Monday is for Music

I love Christmas music. I think Christmas songs have great Biblical Theology. One of my favorites is “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”. I love the lyrics. Any song that includes the “proto-evangel” has to be great!

Hark! the herald angels sing,"Glory to the new born King,peace on earth, and mercy mild,God and sinners reconciled!"Joyful, all ye nations rise,join the triumph of the skies;with th' angelic host proclaim,"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"Hark! the herald angels sing,"Glory to the new born King!"

Christ, by highest heaven adored;Christ, the everlasting Lord;late in time behold him come,offspring of a virgin's womb.Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;hail th' incarnate Deity,pleased as man with man to dwell,Jesus, our Emmanuel.Hark! the herald angels sing,"Glory to the new born King!"

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!Hail the Sun of Righteousness!Light and life to all he brings,risen with healing in his wings.Mild he lays his glory by,born that man no more may die,born to raise the sons of earth,born to give us second birth.Hark! the herald angels sing,"Glory to the new born King!"

Come, Desire of nations, come,fix in us thy humble home;rise, the woman's conquering Seed,bruise in us the serpent's head.Adam's likeness, Lord, efface;stamp thine image in its place.Second Adam from above,Reinstate us in thy love.Hark! the herald angels sing,"Glory to the new born King!"

Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,Stamp Thine image in its place:Second Adam from above,Reinstate us in Thy love.Let us Thee, though lost, regain,Thee, the Life, the inner man:O, to all Thyself impart,Formed in each believing heart.Hark! the herald angels sing,“Glory to the newborn King!”

Enjoy Weezer’s version.

More on Sanctification

Awhile back I started wrestling hard with the role of man and the role of the Spirit in sanctification. I have spent a lot of time the last year reading on this subject. I have even tried to articulate some thoughts on the subject here and here and I plan on writing some more. I would love to hear some questions from folks about sanctification. Put them in the comments, or email me at psveal@msn.com. For now, here is a video that may peek some interest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gub5uaiT3fo

Harvest Mission Sunday at SCBC

Next Sunday Pastor Ryan Franchuk will speak at Shell Creek for Harvest Mission Sunday. If you are in the area I’d encourage you to come. Starts at 9:45 a.m. sharp.

Pastor Franchuk recently spoke at the NAB South Dakota Association meeting. And here is the website for the church-plant he is part of.

Peter's Ups and Downs

Tomorrow morning I will be preaching on the following text from Mark chapter 8:

"And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, 'Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man'."

One of the hardest things about preaching is trying to fit all of your studying into a 30-40 minute sermon. In the end, I try by the mercy and grace of the Almighty, to render a faithful understanding of the text to my hearers for the glory of God. There is always stuff left out, and this week is no exception. I am not sure I will get to the “back-story” of Peter, so I wanted to blog a little about it.

I called Peter a “back-story” because I do not believe he is the focus of this narrative. I feel that too often teachers of the Word can focus on “back-stories” verses the main point of the text. While other details of the text are often interesting, and provocative, I firmly believe the inspired writers of the Bible wrote with a purpose. All the “details” of scripture point to a big picture purpose. That is what I am always trying to accomplish with my preaching. I want to convey and expound the big picture, and I believe big picture is Jesus Christ. So, Lord willing, when I preach tomorrow, I will spend my energy and focus on lifting high Jesus Christ.

Now back to Peter. One can’t help but wonder the emotions that Peter felt after eliciting such a response from Jesus. Just a few verses before, Peter rides the spiritual rollercoaster to the top with the confession that Jesus is not John the Baptist, or Elijah, or even one of the prophets, but that Jesus is the “Christ”. Now his stomach falls as he plummets down to the bottom with the rebuke of Jesus that he is like Satan. This is not the only time the gospels record Peter’s rollercoaster ride of sanctification for us. He is the one who calls out to Jesus from the boat wanting to walk on the water with Christ. Then he sinks in unbelief. He is the one who asks Jesus to wash his whole body, and then he is reminded that only his feet need to be washed. He defiantly strikes with the sword to defend Jesus in the garden, then denies the Son of Man three times before the cock crows. Wow. I thought my spiritual life was a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows!

