What's In A Name?

In doing some reading recently, I ran across something that piqued my interest. I've heard in the past that Bono had made some interesting comments when he was knighted earlier this year.

I went to You Tube to do a search for his comments. Bono, in his interview jokingly says not to call him "Sir". He jokes instead that he could be called "Lord of Lords" or a demi-god. (Check the link below)



Rev 19:16, when referring to Jesus, states that "And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."" Clearly there is only one Lord of Lords.

Dictionary.com defines a demigod as "a mythological being who is partly divine and partly human; an inferior deity."

Hmmmm... maybe this will be a wake-up call for those churches who chose to utilize his music and hold him up as an example.

Does he do humanitarian work and have good deeds? Yes, but so do the Mormons and other organizations. May we as the body of Christ wake up and return to God-honoring, Christ-centered worship and away from man-centered ways.

In light of his comments, it sounds like Bono, still hasn't found what he's looking for.

Because Truth matters,
George

Our family just finished watching the movie "Time Changer".

I have to say that it is an incredibly thought provoking movie. Without giving away the plot, the movie takes the audience and has us consider our lives, our relationships with Christ and how society and morals without Jesus is nothing to look forward to.

There are a number of emotional and thought provoking scenes in which I can sympathize with the main character, feeling lost in another world; a world where everyone thinks that everything is OK, but you know the Truth and that it's not. This is a feeling that you can have in talking with people, watching TV, shopping or even in church.

What is really important? Is Jesus central to your life and not just someone that you identify with? Is He your Lord and Saviour? Are we slowly becoming desensitised to sin in our lives?

The truth is that God has a time already set for His return. We don't know it and we can't change it. What we CAN do is take the time that we have, turn from and confess our sins and accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour and tell others about Him.

What time is it? It's closer than you think. Are you ready?

Because Truth matters,
George

Celebrate Jesus, Celebrate!

This past week, I had the privilege of seeing a preview of what beautiful girls I have. Yes, I know that they are always beautiful. I also know that God has blessed me with wonderful boys as well. This week, I just had the chance to see our girls practice for an upcoming performance at our church.

It was wonderful to see these girls freely showing their love for God.

The Grace of God and Cat and Dog Theology

I recently read an interesting article on the grace of God and how to approach that wonderful subject. The article took the approach that it was going to examine God's nature as evidenced through His bountiful grace. What an amazing approach. (no pun intended)

Did you see it? The goal was learning about God through His grace and not learning about grace through God. It's in the way that the subject is approached.

I am also currently reading a book called "Cat and Dog Theology" which helps us think about the way that we view God. to quote from the book,

A dog says, 'You pet me, you feed me, you shelter me, you love me, you must be God.' A cat says, 'You pet me, you feed me, you shelter me, you love me, I must be God.' This book challenges the readers' understanding of their relationship with God. Our understanding of how we relate to God may not be wrong, but it may be incomplete. The God-given traits of cats ('you exist to serve me') and dogs('I exist to serve you') can be similar to certain theological attitudes held by many Christians. In our personal theologies, some attitudes may draw us closer to God, and others can also pull us away from Him.

It's all in the way that we see our relationship with out Father. During the next few days, I hope to continue to look at this in more detail.

Because Truth matters,
George

The Story Continues...

In reflecting back upon this day, 16 years ago, I remember a nervous beautiful girl who was willing to leave all that she had known to start a new life with me. We were (and still are) deeply in love.

I remember feeling nervous and scared. What if I wasn't a good husband? What if I snored? What if she snored? Silly questions were put to rest by the refining of our marriage over time. Little worries are just that - little worries. Big worries become little when our faith is placed in God.

The Word of God teaches us that the marriage Union and relationship was inspired by God, instituted by God, is preserved by God.

So God created man in his own image . . . ; [one] male and [one] female created he them" - Genesis 1:27

"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh" - Genesis 2:24

"What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder" - Mark 10:9

"But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.” - 1 Peter 3:4

Speaking of that last part, I am reminded of our vows to each other and of our ceremony...

"The circle, the emblem of eternity; and gold, the emblem of that which is least tarnished and most enduring. It is to show how lasting and imperishable is the faith and love now mutually pledged."

