The Foundation

Happy Tax Freedom Day!

2009-04-14T11:56:00.002-04:00

For the past 3.5 months most Americans have been working for the various governments (federal, state, local) to make enough money to pay this year's tax obligations. But as of April 13th we get to start working for ourselves!

http://www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/24529.html

Jesus Wants the Rose

2009-04-08T16:31:00.002-04:00

Here is a video excerpt from Matt Chandler the pastor of The Village Church. I think this is a very powerful illustration. I know most of us have sat through preaching like his example and it should make us all angry to see the Gospel trampled like that.

Romans 5:8:
⁸But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

He does all that he pleases

2009-03-30T11:49:00.003-04:00

Psalm 115:3

Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

Unleash 09 Sessions

2009-03-22T13:54:00.003-04:00

Our good buddy Steve Staton, went down to the Unleash conference at NewSpring and reported back saying that it was amazing...so I figured we would share the main session videos here. Check em out.

Ignatius

2009-03-16T07:43:00.001-04:00

Ignatius from travis hawkins on Vimeo.

What if Satan took control of a City?

2009-03-02T08:00:00.000-05:00

I am reading Christless Christianity by Michael Horton and it begins with the question, What would it look like if Satan really took control of a city? Generally, when we think of Satan taking over a city all kinds of evil images begin filling our minds. Prostitution, murder, and greed just to name a few.

Over fifty years ago Donald Barnhouse offered a different scenario in his weekly sermon on CBS radio.

"If Satan took over Philadelphia, all of the bars would be closed, pornography banished, and pristine streets would be filled with tidy pedestrians who smiled at each other. There would be no swearing. The children would say, "Yes, sir" and "No, ma'am," and the churches would be full every Sunday...where Christ is not preached."

Now this scenario might be somewhat of an exaggeration but I believe it to be true. Wherever Christ and his Gospel is being proclaimed we can be assured that Satan is most active in opposition. But where churches are full and the Good News of the Gospel is exchanged for the good advice of a self-help, moralistic, therapeutic deism, then Satan, however subtle, is beginning to take control.

His own arm brought him Salvation

2009-02-24T08:00:00.002-05:00

Isaiah 59:15-20

The LORD saw it, and it displeased him
that there was no justice.
¹⁶ He saw that there was no man,
and wondered that there was no one to intercede;
then his own arm brought him salvation,
and his righteousness upheld him.
¹⁷ He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and a helmet of salvation on his head;
he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,
and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.
¹⁸ According to their deeds, so will he repay,
wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;
to the coastlands he will render repayment.
¹⁹ So they shall fear the name of the LORD from the west,
and his glory from the rising of the sun;
for he will come like a rushing stream,
which the wind of the LORD drives.

²⁰ "And a Redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who turn from transgression," declares the LORD.

You atone for our transgressions

2009-02-21T08:32:00.000-05:00

Psalm 65: 1-4

¹Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion,
and to you shall vows be performed.
²O you who hear prayer,
to you shall all flesh come.
³When iniquities prevail against me,
you atone for our transgressions.
⁴ Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,
to dwell in your courts!
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
the holiness of your temple!

Who for the Joy set before Him

2009-02-19T10:22:00.001-05:00

Hebrews 12:2

²Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³

But to him who does not work

2009-02-18T09:05:00.003-05:00

Romans 4: 4-5
⁴Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. ⁵And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,

The Supremacy of Christ

2009-02-13T08:27:00.000-05:00

Colossians 1:15-23

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ¹⁶For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. ¹⁷He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. ¹⁸And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. ¹⁹For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, ²⁰and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

²¹Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. ²²But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— ²³if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

BibleMap.org

2009-02-10T12:38:00.003-05:00

Ever wondered where all the churches in Revelation 1 actually were? Maybe not...but if you did, you can now see their location on a satellite image of earth courtesy of BibleMap.org. Just type in the book and chapter of the Bible your reading and you'll see a map of locations found in that section of scripture....pretty cool huh?

Infinite, and an infant

2008-12-24T08:00:00.000-05:00

“I do believe that the very angels have never wondered but once and that has been incessantly ever since they first beheld it. They never cease to tell the astonishing story, and to tell it with increasing astonishment too, that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born of the Virgin Mary, and became a man. Is he not rightly called Wonderful? Infinite, and an infant — eternal, and yet born of a woman — Almighty, and yet hanging on a woman’s breast supporting the universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother’s arms — king of angels, and yet the reputed son of Joseph — heir of all things and yet the carpenter’s despised son. Wonderful art thou O Jesus, and that shall be thy name for ever.”

- Charles Spurgeon

Better news the Gospel brings

2008-12-22T07:00:00.001-05:00

“Run, John, run. The law commands
But gives neither feet nor hands.
Better news the gospel brings;
It bids us fly and gives us wings.”

—John Bunyan, quoted by Jerry Bridges in The Discipline of Grace

Gospel remorse

2008-12-18T07:00:00.001-05:00

“Legalistic remorse says, ‘I broke God’s rules,’ while real repentance says, ‘I broke God’s heart.’ Legalistic repentance takes sin to Mt. Sinai, gospel repentance to Mt. Calvary. Legalistic repentance is convicted by punishment, gospel repentance becomes convicted by mercy.”

- Tim Keller

Trinity & Incarnation

2008-12-17T07:00:00.000-05:00

“Trinity and Incarnation belong together. The doctrine of the Trinity declares that the man Jesus is truly divine; that of the Incarnation declares that the divine Jesus is truly human. Together they proclaim the full reality of the Savior whom the New Testament sets forth, the Son who came from the Father’s side at the Father’s will to become the sinner’s substitute on the cross (Matt. 20:28; 26:36-46; John 1:29; 3:13-17; Rom. 5:8; 8:32; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; 8:9; Phil. 2:5-8).”

- J.I. Packer, Concise Theology

God Incarnate

2008-12-16T07:36:00.001-05:00

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14

“The paradox is amazing. The Creator assumed the human frailty of his creatures. The Eternal One entered time. The all-powerful made himself vulnerable. The all-holy exposed himself to temptation. And in the end the immortal died.”

- John Stott, The Incomparable Christ

In Christ Alone

2008-12-15T16:43:00.002-05:00

“It is not faith that saves, but faith in Jesus Christ… It is not, strictly speaking, even faith in Christ that saves, but Christ that saves through faith. The saving power resides exclusively, not in the act of faith or the attitude of faith or in the nature of faith, but in the object of faith.”

- B. B. Warfield quoted by Sinclair Ferguson, In Christ Alone

Politically Incorrect Guide To Politics

2008-10-20T08:24:00.004-04:00

John Stossel lays out a convincing case against government intervention by showing why we should not expect our politicians to keep their promises, and also how their attempt at keeping their promises usually backfire on us.

Parts 2-6 can be found at the Campaign for Liberty website.

Bulls & Bears

2008-10-14T14:21:00.002-04:00

I thought that these videos of Peter Schiff were sort of funny (in a sad way). Peter Schiff was the economic advisor for Ron Paul and both of them were laughed at and ridiculed by the "experts" for their gloomy predictions about the "invincible" American economy.

Some of these videos of Peter Schiff go back to 2006 and you would think that he was actually able to go to the future and then come back and report what he saw. I mean everything that he said would happen, as far as I can tell, has happened and everybody thought that he was Chicken Little just running around screaming "The sky is falling".

8/28/2006 - Peter Schiff Predicts the US Economic Collapse with Unbelievable Accuracy

Peter Schiff vs Steve Forbes - Part 1

Peter Schiff vs Steve Forbes - Part 2

"From the same mouth come blessing and cursing."

2008-10-13T14:05:00.004-04:00

I have to admit that this describes me pretty well on some Sunday's.

James 3

Baptism Resources

2008-08-24T12:36:00.005-04:00

After a long summer blog hiatus we are back in action with a new format for some of our Wednesday night meetings. This week we have chosen to host a discussion on Baptism and as a result everyone (hopefully) in the group who will do some research on the topic and check out some of the resources listed below so that each person will be able to add something valuable to the discussion. Since we have readers of our blog who aren't able to join us in our meetings we hope that you can refer back to these blog posts when confronted with the topic. If you can't make it to meeting you can also share your views or ask questions on the topic in the comment section. Also feel free to post any relevant resources you may know of as a comment.

Baptism Resources

Audio

Doctrine of Baptism in and Filling with the Holy Spirit mp3
Wayne Grudem

The Case for Infant Baptism
Gregg Strawbridge

The Case for Believer's Baptism
Tom Schreiner

Text

Wikipedia Article

BAPTISM
THIS RITE EXHIBITS UNION WITH CHRIST
by J. I. Packer

The Evangelical Doctrine of Baptism
John Stott (pdf)

United Methodist Church- Baptism Overview

Southern Baptist Convention & IMB- Baptism Overview

Compiled List of Other Resources

Credobaptism- Believer's Baptism

Paedobaptism- Covenant Infant Baptism

What is thy only comfort in life and death?

2008-06-10T07:44:00.002-04:00

The following is taken from the first question in the Heidelberg Catechism.

Question 1. What is thy only comfort in life and death?

Answer: That I with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ; who, with his precious blood, has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto him.

As a door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man on his bed

2008-05-16T08:15:00.005-04:00

Laziness in todays society is often celebrated, even encouraged. Most of us can think of times when overachieving is discouraged and underachieving rewarded. I can think back to some of my engineering classes where everyone was discouraged from scoring well on a test for fear that we would mess up the "curve" for the rest. (and this is from the people who will be responsible for building our bridges, cars, power plants, etc.)

The Bible knows nothing of this glorification of laziness, in fact it speaks clearly about it being a sin as well as being shameful. Douglas Wilson over at Blog and Mablog has written a good post of this topic.

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We will find no real help in looking at the Hebrew word for lazy man, or sluggard. It means . . . well, it means lazy man or sluggard. Some things are so universal that they translate well into any language; we all understand what a shirker is. It would simplistic to say that poverty is always caused by laziness, period, as some believe. But it is equally simplistic to say that no poverty is caused by laziness -- as a number of others believe. The linkage we have in our minds between laziness and poverty is one that the Scriptures helped to create. How many times in Scripture do we find the two mentioned together in one breath?

But the Bible does not just say that laziness is an engine of poverty. There are other aspects of this sin. First, laziness is shameful. However common it might be, the Bible teaches that laziness remains a disgrace. "He who has a slack hand becomes poor, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. He who gathers in summer is a wise son; he who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame" (Prov. 10:4-5). As a sin which brings shame, we should consider well some of its identifying characteristics. As we learn, we should remember that laziness has an obvious alternative. "Go to the ant, you sluggard! . . . " (Prov. 6:6-11). If we put these two truths together, we see that at least some poverty is shameful -- precisely because it was brought about by sinful choices. When the judgment is accurate, this is not "blaming the victim," but rather blaming the perpetrator. This does not mean that the honest, working poor are to be blamed -- the Scriptures never do that. But from the frequency of the warnings in Proverbs on the subject, we may conclude that a significant percentage of the poor are in that condition because of their own poor work ethic. So, for those in that condition, they ought to be ashamed. But instead, in our culture we try to shame the person who was inept enough to point out the obvious. Lazy bums don't have to feel ashamed. But you must feel ashamed if you use the phrase lazy bum.

But Proverbs won't give up this point. Laziness has no follow through. A lazy man may have bursts of activity, and he may even get something done during one of them. But he does not maintain; he does not persevere. "The lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting, but diligence is man's precious possession" (Prov. 12:27). Sometimes the lack of follow-through is extraordinary—a very simple thing could be done to bring a project to completion, but he does not do it. "A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again. Strike a scoffer, and the simple will become wary; rebuke one who has understanding, and he will discern knowledge" (Prov. 19:24-25). The solution to laziness is seen in this passage as well—the lazy must be permitted to eat their own cooking (or not, as the case may be). As St. Paul put it, a man not willing to work shouldn't eat.

Laziness if full to the brim of excuses. "The lazy man says, There is a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!" (Prov. 22:13). Sometimes the excuses are unreasonable—the ancient Hebrew equivalent of "the dog ate my homework," or "aliens kidnapped me . . . what year is it?" Other times the excuses may seem more plausible and hence reasonable, but the results are still the same. "The lazy man will not plow because of winter; he will beg during harvest and have nothing" (Prov. 20:4).

Laziness is full of "wisdom." "In all labor there is profit, but idle chatter leads only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their riches, but the foolishness of fools is folly" (Prov. 14:23-24). The lazy man wears his foolish talk like a crown. He may be full of proverbial wisdom concerning work, but his wisdom is like the legs of a lame man (Prov. 26:7).

