Preachers: preach!

Public speaking (Photo credit: brainpop_uk)

The Sermon on the Mount is arguably the most famous act of public speaking in history, despite remarkably few people actually knowing what it’s about. Go on, give it a read, it’s over here. I’ll wait.

I know, pretty shocking, isn’t it? Is he actually saying that people who don’t believe in him are going to hell? It does sort of sound like it, doesn’t it? In fact, there’s a lot of controversial stuff in there. Please feel free to discuss any of it in the comments section.

Anyway, I love a little throwaway comment that Matthew put in after he’d finished speaking:

the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes. (Matthew 7:28b-29)

Do you see that? Their scribes, the ones who were meant to know what’s going on, didn’t speak as if they had any authority! I wonder…I wonder if I’m even allowed to say this…I wonder how much ‘preaching’ in the world today is done by people who speak with true authority.

I reckon ‘motivational speakers’ definitely do. Politicians generally seem to. The New Atheists seem to (although their ‘authority’ is more presented as arrogance and aggression). But do Christian preachers?

Certainly there are some; it’s hard to deny the authority presented by Matt Chandler, Mark Driscoll, Craig Groeschel or John Piper. And this isn’t a jab at preachers, more a question: if you preach, how much authority do you preach with?

Football will continue

English: 116 Clique on DWYL Tour 2009 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Because my to-do list is not full enough of things which are neither urgent nor important I subscribe to The Guardian’s daily e-mail about football.

It’s called the Fiver because it’s meant to arrive at about five o’clock, and when I first saw it the question that came to mind was: How on earth is there enough new to provide a daily update on football? Well, a couple of weeks ago they really struck something by explaining themselves. Here’s a brief quote:

…right now only one thing seems certain: despite repeated Fiver campaigns, football will never stop. Every second of every day for the rest of your life, there will be a happening of football going on, some story, some outrage, some brouhaha. At the exact moment you die, many years from now, football will be happening somewhere. And in the moments after your death football will just keep happening, all over the place, horribly vital, fresh storms and spats and swoops and sagas brewing up even as your eyes close for the last time and light begins to fade, and the last sight or sound your senses are aware of is a sensational swoop for a 13-year-old Peruvian wonderkid, or a managerial reshuffle in Russia, or a man saying a thing about another thing solely because he was asked a question by a man whose job it is to ask questions and thereby create out of thin air some football to happen.

Now what’s really depressing about that quote is that it’s actually true. And not just true about football, but true about all sorts of things. Other things that will simply roll on into the future, with or without us, include such joys as politics and soap operas, and thinking about this reminds me that we only live once.

When my eyes are preparing to close for the last time will I be thinking about the possibility of a Peruvian wonderkid becoming a world-famous footballer, or will I be reflecting on a life well-lived and a legacy left behind me?

Don’t.

Waste.

Your.

Life.

Where your treasure is

Mega Millions logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This shocked me the other day. Remember that Mega Millions prize a couple of weeks ago for hundreds of millions of dollars? Well, this article over at the International Business Times sheds a dark light (ooh, oxymoron) on the situation. And here’s the sentence that made me stop in my tracks:

…poor people in the U.S. – those earning $13,000 or less – spend an astounding 9 percent of their income on lottery tickets.

Hang on, 9 percent?! That’s ridiculous! You don’t have to work for an accounting firm to know that at least 99.9% of those people would be far better off just by cutting out the lottery from their budget, so why, how does that even happen?

Well, it’s called addiction, or more often in Scripture slavery, and John Piper over at Desiring God has responded to the situation in his typical way. There’s really good stuff there, but the final sentence probably sums it up in a good, hard-hitting way:

So, if you win, don’t tithe your lottery winnings to our church. Christ does not build his church on the backs of the poor. Pray that Christ’s people will be so satisfied in him that they will be freed from the greed that makes us crave to get rich.

