The Southern Baptist Primer; The Holy Spirit - Part 8

Today's installment of The Southern Baptist Primer presents us with a fundamental truth of our spiritual life which, if fully grasped, will help us focus more on Christ and and less on ourselves. It is the Spirit who is working to change us and He will accomplish His work! When we see this we can effectivel combat the legalistic expectations that most Christians promote. (The text for The 2000 BF&M appears in bold/italics).

He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts by which they serve God through His church.

The Spirit Encourages. The Spirit works within those believers that He has ushered into the Body. His work reflects His name: Holy. The Spirit took destitute and dark individuals and washed them clean, He sanctified them (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

Sanctification is a progressive work of God and man that makes us more and more free from sin and like Christ in our actual lives.[1] This inner-working of the Spirit is something to be thankful for (2 Thessalonians 2:13). It is part of the process of our salvation (1 Peter 1:2). It has to do with walking according to the Spirit and not the flesh (Romans 8:4) by understanding whose we are (Romans 8:15-16).

The Spirit that brought new life also works to bring forth fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). The same Spirit that brings freedom also transforms us from one degree of glory to another (2 Corinthians 3:17-18). It is extremely encouraging to note that we are not alone nor are we powerless. As a church we must resist the thinking that the Spirit of God is present to focus on us and our situation. Rather we must look to Him for assistance in our desperate need: our need for holiness. Let’s worship Him and enjoy the reality that I am not going to make it on my own and so I need to quit trying on my own. He has already made us holy through the blood and He is making us holy by the Spirit!

[1] Grudem, Systematic Theology, 746.

Father-of-the-year Award? Not Me!

I will not win the “Father-of-the-Year” award anytime soon. I am sure that my insensitivity will not surprise many of you but maybe it will serve as a signpost to my younger, ‘new-father’ brothers (a huge, orange, DANGER!!! signpost). Anyway….

There we were, Amy and I, several years ago, enjoying something on TV one evening. Two of our precious boys (at that time they were 4 and 7 or so) were ‘playing' in the living room. When I say playing what I really mean is some form of out of control, spasmatic, pirate/cowboy/tarzan activity that cannot be accomplished with ANY kind of decorum or audio management. Needless to say: THEY WERE LOUD!

Loud children and my peace of mind do not go together very well and so I tend to raise myself to their level by losing control of my own audio management. Around the time of their third transgression I just about lost it.

In the background I heard another ‘thump’ followed by more screaming. “Well I guess the pirates got ol’ Tarzan that time” I thought to myself as I took a deep breath preparing for my own outburst.

My oldest son came stumbling into our room with his hand up on the side of his head and his screams piercing my eardrums. Did I lose it? Understatement of the year!!!

What exactly did this Father-of-the-year wannabe say? Well….

“Ha! What did you think would happen son!?!” I hollered back at him “Stop screaming and take it like a man (Some man hunh?)!”

That’s when he moved his hand. All of a sudden the whole left side of his face was covered in a torrent of bright, red blood! Isn’t it funny how our emotions can change in an instant? I went from 100mph to 0mph is a nano-second.

Eeeeeerrrrrcchh!!

He had jumped from the sofa to the floor (escaping from a monster crocodile or something I am sure) and struck his head on the sharp side of some bookshelves.

His head was SPLIT open! Blood was everywhere (EVERYWHERE!) and I was a changed man.

SPEEDBUMP (added on 05.26.06 to protect against future neck injuries! HT: Blest and svoblogger):

Spencer and I rushed to the emergency room and he was stitched up fine. He was fortunate that he didn't hit any major arteries (although you wouldn't know it by the amount of blood that he shed).

The point that I am trying to make is that when we see blood we know something is very wrong. Bruises, scrapes, or strawberries aren't great but we usually just brush them off. Blood is another thing altogether. It is serious and causes us to begin to think about emergency actions.

End of SPEEDBUMP:

Moms, Dads you know what I mean. Who, when they see drops of blood on the floor, doesn’t get a little panicked? Who, when a child yells out: “so and so’s bleeding!” doesn’t catch their breath and hurry to the scene?

Why is that?

Well it is because blood is an important part of our body and we only have so much of it. Blood is supposed to stay IN the body and when it is running out of it there is something terribly wrong! The Bible tells us that “the blood is the life” (Deuteronomy 12:23). Blood is so crucial that if you run out you die!

Have you thought about that?

