semper reformanda

2009-02-07T01:37:00.001-05:00

2009-01-12T09:16:00.001-05:00

2009-01-08T19:56:00.001-05:00

2008-12-23T09:55:00.003-05:00

"But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one."

1 Corinthians 5:11 (English Standard Version)

Reviler

2008-12-17T09:03:00.000-05:00

2008-08-26T15:08:00.011-05:00

What is the relationship between the wrestler on the left and Stone Cold on the right?

A. brothers
B. father/son
C. cousins
D. none of the above

Answer: D, none of the above. The shocking reality is that the guy on the left is Steve Austin back in the early 1990’s. Amazing, huh? If you don't believe me you can watch this old clip of "Stunning" Steve Austin (don't worry...there's no middle fingers, beer or swearing...)

Steve Austin worked his way up, making no money, getting beat to death 40+ weeks a year and clawed his way into the WCW in the early 90’s. What you need to understand is that industry is as cut throat as national politics…or worse. For every Hulk Hogan there are thousands of wrestlers with lots of potential who never “break in” as they say. The odds of one ever seeing themselves in a wrestling ring on TV are very, very slim.

So you do what you have to do, as they say. You follow the money, take what you need to take to get in the ring one more time and you say what you need to say to get over with the fans. Steve Austin was no different and in the 1990’s the gimmick he had was that of a good looking, arrogant and blond stud. The good folks at WCW even teamed him up with the late Brian Pillman and formed the now famous tag team, The Hollywood Blonds. I heard Steve Austin speak about this in an interview once and he indicated that he was in that tag team long before he had ever even been to Hollywood!

In the locker room Austin was anything but a sissy. Ask anyone in the mid-90’s about Steve Austin and they would have quickly let you know that Austin was one hard working man. He kept his nose clean for the most part (as much as a wrestler bouncing from city to city week after week could of course) and usually did what was asked of him. He might have had a pretty boy persona in the ring but Steve Austin was known as a work horse.

He had respect in the locker room and management tried to figure out what to do him. While not gargantuan in size, he wasn’t a midget either. He had solid mic skills, could flow with the electricity generated by the crowd in the ring and was good looking enough to be a champion. Yet they could just not market him the right way. He wasn’t as talented in the ring as the WWF’s emerging blond bombshell Shawn Michaels and the WCW already had a blond bombshell of their own in the legendary Ric Flair. Austin was fired by WCW while injured in 1995, they just couldn’t figure out how to market him and he ended up simply lost in the mix. They cut him loose.

Nice…after working his tail off, keeping his nose clean for the most part, doing what he was told for the most part and taking all those “bumps” for the WCW they cut him loose while injured. The gimmicks had not worked and his days of going to the ring as someone else were over. He was contacted by a friend in the business named Paul Heyman who ran a rouge wrestling organization…the infamous Extreme Championship Wresting…ECW. The vibe of the mid 1990’s was that of rebellion and postmodernism was more thoroughly than ever flooding pop culture. Nirvana and Pearl Jam ruled the airwaves and a raw aggravation with hypocritical polish society often put on things rose as Generation X emerged into their teens and early 20’s. Out went the Cosby’s and Home Improvement in came Roseanne and Friends.

Extreme Championship Wrestling was not family friendly. Its home was a rundown bingo hall in Philadelphia with folding chairs and some bleachers and it was the wrestling counterpart to the grunge movement in music and fashion. It was bloody, raw and real. And that’s where Austin landed…in ECW.

He took full advantage of this new setting. Certainly the money wasn’t as good and the over all work environment not nearly as safe. But Steve Austin found a place where he could develop an in ring persona which was nothing more than an amplification of who really was backstage. In those days in both the WCW and the WWF wrestlers were not allowed to curse each other in front of the crowd…in ECW you were not allowed NOT to curse at each other. It was all about being real with real emotions and passion in the ECW. And Austin took full advantage of this new found uncensored platform. While he was not yet “Stone Cold” Steve Austin (he went by the name “Superstar” Steve Austin) the Stone Cold famous today began to emerge. While his attitude and intensity with the mic and in the ring might not be considered over the top today, back in 1995 it was shocking to say the least. It was as if this Austin guy was just being himself, as if he really thought this stuff…as if he was being real or something.

And the fans ate it up. Men, young men…were eating it up.

Well, Vince McMahon could have cared less about “Stunning” Steve Austin just a few months prior…but this “Superstar” Steve Austin presented a new opportunity for the WWF. They snagged him after his brief stint in ECW and brought him in as the “Ringmaster” Steve Austin.

Austin already had his fill with the gimmick style of wrestling. He came in, shaved his golden locks, dawned simple black trunks with black boots…looked totally disgusted and stomped to the ring intending only to beat the life out of whoever was in his way in a manner that just seemed so serious and real. He didn't simply look "mean" or "mad" like other wrestlers...Austin looked "real" and as if he was not playing a character at all (flicking the crowd off and cussing at them the whole time btw). There were no pyrotechnics, he didn’t rip his shirt off, he didn’t have a glittery robe, he wasn’t an IRS agent, he wasn’t a leprechaun, he wasn’t a zombie, he didn’t dance around, he wasn’t doing voodoo or playing an air guitar. He was just Steve Austin and he was there for one reason…WIN…and then go home.

Again…this might not seem like a big deal now…but at the time this was just unheard of. Only the “stiffs” (wrestlers going nowhere who were brought in to be the punching bags on TV) wore such bland outfits. And flying the middle finger? Frequently? At the crowd? Unheard of! Before this the villain might shake his fist at the crowd and bellow a “ahhh…shut your yappers why don’t ya!” or something but that’s about it. No one had ever seen something like this Austin guy…the same guy the WCW just couldn’t figure out what to do with.

From that point Steve Austin’s fame took off like a rocket. He became “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and the rest is history. He was not just a popular wrestler…he literally transcended wrestling and became a legendary cultural icon in the west. This is particularly true with the very segment our churches are the least capable of reaching…men born in and after the 1960’s.

The first and foremost thing I believe our pastors and church leaders need to really “get” in order to more effectively communicate with unconverted men in our culture is what Austin got in 1995…authenticity. We do not fool these “real men” with our painted smiles, perfect hair, pat evangelical answers or glossy personalities. No man is always happy, no man is always patient, no man is always sweet and no man always has all the answers. So when we present ourselves this way we instantly lose the respect of men who were not raised in the evangelical bubble.

I’m always amazed at how out of touch with authenticity church leaders can be…and they often talk about how they want to be “authentic”. It’s kinda creepy actually. So often words like “authentic” are nothing more than new hip evangelical buzz words which seem to be presented as a new “style” to adopt or something. As Mark was saying in our last comment section, this is not a style. KNOW YOURSELF AND THEN BE YOURSELF. You’re not perfect and we all know it…acting like you are is insulting to our intelligence and makes you irrelevant in the end (in this day and age for sure).

Of course we need to stop here and be clear. Authenticity can be a wonderful excuse for being a complete jerk or pervert or whatever. “This is just how I am so deal with it” is not being authentic. Actually…I take that back…it’s being an authentic jerk. Steve Austin never considered the feelings of others to say the least and that is an example of what needs redeemed. We as Christians are to be “Christ like”…not “me like”. We represent HIM and not ourselves. So we put on Christ and act on HIS behalf. This is very true. The reality however is that from the moment of our Deliverance until our Glorification we are being worked on by the power of the Holy Spirit. Yes…even pastors. We are being changed and made new…we are in the process of being saved by Jesus. While our people do not need to know what our temptations are they ought to be sure we struggle to mortify the flesh and submit to the will of Christ just as much as they do (if not far more). They ought to know we suffer. They ought to know we agonize over our sinfulness and lack of faith. They ought to know we are not always happy, that we can and do often hurt. They ought to know that we are councilors who receive counseling. They ought to know we have not arrived…because we have not…and to present ourselves as if we have is inauthentic to put it nicely.

And men will not respect, follow or pay much attention to someone who is not the real deal or to someone who is so insecure inside that they must overcompensate by presenting a glossy evangelical front.

Yes, Stone Cold Steve Austin was a character. But the character was nothing more than an amplification of Steve Austin…a hard working Texan who was an aggressive straight shooter. When Austin stripped down his in-ring persona to nothing more than an amplification of himself…men responded and still respond. The very men who IGNORE us.

Pastors are not performers like Austin and so we have no need to “amplify” our personality in that way. But I’m going to suggest that we strip down our church persona just a bit. I suggest we no longer present ourselves as the guy with all the answers and the guy who just loves being a doormat and is always real super sweet and nice. We’re obviously not fooling these guys…they’re all at home watching the pre-game and paying no attention to what we’re doing. Be real. I’m afraid that so many pastors and church leaders have been under so much pressure from their tradition, family and people to have it all together for so long that some guys just don’t know who they are and so being “authentic” is quite confusing and unnatural to them…and I’m being serious. It’s why so many pastors and church leaders burn out, drop out or fall out of ministry every year.

So…clue #1 as to why Steve Austin connected so powerfully with the men we are so poor at connecting with.

Stone Cold was Steve Austin.

"For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned." Romans 12:3 ESV

2008-08-25T16:45:00.000-05:00

The next installment about the church and men will be up tomorrow and that’s the bottom line cause Gary Fox SAID SO! Oh wait…I’ve been watching that Stone Cold video from last time too much, sorry about that.

None the less I came across this short clip from Mark Driscoll addressing an issue which will go hand in hand with the over arching topic we’ve been into dealing with men. Here Driscoll addresses the issue of “provocative language” which in the next several installments I will contend is vitally needed today from behind our pulpits if we ever dream to capture the fascination of “real men”. Take a look and let me know what you think in the comment section.

2008-08-12T09:56:00.015-05:00

As you can tell by the lack of life changing articles here at semper reformanda, things have been busy down here on the farm. We had our very first micro-outreach this Saturday wherein we invited the immediate neighborhood to a simple cook out. While we did have two bounce houses set up (borrowed from two sister churches) we resisted the temptation of giving away hot air balloon rides, having a local celebrity like Bernie Kosar or someone swing by to give autographs or setting up a stage for rock bands to play all day. It was just a cook out and that’s what they were invited to.

And while I didn’t count, I’d guess about 25 people came out. Kids were bouncing in the bounce house and the adults sat around in folding chairs, catching up on the local gossip about the schools and such. Then people began to ask questions about the church and Jesus answered my prayer which was, “Lord, give me a family or two…” and He did! I invited them all, but one family seemed very sincere about actually coming to our first Bible study (which is tonight!) I walked them through the basement of the church building to show them the sweet children’s murals we’ve just had painted in the hallway and large room (pics forthcoming).

Coram Deo is starting…pray for us tonight (pray that one or two of these families actually come out!)

I’m going to go deeper into a topic that we’ve hashed out here before and I believe will really push the boundaries of our comfy evangelical subculture. If you are deeply satisfied with and love this comfy evangelical subculture I’m sure you are going to get uncomfortable very quickly over the next few posts. Being radically driven by the doctrine of “Sola Scriptura” I must provoke this conversation. I simply can not dig into the topic the Lord has laid on my heart without also digging into some evangelical assumptions about “right and wrong”.

The over arching topic is…where are the men? What is it about what we are doing and saying that seems so trivial, irrelevant and uninspiring to men? Of course I’m starting with the assumed acknowledgement that most men have no desire to throw themselves into active participation in the church. If your local church effectively reaches previously unchurched men then more power to you…but that’s not normal.

Most men in church today were raised in church and so they have deep roots in the church and see her value…even despite herself. Those men active in the church who were not raised in the church most likely married a women who was and has, for one reason or another, convinced him that he needs the church (maybe he truly buys that and appreciated the church, maybe he more or less needs to keep her happy or maybe he knows its good for the kids…the reasons can vary). My own brother in law was not raised in the church…then he met my lovely sister Sarah. He figured out very quickly that to get to her he had better get into church. Now he loves his church and serves in many ways right there.

Where are the unchurched men? Where are guys like Harvey, Johnny, Tyrone and Mike (guys I used to work with in the factory)? Where are the men who have little church background and are either unmarried or married to a women who is herself not a church attendee?

What do you think about those guys? Ought they settle down, cut their hair (or grow hair for those men who shave their heads bald), give up their rock n roll, clean up their language, be more polite and get into church like good dignified men?

There are of course the white collar unchurched men who dress the part but just need to work on their language.

If that’s what you think about guys like Harvey then get ready…cause I’m coming after your postulation.

Before we proceed let’s be sure of the framework. There are behaviors and attitudes that these men must repent of and daily forsake. The dude sleeping with his girlfriend(s) needs to end that lifestyle immediately. It is sinful and he needs to know that Jesus is very angry with him for doing that. He needs to know the standard is straightforward from the Bible…have lots of sex with your wife, provide for her and the kids…and that’s it. He needs to be told that it’s time to grow up, be a man, take responsibility for himself and his family and marry her. That means he needs to get and keep a job and then pay all his bills FIRST with the money from said job. It might mean he’ll have to sell his X-box and 47 games, 4 wicked-cool X-box controlers and the stupid 15inch subwoofers in his rust bucket car in order to buy her a ring. The white collar dude like Ron (I worked with him at a mortgage company) needs to know something very similar…but he’s gonna have to be told that he might not be able to keep the Camaro or his front row Browns season tickets and he might not be able to buy a house and “get himself established” before getting married. Get married or stop having sex with your girlfriend…there’s no third option…that’s the simple message the church has for that dude.

The lazy unchurched man, the hard working blue collar unchurched man and the ambitious white collar unchurched man all need to understand one fundamental thing…they are not King Kong. They are King Nothing. Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and all men will bow in utter submission before Him someday. These dudes need to understand how this applies to them…they must release control. They must release the control they feel is rightful there’s for themselves, their girlfriends/wives and children. These men need to know that they would melt, sizzle and evaporate in the presence of the Holy Trinity…they must get over themselves because there is One greater then themselves who sandals they are not worthy to untie…

So before we even get started, be sure, I’m not nor will I ever suggest we compromise clear Biblical standards in order to accommodate the sinful lusts or selfishness of unregenerate men. I recommend just the opposite.

And by recommending just the opposite I am forced to equally cut against the grain of what is now common in evangelicalism and this is where I’m going to get into some trouble with some of you. You have to love me anyway, right?

We're totally Chic-a-Fide. Up, down, sideways and backwards. Our style of music, dress, decor, preaching, attitude and even the way our lead men, the pastors, act and talk is all girlie and totally uninspiring to unchurched men. It's like we project to the community this message: "come to us with your hurts, we don't know you but we love you, we're ever so gentle, we're unoffensive, we're safe, we're polite, we're tender...yes, come share your deepest fears with us and blow intimate kisses to sweet Jesus with us..." and the dudes send their women and children (if they are interested)...and they stay home to work on the truck and listen to the ball game on the radio.

I’d like you to take a look at this music video/tribute to a dude whom nearly every lazy unchurched man, hard working blue collar unchurched man and every ambitious white collar unchurched man I have ever met were fascinated by and in some way or another, admired. In fact, most churched men that I know who are familiar with Stone Cold Steve Austin in some way “got a kick out of him” or even admired him in some way…admired him...even if they didn’t admit it too loud.

Why? My question is this as you watch this video…what was it about this wrestler that so radically and in such an unprecedented way connected with men? Stone Cold Steve Austin was one of the most popular wrestlers ever and was known by nearly all men of nearly all ages. I don’t think I’ve ever met a guy who didn’t like “Stone Cold”. In fact it doesn’t matter what type of work a man is into, if he is having problems at work all you have to say is, “well Bob, go in there tomorrow like Stone Cold…” and you’ll be sure to get a boyish smile instantly and a “ha…yeah…” as he quickly daydreams about doing it.

Pay attention…here we have Stone Cold extending the middle finger TO THE CROWD (watch closely and you’ll see him do this several times) and THE CROWD LOVED IT! He did that constantly throughout his career and the more he did the more the crowd loved him for it! Why is that? Watch with an open mind and discernment, look for clues. For those of you not familiar with wrestling of the late 90’s and early 00’s and if you don’t know who these guys are he’s attacking let me give you a couple clarifying clues. These guys he’s smashing and “stunning” were the villains who used to get over on the “hero’s” by cheating…until Stone Cold hit the scene and began to fight fire with fire. You’ll notice some plain clothed guys who get the boot to stomach and then the Stunner as well. Those were the corporate big wigs who were corrupt and who would stack the deck against Stone Cold in various situations in order to rob him of the championship so they could have a more refined and classy champion represent the company. And once or twice you’ll see a referee get the Stunner. Those refs were, according to the story line, bought and paid for by the company…they were corrupt refs and Stone Cold would end up having enough of it and deal with them “his way”. So Stone Cold was dealing with the cards totally stacked against him all the time. They even put him in the ring with a dozen other men…you’ll see that at the end of the clip. Watch his gleeful attitude as he stomps down the ramp into the pit of guys there to beat him down…it’s at about the 3 minute mark. It’s classic Stone Cold.

I’m not suggesting that Stone Cold is the model Christian, lol. BUT…is there anything about his attitude and his connection with the crowd, mostly men, that the church should pay attention to and redeem? What if we presented spiritual warfare to men as Stone Cold went to war in the fantasy world of wrestling? What is redeemable about Stone Cold…is there anything about this character that our pastors should assimilate into their ministry? What is unredeemable? There is a gesture he makes in this video montage that is an absolute abomination...and I mean that in the truest sense. Can you guess what it is? It’s not the extended middle finger. He does something else with his hands that is a flat out offense to Jesus and is the opposite of what a Christian man should ever do. Look for it…I’ll mail a check for $10 to the first person to rightly point this gesture out in the comment section. The attitude displayed by this one gesture is the one thing I see that is unredeemable. Look for it.

