Worship Notes

GRACE CAMP MEETING SERMONS - PRAYER AND INTIMACY WITH GOD

2011-04-10T13:52:00.000-07:00

The Lord met with us. Here are some great messages on prayer.

http://www.sermonaudio.com/search.asp?sourceonly=true&currSection=sermonssource&keyword=rockportbaptist&subsetcat=series&subsetitem=Grace+Camp+Meeting+2011

4th ANNUAL GRACE CAMP MEETING - ARNOLD, MO.

2011-03-29T12:15:00.000-07:00

4TH ANNUAL GRACE CAMP MEETING - ARNOLD, MO

Rockport Baptist Church is sponsoring their 4th annual
Grace Camp Meeting, April 7th - 10th.
We have been seeking the Lord diligently since the first of the year and are excited about what the Lord is going to do.

Here is a link to the church website where you can register. There is no charge for the conference, but we would like to know how many we will have to feed.

http://www.rockportbaptist.org/

Just click on the Grace Camp Meeting icon to register

Hear are some sermons from our speakers:

Curt Daniel

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=1030101035340

Mack Tomlinson

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=10311001692

Bob Jennings

http://www.sermonaudio.com/search.asp?SpeakerOnly=true&currSection=sermonsspeaker&keyword=Bob^Jennings

contact me for more info
Bob Schembre
314-807-6359

Parenting – Consistency, Consistency, Consistency

2011-03-25T06:42:00.000-07:00

(some practical biblical advice on training young children)

How does one train his child to be well-behaved? Certainly there are different temperaments that we have to deal with when raising children, but the bible gives us plenty of instruction as to how to normally raise a child. In this article, I want to offer some practical advice concerning training a child to obey.

Genesis 8:21 teaches us that the imagination of a child's heart is evil. Proverbs 22:15 teaches us that foolishness is bound in his heart. Children are naturally inclined to disobey their parents. God has given parents the responsibility to save their children from destroying themselves in sin. The method that God has given us is discipline. (Prov 22:15)

It is important that parents realize that their responsibility to lovingly discipline their children begins when they are born and ends when they leave home. For the sake of this article, I am going to focus on the early years.

Our children are conceived in sin and have a natural disposition to lie, disobey and rebel. (Psa. 51:5) Babies are born in sin and immediately are inclined to begin ordering their lives around themselves. It is the responsibility of the parents to train their children that there is a certain time to eat and a certain time to sleep. Good parenting involves quickly establishing as consistent of a routine as possible for their new baby. From birth to departure from the home, children need guidelines. These must always be administered with grace, but they must be firmly held to in love. It is the responsibility of the godly parent to begin teaching their children early that the life of the family is centered on Christ.

It is time consuming and exhausting to properly raise children. One the most important lessons that children must be taught is that they must obey. The only way that children learn to obey is if the parent teaches the child discipline and if failure to obey is rewarded with correction. The biblical means of correction begins with spanking, or to use biblical terms beating them with a rod. Of course, this does not mean beating as you would beat a wild donkey. Spankings are to be given with discretion and in love. But they are to be given firmly and consistently. The amount of correction needed depends on the offense.

In the early months of child-rearing, all of the discipline involves routine, including feeding, changing, playing and putting to bed. The parents must be consistent if they are to expect the child to ultimately learn that there are guidelines and rules in the home. Within 6 months of the child being born (some will naturally disagree here), the child will need to begin to understand more punitive types of correction. This will involve mainly a touch and a firm tone in response to negative behavior. Most mothers who breast-feed are keenly aware of the need for this when the child around this age or even earlier get their first teeth. Beards are also a good way to begin training children. When the child is old enough to understand the touch and negative tone, they should be trained to obey. Some gentlemen think it is great to have their beards pulled upon, but when the child gets a little older it is not so funny. (Ok, I am joshing a little here.) The point is that we must take our parenting seriously. Parenting is so much more than discipline, but without discipline our jobs will eventually become almost impossible.

The next stage of correction comes as the child begins to get around a little. This will be between the ages of 6 months to a year. By one year they should be getting around very well and if you haven’t begun to discipline them, parenting will begin to get much more frustrating. Parenting is teamwork and the father should ensure that when he is home, he is actively involved in raising the children. He should help in maintaining a loving atmosphere and a firm hand in correction.

When the child begins to do something that is not permissible, like grab a table lamp or stick their fingers in a light socket, it behooves the parent to maintain a consistent method of correction. Remind them of their former training with a firm touch and a firm tone, saying “NO”! Yelling will never do in the home and should not be permitted. (I only wish I had always kept this rule.) The tongue is a world of iniquity and must be kept in submission to the spirit of God. If the child repeats the negative behavior a firm swat should quickly ensue. Be very careful of using your hand to do this. First of all the Bible does always mention using a rod. (Proverbs 23:13,14) I have investigated this word on a number of occasions and am persuaded that the closest we can get to the instrument in mind is a small wooden instrument. We used a small wooden spoon. A small dowel rod between ¼ and ½ inch and no longer than one foot long would be appropriate in my opinion at this age. A small branch off of a bush with the rough places smoothed off would seem to fit here biblically also.

Normally this will be enough of a deterrent at first even through diapers, but before long the child will catch on that there isn’t much pain associated with diaper protection and will not take it seriously and may in fact take it as a kind of a game. I think the best course here is to remove the diaper and give a swat. I know that most parents will think this is too much trouble. I understand that, but we are required to be good stewards with these children that the Lord has given us and inconsistency will not do. It may be appropriate to swat the back of side of the thigh, but I am afraid that normally we should see that there is a place that the Lord made to be swatted.

The next stage we can guide our children is in remaining still and quiet for a period of time. Around one year old, I would begin having my children start learning to sit still during devotions. I would always have my bible on my lap on one side and the child on the other. My goal was to be able to read a certain portion of scripture with them sitting still. They were not allowed to squirm, get down or cry out. For any of these actions, I would give them a firm “NO” and the second instance would always be followed with a “NO” and a swat on the side of the thigh. This is normally all it took in order to read the few verses I had selected. If it continued, they would receive the same verbal command followed by a swat. After a couple days of being consistent, they would only need rare reminders.

Recently one of the young Christian mothers of our church told me about how she has “blanket time” with her baby. This means that the child is put on a blanket for a certain period of time, just a couple of minutes and they were not allowed to get off of the blanket, throw things or cry out. Each time the child would disobey there would be a swat and the time was gradually lengthened. I heartily commend this mother for her consistency.

That is what it is all about parents. Consistency. If you are not consistent and firm in your discipline, it will not work and will not be a blessing to your child. Laziness is not excuse. Fathers should take the lead in this matter of discipline and help the mother when they are in the house. Fathers are to take the lead in spiritual matters and in matters of discipline. Normally when there are discipline issues in the home it is because of the passivity of the father. Mothers likewise are required to be consistent. The child needs to know clear guidelines as to what is acceptable behavior.

When going to church, we always left our children in the churches nursery until such a time as I thought it was fair to require them to sit still for the required amount of time. This was up to my discretion as I got to know the temperament of the child, but it was normally around the age of two. This was a new experience to them so I prayed for those around me to have patience as I trained them. When I was in the pulpit, I allowed my wife to make her own decision about what she thought she was able to handle. The added benefit to having me in the pulpit of the small churches I was normally Pastor of at those ages was that I could look at the child and sometimes I would even give a verbal command while I was preaching. (the tone was such that they knew they were in trouble after church.)

But there never was a time in church, in our home, during devotions, at the dinner table or otherwise that our children were not clear on acceptable behavior. We had those riotous moments at young ages when one child would throw something from his high-chair across the table, but if this action was repeated it quickly became an action that we did not tolerate. In fact, the only time I remember our children being unhappy at the dinner table was when I was sinfully responding to some issue and would bring it to the table. I can’t tell you how deeply I regret those sinful times.

It is important to teach children how to behave properly. We could go to someone’s home for a visit and the children would remain seated in their places while we talked and visited. Before the age of two, guests would have to be patient, especially if we were the quests, while we trained our children to be quiet and to sit still. There were times when a limit was obviously reached and we would have to retreat to a separate room where the child usually came back from quietly sobbing. When this was in restaurants it was always encouraging when coming back from the rest-room or car to get stares from those in the restaurant who did not believe in discipline and would frown, while others may knowingly nod their approval. But we are required to be consistent and the place where we are should matter little. Our children profited from correction and began enjoying gathering with others. In fact, at early ages, they learned that there would come appropriate times when they could actually engage in the conversation and be a part of the community. Engaging socially was something that was first learned in our home and around quests. The only way that this is accomplished is through consistent discipline.

Perhaps next time I will cover later ages or answer questions some people have.

4TH ANNUAL GRACE CAMP MEETING - ARNOLD, MO

2011-03-24T08:53:00.001-07:00

4TH ANNUAL GRACE CAMP MEETING - ARNOLD, MO

ARE YOU ABLE TO BE REBUKED?

2011-03-24T08:50:00.001-07:00

If you have not been rebuked lately, what is wrong with you? Do your friends
think that you are so thin-skinned and fragile that you could never take any
negativity? Or are they simply in the habit of living out compromised lives
regardless of the consequences? Or is it simply that you are too prideful and
everyone knows that any attempt at correcting you would result in such a
prideful rebuff and defense that they are not prone to offer much of anything in
the way of advice.

According to the scriptures, rebuke, reproof and correction ought to be a part
of the Christian community. It should be exercised only when needed and in love,
but it should be exercised. I think that the main problem is that in our day of
egalitarianism no one wants to be told that they are less than they should be.
We insist only on affirmation. This is the cry of the day. But in the
Christian community this is to live in an unbiblical way.

Pride is at the root of it all. If you cannot receive a rebuke without being
defensive, you are prideful. Many people are adept at giving out correction,
but poorly receive it. This is to show that one has no understanding and is not
wise. (Proverbs 9:8)

In order to receive rebuke, one must be walking in humility and dependence on
God. We cannot have high views of ourselves and walk in wisdom. (Proverbs 10:17)
We will not be ready to receive needed correction and instruction if we think
that we have no need of it.

We must believe that God is Sovereign in order to receive rebuke. If we are
continually seeing men opposing us, it is fairly certain that we are
self-centered. God may indeed use men to sanctify us, but it is in seeing the
hand of God in our lives rather than mere men opposing us that we are able to
rest in His Sovereign power and humbly receive whatever instruction comes our
way, so that we might carefully weigh its truthfulness. (Proverbs 1:25; Proverbs
12:1)

We must understand that we have a great need to learn and gain understanding.
One who chafes at personal instruction is prideful. He is rebellious and lacks
faith. He is living a life of self-sufficiency thinking that he has all that he
needs to live. This person is in danger. He is spiritually blind to his own
deficiencies and is not able to see his need, therefore when correction comes,
his first inclination is self-preservation. He is merely preserving his image,
defending his perception of himself and ensuring that the façade is never torn
down.

How do you receive a rebuke? How do you accept correction? How do YOU receive
reproof?

If you are not able to, then you must repent of your pride and humble yourself
before God that He may exalt you in due time.

4TH ANNUAL GRACE CAMP MEETING - ARNOLD, MO

2011-03-21T20:10:00.001-07:00

Proper Attitudes for Worship Ecclesiastes 5:1,2

2011-03-07T09:41:00.000-08:00

Prepare Your Soul to Receive a Word from God – Just as we should be sure when entering our homes to clean our shoes, so when we enter for worship should we come in repentance.

Our Conversation – I have recently been thinking about the difference between fellowship and socializing. The world can socialize, but only the church can fellowship. Our fellowship is to be around Christ. When believers gather, if their conversation is never about Christ, there should be much heart searching. How profitable is our conversation? How much more should we be concerned about our conversation when preparing to meet with God together for worship. Often church gatherings are abuzz with much that is trivial, but little that concerns the Lord. One would think that we are preparing for a church bazaar or circus rather than a time of worship. We are often merely socializing rather than fellowshipping. There is often much frivolity and little heart preparation for worship. Friendly and caring greetings and welcomes are appropriate. Even joyous laughter on occasion concerning the goodness of God, but I fear that far too often what is on our minds and lips involves the Lord very little.

Our hearts should have been prepared by prayer and should be set on spiritual things and not on the world and the things of it, that will choke the word and it will become unprofitable. Often when such subjects are brought up there is a sinful response of pride. “We will not listen to such admonitions but will rather enter “our church” just as we wish. “We only have a little time to fellowship” is often heard. And which would be fine if it were true fellowship around Christ.

We little discern what is about to take place, what spiritual warfare is already occurring when we enter the building we have set aside for the gathering of the body for worship. Even as we prepare to leave our homes the enemy begins to cause strife and create distractions. So few seem to have time for prayerful preparation for worship and allow themselves to be profited little. It is important what we “guard our steps” when we go to the place of worship. Our thoughts should be composed, quiet and attentive to all that is being said. How will we train our children to quiet themselves for worship if we ourselves are undisciplined of spirit?

This is to say nothing of those with wicked hearts who enter the building to gossip, slander and judge the saints. We could say much of this sort of ungodliness, but suffice it to say that this is what happens with foolish hearts when there is an unrestrained general gaiety defining the conduct of the saints and the subsequent little prayer and meditation on the things of God. The pastors often have to call for the quiet of the assembly, not because of anything spiritual and normally not because of anything other than trivial and unimportant communications that have little or nothing to do with preparation for worship. This is merely a sign of the lack of comprehension or care of spiritual things. Much that occurs in worship completely flies over the heads of the distracted saints and both the regenerate and the unregenerate leave the building unchanged and uncaring. They have fulfilled their weekly obligations and are content at having done so. The consequent sacrifices of praise are void of reality and ring merely of shallow souls wishing that they could have the benefits of such things as would be only the result of a work of God should they truly have a heart that desires it so much that they would cease the commotions of the worldly mind and lay themselves low before the Lord in repentance.

The preacher calls this the sacrifice of fools.

James 1:21; 1 Peter 2:1,2

THIS IS WAR!

2011-01-24T11:26:00.000-08:00

Please take the time to listen to this important exhortation concerning prayer.

What A Sentimental Time Christmas Is :)

2010-12-28T11:06:00.000-08:00

Well, over the “Christmas season” did anyone include the story of all of the children being slaughtered in Bethlehem? If not, why not? Why is this part of the Christmas story not as much a part of the Christmas story as everything else?

Can I suggest one reason we don’t include the slaughter of every baby in Bethlehem? It is because of the sentimentality associated with the season. Much like Easter, we want to emphasize the positive aspects of the gospel (if we include the gospel at all) and leave out the fact of, well, sin. He came to die for our sins.

People are more thrilled with presents under the tree and a white Christmas than that the sin that engulfs them has separated them from the very God who became man.

May I suggest that next year the color red remind us of the slaughter of all of the babies in Bethlehem 2000 years ago and of course, the blood of Jesus that cleanses from sin. Of course, the slaughter of babies doesn’t jell with the sentimentalism that is demanded once every 12 months. Neither does the demand of the Lord to forsake family for Him.

I am against sentimentalism for the sake of sentimentalism, but not against celebrating the incarnation. It’s something I do year round. In fact, almost daily I suppose.

But frankly, the sentimentality and all of the gushy emotions kind of nauseate me. Especially when I am tempted to get caught up in it myself. Can I suggest the need for a bit of self-examination? Perhaps this love of the sentimental is simply an attempt to make up for a lack of true feeling for God year round? Perhaps the tiny bit of passion one has for Christ needs seasons of sentimentality to bring out the truth that sentimentality is all that is involved in this relationship. Kind of like the dude who tattoos a girls name on his arm as if he could express his love and all that he is prepared to do for her by that mere act. This usually precedes the total abandonment of the forlorn lass by the irresponsible chump. If he really loved her he would live sacrificially for her. He would marry her.

I say that sentimentality coincides with Radical Egalitarianism because after all, there needs to be some way for us all to feel good together if we are to call ourselves Christians. If you really want to celebrate the incarnation, Jesus said to take up your cross daily and die. I know, it’s easier to pray a prayer, go to church and be especially caring around Christmas time. (gag)

an emotional and passionate person

(not giving props to the one who started the thinking for this post in order to protect myself)

The Effect of Radical Egalitarianism in Discipleship

2010-12-20T17:41:00.000-08:00

The other day in a discussion with a brother we were talking about the difficulties of discipleship and he pointed to the problem of radical egalitarianism. I have been reading since then and have to give props to Wildavsky, Piper, Grudem and others. I have more thoughts on this subject, but have attempted to boil them down in the following one page essay. I have some cross-cultural thoughts hinted at, but will save them for future discussion. I will gladly discuss any suggestions that are seriously thought out.

The effect of radical egalitarian thought on the hierarchy of wisdom naturally developed in Christian education and institutions has spawned a generation of very need individuals who don't realize their own needs. I have noticed when discipling young men that it is all too common to have responses to the impartation of wisdom that show a stubborn refusal to open oneself up to that level of learning which is acquired only in humility and asking the very questions that when answered would enlighten one with true wisdom. Proving that the source of such a fountain of pride is radical egalitarian thought is the prevalence of a refusal to be a servant in small things. The cry of “equality” has been so loud in the atmosphere of modern liberalism that anything associated with authority and hierarchy is denounced as evil or unjust. How justice came to be viewed in the institution of learning is not a puzzle. The worldly thought that equality is the highest good has replaced Gods’ glory being the highest good. Respect and honor are demanded before the floor is even scrubbed well. The thought that we should evolve into a society where scores are not even kept at ball games has crept into the church resulting in a despising of every kind of God-given authority and has given way to the demand of the democracy of comfort in the midst of theocracy.

The most common ideas in the world resulting from radical egalitarianism are feminism, the gay rights movement, affirmative action and quotas. Responsibility is the principle that is frowned upon in these discussions of course, because radical individualism demands that we not be put in the uncomfortable position of having to earn our way before enjoying the privileges of the way. The family is the first institution to suffer from liberal and radical thought. Every last vestige of the Christian family is being torn at by the media and other proponents of modern liberalism. For years now, TV show, movies and commercials have attempted to mock the authority of the home. In particular, because of the influence of feminism, another spawn of radical egalitarianism, the father in the home has been made the brunt of jokes, insinuations and parody.

Radical egalitarianism refuses to acknowledge that one segment of society or individual is superior to another. We have somehow been deceived into believing that all men being created equal ends with all men being equal. But where men end up in life involves time, experience, responsibility, learning, investment, blood, sweat and tears. Too many nowadays have been deceived by modern thought and have knowingly or unknowingly bowed to the God of radical egalitarianism to their own detriment. They will not have anyone telling them what to do and they will not acknowledge their need to learn. Thus we have a generation of know-it-alls climbing up our ecclesiastical ladders taking places that will possibly result in not only their own fall, (I have seen it far too often), but the fall of many of those unfortunate enough to end up under them.

Now lest some misunderstand, I am not talking of the kind of egalitarianism displayed by Jesus when He taught us that the servant is the highest, or that the first is the last. In using these words and in teaching of the equality of service in the body, he was not denigrating authority, nor dispelling the fact that there are those in society who have more and those who have less. Jesus was and is in fact the same Sovereign God who has ordained that such things be as they are. Agreed, that the ground is level at the foot of the cross. Please understand that I am attempting to address the attack on the family and the church in their ministry of teaching that has resulted in children demanding to be addressed and thought of as adults before they have even had the time to experience the results of taking responsibility seriously.

Thoughts?

