The Resurgence

Does God Really Want a Team to Have a Senior Leader?

Mark Driscoll — Wed, 23 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

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From Filthy Rags to Robes of Righteousness

Justin Holcomb — Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, those who remember you in your ways. Behold, you were angry, and we sinned; in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved? We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

Isaiah 64:5–6

I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness.

Isaiah 61:10a

Someone swindled us.

They appealed to our pride and sold us the idea of moralism, and told us that acting religious is expected of us. And we went along with it.

We’re tempted to strut as if we are wearing royal robes of spirituality and morality. But the truth is that we are really parading in filthy rags. That is the picture offered in Isaiah 64. Most biblical commentaries say that these “filthy rags” God is referring to are actually “menstruation cloths” associated with one of the most extreme forms of uncleanness under the Law of Moses. They were treated with the great disgust, disposed of immediately, and never reused. Sit with that for a second. All your best moments, your most selfless and spiritual acts—God calls them filthy rags.

Justification is the opposite of condemnation.

There is a reason we do not boast in our morality and spirituality. If we have faith in Christ, we are not left draped in our own filthy rags but we get the robe of righteousness from Christ. Isaiah writes: “I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness” (Isa. 61:10). From filthy rags to robes of righteousness. That’s beautiful! Jesus takes on our filthy rags, and he robes us in his righteousness. This is imputed righteousness. This is justification—the declaration of your righteous status before God.

Justification is the opposite of condemnation. When a person is condemned, they are declared to be wicked and sentenced to death. When a person is justified, they are declared to be righteous and set free to live. Condemnation doesn’t make a person wicked; it simply declares their state of wickedness. If you trust in Christ for your righteousness, then by faith you are declared righteous before God. His righteousness becomes your righteousness.

There is no waxing and waning of your righteousness before God.

This is the wonderful doctrine of imputed righteousness. The righteousness of Christ is really given to us, credited to our account. It covers our sins like a spotless white robe of righteousness.

Imputation is an awesome liberating truth that can give us great assurance and confidence before God. You may be strong today and weak tomorrow. Life will always have its peaks and valleys. “Old sins” may re-emerge, or God may deliver you from them. You may progress or regress spiritually. But there is no waxing and waning of your righteousness before God. For you are clothed in the perfect righteousness of Christ to which you can never add and from which you can never subtract.

Jesus Wants to Trade

Ed Welch — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

When Jesus touched or was purposefully touched, there was a lot happening. He was showing his solidarity with outcasts. He was identifying with them. Of that, there is no doubt. When you see people purposefully touching, you know they are at least good friends. But if that’s all Jesus did, it would have been a nice but empty gesture. The outcasts would have felt temporary comfort but no real change in status. So there was much more happening. The accumulating references to “power” give it away.

With every intentional touch there was a transaction being made. “Power” goes out from Jesus to the person who was touched. Splice together various Scriptures and you will see that power is a loaded term that includes:

Holiness conferred (consecration)
Forgiveness of sins
Cleansing and purification
Healing
Identification with Jesus’ status

Meanwhile, the unclean person gave something to Jesus, the scapegoat. He or she gave:

Sins
Shameful acts
Victimization and its contamination
Disease

This is the gospel: God touches us.

All the talk about cleanness and uncleanness points to this divine touch. This is what the universe itself was waiting for. It is an unbalanced transaction that displaces our shame and replaces it with holiness. The Apostle Paul put it this way: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). With our touch, Jesus becomes our scapegoat. In his touch, Jesus takes our sin and absorbs our shame (Ps. 69:9; Rom. 15:3), and we receive his righteousness. If you prefer symmetry in your relationships, in which you give a gift of similar value to the one you receive, you have not yet touched Jesus.

This is faith: we reach out and touch the holy One.

Faith means we believe that the kingdom of heaven has come to us in Christ. It means we believe there is hope in Jesus and only in him. It means we believe that rescue, healing, covering, acceptance, and cleansing are possible, and possible only in Jesus. Faith—or touching Jesus—means saying, “Jesus, I need you.”

It sounds easy but, like all things spiritual, faith is evidence of supernatural power at work in us. Left to ourselves, we instinctively turn inward rather than put our trust and confidence in Jesus. You know this instinct. We call it self-protection, though it is more accurately called unbelief.

Shame has a natural affinity with self-protection and unbelief. It hides from others, feels undeserving of anything good, and believes it will contaminate whatever comes close. But look at what happened when Jesus came. Unclean people suddenly were filled with hope. Instead of hiding from the world, they became indifferent to the derision of the relatively clean townspeople and boldly went out to see Jesus. When they saw him, they felt compelled to touch him because they understood that their salvation was near. They came alive!

Watch them as they sit in the filth of their daily lives. Watch them as they hear rumors of someone who cares and has power. Watch them stand up when they receive news that Jesus is approaching. Watch their steps quicken when they hear the crowd. Watch them become an unstoppable force when they see him. Don’t get in the way of someone who is both desperate and hopeful when the King is near.

These are the men and women of faith.

Join them. Don’t be one who happens to bump into Jesus in a crowded marketplace. Instead, join those who purposefully touched him.

Please, join them.

This post is excerpted from Ed’s latest book, Shame Interrupted: How God Lifts the Pain of Worthlessness and Rejection. You can find out more about the book here, read a free chapter of the book here, or pick up a copy on Amazon today.

Atheists Need Your Help

Mitch Stokes — Tue, 22 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Perhaps you’re aware of a new version of atheists called, reasonably enough, the New Atheists. Like older versions, new atheists don’t believe in God and claim that religious believers are, if not downright stupid, at least intellectually cavalier. But the New Atheists’ complaints against believers aren’t merely academic. As they see it, the believer’s lack of intellectual responsibility is more than a matter of ideas; it is a thing of immense practical concern. Our irrationality, they say, makes us dangerous, not merely dolts. Naturally, this troubles the atheists, whose militant leaders Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins, and the late Christopher Hitchens see religious belief as something to eliminate rather than merely ridicule. “We must find our way to a time when faith, without evidence, disgraces anyone who would claim it,” writes Harris. “Given the present state of our world, there appears to be no other future worth wanting.”

Of course, religious people can be dangerous. Most of us think of September 11, 2001, when Muslim extremists flew airliners into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon, killing thousands. We’re all aware of this kind of danger. Yet extremists aren’t the sole threat. The perils of religion surround us daily. According to Dawkins, you or your parents (or both) have probably committed horrific crimes in the name of God. In his article “Religion’s Real Child Abuse,” Dawkins approvingly quotes psychologist Nicholas Humphrey:

Children, I’ll argue, have a human right not to have their minds crippled by exposure to other people’s bad ideas—no matter who these other people are. Parents, correspondingly, have no god-given license to enculturate their children in whatever ways they personally choose: no right to limit the horizons of their children’s knowledge, to bring them up in an atmosphere of dogma and superstition, or to insist they follow the straight and narrow paths of their own faith. In short, children have a right not have their minds addled by nonsense.

Ominously, Humphrey adds: “And we as a society have a duty to protect them from it.”

In fact, Dawkins thinks that a religious upbringing is worse than most forms of child abuse. Once asked about the Catholic priest sex-abuse scandal, Dawkins actually said that, “the damage [from molestation] was arguably less than the long-term psychological damage inflicted by bringing the child up Catholic in the first place.” The only thing more lacking than his sensitivity is his sense of perspective. Rape or religion? Dawkins says it’s arguably worse to teach children that Christianity is true than it is to violate them sexually.

If Dawkins and other atheists are being genuine—and I have no real reason to doubt their sincerity—they’re trying to set the stakes very high. There’s a certain amount of bluster and theatrics of course; nevertheless, by offering to “protect” our children from religious teaching, it’s hard not to detect more than a whiff of good old-fashioned totalitarianism. Christopher Hitchens’ brother, Peter, a Christian, reminds us that after Lenin’s coup, teaching religion to children was illegal and could result in the death penalty.If religious education amounts to literal child abuse, it’s difficult to see how Dawkins and Humphrey could find such measures disagreeable.

Whatever the tactics, a cultural war is afoot. Only struggle will produce the rationalist future that Harris and others envision. To get there, said Christopher Hitchens, “We have first to transcend our prehistory, and escape the gnarled hands which reach out to drag us back to the catacombs and the reeking altars and the guilty pleasures of subjection and abjection. . . . To clear the mind for this project, it has become necessary to know the enemy, and to prepare to fight it.” Hitchens said elsewhere that one of the few things he and the late William F. Buckley Jr. agreed on was that “the duel between Christianity and atheism is the most important in the world.”

How then should we respond to belligerent unbelievers? Well, it’s all too easy to get angry and wound up. Do the opposite instead: relax. This is one of the first things to remember when attempting to love your enemies. Anger and fear—the latter usually causing the former—get in the way of doing the right thing. To be sure, these atheists are sometimes in your face, asking for a fight, but if you melt into defensive shrillness just because their nose is an inch from yours, you’ve already lost—not merely the confrontation—but the person in front of you.

So how do you remain calm, confident, and in your right mind when someone is threatening you? The first and obvious thing is to constantly pray about it, asking to fear God alone. The second is to prepare for confrontation, to train for it. In the case of these atheists, read up on your apologetics, learn the fundamental moves and high-yield techniques. Just as in physical confrontations, the more competent you are at self-defense, the easier it is to relax. As someone once said, “The stronger you are, the more gentle you can afford to be.” If you don’t feel threatened by the person in front of you, you’ll be more likely to see him as someone who needs help. Which is exactly what the atheist is.

Mitch Stokes is the author of his newly released book, A Shot of Faith {to the Head}: Be a Confident Believer in an Age of Cranky Atheists. You can check out more about the book from the video below.

Why Your Self-Image Won't Make You Happy

Jonathan Dodson — Mon, 21 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

We are all concerned about our images.

Hipsters work hard to look like they don’t care about image. Professionals work equally hard to look like they do care about image. We all project our values through the way we present ourselves. In writing this post, I am tempted to make writing decisions that reflect an intellectual image, instead of writing in a way that will best serve you.

The Temptation and the Lie

We all face the temptation to project false images of ourselves because we find the real image inadequate. This is easily done with social media. Our online image is often different from our offline image. With our Facebook status, we can project how we want others to see us, not who we truly are. Blog posts can be shrouded in airs of intellectualism, edginess, or humility. If we are honest, our real image is nowhere near as attractive as we want it to be.

We want to be more beautiful, more successful, more creative, more virtuous, more popular, and more intelligent than we actually are. We all have an image problem. The problem, however, is not that we lack beauty, success, creativity, virtue, popularity, or intelligence. The problem is that we believe the lie that says that obtaining those images will actually make us happy. Believing the lie, we fight rigorously to obtain (or retain) our images of choice...

The problem is that we believe the lie that says that obtaining those images will actually make us happy.

We fight with whatever it takes—money, time, sacrifice, overworking, and the occasional white lie. In doing so, we believe a lie. We express faith in what is false. We rely on the unreliable. Only after we realize our tendency to build our identity on things that are untrue and unreliable can we begin to sink our identity into what is truly reliable. If none of the images above truly satisfy, what kind of image should we be striving for?

The Image of God

Christianity is about image. It affirms that we were created in God’s image (Gen. 1:26–28), disfigured in our fall with Adam (Rom. 5:12–21), and are in desperate need of renewal. This image constitutes our essential dignity as human beings. It is an imprint of the Creator’s divine nature, which includes our ability to rule and relate.

Only by looking to Jesus can our disfigured image be restored and our contemptuous disregard forgiven.

Apart from the redeeming work of God to restore our image, we rule and relate in very distorted ways. We rule over instead of for one another, and we relate out of a distorted sense of what will truly make us happy. As a result, we treat God and others with contempt and disregard. The good news is that God wants to restore our image in Christ (2 Cor. 3:18; Col. 3:10). He promises a restored image in Jesus, who is the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15). He holds up the image of Jesus as most glorious, and through the gospel, opens our eyes to his never-ending beauty (2 Cor. 4:6).

Only by looking to Jesus can our disfigured image be restored and our contemptuous disregard forgiven. When we look away from ourselves and into the face of Christ, we behold “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6). This gospel knowledge corrects our vision again and again so that we not only behold but also become the image of the glory of God in Christ.

This post is excerpted from Jonathan Dodson's new Re:lit book, Gospel-Centered Discipleship. For the rest of the conversation about the definition of discipleship, what it is and it applies to the gospel, pick up your copy today.

This Changes Everything

Bob Kellemen — Mon, 21 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Have This Mind

I’ve often said that there’s one passage of Scripture that if I consistently applied it to my life then everything about how I live would change.

I’ve frequently written that I also think the same passage is a primary reason many people find it difficult to follow Jesus, because this passage is so convicting and calls for such radical sacrifice.

I’ve regularly thought that this same passage summarizes my prayer for the ultimate result of my parenting—that my children would choose to live out this one passage.

What’s the passage?

Philippians 2:1–11:

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Imagine the Instead Ofs

Imagine if the life and death of Christ—his self-sacrificial giving—were the model we followed every day in every relationship . . .

How would we relate differently to others if instead of seeking (demanding) that they encourage us, comfort us, and love us, instead we lived to encourage, comfort, and love others because we already have Christ’s encouragement, comfort, and love?
How would we relate differently in our homes—with our spouses, parents, and children—if instead of insisting that family members thought like us, we sought to understand, empathize with, and be one with our family members?
How would we relate differently at work and in church if instead of seeking our own agenda, we did nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility considered others better than ourselves?
How would we relate differently with our friends and with our “enemies” if instead of looking out for “number one,” we each looked not first to our own interests, but to the interests of others?
How would our attitudes toward others change if we maintained the mind of Christ and did not demand equality, but made ourselves nothing, serving others, sacrificing for others, and humbling ourselves before and for others—even to the point of laying down our life for another?

The Fleshly Objection

Our flesh objects, “That’s not fair. I’ll only give like that if the other person is willing to give the same amount!”

I’m eternally grateful that Christ did not think like that. If he had, then I’d still be dead in my sins, because he would not have chosen to die for my sins.

It’s Not about Me

I’m preaching to myself here. This passage is eating me for lunch. That is, it’s convicting me deeply about how self-focused I’ve been instead of being Christ-centered, Christ-like, Christ-empowered, and others-focused.

Through Christ’s power, I want to live like Christ for Christ’s glory.

Through Christ’s power, I want to put others first, just as Christ sacrificed himself for us.

My Statement of Faith and Practice

Churches and parachurch groups create a statement of faith and practice that summarizes what they belief about Christianity and how Christians can reflect Christ as they live the Christian life.

For me, Philippians 2:1–11 has become for me a summary personal statement of faith and practice.

In Philippians 2:5–11, I find my statement of faith: an incredible summary of what I believe about Christ’s birth, life, death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and eternal glory.

In Philippians 2:1–5, I find my statement of practice—a radical summary of how I believe I should live the Christian life through Christ, like Christ, and for Christ as I serve others.