What is going on here? If you are offended by rock n roll, the middle finger, blood or Stone Cold Stunners please don’t watch this. But if you are curious as to what “inspires” the raw, unrefined and unchurched men in your community hold onto your hat and watch this. Let’s talk about it in the comment section.

2008-08-07T07:26:00.001-05:00

Click on the pic...

2008-07-31T09:10:00.006-05:00

FINALLY! We've got the sound quality at a point where I'm comfortable putting a link here on the blog! Here is last weeks message called "The Temptation of Jesus Christ" (incredibly creative title I know). You can listen on your computer or download it to any MP3 player and listen as you travel the globe.

Below is the text from which I preached:

Matthew 4:1-11 ESV

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." 4 But he answered, "It is written, "'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6 and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, "'He will command his angels concerning you,' and "'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'"

7 Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written, "'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'"

11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

2008-07-30T09:09:00.015-05:00

I turned thirty in February and that was a hard pill to swallow. I had been noticing lately that I’ve not been hearing people comment about how “fantastic it is to see a young person preach the old time Gospel…” as much I used to. Thirty? I was on the team which planed our classes ten year reunion (the irony of that I’ll share some other time…) and all of us felt the same…we’re way to cool and young to be thirty. I’ve been in pastoral ministry for about ten years now! I began this illustrious career as a part time youth pastor (yeah, more irony) when I was twenty. It’s been a roller coaster ever since full of “trial and error” I assure you. I’m like a real life Forest Gump. I intended to sit down and write out the most significant lessons I’ve learned in the ten years I’ve been serving in pastoral ministry back when I actually turned thirty…but like I said, that was February and as most of you know…I was living in a cave and everything was super hectic with the parsonage. So I never got around to it…but I think I need to come up with it and publish it. It’s weird…but I actually now know a couple guys younger than me in the struggle (very weird) and maybe it will make them think or even be helpful to them in some way. It was helpful to me to articulate it. The first lesson is the most significant one to me…the rest are in no particular order. These are the things I’ve picked up on in my first ten years of pastoral ministry:

· The Gospel is not the side dish. Jesus is the reigning King over all creation. He saves and forgives sinners and molds them into His likeness totally and utterly apart from the assistance or cooperation of the sinner. From start to finish, everything is about that Gospel. It’s not the side dish or just one of many topics to be discussed…it’s the only topic.

· All churches say they care about the lost, most don’t know how, some actually just don’t care.

· A passionate hunger for and irenic approach to Church history (all of it, not just post-Reformation) is vitally important. Seeking to understand and remember the suffering, the doctrinal struggles, moral failures and moral victories in our family history gives a mature perspective on my suffering, doctrinal struggles, moral failures and moral victories. We are wasting far too much energy trying to reinvent the wheel.

· Wisdom, not zeal, is the most important characteristic in a leader. If you empower a zealous person who is not wise you will pay severely.

· Never put yourself or allow yourself to be put into a position where you need clarify what you really meant by something you said. Being cavalier with your authenticity might seem cool, hip, ‘relevant’ and fresh…but that attitude can be used like a ball bat on you if someone wants to hurt you. I must resist wearing my heart on my sleeve (which is no small task for me).

· Naomi can make or break me, no one on earth is more important to my health than her. I wish I would have better understood that years ago…I hope I never forget it.

· The key to church growth and health is reaching and discipling young men. Not marketing or mailers, young men. Not youth or music, young men. Period. Most churches are scared to death by and made very uncomfortable by “real men” and do all they can to neuter “real men” in order to make them nice, polite, tender, mild, quiet...church boys (just look at how we instruct little boys and teenage boys…). Most churches are perfectly set up and decorated to reach 35-40 year old women…and their children…and most of the men stay home. If we win the young men we win the women, children, money, resources, energy, creativity, passion and leadership. Plus if we win the young men we won’t need to hire people to mow the lawn or plow the drive. Start by reaching the men (don’t suppress your masculinity on Sunday, think about men when picking the décor, men are inspired by preaching and bored by bland talks and men don’t particularly care to sing sappy prom songs or sappy hymns to another man…even if it’s the Godman…ect.) and then provide ministries needed to care for their wives or girlfriends (soon to be wives if you truly reach these men) and children.

· Pastors whine too much. I whine too much. Read the Bible and then read Church history and then go visit voice of the martyrs and then repent and then shut up. I guess our whining is giving the real men headaches.

· I love the Southern Baptist Convention. I really do. Yeah we’ve got some crazy uncles in the bunch who say crazy stuff from time to time. What I love is that we are not a denomination…we are cooperation. There is a difference. And I love the SBC heart for missions. Despite our sudden spasms of fundamentalistic fits from time to time, the bottom line is spreading the Gospel at home and abroad and Southern Baptists put their money where their mouths are. I’ve see it faithfully demonstrated month after month first hand and I will always be grateful and will always defend my SBC.

· Pastors are foolish sinners saved only by grace alone, through personal faith alone in Jesus alone…don’t kid yourself. They’d all burn in hell forever if they got what they deserved. They are just people and their wives are just people. You'll end up very hurt at some point if you don’t get that.

2008-07-29T11:07:00.002-05:00

Wow...I was a cute little boy, that's for sure!
Baby Preacher

2008-07-25T14:33:00.003-05:00

What do you think about this? Do you agree? If you agree...then do you continue with "the game"? If you don't agree...then on what basis do you disagree?

2008-07-22T18:14:00.021-05:00

The vision for this church planting onslaught starting here in Northeast Ohio has become more and more clear to me this last year. As Coram Deo is physically taking shape and as I watch my buddy Jeremy get the folks of The Movement Church ready to plant themselves and launch in Barberton I’m finding myself more energized than ever. As I’m entering my sixth year in this game, my tenth or eleventh year as a preacher and (if I’m thinking right) my ninth as a lead pastor in general, I’ve concluded that a Christ exalting and missional local church throughout Church history, boils down to three things.

1. A proper appreciation and deep conviction regarding the doctrine of The Holy Trinity. By this I’m speaking about all that doctrine encompasses (which our feeble minds are able by His grace to comprehend what He enables) including the unique work of each person within this mysterious Holy Trinity and His absolute Sovereign control over all things at all times. One must proceed and engage culture knowing that the Almighty One is able to and in His Word has already clearly communicated with fallen humanity and does not need our mediation (He spoke clearly and so therefore the Word is totally sufficient to stand on its own, saying what it says clearly…without our help…or censorship…it’s not jibber jabber nor can it be made inoffensive to human sensibilities, it is intended by God to offend), He is in need of no assistance to save anyone, is utterly relevant to every person at all times apart from our creativity and will judge all people righteously according to their deeds. This must be at the center of all things the local missional church involves itself and it is from this constant awareness and conviction all else must flow. This might seem obvious, but I assure you many if not most churches are not truly driven nor are consumed by this understanding...it's not basic to their functional dna. It’s why we see so much timidity in pastors and such little reverential fear of God in the West as a whole. Jesus isn’t the centerpiece of our churches, contemporary or traditional. We do not eat His flesh nor drink His blood when we gather because ultimately it’s not even about Him in many (if not most) churches. Now, if that offends you I beg you to please prove me wrong here. Oh to God how I wish my evaluation could be demonstrated and shown to be exaggerated. Speak up and explain to us all how Jesus Christ is exalted and is the centerpiece throughout the churches of the West! This rebuke might not be warranted in your church, Jesus might be the centerpiece indeed…but as a whole, this is just not the case. We have many lovely religious clubs and gatherings for good moralists and pious people…but not so many true local and missional churches. Please pray for me that I never lose sight of Almighty God as I lead.

2. A proper understanding of how the local church is to be governed. A healthy missional church has Jesus as the Senior Pastor and they openly and regularly recognize Jesus as the Senior Pastor in every gathering and meeting. Then, they have healthy, qualified and fearless men who serve as elders and under-shepherds who prayerfully lead the church as the Lord leads them, period…end of story. However, what we’ve got in most local evangelical churches is the influence of a small hand full of qualified men totally diluted with unqualified men and a whole bunch of women, all together and equal in authority, leading local churches. And Jesus? Well, He’s asked to bless what our congregation has decided to do at the end of the meeting. That’s what we’ve got. Oh…maybe not in an “official” capacity…it’s not likely presented that way…but that’s the bottom line even in many of our fine Baptist churches (gasp! Yes…you read that right). Everyone has a say, everyone has a vote and everyone has an opinion. I told my buddy Jeremy the other night that I just can’t explain how anything gets accomplished or how the lost are ever saved, apart from the five points of Calvinism…because most ‘evangelical’ churches are just wandering out in the wilderness without direction, passion or conviction. They just have services and committee meetings it seems. This is because everyone is a leader and so therefore WE HAVE NO LEADERS. I’m not going to toss rocks at congregationalism per se…but…qualified men need to be leading the church. Sure, the congregation can sign off on an issue, that’s not how we’ll be doing things but no matter what you set up is, the Bible is clear “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.” Hebrews 13:17 esv. (Can one of you Greek geeks bust out your lexicon and look up the words “obey”, “leaders” and “submit” here in this passage and share with us what they literally mean cause surely they can’t literally mean “obey”, “leader” or “submit”…).

3. A proper and Biblical missiology. The truly missional church will have no misunderstandings about the way society actually works and will proceed with the previous two convictions boldly. They will not have significant misunderstandings simply because the missional church is actively engaged in the real world. Books can not make a missional church nor can a blog. The missional church is organic and indigenous so therefore they artlessly, very naturally and authentically reflect the culture in which they reside. My buddy Jeremy (I reference him a lot lately…he’s a wise young man) puts it this way, “…we are to be exactly like them and nothing like them at the same time…” So the missional church lives in the real world, participates and enjoys the culture, the music, the art, the drama, the sports, the friendships and the entertainment of the real world yet abstains from the sin of the real world…but not the sinners of the real world. You can not abstain from the culture of the real world and effectively witness to the people of the real world at the same time, that’s foolish (ask the Amish how that strategy is working for them…sure they’re happy with their subculture but they have nearly no Gospel impact or witness in the secular world to speak of at all). The true missional church will seek expertise in Theology first and local Sociology second. It’s through those two lenses they see their Kingdom assignment and objective …they’re traditional evangelical penchants are certainly not of primary concern in the local missional church.

There you go…I’ve saved you a few bucks by keeping you from running out after the next “how to grow a big time church” book. I’m still a young church planter and I’ve not planted a mega-church. But you know what, I don’t think I ever will. If we can continue to spawn multiple Jesus centered, Gospel proclaiming and missional churches in the greater Akron/Canton area till the day I die, that’s just fine by me. Maybe if you are looking to see your church become a mega-church you should just forget the simplicity of my argument and hire a marketing firm to direct your path. But I do know this…we’ve seen people saved, man. This strategy isn’t the best at attracting disgruntled (yet tithing) church hoppers who are looking for the next cool thing. As I’ve reported many times here, we’ve always struggled with the weight of many immature babes in the Lord being carried by just a few mature believers…and we’ve made mistakes in our care for them, believe me. At times we expected way too much...others times we expected way too little. On top of that I have just blown it a time or two and really messed up. This is a road less traveled and we are learning. But I am convinced at this point in my life, in order to have a faithful, missional and healthy local church (not simply a Christian mega attraction/ concert/ mall/ Disneyland called a “church”) you must be radically Trinitarian, you must have Biblical Ecclesiology in practice and not just in theory, complete with Godly and qualified men serving as elders leading the people and the church must have sound missiology deep down in her soul. These three things are not exactly rocket science…but it is amazing that most of evangelicalism is marked by none of these three things.

I’m now 30 and it’s time for me to take these things that just scream through my mind and see them more effectively applied in the local church I’m planting and leading. I don’t know what that means, exactly…but I think I’m onto something. Who knows…but the last two of these three points have only in the last year or two really consumed and convicted me. Poor TEC…they’ve had to suffer along with me as I’ve learned this stuff the hard way(the story of my life it seems). The truth is that we lost key families in the past 12 months. It's been at times a painful season of transition, self evaluation, humility and my own personal maturity as a man. We sure learned a lot about putting the wrong people in positions of influence, that's for sure! That's not all their fault by any stretch...I put them there for crying out loud! Perhaps Coram Deo will reap the benefits of these lessons I've had to learn the hard way? Now, now...I say poor TEC…but…I’ve got this funny feeling she shall more fully blossom now that she’s got these things nailed down more securely herself…

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4 esv

2008-07-07T12:46:00.006-05:00

Theology matters. Truth matters. Understanding what God has so graciously Revealed about Himself is by far, the utmost honor. We believe in a God who may be approached personally, by His grace and through personal trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ. This sense of nearness ought to grow as we study the Scriptures with passion. Pastors, we must always stress to our people that theology matters. Last night God used me to explain to our people that if left alone they are all Jesus hating sons of Satan, totally depraved perverts and snakes who embody the very the word "hypocrite". Every one of us. From that point we proceeded to explain the plan of Salvation...that when we describe Jesus as "Savior", "Deliverer" and "Redeemer" that we REALLY mean it. Those words are very accurate descriptions. Keep in mind...I'm preaching to unchurched people who are either unconverted (until, by grace alone, last night!!!) or newborns in the faith.

But after we taught and preached on the doctrine of Total Depravity and then Perseverance of the Saints (and the other three Reformed doctrines commonly associated less directly), we were all overwhelmed by the presence of Holiness and Power which filled that room. The eyes of two opened and were saved, right there in our midst! People were rejoicing all over the place as we sang about Salvation! I didn't work out with Loire before hand what to sing...the Lord put those songs together. And the richness of phrases like "there is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood LOOSE ALL THEIR GUILTY STAINS!" suddenly penetrated and people got it! What a time!

This is a song we are going to be learning in the next few weeks. It's a nice song, but it is my prayer that our people understand what we mean by "Holy" when speaking of Jesus. "Heaven's Mercy Seat", "Who was and is and is to come" and "King of Kings" are all DEEP concepts and once understood will certainly create and incredible experience of worship with this emotionally charged song. But the song is just a cool song unless we take time, real time...and passion...to explain the implications...then watch out! This is my new favorite song right now and I can't wait for our church to better grasp the doctrine first, then learn the beat!

2008-07-03T14:37:00.004-05:00

Ok…admit it…you’ve glamorized a dynamic and gifted preacher before and you’ll do it again. We’ve also done it with Christian music groups and artist. Of course we can meet with God anywhere and we don’t need the Gaither’s help to meet with Him, but yet so many of you (my own mother!) would be excited for the opportunity to go to one of their Homecoming Concerts. The rest of you would love to see Jeremy Camp or Third Day or whoever. For me…I’d love to go hear RC Sproul (more or less old school Reformed) or Mark Driscoll (new school Reformed) preach if I learned they were in the area for special meetings. As all of the legions of faithful Semper Reformanda readers know…my pastor friend Jeremy and I attempted to help a guy drive a moving van out to Seattle with the hopes of catching all six worship gatherings at Mars Hill. We wanted to worship, learn from them and just hang out together. But I wanted to meet Mark Driscoll and I wanted more than to just shake his hand. I was really hoping to talk with him for a few minutes and thank him for providing all the teaching and materials for free. At one point Jeremy said he thought he could possibly wiggle our way into a lunch…with one of Driscoll’s associate pastors. I just smiled and said “oh, ok…yeah…that would be cool…” but in my mind only one word came to mind, “yippee”. I didn’t want to meet an associate at Mars Hill, man, I wanted to meet with Mark Driscoll. He’s a hero of mine!

Every pastors I run around with always discuss with one another who will be the featured preachers at various events. If you’ve ever run on the wild side with the Hells Angels…errr…I mean…Southern Baptists…you’ll know that when we put on a teaching conference it’s gonna be an ALL DAY THING. Twenty hours of preaching and teaching, then sleep for three…get up, shower, eat your free breakfast somewhere and get twenty more hours of teaching and preaching…then you drive home. We Southern Baptists want to make sure people get their monies worth at our conferences. So if you’re from the old school you prove your dedication to the cause and endure (errr…I mean enjoy) it all. But if you are like me, one of these young guys with pitiful attention spans…you can only handle about fifteen hours of preaching in one day. So my point is…the group I run with will look at the promotional material and pick which preachers we want to hear, which preachers we REALLY want to hear and which ones have names that don’t ring a bell (those are the ones which get missed).

I don’t care who you are…if you desire to walk closely with Jesus...regardless if you are an old school fundamentalist or a new school missional emerging type…you have hero preachers that thrill you…and you’ll go out of your way to hear them if you have the chance.

Beware…the rest of this article contains strong and passionate language.

