Friday, August 17, 2007

Sometimes it is good to suffer...

Psalm 119:71-72 71 It is good for me that I was afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes. 72 The law of Your mouth is better to me Than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

Ponder that this day.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

He Is Coming!

Just to remind you... He is coming quickly. Are you prepared to meet your Creator if He comes today?

Keep Out The Heretics

Archbishop Peter Jensen of Sydney, Australia "has taken the extraordinary step of banning John Shelby Spong, a fellow member of the Anglican communion who arrives in Sydney this morning, from churches in his diocese."

The article is found in The Australian regarding this issue. Spong is a retired bishop of Newark, N.J. and is well-known in the evangelical world for denying almost every cardinal doctrine that we as evangelicals hold. You name a doctrine - he has attempted to deny it.

In one of Spong's books, Jesus for the Non-Religious, here is what it contains:

The book questions biblical references to the nature of the birth of Jesus
Christ, his ability to perform miracles and the Resurrection.

So we see that even in the Anglican church Bishop Jensen is denying some to speak to the people. How much more should we take care in proclaiming the absolute truth to our people.

Remember, Titus 1:9 (which I am becoming convinced is the theme verse for the letter):

Titus 1:9 9 holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.

Let us be the people today that are so holding fast to the faithful word that we teach the truth and are equipped to refute those who deny it (i.e. Spong).

Sufficient in Christ

This excellent post encouraged me this morning...
We need not add to our salvation. Who we are in Christ is sufficient to
sustain us in and through all that life here has to offer. We are pilgrims,
strangers in a strange land. We are on journey and will soon arrive at our
destination. Let us heed Peter's words and abstain from the lustful things this
world has to offer. To entangle ourselves with such things is to slap our Lord
and savior in the face and tell Him that He is not enough. May God forbid that
we ever seek to fill ourselves with anything less than the indwelling power of
His Holy Spirit.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Seeing the Glory of God

John 11:40 40 Jesus said to her [Martha], "Did I not say to you, if you believe, you will see the glory of God?"
This morning I want to give you a few thoughts of mine concerning the phrase, "seeing the glory of God."

We know, first of all, that Jesus' ministry was consumed with the glory of His Father (John 17:1, 4). Jesus was actively living his life for one purpose - to honor and submit to the Father's perfect and sovereign plan. This He did with perfection.

Next, it seems as though seeing the glory of God is something that Jesus offers to Martha - if she believes - and not to everyone else (i.e. the crowds) who will witness this extraordinary miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead.

Along these lines, MacArthur notes:

It was a sovereign act of Christ, designed to glorify Himself and the
Father by putting His resurrection power on display. Consequently it would have
happened to matter how Martha had responded. But though all present would see
the miracle, only those who had faith in Christ would see the fullness of God's
Glory reflected in it (MacArthur, John 1-11, 473).

Thus it seems that seeing the glory of God is understanding what is truly going on here in this text. Sure, Jesus raises a man from the dead - a miracle which only God can do. However, the spiritual meaning, namely, that Jesus Christ is The Resurrection and The Life is something that is hidden to those who refuse to believe. But Martha has the opportunity to understand this:

Leon Morris notes:

For [Jesus] the "glory of God" was the one important thing. This means that the
real meaning of what He would do would be accessible only to faith. All who were
there, believes or not, would see the miracle. But Jesus is promising Martha a
sight of the glory. The crowed would see the miracle, but only believers would
perceive its real significance, the glory (Gospel According to John,
NICNT, 560).

I pray that we all may see the glory of God today as we walk and live
life understanding just who Jesus really is.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Seeing The Glory of God

I raed this quote this morning as our pastor was preaching from John 11 on the "Raising of Lazarus." I read this verse and - no kidding - it was as if I had never read it before. I post it here for your reading and meditation and hopefully it will stimulate your thinking. I am not ready to post my idea as to what I think it means, so I will study it and post it shortly...

John 11:39-40 39 Jesus said, "Remove the stone." Martha, the sister of the deceased, said to Him, "Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days." 40 Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?"

What does it mean when Jesus said to Martha, "you will see the glory of God?"

Friday, August 10, 2007

Theological Refresher -- Inspiration

5 points of inspiration from Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy:

1. God, who is Himself Truth and speaks truth only, has inspired Holy Scripture in order thereby to reveal Himself to lost mankind through Jesus Christ as Creator and Lord, Redeemer and Judge. Holy Scripture is God's witness to Himself.
2. Holy Scripture, being God's own Word, written by men prepared and superintended by His Spirit, is of infallible divine authority in all matters upon which it touches: it is to be believed, as God's instruction, in all that it affirms: obeyed, as God's command, in all that it requires; embraced, as God's pledge, in all that it promises.
3. The Holy Spirit, Scripture's divine Author, both authenticates it to us by His inward witness and opens our minds to understand its meaning.
4. Being wholly and verbally God-given, Scripture is without error or fault in all its teaching, no less in what it states about God's acts in creation, about the events of world history, and about its own literary origins under God, than in its witness to God's saving grace in individual lives.
5. The authority of Scripture is inescapably impaired if this total divine inerrancy is in any way limited or disregarded, or made relative to a view of truth contrary to the Bible's own; and such lapses bring serious loss to both the individual and the Church.