This begs a question in my mind. How did Peter deal with such wild, sometimes violent highs and lows in his sanctification?

In my own life, and in the lives of those I have the privilege of ministering to, this is the most frequent question I deal with. Why do we struggle with sin, when we have seemed to see Jesus as the Christ the son of the most High God (i.e. Peter confessing Jesus as Christ, then being likened to Satan)? Another way of putting the question: If Jesus is Lord of my life, why do I still struggle with sin so much?

This is the old age question of most Christians. There are many things that could be said here, but I’d like to focus on Peter. I think that it is wise for us to look at the end of his life for an answer. Read the first chapter of his second epistle:


“Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: (2) May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. (3) His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, (4) by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. (5) For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, (6) and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, (7) and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. (8) For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (9) For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. (10) Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. (11) For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (12) Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. (13) I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, (14) since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. (15) And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. (16) For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. (17) For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," (18) we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. (19) And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, (20) knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. (21) For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

I’d like to make a couple of observations that may help us wrestle with the issue of sanctification.

1. Peter is very, very clear that our standing before God is based off of faith by the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ. (verse 1) His divine power is what gives us “all things” in regards to sanctification. (verse 3)

2. Because our righteousness is in Christ and not in our works, we have been made “partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” (verse 5) Are you ready? Here comes the big one! THEREFORE since we are partakers of the “divine nature” (Paul calls it a new creation) we can NOW “make every effort to supplement our faith”!

3. Look at verse 8 “For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” These “qualities” that “supplement our faith” DO NOT add anything to our righteousness. They help us be fruitful in the “knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ”. What is this knowledge? It is the understanding of the gospel of Christ! Hosea 6, Isaiah 40, John 17, and the whole Bible screams at us to know Jesus Christ. Know that he is our righteousness! As John Piper says, when Jesus is the blazing center of our universe (everything we are and know) all the other little planets (the sins we are wrestling with) fall right into orbit.

4. Verse 10 says we are to practice these qualities. Practice them. Are you wrestling with sin? Let me ask you this question? Do you practice virtue? Do you even know what virtue is? Practice, practice, practice.

5. Peter then reminds his readers that he will soon die. He wants to make every effort to remind his readers of these qualities. How does he do that? Yep, you guessed it, the Bible. How amazing is this book we have! Peter essentially says, “in your battle with sin, read the Bible, which will cause your knowledge of Christ to increase, which will cause you to make effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and so on.

I could go on and on and on, but I won’t. I will recommend that you read II Peter this week. Read it for you weary, sin-battled soul. I’ll leave you with the last words of Peter to us.

“grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity”

One proud daddy!

Eschatology Forums

There are many different views of Eschatology. However, the big three that most evangelicals fall into are: Amillennial, Postmillennial, and Premillennial. Here are some great recent debates/forums over the three big views. Enjoy.

Boyce College’s panel discussion on the Millennial reign of Christ:

http://www.boycecollege.com/2009/09/23/panel-tribulation-and-millennium-a-theology-forum-on-eschatology/

An evening of Eschatology hosted by John Piper and Desiring God ministries:

https://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/ConferenceMessages/ByDate/2009/4262_An_Evening_On_Eschatology/

Howard Fisher blogging about his interaction with some big names in the field of Eschatology:

http://www.how2fish.blogspot.com/

Psalm 51 & Mark 7

This Sunday I will be preaching on Mark 7:1-23. I have been struggling with the text all week. So today, after struggling to focus, I simply began reading the Psalms. If you don’t have any Psalms memorized, begin with Psalm 1. “…and on His Law he meditates day and night…” He meditates day and night. That led me to begin reciting the few Psalms that I have memorized, Psalms 1, 23, 46, 51, 96, and 103. When I began to recite Psalm 51, the Spirit sweetly refreshed my thoughts on Mark 7.