Now just imagine if your friend called you up and told you about a certain dynamic preacher who’s in town and convinced you to join them in hearing him. Think about finding your way to a “good seat” and sitting down. Then, without any “worship” (please hear my sarcasm) an angry man charges before the crowd and begins to yell with angst:

“YOU VICIOUS PERVERTS! YOU JACK ASSES! YOU GOD HATING LIARS! WHY ARE YOU HERE? WHO TOLD YOU TO COME HERE? YOU ALL SHOULD HIDE YOURSELF IN THE PITS OF HELL BECAUSE YOU’RE DISGUSTING TO ALMIGHTY GOD! DISGUSTING! EVERYONE OF YOU! YOU’RE DISGUSTING! GOD HATES YOU! ESPECIALLY YOU SELF RIGHTEOUS ONES, YOU’RE THE MOST FILTHY OF ALL! YOU’RE NOT PITIFUL…YOU’RE FILTHY! YOU’VE CLOTHED YOURSELVES IN USED MAXI-PADS AND YET YOU’RE PROUD OF YOURSELVES?! YOU FILTHY BUNCH OF FOOLS! WHY ARE YOU EVEN HERE? YOU’RE NOT READY TO REPENT, YOU’RE HERE BECAUSE YOU THINK YOU’RE BETTER THAN THOSE WHO ARE NOT HERE! GO TO HELL IF YOU’RE NOT WILLING TO REPENT!!! GET OUT OF HERE, YOU’RE FULL OF VILE AND POISON AND YOU’RE ALL UNTRUSTWORTY! YOU ARE ALL EVIL AND GOD KNOWS IT! HE’S COMING TO JUDGE YOU! THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE MIRACULOUSLY WILING TO REPENT AND SUBMIT YOURSELF TO THE WILL OF GOD MAY STAY…THE REST GET OUT AND GO TO STRAIGHT TO HELL WHERE YOU BELONG!”

What do you think would happen at that point? Of course, most of the pastors would be cringing, wincing and biting their nails. Some would be shivering and sucking their thumbs in the fetal position under the pews. This is not seeker sensitivity, this is not what the experts say to do! We’re supposed to be slick and cool and calm. We’re supposed to gain the trust of people by showing them how the Bible will help them have a nice productive life. We’re supposed to wear Hawaiian shirts with tan kakis, or at least have a super sweet, harmless southern accent with an attractive twinkle in our eye. We’re supposed to be happy and nice…we’re supposed to be discussion leaders, not thundering preachers of Divine Judgment. And we certainly don’t want people to think God hates them and is totally disgusted with them, for crying out loud! We’re supposed to have twenty five minutes for a PowerPoint, a poem, a small passage or two, three simple application points and a then a prayer, all of which should be building our self esteem and then we all clock out at noon. Sadly, many pastors would not “get it” I’m afraid.

Despite what the giga-church pastors now say about communicating with “seekers”…there where times in Scripture when the man of God would in passion, literally, become unglued and would tear CROWDS of both “seekers” and religious piety apart. Down would come the pride, arrogance and perversion as the inspired preacher would strip away at them. The power and conviction of the Holy Spirit would be unleashed and a deluge of Divine wrath would pour forth causing both repentance and offense at the same time. Grace, forgiveness and then peace would follow the repentant…anger and bitterness would follow the unrepentant. In fact, such unglued prophets often times breathed their last at the bottom of a pile of large jagged rocks.

Of course these thundering messages of condemnation are not the only messages God has for humanity. And I’m not suggesting week in and week out your pastor deliver such messages (however, a solid month of steady hellfire, wrath and judgment behind the pulpit followed by a week of called fasting and then a Sacred Assembly would do all our churches good I’m sure). I’m simply pointing out the fact that such preaching, Biblically speaking, was not uncommon and yet it is extremely uncommon today.

We think the reason our churches are dying (first spiritually…then numerically and lastly financially) has to do with the music or the programs. Don't get me wrong, I’m into cool music and I wish both The Epicenter and Coram Deo will someday each have a cool slide for the kids to slide into their classrooms in. If your church is dying that is not likely the problem...it may be a symptom...but music is not the problem. The problem is that the last generation to ever hear such preaching on any kind of regular basis is dying off…an entire generation has come up, raised kids and is about enter retirement (the boomers) who rarely if ever had their spiritual asses beat like this (and are the ones leading our churches btw). God has been presented to that generation (for reasons which I simply do not understand) as a benign, toothless grandfather up in the clouds who's just happy if we're happy. If that generation spoke of “God” or “Jesus” to my generation at all…that’s the picture of Him we got, collectively. God is like Santa Claus…but even somehow nicer (and far less dangerous if you can believe that!). And the more we keep hawking these false pictures of Jesus around the more rapid our churches perish…and we don’t get it. We’re mesmerized by blind guides, foolish experts and unsubmissive leadership.

We don’t preach the Bible because we don’t trust the Bible and we don’t trust God to save sinners either…we’re convinced that we need to help the cause, soften the message and show people that Jesus is a lovable, harmless little fuzz-ball that just longs to be “accepted” by us. We don’t believe we’re preaching the wrong things, no, we just believe we need to preach more of what we are preaching…we just haven’t become contemporary or catchy enough with the “topics”. So we rearrange the deck chairs, play newer songs, ditch the ties and dresses…put a projector screen up…smile…and continue lose the power and anointing…and we continue to die. The lampstands are long gone in many churches...and nobody notices. We're dull of hearing!

I’m preaching through the life of Jesus Christ at The Epicenter by taking all the four Gospels and preaching the whole story in a chronological order. Those of you who join us are going to learn about a prophet of God named John. John preached brutal messages similar to the example I gave above. He would not ever, EVER, be invited to preach at any conference and they wouldn’t sell his books at our Christian bookstores. But his message was full of power and prepared the way for the Messiah…the Savior. Let’s get serious this week as we study this passage in the Gospel according to Luke.

Those of you not part of our church family, I will attempt to have the audio up on Semper Reformanda by Tuesday. What I hope to do is tie the blog here in with the preaching on Sunday. So every week I’ll have the introduction for the message and then we can interact with that…and then we can interact with the sermon itself in the comment section once it’s up.

2008-06-26T18:46:00.003-05:00

This video compares and contrasts God centered preaching with Man centered preaching. I am not familiar with the God centered preacher at all...but man does he BRING IT. The Man centered preacher is of course, Joel Osteen. The king of Apostate preachers.

The only thing I would suggest is that there is a revival of Christ centered preaching and I hear a bit of dispair in the true preachers voice at the end. Take heart! God is raising up preachers this very day who might not look like the prophets of the 1950's, 1850's, or 1600's...but the heart of their message is the same as what was delievered to the Church 2,000 years ago by the Apostles themselves.

2008-06-24T05:50:00.000-05:00

Well…the trip to Seattle…didn’t work out. Oh how I wish I could just tell the universe why it fell through because it’s a doozy. But it wouldn’t be nice to tell this story so I won’t. But I will say that Jeremy and myself were very disappointed and frustrated. So instead of heading west we picked my nine year old brother in law Evan up and we went east! We took the little bit of money we had for the trip west and spent a couple days at Niagara Falls. It was a he-man road trip…full of ungodly sounds and smells…Playstation 2 and other shenanigans.

BTW…brother Schweyer and I almost ended up in Canadian custody. Yeah…we were caught crossing the border…apparently it’s not like the good old days…and we were caught illegally crossing into another country with a boy who is not my son nor his…a boy who happened not to have any I.D. handy either. According to Schweyer the exchange with Canadian officials was both “crazy” and “tense”. But, as they say, all’s well that ends well…and they let us go home without being tazed, maced or strip searched. Thank you Jesus.

So I’m back in rainy Akron where I belong safe and sound. And I can’t wait to begin posting on a regular basis again!

2008-06-23T11:00:00.003-05:00

I’m off to Seattle this morning. The young church planting phenom, Jeremy Schweyer and I are helping a friend of his drive a moving van across the country to his new home in Seattle. Those of you raved semper reformanda readers are well aware that a personal hero of mine planted a church in Seattle a few years back. So the plan is that we’ll drive across the country and roll into Seattle later this week and spend the weekend there. We’ll attend all the services at Mars Hill, hear the Word, worship Jesus and learn from the way they do everything from set up to children’s ministry…and both Jeremy and I can’t wait to see the body guards who stand up front. Maybe I’ll get to shake Mark Driscoll’s hand? What a thrill…I wonder what would happen if I did get to shake his hand and I got slain in the Spirit? I wonder if the body guards also serve as “catchers”.

Anyway...all I had to do is pay for my food and a ticket home (we'll fly home). So I'm basically hitching a ride across the country like some weird Driscoll groupie or something...yikes...

I’ll be blogging throughout the week so stick around…

2008-06-23T11:00:00.001-05:00

We fought pillar to post and gave all we had then discovered deep down ten times more than we dreamed, all by the grace of God…this damned, pathetic, depressed and forlorn cave we moved into a year ago this Saturday, is now a home.

I do not know what Jesus has planned…but I assure you with every fiber in me, Satan did all he had permission to do to thwart both missions during this last year. Selah.

The first four or six weeks Naomi did not live here with me because we had no bathroom. Every day during that time I drove 20 minutes to her grandparents (where she was staying) and 20 minutes back just to shower. We had internet and cable TV in one room (most of the house did not have working lights) and that was it.

It wasn’t a week or two after Naomi moved into “the cave” that it was broken into in the middle of the day. All the copper pipes from the basement were ripped from the walls and they grabbed my new TV on their way out. That was stellar. The insurance paid for an extended stay hotel room which allowed pets (I have three dogs…in a small hotel room…for a week or so…it was great fun!!!). So grampa had the pleasure of re-plumbing the house a second time and Naomi was back at her grandparents house for another week or so. Two thumbs up!

I’ve written a bit about the break in but allow me to say this. That was an undeniable warning shot from Satan himself. “Stop this now or I will kill you…” I could somehow hear him growl this with hatred as I stood in what became the kitchen waiting for the cops to show up. The whole thing was crazy. For some reason they only took my stuff (my new TV, the only thing of value and entertainment I had in the house) or stuff that effected me (the plumbing). Grampa had at least several hundred dollars worth of tools throughout the house which they could have so easily taken and did not. They break into a gold mine of tools and they don’t take a single one. Only things that belonged to or effected Naomi and I were taken. That Satanic shot made an impact to say the least and prepared us for what was to come.

Once the house was re-plumed…again…the entire project was forced into a four month standstill. When we took the leap we were already working with a bank to finance this project. At the time we moved we were given the strong impression by this bank that given the fact this property was owned by the church free and clear and given the fact that the association had voted to co-sign for the loan on behalf of the mission…the small loan amount we were applying for would be no problem for them to swing at all. It was our assumption that within a month the finances would be set and work would begin on the rest of the parsonage at that point. We really thought everything would be done by, say, Thanksgiving or certainly by Christmas. I was given this strong impression, as was Naomi and our Associational Missionary, Martin Jones. Oh…how terribly naïve we all were. At the last minute something or another fell through…and the deal was taken off the table by that bank.

And that started a series of similar situations, three or four in a row I believe (my brain is just fried right now and I can’t remember all the details). Each time a new bank was approached we were told this was a slam dunk deal and a few days before closing the deal would either drastically change beyond what we needed or they would just put the kibosh on it. Each bank would take about a month of our time, keeping our hopes up, up, up…and then “splat”. Meanwhile we’re still living in the most depressing hole in the ground you’d ever have seen in your life. Even Saddam Hussein would have searched out a better cave to hide out in after the fall of Iraq.

This almost happened a fifth time, with the bank our local association has done business with for decades…until Robert Smith (the sba treasurer), in the most Godly way possible, almost went ballistic. Let me be clear…Robert is a Godly and even tempered man who loves Jesus and loves missions. I have never seen a display of such Christ-like indignation in my life (neither has our DOM Martin Jones) than what I saw that day in some big shots office. His anger was not in any way of the flesh…that was Spirit filled anger, man. He didn’t cuss or get loud…but he got very serious and made it clear that it was in the banks interest to do what they had promised to do for weeks. There is no law requiring the SBA to do business with them for decades into the future and this bait and switch move was going to cost them big time he assured them (key word: assured).

It worked. And we got funded.

In late October or early November (I can’t remember exactly off hand).

During the summer, while we haggled with banks, I was working with our insurance company over the break in and the damage to both the church building and parsonage due to a fairly massive hail storm. It was around the end of October when we finally had a new roof put onto the parsonage…not having water pour into what is now my office was a great relief.

So…as I explained…the funding came through in (or about) November. In case you are not from around here, it starts to get cold in late September and October. The furnace in the house was totally shot and it was getting cold. We started to use electric space heaters in whichever room we were in but I knew that wasn’t going to help keep the pipes from eventually freezing. The SBA stepped in at the last minute and spotted the mission the money to buy a new furnace (97% efficient baby!) and we were able to pay them back once the money was transferred into the Coram Deo account from the loan. It was a close call because the very next week the temperatures really dove.

Once the funds were available the first project was the kitchen. To make a long story short…it was done just before Christmas. Again…we moved into the parsonage on June 30th…we went nearly six months with no stove or kitchen sink. There are certain things in life one takes for granted and really under-appreciates. Trust me when I tell you this…having a fridge, stove and kitchen sink are on the list of underappreciated items for most of you. There was no easy solution accept to either buy microwave meals (and let me tell you…they all taste the same after awhile) or to run through a drive through. We did sit at restaurants a good bit…but man…sometimes you just want to go home, get comfortable, watch the news and eat. Someone offered to let us use this burner thing used for camping…the only problem was we couldn’t do dishes in any (remotely) practical way. And as I said…most of this time we anticipated funding was right around the corner so we didn’t even have a fridge for the first three or four months (why muscle the fridge in the church building up the hill and into the parsonage when in just a few weeks we’ll have to muscle it right back out we would ask ourselves). This lifestyle didn’t exactly make it easy to maintain my weight loss (and almost impossible to continue to lose)…all things considered I’m not in terrible despair right now (believe me, it could have been a complete disaster)…but I have to now make up for the lost ground of the last year and continue the journey I started two years ago. I’m not the least bit worried about that.

Room by room grampa and Naomi’s dad Vince would tear into and discover terrible things…even many dangerous things. Thank God no family ever died in this house is all any of us can say at this point. Because of the constant surprises discovered in each and every room the work drug on and on. A responsible carpenter can not simply cover over these types of things once they are discovered. These things must be fixed. Anyone who has ever done this type of work can testify as well…undoing and correcting the mistakes of others takes far more effort than just doing it right to start with.

So the cave became a construction project with tools, saw dust, buckets of drywall compound, paint cans, nails, stacks of drywall and two by fours all over the place. Most of the winter significant portions for the walls and ceiling were exposed without insulation while being worked on. Widows were forced open due to the excessive dust created by ripping plaster off the walls…in the dead of winter. I was on the phone, studying and writing all winter long bundled up in a hooded sweat shirt, sweat pants and two pairs of socks under my shoes in a corner of what is now our den. Hindsight is 20/20 of course…I really wish I had spent far more time last summer and most of the winter doing more in the parsonage after they left for the day. No one knew how many surprises were in store in every room…I could have been tearing old wall paper off the walls upstairs long before I did. At the time I would have thought that doing so would be to undercut Grampa and Vince…I wasn’t trying to take food out of their mouths in other words.

It was also during all of this that Naomi and I received crushing blows from two different families who were very dear to us. Both issues were separated by several months which in many ways made it worse I guess…you begin to deal with one and then get hit with another. I’ll never get into the all details of either situation but obviously in both cases the issues were multi-layered and in both situations I truly own plenty of the blame. What rocked us so hard was the complete lack of grace or mercy initially shown to us by people who frequently told us how much they loved us. The first situation was initially handled in a way that was, frankly, just plain nasty and it ended up costing Southside several families. The fact that this family back-tracked once our DOM Martin Jones was brought in by one of our elders to help us sort through it all didn’t matter to the families that left. The second situation could have been handled better in my opinion…but there was no attempt by them to rip families from the church or anything crazy like that. In fact, God is bringing healing to that situation as we speak. And as amazing as it may be to me…the first situation has a chance to begin to heal as well. Let me be clear as I can be…I made real mistakes in both situations. I’m not the monster both families initially painted me as of course…but I certainly handed them rocks and then dared them to throw them at me. I made mistakes I will not make again. I’m still learning and growing in my walk with Christ and as a leader of His people. I’m still a young pastor and have learned the hard way to think more before I speak…because words are powerful and can be taken out of context with ease. Wither I like it or not, wither it is fair or not…there is a different set of rules for pastors apparently and I’m done resisting them. What stunned me was not the confrontation of “hey man…you hurt me when you said this…” Those confrontations are normal and healthy and lead to repentance and growth. What shook me so was how fast and unexpected the gloves came off in both situations, how fast my words were taken out of context (poorly chosen yet well intended words) and how easily I was made out to be a monster by people who not long before constantly assured me of their appreciation and admiration.

All of that happening at the same time we were fighting the devil in this parsonage…truly…it about did me in. I really don’t even know what to say other than, “but God…” His grace took hold of me is the only way I can describe it. Naomi…she’s just hard core. I sometimes wonder if anything really phases her. Sure…she complained her fair share…but her spirit was never once defeated. Mine sure was…I was tempted to take a flying leap off the top of the church building more than once. I’m telling you…I have no clue how Southside Christian Fellowship survived and then became The Epicenter Church. No clue at all. None. Where it not for grace alone (because we had nothing else to which we could cling) everything would have fallen apart. I get frustrated that we’re not healthier than we are…but all things considered it is amazing we are this strong. People are still being saved and discipled, TEC supports missions in general and a family planting a church in a closed nation and we are able to help those in need in our community far more than a church of our size would ever be expected to do. Jesus is at work at TEC…what a blessing. More on that later.

