The SBC in Orlando

I thought I'd share my impressions of the SBC in Orlando, particularly with regard to the GCR report. The report passed, but I voted against it (seemingly one of the few). My reasons are simple—Great Commission giving was left in the report. Although I like the amendment which reads that designated giving is to be a supplement to and not a substitute for the Cooperative Program, the idea is still there. Yes I know that designated giving has been and always will be done, but I don't think we need to 'celebrate' is as much as we need to discourage it. I would have liked recommendation 3 to just reinforce CP and that's it. The recommendation is 'better' but not what I would have liked. The other reason I voted against the report was that there is still the 'cooperative agreements' problem out there between the state conventions and NAMB. That wasn't debated, but a change in those agreements may be detrimental to our smaller state conventions. I would have liked to have heard more about that.

With that said, I will support the vote of the convention. I believe that once a decision has been made in a business meeting (in this case the SBC), the decision should be supported (if it's not heretical of course or contrary to the Bible). Thus I support the report and now pray that its impact will be positive and not negative upon the denomination I love and support.

I greatly appreciated the spirit of the debate on both sides. There was no rancor. There was passion, but Baptists should be passionate about how we're going to reach the world. We may have different ideas on how to do it sometimes, but that is ok. Debate is not a bad thing if done with love. It was and that was good to see.

I voted for Ted Traylor for SBC president because I know him to be a good man and pastor who has led a great church. I do not know the ministry of Bryant White, but I'm sure he is as well. He will be in my prayers. I agreed with a statement that he made to the press that he would like to see a smaller percentage of CP funds allocated to the states and more to national causes (NAMB and IMB in particular). That may not ever happen, but I would like to see that debate here in South Carolina. I appreciate the work of the state convention but I have a problem with half of CP funds staying in our Jerusalem and Judea.

The sermons I heard were primarily 'resurgence' centered in some way. I liked it when Mac Brunson (pastor of FBC Jacksonville) said that we did not need resurgence, we needed a refocus to Jesus.

 

The Unchurched Used to Be in Church

share

SBC In Orlando

Everyone and his grandmother are commenting on the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force [GCRTF] report so let me do so as well with a handful of bullet points of comments and questions as I muse.

• The SBC has always had a commitment to the Great Commission, something to applaud.
  
• We are not reaching the masses, something to grieve us.
  
• No report by any denominational task force will bring a greater commitment to the Great Commission in the local church, something to remember.
  
• Will Great Commission giving reported alongside gifts to the Cooperative Program lead to a splintering of the CP? Something to pray about.
  
• The Great Commission giving idea should be scrapped for sake of unity. Something to consider.
  
• Will passing the report as it currently stands lead to a more 'societal' approach as in pre-CP days? Something to watch.
  

I felt that the TF was hamstrung from the beginning, given the makeup of the team itself and because of its chairman. While the team was tweaked a bit later, in the beginning the TF did not really represent a cross-section of Southern Baptists—mistake. Also, his increased giving to CP notwithstanding naming Ronnie Floyd as chairman, when his church gave little through the CP, was a critical error by Johnny Hunt [please keep in mind that comment in no ways reflects upon Bro. Floyd as a good man and pastor—his church's giving through CP is a matter of record.].

Is the recommendation to celebrate Great Commission giving a way to make more palatable the nomination of men to leadership in the SBC whose track record on CP giving is less than stellar? I don't know…this is just the musing of a country preacher.

I'm not naïve. I've been around for a day or two now. I believe the SBC could do with some stream-lining, and I would like the state to have less of my CP dollar (although I appreciate the fine work of the state conventions), but I think changes should come from the bottom-up and not the top down. Churches must change, send people to their state conventions for them to change, and then the SBC will reflect those changes.

I also think the strength of the SBC is in cooperation. We can still do much more together than separately [even the super-churches]. Whatever moves we make should strengthen cooperation and our resolve to reach the masses with the Gospel. I'm concerned Orlando won't do that.

The Key Question in Hermeneutics

There is a key question when approaching any biblical text. Where one begins is where one ends. The issue: is a biblical text anthropocentric or theocentric? In other words, is a text man-centered or God-centered?

Sidney Greidanus has written eloquently on the topic:

 

"Fundamentally, the Bible is more than an ordinary history book, more than

artistically pleasing literature; it is religious literature . . . As religious literature,

the Bible reveals its theocentric nature. Everything is viewed in relationship to

God: the world is God's creation; human beings are image-bearers of God;

salvation belongs to God—in short, all of life belongs to and is governed by

God.

 

Every genre of biblical literature is theocentric. Even Esther, although God is not mentioned in the book, has a theocentric viewpoint. God is obviously working to protect the Jews. Theocentric interpretation seeks to expose in every passage the God-centered focus of the entire Bible.

Anthropocentric interpretation, on the other hand, is focused not upon God but upon human beings. Too often an anthropocentric emphasis is found in preaching and teaching. Interpreters love to focus on the human drama in the text. Bible characters are often seen as either good or bad examples of what one should or should not do for God—and because those examples are easily found in a text and resonate with the interpreter, a "man centered" spin is placed upon a text that was ultimately meant to teach a great truth about God.

While this is obviously a New Testament narrative, a good example of anthropocentric interpretation is found in the denials of Christ by Peter. As Ernest Best pointed out, "The incidents in which the weakness of Peter are (sic) shown are not recorded primarily to tell us about Peter's weakness but about the mercy of God who forgives him." Thus, Best argued, "The selection of incidents which we have been given about Peter has been dominated by an interest other than the character of Peter himself. It is foolish of us therefore to use these incidents to build up a picture of the character of Peter and then to go on and apply it to men generally. We ought to use the incidents of Peter's weakness instead to argue for God's mercy and strength."

Keep the following principles in mind when interpreting a passage of from the Old Testament:

• The Bible was given to reveal the character and purpose of God, not us.
  

  
   

• Even the moral requirements of Scripture reveal God and his intentions.
  

  
   

• Every text can be studied to discover what it tells us about God.
  

  
   

• Theocentric interpretation does not mean the sermon or Bible study is about
  God
  

  
   

• Theocentric interpretation asks, "What does this text tell me about God?"
  

  
   

• Use the basic concepts of a passage to consider how they point to God.
  

  
   

• In the New Testament, the basic question would then be, "What does this text tell me about Christ?" In essence, texts in the New Testament are Christocentric. The approach of a New Testament text would essentially be the same as that of the Old Testament.
  

  
   

Allow me now to turn to Genesis 22, the account of Abraham offering Isaac as a sacrifice. More often than not, interpreters focus on Abraham and offer a moralistic sermon or study on faith. Obviously, Abraham's faith is important in the passage, however, when one focuses only on the Patriarch, it is an anthropocentric interpretation of the text.

If the text is theocentric (and it is), then let us ask the key question: What does this text say about God? When one looks at the text from this perspective there is a change in focus. What did Abraham and Isaac learn about God that day? The answer to that question is found in verse 14 after Abraham found a ram caught by his horns in the thicket: "And Abraham called the name of that place Yahweh-Jireh (The Lord Will Provide)."

One meets biblical characters who are extremely human. Remember, however, they are never seen in isolation. They are always part of a much larger story—the story about God. Hence, when interpreters pass on the biblical story, "they ought to employ biblical characters the way the Bible employs them, not as ethical models, not as heroes for emulation or examples for warning, but as people whose story has been taken up into the Bible in order to reveal what God is doing for and through them." [Greidanus]

New Parents and Church

Does having children make parents better church goers? Here's an interesting article from Barna that didn't send great surprises my way. We better rethink, however, the old idea that parenthood makes people more inclined to think about God and more open to Him.

