Meditations of a δούλος

Book Review: For Calvinism

2012-01-06T20:44:00.001-05:00

For Calvinism by Michael S. Horton is a well thought out book that defends the "Doctrines of Grace," typically known as Calvinism in evangelical Christian circles. I found t to be an interesting book that defends the theological position of Calvinism. For the most part Horton writes in a non-judgmental way, trying to show why he believes the doctrines of Calvinism to be the Scriptural teachings.

Horton says in the book that he does not necessarily agree with the acronymn given to the doctrines of grace, TULIP. For those who don't know, TULIP stands for: Total Depravity (humans are sinful and can not save themselves), Unconditional Election (God chose or elected certain individuals for salvation, not based on their merit, but upon His grace, before the foundation of the world), Limited Atonement (Christ's death upon the cross was effective only for the elect), Irresistable Grace (When the Holy Spirit draws an individual to Christ and regenerates them, they come to faith in Christ), and finally Perserverance of the Saints (those who are saved cannot lose their salvation, but are held by God's grace throughout eternity.)

Most evangelical's who have problems with the teachings of Calvinism have problems with unconditional election, limited atonement, and irresistable grace. The author provides a well thought out argument for each of these doctrines and even gives alternate names for them. My understanding of the Calvinist position has grown significantly from his words.

He also talks about Calvinists and missions. He points out, which I have noticed before, that many missionaries of the past were indeed Calvinists (though not hyper-calvinists which would see no point in missions at all.) I learned from Horton that John Calvin (who the theological position is named after and credited to) was very missions minded and even noted in a sermon that Christ did not only come for some, but offers salvation to all. William Carrey, the "father of the modern missions movement," was very much so a Calvinist, but was deeply concerned with spreading the gospel through missions and reaching the lost souls around the world.

I could write a book in response to this book, but to sum up my thoughts, For Calvinism was a very good education book about the doctrines of grace. I would recommend it to anyone who desires to know what Calvinism teaches more fully. I am now beginning the book that was made to accompany this one, Against Calvinism by Roger E. Olson. Both books were recommended to me for a "balanced approach" to understanding the doctrines of Calvinism. I will post a review of Olson's book when I am finished reading it, hopefully soon.

Merry CHRISTmas!

2011-12-24T23:23:00.001-05:00

Twas the night before CHRISTmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse (or my two beautiful children). I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas season and have thoroughly enjoyed the time of advent building up to the celebration of our Savior's birth. I sure have. I love this time of year, and look forward to next year's celebrations already.

I hope you didn't get too caught up in the material side of Christmas, though there is nothing wrong with getting or giving gifts. I just know how easy it is to forget what we are really celebrating the holiday for in the first place if we take our eyes off Jesus for very long.

So as we focus our thoughts on Jesus all day tomorrow, take a breath from the normal life that we get caught up in and rest, relax, and rejuvenate in the presence of the King of kings.

-Merry Christmas,

Ian

Christmas...

2011-12-19T17:03:00.001-05:00

Much has been said and will continue to be said about Christ being the reason for Christmas. I am enthusiastic myself about letting people know that Christmas is supposed to be a celebration of the Savior's birth. Just thinking about the nativity that we so often celebrate at Christmas time gets me very excited, emotional, and ever thinking. I just like to take a moment and ponder the true meaning of Christmas, slowing down from my daily activities and meditating on the Lord.

What a humbling thought that the God of the universe became a man...first a baby! In the beginning was the Word, John's Gospel tells us, and the Word became flesh. Wow. God, who can't be held in a temple, became a helpless baby. Fully God, fully human. One word describes this event - amazing. How have we taken such an amazing thing and made it about gifts, Santa Claus, and hedonism?

I am excited to share with my two children and wife in the Christmas story from Luke chapter 2 this Christmas. Before anything else we are going to sit down, read the story of Jesus' birth, and thank Him for His birthday. I hope you will also sit back and reflect upon our Savior's birth. If you don't know Him, I pray that you would come to this Christmas season. He is everything and I am so glad He came for me!

Studying French

2011-12-16T19:48:00.002-05:00

So, I believe the Lord has led me to take part in a vision mission trip to Senegal, West Africa in May 2012. I am going as a part of the first team from Clear Creek Baptist College, which dreams of partnering with the International Mission Board in reaching the people of Senegal with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Hopefully our trip this May will allow us to prayer walk and build relationships that will last for eternity.

The national language of Senegal is actually French, though many people speak the Pulaar dialect. I pick up languages rather easily, so hopefully the study in French and Pulaar over the next six months will prove fruitful and long-lasting. I don't know what the Lord will do with me when it pertains to French or Senegal beyond this, but I want to be faithful to whatever He calls me to do!

Please pray for the Lord to provide language learning resources and for ease of learning two new languages at once. I really appreciate every prayer that is given towards this, as God answers the prayers of His saints and prepares us through prayer for His purposes. Also please pray for the trip. Currently there are three of us going on the first trip in May, thou another professor is praying about joining us.

Thanks so much and Merry Christmas!

Praise the Lord!

2011-12-15T22:10:00.001-05:00

Psalm 150 tells us to praise the Lord with everything we've got within us! The whole earth is made to praise him and we have the privilege of joining in on it. Will you praise the Lord with all your might today?

1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens!

2 Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!

3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!

4 Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!

5 Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!

6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!

Next On My Reading List:

2011-12-07T07:19:00.004-05:00

I Am a Follower: The Way, Truth, and Life of Following Jesus by Leonard Sweet

Book Description:
It's time to leave the leadership obsession behind. It's never been about leading.

“Leadership” has become a runaway obsession for those who are called to equip the body of Christ for service in the Kingdom of God. The concept of “followership” is all but lost in the wake of this leadership fetish, a near hypnotic obsession. Jesus’ clear call, and the pattern of New Testament leadership, are actually found in a pattern of followership. We’ve been told otherwise but when it comes to a movement in our churches, our families, or the workplace, everything rises or falls on followership. Sweet proposes an intentional shift from leadership cults to followership cultures. He critiques the issue of leadership obsession but focuses on reigniting a passion for the "follow me" theme found throughout the gospels and the entire New Testament. Building on a set of metaphors/images, he stirs the imagination by showing what it means to be a follower of Christ and explains the vital cog that followership and the first follower play in helping others enter into the Kingdom of God.

I Am A Follower moves readers:

--from leaders that are over to followers that are among

--from sages and gurus to scouts and guides

--from Saul's armor to David's sling

--from having the right answers to asking the right questions

--from architects to gardeners

Book Review - When God Whispers Your Name

2011-12-06T21:38:00.004-05:00

Max Lucado's book, When God Whispers Your Name, is an inspirational book that contains several stories and ideas from Scripture, to help the reader understand that God cares about them. As a Christian it is a comforting thing to know that the God of the universe knows me by name and actually does love and care for me. I always enjoy reading Max Lucado's books. I feel all warm and fuzzy inside as I read the amazing accounts of God's work in his (Lucado's) life and in the lives of others. 99% of the time the stories are applicable to my own life, and I am able to reflect upon God's work in my life because of it.

Though I must admit, this one was a little harder for me to get into than other books by Lucado, it is still very good. I would recommend it to anyone needing to feel God's presence or who question God's care for them as individuals. I think, like most of his books, Lucado writes short chapters to inspire daily devotional reading - if the reader should so choose. This book would work rather nicely for that, as a one chapter a day kind of devotional. Usually once I read one chapter, it is really hard for me to put his books down though ;).

Overall, I thought Max Lucado's When God Whispers Your Name was a good book. I think God has gifted Lucado to be an excellent writer, and I can definitely see his love for the Lord Jesus Christ in his writings.

This book was given to me, free of charge, in exchange for an honest review, by Thomas Nelson Publishing Company's BookSneeze program.

A More In Depth Look At Jonathan Edwards' Impact Upon The First Great Awakening

2011-12-05T08:20:00.001-05:00

Jonathan Edwards has been called by many the most influential intellectual thinker of his time. By others he is known as the greatest intellect that America has ever seen. During his lifetime he wrote many works on the Christian faith, including several published sermons and defense works on certain doctrines of the faith. He certainly has had a great impact upon Christian thinkers from his lifetime through today, and no doubt his works will continue to impact those in the future. But what type of impact did he have upon the First Great Awakening in America?

The First Great Awakening in America is generally attributed to the preaching of Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield. It seems as though Edwards’ preaching was most likely the spark from which the blazing fire of revival got its start. There were several cultural and religious factors that had led up to the Great Awakening, which prepared or laid the foundation for the revival to begin. Edwards’ famous sermon series on “Justification by Faith Alone” led to the beginnings of the revival, which spread throughout the eastern coast of the colonies. The revival lasted from around 1734 to 1742, with general awakenings ebbing and flowing throughout. Upon reflection Edwards wrote an account of the great work of God, which gives us some details of this great revival movement.

Historical Factors Leading Up To the Revival

The religious state of New England, and consequently of the world, had a huge impact upon the breaking out of the Great Awakening. In the 1730’s and 40’s in New England church membership was highly valued and directly affected one’s ability to participate in public events. Only church members could run for office or vote during this time, which is how things had operated throughout history in Christian societies.[1] Throughout the history of Christian Europe, which directly influenced Christianity in the American colonies, the common practice was to baptize all at infancy and consider them members of the church. This was practiced in both Roman Catholic and Reformed Protestant denominations. It was then expected that the “member” would be taught doctrines and correct living practices throughout childhood, thus allowing them to show evidence of their status as a Christian.[2]

In many instances it was thought of as a confirmation of the person’s faith when they first partook in the Lord’s Supper, of which every church member was supposed to partake. There were many ideas floating around during this time about who should be allowed to participate in the Lord’s Supper. Some were arguing that one must have evidence of their conversion prior to participating, while others thought this not necessary. The issue led to debates and ultimately to the acceptance of baptismal regeneration, which states that the infant is a converted Christian upon receiving the infant baptism. This idea allowed for all to take part in the Lord’s Supper and to be considered viable church members.[3]

The New England Puritans did not hold to these beliefs though. They did not believe in baptismal regeneration, but taught that a born-again believer must have evidence of their conversion experience through a changed life, which would be visible to those around them.[4] This Puritan theology then directly influenced the beginning of the Great Awakening, because Jonathan Edwards himself held to these values.

Another historical factor that led up to the Great Awakening was the emphasis upon the Armenian theology of salvation by works, which actually took its root in the papal system of the Roman Catholic Church.[5] The papal system, which basically taught that the Pope was the authority on all things pertaining to doctrine and therefore salvation, led to church members having an understanding of a works based salvation. One had to do all the things that the papacy ascribed in order to be saved. This theology filtered into Armenian doctrine, which was building steadily in popularity in New England during the 1730’s.[6]

Puritans like Edwards were absolutely against a theology of works leading to salvation. Most Puritans held to a strictly Calvinistic theology, which taught that God was absolutely sovereign over all matters, including salvation. Puritan preachers such as Edwards held to and preached a theology of justification (salvation) by faith alone, through grace alone, which takes its root all the way back to Martin Luther, the great reformer.[7]

Jonathan Edwards’ Sermonic Influence upon the Great Awakening

Edwards was truly a brilliant mind. He graduated from Yale at the age of seventeen and spent several more years there as a tutor. He left Yale to help his grandfather, Solomon Stoddard, with his church in Northampton, Massachusetts. After spending two years there, his grandfather died, and Edwards became the senior pastor.[8] He was very concerned over the low level of morality among his church members, especially among the youth, and wrote:

“Many of them were very much addicted to night walking, frequenting the tavern, and lewd practices. It was their manner very frequently to get together in conventions of both sexes for mirth and jollity, which they called frolics, and would spend the greater part of the night in them.”[9]

This bothered him so much that he began to meet with the youth in their homes and discuss spiritual things with them. He eventually began to see some improvement in their attitudes and understanding of spiritual things, but the real breakthrough came in his preaching.[10]

To combat the lack of spiritual understanding and piety among the people of his congregation, he began preaching a series on the essential doctrine of “Justification by Faith Alone.” His expressed purpose in preaching such sermons was to make men feel that they understood the subject, and secondly to wipe away all those hopes of heaven, which they had built upon their own works.[11] During this sermon series Edwards preached his most famous sermon, which kick-started the Great Awakening, Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God.