Through all these trials, toils and snares we’ve come out ok on the other side. The Epicenter Church is not where any of us are satisfied with…yet she’s very much alive and the vibe is so great. The summer has brought lean Sunday attendance…but I guess I should just join the club on that one. Phase 1 of Coram Deo is now, unbelievably, complete (is any house ever “done”?). We can now engage the community and offer hospitality to them! We can now have people from the community in our home for dinner! We can have Bible studies in our home! We have mission teams coming all summer long to work on Phase 2: the church building. If you are interested in volunteering in the church building, or leading a team from your church, let me know! With the price of gas these days Coram Deo might be a good fit for your mission trip budget!

How do I end this? Hmm. All I know is that a year ago I thought I understood what grace and mercy were. I really did. I can now say that I have a better understanding of both so I am truly grateful for the last year. I might finally be crushed enough to be somewhat useful in Kingdom work. My prayer is that I am never so hard again that God must crush me. The opportunity to call men to repent and lead their homes under the authority of Christ in not just one mission…but two…still floors me. My mouth waters when I think about preaching at Coram Deo in the morning and then preaching at The Epicenter Church at night. I can hardly wait to see elders raised in both congregations. The vision, by the grace of God, is becoming more clear and I am thrilled to be a kite in Christ’s hurricane in northeast Ohio.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.” James 1:2-6 niv

2008-05-19T13:32:00.001-05:00

2008-05-13T07:36:00.000-05:00

2008-05-08T15:16:00.000-05:00

This Sunday at The Epicenter...

2008-04-28T08:39:00.005-05:00

Hey everyone…I apologize for my sudden absence. We are in the final stage of the parsonage overhaul which is good, but, it means that all my free time is being spent scraping wall paper, priming, painting and painting second coats in every room and pulling nails and staples out the floors so we can lay the new floors down. Blogging has been my hobby and something I've done for enjoyment in my free time and for the next 4-6 weeks I don’t think I’ll have much of that. By the end of May my time for writing should return (along with the energy it takes to keep things fresh).

Right now we are working out the kinks in our new digital recording situation and I believe we’ll be able to start posting the messages God uses me to proclaim on our site. At that point it’ll be easy to link them here. Once that is complete and I’m comfortable with the quality of the recording we’ll be linking to those message from the blog here and will post the outline from which I preached here as well. I have to check out how last nights recording went and we might be posting that message here later tonight or tomorrow if the quality was half way decent.

I’m really praying about what everything is going to look like here on Semper Reformanda in the next year.

I’m so excited about how God has transition Southside Christian Fellowship into The Epicenter Church. A family or two left us last year…but God brought in new families...this has been our story since the start (5 steps forward, 4.5 back)…it’s weird. The Epicenter Church is apparently being used of God to serve as the nursery wing of the Kingdom because each of the four or five new families are newborns in the faith…with all the zeal and rawness that come with spiritual newborns to be sure! And of course, we have a very high proportion of children in what we now call our “Little Tremors” children’s ministry. So I’m pleased with the fruit of all this labor, even though sometimes I complain to my wife because I’m pretty sure our “ministry” can’t afford a jet airplane right now, I am satisfied as I see 20 something after 20 something come and receive Salvation since our move. And no matter how much the big guy yells on Sundays…they keep coming back.

Then we’ve got Coram Deo becoming more and more of a reality. Like I said, the parsonage will be done in the next month or so and the church building won’t take long after that. My plan is to begin to have neighborhood cook outs here at the parsonage as an initial way to engage the immediate neighborhood of the church. At that point I plan on casually inviting those who come to these cook outs to a Bible study here in our home…and then go from there. I’m sure there are sexier ways of doing things, I guess we could launch rockets and fireworks and have men break ball bats, rip up phone books or swallow swords or something to get a crowd…but in my opinion…church planting is about evangelism…and evangelism starts with relationships. The plan is to begin some kind of Bible studies in the parsonage in July, be working on the church building in July and August…and begin to worship in the church building in September or October and go from there. The pressure to “go, go, go” with Coram Deo won’t be like it was with Southside because Coram Deo has a fantastic building…debt free. So even she doesn’t take off explosively we won’t have the added pressure of ridiculous rent payments or anything like that…and that’s a big deal.

So we’ll have Coram Deo Community in Akron worshiping Jesus at 10:30am and then The Epicenter Church in Wadsworth worshiping Jesus at 6pm. Hmm. Sounds like a plan. These will be two distinct churches, sister churches to be sure…but not one church with two “campuses” or whatever. I’m pretty sure I have theological issues with the multiple campus model that I won’t get into. My hero, Mark Driscoll, is into that at Mars Hill and I must say, that’s the only significant thing that I part ways with him over (that I’m aware of).

While we are not starting a second campus of the same church, I do pray that The Epicenter and Coram Deo will have a tight relationship together. That’s a safe bet so long as I am leading both congregations…I pray that after I’m gone these two churches will always stay tight and will always partner together in planting new churches.

What I’m not sure about is how I can use this blog to communicate to both congregations of God’s people. I’m not sure if I’ll end up working both congregations through the same series or not. That doesn’t seem like a bad option but I’m pretty sure that can’t happen at first at least. God has laid on my heart the desire to instead of preaching through one book of the Bible, to preach through the life of Christ through a chronological harmony of all four gospels. That will start in two weeks (I’ve been prepping our people with an overview of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity the last several weeks, ending this introductory mini-series this Sunday night with a message on the two natures of Christ and their implications). So obviously this is a massive study which could take a long time for TEC to work through…and Coram Deo will begin to worship on Sunday mornings in September or October of this year…I don’t think the study of the life of Christ will be complete by that point…so…it looks like I’ll be preaching through two different topics with two different congregations for awhile at least. That might not be altogether bad for Coram Deo, this will give me a good chance to lay a solid foundation for the initial group to grow from. At some point I would like the blog here, Semper Reformanda, to become a conduit for both congregations to plug into to gain further insight into where God is leading us. There are all sorts of issues that could be mentioned in a sermon, but for the sake of time, we just can’t. However, I could give that extra information here on the blog for further enrichment.

For example, last night I preached on The Holy Spirit. Buddy…there are TONS of issues in which The Holy Spirit is involved (to say the least)…one could preach four or five parts EASILY which would be focused on the person and work of the Holy Spirit. I simply could not get into everything last night, but felt led to keep the focus upon the way in which The Holy Spirit interacts with sinners in the process of Salvation. Going from how He convicts the world of sin, hardening some and softening others, how He regenerates, gives faith, unconditionally and eternally secures (seals) the believer, fills and dwells forever in the believer, prays for the believer, endows gifts to the believer and then empowers the believer for service…it was jam-packed. But…I only briefly mentioned His work in Creation and briefly mentioned His inspiring of the Scripture or His work to illuminate the heart, ears and eyes of the believer as he reads that Spirit inspired Scripture. This blog could be a way for me to communicate these things to our people for their further study and adoration of the Lord.

So that might be the direction of the Semper Reformanda…it might be far more driven by the context of what God is doing in our congregations. I just don’t know how that will look until both congregations are in sync together and I don’t think I’ll be posting much till the end of May other than a link to the latest message God had me preach with the outline…of course I’ll always respond to any comments in the comment section, that’s always fun.

2008-04-19T06:56:00.002-05:00

2008-03-13T14:09:00.002-05:00

Sexy God!...another CLASSIC!

2008-03-12T19:38:00.001-05:00

This is a CLASSIC!

2008-03-11T12:01:00.005-05:00

The topic this week at The Epicenter Church...

2008-03-07T13:32:00.001-05:00

For the first time in my life I have writers block. For the last couple weeks all I can do is stare at a blank Word document before closing it and moving on. This is obvious because of my lack of life changing and thrilling articles here on the blog. I think there are two issues contributing to this block. One is that I’m not mad. I write better and preach better when I’m mad. So I need to listen to more "Christian" radio and watch more TBN and MSNBC this weekend. That should take care of my lack of passion.

Second, I think I’m really stressed out. Anyone who flirts with burn out can testify that one never fully appreciates that dynamic until one is way past critical mass. Monday’s are supposed to be my day off and the last two have been booked with meetings (one was optional…and I chose to work…the other was less optional…but the truth is that I would have went either way). On top of that, the men working on the parsonage don’t work a Tuesday-Sunday schedule like I do…they are here bright and early on Mondays like normal people. So of course I’m worried that these guys will think I’m a loafer if I’m not working on Monday’s…so I help them out or study on Monday’s anyway. If they weren’t here I’d be playing Madden on my GameCube, doing less actual housework than I would let Naomi assume I was doing on my day off and having dinner ready for her when she got home (that’s what I used to do on my Monday’s before this project). Now I’m preaching every week, some weeks twice…some weeks six times! I’m plowing through some reading, let me tell you! And my Mondays are no different than any other day.

I am drained and the only thing I can write about is that I don’t know what to write about! I need to go away for several days. The funny farm might be a nice option at this point. I’m not the easiest person to be living with right now so I’m not sure going away with Naomi would be enjoyable for her. I think I need to get a room down at Seneca Lake Baptist Assembly, pastors have access to rooms for solitude during the off season. But what would happen to the work if I’m not here? I’m only kidding.

Just giving you a glimpse into my world right now…it’s busy and I’m not helping matters much. Just pray for me, a sinner. Oh…a pastor friend of mine sent me a tool that might be helpful in teaching people about themselves, their gifts and possibly discover more about their calling in life. I took it…and here are my results…

2008-02-28T17:07:00.003-05:00

here is a message Driscoll gave last Sunday which rehashes some of the basic info from the mp3 of the last post...with more flavor.

this guy was part of starting the "Emerging Church" movement and was initially very close with the liberal strand which has become known as "The Emergent Village"...so his perspectives are valuable I believe, especially if you are still trying to zero in on how you feel about the "Emerging Church" as an evangelical movement.

2008-02-27T11:23:00.002-05:00

If you are interested in some of the background of "The Emerging Church" I'd encourage you to listen to Mark Driscoll's perspective, given at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, found here.

Let's talk about it...

2008-02-19T16:39:00.002-05:00

I really need some help. Ok...stop snickering...enough! You know what I mean! I need your input. The Epicenter Church website is almost complete...most of the content is up. I'm still working out some bugs with links under the FAQ page and I need to begin to upload a couple sermons under "listen".

I dropped out of high school and got my GED, folks…ok? I'm not that great with grammar or speeling, as shocking as that might seem to so many of you who read the blog here. What I need all of you to do is to check the site out and comb through it for me. Please look for speeling mistakes and grammar mistakes. Pretend it's like an egg hunt or something, ok? We've invested a few bucks into this and I truly want it to be flawless.

So...the link is www.theepicenterchurch.com and when you find mistakes please email them to me at asthedeer1@juno.com

Oh, one more thing. When you see the site you will notice different links on the left hand side. They will all stay the same except the Rick Warren link will be changed to a link to Joel Osteen...ok...that's another lie. Man I need to stop that. But...for real...it will link to our church's Myspace…errr…uhhh…space…instead of Rick Warren’s.

Finally...when you get to the FAQ page and read the answer to the question about why our church is growing keep in mind...I didn't write that portion, ok? I of course would have used must loftier language.

2008-02-17T12:51:00.002-05:00

I find it amazing how Eastern Orthodoxy and Reformed Christianity can agree so much and disagree so much about the same basic topic, Authority.

2008-02-15T10:49:00.004-05:00

Some more banners to help inspire the Emergent Villagers who frequent my domain...

2008-02-13T09:08:00.004-05:00

I found another classic by Mark Driscoll on YouTube and we all need to soak it in. I have become totally convinced that this short clip captures one of the essential keys to true, deep and lasting spiritual growth. This is also very true for pastors...if you are a pastor...to whom do you submit? Do you have a mentor? Who has authority over you? And by authority, I don't mean compulsive authority...because that simply deals with external "church related" issues. I mean...to whom do you willingly submit yourself to? Who is your Paul, pastor?

Make no mistake...the only reason I have not shipwrecked as a Christian and certainly as a pastor is because I decided upfront that I would find men of wisdom and do whatever they tell me to do. I'm impulsive and run off at the mouth...I knew that if I was to grow into a spiritual father of a group of God's people I must certainly be a man under spiritual authority myself. Pastors are not exempted from this principle.

2008-02-12T18:17:00.000-05:00

Ed Young disputes
Clinton's NBCC remarks
By Erin Roach

HOUSTON (Baptist Press)--Ed Young, pastor of Second Baptist Church in Houston, said former President Bill Clinton's remarks about him at the New Baptist Covenant Celebration in Atlanta earlier this month came "out of the fantasy file" and were "completely inaccurate."

Clinton, during the closing session of the celebration Feb. 1, spent several minutes recounting a visit Young made to the White House in 1993 as president of the Southern Baptist Convention when Young supposedly asked Clinton, "Do you believe the Bible is literally true?"

Young, in a letter to Clinton released to Baptist Press, said he was stunned to read the transcript of Clinton's remarks and wanted to set the record straight.

"Your comments concerning our visit together were not just taken out of context; the conversation you described never took place," Young wrote to Clinton Feb. 8.

Clinton, while talking about the Conservative Resurgence within the SBC, said in his speech, "Rev. Young reached out to me and he asked if Al Gore and I would have breakfast with him and if I would go jogging with him up and down the Mall of Washington first. As I remember, he was a little younger and a little fitter than I was, but I managed to keep up."

During breakfast on the Truman Balcony of the White House, Young, Clinton recounted, "looked at me and he said, 'I want to ask you a question, a simple question, and I just want a yes or no answer. I don't want one of those slick political answers. Just answer me yes or no. Do you believe the Bible is literally true? Yes or No?'

"I said, 'Rev. Young, I think it is completely true, but I do not believe you or I or any other living person is wise enough to understand it completely,'" Clinton said at the New Baptist Covenant. "He said, 'That's a political answer.' I said, 'No it's not. You asked a political question.' I said, 'It is not.'"

Young, in his letter, said the most important discrepancy he wanted to correct is that he did not ask whether Clinton believed the Bible is literally true.

"I do not believe the Bible is literally, in the normal definition of the word, true," Young wrote. "Jesus said, 'I am the door.' No one takes that 'literally.'

"As you know, Sir, in the Bible there are metaphors, parables, hyperbole, poetry, apocalyptic language, etc., and the Bible cannot be understood by anyone who would be foolish enough to think that you can take the Word of God literally," Young added in his letter to Clinton. "Also, at no time during our visit did I use the pejorative phrase, 'slick political answer.'"

Young said he did not solicit the meeting with Clinton. Instead, he said, an invitation was issued by a member of Clinton's staff.

"For the record, we did not have a meal together," Young wrote. "The next morning after our meeting on the Truman Balcony, we did jog the Washington Mall. Also, for the record, I had a tough time keeping up with you. We jogged some 40 minutes, and you were in terrific shape. And, incidentally, I am older than you, but I appreciate the fact
that you thought I was younger."

Clinton, during his speech in Atlanta, said, "We had a remarkable breakfast on the Truman Balcony at the White House, sitting outside and talking, and Al Gore was there, and Al engaged him in an issue debate. He said, 'You know I love my Baptist roots, but I have three daughters and a son, and I don't think it's right that only my son can become a
minister.' So they argued about that."

Young said Clinton's account of Gore's question was right on target, but he said there was "absolutely no argument."

"There was nothing to argue about. I simply stated that every Baptist church is autonomous and can ordain anyone it desires to ordain," Young wrote.

Young surmised that Clinton could have had a similar conversation with another clergyman visiting the White House, but he insisted the dialogue Clinton described did not happen with him.

"Let me assure you that the verbiage you attributed to me was never spoken," Young wrote before ending the letter with an invitation to meet with Clinton if the former president accompanies his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton, to an upcoming presidential debate in Houston.

In comments to Baptist Press Feb. 11, Young said he became aware of Clinton's inaccurate remarks when a staff member found a report online and alerted him to the mention of the pastor's name. The staff member read the account, and Young said he laughed at the portrayal and had no intention of making Clinton's error public until some trusted friends
urged him to do so.

Then he called two of the three other ministers who had been with him at the White House meeting and read Clinton's remarks to them.

"They both laughed, and they both said, 'Never happened. Never even close.' There's not a scintilla of it that's truthful," Young said.

Although the ministers and the president and vice president discussed controversial matters during their 1993 meeting, Young said he remembers clearly "that all parties were exceedingly civil and respectful." Unlike Clinton's numerous meetings with people of faith during his White House years, Young said a White House visit is rare
enough for him that he would have remembered well any time he was granted the privilege.

"We walked around the Oval Office. He said, 'Where do you want to meet?' I said, 'Let's sit on the Truman Balcony.' I remember a lot of details, but the whole context of how he verbalized it [in the speech], it's like I wanted to have breakfast with he and Al Gore, I wanted to meet with him," Young told BP. "Who can do that with the president of the United States? I would never do that. No one can do that.

"I guess he brought this out of the fantasy file to show what a tough line us fundamentalists are taking and how hard it is to do business with us," Young said. "I assume that was his point. That is totally ridiculous, silly and completely inaccurate."

Also in his speech to moderate Baptists at the New Baptist Covenant, Clinton said the conservatives took over the SBC in the 1980s and believed they needed to be more political on issues like abortion. Then he delivered a line that drew applause.

"Those of us who disagreed were horrified when President [Jimmy] Carter was once asked to abandon his secular humanism," Clinton said. "We thought he was a pretty good example of a devout Baptist and a faithful follower of Christ."

At the annual meeting of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in 2001, Carter had mentioned his version of a White House meeting with Adrian Rogers, who was first elected president of the SBC in 1979.

