Aliens and Strangers

Aliens and Exiles: We Have Moved

2009-02-14T13:55:00.002-06:00

Thanks for checking in!! We have moved to a new blog, Aliens and Exiles. All of the old posts, including comments, can be found there!! All future posts will go there as well, so please join us as we try to grow and spread the good news of Jesus!!

Dr. Martin Loyd Jones - Excerpt from a personal letter

2009-02-07T17:58:00.001-06:00

Excerpt from a personal letter, dated 25th November 1974

Saturday, December 13, 2008 at 11:19pm

My attitude to the question of Tongues and other gifts is this: I have never been able to accept the traditional teaching as stated particularly, perhaps, by Warfield, that all gifts came to an end at the Apostolic era. I cannot see any scriptural warrant for this teaching; indeed it seems to me to be a kind of dispensationalism which renders much of the epistles useless. For instance it implies that the teaching of 1 Thessalonians 5, verses 19 - 21 has no application today. All I say is, that while it is clear from the history of the Church that certain gifts seem to have been in abeyance over the centuries the Holy Spirit in His Lordship may give them at any time. Indeed there is clear teaching that towards the end of this age such gifts are likely to reappear in great power, and at the same time many counterfeits.

The result of all this is that while I am very unhappy about this Charismatic Movement, and regard it as a real danger to the true Church and the Gospel, because it implies constantly that doctrine does not matter at all, I am equally concerned that we should not become guilty of "quenching the Spirit" and tying ourselves up in a dead orthodoxy.

PAIGE PATTERSON HOPES CALVINIST PROFESSORS WON’T BE “LET GO” AT SOUTHWESTERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY (SBC)? -Repost from Apprising Ministries

2009-02-05T12:43:00.001-06:00

Apprising Ministries continues our coverage of an accusation made by Wade Burleson in his post Forcibly Removing the Tulips at SWBTS. One which Robin Foster of SBC Todayhas referred to as Tabloid Blogging:

Because of the recent tabloid blogging that has occurred at this site here and here, we at SBC Today have been busy answering questions on when we would respond to what one Calvinistic professor called, “lies and slander” of the aforementioned postings. (Online source)

At his Grace and Truth to Youblog Burleson had written:

Yesterday Dr. Paige Patterson met with professors in the theology school at SWBTS and said that the seminary would be letting go the five point Calvinist professors from the seminary, claiming that the lack of funds and the need to reduce faculty as the rationale for the impending releases. Odd, however, was the chosen method of reduction. (Online source)

I’ve previously pointed out that this immediately caught my attention because, as a former Roman Catholic, I now happen to be an SBC pastor myself holding the doctrines of grace being discussed in Burleson’s post. In addition, it’s also no secret in the Christian blogosphere that I’ve been quite critical of the Southern Baptist Convention.

The main reason is my contention that it’s filled with CEO-type leader wannabes who comprise a “good ol’ network” largely advancing each other’s businesses, oops, ministries. And along with this pragmatic semi-pelagianism the SBC, ostensibly the largest Protestant denomination in the country, is slowly embracing Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism whose rotten root draws much of its spiritual poison from the antibiblical monastic traditions of apostate Roman Catholicism.

This is necessary background as to why I’m very carefully watching this developing story. In my original piece I also brought out that Dr. Greg Welty, a Calvinist on staff at SWBTS, is denying any such meeting took place. Then yesterday in Forcibly Removing the Tulips at SWBTS (Part II)Burleson would share “a couple of observations.” The first of which was:

(1). This expressed intent to use the downturn in the economy to rid the faculty of Calvinists has been known by various SWBTS professors and administrators, but not all professors, for at least ten days. Meetings with professors were both individual in nature, and in a couple of instances, several professors at one time. (Online source)

Also yesterday in Are Calvinist Professors To Be “Let Go” At Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBC)? I mentioned a phone call I had received from J. Randall Easter, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Briar, Azle, TX. Pastor Easter, came recommended by a pastor on AM’s board of directors and both have stood shoulder to shoulder with Paul Washer for the advance of God’s Gospel preaching with him in Peru.

Pastor Easter is also a student at SWTBS and gave me permission to publish an email, which he sent me following our talk. In his letter he shares his firsthand information from speaking personally to some of the professors involved in what Easter called “meetings between the President of SWBTS and Faculty” of SWBTS.

Now today let me draw to your attention a post at the aforementioned SBC Today called A Brief Visit with Dr. Paige Pattersonwhere Wes Kenney informs us:

One year ago yesterday, we posted an interview with Southwestern Seminary president Dr. Paige Patterson, as Tim Rogers talked with Dr. Patterson in Jacksonville, Florida. Today, we present another. Dr. Patterson was in Hugo, Oklahoma for the Frisco Baptist Association’s annual evangelism conference, and I was able to talk to him briefly after the conference had ended. We talked about issues ranging from ecclesiology to ecumenism, the characteristic passion for missions that has always defined Southwestern, to the future legacy of the seminary as envisioned by the school’s eighth president. We even talked a little about some of the silly rumors generated by recent tabloid blogging. (Online source)

One is able to listen to that interview from a link to the side of the above piece at SBC Today. And finally, in closing this for now, AM now points you below to a partial transcript of that interview with Patterson mentioned above. It appears in a new article by Wade Burleson, who has “spent the last twenty five years pastoring in Oklahoma,” called Are Southern Baptists Blind or Blindfolded? :

Interviewer:“I’ve been asked recently about a rumor that these economic challenges have been used as an excuse uh… to weed out certain professors at Southwestern who hold to a soteriological viewpoint with which you disagree. Is there any truth to that rumor?”

Paige Patterson: “Ummm… eh you… you know… eh uh… I certainly hope not. Uhhh… eh uh… eh… I’ve lived my entire life… of life in a goldfish bowl… and… as boldly as I know how to do it. Uhhh… we’re not certain at all that we’re going to have to eliminate any professor. We have been working very, very hard to… ummm… to cut everything else in the world so we don’t have to cut professors and… uh… we don’t know yet what we’re gonna have to do, but we… we’re hopeful that we don’t have to cut any professors. If we do… ummm… I will not use a… uhhh… screen… uh… to do that with. Ummm… if if if… every decision that I make regarding faculty would be made with a view to assisting the school to be the best school it possibly can be. Ummm… we have every conceivable soteriological view on the campus… uhhh… in terms of five points of Calvinism. We have one-pointers, two-pointers, three-pointers, four-pointers, and five-pointers. Uhhh… I will say this. Uhhh… Southwestern will not build a school in the future around anybody who could not look anybody in the world in the eyes and say, “Christ died for your sins.” If there is a problem there, then I believe there’s a problem that Southern Baptists would not want to fund.

Interviewer: “True.”

Paige Patterson: “And so uhhh… uhhh… that would be case, but I wouldn’t be hidin’ behind a screen of economic matters… if I had to deal with that”.

Interviewer: “Sure.”

Paige Patterson: “And uhhh… uh… God willing… ummm… if He’s gracious to us… God’s people continue to give… maybe we won’t have to lay off anybody else.”

Interviewer: “That’s what we’re prayin’ for. Yes.” (Online source)

Blog Block

2009-02-02T18:27:00.002-06:00

In spite of a lofty New Year's Resolution, I have been unable to get anything of my own posted here since I wrote the New Year's post. I have started and restarted 4 different posts, but cannot seem to get the point of what I want to say across to myself, let alone actually post anything here for public consumption. I guess I have some stupid form of writer's block. I'm glad my livelihood does not depend on my writing, or I'd be screwed!! The ideas are there, just not the ability to communicate them. If it wasn't for TH, this blog would be more or less dead, falling far short of the goals I had set for it!!
Perhaps with the end of the football season I will be able to think about other things, though I really didn't obsess over it in the first place, just spent several hours a week watching it. I cannot think of any good excuses for not being able to write anything, other than the fact I just can't seem to put any worthwhile thoughts together!!
I may have mentioned that a few times already. . .

For This Reason - Repost from TeamPyro

2009-01-31T07:59:00.002-06:00

This is an excellent post by Frank Turk of TeamPyro. Give it a read and let it sink in!!

Honestly: there are reasons to admire Hugh Hewitt. He's a man of many public accomplishments, a public servant, a lawyer, apparently a fine administrator and speech-writer. He's a fine man. Probably a good neighbor.

He deserves our respect.

What we are not required to give him, however, is intellectual and spiritual carte blanche. In spite of his allegedly-conservative political views, he's vacant on the subject of the Christian faith and what it means to have a savior and a Gospel and a church. And if he would stay away from these subjects, he'd be far more admirable.

But he doesn't. Maybe he can't -- maybe like a moth compelled to throw itself into the flame of a candle, or maybe like a wolf who bleeds to death because he is licking a razor and tasting his own blood -- Hewitt always circles back to the subject of christianity (small "c" intentional).

And he comes back because he thinks that the ends of the church are the same as the ends of conservatism. It's because he sees the church as a moral improvement society -- something which only teaches the world something it couldn't learn on its own.

This is why Hugh Hewitt gets my goat: he sees the church as a means to a political end. I find his views in that respect reprehensible.

Which is why it surprised me a little to see that J. P. Moreland was on Hewitt's show recently advocating for the same clap-trap Hewitt is selling. I mean: J. P. Moreland. He's a respected apologist -- same class as William Lane Craig and Francis Beckwith, right?

I'll leave that part to the meta.

But on Hewitt, we can see Dr. Moreland saying stuff like this:

Being involved in politics is not unchristian. In fact, it’s a part of our calling as Christians. Why? Because we are supposed to do good to all people including the household of faith. And to do good to all people means establishing just laws and a just and a stable social order. And that’s the job of the state. It’s political. So the first thing a pastor should do and the Church should do is to enlist people like the dickens to be involved in the political process and vote. It is unconscionable that we have these rights, and that we have an obligation as disciples of Jesus to try to bring goodness and truth to society, that we don’t use all means available to promote just laws and a just and stable social order through the political process. And so voting is absolutely critical.

Get that? The first thing we should be concerned about as Christians is inhabiting the political process.

The first thing. Seriously: that's the first thing the pulpits of our churches should be used for? But get this as a chaser:

This is important because the Evangelical does not want to place the state under Scripture. That would be to create a theocracy, and that has never been a good idea. What we want is we want to place the state under the natural moral law. Therefore, if an Evangelical is going to be for traditional marriage, and it’s going to be against gay marriage, it cannot use Scripture to argue that case in the public square. It can be preached from the pulpit that this is a Biblical view, but when it comes to political engagement, it is not our attempt to place the state under the Bible, but to place it under the natural moral law. So it would follow, then, that Christians need to learn how to provide independent arguments for traditional marriage that do not require premises from the Scriptures.

Look: I can't make up stuff like this. I'd feel embarrassed if I attributed a statement like that to someone because it is surreal -- absurd in such a way that it makes sarcasm irrelevant.

Read the whole interview with Dr. Moreland for yourself, but don't be taken in by it. You know better. You know for a fact that Jesus did not die to make sure that the Republicans will control both houses of the Legislature, the Oval Office, and appoint only right-of-center judges to Supreme Court.

Paul knew it, anyway. Listen to what he said:

I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world ...

Now listen: Paul says this from a prison cell under a government based wholly on idolatry. If anyone ever had a chance to declare and proclaim and require a political solution to his plight, it was Paul. But he says this:

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

The pontifications of Hugh Hewitt or J.P. Moreland or any of the dunces who agree with them that somehow "evangelicalism" has "died" because Barack Obama is our president are like the sounds of tin cans being kicked in the street by rough and homeless children. The sounds that come out of them are because they are part of the game and not because they have something to say. They get kicked, and it's "POP! CLACK-tee-CLACK-clack!" -- a small, insulted sound at which the children laugh.

