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1000!

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Yes, this is post #1000, and a good lesson in perseverance.

When I first began posting many moons ago, I hoped to be able to put some good resources into people’s hands. Really, I kept noticing that there were so many amazing resources available online and I wanted a place to keep them all together. This blog has served that purpose for me. I’ve also done series of posts on marriage and family, sought to recap and preview weekends at Crestview, which have helped me to actively apply what I am speaking on, wrestled with theological things and also had personal moments, like honoring my mom, my wife, and writing an open letter to Andrew on his most recent birthday. It’s really been enjoyable and I’m anxious to see how God will use this in the future.

Not Called?

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“Not called!” did you say? “Not heard the call,” I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father’s house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there. Then look Christ in the face — whose mercy you have professed to obey — and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish His mercy to the world. (William Booth, Founder of the Salvation Army)

(taken from the latest issue of HeartCry Magazine, Vol 62, p.3)

This volume also features some amazing quotes by Spurgeon on evangelism as well as a sermon from him entitled The Missionary’s Charge.

ZGBriefs…

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ZGBriefs is a condensation of China news items gathered from published sources. It is a free weekly news summary sent to subscribers via email. ZGBriefs helps readers keep up with emerging trends of China.

You can find out more on their website.

Why Be Involved in Missions?

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…according to Rick Cornish…

1) Because missions is God’s passion
2) Because the need is great.

I thought we had a great day yesterday and were challenged throughout the day to be about God’s business. I also thought this tied really well with the emphasis we’ve seen in Luke 15:1-32 and also in our Sent small group study.

Hopefully yesterday left you encouraged and motivated to honor God by being involved with missions.

Servant?

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In Elder’s Meeting a few days ago, we discussed Ajith Fernando’s booklet An Authentic Servant (check out the link for it free online). A tension we felt was how we are so prone to selfish convenience and not wanting to bother with people. It can be so easy to move in that direction. But another tension is the fact that we need to rest effectively. The Sabbath in a concept in Scripture. How do we pursue rest, though, without being selfish. It all made for a good discussion. Any thoughts?

Anorexia or Gluttony?

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In an earlier post, I promised some interaction with Art Azurdia’s latest book Connected Christianity: Engaging Culture Without Compromise. Probably the most helpful thing he said, for me personally, was what he called “two practical distortions that have severely undercut our gospel effectiveness: cultural gluttony or cultural anorexia.” Then he defined each of these:

What is cultural gluttony? It is sinful compromise with the world: that is, the consequence of being missional without being theological. Often masked in the guise of desiring to win the world, Christians rabidly pursue likeness to the world. Over time, unfortunately, the world’s values, objectives, and desires become our values, objectives and desires. Cultural gluttony is the act of consuming the culture until it forms us. (taken from p.25)

After some extended discussion on the ramifications of this, he defined cultural anorexia:

An alternative to which the church has often succumbed in reaction is that of cultural anorexia: that is, the consequence of being theological without being missional. It takes the form of a radical and decided withdrawal from the world. Since we are determined not to let the world shape us, we isolate, insulate, and withdraw. Before long the Church evolves into a kind of enclave, a ghetto, an island of irreverent piety, and eventually we lose the ability to speak to non-Christians. Worse yet, our hearts become filled with a compassionless indifference toward such people. (taken from pp.26-27)

I was really helped by Azurdia and seeing these extremes, because I think I’ve been a part of the second at a point or two on my life. As I thought about this again this week, it can easily be a way to drift into self-righteous tendencies and miss out on the mission to which we have been called. I would recommend Azurdia’s book and all that he lays out in this helpful book.

Weekend Recap – Luke 15

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The final message from our brief summer series on Luke 15 is now online. It was entitled “Compassionate Father and Lost Sons (3)” from Luke 15:25-32. This sermon was after the self-righteous tendencies we have as religious, elder brother types. I mentioned Jerry Bridges’ book, Bookends of the Christian Life, and how Bridges calls self-righteousness Gospel Enemy #1. Here are the questions Bridges gave to determine if we were self-righteous or not:

1) Do you tend to live by a list of dos and don’ts?
2) Is it difficult for you to respect those whose standards aren’t as high as yours?
3) Do you assume that practicing spiritual disciplines should result in God’s blessing?
4) Do you feel you’re better than most other people?
5) Has it been a long time since you identified a sin and repented of it?
6) Do you resent it when others point out your “spiritual blind spots”?
7) Do you readily recognize the sins of others but not your own?
8) Do you have the sense that God owes you a good life?
9) Do you get angry when difficulties and suffering come into your life?
10) Do you seldom think of the cross?
(taken from p.49)

The best remedy for our self-righteous thinking is the compassionate father and His unending love for us. Repent and turn to Him!

Weekend Prep on Older Brother

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This coming Lord’s Day (Lord-willing), we will finish up Luke 15:1-32 and, specifically, the parable of the lost sons and compassionate father. We will be honing in on lost son #2 – the older son from Luke 15:25-32. Most of us have no problem seeing the first son as lost, but many of us (church types) don’t see the self-righteous attitude we exalt we as something that separates us from the father. This sermon, then, is one we need. I hope you come prepared Sunday to wage war on your self-righteous, self-sufficient way of living and submit to a compassionate father full of mercy.