Self-Accountability

After going on holiday for just over a week, I felt like my spiritual life had also taken a “holiday”. I promised myself I wouldn’t give up any spiritual disciples, e.g. prayer and reading of Scriptures. However, I don’t remember opening my Bible once. My thought when I returned home was, If someone looked at the last eight or nine days of my life, they wouldn’t know I was a Christian. There wouldn’t be anything different about my life – no time spent with the Lord, no prayer with my wife (excluding meals).

I think we need to hold ourselves accountable more. Maybe once each month we should be asking ourselves, If someone were to look at the past month of my life, would the light of Christ shine through?

And we’re not just talking about Sundays here. It’s pretty easy to be a Sunday Christian – attend a worship service (or two) and call it a week on our spiritual life. So maybe the better question would be, If someone were to look at the past month of my life, Sundays excluded, would the light of Christ shine through?

Fill that Room!

It seems there is a tendency for some teaching pastors to do everything in their power to fill seats in their church worship services. Maybe they are genuine and want to see souls saved, or maybe they just want to pay the bills. Either way, some will go to great lengths to get “butts in seats”, including watering down the Word. What I mean by this is that sermons are no longer sermons but pep talks or self help topics or life lessons. But they want to keep it “Scriptural”, so they will just add something churchy to it – “Improve Your Sex Life God’s Way” or “Reach Your Full Potential In the Lord“.

I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with teaching on sex. But when you disguise your message or water down what the Word teaches in order to fill seats on Sunday morning, you are deceiving a lot of people. The ol’ bait and switch routine in churches needs to go. I’m sorry, I don’t care if you say, “We are just trying to reach as many people as possible.” The Apostle Peter reached a heck of a lot of people, and it was by telling them the truth found in the Word (Acts 2:14-41), not by gimmicks or games. (The same can be said of youth ministries today, some loading up their youth rooms with “a game room fully equipped with a rock wall, pool tables, and tons of the newest gaming stations and games“.)

Francis Chan, teaching pastor of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, California, is one of my favorite pastors to listen to. Not only is he sound in biblical preaching, but he teaches in a way that elicits passion and emotion for the Word. Recently, Pastor Chan spoke to his congregation on why they were not going to go ahead with a major building project. Sadly, this is the kind of attitude many pastors are unwilling to take…

Taken from Cornerstone Simi sermon – “Holy Anguish“

Money quote: “The one thing I don’t ever want to do, you guys, to the day I die is I don’t ever want to water down who God is and whatever he tells me to say. Even if everyone leaves, I don’t ever want to water that down….”

The Church and Hypocrisy

I wanted to direct your attention to a great post by RC Sproul, minister of Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Central Florida and founder of Ligonier Ministries. Sproul addresses a common objection non-Christians have with Christianity – “Why is the church full of hypocrites?”

The term hypocrite came from the world of Greek drama. It was used to describe the masks that the players used to dramatize certain roles. Even today, the theatre is symbolized by the twin masks of comedy and tragedy. In antiquity, certain players played more than one role, and they indicated their role by holding a mask in front of their face. That’s the origin of the concept of hypocrisy.

But the charge that the church is full of hypocrites is manifestly false. Though no Christian achieves the full measure of sanctification in this life, that we all struggle with ongoing sin does not justly yield the verdict of hypocrisy. A hypocrite is someone who does things he claims he does not do. Outside observers of the Christian church see people who profess to be Christians and observe that they sin. Since they see sin in the lives of Christians, they rush to the judgment that therefore these people are hypocrites. If a person claims to be without sin and then demonstrates sin, surely that person is a hypocrite. But for a Christian simply to demonstrate that he is a sinner does not convict him of hypocrisy.

Read the entire article here.

HT: Justin Taylor

Emotion Sickness

I’ve really gotten into old hymns. I’ve discovered that sometimes it doesn’t matter what music is put to the song – whether it’s rock, piano, organ, or no instrumentals at all – because the words don’t change. It doesn’t matter what music you put to “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation/Oh my soul praise Him, for He is thy help and salvation”, because the words to the song alone elicit passion and emotion. You can’t help but have a full and longing heart when you sing about the atonement, sing about God’s love, and sing about the Creator of the universe.

Why is it that many Christians are so afraid of emotion in worship? There is obviously a danger when you are only relying on emotions and your feelings in worship. But if we love God and sing to him as our Saviour, shouldn’t that be an emotional experience?