Thursday, August 9, 2007

Once a people -- Always will be a people

This morning I had a delightful time in Jeremiah 31 being reminded not only of God's faithfulness, but also of his unconditional, unilateral and unchangeable covenant with the nation of Israel.

Jeremiah 31:35-37 35 Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for light by day And the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; The LORD of hosts is His name: 36 "If this fixed order departs From before Me," declares the LORD, "Then the offspring of Israel also will cease From being a nation before Me forever." 37 Thus says the LORD, "If the heavens above can be measured And the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel For all that they have done," declares the LORD.

I firmly am convinced, most wholeheartedly, that God's covenant that He made with Abraham was not bilateral - that is, that both parties agreed to enter into the covenant. Rather, Genesis 12 is clear (at least, to me) that it was God who made the covenant with Abraham (Gen 15 even speaks of it happening while Abraham was in a deep sleep)...

Genesis 12:2-3 2 And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; 3 And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed."

Genesis 15:12-13, 18 12 Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him. 13 God said to Abram, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years ... On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I have given this land, From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:

I find great hope in verses such as these for a number of reasons:

1) It reveals to me God's unchanging and unfailing faithfulness. He will never (and can never) break his promises. He is a faithful God (Deut 7:9).

2) It reveals to me God's plan is still in effect for national, ethnic, Jewish Israel. There is no way around it. I have never heard a satisfactory response by those that hold to supercessionism (that is, that the church replaced Israel and is now the new Israel) to the crystal clear passage (at least, to me) in Jeremiah 31:35ff.

3) It reveals to me God's desire for me to continue to aggressively share the gospel with everyone - including the Jewish people. For God still has a great number of these precious people who will one day acknowledge Him as Messiah.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Biblical Scholarship -- Part 2

Silva in his work, God, Language and Scripture concludes with this quote that I heartily agree with:

But I fear most of all for the future of biblical scholarship. Many are the students who have acknowledged that, if they had not been forced to take Greek and Hebrew, they would not have done so, thus missing what they now consider a foundational element in their theological education. Dropping the language requirement leads inexorably to a drain in the pool of potential scholars. Can we afford to abandon the scientific study of the Bible and leave it in the hands of those who have no regard for its authority?

Prayer For India

I have been in contact with a friend of mine in India. He does Christian evangelism work there and is a great and passionate soldier for our Lord! His name is Raju. Believe it or not, I met him in New York City recently and he hugged me tighter than I had ever been sqeezed before in my whole life. He was literally overwhelmed and overjoyed to see Jews for Jesus on the streets.

This picture here is of Raju and his wife.


This picture is of everyone gathered for a meeting. Alot of people at this meeting huh!

Here is Raju and some in his congregation meeting together.


Here is Raju teaching one Sunday morning.

Psalm 96:1-3 Sing to the LORD a new song; Sing to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Sing to the LORD, bless His name; Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. 3 Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Evangelism -- One Way To Do It...

I was reminded this morning of the simplicity of evangelism. Of course, I recognize there are many facets to this and one must be ready and equipped to engage in theological discussions, but as far as just the sheer act of being a witness for Christ is fairly simple.

Take the conversion of Augustine. One day when traveling to his home in Milan he heard a child say "Tolle lege, tolle lege" ("Take and read!"). He opened the book that the child gave him to Romans 13:14:

Romans 13:14 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

He was converted then. May we be those who are witnesses for Christ today...even if it is merely handing the Scriptures to someone in hopes that the Holy Spirit may do His saving work.

Move and Stay There...

This essay is by a guy named Jim Elliff and it's entitled, Pastors Moving To Other Churches: Why? It is excellent. Quite lengthy, but excellent. It is an excellent argument (and a right one) as to why a man should pastor a flock and live life with the sheep. He must become part of them and let them become part of him. It is about living life together and this, Elliff, argues, is one of the greatest ways in which a pastor can make a huge difference in the lives of his people. Read it HERE.

Saturday, August 4, 2007

The Pastor As Theologian

To be a "pastor who is not willing to enter into the theological world" is an oxymoron, I believe. I feel comforted knowing that I have the president of Southern Theological Seminary on my side. Mohler notes, "Every pastor is called to be a theologian." He adds:

Nevertheless, the health of the church depends upon its pastors functioning as faithful theologians--teaching, preaching, defending, and applying the great doctrines of the faith.
This is why we need men in the pulpits to accurately and convincingly expound the Word of God. We note that in many seminaries today, the credentials of the faculty must not merely be academic, but they also must have pastoral experience. Why not take this same reasoning to the church setting? A pastor must not only have pastoral credentials, but he must also have the academic credentials necessary to expound the Word of God in a way that is theologically sound.