Carter said that upon leaving the Oval Office during a visit that year, Rogers turned to him and said, "We are praying, Mr. President, that you will abandon secular humanism as your religion."

Rogers and Carter met in Atlanta after the CBF episode, and Rogers disputed Carter's remarks. "I can tell you emphatically I didn't say it," Rogers told Carter, according to an interview he gave to the Florida Baptist Witness just before his death in 2005. "Had I said it, it would have been so etched in my consciousness."

Carter, who co-chaired the New Baptist Covenant and invited Clinton to speak, again delivered his version of the story in his book "Our Endangered Values" in 2005 as a primary illustration of the dangers of religious fundamentalism. When questioned about it, the former president agreed to correct future editions of his book, and he
apologized to Rogers' family a month after the pastor's death.

Young told Baptist Press that the two accounts of former presidents misleading the public about their encounters with SBC presidents are examples of individuals trying to paint those they don't agree with "with different colors than they really represent."
--30--
Erin Roach is a staff writer for Baptist Press.

Following is the complete text of the letter Ed Young, pastor of Second Baptist Church in Houston, sent to former President Bill Clinton:

February 8, 2008

President William Jefferson Clinton
William J. Clinton Foundation
55 West 125th Street
New York, NY 10027

Dear Mr. President:

After receiving a copy of the address you delivered at the Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant in Atlanta, I have asked for divine wisdom as to how I should respond. Initially, I was stunned. Your comments concerning our visit together were not just taken out of context; the conversation you described never took place. Certainly we did not agree on many issues. You were gracious, patient, and transparent. I was impressed with you as a person and with your willingness to allow others to share with you. I certainly was not confrontational, and on several occasions we simply politely agreed to disagree.

Let me remind you of the context of our visit. I did not solicit the meeting. I had initiated a prayer ministry throughout our denomination for the specific purpose of praying for you and the Vice President, and for the Lord to give you divine wisdom as you led our nation. I believed that if some 16-million of your brothers and sisters in Christ prayed for you daily, God would work in and through you as you served the people.

As I recall, a member of your staff, who served the White House in various religious matters, issued an invitation for me to come to Washington. For the record, we did not have a meal together. The next morning after our meeting on the Truman Balcony, we did jog the Washington Mall. Also, for the record, I had a tough time keeping up with you. We jogged some 40 minutes, and you were in terrific shape. And, incidentally, I am older than you, but I appreciate the fact that you thought I was younger.

Vice President Gore did ask about women in the ministry. Your account of his question was right on target. But there was absolutely no argument. There was nothing to argue about. I simply stated that every Baptist church is autonomous and can ordain anyone it desires to ordain. I also mentioned that many Baptist churches had already ordained women, some as pastors, some staff, and others as chaplains. The Vice President indicated that he would like to discuss this further at some future time, and I responded that I would be happy to do so. There was no debate and certainly no argument.

The most important thing I wish to correct is that I have never asked you nor anyone else the question, "Do you believe the Bible is literally true?" I do not believe the Bible is literally, in the normal definition of the word, true. Jesus said, "I am the door." No one takes that "literally." As you know, Sir, in the Bible there are metaphors, parables, hyperbole, poetry, apocalyptic language, etc., and the Bible cannot be understood by anyone who would be foolish enough to think that you can take the Word of God literally. Also, at no time during our visit did I use the pejorative phrase, "slick political answer."

Perhaps on some other occasion you got into a quid pro quo with another clergyman or group visiting the White House. But let me assure you that the verbiage you attributed to me was never spoken. Again, we talked about issues, and I remember clearly that all parties were exceedingly civil and respectful.

Incidentally, this is not a case of, "this is what you remember and this is what I remember." If you doubt what I am saying, I encourage you to call other individuals who were present, as I have done. When I read to them the section of your speech pertaining to our meeting, they said that conversation never happened.

Do not misunderstand my response. I simply want to set the record straight. You were cordial, and although our visit did cover some sensitive issues, I remember our time together with great warmth and appreciation.

Incidentally, I am on the Board of Directors of the Greater Houston Partnership. We are hosting and sponsoring a Presidential Debate prior to the Texas Primary. If you happen to be with Senator Clinton, I would love to have an opportunity to sit down and visit with you personally.

Be confident of my prayers for the entire Clinton family. May the good Lord richly bless you and yours.

His and yours,

H. Edwin Young

2008-02-11T01:49:00.000-05:00

On an iniquitously cold Sunday night The Epicenter Church met for the first time. Of course, this was not the first gathering of our church family…but it was the first in our new building and the first while known as The Epicenter. The cold kept many of our friends at home, especially those who had a bit of a drive to make. My email inbox had several messages waiting for me when I got in from several folks…I bet a third or so couldn’t make it cause the conditions where potentially hazardous. And man…it was. I think around 6pm it was around 5 degrees outside with a wind-chill in the negative teens I’m sure. Plus, it wasn't just way below freezing, the wind was demented and wicked tonight. It was brutal out there…I knew attendance would be down.

But a handful gathered together for worship and it was great. We had Mark and Jody Jones join us, which was a blessing! Mark is the pastor (and founder) of True Hope Community Fellowship in Navarre. I was also blessed to have my friends Zac (a featured commenter, analyst and Eastern Orthodox correspondent here, lol), his sweet and lovely wife Arlie and their friend (and now ‘my’ friend, truly) Mark who I think I’ll nickname “Saint Mark” for strange reasons which I don’t know. Every now and then I just nickname people for no apparent reason.

Attendance was down…but the Spirit was not. It was great to worship our Lord together again and to finally feel like we have a home to do it in. I am so grateful for the generosity of Ridgewood Baptist Church in allowing us such full access to their church building for worship. On top of that, their trusty and faithful deacon, brother Rob Snyder, has agreed to help us with the sound and tech stuff. Rob is becoming a good friend…I always admire guys like him. Men who just do what God has called them to do, mostly behind the scenes…but guys who are indispensable in the church.

I was a bit fired up tonight. I hadn’t really preached much in a couple months. Our church family was meeting in homes while we figured out where we would end up. I felt (perhaps) like the ancient Hebrew Prophet Jeremiah when he said that “But if I say, “I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.” Yeah…I had the fire in me like a pressure cooker and once I started to let it out…yikes, hang on! Let’s just say that wasn’t the most “seeker sensitive” message I’ve ever preached in my life. A bunch of us hit the local Applebee’s after we tore everything down and a couple of the guys were really busting my chops. They couldn’t remember when, exactly, the last time I told people that they needed to “…either serve the Lord or get out of this church!” LOL!

Yeah…I said that. And I heard about it at “the bees”. One of the guys said, “man…I was gonna get up and leave when you said that but I was afraid you’d get mad and yell at me to sit back down!” Everyone cracked up, as is the case whenever we hit Applebees for fellowship! These punks I have to pastor have no respect, it's outrageous! Of course that rather harsh and strange statement I made in the message fit somewhat fairly into the context of the passage from which I was preaching. I preached from 1 Kings 18…the showdown of Elijah and the 450 false prophets of Baal. Elijah told the people “if the Lord is God then serve Him…if Baal is God then serve him…” I said it would be like if a Prophet walked in and told us, "you people either serve the Lord or get out of this church!”

As usual, the musical worship was loud, raw and passionate…just like we love it! We don’t come gather for a pep talk and nifty pop music…it’s about worship and I’m so thrilled to see how God is cultivating a longing for repentance and worship in our church family. That small group cried out for a taste of heaven and those who sought…found. It was refreshing.

I have felt that we needed to add an element to our worship gathering which I think we’ll introduce every Sunday night. We ended with extended silence. We live in a culture of constant noise and distraction…how often do we ever just sit in near silence? Well…we tried it tonight. With just a few instructions we all sat there and quieted our minds a bit and focused on God in prayer and mediation. It was pretty powerful and it was only for a few minutes. It’s amazing how long a few minutes can seem when there is no noise.

I should also not fail to mention that our childrens church...called "Little Tremors" had a great time in worship as well. The kids are with the adults for the first two songs of worship and are dismissed for their lesson. I think we had as many kids as adults tonight...which was great given the weather! We always have a high percentage of kids in Sunday worship...it's a good sign and I'm thrilled to see it!

I’m pumped. This is going to work out great for our young and fledgling community of faith. Obviously it would have been really cool for most if not all of us to be together this first Sunday in our new location. Numbers do matter (why else would the gospel writers and Apostles have recorded attendance at various events?)…they indicate the impact and influence a congregation is having in its community. That will come and I’m sure we’ll get back to normal next week…and continue to grow. I’m excited about our first Aftershocks this week. Aftershocks are prayer and discussion groups which get together to…uh…pray and discuss the passage which was preached the previous Sunday. So that is going to be very cool.

Keep us in prayer…we need the prayers and you need more practice!

2008-02-09T01:19:00.001-05:00

With all the "Super Duper Tuesday" coverage this past Tuesday very few people really "got" how incredible the Union University story was (and is). Watch this short video to help yourself understand the magnitude and the scope of what really happened...and help yourself more fully appreciate the God of Providence, Sovereignty, Mystery and Might...

2008-02-08T14:52:00.001-05:00

The Southern Baptist Convention is not a true “denomination”. The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word denomination as “A large group of religious congregations united under a common faith and name and organized under a single administrative and legal hierarchy.”

That is not how the SBC works. Now, sure, under the most general and relaxed understanding of what a denomination is, the SBC might be thought of as one. But in no way are we a true denomination in the strictest or most technical sense. In fact…as far as I know…there has never been a significant Baptist “denomination” ever in history. It could well be argued that Baptists were the original non-denominationalists.

That’s why I’ve often said (gaining the strangest of looks I assure you) that if your “non-denominational” church does not baptize infants, if it doesn’t teach that every believer should seek (and receive) the gift of tongues, if it believes the Bible is the final and only infallible authority in the Christian life and if it teaches that salvation is by grace through faith in Christ…it’s a Baptist church. If that describes your church…your church falls squarely within the Baptist tradition. Ha ha…naana, naana, naana!

Now obviously where such a church fits within the Baptist spectrum may vary greatly. Defining what an average Baptist church believes is as difficult as defining what an average non-denominational church believes. When the only creed a tradition has is “we don’t have creeds” or “our only creed is Christ” you can imagine how diverse that tradition would be. We’ve got 5-point Reformed Baptist churches and we have Free Will Baptist churches. We have King James Only churches and snake handling churches…all who call themselves “Baptist”. Some Baptist churches are shouting and dancing country gospel churches, some are shouting and dancing black gospel churches and some are very reserved, stern, conservative, piano and organ only Baptist churches. Then you can toss churches like The Epicenter into the mix and you can see…the mold isn’t broken…there was no mold to start with. In the essentials “unity”…and that’s about it.

There are only a few things which truly unite all Baptists and at the top of that list is a fierce and radical independence. Baptist congregations are autonomous (self governing) churches and have historically preferred even torture over conformity. Study how the Magisterial Reformers/Protestants AND the Roman Catholics viciously persecuted, tormented and even tortured to death our forefathers AND foremothers known as the Anabaptists and you’ll quickly understand how this independent streak was forged in our identity.

You must understand this fundamental mark of all Baptists…local church autonomy. I’ve talked with “non-denominational” pastors before who are in every way “Baptist” yet say things like “I don’t want some headquarters telling my church what to do…” This idea of a headquarters telling local churches what to do is unheard of in the Southern Baptist Convention. Take a look at the definition again…a denomination is “a large group of religious congregations united under a common faith and name and organized under a single administrative and legal hierarchy.” In no way does this describe the SBC.

First of all…we are not “united under a common faith…” This gets tricky because obviously there are certain fundamentals that no true Christian congregation would deny. I won’t get into them here. All true Baptists like all true Christian congregations confess the doctrines of the Holy Trinity, Sola Gratia and Sola Fida. Additionally, all true Baptists confess Sola Scriptura, believer’s baptism and (therefore) regenerate church membership. So these parts of the faith are held by all Baptists, but as I will get into next time, there is a TREMENDOUS diversity of theological distinctives in tertiary issues among Southern Baptists. We’ve got all the verities of “Calvinists”, premillennialists and amillennialists. We’ve got cessationists and continualists, many times in the same congregation! Now you can understand why Baptists have well earned the nick-name “Battling Baptists”! The theme verse of Baptists is surely Proverbs 27:17! And because sparks a’flying are not uncommon in Baptist circles Baptists have historically been very Biblically sharp and have produced (in my ever humble opinion) the greatest apologists and some of the most brilliant teachers, preachers and theologians since the very ancient Church fathers. Programs such as Sunday School and Awana are rooted in the Baptist passion to always go “back to the Bible” and to train children at early ages how to boldly use the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. (By the way…I’m terribly concerned about the condition of Christian education in our Baptist churches these days…we’ve become infatuated with seeker sensitivity, PowerPoint and video clip driven preaching and are not teaching an entire generation how to study the Bible for themselves…this is leading to a desperate spiritual anemia in Baptist and non-denominational congregations…)

Furthermore, we certainly do not have a single administrative or legal hierarchy. Hierarchy? Hierarchy? What is this hierarchy you speak of? We don’t know of any hierarchy! Not at all…there are no headquarters which can “administrate” ANYTHING in a local SBC congregation. SBC churches, as far as the Convention itself is concerned, are under no obligation whatsoever to send a dime in financial support in order to be an SBC church. Every congregation governs itself from start to finish. So the non-denominational pastors or church leaders reading this…nothing regarding the governing of your congregation or your congregations tertiary theological distinctions would need to change to associate. You don’t need to insert the word “Baptist” onto your name or anything. As I said in the last article…the SBC is from start to finish about MISSIONS…that’s it. We are missional association of autonomous churches. We have a guiding document which is no way a “creed” called the Baptist Faith and Message (which you will find running down the right hand side of this blog, called here, “my confession”).

I like that. The Southern Baptist Convention is ruled “from the bottom, up” so to speak. The local congregations together instruct the Convention leadership how the mission monies should be spent. The local congregations instruct the Convention leadership what “we” believe…they don’t dictate those things to us. Every SBC church is under the authority of the Scriptures and the under-shepherding of a “Bishop” or “senior pastor”…not Convention leaders. No one can come into an SBC church and say “boo” unless the local elders (pastors and deacons) of that congregation give the ok first. And believe me when I tell you…if a Convention leader strode into a SBC congregation and even attempted to throw false weight around he’d be shouted down and then shown the door (generally by the deacons) in an unceremonious way…I assure you.
It’s all about a highly effective missional effort without the sacrifice of one ounce of local autonomy. That’s why I’m planting Southern Baptist churches. As “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair has often declared (about himself of course), it’s “…the best thing going today…woooooooooo!”

Next time…in the final installment of my SBC cheerleading series…I’d like to talk about the diversity within the SBC. Our tent is a big one.

2008-02-06T23:58:00.001-05:00

I have a new hobby. It's a great stress reliever actually...and oh does it make me feel clever. I have suddenly realized that I can send parts of the Emergent church blogosphere into a tizzy at will! Oh the rush of POWER...yes...my precious...it's intoxicating! Besides...I have nothing better to do, right?

In all seriousness...one of my hero's is Rush Limbaugh. He has always taught that one of the greatest ways to demonstrate absurdity...is to be absurd. And that is why I've been creating these motivational banners for the Emergent church. Satire is so very helpful...and fun! I honestly do hope and pray these guys will snap out of their infatuation with these heterodox doctrines. It may be trendy and you might feel like you are really part of a great discovery…as if Christianity has missed it for twenty centuries and now is finally getting it since you all have arrived. But this “other gospel” is damnable and there will be blood on the hands of those who preach it.

2008-02-06T13:28:00.001-05:00

There is only one reason why there is a Southern Baptist Convention. Gospel centered missions. That’s it. And when I became aware of how real a statement like that is (it’s not just a slogan or cliché…) I absolutely fell in LOVE with the idea, the dream and the vision of the Southern Baptist Convention.

We as Southern Baptists support (as of 11-07) 5,338 international missionaries. If I understand the data correctly, of that number, 4,211 of those missionaries are “vocational”…and are fully funded. The rest are partially (or perhaps mostly) funded by cooperating Southern Baptist churches. Think about that…at least 4,000 gospel preaching missionaries around the globe are not forced to bounce from church, to church, to church, to church begging for scraps…errrrrrrrrrrrrrr…”raising support” because Southern Baptists believe we can accomplish more together than if all these autonomous churches simply did their own thing. These international missionaries, instead of the obscene stress and wasted time of fund raising, can spend that same time in school learning the culture and langue(s) of the people God has called them to engage. Sometimes big numbers will numb our minds. Stop and think about that…FOUR THOUSAND FUNDED MISSIONARIES AROUND THE WORLD PLANTING GOSPEL PREACHING, REPRODUCING INDIGIONOUS CHURCHES!

Honestly…look up (or as I now say, “google”) any other missions agency or any other denomination and simply compare. When I learned about the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering of the SBC I was sold. Yes…I know that we have our "Jerry Falwell’s" who take on Tinky Winky…hey…every family has a weird uncle or two! I don’t really care if it’s “cool” or “trendy” to be in the SBC here in the north/north east either. I love Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ loves missions. If the SBC loves the same Jesus I love and loves the same gospel He loves…and loves to spread that same gospel He loves…then I love the SBC…weird uncles and all. (For the record…Tinky Winky is a gay, perverted, deviant…I’ve got “gay-dar”…just trust me. That’s a doll with a gay mans voice that carries a big red purse…plus he’s purple with a triangle on his head…yeah…he’s both fabulous and super. I guess I’m from the old school…if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, well call me crazy, I think it’s a duck.)

