Dear Mr. President

On Human Nature

I wish I could have sat under John Stott's teaching and preaching ministry.

Much that we take for granted in a civilized society is based upon the assumption of human sin. Nearly all legislation has grown up because human beings cannot be trusted to settle their own disputes with justice and without self-interest. A promise is not enough; we need a contract. Doors are not enough; we have to lock and bolt them. The payment of fares is not enough; tickets have to be issued, inspected and collected. Law and order are not enough; we need the police to enforce them. All this is due to man’s sin. We cannot trust each other. We need protection against one another. It is a terrible indictment of human nature. ~John Stott, Basic Christianity

A Prayer for Forgiveness

Lord, please forgive me. Forgive me for looking to others for the acceptance that only you can cover me in. Forgive me for looking to my job (or lack thereof) for the security only you can richly provide. Forgive me for looking to my collection of books for the wisdom only you can share. Forgive me for looking to my surroundings for the peace that only you can grant. Forgive me for looking to my church for the faith that only you can create in me. And forgive me for seeking that which is trivial and temporal--as well as the praise of men. And above all else: Forgive me for not seeking you and your Kingdom more.

Amen

Patience and Repentance

Today I caught a clip of Mark Driscoll calling out men to be men. I'd heard some of the rage over his doing so--so I was all ears. Much of what he said I agreed with (those who have followed my blogs elsewhere know I am a Driscoll fan, mostly because of his constant emphasis on Jesus--specifically the genuine Jesus). But it was the spirit and tone in which Driscoll shared his concerns (rebuke) that I found extremely unhelpful and childish.

We who preach repentance would do well to remember these words from Paul.

Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? ~Romans 2:1-4, ESV (italics mine)

Maybe a little patience from us could go a long ways with our brothers who are not as far along as us--those brothers who are presently stuck in habitual sin, gross sin, or any other type of sin for that matter (as we have been ourselves if we are honest even a smidgen).

You can see the clip here at Jared Wilson's awesome "Gospel-Driven Church" blog.

Reformation Thinking

As I survey more and more of what passes for good teaching it continues to become increasingly apparent to me that we continue to experience a drift if not an all out abandonment from reformation thinking.

"The Cambridge Declaration" by the "Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals" laid out the following in 1996 and I have found it a good reminder.

The conference, and the eventual declaration that was created, was broadly influenced by the following:

*The culture of the modern world (as represented by postmodernism) is changing the message that the church preaches.

*The decision by many churches and denominations to directly enter politics and endorse political parties and candidates - and doing this instead of preaching the gospel.

*The erosion of Christian doctrine within the modern church, including the lack of Expository preaching.

*The increasing influence of relativism within the church, which has led to an environment where "truth" is subjectively determined, and where church leaders aim to preach only "positive" messages.

*The increasing focus upon man, rather than God, within the church.
An increasing focus on man's ability to respond to God's grace, rather than a focus upon God's ability to save man.

*A focus on the quantitative and measurable aspects of church growth (which thus links Christian ministry with outward success) rather than the qualitative and spiritual aspects of Biblical ministry.

The declaration is a call to repentance for the evangelical church in order to reaffirm the historical Christian truths that are articulated by The Five Solas and deny modern teachings:

1. Sola Scriptura: The Erosion Of Authority

A reaffirmation that the Bible contains all things necessary to understand and obey God. A denial that any other form of authority is needed to bind the conscience of the Christian.

2. Solus Christus: The Erosion Of Christ-Centered Faith

A reaffirmation that Christ alone and his penal substitutionary atonement on the cross are the means by which all Christians are saved. A denial that the Gospel can be preached without the atonement being declared and without faith being solicited from the listeners.

3. Sola Gratia: The Erosion Of The Gospel

A reaffirmation that salvation is a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. A denial that salvation is in any sense a work of the human heart, either fully or partially.

4. Sola Fide: The Erosion Of The Chief Article

A reaffirmation that a person is justified (declared innocent) before God through faith alone and through Christ alone - that Christ's righteousness is imputed to the Christian. A denial that justification relies upon any human merit, and that churches which teach this cannot be considered legitimate churches.

5. Soli Deo Gloria: The Erosion Of God-Centered Worship

A reaffirmation that salvation is ultimately for God's glory rather than man's, and that Christians everywhere should understand that they are under God's authority and act for his glory alone. A denial that God can be glorified through "entertainment"-style worship; the removal of law and/or gospel in preaching; and preaching that focuses upon self-improvement, self-esteem and self fulfillment.

Jesus Plus Zilch, Nada, Nothing

The gospel isn't about me, it isn't about you, it isn't about our church, our cool productions, or our hipster pastor. The gospel isn't about 10 steps to a happy life and it isn't about 7 secrets to a successful "Christian" business. The gospel isn't God's way of helping us be better people. The gospel isn't about how to make our kids behave more and it isn't about what not to say if we want to make our spouses do what we want them to do.

Hell will be full of people who used to be happy. Better people will line the halls of hell. And even so-called "successful Christians" will spend eternity in a lake of fire seperated from God.

The gospel is all about Jesus. He is exclusively the good news and he is the only way to God. He is the beginning and the end, the first and the last, the kit and caboodle, the icing and the cake.

The gospel is Jesus plus zilch, nada, nothing.

Siding with the Sages of Our Age

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. ~Acts 20:28, ESV

I ran across the following in one of those mass emails that essentially claims to have life all figured out and if you'll just heed the advice given you will be successful.

