Election Thoughts

I ran across this excellent post from Mark Driscoll, the pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, yesterday and thought that he hit it right on the head!!!!! I hope that this is food for considerable thought given the nature of the problems that we now face as a nation.

In God We Do Not Trust
Mark Driscoll
In my years of pastoral ministry I have worked very hard to not be political. I believe that my job as a pastor is to preach and teach the Bible well so that my people make their decisions, including their voting decisions, out of their faith convictions.
This election season which has dominated the cultural conversation for many months has been particularly insightful regarding the incessant gospel thirst that abides deep in the heart of the men and women who bear God’s image. Without endorsing or maligning either political party or their respective presidential candidates, I am hopeful that a few insights from the recent election season are of help, particularly to younger evangelicals.
First, people are longing for a savior who will atone for their sins. In this election, people thirst for a savior who will atone for their economic sins of buying things they did not need with money they did not have. The result is a mountain of credit debt they cannot pay and a desperate yearning that somehow a new president will save them from economic hell.
Second, people are longing for a king who will keep them safe from terror in his kingdom. In the Old Testament the concept of a peaceable kingdom is marked by the word shalom. In shalom there is not only the absence of sin, war, strife, and suffering but also the presence of love, peace, harmony, and health. And, this thirst for shalom is so parched that every election people cannot help but naively believe that if their candidate simply wins shalom is sure to come despite sin and the curse.
The bottom line is obvious to those with gospel eyes. People are longing for Jesus, and tragically left voting for mere presidential candidates. For those whose candidate wins today there will be some months of groundless euphoric faith in that candidate and the atoning salvation that their kingdom will bring. But, in time, their supporters will see that no matter who wins the presidency, they are mere mortals prone to sin, folly, and self-interest just like all the other sons of Adam and daughters of Eve. To help extend naïve false hope as long as possible, a great enemy will be named and demonized as the one who is hindering all of the progress to atone for our sins and usher in our kingdom. If the Democrats win it will be the rich, and if the Republicans win it will be the terrorists. This diversionary trick is as old as Eve who blamed her sin on Satan rather than repenting. The lie is that it’s always someone else’s fault and we’re always the victim of sinners and never the sinner.
Speaking of repentance, sadly, no matter who wins there will be no call to personal repentance of our own personal sins which contributes to cultural suffering and decline such as our pride, gluttony, covetousness, greed, indebtedness, self-righteousness, perversion, and laziness. And, in four years we’ll do it all again and pretend that this time things will be different. Four years after that, we’ll do it yet again. And, we’ll continue driving around this cul de sac until Jesus returns, sets up his throne, and puts an end to folly once and for all.
In the meantime, I would encourage all preachers to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and repentance of personal sin. He alone can truly atone for our sins. He alone can deliver us from a real hell. He alone is our sinless and great King. And, he alone has a Shalom kingdom to offer.
Lastly, for those preachers who have gotten sidetracked for the cause of a false king and a false kingdom by making too much of the election and too little of Jesus, today is a good day to practice repentance in preparation to preach it on Sunday. Just give it some time. The thirst will remain that only Jesus can quench. So, we’ve still got work to do….until we see King Jesus and voting is done once and for all.

Miscellaneous Thoughts!

It's been a while since I have posted anything on my blog. Since my last post I have been on a 40 Day Sabbatical, a 2 week vacation, and have been "back in the saddle" at the church for about 10 weeks. Needless to say, a lot of water has gone under the bridge! I find myself thinking more and more lately about the state of the Gospel in the church. When I read the Gospels (and preach through Galatians!), it seems there is a definitive difference between what I read and what I see. In the modern church, it seems that we are preoccupied with a gospel that seems to be all about us. A quick look at Christian books and TV only confirms my fear. The "modern" proclamation of the Gospel seems to center on the message that "Jesus died so that you can have a better life. God wants you to be happy, healthy, and, don't forget, wealthy." It seems that, according to some preachers, God exists for me. But, the Bible doesn't say that at all. In fact, it is just the opposite- I exist for God. And more importantly, Jesus did not die so that I can have a better life. He died so that my sin, which separated me from Him and doomed me to the just penalty of my rebellion against Him, hell, could be forgiven. Now, it is true that a relationship with God through Jesus Christ does produce a better life. But, what makes it better is not the stuff that "I get" from God. It's the tremendous peace of knowing that God has forgiven my sin through the finished work of the cross, and encountering Him as we walk through life together, that is the real benefit of my salvation. There is no greater blessing than that!