I’ve been in and out of a number of Presbyterian churches in my life, and I’ve rarely seen passion in singing. No clapping, no hands held high, no dancing (not that those are the only ways to show passion). Maybe it has something to do with where we’ve come from – after all, I couldn’t imagine John Calvin dancing around to Hillsong’s “One Way“.

But think about our distant, distant history. Did first temple Jews stand there singing the Psalms with no emotion, no energy, no passion? I have a feeling that worship and singing in the Old Testament period was a lot more charismatic (yeah, I said it) than we would care to admit. Think of all the instruments that were used – harp, horns and trumpets, cymbals. Think of the experiences they encountered – the parting of the Red Sea and exodus from Egypt, the fall of Jericho, deliverance in the period of the judges. I’m not saying it’s the same exact worship service that charismatic churches have today, but I’m saying there was most likely much more passion and energy in their singing. None of this “pious”, stiff-as-a-board worship that you see in many Presbyterian churches today.

I agree with my pastor, David Meredith, on this one. A church worship service should have solid, biblical preaching and passionate, heart-felt singing.

What do you think?

Thoughts on the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church Controversy

I have been saddened by the recent controversy at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church (CRPC) in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I’ve waited a while to express my thoughts on what has taken place. The reason I am so close to the action is that I grew up worshiping at CRPC. My parents were members of CRPC ever since they moved to Florida from Ohio in the late 70’s. They both taught at Westminster Academy, a private, Classical Christian school started by the late Dr. D. James Kennedy, who was the minister at CRPC from its inception up until he died a few years ago.

Since I was homeschooled through 2nd grade, most of the friends I made early on were from Sunday School and children’s choirs at CRPC. I was very involved in Gangway, the youth ministry at CRPC, from the drama team to Youth Evangelism Explosion, including many mission trips along the way. After graduating high school, I interned as a youth leader, leading the junior high boys Bible study, planning and attending youth retreats, and alternating teaching nights with another intern. After going away to Florida State University, I would still return to South Florida to visit my family and worship with the church that helped my parents bring me up in the Christian faith. CRPC was truly a covenant family to me.

When Dr. Kennedy died in 2007, a pulpit nominating committee was elected to search for a new minister, someone who would pastor the flock in a new era at Coral Ridge. The process took months, and it wasn’t until the spring of 2009 that Tullian Tchividjian was voted to take the role as CRPC’s new preaching elder. There was much excitement, as Tchividjian brought with him youth and passion, which is what I felt CRPC needed at the time.

Pastor Tullian Tchividjian

My history with Pastor Tchividjian is very brief, but I was immediately impressed with him. When I was attending university and home on a break, I heard about his ministry with New City Church. Curiously, I attended a worship service and met Pastor Tchividjian afterwards, as my parents knew him from his days when he attended Westminster Academy. Since I was going to be searching for work after graduation, I emailed him to ask if they were looking to begin a youth and student ministry. He emailed me back and said he would love to sit down and chat over a coffee. Unfortunately, I never got a chance to have that chat, as I was away at university for most of the year. But my point in this story is that Pastor Tchividjian was a very approachable, down-to-earth pastor. And I liked that, coming from a big church like CRPC, where chats with Dr. Kennedy were few and (very) far between.

When New City Church merged with Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church and Pastor Tchividjian became CRPC’s new preaching elder, my parents were impressed with how personable he was. He remembered their names (which may not sound like much, but growing up in one of the first Presbyterian megachurches and under the care of Dr. Kennedy, we hadn’t known a lead minister that could remember our names). He preached with passion and conviction. He was what everyone at CRPC thought we needed.

But something changed. CRPC went from a church filled with joy and excitement and hope to a church filled with sadness and many question marks. This was all in a matter of only a few months. Staff members who had been at CRPC for years were fired without apology. The contemporary worship team was replaced with New City’s worship team. A half dozen members even called for a petition to dissolve the relationship of CRPC with Pastor Tchividjian. Just last Sunday a formal congregational meeting was called to vote on whether or not to keep Pastor Tchividjian as CRPC’s preaching elder. While the vote was in favor of Pastor Tchividjian, over 30% of the congregation voted against him. And you don’t have to be an expert on church politics to know that if 30% of your congregation is not with you after over 90% voted to hire you, then something has gone terribly wrong.

My post today is not to point fingers. It’s not spread rumors or gossip. I am across the Atlantic from CRPC, and I haven’t seen or heard what many others have. But I am sad for my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. I am sad for Pastor Tchividjian. I am sad for those who were fired from CRPC. I am sad for the music director and organist who felt they needed to resign. I am sad for the Christian church as a whole, because it is times like these where the world looks at the church, sees division and anger and bitterness, shakes its head, and wants nothing to do with her.

