Suffering and the Modern Christian

This Sunday evening I'll be preaching on suffering and the gospel. I have a hunch that many modern Christians in the west (myself included), don't grasp the implications of Jesus' words...

Matthew 16:24-25 If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

This blog post, Wearing Crosses or Bearing Them, by a Westminster Seminary California grad seems to confirm my suspicions.

Firefox

Since switching from Internet Explorer to Firefox a couple of years ago, internet life has generally been much better. If you haven't yet switched, here are a number of reasons to do so.

Memorial Day with Ems

 

 

 

 

The Kingdom of God (and a little hip hop)

I've always appreciated the preaching ministry of Alistair Begg. And, I've always felt the "two kingdoms" view of theology was spot on. And now, to find Alistair Begg preaching the "two kingdoms" - set to music! This very well may be the coolest thing ever.

There is a whole ministry dedicated to setting sermons to music (Relevant Revolution). True, this may go beyond the "ordinary means," but still, it's very cool - and it makes my secret desire to be some sort of rock star more tangible.

They encourage folks to download the "sermon jams" and then give them away. With their list of preachers (Alistair Begg, John Piper, Ravi Zacharias, etc.), this may not be a bad idea.

Summertime!

 

Charles Spurgeon on the fact that there was no room for Christ in the Inn...

If you have room for Christ, then from this day forth remember The World Has No Room For You... remember henceforth there is no room in this world for any true follower of Christ. There is no room for you to take your ease; no, you are to be a soldier of the cross, and you will find no ease in all your life-warfare. There is no room for you to sit down contented with your own attainments, for you are a traveler, and you are to forget the things that are behind, and press forward to that which is before; no room for you to hide your treasure in, for here the moth and rust doth corrupt; no room for you to put your confidence, for “Cursed is he that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm.” From this day there will be no room for you in the world’s good opinion — they will count you to be an offscouring; no room for you in the world’s polite society — you must go without the camp, bearing his reproach. From this time forth, I say, if you have room for Christ, the world will hardly find room of sufferance for you; you must expect now to be laughed at; now you must wear the fool’s cap in men’s esteem; and your song must be at the very beginning of your pilgrimage,

“Jesus, I thy cross have taken, All to leave and follow thee; Naked, poor, despised, forsaken, Thou from hence my all shall be.”

The Perils of Preaching...

Church: Sucks or Doesn't Suck?

GracePoint Church in Wichita, Kansas has created a bit of a stir with their new marketing slogan, "Church Doesn't Suck." Apparently, the slogan comes from a comment the pastor received from a woman attending their church who said, "Hey, this doesn't suck." So, after that comment, up went the "Church Doesn't Suck" billboard, along with the comment on an advertising website that says, "At GracePoint, church doesn't suck."

The pastor says that if you are the type of person offended by this slogan, then you're not the type of person they are trying to reach.

I'm not the type of person they are trying to reach.

Honesty

Sometimes, we just need to be told the truth.

Heaven Without Christ?

As noted in the previous blog, many who call themselves Christians are satisfied with a religion without Christ. In light of that I appreciate John Piper's stinging question from God is the Gospel.

The critical question for our generation--and for every generation--is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?

Where Christ Is Not Preached

Our church youth director Chris M. says, "many evangelicals today would be happy with a public religion without any content." Indeed, this certainly seems to be the case. I was shocked to read the presidential proclamation on the National Day of Prayer. In it George Bush says,

Americans of many faiths and traditions share a common belief that God hears the prayers of His children and shows grace to those who seek Him. Following the tragedy at Virginia Tech, in towns all across America, in houses of worship from every faith, Americans have joined together to pray for the lives that were lost and for their families, friends, and loved ones. We hold the victims in our hearts and pray for those who suffer and grieve. There is a power in these prayers, and we can find comfort in the grace and guidance of a loving God.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 3, 2007, as a National Day of Prayer. I ask the citizens of our Nation to give thanks, each according to his or her own faith

Do you hear what he's saying? He is essentially saying that there is "power" in the prayers of people of all faiths. He is in fact urging people of all faiths to pray to whatever God they choose to pray to. As president, this is fine - we live in a society with the blessing of freedom of religion. But if the president is a Christian as he says he is, his statements are in fact heresy and a direct denial of the supremacy of Christ.

