I just finished reading Philip Yancey’s Soul Survivor and instead of writing a normal book review (I have taken a book review hiatus, I will eventually write more) I will instead take his advice in the epilogue and reflect on those God has used to guide me in my journey in pursuing Christ.
Yancey has some odd mentors in his book that initially caused some worry on my part, but after he tells his story about growing up in a hate-filled fundamentalist church (not all fit this category but his certainly did) he struggled to trust the church or even God. We all have struggles and obstacles to faith. These may come from the rebellious nature of our own hearts or from the suffering that results from living in a fallen world or even from the enemy of our souls. Yet the journey is often confusing and with every believer it is unique and tangled, so bear with me for a few paragraphs while I take Yancey’s advice and reflect on my mentors in the faith.
First I must acknowledge the influence of my parents - Mom taught me to love - she thinks that she’s not very good at expressing love. Yet all of her sons have felt loved and learned from Mom how to share love in meaningful ways. Dad taught me how to be a man - that manhood doesn’t consist of grunting and spitting but rather is fundamentally about taking responsibility and being willing to sacrifice for others (in Dad’s case sometimes to a fault, sorry Dad but its true).
Second I would point to J.R.R. Tolkien. When I was in the sixth grade I stumbled across the Hobbit and was immediately hooked. I then went on to read the Lord of the Rings of course. What I learned from Tolkien was from his portrayal of heroes. Throughout my younger years (and to this day) my understanding of what a hero was came from Tolkien, one who courageously does what is necessary even when it means a great deal of suffering by one for others. This was what really captivated me. Seeing poor little Frodo suffering alone to save all of middle earth, that is epic heroism. Repentant Boromir fighting to the death so the little one’s can escape. I didn’t know it at the time but these are Christ-like heroes. In shaping my understanding of a hero, in some measure, Tolkien softened my heart to hear about the work of Christ.
Third (bear with me) is the Dalai Llama. In my junior year of high school I was once again prowling through the library (boy I was a nerd) and came across a book by the Dalai Llama where in very basic terms he explained what Buddhism was. I began reading there in the aisle and was captivated. He was answering questions from his perspective that I had never once thought to ask. I checked out the book and checked it out repeatedly for the next year. To a few friends I declared myself a Buddhist (sorry Mom and Dad). The positive that came out of this deception (for I became convinced that Buddhism is not true and actually does a very poor job of answering the big questions) was that I began thinking about spiritual things. I don’t think that before that moment I had ever had a spiritual thought in my life. So it was a kind of back-handed blessing, good coming out of darkness.
Fourth was John Lucas. John was the first person ever to invite me to any kind of Christian function. I had never been invited to church or BSU or anything like it in my life. Yet John took me to these meetings and shared the Gospel with me and after I became a Christian (and to this day) John has served as a guide and mentor to me as I strive to follow my crucified savior.
Paul Badgett was important for the biggest reason that it was under his preaching that I came to faith in Christ. But also Paul was faithful to proclaim the beautiful gospel simply and clearly week after week. Thank you Paul for feeding me the gospel.
Erwin Lutzer’s book Doctrine’s that Divide was the book that showed me that theology really does matter. That what we believe really does matter. This was the book that God used to kill all the post-modernism left in me.
Now I want to close with a few honorable mentions. Josh Owen allowed me to watch him be a pastor, husband, father, and theologian. He showed me that we can be all these things without neglecting our churches or our families, thank you Josh. Francis Schaeffer showed me that the Christian faith was intellectually beautiful and extremely logical, that we are not leaping into the dark. Mark Helton has shown me how to suffer with grace. My matchless wife has shown me the power of forgiveness and love (she has had much to forgive and little to find worthy of love).
PS - Yancey's book is a great read. His writing ability made this book hard to put down. But most of all the strange path that God used in bringing him safely into the fold was captivating. A worthy read and I've been inspired to read more by Yancey.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Being Right Without Sounding Crazy
Sometimes I think about who I spend my time with and I wonder if it really is pleasing to my King. While He was here during His incarnation He spent His time with either the world's nobodies or the religious world's outcasts. His disciples were nobodies and He spent an awful lot of time hanging out with tax collector's. He was scandalously friendly with people known to be sexually immoral. Jesus only had so much time to spend with people here and He chose to invest in these people.
