Tuesday, October 27, 2009
From Al Mohler's Tweet
Evangelical churches gave avg. 6% to international missions during Great Depression, avg. 2% now. Retreat? Documentation http://bit.ly/oIrMq
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
How To Identify A Reliable Preacher
October 22nd, 2009 by Tullian Tchividjian, On Earth as it is in Heaven Blog, www.crpc.org/blog/
Two weeks ago I mentioned in my sermon that God grows Christians by feeding them his Word. One way he does this is by providing the church with teachers and preachers. This means that if we are going to grow we need to be sitting at the feet of reliable carriers of God’s truth. This, however, begs the question: how can we identify a reliable carrier of God’s truth? The Bible makes it clear that there are many unreliable carriers of so-called truth. Satan masquerades as an angel of light seeking to deceive. So we need a lot of biblical discernment here. Just because a teacher or preacher comes in Jesus’ name with a Bible under his arm doesn’t automatically mean he is reliable.
Thankfully both the Bible and church history give us some direction here. So I want to provide you with a brief list of five questions (based on the five sola’s of the Reformation) that can help you discern the reliability of a particular teacher or preacher.
Question 1 (Sola Scriptura): Does the preacher ground everything he says in the Bible? Does he, in other words, begin with the authority and sufficiency of Scripture? A reliable carrier of God’s truth seeks to revel in, wrestle with, and expound from, the Bible. He starts with the Bible. All of his comments flow from what a particular passage in the Bible says. He doesn’t simply use the Bible to support what he wants to say. That is, he submits to what the Bible says, he does not seek to submit the Bible to what he says. He cares about both the Old Testament and the New Testament. He refuses to take verses out of context. He recognizes the unity of the Bible. He acknowledges that both the Old Testament and the New Testament tell one story and point to one figure, namely that God saves sinners through the accomplished work of his son Jesus Christ.
Question 2 (Sola Gratia): Does the preacher freely emphasize that because of sin, a right relationship with God can only be established by God’s grace alone? Beware of any teaching that emphasizes man’s ability over God’s ability; man’s freedom over God’s freedom; man’s power over God’s power; man’s initiative over God’s initiative. Beware of any teaching which subtlety communicates that a right relationship with God depends ultimately on human response over Divine sovereignty.
Question 3 (Sola Fide): Does the preacher stress that salvation is not achieved by what we can do, rather salvation is received by faith in what Christ has already done? It has been rightly stated that there really are only two religions: the religion of human accomplishment and the religion of Divine accomplishment. Does the preacher emphasize the former or the latter? A reliable carrier of God’s truth always highlights the fact that God saves sinners; sinners don’t save themselves.
Question 4 (Sola Christus): Does the preacher underline that Christ is the exclusive mediator between God and man? Does the explainer both affirm and proclaim that Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life” and that nobody comes to the Father but by Christ? Does he talk about sin and the necessity of Christ? Preachers must learn how to unveil and unpack the truth of the Gospel from every Biblical text they preach in such a way that it results in the exposure of both the idols of our culture and the idols of our hearts. The faithful exposition of our true Savior from every passage in the Bible painfully reveals all of the pseudo-saviors that we trust in culturally and personally. Every sermon ought to disclose the subtle ways in which we as individuals and we as a culture depend on lesser things than Jesus to provide the security, acceptance, protection, affection, meaning, and satisfaction that only Christ can supply. In this way, good preachers must constantly show just how relevant and necessary Jesus is; they must work hard to show that we are great sinners but Christ is a great Savior.
Question 5 (Sola Deo Gloria): Does the preacher exalt God above all? A reliable explainer will always lead you to marvel at God. A true carrier of God’s truth will always lead you to encounter the glory of God. A God-centered teacher is just that: God-centered. He will preach and teach in such a way that you find yourself hungering and thirsting for God. You will listen to sermon after sermon and walk away with grand impressions of Divine personality, not grand impressions of human personality.
This is just a start, but I hope it serves as a resource to help you determine the reliability of a particular teacher or preacher.