And in case you cannot read my parable here, the children are the unbelievers. They have kicked Hewitt's can, and his complaint is really: because he played the game, he got kicked. Having more cans in the street is not going to stop the kickers from kicking: it is going to cause them to kick more cans.

Christians ought to be more than cans in the street getting kicked. Paul has indeed instructed us -- Christ has indeed instructed us, and God in all of Scripture has sufficiently and perfectly instructed us -- on what we are to do first. May He who calls us out of the world to pass through the world as if it were not our home also call us to preach the Gospel which is the only hope of men -- and not trade it for the noises of traducers like Hewitt who don't understand that they are the problem, not the Gospel.

And to be sure you know what I'm telling you personally to do here, be in the Lord's house with the Lord's people on the Lord's day this weekend -- start there. Call people there. The solution that ought to be preached there should be the Gospel and not new law.

THE RESOLUTIONS of Jonathan Edwards

2009-01-23T10:32:00.002-06:00

THE RESOLUTIONS of Jonathan Edwards BEING SENSIBLE THAT I AM UNABLE TO DO ANYTHING WITHOUT GOD’ S HELP, I DO HUMBLY ENTREAT HIM BY HIS GRACE TO ENABLE ME TO KEEP THESE RESOLUTIONS, SO FAR AS THEY ARE AGREEABLE TO HIS WILL, FOR CHRIST’ S SAKE.

Remember to read over these Resolutions once a week.

1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to God’ s glory, and my own good, profit and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without any consideration of the time, whether now, or never so many myriads of ages hence. Resolved to do whatever I think to be my duty and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general. Resolved to do this, whatever difficulties I meet with, how many soever, and how great soever.

2. Resolved, to be continually endeavoring to find out some new contrivance and invention to promote the aforementioned things.

3. Resolved, if ever I shall fall and grow dull, so as to neglect to keep any part of these Resolutions, to repent of all I can remember, when I come to myself again.

4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, whether in soul or body, less or more, but what tends to the glory of God; nor be, nor suffer it, if I can avoid it.

5. Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can.

6. Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live.

7. Resolved, never to do anything, which I should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of my life.

8. Resolved, to act, in all respects, both speaking and doing, as if nobody had been so vile as I, and as if I had committed the same sins, or had the same infirmities or failings as others; and that I will let the knowledge of their failings promote nothing but shame in myself, and prove only an occasion of my confessing my own sins and misery to God. July 30.

9. Resolved, to think much on all occasions of my own dying, and of the common circumstances which attend death.

10. Resolved, when I feel pain, to think of the pains of martyrdom, and of hell.

11. Resolved, when I think of any theorem in divinity to be solved, immediately to do what I can towards solving it, if circumstances do not hinder.

12. Resolved, if I take delight in it as a gratification of pride, or vanity, or on any such account, immediately to throw it by.

13. Resolved, to be endeavoring to find out fit objects of charity and liberality.

14. Resolved, never to do any thing out of revenge.

15. Resolved, never to suffer the least motions of anger towards irrational beings.

16. Resolved, never to speak evil of anyone, so that it shall tend to his dishonor, more or less, upon no account except for some real good.

17. Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.

18. Resolved, to live so, at all times, as I think is best in my devout frames, and when I have clearest notions of things of the gospel, and another world.

19. Resolved, never to do any thing, which I should be afraid to do, if I expected it would not be above an hour, before I should hear the last trump.

20. Resolved, to maintain the strictest temperance, in eating and drinking.

21. Resolved, never to do any thing, which if I should see in another, I should count a just occasion to despise him for, or to think any way the more meanly of him. (Resolutions 1 through 21 written in one setting in New Haven in 1722)

22. Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence, yea violence, I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of.

23. Resolved, frequently to take some deliberate action, which seems most unlikely to be done, for the glory of God, and trace it back to the original intention, designs and ends of it; and if I find it not to be for God’ s glory, to repute it as a breach of the 4th Resolution.

24. Resolved, whenever I do any conspicuously evil action, to trace it back, till I come to the original cause; and then, both carefully endeavor to do so no more, and to fight and pray with all my might against the original of it.

25. Resolved, to examine carefully, and constantly, what that one thing in me is, which causes me in the least to doubt of the love of God; and to direct all my forces against it.

26. Resolved, to cast away such things, as I find do abate my assurance.

27. Resolved, never willfully to omit any thing, except the omission be for the glory of God; and frequently to examine my omissions.

28. Resolved, to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly and frequently, as that I may find, and plainly perceive myself to grow in the knowledge of the same.

29. Resolved, never to count that a prayer, nor to let that pass as a prayer, nor that as a petition of a prayer, which is so made, that I cannot hope that God will answer it; nor that as a confession, which I cannot hope God will accept.

30. Resolved, to strive to my utmost every week to be brought higher in religion, and to a higher exercise of grace, than I was the week before.

31. Resolved, never to say any thing at all against any body, but when it is perfectly agreeable to the highest degree of Christian honor, and of love to mankind, agreeable to the lowest humility, and sense of my own faults and failings, and agreeable to the golden rule; often, when I have said anything against anyone, to bring it to, and try it strictly by the test of this Resolution.

32. Resolved, to be strictly and firmly faithful to my trust, that that, in Proverbs 20:6,‹A faithful man who can find?Š may not be partly fulfilled in me.

33. Resolved, to do always, what I can towards making, maintaining, and preserving peace, when it can be done without overbalancing detriment in other respects. Dec. 26, 1722.

34. Resolved, in narrations never to speak any thing but the pure and simple verity.

35. Resolved, whenever I so much question whether I have done my duty, as that my quiet and calm is thereby disturbed, to set it down, and also how the question was resolved. Dec. 18, 1722.

36. Resolved, never to speak evil of any, except I have some particular good call for it. Dec. 19, 1722.

37. Resolved, to inquire every night, as I am going to bed, wherein I have been negligent,- what sin I have committed,-and wherein I have denied myself;-also at the end of every week, month and year. Dec. 22 and 26, 1722.

38. Resolved, never to speak anything that is ridiculous, sportive, or matter of laughter on the Lord’ s day. Sabbath evening, Dec. 23, 1722.

39. Resolved, never to do any thing of which I so much question the lawfulness of, as that I intend, at the same time, to consider and examine afterwards, whether it be lawful or not; unless I as much question the lawfulness of the omission.

40. Resolved, to inquire every night, before I go to bed, whether I have acted in the best way I possibly could, with respect to eating and drinking. Jan. 7, 1723.

41. Resolved, to ask myself, at the end of every day, week, month and year, wherein I could possibly, in any respect, have done better. Jan. 11, 1723.

42. Resolved, frequently to renew the dedication of myself to God, which was made at my baptism; which I solemnly renewed, when I was received into the communion of the church; and which I have solemnly re-made this twelfth day of January, 1722-23.

43. Resolved, never, henceforward, till I die, to act as if I were any way my own, but entirely and altogether God’ s; agreeable to what is to be found in Saturday, January 12, 1723.

44. Resolved, that no other end but religion, shall have any influence at all on any of my actions; and that no action shall be, in the least circumstance, any otherwise than the religious end will carry it. January 12, 1723.

45. Resolved, never to allow any pleasure or grief, joy or sorrow, nor any affection at all, nor any degree of affection, nor any circumstance relating to it, but what helps religion. Jan. 12 and 13, 1723.

46. Resolved, never to allow the least measure of any fretting uneasiness at my father or mother. Resolved to suffer no effects of it, so much as in the least alteration of speech, or motion of my eye: and to be especially careful of it with respect to any of our family.

47. Resolved, to endeavor, to my utmost, to deny whatever is not most agreeable to a good, and universally sweet and benevolent, quiet, peaceable, contented and easy, compassionate and generous, humble and meek, submissive and obliging, diligent and industrious, charitable and even, patient, moderate, forgiving and sincere temper; and to do at all times, what such a temper would lead me to; and to examine strictly, at the end of every week, whether I have done so. Sabbath morning. May 5, 1723.

48. Resolved, constantly, with the utmost niceness and diligence, and the strictest scrutiny, to be looking into the state of my soul, that I may know whether I have truly an interest in Christ or not; that when I come to die, I may not have any negligence respecting this to repent of. May 26, 1723.

49. Resolved, that this never shall be, if I can help it.

50. Resolved, I will act so as I think I shall judge would have been best, and most prudent, when I come into the future world. July 5, 1723.

51. Resolved, that I will act so, in every respect, as I think I shall wish I had done, if I should at last be damned. July 8, 1723.

52. I frequently hear persons in old age, say how they would live, if they were to live their lives over again: Resolved, that I will live just so as I can think I shall wish I had done, supposing I live to old age. July 8, 1723.

53. Resolved, to improve every opportunity, when I am in the best and happiest frame of mind, to cast and venture my soul on the Lord Jesus Christ, to trust and confide in him, and consecrate myself wholly to him; that from this I may have assurance of my safety, knowing that I confide in my Redeemer. July 8, 1723.

54. Whenever I hear anything spoken in conversation of any person, if I think it would be praiseworthy in me, Resolved to endeavor to imitate it. July 8, 1723.

55. Resolved, to endeavor to my utmost to act as I can think I should do, if, I had already seen the happiness of heaven, and hell torments. July 8, 1723.

56. Resolved, never to give over, nor in the least to slacken, my fight with my corruptions, however unsuccessful I may be.

57. Resolved, when I fear misfortunes and adversities, to examine whether I have done my duty, and resolve to do it, and let the event be just as providence orders it. I will as far as I can, be concerned about nothing but my duty, and my sin. June 9, and July 13 1723.

58. Resolved, not only to refrain from an air of dislike, fretfulness, and anger in conversation, but to exhibit an air of love, cheerfulness and benignity. May 27, and July 13, 1723.

59. Resolved, when I am most conscious of provocations to ill nature and anger, that I will strive most to feel and act good-naturedly; yea, at such times, to manifest good nature, though I think that in other respects it would be disadvantageous, and so as would be imprudent at other times. May 12, July 11, and July 13.

60. Resolved, whenever my feelings begin to appear in the least out of order, when I am conscious of the least uneasiness within, or the least irregularity without, I will then subject myself to the strictest examination. July 4, and 13, 1723.

61. Resolved, that I will not give way to that listlessness which I find unbends and relaxes my mind from being fully and fixedly set on religion, whatever excuse I may have for it-that what my listlessness inclines me to do, is best to be done, etc. May 21, and July 13, 1723.

62. Resolved, never to do anything but duty, and then according to Ephesians 6:6-8, to do it willingly and cheerfully as unto the Lord, and not to man:‹knowing that whatever good thing any man doth, the same shall he receive of the Lord.Š June 25 and July 13, 1723.

63. On the supposition, that there never was to be but one individual in the world, at any one time, who was properly a complete Christian, in all respects of a right stamp, having Christianity always shining in its true luster, and appearing excellent and lovely, from whatever part and under whatever character viewed: Resolved, to act just as I would do, if I strove with all my might to be that one, who should live in my time. January 14 and July 13, 1723.

64. Resolved, when I find those ‹groanings which cannot be utteredŠ (Romans 8:26), of which the Apostle speaks, and those‹breakings of soul for the longing it hath,Š of which the Psalmist speaks, Psalm 119:20, that I will promote them to the utmost of my power, and that I will not be weary of earnestly endeavoring to vent my desires, nor of the repetitions of such earnestness. July 23, and August 10, 1723.