Reflecting on this I am embarrassed to think on the mistakes made by the church in the past. Times of compromise and foolishness. And even times of hatred. Yet we are called to be much different than this. Especially when we are certain of being right. We must be right with compassion and love. Remember Jesus not only taught us to love the outcast and the immoral through His actions He absolutely commanded it when He told us to love our neighbor. Immoral people and people who are wrong are still our neighbors.
There is also the issue of the image of God. The fact that all humans are made in the image of God should drive us to respect and cherish every living human, whether they share our convictions or not. As Francis Schaeffer said there are 'no little people.'
So who do I have in mind particularly - I am thinking specifically of how we as Evangelicals have interacted with homosexuals. I recently was exposed to two different ways of responding to our culture's embrace of homosexuality. One was a man was denouncing homosexuality as an awful sin that deserved hell and that they shouldn't talk about some gay gene, because people choose to be that way. Then I heard another Evangelical (that I respect and appreciate a great deal) say that in a few decades we are going to be sorry for not embracing homosexuality in the same way the southern church should be embarrassed for supporting a racist society.
I found them both distasteful for different reasons. The first man for his lack of compassion and willingness to show grace. The second man for listening to culture rather than the clear truth of scripture. We must find a balance.
I want to say clearly that I believe that the Bible teaches that homosexuality is sinful. I also believe that it is destructive to individuals and families. I also fear that it is a particularly enslaving sin that it is difficult to escape once begun. I also believe that there is a distinct possibility that there is some sort of genetic proclivity toward homosexual attraction (like some people are born with addictive personalities or struggle with chemical depression). But I also think that homosexuals are still our neighbors, that they are made in the Image of God and therefore have inherent dignity and should be treated with respect.
We need to learn to be understanding, to acknowledge the difficulty of escaping this lifestyle. Be willing to acknowledge that some people will always struggle with same-sex attraction. To show mercy and grace. To develop real friendships with homosexuals. And at the same time be clear that even as we love homosexuals we are still opposed to their sin.
We must learn to be right with compassion and grace.
PS - I bet Jesus would have been friends with homosexuals and still told them to leave their sin.
Reflecting on this I am embarrassed to think on the mistakes made by the church in the past. Times of compromise and foolishness. And even times of hatred. Yet we are called to be much different than this. Especially when we are certain of being right. We must be right with compassion and love. Remember Jesus not only taught us to love the outcast and the immoral through His actions He absolutely commanded it when He told us to love our neighbor. Immoral people and people who are wrong are still our neighbors.
There is also the issue of the image of God. The fact that all humans are made in the image of God should drive us to respect and cherish every living human, whether they share our convictions or not. As Francis Schaeffer said there are 'no little people.'
So who do I have in mind particularly - I am thinking specifically of how we as Evangelicals have interacted with homosexuals. I recently was exposed to two different ways of responding to our culture's embrace of homosexuality. One was a man was denouncing homosexuality as an awful sin that deserved hell and that they shouldn't talk about some gay gene, because people choose to be that way. Then I heard another Evangelical (that I respect and appreciate a great deal) say that in a few decades we are going to be sorry for not embracing homosexuality in the same way the southern church should be embarrassed for supporting a racist society.
I found them both distasteful for different reasons. The first man for his lack of compassion and willingness to show grace. The second man for listening to culture rather than the clear truth of scripture. We must find a balance.
I want to say clearly that I believe that the Bible teaches that homosexuality is sinful. I also believe that it is destructive to individuals and families. I also fear that it is a particularly enslaving sin that it is difficult to escape once begun. I also believe that there is a distinct possibility that there is some sort of genetic proclivity toward homosexual attraction (like some people are born with addictive personalities or struggle with chemical depression). But I also think that homosexuals are still our neighbors, that they are made in the Image of God and therefore have inherent dignity and should be treated with respect.
We need to learn to be understanding, to acknowledge the difficulty of escaping this lifestyle. Be willing to acknowledge that some people will always struggle with same-sex attraction. To show mercy and grace. To develop real friendships with homosexuals. And at the same time be clear that even as we love homosexuals we are still opposed to their sin.
We must learn to be right with compassion and grace.