By this point in Mark’s gospel, the Pharisees are looking for any way to discredit Jesus and his disciples. Even to the point of trying to make him look bad by not honoring the tradition of the elders. Since Jesus knows what is in the heart of every man, (John 2:25) He cuts to the chase and says that Isaiah spoke of these men when he said

“These people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. In vain do the worship me, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men.”

Wow. Jesus lays it on pretty thick over a tradition! We do many things in our culture that are “traditions”. That doesn’t mean we are worshiping in vain, right? Then Mark continues to record Jesus’ words.

“…whatever goes into a person cannot defile him…What comes out of person defiles him…For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts” etc.

Now back to Psalm 51. Listen to verses 10-13:

Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence, O God,
And take not you Holy Spirit from me.
Return unto me the joy of your salvation,
And uphold me with a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
And sinners will return to you.

Do you see the connection? We are so often concerned about the outward actions of ourselves and others. So much that we often become legalistic. We begin holding these traditions higher than the commandments of God!

So then how do we keep from becoming legalistic? Answer, we start with ourselves. We plead, as David did, for the Holy Spirit to work on our hearts! Do you see the pattern? Line 2, 4, and 6 all deal with the spirit. Once the Spirit works on our hearts, then we can teach transgressors God’s ways (not ours). Then sinners will return to him.

I never cease to be amazed with the Word of God. From the beginning to the end it is sufficient, satisfying, and life-giving!

IDOP 2009

It’s still not too late for you pastors to order your free International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church resource kit. This year IDOP will be on November 8th. Please consider taking time in your service to pray for the suffering universal church. If you are not a pastor and you read this blog, please mention IDOP to the leadership of your Church.

The Lord's Prayer

At Shell Creek we have been going through the Lord’s Prayer for Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting. This week we are looking at the phrase,

“Give us this day our daily bread”

Here are some of the questions I’ve come up with to ask the group:

1. 24,000 people starve to death every single day. What are your thoughts of that number in light of Matthew 6:11?

2. Is Jesus speaking of physical bread, spiritual bread, or both? Why or Why not?

3. What are some other daily needs that Christians have, besides bread for the stomach?

4. Is there a spiritual connection to physical needs?


Thoughts? Is Jesus speaking of physical or spiritual bread? Does it matter and why or why not?

Augustine and Sunday School at Shell Creek

I’ve taken a short break from Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology to teach a short series on hermeneutics. I know that hermeneutics is a big word, and it is a somewhat technical study, however I am convinced that almost all bad theology starts with a skewed, or bad hermeneutical methodology.

I love St. Augustine. His book “On Christian Doctrine” had a very big influence on me while I was preparing for ministry. If you have never read it, I highly recommend it. In his preface lays out three types of people who might object to him writing a book on “the mode of ascertaining the proper meaning of scripture, and the mode of making known that meaning.”

Here are the three objections:

1. Those who fail to understand the rules laid down.

2. Those who fail to ascertain the meaning after understanding the rules laid down.

3. Those who have ascertained the meaning of scripture without aid from the rules laid down.

What I love about St. Augustine is that even though his book was written almost 1600 years ago, it has such real application to the 21st century! For I have heard these very objections to learning good rules to help us mine the endless depths of God’s Word.

Just like the first objection, many Christians put no effort to properly find the meaning of a text. In the post-modern air that we breathe, this is not uncommon. I fear many Christians don’t really believe there is objective meaning form a text, and therefore do not apply themselves to find the objective meaning. They go through their Christian life, bouncing from one devotional to another, finding joy in the devotionals that take either the least amount of time and effort, or the devotionals that spoon-feed their anemic soul.

I have also known Christians who live like the second objection. If I am not careful, I can often land here too. These are the Christians who like everything in scripture to be logical. They know the rules of interpretation very well. Yet, so often can miss the very meaning they are trying to get to. They can parse sentences very well, but forget that the very sentence they are parsing is the Word of God.