The text which Edwards used for this sermon was Deuteronomy 32:35 – “Their foot shall slide in due time.” His main idea was that all men who are outside of Christ are dangling over the pit of hell, only hanging by the thread of God’s grace and mercy (which he calls God’s pleasure).[12] He taught within the sermon that God is ultimately sovereign over all affairs, including those of judgment and salvation, and that in due time He will put those sinners who are outside of Christ into their rightful place in hell.[13]

Edwards used very vivid images of the torment that awaits lost souls, which effectively led many into a fearful understanding of their own sins against the holiness of God. It is interesting to note that God worked so mightily through Edwards, eventually leading to over three-hundred conversions in the context of his local church, even though he did not preach in an exciting style at all. It is recorded that Edwards merely read the manuscripts for his sermons in a monotone manner, without the use of hand gestures of any kind.[14]

One reason this powerful sermon may have been so effective, is the method in which Edwards applied the truth to the lives of those in the congregation. He said:

“The use [of the sermon] may be of awakening to unconverted persons in this congregation. This that you have heard is the case of every one of you that are out of Christ. That world of miser, that lake of burning brimstone, is extended abroad under you. There is the dreadful pit of the glowing flames of the wrath of God; there is hell’s wide gaping mouth open; and you have nothing to stand upon, nor any thing to take hold of. There is nothing between you and hell but the air; it is only the power and mere pleasure of God that holds you up.”[15]

Needless to say, he was trying to drive home the point that those who are outside of Christ need to turn to Him, in order to avoid this terrible fate for all of eternity. He gave a lengthy discourse on the reasons behind their need to do so, and discussed the method in which this repentance and faith should take place.

Edwards’ Reflection on the Great Awakening

Jonathan Edwards had a great amount of influence upon the Great Awakening. The night that he preached his famous sermon many souls were converted to Christianity and a great revival fire began burning. Before long the revival had spread all the way down the colonial coast, and had even begun to travel back to England.[16]

Edwards wrote down the events of this revival in his book, A Faithful Narrative of the Surprising Work of God. He described the reaction of the people in Northampton as such:

“There was scarcely a single person in the town, old or young, left unconcerned about the great things of the eternal world…Souls did, as it were, come by flocks to Jesus Christ…The town seemed to be full of the presence of God; it was never so full of love, nor of joy, and yet so full of distress, as it was then. There were remarkable tokens of God’s presence in almost every house.”[17]

His book carried the news of the Great Awakening all way to Europe, where people were longing for a similar experience. Edwards attributes the great work to God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, saying it was quite a miraculous work.[18]

In conclusion we can see that Jonathan Edwards’ sermons and piety had a direct effect upon the Great Awakening that began in New England in the 1730’s. Though he would argue that it was a miraculous work of the Holy Spirit, and this author would agree, there is no doubt that his great intellectual ability to search out the Scriptures and present them in an applicable way, impacted those people in Northampton. Because he was not fearful of presenting the doctrines of justification by faith alone and the truth of a possible eternity in hell, many people were saved. This study has left me with the question of whether our current method of sermonizing in the twenty-first century is leading us toward or away from a great revival of this magnitude. It seems that in recent years evangelical Christians have strayed away from the deep doctrines of the Christian faith, and have aimed to bring people into the kingdom of God through other methods. Could we learn something from the example of Jonathan Edwards?

[1] Joseph Tracy, The Great Awakening: A History of the Revival of Religion in the Time of Edwards and Whitefield (1842; repr., Bath, England: The Bath Press, 1997), 1-2.

[2] Ibid. 2

[3] Ibid. 2-3

[4] Ibid. 3

[5] Ibid. 7

[6] Ibid. 7-8

[7] Ibid. 8-9

[8] John Mark Terry, Evangelism: A Concise History (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1994), 117.

[9] Ibid. 117

[10] Ibid 117

[11] Joseph Tracy, The Great Awakening: A History of the Revival of Religion in the Time of Edwards and Whitefield (1842; repr., Bath, England: The Bath Press, 1997), 10.

[12] Jonathan Edwards, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” from Selected Writings of Jonathan Edwards, Ed. Harold P. Simonson (New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1970), 96, 99.

[13] Ibid. 97

[14] John Mark Terry, Evangelism: A Concise History (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1994), 118.

[15] Jonathan Edwards, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” from Selected Writings of Jonathan Edwards, Ed. Harold P. Simonson (New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1970), 104.

[16] John Mark Terry, Evangelism: A Concise History (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1994), 118.

[17] Ibid. 118

[18] Ibid. 119

A Little Inspiration From Church History

2011-12-04T19:26:00.001-05:00

In the 1730's a massive revival, commonly known as The (first) Great Awakening, spread across the entire eastern seaboard - of the then newfound colonies of North America. This awesome display of God's power and grace began in a little town known as Northampton, Massachusetts. God used an intelligent preacher by the name of Jonathan Edwards to reshape the face of the colonies, and eventually Christianity in America.

Jonathan Edwards graduated from Yale at the age of 17 and stuck around for a few years tutoring other students, before his grandfather - Solomon Stoddard - called him to help with his church in Northampton. He became the full time pastor of the church after his grandfather passed away a mere two years later. He was very upset by the lack of spiritual piety among his members, especially the younger generation. He began meeting with these young people in their homes, and eventually saw an increase in interest among them when it came to spiritual things. This was the background for what God used to ignite the flame of revival amongst these people.

He began preaching series on Justification by Faith Alone, which he picked up on from Martin Luther's teachings. He boldly preached that nothing men do can save them, but that salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ alone. The sermon he is most famous for, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, changed the face of America forever. Within this sermon he told members of his congregation that the only thing saving most of them from falling into the fiery pits of hell, was the pure pleasure of God, who was holding them as one holds a spider over the flames. He continued with graphic images of the sinner's destiny towards hell, no doubt placing the fear of God in the many lost souls of his congregation. Towards the end of his sermon, Edwards offered the people the gift of salvation through faith in Christ, and several became believers that night.

The crazy thing about this sermon, to me at least, is the method in which he preached it. A monotone, non-emotional Edwards merely read his manuscript word for word. He did not preach in the style we think of, he read. But God did an amazing work through this man and from that night in 1734 until 1742 a great revival swept over the colonies, even into Europe. Great men of God such as George Whitefield and John Wesley (the founder of the Methodist Church) were co-workers with Edwards in this Great Awakening; but God ultimately was the mastermind behind it.

I am encouraged by this tale from our history as Christians, as Americans. Jonathan Edwards is known as the most intelligent intellectual of his time. Some people claim him to be the greatest intellectual America has ever produced. While I may not be such a great intellectual, I serve the same God that Edwards did. If God can use him, He can use me just as well. The thing that I must do is to execute obedience to the Lord's leading in my life. Jonathan Edwards was heartbroken over sin and was obedient to stand firm in his faith and preach boldly against that sin. God used him. If I, we as Christians, will be just as obedient, God may use us in the same aspect. Our neighborhoods, our country, our world needs a Great Awakening to faith in Jesus Christ. I pray that God will use me to be a messenger to even one person who needs to be awakened for His glory.

Sources:

-Edwards, Jonathan. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” In Selected Writings of Jonathan Edwards. Ed. Harold P. Simonson. New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1970.

-Terry, John Mark. Evangelism: A Concise History. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1994.

-Tracy, Joseph. The Great Awakening: A History of the Revival of Religion in the Time of Edwards and Whitefield. 1842. Reprint, Bath, England: The Bath Press, 1997.

Called to...

2011-12-03T21:35:00.000-05:00

In recent days the Lord has led me to understand that there is a slight change in the path to which I am called to walk. You see, He has called me into ministry, as I have expressed in writing before. I most definitely feel called to missions. My heart more specifically beats for international missions. I love to travel and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ around the world. For the past two and a half years I have been under the impression that my calling entailed full time career missions service - and some day it might still involve that aspect of missions.

However, I have recently come to understand that my more immediate calling is to prepare. For what? you may ask. Well, to teach. Missions, apologetics, evangelism, church history - all my passions, all things that I feel God is calling me to teach. I understand it is a high calling, one that I should take very seriously and walk very close to the Lord in. To be honest, I am pumped about this calling that the Lord has given me. I am passionate about teaching, gifted by the Holy Spirit to do so, and have a burning desire that God has placed within my heart to do so.

I have known for quite some time that I am called to teach, but I always thought it would come later, as in after mission service. However, God has been preparing me and sending me on short term mission trips seemingly left and right. I have gone on four, soon to be five, in the past two years and have a passion and calling to do many more over the course of my life. The Lord has given me an understanding that short term missions work and teaching are what He wants me to focus upon currently. Of course, He will work out the details along the way. I am just trying to be faithful and obedient to follow Him as He does so.

What's the Lord calling you to?

Book Review - No Wonder They Call Him The Savior

2011-11-08T23:03:00.000-05:00

No Wonder They Call Him The Savior by Max Lucado was given to me by Thomas Nelson in exchange for an honest review; the opinions expressed are my own and are not influenced by the publisher.

No Wonder They Call Him The Savior is an awesome book! Max Lucado has a way with words that just make you feel God's love and grace surrounding you. He masterfully crafts sentences, paragraphs, and chapters that lead the reader into a devotional thought of great depth. This book focuses on the most important thing in history, the thing that matters the most - the cross.

Lucado breaks the book down into three sections:

The Cross: It's Words
The Cross: It's Witnesses
The Cross: It's Wisdom

Each section takes a fresh look at the cross of Jesus Christ and gives us a new look at what it means to us. In section one I truly enjoyed reading of the crucifixion in a new light - namely one that looks at Jesus' humanity and deity, and how they played into the cross. I was greatly encouraged by a chapter on Jesus' humanity, which showed that He understands when I am honestly too tired to read and just need sleep, or when I become angry, etc. The Bible says we have a Savior who knows what we are tempted with, and Max Lucado brought that out in the cross.

The second section focuses on those around the crucifixion - His disciples, family, the thieves, the Romans, etc. A very good insightful section on how we relate to those who were around the cross that Friday afternoon. I truly enjoyed Lucado's conjecture about Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus.

The final section is the wisdom that we can glean from the cross and it is full of practical application for our lives. The first chapter is called ALIVE! and is a work of art in describing to us the events leading up to and through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus - the entire chapter is done in one word sentences. Also, the best example of the parable of the prodigal son in today's world that I have ever read or heard.

I would recommend this book to any Christian who wants to delve deeper into their devotional thought life with the Lord, or to anyone wanting a fresh look at the cross. Time and time again as I read this book, I caught myself thinking...No wonder He's called the Savior!