PS - I bet Jesus would have been friends with homosexuals and still told them to leave their sin.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
A DISTURBING REMINDER OF WHY THE SBC RESURGENCE WAS NECCESSARY
One of the things that I praise God for is the conservative resurgence within Southern Baptist life. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Adrian Roger's election as President of the SBC, an event that almost all Baptist historians say changed the face of the convention forever. Since that monumental event, we have consistently seen conservative leaders who hold strongly to the inerrancy of God's Word voted in as president of the convention. We have seen trustee boards that were once dominated by liberals slowly begin to fill up with conservatives. We have seen seminary leaders who were liberal retire or resign, and solid conservatives replacing them to train men and women for ministry. We have seen faculty changes that has produced the best scholarship available today in our SBC Seminaries. In a word, we have seen a move of God that is unparalleled in the history of the church. For those who are interested in reading more about the transition years, two books stand out in my mind. The first is "The Bapist Reformation," by Jerry Sutton, a Southern Baptist conservative who now teaches at Liberty University. The second is "Uneasy in Babylon," by Barry Hankin, a moderate baptist historian who teaches at Baylor University, but delivers a well-researched and balanced evaluation of the movement and its impact on SBC life.
In light of God's grace to us in the last thirty years, this article reminded me of where we could be today were it not for the grace of God. This article was published as an opinion piece in the Associated Baptist Press, and it essentially accuses Jesus as being a racist until he encountered a woman who challenged his bias and helped him to "see" his error. After that he "learned" his mission was to the entire world and left his prejudiced views of Jewish elitism.
While there are many disagreements being aired within SBC circles right now regarding a host of topics, let's all thank God that all of them are being done from the perspective that God's Word is infallible, inerrant, and sufficient for our faith and practice!
Click Here for ABP Article
In light of God's grace to us in the last thirty years, this article reminded me of where we could be today were it not for the grace of God. This article was published as an opinion piece in the Associated Baptist Press, and it essentially accuses Jesus as being a racist until he encountered a woman who challenged his bias and helped him to "see" his error. After that he "learned" his mission was to the entire world and left his prejudiced views of Jewish elitism.
While there are many disagreements being aired within SBC circles right now regarding a host of topics, let's all thank God that all of them are being done from the perspective that God's Word is infallible, inerrant, and sufficient for our faith and practice!
Click Here for ABP Article
A GREAT GIVEAWAY
I thought everyone here might like to know about this amazing giveaway. A Boomer in the Pew, a Christian blogger, is giving away a Calfskin ESV Study Bible in honor of his first year anniversary as a blogger. Now I know what you are thinking: why haven't we done anything like that on here, right? So below I am including a link to the giveaway site, and I am also announcing that we will soon have a giveaway, and the winner gets to spend a weekend with Joshua Owen filing his books and papers while listening to him rattle off useless information and squabbles of the day from his world. I know, I know, how could we give away such a great gift. But the expenses will be covered in full by Dr. Owen! I mean, the guy has a PhD. and everything, so surely he can afford such a fantastic opportunity. Check back soon for more details, or just drop by Josh's house unannounced and tell him "John sent me for the weekend." He will be thrilled. :)
Click here for the ESV Giveaway.
Click here for the ESV Giveaway.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
12 Steps to Better Bible Reading
4 Mistakes to Avoid
1. Taking verses out of context- for example John 15:7 - If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
- This is made to say that God loves His children and simply wants to give them their wishes, but when quoted in this manner the first half of this verse is left out. This could be made to say that if you wish for a new spouse or your neighbors house then God will give it to you. But we must not forget that we ask in the context of abiding in Christ and those who are abiding in Christ will only ask according to His will and for things that bring Him glory.
2. Reading Randomly - the practice of hunting for a blessing, or letting our bible drop open and reading the first chapter or verse that we see, or even just reading our favorite passages again and again - this practice robs us of the riches of God's Word, of all that He has spoken for us.
3. Holding to Tradition too tightly - when we read the Word and are confronted with a difficult truth that seems to conflict with we have been taught we are tempted to say, "well it can't mean that."
- For example - Luke 6:27 - But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
4. Ignoring Genre - we can't read the Psalms like Letters or History or Prophecy, we need to learn to read each kind of scripture according to the rules of the genre. Else we will end up confused.
4 Conviction to Hold
5. The Bible is the Word of God - 1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
- which means that it is also perfect, accurate, and trustworthy.
