From John Piper at the Desiring God blog:
Bloodlines is one of the most autobiographical books I have written. It tells my story from racism to the path of redemption. I preached on the theme of Bloodlines yesterday to mark Martin Luther King weekend. The title of the message was “From Bloodlines to Bloodline.” I argued that God is calling his people to move from the alienation of many bloodlines to the reconciliation of the single bloodline that began on the cross of Christ.
I urged my people to read the book. Not because I care about selling books, but because I want them to know my story, to be aware to the global relevance of the issue, and to feel the hope that comes from the power of the gospel.
In making the book available in a PDF version online for free we are trying to remove every obstacle that might keep you from that experience.
Chapter six is the one I tried to unpack in this week’s message. It is close to the center of the Gospel’s relevance for perseverance in the cause of Christ-exalting ethnic diversity.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Now it’s available for free in pdf. Please download it and read it.
The Glory of God and the Joy of Sex
By · CommentsAs I am preaching through Leviticus, I find myself in Leviticus 18 this week. My wife and I have already had multiple discussions as to how I will deal with the topic in the context of a multi-ethnic (lots of traditions and tabus), multi-generational (lots of kiddos-including my own- and some senior adults) congregation.
I’ve asked our pastoral team to be in prayer with me as I prepare and to help me as I consider the language to use in preaching this sermon. In the midst of all the conversations, I was reminded of preaching through 1 Corinthians 7 in the fall of 2009. At that time I wrote the following piece, and I thought it would be a good place to start our thinking:
How should Christians view sex?
Any conversations about sex have to take into consideration the cultural influences of the sexual revolution of the 60′s and its impact on present views on sex in our society. Along with the present reality of rampant sexual sin now being reaped as a result of the seeds of the sexual revolution, there is also the reality of distorted sex as a result of being used, abused and misused sexually. What will the church say to these?
The sexual revolution also provided false pictures of sexuality (see Hollywood) which promote what I would call frustrated sex – it’s not all that. But there are also other forms of frustrated sex. What of those who cannot enjoy sex because of physical limitations or medical conditions? What will the church say to these?
Like most things, the church has tended to respond with either legalism or license. Augustine’s pre-conversion immoral life led him to adopt a strong stance against sex which influenced the Catholic church to adopt a celibate priesthood. The church has generally followed this pattern of legalism by telling teenagers and singles that “True Love Waits” – the Christian version of “Just Say No!”
Ironically it has become popular today to talk about sex in church and invite congregants to enjoy sex often-perhaps a “40 Days of Sex” Campaign is lurking in our evangelical future? So, how is the church to view sex?
The Corinthians’ Response: Legalism
The Corinthians opted for the legalistic approach- “It is right for a man not to touch a woman” (1 Cor. 7:1). Paul responds by urging them to remain in whatever condition they were called to Christ because of a present distress unknown to us (7:17, 25-27). If at all possible, though, Paul urged a celibate life which allowed for undistracted devotion to Christ (7:7-8, 32-35). However, Paul recognized that not everyone has the gift of celibacy (7:7). Those who don’t have the gift of celibacy have been granted another gift – marriage and the joy of sex within marriage.
The Biblical Picture
Sex is a gift given by God by which we may know Him more intimately and glorify Him more fully. Here is my fourfold argument:
1. We glorify God when we fulfill our God-given roles which include maleness/femaleness (Gen. 1:27). We were not created to be alone (Gen. 2:18); we were created to reflect the tri-une fellowship of the living God in our own relationships. God’s answer to the “badness” of being alone was marriage (Gen. 2:18-25). Here we see that sexual attraction is good and God-glorifying but only within the marriage covenant.
2. We cannot talk about sex without talking about marriage (Gen. 2:24-25). In marriage there is intimacy: real, physical, interpersonal knowledge between husband and wife. Sex is a one-flesh, no-shame union in which husband & wife know one another intimately (Gen. 4:1).