As the union now formed is to be ended only by death, it becomes you to consider the duties you now solemnly assume. If these be remembered and faithfully discharged they will add to the happiness of this life, lightening by dividing its inevitable sorrows, and heightening by doubling all its blessedness. But if these obligations be neglected and violated, you cannot escape the keenest misery as well as the darkest guilt.

It is the duty of the husband to provide for the support of his wife, to shelter her from danger, and to cherish for her a manly and unchanging affection, it being the command of God's Word that husbands love their wives even as Christ loved the church and gave his own life for her.

It is the duty of the wife to reverence and obey her husband, and to put on the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is, in God's sight, an ornament of great price, His Word commanding that wives be subject unto their own husbands, even as the church is subject unto Christ."

It's a day that I will always treasure and look back to to see where we began; but I also look forward to see where God is leading us.

I pray that Diana still sees the man that she loved and although life hasn't always been the way that we've planned, still sees the man that she still loves.

Happy Anniversary

Happy 16th Anniversary, Diana!

I could not ask for a better wife or friend than I have in you. I am so blessed that God has graciously given you to me to share my life.

Here's to a smashing anniversary (just not the smashing like last years :) )

Love Always,
George

Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant!

Yesterday, I learned of the passing of a great man, Dr. D. James Kennedy. Although I've never met him on this side of Glory, Dr. Kennedy was an inspiration to me and a myriad of others.

Dr. Kennedy, before he passed away, was quoted as saying...

“Now, I know that someday I am going to come to what some people will say is the end of this life. They will probably put me in a box and roll me right down here in front of the church, and some people will gather around, and a few people will cry. But I have told them not to do that because I don’t want them to cry. I want them to begin the service with the Doxology and end with the Hallelujah chorus, because I am not going to be there, and I am not going to be dead. I will be more alive than I have ever been in my life, and I will be looking down upon you poor people who are still in the land of dying and have not yet joined me in the land of the living. And I will be alive forevermore, in greater health and vitality and joy than ever, ever, I or anyone has known before.”

D. James Kennedy, Ph.D.

Amen! What an awesome quote. I echo his sentiments, heartily!

Division and Truth, Rather Than Unity and Lies

Here is an interesting quote from Iain Murray. I'd be interested in hearing what your thoughts are on this subject.

Are there times when division is better than unity? I'm not talking about just stiring up trouble for troubles sake, but are there times when unity should not be the end result?

Divisions and separations are most objectionable in religion. They weaken the cause of true Christianity.- But before we blame people for them, we must be careful that we lay the blame where it is deserved. False doctrine and heresy are even worse than schism. If people separate themselves from teaching which is positively false and unscriptural, they ought to be praised rather than reproved. In such cases separation is a virtue and not a sin.

The old saying must never be forgotten, "He is the schismatic who causes the schism"... Controversy in religion is a hateful thing... But there is one thing which is even worse than controversy, and that is false doctrine, allowed, and permitted without protest or molestation. ...

For some extra thought...

Romans 16:17 says, "Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them."

"For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you. "

- 1 Corinthians 11:18-19, NASB

It would seenm that scripture is clear on this matter, division and truth, rather than unity and lies.

Eternity

I've been thinking a lot about Eternity today. We celebrated the Lord's Supper and when our pastor was talking about salvation and examining oneself, it brought to bear a very sobering thought; and that is about eternity.

Most people don't think about eternity, but when you are considering where you will spend the rest of your life, there is no greater thought.

Mt. Everest is 29,029 feet tall. It's the tallest mountain on Earth. It pales in comparision to Eternity, yet is the closest analogy that I have to use.

When this life is over, we will all pass into "eternity". If you are a born-again Christian, you will go to Heaven while if you are ANYTHING else, you will go to hell... for eternity.

I once heard this analogy about how to grasp the concept of eternity and it goes like this...

Imagine the tallest mountain in the world; then imagine that once every 1,000 years someone gently brushes a hankerchief across it peak. On the day that that mountain is reduced to a flat piece of land, the first second of eternity is beginning to tick.

It may seem very far away, but it's closer than you think.

Where will you be?

Real Church Growth

"Preaching is the primary means of growth for the local church. There is a great deal of debate about this in our day, but it is the preaching of the Word that God most uses to build up a church, not only numerically but above all (and far more importantly) in spiritual depth and understanding of the people who make up the congregation."

