Tag: Jesus

Interestingness

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Interestingness2 Comments

It is time for another dose of Interestingness. What follows are a few articles and videos from around the web I found interesting this week. Check them out.

Is Jesus the Only Way?

Jonathan Dodson from The Resurgence answers the question: Is Jesus the Only Way? You can read it by clicking here.

Reparative Therapy

Homosexuality and Reparative Therapy. Al Mohler weighs in. Here is a snippet from the article:

Known as reparative therapy or sexual orientation conversion therapy, these approaches seek to assist individuals in changing their sexual orientation from homosexual to heterosexual. The cultural and political debate over reparative therapy emerged when a clinic run by Marcus Bachmann, husband of Republican candidate Rep. Michele Bachmann, was accused of offering treatment and counseling intended to change sexual orientation.

You can read the rest of what he has to say by clicking here.

Adoption

Russell Moore recently wrote: An Open Letter to an Unborn Baby, by doing so he is advocating adoption. It is a good read. You can check it out by clicking here.

Biblical Authority and Interpretation

John Piper, Don Carson, and Tim Keller had a round table discussion this last week, which the guys over at The Gospel Coalition filmed and made available on their website. The discussion centers on biblical authority and interpretation. It is a great video series. You can watch it by clicking here.

Impressionist Jim Meskimen

This is a must watch video. Very impressive!!!

Community: Why is it important?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Church Life, PracticalLeave a comment

Biblical Mandate for Community

Members of the church have a biblical mandate to assemble in community with one another. The writer of Hebrews says,

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. ” (Heb 10:24–25)

According to Hebrews, church members need to be consistently meeting together, in order to encourage one another, and to stir each other up to love and good works. If this is the case, why do people often not assimilate into communities?

Assimilation Problems

Several problems exist as to why members do not actively participate in the church’s community:

1) Individualism – A lot of church members are individualistic believing they can change by themselves.

2) Compartmentalism – Most people tend to compartmentalize their lives having a church life, work life, and family life. These are all kept separate and one compartment is not to interfere with the other.

3) Busyness – Almost all Americans are busy some families may want to participate, but they are too busy to do so. The “I am too busy” excuse means living in community with other Christians is not important.[1]

4) Consumerism – Most Americans are consumerists they come to church in order to get, but are not willing to give. They are content sitting in the pew week after week because they have been conditioned by society to consume and shop around instead of plugging in and getting involved.

All of these problems tell us many church members do not see the value of living in community with one another or being involved in the church. They do not understand why it is necessary for their Christian growth and their ability to reach the community for Christ.

The Value of Community

Even though many church members do not see the value of living in community with one another, I am convinced community is necessary for growth to occur in our spiritual lives. These communities are much more than fellowship clubs, even though fellowship is important and necessary for the spiritual growth of the community. These groups (read also ministries) are to be Authentic Gospel-Centered Missional Communities, which have a dual purpose of both speaking into the lives of its participants and reaching the community for Christ. As these communities study Scripture together and begin to increase in their affections for their Savior (upreach), they will want to serve others in the group, as well as seek to rid sin out of their own lives, while helping others in the group do the same (inreach). When upreach and inreach are taking place, the desire to take up God’s mission of reaching neighborhoods and the world with the gospel will begin to increase and take shape (outreach).

In order for these communities to grow in their affections for their Savior, the gospel needs to be proclaimed and studied in-depth, understanding its content and how it comes to bear on the individual’s life. When one understands what Christ has done for them and how they fit into God’s plan, their affections for their Savior will grow.

As their affections grow, they will desire to rid their lives of sin, because they realize that their desires do not match Christ’s desires. I focus on desires here because they stem from the heart, which is the real cause of man’s sin. Pumping different information into man’s mind does not necessarily cause change in one’s life. Rather, the desires of man need to be changed. The only way that will occur is through the work of the Holy Spirit in a person’s life. Before one can seek change, they need to first recognize their wrong desires, which happens through the teaching of the Word in their community. Second, false desires are rid from ones life through prayer and the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

As man seeks to align himself with Christ’s desires, he will then take up God’s mission, which is to reach the world with the gospel.

Here is where community comes in. In order for men to understand that their desires are different than their Saviors, they need a group of people who are allowed to probe their heart, dig deep, understand their sins, and surface the desires that lie behind those sins. This can only happen if members are committed to regularly attending a group where they allow its members to probe their hearts, challenge them, speak into their lives with the gospel, and pray for them.

