When God has other ideas that we do.

What I am Reading

I read recently The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity by Philip Jenkins.  This blockbuster book examines the major shift of the mission world.  The author believes that in coming generations, revival and gospel advancement will take place south of the equator predominantly Africa and South America as they become truly Christian countries.  In juxtaposition, the West will become more and more nominally Christian so that at some point the Southern hemisphere may be sending missionaries our way. 

The book is an excellent expose of this trend, and a must for those serious about missions, thinking about direction of missions, and the state of the church in the West.

John Calvin on “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?”

“This was his chief conflict, harder than any other agony, that in His anguish He was not given relief by His Father’s aid or favour, but made to feel somehow estranged.”

Oliver Cromwell on Liberty of Conscience

I have been reading some of Oliver Cromwell’s letters recently, and he is very impressive Christian soldier and statesman.  In reading through his letters, there are some eerie parallels with our country.  One letter that was striking to me was on the issue of personal liberty which is something Cromwell fought for the preservation of all people because he believed it was a God given right to all. 

“If there be an absoluteness in the imposer, without fitting allowances and exceptions from the rule, we shall have our people driven into the wilderness, as they were when those poor and afflicted people that forsook their estates and inheritances here, where they lived plentifully and comfortably, for the enjoyment of their liberty, and were necessitated to go into the vast howling wilderness in New England where they have for liberty sake strip themselves of all their comfort and full enjoyment they had, embracing rather loss of friends and want, than to be so ensnared and in bondage.”

To The Garden We Go

Like most gardeners, I have been slow due to the rains this spring.  But I have some success already.  We have had a steady harvest of strawberries through the end of May until mid June. 

Here is Noah with his strawberry harvest. 

We also have had our first tomatoes.  A family member gave us a patio tomato on mother’s day and already I am picking some.  They do not taste the best however. 

I also have a few cuttings (though not as many as I hoped) with lettuce, spinach, and peas for salads.  I grew several different types of lettuce (about six different varieties), and two different types of spinach.  I grew them in back end of our property in old washtubs and water troughs. 

Another Lutheran Pastor Video

Last month I shared with you a video series entitled, “Things Your Lutheran Pastor Loves to Hear”.  It is good, witty truth.  This is my second favorite clip.  I can’t tell you how many times I have been accosted by “Christian” sales people promising to do what only God said He could do.

Update on Southern

I am back studying German as part of my PhD work.  I am required to be able to read and translation four languages.  I have Greek, Hebrew, and Latin under my belt.  German is the last of the Mohicans.  I am taking an independent study with an instructor from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary which has its perks.  I hope to complete the course by summer’s end, and while the mechanics of languages are fascinating at times, I will be happy to finish it.  I was a little anxious about German based on my oral class earlier this year.  German is pretty brutal.  But so far, so good.

Matthew Henry on “My God, My God why have You forsaken Me?”

 

This coming Lord’s day we will gaze on Matthew 27:46, “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?”  I believe this is the central focus of Matthew’s entire theology of the cross.  It is the only statement Matthew records Jesus saying, and it has been interpreted with much controversy.  The Puritan commentator Matthew Henry speaks succinctly about this verse and its “God forsakenness” when he writes, “Jesus says this himself, who we are sure was under no mistake.”  At the simplest level we believe Jesus meant what he said and did say it because the Bible says He said it. 

Tertullian on the darkness surrounding the cross

Matthew 27:45 stated that darkness fell throughout all the land for three hours (noon to three) as Christ was hanging on the cross.  Evidently Christians viewed (and still do) as a supernatural act of God that symbolized His judgment upon His son.  The early church father brought this ominous moment up to his readers a generation later when he wrote, the “wonder (of this darkness) is related in your own annals and is preserved in your archives to this day.”

Nuts and Bolts

Every church has its share of discrepancies.  The following are true misplaced comments in various church bulletins:

The Fasting & Prayer Conference includes meals.
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The sermon this morning: 'Jesus Walks on the Water.' The sermon tonight: 'Searching for Jesus.'
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Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale. It's a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands.
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The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been canceled due to a conflict..
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Don't let worry kill you off - let the Church help.

END TIME KOOKS

One way to detect a false teacher is this obsession with signs and wonders.  False teachers always seem to manifest what I call a spiritual treasure map, or decoding secret messages.  Jesus says they center on specifics that not all men can know, but they think they know. 

They give us specific signs as to the who, where, and when of Jesus. 

1.      They claim to know where Jesus is and will be (Matthew 24:23, 26).

'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!''Look, he is in the wilderness, 'Look, he is in the inner rooms,  So false teachers claim to know who Jesus is in a way that we cannot know.  And they claim to know where He will be in the wilderness, or in the inner rooms.  In Scripture, the desert is often seen as a place of special, divine revelation-Jesus in wilderness, Paul in Arabia.  “Inner rooms” are seen as a meeting place where the excitement of the Spirit comes-Pentecost.  It is like playing hide and seek with Jesus.  Jesus is only for the select few that know where to find him. 

2.      They claim to know when Jesus will come (Luke 21:8).

Luke’s version adds that a false teacher will be obsessed with when the Messiah will come And he said, "See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he!' and, 'The time is at hand!' Do not go after them.

So the false prophets make specific assertions-they will have particular information that the rest of us lack.  Spiritual decoders; spiritual treasure map; like sorcerers in the Lord of the rings, fortune tellers, witch of Endor-inside track information. 

Be careful when you hear people getting so specific about Jesus and His return that you are left with the feeling that they and they alone have an inside track with God.  So one of the criteria that you should use in determining false teachers is ask this question.  Is it up to this teacher to provide me with special revelation?  Do I depend on this teacher as a spiritual decoder of truth?  This is exactly where the false teacher wants to be as the only spiritual person able to communicate special signs like where the Messiah is and who He is. 