"The lazy man says, 'There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion is in the streets!' As a door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man on his bed. The lazy man buries his hand in the bowl; it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth. The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly" (Prov. 26:13-17). Even though the lifestyle is ludicrous, and the folly is apparent to all around, the lazy man has it all figured out. He has more wisdom (in his own eyes) than seven wise men.

Not surprisingly, laziness is an irritation to others. "As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is the lazy man to those who send him" (Prov. 10:26). This is not surprising. If one of them is lazy, two men will have very different ideas of what constitutes diligence.

Laziness, like many other things in the world, compounds with interest. "Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger" (Prov. 19:15). "The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich" (Prov. 13:4). Laziness is not rest; it does not prepare for work. It only prepares for more laziness. The laziness grows, along with frustrated desire. Unwillingness to work for something is not the same thing as a willingness to not have it.

Laziness provokes hastiness and deceit. "The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, but those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty. Getting treasures by a lying tongue is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death" (Prov. 21:5-6).It is a set up for boneheadedness and lies.

For a man who loves the easy way, laziness is hard to explain, because laziness is hard. "The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, but the way of the upright is a highway" (Prov. 15:19). Proverbs teaches us that laziness is counterproductive; it does not accomplish its desired end. "The hand of the diligent will rule, but the lazy man will be put to forced labor" (Prov. 12:24).

And last, laziness is an object lesson, one to be pointed out to your boys. "I went by the field of the lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man devoid of understanding . . ." (Prov. 24:30). If we are not allowed to talk about it, we cannot teach our sons. And so it must be noted that, at a certain level, laziness is a public event and not a private matter.

Walt Rumfelt Testimony

2008-04-21T22:25:00.007-04:00

We had the privilege of having Walt Rumfelt share his testimony with us last Wednesday night and now have that recording available for download here. Walt was a longtime athletic trainer at Crest High School and recently became terribly ill with an unknown infection after returning from a mission trip to Nepal. Walt spent a couple weeks in the Baptist Hospital and is now home recovering and regaining strength daily. His testimony is a powerful example of the results of prayer, faith, and a divine work of our Lord. His testimony is encouraging for those in the toughest of times and a simple reminder that our God is always with us. Be sure to listen to the testimony, share it with others, and keep updated with Walt's story on his website.

Foundation Box Update-James Series

2008-04-11T11:42:00.002-04:00

The Foundation Box has been updated with study notes from our current James Series. Feel free to download and share.

Jesus and Navy Seals

2008-04-10T14:36:00.003-04:00

Here is an amazing story of a Navy Seal laying down his life to save his fellow soldiers by taking the full force of a grenade blast. Faced with the decision to save his life by escaping before the explosion, he chose instead to sacrifice his own life for the sake of the other Seals. It truly is a heroic act and is one I don't think many would make.

Now try to picture that Navy Seal jumping on the grenade for an enemy, it would be unheard of! It is very rare that someone would die for their friends much less his enemies.

But this is what Christians believed happened in the Gospel. We believe that Jesus Christ the God/Man entered into space and time and gave himself up for his enemies. There was nothing in us that could have drove Christ to do this, we were hostile to God deserving nothing, it is only by grace that he would die for his enemies. I was an enemy of God, and Christ took upon himself the punishment that was rightly mine. This love, this grace, is unheard of, who would die for their enemies? But this is the glorious truth that Paul echos in Romans chapter 5.

6For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (Romans 5:6-11)

One of the main purposes and results from this act, is that we as enemies would be reconciled to God through Jesus. We would no longer be considered enemies of God deserving wrath but that God would look upon us as friends and we would receive adoption as sons because of what Christ has done.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/08/seal.medal/index.html

For God so loved the world

2008-04-08T08:18:00.001-04:00

I was reading in a book by D.A. Carson the other day and he was talking about God’s salvific stance toward his fallen world. He was explaining John 3:16 and I don’t remember if this was the first time I had heard it explained like this or if I just forgot, but it sort of stood out to me.

He explained that “world” in John does not so much refer to bigness as to badness. Quoting Carson,

“In John’s vocabulary, “world” is primarily the moral order in willful and culpable rebellion against God. In John 3:16 God’s love in sending the Lord Jesus is to be admired not because it is extended to so big a thing as the world, but to so bad a thing; not to so many people, as to such wicked people. Nevertheless elsewhere John can speak of "the whole” (1 John 2:2), thus bringing bigness and badness together. More importantly, in Johannine theology the disciples themselves once belonged to the world but were drawn out of it(e.g., John 15:19). On this axis, God's love for the world cannot be collapsed into his love for the elect.

The same lesson is learned from many passages and themes in Scripture. However much God stands in judgment over the world, he also presents himself as the God who invites and commands all human beings to repent. He orders his people to carry the Gospel to the farthest corner of the world, proclaiming it to men and women everywhere. To rebels the sovereign Lord calls out,

As surely as I live ... I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but
rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil
ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel? - Ezek. 33:11

Every time I have heard or seen John 3:16 referred to it is always in the context of such a big a thing as the world instead of such a wicked thing as the world. That adds a whole other dimension. What you think? Am I the only one who has missed that?

Passion Week on Google Earth

2008-03-21T07:53:00.002-04:00

I found this over at the Between Two Worlds blog. It uses Google Earth to map out the major events that occurred during Passion or Holy Week. It also references the Biblical passages and has short descriptions as well.

View Larger Map

It is almost incomprehensible that our Lord and Savior, through whom all things were created, would humble himself to the point that he would step into time and space and be made like his brothers in order that he might taste death for us.

As believers we can rest in the fact that we have a more perfect sacrifice than the blood of bulls and goats. Our substitute was in every way made like us, yet was without sin, perfectly qualified and able to represent us. His blood is of infinite worth able to ransom sinners from an infinite debt. Our substitute perfectly and fully exhausted the wrath of Father on our behalf.

We can also rest in the fact that we have a more perfect High Priest. As High Priest of his own sacrifice, Jesus entered “once and for all” into the true Most Holy Place, not a copy. He entered into the presence of God himself by his own blood to make atonement for the sins many. And just like the High Priest returning from the Holy of Holies was a sign to Israel that God had accepted the sacrifice, the return of our High Priest from the “true Holy of Holies”, otherwise known as the resurrection, is proof that God has accepted the sacrifice of his son on our behalf. It is proof that our debt has been paid in full and that we have been reconciled to God and can draw near to God with a clear conscience and full assurance of faith because of the work of our sin-bearing substitute.

"19Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Heb 10:19-25)

Unlike the High Priest in the old covenant whose priesthood was temporary because of death, our Great High Priest was appointed to office by an oath of God himself, and since he lives forever, “he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” (Heb 7:25)

22This makes Jesus the guarantor of^(S) a better covenant. (Heb 7:22)

"to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:21)

Life After, Life After Death

2008-03-20T12:33:00.013-04:00

I ran across this interview with N.T. Wright, who in my opinion is one of the best New Testament scholars on the planet and an outstanding author. In this interview on his new book, Suprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church, Wright offers insight into some of the concepts discussed in the book. I found his thoughts on a "two-stage postmortem reality" to be especially interesting. Check out what N.T. had to say about life after death:

I put it this way for my audiences: "there is life after life after death." People are very puzzled by that, so I begin to explain it to them. There's life after death. That was Jesus between Good Friday and Easter. He was dead, but he was in whatever life after death is—in paradise without his resurrected body. But that wasn't his final destination. Here I introduce the idea of a two-stage postmortem reality. Most Western Christians have only heard about a two-stage postmortem reality in the Catholic idea of purgatory. That's wrong! A person goes to heaven first and then to the new heavens and new earth. People stare at you like you've just invented some odd heresy, but sorry—this is what the New Testament teaches. The New Testament doesn't have much to say about what happens to people immediately after they die. It's much more interested in the anticipation of the ultimate new world within this one. If you concentrate on preaching life after death, you devalue the present world. Life after life after death, however, reaffirms the value of this present world.

(Be sure to read the rest of the interview when you have time, and think about purchasing the book if you are interested in learning more about the Resurrection and Heaven.)

So what do yall think about these comments? Is it just me or has anyone else read this verse and wondered, "well, what is happening to these dead people until Christ comes back?" Then you flip over to this verse and realize that Jesus told the criminal that he would be with him in paradise that "same day". So what are we to make of these seemingly contrasting verses? Any thoughts? What about Wright's comments?

Can My Church Change?

2008-03-17T06:56:00.000-04:00

Have you ever asked yourself this question? Many of you have struggled deeply with this question because you are in leadership at the church where you serve. You realize that your church needs to change, and not just any change (like adding a contemporary service, or getting a full-time youth minister) but a major change. A change that not only will require a complete restructuring of the the leadership in your church, as well as the programs you offer, but a change that goes much deeper than that. Your church needs a change of heart. A change that occurs inside the hearts of every member in the church. A change that won't happen by adding an electric guitar and a LCD projector to a morning service and calling it contemporary worship...no, the type of change we need in some of our churches can only come from God. This type of change is much more than an a big transition. Can this type of change even happen?

I believe it can! I was truly inspired by this article, which is the story of Orchard Valley Community Church. It's a story of a pastor and his personal struggles with the change that needed to happen and ultimately the renewing of a whole church body. It's a story that will give hope to any pastor, leader or member that struggles with the feelings of change.

Sharpe Curve Ahead: Scott Hodge

Moses on Drugs? Was He 'High on the Mountain'?

2008-03-07T07:18:00.002-05:00

One researcher seems to think so. Israeli researcher Benny Shanon claims that Moses was on psychedelic drugs when God spoke to him concerning the 10 Commandments. Supposedly these mind altering substances were common among early Israelites during biblical times. This theory would explain the "burning bush" incident and furthers the point that Moses evidently was a junkie. Shanon himself admits to having piddled around with such substances, so evidently the question shouldn't be "What was Moses Smoking?" but rather, "What in the heck is Shanon smoking?"

Read the article here.

How Do You Interpret Scripture? The Hermeneutics Quiz

2008-03-03T07:41:00.003-05:00

Have you ever read or heard someone use the word Hermeneutics? Probably not, and yeah....I know, who cares about all those big-fancy Bible Professor words anyway? Well I think this is one word we should at the least be aware of, especially in how it relates to our own study of the Bible even if we never use the word hermeneutics again. In short, Hermeneutics refers to the process of scriptural interpretation. What does that mean to you? Everyone of us who read the Bible interpret it in some form or fashion. Do you read it literally? Do you read it for the major truths? Do you read it as God's infallible, inerrant word, or is it God's inspired word that needs interpretation and contextualization for today? Do you interpret some passages like those on homosexuality as having a literal meaning that is applicable for today or do you read passages like 1 Timothy regarding women as not being need in today's Church?

Well the good people over at Leadership Journal have created a Hermeneutics Quiz that you can take here. (Once you read a little about the quiz click- Take the Hermeneutics Quiz and then click- Take Assessment.)

Let us know what you scored, and what you think about your results. I scored a 52 which labels me as a Conservative Hermeneutic (borderline Moderate). I'm down with that...what are you?

Real Preachers of Genius

2008-02-28T07:47:00.002-05:00

I ran across this video the other day and thought it was funny. While not true in every case, it does have some truth to it.

Emerging, Emergent, Evangelical, Orthodox....

2008-02-27T07:05:00.001-05:00

Which are you? It seems like there are so many categories, labels, titles, etc. today in America's "Churchianity" that it has become hard to distinguish all the lingo. One blogger has attempted to clarify some of this confusion in the "emerging church" with some pretty neat graphics and a great post. (If you don't recognize any of the names below...don't worry... you are probably better off...but many of you Emerging fans might find this real cool.)

From this chart, where do you fit in? Where does your church or ministry fit in?

What do you think? Do you agree with the grouping? What about Rob Bell, Bill Hybels, Rick Warren, Andy Stanley, Ed Young Jr. and others in the Megachurch camp? Where do they fit in this diagram? What about Joel Osteen? What about influential black pastors like T.D. Jakes, Tony Evans, and Bishop Eddie Long? Anyone else you'd like to see added?

Surety, Mediator, Substitute

2008-02-07T08:26:00.000-05:00

In the last post we have seen that the bible describes sin as: (1) debt, (2) enmity, and a (3) crime. We have seen that each and every person is in a state of total helplessness. By nature of God’s sovereignty and authority over our lives, we owe God perfect obedience but even our best efforts are as “filthy rags” the Hebrew literally means “dirty menstrual rags”, no joke. God is obligated to bring justice unless the demands with respect to our debt, state of enmity, and crimes are satisfied.