Muslims and the cross

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I find John Piper an inspiring leader in many ways. One thing he does a lot of is write, and he wrote about Muslims a bit ago; here’s a quote from him:

When Jesus says, “receive him,” he means receive him for who he really is: the divine, eternal Son of God who lays down his life for the sheep and takes it up again in three days. If a person does not receive him in this way, that person, Jesus says, does not love God.

…

Historically Muslims do not know Jesus, honor Jesus, or receive Jesus for who he really is — the divine, eternal, Son of God, who laid down his life on the cross for sinners and rose again the third day. Therefore, Jesus says, such Muslims do not know God and do not honor God and do not love God. As offensive as this is, Jesus said it to the most Bible-saturated, ritually disciplined, God-aware, religious people of his day. . . .

I believe with all my heart that, as forgiven sinners, who owe our lives to blood-bought grace alone, we Christians can look with love and good will, and even tender-hearted compassion, into the eyes of a Muslim and say: I do not believe you know God or honor God or love God. I hope through our conversation that you will see the truth and beauty of Christ-crucified and risen for the sins of everyone who trusts him. And if we were threatened right now, I hope that I would lay down my life for you.

The full discussion and document are available here.

God’s sovereignty in disability

This is a phenomenally powerful, moving and thoroughly godly interview between John Piper and John Knight, whose son was born without eyes. The full transcript is available for free here. Fully worth the 20 or so minutes.

Proverbs 1:24-33

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The biggest challenge of working systematically through a Bible book is that you can’t simply pick out the nice, easy passages. This is Wisdom speaking:

‘Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.’ Proverbs 1:24-33

Who’s this talking to?

It’s always important to look at these tough passages in context. Looking at the previous verses we’ve learnt that God defines foolishness as not having fear of the LORD, and it is these fools which Wisdom is addressing here. In other words, this passage is targeted at non-Christians.

Because, because, because, because, because…

There’s quite a significant introductory sentence to this passage which makes abundantly clear the reasons why Wisdom, who represents God, is saying what she is saying. Read it through and you’ll see that Wisdom initiated in a number of different ways, and the people just stiff-armed Him. Look at the things they’ve done: they refused to listen to her call, they did not heed her stretched-out hand, they ignored her counsel, they wouldn’t listen to her reproof, they hated her knowledge, and they didn’t choose the fear of the LORD. The blame for the consequences listed in this passage sits squarely with the people. They’ve been given plenty of opportunities to avoid the unpleasantness, but have not taken them.

The knee-jerk reaction for most people when reading a passage like this is ‘but that doesn’t seem very fair! How mean of Wisdom to mock when terror strikes!’ The simple truth is that non-Christians have been given innumerable opportunities to escape from this insane wrath, yet they have actively chosen not to take them. This punishment is deserved. God is fair, just, and kind when He sees distress and anguish coming upon those who have actively rejected His help and says ‘this is your fault’.

But God seems mean

He does, doesn’t He? This passage would suggest that it’s describing hell (the eternal consequences for unbelievers’ sin), and that the suffering souls call to God and He says ‘no, too late’. But I don’t think that’s the case. Have a look at the particular words used to describe God’s response: ‘they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices’ – again, the fact that God will not respond is their fault. This same idea is mirrored in the language of Romans 1, where Paul writes that God ‘gave them up’ to their sin. God pursues and pursues and pursues, but if someone is dead set against receiving His grace, He will hand them what they have been begging for, even though they will not like it.

John Piper explained this well in a blog post when he talked about the consequences of our actions. He said that a person who enjoys excessive amounts of food is effectively begging to become obese and unhealthy. Of course, no-one wants to get fat, but it’s the clear and well-understood consequence of a person’s actions. Similarly, no-one smokes in order to get breathing problems or lung cancer. If it happens, however, it’s an obvious result of that person’s actions. C. S. Lewis summed this entire idea up so well when he said, ‘There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’

Our response

Are you a Christian? If not, you should read this Bible passage again, very carefully. Clearly you don’t believe in hell and Jesus being alive and everything else, but if you’re going to say that you must also be comfortable saying that, if it is all real, you are happy with God’s just wrath being poured out on you. I’m sure that God does seem mean, but there is good news. The wrath that you have earned, that punishment that you deserve, has already been poured out on a substitute. Jesus of Nazareth was crucified as a criminal despite the fact he had done nothing wrong, and in that historical event he won eternal life and joy for all who will accept the saving hand of God. If you, by faith, will accept that your punishment has already been spent on him, you will be raised into new life as he was. The same promise given in this passage will be for you: ‘whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease’. If you do, please contact me.

