By Andy Farmer

I was talking recently to a pastor from another church about differences in the way our congregations are being led and built. We realized that we agreed on far more things than we were different. One difference we talked about was eschatology – the study of the final things. We differ in our understanding of how God is going to wrap up this glorious salvation project we call history. We affirm the same Gospel but we differ on the end times – so much so that we realize that we can do ministry together, but we probably couldn’t build a church together. What you believe about the end times will shape how you build the church in present times.

Historically there have been a number of different ways of understanding and applying the very challenging apocalyptic passages in the Bible. Sadly, many churches and believers have done great harm to themselves and others by taking their end times speculation well beyond what the scriptures actually teach. But within the Gospel-believing communion of faith, you can have some diversity in understanding the eschatology of the Bible. And since we are dealing with things that are to play out in the future, it is wise that we hold our own eschatology with humble hearts and minds.

As pastors, we want to avoid using eschatology as a calling card. In other words, we don’t want our church known for its views of the millennium, or what the mark of the beast really means, etc. – we want to be known for the Gospel. We also want to avoid using eschatology as a litmus test – whether we accept someone as a brother or sister in good standing based on whether they are getting ready for the Rapture or not. Eschatology should matter to us because Jesus is coming back and resolving everything that went wrong when sin entered the universe through man. That should stir our hearts to great hope and confidence. It should motivate us to reach out to the lost. And it should keep us serious and sober in a foolish world, as Peter called us.

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God. (2Peter 3:1-12a)

If you'd like to get a recent take on how we work in this area of eschatology, Jeff Purswell gives a great brief summary of what's important in our thinking in the following post:

http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/Blog/post/The-Last-One-Jeff-Purswell-Eschatology.aspx

By Jared Mellinger

A couple weeks ago I introduced an 18th century author and pastor by the name of Thomas Adam. The book Private Thoughts on Religion is a collection of Adam’s journal entries that were published after his death.

Here are some entries on the theme of sin and grace that are worthy of careful reflection and meditation:

“The more I am terrified with a sight and sense of sin, the more precious Christ is, and the faster I lay hold on him.” (p. 92)
 

“To comprehend the breadth and length, and depth and height of the love of Christ, we must first take the dimensions of our own sin.” (p. 167)
 

“Faith does not consist in thinking that my sins are comparatively little, and therefore may be forgiven; but in knowing that they are very great, and believing that, though they are never so many and great, past or present, Christ’s blood is above them all.” (p. 172)
 

“When sin, past and present, appears in its true shape, with all its horrid malignity, and desert of damnation, then is the time for a full sight of Christ. And O how gloriously does ‘the Sun of Righteousness arise,’ to the benighted, sin-burdened soul, ‘with healing in his wings!’ How sweet is mercy! How precious the name Jesus! And how dear his blood to the awakened guilty conscience!” (p. 183)
 

“Remembrance of sin, and sense of redeeming mercy will be the ground of praise and thanksgiving to God and the Lamb for ever in heaven.” (p. 184)
 

“The moment we think that we have no sin, we shall desert Christ.” (p. 212)

By Andy Farmer

One of the common conversations in the church today is how we experience Christ – what he means in my present experience and how I relate to Him. A lot of emphasis seems to be placed on this, our communion with Christ, and with good reason. It is a consistent theme in the New Testament and an vital implication of true faith. But in focusing on our present experience of Christ we can subtly move the historic basis of that communion in the cross to the background. And this is not a good thing.

Interestingly, this was a concern in the church early in the last century as well. J. Gresham Machen spoke the following counsel to God’s people then, and it is equally helpful to us today.

“We ought never to set present communion with Christ, as so many are doing, in opposition to the gospel; we ought never to say that we are interested in what Christ does for us now, but are not so much interested in what He did long ago.

Do you know what soon happens when men talk that way? They soon lose all contact with the real Christ; their religion would really remain essentially the same if Jesus never lived.

That danger should be avoided by the Christian man with all his might and main. God has given us an anchor for our souls; He has anchored himself to us by the message of the Cross. Let us never cast that anchor off; let us never weaken our connection with the events upon which our faith is based.

Such dependence upon the past will never prevent us from having present communion with Christ. Unlike the communion of the mystics it will be communion not with the imaginings of our own hearts, but with the real Saviour Jesus Christ.

The gospel of redemption through the Cross and resurrection of Christ is not a barrier between us and Christ, but it is the blessed tie by which He has bound us for ever to Him.”

—J. Gresham Machen, What Is Faith? (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1991), 153-54
Taken from the blog “Of First Importance” under the entry: He has anchored himself to us by the message of the Cross

By Jared Mellinger

This week’s blogs will run with themes from Youth Camp 2010 which just concluded this past Saturday. Over 150 teens plus their parents and some of our very best single men and women (serving magnificently as team leaders) met God together at Camp Ladore in northeastern PA. Yesterday we dedicated our Sunday morning service to celebrating God’s work among the youth in our church.

For our Youth Camp blogs I’ve chosen to start the week with a poem written by Na’Chelle Morris, which she read to everyone right before I spoke on Friday night. The creative and theologically rich words below stir my heart to worship and to gratefulness to God for bringing the life transforming power of the Gospel into the lives of the young men and women of our church. Thank you Na’Chelle for blessing us with your gift Friday night, and again through this blog!

Here I stand, Blind with pride
Trying to be the Judge, When I (myself) deserve to be judged
I spat at people - Scoffed and mocked
Thought I was the best - The cleanest - The greatest
Then I encountered a Man
So white and pure - Perfect and holy
Flawless

The Man looked at me sympathetically and said, “Surely you are blind and in need!
Let me help you, - Show you how you truly are!”

He gave me this mirror in the shape of a book
The Holy Bible was its title
I looked in the mirror and saw - myself
I saw that I was lost - Lost and blind in pride
For it was covering my eyes - Holding me back
Keeping me from the truth
I saw that I had shackles - I was bound to big weights
sinking in my sin - Sin from past to present day
I starting drowning – I tried to swim
But all the weight kept me from going up
Even if I did go up a little, Something else would pull me back down
I saw that it was - want 

I put down the book and contemplated what I had seen
Then I realized - I saw myself the way I truly am
Dirty – Lazy – Imperfect - Sinful
Then I knew
I had no other choice - The only way to get out
Was to admit my pride - Admit I needed help
Admit everything
Then I cried out to God

“Oh Lord! - Undo the grips of my pride!
Save me Lord!
For pride is killing me
Flesh is holding me - Covering me
Keeping me from You!”

Then I saw the Man - Clothed in white
Holy and pure - Perfect and humble
To take my place
Gripped - By my pride
Drowned - In my sin
Torn - By my wants
Soiled - By my flesh
Now He’s crying, “Save me Lord!”

Then His blood was shed
Covering
Crushing
Destroying
All that held me and Him

And He said to me,
“I have cleansed you, - none can bind you,
No one can put shackles on you,
You are forever free!

In awe I hugged Him
Thanked Him - Kissed Him
But something still bugged me - Bothered me
In the back of my mind
“Why for me?”
He said, “Because I love you.”
I asked the Man the same question
But again I heard, “Because I love you!”

I see now - It’s a mystery how much You love me
My God! - My God! - Thank You for loving me!
Now I stand - Saved - Saved by grace - Love
And mercy!

By Jared Mellinger

I have a friend I’m eager to introduce.  A man by the name of Thomas Adam.    

 Thomas Adam was a pastor in northern England in the 18^th Century.  He was born in 1701, lived to be 84 years old, and was a man whose life was marked by a deep awareness of his own sin and a deep love for Jesus Christ.  He was a godly man who spent his life walking in close fellowship with his Savior.

 Several years after Adam died; a volume called Posthumous Works was published.  Included in these works were entries from his private journal.  He had no idea these entries would one day be seen by others, and his journal entries frequently include confession and grieving over his sin. 

 But as the publisher points out, Adam would have had no objections to a broader audience benefiting from these thoughts and confessions.  The publisher believed he had the freedom to circulate these private thoughts based on one of the entries in the journal.  Adam wrote:

 "If proclaiming my life before men and angels will be proclaiming the glory of saving grace, let it be done.  I do not desire to have one sinful act, word, or thought concealed.  Forgiveness through the blood of Christ will be to myself an endless spring of admiration, love, and thanksgiving; and the blessed company of heaven will join with me in praising God and the Lamb for it, to all eternity.”  (Private Thoughts on Religion, p. 99)       

 The journal entries were later published on their own with the title Private Thoughts on Religion.  The book is a treasure chest of insights and reflections.  I read through it in my morning devotions sometime in 2008. 

 Over the next couple of Mondays, I want to share some of my favorite quotes from the private journal of Thomas Adam.  

 I will give you one quote to hold you over:

 “He who, with a consciousness and acknowledgment of great imperfection, trusts in the righteousness of Christ, is a better Christian than a more perfect man who trusts his own.”  (p. 181)

 That, my friends, is brilliant and worth rereading!  And there is more to come.

By Jared Mellinger

On the Acts Blog, I have been posting lyrics to various hymns on themes related to the book of Acts. If you are interested in checking them out, you can go here.
 
Here is a hymn written in 1914 by Bessie Porter Head, called “O Breath of Life.” I encourage you to make this song your prayer as we continue walking through the book of Acts together.
 
O Breath of life, come sweeping through us,
Revive Thy church with life and power;
O Breath of life, come, cleanse, renew us,
And fit Thy church to meet this hour.

O Wind of God, come bend us, break us,
Till humbly we confess our need;
Then in Thy tenderness remake us,
Revive, restore, for this we plead.

O Breath of love, come breathe within us,
Renewing thought and will and heart;
Come, Love of Christ, afresh to win us,
Revive Thy church in every part.

O Heart of Christ, once broken for us,
'Tis there we find our strength and rest;
Our broken, contrite hearts now solace,
And let Thy waiting church be blest.