Your Turn

How could this one passage, Philippians 2:1–11, change how you live your life and relate to others?

Why the Church and the Community Need Shepherds

Scott Thomas — Sun, 20 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

What do you see when you walk around your city? What do you feel? How will you respond? In Matthew 9:35–38, we get a glimpse of what Jesus saw and felt, and how he responded.

Jesus saw the harassed and helpless crowds of people wandering aimlessly like a sheep without a shepherd. They were harassed (severely troubled, battered, bruised and enslaved to sin) and they were helpless (thrown down, condemned by sin, blind and lost).

Jesus Felt Compassion

Jesus felt compassion. Compassion is a distinguishing characteristic of Christianity. Other religious systems demand perfection and or alignment with their steps of absolution. The Pharisee in the temple in Luke 18 thanked God that he was not like other sinners and God condemned him. The despicable sinner in the temple in Luke 18 begged for mercy and God forgave him. Christianity looks for the imperfect, the despised, and the corrupt. God is not recruiting the righteous for his kingdom; he is redeeming the rotten.

Matthew’s Gospel reveals the very human and very divine compassion of a merciful God. In Matthew 14:13–14, Jesus saw a great multitude and he felt compassion. In Matthew 15:32, Jesus had compassion for the multitude and for their need to eat. In Matthew 18:21, the parabolic king had compassion for the man who was deeply indebted to him and he released him from his debt. In Matthew 20:30, 34, Jesus met two blind men on the road to Jericho and had compassion on them. In Matthew 23:37, Jesus felt deep concern for Jerusalem and desired to gather them near his breast like a hen would her baby chicks.

Jesus Responded

Jesus responded by praying for a gathering of the harvest before utter lostness and irreversible judgment. The solution was more workers, and more shepherds who will lead their flocks to the chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ.

The Shepherds Are Few

The church and our community need shepherds to care for them. The central theme of Gospel Coach is to shepherd leaders to glorify God. In Acts 20:28, the word “care” (for the church of God) is a word that is translated “shepherd.” Jesus is “the great shepherd of the sheep by the blood of the eternal covenant” (Heb. 13:20). The point of all church leadership is to lead others to the chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ. He is the “Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Pet. 2:25).

4 Characteristics of a Gospel Coach

A Gospel Coach is a leader who reflects the nature and characteristics of a shepherd.

A Gospel Coach recognizes their personal identity as a sheep in need of shepherding care. “As a fellow elder and a witness of the suffering of Christ . . .” (1 Pet. 5:1). Shepherd leaders and coaches are not people who have no problems; they are people who are leading others as they too follow the chief Shepherd.
A Gospel Coach initiates care with the people immediately around them (1 Pet. 5:2). We are mandated to care for the flock of God among us. This may be a church or a small group or a ministry department or fellow employees or neighbors or family.
A Gospel Coach responds to needs voluntarily, not under compulsion (1 Pet. 5:2b–3a). Peter describes this sacrificial leading as willingly, eagerly and as an example to others. A Gospel Coach is not shepherding because he is paid to care for others (see the hireling in John 10:12), but one that is called to care for others.
A Gospel Coach provides a reproducible example to those they are leading (1 Pet. 5:3). It doesn’t require that a person be without faults, sins, or inadequacies. We don’t need to be perfect and we cannot be perfect. Sometimes we think an example is someone with a perfect marriage, a perfect family, a perfect record, and a perfect credit score. Jesus is the only “perfect” in our life. We are only exemplary leaders when we acknowledge and confess our need for a Savior every day of our life in every area of our life.

Shepherds Reflect Jesus’ Love for Us

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34–35, emphasis mine).

Scott Thomas and Tom Wood’s new book, Gospel Coach: Shepherding Leaders to Glorify God, just hit digital and physical store shelves.

Got Music?

Resurgence — Sat, 19 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

How many of you were around back in the day during the old school Mars Hill bands? How many of you wish you'd been there?

Well, we made an epic discovery the other day. While doing some spring cleaning, we stumbled on a bunch of CDs of old Mars Hill live worship. These are Mars Hill Music classics from Team Strike Force, Red Letter, Ex Nihilo, and more bands.

Wanna own this part of Mars Hill Music history? Give us $30, and we'll send you a package of 40 assorted CDs of old and new Mars Hill recordings. Then, you can give the discs to your friends, family, band members, neighbors, barista, person on the bus—whomever, and relive some of the old glory days.

But hurry—we only have enough for 60 orders!

Order your 40 Mars Hill Live CDs here.

Your Problems or Your Purpose: Where Is Your Focus?

Sutton Turner — Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

How you approach your job or your ministry makes a difference in how effective and helpful you are to the larger goal. Pastor Sutton writes about what being a helpful team member looks like.

When I interview someone for a job, I can usually make a decision within the first five minutes.

In 1997, I started a company that grew from 3 to 380 employees in just a few years. In 2008, I founded another company that grew from 4 people to 500 in just 16 months. Today over 1,000 people work for Khidmah.

For most people in the world, work is a team sport—and ministry is always a team sport. How do you know whether or not someone will be a good addition to your team?

One simple diagnostic question has been helpful for me: Is this person problem-focused or purpose-focused?

Here’s the Problem

Problem-focused people . . .

. . . are paralyzed by problems and fail to find solutions.

. . . are quick to point out problems and criticize anything and anyone—except themselves.

. . . resist good leadership because they perceive it to be a threat.

. . . resist change because they cannot see the benefit of a new direction, only the problems.

. . . take it personally when someone is placed above them in the organizational chart.

. . . never take responsibility for their actions and instead always blame another person or problem.

. . . don't respond to encouragement, don't want supervision, and don't listen to advice because they perceive themselves to be sufficient.

. . . like having other problem-focused people around because they like to sit around, criticize, and talk about problems.

. . . succeed by mistake or by luck, never by effort or planning, because they are more focused on problems than how to overcome them.

. . . bring their problems onto a team.

. . . create more problems, because it gives them something to do: dwell on problems.

Purpose Full

Purpose-focused people . . .

. . . approach problems as opportunities to shine, not problems to overcome.

. . . never bring up problems without multiple potential solutions.

. . . focus on their strength. They know what they are good at and seek out opportunities to use their skills.

. . . acknowledge their weaknesses and know the areas where they must improve.

. . . respond to encouragement. Because they understand their own shortcomings, they appreciate knowing that someone believes in them.

. . . remain upbeat and positive because they see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Even in a crisis, they remind others that the end is in sight.

. . . don't mind when someone is placed above them in the organizational chart, and respond by asking, “What can I learn from this person?”

. . . want to learn and get better in everything they do.

. . . love good, supportive leadership because they love to learn and grow. Purpose-focused people will not tolerate poor leaders for long.

. . . are quick to admit when they are in the wrong or the cause of a problem, and are equally quick to fix it.

. . . are slow to take credit.

. . . focus on the success of the mission rather than personal gain, status, or credit. They want to see the objective met and fulfill their purpose in making the greater purpose happen.

. . . like having other purpose-focused people around because they want to be a part of a strong team where everyone's unique strengths add value for the betterment of the whole.

How Can You Tell?

When I ask a potential team member about their strengths and weaknesses, their response is generally a good indicator of whether or not the candidate is focused on problems or a purpose.

Obviously, building trust and assessing character requires more than five minutes. But I hope this concept can be of some use for those of us in leadership and for all of us in need of repentance. We would all be doomed to our problems without God's common grace and Jesus' victory over sin. He gives us hope and calls us to focus on the greatest purpose of all.

5 Things Mentors Should Model

Dave Kraft — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

Dave Kraft writes about his early mentor Warren Myers, what he learned from this man who had a significant impact on his life, and the value of having strong Christian mentors.

My mentor, Warren Myers, taught me a lot, but most of what I learned was by observing him. Here is what he modeled.

1. Genuine Prayer

I remember first meeting Warren Myers, a storied missionary with the Navigators organization. A few days earlier, I had moved into the Navigators home in Los Angeles to join some other young men receiving training. Warren suggested we take a walk and pray together. We walked. He did most of the praying. I prayed for everybody and everything I could think of in ten minutes and was through. He continued to pray for people he knew all over the world. I never walked that far before (I was beginning to wonder if we would ever get home again) and had never seen anybody pray with that kind of intimate knowledge of so many people in so many places.

I remember coming downstairs very early one morning to grab a bite before heading off to work. The door to his bedroom was slightly ajar and I saw him kneeling deep in prayer with the Bible and prayer pages spread out on the bed.

2. Love for People

Warren invited me to join him for a speaking engagement. Sure, why not? I shared my testimony and he taught. I then jumped quickly into the food line and lost sight of him. Later, I caught him out of the corner of my eye huddled with an old friend he had not expected to see. There they were, Bibles open, nose-to-nose and knee-to-knee fully into it, sharing intently with each other. One evening Warren abruptly left our dinner table before he was finished in order to respond to an urgent need a friend had. On many occasions I saw him put people before comfort, food, his schedule, his own needs. Not to an extreme, but when it was called for. In 1 Thessalonians 2:1-11, the Apostle Paul speaks of his love and care for the Thessalonian believers; he writes of sharing his life, not just the gospel and caring for them like both a mother and a father.

3. Loyalty

It was not unusual (during the 35 years after we had gone our separate ways) for Warren to call me from various places in the country to see how I was doing, pray with me over the phone, inquire about my family or offer to meet with me if he was in the area. He never forgot me!

4. Teachability

I had the privilege of going through the book of Romans with a handful of men Warren was training. He was the teacher and we were the students, yet he often prefaced an opinion with, “This is the light I currently have on it”, opening it up for debate, new thoughts and the possibility that he (the perceived expert in our eyes) could be wrong. Over the years when we met here or there, Warren would ask me what I was learning and then proceeded to take notes on my comments. This blew my mind. What, after all his years of living, could I possibly teach him?

He resembled the Jews in Berea in Acts 17:11, “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” Warren was always open to a new way of looking at issues, eager to keep learning and growing, willing to see things differently, willing to change a stance or an opinion when it became clear he was wrong or inaccurate.

5. Imitable Faith

He was my friend. I still think of him from time to time, even though he is no longer here. For many years I had Warren’s name on a page in my prayer book. On that page was a verse:

“Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.” Hebrews 13:7

This verse admonishes me to imitate Warren’s faith, not imitate him. Now allow me to make an important point. Warren was not perfect, he was not a man I worshipped or idolized. He had his sin, faults, and shortcomings, and would be the first one to own them, confess and repent.

I appreciated him, learned from him and grew by watching him as he modeled love for Jesus and people. He simply lived his life (warts and all), and I’m thankful to have been around, as were the other men who knew him and were discipled by him.

I am motivated to touch the lives of others as Warren touched mine. I have had, and have, many mentors. Warren was one of the early ones.

Have Dave Kraft speak at your church about Leaders Who Last.

Should Christians Believe in Evolution?

Will Little — Thu, 17 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

In the previous post in this series we examined the concept of a worldview and how, philosophically speaking, Christianity supports scientific investigation more fully and consistently than any other worldview. Here, we’ll focus our attention on what is undoubtedly the hottest topic debated at the border of faith and science: evolution. Before diving in, it is critical to acknowledge that the “how” of creation is a secondary issue. As Christians we can agree that “God did it” and remained unified (Eph. 4:3) even if we disagree about the interpretation of scientific data and to what degree, if any, science should influence our interpretation of Scripture.

What Is Evolution?

The question “Do you believe in evolution?” does not have a simple “yes” or “no” answer. There are at least six principal meanings of evolution used in biology textbooks, and for the average non-scientist I believe there are four core distinctions that should be understood:

(1) Evolution As Change Over Time

Rocks change. Lakes and rivers change. Animals, people, and cultures change. History is not static and is therefore constantly evolving. This definition usually implies progression, where complexity and diversity increases over time. For example, people on all sides of the evolution debate agree that, generally speaking, biologically simple species have preceded more complex ones.

(2) Evolution As Universal Common Ancestry

It’s no secret that groups of plants and animals have similar structures, functions, mechanics, etc. Great thinkers throughout history have suggested that life may be somehow “related.” While an entire field of biology (i.e. phylogenetics) is devoted to studying ancestral relationships between species, it’s important to note that objects such as cars, chairs, toasters, etc. also have ancestral relationships. The key debate, of course, concerns the underlying mechanisms that produce ancestry, and whether or not all species share a universal common ancestor (it’s possible that only limited common ancestry has occurred).

(3) Evolution As Natural Selection Plus Random Genetic Changes

Generally speaking, although not universally accepted, scientists today believe that natural selection acting on random genetic variation combined with the processes of gene flow and genetic drift are the main physical mechanisms that produce new species over time. In other words, species that survive in various environmental conditions pass on genetic material to their kids. Some of the genes that persist do so because of selective pressures, while others persist merely by the random “drift” of DNA within the genome of a species or by the random “flow” (or transfer) of DNA between populations (follow the links above to learn more).

(4) Evolution As the Grand Theory of Everything (i.e. Naturalism)

Unfortunately, there are many scientists and writers who succumb to, as Tim Keller writes, “the confusion of biology and philosophy.” In other words, naturalists like Richard Dawkins and other New Atheists insist that evolutionary mechanisms are “purposeless” and that only natural explanations for everything (from physics to psychology) are allowed. However, as we’ve discussed in previous posts in this series and in many posts about apologetics here on The Resurgence, such assertions are philosophical in nature and cannot be proved with the tools of science.

Christians have absolutely nothing to fear from scientific discoveries.

What Do Christians Think About Evolution?

Christians agree that changes happen over time (definition #1) and that evolution does not require naturalism (definition #4), but there is, of course, debate over definitions #2 and #3 and whether or not genetic changes are “guided” or “unguided.” There are no simple resolutions here. Some Christians such as biochemist Michael Behe think that all species likely had a universal common ancestor but that there is an edge of evolution: that natural selection and genetic changes cannot account for the complete diversity of life. Other Christians such as geneticist and NIH director Francis Collins think that God created via definitions #2 and #3 but that genetics “will never explain certain special human attributes, such as the knowledge of the Moral Law and the universal search for God.” And still others, such as geologist and young-earth creationist Kurt Wise, reject definitions #2 and #3, proposing that a form of limited common ancestry called Baraminology is the best explanation for the origin of species.

What Should Christians Think About Evolution?

At the end of the day, Christians should believe in the authority of Scripture and that “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). While the specifics of “how” God created are open-handed issues, two of the most essential doctrines that derive from the beginning of Genesis are the Imago Dei (Gen. 1:27—i.e. that we are created in the image of God) and our fall into a sinful nature apart from God.

Additionally, while Christians can disagree over the historicity of Adam and Eve, denying their physical existence raises serious questions about the doctrine of sin, the authority of the scripture, and the nature of Christ’s atonement. Christians can be assured, however, that science has not (and need not) threaten a historical Adam and Eve. Old Testament scholar C. John Collins in Did Adam and Eve Really Exist? writes:

“The traditional understanding of Adam and Eve as our first parents who brought sin into human experience is worthy of our confidence and adherence. It does justice to specific Biblical texts, and suits the biblical story line, with its notions of representation and covenantal inclusion; it also provides a meaningful explanation for everyday experience. It is the view articulated or presupposed in Genesis, in Paul, and above all, in the Gospel presentation of Jesus. The alternatives are less satisfactory, and possibly even disastrous, on all these counts.”