3. But we cannot talk about marriage without talking about the God who reveals Himself as the ever-faithful husband of His bride. The Lord betrothed Himself to Israel (Ezekiel 16:8-14). Yet, Israel was continually adulterous, so in 722 BC, the Lord judged Israel for her adultery and removed her from the North (Hosea 1:2-2:13). The Lord was patient with Judah, but eventually in 586 BC the Lord judged her for adultery and removed her from Jerusalem (Ezekiel 16:15, 30).
Even so, God proved to be the ever-faithful husband who wins back His bride (Hosea 2:14-18) through a new covenant by which He would be intimately known (Ezekiel 16:59-63). The New Testament reveals that Jesus is the one who mediates this new covenant (Hebrews 8:8-12). As our faithful husband, Jesus is preparing us (Eph. 5:25ff) for His wedding day, the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-9). It is by faith that we are betrothed to Christ (2 Cor. 11:2).
4. Conclusion for Marrieds: So, sex is a divine gift by which we may know God more intimately and glorify Him more fully – because our faithfulness as husband and wife in the earthly marriage covenant and our delighting in one another as husband and wife point to the intimate knowledge between God and His bride and the joys of covenant faithfulness-both His and ours. We bring God great glory when we are fully satisfied with Him in this covenant relationship.
So, let the married persons delight in the covenant of marriage and delight in one another as a reflection of God’s covenant love for and delight in His bride.
5. Conclusion for Singles: The faithfulness of a single, celibate Christian man or woman points to the church patiently awaiting the return of the bridegroom for His bride on the wedding day.
So, let the singles wait on the Lord and serve Him now with undistracted devotion until our bridegroom returns or until Christ provides a temporary spouse on this earth in which you can reflect His covenant love and faithfulness.
Such delighting in God for the single and the married, frees us from the bondage of sexual temptation and sin (2 Peter 1:3-4).
What is the mission of High Pointe Baptist Church?
By · CommentsGo therefore and make disciples of all nations . . . (Matthew 28:19, ESV)
In his book on missions, titled, Let the Nations Be Glad: The Supremacy of God in Missions, John Piper suggests that, “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever. Worship, therefore, is the fuel and goal of missions.”
At first this idea that missions (and evangelism) is not the ultimate goal of the church may shock some; yet, I suggest that we cannot understand the necessity of missions and evangelism until we understand the priority of worship. Once we understand that worship is the ultimate priority of every believer and every believing community, then we will see that worship is the goal and fuel of evangelism and missions, and we will gain a genuine passion for both. Let me explain.
Essentially, we were created to worship. The Bible teaches that we were created in the image and likeness of God to reflect God’s glory (Genesis 1:26-27)—this is worship. However, Adam’s sin marred God’s image in us, for every one of us participated in Adam’s sin with the consequence that we too bear Adam’s guilt (Romans 5:12). So, we are no longer able to truly and faithfully reflect God’s glory, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The activities of our culture testify to human sinfulness because instead of worshiping the one, true and living God, we prefer to worship those things which He created (Romans 1:18-32).
The good news of the gospel is that the Father is seeking genuine worshipers, those who will worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24). To worship in spirit means to worship God out of the overflow of the Holy Spirit in your life. To worship in truth is to worship God on the basis of the truth concerning Jesus Christ. Thus, spirit and truth worship engages both hearts and minds that have been transformed by the Spirit of God.
Here’s the point! There are people in this world who presently do not worship God through Christ. Their hearts and minds are geared toward self-worship. Since the Father is seeking genuine worshipers to worship Him, then we must join the Father on this mission. And since the people who presently do not worship God can only become genuine worshipers by a transformation of heart and mind that comes by the Grace of God, through faith in Christ, then our mission is to declare the truth about Christ to a world that does not worship Christ. So, missions is really joining God in the gathering of worshipers who have been transformed by the truth of Jesus Christ for the glory of God.