Finally, some Christians, by the power of the Holy Spirit, have seen the meaning of scripture, and feel that there is no logic involved. They often quote that there is no need for working hard to find the meaning of text, just pray and God will reveal it to you. Scripture can often become a “wax nose” with this understanding of interpreting scripture. For how do you know if it is the Spirit, or your own selfish evil heart that is giving the meaning to the text?

St. Augustine answers these objections beautifully.

“To reply briefly to all these. To those who do not understand what is here set down, my answer is, that I am not to be blamed for their want of understanding. It is just as if they were anxious to see the new or the old moon, or some very obscure star, and I should point it out with my finger: if they had not sight enough to see even my finger, they would surely have no right to fly into a passion with me on that account. As for those who, even though they know and understand mydirections, fail to penetrate the meaning of obscure passages in Scripture, they may stand for those who, in the case I have imagined, are just able to see my finger, but cannot see the stars at which it is pointed. And so both these classes had better give up blaming me, and pray instead that God would grant them the sight of their eyes. For though I can move my finger to point out an object, it is out of my power to open men's eyes that they may see either the fact that I am pointing, or the object at which I point.

But now as to those who talk vauntingly of divine Grace, and boast that they understand and can explain Scripture without the aid of such directions as those I now propose to lay down, and who think, therefore, that what I have undertaken to write is entirely superfluous. I would such persons could calm themselves so far as to remember that, however justly they may rejoice in God's great gift, yet it was from human teachers they themselves learnt to read..."

God has blessed us with the ability to communicate. He has also blessed us with the means to grow in understanding communication. This includes learning how to read, how to find the meaning in a text, and how to apply that meaning to our lives so that we would see Christ more clearly, causing our affections to deepen for him and his glory! Every Christian should dig deep into God's Word to learn more and more about Christ.

Mark 6:1-29 & Rev. Dibaj

This Sunday I will be preaching at my church, and filling the pulpit at 1st Baptist Church in Columbus too. Our service starts at 9:45 and theirs at 10:30, I am told that Pastor Glen usually starts preaching at 11:00, so I should have just enough time to sneak into 1st Baptist’s worship service right before the sermon should start.

I am currently preaching through the Gospel of Mark at Shell Creek. Since I am not talented enough to prepare two sermons for two different churches, I will be preaching the same sermon. We happen to be in chapter 6 of Mark’s account of the life of Christ.

Let me confess. Preaching through one of the gospels is hard work. I firmly believe that that Holy Spirit led each of the four men to write their gospels differently. It has been interesting to wrestle with how Mark links different stories into the narrative.

In verses 1-29 we see three different reactions to Christ and the message He brings. (Mark 1:15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel”)

1. The reaction of the people in Jesus’ home town
2. The reaction of people to the Apostles as their sent out 2 by 2
3. The reaction of Herod and his lover to John the Baptist

Over and over again, the Bible tells us that there will be people who will not believe the good news of Jesus Christ. The Bible also tells us that not only will some people not believe the gospel, but that they will hate the gospel, and those that are proclaiming the gospel. There will be many who will be offended with Christ. There will be many who will reject Christ. There will be many who are offended and reject those who proclaim Christ. This should not surprise us. We should not be caught off guard when people reject Christ and his message of repentance and faith.

I will be sharing the story of Rev. Dibaj. He was arrested in Iran for preaching the gospel. Since time will not allow me to share his full defense before the judges, I wanted to post his written defense.

“With all humility I express my gratitude to the Judge of all heaven and earth for this precious opportunity, and with brokenness I wait upon the Lord to deliver me from this court trial according to His promises. I also beg the honored members of the court who are present to listen with patience to my defense and with respect for the Name of the Lord.