Book Review - The Book Of Man

2011-11-06T18:42:00.000-05:00

The Book of Man by William Bennet was given to me by Thomas Nelson, through their BookSneeze program in exchange for an honest review; all views expressed are my own and not altered by Thomas Nelson.

The Book of Man is supposed to contain readings on the path to manhood. Held within are some 540 pages of various life stories, quotes, poems, fiction pieces, and Biblical pieces - all of which are supposed to lead the man reading it on the right path to being a real man. It is sold as a Christian book, supposedly written from a Christian perspective, but in my opinion it is lacking in the area of Christian advice - for the most part. There are in various places throughout the book where Bennet uses Bible passages, or gives practical advice from a Christian point of view. For the most part however, it seems to me that secular examples are used more often than Christian views - Plato, readings from Beowulf, William Shakespeare, etc.

That being said, I found the life stories of the various men to be inspiring at times, and maybe even helpful in understanding how men can react to different situations that may arise in life. The readings on war seemed to be pointed towards rising up the adventurous side of men - the side of men which desires to be the hero. (By the way Bennet says that we as Americans have gone so far from the days of letting our boys admire heroes, which he feels is one of the biggest problems with our men - or lack thereof - today.)

The section I enjoyed the most was the final chapter on "The man in prayer and reflection." Bennet makes the point that it has been understood from times past that a man is not a man at all unless they spend time reflecting on the deep things of life, and on the normal things as well. He quotes several people who point to the importance of reflection, most of whom say that those who don't reflect are like men who are physically unfit because they don't exercise or eat well - except the non-reflecting men are mentally and spiritually unfit. He does talk about prayer as well and makes the point that prayer is man's way of communicating with God - our conversation to come to know Him better - which I totally agree with.

The physical book is fairly large and very nicely bound. It has the torn edge look, making it look rustic or old. The paper is very good quality and very thick. The ink used on the pages is very dark and easily readable. This book is pretty big and thick, so I would not expect one to carry it with them to the doctor's office in it's physical form; however, the format of the book makes a nice daily reflection type of book, which would go well on a coffee table or bedside stand. If one wanted to carry the book around with them, I would recommend going with the electronic version of the book (kindle, e-reader, etc.).

Overall, I would not call this a book that men can read and find the meaning of true (biblical) manhood. Does it contain some good stories, secular and Bible alike? Yes. However if one wants to understand manhood better, try reading something like Wild at Heart by John Eldredge or even consider doing the Men's Fraternity Bible Study.

Next book review will be...

2011-10-24T13:56:00.000-04:00

Next book review is going to be....drum roll please....

"The Book of Man" by William J. Bennet. This weekend I was at a men's conference at my church and one of the pastor's who spoke, who is a good friend of mine and partner in ministry, used this book and recommended it to all the men there. I just finished reading "Wild at Heart," which changed my life and truly did show me what biblical manhood is about. Then as I finished that book another just falls in my lap! God is truly laying it upon my heart to learn what it means to be a man of God...a true man. So, hopefully soon a review will be coming!

Bonhoffer Review

2011-10-24T13:49:00.000-04:00

Bonhoffer: Pastor, Prophet, Martyr, Spy by Eric Metaxas is an excellent biography of a great man of God. Metaxas delves deep into the details of Bonhoeffer's life, giving great insight into the development of the heroes faith, outlook on life, and eventually his mission.

I enjoyed reading of the family life as Bonhoeffer grew up in Germany. He had many interesting tales of the days of his youth, including his faith at a young age. His mother instilled Christianity in him and his siblings, but he was the only one to take it most seriously. Even from a young age Bonhoeffer was the heroic type, taking up for his sisters and family members. As life went on he took that courage and shaped it into what he would need to follow God's call on his life to try and stop Adolf Hitler from his terrible crimes against human kind.

I would recommend this book to any of my brothers and sisters in Christ who are looking for an inspiring biography to grow their faith. I have heard many great men of God say that they read a biography per year of some man or woman of God from church history, just to increase their own faith and understanding. I plan to do the same!

This book was given to me as a part of Thomas Nelson Publisher's BookSneeze program in exchange for an honest review.

An Energizing Reminder To Pray

2011-08-03T10:00:00.000-04:00

As I sit at my desk this morning, I am sipping coffee and reading my Bible. I am reminded of time spent in Sapporo, Japan as I lift my coffee cup to my lips and enjoy the hot liquid and energy that comes from it. I bought the coffee cup from a Starbucks coffee shop in the Sapporo train station a week and a half ago. A picture of the Sapporo clock tower is beautifully displayed along with the name of the city in English and Kanji. As I am sipping coffee out of this cup I am reminded to pray for the over two million people who reside in Sapporo city – that was the purpose of my purchase, to drive me to pray.

Getting ready for work also reminds me to pray for the people of Sapporo, specifically the students and professors of Hokkaido University. My wife and I visited the university last week as we stayed in Sapporo. While prayer walking the beautiful campus we found ourselves at the Hokkadai Museum, where I purchased a leather keychain with the words “Hokkaido University” embossed upon it. When I look upon those words I am reminded of the people we met during our prayer walking visit. So many students walk through the large campus every day who have never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The university has a history of a strong Christian witness flooding through the campus. The founder Dr. William Clark was a missionary from Massachusetts who encouraged the spreading of the Gospel and regular prayer meetings upon the campus grounds. Unfortunately this is no longer a normal practice upon the campus.

Pray with us that the two million people of Sapporo city will begin to turn from the religions and idols of their ancestors and embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray that God will begin to send laborers to the harvest field, for as Jesus said the harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray for the students of Hokkaido University that they will begin to see the glory of God as they study agriculture and science. Pray that the professors and staff of the university will reflect upon the rich Christian history of their university and embrace the same Good News that once spread upon the campus rapidly. Pray that the Christians in Sapporo will be bold witnesses for Jesus Christ and will live their lives in a manner worthy of their calling. Pray for a great awakening to sweep over the Japanese people, much like the great awakenings that took place in America so many years ago.

Praying @ Hokkaido University

Next Review: Bonhoeffer - Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

2011-08-03T08:34:00.000-04:00

From the New York Times bestselling author of Amazing Grace, a groundbreaking biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, one of the greatest heroes of the twentieth century, the man who stood up to Hitler.

A definitive, deeply moving narrative, Bonhoeffer is a story of moral courage in the face of the monstrous evil that was Nazism.

After discovering the fire of true faith in a Harlem church, Bonhoeffer returned to Germany and became one of the first to speak out against Hitler. As a double-agent, he joined the plot to assassinate the Führer, and was hanged in Flossenberg concentration camp at age 39. Since his death, Bonhoeffer has grown to be one of the most fascinating, complex figures of the 20th century.

Bonhoeffer presents a profoundly orthodox Christian theologian whose faith led him to boldly confront the greatest evil of the 20th century, and uncovers never-before-revealed facts, including the story of his passionate romance.

*2011 ECPA Book of the Year

*2011 Canterbury Medal by the Becket Fund recognizing courage in the defense of religious liberty

*2011 Christopher Award winner highlighting the power of faith, courage, and action

I am SUPER excited to read this book, I have been looking forward to it for quite some time. However, I don't know the speed at which I will be able to read it, as the new semester @ Clear Creek begins next Thursday and I have a TON of reading to do for classes. However, keep an eye out!

Review: Billy Graham in Quotes

2011-07-27T10:47:00.000-04:00

I recently received a copy of Billy Graham in Quotes from Thomas Nelson Publishers as a part of their BookSneeze program. I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review of the book.

I found Billy Graham in Quotes to be a nice little book to have. It is very inspirational to read the words that came from one of God's most well known warriors of our modern times. Billy Graham is easily one of the heroes on my list of Christian's that I look up to. He delved deeply into God's Word and applied it to his very life and to the lives of others.

So what can you expect from the man who preached to more people than anyone in the history of the world? A lot of very useful and gut wrenching quotes. This book covers a large span of Billy Graham's ministry and a wide array of topics. Anything from spirituality to mourning is covered in this book. The layout is very easy to use and very nice in my opinion.

I would recommend this book to any Christian who enjoys Billy Graham or who needs to be inspired during their day to day lives.

Cowboy Church

2011-06-10T09:32:00.001-04:00

God has truly blessed me this morning as I watched an interview with Jeff Smith - the founder of the Cowboy Church Network of North America. The interview is sponsored and conducted by Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and their Center for Great Commission Studies. The interview is about 14 minutes long and can be watched by following the link below. By clicking on the "Cowboy Church" located above this post (that is the name of the post) you will be taken to the Cowboy Church website.

God is truly doing an amazing work with the Cowboy Church Network. He has inspired Jeff Smith to use an unusual method of church planting for our day and time, but it is not so far removed from our culture. A few hundred years ago Methodists pastors used the same strategy to plant churches all throughout the south. It is called "circuit riding," which entails one preacher riding from church to church each week to preach and encourage the people. Jeff Smith picked up this model to plant cowboy churches and is seeing some great work being done by God. He basically plants four churches in a certain area of need and preaches at each one once a month. He partners with local pastors, who preach the other three weeks during the month at each church. Then Jeff waits as God raises up a pastor for one of the churches, and gives that church away. Then he goes and starts a new church within the same general area, spreading the circuit and making more disciples for Christ. Truly inspiring! Watch the interview by following this link: http://cgcs.sebts.edu/?p=2145

Grace and Peace

Sherlock Holmes meets faith?

2011-06-06T12:23:00.000-04:00

No Place Like Holmes by Jason Ethcoe is a brilliantly written young teen novel in the classic styling of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes mysteries. The story line of this book is very intriguing and I found it a delightful read. I truly enjoyed the weaving in of the Christian faith that is presented throughout this story.

I am a huge fan of the old Sherlock Holmes stories by Doyle and I have a feeling that Jason Ethcoe is as well. He has written this story in a similar style and fashion that the classics present. With a gripping plot, clues that leave you hungry for more (not to mention trying to figure the story out for yourself), and twists that leave you astonished; Ethcoe's mystery is one definitely worth reading.

The story follows a young boy, Griffin Sharpe, that is brilliant - a genius, in the early 1900's. He is sent to be with his uncle who is a private detective in London, England. The crazy thing? He lives at 221 Baker Street - the address of the famous Sherlock Holmes. The boy finds out about Holmes on his way to London and is immediately fascinated by the similarities that they share. Much like Holmes, Griffin is able to deduce information based upon deductive reasoning. He can not wait to meet the famous detective!

Nearly as soon as he arrives at 221 Baker Street a case presents itself. He and his uncle race against the clock to save the lives of many people in London. Will they succeed? Tune in and find out for yourselves...

This book was given to me in an Ebook format for an unbiased review by Thomas Nelson, through their BookSneeze program.

Genesis 3 - The Fall

2011-06-04T23:23:00.000-04:00

[3:1] Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.
He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” [2] And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, [3] but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” [4] But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. [5] For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” [6] So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. [7] Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
[8] And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. [9] But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” [10] And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” [11] He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” [12] The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” [13] Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
[14] The LORD God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
[15] I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”
[16] To the woman he said,
“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children.
Your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”
[17] And to Adam he said,
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
[18] thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
[19] By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
[20] The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. [21] And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.
[22] Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” [23] therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. [24] He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

v.1 - The serpent is more crafty, which is clearly presented as a bad thing, than any other beast in the field. He says to Eve: "Did God actually say, you shall not eat of any tree in the garden?" The serpent is purposefully twisting God's words here by making the command seem much more harsh than it actually was. God had merely told Adam not to eat of the tree in the middle of the garden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for if he ate of the tree he would surely die. However Satan makes it seem as if God said that they could not eat of any tree.