We Have Seen His Glory

I didn't read as much on this week of vacation as I usually do, but I did get through an interesting book. Ben Witherington has recently published, We Have Seen His Glory: A Vision of Kingdom Worship [Eerdmans]. Witherington is rightly concerned by the consumer mentality of today's worshiper and attacks it through what is in essence a very fine New Testament theology of worship. The author believes that worship should be seen in light of the eschaton 'rather than in light of what has already gone on in the past, in light of Kingdom Come rather than in light of kingdoms gone' [ix]. He writes, "I am convinced that one of the great detriments to having a more reflective and more Christian approach to worship is that even many of our ministers and worship leaders have very little understanding of what the New Testament actually says about worship" [x]. With those words in the preface, Witherington proceeds in eight chapters to concisely present what the New Testament does say about the subject.

Here are some salient quotes from the book that resonated with me:

• Salvation is a means to an end, not an end in itself—that end being the worship of God [7].
  
• Worship is the ultimate ethical act on earth, the most important act on earth because it is the ultimate fulfillment of the Shema, the Great Commandment, and indeed the First and Second Commandments [8].
  
• The function of music in worship is not to set the mood or even to rev up the troops, but rather to engage them at the affective level so that their whole being . . . are caught up in the wonder, love, and praise of God [17].
  
• One of the most disturbing trends in worship is its anthropocentric character. Worship is to be theocentric/Christocentric [20].
  
• Only God's glory should show up in worship [23].
  
• The confession of Jesus as Lord changes everything, including worship [31].
  
• We take the America's Got Talent approach to deciding who does what in worship. Paul says that the prerequisite is having given oneself totally to God, and then recognizing the character and measure of one's faith [40].
  
• Early Christians did not hold to theological principles which suggested that edifices for worship were inherently bad and worship in houses was theologically better [51].
  
• Worship is not just a matter of adoration, but also involves edification [66].
  
• We would do well to see invoking Jesus' name at the end of a prayer as signing his name to our petitions. If so, then we need to ask, Would Jesus sign off on our entreaties? [81].
  
• Did any of the New Testament writers believe they were writing sacred, God-breathed texts? The answer must be surely yes [97].
  
• The fundamental reason why Christian worship should be different is not because Christ has inaugurated his kingdom on earth, but because believers are different and should worship differently [134].
  
• All acts of work should be doxological, and thus should be acts of worship [136].
  
• As the biblical understanding [of worship] ebbs and the consumer mentality flows and grows, it is hardly surprising that worship has been turned into something it was never intended to be: a performance of the few fo the couch potatoes for Jesus in the pews [146].
  
• Worship is the means God uses to mold us into our better selves [150].
  
• Too often people evaluate worship and which sort they want to participate in on the basis of style, and this is a serious mistake . . . The issue is not style but substance. The issue is not 'where am I most comfortable. Did it ever occur to you that worship might be most helpful when it unsettles your ways and makes you profoundly uncomfortable with your present state of spiritual lethargy [153]?
  
• Worship without good preaching is not adequate worship, because God wants to clear his throat each week and address his people [155].
  
• It is not the preacher's job to 'put the cookies on the bottom shelf.' It is time to stop serving pablum in worship instead of real soul food [160].
  

Witherington does a marvelous job taking a difficult subject and dealing with it biblically and theologically. He synthesizes the NT witness about worship and makes is available to all who wish to 'have an ear to hear.' I found his thoughts on how the early church felt about 'buildings' over against 'homes' especially helpful, given statements in the "home church" movement that worshiping in homes is more 'biblical.' On the negative side, I felt his emphasis on rhetorical criticism a bit out of place. However, his chapters dealing with John 4, Revelation 4-5, Worship as Sabbatical, and Work and Worship, were very insightful and helpful to me. The reflective questions at the end of each chapter make this an even more helpful text. Preaching/Music professors should consider it. I may even use it as a book review text in New Testament because of the importance of the subject.

Ministers need to read this book. The consumer and narcissistic tendencies in today's worship is at partly (and maybe more) our fault. Ministers do need to understand worship, particularly from the NT point of view. Witherington has done us a service in writing this book.

Great Commission Resurgence

I've read the final report of the Great Commission Task Force. While I'm glad there is a strong affirmation of the Cooperative Program in the final report, I'm still troubled by its embracing of so-called "Great Commission Giving." My church gives 10% of its undesignated receipts to the CP, but we also give a substantial amount of money each year to other mission causes. I would never dream of reporting that giving alongside the CP.

Morris Chapman has written a concise article concerning this issue. I basically agree with his sentiments.

I wonder how much of this is politically motivated? In other words, I wonder if what drives at least some of this discussion is criticism of some recent SBC president candidates who lead churches that give such a low percentage to the CP? Just musing.

When the Word Is Ignored

What does a pastor do when the message that God lays on his heart is faithfully developed and preached but subsequently ignored? Does he give up? Does he turn in his ordination papers? Does he retreat to his study and crawl up in the fetal position? While those might seem to be viable options at the time (especially on Monday morning), what is the right thing to do? Obviously the right thing is to continue to preach. The preacher needs always to remember this—the response of people to God's message is not the responsibility of the deliverer. The preacher is responsible only for himself. If he has prayed; if he has studied; if he has delivered the message God has laid on his heart—a message based on God's authority (His Word), then that is all he can do. He can do nothing more. God requires nothing other than faithfulness from him. God will take care of the hearers. They are in His hands anyway.

Paul warned Timothy:
For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear something new. They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths [2 Tim 4:3-4]. We may be living in the era of 'itching ears' but remember what the Apostle said in vv. 1-2: I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and because of His appearing and His kingdom: ² Proclaim the message; persist in it whether convenient or not; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching.

The preacher's job, even when people don't listen—keep preaching! Be faithful! Keep praying! Keep studying! Keep preparing! The preacher doesn't work for the people anyway. He works for God!!!

 

Is there a reason you’re late … or is it just an excuse? : The Work Buzz

Is there a reason you’re late … or is it just an excuse? : The Work Buzz

Posted using ShareThis

A Good Word for Preachers

In a book by Paul Boller, the author tells a story about Woodrow Wilson. One of his cabinet members praised him for his short speeches. He then asked Wilson how long it took him to write a speech. "It depends," said Wilson, "If I am to speak ten minutes I need a week for preparation, if fifteen minutes, three days; if half an hour, two days; if an hour, I am ready now."

E. Earle Ellis

I'm saddened by the death of Dr. E. Earle Ellis, renowned New Testament scholar and churchman.

Southwestern Seminary has an obituary. Ellis' The Making of the New Testament Documents is a classic that will be quoted for years to come.

What Is Worship?

Being in church for the first time in two weeks today just reminded me again of how sweet it is to worship God corporately. There is nothing much else like it. Let's be reminded of the definition of worship I came across years ago from Calvin Miller, "Worship is the church busy at the business of loving God." Worship has nothing to do with music style or even preaching style. It has everything to do with the heart. Whether the music is liturgical or contemporary; whether the preaching is expository or topical (as long as it is biblical), the believer can worship. It makes no difference who is leading in worship. It makes no difference what the instrumentation is. Worship begins and ends with the heart of the individual. Did you show God you loved Him today? If you did you worshiped. If you didn't, well….

ACTS 6 AND DEACON MINISTRY

The recent edition of Bibliotheca Sacra has an interesting article by Phillip Sell, "The Seven in Acts as a Ministry Team." Traditionally, this passage assumes the Seven chosen to wait on tables to be the beginning of deacon ministry. For several years I've questioned that, and the article by Sell convinces me that I've been on the right track. Sell writes, "The continual growth of the church seems to have made the distribution of goods to the needy a large task that needed attention so as not to disrupt the unity of the church. This division of labor is situational not paradigmatic for the church for all times. It reflects their practical situation" [61]. Sell also believes that the laying on of hands in the passage was not 'ordination' to a lifetime office but the authorization of the apostles to act in their stead and confirming the selection of the Seven by the congregation.