- James Montgomery Boice

Gems for Jules, Part II

Here are the pictures that Diana promised that I would post of Juliana :)

I hope that you enjoy them.

Wha'choo talkin' 'bout, Pastor?

When I was growing up, I remember watching TV with my parents and invariably, when it was on, my parents would watch a show called "Diff'rent Strokes".

The show had a character named Arnold who when confronted with a statement that didn't make sense (usually by his brother, Willis), would say, "Wha'choo talkin' 'bout, Willis?"

As I look around at who a lot of modern pastors are looking up to as examples of how to "do church", it seems that there is an alarming rise in false teachings amongst these "leaders".


Leaders such as Rob Bell, Perry Nobel and Steven Furtick, cast a shadow of thinly veiled anger and contempt for "traditional" Christians and in their attempt to be non-judgemental to the "unchurched" fail at being non-judgemental to fellow believers; and that's just the beginning.

In just the past few weeks...

Books like Velvet Elvis, by Rob Bell, which question and are trying to "reinterpret" the Bible and our faith while casting doubt on our beliefs are applauded from the pulpit.

Perry Nobel, of Newspring Church, being carried out in a coffin after the "worship band" plays AC/DC's Hell's Bells is seen as being innovative.

It's even "IN" to recreate the church as an entertainment center for the lost. It's all about numbers. To paraphrase a friend of mine, "People are brought in, pray the sinner's prayer, are baptized, send out to make friends...next."

In a rant about "Christians", one of these leaders, Steven Furtick, a pastor at Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC epitomizes a VERY common "Do something (be like us) or your 'spiritually fat'" attitude.

In watching a recent video of one of his sermons, Mr. Furtick states plainly, “If You Know Jesus This Church is NOT for you!”

His attitude can summed up in these statements:

We don't teach from Books of the Bible because it gets in the way of evangelism.

We don't offer different kinds of Bible studies because it gets in the way of evangelism.

We don't teach doctrine because it gets in the way of evangelism.

If you want to be fed God's word or have the Bible explained to you then you are a fat lazy Christian and you need to shut up and get to work or you need to leave this church because we ONLY do evangelism.

Where is love, grace, holiness and reverence? Where are the Biblical mandates for preaching, discipleship, sound doctrine, etc.?

It makes me shake my head and say, "Wha'choo talkin' 'bout, Pastor?"

Gems for Jules

It's such a great title, so I borrowed it from Diana's blog. Yesterday, while my wife and youngest daughter were out shopping, Juliana expressed an interest in getting her ears pierced.

Now, this has happened before and when Juliana shows an interest, Diana would usually ask Jules, "Would you like to get your ears pierced?", to which she usually replies, "No."

Yesterday was different. Jules wanted to get earrings. Diana let Jules pick out a pair that she wanted. Then it was time...

I had always thought that Jules would cry when she got her ears pierced. I remember Diana explaining the process to her and what it would feel like.

To my surprise and relief, the piercing went very well with no crying, just a precious 4 year-old admiring her new earrings.

Juliana later told me the story, pointing to her newly pierced ears and I realized just how much like her mom she was... strong, able to withstand pain and able to see the joy in the little things in life.

Quote of the Day

"Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips,

and from a deceitful tongue."

--Psalm 120:2

Keeping the main thing, THE MAIN THING

I recently opened an account on God Tube, a Christian alternative to You Tube. I like the idea of communication, hence the blog. I also like the idea of publishing videos and although the embedded video is not mine (obviously), I like what it has to say. It's a Biblical response to emergent Rob Bell's attack on street preaching.

There seems to be a lot of disdain and even hatred towards the ways that "we used to do things". Rob Bell with books like Velvet Elvis and Sex God, works to tear at the fabric of Christianity and sadly, many pastors are following his lead.

The gospel is as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago. It's simply telling people about the reason for the hope that lies within you. There are diffent methods for evangelism and whether it's relational or "street" evangelism, they all have a purpose.

When it all comes down to it, I am just a beggar telling another beggar where he found food.

Quote of the Day

The spotless purity of truth must always be at war

with the blackness of heresy and lies.

--Charles Haddon Spurgeon,

from The Truth War by John MacArthur.

