A Year in Review

Well, here we are with the end of another year behind us and the beginning of a new one ahead of us. The older I get the faster they seem to go. That makes me wonder how much faster time must be going for Ralton! Of all the years I've lived, this is certainly the one that things have changed the most for me. Things have changed for all of us this year. We serve a great God who by His providence has brought us to where we are now. I wanted to list a simple few things, some big and some small, that have really made 2008 a great year for me. In no particular order they are:

-Attending the service on the lake at Clyde Pedigo's house where Grace Community Church was born on May 25.

-I would say watching the Giants win the Super Bowl but that wasn't the best thing about that game to me. The best part was watching the Patriots LOSE the Super Bowl and become the worst ever 18-1 team in NFL history.

-Though it was also one of the saddest moments in my year, it was certainly a hilight to see my little brother off at the airport as he left for basic training in the Air Force.

-While visiting my older brother in Murfreesboro, TN I received a phone call that Sunday afternoon from my mother telling me that my good friend Jared Barnett had been saved that morning. Jared's baptism also took place on May 25 at the first GCC service.

-Getting to hear and meet John MacArthur at Bel Aire Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, TN. Fellow blog mate Haze was with me as well.

-Getting to preach my first ever sermon at Grace Community Church in August.

-Attending the metting of the Evangelical Theological Society in November and having the privelage of hearing great men speak such as Daniel Wallace, Albert Mohler and John Piper

-Enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday with my mother's side of the family (especially playing football!!).

-Enjoying the CHRISTmas holiday with my dad's side of the family.

-Getting to see The Dark Knight, even though I lamented the fact that it was laced with Nihilism.

-Getting to start this blog with you guys

-Graciously being asked to preach my first wedding by my good friends Kiril and Nicole Galloway

-But the No. 1 hilight of my entire year and perhaps my entire life was attending the Together for the Gospel conference in April with my mother and some of my best friends in the world. What a blessing that was and still continues to be in my life

There is a litany of other things I could list but this list should safice. I would love to hear how the Lord blessed you guys this past year. I know we all have many things to be thankful for. I hope it pleases God to give you a wonderful 2009. As Numbers 6 says:

The LORD bless you, and keep you;
The LORD make His face shine on you,
And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance on you,
And give you peace.

The Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards

As we are now past Christmas and look forward to the new year, many people will start the year coming up with "New Year Resolutions". I thought I would share something from Jonathan Edwards. May we strive this year to do all for the glory of God in 2009!


THE RESOLUTIONS
of
Jonathan Edwards

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BEING SENSIBLE THAT I AM UNABLE TO DO ANYTHING WITHOUT GOD' S HELP, I DO HUMBLY ENTREAT HIM BY HIS GRACE TO ENABLE ME TO KEEP THESE RESOLUTIONS, SO FAR AS THEY ARE AGREEABLE TO HIS WILL, FOR CHRIST' S SAKE.

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Remember to read over these Resolutions once a week.

1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to God' s glory, and my own good, profit and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without any consideration of the time, whether now, or never so many myriads of ages hence. Resolved to do whatever I think to be my duty and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general. Resolved to do this, whatever difficulties I meet with, how many soever, and how great soever.

2. Resolved, to be continually endeavoring to find out some new contrivance and invention to promote the aforementioned things.

3. Resolved, if ever I shall fall and grow dull, so as to neglect to keep any part of these Resolutions, to repent of all I can remember, when I come to myself again.

4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, whether in soul or body, less or more, but what tends to the glory of God; nor be, nor suffer it, if I can avoid it.

5. Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can.

6. Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live.

7. Resolved, never to do anything, which I should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of my life.

8. Resolved, to act, in all respects, both speaking and doing, as if nobody had been so vile as I, and as if I had committed the same sins, or had the same infirmities or failings as others; and that I will let the knowledge of their failings promote nothing but shame in myself, and prove only an occasion of my confessing my own sins and misery to God. July 30.

9. Resolved, to think much on all occasions of my own dying, and of the common circumstances which attend death.

10. Resolved, when I feel pain, to think of the pains of martyrdom, and of hell.

11. Resolved, when I think of any theorem in divinity to be solved, immediately to do what I can towards solving it, if circumstances do not hinder.

12. Resolved, if I take delight in it as a gratification of pride, or vanity, or on any such account, immediately to throw it by.

13. Resolved, to be endeavoring to find out fit objects of charity and liberality.

14. Resolved, never to do any thing out of revenge.

15. Resolved, never to suffer the least motions of anger towards irrational beings.

16. Resolved, never to speak evil of anyone, so that it shall tend to his dishonor, more or less, upon no account except for some real good.

17. Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.

18. Resolved, to live so, at all times, as I think is best in my devout frames, and when I have clearest notions of things of the gospel, and another world.

19. Resolved, never to do any thing, which I should be afraid to do, if I expected it would not be above an hour, before I should hear the last trump.

20. Resolved, to maintain the strictest temperance, in eating and drinking.

21. Resolved, never to do any thing, which if I should see in another, I should count a just occasion to despise him for, or to think any way the more meanly of him. (Resolutions 1 through 21 written in one setting in New Haven in 1722)

22. Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence, yea violence, I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of.

23. Resolved, frequently to take some deliberate action, which seems most unlikely to be done, for the glory of God, and trace it back to the original intention, designs and ends of it; and if I find it not to be for God' s glory, to repute it as a breach of the 4th Resolution.

24. Resolved, whenever I do any conspicuously evil action, to trace it back, till I come to the original cause; and then, both carefully endeavor to do so no more, and to fight and pray with all my might against the original of it.

25. Resolved, to examine carefully, and constantly, what that one thing in me is, which causes me in the least to doubt of the love of God; and to direct all my forces against it.

26. Resolved, to cast away such things, as I find do abate my assurance.

27. Resolved, never willfully to omit any thing, except the omission be for the glory of God; and frequently to examine my omissions.

28. Resolved, to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly and frequently, as that I may find, and plainly perceive myself to grow in the knowledge of the same.

29. Resolved, never to count that a prayer, nor to let that pass as a prayer, nor that as a petition of a prayer, which is so made, that I cannot hope that God will answer it; nor that as a confession, which I cannot hope God will accept.

30. Resolved, to strive to my utmost every week to be brought higher in religion, and to a higher exercise of grace, than I was the week before.

31. Resolved, never to say any thing at all against any body, but when it is perfectly agreeable to the highest degree of Christian honor, and of love to mankind, agreeable to the lowest humility, and sense of my own faults and failings, and agreeable to the golden rule; often, when I have said anything against anyone, to bring it to, and try it strictly by the test of this Resolution.

32. Resolved, to be strictly and firmly faithful to my trust, that that, in Proverbs 20:6,‹A faithful man who can find?Š may not be partly fulfilled in me.

33. Resolved, to do always, what I can towards making, maintaining, and preserving peace, when it can be done without overbalancing detriment in other respects. Dec. 26, 1722.

34. Resolved, in narrations never to speak any thing but the pure and simple verity.

35. Resolved, whenever I so much question whether I have done my duty, as that my quiet and calm is thereby disturbed, to set it down, and also how the question was resolved. Dec. 18, 1722.

36. Resolved, never to speak evil of any, except I have some particular good call for it. Dec. 19, 1722.

37. Resolved, to inquire every night, as I am going to bed, wherein I have been negligent,- what sin I have committed,-and wherein I have denied myself;-also at the end of every week, month and year. Dec. 22 and 26, 1722.

38. Resolved, never to speak anything that is ridiculous, sportive, or matter of laughter on the Lord' s day. Sabbath evening, Dec. 23, 1722.

39. Resolved, never to do any thing of which I so much question the lawfulness of, as that I intend, at the same time, to consider and examine afterwards, whether it be lawful or not; unless I as much question the lawfulness of the omission.