Then notice that the devil makes the tree of the knowledge of good and evil seem like every other tree. He says "God knows you will be just like Him...you will surely not die." Satan, like he always does, uses some truth here, but twists it into a lie. God did know that they would become like Him in the sense that they would understand the difference between good and evil, between holiness and sin - and God was trying to protect them from that. However the enemy just lies to them by saying "you will surely not die." God had told them they would die - that should have been enough, yet they still listened to the serpent.

v. 6 - Eve falls into temptation and sins against God. When she saw that the fruit of the tree was "good for food" (lust of the flesh), "delight to the eyes" (lust of the eyes), and "it was desired to make one wise" (pride of life), she took and ate of it. She sinned directly against God by clearly disobeying His command. Pay attention to what happens next...she "turned and gave some to her husband, who was next to her!" Apparently Adam, who had actually received the command from God directly and whom was responsible for his wife, was standing there as she defiantly ate the fruit. Beyond that his wife turns and gives the fruit to him...and what does he do? He eats! Both people were created specially by God - in His very image. They sinned against Him and did indeed die - spiritually. Unfortunately because of Adam's sin, we too sin and die spiritually.

v. 8-13 - God comes and the couple hide themselves out of shame. They were used to walking with God - the Creator of everything! They had an intimate relationship with Him, they knew Him and He them. Yet when God enters the Garden of Eden and they hear His footsteps, they are forced by their sin to hide from Him. Notice that God gives them ample opportunities to confess their sins and come clean before Him. He knew exactly where they were in the garden, yet He asks them where they are. When they wont come clean, God confronts Adam and Eve. What do they do? They pass the blame on someone else.

Adam says (in my wording) it was the wife that You gave me! Eve says it was the serpent! The crazy thing is...even today, thousands of years later, when someone is guilty and caught - the first response is to pass the blame to someone else. Solomon said it right...there is truly nothing new under the sun.

v. 14-19 - The Curse - God in His infinite knowledge and wisdom saw fit to place a curse upon the serpent, the woman, the man, and the earth. This is a part of His punishment for the sins that were committed. Sin has to be punished, and ultimately the punishment is God's wrath, but here He places a curse.

First He curses the serpent. The serpent is to be hated. It is to be the lowest of all the animals on the earth. It must slither on it's belly for as long as the earth remains.

Then He curses Satan. God prophecies the coming of the Messiah from the seed of the woman. He prophecies the enmity between the two and the victory of Christ over the serpent. v. 15 is the very first Messianic prophecy in the Bible - in the history of the universe!

God then turns to the woman. She will have increased pain in childbirth. I have heard some interesting theories about this pain, including the idea that the pain is the torment that a mother goes through as her children grow up and cause themselves pain and trouble; the pain the mother must experience as her child moves away and becomes totally independent. The woman must also be submissive to her husband. She wants to have his God-given position, but she can not have it.

Next the man receives his curse. He must toil, that is work hard day in and day out to produce food and provide for his family. He will labor all of his life and will never reach an end of needing to provide. He will eventually return to the dust from which he came.

Lastly the earth receives a curse based upon the man's sin. God curses the earth and says it will remain broken (until He creates the new heaven and new earth.) God's creation is magnificent as we see it today, in it's broken state. Just imagine what it must have been like to view the world before Adam's sin. One day we will return to that paradise.

v. 20-24 - Here we see an early picture of God's mercy and grace. By all means the man deserved to be punished by God and then left to fend for his own. On his own Adam tried to make clothes out of fig leaves...but they were not enough to cover himself. God takes the life of an innocent animal and provides clothes for Adam and his wife. Even here we see that the author of Hebrews is right in saying that "without the shedding of blood, there can be no forgiveness of sins."

We also see God's mercy and grace through His placing the man and woman outside of the garden. They were now sinful - fallen, and would eventually die. However, if they remained in the garden and ate from the tree of life, they would remain forever in this state. God loved them enough to remove them from paradise, until it is time for Him to bring us back to that point.

-Grace and Peace

Gospel Haiku

2011-06-01T08:48:00.000-04:00

Haiku is a form of poetry using a specific mold. The mold is 5-7-5, meaning 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables. So how can one present the Gospel in haiku form? Try this on:

Jesus is the Way,
Eternal life awaiting,
Call upon His name.

There it is...Gospel Haiku!

Words...

2011-05-30T14:04:00.003-04:00

I once was an atheist, til I was a pagan
Sinned against God, that's why Jesus was hangin'
On the cross, He gave me life
Eternal - in the grave three days, two nights
The darkest of darkness was overcome, by the Glorious Light
Once was blind, I received true sight
In His image I was made, forever gonna praise Him
I once was an atheist, now I am a CHRISTIAN

Thank you Lord, for your mercy and grace
Got me livin for your glory, like I'm runnin' a race
Eyes on the finish line, never gonna quit
With Christ I can do anything, we can handle it
Through times of trial, through times of grace
By the shadow of death, or the light of your face
Gonna march on, like a soldier in war
Ambassadors of Christ, we're created for
His glory, to spread it through the earth
Now that's a high calling, of infinite worth...

John Piper interview Rick Warren on Doctrine...

2011-05-27T20:55:00.000-04:00

Check out the video below. John Piper interviews Rick Warren, famed pastor and author of The Purpose Driven Life on his views of Biblical Doctrine. This video, though a little long, is very helpful and informative.

Great Commission Thoughts...

2011-05-27T14:49:00.000-04:00

"And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

To most evangelical Christians the above passage of Scripture represents a divine mandate upon their very lives. That is to say that each and every disciple of Jesus Christ is commanded by God to be obedient to the verses above. Yet, so many times we fail. We are not obedient to the mandate to be making disciples - to share our faith with a lost and dying world. Why is that? Why do we allow ourselves to miss the mark (sin) so often concerning this matter?

Many times it seems to be birthed out of a sense of fear. Americans especially have a fear of what other men and women are going to think. We don't like other people thinking that we are crazy or wrong. We want to be accepted by everyone. This simply boils down to a fear of man. Of course the Bible addresses this issue and tells us to not live in a spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7) and that perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). Simply put this fear, though natural to man, can lead to sin if one does not faithfully obey God because of it.

At other times it seems that we fail to fulfill the Great Commission because we have become stale, stagnant, or apathetic. We forget the urgent need to take the Gospel to those around us. We forget that there is only one name given under heaven by which men must be saved (Acts 4:12). We forget that Jesus Christ truly is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). We forget that those whose names are not found in the Book of Life will spend eternity in hell! (Revelation 20:15)

In reality the Great Commission means that spiritual anonymity is not an option for the Christian. We must share our faith and make disciples. After all it should be our joy to do so - to share the greatest news of the history of mankind with our fellow men and women. To share hope with the hurting, love with the dying, and grace with the needy. At one time we were in their spot as well...Colossians 2:13-15, Ephesians 2:1-10.

I hope to encourage you to share your faith. Fulfill the Great Commission. There is no greater calling known to man, then to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Be faithful!

-Grace and Peace

Review: The Seraph Seal

2011-05-26T16:02:00.000-04:00

The Seraph Seal by Leonard Sweet and Lori Wagner is a fast paced novel set in the not so distant future. Written in much the same style as the Da Vinci Code or the Left Behind series, Sweet and Wagner lead readers on an intense journey through time as seemingly ordinary men and women try to discern clues left for thousands of years - specifically for them. A book about prophecies, science, faith, love, and the battle between good and evil; the Seraph Seal will keep you hooked for it's entirety.

I was actually not looking forward to reading this book when it arrived in my mailbox. It is rather thick, boasting a total of 527 pages. The book actually sat on my desk at work for half a week, slowly becoming buried under a pile of work, while I ignored it's existence. However after finishing a book and feeling the compulsion to read more, I picked it up and began. From the moment I opened to the first page of the introduction, I COULD NOT PUT THE BOOK DOWN!

Sweet and Wagner do a great job of holding your attention while leading you on to want to read more and more and more. I was constantly trying to figure out what the next page was going to reveal and often found my heart beating fast in my chest while reading the next turn of events. I was pleased with the end result. I will say that the book is at times predictable though.

The book is of course fiction, but it does present some spiritual truths. Then again the authors used a lot of mysticism and philosophical thoughts from the past to build some arguments found within the book. But as a reader, I kept reminding myself that it was indeed fiction.

Great book!

-This book was given to me free for a real review, by Thomas Nelson publishers through their Booksneeze program.

Max On Life Review

2011-04-18T17:37:00.001-04:00

Max Lucado’s new book, Max On Life is written in a very friendly question and answer format. Lucado has received hundreds of questions over his years as a pastor and writer. In this book he attempts to answer the most popular questions from a Biblical perspective. The format is also laid out in such a way that one could use this book as a daily devotional, if the reader so chose. Each chapter is laid out with thirty questions and the answers to those questions. There are seven units or themes each containing thirty questions; these include Hope, Hurt, Help, Him/Her, Home, Haves/Have-Nots, and Hereafter.

This is an excellent resource for any and every Christian to have, as it surely answers questions that each of us encounter during our Christian walk. This would be an excellent resource for any minister in a leadership position to have on their bookshelf as it contains answers to many life questions and will undoubtedly come in handy.

Some questions that really stuck out to me were:

“It is embarrassing for me to admit this, but it’s a struggle for me to pray. I want to pray more, but it seems as though I can’t pray for more than a few minutes without getting distracted. Why does this happen to me? Does it mean I am a weak Christian?

“For years I’ve struggled to get along with my mother-in-law. She is very critical and not an easy person to love, but I feel like I’ve just developed a habit of disliking her. Do you really think I can change my attitude toward her??

“In most of my prayers I ask God for things I need each day. These are legitimate needs. (I’m not asking God to make me a millionaire, just to help me pay the mortgage.) Is God really concerned about the necessities of my life?”

I enjoyed the book and am glad to have it as a resource for future use.

*This book was sent to me by the Thomas Nelson Publishing company through their BookSneeze program in exchange for honest review.

Book Review...Coming Soon!

2011-03-30T09:40:00.002-04:00

I recently joined a website called Booksneeze, which allows Christians to receive free books in exchange for an honest review on their blog and one popular bookstore website. So, my first book review will come in the way of the above book. I should receive it shortly, so keep an eye out for the review!

My Personal Theology

2011-03-18T12:22:00.000-04:00

I recently had to write my "Personal Theology" for a class I have this semester. Basically I had to write in two pages my understanding of who God is and how He acts. You see, Theology is the study of God; Theo comes from the Greek word Theos which means God, while logy comes from the Greek word logos which can mean "the treating or study of."

So I thought I would share with whoever wishes to read it, what I wrote for my personal theology.

My Personal Theology

God is the all powerful Creator. As I look at the world that surrounds me; full of life, beauty, and majesty I can only draw one conclusion – and that is that someone of supreme intelligence had to design the universe and everything in it. I have never accepted the teaching of evolution; even as a non-believer I accepted the existence of a Creator God. As a side note I believe in a literal six 24-hour day creation and a young (6,000-10,000 years) earth.