Although he is careful to admit:

“If someone should decide that there were, in fact, more human beings than just Adam and Eve at the beginning of mankind, then, in order to maintain good sense, he should envision these humans as a single tribe. Adam would then be the chieftain of this tribe (preferably produced before the others), and Eve would be his wife. This tribe “fell” under the leadership of Adam and Eve. This follows from the notion of solidarity in a representative. Some may call this a form of “polygenesis,” but this is quite distinct from the more conventional, and unacceptable, kind.”

How Should Christians Discuss Evolution?

Unfortunately, both theists and atheists have fallen into traps when interpreting evolutionary data. Christians have been fearful of (and in some cases belligerent toward) science, and atheists have been fearful of (and in some cases belligerent toward) supernatural philosophy. All truth belongs to God, which means that Christians have absolutely nothing to fear from scientific discoveries. Atheists on the other hand, run into serious problems with their naturalistic worldview if science detects supernatural activity. This is why Intelligent Design, at least in part, gets such a beating in the blogosphere. Intelligent Design at its core is merely the science of demonstrating an intelligent cause produced something (be it Stonehenge, a watch, a bioengineered virus, a universe, etc.), even though its implications on philosophy and religion are tremendous.

Personally, it appears to me that modern evidence does suggest that natural selection acting on genetic changes, combined with various flavors of genetic drift and flow, can alter populations to the point of producing new species, as technically defined. Even Michael Behe admits this in his latest book. However, it is not clear to me the extent to which these physical mechanisms can produce a significant increase in biological complexity and higher order taxa. To be honest, I still have more to learn and I'm open to having this clarified. On the other hand, I am convinced that supernatural injections in history such as the Big Bang and the resurrection of Jesus are historical facts backed up by the tools of science, which is why I am open to a supernatural explanation of events such as the origin of biological information, should science point us in that direction.

In conclusion, there are no easy answers. Christians can and should remain committed to core beliefs and be unified amidst disagreements over science. However, it is important to note that often in the debate over evolution there is a false dichotomy setup between those who take the Bible seriously and those who take science seriously. In reality, faithful Christians who are scientists have a variety of thoughtful ways to reconcile science and faith. Overall, a more humble approach to studying and discussing evolution is needed (and possible) because of our common faith in Jesus. We can be confident the King of kings is not threatened by scientific discoveries and will continue to use them for his glory.

In the next and final post in this series, Pastor Will will examine how Christians should pursue science and interpret data in light of the history of rapidly changing theories and the authority of scripture. He will also provide resources for further study of the intersection of faith and science.

"I Can't Get No Satisfaction"

Matt Chandler — Wed, 16 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

Sin isn’t just a personal thing—it’s a cosmic thing.

While the gospel shows us that depravity is very personal, that it’s in us, the gospel also shows us that depravity affects earth’s very social fabric and systems, that it’s also out there. Of course, it is out there because it’s in here, but as Solomon’s recollections in Ecclesiastes reveal, it’s not just that we are in need of satisfaction, but that every good thing in the universe (apart from God) is too broken to satisfy. How dissatisfied does this fracture leave Solomon?

So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind. I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me, and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will be master of all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. So I turned about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under the sun, because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it.This also is vanity and a great evil. (Eccles. 2:17–21)

Meaninglessness

There is a diminishing return on the pleasure Solomon is seeking, so he starts to hate life. He has sucked all the marrow out of it, and he’s only in his 30s. He moves from being grieved to being frustrated. Notice that he’s even frustrated about what will come after him. What we know from history is that, after Solomon, the nation of Israel completely dissolved.

In this passage we catch him looking at his sons. He has been wise, he has built Israel to be wealthy and powerful, and he’s looking at his boys and thinking, “We’re in trouble. I have done nothing but manage this thing wisely, and these guys coming up behind me will destroy it.” He realizes he is powerless to control what will happen to the wealth he has accumulated. He can’t take it with him, and he can’t make sure it won’t be squandered after he’s gone. The meaninglessness begins to settle in, and he gives his heart over to despair.

God Gives All Gifts

Solomon does discover the answer. He writes, “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment?” (vv. 24–25). What Solomon has just said is that lasting enjoyment experienced by the soul is a gift from Jesus.

God gives gifts to all men. Whether you believe in God or not, you are living, walking, and wearing his stuff. He gives gifts to all: food, drink, work, friends, family. He gives gifts to all, but only the children of God, only those who believe in Jesus, receive the gift of lasting enjoyment. Why? Because if we’re oriented around Jesus, our satisfaction is not tied to anything but him. We can actually enjoy God’s good gifts the way they’re designed to be enjoyed, because they are in orbit around the right sun—not our self, but our Savior.

This is an adapted excerpt from Pastor Matt Chandler's new book, The Explicit Gospel.

Jesus Loses No One

Justin Holcomb — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:37–40

It’s easy for many of us to fall into thinking of God as angry and disappointed toward us, or at best, as passive and indifferent. Some may think that they’ve failed him so many times that he’s probably given up on them to focus on the godly, “effective” people. But Jesus’ words tell a vastly different story.

Through Jesus, God is actively reaching into our chaos, pain, and confusion to grasp us and rescue us from sin, evil, and ourselves. Jesus has initiated the relationship with us: “I have come down from heaven to do God’s will.” And when God grasps us, we are secure, not driven away, forgotten, or lost.

For those who trust in Jesus, God is not aggressively against you (as in judgment) and God is not passively indifferent about you (as if you will be forgotten). Rather, he is actively, lovingly ensuring that you will have new life: “all who believe in the Son will have eternal life” and “I will raise you up on the last day.”

Jesus is assured that many would indeed come to him in faith. God does not turn any away who come to him, nor will he ever disown them. In a world of overwhelming complexities and insecurities, you can know at the very core of your being that God has decided to make you his and will not let anything get in the way. If you have put your trust in Christ, your future is not hanging in the balance; it is rock-solid. Your future is resurrection.

We are bent toward independence and unfaithfulness. If the security of our salvation depended on our ability to choose and hang on to Christ, then we would be caught on the treadmill of a self-centered scheme of works righteousness. Thankfully, Scripture teaches that it all depends on God to keep us secure:

“If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? . . . So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.” (Matt. 18:12–14)
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:27–28)
“To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 1:24–25)

Trust Jesus, and rest secure. Jesus loses no one.

Justin Holcomb is the executive director of the Resurgence, and at the end of this month, will be installed as the lead pastor of the U-District church.

Why You Should Send Your Worship Pastor to Re:Train

Alex Early — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

Just a Guy Playing a Guitar

In my experience, I’ve often observed the preaching pastor to be more of the theological heavyweight of the church and the worship pastor usually can get by with just knowing the basics of the gospel as long as he pulls his job off well for five songs on Sunday mornings.

But that’s just a guy playing a guitar who needs a gospel-centered education. A worship pastor is someone entirely different.

Talking Theology in a Bar

Our worship pastor is Gregg Katz.

Before coming to Four Corners, he was a security project manager in the field of electrical engineering. Though good with electrical work, God had entrusted to Gregg an incredible gift in another field: music. Writing, arranging, playing, instructing, leading through song, and pastoring were all buried in Gregg’s heart.

When we started Four Corners Church in January 2009, Gregg and his family came after friends invited him, though he himself came reluctantly.

He was reluctant because

We were meeting in a bar. (That said, it wasn’t the bar itself didn’t scare him, but the thought of What could they be teaching in there? that was a concern.)
He knew that theologically he differed in some ways from Four Corners.

But something intrigued Gregg. This was the first time he was actually meeting lots of men from the Reformed tradition who were missionally engaging the culture and seemed genuinely concerned about people.

Gregg and his family started coming to Four Corners and fell in love with the people and the vision that God had given us. He and I would meet up with friends there at the Alamo and just hang out, talk about music, sports, news, politics—just anything. Without a doubt, our differences in our own theological understandings would surface, and I’d explain to him some of the doctrines of grace. We never got heated, we just seemed to disagree as gentlemen.

However, I could tell Gregg’s wheels were turning and he couldn’t let this go.

God used Re:Train to change Gregg’s life forever.

One day, out of the blue, Gregg walked up to me and said, “Hey man, I’ve been listening to Mark Driscoll, Matt Chandler, and other guys from Acts 29. I’m selling everything. Me and my family are moving to Seattle to join Mars Hill Church and I’m going to Re:Train.”

I stood there speechless. I couldn’t believe it! He said, “I don’t know where this is going to end up—I just know I have to go.”

So, Gregg did just that. He quit his job, sold most of his possessions and relocated he and his wife and three children to Seattle to live in a tiny rental house, be rained on, underpaid as an electrician, and served and equipped by Mars Hill Church.

A Man Sharpened in Training

God used Re:Train to change Gregg’s life forever. About three months before his graduation from the program, Gregg and Gina began to feel called to come back to Georgia. God put it on our elders’ hearts that he was the man to be hired as our first full-time pastor of Music & Arts.

Since returning from Re:Train, Gregg has come back grounded in his theology, more in love with his wife than ever, missionally engaged, competent to handle the Scriptures as an elder should, excited about Jesus, filled with the Spirit, and is driven to be thorough in his work.

Many worship pastors today aren’t wired to be “kingly” in their approach to their work. But after Re:Train, Gregg’s kingly skills were sharpened all the more as he saw the incredible need to be diligent in all things entrusted to him.

A Church Benefitted by a Pastor’s Training

As he leads on Sundays, he is deep and winsome to everyone in our church whether they are an unbeliever, a brand-new Christian, or a mature believer. It is normal for us to see Gregg hanging out with people who don’t know or love Jesus because Gregg is a friend of sinners.

Every song, prayer, and movement in our corporate gatherings have more definition, intentionality, and direction toward a specific destination of where we are going as a body by the leading of the Holy Spirit through Pastor Gregg.

Four Corners Church weekly reaps the benefits of Pastor Gregg’s education and time well-spent for a year at Re:Train.

Applications for the 2012–2013 Re:Train year are open, but close soon on May 25, so apply soon! During the year, there are two, week-long sessions, and six weekend sessions of classes.

God’s Refrigerator Art

Reggie Kidd — Tue, 15 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Try Harder

My father loved me as best he knew how. I know he did. But he had a way of communicating to me about most everything I did: “Not quite good enough. You’ve got to try harder.” Grades and sports were where I most frequently received those messages.

In hindsight, I’m sure he was projecting onto me his own sense that he was not doing quite enough in his own life. It wasn’t enough that he was the first generation of his family to go to college. It wasn’t enough that he had gone on to graduate school to earn a doctorate. After all, he only rose to the rank of a non-tenured, non-published junior college professor.

He wanted more for me, so he pushed. The scary thing is that I can read my own life in similar terms: achieving a lot, but maybe not as much as if I’d just tried harder.

And I have a niggling suspicion that I have communicated the same message to my own children: “Nice try, but you’ve got to try harder than that.” I remember with shame the day one of my kids at about age four proudly brought home from church a piece of Sunday School art. But before I put it on the refrigerator, I felt it necessary to correct a misspelled word. I wonder what I communicated to my child that day.

Our works as well are justified.

–Calvin

Imagine my shock to discover in that sternest of theologians, John Calvin, an entirely different take on the way our heavenly Father looks at the efforts of his children:

God’s children are pleasing and lovable to him, since he sees in them the marks and features of his own countenance. For we have elsewhere taught that regeneration is a renewal of the divine image in us. Since, therefore, wherever God contemplates his own face, he both rightly loves it and holds it in honor, it is said with good reason that the lives of believers, framed to holiness and righteousness, are pleasing to him. (Institutes, 3.17.5)

Therefore, as we ourselves, when we have been engrafted in Christ, are righteous in God’s sight because our iniquities are covered by Christ’s sinlessness, so our works are righteous and are thus regarded because whatever fault is otherwise in them is buried in Christ’s purity, and is not charged to our account. Accordingly, we can deservedly say that by faith alone not only we ourselves but our works as well are justified. (Institutes, 3.17.10)

Here’s to the day when I can believe the good news is really that good.

Here’s to the day when I can believe he sees in me—and rightly loves and honors—the marks and features of his own countenance.

Here’s to the day I can dare to believe that I am pleasing and lovable to him, that whatever faults there are in my works are buried in Christ’s purity, and not charged to my account.

Here’s to the day when I can stand and say: “Thank God, by faith not only I myself but my works are justified.”

Here’s to the day when I can imagine my heavenly Father proudly displaying my “Sunday School art” on his refrigerator and turning to his heavenly court, puffing out his chest and saying, “A son of my redemption did that, and I am so proud of him!”

Originally posted on Steve Brown's site.

Gospel Homework

Jonathan Dodson — Mon, 14 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

Pastor Matt Chandler interviews Pastor Jonathan Dodson about his latest Re:lit book, Gospel-Centered Discipleship, and the "exciting" idea of gospel homework.

Pick up your copy of Gospel-Centered Discipleship here

Admit It. You're Stuck.

Casey Cease — Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,

knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

Colossians 3:23–24

Have you ever had a day, week, month, or year where you’ve felt stuck? (Or maybe you feel like this all the time?) Whether it be vocationally, spiritually, or relationally, you just feel like things aren’t moving along as they should. We’ve all been there. The question is, how do you get out of those seasons?

The other day I went to help a friend get his yard in order because he was feeling overwhelmed by it. Some time had passed from the last time he did yard work, for sure, but it wasn’t all that bad. However, the task seemed daunting to him, because he felt stuck. This experience caused me to reflect on times when I have felt overwhelmed or stuck, which has happened several times in the past.

Here are a few things to remember when you are feeling stuck and some things to help you become unstuck:

1. Remember Whose You Are.

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, then you have been purchased, adopted, and identified with Christ. As followers of Jesus we need to remember that we are called to freedom (Galatians 5:1, 13) and not slavery. This freedom enables us to become unstuck.

2. Admit That You’re Stuck.

We were made to be in relationship with other people. For followers of Jesus, we’ve been called to live in community with one another. Confess your stuck-ness to God and to those around you who will love you, pray for you, and if necessary, hold you accountable.

3. Set Realistic Goals.

If you have some chores or tasks that need to get done, create a list or checklist. I like to use a free service called Do.com for this, but regular old pen and paper work just fine, too. If you haven’t read your Bible in months, then setting a goal of reading it for three hours is not realistic. If your entire house needs to be deep cleaned but you only have an hour, then pick one room. If your house is a total disaster, then start by cleaning the room used least, so that it will stay cleaner long. Setting realistic goals will help you experience some momentum and help you to not become discouraged.