You see, the ultimate goal of the church is worship, and the worship of the living God on the basis of the truth of Christ is what should fuel and drive our missions and evangelism efforts. This is truly our mission at High Pointe; we long to see all peoples become whole-hearted followers of Jesus Christ by reaching unbelievers, gathering worshipers, and making disciples to the glory of God. As we begin a new year together, we hope you will join us in this effort to see those who presently do not worship Christ become true worshipers. To what end? Worship!
“After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9-10).
Why did Jesus come in the flesh?
By · Comments“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (Hebrews 2:14-15, ESV).
Christmas can be a dangerous time of the year because in the midst of our celebrations, we may forget there are others with great needs who face suffering and heartache during this season. We need to consider that Christmas is a great time for ministry. So, let us be compassionate and caring toward all, and seek opportunities to minister this Christmas.
There is an even greater reason why Christmas is dangerous; it’s dangerous because in the midst of all the lights and carols and candy and tinsel that help us celebrate the first coming of our Lord, we can forget just exactly WHY it was Jesus came. When we ask why Jesus came in the flesh, though, we are asking at the very least two questions. First, we are asking, “Why Jesus came in the FLESH?” In other words, why did Jesus have to take on human form? The second aspect of the question is, “WHY did Jesus come in the flesh?” Here we are asking about the purpose of the incarnation-God coming in the flesh? As we consider the WHY of Christmas, let me give two answers that begin to address both aspects of the question and lead us to bask in the glory of God’s beloved Son and our Savior, Jesus.
First, Jesus came in the flesh as our champion, to destroy the devil and deliver us from slavery (Hebrews 2:14-16). A champion identified with a particular people and represented them on the battlefield against an enemy. Perhaps the most famous champions in the Bible are David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17). Goliath represented the Philistines, while David represented Israel and God. As we know, David defeated Goliath and liberated Israel from present and future fear of the Philistines: i.e., bondage. Jesus is our champion sent by God to identify with us and represent us on the battlefield of this world against our enemy the devil. By his incarnation Jesus both identified with us and represented us. By His death and resurrection Jesus both defeated the devil and liberated us from slavery. Consequently, because of Christ’s victory over sin and Satan and death, we no longer need to fear death (1 Corinthians 15:50-57).
Secondly, Jesus came in the flesh as our high priest in order to offer Himself as the once for all sacrifice for our sins (Hebrews 2:17-18). As the high priest represented the people before God in the temple (Hebrews 5:1-3), so Jesus had to be made like us in every way (except sin: Hebrews 4:15; 7:26) in order to represent us before God. Jesus is our high priest who offers Himself as the sacrificial lamb in our place (Hebrews 10:1-18). Therefore, because of Christ’s high priestly work, we can draw near to God with confidence (Hebrews 10:19-25).
So, for a world full of fear and without hope, we remember this Christmas that Jesus came to defeat the devil by paying the penalty for our sin through His sacrificial death, so that all who put their trust in Jesus Christ as their champion and high priest have their sins forgiven and no longer need to fear death. For a world full of suffering, we remember that since Jesus came in flesh and blood and suffered as a human being, then He is able to help us in our own suffering as human beings. Therefore, consider Jesus who has already run the course of this life and faced suffering and is now seated at the right hand of God, and you run the race of life with endurance, keeping your eyes fixed upon Jesus, the originator and completer of our faith.
(This post was originally posted on December 8, 2010)
How much are your vices really costing you?
By · CommentsDuring an economic crisis when everyone is trying to pinch pennies to make ends meet, how much do you think that daily $4.00 Starbuck’s is costing you at the end of the year when you tally it all up?
Hank Coleman, writing for Fox Business has done the math:
If you were to brew your own instead of buying a cup of coffee on your way to work, your savings could be about $700 per year, and that doesn’t even factor in the savings associated with not picking up that blueberry muffin on the side.
What could you do with an extra $700.00?