How are these demands satisfied? As I mentioned at the end of the last post, this satisfaction is provided on behalf of all who repent and believe by the God/Man, Jesus Christ.

In each of the three ways the bible describes sin, Jesus plays a crucial role.

Sin as:	Man	God	Christ
Debt	Debtor	Creditor	Surety
Enmity	Enemy	Violated One	Mediator
Crime	Criminal	Judge	Substitute

When sin is described as a debt, Christ is our Surety (Heb. 7:22). These are both economic terms. Jesus is the one who cosigns the note. He is the one who stands there, backing up our indebtedness, taking on himself the requirement of what must be paid.

When sin is described as an expression of enmity, Christ plays the role of Mediator. When two humans get into a conflict, the mediator is the one who stands in the middle in order to settle the conflict. This is called reconciliation, and this is exactly what Jesus does for us. He reconciles us to God. As a result of our sin we have shown ourselves to be enemies of God, we have separated ourselves and alienated ourselves from God, but Paul writes in 2 Cor. 5:19, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself.”

When sin is characterized as a crime, Christ is the one who actually comes under judgment. He acts as our substitute, the innocent in the place of the guilty criminals.

It is Christ who makes the satisfaction for our debt, our enmity, and our crimes. It is essential to understand exactly how Jesus functions in each of the crucial roles. Today there are all kinds of misunderstandings on the atonement that are common. According to one popular view, God the Father is enraged at man, but God the Son is sympathetic with fallen man and sides with us and acts as our Mediator to calm the Father’s anger. The father is about to punish everybody and send them to hell, but the Son says: “Punish Me instead. Let Me stand in their place.” According to this view, there is a tension or a split within the Godhead itself, as if the Father has an agenda and the Son persuades Him to change His mind. It is a widespread belief that the Son seems more loving, patient, and compassionate than the Father.

In “The Truth of the Cross”, Sproul gives an illustration that is really helpful. He gives the following scenario. Imagine that I go to a friend and say: “Don, I’m in trouble. I need to borrow $10,000. Would you lend me $10,000?” And Don says, “Sure.” He lends me $10,000 and I understand that I now owe him $10,000. We have a perfectly legal and ethical arrangement. Unfortunately, I wake up one morning and I find out I can’t pay the $10,000. Now I’m in big trouble. However, my brother says: “Don’t worry about it. I’ll pay the $10,000.” So he pays Don the money that I owe. Now I owe Don nothing. My debt has been cancelled 100 percent. In fact, he must receive that $10,000 legal tender in payment for the debt because the only responsibility I have to him is to pay the money. That’s the way a debt is.

Now suppose I were to break into Don’s house and steal $10,000. Don comes home and finds his $10,000 missing and calls the police. The police track me down and find the $10,000 in my possession and arrest me. I might say: “I’m sorry Don, here take the money back and let’s just forget it.” Or perhaps I have spent the money by the time they arrest me, but my brother steps in again and says, “Wait a minute, I’ll give him the $10,000.” In either scenario, Don is not bound to receive that $10,000 and wipe the slate clean because not only have I incurred a “debt” to Don, I have committed a crime against him and have violated him as a person. He has the right to decide whether he will accept that payment and refuse to press charges – because he is the one who has been wronged.

When Jesus offers to make satisfaction for me, in order for that payment to be accepted, God the Father, who is my Creditor, the party I have violated, and my Judge, must decide that He will accept payment from another in my behalf. In other words, if I owe God the death penalty because I sinned against Him, and Jesus says, “I will die for him,” and then lays down His life and dies for me, would the Father be under any obligation whatsoever to accept the payment? No. There first must be a judgment or decree by the creator of the universe that He will in fact accept a substitutionary payment for my debt, my enmity, and my crime. The beauty of it is that the Father did accept Jesus’ substitutionary payment for us. There was a prior decision of the Father that was based on sheer grace. At some point before time began, He made the decision to accept the satisfaction made by a Substitute. We may think the Son is more loving that the Father, but whose idea was it for us to have a Mediator? Who sent the Mediator? God the Father sent the Son to be the Mediator who would reconcile us to himself. “God so love the world that He gave his only begotten Son…” (John 3:16)

21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all^[^h^] who believe. For there is no difference; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, 26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:21-26)

In the cross we see perfect justice mixed with perfect mercy. At the cross, forgiveness was achieved by canceling the debt that stood against us. This debt was not a hypothetical debt or paper debt, but it was an actual legal debt in which Christ’s own flesh was nailed to the cross. The wrath of God was removed from believing sinners as a result of Christ bearing the full force of God’s wrath in our place.

From the famed suffering servant passage in Isaiah 53:

…5But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed….10 Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53: 5 & 10)

He forgave us all our sins, 14having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. (Colossians 2:14)

Not everyone today understands the idea of God having to be just. God is typically pictured as being so absolutely and unconditionally loving that he can forgive sin on the basis of his love alone. This is an extremely dangerous position to be in because it neglects two other important parts of his nature- holiness and justice. Even worse than that, it reduces the infinitely costly sacrifice of the Son of God to having almost no purpose whatsoever. If God can justify on the basis of love alone, then the cross was not needed. It overlooks the purpose and beauty of the cross which was God’s ultimate display of his love towards an undeserving people.

As you may be starting to see, the Gospel is more than just a handbook on how to get saved. The Gospel is simple enough for anyone to understand yet deep enough to where we can study it our whole lives and never fully exhaust the truths that it contains. The Gospel is not just for unbelievers, it is for everyone no matter what the situation. Just think about all of the problems in 1 Corinthians that the church had. After every problem Paul mentioned in Corinthians the answer was always the Gospel.

2For I decided to know nothing among you exceptJesus Christ and him crucified. (1 Corinthians 2:2)

Take favoritism or partiality as an example since we just talked about it yesterday in James. How do you stop showing favoritism toward people like yourself or rich and important people? How do you stop judging those who are outcast, unimportant or poor? The answer again is the Gospel. In light of the Gospel it is arrogant and presumptuous to think of yourselves more highly than others, as if there is something inherently good within you that makes you better or more important than someone else. There is a hint of pride wrapped up in favoritism. The cross removes all traces of pride and all grounds for boasting; all that is left is humbleness and thanksgiving. The cross reminds us that we were all debtors, enemies, and criminals, and that it was only by sheer grace that God chose us and called us out of the darkness.

26Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast before him. 30It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)

Sin as Cosmic Treason

2008-02-05T10:59:00.000-05:00

Popular church leaders, writers, and Christian thinkers are saying that we have talked too much about sin and the cross. They say we as a culture have been “Gospel Hardened” and the cure for that is not more Gospel but less gospel. We are told that we should first tell them about the wonderful plan God has for their lives, how to have better finances and well behaved children, instead of telling them about sin and how to escape the coming wrath (1 Thess1:4-10) Even after becoming Christians many people see the Gospel only as an introductory message to Christianity. It is seen only as a message about how to be saved rather than “the” message of Christianity.

It doesn’t help that we as Evangelicals have added to this thinking by reducing the Gospel to a few hoops one must jump through in order to be saved. If we can get someone to come down during an alter call, raise their hand, and then repeat a prayer, we can hand them their salvation along with their assurance in a two for one ticket. Instead of being saved by grace through faith in the substitutionary work of Christ on our behalf, we are saved by faith or hope that the prayer we prayed when we were younger worked. Seems a lot like superstations rather than faith (and we Protestants think the Catholics and their Marian dogmas are superstitious). Shame on us for reducing the Gospel to some man-made tactics we can deploy at will.

8The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." (John 3:8)

From my experience, and I can say my experience because I find it true in my own life, is that after a person comes face to face with their sin, repents and believes the Gospel, over time the Gospel get replaced. We start to forget about it and depend on other things like our knowledge, our good works, or how we stack up to other people. We think about it maybe once a year at Easter, during communion (that’s probably once a quarter if you’re a Baptist), or maybe the preacher mentions it in a passing phrase before the service is over. Or just think about all the youth conferences (granted some are better than others) that are designed to “fire up” believers through music, charismatic speakers and emotional alter calls only to find that passion quickly fade a few days later. I am learning that true enduring passion is derived from one’s understanding and experience of the Gospel, not by rededicating your life at a retreat every year. One glimpse of the Gospel should be enough to move a truly regenerate believer to follow, and that same Gospel will enable them to endure until the race is finished.

God has been showing me through the Bible that I will never outgrow my need for the Gospel. Sincere repentance is continual. Only when we begin to repent from sin and turn to Christ do we begin to see the evil of our sin. Our human nature and mind has the capability of deceiving us, we begin to justify sin and downplay its implications. It is only through repentance and setting our eyes upon Jesus and his work on the cross that we begin to see God’s love in light of our sin. Spurgeon said that, “Repentance makes us see the evil of sin, not merely as a theory, but experimentally-as a burnt child dreads fire.”

“Forgodly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation…” (2 Corinthians 7:10)

You never outgrow your need for the Gospel. It is not something you believe when you first become a Christian, and then you move past it on your way to something “deeper”. You never outgrow you dependence on Jesus for the slightest good in your life, you never arrive. The Christian life is a daily reliance on the Gospel; we are to be humbled daily by the Cross. The Cross reminds us that sin is serious, hell is real, and Grace is costly. The Cross reminds us that perfect obedience is demanded from us, and because of our rebellion we have separated ourselves from God, we have incurred an infinite debt, we have become accursed, and we have shown ourselves to be enemies of God. The cross reminds us that Jesus became a curse for us, that God has reconciled us to himself through Christ. The Cross reminds us that we are not our own, that we were bought at a price; we were redeemed from bondage and slavery to sin and have become slaves of righteousness.

“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publiclyportrayed as crucified. 2Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or byhearing with faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”(Galatians 3:1-3)

Now, you may not follow where I am going with this, everyone has heard it over and over, “the cross is important”, “Jesus died for my sins”, “make Jesus the center of your lives.” But how many people are actually living Christ centered lives? How many people have a Christ centered worldview? How many people live with full submission to Jesus’ Lordship over their lives, one that demands they take up their cross follow him? We all struggle with that, it is a process that we cannot accomplish on our own. And I am convinced that you can’t do that apart from Gospel.

Now this is important because the necessity of the cross is becoming more controversial than ever right now. Even from within the Church, the concept of the atonement (especially penal substitution) is being challenged. Many believe God can’t punish sin and send people to Hell so everyone must be saved. Many believe the cross wasn’t necessary because there are other ways to God, and many believe we are already saved and just need to realize it. People just don’t believe they need a savior. No one is rushing to the bookstores asking how to be reconciled to God. No one is asking how to understand the depth of the cross; no one is seeking to understand what Jesus has done for us. It doesn’t sell. We want to know how to “Have our Best Life Now” or when the rapture is going to happen.

Sometimes we forget and need to be reminded of what God has done. Sometimes we need to repent because we have gotten off track and replaced Christ with some form of idolatry. At some point we had to believe for the first time, and for those who have never placed their faith in Jesus, the command is to repent and believe for the first time. Whatever your situation, the Gospel is always just as important.

At the very center of the Gospel is the concept of substitutionary atonement, there are other aspects of the Gospel that are very important as well but I wanted to talk some about substitution since we are approaching the season of Lent, maybe I’ll talk about the other aspects later. I wanted to show how the Bible talks about sin, and our need for atonement, and how Jesus redeemed us from the penalty of sin by providing atonement for our sins. Before we can understand the full depth of what Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross we must first understand the situation that he saved us from. So, for now I will show how the Bible describes sin and follow it up with another post on how Jesus plays a crucial role in each situation.

I read a book a while back called “The Truth of the Cross” by R.C. Sproul, and in that book he writes that the bible describes sin in at least three distinct ways. Biblically, sin is described as a debt, it is described as a state of enmity, and it is described as a crime.

Sin as a Debt

The first way the Bible talks about sin is debt. In Matthew 18:21-35, Jesus taught that Christians have a duty to forgive others’ debts because God forgave us of our debts. Also, the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6 says “and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” So how do we incur a debt against God and how does that relate to sin? First off we have to understand the role of God as Sovereign Lord over creation. Sovereignty implies that God is the author of our lives and therefore has authority over us. If a person has authority over someone else it means that they have the right to impose obligations that we must meet. So if God imposes obligations on me, I owe obedience to Him, and if I fail to obey, I incur a debt.

So, just think for a moment, if a perfectly and completely Holy God imposes moral obligations on us, what is required of us? This is the crux of the problem as R.C says, because we owe God perfect obedience. If I am responsible to be perfect, and I sin once, what must I do to be perfect? What do I have to do to become perfect once I have been made imperfect? The truth is, we can’t make that one little spot clean, it is impossible.