40. Resolved, to inquire every night, before I go to bed, whether I have acted in the best way I possibly could, with respect to eating and drinking. Jan. 7, 1723.

41. Resolved, to ask myself, at the end of every day, week, month and year, wherein I could possibly, in any respect, have done better. Jan. 11, 1723.

42. Resolved, frequently to renew the dedication of myself to God, which was made at my baptism; which I solemnly renewed, when I was received into the communion of the church; and which I have solemnly re-made this twelfth day of January, 1722-23.

43. Resolved, never, henceforward, till I die, to act as if I were any way my own, but entirely and altogether God' s; agreeable to what is to be found in Saturday, January 12, 1723.

44. Resolved, that no other end but religion, shall have any influence at all on any of my actions; and that no action shall be, in the least circumstance, any otherwise than the religious end will carry it. January 12, 1723.

45. Resolved, never to allow any pleasure or grief, joy or sorrow, nor any affection at all, nor any degree of affection, nor any circumstance relating to it, but what helps religion. Jan. 12 and 13, 1723.

46. Resolved, never to allow the least measure of any fretting uneasiness at my father or mother. Resolved to suffer no effects of it, so much as in the least alteration of speech, or motion of my eye: and to be especially careful of it with respect to any of our family.

47. Resolved, to endeavor, to my utmost, to deny whatever is not most agreeable to a good, and universally sweet and benevolent, quiet, peaceable, contented and easy, compassionate and generous, humble and meek, submissive and obliging, diligent and industrious, charitable and even, patient, moderate, forgiving and sincere temper; and to do at all times, what such a temper would lead me to; and to examine strictly, at the end of every week, whether I have done so. Sabbath morning. May 5, 1723.

48. Resolved, constantly, with the utmost niceness and diligence, and the strictest scrutiny, to be looking into the state of my soul, that I may know whether I have truly an interest in Christ or not; that when I come to die, I may not have any negligence respecting this to repent of. May 26, 1723.

49. Resolved, that this never shall be, if I can help it.

50. Resolved, I will act so as I think I shall judge would have been best, and most prudent, when I come into the future world. July 5, 1723.

51. Resolved, that I will act so, in every respect, as I think I shall wish I had done, if I should at last be damned. July 8, 1723.

52. I frequently hear persons in old age, say how they would live, if they were to live their lives over again: Resolved, that I will live just so as I can think I shall wish I had done, supposing I live to old age. July 8, 1723.

53. Resolved, to improve every opportunity, when I am in the best and happiest frame of mind, to cast and venture my soul on the Lord Jesus Christ, to trust and confide in him, and consecrate myself wholly to him; that from this I may have assurance of my safety, knowing that I confide in my Redeemer. July 8, 1723.

54. Whenever I hear anything spoken in conversation of any person, if I think it would be praiseworthy in me, Resolved to endeavor to imitate it. July 8, 1723.

55. Resolved, to endeavor to my utmost to act as I can think I should do, if, I had already seen the happiness of heaven, and hell torments. July 8, 1723.

56. Resolved, never to give over, nor in the least to slacken, my fight with my corruptions, however unsuccessful I may be.

57. Resolved, when I fear misfortunes and adversities, to examine whether I have done my duty, and resolve to do it, and let the event be just as providence orders it. I will as far as I can, be concerned about nothing but my duty, and my sin. June 9, and July 13 1723.

58. Resolved, not only to refrain from an air of dislike, fretfulness, and anger in conversation, but to exhibit an air of love, cheerfulness and benignity. May 27, and July 13, 1723.

59. Resolved, when I am most conscious of provocations to ill nature and anger, that I will strive most to feel and act good-naturedly; yea, at such times, to manifest good nature, though I think that in other respects it would be disadvantageous, and so as would be imprudent at other times. May 12, July 11, and July 13.

60. Resolved, whenever my feelings begin to appear in the least out of order, when I am conscious of the least uneasiness within, or the least irregularity without, I will then subject myself to the strictest examination. July 4, and 13, 1723.

61. Resolved, that I will not give way to that listlessness which I find unbends and relaxes my mind from being fully and fixedly set on religion, whatever excuse I may have for it-that what my listlessness inclines me to do, is best to be done, etc. May 21, and July 13, 1723.

62. Resolved, never to do anything but duty, and then according to Ephesians 6:6-8, to do it willingly and cheerfully as unto the Lord, and not to man:‹knowing that whatever good thing any man doth, the same shall he receive of the Lord.Š June 25 and July 13, 1723.

63. On the supposition, that there never was to be but one individual in the world, at any one time, who was properly a complete Christian, in all respects of a right stamp, having Christianity always shining in its true luster, and appearing excellent and lovely, from whatever part and under whatever character viewed: Resolved, to act just as I would do, if I strove with all my might to be that one, who should live in my time. January 14 and July 13, 1723.

64. Resolved, when I find those ‹groanings which cannot be utteredŠ (Romans 8:26), of which the Apostle speaks, and those‹breakings of soul for the longing it hath,Š of which the Psalmist speaks, Psalm 119:20, that I will promote them to the utmost of my power, and that I will not be weary of earnestly endeavoring to vent my desires, nor of the repetitions of such earnestness. July 23, and August 10, 1723.

65. Resolved, very much to exercise myself in this, all my life long, viz. with the greatest openness, of which I am capable of, to declare my ways to God, and lay open my soul to him: all my sins, temptations, difficulties, sorrows, fears, hopes, desires, and every thing, and every circumstance; according to Dr. Manton' s 27th Sermon on Psalm 119. July 26, and Aug.10 1723.

66. Resolved, that I will endeavor always to keep a benign aspect, and air of acting and speaking in all places, and in all companies, except it should so happen that duty requires otherwise.

67. Resolved, after afflictions, to inquire, what I am the better for them, what am I the better for them, and what I might have got by them.

68. Resolved, to confess frankly to myself all that which I find in myself, either infirmity or sin; and, if it be what concerns religion, also to confess the whole case to God, and implore needed help. July 23, and August 10, 1723.

69. Resolved, always to do that, which I shall wish I had done when I see others do it. August 11, 1723.

70. Let there be something of benevolence, in all that I speak. August 17, 1723.

I'll be Gone for Christmas

This is a wonderful time of year for so many of us. We love celebrating the birth of Christ and the beauty and joy that this season brings. We love spending Christmas with our families, we love the lights and exchanging gifts, and if you’re anything like me you especially love the food! But this year I am experiencing something new. For the first time in my life I have to spend Christmas without my little brother. Josh Lloyd shipped off on December 10 for basic training in the Air Force. He will be gone a total of 3 months.
My brother and I are very close which makes him being gone all the more difficult. But I have gained a whole new respect for our men and women in the armed services since Josh has left. I always appreciated the fact that they would just pick up and leave and go to Iraq or Germany or basic training or any other place. But this time it hit close to home. Until now, it almost had the affect of watching the news and seeing a tragedy that happened in another place far away. I might think that this event was terrible but it never really strikes you until you are in the midst of it and can see it first hand. But it is real and there is pain in being away from loved ones at this time of year. As my family ate dinner and opened some of our presents tonight my mind drifted to wondering what my brother was doing and how badly I wished he could be with us. The vacant seat at the table and the lack of another person to open gifts left us all with heavy hearts.
This pain in my heart is another reminder of sin. If there were no sin then there would be no need for a military and thus my brother could be home this Christmas. The evil in man’s heart that causes the nations to wage war against each other is the very reason we need the armed services. Were it not for them, pandemonium would certainly ensue.
We all know soldiers that won’t be home for Christmas this year. When you think of them, pray for them. They are real people who each represent whole families that will be without a loved one to sit down with at dinner and to give presents to. The dedication to their country that this shows speaks volumes. They are the ones who stand watch while the rest of us are asleep comfortably in our beds. They are the ones that give up freedoms to protect ours. They are the military of the greatest country in the world, and they are the ones that this year will sing the song, “I’ll be Gone for Christmas.”