"Our lives belong to us and so do our decisions."

For those of us who claim to follow Jesus but somehow want to cling to siding with the sages of our age who promote the notion that our lives are our own, we might condider that to do so is to deny the sovereignty and reign of God Almighty.

for, "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it." ~1 Corinthians 10:26, NIV

That includes us.

Our lives are not our own, they have been bought with the price of God's one and only dear Son.

Good Takes on “The Coming Evangelical Collapse.”

Everybody and their brother has offered their assessment of Michael Spencer's (aka imonk) piece that made headlines a few months back titled “The Coming Evangelical Collapse.” Myself, I offered no such assessments but thought his takes were good (in all honesty I have found much more needed leaf lettuce and meat on his blog).

I ran across the following takes posted on Frank Viola's blog in relation to Spencer's article and found the comments quite intriguing (note: Viola is someone who I haven't read much of until last week after running across his "Jesus Manifesto"--excellent btw--which he co-authored with Leonard Sweet)

(Viola quotes his friend, Hal Miller)

Christianity is culturally relevant when it offers a qualitatively different society. Jesus called it “the kingdom of God.” Paul saw its first outlines in the gathered disciples of Jesus, and so he called them ekklesia - we translate it “church”- a Greek word denoting citizens assembled to attend to their common project, their city.

The evangelicals missed this. Evangelicalism sought to transform people and so transform the world. They did not see that something might be missing from this vision, something their assumption of American individualism would hide from them. The true Christian vision is to transform people, transforming them into a people, and so transform the world. The evangelicals missed that middle term. They could not see the church as a foretaste of the new society; it was a club for the new individuals. The evangelicals simply dressed American individualism in Christian clothing. They ended up with new isolated individuals, but in the old society. Since their expression of Christianity did not take form as a new society, it quickly became culturally irrelevant, even though it was admirably culturally open.

To be culturally relevant, Christianity must offer an alternative. God has indeed chosen to deal with persons as individuals- in this the evangelicals were right. Yet they are not simply individuals; they become members of a social reality called ekklesia, which is the entering wedge of the new society of God’s making.

Too often, for example, we assume that evangelism involves the simple aggregation of more and more new individuals. If enough people are “born again,” the world’s problems will diminish. But the experience of the last twenty years- in which we had more and more people “born again” as well as more and more marital tragedies, more and more international tension, and more and more bondage to the demons of our age- seems a perfectly contrived counter-example to this theory.

The Christian calling requires being reconciled with God, to be sure. But it also requires being a new, reconciling society characterized by forgiveness, acceptance, and responsibility in a common task- a society qualitatively different from its culture, yet engaged with it. Little gatherings of Christians for worship and mutual help in being disciples become the seeds of God’s coming new society.

Such a new society will be culturally relevant because it springs from God’s movement among God’s people. The persons who make up this new society live their faith in the face of day-to-day problems that they share with the world around them. They face the same questions as unbelievers: finding joy and meaning in work, living at peace both personally and globally, raising responsible and compassionate children. And in facing those questions, Christian faith becomes relevant even for unbelievers.

Imagine a group of people gathering to help each other in the common task of seeing God’s kingdom incarnated in their work, in their families, in their towns, in their world, in their midst, and (rather than only) in their individual lives. This gathering is ekklesia. It will be relevant to its world because it lives the life of the kingdom in the world, not apart from it.

For a complete look at the piece posted by Viola see his review here.

Nothing Else

We should consider Paul's words before we claim to know anything else.

For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. ~1 Corinthians 2:2, ESV

Key of Hope

"It is estimated that by the year 2015, South Africa will be home to three million or more AIDS orphans."

Dan Smither and his wife Rachel (who attended school with my younger brother and sister) are caring for and reaching these children with the good news of the gospel. Dan writes, "They are children like our very own. Kids, who still have the ability to escape the raging AIDS epidemic and help lead the fight against the devastating wave of poverty and death, but only with the help of someone who cares. But there is little time and few who are willing to give them this chance. You can be their key."

Check out this 5 minute clip to learn more.

Key of Hope 2009 from Jim TerMarsch on Vimeo.

And visit their website if you'd like to learn about how you can help.

Key of Hope

Incarnation

My first love
My best love
Tabernacled incarnation
Fiery torrent of jealousy
Wanting all of me eternally
Bleeding pierced heart
Dying for unquenchable love of me
Divine and unrequited lover
Waiting for me to hear your whispered love
Drawing me into the embrace of your friendship
Willing to teach me of your abundance
If only I would care to listen
Offering me no less than yourself
Your pulsing, enlivening Spirit
To indwell my being beyond measure
Why do I not care to drink deeply of you
My everything
Afraid to die of love
For you as you for me
Purge away my hardness
Amputate my fear
Boil away my coldness
Break the wall of false attachment
That pays homage to a hollow god
There is no other love like you
To cherish such as me
Ungrateful sluggard
Pretentious fool
Forgetful lover
Half a friend
And yet your love for me
Is all consuming, all-pursuing
A holocaust of self-forgetfulness
Waiting for a simple glance
Of heart to Heart
So in a moment
This perishing body
Becomes itself
A tent of meeting
A tender kiss
A nuptial promise
Of unending bliss
Losing self in love
For this was I created
You in me and I in you
Eternally

~Author Unknown