4. Just Do Something.

A lot of times, when we are feeling stuck, we end up not doing anything. That’s almost always the worst solution to this problem. Instead of sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves, we need to find something constructive to do and do it. For those who are “waiting on the Lord” (there are certainly situations for this, but a lot of people use this as an excuse to cover up their laziness), they need to realize that there is a lot that they should still be doing (i.e. The Great Commandment and the Great Commission). I really enjoyed a book by Kevin DeYoung called—wait for it—Just Do Something.

5. Ask for Help.

There is no shame in asking for help. Perhaps you need to hire someone, delegate a project, or you just need to ask some people in your community for help. After all, most of the time, our pride keeps us from asking for help, and we all know that that only hurts us.

The good news about the gospel of Jesus is that he meets us where we are, but also refuses to leave us there. You have the opportunity and the power to get unstuck. So what are you waiting for?

Why Every Leader Needs a Coach

Scott Thomas — Sun, 13 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

I made a terrible decision over ten years ago when I suddenly resigned from a church as its lead pastor after a six-month-long, emotionally intense battle with another elder. It is not always wrong to resign, but it always wrong to resign in isolation. I did not feel that I had anyone who could objectively coach me through this decision.

I had friends around me who were directly affected by the situation, but I did not have someone with the three ingredients of a coach: 1) someone I could trust, 2) someone who would care, 3) and someone who could help. So, I left and the problems followed me. It was then that I decided to get a coach and I have not made another major decision in isolation. I have several men whom I can call. My wife calls them my “dudes.” If I am wrestling with an issue, she says, “Call your dudes.” In her words, every leader needs some dudes.

You cannot just train someone how to do something. You have to train them who to be.

Every leader needs a coach. Paul was a coach to a young disciple, leader, and protégé named Timothy. From a prison, Paul wrote what is regarded as his last public letter to Timothy. It is a treatise on leadership development. Paul proclaimed the gospel and God saved Timothy. Timothy grew in his faith and Paul took Timothy under his care and they ministered together for many years. In the letter found in 2 Timothy, Paul is handing off or entrusting this ministry to Timothy’s oversight. He could only do so because of the years of coaching that took place between them. Gospel Coaching is leadership development with focused attention on a disciple’s personal, spiritual, and missional aspects of life. You cannot just train someone how to do something; you have to train them who to be. Gospel Coaching does both.

Leadership is lonely. Church leadership is even lonelier because other people’s problems become the leader’s problems, and the leader naturally ignores the very real and acute personal, spiritual, and missional challenges they are facing. Chapters 1 and 2 of 2 Timothy give us three insights into how a Gospel Coach functions in the life of another leader.

Grace Strengthens Leaders

It is grace that strengthens leaders, not their abilities, personalities or skills. Paul reminds Timothy of God’s grace (1:2) that continually strengthens him (2:1) and Paul reminds Timothy of his own grace extended without merit in three specific ways.

Paul prayed for Timothy constantly (1:3),
Paul was compassionate toward Timothy’s needs (1:4), and
Paul infused faith that rested in the gospel as Timothy’s empowerment (1:4–7). Paul didn’t just try to make Timothy feel good about himself, but he encouraged him to be more dependent upon the gospel (1:8–9).

Gospel-Entrusted Leaders

Leaders are entrusted with the gospel, not because they are trustworthy, but because of a holy calling of God (1:9–11). Leaders are called to “guard the gospel” with every fiber of their being (1:12–14). Leaders are also called to entrust that gospel to other faithful disciples (2:2). We develop leaders by the gospel and not just skill development. Gospel Coaching is a Spirit-empowered relationship where both participants are allowing the gospel to transform their lives completely (1:14).

Glory-Giving Leaders

Leaders often seek glory for themselves when they operate outside of the gospel. But only God deserves any glory. Often, leaders are called to glorify God in the midst of personal or ministerial suffering. A Gospel Coach shares in that suffering (with Jesus and with the other person) “for the gospel by the power of God” (1:8). Paul entreats Timothy to “share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus,” as an athlete and as a farmer. Jesus is the soldier (2:3) who defeated Satan, sin, and death. Jesus is the athlete (2:5) who competed within the rules by living without sin. Jesus is the farmer (2:6) who sowed his own seed into the grave and God raised him up as the firstfruits of all believers (1 Cor. 15:20, 23). A Gospel Coach reminds the disciple of the glory that only belongs to God—no matter how well they performed. A Gospel Coach shares in the suffering with the disciple. The coach does this by proclaiming the good news of the One who suffered on our behalf for the glory of God.

Scott’s new book, Gospel Coach: Shepherding Leaders to Glorify God just hit digital and physical store shelves.

Divine Interruptions at Bedtime

Jake Johnson — Fri, 11 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Impatience Is Not a “Lesser” Sin

I’m often astonished by my lack of patience. I’m also convicted by it, as Paul establishes patience as a fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22).

By implication, my lack of patience is a work of the flesh that often manifests in “enmity, strife . . . fits of anger . . . dissensions, divisions . . . and things like these” (Galatians 5:19–21)—i.e. things that often get lost as I focus on the “bigger” sins Paul mentions. You know, orgies and stuff.

Rather than leave me wallowing in my impatience and anxiety, Jesus instead lovingly and actively works in my life.

The eternal consequences of my lack of patience, and the “works of the flesh” to which it gives birth, are not minor. As Paul sternly reminds us, “I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:21).

I don’t know about you, but these types of verses sure make me anxious (which is another sin and another story).

This is why I’m thankful that Jesus loves me so much that, rather than leave me wallowing in my impatience and anxiety, he instead lovingly and actively works in my life to sanctify me and make me more like him.

The Two-Year-Old Was Winning the Battle of Wills

Most recently, he’s been doing so through divine interruptions in the form of my younger son, Dylan, not taking to bedtime so well.

For over a month, my two-year-old has been bucking. We’ve had some epic battles in trying to get him to stay in bed and go to sleep. At their best, these battles last a half hour. At their worst, they last upwards of two hours. I’d like to think this is not good for an impatient man . . . but it is.

My initial strategy was battle of the wills: mine against Dylan’s. Unfortunately, he was winning. Tiring of the continual interruptions and having to get up time and time again to place him back in bed (he was interrupting my Facebook and Twitter time!), I eventually resorted to camping on his floor with my iPhone till he would fall asleep, continually saying, “Close your eyes,” in what I assumed was a calm, controlled voice.

When that failed, I finally resorted to lying with him on his bed, saying the same close-your-eyes mantra over and over. No luck.

My patience continued to grow thin.

The Gift of a Divine Interruption

Then God quietly revealed to me one night why all this was happening. He was growing me to be patient and to rely on him. I was strongly convicted that the entire bedtime battle had been one of my self-will rather than one of quiet, patient reliance on Jesus in prayer.

In my head came this thought, “Not once have you prayed to ask for my help in this. It’s time to start praying.”

Slowly, and thankfully, God has been using Dylan’s interruptions and defiance to turn my heart towards Jesus—and ultimately toward Dylan.

These moments are precious, and I no longer wish to squander them.

The day will come when Dylan will go to sleep on his own, and I will lose these precious periods of simply needing to be with him and by him as he fights sleep. Sadly, I’ve wasted countless hours battling against him rather than being with him, praying for him, and battling for him.

God used Dylan to provide for me a divine interruption that turned my focus from the present and my desires to praying for my son as I wait for him to sleep. I pray that he’ll sleep, but I also pray that he will grow in Christ to become a mighty man of God. I pray for his future wife. I pray that I’ll be a better dad. I sit quietly and enjoy simply staring at this great gift God has given me.

These are moments when the present touches eternity. They are precious, and I no longer wish to squander them.

In all our lives, God presents us with such divine interruptions. They are beautiful gifts of a divine and loving God. My prayer for you is that you too will not squander them but accept them and revere them. Just as they are for me, they are making you more like Jesus.

11 Pieces of Advice for Assistants

Rick Hawkins — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:00:00 -0700

In my world as a pastor’s assistant, the need for hard-working, high-capacity, tough-as-nails assistants is growing.

As people continue to meet Jesus and churches continue to be planted in various cities around the nation, it’s clear that the supporting role of the assistant will be needed for pastors to do what they do best at the highest levels possible. So for the assistant doing his or her job for the first time, here are 11 practical pieces of advice that by God’s grace will help you to be a good assistant.

"And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues" (1 Corinthians 12:28).

1. Be Humble

“Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another” (1 Peter 5:5). Know that this job is not about getting recognized for your good work, but it’s about the gospel going forward. So seek by the grace of God to be humble, willing to do the smallest to greatest task with everything you got.

2. Become a Generalist

By “generalist,” I simply mean be “able to do a lot of things.” Don’t ever find yourself saying, “I don’t know how to do that,” or “I am not good at that.” Whether it’s typing up a bullet-pointed report, or flying a figurative 747 jumbo jet of a ministry, figure out how to do it—and do it well.

3. Be Steady

"Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain" (1 Corinthians 15:58). There is nothing better then for a leader to have an assistant in his or her court who is steadfast in the Lord, who knows his or her identity in Christ, and has a vibrant, personal walk with Jesus. Make sure that you are taking care of yourself spiritually, physically, and mentally. This way, you will be a blessing and not a burden. The last thing that the person you are assisting needs is always to be having to take care of you.

4. Know Your Leader

As you start your job, it is important that you work extremely hard to get to know your leader. How do they work best? What is their ideal week? What are their personal preferences? What hobbies do they have? What gets on their nerves the most? What are their strengths and weaknesses? The better you know the person you are assisting, the better you will be able to work around them and respond on their behalf as needed. Write down all of the things you want to know about the person you are assisting and send them a list of questions that they can answer all at once.

5. Be Detail-Oriented

Are you OCD? Good. You will need it for this job. Every single detail matters. Not all leaders will be detail-oriented, but will be geared toward big picture vision. You must learn to take their vague vision and make the details happen.

6. Be Diligent

"The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance" (Proverbs 21:5). To be sure, being an assistant can be a fun job that allows you to see parts of the organization that most people don’t get to be apart of. However, there are parts of the job that can be repetitive and not fun at all. You must be able to become diligent in doing the same things over and over and over again with the same passion that you had for them the first time. Overtime, your diligence will bear fruit by helping to serve the advancement of the gospel.

7. You Must Learn To Manage Projects

As an assistant, your job will often be to carry out the projects that your leader speaks into existence. You must learn to organize and drive a small team in order to see the project come to completion.

8. Anticipate Your Leader’s Needs

Look ahead into your leader’s schedule and imagine in your mind that you are him or her, walking into that meeting, or traveling to that place. What would be helpful for you to have? What would you need to get the job done? Figure out what these things are and plan ahead for your leader.

9. Be Proactive

Don’t work only when your leader asks you to do something; you’re not a circus animal. Instead, be proactive, always looking ahead and always looking for other ways that you can assist the person you are working for.

10. Be Self-Motivated

If your leader has to motivate you to work, stop reading this post now because it’s a waste of your time. Your personal work ethic needs to match that of your leader. You need to be self-motivated to work hard every single hour of every day without having to be pushed.

11. Be Able to “Catch” Teaching

Ever heard the phrase “caught, not taught”? As an assistant, you will receive training every single day by the person that you are working for. However, most of the time, this training will be “caught” and will not come directly. Instead, the training will be indirect, and you will have to catch things as you see your leader doing them if you want to learn.

Remember, you can only do this by the grace of God and power of the Holy Spirit. I hope that this list serves you well as I definitely could have used it when I began my job.

Love Your Enemies, Huh?

Douglas Wilson — Thu, 10 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

A few years ago, a documentary called Collision was made where Douglas Wilson debated Christopher Hitchens on Is Christianity Good for the World? Hundreds of hours of footage was shot and edited down to 90 minutes of solid debate and conversation. The clip you see above didn't make into that 90 minutes. Consider it deleted scenes. This is the first time it's being released, and we have it here for you to learn what it means and looks like to make a defense for your faith.

Notes from Douglas Wilson

In this clip, Christopher is taking issue with the heart and soul of Christian living, which is love. This is Christopher at the top of his enfant terrible form—attacking love! He will be kicking puppies next, trying to get all the Christians to gasp and go white in the face.

Love for God and neighbor is the summation of all the law and the prophets. Love describes the way God is, and the command to love is really a command to be like God. To obey it (by grace) is to bring yourself into conformity with ultimate reality. But Christopher didn’t like being told what to do, and he especially didn’t like being commanded to love. He regarded this kind of love as an extraordinary bit of luck, if it happens to you, but it could not be a rule to be followed. And he reserved a special ire for the command that Scripture gives to us when we are told to love our enemies. That is something that Christopher flatly refused to do.

But let us stop and reflect for a moment. One of Christopher’s favorite tricks was that of saying shocking things, and this was designed to get us to stop thinking about what was just said. In the previous outtake from Collision, his complaint against God was that God treated his enemies in exactly the way that Christopher was insisting (now) that our enemies must be treated. In short, in the previous clip, how dare God send his enemies to hell? In this clip, how dare God interfere with our attempts to send them there?

Cornelius Van Til once used the illustration of a rebellious child who needs to sit on his father’s lap in order to slap him. In order to attack God, a rebel must pick some place to stand (which necessarily must be an attribute of God’s considered in isolation) in order to be able to be critical of another of God’s attributes. These two video clips provide a perfect illustration of the technique. In this clip, Christopher uses the doctrine of justice to attack God’s words concerning love. In the previous clip, sitting at the same table, he was using the reality of God’s love to attack God’s words concerning justice.

G.K. Chesterton once said that it began to look as though Christianity were not big enough to encompass any errors, but rather that any stick was good enough to beat Christianity with.

Learn more about apologetics

Random Thoughts on Communications

Mark Driscoll — Wed, 09 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

This content is for those that have signed up for Leadership Coaching with Pastor Mark.
Please sign in at http://theresurgence.com/.

Are You Pinning to the Glory of God?

Trisha Wilkerson — Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

The Good Pinterest Life

The world of Pinterest is an art heaven. Ideas, photos, projects, and creations galore invite you to enter and explore. We peruse the art, drool over the recipes, marvel at handmade gifts, and get inspired by mid-century modern designs.

Beauty is from God because he himself is beautiful. Made in his image, we all long for beauty. A room redecorated with skill and imagination draws us in. As we engage in our culture, we often notice excellence, creativity and beauty all around.

Pinning favorites on Pinterest can be a form of worship. It’s like an art museum displaying what’s in our hearts, what we think is most beautiful.

Sometimes life online seems more fun and beautiful than the life we are in.

At first, Pinterest is blissful. It paints a picture of the “good life,” where our food pantries and closets are perfectly organized and our kids are served the most exciting, healthy, and delicious foods.

All of this can be inspiring and helpful as long as we simply enjoy the art and use it as a resource to generate ideas for reasonable projects to improve our homes and serve our families well. But endless fashion photos and crocheted masterpieces can also generate mile-long lists of “someday” projects that we can feel guilty for never completing. Before long, we’ve created an alternate world for our “best self,” an ideal we’ll never live up to.