The bigger problem is that we are not just basically good people with a few minor spots and blemishes, the Bible describes us as being corrupt to our very core, every part of our being has been tainted by sin, our minds, hearts, desires, our will has all been tainted by the fall. We are by nature children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3), our righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6),we are hostile to God and cannot submit to God’s law (Romans8:7-8). By nature of the above, we have incurred an infinite debt that is impossible to repay.

Sin as Enmity

The second way the bible talks about sin is as an expression of enmity. Sin is an expression of hostility towards God; it is a violation of the personal relationship we are supposed to have with God. When we sin, we do not communicate love towards God; instead we are rejecting him and openly declaring our hostility towards Him. The Bible also explains that God has never violated us, he never treats us unjustly, and he never breaks a promise. We are the ones that violate the relationship and show ourselves to be God’s enemies. That is important because a lot of people, even Christians, misunderstand this. You find people all the time who are angry at God because they feel they have been treated unfairly or unjustly. “How could God allow this to happen to me?” “If God were really good, then he would recognize all of the good things I do and treat me accordingly”. In the realm of human relationships, if someone violates me, it is fair to bring that before God and ask him to make that situation right. But it is never legit to claim that God is unjust for allowing that to happen. When it comes to sin, God is always the injured party, ultimately all sin is an offence against God (Psalm 51:4). As a result of our sin, our relationship with God is broken and we have become separated and alienated from him.

Sin as a Crime

Third, the Bible describes sin as a crime. We have seen that God has the right to impose moral obligations on us. Those moral obligations come in the form of laws we are demanded to obey. When we don’t conform, we are breaking the law and committing a crime against God. In this understanding, God acts as the Judge. When we fail to obey, God has an obligation as a just judge, to bring judgment on us and punish all crimes. God’s justice, just like his holiness, is a perfect justice. He does not compromise his justice or his holiness, so sin must be punished.

In each sense, God’s demands must be satisfied or he is obligated to bring judgment. So how are we to satisfy the demands and obligations God has required of us? The truth is there is nothing we can do to merit righteousness. There is nothing we can do to repay our debt, nothing we can do to reconcile ourselves to God. The ransom price is infinitely high. The only thing that can satisfy the demands God requires from us, was also provided for us by Him. The only person to ever completely fulfill all the requirements and obligations of law, the only person to never incur a debt, never rebel against God, never commit a crime, was the God/Man, and it is only by his blood we have atonement for our sins. Only a sacrifice of infinite worth is able to ransom slaves from an infinite debt.

Only after we have a correct understanding of God and his character do we really come to understand the depth of our depravity and our utter dependence on what Martin Luther called an “alien righteousness”.

I have shown briefly that the Bible describes sin in at least three distinct ways, next post will be the good stuff as we learn how Jesus plays a crucial role for us in each case.

Select a Candidate 2008

2008-01-14T14:32:00.000-05:00

Since we are on a recent series of political posts, I thought I would post a good resource that will help match your views with particular candidates. A Illinois news channel has created a Select a Candidate Quiz that asks you questions regarding a series of issues and you respond by selecting your view on the issue as well as its' importance to you. It is only 11 questions long and after completion it gives you a rank order of the candidates based on how similar your views are to theirs. Enjoy!

Take the Quiz Here

If you take the quiz: Did you find the results to be what you expected? Any surprises?

Can a Church or Pastor Endorse a Political Candidate?

2008-01-10T07:15:00.000-05:00

Can a pastor endorse a candidate from the pulpit? Can a church hang up Huckabee or Clinton signs all over the building (well maybe Hillary signs in a church is a little far stretched...but...it could happen) and urge you to vote for a certain candidate? Is it even legal?

You will never see us as a ministry endorse a particular candidate on this blog or at any of our worship services. However, if you were to personally ask me who I am going to vote for I would be glad to tell you who my favorite candidate is. But it is never OK for a church, ministry, or non-profit agency to endorse a candidate. In fact, it is against the law. That's right, it is unlawful for a non-profit organization to directly endorse or oppose a political candidate. That was new news to me as well but Out of Ur published a wonderful blog on this issue entitled: Politics from the Pulpit. I hope you will check it our and read the article.

Comments? Have you ever heard a pastor endorse a candidate from the pulpit? Or more likely, have you ever heard a pastor, church, or ministry oppose a political candidate?

Obama's Call to Renewal

2008-01-08T07:06:00.000-05:00

“(Obama's speech on faith) may be the most important pronouncement by a Democrat on faith and politics since John F. Kennedy's Houston speech in 1960 declaring his independence from the Vatican...Obama offers the first faith testimony I have heard from any politician that speaks honestly about the uncertainties of belief.”

— E.J. Dionne, Op-Ed., Washington Post, June 30, 2006

While we are on the topic of Christian politics I thought I would share some quick thoughts from a speech that Senator Barack Obama made back in June of 2006. I was ignorant of this speech until a couple weeks ago when I stumbled across it on Obama's campaign website. I was drawn into reading the speech because of the above mentioned quote that caught my attention. I think many times "Evangelicals" in America believe that all Democrats are liberal atheists with no faith at all, or at best, practice an unauthentic faith that is only put on to reel in Evangelical votes. I think overlooking an entire party when deciding who to vote for based upon religious stereotypes (whether it be the "liberal heathens" or the "hell-fire, fundamentalist conservatives") is the biggest mistake a voter can make.

This blog entry isn't intended to be an endorsement of Obama, but rather a discussion starter continuing on the topic of faith and politics. With that being said, I would like to share some quotes from Obama's speech on faith and politics. I hope you'll join the conversation and comment with your thoughts and whether or not you agree or disagree with anything mentioned. And if you are a Christian, does everything Obama say in this speech line up with sound Biblical Theology?

_______

"Indeed, the single biggest "gap" in party affiliation among white Americans today is not between men and women, or those who reside in so-called Red States and those who reside in Blue, but between those who attend church regularly and those who don't."

"This religious tendency is not simply the result of successful marketing by skilled preachers or the draw of popular mega-churches. In fact, it speaks to a hunger that's deeper than that - a hunger that goes beyond any particular issue or cause."

"And in time, I came to realize that something was missing as well -- that without a vessel for my beliefs, without a commitment to a particular community of faith, at some level I would always remain apart, and alone."

"Because of its past, the black church understands in an intimate way the Biblical call to feed the hungry and cloth the naked and challenge powers and principalities. And in its historical struggles for freedom and the rights of man, I was able to see faith as more than just a comfort to the weary or a hedge against death, but rather as an active, palpable agent in the world. As a source of hope."

"You need to come to church in the first place precisely because you are first of this world, not apart from it. You need to embrace Christ precisely because you have sins to wash away - because you are human and need an ally in this difficult journey."

"After all, the problems of poverty and racism, the uninsured and the unemployed, are not simply technical problems in search of the perfect ten point plan. They are rooted in both societal indifference and individual callousness - in the imperfections of man. Solving these problems will require changes in government policy, but it will also require changes in hearts and a change in minds."

"In fact, because I do not believe that religious people have a monopoly on morality, I would rather have someone who is grounded in morality and ethics, and who is also secular, affirm their morality and ethics and values without pretending that they're something they're not."

"Democracy demands that the religiously motivated translate their concerns into universal, rather than religion-specific, values. It requires that their proposals be subject to argument, and amenable to reason. I may be opposed to abortion for religious reasons, but if I seek to pass a law banning the practice, I cannot simply point to the teachings of my church or evoke God's will. I have to explain why abortion violates some principle that is accessible to people of all faiths, including those with no faith at all."

"Even those who claim the Bible's inerrancy make distinctions between Scriptural edicts, sensing that some passages - the Ten Commandments, say, or a belief in Christ's divinity - are central to Christian faith, while others are more culturally specific and may be modified to accommodate modern life. The American people intuitively understand this, which is why the majority of Catholics practice birth control and some of those opposed to gay marriage nevertheless are opposed to a Constitutional amendment to ban it. Religious leadership need not accept such wisdom in counseling their flocks, but they should recognize this wisdom in their politics."

________

Any thoughts?

Read Obama's 'Call to Renewal'

Beliefnet Article with Video Clips

Christian Politics: An Ethical Standard of Human Life (pro-life)

2008-01-06T21:39:00.000-05:00

“Christian politics” as I stare at that phrase up on my computer screen while trying to catch glimpses of the debates on TV I get the feeling that the idea is an oxymoron. Nevertheless I have decided to do a blog on the subject.

Before I get started, I do want to preface this by saying these are opinions. I will do my best not to lean toward either party or any particular candidate. I do have candidates that I like more than others, but my goal is not to persuade anyone toward anyone. My goal is to discuss values that I believe biblically all Christians should hold. Please read my views carefully and test them for your selves; and by the way, argue against them or for them if you feel the need.

Well, if I’m doing this thing and we all know how good I am at making people mad, I might as well just take on the entire moral majority at once. Christians should believe in an ethical standard of human life. This idea is neither new nor controversial. The right to “life” is even outlined in our Declaration of Independence. Even so, some how, some where, the idea of morality in politics got narrowed down to abortion and gay marriage. I suppose I’ll begin with the easy stuff.

Christians should be Pro-life. This holds true absolutely on the abortion issue. I do not believe that Christians should attack anyone who’s ever had an abortion. That is not the role that Christ called us to, but I do believe we should try and dissuade women from having them. There are too many righteous options and too many couples trying to adopt because they cannot have children. These views lead me to the belief that politicians and leaders should do more to make these options more attractive. This blog is a Pro-life blog though, not an anti-abortion.

Christians should be Pro-life. That means that Christians should be anti-Capitol punishment. There are many very solid very compelling arguments for Capitol punishment. This is an area of disagreement among Christians, even those who oppose abortion. However I do not believe that capitol punishment lines up with ideas like “Vengeance is mine says the Lord” (Romans 12:19-21) or “You without sin throw the first stone” (Luke 8:7). Capitol punishment is also a way of doubting the power of Jesus to restore and redeem, after all, is there any without sin? If I remember right it was a persecutor of Christ who ended up writing the majority of the new testament.

Christians should be Pro-life. That means that Christians should hold all human life to be sacred and treated as such. Psalms tells us that God creates individual life (139:13-14). Everything made by God should be valued as such. Christians also should hold that all life is eternal. (That’s not to say everyone will spend it together) Here’s where it gets messy. If all human life is sacred then so are the lives of murders, unborn children, people living in poverty, people dying of disease, people fighting wars, people whom wars are being fought around, dirt bags, mugs, thugs, riff raff, ruffians, hooligans, and even….Methodists! (Sorry for the Blazing Saddles reference) What I should have included on that list is people who are terrorists. Christians should not be ok with torture in any form, any way, or from any source. Churches are built on the blood of martyrs and Christianity spreads because of perseverance in the face of persecution, not by the sword. It is better for Christians to die for their belief in the love, mercy and abundant grace of Christ as well as our faith in eternal life, than it is to betray that for the sake of mortal life. (Matt 16:24-27)

I will get more into the idea of holding human life sacred on issues of poverty and disease and war later. For now, read what I’ve written, test it and let me know what you think.

Get out of Purgatory (I mean Jail) Free Card

2007-12-19T16:09:00.000-05:00

Pope Benedict XVI must have caught the Christmas fever as well, because he is in a particularly generous mood. The Pope is offering relief from purgatory to Roman Catholics who travel to Lourdes to pray to the shrine dedicated to the Madonna of Lourdes.

There is no need to worry if you won't be able to make the trip, Pope Benedict has made provisions. Just pray at places of worship dedicated to the Madonna of Lourdes from Feb. 2 to Feb. 11.

And we were supposed to think the RCC stopped offering plenary indulgences after that whole deal we call the Reformation.

No thanks, I'll just cling to the perfect righteousness that Jesus accomplished on my behalf through his substitutionary work on the cross as my sinless sin bearer.

O Holy Night

2007-12-10T16:47:00.000-05:00

A lot of Christmas songs that we sing are extremely well written songs that contain deep biblical truths. It is a shame that they have been deemed “Christmas songs” in the modern sense and are reserved for Christmas time only by unwritten laws.

O Holy Night is definitely one of my favorite Christmas songs. Parts of it remind me somewhat of Paul’s prayers and writings in the first part of Ephesians, where he points us to the glory of God and the treasures and riches that are found in Christ.