I've believed for some time that Acts 6 was situational and that the Seven were simply carrying out a temporary ministry. Stephen and Philip, the only two of the Seven that we know anything about, certainly had preaching/teaching ministries—Philip being a church planter/missionary. Neither seems to have been a deacon in the church office sense. Certainly by the time Paul writes the Prison and Pastoral Epistles, the office of deacon was part of the church. The Apostle greets them in Philippians 1:1 and gives presents a list of characteristics to look for in deacons in 1 Timothy 3. It's not altogether clear what their primary responsibilities were, although practical ministry may have been the bulk of it. However, overseers were also to be involved in serving others. Certainly deacons were and are to be spiritual leaders involved in helping the overseer minister to God's people.

In his commentary, Bock writes that the actions of Acts 6 may have led to the creation of the office at a later time. Perhaps that is true, but that may be going too far as well. All we can really say is that the office developed over time—the need for the overseer to have help in ministering to God's people would be obvious so he can spend the bulk of his time in prayer and in the Word. However, the deacon's ministry probably should not be limited to waiting on tables.

Ministers and Depression

I have meant for a while to blog on a recent article in The Baptist Courier concerning minister's battles with depression. The suicide of a pastor I know last year caused me to think about this problem and the recent article made it even more of an issue for me.

There is a letter to the editor in this week's edition that will shed even more light on the pain in many a pastor's home.

I'll have more to write about this topic later, but the challenge of unrealistic expectations that most congregations have placed upon their pastors is a major problem. Both the article and the letter focus on that. Congregations need to take a hard look at what they expect, ensure that their pastor gets rest and has some down time, and help share the load. Pastors also need to take a day off, have a hobby or something to get their mind off the unending challenges of ministry (I admit that is difficult), and have some people around them who can encourage them along the way.

Read both articles--they are eye openers.

Kennett "Coke" Picture

Chet Andrews was recently at the Coke museum in Atlanta and found this picture of my hometown of Kennett, MO. Interesting!

Happy 75th Elvis!

This would have been Elvis' 75th birthday. Shouldn't today be a national holiday?

Christmas in Kennett

Christmas 2009 was a good one. We found everyone in good health and spirits and for that we're thankful! Hope yours was wonderful and Christ-filled!

Christmas Party 2009

Lesa and I had a good time at our staff Christmas party. I appreciate our church staff!

Politically Incorrect 12 Days of Christmas

I got this from the "Preaching Today Newsletter".

[12 Politically Correct Days of Christmas]

On the 12th day of the Eurocentrically-imposed midwinter festival, my potential acquaintance gave to me:
TWELVE males reclaiming their inner warrior through ritual drumming;

ELEVEN pipers piping (plus the 18-member pit orchestra made up of members in good standing of the Musicians Equity Union as called for in their union contract, even though they will not be asked to play a note);

TEN melanin-deprived, testosterone-poisoned scions of the patriarchal ruling class system leaping;

NINE persons engaged in rhythmic self-expression;

EIGHT economically-disadvantaged female persons stealing milk products from enslaved Bovine Americans;

SEVEN endangered swans swimming on federally-protected wetlands;

SIX enslaved Fowl Americans producing stolen, non-human animal products;

FIVE golden symbols of culturally-sanctioned enforced domestic incarceration, (NOTE: After a member of the Animal Liberation Front threatened to throw red paint at my computer, the calling birds, French hens and partridge have been reintroduced to their native habitat. To avoid further animal American enslavement, the remaining gift package has been revised.);

FOUR hours of recorded whale songs;

THREE deconstructionist poets;

TWO Sierra Club calendars printed on recycled, processed tree carcasses; and

A Spotted Owl activist chained to an old-growth pear tree.

Carl Watson

I read in our hometown paper that the first person I ever baptized went to be with the Lord. Carl Watson died at 87 years old. He was won to Christ by a retired minister in our congregation (Providence Baptist in Kennett, MO) and I baptized him a week later. That was in 1986. He was in his 60s. He was baptized along with three other people but he was the first in the pool. I've been fortunate to have baptized many since, but seldom have I seen someone who took his Christian walk more seriously than Carl. He was a wonderful man, quiet guy, who was a joy to be around and an asset to our church. His was truly a conversion. I'm glad he's with the Lord today.

I thought he deserved a word today.

Riverside Anniversary

I celebrated a sigificant ministry anniversary 20 years ago but there another one 10 years ago. Ten years ago Saturday I was called to serve as pastor of Riverside Baptist in Ft Worth. I served there until we left for South Carolina in June 2006. Hope all my friends at RBC are doing well!

Budgets, Churches, and Faith

While attending the business session of the South Carolina Baptist Convention yesterday I was a little bit discouraged as we voted on the 2010 budget, which has been cut from last year. All the "right" reasons were given--the economy, less Cooperative Program giving, churches are hurting, etc., etc., etc. And I wondered, where is faith?

Churches have two ways to put a budget together and a preacher yesterday put it well--either a fact based budget or a faith based budget (preachers love alliteration!). Most of the time here is what we do: we place the previous year's budget alongside this year's requests, determine what the giving patterns will likely be, and then put a budget together.

That may be fine for a business that runs on business rules, but I've always been uncomfortable with a church doing that. Why? It is because a church runs in a different sphere than a business. A church's "boss" is the Lord Jesus Christ. There is nothing He can't do or can't provide for His church.

So how should a church put a budget together? It should do so on its knees. A church should seek the Lord Christ, petition Him for an unveiling of His will, then obey His will no matter how much it "costs" in budget bottom line. When a church does this the Lord will make sure that a church does not have the resources which the people can see how it will all get done. Instead He will call upon His people to walk with Him by faith, believing He can do through them what they cannot do. In other words, He will ensure that He gets the glory and not the church. When those resources come, then the people of God grow in their walk with Him, learn even more how to walk by faith, and will take even bigger faith steps in the future.

Does this mean that the church should not be responsibile stewards of resources? Absolutely not! However, a church's budget like everything else should be a statement of faith--"We believe God to do what we cannot do!" When the people of God employ a "faith" budget, then God moves in power. However, when we put together a "fact" budget God allows us to do what we can see and nothing supernatural happens. It is just business as usual.

I Will Rise

Stephanie and I sang "I Will Rise" yesterdy at Fairview. This was our first duet there, although we sang several times at Riverside. Lesa took the pic as we got ready Sunday morning. Steph always makes me look and sound better than I do!!

20th Anniversary

This weekend is a special anniversary in my ministry. On November 1, 1989--20 years ago Sunday--my family and I moved to Graceville, Florida to serve Poplar Springs Baptist Church and attend what is now known as the Baptist College of Florida. At the time there were just three of us but Lesa was pregnant with Steph. When we got there 20 years ago there was no porch that you see in the picture and there were trees in the front parking lot.

Greek T-Shirt

Any student of Greek will be relate to this t-shirt. I wish I had one!! This is just plain funny!

The Painful Side of Leadership

Jeff Iorg, President of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, has written an insightful and extremely practical book. The Painful Side of Leadership: Moving Forward When It Hurts (B&H Publishing) is a must read. Leadership by defintion is often painful and there is always tension. Iorg helps the minister/leader navigate that tension with tremendous insight through personal experience.

There are 15 easy to read and digest chapters in the book. For me his two chapters on criticism were the best. "Leaders have critics--as surely as dogs have fleas and usually about as helpful" (113)! True indeed. Iorg uses 2 Samuel 16, an account of David receiving severe criticism by Shimei, to help the reader understand criticism and how to deal with it. Criticism often comes when we least need it, often when we least deserve it, and usually from those last qualified to give it. But it is the resonse to criticism that is important for the leader. Using David's response to Shimei, Iorg urges the minister/leader to handle criticism in several ways: resond, don't react, to critics; stay focused on mission in spite of criticism; find God's good in every criticism; and allow God and others to handle your critics [131-149]. Often God works through critics to change you--an important truth that all leaders need to remember.