Two weeks ago I mentioned in my sermon that God grows Christians by feeding them his Word. One way he does this is by providing the church with teachers and preachers. This means that if we are going to grow we need to be sitting at the feet of reliable carriers of God’s truth. This, however, begs the question: how can we identify a reliable carrier of God’s truth? The Bible makes it clear that there are many unreliable carriers of so-called truth. Satan masquerades as an angel of light seeking to deceive. So we need a lot of biblical discernment here. Just because a teacher or preacher comes in Jesus’ name with a Bible under his arm doesn’t automatically mean he is reliable.
Thankfully both the Bible and church history give us some direction here. So I want to provide you with a brief list of five questions (based on the five sola’s of the Reformation) that can help you discern the reliability of a particular teacher or preacher.
Question 1 (Sola Scriptura): Does the preacher ground everything he says in the Bible? Does he, in other words, begin with the authority and sufficiency of Scripture? A reliable carrier of God’s truth seeks to revel in, wrestle with, and expound from, the Bible. He starts with the Bible. All of his comments flow from what a particular passage in the Bible says. He doesn’t simply use the Bible to support what he wants to say. That is, he submits to what the Bible says, he does not seek to submit the Bible to what he says. He cares about both the Old Testament and the New Testament. He refuses to take verses out of context. He recognizes the unity of the Bible. He acknowledges that both the Old Testament and the New Testament tell one story and point to one figure, namely that God saves sinners through the accomplished work of his son Jesus Christ.
Question 2 (Sola Gratia): Does the preacher freely emphasize that because of sin, a right relationship with God can only be established by God’s grace alone? Beware of any teaching that emphasizes man’s ability over God’s ability; man’s freedom over God’s freedom; man’s power over God’s power; man’s initiative over God’s initiative. Beware of any teaching which subtlety communicates that a right relationship with God depends ultimately on human response over Divine sovereignty.
Question 3 (Sola Fide): Does the preacher stress that salvation is not achieved by what we can do, rather salvation is received by faith in what Christ has already done? It has been rightly stated that there really are only two religions: the religion of human accomplishment and the religion of Divine accomplishment. Does the preacher emphasize the former or the latter? A reliable carrier of God’s truth always highlights the fact that God saves sinners; sinners don’t save themselves.
Question 4 (Sola Christus): Does the preacher underline that Christ is the exclusive mediator between God and man? Does the explainer both affirm and proclaim that Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life” and that nobody comes to the Father but by Christ? Does he talk about sin and the necessity of Christ? Preachers must learn how to unveil and unpack the truth of the Gospel from every Biblical text they preach in such a way that it results in the exposure of both the idols of our culture and the idols of our hearts. The faithful exposition of our true Savior from every passage in the Bible painfully reveals all of the pseudo-saviors that we trust in culturally and personally. Every sermon ought to disclose the subtle ways in which we as individuals and we as a culture depend on lesser things than Jesus to provide the security, acceptance, protection, affection, meaning, and satisfaction that only Christ can supply. In this way, good preachers must constantly show just how relevant and necessary Jesus is; they must work hard to show that we are great sinners but Christ is a great Savior.
Question 5 (Sola Deo Gloria): Does the preacher exalt God above all? A reliable explainer will always lead you to marvel at God. A true carrier of God’s truth will always lead you to encounter the glory of God. A God-centered teacher is just that: God-centered. He will preach and teach in such a way that you find yourself hungering and thirsting for God. You will listen to sermon after sermon and walk away with grand impressions of Divine personality, not grand impressions of human personality.
This is just a start, but I hope it serves as a resource to help you determine the reliability of a particular teacher or preacher.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
From Piper's Twitter
"God is more curious in observing the messages delivered by the heart, those delivered only by the mouth." Thomas Brooks
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
From my Niece's Blog, So blessed. So strong. So thankful
Time for A Change
Today I went for a run in my favorite Columbus park - Highbanks Metro Park. I discovered this park about a month or so ago since it's pretty close to my new place.
I almost chickened out of going because when I walked out the door I realized how chilly it was getting outside. But - I decided to stick to my promise to myself of working out/running three times this week.