Unfortunately, it would seem that a lot of proclaimers have bowed to the pressure of political correctness and culture. It seems that many have concluded that "people don't need to be told that they are sinners. They already know that. They need to hear the good news!" Nothing could be further from the truth! Modern America has decided that there is no such thing as sin, because there is no such thing as absolute truth. Without absolutes, everything is negotiable! What follows is a life directed by a "if it feels good, do it" mentality. Clearly, man must be confronted with the fact of sin, before he is even aware that he needs the "Good News".
So, where do we go from here? I believe that we, in the church, need to make sure that we are constantly preaching the Gospel ("... using words when necessary. - St. Francis of Assisi). Our gospel must be Biblically rooted and complete. A piece-meal gospel doesn't result in piece-meal Christians. It results in something far more sinister- people who believe themselves to be "saved" who continue to live unregenerate lives. This leads to a double tragedy. First, the person has a false belief that they are right with God, inoculating them to a true conversion experience. Second, lost people around them stumble at their duplicity and conclude that Jesus really doesn't change lives. To combat this dual tragedy, we must make Biblical fidelity of first importance. We must speak the words of Jesus and back up our words with the love of Jesus. Anything less, and we are guilty of preaching "a different gospel- not that there is another one..." (Galatians 1:6b-7a, ESV). If we are found to be doing so, the words of Paul are very clear, and jarring: "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed." (Galatians 1:8, ESV)

Must see from Louie Giglio

Someone forwarded the link below to me and I could not help but post it here. I cannot tell you how much this spoke to my heart. I hope it encourages you as well. God bless!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4zgJXPpI4

Oprah & Eckhart

By now you have probably seen the u-tube video being circulated about Oprah Winfrey's fascination with New Age guru Eckhart Tolle. Apparently, Oprah has become completely immersed in Tolle's "A New Earth" teachings. From what I have read and seen, Tolle's teachings seem pretty close to the ancient Gnostic teachings that we see the Biblical authors writing against. So why does this stuff seem to find traction in almost every generation? The appeal of Tolle's teachings is that it promotes the idea that you can overcome negative patterns of thinking and rise above the pain and suffering of life. That is an attractive message! Who wouldn't want to have an existence that is free from pain and suffering. Tolle teaches that we can arrive at this "higher consciousness" through meditation and introspection. The idea of an after-life is discouraged by Tolle. He flippantly answers Oprah's question, "What do you think about life after death?" with "I don't think much about it at all." All of these ideas are found in the basic tenets of Gnosticism. So it is an old message finding new proponents. With Oprah's vast media empire and deep pockets, expect this to gain some "celebrity" backing.

So how do we respond? First, we should not be surprised. We are told in Scripture that false teachers and destructive heresies would come. It is just one more reminder that we live in a fallen world that is screaming for redemption! Second, now is the time, more than ever, for Christians to LIVE the message of Christ. Bashing Oprah & Tolle only play into their scheme. Christians should respond by showing our world the meaning of love. God's love for man is so much greater than any love than man could demonstrate. As we reflect God's compassion to mankind, we will show the world that God is not just interested in their eternal destination (though He really does care about that deeply!). He cares very much about their lives now and desires to have a relationship with them now! Third, and perhaps more importantly, we need to pray for Oprah. By her own admission she grew up in a Christian church. She says that one day during a sermon about the "Almighty nature of God" the pastor talked about God being a jealous God. She says this struck her as "funny". How could an "Almighty God" be jealous? This began the questioning that led her to Tolle. We need to pray that Oprah comes to understand that it is God's intense love for her that motivates God's feelings of jealousy. God wants a relationship with Oprah unhindered by false gods and competitors. He wants the same for all of us! Let's all pray that Oprah turns away from this error and turns back to 'THE Way, THE Truth, and THE Life", Jesus Christ!

Any ideas????

I am in the process of doing some advance sermon planning (I'll bet you didn't know that I actually did that, did you?). In the midst of this I had a thought- why not ask people to submit some topics that they would like to hear a sermon on? So.... post some topics. I will prayerfully sift through them and put together a sermon series. Thanks for you help!

I have been thinking this week a lot about the power of words. Words have the ability to tear down or to build up. They have the ability to enhance life or to destroy life. I guess that's why we are counseled in Scripture to "be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger" (James 1:19b). I must admit this is a hard one for me! Those of you who know me can attest that I love to use A LOT of words- especially when preaching (there, I said it so no one else had too- Ha!). Learning to listen more and talk less is the key to being slow to anger in my estimation. When I really listen to people, it is not long before I start to get a sense of their heart. This helps me to interpret their words and actions so that I respond appropriately, and most importantly, in a God-honoring way. Words- they make us or break us. Let's all pray for greater wisdom and self-control so that our lives reflect our Father in Heaven and our words build up rather than tear down.

Hey Guys!

This is my first entry in my new blog. I am pretty new at this so it will take me some time to get my legs under me. Anyway, I hope that this blog will become a place to talk about all the great things that God is doing all around us. There are some pretty incredible stories that need to be heard. In fact, if you have a great "God story", post it here! Let's encourage each other and do a little "bragging on the Lord!" By the way, the picture above was taken on a beautiful beach in California. I was there last summer at the Vineyard National Conference. I cannot tell you how awesome it was to look out at the Pacific ocean and ponder how God scooped it out with His hand. It reminded me just how big our God really is. It also reminded me how really small I am. Isn't it really cool how such a big God can care about someone as small as me? The Scriptures tell me that God knows me right down to the number of hairs on my head. That means that He knows what I am going through and loves me enough to walk with me through it all. To everyone out there who is suffering or struggling, remember, a really BIG God loves you BIG and is walking with you through all of life's ups and downs! Be encouraged!

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