65. Resolved, very much to exercise myself in this, all my life long, viz. with the greatest openness, of which I am capable of, to declare my ways to God, and lay open my soul to him: all my sins, temptations, difficulties, sorrows, fears, hopes, desires, and every thing, and every circumstance; according to Dr. Manton’ s 27th Sermon on Psalm 119. July 26, and Aug.10 1723.

66. Resolved, that I will endeavor always to keep a benign aspect, and air of acting and speaking in all places, and in all companies, except it should so happen that duty requires otherwise.

67. Resolved, after afflictions, to inquire, what I am the better for them, what am I the better for them, and what I might have got by them.

68. Resolved, to confess frankly to myself all that which I find in myself, either infirmity or sin; and, if it be what concerns religion, also to confess the whole case to God, and implore needed help. July 23, and August 10, 1723.

69. Resolved, always to do that, which I shall wish I had done when I see others do it. August 11, 1723.

70. Let there be something of benevolence, in all that I speak. August 17, 1723.

INDIA - Four Christians Arrested in Madhya Pradesh

2009-01-23T10:07:00.003-06:00

On Jan. 5, police arrested four Christians on false charges of forcible conversion in the village of Kushalpura, Madhya Pradesh, India.

At 10:00 a.m., Pastor Kantilal Bhuria went to a home where 25 Christians were gathered for prayer. During the service, a mob of Hindu extremists barged into the house and accused Pastor Bhuria of forcibly converting Hindus. The extremists verbally abused those present and beat a Christian woman. The police arrived on scene after receiving a phone call from the attackers and arrested four believers. At last report, these Christians remained in detention. Pray for the release of these Christians.

The Voice of the Martyrs provides assistance to persecuted believers in India through the Families of Martyrs fund and resources to rebuild their homes or churches. VOM also provides Bibles and literature so pastors can adequately share the gospel. VOM encourages you to pray and ask God to give these pastors and other suffering believers in India grace, wisdom and endurance as they serve Him.

Study Bibles

2009-01-22T17:43:00.010-06:00

Hi, I'm a Mac. . .

And I'm an ESV!

CHARLES SPURGEON: MEET THE ONLY GOD THERE IS

2009-01-21T12:53:00.003-06:00

Ken Silva wrote over on the appraising ministries blog (http://apprising.org/)"From the Charles Spurgeon devotional At the Master’s Feet for January 20. Using the Sword of the Spirit Spurgeon slices through the mystic mist of the mush god of contemporary Christendom:

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (Galatians 6:7-8, KJV)

And we now declare that the God of Holy Scripture is a God of inflexible justice, He is not the God Whom some of you adore. You adore a god who winks at great sins; you believe in a god who calls your crimes peccadillos and little faults. Some of you worship a god who does not punish sin but who is so weakly merciful, and mercilessly weak, that he passes by transgressions and iniquity and never enacts a punishment.

You believe in a god who, if man sins, does not demand punishment for his offense. You think that a few good works of your own will pacify him, that he is so weak a ruler that a few good words uttered before him in prayer will win sufficient merit to reverse the sentence, if indeed you think he ever passes a sentence at all. Your god is no God; he is as much a false god of the Greeks or of ancient Nineveh.

The God of Scripture is one who is inflexibly severe in justice and will by no means clear the guilty. “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked” (Nahum 1:3, KJV). The God of Scripture is a Ruler who, when His subjects rebel, marks their crime and never forgives them until He was punished it, either"

We all (I am the Chief of Sinners here) must fight the urge to create a god in our own image and with the Israelites of old dance around our creation and proclaim "This is the god who brought me up from the land of Egypt"or"This is my personal Lord and Savior", and "My God is this". God forgive me and and help me to see that my reasoning is just as silly as Aaron's "So I said to them 'Let any who have gold take it off.' So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf." The only remedy for this is to throw ourselves into the Word and get to know the God as he has revealed himself.

Towards a Theology of Fitness

2009-01-21T10:58:00.001-06:00

Until about nine months ago I would have scoffed at the idea that one should develop a theology of fitness. A Theology of Work, yes, a Theology of Marriage – absolutely, but fitness, nah. Seriously, the people who focus on that sort of thing are the granola eatin’ momma’s boys who take one statement by Paul, eisegete it beyond recognition and then paint it on the wall of their Jesus gym. 1 Timothy 4:8 says “for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.” I think that taking this verse and trying to suggest that Paul is trying to get Timothy to begin “Pumping Iron” is abandoning the natural reading of the text, and more than just a little bit silly. But, I have seen “Bodily Exercise Profits” on the walls of at least two YMCA’s. The same holds true for Paul’s athlete analogies; A simple reading (not a study mind you – just reading) will inform one to realize that Paul is using a commonly held cultural ideal to make a point about spiritual things. To take these analogous images and use them to teach fitness is, to me, an unconscionable mishandling of The Scripture. So, for all these reason I merrily ate my fried bologna sandwich surrounded by my books and got fat nasty and disgusting, laughing at the Under Armour wearing fools out there in the cold (or the heat as the case may be.)

But then I was invited to go to Nepal to help a member of my church teach, train, and equip pastors. I was going to get to go to a foreign land and impact the Church of my King by teaching His servants how to preach expositional Sermons. Now this is my sort of thing. The route we where to take to get to the “Seminar” was described to me like this: “We will fly out of Kathmandu to city X and then take a bus to Town Y, and in Town Y we will get a Taxi to take us ‘as far as it goes’, and then we will walk the rest of the way.” “How far do you think that might be?” I asked. With a chuckle my host said “That is depends on where the Taxi will go no more”. I couldn’t tell at this point whether my friend was messing with my mind, if I was having trouble with his broken English, or the situation was really this nebulous. After several minutes of wrangling with the language I was able to determine that I should be prepared to walk 20 kilometers with a pack full of all my stuff, to preach the gospel. As a former Marine I know it was possible that I had gotten in up my neck. As I leaned on the counter to catch my breath from walking to the fridge I slowly ate a Swiss Cake Roll and thought about the changes that I was going to have to make in the next few months.

The preparation was simple, I bought a good heavy pack and filled it with commentaries and Greek word studies until it was about 50lbs and walked. The first day I almost got out of my office, and then I was able to make it to the front door and so on until I was walking about 5 miles a day with my pack. I am pretty sure that my neighbors thought I had finally lost my ever-loving mind as I plodded around the community with all 5 kids in tow and Wuest falling out of my pack. But, I was ready - I thought. As you have probably already surmised the terrain in Western Nepal (What with the Himalayas and everything) was a good bit different than the piedmont of North Carolina, and the mental/spiritual exhaustion of the actual work I had traveled to perform made the walking up and down the mountains all the more difficult. I returned to the United States a different man and wouldn’t trade those two weeks of crushing for anything. This is not the place to discuss all the things God taught me in Nepal, but I did have a bit of an epiphany about fitness.

I heard John Piper say in a sermon one time something near this “If you do not possess a passport you are not in God’s will.” His point, I think, was this: If you are not prepared to answer the call of your king at a moment’s notice then you are presuming upon God not calling you to serve him outside of the country. When I heard this I patted my passport, said Amen, you tell ‘em, smiled and moved on. But, if this principle is correct, if I am to be ready to be scrambled in the service of my king immediately then fitness becomes an issue of the Gospel. Things began to crystallize in my mind. If everything God has given me is to be used for Him for the furtherance of the gospel – If my Home, my marriage, my money is a gift given as nothing more than equipment to be used in the service of my King then is my body any different? 2 Timothy 4:1-2 says “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.” If I study diligently to be obedient to this passage am I assuming upon WHERE I am to preach the gospel. I confess as sin that yes I was. I was living my life as if God could not possible send me to preach his gospel somewhere that required that I walk further than from the car to the pulpit. In Nepal one morning I stood with two Nepalese Pastors as they looked across the mountains and said “There is a village on that mountain that has not heard the gospel”, and “We need to send someone over there with Jesus” and as this conversation continued I realized that because of my American mindset it had never crossed my mind that God might ask ME to walk to “that Village” and preach the gospel, and that right then at that moment I COULD NOT do so because I was physically unable, and that made me ashamed of my sin. So, for me the first point in my theology of fitness is simply this.

I must be ready at all times to respond to the call of my King to take the gospel wherever he sends me. This would include my spiritual walk in that I must be in constant communion with my savior so that I am ready. This would include my mental preparation in that I study and equip myself to preach and respond and hold Jesus up. And now I realize that this would include Physical preparation in that I must be prepared and equipped to physically Go should the call come.

I will continue with the second and third points in the next few days.

-Blaurock

A Prayer for President Obama by Al Mohler

2009-01-20T13:37:00.003-06:00

A Prayer for President Obama
Al Mohler http://www.albertmohler.com/blog_read.php?id=3113

Posted: Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 2:00 am ET

Our Father, Lord of all creation, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: We pray today with a sense of special urgency and responsibility. We come before you to pray for our new President, Barack Obama, and for all those in this new administration who now assume roles of such high responsibility.

We know that you and you alone are sovereign; that you rule over all, and that you alone are able to keep and defend us. We know that our times are in your hands, and that "the king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord" [Proverbs 21:1]. Our confidence is in you and in you alone. We come before you as a people who acknowledge our constant need for your provision, wisdom, and protection.

Father, we pray today for Barack Obama as he takes office as President of the United States. We pray that you will show the glory of your name in our times and in these days, confounding the wisdom of the wise, thwarting the plans of the arrogant, and vindicating those who do justice and practice righteousness.

Father, we pray with thanksgiving for the gift of government and the grace of civic order. Thank you for giving us rulers and for knowing our need for laws and ordered life together. Thank you for this nation and the blessings we know as its citizens. Thank you for freedoms unprecedented in human history. We understand that these freedoms come with unprecedented opportunities.

Lord, we pray with thanksgiving for the joy and celebration reflected on millions of faces who never expected to look to the President of the United States and see a person who looks like themselves. Father, thank you for preserving this nation to the moment when an African-American citizen will take the oath of office and become our President. Thank you for the hope this has given to so many, the pride emerging in hearts that had known no such hope, and the pride that comes to a people who have experienced such pain at the hands of fellow citizens, simply because of the color of their skin. Father, we rejoice in every elderly face that reflects such long-sought satisfaction and in every young face that expresses such unrestrained joy. May this become an open door for a vision of race and human dignity that reflects your glory in our differences, and not our corruption of your gift.

Father, protect this president, we pray. We pray that you will surround this president and his family, along with all our leaders, with your protection and sustenance. May he be protected from evil acts and evil intentions, and may his family be protected from all evil and harm.

We pray that the Obama family will be drawn together as they move into the White House, and that they will know great joy in their family life. We are thankful for the example Barack and Michelle Obama have set as parents. Father, protect those precious girls in every way -- including the protection of their hearts as they see their father often criticized and as he is away from them on business of state. May their years in the White House bring them all even closer together.

Father, we pray for the safety and security of this nation, even as our new president settles into his role as Commander in Chief. We know that you and you alone can be our defense. We do not place our trust in horses or chariots, and we pray that you will give this president wisdom as he fulfills this vital responsibility.

Father, grant him wisdom in every dimension of his vast responsibility. Grant him wisdom to deal with a global financial crisis and with the swirling complex of vexing problems and challenges at home and abroad. May he inspire this nation to a higher vision for our common life together, to a higher standard of justice, righteousness, unity, and the tasks of citizenship.