Another chapter I particuarly appreciated was 'Moving to a New Position.' While all ministers accept a new responsibility believing they will be there forever, the fact is transitions occur and often when they are least expected. The chapter has a narrow focus, "on leaving well as part of a healthy resignation or retirement" [248]. There are several practical suggstions. The most important, I believe, is to define your future relationship with the church you're leaving. Two principles should be well learned: (1) when you leave, really leave; and (2) if you return for any reason (even for a casual visit), clear it with the new pastor first. Too many pastors hang onto their former churches, making it very difficult on their successors. When God moves you to a new place or you retire from active ministry, you must respect the leadership God places in a church after you. A new leader is the leader--not you.

There are many other chapters well worth the time. Iorg deals with issues from how to lead a church through significant change to how to terminate someone from your team. Another important chapter is the one dealing with the lonliness of leadership. "Lonliness is an occupational hazard of Christian leadership" (71). Because of the all the public things a mnister/leader does, that seems like an oxymoron, but it isn't. This chapter will benefit every minister/leader I know.

A minister/leader with just a few years experience will learn much from Iorg's personal illustrations. He gives the reader both the good and the bad to illustrate his principles--something I greatly appreciated. And for one who has been in the ministry for well over two-decades now, I laughed often as I could change the names and the places but tell the same stories. We've all been there.

This book is a must read for young ministers/leaders. I would highly recommend the book in any leadership course. More seasoned pastors/leades will also greatly benefit by Iorg's practical advise. There are always things we can learn about leadership.

This book is obviously highly recommended.

The Resurrection of Jesus

I am ending an almost year-long series of messages from Matthew Wednesday night at Fairview. Of course, the last message is about the resurrection of Jesus. In his commentary, David Turner laments that Christians often focus on the resurrection of Christ only at Easter. But it is in fact the essence of our faith. He writes:

Without the resurrection, Jesus's ministry ends in defeat. But everything changes if 'he is not here, for he was raised, just as he said' (28:6). The resurrection not only culminates the passion narrative but also is at the center of redemption itself. Without it one can only pity Jesus as a martyr whose lofty ideals were sadly misunderstood. With it one must stand in awe of the Messiah, the Son of God, who gave his life as ransom for many and who will one day return in glory to judge humanity (683).

Amen!

Back to Work

Back from a week at the beach. October is a great time to vacation. I didn't read as much on this go around, but I did get through a great book on leadership that I'll review some time this week.

Good Sermon

Gordon Fort, the VP of overseas operations at the International Mission Board, was in our church Sunday. He preached a message that all believers need to hear. Here's the link if you're interested.

http://www.fairviewgreer.net/pool/sound/10-11-2009.mp3

Habakkuk 3:17-18

I was reading in the little book of Habakkuk this morning. The book is a dialogue between the prophet and God about God's plan to send Babylon to judge Israel. 3:17-18 caught my attention.

¹⁷ Though the fig tree does not bud and there is no fruit on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, ¹⁸ yet I will triumph in the Lord; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation! Habakkuk 3:17-18 (HCSB)

Economic conditions must never dictate our response to God. We must always praise Him. I'm thankful too that no conditions, good, bad, or otherwise, determines our relationship with Him.

The prophets final words:

Yahweh my Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like those of a deer and enables me to walk on mountain heights! . Habakkuk 3:19 (HCSB)

Amen!

Sam the Sham

I was listening to Elvis Radio Friday on Sirius and the George Klein Show--GK was interviewing Sam the Sham, who did "Wooly Bully," maybe the greatest party song of all time. Anyway, it took me to the summer of 1978 when I was part of a group that opened a show for Sam the Sham and Tony Joe White (wrote Polk Salad Annie). That was a good time!!

Faith and Church Size

Here is a fascinating study by Barna on faith and church size. It might be a little surprising to some. Off the top of my head I might have believed the opposite of the results.

Here's one interesting quote from the Barna report:

Despite the substantial attention focused on Protestant mega-churches, such congregations draw about 9% of adults who frequent a Protestant church. In contrast, 41% of adults attending a Protestant church associate with a congregation of 100 or fewer adults. An additional 23% can be found at churches of 101 to 200 adults, 18% associate with bodies of 201 to 499 adults, and 9% can be found in churches of 500 to 999 adults.

I keep saying we pay way too much attention to the mega church. Most people attend churches much smaller. One primary criticism I've had of the SBC for years is that leadership comes way too often from the large to mega-church when the vast majority of our churches are much smaller.

Fairview Tailgate

Everyone enjoyed the 1st annual Fairview Tailgate last night. Probably folks drove by and asked, 'What is that crazy church doing?' Well, we were having a good time. It's not good to be serious all the time. I'm already looking foward to next year.

Kostenberger on Church Government

Here's a paper I found on Dave Black's blog that will be of interest to some of my readers. Andreas Kostenberger of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary has written a paper on eccesiological issues of interest. I've read part of this and found it interesting. I'll comment on some of the issues a bit later when I've had time to digest it completely.

Choir

Here's the combined choirs of 13 Greer Baptist Association Churches getting ready for last night's 50th anniversary celebration at Fairview. They sounded great, and it was a wonderful night with over 1,000 in attendance.

GBA 50th

Fairview hosted Greer Baptist Association's 50th anniversary last night. I think we probably had over 1,000 in the worship center. I have some pics of the choir but for some reason they won't upload this morning. I'll try that again later, but I did want to particularly mention Richard Blackaby's message. He talked about how the church will be effective in the future.

• We must be on God's agenda and not on our's
• We cannot fear change
• We must invest in young people
• We must equip the saints

I've been hammering on these four points for a while in our church so his message was timely for us. A church that makes a difference cannot be concerned about the latest trends, fads, and books on the market. We can't look at programs or personalities. We must look only to God who has an individual will for each church.

If a church won't change it will die--period. He told the sad story of a church that refused the change to reach the neighborhood around it. They voted to watch themselves die. Sad, but that is exactly what many churches are doing. They's rather die than change.

If we don't invest in young people we will die as well. We're losing young adults at a staggering rate to the world. Dr. Blackaby was especially passionate on this point and it certainly resonated with me. The most important thing in my life is for my two college age kids to be serving God as adults and raising their families as they have been raised.

We must equip the saints, especially to understand what it means to be born again. One statement from last night--We will not get to heaven by raising our hands, praying a simple prayer, or signing a card. We will get to heaven just because we are a member of a Baptist church or any other church. We will get to heaven because we are born again. And born again people act like they are born again. I blogged recently about folks on the church roll who have the false impression they are saved when it is likely they aren't. Christian people don't continually live like the devil--Christian people live like their Lord!

It was a wonderful night of worship. I was honored we were able to host it.

Heaven

This is a good one from "Preaching Now" newsletter that I couldn't resist.

I was shocked, confused, bewildered
As I entered Heaven's door,
Not by the beauty of it all,
Nor the lights or its decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven
Who made me sputter and gasp—
The thieves, the liars, the sinners,
The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade
Who swiped my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor
Who never said anything nice.
Herb, who I always thought
Was rotting away in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,
Looking incredibly well.

I nudged Jesus,
"What's the deal?
I would love to hear Your take.
How'd all these sinners get up here?
God must've made a mistake.

"And why's everyone so quiet,
So somber--give me a clue.""
Hush, child," He said, "They're all in shock.
At the thought of seeing you." (from Mikey's Funnies)

Amen or Oh Me?

Church Discipline the Old Fashioned Way!

A Fairview member recently attended one of their old churches and brought back the bulletin. On the back of it is an interesting history note. I'll leave the church and city nameless.

In 1921 the Baptist Ministers' Association issued a resolution urging Baptist young people 'to show disapproval to dancing...by precept and example.' The measure was approved after an incident involving a member of (church name) who danced at a chaperoned event for high school graduates given by Governor and Mrs. Westmorland Davis at the governor's mansion. The woman was dismissed from the choir and told she could not teach Sunday School.

We used to "church" folks for all kinds of reasons. Now we don't do it at all. I wonder if there should be a happy medium?