Revive us, Lord! Is zeal abating,
While harvest fields are vast and white?
Revive, us Lord, the world is waiting,
Equip Thy church to spread the light.

By Andy Farmer

Here’s a great quote for the days of battle from Herman Bavinck, a theologian of the 19th Century who deserves to be known by 21st Century folks. It is courtesy of http://www.firstimportance.org.

“Christ is our holiness in the same sense in which he is our righteousness. He is a complete and all-sufficient Savior. He does not accomplish his work halfway but saves us really and completely. He does not rest until, after pronouncing his acquittal in our conscience, he has also imparted full holiness and glory to us.  By his righteousness, accordingly, he does not just restore us to the state of the just who will go scot-free in the judgment of God, in order then to leave us to ourselves to reform ourselves after God’s image and to merit eternal life. But Christ has accomplished everything. He bore for us the guilt and punishment of sin, placed himself under the law to secure eternal life for us, and then arose from the grave to communicate himself to us in all his fullness for both our righteousness and sanctification (1 Cor. 1:30). The holiness that must completely become ours therefore fully awaits us in Christ.”

—Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics (Grand Rapids, Mi.: Baker Academic, 2008), 4:248

By Rob Flood

Fitting reading into my schedule remains a regular challenge for me.  But it is not because I have a busier schedule than those who read regularly.  It is because they have prioritized it as a necessary discipline and I have not.  And they are better for it.

As a church, we have set aside a portion of our building to honor the place that books should hold in our lives.  As a team of pastors, we seek to fill that book shoppe with solid, helpful, gospel-centered material.  When appropriate and helpful, we recommend certain books to coordinate with sermon series that we’re doing.

We do all of this for one reason: we are better off when we read.  Reading is a means of grace in our lives.  Reading engages our minds, challenges our hearts, and keeps our convictions in check.  Reading fuels our learning and creates a hunger for more.  Many would attest to the fact that reading has changed their lives.

To that end, Jared posted earlier this year on books every Christian should read.  Here is a link to that post:

http://www.covfel.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=52015&articleId=13174

Meghan Mellinger has written a blog speaking directly to women on the same subject:

 

http://www.covfel.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=52015&articleId=14162

Also, CJ Mahaney has helpfully and interestingly posted on reading throughout his blog posts.  In fact, under the heading of “Reading,” he has posted 33 separate posts.  Here is a link to the category for your perusal:

http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/Blog/category/Reading.aspx

Join me in seeking to reprioritize our lives so that reading gains its rightful place in the priorities that find their way…regularly and routinely…into our schedules.

by Jared Mellinger

Are you up to anything this coming Sunday evening?  On June 27 at 6:00 pm, there will be two 30-minute sermons from two of the men who have been participating in the Preaching Lab.  We call this Preach the Word.  It will be a low-key event, but it is open to the entire church.

The guys who are preaching are Christopher Campbell and Jacob Young.  Both of them are going to be preaching on the resurrection, which is a Gospel truth of first importance to Christians.  Jacob will be preaching from Matthew 27:57-28:15, and Christopher will preach from 1 Corinthians 15:12-28.  These guys have been working hard in preparation, and I have seen the sermons and I can’t wait to hear them Sunday evening.  It’s going to be good.   

We want to do all we can as pastors to identify and train future preachers.  This event gives us an opportunity to do that, while benefiting from the teaching we will receive.  It also gives us an opportunity to encourage these young men and celebrate the grace that is on their lives.   

I can still remember the first sermon I ever preached.  It was the summer of 1999, in Wildwood, New Jersey.  I was 18 years old.  I was living with two friends, and the three of us all had jobs working at a pizza place close to the boardwalk.  We worked through the night and enjoyed going to the beach to watch the sunrise before going home and going to bed.

We all had ambitions for pastoral ministry.  We all wanted to preach, but there weren’t exactly any opportunities to do so.  So we decided that we would preach sermons to each other, and invite anyone else who wanted to come.  The makeshift pulpit was a big living room chair, with a trashcan turned upside-down and stacked on top of the chair.  No kidding!  My handwritten sermon notes were on top of a trashcan, and 6 or 7 people were seated all over the small living room.  

I’m pretty sure there wasn’t anything spectacular about the sermon.  None of us knew enough about preaching to determine whether or not the sermon was any good (which in hindsight, really worked to my advantage!).  The sermon was probably quite forgettable.  But one of the young women there had parents who ran a ministry for youth, and she told her parents they should have me speak to the youth, which led to other opportunities to preach. 

The encouragement I received from people early on went a long ways in building my faith for how God might use me in preaching.  I can look back and see the kindness of God in the opportunities he provided.  I don’t know what God will do with the men who have been participating in the Preaching Lab.  But I can guarantee you that the sermons that will be preached on Sunday evening will be better than my first sermon!  And, they will be preaching from a pulpit rather than a trashcan.   

Consider coming out and supporting these guys, and sitting under God’s word with me.  And, mark your calendars for July 25 and August 29 as well, because Preach the Word will continue those nights, with other young men.   

By Jared Mellinger

I was able to attend Next 2010 Memorial Day weekend in Baltimore, and I loved every minute of it.  I’ve been there other years as well.  One of my favorite parts of Next has always been the music and the singing.  It is seriously loud, usually quite fast, and always Christ-exalting (however you feel about the first two qualities, the third quality assures me that all of you would enjoy the singing there as much as I do).  My tradition is to come home from the conference, download the songs from i-tunes, and go around singing them for a while.  

We sang “How Great is Your Faithfulness”, which is a song off the new Matt Redman CD (“We Shall Not Be Shaken”).  With music, I usually listen to one CD every day for a few months, and then jump to another CD after that one has been completely killed.  Matt Redman’s new CD is the one I have been listening to a lot lately.  I like it so much that I got a copy for all the other pastors, so hopefully they are enjoying it as much as I am.  “How Great is Your Faithfulness” is a great song.  

We also sang a handful of Getty songs at the conference.  I thank God for Keith and Kristen Getty, and the ability they have to create contemporary hymns that are rich in content, but are easy to understand and have memorable melodies.  We sang “In Christ Alone”, “Speak O Lord”, and “O Church Arise”.  One of the things I appreciate about the Getty’s is that their songs cover a broad range of theological themes, but remain tied to the work of Christ.  “Speak O Lord”, for example, is a song about the preaching of God’s word, and “O Church Arise” focuses on the church.

One more highlight related to the singing was the choir.  The human voice is a great and powerful instrument, and hearing the voices of dozens of young men and women who know how to sing (unlike me!) is something that always draws my heart to worship God.  It made me grateful for the choir of gifted singers that we have joyfully serving at Covenant Fellowship.  

I’ve been asking people who were at the conference what a highlight was for them, and how God met them at the conference.  Whether or not you were at NEXT, I’d encourage you to do the same, and take in some of the stories of how people encountered God.  You will get to hear not only about the singing, but about the preaching of guys like D.A. Carson, Kevin DeYoung, and C.J. Mahaney.   
 
And if you were at the conference, share with others how you benefited from the conference!  And, fill your iPod (or CD player or computer) with the songs you enjoyed from our time together.  The conference may be over, but worshipping God through singing and with our lives continues today, this week, and forever

By Megan Mellinger

Reading plays a vital role in our spiritual growth as believers.  But if you are anything like me, you have an ever growing list of books you’d like to read, but a limited amount of time to get that reading done!  So the question of what you read and don’t read becomes all the more important. 

I’ve noticed that as women we can be naturally drawn to books of a more practical nature – books that are usually written by female authors that speak to our roles as wives and mothers.  At times we might even restrict our reading entirely to books like this. 

Now practical application is a very good thing and is essential to the Christian life!  And I thank God for the many books by godly women that have had a great impact on my life.  I have been helped tremendously by some of the parenting books out there and books that address me in my role as wife and mom. 

But one of the (perhaps surprising) things I’ve learned along the way is that the books that help me the most to be a better wife and mom are books by theologians and pastors that deepen my understanding and appreciation of the cross and help me love the Savior more…in other words, books that are more theological in nature. 

So if you were to ask me what books have helped me most as a wife and mom I think I would tell you books like Scandalous by D.A. Carson (which I just finished and absolutely loved!) or Holiness by J.C. Ryle (who has impacted me enough to name my firstborn son Ryle after him!) or Spiritual Depression by Martin Lloyd-Jones (probably my favorite author, although I don’t anticipate naming any of my children Martin, Lloyd, or Jones).

These are books that are full of Scripture, and books that preach the truth of God’s word to my heart.  These are the type of books that feed my soul and increase my faith toward God...and as a result there is an increase in the fruit of the Spirit in my life, which in turn makes me a better wife and mother. 

It is this fruit of the Spirit that will also attract my children to the gospel.  I’ve come to realize that my own personal holiness will do more to draw my children to God than my teaching or techniques.  What I need most as a mom (or wife or daughter or friend) isn’t a methodology to apply, but the transforming power of the gospel.  And so my reading diet ought to reflect that great need. 

To be clear, I do think we need to continue reading books on parenting and biblical femininity (in fact I’m in the middle of reading a parenting book right now!).  And I think as women we should be reading some of the great books by female authors.  But I don’t think this should be the biggest portion of our reading.  Let’s reserve the biggest portion of our reading diet for those books that feed our souls on God’s word and deepen our love for the Savior. 

And as we do this, don’t be too surprised to find yourself continuing to grow as a wife, mother, and woman of God in the process!

By Chris Radano

“God is over all things, under all things; outside all; within, but not enclosed; without but not excluded; above but not raised up; below but not depressed; wholly above, presiding; wholly beneath, sustaining; wholly within, filling.”  – Hildebert of Lavardin as quoted in A.W. Tozer’s The Knowledge of the Holy.

I don’t recall exactly when I first learned about God’s omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence…the three omni’s as they’re referred to.  I’ve thought about them, casually talked about them, but am not often amazed by them.  This is perhaps most true of the omnipresence of God.  However, I recently became excited about God’s omnipresence in a way different than his omnipotence or omniscience.  I think generally we have little problem understanding the concept God’s omnipotence, insofar as we can easily imagine a person with bigger muscles than ourselves.  And likewise for us to contemplate omniscience as we know there could be someone out there with a bigger brain than say, Einstein, Aristotle, or even Solomon.  However, when I think of the omnipresence of God, my mind has a more difficult time grasping God’s presence everywhere, fully and not divided, at all times.  Instead, I too often think of God in one place, then quickly zipping around to another place in a microsecond, until he’s finished, brushing his hands until something worth going to comes up.  Or I think of his omnipresence as if he’s some sort of giant looking over the earth addressing multiple things at one time…like a cosmic multi-tasker.  And yet I know it’s more than that.

As I try to grasp an understanding of God’s omnipresence from the Bible, I can too easily get locked into thinking of God’s presence through chronological scriptural accounts, as if he is moving from one story to another, like an episodic television series.  I also underestimate the impact of God’s omnipresence even when it’s explicitly stated in scripture.  For me this awakening moment occurred recently while I was reading the story of Job and wondered of the relative timeline of Job in the Old Testament.  While little is known about the time of Job, speculation of it being as early as the time frame of Abraham or as late as the time of the Babylonian exile excited me.  I grew amazed about the possibility that while God was testing Job through affliction, he could have been making his promises or sealing his covenant with Abraham.  Or while God questioned Job with rapid fire-like intensity, he simultaneously may have been showing Ezekiel revelations of his departing glory from the temple.  Wow!  Now, whether or not these events did in fact overlap doesn’t really matter to me.  Initially, it revealed my unconscious tendency to limit God to doing one big thing at a time in a single location.  But as I meditated on this, I believe God provided a practical picture of his omnipresence, through scripture, to help understand what’s written about his character in scriptures like Psalm 139:7-10.  God is everywhere, fully.  These are the moments when I put down my pen and my book and worship the God that is infinitely greater than me and more glorious than any human being.  Without such a picture, God’s omnipresence looked no different to me than a busy politician going from one appointment to another.

I wonder if we experienced God in the way Job or Abraham experienced Him, that we might feel more blessed than others.  Yet to think that at the exact same time, someone else may be experiencing an equally deep and powerful personal relationship with the same God inspires confidence in the majesty of our God.  Omnipresence is still harder for me to grasp than his omnipotence or omniscience, however, by the Spirit’s continual illumination of scripture, it’s becoming easier to now imagine a God who can do all things and know all things for all people throughout the world…at the same time.

By Trish Donohue

 

Analogies about spring abound.  Poets love to wax eloquent about spring; singers love to croon about spring.  All those themes of growth, renewal, hope, and life get us all worked up and we begin to pontificate—but appropriately.  It is a pretty amazing thing to see the earth moving and growing as it responds to its Creator. 

 

So the kids and I were quoting Robert Frost as we noticed the new yellowish leaves:  “Nature’s first green is gold, her hardest hue to hold.”  That is, until we saw our pink azaleas and it turned into, “Nature’s first green is pink,” and of course that rhymed with stink… and you get the feel of the rest of the poetry, complete with giggles.

 

But Robert Frost was right; spring can’t hold her new beauty long.

 

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold. 
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour. 
Then leaf subsides to leaf. 
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day. 
Nothing gold can stay.  

 

The world is so infatuated with spring because it represents all we want life to be.  We want to be young and fresh and growing.  We want to be flowering and beautiful.  We want another chance.  We want beauty to come from the hard ground of our lives.  We want endless potential. 

 

But life isn’t like that, is it?  Eden didn’t stay.  It “sank to grief.”  Because of sin, its beauty faded, its gates closed.  I appreciate a poet who, Christian or not, makes accurate observations about life.  But oh, how I hope that Robert Frost heard and believed the gospel before he died. 

Our hearts long for more than a fading flower—they long for eternity, because they were made for eternity. 

 

 

So here’s my little addendum to “Nothing Gold Can Stay.”  Will you permit me Mr. Frost? 

 

          
            …So dawn goes down to day

            Nothing gold can stay.

            Until One free of blame,

            Bled for all our shame;

            Made an end of sin,

            And conquered death within.

            Our Prince reversed the fall,
            And one sweet day will call:
            “Now dawn goes down to dawn,
             And everything gold can stay.”

By Jared Mellinger

 

A couple Sundays ago, Joseph Stigora and Leo Parris led us in singing praises to God inspired by the Lord’s self-revelation in the created world.  I enjoyed every second of it.

 

The works of creation reveal so much of the glory of God’s goodness, the glory of his wisdom, and the glory of his power, that when Christians observe the world around us, we cannot help but to break into song.  “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.  Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge” (Psalm 19:1-2).  Creation reveals the Creator, and God expects us to observe creation as a means of deepening our worship and knowledge of him.

    

Here, we need to learn from poets and musicians, who teach us to slow down and observe the work of God in all he has made.  The Psalmists did this well, frequently studying and delighting in the works of God: “Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them” (Psalm 111:2).    

 

Psalm 104 is exemplary.  It is worth reading the entire Psalm, but here is a sample: “Bless the LORD, O my soul!  O LORD my God, you are very great!  …You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills; they give drink to every beast of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.  Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; they sing among the branches.  From your lofty abode you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.  …O LORD, how manifold are your works!  In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.”  (Psalm 104:1, 10-13, 24)

 

We learn from the Psalmists that creation reveals the glory of God and should call forth the praise of God in our hearts.  An awareness of the glory of God in creation must led us to joy and thanksgiving.  And, it is not enough to merely acknowledge that creation reveals the greatness of God; we must pay attention to the details of God’s glory being revealed in rivers and hills, in beasts and birds, in mountains and in all the earth.  It is good to join the Psalmist in singing about these things.  The Psalmists are creational theologians, who have learned to mine and explore and celebrate the revelation of God in the world around them.    

 

This spring provides an opportunity to expand our knowledge of God and deepen our delight in God by studying the beauty of God in creation.  Let’s open our eyes.  Let’s go for a walk.  Let’s leave time to observe and experience.  Let’s not miss the countless manifestations of the presence of God that surround us in cool breezes and massive clouds and glowing stars and green grass and towering trees and falling rain.  All of it is speaking.  All of it declares the glory of God.  All of it provides opportunities to sing to the Lord a new song, and worship him with joyful and grateful hearts.

 

Creation is God on display.  Behold the God who has made us and saved us, study the works of the Lord, and bless his name for all he has done.  O Lord my God, you are very great!

By Andy Farmer

 

I came across a recent blog by Kevin DeYoung on the Gospel Coalition where he shows a clip from the movie Amistad.  Amistad was produced and directed by Steven Spielberg and released in 1997.  If you don’t know the story, here’s a brief synopsis from IMDb. 

Amistad is the name of a slave ship traveling from Cuba to the U.S. in 1839.  It is carrying a cargo of Africans who have been sold into slavery in Cuba, taken on board, and chained in the cargo hold of the ship.  As the ship is crossing from Cuba to the U.S., Cinque, who was a tribal leader in Africa, leads a mutiny and takes over the ship.  They continue to sail, hoping to find help when they land.  Instead, when they reach the United States, they are imprisoned as runaway slaves.  They don't speak a word of English, and it seems like they are doomed to die for killing their captors when an abolitionist lawyer decides to take their case, arguing that they were free citizens of another country and not slaves at all.  The case finally gets to the Supreme Court, where John Quincy Adams makes an impassioned and eloquent plea for their release.

The movie is rated “R” – appropriately, for some graphic depictions of cruelty to slaves, but the vast majority of movie is about the people involved in a situation that tests the values and convictions of all involved.  Interestingly, the clip DeYoung presents is a remarkable presentation of the Gospel through the experience of two imprisoned slaves who are trying to make sense of the images portrayed in a picture Bible they find in a church.  It is well worth watching.

 

A Gospel for All Nations, watch HERE

By Jared Mellinger

A young man in the church emailed me last week and asked what books I would put at the top of the list that every Christian should read.  Beyond the Bible (and I recommend the ESV Study Bible), what books are at the top of my recommended reading list?

I didn’t have a list like that in writing, but here’s what I sent back to him.  The list is admittedly narrow (focusing mostly on ‘Christian Living’), and most of them are living authors because this is my ‘every Christian should read these’ list and I wanted to remain realistic and accessible here (it didn’t seem fair to put Calvin’s Institutes or Augustine’s The City of God on this particular list).

This is the library that I would put in the home of every member of the church, if I could.

I might be missing some, and I reserve the right to adjust the list at any point!  All of these are in the book shoppe, and I list them here in no particular order.

                Knowing God, J.I. Packer

The Cross of Christ, John Stott

Holiness, J.C. Ryle

Redemption Accomplished and Applied, John Murray

The Holiness of God, R.C. Sproul

Saved From What?  R.C. Sproul

When I Don’t Desire God, John Piper

How Long O Lord, D.A. Carson

The Cross and Christian Ministry, D.A. Carson

Spiritual Disciplines within the Church, Donald Whitney

Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, Mark Dever

Why Small Groups, ed. C.J. Mahaney

Humility, C.J. Mahaney

Living the Cross Centered Life, C.J. Mahaney

Instruments in the Redeemers Hands, Paul Tripp

The Discipline of Grace, Jerry Bridges

Charity and Its Fruits, Jonathan Edwards

Overcoming Sin and Temptation, John Owen (ed. Kapic and Taylor)

 

And, 2 biggies that serve more for reference:

Systematic Theology, Wayne Grudem

The New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, ed. Alexander and Rosner

 

So, how many of my top 20 do you own?  And more importantly, how many have you read?  These are books that are well worth reading and re-reading, and I promise they will feed your soul, stir your heart, and expand your mind.   

By Andy Farmer

This past week several of the pastors had the opportunity to attend Together for the Gospel, a bi-annual pastor’s conference held in Louisville, KY.  It is a conference that developed out of the friendships between four leaders in the church who come from different places and streams of evangelicalism but have found common ground in the Gospel.  Three of the key guys, Ligon Duncan (PCA) and Al Mohler and Mark Dever (Southern Baptists) represent large constituencies of churches.  The fourth, CJ Mahaney represents, well, us. 

Being at T4G with 7,000 other pastors made all of us Sovereign Grace Guys, maybe 200 strong, feel a bit overwhelmed.  It reminded me a little of the Green Jacket ceremony at the end of the Masters Golf Tournament.  There’s Jim Nance of CBS, Billy Payne of Augusta National, last year’s winner Angel Cabrera, and this year’s champion, Phil Mickelson.  And, oh yeah, there’s this 16 year old kid in sneakers who was low amateur for the week.  That’s us, the low amateurs sitting there trying not to say something stupid.

Anyway, the sessions were outstanding around the theme of “The Unadjusted Gospel”.  The undisputed highlight for me was hearing John Piper proclaim the doctrine of justification as taught by Jesus the Justifier himself.  If you’re familiar with some of the theological debates these days you’ll know that people are trying to redefine the Gospel, often by saying that what we believe Paul taught was different than what Jesus taught.  (Actually this has been going on for a couple of hundred years, but it shows up in different ways from time to time).

Anyway, his message was a passionate and weighty defense of the coherence and consistency of the doctrine of justification as taught by Jesus and the Apostles.  But setting that aside it was also a heart enlarging declaration of the person of Jesus as our Justifier.  I’ve included a link to Justin Taylor’s blog where you can watch the message.  If you don’t have an opportunity to watch the whole thing, there is a compelling discourse on the Jesus and the rich ruler that the Holy Spirit pressed deeply into my heart.  You’ll find it from around 33:00 to 39:10.

I thank God for the men of T4G who are defending the centrality of the Gospel in their ministries and demonstrating it in their relationships. 

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2010/04/15/did-jesus-preach-pauls-gospel/

Jared Mellinger

Christ has died!  Christ has risen!  Christ will return!  It is impossible to think about these things too frequently or too deeply.

Here are 3 questions and answers from the Heidelberg Catechism (written in1563) that have helped me reflect on the work of Christ for us.  These are the truths about Christ that men and women have treasured and embraced for centuries.

Question 37: What do you understand by the word “suffered”?

Answer: That during His whole life on earth, but especially at the end, Christ sustained in body and soul the anger of God against the sin of the whole human race.  This He did in order that, by His suffering as the only atoning sacrifice, He might set us free, body and soul, from eternal condemnation, and gain for us God’s grace, righteousness, and eternal life. 

Question 45: How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us?

Answer: First, by His resurrection He has overcome death, so that He might make us share in the righteousness He won for us by His death.  Second, by His power we too are already now resurrected to a new life.  Third, Christ’s resurrection is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection. 

Question 52: How does Christ’s return “to judge the living and the dead” comfort you?

Answer: In all my distress and persecution I turn my eyes to the heavens and confidently await as judge the very One who has already  stood trial in my place before God and so has removed the whole curse from me.  All His enemies and mine He will condemn to everlasting punishment: but me and all His chosen ones He will take along with Him into the joy and the glory of heaven. 

What a savior we have in Jesus!  And what a great salvation awaits us because of what God has done through His death and resurrection.  

By Jared Mellinger

Benedictions are the words pastors say at the end of a service to speak grace and hope over the congregation.  Last week, I gave two reasons we do benedictions: 1. They are biblical, and 2. They tie us to church history. 

Here are 3 more reasons we use benedictions:

3. Benedictions summarize the service.  We often use benedictions as a way to summarize what we hope people take away from the service.  There was one year when we preached on the faithfulness of God the first Sunday of the year.  We closed the service with a reminder of God’s faithfulness:

Now, may our faithful God, whose grace has brought us safe this far,
Continue to lead us together through the coming year,
And may we rest in the great confidence of knowing that
He who calls us is faithful; and He will surely do it.

Another time, there was a sermon on evangelism, and we ended with this benediction:

May the glorious cause of God engage your heart and may Jesus Christ be known wherever you are, as you experience the joy that comes to those who proclaim the excellencies of the Savior

The benediction provides a way to have the main thing God was just doing among us in the service is what we leave with in our minds.

4. Benedictions prepare us for normal life.  We go from the meeting to serve God and worship him with our lives.  Benedictions remind us that worship is not confined to the Sunday meeting, but includes all of life. 

So the benediction not only summarizes the service, it transitions us into life in the real world.  It reminds us that as we step back into the difficulties (and the joys!) of living for Christ on Monday and Tuesday and beyond, we go with the great and precious promises of God.  Through these closing words, we are dismissed from the service with an eagerness to go treasure Christ, to grow in grace, and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who do not know him. 

The people of God are launched into the world as witnesses to the grace they have received and celebrated in their gathering.   

5. Benedictions leave us with a sense of God.  At the end of a service, we want to leave people primarily aware of who God is and all of the promises we have in Christ.  Our goal is to never leave people at the end of a service more aware of what they must do than they are aware of what God has done for them in Christ, and what God promises he will do in the future.

Ordinarily, we shouldn’t leave services focused primarily on ourselves, our sin, or our responsibilities.  We leave focused on Christ.  We leave aware of what God can do in each area of our lives.  This is where benedictions serve us well: they transfer hope for what God wants to do in us.  They leave us with a sense of God.  They leave us trusting Christ, resting on Christ, hoping fully in the promises Christ.

So, don’t miss out on the benediction!  This is not a time to check out or begin gathering our belongings, but a time for us all to listen, receive, and benefit, as the gathered people of God.  It is a vital part of the meeting and by the grace of God, the words of the benediction could make all the difference as we go into the world as witnesses and ambassadors of Christ. 

By Jared Mellinger

 

Benedictions are the words a pastor often speaks at the end of a church service to give people hope, encouragement, and comfort as they leave.  The word “Benediction” comes from a Latin phrase meaning ‘to speak well of’.  Benedictions speak a blessing over the people of God in the form of an intercessory prayer for the congregation.  They communicate a desire and hope that God will do something on behalf of his people. 

 

The benedictions we do are short, but important.  Here are some of the reasons we use them:    

 

1.  Benedictions are biblical

The benediction was a part of Israel’s worship.  Perhaps the most popular benediction is the blessing God wanted Aaron to speak over the Israelites, to call attention to God’s protection, grace, and peace: “The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace” (Numbers 6:24-26).

 

In the New Testament, Paul often ends his letters with a benediction, emphasizing the grace and peace of God that belongs to all who are in Christ.  The Trinitarian benediction at the end of 2 Corinthians is elegant and powerful: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14).  And, 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 says, ^“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.”

 

One of my personal favorites comes at the end of Jude: “Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever.  Amen.”  (Jude 24-25)

 

2.  Benedictions tie us to the great historic march of God’s church

The reformers of the sixteenth century used benedictions to end their services.  Martin Luther ended services with “God’s Spirit and grace be with us all.”  Ulrich Zwingli’s recommended benediction was “Almighty, eternal God!  Forgive us our sin and lead us to everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  The Book of Common Prayer encourages pastors to speak this blessing: “The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, be among you, and remain with you always.” 

 

Richard Baxter, in the 17^th Century, used the following: “Now the God of peace, which brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that Great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever.”    

 

When we listen to a benediction, we connect ourselves not only with God’s truth, but also with followers of Christ over the centuries.  

 

Next time, I’ll give 3 more reasons we use benedictions as a church.

By Jared Mellinger

 

We recently added quite a few books to our Book Shoppe.  As you know, we don’t make any money off of the sale of books – this is just part of our effort to get the best resources we can recommend into your hands. 

 

I’ve put the new additions under different headings below.  I’ve also made a brief comment on each book, and I apologize in advance for all the superlatives.  These are some really good books! 

 

If it’s been a while since your been to the Book Shoppe, make your way there and pick up a few books to feed your soul.  Consider making it a goal as a Christian to read at least one soul-edifying book a month.     

 

Christian Living

• The Praying Life, by Paul Miller.  A really good, grace-motivated book on prayer.  The first section on praying like children is outstanding.
• Bookends for the Christian Life, by Jerry Bridges.  This is a great introduction to the Christian life, very easy to read.  Probably my favorite book by Bridges.
• Children of the Living God, Sinclair Ferguson.  A great little book on what it means to have God as our Father.
• Bruised Reed, Richard Sibbes.  A bit more challenging because it is written by a 17^th century Puritan, but full of rich and comforting reflections on the compassion of Christ.
• Why We Love the Church, by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Cluck.  An engaging and enjoyable defense of the church, from the same guys who wrote “Why We’re Not Emergent”.     
• Counterfeit Gods, by Tim Keller.  An insightful book on idolatry and, as always, Keller is excellent at speaking to both believers and unbelievers in a winsome and helpful way.   

Devotional

• In Christ Alone, by Sinclair Ferguson.  Short readings on a broad range of subjects.  If you enjoy Ferguson, you will like this book.  
• The Loveliness of Christ, by Samuel Rutherford.  A collection of brief quotes drawn from Rutherford’s letters.   

Biography

• CH Spurgeon on Spiritual Leadership, by Steve Miller.  A great introduction to Spurgeon that examines various aspects of his leadership: includes chapters on prayer, faith, Scripture, suffering, evangelism, and more.   
• The Suffering Letters of CH Spurgeon, by CH Spurgeon.  Spurgeon was a man who suffered much, and these letters written primarily to his congregation will encourage us in our suffering.     
• Robert Murray M’Cheyne, by Andrew Bonar.  One of my all-time favorite books.  An excellent biography that touches on themes of studying God’s word, the call to pastoral ministry, and revival. 

This is about half of the list of books we recently added, so I better save the rest for another post.  Part 2 will include books for families and children, and theology books. 

By Jared Mellinger

Of the making of devotionals there is no end.  This is true.  Christian publishers realized at some point that virtually any book can be turned into a devotional.  This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean that Christian readers now have many options to choose from when it comes to resources to use for our devotions. 

I’m also aware there are now a number of devotional readings you can have e-mailed to your inbox each day.  I’ve never subscribed to any of these, but from the ones I’ve read, some seem helpful, and others seem less helpful.  The abundance of options and the range of helpfulness among the options make it important to choose wisely. 

I’ve found there are 2 devotionals that I continue to return to each year, and highly recommend to others.  I’m sure there are other devotionals that could be added, but these are the ones I have benefited from the most.

1.  Beside Still Waters: Words of Comfort for the Soul, by C.H. Spurgeon

This book was edited by a man named Roy Clarke, but all of the content belongs to Charles Spurgeon.  Here’s what Clarke says in the preface:

“Charles Haddon Spurgeon is my avocation.  I have read over two thousand of his sermons, outlining and analyzing more than a thousand.  In them I found a field of precious gems: more than three hundred vignettes promising hope, comfort, and encouragement.  Spurgeon pointed out that people often come into the house of God heavily loaded with the thoughts of their daily vocations, the pressures of business, and the burdens of family life.  As Spurgeon looked into the eyes of hurting and bewildered parishioners, he often responded with words of comfort.” 

Each “vignette” of comfort is one small page.  It is not just a book for those who are suffering; this is often the first thing I read in the morning.  In the weeks after Meghan delivered Isaac, our youngest child, and her devotional pattern was thrown a curve ball, she was never too busy to take 2 minutes to read a page of this book.   

This devotional has a heart-warming quality that will strengthen your soul in the grace of God.   

2.  For the Love of God: A Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God’s Word, Vol 1 and 2, by D.A. Carson

As the preface says, these 2 volumes are “for Christians who want to read the Bible, who want to read all the Bible.”  Here is a devotional that helps readers understand our Bibles better, and encourages “a systematic and repeated reading of the whole Bible.”  It has really helped me understand the Bible better. 

It is based off of the Bible reading plan by Robert Murray M’Cheyne, which gets you through the New Testament and the Psalms twice a year, and the rest of the Bible once a year, by reading 4 chapters a day.  But you can adjust the plan so that instead of reading 4 chapters you are reading 2 chapters a day, and you can still use Carson’s devotional.  In fact, I find this book really helpful beyond devotions.  If there is a text I am studying, I will almost always look up that passage in the Scripture Index in the back of Volume 2, and read Carson’s comments on that chapter. 

Carson’s devotionals are a gift to the church and will help readers grow in our knowledge of God’s word. 

By Jared Mellinger

 

If you are looking for some good reading related to Christmas, I recommend the book Nancy Guthrie has edited: “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus: Experiencing the Peace and Promise of Christmas.”

 

Here’s what I like about it:

 

1)     It is devotional and reflective in tone and approach.  It will have the effect of warming your heart to Jesus and deepening your joy in the meaning of Christmas.

 

2)     The chapters are short, making it easy to read even if life is already busy and full.  The chapters are around 4-6 pages long.  It is a relatively short book with 22 readings.

 

3)     It deals with a range of themes related to the incarnation, and therefore avoids being redundant.  There is a chapter on the gifts of Christmas, a chapter on Joseph, a chapter on the shepherds, a chapter on the wise men, and many more.

        

4)     The authors are some of my favorites: John Piper, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Charles Spurgeon, J.I. Packer, John Calvin, Saint Augustine, J.C. Ryle, R.C. Sproul, Joni Eareckson Tada, and more.  As you can see, the authors are also pulled from various centuries, and not confined to living authors.  I like this.   

 

One of the chapters that I enjoyed the most was by Raymond C. Ortlund Jr.  He outlines five reasons we have for being joyful, all related to the angels’ pronouncement in Luke 2: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased.”

 

J.I. Packer’s chapter was also a favorite.  He writes on 2 Corinthians 8:9: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.”  This is typical Packer brilliance in bite sized chunks.     

 

And, one more chapter I really enjoyed (after this I need to stop, otherwise it will become meaningless to say a chapter was one of my favorites) is the one by Jonathan Edwards.  “To Be More Blessed than Mary,” from Luke 11:27-28.  After describing the blessedness of Mary, he states his thesis: “It is more blessed to be spiritually related to Jesus Christ – to be his disciples, his brethren and the members – than to stand in the nearest temporal relation, than to be his brother or his mother.”   

 

This book will help you reflect on the joy of Christmas.  I have enjoyed reading and re-reading it.  If you are looking for a book to help you reflect on the incarnation and celebrate Christmas, this compilation is for you.   

By Andy Farmer

One area of our Anniversary Museum that drew a lot of attention was our book table of Dave Harvey’s 25 Books That Built the Church.  A number of folks have asked if we could post the list and the descriptions from Dave about each book. 

The following is the list of books in no particular order, along with the descriptions of the books that were on the display table.  Please note that these are not the 25 books Dave would most recommend.  That’s another list.  These are just books that he felt played a significant role in our church over the years.  They say a lot about who we were, and about what we’re becoming.

Dave Harvey’s '25 Books That Built the Church'

 We asked Dave what 25 books have had the most significant impact on our church in its first 25 years.  An impossible question to answer.  One thing he reminded us of is that some books had significant impact on our church at a certain time in our history.  But they’re not books that would necessarily make it onto Dave’s ‘25 Books You Should Be Reading Now’ list.  That list will have to come out at a different time.

So this display represents books that have shaped us in as a church throughout our history.  Where possible we’ve tried to display the version of the book that was in print when it was having affect on who we were becoming as a church.

                                                                                   Clap Your Hands

by Larry Tomczak

Larry was very involved in helping this church get established and this book was a Christian best-seller at the time.  Many folks who would have come to the church in the early days would have either seen Larry speak at a conference or read this book about his life.

                                                                                      Knowing God

by J. I. Packer

Many say this will be one of the few books from our generation that will still be in print a hundred years from now.  Nothing says ‘all of life is doctrine’ better than Knowing God.  It formed a spiritual backbone in this church from the very outset.   

Money, Possessions and Eternity

by Randy Alcorn

Randy articulated and applied a New Testament view of life to the wallet, the retirement plan and the stuff we think we need.  He became a friend who counseled us in our building project and in our view of the mission of the local church.  His writing on social issues and works like Deadline and Heaven have continually reminded us that what we have here is not all there is to life.   

Trusting God

by Jerry Bridges

The church is a place where suffering people gather.  In our early days we found many folks coming from troubled church backgrounds – we called them ‘burnt stones’.  We needed a biblically sound and graciously written book on suffering and the sovereignty of God.  Jerry Bridges has delivered it because he has lived it.  We are indebted to him as an older brother in the Lord and as a friend to our church.   

Power Evangelism

by John Wimber

Wimber lived with evangelistic zeal and robust confidence in the dynamic role of the Holy Spirit in the spread of the Gospel.  To be influenced by Wimber is to live expectant that God will go before us to prepare hearts for the Gospel, and to be bold when the opportunity to share it occurs.    

The Holiness of God

by R. C. Sproul

This book ‘swept through’ our family of churches during the late 80’s spurred by a message C. J. did on Uzzah and the Ark of God.  This message and Sproul’s writing maybe did more than anything else to move us from a man-centered view of things to a God-centered view of life.  God is holy, we’re not.  That’s the point.   

The Body

by Charles Colson

In our early days we were casting around the evangelical world for some affirmation of the priority of the local church in the life of a believer.  This book helped us dialogue with other churches and ministries beyond our world and learn from them.

Temptation and Sin

by John Owen

To read Owen is to realize that our greatest enemy is not the devil, or the dude in the cubicle next to us.  It’s remaining sin in our hearts.  Coming from a charismatic theology and a therapeutic culture, we needed to hear that.  Fortunately there are ways to ramp up to Owen’s Puritan writing with books that could easily make this list, like The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges and The Enemy Within by Kris Lundgaard.  But Owen is the real deal. 

The Peacemaker

by Ken Sande

Where there are people there’s conflict.  But conflict creates Gospel opportunities.  Unity in the church is not built through absence of conflict, but by pursuing the redemptive opportunities that come with conflict.  Ken Sande has served us with his writing and his personal counsel.  There’s still nothing like this book out there.

Spiritual Leadership

by J. Oswald Sanders

We’ve benefitted from a lot of great books on leadership over the years, but this one has been with us from the beginning.  Sanders takes us into the heart of New Testament leadership.  A must read for anyone considering the call to ministry but very helpful for anyone in any capacity of leadership in the church, the home, or in the world.

Desiring God

by John Piper

This book sets out Piper’s big themes.  God’s delight in Himself.  The need for strong affections rooted in biblical truth.   The joy and pleasure of obedience to Christ.  Finding true joy in the true joy of others.  Where would we be without these truths?   There may be no current pastor/theologian beyond our movement who has more affected us as a local church.

Surprised by the Power of the Spirit

by Jack Deere

The mid 90’s was a time when a lot of controversy was floating around about experiencing the dynamic activity of the Holy Spirit.  Jack Deere came along and brought biblical, theological and historical depth to our understanding of the power,  presence and work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of God’s people.

Systematic Theology

by Wayne Grudem

Grudem gets it.  The ‘big blue book’ sets out a thorough but readable systematic theology for the church.  Chapter 16 on God’s providence broke us.  And, thanks to the editorial work of Jeff Purswell, Dean of the Sovereign Grace Pastor’s College, we also have Bible Doctrine, which is not Grudem for dummies, its Grudem for folks who want to major on the majors. 

Experiencing God

by Henry Blackaby and Claude King

There was a time when ministry was all about finding and using your gifts.  This book exploded that by rooting ministry in throwing yourself into what God is doing and letting him give the gifts as He pleases.  That’s made a big difference in this church, beginning with the pastoral team.  

When People are Big and God is Small

by Ed Welch

This book redrew the map of our relationships for a lot of us when we read it.  There is not an area of life – marriage, family, ministry, friendship, outreach – that isn’t affected by the fear of man.  Ed helps not only identify this pervasive idolatry, but stirs a Gospel-centered fear of God in the fight against it.  This stuff will never get old. 

Religious Affections

by Jonathan Edwards

In the mid-90’s when the charismatic world was talking about how God would ‘offend the mind to get to the heart’, C. J. sent us to Edwards and the Great Awakening to learn some important lessons on what authentic experience of God’s power should look like.  This was a guiding light in chaotic times.  But it is a book for all times.

The Cross of Christ

by John Stott

I could fill this list with books on the cross but this one can’t be topped.  We learned that to be Gospel centered meant that we needed to move the Cross to the center of everything.  That’s what Stott does in a magisterial way.  C. J. recommends reading one book on the cross a year.  Make sure this one is on your list.

The Doctrine of Repentance

by Thomas Watson

Watson is one of the easier Puritan’s to read, and this little book speaks volumes about the heart and life change that occurs when true repentance takes place.  We thought we were pretty humble till we read this. 

The Cross Centered Life

by C.J. Mahaney

This book put what it means to ‘keep the main thing the main thing’ into words that folks can understand and apply.  C. J. put a whole lot of important biblical truth in a great small package.  All of C. J.’s inestimable influence on this church has had the goal and effect of putting the cross at the center of everything we do. 

Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood

by John Piper and Wayne Grudem

How we understand the roles of men and women in God’s design is not a small issue.  It ultimately defines what kind of people, and church, we become.  The gender debate rages all around us, and this book (recently updated) still speaks with biblical clarity and force that cannot be denied. 

Shepherding a Child’s Heart

by Ted Tripp

In our early years we placed a lot of emphasis on the parent’s leadership and the goal of raising happy and obedient children.  Ted Tripp brought the Gospel into the center of parenting responsibility through this book and a seminar he did with us in the early 90’s.  This fits with his brother Paul’s book Age of Opportunity, which applies the same Gospel centered view to parenting teens.  I thank God for these books and these friends - as a pastor and as a dad. 

War of Words

by Paul Tripp

Paul is a dear friend and older brother to this church and his influence through writing and teaching can’t be overstated.  This book has rebooted a lot of mouths for the good – including my own.  God has spared us from the disease of gossip and slander that has plagued many churches, and I know this book has been preventative medicine. 

Spurgeon vs. Hyper-Calvinism

by Iain Murray

I had to have something Spurgeon in here and this might seem like an odd choice.  But as we’ve sought to understand and articulate what it means to be ‘essentially Reformed’, Spurgeon’s commitment to Gospel and Bible over any strict adherence to a theological system is worth following.  This book was read by the pastors and folks in leadership training, but would be valuable to anyone who wants to know how to humbly stand for truth.  Gotta throw in Beside Still Waters, The Power of Prayer in a Believer’s Life and Dallimore’s Spurgeon – A New Biography here as well.

The Valley of Vision

edited by Arthur Bennett

What a treasure!  A collection of Puritan prayers that exalt the Savior and survey the soul.  I’m one of many who always keeps this on my devotional table.  We’re displaying the old ugly paperback version that we were first turned onto, but Banner of Truth gets props for the small leather edition – unexpectedly brilliant marketing.

Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life

by Donald Whitney

I had to include a spiritual disciplines book and this one is the best out there.  Whitney makes both the ‘spiritual’ and the ‘discipline’ aspects of our devotion to Christ come together better than any book I’ve read.  And you should take it a step further and read his Spiritual Disciplines in the Church.

 

By Jared Mellinger

 

Every Christian should love preaching.  Not that we all love doing the preaching, because “Not many of you should become teachers” (James 3:1).  But we should all love preaching in the sense that we believe that nothing is more important to the health of our souls, and nothing is more central to Christian worship, than the preaching of God’s word.   

 

Healthy churches are full of people who have a high view of preaching.  One of the most reliable measures of the maturity of a church is the peoples’ understanding and appreciation of the preaching task.  This means preachers aren’t the only ones who need to have a theology of preaching, or a biblical understanding of the primacy of preaching.  It is a theme that matters for us all. 

 

If you haven’t given much thought to preaching, or if hearing the phrase “expositional pulpit monologue” doesn’t immediately begin to pump adrenaline through your veins, don’t worry.  A great starting point, if you missed it, is Mark’s sermon from Sunday, on the priority and purpose of preaching.  Then, consider reading Donald Whitney’s chapter on preaching in his book Spiritual Disciplines in the Church.  It’s called “Why Listen to Preaching in the Church?” 

 

In fact, in light of the value of Christians thinking clearly about the role of preaching, I’d encourage every believer to read a book on preaching at some point.  Here are a few suggestions of books on preaching that I’d recommend for those who don’t preach but want to reflect more on the subject. 

 

1.  What is Biblical Preaching?, by Eric Alexander

A short introduction to preaching that explains why preaching is important, written by an outstanding preacher.  I recommend this not only because the content is very helpful, but because it is a very readable length.

 

2.  The Supremacy of God in Preaching, by John Piper

Piper is aiming at preachers, but gives a wonderful vision of “the gravity and gladness of preaching” (to use Piper’s phrase), that will benefit all Christians.  The second part of the book describes the preaching of Jonathan Edwards.  If you have enjoyed other books by Piper, I’d encourage you to read his book on preaching. 

 

3.  Preachers Who Made a Difference, by Peter Jeffery

This book introduces readers to nine men from church history who have been powerfully used by God in their preaching.  The chapters are short and Jeffery’s writing is highly accessible.  There are chapters on John Knox, J.C. Ryle, Charles Spurgeon, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and more. 

 

4.  He is Not Silent, by Dr. Al Mohler    

Mohler believes that one of the hallmarks of our time is a crisis in preaching, and that the urgent need in our day is to recover a sense of the glory of preaching.  Here he explains why preaching is the heart of worship, gives a theology of preaching, and explains the importance of expository preaching.

 

I can speak for the other men who preach to you.  There is nothing that would give us greater joy than to know that the people to whom we preach not only hear the word with open hearts, but understand the high call of preaching and hold us accountable to that call. 

By Jared Mellinger

 

One of the best books I am aware of on the subject of Heaven is a book by Randy Alcorn, simply called Heaven.  We recommended the book a few weeks ago, and I’ve heard back from several people who have said they have really been enjoying it (one of them was my wife Meghan, who is currently working her way through it).

 

One of the helpful features of the book is the clear distinction between the temporary lodging that currently exists for those who die in Christ (“the intermediate Heaven”), and our true eternal home that we will enter when Christ returns (“the New Earth”).  This distinction is essential to understanding our ultimate hope as believers and keeps our hope centered on Christ and his return.  The full application of the salvation Christ has won for us is not completed when we die, but when Jesus Christ comes again.

 

Here are a two choice quotes from Alcorn on our Intermediate Home.  I highly recommend his book, and encourage you to think often about our final destination.        

 

“The intermediate Heaven is not our final destination.  Though it will be a wonderful place, the intermediate Heaven is not the place we were made for – the place God promises to refashion for us to live in forever.  God’s children are destined for life as resurrected beings on a resurrected Earth.  …It bears repeating because it is so commonly misunderstood: When we die, believers in Christ will not go to the Heaven where we’ll live forever.  Instead, we’ll go to an intermediate Heaven.  In the intermediate Heaven, we’ll await the time of Christ’s return to the earth, our bodily resurrection, the final judgment, and the creation of the new heavens and the New Earth.  If we fail to grasp this truth, we will fail to understand the biblical doctrine of Heaven.”  (p 42)

 

“Books on Heaven often fail to distinguish between the intermediate and eternal states, using the one word – Heaven – as all-inclusive.  But this has dulled our thinking and keeps us from understanding important biblical distinctions.  In this book, when referring to the place believers go after death, I use terms such as the present Heaven or the intermediate Heaven.  I’ll refer to the eternal state as the eternal Heaven or the New Earth.  I hope you can see why this is such an important distinction.  The present heaven is a temporary lodging, a waiting place until the return of Christ and our bodily resurrection.  The eternal Heaven, the New Earth, is our true home, the place where we will live forever with our Lord and with each other.  The great redemptive promises of God will find their ultimate fulfillment on the New Earth, not the intermediate Heaven.”  (p 44)

By Andy Farmer

A couple of Sundays ago we celebrated all God did at Youth Camp 2009.  During the service we had the chance to hear from a young man, Evan Wisneski, who received the saving grace of Jesus Christ during the camp.  At the end of Evan’s testimony he made a very profound theological statement.

“I never saw it coming, but I was saved at Youth Camp 2009"

As soon as he said this my mind went immediately back to that late night on February 10, 1981, when I was saved.  Like Evan, I never saw it coming.  I sat down in a college dorm suite lounge convinced that belief in God was “the opiate of the masses” (as my hero Karl Marx said it), and stood up a few hours later a follower of Jesus Christ.

The truth is, for all of us the fitting end of our testimony is, ‘I never saw it coming, but I was saved at…..’  The apostle Paul seemed to enjoy the irony of it all – his Damascus Road arrest by the risen Savior is a key part of the story he tells about himself to whomever will listen.  And he surely never saw that coming!  Essential to Paul’s Gospel is the idea that no one seeks after God.  It is God who seeks after us (Romans 10:3-26).  Repeatedly, Jesus tells us that he has come to seek the lost, not the searching; to open the eyes and ears of the blind and the deaf.  The very people in Jesus’ day who said they were longing for deliverance from God never saw it coming.

This doesn’t mean that people don’t search for something like God.  I was certainly searching back in 1981.  I’m sure Evan would say he was searching before he went to Youth Camp.  The world is full of searchers, and there are plenty of gods, both spiritual and temporal, that are easily found.  But no human searching can find God.  Sin has ruined the eyes that are essential to see Him, ears that are essential to hear Him, and hearts that are essential to desire him.  No, my brothers, if you have found Jesus Christ, it is because he revealed himself to you.  Admit it, you never saw it coming. 

Thank you, Evan, for preaching Gospel truth to us.  I’m glad he saved you when you never saw it coming.  I know what that feels like.  It feels right.

By Jacob Young

I wrote this as a kind of journal entry a few months ago. While this was an intense but relatively short-lived trial, it produced some great fruit in my otherwise comfortable life. Maybe you can relate.

I had my second kidney stone come upon me today. The little guy is just 3mm big – and I’m still waiting for him to make his final appearance. The day went as follows: I went to the doctor in the morning because my pain and discomfort were getting worse; they confirmed it was a kidney stone; I went to another place for a Cat Scan to see where it was; went to work for a bit; came home because the pain was really bad; the pain got worse over the next two hours; I threw up because the pain was so bad; we went to the emergency room upon the guidance of my doctor; got an I-V of stronger pain medication; reflected on God’s goodness with Michelle in the ER room; and eventually came home with new medicine and feeling a lot better.

Anyhow, so below are a few thoughts upon this occasion: 

1. God has been so good to give me these kidney stones. They’re painful no doubt. Through it, I’ve seen so many vast caverns of grace he has put in my life. I’ve seen his glory radiating in my heart and life – and my wife’s as well in ways that are only particularly seen when the heat of pain is intensified.

2. Through the pain, I found my life being more conformed around God than I had expected. Though it was extremely painful, I found myself praying God’s truths to him, praying his Scripture to him, praying his character to him. However, it wasn’t like I was suddenly filled with joy at that moment. But I was preaching a universe-changing message to myself in a moment of dire pain – I was preaching the Gospel. I was thankful to be able to remember some Scripture that I could speak to myself – it’s an encouragement to memorize more Scripture, but also an encouragement that even the most random Scriptures can breath life to a weary soul (for example, I was reciting the first few lines of Ps. 36 to myself – not exactly a “hey, you’ll get better” text!). There is a power in God’s word and truth to always be working. It seems to me that even having a mind focused on God is not something for me to be praised for, but rather God, who’s given me that gift in this situation. I wouldn’t want to look at God when my body’s being destroyed, but God’s Spirit, who moves within me to look at Jesus, does.

3. God was good to prevent this stone from coming earlier. I had my first kidney stone two weeks ago to the day, just two days before we were about to leave on (essentially) two weeks of vacation. Thankfully it passed the morning we were leaving, and while I had a few bouts with the second during those two weeks, it never was debilitating. I remember feeling the second one coming on about half way through the trip when we’d come home for a couple days before our second leg of the vacation. Kidney stones feel a certain way, so it’s not just like a lower back pain. So upon feeling this, I bent down, and I quietly asked my Father to take it away. I felt his nearness, and went to bed knowing that he’d heard me either way. Obviously he didn’t take it away, but he did push it aside until the best time for me. What a great Father.

4. I look with a deeper affection on Jesus Christ with an anticipation of when these bodies will be glorified. As the pain increased, and in reflection, my knowledge and understanding that this body is decaying, that it is not perfect to sustain God’s work in me grows. That, in fact, in my weakness his strength is revealed. How often to I actually glory in my weakness? Folks, I’m a prideful man, so I like being strong. But I’m seeing how my weakness actually is God’s preferred instrument to display his might – and this doesn’t mean that I’m then given a Porsche body this side of heaven. This body is under a curse as with the rest of creation, but where as this is true from Romans 8:19-23, it is also true from the end of Romans that nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus Christ for us (v. 35), and that all things work for our good (v.28). And what is this good?

5. It also gave me a taste for what Christ saved me from: Hell and God’s wrath. The pain was bad, but not to damnation – however, I caught a faint glimpse of the horrors of Hell, the screams of torment, the anguish of body that only faintly can reflect the wrath of God pressing in on a soul.

I pray that God fixes all these things on my mind to remember, to press on with, and to love him and his Gospel more through. I love God more now – I find myself loving the things of the world less. Oh God, write your Law on my heart through these small but intense trials that I might walk in your statues more closely to honor your name, to walk in the fruits of holiness that Christ bought me fore, that I might enjoy you more, and find Christ more and more satisfying!

By Jason Russell

As we’ve pondered the cross over the last few months, the Lord has refreshed us and given renewed appreciation for all that Christ has done for us.  One of the things I’ve taken away from the recent preaching series In My Place is Jim’s charge to come and meditate on “the Gospel spot” each morning in my quiet time.  Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 1:24 stuck out to me one morning as I was doing this:

“but we preach Christ crucified….the power of God and the wisdom of God.”

Of all the mighty works of God it is the cross of Christ that stands as the crown of His wisdom.  By His sovereign plan the Creator has wisely solved the human dilemma (man’s sinfulness and incapability to be reconciled to God) and the divine dilemma (God’s holiness and righteous requirement to punish sin).  He formulated the plan before the foundations of the earth were laid as the means by which he would glorify the Son and save those elected to know his love.  Since he has, we will forever praise him.   

God’s wisdom in the cross not only propels me to praise, it functions as practical encouragement for living each day.  How often am I faced with my need for wisdom?  In my marriage, parenting, at my work place, offering counsel to friends…the list goes on.  In all of these areas I am assured by the wisdom of God in crushing His own Son to redeem sinners like me.  He has proven his wisdom at the cross; surely He has wisdom enough for my problems which are far less weighty.  So, as I stare at various decisions throughout the course of a day this one thing I know: God’s abundant wisdom is more than sufficient to guide me. 

Are you facing decisions to buy or sell a home?  God has wisdom.  Trying to live on a tighter budget in light of hard economic times?  God has wisdom.  Considering a business venture?  God has wisdom.  Caring for a family member or friend in need?  God has abundant wisdom.  James tells us that all we need to do to get it is ask:

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”  James 1:5

by Jared Mellinger

This coming Sunday we begin our next preaching series, called Real Church.  We’ll be spending 15 weeks walking through the book of 1 Thessalonians.  There are many books of the Bible that have been shouting at me to preach them, but none has been shouting more loudly and seems timelier than 1 Thessalonians. 

In the sermon next week, I’ll be explaining our goals for the series and why we are preaching through this book.  The pastoral team is convinced that this book contains a timely message from God for Covenant Fellowship in this season.

One of the things we are excited about (and I hope you are excited about!) is the Study Guide for 1 Thessalonians we created for this series.  If you were here on Sunday we handed them out.  If you didn’t get one we will have copies available at our info center.  We also will be making it available on line in PDF format on the “Resources” page of our web site (www.covfel.org).  We are hoping that this guide will help us get the most out of the preaching series.

Our goal is to provide a tool that would promote the serious study of the Scriptures in our devotions at home and among friends.  So there are 15 studies in the booklet, one for each sermon in the series.  You can use each section to help you prepare for the sermon (jump into the first study this week!) or as a helpful follow-up after hearing the message.  You’ll also find an outline of 1 Thessalonians, goals for the series (derived from the major themes of the letter), articles by men like Paul Tripp and Jerry Bridges, and recommended resources for further study.

Let’s get ready to immerse ourselves in 1 Thessalonians.  Let’s read and re-read this book.  Let’s be praying that God meets us in this sermon series.  Let’s enjoy much fellowship with one another around this book.  Let’s anticipate how God is going to meet us, remembering this is “the word of God, which is at work in your believers” (1 Thess. 2:13).         

By Andy Farmer

 

On Sunday Jared preached the last sermon in our series, In My Place.  For me it has been a tremendous journey through some of the most profound passages in the Bible.  In this series we’ve been fed by the word of God from:

 

·        1 Corinthians 15:1-5 (The Centrality of the Gospel)

·        Exodus 12:1-27 (The Passover)

·        Leviticus 16 (The Day of Atonement)

·        Mark 15:16-47 (The Crucifixion)

·        Romans 3:21-26 (Justified by Grace)

·        Galatians 3:10-14 (Redeemed from the Curse)

 

Why not take your devotions this week and read back through these passages to dig deeper in reflection on the substitutionary work of Christ for you.

 

In his message Jared exhorted us with this:  “If we ever find ourselves in a place where we are saying ‘I've got that, let's move on' when it comes to the substitutionary death of Christ for our sins, we need to wave a great big caution sign over our lives"

 

Let’s face it.  There are a lot of things going on in life where we want biblical answers.  And there are a lot of big issues we face where we’re tempted to say, ‘thanks a lot, that was great stuff, now can we talk about…..’  But I think what Jared is getting at in that statement, and what this series has resoundingly declared, is that any answers or direction that can’t find connection to what Christ has done for us will not lead us to what God wants for us.  So here’s my personal take home in two points: 

 

1. I want to regularly study and meditate on the cross so that it worms its way into all my thinking and feeling and therefore into all my doing. 

By giving consistent attention to this truth of truths I will build connecting bridges into every area of my life.

 

2. I want to regularly study the circumstances and happenstances of my life and trace them back to the work of the cross.      

Are things going well?  Am I grateful because I’m living in the blessings of God purchased by Christ’s blood?  Are things not going well?  Am I in faith for the promises of God that have become mine in Jesus? 

 

Am I living my life in light of what could have been, and where I could have gone, if Jesus hadn’t died in my place?  As J. C. Ryle writes,

 

The more I keep the cross in my mind's eye, the more fullness I seem to discern in it.  The longer I dwell on the cross in my thoughts, the more I am satisfied that there is more to be learned at the foot of the cross than anywhere else in the world.

By Jared Mellinger

It is the heart of the pastors that though we have closed out this series In My Place, we never truly leave it as a church.  A quote from J. C. Ryle stirs me to see that every time I open my Bible I should remember Jesus In My Place.

Depend upon it, the cross of Christ,—the death of Christ on the cross to make atonement for sinners,—is the centre truth in the whole Bible.  This is the truth we begin with when we open Genesis.  The seed of the woman bruising the serpent's head is nothing else but a prophecy of Christ crucified.  This is the truth that shines out, though veiled, all through the Law of Moses, and the history of the Jews.  The daily sacrifice, the Passover lamb, the continual shedding of blood in the tabernacle and temple,—all these were emblems of Christ crucified.  This is the truth that we see honoured in the vision of heaven before we close the book of Revelation.  "In the midst of the throne and of the four beasts," we are told, "and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain.”  (Rev. v. 6.)  Even in the midst of heavenly glory we get a view of Christ crucified.  Take away the cross of Christ, and the Bible is a dark book.

One of the ways we’ve tried to make sure we as a church continue to experience the light of the cross in our Bibles and lives is by recommending some great study resources.  If you haven’t seen this list on the web site I’m including it below.  All of these are available through our Book Shoppe.  Why not choose one and make it your devotional reading for this summer. 

Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross (ed. Guthrie)
An outstanding compilation of meditations on the cross.  The line-up includes Luther, Piper, Mahaney, Spurgeon, Ryle, Owen, Lloyd-Jones, Sproul, Calvin, Packer, Edwards, Augustine, Keller, and more.  Each chapter is very short and accessible, but deep and powerful as well.  Great for devotions.

Pierced for Our Transgressions (Jeffery, Ovey, and Sach)
A wonderful treatise on the penal substitution of Christ.  Be sure to read chapter 2.  It provides a sound biblical overview of this important doctrine and examines each of the texts preached in this sermon series.  The second half deals with common objections to penal substitution. 

In My Place Condemned He Stood (Packer and Dever)
A compilation of theological essays that celebrate the glory of the atonement which all aim at one glorious purpose in our lives.  That purpose is captured in the conclusion of the book, “True Christ-centeredness is, and ever must be, cross-centeredness.”  To help us cultivate a “cross-centeredness” the book also contains an outstanding annotated bibliography and reading list written by Ligon Duncan.

The Great Exchange (Bridges and Bevington)
Drawn from George Smeaton’s work, “The Doctrine of the Atonement According To The Apostles,” this book is written in a way “to help believers think afresh and more deeply of the gospel.”  Surveys the key New Testament texts on the death of Christ.

The Cross of Christ (Stott)
A classic work on the cross that every believer should read.  Make sure you don’t bog down in the first few chapters, because chapters 5 and 6 are outstanding.  Stott shows that the heart of Christ’s work on the cross is the satisfaction for sin through the self-substitution of God.

Living The Cross Centered Life (Mahaney)
Written with pastoral skill, the short chapters in this book not only capture C.J.’s passion for the cross, but give practical ideas that help you to keep the gospel the “main thing” in your life.  This book is highly accessible – a great place to start – and is guaranteed to stir fresh love for the Savior. 

By Jared Mellinger

Proverbs 27:2 says, “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.”  This proverb teaches us that it’s not proper for us to always be talking about ourselves, and commending ourselves, and praising ourselves.  It summarizes a warning echoed throughout the Bible against self-centeredness.

 

Question: Did Jesus obey Proverbs 27:2?   

 

We’re so familiar with his sayings that its easy to miss how often Jesus is not only talking about himself, but speaking very highly of himself – commending himself, praising himself, saying things intended to cause others to think more highly of him.  Mark Dever observes, “It seems like every time Jesus speaks, he speaks about himself, why he came into the world, or what he will do for those who believe in him.”  (The Message of the New Testament, 103)  Have you ever noticed that?  It seems like every time Jesus speaks, he speaks about himself.  His entire ministry was characterized by self-commendation.  He praises himself constantly, and without apology.  Was he that self-centered?

 

Think about it: Who else besides Jesus walks into a group of people and says, “I tell you, something greater than the temple is here” (Mt. 12:6)?  Or, “Something greater than Solomon is here” (Mt. 12:42).  “Learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart” (Mt. 11:29).  “I am the Good Shepherd” (John 10:11).  He is praising himself with his own mouth.  “I, Jesus, am the bright morning star” (Rev. 22:16).  “I am the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” (Rev. 22:13). 

 

What about Proverbs 27:2, and letting another praise you?  How can Jesus commend himself as he does? 

 

The answer is that Jesus knows who he is.  He knows that the most important message in the history of the world is the message of who he is and what he came to earth to accomplish.  He knows that he alone can save us and satisfy our hearts.  The Good Shepherd is only good if he guides us to himself.  And so the message Jesus brought was the message of himself.  The self-centeredness that Proverbs 27:2 warns against is when people who should not be the center live as if they are.  Jesus wasn’t capable of the self-centeredness that we can display because he is in fact the center of everything that matters in the universe. 

 

In making himself the center of his teaching, and in commending himself as he does, Jesus parts ways with every other religious leader in the history of the world.  Study the teachings of Muhammad, or look at Buddha or anyone else.  Every other religious leader has come pointing people away from themselves to the way of salvation, claiming to direct people to the truth through their teachings, or by providing an example of an ethical life. 

 

Jesus is altogether unique, and his message is entirely and radically different, because the centerpiece of his message is himself.  Jesus did not just come claiming to have the truth, he came saying that he is the truth.  He declares that he alone is the door of salvation, and that he alone is the Good Shepherd.  No one has ever spoken like this man.  Christ stands alone, in a league of his own.  He is worthy of praise, and therefore he praises himself and invites us to join him – not in praising and commending ourselves with our own mouths, but in praising and commending him as our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.     

Posted by Chris Radano

 

“The heavens declare the glory of God...” - Psalm 19:1

“You are a believer in God?  But you’re a scientist...” - personal friend

 

As a research chemist, my world consists of laboratories, chemicals, funny looking glassware and unique vocabulary.  To the surprise of my friend quoted above, my faith in God and my love for science were not mutually exclusive.  As a research chemist, I constantly try to find ‘pictures’ in the chemistry lab to help me meditate biblical truths.  The use of chemistry language to describe certain theological processes can be very clarifying to me.

 

For example, there’s the process of crystallization.  Crystallization is a common technique whereby a solid substance (molecule, compound, etc) is purified from a mixture of impurities - e.g. – stuff that doesn’t belong.  The substance is dissolved in a suitable solvent and slowly cooled.  Crystals of the pure substance begin to form, becoming larger and larger, where they can be easily separated.  The impurities never crystallize, remaining dissolved in the solvent, ultimately washing away.  When I see crystallization I think about the process of sanctification.

 

Crystallization is a slow process and is a reminder to me that sanctification doesn’t take place overnight.  The process of crystallization cannot be rushed, but it is a kinetic process - meaning that the overall purity of the final material is dependent on the rate at which the crystallization takes place.  Too fast and the impurities are co-crystallizing with (i.e. attach themselves to) the substance, which means it is not becoming pure.  The slower the crystallization kinetics, the more easily the beauty of the crystals is seen.  To me, the parallel is clear - quick fixes in behavior don’t work to truly purify the heart.  They seem helpful and progress seems to be made, but it is the kinetic effect of the sanctification process over time that produces the beauty of true purity.      

 

The crystallization process happens when the chemist applies certain instruments and techniques to concentrate a chemical activity.  To me the instruments of analysis and techniques of detecting impurity are means of common grace for the scientist to work with chemical processes.  In a similar way, God has given us means of grace to work for our benefit in the process of sanctification.  For example, prayer, application of the Word of God, accountability, trials and adversity in life, the encouragement of fellowship, etc. all make a meaningful contribution to sanctification if we apply them in appropriate ways. 

 

These examples and correlations between chemistry and theology are eye-opening to me when I really sit down and consider them.  I hope that this little lesson in theological science helps you join me in marveling at the wisdom of our Creator/Redeemer.  My purpose is not to try to fit God into my world, but visualize my world as part of what God has created and speaks about in His word. 

Posted by Jared Mellinger

This year our Good Friday service and our Easter service will flow out of the theme of our current sermon series, “In My Place”. 

Good Friday is the Friday before Easter and is the day Christians historically commemorate the suffering and death of Christ.  This year, rather than preaching a sermon on Good Friday, there will be several short reflections from Isaiah 53 – ‘the song of the Suffering Servant’ - during our time together.  Also, in addition to singing and prayer, we will be participating together in the Lord’s Supper. 

The Lord’s Supper, or communion, is one of the ways Jesus teaches us the centrality of his death.  John Stott writes,

“What did the bread and wine signify?  The words he had spoken explained.  Of the bread he had said ‘This is my body given for you’, and of the wine ‘This is my blood shed for you’.  So his death spoke to them from both the elements.  The bread did not stand for his living body, as he reclined with them at table, but his body as it was shortly to be ‘given’ for them in death.  Similarly, the wine did not stand for his blood as it flowed in his veins while he spoke to them, but his blood which was shortly to be ‘poured out’ for them in death.  The evidence is plain and irrefutable.  The Lord’s Supper, which was instituted by Jesus, and which is the only regular commemorative act authorized by him, dramatizes neither his birth nor his life, neither his words nor his works, but only his death.  Nothing could indicate more clearly the central significance which Jesus attached to his death.  It was by his death that he wished above all else to be remembered.”  (The Cross of Christ, p. 68)    

That is what we will be remembering together at our Good Friday service. 

Then, on Easter Sunday, there will be a sermon on the resurrection, also from Isaiah 53.  Yes, Isaiah 53.  A resurrection sermon, full of joy and hope, drawn from a chapter on the death of the suffering servant!  The sermon text will be Isaiah 53:10-12.  These verses are what enable John Stott to say, “It is from Isaiah 53 that Jesus seems to have derived the clearest forecast not only of his sufferings, but also of his subsequent glory.”  (The Cross of Christ, 31)

I’m eager to reflect on the sufferings of Christ and celebrate the subsequent glory of Christ together.  Let’s also remember that we go through Easter week in a world full of lost people blind and desperate for the message of the death and resurrection of Christ for them.  Pray that during this week God will stir cold hearts to seek him afresh, and that some of those he is drawing will join with us in our celebration.