Father, we pray that you will change this president's heart and mind on issues of urgent concern. We are so thankful for his gifts and talents, for his intellect and power of influence. Father, bend his heart to see the dignity and sanctity of every single human life, from the moment of conception until natural death. Father, lead him to see abortion, not as a matter of misconstrued rights, but as a murderous violation of the right to life. May he come to see every aborted life as a violation of human dignity and every abortion as an abhorrent blight upon this nation's moral witness. May he pledge himself to protect every human life at every stage of development. He has declared himself as an energetic defender of abortion rights, and we fear that his election will lead directly to the deaths of countless unborn human beings. Protect us from this unspeakable evil, we pray. Most urgently, we pray that you will bring the reign of abortion to an end, even as you are the defender of the defenseless.

Father, may this new president see that human dignity is undermined when human embryos are destroyed in the name of medical progress, and may he see marriage as an institution that is vital to the very survival of civilization. May he protect all that is right and good. Father, change his heart where it must be changed, and give him resolve where his heart is right before you.

Father, when we face hard days ahead -- when we find ourselves required by conscience to oppose this president within the bounds of our roles as citizens -- may we be granted your guidance to do so with a proper spirit, with a proper demeanor, and with persuasive arguments. May we learn anew how to confront without demonizing, and to oppose without abandoning hope.

Father, we are aware that our future is in your hands, and we are fully aware that you and you alone will judge the nations. Much responsibility is now invested in President Barack Obama, and much will be required. May we, as Christian citizens, also fulfill what you would require of us. Even as we pray for you to protect this president and change his heart, we also pray that your church will be protected and that you will conform our hearts to your perfect will.

Father, we pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, the ever-reigning once and future King, the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He and he alone can save, and his kingdom is forever. Above all, may your great name be praised. Amen.

_________________________

Christians are, first of all, citizens of a heavenly kingdom. The followers of Christ know no allegiance of ultimate rank to any government or earthly authority. Yet, the Bible clearly teaches that God has given us the gifts of law, government, and ruling authorities for our good. We are instructed to pray for "rulers and all who have authority" and to be faithful in praying "so that we can have quiet and peaceful lives full of worship and respect for God" [1 Timothy 2:2].

As Barack Obama prepares to take the oath of office and become the 44th President of the United States, Christians should be thinking about how to pray for the new President. I offer this prayer as a place to start, as we observe the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States together.

Hebrews 13:3

2009-01-20T13:25:00.002-06:00

Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. Hebrews 13:3

Location: China Arrested: January 2007 Days Imprisoned: 726
Print Fact Sheet

On January 26, 2007, 76-year-old Shuang Shuying and her son, house church leader Hua Huiqi, were attacked, wounded and arrested by police while walking near a 2008 Olympic hotel site in Beijing. Shuying has numerous medical problems and is serving two years in prison. We invite you to write a letter of encouragement to Shuying. We have experienced incredible results when readers write to believers who have been imprisoned for their faith. The letters often result in shorter prison sentences. Send a letter of encouragement to Shuying and let her know you are praying for her. Also, write to the Chinese government requesting she be released. Let your friends know about suffering believers in China and encourage them to pray and write too. Get involved. Pray and write today.

http://www.prisoneralert.com/pprofiles/vp_prisoner_177_profile.html

Quote of the Day

2009-01-19T10:53:00.000-06:00

“If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the Word of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Him. Where the battle rages there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all the battle front besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.” -- Martin Luther

Christians in Retreat

2009-01-18T20:04:00.002-06:00

The Tennessean today published a story titled “Southern Baptist Fight decline” which can be found here http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090117/NEWS06/901170354. In this article Bob Smietana, wote,

“The biggest problem facing Baptists may be that they talk a lot about saving souls, but church members have become reluctant to share their faith. Baptists emphasize believer's baptism, which means that new converts should be immersed after professing their faith in Jesus Christ.

Ed Stetzer, head of LifeWay Research, said that a grass-roots evangelism revival is needed in Baptist churches. He says too many Southern Baptists rely on preachers to talk about Jesus.

"Southern Baptists are people who love to talk about evangelism, as long as it is being done by someone else," he said.

In 1978, just before the start of the resurgence, there was one baptism for every 36 members of the convention. By 2007, that ratio was one baptism to every 47 members.

"We are baptizing fewer of our own children, and fewer unchurched people," LifeWay's Rainer said.

More than 9,000 congregations, or almost a quarter of all Southern Baptist churches, reported no baptisms in 2007. And, in that year, only 8.3 percent of the churches were responsible for 49.8 percent of the convention's baptisms.”

The problem has to be that Southern Baptist either:

A. Do not believe in Hell any more.

B. Hate the people around them so much that they wish they would go to hell.

C. Are so lazy and narcissistic that they would rather watch football (or read or play Boggle or whatever) than warn people about hell.

D. Are trying to stay out of hell themselves by playing religious games, and once they have checked off the Church box they are done.

I think the answer is either C or D and it breaks my heart. And, the enemy is not taking a break either. If he can get all of us focused on the election, or putting together a petition to have “Desperate Housewives” taken off the air, or making sure that the Jesus fish on my pickup is well polished then there is no one left to share the gospel with the guy at your job. I would invite you the visit http://www.wayofthemaster.com/learntoshare.shtml, and dedicate your life to Jesus and doing the work he has called us to do. Jesus said “Go” and if we disobey that, if we thumb our nose at the King and make silly excuses then how can we expect anything but condemnation in our lives?

Blaurock Luke 12:47

How Barack Obama Will Make Christ a Minister of Condemnation

2009-01-17T22:23:00.003-06:00

How Barack Obama Will Make Christ a Minister of Condemnation
January 17, 2009 By: John Piper

At Barack Obama’s request, tomorrow in the Lincoln Memorial, Gene Robinson, the first openly non-celibate homosexual bishop in the Episcopal Church, will deliver the invocation for the inauguration kick-off.

This is tragic not mainly because Obama is willing to hold up the legitimacy of homosexual intercourse, but because he is willing to get behind the church endorsement of sexual intercourse between men.

It is one thing to say: Two men may legally have sex. It is another to say: The Christian church acted acceptably in blessing Robinson’s sex with men.

The implications of this are serious.

It means that Barack Obama is willing, not just to tolerate, but to feature a person and a viewpoint that makes the church a minister of damnation. Again, the tragedy here is not that many people in public life hold views (like atheism) that lead to damnation, but that Obama is making the church the minister of damnation.

The apostle Paul says,

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves , nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

What is Paul saying about things like adultery, greed, stealing, and homosexual practice? As J. I. Packer puts it, “They are ways of sin that, if not repented of and forsaken, will keep people out of God’s kingdom of salvation.” (Christianity Today, January 2003, p. 48).

In other words, to bless people in these sins, instead of offering them forgiveness and deliverance from them, is to minister damnation to them, not salvation.

The gospel, with its forgiveness and deliverance from homosexual practice, offers salvation. Gene Robinson, with his blessing and approval of homosexual practice, offers damnation. And he does it in the name of Christ.

It is as though Obama sought out a church which blessed stealing and adultery, and then chose its most well-known thief and adulterer, and asked him to pray.

One more time: The issue here is not that presidents may need to tolerate things they don’t approve of. The issue is this: In linking the Christian ministry to the approval of homosexual activity, Christ is made a minister of condemnation.

Desiring God Blog

"God Told Me"

2009-01-17T11:45:00.005-06:00

A Friend of Mine, John Killian Ask me the following question:
"In light of the position we hold that Scripture is our sole authority, I would like comments on the matter of those who constantly claim that God speaks personally to them. Do people today hear voices from God? Is God silent? Do these personal messages from God possess a value on par with Scripture? Lest I am perceived as harsh, I am sincere in wanting input on this question.

I believe that God is still free to speak (just as he did to the prophets) and still does speak to people through many aveunes. The inner conviction of the Spirit, through other believers, through creation through a variety of methods and means. These convictions or experiences however must be interpreted through the lense of scripture. God will never tell you something that contridicts scripture or goes against it in any way. These experiences are in no way equal to scripture. When I preach do I believe God is speaking through me, yes. Do I believe that I have been inspired by he Holy Spirit to speak, yes of course, I pray that every time I speak I am inspired. But, is it inspired to be equal to scripture no way. The same applies to any other Word we have from God. Scripture has a higher level of authority above all other forms of revelation."

An Excellent question, one that I think the Church has avoided for far too long out of the fear of offending someone. Hebrews 1:1-2 says "Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world." So, I think that John Piper rightly points out that there are two phases of Revelation 1.) God spoke through prophets, and 2.) He now speaks through Jesus. When we look for a third way are we not saying, "I have plumbed the depths of this Jesus guy, and have found Him wanting. I need more than Jesus." Really, Has my wicked evil heart Really exausted all that Jesus has to offer me so that I long for another word? Or, could it be that I am too lazy to fall on my knees with my face in The Book and seek Him with all my being and effort. I believe that if we seek more of Him, if Jesus becomes the goal and not the means then the "Who do I marry", and "What house do I buy" kind of questions fade to grey and more or less take care of themselves.

It seems to me from observation and personal experience (Not very valuable I know) that when most people say "I feel lead" it means "I really want to", or "I feel strongly" and "God has laid ____ on my heart" means "I just thought of this". As a pastor I have had different people say that "The Lord has lead me" to leave their wife, sue a fellow christian, and take a job as a bartender. I have also had two separate people in the midst of an affair tell me that "God has given them peace" about the illicit relationship because they "really love" the person they are not married to at the time. I realize that these are extreme examples, but they highlight the fact that Our heart is deceitful (A liar) above all things and desperately wicked. I cannot (Nay Must not) believe what my heart/mind tell me. God, I believe does speak to us, through His Word primarily and through His Church, (but we are to test these against the word). Personally, I have excised all the "God lead, God spoke, God called" phrases from my vocabulary lest I break the commandment to Not Take the Lord my God's Name in vain. I think that God guides us through various means, but if it isnt in text I cannot be SURE that it is Him, and must treat it as a lesser, much lesser, authority.

Blaurock

New Year’s Day 2009

2009-01-01T17:58:00.004-06:00

To follow up the post on New Year’s Resolution, I want to look at a short passage of Scripture.

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." Ephesians 5:15-16

We’ve got a whole new year ahead of us. As believers though, we’ve got eternity ahead of us. That never changes, no matter the date on the calendar. That means our goals, or resolutions, should never change, no matter what we do, it is to be done to glorify God. (I Cor 10:31)

The year ahead is always something we cannot predict. Things often take turns we didn’t expect. Our passage points out that the days are evil. We know, from Scripture, that the days will get worse as we draw closer to the end. We don’t know when that day will actually be (Matthew 24:36) but we know that they will be similar to the days of Noah (Matthew 24:37-38). Genesis 6:5 says “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” The days that we live in are truly no different. People are focused on the temporal, the past, the here and now.

We are to be different “not as unwise, but as wise.” Pay attention to your walk. Place one foot in front of the other, steady as you go. Carpe Diem, as the saying goes. The Greek word for time here means opportunity. Make the most of the opportunity that is the life you have been given. Worship and serve! God is to be our focus, our passion, our life!!

David Brainard, missionary to the Native Americans in the early your of America, said, “When I really enjoy God, I feel my desires of Him the more insatiable, and my thirstings after holiness the more unquenchable…Oh, for holiness! Oh, for more of God in my soul! Oh, this pleasing pain! It makes my soul press after God…Oh, that I might no loiter on my heavenly journey!!!

New Years Resolutions

2009-01-01T02:05:00.004-06:00

Every year people make New Year's Resolutions. Sometimes they are a repeat of the resolutions of last year that never got done, sometimes they are new resolutions that won't get done. There is just something about the changing of the calendar that makes people want to change, be better, improve one's self.

That being said, here are mine!!

First of all, I want to improve things here at A&S. I want to post with some kind of regularity, at least once a week. It would help if I had a focus, like I did with the Proverbs, so I may try to find something like that. I also have to finish my post on the Great Commission!!