When We Covet Creativity

Like the Proverbs 31 gal, we are slightly inspired, but more often we are deeply intimidated. Overwhelmed with what is lacking in ourselves, we allow the whispers of condemnation to enter into our minds. As with Pinterest, what could inspire worshipful expression and gratitude drifts from enjoyment to envy. Rather than simple gratitude for beauty, we are tempted to lust for more.

When our hearts are content, we can enjoy creating beauty, appreciating new and fun ideas, and undertaking creative projects without them taking over our lives. A heart like this can enjoy Pinterest with joy and without the pressure to keep up. We can save that new project idea for the right time, and in the meantime feel satisfied. If nothing else, we’ve had fun appreciating someone else’s creativity.

God is the author of art, and his masterpieces are breathtaking.

When are hearts are covetous, rather than content, we see someone else’s home, food, and clothes and feel shame and jealousy for what is lacking in our own selves and lives. Comparison and bitterness fuel the heart to copycat and catch up. We might even believe the lie that people’s judgments of our home, fashion, meals, or appearance matter. If only we could do “that” project, someone will be impressed. It also presents yet another form for escape from our individual realities. Sometimes life online seems more fun and beautiful than the life we are in.

I have heard some women say that they feel horrible for not making gourmet dinners or handmade birthday party invitations that they see online. And, others feel depressed when they compare their clothes or living rooms to those of the Pinterest princesses. For me, I have felt that sneaky whisper of covetousness when a photo captures my decorating dreams.

Are you trying to live up to some man-made or self-made standard? We have to fight to remember who we are in Christ when these temptations certainly come.

“Strength and Dignity Are Her Clothing”

Pinterest is new and exciting, but the heart experiences are as old as the hills. Imagine those ancient women who read Proverbs 31 or Titus 2, or any other biblical woman description. Surely their hearts were tempted to envy too and to believe lies about who they were. I can just hear the women saying, “That Proverbs 31 lady, she is impossible. I’ll never be like her.” We might as well say, “That Pinterest lady. My home will never be as beautiful or as organized.” We can, because of grace, fight temptation and not give in to envy and covetousness when we see beauty. God lovingly reminds us that we are not defined by appearances but by his Son, which is far more glorious. The Spirit prompts gratitude and worship as we enjoy Jesus.

An Invitation to Enjoy the Art and Beauty of God

God is the author of art, and his masterpieces are breathtaking. All art invites us to worship Christ. From enjoying nature to music, we stand in awe of his creation. Created by him, we create beauty with him. We are given beauty all around us to enjoy and inspire us to see him in it. Let’s put away envy and instead enjoy his beauty.

Feedback Is Scary—But You Need It

Justin Buzzard — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

Leaders, you need feedback. But most of us aren't getting it. Why? Because feedback is scary.

Let me tell you the story on where this post is coming from.

Learning to Prune

Last year I moved to Silicon Valley to start Garden City Church. This was the scariest move of faith I’ve ever made. With just three people committed to my dream, $3,000 in the church bank account, and a heart full of big vision, I moved my wife and three young sons to start this new adventure. Plenty of people told me I was crazy.

Garden City Church is now six months old. These past six months have been the most exciting, difficult, rewarding, busy, and thrilling six months of my life. I’ve poured my heart and soul into this church. I’ve given it everything I’ve got. We’re off to a great start as a church and we are already far beyond my hopes and expectations of where we would be half a year into our life as a church.

But, as in any church or organization, things aren’t perfect. There are changes that need to be made, branches that need to be pruned, sins that need to be confessed, data that needs to be processed, and courses that need to be corrected. And, as the lead guy, I’m the one most responsible for looking at reality, calling a spade a spade, and leading change and forward movement.

Inviting Iron

About two months ago, I started realizing how I didn’t want to hear too much feedback (i.e. criticism) about the church because of how close my heart is intertwined with this church, with this dream that God's birthed in me. I started talking to God about this and asking him to help me.

This was happening at the same time that I was taking a closer look at the DNA and culture of our church and noticing some changes that needed to be made (nothing major here, but still important). I told God that I didn’t want to be an insecure leader who ignores truth and that I wanted to set a stronger culture in our church, especially among the leadership, where loving feedback is easily given and easily received. Though six months earlier I’d already put in place a provisional elder board and a solid deacon board whom I repeatedly invite to be iron in my life—to love me, critique me, and hold me accountable—I felt that something more was needed.

I don’t want any of our egos screwing things up.

So, I did something that was scary for me to do. This last Sunday I held a “holy discontent” meeting at my house with all the leaders in our church. I sent an email to all the leaders seven days before the meeting and laid out the situation: I was full of deep contentment in God and so happy over the life of our church, but that I was also full of holy discontent over some status quo realities in our church and that I’m the one ultimately responsible. I told my team that I didn’t ever want myself to get in the way of what God is doing in our church, that I don’t want any of our egos screwing things up, and asked them to prepare for a meeting at my house where we would air all of our “holy discontent” and then spend some extended time in prayer.

Doing this ignited some great (and hard) emails and conversations throughout the week. Then, on Sunday night, we had the meeting. And it was awesome! All the leaders expressed their feedback in a manner that was both humble and loving, and in a way that didn’t compromise the truth or mince words. It was the best, most important, and most powerful meeting we’ve had as leaders. What stood at the center of our meeting was the gospel of Jesus Christ and the vision we have for this church. With Jesus at the center, egos are left to the side and deep unity and love can be experienced among leadership teams and in a church.

The Pride in Insecurity

Leaders (church planters especially), feedback is tough because our hearts are so raw. You are so deeply invested in loving and leading people and your people likely do not understand how much pressure you’re under, the stress and pain that happen behind the scenes, the sleepless nights, the dissonance between the vision God has given you and the reality in your own life and the church, and how much your heart beats for the things of God and the well-being of your church. But this cannot be an excuse for avoiding feedback.

As early as possible in your organization you need to establish a culture of feedback. The longer you wait, the harder it will get. This will look different in different organizations. You need to figure out and initiate the culture of feedback that is most effective and God glorifying for your context.

Leader, you will never receive a greater criticism than Jesus gave you on the cross. And you will never receive a greater compliment.

The worst person to be leading an organization is a person who is insecure. Yes, we’re all insecure to differing degrees, but there’s a type of leader who is deeply insecure and avoids all feedback in order to not be hurt, threatened, our found out. That is sin. That is pride. And that is incredibly dangerous for the leader and for the people being led. Insecure pastors are a dime a dozen and the only thing that can change this is team leadership/feedback and the deep feedback of the gospel.

The healthiest style of leadership is team leadership. And if you believe, as I do, that a team needs a lead guy to lead the team, you must put a strong team around you. The stronger you are as a leader, the stronger the team you need around you. I’m strong and stubborn, so I’m thankful to have a bunch of strong people surrounding me, loving me, and challenging me. (Note: Leader, it sounds like a paradox, but you must also follow Spurgeon’s counsel: “A minister ought to have one blind eye and one deaf ear.” You must ignore certain feedback that is harmful and not helpful. Turn a deaf ear to it.)

The Feedback of the Gospel

But more than anything a leader needs the deep feedback of the gospel. The good news of the gospel is the one thing that can liberate a leader from the fear of feedback. Leader, you will never receive a greater criticism than Jesus gave you on the cross: you were such a mess that the Son of God had to die for you. And you will never receive a greater compliment: you were so loved and treasured that the Son of God laid down his life for you—for you! The gospel liberates. The gospel turns insecure leaders into secure leaders. The gospel creates leadership and church cultures where feedback is sought, not fought, because everybody is pursuing the same thing: a community centered on Jesus and led by Jesus.

Leader, is God crushing you right now? Welcome it. He may well be killing the idols.

Leaders, get your heart back to the gospel. Jesus must be the most exciting thing in your life. When Jesus is most exciting to you, when your living from the feedback you’ve already received from Jesus, you’ll be free to really lead and not merely manage an ego.

Leader, is God crushing you right now? Welcome it. He may well be killing the idols and insecurity in your life in order to really set you free as a leader. God crushed me before I moved to plant this church (long story). Looking back, I’m so glad he did. It was my gospel re-awakening. Had he not done that, the way I’m leading this church plant would look really different, would be more about me than Jesus, and would be a lot less fun.

Jesus + Healthy Feedback = Healthy Leadership

This post originally appeared on Justin's blog.

Film & Theology: 'The Avengers' | Is Bowing Natural?

James Harleman — Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

"KNEEL! Is not this simpler? Is this not your natural state? It's the unspoken truth of humanity that you crave subjugation. . . . You were made to be ruled. In the end, you will always kneel."

While this quote might apply to The Avengers film itself, how it utterly conquered box-office records this weekend and made all other movies kneel before it, the line is actually a pivotal quote from Loki as he makes an assembled group of humans kneel before him in the film's narrative.

Is there some truth in his claim?

In what could have been a mess of Marvel characters mashed into a film where all of them struggle to be the center of attention, director Joss Whedon rules and reigns over the various players with a knowledge of comic-book art that frees them to serve a great story that is the sum of their cinematic parts. Conveniently, the film itself deals with human nature and what "freedom" means, the questions of if we were made to be ruled over and where our identity lies. The villainous Loki's plans to be god of Earth may not be what we need, but does this mean we shouldn't bow to anyone? Maybe it just means, as the Hulk so aptly puts it, that Loki is a "puny god."

In this video review, we examine how the Avengers in the film playfully suit up to tackle these themes, hammer on the ideas, shield us from the wrong forms of slavery, and take aim at the "free servitude" our lives should reflect.

James Harleman is an elder at the Shoreline church and has been analyzing movies for Film & Theology posts and events for several years. For more from James on engaging culture and redefining entertainment, check out the Cinemagogue.

Why I Love Re:Train

Justin Holcomb — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

I love Re:Train and am excited about this upcoming year. Here’s why.

I love the mission of Re:Train, which is to train leaders for Jesus-centered, gospel-saturated ministry to serve their churches in a biblically faithful, culturally accessible way.

I love seeing the fruit from the past three years of Re:Train. In that time, nearly 400 men and women have attended from around the world. God has used it for many students to grow in their awareness of the holiness and grace of God, to strengthen their families, and to help them discern and confirm their calling. God has used Re:Train to serve students as they lead, preach, teach, counsel, disciple, and minister.

I’m excited about this next year of Re:Train for a few reasons:

The Re:Train program is focused and based on four courses: Disciple, Preaching & Teaching the Bible, Counseling & Community, and Leadership Dynamics. These courses are intentionally related to each other and build on each other. The program we’ve developed has grown out of what we’ve learned is most helpful for students and their ministry over the course of the last three years.
The lineup of teachers is great. Re:Train couples world-class theological instruction with intensely practical ministry expertise from pastors and scholars serving in church ministry contexts. Our teachers include Mark Driscoll, Bryan Chapell, Bill Clem, Ray Ortlund, Jim Gilmore, Eric Mason, Dave Bruskas, Ed Welch, Sutton Turner, Mike Wilkerson, Brad House, and myself.
Re:Train is accessible. We’ve lowered the tuition to $2,750 to make cost less of a barrier. Thanks to new videoconferencing technology, we now have five locations: Seattle, Portland, Orange County, Albuquerque, and Philadelphia.
Re:Train has partnered with seven seminaries to transcribe the Re:Train program for graduate-level credits. One of those seminaries, Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS), offers Re:Train students a 33% tuition discount on their annual, published rate per credit hour. This discount is for full- or part-time coursework completed in residence and by extension at RTS.

Re:Train is for leaders. Leaders include deacons, elders, Community Group leaders and coaches, Redemption Group leaders and coaches, worship leaders, service team leads, children’s and student ministry leaders, pastoral counselors, church staff, church planters, and those working toward any of these roles. If you are currently serving or hope to serve in any sort of leadership, consider applying. Re:Train equips you to be a better and more faithful leader in your local church and future ministry.

Find out more about Re:Train here

8 Principles for Churches That Want to Grow

Mark Driscoll — Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

When it comes to numbers, churches tend to err in one of two ways: they either discount them as unimportant or they put too much emphasis on them.

The reality is that numbers are important, and though they aren’t the only sign of a healthy church, they are an important measure.

For Mars Hill, numbers are a key measure of our health. For us, it’s all about the numbers, if by “numbers” you mean the number of people getting their sins forgiven, getting their lives changed by Jesus, and going to heaven instead of hell. We’d like that number to go up. We’re all for that.

When numbers are viewed from this perspective, they are a good thing to desire to see grow. This is why I commend pastors who desire to see the church they pastor grow for the right reasons.

In my conversations with pastors around the world, many have questions on church growth. So, I thought I’d share eight principles I’ve learned about church growth.

1. Begin with the end in mind and know how large you want to be.

The following is a rough breakdown of reported (which may not be entirely accurate) church attendance. Admittedly, these numbers are a few years old, but, as a general rule, they do give you a rough idea of church-size barriers.

Churches with 45 people or fewer = 100,000 churches or 25% of all churches
Churches with 75 people or fewer = 200,000 churches or 50% of all churches
Churches with 150 people or fewer = 300,000 churches or 75% of all churches
Churches with 350 people or fewer = 380,000 churches or 95% of all churches
Churches with 800 people or fewer = 392,000 churches or 98% of all churches
Churches with 800 people or more = 8,000 churches or 2% of all churches
Churches with 2,000 people or more = 870 churches or 0.22% of all churches
Churches with 3,000 people or more = 425 churches or 0.11% of all churches

Lyle Schaller, considered one of the best church consultants in the world, states in his book, The Very Large Church, that the two most comfortable church sizes are under 45 people and under 150 people, likely making them two of the hardest thresholds to pass through, in addition to the 800 mark.

In The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell states that 150 is also the maximum number of people someone can purposefully connect with, which explains why some people do not like bigger churches. It may also explain why John Wesley divided people into groups of about 150, the average hunter-gatherer village is about 150 people, most military units are under 200, and the Hutterites allow their communities to grow no larger than 150.

Understanding group dynamics like this is important in understanding that there are significant challenges that come with each phase of church size, and being aware of where you want your church to grow allows you to begin preparing for those growth phases more effectively.

2. The larger the church, the more different it is from other churches of the same theology and tradition.

As a church grows, while the theology remains the same, the organization complexity doesn’t, often requiring new methods of ministry.

Size affects the number of lines of communication, how an organization stacks or does not stack leadership, access to the senior leader and family, etc. Simply put, church size does matter for how a church is run, much like a married couple who some years later find themselves with a dozen children cannot simply organize their life as they did with their first child—everything must change.

For those wanting to learn more about the dynamics of church size, Tim Keller has a helpful paper, and Larry Osborne has a helpful book called Sticky Teams.

3. Change is inevitable.

You either move forward or backward. A living church changes differently than a dying church does, but all churches change.

For a church to grow, it must change. It does not need to change in theology, but it will need to change in methodology. If a church is unwilling to change their methodology to reach and care for more people, then it is guilty of method-idolatry, which is where we confuse unchanging biblical principles with what are supposed to be changing cultural methods.