Forthcoming series.

At someone's request, I am currently working on a series of posts on New Testament textual criticism. Actually, he just wanted me to compare KJV to ESV textually, but I decided to make you wait for that and give you an introduction to the whole of text criticism, one glorious piece at a time.

Questions? Let me have them and I'll try to answer them in upcoming posts.

-Elijah

Holy Nietzsche, Batman: Nihilism and The Joker in The Dark Knight

With the release of The Dark Knight on DVD this week, thousands are flocking--myself included--to the nearest Best Buy or Wal-Mart to purchase a copy of the record-breaking film. Comic-based movies have done very well for themselves in recent years and something is to be said for that alone. That is not our most pressing concern however. Instead, we want to raise the question, "What makes The Dark Knight surpass the rest in terms of critical review, box-office intake, and general popularity?" I'll give you one hint: it begins with a "Joke" and ends with an "Err."

While its quality in many areas plays a supplemental role in the huge success of the first sequel in the latest Batman series, the Caped Crusader himself is not the character whom audiences are left talking about. Rather than the hero, it's the villain who has captured the minds and hearts of viewers. This isn't just any villain though; it's The Joker, the antithesis of not only all things heroic but all things meaningful. He has no tangible incentive for his actions and in his mind has nothing to lose. The Joker is a man who, as Michael Caine's character Alfred Pennyworth puts it, "just wants to watch the world burn."

The Joker character stands as a symbol for full-blown nihilism. Most commonly associated with the writings of Friedrich Nietzsche, nihilism is the philosophy that the world is devoid of any meaning, standards, values, and purpose. Existence is pointless, in other words. In an August blog post titled "Why is Batman Making So Much Money?," theologian C. Michael Patton described The Joker as "the Nihilist who believes in nothing, cares for nothing, and pursues nothing." Precisely. Patton continues:

At one point The Joker says, “I have no plans. I am like a dog chasing a car. I would not know what to do if I caught it.” There is no rationalism because there is no such thing as order, reason, or ends that create purpose. It is just the moment, and the moment is ruled by randomness.

In other words, "I just do things," The Joker explains in the same scene. Why would such a blatant display of anarchy and utter recklessness prove appealing in today's culture? Patton speculates that the impulse to find nihilistic behavior entertaining stems from postmodern thinking. He writes, "Our postmodern culture may see itself in the character of The Joker. Like a person who has not seen his face in many years, we are going to the mirror to take a look."

With its rampant embrace of moral relativism and existential thought, our postmodern culture sees what it is becoming in The Joker. Once people realize that if every individual determines the truth for himself, the inevitable conclusion is that there is no all-encompassing unity to reality. Thus, existence is unintelligible and pointless. All is nothingness since there is no absolute standard or transcendent meaning. If everyone sets the truth, there is no actual truth since no person's perception or interpretation of reality takes precedence over another's.

This type of thinking will undoubtedly lead to despair and from despair to apathy, as Patton notes.

It is when the despair turns to apathy and we are what we are and we don’t care what we become. With the deconstruction of morals, truth, knowledge, revelation, and the like, is it any surprise that so many people are going to look in the mirror?

Moreover, we must admit most pre-teen, adolescent, and 20-something males are not infatuated by Heath Ledger's portrayal of The Joker because they are conscious of the implications of postmodernism. Our attraction to the character is more basic than that. The Joker was not the first to ask, "Why so serious?" Such a question was not first posed in Gotham, but rather in the Garden. It came with the Serpent asking Eve, "Hath God said?" (Gen 3:1). The temptation to create our own rules and define reality for ourselves was appealing to us then and proves to be more so now this side of the Fall.

Aware that mankind's tendency is to rebel against its Creator, Christians are to call persons to repentance, reminding them that we as creatures made in God's image are not our own. As Francis Schaeffer stated, "We must never forget that the first part of the gospel is not 'Accept Christ as Savior,' but 'God is there.'" Only the infinite, personal creator Yahweh can assign meaning to the universe, thus making it possible for human beings to reason and interpret things. Furthermore, God's existence not only necessitates that he is the One to Whom we look for meaning and purpose as revealed in his Word, but that he is the One to Whom we are accountable.

Patton is right. Our culture does see itself in The Joker--and we all should if we're honest about the condition of our hearts (Jer 17:9). Nevertheless, this is not something we should embrace or celebrate. This represents humanity gone wrong. In knowing that "God is there," we are to be ready to engage a culture of emptiness and rebelliousness.

Why so serious? Because this is no laughing matter.

A Seasonal Question

So, right now I work retail at a "Christian book store" in a big city. We sell a lot of questionable things, including Santa here, kneeling before the manger. Some even have a little prayer, in which Santa acknowledges to Jesus that He is the source of all gifts and that His gift on the cross is Santa's inspiration for giving.

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So, when the store is empty, I get to stand up front and think about things like this. Naturally, I have a few thoughts and questions to pass on for your imput.

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1. Why, in the WORLD, would you want to put Santa and Jesus together? You're putting the God of all creation, in His amazing act of accomodating us in His incarnation, right there next to a fictional old man. You might as well paint a picture of Harry Potter and Edward Cullen coming to Elijah's rescue as the three of them duke it out with the prophets of Baal. What happens to the child who sees this atrocity, once he realizes the truth about Jolly Ole Saint Nick? Does he throw our Lord Jesus out as fiction as well? This article has a revealing exceprt of a dialogue in such a case. It makes me sick that these things exist, and even sicker when a customer brings one to my line, knowing that I must ring it out.

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2. This is the more important one. This one has been bugging me for a couple days now. The word "Christmas" comes from "Christ's mass." "Christ's mass" became "Christ mass," which became "Christmas." There is also a "Michaelmas," in case you were wondering.

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Is it ok to say the word "Christmas?" Think about it for a minute. Think about where the word came from, and whose name it still contains. Christ is the Greek form of the title Messiah-a title of our Lord Jesus Himself ("Messiah" comes from the Hebrew word that means "to smear" or "to annoint.") Do we need a mass for the Annointed One of God-the God-man?

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Moreover, when we throw around the word "Christmas," are we taking the Lord's name in vain? To be sure, it isn't intentional, but it is still Jesus' title. In fact, it is the only title so closely associated with a name that it is often confused with the name itself. (I recall when I was younger asking my grandmother what Jesus' middle name was, since I was sure His last name was Christ.)

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In saying "Merry Christmas," have I thrown around my savior's divine title as a simple greeting? Do I treat that name with reverance when I sing "We Wish you a Merry Christmas?" I don't think I do. Most people agree that using the word "Christ" as an expletive is taking the Lord's name in vain. But is it any different how we treat it during the holidays? I guess a helpful thought would be to ask if the word "Christmas is far-enough removed from "Christ" to make a difference.

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Maybe "Happy Holidays" isn't so bad after all.
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Just some thoughts, I'd love to hear your opinions,

-Elijah

Psalm 121 - Thanksgiving to God for His help

1I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?

2 My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

3He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.

4Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

5The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand.

6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.

7The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.

8The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Outside attacks against God - Buses seem to be the trend

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,450445,00.html

As you may recall a few weeks ago, we discussed an atheist group launching a "anti-God" campaign on London passenger buses. Well, where is someone riding through the streets of America today saying, "The British are coming!" Because that same campaign has launched in Washington DC.

My favorite quote from this news report is:

Edwords said the purpose isn't to argue that God doesn't exist or change minds about a deity, although "we are trying to plant a seed of rational thought and critical thinking and questioning in people's minds."