Just musing...

Wedgwood

Today is the 10th annivesary of the shootings at Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth. I remember the day well. I was in the hallway waiting on my children at Travis Avenue Baptist Church when we began to hear about a shooting at Wedgwood. Seven people were killed and several were wounded. If you ever want to see how a congregation is to react to tragedy, look at Wedgwood. The church held a special time of observance of the anniversary this past Sunday.

Which Israel?

I was reading Jeremiah 31-32 this morning, which are chapters in which the prophet tells Israel of a future they would have after their time of chastisement for their sins. In 31:31-34, the New Covenant is proclaimed--a covenant not written on tablets of stone but on the heart. Then come verses 35-36:

³⁵ This is what the Lord says: The One who gives the sun for light by day, the fixed order of moon and stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea and makes its waves roar— the Lord of Hosts is His name: ³⁶ If this fixed order departs from My presence— [this is] the Lord’s declaration— then also Israel’s descendants will cease to be a nation before Me forever. Jeremiah 31:35-36 (HCSB)

This passage begs the question, Which Israel? Is the prophecy about the geographical/political nation Israel. Many believe that it is. But what does the New Testament say about Israel? Note Paul's statement: May peace be on all those who follow this standard, and mercy also be on the Israel of God! Galatians 6:16 (HCSB). It is obvious in Galatians that Paul has Christians on his mind. The Church has become the Israel of God.

An important hermeneutical principle when dealing with the Old Testament is that one must sift each passage through the New Testament. Does the New Testament change or at least tweak an idea found in the Old Testament? When one takes the promise of Jeremiah 31 and sifts it through the New Testament grid, it seems that there is a change. Israel is made up of Jews and Gentiles who have professed Christ as Savior.

Israel then will be a nation forever. But she will be nation of priests before God [1 Peter 2:9]. She is the Church of Jesus Christ!

Redemptive Preaching

This is from the recent PreachingNow newsletter.

In his new book Christ-Centered Worship (Baker), Bryan Chapell includes a chapter on sermons that begins with a reminder of the need for expository preaching. Then he continues: "But we need to be clear that the preacher's concern should not only be instructive. God is active in His Word, convicting the heart, renewing the mind, and strengthening the will. This means that preaching is not simply an instructive lecture; it is a redemptive event. If we only think of the sermon as a means of transferring information, then we will prioritize making the message dense with historical facts, moral instruction, and memory retention devices that prepare people for later tests of formal doctrine or factual knowledge. Such tests are rare. And most persons' ability to remember a sermon's content in following days can devastate the ego of a preacher whose primary goal is the congregation's doctrinal or biblical literacy."The needed reordering of priorities will not come by emptying the sermon of biblical content, but by preparing it for spiritual warfare and welfare. Our primary goal is not preparing people for later tests of mind or behavior, but rather humbling and strengthening the wills of God's people within the context of the sermon. Because God is active in His Word, we should preach with the conviction that the Spirit of God will use the truths of His Word as we preach to change hearts now! As hearts change, lives change -- even when sermon specifics are forgotten (Prov. 4:23). ..."The preacher's obligation to transform as well as inform should compel us to ensure that our sermons are an instrument of God's grace as well as a conduit for His truth."

Lord help me and others who preach Your Word remember this admonition!

Updated NIV

Baptist Press is reporting that there will be major revision of the NIV by 2011. It is ironic that the revision will come on the 400th anniversary of the KJV. The TNIV will be discontinued. The TNIV has been unfairly criticized for its so-called 'gender-inclusive' language. I think if one reads the TNIV without preconceived notions about it, he would find it an o.k. translation. I'm not a fan of dynamic equivalent translations but as they go the TNIV was fine. It was geared toward younger readers and seemed to meet that need.

I know some of the folks involved in putting the TNIV together. They certainly can't be accused of liberalism and bowing to a feminist agenda, however, that doesn't stop those who like to hurl those accusations.

Same Thing No Matter Where You Go

While in Honduras, I was part of an interesting conversation with one of our translators, Omar. Omar is called to ministry and has done some pastoral work and lots of evangelistic work in his country. We were told while there that it was very hard to reach young people in Honduras. When we asked Omar that question, he simply laughed. His response, "It's hard for churches who won't change." Then he began telling us about churches that are willing to change from its traditional music and dress to more contemporary modes of both. Those churches are reaching young people for Christ.

I laughed too beause that's just what we're talking about in America. The bottom line: if a church won't change it will die. Period! It makes no difference if that church is in Honduras or in South Carolina. Traditional churches need to understand that if they won't change, all they can look forward to is a slow death.

Jeremiah 17:5-8

I think we need to hear this word from the Lord.

⁵ This is what the Lord says: Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind, who makes [human] flesh his strength and turns his heart from the Lord. ⁶ He will be like a juniper in the Arabah; he cannot see when good comes but dwells in the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land where no one lives. ⁷ Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence indeed is the Lord. ⁸ He will be like a tree planted by water: it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn’t fear when heat comes, and its foliage remains green. It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit.

Do you trust in yourself or in man or do you trust in God? I think that is a good question for the times in which we live.

One More from Honduras

We flew 1500 miles to eat at Pizza Hut! This is just outside the Tegucigalpa airport. The pizza was pretty good!!

Ministry in Oropoli

Here I am with my fellow pastor, Malcolm Lance. We were helping to weigh people as they entered the medical clinic. Malcom was a great help; he's been in Honduras many times and knows the ropes. He serves at Cathey's Creek Baptist Church in Brevard, NC.

Oropoli, Honduras

This is the great view up the "hill" in Oropoli. You can see for miles. Folks in the U.S. would pay big bucks for a view like this.

Preaching in Honduras

I haven't had time to write much about my Honduras mission trip but it was a great time of ministry. Baptist Medical and Dental Ministries International [BMDMI] has a fruitful ministry that pretty much runs like a well-oiled machine. Here I am preaching under the "Gospel Tent" one morning getting folks ready to go to the medical clinic. We were in Oropoli, Honduras about 2 1/2 hours SE of the capitol. During the week over 24 hundred people were ministered to and heard the gospel.

Jeremiah's World and Ours

I've begun reading Jeremiah in my devotional time and when I got to chatper 2, verses 27-28 jumped off the page:

27 say to a tree: You are my father, and to a stone: You gave birth to me. For they have turned their back to Me and not their face, but in their time of disaster they beg: Rise up and save us! 28 But where are your gods you made for yourself? Let them rise up and save you in your time of disaster if they can, for your gods are as numerous as your cities, Judah. Jeremiah 2:27-28 (HCSB)

Jeremiah's world was not different than ours. How often we serve our idols but when we get in trouble we turn to God and ask that He get us out of it. Yet God asks, "Why can't the idols you serve get you out of trouble?"

Far too often people turn their backs on God, not really giving Him much of a place in their lives. Yet they go to church on Sunday, going through the relgious motions and cry out to God when the heat is turned up in their lives. We shouldn't expect God to come to the rescue; He won't.

God save us from this kind of hypocrisy.

A Praying Life

Here is a quick recommendation--read A Praying Life by Paul E Miller (Navpress, 2009). Miller is director of seeJesus.net. From Miller's personal and family life, he gives the reader an honest, everyday look at the vital importance of being connected with the Heavenly Father through prayer. After reading the book, I thought: "Prayer makes a difference every day!"

There are several practical helps in the last section of the book as well. Miller greatly challenged me in many ways. I try to read a book on prayer once a year. This is the best one I've read in the last several!

Church of What's Happening Now

Cal Thomas has an excellent editorial, published in Wednesday's Greenville News that you should read: "Church of What's Happening Now Embraces Everything." It deals with the recent decision of the Episcopal Church to end the ban on the ordination of gay bishops and permit marriage 'blessings' for same-sex couples. The denomination explains the decision is to stem the exodus from their church by embracing a new doctrine they call 'inclusivity' which they hope will attract young people.