Blood has a very special place in the Scriptures. The Bible starts out with an example of the message that blood communicates to us in Genesis 4:10 “And the LORD said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground.” After Cain killed Abel God confronts him with the evidence of Abel’s death: his blood all over the ground. That blood communicated to God that Abel was no longer alive, it cried out to God!

The Bible also demonstrates the tragedy of shed blood when the wicked brothers dip Joseph’s robe in blood to communicate to Jacob that his beloved son was dead: “then they took Joseph's robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood (Genesis 37:31).”

The first plague on the Egyptian nation during God’s work of deliverance was blood: “Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood (Exodus 7:20).”

One of the most telling examples was the sign of the Passover: blood (Exodus 12:13). This verse tells us that “the blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.” The blood was that of a lamb killed, KILLED, as a substitute for the firstborn son.

Blood was the sign that someone/thing had died.

The sign of blood is one that communicates that a terrible thing has occurred. Just like I responded so feverishly when my precious son’s blood was pouring from his body, oughtn’t we respond even more fervently to the entirety of the spilt blood of the very Son of God?

This blood brought us the forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:28 “for this is my blood of the

covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”).

It brought us justification (Romans 5:9 “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”).

It brought us near to God (Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”).

It brought us peace (Colossians 1:20 “and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”).

It gives us confidence to enter the presence of God (Hebrews 10:19 “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus,”).

The blood of Christ is THE evidence of His work, life, death, and promise. Just like the wicked brothers communicated to their father, Jacob, that his beloved son was dead, so Jesus communicates to us, his wicked brothers, that He is the One who died and can bring us to His father (Revelation 19:13 “He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.”)!

Won’t you look past all of the noise, clamor, and activity that passes for much of our religious life today and look at the blood that was shed for the life of God’s children?

Before you pass it off… look closely… there IS life in that blood!

Guest Blogger: John Wootten

John Wootten, an individual who knew me when I only had 3 children, sent me this blog last Friday. He had written on his blog: Pithy Doctrine about this conference that he attended. When I read The Da Vinci Code I was surprised to see so much of what Jane666 had written incorporated into the book. (Jane if you are lurking around here anywhere maybe you could surface and answer some of these questions). Anyway... John, thanks for sending this over for us.

Mike Licona on Mithraism in “The Da Vinci Code”

Mike Licona, the director of apologetics and interfaith evangelism at the North American Mission Board, has written an article for Baptist Press discussing the Mithras issue in The Da Vinci Code. It is the third article in a five-part series examining the claims of “The Da Vinci Code,” which debuts in American theaters Friday, May 19.

According to Licona, the characters in Dan Brown’s novel paint Christianity as an unoriginal religion, borrowing from other surrounding pagan religions during its formation. Specifically, Brown mentions one of the three largest Roman mystery religions, Mithraism.

Licona tells us that Dan Brown’s book describes Mithras as, “the son of god and the light of the world -- was born on Dec. 25, died, was buried in a rock tomb, and then resurrected in three days.” Fortunately for skeptics of Christianity, this thesis is easily proven. One must simply provide the text of a primary source which pre-dates Christianity that describes the customs and beliefs of Mithraism which were later copied by Christianity.

Unfortunately for skeptics of Christianity, no such documents exist. Licona contends that his research has led him to believe that, while the religions themselves pre-date Christianity, their supposed “Christian-like” teachings do not. Because the accounts of these practices post-date Christianity by 100 years, Licona says, “it appears that it was these other religions that were influenced by Christianity rather than the other way around.” Furthermore, regarding the specific reference Brown’s novel makes to Mithraism, Licona states, “I am unaware of any account, even a late one, of a Mithras who dies, is buried in a rock tomb, then resurrected in three days.”

Licona offers the evidence of two experts in the field of ancient religions as proof of the historical inaccuracy of Brown’s novel: Dr. Bart Ehrman and Dr. Tryggve Mettinger.

Dr. Ehrman is an agnostic history professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who specializes in early Christian writings. He is specifically of the opinion that the orthodox Christian Fathers manipulated the texts of scripture, so he is certainly no ally to evangelicals. He has written extensively on the Apostolic Fathers, as well as heresy and orthodoxy in the early church. If anyone would have studied and understood the intertwining of Christian and Mithraic religions during what he considers the “Proto-Orthodox Christian” era, it would be him. Yet in his book, The Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code, he makes no such link. I have encountered Ehrman in other research projects on ancient religions, and he has also advocated an early date for the Christian scriptures because of the discovery of older manuscripts. Ehrman maintains that, based on recent archaeological discoveries in the last 50 years, Christianity dates back to the first century A.D. while Mithraism dates only to the second century A.D.