I Drank in the Scriptures in the Bahamas

2010-12-20T06:21:00.000-08:00

Awright, so we just got back from the Bahamas. A week of laying out on the beach reading the Word on my new Kindle. and sleeping. and reading. and watching the ocean and the sun. and having the butler bring nachos and a drink for the wife and I. Well, it wasn't heaven by any stretch of the imagination of course. It was kind of dream like though.
All the while we were there, Faith and I both sensed a longing. For the place where our souls belong. For relaxing and reading the tropical climate was great, but it's not what we were created for. God was no closer to us.
Sure, not having a phone, )with the exception of the the .50 texts my wife sent and the two accidental international pocket calls I made for 10 minutes), was great. No electronics except my Kindle for reading. ( I am not bragging about the Kindle) (by the way, have you ever tried something like this? it is awesome) anyway, we really enjoyed being away and I feel so refueled that I feel dangerous. Sinners better get out of the way if you don't want a full dose of the gospel.
But now, I want to go ahead and read Radical by David Platt, which I was hesitant to read right before we left on our 30th anniversary tropical vacation. (our first ever)
I think he is talking about forgetting all about the American Dream and hotly pursuing Christ. Actually, I did suspect that maybe the Lord was calling me to missions in the Bahamas for a little bit. I even inquired into it a bit and was told that I would be wonderfully embraced by pastors down there if I should come to teach and preach. Anyway, the Lord did not lead further. shucks.
I am glad to be back to the church family that God has called me to. We had a good worship gathering yesterday with a great message on missions from one of our interning missionary families, the Phleegers.
Had a good time in counseling with one of our church families in the afternoon where God is evidently working. and then visited our dear sister, Nancy Ponder in the hospital. She is in much pain and is asking for the Lord to take her on home. To hear her moan in pain and then smile as she praised the Lord and prayed together and she would say Amen and then begin moaning again. It is these times where I feel led to pray that the Lord would give grace and usher the saint into His presence as quickly as possible. I pray that for Nancy.
So, we are back. I not sure we really went with the exception that I feel rejuvenated and we have pictures.
So, most of my time there, Faith will attest, I read. and I read. I couldn't get enough of the Word. There are seldom times like that when I can just drink in the Word for hours. But why not? It seems to me that if a Pastors job it primarily the ministry of the Word and prayer, how could he not spend hours each day reading the Word. Well of course, hours of praying is what it seems like the ministry demands. You can do so much more through praying than anything else. Well, with my business, the demands of being a faithful husband, father and grandfather, I am going to set my heart on a continued drinking in of the Word and long hours of prayer. That is what I long for until I reach my home in heaven. Some things will be left undone. And that is OK. If I can' t daily drink in the Word and spend quality time with my Father in communion, then I might as well resign from being a Pastor. And I am being realistic.

The Incredible Rush for Christmas Now

2010-12-07T07:39:00.000-08:00

We see it every year in the world. Before Thanksgiving has even begun the rush to advertise amidst the barrage of the false images of what the birth of Christ really meant assaults us. We are reminded continually of the crass commercialism we will experience for the next four weeks that will make an attempt to dull our senses to the remembrance of a sacred day which should be holy and should fill us with joy. But it seems to blaze by. Amidst the rush of shopping, decorating and preparing we lose the real experience and implication of anticipation.

Christmas used to be so simple and sacred. But we have forgotten how to wait. Our society teaches us that we should have everything now. As soon as young people marry nowadays, they want the same things it took their parents years to enjoy. They want it all now. They want that fullness of experience that can only be enjoyed after years of suffering and waiting. We would rather bypass the suffering. And waiting? That was something born of necessity in years gone by. Now, we want what we can have and we want it now.

I am afraid that attitude has crept into the church. Every year, once every twelve months, people clamour for certain experiences. We want certain songs sang. Never mind that many of the songs labeled as “Christmas songs” could be done much better, many are weak theologically and some are downright unbiblical. We just want that feeling that singing these songs bring us and we want it all month long. We want our month of Christmas.

Churches have for years experienced and taught the necessity of waiting and anticipating the coming of the Messiah. Some call it advent, the few weeks before December 25^th. Now I am not in favor of religious trappings, but the biblical notion of waiting certainly appeals to me in my somewhat advanced age. Waiting is something that God uses in many situations. There is a maturing process that only waiting can accomplish.

We are a people who are waiting on the coming of the Lord. We are to anticipate His coming and hope for it, but we are to wait. We are to endure. We are to fast and pray. Long. We are to wait on Him. We are to suffer. And when He comes, oh how glorious, how precious, how sweet.

This is the way to truly celebrate Christmas. As it happened. The Israelites had waited the coming of the Messiah with anticipation. For years they had suffered. And then He came. He was born. The Deliverer was here.

There is something about the coming of Christ that wonderfully appeals to me. The culmination of waiting? The enjoyment of the promise I had embraced? The receiving of the gift? The shock of the world? Oh, one day the world will bow to my King. One glorious day.

In a couple weeks, we will meet on Christmas Eve and enjoy celebrating together. It will be a sacred moment. Standing in our church in a circle, holding hands and rejoicing that we are safe in Christ. That evening for some, for us the next morning on Christmas day, the family will sit in a small circle and read about that glorious day 2000 years ago when our Savior came to earth in the body of a baby. It will once again be holy. It will be meaningful. It will be special. One thing that makes it special every year is the waiting and the anticipation. Celebrating advent in our own way. This is not Christmas month. This is advent, but Christmas Day is coming.

Wait.

1 Thessalonians 1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come..

Psalms 27:14 Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

2 Thessalonians 3:5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.

Romans 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

Romans 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

Empty Nothings

2010-12-01T07:19:00.000-08:00

Life is filled with them. In fact, most of the world is made up of them. Promises that can't be fulfilled. Intentions that are not acted on. Mirages that never materialize. The bible teaches us that life itself is a vapor. yet throughout their lives men pursue that which is nothing. Along the way they experience nothing because nothings are empty. The mirages they bask in serve to merely enlarge their appetites, voraciously hounding that which fills, yet they are never truly at peace and satisfied.
Sin itself, which is something, can only provide emptiness. Before God it is something. It is something hideous and horrible in fact. It is impossible to see how utterly horrible sin is unless you can see how beautiful Christ, the Savior from sin is. It was He, who fills all, who took upon Himself all of the terrible weight of your sin. And He is the only one who could do it. Taking upon Himself your sin was so weighty that it caused a rift between the Father and the Son. But He did it because of love.
All that sin and the world promises turns out to be nothing and all that the heart of man truly longs after is found in the One who alone can truly fulfill.
I urge you to turn to Christ. Cease your persistent pursuit of nothings which are empty.

Worthy Is The Lamb

2010-11-23T08:15:00.000-08:00

My son preached this message this past Sunday at Karis church in Columbia and I wanted to share it. It is about worship from Revelation 5 and greatly magnifies the Lord.

Worthy Is the Lamb

God's Remedy for the Troubled Soul

2010-10-25T19:03:00.001-07:00

This is a sermon preached this past Sunday at Rockport that I hope will truly be a help to a troubled soul.

True Gospel Affection in the Soul of Man

2010-09-25T11:45:00.000-07:00

A Plain gospel message. Preached this past Sunday at Rockport Baptist church in Arnold, Missouri.

True Gospel Affection in the Soul of Man

More Thoughts on Worship Preparation

2010-09-04T06:01:00.000-07:00

Ecclesiastes 5:2-3

Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool's voice with many words.

So many have not been taught well concerning spiritual etiquette when gathering for worship. Please consider God's word concerning this.

My first thoughts are on the word "rash". This Hebrew word "bahal" is translated "trouble" 17 times and "haste" 4 times. Think here of Jesus words to Martha. "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary." In the context of this passage our thoughts here would be concerned with reverent consideration rather than a hasty rushing in accompanied by babbling about much of nothing. Seeking the Lord quietly would do so much for our hearts preparation for worship.

So often we appear so concerned to tell all our troubles, yet we have spent little time telling the Lord about our troubles and preparing our hearts for exactly the divine encounter in His Word that may be the answer we are seeking.

This passage also spoke to me about the reasonableness of well prepared worship. Shooting from the hip is not more spiritual than well thought out, prepared and contemplative worship. It was actually Aaron hastily making the golden calf, Nadab and Abihus' hasty and irreverent offering and King Saul's brazen worship that brought the judgment of God. We are approaching GOD! We especially, as people of grace, ought to be so filled with gratitude that all we can think about is, "I am coming before the King." "I am coming to worship my King." "He is the One who has set me free." "We have an audience with the KING!"

It's time we stop looking like we are so concerned about what others think about us and focus on the reality of what is taking place as we gather to worship the LORD, the MASTER, the KING! (and that would of course necessitate arriving in a timely manner and being sensitive to distractions during worship that would draw attention away from Him and His WORD! This also requires grace and wisdom.)

There is a real difference between being sensitive to the Holy Spirit and being carelessly unprepared when gathering before the LORD. But preparation is not only the responsibility of the Elders. We ought to be both prepared and yet subjected to His Lordship. He can do whatever He wants, and if our hearts are prepared, then and only then will we be ready to yield to Him. Personal preparation is so important here.
"God is in heaven and you are on earth" speaks of the fact that He is the Creator and we are the creatures. Coming boldly into the throne room never implies irreverence.
Let your words be few.

Then, when we have ended the service with prayer, it is appropriate to leave. It is not appropriate to leave before the last Amen. Let us be considerate to all. And let us then love those who are visiting, new comers, new members and those who are hurting, with true care, concern and prayer.

Preparing For Worship

2010-09-04T06:00:00.001-07:00

I gave a brief exhortation regarding preparation for worship at our business meeting yesterday. I thought I would briefly encourage further. My mentor sent me a few thoughts, which I have expanded upon.

Ecclesiastes 5:1

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil.

The concept of preparing for Worship seems lost in our busy lives. As if because God is a God of grace, we should feel fine to simply rush into His presence, having taken no thought as to how prepared we were for the encounter. As if preparation for worship was not a "real-life" need and trivial conversation with people were so critical to our spiritual lives that we ought not to leave it out. On Sunday morning we rush into the church, talk all the way through until the time we attempt to calm people down before the call to Worship and get them "focused on God", and then wonder why we didn't "sense the presence of God" this morning.

For the Puritans, preparing for worship started the night before. The Puritans were people concerned with being prepared for Worship. It was common for there to be prayer meetings on Saturday evening, simply in preparation for Sunday Morning.

The Westminster Confession states: "When the congregation is to meet for public worship, the people (having prepared beforehand their hearts thereunto) ought all to come…"
Certainly, some may give 10 or 20 seconds to prayer the morning of worship, but the question must be raised as to whether this is sufficient. We need for God to work in our hearts before the worship time ever begins.
It is God we are worshiping.

Perhaps we should consider the last few words in Ecclesiastes 5:1. "we don't know the evil we are doing".

Listen to the words of Stephen Charnock:

"Worship is an act of the understanding, applying itself to the knowledge of the excellency of God, and actual thoughts of his majesty….It is also an act of the will, whereby the soul adores and reverenceth his majesty, is ravished with his amiableness, embraceth His goodness, enters itself into an intimate communion with this most lovely object, and pitcheth all his affections upon Him" (Steven Charnock)

What is at the root of the matter is the condition of our heart. Do we even care? Our hearts need preparedness for worship. JI Packer said: "An aimless, careless, casual, routine habit of church-going is neither rational nor reverent."

Please hear this admonition. Beginning on Saturday evening, spend much time with God. Seeking His face, for His smile, crying out for the power of God on the preacher, exalting Jesus as Lord in your life, humbly submitting yourself to His supremacy, begging for His grace and for the display of His glorious majesty as we humbly and reverently gather to bow before His throne in worship, praise, prayer and preaching. We are not walking into Walmart, neither are we entering the house of God. The people of God, His house, are gathering together for Worship. When we gather, be preparing your heart for this awesome occasion. Be ready to stand trembling, yet joyfully lavishing praise on the One who has raised us from the dead and given us life.

COUNSEL FOR HUSBAND AND WIVES

2010-08-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have been so busy that I haven't had the time to take on my blogs. I have three and they have all been neglected. I am determined to keep them open and get back to them this fall.
Until then, I had the opportunity to preach at Rockport again, and after reading various Puritans, I decided to preach on Eph 5:33 for the edification of our couples.
Most of the points are borrowed but are still good. This would be good counsel for most marriages that are having trouble.

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?sermonid=82310163320

How to Tell You're Born of God

2010-06-09T11:45:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share this. Not that I am a fan of my own preaching. I'm not. Really can't stand to hear myself. but I think the truth in this message is desperately needed in the church today. So, I will share it. Please forgive my forwardness, but hopefully you can share it with someone who may need to hear it.

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=69101254582

Abide

2010-04-08T07:35:00.001-07:00

Colossians 1: 9

Dear Sons and daughters,

Backing up and bit and looking at Paul’s prayer for the Colossians, my prayers for you are certainly like Paul’s. He says that he did not cease to pray for them, that they might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. He is thinking about the first few verses where he thanked God for the hope that came to them. And that of course is the first thing that God must do, is to give us hope in our hearts. And that only happens when God changes our heart. We can’t do it ourselves, and that is why I pray that God might do it in you.
His theme in both passages involves the bearing of fruit. First, the fact that the hope that comes to us causes us to bear fruit, and secondly, that it is God’s will that we bear fruit. Now, you ask, how can we do that? We can’t!
Try as you may, muster up all the desire you can, you will never be able to bear fruit. But God can. Jesus said, “abide in Me, and I will abide in You. As the branch can not bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.”
Abide – translated to remain 16 times; to dwell 15 times
3306 menw meno men’-o
a root word;
AV-abide 61, remain 16, dwell 15, continue 11, tarry 9, endure 3, misc 5; 120
1) to remain, abide
1a) in reference to place
1a1) to sojourn, tarry
1a2) not to depart
1a2a) to continue to be present
1a2b) to be held, kept, continually
1b) in reference to time
1b1) to continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure
1b1a) of persons, to survive, live
1c) in reference to state or condition
1c1) to remain as one, not to become another or different
2) to wait for, await one

In other words, the only way that anything positive spiritually is going to happen is if you spend time with Jesus. That means talking to Him in prayer. And reading His word. The short time it takes you to read this paper is a good start. Then, just spend a few moments talking to Him about this. As you do, pray that He will direct your path this day. That you will be sensitive to His leadership, see what He is doing, and follow Him by faith, knowing that He is perfect in all His ways, no matter what it looks like to You.

Let me try to simplify. My prayer for you, like Paul’s for the Colossians, is that you would be filled with the knowledge of what God desires for you. That you would see how God is involved in every aspect of your lives, and knowing Him and how He works will cause you to see His hand in everything so much more. And that you would come to understand how His works so beautifully flow together in one glorious purpose. He has a purpose for you. You are not an accident. There is a set out plan for your life that He is working out. Watch for Him! You will see it. And it is wonderful beyond comprehension.

All of my love,

Dad

Note to Children on The Lovingkindness of God

2010-02-24T15:12:00.001-08:00

Sons and daughters,
Well, there are just times that you have to drink in certain portions of scripture again and again. As I have poured out my heart to God for you this morning, I believe in the Lord. I believe that He is working in you right now and will continue to work in your hearts. I am in Psalm 107 once again re-reading these wonderful words and claiming them for my children. V. 6 says that they cried to the Lord in their trouble and He delivered them out of their distresses.
That is my hearts desire. That you are delivered out of your distress. Jesus is a Deliverer. That is His business. These people were hungry and thirsty..their soul fainted in them….THEN they cried to the Lord. That is the time to cry out to the Lord, and He will satisfy your soul and fill it.
There is nothing like just getting alone somewhere and crying out to the Lord. Weeping tears of repentance and at the same time tears of joy because you know that the Lord is near to them that are of a broken heart.
Read this Psalm, I have printed it for you, and see what type of Lord our Lord is. Yes, he allows us to go through tribulations because of our rebellion, but when we cry to Him He hears.
Oh, that my children would praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to them.
Look, He is able to brake the gates of brass and cut the bars of iron in two. He is able to brake bonds and to bring you out of darkness and the shadow of death. Did you know that when you are away from the Lord you are sitting under the shadow of death?
That is where some of you are right now. Do you know how that strikes fear into my heart?
He can make your storms to be calm and your waves to be still. And you will be glad to be quiet and He will bring you to your desired haven.
Whoever is wise, and will observe these things will understand the lovingkindess of the Lord.
Your Loving Dad

1 ¶ Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble
3 and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
4 Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city to dwell in;
5 hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.
6 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in.
8 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men!
9 For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
10 ¶ Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons,
11 for they had rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High.
12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help.
13 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart.
15 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men!
16 For he shatters the doors of bronze and cuts in two the bars of iron.
17 ¶ Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction;
18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death.
19 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.
20 He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction.
21 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men!
22 And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!
23 ¶ Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters;
24 they saw the deeds of the LORD, his wondrous works in the deep.
25 For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea.
26 They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight;
27 they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits’ end.
28 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.
29 He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.
31 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men!
32 Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.
33 ¶ He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground,
34 a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants.
35 He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water.
36 And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in;
37 they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield.
38 By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish.
39 When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, evil, and sorrow,
40 he pours contempt on princes and makes them wander in trackless wastes;
41 but he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks.
42 The upright see it and are glad, and all wickedness shuts its mouth.
43 Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

2010-02-24T15:12:00.000-08:00

Letter to My Children On Rebellion

2010-02-19T07:18:00.000-08:00

Good Morning Sons and Daughters,

Or whatever time of day it is that you are reading this. I imagine afternoon or evening.
Which reminds me. You all need to get into the habit of reading the bible every morning. At least one chapter. It would take all of 2-3 minutes on average; Sometimes one. And those very few minutes each day would impact your life dramatically if you were consistent.
I am amazed at how gracious God is with me. Psalm 106 reminded me through His patience with the children of Israel. It’s kind of a mini picture of the first five books of the Bible. Time and again God had been gracious with them, and yet they would come to a place where it seemed better to them to take another way. God would punish them, and they would return asking for mercy, and of course God gave it. Now don’t think that people didn’t die in the midst of all of this. They did. As a matter of fact, not a one of the children of Israel who started out the trip into to wilderness ever made it out. Their lives were vicious cycles of drifting from God into rebellion, experiencing His punishment, asking for mercy, receiving it; then wondering off into rebellion again, etc. ad nauseum.
Remember that scripture that says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end of that way is death.” Yes, God is merciful. I am surprised that I am still alive. Not that I have ever wandered off into blatant adultery, drunkenness, thievery, or rebellion. But that at fifty years old I still have too many times that my flesh is weak. I hate the flesh. But I love the Lord. And I pray that He will purify my heart and my mind so that you kids see more of Jesus in me by the time I die. I don’t want my life to be a picture of Psalm 106, but a picture of Jesus.
So my exhortation to you my dear, dear children, is to avoid the vicious cycle of rebellion that the children of Israel experienced and so died in the wilderness. Does your life seem like a wilderness from God right now? He is willing to have mercy and restore all that sin has taken. Yes, since He is a loving heavenly Father, there will be times of chastisement in order that you may learn not to stray. But if you cry out to the Lord, in due time, He will answer and come in power and glory. I have seen this kids. The Lord has come upon me in power. He has done this as I have cried out to Him for you. And He has assured me that He is working. For that I am eternally grateful.
1. Do not forget all that God has done in the past.(v.13) Gave you a Christian home. Gave you parents that love you. Allowed you to hear the gospel. Spared your life thus far. Kept you healthy thus far. Girls, He has given you healthy children. Gave you responsible husbands.
2. Be careful what you ask for (v.15) Don’t just desire a fun-filled life. Ask for a joy-filled life. Ask for God’s best for you in all things. Ask for God Himself.
3. Don’t forget God. (v.21) He is always there. He sees all. He knows all. And He loves still.
4. Do not complain against the Lord. You can complain to the Lord all you want. Just don’t complain about the Lord. We can’t even see what is going to happen tomorrow, much less today. And He can. He has already planned what is going to happen tomorrow.
5. Do not yoke up to unbelievers. (v. 28) I know this verse is about Baal, but the general teaching of separation from unbelievers themselves is throughout scripture. Believe me, they didn’t just happen upon Baal. He was introduced by the heathen around them. Come out from among them and be separate from them.
Kids, these are not rules, but principles to live by. Ignore them at your peril.
I love you.