Of course…missions is not something that is done “way out there in the heathen lands…” The SBC funds, also through the Cooperative Program, the 41 State Conventions and the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering, 5,000 North American missionaries, 2,500 chaplains (military, prison, hospital) and hundreds of thousands of volunteers like World Changers and our renowned Disaster Relief workers. Ask anyone devastated by Katrina or Wilma what they think about Southern Baptists and you’ll find out real quick how seriously the SBC takes missions. We had a Katrina refuge family in our congregation for several months after that devastating storm and they wanted to fellowship and worship with an SBC church because as Jim put it, “the Southern Baptists were set up and already serving food before the storm was even over…they were out there before anyone…literally…I couldn’t believe my eyes…”

The whole concept of the SBC is missions…what we call the Cooperative Program. It’s so basic that it’s brilliant. The idea is that churches of like faith and practice simply pull much of their missions giving together and then split it up on an even “pay scale” (for the lack of a better term) among the missionaries. The overhead is in many ways surprisingly minimal and is taken from the (generally) monthly giving of the churches. The annual missions offerings are then sent directly to the field. So 100% of what is given to, for example, the Lottie Moon Christmas Missions Offering goes to missionaries on the field. It’s not like a large chunk of it goes to “denomination” bureaucracy before a much smaller fraction actually makes it to the missionaries on the ground. That overhead is taken care of the “CP”. While no system is perfect or above refining…it’s great. And what it does is it allows missionaries from both large churches and missionaries from small home churches to have equal opportunity for mission support dollars. Many times…maybe most of the time…in the “missionary goes around raising funds” system the missionaries with the “right” connections with the pastors of large(r) congregations get (well) funded while missions who are just as called but are from smaller congregations without the same connections really struggle to raise support. The way the SBC does it is head and shoulders better then that. It’s fair…and as I’ve explained before…it’s far more efficient then having all these autonomous churches having to administrate all these missionaries. Streamlining the process equals more funding for the field…common sense and basic mathematics will confirm this assertion for us.

I know first hand of the abundant generosity of the Southern Baptist Convention and their support of missions. What is now The Epicenter Church was started with more than simple well wishes, prayer and pats on the back. After various assessments were completed the North American Mission Board of the SBC took our little group of 7 on as an official SBC church plant. I have not only never graduated from any seminary (let alone an SBC seminary)...I've not spent a day in one. They of course reviewed my history and spoke with about 435,000 people about my giftedness, calling and competence. But they understand that God calls men to preach...seminary is a great tool...but a degree from one does not mean one is called to preach. Heck, we didn’t even have a name for the mission at that point…yet the SBC committed $24,900 to our mission, dispersed over a three year period, before we even had a name. They kicked in a bit more once we had shown some growth and so the final investment from the NAMB of the SBC was $29,100. The SBC commissioned us to evangelize the unreached peoples of Wadsworth Ohio and put $29,100 behind that commission.

That was just the national SBC. Our local association has helped us in so many ways that I can not even begin to think of how to add it all up. Free printing and the free use of what is known as a “block party trailer” has been invaluable. Not to mention the work and mentorship of our DOM, Martin Jones. So I can’t even add that value up. But I do the Summit Baptist Association has invested around $9,000 into the mission since we started. On top of that our sponsoring church, Ridgewood Baptist has kicked in about $8,000 in addition to the use of the building for our church council meetings…and now they have opened up their building for us to worship in on Sunday evenings!

There have been many other SBC churches and individuals who have also pitched in. But these have been the significant givers to the mission.

That’s $46,100 our mission has received since May of 2004 from those big sources. If I took the time to add up ALL the various sources of mission support from SBC churches I’m positive the number would be closer to the $60,000 range (or more for goodness sake, I don’t deal with the church finances so I’m basically guessing right now, and the more I think about it the more I fear my guessing is way too low). In addition, this year our local association has made available $15,000 grants to our church plants. On and on it goes! Of course as a congregation is built tithes and offerings come in and a church begins to sprout…it's a long process and it does require faithful financial support over the long haul...you can’t just add water and mix. The product we are selling is the LAST thing sinners want to hear...the market for it isn't very good. But God is and we've seen so many miracles as a church is being born! Faith without works is dead…and the SBC is not about hypothetical well wishing…when the find a man who they recognize has been called by God to serve as a missionary they don’t fool around! The churches demand a HIGH level of missions support from the various SBC mission agencies. It's why we are the largest Bible based/Protestant "denomination" in the world.

So I’m on the inside and I understand that the SBC is no joke…it’s a missional convention which bleeds missions. That’s why I have little tolerance and zero respect for church plants which take advantage of the SBC or of the generosity of our local association. THAT REALLY BURNS ME UP. Hey…I’m theologically "Baptist" by heritage and conviction...so don’t be too stunned that I am not much for civility when it comes to such non-sense. I get real bent over the thought of it. Can you imagine taking all that money and support, then saying, “You know…we’ve discovered that we can't be associated with the Southern Baptist Convention after all…shucks...thanks for all the help! Later!”? After the way the SBC came alongside our little group with so much love, support and encouragement which has been a primary key to all the growth we've had...I can’t imagine wanting to be a “silent partner” or just leaving. I really can’t. A church plant doing that BLOWS MY MIND. Shame on them.

The Epicenter Church is associated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Same with Coram Deo Community Church...and I’m not sorry about it or ashamed of it.

I have never met a single unbeliever who had a problem with the SBC who did not also have a problem with historic, orthodox and evangelical Christianity at the same time. Sure, atheist apologists are quick to spew half truths and urban ledgends about the SBC...but it's not like those folks are in love with any other historically Christian tradition. The only folks who even care enough to ask come from churched backgrounds and they are not my primary "target" at any rate. To my knowledge not a single person has left our church because we are associated with the SBC...so in my opinion...our guys in this region of the country need to get over any discomfort with our missional association. Churched people care about such things and are almost always the ones to ask questions like that (along with questions such as, "what seminary did you graduate from") anyway. I am hardly asked and when I am I just say, "our church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention and we partner with them in missions...but we have folks from all kinds of backgrounds who are part of our church family..." and I've yet to have a problem. Every unchurched person I've said that to has said, "oh...that's cool".

2008-02-04T13:32:00.000-05:00

Ok...need a total waste of time break? Well...here it is! The cool thing about this clip is that you will actually lose IQ after watching it...oh...if you don't like the word "freakin" or "darn" then pass on the video. The white horse says both words once or twice.

Enjoy!

UPDATE:
the white horse says, "oh God" once also...keep that in mind before you watch.

2008-02-03T13:56:00.000-05:00

Another epic banner to serve as inspiration for our harmless Emergent friends...

2008-01-31T15:12:00.000-05:00

I’m finally prepared to make our big announcement. Southside Christian Fellowship is changing…sorta. We are moving into a grand location in Wadsworth…which will necessitate a name change. Yeah…big stuff.

Late last year on behalf of our elders, I approached our mother church, Ridgewood Baptist church and asked them if they would prayerfully consider a more direct and intentional partnership with our budding church plant. For about a year or so we were sensing that perhaps God was moving us out of the “south end” of Wadsworth and into a more general location in Wadsworth. There are many reasons why we thought this might be the direction of the Lords leading.

The first was that since early 2003 our fellowship has invested thousands and thousands of dollars into evangelism, outreach, benevolence and advertising which brought much attention, new converts, rededications and church growth in general. What always amazed us was the fact that no more than about a third of our growing family was living in “the south end”. This was despite the fact that our Sunday gatherings were obviously located in the south end of Wadsworth and every single community event we hosted was in the south end. Additionally we ran a free café in the south end for a bit longer than our first year in Wadsworth and we canvassed that area repeatedly over these first few years with flyers, servant evangelism projects, prayer walking and even Christmas Caroling each year! Our church family has grown and grown since the original “7” began meeting for prayer, worship, devotion, fellowship and study…but the folks kept coming from all over Wadsworth each phase of the way. So we decided to go ahead and approach Ridgewood with the idea of allowing us to gather for worship in their sanctuary on Sunday evenings. They have an absolutely beautiful church house in what has become a prime location in Wadsworth. The idea was not simply about allowing us in their buidlings on Sunday’s…but to partner together in mid-week activities and to work together in community evangelism, outreach, benevolence and advertising. Our two congregations are distinct and between the two the vast majority of the community of Wadsworth is well represented. Ridgewood has the tremendous location, wisdom from decades of Christ exulting ministry and fine reputation in Wadsworth. Southside has the catalysis, energy, creativity and zeal common in young church plants. We believed that a more intentional partnership could generate a powerful synergism in the efforts of both congregations in propagating the gospel of Christ.

So I approached Ridgewood with the idea. Their wonderful, wise and handsome interim pastor, Charles Whitlock, thought the idea was not disastrous or ill-starred and actually thought it worth the prayerful consideration of the church. After much prayer and many meetings with both the church council and deacon body of Ridgewood…the idea was presented before the congregation. I had suggested that it be presented before the congregation as a “1 year trial” just to make sure that neither congregation felt obligated to a long term commitment before truly understanding how the partnership would work and feel. And on the 20th of this month the motion carried!

Our end of the deal will include the purchase and installation of discreet video recording equipment for the use of both congregations in the producing of high quality programming for our local TV public access station…and YouTube! We are also going to work together with RBC in the planning of various outreach and promotional activities in Wadsworth. Plus…we have some young and strong men who would be happy to volunteer their time doing some of the most important work of the church such as mowing and other maintenance related ministries…under the humble and faithful leadership of Ridgewood’s grounds and maintenance man, brother Dick. We believe that this partnership is a great...and maybe perfect...fit for both congregations and will, by grace, see much fruit harvested in both church families! In my opinion...I can't think of a better way to meet the primary needs of both congregations than this partnership. It's like pork-n-beans and hot-dogs!

We have a new home! Our first “official” gathering for worship will be Sunday night, February 10th! Below is a satellite shot of the church house, a picture of our new logo (and name) and then a snap shot from the front page of the new website that is being designed which will accompany the launch of this new chapter of our church family!

Keep us in prayer!

2008-01-30T14:53:00.000-05:00

Well…I’ve got a few moments and I would like to articulate why I’m proud to be called to plant churches and why I believe the churches I’m planting ought to be Southern Baptist churches. I honestly believe that the Southern Baptist Convention is better than hot dogs and pork-n-beans. I really do. Sure, I understand that the Church is far greater than the SBC and I do get aggravated by what I believe are silly in house disputes, occasional resolutions I find embarrassing, agencies duplicating ministries needlessly and local SBC churches not understanding (let alone reaching) their potential…but heck…I love the SBC. I love the dream called the SBC! Unless your church is Pentecostal or unless you all baptize infants...it should associate with the SBC first and foremost in my opinion (since I've already dealt with the trouble of the independent church model)...and I'm gonna share with you "why".

I wasn’t raised Southern Baptist, I became a Southern Baptist. I was raised a Regular Baptist…I guess I needed more spice in my Baptist church life (I wonder if the word “Regular” at one time had an exciting, thrilling and inspiring ring to it…cause I’d say that isn’t the case anymore, not so much at least). I won’t take you down the road of my personal testimony…but after my childhood I spent my teen years up through my early 20’s active in church but thinking I was not “Baptist”…so… I’d like to share with you the four main reasons why after looking into it, I choose to align with the SBC and am now planting SBC churches.

The first reason is the most important reason, theology. It’s always tempting to go down the road of articulating all the development of the Baptist tradition…I’ll resist. But, fundamentally, Baptists believe certain things and our doctrinal development is a fascinating study. There are a few things, however, that need to explained. Baptists believe in the primary authority of Scripture (and the infallibility and inerrancy of it!). They also believe that a sinner can only be saved by the grace of God through personal faith (alone) in the Christ revealed in the Scripture…and that “whosoever” calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Of course, Baptists believe in the ancient creeds of the Church regarding the nature of God. Baptists also have a “reformed” heritage…many of our early confessions are, like it or not, Calvinist documents. Of course through the centuries Baptists have developed various stripes, some more “Calvinistic” than others. In fact, free-will Baptists are not Calvinistic in their Soteriology at all. But for the most part, Baptists range between “2 point” and “5 point” Calvinists. I’m in the minority within the SBC…only about 20% of SBC pastors are “5-pointers” like me.

Anyway…Calvinism is not what makes Baptists divergent; after all, Presbyterians are historically Calvinistic as well. I am NOT a Presbyterian and will likely never be for two reasons. First, I believe in the autonomy of the local church. I’m going to touch on that a bit more later…but I believe each congregation should govern itself as they see fit, under the Lordship of Christ. I believe each congregation should ultimately be held accountable to Him, alone. Second, Baptism is not for babies and that is why Baptists only baptize those able to confess personal (and orthodox) faith in Christ. Baptism is also to be done by immersion. Dipping, dripping, sprinkling, spraying or splashing is not baptism. Those customs and traditions are nowhere prescribed in Scripture and I believe defeat the glorious image of what baptism is…the public profession of faith.

These doctrines are Biblical…I’m “a Baptist” not because of some family tradition (but that did have an influence, which I thank God for)…but because these doctrines are clearly taught in the Scriptures and can be very convincingly defended. In fact...I'd be a "Baptist" even if I didn't care to admit it. Saying, "I dont' like labels" doesn't change the tradition you are in...it just means you don't like labels. If your church is “non-denominational/evangelical” and it doesn’t have people running around speaking in tongues (and teaching that all Christians should be as well) or falling down in the Spirit and if your church does not baptize babies…guess what? That's a “Baptist” church. You might not like that…you might not admit that…but it is what it is. The understanding of Scripture, the tradition and the philosophy which under girds such a church is straight from the Anabaptist stream, so deal with it. (or don't deal with it...but denial is not simply a river in Egypt!)

I believe classic Baptist theology is the most purely Biblical of all Christian traditions. Plus…the cousin of Jesus Christ Himself was a Baptist, so put that in your pipe and smoke it! (It's ok for Baptists to smoke...trust me. If you ever want to know how many Baptist deacons attended Sunday School simply go out into the parking lot once morning worship begins. Add up the cigarette butts and then divide by two. That'll give you a good estimate.)

Next time…Southern Baptist cooperation in missions…

And Jesus came and said to them,”All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 ESV

2008-01-28T17:20:00.000-05:00

Hey...I read an absurd blog entry by some emergent guy today (emergent is the new way of saying "liberal") which inspired me and so I busted out my PowerPoint program and made this little banner in protest! It amused me...the passage at the bottom is 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1. Lord willing I'll have an article up tomorrow...busy, busy, busy!

UPDATE:

Ok...I was at the gym and thought of another inspirational banner for the Emergent conversationalists who lurk...hey...I think I've found a new calling!

I just thought of another one...I'm on a roll!

2008-01-25T10:08:00.000-05:00

John Piper on dialoging with Islam...

2008-01-24T13:27:00.000-05:00

I just heard a great quote today which I believe really sums up the “Emergent” church movement. Tell me what you think...

“The Emergent church has all the wrong answers to all the right questions”.

2008-01-21T22:08:00.000-05:00

I’ve watched all the debates from both the major political parties in the United States this primary season. I’ll let you think about which party is which in my conclusion.

The debate of one of those parties is about 20% platitude and 80% substance. The series of debates of the other party is about 80% platitude and 20% substance.

Incredible.

2008-01-21T13:02:00.000-05:00

I am glad to report that the issue I need to deal with next is almost a muted point…in fact…so muted is this issue anymore that as I have indicated in recent posts…I think a new imbalance is emerging…an imbalanced/hyper ecumenicalism. We’ve seen since the 90’s a much larger scale acceptance of Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and even in some circles (believe it or not) Mormonism among churches and denominations which at one point fell within the greater Reformed tradition. People who follow this blog have been at times “shocked and awed” at the strong language used in describing Roman Catholicism for example…such language was not considered shocking 20 years ago I assure you. I can remember when being a “fundamentalist” was a GOOD thing! And I am not an old man! (Of course, fundamentalists have done a great job ending their influence by their insistence upon extra-Biblical dogmas which if you think about it…is very hypocritical!)

So anyway…”denominationalism” is not nearly the issue it was decades ago. But I still want to deal with it…even a little leaven will leaven the whole lump.

Do you understand that no group, tradition, church or denomination is inerrant or infallible? And if you find yourself in such a tradition or denomination which tells you they are I would advise you to FLEE! I grew up in a fundamental Baptist church. We were so fundamental that we would not even have a joint church picnic with other Baptist churches that were not part of our association. I can remember as young kid the church discussing the invitation of another Baptist church that was not in our association, located about a mile up the road, to join them for a picnic and southern gospel singing. And buddy…let me tell you…that idea was not long entertained. It got shredded! “God called us to be separate from the world and to not associate with churches not of like faith and practice! This church is going to stay PURE!” one old deacon shouted (and I mean, shouted). And that was that. There was not 1% difference between the two churches…the problem was that the Baptist church which sent the invitation was independent and not part of our association and so therefore they were not of like “practice” so we couldn’t fellowship with them.