Licona relies on another secular professor, Dr. Mettinger from Lund University in Sweden, who has written at length on the phenomenon of “rising and dying gods in the ancient near east.” Mettinger’s works have been viewed by many scholars as the most important work on “dying and rising gods” since Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer wrote on the same subject in 1890. Mettinger has the benefit of more than a century’s worth of archaeological findings to bring his research up-to-date. Mettinger’s writings focus heavily on the religions of Attis, Adonis, and Osiris, while Mithraism receives only marginal treatment, due to its lack of credible primary sources. Nevertheless, Mettinger argues that there is not a single account of a resurrected god pre-dating the life of Christ that can be substantiated as a parallel to Christianity.

What makes this issue truly remarkable is just how many scholars are debunking the myth of Mithraic influence on Christianity. Dan Brown’s novel has been attacked from every possible corner, drawing the ink of liberals, agnostics, atheists, evangelicals, as well as feminists like Barbara Walker and members of the Jesus Seminar like Robert Price. The Mithras Myth is certainly falling out of favor with the anti-Christian agenda because it lacks even the slightest evidence necessary for substantiation. Hence, Licona offers these final words of advice to Christians giving a defense to the originality of Christianity:

“Anyone claiming that Christianity borrowed its major doctrines from pagan religions of its day shoulders the responsibility of supporting it, not just with a claim to the effect as Brown has done, but also by supplying references to the pre-Christian ancient writings which would lead to such a conclusion. Demand these references from your friend and take heart. They do not exist.”

Bibliography

Ehrman, Bart. Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code: A Historian Reveals What We Really Know about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and Constantine. Oxford University Press, 2004. http://www.bartdehrman.com

Mettinger, Tryggve N.D. The Riddle of Resurrection. ”Dying and rising gods” in the ancient Near East. Coniectanea Biblica, Old Testament, 50. Stockholm: Almquiest & Wiksell Int’l, 2001. http://www.teol.lu.se/gt/forskning/mettinger.html

Price, Robert M. The Da Vinci Fraud: Why the Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction. Prometheus Books: Portland, OR, 2005. http://www.robertmprice.mindvendor.com


Da Vinci Code Seminar Video:

http://www.4truth.net/site/c.hiKXLbPNLrF/b.749325/apps/s/content.asp?ct=932151

http://www.4truth.net/site/c.hiKXLbPNLrF/b.749325/apps/s/content.asp?ct=1587247

The Southern Baptist Primer; The Holy Spirit - Part 7

The truth that we will see in this installment of The Southern Baptist Primer is one of the most amazing realities of a Christian's walk. The work that the Holy Spirit does in the life of a believer is supernatural! Today we will see that:

At the moment of regeneration He baptizes every believer into the Body of Christ. (This is the text from The 2000 BF&M)

He is our point of Entrance. The Holy Spirit has been demonstrated as Enlightening the mind regarding the truth, Emphasizing Christ, and as the primary Evangelist. In these sections we have seen that the Holy Spirit is intricately involved in the salvation of God’s people. It is no surprise then to notice the way our entrance into the body is described. We have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13).

This word, baptized, means to be immersed or plunged into. The body of Christ is made up of many members, many nations a great multitude that will cry out salvation belongs to our God who sits on the Throne and to the Lamb (Revelation 7:9). All of the different languages and cultures, colors and traditions, ages and relationships that make up this body enter the Body in the same way: through the door (Christ – John 14:6) buried and risen to new life by the Spirit (Ephesians 4:4-6).

This is demonstrated in Acts (2; 8; 10; & 19) when the Spirit baptizes first the Jews, then the Samaritans, then the Gentiles, and then the followers of John. The Spirit ushers us into the Body of the Beloved Son, Jew or Gentile, by immersing into death to self and raising into life in Christ.
It is absolutely crucial that we, members of this body, recognize that the criteria for church membership is regeneration. It is the renewing of our minds by the very Spirit of God. It is being born again. One of the reasons that churches struggle and split is that this is not recognized. We are so lazy and ‘tolerant’ with our membership that we welcome into the family individuals who display a desire to be included without demonstrating through testimony, doctrine, or lifestyle this Spirit-filled regeneration! How do we recognize this? By seeing how the Holy Spirit does actually bring forth His fruit.

