I've said it on Facebook and on Twitter. Now I'm saying it on here! If you're not listening to Art Azurdia's sermons on the Christian Family & Marriage, you are just plain crazy! Here's some highlights:
"Your marriage & family does not exist for you. It exists ultimately for God! You are going to be prone to idolatry in your home until you understand that everything about your home exists for the glory of God." (Azurdia)
Quote from Matthew Henry: "That the woman was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be beloved."
"Marriage and family will never ever ever live up to what you want it to be. It will never live up to your fantasies. Why? Because of the curse! Moreover, many of those fantasies are idolatrous!" (Azurdia)
"The more we sense our need the more we shall find our need met in Christ. The more we find our need met in Christ the nearer we will come to him. The nearer we come to him the more we will discover our hearts saying: 'If you should mark my sins, Lord, I could not stand. But there is forgiveness with you that you may be feared.'"
(Sinclair Ferguson, The Christian Life: A Doctrinal Introduction)
This video is making the rounds big time in the Christian scene today. It's already been seen over 2 million times, and featured on The Resurgence blog! It has already provoked some interesting discussion about its content. An acquaintance of mine from Western Seminary, Brian LePort, recently posted a blog containing some of his thoughts about the video. You can read his post here. The main point of LePort's blog is that Jesus participated in and promoted religion. We all participate in some sort of organized religion, and Jesus is not against religion. The discussion should be framed in this manner:
"Jesus is against our sinful, anti-God behaviors. Jesus is against our worship of false gods and no-gods (and yes, sometimes religion can be a tool for this). Jesus is against our abuse of neighbor, our selfishness, our greed, our gluttony, and those practices that dehumanize us. Jesus is not against religion vis-à-vis religion." (LePort)
I'm inclined to agree with Brian. I like what he has written so far, but I could not resist mentioning a couple things from a slightly different angle, and then address what I think is a bigger issue with this piece and yet a very subtle problem.
First, the problem of definitions. I believe a lot of the misunderstanding between LePort and the poet could be cleared up if definitions were presented by both of them with clarity. The poet never really explains what he means by religion. He assumes too much that everyone understands what he means by religion. I believe the term "dead religion" probably better reflects what he means by "religion" in this piece. But because the poet does not define what he means, he leaves room for many individuals, like LePort, to step in & wave around James 1:27 as a counter to his point.
"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." (James 1:27)
And this is the over-aching issue that must be addressed. There is a type of pure and undefiled religion before God, and there is a type that is impure & defiled before him as well. One has self-righteous quality that lacks compassion and grace, which is more performance than pure religion. The other is full of grace & compassion for our neighbor, rooted in the finished work of Jesus. Both are religion, and yet God looks upon both with different attitudes.
Second problem, which I think is more outlandish but subtle, is the problem of false dichotomies in this piece. A false dichotomy is simply a big word for referencing to a situation where the arguer sets up the situation so it looks like there are only two choices, when in fact those two choices are not set against each other. You hear this in statements the poet makes like: "Jesus hated religion", and "Jesus and religion are on opposite spectrums." It is not so much that Jesus hated religion. It is that he hated a certain kind of religion. There was a kind of religion that Jesus very much loved, and participated in regularly as we have already seen.
The false dichotomy that I found to be more troubling than all of these was the statement, "Religion says do. Jesus says done. Religion says slave. Jesus says son." While I certainly agree that Jesus said, "It is finished", and I believe he meant it. While I certainly embrace the doctrine of adoption, and cherish my Sonship through Christ. I could not believe what these were set over against. Do? Slave?
Jesus had a lot to say that would fall into a category of "do". He gave many commands on things his followers should do and not do. A quick reading of the Sermon on the Mount, and you will find a lot of do's and dont's. There are a lot of do's in the New Testament that are the marks of Biblical Christianity, but what is never linked to those commands is promise of earning one's salvation. Which is so clearly displayed by the poet in the ending verse.
"And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness..." (Romans 4:5)
Within Christianity, there are a lot of do's, but those do's always flow out of the finished, done work of Christ. They are not setup as enemies against each other for us to choose between. The cross bids us to come and take our knee, but then it drives us out with the message and plenty of things to do.
The poet also sets slavery and Sonship over against each other. Now I want to assume that the poet is talking about slavery to "dead religion". But again because he does not define his terms, I feel necessary to comment on this point. The Apostle Paul makes it very clear in Romans that we are set free from slavery to sin, but are now are slaves to righteousness.
"Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness." (Romans 6:16-18)
While we are set free by the Gospel, it's important for us all to understand that it is not freedom in the terms that freedom is often defined with. So often freedom is defined as exemption from external control, and interference. But this is not how the Bible defines freedom! In the Gospel, we are certainly set free from the tyranny of sin and death, but as new sons of King Jesus we are set into a new kind of slavery, slavery to righteousness. We are subjects in a new kingdom. We are commissioned with new orders by the king. These orders are instructions like keeping ones self unstained from the world, to visit orphans and widows, to love & fellowship with Christ's bride--The Church. While we are most certainly sons, we are still slaves. But thanks to God, we are slaves to righteousness, and to a good and kind king.
I hope this was helpful. I would encourage you to at all times consider this recurring problem within Christianity. We have a tendency to fail to define things clearly. People often set two things against each other that have no business being set opposite of each other. I think they often do this unknowingly, which I hope is the case here.
If you have any additional thoughts, please leave them in the comment box below!
Back several months ago, one of my heros - Sidney Greidanus - delivered two lectures on preaching Christ from the Old Testament. If you haven't heard of this man, you have to check out some of stuff. He wrote a whole book about this practice of proclaiming Christ from the Old Testament.
I just stumbled upon some rare jewels! It is very unusual to find free Keller resources out on the web, especially rare documented ones! These five MP3s are from Second Presbyterian Church in Memphis, TN. You can find lots of other great speakers, like Allistair Begg & Sinclair Ferguson, on their site. Make sure you get these on your iPod first!
"They whose affection to God is founded first on his profitableness to them, their affection begins at the wrong end; they regard God only for the utmost limit of the stream of divine good, where it touches them, and reaches their interest; and have no respect to that infinite glory of God's nature, which is the original good, and the true fountain of all good, the first fountain of all loveliness of every kind, and so the first foundation of all true love."
...
"Self-love, through the exercise of mere natural gratitude, may be the foundation of a sort of love to God many ways. A kind of love may arise from a false notion of God, that men have been educated in, or have some way imbibed; as though he were only goodness and mercy, and not revenging justice; or as though the exercises of his goodness were necessary, and not free and sovereign; or as though his goodness were dependent on what is in them, and as it were constrained by them. Men on such grounds as these, may love a God of their own forming in their imaginations, when they are far from loving such a God as reigns in heaven."
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"In the love of the true saint God is the lowest foundation; the love of the excellency of his nature is the foundation of all the affections which come afterwards wherein self-love is concerned as a handmaid: on the contrary, the hypocrite lays himself at the bottom of all, as the first foundation, and lays on God as the superstructure; and even his acknowledgment of God's glory itself depends on his regard to his private interest."
For one of my final classess of seminary, I had to conduct an interview of two people that I admired about spiritual formation, in particular spiritual disciplines. Today is the final installment of a three part series containing a summary of the content from those interviews. I hope it helps you!
The first person I interview for this assignment was Pastor Michael Lawrence from Hinson Baptist Church in Portland, Oregon. Michael is the preaching pastor at Hinson. He is married and has five children. He has a Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell, and a PhD from Cambridge University. The second person I interview for this assignment was Robert Jones. He is a member of my church in Portland. He is married with four children. Robert is the director of Theological Research Exchange Network.
At this point, both men had specific practices that differed from each other. Michael had a unique approach to journaling that I had not hear about, but appreciated very much. He only journals once a week, and this happens on Monday. He begins by creating several headings that correspond to his responsibilities (Disciple, Husband, Father, Pastor, Director, etc.). Under each heading, he wrote several steps that he need to take to “move the ball down the field” in each area. He revisits those steps during the week to keep his focus. He also takes these journals on retreats to review how he is doing in each area. Michael and his wife take retreats semi-annually to reflect, review, and think about their lives and their walk with Jesus. As a father, Michael leads his family each day in family worship. This begins with breakfast over God’s word and prayer. He ends each day with nighttime prayer with his kids. Michael has notice two things help him grow as a pastor/leader. The first is reading lots of church history. He has found that reading church history helps him avoid mistakes that others have made in the past. The second thing is listening to a sermon from another preacher. He has found that being a preacher, and preaching fifty times a year, has caused him to miss being preached to each week. This is a new practice for him and he is attempting to work this into his schedule on Monday afternoons.
In a similar manner, Robert Jones loves to read the writings of other “spiritual giants” from all epochs of church history. He reading and learning tends to focus on their spiritual writings, and not biographies like Michael. Robert seemed to practice fasting more regularly than Michael, who seemed to do it for major decisions. Robert emphasized that fasting is not bargaining with God for something, but giving up things because of his earnest desire for something else. Fasting is a way of sincerely demonstrating this desire to God. Robert also discussed a practice that he called, “beauty hunting”. He says he is always on the lookout for beauty, praise, and instruction in the world. When he discovers this beauty, he allows it to lead him into worship to God.
