Monthly Archives: May 2010

The Voice of One Crying in the Wilderness…

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Luke 3:4

The voice crying in the wilderness demanded a way for the Lord, a way prepared, and a way prepared in the wilderness. I would be attentive to the Master’s proclamation, and give Him a road into my heart, cast up by gracious operations, through the desert of my nature. The four directions in the text must have my serious attention.

Every valley must be exalted. Low and grovelling thoughts of God must be given up; doubting and despairing must be removed; and self-seeking and carnal delights must be forsaken. Across these deep valleys a glorious causeway of grace must be raised.

Every mountain and hill shall be laid low. Proud creature-sufficiency, and boastful self-righteousness, must be levelled, to make a highway for the King of kings. Divine fellowship is never vouchsafed to haughty, highminded sinners. The Lord hath respect unto the lowly, and visits the contrite in heart, but the lofty are an abomination unto Him. My soul, beseech the Holy Spirit to set thee right in this respect.

The crooked shall be made straight. The wavering heart must have a straight path of decision for God and holiness marked out for it. Double-minded men are strangers to the God of truth. My soul, take heed that thou be in all things honest and true, as in the sight of the heart-searching God.

The rough places shall be made smooth. Stumbling-blocks of sin must be removed, and thorns and briers of rebellion must be uprooted. So great a visitor must not find miry ways and stony places when He comes to honour His favoured ones with His company. Oh that this evening the Lord may find in my heart a highway made ready by His grace, that He may make a triumphal progress through the utmost bounds of my soul, from the beginning of this year even to the end of it.

1.3p

Weekly Links (5/7/2010)

by Stephen Rodgers

Hey everyone! We’re back, and just like last week, we’re keeping it short. However, this is going to just be one of those weeks where everything is heavy on the text-side…no music or videos this time. But I think you’ll still really enjoy what we’ve got…

  • You might have seen the news already, but a preacher was arrested in Great Britain recently. Apparently, according to their new law, merely saying “homosexuality is a sin” constitutes hate speech. Al Mohler has an article with the details.
  • Don Whitney has a great article on six words that can open hearts. You should check it out.
  • In case you missed it, a couple weeks ago we had a special edition of the Weekly Links that focused on Christian journals. So it might interest you to check out the latest edition of Tabletalk (on the topic of sanctification) as well as the highlights from the latest edition of the IXMarks eJournal (on the topic of deacons).
  • For those of you who might be struggling or reflecting on their personal spiritual disciplines, here’s a tag-team of articles for you. The folks over at DG remind us that devotions aren’t magic, and Tim Challies has a good article up on how to pray badly.
  • Did you know that Johnny Cash wrote a biography on the apostle Paul? Yeah…me neither. And I like both those guys. However, the best thing that came out of that project might just be this quote.
  • For those of you looking to get some deals on Christian resources, you might want to make a habit of checking out Ligonier Ministries’ $5 Fridays. Each Friday, a bunch of resources that are normally quite a bit pricier will be offered for just $5 each.
  • Ok, this article is a bit of a beast, but I found it quite enjoyable. David Hart laments that he simply can’t find intellectually-serious atheism among the self-styled New Atheists. If you just want to scan the cliff-notes version, you can do so here, but I do recommend the whole article.
  • And just to wrap everything up, there’s something in this post for EVERYONE. I don’t want to spoil it for you. Let’s just say that it’s called “Jesus and Losers” and leave it at that. But it’s short, easy-to-read, and worth thinking about long after you’ve finished, so enjoy.

Pro Rege!

Music Ministry Update

by Tim Yu

The College Praise Team is the musical praise ministry that is part of the College Life ministry at Lighthouse. The ministry is called the “musical praise” ministry in favor of “worship team” to clarify a common misconception that worship is limited to the singing time that precedes the sermon. Music is just one of the many mediums in which we worship and give glory to God. The ministry purposes are to lead and facilitate musical worship of God, to personally understand and teach the body what biblical worship is, and to grow in excellence in musical talents and abilities. Currently, the College Life ministry serves on Wednesday at SDSU Bible study (led by Nelson Kha), Friday at UCSD Bible study (led by Tim Nieh), and Sunday at College Life large group (led by me).

Because of campus restrictions on having amplified music, musical praise times on the college campuses are simple and unamplified, usually led by just a single guitar with vocalists. Though that may seem like a drawback to fans of loud, exciting music, singing with and hearing the collective voices of passionate collegians in a large, echoey, lecture hall is awesome. Large group praise times provide a different setting because meetings are held at church, after the collegians are given a short break after Sunday school to grab lunch. The band is in full effect, combining the wide range of talents on the team to create a unified sound.