I have heard that it is also the first ever music to be broadcasted over radio. I think someone played it on the violin maybe. Here is a video of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra performing it, they do an awesome job with it. It starts in the second half of the video after O Come all Ye Faithful (which is also very good).

Oh holy night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of the dear Saviour's birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,

Till He appear'd and the soul felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!

Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born;

Oh night divine, Oh night, Oh night Divine.

Led by the light of Faith serenely beaming,

With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.

So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,

Here come the wise men from Orient land.

The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger;

In all our trials born to be our friend.

He knows our need, to our weakness is no stranger,

Behold your King! Before Him lowly bend!

Behold your King, Behold your King.

Truly He taught us to love one another;

His law is love and His gospel is peace.

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother;

And in His name all oppression shall cease.

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,

Let all within us praise His holy name.

Christ is the Lord! O praise His Name forever,

His power and glory evermore proclaim.

Rob Bell: Hippier-Than-Thou Pastor

2007-12-10T06:19:00.000-05:00

Creative title huh? Well I can't take credit for it...Time Magazine released an article by the same title that is all about the culturally-savvy, megachurch pastor, Rob Bell. There is much discussion these days on the blogosphere concerning Rob Bell--1/3 love him, 1/3 hate him, and 1/3 can't decide what to think. I had the joy of hearing Rob speak at a conference several years ago and I will have to say that he is one of the best communicators I have ever heard. The message he delivered that day is one of the best sermons I have ever heard on many different levels. He hopped around the stage like a rapper with the mic, who was laying down a hot track, yet in the same manner he was able to passionately explain the Gospel message. If any one person fits all of the Evangelical "buzz words," (Emergent, Creative, Relevant, Emerging, Missional) that person would be Rob Bell. Some have claimed him as the heir to Billy Graham, while others have claimed him as a heretic. Love him or hate him, call him a hippy, a heretic, a genius, a geek, or a saint, Rob Bell is here to stay and is having a huge influence on the Church in America.

Check out the Time Magazine article: The Hippier-Than-Thou Pastor

Has anyone ever heard Rob Bell in person, read his books, listened to a podcast, or watched a NOOMA video? If so any, any discussion on the topic?

Box Update- Ephesians Study Notes

2007-12-06T06:17:00.000-05:00

The Foundation Box has been updated with notes from two previous Wednesday night services. Notes from Webb's teaching on Husbands and Wives will be uploaded soon. To download or print these notes you can visit our Box or you can direct download the files below.

Ephesians 5.1-10 (Ephesians Series. Sermon Notes. 11-14-07)

Ephesians 5.10-21 (Ephesians Series. Sermon Notes. 11-28-07)

The Golden Compass: What's the Deal?

2007-12-04T06:24:00.000-05:00

I will have to say that it was not until recently that I became aware of The Golden Compass, Phillip Pullman or the His Dark Materials trilogy. But after reading several articles online and several interviews with Pullman it is very clear that his agenda in these books is to destroy the Christian church and to debunk the idea of God. Just think of this trilogy as the polar opposite of Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. In fact Pullman described Lewis's work as "one of the most ugly and poisonous things I ever read."

So what's the deal? Should we protest, picket, hoot and holler, and raise a ruckus at the movie theater when The Golden Compass releases? Well, No....I don't think so...but I do believe that we should be informed. You should "always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have."(1Peter 3.15) It is quite possible that within the next week at work, school, church or the grocery store that this movie will come up in conversation as well as the subversive themes it portrays. And if that is the case then we need not be ignorant, rather we should be informed and ready to talk about the issues that come up. I can see the biggest challenge coming from uninformed parents and family members who take their kids to see the movie...the kids love the movie and then for Christmas the parents buy them the entire trilogy all the while not realizing that the books are about killing God, the idea of the Christian church and original sin.

So, if you are a parent I hope that you especially will do some research and become informed on Pullman and the trilogy from which this movie is based upon. I also hope that you will do some thoughtful consideration when deciding if your child should be allowed to watch this movie and even more so when it comes to reading the books. On another note, the movie should actually be good and for that reason I am excited about watching it....not to mention it has the new James Bond actor as a character and he was awesome!

"Atheists express their rage against God although in their view He does not exist." --C. S. Lewis

"A great many of those who 'debunk' traditional...values have in the background values of their own which they believe to be immune from the debunking process." C.S. Lewis--The Abolition of Man

The Golden Compass--A Briefing for Concerned Christians -- Albert Mohler

'The Golden Compass'--Does Not Point to True North -- Ben Witherington III

Is 'Golden Compass' selling atheism to kids? -- CNN Article

Religion Row Hits Pullman Epic -- UK Observer

"The Golden Compass" Sparks Protest -- The Catholic League

A Good Soldier

2007-12-03T11:36:00.000-05:00

John MacArthur has an excellent article on the marks of a good soldier. He says the marks of a good soldier are (1) Willingness to suffer hardship with the rest of the soldiers (2) Being on 24/7 active duty and a separation from "normal life" and (3) A desire to please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.

A Good Soldier

Wednesday Night Meeting and Carl Cartee

2007-11-27T12:06:00.000-05:00

Just a reminder that we will be meeting back at the Renfro Center
Basement this Wednesday (tomorrow) at 7pm. We'll be continuing our study on Ephesians with a look at Ch. 5. 10-21 which is an awesome passage.

Also this Saturday @ 7pm there is a Carl Cartee concert at
Gardner-Webb and the admission is a non-perishable canned food item. We will be getting a group together to go and will make plans after tomorrow's meeting. If you'd like to go and won't make it to the meeting tomorrow please contact us.

New Podcasts: Ephesians Series

2007-11-22T11:55:00.000-05:00

Just updated the Foundation Podcast with two recent messages from the Ephesians Series. Visit the podcast site or click below for direct downloads. Share and Enjoy!

Changing Your Clothes: Ephesians 4.20-32

Walk in Love: Ephesians 5.1-10

The Beloved Disciple and Lazarus?

2007-11-14T12:48:00.000-05:00

When I found out several months ago that Dr. Ben Witherington III would be visiting a local church here in Shelby and that he would be giving a lecture, I knew that I didn't want to miss out on the opportunity. And...I'm glad I didn't.

Dr. Witherington's lecture was one of the most interesting lectures I've ever sat through and it was on the topic of the Beloved Disciple mentioned in the Gospel of John. The traditional view, and the view that I grew up hearing from Sunday School, was that the Beloved Disciple was John son of Zebedee, the disciple, who was also part of Jesus' "Inner Three" consisting of Peter, James and John. This John was also the same person who wrote the book of Revelation from Patmos and the three letters of John. It is traditionally taught that John is just referring to himself as the Beloved Disciple in his Gospel and that, for the most part, is what most people believe.

Well Dr. Witherington certainly threw a monkey in that wrench! Not only did he present the idea that the Beloved Disciple(BD) was not John, son of Zebedee, but that the BD was in fact Lazarus. And on top of that, Lazarus was in fact the one who wrote most of the Gospel of John, or at the least, it was put together from a collection of his memoirs.

Interesting stuff huh? Well if this does interest you and you'd like to read Dr. Witherington's arguments for this position, he conveniently posted the lecture up to his blog and you can read it here.

If Dr. Witherington is correct about Lazarus then how does that affect the way we preach the Gospel of John? Or does anything even change? Would the Bible be any less powerful if Lazarus wrote a gospel instead of one of the disciples? Wasn't he a disciple of Jesus too, even if he wasn't one of the 12?

I encourage you to read the lecture from Dr. Witherington and as well as his blog. If you read the lecture, please share your thoughts on the topic as well as anything from the lecture you agree/disagree with. Below is the link to the lecture:

Was Lazarus the Beloved Disciple?

Ephesians Study Notes for Chapter 4.20-32

2007-11-09T06:23:00.000-05:00

Just updated the Foundation Box with the sermon notes from Ephesians 4.20-32. You can check out our Box to download any of the previous files from the Ephesians Series.

Feed Your Brain

2007-11-07T07:22:00.000-05:00

This being the 21st century and all, we are not flying around in personal space craft wielding lightsabers like in Star Wars, or chasing after the last drop of fuel like in Mad Max, but we do have access to more information than ever before.

We have access to the works of some of the greatest minds in Christian History and yet we choose to fill our minds with the latest Tim Lahaye book, or waste our time reading the most popular and coolest emergent book out right now. It's sad, I know.

There are plenty of good(and free) online sources, but I wanted to point out three that I think are good.

The first one is Reclaiming the Mind. It is basically an online theology program covering all the basic areas of Systematic Theology. It also has a library of Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) papers from a range of different contributors. It is backed by the likes of JP Moreland, John Frame, Roger Olson, Sam Storms, William Lane Craig, etc, and best of all it's FREE.

The second one is Biblical Training. It is sort of like an online Seminary. They go into actual seminary classes and record classes for the whole semester. They have classes ranging from Old and New Testament survey classes, Systematic Theology, Church History, Apologetics, World Religions, and even new believer classes, all for free. These courses are taught by some of the top scholars from various Seminaries, including Craig Blomberg, Bruce Ware, John Piper, etc. It's also endorsed by J.I. Packer if that name means anything to you. The goal of this is to help train pastors and missionaries in the field who don't have access to information like this, or can't afford to go to seminary.

The third one is Faith by Hearing. It is a huge collection of sermons and lectures from almost everyone imaginable. So download them put them on your iPod and learn a little something. You got to love their banner with all those guys with iPods, good stuff. I recognize Martin Luther, John Owen, and Jonathan Edwards, I don't know who the others are.

Anyway, take advantage of all the resources we have access to today. You don't have to go to seminary or have a huge library to get the training and resources you need. It is kind of ironic that while we have more access to information than ever before in Christian History, Biblical literacy is at its lowest point.

Box Update

2007-11-07T00:26:00.000-05:00

Just updated The Foundation Box with notes from our study on Ephesians 4.11-16. (Download here)

Super-Bad

2007-11-06T06:34:00.000-05:00

I know, I know, you aren't supposed to brag, but by golly my new Bible is bad-to-da-bone. As my brother would say, "it's Metal." This is the new ESV Thinline Tru-Tone series of Bibles available from Crossway. But you can save yourself $10 if you buy it from Amazon for the great price of $19.79. They offer about ten different cover designs that all rock.

Check them out here.

PS- I know our good buddy Steven Staton will buy one because he certainly is Metal and loves rockin' an awesome Bible.

Alcohol and the Christian: Do they mix?

2007-11-05T06:49:00.000-05:00

It seems rare that even a month will go by in my life where the topic of alcohol and the Christian does not come up. It comes up all the time. Our ministry is non-denominational with people coming from many different denominational backgrounds: Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Pentecostals, and so on, which at times can lead to a difference of opinion. It also seems that about every 3rd odd day I'll hear some joke about a Methodist drinking at the bar or the Southern Baptist hiding in the basement sippin on some Kentucky Gentleman. Our worship leader is Methodist...my girlfriend is Methodist...and I'm the lonely Baptist, so you see the dilemma I'm in right? Or is it really a dilemma? Do we have different views? I'm not quite sure, but there is one thing that is certain: alcohol is everywhere and Christians drink. As my opinion has changed many times over on this topic, I find myself growing, what would appear as, more liberal in my opinion on alcohol and the Christian and constantly battling with the teetotalism taught to me in the Baptist church. Don't get me wrong: abuse of alcohol and being a drunk certainly is a sin, but it is no more of a sin than being a glutton and overdoing yourself in the buffet line. Methodists go to the bar and Southern Baptists go to the buffet and to each is his own vice. Gluttony and drunkenness are both sins and one shouldn't be used as an excuse for the other.

So what am I saying? Well, I'm not going to take the time to develop my opinion in this post but let's just say that I'm certainly not a teetotalist who believes that one must abstain from alcohol, nor am I a Silly-Billy who will use my freedom in Christ as an excuse to get drunk. I do believe being drunk is a sin on all occasions but drinking alcohol in itself is not a sin. And that's about as far as I'll go in this post, but I do want you to read a couple other well worthy reads....especially the iMonk's post about the hypocrisy in the Baptist Church when it comes to alcohol use. I also hope you'll take the time to comment with your own views on alcohol and the Christian. Do they mix? What is your opinion? Should Christians stay away from alcohol in public? Should Christians drink at all? Is it not OK to drink a cold one at the bar as long as it is in moderation? What do ya think?

One Big, Happy, Lie: Southern Baptists, Alcohol and Me

Alcohol and the Bible

Church Protests Dead Marine's Funeral?

