What is gossip?
HT: Justin Taylor
A Little About Me…
I am a Christian, husband, father, pastor, professor, & teacher who wants to help fellow pilgrims on our way to the Heavenly City.
I Hope You Experience Despair
I hope you experience despair. I hope you come to a place where you no longer can find any meaningful happiness in yourself or the things around you. I hope that when you drink, you will find that even alcohol cannot numb away your nagging feeling of emptiness and despair which lingers in your soul. I hope the unending sexual encounters you pursue would all leave you with nothing but more cravings and less peace. I pray that even your own family, as much as you love and care for them, will no longer bring meaning to your life. I hope you lose all hope in yourself and everything else in this world. I hope you come to the conclusion of King Solomon:
All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless. (Ecclesiastes 2:17-23).
Why would I hope for such a thing? How could I possibly desire that you experience despair and hopelessness? Do I hate you? No. I say this not out of hatred, but love.
I hope all these things for you, not because I want your life to be marked by sorrow, sadness, and dissatisfaction. No, I say this because I want the opposite for your life. I hope you (and I) come to despair in all that you are and all that you have so you then may finally turn away from trusting in yourself, your stuff, or anything else in this world and turn to the Only God of All. I say this in hopes that you would turn from empty idolatry, that you would turn away from living your life for Creation, and finally turn to your Creator. I say this because I want you to stop running after God’s stuff and chase God Himself. As the song calls…
Rise from your knees, stop worshiping
The splinters of broken gods, turn and see your King
There is one God over all kings and rulers
And he reigns alone
Timothy Keller sums it up well…
The way forward, out of despair, is to discern the idols of our hearts and our culture. But that will not be enough. The only way to free ourselves from the destructive influence of counterfeit gods is to turn back to the true one. The living God, who revealed Himself both at Sinai and on the Cross, is the only Lord who, if you find Him, can truly fulfill you, and, if you fail him, can truly forgive you.
Although God’s creation is very good (Genesis 1:31) and should be accepted with thanksgiving (1 Timothy 4:4), it should never be looked to for complete contentment. Satisfaction is sold separately from creation and can only be known in relationship with the Creator.
Unfortunately, none of us will ever come to see this truth until we see the bankruptcy of the idols we chase. We will never know true hope unless we come to it from the depths of true despair. We will never cherish the living God until we know the pitiful emptiness of our beloved idols.
Or you could say it this way…
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Tagged gospel, idolatry, jefferson bethke, joy, love, sin, timothy keller, worship
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The Saturday Post(s)
Things Jesus Didn’t Say. I like the end: “When Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were super cool with his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had a realistic understanding of the Bible and helped the disciples feel better about themselves.”
Why Keep Sexual Boundaries? “Though almost any reason for sexual boundaries is a good one, mine is not a Christian reason in that it has nothing to do with Jesus. That scares me. Jeopardizing my relationship with my wife is more motivating to me than jeopardizing my relationship with the Lord.”
Are You Leaching the Local Church? I appreciate the pastor who was quoted in this piece, “For those of you who come here every week thinking attendance makes you good with God, you’re wrong. Some of you are driving from the other side of the metroplex, and are not really connected to the church at all. If you’re just coming here, not involved in a small group, not serving with nursery, parking, or ushering — if you’re just here to hear the band or listen to me talk — go somewhere else. You’re a leech. And quite frankly, we could use your seat.”
Why Women Should Study Theology. Give it a read, ladies!
How Busy People Make Time to Read. FastCompany offers some good ways to fit reading into your busy life.
Encourage One Another. “In one sense, encouragement is like oxygen in the life of a church. It keeps hearts beating, minds clear, and hands inspired to serve.”
5 Reasons to Journal. I love journaling, but know it’s not for everyone. Here are five reasons you should at least consider it.
3 of the Best Books for Non-Believers. I appreciated this list. For more book recommendations for non-believers, check this out.
These Guys Are Awesome. The hat trick is especially good.
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Tagged books, encouragement, evangelism, journaling, liberalism, local church, purity, reading, sex, sexual immorality, theology, women
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Let Them Only Get to Hell Over Our Dead Bodies
Last night I preached on the topic of evangelism to the middle schoolers at my church. I helped them see that following Jesus meant becoming a fisher of people. As Jesus said…
“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” Matthew 4:19
As we follower Jesus, the Greatest Fisher of People who ever lived, we will follow Him in His work of catching fish. As Christians, we will seek to catch those who swim in a sea of sin in order to bring them onto the land of God’s grace.
As I preached that simple message, I was reminded of the powerful words of Charles Spurgeon in a sermon he preaches long ago:
Oh, my brothers and sisters in Christ, if sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies; and if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay, and not madly to destroy themselves. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for.
Amen. Amen. Amen. May the love of Christ overflow out our mouths. May we all be unrelenting in throwing out the nets of His gospel.