Thomas rightly criticizes the decision as having nothing to do with the foundational truths set forth in Scripture. Thomas writes, The church is inclusive only for those who are adopted by faith into God's family. There are more biblical references to this than there is room to cite here, but for the Episcopal leadership, biblical references no longer have power to persuade, much less compel them to conform. That's because Episcopal leadership denied the teachings of Scripture, in for of, well, inclusivity, a word that appears nowhere in Scripture. Even if it did, Episcopal heretics--for that is what they are--would choose another word to make them feel more comfortable, since accommodation with the world seems to be a more important objective than the favor of God.

Thank God for men like Cal Thomas, who still write/speak the truth. By the way, Thomas takes time in the article to also criticize Jimmy Carter, who also embraces same-sex civil unions.

An Episcopalian priest was a neighbor of mine in Texas. His church, along with several others in the state, had pulled out of the denomination over this issue. This man believed the Word and would not stand for compromise. There are many God-fearing, Bible believing Episcopalians who do not support this kind of rebellion against God. Thank God for them too!

By the way I went to www.calthomas.com to find the column but did not--apparently it has not been posted yet. However on his site are archived columns and comments.

Jamaica Pic 2

Here's Lesa doing what she loves in Jamaica!

Jamaica Pic

Lesa and Steph recently ministered a week in Jamaica. It was a blessing to them both. Here is Steph with one of the many friends she made.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to my blushing bride--Lesa. She's in Jamaica with Steph on a mission trip so we'll celebate later!

Church Rolls and Hebrews 6:4-6

Earlier this week we had a discussion in my New Testament survey class at North Greenville about the warning passages in Hebrews. Of particular interest to most is Hebrews 6:4-6, where it appears on the surface that one can lose his/her salvation. I interpret the passage as the writer warning those who 'profess' but do not 'possess' Christ. Examples of this would be Judas and Simon Magus in the NT as well as Jesus' Parable of the Sower.

I've been meditating on this passage with regard to the membership rolls of most SBC churches. Many folks on our roll who do not attend could not be found by the FBI. The great majority of them have not darkened the door of the church in years. I wonder if many of them give the church even the slightest thought. Some may but most probably do not.

What is their problem? I suspect the great majority are in the spiritual condition that concerns the writer of Hebrews. Many of these folks are simply not saved. They tasted the heavenly gift, became companions with the Holy Spirit, and tasted God's good word and His power, but simply never received Christ. They've professed but never possessed. They've walked down an aisle, filled out a membership card, perhaps even been baptized, but they've never been born again.

This condition is dangerous on a number of levels. What concerns me most is that many of these folks are putting their eternal security on church membership instead of Jesus. If you are placing your security on church membership, you're no better off than the folks of the book of Hebrews, many of whom were retreating back to Judaism instead of turning fully to Christ.

The problem of church rolls is a conundrum for the traditional church. Many see the church roll as sacrosanct. Every time I've ever brought it up, I get the "we've got to keep them because..." argument. The 'because' is usually, "If we drop them how can we minister to them?" Could it be that by warning them they could be dropped from the roll, sharing what biblical discipleship is all about, and reminding them of the importance of the church, is ministering to them?

Remember this: the church roll book is not the same as God's book, the Lamb's Book of Life. It is likely past time that church's stop contributing to this false sense of security, purge their rolls, and call people back to a personal relationship with Christ that is lived out in the community of His church. The church needs to hold its membership accountable and warn those who fall away that God's children persevere. We must warn in love, but doesn't love compel us to warn?

Thomas on Adultery

Cal Thomas' recent column on the Sanford 'affair' is insightful and should be read and thought about. Note a couple of paragraphs:

One can make excuses about power and loneliness and starting out as a friendship that develops into something else, as Gov. Sanford rambled on about, but one can’t explain adultery. It is what it is and the person who commits it should be calling on God for mercy, not the voters for understanding.

I once asked evangelist Billy Graham if he experienced temptations of the flesh when he was young. He said, “of course.” How did he deal with them? With passion he responded, “I asked God to strike me dead before He ever allowed me to dishonor Him in that way.” That is the kind of seriousness one needs to overcome the temptations of a corrupt culture in which shameful behavior is too often paraded in the streets.

Read the column; it will cause you to pause and ask for God's help and mercy.

Great Commission Task Force

The SBC this week approved as expected the formation of the Great Commission Task Force. It looks like a pretty good group, although I wonder if it is truly representative of the entire SBC. A couple of thoughts come to mind when I look over the list. First, there is no one from the mid-west (I don't think Kentucky is considered mid-west). Ronnie Floyd is as close as you get in Springdale, Arkansas. There are five members from Florida!

As usual, the super-church/very large church is represented the most. As far as I can tell (and I could be wrong), Mike Orr of First Baptist Chipley, Florida, is the only pastor of what I would call a medium size Baptist Church. By the way, I don't know Mike but I know FBC. I served in the Chipley area for over five years and FBC is a good congregation. There are no small churches represented as far as I can tell. I'm not sure of the membership/attendance of St. Andrew's in Panama City, but I know it wouldn't be termed small. Five of the members are denominational and three are educators.

I'm not sure what this group will be able to do, but I'm looking forward to hearing from them.

The Sanford "Affair"

You can't go anywhere today without hearing about the Sanford "affair." For those not from SC, you've probably heard the story about our governor; it's all over the news. I've reflected on all this from a biblical perspective and here are some random thoughts.

• We live in a fallen world and people sin, and sin always has terrible consequences.
• Integrity matters--always. A good name is better than riches [Prov 22:1].
• Believers must always have a heart of compassion and forgiveness [Matthew 18].
• Believers must never put too much trust in politics or politicians--our citizenship is in heaven and only our Lord is perfect!
• Believers have a responsibility to pray for our leaders [1 Timoth 2:1-3]. One thought that crossed my mind this morning was--if Christians prayed more for leaders, praying for a spiritual mind, a submissive spirit, and protection from the evil one, would this happen less frequently? God convicted me to be less critical and more prayerful.

I think too I must be consistent with this. When President Clinton was caught in his affair with Monica Lewinski, I believed strongly that he broke the public's trust and should resign. Contrary to his supporters, I believed then that his affair showed a basic flaw in character that inhibits sound decision making. I believe that now about Governor Sanford. He should resign. There's a problem deep down in his soul that also inhibits sound decision making. Besides, he should concern himself now with healing himself and his family.

I've committed myself to pray for the governor and his family. I hope you'll join me.

Steph's Blog

Stephanie is on mission this summer in Florence, SC. She is working with the Florence Baptist Association through the North American Mission Board. She has set up a blog to share some of her experiences. Lesa and I are extremely proud of what she's doing. I know Steph would appreciate your prayers as she continues the work through the end of July.

New Boy Friend

We recently attended a Greenville Drive game. Looks like Steph found a date!!

The Need for Silence

Al Mohler's always insightful blog has an entry today about the need for silence. Primarily he discusses children but the need is just as real for adults.

Similarly, I've just begun the book A Praying Life by Paul Miller. I read this only a couple of hours before Mohler's blog. He writes:

American culture is probably the hardest place in the world to learn to pray. We prize accomplishments, production. But prayer is nothing but talking to God. It feels useless, as if we are wasting time. Every bone in our bodies screams, 'Get to work.'

When we aren't working, we are used to being entertained. Television, the Internet, video games, and cell phones make free time as busy as work. When we do slow down, we slip into a stupor. Exhausted by the pace of life, we veg out in front of a screen or with earplugs.

If we try to be quiet, we are assaulted by what C.S. Lewis called 'the Kingdom of Noise.' Everywhere we go we hear the background noise. If the noise isn't provided for us, we can bring our own via iPod.

How true. I've become more and more enamored with silence. To use a quote from a recent blog entry, I've been working on 'ruthlessly eliminating hurry.' That would include having to have noise all the time.