I believe the church is imperfect. And if our mission was to proclaim the church, it would be nearly impossible. But, fortunately, that is not our mission. Our mission is to proclaim Christ, and him crucified for our sins. Our mission is to point people to a holy, righteous, and sovereign King – one who bled, and died, and beat death to secure everlasting life for all those who believe. The gospel of Jesus Christ is not about how good we can be but about how good he is to us, displaying his infinite love and grace.

Imperfect churches are made of imperfect people – people who follow their convictions and may even think that what they are doing is right when, in fact, it is not. However, as Christians, we must not lift up the banner of imperfection and stand behind it every time we sin. We must not cling to the fact that we are still in the sinful flesh. As a friend of mine once wrote, “Like a pair of tight pants after the holidays, our holiness doesn’t suit us during the week if we’re used to leaving it behind on Sundays.” Holiness isn’t something that we can shrug off and say, “Ah, I’m not perfect.” It is something we must always be reaching for. The beauty of the gospel is in grace and forgiveness of sins, but it’s also in the fact that we are made new. We have been born again into a new life with the Spirit. And we must not let the flesh of old control us, but we must seek righteousness and sanctification in our Lord.

I pray for reconciliation at Coral Ridge. I know many have left already, not because they are divided over fellow worshipers, but because they feel they cannot sit under the current leadership. Much has been written about the dissenters at Coral Ridge – some of it true, but most of it incomplete. But regardless of what has taken place in the past, may all who were involved move on to find peace with each other and peace with our Lord.

To Fireproof a Marriage

Last night, my wife and I watched the movie Fireproof. It is a movie starring Kirk Cameron (Growing Pains, Left Behind) and Erin Bethea (Facing the Giants) which details the fall and redemption of marriage. I must say that the movie left me feeling awkward – but in a good way. I was already expecting poor acting, writing, directing, casting, and pretty much everything else that goes into a good film, so I was not disappointed when Fireproof fulfilled those expectations. However, I would like to point out what I think is the difference between a good film and a good movie.

To me, a good film has a combination of superb acting, directing, writing, etc. It is what wins Grammy awards. Shawshank Redemption and The Godfather are just two examples. But, on the other hand, a good movie entertains, teaches, and leaves the viewer more enlightened. Fireproof is the perfect example of a good movie. While the elements of a good film were absent, I was thoroughly entertained and edified by it. I think if a movie can encourage me in my marriage and, most importantly, my relationship with the Lord, then that movie deserves respect, regardless of the (lack of) quality or cheesiness.

Without spoiling the movie, I just want to quickly share what I think was the highlight of the movie. Cameron plays a firefighter who’s marriage is failing. This is due to a number of different reasons, including his addiction to pornography. There are multiple occasions where his wife points out that he loves the images on the computer more than he loves her. But midway through the movie, Cameron’s character, Caleb, becomes a Christian. And there is a scene where he is sitting at his computer looking at boats on a website when a pornography pop-up appears. You can really see the struggle he is having in his heart and mind – the battle between the sinful nature and the nature of the Holy Spirit. So what is his solution? He rips his computer and monitor away, takes it out back, and beats it with a baseball bat. When his wife gets home, she notices that in place of the computer is a vase with a dozen roses and a card that says “I love you more”.

I love this scene for two reasons: it teaches me about my marriage, and it teaches me about my relationship with God. It reminds me that nothing, including pornography, TV, my iPhone, or whatever it is, should compete with love for my wife. And even more, nothing should compete with love for my Lord. It’s easy to forget that. It’s easy to get caught up in work or your favorite TV show or reading blogs. And there’s obviously nothing inherently wrong with those things. But when they take the place of your wife, they are just another form of infidelity. And when they take the place of your God, they are idolatry.

While it isn’t possible to completely fireproof a marriage – after all, there will always be “for better and for worse” – it is possible to hold yourself accountable to stay faithful to your marriage and faithful to your Lord.

God on Display

Tullian Tchividjian of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church recently wrote a book called Unfashionable about what it means to be an “unfashionable church” and is currently preaching through that each Sunday. I haven’t read the book, but (aside from hearing the word “unfashionable” way too often) I am really enjoying his sermon series. Below is a short excerpt from his August 23 sermon on unfashionable worship. I will include the transcript for those who are short on time.

An unfashionable worship service is a service that leads you to the point of realizing that everything minus God equals nothing. So a worship service is not first the place to showcase our human talent. It is the place for God to showcase his divine treasure. That’s what it’s about. Human talent cannot change a human heart. God on display can change us from the inside out.