And God help the one who ever suggested we associate or fellowship with a SOUTHERN BAPTIST church! Good grief…such a suggestion would have slingshot you onto the fast track towards some kind of discipline! If you taught a class you’d be in jeopardy of losing it I’d bet! Southern Baptists were LIBERALS and not true Baptists! Same with Billy Graham! Now, this was not the case in the church I grew up in…but one of those churches in that association stopped their Awana program once they found out that Awana was allowing SBC churches and non-denominational churches to host Awana clubs. The church I grew up in never did anything that extreme and from what I gather that church is not like that at all anymore. They are still Baptist…but from what I understand they no longer maintain an isolationist position. And let me also say that I am glad I was raised in that church…those people believed the Bible (even with their silly imperfections) and stressed something which has immensely benefited my personal life and ministry life…Scripture memorization.

Let me ask you...are you willing to walk on the wild side and really listen to other Christians who differ with you regarding “tongues”, the “security” of the believer or who understand the book of Revelation different than you? Do you believe Evangelical Lutherans have anything to teach Pentecostals? Can Pentecostals help or be of benefit to the Brethren or Presbyterians? Can Baptists teach Pentecostals or can Nazarenes help balance the Baptists?

You better believe it. Of course as I have wrote here recently, tearing down denominational walls would be an awful idea. I want the Pentecostals to stay put in their own churches, same with the Nazarenes and Presbyterians (unless they know upfront that those convictions can not be part of their “agenda” in our church). And believe me…those groups would want me to stay put as well. There is nothing wrong with that. But there is a problem when we treat other Christians from different traditions and denominations as second class citizens in the Kingdom. I know my sister-in-law was asked several times by some in her family if my brother Steve “was filled with the Holy Ghost” or if he “had the Holy Ghost”…they were Pentecostal. They quickly fell in love with Steve…but he being a “Baptist” was something which brought a few of them a moment or two of caution. I know several Pentecostals who have told me personally that they would never, ever, date or certainly never marry a person who was not a Pentecostal because their families would have an absolute melt down. To be sure, more than one Baptist father has went “ballistic” when he found out his daughter was dating a Pentecostal…it goes both ways. This is crazy to me. You are either in the Kingdom of God or you are not…there are no second class citizens. If I had a daughter who wanted to marry a Pentecostal I would certainly debate with him about the secondary doctrinal divisions between us…for the rest of my life. Other than that, I’d give him as much hell as a Baptist young man, and if he met my (naturally unattainable) standards I’d let him marry my girl.

There is a real danger of idolizing our tradition and finding our security based upon the type of church we were raised in. God’s Kingdom is not the Southern Baptist Convention and neither is it Pentecostal or Evangelical Lutheran. Denominations are earthly tools to help us work in day to day harmony. Don’t forget that…they serve to assist us to live in HARMONY with other Christians…not disharmony! It would do you tremendous good to listen to people who disagree with you about secondary theological issues and really to “get” what they believe, why they believe it and what historical process has led them to believe it. That doesn’t mean you’ll be convinced…but your hard edges will round off (and that’s a good thing). You’ll begin to appreciate and relish the diversity found in the Kingdom of God this side of eternity. Because each tradition within the true Church of Christ contains valuable insights even if their insights are over inflated or out of balance…there is a core of truth within that imbalance that you can really learn from…don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. For "Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." 1 Peter 3:8-12 (ESV)

2008-01-19T07:06:00.000-05:00

I dealt with this nutty theory last year and you can read what I wrote here.

2008-01-18T15:33:00.000-05:00

BONUS!

I came across this inspirational poster today and thought that I would throw it up for the benefit of all the Emergent Village types who obsessively lurk around here. This blog is kinda like the Rush Limbaugh show...liberals love to hate it!

2008-01-18T09:25:00.000-05:00

Things are CRAZY around the parsonage right now and plus Southside is in the midst of some very exciting changes...I have not had time to finish up on denominations! Lord willing I can finish the series up this weekend and can post the last two installments on Monday and Tuesday. But today and tomorrow I'm posting part 1 and 2 of RC Sprouls teaching on the psychology of atheism. It's very interesting and something I hope we can discuss here.

2008-01-17T14:10:00.000-05:00

I came across a beautiful Psalm this afternoon in my study and just thought that I would post it for all. There are some things in Scripture which "are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction..." but not everything is hard to understand. This is a plain as day...enjoy...

"Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.

The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over many waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty. The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon. He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire. The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, "Glory!"

The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever. May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!"

Psalm 29 ESV

2008-01-16T12:57:00.001-05:00

Alrighty…it’s that time of year again when the gaskets in my head begin to contort…yep…they can’t take much more…they are about to blow.

I’m going to ask you all think about this one question, one more time (it’s becoming a yearly tradition which follows the American Idol auditions). Why is this entertaining? Why do we find humiliating people in front of millions upon millions of people amusing? What is going on in our twisted culture that finds exploiting people, mocking people and degrading people so much fun?

We’re not far from the Roman Coliseum folks. Whole families would go to the massive Coliseum in Rome and cheer and laugh as animals would bludgeon themselves in events that would make Michael Vick go, “now that’s just messed up, bro…” Of course it wasn’t just animals being battered to grotesque deaths. No, people (slaves, criminals, Christians) were stripped naked and chased around the Coliseum floor by Gladiators and/or wild beasts until run down and disemboweled for the joy of the perverted Roman culture. Gladiators would also square off, before tens of thousands at a time and beat each other till one was dead and the other would live (to one degree or another) to fight another day.

There is something within human nature that is perverted, badly perverted. We take pleasure in watching another experience pain. It’s the same thing that would motivate me to hit my little brother when we were real little kids…I can remember being happy when he would start that scream/cry combo and would run to mom even though I knew my mom was going to whip me. Or the drive to see the look on my sisters face when I would rip the arms off her Barbie dolls. We don’t have a little devil on our shoulder whispering naughty ideas into our heads…no…we are the little devil. We enjoy watching people make fools of themselves. We’ll even sit our kids down and laugh together as a family at people who make fools and morons of themselves on TV. Hey, after all, we’d never do anything like that. Those people are really stupid.

Now I’m seeing this new show called The Moment of Truth. Oh…does this look tantalizing and titillating or what? Watching greedy people totally and utterly expose themselves for our amusement is just what the doctor has ordered! Oh yes, watching the pain on the faces of the family of these foolish and greedy people is going to be just deluxe! The Newlywed Show was fine for its time…watching silly husbands forget their wives birthstone in front of a live audience and on TV was great fun for awhile. But how boring is all of that at this point? No…we need it more bloody...ERRRRRRRRRRRR...I meant to say...juicy.

What is the matter with us? Why do we flock to such spectacles?

We need a Savior.

This is a slippery slope my friends. I really want you to think about why shows like these entertain you. Think about the immaturity of it all…little kids like to hurt each other and pinch each other for kicks and giggles…what is so fun about mocking people? Those aren’t actors, they are real people with real problems and real families. For crying out loud…they are made in God’s image and it’s not ok to dehumanize even a fool! Just because one is screaming for such attention doesn’t mean it should be given them…we can’t just say, “Hey…they wanted to go on TV and make dumb donkeys out of themselves…then fine…” NO! It’s not fine! Exploiting a fool is WRONG! They are FOOLS for crying out loud! Foolish people do foolish things…WHY DO WE ENCOURAGE THEM? How outrageously arrogant!

Yes, a slippery slope is what this is. Oh…we used to giggle and squirm when people were eating maggots and backstabbing each other right off the island. But…well…that isn’t shocking anymore. Now we want to see real relationships...not the shallow ones which are superficially formed on these reality TV shows...no real relationships need to be blown up. What fun! We need to get people whose IQ's are just above mentally retarded, literally, and see arrogant and pompous jerks rip them to shreds. Hopefully we'll just get over it and start shredding full blown retards...the kids in the school yard have been doing it forever so what's the big deal? Of course all of that will soon be seen as old chestnuts also. So, I’ve got a great idea for Fox to try out next. Oh…this one will be good.

What we need first is a convicted child rapist and murdered. Get a real filthy creep who molested and killed a child. After all…these people are the most disgusting of all, am I right. Then…set up a game where contestants have the opportunity to personally execute this guy by flipping the switch to his electric chair. What’s at stake? 1 million dollars. Each season the viewers would be able to learn of the convict’s story, his background, his abuse and his illnesses. We’d also get to meet the contestant and find out about his or her background and story. Each week we would get to see the contestant interact with his or her family as they all agonize about what to do. Can he or she really do it? Can he or she really flip the switch and fry this man for money? Maybe even they could tape messages from the convict and play them for the contestant and his or her family every week. Hey…the contestant could even meet the convict either in person, through glass or on a video conference. That would really amp things up! All of it would lead to the season finale…live! If the contestant flips the switch and electrocutes the murderer/child rapist he or she will win 1 million dollars. If in the end the contestant can’t do it…then onto the next season the murderer/rapist would go. Can you imagine all the drama?

Wow, that would be great TV…

I wonder what Jesus thinks about what amuses us?

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:8-9 (ESV)

UPDATE:

Keep in mind with American Idol…tens of thousands of people show up and try to get an audition with these judges. The producers of the show hand pick the most foolish hopefuls of all and instead of weeding them out…they pat them on the back, pump them up and pass them onto the next level of screening. These people have their backs patted and are encouraged for hours and hours as they go through various screenings before they ever get before the TV cameras and these judges. That is just screwed up and American Idol ought to be ashamed. If Paula Abdul was such a sweet heart she ought to demand they stop this. I guess I wouldn’t be so mad if they were taping outrageous acts out on the streets as the lines wrap around the building to get in. But to give these foolish people so much hope for so long, having the producers give them the idea that they just might have what American Idol is looking for. And then escorting them right before these “judges” knowing full well that they are sending them in there for a humilating overkill and scorching…is just mean and sick. It’s wrong. They are basically lied to for hours, propped up and then slam dunked…all with the hopes of seeing tears or some other embarrassing reaction from the hopefuls. Think about it. Just think about it next time your shoveling popcorn in your mouth and laughing while watching these fools on American Idol.

2008-01-14T13:46:00.000-05:00

Why would I suggest non-denominationalism is unhealthy? I know this question has been burning with so many of you…so allow me to bring some comfort to you today.

But (as is the case with many of my articles) a qualification must be first established before we proceed. Understand, I’m using the term “denomination” in the most generic and un-technical context possible. Probably the best term is “independent” rather than “non-denominational”. The reason for this will be developed more next time when I deal with “denominationalism” and the unhealthiness of it. The reality is that, for example, Southern Baptists are all “non-denominational” churches because the Southern Baptist Convention is not a denomination…as is denoted in the name…it’s a “convention”. But I’ll tease this distinction up more next time.

So for now I’ll say “independent” or “non-denominational” interchangeably because both terms in common usage amount to the same thing. I’m talking about local churches who are not accountable to any other body of like minded believers. They may be isolationists who have, literally, nothing at all to do with any other evangelical church or organization or they may view themselves as very ecumenical and participate in para-church movements such as local town ministerial associations, Promise Keepers, Acts29 Network, 9 Marks, Acquire the Fire or regional Moody Conferences (just as examples) but yet they are not held accountable to any such group. They are kingdoms unto themselves…for whatever reason.

The unsubmissive flare found in the more vocal “non-denominational” or “independent” proponents is symptomatic of deeper spiritual problems. Obviously there are independent congregations which have no clue as to why they are independent…many such local churches are what they are and nobody remembers exactly why. I’m not hammering on those folks (too severely)…I’m hammering those congregations which splash INDEPENDENT on their signs or congregations which will bring in a new pastor who then arbitrarily pulls the church out from such accountability and cooperation for reasons which careful observers usually find obvious.

The first and foremost reason why churches ought not to be “independent” is missions. Of course nearly every evangelical church gives to missions…the problem is how drastically inefficient individual churches giving independently from other churches is for missionaries “on the ground”. In Southern Baptist circles we have a phrase which repeatedly reminds us why we cooperate “we can do more together…” It’s true…more is accomplished with churches of like faith when they pull their resources together for the purposes of missions than if the same bunch of churches gave the same portion to missions independently of one another. The cooperation model eliminates a TREMENDOUS amount of administrative duplication which obviously exists in the independent models. The streamlining of (the much needed) administrative work that missions must have for practical purposes insures that more funds make it to the actual field and into the budget of the actual missionary. If every church worked independently the administrative costs alone would double or triple…or worse. The bottom line is that FAR LESS mission dollars actually reach the field when individual churches do not cooperate in missions.

Of course there are non-denominational mission agencies which are working to assist “non-denominational” churches make a more effecient impact on the field by helping to reduce the amount of administrative duplication independent churches face. These agencies attempt to pull various “non-denominational” churches together for the sake of missions and that’s fine and well as far as that goes. In reality most independent/non-denominational church still work independently in missions and deal with one or maybe two missionaries at the most…but these mission organizations are on the right track. I pray, for the sake of missions, that more independent churches would at least consider that kind of cooperative effort. Having these independent missionaries running all over the place trying to raise funds from all these independent churches is just incredibly inefficient…and stupid…and insulting (missionaries should not be begging for support!)

But even if an independent church is working with a missions organization that only deals with one of the problems with “non-denominationalism”. There is the looming issue of accountability. Where is the protection of God’s people from the possible abuse of heterodox or heretical teaching, immorality within the eldership or the misuse of church finances or resources? There are not many options in dealing with such things in the independent/non-denominational model…this is more and more true the smaller the congregation is (and the vast majority of congregations in the US run less than 100 in Sunday worship attendance, across the board). Every church must have some form of a constitution wherein guidelines are legally laid out regarding the governance of the church. Certainly issues such as embezzlement or flagrant contradiction of the legal documents can be dealt with in the legal system…a lovely option. But when it comes to moral issues or theological issues the courts are not usually much help. And even in the event where a church has language in its legal documents outlining moral misconduct or the ability of the congregation to remove an elder by vote…if the situation is bad enough…the courts would need to make a ruling. Again…this “nuclear option” is on the short list in the independent structure. Do not be mistaken for a minute…this kind of spiritual immaturity is not unheard of. Camps can and are formed within churches and even as a young man in the ministry I have already casually worked with a split church at legal war with one another. It’s ridiculous. So the people of God within an independent church have only two options before them if the eldership ever abused its power. They can sue or leave the church. Wow…great options. Most of course choose the latter, sadly. In the church hopping age this latter option doesn’t seem as upsetting, but it should be. The tares are the ones that should be leaving...not the wheat, after all. Plus, our local church is our spiritual family…it is where we are married and buried. It's where we or our children where baptized (or came to faith!) It’s where our family is…leaving is a painful option and is one of only two if an independent congregation has “run away” elders. No congregation installs a trouble maker or ordains a screw ball…they emerge once they are established. Obviously the independent church can work out it's own issues and usually will...but what happens when they can't or won't? Then what?

Of course, “denominational” churches (or as Southern Baptists say, cooperating churches) can and do go to legal war at times. It’s great fun and brings so much glory to the Lord…why…look at all publicity these battles bring! The thing to understand…the “nuclear option” is generally WAY down on the list of options in churches who are connected by either denomination or convention. There is a “protocol” which usually deals with divisions as effectively as is possible (there is no earthly cure for spiritual immaturity). In the cooperation/convention/denomination models there is someone to call when problems erupt…and that someone is not a lawyer. Each “denomination” is set up differently…but the bottom line is that if the pastor begins to push a doctrine not held by that congregation and a controversy erupts, there is a spiritual man of God who can and will come in to mediate and bring correction to wherever the source of the problem lies (either within the eldership, congregation...or both). Some “denominations” place greater authority within the office of this type of overseer than do others. But the point is that the people of God in a congregation can go “over the head” of their elders in some form or fashion if real or perceived abuse is felt. There is no such influence within a non-denominational church and imbalance is always a reality, again, this is more and more true in smaller congregations. Even with a cooperating or denominational church lawsuits erupt or people end up leaving…but those things almost always happen after a long series of other options have run their course. “Denominations” are usually able to put out fires way before they get out of hand. You never hear about these potentially destructive “wars” in the papers…because the fire gets put out before bombs are launched, duh! For 4,000 to 5,000 years congregations of God’s people have cooperated and held one another accountable…”non-denominationalism” is a very new thing in comparison.

A congregation not being accountable to other congregations of like faith is neither Biblical nor historical. The hyper-independent streak in modern (and western) evangelicalism is generally an over-reaction to the type of “denominationalism” that I’m about target and blow up next time.

To be clear…I firmly believe that congregations ought to be connected with, cooperate with and be held accountable (in some form or fashion) to other like minded congregations in their area or region. This promotes a more efficient missions effort and will serve to bring balance within the life of the church through the Godly influence of other congregations. It also provides the pastor opportunities to seek council in his personal life or for church related issues from Godly and wise men without the fear of confidence being broken (which would certainly serve as a distraction in the life of the congregation). Also, such cooperation not only goes to serve missions and the issues within the particular church very well…but provides an avenue by which the congregation may bless, encourage, lift up or bring correction to a struggling sister congregation also. The idea of genuine partnership is the best way for congregations to reach their cultures with the gospel. It allows diversity of thought pertaining to secondary theological issues yet maintains order, cooperation and when needed…discipline. There is not a better balanced system this side of glory and has served the Reformed tradition well.

Next time I’m going to hammer on “denominationalism” and then end with a post on why I’m planting Southern Baptist churches. There are certainly more than one system that can be discussed. Some systems allow more local church autonomy than others…if you are a “non-denominational” pastor or elder I would encourage you to look into various ‘groups’ and link up with the one you are in most harmony with. They are certainly not all set up the same, so do your homework and please don’t lump every group together. I know within the SBC local church autonomy is of pristine value…you REALLY have to be heterodox or heretical for the convention to even attempt to bring discipline to a local congregation…

Denominationalism is NEXT!