If you already are a Christian, you should respond too. We must accept the truth of hell. Now, having accepted that, think for a moment about those you know who are not Christians. Family members, friends, colleagues, customers, the ice cream man…if they have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour, that eternal torment is also their destiny. The idea of hell must serve as a kick up our behinds to get into conversations with those around us who don’t know Jesus and to be God’s stretched-out hand in our communities.

What is the church?

Image via Wikipedia

I read an article recently about martyrdom. I’m odd like that.

I’d always taken it as read that martyrdom was fertiliser for the gospel – John Piper’s teaching on this had always been encouraging, Paul’s words about ‘filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions’ (Colossians 1:24) as well as testimonies from all over the world had underlined this assumption. Not to mention Tertullian’s famous quote, ‘the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church’.

But this article had a slightly different take on the whole issue of martyrdom, and pointed out that:

the membership of the Evangelical Christian Baptists (registered and unregistered) in the Soviet Union had dropped from approximately 1,000,000 in 1926 to just under 249,000 in 1993…The Communists almost succeeded.

So on this occasion the size of the church actually shrunk due to persecution.

Or did it?

I have no doubt whatsoever that the number of church members shrunk, but I wonder whether our definition of the church needs to be rethought for this – does the fact that you’re a member of a local church mean that you’re a member of the global church?

I think that the author of this article is talking only about the visible church. Even after seeing these statistics I’d still say that the church was potentially growing under persecution, because those who left the church would most likely be those who attended without having submitted their entire lives to Christ.

Not trying to be controversial, just a thinking point – if the church you attend was subjected to persecution would you leave?

Can you be a part of the global body of Christ without being part of the visible church?

How should a Christian respond to Bin Laden’s death?

Christians around the world seem to have responded very differently to Bin Laden’s death; should we be out in the streets partying, or should we be condemning murderers who would attack an unarmed man?

To bring some clarity (or perhaps just to muddy the waters) here’s a little collection of some Christian responses:

John Piper says that God both approves and disapproves of his death, and here’s a video of a sermon clip: Pour out your indignation on them.

Christopher Morgan says we should grieve and rejoice.

Kevin DeYoung is a bit more decisive on the matter.

Of course, the Archibishop of Canterbury has been quoted as saying that he’s uncomfortable with the murder of an unarmed man, but concluded that justice must be seen to be done.

Don Carson has written a 207-page book for you hardcore readers and it’s available as a free e-book over here. Osama Bin Laden is specifically looked at on pages 108-144, and it’s quite nicely summed up in this short post.

There’s a great post over at The Resurgence, which is where the picture above was taken from.

And finally…

The Newfrontiers Theology Blog pretty much sums up the whole of Christian history over here, and concludes with pretty much the statement that would summarise everything above:

Complicated, isn’t it.

Christian Audiobooks

I’m not sure if I’ve ever mentioned this before, but even if I have it’s probably worth a second go.

On my review site I have the opportunity to review audiobooks every so often, which are provided by christianaudio.com.

Every month, christianaudio.com offers a free Christian audiobook for download, and they’re often very, very good. This month the free book is John Piper’s Don’t Waste Your Life, a book which has affected me and many other Christians – if you haven’t yet downloaded it get onto that website and get that free book!

If you fancy reviewing books for them, they give you even more free books, around two per month! That’s a lot of free books, and the vast majority of them is excellent. If you think reviewing audiobooks for free would interest you, click over to their reviewers programme.