A worship service that has the power to change you is a worship service that leaves you with grand impressions of divine gravitas – gravity – not grand impressions of human giftedness. There are plenty of great shows around this city and around the country. And while we are to honor God with the talents he has given us, it is through those talents that we ultimately honor God. We come to see God, to encounter God.

Notice Isaiah did not leave the temple thinking, What a great, angelic choir! What great music! What a great temple! He left thinking, What a great God! Now we have great music in both services. And we have a great facility. But I’m telling you, if people don’t leave this place thinking first, What a great God, then our great music and our great facility mean nothing.

:: Tullian Tchvidjian’s blog, “On Earth as it is in Heaven“
:: Tullian Tchividjian’s podcast

Losing My Religion

For the last few years it seems like the term “religion” has been used and abused so much that I don’t even know what the word means anymore. My understanding was that “religion” refers to our worship of God. After becoming a Christian, it should be evident that our lives reflect what Jesus commands of us, namely to love God and to love others. This is what I thought religion was.

Then along comes the saying “religion sucks”.

Or “it’s not about religion, it’s about a relationship”.

And I’m totally confused.

Now, look, I know what they mean by “religion sucks”. They are basically saying that works righteousness, i.e. trying to achieve salvation on our own merit, sucks. They are saying that it’s not about going through the motions, it’s about knowing Jesus Christ as our Saviour, Lord, and Friend. I would agree with that, but is that really what religion is? Are we getting the word confused because when we think of the word “religion” we think of the Pharisees or even Islamic extremists? Do we think of the Crusades or the Religious Right in America? Do we think of ceremonies and practices that are unnecessary? Maybe… but is that what the word means?

James 1:26-27 says, “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (ESV)

Just before this, we are encouraged to be “doers of the Word” instead of just “hearers of the Word”. In other words, we must not only sit back and listen to our favorite sermons or even spend hours each day reading the Scriptures if we aren’t doing what the Scriptures say! Isn’t religion just being a “doer of the Word”?

Religion is the practical living out of a new life, regenerated by the Holy Spirit. It’s the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5). To me, religion is just our worship of God. Yes we are not saved by it, but religion is our response to the Creator, who saved us by his grace through the blood of his one and only Son.

So maybe it’s time we brought religion back in the church – not the political or national kind but the worship kind.

I’ll make t-shirts.

All You Need is Love

Homosexuality is obviously a hot topic in the church, and it has been for quite some time now. On one hand, there are many who will bring out Bible verses (Leviticus, Romans, 1 Corinthians, etc.) to try to persuade people that homosexuality is a sin. On the other hand “gay affirmers”, as they refer to themselves, claim that homosexuality in the Bible was totally different to homosexuality in the 21st Century and is therefore not a sin. In fact, some will even say that homosexuality is a 20th Century idea. Now, I am one that affirms that the Bible is inerrant, inspired by God and, as Paul’s letter to Timothy tells us (to paraphrase) “useful for everything in life”. I am also one that holds to the five solas of the Reformation, which includes sola Scriptura, the idea that Scripture alone is our final word and authority on all matters.

With all that said, we do not even need those Bible verses from Leviticus, et al. to prove that homosexuality is against God’s created order and, therefore, a sin. All we need to do is look at creation – God creating male and female and commanding them to “be fruitful and increase in number”. Gay Affirmers will say we should not keep two human beings separate who love one another. But we aren’t told that humans were created to love one another. They were created to “be fruitful and increase in number”. Yes, we are commanded to love one another, but that’s not why we exist. I mean, is God okay with things because we love each other? Does love cancel out rebellion from God?

Gay Affirmers will also say that homosexuals are created that way by God, so we need to respect and affirm that. Okay, so what about liars and murderers and thieves and disobedient children? Were they created that way? Look, I do believe that there are many who are born with a predisposition to homosexuality. But that doesn’t mean they should give in to this predisposition. Yes, their life may be difficult. But a difficult 70 years is nothing compared to an eternity of torture.

Now I’m not one of those Westboro Baptist sorts, picketing churches and funerals with signs that read “God Hates Fags”. I believe that we need to show homosexuals grace and love, just like we need to show any other “disobedient rebel” grace and love. After all, I don’t deserve God’s grace myself! What makes me more worthy than them? Nothing! I was once a disobedient rebel myself; I “was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see”. And it’s only because God first worked in my heart that I have put my faith in Christ.