Dad

Note to Children on the Fear of God

2010-02-18T09:51:00.000-08:00

My Dear Sons and Daughters,

In studying this morning Psalm 111, we are reminded of the perfect faithfulness of God and of the foundational theme of Proverbs, the fear of the Lord.
To walk in the ways of God and to follow the principles we are taught in the Bible is certainly the wisest course we could take. In fact, woe be to us if we walk another way. You merely need to go back two chapters to see the end of the man who opposes God in his ways.
There is such comfort in the fear of God. When you bow to the Lord of the universe, you know that you are bowing to someone who is competent, someone who is faithful, and someone who can be trusted. If your shrine lies elsewhere, then you can only rely on yourself, and in the end you will see that we are too feeble to be relied on to even handle one day apart from God.
It is simply awesome to think that God the creator is our Savior and our Friend. That is why we can both fall down before Him with tears in reverent awe and gleefully laugh as we rejoice in Him as He reveals Himself to us in power. The only way that we can possibly respond to the goodness and grace of God is to faithfully live by His principles.
If we refuse to live by His principles, then we are fools. That is why the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge. He holds the keys to life. Life is all about Him and what He is doing in and through your life. Ignore him and you will fall. Despise His reproofs and you will die.
The voices will be many and often which compel you to take another route, but you must be resolute. You can’t afford to walk in the ways of the unwise. You know better. (You have sat under an average of 150 sermons a year from your father for most of your lives…. ). Anyway, as you walk, keep your eyes on Jesus and listen to His voice as the Holy Spirit guides you. The resulting blessings that begin to rain down on you will refreshingly remind you that God is faithful. He has written your name on the palm of His hand. He numbers every hair on you head. Ignore His promptings only to trudge once again agonizingly slowly down the muddy ruts of pain and isolation from God. I say slow, because it is such a dreary way once the initial thrill of rebellion wears off, but it happens all of a sudden if you are not alert to what Satan is trying to do. Be sober. Be alert. Satan is like a roaring lion seeking to devour you and your children. Fight for them. You boys fight for your future wives and children. Do it now! Tomorrow you will be old men. Listen to your father. Fight my sons. Pray my daughters. Do not be deceived. I am praying for you and am confident that God is faithful.

Love,
Dad

Note to my Sons

2010-02-16T12:00:00.000-08:00

Some Observations Concerning Joy

My sons, it is with the greatest concern, love, tender care and fatherly emotion that I write to you concerning your present and future experience of joy. I write this, not because you don’t know joy, but because I fear that at the very least, my example has not been one of consistent joy. I assure you, that the times that you have observed me in a state of anxiety or fretting has only been caused by my own sins.
I do know, having observed you very closely, with the eye of a paternal intensity not unlike a father over the crib of a badly injured newborn babe, that there are times when you do enjoy the experience of joy and there are times that you do not. What concerns me is not something that I have misdiagnosed or misinterpreted. I am no novice when it comes to my children. I have studied them all of their lives and have been keenly sensitive to every wisp and movement that affects them. Some may say that perhaps this kind of fawning observation is unmanly, or not fatherly, but I cannot help overseeing my offspring in a way that causes me to be in continual prayer, concern and care.
I feel like I have set you free to fly, but that in some ways I have clipped your wings. The kind of love that I have for you, I feel, is unusual. I don’t see it in a lot of men for their children, yet they proclaim that it is a sort of tough love that kicks the nestlings from their homes to survive on their own. Perhaps, but at least these same nestlings should be adequately trained and equipped to handle the various aspects of independent life necessary to prosper in all sorts of circumstances. In that I have fallen short, and have thereby clipped your wings. Not to worry though, because you have sprouted fine on your own, and have learned and are learning the hard way to fend for yourselves, God having slowly restrained me from gathering you under my wings against your will, you both being men of God who yearn to live free. Free from restraint, but also free from sin. It is this area that I want to address.
The times of joy that I have most often observed you, not to put you both in the same category, because you are both so different yet you do struggle with some of the same sins, are times when you are out of your ordinary element. By that I mean that you are away from home and are with those that are not your family. This is partially unfair in that we have had thankfully not a few times of delightful fellowship with only our own family in glorious discussion of the things of God, which times have sustained my life.
But having lived with you for the past few months, and that, under strained financial circumstances, I have concern for you future families. It may not always be well, as I have stated in another letter, with our economy, even though God’s economy is what we actually live under. You may often have your character tested, and this same character must be iron-clad before your family. That is what the times you are going through right now are for. There are going to be people depending on you, and you must show your wife and children that you are trusting implicitly in the ROCK, who cannot be moved.
I have observed the leak of joy from your lives, even though my observations are tainted and cannot be fully trusted, because I only see the outward man. But I do see your demeanor around your family, and that demeanor will affect the whole family. Not that you are to live for the happiness of others, but others’ happiness is often tied up with yours, and that will be perfectly clear to those others, when you are the head of your home.
So let me cut to the chase. The absence of joy often means the presence of or a struggle with sin. We are taught that in order to overcome our sins, we must walk in the Spirit. One of the fruits of the Spirit is joy, the others being of equal value. Love, peace, long-suffering, self-control, etc. As we walk in continual and humble obedience to His leadership, and submission to His will, and yieldedness to His presence, His affect in our lives will be the fruit we bear of love, joy, peace, etc. I say again, we simply cannot walk after the flesh and have joy. It is impossible, because joy is a fruit of the Spirit. And if it is a fruit of the Spirit, then it is not something that we can call up at will. It is something that we live in. My sons, walk in the spirit, and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. This is a lifelong lesson, but something that we must take up everyday and wage war about. I know that I am preaching to the choir, and to myself. Painfully aware of that in fact, but your loving Dad is thankfully, still growing in grace, and still has a fiery desire to see my sons full of joy. Don’t get me wrong, I want you to also walk in sorrow for your sins, but godly sorrow results in repentance and the resultant joy. The sorrow of the world works death.
I wish to see my boys know the full joy of the Lord, as I know that you have known. I simply want it for you more, and I want it for your future families. I want you to be overcomers, conquerors, warriors, who can lead a family to the fountain of joy. Otherwise, I feel that you may taint your offspring more than I have tainted mine. You both have strong personalities, lots of talent, leadership capabilities out the wazoo, and limitless possibilities. So….you are on dangerous ground, being heirs of pride. My sons, cast your all once again, and every day on Jesus. I am so…so proud of you both, but I must hasten to add that it is a humble and thankful response to God rather than true pride.

Letter to My Children - 2nd

2010-02-11T08:46:00.000-08:00

Well Dear Children,

How my heart is enlarged for you. As I pour out my soul to God on your behalf this morning, my prayer is that you would experience the reality of the presence of God in such a way as to change you forever.

There are times that a child of God slips, and at such times he will find that God is there. And that God understands. Psalms 103:14 tells us that “He knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.”

In other words, the Lord knows the foundation of our thoughts, actions and intentions. He knows what we are made of, what we have experienced, what we have been taught, what we have grasped and haven’t grasped. He knows the basis upon which we act and speak. And he knows that he made us from the dust of the ground and he doesn’t have expectations that are out of the realm of our ability to fulfill.

He is a merciful God. In fact, v. 17 of that same Chapter tells us that God’s mercy is from everlasting to everlasting upon those that fear Him.

There will never be a time that one of His children is not able to receive mercy. Sometimes we will feel differently. As if we have sinned too much to go to God with it. But that is a deceptive feeling. The truth is, if we are God’s children, then every time we sin we can go to God with it and ask for forgiveness. In fact, we must go to God with it. Where else can we go?

Do you not think that I struggle with the same sins as you do? Yes, we are all made of the same dust. And we have very much the same points of reference in which to live our lives. All that I have learned I have taught you. How much you have grasped, I don’t know. That is the difference. But certainly I have had to make much use of the mercy of God, which fount thankfully never runs dry for the believer. His mercy is indeed from everlasting to everlasting upon those that fear Him.

Read that whole chapter of Psalm 103 and you will find comfort in the mercy of God. And then cry out to Him that He will give you His mercy. And He will. He is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in mercy. Oh that His mercy would flood the lives of my children and that they would flee to Him for refuge. He will take you in and comfort you. He will rescue you from the power of sin and self and the ultimate despair that sin will take you to if you let it.

Remember, He has come that you might have joy. And that you might have LIFE.

And God is going to give it to you. I know this. Drink of it deeply! Children drink of the riches that God has for you right now.

Your loving Dad

Two Young Street Preachers Murdered!

2010-02-09T10:01:00.000-08:00

Two men preaching religion shot to death in Boynton Beach

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/crime/two-men-preaching-religion-shot-to-death-in-211257.html

These men were martyrs. They were men of God who gave their lives proclaiming the gospel in a situation they understood could very well bring death. They had been part of gangs and knew that the results of their mission to bring the gospel to the streets may very well end in their deaths, but they went anyway. Day and night preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Would to God that we had some preachers with the holy boldness of these young men. As a missionary in New York City for seven years, I know what it is like to go into the darkest parts of the city to proclaim the gospel. Only nowadays it is even worse.
Lord give us more young men who are willing to lay down their lives and go to their Jerusalems, their Judeas, and to the uttermost parts of the earth to give their lives. It is going to take the blood of countless martyrs on the streets of the middle east to see the kingdom furthered. Right now, it is the nationals who are giving their lives. May the Lord call us further into lives of death for the cause of Christ. Even if it means our literal death.
May we not forget these two young brave warriors.

What Kind of Preachers Do We Need?

2010-02-09T09:54:00.000-08:00

"There must appear a new type of preacher. The proper, ruler-of-the-synagogue type will never do. Neither will the priestly type of man who carries out his duties, takes his pay and asks no questions, nor the smooth-talking pastoral type who knows how to make the Christian religion acceptable to everyone. All these have been tried and found wanting. Another kind of religious leader must arise among us. He must be of the old prophet type, a man who has seen visions of God and has heard a voice from the Throne. When he comes (and I pray God there will be not one but many) he will stand in flat contradiction to everything our smirking, smooth civilization holds dear. He will contradict, denounce and protest in the name of God and will earn the hatred and opposition of a large segment of Christendom." A.W. Tozer

Three Simple Questions for Fathers

2010-02-08T10:44:00.001-08:00

Father’s, Where Is Your Heart?
Proverbs 4:23

1. Is your heart__________ __________to your wife?
Eph 5:25; Col 3:19

Be not _____________ against them

2. Is your heart __________ to your children?
Col. 3:21; Mal 4:4-6

3. Is your heart __________ ___________ God?
Is 29:13; Matt 6:21; Col 3:3

A Letter To My Children

2010-02-05T04:41:00.000-08:00

Dear ones,

I want you to think for a minute about what real wisdom is. I have gone back to Psalm 111:10 once again. There is so much there. How my heart longs that you would fear God…..that you would shun the wisdom of the world and fear God. You can be wise in the things of the world and still fear God.

All the wisdom of the world, without the fear of God is vanity. All who live their lives without knowledge of the purpose they were born for are fools. Normally those who protect their own interest, have business savvy, and even are good at deceiving people for the purpose of gain, are looked at as wise. But even if that is true, their wisdom is unprofitable and twisted, because true wisdom manifests itself in fearing God.

“The beginning of wisdom”,….. that phrase has caused many to think that the fear of God is kind of like a key to wisdom, but that is not true. The fear of God is absolutely comprehensive in understanding God, living for God, knowing about life and what we are to do.

It is a fear of His goodness and grace. A fear of offending someone so good and kind as He is. Think for a minute about what Jesus did on the cross for you. How knowing before the world was created, that He was going to take on Himself the sins of His people, and that you were one of His people.(Of this the scripture is absolutely clear. God knew who were His, not because of some merit or choice He foresaw in them, but because of His own mere pleasure, He loved His own before the creation of the world.)

And so, He took all of your sins on Himself. Of course, He also took on himself the sins of every one of His own, but what is important right now is that you understand that He actually took your sins on Himself while hanging on the cross. And think about how He suffered. How they mocked Him in a mock trial, placing a crown made of thorns on His head and beating upon it with canes so that it pierced down threw His skin and into his skull. Slapping and punching Him in the face and tempting Him to guess who was hitting Him, so many threw the blows. Oh, He knew. Yet nothing could keep Him from what He was going to do for you. He knew that without His suffering, you would have no hope. How He took the beatings with the cat o’ nine tails. A cruel leather whip with many strands laced with broken glass, shards of pottery and metal. They whipped Him 40 times. Count them out. And with every whip the glass and shards buried themselves in His precious skin. Then the executioner would rip the strands out of His body tearing flesh and muscle until the Bible says that looking at Jesus, you could not tell He was a man. A man shaped form of blood and tissue walked up the hill of Calvary to hang on the cross for you. They spit on Him and tore out His beard on the way up. He fell and stained the pathway up the hill with the blood He was shedding for you. I can barely described the scene as they threw Him down, stretched Him out on the cross and pounded large Roman nails through His hands and feet. They raised Him up on the cross and He hung there, bleeding and gasping until He had shed down the cross all that was necessary for death to come and for the price of your salvation to be paid. Then He determined to die and said “It is finished.” I have barely scratched the surface, because He endured so much on our behalf. He was forsaken by the Father as He took your sins on Himself. Think of that. The Son of God, forsaken by God the Father, for you. The wages of sin is death, but Jesus was the perfect Lamb of God. He had no sins to die for. So the agreement between the Son and the Father was that the Son would take your sins and my sins on Himself and die for them. And pay for them He did. He died…..And then, He rose from the dead to prove that He was worthy to do what He did. And He is alive today and speaking to you right now. Gently calling you to love and adore Him. All of your sins are gone. Worship Him. Bow down and praise Him. Never intentionally sin. If you do, think about what Jesus has done for you in His goodness and repent. And then praise Him for His grace and goodness. Fear to offend such love.

Psalm 111:10 says that all who have a good understanding practice the fear of the Lord. What is it to practice the fear of the Lord? It is to live daily with the knowledge and memory of what He has done for you, is doing for you and will do for you. But mainly it is the knowledge of who He is. Read the entire chapter again. This is our God. Full of splendor and majesty. Never was there such a King. What a mighty God. And gracious! He is Holy and awesome. And He is our Lord and our God. Hallelujah!

Now, …look at the promises in Psalm 112 of the one who fears the Lord.

I love you all.

Why Baptists (Arminian and Calvinists of all kinds) Should Cooperate

2010-02-03T09:13:00.000-08:00

Well, considering some recent discussions in the convention, the subject was brought up again and we talked about opinions. Since I had written an opinion for the Missouri Baptist paper, the Pathway, I thought I would simply post it, but in an un-edited form:

Any discussion of “Missionary Calvinism” would be incomplete with mentioning such Calvinist missionary giants such as: George Whitfield, Charles H. Spurgeon, David Brainerd, Jonathan Edwards, Adoniram Judson, Luther Rice, Lottie Moon, Andrew Fuller, and the father of modern missions; William Carey. Yet, sadly we find that the vast majority of Southern Baptist do not even know that these great missionary men and women were even Calvinist.

Why All Of Those Who Are Baptist Should Cooperate Together In Spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I copied the following four statements from SBC websites. The second and fourth are duplications of point number 5 and 14 of the Baptist Faith and Message. The third is a duplication of points 4 and 5 of the original charter of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, commonly called the Abstract of Principles. I include these foremost in order to show that what both sides of the issues need to understand is that there is historical precedence set for the stand each side is taking. From my point of view, the historical Calvinistic stand is the least understood, and has been relegated to a hyper-calvinistic view, when in fact it is not.

(I.)
God's Purpose of Grace

Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. …All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end.

(II.)
God's Purpose of Grace
Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. It is consistent with the free agency of man, and comprehends all the means in connection with the end. It is the glorious display of God's sovereign goodness, and is infinitely wise, holy, and unchangeable. It excludes boasting and promotes humility.
All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, and bring reproach on the cause of Christ and temporal judgments on themselves; yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

(III.)
IV. Providence.
God from eternity, decrees or permits all things that come to pass, and perpetually upholds, directs and governs all creatures and all events; yet so as not to destroy the free will and responsibility of intelligent creatures.

V. Election.
Election is God's eternal choice of some persons unto everlasting life -- not because of foreseen merit in them, but of his mere mercy in Christ -- in consequence of which choice they are called, justified and glorified.

(IV.)
XIV. Cooperation
Christ's people should, as occasion requires, organize such associations and conventions as may best secure cooperation for the great objects of the Kingdom of God. Such organizations have no authority over one another or over the churches. They are voluntary and advisory bodies designed to elicit, combine, and direct the energies of our people in the most effective manner. Members of New Testament churches should cooperate with one another in carrying forward the missionary, educational, and benevolent ministries for the extension of Christ's Kingdom. Christian unity in the New Testament sense is spiritual harmony and voluntary cooperation for common ends by various groups of Christ's people. Cooperation is desirable between the various Christian denominations, when the end to be attained is itself justified, and when such cooperation involves no violation of conscience or compromise of loyalty to Christ and His Word as revealed in the New Testament.

It is not my intention in this article to debate the subject of Calvinism. For one thing, many of our church members today do not know what one means when they use the term "Calvinism". I prefer Augustinianism, if you must have an identifier, because Augustine first espoused what we now call Calvinism, in particular in his controversy with Pelagius. Pelagius made salvation a choice of the free will and did not favor as severe view of the fall as Augustine. (For us as Baptists, it might even be helpful to think in terms of “Spurgeon-ism”, since the much revered Charles Spurgeon held fast to these same truths)

Nowadays, most Baptists that I know hold to at least some of Augustines’ tenets, which are referred to as “The Doctrines of Grace”, or Calvinism.. They may call themselves 3, 4 or 5 point Calvinists if cornered, but normally prefer to simply be known as Baptist. The one point of Calvinism that most in the SBC adhere to is the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, commonly called "eternal security". None of those who have studied modern church history can deny that for years now, there have been at least two major camps within Baptist circles regarding Calvinism: those who emphasize limited atonement, or other points of Calvinism, and those who emphasize man’s free will, or other points of Pelagianism, (or actually today, semi-Pelagianism*) commonly now called Arminianism, after, the Dutch theologian Jacob Arminius. I would suggest a thorough study of both Calvinism and Arminianism, and most Baptists will come to the conclusion that, yes, indeed, they adhere to some of the points of Calvinism if not all. (I will deal with the question of hyper-calvinism, which is a different animal later.)
*Full blown Pelagianism emphasizes man’s will to such a degree, that atonement is not necessary. Men are not seen as born sinners. Instead it is thought that they are able to emulate Christ’s example and save themselves by their good works. Semi-Pelagianism, on the other hand, believes men are born in sin, but have the "capacity" to choose Christ of their own free will regardless of regeneration. Basically, in Calvinism, God regenerates a soul, giving him the ability to believe, and in semi-pelagianism, a sinner believes so that God can regenerate him. Can we not center our fellowship around the doctrine of justification by faith? Can we not focus on repentance and faith being the prerequisites for salvation, resulting in the forgiveness of sins and the imputed righteousness of Christ? These we all agree on. I am willing to uphold my integrity as to my belief in "how and why" faith comes, and yet allow the latitude for my brother to come to a conclusion in that area that is different than mine and still work together with the desire at hand, which is for as many as possible to come to faith. I agree with Spurgeon when he says that "we care far more for the central evangelical trusts than we do for Calvinism as a system; but we believe that Calvinism has in it a conservative force which helps to hold me to the vital truth, and therefore we are sorry to see any quitting it who have once accepted it. We are after all organized to aid in spreading the gospel around the world, not to police one another.