The Southern Baptist Primer; The Holy Spirit - Part 7

The truth that we will see in this installment of The Southern Baptist Primer is one of the most amazing realities of a Christian's walk.

At the moment of regeneration He baptizes every believer into the Body of Christ.

He is our point of Entrance. The Holy Spirit has been demonstrated as Enlightening the mind regarding the truth, Emphasizing Christ, and as the primary Evangelist. In these sections we have seen that the Holy Spirit is intricately involved in the salvation of God’s people. It is no surprise then to notice the way our entrance into the body is described. We have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13).
This word, baptized, means to be immersed or plunged into. The body of Christ is made up of many members, many nations a great multitude that will cry out salvation belongs to our God who sits on the Throne and to the Lamb (Revelation 7:9). All of the different languages and cultures, colors and traditions, ages and relationships that make up this body enter the Body in the same way: through the door (Christ – John 14:6) buried and risen to new life by the Spirit (Ephesians 4:4-6).
This is demonstrated in Acts (2; 8; 10; & 19) when the Spirit baptizes first the Jews, then the Samaritans, then the Gentiles, and then the followers of John. The Spirit ushers us into the Body of the Beloved Son, Jew or Gentile, by immersing into death to self and raising into life in Christ.
It is absolutely crucial that we, members of this body, recognize that the criteria for church membership is regeneration. It is the renewing of our minds by the very Spirit of God. It is being born again. One of the reasons that churches struggle and split is that this is not recognized. We are so lazy and ‘tolerant’ with our membership that we welcome into the family individuals who display a desire to be included without demonstrating through testimony, doctrine, or lifestyle this Spirit-filled regeneration! How do we recognize this? By seeing how the Holy Spirit does actually bring forth His fruit.

Remember Mithra?

The ever-faithful John has revealed an exciting article in the Baptist Press about Mithra. Do you remember when Jane666 graced our blog with her fascinating statements about Mithras? Do you remember when we asked her time and time again about her proof texts and she kept giving us texts from the 1800-1900's?

Why didn't she give us any ancient texts? Because there aren't any!

Hopefully John will be kind enough to guest blog here soon and give us much more information!

John?

Summer Reading, What's Yours?

Today I turned in my application to begin working on my Master's degree this fall, and will no doubt have my hands full of books to read. Because of this, I have purchased a few books to read this summer before I get started in school again, and I'm very excited about being a bookworm all summer (if my family lets me, that is)
.
The two books I ordered off of Amazon arrived today, much earlier than expected. As soon as I finish reading Science and Faith: An Evangelical Dialogue by Harry Poe and Jimmy Davis from Union University, I will hop right into Marsden's Jonathan Edwards: A Life. Once that is completed, I am eagerly awaiting Iain Murray's David Martyn Lloyd Jones the First Forty Years. Both of these books have come highly recommended.

What about you? What books are on your shelf, just waiting to be read in the coming months. Let's hear 'em.

- Kevin

Everybody Shuffle!!

We decided to wait to get Ruth used to new technology, and so we try and keep her away from the computer, and the tv as well. Well, we realized it is simply impossible. Just last night, we walked in on her listening to our new Ipod Shuffle! What's more, she was listening Greg Bahnsen's lectures on Apologetics!

What a girl!!

-Kevin

The Southern Baptist Primer - The Holy Spirit; part 6

In this afternoon's installment of The Southern Baptist Primer, we are going to look at the Holy Spirit's role as the Evangelist. In today's modern 'evangelistic' culture it is all too familiar to hear of 'revivals' and 'evangelists'. Very often we hear of the great numbers of conversions and baptisms that are recorded at these meetings and by these individuals.

I regret having ever thought about these issues without connecting the Holy Spirit to the accomplishment of the work. All too often we neglect the Holy Spirit's work. We rely instead on an individuals passion or testimony. We promote a certain venue or audience and appeal to their personal preference or situation. All the while the Holy Spirit does the work and God receives none of the credit. How sad.

As Southern Baptists we profess to believe that (The 2000 BF&M text appears in bold/italics):

He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration.

The Spirit is the primary Evangelist. This section reaffirms section IV (The Spirit’s Emphasis is Christ). The Holy Spirit works in the hearts of humans to call them to the hope and forgiveness of the Gospel of Christ. Both the Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ (Revelation 22:17).