Second, I want to be better read. I am planning on setting aside $25-30 a month to buy books, hopefully getting at least two books a month. I don't plan on doing book reviews, although I may attempt one or two. Mainly, I just need to feed my mind more (which meand less television).

Third, I want to finally complete a "through the Bible in a year" plan. Every study bible I have has one in the back but I never seem to complete it. I worked on a couple of plans the other day that I think will work quite well though, with a big emphasis on the New Testament. I'll lay it out below.

Plan 1
This plan takes you through the Old Testament once and the New Testament 13 times, reading 10-11 chapters a day of NT. Wow, I know!

1. Read 3 chapters from the OT, 6 days a week, starting January 1st.
2. Week 1 (starting the first Sunday of January)
Sun: MT: 1-10
Mon: MT: 11-19
Tue: MT: 20-28
Wed: 1 Cor. 1-10
Thu: 1 Cor 11-16, 2 Cor 1-3
Fri: 2 Cor 4-13
Sat: 1&2 Thessalonians

Week 2
Sun: Mark 1-8
Mon: Mark 9-16
Tue: 1&2 Peter
Wed: Galatians, Colossians, & Philemon
Thu: Ephesians & Philippians
Fri: Hebrews 1-10
Sat: Hebrews 11-13 & Titus

Week 3
Sun: Luke 1-10
Mon: Luke 11-20
Tue: Luke 21-24 & Acts 1-6
Wed: Acts 7-16
Thu: Acts 17-25
Fri: Acts 26-28 & James
Sat: 1 & 2 Timothy

Week 4
Sun: John 1-10
Mon: John 11-20
Tue: Romans 1-8
Wed: Romans 9-16
Thu: 1-3 John & Jude
Fri: Revelation 1-11
Sat: Revelation 12-22

Plan 2
This plan takes you through the OT once and the NT 6 times(actually 6.5), reading 4-5 chapters a day of NT.

1. Read 3 chapters from the OT,6 days a week, starting January 1st.
2. Week 1 (starting the first Sunday of January)
Sun: Mt 1-5
Mon: Mt 6-10
Tue: Mt 11-15
Wed: Mt 16-20
Thu: Mt 21-24
Fri: Mt 25-28
Sat: James

Week 2
Sun: Mark 1-5
Mon: Mark 6-10
Tue: Mark 11-16
Wed: Romans 1-5
Thu: Romans 6-10
Fri: Romans 11-16
Sat: Jude

Week 3
Sun: John 1-5
Mon: John 6-10
Tue: John 11-15
Wed: John 16-20
Thu: 1 John
Fri: 2-3 John
Sat: Galatians

Week 4
Sun: Luke 1-4
Mon: Luke 5-9
Tue: Luke 1-14
Wed: Luke 15-19
Thu: Luke 2-24
Fri: 1 Thessalonians
Sat: 2 Thessalonians

Week 5
Sun: Acts 1-5
Mon: Acts 6-10
Tue: Acts 11-15
Wed: Acts 16-20
Thu: Acts 21-24
Fri: Acts 25-28
Sat: Philippians

Week 6
Sun: Colossians
Mon: 1 Cor 1-5
Tue: 1 Cor 6-10
Wed: 1 Cor 11-16
Thu: 2 Cor 1-5
Fri: 2 Cor 6-9
Sat: 2 Cor 10-13

Week 7
Sun: Hebrews 1-4
Mon: Hebrews 5-8
Tue: Hebrews 9-13
Wed: Ephesians
Thu: 1 Timothy
Fri: 2 Timothy
Sat: Titus

Week 8
Sun: 1 Peter
Mon: 2 Peter & Philemon
Tue: Revelation 1-5
Wed: Revelation 6-9
Thu: Revelation 10-13
Fri: Revelation 14-17
Sat: Revelation 18-22

Atheist Penn Jillette on Proseletyzing

2008-12-20T08:48:00.003-06:00

I've never really been into Penn and Teller, though I have been aware of them and their Vegas show. I found this video on another blog, The Contemporary Calvinist, and thought you would all enjoy it. Interesting and convicting!!

The Picture As It Becomes

2008-12-17T18:32:00.002-06:00

But He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me I shall come forth like gold.

Job 23:10

It's like translating: like learning, only less me.

The unsettling urge to rescue

What falls away. Because all I know-

I am unlearning. Seeing is closer to it

(closer to being able to breath as ) I

Understand the cracks, the holes,

And gaps ARE the picture

as it becomes. And as I surrender.

Seeing is closer to it.

See, I keep piling up

The broken pieces around me thinking

That's what will protect, will defend me.

But the garbage is not

keeping me from sinking.

I cry for what's taken away.

Blind to what you are revealing.

The promise that "you know" means more than

My pretty garbage. Its stronger than my hands,

Wrapped around what used to make sense.

Its right, not familiar.

Clean, not common.

If You know - then, this is worth everything.

So. What's lower than weak?

What's higher than calm?

It is not what's left, Its what

is being revealed.

Letting go of my pretty garbage -

and trusting

( in ways, with means)

by forgetting what I call control.

It is better to be preserved in brine—than to rot in honey!

2008-11-16T16:28:00.002-06:00

William Secker, "The Consistent Christian" 1660

Above every evil, we should consider sin as the greatest evil—as it is the fountainorigin of all evils. Sin is the only target—at which all the arrows of divine vengeance are shot! Sinners are those spiders which weave their own webs—and are afterwards entangled in them! Our own destruction—is but the fruit of our own transgression. There is more real evil in a particle of corruption—than in an ocean of tribulation!

The evil of suffering is transient—but the evil of sin is permanent. The consistent Christian will always choose the worst of sorrows—before he will commit the least of sins!

The wicked entirely reverse this—for they prefer the greatest sin—to the least sufferings! This is to leap out of the hot pan—into the consuming fire! By seeking to shun an external calamity—they rush into eternal misery! and This is as if a man should lose his head—to preserve his hat!

As the works of sin are dishonorable; so the wages of sin are deadly! "The wages of sin—is death." The corruption of nature is the cause of the dissolution of nature. The candle of our lives—is blown out by the wind of our lusts! Were it not for sin—death would never have had a beginning! Were it not for death—sin would never have an ending!

What is so sweet a good as Christ? And what is so great an evil as lust? Sin has brought many a believer into suffering—and suffering has instrumentally kept many a believer out of sin! It is better to be preserved in brine—than to rot in honey! The bitterest medicine is to be preferred—before the sweetest poison!worst of sorrows—before he will commit the least of sins! The consistent Christian will always choose the

The Love of God and the Non-Elect

2008-11-10T18:41:00.001-06:00

Does God love only the elect and hate the non-elect?

John MacArthur

The fact that some sinners are not elected to salvation is no proof that God's attitude toward them is utterly devoid of sincere love. We know from Scripture that God is compassionate, kind, generous, and good even to the most stubborn sinners. Who can deny that these mercies flow out of God's boundless love? Yet it is evident that they are showered even on unrepentant sinners.

It must be acknowledged, however, that explaining God's love toward the reprobate is not as simple as most modern evangelicals want to make it. Clearly there is a sense in which the psalmist's expression, "I hate the assembly of evildoers" (Ps. 26:5) is a reflection of the mind of God. "Do I not hate those who hate Thee, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against Thee? I hate them with the utmost hatred; they have become my enemies" (Ps. 139:21-22). Such hatred as the psalmist expressed is a virtue, and we have every reason to conclude that it is a hatred God Himself shares. After all, He did say, "I have hated Esau" (Mal. 1:3; Rom. 9:13). The context reveals God was speaking of a whole race of wicked people. So there is a true and real sense in which Scripture teaches that God hates the wicked.

So an important distinction must be made. God loves believers with a particular love. It is a family love, the ultimate love of an eternal Father for His children. It is the consummate love of a Bridegroom for His bride. It is an eternal love that guarantees their salvation from sin and its ghastly penalty. That special love is reserved for believers alone.

However, limiting this saving, everlasting love to His chosen ones does not render God's compassion, mercy, goodness, and love for the rest of mankind insincere or meaningless. When God invites sinners to repent and receive forgiveness (Isa. 1:18; Matt. 11:28-30), His pleading is from a sincere heart of genuine love. "'As I live!' declares the Lord God, 'I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?'" (Ezek. 33:11). Clearly God does love even those who spurn His tender mercy, but it is a different quality of love, and different in degree from His love for His own.

(Today's post was adapted from John's book, The God Who Loves, pp. 14, 16).

Drive By Post

2008-11-07T19:49:00.004-06:00

Question: What can the body of Christ learn from those who seek to be gods?

Check out this news release about the Mormons in California.

The Influence of Scripture

2008-11-06T19:23:00.004-06:00

As mentioned in a previous post, I have begun memorizing Scripture. This was an activity, a spiritual discipline, that I knew was lacking in my life and sorely needed. I had purchased the Fighter Verses pack from Desiring God Ministries and started them once before but stalled out when The Queen didn't participate as planned. Nevertheless, as the spiritual leader of my home, I started them back up, roughly at the same time as the bi-monthly men's group, which also encouraged us to memorize passages.

Happily, I can say that the memorization is going well and that I am truly seeing changes in the way I am thinking (Romans 12:2) and even in the way I pray. I'm simply writing this to encourage all to do some type of memorization program. A verse, a passage, a book, whatever it takes, HIDE GOD'S WORD IN YOUR HEART.

You'll be glad you did, when our Bible's are ripped out of our hands.

Ok, that last was a little dramatic. . .

Time To Live a Little

2008-11-06T03:54:00.003-06:00

Today was a tough day for many Americans, or at least it was around here. The day after this historic election found me very somber. I would not go so far as to say depressed, but downcast, for sure. A kind of short-tempered feeling, with a dash of irritation, and a boatload of exasperation. I walked by faculty who I know supported the man who today is our President, and did not move out of the cordial greeting phase with them at all. I heard things that tempted my blood to boil. And I knew the day would get harder.

For those who do not know I am a pastor and a junior high History and Civics teacher, and between talking to a few teachers and fielding questions from students (which I did all day), I am exhausted. I had to do my very best to live Romans 13:1-7 and Titus 3:1. It was difficult. However, I was encouraged by a few things I read at The Founders Blog, and some other sites I frequent. I began to remember that I am commanded to pray for my leaders, to honor them, and to keep in mind that God is in control as the One who orders all things to the pleasure of His good will.

However, I did not come straight home after work. During my planning period I decided to do something that I pray will bear fruit and glorify my Savior.

I made a few appointments.

At 3:30 today I met with the mayor of the little town I live in. We spoke a little about the new town council. She related that they always prayed before conducting any town business. She shared some of her concerns: the homeless, veterans, the hungry and poor. I really do not think there is a truly homeless person in the little town limits. But she told me about a group living under a bridge in a bigger city, not 30 miles from here. She spoke about a woman's self-defense program that she found out about from some volunteers at the annual Founders Day who were not even living within the town limits. And about how she wrote some letters of appreciation to the persons responsible for the program. These letters really encouraged a few people. (Maybe enough to continue the program..) I then confessed to her that I did not pray for my elected officials as I should. I read her the opening verses of Romans 13. With her permission, I prayed with her and for her, then I left.with an invitation to open a future Founders Day in prayer.

I am not going to pretend that I am not cringing when I hear about all the things that naturally follow an election, But I do believe that this is a really good chance to live the love that I preach about, to give the respect that I should offer to those who God says deserves it, to not render myself unapproachable to those who voted differently than I did , and to trust the sovereignty of God.