Both men gave several principles that I thought were important to remember about spiritual disciplines. Robert pointed out that motivation is everything when it comes to spiritual disciplines. The aim of all disciplines is greater love for Jesus and the Gospel. Robert also pointed out that we often have more time than we realize. We need to learn to seize the “gaps” of our lives and fill them with the good mortar of praise and prayer. Michael pointed out that we are all too often to listening to ourselves more than we listen to what Scripture says about God and ourselves. He mentioned a Puritan idea that I thought summed up this well. “We need to listen to ourselves less, and preach to ourselves more.” In all these disciplines, we need to see God’s character, and admit our failures in confession. In the end, we need to turn to the Gospel and preach 1 John 1:7-9 to ourselves daily:
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
For one of my final classess of seminary, I had to conduct an interview of two people that I admired about spiritual formation, in particular spiritual disciplines. Today is part two of a three part series containing a summary of the content from those interviews. I hope it helps you!
The first person I interview for this assignment was Pastor Michael Lawrence from Hinson Baptist Church in Portland, Oregon. Michael is the preaching pastor at Hinson. He is married and has five children. He has a Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell, and a PhD from Cambridge University. The second person I interview for this assignment was Robert Jones. He is a member of my church in Portland. He is married with four children. Robert is the director of Theological Research Exchange Network.
Both men mentioned that prayer plays an important role in the life of a Christian. Michael made a big emphasis on praying out of the Scripture. He reads a stanza out of Psalm 119 each morning, reflects upon it, and prays that God would accomplish those things in him and his church. He spends time praying for the members of his church by name each day. He always has a membership roster handy, and works his way through the names that way. Robert made a huge emphasis on intercession on behalf of others. He prays on the way to each meeting he has during the week.
Both Michael and Robert mentioned a set of disciplines that are often over looked, or minimized because of the individualistic nature of spiritual disciplines, the corporate disciplines. For Robert, one the highlights of the corporate disciplines is the giving of his finances. He loves this because it is an exercise of faith. It is a sort of “putting your money where your mouth is”. Michael talked about the great need for Christians to prepare themselves to engage in a Sunday service, not as an individual experience, but as a body.
For one of my final classess of seminary, I had to conduct an interview of two people that I admired about spiritual formation, in particular spiritual disciplines. Today starts a three part series containing some of the content from those interviews. I hope it helps you!
The first person I interview for this assignment was Pastor Michael Lawrence from Hinson Baptist Church in Portland, Oregon. Michael is the preaching pastor at Hinson. He is married and has five children. He has a Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell, and a PhD from Cambridge University. The second person I interview for this assignment was Robert Jones. He is a member of my church in Portland. He is married with four children. Robert is the director of Theological Research Exchange Network.
In these interview, there were several disciplines that were common to both individuals. Both men discussed reading ones Bible as a critical component for Christian maturity. This process is not like preparing for a sermon. Michael encouraged me, as a future preacher, to be reading a different genre than the one that is being preached each week. He suggested this because it adds a different flavor to his preaching. It often leads him to discover connections throughout the Bible that inform his preaching. Michael suggested that I attempt to read a chapter a day. Robert instructed that this reading be done aloud. He also suggested that I focus on one book of the Bible for a season. He focuses on one book and repeatedly reads it three or four times. This is different than what most people do, reading a book of the Bible once and then moving right along to the next book. Each individual reads contemplatively, but with different ideas in mind. Michael said when he reads, he reads with this question in mind: “How does Christ fulfill this Scripture?” Robert said when he reads, he read with two questions in mind: “What does this mean?” and “How does this stir up my affection for God?”
Both men discussed the discipline of Christian meditation. I say “Christian” because both men make a distinction between emptying your mind, a pagan practice, and filling your mind with scripture, Christian meditation. Both men recommended J.I. Packer’s chapter on meditation in his book, Knowing God. I hope to read this chapter very soon. Michael said this discipline is something that takes time to develop because it must be an unhurried practice. This unhurried quality is something that Americans have a real difficulty practicing. Robert described the process of meditation as focusing on one verse. Once selecting this verse, we read it repeatedly, giving a different emphasis to each clause or word. Michael likes to do this with the text he is preaching each week. He finds it adds a devotional quality to his preaching, and protects him from approaching the text from a pure academic mindset.
I just started a 2nd blog called, "Paul Likes". Simple put: it's a place to find out about all the stuff that I like, and you might as well. Post will be about things such as: cool gear, music, movies, and stuff around Portland, Oregon. Check it out!