Here's my point. Chris is right. As long as the president says he is a Christian and promotes certain moral issues that Christians generally support, many evangelicals are perfectly happy with that sort of public religion, without any content, and without any Christ.

Oh, that the evangelical church in America would return to its first love (Rev. 2:4)! Michael Horton's comment below is very telling...

What would things look like if Satan actually took over a city? The first frames in our imaginative slide show probably depict mayhem on a massive scale: Widespread violence, deviant sexualities, pornography in every vending machine, churches closed down and worshipers dragged off to City Hall. Over a half-century ago, Donald Grey Barnhouse, pastor of Philadelphia's Tenth Presbyterian Church, gave his CBS radio audience a different picture of what it would look like if Satan took control of a town in America. He said that all of the bars and pool halls would be closed, pornography banished, pristine streets and sidewalks would be occupied by tidy pedestrians who smiled at each other. There would be no swearing. The kids would answer "Yes, sir," "No, ma'am," and the churches would be full on Sunday ... where Christ is not preached.

Jerry Falwell

Cal Thomas on Jerry Falwell...

The Jerry Falwell I knew was torn between the two kingdoms he represented: one not of this world and the other very much of this world; one with tactics and tools that could change lives and the other with tactics and tools that changed little....

It makes one wonder why he put so much time, effort and money into political organizing when with his other role as preacher he shared a message about a King and a Kingdom that was better able to change people for the better than either political party could ever hope to do.

via Postscript Posthaste

A Great Ride

I'm looking through some of my older files - here's one of my favorites. This is video of a sledride at Jumonville Camp outside of Pittsburgh. It's the biggest sledding hill I've ever seen. This video was taken in February 2005. When we went back in 2006 they said no one was aloud to sled on the hill anymore - something about a kid getting stuck in a tree at the bottom of the hill. Enjoy

Church Hopping

John Calvin says we ought to thank God for gifts from "natural men" (non-Christians) who are "sharp and penetrating" in their investigation of things (Institutes 2.2.15). Could it be that God could teach the church a few things through the makers of "King of the Hill?" Decide for yourself.

Amen and Amen and Ouch

Carl Treumen's words from the Reformation21 blog regarding women in Reformed circles are oh-so-accurate. Proverbs 31 without the gospel can be a deadly burden (Proverbs 31:10-31).

I have lost count of the number of women I have come across, particularly in presbyterian circles, who feel the need to conform to some Reformed cultural norm. You can tell them on the Sundays: the exhausted and haggard mothers whose husbands expect them not only to cook and to clean, but also to home-school the kids. For every omnicompetent wife who seems to be able to run the world and then some, and still look like a million dollars when hubbie gets home for dinner (already on the table, of course), there are ten or more who look crushed and dispirited, who really need to send their kids out of the house in the morning so they can get some rest and some mental sanity, who need their husbands to see the problem and take steps to help them. Are they inadequate as Christian mothers? No. They are crushed by a "Christian" culture that demands their all and gives no slack.

I am no feminist (my wife will confirm my impeccable Neanderthal credentials); I have strong views on women's ordination; but I am saddened by the way Reformed church culture so often tramples its women underfoot with its mindless identification of biblical manhood with something akin to John Wayne and its assumption that all Christian women should make Mary Poppins look domestically incompetent.

Charles Spurgeon on Weekly Communion

“So with the Lord's Supper. My witness is, and I think I speak the mind of many of God's people now present, that coming as some of us do, weekly, to the Lord's table, we do not find the breaking of bread to have lost its significance—it is always fresh to us. I have often remarked on Lord's-day evening, whatever the subject may have been, whether Sinai has thundered over our heads, or the plaintive notes of Calvary have pierced our hearts, it always seems equally appropriate to come to the breaking of bread. Shame on the Christian church that she should put it off to once a month, and mar the first day of the week by depriving it of its glory in the meeting together for fellowship and breaking of bread, and showing forth of the death of Christ till he come. They who once know the sweetness of each Lord's-day celebrating his Supper, will not be content, I am sure, to put it off to less frequent seasons. Beloved, when the Holy Ghost is with us, ordinances are wells to the Christian, wells of rich comfort and of near communion.”

via Postscript Posthaste

Fun in the Pool

Emily Eating With a Spoon

Emily Walks

Emily's starting to prefer walking to crawling. Very exciting!