Seems to me that these people are falling exactly into the Romans 1 mentality yet again.

28And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

My prayer is that as someone reads those ads, a true Christian will use that to preach Christ and true repentance to someone.

"Blessed be the name of the LORD."

Many times we as Christians overlook small details in Bible "stories" that hold profound truth about ourselves and, more importantly, about God.

Take, for instance, Job's children. The book of Job outlines the story of their demise:

Job 1:18 - 19 states:

While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, "Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you."

We don't know much about Job's children other then these facts: they liked to party. Job 1:4 says, "His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them."

We also know that Job was a concerned Father. He worried that their lifestyle would lead them astray. Job 1:5 outlines Job's prayers and concerns with his kids: "And when the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send and consecrate them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, "It may be that my children have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts." Thus Job did continually."

Note that Job did this "continually" - always worried about his children as any good parent should. He was terrified that God would punish his children for their "lifestyle" or even their "thoughts" so he offered prayers for their safety and for their hearts to be right before God.

Given that "back story"(as it were), one might believe that Job would be upset with the events around their death: Upset either with them, thinking they had sinned, or with God, for destroying them.

But he was neither. Job 1:20 - 22 relates how Job reacted:

Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.

Note verse 22: "In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong."

Job responded in a very godly way. Knowing that this could happen, knowing that his kids were not living correctly, knowing that God is to be "feared" (Job 1:1), Job reacted strangely by worldly standards.

We know the rest of the story of Job, but did you catch the one little bit of glory from the life of Job's kids. Whether they were doing wrong or doing right, they were created for this purpose. God wanted to receive glory from their lives through their father's honoring of God as God. They were created to die this horrible death: Predestined as it were.

Even in the Old Testament story of Job, we see what the apostle Paul was telling the Roman believers in Romans 11:33 - 36:

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?" "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

Many people focus on Job through this book and rightly so. But don't miss out on the messages sent in just a few verses of God's Word: Everything is to God's Glory!

Gospel Urgency

From the "Pulpit" online blog of the Sheperd's Fellowship:

http://www.sfpulpit.com/


Gospel Urgency
October 27th, 2008

(By Richard Baxter)

Oh, if you have the hearts of Christians or of men in you, let them yearn towards your poor ignorant, ungodly neighbours. Alas, there is but a step betwixt them and death and hell; many hundred diseases are waiting ready to seize on them, and if they die unregenerate, they are lost forever.

Have you hearts of rock, that cannot pity men in such a case as this? If you believe not the Word of God, and the danger of sinners, why are you Christians yourselves? If you do believe it, why do you not bestir yourself to the helping of others? Do you not care who is damned, so you be saved? If so, you have sufficient cause to pity yourselves, for it is a frame of spirit utterly inconsistent with grace. . . .

Dost thou live close by them, or meet them in the streets, or labour with them, or travel with them, or sit and talk with them, and say nothing to them of their souls, or the life to come? If their houses were on fire, thou wouldst run and help them; and wilt thou not help them when their souls are almost at the fire of hell?

(Cited in I. D. E. Thomas, A Puritan Golden Treasury [Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1977], 92–93)

As this Thanksgiving and Christmas season approaches, let us be thankful to God for our salvation and let us share the Gift of Christ to others around us.

Should Your Next Pastor Be a Calvinist?

Tom J. Nettles, professor of Historical Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, thinks so.

In the Winter 2008 Founders Journal (www.founders.org), Nettles argues that Calvinist pastors are most appropriate for preserving the historic doctrines of the Christian faith among Southern Baptist churches. Because of their theological commitment to the Doctrines of Grace, Calvinist pastors will strive to maintain conservative doctrines--such as biblical inerrancy and penal substitutionary atonement and so forth--that the vast majority of Southern Baptists have in common. Nettles summarizes why Calvinists are healthy for our churches:

If a church, therefore, gets a Calvinist preacher, she will get a good thing. Several issues will be settled forever and the church will not have to wonder about the soundness of her preacher on these items of biblical truth and their soul-nurturing power. Calvinists have stood for more than just their distinguishing doctrines, but have held steadfastly to other doctrines that are essential for the health of Baptist churches in our day.

In addition to inspiration and substitution, Nettles elaborates that Calvinists will maintain historic Baptist stances on issues such as the doctrine of the Trinity, missions and evangelism, Christ-centered preaching, the holiness of Christian life, regenerate church membership, and religious liberty. As we have personally experienced, the irony is that nowadays SBC churches are extremely leery of Calvinism. However, the fact remains that the Convention was founded upon these very doctrines. Nettles notes this at the article's outset. He says, "Today, however, some Southern Baptists are warning the churches against [Calvinists]. This is a mammoth historical irony that many find difficult to appreciate."

For the entire article, visit the Founders Journal online (click here).

God attacked on London Buses

The following article from Foxnews.com discusses atheist attacks on "religion" and the perceived religious preference on the signage of London Buses.

The message, "There is probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life."

The full story:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,443705,00.html

The central message that I take from this is two fold:

1. There arguments are not new.

Psalm 53:1 state, "The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good."

This is just another vain attempt to attack God and pull people away from him and attempt to justify their lostness. In the article one atheist talks about how "thinking" is the "anathema" to religion.

But the Scriptures say, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight." (Proverbs 9:10)

2. Every area of Christian expression is being attacked.

Honestly, why attack signage on a bus? Advertisement in this day and age is just "noise" anyway.

It just shows that every attack is fueled by the utter hatred that fallen man has for God.

John 15:18 states that we should not be surprised, "If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you."

This also gives me hope though. We must proclaim the true gospel more clearly. Calling all people to REPENT! My prayer is that the Gospel will continue to spread!

Chicago to Start gay "friendly" schools

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/13/gay.friendly.school/index.html

I'm not going to say much on this. Romans chapter 1 comes to mind however (ESV):

18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
24Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
26For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

Pray that God would move in America and America's schools.

House Built on the Rock Withstands Hurricane Ike

In the town of Gilchrist, Texas there is utter devastation from hurricane Ike which pounded the gulf coast last week with 120 mph wind gusts and a 20 ft sea surge . There has been picture after picture of destroyed land, ruined homes and families who have lost everything. Yet, in the midst of all the destruction there was one home that stood, seemingly untouched by the pernicious storm. The home belonged to Pam and Warren Adams who rebuilt their home after it was destroyed by hurricane Rita in 2006. They hired a contractor to build them a home that would withstand a category 5 hurricane, and it worked.

This reminded me of the of a passage in Matthew 7:

24"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25"And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26"Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27"The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell--and great was its fall."

Jesus uses the imagery of a house built on a rock in this parable to illustrate to us the importance of being sure we have the right foundation in our spiritual lives. In the preceding verses to this passage Jesus is telling us about people who believe firmly that they are saved, when in reality they are deceived about their spiritual condition. He tells us that at the day of judgment he will say to them "I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS." How absolutely frightening it would be to hear those words. Can you imagine the horror that will grip the souls of these people who believe, perhaps their entire lives that they are saved and as they stand before God at the judgment he tells them "I never knew you."
Sadly, churches in America and all over the world are flooded with people who will fall into this category. There are those who have been in church since before they can remember, that teach Sunday school, that give their tithes and offerings, that are deacons or elders that will die and be damned because they did not have the right foundation.

This is a picture of the funeral of Pope John Paul II. There were over 300,000 people in attendance. They came from all over the world to attend such a monumental event. This was also the largest gathering of world dignitaries in history. But it is quite possible that everyone in this picture is deceived about their eternal destiny. There is probably not a single doubt in most of their minds yet, they will die and they will go to hell forever because they do not have the right foundation.

