No objectivity…

I have two or three posts that have been bouncing around in my head the last few weeks – all of them related to Fundamentalism (that’s capital F “Fundamentalism”)…  The main reason I haven’t posted them (and won’t for some time) is that, as one close friend pointed out, I have no objectivity.  I’m worried that my legitimate ‘concerns’ regarding that system have grown into an attitude that is unloving, ungracious and unhelpful – leaking into how I interact (or don’t because I just can’t take it) with those in that movement that I formerly counted as close friends.

The recent death of my friend, who over time would have been a close friend, has brought to the surface of my mind much of what is wrong with that brand of Christianity labeled as Fundamentalism and removed whatever objectivity may have existed prior.

So, I wait and pray and will at some time write about this.  But for now I wait for a return to objectivity.

A great answer to the question, “Why should I want to be a Christian?”

Watch video here:  http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/MediaPlayer/4402/Video/

(Text from the desiring God blog @ http://ow.ly/Gn3V)

The following is an edited transcript of the audio.

Why should I want to be a Christian?

All of our wants are either toward something or away from something, aren’t they?

In other words, I don’t want pain and I do want pleasure. And those are just two words to use. You can use other words: discomfort, agony, horror. Or pick the pains that you don’t like: loneliness, etc.

So there’s a whole group of things that we don’t want. And then there’s a whole group of things that we do want: pleasure, delight, joy, satisfaction.

Christianity is Christ Jesus the Son of God, eternal, coming into the world to save sinners who have earned for themselves God’s punishment because of our neglecting God, rebelling against God, ignoring God, despising God, refusing God, walking away from God, minimizing God.

Everybody has done this. Christians still do it, unbelievers do it. Nobody owns up to the value of God to the degree that we should. And God is infinitely valuable and infinitely worthy of our trust and our love. Yet nobody does it. Therefore we’re all under his just judgment and we’re going to be sentenced one day to a lake of fire called the second death or hell.

And to trust in Jesus’ work on our behalf, when he died in our place, delivers us from the wrath to come.

So the first reason is the negative one: all those horrible things that will come upon us if we continue to rebel against God won’t come upon us if we trust in Christ who offers himself to us as a way of escape.

So that’s the negative side. But far more satisfying is, “Why would you want to get out of hell? Or why would you want to have your sins forgiven? Or why would you want to be reconciled with God?” And the answer to those questions is, “To have infinite satisfaction with God forever and ever.”

A clean conscience? Yes. Forgiven sins? Yes. Out of hell? Yes. In heaven? Yes. New heavens and new earth? Yes. Lion lying down with the lamb? Yes. Restored with Mom and Dad who were Christians? Yes. But that’s not the ultimate satisfaction.

The ultimate satisfaction is that you are going to be with Jesus. You’re going to see infinite glory in Jesus.

So why should you want—want—to be a Christian? It’s because you don’t want eternal pain. You do want eternal pleasure.

Hell is eternal pain, and we’re all going there without believing in Jesus. And God is eternal pleasure: “In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).

So if you want full pleasures—that is, 100%, not 85% or 99%—and eternal pleasures—not just 80 years, but 80 ages of years—then become a Christian. That is, renounce self-reliance and embrace Jesus Christ as the Savior and Lord and Treasure of your life. And you will have infinite pleasures in his presence forever.

I think that’s a pretty good reason for wanting to be a Christian.

Longing for this day…

As if a reminder was needed – a recent tragedy in our family again makes me long for the day when God will bring these verses to pass…

Rev. 21.1 ¶ Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
Rev. 21.2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev. 21.3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,
Rev. 21.4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”
Rev. 21.5 ¶ And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He *said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.