I plan to try to pray with (and for) as many of my elected officials as I can. I do not pretend to be reconciled to all of what has happened in my country. I just do not want to miss such an opportunity to obey God, and maybe to even grow a little spiritually (Lord willing). Please join me in praying for our country and its elected officials.

POLITICS - What's Missing?

2008-10-31T15:07:00.011-05:00

Proverbs 14
1 Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.
2 He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him.
3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.
4 Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.
5 A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.
6 A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth.
7 Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.
8 The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit.
9 Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour.
10The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.
11 The house of the wicked shall be overthrown: but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish.
12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness.
14 The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself.
15 The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.
16 A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.
17 He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated.
18 The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19 The evil bow before the good; and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
20 The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich hath many friends.
21 He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.
22 Do they not err that devise evil? but mercy and truth shall be to them that devise good.
23 In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.
24 The crown of the wise is their riches: but the foolishness of fools is folly.
25 A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies.
26 In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge.
27 The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.
28 In the multitude of people is the king's honour: but in the want of people is the destruction of the prince.
29 He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
30 A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.
31 He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor.
32 The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: but the righteous hath hope in his death.
33 Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the midst of fools is made known.
34 Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.
35 The king's favour is toward a wise servant: but his wrath is against him that causeth shame.

As I knew it would, the POLITICS post left open many subjects. Among many of the topics skirted was that of Godly leadership. I am by no means an expert on that subject and don't plan on holding a seminar anytime soon. However, there are places in Scripture that I find clues on how to recognize a Godly man who has been placed in a position of leadership.

As I began to read through Proverbs 14 in preparation for this post, it became evident that I better just post the entire text and highlight those portions that seem to speak directly to the inseparable issues of Godly leadership and righteousness. My belief is that our Founding Fathers understood the link between these two and endeavored to write our charter documents according to these principles. It is also evident from their writings that they believed that the prosperity and longevity of a nation was directly linked to the morality of the nations citizenry.

"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism who should labour to subvert these great Pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of Men and citizens. The mere Politician, equally with the pious man ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connections with private and public felicity."
George Washington spoke these words as part of his Farewell Address. They show his clear understanding and belief that all men, whether servants of the public or not should understand the importance of religion and morality to the strength of this nation.

Abraham Lincoln -- "I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book."

George Washington -- "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God or the Bible."

Patrick Henry -- "The Bible is worth all other books which have ever been printed."

Andrew Jackson -- "That book, sir, is the rock on what our republic rests."

Sir Isaac Newton -- "There are more sure marks of authenticity in the Bible than in any profane history."

Immanuel Kant -- "The existence of the Bible, as a book for the people, is benefit which the human race has ever experienced. Every attempt to be little it is a crime against humanity."

Thomas Huxley -- "The Bible has been the Magna Charta of the poor and oppressed. The human race is not in a position to dispense with it."

Theodore Roosevelt -- "If a man is not familiar with the Bible, he has suffered a loss which he has better make all possible haste to correct."

Woodrow Wilson -- "When you have read the Bible, you will know it is the Word of God, because you will have found the key to your own heart, your own happiness, your own duty."

I include the quotes above only as evidence that through centuries, leaders of our nation as well as others accepted the necessity of the Word of God in the lives of people. Where are those men today?

As I look on the modern political scene there is no question of the greed and corruption that drives our world. "In God We Trust" is belabored at every turn by panic and uncertainty over markets and unemployment numbers. Instability throughout the Middle East and uneasy friendships in Europe and Asia have caused us worry and fear over the future. How can we claim God as our refuge yet worry about our 401k's?

June 6, 1944, Franklin Roosevelt led our nation in prayer. Heard across the nation on public radio, our President demonstrated his understanding of the "separation of Church and State." He knew it did not apply to the simple admission of God's existence and his almighty power over the affairs of men. When did his example become a "moment of silence"? How can we have a nation that cries out to God via a moment of silence?

I suppose this is a true blog post. Thoughts, sometimes rambling but all related regarding what we may never see again. Our politicians are expected to lie to us. We expect them to speak of their private faith. We expect them to keep it private enough that it's not even visible in their public policy. Contrast that with Proverbs 14 and with the example set by our Founding Fathers.

I'm frequently convicted on these things in my own home. MP's posts on wisdom made good reading and food for thought as well. After all, Godly men are not just needed in our governmental offices, but in our homes as well. Looking after the spiritual training of their families so that the next generation understands what their leaders should look like. Judging from the statistics given to us regarding divorce, marital infidelity, unwed mothers, juvenile delinquency, perhaps it's no surprise that there are few Godly leaders in public office. There don't seem to be many in our homes either.

May we pray that God raises up leaders who know Him and His Word. May we then look in the mirror and realize He's called us.

Reformation Day 2008

2008-10-31T12:36:00.004-05:00

"Out of love and concern for the truth, and with the object of eliciting it..."
Opening words of the 95 Thesis
Martin Luther, 15 October 1517

With these words, which were actually written in Latin not German, the event commonly know as the Reformation was set in motion. The document itself is aimed primarily at exposing the practice of the sale of Indulgences to the light of what the New Testament teaches about the forgiveness of sin solely by God's grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. A clear case is made that God, and not the Pope, is the only one who can "remit guilt" of sin. And at the time the hammer struck the nails, fixing it to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, I can imagine little notice being taken. This would soon change.

In a nutshell, buying an Indulgence (certified by a slip of paper) was literally buying a lesser (or in some cases, completely erased) punishment for sins. In this case, it was supposedly a special Indulgence being pushed on the faithful, most of which could neither read or write, neither German or Latin. They simply believed what they were told.

Much of the receipts would go to a massive building project, Saint Peter's Cathedral in Rome. But, the points that Luther sought to discuss were aimed at a corrupt and blasphemous practice, not a building. And the result was astounding: the Light of the gospel of the grace of God in Christ Jesus tore through the darkness of superstition and outright lies of Rome. It ripped the Christian world in two. It birthed the grounds on which martyrs died, wars were fought, kingdoms were lost and gained. It also corresponded the advent of mass printing, and to widespread distribution of the Word of God in Dr. Luther's German and other languages very soon.

So my reflection on this first annual Reformation Day post is simple: "Love and concern for the truth, with the object of eliciting it" is not a one-time call, but a standard the body would do well to keep close to us today. This is not far at all from the admonition we find in 1 Timothy 4:16, "Keep a close watch on yourself and your teaching. Persist in this, for by doing so you will save both yourself and your hearers." There were and are many enemies of God's truth. These enemies lie both within our own wicked hearts and in the enticements of the world which threaten to draw is into sin and error.

If we have any love for the truth of the gospel within us it is the work of the God of the universe. I pray that this day would find us willing to make the stands in our own lives that we must. We have a great Helper and the greatest truth ever revealed to man if we are united to Christ by faith. Lets display love and concern for the truth even if it costs, and it certainly does and will.

A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:
For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great, and, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.
Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.
And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.
That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.

Tim Challies

2008-10-28T19:42:00.004-05:00

I have added a new blog to our blog roll, Challies Dot Com. It is chock full of book reviews, most of them as good as the books that they are reviewing (if they are good books, anyway)! Someone had mentioned the book Christless Christianity to me and I found a review of it on his site. I am very much looking forward to getting the book but the review was an excellent preview of what I hope to be in the book.
He has reviews of a wide variety of books, to many to mention here. You can often find his reviews on Amazon.com and the comments can be encouraging and wildly critical at times. I was very amused by the comments that he got after writing a scathing review of the popular book, The Shack. You'd just have to hunt it down yourself but it was interesting and somewhat indicitive of the exact things Challies was trying to say about the book!

POLITICS!!!!!

2008-10-27T15:05:00.006-05:00

Well, at the request of MP (notice the blame shift!) I suppose it's time to weigh in on current issues.

I'll skip the economics since it changes daily and who really knows whether things are as bad as we're being told or not. Ever heard the phrase "It's the economy, stupid"? Well, it ANNOYS me!! I have never and hope to never vote based on economic issues and quite frankly cannot believe a believer would ever do so. The Scripture teaches that the Father takes care of our physical needs so why would I ask or vote in such a way to empower the government to do so? However, the race for the Presidency has elements that have concerned me for years and that seem especially poignant this year.

This primary season was interesting to watch. For the first time in history, the Democrats began talking about Faith. We saw arguments over how much ones Faith should influence them in decisions made while holding office. We saw arguments over whether the Republicans had duped the Religious Right into voting with them based solely on morality and family issues. There were even "church leaders" debating as to whether global warming, poverty, and AIDS were moral issues on par with abortion and the sanctity of marriage. It was a great time!

Skip ahead ...... both parties choose a candidate. Arguments change to those of experience and qualifications. Liberal or Conservative. Who's the better bridge builder to the other party. (Notice anything missing?) Then each candidate picks a VP candidate designed to bolster areas where they've been considered weak. Obama picks a foreign policy guy with years of experience (so much for "Change in Washington) and McCain picks a no-name governor from Alaska who appeals strongly to the Religious Right (so much for reaching across the aisle).

Now, let me pause a moment to point out that I have not yet endorsed either candidate as I believe both are attempting to appeal to the widest number of voters in order to win the election and may not be telling us the whole truth of their intentions.

MORTAGE MARKET CRASH ------- STOCK MARKET CRASH ------- UHH OHH!!!!

Ummmm ..... what happened to those issues of morality and Faith? When was the last time we saw the Republican candidate point out that Obama signed and fully supports full access to abortion (including partial birth) on demand and funded by the government (watch carefully as he unveils his health care plan). When was the last time you saw McCain appeal to the concerns of the "values voters" and speak about his pro-life stance or his view on marriage? The VP debate brought about the topic of homosexual marriage or civil unions but it was a passing question and largely overshadowed by economic and wartime issues.

We must support individuals who have a basic understanding of right and wrong. It's that simple. If a man or woman does not understand that the "lawful" taking of innocent life is an abomination before God, how can he possibly appeal to that same God for guidance on other issues as he leads this nation? The Word speaks of a man who builds an idol from wood. Some of the same tree he then uses for firewood, some to build a shelter. Aren't we also creating a God of our own making when we pick and choose which areas He might have an opinion on? What sort of fickle Faith is it to pray for financial success or strength and victory in war while we refuse to stand on a basic premise such as protection of the innocent?

A former pastor of mine used to say that it doesn't matter who is in the White House but the important thing is who is in God's house. I'd have to agree. But, I cannot vote to place someone in the White House who obviously failed to gain any spiritual understanding while sitting in God's house! I don't care about the Republican or Democratic platform. I suppose you might call me a single issue voter (though the Second Amendment and other Constitutional issues get me going as well).

While we may not have ever been "God's people", as a nation, there was a time when we honored Him and His role in shaping our existence. When visiting the poll on November 4th, do not forget that economic hard times come and go. Famines and pestilence have and always will plague nations. But, we who are believers have a duty to place our honor of God in proper perspective to our need for financial comfort.

Here's my point: Our next president will pick at a minimum, two Supreme Court justices. The values and beliefs of these individuals will direct the course of our laws and their interpretations for the next generation. Whether they will interpret the Constitution as a "living document", subject to change depending on our changing moral point-of-view or see it through the eyes of our Founders will direct their decisions.

Now, I officially announce my endorsement of Mike Huckabee for President of the United States!! But .... since he won't appear on the ballot, I'll take what I can get in the pro-life arena.

The Great Commission - GO!!!

2008-10-26T02:47:00.006-05:00

Matthew 28:19: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Mark 16:15: And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.