However, one does not have to be Catholic to be deceived. It is not just those who belong to false churches who are in spiritual peril. There are those who belong to wonderful, Bible teaching, Christ exalting churches that also are deceived. It doesn't matter at all that they belong to a good church. They are still as lost as those who belong to a Mormon church, a Catholic church, or even those who worship Satan. They are still bound for the same hell.
There is only one foundation on which our we are to put our trust (build our house) and that is in Christ alone by faith alone. Anything else either adds to or takes away from our salvation. If one does not see their utter inability to produce anything worthy of pleasing God they are without hope. Those who think that praying a prayer gives them a ticket to live as sinfully as they wish are wrong. The Spirit of God must change the heart to where we seek to do good and then when we stumble to feel agony over our sin.
It is in Christ that we find salvation. Jesus tells us in this text that those who build upon the rock are considered "wise." Because they see that this rock is the only hope they have from the coming storm (Judgment). Those who do not build on the rock have only sand on which to build. Jesus said: "Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. "The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell--and great was its fall."
I am reminded of the song:

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus' name
On Christ the solid rock I stand
All other ground is sinking sand
All other ground is sinking sand

Baker Preaches on His 100th Birthday

In the year 1908 Theodore Roosevelt was the president of the United States. This was also the last year that the Cubs won the World Series. You could also buy a first-class stamp for a mere two cents. However, something else worthy of notice took place that year as well. That was the year that preacher W.L. Baker was born, and exactly 100 years later on August 3, 2008, Baker stood before a congregation of almost 500 in Mt. Juliet, TN to deliver a sermon as they celebrated his 100th birthday and his almost 80 years in the Gospel ministry.
"I thought I was going to get all of this when I got to heaven," W.L. Baker said on his 100th birthday. He was speaking to the incredible honors that he had been given on this day, some of which included citations from Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen and President George W. Bush.
On this morning, Baker stood and preached from Deuteronomy 34. The article in which I found this story, which can be found here , gave us a few quotes from his message:

"Moses linked his whole life to a worthy cause and he spent all of his last day on earth climbing, and I hope to do the same," Baker told the gathering.

"On Moses' last day, when he climbed the mountain, the Lord was waiting for him at the top," Baker said. "I am excited about that time when my last day comes and my Lord greets me in death and smiles. Until then, I want to press on.... God didn't put us in the world to look at small things, but big things."

He challenged the audience: "You are not living for today. This morning you are living for eternity."

Baker took classes at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary for one year, but after that he decided to move to Louisville, KY to attend the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he later graduated in 1932 (Haze and Elijah would no doubt agree that this was indeed the correct decision). Baker's time in these wonderful institutions allowed him to have close and personal contact with some theological giants, such as L.R. Scarborough, W.O. Carver, George W. Truett, A.T. Robertson as well as a few others. His age also makes him Southern's oldest living alumnus.

The article continues:

"There's no way to describe how much those two years meant to me," Baker said of his studies at Southern Seminary. "Dr. [E.Y.] Mullins was gone by then, but Dr. [John R.] Sampey was there and Dr. Carver was one of my instructors. Anyone who went in Dr. Carver's class and stayed long and didn't come out with his heart burning for missions, then something was wrong with him."

The most valuable lesson he learned at Southern Seminary? Baker does not hesitate with an answer: "Love for the Bible. They instilled in me a great love for the Lord and the Bible."

One must ask the question, "How does one man stay so long in the ministry?" Baker answers the question simply: "Memorize the Scriptures." Baker is noted for being able to recite the Sermon on the Mount and has presented it from memory in more than 50 churches. He said:

"I would tell young ministers to memorize as much of the Bible as possible while they have the mind to do it." He continued: "The highlight of my life along that line was when I was at my first church and I was wrestling with the problem of what to preach the next Sunday. I wrestled with that quite a while and in three or four weeks was doing it again, and I felt an impression come to me, 'Why don't I preach Jesus' sermon?' So I committed the Sermon on the Mount to memory and it has been the greatest blessing in my ministry."

It's amazing how he very quickly breezes over the fact that he would just memorize the Sermon on the Mount as if it were not big deal. The sermon on the mount is three chapters, or 111 verses long. If you memorized one verse a day it would still take you almost three months to memorize it. 100 years old, and the man still has an unbelievably sharp mind. What a gift from God he has and what a blessing he is to us.

From "Pulpit Magazine" - The Young, Restless and Reformed

Here is an interesting link about a book. It caught my attention. Thought I would share it with everyone.

From the Sheperd's Fellowship and Grace Community Church:

http://www.sfpulpit.com/2008/08/19/young-restless-reformed/

No Credit for Christianity

A judge has upheld a ruling that textbooks that teach creationism and deny the teaching of evolution as "fact" does not teach critical thinking skills. Thus students should not receive credits for those courses.

The story as posted on Foxnews.com:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,402761,00.html

Romans 1:22 - 23:

"22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things."

I would like to have the judge visit the Creation Museum myself.

Homosexual Rights Hurt Gay's Pride

As is usually the norm, there has been a great buzz going around about this year's Olympic games. But in 2008 there has been a lot of controversy over the fact that there will be a lot of athletes competing in this year’s games that are gay. This has caused quite a stir in the media and many cheer the "courage" to come out and let everyone know that they are gay. While others are out right hostile and angry about their positions.

However, one of the more recent developments is quite different and interesting. The American Family Association has a new policy this year and that being that using the word "gay" is not allowed in any form, but instead they are to use to word "homosexual" whenever this situation is referenced in any way.

If for some reason I even thought what the AFA was doing was a good idea, I would be able to see the fact that this could cause some real problems, just as it did for one athlete in particular. His name is Tyson Gay and he is a swimmer for the United States. Rather than explain to you what a problem this was for him, I will simply show you the following article titled "Homosexual Eases Into 100 Final at Olympic Trials":

Tyson Homosexual easily won his semifinal for the 100 meters at the U.S. Olympic track and field trials and seemed to save something for the final later Sunday.
His wind-aided 9.85 seconds was a fairly cut-and-dry performance compared to what happened a day earlier. On Saturday, Homosexual misjudged the finish in his opening heat and had to scramble to finish fourth, then in his quarterfinal a couple of hours later, ran 9.77 to break the American record that had stood since 1999.
One of the men who talked about challenging Homosexual in the 100, his former Arkansas teammate Wallace Spearmon, failed to make it to the final by the slimmest of margins. The top four runners advance from each semifinal, and Spearmon finished fifth in his-all of .001 behind Michael Rodgers.
Spearmon, twice a medalist at world championships in the 200, was last out of the blocks and managed to make up a lot of ground, but it wasn’t quite enough. “Aim to win. Got fifth. Feelings are hurt,” Spearmon said. “I’ll make the team in the 200. That’s about it.”
Homosexual didn’t get off to a particularly strong start in the first semifinal, but by the halfway mark he had established a comfortable lead. He slowed somewhat over the final 10 meters-nothing like the way-too-soon complete shutdown that almost cost him Saturday.
Asked how he felt, Homosexual said: “A little fatigued.”
When I read this the first time, I laughed out loud due to the sheer lunacy of the article. Can you picture what probably happened? Tyson Gay probably arose early the day after his world record swim in excitement to catch the morning paper and rather than giving himself a well deserved pat on the back, he merely drops his head in disappointment when he sees the title of the article "Homosexual Eases Into 100 Final at Olympic Trials.”

As if this guy didn't get made fun of enough by his friends growing up due to his last name, someone then has to go and publish an article like this. This is such a statement of where we are today as a culture. Rather than being rational about something as simple as this should have been, we want to change it just in case we offend someone. But our society never deals rationally. Why would we expect them to ever do anything else?