4. Don’t assign moral judgments to size and change.

People tend to wrongly attach a moral value to church size, which is unholy, unhealthy, and unhelpful. This explains why big churches are accused of being uncaring and small churches are accused of not reaching people or being well led or organized.

I pastored Mars Hill when it was small and saw a lot of people saved by Jesus. And, now that Mars Hill is large, I'm certain we take far better care of our people with far better community than we did when we were small. Many smaller church pastors, especially those who value theology well above ministry philosophy and size, tend to completely overlook or even deny the importance of church size. They will accuse those who care about numbers to be simply pragmatic, as if wanting more people to meet Jesus and grow in grace were a bad thing.

The reality is that Jesus works through churches of all sizes, and if he should see fit to bless a church to grow bigger, that is not a bad thing but a good thing.

5. If you want to grow, you need to prepare for common changes now.

Here are few of the changes you’ll face as you grow:

You move from managing workers, to leading managers, to leading leaders.
Focus shifts from a survival-in-the-present mode to a success-in-the-future mode.
Expectations move from informal to formal (elders, deacons, and members).
You have to grow from making decisions by general consensus to a handful of people making decisions.
Communications becomes formal and written rather than informal and oral.
People’s roles move from general responsibility to specialized responsibility.
The church moves from being one community to being many communities (e.g. multiple services, community groups, etc.).
The senior leaders shift their focus from being primarily caregivers to making sure people are being cared for by raising up leaders.
The senior leader shifts from working in the organization to working on the organization.
The members move from being connected to the pastor to being connected to other leaders.
Focus shifts from drawing people through relationship to drawing them through events and dynamic Sunday services.

6. Be humble as a leader to seek the counsel of pastors ahead of you and receive their counsel.

Over the years, I’ve reached out to many godly pastors who oversee larger churches for advice and counsel as Mars Hill has grown. Their friendship, advice, prayer, and service to our church have been much appreciated and priceless. No man is an island, and it’s crucial to seek godly counsel and humbly receive it.

7. Discern between guilt and conviction in seasons of transition.

Developing this discernment is key, as you cannot do what everyone wants you to do and also do exactly what God calls you to do. As the old adage goes, if you try to please everyone, you please no one.

Proverbs 29:25 says that fear of man is a “trap” or a “snare,” depending upon your translation. Fear of man causes us to live for the approval of our tribe and to fear criticism or ostracism from our tribe. Fear of man is a form of idolatry—living to please someone other than Jesus Christ.

Ultimately, when you get to heaven, you’ll give account to Jesus for your decisions and actions as a pastor. Strive to be faithful to Jesus, not to the demands of people.

8. Pray and plan for people to meet Jesus.

As you often get what you pray for, and you need to prepare for it.

Mars Hill has been blessed by God to see a great harvest over the years. Like any large harvest, there is much work to do and it is tiring. As you pray for many people to meet Jesus, also prepare in faithful expectation for the work that will come if Jesus answers your prayer.

The good news is that seeing many people meet Jesus, while demanding work, is the best kind of work there is.

Why Every Church Leader Needs the Gospel

Scott Thomas — Sun, 06 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Stress of Ministry

In a 2010 feature, “Taking a Break From the Lord’s Work,” the New York Times reported that, “members of the clergy suffer from obesity, hypertension, and depression at rates higher than most Americans.” Additionally, “their use of antidepressants has risen, while their life expectancy has fallen” and “many would change jobs if they could.”

As a pastor to pastors, this bothers me greatly.

How do we, as church leaders, cope with the stress? I think we resort to methods that any leader could try, regardless of their faith in Jesus Christ. We try taking up hobbies, personal retreats, days off, and vacations. These are not bad things, but they are not answers. They should be expressions of resting in our identity in Christ, not the means to find rest. One pastor wrote that to cope with stress, he listens to soothing music, gets a massage, and shoots guns. Peculiar combination. Another pastor wrote that he takes mental holidays. I wonder if he was taking one when he wrote that. One pastor said that he keeps a card in his drawer that reminds him to “lighten up and smile.” I think smiling is always a good thing, but it’s not the solution to stress. It’s like watering rocks to make them grow.

Leaning on humanistic devices to cope with life and the stresses of ministry is a problem. This includes what is called “life coaching.” Unfortunately, the life coaching industry is filled with self-centered goals and self-justifying behavior, which humanist therapists call “unconditional positive regard.” Carl Rogers coined this to mean that whatever a client wanted to do or say or be was regarded as a good thing. Life coaching can be based on behavior modification and not gospel transformation. It generally believes that people are basically good and are instructed to follow their hearts for self actualization, even though the Bible says that our hearts are “deceitful above all things and desperately sick” (Jer. 17:9).

Gospel Coaching system is not one that gives good advice to others, but rather good news. From Colossians 1:21–24 (emphasis mine):

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church.

The Gospel Story

The gospel is not merely a definition, but a story (Rom. 1:1–6, 16). J. I. Packer said it includes not just the cross, but also the cradle, the cross and a crown. I added to Packer (that sounds like a bad idea) by including “creation” and “coming” as complementary bookends.

Creation. In the beginning, God created all things for his glory, including mankind made in the image of God. It was complete harmony.
Cradle. The sin by Adam and Eve had a consequence of condemnation and a need existed for a Savior: an atoning sacrifice and a substitute who could take our place. God sent his Son Jesus, born of a virgin who lived a sinless, perfect life.
Cross. The promise of a Savior was fulfilled by the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. On the cross, he paid the price in full and took away our condemnation by placing it upon himself.
Crown. At the resurrection of Jesus, he established his kingdom on earth as the victorious conquering King over death, hell and condemnation. Upon his return to heaven, he sat down at the right hand of the Father, having completed the work he was sent to accomplish.
Coming. One day, Jesus will return and will fully establish his kingdom on earth and in heaven. He will completely obliterate sin and Satan. Every tear will be wiped away, every sorrow, every pain, every disappointment, and every stress. He will restore relationships and will reunite those believers we temporarily lost out of this life: our parents, siblings, babies, and friends. Most of all, his coming will completely and thoroughly unite us with the Lamb of God whose blood was shed for our eternal joy and the glory of our Father.

The Gospel Implications for the Church Leader

When we become Christians, two things happened: we got saved completely and we got loved completely. Nothing can change that!

Scott Thomas’ new book, Gospel Coach: Shepherding Leaders to Glorify God, just hit digital and physical store shelves.

Leading Up

Mark Driscoll — Sat, 05 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

This content is for those that have signed up for Leadership Coaching with Pastor Mark.
Please sign in at http://theresurgence.com/.

From Without, From Within, From Beyond: Does It Matter Where Your Worship Songs Come From?

Bobby and Kristen Gilles — Fri, 04 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

In the 1980s and ’90s, “worship wars” sprung up around the world, with some churches drawing lines in the sand around classic hymnody. Others threw out the hymnal and restructured services around contemporary praise and worship songs from albums provided by record labels. Although less prevalent, these divisions exist today.

And some churches push for a third way: songs from members in their own congregations. This is a welcome development, but occasionally we hear from worship leaders who only lead songs written from within the church. This is as extreme as churches that only sing old hymns and churches that only do the CCLI Top 25.

Pastors, pray that God sends you songwriters, musicians, and poets.

If you want a balanced diet of songs for worship, weigh the benefits of songs from outside the church, from inside the church, and from beyond—the rich tapestry of hymns from those who have gone before us.

From the Outside

Your local church is just one expression of a global family. To say, “I only want to worship God and allow myself to be spiritually formed by songs from my own congregation” is like believing you couldn’t be blessed and strengthened by a John Piper book, a Mark Driscoll podcast sermon, or a Tim Keller Bible study.

There is something beautiful about walking into a church building far away, perhaps when you’re on vacation or a business trip, and feeling instantly at home as you belt out “How He Loves” or “Blessed Be Your Name” with people you’ve never met. You know the words and melody, and so do they. We hold these songs in common, as we hold our salvation in common.

From the Inside

Has God raised up preachers among you? Has he raised up counselors, benefactors, and encouragers? Mothers for the motherless and fathers for the fatherless? He can raise up songwriters, too, songwriters who can tell the old, old story of Jesus and his love as it intersects with the story of your congregation, in the dialect and personality of your people.

Pastors, pray that God sends you songwriters, musicians, and poets. Nurture them and train them to submit their art to proper theology. Don’t hold them in higher esteem than other servants but don’t make them feel as if they need to obtain a recording contract in Nashville before they are fit for your church.

From Beyond

For over 2,000 years God has been saving souls and empowering them by his Holy Spirit to work in his kingdom. This work has included an immense body of worship songs. The hymns of our ancestors are a treasure chest of gospel-centered songs fit for “teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom” (Col. 3:16).

To ignore this inheritance is like an adolescent telling his parents “Sorry, Mom and Dad, you have nothing to teach me. I’m going to figure out life on my own.”

The Bottom Line

Each assembly of believers is different. In some churches, the split between songs from outside, from within and from the past may be 50/30/20. In others it may be equal, and in others it may be 15/40/45. Whatever your approach, think about the advantages of each kind of song, and above all, choose songs that praise God for his unique attributes and acts in history, centered on the cross of Christ.

The Explicit Gospel

Matt Chandler — Thu, 03 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

Pastor Matt Chandler spoke at a different city up and down the east coast every night for a week straight on the Explicit Gospel Tour. Inspired by the needs of both the overchurched and the unchurched, and bolstered by the common neglect of the explicit gospel within Christianity, Pastor Matt begins with the specifics of the gospel—outlining what it is and what it is not—and then switches gears to focus on the fullness of the gospel and its massive implications on both personal and cosmic levels. Here is a call to true Christianity, to know the gospel explicitly, and to unite the church on the amazing grounds of the good news of Jesus!

Find out more what the gospel is and what it isn't in Pastor Matt Chandler's new book, The Explicit Gospel. Also, check out the DVD Leader Kit and Study Guide from Lifeway.

He Who Began a Good Work in You

Steven E. Runge — Thu, 03 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

In Philippians 1:6, Paul uses a special device to signal that he’s about to say something important. The reference to “this same thing” is like saying, “Listen to this!” or “Guess what?” In this case, the words to follow assure us that God, the author and originator of life, will be faithful to complete the work he started. He will not abandon us.

But instead of calling him God, Paul uses “he who began a good work in you.” The change from the standard God or Lord is risky because his audience has to figure out to whom Paul is referring. Paul is forcing us to think about God in a specific way—in this specific context. Paul has a reason for doing so.

What comes to mind when you think of God? What events or qualities do you think about first? It could be any one of a host of things. Paul purposely avoids referring directly to God. Instead, he uses an alias expression. This expression constrains us to think about God in a particular way, in this particular context, instead of just picking whatever manner we want. By changing from the expected name, Paul intentionally shapes our conception of God based on where he is headed in this passage.

Think about all of the different qualities we might conjure up when God is mentioned. By using an expression other than the normal one, Paul forces us to think about the particular quality he highlights.

Despite the negative appearance of the circumstances, God is still in control and still accomplishing his purposes in the life of Paul and in our own lives. Beginning the “good work” was not a mistake that will be left incomplete. Adopting God’s perspective on the situation requires us to give up our wrong perspectives. Paul affirms in verse 7 that this is the proper way to think about things, implying that the Philippians should think this way.

This adapted excerpt, courtesy of Logos Bible Software, is from Steven E. Runge’s High-Definition Commentary: Philippians. The High Definition Commentary series is practical and accessible. Each commentary has plot twists, shocking moments, and a climax—combined with professional graphics, based on a linguist's analysis of the text. All infographics are exportable for presentation software like Proclaim. Purchase the first volume here.

Will God Be Faithful?

Justin Holcomb — Wed, 02 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Psalm 22 contains some of the most heart-wrenching cries to God recorded in all of the Psalms. God himself is on trial and David asks, “Will God remain faithful?”

This is the song of a believer who experiences great suffering and wonders where God is. It is a psalm that, in the midst of injustice, wonders if God himself will be faithful to his promise.

This is a psalm in three movements. The first movement is written with the dark, minor notes of pain, bewilderment, and betrayal. The second has bright chords of rejoicing and freedom. The third is composed of both the deep, sundering bass notes of God’s power and the high ring of celestial praise.

The song, to be sung on the Sabbath, was a reminder. Like most psalmic worship, David’s goal was to weekly remember God’s faithfulness to his covenant promises and to reassure the assembled congregation that God’s faithfulness is completely trustworthy. Let’s listen.

Conflict: Is God Faithful?

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,

and by night, but I find no rest.

Psalm 22:1–2

The first movement of Psalm 22 has God on trial. David asks the question, “Will he be faithful?” while at the same time arguing that he should. Verses 1–2 express the heart-cry of Jesus on the cross: “Why have you forsaken me?” David most likely composed this psalm while on the run from King Saul. He had been promised the throne of Israel and the protection of God, yet he had spent the last few years of his life on the run as a fugitive. It truly seemed like God had forsaken David and forgotten his promise. Because the trial went on longer and longer, and David cried out more and more, it seemed that God had stopped paying attention.

But I am a worm and not a man,

scorned by mankind and despised by the people.

All who see me mock me;

they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;

“He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him;

let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”

Psalm 22:6–8

Yet this situation, David cries, is out of character for God. His holiness and glory have not been jeopardized, but are still upheld by Israel. So he cannot have lost his power. When Israel cried out to God, they were rescued and not put to shame. They trusted in God and he answered their cries. David’s question is, “Why, if you redeemed Israel out of Egypt and her slavery, have you forgotten me?” Over the next few verses, David compares his situation and character to that of Israel. In verses 6–8, he describes his reality: he is despised by his own people, while Israel was only despised by foreigners. The people mocking him realize the conflict—they mock him because they think God will not rescue him. Verse 8 ends with the question, “Has God abandoned David?”

Yet you are he who took me from the womb;

you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.

On you was I cast from my birth,

and from my mother's womb you have been my God.

Be not far from me,

for trouble is near,

and there is none to help.

Psalm 22:9–11

David’s frustration mounts in verses 9–11. If God is faithful to his promises to those who are obedient, David has more claim than anyone. He was God’s from birth, and since infancy he has been faithfully obedient to God. If there is anyone who has a right to call on God’s faithfulness, it is David. At this point, God seems without an excuse, and David’s question is simply, “What gives?” The psalm then relays David’s resignation in vivid imagery: poured out like water and starving to death, David has nothing left to hold out for. His enemies surround him like lions and dogs. The wealth he had before becoming an outcast is divided up among his enemies.

This movement concludes with a final, dying man’s cry to God to deliver. David has made his argument and can do no more. He must now wait for God’s answer. This movement should be the heart-cry of every believer when suffering. There is nothing wrong with the tension of asking “Will God be faithful?” Often this question drives believers to worship and anticipates the future action of God. It is part of worship. However, worshipers find hope when they remember the past actions of God.

Resolution: God Is Faithful

But you, O LORD, do not be far off!

O you my help, come quickly to my aid!

Deliver my soul from the sword,

my precious life from the power of the dog!

Save me from the mouth of the lion!