Great post from the IX Marks blog…

November 20, 2009

Learning to be Yourself as a Preacher: From One Still Trying to Do Just That

by Kevin DeYoung

When Phillips Brooks famously defined preaching as “the communication of truth through personality” I do believe he was talking about your own personality and not someone else’s.  It has taken me awhile, but I finally feel like I have learned to be myself in the pulpit.  Now whether this means my sermons are better or worse I can’t say.  But being myself means my preaching is more genuine, more comfortable, and more sustainable.  I know I have a lot to learn as a preacher, and I hope that ten years from now I’ll still get those awkward but true compliments–“your preaching has really improved over the years.” But at 32 I feel like I’m finally preaching the truth through my own personality.

Like most young preachers, and not a few old ones, I’ve struggled to find my “voice” as a preacher.  When I was in college I started devouring the Reformers and Puritans.  Everything I read seemed to be either hundreds of years old or was translated hundreds of years ago.  As a result, my writing (I wasn’t doing much preaching at the time) sounded like I was aiming for the “just translated from Latin” award.  My sentences were often elephantine.  The grammar was antiquated and there were simply too many words.  A very fine professor who affirmed me in many ways challenged me to write for my own century, not for the century of my heroes.  It was painful advice at the time.  I wasn’t quite sure I trusted him.  After all, wasn’t it a mark of piety to use words like “behoove” “calumny” and “obfuscate”?  Well, it wasn’t.  I need to be myself and not put on puritan-sounding airs.  (Incidentally, my cousin, and classmate during college, had a wonderful t-shirt at the time that read “Eschew Obfuscation.”  And he was the one with a girlfriend during all four years!  Go figure.)…..

Read the rest here…

Great article…

Whatever your thoughts are on Mark Driscoll, I think you’ll find the following article well written, fair, and clear.

http://assets.marshillchurch.org/media/Audio/ESV%20Statement%20Version%204%200_final.pdf

God’s mercy…

“(There was none who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of the LORD like Ahab, whom Jezebel his wife incited. He acted very abominably in going after idols, as the Amorites had done, whom the LORD cast out before the people of Israel.)
And when Ahab heard those words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his flesh and fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about dejectedly. And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days; but in his son’s days I will bring the disaster upon his house.””
(1 Kings 21.25–29 ESV)

Is there any greater juxtaposition of man’s evil and God’s mercy?  “There was none who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of the Lord” is followed by “Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days…”  Unbelievable.  More unbelievable, perhaps, is my heart crying out for this man’s punishment and my incredulity at his being spared – completely overlooking the mercy that is shown to me on an hourly basis…

separation…

unified body?

the hand is white and pristine

the foot is unclean

on my birthday…

I posted this on fb a while back but not surprisingly I’ve been going over it in my head all day today – this being my first ever birthday without a Dad…  He was a great man and it is hard to express just how much I miss him.

 

I must have been turning 7 or 8 (not exactly sure) and was anticipating a fantastic birthday. However, unknown to me, we were quite poor.  With both parents involved in the Christian school, we simply did not have much money and I was told by my Mom and Dad that they were not going to be able to buy me presents. I can still remember my disappointment at the news – I don’t think I was angry, just sad…  I can still remember that birthday (I think – but you know how time changes our memories) my Dad pulling into the driveway and unloading  multiple presents – including some wicked awesome walkie-talkies that had morse code buttons on them and a nerf soccer ball…  I could only think that they had been pulling my leg the whole time (and if you know my Dad you know this was entirely possible) and had intentionally thrown me off track to make the surprise bigger.

I wouldn’t learn until after my high school years how this event came to pass. My Dad, my loving, generous Dad not having any money because he worked for a school that paid him something like 12k a year (married w/three kids) pawned his wedding ring to buy some birthday presents for his only son.

Someone told me recently that, after many years (I think they told me it had been 14 years or something)  you can begin to have these kind of great memories minus the pain.  I must say, I am looking forward to that but in the meantime am “happy” for the pain which is commensurate with the loss…

16 years ago (October 2) I met my wife…

cool fall evening

life would never be the same

i was unaware

random haiku

who is ben hoffman

random inane blog poster

angry liberal