A Log in the Fire
I have written before about the essential importance of loving, being a part of, and going to church. To add to the list, here is a simple little story from Donald Whitney to help illustrate the importance of church fellowship within the Christian life.
A pastor went to visit a church member who had been neglecting fellowship. The man invited him in, and they both sat down by the fireplace. Without speaking, the pastor looked thoughtfully into the fire for several minutes. Then, taking the iron poker, he pulled one of the red-hot coals to the front edge of the hearth. Soon it lost its glowing warmth and became dark and cool. Silently the pastor pushed the coal back into the company of the other embers and it quickly returned to its former strength.
“I see what you mean, Pastor,” the man admitted. “I’ll be back this Sunday.”
The strength of your spiritual fire is related to the fellowship you have with the body of Christ. You will not be able to maintain your spiritual fervency without the spiritual fuel God supplies through fellowship.
(Spiritual Disciplines Within the Church, p. 158-159).
As the author of Hebrews wrote long ago, “Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (10:24-25).
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Tagged church, church membership, church service, donald whitney, fellowship
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Doctrine is Not Enough
Sound doctrine is a gift, a blessing, and a fountain of life to those who love the Lord Jesus. What can be more beautiful to a believer than the precious truth about His Lord? However, as precious as sound doctrine is, it is not enough.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones elaborates:
There is a terrible danger of putting our doctrines (teachings), the true doctrines, about the persons into the place of the persons. And that is absolutely fatal. But it is a very familiar scare, which traps evangelical people and orthodox people. You can be orthodox but dead. Why? Well, because you are stopping at the doctrines, you are stopping at the definitions and failing to realize that the whole purpose of doctrine is not to be an end in itself, but to lead us to a knowledge of the person and to an understanding of the person and to a fellowship with the person.
There are churches and denominations today that are perfectly orthodox yet are quite dead.. They do not seem to be used at all in the salvation of souls, nor really in giving their people assurance of salvation. Why? Because they remain only on the level of doctrine – this intellectual concern and this intellectual correctness. It is a terrible thing to substitute even true doctrines for a living relationship with the person. (Taken from Revival, p. 58).
It is true, no meaningful relationship can exist without true knowledge of the other, but there is a great danger of making that truth an end in itself which is an abuse of the truths God has given us. God’s Word, and the doctrines therein, are purposed to lead us into fellowship with God Himself. Andrew Bonar said it best:
It never is the belief of bare truths that saves the soul; for these have to do only with the understanding. Truths, however weighty, must guide us onward to the Person who is the essence of the testimony…Faith is begun in the head, but not perfected till it comes into the heart…The belief of the testimony concerning the Son of God, our Savior, is the porch of the building, through which we pass into the audience-chamber and meet the Living Inhabitant, full of light, and life, and love. (Taken from The Person of Christ).
Doctrines are designed to lead us into fellowship. They are roads, not destinations. They are doorways you pass through, not living rooms you sit in. We must always be careful that we do not camp on the road or stop in the doorway, but that we enter through the doorway of doctrine into fellowship with the Living Christ.
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Tagged andrew bonar, bible, doctrine, martyn lloyd jones, study, theology, truth
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Bigger & Bigger & Bigger
Among the many gifts of maturing in Christ, few surpass the one illustrated here by C.S. Lewis in Prince Caspian.
And then—oh joy! For he was there: the huge Lion, shining white in the moonlight, with his huge black shadow underneath him.
But for the movement of his tail he might have been a stone lion, but Lucy never thought of that. She never stopped to think whether he was a friendly lion or not. She rushed to him. She felt her heart would burst if she lost a moment. And the next thing she knew was that she was kissing him and putting her arms as far round his neck as she could and burying her face in the beautiful rich silkiness of his mane.
“Aslan, Aslan. Dear Aslan,” sobbed Lucy. “At last.”
The great beast rolled over on his side so that Lucy fell, half sitting and half lying between his front paws. He bent forward and just touched her nose with his tongue. His warm breath came all round her. She gazed up into the large wise face.
“‘Welcome, child,” he said.
“AsIan,” said Lucy, “you’re bigger.”
“That is because you are older, little one,” answered he.
“Not because you are?”
“I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.”
C.S. Lewis, Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia.
A sure way to measure your growth in Christ is to measure how much Christ has grown in your eyes. Growing in Christ results in Christ growing larger in your eyes with every passing year. He does not become more glorious, but the more we grow, the more we are able to see how glorious He truly is. Every year we grow, we shall find Him bigger.
The Saturday Post(s)
Preach the Gospel to Yourself. Read this for excellent instruction on how to preach the gospel to your own heart. “Whatever Scriptures we use to assure us of God’s forgiveness, we must realize that whether the passage explicitly states it or not, the only basis for God’s forgiveness is the blood of Christ shed on the cross for us.”
If God Knows Our Every Need, Then Why Doe He Tell Us to Pray? “Most of us don’t like to humble ourselves. At least I don’t like to. And prayer is an act of humility. Prayer is an act of weakness. When we pray we admit to God that we desperately need help.”