6. The Bible is Sufficient - It is the Word that makes us competent - equipped for every good work. - 2 Tim. 3:16-17 - All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
- There is nothing else that is necessary - we need to be readers of the Word, hearers of the Word proclaimed, living in community where the Word can be obeyed and lived out. But is the direction of the Word that must guide all things.
7. The Author determines the Meaning - I have heard it said that everyone finds their own meaning when they read the Bible - or that there are as many meanings as there are people - we don't treat our letters that way do we - when I write a letter I mean one thing - and since I wrote it I determined that meaning - when we read the Bible we read God's word so we seek His meaning and there is only one - it may affect our lives differently - we may have different sins to repent of - but the meaning never changes - we seek His meaning.
8. Joy is found in the Word - Joy is found in seeing Jesus for all that He is - since the Bible is the only revelation of who Jesus is then we must approach the Bible seeking to see and enjoy Jesus - it is not simply a duty - it must be approached as an opportunity to sit down to a feast.
4 Practices to Adopt
9. Read all the Bible - Everything in the Bible in from God and given to us for our benefit.
- 2 Tim. 3:16-17 - All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
- This means that we must find a system that works for us so that we find ourselves diving into all that God has spoken.
10. Read the Broader Context - Greg Koukle has a special message that he gives called - never read a Bible verse - his idea is that we should never read only one verse since it is so easy to take single sentences out of context - he recommends that we begin to think in terms of paragraphs - never read less than a paragraph,
- Think about how easy it would be for people to ruin what you say by taking only one sentence out of a whole conversation you've had. They could make you say almost anything - but you would argue, but that's not really what I said - lets give God the same treatment we want about our words.
11.Submit to the Authority of the Word - we are not free to disagree with the Word. We must hear the Word, recognize its authority, and submit. This is often difficult but it is necessary.
12. Read to See Jesus - Luke 24:44 - Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."
- For example this morning I was reading about Joseph in Genesis - and his life is a picture of what Jesus was going to be - one person who suffers so that a whole people, in Joseph's case a whole region of the world would be kept alive. It was really moving to see that reflection of Jesus. But if Luke 24:44 is true then we must look at all we read with Jesus glasses on - trying to see the things written about Him.
1. Taking verses out of context- for example John 15:7 - If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
- This is made to say that God loves His children and simply wants to give them their wishes, but when quoted in this manner the first half of this verse is left out. This could be made to say that if you wish for a new spouse or your neighbors house then God will give it to you. But we must not forget that we ask in the context of abiding in Christ and those who are abiding in Christ will only ask according to His will and for things that bring Him glory.
2. Reading Randomly - the practice of hunting for a blessing, or letting our bible drop open and reading the first chapter or verse that we see, or even just reading our favorite passages again and again - this practice robs us of the riches of God's Word, of all that He has spoken for us.
3. Holding to Tradition too tightly - when we read the Word and are confronted with a difficult truth that seems to conflict with we have been taught we are tempted to say, "well it can't mean that."
- For example - Luke 6:27 - But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
4. Ignoring Genre - we can't read the Psalms like Letters or History or Prophecy, we need to learn to read each kind of scripture according to the rules of the genre. Else we will end up confused.
4 Conviction to Hold
5. The Bible is the Word of God - 1 Thess. 2:13 - And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
- which means that it is also perfect, accurate, and trustworthy.
6. The Bible is Sufficient - It is the Word that makes us competent - equipped for every good work. - 2 Tim. 3:16-17 - All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
- There is nothing else that is necessary - we need to be readers of the Word, hearers of the Word proclaimed, living in community where the Word can be obeyed and lived out. But is the direction of the Word that must guide all things.
7. The Author determines the Meaning - I have heard it said that everyone finds their own meaning when they read the Bible - or that there are as many meanings as there are people - we don't treat our letters that way do we - when I write a letter I mean one thing - and since I wrote it I determined that meaning - when we read the Bible we read God's word so we seek His meaning and there is only one - it may affect our lives differently - we may have different sins to repent of - but the meaning never changes - we seek His meaning.
8. Joy is found in the Word - Joy is found in seeing Jesus for all that He is - since the Bible is the only revelation of who Jesus is then we must approach the Bible seeking to see and enjoy Jesus - it is not simply a duty - it must be approached as an opportunity to sit down to a feast.