You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen!

Psalm 22:19–21

Just when it seems that God has truly gone silent, David’s tone changes: he begins to rejoice that God has answered him (verse 21). There is no comment whether or not David received the redemption for which he longed, but he expresses confidence that God will be faithful to his word. The deliverance in verses 19–21 form the foundation for David’s praise. Praise be to God for deliverance is not private act, but a communal one. This song, sung among the assembled people on Sabbath, recounts the actions of God in David’s life to the people of Israel. The song’s praise to God for his intervention reminds the nation of God’s acts on the whole nation’s behalf. Just as David was redeemed, so was Israel. Just as David has a reason to praise God, so does the congregation.

These nations will remember the actions of God.

The conclusion to this movement is rather simple despite the terror of the previous movement. The afflicted can trust God for deliverance, and this deliverance should prompt obedience. Just as God was faithful to his promise, David promises faithfulness to his own promise. Worship is the beginning of obedience. The same spirit of thankfulness that prompts praise to God will also prompt obedience. Individual praise then encourages corporate remembrance of God’s action and further praise. But this chain of events is not limited to the people of God alone. The next movement concludes the psalm with a thunderous crescendo.

Future: God’s Faithful Reign

All the ends of the earth shall remember

and turn to the LORD,

and all the families of the nations

shall worship before you.

For kingship belongs to the LORD,

and he rules over the nations.

All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;

before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,

even the one who could not keep himself alive.

Posterity shall serve him;

it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;

they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,

that he has done it.

Psalm 22:27–31

The song concludes (verses 27–31) with a movement so profound it is hard to remember the suffering recounted in the first verses. David expands the worshiping people to include all the nations of the world. These nations will remember the actions of God—demonstrated in the lives of the people of Israel and her King—and turn to him in worship. God is truly King over the whole earth, and rightly deserves the worship of all people. Everyone—prosperous or otherwise—will serve him.

We Are Witnesses

Just as a pebble tossed into a lake spreads ripples over the whole lake, a person who experiences God’s redemption and praises him sets off a reaction. The people of God take up the chorus and praise God along with the redeemed, for they, too, were redeemed. When all the people of God are doing this, they are a witness to God’s redemption and an example for the world.

Psalm 22 closes by mentioning the remembrance passed down from generation to generation. Parents who hand down the stories of God’s faithfulness raise children who trust their God.

In the same way, the people of God stand as a powerful witness to the world when worshiping him for his faithfulness and redemption. Just as Jesus suffered and felt the abandonment of God, yet experienced deliverance to the heights of glory, so Christians, when faced with suffering, praise God and trust him for deliverance.

The Dangers of Fundamentalism in Leadership

Jeremy Pace — Tue, 01 May 2012 12:00:00 -0700

But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.

Revelation 2:4

I have a confession: I am a fundamentalist at heart. I am a lover of truth, and I am a rule follower. Yet, when I read Christ’s rebuke of the church of Ephesus, my own heart and actions are exposed, as I see Jesus calling his people to be lovers of the one who is truth and of his people. The same rebuke given to the Ephesian church could many times be given to me.

Fundamentalism has a varied history. In the early 20th century, the fundamentalist movement was responsible for directly and rightly combating the modernest heresies springing forth from within many of that day’s primary theological institutions. Yet, like the Ephesian church, while it began as a right and just movement against doctrines and practices that were contrary to Scripture, the fundamentalist movement has more recently become known more for its attacks on those within and outside the church than its love for the Lord and for his people.

Do not read this post as a condemnation of defending the faith against heresy. Christ is clear in his affirmation of the Ephesian church toward their perseverance and diligence to oppose those who taught a false gospel and proclaimed a different way of living in faith than the one given them by the apostles. Yet, at the same time, Christ’s admonition to the church is that they have made addressing heresy and licentious behavior their primary purpose, above what Jesus had taught as the two greatest commandments (Matthew 22:37–40).

When fundamentalism becomes the lens by which church leaders lead, two primary dangers await they and their people: a loss of love and a distraction from the mission of God.

A Loss of Love

Robert H. Mounce, in his commentary on the book of Revelation contends that, “Good works and pure doctrine are not adequate substitutes for that rich relationship of mutual love shared by those who have experienced for the first time the redemptive love of God.”

What a poor substitute it is for leadership to expound adherence to the true and powerful doctrines of Scripture over and (perhaps unintentionally) against the love of the God those doctrines portray! When fundamentalism becomes the primary lens of those in church leadership, they first lead their people to seek right doctrine and good behavior even more so than Christ. This is what the church in Ephesus was guilty of. Their concern was more towards right doctrine than love for Christ. What started as defense because of a love for Christ, turned into a loveless defense of Christ.

This loss of love is seen even more acutely in that a fundamentalist lens leads people to be suspicious and lack grace toward others in the church. Fundamentalism, when primary, creates a culture of critical inspection that fails to remember that is only by God’s grace and through his Spirit that people’s minds and hearts are transformed into complete and glad submission to the Father’s will. Jesus says in John 13:35 that the mark of discipleship is the love within his body toward one another. What happens when fundamentalism seeps into church leadership is that the effort to uphold right behavior and doctrine actually creates a culture that is opposed to Christ’s standard for how the church is to live.

The first danger of fundamentalism in leadership is the loss of love and joy in the Lord and grace towards those within the church. Quoting Barclay, Mounce sums up this first danger, “heresy-hunting had killed love and orthodoxy had been achieved at the price of fellowship.” According to Christ in Revelation 2, that was too great of a price to pay.

A Distraction from the Mission of God

In my prior position before joining the Mars Hill staff, my primary responsibilities centered around engaging the culture with the gospel and equipping the church to do the same. Because of the scope of our ministry, I had the opportunity to work with many types of churches and leaders, and in so doing observed the second danger of a fundamentalist lens within church leadership: a distraction from the mission of God.

According to 2 Corinthians 5:14–21, God’s mission is to glorify himself through the reconciliation of all things—humanity and creation—to a right relationship with him through Christ Jesus. Christ is the hope of the world, and the church is to be the instrument by which that hope is made manifest (Ephesians 3:10). The church’s role in the mission of God assumes a relationship with those who are either not yet or not fully reconciled to God. A fundamentalist lens distorts the mission of God from reconciling all things to himself to avoiding those people,and those aspects of culture, that are not living and believing rightly.

Defense against heresy, especially wolves within the church, is an important aspect of faithful biblical leadership. However, when such defense becomes the primary purpose of leadership, the church’s focus turns to important but peripheral issues and in turn distracts them from engaging the world and people around them with the gospel. Right doctrine should not lead people to disengage with the world, but rather, with a courageous meekness, seek to transform it!

The second danger of fundamentalism in leadership is that it distracts the church from being ministers of reconciliation within the world to being protectors of doctrine and moral behavior against the world.

Avoiding the Dangers

How do we avoid such dangers?

Address heresy and ungodly behavior within your church with perseverance and boldness, but also with humility and dependence on the Lord. Remember that your mind and life has been transformed only by God’s grace through his Spirit. The same will be true of your people. Right doctrine does not save, but only the grace of God through faith in Christ. Because God is powerful, you can be steadfast and bold. Because God is powerful you recognize how the church is protected and lives are changed, and it is not by you!
Do not let the world scare you. The church of Ephesus stood firm in the midst of a great opposition. The church today faces many of these same oppositions. Do not shy away from engaging with those who do not believe like you or act like you. Do not shy away from calling them to Christ and to full life under his authority. Yet, do so with love (2 Corinthians 5:14)!

For more, check out Pastor Mark’s latest sermon, “Fundamentalist in Ephesus: All Head, No Heart.”

Jeremy Pace is the Mars Hill Leadership Development senior manager.

How Should We View Ourselves?

Julie Lowe — Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

The Lie

One pervasive lie in Western culture is that a person’s value is found in physical appearance. As Christians, we don’t want to buy into that lie. This presents a difficult task because the media actively tries to persuade us that, without the latest technology, coolest shoes, newest makeup products, or thinnest body we cannot possibly live a fulfilling life. Not only that, but a biologically unattainable ideal is set forth. Why? Because the media’s goal is to convince you that you are incomplete without the product or procedure it is trying to sell to you. Perfection is just out of reach, so you must strive (and pay!) for what they have to offer.

The False Buy-In

Do you constantly scrutinize your appearance? Is it as though you walk around with a mirror held out in front of you reminding you what is lacking? In reality that mirror reflects a distorted perception, much like a carnival mirror. It not only prevents you from seeing yourself accurately, but it creates a self-focused absorption. The appearance of “you” becomes more important than truly being known as a person. The mirror creates a wall that isolates you from others. You become enslaved to the pursuit of an ideal image and to caring too much about what others think. So the question remains: How should I view myself?

The True Mirror

God’s Word teaches us how to have an accurate view of self. Think about 2 Corinthians 4:7, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” This passage identifies us as “jars of clay” with a treasure of great value inside of us. As inconspicuous clay pots we “show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” Consider this image:

Imagine a vase sitting perched on a shelf. Its main purpose is to look attractive. You too want to look attractive. You want people to be drawn to your external appearance. You want the world to look at you and say, “Look how successful, beautiful, and smart you are!” But the Bible paints a different picture. Instead of being a beautiful vase, we are dirty clay pots with cracks and holes. We have struggles and weaknesses and imperfections. And in fact, these imperfections allow the treasure within us to shine all the more brightly. Christ brings value and meaning to us, yet we so often want it the other way around. Any time someone tries to be perfect or be the most attractive, the external adorning gets in the way of the gospel (1 Peter 3:3). That external adorning cannot be sustained (Ecclesiastes 3:11) . . . and as a result, any time we find a crack or hole, we desperately grab for something to try and hide our weakness and shortcomings.

The True Evaluator

God knows you by name, sees you accurately, is aware of your strengths and weaknesses, and still he calls you his own. In Christ you are given freedom to be broken, to be imperfect, to have failings. 2 Corinthians 4:17–18 goes on to say, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

“You” In Perspective

It would be easy to conclude that we need to care less about the external and more about the internal, and there is some merit to that. However a better concern is the degree to which we allow our appearance to dictate our worth. Scripture emphasizes that we are called to live for the eternal. We should live for eternity in a way that shapes how we live today. As the old familiar song says, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.”

Don't Diminish the Cross

Matt Chandler — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:00:00 -0700

We're excited to announce that Pastor Matt Chandler's new Re:lit book, The Explicit Gospel, just hit digital and phyical store shelves today. Read an adapted excerpt from it below.

Because I didn’t have a lot of church background, I struggled for a long time to understand certain phrases common in the evangelical community. First and foremost is this idea about Jesus being the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29).

Problems with the Cross

The suffering, this brutal slaughter of Jesus, stands now as the hallmark and message of our faith, and many people have massive problems with it. Some scholars and writers assert that the problem with assigning the slaughter of Jesus to God’s sovereign and atoning work is that it amounts to a kind of divine child abuse.

The problem with this view, though, is that it’s not like God the Father was whipping God the Son without God the Son obliging. If you’ll remember, Jesus says, “No one takes my life from me. I lay it down” (John 10:18). The critics of a cross-centered atonement challenge the priority of the view of penal substitution (or deny its validity altogether), but this creates the problem of all the bloody sacrifices throughout the Old Testament, which Christ’s clearly stands in line with. To deny penal substitution is to say that all that sacrificing was incidental.

If we don’t understand the bad news, we will never grasp the good news.

Jesus' Death Is Explicit

There are others who approach the issue from a more visceral place. They want to say the cross is simply too gross. It’s too horrific. Certainly not a pleasant topic for polite company. “I saw The Passion of the Christ,” they might say. “It’s pornographic.” The bloodiness of the cross makes them too uncomfortable. Instead of thinking that maybe that’s part of the point, they want to make something else central to the Christian faith besides the cross of Christ. If you don’t talk about sin, if you don’t talk about blood, if you don’t talk about the cross in those ways, then don’t talk about the gospel, because the gospel is bloody and horrific.

First Corinthians 1:18 says that “the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing.” This is a dire warning to those who find the cross too silly of a doctrine or who seek to diminish its place in the Christian faith to make their calling sure. Those who see the message of the cross as foolishness are perishing.

Being Good Won't Cut It

If we don’t understand the bad news, we will never grasp the good news. The bad news is not just that we don’t measure up to the law but that by the works of the law none of us will be justified before God (Gal. 2:16). What alternatives to the cross are there? Be a good man? Be a good woman? Be a good Boy Scout or Girl Scout for Jesus?

This is what it boils down to for many in the church: replacing the centrality of the cross with something more appealing, something we think is more weighty. In fact, all across the evangelical landscape, people want to get away from the shame and the blood and the guts and the horrific slaughter of Jesus Christ and focus on something else with the cross out on the margins. What will we do with this?

Find out more what the gospel is and what it isn't in Pastor Matt Chandler's new book, The Explicit Gospel.

4 Things I Want to Know about My Staff

Craig Groeschel — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

People in ministry have a tendency to run until they collapse. It is important to take care of staff members individually so they are continually sustained in all areas of life.

1. How are you doing spiritually?

As a young pastor, I don’t remember many people taking an interest in my personal spiritual life. My pastor was phenomenal at teaching us the Bible (and for that I’m forever grateful). But most of my early mentors didn’t help me develop my own disciplines for spiritual growth.

When I meet with staff members, I want to know how they’re doing spiritually.

In ministry, it’s way too easy to substitute ministry for our time with God. Doing ministry without spending time with God is like trying to drive a car without refilling the tank. Eventually, it just won’t work anymore.

Bill Hybels once said, “The way I was doing the work of God was destroying the work of God in me.”

I don’t want that to happen to those who serve with me.

So… how are you doing spiritually?

2. Who is speaking into your life?

In the early years of our ministry, I poured my life into each staff member. Now, with a large staff in many locations, I can no longer invest in every individual staff member.

That’s why I want to know, “Who is speaking into your life?”

Who’s rattling your world?
Who thinks so radically that they give you a headache?
Who’s correcting you when you need it?

I want to give honor to Lyle Schaller for all the years he “disturbed” me with his wild ideas. Also, Bill Hybels and Andy Stanley have spoken wisdom into my life in a profound way. I’m deeply grateful to all of them.

Who is speaking into your life? What are you learning from their influence?

3. How is your family doing?

Amy and I have six kids. When Amy was pregnant with our second child, someone I admired in ministry warned me, “You’d better stop at two children. Kids will hinder your ministry.”

That comment crushed me.

My family is a big part of ministry. Hopefully, I’m raising future Christian leaders who will bring glory to God in the world.

Churches (usually unintentionally) can be harmful to families. We put such crazy scheduling demands on pastors and staff members that having a strong family is almost impossible.

I believe a strong ministry is an overflow of a strong family (Although, I’m not saying you have to be married to have a strong ministry).

God has given me a deep burden for our staff’s families. I regularly talk about guarding family time. No one will do it for you.

What about you? How is your family?

4. When is the last time you failed?

This may sound like an unusual question, but it’s one of my favorites to ask. I want to know from our staff, “When is the last time you failed?”