College is an exciting but challenging time to serve in leading musical praise. It’s exciting because collegians are energetic and passionate in their worship of God. They are faced with unique challenges and opportunities to bring the gospel of Christ to their worldly campuses, which stretches their faith and trust in God. And most are just starting to realize the treasure that can be found by deeply studying the Scriptures. Yet, leading musical praise during college can also be challenging because of the struggles with pride. With the help of the music director at Lighthouse, Eugene Park, I have learned to not excuse pride and immaturity just because of youth. The expectations of godly character, a life above reproach, and a servant’s heart are essential, regardless of the age. God’s Word never makes exceptions for younger men and women.

With all of the upcoming changes in the future due to the church plant, the College Praise Team will likely have a much different structure in the next school year. So basically, the upcoming plan for the ministry is to be flexible and ready for anything while entrusting our hearts for worship to the Lord.

College Praise Team

Living Theology #21 – Sin

by Garrett Glende

Last week we looked at our essential natures as humans in terms of our body and spirit, but we never surveyed the state of our being. Last week’s article sought to answer the question, “What are we made of?” where this week we will offer a brief response to the question, “What are we like?” Most of who we are as humans can be defined by our nature to sin. It is what all men share in common with one another. The fact that all men have been made in God’s image yet have tarnished this image with sin forms the basis for a proper anthropology. We must truly understand what sin is and how it affects our lives so that our worship of God would be in spirit and truth.

Grudem defines sin as “any failure to conform to the moral law of God in act, attitude, or nature.” God has set standards that we must abide by because his character dictates such. It is not that God chooses a random list of rules that we are bound to, but rather that his own nature defines what is right and wrong. God is fully good, therefore anything that is contradictory to his nature is opposing that which is good. The problem for us is that God is a holy, righteous God and we cannot even come close to attaining the standards that He has set. We fall short not only in the bad things that we do, but in the good things that we fail to do. Moreover, sin has so infected us that it is not just an outward action, but it is a reflection of the state of our hearts. This sin that is in us comes from the human representative, Adam. Because of the first sin that he committed in the garden, all men have inherited a sinful nature, known as the doctrine of original sin. Through this one man’s act, sin entered into the world and spread to all men, and consequently death (Romans 5). Death is the necessary punishment for the transgressions that each of us have put forth against God, who is completely holy and just to condemn sinners.

Humans are so corrupted with sin that we are completely unable of doing any good apart from the sovereign grace of God. This doctrine that was brought to light during the reformation is known as total depravity. Many have deemed the term (which supplies the “T” in the TULIP acronym) misguided because not all men fully act out their depravity and some have proposed that a more suitable name for the doctrine would be “total inability.” Either way, the Bible is clear that all have sinned (Romans 3:23), that the unregenerate man is dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1), and is in bondage to their sin (Romans 6:17, John 8:32). Being dead in sin means that we are completely unable to make any move towards God for our salvation. Our hearts of stone possess no ability to understand in a saving way any sort of spiritual truth. Thank God for grace!

In light of a clear understanding of who we once we as slaves to sin, our outlook on the Christian life should be radically changed. All believers have been awakened to see the ugliness of their hearts and their total inability to do anything about it. We now can praise God that He alone has raised us from the deadness of our sin and given us life in His Son. There was nothing that we ever contributed to our salvation – all that we have been given has been by grace. This attitude of dependence on God must carry over into the Christian life as we grow in sanctification. We cannot thank God for saving us and then decide to live the rest of our lives independently, believing that we can battle sin on our own. We must still put our hope in Christ to forgive us of our sin and rely on the Holy Spirit’s empowerment to overcome temptation. The degree to which we depend on God does not change from the moment of salvation to our last breaths on earth. This dependence requires humility of spirit, heartfelt prayer, and daily repentance. We must continue to regard ourselves as sinners in need of grace daily, going to God to thank Him for the gospel, and always seeking to put off sin and turn towards righteousness. There is no room for pride when confronted with the doctrine of sin. There is no such thing as self-sufficiency for a Christian who understands rightly their sinful nature. Praise be to God that He has rescued us and freed us to live for His glory!

