Whatever

Let's begin the new year with a fresh submission to the will of God, and break the hold of that lackadaisical and purposeless attitude which has flooded our age.
 

"We live in a day of 'whatever.' The problem is that 'whatever' is fate to - 'whatever happens.' The mantra I hear from post modernity is, 'I don't know, I don't care and I don't really matter.' This strikes at the truth and value of human life. This is preached in contemporary music, seen in art and read in literature. The technical terminology for ths frame of mind is agnosticism, narcissism and apathy. 'whatever' leads to hopelessness and hopelessness leads to apathy and apathy eventually leads to depression. This lethargic minded approach of interpreting life is very dangerous to the health of your soul. The attitude shift of repentance is 'Whate'er My God Ordains is Right.'"

 
-Pastor Craig Bowen of Lakeside Community Church (from a sermon delivered on Dec. 18, 2011)

A Leading Creationist will Speak at my Church

Dr. Gary Parker will speak at Lakeside Community Church on July 24, 2011. At 9:30am, he will teach an age-integrated Sunday School class covering the controversial phrase, "He descended into Hades" from the Apostles' Creed. He will speak on Biblical and scientific creation at the 10:45am service.

Dr. Parker has worked for both Answers In Genesis and the Institute for Creation Research. His testimony is included in the following video from the Institute for Creation Research, along with those of Drs. Thomas Kindell and Jobe Martin.

His Answers In Genesis bio can be read HERE. 

Lakeside Retreat 2011 - What I Brought Home

My wife and kids, of course! And my guitar and mandolin. But besides all that, I brought home a powerful reminder of the importance of faithfulness.

Someone mentioned the way David had saved his father's sheep from lions and bears. He noted, "David could easily have said, 'oh well, it's just one little sheep. No one will miss it.' But instead he risked his life to save that sheep." When I heard these words, I immediately recognized that there have been times when I have not guarded my Father's "sheep," have not stood up bravely to oppose the aggressor, have not risked my life, have not been faithful in the "little things," have not "shed blood" in the fight against sin. I suddenly realized (anew) that seemingly small compromises are serious violations in God's eyes. God values His little sheep very highly, and He values our faithfulness very highly. All things are HIS, and I have no right to relinquish any of His property to the enemy. Whatever He has given me, I must guard carefully.


My mind is His. My mouth is His. My body is His. My life belongs to Him, and I must show that I belong to Him in all of the small ways as well as the big ways. I need to be fierce and courageous in guarding the little sheep in my life. Every stray word, thought and deed must be repented quickly, and every detail must be kept in faithfulness. I have to guard the trust.


My wife and children are His. I must place myself between them and the destroyer. I must stand my ground without flinching, and oppose every threat that comes against them. I must defend them with my life. Love always protects.


That's what I brought home from the retreat. I am grateful that God loves me so much that He will not let me go astray in these things without conviction, rebuke and discipline. Because I am also His sheep, and His son. He calls me, like David, to be a man "after His own heart" - a man who will defend himself and his family against evil.


I Samuel 17:34-37 But David said to Saul, "Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God." And David said, "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." And Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you!"

Lakeside Retreat 2011 - Pictures

A few photos I took this morning . . .

Steve Demme speaking some very encouraging words on "Being a Disciple and Making Disciples" 

(and that's my mandolin in the background)

A beautiful sunrise on Honey Creek (the beauty of it is unmistakable, even though I was holding the camera crooked)

My lovely wife :)  (the one on the right!)

Honey Creek just after sunrise

My son, acting like . . . himself

More of Honey Creek

Lakeside Retreat 2011 - Strengthening Families

This weekend we are at the Honey Creek Retreat Center in Waverly, GA for our annual church retreat. Our featured speaker is Steve Demme, who created the well known "Math-U-See" curriculum (used widely by home schoolers). What are we doing at this retreat? We are celebrating grace! We are celebrating the Gospel! We are celebrating the Lord Jesus Christ! We are spurring one another on in leading our families in the Truth!


Last night Pastor Demme shared a message that showed how David's kingly successes were an extension of the lessons he learned as he honored his parents in his earlier life. He also mentioned that only one kind of family is mentioned in the Bible: the messed up, "dysfunctional" kind. And what great hope that gives all of us imperfect parents and children in the Gospel!

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Meet Dr. Joel Klenck, Paleontologist

Here are two short videos of Dr. Joel Klenck speaking at my church. The rock background is perfect for the subject matter, don't you think?

Learn more about Dr. Klenck's work here: Paleontological Research Corporation

Evolution - the Seeds of Doubt

Some Comments About Creation and Inerrancy

Dr. Andreas Kostenberger was at my church last Sunday!

Yes, it's true. One of the great Biblical scholars of our day taught a small Sunday School class and then preached to less than 100 people at Lakeside Community Church.

Dr. Kostenberger capably answered several tough questions about the book of John, from my "definition-of-world" multi-question to the reason why John 7:53-8:11 is included in the Bible. His working definition of "world" was surprisingly close to mine, but he added "in need of redemption," which I thought was helpful. He also noted that there could be some aspect of "Gentiles & Jews" (i.e., "the whole world" as opposed to Jews only) in John 3:16. I'm not opposed to "Gentiles & Jews" because, well, that pretty much encompasses every individual. You're either one or the other, right? In addition, he mentioned some passages where "world" clearly means "earth" or created universe, and showed how John can quickly switch between the two meanings.