I've never been able to truly study with noise or read with any kind of comprehension when there is something else going on. My staff here at Fairview laugh because I've always got a fan going [even in winter]. It is used primarily to drown out any extemporaneous noise. I'm applying that more and more to my spiritual life with increasing benefits. Try silence. You'll like it.

"Be still and know I am God" [Psalm 46:10].

Spiritual Leadership

This is from the latest "Preaching Now" newsletter.

An unclear understanding of spiritual maturity may be an underlying reason why there is so little progress in seeing people develop spiritually in the United States, despite overwhelming access to churches and unlimited products and resources, The Barna Group says."America has a spiritual depth problem partly because the faith community does not have a robust definition of its spiritual goals," David Kinnaman, Barna's president, said. "The study shows the need for new types of spiritual metrics."Barna found that most Christians equate spiritual maturity with following the rules described in the Bible.

Also, many churchgoers were unable to identify how their church defines spiritual maturity. Most Christians, Barna said, offer one-dimensional views of personal spiritual maturity, giving answers such as having a relationship with Jesus, living a moral lifestyle or applying the Bible.Most pastors struggle with articulating a specific set of objectives for spirituality and instead list activities over attitudes, the study said.

Pastors are willing to acknowledge that a lack of spiritual maturity is one of the largest problems in the nation, but few of them say spiritual immaturity is a problem in their church.When Barna asked the 600-plus pastors who were part of the survey to identify biblical references to chart spiritual maturity, most gave generic responses such as "the whole Bible," "the gospels" or "the New Testament." Just 2 percent mentioned the Galatians 5 passage listing the fruit of the Spirit."

One new metric might be a renewed effort on the part of leaders to articulate the outcomes of spiritual growth. Another might be the relational engagement and accountability that people maintain," Kinnaman said. "Of course, spirituality is neither a science nor a business, so there is a natural resistance to ascribing scientific or operational standards to what most people believe is an organic process."Yet, the process of spiritual growth is neither simplistic nor without guidelines, so hard work and solid thinking in this arena is needed."

(Baptist Press, 6-1-09; click here to read the full story.)

My own view is that spiritual maturity can be clearly guaged by Galatians 5. Is the fruit of the Spirit recognizable in an individual's life? I guage my own spiritual growth by sifting my life through that passage. Spiritual maturity is not measured in activities but in fruit.

Speaking Your Mind

Every once in a while someone will hurt another and rationalize it by saying, "I always speak my mind." I was reminded today reading David Jeremiah's devotional that speaking one's mind is not always the right and loving thing to do. Let's be reminded of the following Scriptures:

• A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man holds it in check. [Prov 29:11]
• My dearly loved brothers, understand this: everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger [James 1:19]
• The one who guards his mouth protects his life; the one who opens his lips invites his own ruin [Prov 13:3]
• No rotten talk should come from your mouth, but only what is good for the building up of someone in need, in order to give grace to those who hear. [Eph 4:29]

Remember all things, especially your speech, should be done in love. Most of the time "speaking my mind" means I'm going to say something hurtful. That's not the job of the believer. The job of the believer is to lift people up, not tear them down.

Just musing.

Number 21

This is a week late (it's been pretty busy around here!), but here's what a 21 year old looks like!!

Happy 21--Andrew

The Erosion of Inerrancy

The third mini-review from my vacation is G.K. Beale's The Erosion of Inerrancy in Evangelicalism. Beale's concern is that a significant number of evangelicals are moving away from the Chicago Statement on Inerrancy and embracing more postmodern interpretive methods, causing less confidence in the propositional claims of the Bible.

Primarily Beale debates Peter Enns, whom Beale sees as a primary example of those who are moving away from inerrancy. Enns' book, Inspiration and Incarnation: Evangelicals and the Problem of the Old Testament, is Beale's primary target. There are chapters concerning OT narratives [primarily those in Genesis], how OT texts are handled in the NT, the authorship of Isaiah, and OT cosmology.

Can the Bible contain myth and still be considered authoritative? Can inspiration for the Bible be maintained if it contains distortions of history? Did Jesus and the apostles misinterpret the OT? If Jesus taught that Isaiah wrote all his prophecy, can one hold to Second or Third Isaiah and still hold to the authority of Scripture? Does the OT borrow mythological beliefs about the cosmos that are clearly incompatible with modern scientific knowledge? These are important questions dealt with by the author as the book unfolds. Beale is concerned that these questions once posed by liberal theologians are now being asked from within evangelicalism. He is rightly concerned. If evangelicals continue to move along the lines outlined in this book, we all better be concerned!

I would urge a reading of this book to open one's eyes to what is happening in larger evangelicalism.

The Attentive Life

As mentioned earlier, I had the chance to catch up on some reading on my recent vacation. The best book I read was The Attentive Life by Leighton Ford. For Ford, the great sin Christians commit is that of inattention to God and what He is doing in your life. Ford writes: "We live in an age of continuous partial attention." This partial attention is a major hindrance in our relationship to God because it is sin. He quotes the Quaker writer Douglas Steere: "For prayer is awakeness, attention, intense inward openness. In a certain way sin could be described . . . as anything that destroys this attention" [26]. Ford's solution--practice in some way the Benedictine Hours, from Vigils to Compline. For the author, these divine hours are not just for one's day but for one's life.

The book then is structured along the "Hours." In each chapter there is a description of the "Hour," a biblical/devotional development of it, and an example of one "Who Paid Attention."

If distraction is the primary problem of most believers (and I agree that it is), then this book is at least a partial remedy. Some salient quotes:

• The true mystics . . . are not those who contemplate holiness in isolation, reaching godlike illumination in serene silence, but those who manage to find God in a world filled with noise, the demands of other people and making a living [quoting Kathleen Norris].
• The great irony of our wired age of communication is that many of our children are growing up information rich and imigination poor.
• To pray without ceasing is not to think about God rather than other things, or to talk to God instead of to other people, but rather to think, speak and live in the presence of God [quoting Henri Nouwen].
• Love is focused attention.
• Hurry is the great enemy of life in the Spirit.
• Ruthlessly eliminate hurry! [The key to keeping the 'fast lane' from ruining one's spiritual life]
• Death, some small, some huge, may be God's way of bringing transformation and new life.

You get the idea. There are many quotes and scriptural references that bring life to this book. Ford has written something we all need. He is calling for something we all need to do. We all need to slow down and pay attention to the One who always pays attention to us. You need to read this one!

Ending of Mark

I read several books during my recent vacation. I'll comment on three of them over the next few days. David Alan Black has edited, Perspectives on the Ending of Mark. The book consists of papers shared during a 2007 conference held at Southeastern Seminary.

Whether or not Mark 16:9-20 is original is something text critics and Bible students have grappled with for centuries. By and large there are three major views: (1) The Gospel ended at v. 8; (2) vv. 9-20 belonged with the Gospel from the start; and (3) the ending was lost. Those views were touted by Daniel Wallace, Maurice Robinson, and Keith Elliott, respectively. David Alan Black adds a chapter in which he touts his own proposal for solving the Synoptic Problem (see his Why Four Gospels?]. Black believes Mark wrote vv. 9-20 as an addendum to the Gospel later.

Each of the chapters is well done and clearly outlines the proposal championed. I have in recent years come to the conclusion that Mark ended his work at v. 8 and vv. 9-20 are secondary. That just seems to me to be the easiest and best explanation. However, as this work makes clear, one must hold to his view on these verses tentatively. The last word has yet to be spoken or written about them.

If you want a clear outline of the major ways this text is handled, this book is for you. I highly recommend it. All the chapters were a good read and stimulated further thought and study on my part.

Myrtle Beach 2009

Vacations are awesome but end too soon! We had a great time on Myrtle Beach. It was bike-week but that didn't bother us too much, surprisingly.