In John 3:3 Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born again. He then says (3:5) that unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. When Jesus speaks in John 3:8 He indicates that it is especially God the Holy Spirit who produces regeneration.[1] This is what happened in Acts 10:44 as Peter was, at the direction and instruction of the Spirit (10:19), sharing the Gospel with Cornelius’ household. The Holy Spirit fell upon them and they believed.

It is interesting to note that the call is commonly attributed to God the Father (Romans 8:30; 1 Corinthians 1:9; Galatians 1:15; Ephesians 1:17-18; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-23; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; 2 Timothy 1:9; 1 Peter 5:10; 1:John 3:1). Even the Son issues the call in Matthew 9:13; Mark 2:17; Luke 5:32; 1 Corinthians 7:22; 2 Peter 1:3). This is not to negate the Spirit’s work in the calling. It is His powerful testimony in the very Word, the same Word that tells us of the Father and the Son’s calling, that is powerful unto Salvation (Romans 1:16; Hebrews 4:12).
Regeneration is a secret act of God in which He imparts new spiritual life to us.[2] It is the very Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ that gives this life (Romans 8:9-11). It is the Spirit that regenerates and renews (Titus 3:5).

[1] Grudem, Systematic Theology, 699.
[2] Grudem, Theology, page 699.

"drum roll please"

Thanks Sweetheart! We all know you did most of the work!

Thanks Mom and Dad!!



It is now official. I'm actually about 100 times more intelligent than I was a day ago!!!

The Question for the Ages

Today I went to my graduation rehearsal, and then to the house of Seminary President R. Albert Mohler. In all of my four years in Louisville, I have never stepped into that house, and I was duly impressed by his massive library. And I mean massive in every sense of the word. When you have the 55 volume set of Luther's complete works, and it looks miniscule compared to everything that surrounds it, you are officially ridiculous. I spent quite a bit of time just walking through the hallways of his library (yes, I said hallways!), and gazing at all the different books, and other paraphenalia like Spurgeon's handwritten notes for a sermon, a sword from the Crusades, and a printed page from the 1611 Bible. It was awesome.

There were also little glass cups and bowls filled with coffee beans, and they were set at random throughout the library. Now, being the uncultured boy that I am, I had no idea why he had coffee beans. And as the man himself was mingling through his library, I asked him. And I got quite a lecture on the care of books, and how they "like coffee beans." Moreover, and this I could understand, they smell "manly," unlike some kind of "flowery smelling stuff." He also had tobacco scented candles. Dude...

But anyway, as soon he finished his little diatribe on coffee beans and antiquated books, I noticed that there was a little crowd standing around us now, listening. And one of the other students asked a question. And it is a question I've heard people ask Dr. Mohler several times, and I don't see Dr. Mohler very often (I know, I know, big shocker there). He asked this: "Dr. Mohler, can you tell us what we should read?" Maybe I'm a little cynical, but I'm fairly positive that Dr. Mohler has not only answered that questioned a bajillion times, he has even written his reply to that question once or twice (or three or four times). So my question today is this: How many times do you think Dr. Mohler gets asked that question in, say, a week?

Writer's Edge Accepted My Manuscript

Well, my beautiful wife called me just now and told me that I got a notice from Writer's Edge, the editing group that I submitted my manuscript proposal to, and they have accepted it!

Writer's Edge is not a publisher. They more or less provide publishers with 'approved' manuscripts. They will publish my book description in their monthly report which is sent to over 90 popular publishing houses.

Keep praying. We are now waiting for a publisher to call and inquire about the book!

Chicken RUN!!! - Update

The running score as of this morning (9:00 am) was
Chicks - 12
Eggs - 47

When I left for work there were 4 more eggs 'pipping' (chicks making a bunch of noise and beginning to break out) but I don't count them as chicks until they have completely hatched. (Isn't there some proverbial saying that sounds like that?)

You just never know!

[Update (as of 12:30 pm)]
Chicks - 15
Eggs - 44

[Update (as of 8:00 pm)]
Chicks - 19
Eggs - 40

[Update (as of 6:30 am on Wednesday)]
Chicks - 22
Eggs - 37

A Cry of Thankfulness!!!!

I have just finished the final exam of my final semester of my final year in of college. My undergrad is complete. not one hour ago, i turned in an exam i did not study for, and was unprepared for. It doesn't matter because I'm done. I walk the line on Friday, recieve my diploma and....

go right back to school next semester for my Masters... oh well.

But right now, I'm going to bask in the moment!!! I'm done!!!!

-Kevin the College Graduate

Chicken RUN!!!

