Jesus is pure; his bride wasn’t
March 10, 2010
Russell Moore gives a gospel-saturated answer to a young woman asking about what she has a right to know about her boyfriend’s sexual past and when she has a right to know it. Take and read.
Also read Jeremiah 3.
Singing orca
March 2, 2010
This is from the blog of Scotty Smith, Pastor for Preaching, Teaching and Worship at Christ Community Church (PCA) in Franklin, Tennessee:
A Prayer About the Day of Singing OrcaThen I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, forever and ever!” Revelation 5:13Dear Lord Jesus, I cannot imagine the horror and trauma of those who witnessed the death of an Orca trainer yesterday at Sea World. We pray, especially for the children who were present… bring your healing hand and loving heart to bear. By whatever means you choose, we pray for your redeeming presence in this tragedy.Jesus, gut-numbing events like this fuel my intense longing for the Day when “every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them,” will sing your praise forever in the new heaven and new earth. What Isaiah whispered (Isaiah 11:6-9; 65:17-25) and John envisioned (Revelation 21:1-5), we will enjoy with them—this very world redeemed and restored by you, Lord Jesus—the one who is making all things new.The very fact that Orca are better known as “Killer Whales” just underscores the fact that nothing in this broken world is the way it’s meant to be. Orca were meant to sing and play, not attack and devour. The odious stench of sin, decay and death permeate every sphere of your creation. In fact, it’s far more incomprehensible to realize that over half of the world’s families exist for a whole month on the price of one Sea World ticket. Have mercy, Lord Jesus, have mercy… I know that you have, and I know that you will….Until the Day of the pan-creature praise chorus, give us, give me, all the grace and strength we need to love mercy, do justice and walk humbly with our God. So very Amen, we pray, offering all praise, honor, glory and power, to him who sits on the throne and to you, the Lamb of God.
Tripp on pastors
February 3, 2010
Here are notes taken from a Monday pre-conference seminar by Paul Tripp:
I don’t know how many ministers of the gospel read this blog, but this is one you really should read. Elders and anyone else who has the opportunity to be a good friend to his pastor ought to read these notes as well.
Tattoos, submission, and growing up
January 26, 2010
At his blog Moore to the Point, Russell D. Moore answers a question from a 19-year-old about his desire to get a Christian tattoo and his desire to honor his parents. Moore deals with all the right questions in his response. Most helpful to me is the way he speaks to an issue that has come up from time to time in my ministry to families. Teens, especially those in the midst of rebellion, cling to a cherished belief that once they turn 18, then they are adults and no longer have to submit to parents. This is one of the most ridiculous statements ever made, and yes, I know all the things that most states in the U.S. say an 18-year-old can legally do. Moore handles it biblically (and more thoughtfully than I often do):
When does your obedience to parents end or, better put, when are you responsible for making your own decisions?
It isn’t at eighteen. The Bible never puts eighteen or twenty-one as some arbitrary mark between childhood and maturity. Instead, in Scripture, maturity is less a chronological or biological matter than an economic one. When are you able to establish a household, a household for which you are responsible? The creation pattern is that a man is equipped to provide for his household (Gen. 2:15). He then “leaves father and mother” as he cleaves to his wife and forms (within the larger tribe) a new household (Gen. 2:24).
Between childhood and maturity, your parents are working to prepare you for this responsibility, handing over more and more of it to you as you prepare to give yourself over for the provision and protection of a wife and family (Eph. 5) or for the sake of the mission (1 Cor. 7).
Grace like manna
January 5, 2010
Eight or so years ago I went with an elder to visit an elderly widow on a blistering cold day (much like today). She had recently moved closer to one of her grown children and had been coming to our church with her family. On this get-to-know-you-better kind of visit, I knew what to expect. This elder and I had good teamwork in these situations. He is affable, warm, quick-witted. He sets a good, engaging kind of tone to these visits, and I bring the heavy artillery. I usually asked the question or made the comment that moved things from friendly chit-chat to more serious and spiritual directions. But on this day, I was surprised. The widow gave a clear and credible testimony of her faith in Christ. She said that frequently she thought about death. While she was not afraid to die, she said she was often afraid of dying. “I wonder sometimes if I have the strength and courage to face the process,” she said. 