A Preacher on the Fence

I read this poem recently and it really rings true. I pray for all those that are in or are called into the ministry that the Lord grant us wisdom and boldness to preach and teach His unabashed Word. May He fan the fire in our bones so we cannot help but to speak His Truth for His glory.

From out of the millions of the earth

God often calls a man

To preach the word, and for the truth

To take a royal stand.

“Tis sad to see him shun the cross,

Nor stand in its defense

Between the fields of right and wrong:

A preacher on the fence.

Before him are the souls of men

Bound for Heaven or Hell;

An open Bible in his hand,

And yet he will not tell

All the truth that’s written there, It haveth an offence -

The joys of Heaven, the horrors of Hell -

A preacher on the fence.

Now surely God has called the man

To battle for the right.

“Tis his to ferret out the wrong

And turn on us the light.

And yet he dare not tell the truth,

He fears the consequence,

The most disgusting thing on earth

Is a preacher on the fence.

If he should stand up for the wrong,

The right he’d not defend;

If he should stand up for the right,

The wrong he would offend.

His mouth is closed, he cannot speak

For freedom or against.

Great God deliver us from

A preacher on the fence.

But soon both sides will find him out

And brand him as a fraud,

A coward who dares not to please

The devil or his God.

Oh God, free us from fear of man,

From cowardly pretence;

Cleanse out the dross and fear of loss,

And keep us off the fence.

–Author Unknown

Because Truth matters,
George

The Preaching Of Sin

I recently came across this this past week and I wanted to post it to help illustrate a point. You see, there has been a lot of vitriole from two differing schools of thought about Christianity and the preaching of sin to lost souls.

There is one group of people who burn with a passion for the lost. Their desire and passion are to be commended, however in reaching out to sinners, the Gospel that is presented is a 1/2 gospel of "God wants you to be happy"-styled, self help sermons that are devoid of a reason for wanted to be saved in the first place.

The second group of people are often confused as legalistic hatemongers who love to condemn people to hell. That is what it may appear to be, but it is not the case. You see, these people also have a great passion to see the lost come to Christ, but know that Biblically, the sinner has to presented with the problem... their sin, before they are told of the solution.

It's in light of this approach that grace and mercy are crystal clear and apparent.

Like a well balanced diet, supplying the lost with all of the ingredients will ensure that the message is preached properly, for how can a person appreciate the FREE gift from Jesus Christ unless he knows why he needs it.

A little side note: I liked this illustration with one exception. The word "Grace" should be larger, for where sin abound, Grace much more abounds.

What A Preacher Is...

Here's just an interesting quote that I wanted to post. I got it from ExecutablePreacher.com. It describes what a preacher is. For those of us who are called into ministry, I pray that we all burn with passion for Jesus, our Lord and with compassion for those who are lost and perishing. May we always be found faithful and obedient to His perfect will and anxious to share with others the Good News of the Gospel.

May we be ever faithful in the execution of our roles as ambassadors for Christ while keeping strong in our positions as servants of the Most High God.

I would express him simple, grave, sincere;
In doctrine uncorrupt; in language plain,
And plain in manner; decent, solemn, chaste,
And natural in gesture; much impress'd
Himself, as conscious of his awful charge,
And anxious mainly that the flock he feeds
May feel it too; affectionate in look,
And tender in address, as well becomes
A messenger of grace to guilty men.

- William Cowper, Task (bk. II, l. 394)

Because Truth matters,
George

The Legacy Begins...

I remember seeing that slogan on the t-shirts that my son's middle school was selling last year. It was the premiere year for the school and they were trying to instill pride and spirit in the new school. Last year, my son's team lost every game that they played. needless to say, the legacy felt a bit off.

This year, they won their first game of the season and subsequently, the first game in the schools history. My youngest son, Matt, was with me during the game and felt anxiety and stress as he routed his brother and the team on. He sat by and watched and cheered and no matter what happened and how much he wanted to, he couldn't help out. In the end, the Falcons won 6-2!

In reflecting on this; it's a lot like life and how we raise our children. We train them and then when the big game comes, we release them and cheer and route for them from the sidelines. Although we may get to help from time to time, we have to resign ourselves that we cannot play the game for our kids; that is something that they must do for themselves.

What is your legacy and who are you leaving it to?