Again, my point is not to debate the subject at hand, but to merely suggest that we, at least we in the Jefferson Baptist Association, are probably not going to finalize a debate that has gone on for years, but that with mature, prayerful consideration of our responsibilities as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we can cooperate in order to spread the gospel around the world, and evangelize as many as possible in the short time that we have.

Defamation

Friends, it is impossible for us to have the blessing of God upon our lives if we insist on tearing down our brothers. While it is always helpful for us to study the scriptures and have healthy and sometimes fiery debate, we cannot slander our brothers in Christ or in anyway attempt to undermine their efforts for Jesus Christ and think that God will wink at our actions. On both sides of this issue, I have heard good men cross the line when speaking of those who interpret the scriptures differently when it comes to these doctrines. According to the Baptist Faith and Message, we all agree on the doctrine of election. We simply disagree on how a person arrives at that election. And that is alright. Our main focus in our association should be in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in order that all may hear. It is our job to get the gospel out to the ends of the world. Wherever the banner of our Savior is not being flown, we should be fierce about going, or supporting someone who is going. Surely we understand that the complexity of baptist life would require us to yield to our brothers often, in many areas. We have seen this at the national level. As long as we maintain doctrinal integrity that is within the historic beliefs of baptists, there should be no problem

Extremes

There are some positions on both sides of this issue that need to be pointed out. They should be defined and explained in laymen’s terms in order to facilitate our working together.

1. Hyper Calvinism – Hyper-Calvinism emphasizes divine sovereignty to the exclusion of human responsibility. The doctrine of hyper-calvinism would tell us that there is no need for the believer to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, because God has determined whom He would save and He will save them without our help. They would say, or at least imply that there is no reason for us to evangelize or send out missionaries. That we cannot sincerely make an offer of the gospel to everyone, because God has not chosen everyone to be saved. The result of this error is a “sit and wait” mentality. We’ll sit and wait until God gets around to saving his elect. But we will not do anything to call men to put their faith in Jesus Christ.
These all, we utterly reject.
A true Calvinist, like Spurgeon, or for that matter William Carey the father of modern missions, knows of the great responsibility we have to get the gospel out and to support missions. That hyper-calvinism is dangerous and unbiblical we would all agree. It is important to point this out. A Calvinist is not the same as a hyper-calvinist. As I said, from the Baptist Faith and Message, it is clear that we are all Calvinists to some degree. Broadus and Manley, where we get our "Broadman press", William Carey, that great missionary, Adoniram Judson, John Bunyan, B. H. Carroll, Alvah Hovey, A. H. Strong, J. P. Boyce, John L. Dagg, Richard Fuller, Jonathan Edwards, Luther Rice, Andrew Fuller, George Whitfield, Charles Spurgeon, Lottie Moon and many others were all "Calvinists" of the five point type. It is by no means a new invention that Baptists are Calvinists.
Most Baptists would agree with the total depravity of man, yet would insist that man is responsible to repent and believe the gospel. Many Baptist would agree with unconditional election, that God is at least infallible in His foreknowledge, define it how you will. Most Baptists with a few exceptions believe “once saved always saved”. That is called the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, or the last part of point 5 in the Baptist Faith and Message. Most all of us disagree strongly with Hyper-Calvinism, and reject the notion that we are not responsible to preach the gospel, evangelize and do missions. The apostle Paul rejoiced when the gospel was preached, even if it was because of contention. So should we. And we should never be those who attempt to thwart the work or ministries of those who by preaching HIS GOSPEL are calling men to repentance and faith and are attempting to do so around the world.

2. Easy-believism – Easy-believism is the notion that salvation entails a mere assent the the facts of the gospel message. It has been termed decisional regeneration or decisionism for short. Those who promote the man-centered tactics of easy-believism would maintain that all that is needed for a man to be saved is for him to affirm the truths of the gospel as they presented to him. It excludes the necessity for the conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit and the responsibility for man to repent.
These, most Baptists who would not categorize themselves as Calvinists, would reject as not belonging to the way of salvation. This type of evangelism is to be rejected outright as being no more than an art of manipulation akin to convincing men to join a club because of its benefits. Baptists have historically required both a true repentance from sin, which is followed by a life of biblical fruit, and a sincere faith in the merit and work of Jesus Christ alone which benefits are applied to the believer upon his conversion.
What is interesting is that those who are either 3, 4 or 5 point Calvinists were among those who began to see errors of decisionism and the lack of fruit in our Baptist churches because of it, and after identifying it, began to categorize many who are not of a like Calvinistic mind as belonging to the those promoting decisionism. This general attack in the direction of any church which held an altar call was unwarranted, and only resulted historically in a return of fire from the other direction, both sides being the worse for it.

The Invitation System

While many Baptists who hold invitations would never agree to the above definition of easy-believism, it is also easy to witness the actual methodology of those who do being practiced in some of our Baptist churches today. While most all degree of Calvinists in our association would insist on a clear call for sinners to repent and believe and for believers to examine their lives, some would also insist that there are other ways to extend that call than to ask people to “come down the aisle.” We have no record of any form of the modern invitation being given in the church for 1800 years, but there has always been a clear invitation given for sinners to repent and trust Christ. Some churches have used a counseling room as a place to go to for counseling if someone has sensed an immediate urge to repent and trust in Christ. I know of no Calvinists even of the 5 point type who would refuse to counsel anyone in the gospel if they “came down the aisle” of their church in obvious spiritual need.
On the other hand, I have seen a number of people converted in their homes after having heard the gospel and brought under conviction by the Holy Spirit. We all know that there is no secret formula that must be prayed when a person is converted, but that it is a matter of the heart.
Unfortunately, many of those who have invitations and have seen the result of many coming down the aisle who nevertheless show no lasting fruit in their lives(thus revealing the truth that they were never truly converted), have failed to be more cautious when dealing with souls. Calvinists have watched the efforts of mass evangelism, and the promotion of numbers and baptisms result in a flood of unregenerated people filling our churches and scores who either struggle with the assurance of their salvation or depend on a time they went down an aisle or prayed a prayer, rather than continuing to trust in the Savior they claimed to be saved by.
The modern resurgence of those who have gone back to the more ancient roots of Augustinianism is greatly populated by the very same people who were either brought up in some type of easy-believism, or once practiced it themselves. Some in this revolution, which those in it would term a “work of God”, have been tempted to classify even good Baptist ministries who adhere to neither a system of easy-believism, or Calvinism, as belonging in the easy-believism camp. This is wrong. I love my dear brothers who do not agree doctrinally with me, but are faithful in preaching the gospel and supporting world-wide missions, and name calling simply does not have a place in our baptist associations.

In my opinion, there is nothing inherently wrong with the invitation system per se. Many Baptist churches hold invitations, but are prayerful and careful in counseling with those who are being dealt with by the Holy Spirit. There is often time taken to pray, sometimes continuing on to an inquiry room, there is often scripture read, and there are times when souls are genuinely converted at the front of a church. The problem that many Calvinists see is when there is a mass of people who are led in a prayer, and then told that since they prayed that prayer they are going to heaven. I certainly don’t want to entertain any thoughts that would appear derogatory, but simply let me say that souls are worth spending time with. The Holy Spirit is more than able to finish any work that He starts. (Which does not mean that He does not use man in the process of evangelism, He certainly does.) The problem is when it is apparent that God is not working at all. There is no apparent conviction, no desire to forsake sin and no real faith in the finished work of Christ, but simply a desire to escape hell. I have many examples to site, but on the other hand, I could offer just as many examples where sinners were truly converted after the preaching of the gospel. They “came down the aisle” and were prayed with and God saved them. None of us doubt that! It is caution when dealing with souls that we demand, whether you deal with them during an invitation or during an appointment at a later time. It is entirely too common for those who deal with souls not to be familiar with the gospel and to attempt to convince an inquirer that, if they would simply “pray this prayer after me”, they would be converted. I don’t mind leading someone in a prayer, if I am convinced that they are praying from the heart. But if indeed The Holy Spirit has them under conviction and it is from the heart, and they have understood the gospel, would they not be saved regardless of whether they “prayed the right words” or not, if there was true repentance and faith in Jesus Christ?
Those are some of the concerns of Calvinists when it comes to the invitation system. The downside of all of this is that, many who don’t understand either the Calvinistic roots of our Baptist heritage and/or don’t understand biblical Calvinism (Augustinianism), are prone to identify the lack of an invitation or just the word Calvinist with Hyper-Calvinism. Even the most conservative of those adhering to an Augustinian position would have trouble with the positions they are often accused of having. Let me say loudly, “We are not hyper-calvinists.” I would like to hear just as loudly proclaimed on the other side; “we are not among those who promote easy-believism.” We believe in the Baptist Faith and Message. We believe in the perseverance of the saints. We believe in the doctrine of election according to grace.” Let both sides loudly proclaim, we reject both easy-believism and hyper-calvinism, and we shall be on solid ground. At least solid enough to labor together to get the gospel out, and send the saints around the world in mission endeavors.
Both easy-believism and hyper-calvinism are dangerous positions which should be rejected by all gospel loving, mission-minded Baptists. It is also just as harmful to the cause of Christ, for those on either side to classify our brothers to the extreme side. The desire to defame, destroy or undermine our Baptist brethren does not help the cause of the gospel, but rather hinders it. Hyper-calvinism is not defined by whether you are a 3, 4 or 5 point Calvinist, but by your response to those truths in regards to missionary endeavors, evangelism, and the responsibility and duty of man. Easy-believism is not defined by whether you have an invitation or not, but by how you respond to the need for the gospel to be taken seriously by both understanding that salvation is a work of God whereby the Holy Spirit brings conviction of sin upon a sinner bringing him to repent and believe without doing any damage to his will. Understanding that salvation is a work of God will not only give the confidence needed to clearly preach the gospel, but will result in a reliance on the power of God in conversion rather than the ability of man. Not that persuasion and convincing is not a part of the art of preaching, but that we rely on the power of God in all of these things.
Human reasoning entering into the debate.
On both sides of this issue I have both heard and read men using human reasoning in order to justify what they believe. I don’t believe that is necessary or warranted. Do I believe the debate is necessary? Of course! Iron sharpens iron, and we as God’s men should be diligent about what we believe and why we believe it. But the debate does not have to degenerate. We can, like many of those in leadership of the Southern Baptist convention, have healthy dialogue, yet work together in preaching the gospel. I know of no preacher worth his salt who would preach either hyper-calvinism or easy-believism to a lost man. Yes, we can stand on our doctrine and even debate about it, yet we must be one in keeping our focus on getting the gospel out to the uttermost parts of the earth. That includes working together in our associational Camps in order to come to terms with one another’s differences in approach and methodology and seeking to find common ground where we can not only preach the gospel, but invite sinners to trust in Christ and counsel them to that end. We urge all men everywhere to repent and to trust in our Wonderful Savior.
I think the common ground we need to start on is that God is absolutely sovereign and man is absolutely responsible in the gracious work of salvation. Let us as Baptists make a resolution that in spite of our differences in doctrine and methodology, we are servants of the King and stand shoulder to shoulder with the banner of His gospel, His death, burial and resurrection, and the need for men to repent and trust in Christ as their Savior.
From there, let us send our missionaries out, stand on the streets and preach the gospel, pass out our gospel tracts, preach to our youth, preach to our congregations and give the clear call of the gospel, and advance the Kingdom of God.
Bob Schembre
Rockport Baptist Church

God's Way Is Holy - outline

2010-02-02T09:10:00.000-08:00

I thought that I would post one of my outlines for a recent sermon I preached in case anyone would be interested in using any of it. Feel free. (My outlines are kind of hard for others to follow sometimes.)

Your way, O God, is holy – Psa 77:13

God is altogether different than us.
Holy – apartness – separateness God is a different type of being.
God is not “like us, only bigger” - and God’s ways are not like our ways, Is 55:8,9

YOUR WAY – NOT OUR WAY

For a believer to walk in the way of the Lord is the way of implicit obedience. He does not analyze the benefits or contemplate the dangers.
Our lives are filled with daily tests of loyalty. To prove our love for God. The question is, we will walk in the way of the world or the way of the Lord.
There is a certain “way” everyone lives. The “way” you live your life is your way, but it may not necessarily be God’s way.
Pro 21:2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.
Pro 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof [are] the ways of death

They tested God again and again, and provoked (limited) the Holy One of Israel. Psalm 78:41
To set marks or limits - - they limited the “HOLY ONE” - He was grieved at this!!!
They had a wrong view of God –
They spoke against God, saying “Can God spread a table in the wilderness?” Psalm 78:19
What did God want?
For them to Remember – and for them to believe – Psalm 78:21,22
- Because they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power.
- Is God not big enough for your problem? Is God not big enough to deal with your soul? Are you too much for God to handle? Are your sins too big for God? Was His sacrifice not sufficient for your sins? -
- God has not forgotten about you – have you forgotten about God! Have you forgotten who this God is. Have you made a god after your own imagination who is not able to do what you think ought to be done.
- 1. The first problem is that you don’t know what needs to be done.
- 2. The Second problem is that God can do anything.
That is why it is so critical for us to be a people of the Word and prayer.
Of the Word, so that we may remember every day who God is and believe Him.
Of Prayer, so that we may commit our way to the Lord.

Our problem is that so often, we have got it all figured out –

Psa 78:18 –
They tested God – as if tasting food and smelling something to see if it is desirable or palatable.

The demanded the food they craved. – demand or ask – same word as 1 Samuel 8:10 – they asked for a king.

We become so convinced that we are right in what we want and what we need because we are actually the lords over our lives instead of humbly serving the Lord. We are so convinced that we see things rightly that we actually demand that the Lord see things like we see them.
Food – we see ourselves as being satisfied with something – we watch out for ourselves – and in so doing limit God and limit ourselves from experiencing a miraculous life. We want normal! Our way is comfortable!!!

Craved – In other words – we live more according to our fleshly instincts…our natural life – our soulish passions -

Can God spread a table in the wilderness??
Spread – arrange or furnish – they had a vision of the best that they could imagine –
God had given them the miraculous –manna from heaven and water out of a rock –
But they imagined a table filled with leeks and onions and garlic –
God could fill that table with quail and pheasant and lamb and fruits and vegetables and wine. Here properly – a Kings table – long and filled with guests –
Note – You cannot arrange things in your life like God can. You can only try. God actually does it.
Wilderness – God had driven them there - for a reason - doubting God
YOUR WAY IS HOLY -
God often relates His holiness to the place where He dwells.
He says that the place he dwells is with the humble and the contrite. – A People who do not know everything and who do not have it all figured out.
God wants for us to come as a little child – Matthew 18:3 – He wants us to be His children
Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus wants us to be without pretense – We are trying to be spiritual, to get it right.
We act like adults and try to fix ourselves up.
It is critical to spiritual life to come to Jesus just as you are. – Come overwhelmed with life – come with a wandering mind –
Come trusting Him implicitly and obeying Him the same – Give your LIFE to Jesus.

Preacher - Preach the gospel -!!!!!

Classic Re-post - Courtship and Waiting for Marriage

2010-02-01T09:48:00.000-08:00

I would like to discuss an appropriate way to look at courtship. With our aversion for the dating scene, it is all too easy to skip a critical process in preparation for marriage that involves a mature, patient waiting on God. The exclusion of dating which leads to courtship can make young believers feel that they are trapped or committed if they are led to look at courtship more like an engagement process than a vital step in examining ourselves in the light of God's directions and learning more about our potential mate.
A young lady could possibly have several suitors in the process of courtship, none of which may appeal to her or none of which would be entertained by her parents. In the case of one of the young men appealing to her, I believe that the understanding of a more biblical view of courtship would go a long way towards preventing hastiness in a major life decision and encouraging a lower view of courtship than us who have nixed the dating scene have adopted.
Those who are courting should know that they are friends who like each other, and have an interest towards each other. They should focus on seeking God's will and praying for God's blessing on each others lives. IT IS ALL ABOUT HIM! It is about His kingdom, and what He wants to do with His people in His kingdom.
During courtship, the young couple should spend time with the church family and the family of the parents, getting to know one another, becoming good friends and caring for each other as brother and sister in the Lord with all purity.They should be praying for one another, encouraging one another in Christ, to walk in the ways of our Lord, pursue intimacy with Him, and to become the man or woman of God that He created us to be.
They are to be watching the lives of their potential mate, observing the ways of the family, listening to the words and responses of one another, hearing their motives and attitude towards the things of God, or the absence thereof. They should be looking for a yieldedness to the Lord Jesus Christ in all things, including the direction of their relationship and they should be yielding to the will of God in all things.
If the relationship of those "courting", is all about their feeling of love for one another, nurturing those feelings and becoming obsessed with what they want, then strong admonition is necessary and should be provided by family or church leadership. It is in this dangerous time that biblical admonition regarding patience should be exercised.

A fruit of the Spirit is patience. Waiting is good. And it is the art of patiently waiting for God to work that often saves a marriage. There is a difference between waiting and waiting patiently. Many a young lady is waited on by an impatiently waiting young man. And impatience is dangerous. Paul taught Timothy to pursue patience. Courtship is not pursuing one that you want to marry, rather, it should not be in my opinion. Courtship is determining the will of God concerning two people.

This patient waiting should involve prayer and thankfulness. Prayer has an amazing way of helping us with patience. And we should count it all joy that the "God of patience" is working in us.

Courtship should be a beautiful time of waiting, worship of God, and seeing your friend conformed to the image of Christ.

The couple should be waiting on God to see if He will use them together to serve HIM as a married couple, if God has someone else for them, or if they are going to serve HIM alone. They should be waiting patiently on God and aligning themselves with purity, holiness and the Word of God.

There should be a clear understanding that if the courtship does not work out, the couple will be mature enough to part as friends, without resentment and with all due respect for each other's feelings.

Remember guys, it's all about Him, it is not about you. Put your hope in Christ alone and be willing to engage or let go within a few months. That may seem a rather arbitrary amount of time, but I have my reasons and may include them in a later post.

Courtship Prayer: Lord, have your way in us. If this is to be, then YOU do it.

Why Pray???

2010-01-30T08:16:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I dig through my files and find something interesting. This post is one of those interesting things. To me anyway. The Holy Spirit has been moving in our membership concerning prayer. I think He led me to this article. The only thing is, I am not sure who to give credit to. It looks and sounds like my writing. It seems a bit like an unfinished sermon. But I may have gotten the idea(s) somewhere and simply can't remember where. I does sound a bit like Paul Miller's new book, "A Praying Life", which I have recently recommended. So let me credit Paul with inspiring me. Let's pray!

Why Pray?

Why should God answer our prayers when all we want to pray for is what we want. We aren’t interested in God doing whatever He wants. We are far too consumed in our own plans to bother with God’s plans.
Jesus taught His disciples to pray – Our Father who art in heaven-
Hallowed be thy name.