Before I could formulate a response, the elder (usually the silent partner at this point in the conversation) spoke up and answered better than I could. “O you don’t have to worry about that. When you need that grace, the Lord will give it to you. You feel like you don’t have it right now, but you don’t need it right now. It’s like manna. It’ll be there.”
Reading Edward T. Welch’s Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest reminded me of that cold afternoon. In one chapter Welch teases out our specific fears of death: fears of eternity, fears of the way you might die, fears of hardship for loved ones, fear of the unknown, and fear of judgment. He addresses the second fear, fear of the way you might die, like my friend and fellow elder did that day. Let me share Welch’s version with you. Read the rest of this entry »
Read it again in 2010
December 29, 2009
READ THE BIBLE FROM COVER TO COVER IN 2010. You can start at Genesis and go right through to Revelation if you like. My favorite plan involves reading three chapters a day (and five on the Lord’s Day). In this plan you read a different genre of Scripture each day of the week (wisdom literature, Pentateuch, OT histories, prophets, gospels, epistles). The variation has helped me push through the low seasons that come during the year, and it helps me see the interconnectedness of all of God’s Word. I first came across this scheme about twenty years ago when Dr. Douglas Kelly included it as an appendix in his book If God Already Knows, Why Pray? I have passed it along to many others through the years.
Sundays: read five chapters in the Psalms. When done, read through Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.
Mondays: read three chapters in Genesis. When done, read through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
Tuesdays: read three chapters in Joshua. When done, read through Judges, Ruth, 1& 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings.
Wednesdays: read three chapters in Job. When done, read through 1 & 2 Chroniclers, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther.
Thursdays: read three chapters in Isaiah. When done, read through Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
Fridays: read three chapters In Matthew. When done, read through Mark, Luke, John, and Acts.
Saturdays: read three chapters in Romans. When done, read through 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 & 2 Peter, 1, 2 & 3 John, Jude, and Revelation.
FURTHER ADVICE
- Set a distinct time of day and place for your reading, as free as possible from distractions. Turn off that electronic device that bosses you around.
- Use a good, readable translation. I recommend, in the following order: English Standard Version, New King James Version, New International Version, King James Version, and New American Standard. But the best translation of the Scriptures is one you are actually reading! I don’t recommend a study Bible. All those extra notes and comments can be distracting, and you might need an orthopedic specialist if you haul around an ESV Study Bible for 365 consecutive days.
- When you forget or fall behind, don’t give up. All is not lost. The devil would like you to give up once you’ve fallen behind. Pick back up right where you were. You can double up to catch up, but you don’t have to. So what if you finish in February 2011?
- Pray every day before you read, and after you read.
- Ask a friend or loved one to join you in the venture. Keep each other accountable.
Cream of blog 12.18.09
December 18, 2009
The Sweet Dropper has been silent about 10 days, as a trip to Belize has hindered my blogging. Here are a few blog entries worth your time.
- Gene Edward Veith comments on findings of The Pew Forum, which reports that Americans are becoming increasingly syncretistic in their religious views and practices.
- Tim Keller on how to deal with criticism, and how John Newton has helped him respond in godly ways.
- Justin Taylor with resources on helping men gain victories in the battle against lust.
- CCEF has posted Tim Lane’s pamphlet Family Feuds: How to Respond–great teaching and equipping for Christmas family gatherings and the conflicts that go with them.
The Lord is my shepherd…he laid down his life for his sheep.
December 7, 2009
Joseph Randall at Feeding on Christ wrote this meditation on Christ our Good Shepherd who laid down his life for his sheep:
The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. Psalm 23:1
This amazing truth is ultimately fulfilled in the Good Shepherd – the Lord Jesus Christ. Only in Him is this supernatural satisfaction fully realized, and for this realization to happen, Jesus had to lay down His life for the sheep (John 10:11).
Jesus had to lack everything for His sheep.