Encouragement of Others

by Elder Mike Chon

One not so wise man said “Life would be a lot easier if you didn’t have to work with people.” Yes, at times people can make life more difficult and inconvenient. From disputes and conflicts, to broken families, to even wars, people have caused enough damage to others that we would rather be alone than have to work with others. Now with the advances in technology you actually can live in a virtual world where people only know each other by username and never have to talk or see who you are actually working with. Instead of asking how you are doing, you can just look at their social network site and find out what is going on in someone’s life. For the unbeliever, this type of life may actually be preferred. They don’t see a reason for having to interact with others especially if the “others” interfere with their life, with their desires, with their rights, with their opinions, with their feelings, with their kingdom. In a consumer-centered, self-idolizing, pleasure-driven world, nothing would be more offensive than for someone to disrupt their “world.” But for the one that is born again, and is a true follower of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, we live in this life in a completely different way. We actually can find encouragement from others, even those that make life difficult.

Remember as believers we encourage others not just for encouragement sake, but for a purpose. It isn’t just to make someone feel good about themselves, but ultimately it is to encourage someone to love God and Christ more. When we look at life we must remember that we can be encouraged in situations that my not appear “good” but ultimately it is helping us to love Christ more. That is why in Matthew 5:10-11 Christ calls us “blessed” when we are persecuted and reviled against. Not only that, but Christ calls us in Matthew 5:44 to love our enemies and pray for them. We are not to look at others who may discourage us or even persecute us as a curse, but instead we are to see them as Christ sees them, as instruments that cause us to love Christ more. What a great blessing we have to be able to experience hardship from others so that it would cause us to love God more! How gracious God is to bring people into our lives that show us that we cannot love others unless we love God first? How loving of God to bring people into our lives that make life so difficult which helps us to love God more and love ourselves less? That is why the “others” in your life are a blessing.

I will have to use my children as an example again. My oldest son, who is three and a half years old, has the great blessing of learning patience and loving “others” everyday. Our 2 year old son is the “other” in his life who constantly takes away the toys that he is playing with, destroys the train tracks that he helped put together and destroys the blocks that he built. Not only that but he now has an 11 month old sister who follows the steps of the younger brother in taking toys away and destroying train tracks. What a blessing it is to have a younger brother and sister who helps you to daily practice patience and love toward others! Even though I know my oldest will disagree that he is blessed, where else would he learn these things if he didn’t have a younger brother and sister? Where would you learn what it means to love your enemies, to consider those that persecute you as a blessing, if those people are not placed in your lives? God is truly wise beyond our understanding to graciously bring people into our lives so that they will help us to love others as Christ loved us. May you not react toward “others” with frustrations or anger, but instead use every opportunity to learn and grow in your love for God and Christ. Only because Christ loved us first can we love Him and also love “others.”

Book Review: What is the Gospel?

Book by Greg Gilbert

Review by Cesar Vigil-Ruiz

Having had the great privilege of going on short-term missions, I’ve been blessed to have a good number of conversations with people in Argentina about the message most important to us: the Gospel. The Gospel, as preached in our church, deals with the person and work of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. To be involved in any type of missions has to get you thinking and talking about the Gospel with those around you. It’s impossible not to. As a matter of fact, it should be that way not only during a missions trip, but every day of your life. I saw this as a constant theme throughout the trip, which is always a rebuke to how I live my life on a daily basis. Missions trips usually do that.

Having said that, reading books about the Gospel can continue to help foster a flavor of speech that is influenced by what the Gospel is all about, since you’re confronted with the claims of Jesus and how it should readily lead to faith and repentance on our part (though as sinners we never respond this way without God Himself intervening). It’s a blessing to have many works to choose from with regards to being very aware of what the Gospel message is (especially having the Scriptures). And yet, many professing Christians will give you puzzling looks when asked, “What is the Gospel?” They know they should know the answer, but always dread that question. I’ve had that encounter before, and it’s an uncomfortable position to be in. Imagine being asked that by a Mormon, or a Muslim, and the loss of credibility that follows when you cannot explain to another how one becomes a Christian.

Enter What is the Gospel? by Greg Gilbert. Weighing in at 114 pages, this book is a clear, deep (though not scholarly) look into what the Gospel message is all about. Pastor Greg is all too familiar with the problem many people in the church have in answering the most important question anyone can ask:

[H]ow firm a grasp do you think most Christians really have on the content of the Christian gospel? How would you answer if someone asked you: What is this news that you Christians go on and on about? And what’s so good about it? (p.15)

He knows, and gives many horrendous examples, of how people have answered that question before (and still answer to this day!). He doesn’t hold back what a sad reality it is when churches are filled with people who do not know the Gospel: unhealthy living:

There would be nothing healthy at all in Christians who couldn’t care less how we define and understand the gospel…Christians just don’t agree on what the gospel is–even Christians who call themselves evangelical. (p.17)

Because of this, Pastor Gilbert wrote this books for various reasons, of which are mentioned below:

  • For the Christian, to cause your heart to swell with joy and praise towards Jesus Christ for what he has accomplished for you.
  • It will give you a deeper confidence as you talk to others about the good news of Jesus.
  • To see the importance of this gospel for the life of the church, and that as a result you will work to make sure that this gospel is preached, sung, prayed, taught, proclaimed, and heard in every aspect of your church’s life.
  • To help to shore up the edges of the gospel in your mind and heart.
  • For the non-Christian, to be provoked to think hard about the good news of Jesus Christ.