I. First of all, we are to see God as our Father.
A relationship to a Father is one that involves obedience, for the Father knows best.
We are His children and being a part of his family, we are to be intimately involved in a family relationship. And you can’t have a healthy family relationship without talking. And that is what prayer is…Talking to God.
When we have an emphasis on prayer, we first need to ask the question, why is the church not interested in talking to their Father?
Something is desperately wrong when the church is not interested in praying. And you can’t say it isn’t so, when the prayer meeting is so sparsely attended. Very few Christians are really interested in praying. Usually when a special prayer meeting is called in churches today, and this includes our church, you might have one or two show up, if any at all. You can make excuses and boast about praying alone, but if there was much praying alone, there would be more power and more seeing God at work.
It must amaze our Father that so few pray so little. Is 59:16 speaks about God wondering….
He wondered that there was no intercessor. It amazed God. Why do you think that is?
Perhaps because He is such a mighty Sovereign who reigns over all of the universe and who has given exceeding great and precious promises to His people and they fail to take him up on it. He has said,”Whatsoever you shall ask in my name, I will give it to you.”
That is amazing. That is astonishing, Yet we fail to pray
Why do you think so many Christians are defeated and bound by sin.?? Because we pray so little.
Why are so many in the church often discouraged and depressed? Because we pray so little.
Why are so few brought out of darkness into His marvelous light? Because there is so little prayer going on.
Why is our church not on fire for God? Because we pray so little.
And our prayers are very weak. There is little agonizing in prayer nowadays. Has the church forgotten how to agonize in prayer? Is our spiritual temperature so cold that all we know to do is intellectually rattle off a few requests that seem good to us. Where is the crying out to God, the weeping of the saints for lost sinners and family members, the wrestling with God and labouring in prayer until God hears and answers our prayers?
We have forgotten how to talk to our Father. The King of the universe. We have turned Him into a passive and helpless ruler of past times who is impotent to shake our world right now.
I am not out to criticize, and not to condemn, but to encourage the church to take hold of God like never before and ask Him to do the miraculous.
We have allowed Satan to defeat us and to blind us from facing the question of prayer.
He will do anything to keep us from praying. And he has. And we are not.
Jesus said, to pray…Our Father. He cares for us. He wants the best for us. He wants to work mightily, but He has commanded us to pray. He works through prayer. The Devil is quite happy if we do anything except prayer, because God has ordained that prayer is how He will work.
Jesus instructions were perfect. Talk to Him as a Father. Ask great things of Him. He has promised to answer. Through the mediating work of the Lord Jesus Christ, we can now come before our Holy Father and have an intimacy we never dreamed possible. We are encouraged to come boldly before the throne of grace.. God wonders that we do not talk to Him. God wonders that we do not pour our hearts out before Him in prayer and ask great things of Him.
Our prayers are so small. And God is so big?
Have we no more time to talk to God? Have we allowed our lives to fill up so that we are too busy to spend much time with God? The one who holds the keys to everything. The one who is the Door?
He said,”If you shall ask anything in my name, that will I do.” Yet we fail to pray fervently. He promised that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. And He has made us righteous, yet we fail to pray fervently. We fail to pray with any passion. We say that we are in love with the Lord, yet we fail to show any passionate love to the Lord in our prayers. Are prayers are like so many recitals attempting to get the formula right. And they are so dead and lifeless.
How do you learn to pray? By getting alone with your Father and talking to him. He is your Father in heaven, Jesus said. Not that He is limited to heaven, but that He is in heaven, over all. He is the God of all existence and able to move mountains and seas, and is willing to do it if we just ask. That is what He said, and He is no liar.

Sometimes the thing that keeps us from talking to the Father is sin. We have hidden sin in our lives and it keeps us from prayer. Afraid to approach God to honestly lest he take our secret sin from us. Lest He bare our hearts and cause us to come clean with Him in repentance, never to again be able to enjoy our sin.
Sometimes the thing that keeps us from talking to the Father is that one has never been born again. Our Father. Is He. Then why are you so uncomfortable talking to Him? You don’t know how? How do you learn? By doing it. That’s the only answer I have. You learn to pray by praying. So get to praying, and allow your Father to do whatever He wants with your life whenever He wants to and know the thrill of asking Him for great things.
Not the things of this world. Not money, and cars and stuff. I am talking about spiritual things. Things that really matter. Things that last for eternity. That is where the real adrenaline rush comes in. Enjoying a life above the shallow sphere most people spend all of their lives. In the hollow pursuit of earthly pleasures and comforts.
Jesus says we can come to our Father, and say “Father, who is over all.
Your name is Holy. I can’t approach you on my own merit. But in Jesus name I can ask you to move in a mighty way to accomplish your purposes in my life.”
Hey, by the way, what other purposes in this life are there for you? God has a purpose for you. And finding out what it is and getting caught up in the enjoyment of seeing God fulfill that purpose in your life is the most thrilling thing you will ever know.
The Christian life is not a boring uneventful life when you live it God’s way. If you try to stay in control, it certainly can be boring.. Because after all…what can you do????
Nothing. That’s what. And if that is your thing…staying in control of your own life, then go for it. It’s not for me. I want to know the adventure of following Jesus Christ. Yes, sometimes He is silent. Because He won’t allow you to put Him in a box and call upon Him like some genie in a bottle. But if you want to know what real Christianity is like then pray like Jesus instructed us.
II. Your kingdom come. That’s just the problem isn’t it? We have our own little kingdom all set up and if God’s kingdom should take over it would ruin everything. We want our comfortable little lifestyles. We don’t want our feathers ruffled. Let’s face it church. We are so unrelevant today it’s a wonder any young people ever darken the door of our church at all. I know I wouldn’t if I was a lost young people. Hey, maybe that’s the way you want it. All neat and tidy. Everybody sitting next to each other in church and we can then go back to our comfortable lives without so much as a new wrinkle.
We are more worried about whether Bro. Bob is going to do songs that we approve of today than we are concerned about the souls of the young people sitting around us. If we were just to go back to singing the old bar tunes Luther and the Wesley’s used it would be just fine. Even if it did run some kids off. We know what’s best for this church.
What is palatable to our ears. After all, we have a corner on what’s most pleasing to God.
Listen. Jesus didn’t come to make things tidy. He said that He came to bring a sword. And He did, and He is still swinging it. He said that he came to set a man against his father and a daughter against her mother. A persons’ enemies would be those of his own household. Because whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
But no cross-bearing for us. Don’t ruffle our family. Don’t ruffle our feathers.
Not thy kingdom come, but bless our kingdom is what we really think.
At least it’s how we pray. Lord bring anything but the sword. Not that way, but my way.
We draw a little circle around ourselves and pray, thy kingdom, all out there, but MY kingdom in here. And My kingdom in this family. And in my household.
Would to God that He would be the sword and so spiritually wound us and devastate our kingdom that there would be nothing but spiritual desolation and despair, compelling us to get real with God, cry out to him, and pray, Lord….bring on the kingdom in me.
Rule in me. Rule in my life. You call the shots. Whatever you want from me today, you do it… And if you do…Hang on.

III. Lord, Your Will be done.
Lord, what do you want from me today? What are you going to do in me today. Who are you going to bring my way today? More work to do on me? A word of witness that you want done? Someone that needs to be ministered to ?? Whatever you want Lord. You call the shots. Your will be done today and everyday.
What if it is God’s will for you to pray? And it is. He was said it over and over and over. And why do we not? Because we don’t really want God’s will in our lives. If we really wanted God’s will in our lives we would do what He asks us to do, and first and foremost, He wants us to pray. He wants us to cry out to Him . To call to him and He will answer us and show us great and mighty things which we know not.
But we are quite satisfied with our own ways and our own resources thank you. Otherwise we would certainly be a people of prayer. Why do I preach like this you suppose? It is because we are in such imminent danger of fading into the history of dead churches who were impotent to affect anything as far as God’s kingdom goes because they were too self-involved to pursue God passionately in prayer.
Once you get the gears going in a church it is fairly easy to keep it going. Just don’t mess with the status quo. Don’t rock the boat. Don’t bring any of “those “ people into our church and mess it up. We have such a great control on our churches nowadays it is a wonder anything for God gets done at all. You can call it of God al you want, but if God didn’t initiate it, it is not of God. It is time for the church to pray, Lord, You will be done. No matter what the cost. No matter where we have to go. No matter what you want to do. We are ready. Your will be done. Not Bob’s will be done, not Scott’s will be done, not Kurt’s will be done..Not Will’s will be done…….Elder Will Jackson you know. But God’s will be done. Make it as radical as you want Lord. We are ready for Your kingdom to come down and takeover your kingdom. We have not done much with it.

A Bilbical View of Marriage

2010-01-29T08:07:00.000-08:00

Someone has once said that a man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder.

If you don’t know where you are going, you will get there quickly. Nowhere.

When thinking about a successful marriage, we have to examine our own thoughts about it and why we got involved in the first place. To be sure, there will be something tainted in every aspect of our inquisition, but overall, there needs to be a clear intention to find God’s own purposes in our married lives.

To begin with, unless we have a correct view of God’s original intention, we will not be able to understand how we have gone wrong, if indeed we have. And we probably have.

To have a correct view of God’s original intention would be impossible if we did not understand God.

In fact, just as an example, look at Genesis 3.

1. Who was the conversation the serpent and Eve were having about?

God – Elohim
It is interesting that Satan does not call Him the Lord God. Jehovah Elohim.
The name which is used thoughout the Old Testament and which is the personal name by which Adam and Eve knew God.

First, Elohim is used in 1:1 through 2:3, concerning creation, then in v,5, the use of the Lord God, Jehovah Elohim calls into mind the caring God, the loving God, the God who would cause it to rain on the earth He created and who created this man out of the dust.

But the serpent uses the term Elohim, which is also the term Eve used in this conversation.

2. Why is this important?_____________________________

Because the point of Genesis is not about building a successful marriage. It is about God and who He is.

A Biblical View of marriage does not mean that you are going to be able to fulfill your dreams. God is in the business of shattering dreams. Let me repeat that.

The fact that Eve’s failure to consult her husband, resulting in her referring, as the serpent did, to “God” and not the “Lord God”, illustrates for us the difference in the attitudes of those who are in marriage to see what they can get out of it and those who are in marriage because they believe that God has ordained it for them.

What is the difference? Here it is.

You can either live your life hoping that life is fair, and God is good, all the time, and that He will certainly let you fulfill all of your wonderful dreams.

Or you can fall down before the Lord God, trust Him, and obey Him because He knows what He is doing and you don’t.

3. Now, what is the purpose of your marriage?_________________________ Your marriage is for God’s pleasure.
That’s right, everything that God created is for God’s pleasure, and you are a part of that.

God takes great pleasure when a couple is functioning the way that God intended them to, which we will get to next week.

God takes great pleasure in His own work, so when your marriage is working like it is supposed to, God delights in it. How is your marriage working right now?

Remember this. God does not run His world on the principles of fairness, success or dreams.

We need to get rid of our culture affected propositions if we are ever to find God.

Now, was the reason for God commanding Adam not to eat of the fruit of the tree that was in the midst of the garden apparent?
No. It was not apparent.
Calvin said, “Very dangerous is the temptation, when it is suggested to us, that God is not to be obeyed except so far as the reason of His command is apparent.”

The whole tragedy of Genesis 3 is not that Adam and Eve fell, plunged the human race into darkness and got kicked out of the Garden of Eden.

The tragedy is that the advantages and blessings that the Lord God had given to them were abundantly sufficient and they ending up losing confidence that that was true, and thus dishonored God by their self-centered disobedience.

Everything was beautiful.

You remember this. Satan always says of God - ”Not sufficient.”

The way we get to thinking like this is that our marriages and families become the thrones of our lives.

When the only one who should rightfully occupy that place is Jesus Christ.

I am not here to teach you how to have a happy successful marriage. My job is to teach you that God has a purpose for your marriage and that purpose may be to crush you.

Part of what God sometimes does in a marriage is to use the differences in our mates to humble us and to mature our character into Christ-likeness. And that pleases God.
And no matter how far you may go in success or fulfilling your dreams, if God is not at the center it will only be smoke in the wind.

What is God’s purpose for your marriage?? To glorify Himself. That both we and others would glorify God for who He is.
First of all, marriage. What a great idea. And it is God’s idea. And it only works God’s way. And when it works God’s way, he is pleased and He is glorified.

SAVED FROM GOD

2009-12-16T11:52:00.000-08:00

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?sermonid=121609115463

BOOK REVIEW - A Praying Life by Paul Miller

2009-10-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

I have just finished Paul Millers' new book, "A Praying Life". I am still thinking about all of the areas of my life that He has touched. For me, his chapter on cynicism was worth the price of the book. I began my own study on cynicism and taking a hard close look at my life and my faith. Actually, I could say that for almost every chapter. This book is life-changing.
Rarely have I had a book affect me in so many areas, yet it continually brought me back to the point of the book. Life is prayer. Personal, powerful, life-changing prayer. Paul's theology on prayer is sound and he teaches us how to actually live a life of prayer. Real prayer.
I have always been interested in prayer, (of course, I am a believer, who isn't?) and have read alot of books on the subject, but I have never read as impacting a book as this one. From cover to cover, this book hits home. I cannot recommend it highly enough. If I could, I would buy you one. But I can't. You buy it, and it will be seen as one of the best investments you have ever made.

Playing It Safe

2009-10-20T07:41:00.000-07:00

It seems like so many in the church are playing it safe. We had our brother Trevor Johnson, missionary to Papua New Guinea last week and he testified to what God is doing amongst the Korawi tribe. Here is a man who gave himself and his family to be plucked up and planted. He has had malaria five times, their children often have to be de-wormed, several of the children of their co-laborers have been buried in the jungle. He has endured significant danger for the cause of Christ. Our brother, Brig, and his wife have been plucked up and planted in Israel. He is attempting to learn to speak in Hebrew. He has endured the loss of everything material. Our friend Walid endure danger and the potential loss of his freedom, or life, as he ministers to muslims.
I look at our congregation, and others I love, and we play if so safe. We are averse to risk. We huddle around in our homes, once a week making our way to church, determining that we will give only as much as allows us to remain comfortable. We shield our children and keep mostly to ourselves. We would never consider taking anything close to the amount of risk these brothers have taken. Why?
We protect ourselves from hurt, distancing ourselves from those brothers who say things that call us to give more of ourselves to The Cause. We isolate ourselves from those who differ from us in the things which are least central to the cause of Christ. We separate ourselves from those who cause us any discomfort or who may dare to challenge our way of thinking. We judge others who may not be as legalistic in their thinking and are free to serve, love and befriend people who simply wouldn't fit in with "our crowd". Some of us I feel would fit in more in a monastery and others would fit in more in some other type of cloistered community.
We are so uncomfortable with risk that we end up odd looking specimens of 20th century Christianity to the rest of the laborers around the world. We look silly. Christian, you look silly in your comfort.
Where is the risk in our lives that shows our faith? What are we risking? What? Why?

Husbands, Love Your Wives - BE THEIR SAVIOR!

2009-09-10T04:58:00.000-07:00

Talking to all of the young people lately about marriage has brought to mind the fact that so many husbands fail to simply understand that they are called to lay down their lives for their wives. If we are to be examples of the relationship between Christ and his church, we must first of all give ourselves sacrificially for our wives. So many men want to be the head of their wives, but not their savior.
I say savior in the sense of being as Christ is to the church. That is what Paul means when he says "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her". Men, what are you giving up for your wife? You are supposed to be giving up your life! Your wife comes before everyone! You have no right to demand that your wife submit herself to you unless you are being her savior and giving yourself up for her. She is to come before your children, before your job, before your hobby for goodness sake and before your friends.
You are to be a Christ to her. You are to be loving her as Christ loved the church. Many of you aren't. You want to be the center of everything, including the life of your wife, but your life is so self-centered that the picture you are supposed to be is warped.
Christ is selfless. He laid down His life for the sheep. The primary example that every married Christian man should be is one of dying daily for his wife.
Men, die to yourself. And be a man. Stop worshiping the god of pleasure and die! Living sacrificially is not simply working a job. Your wife is the result of what you have made her. When you first took her hand at the altar, you committed to cherish her even as Christ cherishes the church. Men, what have you done to your wives? Why are they not rejoicing? Is it because you are still so very much alive to yourself? If so, it is no wonder that your wife finds it hard to respect your walk.

Sarcasm Will Poison Your Church

2009-08-31T08:16:00.000-07:00

Proverbs 26:18,19 - Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death, is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, "I am only joking!"
While studying for my bible Class, I was struck with this verse and what it means. The word "deceives", can also mean, "to cast or throw." I take that to mean things like sarcasm.
Proverbs 15:4 tells us that "A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit".
Sarcasm has been a major part of my method of communication, especially among my closest brothers, but I have seen how it actually hinders intimacy in fellowship. Sarcasm can actually be a protection device to keep people at a healthy distance so that we are not vulnerable.
In our church, we are trying to lead our people into a healthier and more intimate and real church fellowship. One of the things that has hindered this is sarcasm being used as a form of communication.
Friends, it is deadly. Sarcasm masquerades as friendship, but only plants seeds of resentment and bitterness that Satan can use to ultimately cause a divide in the fellowship when trials come. We simply cannot afford this type of worldly communication. We are to be a sober-minded people.
Now, someone will always stand up and defend the use of sarcasm because humor has a place in the kingdom of God. Let me remind you, that if the humor is about a circumstance, and is not directed toward another, it can be a healthy form of communication. But if it is at the expense of a brother, it can only poison further effective and serious communion between us.
I have witnessed the shallowness and the distance in relationship caused by a lack of trust and the resistance to opening our lives up to one another. One reason is that we feel that our trust may be betrayed, and brought to bear as an arrow or a firebrand.
The spirit of competition that results as we engage habitually in sarcasm will build a barrier in our fellowship that will eventually close off all serious and pious communion amongst the saints that is so desperately needed in the midst of our battles for righteousness and our faith amidst trial.
Paul exhorts us in Colossians 4:6 to "let our speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt". Iron sharpens iron in serious conversation and debate, but sarcasm only cuts. And when one is cut enough, and wounded, he will either strike back, or desert the battle. Either way, you lose.
Leaders, stop it now. Be an example of holiness and sober-mindedness. Don't choose to be a "good ol boy" and fall in with the vain conversation that takes place in so many fellowships. If you take this stand, it will pay rich dividends in your church.
If you do not, you may continue to experience mere "surface" relationship where there is an apparent lack of trust and a suspicion which hinders true intimacy.

The Greatest Need of the Church Today - Brokenness

2009-08-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

I suppose that this may seem like utter self-promotion. Actually, I hate to hear myself preach. I can't blame others. but this message was sent to me from the Lord. I was notified the previous day that I would need to preach this past Sunday, and didn't have a lot of time to prepare, so this is actually not a very good sermon. But it was something I believe the Lord sent to me for the church. I hope that it blesses you.

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=82609121064

First Demons, Then Salvation Came To Their House

2009-08-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday evening, Bro Scott and I had the privilege to go to a home we were invited to through a waitress Scott had befriended. Her family had been harassed by what seemed to them to be departed family members and ghosts. She and the children saw several different people in her room and night, her bed shook violently on several occasions, etc. The night before we came, "someone" had tapped her on the shoulder. Many different manifestations had caused them to be a family filled with fear.
After arriving at the home and questioning all involved, Bro Scott and I went upstairs where the manifestations had taken place, read scripture, prayed, and basically commanded any demonic entities to simply leave, in Jesus name. What else could we do? We were there representing the Lord Jesus Christ.
Well, we went back downstairs where family, neighbors and relatives had gathered and had a wonderful time preaching the gospel to them all. It has been a long time since I had seen such rapt attention given to the gospel by lost young people. After clearly expounding the gospel, we went back with the family upstairs, prayed with them and rejoiced in the goodness of God. They testified that the room was no longer cold and the mother was no longer afraid. One of the daughters testified that she had been saved right then. The other daughter also said that she believes. Others seemed to be in a condition where God was working in their hearts. Well, the immediate family is supposed to come to church on Sunday, and then we are supposed to go back each week to study the Bible and pray with them. We left them and they were full of hope.
This was all arranged by the Lord. Pray for us, that many would be saved as a result of what God is doing there.