But at the same time, Scripture is quite clear that unrepentant sinners will not inherit the Kingdom of God, whether you are a liar, murderer, homosexual, etc. So, yes, we do need to preach love and grace and mercy. After all, that’s part of God’s character. And if all we do is focus on the sin, how are they to understand grace? But God is also holy and just, and we must preach repentance.

Gospel-Centered Life

Last week, one of my Tweeps, Tim Brister, posted this question on Twitter:

Help me out! In 140 characters or less, how would you define being “gospel-centered” to a new Christian?

8:24 PM Aug 22nd from Tweetie

So, in typical Twitter fashion, I replied to his Tweet:

@timmybrister have thm read MLJ’s beatitudes chptrs n stdies n the srmn on mnt. My wrds, lvng God & othrs thru Jesus w the HS and by grce

8:39 PM Aug 22nd from TweetDeck in reply to timmybrister

And for those who have not learned the text message/Twitter short hand language, here is your English translation:

Have them read Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ Beatitudes chapters in Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. In my own words: Loving God and others through Jesus, with the Holy Spirit, and by grace.

I believe Tim’s question is a very relevant one for all of us, whether we are in professional ministry (the “church staff”) or lay ministry (everyone else in the church). We need to understand the core of the gospel message, and we need to be able to explain to non-Christians (and Christians!) what living a gospel-centered life looks like. It’s easy for us to go around preaching the gospel – that seems to be no problem for most ministers. But living the gospel-centered life is another thing.

Now, there have been books written about this – The Cross-Centered Life: Keeping the Gospel the Main Thing by CJ Mahaney and In Christ Alone: Living the Gospel Centered Life by Sinclair Ferguson to name just two – but I think most of us, as Christians, often find it hard to pin down what exactly a gospel-centered life looks like. Obviously, the very character and person of Jesus Christ himself would be our model and standard for gospel-centered living. But what does that mean for us? How do we keep “the main thing the main thing”?

One of the best answers might be in a resource that has recently been made available for FREE through the end of September when you subscribe to the World Harvest Mission mailing list (don’t worry, you can always unsubscribe!). It is a nine-lesson study appropriately called The Gospel-Centered Life and written by Bob Thune and Will Walker, pastors at Coram Deo Church in Nebraska. To summarize, Pastor Tullian Tchividjian of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church (my home church) in Florida gives us his take on The Gospel-Centered Life:

My seminary friend Bob Thune (pastor of Coram Deo Church in Omaha, Nebraska) has written something to describe his church that I found very helpful to me as I describe our one new church. He explains that every church has a “DNA” – a set of deeply rooted values or characteristics that define it. As one new church committed to learn from the past, live in the present, and look to the future, we can describe Coral Ridge’s DNA as “gospel-centered.” So what does that mean, exactly?

As Bob rightly says, “Churches often obscure the glory of the gospel by reducing it to something less than it is. Some understand the gospel only as doctrinal content to be believed. Others diminish it to a personal, subjective experience of God’s presence. Still others see it as a social cause to be championed. The gospel is none of these, and yet it is all of these. A truly gospel-centered church understands and embraces the fullness of the gospel as content, community, and cause.”

A further look at what our “DNA” should look like:

GOSPEL CONTENT
The Gospel is a message that is to be preached or proclaimed (Mark 1:14; Acts 14:21; Rom 1:15; 1 Peter 1:12). It is the story of God’s redemption of his fallen creation. It is the good news that God has acted in history to conquer evil and reconcile sinners to himself through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus (1 Cor 15:1-12). A gospel-centered church is one where the gospel is proclaimed clearly, consistently, and compellingly (1 Cor 9:16-23).

GOSPEL COMMUNITY
The gospel is not just a message to be believed, but a power to be experienced (Rom 1:16). The gospel shapes a new community as those who were formerly God’s enemies are reconciled to Him (Rom 5:10) and adopted into his family (Gal 4:4-7). The church is not a place, but a people – a community that is continually being reformed and renewed by the transforming power of the gospel (Col. 1:6).

GOSPEL CAUSE
The gospel is a call to action – a declaration that “the kingdom of God is at hand” (Mark 1:15). God is not just interested in the salvation of humans, but in the restoration of all of creation to its original “good” (Gen 1:31; Rom 8:19-22). A gospel-centered church will be active in the work of mercy, justice, and cultural renewal, praying and working against the effects of sin so that God’s will might be done “on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt 6:10).

So a gospel-centered life is:

1. Preaching and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ clearly, consistently, and compellingly.
2. Being part of a community of believers that are continually being reformed and renewed by the transforming power of the gospel.
3. Active in the work of mercy, justice, and cultural renewal.

HT: Tim Brister – “Provocations and Pantings”