And if you think you’d be interested in getting audiobooks regularly, why not join them in a subscription? Currently if you sign up you get for free:

• One Crossway TruTone ESV Study Bible (a $75 value!) - The Crossway ESV Study Bible was created to help people understand the Bible in a deeper way. Combining the best and more recent evangelical Christian scholarship with the highly regarded ESV text, it is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published. This bible also includes free access to the ESV Online Study Bible! Click here for more information on the ESV TruTone Study Bible you’ll be receiving (we cannot guarantee which color or packaging will be sent).
• One One-Year Christianity Today Magazine Subscription (a $25 value!) - Initially focused on providing pastors with a strong energetic voice of evangelical leadership, CTI now serves the global church with resources designed to meet the needs of both Christian leaders and laity alike — adults, youth, and families. Today, more than 2.5 million readers gain encouragement and relevant, Bible-based wisdom from CTI’s 11 magazines. Click here for more information on the One-Year Christianity TodayMagazine Subscription you’ll be receiving (subscription to be redeemed with a mail-in form).
• One One-Year Subscription to Ligonier’s Tabletalk Magazine (a $23 value!) - Tabletalkmagazine was formed in 1977 to provide a substantive study tool for believers. Though its format has changed over the years, Tabletalk continues to challenge and encourage readers to dig deeper into the Word of God in order that their lives may be transformed through the renewing of their minds. Click here for more information on the One-YearTabletalk Magazine Subscription you’ll be receiving (subscription to be redeemed with a call-in code).
• One David C. Cook’s Crazy Love DVD Study Resource (a $30 value!) - The Crazy Love DVD Study Resource helps you and your small group to dive deeper into God’s love. A companion to the best-selling Crazy Love book, by pastor Francis Chan, this 10-week study follows a day-in-the-life of Francis in the form of ten, 10-minute segments that correspond to each chapter of Crazy Love. Click here for more information on the David C. Cook Crazy Love DVD Study Resource you’ll be receiving.
• Two christianaudio CD Audiobooks (a $35 value!) - You’ll also be receiving the CD audiobooks of best-selling Radical, Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream by David Platt and Invitation, the story of Billy Graham by Aram & Basyle Tchividjian!

Special note for international customers:

• Although subscribers can use their credits anywhere in the world for digital download content, the above bonus offer, as well as CD products on our site, are only available to ship to residents of the 50 United States of America.
• In lieu of the above bonus offer, international subscribers will receive a free download of the ESV Hear the Word Audio Bible and 12 bonus credits added to their account once the new or upgrade subscription order has been processed.

I know this is basically a big advert, but I don’t mind. I think christianaudio.com do a really good job, and I’d rather they stay in business so hope this helps them out in some way.

Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper (audio)

I greatly respect John Piper’s ministry, and one of his key mottos which has impacted me has been ‘Don’t waste your life’. The idea that I could sit on my deathbed and regret my time here is a thought that plagues me, and I think Piper’s theology hits the nail squarely on the head. Through a variety of carefully picked chapters John Piper puts forward the idea that we will be most fulfilled, and most satisfied, when we are living every ounce of our lives to the glory of God.

The writing style is extremely logical, but includes many well-told stories so to my mind anyone would enjoy reading this book, and the audio presentation is also good. I have heard many tell me before that their lives have been radically changed through reading this book, and I have to say I join those ranks.

My only concern with this book would be that a reader/listener could take the message ‘too far’, so I’d thoroughly recommend this book with a ‘chill out’ warning. That said, Piper is well aware of this tendency so a careful read of this would be a good thing for absolutely anyone.

In short, I’d recommend this to every Christian regardless of spiritual maturity, and every seeker. In particular I think this would be invaluable to someone whose faith had started to become stale. If you’re not sure, check out the free version of this available online for download: http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/online-books/dont-waste-your-life

I got this audiobook for free from christianaudio.com. I’m not required to give a positive review.