Baptist Cooperation Article

2009-08-14T14:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I had to edit it down to approx 1,000 words to get it published, so it is choppy and some of the points are very weakened, but hopefully this will help. At least I hope it helps with the current dialogues going on in Missouri.

http://www.mbcpathway.com/opinion/article201328c2506401.htm

My Son's First Sermon

2009-08-10T07:14:00.000-07:00

Well, as we sat last Sunday listening to our oldest son Bobby preach his first sermon in his church, we rejoiced at the goodness of God. Three years ago when he was still unconverted, we would never have imagined what God would do. It was entitled "Jesus Our Everything", and you must know how joyful Faith and I are to know that Bobby is living it and preaching it.
Hope you enjoy it also.

http://karischurch.org/media.aspx

Drink Ye All of It - A Betrothal!

2009-08-07T06:53:00.000-07:00

The lover of our souls said in Hosea 2:19 "I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the Lord." In the 16th verse He says, "you will call me my husband and will call me no more my master."
When he asked the disciples around the table to take of the bread and the wine, he was sealing a covenant with them.
In Judaism, the bridegroom asks for the hand of the bride by pouring a cup of wine for his bride to be and then he waits for her to respond by drinking from the cup. She is saying "yes" and this symbolizes the sealing of their marriage covenant. They were now engaged. They belonged to one another for the rest of their lives. They had sealed a covenant. Then a price was offered for the bride.
Jesus was about to go to the cross to pay the price of the bride. His death and the shedding of His holy blood.
He has sealed our marriage covenant with His blood. We are His. He purchased us. "Drink ye all of it."
Treasure this remembrance each time you do it. We are awaiting His return. He has not drank of the fruit of the vine since that day in the upper room. But one day, He will. With us. Together. Around His table. As we are forever wed to our Beloved.
Say "yes" to Him. Again, and again, and again! You are sealed. Enjoy it!

DO NOT LOSE HEART!

2009-08-06T09:30:00.000-07:00

Don't lose heart preacher! God is our refuge and strength. He is a very present help in trouble. Don't fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
There is a river! The Lord of Hosts is with us!
Though our outer man is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.
For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
You must see the hand of God in all of this. If you only see the hand of man opposing you, you will get discouraged. Our God is in control and is molding and shaping you for His own good purposes. When you come forth, you will come forth as gold.

BIBLICAL REFLECTIONS ON INSTRUMENTS AND WORSHIP

2009-08-05T06:56:00.000-07:00

The believer is no longer under laws and rules. We are no longer prescribed an order of worship. That is why the New Testament is surprisingly silent on the subject of worship In fact when the church gathers it is never called worship in the New Testament. There is to be a glad freedom in the grace of God and a liberty in the Holy Spirit. I don’t want you to be confused as to why we gather. Not that we are not worshiping when we gather, but that our reason for meeting is that we are “following hard after God”. We are simply wanting God to fill us with Himself, because we know that He is all that we need. That is why all of our songs have to do with Him. We are not performing an order of worship or doing our duty. We strive to pour our hearts and lives into the participatory experience of glorying in the person and work of Jesus Christ. We do not want there to be a focus on the musical excellence, or the lack thereof. We ought not to sit and judge the delivery of the sermon, or the appearance of other believers. Our focus is to be on God Himself. Every member of the body should gather hungry for God, and wait with anticipation as we pray and sing with all of our hearts and read the scriptures and preach and listen, all with the aim of drinking in His presence, His Word, His Spirit.
The regulative principle is used to apply to worship in the sense that only the Scriptures “sanction” what can and cannot be used in worship. In the scriptures, when Paul and James “sanction” believers to “sing Psalms”, they are using a word that in itself means “a striking, or a twanging” in particular, of a musical instrument. The whole of Psalms, and the matter of singing, clearly lends itself to being accompanied by musical instruments. In fact, a thorough study of instruments in the Psalms gives us the clear understanding that we are to praise Him with instruments. Meditating on the truths of Gods word while listening to an artist play that song beautifully on an instrument brings glory to God. I can play a beautiful song on the piano while worshiping Him in my heart, and the resultant chords sounding forth that song glorifies God. It is not that the sounds are in and of themselves are pleasing to God, but that the hearts and minds of the hearer, or hearers are stimulated to enjoin praise to God. This is God’s idea, not man’s. It is He who has made us and not we ourselves and to authentically sing praises to God, our whole being is to be incorporated. There is nothing wrong, in fact, there is everything right with using musical instruments to enhance our full worship experience and to help engage our hearts and our minds. Not simply one or the other. Music is God’s idea. Instruments are God’s idea. We are enjoined to use instruments in worship and it is to certainly be more than an intellectual exercise. We are to sing praises to God with passion. The Psalms were particularly written to be accompanied by musical instruments.

The regulative principle as used by those who oppose the use of various instruments in worship opposes the very scriptures it purports to uphold, as if one could sing Psalm 150, as sanctioned by James and Paul, and not use the same stringed instrument the Psalms they are singing exhort us to use. Or as if we could sing Psalm 33 and then command not to use the same harp in praising Him that we just sang about. Or sing Psalm 43 and believe that while David could praise Him with a harp, or a ten stringed instrument, we could not praise Him with a six or a twelve stringed instrument.
We have the freedom according to scripture to use instruments in our corporate worship, and we have the admonition to at times use them loudly. There are other times when silence is necessitated. Times when reflective instrumentation is warranted. Times when beautiful accompaniment is needed. (For some of us, it is as beautiful as we can possibly make it with our talents.) And all of these at times should be implemented in our worship. We are going to continue to use Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs. We are going to sing deep theological songs, simple phrases of meditation and reflection concerning those truths, we are going to wait and linger over certain truths at times, sometimes singing them repetitively, like in the Psalms. Sometimes between verses we are going to continue the melody on the instruments in meditative praise, giving the congregation more time to reflect on the truth we just sang. We are going to use different instruments, sometimes more, sometimes less, and sometimes no instruments. Sometimes Old Hymns of the faith, like "It Is Well" and "And Can It Be", sometimes a Hymn like it is written in the Trinity Hymnal, and sometimes I will re-write the song, or use the melody a modern composer has written rather than the old dirges they sometimes used.
As we learn and grow together in the grace of God, we learn to support one another, to uphold one another, to encourage one another and to pray for one another. Our desire is to be a grace-filled church, with an atmosphere of “passion for God” when it comes to worship. As the elder who oversees worship at Rockport, along with the other elders who keep me accountable, my desire it to please God above all. I also desire that our worship services are a blessing to the congregation. As we join together each week let’s encourage and exhort one another in an atmosphere of grace, longing, hungering and thirsting for God.
(an edited version of something I posted on the old website)

The Power of God

2009-08-04T05:40:00.000-07:00

Divine unction only comes to those who have kept themselves pure in heart and mind.
Without that unction, ALL of our sermons are mere dribble, no matter how eloquent, persuasive, or intellectual.
Only as we are endued with power from on high as we preach will lives be radically changed.
Stephen Olford said "Beloved, if you stand behind this holy desk and you're life isn't pure; if you're life isn't absolutely holy as far as you know it; if are not walking under an unclouded sky with the ungrieved, unquenched Holy Spirit in your life; then, my friend, you've absolutely blocked the message from any authority whatsoever," he said.
While I was at Stephen Olford's home years ago during his Institute on Biblical Preaching, (there were just a couple of us back then when he first started the Institute in Memphis in 1985), I remember his admonition concerning power.
He said, "Don't you think for a minute that being instant in season and out of season means that you can ask God for His anointing to preach when you need it on Sunday, if you haven't been living in power everyday."
I have tried to remember that on Monday as well as on Saturday, and have always asked my church to be in prayer for me.. We simply cannot afford to let down our guard for a moment. How many men will we see with their armor not on and them ending up on the shelf, with no power, doing no mighty works, preaching merely from the intellect, dispensing no life, with Ichabod written over the lintel of their sanctuaries.
The man of God is to be endued with power from on high as he lives his dedicated life. His prayer should be, "God, if I cannot live my life with a divine anointing to preach and witness to the unbeliever, then just go ahead and take me home now." Oh that men would tarry before God until the power comes. There have been nights when I have waited before God through the night, pleading with Him for power. Most Mondays are spent seeking God and asking for a refilling of His Spirit. I often feel spent after a day of ministering. Yes, we need a fresh anointing all the time. God gives us a fresh anointing. Send down the power from on high. Shake this place where we worship and let the glory of God fall! Send the fire! Wake the sleeping church. Save the deaf, dumb and blind. Open the eyes of those who are blinded by the god of this world. Free those who are shackled by sin. Raise those who are dead to God. These mighty works only happen as the man of God is anointed with the power of God.
Preach with power!

What A God!

2009-08-03T09:36:00.000-07:00

As I was watching the sun rise this morning, I was reminded of the faithfulness of God. Every morning He does it again. He is perfect. By the sunrise, I was reminded that our God is indescribably Glorious in Holiness. There is none like Him. In fact, he is altogether Other. Perfectly Other. He is incomprehensibly fearful in praises. From the rising of the sun to the going down of the same, the Lord's name is to be praised. He is worthy of the endless praise of all of creation from this time forth and forevermore, yet it all could not render to Him the praise He is due. God also faithfully does inconceivable wonders. Who, but God, would ever think to do things the way He does them. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are His ways higher than our ways. The glorious sunrise I witnessed this morning continues to testify to His faithfulness. Yes, the sun came up again this morning. And it will come up tomorrow morning, until God decides to end it all. After all, He is the only one keeping it all going, and perfectly so. Even in our lives, there are no mistakes, but God, in His perfect timing, constant faithfulness, and wondrous ways, runs our world and our lives. It seems as though I saw written in the sky this morning, just what I have witnessed in my life, "I have been young and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his children begging for bread." Glory be to God!

Press Toward the Mark

2009-07-29T08:54:00.000-07:00

Did you know that there actually people who text and play video games and look on the internet during worship services? That's a revelation of the true condition of ones heart isn't it? What are we there for? Why not stay home? Just there for people? If we are there for God, would you not think that games and the internet has no place for a believer in a worship service. Actually, it's quite blasphemous. Giving to something else what we should be giving to God. Which is our all. The hypocrisy of singing "How Great Thou Art" one moment, and the next moment texting a friend to inquire as to where we will eat lunch. or looking at Facebook to see what someone else is doing.
I'll tell ya. The apathy and laziness that is apparent in our pews reveal the ungodly levels to which we have sunk. I'm calling for a burnin'! At least for an appeal to believers that they leave their idols at home while we gather to worship the living God.
This kind of indifference though, really shows us how unconcerned we are to become the worshipers that God has called us to be.

The Walmart Shun

2009-07-27T15:16:00.000-07:00

Funny how a friend of mine read this post I borrowed and put on Facebook. She told how her story echoed these thoughts and that she is often "shunned" in Wal-mart. I've been there. I suppose because I no longer believe exactly like those who do the shunning. Perhaps because I left their church long ago? . I will have to get used to the Wal-mart shun. Sad. Life is so short.

From A Scandalous Freedom by Steve Brown:

When the requirement for acceptance in any particular group is to think certain thoughts, to act in certain ways, and to fit in certain molds — and when we don’t think or act that way or fit the mold — we tend to fake it. We put on a mask that says, “I’m just like you. Now, will you please love me and accept me?” I can think of hardly any thing that will kill your joy and freedom more than wearing a mask geared to get others to accept you because you are acting like them.

Allow me to let you in on a secret: Nobody fits the mold, and most of us wear masks to cause others to think we do…. When we give the impression that we have it all together and live “one hundred miles from any known sin,” when we preach and teach about sin with the implication that we are talking about others, when we seem to be anything other than what we are, sinners saved by grace — we do a great disservice to one another, and we become bound to the masks instead of free in Christ.

….

Christ can give you the freedom to stop pretending. Of course, superficial Christians — those who have been wearing their masks for so long that they seem sewed on — will probably reject you. Those who put you on a pedestal and worship there will feel so shocked they might, for a period, not want to have anything to do with you. Religious leaders into control will probably kick you out of their groups, because honesty and control hardly ever sleep well together. Those kinds of people will probably pray for you and give you a wide berth.

If that happens, celebrate. You have now determined who is and who isn’t playing games with your mind and your heart. And you will feel surprised how much easier it is to come clean about who you really are. It takes a lot of emotional gasoline to keep the mask straight… and now you won’t have to do it any more.

My Longing

2009-07-24T06:29:00.000-07:00

I long for the day when Jesus comes back personally to claim his own. I long for the day when I am fully free from sin and am able to fully and freely worship my Lord. I am tired of this world and its agenda and wish for the eyes of multitudes to be opened rather than just a few at a time. I long for holiness, without which no man will see the Lord. I long to be free from this body of death. I am so thirsty for the fullness of God and long to be filled to overflowing with the fullness of His Holy Spirit. I long for the day when there is no more pain, no more sorrow and no more tears. Mostly for my family and friends. It hurts me when they hurt. For 31 years now I have walked with the Lord, and my faith seems weakest in times of prosperity. Not that I am not happy. I am. Normally. But my walk is just not as consistent. What a weakness. Weakness after weakness. Oh to be free. To be with Him, forever. Until then, I fear that years may pass before I am any wit like the Lord Jesus. He is worthy of His reward.

A Savor of Life Unto Life

2009-07-23T08:32:00.001-07:00

As we live our lives as Christians, we will either have a good smell or we will reek. Our lives should cause the gospel to smell good. To other believers that is. To the lost, our lives should bring conviction. In particular, the conviction that should they not believe, they will perish.
The way we live enhances the flavor of the gospel. Paul warned the Corinthians that they should not peddle the Word of God. Basically, we shouldn't give out the Word of God for what we get out of it. What do you get from getting out the Word of God? Think about it!
Uh, or do you get out the Word of God at all? Wow, now that's a thought. Why bother living it if we don't believe it enough to tell other people about it?
So, how are you smelling today?

Jesus Loves Me This I Know - repost

2009-07-22T09:12:00.001-07:00

Some questions have been asked concerning my message on Sunday Morning, “Jesus Loves Me This I Know”, and the question of our sins and God’s anger. I want to try to make this response as brief as possible. I want to begin by affirming that, NO dear friends, God is not angry with us because of our sins. Now doesn’t that cause the believer to want to go out and sin with impunity? No, it doesn’t. The gospel makes the believer want to live a holy life. The question is, how does he do that, which is actually another message, but part of the answer is believing that what God says is true. Actually, it is very common for believers to live lives filled with guilt concerning their sins, and feel that God is continually mad, or “upset” with them. No, dear ones, God has forgiven you “all trespasses”. Isn’t He gracious? Isn’t He kind? Doesn’t that make you want to love Him more? Be patient. “He that has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” It is His love, kindness and forgiveness that excite us towards a practical living out a pure life, not His anger.
One verse that was referenced in questions about God’s anger for sin toward the believer was Gal 5:7.
Gal 5:7- Be not deceived, God is not mocked; for what ever a man sows that will he also reap.
The context of this verse has most to do with the believer doing good, especially concerning those who labor in the gospel
He is certainly not talking about the sins of a believer, for in the very next verse, the result of the wrong type of sowing is corruption, and the result of the right type of sowing is eternal life.
If anything, this verse has more of a reference to character and a hope for eternity, whether false or true.
It makes for “good preaching on sin”, to use this verse to attempt to prevent the believer from sinning, but it is simply the wrong use of scripture for a gospel preacher.
If this verse is the only ground we are going to stand on to attempt to prove that “God gets angry with his children”, than we are on shaky ground.
Spiritual warfare again sin is another subject, which always needs to be addressed. The true believer always desires to fight against sin, but the question of how that is scripturally carried on is another subject also. I would maintain that a big part of it is having our minds renewed concerning sin, the cross and the love of God. We are always to admonish one another concerning sin, but more importantly, we are to point one another to Christ. The believer is always to strive against and resist sin, but how is that accomplished? We are admonished by Paul in Romans concerning “reckoning” and “yielding” and it would pay great dividends to us to study what he says. Scott covered this beautifully in his exegesis of Romans, where the doctrine of sin is most full covered. Scott’s work on this subject is very clear.
In essence, when we understand that "We are dead, and our lives are hidden with God in Christ" Col 3:3, our theology about God's attitude towards us my get cleared up.
Another question that was raised was concerning the "discipline of God". Yes, God does discipline his children, but it always in love. God never disciplines his children in anger. (by the way, just like we should not!) His discipline is "for our good", not as a result of His being angry at us. it is simply His way of training the believer for godliness.
when I was in training for football, it was rigorous. It was often painful. It was sometimes not fun! but there was no anger or punishment involved. I was being prepared for survival! When a head to head collision came between me and some young 20 year old college football player, I wanted to be prepared. My trainers and coaches were kind to me to get me ready for those days, or I may not be walking today. God is so kind and good to discipline His children, and give them His grace in order to endure trials.
the scriptures teach us that it is God's goodness that leads us to repentance, not His wrath. that, glory to Him, was vented upon Christ, for us.
let's rejoice that we have such a loving God, who although He will pour out His wrath without mixture upon them that do not know Christ, upon His blessed children, He will lavish only grace upon grace.

Worship in Study

2009-07-16T16:30:00.000-07:00

The Scriptures tell us to "study to show ourselves approved unto God". I Timothy 2:15 Study is one of the highest forms of worship. If you received a love letter from your lover, and merely glanced at it and threw it aside, it would reveal a problem in the relationship.

Believers ought to study God's Word passionately. There ought to be a daily and intimate relationship developed through the diligent study of God's Word. A true worshiper cannot help but to dive into the text he is reading and do all that he can do to understand what the sweet author is saying to him. He should diligently compare what He has said in other places, and if possible, study the original languages.

I am involved at this time in an intense study of Greek. Something that I have desired to do for many years after having dropped the course because of a failing grade, due to raising a family, working and in general not having the time to devote to every class.
I took the easy way out and have regretted it ever since. Now I am not saying that one has to study the original languages to know what God is saying. Far from it. But something of our study should reveal that we are passionate about the God we love. Our study should manifest itself in worship. Study is worship. How are you worshiping God in your study today? Then how will you worship Him on Sunday?

We beseech thee!

2009-07-14T12:37:00.000-07:00

The word beseech isn't used any more. It is a strong word that means to entreat, but so much more. There is a passion and a longing in the word beseech. When the writers of the sacred text used the word beseech it had to do with things that were eternally significant. Perhaps that is exactly why we don't beseech God much anymore. We simply say our prayers, or ask the Lord for certain things.

We don't like to get down and dirty when it comes to prayer. We would never find ourselves wallerin' on the floor crying out to God. We, quite frankly, are too sophisticated. And so are our words. We frame our petitions and contemplate the elegance of our requests. How un-needy we are nowadays that we pray without sweat or strong tears.

Do we wonder that we never seem to "take hold of God"? Do we really want God? Or would we secretly rather hold on to our worldly life-styles?

I fear that, yes, we are comfortable where we are at. And that scares me. Oh how pride goeth before a fall.

"I know thy works, that thou are neither cold nor hot."