Conclusion

I am convinced it is important that we live in community with one another. The Bible, in more than one place, talks about us as a family, and in Hebrews we are commanded to gather together with the purpose of stirring one another up in love and good works. If we do not come together, then we are living as an estranged brothers and sisters, as a dysfunctional family who only sees each other on major holidays. This type of living is one thing the church simply cannot afford. We cannot afford it because authentic community is necessary to reveal our own sinful desires and root those desires out, which happens through Bible study, prayer, and walking alongside one another. If we never get together, these things will not happen. As well as God’s mission will not be advanced through our church, which is to reach the world for Christ. So my challenge to you is to make time for your church family, get off the sidelines and get involved in one another’s lives and God’s mission.

[1]Brian Hedges, Christ Formed in You: The Power of the Gospel For Personal Change, 239-42.

How do you know you are a Christian?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Practical3 Comments

I want to ask you a question, an important question. One I would like you to give some thought. Here it is: How do you know you are a Christian? Do you say you are Christian because you walked the isle one day and prayed with the pastor at the front of the church? Maybe you say you are a Christian because you confessed Christ as your Savior at a youth retreat while you were “high” on the Christian life. Or just maybe you walked down to the front at a Crusade along with 7,000 other people. Before I go on, I am not saying that you are not a Christian because you were saved at the front of the church, on a youth retreat, or at a crusade. What I am trying to get across is that these experiences alone do not make you a Christian.

There are many people who claim to be something because they participate in an activity with those who are in reality genuine. For instance, if I told you I am a minor league baseball player, you might believe me, that is until you ask me when I am playing next. That is where my logic would break down because I would explain to you that I am a minor league baseball player because I trained with the local minor league team once at a kids baseball camp. As you heard me explain how I wore their uniforms and played in a game and how that made me a minor league baseball player, you would soon realize I was not what I claim to be, and you would begin thinking my logic was a little off.

Just as it is logically incoherent for me to think I am a minor league baseball player because I once hung out with the players and trained with them at a kids camp, it is equally as illogical that we think we are Christians because we once, or currently, hung around those who are Christians, attended church, or even walked the isle.

We learn in Matthew’s Gospel that one day Jesus will tell those who think they were His followers “Depart from me for I never knew you.”

He says, “Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?” But Jesus will turn to those and say, “I never knew you, depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.” (Matt. 7:21-23).

If we can think we are a Christian, and not be a Christian, how do we know that we are a Christian?

First, we need to have confessed Christ as our Savior, which is what you could have been doing when you walked the isle, prayed the sinners prayer at youth camp, or went forward at a Crusade. But you see, to confess Christ once is not the mark of a Christian. Mike McKinley, in his book, Am I Really a Christian, says,

“It is true that we need to make a onetime decision to follow Jesus. But a true onetime decision is followed by the everyday decision to follow Jesus” (23).

With that in mind, I want to provide you with five additional ways McKinley gives that show we are true followers of Jesus (39).

(1) Belief in True Doctrine

You’re not a Christian just because you like Jesus. You must believe Jesus is your Savior (John 3:16-18, 36; Romans 3:21-25; Hebrews 11:6).

(2) Hatred for Sin in Your Life

You’re not a Christian if you enjoy sin (Romans 6:1-14; 1 Peter 1:13-21; Galatians 5:19-21; 1 John 3:4-10).

(3) Perseverance Over Time

You’re not a Christian if you don’t persist in the faith (Philippians 3:12-16; Hebrews 12:1; Romans 8:38-39).

(4) Love for Other People

You’re not a Christian if you don’t have care and concern for other people (John 13:34-35; 1 John 2:9-11).

(5) Freedom from Love of the World

You’re not a Christian if the things of the world are more valuable to you than God (Luke 18:18-25; 1 John 2:15-17).

Conclusion

This week I would like you to think through your answer for why you are a Christian. Considering these questions: Have you made Christ your Savior, not just your friend? Do you see a willingness to repent of the sins in your life or are you content in your sins, not wanting to repent and rid them out of your life? Have you persevered in the Christian faith for many years, or do you find yourself living for Christ only when it is the cool thing to do? Since you professed Christ as your Savior have you noticed a love for other people? Are you willing to sacrifice your time, energy, and money to help them? Do you love the world? Are you willing to sacrifice your stuff for God, or are you chasing after worldly possessions more than you are seeking God? Do you skip church on Sunday because you need to go into the office to do some work because time is money?

Your answers to these questions will either assure you of your Christian faith, or they will show you that your faith is not real. I pray God will reveal to you the answer because your eternal destiny hangs in the balance.