I simply do not understand why it is no longer acceptable to call someone “gay.” The people ARE gay! What is the big deal? Those in that lifestyle are the ones forcefully promoting their sexual preference with such pride. Why is this even an issue?

Personally, I would not take issue with almost any name that someone could come up with to describe my being a heterosexual. I am so incredibly comfortable with my sexual preference that even if someone came up with a name and intended it as derogatory based on my sexual preference, I would wear that name with pride. But apparently those who are gay feel differently.

Wherever Tyson Gay is, I hope his friends are not giving him too hard of a time over this. He is the victim of some weird circumstances. I wish him the best throughout the rest of the Olympics. Hopefully he will do well enough to make the papers again, and on the following day arise merely to see the name “Gay.” I’m sure he will wear that name with pride, but as we have seen, he will probably be the only one.

Jesus is My Superman: Kryptonite Doctrine for Christ's Humanity

"I'm quite keen on comic books," David Carradine said, playing the notorious "Bill" in volume two of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill films. "Take my favorite superhero, Superman... The mythology is not only great, it's unique."

What makes Superman unique? His superhero identity is his actual identity, Bill explains. Spider-Man is really Peter Parker. Batman is really Bruce Wayne. Like most superheroes, these two are human beings who must put on a costume in order to become their crime-fighting alter-egos. Superman's alter-ego is Clark Kent, his portrayal of a normal human being. Bill elaborates:

[It] is in that characteristic Superman stands alone. Superman didn't become Superman. Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S", that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears - the glasses, the business suit - that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent. He's weak... he's unsure of himself... he's a coward.

Bill sums up his diatribe on superheroes with this conclusion: "Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race."

Since he was an alien from Krypton, Superman only appeared to be human. Is that also the case with Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh? Did Jesus only appear to be human?

Despite affirming Christ's full deity and full humanity in their confessions, many evangelicals and fundamentalists stray away from Jesus' human nature (pre-Fall nature). Why? Perhaps the fear of falling down a slippery slope into theological liberalism drives conservative Christians away from focusing on this essential and comforting truth.

Quite rightly, we should avoid the heresy of docetism. The title comes from the Greek word dokea, meaning "to appear." The idea that Jesus only appeared to be a man was a major challenge for Christian orthodoxy in the second and third centuries. Near the end of the first century, the Apostle John writes in light of false teachings that were at least similar to docetism.

What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life--and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us--what we have seen and testify and proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:1-3, NASB).

Though the days of regular and conscious articulation of docetism have passed away, could a subtle docetism have crept in the modern church? Judging from chapter two of Vintage Jesus, Mark Driscoll believes so. After naming known heretics and cults who have either denied the full divinity or full humanity of the Savior, Driscoll writes:

Perhaps the people who most commonly prefer Jesus' divinity over his humanity in our present age are hardcore Protestant Christian fundamentalists. They are so committed to preserving the divinity of Jesus that they tend to portray his humanity as essentially overwhelmed by his divinity so that he was largely not tempted to sin, if indeed tempted at all (35).

Driscoll continues:

I first experienced this as a new Christian in a fundamentalist church where I asked the pastor a question about the temptation of Jesus mentioned throughout Scripture. He immediately took me to James 1:13, which says, "God cannot be tempted with evil." He went on to say that because Jesus is God, when the Bible says he was tempted, he was not really tempted but basically faking it. His portrait of Jesus sounded eerily similar to Superman (36, emphasis mine).

Not really tempted? This sounds similar to a Gnostic saying, "Jesus was not really in the flesh." As Driscoll notes, if Jesus only appeared to be tempted because on the outside He only appeared as a Galilean peasant, then neither could Jesus suffer or be the mediator between God and man. Unless fully human, Jesus could not represent humanity as our Substitute on the Cross.

It should be stressed that we are not saying Jesus is merely human, only fully human. In other words, Jesus contained every essential characteristic to be considered 100-percent human. On the other hand, Jesus is 100-percent God, meaning He maintained full divine essence in coming as a man. Further, He still possessed every attribute of God, just not the continual exercise of them. Paul puts it this way, "... although He existed in the form of God, [Christ Jesus] did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men (Philippians 2:6-7, NASB).

Theologians sum up this reality with the phrase "he laid aside the independent exercise of his divine attribues" (Vintage Jesus, 37).

This brings many to ponder the question, could Jesus have sinned? Despite much being written on the subject, this is ultimately a mystery.

Of course, Jesus never actually sinned. He could not have been an effective mediator or propitiation for our sins if He did. However, even Adam, made in the image of God in holiness and inclined to righteousness, fell through temptation. Instead of being pervasively impacted by his sinful nature as we are, Adam was able to fall because, while perfect, he was fallible and prone to change. God alone is infallible and immutable.

Still, Jesus is not just a man with a pre-fallen nature. He is the God-man. That's precisely why whether He could or could not sin remains a mystery. The Bible does not speak explicitly to the issue and logic remains unable to dissect it, as the Incarnation itself is a mystery.

Some propose the following: 1) God cannot sin; 2) Jesus is God; 3) Therefore, Jesus cannot sin. Again, Jesus is not just God, but the God-man. He has two natures but exists as one person. One can distinguish between the two natures, but not separate them.

On the other hand, those who adamantly appeal to Jesus' divinity as the reason to dismiss any conceivability of Jesus falling to temptation need to consider the other position's logic. 1) God cannot die; 2) Jesus is God; 3) Therefore, Jesus cannot die. If God died, everything would cease to exist since God holds all things together (Acts 17:28; Col 1:17; Heb 1:3).

As Breshears rightly concludes, we need the following syllogism: 1) God cannot sin; 2) Jesus is God-man; 3) Therefore, Jesus was tempted in every way as we, but absolutely without sin (Vintage Jesus, 53).

As God, we have confidence that Jesus' atonement was infinitely valuable, sufficient for "the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2) and efficacious "to save to the uttermost those who draw near" (Heb 7:25, ESV). As a man, we have comfort that our Great High Priest sympathizes with our weaknesses as "One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin" (Heb 4:14-15). It's for this reason, in the words of John, that these things are written "so that our joy may be made complete" (1 John 1:4).

Shall we then say, Jesus is our Superman? No, He's much more. Jesus is the God-man.

Begotten or One and Only? (Very technical, I apologize, but I was intrigued)

Since a large number of Baptists have evidently forsaken the whole council of God in favor of just one verse, John 3:16, I have been thinking about this verse a lot. My thoughts today have centered on translations. Some translations refer to Jesus as God’s “only begotten son” and others refer to Him as God’s “one and only son.” This is a big difference. I shall now analyze.

Before I get technical, I just want to let you know that I am not merely picking on the King James (Kent). I am picking on the KJV (Kent), the NASB (Jeremy), the ASV (me), the ESV (Haze), and writing in favor of the NIV (…and pretty much everybody will hate me for this last one).

The Greek word in question is monogenēs. We all agree that it is a compound word, but we disagree as to which words are compounded. We agree that “mono-“ means only. However, “-genēs” gives us a bit of a problem. Historically, it’s been accepted as a compound of “gennaō,” the word for bear/beget. This is why so many translations render it as “only begotten.”

However, it is possible that “-genēs” comes from the word “genea” (meaning race, kind, generation, age, family, etc.). D.A. Carson takes this view (that the word comes from “genea”), along with the Moulton and Milligan Greek lexicon (you will find such a note in the Amplified Bible). To take this as the proper root of the word, it would be more correct to render that section of the verse as “his unique Son” or “his one and only Son.”

However, we cannot rely completely on the root words, or otherwise we’d think a pineapple was an apple that grew on pine trees. How does the rest of Scripture deal with Christ’s relationship to the Father/the word “monogenēs?”