Why All Of Those Who Are Baptist Should Cooperate Together In Spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

2009-07-08T06:03:00.000-07:00

I copied the following four statements from SBC websites. The second and fourth are duplications of point number 5 and 14 of the Baptist Faith and Message. The third is a duplication of points 4 and 5 of the original charter of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, commonly called the Abstract of Principles. I include these foremost in order to show that what both sides of the issues need to understand is that there is historical precedence set for the stand each side is taking. From my point of view, the historical Calvinistic stand is the least understood, and has been relegated to a hyper-calvinistic view, when in fact it is not.
(I.)
God's Purpose of Grace
Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. …All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end.
(II.)
God's Purpose of Grace
Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. It is consistent with the free agency of man, and comprehends all the means in connection with the end. It is the glorious display of God's sovereign goodness, and is infinitely wise, holy, and unchangeable. It excludes boasting and promotes humility.
All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, and bring reproach on the cause of Christ and temporal judgments on themselves; yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.
(III.)
IV. Providence.
God from eternity, decrees or permits all things that come to pass, and perpetually upholds, directs and governs all creatures and all events; yet so as not to destroy the free will and responsibility of intelligent creatures.

V. Election.
Election is God's eternal choice of some persons unto everlasting life -- not because of foreseen merit in them, but of his mere mercy in Christ -- in consequence of which choice they are called, justified and glorified.
(IV.)
XIV. Cooperation
Christ's people should, as occasion requires, organize such associations and conventions as may best secure cooperation for the great objects of the Kingdom of God. Such organizations have no authority over one another or over the churches. They are voluntary and advisory bodies designed to elicit, combine, and direct the energies of our people in the most effective manner. Members of New Testament churches should cooperate with one another in carrying forward the missionary, educational, and benevolent ministries for the extension of Christ's Kingdom. Christian unity in the New Testament sense is spiritual harmony and voluntary cooperation for common ends by various groups of Christ's people. Cooperation is desirable between the various Christian denominations, when the end to be attained is itself justified, and when such cooperation involves no violation of conscience or compromise of loyalty to Christ and His Word as revealed in the New Testament.

It is not my intention in this article to debate the subject of Calvinism. For one thing, many of our church members today do not know what one means when they use the term "Calvinism". I prefer Augustinianism, if you must have an identifier, because Augustine first espoused what we now call Calvinism, in particular in his controversy with Pelagius. Pelagius made salvation a choice of the free will and did not favor as severe view of the fall as Augustine. (For us as Baptists, it might even be helpful to think in terms of “Spurgeon-ism”, since the much revered Charles Spurgeon held fast to these same truths)
Nowadays, most Baptists that I know hold to at least some of Augustines’ tenets, which are referred to as “The Doctrines of Grace”, or Calvinism.. They may call themselves 3, 4 or 5 point Calvinists if cornered, but normally prefer to simply be known as Baptist. The one point of Calvinism that most in the SBC adhere to is the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, commonly called "eternal security". None of those who have studied modern church history can deny that for years now, there have been at least two major camps within Baptist circles regarding Calvinism: those who emphasize limited atonement, or other points of Calvinism, and those who emphasize man’s free will, or other points of Pelagianism, (or actually today, semi-Pelagianism*) commonly now called Arminianism, after, the Dutch theologian Jacob Arminius. I would suggest a thorough study of both Calvinism and Arminianism, and most Baptists will come to the conclusion that, yes, indeed, they adhere to some of the points of Calvinism if not all. (I will deal with the question of hyper-calvinism, which is a different animal later.)
*Full blown Pelagianism emphasizes man’s will to such a degree, that atonement is not necessary. Men are not seen as born sinners. Instead it is thought that they are able to emulate Christ’s example and save themselves by their good works. Semi-Pelagianism, on the other hand, believes men are born in sin, but have the "capacity" to choose Christ of their own free will regardless of regeneration. Basically, in Calvinism, God regenerates a soul, giving him the ability to believe, and in semi-pelagianism, a sinner believes so that God can regenerate him. Can we not center our fellowship around the doctrine of justification by faith? Can we not focus on repentance and faith being the prerequisites for salvation, resulting in the forgiveness of sins and the imputed righteousness of Christ? These we all agree on. I am willing to uphold my integrity as to my belief in "how and why" faith comes, and yet allow the latitude for my brother to come to a conclusion in that area that is different than mine and still work together with the desire at hand, which is for as many as possible to come to faith. I agree with Spurgeon when he says that "we care far more for the central evangelical truths than we do for Calvinism as a system; but we believe that Calvinism has in it a conservative force which helps to hold me to the vital truth, and therefore we are sorry to see any quitting it who have once accepted it”. We are after all organized to aid in spreading the gospel around the world, not to police one another.
Again, my point is not to debate the subject at hand, but to merely suggest that we, at least we in the Jefferson Baptist Association, are probably not going to finalize a debate that has gone on for years, but that with mature, prayerful consideration of our responsibilities as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we can cooperate in order to spread the gospel around the world, and evangelize as many as possible in the short time that we have.

Defamation
Friends, it is impossible for us to have the blessing of God upon our lives if we insist on tearing down our brothers. While it is always helpful for us to study the scriptures and have healthy and sometimes fiery debate, we cannot slander our brothers in Christ or in anyway attempt to undermine their efforts for Jesus Christ and think that God will wink at our actions. On both sides of this issue, I have heard good men cross the line when speaking of those who interpret the scriptures differently when it comes to these doctrines. According to the Baptist Faith and Message, we all agree on the doctrine of election. We simply disagree on how a person arrives at that election. And that is alright. Our main focus in our association should be in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in order that all may hear. It is our job to get the gospel out to the ends of the world. Wherever the banner of our Savior is not being flown, we should be fierce about going, or supporting someone who is going. Surely we understand that the complexity of baptist life would require us to yield to our brothers often, in many areas. We have seen this at the national level. As long as we maintain doctrinal integrity that is within the historic beliefs of baptists, there should be no problem

Extremes
There are some positions on both sides of this issue that need to be pointed out. They should be defined and explained in laymen’s terms in order to facilitate our working together.
1. Hyper Calvinism – Hyper-Calvinism emphasizes divine sovereignty to the exclusion of human responsibility. The doctrine of hyper-calvinism would tell us that there is no need for the believer to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, because God has determined whom He would save and He will save them without our help. They would say, or at least imply that there is no reason for us to evangelize or send out missionaries. That we cannot sincerely make an offer of the gospel to everyone, because God has not chosen everyone to be saved. The result of this error is a “sit and wait” mentality. We’ll sit and wait until God gets around to saving his elect. But we will not do anything to call men to put their faith in Jesus Christ.
These all, we utterly reject.
A true Calvinist, like Spurgeon, or for that matter William Carey the father of modern missions, knows of the great responsibility we have to get the gospel out and to support missions. That hyper-calvinism is dangerous and unbiblical we would all agree. It is important to point this out. A Calvinist is not the same as a hyper-calvinist. As I said, from the Baptist Faith and Message, it is clear that we are all Calvinists to some degree. Broadus and Manley, where we get our "Broadman press", William Carey, that great missionary, Adoniram Judson, John Bunyan, B. H. Carroll, Alvah Hovey, A. H. Strong, J. P. Boyce, John L. Dagg, Richard Fuller and many others were all "Calvinists" of the five point type. It is by no means a new invention that Baptists are Calvinists.
Most Baptists would agree with the total depravity of man, yet would insist that man is responsible to repent and believe the gospel. Many Baptist would agree with unconditional election, that God is at least infallible in His foreknowledge, define it how you will. Most Baptists with a few exceptions believe “once saved always saved”. That is called the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, or the last part of point 5 in the Baptist Faith and Message. Most all of us disagree strongly with Hyper-Calvinism, and reject the notion that we are not responsible to preach the gospel, evangelize and do missions. The apostle Paul rejoiced when the gospel was preached, even if it was because of contention. So should we. And we should never be those who attempt to thwart the work or ministries of those who by preaching HIS GOSPEL are calling men to repentance and faith and are attempting to do so around the world.

2. Easy-believism – Easy-believism is the notion that salvation entails a mere assent the the facts of the gospel message. It has been termed decisional regeneration or decisionism for short. Those who promote the man-centered tactics of easy-believism would maintain that all that is needed for a man to be saved is for him to affirm the truths of the gospel as they presented to him. It excludes the necessity for the conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit and the responsibility for man to repent.
These, even Baptists who would not categorize themselves as Calvinists, would reject as not belonging to the way of salvation. This type of evangelism is to be rejected outright as being no more than an art of manipulation akin to convincing men to join a club because of its benefits. Baptists have historically required both a true repentance from sin, which is followed by a life of biblical fruit, and a sincere faith in the merit and work of Jesus Christ alone which benefits are applied to the believer upon his conversion.
What is interesting is that those who are either 3, 4 or 5 point Calvinists were among those who began to see errors of decisionism and the lack of fruit in our Baptist churches because of it, and after identifying it, began to categorize many who are not of a like Calvinistic mind as belonging to the those promoting decisionism. This general attack in the direction of any church which held an altar call was unwarranted, and only resulted historically in a return of fire from the other direction, both sides being the worse for it.

The Invitation System
While many Baptists who hold invitations would never agree to the above definition of easy-believism, it is also easy to witness the actual methodology of those who do being practiced in some of our Baptist churches today. While most all degree of Calvinists in our association would insist on a clear call for sinners to repent and believe and for believers to examine their lives, some would also insist that there are other ways to extend that call than to ask people to “come down the aisle.” We have no record of any form of the modern invitation being given in the church for 1800 years, but there has always been a clear invitation given for sinners to repent and trust Christ. Some churches have used a counseling room as a place to go to for counseling if someone has sensed an immediate urge to repent and trust in Christ. I know of no Calvinists even of the 5 point type who would refuse to counsel anyone in the gospel if they “came down the aisle” of their church in obvious spiritual need.
On the other hand, I have seen a number of people converted in their homes after having heard the gospel and brought under conviction by the Holy Spirit. We all know that there is no secret formula that must be prayed when a person is converted, but that it is a matter of the heart.
Unfortunately, many of those who have invitations and have seen the result of many coming down the aisle who nevertheless show no lasting fruit in their lives(thus revealing the truth that they were never truly converted), have failed to be more cautious when dealing with souls. Calvinists have watched the efforts of mass evangelism, and the promotion of numbers and baptisms result in a flood of unregenerated people filling our churches and scores who either struggle with the assurance of their salvation or depend on a time they went down an aisle or prayed a prayer, rather than continuing to trust in the Savior they claimed to be saved by.
Please let me reiterate that we all as Baptists demand that an invitation be given for sinners to repent and trust in Christ as their Saviour. We believe that invitation is given clearly every time we preach the gospel. When I am preaching on the streets, I am constantly giving an invitation. Sometimes people stop, and I personally call them to repentance. When I was a missionary in New York City, I preached on the streets there, went door to door, and from the pulpit, gave an invitation for sinners to come to Christ. We believe in invitations. We believe it is our responsibility to preach the gospel around the world and invite sinners to come to Christ. We do it every day. Is it so bad that our method of invitation is different. Where in the scripture does it spell out a need to have an “altar call” as so many do today? I have had altar calls and I have told people to think about and pray about what they just heard. It was just a few months ago that a sinner came to my home obviously distraught at his lost condition. He was under deep conviction by the Holy Spirit. It was obvious that God was doing a work in his soul. Could I have led him in a prayer at that time? Certainly. I have done it hundreds and hundreds of times. But our responsibility when we lead people to Christ is to be sensitive to where they truly are, and to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and to be spiritual surgeons who handle the Word of God like a scalpel. He was obviously struggling with some sin. After counseling in the gospel, I sent him home to pray. He went home and got alone with God and the sweet Holy Spirit showed the light on some sin of his and he cried out to God and was gloriously converted. What a bright light that young man is today. What hope has filled his family now that he is genuinely converted. We simply can’t get it down to a science and professionally lead people to pray a prayer, decide for Christ, or join a church. Our contention is that the call to come to Christ is entailed in the very gospel we preach, and it is up to the preacher of the gospel to both give that call and carefully and prayerfully deal with the souls that come under his counsel.
The modern resurgence of those who have gone back to the more ancient roots of Augustinianism is greatly populated by the very same people who were either brought up in some type of easy-believism, or once practiced it themselves. Some in this revolution, which those in it would term a “work of God”, have been tempted to classify even good Baptist ministries who adhere to neither a system of easy-believism, or Calvinism, as belonging in the easy-believism camp. This is wrong. I love my dear brothers who do not agree doctrinally with me, but are faithful in preaching the gospel and supporting world-wide missions, and name calling simply does not have a place in our baptist associations.

In my opinion, there is nothing inherently wrong with the invitation system per se. Many Baptist churches hold invitations, but are prayerful and careful in counseling with those who are being dealt with by the Holy Spirit. There is often time taken to pray, sometimes continuing on to an inquiry room, there is often scripture read, and there are times when souls are genuinely converted at the front of a church. The problem that many Calvinists see is when there is a mass of people who are led in a prayer, and then told that since they prayed that prayer they are going to heaven. I certainly don’t want to entertain any thoughts that would appear derogatory, but simply let me say that souls are worth spending time with. The Holy Spirit is more than able to finish any work that He starts. (Which does not mean that He does not use man in the process of evangelism, He certainly does.) The problem is when it is apparent that God is not working at all. There is no apparent conviction, no desire to forsake sin and no real faith in the finished work of Christ, but simply a desire to escape hell. I have many examples to site, but on the other hand, I could offer just as many examples where sinners were truly converted after the preaching of the gospel. They “came down the aisle” and were prayed with and God saved them. None of us doubt that! It is caution when dealing with souls that we demand, whether you deal with them during an invitation or during an appointment at a later time. It is entirely too common for those who deal with souls not to be familiar with the gospel and to attempt to convince an inquirer that, if they would simply “pray this prayer after me”, they would be converted. I don’t mind leading someone in a prayer, if I am convinced that they are praying from the heart. But if indeed The Holy Spirit has them under conviction and it is from the heart, and they have understood the gospel, would they not be saved regardless of whether they “prayed the right words” or not, if there was true repentance and faith in Jesus Christ?
Those are some of the concerns of Calvinists when it comes to the invitation system. The downside of all of this is that, many who don’t understand either the Calvinistic roots of our Baptist heritage and/or don’t understand biblical Calvinism (Augustinianism), are prone to identify the lack of an invitation or just the word Calvinist with Hyper-Calvinism. Even the most conservative of those adhering to an Augustinian position would have trouble with the positions they are often accused of having. Let me say loudly, “We are not hyper-calvinists.” I would like to hear just as loudly proclaimed on the other side; “we are not among those who promote easy-believism. We believe in the Baptist Faith and Message. We believe in the perseverance of the saints. We believe in the doctrine of election according to grace.” Let both sides loudly proclaim, we reject both easy-believism and hyper-calvinism, and we shall be on solid ground. At least solid enough to labor together to get the gospel out, and send the saints around the world in mission endeavors.
Both easy-believism and hyper-calvinism are dangerous positions which should be rejected by all gospel loving, mission-minded Baptists. It is also just as harmful to the cause of Christ, for those on either side to classify our brothers to the extreme side. The desire to defame, destroy or undermine our Baptist brethren does not help the cause of the gospel, but rather hinders it. Hyper-calvinism is not defined by whether you are a 3, 4 or 5 point Calvinist, but by your response to those truths in regards to missionary endeavors, evangelism, and the responsibility and duty of man. Easy-believism is not defined by whether you have an invitation or not, but by how you respond to the need for the gospel to be taken seriously by understanding that salvation is a work of God whereby the Holy Spirit brings conviction of sin upon a sinner bringing him to repent and believe without doing any damage to his will. Understanding that salvation is a work of God will not only give the confidence needed to clearly preach the gospel, but will result in a reliance on the power of God in conversion rather than the ability of man. Not that persuasion and convincing is not a part of the art of preaching, but that we rely on the power of God in all of these things.
Human reasoning entering into the debate.
On both sides of this issue I have both heard and read men using human reasoning in order to justify what they believe. I don’t believe that is necessary or warranted. Do I believe the debate is necessary? Of course! Iron sharpens iron, and we as God’s men should be diligent about what we believe and why we believe it. But the debate does not have to degenerate. We can, like many of those in leadership of the Southern Baptist convention, have healthy dialogue, yet work together in preaching the gospel. I know of no preacher worth his salt who would preach either hyper-calvinism or easy-believism to a lost man. Yes, we can stand on our doctrine and even debate about it, yet we must be one in keeping our focus on getting the gospel out to the uttermost parts of the earth. That includes working together in our associational Camps in order to come to terms with one another’s differences in approach and methodology and seeking to find common ground where we can not only preach the gospel, but invite sinners to trust in Christ and counsel them to that end. We urge all men everywhere to repent and to trust in our Wonderful Savior.
I think the common ground we need to start on is that God is absolutely sovereign and man is absolutely responsible in the gracious work of salvation. Let us as Baptists make a resolution that in spite of our differences in doctrine and methodology, we are servants of the King and stand shoulder to shoulder with the banner of His gospel, His death, burial and resurrection, and the need for men to repent and trust in Christ as their Savior.
From there, let us send our missionaries out, stand on the streets and preach the gospel, pass out our gospel tracts, preach to our youth, preach to our congregations and give the clear call of the gospel, and advance the Kingdom of God.

Rev. Bob Schembre

Rockport Baptist Church

Worship - a response to a brother

2009-07-03T14:10:00.000-07:00

It was not that long ago, that I had an interaction with a dear brother regarding the subject of a saint shouting during our worship services. Like all matter where there is disagreement, there must be communication. At that time I shared with our dear brother the following note, and thought that it would be edifying to include it here in my thoughts on worship. I have removed the names in the note and one or two identifying sentences. I hope that anyone who can receive understanding and/or help from this response will find it.