Mohler agrees and writes this excellent article. I'm going to read this article once a month to keep myself in check. READ THE ARTICLE HERE.

Friday, August 3, 2007

Like Sixteen Is Not Enough...

I clicked on the news and one of the top stories was Michelle Duggar and her husband who live in Little Rock, Arkansas who just had their SEVENTEENTH ("17") baby. Same marriage. Same family. Real children! Amazing. This is one family that takes Psalm 127 quite literally...

Psalm 127:3-5 3 Behold, children are a gift of the LORD; The fruit of the womb is a reward. 4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth. 5 How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.

I knew we held to a literal interpretation of the Scriptures...but seriously, 17?!?!

AND get this, they are all home-schooled.

Pray For The Lost

This post is from a NT scholar that I have been reading a lot from recently as I prepare for some exams, David Alan Black. He has written numerous works, such as, It's Still Greek To Me, Linguistics for Students of NT Greek, Rethinking NT Textual Criticism, among many others. In any rate, Dr. Black has a webpage that is superb. He has a column with his thoughts (and he puts a new one up every few days or so) that are really challenging and thought provoking. This is an example from the column.

I have a salvation prayer list. Do you? “Operation Andrew” suggests you make a list of 4 or 5 people who need salvation and pray for them daily. I might suggest that before you do this you ask God to bring certain people to your mind. Then, when He lays them upon your heart, pray for them at least once a day.

Remember: no case is impossible. In New Testament times the Gospel even penetrated the household of the Emperor himself (Phil. 4:22). God may well have a few surprises up His sleeve for you – just as He did for me when Mohammed became a new creation in an Alaba prison. Some people on your prayer list will, of course, be more ready than others. In a tiny village in Northern Ethiopia lives a woman who 3 years ago had no believer in her family. Now she is surrounded by a son and daughter who follow Jesus. I think she is not far from the kingdom. It’s good to remember that God has no favorites. He “does not show favoritism, but accepts men from every nation” (Acts 10:34).


Must you use a certain technique when praying for the lost? By no means! Simply spread your requests out before God without suggesting what He ought to do about it. Leave the means and the timing to Him. “Ask and you will receive,” said Jesus, and when we ask through Him we can be assured that our prayers will be heard and answered as the Father deems best.

I suppose that a burden for the lost is the most crucial mark of any church when we are considering the matter of evangelism. If you have really experienced the Good News of salvation you will want others to share that experience. My limited experience in foreign missions goes to support the assertion that once a church begins to pray for the lost, before long they will begin to give generously to support those in their midst who seek to go out. Such churches begin to look beyond themselves. They will be willing to neglect their own needs (our “needs” are often only our “wants,” aren’t they?) and look to far needier places to support. The fellowship in a church that genuinely loves the lost has got to be sweeter than anywhere else in town.

My friend, I cannot tell you how important it is for you to visualize the harvest field to which God has called you. Remember: the fields are white, and you’ve been drafted for the harvest. One day you and I will step out into eternity. In the meantime, what can we do for the lost?

Pray for them

Thursday, August 2, 2007

Piper on the Twin Cities Bridge Collapse

John Piper writes a short bit on his reflections regarding the collapse of the bridge in the Twin Cities. He notes that many of their workers at the church and at DesiringGod ministries cross the bridge often.

Read the excerpt HERE.

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Are We Counted Righteous In Christ? Or Not?

One of the books I have been reading for pleasure lately is one by John Piper, Counted Righteous In Christ. The title caught my eye, so I opened up to see how Piper would organize the work. To my surprise, he spends most of the book arguing against a well known New Testament theologian who says that:
The doctrine of imputation is not even biblical. Still less it is 'essential' to the Gospel.
He goes on to (boldly) note:
I join the growing number of biblical theologians, evangelical and non-evangelical alike, who deny that Paul or any other New Testament author speaks of a righteousness of Christ (whatever it might include or exclude) that is imputed to believing sinners, and find instead a doctrine of God's righteousness as his salvific activity in a covenantal framework, not in terms of an imputation of Christ's righteousness in a bookkeeping framework.
Well, I disagree with Mr. Gundry very firmly because I believe that the Scriptures do, in fact, teach that believers are imputed an external righteousness. That is, our righteousness comes outside of ourselves. Specifically, I believe the righteousness with which believers are credited is that of Jesus Christ.

So in this book, Piper goes through the NT in a very detailed exegetical fashion and proves (very solidly) that this claim by Gundry is false. It is a short book, but a very important one in understanding this assault on the historic (and biblical) view of the atonement.
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