I am a Christian. As a sinner I believe Jesus has died for my sins on the cross and by His resurrection and victory over death, has made me righteous in the presence of the Holy God. The true God speaks about this fact in His Holy Word, the Gospel (Injil). Jesus means Savior "because He will save His people from their sins." Jesus paid the penalty of our sins by His own blood and gave us a new life so that we can live for the glory of God by the help of the Holy Spirit and be like a dam against corruption, be a channel of blessing and healing, and be protected by the love of God.

In response to this kindness, He has asked me to deny myself and be His fully surrendered follower, and not to fear people even if they kill my body, but rather rely on the creator of life who has crowned me with the crown of mercy and compassion. He is the great protector of His beloved ones as well as their great reward.

I have been charged with "apostasy!" The invisible God who knows our hearts has given assurance to us, as Christians, that we are not among the apostates who will perish but among the believers who will have eternal life. In Islamic Law (Sharia'), an apostate is one who does not believe in God, the prophets or the resurrection of the dead, We Christians believe in all three!

They say "You were a Muslim and you have become a Christian." This is not so. For many years I had no religion. After searching and studying I accepted God's call and believed in the Lord Jesus Christ in order to receive eternal life. People choose their religion but a Christian is chosen by Christ. He says, "You have not chosen me but I have chosen you." Since when did He choose me? He chose me before the foundation of the world. People say, "You were a Muslim from your birth." God says, "You were a Christian from the beginning." He states that He chose us thousands of years ago, even before the creation of the universe, so that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ we may be His. A Christian means one who belongs to Jesus Christ.

The eternal God who sees the end from the beginning and who has chosen me to belong to Him, knew from the beginning those whose heart would be drawn to Him and also those who would be willing to sell their faith and eternity for a pot of porridge. I would rather have the whole world against me, but know that the Almighty God is with me. I would rather be called an apostate, but know that I have the approval of the God of glory, because man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart. For Him who is God for all eternity nothing is impossible. All power in heaven and on earth is in His hands.

The Almighty God will raise up anyone He chooses and bring down others, accept some and reject others, send some to heaven and other to hell. Now because God does whatever He desires, who can separate us from the love of God? Or who can destroy the relationship between the creator and the creature or defeat a life that is faithful to his Lord? The faithful will be safe and secure under the shadow of the Almighty! Our refuge is the mercy seat of God who is exalted from the beginning. I know in whom I have believed, and He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him to the end until I reach the Kingdom of God, the place where the righteous shine like the sun, but where the evil doers will receive their punishment in the fire of hell.

They tell me, "Return!" But to whom can I return from the arms of my God? Is it right to accept what people are saying instead of obeying the Word of God? It is now 45 years that I am walking with the God of miracles, and His kindness upon me is like a shadow and I owe Him much for His fatherly love and concern.
The love of Jesus has filled all my being and I feel the warmth of His love in every part of my body. God, who is my glory and honor and protector, has put his seal of approval upon me through His unsparing blessings and miracles.

This test of faith is a clear example. The good and kind God reproves and punishes all those whom He loves. He tests them in preparation for heaven. The God of Daniel, who protected his friends in the fiery furnace, has protected me for nine years in prison. And all the bad happenings have turned out for our good and gain, so much so that I am filled to overflowing with joy and thankfulness.

The God of Job has tested my faith and commitment in order to increase my patience and faithfulness. During these nine years he has freed me from all my responsibilities so that under the protection of His blessed Name, I would spend my time in prayer and study of His Word, with a searching heart and with brokenness, and grow in the knowledge of my Lord. I praise the lord for this unique opportunity. God gave me space in my confinement, brought healing in my difficult hardships and His kindness revived me. Oh what great blessings God has in store for those who fear Him!

They object to my evangelizing. But if one finds a blind person who is about to fall in a well and keeps silent then one has sinned. It is our religious duty, as long as the door of God's mercy is open, to convince evil doers to turn from their sinful ways and find refuge in Him in order to be saved from the wrath of the Righteous God and from the coming dreadful punishment.