Dear___________,

Thank you for your interest in this matter. I don't wish to debate, so this will be my only response, at least on this for now. That is why I addressed preachers. I didn’t want to bring all of this out for now. Another time maybe, but I am not interested in debating at this time. As with other issues I am tempted to think that you have your mind made up on this issue. But at any rate, I won't judge you and will entertain your thoughts.
You begin by quoting numerous verses on edification. Very well. Since God has called me to give my life for the edification of the saints, I must hasten to agree on the import of this subject. However, the subject at hand is worship, and although you cite these verses and conclude by saying that edification is of “first priority”, I also must hasten to strongly disagree.
In fact, first priority in worship is Godward. First priority is pleasing God, focusing on God, lifting up praises to God, bowing before God. It is all about God. During worship, while edification is important, it is not the most important issue. Teaching the saints to exult in God is the most important issue.
2Sa 6:15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet.
1Ch 15:28 Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.
2Ch 15:14 And they sware unto the LORD with a loud voice, and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with cornets.
Ps 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Ps 5:11 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.
Ps 32:11 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Ps 47:1 O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
Ps 132:9 Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; and let thy saints shout for joy.
Ps 132:16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation: and her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Brother, shouting is as scriptural as singing. Now, I have seen the charismania in some churches, and would not want the disorder associated with that movement, but would you really think that it was love to censor a brother who was so full of joy over what Christ has done for him that he shouted one time during the service. Would you really be ready to judge his motives and say that that one shout was disorderly? Perhaps you are not comfortable with shouting. Our formative paths and experiences are different brother, and Christian love calls for a largeness of latitude and forbearance when it comes to expressions of praise. As I said to another brother, I will not judge your lack of emotions, and neither should you judge my emotions.
You are judging also whether the church is edified by certain expressions of emotion. I have been greatly edified on any number of occasions when the truth which was being sung or preached impacted a saint so much that that dear saint had to cry out to God. Who am I to judge that dear saint? Isn't it needful for the body to be hospitable and gracious to a saint who gets so stirred by the truth that is being sung or preached that it comes forth in what appears to many, both now and historically in many Baptist churches, to be a response that is quite within the limits of appropriate scriptural response.
Now maybe your background doesn't give you that experience. Perhaps you have never been in a baptist church when someone has shouted, and there are many good, solid, bible-believing churches, with nothing that most believers would classify as disorderly, where shouting sporadically takes place.
I had an older brother in the Lord who used to get moved by the truth often. He was a former alcoholic, and God had gloriously saved him and he never got over it. "Once in awhile old brother so and so is going to shout", was simply the way we handled it. What is so wrong with that? Have we come to the time in our Baptist churches that we are going to attempt to legislate the praises of God's people?
Now I believe in standing against the modern day charismatic movement and all that it stands for, but that is not us brother. Many of the old Regular Baptists, where we Calvinists get our heritage still shout today. Many of the Independent Baptist churches have members who shout. I have never seen it get out of order. And I have never in my twenty seven years of ministering seen people upset because another saint gets excited about the Lord and say that it just ruins the whole service for them. Brother, the whole thing quite frankly sounds ludicrous to me. I am trying to understand but am really having difficulty comprehending what seems to be bitter resistance, when holding it all up to the light of scripture.
Every single believer ought to be growing in grace and learning more and becoming more and more intimate. Brother, in my private devotions, I get so emotional nowadays over what God has done for me, that sometimes I don't know what to do. I waller and holler and thank God that He has saved me. The people in my church have never seen so much self-control, discretion, restraint for the sake of the body, subjection of my spirit and willingness to not be the center of attention, but one or two shouts during a service should be no more distracting than a loud off key singer. ( God give us more who sing loudly as the scripture teaches, even if off key.)
Brother, seriously, we need to be humble and not judge the motives of our brothers and sisters in Christ, especially in an area so clearly spelled out in scripture. You would have to strain at a gnat to say that shouting is not allowed in worship services if you searched the scriptures on worship. I have. Over the years I have taught a series on worship and have carefully studied every single use of anything having to do with worship and praise and every word involved including the Hebrew and the Greek. We are simply not talking about disorder when a saint cries out. Every believer ought to learn the disciplines also, not just of self-restraint, but of not being easily distracted. We ought to be going so hard after God and worshiping with all of our might that it would be very difficult to get our attention off of God. All too often though, many are simply watching others. That is why so many, who really want to just lift up their hands and worship God don't. They are afraid what others will think of them. Shame. (And you really have to strain to say that the scriptures teach that the raising of the hands in worship is anything but that.)
Ps 28:2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
Ps 63:4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
Ps 134:2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the LORD.
Ps 141:2 Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
Here is Spurgeon’s Quote –
“When I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle: which holy place was the type of our Lord Jesus; and if we would gain acceptance, we must turn ourselves evermore to the blood besprinkled mercy seat of his atonement. Uplifted hands have ever been a form of devout posture, and are intended to signify a reaching upward towards God, a readiness, an eagerness to receive the blessing sought after. We stretch out empty hands, for we are beggars; we lift them up, for we seek heavenly supplies; we lift them towards the mercy seat of Jesus, for there our expectation dwells. ‘I will lift up my hands in thy name.’ For worship the hands were uplifted, as also in joy, in thanksgiving, in labour, in confidence; in all these senses we would lift up our hands in Jehovah’s name alone. No hands need hang down when God draws near in love. The name of Jesus has often made lame men leap as a hart, and it has made sad men clap their hands for joy.
The New Testament is absent of many things about worship Bro. I believe that the particulars in the New Testament are not strangely absent, but purposefully absent, because the gospel was going out into all the world and there would be a wide variety in styles of worship throughout the nations and the ages. Thus there are precious few guidelines for worship in the New Testament. What we get from overall principles are from the Old Testament. Now I am not a dispensationalist and understand the ramifications of that theology. I believe that Old Testament saints were saved by grace just like today, and if they had something to shout about with the types and shadows, we New Testament believers who no longer have figures, but Christ Himself, and His shed blood have much more of a reason to shout. I'm about ready to shout right now.
Now is one expression or the lack of more spiritual than the other? Of course not. Whoever thought of such a silly notion? We are all different. You yourself said that most of the responses thus far were subjective, and that the fine line between what may lead to disunity and what is acceptable practice is subjective. Most of your responses have been subjective. Because we are all different. Why is it that the brother who cries out to God because of the enormous truth he is dwelling upon may be causing disunity, but the brother who is opposing him, or judging him is not causing disunity? It all depends on who you talk to in this subjective area.
You said that you like to hear an Amen now and then during the sermon. During the truth being preached in sermon, but not the truth being sung about in the songs? What is the difference? In considering an "amen" during the message, here's my question, "How is that OK and not disruptive (when all is quiet), but an "amen" or "hallelujah" during the singing when all are singing any way is not? Most of the answers are going to be subjective.
Now you said that the model for the church is inward peace, joy and faith. Hmmm. I strongly disagree. You have taken your subjective view of worship and want to use it as a rule. The New Testament model is liberty and freedom. Order yes. Silliness and trivialities no. Gravity yes. Gladness yes. Dull, emotionless worship no. Emotions in worship is another long subject though.
Brother, let's worship together in our church. Let's worship God passionately. You inwardly, me from inward to outward.
If somebody gets out of line with anything stupid like barking, laughing, crawling down the aisles, or speaking in tongues the leaders would quickly address it.
But for God's sake, let's not try to put out fires that God starts in peoples hearts. I haven't seen any wild fires or strange fires and am not going to judge that the passion in another saint is anything but pure.

In Christ’s Magnificent and Awesome Love,
Bob

Worshiping on the Surface

2009-06-24T03:37:00.000-07:00

After reading 1 Corinthians 12 and 13 this morning, I began thinking about the relationships that I have in church. Some are very dear. I love these people. I try to pray for as many of the members of our congregation as I can, but it is better when the Elders split up the congregation for prayer. At least it is easier.
I think of those who I don't really know very well. I think of those who seem to have somewhat against me. (this is not paranoia. These are things that have been brought to me by the Elders) I think of our biblical responsibility as Elders to exercise church discipline. This is not simply punitive in nature. Part of being a healthy functioning church is that there are no divisions, i.e. that there are no members who won't have anything to do with other members. In fact, love requires this. Now, I certainly don't have the time or the energy to go chasing around members who have been offended by me. (it seems that is all to common in my years of ministry. I think I have large feet.) But certainly, it would behoove us to bring our differences to our brother and be fully reconciled. I have been extended love beyond measure in this congregation. I have never seen it like this. Yet, there are always those who are tender and are the walking wounded. My prayer is that there would be a boldness in these tender ones to approach me in order that we may reconcile and share our love in Christ. If our relationships are only on the surface, then our worship can go no deeper. For that matter, the bible insists that we do not worship our Lord, if we are at odds with any brother at all. First, leave your gift at the altar. Be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Courtship - An Admonishment

2009-06-22T07:52:00.000-07:00

A fruit of the Spirit is patience. Waiting is good. And it is the art of patiently waiting for God to work that often saves a marriage. There is a difference between waiting and waiting patiently. Many a young lady is waited on by an impatiently waiting young man. And impatience is dangerous. Paul taught Timothy to pursue patience. Courtship is not pursuing one that you want to marry, rather, it should not be in my opinion. Courtship is determining the will of God concerning two people.

This patient waiting should involve prayer and thankfulness. Prayer has an amazing way of helping us with patience. And we should count it all joy that the "God of patience" is working in us.

Courtship should be a beautiful time of waiting, worship of God, and seeing your friend conformed to the image of Christ.

The couple should be waiting on God to see if He will use them together to serve HIM as a married couple, if God has someone else for them, or if they are going to serve HIM alone. They should be waiting patiently on God and aligning themselves with purity, holiness and the Word of God.

There should be a clear understanding that if the courtship does not work out, the couple will be mature enough to part as friends, without resentment and with all due respect for each other's feelings.

Remember guys, it's all about Him, it is not about you. Put your hope in Christ alone and be willing to engage or let go within a few months. That may seem a rather arbitrary amount of time, but I have my reasons and may include them in a later post.

Courtship Prayer: Lord, have your way in us. If this is to be, then YOU do it.

Singing

2009-06-16T15:56:00.000-07:00

The scriptures exhort us to sing. We should enjoy singing, and sing every day. We ought to be a singing people. We have a reason to sing. No one but a believer can know the hope that we have in Christ. We should sing to ourselves in Psalms, Hymns and spiritual songs. Our thoughts should be saturated with scriptural songs. Good doctrinal songs. Wonderful praise songs. We should sing with all of our hearts. And when we gather for corporate worship, we should sing lustily and gladly. What a Savior! We will sing with our new voices for all eternity and praise the One who has given us life and hope. Be a singing believer, and you will find yourself mounting up to higher ground. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live. I will sing this new song to the Lord.

HOPE AND WORSHIP

2009-06-11T14:34:00.000-07:00

We gather to worship because our only hope is Jesus Christ. As I read the Psalms, I make it a habit to ask myself if I am doing what the Psalms say. When the Psalmist says "I trust in the Lord", I ask myself if I am trusting in the Lord. Or am I trusting in myself, my abilities, my strength or my resolve. When David refers to God as his refuge, I ask myself if I am fleeing to Him or to other things for my comfort, my escape, my rest, my strength, or my protection.
We often choose other sources of refuge. We put our trust in men or things. We see a bright future for us if certain things will happen. To what are you fleeing to today? What would you wish would happen that would make everything right? In what do you take comfort? How do you feel safe?
If the answer to any of these are anything other than God, (and please be honest with yourself, otherwise, why are we having this discussion?) then you need to understand that you are only placing your hope in something that will never and can never be what you think it will. You have been deceived. You have fallen for the lie. You worship what you hope in.

The Power of God

2009-06-05T18:44:00.000-07:00

Well, I had a bad day. But God is good. i thought I would just transfer an old post that I think is worth reading for today's post. It has a bit to do with last Sunday evening's message. Here ya go.

Divine unction only comes to those who have kept themselves pure in heart and mind.
Without that unction, ALL of our sermons are mere dribble, no matter how eloquent, persuasive, or intellectual.
Only as we are endued with power from on high will lives be radically changed.
Stephen Olford said "Beloved, if you stand behind this holy desk and you're life isn't pure; if you're life isn't absolutely holy as far as you know it; if are not walking under an unclouded sky with the ungrieved, unquenched Holy Spirit in your life; then, my friend, you've absolutely blocked the message from any authority whatsoever," he said.
While I was at Stephen Olford's home years ago during his Institute on Biblical Preaching, (there were just a couple of us back then when he first started the Institute in Memphis in 1985), I remember his admonition concerning power.
He said, "Don't you think for a minute that being instant in season and out of season means that you can ask God for His anointing to preach when you need it on Sunday, if you haven't been living in power everyday."
I have tried to remember that on Monday as well as on Saturday, and have always asked my church to be in prayer for me.. We simply cannot afford to let down our guard for a moment. How many men will we see with their armor not on and they ending up on the shelf, with no power, doing no mighty works, preaching merely from the intellect, dispensing no life, with Ichabod written over the lintel of their sanctuaries.
The man of God is to be endued with power from on high as he lives his dedicated life. His prayer should be, "God, if I cannot live my life with a divine anointing to preach and witness to the unbeliever, then just go ahead and take me home now." Oh that men would tarry before God until the power comes. There have been nights when I have waited before God through the night, pleading with Him for power. Most Mondays are spent seeking God and asking for a refilling of His Spirit. I often feel spent after a day of ministering. Yes, we need a fresh anointing all the time. God gives us a fresh anointing. Send down the power from on high. Shake this place where we worship and let the glory of God fall! Send the fire! Wake the sleeping church. Save the deaf, dumb and blind. Open the eyes of those who are blinded by the god of this world. Free those who are shackled by sin. Raise those who are dead to God. These mighty works only happen as the man of God is anointed with the power of God, and it is Satans' determination that God's man would fall
Church, let us earnestly pray together that our teaching Pastor is filled with the Spirit of God and endued with power from on high. It is our responsibility to stand beside him and hold up his hands, to labor together in prayer that the glory would descend and that there would be a divine anointing upon him as he preaches. Let us pray every week that he would have more and more of God's power upon him, and let us never stop praying until we gather with the heavenly throng around His glorious throne!

Passionate Worship

2009-06-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

Well, I attempted this last Sunday Evening to convey the heart of my understanding as to why we do what we do. At least laying a foundation. The Sermon can be found here.
After reviewing it today I have a couple of thoughts. Primarily, I feel for the brethren who listened to that message and who are not as emotionally based as some of us are. I am afraid I might give the impression that one cannot be fully engaged in worship and it not be a fully visible experience to the rest of the saints. Well, I happen to know that is entirely possible, because I have experienced it myself. There are times when the communion is so deep and so sweet, that the only visible sign may be a tear or a bowed head.
Having said that, I do feel that a big problem in our churches is that we not only do not adequately prepare for corporate worship, but that same lack of preparation is there in our daily lives. We simply cannot fuly engage in worship of our God if our lives are filled with so many preoccupations. We must be a people who cast out our idols and gaze upon His glorious beauty, believe with all of our hearts, and worship Him with all of minds, our our hearts, all our strength and all our soul.

George Tiller's Death

2009-06-01T12:24:00.000-07:00

I want to completely condemn the murder of Tiller the Killer. It was wrong. What amazes me is that many of those who claim to be pro-life and are speaking out against this murder were not as vocal in their condemnation of Tiller's infamous murders.

KILLER TILLER - HUFF AND PUFF POST - RANT!

2009-06-01T08:57:00.000-07:00

Well, the old Huff and Puff Post is at it again. No shocker here either. Right away, they have identified the culprit in this case to be, you guessed it, religion! Even calling for the President to use our Armed Forces on the streets to defend the lives of Abortionists. Now, I completely and without reservation condemn the murder of George Tiller.
Several interesting points. The first of which is that Tiller was an usher in this Lutheran church. Now, must of us conservatives would immediately determine that the church is liberal. Must be, if they let this know killer of the unborn be an upstanding member in their church. Fine. The point is, I wonder if the liberal media will investigate this aspect. Will they give thought to this. Hmmm, this happened in a church. This church was fine with Tiller being a member. Even an usher who greeted people on the way in to their "religious services". Maaaaybe all religion is not bad? Nah, they won't give it a second thought. They'll leave their left-wing religious cronies to suffer and suck it up.
Also, we still don't know what Scott Roeder's motives were. Well now, we don't have to be naive aboiut it do we? He evidently stewed about this for quite some time and decided to take it into his own hands and kill this man. Also, he had a fish symbol on his car. Oh these crazy religious right people.
Oh, by the way. It is interesting that the Huff and Puff put this crime on par with the killing of thousands in our nation on 9-11 by Muslim terrorists. One thing they forget. The Muslim terrorists kill in order that they may go to "their" heaven and be rewarded for their killing. They kill innocent people. These home grown people who kill abortionists are motivated by the killing of the abortionists themselves. (The abortionists, in my estimation are not innocent people.) I cannot justify their killing of the abortionists. (I refuse to call them "Doctor".) They hope to receive no reward from this killing, but rather realize that they are probably going to pay a huge cost for their actions with no reward. They are deluded, but they are are not equal to the dangerous mindset of those who wish to wipe our nation off of the face of the earth. Oh, and by they way....the Muslim terrorists will start with those among us who they deem the most evil. The liberal left! How ironic.

KILLER TILLER

2009-05-31T22:08:00.001-07:00

Well, Killer Tiller has met his match. He has become the victim of the death that he sent so many hundreds of thousands of innocent precious little babies to. His homicidal ways were clear verification of the total depravity of man, and that although all of us are not as bad as we could be, the depths of the depravity of man know no limits.
There is hardly a living human being in our side of the world as close to the likes of Hitler as this individual. There remains no more mercy. He is damned. It is impossible that this man could live as the serial murderer that he was without repentance and have any hope. He was not only an outspoken advocate of mass murder of innocent babies, but actually funded it, promoted it, and his hands were the instruments of the deaths of untold thousands.
I do not justify the murderous rage of the man who took his life. In fact, I condemn it without reservation. God has said. "Vengeance is mine. I will repay." The vengeance has barely begun. And God is just. I don't know that he has any family to pray for.
God is perfect in all of his ways. I have always wondered why he let this man live a long as he did. But then again, I have often wondered why He let me live.
God is a God of grace and justice. God had grace upon me and I don't know why.

Rockport Worship

2009-05-29T09:19:00.000-07:00

Aaron is busy and was supposed to preach this Sunday in the evening service, so I guess I am going to go ahead and bring what I planned on bringing at a later date on the subject of worship at Rockport. Specifically, the "Rationale and Theology for our Worship Services and why Passionate Worship is Biblical". I started to go into why passionate worship is the only biblical way to worship, but for fear of being misunderstood, I am going to keep that portion to biblical models of passionate worship. I realize that everyone is different and everyone expresses themselves differently, so I don't want it to seem like I am trying to force anything on anyone. The joy of passionate worship is that we get to enjoy the Lord in our worship as children worshiping at the feet of their Father.
I have always been thrilled when my children play together in front of me. I could watch them for hours. They do it for their own enjoyment, yet I also enjoy it. There are many times when I have thought that I was the one enjoying it most. Even now, when my children are grown, I love watching them have fun together. It thrills me to no end to see them laughing with glee together at something. In particular as it relates to what is nearest to my heart, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ. As they wonder at God's wonders and ways and thrill at the adventure of a life of faith, I get absolutely filled with joy.
Our Father is the same way. I am sure, if He could wonder, He would wonder, why His children don't seem more thrilled with the words they are singing about Him. Did He not make them the emotional creatures that they are?
Anyway, the theological basis for my thoughts are seriously interesting.

This Sunday AM we are going to be using:

Hallelujah! What A Savior! Hymn 175

Fountain of Grace

A Glorious Sacrifice - This is a song I wrote.

Jesus I Am Resting, Resting - we will do a new version of this great old Hymn

You Are My King (Amazing Love)

I Love You Lord (with extra verse by John Piper)

I am pretty pumped for next Sunday. It is our monthly dinner on the grounds Sunday. We call it Fellowship Sunday around here. But we eat at church after the services. We are going to be using all Southern Gospel Music for Worship. I am trying to eliminate from the list those songs that seem to be "gospel light." I have eliminated quite a few that I used to very willing to do. I'm going to be getting the banjo out for this one. Should be a great and fun day.

Continuous Worship

2009-05-26T16:16:00.000-07:00

Nobody is worshiping nothing. We are all worshiping something all of the time. The question is who or what.

The Masses

2009-05-23T11:32:00.000-07:00

I went to a MLB baseball game last night. Myriads of fans worshiping their god. Some, just enjoying a night out with the family. Most of the evening, at least percentage wise is spent simply observing the players preparing for the next play. I suppose percentage wise, it is the same with football, although, every play is sure to avail something, either pro or con.
It was sort of a melancholy evening. I appreciated the time out. (Our friends who took us, gave us tickets, with the expectation that we would give them the toy that was handed out that evening, which I did, rather grudgingly for some reason. An Albert Pujols statue of some sort.) At any rate, I enjoyed focusing on the professionalism of the players doing their thing. At the top of what they do to be sure.
I suppose I had several problems. For one thing, the amount of activity offered during the evening surely did not seem to deserve the millions of dollars these guys make. Oh, they are good. Too good in fact for my taste. I would rather see an old man playing softball attempt to slide into home, only to change his mind half-way through and actually barrel roll over the plate as the crowd gasps as if questioning the chances of his survival.
I looked at the crowds and thought about the world. I questioned how many of these people are going to spend eternity in hell. Most of them I suppose. What was there? Some 50,000? I felt like standing up and screaming. I wouldn't have been heard though. Most don't even hear when you preach to them while they are passing by you on the street. Most are simply oblivious. We aren't. But sometimes we act like we are.
Man, this world is going to hell. I can't believe I'm not. Wow. Amazing grace.