Ever been to an old fashioned tent meeting or any week long revival meetings? They are normally evangelistic in nature (all for that) and are somewhat pep rallyish in nature (not so much for that). They seem to serve as a way to get the body of locals to attend a little extra church, meet a new speaker (it seems that the churches normal shepherd rarely leads these meetings), and invite the unchurched to attend them. I think something is missing. I think that the point is being missed altogether.

GO.

GO OUT.

Move along, get going, leave the area, make tracks. According to Vines Expository Dictionary, it marks the end of a conversation, such as, "you go on your way, we're done here."
Go. It is a very crucial part of evangelism and the part no one seems to be able to get past. We all seem to have a grasp on the fact that we need to spread the Gospel, or at least it appears that we do. We give to missions, we cry when someone confesses Christ, we might even leave a tract when we finish our meal (please leave a decent tip when you do). So we get that we should be sharing the Gospel. We often seem to think that it is the pastor's job to be doing it though. So, that means that we try and get the world to come in to our arena. We invite them to church, try to get them to rallies, tune our radios to Christian radios stations at work, etc. But we don't actually GO!

I once offended a guy (no, really) by saying that Christian music wasn't meant for him. It was meant for Christians. I think that church is the same. My church is meant for Christians. It is meant for Christians to come to for nourishment, for guidance, for accountability. It is a place that Christians should be gathering together in order to GO out. It seems fairly simple to me.

The point of this post is that we should be going out and witnessing. Not waiting for the world to join us on Sunday mornings. Will they come? Sometimes, yes. Should we be waiting for that event? Absolutely not!

So what are you waiting for? Find yourself a sinner and experiment on him!!

Heeeeeee's Baaaaaaaaack!!

2008-10-25T23:15:00.003-05:00

Just so everyone know's, PM is back from Nepal! He will be bringing pictures and news (hopefully several posts worth) from the mission field. He is also going to bring our first annual HAPPY REFORMATION DAY post.

SO STAY TUNED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Great Commission - The Authority of Jesus

2008-10-23T17:39:00.004-05:00

Matthew 28:18 "And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.' "

Anytime I have ever heard someone speak of the Great Commission, the focus has always been on Matthew 28:19-20, the "go and make" portions of the passage. Without a doubt, the command to go and make are very important, as how are to know what we are to do if we aren't told? They are our marching orders, if you will. However, I cannot remember having heard anyone give so much as a passing comment on verse 18. Jesus' authority. Who is giving these instructions? Jesus is. Who is sending us to go and make? Jesus is. He is the Lord, the Master, the Creator of the universe. He has the authority to give these commands, to make the demand that we his followers obey.

Authority, by definition, is the right to hold sway in a given relationship. To be in charge would be a simple way to put it. A father over his children, a general over his soldiers, a manager over his employees, etc. In Matthew 28:18, the word authority is also translated power, which invokes the imagery of might. The person at the top. THE MAN!

One example we see of this in Scripture is in Matthew 8:8-9, "But the centurion replied, 'Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it.' " While the main focus of this passage is the great faith of the centurion, his grasp of the authority of Jesus is also remarkable. He knew that he was unworthy to have someone as powerful as Jesus in his home and that a mighty word from the Lord was all that was needed.

I have been somewhat puzzled by some of the commentaries on this particular verse that seem to say that NOW Jesus has this authority to send us. From what I have been able to find in the Gospels, Jesus had always had authority. He had the authority over the weather, over elemental properties, over sickness and demons, in His teachings, over death, even over His own death. So, while the resurrection of the Savior certainly paid our price for sin, securing our salvation through Him, how does it increase or finalize His authority? Does His resurrection simply prove His authority over sin and death, therefore being a very visible demonstration of His supremacy?

Two things are clear to me from this passage. First, the scope of Jesus' authority. He makes it plain that He is Master of all. Where is there that doesn't encompass heaven or earth? He has authority over both and all that they contain. He is Lord of the spiritual realm as well as the physical realm. He has the right to command all to be saved (Acts 17:30) and to demand that we glorify Him in whatever we do (1 Cor.10:31).

The second is that Jesus not only has the authority to send us to do His work, He also has the authority to command all who hear our message to obey it (again, see Acts 17:30). If they reject the message we bring, they are rejecting Jesus. To reject Him is to reject God (Luke 10:16). To reject Jesus is to remain under the wrath of God (John 3:36)

The blessing in this verse is that we are acting in obedience to our Lord and Savior when we "go and make," when we share the Gospel. There was no question in the Apostle Peter's mind when he said, "And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead." (Acts 10:42) It is a command and it is to be obeyed. There is no other option for us as believers. We are to spread the Gospel!!

---MP

The Great Commission - Introduction

2008-10-12T15:34:00.005-05:00

Missions have been on my mind a lot lately, from things that have been going on at church to PM going to Nepal, to things that I have been reading. As a result, I have been spending some time studying the Great Commission and personal evangelism in general. I have been trying to tie the passages that deal with the Commission, or are the final commands of Jesus in the Gospels, together to make it clear what we are to be doing. We have been reading What Jesus Demands of the World, by John Piper, in our men's group at church and on the cover it quotes the beginning of the Great Commission as found in Matthew 28:19, "All authority in heaven and on earth are given to me." Since the point of the book are demands that Jesus makes on the world, starting with salvation and going into obedient Christian living, it has made me want to take an even closer look at the Great Commission itself.

There are four specific instances in Scripture where the Great Commission is given, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark16:15, Luke 24:46-48, and Acts 1:8. I am also going to include a passage from John, but only because of how it pertains on a personal level to us. To summarize all of them, we are to go into all of the world, sharing the gospel, telling of the things that we have seen and heard, baptizing them in the name of God, teaching everyone the things that we have been commanded by the Lord. I want to look at each passage individually, briefly, while focusing mainly on Matthew's version. I'll try to get it done over the next couple of weeks, as I need to get it of my head and on to paper, or at least into cyberspace!! I hope to make it as clear as possible and that it will be an encouragement to all who read it!

MP

Godspeed

2008-10-07T20:02:00.003-05:00

PM is leaving for the country of Nepal in the morning. His family will be dropping him off for a lengthy flight that will take him around the world. Once there, he will be helping to encourage and lead native pastors, as they serve God and shepherd their flocks.
Let's back him up in prayer, praying that 1) God would be glorified, 2) PM would be spirit-filled as he teaches from God's Word, and 3) the Gospel would spread throughout the region as a result.

I would challenge everyone to fast for one meal this week and spend it in prayer for this missionary effort. I will personally be doing this Thursday night. You plan yours however you want!!

Godspeed, my brother!

The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26

MP

The Bed was Already Made

2008-09-30T21:03:00.004-05:00

2 Corinthians 2:16

“to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?”

He had been in hospice care for months, his liver destroyed, his life slipping from him. I saw him once with many people around, stopped by once and was told he was resting, visited and prayed with him twice when he was in such pain that, through the fog of medication, I do not know if he could understand much of what was happening. In prayer with him, I preached the gospel twice (with his wife in the room) both at the hospital and at his home. But I had been praying for a conscious moment for him, to look in his eyes and share Jesus.

Saturday night I rode the elevator up to the fourth floor and walked into a still and dark room. The bed was made, and he was gone. I found out later that he had died the day before.

I helped the widow find the phone number of the pastor that the family wanted to conduct the funeral, formally the pastor of the little church I serve now.

At the visitation, all I could do way pray that they were weeping for the right reasons, and make sure they knew I was really there if they needed me.

I could spend years listing things that I should have done differently in trying to reach him and the family. But nothing prepared me for that dark hospital room, and no one called me to let me know he was gone. They were understandably busy.

Tract Review - Million Dollar Bill HALLOWEEN

2008-09-30T20:43:00.014-05:00

Just wanted to show everyone the Halloween Version of the Million Dollar Bill tract. Everything is the same about it except the picture, obviously!!
We have decided to pre-bag our candy this year and put the tracts in with the candy. No matter what your views on trick-or-treat are (and that isn't the point of this post, so save it), there is nothing better than having the world go door to door for you to evangelize!! We are going to put in this version of the Million Dollar Bill, a pressed penny, and for the adults, John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life tracts. I will do a review on the DWYL tracts later, but they are also excellent for handing out. They are based on Piper's book by the same title, which I highly recommend. If you do purchase it, I suggest you get it with the dvd, as it is only a few extra dollars and well worth it!! The video is about 45 minutes long and great for any type of small group or just for your own personal viewing.

Click on the tracts to see the whole text and purchase some today!!

MP

Tract Review - Wallet

2008-09-30T20:19:00.005-05:00

This is a tract that I like to drop in parking lots at stores and at the truck stop. At first glance, people will see the $50 sticking out and realize that they have picked up something different! When you open it, you still don't get the message, you are greeted with pictures of credit cards and other "wallet" type things. Then, as you open it again, there are a series of multiple choice questions, almost in an ethics type layout. Then, as always with any Living Waters tract, the Ten Commandments are used to show the sins and to bring conviction.

Because I don't stick around and watch tracts that I "plant," I don't know if these are picked up by cleaning personnel and thrown away or if my intended victims actually pick them up and read them. So, I can't factor any type of "success" to them, other than the fact that the gospel is presented and that God's Word is going out and will "not return to him empty." (Isaiah 55:11)

Click on the tract to see the whole text and purchase some today!!

MP

Psalm 119:169-176

2008-09-30T19:53:00.003-05:00

169 Let my cry come before you, O LORD; give me understanding according to your word!
170 Let my plea come before you; deliver me according to your word.
171 My lips will pour forth praise, for you teach me your statutes.
172 My tongue will sing of your word, for all your commandments are right.
173 Let your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen your precepts.
174 I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight.
175 Let my soul live and praise you, and let your rules help me.
176 I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.

Word of God speak. . .

Memorizing Scripture

2008-09-19T20:45:00.006-05:00

I have recently begun using the Fighter Verses that Desiring God ministries puts out. I am also memorizing Scripture with our men's group at church and helping BK with her memory verses at school. I came across a way to memorize verses in Piper's book When I Don't Desire God. He took it from Dr. Andrew Davis, the pastor of First Baptist Church in Durham, N.C. I posted the gist of it here and you can download the whole thing from the FBC website. While he is focusing on large portions of Scripture, I am finding it to be very helpful in doing the smaller passages as well as the multiple passages that I am working on.

MP

Sample daily procedure: The following is an example of how someone could go about memorizing Ephesians at the rate of one verse per day:

1) Day one: Read Ephesians 1:1 out loud ten times, looking at each word as if photographing it with your eyes. Be sure to include the verse number.18 Then cover the page and recite it ten times. You’re done for the day.

2) Day two: Yesterday’s verse first!! Recite yesterday’s verse, Ephesians 1:1 ten times, being sure to include the verse number. Look in the Bible if you need to, just to refresh your memory. Now, do your new verse. Read Ephesians 1:2 out loud ten times, looking at each word as if photographing it with your eyes. Be sure to include the verse number. Then cover the page and recite it ten times. You’re done for the day.

3) Day three: Yesterday’s verse first!! Recite yesterday’s verse, Ephesians 1:2 ten times, being sure to include the verse number. Again, you should look in the Bible if you need to, just to refresh your memory. Old verses next, altogether: Recite Ephesians 1:1-2 together once,
being sure to include the verse numbers. Now, do your new verse. Read Ephesians 1:3 out loud ten times, looking at each word as if photographing it with your eyes. Be sure to include the verse number. Then cover the page and recite it ten times. You’re done for the day.