4 Practices to Adopt
9. Read all the Bible - Everything in the Bible in from God and given to us for our benefit.
- 2 Tim. 3:16-17 - All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
- This means that we must find a system that works for us so that we find ourselves diving into all that God has spoken.
10. Read the Broader Context - Greg Koukle has a special message that he gives called - never read a Bible verse - his idea is that we should never read only one verse since it is so easy to take single sentences out of context - he recommends that we begin to think in terms of paragraphs - never read less than a paragraph,
- Think about how easy it would be for people to ruin what you say by taking only one sentence out of a whole conversation you've had. They could make you say almost anything - but you would argue, but that's not really what I said - lets give God the same treatment we want about our words.
11.Submit to the Authority of the Word - we are not free to disagree with the Word. We must hear the Word, recognize its authority, and submit. This is often difficult but it is necessary.
12. Read to See Jesus - Luke 24:44 - Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."
- For example this morning I was reading about Joseph in Genesis - and his life is a picture of what Jesus was going to be - one person who suffers so that a whole people, in Joseph's case a whole region of the world would be kept alive. It was really moving to see that reflection of Jesus. But if Luke 24:44 is true then we must look at all we read with Jesus glasses on - trying to see the things written about Him.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Valentine's Day
This is my little effort to help us all to love and treasure the gift God has given us in the form of our spouses. Now I do know that not all marriages are good marriages. It is difficult to treasure a spouse who is unfaithful to you, or who is physically abusive (you should treasure them from another location). But for most people this is not the case. Our marriages are simply less than they could be because we fail to take the initiative in studying our spouses and being willing to meet their real needs, not the needs we think they have. So here is my little effort at helping us all treasure our spouses more deeply and accurately this year.
How Men can Treasure their Wives
1. Tell her you love her a lot - they need to hear us say it, and we need to find ways of showing her that we love her. Tell her she's beautiful - most women still have a little girl inside looking up at you and wanting to know if you think she's pretty.
2. Listen to her - hear her out, and this is a big one, don't try to solve her problems, our wives are smarter than us they just need to vent, to get it all out, so we as men need to restrain our problem-solving selves and just listen and learn how to ask questions that help her get it all out.
- How not to listen - never ever tell her you think that she's over-reacting, never wonder aloud about the time of the month, and never ever tell her to calm down, unless you want to find out how to live without some of your body parts.
3. Help her around the house - this will tell her that home and family are important to you too, that you care about the burdens that she bears, and that you care about her so much that you want to make her life easier.
4. Try to be romantic - try to find out ways to make her feel that she has been romanced, that you are still in love with her, remember all the things you used to do when you were trying to get her to marry you, if you've stopped doing those things you may be in trouble. Take her out to dinner, buy her gifts for no reason, buy her favorite ice cream when she's had a bad day, never ever forget her birthday or your anniversary. Tell her what she means to you - now we are pretty clumsy about this but believe me they will appreciate an attempt - Women love to be surprised - good surprises mind you - try to surprise them, random gifts, random times to come home, just show up where she works to have lunch with her. Get a babysitter without telling her and take her to a movie or something. Study your wife and find out how you can best meet her needs.
5. Be a spiritual leader - make the attempt - lead the family in prayer, read the Bible together and to the kids.
How Women can Treasure their Husbands
1. Make sure he feels appreciated - thank him for what he does, tell him you're proud of him. Ladies you have an amazing power in this department. Everyone in the world can hate our guts but if we feel appreciated by our wives then we hold our heads high. You have an amazing influence on whether your husband is a confident man or not.
2. Make sure he feels desired - this probably means what you think it means but it could mean a lot of other things too. Find out what makes him feel desired because it is difficult for us to say this out loud but we need to feel desired, not just satisfied but really desired by our wives.
3. Try to get interested in his interests - watch football with him and ask questions - Edna has told me for years that she hates basketball - that it doesn't make sense to her, but this season she started watching games with me, and she has been asking questions - this is an awesome thing. Getting to share our loves with the one we love the most makes it more meaningful.
4. Let him be a leader - men are called by God to lead and when they are unable to do so, often resentment and bitterness creep in - but if you want a man to feel treasured let him lead, follow him whenever you can.
