Saturday, January 25, 2014
Friday, January 3, 2014
How to Change Your Mind
Joe Carter says there are essentially three types of reactions to the suggestions in his post How to Change Your Mind:
1. Most will snicker at the crazy claims2. A few will be intrigued, but will not implement
3. A tiny minority will recognize the simplicity and genius, and apply it.
After reading this article on the Gospel Coalition, I have yet to apply it fully. Apply what? Well you ought to read the post, but here it is:
1. Choose a book of the Bible.This advice comes from James M. Gray (1851-1935). It is so encouraging to hear the wisdom of dead men. Good and simple wisdom. Go read what Mr. Gray says in the post.
2. Read it in its entirety.
3. Repeat step #2 twenty times.
4. Repeat this process for all books of the Bible.
Sometimes I find myself not knowing how to spend my time. And of course Facebook is always ready to help me in that problem.
But seriously, let's stop acting on our silly needs for entertainment, and take the hours we have to find a quiet place and read, and reread, and reread, and let God's Holy Spirit sanctify our hearts and minds, and quite likely also incline our spirit to prayers of thanksgiving, confession, and intercession.
Monday, December 30, 2013
Salvation is exclusively through Jesus, but...
"I am not saying that unbelievers are punished because they did not put faith in a Jesus they never heard of...
Those who never hear the gospel are not punished for not knowing Jesus. Not knowing Jesus results in punishment, but sin is the grounds for punishment. Those who do not put faith in Christ are punished for being sinners. They are punished in the next life for turning the truth of general revelation into a lie (Rom. 1:18-25). They have broken God’s law, and anyone guilty of even one violation is accountable for the whole law (James 2:10). Those with no knowledge of Christ will be judged less severely because they had less light, though that judgment will still be far from painless (Matt. 11:20-24). Our only hope in life and in death is that we are not our own but belong body and soul to our faithful Savior Jesus Christ."
- Kevin DeYoung from clarifying-inclusivism-and-exclusivism
Those who never hear the gospel are not punished for not knowing Jesus. Not knowing Jesus results in punishment, but sin is the grounds for punishment. Those who do not put faith in Christ are punished for being sinners. They are punished in the next life for turning the truth of general revelation into a lie (Rom. 1:18-25). They have broken God’s law, and anyone guilty of even one violation is accountable for the whole law (James 2:10). Those with no knowledge of Christ will be judged less severely because they had less light, though that judgment will still be far from painless (Matt. 11:20-24). Our only hope in life and in death is that we are not our own but belong body and soul to our faithful Savior Jesus Christ."
- Kevin DeYoung from clarifying-inclusivism-and-exclusivism
Friday, December 27, 2013
Jonathan Edwards' Portrait of the Pastor
Some guiding thoughts as I consider the idea of the calling of eldership from the Concluding Remarks from themelios article -The Ministerial Ideal in the Ordination Sermons of Jonathan Edwards.
Edwards’s reflections on the Christian ministry may seem like alien advice to our modern ears. The reason for this may be that our contemporary ideals of pastoral ministry are too saturated with images drawn from the world rather than from the other-worldly wisdom of Scripture....
First, the portrait of a minister “marrying” his congregation may have kept Edwards from viewing the ministry as a stepping stone to personal fulfillment and success. Those familiar with his personal writings, especially in his youth, know that Edwards struggled with pride. His intellectual gifts were uncommon and he knew it. Yet he did not use these gifts merely to pursue a path of upward mobility in his denominational world. The image of a minister marrying his congregation may have prevented him from easily entertaining ideas of leaving his congregation when ministry got difficult...
Second, the portrait of a minister as a burning and shining light no doubt led Edwards to preach rich, sound biblical doctrine. Edwards was convinced that the primary pathway to Christian transformation was through teaching the great truths of Christianity. Only when the mind is sufficiently informed with biblical theology can heart and life be transformed by the gospel. As a shining light, he devoted long hours to studying the Scriptures so that his congregation could benefit from his rich meditations on biblical doctrine. Yet preaching biblical doctrine was not enough. The minister must know God and his ways through prayer, the mortification of sin, and the pursuit of communion with Christ. In short, he must burn as well as shine, for heat and light necessarily go together.