Evidently, the younger generations are a little smarter? They are foregoing that $4.00 latte and instead spending only $2.00 per can for energy drinks. But as Coleman notes:
Energy drinks are far from cheap to purchase, with a typical price tag of $2 or more for a can. If you drink several cans throughout the day while at work, you’ll put a serious dent in your wallet – on the order of $1000-$1500/year.
Of course, if you add cigarettes to the “vice” list, the costs really add up, according to Coleman:
A pack of cigarettes can cost $4-$5 (or more!) depending on where you live. So someone who has a two pack a day habit could easily be spending $240 per month, or $2,880 per year. Even cutting back to one pack per day can significantly increase your cash flow. If you were to quit smoking completely and invest that $2,880 per year and it grew at 8% annually for 20 years, you could amass over $104,000.
Of course, we haven’t even talked about drinks – I’m not just talking about alcoholic beverages, either. With five daughters, whenever we go out to a restaurant, if each of us ordered a soft drink or tea, that would add about $14.00 to our total tab: $2.00/drink X seven people (we’ve all learned to drink water at restaurants).
I wonder if we were to take a careful look at our expenditures, what we would find – what savings we might find. What can we do with such savings? Imagine how many more gospel ministries and missionaries all of us coffee drinking, energy boost needing evangelicals might support if we stopped and counted the cost.
Read Hank Coleman’s entire article at fivecentnickel.com.
Making BIG Requests of God in 2012
By · CommentsAsk, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened (Matthew 7:7-8, ESV).
How do you approach God in prayer? Are you timid, hesitant in your prayers or do you approach God with great faith and boldness? Perhaps it’s just me, but I think that maybe, just maybe, many of us are timid when we approach God in prayer. Let me point out two of the many factors that may contribute to such a hesitant prayer life. One factor that leads to our hesitancy in praying bold prayers and making BIG requests of God may be our disdain for the health and wealth gospel, the gospel of prosperity. Prosperity preachers encourage you to have faith in your faith and promise that such faith will result in wealth and health. These false teachers say that if you have enough faith you will never have health troubles or financial worries; instead you will be rich and live long in the lap of luxury. These peddlers of prosperity urge you to make BIG requests of God for personal gain. Such instruction is contrary to Scripture, for as James reminds us, one of the reasons our prayer life may be frustrated is because we ask with wrong motives—“you ask wrongly, to spend it on passions” (James 4:3). So, it is not wrong to make BIG requests of God if we make them for the right reason—His glory!
Another more foundational reason for our timidity in prayer is lack of faith in the God who provides (not in faith itself). We are simply too afraid to make BIG requests of God. Of course, we know God is a BIG God, but we are not sure if we should ask BIG things of Him—that may be presumptuous. Nevertheless, the Bible clearly teaches us that we are to approach God boldly or confidently in prayer (Hebrews 4:4:16). Now, what makes a confident approach biblical, contrary to the prosperity gospel approach, is that an approach to the throne of grace is not rooted in who we are or what we’ve done but in who Christ is and what He has done for us. The apostle Paul reminds us that Jesus Christ is the one “in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him (Ephesians 3:12). In other words, we approach God with boldness in prayer when we believe that Christ has gained access for us into God’s throne through His sacrificial death.
When we approach God with boldness on the basis of Christ’s life and work and for the purpose of God’s glory, then we please God. It is in such a context that Jesus invites His disciples to ask, seek and knock. We are to ask persistently of God things that will glorify Him; we are to seek earnestly in prayer those things which honor God; we are to knock urgently on the doors of heaven for those things that will advance God’s kingdom. When we take such joy in God and His glory, the Bible reminds us that God will give us the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4).
As we prepare to begin another year, I invite you to pray with boldness and make BIG requests of God that bring Him glory. Ask God to do BIG things that will advance His kingdom purposes and thereby bring Him great glory.
(Note: This is a re-post from December 2, 2010.)