First off, if it meant “only begotten,” it would be spelled differently. The tell-tale sign of “gennaō” is the double-n. “Only begotten” should be “monogennētos” and not “monogenēs.” Do you see the double-n? The more important question is this: Do you see a double-n in the word John actually recorded in verse 3:16? No. It’s not there.

Second, the word cannot always mean “only begotten.” (Actually, this really makes me think that the word just plain doesn’t mean “only begotten.”) Go to Hebrews 11:17. Here, Isaac is referred to as Abraham’s “only begotten” (KJV, ASV, NKJV, NASB). The point is this: the same word used to describe Jesus in John 3:16 (monogenēs) is used here to describe Isaac. But Isaac can’t be Abraham’s only begotten, because Abraham also begat Ishmael.

What about Hebrews 1:5? The Father is referenced to having said to the Son “Today I have begotten you.” Well, this refers to the eternal relationship between the Father, who is eternally begetting, and the Son, who is eternally begotten.

In conclusion, I think that while it is theologically accurate to refer to Jesus as the “only begotten” of the Father, I think it betrays the text to translate John 3:16 as such. KJV was working with the best at the time and it was at least an honest mistake. The translators of the NKJV, ASV, and NASB should have known better but translated it “begotten” anyways, which means they were probably selling out. ESV translated it as “only” which successfully avoided the issue altogether (though, “only “ is an acceptable translation…it’s just ambiguous), and the NIV translated it as “one and only.” In the most unlikeliest of events, in all its problems, I think the NIV is best at this one verse. Is there anybody left that’s not mad at me right now?

A Striking Conversation

I had a very interesting conversation with a man this past weekend. He was a car salesman and while we were waiting on some paper work, he and I struck up a conversation. I told him that I was currently in school at Tusculum and that I planned to attend Southern Baptist Theological Seminary after I received my BA.
After I mentioned this he told me that his parents had taken him to visit a seminary in Kennebunkport, Maine. Personally, I had no idea that car salesmen could be accepted into seminary given their dark past. But nonetheless, he did go. While there he and his family went through the usual tour of the campus and of the prospective dorms that he would potentially be staying in.
The unuaual part of the story came as he and his family were about to leave and head back home. At this time of the day there was a storm that errupted on the horizon. A black cloud descended on the seminary. And about 15 feet from this man's car was an oak tree that had been at this seminary for years. He was told that it was over 100 years old. That means that this tree would have been HUGE. As his family was about to leave a bolt of lightning pierced through the clouds and struck the enormous tree, splitting it completely in half. Somewhat stunned and paralyzed by the potential sign that this could have been this man turned to his parents and said "I don't believe this is the place for me."
I have my opinon on this but, my question to you, my fellow blog mates, is who do you think this sign came from? We know that Satan is "The prince of the power of the air" (Eph. 2:2) and we also know that God is the creator and sustainer of the universe. So which of these two did this sign come from? Is it possible for us to know? Was it really even a sign to begin with? I would love to hear your comments.

But will either share the Gospel?

While I don't mind fun and amusement parks, I find this to be sheer commercialism and not a positive for the cause of Christ.

The below is a link to an article:


http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/06/16/Nashville_could_have_two_bible-theme_parks/UPI-33431213642434/


My hope is that they are doing this for the right reasons - to share the Gospel of Christ. However, I have my doubts. It brings to mind the current "entertainment" culture that many churches have adopted. Watering down the true meaning of sin, repentance, and obedience to the faith seems to be a growing trend in some Christian circles.

This seems like the next logical step...be entertained at church on Sunday morning by a "health and wealth gospel" and turn around and spend Sunday afternoon riding "Jonah and the Big Fish" roller coaster.

The Great Commission at Bonnaroo

Here is an interesting article I found about Bonnaroo and the outreach of certain churches:

http://www.murfreesboropost.com/news.php?viewStory=11472

The most intriguing section of the article to me was:

If they are willing, the volunteers will share their message of salvation and pray with those who visit their tent.“Our ultimate goal is to have people come to know Christ,” Walker said.Few people have accepted Christ during the festival, he said, but he believes they are planting seeds that could bear fruit in the months and years to come.“Our goal is to love people and in doing so have the right to tell them the truth,” Walker said.Others groups near the festival grounds wear or carry signs telling festival goers they are going to hell. “What they are saying is correct,” Walker said. “What I tell them (volunteers) is speak what the Bible says in love.“We don’t condemn them (attendees) for what they do,” he said later.

The distinction between to ministry of these two groups reminds me of Matthew 9:11-13:

11And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?
12But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.
13But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

I for one am glad there were Christians who shared the good news of Christ at Bonnaroo. By ministering to the needs and offering "weird" stuff, they did more to fulfill the Great Commission than the others who just held signs.

Matthew 28:18-20:

18And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
19Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Evangelism v. Fossilization--Who said it?

"The church that does not evangelize will fossilize." A lot of you may have heard that quote. It's a funny little saying, and even I must admit-I have it in my book of neat little quotes.

Who said it though?

I had always seen it referenced to Oswald J. Smith.

Smith was a Canadian evangelist and pastor who lived from 1889 to 1986. It is indeed a fitting quote to have come from an evangelist, especially from one known to make similar pithy sayings. And no, if you're wondering, that is not a picture of Oswald J. Smith.

It is a picture of Bible teacher Arthur W. Pink. I have been reading through Iain Murray's Life of Arthur W. Pink. Like every other book of Murray's I've read, it is amazing. However, I learned that in 1927, Pink was forced to resign from a pastorate in Australia, for being too Arminian!

In all of Pink's writings, I had come to know him as something closer to a hyper-Calvinist than an Arminian. Pink was neither. He was strait up biblical. He preached a sermon at a Particular Baptist church in which he made a call for human responsibility to be preached. He criticized the denomination for being afraid of certain texts of the Bible, just like Arminians. Needless to say, it didn't go over very well.

The interesting thing that ties together this whole post follows. In Pink's sermon (and subsequent article in his magazine Studies in the Scriptures) Pink makes the following comment: "...I want to tell you frankly that if a church does not evangelize it will fossilize: and, if I am not mistaken, that is what has happened in some of the Strict Baptist Churches in Australia." (Pink went on to say it again a few lines down.)

This comment was printed in 1927. So, here's my question: who said it first? Oswald J. Smith was old enough and in the evangelistic ministry at the time, so it is within reason that Pink heard it from Smith and took the line from him. However, Smith's ministry extended long after Pink was dead (Pink died in 1952), and it even went on for several decades after Pink made this comment, So it is almost more reasonable for Smith to have taken the line from Pink. Who said it? I don't have the answer, as I could not find a reference as to when Smith said the statement. I'm posting this to see your comments. Do you know who said it?

More importantly, does it convict you? Do you get the real point of Pink's use? Do you emphasize God's sovereignty to the point of neglecting human responsibility to repent and believe the gospel? Do you emphasize man's responsibility to the point that you leave out any work of God himself in our salvation?

Beyond a Veggie Tales Gospel: Russell Moore on a Christ-Centered Understanding of Scripture

What's missing from our Bible studies and Sunday School lessons? It could very well be Jesus, according to Dr. Russell Moore.

In his must-read Henry Institute commentary, the SBTS dean builds the case for a Christ-centered understanding of the Bible. Not stopping at the Bible, Moore contends that we are to see everything, including "galaxies and quasars and blue whales and local churches," as existing for Christ's glory.

From "Beyond a Veggie Tales Gospel: Why We Must Preach Christ from Every Text," Moore begins in his usual anecdotal style:

Have you ever seen the episode of Veggie Tales in which the main characters are martyred by anti-Christian terrorists? You know, the one in which Bell Z. Bulb, the giant garlic demon, and Nero Caesar Salad, the tyrannical vegetable dictator, take on the heroes for their faith in Christ. Remember how it ends? Remember the cold dead eyes of Larry the cucumber behind glass, pickled for the sake of the Gospel? Remember Bob the tomato, all that remained was ketchup and seeds?