We often forget how important our marriages are in glorifying God. As we read in Eph 5:25 and 31
- Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, AND This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.
- Treasuring our spouses is a living picture of how Jesus loved His bride the church. Marriage was created to reflect this love of Christ and when we have beautiful marriages it proclaims very loudly what it was meant to proclaim - that Jesus really loved His bride - the Church.
So take Valentine's Day in hand and use it to bless and treasure your spouse don't look at it as Extortion Day, but a day of proclaiming the Gospel in a really fun way.
PS - this post was wife approved.
How Men can Treasure their Wives
1. Tell her you love her a lot - they need to hear us say it, and we need to find ways of showing her that we love her. Tell her she's beautiful - most women still have a little girl inside looking up at you and wanting to know if you think she's pretty.
2. Listen to her - hear her out, and this is a big one, don't try to solve her problems, our wives are smarter than us they just need to vent, to get it all out, so we as men need to restrain our problem-solving selves and just listen and learn how to ask questions that help her get it all out.
- How not to listen - never ever tell her you think that she's over-reacting, never wonder aloud about the time of the month, and never ever tell her to calm down, unless you want to find out how to live without some of your body parts.
3. Help her around the house - this will tell her that home and family are important to you too, that you care about the burdens that she bears, and that you care about her so much that you want to make her life easier.
4. Try to be romantic - try to find out ways to make her feel that she has been romanced, that you are still in love with her, remember all the things you used to do when you were trying to get her to marry you, if you've stopped doing those things you may be in trouble. Take her out to dinner, buy her gifts for no reason, buy her favorite ice cream when she's had a bad day, never ever forget her birthday or your anniversary. Tell her what she means to you - now we are pretty clumsy about this but believe me they will appreciate an attempt - Women love to be surprised - good surprises mind you - try to surprise them, random gifts, random times to come home, just show up where she works to have lunch with her. Get a babysitter without telling her and take her to a movie or something. Study your wife and find out how you can best meet her needs.
5. Be a spiritual leader - make the attempt - lead the family in prayer, read the Bible together and to the kids.
How Women can Treasure their Husbands
1. Make sure he feels appreciated - thank him for what he does, tell him you're proud of him. Ladies you have an amazing power in this department. Everyone in the world can hate our guts but if we feel appreciated by our wives then we hold our heads high. You have an amazing influence on whether your husband is a confident man or not.
2. Make sure he feels desired - this probably means what you think it means but it could mean a lot of other things too. Find out what makes him feel desired because it is difficult for us to say this out loud but we need to feel desired, not just satisfied but really desired by our wives.
3. Try to get interested in his interests - watch football with him and ask questions - Edna has told me for years that she hates basketball - that it doesn't make sense to her, but this season she started watching games with me, and she has been asking questions - this is an awesome thing. Getting to share our loves with the one we love the most makes it more meaningful.
4. Let him be a leader - men are called by God to lead and when they are unable to do so, often resentment and bitterness creep in - but if you want a man to feel treasured let him lead, follow him whenever you can.
We often forget how important our marriages are in glorifying God. As we read in Eph 5:25 and 31
- Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, AND This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.
- Treasuring our spouses is a living picture of how Jesus loved His bride the church. Marriage was created to reflect this love of Christ and when we have beautiful marriages it proclaims very loudly what it was meant to proclaim - that Jesus really loved His bride - the Church.
So take Valentine's Day in hand and use it to bless and treasure your spouse don't look at it as Extortion Day, but a day of proclaiming the Gospel in a really fun way.
PS - this post was wife approved.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Fit for Heaven?
"But alas, how little fit for heaven are many who talk of 'going to heaven' when they die, while they manifestly have no saving faith, and no real acquaintance with Christ. You give Christ no honor here. You have no communion with Him. You do not love Him. Alas! what could you do in heaven? It would be no place for you. Its joys would be no joys for you. Its happiness would be a happiness into which you could not enter. Its employments would be a weariness and burden to your heart. Oh, repent and change before it be too late!"
J. C. Ryle, "Christ is All," in Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots (1877), cited in John Piper, God is the Gospel (Wheaton: Crossway, 2005), 16.
J. C. Ryle, "Christ is All," in Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots (1877), cited in John Piper, God is the Gospel (Wheaton: Crossway, 2005), 16.
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