Now that the Christmas season has officially begun, we will be invited to join in the purchasing and accumulation of “stuff.” How will we fare in the face of such consumeristic materialism? Dave Harvey, in his chapter on “stuff” in Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World, reminds us of four lies we believe about stuff that chain our hearts to this fleeting world: (1) My stuff will make me happy; (2) My stuff makes me important; (3) My stuff makes me secure; (4) My stuff makes me rich. As we have seen in this recent economic downturn, however, stuff is elusive; it is passing away right before our very eyes. So, how can we combat materialism and covetousness this Christmas? Harvey offers some wonderful counsel that we would all do well to heed.
Consider your true riches. When you consider that God has given us Christ while we were sinners, then you will see just what a treasure Christ is and how rich you are. Christ is the one who was rich and became poor for us, “so that you, by his poverty, might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Now, through Christ’s death, we are sons and daughters of God and rightful heirs with Christ of the Father’s inheritance. So, consider what you deserve (death and hell) and consider what you have received—you are rich in Christ! Nothing in this world compares!
Confess and Repent. Because our culture is consumed with materialism and covetousness we sometimes forget that they are both sin. Confess your sinful desire to be satisfied with stuff, and turn away from that desire by faith in order to find your satisfaction in Christ. The Lord is faithful and just to forgive us all our sin, including materialism and covetousness, if we simply come to him and ask forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
Express specific gratitude. Marketing strategies seek to breed discontent with what we have in order to get us to buy what we don’t need. We must be thankful for Christ and His saving grace, but we also need to be thankful for everything that God has granted us. Not only has He given us Christ, He has given us everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). But that’s not all. As our heavenly Father He is our great provider. So, every good and perfect gift comes from Him (James 1:17). Are you thankful for the house, car, clothing, food He has provided for you? Everything you have that is good has come from His hand!
Dematerialize your life. When you realize how rich you are already and come to terms with the reality that you don’t need all that stuff to make you happy, then you will understand how much stuff you have that you don’t need. Yet, someone else may need the stuff you have—clothes, food, car, etc. So, why not give your extra stuff away! Find out what needs people have and fill that need if you can.
Give generously. Harvey says, “few things kill the coveting heart quicker than depriving it of stuff. Few things reflect the heart of God more than giving graciously.” I know this to be true from personal experience. Giving generously through tithes and offerings is a great place to begin growing in giving. Yet, as Randy Alcorn suggests, tithing is only the training wheels of giving. Let us ask God to give us hearts like His: hearts that give generously and sacrificially. Only then will we be free from the bondage of stuff.
Oklahoma State women’s basketball coach Kurt Budke and assistant Miranda Serna have died in a plane crash along with two others, just 10 months after the school commemorated the 10th anniversary of a crash that killed 10 men associated with the men’s program.
Why do we hate Tim Tebow?
By · CommentsJen Floyd Engel, in a Fox Sports Exclusive, asks “Why the heck we hate Tim Tebow?” In part she says:
His religious fervor is an easy target for the vitriol spewed from those who dislike him, but the reasons are much deeper than that. From his advocacy of abstinence to his infamous “You will never see another team play this hard” speech at Florida, it is like he is too good to be true. He is too nice, and thereby we want him to trip up so we can feel better. We want him to be revealed as a hypocrite, and when that fails to happen, we settle for gleefully celebrating his failures on the football field. And why? Because he dares to say thanks?
Are we sacrificing our children to the gods of this world?
By Juan Sanchez · Comments (0)Sacrificing children to false gods in the Old Testament
In Leviticus 18:21, God forbids Israel from offering their children to Molech. In Leviticus 20:1-5, God warns that those who offer their children to Molech will be put to death by stoning, while those who close their eyes to such abominations will be cut off from the people.