When you’re not failing, you’re not growing. Some of the most valuable lessons the disciples learned from Jesus immediately followed failure. Jesus allowed them to fail.

I’m glad to say that I’ve tried a few things recently that didn’t go so well. The good news is:

When I fail, it gives me the chance to learn.
When I fail, I increase my tolerance for failure, helping me not to become complacent.
When I fail, I continue to inspire others to take faith risks.

What about you? When is the last time you’ve failed?

Adapted from Craig's articles on Swerve.

By What Standard?

Douglas Wilson — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Notes from Douglas Wilson

When it comes to apologetics, the question, “By what standard?” really is a fundamental question. The same question arises in disputes on many playgrounds—it's the same thing as asking, “Who says?” If you claim that I have to do something, the question should come back, "Why do I have to do this?" It is at this point that a presuppositional approach to apologetics has its cleanest shot. A good place to go to study this approach further would be something like Greg Bahnsen’s Always Ready.

During our three days together making Collision, this was one of the few times where Christopher was brought up short. I think it was because the question here was a complete novelty for him, and he needed a moment to think about it.

When he tries to answer the “By what standard?” question, notice how he smuggles in the assumption that I am asking him to prove. He says that he knows certain (moral) realities because he is among the “higher primates.” But there is a word in there that is value-laden—higher. Higher by what standard? What are we talking about?

Christopher set up the next exchange nicely by acknowledging that as primates, we have a jumble of conflicting instincts. The response I offered was something I first learned from C.S. Lewis. If I have two competing and contradictory instincts, an evolutionary approach can account for each of those instincts (say, self-preservation and herd preservation). What it cannot account for is a third instinct that tells me which of the first two instincts I ought to obey in this instance. I do not have an “umpire” instinct that decides between them.

What I do have is a conscience, which cannot be accounted for apart from God. Christopher tries to take a “conscience vote” among the students there when he brings up the question of eternal torment. But we don’t need a conscience vote. We need to account for why we have consciences in the first place.

Learn more about apologetics

Calling All Leaders

Resurgence — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Are you a ministry leader looking to move to the next level? Are you looking for further training in theology and missiology to better lead your church or ministry?

If so, Re:Train is for you.

The Resurgence Training Center (Re:Train) is a one-year, intensive, cohort-based program designed to train leaders practically and theologically. The program is designed after popular “executive style” graduate programs to serve students currently serving in full-time ministry or for those who do not have time for semester-long courses. Students meet together in person eight times per academic year, with six weekend courses at regional hubs and two, week-long courses at Mars Hill Church in Ballard.

The Resurgence Training Center’s mission is to raise up leaders in gospel-saturated ministry to serve their churches in culturally accessible ways while remaining biblically faithful. This unique training is confessionally Reformed, convictionally complementarian, and committedly missional, empowered by the Spirit—by the church and for the church.

Registration for the 2012–2013 academic year is now open. Learn more about Re:Train

Re:Train Testimonial: Saxon Williams

My family’s journey to Re:Train began in North Carolina. My wife, Shannon, and I had been serving in full-time ministry for the last ten years on the East Coast when I heard about this unique training program. In 2010, after much prayer and consideration, my wife and I set out across the country with our four kiddos, vowing to take a year to start a business building custom homes and spend some much needed time together as a family, and then apply for Re:Train. Thinking back, I am still amazed we made such drastic changes not knowing if I would be accepted into the program. We were certain of the call and believed God would work out the details.

By God’s grace, at 34 years old, I received word in June 2011 that I would once again be taking on the title of student. The excitement wore off quickly as I came to two conclusions. First, we had little money. In nine months time, we had adopted a little girl from Ethiopia, resigned from our beloved church in NC, moved cross-country, and started a business—all with a house full of children who needed to eat and have a roof over their heads. We knew there were scholarships for students from Mars Hill churches, but we were attending a church two hours away from the nearest Mars Hill church. At the time, the tuition was $8,000. Even after allowing us to pay in increments, the cost was daunting.

Secondly, it had been many years since I had written a 20-page paper or engaged in hours of robust classroom discussions or read five books in a month. I was a self-employed husband and father of four. Suddenly, I felt very old. For every argument I made for why I should just step back before I made a fool of myself, Shannon would counter with reasons why I should keep moving forward.

Miraculously, work came pouring into my business, and we were able to begin making tuition payments. I nervously made the first two-hour trip to Seattle in August, not sure of what to expect. I was placed in an amazing church plant cohort where I have been challenged and driven to think and respond in new ways. The lectures were first-class and given by some of the most exceptional and brilliant minds today. The class and cohort discussions were phenomenal. The reading assignments were chosen with great intention. Not one second of the time I have spent with Re:Train has been squandered. Every discussion and every assignment has been beneficial and purposeful.

As I began sharing all I was learning with my pastor, he was also convinced of the great benefit of the program. Unexpectedly, Elevate Church began sending us random gifts of support to help us pay for tuition. The church was a replant itself, and our pastor had always felt strongly about supporting other church planters. We are so amazed by their gracious generosity.

Overall, this has been a very challenging year. There never seemed to be enough time, money, or energy to continue. Looking back, I am humbled to see how God provided everything I needed for this journey: a wife who supported my efforts with many hours of prayer and unyielding encouragement, work to provide for my family and help pay for school, a fantastic church that came alongside our family in a real and tangible way, gracious hosts in Seattle who offered me housing during my weekends at Re:Train, and a fantastic cohort of brothers who are passionate about Jesus and reaching people with the gospel.

This experience has been priceless. I am incredibly honored to have been a part of Re:Train.

Find Our More about Re:Train Here

How the Gospel Overcomes Gluttony

Matt Wallace — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

The Culture

Having worked professionally as a personal trainer for over 15 years, I know millions of people resolve each year to get control of the overeating that has haunted them and perhaps threatens their health. And I’m not talking about enjoying an occasional dessert, but rather a desperate dependence upon food.

In attempt to fix the problem, millions of dollars are poured into the fitness industry, gym memberships expand, and every manner of diet book and fitness product. No doubt these books will be full of easy-to-follow principles. Nevertheless, a month or so later we learn the five easy principles are anything but easy. The constant failure reveals that the problem with chronic overeating goes deeper than we have ever imagined.

The root of every sin is a disaffection for God.

Food Isn't the Real Problem

Turning to the Scriptures, we see a diagnosis of the human condition that goes to the root of all our problems. What we see is that the real problem isn’t food, or weak willpower, but the affections of our hearts. In Genesis 3, we see the root of every sin is a disaffection for God, based in unbelief. Satan used the fruit to sell a grand story of how food would impart to Adam and Eve a better identity than being God’s children and reflectors of his glory. As the story was sold, the fruit would give knowledge that would make them not merely image bearers of God, but gods.

Gluttony is based on the lie that food is more pleasurable than God.

Because Adam and Eve didn’t trust in their exalted status, approval, and security in God, they sought to establish their own righteousness. It was the forbidden fruit that promised salvation. So, in rebellion, they ate to satisfy their deepest longings. Although they had plenty of food in the garden, it wasn’t enough. Their hope was that food would give them a better existence than being loved by God. That is the root of gluttony. It is a deep seated rebellious affection based on the lie that food is more pleasurable than God. Gluttony is not merely a lack will power, it is religious in nature as it is service, devotion, and worship of the pleasure of food instead of God. In short, gluttony is idolatry.

Why Gluttony Is Idolatry

As Richard Baxter explains, “Gluttony is a sin so exceedingly contrary to the love of God: it is idolatry. It hath the heart which God should have . . . because that love, that care, that delight, that service and diligence which God should have, is given by the glutton to his belly and to his throat.”

Paul underscores the severity and end of trusting in food as a god. “Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things” (Phil. 3:19).

For the glutton, food is more pleasing, more alluring, more enthralling, more satisfying, and more beautiful than God. The glutton has covenanted with overeating to be their comfort, security, approval. In doing so, the glutton has become his own savior, eating his means of grace as a sacrifice on the altar of pleasure. If this is true, then we need to assess overeating with new eyes. We must say plainly, “I treasure food more than I treasure God.” Gluttony exposes how we really feel about God.

Resolutions Are Powerless

That is why our resolutions are powerless to change the heart. We need more than principles and personal trainers. The good news for the glutton is that acceptance and change aren’t based on our resolutions and effort (Gal. 2:15–21), but on God’s gracious resolution and effort to make us his workmanship in Christ (Eph. 2:8–10). The only resolution that matters is God’s gracious resolution to give sinners himself through the blood-stained cross and empty tomb. The gospel of Christ offers us all we need to satisfy the hungry soul, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger” (John 6:35).

Though guiltless, Jesus became the glutton on the cross.

How do we change? Thankfully God has revealed gluttony’s fatal weakness: gluttony is fool’s gold. The truth is that gluttony owes its leverage over our affections to the degree that we believe its lie and have nothing bigger to chase it out of our hearts. In other words, to change we need to have a disaffection for gluttony and a new affection for God.

Look to Jesus

How do we develop a disaffection for gluttony? By faith, look to the cross and see the horror of gluttony in the stripes of Jesus. Charles Spurgeon said it this way, “Look to the cross and hate your sin, for it nailed your well-beloved to the tree.” The glutton needs to see Jesus, who lived a life of self-control and perfect moderation, dying for the glutton. That is what gluttony deserves before God’s tribunal—death. As an idol, gluttony deserves to be cursed and exiled from his holy presence. Though guiltless, Jesus became the glutton on the cross. The pleasure of gluttony loses its luster under the shadow of the cross, where gluttony is revealed as just another broken cistern (Jer. 2:13).

The wandering soul has been brought home by the relentless love of God, at the cost of Jesus.

However seeing gluttony as desperately wicked is only half the battle, we also need to "de-leverage" the cravings gluttony once appealed to by loving something bigger. Here again we look to Jesus. When the glutton deserved separation, they received reconciliation. Why? God has done something utterly astounding and amazing for the glutton at the cross. Because Jesus was rejected by God, the glutton is now accepted in Christ. The wondrous accomplishment of the cross is that glutton is no longer a glutton, but an accepted child of God. In Christ, God gives himself to the soul in deep intimacy and affection, restoring the union and communion once enjoyed in the garden (1 John 1:3; 2 Cor. 13:14). But our new standing isn’t based on our approval, but on the approval of Christ. The wandering soul has been brought home by the relentless love of God, at the cost of Jesus.

New Affections and Desires

The intimacy we always craved, but never could earn, is now given to us freely in Christ. By faith in his gospel they now enjoy the sweetness of Christ, for he has become our acceptance, our security, our future, our elder brother, God is our Father, the Spirit is our comforter, and the church is our new family. Our future is moving irresistibly toward unfathomable glory because it is tied to Christ’s merited reward. God has given us everything by giving himself to us in Jesus. In light of the eternal benefits of our reconciliation, the temporary spell of gluttony is broken. Everything has changed.

In the contrast, we see what we deserve and what we are given: the power of new affections. It is the freeness of it all that staggers the affections. It is by daily appropriating Christ by faith in our moment of need when gluttony’s grip is weakened. The gospel of Jesus is just too big, too strong, too beautiful for gluttony to compete.

The Expulsive Power of New Affection

Thomas Chalmers called it “the expulsive power of a new affection” that uproots and dethrones gluttony. The vain and fleeting pleasures of gluttony are replaced by our union and communion with the breathtaking loveliness of the blessed Trinity. So to the degree that the glutton sees the contrast between what we justly deserve and what we are freely given, new affections take over and we "taste and see that the LORD is good" (Psalm 34:8), that in God there is, "fullness of joy" and "pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11).

The gospel of Christ is the ground upon which gluttony is put to death.

So when the soul is depressed about the future, when failure breaks into our lives, when the break up happens, when the loneliness shows its teeth, when grief will not relent, when the daily rhythms of existence seem lifeless and bleak, when our dreams crash, it is not to the kitchen we go, but to Christ and recount his heroic exploits on our behalf. We must learn to rely on his gospel on the spot. The gospel with all of its flavors are to be savored and enjoyed drawing down nourishment and delight in the soul. So the gospel of Christ is the sole ground of the glutton’s approval, but it is also the ground upon which gluttony is put to death and where renewal and change take place until the work is finished.

But I discipline my body and keep it under control.

1 Corinthians 9:27

Spirit-Filled Self-Control

When we start loving God more than food, what does this look like in our lives? Like repentance. Repentance is the outcome of changed affections. When the Holy Spirit shows us that Jesus is more beautiful than overeating, we will stop overeating because the power of the idol has been uprooted. Paul says self-control is one of the fruits of the Spirit. So when the Spirit shows and teaches us how to rely on the promises of Jesus' gospel everyday, our hearts change and so our choices change.

Moderation and self-control are but the byproducts of proper delight and joy in God, which is the work of the Spirit who shows us Jesus as our all-satisfying treasure. Although Spirit-produced self-control may look like human will power or religious effort, it is not (Col. 2:23)! Spirit-produced self-control has its source and sustaining motivation in the freedom of the Jesus' gospel. That is why Paul would not allow anything to master him (1 Cor. 9:27). Paul was not able to cause or sustain this by his power or effort. God was Paul’s delight so every idol was slowly dethroned in his heart. So Paul’s self-control was generated by faith in Christ. He drew his strength down from his continual gaze upon Christ's gospel by faith and his prayerful reliance on the Spirit to show him Jesus (Eph. 3:14–19). It is feeding on Christ by faith which exiles gluttony from the heart and develops gospel grounded self-control.

The Ripple Effect

The implications of mortified gluttony ripple as a pebble dropped in a pond. The repentant glutton, instead of hoarding and overeating food, may give food to the hungry because they realize God has fed them so generously in Christ. They might reach out to people who struggle with gluttony because God reached out to them. Why? Because they have a new relationship with food, because they have a new relationship with God.

To persevere, the soul will need constant reliance on Jesus' gospel.

Overeating doesn’t have mastery over them anymore because they now love God more than food. Thus they begin to eat the gift of food to the glory of God, they begin caring for God’s temple, they may even be moved to fast for the salvation of their city. What matters is the image of God is restored in them by holy affections; they are freed to live for God’s glory because they are free from serving the glory of gluttony, and God has become their all-satisfying treasure. And when we love God more than gluttony, we make him look beautiful above all other things.

A Daily Fight

Fighting against gluttony will be a daily battle. The world, flesh, and the devil will allure, entice, and try to convince the soul through hardships and enchantments that food is more beautiful than God. To persevere, the soul will need constant reliance on Jesus' gospel through deep community, daily feeding on the gospel, reliance on the Spirit’s work, preaching, and worship to keep the all satisfying splendor of God before our wandering appetites. But perhaps, above all, the Lord’s supper will be prove to be a great comfort, as it points to the consummation of the new age, when we will dine with Jesus and every longing of the human heart, "may be filled with all the fullness of God" (Eph. 3:19), forever and ever, amen.

This post is adapted from one that originally appeared on Gospel Alliance NE.