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed."
- Romans 8:7-8 - the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
- Colossians 1:21 - you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds
- James 4:4 - You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
c.f. Romans 1:28-30
What is man's relationship to God?
- Psalm 58:3 - The wicked are estranged from the womb; those who speak lies go astray from birth.
- Ephesians 2:12-13 - remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
- Ephesians 2:3 - Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
c.f. Isaiah 59:2
Can man then do anything to please God?
- Proverbs 15:9 - The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord
- Proverbs 15:8/21:27 - The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord
- Proverbs 28:9 - He who turns away his ear from listening to the law, even his prayer is an abomination.
- Isaiah 64:6 - For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
- Romans 8:7-8 - the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
- Hebrews 11:6 - And without faith it is impossible to please [God]
c.f. Psalm 50:16; Proverbs 21:4; Isaiah 1:10-15; Amos 5:21-24
Are men at least seeking God?
- John 3:20 - "For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed."
- Isaiah 65:1 - "I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me."
- Isaiah 64:7 - There is no one who calls on Your name, who arouses himself to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us and have delivered us into the power of our iniquities.
- Romans 3:10-12 - "there is none who seeks for God"
c.f. Romans 10:20
Can the natural man comprehend the gospel or come to saving knowledge of God on his own?
- 1 Corinthians 2:14 - But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.
- 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 - our gospel is veiled... to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
- 1 Corinthians 1:18,21-24 - For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Crist crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness
- Matthew 11:27 - "no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.'
c.f. Psalm 119:18; Proverbs 4:19; Matthew 16:17; John 8:43; Ephesians 4:17-19; 2 Corinthians 2:15-16; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4
Can men of themselves accept God's gift of salvation? Do men choose God or come to Him on their own?
- John 3:27 - John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven."
- John 14:16 - "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him
- John 1:12-13 - But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
- John 6:44 & 64 - "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him;" And He was saying, "For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father."
- Romans 9:16 - So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.
- Romans 11:35-36 - Or who has first given to [the Lord] that it might be paid back to him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things.
- 1 Corinthians 1:30 - But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus
- Philippians 2:13 - for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
c.f. Jonah 2:9; Zephaniah 3:9; John 15:16; 1 Corinthians 15:10; Philippians 1:6; James 1:18
Who supplies faith/belief/repentance?
- Romans 12:3 - God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
- Acts 5:31 - "He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
- Acts 11:18 - When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, "Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life."
- Philippians 1:29 - For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake... to believe in Him
- Acts 18:27 - And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brethren encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace
- Ephesians 2:8-9 - For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
- 2 Timothy 2:25 - The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, [etc.]... if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth
- 1 Corinthians 12:3 - no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit
- 2 Peter 1:3 - His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence
- Romans 11:36 - For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.
- John 3:6 & 6:63 - "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit... It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing;"
c.f. 1 Chronicles 29:14; John 5:44; Ephesians 6:23; 1 Corinthians 4:7; 2 Peter 1:1
Can men do anything to help themselves?
- Romans 5:6 - For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
- Ephesians 2:5 - even when we were dead in our transgressions, [God] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)
c.f. Psalm 49:7-9; Jeremiah 2:22
Who then can be saved?!
- Matthew 19:26 - Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
c.f. Mark 10:27; Luke 18:27
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