Molech was believed to be a deity of the Ammonites (1 Kings 11:7). The likely practice was that parents would kill their children first, then toss them into the fire pit (Topheth) as a sacrifice to Molech. This abomination may be traced throughout Israel’s (1 Kings 11:1-8) and Judah’s (2 Kings 23:1-20) history. In fact, Jeremiah records that abominations such as the sacrifices of Israel’s children to Molech is one of the reasons God handed them over to Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 32:26-35; cf. 7:30-34; 19:4-9).
Sacrificing children to false gods in our day
Lest we think we have advanced beyond this barbarism, we sacrifice our children to the gods of this world:
1. Abortion: the sacrifice of unborn children to the gods of this world. The Christian worldview of humanity is such that all life bears God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27) and that human life begins at conception (Ps. 139:13-16). Because the conceptus (fertilized egg) is an unborn child bearing God’s image, ending that life is murder (Genesis 9:6).
When the reasons for ending the life of unborn children are given, they largely expose our personal idols: self, career, work, relationship, fame, etc.
See, U. S. Abortion Statistics (from abort73 website)
2. Reproductive technologies: It is possible that the use of some reproductive techonologies cause us to sacrifice many unborn children in order to have some children. Notice I say it is possible. It is possible to pursue fertility technologies with a pure heart and faithful financial stewardship. It is also possible that the false god of “biological” children may push some couples to compromise their Christian worldview (fertilized egg = human life) by fertilizing more eggs than will be used. For these reasons, it is imperative that any Christian couple seek the counsel of physicians who themselves are committed to a pro-life, Christian worldview of humanity.
Further, idolatries may be exposed in the amount of financial resources a couple may be willing to commit to such procedures. The issue of financial stewardship raises the question of whether or not it may be wiser to adopt.
3. Birth Control: There is debate within the pro-life, Christian medical community as to whether or not hormone contraceptives (oral, injectables, implants) may function as abortifacients. Some methods of birth control are clearly abortive (IUD’s; RU486). Some are true contraceptives – they prohibit conception. The debate is such that Christians should be willing to do the necessary research in order to proceed with a clear conscience. See the opposing arguments below by pro-life, Christian Ob-Gyns:
Birth Control Pill: Abortifacient and Contraceptive (takes position that birth control pills are abortifacient)
Hormone Contraceptives Controversies and Clarifications (takes position that the data is not conclusive)
Regardless, the issue of contraception (avoiding conception – including natural family planning) raises the question of how one views children – are they a gift from God or an inconvenience; are they a blessing to be received or are they hurdles to our plans (read idols): education, career goals, relationship, financial goals, fame, etc.?
The best talk I have heard on these matters from a theological perspective was an address by R. Albert Mohler, titled Reproductive Technologies and Contraception, delivered at a Carl F. H. Henry Forum at Capitol Hill Baptist Church.
The One who sacrificed His Son so that we idolaters and child sacrificers might be forgiven and receive life
What of those who have sacrificed their children to the gods of this world? Is there any hope? Will they be forever cast out of God’s presence? The good news that is the gospel reminds us that God the Father sacrificed His own Son Jesus, so that all who have sacrificed their own children may not die/perish/be eternally separated from His presence but instead receive forgiveness of sin and everlasting life in the very presence of God.
1. The Father called Jesus to be the faithful Israel/Son who obeyed His every command (Matthew 2:15). The context of this call was Herod’s killing of the Jewish children (Matthew 2:16-18).
2. The Father was pleased with Jesus’ obedience: “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” (Matt 3:17); “Listen to him” (Matt 17:5).
3. Jesus willingly obeyed the Father even to the point of death on a cross – “Not my will be done but your will be done” (Matthew 26:39, 42, 43).
4. At the cross, the crowds mocked Jesus: “If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross” (27:38-39).
5. At the cross, some observers had to confess, “Truly, Jesus was the Son of God” (Matthew 27:51-54).
Jesus is God’s Son through whom idolaters and murderers may receive forgiveness of sins. Let us confess our idolatries and murders; let us repent (renew our thinking); and let us trust in Christ alone, for He is all sufficient and worthy of all our worship.