2007-11-02T06:42:00.000-04:00

I ran across this article this morning about some crazy fundamentalist Kansas church that actually went to a dead Marine's funeral with signs that said, “God hates fags” and “Thank God for dead soldiers.” Oh, and the protest had nothing to do with that specific Marine. In fact, these wackos regularly "argue that U.S. troops are dying as punishment for America’s tolerance of homosexuality."

This type of stuff really makes me angry and at the same time it hurts because it's churches(hate groups) like this who are destroying the testimony of the Church as a whole. How in the heck could anyone think that something so screwed up as this brings any glory to God? In fact I think God probably wouldn't be so mad if someone punched them in the face for their stupidity...I know I'd sure like to...

Anyways, evidently I'm not the only one who thinks this is ridiculous because a jury awarded the family of the Marine $11 million in punitive and compensatory damages that the church, Westboro Baptist, will now have to pay after the family filled an invasion of privacy lawsuit. I couldn't agree more with this ruling and I think the church should face consequences for their actions...but that's just my opinion. What's yours? How do we as Christians respond or react to obviously false churches like this one? Do we sit back and be quiet while they destroy the testimony and image of the Church? Do we speak up and call them out? Let's hear what you think.

Baltimore Sun Article on Lawsuit
Wikipedia article on Westboro Baptist

Halloween Night Service

2007-10-31T08:09:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween! We'll be having our service at the normal time tonight (7pm) in the Renfro basement. Wear your costume to the meeting and afterwards we'll be heading over to Spoon's house for the Halloween party. Mary is bringing some pumpkins to carve and everyone else is welcome to bring their favorite candy/food to munch on.

If you have questions contact us!

Sermon Jams

2007-10-30T10:37:00.000-04:00

Have you ever wondered what Alistair Begg, Joshua Harris, John Piper, Driscoll, Ravi and others sound like to music? Well now there is no need to wonder.

10:31 Sermon Jams has put together sermon excerpts from all of those guys and put them to music. Relevant revolution also has some as well.

Alistair Begg is quickly becoming one of the pastors I love to listen to and learn from. I think it is a combination of his accent, humor, frankness, theological clarity, and his sense of urgency and seriousness when it comes to the Gospel. It kind of stinks that he comes on the radio in Charlotte when everybody is supposed to be in the bed.

Here are some notable sermon jams to check out:
Alistair Begg - Careful
Mark Driscoll - Idols
John Piper - Check Yourself
Josh Harris - Cross Centered
Ravi - Pride

ESV Reformation Study Bible

2007-10-30T09:10:00.000-04:00

You might have heard us mentioning the ESV translation or noticed that we've been teaching from it a fair amount over the past couple months. If you've been wanting to buy a new Bible or wanting to check out the ESV you might want to take advantage of the sale happening on Wednesday for the ESV Reformation Study Bible. Order Here. (Only on Wednesday- Not
Before or After) This study Bible is edited by R.C. Sproul and the ESV is endorsed by John Piper and so, by my calculations, that would make this a pretty trustworthy Bible to have. Check it out if you are interested.

Dose of Spurgeon

2007-10-25T07:40:00.000-04:00

'Salvation is of the Lord.'-Jonah 2:9

Salvation is the work of God. It is He alone who quickens the soul 'dead in trespasses and sins,' and it is He also who maintains the soul in its spiritual life. He is both 'Alpha and Omega.' 'Salvation is of the Lord.' If I am prayerful, God makes me prayerful; if I have graces, they are God's gifts to me; if I hold on in a consistent life, it is because He upholds me with His hand. I do nothing whatever towards my own preservation, except what God Himself first does in me. Whatever I have, all my goodness is of the Lord alone. Wherein I sin, that is my own; but wherein I act rightly, that is of God, wholly and completely. If I have repulsed a spiritual enemy, the Lord's strength nerved my arm. Do I live before men a consecrated life? It is not I, but Christ who liveth in me. Am I sanctified? I did not cleanse myself: God's Holy Spirit sanctifies me. Am I weaned from the world? I am weaned by God's chastisements sanctified to my good. Do I grow in knowledge? The great Instructor teaches me.

All my jewels were fashioned by heavenly art. I find in God all that I want; but I find in myself nothing but sin and misery. 'He only is my rock and my salvation.' Do I feed on the Word? That Word would be no food for me unless the Lord made it food for my soul, and helped me to feed upon it. Do I live on the manna which comes down from heaven? What is that manna but Jesus Christ himself incarnate, whose body and whose blood I eat and drink? Am I continually receiving fresh increase of strength? Where do I gather my might? My help cometh from heaven's hills: without Jesus I can do nothing. As a branch cannot bring forth fruit except it abide in the vine, no more can I, except I abide in Him. What Jonah learned in the great deep, let me learn this morning in my closet: 'Salvation is of the Lord.'

Poor Boy's Cookbook

2007-10-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

Because I don't already have enough things to do--I decided to take on the task of creating a new blog. Unlike this blog, the new blog will will have nothing to do with ministry and everything to do with food. Sound strange? Why would he do that, you might ask? Well now that I've bought a house and have a culinary genius living with me, one could not help but create great food.

So please welcome to the blogosphere the Poor Boy's Cookbook. Just as a taste of what the new blog will offer, here is a quote from the first post:

"This blog will serve as a culinary platform to share with mankind the genius that is found within the minds of one Lazy Man and one School Teacher. They are two bachelors in their 20's sharing a home together and have no money. The School Teacher makes dimes and nickels working for the school system but loses all of his hard earned money to "the man" and to the mortgage company since they own his newly purchased home. The Lazy Man is a professional college student with no job, but a strong passion for cooking and the creative mind to fuel that passion."

I hope you'll check the blog out from time to time(you'll find a link in the side menu of this blog) as we will be posting up a variety of recipes that we create as well as various other cooking/food related posts. All of the recipes on the blog will be original recipes from our kitchen and most of them will come from our culinary experiments. Each post will contain a recipe card that can be enlarged and printed for your use. These recipes are taste tested and Wesson approved, and as you know if it's approved by a Wesson then it will taste pretty darn good. Not to mention, if its made by two bachelors then you know its gonna be cheap and quick to prepare. So please share and enjoy!

Poor Boy's Cookbook

Ephesisans Series Notes- Updated

2007-10-22T18:36:00.000-04:00

Just uploaded notes from the Ephesians Series and they can be found in our wonderful new friend called The Box Widget. Click on the file you'd like to download below in the widget or you can just view our Box.

9Marks Book Study Highlights: Chapter 2

2007-10-21T14:47:00.000-04:00

Biblical Theology. The next mark of a healthy church according to Mark Dever is Biblical Theology. Why is this important you might ask? Well I think it is pretty obvious that biblical illiteracy is a huge problem in America and especially among Christians. Christians just don't read their Bible and when they do it's seldom that they come to a right understanding of the theology contained in pages they read. Part of the problem is very much related to the first mark, Expositional Preaching, or really the lack-there-of. Pastors just don't preach expositionally very often anymore and since very few of their church members actually read their Bible outside of Sunday morning it is no wonder that people have a screwed up understanding of Biblical Theology. So here are the points we learned from this chapter and hopefully you'll realize, like us, that Biblical Theology is very, very important:

In society today, beliefs have been domesticated. People no longer fight for them and may not even care about them anymore.
Today people believe to be true simply what they desire to be true.
People need to have a "metanarrative" or meaning in their life.
God is a creating, holy, faithful, loving and sovereign God.
Sound teaching in our church must include a clear commitment to the teachings of the Bible, even if those teachings are often neglected.
The Bible shows us very plainly that God is a creating God and the He is an electing God.
God has a passion for holiness and is not unconcerned with His creation.
The language of covenant is the language of personal relationship.
The sacrifices of the OT showed that purification was needed, and that sin is so serious that death is needed to atone for it--that salvation and forgiveness are costly.
If you think people are basically good, then a church is simply a place where we seek encouragement or perhaps the enhancement of our self-esteem.
If you think that we are spiritually dead, then the church needs to present the Gospel clearly and tell people how to find forgiveness and new life.
Jesus Christ was the faithful fulfillment of God's promise to redeem us into a restored relationship with Himself.
God will continue to care for us and His continuing care is based not on our faithfulness but on His.

More Church Programming = More Spiritual Growth?

2007-10-18T11:33:00.000-04:00

Here's the question: Does the spiritual maturity of a believer correlate to their level of church activity?

Some would certainly agree with that statement and come to the conclusion that those who are most active in church are the one's who are most mature in their faith...you know the the kind of people who tithe, serve, and show love for others like Christ has done unto us.

Well, Willow Creek Church, the nation's 2nd largest church, has been doing some research to see if their church model, which is highly programmatic, has been successful in producing growing disciples. If you don't know about Bill Hybels and Willow Creek he was basically the Rick Warren before there was Rick Warren. His influence on Evangelical Christianity in America has been huge and the philosophy and methods implemented at Willow Creek have shaped the way America does church in many tangible ways. I'll spare you the history lesson and get to the point: Willow Creek's research (called Reveal) concluded that what they thought was working actually wasn't.

They found that there is no significant correlation between the level of church activity and the level of spiritual growth. So basically...just because a person goes to church every time the doors are open, it doesn't mean that they are growing spiritually. Hmmm...well what about if they are involved in small groups, and go through discipleship classes, and go on trips with the youth? Still no significant correlation. So what did the research find?

Speaking at a Leadership Conference, Bill Hybels said:

"Some of the stuff that we have put millions of dollars into thinking it would really help our people grow and develop spiritually, when the data actually came back it wasn’t helping people that much. Other things that we didn’t put that much money into and didn’t put much staff against is stuff our people are crying out for."

Another author from Leadership Journal blog wrote:

"In other words, spiritual growth doesn’t happen best by becoming dependent on elaborate church programs but through the age old spiritual practices of prayer, bible reading, and relationships. And, ironically, these basic disciplines do not require multi-million dollar facilities and hundreds of staff to manage."

I encourage you to read more on this because it has some huge implications on church methodology and your own spiritual growth. Growing up in a Baptist church where programming was highly emphasized, I believe this research could have the potential to reshape the way church is done everywhere.

Check the research out yourself and leave your comments on how you think this could change the way we should "do church":

REVEAL Key Findings

Out of Ur Blog on Research

Willow: Teach People to Feed Themselves

(click to enlarge)

9Marks Book Study Highlights: Chapter 1

2007-10-16T15:19:00.000-04:00

So far our book study on 9 Marks of a Healthy Church has been terrific. We have been challenged and stretched in the way we view ministry and the methods we use to carry it out. We have seen God affirm in us, through this book, some of the recent changes in the style/format of the Foundation services and believe we are heading in the right direction. It just so happens that one of the major changes we made in our services happens to be the the first of the 9Marks according to Mark Dever; expositional preaching. We have committed to preaching and teaching the Word of God like never before. We are deliberately making the preaching and teaching of the Word as a central part of the Foundation Ministry and trust that God will be honored by that . Check out some key ideas we gathered from Chapter 1 of 9Marks:

Chapter 1:

The first mark of a healthy church is expositional preaching.
The main role of any pastor is expositional preaching.
Expositional preaching contrasts with a topical sermon.
A topical sermon begins with what the preacher wants to preach about.
An expositional sermon makes the point of the message the point of a particular passage of Scripture.
A pastor who doesn’t regularly preach expositionally will never preach more than they knew when they began the whole exercise.
Pastors shouldn’t use Scripture as an excuse for what they already want to say.
God’s Word is the instrument chosen by Him to bring life.
The Word shows us what to believe.
It is in Christ that the Word of God has fully and finally come to us.
God’s Word not only gives us life; it also gives us direction and it keeps shaping and molding us in the image of the God who is speaking to us.
All of us, by our sinful nature, are looking for ways to justify our sins against God. We want to know how we can defend ourselves from God’s charges. Therefore we are in desperate need to hear God’s Word brought honestly to us, so that we don’t just hear what we want to hear but rather hear what God has actually said.

Joel Osteen on 60 Minutes

2007-10-16T09:23:00.001-04:00

60 minutes has just aired a TV special on America’s most popular pastor. With a church membership of approximately 47000, Lakewood Church in Houston Texas is the largest church in America. Osteen's services are broadcasted all over the world with millions tuning in every week. And oh yeah by the way, he can bench press 300 lbs and cry on demand.

I thought the reporter did a good job, I don’t think he was buying all the stuff Osteen was yapping about. It seems like the reporter understood Christianity well enough to figure out the problem with Osteen. He kept pointing out the similarities between Osteen’s teaching and the teaching of Dr. Phil or Oprah. He also could spot the dangers in telling everyone that they will be rich and happy.