Third, the portrait of the minister suffering on behalf of his people may have sustained Edwards through years of ministerial turmoil. Toward the end of his Northampton years, Edwards knew the bitterness of having a church turn on him. At Stockbridge he experienced the hardships associated with intense opposition by powerful community leaders. Surely the image of Christ’s sufferings sustained him in pressing forward in his duties during such times. In the end, Edwards moved on from both of these places (for different reasons). He did so with much reserve after seeking the wisdom of friends and family, not merely because there was suffering associated with the job. As Edwards understood it, suffering was a fundamental part of ministering the gospel.
Lastly, the portrait of the minister and his congregation before the judgment of God may have propelled Edwards to pursue justice in his pastoral duties. Ministers likewise can zealously pursue righteousness in their congregations. In the midst of this pursuit they will experience defeat and be taken advantage of. Yet faithful ministers can take courage in the fact that justice shall be done to them in the sight of all at the end of this age.
Edwards’s reflections on the Christian ministry may seem like alien advice to our modern ears. The reason for this may be that our contemporary ideals of pastoral ministry are too saturated with images drawn from the world rather than from the other-worldly wisdom of Scripture....
First, the portrait of a minister “marrying” his congregation may have kept Edwards from viewing the ministry as a stepping stone to personal fulfillment and success. Those familiar with his personal writings, especially in his youth, know that Edwards struggled with pride. His intellectual gifts were uncommon and he knew it. Yet he did not use these gifts merely to pursue a path of upward mobility in his denominational world. The image of a minister marrying his congregation may have prevented him from easily entertaining ideas of leaving his congregation when ministry got difficult...
Second, the portrait of a minister as a burning and shining light no doubt led Edwards to preach rich, sound biblical doctrine. Edwards was convinced that the primary pathway to Christian transformation was through teaching the great truths of Christianity. Only when the mind is sufficiently informed with biblical theology can heart and life be transformed by the gospel. As a shining light, he devoted long hours to studying the Scriptures so that his congregation could benefit from his rich meditations on biblical doctrine. Yet preaching biblical doctrine was not enough. The minister must know God and his ways through prayer, the mortification of sin, and the pursuit of communion with Christ. In short, he must burn as well as shine, for heat and light necessarily go together.
Third, the portrait of the minister suffering on behalf of his people may have sustained Edwards through years of ministerial turmoil. Toward the end of his Northampton years, Edwards knew the bitterness of having a church turn on him. At Stockbridge he experienced the hardships associated with intense opposition by powerful community leaders. Surely the image of Christ’s sufferings sustained him in pressing forward in his duties during such times. In the end, Edwards moved on from both of these places (for different reasons). He did so with much reserve after seeking the wisdom of friends and family, not merely because there was suffering associated with the job. As Edwards understood it, suffering was a fundamental part of ministering the gospel.
Lastly, the portrait of the minister and his congregation before the judgment of God may have propelled Edwards to pursue justice in his pastoral duties. Ministers likewise can zealously pursue righteousness in their congregations. In the midst of this pursuit they will experience defeat and be taken advantage of. Yet faithful ministers can take courage in the fact that justice shall be done to them in the sight of all at the end of this age.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Marriage, Mission, Discipleship
Francis and Lisa Chan - Two People With One Mission
I'll sum it up: seek first the kingdom of heaven, and everything else will fall into place.
This is worth a listen.
I'll sum it up: seek first the kingdom of heaven, and everything else will fall into place.
This is worth a listen.
Why I need to read the Bible daily
- It creates the necessary posture of dependence, saying, “Lord, without you I am nothing.”
- It directs the soul and mind toward the things that are above, saying, “Give me life according to your Word.”
What Should Motivate Us?
Should the truth of the existence of hell drive us?
or the truth of the hope of salvation?
Two quotes from Matt Chandler's Explicit Gospel:
or the truth of the hope of salvation?
Two quotes from Matt Chandler's Explicit Gospel:
“This avoidance of the difficult things of Scripture — of sinfulness and hell and God’s notable severity — is idolatrous and cowardly. If a man or a woman who teaches the Scriptures is afraid to explain to you the severity of God, they have betrayed you, and they love their ego more than they love you.” (41)
“Heaven is not a place for those who are afraid of hell; it’s a place for those who love God. You can scare people into coming to your church, you can scare people into trying to be good, you can scare people into giving money, you can even scare them into walking down an aisle and praying a certain prayer, but you cannot scare people into loving God. You just can’t do it.” (49)So let's not avoid hell (which I think I have), but let's fully seek the love of Christ (which I think I have not).
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