God is relational. We can first see this in Genesis 1:26 when God says “Let us make man in our image.” God continues to show His relational nature as He forms Adam and breathes life into Him, eventually giving Adam a wife from his own body. God walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden until they sinned, then He still clothed them. Throughout the entire Bible we see God acting relationally with His people. The climax of God’s acting relationally is seen in the Gospels, as God the Son walked this earth and died for mankind’s sin.

God is Triune. The doctrine of the Trinity is a fundamental doctrine of Christianity and one that has been debated and doubted since the first century. As I understand God is one God (Deut. 6:4) who exists in three persons – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.[1] I have been able to better understand the Trinity by looking at the Biblical picture of marriage.[2] In Matthew 19 we see the Pharisees asking Jesus about divorce. Jesus answers them that in the beginning God created male and female. He quotes the Old Testament and says “Therefore the man shall leave his mother and father and hold fast to his wife and they shall become one flesh. They are no longer two, but one flesh.[3]” We know that when a man and woman are married they are not physically one person, nor do they lose their individual personalities, but in God’s eyes they are indeed one flesh. Much in the same way, we see that each person of the Trinity has their own personalities, yet they are all the same God.

God is eternal. God does not have a beginning, nor will He ever have an end. He has always existed in all three persons. John 1:1 says “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” I think it is very important to understand that the Word (Jesus) was not created, but has always been in existence and actually created the world.[4]

Jesus Christ, the God-Man lived the perfect (sinless) life, which He voluntarily laid down for the whole of humanity. “He is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world.”[5] In laying down His life as mankind’s sacrificial lamb[6] He opened up the door for men to have a personal relationship with God, which in His words is eternal life.[7] The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus was crucified (but gave up His own spirit), buried in an unused tomb, and was resurrected by God three days later. I fully believe that Jesus has defeated death, hell, and sin. Forty days later He ascended to the Father’s side, where He now sits until His anticipated return. I believe He will return bodily, though I don’t even begin to claim to know when, and will reign for 1,000 years on earth, before completely defeating Satan and demolishing all evil and sin.

God is Judge. In the end every single person will stand before God and give an account for his or her life on earth. Each person’s eternal destiny will depend upon what they did with Jesus Christ while they were alive on earth. Those who gave their life to Christ, allowing Him to be Savior and Lord, will reside with and worship God in the new heaven and new earth for eternity. Those who rejected Christ and remained lord of their own life on earth will remain guilty before God and will spend eternity in Hell – in pain and suffering. I do not believe that Hell is separation from God, since God is omnipresent and will always remain the same. I believe that Hell is so terrible because God is there, pouring out His wrath upon those present for eternity.

God uses people. From Abraham to the Apostle Paul to St. Patrick to Dr. Bob Hughes we see that God uses people to accomplish His tasks. In the four Gospels and the book of Acts Jesus Christ gave His followers a commission to share the good news[8] of salvation by grace, through faith in His name to all peoples of the world. Jesus is the self-proclaimed only way to Heaven[9] and therefore all other religions are false. Romans 1:18-32 teaches that all men are without excuse and guilty before God even if they have never heard the name of Jesus or the plan of salvation. This is why witnessing and missions are so vital. It is the Christian’s responsibility to share the truth with those who have never heard, giving them the opportunity to obtain eternal life. I believe if we are disobedient their blood is on our hands.

God is love[10]and is full of mercy and grace. The most well known verse of the Bible is easily John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” God does not desire any to perish, but for all to come to repentance.[11] His love was poured out as He sent His only Son to die for us. The cross is the ultimate picture of love, mercy, and grace.

[1] Genesis 1:2, 24; Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19

[2] In a truly biblical marriage, there will be three persons – the husband, the wife, and Jesus Christ.

[3] Matthew 19:3-6

[4] John 1:2-3

[5] 1 John 2:2

[6] John 1:29

[7] John 17:3

[8] “Good news” is the literal meaning of Gospel (euangellion in the Greek)

[9] John 14:6 (also see Acts 4:12)

[10] 1 John 4:8

[11] 2 Peter 3:9

3 John

2011-02-12T20:41:00.000-05:00

5 Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, 6 who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. 7 For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. 8 Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.
9 I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. 10 So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. 3 John 5-10 (ESV)

This morning during my quiet time the Lord encouraged me through one of the shortest books in the Bible. I am almost ashamed to say that I usually just read through 3rd John and haven't really taken the time to meditate upon the words found within. However, that changed this morning.

Traditionally the author of 3 John is held to be the apostle John. He was writing to praise Gaius, a beloved brother. Gaius was being obedient to the Lord and acting as the apostles would. Apparently some missionaries had been traveling through his area and stopped by his home or church. He apparently welcomed them in warmly and provided their needs for them. John notes that Gaius does well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of the Lord, because these men were going out in the name of Jesus and accomplishing His work. John then tells his audience that we ought to support brothers such as these, that is missionaries, because in doing so we have become fellow workers in the truth. By supporting missionaries in their work, we ourselves are becoming a very part of the work! Praise God!

This is very encouraging to me, because God has called my wife and I to go as missionaries through a "faith-based" agency. The term faith-based missions is given to organizations and missionaries who go out in the name of Jesus solely based on faith - that is that they do not have an organization paying them to go, but they must trust God to raise up supporters from among His body. God has personally called my wife and I to go through Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF) International.

I won't lie, it is a bit testing to know that God wants us to go through a faith-based organization. It would be much easier in human eyes to go through an organization like the International Mission Board (IMB), who pay for you to go, based upon the cooperative program that is set up among Southern Baptist churches. What's the difference? No raising funds. Yet, at the same time I feel comforted and quite excited knowing that God would privilege me to trust Him completely for our funds. It feels more adventurous and faith fueling to know that we must solely trust God for our funds.

God used the above passage this morning to really comfort me and to show me that it is a completely Biblical principle for His body to pay for and support His missionaries. In a way that only the Holy Spirit could, He comforted me with words of encouragement. He said, "I'll take care of you Ian, I'll raise up the individuals and churches to support your family. I have the support that you need."

Now, let's look at the negative side of this passage. Diotrephes was apparently an elder of some sort at another church. He was not supporting these same missionaries the way that Gaius had, but rather was persecuting them (in a sense) and not allowing the church to hear them out. He was so prideful that he even kicked the brothers and sisters out of the church for trying to support the missionaries.

Pride is a monster. It can easily creep up on each and every one of us. We must be very careful to not allow this to happen to us. Diotrephes was considering himself to be very important, more so than the apostles themselves, and wasn't listening to their words or following their example. John states that he was going to say something to Diotrephes personally if/when he came to the church. This is obviously an offense worthy of rebuke/discipline.

I think the obvious teaching here seems to be the difference between Gaius' dealings with the missionaries and Diotrephes'. John is praising Gaius for his actions. He was being Christlike and advancing the Gospel by taking care of the missionaries. Diotrephes was receiving a bad report from John. He was not acting Christlike, but acting out of the flesh. He was not advancing the cause of the Gospel and was not working in truth. We must follow Gaius' example and take part in advancing the Gospel.

Not everyone is called to be a career missionary, but everyone is called by God to advance the Gospel. Will you be obedient?

The American Dream....our downfall?

2011-02-10T20:38:00.000-05:00

One thing that has been severely convicting in my own life is the fact that many times I get caught up in living out my Christian walk as if earth is my permanent home. It saddens me when I catch myself in these periods of thought and actions, because earth is not my home! I am merely a sojourner here, yet it is so easy to get caught up in materialism and the American Dream.

As Americans we feel that we are entitled to certain things. Things like a nice house with a fenced in yard, two or three fuel efficient cars, a nice computer, a good paying job, a credit card with a decent credit limit, a flat screen t.v., an iPod, the newest cell phone, etc. - the "freedoms" that all people are supposedly entitled to. The problem is that the Bible never teaches that! No where does God say that we have the right to all those things. The only thing we deserve is eternity in Hell. I am not even deserving of salvation...and neither are you. The Bible says we are saved by grace and not by works.

My problem, and I feel the problem of many in the American church, is that we allow ourselves to fall in love with the world. In reality we should ask ourselves what the Bible says about that. Well...here it is:

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (ESV)

God clearly tells us that we are not to love the world in His Word.

Is it wrong to have stuff? No. It is not wrong to own a house or a car or any of the other things listed above necessarily, but we have to draw the line somewhere. I believe it is Scriptural to say that it is wrong when we have things in excess. I believe the Bible clearly teaches that we don't need to store things up here on earth, but rather store up our treasures in Heaven. (Matt. 6:19-24) I also think it is completely Biblical that we are too use our material possessions to help those in need, just look at Acts 4 and 1 John 3:17-18.

My point? The Christian life is about more than Jesus prospering us here on earth and then giving us a home in Heaven when we die. The Christian life is about dying to ourselves daily and following Jesus Christ. We are to take up our cross - that is we are to take up a torture device...a.k.a. we are to crucify our flesh and live to Christ. We need to stop living like earth is our home. We (I) need to start living like Christ truly is the only way to Heaven and we - I - need to die to ourselves. We need to sacrifice our fleshly wants (not needs) in order to advance the kingdom of God. We need to take our faith back from the American Dream.

Paul's Short Description of Christ in Colossians

2011-01-26T09:53:00.000-05:00

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. Colossians 1:15-20 (ESV)

God spoke to me a little during my quiet time this morning. I had prayed before I began digging into the Word that God would speak to me and teach me from His Word. I prayed that He would allow me to read the book of Colossians with a fresh set of eyes - as if I had never read it before. I like this practice because it truly allows us to read Scripture without preconceived notions and it allows the Holy Spirit to be our guide, our teacher, our commentator. I highly encourage this practice as it allows your spirit to be nurtured by the Spirit of God and truly deepens your knowledge and understanding of God's Word.

After I had finished praying I began digging into the book of Colossians and God indeed allowed me to read it fresh, anew, reading out the text and not reading into the text. As I came across the above passage, I noticed that Paul gave us a multifaceted portrait of Christ in these five verses. He paints a beautiful picture of some of the characteristics of our Lord and Savior, and I thought I'd share them with you.

Here we go, Paul's short description of Jesus Christ in Colossians 1:15-20:

Christ is The Image of God (1:15) - He is the image of the invisible God. Jesus Christ was God in the flesh. Many times in the Gospels He is referred to as the Son of God. In the first century context, to be someone's son meant that you shared in his characteristics. Jesus was the exact representation of God on earth - He was our visible evidence of God, He revealed God to us. Check out what John says about that:

No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. John 1:18 (ESV)

Christ is The Creator (1:16) - For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. Again look at what John says here:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. John 1:1-3 (ESV)

Christ is The Sustainer (1:17) - And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Christ is Lord of the Church (1:18) - And he is the head of the body, the church.

Christ is The God-Man (1:19) - For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

Christ is Our Redeemer (1:20) - and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

Christ is Our Example (1:15, 18) - the firstborn of all creation; He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, Christ sets our example in how we are to walk the Christian walk. He is the firstborn from the dead - a.k.a. He is the first to defeat death, hell, and the grave. Because of Him, we too are able to die to ourself and be reconciled; we are able to have confidence that we are baptized into His death and raised in Him as well!

First Baptist Woodstock 9:30 am Worship Service Jan. 9, 2011

2011-01-09T11:43:00.003-05:00

I was not able to attend church this morning at my church, but attended 1st Baptist Woodstock online :). It was a great service! Here are some notes that I jotted down during the service.