Divine Interruptions

This morning God turned my attention to Amos 7:14: So Amos answered Amaziah, “I was not a prophet or the son of a prophet; rather, I was a herdsman, and I took care of sycamore figs. The High Priest has warned Amos to stop prophesying and go back home where he belongs. Amos simply says he cannot. He had been living his life, tending to his business, when God interrupted and called him to be a prophet.

God specializes in divine interruptions. As you move along your day, look for them. They are divine opportunities to get in on kingdom work. Because He's God, He has a right to intervene in our lives anytime He chooses. It is up to us to be ready.

Ask God today to give you a discerning spirit. Ask Him to open your eyes and heart to those divine interruptions, opportunities to do something eternal. He's working. Are you ready?

A Christian Take on Mother's Day

Al Mohler is always articulate on the "now" issues. Here is part of his recent take on Mother's Day.

The Christian vision of motherhood is more about courage and faithfulness than about sentimentalism. The mothers of the Bible are a tough lot. Jochebed put her baby in a floating ark of bulrushes, defying the order of Pharaoh that all Hebrew male children be put to death. Rachel, mother to Joseph and Benjamin, died giving birth to Benjamin. Hannah promised her son to God, and presented Samuel as a young boy for service in the House of the Lord. Mary, the mother of Jesus, risked shame and disgrace to bear the Savior, and to provide all Christians with a model of brave and unflinching obedience. She was there when Jesus Christ was crucified. As Simeon had told her just after the birth of Christ, "Behold this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed." [Luke 2:34-35]
A corsage hardly seems appropriate.

Christians must resist the reduction of motherhood to sentimentality, and particularly that sentimentalism that undermines what mothers are truly to represent -- nurture, fortitude, courage, dedication, faithfulness, discipline, and trust in God.

Mother's Day is a bad idea because it subverts the reality of faithful mothering and robs faithful mothers of their true glory. Mothers deserving of honor are handed cards and taken to lunch, when songs of praise should instead be offered to the glory of God. Undeserving mothers, who abdicate their true responsibility, are honored just because they are mothers. Children, young and old, who ignore and dishonor their mothers by word and by life throughout the year, assuage their guilt by making a big deal of Mother's Day.
So, Mother's Day is a bad idea.

Then again, Mother's Day is impossible to ignore. What quality of ingratitude marks the son or daughter (or husband) who does not honor mothers on Mother's Day? There was I yesterday, with son and daughter, honoring both their mother (my dear wife, Mary) and my mother-in-law. Yes, we had a celebratory meal out and we passed out greeting cards with our own personal inscriptions. Gifts were delivered, and all the right things were said. Calls were made to my mother, several states away.
In the end, we are all like little children who push crumpled hand-made greeting cards toward Mom, who then accepts our grubby offerings with love and gratitude.

So much for avoiding sentimentality. Let's just make certain that there is more to Mother's Day than sentiment. The mothers we should honor are those who raise children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, who honor their marriages and live faithfully, who teach and nurture and discipline by the Bible. These are mothers who defy the spirit of the age, protect their children from danger, maintain godly discipline and order in the home, and feed their children the pure milk of God's Word.

These mothers deserve honor upon honor, and their reward will be great in heaven. Yet, in the meantime, a card and a kiss on Mother's Day won't hurt. It's just not nearly enough

I couldn't agree more!

A Case for Historic Premillennialism

I've just finished a book edited by Craig Blomberg and Sung Wook Chung that presents a strong case (finally) for historic premillennialism. Most of the contributions in A Case for Historic Premillennialism: An Alternative to 'Left Behind' Eschatology come from papers presented by faculty members at Denver Seminary.

The chapters are:

• "Dispensational and Historic Premillennialism as Popular Millennialist Movements" by Timothy P. Weber. The bottom line of this article is that Dispensationalists [D] have done a much better job than Historic Premillennialists [HP] in relaying their story. HP is primarily found in academia while D is found in the pews of churches.
• "The Future Written in the Past: The OT and the Millennium" by Richard S. Hess. In this study Hess concludes that God will allow his people to go through tribulation and will bring them through it to demonstrate his faithfulness to his people.
• "Judaism and the World to Come" by Helene Dallaire. Dallaire surveys Jewish texts concerning life after death. Her conclusion is that there is no single systematized statement on the Jewish understanding of life after death.
• "The Postribulationism of the NT" by Craig Blomberg. Blomberg primarily surveys the word translated "tribulation" and its verbal cognates in the NT. His conclusion is that no where does God ever promise that his children will be removed from it--even the so called Great Tribulation. He also deals with the rapture question and why the church missing from Rev 4 and following.
• "The Theological Method of Premillennialism by Don Payne. His thesis is stated clearly: "Premillennialism depends upon a distinct theological method that involves factors and influences beyond its commitment to certain hermeneutical and exegetical procedures" [90]. Those influences include tradition, reason, and experience. This article is especially interesting in that most premillennialists simply refer to the Scripture as their lone authority.
• "Contemporary Millennial/Tribulational Debates: Whose Side Was the Early Church On? by Donald Fairbairn. The author states that chiliastic expectations were clear in the patristic period and that the shift away from premillennialism in the third and four centuries is due primarily to philosophical concerns. A pretribulatinal rapture was not in the minds of patristic writers, and they expected believers to be present and to suffer during the Great Tribulation. An interesting insight was that patristic writers used eschatology in their battle against heresy, particularly Gnosticism. Perhaps the church should learn a lesson in its contemporary battle against the same heresy.
• There are two other chapters--one dealing with Reformed theology and the other with Latin American evangelicalism that I didn't find as helpful but I'm sure others will.

Historic Premillennialism is, I think, the best way to explain eschatological issues. It is not perfect; no eschatological system will be because of our many limitations. This book will not replace "Left Behind" on the popular level, but it does give those who embrace HP already some help in verbalizing and defending what they believe. I highly recommend this book no matter what eschatological system one holds.

Youth, Arrogance, and the Church

In a recent column, Cal Thomas commented on remarks made by John McCain's daughter, Meghan. She believes she knows why her father lost the election last year and what the GOP needs to do in the future: Republicans need to be more like Democrats. Thomas writes: "McCain said Republicans needed to look forward, be more modern, forget the past (presumably she means those Reagan and Republican congressional victories) and adopt new beliefs."

Thomas is rightly critical of Meghan McCain and others like her: "Dissing the past is a quality found mostly in arrogant youth who think they know more than anyone who has ever lived and believe only they are sufficiently enlightened enough to tell the rest of us how and what to think. But the past and those who have gone before are great teachers for moderns who would learn. The writer of Ecclesiastes noted that there is “nothing new under the sun.” And there’s also this, “Is there any thing whereof it may be said, ‘See, this is new’? It hath been already of old time, which was before us.”'

Meghan McCain reminds me of some younger ministers today. The Baptist Courier has an article in this week's edition on the need for younger ministers to be involved in SBC leadership. Some of the comments are very insightful, but there was one in particular that caught my attention and reflects many younger than I:

Billy Baugus, 41, youth and children’s pastor at First Baptist Church, Wagener, said Southern Baptists “spend way too much time stuck in the past” and that 1950s-era Sunday school and traditional worship services are no longer effective in reaching what he calls the “now” generation. “We must be willing to change our ways and bring the word of God in relevant means to this generation,” he said.

Bro. Baugus' comments are much like those of McCain's and are not really helpful. Getting rid of traditonal approaches is not the answer to the problems the SBC or any other denomination faces in our post-Christian society. If every church today got rid of traditonal worship and Sunday School, and decided to move in a completely new direction, I doubt very seriously that our baptism numbers would go up sigificantly. The answer to the downward trend in membership and baptisms is to be found spiritually not functionally.

By the way, I'm in favor of ministers of all ages being involved in SBC leadership. I'm also in favor of new methods. I'm not stuck in the past. However, the past always has a great deal to teach us. Some of it is even good.

There are great men of God upon whose shoulders we all stand. I'm thinking we can still learn from them. For what it's worth, I think we can learn from the younger guys too.