4) Day four: Yesterday’s verse first!! Recite yesterday’s verse, Ephesians 1:3 ten times, being sure to include the verse number. Again, you should look in the Bible if you need to, just to refresh your memory. Old verses next, altogether: Recite Ephesians 1:1-3 together once,
being sure to include the verse numbers. Now, do your new verse. Read Ephesians 1:4 out loud ten times, looking at each word as if photographing it with your eyes. Be sure to include the verse number.
Then cover the page and recite it ten times. You’re done for the day.

This cycle would continue through the entire book. Obviously, the “old verses altogether” stage will soon swell to take the most time of all. That’s exactly the way it should be. The entire book of Ephesians can be read at a reasonable rate in less than fifteen minutes. Therefore, the “old verses altogether” stage of your review should not take longer than that on any given day. Do it with the Bible ready at hand, in case you draw a blank or get stuck . . . there’s no shame in looking, and it actually helps to nail down troublesome verses so they will never be trouble again.

Tract Review - Million Dollar Bill

2008-09-14T10:01:00.009-05:00

The Million Dollar Bill was initially one of my least favorite tracts to give out. The original tract, that I still have about 80 million worth, was difficult to read, as the message was around the outer edge of the back in very small print. However, I must not have been the only one who thought that, as Living Waters updated it and actually made it better!
The first one had Grover Cleveland on the front and the Lincoln Memorial on the back. You can see that has been changed to Rutherford B. Hayes and to Washington crossing the Potomac River. The message is much easier to read now, which takes the strain out of it and makes the message much easier to find. With the first one, I had to point out that the message was even there!
On the new one, the message is framing Washington and is a larger print.

These tracts have a way of opening up discussions on the value of money versus eternity. I have had several people ask for more because of a perceived "collectible" feel to them. Like most of the tracts from Living Waters, the message is simple, with the Ten Commandments being used to bring conviction before introducing Jesus as the means of redemption.

I normally just ask people if I had given them one million dollars yet. Most laugh and then are truly delighted to take the tract when I give it to them. Then I turn it over and point out the message. With a few, I have been able to then engage in conversation, mainly just asking about their knowledge of the 10 Commandments, using my arm as a visual aid. So far, no one has hit me.

Darn it!

Click on the tract to see the whole text and purchase some today!!

MP

I Am Weak

2008-09-14T09:35:00.004-05:00

On Saturday, I had an accident.

I work a part-time job, doing whatever driving that I am asked to do. I was hauling asphalt on this particular day. Now, most of us know asphalt as the road that you drive on or what is used to patch the road you drive on. This particular variety, AC5, is used for roofing shingles. When loaded, it loads around 1000 gallons a minute, at a temperature of 360 degrees. I guess it's that temperature, because if it hits you, you turn around and run.

While on my fifth load, the valve stuck and I got splashed with it. The problem was, I couldn't get to the valve and shut it off without further burning myself. While I did get it shut off, it wasn't until I had released around 3500 gallons onto my customers ground and spillway.

I'm okay, thanks for asking.

The weakness comes in here. While the asphalt was boiling out, I shouted several words of profanity, running around trying to get the valve shut off. Some would say that it was only natural, and I would agree with that. But I actually saw it as a great weakness on my part. Other than repeating things that others have said, I rarely use any form of profanity. I am around it enough that it still offends me. So why did I use it in my panic?

Several times in Scripture we are told to cry out to God. In joy or in pain, we are told to do so. Was this any different? I believe that God could have stopped the flow for me, if I had only called on Him to do so. At the very least, He could have slowed it to the point that I could have gotten in to shut it down.

After it was over, I just sat down and asked for forgiveness. I confessed my weakness and asked for the strength to do better. I was reminded of the father who asked that Jesus heal his child. In Mark 9:24 we see him cry out and ask Jesus to help his unbelief. May I make that my prayer today. In every situation, let the name of Jesus be on my lips in times of joy and times of pain. In calm and panic, may I look to the Creator to help and comfort.

MP

Kizziah Kolumn

2008-09-12T17:22:00.004-05:00

I just wanted to point out a link in our blog roll, Kizziah Kolumn. David Kizziah is the son-in-law of my pastor and headed to the foreign mission field. I'll skip saying to much here, just go check out the blog and add them to your prayers!!

While our emphasis on A&S may be on personal evangelism, we need to be sure and keep foreign missions in our prayers.

I've got some tract reviews and stories in the wings as well as something I am working on about the Great Commission, SO STAY TUNED FOR MORE!!!!!!!!

MP

SWEET???

2008-09-11T11:01:00.003-05:00

Hi guys,

MP called the other day and clued me in to this little event. Surprised me greatly I guess and I'm still not real sure what my opinion is but here's some further info on the former Stryper dude.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Sweet
I think I'll take the time to check up on some of the other guys I used to listen to occasionally just to see if any others have been park rangers!

TL

Oh, For Grace to Trust Him More

2008-09-09T04:02:00.003-05:00

Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.

Hebrews 13: 13-14

By way of introduction: I am a brand new pastor, not even two years into serving in my first pastorate. I am married with two kids, three cats, too many dogs, and the laptop I am writing this on is partially held together with duct tape. I have not been to Seminary, but am looking at ways to get headed in that direction. I am a school teacher by trade, and a child of God's by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. His call on my life to preach and to pastor was really one of those "I was the last to know" sort of things. Really, my heart is just to love and obey my God, to share the unimaginable grace and mercy of God in Christ Jesus, to cling to His unchanging word, and to follow Him wherever He leads. So far it has lead to places that I never thought I would find myself. One of those places is on my face before Him in fear and love and praise and wonder over and over. Another of those places was through what I believe was some chastisement. Yet another was to surrender to a call to preach. I am leaving a lot out , but there will be, I pray, time for all that later.

I wanted to begin with a post about one more place that God is leading: India and Nepal. I'll be going there, Lord willing, soon. Its only for a few weeks, but I have never even been out of the country, and this is only my second mission trip. My first was to Michigan for six days. Needless to say, I ask that you pray for me and for my family as well as the church I serve and the young man who, Lord, willing will be filling the pulpit.

The plan is to help the Body in Nepal and to minister to my brothers and sisters in whatever way I can. There is a bit more to it, but right now that is enough to pray on. There are literally hundreds of people who are more "qualified". People who have given up everything and trained long and hard to get the chance to do what has simply opened to me by God's providence. I have a family that is worried, kids who are trying to get their brain around all of this, and the best wife on earth, who is trusting in God through everything, but still not completely o.k with the trip. In other words, she is trusting God, but I have yet to see any cartwheels in the yard in celebration of the event. (Let's keep in mind, she thought she was marring a teacher. It is amazing to watch God grow both her and us.)

Violence and murder against Christians and the destruction of churches in India had been in the news lately. These and other dangers could be waiting in Nepal. There are those who do not want me to go on this mission, that has been made clear. Still, I look at all the doors that have been opened, the clear commands in scripture, and see that this is not up to me. I have to follow.

I have been taught that a good question to ask at this point, as I prepare to go, is: What is my Heavenly Father revealing about my own sinful heart as I walk this? Here is the short answer: The disconnect between my head knowledge and my faith is not longer acceptable. I cannot just know that I am to cast my care upon Him because he cares for me, I have to live that. To step out on it, is far removed from chasing the verbs around or cross-referencing .

See, if Hebrews 13: 13-14 is a real part of my life in Christ, and not just one of the scripture references in John Piper's sermon at Together for the Gospel 08, then I have to live it and walk it and trust my God.

I have to live the truth of the First century Christians leaving Judaism forever and going out to where Jesus suffered, outside Jerusalem, because we have a High Priest that it sympathetic, tempted in all ways and yet without sin, in Jesus Christ who suffered for our sins and took the wrath we deserve. And I have to live going to Him, outside of all I recognize and find "safe". Leave my "zone", leave my air conditioning and all the safety of food I trust, water I trust, and leave threats to my life and faith that I am learning (to my shame) that I trusted and allowed for far too long. Threats like apathy and self-righteousness and lust and greed.

I have to pray for grace to face a physical body that is not able to go ten miles with a loaded pack. A body that I ignored and abused until seized with panic that it is broken and is failing. I have to live the truth of His reproach, then the truth of sharing it. My Savior was rejected and a man of sorrows. He was scorned by those He came to save. I have to pray for the grace to share in that and to rejoice .

And the truth that I have no lasting city here. This place cannot be my home. A sojourner, a soldier, a slave, and a pastor and a teacher, yes - but, I am not here to colonize within the enemies kingdom. I am here to preach the gospel of grace, to run the race before me, and to battle the sin in my flesh by the power of the Holy Spirit. But most of all to glorify God, and , yes, to enjoy Him forever. Having no lasting city for me right now means falling out of love with what I have turned my "world" into. And praying that Jesus would be more and more my world.

India, Nepal, America. No lasting city here, only the amazing chance to go, at a time of danger, to a place half a world away, and wash the feet of the saints. I ask that you pray for me, that I may have grace to trust Him more, to bear up and follow in obedience.

Good Golly!

2008-09-08T21:44:00.009-05:00

Who signs in before 4 am? Anyway, I've added a section for links over there ---------->. The first one is where I find most of the stuff I listen to. Also, I made a li'l change to one of the settings (just to help MP out). I changed the archiving to once weekly instead of monthly so hopefully if I goof somethin' up while adding a link it can be fixed easier.
Anywho, the new job starts on the 8th. God's been very good over the last 3 1/2 years in allowing us to pay down our debt in a big way. It came with a serious price on my sanity though! The new job will test our commitment to living within a budget but it will offer some stability I've never had.

--TL

Evangelism Thought

2008-09-08T21:44:00.008-05:00

In a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich, the cow and the chicken are involved but the pig is committed.

Be a pig.

---MP

House on the Rock (Read to the end)

2008-09-08T21:44:00.007-05:00

The wise man built his house upon the rock

And the rain came tumbling down

Oh, the rain came down

And the floods came up

The rain came down

And the floods came up

The rain came down

And the floods came up

And the wise man's house stood firm.

The foolish man built his house upon the sand

And the rain came tumbling down

Oh, the rain came down

And the floods came up

The rain came down

And the floods came up

The rain came down

And the floods came up

And the foolish man's house went "splat!" [clap hands once]

So, build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ

Build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ

And the blessings will come down

Oh, the blessings come down

As your prayers go up

The blessings come down

As your prayers go up

The blessings come down

As your prayer go up

So build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew 7:24-27 is the basis for this popular children's song. I can remember almost all of the hand motions that go with it. I never knew the context of it, which is always the problem of children's songs. This passage is a sobering warning about not following the words of our Lord and all of Scripture for that matter. Verse 27 ends with the phrase, "And great was its fall.”

Great is the fall of those who's life is outside of Christ. Great is the fall of the family who does not have godly leadership. Great is the fall of the church that fails to preach the Word.

For those who remember MP's first blog, it was all about a search for wisdom (still working on that). If I want to be regarded as wise by my Savior, I MUST listen to His word! This morning in worship, my pastor shared some thoughts from Mark Dever, about how to biblically build the church. While he may have had the corporate body in mind, I couldn't help but to apply it directly to me as a man, using it to apply to my own walk with Christ. I am going to expand on them (I finally have something to focus on!) over a few posts.

---MP

Batter up!!!

2008-09-08T21:43:00.004-05:00

Just as a reminder, this is not just my blog, so I am not going to steer topics or pick them. Just imagine some guys sitting in a pub, enjoying a pint of bitters and discussing things that guys discuss. Everyone needs to pitch in. JS can post stories (the zombie story is a good start), PM can post sermon overflow, TL can update us on his job situation, and I will talk about the Indianapolis Colts.

Or whatever.

---MP

New Home!!

2008-09-08T21:25:00.001-05:00

Welcome to our new blog home!! I will post all the old stuff tomorrow!