The book is broken into eight chapters, four of which explain the four components of the Gospel message: God, man, Christ, response. If you miss mentioning one, you get the message wrong. If you have the wrong view of any one of these components, you get the message wrong. The reason Pastor Gilbert believes this to be the case is because he sees this as being taught by Scripture itself (even if not in a slick presentation):

Whatever else [the apostles] might say, these are the issues that seem to lie at the heart of their presentation of the gospel. Contexts change, angles change, words change, and approaches change, but somehow and in some way the earliest Christians always seem to get at these four issues: We are accountable to the God who created us. We have sinned against that God and will be judged. But God has acted in Jesus Christ to save us, and we take hold of that salvation by repentance from sin and faith in Jesus. (p.32)

Obviously this God-man-Christ-response structure is not a slavish formula. The apostles don’t necessarily tick the points off like a checklist when they proclaim the gospel. Depending on the context, how long they have to preach, and who is included in their audience, they explain those four points at various lengths. Sometimes one or more of them are even left implicit rather than explicit–especially the fact that it is God to whom we are accountable and from whom we need the gift of forgiveness. (p.35)

Each component is observed through the Scriptures to point us to what God says will save a man who deserves His wrath. If God has plans to make life with Him available, wouldn’t you want to know how that is possible? Christian, what arrogance to assume you no longer have need of this! If Christ has demonstrated His love for you that is far greater than anything your spouse, brother/sister, pastor, parents, and friends can ever do for you (combined!), would you not want to know why?

The book also contains chapters dealing with what the Bible says the kingdom is all about (and the many misconceptions behind it), the importance of keeping the cross at the center of your life (and decentralized alternatives to the Gospel), and finally the power that the Gospel comes with. It is a short, yet clear, explanation of the good news of Jesus Christ that it will be a great read for your small group, for discipling a new believer, for comforting a seasoned/weary saint, or to introduce to someone who has no idea what Christianity is all about. There is much to chew on in this book, and God is to be praised for using sinners saved by grace to be a blessing to others.

There is no getting around it: if Paul, one of Jesus Christ’s apostles, calls this message “of first importance” (1 Corinthians 15:3), how dare we go against him on this! I would highly encourage all to spend time to dig deep into the Gospel, and be humbled and grateful all over again to the glorious grace that God gave to you (and still gives today!).

I Will Give Thee for a Covenant of the People

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Isaiah 49:8

Jesus Christ is Himself the sum and substance of the covenant, and as one of its gifts. He is the property of every believer. Believer, canst thou estimate what thou hast gotten in Christ? ‘In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.’ Consider that word ‘God’ and its infinity, and then meditate upon ‘perfect man’ and all his beauty; for all that Christ, as God and man, ever had, or can have, is thine-out of pure free favour, passed over to thee to be thine entailed property forever. Our blessed Jesus, as God, is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent. Will it not console you to know that all these great and glorious attributes are altogether yours? Has he power? That power is yours to support and strengthen you, to overcome your enemies, and to preserve you even to the end. Has He love? Well, there is not a drop of love in His heart which is not yours; you may dive into the immense ocean of His love, and you may say of it all, ‘It is mine.’ Hath He justice? It may seem a stern attribute, but even that is yours, for He will by His justice see to it that all which is promised to you in the covenant of grace shall be most certainly secured to you. And all that He has as perfect man is yours. As a perfect man the Father’s delight was upon Him. He stood accepted by the Most High. O believer, God’s acceptance of Christ is thine acceptance; for knowest thou not that the love which the Father set on a perfect Christ, He sets on thee now? For all that Christ did is thine. That perfect righteousness which Jesus wrought out, when through His stainless life He kept the law and made it honourable, is thine, and is imputed to thee. Christ is in the covenant.

‘My God, I am thine-what a comfort divine!
What a blessing to know that the Saviour is mine!
In the heavenly Lamb thrice happy I am,
And my heart it doth dance at the sound of His name.’

1.3a