As for the apparently spurious passage in John 8, Dr. Kostenberger said he has contacted Bible publishers and asked them to consider removing it. Although it's probably historically true, the passage lacks the needed textual evidence to be considered an authoritative part of the New Testament. Contrary to the impression given by Bart Ehrman, this is one of only two passages in the New Testament which fall into this category (the other is the famous "second ending" of Mark). An interesting point made during the Q and A session was that John's Gospel has many parallels with the book of Isaiah.

The sermon covered John 20:26-29, which is the account of Thomas' refusal to believe in the resurrection without physical proof. This was timely for me, as I had just confessed to my accountability partners that "my number one problem at the moment is unbelief." God is always the master of perfect timing, is He not? In the middle of the sermon, my 8-year-old daughter looked up at me and said, "Daddy, this is interesting - I like it!" Wow.

What struck me most about Dr. Kostenberger was the way he exuded humility. He was thoughtful, gracious and not quick to speak. It is rare to see such great knowledge and insight unaccompanied by the arrogance that sometimes results from learning. God's Word, rightly handled, does produce a remarkable humility and Christ-centeredness which are inspiring.

My pastor exhibits the same characteristics, and he's no theological lightweight himself. I'm grateful to God for providing these men as examples of character qualities I hope to attain, by grace, in His time.

I haven't figured out how to upload the audio files yet, but if I figure it out I'll offer them for the benefit of all interested THEOparadoxians.

Five Solas of the Reformation Conference

You've probably heard about the anti-Calvinistic John 3:16 Conference. Recently a very different conference was held in South Georgia, and I was blessed to be a part of it. Here's how it happened . . .

CHANGING CHURCHES
My family recently started attending a different church. For about 3 years, we were part of a wonderful group of churches known as Sovereign Grace Ministries. However, the Sovereign Grace church in our area is a long distance from where we live. Although the doctrine and core values are a nearly perfect match for us, we felt a nudge from the Lord to get connected with a church closer to our home. As a result, we recently joined ourselves to Lakeside Community Church, a small but vibrant Evangelical Free church. I could say many things about the blessings we have received in this body of believers, but I want to share about the church retreat that took place this past weekend.

FIVE SOLAS RETREAT

We gathered at Honey Creek Retreat Center in Waverly, Georgia - not far from where the John 3:16 Conference was held last year. Our guest speaker was Rick Bourque, pastor of East Side Community Church in Jacksonville, Florida. Rick has made a devoted study of the Reformation, Reformed theology, and Church History. He taught four great sessions on the 5 Solas of the Reformation:

SOLA SCRIPTURA - By the Word of God Alone

SOLA GRATIA - By Grace Alone

SOLA FIDE - Through Faith Alone

SOLUS CHRISTUS - In Christ Alone

SOLI DEO GLORIA - For the Glory of God Alone

Each session included teaching from the book of Romans, an explanation of one or two of the Solas, and a historical portrait of a person who embodied the doctrine. The historical figures were Martin Luther (Sola Scriptura), John Calvin (Sola Gratia & Sola Fide), John Owen (Solus Christus), and Jonathan Edwards (Soli Deo Gloria). All of this was encouraging, faith-building, and challenging.

THE FRUIT OF SUFFERING

We spent one evening singing hymns and learning the stories behind them. What came out clearly through the historical portraits and all of the hymn stories was this: God reveals His glory through our sufferings. John Owen had 11 children, ten of whom died in early childhood. The other child lived into her late teens, and then she too died. Owen's sparkling theological works were written in the midst of these tragedies, and this man who taught us what it means to "mortify sin" knew death up close. Jonathan Edwards wrote some of his best works after he was kicked out of his church and placed in an out-of-the-way pastorate. Calvin wrote the Institutes while he was being hunted down by the French government. Martin Luther translated the Bible into German while hiding from Catholic persecutors who were intent on killing him. And the lives of the hymn writers were similar: death, tragedy, poverty, pain, sickness. Every suffering led to to a greater glorification of the God who sustained them through it.

TESTIMONY TO GOD'S FAITHFULNESS
We also heard the testimony of retired Missionary, Al Larson, who attends Lakeside with his wife. Many years ago, they were part of a group of missionaries who were captured by rebels while serving in the Congo. After watching many of his friends and co-workers die at the hands of the rebels, Al managed to lead several prisoners to safety in a daring escape. Afterwards, he led a group of Cuban mercenaries to a house where the women and children were being held, and assisted in their rescue. Some years ago, all of this was recounted in a book called "Out of the Jaws of the Lion," by H. Dowdy. Missiologists believe that the sufferings of these missionaries planted the seeds for a revival that has come to the Congo in more recent years. The political instability and persecution continue, but God's glory shines in the darkness. I am grateful that my children can hear these firsthand accounts of God's faithfulness.

The photos in this post were taken at the retreat. Whether in the skies or in the fields, in the streams or in the trees, in our joys or in our sorrows - God paints a beautiful picture, revealing His exalted glory.