Jesus Christ says "I am the door. Whoever enters through me will be saved." "I am the way, the truth and the life. No-one comes to the father except through me." "Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Among the prophets of God, only Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and He is our living intercessor for ever.
He is our Savior and He is the (spiritual) Son of God. To know Him means to know eternal life. I, a useless sinner, have believed in this beloved person and all His words and miracles recorded in the Gospel, and I have committed my life into His hands. Life for me is an opportunity to serve Him, and death is a better opportunity to be with Christ. Therefore I am not only satisfied to be in prison for the honor of His Holy Name, but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus, my Lord, and enter His kingdom sooner, the place where the elect of God enter everlasting life. But the wicked enter into eternal damnation.

May the shadow of God's kindness and His hand of blessing and healing be and remain upon you for ever. Amen. With Respect,

Your Christian prisoner,
Mehdi Dibaj”

Rev. Dibaj was sentenced to be killed for his “apostasy”. His story leaked out, and the Iranian government under pressure released Rev. Dibaj. Six months after his release he disappeared. Several days later police found his body. He had been stabbed to death.

I praise God for men like Dibaj. As the author of Hebrews says “…of whom the world was not worthy of them…”

Mark 6 and all of the Bible testifies that the gospel will be loved & hated. As Christians, it is not our job to make men love the gospel. It is our job to proclaim the message. “the time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand; REPENT and BELIEVE in the gospel.”

Country Living = Pet Frog

Baby Grace is Here!!!!

Monday is for Music

I've really started to dig the band Elbow. Here they are preforming with the BBC Concert Orchestra. Enjoy

The Kingdom of God

I have been preaching through the Gospel of Mark on Sunday Mornings. The title of the series is "The Kingdom of God". I think that it is important for Christians in the United States to remember every time they gather, that the Kingdom of God is sooooooo, much more than life in the great USA.

One way that we are remembering our brothers and sisters around the world here at Shell Creek Baptist Church, is by praying for a different country in the bulletin every week, where persecution is happening right now.

Here is another way you can.

With the Director from Frontline Missions on Vimeo.

Dispatches From the Front Trailer from Frontline Missions on Vimeo.

Monday is for Music (late)

Last Sunday for Sunday School we studied the incommunicable attribute of God’s omnipresence. We read the following quote from Henry Bavinck's The Doctrine of God:

“When you wish to do something evil, you retire from the public into your house where no enemy may see you; from those places of your house which are open and visible to the eyes of men you remove yourself into your room; even in your room you fear some witness from another quarter; you retire into your heart, there you meditate: he is more inward than your heart. Wherever, therefore, you shall have fled, there he is. From yourself, whither will you flee: Will you not follow yourself wherever you flee? But since there is One more inward even than yourself, there is no place where you may flee from God angry but to God reconciled. There is no place at all whither you may flee. Will you flee from him? Flee unto him.”

I said it reminded me of the old song "Sinnerman", which no one knew. So, from one of my favorite bands, here is "Sinnerman".

Mark chapter 4 and the ELCA

Yesterday my sermon text was Mark 4:21-34. I spoke about the means by which the word of life is given to dead souls, namely the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In my text Mark records the following words of Christ,

“Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

I wrestled for a long time about why Mark led by the Spirit would put this with the parable of the seed and the soil. What does judging have to do with people hearing and believing the gospel? And why is it followed by the words of the one who has nothing even what he has will be taken away? To help me articulate to my hearers on Sunday what I think Christ is talking about, I used the example of the ELCA’s recent decision about homosexuals in ministry and church work. Before I share the way I spoke about the ELCA’s decision and the text in Mark, let me catch you up on Mark chapter 4.

It is interesting that Mark seems very selective about what he puts in his account of the gospel in regards to the teachings of Christ. As I taught the week before, and continued yesterday, it seems clear to me that Mark is driving home the fact of those who “have ears to hear, let them hear”. Four times in chapter four, the command is given to listen, hear, and understand. Then Mark closes the parables of Jesus by saying, “With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it.”