Well, do you remember the Chicken Littles I hatched out a month and a half ago?

Well here are the eggs that are in the very process of hatching as we speak!

For me, I am the kind of guy that uses 6 nails to do the work of 1 and thinks that if one cup of water is good than one gallon must be better!

There are 59 eggs-in-waiting!

Blest, John, and Kevin:

I need plenty of help naming these things. Ro-tiss Airie, Teri Aki, Jerk, Gri Lled, Cass R Role, Smo Ked, etc.

Done So Soon? Not Hardly.

Well, it has been decided. When society comes to realize there is no real meaning in much of anything, they start doing some pretty incredible stuff...

like this.

Oh Lord come quickly. Like before the second movement.

The Southern Baptist Primer; Part 5 - God the Holy Spirit

In today's installment of The Southern Baptist Primer we enter the eternal Court Room and observe the trial of all creation. In this episode the Spirit takes on numerous roles. What do you think will happen to you, or maybe is happening to you right now, as the Spirit brings His role to life? (The text of The 2000 BF&M is in bold/italics)

He convicts men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.

This is the Spirit’s Edict (proclamation, decree, or statute). As the Chief Witness in the trial of His creation, the Spirit presents damning testimony against humanity for their sinful rejection of the Gospel of Christ. In John 16:8 the Spirit is the Prosecuting attorney bringing forth the charges against the world in the areas of sin, righteousness, and judgment. In verse 9 He finds them guilty because of their sin and the evidence is that they did not believe in God’s way: Christ.

‘The basic sin is the sin that puts self at the center of things and consequently refuses to believe. This is the world’s characteristic sin, and it received classic expression when God sent His Son into the world and the world refused to believe in Him.’[1]

In verse 10 the righteousness that leads to eternal life is not found in the works of the world but in the work of the Son. The Son is with the Father now and the Spirit is present to bring about the understanding. In verse 11 the judgment made by the Spirit is the legal discussion passed upon Satan and his followers. This judgment will not be favorable toward the world, those who are convicted by the Spirit. Each of these aspects of the Spirit’s conviction must be seen as they relate to the Son because it is the Spirit’s focus to glorify Christ (John 16:14).

Paul speaks of the Spirit’s work in the salvation of the Thessalonians in 1 Thessalonians 1:5. The evidence of God’s election is seen not only because the gospel message came in word only but also in power and the Holy Spirit with full conviction. These Thessalonians are the fruit of the powerful convicting work of the Spirit.

What about you today? When the Baliff of Eternity calls your name and you must stand before the Judge of All Creation what will the Spirit have to say about you? How have you responded to this work of God? There is only one way... call on the name of the One whom the Spirit exalts: Jesus Christ. He is the One who has taken upon Himself the punishment for God's children! Christ's sheep hear His voice... can you hear Him right now? Repent and believe in Christ!

[1] Leon Morris, John, page 618.

Free Ipod Video!!!!

I am not usually the kind of person to do things like this one, but after talking to several people I know and trust I am convinced that it really works. It is legitimate. If you go here, and complete one of the easy offers they have (which only involves a minimal amount of work on your part), and then convince a certain amount of people (which is a very reasonable amount) to do the same, they will ship you a free I pod once you completed it, and you can even choose wha tkind you want. I know of one guy who got a Nano doing this. Please help me out and follow the link and check it out. Please help me out!

The Southern Baptist Primer - Part 4; God the Spirit

In today's installment of my commentary on The 2000 Baptist Faith and Message we will see the 'what' and the 'why' of the Spirit's work. The Spirit is here to lift up the name of the Son of God! Observe in your own life. Notice, in the following, how the Spirit works to bring glory to the Son. (The text of the BF&M is in bold/italics).

He exalts Christ.

This is the Spirit’s Emphasis. Jesus told His disciples that “the coming Spirit will glorify me” (John 16:14).