Dads, Plan for Family Time. “Dads, as fall begins (in the Northern Hemisphere), your family schedule is likely already filling up with activities. But does your fall schedule bear the marks of your leadership?”
The Ordinary Church. An extremely good sermon on the ordinary nature of the church. “A church was not an event. A church was not a place where there was a platform for some striking figure or over-the-top personality. It was just an ordinary place where the people of God who were genuinely converted devoted themselves continually to the Word of God, to fellowship, to the Lord’s table, and prayer. Ordinary. I’m so thankful that this is an ordinary church. Not only ordinary activities, but secondly ordinary attitudes, ordinary attitudes.”
Mentoring 101. Some good wisdom on the crucial topic of mentoring.
Two Things We Must Be Clear About When We Talk About Homosexuality. “We may want to avoid the controversy, but it’s coming whether we like it or not. In some way, at some time or place, every Christian will have to take their stand on this question: what does the Bible say about homosexuality? Let me suggest two points I think we must state with both compassion and clarity.”
Here’s to Adventurous Toddlers. Try not to laugh.
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Tagged church, fatherhood, gay, gospel, homosexual, homosexuality, jerry bridges, john macarthur, mentor, prayer, Sanctification
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Why You Should Take Jesus Seriously
Jesus of Nazareth is a big deal. I don’t think it would be a stretch to say that you would be an absolute fool to not take him seriously. Here are some reasons why.
He is the most influential man who has ever walked the face of the earth. From the individual to national level, there is no man who comes close to comparing with Jesus in measure of influence. You have to understand Jesus to make sense of most world history for the past 2,000 years.
His actions and statements. Jesus said things that only a crazy person would say (e.g. He is eternal, He is God, He is the truth, He is the only way to the Father, etc.), but Jesus acted more sane than anybody I know, including myself. Crazy people don’t act so sane and sane people don’t say things like Jesus did, unless they were true.
He claims to be God in flesh. Jesus claimed to be one with the Father (John 10:30) and the Jews knew that He meant He was God (John 10:31).
He changed the calendar. Whether it is BCE/CE or BC/AD, it seems that history has honored Jesus by making time centered on Him.
Billions of people throughout history have chosen to live their entire lives (even give up their lives) for Him alone. As Todd Friel says in his excellent book Jesus Unmasked, “He has more followers than the Rolling Stones, Beatles, and Miley Cyrus combined.” This doesn’t prove anything, but if billions of people have chosen to run one direction, it is at least worth a look to find out why.
He promised to rise from the dead and then did so. Although his enemies knew he died and they knew where they buried him, they never were able to find his body afterward. Additionally, the disciples who ran away scared when he was crucified (Matthew 26:31) began boldly proclaiming that He rose from the dead only weeks after (Acts 5:27-32). What created such a change other than they really saw their Risen Lord. If you disagree about the resurrection, what plausible explanation do you have?
He is a common denominator in practically all major and minor religions. Every major world religion has something to say about him (Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism) and most minor religions include him in some way. They all claim different things about him, but none of them ignore him.
He claimed that your eternal destiny depends on how you respond to Him. Jesus once taught, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). According to Jesus, your entrance to heaven or your condemnation to hell rests on Him alone.
There’s more to say, but those are some good starting points. I am not saying that, because of these reasons, you should become a Christian right now (although I think you should), but what I am challenging you to do is see is that you must take Jesus seriously. You would be a fool not to.
Now, allow Ravi Zacharias to blow your mind.
What Christians Do With the Bible
The Bible is a big deal to Christians because, for us, it is the primary way that God has chosen to make Himself and His salvation known to the world. To say it more carefully, God has revealed His character and saving work perfectly through the incarnation of His Son as recorded in the Scriptures.
With that in mind, it shouldn’t be difficult to see how important knowing the Bible is to Christianity. Reading the Bible is the food and drink of true Christians, but they do a lot more with the Bible than simply read it. I believe the London Baptist Confession (1689) gives a good, concise summary of the primary things Christians do with their Bibles.
By this faith Christians believe to be true everything revealed in the Word, recognizing it as the authority of God himself. (Acts 24:14)
They also perceive that the Word is more excellent than every other writing and everything else in the world (Psalm 27:7-10; 119:72), because it displays the glory of God in his attributes, the excellence of Christ in his nature and offices, and the power and fullness of the Holy Spirit in his activities and operations. So they are enabled to entrust their souls to the truth believed (2 Timothy 1:12).
They respond differently according to the content of each particular passage—obeying the commands (John 14:14), trembling at the threatenings (Isaiah 66:2), and embracing the promises of God for this life and the one to come (Hebrews 11:13). (XIV:II).
Christians believe the Bible to be true, perceive the Bible as the most excellent writing ever penned, and respond to the Bible in faith and obedience.
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Tagged bible, confession, creed, god, incarnation, jesus, london baptist confession, revelation
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A Pilgrim's Friend 