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

To Live is Christ and To Die is Gain

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Devotionals5 Comments

In Philippians 1:18-21, we learn Paul was able to face persecution and possible death joyfully because of the prayer of the Philippians and the supply of the Spirit. In addition, he was able to face these circumstances joyfully because he knew he would be vindicated and would gain ultimate salvation. Furthermore, his ultimate joy came from knowing that Christ would be proclaimed and the Gospel advanced even if it meant he had to die. This attitude and certain belief causes him to say, “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

To Live is Christ

With Paul’s statement, “To live is Christ”, we encounter a man who had a singular focus in life, which was to glorify Christ. He lived in such a way that he saw everything he did and every circumstance he faced as a means of pointing other to Christ. He did not care if he was ridiculed, beaten, jailed, shipwrecked, or even killed because he had a singular focus, to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Jews first and then the Gentiles.

Paul lived a life radically different than most Christians today, not because he thought it would earn him salvation, but because he desired to see Christ glorified and understood the promises of God, which is revealed in his next statement, “to die is gain.”

To Die is Gain

Paul believed death was gain because he knew he would be with his Lord and Savior, the one he proclaimed to all people. He also knew the advantage the next world held over this one. A life free from persecution, sickness, disease, and injustice awaited him. For Paul, death was gain, which allowed him to “live for Christ.”

Application

Paul believed death was gain,which was the reason he could live for Christ. He shared his attitude with the Philippians because he wanted them to see death as gain, so they too could live for Christ. He wanted them to take up his purpose for life, which was to glorify Christ in every decision and circumstance, living as if death is victory, not caring if men could destroy their body, but ever seeking to glorify Christ in life or death.

This means Paul’s letter to the Philippians was not written just to tell them what he thought about life, it was to challenge and encourage them to think and live the same way. Likewise, the reason this text has been preserved for 2,000 years was not just so Paul could tell us what he thought about life, it was preserved because God desires we live like Paul. God desires we say with Paul, “To live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Image: bela_kiefer / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The Story of the Bible

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Pastoral, Practical, Preaching8 Comments

In his book According to Plan, Graeme Goldsworthy provides an Outline of Biblical History at the beginning of each chapter in part three. I want to share his synopsis with you in hopes it will help you tie the entire biblical story together.

Genesis 1-2

In the beginning God created everything that exists. He made Adam and Eve and placed them in the garden of Eden. God spoke to them and gave them certain tasks in the world. For food he allowed them the fruit of all the trees in the garden except one. He warned them that they would die if they ate the fruit of that one tree.

Genesis 3

The snake persuaded Eve to disobey God and to eat the forbidden fruit. She gave some to Adam and he ate also. Then God spoke to them in judgment, and sent them out of the garden into a world that came under the same judgment.

Genesis 4-11

Outside Eden, Cain and Abel were born to Adam and Eve. Cain murdered Abel and Eve bore another son, Seth. Eventually the human race became so wicked that God determined to destroy every living thing with a flood. Noah and his family were saved by building a great boat at God’s command. The human race began again with Noah and his three sons with their families. Sometime after the flood a still unified human race attempted a godless act to assert its power in the building of a high tower. God thwarted these plans by scattering the people and confusing their language.

Genesis 12-50

Sometime in the early second millennium B.C. God called Abraham out of Mesopotamia to Canaan. He promised to give this land to Abraham’s descendants and to bless them as his people. Abraham went, and many years later he had a son, Isaac. Isaac in turn had two son, Esau and Jacob. The promises of God were established with Jacob and his descendants. He had twelve sons, and in time they all went to live in Egypt because of famine in Canaan.

Exodus 1-15

In time the descendants of Jacob living in Egypt multiplied to become a very large number of people. The Egyptians no longer regarded them with friendliness and made them slaves. God appointed Moses to be the one who would lead Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land of Canaan. When the moment came for Moses to demand the freedom of his people the Pharaoh refused to let them go. Through Moses God worked ten miracle-plagues which brought hardship, destruction and death to the Egyptians. Finally Pharaoh let Israel go, but then pursued them and trapped them at the Red Sea (or Sea of Reeds). Then God opened the way in the sea for Israel to cross on dry land, but closed the water over the Egyptian army, destroying it.

Exodus 16-40, Leviticus

After their release from Egypt, Moses led the Israelites to Mount Sinai. God then gave them his law which they were commanded to keep. At one point Moses held a covenant renewal ceremony in which the covenant arrangement was sealed in blood. However, while Moses was away on the mountain, the people persuaded Aaron to fashion a golden calf. Thus they showed their inclination to forsake the covenant and to engage in idolatry. God also commanded the building of the tabernacle and gave all the rules of sacrificial worship by which Israel might approach him.