‘There is a reason why the Holy Spirit does not receive the same level and kind of attention that is focused upon the Father and the Son: it is not His purpose to attract that kind of attention to Himself. Just as the Son voluntarily chose to take the role of Suffering Servant so as to redeem God’s people, so too, the Spirit has chosen to take the role as Sanctifier and advocate of the people of God. But since it is the Spirit’s role to direct the hearts of men to Christ and to conform them to His image, He does not seek to push Himself into the forefront and gain attention for Himself.’[1]

It is in Luke’s Gospel and Acts that we can see the connection between the Spirit and the Son most clearly. Luke refers to the Spirit at least 17 times in his gospel and almost 70 times in Acts (compare to 6 times in Mark and 12 in Matthew). The Spirit’s activity is seen prior to the birth of Jesus in the prediction of John’s filling (Luke 1:15). The Spirit is instrumental in Jesus’ conception (1:35) and dedication (2:25-27). He is to be the substance of the Baptism that Christ brings (3:16). He is present at the Baptism and initiation of Christ’s ministry (3:22). He leads Christ to His wilderness experience (4:1). Empowered Christ’s early ministry (4:14). Was one of the subjects for Christ’s first sermon (4:18-19).[2] It is by the Holy Spirit’s power that the disciple’s and the early Christians will testify to the glory of Christ (Acts 1:8). It is by the Spirit’s power that the early Christians witness to Christ even in times of crisis (4:8). The Spirit filled the early church so that they continued to speak the word of God, the testimony of the Son, with boldness (4:30).

The Spirit is even identified as the Spirit of Jesus (Acts 16:7; Romans 8:9; Galatians 4:6; Philippians 1:19; 1 Peter 1:11) and focuses on His Gospel (John 15:26). The Holy Spirit works to bring glory to the Son. His gifting only serves this end. He works to bring attention to the Savior.

[1] James R. White, The Forgotten Trinity, page 139.
[2] Robert Stein, Luke, page 47-48.

The Southern Baptist Primer; Part 3 - God the Spirit

In the next installment of The Southern Baptist Primer, I want you to pay attention to the work of illumination that the Spirit brings to believers. Have you considered this great truth? Do you realize that the reason you understand the Gospel in a saving sense is that God has, by His Spirit, opened your eyes to see and your stone-hard heart to believe! Praise Him!

(The text of The 2000 BF&M is in bold/italics)

Through illumination He enables men to understand truth.

The Spirit brings about Enlightenment. In the prior chapter on Scripture we learned the definitions for inspiration and revelation.[1] In this section we will see how the Holy Spirit continues His work of communicating God’s Gospel of Christ through the third step: illumination. The process looks like this: ‘The giving of God’s message is usually called revelation; the recording of it is spoken of as inspiration, and the work of the Spirit in guiding the interpretation is illumination.’[2] Thus illumination is shedding light on something. It is bringing about the correct understanding of the message communicated.

This statement does not mean that non-Christians, individuals who are not possessed by the Holy Spirit, cannot arrive at a correct metal grasp of the meaning or teaching of the Bible.[3] A study of the word foolishness found in 1 Corinthians 1-3 will help us to understand this better. In 1 Corinthians 2:14 we are told that the natural person is not able to understand the things of God because they are foolishness to him. Does this mean that apart from the Spirit’s working nothing can be understood from Scripture? Is it only those who have been saved who can read the Bible and come to a correct mental grasp of it? Not necessarily. If we look at the way Paul argues in chapters 1 and 3 we can see that this lack of understanding is not mental but moral. It is not the intelligence but the intentions of the heart that comes into play here. In 1 Corinthians 1:20 God makes foolish the wisdom of the world and in 3:19 this same word, foolish, is used to describe how God views the wisdom of the world. It doesn’t mean that God doesn’t understand it. It means that He simply considers it foolish. Therefore in 2:14 Paul is not saying that the natural man cannot understand the facts of the things of the Spirit of God, he is saying that the natural man cannot grasp the significance because he considers them foolish. The natural man is self-centered and sinful. The natural man is dead in his sin and incapable of accepting or believing the things of God without the Spirit’s work of enlightenment.

It is the Spirit who teaches and guides (Matthew 10:20; Mark 13:11; Luke 12:12; John 14:26; 16:13) and it is the Spirit of God who brings us to understand the mind of God (1 Corinthians 2:6-16).

[1] See Chapter 1, page 5.
[2] Tribble, Our Doctrines, page 78. Emphasis mine.
[3] Stein, Basic Guide, page 66. The following word study is found on pages 65-71.

Urgent Prayer Request:

Our dear friend and brother, John Wootten, is having some pretty major hernia surgery on Thursday.

Let's remember him and his family this week as he prepares for it and recovers from it.

John... Keep us updated!

Visit his blog and let him know you are praying for him!

Is God's Love That Simple?

I have often been told that because God is love (1 John 4:8 & 16) then that means that He loves everyone the exact same way. Before you write me off as some kind of heretic hear me out.