Contra rest in green pastures, He had no place to lay His head (Matthew 8:20)
Contra still waters, He was baptized with the wrath of God (Luke 12:50)
Contra a restored soul, His soul was poured out unto death (Isaiah 53:12)
Contra being led in right paths, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter and offered Himself as a propitiation so that God might be proved righteous (Acts 8:32, Romans 3:25-26)
Contra fearing no evil in the dark death valley, He was made evil Who knew no evil and sorrowed unto death as He contemplated the darkness of death that would utterly consume Him (2 Corinthians 5:21, Mark 14:34-36)
Contra having God with him as His comfort, God forsook Him, pouring out His just wrath upon Him (Matthew 27:46)
Contra having a rod and a staff to comfort Him, the rod of the Father was pleased to crush Him (Isaiah 53:10)
Contra having a table spread before Him, He hungered in the wilderness and thirsted unto death (Luke 4:1-2, John 19:28)
Contra having His head anointed with oil, He wore a blood-soaked crown of thorns (Matthew 27:29)
Contra having a cup that overflows, He drank the cup of the wrath of God to the dregs (Isaiah 51:17, Matthew 26:39)
Contra goodness and mercy pursuing Him all His days, wrath and torment pursued Him unto death (Isaiah 53)
Contra dwelling in the house of the LORD, He was banished from the dwelling of the LORD as the unclean and cursed one (Galatians 3:13)
And He did all of this on behalf of stubborn, sinful, hell deserving sheep who rebelled against Him. This is the best news in the world! All who know this Good Shepherd by grace through faith will lack no good thing, for He will provide for them, protect them, comfort them, and satisfy them fully – He will be all and all to them now and forever and ever…
Cream of blog 12.01.09
December 1, 2009
A few blog posts worth reading…
Creeds, confessions, catechisms
November 10, 2009
Sunday morning I was teaching the first meeting of a new members’ class. We discussed the value of creeds (such as the Apostles’ Creed or the Nicene Creed) and confessions (such as the Westminster Confession of Faith) and catechisms (such as the Westminster Larger and Shorter Catechisms or the Heidelberg Catechism). This discussion took place as I was emphasizing one of our non-negotiable commitments as a church–that the Bible is entirely true. But if we believe the Bible is true, then why have these summations of biblical doctrine? Do they not undermine the authority and sufficiency of the Bible? Remember a couple of things:
- A biblical creed or confession is like the small booklet you get when you want to get a driver’s license (my firstborn is taking the test today). To take the test you are not required to go the courthouse and study all the traffic and liability laws. The booklet helps you. Now the difference, of course, is obvious. Once you get your driver’s license, you never want to go read the state codes. But in living as followers of Christ, the Bible is always more engaging and interesting than the credal summaries. The skeletal structure provided by creeds and confessions needs the muscles and flesh and blood of living, active faith.
- Creeds, confessions and catechisms make it plain for all to see what it is that we believe and what points of biblical teaching we believe are most important. I told the class, “If you read the Westminster Confession of Faith, you have the basic sketch of the theology that I’m going to preach and teach. Don’t expect me to surprise you.” I preach Jesus Christ and him crucified, and the creeds and confessions fill in what I mean when I say “Jesus Christ.” John Mark Reynolds makes a great point on this in a recent post from Scriptorium Daily:
Yesterday I was asked about the value of Creeds like those of Nicaea. My interlocutor was insistent, “What if I love Jesus? What is the point of a Creed? Doesn’t it get in the way of my love for the Lord?”
The problem with this idea is that even in daily life it is easy to love the “wrong” person. Too often I build up a Fantasy Hope and then love not the wife I actually have, but a wife that exists only in my head.
This is such a bad thing that I must be thankful for anything, however painful, that jars me back to reality.
I want to love Hope not my false ideas about her! If I say I love Hope, but my ideas about her do not correspond to the Hope next to me, then my love has been misplaced.
This is even easier to do when it comes to God, since my motivations for fooling myself are so much greater.
The Creed, which is based on Sacred Scriptures, tells us which Jesus to love. When you love the God pointed out in the Nicaean Creed, you know you have found the right God. Your love is hopeful and not in vain. You are not worshipping the Jesus of Your Head or the God of the Movies instead of the God of the Bible!
The Creed is so harsh and exclusive, because if you make the error they are anathematizing you for worshiping a different God. If you say you love Jesus, but you end up loving Jesus of Hacienda Heights (I once met, name tag and all, the Jesus of Disneyland), that is not going to cut it.
Of course meeting the right Jesus is not enough, you have to love Him and accept Him as your Lord and Redeemer, but at least if you are Creedal, that you are talking to the right God.
If on the other hand, you are trust Jesus of Hacienda Heights, you are doomed no matter how sincere you might be. If you worship a Jesus who is not fully God, did not come in the flesh, or a Jesus who has one nature, then you might know someone like Jesus, but you don’t know the Lord.
That is a bad idea.