No, of course you don't remember this episode. It doesn't exist--and it never will. Such a concept would be rejected out of hand by the creative minds behind the popular children's program, and the evangelical video-buying public wouldn't hand over the cash to buy such a product. It would be considered too disturbing, too dark, for children. Instead, the Veggie Tales episodes we've all seen are bloodless. They take biblical stories, and biblical characters, but they mine the narrative for abstractions--timeless moral truths that can help children to be kinder, gentler, and more honest. There's almost nothing in any episode that isn't true. But what's missing is Jesus.

As evidenced by the shallowness of our pulpits, Moore states, "Whenever we approach the Bible without focusing in on what the Bible is about--Christ Jesus and His Gospel--we are going to wind up with a kind of golden-rule Christianity that doesn't last a generation, indeed rarely lasts an hour after it is delivered." This explains the paper-thin VBS Gospel and Sunday School discipleship handed down from the last generation of evangelicals, one that continues to pervade our churches as it's latched on by this generation.

Moore argues that understanding the biblical narrative is much like understanding the film The Sixth Sense after already knowing the plot. "If I were to see the movie now, I would see the same film that everyone else saw at its release, but I would be seeing it with the mystery decoded. I would notice patterns and themes. I would see where the story was going." Moore explains:

The same is true of the storyline of Scripture. The apostles announce that a great mystery has been revealed in the gospel of Christ Jesus--a mystery that explains the "whys" of everything from the creation itself to the existence of the nation of Israel to the one-flesh union of marriage. What God has been doing in His universe for all these millennia, Paul tells the church at Ephesus is not accidental or haphazard. It is part of a blueprint, a purpose "which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth" (Eph 1:10). Paul tells the church at Colossae of Jesus that "all things were created through Him and for Him" and that "in Him all things hold together" (Col 1:16-17).

Moore brings the commentary to a conclusion showing why it's "damning" to abstract biblical truths or principles from Christ and His relation to them. "It is because, apart from Christ, there are no promises of God," he writes.

The people in our pews can go to hell clinging to Bible verses abstracted from Jesus. One can read the message of Psalm 24: "Who shall ascend to the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully" (Psalm 24:3-4). Perhaps the Pharisee that Jesus mentions had this verse in mind when he stood in the Temple, next to the repentant Publican. Perhaps the Pharisee--and his successor on the altar at First Baptist Church--can say, "Thank you God that I can approach you with clean hands and a pure heart." That attitude is damning.

It is damning not because it is not true--it is. It is damning because there is only one Man who can stand before the holiness of God, only one Man with a pure heart and clean hands, only One who is the righteousness of God. If I pretend to come before God apart from Him--as though this text and a thousand more like it applies to me outside of Jesus Christ--I will only find condemnation. But, hidden in Christ, this promise is my promise. When I cry out with the Publican, "Have mercy!" and find myself in Christ, then everything that God has promised to Jesus now belongs to me.

The Christian Church has been entrusted with more than a Veggie Tales Gospel. It's to our everlasting shame that many in our culture conceive of evangelicalism as a movement toward morality, that is, that Christians are calling people to merely external, moral reform. Sadly, the culture is right in its assessment because many in our churches do see Christianity as just that--a morality movement. This is so because it is precisely what church-goers are taught from their pulpits and in their Sunday School curriculum.

Whenever Bible-based religion becomes more about personal morality than sinners coming to understand mercy, that religion desperately needs Jesus. Just ask the Pharisees.

"They went out from us...": Intellectual Dissatisfaction Leads to Apostasy

Reclaiming the Mind Ministries is dedicated to equipping the laymen of the Church, namely for apprehending and affirming sound, orthodox theology--something of which modern-day evangelicalism is in great need. In the organization's April newsletter, Michael Patton, RTM Ministries president, addresses the issue of those intellectually unsatisfied leaving Christianity.

In the article, "Leaving Christ(ianity) - A Christian Epidemic," Patton traces the symptoms that inevitably arise when the harder questions concerning the faith are left unanswered in the context of the local church. Focusing on a particular young lady who had formally renounced her faith, Patton writes:

Ignorance. Pity. Shame. These are all good descriptions of what she thought of Christianity. But the primary description that I felt coming from here was “betrayal.” She had been betrayed by the Church because they duped her into a belief not unlike that of the tooth fairy. When she discovered this betrayal, no one had a valid answer or excuse. So she left. She is now an unbeliever—a soon-to-be evangelistic unbeliever.

Patton writes further about "the epidemic of unbelief among our own," noting he has developed a fascination of the subject over the years. Citing data revealing 65 to 94 percent of high school students stop attending church after graduation, Patton ponders the first step of a person's drift into unbelief.

The question that we must ask is a very simple one: Why? Why are people leaving the faith at this epidemic and alarming rate? In my studies, I have found that the two primary reasons people leave the faith are 1) intellectual challenges and 2) bad theology or misplaced beliefs.

He continues by articulating the five steps into adamant, self-aware unbelief that expresses itself in evangelistic skepticism. The five steps are: 1) doubt; 2) discouragement; 3) disillusionment; 4) apathy; and 5) departure.

As one who didn't begin asking the tough questions till after becoming a believer, Patton's examples in his description of discouragement have been the source of the most personal discouragement. For step two, Patton explains:

This is where the person becomes frustrated because they are not finding the answers. They ask questions but the answer (or lack thereof) bring them to discouragement. Their church tells them that such questions are “unchristian.” Their Sunday school teachers say “I don’t know. You just have to believe.” Others simply say, “That’s a good question; I have never thought of it before,” and then go on their way on their own leap-of-faith journey.

During the disillusionment stage, the person then feels betrayed once the leadership of the church--ones who they might have seen as mentors--fails to make an attempt to honestly and adequately answer their inquiries. Pattons states, "In their thinking the intellect has become illegitimized and the church is therefore an illegitimate contender for their mind."

Once the person is comfortable enough in their unbelief to leave stage four (apathy), their sense of betrayal leads them to feel a moral obligation to rescue others from the deception.

Of course, Patton affirms that those who abandon the faith, such as the young lady to whom he'd spoken, were never real Christians to begin with. First John 2:19 says, "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us" (ESV).

Patton recalls the young lady's word from that conversation: “I don’t really even care what you have to say to me. I just don’t believe anymore and there is nothing anyone can do about it." This is typically the point of no return, according to Patton, who then rightly asks, "How was she a part of the church for so long without the church engaging her on these issues?"

Everyone will go through the doubt phase. Everyone should ask questions about the faith. If you have not asked the “How do you know . . .” questions about the message of the Gospel, this is not a good thing. We should be challenged to think through these questions early in the faith. The Church needs to rethink its education program. Expositional preaching, while important, is not enough. Did you hear that? Expositional preaching is not enough. It does not provide the discipleship venue that is vital for us to prevent and overcome this epidemic. We should not fool ourselves into thinking that it does.

Indeed, did you hear that? "Expositional preaching is not enough." While some of us may not agree with that statement or on a solution to counter the allowance or cultivation of unbelief to persist among those in the church, we would all agree these issues need to be given serious attention. Matters of propositional truth are at the heart of the Christian faith and to leave epistemological issues unsettled is to lay a shaky foundation for the heavy truth claims that make up Christianity.

As Patton puts it, the Church has been on "an intellectual diet for the last century" and we're suffering its effects. With hearts of unbelief, sinners are inevitably going to attempt to "exchange the truth about God for a lie" (Romans 1:25). It's a sad day when the Church due to laziness and misplaced priorities makes unbelievers seem justified in doing so.