But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved." And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question. So, being sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and brought great joy to all the brothers. When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they declared all that God had done with them. But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, "It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses." The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter. And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, "Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will." And all the assembly fell silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles. After they finished speaking, James replied, "Brothers, listen to me. Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written, "'After this I will return, and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will restore it, that the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who makes these things known from of old.' Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood. For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues." Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brothers, with the following letter: "The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings. Since we have heard that some persons have gone out from us and troubled you with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions, it has seemed good to us, having come to one accord, to choose men and send them to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth. For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell." So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch, and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter. And when they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement. And Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, encouraged and strengthened the brothers with many words. And after they had spent some time, they were sent off in peace by the brothers to those who had sent them. But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also. Acts 15:1-35 ESV

2008-01-10T15:45:00.000-05:00

I'm putting the finishing touches on the next stunning installment in this little series about denominations. But...I have to pass this EPIC video on to you. The plot is simple. A crook has just robbed a store in a mall and is making a run for it. Enjoy...

2008-01-08T14:14:00.000-05:00

I really think it would be completely out of order for someone to stand up and “speak in tongues” in a congregation full of people who all speak the same language. I’d also get angry and would probably walk out of the church building if they started to baptize a little baby. I would not submit to a woman pastor of my congregation, she'd be gone or my family would be gone in short order. There is a distinct possibility I would shout out loud in protest, on my way out of the back door, if my pastor stood up there and taught that the Lords Supper was anything more than a memorial meal. At this point in my life, I would not sit under the authority of a pastor who taught that salvation was not by grace unconditionally secure and eternal for those in Christ Jesus.

You see…those of you who call out for the pulling down of denominational walls really do not know what you are talking about, frankly. You live, apparently, in a bubble. And, it would seem, your only real theological conviction is that theological convictions are bad. I know such thinking is very nice and idealistic, but it is terribly naïve.

What needs to be understood is that there is no sterile machine out there that spits out denominational convictions and distinctions. Denominational distinctives evolve from the study of Scripture, reason, maturity, immaturity experience and values…of real people. There is a core of doctrines which no Christian church or individual denies…that core is very small (in quantity, not quality). Just like there is a DNA within families which biologically binds people together so there is a DNA within the Church which super naturally binds God’s people together.

But let’s not fall under the false perception that issues not directly related to ‘the core’ of Christian theology are unimportant or insignificant. There are many issues worthy to debate and even separate over. Make no mistake…Paul and Barnabas separated over the application of theology.

How well would someone who reads the Bible, believes and teaches that every Christian has the right and obligation to seek and receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit with the initial physical evidence of speaking in tongues, do in a church I pastor? How much would they appreciate it when I teach that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is not a one time event but is a continual baptism which begins at Salvation with many subsequent infillings or baptisms throughout the Christian walk? How would he like it to hear a doctrine he holds dear “shot at” by me? I don’t believe tongues are the evidence of anything necessarily and I certainly don’t believe that gift is for every Christian. Imagine if that was one of your most precious doctrines and you had to submit to my preaching against it whenever the topic came up? (We’ve had Pentecostals in our church, even leadership, before…but they knew up front where we stood and they were willing to not cause division…it worked out great).

How kindly would I take to such a one contradicting me regarding this issue in the church hallway? Should I command that he cover his mouth and never speak the truth if what he believes is truth contradicts what I believe is truth?

I’ll tell you what I would do if this became a problem right now. I would go to him with my Bible. I might even take an elder or two with me. I would engage with him and do my best to teach him the proper doctrine of tongues by explaining the Scriptures and by answering his questions the best I could. If we did not come to an agreement I would then give him an option. He could stop contradicting my teaching authority and at least bring balance by saying, “this is what I believe and why…this is what pastor Gary believes and why” (I’m ok with that approach, I’m into education…not indoctrination) or, if his agenda was to promote this doctrine and if he felt that by not promoting this doctrine he was not honoring God…I would introduce him to Pastor Templeton who is the pastor of Radiant Life Church in our town. Radiant Life church is an Assemblies of God church which maintains and promotes Pentecostal distinctives. I would advise him to go there first and if that church didn’t fit to have Pastor Templeton help him find a Pentecostal church that would best fit his family (because I am sure Pastor Templeton would be aware of far more Pentecostal options than am I).

The reason I’d do this is simple. You can’t have competing theological voices in a local church. The church will split if that happens. Discussing tertiary theological issues or even having irenicly spirited debate over them within a local household of God is one thing. It’s actually very healthy. But arguing and dividing over them is sinful…and that is what will happen. It’s so sinful to argue, fight and divide over these things because they are not primary doctrines and they are all distracting issues which so easily take our eyes of the ball. They are roads to nowhere, ultimately. None of them have anything in the world to do with the nature of God, the means of Salvation, defending the downtrodden or the helping of widows.

And that is what would end up happening if we did not have denominations. There would be constant fighting, arguing and distraction by unofficial fractions all under one roof. The pastor would obviously have a conviction about each issue...it’s not possible to be neutral about anything…and so major chunks of the congregation would feel that the pastor was teaching false doctrine or at the very least was not intelligent or spiritual.

What a mess!

Not only would this be a practical mess…but God forbids this kind of chaos! The Bible is clear…there are not to be divisions among us. We are to live in harmony and tolerance with our brothers. Denominations allow this to happen in an orderly fashion. They serve as a generous way to say, “brothers, we are all part of God’s family. We have all been saved by His grace. This bickering must stop. Lest any of us be forced to live with the burden of appeasing compromise upon our shoulders, let us follow the examples of Paul and Barnabas and part ways for the advancement of the gospel…despite our secondary differences we can work for the Kingdom best this way”. The parting of company, as it did with Paul and Barnabas, can allow God’s people to focus on the primary Commission of Christ without a weekly or even daily antagonizing of their secondary theological convictions.

All of this call to end denominations reminds me of when the politicians stand up and call for the end of partisanship. The only way for that to happen is for someone to give in. When you hear a Republican talking like that what they are saying is that Democrats should give up their liberal convictions and be conservative capitalists like them. When a Democrat talks like that what they are really saying is that Republicans should give up on their capitalist and conservative convictions and become socialists like them. That’s all it is…”let’s stop all the bickering…think like me and we won’t argue anymore!” It’s the same with theology…

So now you see and have an abiding understanding of the great benefit of denominations. They work to maintain the unity of the local church which is visible and the Church which is not. They serve as a tool to keep local bodies focused on the gospel and gospel work without weekly fighting over less than essential issues. Like any tool…they can be and are abused. But the issue is the abuse, not the tool.

As we progress I believe we’ll touch on the problems with “non-denominational” church government. There is also the problem of what can be called “denominationalism” which is arrogant allegiance to ones denomination and not the Kingdom. I’d also like to end with an article explain why I’m planting Southern Baptist churches. Oh…it’s gonna be great fun around here!

For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise. Galatians 3:26-29 ESV

2008-01-07T11:26:00.001-05:00

Would Jesus run a jail with this attidude? Let's talk about it in the comment section.

2008-01-04T14:10:00.000-05:00

I think denominations are a good thing. I’m glad we have them. I think God uses them and has a purpose for them to serve on this side of eternity to advance His Kingdom. I think that breaking down denominational walls would be a very bad thing. I’m against doing that until Christ returns to establish His Kingdom on earth. I hope the denominations don’t all “get together” someday. I also think it unwise for a church to be independent/non-denominational. I think every church should be held accountable to other local churches of like faith. If you pastor a non-denominational or independent church I would advise you to seek out a denomination which shares your core doctrinal distinctives and missiology and lead your congregation to yoke up with that denomination as soon as possible. It will make your local congregation and the denomination more healthy, balanced and effective in mission.

Why do I hear so many crickets in the back ground? And why are you all looking at me like that?

Ok…let me show you in the Bible how I’ve come to this conclusion.

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” Psalm 133:1 esv

“And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.” John 17:11 esv

“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” Romans 12:4-5 esv

“I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, "I follow Paul," or "I follow Apollos," or"I follow Cephas," or "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” 1 Corinthians 1:10-12 esv

Where are those crickets coming from? There’s snow all over the ground! Are you all making that noise? Oh…ok…I get it…I’m hearing that noise and you people are making those faces because it’s rare for someone to stand up and proclaim “I don’t want to break down denominational walls because I think they are a good thing!” And the verses that I’m citing to support my claim are typically passages cited to show you how BAD and STUPID denominations are.

Before I dive in and explain this exotic, foreign, strange, bizarre and outlandish assertion of mine let me begin by saying this. I really think the spiritual life would be much easier if Eastern Orthodoxy was in fact the one true and only Church Christ Himself established in Matthew 16. I actually used to think that about Roman Catholicism…to have a substitute for Christ to stand up and declare what is and is not would be truly fantastic and convenient. But doing my study and learning of Christian history in a more detailed way I now see they are completely ineligible for that claim. Either the Church can evolve, grow and reform or it can not. If it can then Reformed Christianity is the only real and reasonable option. If it can not (or maybe I should say does not) then Eastern Orthodoxy is the only real and reasonable option. Because Rome has indeed evolved and reformed…yet strangely and amazingly claims otherwise.

I want all my evangelicals and reformed Christians to just stop and think about how nice it would be to no longer need to worry about “rightly handling the word of truth” personally. Just think about that. I hope you are aware that, at least in the reformed understanding of that passage and other like it, we have a personal obligation to God Almighty to handle His Word with reverence and we are obligated to personally see to it that we understand the Scriptures. It is a sin to simply buy what a pastor sells without personal examination of the Scriptures to see if the things he is teaching is true. Now, we must all understand, truly appreciate and really consider the fact that for century upon century most Christians did not live like this nor view spirituality as we in the reformed tradition do today. Devout Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholics do not live with our view of spirituality even to this day. Both Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, at least in theory, claim that the there is no need for us to (as they say) reinvent the wheel. Faithful men ages ago have already handled the Word of truth and by God’s grace have already explained to us in both word and deed what it means and how it applies to life. It is not up to us to interpret the Bible because it has already been interpreted authoritatively. That is why both Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic devotees don’t talk about “essential” doctrines because in their world…every doctrine is essential. On the scale of truth every dogma is a 10…one can not pick and choose which dogmas they except and which they don’t have a real taste for and be eligible to receive Christ (His body and blood they believe).

Oh would that be nice or what? If the Bible was perfectly interpreted for me and all I had to do was follow the prescriptions of Priests and Bishops there would sure be a lot less tension in my head. And of course all the bickering among denominations would cease which would also be a real plus. If only we could all just get along and believe the same thing…

The problem is that such a system is a fantasy and is not to be expected in this lifetime. We do not read of an infallible Church with the mandate or even the ability to pass down the Authority of the Apostles to non-Apostles (Bishops) in the Bible. On top of that Church history does not reveal the heightened level of doctrinal unity which is touted today by either bunch. It’s very difficult to debate Church history because it is 2,000 years old and still going strong. Name anything as old as the Church…there are very few things…if anything…with as much water under its bridge as the Church. (Maybe Judaism…but I would argue the religion practiced by Jews today is not the same as it was in the days of Christ or before Him). Christian history is vast and deep and each branch is generally too careless with the amount of gloss which is applied to it. But suffice it to say…I don’t see the tremendous doctrinal uniformity which is proclaimed today…not in the first 1,000 years especially. One quick example would be that the east and west did not see eye to eye with how the articulated the finer details of the Holy Trinity…maybe ever. There were constant doctrinal bickering and various camps which would emerge in the east and west and then dissolve as others emerged all throughout the first 10 centuries…this lead to the Great Schism of 1054. (I will say at that point Eastern Orthodoxy has maintained incredible dogmatic unity since the Schism.)

So I don’t believe the glue which holds the Church together is the dogmas or doctrines of ecclesiastical councils. But there are two certain doctrines which emerge within the heart of all true Christians. Doctrines which the Holy Spirit will usually bring to the attention and then conviction of every believe through the reading of and study of His Word (I’m sure there are some for various reason who were never properly educated in these two issues yet were elect…we are not saved by theological precision or mental aptitude). The Trinity and Salvation by the grace of Christ alone (apart from personal effort, merit or work) are the two fundamentals no true Christian will ever deny. Not all true Christians understand or correctly articulate these doctrines…but no true Christian would ever, if properly informed, deny these two great doctrines.

Those are the two doctrines you will find in every true local Church of Jesus Christ. Simple observation and simple logic will by grace bring us to this conclusion. It is a very difficult thing to speak for the entire Church indeed…because the Church is not a visible thing…it is invisible. Its head is not a council or a pontiff…the head of the Church is our Priest, Jesus Christ. I would repeatedly say to my Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox friends that the Church is invisible…not all in Christendom today or throughout Christian history are elect. Most church goers are not of the elect. They have a form of godliness yet deny the power (the gospel) of it. So taking a survey of hands in Church history doesn’t necessarily prove much…I would suggest that while not all people in Christendom were unsaved…certainly as is the case today…most were not…which I believe is part of the reason for their collective confusion.

What does all of this have to do with the goodness of denominations? How do the verses presented up top support this assertion I’ve made?

I’ll tell you next time. But I will give you a hint…we need denominations in order to maintain the unity and harmony of Christ’s one and only Church.

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ. Matthew 16:13-20 esv

2007-12-31T08:35:00.000-05:00

A message for all the seeker driven and emergent village "type" pastors who frequent the blog...

2007-12-30T09:40:00.000-05:00

Wade Burleson just posted several quotes from a Baptist pastor named John Quincy Adams who preached in America in the 1800's. I thought this one was well worth your read...

A Reformer is one who seeks to remove abuses which have crept into an organization or community, or one who boldly enters a field where error has held undisputed sway, and fearlessly wields amid giant powers of opposition, the weapons of truth. He aims to entirely revolutionize the minds of the community in which he labors, on that particular subject where he believes reform to he needed. A compromise between truth and error is not what he seeks, and will not satisfy him. "The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," is his motto. Old systems of error, however sacred on account of their antiquity, he boldly attacks. Though massive darkness has long brooded over the people, he aims to dissipate the gloom, and shed upon them brilliant rays of light. His work is a mighty one; the end for which he labors is noble and sublime. He holds a position in advance of the community in which he resides, and the age in which he lives – hence he possesses traits of character that are peculiar, which fit him to toil and suffer for the accomplishment of his designs.

2007-12-29T10:57:00.001-05:00

2007-12-28T08:29:00.000-05:00

"Remember that a government big enough to give you everything you want is also big enough to take away everything you have."

“We have the right as individuals to give away as much of our own money as we please in charity; but as members of Congress we have no right to appropriate a dollar of the public money.”

“I have always supported measures and principles and not men.”

“Be always sure you are right - then go ahead.”

“Since you have chosen to elect a man with a timber toe to succeed me, you may all go to hell and I will go to Texas.”

-Davy Crockett

2007-12-27T08:16:00.000-05:00

2007-12-25T22:20:00.000-05:00

"The self-sins dwell too deep within us and are too much a part of our natures to come to our attention till the light of God is focused upon them. The grosser manifestations of these sins--egotism, exhibitionism, self-promotion--are strangely tolerated in Christian leaders, even in circles of impeccable orthodoxy. They are so much in evidence as actually, for many people, to become identified with the gospel. I trust it is not a cynical observation to say that they appear these days to be a requisite for popularity in some sections of the Church visible. Promoting self under the guise of promoting Christ is currently so common as to excite little notice."

-A. W. Tozer (1897-1963), Pursuit of God [1948]

2007-12-24T12:04:00.001-05:00

2007-12-24T07:39:00.000-05:00

Oh, Holy Night!

Oh, holy night, the stars are brightly shining; It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth! Long lay the world in sin and error pining, Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth. A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices, For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn. Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices! Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born! Oh night, Oh holy night, Oh night divine!

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming, With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand. So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming, Here came the wise men from Orient land. The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger, In all our trials born to be our Friend! He knows our need—to our weakness is no stranger. Behold your King; before Him lowly bend! Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!

Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His Gospel is peace. Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother And in His Name all oppression shall cease. Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, Let all within us praise His holy Name! Christ is the Lord! Oh, praise His name forever! His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim! His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!

2007-12-23T07:40:00.000-05:00

Joy To The World!

Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare Him room, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing!

Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns! Let men their songs employ; While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy!

No more let sins and sorrows grow, Nor thorns infest the ground; He comes to make His blessings flow Far as the curse is found, Far as the curse is found, Far as, far as, the curse is found!

He rules the world with truth and grace, And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness, And wonders of His love, And wonders of His love, And wonders, wonders, of His love!

2007-12-22T11:04:00.000-05:00

For Unto Us A Child Is Born

For unto us a child is born, To us a son is given; The government shall rest on him, The’ anointed One from Heav’n. His name is Wonderful Counselor, The Mighty God is He, The Everlasting Father, The humble Prince of Peace.

The increase of his government And peace shall never end; He’ll reign on David’s ancient throne As ruler of all men. Upheld with justice and righteousness, Forever His kingdom will last; The zeal of the Lord God Most High Will bring these things to pass.

Lord Jesus, come now and reign in me, Be Lord of my life this hour. Come be my Counselor and my God, My source of wisdom and power. Watch o’er me with your Father care, My heart and my mind, fill with peace. I worship you, my Lord and King, My praise will never cease.

2007-12-21T07:44:00.000-05:00

The First Noel

The first Noel the angel did say Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay; In fields where they lay tending their sheep, On a cold winter’s night that was so deep.