I was also glad 60 minutes brought on somebody like Michael Horton; it is very rare shows like this bring on someone of his caliber. Too bad he only got like 30 seconds of show time with 20 seconds showing him walking up stairs. But I think what they showed of Dr. Horton was good, I am surprised that they showed what they did. He was able to squeeze out a few phrases such as cotton candy gospel, fortune cookie, easy listening, and heresy. Dr. Horton is a professor at Westminster Seminary, he is also the editor of Modern Reformation magazine, and part of the White Horse Inn radio talk show.

None of this changes the fact that he is still deceiving millions with his distorted Gospel, and making millions if I might add. I am starting to think that he knows exactly what he is doing. He knows there is lots of money to be made from new age self help as well as Christianity, so why not combine them. When you need to talk about self help topics draw from your new age sources, and when you talk about something that can be supported from the Bible, use that.

The Internetmonk has a good article on the 60 minutes piece as well, so take a look at it if you can.

Extreme Makeover: A Year Following every law the Bible

2007-10-11T07:57:00.000-04:00

Here is an interesting article about a guy who spent one year trying to follow every rule in the Bible.

John Piper: The State of the Pulpit Today

2007-10-09T21:50:00.000-04:00

Here is an interesting video from Piper I found from the Gospel Coalition website.

It really blows my mind to see people like John Piper, who have studied and preached the truths found in the Gospel for a long time, but are still just as passionate and consumed by these truth as they were when they first learned them. It seems like each time they go to preach, they are excited by what God is teaching them through the scriptures. They do not try to preach the latest fad, they are not afraid to teach the Bible even though the surveys, and cultural experts say that is not the way to draw a crowd or reach people today. They are confident that the Gospel can change lives. We need more pastors like that, it is definitely refreshing and encouraging to see long time pastors still passionate about the Gospel.

Romans 1:16
1 Corinthians 1:18-30

Also, I just got my ESV. I think I am gonna switch over to it as my main translation. The only problem is alot of the passages I know are in the NIV. But, I really like the ESV, I have been reading and using it when I am online, so I would highly recommend at least buying a copy if you can afford it. You don't have to switch over, but it is definitely a translation I would have. Any thoughts?

Wednesday Night Meeting 9/26

2007-09-25T23:25:00.000-04:00

The Foundation will be meeting tomorrow night (Wednesday) at 7pm in the Renfro Center basement. We are now in our 5th week of the Ephesians Study Series and will be focusing on Ephesians 3.14-21 and Paul's prayer for the believers. The title of the teaching is "Unleashed." Be sure to bring your Bible and something to write with.

Upcoming News: Next Wednesday we will be going to the Cleveland County Fair as a group after our weekly meeting. We are moving the service time up to 6:00PM. We are starting an hour earlier so that we can get out to the fair somewhat early. Be sure to invite a bunch of friends next week!

9Marks Book Study Highlights-- Part 1

2007-09-23T15:12:00.000-04:00

As the Vision Team(Aaron,Jonathan,Chance) has been meeting weekly to plan and prepare for the present as well as the future for The Foundation, we realized that we needed to do a better job of studying and growing together as a leadership team. To accomplish that task we are currently reading a book entitled: 9 Marks of a Healthy Church, written by Mark Dever. So far the book has been awesome and we would like to share some of the things we are learning as we move along through the book. I hope these posts will be helpful to you and that you might see The Foundation putting more emphasis on some of the healthy characteristics for the Body. Here are the notes from the Preface and Introduction:

Preface:

Unhealthy churches cause few problems on mature-healthy Christians but are serious deterrents in the growth of young Christians.
Bad churches are very effective anti-missionary forces.
The local church is God’s evangelism plan.
The local church isn’t an option for us; it’s the shape of you following Jesus.
If we want to be more biblical in our evangelism, then we will find ourselves devoting more time to praying for the lost in our personal prayer times.

Introduction:

Preaching of the Gospel and proper administration of baptism and the Lord’s Supper have been regarded as the marks of a true church by Protestants since the Reformation.
The exaltation of numbers and technique are two easily recognizable hallmarks of secularization in American churches.
Three Major Church Models: Liberal, Seeker-Sensitive, and Traditional
All three assume that evident relevance and response is a true indicator of success. (Social Ministries/Liberal—Music/Seeker-Sensitive—Programs/Traditional)
It is dangerous to assume that the fruit of a successful church is readily apparent.
God’s word is well-stocked with images of delayed blessing.
“Biblically, we must realize that the size of what our eyes see is rarely a good way to estimate the greatness of something in the eyes of God”
A successful ministry is one that is demonstrably faithful to God’s Word.
The preaching of the message and the leading of disciples are two basic needs in our churches.
The 9Marks: Expositional Preaching, Biblical Theology, The Gospel, Biblical Understanding of Conversion, Biblical Understanding or Evangelism, Biblical Understanding of Church Membership, Biblical Church Discipline, Concern for Discipleship and Growth, and Biblical Church Leadership.

Ephesians Study Notes Ch. 3.1-13

2007-09-22T14:50:00.000-04:00

My study notes from Ephesians Ch. 3.1-13 are now available online via Google Documents. You can view them by following this link. These notes are from my preparational study before the Wednesday night teaching, so they might only make sense to me, but I think you can find something useful in them to refer back to later. Enjoy!

Is Yoga OK for Christians?

2007-09-21T12:32:00.001-04:00

I recently ran across a video from CNN where they asked if yoga is ok for Christians. They brought on John MacArthur, pastor of Grace Community Church, and Doug Pagitt, pastor of Solomon's Porch and member of Emergent village to debate this.

Just a little side note: If you are ever asked to come on CNN to debate an issue and you find out John MacArthur is on the other end, don't go, you will lose! I am a big fan of John MacArthur and I have watched him time and time again defend the biblical Gospel on live TV and it is always the same result. He constantly and relentlessly makes a stand for biblical truth. After seeing many Christian leaders sink back and flounder, MacArthur never misses a chance to present the Gospel with clarity and conviction.

You can't deny that yoga is becoming extremely popular in America as well as the Church. So what is its place in the lives of Christians? Is it off limits? Use it for exercise only? I took a few classes in college on eastern spirituality and we talked about yoga and the different types in depth. It is hard to separate yoga from its history and background, which are bottom line anti-Christian, so I urge to be careful when it comes to things like this.

I also urge you to be extremely cautious when it comes to the emergent movement and some of its authors and leaders. Some of these people are associated with the emergent movement, some are loosely associated, and some you just need to be on your toes :). Brian McLaren, Doug Pagitt, Tony Jones, Leonard Sweet, Shane Claiborne, Spencer Burke, Rob Bell (no he didn't), Don Miller (that's two strikes now), Tony Campolo, etc. I am not telling you don't read books by them, because some of them have good things to say, but I do want to say be careful and exercise a little discernment when it comes to books, instead of reading the latest and coolest books out there and believing they are true simply because they come under a Christian heading.

How Much do Pastor's Get Paid?

2007-09-18T14:34:00.000-04:00

Interested? Christianity Today International just finished a report on Pastor's salaries. Evidently Baptist youth ministers make the highest youth worker salaries among all denominations....not what I would have thought. Anyways here's the report. Check it out.

Wednesday Night Meeting

2007-09-18T12:01:00.000-04:00

Once again, Wednesday's meeting will be in the Renfro Center Basement at 7pm. We will be digging into Ephesians 3 this week and will hopefully be able to reap some good stuff from God's Word that we can apply to our lives...be sure to bring your Bible and something to write with. Last week we went to IHOP after the meeting so who knows where we'll end up this time. See yall tomorrow!

Billy Graham & Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

2007-09-14T16:07:00.000-04:00

Recently, I came across a very interesting exhibit over at The Jonathan Edwards Center, where they have audio clips from the time Billy Graham preached “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”. Considered to be one of the greatest and most famous of American sermons, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” was first preached by Jonathan Edwards in 1741 during the First Great Awakening.

They have a transcript of the sermon that compares the original sermon to Billy Graham’s version. I thought it was interesting to see the slight differences (yes I know my nerdieness is showing).

Wednesday Night Meeting-9/12

2007-09-10T13:36:00.000-04:00

We are meeting once again on Wednesday night in the Renfro Center basement at 7pm. We'll be continuing our Ephesians Series with a study on Ephesians 2.11-22. Jeremiah Childers will do the teaching which should be great. Jeremiah is a student in the Divinity School at Gardner-Webb and is working on his Master's in Divinity. We will also take time out for The Lord's Supper which is something that we will be doing for the first time as a ministry.

After the Meeting: There are no definite plans at the moment. We'll decide after the service whether to go to the Coffee Shop, Kerry's, or to the Cookout. So everyone be thinking about where you'd like to go.

For All You Bookworms

2007-09-10T13:14:00.000-04:00

This chair's for you! Pretty cool idea...you can roll your chair to the perfect spot in the house, sit down, and pick out your favorite book from a 80 book collection, all without ever leaving your chair. Now all you have to do is fork out the 2,000 green-ones it will cost you to get it. But at least you would have a super-cool modern chair to display all the books you've bought but never get around to reading...

New Shane and Shane CD!

2007-09-06T14:37:00.000-04:00

I am excited to announce that finally, after about 3 years, the new Shane and Shane CD is out.

If you haven’t ever heard anything by them, I suggest you go and buy every CD they have made, you won’t be disappointed. They are just flat out on a whole different level than all of the “stuff” going on in Christian music. A lot of their music comes directly from the Psalms and other scriptures and is saturated with the Gospel. I am a person who loves the Gospel, I love to learn about it and sing about it, and in a Christian subculture surrounded by “prom songs to Jesus” which are devoid of substance and hardly mention sin, grace, Jesus, or atonement, Shane and Shane are definitely refreshing to hear.

I was able to go to their concert in Charlotte about a week ago and I was blown away. There wasn’t anything special about the concert, no big show with lights and all of that, just the music. When most artists are writing man-centered songs that hardly mention anything Christian, Shane and Shane were surprisingly God-centered. It was refreshing to see musicians and their music consumed and passionate about the Gospel and unashamed to share it. So, I highly recommend checking them out.

"Excellence in All Things and All Things to God's Glory" -- The Legacy of Dr. D. James Kennedy

2007-09-06T08:03:00.001-04:00

Dr. Mohler has a good post about the passing of Dr.D. James Kennedy.

Also, Justin Taylor over at Between Two Worlds has a post with some good links.

Wednesday Night Meeting

2007-09-04T23:00:00.000-04:00

There is a Foundation meeting tomorrow night at 7pm in the Renfro Center basement. Courtney Eller will be there this week to share a presentation on her mission trip to Uganda over the summer which should be awesome. Also, Justin Webb will continue our teaching series on Ephesians 2.1-10, so be sure to bring your Bible and something to write with.

After the Meeting: The plan is to go over to Broad River Coffee once again to hangout and listen during their open mic night.

If you have questions, contact us.

Ephesians Study Notes Ch. 1.15-23

2007-09-01T17:45:00.000-04:00

The study notes from Ephesians 1.15-23 are now posted. Here's the link. The notes are published on Google Documents so you should be able to save and print from there if you wish. Hope you enjoy!

SteveO on Youth Ministry

2007-08-30T23:34:00.000-04:00

Our good buddy Steven Staton, who's been steppin it up some here lately in the blogosphere, posted a great blog today on youth ministry called, "Two People Stuck on an Escalator." Check it out...and watch the video. Great analogy Steve.

Governor Huckabee on Creationism

2007-08-29T23:32:00.000-04:00

Governor Huckabee in my opinion pretty much hits a homerun on his response to a Creationism question during a Republican debate. Check it out!

Wednesday Night Meeting-8/29

2007-08-27T16:25:00.000-04:00

Once again The Foundation will be meeting Wednesday night at 7pm in the Renfro Center basement. You are in for a treat this week as you will hear two different mission trip reports from this summer. Stephanie Kay will be sharing on our New Orleans trip and Justin Witherspoon will share on his trip to Brazil. We will also pick up on our Ephesians study with an in-depth look at Ephesians 1.15-23 and focusing on "Our Resources in Christ."

After the meeting we will head over to Broad River Coffee to hangout and drink some good coffee. See ya'll Wednesday.

Crisis of Faith or Real Faith?

2007-08-25T10:47:00.000-04:00

New Information Sheds Light into the Personal Faith Life of Mother Teresa.

Hey Guys,

I have not posted in a long while. I read this article on Mother Teresa and found it encouraging and also sad that we all face times of doubt and loneliness in our walk with God. Like Mother Teresa many of us put on a smile in public and count our tears in private. Like many of the psalms we have our highs and lows, a schizophrenia of emotions in our Christian walk, but we must also realize God is the one walking alongside of us through our journey.