Dr. Johnny Hunt Sunday January 9th, 2011

1 Peter 4:7-9 - "The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling." (ESV)

Some thoughts Dr. Hunt had during his quiet time this morning...

"If grace is the front door, then mercy is the back door."

-God showed us grace by coming in the front door and giving us an awesome gift that we do not deserve.

-God showed us mercy by closing the back door which kept us from experiencing the punishment and wrath that we do deserve.

-1 Peter 4:2 - so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. (ESV)

Peter is telling us that we are expecting Jesus' return at anytime -because He could return at any time!
So many people try to determine when Christ will return...

-Pastor Adrian Rogers used to say: "I am not trying to be on the planning committee of Christ's return...but I am going to be on the welcoming committee of Christ's return!"

We are not supposed to try and determine when Christ will return, because the Word says that no one knows, not even the angels in heaven know!
However we are supposed to live expectantly of His return, because it is imminent.

-Romans 14:10-11 -Why do you pass judgment of your brother? Or why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written,

As I live, says the Lord, every knee

shall bow to me,

and every tongue shall confess to

God.

-One of the things that every person that has ever lived will have to do is stand before God's judgment seat.

-The entire New Testament points to Christ's return...

-However the inner circle of Christ's disciples - Peter, James, and John - write more about Christ's second coming than any other New Testament authors.

-It is interesting to see that Christ's closest followers were the most concerned with His return!

-Since Christ's ascension people have been eagerly awaiting His return:

-The first century church thought that His return would come at anytime. Look at Paul's writings and you can see that he expected Christ's return before his generation passed by.

-The church during the time of the Reformation thought Christ's return would come during their dark times...

-Today we expect Christ's return at anytime because our world is getting darker and darker!

-"Most of the Christians living outside of the United States are living in tribulation currently and honestly would say 'Come Lord Jesus, quickly!' But here in the United States we have allowed the American dream to cloud our minds so much that we can't even see the Christ that we cling to and will spend eternity with! We would be more likely to say that Christ can come...after we get through our appointments."

-3 things that Christ's return causes:

God used Jesus' imminent return to humble the 1st century church. It is humbling that He could come today.
Christ's return harmonizes the church. The thought of Christ returning any moment brings the church closer together.
Eagerly awaiting the return of our Lord brings honor to Him.

-"When the Bible gives us a doctrinal truth, such as a truth on eschatology (the study of end things), it will also give us a practical truth - that is what we are to do about the doctrinal truth."

-What are we to do about Christ's return?-

We are to live expectantly.

-There is coming a dark hour when no one will be working...so we are to be working now!

2. We need to love the the lost like we have never loved before.

-If we truly believe that Christ is going to return and it could be at any time, we need to love the lost and share the Gospel with them like never before.

3. We need to purify our lives.

-The fact that Christ is coming soon should cause us to clean up our lives...surely we would be honest and say that there are things in our lives that we would not want Jesus to return while we were doing them. Since He could return any moment...we need to rid our lives of those things now!

-When Peter says the end is near, he is meaning something very specific

-The statement is in the Perfect Tense. This means that the end has come upon us and continues to be near until Christ opens the door and enters back into the world.

-The Greek word for end is telos which is the same root word that Jesus used when He was hanging on the cross and said "It is finished." What does that mean? Peter is saying that there are no other events needed for Christ to return...it is finished...we are just waiting on His return, which could be at any moment!

-We see that the doctrinal truth of this passage (1 Peter 4:7-9) is that Christ is going to return and it is imminent.

-So what is the practical truth?

-Because Christ's is returning soon we need to:

Love one another deeply: Look at what Peter says. He says that we need to love one another deeply and remember that love covers a multitude of sins. What does this mean? It means that until the Lord does return, one of our enemies may come to be a follower of Christ. When they do we need to love them deeply and forgive them...this true deep love will cover and forgive every wrong thing that they have ever done to you!
We must live hospitably: The word hospitality means to love a stranger! You know what is great about that? The Bible says that in do so (loving a stranger) we may have entertained an angel without ever knowing it!!! Remember Abraham? He came out of his tent and was hospitable to three men...before he even realized that one of them was JESUS!

-We need to love as Christ loves and expect Jesus to return any moment!

Are you being transformed?

2011-01-08T14:07:00.001-05:00

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2 (ESV)

Wow, talk about a charge from God! It's so easy for us to look like everyone that surrounds us. We just become like a sponge and soak in the culture that is around us until we become so full of the outside influences that begin to drip it out one drop at a time - and we start to get everyone around us wet with the stuff leaking out. The juice that flows from within you depends upon what or who you surround yourself with.

In his letter to the Romans Paul charges the Christian brothers and sisters not to be conformed to this world. The Greek word used for world can also mean age; the idea that the word carries is the culture, the society of the specific time period, the secular "world," and is not describing the literal earth. Christians aren't supposed to be like everyone else in the world. We should be different than the world because the Holy Spirit of God lives within us! Look at this description that Paul gives of a believer, before they became a believer and after they were saved:

[2:1] And you were dead in the trespasses and sins [2] in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— [3] among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. [4] But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, [5] even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— [6] and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, [7] so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. [8] For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, [9] not a result of works, so that no one may boast. [10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Ephesians 2:1-10 (ESV)

Paul says that we were dead in our trespasses and sins, get this following the course of this world! He continues to say that we following Satan - the prince of the power of the air, who is at work in the lost - the sons of disobedience. Man get this, we were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. Paul is telling us that we used to look just like the world, because we were just like the world! But read on!!!

He says that God was so rich in His mercy and grace, because He loved us with such a great love, that even when we were dead in our trespasses - He saved us, He made us alive! Praise God! Now we are seated in heavenly places with Christ. We have been saved by grace, not by our own works, by grace through faith! God predestined us to be like Christ, to do His good works! Listen, we are supposed to look like Christ and do His good works; we can't allow ourselves to look like the world! Look what Christ has done for us...how can we turn our backs on God and look like the world? He didn't turn His back on us - He died for our sins, He made us alive when we were dead!

Back to Romans. Paul says that we aren't to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewal of our minds. The word for transformed is the Greek word that we get our English word metamorphosis from. The idea is literally to be transformed like a caterpillar who crawls into his cocoon and comes out a butterfly! When we come to Christ and He makes us alive we are a new creation (see 2 Cor. 5:17), we can't go on in the sins that we used to walk in (see Romans 6:1-2).

How can we be transformed? By allowing the Holy Spirit of God to renew our minds; that is to push out our thoughts and ideas, letting the Word of God take their place. We need to spend time in God's love letter to His chosen children. God loves us more than we can fathom, He literally breathed out His Word for us (2 Tim. 3:16) so we can know Him. Read God's Word, ask the Spirit to renew your mind, to guide you and teach you to be more like Christ. The more you read, the more you allow Him to take over your life...the more you become transformed into His image.

We also need to remove ourselves from things that are of the sinful world. Don't hear me wrong, we don't need to completely remove ourselves from the world...we are to be in it, but not to be of it. We need to weed all things that aren't of God out of our lives. Ask Christ what He doesn't like in your life and with an open mind listen, because He will show you. Again read the Word with an open mind, He will show you what disgusts Him about your life. As you weed these things out of your life, you are being transformed more into the image of Christ!

Who do you look most like? The world or Christ? Who do you see when you look in the mirror? You? If so, you're not done yet...or better yet, Christ isn't done with you yet!

ψευδόμεθα - Psuedometha (Liars...)

2010-11-23T20:18:00.000-05:00

5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:5-9 ESV

One thing that breaks my heart is meeting someone who claims to be a Christian, yet lives like everyone else on the face of the planet. It particularly bothers me because I lived like that for 8 years myself. This is a real problem, because Jesus told His disciples that many people would come to Him on the day of judgement claiming to be His followers, claiming to have done many acts in His name - yet Jesus sends them to eternal punishment, proclaiming that He never knew them. (See Matthew 7)

In the above passage the apostle John clearly states that we can not claim to have fellowship with God, that is claim to be a Christian, and yet walk in sin. He says that in doing so we are liars! The word used in the Greek New Testament is in the middle tense, which means that the person performing the action is also receiving the action. What does that mean you say? It means that the person claiming to have fellowship with God and yet walks in sin is lying to themselves.

The word used to describe walking in darkness is peripateo, which means "to walk." Seems pretty simple, but it carries the idea of constantly walking or living a life of constantly doing a certain thing. So the apostle John was telling the churches that he was writing to that they can not continue to constantly live a life of sin. You see before we are saved that is the nature of a man (or woman), but the redeemed man (or woman) has a new nature (see 2 Cor. 5:17), that is that they now have the Holy Spirit living within them! It is impossible to be saved and not be changed.

I heard an illustration once that, well, illustrates this point greatly. There was a preacher who once stood before his congregation and said: "Beloved, you have come to trust and expect me to be here in this pulpit every Sunday morning at the same time. Now how would you feel if one Sunday morning I wasn't here on time, in fact no one had heard from me all morning. Then about ten minutes after time to start church I come stumbling in the front doors. My clothes are fine, I look a little shaken, but fine for the most part. As I make my way into the pulpit I begin to explain why I'm late. I tell you that I was just about to cross the street to enter the church about ten minutes ago and WHAM! An semi-truck going 50 miles per hour slammed directly into me; but no worries friends, I'll be okay." He continues: "Now would you believe me? Of course not, you'd have to be insane to believe that story. If a semi-truck hit me I would not be in front of you at all; as a matter of a fact, I would be a splat on the road!!! So how is it that you expect me to believe that the HOLY SPIRIT of GOD has entered into your heart and you have no change?"

My friends, it would be insanity for me to believe that the Holy Spirit of God entered into your life and you walked away unchanged! It is impossible!!! The God of the entire universe - the Creator and Sustainer, the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the One who raises men from the dead, the Savior of the world, - entering into your life automatically means change. So stop lying to yourself, if you have walked an aisle, shook the preacher's hand, said a prayer, filled out a membership card, and even gotten dunked in some water - that doesn't mean that you were genuinely saved. If you have not completely surrendered your life to God and seen that evidence of the Holy Spirit living within you, then you need to reconsider your "salvation experience."

God is light, in Him there is no sin at all! Zip, zilch, zero. Not even an ounce of darkness exists within Him. Our hearts by nature are full of darkness. God can and does change that though; when the Light of the world enters in - all the darkness can be made to disappear!!! Praise God for His faithfulness, mercy, and grace. That He would extend His salvation to us simply amazes me...for we are definitely not worthy.

I hope and pray that you are genuinely saved - that you have seen a change in your life. I pray that it is evident to others around you that something changed...you're not the same anymore. If you hear that, I say Praise God! If not, it's time to turn your life over to God...

Why We Must Go

2010-11-14T15:50:00.001-05:00

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

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

“Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. Luke 24:46-48 (ESV)

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” John 20:21 (ESV)

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8 (ESV)

The above verses are known as the five-fold Great Commission. The Great Commission is the command given by Jesus Christ to His followers to go into the world and to proclaim the good news to all nations. As one who is called to be a missionary, I feel very strongly that these verses speak directly to me. The Great Commission is not only for missionaries and pastors though. Indeed it is for all Christians...