Highbanks is my favorite so far because of their nature trails. They rock. They're not too flat, not too hilly - but still a challenge. The park is pretty big so it's nice to have variety in scenery each visit.
I couldn't help but stop a few times and just stare at all the oranges, reds, and yellows in the leaves. The trails run through several gorges, streams, etc so it's absolutely beautiful this time of year.
I stopped at the top of a hill that overlooks a ginormous gorge and wished so hard that I had a camera. It was almost like experiencing fall for the first time...and then I realized it was nothing new, this happens every year. Why have I not slowed down each fall to appreciate it?
I started thinking about what the leaves changing colors really means. The dominate word in my mind was 'change'. Something new is taking place all over the world of nature. It's something quite beautiful.
The same God who orders the universe and the leaves to change colors, is the same God who orders my footsteps and commands change in my life. I remember my eighth grade teacher always saying "change is good for the soul". Sometimes change sucks. Change only sucks when we're afraid or self-conscious or timid. Changes suck when everything is comfortable and change might really shake our perfect worlds to their sides.
I bet if leaves had brains, they would be self-conscious about their beautiful green selves turning yellow, orange, then red. I bet they would think, "But, I like being beautiful green!"..."I don't want to be yellow...I wonder if other people will like me when I'm orange"..."It was so much fun being green, it might be harder being red!".
Just like the leaves, we have seasons in our lives. When life is going great for us, we're just like leaves in the prime of spring and summer. And then all of a sudden, cold temperatures come along and we can sense God making a change in our lives. Just like the leaves, we wonder why life can't just remain perfect for a little while longer. We doubt ourselves, we might second guess our preparedness for a new season.
Don't get me wrong, I do love it when the leaves are the most lush green. But I am so much more in awe when I see the fall array among the once green leaves. Right now the leaves are at their beauty peak and I can't wait to see them again tomorrow because I know that soon they will turn brown and fade away.
I have to believe that just like those leaves, we are most beautiful and-awe inspiring while experiencing extreme change.
Who would we be if we never faced challenges? What would we ever accomplish if every day in our lives was a lush, green day?
More importantly, if every day was beautiful and green...how often would we think of God? How often would we need to put our trust in Him? How often would we fall down on our knees and beg Him for an answer? Or praise Him for a victory? If every day was green and perfect, we might start thinking we're the ones in control.
When you look down in a gorge during the winter time, it's very easy to see the tree trunks that have fallen and rest along the forest bottom. Similarly, when we go through seasons of winter in our own lives, it's very easy to see our past failures and mistakes.
But when the gorge is full of fall-colored leaves, the fallen trees only make the forest look more beautiful. When we're most beautiful is when we're overcoming and changing and using our past failures and mistakes as stepping stones.
Embrace change as a chance to become more beautiful, more passionate, more engaged in God's wonders.
Look forward to the person you are becoming.
Today I went for a run in my favorite Columbus park - Highbanks Metro Park. I discovered this park about a month or so ago since it's pretty close to my new place.
I almost chickened out of going because when I walked out the door I realized how chilly it was getting outside. But - I decided to stick to my promise to myself of working out/running three times this week.
Highbanks is my favorite so far because of their nature trails. They rock. They're not too flat, not too hilly - but still a challenge. The park is pretty big so it's nice to have variety in scenery each visit.
I couldn't help but stop a few times and just stare at all the oranges, reds, and yellows in the leaves. The trails run through several gorges, streams, etc so it's absolutely beautiful this time of year.
I stopped at the top of a hill that overlooks a ginormous gorge and wished so hard that I had a camera. It was almost like experiencing fall for the first time...and then I realized it was nothing new, this happens every year. Why have I not slowed down each fall to appreciate it?
I started thinking about what the leaves changing colors really means. The dominate word in my mind was 'change'. Something new is taking place all over the world of nature. It's something quite beautiful.
The same God who orders the universe and the leaves to change colors, is the same God who orders my footsteps and commands change in my life. I remember my eighth grade teacher always saying "change is good for the soul". Sometimes change sucks. Change only sucks when we're afraid or self-conscious or timid. Changes suck when everything is comfortable and change might really shake our perfect worlds to their sides.