Why is it that we can be selective in the emphasis of our love and yet we insist that God isn't. I have often been challenged by Ephesians 5:25-27 - "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish."

Here we see several things that demonstrate that while God is love, He is discriminating with His love.
1. He loves the church in a specific, intimate, protected way: "Husbands love your wives, as Christ loved the church..." How else can you read this passage than to read it to say that Christ loves His church in a way that is unique to the rest of the world. How do you think you, men, would feel if I loved your wife like I love my wife? I don't have to explain the way Amy would feel. Why? Because the love between a husband and wife is sacred and not to be shared. Paul uses that analogy to make this point: While God loves because He is love, He loves His people to a different degree.
2. His special love will accomplish something for the church that will not be accomplished for the lost:
- Atonement - '... and gave Himself up for her,'
- Sanctification - '...that He might sanctify her...'
- Glorification - '...so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor...'

Each of these doctrines are only ever applied to the church, never to the lost, so how can we not make a distinction also?

Think about this: While you love your friends' children, do you love them to the same degree as your love for your own? Why then do we refuse to allow God the same perogative?

James White got me thinking aobut this this morning in this post.

Read it and let me know your thoughts!

That was Deliberate! It was Deliberate!

So, after a hiatus and a trip to Nebraska for my wife's grandmother's funeral, I have returned. And I'm in a rather foul mood this week. It all has to do with those guys over at the Together for the Gospel website. They had to have this great conference, and they had to hold it in the town I live in, knowing I would not be able to go to it! Then, to heap coals upon coals, they had to give out all these great books! It has made this week rather difficult to bear. Fortunately, I have very good friends who took pity upon me, and offered me books that they had already had, so that was a salve to my wounds.

One of those books, The Deliberate Church by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander, is the subject of my post today. I have only just started to read this book, and will hopefully deal with it a a more full fashion later on, but there is a paragraph right near the beginning that I read and reread because I thought it so profound. So today, let me share it with you. The Deliberate Church is a book that is attempting to appeal to those people who are caught up in such methodologies, practices, or fads as the Purpose Driven Church, The Emergent church, and so on and so forth. The premise of the book, however, is entirely different than the fads, and methodologies; the book attempts to simply apply the Biblical truth of the Gospel to church life, and it is excellent. Listen to this:

Preserving this functional centrality of the Gospel is the reason we don't want to promote programs, steps, and innovative metaphors in the Deliberate Church. To preserve functional centrality for the Gospel, human method has to remain plain, or else it will naturally supplant the Gospel's rightful role. In this way, our method in building the church will function in much the same way as a preacher's style of communication. a preacher can be so flamboyant and animated that his own personality becomes more noticeable and affecting than the message he's trying to preach. Similarly, the methods of pastors and church leaders in building the local church can become so prominent that they begin to siphon for themselves the glory for the church's growth that rightly belongs to the Gospel alone. Our goal as preachers and leaders is to keep our methods basic and plain so that the Gospel is cast in bold relief against the backdrop of our own admitted weakness.

This is an excellent observation of the state of many churches today. I wonder if too many people doubt power of the Gospel to work, and therefore they begin to depend upon their own ability rather than the promised ability of the Word of God. Dever and Alexander note this as well in the Foreword when they say:

At the root of all this [creative models and innovative approaches], often unwittingly, is the rapid erosion of our faith in the sufficiency of Scripture for our effectiveness in ministry.


i hope to bring you more from this excellent book soon.

-Kevin

Is VBS the Greatest Evangelistic Event in a Church?

"Vacation Bible School is the greatest evangelistism event in a church."

I read this recently in some of our convention literature. Do you agree with it or not?

How has it come to this? How has a week-long, entertainment intensive, craft-making, clever song singing, snack-serving activity become confused with the greatest evangelism event in a church? How has a hi-priced, flashy logo'd, story-telling, trinket-selling event replaced personal Word throwing as the supposed hi-point of our Great Commission claiming convention?

What kind of confused logic is this? I have no idea and yet, as a pastor I could be (and have been) considered as a heretic for even suggesting that VBS isn't the evangelistic hero that most people think it is.

Questions:

What was VBS like when it was truly a Bible school during the summer vacation?

What do you remember about the evangelism you experienced?

Couldn't we spend the literal thousands of dollars more effectively during the year rather than blowing it all on a all-or-nothing endeavor like VBS?

Why do we die for VBS and refuse year-long discipleship?

Am I totally off my rocker?