Every Christian has a personal testimony of how the Lord Jesus has saved their soul and given them new life. If you do not have that testimony, then you are not a Christian. Jesus makes it clear that He is the only way to heaven (see John 14:6 and Acts 4:12) and that having eternal life means knowing Him (see John 17:3). Being that every Christian has a personal testimony, then every Christian has a story to tell - and that is the command, to tell our testimony to the world, to share the Gospel.

Perhaps you have been a Christian for many years and never even considered sharing your testimony with even your neighbor, let alone the world...well today is the day of change my friend! Sharing the Gospel is exciting! There is nothing more exciting then leading someone else to know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior! However I do understand that sharing the good news is not always easy, per se.

As a matter of a fact sharing with a stranger can be quite intimidating; which leads to many Christians never sharing their faith. This also leads to the thought process that saying "God bless" on your way out of a store, or when saying goodbye is witnessing. Well, while it is a great gesture to share with others, it is by no means the Gospel...and no one can be saved without hearing the news about Jesus Christ!

Other than the fact that Jesus has commanded us to do so, we should be motivated to share the Gospel because Hell is real. Eternal punishment is not a fantasy or just something that Christians make up. It is a factual thing, anyone who does not give their life to Christ while they are alive on earth will suffer in Hell for eternity after they die. There are literally billions of people who have never given their life to Christ, and a huge percentage of those have never even heard the name of Jesus!!! That alone should motivate us to go and tell.

However I must make it clear that the imperative verb in Matthew 28 is not "go" as many would believe. Rather the verb is to make disciples. Therefore one can not get out of witnessing by claiming that they are not called to go. Rather a literal reading of the Greek text would be: As you are going, make disciples of all nations. Jesus knew that people are "goers," that is we are constantly going somewhere. As we are going we are to be telling people about Jesus Christ - it is that simple.

There are however those who are called specifically to the ministry of being a missionary, as I am - and many more before me have been. We all are commanded to tell others about Jesus, but would you be willing to answer the Lord as Isaiah did in the throne room of God - and as I have personally: "And I heard the voice of the Lord saying 'Whom shall I send and who will go for us?' And I said, 'here am I Lord, send me.'" Isaiah 6:8

Preparing to go to Haiti

2010-10-14T21:02:00.006-04:00

As I am preparing to depart for Haiti for a week, I have been reading, meditating upon, and praying through some Psalms -- at the suggestion of my team leader and pastor, Scott. One of the Psalms that I have been praying through is Psalm 67:

1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make His face to shine upon us,
Selah
2 that your way may be known on earth,
your saving power among all nations.
3 Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!
4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you judge the peoples with equity
and guide the nations upon the earth.
Selah
5 Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!
6 The earth has yielded its increase;
God, our God, shall bless us.
7 God shall bless us;
let all the ends of the earth fear Him! Psalm 67 ESV

What a Psalm! It is perfect for my situation! That is one thing that I love about the Psalms, they easily apply to life; each one is packed full of wisdom and insight into everyday life. Sixty-seven is clearly a missional Psalm, as it makes many missions based statements.

Notice in verse one that the Psalmist is asking the Lord to bless us and shine His face upon us. However he is not asking for selfish reasons, as some people ask God for blessings. No, here the blessings are bestowed for a purpose, that God's ways would be known among the whole earth -- that His saving power would be known among all nations! Oh what an awesome prayer! I so desire God's name, ways, and saving power to be made known among all the nations of the earth.

That is why we go to other parts of the world to share the Gospel (euangellion - "good news") about Jesus Christ. God sent His Son to die for the entire world (John 3:16), making salvation possible for all of mankind! If we truly believe this, then we must carry the news to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).

As I am preparing to go on my second international mission trip of the year (all thanks to God, because I could never have gone on one on my own) I am asking Christ for the same thing as the Psalmist:

"O Lord Jesus, as I prepare to carry your message to the nation of Haiti, please God prepare my heart and mind for the task. O Lord, I ask your blessing upon myself and the other four who are stepping out in obedience to you; God please let your face shine upon us. I ask that you would allow us to make your name known among the Haitian people; that those who have never heard the message of Christ would come to know the power of your salvation. Father, I am not ashamed of the Gospel; for I truly know that it is the power of God to save those who believe. Let the nation of Haiti praise you, O God; let the peoples of that island praise you! Lord I know that the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; so God I ask that you would continue to send laborers to your field. I love you Lord, and I thank you for the opportunity to go for you and in your name. It is in Jesus' holy and precious name that I pray. Amen."

My Testimony

2010-10-09T21:10:00.002-04:00

Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me all that I ever did." John 4:39 ESV

   I believe that a Christian's testimony is a powerful thing. We see in the above verse that many Samaritans believed in Jesus because of the woman's (at the well) testimony. She told them about her personal encounter with Jesus Christ. To be honest that is a major part of what witnessing is -- telling someone else what you know from experience about Jesus! He came, died, and rose on the third day; then two thousand years later He changed my life. So I'll share my story with you:

   I don't exactly remember when my father was saved, but I was pretty young, maybe 5 years old. After he met the Lord we began going to church pretty regularly. One of my earliest church memories is of a church down the street from our house in Valdosta, Georgia. I don't actually remember anything about that church, except that we had our picture taken there one day -- but the point is that at a very young age I was in church.
   We were in and out of church until I was eleven, when my parents were divorced. After their divorce, my brothers and I lived with my mother, and we did not go to church. I actually didn't start going back to church until I was around thirteen years old. When I was thirteen my best friend at the time invited me to go to church with him, and so I went as much as I could.
   Around the same time, when I was thirteen, I went to stay with my dad at his apartment for a week. During that time my dad presented the Gospel to me, and I was extremely convicted at the time. He asked me if I wanted to pray and ask Christ into my heart. Frankly, to be honest I was really just a scared thirteen year old boy who did not want to go to hell for eternity, so I said yes. He prayed over me, I cried and felt very emotional, but I don't remember praying. I just remember laying there on his bed, crying and listening to him pray for me. Either way, it was decided that I had accepted Christ that day and become saved.
   The problem with that statement is that I did not have any change in my life -- none, zip, zilch, zero! I kept going to church for a while, but I was still smoking, lying, cursing like a sailor, looking at pornography, and just living a life of sin. When I was fourteen or fifteen I dropped out of church completely. Eventually I became addicted to pornography, a habitual liar, a thief, a substance abuser (tobacco), among other things.
   Fast forward to college, I was living the same lifestyle day in and day out there as well. I eventually began listening to some very dark, even demonic music. I couldn't go through a day without looking at pornography at least two or three times. I don't know if I spoke a word of truth for quite some time, which bit me in the rear-end quite a few times.
   During my second semester of college I met my future wife and we were married about six months later. We had our first child, Aubrey in January of 2007, and to be honest I know I was a horrible father -- I didn't really care. I had been kicked out of college, for bad grades, and was now jumping from job to job. Eventually I found that I loved to cook, and decided to pursue a career in the culinary industry. I began attending a culinary school about an hour from our home. Soon I was working in a restaurant about 20 minutes from the school, still about an hour from my house; so that I would be gone basically all day six days a week.
   During this time I began to form a huge problem in my life -- idolatry. It began by becoming a workaholic, and eventually (for lack of a better word) evolved into the worship of money and material stuff. Sure, I wasn't bowing down to dollar bills or physical things, but every bit of my life was spent pursuing them. I eventually ended up with three jobs and was going to school full time; needless to say that worked out poorly and I quit school. I continued to work in the culinary industry for about another three years.
   Okay, let's fast forward again. January 1st, 2008, I decided to change my lifestyle and lose weight. I began a strenuous exercise program and diet; in one year I lost 85 pounds. That fueled my idolatry, I worked more and more to buy more stuff -- running shoes, bikes (thousands of dollars worth of bikes!), and other things. I didn't realize it at the time, but I was searching everywhere to find something to fill the void in my life; yet nothing was filling the emptiness.
   I was still addicted to pornography, still a habitual liar, still cursed like a sailor, still a thief at times, had now begun drinking, and was an idolater. I asked my wife for a divorce in early January 2009, blaming her for my depression and all my problems. I was pursuing a job in Florida (we lived in KY at the time) and was planning on leaving my family behind to take the position (they were supposed to come meet me at a later date). I was a mess.

   Then one cold January night after riding home from work my world came crashing down. I was in my bathroom and the Holy Spirit convicted me so much that I literally could not stand. God clearly said to me that if I was to die that night, I would go to hell for eternity. I had hit rock bottom; I had tried every method that I knew to try and find happiness, all without avail. I was a mess; a sin-sick, broken shell of a man, that had been claiming to be a Christian, yet living like Satan himself. I literally came to the end of the road, the end of myself. And you know what? That was the greatest night of my life.
   As I crumpled under the weight of my sin, I knew there was only one decision that I had to make, and that was to follow Jesus! I did not pray the "sinners prayer," that is ever so popular in modern churches though. No, I cried out to God and simply said this: "Lord, I have been trying to live my life and I can't do it on my own. I need you to do it for me. God, I give my life to you; from now on I'm yours." I got up and went to bed.
   The most amazing thing happened to me that night, I became a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). Literally overnight I was a completely different person. I no longer desired the sinful things that I had just the day before. Instead, all I wanted to do was get my hands on a Bible and read God's Word! I called my mother and she sent me my old study Bible; two days later my journey through the New Testament began. But back to the new life -- our neighbors were asking my wife what had happened to me, because I was not the same! Praise God!
   I began reading the Bible, and fell in love with it -- I could not put it down! I began going to church that weekend and a few weeks later I was baptized. It was funny, during one of my breaks at work I was reading the Gospel of Mark and felt the sudden urge to be baptized. So that Sunday I was going to ask the pastor if I could be baptized soon, but before I could ask he announced that they were going to have a baptism service the next Sunday! God was moving...
   I was baptized and joined the church; I remember the exhilaration of being baptized and becoming a member of the local church; I felt like a kid on Christmas morning, I was so excited. I finished reading the New Testament within a few months and the Lord called me into ministry. I remember talking with my pastor and him suggesting that the Lord had told him that I was called into ministry, but denying his comment. God wouldn't let me rest until I accept the call. So I began searching out a Bible college.
   God called me to Clear Creek Baptist Bible College, where I am a current full time student. A few months after He called me into ministry, I felt the call to missions. At first I wasn't sure what God was telling me, but every time I heard the word missions or someone talked about being a missionary my heart burst on fire with excitement. During orientation for Bible College the professors introduced themselves. A large portion of them had been missionaries in the past and every time one of them spoke the all familiar chest burning, heart pounding, sweat beading exhilaration came over me. Each time one of them spoke God pushed me closer to the altar (or so it felt.) Before the end of that day I had decided I was called to missions.
   Now, a year and a half later, I am almost a junior in Bible college and on fire for missions. My wife and I are happier than we have ever been (now married for 4 years and counting). Our two children love to go church, as do my wife and I. I have had several opportunities to preach, teach, and now go on mission trips. I have been blessed with the ability to lead people to the Lord. I could care less about money or material things -- Praise God!

   I love the Lord! I can't thank Him enough for saving my soul. If there was ever someone who was unworthy, it was me -- I knew the Gospel and yet continued in my life of sin anyway. Praise God that He is faithful and full of mercy and grace! That night in January when I cried out to Him, I told Him that my life was His now -- and I meant it. I met Jesus Christ personally and He changed me and I have never been the same. I never want to take the reigns of my life again; I would rather let Him keep them, forever :).