B.      They center on the spectacular (Matthew 24:23-26)

Jesus declares that another feature of false prophets is their ability to do the spectacular which has a persuasive affect on their onlookers.  For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders,

So we learn that false teachers are specific in their talking, and spectacular in their doing.  They do many “great signs and wonders”.  But that isn’t the telltale sign of authenticity is it? 

Earlier in Matthew 7, we have some self-righteous imposters standing before Jesus the Judge at judgment day, and they profess, “Lord, Lord” and then they give their claim, “in your name we have prophesied, and in your name we have cast out demons, and in your name we have done many miracles”.  Yet Jesus rejects them.  Signs and wonders is not the final test for authenticity. 

In fact, in Matthew’s gospel the word doing ‘wonders’ is never attributed to Jesus nor His disciples.  And when Jesus does signs it is due to people’s unbelief in Him.  People don’t believe Him, so they demand a sign of Him, and when He gives them a sign they still won’t believe-like the resurrection.  In fact, many times Jesus tells people to keep quiet after He does a miracle.  Unlike Jesus, false teachers do many signs and wonders to be seen by men.  Egyptian magicians/Simon the magician and others.

Jesus told the sign seekers in Luke 17:20, the kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed.  But brothers and sisters, if you looked at the landscape with sign seekers today, you would think Jesus didn’t know what He was talking about.  

And this is one reason why false teachers are so dangerous.  It would be one thing if only one came on the scene and committed their atrocities on the church.  Then the church could band together and purge them out.  But one of the dangers of false teachers is that they are in every age, in every walk of religious life.  Jesus warns us that false teachers will not be dying on the vine, they will abundantly fruitful-many (4)…many (11) and will lead astray if possible even the elect (24).  With the elect, we see the pull of false teaching in the case of Peter and Barnabas in Galatians 2. 

Jesus, for His part, always centers on clarity and Himself (Matthew 24:27-28).  If Jesus centers on Himself and the clear, we are wise to do the same. 

What I Am Reading

The History of Christian Spirituality is a worthy survey edited by Gordon Mursell.  This work gives the reader a general overview of two thousand years of church history.  It is a resource for those beginning to inquire the history and development of Christian spirituality.  It reads much like a textbook, so unless you are really interested in the subject it probably is not worth your time. 

THE LONG GOODBYE

This is a picture of my parent’s house for the last twelve years.  My mom recently sold it along with eighty acres and moved closer to me.  This was a bittersweet moment.  After my dad passed away in 2008, my mom stayed there by herself.  Her nearest neighbor was about one mile away, and she lived on a dead end dirt road.  So it made practical sense to get out of there and be closer to her family.  My sister and brother also live in KC area as well.  It was bitter because this house and the land it sat on holds dear memories to me.  My dad bought this eighty acre farm in the late 1950’s for about $4,000.  He and his father farmed it, and hunted on it (this eighty acres is the best hunting ground we have).  I spent many hours of camping, cutting wood, hunting with my father.  I have taken a few study sabbaticals in the “upper rooms”.  I have had several guys from our church down there for retreats.  In these respects, it has been tough to let it go.  We still have 120 acres, but it isn’t quite the same. 

It is funny how the Lord takes you through chapters of this life.  My grandparents farm that they lived in since the 1920’s burnt to the ground in the early 1990’s.  The house I grew up in the Northeast KC area had the same thing happen a few years back.  The first house Anita and I lived in when we were married was bulldozed down.  These are good reminders that nothing in this life no matter how precious is permanent.  Which is why we long for a city whose builder and maker is God. 

SPURGEON ON GOSPEL TRIUMPHALISM IN THE MIDST OF MILITANT PERSECUTION

It would be easy to show at our present rate of progress the kingdoms of this world never could become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.  Indeed, many in the Church are giving up the idea of it except on the occasion of the advent of Christ, which, as it chimes in with our own idleness, is likely to be popular doctrine.  I myself believe that King Jesus will reign, and the idols be utterly abolished; but I expect the same power which turned the world upside down once will still continue to do it.  The Holy Ghost would never suffer the imputation to rest upon His holy name that He was not able to convert the world.

Soup Night

Consomme with Stuffed Ravoli

This soup scored a 20.5 on the whisk scale, making it a classic.  The only classic this past season.

1 bag of stuffed ravoli

1 teaspoon of light soy sauce

1 scallion, minced

1 garlic clove, crushed

14 ounce can chicken or fish stock

2 tablespoons of sherry

1 bag of shrimp

Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1-Heat the consommé/stock in a pan with sherry, soy sauce, garlic, and scallion. 

Step 2-Bring to a boil, then add the ravioli

Step 3-Simmer 1 to 2 minutes and add shrimp

It looks like he wanted some alone time and chances are he will have some.

Update on Southern

I returned from a ten day jaunt to Louisville for my spring seminars at Southern.  I did two seminars (Medieval Spirituality and Puritan/Evangelical Spirituality) as well as one colloquium (Mysticism).  The time was well spent with some dear brothers.  I worshipped with two congregations while there, and spent some extended time at dinners, lunches, bookstores with Dr. Michael Haykin.  I turned in eight papers, made four presentations, and read about twenty books in preparation for the courses.  It was filling and draining at the same time.  I also experienced some amazing feedback and future opportunities that are beyond my expectations.  I will expand on that in the future.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

To my precious daughter who turns eight today.  Emma, you are the treasure of our hearts.  May our Lord treasure you with Himself in this next year. 

DEDICATED TO THE TROOPS

Today celebrates D-Day.  Since I missed a tribute to Memorial Day, here is a clip that is grips me.  As a son of a veteran who served his country, all I can say to all veterans is thanks for keeping us the “land of the free, and the home of the brave”.