I bet if leaves had brains, they would be self-conscious about their beautiful green selves turning yellow, orange, then red. I bet they would think, "But, I like being beautiful green!"..."I don't want to be yellow...I wonder if other people will like me when I'm orange"..."It was so much fun being green, it might be harder being red!".
Just like the leaves, we have seasons in our lives. When life is going great for us, we're just like leaves in the prime of spring and summer. And then all of a sudden, cold temperatures come along and we can sense God making a change in our lives. Just like the leaves, we wonder why life can't just remain perfect for a little while longer. We doubt ourselves, we might second guess our preparedness for a new season.
Don't get me wrong, I do love it when the leaves are the most lush green. But I am so much more in awe when I see the fall array among the once green leaves. Right now the leaves are at their beauty peak and I can't wait to see them again tomorrow because I know that soon they will turn brown and fade away.
I have to believe that just like those leaves, we are most beautiful and-awe inspiring while experiencing extreme change.
Who would we be if we never faced challenges? What would we ever accomplish if every day in our lives was a lush, green day?
More importantly, if every day was beautiful and green...how often would we think of God? How often would we need to put our trust in Him? How often would we fall down on our knees and beg Him for an answer? Or praise Him for a victory? If every day was green and perfect, we might start thinking we're the ones in control.
When you look down in a gorge during the winter time, it's very easy to see the tree trunks that have fallen and rest along the forest bottom. Similarly, when we go through seasons of winter in our own lives, it's very easy to see our past failures and mistakes.
But when the gorge is full of fall-colored leaves, the fallen trees only make the forest look more beautiful. When we're most beautiful is when we're overcoming and changing and using our past failures and mistakes as stepping stones.
Embrace change as a chance to become more beautiful, more passionate, more engaged in God's wonders.
Look forward to the person you are becoming.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Internal Idol Worship
While traditional idol worship still occurs in many places, internal idol worship - within the heart - is universal.
RedeemerNYC Twitter
RedeemerNYC Twitter
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Tim Keller's Counterfeit Gods
In his book Counterfeit Gods, Tim Keller writes:
What is an idol? It is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give. A counterfeit god is anything so central and essential to your life that, should you lose it, your life would feel hardly worth living. An idol has such a controlling position in your heart that you can spend most of your passion and energy, your emotional and financial resources, on it without a second thought. It can be family and children, or career and making money, or achievement and critical acclaim, or saving “face” and social standing. It can be a romantic relationship, peer approval, competence and skill, secure and comfortable circumstances, your beauty or your brains, a great political or social cause, your morality and virtue, or even success in the Christian ministry. When your meaning in life is to fix someone else’s life, we may call it “codependency” but it is really idolatry. An idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, “If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.”
What are those things, or who are those people, that you depend on more than Jesus to provide the meaning and purpose and security and significance you long for? In other words, what are your idols? Experiencing God’s deep rescue begins with identifying what idols you worship.
From On Earth as it is in Heaven
What is an idol? It is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give. A counterfeit god is anything so central and essential to your life that, should you lose it, your life would feel hardly worth living. An idol has such a controlling position in your heart that you can spend most of your passion and energy, your emotional and financial resources, on it without a second thought. It can be family and children, or career and making money, or achievement and critical acclaim, or saving “face” and social standing. It can be a romantic relationship, peer approval, competence and skill, secure and comfortable circumstances, your beauty or your brains, a great political or social cause, your morality and virtue, or even success in the Christian ministry. When your meaning in life is to fix someone else’s life, we may call it “codependency” but it is really idolatry. An idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, “If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.”
What are those things, or who are those people, that you depend on more than Jesus to provide the meaning and purpose and security and significance you long for? In other words, what are your idols? Experiencing God’s deep rescue begins with identifying what idols you worship.
From On Earth as it is in Heaven
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
From Piper's Twitter
Love: "The steady directing of the human will toward the eternal well-being of another" Stephen Neill. (Note "eternal")
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