Check out the article at http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20070823/wl_time/motherteresascrisisoffaith;_ylt=AsApQ8Y57LzR7PsOj4BZ9Vqs0NUE

Ephesians Study Notes Ch. 1.1-14

2007-08-22T22:59:00.000-04:00

We just had our 1st Wednesday night meeting with a new kind of style and format. It was kind of a mesh between our services, small groups and HangOuts all into one meeting. The teaching tonight was on Ephesians 1. 1-14. For those of yall who were not there, you can get a copy of my teaching notes by clicking here.

Next week we'll be moving onto the rest of Ephesians 1 where we'll take a look at our "Resources in Christ." I'm looking forward to it already!

Foundation Gathering This Wednesday

2007-08-19T23:17:00.000-04:00

After a near summer-long "sabbatical," if you will, The Foundation is back this Wednesday night as we will have our first meeting of the new school year. We will be meeting over at the Renfro Center at 7pm with a short worship service and then a trip to Kerry's for some ice cream will follow. The format will be a little different in these meetings, so be sure to come and check it out (don't forget your Bible, because we'll be diggin in). Also try to check the blog (Yea, we know...we've been lazy on here too, but we're working on it) this week as we'll be putting new information up about some changes coming this year in the Foundation. If you have any questions....contact us.

Gospel Riches

2007-08-08T11:00:00.000-04:00

I ran across this article the other day from Christianity Today.

The article is about the growth of the "Prosperity Gospel", "Health and Wealth Gospel", "Name it Claim it" or however you want to say it gospel that is spreading rapidly all over Africa. The worst part is that this so called gospel was exported from America to Africa and other countries, once we figured out how to package, market, and sell it.

Also, here is a video excerpt from John Piper talking about the prosperity gospel.

There are many examples of modern attempts to redefine the gospel that bother me, but the “Prosperity gospel” has always been one that gets under my skin. Other attempts, though equally dangerous, usually come from well meaning people that are driven by distorted social agendas, worldviews, etc., instead of being driven by a desire to glorify God and be faithful to the Scriptures.

But the Prosperity gospel is somewhat different. These teachers, preaches, guru’s, prophets or what not, are driven by making lots of money through promising things that even God did not promise us, and exploiting the poor and weak in spirit. The gospel is distorted and used to manipulate people into giving money. I mean who wouldn’t want Jesus if he is going to give us money, health, cars, and other worldly things.

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

New Orleans Prayer Meeting

2007-07-28T18:52:00.000-04:00

Come pray with us!

Sunday, July 29th

Simmons' House

4:00pm

Our team leaves for New Orleans this coming Wednesday, please pray for us!

Is the Roman Catholic Church the only true Church?

2007-07-21T11:03:00.000-04:00

That shouldn't sound like anything new, that is the age old claim that the Reformers repeatedly denied, and a claim which we deny today as well. The Vatican just released a new document declaring the RCC to be the only true church, and that any church which denies the papacy is not a true church.

Dr. Al Mohler has a good post on the topic so check it out and let me know what you think.

Update for New Orleans trip

2007-07-18T18:01:00.000-04:00

"We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom,so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me." Col. 1:28-29

In two weeks our team will be in New Orleans! Please be praying for the people we will meet and ask the Lord to reveal Himself the the people there through our team.

For anyone who can and would like to- we're going to meet out in front of Walmart at 2:00 on Sunday, July 22. We're going to be getting supplies to pass out to the homeless.

Our next meeting will be at Kesha's house (let someone know if you need directions) after our Walmart adventure- we'll meet atKesha's house at 4pm that same Sunday.

Please remember that all the money due for the trip ($200) will be due on Sunday, July 29, but you can pay at any time before that.

News on the trip:

**We have a van to ride in!** Double Springs is letting us use their van- praise God!

**We need to each be getting ready to share our testimonies, so we'll talk about that at our next meeting.

FYI- I'll pass out a packing list at our next meeting.

Let me know if you have any questions,
Stephanie

New Orleans

2007-07-08T18:30:00.000-04:00

New Orleans Meeting
Tuesday, July 10th
Johnny and Mary's House
6:00 PM

Come ready to talk about our team's plans and such! Also, if you're going with us, $50 is due by Wed, July 11th

If you're not going to New Orleans, please pray for our team and the people we will be able to minister to.

Morning and Evening: July 6th

2007-07-06T09:28:00.000-04:00

This post from Spurgeon rings just as loud and true now, as it did when he wrote it. It is common place today to try and interpret scripture in light of our society, experiences, and agendas. We use arguments such as, "Our society is different from the society back then, so...(fill in the blank). When the authority of scripture to govern and sanctify our lives through the spirit takes a back seat to what we want or think scripture should say or mean, it is not long before as Spurgeon says, "an error in judgement becomes an error in practice". Scripture as the reformers said is, norma normans non normata, "The norm of norms which cannot be normed." Scripture is the final authority on all matters, it is above our experiences, opinions, and theological systems. Scripture is not interpreted in light of our experiences, our experiences are interpreted in light of Scripture. When Scripture is subject to our society, agendas, models, fads, or techniques it is not long before you are selling indulgences, ordaining homosexual bishops, pushing for gender neutral paraphrased bibles, changing the name of the trinity to something crazy like "Compassionate Mother, Beloved Child, Live-Giving Womb", denying the exclusive claims of Jesus, denying his substitutionary atonement for sins, adopting a righteousness obtained by works + faith. I could give example after example of problems that have been directly caused or set into motion by rejecting Scripture as the norm of all norms. This also plays out on an individual level as well. Everyone, believe it or not has a theology, something they believe about God or Jesus that shapes their view of him and which affects all aspects of their lives: worship, prayer, actions, etc. As Christians we are commanded to live by the truth, worship in truth, proclaim the truth, and to do that we first need to know the truth. We have to let the Holy Spirit through the gospel teach and shape us into the image of Christ. As a Christian, you never have it figured out, you never reach a point where you can say, "I don't need to read scripture because I have a good grasp of what it says." The gospel is the avenue through which the Spirit moves and works. The Spirit never reveals or acts contrary to scripture. The primary way the Spirit sanctifies us is through the Word(Gospel), so I urge you to read and meditate on the truths found in the Bible, because they are living and active able to teach, encourage, rebuke, and prepare you for every good work.

'Sanctify them through Thy truth.'-John 17:17

Sanctification begins in regeneration. The Spirit of God infuses into man that new living principle by which he becomes 'a new creature' in Christ Jesus. This work, which begins in the new birth, is carried on in two ways-mortification, whereby the lusts of the flesh are subdued and kept under; and vivification, by which the life which God has put within us is made to be a well of water springing up unto everlasting life. This is carried on every day in what is called 'perseverance,' by which the Christian is preserved and continued in a gracious state, and is made to abound in good works unto the praise and glory of God; and it culminates or comes to perfection, in 'glory,' when the soul, being thoroughly purged, is caught up to dwell with holy beings at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

But while the Spirit of God is thus the author of sanctification, yet there is a visible agency employed which must not be forgotten. 'Sanctify them,' said Jesus, 'through thy truth: thy word is truth.' The passages of Scripture which prove that the instrument of our sanctification is the Word of God are very many. The Spirit of God brings to our minds the precepts and doctrines of truth, and applies them with power. These are heard in the ear, and being received in the heart, they work in us to will and to do of God's good pleasure. The truth is the sanctifier, and if we do not hear or read the truth, we shall not grow in sanctification. We only progress in sound living as we progress in sound understanding. 'Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.' Do not say of any error, 'It is a mere matter of opinion.' No man indulges an error of judgment, without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth, for by so holding the truth shall you be sanctified by the Spirit of God.

The Faithful Pastor and the Faithful Church: an interview with Mark Dever

2007-07-03T09:17:00.000-04:00

Here is an interview with Mark Dever that is pretty good and covers a few different topics.

Mark is a pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist Chruch in D.C., and is also part of the Together for the Gospel crew, and started 9 Marks ministries.

NEW ORLEANS HERE WE COME!

2007-06-25T22:54:00.000-04:00
Wednesday, June 27th
7:00 PM
Johnny and Mary Walker's house
(let someone know if you need directions)

We're going to New Orleans on a mission trip August 1-5!! Anyone who is interested in going on the trip can and should come to this meeting. We need to nail down who's going to be going on the trip. We also need to talk about some more details and fundraising options.

If you have any questions or ideas about the trip/fundraising, bring them to the meeting on Wednesday and we'll talk about them.

If you can't make it to this meeting, leave a comment here and I'll fill you in on the details later.

See you there!

British Girl Sues for Right to Wear a Purity Ring

2007-06-22T23:53:00.000-04:00
I ran across this article over on the New York Times about a British girl who was punished in school for wearing a "purity ring" because it violated school dress codes. The student claims that the ring is an expression of her Christian faith and that she is being discriminated against. Since when can you not wear rings to school? Anyways, if you are familiar with "True Love Waits" or in her case the organization is called "Silver Ring Thing" then you get the basic gist of why she was wearing the ring. But is that really an expression of her faith? Is the government suppressing her Christian beliefs? The article raises some interesting questions...so if you have a minute check it out:

British Girl Sues for Right to Wear Chastity Ring: New York Times

Jesus Found in a Tree

2007-06-21T12:08:00.000-04:00
Evidently some members of a Memphis church claim to have seen Jesus in a trunk of a tree. Don't believe me? Check out the article for yourself.

UMC State of the Church

2007-06-20T12:15:00.000-04:00

The United Methodist Church has released their annual State of the Church Report. The UMC site reports:

"The annual State of the Church Report provides a detailed look at The United Methodist Church today. It encompasses the issues and concerns on the minds of the church's members and their hopes for the denomination in the future.
The report is sponsored by the United Methodist Connectional Table as a way to:

Encourage conversation and visioning across the church.
Identify signs of strength and weakness in the life and ministries of the church.
Recognize the church's heritage and work."

Interested in the data? Below is a link to the research data which I found to be pretty interesting. It's crazy how much the values and beliefs vary among clergy and laity across the different regions of the US. Check it out.

2006 UMC Quantitative Research

Cookout & Pool Party

2007-06-19T11:29:00.000-04:00

The ladies are throwing a pool party/cookout on Wednesday night for anyone who wants to come. The party will be held at Kesha Allen's house and will last from 6:30 until whenever. Hamburgers and hotdogs will be served. Bring your swimsuit and invite a friend to come out for a good time. And in case you didn't know...these ladies know how to put on a shindig...especially when it comes to food!

Click Here for directions.

Any Questions? Contact Us.

Religion as Ice Cream

2007-06-19T10:53:00.000-04:00

Some more sad news from the Episcopal Church. It seems now that Christianity can be mixed with other religions to find the flavor of ice cream that you like. What else would make a good flavor? Christianity and Daoism? Hey, if it works for you why not? Maybe the more toppings the better. Riddleblog article. Stand to Reason article.

Excuse my sarcasm, but I do not have the mental capacity to understand this type of thinking, and it saddens me to see the Gospel of the Living God substituted for an idol. It saddens me to see people confessing to be Christians when they do not treasure Jesus. It's not saying a prayer or reciting a few doctrines that saves a person, Jesus must be your treasure, like the parable in Matthew 13, the kingdom of God is like a man finding a treasure hidden in a field and then he sells everything to buy that field so he can have the treasure. From this article, it would be the equivalent of selling everything to buy the field but then setting up an altar and worshiping Allah, at best it’s an insult to God, at worst it treats lightly the blood of Jesus, trampling it underfoot (Heb 10), and strips from the only person worthy of worship, the glory and honor that is due Him. That might be a little dramatic, but it makes me angry, and I think it makes God angry as well.

This also applies to everyone, myself included. Jesus must be treasured, and not as a means to some other treasure such as money, power, social reasons, or heaven (that could make you think). To confess to be a Christian, yet treasure the gifts rather than the giver of all things, is a contradiction in terms. Is Jesus your treasure? Or have you replaced Jesus with worldly treasures? Eternal life is not something you bargain with, you don’t get to go to heaven in exchange for one Sunday a week, you can’t say to God, “I’ll let you forgive me of my sins if you let me still treasure this over you.” Galatians 6 says, do not be deceived, God is not mocked, for what you sow you also will reap. You can’t have it both ways.

I think as Christians we always have to examine ourselves and our lives to see if our actions line up with what we treasure. If you have replaced Jesus as your treasure with something else, repent, ask for forgiveness, and begin to treasure and praise Him who has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9)