I hope this has been encouraging, uplifting, and caused you to worship the Lord. I pray that if you do not know Him as your personal Lord and Savior, that you would repent of your sins and cry out to Him; today is the day of salvation!

Lastly I would like to share my life verse with you"

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me." Isaiah 6:8 ESV

A short discussion about Joe Smith and other false teachers...

2010-10-08T09:09:00.005-04:00

For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:21 ESV

   This is to say that no true prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but rather was inspired by God as the Holy Spirit carried the speaker along. Peter is about to delve into some serious discussion of false prophets in the next few verses of his second letter; but before he gets into that, he makes a statement about true prophecy to clarify his statements. In the Old Testament law it was said that false prophets were to be stoned -- killed for their actions! We see a clear example of this taking place with Elijah and the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings chapter 18:18-40. In this example though Elijah does not use stones to kill the prophets because of the vast amount of them (450).
   The command to stone the false prophets was given with good reason. First of all these false prophets were blaspheming the Lord, in saying that they were bringing a prophecy that was not true - all true prophecy comes from the Lord. Secondly they could easily persuade even followers of Yahweh to be led astray, and as we will see in Peter's letter, God protects His people. Last but most definitely not least, God said so. Whether you hold to this or not (I do) whatever God says is correct, because He is God!
   With that in mind let us see what Peter has to say about false prophets...

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. 3 And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. 2 Peter 2:1-3 ESV

Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones, 11 whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord. 12 But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction, 13 suffering wrong as the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, while they feast with you. 14 They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children! 15 Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing, 16 but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.
17 These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. 18 For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. 19 They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. 2 Peter 2:10-19 ESV

   So in the last verse of chapter one Peter tells us that all true prophecy comes from God, then he starts chapter two off with BUT false prophets also came, just as false teachers will arise among you. From within the church false prophets/teachers shall arise.
   Before I move on I should preface this by telling you that I am currently taking a class on cults. The study of cults fascinates me, and at times is mind boggling. I sit and wonder how anyone could believe what these cult leaders are feeding them, these blatant false prophecies and lies. Then this morning I came to this passage and realized that God has spelled out for us how people can be led astray by these teachings. As I read the words of Peter certain cult leaders came to my mind and I was blown away at how spot on his description of them is. So let us move on then...
   I wanted to note some basic things that Peter identifies as traits of a false prophet or false teacher. He says that they are driven by greed (v. 3 & 14). As I study cults I see one pretty large theme that runs rampant throughout them, and that is that their leaders are greedy.
   Take for example Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism. Joe was known to be a treasure hunter before he became the "prophet," and was also on trial with his family for fraud. He and his family would claim to find treasure, of which they had previously buried in the spot, and sell it for large amounts of money. After the fact, when he was becoming the "prophet," he "found" the golden plates using the same treasure hunting methods that he had used previously (though the Mormons will tell you that the angel Moroni revealed it to him, which was his ~~cover-up,~~ I mean claim). Most people, including Mormons, may not realize that ol' Joe became very rich as the leader of his new cult. They had enough money to buy Utah! He was wealthy, because he was a schemer.
   My point? He was driven by greed. Though Joseph Smith is not the only cult leader who was greedy; we could throw Tony Alamo, Mo Berg, L. Ron Hubbard, and many others into this category too. One thing they all had in common -- after becoming the leader/founder of their cult, they became filthy rich.

   The next characteristic that Peter attributes to these false prophets is that their eyes are full of adultery (v. 14). He even continues to say that their eyes are insatiable for sin; they can not get enough of it! No matter how much sin they are a part of, they are still never satisfied, they are never satiated (which means to be full).
   Again let's take a look at Joseph Smith. He had several wives!!! Now at first Mr. Smith denied the doctrine of plural marriage in public, but in his private life he had several "spirit" wives. There are even statements made by some of his closest followers that he would come to them and take their wives! The crazy thing is, they trust him so much that they just gave their wives over to him!!! He would basically take any woman that he wanted to be his wife, and make it so; his eyes were full of adultery - insatiable for sin.
   Eventually the doctrine of plural marriage was established by Joseph Smith and then all men in the cult were allowed to, and should have multiple wives. There are some strange doctrines that go along with the idea of plural marriage in the Mormon church. The least of which being that the male needs several spirit wives to populate his planet that he will receive when he dies and makes it into the highest level of heaven. But I won't go into the various doctrines of the LDS church today....that is a post for later.
   Again though, I am not just picking on Joseph Smith, several other cult leaders throughout history have had the exact same sexual drive in their leadership. Mo Berg, the founder of The Children of God, was so much driven by this that it sickens me. There are things that happened within The Children of God that I do not feel comfortable writing about. To put it in the most censored way that I can think of, he encouraged sex with everyone in the compound (the adherents lived in a compound), and I mean everyone. He even encouraged the women of the compound to do "flirty fishing," which was to go out and basically sell themselves on a street corner -- while "witnessing" to the man that she was selling herself to. Yeah, it is bad.
   There are plenty of others that fall into this sex driven boat as well. It seems to me that a large majority of the cult leaders that I have studied all fall into this category. It is easy for them to do, they persuade people to believe that they are the prophet of God; and the people believe every word they say, so all that they have to do is say that God revealed to them that they need to sleep with the follower...and it is done.

   Next we see that Peter makes a note that these false teachers entice unsteady souls. Cults feed off of unsteady souls. People begin thinking about life and life after death, and begin searching -- some passively, others quite actively. During this soul searching period the person becomes very vulnerable and open to ideas that sound spiritual and seem to be right. In steps the cult representative, who brings the message of "good news" to the person and entices their flesh with the ideas. When the flesh is enticed, then the person jumps on board and joins the cult.
   Now admittedly it does not always happen in this way, but a large portion of the time it does. Most Christian based cults (that is cults that use Christianity as a spring board; I am not saying that they are Christians) sound kinda close to what unchurched people know about the church. The big kicker is that most cults, such as the Mormons, are very nice -- they will do anything for the person that they are trying to reach. In a period of searching, that is a huge factor in the decision making process; that is, "how can this help me?"
   Cults become filled with these unsteady souls, and sometimes once they are in, they can not leave -- for fear of being ex-communicated (LDS) or even killed in some instances. Cults are a scary thing...

   Baby Christians have to be extremely careful. Look at verse 18; it says that through the passions of the flesh, these false teachers lead people astray, even those who are barely escaping from those living in error -- that is new or baby Christians. This is one of many reasons why it is so important to read and study the Bible on your own and then also attend a local Bible teaching church to learn the doctrines of Christianity. Unless you study the Bible on your own, you can and possibly will be led astray by false doctrines that creep in.
   God does take care of the godly though. Read the passage below:
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6 if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked 8 (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); 9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority. 2 Peter 4-10 ESV

   God does indeed take care of the godly, He knows how to rescue us from trials (literally temptations) that come our way. We do have to read and pray though. In my own life I have seen this happen. God has protected me from many cults that have tried to influence my life - He is faithful!
   Notice also though that God takes care of the punishment of these false teachers. In verses 4-10 we see a few examples of God punishing the ungodly: the rebellious angels, the entire world (minus 8), and Sodom and Gomorrah (minus Lot). Alongside each of those punishments we see that God does indeed protect the godly; He protected the angels who were serving Him, He protected Noah and his family, and He protected Lot. But we must not miss the huge penalty for the sins of the ungodly. The angels were thrown into hell! The world was overtaken by a flood and everything in it died, except what was on the ark! Sodom and Gomorrah were utterly destroyed with fire from heaven! Sin has a huge penalty!
   One of the last things that Peter says about this is that those false teachers who entice the unsteady souls, have the gloom of utter darkness saved for them. He is referring to none other than hell, their punishment will be eternity in hell. That is unless they repent of their sins and turn to Jesus before they die!

   The lesson(s) learned today: We must be careful as to not be taken over by the false doctrines that entice our flesh. We need to test the spirits ( 1 John 4:1-6) to see if they are from God. We need to study the Word, both on our own and in the fellowship of other believers (the local church). Lastly, I personally was strengthened in my understanding that God truly is omniscient (all-knowing). He knew that false teachers would come, and He warned us about them in His Word! Praise God for His faithfulness!

Faith without works?

2010-10-06T10:52:00.004-04:00

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead. James 2:14-26 ESV

   What is faith anyway? Well, Hebrews 11:1 says that faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction (evidence) of things not seen. So our faith is the evidence of things that we can not see; for we can not see God, but the Christian's faith should be evidence enough of His existence. Unfortunately many people claim to have faith, but yet they show absolutely no evidence of that faith. This is exactly what our dear brother James is speaking about in the second chapter of his wonderful New Testament letter.

   I want to make it clear that James is not pushing works based salvation in this passage. Though he states that faith apart from works is dead; and that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone, he is not saying that works save you. Ephesians 2:8-9 says:
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. ESV

   No, instead what James is saying is that one can not claim to have faith, but not have works. You see, it is impossible for anyone to prove that they have faith to another person without showing them through works. Think about it, how would you prove to me that you have faith in Jesus Christ without any works? Frankly, the only thing that you could possibly do would be to attempt to persuade me by your words. However, you can tell me that you believe the sky is green all day, but until you prove it to be true, I'm not going to believe you.

   I will however believe that you have faith in Christ if I see you praying, reading the Word, acting like Christ, worshiping the Lord, etc.. Through your actions your faith is evidenced. Just as faith is the evidence of things not seen, works are the evidence of faith. Or one could say that works are the natural outpouring of faith.

   When someone becomes a follower of Christ, the Holy Spirit enters into their heart (their soul or very being), and they become a new creation (see 2 Corinthians 5:17). If the Holy Spirit truly dwells within you, then works should automatically flow. A preacher's little girl once said it this way:
   "Daddy, if Jesus lives in my heart shouldn't He stick out?"

   That little girl is absolutely right! If you claim to be a Christian, if you say that Jesus Christ has entered into your life, He should stick out. Think about your life lately, has Jesus been sticking out? If not, is your faith living or dead? I pray that you have living faith, working faith - and not faith that produces no fruit.

For God So Loved The World...

2010-10-05T21:53:00.001-04:00

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:14-16 (ESV)

   Most, if not all Christians have verse 16 memorized. It is drilled into us from the time we are in our mother's womb. However it seems that not many of us have verses 14 and 15 memorized - or the Old Testament passage that Jesus is referencing. I think we can find a great truth when we look at the back story that Jesus is referring to. The specific text is Numbers 21:4-9:

From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” 6 Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. 7 And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. 8 And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. (ESV)

   The people of Israel had previously had the chance to enter into the promised land, yet they doubted God and feared men, therefore they were punished to 40 years in the wilderness. The crazy part is that they were within about a day or two from home the entire time! Even though they caused their wandering, they still grumble against God and blame Him for their troubles. We see that God sends punishment upon the Israelites, in the form of vipers or fiery serpents. The Israelites repented of their sin and Moses prayed for them. God then instructed Moses to make an image of a fiery serpent. Moses makes one out of bronze and places it on a pole in the middle of the camp. This pole would reach high enough that the million plus Israelites would all be able to see it. We can see in the text that all who looked upon that serpent were saved.

   Now get this: God can use a bronze serpent to save His people, but God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son to save them!

   In the same way that the Israelites had to look upon the serpent and have faith that God could save them through it, we must look to Christ and have faith in Him! Salvation comes through faith alone in Christ alone!