Numbers, Deuteronomy

After giving the law to the Israelites at Sinai, God directed them to go in and take possession of the Promised land. Fearing the inhabitants of Canaan, they refused to do so, thus showing their lack of confidence in the promises of God. The whole adult generation that had come out of Egypt, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, was condemned to wander and die in the desert. Israel was forbidden to dispossess its kinsfolk, the nations of Edom, Moab and Ammon, but was given victory over other nations that opposed it. Finally, forty years after leaving Egypt, Israel arrived in the Moabite territory on the east side of the Jordan. Here Moses prepared the people for their possession of Canaan, and commissioned Joshua as their new leader.

Joshua, Judges, Ruth

Under Joshua’s leadership the Israelites crossed the Jordan and began the task of driving out the inhabitants of Canaan. After the conquest the land was divided between the tribes, each being allotted its own region. Only the tribe of Levi was without an inheritance of land because of its special priestly relationship to God. There remained pockets of Canaanites in the land and, from time to time, these threatened Israel’s hold on their new possession. From the one-man leaderships of Moses and Joshua the nation moved into a period of relative instability during which judges exercised some measure of control over the affairs of the people.

1 and 2 Samuel, 1 Kings 1-10, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles 2-9

Samuel became judge and prophet in all Israel at a time when the Philistines threatened the freedom of the nation. An earlier movement for kingship was revived and the demand put to a reluctant Samuel. The first king, Saul, had a promising start to his reign but eventually showed himself unsuitable as the ruler of the covenant people. While Saul still reigned, David was anointed to succeed him. Because of Saul’s jealousy, David became an outcast. However, when Saul died in battle, David returned and became king (about 1000 B.C.). Due to his successes Israel became a powerful and stable nation. He established a central sanctuary at Jerusalem and created a professional bureaucracy and a permanent army. David’s son, Solomon, succeeded him (about 961 B.C.) and the prosperity of Israel continued. The building of the temple at Jerusalem was one of Solomon’s more notable achievements.

1 Kings 11-22, 2 Kings

Solomon allowed political considerations and personal ambitions to sour his relationship with God, and this in turn had a bad effect on the life of Israel. Solomon’s son began an oppressive rule that led to the rebellion of the northern tribes and the division of the kingdom. Although there were some political and religious high points, both kingdoms went into decline. A new breed of prophets warned against the direction of national life, but matters went from bad to worse. In 722 B.C., the southern kingdom of Judah was devastated by the Babylonians. Jerusalem and its temple were destroyed, and a large part of the population was deported to Babylon.

Keep Reading

X-Ray Questions: What or Whom do you trust?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Discipleship, Practical, X-Ray Questions1 Comment

This week we continue our X-Ray Questions series, as we look at the question: What or whom do you trust? You can read the other posts in this series by clicking here.

X-Ray Question:

(11) What or whom do you trust?

Trust is one of the major verbs relating you to God – or to false gods and lies. Crucial psalms breathe trust in our Father and Shepherd. Where instead do you place life-directing, life anchoring trust? In other people? In your abilities or achievements? In your church or theological tradition? In possessions? In diet, exercise, and medical care?

Understand

The person or object that we trust is the one we believe will provide us with happiness, joy, protection, deliverance, comfort, etc. Our trust should be in God and God alone because finite persons, inanimate objects, your abilities and achievements, or thoughts (I have in mind here theological traditions, or health ideas) will always fail you.

Repent

We must repent by realizing that God should be the one we must place our trust in, not in our own abilities or achievements, our traditions, other people, or objects. For when we decide to place our trust in anything other than God, we are trusting in something that will ultimately fail us and we are leaning on our own understanding. Solomon writes in Proverbs 3:5:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding

Solomon also tells us that the one who leans on his own understanding is a fool (Prov. 12:15)

In Psalm 103, David tells his readers of the benefits of the Lord: He pardons all your iniquities, heals all your diseases, redeems your life from the pit, crowns you with both lovingkindness and compassion, and He takes care of the oppressed by performing righteous deeds and judgments for them. Not only does God do all those things, David also says He “satisfies your years with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle.”

The Lord’s benefits are greater than we could ever imagine and ever hope. Since He is the Holy, Unchangeable, and Sovereign Lord, what David wrote will never change. God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. As a result, we can place our trust in Him knowing He will bring us joy, comfort, peace, deliverance, protection, etc. In short, He alone will fill the longings of our heart.

Scripture

Here are a few passages from God’s word to meditate on this week, as you consider the question: What or whom do you trust?: Prov. 3:5, 11, 18; 12:15; Pss 23, 103, 131.

All X-Ray questions taken from David Powlison’s book Seeing with New Eyes.