So it is with us as we share the gospel of Christ. Some (1 type of soil out of 4) will hear the gospel, and the Holy Spirit will breathe life into their dead souls awaking faith in Christ. Many (3 types of soil out of 4) will hear and the Holy Spirit will not breathe life into their dead souls awaking faith in Christ. It is the Holy Spirit that causes the soil to receive the word of life by the hearing of the gospel. This is sobering and wonderful at the same time. It is humbling and encouraging at the same time. This speaks of the reality that the believer's responsibility is not to save men, but to call men to repentance and faith through the proclamation of the gospel. Men are saved by God, not men. Yet, God uses the means of sharing the gospel. I began the sermon yesterday by quoting Richard Baxter, “God is the Arbitrary Absolute Lord of all means. Therefore, he can use and dispose of them as he sees fit. Yet, he acts by them.”

Now to the verses I mentioned and the ELCA.

When we understand the reality that we do not save men, but God does, and that he does this through the proclamation of his gospel, we will not stand in judgment over any sinner that is still under the wrath of God. We will not hold ourselves up as the standard by which salvation is merited or achieved. We will appeal to the word of God, namely the gospel of Christ! How many times have you heard it said that “Christians pick on homosexuality, but not greed, or divorce, or etc…” and “Do not judge homosexuals, for what measure you use it will be measured to you”?

This is why it is important to understand that salvation is 100% wrought by God. For if we know that our experience, or knowledge of the word, or depth of insight into the glory of God, is not the standard, but Christ and his word, we will appeal to the Word of God as the standard not ourselves, or some achieved salvation. And when we don’t understand that salvation is 100% wrought by God through the proclamation of the gospel, we will hold something (knowledge, culture, circumstance, sexual biological determinism, etc…) up next to God as the standard by which we judge a sinner and their sins.

I fear this is what the ELCA has done. The Word of God is not the standard alone for them. I fear the words of Christ in Mark for them, “For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away”. We should not judge the ELCA, we should hold the Word of God up as the judge by pleading with them to hear and understand the Word.

ELCA, are you like the rocky soil? Are you falling away with no root because of persecutionon account of the Word? ELCA, are like the thorny soil? Are the desires for something worldly (inclusivity) choking out the Word? Oh, please ELCA, hear and understand the gospel!

http://www.elca.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-Organization/Communication-Services/News/Releases.aspx?a=4253

Monday is for Music

Some more soundtrack music. This is from the movie "Once".

Children and Evangelism

Some good thoughts from How2fish.

News From the Veal's at Shell Creek

Sorry that I have not posted much in the last month. Most of my spare time seems to fall to the boys, or to sleep. Things seem to be going well at Church. We are still praying as to the direction God is leading with Shell Creek. I am excited about the future. Like I said, I am not sure what it will look like, but God is building a strong passion in my heart for “placing my hand to the plow and never looking back”.

I preached two short topical sermon series since I arrived at Shell Creek. The first was on the Word of God. The second was on the purpose of God, Man, and the Church. I wanted to share my burden and passions for the ministry with the congregation, emphasizing that the chief end of man is to Glorify God and enjoy him forever. This week I’ll start preaching through the Gospel of Mark. The series is called “The Kingdom of God”. I am working on getting the sermons recorded, and once they are, they will go on the blog.

Here are some bullet point updates on ministry, family, and country living.

We had a good turn-out for the annual Shell Creek Baptist Church 4th of July Picnic.

I’ve learned the joy of getting up before 4 every morning to work at UPS.

I purchased a fishing license, and have caught 0 fish.

The boys and I enjoy gopher hunting in the cemetery and finding toads, snapping turtles, snakes, and farm cats.

Here are some things that you can pray for:

Shelly is struggling with the last couple of weeks of her pregnancy.

Our house is receiving almost no interest in the Real Estate market. It would be a huge blessing if our house sold sooner than later.

Lastly here are some pics of the 4th and a video of the boys telling us what they thought of the ride at the Platte County Fair: