Always Reforming to Scripture

Great Sermon by Matt Chandler

2012-01-11T22:08:00.000-06:00

My wife and I listened to a great sermon as we traveled last weekend. We talked about its content for some time. We both agreed that it was a true blessing so we recommend it to your spiritual ears.

Matt Chandler Session 4 at Lead 2011 in Auburn Maine. “Which You Received” Romans 8.28-37
http://gospelalliancene.com/which-you-received-matt-chandler/

We hope you are blessed as we were.

Great Resource for Free: Knowing God (J.I. Packer)

2012-01-04T07:00:00.000-06:00

I have recommended this book to many over the years. It has sold over a million copies. Get the audio free this month (1-2012) here: http://christianaudio.com/free

Kim Jong Il is Dead

2011-12-19T10:16:00.001-06:00

The diabolical leader Kim Jong Il is dead. I will never forget the story I read concerning how Christians have been killed in North Korea. This is just one story out of thousands.

"While Interviewee 17 was in the North Korean Army, his unit was dispatched to widen the highway between Pyongyang and the nearby port city of Nampo. They were demolishing a vacated house in Yongkang county, Yongkang district town, when in a basement between two bricks they found a Bible and a small notebook that contained 25 names, one identified as pastor, two as chon-do-sa (assistant pastors), two as elders, and 20 other names, apparently parishioners, identified by their occupations. The soldiers turned the Bible and notebook over to the local branch of Department 15 of the Korean Workers Party (KWP), but the Party officials said it was up to the military police unit, Bowisaryungbu gigwanwon, to investigate. Tracked down at their place of work through the listing of occupation in the notebook, the 25 persons were picked up without formal arrest by the military bowibu. The interviewee was not aware of any judicial procedures for those seized. In November 1996, the 25 were brought to the road construction site. Four concentric rectangular rows of spectators were assembled to watch the execution. Interviewee 17 was in the first row. The five leaders to be executed - the pastor, two assistant pastors, and two elders - were bound hand and foot and made to lie down in front of a steamroller. This steamroller was a large construction vehicle imported from Japan with a heavy, huge, and wide steel roller mounted on the front to crush and level the roadway prior to pouring concrete. The other twenty persons were held just to the side. The condemned were accused of being Kiddokyo (Protestant Christian) spies and conspiring to engage in subversive activities. Nevertheless, they were told, “If you abandon religion and serve only Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, you will not be killed.” None of the five said a word. Some of the fellow parishioners assembled to watch the execution cried, screamed out, or fainted when the skulls made a popping sound as they were crushed beneath the steamroller. Interviewee 17 thought, at the time, that these church people were crazy. He thought then that religion was an “opiate,” and it was stupid for them to give up their lives for religion. He heard from the soldiers who took away the other twenty prisoners that they were being sent to a prison camp. He sketched from memory a diagram of the execution scene."

http://www.nysun.com/foreign/korean-reds-targeting-christians/23082/

http://northkoreanchristians.com/religion-north-korea.html

Check out this article and videos at Justin Taylor's blog concerning the death of Kim Jong Il
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2011/12/19/inside-kim-jong-ils-diabolical-world/

Veteran's Day: Freedom Is Not Free

2011-11-11T18:13:00.004-06:00

I have said many times, “freedom is not free.” Frank A. Olomon was a WW2 veteran that lived with a daily reminder of that statement. I officiated his funeral in June of 2011. Frank and two of his brothers served in the military during WW2.

Hitler’s military machine had taken over France in May of 1940 and conquered it in six weeks. In response, the US military landed in Normandy, France, on July 22, 1944. A few weeks later, Frank landed in Normandy and worked his way up to Saint Lo with the 28th infantry. On August 29, 1944, Frank was hit in the leg with a 50 caliber tracer bullet. It hit his knee and exited the back of his thigh. With many dead all around him, he eventually became unconscious from the shock and was later picked up by a tank. Frank’s leg had to be amputated.

His parents got a telegram saying that he was missing in action. Then one came that he was wounded in action. He eventually made it to a military hospital in Battle Creek, Michigan. It was there that his parents were finally able to see him. Frank was later awarded the Bronze Star, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with Bronze Star attachment, Victory Medal, Good Conduct Medal and Honorable Service lapel pin. Once back in Burlington, Iowa, Frank made it around on crutches for quite some time before getting an artificial leg. Around this time, he decided he would teach his brother, Glenn, to drive so that he could be chauffeured to work. The two brothers headed down a gravel road and Frank directed Glen to turn here and turn there and then he told him to bring it to a stop. When Glenn put on the brakes he was in loose gravel and the car made a 180 degree turn. Frank told him to get out of the driver’s seat and from that day on Frank drove.

Frank was later fitted with a prosthetic leg and wore out four of them during the next 67 years. He lived with phantom pain and pain in his upper leg all of his life. Daily he lived with a reminder of war. I wonder how many days Frank went to strap on his prosthetic leg only to think back to that day in St. Lo, France?

Frank worked for Zaiser’s Florist and Greenhouse for 45 years. Being on your feet working in the greenhouse and fields with a prosthetic leg was not easy but Frank did it and did it well.

Frank met his wife, Betty Gosling, on a blind date in Burlington. She was from England and she too had a personal experience with WW2. Her home town experienced 65 air raids from German planes.

Frank saw his fellow soldiers die on the battle field and he lived with a constant reminder that freedom is not free. The war changed him physically and psychologically.

Don’t just wait to thank a veteran on Veteran’s Day, thank veterans as often as you can. You would be surprised at how many of them have never heard someone say—thank you.

And remember that freedom is not free.

I thank God for all of the American men and women who have served our country!
See also:

http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2010/11/veterans-day.html

http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2007/05/should-we-feel-guilty-for-having.html

Wade Burleson Blog:
http://www.wadeburleson.org/2011/11/remembering-bob-vance-and-others-who.html

A Cardinal and A Christian (Pujols and Holliday)

2011-10-29T20:15:00.003-05:00

You can glorify God as a Christian in pretty much any profession.

A couple of Scripture come to mind:

Colossians 3:23-24 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Here is what Pujols says on his website:

My life’s goal is to bring glory to Jesus. My life is not mostly dedicated to the Lord, it is 100% committed to Jesus Christ and His will. God has given me the ability to succeed in the game of baseball. But baseball is not the end; baseball is the means by which my wife, Dee Dee, and I glorify God. Baseball is simply my platform to elevate Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. I would also rather be known as a great husband and father than an All-Star baseball player. Perhaps one day I could be honored with an invitation into Baseball’s Hall of Fame. That would certainly be a boyhood dream of mine come true, but it is a far greater honor that one day I will be in heaven with God to enjoy Him forever.

Check out a couple of Cardinal players who are vocal about their Christian faith.

Albert Pujols (

Matt Holliday

The Horrendous Advice of Pat Robertson

2011-09-19T21:50:00.002-05:00

Sunday evening I checked out a couple of blogs and one in particular caught my eye. It was Justin Taylor’s blog, The Gospel-Emptying Cruelty of Pat Robertson. Then I watched the video where Pat Robertson answered the question in regards to divorce and Alzheimer’s.

I then checked out some other links to the story:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/14/pat-robertson-divorce-alzheimers_n_963305.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44530424/ns/health-alzheimers_disease/t/pat-robertson-divorcing-spouse-alzheimers-justifiable/
http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/story/2011-09-15/pat-robertson/50412904/1
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/17/us/pat-robertson-remarks-on-alzheimers-stir-passions.html
http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/16/pat-robertson-makes-controversial-alzheimers-claims/

video clips:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/pat-robertson-alzheimers-divorce-remarks-fire-14534026
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44530424/ns/health-alzheimers_disease/t/pat-robertson-divorcing-spouse-alzheimers-justifiable/

Then I watched an interview of Russell Moore on CNN.

This issue hits home to every pastor. We have folks in our congregations that have gone through the hardship of seeing a loved one suffer with Alzheimer’s. It hits home very personally in my own life because my mother has Alzheimer’s. My father takes care of my mother, his wife of 53 years. He fixes her a strudel and a hot cup of Mocha every morning and sets out her medication on saucer for her to take. He does all of the cooking and shopping. He will listen to her talk about going to work, when she hasn’t worked in over 15 years. He will listen to her talk about having to move because they are living in her mother’s house, in her mind. He must listen to her ask the same questions many times a day. And he does this day in and day out. Is it trying? You bet. Is it frustrating and difficult at times? Yes. But to hear Pat Robertson say that it is justifiable to divorce your spouse because they have Alzheimer’s is horrendous.

So I wrote the following twenty minutes before my father called me:

My father doesn’t own a computer, so he will never read this blog, but I will call him this week and tell him how proud I am of him for taking care of his wife, my mother, in sickness and in health. Thankfully my mother’s Alzheimer’s is still in the mild stage, but by all indications my father will continue to love her and care for to the best of his ability. When the time comes that he can no longer do so, we will have to seek a skilled care facility. The next time I see my father, I will show him Russell Moore’s testimony and tell him how proud I am in how he is serving mom day in and day out.
At about 9:20 PM my father called. Normally he doesn’t call this late but he was checking in to see how my day had been and to tell me that the Cardinals won 5 to 0. It was so surreal that he called at this time. I could hardly hold back the tears. Since it was on my mind, I went ahead and told him how proud we were in how he was taking care of mom. I told him that he was doing a good job and that I knew that it hadn’t been easy. That is about all I could say to him at the moment. I am not an overly emotional person, but I had to let him go. I slipped into my bedroom for a moment, just long enough to think about what had happened. I am upset by how Pat Robertson answered the question posed to him. Yet it provided an opportunity for me to think about my father and other caregivers who lovingly stand by their parents, spouse or child in the time when they need them the most. It will also give me a better awareness of the thoughts that some people have.

I guess you could say that divorcing a spouse with Alzheimer’s is justifiable—if you’re an atheist. If there is no god and we are here by chance, our lives ultimately don’t have any meaning, and there is no afterlife, no god to be accountable to—then sure divorce your wife because you only go around once! Live it up because you have to go for everything and sticking around caring for a loved one is only wasting what little time you have.

I have never been a fan or follower of Pat Robertson. I don’t watch him or care to watch him. But I do hope and pray that he will have a change of heart and repent of his statement. I thank the Lord for clear thinking leaders like Russell Moore and for caregivers who continue to love and serve through hardships.

US Debt Analogy by Dave Ramsey

2011-08-10T08:17:00.000-05:00

"If the US Government was a family, they would be making $58,000 a year, they spend $75,000 a year, & are $327,000 in credit card debt. They are currently proposing BIG spending cuts to reduce their spending to $72,000 a year. These are the actual proportions of the federal budget & debt, reduced to a level that we can understand.” – Dave Ramsey

Memorial Day: Beyond Death (for the Christian)

2011-06-02T19:38:00.001-05:00

Beyond Death (for the Christian)

 We have a material body and an immaterial soul/spirit (Genesis 35:18; Luke 23:42-43; Matthew 10:28; 17:1-3; Acts 7:59; )

 At the moment of death our soul separates from the body and departs to be with Christ (2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:20-25; Revelation 6:9-11)

 Our material body returns to dust (Genesis 3:19) and we remain in a disembodied state in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23) until the resurrection (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

 At the second coming of Jesus Christ believers who have died will return with him and will receive their resurrected bodies first; the believers who are alive at that time will be transformed as well (1 Thess. 4:13-18; 1 Cor. 15:20-23, 51-52)

 A resurrected body is the final phase of our redemption (Rom. 8:23, 30; Philippians 3:20-21)

 How will the dead be raised and what type of body will it be? (1 Cor. 15:35-44; Phil. 3:20-21)

-------------------------------------------

There is no reincarnation (coming back as something else). Hebrews 9:27 says, “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment”.

Those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life with God (John 3:16; 11:25; 1 Peter 3:18).

What Will Harold Camping Say Tomorrow?

2011-05-21T08:14:00.002-05:00

Nothing happened in New Zealand, Thailand, and Australia etc—no massive earthquakes, no rapture, no dead bodies’ littering cemeteries. What will the false teacher, Harold Camping, do come May 22, 2011? I think he will say that he miscalculated and will come up with a new time scheme or he will spiritualize it and add to his 1988 and 1994 concoction? What other options are there? Pray that he will repent of all of his heresy. He has misrepresented the Christian faith and has ruined lives with his false teaching.

But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

Matthew 24:36

Open Letter to Harold Camping (by Grace Valley Christian Center)

2011-05-09T20:34:00.000-05:00

Check out this letter that was sent to Harold Camping
http://www.gracevalley.org/open_letter_harold_camping.pdf

Harold Camping Countdown (Part 2) **Corrupt Calculations"

2011-05-04T10:15:00.000-05:00

Harold Camping Countdown (Part 1)

2011-04-30T21:41:00.001-05:00

Harold Camping has made the news with his Judgment date:

http://www.dickinsoncountynews.com/story/1714343.html

http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2011/03/21/harold-camping-family-radio-iowa-and-the-end-of-the-world/

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20110429/NEWS03/104290342/Munson-Caravan-carries-rapture-reminder-to-Des-Moines?Frontpage

http://www.zeenews.com/news702412.html

http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/01/03/judgement-day-will-may-21-2011-be-the-end-of-the-world/

http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/articles/sitting_in_judgment_may_21_you/

http://qctimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/columnists/barb-ickes/article_b0084360-714b-11e0-991e-001cc4c03286.html

http://articles.cnn.com/2011-03-06/living/judgment.day.caravan_1_rvs-dish-world-ends?_s=PM:LIVING

Below are helpful articles in understanding and critiquing Harold Camping:

http://www.aomin.org/aoblog/index.php?itemid=3983

http://turretinfan.wordpress.com/?s=harold+camping

http://www.gracevalley.org/Letter_to_Harold_Camping_True_Prophet_Or_False.pdf

http://www.scionofzion.com/hall.htm

http://www.alliancenet.org/partner/Article_Display_Page/0,,PTID307086_CHID560462_CIID1526032,00.html

http://wscal.edu/search/results/839e0b01053a522350b54ebfbff970e5/

http://www.sermonaudio.com/search.asp?seriesOnly=true&currSection=sermonstopic&SourceID=malvern&keyworddesc=Harold+Camping+%26+Family+Radio&keyword=Harold+Camping+%26+Family+Radio

http://www.gracevalley.org/open_letter_harold_camping.pdf

http://www.redeemerbroadcasting.org/podcasts/apa_110610_How_to_Read_the_Bible_part_2.mp3

http://www.redeemerbroadcasting.org/podcasts/apa_103010_How_to_Read_the_Bible.mp3

http://www.equip.org/articles/harold-camping-1994-

http://www.equip.org/articles/harold-camping

http://christopherjgordon.blogspot.com/search?q=harold+camping

http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2011/01/what-do-i-think-of-harold-camping.html

Online Christian Resources

2011-04-25T21:09:00.003-05:00

Triablogue has one of the best list of resources that i have found: click here located on the right hand side...

Catagories:
Weekly Archives
Apologetics (50 plus links)
Bible Helps (40 plus links)
Bioethics (40 plus links)
Blogspotting (100 plus links)
Church History (30 plus links)
Countercultism (20 plus links)
Creation/Evolution (20 plus links)
Culture Wars (40 plus links)
News You Can Use (60 plus links)
Parachurch (10 plus links)
Philosophy (40 plus links)
Preaching (10 plus links)
Theology (30 plus links)
Underground Church (5 plus links)

Theology Unplugged Podcast

2011-04-05T18:55:00.002-05:00

Good listening here

http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/what-we-do/theology-unplugged-podcast/

Rob Bell’s Love Wins—Two Reviews Worth Your Time

2011-03-28T20:43:00.000-05:00

Revising Hell into the Heterodox Mainstream

A review of Rob Bell‟s book Love Wins

By Denny Burk

http://www.dennyburk.com/revising-hell-into-the-heterodox-mainstream/

KEVIN DEYOUNG

God Is Still Holy and What You Learned in Sunday School Is Still True: A Review of “Love Wins”

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2011/03/14/rob-bell-love-wins-review/

download pdf
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/files/2011/03/LoveWinsReview.pdf

2011-03-23T21:39:00.002-05:00

Late Term Abortion Doctor Charged in Killing of Newborns

2011-01-19T21:36:00.000-06:00

Doctor Is Charged in Killing of Newborns
(Yes, it is in the New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/20/us/20doctor.html?src=me

and

read the report of the grand jury and district attorney---simply unbelievable http://www.phila.gov/districtattorney/PDFs/GrandJuryWomensMedical.pdf

Ruscha: The Word of God Stands-------Forever!

2011-01-15T18:58:00.002-06:00

What do I think of Harold Camping? Harold needs to go Camping in Siberia and stay there until Jesus comes

2011-01-04T20:25:00.005-06:00

Harold Camping is a false teacher who has set the date for the rapture as May 21st, 2011 and the end of history as we know it for October 21, 2011.

Below are recent news articles concerning Camping:

AOL News (01-01-2011) :
May 21 Is Judgment Day? Harold Camping's Latest Doomsday Prediction

Washington Post:
May 21, 2011: Harold Camping says the end is near

San Fransico Chronicle (01-01-2011):
Biblical scholar's date for rapture: May 21, 2011

[ Bad title ***ATTENTION: HAROLD CAMPING IS NOT A BIBLICAL SCHOLAR***]

Here is a quote from the article, see if any of this makes any sense:

The number 5, . . . equals "atonement." en is "completeness." Seventeen means "heaven." Camping patiently explained how he reached his conclusion for May 21, 2011. "Christ hung on the cross April 1, 33 A.D.," he began. "Now go to April 1 of 2011 A.D., and that's 1,978 years." Camping then multiplied 1,978 by 365.2422 days - the number of days in each solar year, not to be confused with a calendar year. Next, Camping noted that April 1 to May 21 encompasses 51 days. Add 51 to the sum of previous multiplication total, and it equals 722,500. Camping realized that (5 x 10 x 17) x (5 x 10 x 17) = 722,500. Or put into words: (Atonement x Completeness x Heaven), squared. "Five times 10 times 17 is telling you a story," Camping said. "It's the story from the time Christ made payment for your sins until you're completely saved. "I tell ya, I just about fell off my chair when I realized that," Camping said.

Huffington Post (01-04-2011) :
May 21, 2011: Judgment Day Rumors Spread Across The US

Watch this ABC News story :
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=7842772

Let me just say that this guy is so out there, that I can’t believe that I am even responding to this issue. But since he has made the news, I feel the need to provide a response.

How did Harold Camping come up with the year 2011 as the year for the return of Christ?

Camping states:

In 2 Peter 3:8, which is quoted above, Holy God reminds us that one day is as 1,000 years. Therefore, with the correct understanding that the seven days referred to in Genesis 7:4 can be understood as 7,000 years, we learn that when God told Noah there were seven days to escape worldwide destruction, He was also telling the world there would be exactly 7,000 years (one day is as 1,000 years) to escape the wrath of God that would come when He destroys the world on Judgment Day. Because Holy Infinite God is all-knowing, He knows the end from the beginning. He knew how sinful the world would become.

Seven thousand years after 4990 B.C. (the year of the Flood) is the year 2011 A.D. (our calendar).

Thus Holy God is showing us by the words of 2 Peter 3:8 that He wants us to know that exactly 7,000 years after He destroyed the world with water in Noah’s day, He plans to destroy the entire world forever. Because the year 2011 A.D. is exactly 7,000 years after 4990 B.C. when the flood began, the Bible has given us absolute proof that the year 2011 is the end of the world during the Day of Judgment, which will come on the last day of the Day of Judgment. http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/judgment/judgment.html

And here [ http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/waat/waat.pdf ] p. 57

Camping says, Genesis 7:4 can be understood as 7,000 years, we learn that when God told Noah there were seven days to escape worldwide destruction, He was also telling the world there would be exactly 7,000 years (one day is as 1,000 years) to escape the wrath of God that would come when He destroys the world on Judgment Day.”

What? Who in all of Christian or Jewish history would have ever come up with that interpretation? Peter didn’t say a day is a 1,000 years. Peter is simply saying that the passing of time does not affect God or his promises. There are those that mock the idea that the Lord will return and Peter says, “But do not let this one {fact} escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:8-9). Mr. Camping needs to chill out and wait patiently for God’s time and quit trying to put a date on it by twisting Scripture. Camping doesn’t do that with other days in the Bible does he? No.

Thomas Schreiner in his commentary on 1 and 2 Peter states, “The text does not say that one day with the Lord is a thousand years. It says one day with the Lord is like a thousand years. We do not have a literal statement here but a comparison, an analogy. Second, the proposed interpretation does not make sense in context. Peter would then have been saying that the day of judgment lasts one thousand years, which is a rather strange notion. Finally, such an interpretation does not fit well with Peter’s response to the false teachers. What Peter did say cogently responds to the teachers. Even though the Lord has not returned yet, one should not conclude from this that he will never arrive. The Lord does not reckon time as humans do. What seems agonizingly long to us is a whisker of time to him." (p. 380)

God simply told Noah to get in the ark because in seven days the rain is going to begin (Gen 7:1-4, 10). There is nothing symbolic about the future rapture being 7,000 years later! The news agencies should know that Mr. Camping does not represent the view of any Christian group of the last 2,000 years. No one in church history has read Genesis 7:4 and 2 Peter 3:8 to come up with a date for Second Coming or the end of history.

Below are some more outrageous statements made by Harold Camping:

The “house of God” is a reference to all the local congregations, which have been abandoned by the Holy Spirit and placed under the rulership of Satan. They are being punished because they have departed greatly from the true Gospel. Thus, they are under judgment. But that is far different from the day of judgment, the five- month period from May 21, 2011 to October 21, 2011, when each and every human being all over the entire earth will receive the final punishment for his sins. This punishment, of course, will not come upon the true believers, who will be raptured, or caught up in the air to meet Christ, on May 21, 2011. (page 17)

The church age ended in 1988, so, no one can become saved while under the authority of a local congregation. In fact, God has placed Satan in the churches to rule there. Thus, God has commanded those who desire to be obedient to God to come out of the local congregations. (page 18)

http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/glory/glory.pdf

From his latest book, We Are Almost There, we read these statements:

He (Satan) could not deceive the nations during the complete period of the church age, which was symbolically described as a period of 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1-3). The 1,000 years must be understood as a symbolical or spiritual number that signifies “completeness.” The actual period he was bound was 1,955 years (from A.D. 33 to 1988). (page 14-15)

As we continue in this study, we will learn that the church age ended on May 21, 1988 (A.D.). (page 28)

Thus, May 21, 1988, was the official end of the church age and the official beginning of the great tribulation. (page 44)

So, Camping takes the 1,000 years mentioned in Revelation 20 and says that it is symbolic and actually it was 1,955 years. Of course this comes to 1988 and everyone would understand this and also know that the church age is now over!

The church age ended and the 8,400-day great tribulation began the day before Pentecost in 1988, which was May 21, 1988.

The first 2,300 days of the great tribulation began on May 21, 1988, and ended on September 7, 1994.

The second part of the great tribulation, which consists of 6,100 days (8,400 - 2,300 = 6,100), began on September 7, 1994, and ends on May 21, 2011.

The final five months of the earth’s history begins on May 21, 2011, and will end on October 21, 2011.

We thus far have set forth the basic outline of the important time junctures leading to the end of the world. We have also shown the Biblical information that causes us to arrive at this time information. (page.50)

Thus, in Genesis 7, God is effectively saying that all of mankind in the whole world have seven days to get into the safety of Christ, who alone can save us from the wrath of God. But wait a minute. Did not God insist in II Peter 3 that we must absolutely know that a day is as a thousand years? Let us substitute

7,000 years for seven days. Therefore, effectively, God was telling Noah that all of mankind who would ever live in the whole world have 7,000 years to get into the safety of Christ, if they are to escape the wrath of God. What year would be exactly 7,000 years after the flood of Noah’s day? Would you believe it! Long ago we learned that the flood occurred in the year 4990 B.C., and 7,000 years later brings us to the year 2011. Remember, we add the Old Testament years to the New Testament years and subtract 1 year, because there is no year zero.

4990 + 2011 - 1 = 7,000 years

Thus, we must understand that God is definitely declaring that He expects that all of the elect of God would absolutely know that the year 2011 is to be the end of the world. (Page 58)

His book ends with this:
We indeed can be certain that the rapture will occur on May 21, 2011, and the final day of the history of the world is October 21, 2011. (page 63)
http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/waat/waat.pdf

For some good articles to read that critique Camping, see Alpha and Omega Ministry
Watch the Youtube of James White’s seminar on Harold Camping from 2002

And
Letter to Harold Camping (Family Radio) True Prophet or False?
by P. G. Mathew, M.A., M.Div., Th.M.

Christmas Meditation 2010

2010-12-24T20:06:00.000-06:00

My family and I watched Planet Earth on Christmas Eve. The beauty and majesty displayed on film was awe inspiring. And I don’t mind taking delight in the works of God displayed in his world. Calvin said, “Meanwhile let us not be ashamed to take pious delight in the works of God open and manifest in this most beautiful theater." Better yet, Isaiah recorded that the angels said the whole earth is full of God’s glory (Isaiah 6:3). And the Apostle John wrote that, “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being”(John 1:3). Who is the “him”? John said the eternal Word is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:17). How humbling is it that the one through whom all things exist would become flesh (John 1:10,14). The One who created all things that we are watching on Planet Earth, would come into this world to save sinners (1 Tim. 1:15)—simply amazing and profound beyond measure.

Bats fly with sonar in complete darkness catching bugs with stealth like accuracy; and the eternal Son of God, the designer of such creatures, came into the world to save sinners. One far outweighs the other and I get to delight in both. But to compare the two is like comparing the sun to a candle.

What are you going to think about Christmas this year?

2010-12-21T20:44:00.000-06:00

That's Christmas (Short Film) HD from St Helen’s Church on Vimeo.

Billy Graham

2010-12-19T22:25:00.000-06:00

Billy was really only joking about a donut to lure him to church. What does it take for you?

Does God's Word being preached do it ?

Billy Graham Called Me

2010-12-13T21:45:00.000-06:00

I got a call early Sunday morning from Billy Graham to see if we were going to have church because we were having blizzard conditions...

I told him that we were having church. I asked him if he was coming and he said that if i had a donut for him he would come. I told him one would be waiting for him.

You know things are getting bad in the world when you must bribe Billy Graham with a donut to come to church.

STAY tuned for PART 2

I have a picture of Billy Graham with his donut.

Nostalgic Again....? Not really....

2010-12-06T21:45:00.000-06:00

Powerful North Korean Student Testimony // The 3rd Lausanne Congress CapeTown South Africa 2010

2010-11-23T08:50:00.000-06:00

Veterans Day 11-11-10

2010-11-11T07:00:00.002-06:00

Veterans Day is a holiday honoring military veterans. I want to say thank you to those who served and are serving in the military. My life has been enriched by encountering men and women who have served our country. I have gained a deeper understanding by talking with them about their experiences.

I am thankful to have men in our church that fought during WWII in the thick of the battle to stop Hitler's evil genocidal machine. One gentleman in our church, Tony Utt, was on a mountain top in Italy on November 10, 1943, when a piece of shrapnel ripped through his helmet and into his skull. Tony was carried down the mountain, transported to Africa and then to the US. Six months later Tony left the hospital with a metal plate in his skull to cover the hole that the shrapnel left.

I am thankful to have a man in our church that lived in a foxhole in South Korea to help keep the aggressor of North Korea from taking over. I found out about Glenn Olomon’s service in Korea because his wife, Betty, was in the hospital and Glenn was spending the night in a chair the whole time she was there. I was a new pastor at the time and told Glenn that I admired his dedication to Betty by sleeping in the chair night after night. Glenn laughed and said it was easy because he lived in a fox hole for two years in Korea.

We have a Korean church that meets in our church on Sunday afternoons. The pastor of the Korean church drives from a larger Korean church about an hour and half away. A few years back they had an appreciation dinner for military veterans. Another year they had a dinner for Korean veterans to honor their service. They had a nice meal, gave Korean gifts of appreciation to each of the veterans’ in honor of their military service on their behalf.

At the Korean War Memorial in DC there is stone engraved with these words:

OUR NATION HONORS

HER SONS AND DAUGHTERS

WHO ANSWERED THE CALL

TO DEFEND A COUNTRY

THEY NEVER KNEW

AND A PEOPLE

THEY NEVER MET

1950 - KOREA - 1953

My dad (3rd from the right) and four of his brothers served in the military. Two served during WW2 and two served during the Korean War. Robert was wounded at the battle of the Bulge and received the Purple Heart Award. Last week I learned that Odie, who also served during WW 2, struggled with the effects of the war for years. Curtis and Richard served during the Korean War. Curtis was a medic during the war. My dad, being the youngest, served shortly after the Korean War. The majority of his time in the Air Force was with the 57th Weather Reconnaissance. Growing up he would tell us about the time he saw the sun rise twice in the morning.

He was stationed for five months on the island of Eniwetok and was a part of operation Castle Bravo. On March 1, 1954, he witnessed a nuclear explosion that was 1,200 times more powerful than what was dropped on Japan. Bravo was the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated by the United States. The bomb was detonated on Bikini Island while he was on Eniwetok. The fallout contaminated more than seven thousand square miles of the surrounding Pacific Ocean including some of the surrounding small islands like Rongerik, Rongelap and Utirik. It would have contaminated Eniwetok but the wind had changed direction the day of the blast. My dad was not told that there had been nine nuclear detonations on Eniwetok before he arrived.

Another thing that I learned from my dad in recent days in talking about him and his brothers serving in the military was he said his mom and dad cried when he left and came home from service. They had all five of their sons return home, but many men and women did not return home.

Below are the numbers of American deaths during our major wars:

Civil War 364,511

World War I 116,516

World War II 405,399

Korean War 36,574

Vietnam 58,209

Here is another post i did regarding the miltary: Should we feel guilty for having a Memorial Day?

http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2007/05/should-we-feel-guilty-for-having.html

REMEMBER

Putting Jesus In His Place

2010-10-27T17:29:00.002-05:00

I read this book a few years back and i am going to recommend it tonight at church as I deal with the doctrine of the Trinity... it is a must have book! Here is a link for other helpful resources listed [ here ]

The central theological distinctive of Christianity--that Jesus is God incarnate--has repeatedly come under fire from adherents to other religions and scholars who interpret Jesus as a prophet, angel, or guru. Putting Jesus in His Place is designed to introduce Christians to the wealth of biblical teaching on the deity of Christ. Using evidence from the New Testament, this book helps readers appreciate the significance of Christ's deity in a personal relationship with Him, and gives them the confidence to share the truth about Jesus with others

ENDORSEMENTS:

Martin Hengel Professor Emeritus of University of Tübingen, Germany : An exceedingly readable and intelligible book on a centraloand hotly debatedotheme of the Christian message. The work is based upon a scholarly, well-informed investigation of the most important Christological texts in the New Testament. It gives not only rich biblical information to the reader but also practical pastoral guidance.

Fred Sanders Biola University : You might be surprised to learn that the case for Christ’s deity has actually become stronger during the past couple of decades. The average, reasonably l-informed Christian has probably missed out on the flood of new approaches, observations, and lines of argument that have been flowing from the scholarly books and journals lately. Bowman and Komoszewski’s Putting Jesus in His Place has gathered the best of all this recent scholarship and put it together in one readable, memorable, and engaging volume. If you graduated from seminary twenty years ago, you need to know that your notes are out of date and that there are exciting new ways of presenting the case that Jesus is God. I know of no other book that gathers such a wide variety of different types of biblical evidence for this doctrine, organizing it clearly and making all the right connections. While reading the book, I found myself at several points thinking, It’s too bad that a popular-level book like this can’t afford to give the details on some of the more complicated evidence, only to discover that Bowman and Komoszewski plunged right in and provided easy-to-understand summaries of the specialist scholarship. Putting Jesus in His Place is the book I’ve been looking for to put into the hands of believers who want to understand how the New Testament teaches that Jesus is God.

Rev. Mark D. Roberts, Ph.D. Irvine Presbyterian Church : As a pastor with a commitment to engage in serious scholarship, and as a scholar with a commitment to communicate with non-specialists, I’m always looking for books that address pressing topics in a way that is academically solid yet available to a wide audience. Putting Jesus in His Place is just such a book. Nothing is more critical in today’s world than the question of Jesus’ true identity. It is often claimed that his divinity was a late invention by the church, and is not taught in the New Testament. Putting Jesus in His Place shows the folly of this claim by an exacting analysis of the New Testament data. The facts are clear: the New Testament writers regarded Jesus as God, both implicitly and explicitly. Putting Jesus in His Place will reassure Christians of the truth and prepare them to be articulate, well-informed defenders of this truth in the wider world. Anyone who reads this book will no longer fall prey to the mistaken notion of the deity of Christ as some later addition to authentic Christian faith. Instead, every reader will be challenged to acknowledge the ancient affirmation of Jesus as God, and to consider the personal implications of this confession for contemporary living.

I. Howard Marshall Professor Emeritus, University of Aberdeen, Scotland : This book is a very comprehensive study of all the material in the New Testament that testifies to or is consistent with the full deity of Jesus Christ, the sheer quantity of which may come as a surprise to some readers. There is helpful detailed discussion of many controversial passages that will be useful to students who want to go more deeply into the problems.

Craig A. Evans Acadia Divinity College, Nova Scotia, Canada : Putting Jesus in His Place is a reader-friendly treatment of a difficult topic, one that is often neglected in New Testament scholarship. Bowman and Komoszewski clarify the issues, focus on the key passages, and mount an impressive defense of a cardinal Christian doctrine. Anyone who wonders about the divinity of Jesus should read this book.

Paul Copan Palm Beach Atlantic University West Palm Beach, FL : This wide-ranging yet accessible book by Bowman and Komoszewski is a splendid compilation of the evidenceoboth explicit and impliedofor Jesus’ deity, which pervades the New Testament. The authors make a convincing case as they discuss biblical texts, interact with important recent literature, and present the striking significance and entailments of Jesus’ divinity. A remarkable work!

Daniel B. Wallace Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts : Finally, here is a book that lays out the case for the deity of Christ in clear, compelling, memorable language. Putting Jesus in His Place fills a huge gap by converting the best of biblical scholarship on the subject into language that anyone can understand. This book is a feast for the mind; the endnotes give the reader a glimpse of the meticulous work the authors went through to make the reading so palatable. The acronym HANDS is an ingenious memory device to help any Christian know the basic teaching about Jesus’ deity. When you learn what it means, youill never forget what the New Testament affirms about the divinity of our Lord. I thank God that Bowman and Komoszewski have combined their talents on this supremely important topic and well-written book. The church of the 21st century is in their debt.

Craig L. Blomberg Denver Seminary : The one thing we have no record of Jesus of Nazareth ever saying is iI am God,i though countless charlatans and madmen over the centuries have used precisely these words. As a result, some people, including some Christians, think the case for Jesus’ deity rests solely on the half-dozen passages in the New Testament where others directly call him “God.” Bowman and Komoszewski here offer massive disproof of this minimalist notion. While a sizable majority of the texts they survey afford implicit rather than explicit evidence for the deity of Jesus, and while it is possible to dispute the implications they derive from certain passages, it is impossible to dismiss the cumulative case that the first Christians, following Jesus’ own lead, viewed him as God incarnate, and that the New Testament is replete with dozens of texts that attest this conviction. The book itself is remarkably clear and uncluttered, but detailed endnotes interact with almost all of the significant, recent relevant scholarship as well. Warmly to be commended.

Craig J. Hazen Biola University : Rarely have I seen such a comprehensive and deeply scholarly presentation in theology at such an accessible leveloand on one of the most important topics anyone can study: the deity of Christ. Bowman and Komoszewski obviously know this topic as well as anyone in the world because it takes that depth of knowledge to present a case like this in language that can be grasped by non-scholars in every walk of life. I predict this will be a standard textbook on the subject and a much-used resource for anyone who wants to make the case for Jesus’ deity to unbelievers such as Muslims, Mormons, Jehovahis Witnesses, New Agers, and skeptics in this generation.

Ravi Zacharias Ravi Zacharias International Ministries : Putting Jesus in His Place is a meticulously researched and brilliant book on a subject that continues to remain significant even after 2000 years. Robert Bowman and Ed Komoszewski have given readers a unique and unparalleled resourceoand one with life-changing implications. I commend this volume to you with much appreciation for their work.

Richard Bauckham St. Mary’s College, University of St Andrews : Bowman and Komoszewski do a splendid job of showing that the divine identity of Jesus is not confined to a few key texts, but presented throughout the New Testament in a wide variety of ways. Their arguments are fully based on the best of recent scholarship, and explained in a way that all serious readers of the New Testament will appreciate.

Murray J. Harris Trinity Evangelical Divinity School Deerfield, IL : An exciting, compelling and user-friendly investigation of the full range of New Testament evidence for the unique divine identity of Jesus Christ, admirably suitable for the non-specialist reader, yet with detailed up-to-date specialist notes.

Thomas R. Schreiner Southern Baptist Theological Seminary : The deity of Jesus Christ is central and foundational to the gospel. Bowman and Komoszewski show that Christis deity pervades the New Testament and is not limited to a few proof texts. Those who have eyes to see will find it everywhere, and if your eyes are deficient this book is just the corrective you need. The work is convincing, clear, and scholarly. Most of all, the book is glorious, reminding us that Jesus is to be worshiped as our Lord, Savior, and God.

Larry W. Hurtado University of Edinburgh, Scotland : This book gathers up admirably the results of a number of recent studies that combine to show how remarkably early Jesus was reverenced as somehow ring a divine status, and how this reverence was exhibited overtly in a whole range of confessional terms and devotional actions. Whether or not one shares the authors’ own particular stance on some matters, they have provided a readable and well-informed summary of a large body of scholarly work showing a very early and very high view of Jesus, not as something emerging by slow evolution, but as an explosively quick and remarkable phenomenon.

Kenneth Boa Reflections Ministries, Atlanta, GA : Putting Jesus in His Place is the finest and most comprehensive apologetic for the deity of Christ that I have yet encountered. The material is rigorous yet highly accessible because of the transparency of the structure and the directness of the style. It is my hope that this book will become a standard resource for educational institutions and for people who desire a clearer vision of the Lord Jesus.

--------------------------------------
In Jeff Miller's review over at Bible.org, he closes with this:

Bowman and Komoszewski have put Jesus in His place. Jesus is fully God. The authors stage a direct attack upon certain core errors in the teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses and Arius (the 3-4^th century precursor to today's JWs), as well as contemporary Oneness and Modalism movements. Certainly there is enough here to place an element of doubt in the minds of many Jehovah's Witnesses. Every serious Jehovah's Witness will have this book on his shelf; how much more should it be on the shelf of every serious Christian.

Before The Throne of God Above

2010-10-01T15:00:00.001-05:00

Nostalgic Songs

2010-09-03T07:19:00.001-05:00

I had a great time recently when I reminisced how the Lord used certain music to really minister to me in my early Christian years. I recommend taking some time to listen to the songs the Lord used at different times in your life to minister to you.

Petra Means Rock, was a cd that I wore out.

http://www.amazon.com/Petra-Means-Rock/dp/B000005KUI

High School test 'slams' Christianity, lauds Islam

2010-08-24T18:24:00.000-05:00

HS test 'slams' Christianity, lauds Islam
By YOAV GONEN Education Reporter (NY POST)
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/bad_faith_in_regents_exam_IHsTi7lMbqhfdMDrnF3xYL#ixzz0xZIpFdKy

Islamophilic Indoctrination in New York High Schools
by Andrew Bostom

http://www.andrewbostom.org/blog/2010/08/24/islamophilic-indoctrination-in-new-york-high-schools/

In Christ Alone

2010-08-19T15:36:00.000-05:00

10 Christians are Killed in Afghanistan

2010-08-08T20:22:00.001-05:00

Last week I read an article that came out in June 2010 titled, "Kill the Christians."subtitle--Lawmakers and protesters in Afghanistan are calling for just that

Then today in our local newspaper had a front page article, 10 killed onAfghanistan medical mission .

Other links: Christianity Today
Slain NY Doctor Was In Afghanistan For 3 Decades

Pray that God would continue to raise up Christians to share the gospel among the nations and for the church to support such gospel efforts.

Romans 10:

14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?
15 How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!"
16 However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, "LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?"
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

Keep up with recent reports of the persecution of our brothers and sisters throughout the world

Senator Burris seeks to turn military hospitals into abortion clinics

2010-08-04T22:20:00.000-05:00

Read the article here posted by Jason Smathers.

Inside a Planned Parenthood September 9, 2009

2010-08-02T09:13:00.000-05:00

An Indiana Planned Parenthood Caught On Tape Giving Fabricated Medical Information

2010-07-27T09:51:00.000-05:00

Watch Your Mouth! (part 1)

2010-07-02T20:59:00.001-05:00

There are pastors, who in their sermons from time to time, will mention how self-vindication (works righteousness) before a holy God will not save anyone. Many of them use Isaiah 64:6, “For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; and all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.” They may explain that the word “filthy garment” in Isaiah 64:6 is literally a “menstrual cloth.” It is offensive to think about—which is the purpose of it. Some pastors have even gone so far to say that our righteous acts to justify us before a holy God are as a “bloody tampon.” I am not arguing for the right to use “bloody tampon”, even though that is what many call a menstrual cloth. It is interesting that when I asked a young teenager boy in our church what a menstrual cloth was, his response was that it is something that music leader uses to wipe down an instrument.

I even had someone tell me that it was not proper to use the word "menstrual cloth". When asked why, the reply was, "because it is wrong." But why is it wrong? "It just is!" Really? Have we become so prone to coming up with our own system of ethics that we have a hard time with what the Bible says? I am arguing for the right to explain what the text says. I will not refrain from explaining that it is justified to explain that the “filthy rag” in the NASB is literally a “menstrual cloth.”

I will give 11 pieces of evidence that will show that a pastor is justified to explain that “filthy rags” in Isaiah 64:6 can be understood as “menstrual cloth.”

1. Brown, Driver and Briggs Hebrew Lexicon: menstruation (prop. time, period), stained garment (fig. of best deeds of guilty people (pg 723) (BibleWorks 6 software)

2. A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, William L. Holladay: (menstrual) period Isaiah 64.5 (p. 265)

3. Theological Workbook of the OT (Harris): (1564a) menstruation (Isa 64:5). (BibleWorks 6 software)

4. The NET Bible is a completely new translation of the Bible with 60,932 translators’ notes! It was completed by more than 25 scholars – experts in the original biblical languages – who worked directly from the best currently available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.
**Read more about here: http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=3537

The New English Translation says, 64:6 We are all like one who is unclean, all our so-called righteous acts are like a menstrual rag in your sight. 12 We all wither like a leaf; our sins carry us away like the wind.

Footnote 12 tn Heb “and like a garment of menstruation [are] all our righteous acts”; KJV, NIV “filthy rags”; ASV “a polluted garment.”
See internet: http://net.bible.org/bible.php?book=Isa&chapter=64#6

Did the NET have any justification for such a translation? Yes. Hebrew dictionaries translate the Hebrew word as “menstrual cloth”.

5. The Hebrew was later translated into Greek and the Greek use of that word in Isaiah 64:6 is translated in other places as menstrual period (Lev. 15:33; 20:18; Isa. 30:22; 64:5; Lam. 1:17; Ezek. 22:10; 36:17).

6. J.A. Motyer, in his commentary on Isaiah, says of 64:6:
Filthy rags/’a garment of menstruation’, i.e. stained by menstrual blood. Bodily discharges that were linked with procreation were considered a defilement because they were so vitally associated fallen human life. Even what we might consider to be in our favour, our righteous acts, flow from a fallen nature and partake of its fallenness (The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary, p. 520).

7. The 1599 Geneva Study Bible:
64:6 But we are all as an unclean [thing], and all our h righteousnesses [are] as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
(h) We are justly punished and brought into captivity, because we have provoked you to anger, and though we would excuse ourselves, yet our righteousness, and best virtues are before you as vile cloths, or (as some read) like the menstruous cloths of a woman.
See internet: http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/GenevaStudyBible/gen.cgi?book=isa&chapter=064

8. The Pulpit Commentary: “Isaiah 64:6 All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; or, as a menstruous garment (see Lam. 1:17)” (p..460).

9. Adam Clark's (1762–1832) commentary:

Verse 6. As filthy rags iddim. Rab. Mosheh ben Maimon And we ben made as unclene alle we: and as the cloth of the woman rooten blode flowing, all our rigtwisnesses. -Old MS. Bible. If preachers knew properly the meaning of this word, would they make such a liberal use of it in their public ministry? And why should any use a word, the meaning of which he does not understand? How many in the congregation blush for the incautious man and his "filthy rags!"
See internet: http://studylight.org/com/acc/view.cgi?book=isa&chapter=064

10. Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary On the Whole Bible (1871)
unclean thing--legally unclean, as a leper. True of Israel, everywhere now cut off by unbelief and by God's judgments from the congregation of the saints. righteousness--plural, "uncleanness" extended to every particular act of theirs, even to theeir prayers and praises. True of the best doings of the unregenerate (Php 3:6-8; Tit 1:15; Heb 11:6). filthy rags--literally, a "menstruous rag" (Le 15:33; 20:18; La 1:17). fade . . . leaf-- (Ps 90:5, 6).
See internet: http://studylight.org/com/jfb/view.cgi?book=isa&chapter=064&verse=006#Isa64_1

11. MacArthur Bible Commentary, p 840.
As in 53:6 (cf. 6:6, 7), the prophet included himself among those confessing their unworthiness to be in God’s presence. Isaiah employed the imagery of menstrual cloths used during a woman’s period to picture uncleanness (cf. Lev. 15:19-24). This is true of the best behavior of unbelievers (cf. Phil. 3:5-8).

Click here for articles on how you want to stand before God

Liberty's Conclusion to Caner Controversy

2010-06-28T08:53:00.003-05:00

Wade Burleson

SBC Today: "We praise God that Dr. Caner Is Exonerated" -- I say, "Huh?"

If Celebrity Were Integrity the Southern Baptist Convention Would Be Morally Blameless: Why the SBC Can Be Faulted for Ergun Caner's Rise and Demise

What Would Happen If Liberty Followed the Student Honor Code In the Ergun Caner Situation?

Tom Chantry
A Declaration from Liberty

Gene Clyatt
Lynchburg, We Have A Problem...

Rose Marie
Camels Swallowed, Forest Still Missing and Presumed Lost

Carla Rolfe
Liberty FAIL

Daniel Spratlin
Ergun Caner Found to be a Liar by Liberty University

Justin Taylor
Just One Question for the Trustees of Liberty University

Francis Turretin
Dr. Ergun Caner - Liberty Investigation Complete

When Can We Expect Our Apology?

When Can We Expect Our Apology? Part 2

James White

Liberty Announces Removal of Ergun Caner as Dean of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary

Quick Update

The Full Liberty Statement

Christianity Today Picks Up Quotes: Jerry Falwell Jr. and Glenn Beck

The Caner Scandal Becomes the Evangelical Cover-Up
07/02/2010 - James White

NEWS
WSET-TV Channel 13 ABC (Lynchburg, VA)
A Following Review, LU Will Replace Dr. Caner as Dean

Townhall.com
Muslim-turned-preacher out as Baptist school dean

Lynchburg News Advance
LU won’t renew Caner’s contract as dean of seminary

Liberty Student News
ERGUN CANER GUILTY: REMOVED AS DEAN FROM SEMINARY

First Amendment Rights---Denied in Dearborn, Michigan

2010-06-22T07:39:00.003-05:00

This is hard to believe--but check it out here:
Distribute the Gospel of John? No!

Read about it here as well.
watch this video, Arrested for Being Christian Preachers at Dearborn Arab Festival 2010

UPDATE: Wednesday, June 30, 2010 Yet Another Policeman Weighs In

Saturday, June 26, 2010 How Many Ways Can a Single Police Department Violate Our First Amendment Rights?

Watch the Live Webcast of Ligonier Ministries' 2010 National Conference

2010-06-17T11:41:00.000-05:00

Title: Tough Questions Christians Face

click here to view live

Conference Schedule

THURSDAY, JUNE 17

Pre-Conference

9:00 - 9:20 a.m.
The Brave New World of New Media, Ed Stetzer

9:25 - 9:45 a.m.
Principles for Conduct in Communication, Tim Challies

10:00 - 10:20 a.m.
Taking Captive New Media for the Church, Burk Parsons

10:25 - 10:45 a.m.
The Hypersocialized Generation, Albert Mohler

10:55 - 11:55 a.m.
Questions & Answers

Conference

3:10 - 4:10 p.m.
Why Did Jesus Have to Die?, John MacArthur

5:10 - 6:00 p.m.
Is the Doctrine of Inerrancy Defensible?, Michael Horton

8:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Does the Doctrine of Divine Decrees Eliminate Human Will?, John MacArthur

FRIDAY, JUNE 18

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.
What Is Evil and Where Did It Come From?, R.C. Sproul

9:30 - 10:30 a.m.
Why Do Christians Still Sin?, R.C. Sproul Jr.

11:40 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
How Do We Know Which Interpretation Is Right?, Derek Thomas

2:30 - 3:25 p.m.
Is the Bible Just Another Book?, Steven Lawson

4:15 - 5:15 p.m.
Is the Exclusivity of Christ Unjust?, Alistair Begg

7:15 - 8:30 p.m.
Questions & Answers

SATURDAY, JUNE 19

8:30 - 9:40 a.m.
Why Does the Universe Look So Old?, Albert Mohler

9:40 - 10:30 a.m.
Is Calvinism Good for the Church?, Burk Parsons

11:15 a.m. - 12:05 p.m.
If God Is Good, How Could He Command Holy War?, Derek Thomas

12:05 - 1:00 p.m.
Can We Enjoy Heaven Knowing of Loved Ones in Hell?, R.C. Sproul

Courageous Missionary Murdered

2010-06-02T08:41:00.000-05:00

Read about it here and here

Christian leader faces questions about Muslim past

2010-05-24T07:37:00.000-05:00

USA TODAY article-- Christian leader faces questions about Muslim past

James White has a list of questions for Caner

Gentlemen, there are a large number of direct questions Ergun Caner must answer. Nothing but open and clear explanations, not excuses, will do. I strongly suggest that you ask the following questions of Ergun Caner, and then publish, openly, the responses, for all of these questions flow from his public pronouncements.

1) When did Ergun Caner live in Turkey? Dates, locations, must be provided.
2) What madrassa did he train at in jihad? Where was he a member of the Youth Jihad? When? For how long?
3) Why has he claimed in public to have been born in Istanbul, Turkey, when he was born in Stockholm, Sweden?
4) Why does he claim to be 100% Turkish when his mother is Swedish?
5) Why has he plainly implied he could speak Arabic (in response to the Islamic claim that unless you can read the Qur’an you cannot criticize it) when his mother tongue is Swedish, and he cannot, in fact, read or speak Arabic?
6) How does he explain his presence in Ohio by at the very latest age four, and possibly as early as 2 and a half, as indicated by legal documents?
7) How does he explain his claim to have always lived in Muslim majority countries before coming to the United States? Sweden is not today, and surely was not in 1969, a majority Muslim nation.
8) How does he explain his often published claim to have come to the United States in 1978 or 1979? How can this be seen as anything other than a purposeful distortion necessary for his “I came as a jihadist from Turkey” rather than “I came as a son of a Muslim father and a Swedish mother to Ohio as a small child” persona?
9) Can Ergun Caner prove he was a devout, active Muslim in high school? One that even wore traditional Islamic garb (though that is unusual in Turkey)? Does he have evidence of this in the form of pictures? Some of us have seen pictures of Ergun in his high school yearbook, and none of them show him wearing Islamic dress.
10) Dr. Caner claims in some of his talks that he learned English in Brooklyn. When did he live in Brooklyn, rather than Ohio?
11) How does Dr. Caner explain the fact that he claims to have done his prayers in the bathroom in high school, though that would be highly unusual and in fact either the act of an ignorant Muslim or one in fear of his life?
12) Why did Ergun Caner say Ramadan was forty days long when in fact it is a lunar month in length? If he had ever fasted during Ramadan I can assure you he would know the difference.
13) Why did Ergun Caner on video confuse the Shahada with the opening words of Surat al-Fatiha? Given that both are part of the Islamic prayers, and would have been repeated thousands of times during his youth as a devout Muslim, how could he be confused about such a basic thing?
14) Emir Caner says their mother became a “hippy” upon coming to the United States. Yet Ergun says she wore Islamic clothing until he baptized her. Which is true?
15) Dr. Caner often uses derogatory terms like “towel head” and “sand nigger” of himself, excusing these racial slurs because he claims to be of these ethnic groups. Yet, these are slurs mainly of Arabic people, not of Turkish people; and beyond this, he is only half Turkish, as his mother is Swedish. So why does he engage in this behavior?
16) Dr. Caner has repeatedly said “his family” disowned him upon his conversion. Yet, court records indicate he lived with his mother as custodial parent, not his father; and Emir says that while his father did disown his sons who converted, their mother was basically ambivalent, as she was no longer a Muslim anyway. Is having your non-custodial parent, who has remarried, disown you identical to being disowned by your (entire) family?
17) Dr. Caner has claimed to engage in more than sixty Muslim debates. Where is the evidence of these debates? Who has he debated? What are their names? When did the debates take place?
18) Dr. Caner claimed to have debated Shabir Ally in Nebraska. Caner admitted in February, 2010, that he never debated Shabir Ally. Who, then, did he debate in Nebraska? When? On what topic?
19) Dr. Caner claimed to debate Abdul Saleeb. Abdul Saleeb means “servant of the cross.” So why did he claim to debate a Christian along with Shabir Ally? Was he simply putting Arabic-sounding names together in a line as a means of impressing his audience?
20) Ergun Caner has often, in talks, and in print, referred to “Hadith 9:57.” Since any meaningful citation of the hadith literature requires the use of the name of the actual collection (in this case, Sahih al-Bukhari), does this not show a fundamental ignorance of the most basic elements of scholarly inquiry into Islamic studies on Ergun Caner’s part?
21) Ergun Caner holds a Th.D. in Theology. Why has he often changed the degree to a Ph.D.?
22) Dr. Caner heads up the Global Apologetics program. His claim to have engaged leaders of numerous religions in debate in many foreign countries and all across the United States is directly related to his recruiting of students. Why should his false claims about his past, and his apologetic work, not be considered false advertising and fraudulent?

What about Blumenthal?

2010-05-23T23:15:00.001-05:00

New York Times Vietnam story
On May 17, 2010, the New York Times published an article stating that Blumenthal "never served in Vietnam, despite statements to the contrary. The Times has found that he obtained at least five military deferments from 1965 to 1970 and took repeated steps that enabled him to avoid going to war." (On June 30, 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued Executive Order 11360, mandating that no deferments for post-graduate study be granted in the future, except for those men pursuing medical and dental courses.) The Times also published a March 2, 2008, video in which he states that "I served in Vietnam".[58][59]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Blumenthal

Richard Blumenthal served our country, but he lied about being in Vietnam . He also claimed to have been that captain of Harvard’s swim. He attended Harvard but he wasn’t the captain of the swim team.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_xAfu5xA04

Democratic Official Says Blumenthal Claims Were ‘Wrong’
By MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM
Published: May 23, 2010

On how many different occasions did he say that he served in Vietnam?

Drop me an email if you know?

My Take on the Ergun Caner Controversy

2010-05-10T19:55:00.006-05:00

I was on the phone with a truck driver in my church who listens to a lot of Christian radio while on the road. While I was on the phone with him he said that he listened to a great program from Focus on the Family about a man who was raised Muslim and had become a Christian. Here is my dilemma. How do I explain to him Ergun Caner’s inconsistencies? Now that there is controversy surrounding many of Caner’s claims, I did a little research to make sense of it all.

I believe that Ergun was raised in a Muslim home and in his teenage years became a Christian. I think what happened with Ergun was that he was born into a Muslim family and his father no doubt disowned Ergun when he became a Christian. However, after the events of 9-11, Ergun’s testimony was greatly embellished (a euphemism for lying) to bring more drama to his conversion story. The sermon that aired April 26, 2010 on Focus on the Family was from a sermon he preached in 2001. It has some outright dishonest statements in it that he has continued to make for many years. It would be nice if Ergun would just set the record straight—publically.

I wish that Ergun would have just stated the facts. His father was a Turkish Muslim who married his mother in Sweden. Ergun was born in Sweden and moved to America before August 25th, 1970 (Emir's birth date), not 1978. So he was under the age of four when he moved here, not 13, 14 or 15. He was born into a Muslim home and when he converted to Christ as a teenager, his father disowned him for it. Later, both of Ergun’s brothers became Christians but his father remained a Muslim until his death in 1999. Praise God for saving him and his brothers. We all wish he would not have lied by changing dates and other details.

You see, there would be no controversy over Ergun’s testimony if he would not have embellished it. We can only hope for him to repent and set the record straight. I have waited a couple of weeks after Ergun’s sermon aired on Focus on the Family to see if there would be some kind of public statement. I (and others) even emailed Ergun and Elmer Towns to see if they had a response to these problems and I received no response. If you know of a response where Ergun has stated he was wrong about the dates I would like to see it.

James White has 22 questions he would like Ergun to answer (click here).

I would like to hear an explanation on when he to America. Here is why:

Here are some of the websites that have provided information regarding the Caner controversy:

Alpha and Omega

FBC Jax Watchdog

Witnesses Unto Me
*check out the documentation files

Squirrel in Babylon

Christ Reformed Baptist Church (5 articles)

Ministry of Reconciliation

Grace And Truth To You

Q and A Panel: Calvin, Newton and Luther

2010-04-15T21:41:00.000-05:00

If you could resurrect three saints of old to hold a conference, who would you choose? Of course, we would choose Jesus, Moses and Paul. However, who would you pick from church history? What is one sermon topic or text you want each of them to address? What question would you pose to each for the Q and A panel? Is there a topic you wish they would clarify?

Romans 5:6-11

2010-04-02T18:02:00.000-05:00

Romans 5:6-11
6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Obama's National Health Care Includes Abortion

2010-03-13T08:56:00.004-06:00

Obama's plan for national health care would provide for abortion. See here (Wall Street Journal) , here (Reasoned Audacity) and here (The Heritage Foundation).

How would abortion insurance work? Here are the cost below from an abortion clinic:

Surgical Abortion:
Pre-Abortion Counseling/Ultrasound- $100

up to 12 weeks LMP- $395
13 & 14 weeks LMP- $495
15 & 16 weeks LMP- $650
17 & 18 weeks LMP- $825
19 & 20 weeks LMP- $1050
21 & 22 weeks LMP- $1350
23 weeks LMP - $1750
More than 23 weeks LMP- $2250
http://www.midwestabortions.com/fees.html

Maybe they need visual aids so that persons wanting to purchase abortion insurance can see why the cost go up as the baby increases in size--so does the cost!

7 Weeks

Up to 12 weeks- $395

24 weeks

More than 23 weeks LMP- $2250

But if you read the articles linked above, you will see that all taxpayers will really be paying for this large expansion of abortion coverage. Those wanting to have abortion coverage will have to contribute no less than a dollar a month.

Obama's Plan Concerning Abortion:

• It would change existing law by allowing federally subsidized health-care plans to pay for abortions and could require private health-insurance plans to cover abortion.

• It would impose a first-ever abortion tax—a separate premium payment that will be used to pay for elective abortions—on enrollees in insurance plans that covers abortions through newly created government health-care exchanges.

• And it would fail to protect the rights of health-care providers to refuse to participate in abortions.

The president's plan goes further than the Senate bill on abortion by calling for spending $11 billion over five years on "community health centers," which include Planned Parenthood clinics that provide abortions.

As always--equip yourself to engage others in this American Holocaust (are you offended that I would use that phrase? please check out Unsure About Abortion... links )

Resources:

Stand To Reason http://www.str.org/

National Right to Life http://www.nrlc.org/

The Case for Life www.caseforlife.com/

Pro Life Training http://www.prolifetraining.com/

Randy Alcorn, Prolife Answers to Prochoice Arguments (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Press, 2000).

Francis J. Beckwith, Politically Correct Death: Answering the Arguments for Abortion Rights (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1993).

C. Ward Kischer and Dianne N. Irving, The Human Development Hoax: Time to Tell the Truth (1997)

Stephen Schwarz, The Moral Question of Abortion (Loyola University Press, 1990).

Scott Klusendorf, The Case For Life (2009)

http://caseforlife.com/

Obama's Abortion Extremism

Compassion Forum With A View From The Womb

Medical Testimony Against Abortion

Unsure About Abortion...

Roe v. Wade Numbers

Obama and Partial Birth Abortion

Abortion Survivor

GO HERE TO TAKE ACTION

Here is more proof that the plan will include abortion.... watch Sen. Johanns

Have You Only Read Pre-Trib Books and Articles?

2010-03-10T07:38:00.002-06:00

Pastor Totten, has a website called, The Second Coming of Christ and Rapture Site . I read his articles years ago and they were very helpful.

Here are some articles that I have written:
Weigh the Evidence

Examination of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Believers Are Found Throughout the Entire Tribulation

On the Fringe? *books you should read

Who'll feed pets in post-Rapture world? Atheists will be here

2010-02-27T08:12:00.000-06:00

Our local newspaper had this article on the front page February 26, 2010, "Who'll Feed Pets in Post-Rapture World? Atheists Will Be Here” and a more detailed story in Business Week. First, it is really hard to believe that this story made the paper at all. Supposedly, only around hundred clients have signed up to have their pets cared for if the rapture happens within the next ten years. I have a hard time believing that anyone really signed up for this.

FYI: the catching up of believers to be with Christ happens at his second coming at the end of the tribulation period, so don’t waste your money on such silly schemes. See: http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/search?q=rapture

Here are some resources that deal with responding to atheism:
http://www.carm.org/atheism
http://www.monergism.com/directory/link_category/Atheism/Essays/     (53 articles)
http://www.monergism.com/directory/link_category/Atheism/Debates/    (25 debates)
http://www.monergism.com/directory/link_category/Atheism/Multimedia/   (16 mp3's)

32 Hours In Haiti

2010-01-28T11:45:00.000-06:00

Abortion Survivor

2010-01-22T09:01:00.001-06:00

If you have never watched the two clips below of Gianna Jessen, an abortion survivor, speak, you must. It is one of the most powerful speeches that I have ever heard.

Gianna Jessen Abortion Survivor in Australia Part 1

Gianna Jessen Abortion Survivor in Australia Part 2

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2010/01/22/overturning-and-undermining-roe-v-wade-an-interview-with-clarke-forsythe/

Haiti Disaster Relief

2010-01-18T08:19:00.000-06:00

http://www.baptistglobalresponse.com/new/giving.php

The Revolution--Rubbish

2010-01-06T07:25:00.000-06:00

For those of you who might have been offended by the statement I made in my sermon Sunday that George Barna's book, The Revolution, is a bunch of skubalon, I want you to know that the Greek word, skubalon, is simply translated "rubbish" (Phil. 3:8) in the NASB, NIV and ESV.

If you want to read some good critiques of the book, please read the articles below:

http://www.albertmohler.com/?cat=Commentary&cdate=2006-02-13

http://www.reformation21.org/shelf-life/revolution.php

http://www.enjoyinggodministries.com/article/revolution-part-i/

http://www.enjoyinggodministries.com/article/revolution-part-ii/

http://www.enjoyinggodministries.com/article/george-barnas-revolution-a-follow-up/

Matt Chandler Is In A Win/win Situation

2009-12-28T16:58:00.002-06:00

I have been a pastor for 15 years and a hospice chaplain for seven years. I have seen many dying people. I am always grateful for those testimonies of believers who understand their mortality and boast in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Matt Chandler is one of those believers, who when diagnosed with cancer, glorifies God by his confidence in his savior no matter what the outcome.

Over my Christmas travels back home I downloaded some of Matt’s sermons on my Ipod. One was from November 4th, 2007 called, Departing In Peace, from the gospel of Luke. I recommend downloading this sermon.

It was very profound for me to listen to Matt preach a sermon from two years ago when he had no clue he would be diagnosed with cancer. It was not diagnosed until two years later when he had a seizure this past Thanksgiving (2009).

Here is part of the sermon that really caught my attention because of what he is dealing with at the present time:

In the sermon, Matt says:

Listen, there is an appointed time for man to live and a time for man to die, and we don't get to control that date. Even when we think we're controlling it, we're not. No, this is about living well and it's about dying well. Because death is this inescapable reality for all of us. It's coming, it's chasing us and it will eventually run us down. You're just not going to be fast enough. I think we joke all the time, I know we're learning all these new things, there's exercises and certain foods to eat and certain foods to not eat. You can go obey all those rules and still, I don't know how many of you looked at the news today, you can still be an elite marathon runner that drops dead at mile 5. So this is about living in peace and then dying there.

Further on he says:

Dell Steele, our chairman of elders, found out this past week that he has an inoperable, really aggressive cancer, and more than likely he's going to go home with the Lord sooner rather than later. He found that out on Tuesday, and on Tuesday night he's up here praying with his men. So on the day you find out you've got a year or two tops and those year or two are going to be difficult, you do what? “Alright. I've got to go pray with my boys.” Why? Because he knows. That's who I want to be when I grow up. And then here's the other fear that befalls us. I think we constantly have an elevated view of who we are and our importance in the great picture. Like, I love my daughter and I love my son very much, and I want to see my daughter grow up and turn down the proposal of a man...no, I want to see her get married and love God deeply. And I want to see my boy turn into a godly man. I'm going to surround him with all the godly dudes I can, all kinds of different godly guys, godly guys that love sports, godly guys that love music, godly guys that love the arts. I just want him to see those different kind of things. I want to see those things. I want to sit with Lauren when we're really old and drink coffee...I want to be with her for 50 years. That would be awesome. And I think the thing we start doing when we start thinking of death is, we're like, “Oh man, what would happen to my family? What would happen to my children?” And listen, I know this might be difficult for us, but in the end God loves my wife monumentally more than I'll ever be able to love her. And my children? I'm a huge fan of strong male presence in the home, gentle, strong, loving male presence in the home. And I don't know how your children are, but if I'm gone for four or five days, my children start to want someone to beat them for some reason. Seriously, they just go to that one thing that they know they shouldn't do and are like, “Somebody's going to spank me up in here. Someone is going to show me they love me. I need boundaries.” And my kids will start doing that. But listen, Christ is a better father than I'll ever be able to be. It's just the truth. And then sometimes I'm like, “Oh, what would happen at the Village? What would happen...” and God's like, “Please. You might be thinking a little bit too much of yourself...EIGHT DAYS IN ASIA!!!!” And stuff like that happens. How’d you like to lose 20 pounds? Excellent! And in the end here's the truth. My role is one of a pawn whether I like it or not. And if my young death furthers the kingdom and furthers the name and renown of the king, if that's what He so desires to do, to call me home early, then please don't cry for me.

I'm not going to be crying for you. I'm going to be home drinking the new wine, without the Baptists getting so angry at me. And so in the end, it's an understanding of the gospel that helps us live well, that helps us suffer well and in the end, helps us die well. And these are important things because let me assure you of some things. Your body's going to break down sooner or later. Very, very, very few people get out of this place without suffering physically, without the body reminding you that all of creation has been subjected to futility. But our boy here says, “With peace I go into the night. With peace I've lived; with peace I've died. Free me. Open my cage. Let me fly.”

The closing thoughts Matt says,

Maybe tonight we don't want the thought of death or dying to be anywhere near our minds and anywhere near our hearts because we live in such an unrest about who we are, about what's in our soul, about what we've been a part of, about what we've been capable of historically. Death is a horrifying idea for us because the thought of standing before God is just mortifying for us. And so maybe for the first time in our lives, we can be honest before a God who already knows. I mean, no shock, no awe, no shrug of disbelief, He knows. There's a freedom in you confessing that He knows. And then that next step is to confess to one another. Maybe we need more faith. We should ask for it. “Jesus, thank You for tonight, thank You for the gospel, thank You for Your voice, thank You for Your power and thank You for Your great glory loving us, hopelessly broken. I pray that by faith and grace we might live well at peace, that we might suffer well at peace and when it comes time, we might die well. It's for Your beautiful name. Amen.”

I thank God for the way he has worked in Matt’s life and I pray that God would heal him and give him many fruitful years in ministry; but Matt is in a win/win situation. If the Lord heals Matt then it will mean fruitful labor for him as he encourages others in their progress and joy in the faith (Phil. 1:25) and if he departs to be with Christ--that is far better; he is a winner as well (Phil 1:20-26).

Here is an article I wrote on this topic:
Absent From The Body--Present With The Lord

Here is the latest update on Matt http://fm.thevillagechurch.net/blog/pastors/?p=459

Message from Matt on 12/20/09 http://fm.thevillagechurch.net/blog/pastors/?p=456

John Piper preached a very encouraging sermon at The Village Church on December 27th. His text was Romans 8:18-25 titled, “Subjected in Hope.” You can find it here and here (check out the last few sermons preached at The Village Church)

BORN AGAIN?

2009-12-26T20:50:00.000-06:00

I highly recommend the book, Finally Alive, or the sermon series (here) for those who wish to understand the new birth.

Purchase (here)

READ NOW (a couple of days before Christmas): A Word about Family Tensions and the Holidays

2009-12-21T12:38:00.000-06:00

Russel Moore has written an excellent article that deals with handling tensions during the holidays. Check it out here

http://www.russellmoore.com/2009/12/20/a-word-about-family-tensions-and-the-holidays/

The Blind Side

2009-12-18T07:55:00.001-06:00

Looking for a good movie? Check out The Blind Side. Watch the preview here http://www.theblindsidemovie.com/

Christianity Today Review:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/movies/reviews/2009/blindside.html

Romans 1:1-5 God's Good News

2009-12-15T10:25:00.000-06:00

Romans 1:1-5
God’s Good News

Rom 1:1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called {as} an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,(2) which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,(3) concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,(4) who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,(5)through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about {the} obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name's sake,

Here is the sermon audio

You can listen from the website (headphone icon) or download it (down-arrow icon).

Encouraging Testimony From A Pastor Facing Brain Surgery

2009-12-08T13:44:00.000-06:00

Matt Chandler is lead pastor at The Village Church

My Heart is full…I am Thankful
The last seven days have been some of the most interesting of my life. I have felt anxiety, fear, sadness and a deep and unmovable joy simultaneously and in deeper ways than I have felt before. I am grateful for this heightened sense of things. Today at 10:45 a.m. CST I will have a good portion of my right frontal lobe removed. I head into that surgery with a heart that is filled with gratitude and hope.

Here are some of the things I am thankful for in no particular order:

1. I am thankful for the thousands of you who have prayed and fasted for my health. It has brought far more tears to Lauren’s and my eyes to receive this kind of attention from the Church universal than this tumor has.

2. I’m thankful for health insurance because I’m guessing they aren’t doing my five-hour surgery for free!

3. I am thankful that I have deep, real friendships at The Village with Michael Bleecker, Josh Patterson, Brian Miller, Chris Chavez and Beau Hughes. They have been such a comfort to me and my family this past week. Pastors should have good friends on their staff. It’s risky but worth the risk.

4. I am grateful for the men of God in my life, namely John Piper who taught me to hold my life cheap and to join with Paul in saying “I don’t count my life of any value or as precious to myself if only I might finish my course and complete the work that He gave me to do to testify to the Gospel of the grace of God. I’m nothing, I just have a job. God keep me faithful on the job and then let me drop and go to the reward.” Without this strong view of God’s sovereign will, I’m not sure how you don’t despair in circumstances like mine.

5. I am thankful for my wife Lauren. “Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: ‘Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.’” “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.”

6. I am thankful for my children. Audrey the Beautiful, Reid the Valiant and Norah the Joyous. Being a daddy to these three is one of the greatest joys of my life.

7. The privilege of seeing and appreciating all of life through the grid of a heightened sense of my own mortality.

8. I am thankful for brilliant doctors and surgeons who have been given a real gift by our great God and King to repair things as complex as the brain.

9. I am thankful for The Village Church. If there is a place that loves Jesus more, takes sanctification as seriously and wants to see the lost love the great King deeply I am unaware of it. These last seven years have been a spectacular joy!

10. More than anything else I am grateful to my King Eternal, my Lord Immortal, for my God invisible. He alone is God. All Glory and Honor, Forever to You O God. I am overwhelmed in these moments by God Himself and the assurance of a future inheritance of a Kingdom that cannot be shaken and where all things are made new (Hebrews 12).

Christ is All,
Matt Chandler

This video was taped a few days before Matt's brain surgery and was aired during the Sunday service time at The Village Church, TX.

Death By Love

2009-11-15T12:59:00.001-06:00

Real people. Real sin. Transformed lives. Deep theology meets gritty pastoral experiences as Death by Love explains the practical implications of what Jesus accomplished on the cross. This compilation of heartfelt letters written from a pastor to his people is for all those who have sinned and have been sinned against.

Death by Love is a unique book on the cross of Jesus Christ. While many books debate the finer points of the doctrine of the atonement, what is often lost are the real-life implications of Jesus’ death on the cross for those who have sinned and have been sinned against. Written in the form of pastoral letters, Death by Love outlines the twelve primary effects of Jesus’ death on the cross and connects each to the life of a different individual.

Driscoll, one of America’s most influential pastors, and Breshears, a respected theologian, help readers understand, appreciate, and trust in Jesus’ work on the cross in a way that will transform their lives. Both deeply theological and intensely practical, this book shows how everyone can find hope through the death of Jesus Christ.

“This book is brutally honest about sin and suffering, and wonderfully hopeful as it points us to our true Savior.”
Timothy S. Lane, Executive Director, Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation

“The stories portrayed in the chapters of this book are all too real, but more importantly, the pastoral responses offer riveting applications of the cross for true and lasting transformation.”
Bruce A. Ware, Professor of Christian Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Practical and powerful. It applies the sufficiency of Jesus to the real-life challenges we face in the church every day. If you work with hurting people you need Death by Love.”
Dan Jarrell, Teaching Pastor, ChangePoint Church, Anchorage, Alaska

“A key reason for my confidence in this book is its brilliant presentation of the historic theology of the cross and how it defends reprehensible attacks against it.”
Gregg R. Allison, Associate Professor of Christian Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“The authors connect squarely with our ever-changing culture, declaring the central doctrine of Jesus’ death and why it is important.”
Bill Mounce, President, BiblicalTraining.org

http://www.crossway.org/product/9781433501296

Click here to purchase the book for 19.99 and get a free PDF downoad of the book.
Click here to purchase the book for 13.59.

Must See: Huckabee's Interview of Former Planned Parenthood Director

2009-11-09T08:20:00.000-06:00

Death is not Dying--for the Christian

2009-10-19T21:47:00.001-05:00

Rachel Barkley was a dear believer who shared her view of death (the Biblical view) before she died. Watch here:

http://deathisnotdying.com/eventvideo/

Helpful Discussions on Prayer

2009-10-07T15:37:00.002-05:00

Colossians 4:2 "Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving."

Don Carson

John Piper

Now that you have a taste of Piper's clips on prayer--check out the resources below for full length sermons and articles:
http://www.desiringgod.org/Search/?search=Prayer

Desiring God 2009 National Conference: With Calvin in the Theater of God

2009-10-02T14:22:00.005-05:00

http://www.desiringgod.org/Events/NationalConferences/Archives/2009/

http://www.theaterofgod.com/

Click on the following names and titles to read, listen or watch:

Julius Kim
At Work and Worship in the Theater of God

Doug Wilson
The Sacred Script in the Theater of God
Calvin, the Bible, and the Western World

Marvin Olasky
The Secular Script in the Theater of God
Calvin on the Christian Meaning of Public Life

Mark Talbot
The Broken Stage in the Theater of God
Sin and Suffering in Calvin's World

Conference Panel Discussion

Sam Storms
The Final Act in the Theater of God
Calvin on the Joy of the Last Resurrection

John Piper
Jesus Christ as Denouement in the Theater of God
Calvin and the Supremacy of Christ in All Things

40 Days For Life

2009-09-22T20:10:00.011-05:00

http://www.40daysforlife.com/about.cfm

40 Days for Life is a community-based campaign that draws attention to the evil of abortion through the use of a three-point program:
Prayer and fasting
Constant vigil
Community outreach
40 Days for Life takes a determined, peaceful approach to showing local communities the consequences of abortion in their own neighborhoods, for their own friends and families. It puts into action a desire to cooperate with God in the carrying out of His plan for the end of abortion in America.

Join the NATIONAL LIFE CHAIN! http://www.lifechain.net/

LIFE CHAIN is a peaceful and prayerful public witness of pro-life Americans standing for one hour praying for our nation and for an end to abortion. It is a visual statement of solidarity by the Christian community that abortion kills children and that the Church supports the sanctity of human life from the moment of conception.

Sunday
Oct. 4, 2009
2:00-3:30 p.m.Burlington

Meet at 2 pm at Salvation Army’s Park Shelter (behind Aldi’s on Agency St.) for corporate prayer and to get a sign. From 2:30-3:30 pm, we’ll stand on the sidewalk along Agency Street (east to Roosevelt and west till across from Hy-Vee)

We’ll pray in silence, being careful not to block the sidewalk for walkers, or to block access to any driveways for businesses.

Proverbs 31:8-9

Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all the unfortunate. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.

2009-09-17T20:11:00.002-05:00

Reforming to Scripture or Reforming to Culture?

2009-08-28T18:34:00.007-05:00

Our culture is embracing same sex marriage and promoting homosexuality as normal practice. The latest denomination to reform itself to the culture’s values is the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. The ELCA news service ran this article on August 13, 2009, ELCA Clergy Support Gay, Lesbian Rights, Ordination, Survey Says.[1] Then on August 19, 2009, the social statement "Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust" was amended and adopted by a more than two-thirds majority vote at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, meeting in Minneapolis.[2] On August 21, the official ELCA NEWS SERVICE posted an article, ELCA Assembly Opens Ministry to Partnered Gay and Lesbian Lutherans.[3]

Within the ELCA there is a group that is concerned with reforming to Scripture called Lutheran CORE.[4] The opening line of the ministry section that describes who they are says: “Lutheran CORE is a coalition of pastors, lay people, congregations and reforming groups. We seek to preserve within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America the authority of the Word of God according to the Lutheran confessions.” In a news release,[5] Mark Chavez, director of the Lutheran Coalition for Reform (CORE), says, Lutheran CORE leaders renounce ELCA decision to endorse gay marriage and to allow pastors to be in same-sex relationships. Ryan Schwarz of Washington, D.C., a member of the Lutheran CORE Steering Committee stated, “The assembly has voted to remove the ELCA from the universal Christian consensus on marriage and homosexual behavior. Lutheran CORE intends to remain faithful to the clear teaching of Scripture and the consistent teaching of the Christian Church worldwide and throughout time.” For those who appreciate the late Martin Luther, you have to appreciate this group within the ELCA who desire to stop the slide further to the left of Scripture. Schwarz also went on to say, “The ELCA Confession of Faith says that Scripture is ‘source and norm’ of the church’s faith and life, but this assembly has shown that the ELCA is willing to violate what it officially says it believes about the Bible.” It is also refreshing to hear the words of Jaynan Clark, president of the WordAlone Network, (The WordAlone Network is one of the renewal organizations that make up Lutheran CORE) say: “It is appalling that ELCA leaders brought these proposals to a vote. The church should not be voting on whether or not to follow the teaching of the Bible… Luther’s stand was on the Word of God and sound reason. He was not convinced then, and we are not convinced now. We just voted out the Word of God, sound reason and the good orders of creation.”

Be careful when you say that Lutherans are embracing gay clergy. Remember that under the heading of any denominational name like Baptist, Lutheran, Presbyterian and Methodist there are subgroups that range from liberal to conservative and differing degrees between the two poles. Under the name, “Lutheran” you have the Evangelical Lutherans Church in America, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod and Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod has a statement regarding the latest discussion of the ELCA. Dr. Gerald B. Kieschnick, president of LCMS, said, “ELCA’s vote is contrary to the synod’s biblical interpretation. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod has repeatedly affirmed as its own position the historical understanding of the Christian church that the Bible condemns homosexual behavior as ‘intrinsically sinful.’ It is therefore contrary to the will of the Creator and constitutes sin against the commandments of God.”[6]

The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod has also made a statement regarding ELCA’s recent decision. Rev. Mark Schroeder, president of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), stated, “To view same-sex relationships as acceptable to God is to place cultural viewpoint and human opinions above the clear Word of God.”[7]

Luther was determined throughout his life to reform his beliefs to the authoritative Word of God. It seems that the ELCA is determined to reform their beliefs to the norms of society. The Bible condemns homosexuality and the ELCA condones it? Pray for those within the ELCA, such as CORE, who are taking a stand. Thank God for the other Lutheran groups seeking to stay faithful to Scripture regarding the issue of homosexuality.

We must always be reforming ourselves to the authority of Holy Scripture—God help us to stand!

A must read:

**Click here for Gagnon's website [http://www.robgagnon.net/ ]

[1] http://www.elca.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-Organization/Communication-Services/News/Releases.aspx?a=4209

[2] http://www.elca.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-Organization/Communication-Services/News/Releases.aspx?a=4232

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

[4] http://www.lutherancore.org/

[5] http://www.lutherancore.org/pdf/newsrel-8-21-09.pdf

[6] http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=15620%20

[7] http://www.wels.net/cgi-bin/site.pl?2617&collectionID=1651&contentID=95806&shortcutID=31623

The Fury of the Wind (new modern hymn)

2009-08-06T11:52:00.011-05:00

A good friend of mine, Eric Schumacher, has written another "modern hymn" that I highly recommend checking out...

http://www.reformedpraise.org/songs/modernhymns/the-fury-of-the-wind/

Here is a description:

This text by Eric Schumacher is a beautiful mixing of the fiery descriptions and words of God in Job and the need that seeing such wrath stirs within the human soul to “flee to Christ.” We would all be “knocked off our high horse” if God were ever to appear to us the way He did to Job in the final five chapters of the book. What a frightening and humbling experience that would be! Our only sane response would be to fall before the feet of the Holy One. It is this very realization of our mortal and sinful selves that shows us the need that we have for the Holy God to make provision for us (no other could possibly do so!). God the Son is the only one who can “make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy” (Jude 24).This text can also be set to a traditional tune.

You can download the MP3 on the website http://www.reformedpraise.org/songs/modernhymns/the-fury-of-the-wind/

Lyrics:
The fury of the wind,
The raging of the sea,
How small a whisper do we hear
Of our God’s majesty!
The thunder of His pow’r,
O, who can understand?
Before the fullness of His wrath
O, who of us could stand?

“Shall man find fault with God?”
He asks of man below.
“Now, gird yourself to answer Me.
And tell Me, if you know:
Who made the earth and sea?
Who speaks and stars obey?
Who plays with creatures of the deep?
Who gives the beast its prey?”

You, Lord, can do all things,
And none can stay Your hand.
I uttered what I did not know
And could not understand.
Before Your greatness, Lord,
I fall upon my face.
And, by such glory stripped of pride,
I cast myself on grace.

The raging wind and sea
Cause me to flee to Christ,
Who bore the tempest of God’s wrath
To be my sacrifice.
Though in the storm I’m blind,
I trust my Sovereign’s plan.
I know that my Redeemer lives
And with Him I shall stand.

ApologetiX Jehovah

2009-07-28T13:21:00.004-05:00

Dear Jehovah Witnesses,

Please listen to this song.

If you want to buy the album, check it out here: http://www.apologetix.com/store/store12.php

If you are mad that Christians would make a parody of a Steve Miller song...............well--go find a discussion board to air your complaints.... I happen to like the song!

***They will be in Washington, Iowa on August 8th.***

ApologetiX returns to Iowa next Saturday, our only concert of 2009 in The Hawkeye State.

Here are the details:Sat, August 8 at 7 p.m. Hamakua Place 604 S. Iowa Ave.Washington, IA 52353

Here are some nearby cities and how many miles away they are:Iowa City (35), Burlington and Cedar Rapids (60), Davenport and Bettendorf (75) Galesburg IL (105) and Des Moines (110).

To purchase advance tickets at a discount, please go to: http://www.apologetix.com/concerts and click on this concert. If you attend, keep in mind that we always meet with friends and fans in the lobby after our shows. Hope to see you there!J.J. JacksonApologetiX (That Christian Parody Band) http://us.mc589.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=j@apologetix.com

The Christian View of Death—Absent from the Body and Present with the Lord

2009-07-01T21:58:00.010-05:00

We have a material body and an immaterial soul/spirit (Genesis 35:18; 2 Kings 17:21; Matthew 10:28; Acts 7:59)
• Genesis 35:16-18 Rachel began to give birth and she suffered severe labor. 17 When she was in severe labor the midwife said to her, "Do not fear, for now you have another son." 18 It came about as her soul was departing (for she died), that she named him Ben-oni; but his father called him Benjamin.

• Matthew 10:28 28 "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

• Acts 7:59-60 59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" 60 Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" Having said this, he fell asleep.

• Luke 23:42-43 42 And he was saying, "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!" 43 And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise."
•**Luke 23:43 –both Jesus and the thief died and were buried, but Jesus while on the cross said they would be in paradise “today”.

At the moment of death, our soul separates from the body and departs to be with Christ (2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:20-25; Hebrews 12:23; Revelation 6:9-11; 20:4 )• 2 Corinthians 5:6-8 6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord-- 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight-- 8 we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.

• Philippians 1:20-26 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. 23 But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; 24 yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith . . .

Our material body returns to dust (Genesis 3:19) and we remain in a disembodied state in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23) until the resurrection (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).• Genesis 3:19 19 By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return."

At the second coming of Jesus Christ , believers who have died will return with him and receive their resurrected bodies first; the believers who are alive at that time will be transformed as well (1 Thess. 4:13-18; 1 Cor. 15:20-23, 51-52)
• 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

• 1 Corinthians 15:20-24 20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming, 24 then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father . . .

• 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

A resurrected body is the final phase of our redemption (Rom. 8:23; Philippians 3:20-21) Other resurrection passages: Matthew 22:23-33; John 5:24-29 [*our deeds are produced by God 3:21], 11:23-27; Acts 24:15; Revelation 20:4-6, 12-15 )
• Romans 8:23 23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.

• Philippians 3:20 - 4:1 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.

• Matthew 22:23-33 23 On that day some Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to Jesus and questioned Him, 24 asking, "Teacher, Moses said, 'IF A MAN DIES HAVING NO CHILDREN, HIS BROTHER AS NEXT OF KIN SHALL MARRY HIS WIFE, AND RAISE UP CHILDREN FOR HIS BROTHER.' 25 "Now there were seven brothers with us; and the first married and died, and having no children left his wife to his brother; 26 so also the second, and the third, down to the seventh. 27 "Last of all, the woman died. 28 "In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had married her."
• 29 But Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30 "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 31 "But regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God: 32 'I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB '? He is not the God of the dead but of the living." 33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.

• John 5:24-29 24 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. 25 "Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 "For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28 "Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment. [***Deeds are evidence of God’s work among confessing believers… John 3:21 21 "But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God." ]

• John 11:23-27 23 Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." 24 Martha said to Him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." 25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" 27 She said to Him, "Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world."

• Acts 24:15 15 having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.

See also: http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2008/05/absent-from-body-present-with-lord.html

Therefore we also have as our ambition,

whether at home or absent,

to be pleasing to Him.

2 Cor. 5: 9

The Troubled Soul (PS 42) by CJ Mahaney

2009-06-17T22:01:00.002-05:00

You need to download and listen to the sermon below. I preached on Psalm 73 Sunday and I heard a great sermon preached live via the internet of C.J. Mahaney's sermon on Psalm 42 from RESOLVED 2009

click on the title The Troubled Soul PSALM 42
MP3
C.J. Mahaney
Mon, Jun 15, 2009

http://www.resolved.org/

Psalm 73 Working Through a Spiritual Crisis

2009-06-16T08:46:00.002-05:00

If you live long enough you will encounter trials that could cause a spiritual crisis. Psalm 73 is a soul searching Psalm that shows how a person worked through their own spiritual crisis.

click here for the MP3 download page for the Psalm 73 sermon

Sermon: The Called Ones of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:6)

2009-06-10T12:58:00.008-05:00

Sermon Text:
Romans 1:6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ

For the audio download of this sermon click here

(I preached this sermon in 2006)

Sermon Notes:

What does it mean that the Roman believers are “the called” of Jesus Christ (see also Jude 1)?

There are at least two uses of the word called

(1) The General Call: a call that comes through the preaching of the gospel (Matt. 24:14; Mark 13:10; Acts 8:40).

(2) The Effectual (Effective) Call: The effectual call is effective, that is, it always results in salvation (Romans 8:30, Romans 1:6-7; I Corinthians 1:9, 26; II Peter 1:10)

"Effective calling is an act of God the Father, speaking through the human proclamation of the gospel, in which he summons people to himself in such a way that they respond in saving faith."
Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1994) 693.

Commentaries of Romans that see the special use of calling here:

- Douglas Moo
“ ‘Call’ and its cognates are used by Paul to express an “effectual” calling. What is meant is not an “invitation” but the powerful and irresistible reaching out of God in grace to bring people into his kingdom.”
Douglas G. Moo, The Epistle to the Romans, NICNT (Grand Rapids, MI.: Eerdmans, 1996) 54.

- Thomas Schreiner
“Here it denotes the effective call accompanying the preaching of the gospel. Those who are called exercise faith in Christ (see 8:28-30). To say that Roman believers are “beloved by God” and “called to be saints” applies language to the church that was used for Israel as God’s elect people.”

Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament ( Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998) 36.

- Albert Barnes
The called of Jesus Christ. Those whom Jesus Christ has called to be his followers. The word called (see ver. 1) denotes not merely an external invitation to a privilege, but it also denotes the internal or effectual call which secures conformity to the will of him who calls, and is thus synonymous with the name Christians, or believers. That true Christians are contemplated by this address is clear from the whole scope of the epistle. See particularly Roman chapter 8.
http://www.studylight.org/com/bnn/view.cgi?book=ro&chapter=1

- Matthew Henry
“The called of Jesus Christ; all those, and those only, are brought to an obedience of the faith that are effectually called of Jesus Christ.”
http://www.ccel.org/h/henry/mhc2/MHC45001.HTM

- Leon Morris
When we think of our position as Christians we are inclined to think first of what we do, and so we speak of our faith or our commitment or the like. But Paul stresses God’s initiative. Christians are people whom God has called. He goes on to speak of being called to belong to Jesus Christ. There is a responsibility attaching to call. Those called belong to Christ. Their lives are his.
Leon Morris, The Epistle to the Romans, IVP (Leicester: IVP/Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988) 52

Other key text:
Rom 8:28-30 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to {His} purpose.For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined {to become} conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

**See 1 Cor. 1:18-31 for this effectual calling of God.**

The ultimate purpose in God choosing and calling us is so that no one would boast before him.

Examples of the divine/effectual call:
One non-salvific example—the raising of Lazarus (Jn 11:39-44)
Salvific—the apostle Paul (Acts 9:1-6; 22:3-11)
Salvific—Lydia (Acts 16:13-14)

Mohler Responds Well To The Tiller Shooting

2009-06-01T12:24:00.007-05:00

Mohler article: A Wicked Deed in Wichita: A Test for the Pro-Life Movement

The Shack Inspection

2009-05-26T09:49:00.003-05:00

I have created a new blog, The Shack Inspection, where I will post all of The Shack articles.

Atheism is Definitely Wrong (read online)

2009-05-06T07:59:00.000-05:00

Read here: http://www.matthiasmedia.com.au/Samples/aidw/aidw_scroller.html

Excellent Review of The Shack at "Girls Gone Wise"

2009-04-30T11:49:00.006-05:00

Mary Kassian has written a great review of The Shack.

Click here to read it: Re-imagining God in the Shack

I couldn't agree more when she said,

I’ve had good friends tell me that I’m missing the point of the Shack. Maybe I am. But maybe, just maybe, they are. Maybe they are getting caught up in the emotion of a heart-wrenching story and are failing to notice the horrendous theology that under girds it. The authors claim that “at its core the book is one long Bible Study.” This isn’t an ordinary story book. It’s a book that seeks to transform people’s ideas about God. The fiction is merely a vehicle for the theology.

In my post Gender Bending in The Shack (The Shack Inspection Part 1) I said,

Mary Kassian has some great articles to check out here:http://www.cbmw.org/component/option,com_metabrowse/browse,keyword/value,Mary%20Kassian/Itemid,116/

Thank you-- Mary! ( http://www.marykassian.com/ )

The Gospel Coalition Network

2009-04-24T20:49:00.002-05:00

http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/

Gospel Coalition Conference: Live on the Web

2009-04-20T05:50:00.002-05:00

http://www.christianity.com/gospelcoalition/

The Shack Inspection: No Penal Substitutionary Death of Jesus, No Reconciliation to Claim

2009-04-07T21:28:00.003-05:00

The Shack: “Honey, you asked me what Jesus did on the cross; so now listen to me carefully: through his death and resurrection, I am now fully reconciled to the world” (192).

How do you get reconciled to God without the death of Jesus propitiating the wrath that should have been ours? This is a question I wish I would have pursued further with Paul Young. Since Paul denies that Christ died as a penalty for our sins, how can he believe in reconciliation? Romans 5:8-10 says,

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

How is it that the blood of Christ saves us from God’s wrath if he was not providing a Substitutionary atonement that bore wrath? We see in the text that we (Christians) were at one time, enemies of God. The universal declaration is that everyone is guilty at God’s court because of sin (Rom. 3:9). We are all sinners in need of forgiveness and a righteousness which we do not have (Romans 1:18-3:20). A person cannot be justified (declared righteous) by good works because no one can do them perfectly (Romans 3:20-21; Gal. 2:16; 3:10-11). When we were in the position of being objects of wrath, God brought about a reconciling work in His Son’s death (Rom 5:10). Because the death of Jesus was a sacrifice for sins (Rom. 3:24-24; 5:10; Eph. 1:7; Heb. 9:26; 10:12), those who believe in him are justified and reconciled to God (Rom. 3:22-26; 5:1; Gal. 3:24-26).

Because Paul Young denies the penal substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ, I don’t see how he can then claim reconciliation. No penal substitutionary atonement, no reconciliation. We (believers) have gone from being enemies to being in a reconciled relationship with God. This all based on the propitiatory death of Jesus the Messiah.

Learning More About Our Triune God

2009-03-31T08:00:00.002-05:00

There are many problems in The Shack regarding the Trinity. I have blogged about two problems already and will probably add a few more later.

If you want to learn about the Trinity I suggest the following:

1. Prayerfully read through the Gospel of John many times

2. Listen to good sermons or lectures on the Trinity

2005 Pastors Conference

"This is My Beloved Son!" Exulting in the Trinitarian Relationships of Jesus Christ

The Trinity of Persons
2005 Desiring God Conference for Pastors
January 31, 2005
Bruce Ware
Listen Download
Download: Audio

C ontending for Our All
The Life and Ministry of Athanasius
February 1, 2005
John Piper
Read Listen Download
Download: Audio

Jesus and the Father
2005 Desiring God Conference for Pastors
February 1, 2005
Bruce Ware
Listen Download
Download: Audio

Jesus and the Spirit
2005 Desiring God Conference for Pastors
February 1, 2005
Bruce Ware
Listen Download

http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/ConferenceMessages/ByConference/9/

Monergism MP3 Library: 59 messages

3. Read good articles on the Trinity

Contemporary Articles and Essays (60 links)

Classic Essays & Articles (42 links)

4. Read good books on the Trinity

I have read the following books and highly recommend all of them

The Kostenberger/Swain book would be great to use while reading through the Gospel of John

Does the Father Have Scars?

2009-03-24T20:53:00.004-05:00

The Shack: Papa didn’t answer, only looked down at their hands. His gaze followed hers and for the first time Mack noticed the scars in her wrists, like those he now assumed Jesus also had on his. She allowed him to tenderly touch the scars, outlines of a deep piercing, and he finally looked up again into her. Tears were slowly making their way down her face, little pathways through the flour that dusted her cheeks.“Don’t ever think that what my son chose to do didn’t cost us dearly. Love always leaves a significant mark,” she stated softly and gently. “We were there together” (p95-96).

First, God the Father is invisible and has not been seen by anyone, except Jesus (John 6:46). Speaking hypothetically--If he were to take upon flesh we would not see scars in his wrist. The triune God did not take upon flesh, only the eternal Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, took upon himself a human nature which we call the incarnation (John 1:14). Paul has Papa saying, “When we three spoke ourself into human existence as the Son of God, we became fully human. We also chose to embrace all the limitations that this entailed. Even though we have always been present in this created universe, we now became flesh and blood” (99). There are many who praise The Shack because they say they learn so much about the Trinity. Yet, this book will only cause more confusion because the book shows Papa having crucifixion scars. Would it be a problem for a pastor to pray Sunday morning in church, “Father, I thank you for being crucified on the cross for my sins”? It would be theologically wrong. The Father was not crucified. We could thank the Father for sending (John 5:23; Gal. 4:4-5) the Son to die on the cross for our sins (Rom. 5:6, 8; 8:34; 1 Cor. 15:3), that would be Biblical.

Gender Bending in The Shack (The Shack Inspection Part 1)

2009-03-16T21:48:00.012-05:00

Gender Bending in The Shack (The Shack Inspection Part 1)

So Mack meets the Trinity at the shack. “Mack decided to bang loudly and see what happened, but just as he raised his fist to do so, the door flew open, and he was looking directly into the face of a large beaming African-American woman”(pg. 82). Mack reflects on this and says, “Since there were three of them, maybe this was a Trinity sort of thing. But two women and a man and none of them white? Then again, why had he naturally assumed that God would be white?”(p.87). Now I could care less in this story what color of skin the Father has, the issue is how Pau l Young portrays God the Father as a woman. Mack asks the question, “Am I going crazy? Am I supposed to believe that God is a big black woman with a questionable sense of humor? Jesus laughed. “She’s a riot! You can always count on her to throw you a curve or two.” (pp. 88-89) Mack has a problem with this new view of God the Father and says, “I think it’d be easier to have this conversation if you weren’t wearing a dress” (p. 93). But what justification does Paul present in the book that would lead him to do such a thing as presenting God the Father as woman? On page 93 we read: “Mackenzie, I am neither male nor female, even though both genders are derived from my nature. If I choose to appear to you as a man or woman, it’s because I love you. For me to appear as a woman and suggest that you call me Papa is simply to mix metaphors, to help you keep from falling so easily back into your religious conditioning” (p. 93). When you have God the Father always addressed in Scripture as Father and never called Mother, one would think that if the Father were going to show up in the flesh, he would be in a male form. Fathers are male and to have a Father presented as a woman wearing a dress is gender bending at its worst. Now Mack, “believed, in his head at least, that God was Spirit, neither male nor female, but in spite of that, he was embarrassed to admit to himself that all his visuals for God were very white and very male” (p.93). It is correct to say God the Father is neither male nor female because He is spirit (John 4:24). But the Fatherhood of God is fully and only masculine language and to have a person called Papa (Father) appear as a woman is a very confusing image that deconstructs the orthodox view of the Trinity. The author is saying that since God is spirit then he is neither male nor female so we can switch it around. Scripture never does this—ever.

Now Papa (the large African American woman), explains to Mack why she/he had to be revealed as a woman, “Hasn’t it always been a problem for you to embrace me as your father? And after what you’ve been through, you couldn’t very well handle a father right now, could you?” (p. 93) Mack asks, “why is there such an emphasis on you being a Father? I mean, it seems to be the way you most reveal yourself”(p. 94). He has only revealed himself as Father in Scripture, God is never called “Mother”.

So if Mack has a problem with religiously stereotyping God the Father as a white Gandalf, why trade that stereotype for a worse one? Having “the Father” appearing as a female is really bogus. Since Mack had a bad father figure in his life you would think that you would give him a perfect father modeled before him over the weekend at the shack . After the fall of Adam, there have always been flawed fathers to differing degrees. Why didn’t God mix the metaphor if that is what people needed? Here is reason as I see it: because he is eternally Father, Son and Holy Spirit. No biblical author calls the first person of Trinity mother or any feminine noun or pronoun. God is spirit (John 4:24) and the Father has never revealed himself in a bodily form (John 1:18; 5:37; 6:46). If God the Father were to appear in a human form, I am sure it would be what we think a father would look like, not a womanly, mother figure. Every New Testament author calls the first person of the Trinity—Father. God as Father is used over 200 times in the New Testament. Jesus prayed to the Father. Jesus said he had a glory with the Father before the world began (Jn 17:5). God (first person of the Blessed Trinity) is eternally the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Scriptures were penned over 1,400 year span, composed by dozens of authors, and the resounding pronoun they used for God was—He. Thousands of times the pronoun used for God is he and is never she.

Here are some great articles that deal with the whole gender issue:

How Shall We Speak of God? Seven Reasons Why We Cannot Call God "Mother"
by Randy Stinson and Christopher W. Cowan

http://www.cbmw.org/Journal/Vol-13-No-2/How-Shall-We-Speak-of-God-Seven-Reasons-Why-We-Cannot-Call-God-Mother

Death of Father Language: Attacking the Heart of Christian Identity
by David Lyle Jeffrey
http://www.cbmw.org/Journal/Vol-4-No-4/Death-of-Father-Language

Our Mother Who Art in Heaven: A Brief Overview and Critique of Evangelical Feminists and the Use of Feminine God-Language
by Randy Stinson
http://www.cbmw.org/Journal/Vol-8-No-2/Our-Mother-Who-Art-in-Heaven

Father of the Fatherless: Women Approaching God as Father
by Mary Kassian
http://www.cbmw.org/Journal/Vol-4-No-4/Father-of-the-Fatherless

Mary Kassian has some great articles to check out here:
http://www.cbmw.org/component/option,com_metabrowse/browse,keyword/value,Mary%20Kassian/Itemid,116/

Tampering With the Trinity: Does the Son Submit to His Father?
by Bruce A. Ware
http://www.cbmw.org/Journal/Vol-6-No-1/Tampering-With-the-Trinity

Here are some of the NT references to God- the Father:

Matt. 5:16, 45, 48; 6:1, 4, 6, 8f, 14f, 18, 26, 32; 7:11, 21; 10:29, 32; 11:25ff; 12:50; 13:43; 15: 13; 16:17, 27; 18:10, 14, 19, 35; 20:23; 23:9; 24:36; 25:34; 26:39, 42, 53; 28:19; Mk. 8:38; 11: 25f; 13:32; 14:36; Lk. 6:36; 9:26; 10:21f; 11:2, 13; 12:30, 32; 22:29, 42; 23:34, 46; 24:49; Jn. 1:14, 18; 3:35; 4:21, 23; 5:17ff, 26, 36f, 45; 6:27, 32, 37, 40, 44ff, 57, 65; 8:16, 18f, 27f, 38, 41, 44, 49; 10:15, 17f, 29f, 32, 36ff; 11:41; 12:26ff, 49f; 13:1, 3; 14:6ff, 16, 20f, 23, 26, 28, 31; 15:1, 8f, 15f, 23f, 26; 16:3, 10, 15, 17, 23, 25ff, 32; 17:1, 5, 11, 21, 24f; 18:11; 20:17, 21; Acts 1:4, 7; 2:33; Rom. 1:7; 6:4; 8:15; 15:6; 1 Co. 1:3; 8:6; 15:24; 2 Co. 1:2f; 6:18; 11:31; Gal. 1:1, 3f; 4:2, 6; Eph. 1:2f, 17; 2:18; 3:14; 4:6; 5:20; 6:23; Phil. 1:2; 2:22; 4:20; Col. 1:2f, 12; 3:17; 1 Thess. 1:1, 3; 3:11, 13; 2 Thess. 1:1f; 2:16; 1 Tim. 1:2; 2 Tim. 1:2; Tit. 1:4; Phlm. 1:3; Heb. 1:5; 7: 10; 12: 9; Jas. 1:17, 27; 3:9; 1 Pet. 1:2f, 17; 2 Pet. 1:17; 1 Jn. 1:2f; 2:1, 13, 15f, 22ff; 3:1; 4:14; 5:1; 2 Jn. 1:3f, 9; Jude 1:1; Rev. 1:6; 2:27; 3:5, 21; 14:1

Why post the following Scriptures? Because I was blessed to go through the NT and think about the relationship of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Gospel of Matthew
5:16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
5:48 "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

6:9 "Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.

11:25 At that time Jesus said, "I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. 26 "Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. 27 "All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

13:43 "Then THE RIGHTEOUS WILL SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

16:17 And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
27 "For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.

20:23 He said to them, "My cup you shall drink; but to sit on My right and on My left, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father."

23:9 "Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.

24:36 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

25:34 "Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

26:39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will."
42 He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, "My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done."
53 "Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?

28:19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,

John
1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.

3:35 "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.

4:21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.
23 "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.

John 5:17-45 Please read this section for yourself… it is incredible!

6:27 "Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal."

46 "Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father.

John 8:41 "You are doing the deeds of your father." They said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God."
42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me.
53 "Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?"
54 Jesus answered, "If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, 'He is our God';
56 "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."
10:15 even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.

John 11:41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised His eyes, and said, "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.

John 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

John 17:4-5 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You,
5 "Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

Acts 1:4 Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me;
7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority;

Romans 1:7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

6:4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

8:15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!"

15:6 so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians
1:3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

8:6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.

15:24 then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.

2 Corinthians 1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

6:18 "And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me," Says the Lord Almighty.

11:31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, He who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.

Galatians
1:1 Paul, an apostle (not sent from men nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead),

1:3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,

1:4 who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

4:2 but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father.

4:6 Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"

Ephesians
1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.
2:18 for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.
3:14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
4:6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
5:20 always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;

6:23 Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philippians
1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2:11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
4:20 Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Colossians
1:2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
1:3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
1:12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.
3:17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

1 Thessalonians
1:1 Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.
1:3 constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father,
3:11 Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you;
3:13 so that He may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.

2 Thessalonians
1:1 Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
1:2 Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2:16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace,

1 Timothy 1:2 To Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Timothy 1:2 To Timothy, my beloved son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Titus 1:4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

Philemon 1:3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Hebrews
1:5 For to which of the angels did He ever say, "YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU"? And again, "I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME"?
12:9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?

James
1:17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
1:27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
3:9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God;

1 Peter
1:2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.
1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
1:17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth;

2 Peter 1:17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, "This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased "--

1 John
1:2 and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us--
1:3 what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.
2:1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;
2:13-24 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.
15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
22 Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.
23 Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also.
24 As for you, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.

Jude 1:1 Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ:

Revelation 1:6 and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father-- to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Revelation 3:21 'He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

I take it that God the Father has always been Father and will continue to be throughout eternity.

God the Father= 200x
God the Mother= 0

God with the pronoun--He = 1,000's of times
God with the pronoun--She= 0

The Shack Inspection (Introduction)

2009-03-05T16:56:00.014-06:00

I plan on writing a series of articles on the controversial book, The Shack. I will be responding to the interview that I had with the author, Paul Young. You can listen to the interview locally (Burlington, Iowa) on KAYP at 89.9 FM airing 3-6-09 (6:00 am, 1:00 pm and 5:00 pm) and it will be archived here http://rock-life.com/KAYP.html .

Before I write a series of articles dealing with The Shack, I thought it would be helpful for you to see that not everyone is fond of the book. My responses will be largely a response to the interview that I had with the author, Paul Young.

My approach is that the book is a top-seller so we might as well be prepared to engage others with the truth of Scripture.

---REVIEWS---

One very insightful review of The Shack comes from a man that personally knows William P. Young. James B. DeYoung, is Professor of New Testament Language and Literature at Western Seminary. Go to http://theshackreview.com/ click on the right hand side “Back of the Shack” or “Spurgeon Fellowship Journal Review”

Tim Challies is the editor of Discerning Reader (http://www.discerningreader.com/), a site dedicated to discerning reviews of books that are of interest to Christians.
http://www.challies.com/archives/book-reviews/the-shack-by-william-p-young.php
Download the review: http://www.challies.com/media/The_Shack.pdf

Challies also did a follow up piece called, Open Mind, Closed Bible
http://www.challies.com/archives/general-news/email-from-a-concerned-reader.php

Chuck Colson in his Breakpoint Commentary weighed in by calling his article, Diminishing Glory, with a subtitle: “Stay Out of The Shack”
http://www.breakpoint.org/listingarticle.asp?ID=7830

Breakpoint also posted an article by Travis K. McSherley that critiques The Shack, called, “ Bringing Heaven Down To Earth” (The Small God of ‘The Shack’)
http://www.breakpoint.org/listingarticle.asp?ID=7831

Norman L. Geisler and Bill Roach ask the question--The Shack: Helpful or Heretical? A Critical Review
http://www.normangeisler.net/theshack.html

Alan Dunn wrote a three part series on The Shack that can be found at Reformed Baptist Fellowship’s website.

The Faulty Foundations of The Shack (Part 1)
http://reformedbaptistfellowship.wordpress.com/2008/08/11/the-faulty-foundations-of-the-shack-part-1/

The Faulty Foundations of The Shack (Part 2)
http://reformedbaptistfellowship.wordpress.com/2008/08/18/the-faulty-foundations-of-the-shack-part-2/

The Faulty Foundations of The Shack (Part 3)
http://reformedbaptistfellowship.wordpress.com/2008/09/09/the-faulty-foundations-of-the-shack-part-3/

Doug Wilson’s review can be found at his Blog and Mablog
http://dougwils.com/index.asp?Action=Anchor&CategoryID=1&BlogID=5989

The Green Baggins blog: Job and John Bunyan Versus The Shack
http://greenbaggins.wordpress.com/2009/01/07/job-and-bunyan-versus-the-shack/

Larry DeBruyn has written three articles on The Shack and Universal Reconciliation

The Shack and Universal Reconciliation (part 1)
http://sheepfodder.wordpress.com/2008/11/01/the-shack-and-universal-reconciliation/

The Shack and Universal Reconciliation (part 2)
http://sheepfodder.wordpress.com/2008/11/02/the-shack-universal-reconciliation-pt-2/

The Shack and Universal Reconciliation (part 3)
http://sheepfodder.wordpress.com/2008/11/03/the-shack-universal-reconciliation-pt-3/

Matt Slick from CARM Ministry interviewed Paul Young
http://carmpodcasting.blogspot.com/2008/07/matt-interviews-author-of-shack.html

Insight For Living (Chuck Swindoll) has posted a review written by Dr. Glenn R. Kreider. Dr. Glenn R. Kreider serves as a professor of theological studies at Dallas Theological Seminary where he received his Ph.D. in 2001.
“But I cannot recommend this book. The reason is simple: the author’s portrayal of God is confusing at best and untrue at worst.” Kreider has two sections about, Confusion about Trinity and Confusion about Christ. He closes his article with, “This is a dangerous book. Its view of the Trinity is inadequate and its view of Christ is unorthodox. That is not good.”
http://www.insight.org/site/PageServer?pagename=shack
for more details http://www.insight.org/site/PageServer?pagename=shack_details#home

Dr. Albert Mohler, President of the Southern Baptist Seminary has his own radion show (Albert Mohler Show). On 4-11-08 he addressed The Shack starting around 11.20 into the program. He states that, “This book includes undiluted heresy.” He also says, "It is intended, undoubtedly, as a way of trying to bring about some kind of redefinition or new understanding of the Christian faith…The main character says at one point that he now understands that everything he learned at seminary was basically all wrong."
http://www.albertmohler.com/radio_show.php?cdate=2008-04-11

Mark Driscoll's take on The Shack

ESV Pocket Bible

2009-02-27T20:57:00.008-06:00

Speaking of ESV Bibles.... I really enjoy my small ESV "Pocket Bible" (OT & NT). It comes in handy while you are at hospitals, nursing homes etc...

I'm not sure how long small Pocket Bibles have been around, but the ones below are from the 1800's (except for the ESV).

The one below is one that has fond memories for me because I bought it 20 years ago when I first became a Christian. It came in handy during coffee breaks when discussing spiritual issues with co-workers.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

Calfskin ESV Study Bible

2009-02-25T08:57:00.004-06:00

Win a Calfskin ESV Study Bible here

I have added this new blog [http://www.boomerinthepew.com ] to my regular list blogs to check out...

Memorial to the Missing

2009-01-21T09:15:00.007-06:00

The plaque reads:

"Before you is a collection of 50 million pennies! Each penny represents one child who has been aborted since the Supreme Court decision Roe vs. Wade in 1973. A penny like a baby seems to be so small and sometimes of very little worth, but when seen in a collection of 50 million it becomes enormous.

Each coin is a person, but in many cases it also represents the difficult process of decision-making, fear, and loneliness. While some speak of pro-choice, these babies had no choice. While some speak of a mother's right to control her own body, 50 million babies were not given their right to live.

Fifty million missing children represented by these pennies must be cause for us to stop, pray, consider what we are doing as a nation, ask God to forgive us, seek ways to help those who are struggling with the decision, and look to the Lord to restore each of us."

There is help for the hurting men and women that are dealing with post abortion issues:

http://www.healinghearts.org/enrollbup.php

http://www.silentnomoreawareness.org/resources/

Resources:

Stand To Reason http://www.str.org/
National Right to Life http://www.nrlc.org/
The Case for Life www.caseforlife.com/
Pro Life Training http://www.prolifetraining.com/

Randy Alcorn, Prolife Answers to Prochoice Arguments (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Press, 2000).

Francis J. Beckwith, Politically Correct Death: Answering the Arguments for Abortion Rights (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1993).

C. Ward Kischer and Dianne N. Irving, The Human Development Hoax: Time to Tell the Truth (1997)

Stephen Schwarz, The Moral Question of Abortion (Loyola University Press, 1990).

Proverbs 31:8-9 Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all the unfortunate. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy.

A MUST SEE:

Part 1 of 2 Gianna Jessen, abortion survivor (she was aborted) speaks at Queen's Hall, Parliament House, Victoria. Australia - on the eve of the debate to decriminalize abortion in Victoria.

Part 2

WORLDVIEWS

2009-01-16T17:03:00.012-06:00

Have you heard about the Atheist Bus Campaign ads which are on some buses in the UK?

Here is the slogan:

You can read more about it here and here.

I think that the counter ad could be:

This one by Micheal Patton

If you have a hard time reading the above poster, here it is:

ATHEISM

The ironic and self-defeating orderly appeal to reason for the existence of a reasonless universe without order, whose purpose is to evidence that there is no purpose, and whose morality is to argue that we should teach that there are no morals except that which they have reasoned for their purpose, which in turn, produces the ultimate emotional articulation of self-centeredness which is fearfully bent towards the cover up and suppression of belief in an ultimate personal cause who brings order, purpose, and judgment to all things. Oh yeah. . . . I’m in.

TAKE TIME to watch the two videos:

Follow this link to watch Ravi Zacharias deal with the problem of atheism by summarizing the arguments for the existence of God.

Click on the link:

http://www.ligonier.org/media_player.php?tabID=1&id=364

Romans 1:20

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

One of my Resolutions

2009-01-02T18:43:00.009-06:00

Resolved, constantly praise God for his sovereign saving grace in my life (Eph 1 & 2).

A good friend of mine, Eric Schumacher, has written a song that causes me to praise God for his sovereign mercy! The title is,Though I was a Child of Darkness.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

The Gospel

2008-12-01T10:01:00.001-06:00

Good Thoughts For Election Worries

2008-11-02T14:58:00.003-06:00

Obama's Abortion Extremism

2008-10-15T16:01:00.003-05:00

Here is a well written article on Obama's Abortion Extremism [ listen to Robert George on the Albert Mohler program from Oct. 14th here ]
by Robert George
Oct 14, 2008

Sen. Barack Obama's views on life issues ranging from abortion to embryonic stem cell research mark him as not merely a pro-choice politician, but rather as the most extreme pro-abortion candidate to have ever run on a major party ticket.

Barack Obama is the most extreme pro-abortion candidate ever to seek the office of President of the United States.

HERE ARE SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ARTICLE (read the full article here )

-- He supports legislation that would repeal the Hyde Amendment, which protects pro-life citizens from having to pay for abortions that are not necessary to save the life of the mother and are not the result of rape or incest.

--He has promised that ''the first thing I'd do as President is sign the Freedom of Choice Act'' (known as FOCA). This proposed legislation would create a federally guaranteed ''fundamental right'' to abortion through all nine months of pregnancy. . .

FOCA would abolish virtually every existing state and federal limitation on abortion, including parental consent and notification laws for minors, state and federal funding restrictions on abortion, and conscience protections for pro-life citizens working in the health-care industry-protections against being forced to participate in the practice of abortion or else lose their jobs. The pro-abortion National Organization for Women has proclaimed with approval that FOCA would ''sweep away hundreds of anti-abortion laws [and] policies.''

--Obama, unlike even many ''pro-choice'' legislators, opposed the ban on partial-birth abortions when he served in the Illinois legislature and condemned the Supreme Court decision that upheld legislation banning this heinous practice.

-- He wishes to strip federal funding from pro-life crisis pregnancy centers that provide alternatives to abortion for pregnant women in need. There is certainly nothing ''pro-choice'' about that.

--Obama opposed legislation to protect children who are born alive, either as a result of an abortionist's unsuccessful effort to kill them in the womb, or by the deliberate delivery of the baby prior to viability.

Robert P. George is McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University. He is a member of the President's Council on Bioethics and previously served on the United States Commission on Civil Rights. He sits on the editorial board of Public Discourse.

The Gospel Coalition

2008-09-29T16:45:00.002-05:00

Go see this movie...

2008-09-29T16:23:00.001-05:00

Obamanation ?

2008-09-16T15:23:00.004-05:00

Two Ways To Live

2008-09-08T10:57:00.001-05:00

Check it out:
http://www.matthiasmedia.com.au/2wtl/

The 500-Year Flood and the Sovereignty of God

2008-07-06T14:26:00.004-05:00

If you want to look at the latest flooding through a biblical worldview then you need to check out the following sermons that Eric Schumacher preached at his church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The 500-Year Flood and the Sovereignty of God (read)
Eric M Schumacher – Preached July 6, 2008 at Northbrook Baptist Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Audio will be available here.

The 500-Year Flood and the Response of the Christian (read)
Eric M Schumacher – Preached June 29, 2008 at Northbrook Baptist Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Audio will be available here.

The 500-Year Flood and the God of All Comfort (read)
Eric M Schumacher – Preached June 22, 2008 at Northbrook Baptist Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Audio will be available here.

The 500-Year Flood and the Kingdom of Christ (read)
Eric M Schumacher – Preached June 15, 2008 at Northbrook Baptist Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Sermon audio is available here now.

Planet Earth

2008-06-05T09:08:00.007-05:00

Product Description: With an unprecedented production budget of $25 million and from the makers of Blue Planet: Seas of Life comes the epic story of life on Earth. Five years in production over 2000 days in the field using 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations shot entirely in high definition this is the ultimate portrait of our planet. A stunning television experience that captures rare action impossible locations and intimate moments with our planet's best-loved wildest and most elusive creatures. From the highest mountains to the deepest rivers this blockbuster series takes you on an unforgettable journey through the daily struggle for survival in Earth's most extreme habitats. Planet Earth takes you to places you have never seen before to experience sights and sounds you may never experience anywhere else.Running Time:

Tim Challes gives nine reasons why you should watch Planet Earth. He states, “While the producers of the series are not Christians (or do not claim to be Christians) and while the films were not meant to draw attention to God, as I watched them I was continually drawn to marvel in the greatness of the Lord. As the films provided a tour of so many beautiful locations and as they gave close-up shots of such incredible creatures, I saw the hand of a Creator. I saw it everywhere.”

I am reading Calvin’s, Institutes of the Christian Religion, and I have enjoyed the section on, "The Knowledge of God the Creator" . Challes’ comment, “I saw the hand of a Creator. I saw it everywhere” reminded me of a couple of Calvin’s quotes: “Yet, in the first place, wherever you cast your eyes, there is no spot in the universe wherein you cannot discern at least some sparks of his glory. You cannot in one glance survey the most vast and beautiful system of the universe, in its wide expanse, without being completely overwhelmed by the boundless force of its brightness…” or just a few sentences later his says, “There are innumerable evidences both in heaven and on earth that declare his wonderful wisdom; not only those more recondite matters for the closer observation of which astronomy, medicine, and all natural science are intended, but also those which thrust themselves upon the sight of even the most untutored and ignorant persons, so that they cannot open their eyes without being compelled to witness them.”

John Calvin, The Institutes of the Christian Religion (ed. John T. McNeill; trans. Ford Lewis Battles; 2 vols.; LCC; Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960), 52-53.

"O LORD, how many are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your possessions."

Psalm 104:24

"Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created."

Revelation 4:11

2008-05-29T15:55:00.001-05:00

Wonder All Around: Horses

2008-05-26T21:10:00.007-05:00

Do you give the horse his might?

Do you clothe his neck with a mane?

—God

(Job 39:19)

Absent From The Body--Present With The Lord

2008-05-20T21:10:00.005-05:00

Recently I was with fellow Christian when his wife died. One of the first things he said was that she was now with the Lord. He paraphrased 2 Corinthians 5:8 which says, “we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.”

Christians are in a win/win situation. Check out the following passage:

Philippians 1:20-26.

Phil 1:20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but {that} with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.
Phil 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Phil 1:22 But if {I am} to live {on} in the flesh, this {will mean} fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose.
Phil 1:23 But I am hard-pressed from both {directions,} having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for {that} is very much better;
Phil 1:24 yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.
Phil 1:25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith,
Phil 1:26 so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again.

Paul was in prison for the cause of Christ (Philippians 1:12-16) and he was telling the Philippian believers about his situation.
· (Paul) I want Christ to be glorified in my body either by life or by death (Philippians 1:20). Why? You might ask. Paul’s response,
· My life is about Christ and if I die it will only be gain (don’t worry about me because I am in a win / win situation. If I live—I am living for Christ, if I die that will only be to my advantage). Let me explain:
· If I get to live, it means fruitful labor for me (1:22) and I can continue for your progress and joy in the faith (1:25).
· Paul was hard pressed between the two situations as he said “I am hard-pressed from both {directions,} having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for {that} is very much better (1:23); yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake (1:24), in order that he might “continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith (1:25).

Why is “dying” a gain for Paul (1:21)? Because, “to depart and be with Christ, for {that} is very much better” (1:23). Paul was hard pressed, because he desired to remain in the flesh (body in this context) (1:22) in order to minister to others, yet on the other hand—departing to be with Christ would be “far better” (1:23). For the Philippians’ sake it would be necessary (1:24) to stay and minister to their needs as it relates to their progress and joy in the faith (1:25). This passage is not hard to understand. Paul’s goal in life was to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. He loved to minister to others in the name of Christ, and if he died, it would only mean that he would get to be present with Christ. It is simple. Paul was in a win win situation and he couldn’t lose. He was in prison for preaching the gospel and while he was in prison he preached the gospel (1:12-16). If he lived he would minister to others (1:24-25), but if the ultimate happened, Paul would “depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better” (1:23). Why is it better to die? Because it ushers Paul into the very presence of Christ. Take your Bible out and read chapter one and see for yourself that this was clearly the mindset of Paul.

The consistent teaching throughout church history is that when a believer dies, his body goes into the ground and his soul goes to heaven to be in the very presence of Jesus.

I have been with precious believers who have been told they have a serious surgery to face and I let them know that they are in a win win situation. If it is God’s desire that they remain on for more years on earth then that will mean they can continue to minister to their family and others, but if that is not the outcome, then they are still winners because they will be present with the Lord. This has brought comfort to many that have been faced with such circumstances. I have been on mission trips out of the country and have prayed that God would allow me to return safely, if it would be his will, because I can continue to minister to my family, church family and others. You see, my wife’s first husband died when she was six months pregnant and I have been mindful of such situations and know how hard it would be if I departed to be with Christ since we have two school-aged children and one in college. Now we have talked about this passage as husband and wife and my desire is like Paul’s. As a matter of fact, my wife has told me many times that she is putting Philippians 1:21 on my tombstone because for over eighteen years now, it has been one of my favorite texts in the New Testament: “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” If God allows me to live it will mean fruitful labor for me and will be more necessary for others in their progress and joy in the faith which I truly love, but if death comes knocking it will only mean that I will depart from this life and will be present with the Lord—which is far better than anything I can comprehend.

Praise be to Jesus—when death comes knocking and comes in to snuff out this earthly body, as a Christian I will depart and be with Christ my Lord. This one fact is truly exhilarating to meditate on. Oh, may you understand this great truth!

***See also http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2009/07/christian-view-of-deathabsent-from-body.html for Scripture relating to the believer's resurrected body.
audio sermon here http://alwaysreformingtoscripture.blogspot.com/2011/06/memorial-day-beyond-death-for-christian.html

Therefore we also have as our ambition,

whether at home or absent,

to be pleasing to Him.

2 Corinthians 5:9